Donie's Ireland daily news BLOG

Enda Kenny to stay ‘until North crisis is sorted out?

  

Taoiseach Enda Kenny has risked deepening the increasingly bitter Fine Gael war over when he will step down by saying he has no intention of leaving until the Northern Ireland political crisis is resolved.

Speaking after the St Patrick’s Day parade in New York City, Mr Kenny said the Northern Ireland issue “takes precedence over everything else”, effectively delaying his departure until at least the summer.

In the aftermath of a tentative coup against Mr Kenny last month, the Taoiseach told the parliamentary party he would address the leadership issue conclusively on his return from his week-long US visit.

However, while the position was widely seen to indicate he would step down later this month or in early April, no definitive timeline was given.

In recent weeks, Mr Kenny has caused concern among Fine Gael dissenters that he will not leave due to his repeated references to the need for stability during the Brexit negotiations next month and last Thursday’s meeting with US president Donald Trump.

However, while those close to Mr Kenny have sought to downplay such fears, the Taoiseach poured further fuel on the flames yesterday by saying the Northern Ireland political crisis is now another reason for why he should not step down.

Asked about when he will resign after walking past cheering crowds at the New York City St Patrick’s Day parade, Mr Kenny said he continues to have “a number of priorities” that must be resolved.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and Taoiseach Enda Kenny march in the St Patrick’s Day parade on 5th Avenue.

He said the political impasse in the North caused by last month’s Stormont elections, and the fact Sinn Féin and DUP now have just three weeks to form a government or be forced into another election in May, was a new addition to these “priorities”, and stoked backbench anger by saying Ireland must provide “stable” leadership.

“What I’ve always said is I need to deal with a number of priorities here, the first priority is to put in place an executive in Northern Ireland,” said Mr Kenny.

“We have no government, no devolved authority, in Northern Ireland now. I hope the parties who are elected will accept the responsibility of putting together a government within the three-week period.

“What I did say to my party is that I would deal with this effectively and conclusively on my return, that’s my intention. But I think these are priorities that take precedence over everything else.”

Asked directly when he is “going to deal with it [the leadership question]”, Mr Kenny said: “I’m not going to answer that for you. Do you not think it’s appropriate that the immediate priority is to have an executive functioning in Northern Ireland, do you not think it’s appropriate that all the work we put together we should have an agreed negotiating stance for the EU that’s going to affect everybody in our country?

“I intend to follow through on those [priorities] very, very diligently.”

A number of Fine Gael backbenchers known to want Mr Kenny to step down as soon as possible last night declined to comment publicly, but said it has already been made clear to the Taoiseach he cannot continue to ignore the leadership issue.

Mr Kenny’s New York comments came 48 hours after a draft version of his speech to the American- Ireland Fund Gala in Washington DC said this would be his last St Patrick’s Day as Taoiseach before it was deleted from the script.

Asked about the change to the otherwise untouched 1,500-word speech on Wednesday, Mr Kenny simply said it was removed “because it shouldn’t have been in there”.

The McEvaddy brothers get Dubai backing for €2bn airport terminal

   

THE MARKER HOTEL IN DUBLIN’S GRAND CANAL SQUARE WILL HAVE 30 BEDROOMS ON THE NEW FLOOR, AND THE MAIN RESTAURANT WILL BE MOVED TO THE ROOFTOP.

Businessmen Ulick (above pic) and Des McEvaddy have secured the financial backing of a Dubai-based investment group to build a proposed €2 billion terminal scheme at Dublin Airport, according to the media.

Omega Air boss Ulick McEvaddy and his brother Des have been attempting for more than 20 years to develop a third independent terminal on 130 acres of land they own adjacent to the airport. They now have the support of Dubai-based Tricap Investments, an investment fund with a diversified portfolio that spans real estate, energy and aerospace in the Middle East, the US, Asia and Africa.

  Brehon to add new floor to Marker hotel in €10m upgrade

Brehon Capital Partners, the owners of the Marker hotel, in Dublin’s Grand Canal Square, is planning a €10 million investment that will add a new floor and upgraded roof bar to the property.

