Nigeria Striker IK Uche Predicted Uneasy Match Against South Africa

Ikechukwu Uche

Nigeria striker Ikechukwu Uche has predicted a tough match against South Africa as the Super Eagles plot to secure Group A's second qualification ticket for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations.

Bafana Bafana lead the group with 11 points while Nigeria displaced Congo to move to second position with seven points each but with a better head-to-head and can snatch the second qualification ticket if they beat the visitors at the Akwa Ibom Stadium in Uyo today.

Uche scored from the penalty spot against Congo in his first game with the Eagles after almost two years as they won 2-0 in Pointe-Noire.

“The game against the Red Devils was a very difficult match for us because it was a match everybody expected us to win,” Uche said.

“This huge expectation from Nigerians propelled us to beat the Congolese despite the huge hostility from them. This we will also take to the match against South Africa in Uyo on Wednesday.

“Now we have to concentrate on beating Bafana Bafana. We won’t be deceived by the South Africans because we know that they are coming with their full squad.

“So we just need to mind our business and do our job well and win the game because that is what over 170 million Nigerians want right now.”

The Villarreal striker is aware of the enormity of the task ahead, even though the South Africans have never won a competitive game against Nigeria.

“We expect a tough game playing at home to South Africa [tomorrow] and I can tell you that it is not going to be easy. But hopefully we will come out victorious like we did against a very hostile Congo Brazzaville team,” he said.

Uche also acknowledged the fans, journalists and everyone who supported his return to the national team.

“I am very happy to be back and I dedicate my goal to all my fans in Nigeria that have supported me to this stage. I sincerely thank all Nigerians for my return to the Eagles and I will work hard on and off the field of play to repay them if possible with goals and most importantly to be a team player and make meaningful contributions to the team,” he assured.

The match is scheduled at 6:00pm, Nigeria time.

-goal.com

Nigeria Speaker Dumps Presidential Ambition

Aminu Waziri Tambuwal

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal on Tuesday announced the jettisoning of his earlier stated political ambition to contest for the presidency of the country, citing personal reasons of ‘sacrifice’ and his decision to avoid seeking any political office.

This was contained in a speech by the Speaker titled: “My Political Future, By Tambuwal”, circulated to journalists by his spokesperson, Imam Imam.

According to him, he reached the decision to distance himself from politics after concluding wider consultations with elders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and taking into consideration the vastness of the country’s political space.

“Having consulted widely, taking into consideration the concerns of some elders of the party, I have decided to suspend my participation in the presidential contest for now. I have done so as a sacrifice for the cohesion and unity of the APC. I am suspending my participation in the presidential race for now because I do not have any inordinate ambition to occupy any office. Nigeria is a country too great to sacrifice on the altar of partisan politics and personal ambition. What any one becomes in life is exclusively in the hands of God. Only God gives power to whoever he pleases,” said Tambuwal.

Tracing the evolution of his recent political forages to Friday the 14th of November,2014 when a group of his colleagues of presented him an Expression of Interest and Nomination forms to participate in the presidential primaries of the APC , he handed down his verdict that: his “entry into the presidential race at this point may necessitate having to rework some equations on the political chessboard of the party.”

Instead of pursuing his ambition, he pledged to General Muhammadu Buhari, Alh Atiku Abubakar, Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, Governor Rochas Okorocha and Mr Sam Ndah- Isaiah, all of who he described as “eminently qualified” to run for the position of president.

He said although he is “fully prepared, ready, willing, determined, available and armed with the requisite plans, programs and ability, to undertake the great mission of rescuing our dear country from the clutches of institutionalized corruption, gross incompetence, greed and divisiveness”; and many others, he will plough his energy into supporting the APC.

“I am convinced that with the progressive spirit and teamwork these objectives are attainable under an All Progressive Congress (APC) administration.

”I came into the APC to enhance and build, Therefore in the interest of our great party the APC and indeed in the overriding national interest I wish to appeal to all my associates, colleagues, supporters, admirers and friends nationwide to show some understanding. It has not been easy coming to this decision and I very well understand the frustration, disappointment and disbelief of many who have committed so much to the project including sacrificing not only their physical, financial and intellectual resources but indeed their personal ambitions in the 2015 electoral contest.



