Tanam Pohon Untuk Melawan Pemanasan Global

Antara - 1 jam 2 menit lalu

Tanam Pohon Untuk Melawan Pemanasan Global

Jakarta (ANTARA) -- Menanam pohon adalah upaya awal untuk mengurangi pemanasan global, kata Direktur Public Affairs PT Djarum Suwarno M Serad pada acara penanaman pohon Trembesi di Kecamatan Karang Anyar, Kabupaten Demak, Rabu (12/3) lalu.

Oh ya? Ya, karena dengan semakin banyak pohon yang tumbuh, lingkungan semakin sejuk, kata vokalis band Nidji, Giring Ganesha, yang turut menyemarakkan acara yang merupakan rangkaian kegiatan tanggung jawab sosial PT Djarum dalam memerangi pemanasan global melalui penanaman pohon di sepanjang jalan raya Semarang-Demak-Kudus, Jawa Tengah.

Bagaimanakah kaitan antara penanaman pohon dengan mengurangi pemanasan global?

Pemanasan global adalah kenaikan suhu udara rata-rata di seluruh permukaan bumi. Kenaikan suhu udara ini terjadi karena semakin banyak gas-gas rumah kaca di atmosfer bumi. Gas-gas ini antara lain uap air (H2O), karbon dioksida (CO2), nitrous oksida (N2O), dan gas metana (CH4), bersama dengan gas-gas lain menyelimuti bumi yang disebut dengan udara.

Gas-gas ini memiliki efek rumah kaca, sehingga sinar matahari bisa masuk menembus kaca, namun panas dari rumah kaca tidak bisa keluar karena tertahan oleh kaca, sehingga udara di dalam rumah kaca lama-kelamaan menjadi lebih panas. Hal seperti ini dilakukan petani di daerah beriklim dingin untuk meningkatkan dan menjaga kestabilan suhu di daerah pertaniannya.

Demikian pula gas-gas rumah kaca di atmosfer bumi. Sinar matahari mampu menerobos lapisan gas ini sehingga mencapai permukaan bumi. Sebagian sinar itu diserap bumi, lainnya dipancarkan kembali ke atmosfer (udara) dalam bentuk panas. Panas ini akan diserap gas-gas rumah kaca, kemudian dipancarkan kembali ke segala penjuru arah, termasuk sebagian besar ke arah bumi. Panas yang dipancarkan kembali ke arah Bumi inilah yang menyebabkan suhu udara di permukaan Bumi menjadi lebih tinggi.

Sesungguhnya keberadaan gas-gas rumah kaca ini sangat elementer sehingga bumi bisa dihuni mahluk hidup termasuk manusia, sebab kalau gas-gas ini tidak ada maka suhu permukaan bumi akan sangat dingin dan tidak memungkinkan mahluk hidup bertahan hidup.

Peningkatan konsentrasi (jumlah) gas-gas rumah kaca ini di atmosfer dengan sendirinya akan meningkatkan jumlah panas yang terperangkap di lapisan udara permukaan bumi. Dalam jangka panjang hal inilah yang menyebabkan pemanasan global.

Di antara gas-gas rumah kaca, jumlah gas karbon dioksida adalah yang meningkat signifikan, terkait dengan peningkatan aktivitas penggunaan bahan bakar fosil (gas, minyak dan batubara) untuk berbagai kerperluan seperti transportasi, industri dan rumah tangga, dari zaman pra-industri hingga zaman modern saat ini. Jumlah gas metana juga meningkat karena aktivitas pertanian, namun jumlahnya jauh lebih sedikit dibanding gas karbon dioksida.

Setiap pembakaran bahan bakar fosil akan melepas CO2 ke udara sebagai sisa pembakaran dalam jumlah yang sebanding.

Pemantauan di observatorium Mauna Loa, Hawaii, konsentrasi CO2 meningkat secara konsisten dari sekitar 318 ppm pada 1957 menjadi sekitar 387 ppm pada tahun 2010. Sementara itu, panel ahli antarpemerintah mengenai perubahan iklim (IPCC) mengungkapkan bahwa suhu permukaan bumi meningkat 0,6 derajat Celcius dari tahun 1861 hingga pada tahun 2001, dan saat ini diperkirakan suhu permukaan bumi meningkat sekitar 0,74 derajat Celcius.

