Lilypads, Kota Terapung Masa Depan (Ecopolis)

(Sumber: http://vincent.callebaut.org, http://www.eikongraphia.com, dan http://www.energiportal.com)

Arsitek dari Belgia, Vincent Callebaut, mengajukan terobosan baru dalam menghadapi masalah perubahan iklim yang ekstrem pada 2100 nanti. Diperkirakan, pada tahun itu beberapa daratan sudah tenggelam oleh naiknya permukaan air laut. Kota-kota besar seperti New York, Bombay, Calcutta, Hô Chi Minh, Shanghai, Miami, Lagos, Abidjan, Jakarta, Alexandria, ... akan menghasilkan 250 juta pengungsi. Beberapa daratan yang tidak tenggelam, dianggap tidak layak tinggal karena tingkat keasinan air laut telah merusak ekosistem yang ada.

Perlu diketahui bahwa naiknya permukaan air laut disebabkan oleh dua sumber es raksasa yang mencair, yaitu Benua Antartika-Greenland dan kumpulan gletser yang tersebar di seluruh dunia. Alasan lainnya adalah terjadinya dilatasi air yang dipengaruhi oleh perubahan suhu. Berdasarkan data GIEC (Intergovernmental Group on the Evolution of the Climate), permukaan air laut sudah naik 20 - 90 cm pada abad ini dengan nilai rata-rata 50 cm (bandingkan dengan nilai rata-rata 10 cm pada abad 20). Para ilmuwan dunia pun telah menghitung bahwa perubahan suhu 1°C akan meningkatkan ketinggian permukan air laut 1 meter. Peningkatan yang hanya 1 m ini akan menenggelamkan daratan 0.05% di Uruguay, 1% di Mesir, 6% di Belanda, 17.5% di Bangladesh dan 80% di Kepulauan Marshall-Kiribati sampai ke Kepulauan Maladewa.

Terobosan baru Vincent adalah kota terapung bernama Lilypads. Lilypads adalah prototipe kota amfibi yang mampu menghidupi diri sendiri dan mampu menampung 50.000 orang. Tiap kota terdapat danau yang menampung danmenjernihkan air hujan. Kota terapung ini tidak membutuhkan jalan dan akan "terhanyut" ke seluruh dunia akibat pergerakan arus laut. Kota ini pun mempunyai 3 marina (pelabuhan kecil) dan 3 gunung dengan ketinggian berbeda yang dikhususkan bagi dunia kerja, bisnis, dan hiburan. Desain kotanya diliputi oleh bangunan dan tanaman, dengan konsep jalan yang ramah lingkungan. Kota amfibi ini unik karena setengahnya adalah air dan setengahnya lagi adalah darat. Sebagian besar di atas permukaan air dan sebagian lainnya di dalam air.

Vincent menjanjikan bahwa kota ini telah mengatasi 4 (empat) masalah utama manusia, yaitu iklim, biodiversitas (keragaman alami makhluk hidup), air, dan kesehatan. Kota ini mendapat sumber daya dari matahari, angin, dan arus laut yang akan memproduksi lebih banyak energi daripada energi yang dikonsumsinya. Selain itu juga akan menjadi kota yang ber-"emisi nol" karena semua karbon dan limbah akan didaur ulang.

Vincent percaya bahwa produknya ini adalah solusi jangka panjang untuk menghadapi naiknya air laut. Memperkuat garis pantai bukanlah solusi karena hanyalah solusi jangka pendek. Menurutnya, desain dari kota terapung ini diinspirasikan dari daun Lili yang mempunyai nama latin Amazonia Victoria Regia (famili Nympheas) yang memiliki tulang daun yang sangat rapat. Tanaman akuatik ini ditemukan oleh ahli botani dari Jerman, Thaddeaus Haenke, yang dipersembahkan kepada Ratu Victoria dari Inggris pada abad 19. Kulit permukaannya yang "double" terdiri dari serat-serat polyester yang ter-cover oleh lapisan titanium dioxide (TiO2) seperti anatase, sehingga dapat mengabsorbsi polusiatmosfer melalui efek fotokatalis.

Tujuan Vincent membuat kota ini adalah menciptakan "hubungan yang harmonis antara manusia dan alam", juga mengeksplorasi model baru tinggal di laut dengan membangun ruang-ruang kolektif yang dapat bergerak.

Catatan Bang Aswi:
Sebuah perusahaan arsitek bernama ZM Architecture di Glasgow, Skotlandia, mempunyai konsep yang inovatif. Konsep yang berjudul Water Lily Solar Panels tersebut memenangkan penghargaan International Design Award pada kategori darat dan laut untuk sumber energi alternatif. Konsep yang diinspirasi dari lembaran daun Lili di atas air tersebut menerapkan piringan lebar panel surya di atas permukaan sungai Clyde di Glasgow. Piringan panel surya yang menyerupai lembaran daun Lili tersebut didesain agar lebih estetik dan membaur dengan ekologi sungai. Seperti yang dikutip BBC, piringan panel surya itu dilengkapi dengan motor dan sensor yang akan menggerakkan piringan berputar mengikuti arah matahari. Dengan teknologi ini, piringan tersebut akan mendapatkan sinar matahari secara optimum. Saat ini, energi listrik yang dihasilkan piringan panel surya tersebut disalurkan ke dalam jaringan listrik nasional di Skotlandia.

Eleven HDTV Trends I Spotted at CES

It's Sunday and here in Las Vegas things are winding down for the Consumer Electronics Show. This is a good quiet-ish time to process the massive amount of tech-overload I've been inundated by this week.

Some of the biggest news this CES came from HDTV manufacturers and related companies. With that in mind here are eleven HDTV trends I spotted on the show floor that make it clear to me 2009 is going to be great year for HDVT technology. If the economy improves, it could be a good year for HDTV sales as well.

Design: We're seeing an increasing emphasis on design. That's evident in the models from LG and Samsung, for example. Samsung's Touch of Color accents, in particular, are eye-catching and meld well with the HDTV's sleek designs.

Connectivity: Manufacturers have dabbled with this idea before, but 2009 was the breakout year of the Internet-connected TV. Vizio, Panasonic, Sony, Samsung, LG all touted Internet-TVs, with many of those using the Yahoo Connected TV widgets system. But connectivity isn't just about widgets and watching your 401K drop by half; nor is it just about connecting your TV to your home network to stream content to your PC. It's about accessing Internet-based services, too, such as Netflix for video streaming, or Pandora for audio streaming.

