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Diamond Jubilee Events Guide

Diane A. Wade
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Diamond Jubilee Events Guide

Celebrate The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in London with your neighbors by hosting a Big Jubilee Lunch.

Big Jubilee Lunch in London

 

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The Big Lunch is an annual nationwide event which encourages people across the UK to enjoy lunch with their neighbors.

This year The Big Lunch falls on the same weekend as The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations, which is a four-day Bank Holiday weekend. So dust off the bunting and Union Jack flags from the Royal Wedding and enjoy a lunch fit for The Queen!

All you have to do is gather together your neighbors and choose what kind of an event you want – from a small gathering raising money for charity to a full-blown street party with music and a barbeque.

How to Organize a Big Jubilee Lunch

 

Every year since it began in 2009, The Big Lunch has been enjoyed by more than a million people, and this year’s special Big Jubilee Lunch is likely to attract even more participants.

If you want to get involved and set up your own local event, follow the “10 Steps to Organizing a Big Lunch Guide” on the Big Lunch website.

You can also request a Big Jubilee Lunch pack, containing advice as well as posters, leaflets and recipes.

 

The Central Weekend 2 – 5 June 2012

 

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The Central Weekend to celebrate The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee takes place from Saturday 2 June to Tuesday 5 June 2012, with celebratory activities throughout the UK and across the Commonwealth

If you are considering visiting central London to join in with the celebrations, you may find it useful to visit the Transport for London website

Alternatively, you may wish to consider watching events on one of the many BBC Big Screens around the UK.

For information about the Official Diamond Jubilee Souvenir Programme click here.

Here is our run-down  of events over the Diamond Jubilee weekend, including approximate timings:

Saturday 2 June, 2012

 


The Queen will attend the Epsom Derby.

Sunday 3 June, 2012

 

The Big Jubilee Lunch: Building on the already popular Big Lunch initiative, people will be encouraged to share lunch with neighbours and friends as part of the Diamond Jubilee celebrations. This may take the form of a traditional street party or a picnic lunch in small or larger groups. This event is being organised by the Big Lunch. Find out more.

The Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant: This event will take place on the Thames and consist of up to 1,000 boats assembled from across the UK, the Commonwealth and around the world. The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh will travel in the Royal Barge which will form the centrepiece of the flotilla. Find out more

Approximate timings are as follows:

14:30BST – The Queen embarks the Royal barge, the Spirit of Chartwell, near Albert Bridge  

16:15BST  – The Royal Barge comes alongside HMS President (Royal Naval Reserve Unit), near Tower Bridge  

Monday 4 June, 2012

 

BBC Concert at Buckingham Palace: There will be a televised Diamond Jubilee Concert at Buckingham Palace with tickets being available to UK residents by public ballot. The musical programme for the concert is still being planned and is expected to feature British and Commonwealth musicians. Details on how to apply for the concert will be available in due course. This event is being organised by the BBC. Find out more

The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Beacons: A network of 2,012 Beacons will be lit by communities and individuals throughout the United Kingdom, as well as the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man and the Commonwealth. As in 2002, The Queen will light the National Beacon. Find out more

Approximate timings are as follows:

19:30BST  – Diamond Jubilee Concert at Buckingham Palace begins

After 22:30BST – The Queen lights the National Beacon outside Buckingham Palace 

 

Tuesday 5 June, 2012

 


On Tuesday 5 June, the Diamond Jubilee weekend will culminate with a day of celebrations in central London, including a service at St Paul’s Cathedral followed by two receptions, a lunch at Westminster Hall, a Carriage Procession to Buckingham Palace and finally a Balcony appearance, Flypast, and Feu de Joie. Find out more.

Download the Order of Service

Approximate timings are as follows:

10:15BST – The Queen leaves Buckingham Palace by car

10:30-11.30BST – Service of Thanksgiving at St Paul’s  

12.30BST – The Queen travels by car from Mansion House to the Palace of Westminster

14:20BST – Carriage Procession from Westminster Hall to Buckingham Palace commences

Approximately 15:25BST – Royal Family appear on the Balcony at Buckingham Palace 

 

 

Top 10 Art Exhibitions in London

 

The_Diamond_Jubilee_London_Art_Exhibition

 

Don’t miss out on the best London exhibitions! Catch one of these great London exhibitions as chosen by our editorial team.

