London is not quite Blair's cup of tea
By Joe Murphyand Nicholas Cecil, Evening Standard
London: Tony Blair had London cafe owners steaming - after claiming they cannot make a good cup of tea.
The Prime Minister landed in hot water by moaning that it was impossible to find a decent cuppa in the capital any more. "I fear you may be right," he said when asked if he agreed that good mugs of tea were impossible to track down. "It's got to be properly strong, it's got to have the right colour. The trouble is, not many people do it like that."
"This is a British tradition that must not be lost. If I were running for office again, I'd make it a major part of any platform," he said.
But a spokesman for The Ritz, where afternoon tea costs £36 (Dh261) a head, said: "We are confident the several hundred cups of tea we serve a day are great."
A Downing Street spokeswoman declined to reveal who made the tea for Blair at No 10, but insisted: "It's always tea in his tea mug."
How to make the perfect brew
The Tea Council's official guide to the perfect cuppa:
Use a good quality loose leaf or bagged tea, stored in an air-tight container at room temperature.
Use freshly drawn boiling water - the water needs to contain oxygen to draw the best flavour from the tea. Let the tea brew for two to four minutes.
It does not matter if milk is poured first or last when using a pot. But milk must be poured last if brewing from a bag in a mug or it will cool the water too quickly.
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Saturday, May 12, 2007
TEA: Nontraditional Tea Parties
Host a nontraditional tea party
by Beth J. Harpaz, The Associated Press
published May 12, 2007 12:15 am
NEW YORK — You’d expect a book called “Tea Party” to provide instructions for a proper afternoon tea, complete with white linen napkins, polished silver and tiered trays of scones, finger sandwiches and petits fours.
But Tracy Stern’s book also provides inspiration for plenty of parties that stray from that cliche, including one for men with black-tea martinis and sausage sandwiches.
Advertisement
Or a zany Mad Hatter-style tea party (a very merry unbirthday) with mismatched plates and cups, ham-banana sandwiches and cherry tarts. And a fall harvest dinner with chai tea, squash soup and an apple-cranberry crisp.
Stern’s “Tea Party” (Clarkson Potter, $27.50) offers recipes and ideas for 20 such themed events. And that’s just the start of her repertoire.
“I could have written five books,” said Stern, whose company, Tracy Stern SALONTEA, sells specialty teas and tea-infused beauty products. “My head is filled with the fantasy of creating tea parties for adults.”
As a child, Stern collected teacups and was obsessed with giving tea parties. As an adult, she turned that passion into a business. In addition to her book, published in April, and her products, she’s lined up investors for a chain of stores called Tea Party, with plans to open the first store later this year in Manhattan.
Stern’s ventures come at a time when the tea industry is booming. Ten years ago, there were 200 specialty tea rooms and retail shops; today there are 2,200, according to the Tea Association of the USA. Statistics from the Tea Association also show that consumer purchases of tea have increased for 15 straight years, with away-from-home consumption increasing 10 percent annually for a decade. Strong growth is anticipated for the next five years.
“Tea is undergoing a renaissance,” said Joe Simrany, president of the Tea Association. Simrany said reasons include increasing awareness and popularity of specialty teas; ready-to-drink teas; and health benefits. (Tea is high in antioxidants.)
In creating her book, Stern, a married mother of two in her late 30s, drew on her experiences as a tea maven. After studying art at the University of Tampa in Florida, she opened the Royal Tea Room in Tampa, with handpainted tea cozies and her own blends of tea. She later sold the business and moved to New York, where she hosted formal teas at a hotel and organized tea parties for charities and corporate events, including creating drinks mixing tea and alcohol to launch liquor products.
The stores she envisions opening will sell her teas and beauty products, along with teacups and teapots she’s designed using antique china for inspiration. The stores also will serve tea and sweets.
“This is the place you’re going to want to be that will be a respite from the crazy city,” said Lauren Freedman-Bolton, CEO of Tracy Stern Inc., who helped Stern devise a business plan and secure financing for the stores. “It will stimulate your senses, but it will also be very calming.”
The same could be said of the tea parties Stern outlines in her book, which include gatherings celebrating New Year’s Day, Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, engagements, baby showers and bridal showers. In addition to recipes, each theme includes ideas for invitations, decor and activities.
