Specs appeal: German physics instructor brings cost-effective glasses to Rwanda | Mark Tran

OneDollarGlasses technicians can be trained in a fortnight, although it can take two sessions to perfect their expertise. Photograph: Martin Aufmuth

It took Martin Aufmuth three years to bring to fruition his concept to generate a device that can make low cost glasses.

Aufmuth, who won prime prize at the Siemens Stiftung award in October, explained his OneDollarGlasses venture was inspired by the book Out of Poverty by Paul Polak, which he read in 2009.

Aufmuth, who teaches maths and physics in Erlangen, Germany, is a huge fan of Polak’s idea of developing useful options that harness the power of markets to lessen poverty. “It showed me the relevance of innovations that sell for about $ one [60p],” he says.

Costing only $ one to make, the glasses will be offered for in between $ two to $ seven, so OneDollarGlasses opticians can earn their living from them. The spectacles are created by hand on a specially developed bending and milling machine, which requires no electrical energy. Virtually servicing-free of charge, it is made to function in the most remote villages. All the products fits into a wooden box with outer dimensions of 30cm x 30cm x 30cm.

The light-weight and flexible frames are produced from rustproof, hypoallergenic 1mm-spring-steel wire,and the polished, unbreakable lenses are made of polycarbonate with a hardened surface.

The OneDollarGlasses optician has a box with 25 lenses (manufactured in China) varying in strength from -six. to +6. diopters in methods of .5 diopters (a diopter is a unit of measurement of the optical energy of a lens).

Polycarbonate is a lot much more resistant than glass or resin, which are typically utilized in glasses. The lenses, which have notches, can be simply clicked into the frame by hand. Since the glasses – individually adjustable and virtually unbreakable – are lightweight, they do not demand standard nose bridges.

Technicians can be educated in just 14 days, despite the fact that it can consider two sessions to excellent their skills. Eye testing is carried out with a straightforward chart that can be connected to a wall or a tree. Three to four people can operate one manufacturing unit to make 5,000-ten,000 pairs of glasses a yr, Aufmuth says. Following a pilot undertaking in Uganda, Aufmuth and his teams have been instruction individuals in Rwanda since April.

The device, like the bending machine, optical equipment and material for the very first 500 pairs of glasses, costs €2,400 (£2010). Aufmuth realises the startup expenses are unaffordable in target nations, so they are covered fully by donations.

In accordance to the World Well being Organisation (WHO), about 150million people suffer from defective eyesight that could be rectified with a pair of glasses.

“Extreme poverty does not only imply hunger, but also illness, hopelessness, missed opportunities in existence,” Aufmuth says on his site. “Many of them can not go to college for that explanation, can not work and can – as a consequence – not provide for themselves and their families. This is what I want to alter.”

Specs appeal: German physics instructor brings cost-effective glasses to Rwanda | Mark Tran

Retendering NHS 111 contracts could cost millions

111 line replaced NHS Direct as the amount to phone for urgent but non-emergency care. Photograph: Alamy

The bungled launch of the NHS 111 support is likely to cost the health service millions of pounds, in accordance to an investigation by the British Health-related Journal (BMJ).

The services was thrown into turmoil last July soon after one particular of the major providers, NHS Direct, announced it planned to pull out of its contracts due to significant monetary troubles.

The price of retendering the contracts is most likely to be really high, the BMJ stated. In just a single region impacted, the West Midlands, the reprocurement approach will cost £500,000, it located.

The NHS 111 line, which replaced NHS Direct as the number to phone for urgent but non-emergency care, has been riddled with teething issues considering that its inception on 1 April. Sufferers have complained of calls going unanswered, bad suggestions offered and calls getting diverted to the wrong part of the nation.

A month following the launch, leading medics mentioned the “problematic” roll-out of the technique had left several patients not being aware of in which to flip. NHS England launched an investigation into the tips line right after a quantity of incidents, like 3 deaths, have been linked to the support.

NHS Direct initially won 11 of the 46 contracts across England to give the 111 service. But in July it announced it would be unable to provide the service in North Essex, Cornwall, Somerset, Buckinghamshire, east London and the City, south-east London, Sutton and Merton, West Midlands, Lancashire and Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Merseyside and Cheshire.