 

Damien Hirst at Tate Modern

 

 

A shark suspended in formaldehyde, a bisected cow and calf… Damien Hirst is well-known for his imaginative and sometimes shocking works. This April, Tate Modern unveils the first substantial survey of Damien Hirst’s work ever held in the UK, featuring more than 70 iconic pieces. Until 9 Sep

 

Picasso and Modern British Art at Tate Britain

 

The influence of Picasso on British art and artists has rarely been recognized – until now, thanks to Tate Britain’s new exhibition. Picasso and Modern British Art explore the Spanish artist’s reputation in Britain, and looks at how Picasso’s work affected British modernism and inspired British artists. Until 15 Jul

 

British Design 1948-2012: Innovation in the Modern Age

 

In this Olympic year the Victoria & Albert Museum celebrates the best of British art and design since London last held the Olympic Games, in 1948. The exhibition brings together more than 300 objects from the fields of fashion, ceramics, graphics, photography, sculpture, product design, architecture, furniture and fine art. Until 12 Aug

 

Yayoi Kusama

 

 

One of Japan’s best-known living artists, Yayoi Kusama’s work spans more than six decades. Kusama is known for her immersive artworks and at this Tate Modern exhibition you can wander through a series of rooms covered in hallucinatory polka dots, mirrors and more. Until 5 Jun

Turner Inspired: In the Light of Claude

 

 

Turner’s daring painting technique dazzled audiences at the beginning of the 19th century and influenced future generations of artists. This National Gallery exhibition examines how Turner was inspired by Claude’s portrayal of light and landscape, and features pictures by Turner and Claude hung side-by-side. Until 5 Jun

 

Royal River: Power, Pageantry and the Thames at the National Maritime Museum

 

As well as being The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee year, 2012 sees the 75th birthday of the National Maritime Museum. Royal River celebrates them both by exploring the relationship between British monarchs and the River Thames throughout history. Royal River is curated by one of Britain’s leading historians, David Starkey. Until 9 Sep

 

Leonardo da Vinci: Anatomist at the Queen’s Gallery

 

Don’t miss the largest-ever exhibition of Leonardo da Vinci’s anatomical drawings at The Queen’s Gallery, Buckingham Palace. Da Vinci produced amazingly accurate anatomical drawings. His research included working in hospitals and medicals schools, where he dissected human and animal material. Until 7 Oct

 

Christian Louboutin at the Design Museum

 

This Design Museum offers a unique retrospective of famous shoe designer Christian Louboutin’s work and a preview of his next collection. Using items from Christian Louboutin’s personal archive the exhibition showcases his designs, methods and inspirations over the past 20 years. Until 9 Jul

 

The Queen: Art and Image at the National Portrait Gallery

 

To celebrate The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, the National Portrait Gallery is bringing together 60 images from The Queen’s 60-year reign. See how The Queen has been portrayed through painting, photography and press images by renowned artists and photographers. Until 21 Oct

 

Royal Academy of Arts Summer Exhibition

 

Don’t miss the highly popular summer exhibition at the Royal Academy, now in its 244th year. Displaying some of the best of contemporary art, the exhibition features more than 1,200 works by both new and distinguished artists, many of which are available to purchase. 4 Jun-12 Aug

 

 

The Diamond Jubilee – Frequently Asked Questions

Diane A. Wade
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The Diamond Jubilee – Frequently Asked Questions

A. Celebrations

What is Her Majesty’s Diamond Jubilee?
The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee marks 60 years since her accession in 1952. Royal Jubilees celebrate significant periods in monarchs’ reigns and national life. In 2012, The Queen will become only the second UK monarch to mark 60 years on the throne. Celebrations were previously held for Her Majesty’s Silver Jubilee in 1977 and Golden Jubilee in 2002.

Diamond_Jubilee_Carriage

 

When exactly is The Queen marking her Diamond Jubilee?

While Accession Day is on 6 February, celebrations will occur throughout 2012, with a special extended bank holiday central weekend in the United Kingdom on 2-5 June.

What events will take place over this bank holiday central weekend?
On Saturday 2 June, The Queen will attend the Epsom Derby. On Sunday 3 June the Big Jubilee Lunch and the Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant will take place. On Monday 4 June a concert will be held at Buckingham Palace and a network of beacons will be lit throughout the UK and the Commonwealth. On Tuesday 5 June a Service of Thanksgiving will be held at St. Paul’s Cathedral, which will be followed by a formal carriage Procession.

Will there be events at other times during the year?
There will be many other events held locally and on a national scale. For example, in May 2012 a Diamond Jubilee Pageant will be held, as part of the Windsor Horse Show, involving equine displays and other acts from around the world.