The expansion will include about 30 bedrooms on the new floor, bringing the hotel up to 217 rooms, while it also involves moving the main restaurant to the rooftop. The roof would be about two-thirds enclosed, with a small, open terrace, allowing it to be used all year round.

JP Morgan may double its Irish workforce.

US investment bank JP Morgan may add up to 500 people to its operations in Ireland, which would more than double its workforce here, the Sunday Business Post suggests. The bank is among those to have instructed property agents to find additional office space in Dublin, it reports.

Minister for Finance Michael Noonan said on St Patrick’s Day that more than 120 overseas banks, insurers and other financial companies are currently in talks to move operations to Ireland as a result of the UK’s decision to quit the European Union.

Mr Noonan made the comments on Friday at an event in Singapore.

Aryzta sets four-year target to cut debts by €1bn.

Aryzta chairman Gary McGann has told analysts that he plans to cut debt levels at the troubled frozen baked goods company by €1 billion within four years, according to the Sunday Times.

Mr McGann, in his first public outing as chairman of Aryzta, said the company would undertake an overhaul of the board and a review of its business model. He also said he had received “very, very clear feedback” from shareholders that they did not see “the strategic fit” between Aryzta and Picard, its French frozen-food retailing associate.

Unilever may sell off its margarine division for €6bn.

Consumer goods giant Unilever is eyeing the £6 billion sale of its margarine division, which produces Flora and Stork, says the Sunday Telegraph. The FTSE 100-listed manufacturer has been forced into a strategic review of its operations after an audacious £115 billion takeover approach from Kraft Heinz, it reports.

The newspaper understands that rather than opt for a defensive bid for a rival such as Colgate-Palmolive, or a spin-off of its entire food arm, Unilever is leaning towards a sale of the margarine business, which controls just under a third of the entire global margarine market.

Eight men rescued off the Sligo coast after dive boat capsizes

Two men taken to hospital following the incident east of Sligo town

  

RESCUE 118 WAS CALLED OFF FROM ITS SEARCH AT BLACKSOD BAY, CO MAYO TO ASSIST WITH THE OPERATION.

Eight men have been rescued from the sea off the coast of Co Sligo after a dive boat capsized.

Two of the men were taken to hospital following the incident which occured off Aughris Pier, east of Sligo town.

A mayday call was received by Malin Head Coast Guard at 11.24am on Sunday. Fortunately, the Sligo Bay RNLI lifeboat crew were on a training exercise in the area and arrived at the scene of the incident at 11.43am.

The lifeboat crew rescued all eight people from the water and one man was airlifted to hospital by the Irish Coast Guard Helicopter Rescue 118. He suffered a head injury when the boat capsized in heavy seas.

The remaining seven men were taken to Aughris Pier where one person was taken by ambulance to hospital. Following the rescue, the lifeboat crew returned to the scene to tow the vessel back to the pier.

Rescue 118 was called off from the search at Blacksod Bay, Co Mayo for the missing crew members of Rescue 116, the Sikorsky helicopter which crashed into the sea on Tuesday morning.

Sligo Bay RNLI lifeboat operations manager Willie Murphy said the incident happened at the end of a difficult week for the rescue services following the loss of Rescue 116.

He said: “This morning’s callout shows that the professionalism and dedication of the search and rescue community remains unchanged.

“The RNLI crew at Sligo Bay along with their colleagues at Rescue 118 were on scene minutes after the call for help was raised and rescued eight people from the water. Our thoughts are with the man who was airlifted to hospital and with our colleagues still searching in Blacksod Bay for the three missing crew members of Rescue 116.

Cancer the dreaded disease of women

    

Cancer is a dreaded disease, and rightly so because hitherto treatment was vague and patients were generally doomed to die of it. Advances in surgical technique and adjuvant treatment have now made cancer a treatable and possibly curable disease in early stages.

Women suffer nearly half the burden of cancer even though they are not pre-disposed to the conventional causative factors like tobacco and alcohol. The causal factors in women are generally age, lifestyle, hereditary, infections and environmental factors.

Social factors, especially inequalities, are major determinants of cancer burden in females, with poorer females more likely to die of their disease than affluent ones. Cancer can have profound social and economic consequences for the people of India, often leading to family impoverishment and societal inequality.

