EKOS Communications, Inc.

The Cassini probe in orbit around Saturn is going to picture the ringed planet in a special photo that also includes a distant Earth.

Older male burying beetles work harder at parental care and mating than younger counterparts, a study suggests.

A hairy crab named after US actor David Hasselhoff hitched a ride on an ocean "highway" to colonise deep sea vents in the Atlantic tens of millions of years ago.

The quality of a performance does not drive the amount of applause an audience gives, a study suggests.

(Marketwired) - Bitdefender, the Romanian creator of the world's #1 antivirus software solutions, has launched a global charity drive to protect the world's most vulnerable from the dangers of malware in alliance with global non-profit TechSoup.

Bitdefender is offering free protection to some 600,000 charities around the world that help hundreds of millions of disadvantaged people and tackle issues ranging from homelessness to special education, from child abuse to environmental degradation, malnourishment, diseases and more.

The drive, which is offering charities the iron clad protection of 11 products including Bitdefender Internet Security, Client Security and Management Server, Small Office Security and Bitdefender Antivirus for Mac, is being coordinated by TechSoup, the non-profit that connects donors to charities worldwide.

"Bitdefender's charity will protect the people who need it most," said Christopher Worman, Director of Program Development at TechSoup. "These charities deal regularly with sensitive information on the world's most vulnerable people – people who have already been victimized or disadvantaged. Bitdefender can make sure this info is dealt with safely."

According to TechSoup, some 52 percent of the entire world's population benefits in some way from the charities offered protection by Bitdefender. The global philanthropy drive is the first by a Romanian company. Other IT companies undertaking similar drives with TechSoup include Microsoft, Cisco, Flickr, Shopify and others.

"We hope to achieve two of our company's main goals with this charity drive," said Catalin Cosoi, Bitdefender's Chief Security Strategist. "We will fulfill our aim to protect the segment of the population that most needs our protection, and we will set an example for other companies in Romania and eastern Europe in the hopes of triggering a wave of global philanthropy from the region. Eastern Europe has progressed greatly in the past couple of decades, and it's time to pay it back."

More information on the program is available at www.techsoup.org. For a list of Bitdefender's charitable offerings, see www.techsoup.org/bitdefender.

About Bitdefender®
Bitdefender is the creator of one of the world's fastest and most effective lines of internationally certified internet security software. The company is an industry pioneer, introducing and developing award-winning protection since 2001. Today, Bitdefender technology secures the digital experience of around 400 million home and corporate users across the globe.

Recently, Bitdefender won a series of important awards and accolades in the global security industry, including "Product of the Year" by AV-Comparatives, "Best Repair 2012" by AV-Test, and "Editor's Choice" by PC Mag, that confirmed the antivirus software's leadership status among security products. More information about Bitdefender's products is available from the company's security press room. Additionally, Bitdefender publishes the HOTforSecurity blog, where readers can find stories from the underworld of internet fraud, scams, malicious software – and gossip.

Barrick Gold Corporation has published its 2012 Responsibility Report, "Responsible Mining." Each year, this report provides an in-depth overview of Barrick’s corporate responsibility performance across a number of areas that are important to sustaining Barrick’s license to operate.

“This report looks back on our progress over the past year and at what lies ahead for Barrick,” says Peter Sinclair, Vice President, Corporate Social Responsibility. “It reflects emerging corporate responsibility trends, summarizing how we are managing our social and environmental impacts to deliver benefits to our host communities. In a year marked by significant change, we recognize that our commitment to responsible mining practices is even more critical to the long-term success of our business.”

Several changes have been made to this year’s report, and chief among these is a greater focus on issues that are of material importance to both Barrick and its stakeholders. The result is a shorter and more focused report, summarizing Barrick’s performance in managing 12 specific issues, including energy use, climate change, water management, community engagement and security, human rights, supply chain management and employee safety.

Highlights from the 2012 Report include:

COMMUNITY

• Implemented grievance mechanisms and social obligations registers across all operating sites, as part of efforts to drive a more disciplined and professional approach to community engagement and ensure communities have a tool to voice their concerns.
• Significant economic contribution to the 11 countries and numerous communities where Barrick operates. In 2012, this contribution totalled $13.7 billion, including $9.1 billion for local and regional goods and services, $2.2 billion in taxes and royalties, and $2.4 billion in wages and benefits.
• $6.4 billion of the company’s total economic contribution went to developing and emerging countries in 2012, providing positive economic opportunities to these countries and host communities.
• Invested $54.4 million in community development initiatives and programs to improve health, education, infrastructure and quality of life. This figure included $5.3 million on scholarships/bursaries for more than 2,500 students.
• Over the past five years, Barrick has contributed nearly $20 million for scholarships, helping more than 15,500 students around the world improve their access to education at the primary, secondary, and tertiary levels.