For more information and news on Jubilee events and activities, please visit www.direct.gov.uk/diamondjubilee or see national and local media as further details are announced.

I would like to organise an event in my local area. Whom do I contact?
People should make contact with the appropriate organisations or representatives – for example, one of the organisations involved with the central weekend, Lord Lieutenancies and local authorities.

Will Her Majesty’s Diamond Jubilee be marked in other Realm countries?
Her Majesty is Queen in 15 Commonwealth Realms in addition to the United Kingdom. The British Monarchy and UK Government websites will carry details only for those events and celebrations taking place in the United Kingdom. More details will be available elsewhere about activities taking place in Her Majesty’s other Realms.

Diamond_Jubilee_Carriage2

B. Central Jubilee Weekend Events

Big Jubilee Lunch
I would like to organise a street party or Big Jubilee Lunch. Who should I contact for more information?
The Big Jubilee Lunch is being organised by the Big Lunch, which is part of the Eden Project. It will be held on Sunday 3 June 2012. For more information please see www.thebiglunch.com or contact [email protected]

Thames Pageant
From where can I watch the Pageant?
Details about where spectators can view the Pageant will be announced by the organisers in due course. Please see http://www.thamesdiamondjubileepageant.org/ for more details.

Can I register a vessel to take part?
Boat registrations closed on 31 October 2011. Please see http://www.thamesdiamondjubileepageant.org/ for more details.

Can I get tickets to be on a boat sailing in the flotilla?
Further details about the Pageant will be announced on the Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant website in due course.

Jubilee Concert at Buckingham Palace
When is the concert?
The Queen is hosting a concert organised by the BBC at Buckingham Palace on Monday 4 June.

Can I apply for tickets?
Details of how to apply for an invitation to the Concert will be announced in early 2012. Successful applicants, chosen by ballot, will be notified in writing.

Can I perform during the concert?
The content of the concert will be decided by the BBC.

The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Beacons
Can I light a Beacon?
Details of how to take part in Beacon lighting ceremonies are available on www.diamondjubileebeacons.co.uk

When will the Beacons be lit?
The Queen will light the National Beacon on Monday 4 June. Further details about the lighting of Beacons will be announced by Diamond Jubilee Beacons Ltd.

Ceremonial Procession
Will there be a ceremonial procession to or from the Service of Thanksgiving, and if so, from where can I watch it?
There will be a formal carriage procession but details of the routes to and from the Service of Thanksgiving at St. Paul’s Cathedral will be announced closer to the time and published on the Monarchy website.

C. Commemorative Articles

Can I produce Diamond Jubilee Souvenirs?
The Lord Chamberlain’s Office at Buckingham Palace produces definitive guidelines on the use of the Royal Arms, Royal Devices, Emblems and Titles and of photographs, portraits, engravings, effigies and busts of The Queen and Members of the Royal Family.

Special guidelines for the use of protected Royal Devices on souvenirs have been produced for The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in 2012 and can be found here – http://www.royal.gov.uk/pdf/DJ%20Emblem%20Guidelines/Souvenir%20Guidelines%20DJ%202012.pdf

Where can I find the Official Diamond Jubilee Emblem?
The Official Diamond Jubilee Emblem is based on an illustration by 10 year-old Katherine Dewar who won a BBC Blue Peter competition. It is available to download, free of charge from the Monarchy website and comes in a number of electronic formats; in English and in Welsh; and in colour, black and white and whiteout.

Where can I use the Emblem?
The emblem is available for use for activities associated with the Diamond Jubilee celebrations including community and national events, publications, retail and merchandising.

Unofficial Publications
As you would expect, the Royal Household takes seriously any reports of individuals or organisations using the Jubilee to raise money in an inappropriate or unauthorised manner. If you are invited to donate money to “official publications”, please write to The Queen’s Assistant Private Secretary, at Buckingham Palace, London SW1A 1AA.

D. Use of The Queen’s title, name and emblems

Can I name something after The Queen or the Diamond Jubilee?
As is customary in Jubilee years, the Deputy Prime Minister and the First Ministers of Scotland and Wales have been given discretion to sanction the use of The Queen’s title and name. A blanket approval is in place for the use of “Diamond Jubilee” and “Jubilee” for community events and buildings (subject to the proviso that building works start or finish in 2012, and events take place in 2012). Permission need not be sought for the use of the titles “Diamond Jubilee” and “Jubilee” in these circumstances.

