In this video, GE provides a wide variety of these body imaging devices to transform objects like a baseball, fruit and a violin to create an analog representation of how tomography captures these image slices:

The world’s leading footwear designer, Nike (NKE), has been rumored by the London Times to be reviewing an acquisition of Under Armour (UA). Nike currently has over $4.5B in cash with $663M in debt while the enterprise value of Under Armour is currently trading at $3.6B, or a pricey 22.8x EBITDA.

Since September 15 of last year, UA has gone up 88.6% and has strong growth prospects. Consensus estimates for EPS growth for the possible target are 34.3% to $1.80 in 2011 and 25.6% and 28.3% for the following two years. Under Armour is, however, in need of the international exposure that Nike could offer. Almost all of the possible target’s revenues came from North America in 2010 (93.8%).

Both companies sell similar products and have strong brands. A takeover would provide revenue synergies, since Nike could benefit from selling new products in its developed global market. Below is a breakdown of Nike’s revenue by region/category:

Of the categories, emerging markets is growing the fastest at 24% for 2011, followed by Greater China at 18%. For each of these regions, roughly two-thirds of sales come from footwear, approximately 30% from apparel and the remainder from equipment. Revenue from Western Europe and Japan have declined by 2% and 13%, respectively.

Nike is currently trading at roughly 19.9x past earnings and 15.6x future earnings. EPS is expected to grow by 10% to $4.83 in 2012 and then by 16.1% and 13.5% for the following years. While I believe that the market has mainly factored in the growth prospects of Nike abroad, an acquisition like Under Armour could go a long way to create value through strengthened marketing appeal.

It is also important to consider that the leading footwear-maker already has several brands: Converse, NIKE Golf, Hurley, Umbro, and Cole Haan. These businesss were up 8% in FY11, excluding currency changes. For comparison, revenues grew by 9.7% to $20.9B for the company overall.

With its 3 largest customers accounting for 23% of US sales and a competitive market, Nike needs to provide innovative products to maintain its sustainable edge. Accordingly, I see the acquisition a step in the right direction for the company, which will be facing lower operating margins in light of the approaching Olympics. I expect operating margins to be 13.2% and 13.8% in FY12 and FY13, respectively.

Over the last six years, EPS growth has been roughly an impressive 14% for the company. While many acquisitions fail to add value, I see a win-win for a Nike and Under Armour deal in terms of combined marketing value, revenue synergies, and growth prospects.

Via http://seekingalpha.com/article/293825-potential-under-armour-buyout-would-be-positive-for-nike

By Anna Brillon on September 14, 2011.

An award-winning app recognized by the Cleanweb Hackathon transforms ordinary produce shops into a virtual marketplace. Named ‘Freshlist,’ this app created by Joshua Rosen and Hoa Hyun gives fruit and vegetable sellers an effective means of making sales. At the same time, Freshlist also helps buyers find what they’re looking for, at a location that is most convenient for them to access.

This article titled “Jamie Oliver calls for global action to tackle obesity” was written by Robin McKie, for The Observer on Saturday 3rd September 2011 23.07 UTC

Levels of obesity across the globe are reaching epidemic proportions, according to medical experts. Now the crisis is to be the focus of a major debate at a UN medical conference in New York.

A coalition of nutrition and health experts – ranging from celebrity chef Jamie Oliver to former government chief scientist Sir David King – are urging western nations to play a key role in halting the dramatic rise in numbers of obese people across the planet.

“There seems to be a trend with developing countries wanting to follow in the footsteps of the western world, and copy their patterns of fast food and consumerism,” Oliver told the One Young World conference in Switzerland on Friday. The phenomenon was a particular problem in India, South America and the Middle East, he said. Oliver added: “Pre-packed convenience food is seen as a symbol of being ‘modern’ in developing countries, but the problems it causes are long-term, and costly.” “Diet-related diseases are two of the top five causes of premature death for people under 60 years old. They look set to create an absolute catastrophe over the next 30 to 40 years if nothing changes.”

Oliver’s aim is to encourage heads of state and the UN secretary-general, Ban Ki-moon, to “sit up and take notice” at a summit on non-communicable disease in New York on 20 September. He called for a “global movement to make obesity a human rights issue” and urged a million people to sign a petition. Oliver also urged countries to hold on to their national dishes, and for recipes to pass from generation to generation, saying: “I believe that together we can make some real noise ahead of this meeting of experts.”

The attempt to generate a global debate on the crisis is backed by King, who wrote in the Lancet recently: “We need changes in many aspects of our environment to avoid the morbid consequences of overweight and obesity. This change will require global political leadership across public policy, considerably broader than that of health policy, and far better monitoring.”

King also called for the issue to be a major focus for debate at the UN summit. “By 2050, 60% of men and 50% of women could be clinically obese,” he wrote. “Without action, obesity-related diseases will cost the UK £45bn a year. Research and action should therefore be undertaken to avoid what could develop into a massive problem, not just for the UK, but also globally.”

The danger posed by rising obesity numbers has been highlighted by the World Health Organisation (WHO). “It is not uncommon to find under-nutrition and obesity existing side-by-side within the same country, within the same community, and the same household,” it states. According to WHO, 65% of the world’s population now lives in countries where overweight and obesity kills more people than underweight. However, it is the latter problem that attracts the headlines because it poses an immediate and life-threatening danger.

“With our western-style diets, our biggest problems are a direct result of what the experts call ‘bad feeding’ – which basically means eating a load of rubbish, highly processed food that’s jammed full of salt, fats, sugars, additives, and cheap processed meats,” Oliver said. “Governments around the world like it when food is cheap and shops are full, but they’re achieving this by allowing big businesses to pump out this sort of food and drink in mass volumes.”

