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Written by ANI
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Thursday, 25 September 2008 |
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New Delhi, Sept.25 (ANI): Saying that the gas market now in India is completely a suppliers' market, Union Secretary for Petroleum and Natural Gas, R.S. Pandey today stated that the Government would determine the pricing formula of gas, which he described as the "fuel of the future". Delivering the keynote address at the 7th Petro India conference on the theme of "Gas in India - Issues, Opportunities and Challenges" in Delhi, organised by Observer Research Foundation and Indian Energy Forum, Pandey said the gas market was completely controlled by the suppliers because of the shortage in the availability of the gas. "Where is the competition now? How can the price be fair when the market is controlled by the suppliers? In such a scenario, the Government will have to determine the pricing formula of gas to balance the interests of both the suppliers and consumers," Pandey said. Pandey said gas pricing was key to both demand and growth. So, the government control over pricing would help prevent any hardship to the vast majority of individual consumers besides accentuating growth in the sector. Pandey said the government was giving its priority to increasing the supply of gas. He said negotiations were progressing well both Iran, Turkmenistan and other countries regarding the pipeline proposals (Iran, India and Pakistan pipeline and Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India - TAPI). "The talks are going on well, in the right track. But I don't want to set a timeline because other countries are also involved," he said. Saying acquiring assets abroad is a top priority, Mr. Pandey said the Government would "aggressively pursue" its efforts in this direction. Pandey said the government would continue to give priority to the fertiliser and power sectors. Pandey called for a shift in emphasis to natural gas, the fuel of the future, and announced that the results of NELP-VII bidding would be finalised in a few days. Pandey advocated a two-pronged strategy to reduce the country's import dependency in the energy sector. One, to accelerate efforts on exploration and development, and two, acquisition of assets abroad, he said. Mr Pandey informed the delegates that ONGC Videsh was already contributing 14 per cent of total domestic production with assets in 22 countries. David Victor, Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, Stanford University, USA, also focused on gas pricing in his special address. He drew the attention of delegates to research analysis that indicated that gas prices tended to follow the oil price trend. More importantly, he cautioned the industry that US gas demand had dropped by almost a third in recent years primarily due to higher prices. Therefore, any discussion on gas pricing should incorporate the aspect of potential demand destruction. Surendra Singh, President, ORF Centre for Politics and Governance and former Cabinet Secretary, called for a market driven gas price regime. To ensure industry growth and enhance energy security, the government must ensure a long-term fiscal and market regime, he said. Dr. S. Narayan, Advisor to ORF Chairman and former Economic Advisor to PM, stressed the need for a Regulator for the Upstream as well, like the Regulator for Downstream. He also emphasised on the need to allow the Regulator to act transparently once the appointment is made. Dr. Rabi Bastia, Sr. Vice President of G and G, RIL, said the gas economy would grow seven-fold in 20 to 30 years. Petro India 2008, a premier event in the country's energy sector, focused on 'Gas in India - Issues, Opportunities and Challenges', and discussed issues impacting the gas sector in view of the increased demand for energy to sustain the country's economic growth. The two-day Petro India 2008 summit is being attended by representatives of leading public and private sector bodies, policy-makers and regulators, gas suppliers, industry consultants and researchers among others. (ANI)
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 25 September 2008 )
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Written by ANI
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Tuesday, 14 October 2008 |
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London, Oct.14 (ANI): Spanish Formula One racer Fernando Alonso has warned key rival Lewis Hamilton of Britain that he will be back to haunt him and wreck his title dream. The Spaniard has vowed to wreak revenge on his former teammate Hamilton by helping Hamilton's rival Felipe Massa in the two-race showdown for the drivers' crown. The duo was at war last season after Alonso accused McLaren of favouring the rookie because he was English in a British team. Hamilton got the better on the track, finishing ahead of the double world champ in the standings, and off it as McLaren sacked Alonso, reports The Sun. Alonso warned: "Yes, there is no doubt. If I can help, I will help Massa. Hamilton and Massa have lost a lot of points. After 16 races the leader has 84 points. In 2006 I had 82 in nine races. "But in the end the one who makes the least errors will win. We'll see." Hamilton leads Massa by just five points after his first-corner error in Fuji on Sunday earned him a drive through penalty. (ANI)
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 14 October 2008 )
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Written by ANI
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Wednesday, 22 October 2008 |
