GINSENG BENEFITS:A cold remedy derived from the popular herb ginseng could help make the cold season a bit shorter and sweeter, new research suggests.
In a study that pitted the ginseng product against a placebo, Canadian researchers found that adults who took the botanical every day for four months developed fewer and less-severe colds than those on the placebo.
Although people in both groups were equally likely to suffer at least one cold during the cold and flu season, those who took ginseng were less likely to fall ill multiple times. What's more, their cold symptoms tended to be shorter lasting and less severe, according to findings published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.
ACCESS TO READING:
A one-day conference on reading and people with sight loss will take place tomorrow week, November 16th, at the Ballymascanlon Hotel, Dundalk. The theme of the conference is access to reading for people with sight loss. Topics include the latest technical developments, campaigning for equal access, reading techniques for people with low vision, reading and children plus much more.
The organisers say it will be of particular interest to libraries, disability professionals, information providers, public service providers, eye specialists, publishers, educational institutions, people with sight problems, their families and friends.To register, you can download the full programme and a booking form from the conference website, www.seeingbetterireland.org.
The conference is organised by the Seeing Better Ireland initiative - an all-Ireland collaboration between The Blind Centre for Northern Ireland and St Joseph's School for the Visually Impaired which aims to host information events relevant to blind and visually impaired people living on either side of the Border.
ASPERGER RESEARCH:
A paper on using drama with children and adolescents affected by Asperger Syndrome (AS) will be presented at a conference in University College Dublin on Saturday, November 26th.
Asperger is a developmental disorder, which is generally regarded as being at the higher-functioning end of the autistic spectrum. Individuals with AS experience significant difficulties with social interaction and communication, flexible thinking and imaginative play. Dr Carmel O'Sullivan and a research team in Trinity College Dublin has been investigating the use of drama for some time. She will present a paper at the conference.
Another speaker will be Prof C. Gillberg, a noted psychiatrist and professor of child and adolescent psychiatry at the University of Gothenberg, Sweden, who has been instrumental in formulating diagnostic criteria.
Further details are available from Aspire (tel: 01 8780027) and further information and registration forms are also available on the website www.aspire-irl.org.
TALKS ON DEAFNESS:
The Centre for Deaf Studies, Trinity College Dublin, will host two key talks on issues involving the deaf this month.
Des Power, emeritus professor of special education at Griffith University in Queensland, will address the issue of Deaf People And Deaf Issues In The News tonight at 8pm. Then on Thursday, Mary Power, associate professor and head of communication and media in the school of humanities and social sciences at Bond University in Queensland, will speak about deaf people's social and business use of SMS and text-based communication technologies. That meeting also starts at 8 pm.
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