For a bridal shower tea, Stern suggests a spa theme, with little plastic tubs for foot soaks in mineral salts and chilled eye masks. Guests even could chip in and hire a manicurist, pedicurist or massage therapist to come. The menu includes serve-yourself buffets: a sophisticated salad bar and a frozen yogurt and sorbet bar.
While her menus and themes are unorthodox, Stern is a purist when it comes to actually making the tea.
“I’m not doing the tea bag,” she declared. “I feel the tea leaf needs to open and unfurl to get the full flavor.” And microwaving a cup of water for tea is a no-no as well. Stern wants the water boiled, then steeped with loose tea.
She added that inviting friends for tea always “makes them feel special,” whether it’s in your home, a fancy hotel or a cozy cafe. “Grabbing a cup of coffee,” she said, “doesn’t have that same special cachet.”
Some easy tea party ideas from Stern:
• For a beach theme, make the table pretty using seashells filled with salt or sequins. Stick a flower in a conch shell.
• For an elegant centerpiece, decorate a branch with crystal teardrops and uplight it with candles.
• Fill clear glasses with the colored aquarium stones sold in pet stores.
• Use cookie cutters to cut sandwiches into bite-size shapes, such as hearts.
• If you own a variety of teacups but not a complete set, use glass plates to mix and match for a modern-vintage look.
• For place settings, put two glass plates together and press a pansy or palm frond between them. If it’s a birthday or shower party, insert a photo of the guest of honor between the plates.
• Use chilled brewed tea to create interesting cocktails. Stern’s black-tea martinis, recommended for a “Gentlemen’s Tea,” are made from 2 ounces of vodka, 2 ounces of chilled brewed black tea and ice. (Dip the moistened rim of the glass in chopped tea leaves and sugar before you pour.)
• Make edible place settings using canned, refrigerated soft breadsticks, which you can shape into your guests’ initials before baking.
• Set the tone for your party with creative invitations. For a garden party, enclose a small packet of flower seeds with each invitation. For a French-themed soiree, use postcards of Paris.
by Beth J. Harpaz, The Associated Press
published May 12, 2007 12:15 am
NEW YORK — You’d expect a book called “Tea Party” to provide instructions for a proper afternoon tea, complete with white linen napkins, polished silver and tiered trays of scones, finger sandwiches and petits fours.
But Tracy Stern’s book also provides inspiration for plenty of parties that stray from that cliche, including one for men with black-tea martinis and sausage sandwiches.
Or a zany Mad Hatter-style tea party (a very merry unbirthday) with mismatched plates and cups, ham-banana sandwiches and cherry tarts. And a fall harvest dinner with chai tea, squash soup and an apple-cranberry crisp.
Stern’s “Tea Party” (Clarkson Potter, $27.50) offers recipes and ideas for 20 such themed events. And that’s just the start of her repertoire.
“I could have written five books,” said Stern, whose company, Tracy Stern SALONTEA, sells specialty teas and tea-infused beauty products. “My head is filled with the fantasy of creating tea parties for adults.”
As a child, Stern collected teacups and was obsessed with giving tea parties. As an adult, she turned that passion into a business. In addition to her book, published in April, and her products, she’s lined up investors for a chain of stores called Tea Party, with plans to open the first store later this year in Manhattan.
Stern’s ventures come at a time when the tea industry is booming. Ten years ago, there were 200 specialty tea rooms and retail shops; today there are 2,200, according to the Tea Association of the USA. Statistics from the Tea Association also show that consumer purchases of tea have increased for 15 straight years, with away-from-home consumption increasing 10 percent annually for a decade. Strong growth is anticipated for the next five years.
“Tea is undergoing a renaissance,” said Joe Simrany, president of the Tea Association. Simrany said reasons include increasing awareness and popularity of specialty teas; ready-to-drink teas; and health benefits. (Tea is high in antioxidants.)
In creating her book, Stern, a married mother of two in her late 30s, drew on her experiences as a tea maven. After studying art at the University of Tampa in Florida, she opened the Royal Tea Room in Tampa, with handpainted tea cozies and her own blends of tea. She later sold the business and moved to New York, where she hosted formal teas at a hotel and organized tea parties for charities and corporate events, including creating drinks mixing tea and alcohol to launch liquor products.
The stores she envisions opening will sell her teas and beauty products, along with teacups and teapots she’s designed using antique china for inspiration. The stores also will serve tea and sweets.