-This Day Live

Wogu: SURE-P Project is Tackling the Myriad Problems of Unemployment, Articles | THISDAY LIVE

Wogu: SURE-P Project is Tackling the Myriad Problems of Unemployment, Articles | THISDAY LIVE

Island with infectous monkeys in Liberia

An island, Farmington Island, with over 60 infected chimpanzees, has been been brought to the fore in Liberia following the outbreak of the Ebola Virus Disease.
The island, popularly called Monkey Island, by Liberians, has been in existence for several years.
However, with the outbreak of the EVD, which has monkeys as one of the primary sources of infection, eyes are turning in the direction of the Island.
The EVD has killed over 1,069 persons in its recent outbreak in West Africa.
Greatly affected by this outbreak are Liberia and Sierra Leone.
Nigeria has so far recorded four deaths from the fast spreading EVD.
According to information provided in a video by a researcher who visited the Island, the monkeys were used for researches and then released into the Island.
Liberians themselves avoid going to the Island.
A 40 minutes drive outside of the town by road and then a boat ride gets a visitor to the Island.
The island is said to be 40 miles from Monrovia, the capital of Liberia.
The chimpanzees are described as “super aggressive” by the presenter.
The chimpanzees were said to have been used for medical researches at the Liberian Institute for Bio-Medical Research, hence it was not strange before the outbreak of the EVD in Liberia so see so many Liberians with monkeys.
The research was said to have been sponsored by the New York Blood Centre.
The chimpanzees, according to the report, were infected with Hepatitis and River Blindness among other diseases.
Betsy Brotman was the Director of the centre, VILAB, which came into existence in 1974.
An article by the New York Times on July 17, 1984, said one in four out of the chimpanzees used in hepatitis research becomes an asymptomatic carrier and as such must stay in captivity.
Yet, there was the need to release them back into the forest so they could live their normal lives again, Brotman said.
The first set of such chimpanzees were released into the Asagny National Park in the Ivory Coast.
According to Brotman, they did humanity a favour and as such should be given their lives back.
The full article on the subject in the New York Times of July 17, 1984 reads:
Robertsville, Liberia: Standing on the bow of the outboard motor boat rocking in the brown water of the Little Bassa river, Betsy Brotman cupped her hands around her mouth and bellowed toward the jungle island. “Char-lie! Char-lie!”
She turned to a passenger in the boat. “Wait till you see Charlie,” she whispered. “He’s fantastic.” She shouted again: “Char-lie! Char- lie!”
For a while it seemed no one was listening. Then, finally, a small, dark, hulking chimpanzee emerged from the dense bush. He lumbered across the beach and waded thigh-deep into the water. Scowling, he raised his right hand and let fly a rock in the direction of the boat. It plopped into the river several inches short of its target.
“That’s Charlie,” Miss Brotman explained. “Didn’t I tell you? Isn’t he fantastic?”
Charlie is one of about 200 chimpanzees in Liberia who have “retired” as research animals in studies of hepatitis viruses, research that now appears to be close to a successful conclusion. He is the dominant chimp on Red Deer Island, a sort of halfway house for a select group of experimental animals that are in the process of being reintroduced to the wild.
“They did human society a favor,” said Miss Brotman, head of Vilab II, a research facility operated by the New York Blood Center in association with the Liberian Institute for Biomedical Research. “It’s our responsibility to try to pay them back by letting them live out their lives in their natural environment.”
Vilab II, a complex of laboratories, staff housing and screened-in chimp bungalows set in the rain forest about 40 miles from Monrovia, is one of several hepatitis research institutes that are attempting the difficult task of returning “retired” chimpanzees to the wild in Africa. It was established 10 years ago, and about 50 chimps were captured to serve as an initial experimental and breeding colony.
Young chimps are excellent models for hepatitis research because they are so genetically close to humans and exhibit the same biochemical changes from the hepatitis viruses, yet they do not contract the clinical disease that makes tests on humans so risky. Miss Brotman emphasized that no experiment performed at Vilab has ever resulted in the death or disablement of a chimp.
But the chimps lose their value as research animals by the time they reach about four years of age. Since a chimp may live for 40 years, that leaves a long retirement.
Some can be put into zoos or used in breeding programs, but for the rest the prospects are bleak. It is expensive to keep an adult chimpanzee in captivity, and chimps that have outlived their research usefulness are often put to death. Until recently they have not been able to be returned to the wild because they never learned survival skills; most were bred in captivity, but some were taken by poachers who killed the mother and sold the baby for $15,000 or more.

