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Virus link to Cambodias killer disease found (2 hrs 40 mins ago) Health experts working to identify an illness that has killed dozens of children in Cambodia found a link to a virus that causes hand, foot and mouth disease, the UN health agency said. At least 52 children aged three months to 11 years have died from the undiagnosed syndrome since mid-April, out of 59 cases, the World Health Organization and the Cambodian health ministry said, updating the toll. Recent laboratory results showed "a significant proportion of the samples tested positive for Enterovirus 71 (EV-71)'', which causes a lethal strain of hand, foot and mouth disease, the joint statement said, Agence France-Presse reports. EV-71 is common in Asia, but Nima Asgari, a public health specialist for the WHO in Cambodia, told AFP he believed it had not been seen in this country before. Asgari said identification of the strain was an important first step but stressed more tests were needed to learn if the deceased children also suffered from other viruses. "It's a significant finding,'' he said. "It demystifies quite a lot the situation.''

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Virus link to Cambodias killer disease found

There are new hands at the tiller for the Tri-County Regional Planning Commission. As part of a routine, two-year swap in the chairmanship between commission members in Peoria, Tazewell and Woodford counties, Larry Whitaker is stepping up to replace Mike Phelan.

The change comes after what has been an extremely active past couple years for the commission under Phelan's chairmanship, something Whitaker - who stepped back onto the commission recently after some time off - noted with the air of someone quite impressed.

"When I came back on the commission, I was just staggered by the intensity of work, the quality of work, the volume of work the commission has continued to take on," he said. Tri-County is "one of those organizations that people really don't hear about until a big project comes along."

Among those lately has been work involved with the Army Corps of Engineers' construction of the island in the Illinois River just north of the McClugage Bridge and a close focus on U.S. Environmental Protection Agency air standards issues - the latter in an effort to keep local air cleaner so we don't face even tighter regulations and restrictions during summer months.

Those are the kinds of things that don't "make for glorious headlines and a lot of glamorous news copy," Whitaker said, but they're the bread and butter of what the commission quietly does.

In addition, of course, the commission has spent time discussing a potential rail link into the Amtrak corridors passing through Bloomington and Galesburg, and commissioned a major study on regional economic development.

"I'm hopeful I can come close to that level of accomplishment" over the next two years, Whitaker said, giving Phelan credit for a "phenomenal job engaging the organization and the people it serves."

Whitaker also earns plaudits from Woodford County Board Chairman Stan Glazier for his experience and leadership, but moreover for the fact that "his personality blends in nicely with everyone so well."

That ability to work well with others is particularly critical for an organization that has to deal with sometimes competing regional interests and parochial interests.

It's a song Whitaker sings well.

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Word on the Street: Planning commission chief figures to be busy

NEW YORK: Social networking giant Facebook plans to engage in a new type of mobile advertising based on the apps used by consumers, The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday on its website. The social network, which has 900 million users, would use its Facebook Connect feature which lets millions log into applications using their Facebook ID and password to track consumers apps, and tailor ads accordingly, it said. Facebook which is based in Menlo Park, California may also attempt to track how people use the apps, but a final decision has not been made, the newspaper said, quoting unnamed sources familiar with the companys plans. The plan is likely to stoke privacy fears, as the initiative would go further than current mobile-ad networks, which track ads viewed by consumers on their mobile phones web browser, the report said. One of the biggest challenges Facebook must confront is its difficulties in generating revenues from smartphones, with more and more users accessing the social networks from mobile devices. That factor led analysts to downgrade their forecasts for the group before its stock market debut in May, which ended up being less than a success. At that time, Facebook shares were offered at $ 38. Shares closed Friday at $ 31.73. Google Inc and Facebook Inc are now neck-and-neck in the race to become the top US online display advertising players, with the search leader expected to edge past the No. 1 social network next year, according to research house eMarketer. Both Internet giants dethroned Yahoo Inc last year, deposing the longtime dominant force in display ads on websites. Both Internet giants dethroned Yahoo Inc last year, deposing the longtime dominant force in display ads on websites.

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Facebook to target ads based on app usage

Sunday, July 8, 2012

KEEPING up with the social networking phenomenon in the Philippines with the continued growth in the use of Twitter among Filipinos, Globe Telecom launched its newest offer to give subscribers free access to Twitter on their mobile phones.

Available to Globe Prepaid and TM subscribers with Internet-capable handsets, the Free Twitter promo is accessible via mobile.twitter.com. The promo allows users to use the main features of Twitter through their mobile phones such as posting tweets and re-tweets, following friends, and editing privacy settings.

Have something to report? Tell us in text, photos or videos.

To enjoy Free Twitter on mobile, subscribers can text FREE TWITTER to 8888 for free**. Upon successful registration to the promo, subscribers will receive a confirmation message which contains the link to the service. Users can also opt to go to their mobile phones internet browser and type http://mobile.twitter.com to use the service.

Subscription to Free Twitter is valid until July 31.

In February, Globe Prepaid and TM subscribers got free access to Facebook on mobile.

Facebook and Twitter are two of the most widely-used social networking sites among Filipinos.

According to a study done by global social media data intelligence and research firm Semiocast in January 2012, the Philippines ranks 8th in the world with the most number of Twitter users with over eight million Filipinos accessing the social networking site.

With the new offer, Globe said it strengthens its position as leader in mobile Internet by staying proactive in responding to the needs of its subscribers, as evidenced in the Yahoo! Net Index 2011 where it was voted as the most popular service provider for mobile internet services.

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Globe offers users free Twitter access

MANILA, Philippines It's not bird flu or SARS. It's Enterovirus 71.

This virus is behind the mystery illness that killed 64 young children and hospitalized 66 in Cambodia, scientists in Phnom Penh said on Sunday, July 8.

The Pasteur Institute in Phnom Penh announced that it discovered Enterovirus Type 71 in about two-thirds of patients. The virus is the perfect explanation for the deaths, according to the institutes virology unit head Philippe Buchy who was cited by Bloomberg.

We can now focus on how to contain it, Buchy said.

Enterovirus Type 71 is a strain of hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD), which is widespread in Asia but rare in Cambodia.

HFMD, a human disease due to intestinal viruses, is not the same as foot-and-mouth disease, which only affects animals. Children affected by HFMD generally suffer high fever, rashes, respiratory and, sometimes, neurological problems.

It took longer for the experts to identify the virus since, in the 64 of the 66 deaths reported since April, the childs health deteriorated faster than expected.

The Enterovirus 71 usually does not lead to such quick deaths.

Most of the 64 who died are between the ages of two and three, according to Swiss pediatrician Beat Richner of Kantha Bopha children's hospital in Phonm Penh where most of the patients were taken.

"All these children have encephalitis (inflammation of the brain) and in the later hours of their life they develop a severe pneumonia with a destruction of the alveoli in the lungs. That is the reason they die," he said. The alveoli, or air sacs, are pockets in the lungs where the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide takes place.

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Enterovirus 71 behind 'mystery disease'