“This is the place you’re going to want to be that will be a respite from the crazy city,” said Lauren Freedman-Bolton, CEO of Tracy Stern Inc., who helped Stern devise a business plan and secure financing for the stores. “It will stimulate your senses, but it will also be very calming.”
The same could be said of the tea parties Stern outlines in her book, which include gatherings celebrating New Year’s Day, Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, engagements, baby showers and bridal showers. In addition to recipes, each theme includes ideas for invitations, decor and activities.
For a bridal shower tea, Stern suggests a spa theme, with little plastic tubs for foot soaks in mineral salts and chilled eye masks. Guests even could chip in and hire a manicurist, pedicurist or massage therapist to come. The menu includes serve-yourself buffets: a sophisticated salad bar and a frozen yogurt and sorbet bar.
While her menus and themes are unorthodox, Stern is a purist when it comes to actually making the tea.
“I’m not doing the tea bag,” she declared. “I feel the tea leaf needs to open and unfurl to get the full flavor.” And microwaving a cup of water for tea is a no-no as well. Stern wants the water boiled, then steeped with loose tea.
She added that inviting friends for tea always “makes them feel special,” whether it’s in your home, a fancy hotel or a cozy cafe. “Grabbing a cup of coffee,” she said, “doesn’t have that same special cachet.”
Some easy tea party ideas from Stern:
• For a beach theme, make the table pretty using seashells filled with salt or sequins. Stick a flower in a conch shell.
• For an elegant centerpiece, decorate a branch with crystal teardrops and uplight it with candles.
• Fill clear glasses with the colored aquarium stones sold in pet stores.
• Use cookie cutters to cut sandwiches into bite-size shapes, such as hearts.
• If you own a variety of teacups but not a complete set, use glass plates to mix and match for a modern-vintage look.
• For place settings, put two glass plates together and press a pansy or palm frond between them. If it’s a birthday or shower party, insert a photo of the guest of honor between the plates.
• Use chilled brewed tea to create interesting cocktails. Stern’s black-tea martinis, recommended for a “Gentlemen’s Tea,” are made from 2 ounces of vodka, 2 ounces of chilled brewed black tea and ice. (Dip the moistened rim of the glass in chopped tea leaves and sugar before you pour.)
• Make edible place settings using canned, refrigerated soft breadsticks, which you can shape into your guests’ initials before baking.
• Set the tone for your party with creative invitations. For a garden party, enclose a small packet of flower seeds with each invitation. For a French-themed soiree, use postcards of Paris.
by Beth J. Harpaz, The Associated Press
published May 12, 2007 12:15 am
NEW YORK — You’d expect a book called “Tea Party” to provide instructions for a proper afternoon tea, complete with white linen napkins, polished silver and tiered trays of scones, finger sandwiches and petits fours.
But Tracy Stern’s book also provides inspiration for plenty of parties that stray from that cliche, including one for men with black-tea martinis and sausage sandwiches.
Advertisement
Or a zany Mad Hatter-style tea party (a very merry unbirthday) with mismatched plates and cups, ham-banana sandwiches and cherry tarts. And a fall harvest dinner with chai tea, squash soup and an apple-cranberry crisp.
Stern’s “Tea Party” (Clarkson Potter, $27.50) offers recipes and ideas for 20 such themed events. And that’s just the start of her repertoire.
“I could have written five books,” said Stern, whose company, Tracy Stern SALONTEA, sells specialty teas and tea-infused beauty products. “My head is filled with the fantasy of creating tea parties for adults.”
As a child, Stern collected teacups and was obsessed with giving tea parties. As an adult, she turned that passion into a business. In addition to her book, published in April, and her products, she’s lined up investors for a chain of stores called Tea Party, with plans to open the first store later this year in Manhattan.
Stern’s ventures come at a time when the tea industry is booming. Ten years ago, there were 200 specialty tea rooms and retail shops; today there are 2,200, according to the Tea Association of the USA. Statistics from the Tea Association also show that consumer purchases of tea have increased for 15 straight years, with away-from-home consumption increasing 10 percent annually for a decade. Strong growth is anticipated for the next five years.