1,500 chimps in US laboratories
With that in mind, Miss Brotman and Alfred M. Prince, the New York- based director of the Vilab project, began in 1978 to try to develop a program to return the chimps to the wild.
Though that may sound like a simple and logical idea, only a few laboratories have set up such programs. There are currently as many as 1,500 chimpanzees in American labs, breeding facilities and zoos. Almost all of them will spend their entire lives behind bars.
About one chimp in every four used in hepatitis research becomes an asymptomatic carrier. These must stay in captivity.
Vilab’s rehabilitation program begins by placing groups of about 10 chimps between 5 and 10 years of age on an island downriver from the institute.
On the island, the chimps are provided with some supplementary food and their progress is carefully monitored. Any animals that are not adjusting to freedom – for example, those that are not eating or are being frequently beaten up by other animals – can be returned to the protection of civilization.
Most of the chimps, however, do appear to gradually become accustomed to life in a natural habitat, Miss Brotman said. They learn to forage for food, build nests in the trees, have sexual relations, give birth – in the last two and a half years four babies have been born on Red Deer Island – care for the young and form a closely knit troop with a normal social hierarchy.
“Many of these animals lived in my house and slept in my bed as infants,” Miss Brotman said. But after they have been two to three years on the island, she added, “even I can’t walk among them safely. An adult male chimp weighs in at about 150 pounds, is stronger than a man and far more aggressive than a gorilla.”

Life without groceries
The process does not end there, however. After five or six years on the island, the chimps need to be transferred to a game reserve where they will have enough space, roughly one acre per chimp, to fend for themselves without anyone bringing them groceries. The area into which they are released must also not have other chimpanzee troops too close by, since that could lead to conflicts that the tenderfoot chimps, unused to the laws of the jungle, would probably lose.
A first group of 10 chimpanzees is scheduled to be released this summer in the Asagny National Park in the Ivory Coast, one of only a handful of reserves in West Africa that conservationists consider reasonably well- protected from poachers and other forms of human encroachment.
For their first year or so in the wild, the chimps will wear radio telemeters on collars, each with its own frequency, so that every individual’s whereabouts and progress can be monitored. Within two years, the collars will disintegrate.
While there is no guarantee that everything will work out as planned, there are encouraging signs, such as Charlie throwing the rock at Miss Brotman, an aggressive display that suggests that Charlie has become a true troop leader and is no longer anyone’s pet.
“The point is to give them a quality of life they couldn’t have in even the best facility,” Miss Brotman said. ”It’s only right. They really are near human, you know.”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GpWNR5snUU8&hd=1#!

Ebola: How US lab dumped infectious monkeys in Liberia, video « The Eagle Online - The Nigerian Online Newspaper

Ebola: How US lab dumped infectious monkeys in Liberia, video « The Eagle Online - The Nigerian Online Newspaper

Life on earth is the miraculous thing in the world.

The life on earth is the miraculous thing in the world. For believers in God, life on earth is the magnificent work of almighty. For atheists it is only the part of universe and life evolved due to scientific evolutions. Life in different forms sustain on earth. Plants, animals, microorganisms are some of them. But the life of human beings is distinctive from all other forms. The origin of man is not yet completely clarified by scientific reasoning.

Even in scientific theories, the creation of man is a disputable topic. Scientists are still researching to find out the particle which constituted life. Agitation against this research is conducted by believers as they believe that it is questioning against God and his powers. The ability of man is very different from other living beings. His adaptability to nature, his thought process and communicative skills are different and in higher forms than any other living beings. Man is basically curious about everything in the nature. He started using various methods about his origin and evolution. The theory of life evolving out from a tiny atom is still not accepted by majority. There are researches done and scientists proved that there was a common ancestor to the entire mankind. Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution is not accepted by modern scientists. The origin of man from apes is not yet proved. The question they raise is, if man originated from apes or monkey family why such evolution is not happening now? It points toward the admitted fact that man had a common ancestor not in the animal form but in primitive human form itself. It is still an ongoing debate.

The evolution theory of Darwin is accepted to a certain extent with some modifications that genetic mutation through long time helped the man to evolve in the present form. Some scientists firmly believe in Darwin’s theory and propagate that even today man is undergoing evolution physically or genetically but it is not properly researched. The life span man is increased, that is because the genes and the immunity system are far more developed than the ancient man. They state that these changes occur in the human body in a subtle manner. A very strict and vast research pattern has to be put forth for determining the evolution process happened and going to be happen in future on human beings.

