How cell phones can expose counterfeit drugs

This post is part of the Global Innovation Showcase created by the New America Foundation and the Global Public Square.

the World Customs Organization estimates that the counterfeit drug market is $200 billion per year and according to the WHO, up to 30 percent of drugs sold in developing nations are counterfeit. In addition, up to 50 percent of some medicines in specific developing countries, including Nigeria and Pakistan, are substandard. These under-standard drugs, which do not have the correct dosage, can lead to a significant healthcare crisis both in terms of spurring drug-resistant diseases and in terms of number of deaths (700,000 deaths from fake malaria and TB drugs alone, according to an IPN Report). In Ghana, local authorities working with the U.S. Pharmacopeial Convention (USP) and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) discovered fake or substandard versions of thirteen vital anti-malarial drugs spread across multiple locations in the country.

To get a sense of the scale of the problem, take a look at India, with several thousand drug manufacturing companies. Given the explosive growth in the Indian pharmaceutical market over the past several years, effectively regulating numerous manufacturing companies can get very challenging, especially if many of them do not have several decades of experience making drugs. Even worse, as we saw in Nigeria, fake drugs manufactured outside India were labeled “Made in India,” directly damaging India’s brand with one of its largest trade partners in Africa.

With just a text message, Sproxil solves this problem.

By using a mobile phone and a simple, free text message, we allow consumers to verify the genuineness of the product they are buying. A chemical tests are too expensive for consumers in emerging markets to know it's genuine. As with Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags, these other methods require prohibitively expensive setups. By contrast, Sproxil use a scratch card technology that has been common in developing nations for the last decade. Consumers merely use a scratch-off panel on the medication to identify a unique PIN, text the PIN to Sproxil’s number and receive a response on the authenticity of the drug right on their cell phone.

Read: Bendable electronics will revolutionize healthcare.

To date, Sproxil has already sold millions of anti-counterfeit labels in Nigeria and has set up the first national mobile-based anti-counterfeit service in Africa by working closely with NAFDAC, the Nigerian food and drug administrative body.

In the future, we hope to help governments leverage mobile phone technology to empower patients and beneficiaries to verify that they obtained genuine mosquito nets, vaccines and relief items. We also want to use this technology to give donors better tools for remote monitoring and evaluation of their donations. For example, products like Long Lasting Insecticidal Nets (LLINs) could bear simple tags that allow end-users to confirm receipt of a donation with a basic cell phone. This would provide donors with a record that their relief efforts are bringing benefits to the intended groups and not being funneled into accounts controlled by corrupt elements or criminals.

Read: Innovations in access to finance.Read: Innovations in access to finance.

With the aggressive adoption of mobile telephony, consumers are back in the game, even in developing nations. Technologists worldwide have worked tirelessly to make communications affordable. Today, many poor farmers, rural teachers and fearless fishermen in tiny canoes have cell phones for various reasons – to check on prices at the market before the harvest, to provide distance education support and to figure out which shore to dock at to get the best prices for fresh fish while still at sea. With affordable communications, new ways abound in providing consumers with information decision support, even at the point of purchase. Sproxil makes this possible with medications. Such an intersection of pharmaceuticals and technology holds promise in helping consumers make the right decision – a decision that can change their lives or the lives of their loved ones.

Cell Phone & Brain Cancer

WHO officially classify cell phones as possibly carcinogenic to humans. This statement was made from a team of 31 scientists from 14 countries who made this decision after reviewing data that were linked between cancer and the type of radiation found in cellphones.

Their conclusion was to classify cellphones in category 2B which are possibly carcinogenic to humans. There are other compounds in the 2B category include lead, nickel, DDT, chloroform and gasoline exhaust.

Said the Director of the International Agency for Research on Cancer, Dr. Christopher Wild, "this new WHO report is important, first and foremost just because of the large number of users worldwide that have access now to this technology." Globally, it's estimated there are 5 billion cell phones being used, that's three fourths of the population on earth.