Price: Westinghouse says its 55-inch television will come in at $1500 in the second quarter. That's with 120Hz technology built-in. Clearly, prices will continue to push downward--a good thing given the current economy.

55 Is the New 52: Look for more 55-inch televisions. I hear 55-inch panels will be hitting more of a sweet spot than 52-inch, in terms of production efficiencies, so we will be seein more of these large models in the future.

Built-in Ports, and Blu-ray, Too. Once an unusual find, USB ports are now near-ubiquitous on HDTVs. Model after model here at CES sport this connector allowing you to easily jack-in a USB flash drive and access images and other multimedia content. SD Card slots are also popping up more frequently than before too (previously, just Panasonic showed SD Card). And Sharp and Haier showed off televisions with integrated Blu-ray players, too. Sharp's models are actually due later this month. The 32-inch LC32BD60U will cost $1099, and a 42-inch LC42BD80U Sharp model with 120Hz refresh will sell for $1899.

E is for Energy. The big word in televisions is energy efficiency. Plasma makers talked about continuing to find ways to reduce energy consumption, and several manufacturers talked up Energy Star 3.0 certification.

Sony's Bravia VE5-series goes the furthest with its environmentally friendly features. Due out in the summer, this line--Bravia KDL-52VE5, the Bravia KDL-46VE5, and the Bravia KDL-40VE5-- features high-efficiency HCFL backlighting, which uses reduced-size cathode tubes in order to improve power efficiency by 40 percent compared with other Sony LCDs. These models also feature a zero-watt standby power switch, a light sensor with dynamic backlight control to adjust the screen's brightness down for use in dim environments, and a presence sensor that turns off the TV if it doesn't detect motion for a specified period of time. These models all feature Motionflow 120Hz technology, too. (Here is a good explainer video on what Motionflow technology is.)

LED In Holding Pattern--Sort Of. Yes, LED backlit displays can consume less energy. Yes, the images can look brilliant, with better dynamic contrast. But not all manufacturers are pushing LED. Samsung is with its new series dedicated strictly to LED displays. But Sharp continues to limit LED technology to its limited edition line. And Sony didn't make any LED TV announcements at the show. This technology still carries a price premium over CCFL-based LCDs--and meanwhile, manufacturers are forging ahead to improve traditional CCFL technology to eke better performance from it (see above mention of Sony's HCFL backlighting).

Wireless Watch: Gagnon, who tracks HDTVs for market research firm DisplaySearch, adds that an upcoming by-product of increased connectivity is the need to improve wireless data transmissions. "Connectivity will be the critical first step (in bringing content to HDTVs), followed by what content is to be displayed on the set," Gagnon said. Devices, such as DVRs, Blu-ray players, and media servers, will need to connect to HDTVs faster and in more convenient robust way.

Numerous standards and companies are working on this, like the Wireless HD consortium (WHDI).This standard has the backing of top TV brands. LG what it claims is the first TVs in the U.S. that supports wireless HDMI. LG's LHX LCD, debuting this week at CES, is a 55-inch HDTV that sports a separate "media box" where you plug your cable boxes and Blu-ray player into.

Right now Internet or networked TV's are very limited in the breadth of content they can display precisely because there isn't an easy way to stream bandwidth intensive content to the TV.

Consumers have a lot of pent-up desire for a wire-free home entertainment center, never mind HDTV. I was disappointed I didn't hear more about short-range HD radio technology. I predict we'll be hearing a lot more about consumer technologies for bringing content to your HDTV - no wires required.

Faster Refresh Rates: Never mind the futuristic stuff from LG Display, which showed 480Hz technology at CES. Several manufacturers showcased 240Hz technology. And across the board, manufacturers admitted they were bringing 120Hz panels--last year still a step-up premium--downstream into mass-market products. Only the lower tier manufacturers, like RCA and Polaroid, said they were still looking at 120Hz as a step up. Of Sharp's models, for example, all new TV's introduced at 40-inches and up now use 120Hz technology. Only one line in Sony's Bravia HDTVs lacks 120Hz technology--the Bravia S5100-series.

The use of higher refresh rates only helps to close the performance gap between LCD and plasma televisions, notes DisplaySearch's Paul Gagnon. "But I think there are diminishing returns at higher refresh rates and it is still expensive to do," Gagnon said. He added that this made it all the more impressive to him that manufacturers are pursuing 120Hz so aggressively.

720p Fades Away: I don't expect 720p to disappear completely. This not-quite-Full-HD high-def resolution will always hit a super-low, entry-level price for the manufacturers aiming to provide ultra-affordable 42-inch displays. But many manufacturers are dropping 720p entirely, or limiting them to specific models in the below 30-inch category. Sony, for example, has just two 720p models left in its new arsenal: The 32-inch Bravia KDL-32L5000, and the 26-inch KDL-26L5000. Of its new models, Sharp only has 720p in 19-inch and 26-inch televisions.

1080p Becomes King at 32-Inches and Up: No, it's not ubiquitous yet, but this is the logical converse of 720p fading away: 1080p at 32-inches and up. But it's an encouraging trend to see--given the growth of Blu-ray disc. It's my opinion more people will be using even small-size HDTV's to view 1080p content. After all, why should you have to downscale picture quality just because you have limited space in your living room/den/bedroom?

HP's Striking Firebird with VoodooDNA Desktops

Hewlett-Packard's new "Firebird with VoodooDNA" high-performance desktop PCs sport an attractively slim, green-friendly design.

The Windows Vista-based Firebird with VoodooDNA 802 and 803 bookshelf systems come with state-of-the-art gaming specs--quad-core Intel Core 2 processors of up to 2.83 GHz, 4 GB of DDR2-800 memory, and dual Nvidia Geforce 9800S video cards with 1 GB of memory.

At the same time, the new systems use compact, power-sipping components usually found in notebook PCs, providing a reduced footprint and maximum energy usage -- 350 watts, or one-fifth the energy used by an average high-performance desktop PC, said Rahul Sood, Chief Technology Officer for HP's Global Gaming Business. Sood and the HP division he runs are still major proponents of SUV-like PCs such as the Blackbird 002 PC, released last fall. Its configured weight is three times that of the Firebird.

