Great Titbits
By tony leather, 14th Apr 2012 | Follow this author
| RSS Feed | Short URL http://nut.bz/2b9j2hma/
Posted in WikinutNewsOff Beat
In maybe the most audacious grren architectural scheme ever dreamt up, a project underway in Milan, Italy will see two towers blocks becoming the first constructions to house living trees as well as people, and aptly named Bosco Verticale, or Vertical Forest in English
Great Titbits
You really could not ask for anything more fitting than that the fairytale that was the iconic film by Danny Boyle should come true for someone, and it has because Sushil Kumar, poor government clerk from eastern India has won 50million rupees - £630,000 - on the popular Indian version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
Precisely echoing the storyline of Oscar-winning 2008 film Slumdog Millionaire, the 26-year-old farm labourers son, earning only £75 a month, his family too poor to own a television set watched at a neighbour's home, they persuading him to apply, and being accepted, his journey to the Mumbai studio was his first plane ride and his first big city visit.
At question 13, with 10million rupees in hand, he thought about stopping, but still looked at the final question, went for broke and all of a sudden found himself to be he the real Slumdog Millionaire, Kumar and new wife weeping as they received the huge cheque.
Kumar, modestly, intends to use some to pay for a course enabling him to take India's tough civil service exam, for a secure and prestigious lifetime job, buy his wife a new home, pay off parental debts and donate start-up cash so his four brothers can set up small businesses, as well as building a library in his home village to give local children access to the books and knowledge.
In maybe the most audacious grren architectural scheme ever dreamt up, a project underway in Milan, Italy will see two towers blocks becoming the first constructions to house living trees as well as people, and aptly named Bosco Verticale, or Vertical Forest in English
According to designer Stefano Boeri website, theserepresent a project for metropolitan reforestation. This, he feels, contributes to environmental regeneration and biodiversity of urban space without the need to expand the city further into the countryside, Each of the 27 floor high towers will be home to 900 trees, species to include oaks as well as a wide range of floral plants and shrubs.
If this were a land-based forest it would cover just over six square miles, so the scheme is truly grandiose, employing use latest green technologies, such as water reclamation, as well as wind and solar power. the planned plant diversity will have characteristics producing humidity, absorbing Carbon Dioxide and dust particles, improving quality of life and saving on energy bills.
A sweet tooth could protect from a stroke, if a large Swedish study on women chocolate-lovers, newly published is to be believed. Having followed 33,000 women over a 10 year period, researchers found that those who ate most chocolate had a 20% lower risk of suffering a stroke.
Published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, the study started back in 1997 when 33,372 Swedish women between 49 and 83 filled out eating habits questionnaires, indicating how often they consumed chocolate the previous year.
A total of about 1,600 strokes were registered in the group over the following decade, researchers finding that the women who ate the least chocolate suffered most strokes, while those eating most - Average two ounces weekly - were the least likely to suffer a stroke.
The study team had previously hypothesized that chocolate would have this effect, as it is known to reduce blood pressure, high blood pressure being a high risk factor, and antioxidants in chocolate reduce) cholesterol, and improve insulin resistance. Dark chocolate helps keep your blood from forming dangerous clots
As the saying goes, it seems that a little of what you fancy will indeed do you good, and two chocolate bars per week, sinful or not, are definitely a healthy option, so feel free.
Comments