“Tea is undergoing a renaissance,” said Joe Simrany, president of the Tea Association. Simrany said reasons include increasing awareness and popularity of specialty teas; ready-to-drink teas; and health benefits. (Tea is high in antioxidants.)
In creating her book, Stern, a married mother of two in her late 30s, drew on her experiences as a tea maven. After studying art at the University of Tampa in Florida, she opened the Royal Tea Room in Tampa, with handpainted tea cozies and her own blends of tea. She later sold the business and moved to New York, where she hosted formal teas at a hotel and organized tea parties for charities and corporate events, including creating drinks mixing tea and alcohol to launch liquor products.
The stores she envisions opening will sell her teas and beauty products, along with teacups and teapots she’s designed using antique china for inspiration. The stores also will serve tea and sweets.
“This is the place you’re going to want to be that will be a respite from the crazy city,” said Lauren Freedman-Bolton, CEO of Tracy Stern Inc., who helped Stern devise a business plan and secure financing for the stores. “It will stimulate your senses, but it will also be very calming.”
The same could be said of the tea parties Stern outlines in her book, which include gatherings celebrating New Year’s Day, Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, engagements, baby showers and bridal showers. In addition to recipes, each theme includes ideas for invitations, decor and activities.
For a bridal shower tea, Stern suggests a spa theme, with little plastic tubs for foot soaks in mineral salts and chilled eye masks. Guests even could chip in and hire a manicurist, pedicurist or massage therapist to come. The menu includes serve-yourself buffets: a sophisticated salad bar and a frozen yogurt and sorbet bar.
While her menus and themes are unorthodox, Stern is a purist when it comes to actually making the tea.
“I’m not doing the tea bag,” she declared. “I feel the tea leaf needs to open and unfurl to get the full flavor.” And microwaving a cup of water for tea is a no-no as well. Stern wants the water boiled, then steeped with loose tea.
She added that inviting friends for tea always “makes them feel special,” whether it’s in your home, a fancy hotel or a cozy cafe. “Grabbing a cup of coffee,” she said, “doesn’t have that same special cachet.”
Some easy tea party ideas from Stern:
• For a beach theme, make the table pretty using seashells filled with salt or sequins. Stick a flower in a conch shell.
• For an elegant centerpiece, decorate a branch with crystal teardrops and uplight it with candles.
• Fill clear glasses with the colored aquarium stones sold in pet stores.
• Use cookie cutters to cut sandwiches into bite-size shapes, such as hearts.
• If you own a variety of teacups but not a complete set, use glass plates to mix and match for a modern-vintage look.
• For place settings, put two glass plates together and press a pansy or palm frond between them. If it’s a birthday or shower party, insert a photo of the guest of honor between the plates.
• Use chilled brewed tea to create interesting cocktails. Stern’s black-tea martinis, recommended for a “Gentlemen’s Tea,” are made from 2 ounces of vodka, 2 ounces of chilled brewed black tea and ice. (Dip the moistened rim of the glass in chopped tea leaves and sugar before you pour.)
• Make edible place settings using canned, refrigerated soft breadsticks, which you can shape into your guests’ initials before baking.
• Set the tone for your party with creative invitations. For a garden party, enclose a small packet of flower seeds with each invitation. For a French-themed soiree, use postcards of Paris.
by Beth J. Harpaz, The Associated Press
published May 12, 2007 12:15 am
NEW YORK — You’d expect a book called “Tea Party” to provide instructions for a proper afternoon tea, complete with white linen napkins, polished silver and tiered trays of scones, finger sandwiches and petits fours.
But Tracy Stern’s book also provides inspiration for plenty of parties that stray from that cliche, including one for men with black-tea martinis and sausage sandwiches.
Or a zany Mad Hatter-style tea party (a very merry unbirthday) with mismatched plates and cups, ham-banana sandwiches and cherry tarts. And a fall harvest dinner with chai tea, squash soup and an apple-cranberry crisp.
Stern’s “Tea Party” (Clarkson Potter, $27.50) offers recipes and ideas for 20 such themed events. And that’s just the start of her repertoire.
“I could have written five books,” said Stern, whose company, Tracy Stern SALONTEA, sells specialty teas and tea-infused beauty products. “My head is filled with the fantasy of creating tea parties for adults.”
As a child, Stern collected teacups and was obsessed with giving tea parties. As an adult, she turned that passion into a business. In addition to her book, published in April, and her products, she’s lined up investors for a chain of stores called Tea Party, with plans to open the first store later this year in Manhattan.