"It's like we took a gas-guzzling SUV of a PC, flipped it on its head and created the hybrid of high-performance PCs," said Sood, founder of boutique PC maker VoodooPC, which HP acquired in 2006.

Most PCs aimed at gamers and enthusiasts tend to sport heavy, bulky cases, to make it easier for them to swap video cards, add hard drives and otherwise upgrade their systems.

Despite the Firebird's compact footprint and use of energy-efficient components, Sood claimed they "don't sacrifice anything" that gamers look for, citing its twin hard drive bays, 6 USB ports, an eSATA connector and dual-link DVI and HDMI display connectors.

By pulling the power supply out of the case, the Firebird systems can get away with "way quieter" fans than other high-performance PCs, he added.

"The high-performance PC space seems to have gone out of control when power supplies exceed 1.6 or 2 kilowatts, drawing more than the wall can handle, and people have 3-4 video cards and spend $5,000 to 6,000 on a machine just to play a videogame," Sood said.

The Firebirds, by contrast, start at $1,799 (monitor is extra). They were made available at www.voodoopc.com on January 9th, and will be sold at retail stores starting in February.

Richard Shim , an analyst with IDC Corp. , thinks Sood and HP may have a winner with the Firebird, noting that most high-performance PCs are built according to a "the uglier the better" rule. "If the Firebird can actually integrate a sleek style without giving up too much performance, I don't think it will sacrifice credibility."

For complete coverage of the 2009 Consumer Electronics Show, see our CES Topic Center.

Touch Screen All-in-One PCs All the Rage at CES

HP, Asus, Shuttle, and MSI have all unveiled stylish new touch screen-capable all-in-one PCs at CES 2009.

HP is following up on the popularity of its classy line of consumer TouchSmart PCs with a rebadged version of its TouchSmart IQ504t geared towards kiosk-style use in places like schools and hotels.The new dx9000 TouchSmart Business PC starts at $1400, and has the same-sized 22-inch multitouch screen and built-in Webcam as the IQ504t, but adds a faster 2.26GHz Core 2 Duo P8400 CPU and greater support options.

Meanwhile, the Taiwanese trio of Asus, MSI and Shuttle all showcased new touch screen "Net Top" PCs that essentially repackage the specs of a netbook into an all-in-one desktop.

The Asus Eee Top (pictured at far top) runs Windows XP and features a 15.6-inch (1366 by 768) display, 802.11n Wi-Fi, plus a built-in 1.3Mp Webcam and speakers. Asus mentioned its 1.6GHz Atom processor, 1GB of RAM, 160GB hard disk and GMA950 graphics might also be upgraded by the time it launches in the US in February, for about $600.

Shuttle's X50 All-in-One has the same-sized screen and almost identical specs as the Eee Top, but adds a rear-stand that can be used to hang it on the wall, along with a dual-core Atom processor. Maybe that's what Asus was hinting at when it mentioned upgrades? The X50 is expected to launch in the second half of the year with a starting price of $500.

Finally, reports suggest that the 19-inch (1366 by 768) MSI Wind NetOn AE1901 will claim bragging rights as the first "Net Top" with a dual-core Atom processor when it goes on sale this month for $500. A $400 16-inch (1366 by 768) model and an $800 22-inch (1920 by 1080) version are expected to launch in February and March, respectively. Though final configurations weren't confirmed, it's likely that the NetOn line will run Windows Vista while internals won't be too different from MSI's Wind netbooks.

Also announced at CES: the super-sleek Lenovo IdeaCenter A600. The brilliant design alone makes it worth taking a look at, but the company may have missed the boat by forgoing a touch screen.

For our complete CES 2009 coverage, see our CES Topic Center.

Value-priced Blu-ray Disc Players Gain Net Connections

Blu-ray Disc is poised to go mainstream in 2009--just as manufacturers start eliminating some of the more confusing points of differentiation among players, based on the products introduced at the International CES this week.

Fourteen of the 19 Blu-ray Disc players I've counted here at the show--including models from LG, Samsung, Pioneer, and even Memorex-- have BD-Live, the official designation of players that support Blu-ray Disc Profile 2.0's ethernet connectivity, storage, and interactive disc abilities. Models that lack BD-Live technology are: two models from Philip (HTS-5100B and BDP-3010), Sharp's LC-BD80U, and Vizio's VBR100, and JVC LT-42B300.

The timing of this migration is reminiscent of the transition DVD players went through. In early models, built-in audio decoders and progressive scan were high-end features that only the more expensive models had. Eventually, as DVD went mainstream, so too did those features. BD-Live support isn't the only feature that goes mainstream: More players offer on-board high-end audio decoders, for Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio.

And in addition to BD-Live support for Internet-connected disc content, more models are serving as a conduit for streaming entertainment from the Internet to your HDTV. LG, Panasonic, and Samsung are among the companies who've announced models with support for such content as Netflix and Pandora (different models support different Internet delivery services).

Now, says Blu-ray Disc Association president Andy Parsons, "We're getting out of the early adopter phase and into the mass market phase. It's been two and half years since we first introduced a Blu-ray Disc player. 2009 is the year we expect to continue significant growth of the format. This will be our big growth year."

Parsons says that in spite of the lingering cloud of the sagging economy, which hangs over every consumer electronics manufacturer. " The fact that the economy was going down the tubes in the past three months, and Blu-ray continued to grow," he notes. "I think it reinforces the idea that consumers enjoy their entertainment. They're always going to need their entertainment."

Another reason Blu-ray Disc is headed squarely for the mainstream is the convergence of Blu-ray Disc players with DVD players. With the average selling price of a Blu-ray Disc player continuing to fall--to $200 and below--the step-up cost of going Blu is less of a deterrence.

New Wireless Standard, TransferJet, Gets Big Name Backing at CES

Watch out Bluetooth, here comes TransferJet.

TransferJet wireless capability is getting closer to reality. The technology, which is being developed by major camera makers Sony, Olympus, Canon, Kodak, Nikon, is intended to make it easier for to transfer your images between devices wirelessly. Now Toshiba is getting behind the wireless standard showing off a laptop here at CES that uses the technology.