Applications to use “The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee”, “Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee” and “Queen Elizabeth’s Diamond Jubilee” must be submitted in writing. Applications in respect of England, Northern Ireland or any of the Crown Dependencies – Parliament and Constitution Division of the Cabinet Office; applications in respect of Scotland or Wales where responsibility for the subject of the application remains with the UK Government – to the Scotland Office and Wales Office respectively.

Can I use an image of the Crown or The Queen’s Cypher (EIIR) for my Jubilee event/project?
Applications to use an image of the Crown, The Queen’s Cypher (EIIR) or Her Majesty’s Coat of Arms must be submitted to the Constitutional and Policy team in the Parliament and Constitution Division of the Cabinet Office.

E. Invitations to Visit

Will The Queen or other Members of the Royal Family be visiting my local area in 2012?
The Queen’s Programme and details of where other Members of the Royal Family will visit will be announced in 2012. Please continue to check the Monarchy website for updates.

I would like to invite The Queen to my Diamond Jubilee event. How do I do this?
The Queen will be extraordinarily busy during her Diamond Jubilee and it will not be possible for her to accept all of the many invitations she will receive. However, if you wish to invite Her Majesty to an event please write to The Queen’s Diary Secretary at Buckingham Palace, London SW1A 1AA.

F. Other

I would like to compose a piece of music for The Queen for her Diamond Jubilee. Can I perform or dedicate it to Her Majesty?
We have been overwhelmed by generous offers to compose or perform pieces of music in celebration of Her Majesty’s Jubilee next year and while there would of course be no objection to musical events of this nature taking place, it will not be possible to associate The Queen directly with these events.

How do I find out more information about Diamond Jubilee projects and events between now and next year?
For those events listed above and taking place over the Jubilee central weekend, please see their individual websites for more details as they are announced. Alternatively, the Government DirectGov website will be updated with further news and announcements as they occur.

The Diamond Jubilee – The Queen

Roy Siemens
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The Diamond Jubilee – The Queen

Early life

Her Majesty the Queen was born on 21 April 1926 in London, the first child of Prince Albert, The Duke of York, and his wife, formerly Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon.

Third in line to the throne, it seemed unlikely that Princess Elizabeth would be Queen. However, shortly after the death of George V, the new King – her uncle Edward VIII – dramatically abdicated so he could marry Wallis Simpson, an American divorcee. Princess Elizabeth’s father then became King George VI and she became heir to the throne.

Princess Elizabeth and her younger sister Princess Margaret were educated at home. During the Blitz in 1940, they were moved to Windsor Castle and stayed there for most of the Second World War. In 1945, Princess Elizabeth joined the war effort, training as a driver in the Women’s Auxiliary Territorial Service (WATS).


The_Diamond_Jubilee_The_Queen

 

Princess, wife, mother

In November 1947, she married a distant cousin, Philip Mountbatten, who was then created His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. The wedding – which took place during the austere post-War years – was described by Winston Churchill as a ‘flash of colour’. The Princess used ration coupons to buy the material for her dress.

The couple have four children. Prince Charles, The Prince of Wales, is the eldest and next in line to throne. Both he and Princess Anne, The Princess Royal were born before their mother became Queen. Prince Andrew, The Duke of York and Prince Edward, The Earl of Wessex are the only two children to be born to a reigning monarch since Queen Victoria.

Accession and coronation

George VI died on 6 February 1952 while Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip were touring Kenya. She returned home immediately and acceded to the throne. After months of preparation, Queen Elizabeth II was crowned at Westminster Abbey on 2 June 1953. For the first time, the ceremony and the huge public celebrations were broadcast by TV across the UK, the Commonwealth and the rest of the world.

A young and glamorous Queen

On her accession, the Queen immediately began her political duties which included opening Parliament and receiving her prime ministers. Throughout the 1950s, the Queen and Prince Philip cut young and glamorous figures as they extensively toured the UK and the Commonwealth.

During the 1960s, the Queen made historic visits to West Berlin at the height of the Cold War, and welcomed Emperor Hirohito of Japan on a state visit to Britain. Against a backdrop of political and social unrest, she celebrated her Silver Jubilee in 1977. It was a huge success and tens of thousands of street parties were thrown by the public across the country.

The 1980s onwards

Five years later, the UK was at war over the Falkland Islands during which Prince Andrew served with the Royal Navy as a helicopter pilot. The 1980s also saw the birth of her first grandchildren, Peter and Zara Phillips.