Stern’s ventures come at a time when the tea industry is booming. Ten years ago, there were 200 specialty tea rooms and retail shops; today there are 2,200, according to the Tea Association of the USA. Statistics from the Tea Association also show that consumer purchases of tea have increased for 15 straight years, with away-from-home consumption increasing 10 percent annually for a decade. Strong growth is anticipated for the next five years.
“Tea is undergoing a renaissance,” said Joe Simrany, president of the Tea Association. Simrany said reasons include increasing awareness and popularity of specialty teas; ready-to-drink teas; and health benefits. (Tea is high in antioxidants.)
In creating her book, Stern, a married mother of two in her late 30s, drew on her experiences as a tea maven. After studying art at the University of Tampa in Florida, she opened the Royal Tea Room in Tampa, with handpainted tea cozies and her own blends of tea. She later sold the business and moved to New York, where she hosted formal teas at a hotel and organized tea parties for charities and corporate events, including creating drinks mixing tea and alcohol to launch liquor products.
The stores she envisions opening will sell her teas and beauty products, along with teacups and teapots she’s designed using antique china for inspiration. The stores also will serve tea and sweets.
“This is the place you’re going to want to be that will be a respite from the crazy city,” said Lauren Freedman-Bolton, CEO of Tracy Stern Inc., who helped Stern devise a business plan and secure financing for the stores. “It will stimulate your senses, but it will also be very calming.”
The same could be said of the tea parties Stern outlines in her book, which include gatherings celebrating New Year’s Day, Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, engagements, baby showers and bridal showers. In addition to recipes, each theme includes ideas for invitations, decor and activities.
For a bridal shower tea, Stern suggests a spa theme, with little plastic tubs for foot soaks in mineral salts and chilled eye masks. Guests even could chip in and hire a manicurist, pedicurist or massage therapist to come. The menu includes serve-yourself buffets: a sophisticated salad bar and a frozen yogurt and sorbet bar.
While her menus and themes are unorthodox, Stern is a purist when it comes to actually making the tea.
“I’m not doing the tea bag,” she declared. “I feel the tea leaf needs to open and unfurl to get the full flavor.” And microwaving a cup of water for tea is a no-no as well. Stern wants the water boiled, then steeped with loose tea.
She added that inviting friends for tea always “makes them feel special,” whether it’s in your home, a fancy hotel or a cozy cafe. “Grabbing a cup of coffee,” she said, “doesn’t have that same special cachet.”
Some easy tea party ideas from Stern:
• For a beach theme, make the table pretty using seashells filled with salt or sequins. Stick a flower in a conch shell.
• For an elegant centerpiece, decorate a branch with crystal teardrops and uplight it with candles.
• Fill clear glasses with the colored aquarium stones sold in pet stores.
• Use cookie cutters to cut sandwiches into bite-size shapes, such as hearts.
• If you own a variety of teacups but not a complete set, use glass plates to mix and match for a modern-vintage look.
• For place settings, put two glass plates together and press a pansy or palm frond between them. If it’s a birthday or shower party, insert a photo of the guest of honor between the plates.
• Use chilled brewed tea to create interesting cocktails. Stern’s black-tea martinis, recommended for a “Gentlemen’s Tea,” are made from 2 ounces of vodka, 2 ounces of chilled brewed black tea and ice. (Dip the moistened rim of the glass in chopped tea leaves and sugar before you pour.)
• Make edible place settings using canned, refrigerated soft breadsticks, which you can shape into your guests’ initials before baking.
• Set the tone for your party with creative invitations. For a garden party, enclose a small packet of flower seeds with each invitation. For a French-themed soiree, use postcards of Paris.
Thursday, May 3, 2007
TEA: Reagan and Prince of Wales and tea
An excerpt from a newspaper called the Scotsman:
Ronald Reagan's private diaries reveal that he also managed to fret about a social faux pas, such as when the Prince of Wales - "a most likeable person" - visited the White House and his tea was served American-style.
"The ushers brought him tea - horror of horrors, they served it our way with a tea bag still in the cup. It finally dawned on me that he was just holding the cup and then finally put down on a table. The prince said: 'I didn't know what to do with the little bag'."