Companies pushing the technology tout TransferJet as over 100 times faster than Bluetooth and say transferring data between devices needs no pass codes or pairing (as Bluetooth requires). The companies have created a consortium and have launched a Website where you can read more about the technology and what other tech firms support the standard.

The two devices must have the appropriate chip embedded inside. Toshiba's demonstration included a laptop with the technology embedded in its palm rest, and embedded into a mobile internet device from Toshiba Japan. Take the camera, rest it on the palm rest, and it will automatically sync your files over to your laptop's hard disk drive. The device needs to be within 2mm of the transfer area.

The technology can achieve 357Mbps throughput--good enough for moving images around, or for streaming video directly from a camcorder, for example.

There's intelligence in the software to transfer files over and display on the screen immediately. Toshiba says it expects some impact on battery life, but not a big impact.

Toshiba also showed a prototype for an external USB dock with TransferJet embedded inside. The company plans to embed the technology into laptops and external devices in the fourth quarter.

LG Introduces the Ultimate Storage Device: NAS with Blu-ray

LG Electronics may have found the ultimate tech-combo product. The N4B1, shown here at CES, is a network attached storage (NAS) device with a built-in Blu-ray writer for backups.

The LG N4B1 isn't going to get any attention because of its name. But it sure stands out for what it does. LG has put together a box that includes four hot-swappable drive bays for 4TB of capacity (or more if you use 1.5TB hard drives inside). And it adds in a Blu-ray Disc writer so you can transfer content from the NAS to Blu-ray, an integrated and useful approach to data archiving and redundancy.

The box beige box with silver accents features a slick, rounded industrial design. Open the front silver grille, and you have easy access to the drive bays. At front you'll find a memory card slot (for Memory Stick, Secure Digital, and xD Picture Card), and a USB port, for backing up items from USB to the NAS. Two additional ports are located on the back of the unit.

The N4B1 has built-in software that tracks what data you've transferred to device, so it only transfers what's new. It also has a version management system. And when you've transferred content to disc, it maintains a library so you can see what's on what disc.

The N4B1 supports remote access; comes set for RAID 5 by default, but has options for RAID 0, 1, 1+0, JBOD; has an e-SATA port at back, and packs gigabit ethernet. It works across Windows, Mac, and Linux systems.

Casio's New, Thinner Cameras Offer High-speed Shooting

Casio has unveiled a small, thin digital camera that features the same fast-shooting functions only available until now on much larger cameras in its line-up.

The EX-FS10, which was unveiled on Thursday at the International Consumer Electronics Show, is 16 millimeters thick but can manage burst-shooting at up to 30 frames per second and high-speed movies at up to 1,000 frames per second.

The high-speed picture mode allows for all sorts of neat tricks, such as the ability to shoot a bunch of pictures in close succession and then pick the best shot while the high-speed movie mode produces a super slow-motion effect when the video is played back at normal 30 frame per second speed.

A companion camera, the EX-FC100, also offers the functions and is slightly thicker at 22 millimeters. The FS10 has a 3X optical zoom while the larger body on the FC100 accommodates a 5X optical zoom.

Both cameras shoot at 9.1-megapixel resolution and will go on sale in the U.S. in March. The FS10 will cost US$350 and the FC100 will cost $400.

Casio launched the first cameras in its high-speed range at CES last year. The dramatic reduction in size over the last 12 months has been helped in part by miniaturization of components inside the camera and the combination of several chips into one. The circuit board inside the cameras is less than half the size of that in the original F1 model.

LCD Display Wins Big LCD Contract From Apple

South Korea's LG Display on Monday said it has signed a five-year deal to supply LCD panels to Apple.

The deal is important for LG Display, one of the largest makers of LCD panels in the world. It gives the company a high profile customer in Apple and offers a financial boost at a time the global economy appears to be worsening.

The company will receive an initial payment of US$500 million from Apple, LG Display said in a statement to the Korea Exchange (KRX).

LG Display offered few other details of the agreement.

HP's Sleek Mini 2140 Netbook

Hewlett-Packard unveiled its Mini 2140 netbook at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas earlier this week, and it's cool.

I had a chance to play with it at HP's booth, and its style is definitely impressive, thanks to the sleek aluminum casing, which is similar to the older 2133.

HP has also made a lot of other improvements on this netbook over its 2133 and Mini 1000, all of which it hopes business professionals will find enticing. The Mini 2140 will launch later this month.

Aside from the sleek silver casing, the Mini 2140 will have a 6-cell battery option, a first for HP and a key feature, in my opinion. Netbooks are made for mobility, and 3-cell batteries often give you just a few hours of life.

An HP representative at the booth said the 6-cell battery can run the Mini 2140 for about eight hours, but I didn't have time to test that claim. The 6-cell batteries on most netbooks last five or more hours, and time varies depending on the makeup of the machine.

For example, the Mini 2140 comes with either a 160GB HDD (hard disk drive) or an 80GB SSD (solid state drive). The SSD option will save a bit of power for a user.

Another bonus for the Mini 2140 is its OS options.

The Mini 2140 I tested was running Windows Vista Business, which performed fine on most of the easy applications I tried out, including Word and Internet Explorer, but still posted a poor boot-up time of 77 seconds.

Luckily, HP also offers Windows XP and XP Professional on the Mini 2140, as well as SUSE Linux.

The 10.1-inch screen on the Mini 2140 was nice, similar to other netbooks I've tried out, and the QWERTY keyboard, which is 92 percent of the size of a standard laptop PC keyboard, is among the most comfortable I've tested.

Price may again be a factor weighing against HP with the Mini 2140. Many of HP's early attempts at netbooks have been a bit expensive, in my opinion. However, with the 2140's aluminum casing, OS options and component options, it may end up being worth the money.

Prices for the device start at US$499 for a basic configuration including a 3-cell battery, and go up to about $700, the HP representative said.

One other consideration to take note of on the Mini 2140 is weight. The device I tested was heavy.

Although it is listed at 2.6 pounds (1.18 kilograms) for the basic system, the one I tested was far heavier than that. The 6-cell battery made a difference, and the HP representative said the one I was using probably weighed 3 pounds, but it seemed even heavier than that. The difference may be the aluminum casing, which offers durability and style but also more weight than the plastic normally used with netbooks.