Little Kindness

"Gestures, in love, are incomparably more attractive, effective and valuable than words." - Francois Rabelais

A famous musician once sang, "...we've got to try a little kindness, show a little kindness, shine the light for everyone to see..." A little kindness will do so much more.

It was after school and Mark was walking home; he noticed the kid just in front of him had tripped, and dropped all the stuff he was carrying. Some books, two sweaters, a baseball bat, and a small tape recorder. Mark bent over and helped the kid pick up the scattered stuff. Since they were going the same way, he helped carry part of the burden. As they walked Mark learnt the boy’s name was Bill, that he loved video games, baseball and history, and that he was having lots of trouble with his other subjects plus he'd just broken up with his girlfriend.

They arrived Bill’s home first and Mark was invited in for a drink and snack; and to watch some television. The afternoon passed pleasantly with a few laughs and some shared small talk, then Mark went home. They continued to see each other around school, had lunch together once or twice, then both graduated from junior high. They ended up in the same high school where they had brief contacts over the years. Finally the long awaited senior year came and three weeks before graduation, Bill asked Mark if they could talk. Bill reminded him of the day years ago when they had first met. “Did you ever wonder why I was carrying so many things home that day?” asked Bill. “You see," he went on, "I cleaned out my locker because I didn’t want to leave a mess for anyone else. I had stored away some of my mothers sleeping pills and I was going home to commit suicide. But after we spent some time together talking and laughing, I realized that if I had killed myself, I would have missed that time and so many others that might follow. So you see, Mark, when you picked up my stuff that day, you did a lot more, you saved my life.”

God's word says, that "it's more blessed to give than to receive...". Little acts of kindness offered are usually very touching, and give the recipients of such acts the belief that life is worth living. Helping an old lady cross the street. Paying for someone's bus fair after they realize they left the purse or wallet at home. Helping someone pick their bag after it falls when their struggling with so much stuff. Or, even going the extra mile helping a lady take her bag home because you noticed she was clutching too many stuff at the bus top are acts of kindness that eases the burden on them.

Beloved no matter how small the act is, be conscious of those around you who need such help. Lend a hand, hold a door open, relinquish your spot on the line, give your sit to another in the bus...pick up the strewn stuff on the floor; who knows you might just be saving Bill's life. Stop that suicide attempt today with a show of kindness.

How Magnesium Supplements boosts brainpower

New research finds that an increase in brain magnesium improves learning and memory in young and old rats. The study, published in January 28^th issue of the journal neuron, suggests that increasing magnesium intake may be a valid strategy to enhance cognitive abilities and supports speculation that inadequate levels of magnesium impair cognitive function, leading to faster deterioration of memory in aging animals.

Diet can have a significant impact on cognitive capacity. Identification of dietary factors which have a positive influence on synapses, the sites of communication between neurons, might help to enhance learning and memory and prevent their decline with age and diseases. Professor Guosong Liu, Director of the Center for Learning and Memory at Tisinghua university in Beijing, China, led a study examining whether increased levels of one such dietary supplement, magnesium, boosts brain power.

“Magnesium is essential for the proper functioning of many tissues in the body, including the brain and, in an earlier study, we demonstrated that magnesium promoted synaptic plasticity in cultured brain cells.’’ Explains Liu. “Therefore it was tempting to take our studies a step further and investigate whether an increase in brain magnesium levels enhanced cognitive function in animals.”

Because it is difficult to boost brain magnesium levels with traditional oral supplements, Dr Liu and colleagues developed a new magnesium compound, magnesium-L-threorate (Mgt) that could significantly increase magnesium in the brain via dietary supplementation. They used Mgt to increase magnesium in rats of different ages and then looked for behavioural and cellular changes associated with memory.

‘’We found that increased brain magnesium enhanced many different forms of learning and memory in both young and aged rats” says Liu.

A close examination of cellular changes associated with memory revealed an increase in the number of functional synapses, activation of key signaling molecules and an enhancement of short and long-term synaptic processes that are crucial for learning and memory.

Midas Touch

According to Greek mythology, Midas was a king who lived in Phrygia in the eighth century B.C. He was very wealthy and had more gold than anyone in the world. He stored the yellow coins and bars in huge vaults underneath his palace and spent many hours each day handling and counting his treasure.

But no matter how much gold Midas collected and put into his vaults, it was not enough. He always wanted more, and he spent much of his time dreaming about how to obtain still more gold.