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Washington, Oct 22 (ANI): Studying an animal model of chronic inflammation and skin cancer, scientists have now found that inflammation can actually prevent skin cancer. Inflammation is the frontline defence of the body against infection or disease. According to researchers at Medical College of Georgia, IDO, an enzyme that works like a firefighter to keep inflammation under control, can be captured to protect early malignant cells "Inflammation should really help prevent a tumour. You want a good immune response; this is what protects you from pathogens," he says. "In this case, it's an unfortunate exploitation by malignant cells," says Dr. Andrew Mellor, director of the MCG Immunotherapy Center and Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar in Molecular Immunogenetics. In fact, the researchers found strong evidence that inflammation triggers the immune response. In the study, the researchers gave mice a single dose of a carcinogen right at the moment when they started painting a tiny portion of skin with a poison ivy derivative twice weekly for 20 weeks. The mix quickly produced IDO and created a "suppressive" immune response that helped resulting precancerous cells grow into tumors. However, employing the same protocol in a mouse in which IDO had been genetically deleted, dramatically slowed tumour development. The significance of the new study is that the researchers have shown that IDO, or indoleomine 2,3-dioxygenase, may be produced as a part of the inflammatory mix, which could then protect the malignant skin cells. "'Chronic' is the key word. We have long suspected that IDO is a component of certain kinds of inflammation that create suppression," said Mellor. He speculated that IDO's "firefighter" role probably resulted from the body's need to control inflammation in areas such as the gastrointestinal tract. The GI tract is constantly bombarded by food and microbes which could lead to debilitating and deadly inflammation. The new research, according to Mellor, showed that IDO has a more important and earlier role than we thought in tumor formation. "IDO favors the tumor: The immune system basically sits back and watches the tumor grow," said Mellor. The study is published online in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. (ANI)
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 22 October 2008 )
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Written by ANI
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Thursday, 23 October 2008 |
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London, Oct 23 (ANI): Scientists at Newcastle University have now unravelled the mechanism by which the fundamental building blocks of life, proteins and metals, bind together. Lead author Professor Nigel Robinson has revealed the mechanism, which ensures that the right metal goes to the right protein. Life, microbe, plant or human, are all made up of atoms, which include metals such as copper and manganese which act as catalysts in proteins, which in turn around the metal atoms. In their study, the researchers had shown that copper and manganese protein wrap around the correct metal atoms in different parts of the cell, which are zones containing different metals. Thus, which protein attaches to which metal is determined by where the folding action takes place in the cell. Earlier scientists believed that the right metals were simply those, which were most attracted to the protein, but the new study led by Professor Nigel Robinson at Newcastle University, might change this perception. "This has taken us one step closer to understanding why metals and proteins assemble in the ways they do," Nature quoted Robinson as saying. He added: "One motive behind the work is pure curiosity, but as so many proteins need metals this type of work has many potential uses - for example, in synthetic biology which is striving to produce green power from bacteria by using energy from sunlight to produce hydrogen gas, a process which needs nickel and iron. "It may also help in diseases such as Alzheimers where there are unexplained links to proteins binding metals such as copper. There's also application in controlling infections by Staphylococcus aureus; a bacterium which our bodies defences succeed - or sometimes fail - in killing by removing manganese and zinc from abscesses." In the study, it was demonstrated that the way the metals attach is identical for a protein that binds manganese to one that binds copper. In both cases the metals bind inside protein barrels with the same type of metal-attractions. The researchers carried out the work in a blue-green algae, a cyanobacterium, and showed that a protein requiring copper transports to the periplasm, the outer area of the cell, where it then folds around the available metal, which is copper. On the other hand, manganese and not copper atoms are found in the cytosol, in the middle of the cell. They showed that a protein requiring manganese folds in the cytosol. The manganese protein is then transported to the periplasm having first trapped its manganese. In the new study, the researchers first developed a new approach to discover metal-binding proteins, which is now being swiftly applied to lots of other types of living cells and other essential metals (zinc, nickel, cobalt, iron). The study is published in the recent issue of Nature. (ANI)
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 23 October 2008 )
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Written by ANI
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Thursday, 23 October 2008 |
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Melbourne, Oct 23 (ANI): When it comes to getting the perfect pose or look, even a piece of bread will come in handy, according to 'Make Me A Supermodel' stylist Tiana Wallace. According to Tiana, bread is very vital to a man in underwear, as just one slice wedged in the front of a pair of briefs will give the sought-after "smooth look." Though Confidential will not confirm if David Beckham used the method for his steamy Armani campaign earlier this year, finalist Rhys Uhlich was chosen to make a test-run. From the taping, which is to be aired on the October 23 episode of Make Me A Supermodel, there was proof enough about what Wallace said. The secret trick left host Jennifer Hawkins amazed that it actually worked. "I actually learnt something that day," the Daily Telegraph quoted her as saying. (ANI)
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 23 October 2008 )
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