Tag Archives: france

American Teens Are Less Likely Than European Teens to Use Cigarettes and Alcohol, but More Likely to Use Illicit Drugs

By Guest PostJune 5, 2012Culture, Generaladolescent behaviour, alcohol, american adolescents, american students, american surveys, american teens, anabolic steroids, cigarettes, cocaine, crack, eastern, Europe, european teens, france, future surveys, Germany, hashish, heroin, illicit drugs, inhalants, italy, jared wadley, lloyd johnston, marijuana, monaco, smoking cigarettes, university of michigan, western europe

ANN ARBOR, Mich.— The U.S. had the second-lowest proportion of students who used tobacco and alcohol compared to their counterparts in 36 European countries, a new report indicates.

The results originate from coordinated school surveys about substance use from more than 100,000 students in some of the largest countries in Europe like Germany, France and Italy, as well as many smaller ones from both Eastern and Western Europe.

Because the methods and measures are largely modeled after the University of Michigan’s Monitoring the Future surveys in this country, comparisons are possible between the U.S. and European results. The 15- and 16-year-old students, who were drawn in nationally representative samples in almost all of the 36 countries, were surveyed last spring. American 10th graders in the 2011 Monitoring the Future studies are of the same age, so comparisons are possible. (more…)

EU5 Map Usage via Smartphone Growing 7x Faster Than Classic Web

By Guest PostMay 31, 2012Technologybenchmarks, Comscore, eu5, european markets, france, Germany, google android, google maps, hesham al jehani, italy, maps, Microsoft, mobile, mobile phone, mobilens data, smartphone users, spain, united kingdom, viamichelin

UK Has Highest Penetration of Smartphone Map Users in EU5

LONDON, UK, 31 May 2012 – comScore, Inc., a leader in measuring the digital world, today released an overview of mobile and computer usage of Maps across the five leading European markets (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom) using the comScore MobiLens and comScore MMX services. The study showed that 35.0 percent of smartphone users in EU5 reported accessing maps via their device in March 2012, compared to 49.6 percent of the internet audience accessing Maps sites on their computers. Across EU5 markets, the smartphone Map audience increased 55 percent over the past year while map access via computer grew just 8 percent.

“Smartphones are quickly becoming the primary platform for on-the-go services such as maps and navigation. With apps such as Google Maps coming pre-installed on many phones it’s becoming second nature for many of us to rely on the smart device in our pocket to show us the way. The days of checking routes in advance and printing maps to take with us will soon be in our rear view mirror,” said Hesham Al-Jehani, European mobile product manager at comScore. (more…)

Disease that Stunts Infants’ Growth Traced to Same Gene that Makes Kids Grow too Fast

By Guest PostMay 30, 2012Scienceabhik banerjee, acronym, adrenal hypoplasia, alice, alice fleming, beckwith wiedemann syndrome, caterpillar, children, chromosome 11, dna sample, edward mccabe, eric vilain, france, geneticist, genital anomalies, genome, growth restriction, hane lee, hormone replacement therapy, image syndrome, infants growth, john achermann, lewis carroll, metaphyseal dysplasia, mushroom, mutation, nature genetics, protein coding factory, ucla, valerie arboleda, wonderland

Discovery ends UCLA scientist’s 20-year quest for cause of IMAGe syndrome

The Caterpillar got down off the mushroom … remarking as it went, ‘One side will make you grow taller, and the other side will make you grow shorter.’

—Lewis Carroll, “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland”

UCLA geneticists have identified the mutation responsible for IMAGe syndrome, a rare disorder that stunts infants’ growth. The twist? The mutation occurs on the same gene that causes Beckwith–Wiedemann syndrome, which makes cells grow too fast, leading to very large children.

Published in the May 27 edition of the journal Nature Genetics, the UCLA findings could lead to new ways of blocking the rapid cell division that allows tumors to grow unchecked. The discovery also offers a new tool for diagnosing children with IMAGe syndrome, which until now has been difficult to identify accurately. (more…)

Q&A: Economic ‘Prophet’ Now Showing Classes How Theory Translates into Practice

By Guest PostMay 3, 2012Economyaleh tsyvinski, american goods, asia, China, economic, economic system, economist, Europe, france, Germany, global economy, globalization, Greece, ireland, italy, jackson institute, japanese economy, jeff garten, lessons of japan, macro debate, macroeconomics, michael marsland, minister of finance, morgan stanley asia, portugal, practice, prognosis, prophet, rick levin, school of management, som, spain, stephen roach, the next china, theory, united states, Wall Street, world economy, xiang huaicheng, yale

Stephen Roach is a respected authority on Asia — China in particular — and an often-cited and widely recognized prophet on the global economy.