However, because cellphone usage habits have changed since the early studies, it's difficult to know whether the conclusions from previous studies are still relevant today. Also, the current studies haven't looked at usage longer than 10 years. So, there is a lot more research to be conducted to get a clear sense of whether cell phones actually cause cancer.

In the meantime, if you are concerned about any potential health risks of cellphones, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) have suggested some steps, including:

- Use of cell phones mainly for shorter conversations, or for times when a landline phone is not available.
- Switch to a cell phone with a hands-free device that will place more distance between the phone and your head.

Sources:

-www.monographs.iarc.fr
-www.fda.gov
-www.naturalnews.com

Best Selling & Top Rated Camcorders 2012

A high quality audio-video recorder, efficient and user friendly camcorders are now available on the market with surprisingly affordable prices, a wide range of options and features are now allows almost anyone to create high-quality video projects to capture family events, sporting events and even used for business purposes.
The very popular right now are the amazing Flip camcorders which are super compact and reliable with a sweet price point and many record in ultraHD. So regardless of your budget, you can find a camcorder to fill your needs.
Here are the top list of best camcorder in the world

1. GoPro Camera HD HERO2 Motorsports Edition CHDMH-002

2. Flip UltraHD Video Camera - Black, 8 GB, 2 Hours (3rd Generation) NEWEST MODEL

3. Flip MinoHD Video Camera - Black, 4 GB, 1 Hour (3rd Generation) NEWEST MODEL

4. Panasonic HDC-TM900K 3 MOS 3D Compatible Camcorder with 32GB Internal Flash
Memory (Black)

5. Flip UltraHD Video Camera - White, 8 GB, 2 Hours (3rd Generation) NEWEST MODEL

6. Flip MinoHD Video Camera - Black, 8 GB, 2 Hours (3rd Generation)

7. ContourHD 1080p Helmet Camera

8. Canon VIXIA HF R20 Full HD Camcorder with 8GB Internal Flash Memory (Black)

9. Sony HDR-CX160 High-Definition Handycam Camcorder (Black)

10. Kodak PlaySport (ZX5) Waterproof Pocket Video Camera Bundle

More info about best selling camcorder click www.amazon.com

Top 5 Best Camera Phones 2011

This is a new era of digital cameras. With the latest technology, you do not need to carry a camera that sized as big as a heavy brick, you simply bring a small waist bag with you and get all facilities in a single item, a cell phone. This is a list of five best big cameras in a mobile phoneThis is a list of five best big cameras in a mobile phone.

1. Nokia N8
Our favorite camera is the Nokia N8 which has incredible resolution, 12MP. Nokia N8 is the best camera phone currently. Cameras with high resolution, high quality photos and has a variety of useful features to ensure that every photo looks amazing regardless of external conditions.
The 12MP camera includes xenon flash which captures natural colours and produces high quality images. It also copes well with artificial and low light meaning you will never miss your shot! All of this on top of an excellent editing board function and you won't even need to upload your pictures before sharing them.
This affordable Nokia Camera phone may have all the capabilities of the latest multimedia camera phones. Pick up this cheap camera phone today so you can save your pennies for those miserable rainy days.

2. Sony Ericsson Xperia Ray
Pesaing lainnya teratas adalah Sony Ericsson Xperia Ray yang menawarkan kamera 8MP dan antarmuka baru Timescape kamera memungkinkan pengguna untuk memperbesar secara digital untuk semua gambar.
Video capturing is done in HD 720p at 30fps and utilizing the Android OS, there are thousands of apps available for all of your editing and uploading needs.

3. HTC Desire
the third is HTC Desire. It's huge screen and powered by powerful Android OS with a impressive 8MP camera which uses dual LED flash and also equiped a HD movie recording facility at 720p resolution.
The Desire HD comes with intuitive menus and tons of applications for ensuring those captured moments can be edited, shared, and treasured.