HUMAN RIGHTS

• Continuing progress on implementing the global human rights compliance program, consistent with the company’s emphasis on respecting human rights in all locations. Advances in 2012 include human rights-related training of more than 10,000 employees, strengthened due diligence in hiring practices and human rights assessments at key sites and projects.

SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENT

• Continued success in workplace safety: A downward trend in the total reportable injury frequency rate, for the 12th straight year, representing an 83 percent improvement in safety performance since 2001.
• Implementation of 30 new energy efficiency projects, including a solar power pilot project at our Veladero mine in Argentina. Barrick now has over 140 energy efficiency projects in place across its operations.
• 19.4 percent of Barrick’s electrical power, both self-generated and purchased, was sourced from renewables in 2012. In 2013, Barrick is continuing its efforts to use more renewable energy and improve energy efficiency.
• Innovation in water management, including water recycling and zero discharge programs and the use of non-potable water sources. For example, 36 percent of water used in 2012 was derived from saline or brackish sources and 70 percent of the company’s operations are zero discharge sites with all water recycled and reused.

RESPONSIBLE SUPPLY CHAIN

• Enhanced supply chain management, including a refreshed Supplier Code of Ethics and adoption of Trace International’s TRAC system to improve respect for human rights and transparency across our supply chain.

EXTERNAL RECOGNITION

• For the fifth consecutive year, Barrick was named to the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index. Barrick was also ranked among the top companies in the world by the NASDAQ Global Sustainability Index. In Canada, Barrick was named a Carbon Disclosure Leader and, more recently, Corporate Knights Magazine included Barrick in its Global 100 listing of the world’s most sustainable companies. In early June, Barrick was ranked fourth in a listing of Canada’s Top 50 Corporate Citizens by Corporate Knights.

EXTERNAL ASSURANCE

• Barrick reports according to the Global Reporting Initiative’s (GRI) Sustainable Reporting Guidelines, using GRI-3 at application Level A+. Since 2008, Barrick's annual Responsibility Report has been externally assured. The report includes a referenced index for the UN Global Compact and the International Council on Mining and Metals Sustainable Development Principles.

About Barrick Gold Corporation
Barrick is the gold industry leader. Based in Toronto, the company operates mines and advanced exploration and development projects on four continents. Shares are traded on the Toronto and New York stock exchanges under the symbol ABX.

To learn more about Barrick’s commitment to responsible mining, visit www.barrickbeyondborders.com. You can also follow Barrick on Twitter and Barrick on Facebook.

(Marketwired) - GOJO Industries is raising awareness of the potential human health risks from refillable bulk soap dispenser contamination that can be avoided. Driven by a commitment to advance social well-being, GOJO is working to change the industry by educating against the use of refillable bulk soap dispensers and recommends the sealed systems that many facilities are moving towards as a solution.

Refillable bulk soap dispensers require that soap is poured into an open reservoir. Because the reservoir is open, bacteria can contaminate the soap leading to a bacterial biofilm on the inside of the dispenser. This can lead to bacterial contamination of new soap added to the dispenser.

Three published articles including the March 2011 edition of the Journal of Environmental Health reveal that 25 percent of public bulk soap dispensers are contaminated by unsafe levels of bacteria.1 A follow up study in Applied and Environmental Microbiology released in May 2011, reports handwashing with soap from these dispensers can increase disease-causing bacteria on hands.2 This study concludes hands can carry over 25 times more bacteria after washing with contaminated soap than before washing, and bacteria left on hands can be transferred to surfaces.

The most recent study published in the January 2012 issue of Biofouling, reveals that biofilms grow in refillable bulk soap dispensers, causing recontamination even after cleaning with bleach.3 The study suggests avoiding recontamination by replacing refillable bulk dispensers with sealed refill systems.

The JEH study was conducted by Dr. Charles P. Gerba and colleagues from the University of Arizona. The AEM study was conducted by scientists from GOJO, BioScience Laboratories in Bozeman, Mont., and the University of Arizona. The Biofouling study was conducted by scientists from the Center for Biofilm Engineering at Montana State University and GOJO.

"The sanitary sealed systems have many advantages," said Dave Shumaker, GOJO microbiologist. "The soap refills are sanitary sealed at the manufacturer and easily snap into place inside the dispenser. Empty refills snap right out and are ready to be recycled. New soap is never refilled or exposed to the environment, unlike refillable bulk soap. This helps to prevent contamination of germs in the air or from fingers of the person doing the refilling."