The other main parts inside the Mini 2140 are the 1.6GHz Intel Atom microprocessor, and the device can hold as much as 2GB of DRAM. The configuration I tested did have 2GB of DRAM, as well as a 160GB HDD.

Jangan Biarkan Suplemen Merusak Anda

Fenomena penggunaan vitamin dan suplemen kesehatan akhir-akhir ini semakin marak saja. Dalam setahun, konsumen bisa menghabiskan kocek hingga ratusan juta rupiah untuk membeli vitamin atau suplemen demi menjaga kesehatan. Bahkan di Inggris, biaya belanja suplemen dapat mencapai 300 juta poundsterling atau sekitar Rp. 540 miliar dalam setahun.

Namun siapa sangka, di balik penggunaan vitamin dan suplemen ternyata ada resiko yang mengintai. Beberapa riset kerap mengaitkan penggunaan suplemen dengan resiko mengidap kanker dan stroke. Sejumlah beberapa lembaga pengawas obat dan produk perawatan kesehatan juga memperingatkan bahaya akan residu obat ilegal.

Glukosamin yang banyak dipakai untuk mengobati sakit sendi atau otot, juga mendapat sorotan. Pengadilan di Skotlandia misalnya, saat ini masih terus melakukan investigasi untuk membuktikan apakah obat ini menjadi penyebab meninggalnya pasien yang mengalami kegagalan liver. Sementara itu, vitamin E yang kerap diklaim sebagai antioksidan pencegah kanker, menurut sebuah riset di AS justru dapat meningkatkan resiko tumor paru.

Tanaman obat bernama ginkgo biloba yang disebut-sebut berkhasiat mengobati kepikunan pun menurut sebuah riset yang dipublikasikan jurnal Neurology pekan lalu diduga berpotensi memicu stroke. Sedangkan Foods Standards Agency di Inggris pekan lalu meragukan royal jelly sebagai makanan yang mampu meningkatkan kekebalan tubuh.

Untuk memperoleh manfaat maksimal dari vitamin atau suplemen, ada baiknya Anda mengkonsumsinya secara bijaksama. Akan lebih baik lagi bila mengkonsultasikannya terlebih dulu dengan dokter kepercayaan Anda.

Tetapi sebagai informasi, Anda juga patut mengetahui apa saja kelebihan dan kekurangan yang dimiliki suatu jenis vitamin atau suplemen. Dengan begitu, Anda akan lebih waspada dalam menggunakannya.

Berikut adalah delapan jenis vitamin atau suplemen paling populer yang dinilai memiliki kelebihan dan kekurangannya.

VITAMIN E

+ : Berfungsi sebagai antioksidan yang melindungi sel-sel dari kerusakan, vitamin E banyak ditemukan dalam kacang-kacangan dan biji-bijian. Banyak sekali penelitian yang menunjukkan bahwa mengkonsumsi makanan mengandung vitamin E mampu menekan resiko penyakit jantung dan kanker.

- : Sejaun ini belum ada bukti signifikan akan manfaat suplementasi vitamin E. Faktanya, riset yang dilakukan peneliti di John Hopkins University AS mengindikasikan bahwa vitamin E berpotensi meningkatkan resiko penyakit jantung hingga 10%. Pekan lalu, sebuah riset juga mengindikasikan peningkatan resiko kanker paru-paru hingga 28%.

Vitamin B6

+ : British Medical Journal melaporkan bahwa dosis 100 mg vitamin B6 mampu meringankan gejala-gejala sindrom premenstrual. Sejumlah riset juga mengaitkan asupan asal folat dan vitamin B8 , yang banyak ditemukan dalam telur daging dan ikan, dengan penurunan resiko penyakit jantung dan kanker perut.

- : Meskipun konsumsi makanan berkadar vitamin B6 tinggi dikaitkan dengan rendahnya resiko penyakit jantung, belum ada bukti bahwa meminum pil vitamin B6 memiliki efek yang sama. Studi berskala besar di Norwegia menunjukkan meminum vitamin B6 dan folat justru meningkatkan resiko serangan jantung dan stroke hingga 20%. Dosis tinggi juga dapat menyebabkan kerusakan syaraf.

St John Wort (Hypericum perforatum)

+ : Kepercayaan tradisi mengatakan herbal ini mampu melawan ilmu sihir. Lazimnya, herbal ini digunakan untuk memelihara sistem syaraf dan melindungi sel-sel syaraf dalam tubuh. Herbal ini biasa digunakan untuk meredakan hipertensi dan melancarkan peredaran darah.

- : Salah seorang ahli pengobatan alternatif Inggris, Profesor Edzard Ernst, dari Plymouth Peninsula Medical School memperingatkan bahwa St John Wort dapat mengurangi efektivitas obat resep seperti warfarin atau obat pengencer darah lainnya, pil anti kanker atau obat-obat pembedahan . Hindari herbal ini jika Anda mengidap epilepsi atau asma.

Royal Jelly

+ : Cairan kental yang dihasilkan lebah muda sebagai bahan makanan larva lebah dan makanan khusus Ratu lebah ini telah terbukti mampu membunuh bakteri dalam tes laboratorium. Zat ini juga mengandung protein dan vitamin C dan diklaim mampu meningkatkan kekebalan tubuh meski belum ada bukti yang solid.

- : Ada sejarah tentang masalah yang ditimbulkan residu obat-obatan yang dibuat dari royal jelly. Pemberian obat-obatan dengan dosis berlebihan pada hewan yang produknya akan dikonsumsi manusia berpotensi menimbulkan gangguan kesehatan. Zat ini juga diduga berpotensi menimbulkan reaksi mematikan. Di Australia, kemasan suplemen royal jelly wajib disertai label peringatan menyusul adanya kasus anak berusia 11 tahun yang mengkonsumsinya kemudan meninggal akibat asma.

Glukosamin

+ : Dua penelitian besar menunjukkan glukosamin mampu meringankan rasa sakit dan memperbaiki mobilitas pada pasien penderita osteoarthtritis. Bukti ini begitu meyakinkan sehingga US National Institutes Of Health berencana menggelar riset lanjutan.

- : Kualitas dan kekuatan produk glukosamin bervariasi. Tampaknya glukosamin juga hanya efektif jika dikombinasikan dengan sejenis senyawa disebut condroitin.