Common cancers and their screening?

Females generally postpone their first contact with a health facility, leading to a delayed diagnosis in an advanced stage. Unfortunately, the four most common cancers afflicting females can be screened and diagnosed at an early stage.

1. Firstly, Breast cancer, can be screened by monthly self-breast examination, annual clinical examination and mammograms after the age of 50 years.
2. Second, cervical cancer, a sexually active female should undergo a pap smear every three years from the age of 21 years and co-testing with HPV after the age of 30 years.
3. Third, ovarian cancer, can be diagnosed by having a high clinical index of suspicion in a female presenting with vague abdominal symptoms, early satiety and a timely investigation by tumour markers and an ultrasound examination.
4. Fourth, uterine cancer, presents as inter-menstrual or postmenopausal bleeding usually in an obese elderly female. The sad common denominator in all these cancers is that they can all be diagnosed early with minimal effort and cured by surgery.

How is cancer treated?

Once a patient is suspected of having symptoms of cancer, a general evaluation followed by a staging workup including a tissue biopsy is done. Once the diagnosis has been confirmed, treatment options are discussed and if possible an appropriate radical surgery is planned. Radical surgery for cancer is the only curative treatment modality for solid organ cancers. Radical cancer surgeries require a centre where trained surgical oncologist interact with their medical and radiation oncology colleagues and have adequate post -operative ICU care  to obtain best results.

The first attempt at treatment is generally the best chance of cure as recurrence is resistant to most forms of treatment. After surgery the patients are followed up by designated protocol and undergo adjuvant therapy (chemotherapy, radiotherapy, targeted therapy) as needed.

The role of women in cancer is prevention?

Women have a central role in the fight against cancer, not only can they encourage their family members to change to a healthy lifestyle (abstinence from smoking/alcohol, healthier food habits, exercise) leading to cancer prevention, they can also be an observant family member who encourages an early medical consultation for a possible cancer symptom leading to early detection and cure. We must therefore, empower women with knowledge and use them as our sentinels in the war on cancer.

Scientists say the ‘five second’ rule is correct when dropping food on the floor

    

WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOU DROP SOME FOOD ON THE FLOOR? DOES IT GO STRAIGHT IN THE BIN OR DO YOU ADHERE TO THE WIDELY-USED ‘FIVE SECOND’ RULE AND EAT IT?

A study, undertaken by scientists at The Big Bang Fair in Birmingham, shows that four out of five people or 79 per cent of us admit to popping fallen food in our mouths.

Of course most people think their own floors are cleaner and thus it’s more acceptable to eat food off – 56 per cent of them in fact – but that figure drops considerably to just 17 per cent if eating off another’s floor.

The research also shows people are just as likely to serve food that’s fallen on the floor to their dog (18 per cent) as they are their partner (17 per cent).

The most radical examples of ‘hoovers’ include people eating snacks off the floor of the cinema (2 per cent) or public transport (1 per cent).

But when asked to justify why they would do thus, a fifth of people admitted to following ‘five-second rule’, which scientists have now revealed as legitimate and safe in most cases.

Germ expert, Professor Anthony Hilton from Aston University, told the Birmingham Mail: “Eating food that has spent a few moments on the floor can never be entirely risk free.

“Obviously, food covered in visible dirt shouldn’t be eaten, but as long as it’s not obviously contaminated, the science shows that food is unlikely to have picked up harmful bacteria from a few seconds spent on an indoor floor.

“That is not to say that germs can’t transfer from the floor to the food.

“Our research has shown that the nature of the floor surface, the type of food dropped on the floor and the length of time it spends on the floor can all have an impact on the number that can transfer.”

Supermarket soups can be laced with up to seven spoons of sugar

    

SOME “HEALTHY” COMMERCIAL SOUPS CONTAIN A STAGGERING SEVEN TEASPOONS OF SUGAR, A TOP CHEF HAS REVEALED.

Hilary O’Hagan-Brennan said one spiced chicken soup was made with 28 grams of sugar per tub. The World Health Organisation recommends people take no more than 24 grams a day.