Dampak negatif dari pemanasan global ini sudah disuarakan banyak kalangan sejak beberapa dekade lalu, namun komunitas dunia terutama kalangan industri baru sadar dalam beberapa tahun terakhir setelah lapisan es di kutub mulai mencair. Pencairan es di kutub dikhawatirkan akan menaikkan muka air laut, yang bisa menenggelamkan pulau dan sejumlah kota di tepi pantai, serta segala aktivitas masyarakat di kawasan pesisir.

Dampak lain dari pemanasan global yakni terganggunya pola iklim. Pola iklim yang tidak teratur membuat pola tanam pertanian menjadi kacau, bahkan bisa berakibat pada gagal panen yang bisa mengakibatkan kelaparan bagi manusia.

Sebagai contoh, selama ini musim hujan di Indonesia dikenal pada periode September hingga Februari, dan musim kering (panas) pada bulan Maret hingga Agustus. Dengan pola ini, biasanya petani menanam padi pada bulan Desember (puncak musim hujan) dan rencana panen pada bulan Maret atau April (awal musim kering). Karena perubahan iklim, musim hujan berlangsung hingga bulan Maret, maka padi tersebut akan hancur dan tidak bisa dipanen.

Selain itu, meningkatnya suhu udara bisa memunculkan berbagai penyakit baru yang sulit ditangani, karena belum sempat dilakukan penelitian.

Para ahli memperkirakan apabila suhu udara meningkat dua derajat Celcius, maka perubahan ekosistem bumi yang terjadi tidak akan bisa dipulihkan (ir-reversible), mahluk hidup banyak yang akan punah.

Oleh karena itu, untuk menghindari malapetaka karena kenaikan suhu tersebut bangsa-bangsa di dunia sepakat untuk mengurangi emisi karbon ke udara mulai tahun 2020.

Ada beberapa cara untuk mengurangi jumlah gas CO2 di udara, antara lain mengurangi penggunaan bahan bakar fosil dan menanam pohon/tumbuhan/tanaman untuk menyerap CO2 dari udara.

Mengurangi penggunaan bahan bakar fosil bisa dilakukan dengan efisiensi penggunaan energi dan atau menggunakan sumber energi lain seperti energi nuklir, tenaga matahari, tenaga air dan lain-lain.

Sementara itu penyerapan CO2 dari udara dilakukan tumbuhan (pohon) melalui proses fotosintesis di dalam daun. Atas bantuan energi dari sinar matahari, air yang diserap tumbuhan dari tanah akan bercampur dengan CO2 yang diserap dari udara untuk menghasilkan gula, yakni bahan organik yang diperlukan untuk tumbuh dan berkembang.

Semakin banyak tumbuhan (pohon) akan semakin banyak pula daun yang menyerap CO2, sehingga konsentrasi CO2 di udara bisa berkurang. Demikianlah proses penanaman pohon bisa mengurangi pemanasan global.

Proses fotosintesis sesungguhnya merupakan salah satu mekanisme alam untuk menjaga kesetimbangan konsentrasi CO2 di atmosfer, selain larutnya CO2 di lautan karena terbawa angin dan hujan, serta karena proses pendinginan udara. Di sinilah fungsi hutan menjadi penting.

Berkurangnya areal hutan karena pembabatan dan konversi untuk kepentingan lain seperti pemukiman dan kawasan industri, menjadi faktor yang mempercepat peningkatan konsentrasi CO2 di atmosfer dalam beberapa dekade terakhir. Oleh karena itu penanaman pohon dan penghutanan kembali areal kritis merupakan langkah penting mengurangi pemanasan global.

Gencarnya pemberitaan mengenai fenomena pemanasan global dan dampaknya telah memunculkan kesadaran di berbagai kalangan masyarakat di dunia untuk berpartisipasi melawan kenaikan suhu bumi ini.

Pemerintah Indonesia mengadakan program penanaman satu miliar pohon untuk mencapai target pengurangan emisi CO2 sebesar 26 persen pada tahun 2020.