Ginkgo Biloba

+ : Walaupun beberapa riset menunjukkan adanya efek negatif, Prof Ernst percaya bahwa ginkgo tetap berkhasiat. Ia menekankan, ketika peneliti mencoret partisipan yang tidak mengkonsumsinya secara teratur, ada sekitar 68% penurunan resiko gangguan ingatan setelah mengkonsumsi ginkgo.

- : Prof Ernst mengatakan bahwa studi lanjutan perlu dilakukan mengingat kasus stroke dalam penelitian diakibatkan pembekuan, bukannya pendarahan - yang mungkin disebabkan peran ginkgo dalam mengencerkan darah. Untuk alasan tersebut, suplemen ginkgo seharusnya tidak diminum bersama aspirin, warfarin atau obat anti pembekuan darah lainnya. Hindari pula sebelum menjalani operasi.

Kava Kava

+ : Minuman yang dibuat dari sari akar kava-kava telah dikenal sejak berabad-abad lampau sebagai obat penenang alami. Sejumlah riset, termasuk yang dilakukan Prof Ernst, terbukti efektif mengatasi kecemasan.

- : Menyusul adanya kasus kematian akibat kerusakan liver di antara pasien peminum suplemen kava, herbal ini dilarang di wilayah Inggris, namun suplemen dalam bentuk pil masih bisa diperoleh lewat internet.

Black Cohosh (Cimicifuga racemosa)

+ : Black Cohosh adalah sejenis tanaman liar mirip semak yang selalu hijau sepanjang tahun. Bagian tanaman yang digunakan sebagai tanaman obat adalah akar dan rimpangnya yang dikeringkan. Walaupun penelitian yang mendukung manfaat herba ini masih sedikit, secara historis, orang-orang Indian Amerika sudah sejak dulu menggunakannya untuk berbagai kondisi, mulai dari masalah-masalah kewanitaan sampai gigitan ular berbisa. Peneliti dari AS yang melakukan tinjauan sejumlah riset menyatakan ada bukti yang cukup bahwa ekstrak herbal ini mampu meringankan gejala-gejala menopause. Sebuah riset terbaru di Prancis juga menemukan bahwa ekstrak black cohosh mampu menghentikan pertumbuhan sel-sel kanker payudara.

- : Menyusul adanya laporan kerusakan liver, Badan Pengawas Obat dan Produk Perawatan Kesehatan Inggris (MHRA) telah meminta produsen untuk mencantumkan label peringatan akan adanya ancaman resiko penggunaan suplemen jenis ini.

Hole In My Heart

My heart aches
Missing you
And wanting to
Scream out your name
Into this vast space where we first met
This place that brought us so close
Is also what makes it so easy to separate
To lose track of you in between casual conversations
And witty quips sent racing through wire
Through time and space
From heart to heart
Until
One day you're no longer there
And I have to face the truth
That this really hurts
And I really felt
Because what we thought was just a game
Became ever so real
And you were what kept me smiling
And hoping
And now that you are not there
To share
Or laugh
For me to cling to at the end of a long day
When I need to reach out
This is when I feel the ache
The incredible void
This hole in my heart
That used to be filled by you

The Net of Love

The boy returned home with his heart happily beating. He was tired, since he covered half of Budapest. He’s been anticipating this moment for more than 6 months when his savings will pay for his internet connection and the world will open before him. The often heard, almost slogan came into his mind: “The information superhighway will become the most heavily traveled road of the next century.”

What he felt was not quite happiness, but an emotion far more unique and noble played around his throat. He was proud to have broken out of the gray circle of dusty commonality. With the help of his computer he can even soar to places that have never before appeared on his mind’s horizon.

Ten p.m. The adventure is about to begin. He typed in his nick and passwords and in that instant it felt as though the sparks of his soul had just landed on the stage of night. He was ecstatic when he typed in the first address and the www page actually crackled onto his monitor. “This is fantastic. From now on I can be on the net as long as I want and never be bored. There are millions of pages waiting to be discovered!”

That is exactly how it was, at least for the first month or two. Then he felt that he needed something else. The holes he felt in his soul were not patched by the adventures. He was about to lay aside the magic net when he discovered something. Someone, from among those who were up to now, in the background shadows for our hero simply said: chat.

The fabric that had meant the world had once again became fully charged with excitement. It was true, he never experienced this before.He could talk with people ‘live’, who as himself, sat hunched over a plastic box filled with microchips and typed their questions and answers into tiny windows.

Time, once again, as a heartless thief had taken the fire from his eyes….that is, until suddenly a small blue square flashed. It was a girl who asked for help, and kindness over-flown from her words. It did not take much for the boy’s soul to comprehend perfect harmony. In this impersonal, yet in some ways far more personal world, two souls have touched.

The mirage of unlimited freedom had buckled his heart, into which an unexpected thought moved in: LOVE. He felt love toward someone he met only a few days before, and with whom he was able to exchange merely a few words, even those over a monitor.
Someone he’s never seen. The keyboard revealed virtually nothing, yet the girl, that sweet butterfly, gave away part of her unblemished soul with every stroke of a key to that other heart who, with increasingly concentrated purpose whispered between bit-per-second that word which for humanity became overused, schematic, yet at the same time still represents the paradise of dreams.

Why should we always organize through the cool etiquette of reality? Why does the power appear silly that combined beauty with beast, and the soul with the soulful? Could it be that two people, two such individuals who perhaps never would have met had they not been caught in the elements of modern life, could it be that they are in love with each other?

A mere few hours of in-depth conversation, but the human emotion does not recognize the lifeless combination of time and distance. Emotions refuse to allow themselves to be pressed into the mold of the everyday routine, they don’t give in to the flooding emptiness and forceful attack of lifelessness. Treatherous waters for sure, never knowing who and when will show their real face or when they will hide behind a pleasant mask. But the girl was herself. The boy felt, he knew that his net-shine can not be false, can’t be fake. They met every night spending all possible time together.

This feeling was not present elsewhere: the boy was surrounded by his internet friends, and there was the Girl but still, his soul was afraid. The echo of emptiness, the cold buzz of evil always woke him from his sweetest dreams, fragmenting peaceful moments.These two souls still found each other. Found each other in the fabric of a world-wide net and in such a fashion that would never have been possible in the real world.