A spokeswoman for NHS Direct said the contracts, which covered far more than a third of the population of England, have been “financially unsustainable”. In October the organisation announced that it was to close soon after projecting a £26m deficit for this economic 12 months.

Dame Barbara Hakin, chief operating officer at NHS England, mentioned: “NHS 111 is now a steady and improving service and we are assured it will continue to get better. I have been impressed by the way that the employees providing these companies across the country have turned the circumstance all around on behalf of the public.

“NHS 111 gives a excellent services with large levels of public fulfillment. Calls are answered promptly and a lot more individuals are obtaining accessibility to the support as we move to complete coverage in February 2014. The latest urgent care review identified the important role that 111 can play. The concept of calling for suggestions first is crucial for patient care outcomes and we are committed to guaranteeing 111 plays its complete element in this.”

Labour’s shadow wellness minister Andrew Gwynne explained: “It is now clear that ministers wasted hundreds of thousands on flawed contracts. Labour warned the government at the outset that 111 was fundamentally flawed but they pressed ahead with the rollout irrespective.

“David Cameron is responsible for its shambolic introduction. The destruction of NHS Direct – a trusted, national support – is one particular of his worst acts of vandalism.”

Retendering NHS 111 contracts could cost millions

Alcohol is not the only cause of violence in Kings Cross. We require to search deeper | Jazz Twemlow

Several instances since moving to Kings Cross, I’ve gone out my front door to discover my home within a cordoned off police region, occasionally enjoying a coffee on a 200-metre stretch of road that was unnervingly deserted, bracketed on both end by crowds unable to enter the region. Despite the tranquility, these unusual moments of peace and quiet are a haunting reminder of the earlier night’s no doubt violent conclusion. It’s disturbing that it was of no shock to see the police tape up once more more than New Year’s Eve.

The standard recourse of most media right after one of these unprovoked attacks is to talk about “alcohol-fuelled” and “mindless” attacks, which displays a superficial truth that’s somewhat unsatisfying. I naturally agree that “violent coward + alcohol” is a far worse eventuality than just “violent coward”, but there is something about the repeated focus on alcohol that robs us of an obligation to peer even more into the ugly and as-nevertheless-unnamed culture that Kings Cross looks to be seeped in.

It’s misleading to emphasis purely on alcohol. Figures released in November show that alcohol consumption general appears to be in a period of mild decline, nevertheless our awareness and fear of violent attacks has in no way been larger. I’m almost certainly failing right here in my remit to write a comment piece, as I’d rather question: is it not worth broadening the scope of our condemnation to incorporate cultural variables and social patterns? Are groups of guys out on the piss more very likely to get concerned in violence than a group of couples who drink the exact same quantity? Why is it that when I stroll property from a good drinking session with pals that was entirely harmless, as soon as I get amongst the culturally decaying brackets of the Coke indicator and McDonalds in Kings Cross, the air itself would seem to hum with an animalistic static charge that tingles with possible harm?

Once again, I’m not attempting to take the onus off us to drink responsibly, but I also really do not want these of us who have a healthful connection with alcohol to come to feel by some means connected to the thuggish drunks who get tanked up and then go seeking for a fight. Information media and these in the public eye would do well to draw our interest to other factors that may possibly contribute to violent outcomes in areas like Kings Cross: overcrowding, proximity to sporting events or national holidays, or clashes in between socioeconomic groups, not to mention the extra involvement of medication.

There is also a accountability on all of us to abandon the sort of language that serves only to glorify and exacerbate these sorts of horrific attacks. I’m by no implies the 1st to say this, but it would be remiss of me not to repeat the sentiment nevertheless: “king-hit” is, without having query, an pointless and repugnant addition to the English language. It makes these cowardly, violent actions seem to be like nothing at all a lot more than an achievement in a personal computer game. It is the kind of phrase that would not be out of place dripping down your screen following finishing someone off in a beat ‘em up seeing it in print in newspapers, nevertheless, is as baffling as it is dangerous. Some have campaigned for it to be renamed, even though I think providing the action a name at all is wildly irresponsible. Allow it disappear from the language fully: even badges of dishonour would be worn proudly by these idiots as I doubt they care much for lexical subtleties.