Kebijakan ini ditanggapi Pemerintah Kota Bekasi dengan menanami pohon di sepanjang jalan raya, serta meminta setiap pelajar di daerah ini menanam satu pohon produktif di areal sekolahnya.

Di Missisippi, Amerika Serikat, masyarakat berlomba-lomba menanami bambu, selain untuk mengurangi pemanasan global juga untuk menghasilkan bahan bangunan dan kerajinan. Bahkan kelompok masyarakat ini melakukan berbagai penelitian yang menghasilkan jenis bambu dengan umur panen lebih pendek.

Di tingkat korporat, kegiatan produksi yang ramah lingkungan banyak dijadikan sebagai keunggulan bersaing dengan menghasilkan produk-produk berlabel ramah lingkungan (eco-labelling). Walaupun masih dipersoalkan, baru-baru ini perusahaan produsen barang-barang konsumen terbesar di dunia, Unilever, menolak minyak sawit produksi salah satu anak perusahaan Sinar Mas Group karena dinilai proses pertanamannya merusak lingkungan.

Sejumlah korporasi juga mengarahkan program kepedulian sosialnya (CSR) untuk turut berpartisipasi melawan pemanasan global, antara lain program Djarum Trees For Life dari PT Djarum. Lewat program ini akan ditanami 2.767 pohon Trembesi di sepanjang turus jalan Semarang-Kudus, Jawa Tengah. Setelah ini selesai akan dilanjutkan di daerah lain kawasan Pantai Utara Jawa.

Pohon Trembesi dipilih selain karena memiliki kemampuan sebagai peneduh, juga merupakan pohon dengan serapan CO2 tertinggi. Hasil penelitian Dr. Ir. H. Endes N. Dahlan, dari Fakultas Kehutanan Institut Pertanian Bogor (IPB) satu batang pohon Trembesi (diameter tajuk 15 meter) mampu menyerap 28,5 ton gas CO2 setiap tahun. Sehingga penanaman pohon jenis ini secara luas dapat menurunkan konsentrasi gas CO2 secara efektif dalam waktu yang lebih singkat.

Sementara itu dipilihnya jalan raya sebagai lokasi penanaman pohon atas dua pertimbangan, yang pertama bahwa jalan raya merupakan kawasan emisi CO2 yang besar karena banyak kendaraan bermotor yang lalu lalang, sehingga tumbuhnya pohon Trembesi di sepanjang jalan akan efektif menyerap CO2 buangan kendaraan bermotor tersebut.

Yang kedua kampanye perang melawan pemanasan global. Dengan menanam pohon Trembesi di pinggir jalan raya, diharapkan semakin banyak orang yang peduli dan melakukan hal serupa untuk memerangi pemanasan global.

PT Djarum sadar bahwa perang melawan pemanasan global bukan hanya tanggung jawab pemerintah atau para pemilik modal, melainkan tugas bersama seluruh umat manusia. Oleh karena itu harus semakin banyak orang yang diajak berpartisipasi.

Oleh karena itu, dalam rangkaian program penanaman pohon Trembesi ini PT Djarum melibatkan banyak kalangan, mulai dari pemerintah daerah Jawa Tengah, Kepolisian, kelompok tani, artis, lembaga swadaya masyarakat (LSM), perguruan tinggi, blogger, dan pelajar.

"Kami ingin menularkan kepada semakin banyak orang keinginan untuk menanam pohon. Kami ingin agar semakin banyak orang yang berpartisipasi melawan pemanasan global," kata Suwarno M Serad di hadapan ribuan warga masyarakat yang menantikan aksi kelompok band Nidji, di Karang Anyar, Demak, pekan lalu.

Dalam rangkaian program Djarum Trees For Life, secara bergelombang sejak bulan Maret, penyanyi Nugie, selebritas Luna Maya dan kelompok band Nidji, melakukan penanaman pohon Trembesi di daerah Karang Anyar, Demak. Acara puncak akan menghadirkan Iwan Fals pada 27 Mei mendatang di Demak.

Sambil menghibur para penggemarnya, para artis ini menyuarakan ajakan untuk menanam pohon untuk melawan pemanasan global demi masa depan bumi dan manusia.