4. Sony Ericsson C905
Another high quality camera phone is the Samsung Galaxy S II which has an 8MP camera with a LED flash. The color representation on the Samsung Galaxy S II is excellent and shots come out both natural and sharp.
The Galaxy is also capable of recording 1080p at 30fps, viewing your content is made easy and enjoyable by using the Galaxy S II 4.3 inch Super AMOLED screen. While it may not be the cheapest phone on the market, it is certainly worth the investment purely for the excellent camera(not to mention the Android OS and the fantastic social media applications available).

5. iPhone 4s
No top phone list would ever be complete without the iPhone and the latest installment now packs an 8mp DSLR camera with dual flash.
It also records in HD and the new voice activation technology makes it perfect for quickly capturing all precious moments. You can also wirelessly print your photos using the new Airprint function - no more nasty cables! The iPhone 4s really is a fantastic mobile and completes the list.

top best-selling cameras throughout 2011

Here is a list of the Top 10 Best Selling Cameras based on purchases via the Internet at www.amazon.com. Canon continues to dominate the digital photography marketplace with 8 entries in this top list. It also comes as no surprise that compact cameras make up the bulk of all cameras sold. The low price with feature-rich enhancements are offer exceptional value for users who want something simple to capture the moment.

This is a list of 10 best-selling camera in 2012:

1. Canon EOS Rebel T3i 18 MP CMOS Digital SLR Camera and DIGIC 4 Imaging with EF-S
18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens

2. Nikon COOLPIX L24 14 MP Digital Camera with 3.6x NIKKOR Optical Zoom Lens and
3-Inch LCD (Black)

3. Canon PowerShot ELPH 300 HS 12.1 MP Digital Camera (Black)

4. GoPro Camera CHDOH-002 HD HERO2 Outdoor Edition

5. Canon EOS Rebel T2i 18 MP CMOS APS-C Digital SLR Camera with 3.0-Inch LCD and EF-S
18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens

6. Canon EOS Rebel T3 12.2 MP CMOS Digital SLR with 18-55mm IS II Lens and EOS HD
Movie Mode (Black)

7. Canon PowerShot SX130IS 12.1 MP Digital Camera with 12x Wide Angle Optical Image
Stabilized Zoom with 3.0-Inch LCD

8. Wild Game Innovations 6.0MP Digital Scouting Camera (Camo)

9. Canon PowerShot S95 10 MP Digital Camera with 3.8x Wide Angle Optical Image Stabilized
Zoom and 3.0-Inch LCD

10. Canon PowerShot SX230HS 12.1 MP Digital Camera with HS SYSTEM and DIGIC 4 Image
Processor, 14x optical zoom (Black)
for more information click www.amazon.com

The Best of 5 Mobile Phone Brands

Competition between mobile phone brand gets hotter every day. Third quarter 2011 data shows the rate of increase and decrease in the fluctuation. Here are the five best-selling mobile phone brands, according to research from Strategy Analytics.

1. Nokia
This is still a champion brand in the market by selling 108.5 million units of mobile phones or the market share of 29.2% in 2011. However, the number of percentage market share decreased by 5.5% from the period of 2010.

2. Samsung
Samsung's market share has decreased from the previous year to reach 20.7% to 18.8% in 2011. In total, Samsung sold 70 million phones, a smartphone with a combination of phone features.

3. LG Electronics
LG Electronics was third with 24.5 million units of mobile phones sold, the sale is 2.6 million higher than the previous year. Even so, their market share declined 2.1% to 6.6% in 2011.

4. Apple
Apples occupies position 4. Apple, vendors that rely on sales of smartphones are holding a market share of 5.0% with total sales of 18.7 million units increased significantly when compared with other brands besides Samsung that also carrying a smartphone features.

5. ZTE
The fifth position is occupied by ZTE. ZTE, which target the middle market is able to sell 4.7 million higher than the achievement of the previous year of 10.4 million units of mobile phones, with a market share of 4.1%, rose by 0.8% from the previous year.