As the New Yr commences, we require a fresh point of view that doesn’t just blame alcohol, but is accepting of a wider individual accountability and demands a deeper examination of the other variables that permit this kind of focused locations of violence to flourish. It would be a sorry way to commence 2014 if we had been forced to admit that, collectively, we cannot get pleasure from a excellent drink.

Alcohol is not the only cause of violence in Kings Cross. We require to search deeper | Jazz Twemlow

If exercising was very good for Charles Darwin, it really is good for all of us | Damon Young

Charles Darwin: barnacle aficionado, intrepid scholar, cautious iconoclast – and dogged, every day walker. The grandfather of modern evolutionary concept walked in rain and sunshine, in youth and age, in firm and solitude. This constitutional was not just for cardiovascular fitness, or to post his 1000′s of letters. It was a crucial part of his intellectual routine.

The “sandwalk” was a gravel track near Down Property, his residence in Kent – he called it his “pondering path”. Every day, after in the morning and once again in the afternoon, Darwin strolled and reflected amongst the privet and hazel, typically alongside his fox terrier. Darwin had a minor pile of stones on the path, and he kicked one with each and every turn: some ideas were 4-pebble issues.

As walkers and joggers will know, Darwin was not being eccentric: numerous puzzles are solved on foot. Poet William Wordsworth paced his gravel path, composing rhymes. Novelist Haruki Murakami runs marathons – including the original marathon (albeit backwards), from Athens to the ancient city. It is often written that the citizens of Königsberg set their clocks by the normal walks of philosopher Immanuel Kant. And Friedrich Nietzsche strolled for hrs, usually close to lakes or up mountains. In Sorrento, Italy, he wandered to his Gedankenbaum – his “thought tree”.

There are a lot of excellent motives for strolling and jogging: fitness, health, quiet solitude or conversation, and the stimulation that happenstance affords. But regular footslogging can also enrich our creativity and increase our character.

Scientists speak of “transient hypofrontality”: a state-of-mind promoted by pursuits that call for bodily exertion but small believed or concentration. The components of the brain that coordinate basic ideas and principles are turned down, while the motor and sensory components are turned up. In this state, tips and impressions mingle much more freely. Unusual and unexpected thoughts arise.

This is partly why Darwin’s son explained the naturalist’s walks had been for his “challenging thinking”: not just since he analysed data, but since he permitted his thoughts to wander as he kicked his stones. He let his idle mind metabolise its substantial meals of information. (“I hate a barnacle,” he wrote, “as no man ever did ahead of.”) Obviously strolling was not responsible for Darwin’s theory of evolution by organic choice, but a good footslog was definitely component of his cognitive labour – and nonetheless is for many these days.

Jogging: good for the thoughts. Photograph: Photograph: Gavin Rodgers/Alamy

Likewise for Murakami, who believes jogging is important for his literary occupation. It provides the novelist, not only power and solitude, but also a particular liberty of mind. In What I Talk About When I Talk About Working, Murakami writes that he jogs to obtain a “void”: a mental blank, around which random thoughts come and go.

In each case, physical exercise is not purely bodily, as if we might carve off the flesh, leaving the spirit behind. And this is a vital philosophical message: of wholeness. The human issue entails a continual to-and-fro among the physique and the mind. In truth, the nouns make these aspects of self appear a lot more divided than they are. Thinking is embodied, and acting is mindful. We are not a ghost in a machine, to use philosopher Gilbert Ryle’s phrase: we are bodies, and these bodies are aware.

In this light, several workouts can have intellectual rewards, and fitness can advantage from our states-of-thoughts. This has much less to do with simplistic corporate slogans – ‘just buy it’ – and much more to do with enlightened pleasure and virtue.

For example, swimming can evoke the sublime, and gesture at the precariousness of human daily life. As the ancient Greek poets remind us, sprinting can prompt pride: not just in rapidly legs or fit lungs, but in the dedication to striving before mortality claims us. Standard jogging can advertise consistency of character, and preserve us from losing the plot. Rock climbing can inspire humility and caution: focus to our flaws, and to the subtle information of rock or wall. This state-of-mind then allows “flow” to come up: we come to feel free, timeless, as we skilfully negotiate a challenging task. Ballet and karate can turn ache into a curious pleasure – we pick bruised ribs and aching toes above a lifestyle of anaesthetised comfort.