According to the legend, one day a being dressed in white appeared to Midas and granted him a wish. The king instantly wished for the "golden touch"—that everything he touched would turn to gold.

The next morning when Midas woke up, he found that his plain linen bedcovers had been transformed into finely spun gold! He gasped with astonishment and jumped out of bed. Then he touched the bedpost, and it turned to gold. "It's true," he cried. "I have the golden touch!"

He rushed through the palace, brushing against walls and furniture along the way, all of which turned to gold at his touch. Out in the garden, he went from bush to bush, touching roses and other flowers, smiling as they turned to gold.

This is the part of the legend most people remember. Many people seem to be fascinated with the idea of being able to create gold—unlimited wealth—at the touch of a finger. Obviously, this is what people are thinking about when they refer to the "Midas touch."

But the Midas myth doesn't end here with everyone living happily ever after.

If You Get What You Want, Will You Want What You Get?

Finally, tiring from the excitement of touching various items and seeing them turn into gold, Midas sat down to read while he waited for breakfast. But the book he picked up immediately turned to gold. Then when he tried to eat a peach, a spoonful of porridge, and a piece of bread, they each turned into hard golden lumps! Even the water in his cup turned to gold.

The king grew alarmed. "If even my food turns to gold, how will I ever eat again?" he worried.

Just then, Midas' daughter, Aurelia, came into the room. She was the only thing he had loved as much as his gold. Aurelia ran to her father, threw her arms around him, and kissed him. Much to Midas' horror, she grew strangely still and turned from a loving, laughing little girl into a golden statue.

The king howled in anguish, overcome by the horror of what was happening before his very eyes. He had gotten what be asked for, but he suddenly realized he didn't want what he was getting.

Fortunately, this is still not the end of the Midas myth. There is yet another part to the story.

Rediscovering True Riches

The being dressed in white suddenly reappeared and asked, "Well, King Midas, are you not the happiest of men?"

"Oh, no," moaned the king, "I am the most miserable of all creatures."

"What? Did I not grant your wish for the golden touch?"

"Yes, but it is a curse to me now," Midas wept. "All that I truly loved is now lost to me."

"Do you mean to say that you would prefer a crust of bread or a cup of water to the gift of the golden touch?" asked the glowing white being.

"Oh, yes!" Midas exclaimed. "I would give up all the gold in the world if only my daughter were restored to me."

According to the myth, the being dressed in white told Midas to go bathe in a certain spring of water that would wash away his golden touch. He was also to bring back some of the water to sprinkle on his daughter and any other objects he wished to change back to their original form.

So the legendary King Midas gladly gave up his golden touch and rejoiced in the restoration of the simple things of life—family, food, and natural beauty. Midas realized that these are the things that have greater value than gold.

The truth is, we do not live in a fairy-tale world. There is no Midas touch or magical formula for material success. But there are opportunities for those who are willing to be diligent and faithful in the work of their mind and hands. And there are biblical principles concerning prosperity and blessing that God honors according to His Word.

Secrets of an Outstanding People

KAIZEN? What does it mean? Is it an English word?  Kaizen is a Japanese word which best helps capture the concept to be express here, Perhaps it is more of an attitude than a concept. It is a process or system based on making an unending positive improvements. It is an attitude found in almost every outstanding achiever or champion. 

For these people, achievement is not a destination. It is rather an unending journey of improvements. It is an attitude dedicated to improvements. It is an attitude compulsively fixed on making the best better. A positive force minded attitude. It is an attitude of continuous stretch, forever pushing the frontiers of possibility, an attitude of never getting complacent or relaxed in the belief that the best, the highest has been obtained. For great people there is never a performance that is so good that it cannot be bettered. In a sense the spirit of improvement possesses these personalities. For them, there is never an apogee in the graph of improvements. There is never a place of stable climax. All climaxes can be improved upon. Every climax is to be surpassed.

Usually the opponent is the spur for greater improvements for the average competitor, but not necessarily for this group of outstanding personalities. For the latter, even where all opponents are beaten, they constitute their own best records into the opponent that must be beaten. Their concept of competition is intrinsic. The challenge is continuously to beat their best performances.

Each best performance becomes the new challenge to be beaten, to be improved upon. The new mark becomes a stepping stool for further climb. For them, it is like the climb on a never-ending ladder leading higher and higher into the heights. There is never a point of satiation. The challenge is constantly for better performances. There are never really destination, but a compulsive unstoppable journey of attainments. No performance of theirs is so good that it cannot be improved upon.