Ms O’Hagan-Brennan said on the RTE’s What Are You Eating? programme that even a root vegetable soup, which people might assume was healthy, contained 16 grams of sugar, or four teaspoons.

She says “There is no place for added sugar in soup”?

And sugar wasn’t the only hidden ingredient in our convenience foods, presenter Philip Boucher-Hayes discovered when he investigated.

He found that one third of us believe wraps are more healthy than traditional sandwiches.

But a large wrap can be equal to two slices of bread. And commercial tortillas are made with glycerol – a form of sugar – to keep them moist, and emulsifier to bind the ingredients together and extend their shelf life.

“Some chicken wraps have as many calories as a 12-inch pizza,” he discovers.

Consultant dietitian Aveen Bannon reveals that while salads are good for you, the benefits are often undone by large amounts of dressing. An average tablespoon of mayonnaise contains 94 calories – and people often use two or three spoons with a salad.

What would happen if the Earth’s rotation change direction or stop

    

The Earth, is the only planet in our solar system, that as long as we know it has life, and moves with a certain pattern, which we assume. Our planet rotates around its axis, a drive that takes about 24 hours, which seems to be from east to west at a speed of about 30 km per second.

We might think that these rules are insignificant and do not affect our existence. Only if our planet “rebels” and change course or reduce speed, then nothing will be the same.

According to the BBC, if the Earth began to move east, the climate in most regions would change drastically. The Sahara would be more rainy and desert will be turned into a jungle. Another case is that of anhydrous California which will also have more rain, as opposed to Florida we would see the swamps to dry up.

If again our planet began to move very slowly, then life on the planet would not survive as well, cause the side that would strike the sun would burn, and the “dark” side would freeze. In just one day we would have a transition from the Ice Age … the planet Venus. It’s a fact that the Earth actually reduces its speed, but it will spend trillions of years until it stops completely.

BUT HERE IS A SUMMARY OF THE QUESTION ANSWERS.?

1. The Earth would become an even more imperfect sphere and this would reduce the acceleration due to gravity; it would decrease at the equator and increase at the poles. Also, the days would shorten.
   2. Since the effect of gravity has decreased near the equator, we would observe tides much higher than usual in these areas, much more land would go underwater during high tides. I assume Venice would cease to remain habitable.
   3. The precession of the Earth’s axis would change. As the Earth becomes an even more Oblate Spheroid, the gravitational differences (of the Sun on Earth) would be larger on different parts of the Earth, this would make the axis precess even faster. The current cycle is 26,000 years long for one complete precession, this would shorten depending on the increase in rotational velocity. Axial precession
   4. North Star would change faster. Currently the North Star is Polaris which is set to be replaced by Deneb in 8,000 years. Due to the above reasons, it would occur faster.
   5. It is also possible that the axial tilt of the Earth would increase. This would mean that winters would be colder and summers would be hotter.
   6. Since the Earth now rotates faster and the Coriolis effect depends on the rotation of the Earth, the impact of Coriolis effect would increase and we would experience faster wind speeds. Coriolis force
   7. This would be a boon for geostationary satellites as the operational altitude would reduce due to Earth’s increased rotational velocity. Geostationary orbit
   8. Since the Sidereal day (Sidereal time) would now be shorter, we would have to redefine our present units of time.
   9. Since we would have to redefine our units of time and also the orbit of our satellites, it would be a disaster for the GPS system, I can safely say that it would be unusable for at least a few years until all the corrections have been made.
   10. Since the Coriolis Effect would alter the wind speeds, and the rotational velocity of Earth has increased, the travel time of aeroplanes would change.    

Donie's Ireland daily news BLOG.

No sugar tax and not much provided for young people in 2016 budget

   

Ireland is ranked fifth highest among 27 EU countries in incidence of childhood obesity

The first ‘giveaway’ Budget since the economic crash has left first-time buyers, variable mortgage holders, savers and those campaigning for a sugar tax disappointed.

Finance Minister Michael Noonan is facing accusations that he overlooked young people.

President of the National Youth Council of Ireland Ian Power welcomed the 50c hike to the minimum wage as 39pc of those on this rate are under 30. But he said it was “extremely disappointing to see the lack of action regarding young jobseekers”.