Several factors are blamed on the rise of obesity: these include an increase in car use, shifts away from manual labour, the rise in urban living and the availability of cheap, high-calorie convenience foods.King stressed that the current obesity epidemic was not caused by people being lazy or overeating and highlighted previous research which showed that individuals had much less choice in the matter of their weight than they would assume.

“Our biology has stepped out of kilter with society,” he said. “Most adults in the UK are already overweight and modern living ensures every generation is heavier than the last. This is known as passive obesity.”

guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010

Pandora has announced twelve new workout stations, aimed at people who want something to listen to while exercising. Here are the stations and some of the artists who feature on them:

• 80′s Cardio – Billy Idol, Michael Jackson, Journey.
• Alternative Endurance Training – Red Hot Chili Peppers, Rise Against, Sublime.
• Classic Rock Power Workout- AC/DC, Aerosmith, Queen.
• Country Fitness – Keith Urban, Toby Keith, Lady Antebellum, Jason Aldean.
• Dance Cardio – Deadmau5, Tiesto, David Guetta.
• Electronic Cardio – Daft Punk, Skrillex, Diplo.
• Hard Rock Strength Training – Linkin Park, Three Days Grace, Disturbed.
• Pop and Hip Hop Power Workout – Ke$ha, Black Eyed Peas, Beyonce.
• Pop Fitness – Katy Perry, Maroon 5, Train.
• Rap Strength Training – Lil Wayne, Jay-Z, Snoop Dogg, Eminem.
• Yoga – Deep Forest, Deepak Chakra, Brian Eno.
• Yoga Workout – Cheb I Sabbah, LTJ Bukem, J-Boogie’s Dubtronic Science.

After adding a genre station, listeners can personalize and refine it by providing thumbs-up and thumbs-down feedback for each song depending on whether they want to hear it more often or never want to hear it again. The vice president of corporate communications at Pandora, Deborah Roth, said:

People have been asking for stations designed specifically to get their blood pumping during workouts. We created twelve great stations from various starting points across the music universe, everything from 80′s to country to hard rock, all geared toward giving people energizing music to listen to while they’re exercising.

via PSFK: http://www.psfk.com/2011/09/music-motivation-pandora-adds-new-workout-stations.html#ixzz1XTQOUuQL

Spaniol, F., Temple, D., Ocker, L., Bonnette, R., Melrose, D, Monteiro, I.
Sport Science Research Laboratory Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between visual skills and volleyball performance of NCAA Division I volleyball players. Participants consisted of thirteen female NCAA Division I volleyball players (height 179.36 ± 7.73cm, age 18-25 years) who were evaluated for visual skills and performance during the 2008-2009 season. Visual skills were assessed using Vizual Edge Performance Trainer® (VEPT), a commercial software program designed to evaluate and train visual skills. Subjects were assessed for eye alignment, depth perception, convergence, divergence, visual recognition, and visual tracking. A composite score (final VEPT score) was also calculated for each subject. Volleyball performance was determined by end of season statistics, which included kills, kills per set, attack errors, hitting percentage, assists, assists per set, serve aces, serve aces per set, serve errors, reception errors, digs, digs per set, blocks solo, blocks assisted, total blocks, blocks per set, blocking errors, and ball-handling errors. Data analysis was performed by utilizing a correlation matrix to calculate correlation coefficients between the vision and performance variables. Statistical analysis indicated significant (p < 0.05) relationships between convergence percentage and attack percentage (r = 0.55), divergence station score and assists per set (r = 0.53), visual recognition percent correct and hitting percentage (r = 0.71), eye alignment and blocks per set (r = -0.56), visualrecognition response time and attack percentage (r = -0.74), and visual recognition percent correct and reception errors (r = – 0.57). The results of this study indicate that superior visual skills were highly related to superior volleyball performance statistics in several areas. Since visual skills appear to play a crucial role in volleyball performance, coaches may consider using programs such as VEPT to assess volleyball players.

Written by Natalia Kielcz

Do you ever think that there are just not enough hours in the day to get everything done? Do you sacrifice sleep in order to have “more” hours of productivity, but you still feel like you are just scraping by? If you do, stop now! Sleep is just a high a priority as anything else in your life, and sleeping less negatively effects how you function inside and out!

Studies on sleep have repeatedly shown that getting quality snooze time in plays a vital role in promoting physical health, longevity, and emotional well-being. The Institute of Medicine recently estimated in its report, Sleep Disorders and Sleep Deprivation: An Unmet Public Health Problem, that “hundreds of billions of dollars a year are spent on direct medical costs related to sleep disorders such as doctor visits, hospital services, prescriptions, and over-the-counter medications.” Sleep problems and lack of sleep can affect everything from personal and work productivity to behavioral and relationship problems. Over time, chronic sleep deprivation may lead to an array of serious medical conditions like obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and even early death. Who would have thought that something as simple as hitting the sheets could cut medical costs and improve your quality of life overal.

In our fast paced, achievement oriented society, we often push sleep aside to get as much as we can done in our waking hours…but without adequate sleep, judgment, mood, and ability to learn and retain information are greatly reduced. This explains why you feel alert, your thoughts are clearer, and you are more emotionally stable after a solid night of rest.

So, when you are feeling low on energy, moody, and/or stressed out, sleep it off!! Clock in 7 to 8 solid hours of sleep regularly and see if that doesn’t improve your quality of “waking” life.

http://www.fitnessbusinessinterviews.com/fitness-entrepreneurs-top-100/

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http://www.fitnessbusinessinterviews.com/fitness-entrepreneurs-top-100/