Is my child old enough for a smartphone?

While it might not bring parents as much joy as a first step or first word, the right time to introduce kids to a smartphone is an important moment.
Smartphones have become the most important piece of technology we own, connecting us with friends, keeping us updated on the world around us, and letting us capture our biggest moments.
If you’re a parent, handing one over to your kid can bring a sense of dread. Who is she talking to? What is he watching? Why can’t she stop texting?

There are ways to limit what your kids can access on their new device, as well as track what they download. Before you do that, consider the following question:

Is my child old enough for a smartphone?

Kids aren’t waiting as long to get their first smartphones. According to a 2016 study from research firm Influence Central, the average age for a child getting his or her first smartphone is 10.3 years old, down from 12 in 2012.
There's no real consensus among experts on the right age to buy a smartphone. During an interview earlier this year, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates said all three of his kids waited until they were 14. Campaigns like Wait Until 8th urge parents to wait until their kids get to the eighth grade.
Ultimately, the decision could come down to whether parents think their child is mature enough to handle a smartphone, said Scott Steinberg, author of Parenting High-Tech Kids: The Ultimate Internet, Web, and Online Safety Guide.

© Getty Images/iStockphoto A group of kids sit together while using their smartphones. "When they're going to be so far outside your oversight or outside of ready accessibility, when they start going off doing activities, camps, or they need to be able to get in touch with you but can’t, that’s a possibility for when you can introduce it," said Steinberg.
More: When is the right age to buy your child a smartphone?

Use your phone’s parental controls

Depending on the device, parents can set restrictions to limit what their children can access on that new smartphone.
For the iPhone, go to Settings, then General, then scroll down to Restrictions. When you first enable restrictions, the device will ask you to create a four-digit PIN.
Restrictions allows parents to control everything from what apps kids can open to whether they can make purchases within apps. Users can also adjust the type of content kids can view based on ratings.
On Android devices, restrictions will vary depending on the handset you own. On Google Play, users can set similar limits on what content kids can access based on ratings.
More: Which iPhone should I buy?
More: Don't want an iPhone 8 or iPhone X? There are plenty of alternatives

Keep an eye on app downloads

Both iOS and Google Play include ways to check out your app history if you plan on sharing accounts with your kids.
In Apple's App Store, for example, users can view what apps they've downloaded as well as what apps aren't on their current devices. In Google Play, users can head to their account, then order history to view downloads.
Also, on the App Store, users can enable automatic downloads, which will automatically add an app downloaded on one device on all of them. It's handy for knowing when your kids have downloaded a new app.
Depending on the age of the child receiving the smartphone, parents can also explore settings within apps to limit activity.
There are also apps dedicated to tracking how much time someone is spending on their phones or in a particular app: Moment for iPhones, Space (formerly BreakFree) for Android. Moment also has a feature that makes the whole family (including parents) go screen-free for a period, say dinner time.
More: These were the most downloaded Apple apps of 2017

The more you know

Perhaps the most important thing parents can do is stay informed. Talk to your kids about why they want a phone and how they plan to use it.
"It’s not high tech parenting that’s going to win the day here," said Steinberg. "It’s traditional low-tech parenting and just making a point to ask the right questions, to be having the conversations in households and schools and making a point to stay on top of the latest new high tech developments."
More: Does your kid have a 'finsta' account? Why it's a big deal
More: On YouTube, sexualized 'Frozen' and Nickelodeon cartoons aren't barred from kids
More: Talk to your teen about Snapchat Ghost Mode, and track their time

Nigerian scientist advances technology to convert urine into gas

A Nigerian scientist, Ejikeme P. Nwosu, and his team of researchers have fabricated equipment that converts urine into flammable gases, biomethane and hydrogen-rich gases, with 100 per cent indigenous technological inputs.

A Nigerian scientist, Ejikeme P. Nwosu, and his team of researchers have fabricated equipment that converts urine into flammable gases, biomethane and hydrogen-rich gases, with 100 per cent indigenous technological inputs.

Nwosu, a graduate of Pure and Industrial Chemistry from Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka (NAU), Anambra State with Masters of Science degree in Organic Chemistry from the University of Ibadan (UI), Oyo State, Explains that a blend of these gases- biomethane and hydrogen-rich gases- can be effectively used to run a gas turbine generator to give the nation over 11,250 megawatts hours of electricity.

Biomethane is a 100 per cent renewable energy source produced by the natural breakdown of organic material: green waste, household waste, agricultural waste, food industry waste and even industrial waste.

Nwosu further explained: “According to 2011 National Agricultural Sample Survey, Nigeria was endowed with an estimated 19.5 million cattle, 72.5 million goats, 41.3 million sheep, 7.1 million pigs and 28,000 camels. If these animals are properly ranched, the wastes collected and processed over 10,000 Megawatts of electricity will be generated as well from these animals.