The level is not that we have to be Olympians, monitoring private bests with tailored dawn instruction schedules. We need not be the fastest, strongest or most agile. The point is that exercise can be a dedication to wholeness to a daily life enriched and enhanced by physical and mental striving. Darwin was no specialist athlete: but he knew about fitness and flourishing.

If exercising was very good for Charles Darwin, it really is good for all of us | Damon Young

China"s Outbound Tourism 2014: The Young And The Old Joining The Middle Aged Abroad

In the autumn of 1989 I identified myself for a amount of complicated reasons organising the first ever German festival of Maltese literature (yes, beside falcons they also have literature on that minor island in the Mediterranean Sea) in West-Berlin. With my six guests I also ventured for a day-trip to East Berlin, where they were “flabbergasted” to comprehend that from the platform of the tower of the French Cathedral they could in fact see the creating in West-Berlin exactly where our festival was taking place, but that the East German citizens standing following following to us would be shot if they attempted to reach it. I, getting grown up with the Berlin Wall cutting my kin into two halves on the two sides of it, even so assured them that this was a properly standard, if unfortunate, predicament which was not about to alter anytime soon. So there was little need for me to be reminded by the popular guide by N.N. Taleb that a “Black Swan”, an unforeseen and unprecedented event, can occur at any time and that stability in the past does not ensure stability in the future. Nevertheless, assuming that the new 12 months in China will be the Year of the Horse, not the 12 months of the Black Swan, we can forecast that nearly all developments described in my last website about China outbound tourism trends in 2013 will continue in 2014.

China will nonetheless be the biggest supply industry for worldwide tourism, very easily surpassing 110 million border crossings, even more supported by the Chinese government exploiting the Soft Energy policy possibilities coming with it. The push variables pollution and overcrowding will continue to motivate Chinese tourists to make the switch from domestic to outbound traveller, even however it is to be hoped that pollution levels will not continue to rise as substantially as in 2013.

The wish of Mr. Huang Ping, director-basic of the Department of Consular Affairs in the Chinese Foreign Ministry, that a lot more countries must signal bilateral visa-free agreements with China, as reported in the January 2014 concern of the COTRI magazine China Outbound Marketplace Intelligence, will almost certainly turn into fulfilled as countries hasten to steer clear of dropping out in the battle for the affluent Chinese guests.

A lot more self-organised travellers will flip up in new areas all above the world from Denver to Turku to Dunedin and the large cash will join the enjoyable each in type of Chinese and global investment aiming at the Chinese outbound market.

Additionally some additional developments need to be pointed out, which are largely linked to the “Long tail” of the Chinese outbound industry. Next to the nonetheless prevalent bundle excursions providing second and third tier city dwellers their first taste of global travel, the officials spending discreet but heavily and the smartphone-wielding (each and every third smartphone in the planet is supposed to be offered in China in 2014) self-organised travellers uploading their minute-by-minute visual report of their trip, niche markets will grow. Is there a want to remind you, dear reader, that every thing is large in China, so niche markets can even now suggest hundred 1000′s of customers? Almost certainly not.

Going on an international ocean cruise will be among these developing niches, as will equipment-based mostly outside pursuits like skiing or diving. Less evident pursuits will have to be extra to this listing, which will probably be triggered by a celebrity, praising on WeChat or Sina Weibo the coolness of walking along beaches in the snow or staying on a houseboat or visiting small workshops making steampunk couture.

Another massive trend for 2014 will be the widening of the age band of Chinese outbound travellers. International travel currently being much less and much less perceived by frequent travellers as unique or dangerous, far more kids can be expected to join their dad and mom or travel in youth travel groups with their classmates or pals. At the other end welcome the Chinese affluent pensioners, a group just beginning to come into existence. Most of them will be still rather in the age group fifty five-65 than over and almost certainly even now be involved in a bit of genuine estate trading and stock markets, but not like the vast majority of middle-aged affluent travellers they are not “time-poor” and can afford to go on journeys which are significantly less frantic, last numerous weeks and are significantly less driven by the question what the other individuals will believe about my trip.  

