iblog

Rushda: A baby boy was recently pronounced dead after suffering from a severe heart attack, only to come back to life half an hour later. Two-week year old Woody Lander had a heart attack due to a blocked aorta and doctors were unable to revive him. The 'dead' baby was given over to his parents so that they could say their last goodbyes, when suddenly he started coughing and doctor's managed to start up his heart again. Many parents see their baby's life as a miracle, but I can only try to imagine how these lucky parents felt to have their special baby alive in their arms again whilst they were sobbing away.

Rushda: We often allow for children not to know simple things, owing to the fact that they are young and still have a lot of learning to do. But I don't think that's a good excuse for not teaching them basic stuff in the first place. A recent survey has shown that one in ten children do not know that pork comes from pigs, two in ten had no idea where yoghurt came from and some even believe that cows lay eggs. Also, almost a fifth of children between three to four years do not know how old they are. No doubt there are many other surprising examples too. Given children's curiosity and great ability to learn I really don't know why there are so many who don't get taught these basic things about themselves and their surroundings - it really is the parents and teachers who are to blame for what seems to be a kind of negligence on their part.

Caroline: A simple thing like a small garden can greatly improve the quality of life for dementia sufferers in residential care. It acts as a form of therapy and a trigger for reminiscence for those with impaired short-term and long-term memory, loss of time and place, declining cognitive abilities, depression and constant pacing. Features such as water features, wind chimes, bird baths and bird tables can add extra interest. Many in residential care were previously keen gardeners and there is no reason why the onset of dementia should preclude them from the opportunity of continuing to enjoy the peace and tranquillity which a garden can bring.

Caroline: Did you know that a family of four could save a bathful of water a day if they turned off the tap when cleaning their teeth? Although the drought in the South East is officially over and the hosepipe bans have been lifted, it is still vital that we cut our water consumption. There are many other easy ways to save water: little things like having a shower instead of a bath which saves on average 50 litres, only using the dishwasher and washing machine for full loads, fitting a water butt for watering plants to name but a few. The dry conditions over the last two years have hopefully served to make us aware of just how precious a commodity water is and that we all have to do our bit.

Rushda: A new big secret is out about Jesus's burial, one that could potentially change the face of Christianity - all courtesy of the great 'authority' of a Hollywood director. James Cameron, the Oscar-winning director of Titanic is making a new documentary in which he tries to show that Jesus's tomb has already been found and that he was buried with Mary Magdalene. The film examines a tomb which was found by archaeologists near Jerusalem a couple of decades ago and producers say that it is most likely that it belonged to Jesus and his family. Apparently "statistical tests and DNA analysis" supports this view (though I'm not sure how they got the latter). Lots of other archaeologists say it is unfounded as the names on the tombs were very common at the time. Whatever the chances are like, I'm very sceptical that the film has hit on the truth, and even more sceptical that Christians would accept it. I would have thought we're all tired of this Da Vinci Code stuff by now, but obviously not Cameron, who just looks like he's shamelessly jumped on the bandwagon.

Rushda: This winter has apparently been the warmest winter on record for the last twenty years, according to the Met office. Apparently this is just what we should be expecting because of climate change and we should see more and more of it in future years. Scientists have already predicted that winters will be getting warmer and wetter and summers are hotter and dryer, and some say this winter is good evidence that this is all coming true. Well, I can definitely agree that it's been wetter than usual but I'm really not sure about the so-called warmth. As far as I'm concerned the results are surprising because I don't remember ever having been so cold!!

Anna: The Kenyan press reported this week that:

"continued synthetic competition, diminishing world prices, introduction of cheap imports of second hand clothes and diminished cotton profitability" were amongst factors that dealt a blow both to cotton production, and the textile and clothing industries.

Massive subsidies given to US farmers by their government, mean that developing world farmers are priced out of the world cotton market. Unaffordable chemicals and a lack of processing plants - "ginneries" - make the position of a cotton farmer in West Africa or Uzbekistan (the biggest producers after the US) even more precarious. Add to that political instability, lack of financial backing and infrastructure problems and you've got a recipe for an unenviable way of making a living. But the Kenyan government is leading the way in addressing the problem, recently launching the 'Kenya Vision 2030' campaign. Cotton does well in low-rainfall areas, so could provide a lifeline to the 80 percent of Kenya which is classed as semi-arid. Meanwhile back on our side of the rich-poor divide, as consumers we can choose to buy Fair Trade cotton where possible and get involved in campaigns to eradicate unfair competition in the world cotton market.

Caroline: If you're feeling sad, had a bad day at work or are full of pent-up emotion forget about retreating to your own home or having a duvet day. The latest thing in the Far East at least is "Crying Bars" where for $6 an hour you can sit and sob your heart out. If the tears won't flow then help yourself to complimentary garlic or pepper spray. Tissues are provided on the house. 80% of the customers are women but for men it is often difficult to know where to go for a good cry so they are becoming increasingly popular with the stronger sex. The manager of one bar in China reports that a young woman was feeling suicidal but after a three hour session in his crying bar she had cheered up sufficiently to go and sort her problems out. Somehow I can't see it catching on over here but who knows - who would have thought karaoke would become so popular to the extent that we now have an epidemic of karaoke polyps from hitting the high notes too vigorously!

Caroline: Panorama last night was enough to put anyone off being a doctor. It dealt with the issue of violence against NHS doctors and nurses, primarily in the A and E departments and made disturbing viewing. Some hospitals seem like war zones and that is not just on a Friday night after the pubs turn out. Edinburgh Royal Infirmary has a permanent police presence, so great is the problem. There are 75000 cases of violence a year and that is just the number reported. Although there is meant to be zero tolerance of such crimes, few cases are prosecuted and those that are, end up with derisory outcomes such as suspended sentences and £50 fines. At the end of the day doctors and nurses are human beings like the rest of us and it says much about their dedication and self control that they don't hit back and refuse to treat the thugs who are out to injure and maim them.

Rushda: We like to think we live in a modern age of gender equality, but it seems that there are some things that still aren't getting shared equally, such as housework. Studies of couples show that women on average tend to do 15 hours of housework a week compared to the 5 hours men do. I'm not too surprised actually, especially given that it is still common for the man to work and the woman to be the housewife. Even if that isn't the case I'm not really sure if it's the man's fault. Perhaps we women are just a lot more fussy about things being neat and tidy whereas men just wouldn't care.