Nicole Koharik, global sustainability marketing director, said GOJO sealed refill systems align social and environmental considerations.

"Sealed systems are consistent with the social well-being practice of promoting human health and the environmental practice of reducing waste through recycling. Sealed-refill systems are an example of how social and environmental factors can mesh," she said. "People sometimes assume reusing is more sustainable, but as the studies revealed, reuse can introduce human health risks. GOJO® SANITARY SEALED™ refills are safer and more sustainable than bulk soap dispensers."

About GOJO
GOJO Industries, Inc., inventors of PURELL® Instant Hand Sanitizer, distributes PURELL hand sanitizer in consumer and away-from-home markets throughout the world. In addition, GOJO manufactures and distributes a full line of products under GOJO® and PROVON® brand names. GOJO has a 64-year history of leadership in improving well-being through hand hygiene and healthy skin. GOJO has products and programs to kill germs on hands and solve skin care-related problems in a variety of markets, including healthcare, foodservice, food processing, manufacturing, automotive, education, government and military. GOJO is a privately held corporation headquartered in Akron, Ohio, with offices in the United Kingdom, France, Australasia, Japan and Brazil. Visit GOJO at gojo.com.

Image with caption: "No More Bulk Infographic (GOJO Industries)." Image available at: www.GOJO.com/NoMoreBulkSoap.

1 Chattman, M, Maxwell, S., Gerba, C. Occurrence of Heterotrophic and Coliform Bacteria in Liquid Hand Soaps From Bulk Refillable Dispensers in Public Facilities. Journal of Environmental Health 2011.

2 Zapka, C., Campbell, E., Maxwell, S., Gerba, C., Dolan, M., Arbogast, J., Macinga, D., Bacteria Hand Contamination and Transfer after Use of Contaminated Bulk-Soap-Refillable Dispensers. Applied and Environmental Microbiology 2011; 77:9 2898-2904.

3 Lorenz, L., Ramsay, B., Goeres, D., Fields, M., Zapka, C., Macinga, D., Evaluation and remediation of bulk soap dispensers for biofilm, Biofouling 2012; 28:1: 99-109.

Meteorologists and scientists meeting at the Met Office say the UK's damp summers could be caused by a warmer Atlantic Ocean.

There are no clear federal guidelines for chemical exposure at oil spills, and no health studies to understand the long term dangers to human health.

China launched its first pilot carbon emissions exchange on Tuesday, though plans for a nationwide roll out and efforts to apply the scheme to some polluting heavy industries could be undermined by a slowdown in the world's No.2 economy.

At first it was miners and wharfies, then all sorts of tradesmen. Now a different generation of home renovators and others are being diagnosed with cancer after exposure to asbestos.

People who increased their consumption of red meat during a four-year period were more likely to develop Type 2 diabetes in a subsequent four-year period, according to an analysis involving about 150,000 people.

Almost all the mass e-mail comments urging the EPA to refrain from blocking a proposed gold and copper mine in Alaska come from a project established by the Competitive Enterprise Institute, a libertarian group that accepts money from mining companies as well as the conservative Koch brothers.

Singaporeans rolled back military training, kept cough-stricken children indoors and considered wearing protective masks to work Tuesday after a smoky haze triggered by forest fires in neighboring Indonesia caused air pollution to briefly hit its worst level in nearly 16 years.

A mosquito-borne disease that preys on the young and malnourished is sweeping across poverty-riven northern India again this monsoon season, with officials worried it could be the deadliest outbreak in nearly a decade.

Doctors say 'mass psychogenic illness' – not contaminated water – is to blame for recent outbreaks of sickness. Garment workers are fearful of workplace safety after a year of deadly accidents.

A planning document intended to resolve decades of water conflict in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta was instead greeted by a flood of lawsuits on Monday. At least seven lawsuits were filed in three counties against what is known as the Delta Plan.

Four more people have died and three more have fallen ill in Saudi Arabia from the new SARS-like coronavirus MERS-CoV, the Saudi Health Ministry said on Monday.

Exposure to traffic fumes and industrial air pollution can dramatically increase a mother's chances of having a child with autism. Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health found the risk was doubled for women living in the most polluted locations.

MERS, an infectious disease called a coronavirus that has sickened more than 60 people since last Sept., has claimed four more lives, bringing the total number of deaths to 32 in the kingdom at the center of the growing crisis. Overall, nearly 40 people have died from the virus since September.