Which country smokes the most?

by Anna Brones on

What would we do without The Economist and its great sidebars? This one shows just how much certain countries smoke. According to ERC, a market research company, the heaviest smokers come from Greece, with an average of 3,000 cigarettes per person in 2007. At 20 cigarettes per pack, that makes 150 packs in a year; a lot of puffing.

Despite recent smoking bans in many places, European countries still manage to hold 18 of the top 20 spots. The most surprising statistic? That France smokes less than the U.S. Whatever happened to the stereotypical image of the French, dressed in all black, a serious look on their face and a Gauloises glued to their fingers? It could have something to do with the price of cigarettes; a pack runs about 5 euros in France, equaling just a little under $8.

Click here to see how these results changed from 2006.

Which countries *cough* smoke the most?

GADLING TAKE 5: Week of 5/2 – 5/9

by Jamie Rhein on

One thing we’ve learned at Gadling this week is that oodles of people want those free Southwest Airlines tickets. So far, as of 3:44 pm, there are 1,162. Visiting people seems to be the biggest theme of many of the contenders’ wishes.

Other numbers of note this week:

Share your numbers of note with us if you have any. One to think about is, how far can you get on one gallon of gas?

Bring mom to flowers for Mother’s Day

by Jamie Rhein on

Several botanical gardens are having Mother’s Day events this Sunday. One of the advantages of going to a botanical garden, I’ve found, is that they usually have wonderful gift shops that are perfect places for picking up that last minute present.

If you’ve forgotten to buy your mother a gift, when she’s not looking, perhaps, when she’s basking in the fragrance of a floral paradise, slip into the shop to buy her a little something. Since the wedding season is upon us, pick up a wedding gift as well. Here are the first 10 botanical gardens I came across that listed a Mother’s Day happening. Nine are in the U.S. and one is not.

(This photo is from a tribute to redbuds and mothers at the Children’s Garden at the Cleveland Botanical Garden. My mom taught me to love redbuds too, so I thought this fitting.)

  1. Botanical Conservatory, Ft. Wayne, Indiana: Free admission and enjoy the butterflies besides.
  2. Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, Boothbay, Maine: Free admission to moms and there’s a special brunch. While your mom is eating, slip out to buy that gift.
  3. Cleveland Botanical Gardens, Cleveland, Ohio: Like the Web site says, the redbuds are in bloom and they’re gorgeous
  4. Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens, Belmont, North Carolina: Moms get in free with a paid admission and the first 250 moms get a potted plant.
  5. Denver Botanical Gardens, Denver, Colorado: The Mother’s Day brunch is sold out but you can bring your own picnic.
  6. Fernwood Botanical Gardens, Niles, Michigan: Enjoy music, food and a plant sale.
  7. Huntsville Botanical Gardens, Huntsville, Alabama: Moms can get a hydrangea, as long as they are available. There’s a dinosaur theme going on, but this has nothing to do with your mother.
  8. Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, Richmond, Virginia: Free family photo for moms while supplies last and free plants to the first 500 moms who come.
  9. Tuscon Botanical Gardens, Tuscon, Arizona: Mom might like to learn about the dinosaurs here as well.
  10. And one not in the United States: Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens. If you took your mother to Australia for brunch, would she be impressed.

If you take your mother somewhere else on Sunday–or if you are a mom–ask for a discount. I got into a museum for free in Lugang, Taiwan once on Mother’s Day because I could claim motherhood. The museum gave me a rose as well. The one catch is, I think you probably need to have your child with you.

Beijing Olympics: Scared of protestors, Chinese government tightens visa rules

by Jeffrey White on

Scared that the Summer Olympics in Beijing will be disrupted by protestors, the Chinese government is finally admitting that it is implementing tougher visa rules, making it more difficult to obtain one for those heading to the Games in August.

According to the Associated Press, Chinese authorities say that an invitation letter, proof of accommodation and round-trip air tickets are required for some travelers applying for a visa.

I didn’t mistype: Authorities are only saying some travelers will be affected, and are being maddeningly vague as to the specifics of the new visa rules. All a foreign ministry flack would tell the AP is, “We have made some arrangements according to the practice of the past Olympics and usual international practice. That is, in the approval process we are more strict and more serious with the procedure,”

Also, the Chinese have suspended multiple entry visas for business travelers through October, which is disrupting the business community in Hong Kong that is used to obtaining such visas easily.

The Chinese government is urging travelers to apply for visas in their home countries rather than the more common practice of applying for one in Hong Kong.

All this is in response to fears that the Games will be disrupted by human rights activists upset about China’s crackdown in Tibet this spring. The Olympic torch’s journey to Beijing has been marred by protests, and some groups are pledging to take more action at the Games themselves.

Still, it’s only now that Chinese authorities are admitting that there will be tougher visa rules. During weeks of media speculation, the Chinese have been denying anything is different.

Big in Japan: Japanese farmers raise poison-free blowfish

by Matthew Firestone on

To steal a line from a classic Simpsons episode:

‘Poison. Poison. Poison. Tasty Fish.’

Blowfish or fugu (??)???packs a lethal punch in the form of tetrodotoxin, an extremely potent neurotoxin that paralyzes its victims while they are still conscious. To put things into perspective, this means that you are fully aware as your throat closes, your lungs deflate and you drift slowly into death’s arms.

There is no known cure.

However, Japan is a country of safety and order, so thankfully the majority of deaths occur when untrained people catch and prepare the fish, accidentally poisoning themselves in the process. The most dangerous culprit is the liver, which has been illegal for centuries despite being the tastiest morsel of the blowfish – it is often compared to the highest-quality foie gras (fatty goose liver).

While illegal meals of liver can still be had on the black market, the danger cannot be understated. In 1975, the famous Kabuki actor and ‘Living National Treasure’ Bandou Mitsugorou VIII requested four servings of liver from a fugu chef in Kyoto. Unable to refuse the request of someone of such an elevated stature, the chef served him the livers. He died soon after.

Of course, all of this is set to change now that Japanese fish-farmers have found away to raise non-poisonous blowfish….

According to an article in the New York Times, recent advances in fugu research and farming have led to the production of blowfish that are ‘as harmless as goldfish.’ In fact, the advances are so significant that farmers have even been successful in producing completely poison-free fugu livers.

So, how did they do it?

About eight years ago, Mr. Tamao Noguchi, a marine toxin specialist at Tokyo Healthcare University and a leading fugu expert, concluded a two-decade study demonstrating that fugu could be made poison-free by strictly controlling its feed. While it was once believed that blowfish develop the toxin on their own, in actuality they eat other animals that carry tetrodotoxin-laden bacteria.

Earlier this year, Mr. Noguchi tested more than 7,000 fugu that had been given only feed free of the tetrodotoxin-laden bacteria. His hypothesis was correct – not a single fish was poisonous!

So, will it once again be possible to eat fugu livers in Japan?

Sadly, Mr. Noguchi’s research is being suppressed by powerful interests in the fugu industry, who fear that farm-raised blowfish will jeopardize their monopoly.

“We won’t approve it,” said Mr. Hisashi Matsumura, the president of the Shimonoseki Fugu Association and vice president of the National Fugu Association. “We’re not engaging in this irrelevant discussion.”

Sigh. Looks like thrill-seekers in Japan are going to have wait a bit longer to legally sample fugu liver. Of course, there are certain places in Japan where you can get your fingers on some fugu liver, though be sure that your affairs are in order before you dig in!

** All images are screenshots from the classic Simpsons episode One Fish, Two Fish, Blowfish, Blue Fish. The show, which first aired January 24, 1991, was the 11th episode of season 2 **