"Mari menanam pohon, karena semakiin banyak pohon lingkungan semakin sejuk," kata Giring ketika menghibur ribuan warga di alun-alun Kecamatan Karang Anyar itu.

Sesungguhnya penanaman pohon tidak sekadar membuat udara menjadi lebih sejuk, seperti diungkapkan Giring, tetapi lebih dari itu, secara tidak kita sadari tindakan itu berkontribusi terhadap perang melawan pemanasan global sehigga bumi dengan segala mahluk di dalamnya terhindar dari kepunahan.

http://id.news.yahoo.com/antr/20100517/tpl-tanam-pohon-untuk-melawan-pemanasan-cc08abe.html

8 Tips to Survive Your Drive

• by Reader's Digest Magazine, on Thu May 6, 2010 9:36am PDT

By Fran Lostys

Do you know what to do in a dangerous driving situation?

Survive your drive with these tips from Walter Irvine, an instructor at the Skip Barber Racing School, in Lakeville, Connecticut.

What If...?

… a car is heading straight toward you in your lane?
“Try to get their attention [honk, flash your lights], but also look ahead and plan for an evasive reaction. Do not stare at the oncoming vehicle,” because your car follows your line of sight. “Look where you want to go, not where you are heading.”

© Jupiterimages/Creatas/Thinkstock

...a car is tailgating you and honking wildly?
“Pull over and let it by.”

PLUS: 11 Crazy Things We Do While We Drive

… a car is swerving ahead of you and the driver is clearly impaired?
“Give him room, do not tailgate, and, again, do not fixate on him.”

… a deer darts in front of your car?
“Calmly attempt to avoid it with as little braking and steering as you can.”

PLUS: The 7 Deadliest Roads

… you come to a four-way stop?
“Always try to establish eye contact with drivers waiting to proceed. If you see them looking at you, you know it is safe.”

… you’re blinded by the sun?
“Don’t overreact by slamming on the brakes or swerving. Continue on your path so you are predictable to other vehicles.”

PLUS: The 5 Best Roads in America

... you get a yellow light as you approach an intersection?
“You should never go through a yellow light if you have the ability to stop safely.”

… you’re about to be rear-ended?
“Take your foot off the brake. If the car behind you hits you, the impact will be lessened if your car can roll forward.”

http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/life/8-tips-to-survive-your-drive-1410116/

Could Online Hackers Steal Your Cash?

Saturday, May 15, 2010provided by

When you access your bank account online you probably don't think that at that exact moment there may be a hacker, somewhere in the world, trying to steal your bank information and your money.

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Your bank offers secure online banking, so why should you worry, right?

Despite banks' efforts to protect accounts from the online crooks, hacker attacks remain a serious threat that cost Americans millions of dollars each year. The Internet Crime Complaint Center reported that Americans lost about $559 million to Internet thieves in 2009. That is more than twice the 2008 figure, when $268 million was stolen on the Internet, according to the center.

"Last year there were more online bank robberies than there were actual on-site bank robberies," says Sean Sullivan, a security adviser at F-Secure, an Internet security firm. "Banks have become very proactive in protecting accounts from hackers, but it's still quite a large problem. We see all types of new attempts every day."

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Biggest Threat

Banking Trojans -- malicious code specifically designed for banking fraud -- are one of the biggest threats to consumers who bank online, Sullivan says. They are invisible and can steal multiple types of data, including passwords. Some more advanced types of Trojans can make fraudulent transfers and drain your account while you are logged on to the account online, he says.

Is Your Bank Safe?

The more questions and passwords you are asked to enter in order to log in to your account, the safer is your bank's website.

If your bank only asks you to enter a username and password to log in its website is not as secure as it should be, Sullivan says.

Some banks require customers to create a username, a site key name and use personalized pictures or symbols that appear during the login process. In addition, banks should ask customers to answer a security question before gaining access to their account.

"The more layers you have before you get to your account, the safer you are," Sullivan says.

Who's Liable?

In the event you become a victim of online theft, act quickly and know your rights. The general rule for consumer checking and savings accounts is the bank is liable for most of the damage, as long as you report the illicit transfer in a timely manner. But if you have a line of credit account or a business account, you need to be extra careful, because the bank will not always be obligated to pay for your loss.