“From these analysis, it is obvious that the solution to epileptic power supply we encounter is within our reach. By end of this year or latest 2018 first quarter, I hope to develop most efficient means of running cars fully on urine. The research is ongoing and I have no doubt what a determined mind can achieve.”

He Continued: “We have also put up another plant (digester) that converts solid biodegradable wastes to biomethane. These plants are located somewhere in Abuja outskirt. In the plant we have been able to generate and use the produced gases to cook for long times and to power generators.”

Nwosu is hopeful that some of the private firms and donor agencies his team has written to will respond positively so that they can make this technology available in homes, hospitals, prisons and others.

“We are not relenting though; we will be installing this plant at some private farms and facilities any moment this year,” he said.

Nwosu, in 2014, obtained a patent for his pioneer work in converting urine into flammable gases. The breakthrough raised the hope of the world using urine to solve its energy crisis.

Nwosu got Patent No NG/P/20/2013/699 for developing a process for conversion of urine into hydrogen-ammonia rich flammable gases and fire resistant materials.

How to get rid of your headache in TWO minutes

So…this is absolutely weird, but some who have tried it swear that it works.

There’s a man on YouTube who claims to have the secret to stopping your headache – whether it is minor or migraine. His name is Kamil K. Wawrzyszko.

Kamil is a business consultant and YouTuber; his video went viral this week with over 1.7 million viewers even though he posted it back in 2012. In the video, he shared a trick to ending a headache in just DOS (two) minutes.

Talking to the camera, Kamil said: “Although I am not a qualified doctor or psychologist, I have helped numerous people with their headaches, sleep patterns, and other health issues.”

He continued by asking his viewers three simple questions:

“Where is your headache? What color is it? What shape is it?”

Then, he instructed the viewers to picture — “visualize” the answers before asking them again four more times.

“By now it should have gone,” he said. “If it didn’t, you may need to watch this a few times; in most cases it works.”

If you read the comments, you will see the testimonies. People who have tried it claim that it works! One viewer asked, “Are you a wizard? It worked.” Another said, “‘Well, I had to watch it several times.”

In a different video, Kamil explains to his viewers how he thinks the trick works. “The more you look at things, the more they disappear,” he claims.

Source: Femail/YouTube

Irish musician acquires Nigerian firm for $80m

A private equity firm with interest in agriculture and technology, 8 Miles, on Tuesday acquired minority stakes worth about $80m in the Nigerian biscuit company, Beloxxi Industries Limited.

Irish pop star, Sir Bob Geldof, is the founder of 8 Miles.

The company also bought a minority stake in Blue Skies, an ethical fruit business that looks to expand into Nigeria and neighbouring West African countries.

Blue Skies, which operates in Ghana, Egypt and South Africa, did not disclose the financial details of the transaction.

However, its Chairman and Founder, Anthony Pile, said in a statement that Blue Skies and 8 Miles shared the vision “for improving the lives of people, protecting the environment and making enough money at source to advance our objective to supply best quality products to the people of the world.”

On the Beloxxi deal, the consortium of investors includes Nigeria-based African Capital Alliance and DEG, a subsidiary of the German KfW Development Bank.

Geldof had in August 2016 shown interest in Nigeria’s snacks industry and had sought to invest in Beloxxi, makers of Beloxxi cream cracker biscuits, towards boosting Africa’s biggest economy.

He had said that growth in the snacks market of large cities, such as Lagos, had been strong in recent years, “but the investment comes as the country struggles through the worst economic crisis in decades, driven by low oil prices and worsened by a failing government response that has included capital controls and import restrictions.”

Inflation had soared to more than 16 per cent at the end of 2016 and companies, including Beloxxi, along with multinational giants such as Unilever, had been forced to increase their prices, hitting consumers at a difficult time.

The President and Chief Executive Officer, Beloxxi, Mr. Obi Ezeude, said that before the $80m lifeline, the company reduced its dependence on imported raw materials and was striving to keep the prices of its biscuits affordable for the poorest Nigerian consumers.

Given the market challenges, he said that Beloxxi had been forced to increase the price of its smallest-sized product, a three-biscuit package of 21 grams, to N15.

Ezeude added, “With this equity investment, we will expand our current operations from five production lines to about 10 production lines. That will increase our capacity from 40,000 metric tonnes to 100,000 metric tonnes of Beloxxi cream crackers per year.”

“This is a landmark transaction that demonstrates the capacity for growth in the manufacturing sector in Nigeria. The investment will further increase the capacity of Beloxxi Industries and enable it to explore the export market, accessing the much needed foreign exchange whilst maximising the potential for growth in Nigeria.”

Chip Interconnection Technology

Nigerians have been at the forefront of it all when it comes to computer innovations and technology, with Philip Emegwali being the most iconic of them all. Now we have a Nigerian, Cyprian Emeka Uzoh, holding more than 300 semiconductor patents worldwide.