“We were told that this Budget was about ‘all sharing in the recovery’, however for young jobseekers this is clearly not the case,” he added.

Some measures to help first-time buyers get on the property ladder had been anticipated, such as changes to the Deposit Interest Retention Tax (Dirt) but Mr Noonan shied away from this.

Neither was there any specific measures to tackle Ireland’s high variable mortgage interest rates. The Department of Finance also ruled out a new sugar tax, as proposed by Health Minister Leo Varadkar and Children’s Minister James Reilly.

“It’s hard to escape the conclusion that by failing to introduce a tax on sugar-sweetened drinks, the Government is prioritising the wealth of multinational companies over the nation’s health and particularly the health of children.

“We know 60pc of the Irish public back the tax,” the Irish Heart Foundation head of advocacy, Chris Macey, said.’

Comedy Genius’ Brendan O’Carroll to receive IFTA Lifetime Achievement award

      

Comedian Brendan O’Carroll to be honoured with Lifetime Achievement award at this year’s IFTA awards ceremony.

The 60-year-old star, best known for his portrayal of Mrs Brown in Mrs Brown’s Boys, is being honoured for his contribution, influence and leadership in comedy, according to organisers.

“Brendan O’Carroll is quite simply a creative genius; his comedic style is accessible, immediate and outrageously funny,” said IFTA CEO Áine Moriarty.

“You don’t need to be a Mrs Brown fan to recognise this man’s brilliance, and his absolute skill and craft that is inspiring young Irish comedy writers and performers to find their own unique voice.”

The award will be presented to O’Carroll at the IFTA Gala Television Awards ceremony on Thursday, October 22.

Previous IFTA Lifetime Achievement recipients include Gay Byrne, Fionnula Flanagan, Neil Jordan, David Kelly and Maureen O’Hara.

A worrying rise in self-harm among young boys in Ireland

Hundreds required emergency treatment in 2014 after inflicting injuries on themselves

     

New figures reveal a ‘worrying’ rise in self-harm among young boys.

Hundreds of children aged between 10 and 14 years required emergency hospital treatment last year after inflicting injuries upon themselves, according to official figures.

Nationally, the number of self-harm cases stabilised in 2014, but there was a surge in the numbers under 14, according to the annual report of the National Self-Harm Registry.

The rate of self-harm among boys as young as 10 grew by 44 per cent last year. Among the 10-14 age group, 78 boys and 244 girls presented at hospitals after harming themselves.

The number of 15 to 19-year-olds presenting with self-harm was 549 for boys and 917 for girls.

The increase is particularly worrying, according to the registry, because self-harm methods among men tend to involve “higher lethality” and there is a greater risk of suicide following self-harm among males compared to females.

The trend highlights the need for awareness programmes geared to young boys and aimed at reducing stigma related to mental health, it says.

Further research is also needed into the effectiveness of interventions such as cognitive behaviour therapy which have proved effective with girls.

Irish hospitals

In the decade since 2004, Irish hospitals have recorded almost 102,000 incidences of self-harm, involving 63,000 people, according to the report.

Last year saw 11,000 presentations involving self-harm by 8,700 individuals.

The overall rate of self-harm was unchanged from 2013 and follows three decreases in successive years.

However, the rate last year was still 6 per cent higher than the rate recorded before the recession in 2007.

Male self-harm was up 2 per cent, while the female rate was unchanged. Since 2007, the male rate has increased 14 per cent, while the female rate was up less than 1 per cent.

Gender gap

The rate of self-harm remains higher among women than men but the gender gap has narrowed from 37 per cent a decade ago to 16 per cent last year.

The report finds wide variations in the rates recorded in different cities and counties. Men in Cork city were three times more likely to self-harm than men in Co Clare, while the rate among women was three times higher in Limerick city, compared to CoMonaghan.

The only significant decrease in the male rate of self-harm was in Co Carlow, down 37 per cent, while similar drops for women were recorded in Co Tipperary and Limerick city.

In contrast, the male rate of self-harm was up 72 per cent in Co Roscommon, 69 per cent in Co Cavan and 25 per cent in Co Kerry.

