有关于一些新闻的英语报道

/article/dn22240-organic-food-no-better-for-you-or-the-planet.html Organic food: no better for you, or the planetFor organic farmers, bad news comes in twos this week. Organic crops seem to be no more nutritious than conventional ones, and are not necessarily great for the planet either.Organic farming eschews synthetic pesticides and fertilisers, and supposedly produces more nutritious food containing fewer harmful contaminants. Crystal Smith-Spangler of S tanford University in California and colleagues put together 237 studies comparing organic andnon-organic food. They found little evidence that organic food was more nutritious. Conventional foods contained more pesticides but were within permitted limits (Annals of Internal Medicine,vol 157, p 348).Meanwhile, organic farming's green credentials have been questioned by Hanna Tuomisto ofthe University of Oxford and colleagues, who reviewed 109 papers. Organic farms were less polluting for a given area of land, but were often more polluting per unit of food produced. Theydid have better soil, though, and housed more species (Journal of Environmental Management, /h8v)."An 'organic' label is not a straightforward guarantee of the most environmentally friendly product," says Tuomisto. She advocates integrated farming, combining a range of existing systems."Advanced breeding technologies, combined with the best farming practices from organic and conventional systems, could have the best overall impact in terms of improving crop yield and sustainability," says Dale Sanders, director of the John Innes Centre in Norwich, UK/world/2012/sep/07/syria-daraya-massacre-ghost-townSyria crisis: Daraya massacre leaves a ghost town still counting its deadOne of the first journalists to enter the Damascus suburb after the slaughter finds a desperate search for lost relativeso Janine di Giovanni in Darayao , Friday 7 September 2012 18.31 BSTA mass grave in Daraya. Estimates of the death tally in August's massacre range from several hundred to more than 1,000. Photograph: Shaam News Network/APThe young mechanic had lost the sight in his right eye during the battle of Daraya. Still, he searched for his missing father for three days, combing destroyed buildings and piles of rubble. He finally found the old man dead on the outskirts of town, at a farm with three other bodies, boys aged 16-20. "Why kill an old man?" he asks.He is not the only one to ask the question. An estimated 500 people were slaughtered in Daraya over two and a half days at the end of last month. Rebels and the government accuse each other. Left behind is a town destroyed beyond recognition.According to Human Rights Watch (HRW), which has interviewed Daraya residents and analysed satellite images of the battle, evidence points towards government responsibility for the killings, although it is not clear whether uniformed men or the shabiha militia carried out the killings after the town was bombed by helicopters and shelled."What we don't know yet is who did the dirty work, the executions –whether it was men in uniform or shabiha," says HRW's Ole Solvang. "We're still investigating."Witnesses speak of intense shelling from helicopters with mounted machine guns, mortars from a government military airport near the Mezzah neighbourhood, and snipers in buildings in the north of the city. They speak of bodies lying in the street, and groups of civilians hiding underground only to be found and summarily killed.Shortly after the events, in an extraordinary act of indecency, the pro-regime television journalist Micheline Azar, entered the town to interview the dying, sticking her microphone in front of their bloody and wounded faces. She said the killings were "in the name of freedom". Not even children were spared her intrusions."It was horrific," says Reem, a Daraya resident. "She was a vulture. She went through the crowds talking to the wounded as though she was floating on water, as though there was not this scene of hell in front of her."Ghost townTwo weeks on, Daraya still stinks of death. A poor Sunni suburb south of Damascus, it had been well known for furniture-making, and for its peaceful resistance before the conflict. Now it is a ghost town of shattered glass and broken graveyard walls, bombed vegetable shops and decapitated blocks of flats. Rank rubbish is piled on corners, uncollected. There is the unmistakable smell of rotting corpses that have not yet been removed from houses. A lone bicyclist makes his way awkwardly through the rubble and debris.The town is still and lifeless. There is no way to confirm the death tally. It ranges from opposition reports of more than 1,000 to government figures of several hundred. The local gravedigger says he has already buried 1,000, and more bodies are found every day. The mounds of freshly dug, moist earth in the cemetery in the middle of town look like they harbour at least several hundred dead.A woman who comes to the graveyard each day to check a list for news of her sons says: "We are still searching houses and abandoned ruins trying to find them." She says everyone waits for the hour when the gravedigger arrives and there are new bodies to identify.In the ashen aftermath of war, it is impossible to imagine what this place looked like before, or what really happened here. It was first bombed, the centre flattened, before house-to-house operations were conducted. Some witnesses say men and boys were killed at close range with guns; others say knives were used."The problem is there is no food, no water, no electricity," says one family. Outside, two children play amid the rubble. "There's nothing to do, no one to play with,"says six-year-old Rauda. "My friends left when the bombing started. I stayed close to my mother and held her. But she said we were not leaving."Many fear becoming refugees as much as they fear the violence. "Would you leave your home?" asks Rashid, who owned a shop, now destroyed. "Would you take your life apart? We leave with our heads high, or we don't leave at all."The attack on Daraya started on 20 August and intensified two days later. The Free Syrian Army withdrew from the town on 23 August and the army entered the next day. "The shelling