The same monitor that used to be seen as the surface for boring characters of a text, at this moment came to represent Life. Real Life. The few currents of electricity, the micrometer’s worth of magic that was constructed by thoughtful, expert hands and the hundreds of ilometers of telephone cable, like some kind of a vein as a warm life supplying vein in the body, tied to each other the boy and the girl, on that stormy, and netted night.

Based on his own experiences written by Thomas L.

Black Shadow In Eyes

Lingkaran hitam di bawah mata memang cukup mengganggu penampilan, karena terlihat kusam. Sebenarnya banyak faktor yang bisa menjadi penyebabnya, seperti kurang tidur atau alergi terhadap sesuatu.

Warna hitam di bawah mata, bisa menjadi pertanda adanya gangguan kesehatan yang cukup serius. Apalagi jika lingkaran hitam di bawah mata anda muncul dibarengi sakit radang tenggorokan atau demam. Ada beberapa faktor yang bisa menjadi penyebab utama bayangan hitam di bawah mata anda, simak berikut ini.

Sering terkena sinar matahari. Memang sinar matahari bisa menjadi salah satu penyebab munculnya lingkaran hitam di bawah mata. Karena area di bawah mata lebih cepat berubah menjadi gelap dibandingkan kulit lain di sekitar wajah.

Asupan nutri yang kurang. Apabila anda kurang mengonsumsi sayuran berwarna hijau, maka secara otomatis, lingkaran hitam akan muncul karena kekurangan nutrisi. Untuk mengatasinya, konsumsilah makanan yang kaya akan antioksidan setiap hari.

Kurang tidur. Ini memang penyebab yang paling sering dialami oleh banyak orang. Apalagi anda harus menyelesaikan beberapa tugas hingga larut malam dan berangkat kerja di pagi hari. Semakin lelah anda, maka kulit wajah akan semakin memperlihatkan aliran darah di bawah mata. Sehingga corak kulit di bawah mata anda akan terlihat kebiruan atau lebih gelap.

Faktor Keturunan/genetik juga turut berperan. Bagi sebagian orang, lingkaran hitam di bawah mata sifatnya turun temurun atau genetik. Jika salah satu orangtua anda mengalaminya, bisa jadi anda pun mendapatkannya.

Adanya lingkaran hitam ini terjadi karena pembesaran pembuluh darah. Pengaruh tingginya jumlah darah yang terdapat di area tersebut, membuat kulit menjadi terlihat lebih gelap dibanding warna kulit di bagian wajah lainnya.

Untuk mengatasi atau menguranginya, banyak cara yang bisa anda lakukan. Saat ini banyak produk kosmetik yang dapat membantu memutihkan rona hitam di bawah mata, tapi gunakan secara hati-hati dengan memperhatikan cara pemakaiannya.

Tapi jika anda ingin menggunakan cara tradisional, cobalah kompres mata dengan irisan ketimun atau tomat yang di tempelkan di mata agar terlihat lebih segar.

Istirahatlah yang cukup selama 8 jam sehari akan sangat membantu anda untuk menghilangkan rona kehitaman di bawah mata. Ada baiknya lagi, jika anda kenali apa yang menyebabkan lingkaran hitam itu muncul di bawah mata anda. Dengan begitu anda bisa mengantisipasi dan tidak melakukan hal tersebut. Semoga berhasil.

Kurang Tidur Picu Obesitas

Bagi Anda pria yang tidurnya kurang dari lima jam setiap malam sebaiknya berhati-hati. Menurut laporan sebuah penelitian terbaru di Jepang, pria yang kurang tidur berisiko tinggi mengalami obesitas dan memiliki kadar gula darah tinggi sehingga berpotensi menyebabkan diabetes.

Seperti diungkapkan Professor Yoshitaka Kaneita dari Universitas Nihon, kurangnya waktu istirahat pada malam hari dapat memicu sejenis hormon dalam darah yang merangsang nafsu makan.

"Hal itu dapat meningkatkan perasaan lapar seperti halnya selera mengkonsumsi makanan berkalori tinggi," ungkapnya sambil menekankan penting artinya bagi masyarakat untuk memberi perhatian lebih pada waktu istirahat di malam hari.

Dalam risetnya, Profesor Yoshitaka melibatkan 21.693 pria yang dipantau kondisinya mulai dari tahun 1999 hingga 2006. Pria yang tidak dalam kondisi gemuk atau obesitas pada 1999 tercatat 1,36 kali memiliki kecenderungan menjadi obesitas jika mereka tidur kurang dari lima jam setiap malam selama kurun waktu tujuh tahun dibandingkan mereka yang tidurnya rata-rata lebih dari lima jam.

Pria yang tidurnya sebentar juga tercatat 1,27 kali mengalami peningkatan kadar gula dalam darah. Penelitian ini tidak menyediakan data untuk perbandingan pada wanita.

Agar Tubuh Tidak Mudah Lesu

Setiap orang pasti pernah merasakan tubuh yang lesu, tidak bertenaga, tidak bergairah sementara banyak hal yang mesti dikerjakan, tapi sayangnya tubuh rasanya enggan untuk digerakkan.

Lebih parah lagi bila tubuh sama sekali kehabisan energi maka tidak hanya rasa pegal pada otot yang dirasakan, namun juga tubuh susah untuk digerakkan bahkan untuk bangun dari tempat tidur. Disamping itu, bisa juga terjadi gangguan konsentrasi dalam mengerjakan sesuatu, mudah marah pada hal hal yang sepele dan lain sebagainya.

Jika semua itu terjadi, maka energi yang selama ini hilang harus segera dipulihkan sehingga tubuh akan kembali bekerja secara optimal. Ada beberapa cara yang bisa anda lakukan untuk membuat tubuh tidak gampang lesu.

Tingkatkan konsumsi Magnesium. Makan makanan yang sehat dan seimbang dapat membantu tubuh untuk mendapatkan vitamin dan mineral yang dibutuhkan. Sayangnya godaan untuk memakan makanan yang tidak sehat sedemikian besar sehingga kemungkinan tubuh akan kekurangan mineral cukup besar khususnya magnesium.

Para ahli mengatakan, diperkirakan mineral diperlukan untuk lebih dari 300 reaksi biokimia yang terjadi di dalam tubuh termasuk memecah glukosa menjadi energi. Jadi bila jumlah mineral sedikit berkurang maka produksi energi juga akan ikut ikutan berkurang.