Ronald Reagan's private diaries reveal that he also managed to fret about a social faux pas, such as when the Prince of Wales - "a most likeable person" - visited the White House and his tea was served American-style.
"The ushers brought him tea - horror of horrors, they served it our way with a tea bag still in the cup. It finally dawned on me that he was just holding the cup and then finally put down on a table. The prince said: 'I didn't know what to do with the little bag'."
Sunday, April 29, 2007
CONVERSATION: Spring in Pittsburgh
SPRING!!!!!! And about gosh darn time, too.
The leaves were already full out in North Carolina before we even had daffodils--but this week spring finally fell in and the leaves are popping out, all new and delicate and that awesome fresh green that's impossible to duplicate, the green that will dullen in a couple weeks into the dark, tired summer green. The flowering trees have leafed out now, but there are still a lot of daffodils, and the TULIPS! I had no idea Pittsburgh was such a tulip city. I guess Pittsburgh's weather might be like Holland--because they're everywhere! Red, pink, yellow, white, multicolored, crazy exploded ones that look like roses, little tight buds that only open up the slightest bit--bursting and waving in borders, bobbing in the breeze. I love tulips! I want to run into a whole field of tulips and fall down and watch them waving above me.
ALSO, last week was Dandelion Week. All abruptly, every dandelion shot up, and every house without a Lawn Valet (i.e. every house not in the posh places of Squirrel Hill and Shadyside) became a field of yellow polka dots. Although they're weeds, they really look pretty nice until they go to seed, and then the lawn looks like a mess of fluff and dying stalks.
A couple days ago it was cold and rainy, and to cheer myself I tried to convince myself it was Londony, as opposed to dreary That worked for awhile until it got REALLY DAMN COLD. But while it was still fairly warm, I noticed how the rain made all the spring greens and pinks and whites pop like crazy mad, like someone had opened the landscape in Photoshop and jacked up the saturation. Lovely! Then it got colder and I stopped noticing the colors. Brrrr!
The leaves were already full out in North Carolina before we even had daffodils--but this week spring finally fell in and the leaves are popping out, all new and delicate and that awesome fresh green that's impossible to duplicate, the green that will dullen in a couple weeks into the dark, tired summer green. The flowering trees have leafed out now, but there are still a lot of daffodils, and the TULIPS! I had no idea Pittsburgh was such a tulip city. I guess Pittsburgh's weather might be like Holland--because they're everywhere! Red, pink, yellow, white, multicolored, crazy exploded ones that look like roses, little tight buds that only open up the slightest bit--bursting and waving in borders, bobbing in the breeze. I love tulips! I want to run into a whole field of tulips and fall down and watch them waving above me.
ALSO, last week was Dandelion Week. All abruptly, every dandelion shot up, and every house without a Lawn Valet (i.e. every house not in the posh places of Squirrel Hill and Shadyside) became a field of yellow polka dots. Although they're weeds, they really look pretty nice until they go to seed, and then the lawn looks like a mess of fluff and dying stalks.
A couple days ago it was cold and rainy, and to cheer myself I tried to convince myself it was Londony, as opposed to dreary That worked for awhile until it got REALLY DAMN COLD. But while it was still fairly warm, I noticed how the rain made all the spring greens and pinks and whites pop like crazy mad, like someone had opened the landscape in Photoshop and jacked up the saturation. Lovely! Then it got colder and I stopped noticing the colors. Brrrr!
Friday, April 20, 2007
CONVERSATION: Mobot races
I got ridiculously sunburned today watching the robots race. It was the ultimate Carnegie Mellon stereotype--tiny robots racing down the sidewalk while a Computer Science professor dressed in a kilt and brandishing a sword revved the crowd up to cheer the robots on. The robots have to be able to recognize a white line curving down the sidewalk to get through fourteen gates. Only one robot got through all the gates, but it took too long to be counted (over four minutes.) Two robots couldn't even get moving, and their creators were working frantically over to the side, laptops covered in coats to be visible in the unexpected sunlight. One robot failed to find the line and kept racing in circles and once straight into the registration booth.
The robot that won was called Plan B (Plan A had failed two weeks earlier) and featured a finger-like "gate sensor" and a sensor shade made of cardboard and egg carton packing foam.
Now I feel like I'm really a Carnegie Mellon student :) I wonder if any of the mobot teams need an English student to write documentation for them?