Disaster struck in 1992 when a devastating fire broke out in Windsor Castle. The same year the respective marriages of Prince Charles, Prince Andrew and Princess Anne disintegrated. The Queen deemed this her ‘annus horribilis’. Tragedy was to follow in 1997, when Diana, Princess of Wales was killed in a car accident.

And 2002 was another year of personal sadness for the Queen, as both her sister Princess Margaret and the Queen Mother died, casting a shadow over the Golden Jubilee celebrations a few months later.

The Diamond Queen

For the last 60 years, during a period of great change in Britain, the Queen has continued to carry out her political duties as head of state, her role as head of the Commonwealth, the ceremonial responsibilities of the sovereign, and a large annual programme of visits in the UK as well as many foreign tours.

The Queen has also made numerous reforms to the monarchy during her reign. In 1992, she offered to start paying income and capital gains tax. She has opened her official residencies to the public – including Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle – in order to finance their maintenance.

She supported ending the rule of male primogeniture, which now means the eldest child can succeed to the throne, regardless of gender. She also supported lifting the ban on anyone in the line of succession marrying a Catholic.

Her reign has heralded the introduction of less formal engagements and visits, and the introduction of the ‘walkabout’ – the meeting and greeting of large numbers of the public.

In 2002, the Queen celebrated 50 years on the throne; in 2006, her 80th birthday; and in 2012, her Diamond Jubilee. The Jubilee will be marked by celebrations across the UK throughout the year.

 

Official website of The Diamond Jubilee: http://www.thediamondjubilee.org/

Bigfoot image captured in Idaho by a group of high school students

Diane A. Wade
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Bigfoot image captured in Idaho by a group of high school students

A group of high school students believe they may have stumbled upon Bigfoot while in the Idaho wilderness for a class project.

The teenagers were in the woods near Mink Creek in Franklin County when they said they noticed a dark creature watching them from a ridge.

One of the students managed to grab his camera to film the large figure retreating between the trees.

The group then raced to the point they had seen the creature, and said they found a large foot imprint in the dirt and took a photograph of it.

“It just didn’t look human-like,” the student who recorded the footage and who does not wish to be identified told Local News 8.

“I don’t know what that is, it’s not a bear, it’s not a moose or anything. It was big and bulky and black.”

He went on: “I’m not going to say yes it was a Bigfoot or no it wasn’t, because I don’t know, and nobody knows.”

The teenagers were in the woods near Mink Creek in Franklin County when they said they noticed a dark creature watching them from a ridge
The teenagers were in the woods near Mink Creek in Franklin County when they said they noticed a dark creature watching them from a ridge

The news station took the footage and the image of the large foot to Jeff Meldrum, a Sasquatch expert at Idaho State University.

While he could not be certain of what the creature was, “it nevertheless is a large dark figure that bears resemblance to descriptions of Sasquatch”, he said.

He explained that although the beast is often rumored to be living in the Northwest of North America, there is also local Bigfoot lore.

He said it has been documented by “immigrants coming into this new frontier and encountering strange and marvelous things including stories of wild men and mountain devils”.

He was joined in his office by anatomist Trent Stephens, who said the beast resembled that seen by Roger Patterson in a famous 1967 clip taken on the Klamath River in California.

“I was just dumb-founded,” Trent Stephens said.

“That arm swaying is exactly like the Patterson film.”

He added: “There’s always room for a hoax, but this was pretty amazing.”

Bigfoot is allegedly an ape-like creature said to inhabit forests mainly in the Northwest, but his existence has not been scientifically proven.

There have been scores of sightings, including in Spokane, Washington in May 2011, when a woman hiker captured a large figure on camera and uploaded the footage to YouTube.

The Animal Planet show Finding Bigfoot will visit Pocatello, Idaho next month to investigate the claims that Bigfoot could be in the area.

 [youtube R7W8xQWEV_g]

THE MYSTERY OF BIGFOOT

Bigfoot, also known as Sasquatch, is described as a hairy, ape-like creature purportedly living in forests, mainly in the Northwest of North America.

Scientists have rejected the beast’s existence, and sightings are widely considered to be either misidentification or hoaxes.

Yet some scientists, including Idaho State University’s Jeff Meldrum, have taken interest in further investigations into sightings.

The most famous sighting of the beast was in 1967, with footage taken of a seven-foot-tall, hairy biped by Roger Patterson on the Klamath River in California.

Images have been taken more recently, including by hunter Rick Jacobs in 2007 who captured a beast using a camera attached to a tree. It was dismissed as a “bear with mange”.