"It is based on whether the customer's conduct with respect to security was reasonable," he says. In that case the court will ultimately determine who was more at fault for the breach -- the bank or the consumer.

Business Accounts

Business accounts are the most vulnerable to hacker attacks and the least protected by the law. Hackers are much more inclined to break into a six-figure business account than a consumer account with a few thousand dollars, Sullivan says.

"There are hundreds of cases of thefts of money from small business deposit accounts each year," Johnson says.

Business accounts are regulated by the Uniform Commercial Code, or UCC, which requires banks to maintain "commercial reasonable authentication security procedures," in any kind of wire transfer, he says.

"If the bank can show the breach was caused by something the customer did the bank is not liable," Johnson says.

California attorney Nada Alnajafi says most small businesses don't understand the risk they are taking when they use wire-transfer accounts.

"I don't think a lot of them understand they are taking almost full risk for any potential issues," she says.

She is representing a small Los Angeles business owner who lost $50,000 after a hacker committed a fraudulent transfer from his Bank of America account to a Croatian Bank. She filed a lawsuit on behalf of her client against Bank of America in February because the bank refused to take responsibility for the theft, she says.

Bank of America claims it is not liable for the illicit transfer. The lawsuit is pending.

How to Help Protect Your Account

• Don't access your account from a shared computer.

• Be certain your computer has anti-virus, firewall and anti-spyware programs, including security software with automatic updates.

• If you are using wireless service, check the settings on your computer to make sure the connection is encrypted. Don't connect to your account using a public network, like the ones you find at a coffee shop or at the airport.

• Review your statements regularly and carefully, and report any suspicious activity to your bank immediately.

• Use a strong password with letters and numbers combined. Don't use the same password for multiple accounts.

• Log out after every session.

Copyrighted, Bankrate.com. All rights reserved.

http://finance.yahoo.com/banking-budgetingk/article/109549/could-online-hackers-steal-your-cash?mod=bb-checking_savings

Internet Use Makes Us Happier, Says Mental-Health Study

AFP/File – A Saudi university student is pictured checking out his internet blog on a laptop at a cafe in Riyadh. …

By TARA KELLY / LONDON – Sat May 15, 1:55 am ET

When it comes to mental health, the Internet gets a bad rap. There are countless studies that suggest regular access to the Internet is linked to stress, anxiety and addiction. But before you stop tweeting and toss out your iPhone, it turns out that spending time on the Web could actually be making you happier.

A May 12 report by British researchers from the U.K.'s Chartered Institute of IT (known as BCS) have found a link between Internet access and well-being. But some benefit more than others from tapping into the information superhighway, including those with lower incomes or fewer qualifications, people living in the developing world and, perhaps most surprisingly, women. (See the 50 best websites of 2009.)

Overall, the study found that access to the Internet leads people to feel better about their lives. "Put simply, people with IT access are more satisfied with life even when taking account of income," said Michael Willmott, the social scientist who authored the study, at a press conference. "Our analysis suggests that IT has an enabling and empowering role in people's lives, by increasing their sense of freedom and control, which has a positive impact on well-being or happiness."

Few studies have been done on how Web access directly affects happiness. So researchers from the Trajectory Partnership, a U.K.-based think tank that carried out the study on behalf of the BCS, analyzed data from 35,000 people across the globe who took part in the World Values Survey from 2005 to 2007. Looking at a number of social and economic factors that determine happiness - including gender, age, income and education - the survey showed that Internet use empowers people by increasing their feelings of security, personal freedom and influence. (See pictures of what money can buy.)

"The results ... are very plausible," says Carol Graham, chair in foreign policy studies at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C., and author of Happiness Around the World. "If you introduce a technology [in the developing world], whether it is the Internet or the cell phone, that allows people to reduce their very high [constraints] of getting through daily life, it has a tremendous well-being affect." (Comment on this story.)

The survey showed that the correlation between Internet access and happiness does not appear to increase with age, meaning it's not just kids who get something out of surfing the Web. "Whether young or old, we're all social beings, we all have a need for the things IT access facilitates," Paul Flatters, a partner at the Trajectory Partnership, told reporters. (See 10 tech trends for 2010.)