Until recently chair of Morgan Stanley Asia and long the firm’s chief economist, Roach came to Yale in 2010 as a senior fellow in the newly inaugurated Jackson Institute for Global Affairs, with a joint appointment at the School of Management (SOM). This spring Roach announced he would be retiring from Morgan Stanley after 30 years with the firm to teach full time at Yale.

YaleNews recently met with the economist in his office to discuss his new career as a teacher and to get his prognosis on the future of the world economy. (more…)

Imagine Cup Turns 10: A Decade of Inspiring Students to Dream Big

By Guest PostApril 20, 2012Technologyabhinav aj jambulingam, andrew dicken, annie ryu, australia, brazil, david gonzalez, digital infinity, egypt, evangelism group, final, france, imagine cup, imagine cup 2012, immunization checkup, Japan, jared wong, joy ming, karnataka, mark hindsbo, Microsoft, MIT, new york, nicaragua, pat yongpradit, puzzle, redmond, ronny ortiz, rural housing, silver spring, springbrook high, sydney, tablet pc, team remindavax, text message, tohoku earthquake, tsunami, visual studio 2010, windows phone

Heading into the U.S. national finals, Microsoft’s signature technology competition has reached 1.25 million students worldwide over the past 10 years.

REDMOND, Wash. — April 20, 2012 — Across every industry — from healthcare to transportation and agriculture to infrastructure — the world has a never-ending need for inspired minds to find creative solutions that solve tough challenges. Yet it’s been estimated that 1 million science and engineering jobs will go unfilled in the U.S. alone over the next three to five years.

According to Mark Hindsbo, vice president of Microsoft’s U.S. Developer & Platform Evangelism Group, that’s why programs like the Imagine Cup are so important. Encouraging students to develop technology-based solutions for real-world issues, and inspiring them to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, has been the mission of Microsoft’s signature technology competition for the past decade. Hindsbo has been involved with the competition since its beginnings. Every year, he says, the judges are amazed by the contestants’ projects and enthusiasm. (more…)

IBM Survey Reveals Digital Behavioral Trends for Consumers: What is your Digital Personality?

By Guest PostApril 16, 2012Technologyanalytics, China, consumer, digital device, digital personalities, france, Germany, ibm, Japan, market, Media, nab conference, payment, saul berman, study, united kingdom, united states, web

*Media & Entertainment Providers Must Practice New Rules for Engagement, Digitizing Content is Not Enough*

ARMONK, N.Y. – 16 Apr 2012: A new IBM study of the media and entertainment market, reveals that as consumers adopt an increasing number of digital devices, four distinct new “digital personalities” are emerging. This shift is compelling companies to adopt more innovative business models that deliver personalized experiences. (more…)

Nearly Half of European Online Audience Visit Sports Sites

By Guest PostApril 12, 2012Technologyaudience, Comscore, Europe, europeans, france, Germany, internet usage, ireland, norway, online, russian internet, spain, sports sites, turkey, united states

*comScore Releases Overview of European Internet Usage for February 2012*

LONDON, UK, 12 April 2012 – comScore, Inc., a leader in measuring the digital world, today released an overview of internet usage in Europe, showing that 386.6 million Europeans went online in February 2012 for an average of 28.2 hours per person. This release highlights internet usage in 49 European markets aggregated into the European region and provides individual reporting on 18 markets. Amongst its findings, the study also showed that 46 percent of Europeans visit Sports sites, with Turkey and Ireland having the highest penetration at approximately 70 percent in February 2012. (more…)

Number of European Smartphone Users Accessing News Surges 74 Percent Over Past Year

By Guest PostMarch 22, 2012Technologybenchmark data, Comscore, eu5, european markets, france, Germany, hesham al jehani, intelligent online, italy, mobile, mobile industry, mobile news, secondary device, small screen, smartphone, spain, spanish smartphone, united kingdom

*Nearly Half of UK Smartphone Users Access News At Least Once Each Month*

LONDON, UK, 22 March 2012 – comScore, Inc., a leader in measuring the digital world, today released an overview of mobile news access across the five leading European markets (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom) using the comScore MobiLens service. The study showed that nearly 37 percent of smartphone users in EU5 reported accessing news sites via an app or browser in January 2012, showing an increase of 74 percent over the past year. For EU5 smartphone users who accessed news sites on a near-daily basis, the growth rate was even stronger at 82 percent. The UK showed the highest penetration with nearly half (46.8 percent) of smartphone users reporting having accessed news sites at least once in the past month. (more…)