So if you encounter this year Chinese vacationers at sudden areas performing surprising things – or asking you for the following steampunk couture store – don’t fear, it is all completely typical. Hopefully you can even earn some money from it.

China"s Outbound Tourism 2014: The Young And The Old Joining The Middle Aged Abroad

Diabetes sufferers who smoke "not obtaining appropriate treatment"

Diabetes United kingdom says smokers with the ailment ought to be offered help to quit as quickly as attainable. Photograph: David Sillitoe for the Guardian

Many people with diabetes who smoke are not being offered the assist they need to quit the habit even even though it can be particularly dangerous to individuals with the ailment, a charity claimed.

Diabetes Uk said the assistance accessible was poor despite the truth that each and every particular person with diabetes was supposed to have their smoking status recorded at their annual review, which should kickstart the process of assisting them give up.

The charity’s annual survey identified that 45% of smokers have been offered assistance and advice on providing up over the earlier 12 months.

It stated the quantity of smokers who finished the survey – 166 out of one,643 – was not adequate to be confident it presented an correct reflection but it supported anecdotal evidence.

“Smoking significantly increases chance of a variety of situations, including cancer and heart disease, and so is very harmful regardless of whether you have diabetes or not,” mentioned Diabetes United kingdom chief executive Barbara Young.

“But because diabetes puts a strain on the circulatory technique and smoking adds to that strain, smoking is even worse for you if you have the issue.

“Offered this, it is crucial that healthcare professionals make certain the yearly conversation they have with individuals with diabetes about smoking as element of their care planning evaluation is the commence of a approach of supporting smokers to give up.

“Delivering details about, and accessibility to, the diverse techniques to aid individuals give up smoking is an crucial element of enhancing assistance for men and women with diabetes.”

As well as calling on GPs to do a lot more, the charity is urging men and women with diabetes who smoke to make a resolution to quit in 2014.

There are about 3.8 million individuals with diabetes in the Uk and one in 6 of them are smokers. The amount of men and women with the ailment is predicted to rise to five million by 2025.

Professor Kevin Fenton, nationwide director of well being and wellbeing at Public Wellness England, explained: “Public Wellness England supports all efforts to improve tips, help and schooling to people who want to quit smoking. Our overall health campaigns, such as Stoptober and the recently launched Smokefree Health Harms, supply help to all men and women making an attempt to quit.

“For people with continual problems such as diabetes, normal wellness checks and, the place acceptable, referral to smoking cessation services, are a essential component of strengthening health and wellbeing.”

Diabetes sufferers who smoke "not obtaining appropriate treatment"

Scotland"s dentists increase by a third below SNP

The amounts of registration with an NHS dentist have also improved considering that the party took office in Might 2007. Photograph: Rui Vieira/PA

The number of dentists in Scotland has risen by practically a third in the past seven many years, according to most current figures.

In between September 2006 and September 2013, Scotland has gained 793 additional dentists – an improve of 32.6%, the SNP stated.

The levels of registration with an NHS dentist have also improved since the party took office, in May possibly 2007.

In March that 12 months, 67% of youngsters and 46% of adults have been registered with an NHS dentist.

As of 30 September 2013, 91% of youngsters and 82% of grownups have been registered.

A lot more than four.four million individuals are now registered – an improve of one.8 million considering that March 2007, the SNP explained.

The Scottish Nationwide celebration MSP Bob Doris, who is also deputy convener of the Scottish parliament’s wellness and sport committee, mentioned: “These figures are actually one thing to smile about. In certain it is vitally essential that kids find out excellent oral wellness early as they are considerably more likely to continue these habits later in lifestyle.

“The new 12 months is the perfect time to register at a dentist and get your teeth checked.

“These figures demonstrate that, soon after years of neglect underneath earlier administrations, real inroads have been created in making certain the provision of very first-rate dental services for the people of Scotland.”

Scotland"s dentists increase by a third below SNP