But the researchers weren't expecting to discover that women gain so much from technology, given that it's such a male-dominated industry. Although the report didn't explore why women reap more happiness from Internet access than men do, the report hypothesizes that because women tend to be at the center of their family's social network, the Web is a tool to help them keep their home lives organized. According to the Brookings Institution's Graham, while the findings may surprise initially, they do make sense. "Particularly the [results on] gender and lesser developing countries, if you consider that women in many of these contexts are either isolated or repressed in a way," she says. "IT gives them communication with the outside world, access to networks and so on. Friendships are very important to well-being as well, and one can imagine e-mail and IT being a good way to maintain those, particularly in contexts where telephones and transport are far from ideal or reliable."

The Trajectory Partnership says that the survey's results have motivated them to go further in trying to answer the question of why some people benefit from Web access more than others. "We hope to establish why this works and in particular how is it working with women and disempowered groups," says social scientistWillmott. (Read "Welcome to Googleville?")

With burgeoning interest in finding ways to measure progress beyond GDP - Bhutan has its index for gross national happiness and the U.N. produces a Human Development Report each year - countries could usefuture studies like this one to help form government policy. The BCS hopes its report will play an important role in shaping how the technology industry develops its products and works toward bridging the digital divide. "The more we can make technology work for humankind, the better," says Willmott.

See TIME's Pictures of the Week.

See the TIME 100 thinkers.

View this article on Time.com

Related articles on Time.com:

• Internet Use and Well-Being: U.K. Web Study Shows Link
• Laugh and the World Laughs With You: How Happiness Spreads
• It's a Glad, Sad, Mad World

http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20100515/hl_time/08599198924400

Things to Stop Doing Now on Facebook

by Consumer Reports Magazine
Wednesday, May 12, 2010

provided by

Using a Weak Password

Avoid simple names or words you can find in a dictionary, even with numbers tacked on the end. Instead, mix upper- and lower-case letters, numbers, and symbols. A password should have at least eight characters. One good technique is to insert numbers or symbols in the middle of a word, such as this variant on the word "houses": hO27usEs!

Leaving Your Full Birth Date in Your Profile

More fromConsumerReports.org: • Millions of Users Exposing Personal Information • Tested: 119 Laptops, Desktops, Netbooks and iPad • Electronics Reviews

It's an ideal target for identity thieves, who could use it to obtain more information about you and potentially gain access to your bank or credit card account. If you've already entered a birth date, go to your profile page and click on the Info tab, then on Edit Information. Under the Basic Information section, choose to show only the month and day or no birthday at all.

Overlooking Useful Privacy Controls

For almost everything in your Facebook profile, you can limit access to only your friends, friends of friends, or yourself. Restrict access to photos, birth date, religious views, and family information, among other things. You can give only certain people or groups access to items such as photos, or block particular people from seeing them. Consider leaving out contact info, such as phone number and address, since you probably don't want anyone to have access to that information anyway.

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Posting Your Child's Name in a Caption

Don't use a child's name in photo tags or captions. If someone else does, delete it by clicking on Remove Tag. If your child isn't on Facebook and someone includes his or her name in a caption, ask that person to remove the name.

Mentioning That You'll Be Away From Home

That's like putting a "no one's home" sign on your door. Wait until you get home to tell everyone how awesome your vacation was and be vague about the date of any trip.

Letting Search Engines Find You

To help prevent strangers from accessing your page, go to the Search section of Facebook's privacy controls and select Only Friends for Facebook search results. Be sure the box for public search results isn't checked.

Permitting Youngsters to Use Facebook Unsupervised

Facebook limits its members to ages 13 and over, but children younger than that do use it. If you have a young child or teenager on Facebook, the best way to provide oversight is to become one of their online friends. Use your e-mail address as the contact for their account so that you receive their notifications and monitor their activities. "What they think is nothing can actually be pretty serious," says Charles Pavelites, a supervisory special agent at the Internet Crime Complaint Center. For example, a child who posts the comment "Mom will be home soon, I need to do the dishes" every day at the same time is revealing too much about the parents' regular comings and goings.

Consumer Reports has no relationship with any advertisers on Yahoo!