started at 7.30am. There is no sound more frightening than rockets," says Rashid.People hid in basements, and when the army arrived some were pulled out and killed outside; others were sprayed with machine-gun fire, Rashid says. "We had some informers who pointed out where opposition people were. They let the women run away but they shot the men one by one. In some cases, they went into the basement and killed old men and children –just because they were boys." His wife's four brothers and three nephews were among the victims.Secret gravesA woman called Umm Hussein says she was rushing to escape the bombardment with her young daughter and 20-year-old son when a truck went by with soldiers shouting: "With our life, with our blood we will fight for Bashar." Umm Hussein and her children did not make it in time: they were stopped and, while she and her daughter were spared, her son was shot and his body taken out of town. There are rumours that some victims are being moved to secret graves, in an eerie reprise of Srebrenica.But other people say the regime soldiers fed them and provided medical attention to the wounded. "They gave us bread," one man says. "Not all of them were monsters."Will Daraya be a turning point in the conflict? Lakhdar Brahimi, the UN's special envoy, sent to the region after Kofi Annan's resignation, has said he is under no illusions about the difficulty he will face. Three months earlier the Houla massacre was also called a turning point."We are waiting for God, waiting for victory," says Rashid, looking around his wasted street. "But victory doesn't seem very soon now."/the-scotsman/education/university-flops-beds-test-as-students-head-to-hotels-1-2512493University flops beds test as students head to hotelsThe Travelodge in St Mary's StreetBy JEN LAVERYPublished on Friday 7 September 2012 12:01FORTY first-year students at Edinburgh University are to be given emergency accommodation in Travelodge hotels and makeshift dormitories after the institution again failed to honour guarantees on housing.Full-time first-year undergraduates living outside the city are normally guaranteed a place in university accommodation for their first year, provided that they submit their application to Accommodation Services by the set deadlines.However, days before the start of term, the university has admitted that alternative accommodation has had to be sourced, despite the university purchasing more than 1000 beds in privately-operated student residences such as Unite.This is the second year running the university has faced problems finding accommodation for first-year students.Common areas in Pollock Halls will now be used to house 17 students in “mini-dorms”, while a further 23 are to be housed in Travelodge hotels at Cameron Toll and St Mary’s Str eet.A university spokesman said the Travelodges had been chosen for their proximity to the university and because they had the capacity for the students to be housed together, adding: “We recognise that this is a serious issue for those affected and we apologise for the inconvenience caused. We expect to have all students accommodated as planned within 30d ays.”The spokesman added that the total cost of the venture would not be known until all the students had been successfully rehoused.A Travelodge spokesman said that room prices vary depending on how far in advance bookings are made and when they are made for. Based on the price of £29 per room, one of the cheapest advertised on its website, housing the 23 students would cost £667 per day – and more than £20,000 if the arrangement continued for the full 30 days.Edinburgh University Students’ Association president James McAsh, below, said the university needed to re-evaluate its priorities. He said: “It is worth noting that the number of beds in Masson House, which is operated by the university’s commercial wing and is currently being used for private conference accommodation, is greater than the total number of students who are being put into temporary accommodation.“The university needs to stop prioritising corporate ventures over its students.”In September last year, it was revealed that more than 60 first-year students were being housed at Queen Margaret University halls, on the outskirts of Musselburgh, resulting in 40-minute commutes to classes.In January, new rector Peter McColl said he was “shocked” to discover that rooms were being used for guests attending conferences while this disruption was taking place, and called for a review./china/2012-09/08/content_15745112.htmComments(Print Mail LargeThe first 72 hours are critical for post-quake rescue operations and rescuers must make their utmost efforts to find and rescue survivors, Wen said.Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao (Front R) visits the quake-hit area at Zhaotong city of Yunnan Province, Sept 8, 2012. [Photo/Xinhua]Wen reached mountainous Yiliang County, one of the worst-hit areas, around 1 am Saturday. He spent a sleepless night visiting quake survivors in villages and hospitals.In a tent outside a hospital building, Wen visited a four-year-old girl who suffered a hand fracture and lost her grandfather in the quake after a falling boulder destroyed her family's home."(You) must hold on and take good care of the child," Wen told the girl's mother.The central square of Yiliang County is covered with tents and temporary shelters for those who have been relocated.Wen called on the quake survivors in the square to work together and remain confident.He also thanked soldiers and police officers who have conducted rescue and relief operations.At 4:40 am, Wen called a meeting in a temporary tent in the quake zone, where he told local officials that the top priority now is to save people. He asked rescuers to reach every village on Saturday.He demanded coordinated efforts in treating the injured in order to minimize the number of casualties.Shelter, food, water and medical treatment should be appropriately arranged for the 200,000 local residents who were forced to evacuate, Wen said."We have to keep safety as a top concern and guard against epidemics," Wen said, urging rescuers to treat garbage and medical waste appropriately.Wen inspected relief