The robot that won was called Plan B (Plan A had failed two weeks earlier) and featured a finger-like "gate sensor" and a sensor shade made of cardboard and egg carton packing foam.
Now I feel like I'm really a Carnegie Mellon student :) I wonder if any of the mobot teams need an English student to write documentation for them?
TEA: IngenuiTEA pot
I recently got a new teapot that BLEW MY MIND. It's called IngenuiTEA from Adagio, and it's just crazy exciting. The review below explains how it works, and if you go to adagio.com you can see a video of it in action.
Review: the IngenuiTEA microwavable tea pot
Ladies, gentlemen, I am in love. I am head over heels - with the IngenuiTEA microwavable tea pot. Resembling a transparent plastic beer stein, you fill the IngenuiTEA with 500ml of water and then place in the microwave. Heat until boiling. Put in two spoonsful of loose tea and let steep the appropriate time. Then center the IngenuiTEA over your teacup and use your cup's rim to push up the base. Tea is then dispensed from the bottom of the pot straight into your cup, and filtered nicely by a fine (and removable) mesh cone inside the pot. It is amazingly convenient and the tea it makes is pretty good too.
The filter is easily removable and the entire rig is easily cleaned. Sturdy and lightweight enough to carry around with you, and at $16 USD, inexpensive enough that you might want to just leave one at work and not worry overmuch if someone kips it. Made by Adagio, whose ardent hope is to make tea as office-convenient as coffee.
Next week I'll review the triniTEA, their innovative tea machine which times the tea steeping and keeps the tea hot for you. [GT]
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
TEA: Tea cures cancer
Two cups of tea a day cuts risk of some skin cancers
PAT HAGAN
TWO cups of a tea day may slash the risk of skin cancer, according to new research.
Scientists found that tea-drinkers were at least 65 per cent less likely to get certain types of tumour.
The findings, published in the European Journal of Cancer Prevention, show tea appears to protect the body against squamous cell carcinomas and basal cell carcinomas.
These types of tumours are not as dangerous as malignant melanomas, which have a high mortality rate, but do affect nearly 70,000 people in Britain every year.
They are usually caused by too much exposure to the sun's rays and grow slowly over a period of months or even years.
Squamous cell carcinomas normally appear on the face and turn into an ulcer-like growth that does not heal.
Basal cell carcinomas normally show up as a painless lump that gradually expands in size.
Although they do not normally spread through the body, they still need to be removed through surgery.
Tea is packed with powerful disease-fighting chemicals and its ability to ward off illness is well known. Studies have found it can protect against heart disease, ovarian cancer and stress.
In the latest study, carried out at Dartmouth Medical School in New Hampshire, scientists analysed more than 1,400 patients aged between 25 and 74 with the types of tumour.
They compared their diet, drinking habits and lifestyle with a similar group who did not have cancer. Regular tea drinkers were 65 per cent less likely to have squamous cell carcinoma and almost 80 per less at risk of a basal cell carcinoma.
PAT HAGAN
TWO cups of a tea day may slash the risk of skin cancer, according to new research.
Scientists found that tea-drinkers were at least 65 per cent less likely to get certain types of tumour.
The findings, published in the European Journal of Cancer Prevention, show tea appears to protect the body against squamous cell carcinomas and basal cell carcinomas.
These types of tumours are not as dangerous as malignant melanomas, which have a high mortality rate, but do affect nearly 70,000 people in Britain every year.
They are usually caused by too much exposure to the sun's rays and grow slowly over a period of months or even years.
Squamous cell carcinomas normally appear on the face and turn into an ulcer-like growth that does not heal.
Basal cell carcinomas normally show up as a painless lump that gradually expands in size.
Although they do not normally spread through the body, they still need to be removed through surgery.
Tea is packed with powerful disease-fighting chemicals and its ability to ward off illness is well known. Studies have found it can protect against heart disease, ovarian cancer and stress.
In the latest study, carried out at Dartmouth Medical School in New Hampshire, scientists analysed more than 1,400 patients aged between 25 and 74 with the types of tumour.
They compared their diet, drinking habits and lifestyle with a similar group who did not have cancer. Regular tea drinkers were 65 per cent less likely to have squamous cell carcinoma and almost 80 per less at risk of a basal cell carcinoma.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)