Beberapa penelitian menyebutkan, wanita yang kekurangan mineral magnesium memiliki detak jantung yang lebih cepat dan memerlukan lebih banyak oksigen untuk melakukan aktivitas fisik bila dibandingkan dengan wanita yang cukup mengkonsumsi mineral magnesium.

Direkomendasikan untuk mengkonsumsi mineral magnesium antara 300 mg untuk perempuan dan 350 mg untuk laki laki. Makanan sumber magnesium antara lain; kacang kacangan, ikan dan sereal.

Biasakan untuk berjalan. Tentu dalam pemikiran banyak orang, bukankah dengan berjalan akan membuat tubuh tambah kelelahan? Tidak demikian dengan pandangan para ahli, justru dengan melakukan aktivitas fisik ringan seperti berjalan akan meningkatkan tenaga. Berjalan merupakan aktifitas olah tubuh yang bisa dilakukan siapa saja, mudah dikerjakan, tidak memerlukan peralatan khusus dan bisa dilakukan dimana saja.

Pada penelitian yang dilakukan para ahli kedokteran, dengan berjalan selama 10 menit, tidak hanya meningkatkan tenaga saat itu saja tetapi juga selama 2 jam ke depan, dan bila setiap hari dalam 3 minggu berjalan selama 10 menit maka tingkat energi yang dihasilkan jauh lebih tinggi lagi.

Tidur yang cukup. Penelitian menunjukan tekanan yang terjadi pada otak yang terlalu berat akan menyebabkan tubuh kehilangan banyak energi. Sebaliknya tidur nyenyak selama 60 menit tidak hanya memulihkan energi yang selama ini terbuang, tapi juga mengembalikan fungsi fungsi otak yang selama ini dipelajari.

Jangan lupa sarapan atau telat makan. Penelitian menunjukan, orang yang sarapan pagi sebelum memulai pekerjaan mempunyai kondisi mood yang lebih baik dan memiliki tubuh yang lebih bertenaga sepanjang hari. Penelitian yang lain menunjukan lupa untuk sarapan dan makan siang akan membuat tubuh merasakan kelelahan yang berlebihan saat malam hari.

Hindari stress dan kendalikan amarah. Salah satu penguras energi yang paling utama adalah stress, kata para ahli psikologi. Stress adalah hasil dari suatu kecemasan dan perasaan cemas akan memakan seluruh energi yang terdapat dalam tubuh. Seperti halnya perasaan khawatir atau takut, stress dapat menyebabkan tubuh kelelahan baik secara fisik maupun mental sekalipun tubuh hanya berbaring di tempat tidur seharian.

Seperti halnya stress, marah yang tertahan juga akan membuat tubuh kehabisan banyak energi. Hal ini disebabkan tubuh mengeluarkan energi yang berlebihan untuk mengendalikan perasaan marah tersebut.

Beberapa hal yang bisa dilakukan untuk mengurangi stress dan mengendalikan amarah antara lain dengan melakukan relaksasi setiap hari, berolahraga untuk membakar efek kimia dari stress dan marah, mendengarkan musik, membaca novel atau hanya bercakap cakap dengan teman dekat.

Minum air yang cukup, hindari alkohol. Tubuh yang kekurangan cairan atau dehidrasi akan membuat perasaan yang lelah dan lemah. Untuk membentuk energi, tubuh memerlukan air sehingga bila pemasukan air kurang maka energi yang terbentuk pun tidak optimal. Minum segelas air juga diperlukan untuk memulihkan energi setelah berolah raga karena saat olah raga tubuh mengeluarkan cairan yang berlebihan dalam bentuk keringat.

Sedangkan alkohol membuat tubuh tertidur dengan pulas walau sebenarnya tubuh tidak tidur yang wajar sebab tidur tersebut dalam pengaruh alkohol.

Makan banyak serat dan rendah gula. Tujuan dari tindakan ini adalah untuk membuat kadar gula yang seimbang dalam darah sehingga energi yang dihasilkan selalu teratur alias konstan. Saat tubuh makan makanan yang manis, kadar gula darah akan meningkat dengan sangat cepat sehingga pembentukan energi juga akan banyak, namun hal itu tidak akan berlangsung lama sebab kadar gula darah akan kembali turun dengan cepat sehingga tubuh akan kembali kelelahan dengan cepat pula.

Namun jika tubuh menerima masukan makanan yang mengandung serat tinggi, akan dihasilkan energi dengan tempo yang lambat dan teratur sehingga energi yang beredar dalam tubuh relatif konstan dan seimbang untuk mencukupi kebutuhan tubuh selama satu hari. Beberapa penelitian juga menyebutkan, dengan mengkonsumsi banyak serat juga akan meningkatkan sensitivitas tubuh terhadap insulin.

Jangan lupakan kudapan. Kudapan disini tidak hanya dimaksudkan untuk mengisi waktu lowong antar waktu makan, namun dianjurkan untuk mengkonsumsi kudapan yang mengandung protein, rendah lemak, tinggi serat seperti selai kacang, roti, yogurt dan lain lain.

Minum susu. Susu merupakan minuman yang tidak hanya mengandung protein dan lemak sebagai sumber energi tapi juga mengandung kalsium untuk tulang. Sehingga disamping menjaga keadaan energi tubuh yang seimbang juga untuk memelihara kesehatan tulang.

Periksa fungsi kelenjar thyroid dan jumlah sel darah. Tindakan ini tidak akan menghasilkan peningkatan energi yang segera, namun jika tubuh selalu merasa lelah walau telah melakukan sembilan langkah diatas maka perlu segera dikonsultasikan ke dokter untuk mengetahui fungsi kelenjar thyroid dan anemia.

Gangguan fungsi thryroid biasanya terjadi pada wanita yang habis melahirkan dan pada masa premenopause. Dengan pemeriksaan darah yang sederhana sudah dapat diketahui kelainan ini sehingga segera dapat dilakukan pengobatan yang tepat, dengan demikian tubuh akan kembali ke keadaan yang normal.

Pada anemia, rendahnya kadar hemoglobin dalam darah akan menganggu penghantaran oksigen ke seluruh tubuh padahal oksigen sangat diperlukan untuk menghasilkan energi. Hal ini biasanya terjadi pada wanita yang habis menstruasi berat.

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