efforts around 10:45 am Saturday, inquiring about local residents' living conditions and warning of the risk of quake-triggered disasters.Wen asked authorities to formulate specific standards concerning subsidies and compensation provided to local residents, as well as map out detailed post-quake reconstruction policies.Two quakes measuring 5.7 and 5.6 on the Richter scale hit a border area near Yiliang County in Yunnan and Weining County in Guizhou Province at 11:19 am and 12:16 pm Friday, respectively, followed by multiple aftershocks."The quakes are not over yet. Aftershocks continue, and within a period of time we will need to guard against secondary and geological hazards," Wen said.The national observatory has forecast rainy weather for the region over the next three days, which may hinder rescue efforts.The observatory warned of possible rain-triggered geological disasters and urged local authorities to enhance monitoring.As part of its efforts to ensure transportation for quake relief personnel and supplies, the Civil Aviation Administration on Saturday ordered airlines to arrange flights and dispatch chartered flights if necessary to transport relief materials and personnel to the quake zone.It has asked the Yibin airport in Sichuan Province, the closest airport to quake-hit Yiliang county in Yunnan, to operate around-the-clock to handle aid flights.Friday's quakes have caused direct economic losses of 3.69 billion yuan ($581 million) in Yunnan and Guizhou provinces, the Ministry of Civil Affairs said Saturday.Preliminary statistics collected as of 10 am Saturday indicated that the quakes have left 80 people dead and 820 others injured, and forced the relocation of 201,000 people in Yunnan.The earthquakes also cut off electricity, triggered landslides and damaged hundreds of thousands of houses in Yunnan, causing 3.5 billion yuan in direct economic losses.According to the ministry, there have been no casualties reported in neighboring Guizhou, where the quakes forced the evacuation of 28,000 people.State and provincial civil affairs authorities have sent 21,000 tents, 31,000 quilts and 26,000 coats to Yunnan. The Red Cross Society of China has also dispatched quilts, jackets and tents to the quake zone.Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao (third R) visits an injured child at Yiliang CountyPeople's Hospital, Zhaotong city of Yunnan province, Sept 8, 2012.[Photo/X inhua]/china/2012-09/08/content_15745199.htmHome / China / PoliticsHu attends APEC meeting inVladivostokUpdated: 2012-09-08 17:22( Xinhua)Comments(VLADIVOSTOK - Chinese President Hu Jintao and leaders from other Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) members gathered here Saturday to discuss using collective action to ensure stable growth in the region.Chinese President Hu Jintao speaks at the 20th APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting in Vladivostok, east Russia, Sept 8, 2012. [Photo/Xinhua]At the two-day APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting, under the theme of "Integrate to Grow, Innovate to Prosper," the leaders will discuss trade and investment liberalization, regional economic integration, strengthening food security and establishing reliable supply chains, as well as cooperation to foster innovative growth.This year's APEC meeting was convened at a time when destabilizing factors and uncertainties remain prominent in the world economy.At present, major economies are experiencing sluggish growth, global demand remains weak, eurozone economies are confronted with a serious debt crisis, international trade has notably slowed, and unemployment is still high in many advanced economies.While pursing APEC's goal of free trade and investment, APEC leaders will work out measures to strengthen cooperation in dealing with these acute problems, which threatenstable growth in the region.Chinese officials said Hu would present China's views to the meeting on how to promote world and regional economic growth, and elaborate China's stance on the topics of this year's meeting.Highlighting the agenda of the meeting, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that the key challenge for Russia and all the APEC economies now is to support sustainable growth."We suggest that the dialogue in Vladivostok focus on freeing up trade and investment flows to stimulate economic growth, taking into account new realities such as Russia's accession to the World Trade Organization," Putin said in an article published in the Wall Street Journal."We have made food security a particular priority for discussion at the summit, a proposal that the other participants supported. Instability in global food markets can lead to serious economic and social risks. We must jointly offer answers to this challenge," he said.Later in the day, the leaders will meet members of the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) to seek their recommendations for future work in specified priority areas.The APEC leaders and ABAC representatives are expected to exchange views on issues such as the Doha Round of global trade negotiations, regional economic integration and food security.Chinese Assistant Minister of Commerce Yu Jianhua told a press briefing last week that APEC members need to bear in mind the nature of the group, adhere to the principle of consensus, take members' differences into consideration and uphold non-discrimination, openness and tolerance while advancing regional integration.At the end of the two-day gathering, the leaders were expected to issue a declaration which will outline the future development of the region.APEC is the premier economic forum in the Asia-Pacific region.Since APEC's birth in 1989, it has grown to encompass 21 members spanning four continents, and represents the most economically dynamic region in the world, accounting for approximately 40 percent of the world's population, around 57 percent of world GDP and about 48 percent of global trade.APEC's 21 member economies are Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, China's Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the Philippines, Russia, Singapore, Chinese Taipei, Thailand, the United States and Vietnam.。