The rate among women jumped 33 per cent in Co Kilkenny.

Intentional drug overdose was the most common method of self-harm, occurring in two-thirds of all cases.

Medicines such as tranquillisers, anti-depressants and paracetamol were involved in 21-37 per cent of drug overdose acts, while hanging occurred in 7 per cent of self-harm incidents.

The report says the steep increase in self-harm involving highly lethal methods noted between 2007 and 2010 may have begun to level off. Similar to 2013, alcohol was involved in over one-third of cases.

Presentations in hospitals peaked around midnight and almost one-third took place on Sundays and Mondays.

Pot still Irish whiskey returns to the West of Ireland

 

L-R: An Taoiseach, Enda Kenny TD with Connacht Whiskey Distillery Directors Tom Jensen, PJ Stapleton, Rob Cassell & David Stapleton

A dream to bring pure pot still Irish whiskey back to the West of Ireland after an absence of over 100 years took its first official step recently when The Connacht Whiskey Distillery in Ballina, Co. Mayo was opened by An Taoiseach, Enda Kenny, T.D.

The €10m investment will generate 40 new jobs at the 27,000 square feet distillery which also features a visitor centre. The Distillery goes into production in mid-October and expects to produce up to 70,000 cases per year. It is only the second Connacht-based craft whiskey distillery, and one of a handful of developed craft distilleries across the country.

Speaking at the opening, the Taoiseach said, “I am delighted that the craft of whiskey-making is returning to the West of Ireland and in so doing is creating 40 new jobs. It is especially pleasing to see the renewal of what was Duffys’ Bakery – we’re moving from one grain to another, so to speak – and bringing new life to this scenic location on the banks of the River Moy. This exciting venture brings to fruition the vision of David Stapleton and his US-Irish team and marks a positive development for the agri-food and drinks sector. It is also a vote of confidence in Mayo and yet another sign of the regional recovery that has begun to take hold across Ireland.”

Taking on scotch
Connacht Whiskey director and past President and CEO of Remy Cointreau USA, Tom Jensen says, “Irish whiskey is the fastest-growing whiskey in the US, but is outsold by scotch 4 to 1. Unlike scotch, Irish whiskey lacks regionally produced whiskeys that reflect the various terroirs of Ireland. Our goal is to introduce US consumers to the beauty of a hand crafted, pot distilled Irish whiskey from Western Ireland.”

Different to other distilleries in the news recently
Rob Cassell, Master Distiller, Connacht Whiskey, comments, “We are very different from the massive, production-driven Irish distilleries that have been in the news lately. We are a company focused on bringing consumers small batch Irish whiskey that is smooth, full of character and has a distinctive flavour. We have a luxury of opportunity here at Connacht Whiskey that allows us to have a step into the past by creating traditional style Irish Whiskey.

We are able to innovate yet pay homage to the past, and are recreating a spirit that can only be produced in the West of Ireland. Irish whiskey has a rich and forgotten past of its pure pot distilled whiskey and I am honoured to have the opportunity to pay tribute to and create a spirit that is unique to the West of Ireland. When a local Irishman can take a bottle of our spirit elsewhere is the world and proudly tout ‘this is from my home’, I’ll know we have succeeded in bottling the craftsman’s passion of the West of Ireland.”

Michael Cantwell, Head of Food Division, Enterprise Ireland, commented, “The Connacht Whiskey Distillery has cultivated the roots of tradition with ambitious and highly innovative thinking to grow a company with the potential to scale rapidly in international markets from its Ballina base. Enterprise Ireland has worked closely with the company in implementing their plans and we look forward to focusing on driving their export sales, creating and sustaining jobs in Ireland for the future.”

Conor McGregor was always going to be a success says a Sligo businessman who sold him clothes 

    

Conor McGregor being fitted out with Mark Cunnigham at EJ Menswear Sligo.

Eamonn Cunningham believes Conor’s work ethic and confidence make him a success and such a captivating character.

Conor McGregor was always going to be a success says a Sligo businessman who sold him clothes after his UFC debut.

Eamonn J Cunningham founded and owns EJ Menswear in Sligo town.