Copyrighted 2009, Consumers Union of U.S., Inc. All Rights Reserved.

http://finance.yahoo.com/family-home/article/109538/7-things-to-stop-doing-now-on-facebook

Debus Getarkan Publik Prancis

Liputan 6 - 2 jam 56 menit lalu

Liputan6.com, London: Atraksi debus khas Banten, seperti mengiris bagian tubuh dengan golok, menancapkan paku dengan pukulan palu di bagian perut, mengupas kelapa dengan gigi dan lain-lain, mengundang decak kagum dan mengetarkan hati penonton di arena Festival Indonesia di Paris, Prancis. Pertujukan itu merupakan bagian dari Festival Indonesia yang digelar KBRI setempat di gedung KBRI Paris, Rue Cortambert 47-49 Paris.

"Para penonton yang penasaran dengan pertunjukan itu, sempat dipersilakan naik ke panggung untuk mencobanya," ujar Agus Badrul Jamal, juru bicara KBRI di Paris kepada koresponden Antara di London, Kamis (13/5).

Berbagai produk kreatif, pagelaran seni budaya, dan dekorasi rumah, ditampilkan dalam pameran itu. "Jumlah pengunjung selama dua hari penyelenggaraan festival tersebut mencapai 2.500 orang, mengalami peningkatan sekitar 800 orang dari kegiatan serupa tahun sebelumnya," kata Agus.

Penyelenggaraan Festival Indonesia 2010 disambut positif baik oleh peserta dari sejumlah usaha kecil dan menengah (UKM) di Indonesia dan juga publik Prancis. Hal itu terlihat dari keikutsertaan UKM yang berjumlah 21 stan, meningkat dari tahun sebelumnya yang hanya 16 UKM.

Festival bertujuan mempromosikan produk unggulan Indonesia, terutama dari pelaku ekonomi di kalangan usaha kecil dan menengah. Selain itu, memperkenalkan potensi investasi dan perdagangan, potensi wisata, dan budaya Indonesia kepada publik Prancis.

"Kesempatan ini juga bermanfaat bagi pengusaha Indonesia untuk mempelajari situasi pasar di Prancis dan juga temu muka langsung dengan pengusaha distributor di negeri tersebut," tutur Agus.(SHA)

http://id.news.yahoo.com/lptn/20100513/tpl-debus-getarkan-publik-prancis-9c562ac.html

11-hour days are bad for the heart

Memo to boss: 11-hour days are bad for the heart

By Ben Hirschler - Tue May 11, 10:16 AM PDT

LONDON (Reuters) - People working 10 or 11 hours a day are more likely to suffer serious heart problems, including heart attacks, than those clocking off after seven hours, researchers said on Tuesday.

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The finding, from an 11-year study of 6,000 British civil servants, does not provide definitive proof that long hours cause coronary heart disease but it does show a clear link, which experts said may be due to stress.

In all, there were 369 cases of death due to heart disease, non-fatal heart attacks and angina among the London-based study group -- and the risk of having an adverse event was 60 percent higher for those who worked three to four hours overtime.

Working an extra one to two hours beyond a normal seven-hour day was not associated with increased risk.

"It seems there might a threshold, so it is not so bad if you work another hour or so more than usual," said Dr Marianna Virtanen, an epidemiologist at the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health and University College London.

The higher incidence of heart problems among those working overtime was independent of a range of other risk factors including smoking, being overweight or having high cholesterol.

But Virtanen said it was possible the lifestyle of people working long hours deteriorated over time, for example as a result of poor diet or increased alcohol consumption.

More fundamentally, long hours may be associated with work-related stress, which interferes with metabolic processes, as well as "sickness presenteeism," whereby employees continue working when they are ill.

Virtanen and colleagues published their findings in the European Heart Journal.

Commenting on the study, Gordon McInnes, professor of clinical pharmacology at the University of Glasgow'sWestern Infirmary, said the findings could have widespread implications for doctors assessing patients' heart risks.

"If the effect is truly causal, the importance is much greater than commonly recognized. Overtime-induced work stress might contribute to a substantial proportion of cardiovascular disease," he said.

(Editing by Charles Dick)

http://health.yahoo.com/news/reuters/us_heart_overtime.html