The Sligo native believes Conor’s remarkable work ethic and confidence makes him so captivating.

The 27-year-old Dubliner came to the west of Ireland on the 25th February 2014.

Conor had just beaten Marcus Brimage and Max Holloway in the UFC fight announcing his arrival on the international stage.

He bought a Hugo Boss Bowler hat, a checkered shirt with braces and cufflinks to match.

Conor posted on Twitter at the time: “Thank you EJ Menswear Sligo for opening up after hours and hooking me up!! Late night shopping, Sligo style.”

Eamonn said: “We opened after hours at 11.30pm at night so he could come in.

“He was just starting to make waves.

  “All the lads here with Eamon in left picture” knew about Conor McGregor and were fans of his. We got on very well with him.

“We like to think that we can claim part of the revival of the dickie bow as a fashion trend in the country.

“It seemed to skyrocket after that.

“He was down to earth and he is working really hard. “Conor is well able to back up whatever he says and he has the confidence and talent to do it and is a special man.

“He’s very fond of three piece suits, it’s very trendy now and gives him a signature look.”

Eamonn channelled the spirit of Conor McGregor making a promotional sales video for his shop which went viral and was viewed over a quarter of a million times.

“McGregor is so topical, our videos, personally I think they’re so bad, they’re good.

“I wouldn’t be the best actor in the world.

“I thought it would be a challenge to take off McGregor and it would be a bit of craic.

“We went for it and it worked out.

“My own son Mark was at Conor’s fight against Chad Mendes in Las Vegas in July.

“He won’t be at the Jose Aldo fight in December because it’s a busy month for us in the shop.”

‘The Notorious’ Conor McGregor isn’t the only famous man to walk through EJ Menswear.

Westlife’s Kian Egan and Shane Filan used to work in the store before their international success.

Kian was also a babysitter to Eamonn’s children.

He said: “Both Kian and Shane worked with us for a while.

“Cian used to babysit our kids.

“He was a good babysitter.

“He loved the guitar and taught my son Mark how to play the instrument.

“We lived across the street from each other at the time.

“Cian was only 14 then, he worked in the shop when he was 16.”

The shop fitted the band with clothes and suits in the early days.

Eamonn feels that the shop is a lucky charm for anybody who gets clothes there.

He said: “We’d like to think we played a small part in the success of different people who came through the doors.

“McGregor came into our place and now he’s a world superstar.

“Sligo Rovers won three cup finals in a row.

“They wore suits for the three finals when they won the cup.

“In 2007, Sligo won the Connacht final, we had fitted them out with suits.”

Eamonn started in the clothes business thinking he would try it for six months.

Forty years later, he’s still in the rag trade.

He worked for Horan’s menswear, Sligo, for 17 years before setting up his own business.

Eamonn said: “At the time, you had to serve an apprenticeship, work your way up the ladder.

“I started in the underwear department and ended up in the suit department.

“You saw every aspect of the men’s business from start to finish.

“It was great training, times were tough, you worked your hours and you worked a lot of extra hours on a very basic wage.

“I had a good boss, I watched a lot and learned from he was operating.

“I opened my own business in 1994 when I was 34.”

Eamonn J Cunningham with the EJ Menswear team in Sligo city.

EJ Menswear is setting up their own website so they can reach customers who have emigrated.

Eamonn said: “Online has changed retail but the core of our business has been built up through customer service and one on one.

“That’s what we like, the customer coming in, we take care of them and they walk out happy.

“That’s what gives me the buzz and it alway will.

“We’ve had a lot of requests to be online because we have customers coming from all over the country and from other countries.”

Eamonn is focused on making the Sligo flagship store as big as it can be.

The mens clothing store in Sligo has some 25,000 likes on their Facebook page.

He added: ““We’ve often thought about opening another shop but it would be very hard to replicate.

“There’s not two of me, or my son Mark, Tom Clarke or any of the lads that work in the shop.

“We’re trying to be a destination store and “Online is helping us reach out more.”

Is a man’s brain programmed to prefer sex over food

    

It is said that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach, but a new study suggests that when it comes to sex, food is the last thing on his mind.

Researchers have found that the male brain is hardwired to seek out sex, even at the expense of a good meal, with specific neurons firing up to over-ride the desire to eat.

The male brain is hardwired to seek out sex?

Intriguingly, women do not have the same neurons, suggesting that sex for females comes secondary to sustenance.

Although the neurons have only been found in the brains of nematode worms, scientists at University College London say that it is likely that similar mechanisms are at work in humans.

And it is proof that male and female brains are wired differently, a controversial subject, which has been argued by scientists and feminists for decades.

Co-author Professor Scott Emmons, from the Departments of Genetics and Neuroscience at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, said: “Though the work is carried out in a small worm, it nevertheless gives us a perspective that helps us appreciate and possibly understand the variety of human sexuality, sexual orientation, and gender identification.

“Although we have not looked in humans, it is plausible that the male human brain has types of neurons that the female brain doesn’t, and vice versa. This may change how the two sexes perceive the world and their behavioural priorities.”

The team were surprised to find the new cells because the worms have been studied by extensively in the past and it is the first time they have been spotted.

The newly identified neurons have been dubbed MCMs or ‘mystery cells of the male’

The worm species used in the study, Caenorhabditis elegans, has two sexes: males and hermaphrodites.

These hermaphrodites are essentially modified females that carry their own sperm and do not need to have sex in order to reproduce.

Scientists conditioned the worms so that when salt was present they realised that they would be starved. Over time, the worms moved away from the salt. However when the salt was present at the same time as a mate, the male worm still moved towards the mate. In contrast, hermaphrodites moved away from the salt even when a mate was present.

It indicated that for males the sex trigger was stronger than the salt.

“Areas of the brain involved in learning display sex differences in many animals, including humans, but how these differences directly affect behaviour is not clear,” said senior author Dr Arantza Barrios of UCL’s Cell & Deveopmental Biology department.

Brain cells specific to men fire up when mates are present and override the need to eat, scientists have found

“We’ve shown how genetic and developmental differences between the two sexes lead to structural changes in the brain of male worms during sexual maturation.

“These changes make male brains work differently, allowing males to remember previous sexual encounters and prioritise sex in future situations.”

The research was published in the journal Nature.

Artificial skin could soon give sense of touch to Artificial Limbs

      

A new “organic electronic skin” was developed with hopes of giving a sense of touch to artificial or prosthetic limbs.

According to the report published at Science Mag Journal, the researchers led by Prof. Zhenan Bao of Stanford University in California has developed a skin-like “mechanoreceptors” integrated with “organic transistor circuit” that transforms pressure into digital signals sent directly to the brain.

This work represents a step toward the design and use of large-area organic electronic skins with neural-integrated touch feedback for replacement limbs,” the researchers pointed in the report.

In a report by Medical News Today(MNT), the team of engineers used a two-layered plastic component where the top layer serves as a sensor that distinguishes pressure just like what the human skin does. Meanwhile, the second layer acts as the “circuit” that will convert the pressure into electric signals which were then sent to the nerve cells to the brain.

As mention by the report, in order to do this, the researchers used “carbon nanotubes” in the plastic component that enabled it to “conduct electricity.” Through this, the flexible material was able to act like a skin, transmitting “short electric pulses.”

The researchers tested the plastic material by creating a model of a line of neurons that were found in a human’s nervous system. Through converting pressure signals to light pulses, the researchers discovered that the neurons and their skin-like plastic material could create a “sensory output” that is recognizable and communicable to the nerve cells.

“The sensor successfully converted pressure into a digital response in a pressure range comparable to that found in a human grip,” the researchers furthered in their study.

On the other hand, although the material is still on trial stage and there are still a lot of works to do, the researchers shared that they will be improving what they created and will look into developing a sensor that will enhance the sensing ability of artificial limbs.

“We have a lot of work to take this from experimental to practical applications. But after spending many years in this work, I now see a clear path where we can take our artificial skin,” Prof. Bao told MNT.

This new material could very well help those people who have lost their limbs due to various incidents. As reported by the Amputee Coalition, there are roughly two million people in the United States that suffer with the loss of limbs. Making this worse is that there are 185,000 amputations happening in US every year.