 

Paralyzed rats able to walk again after spinal stimulation

Kathryn R. Bown
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Paralyzed rats able to walk again after spinal stimulation

Scientists have shown that paralyzed rats have been able to walk again after their spinal cords were bathed in chemicals and zapped with electricity.

An injury to the spinal cord stops the brain controlling the body.

The study, published in the journal Science, showed injured rats could even learn to sprint with spinal stimulation.

Experts said it was an “exceptional study” and that restoring function after paralysis “can no longer be dismissed as a pipedream”.

In 2011, a man from Oregon in the US was able to stand up again while his spinal cord was stimulated with electricity. Rob Summers had been paralyzed from the chest down after being hit by a car.

Now researchers at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology say they have restored far more movement in rats which became able to run and climb stairs.

Scientists have shown that paralyzed rats have been able to walk again after their spinal cords were bathed in chemicals and zapped with electricity
Scientists have shown that paralyzed rats have been able to walk again after their spinal cords were bathed in chemicals and zapped with electricity

The spinal cord of the rats was cut in two places. It meant messages could not travel from the brain to the legs, but the spinal cord was still in one piece.

The researchers then tried to repair the damage. The spinal cord was injected with chemicals which stimulated the nerves in the spine and the base of the spinal cord was electrically stimulated as well. The scientists say they were reawakening the “spinal brain”.

However, this was not sufficient to restore movement. The rats were supported in a robotic harness and were shown a treat which they needed to “learn” to walk towards.

The lead researcher, Prof. Gregoire Courtine, said: “Over time the animal regains the capacity to perform one, two steps, then a long run and eventually we gain the capacity to sprint over ground, climb stairs and even pass obstacles.”

He said: “It is completely unexpected to see this recovery, they walk and climb stairs voluntarily.”

The scientists showed that new nerves were forming across the injury and there were also changes in the brain.

This is not, however, a cure for spinal cord injuries in people.

Prof. Reggie Edgerton, from the University of California Los Angeles, was part of the team which helped Rob Summers stand again.

He said the study was “important” and that it was becoming clear that engaging the brain was the key.

“You’ve got to make the rat want to step, it demonstrates the importance of training and rehabilitation,” he said.

How this works is still unknown. Prof. Reggie Edgerton speculated that “we are activating the spinal cord to a critical level” close to the level which would trigger movement, and a small signal from “the brain pushes it over” leading to movement.

 

From scrawny to brawny in just six weeks

Clyde K. Valle
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0
From scrawny to brawny in just six weeks

Six British broadcasters have competed in Men’s Health magazine’s annual Celebrity Six-Pack Challenge.

Sky Sports’ Alex Payne was one of them.

The most unlikely of men have been transformed into cover model stars thanks to the fitness initiative and the 31-year-old is no exception.

Alex Payne admitted that at first it was a struggle bulking up his “lean frame” but he soon managed to schedule in daily workout sessions.

“I wouldn’t have done this if it weren’t for the element of competition. I genuinely thought I was going to die after the first gym session but I don’t think I really hated any of it.

“I got some very strange looks from the boys in the commentary teams when I started tucking into a protein shake at half time,” he told Men’s Health.

Six British broadcasters have competed in Men’s Health magazine's annual Celebrity Six-Pack Challenge
Six British broadcasters have competed in Men’s Health magazine's annual Celebrity Six-Pack Challenge

Lifting weights, drinking protein shakes, running and abdominal crunches were some methods each of the male contestants, all aged over 30, used to get in shape.

And each says that colleagues, friends and family have been shocked by their new toned physiques.

Goals on Sunday host Ben Shephard, 37, said: “The banter from the other guys has been pretty intense.

“My wife went away for a few days and was shocked when she got back.”

Meanwhile the oldest contestant, former pro-footballer and exuberant Sky pundit Chris Kamara, 54, added: “The last time I had a six-pack was 30 years ago and it’s been 20 since I lifted a weight.

“So I thought I was too old and that I wouldn’t be able to keep up with the young lads.

However, his transformation proved getting a six-pack isn’t just a young man’s game.

“To lose 6 kg and gain muscle like I did in a few weeks shows it’s possible.”

Soccer AM’s Max Rushden, Radio 5 Live’s Mark Chapman and Football Focus and Match of the Day’s Danny Walker also took part.

Previous winners of the Men’s Health Celebrity Six-Pack challenge include Andi Peters and Reggie Yates.

Men’s Health Editor Toby Wiseman said: “Six weeks might not seem long to get into great shape but each one of this year’s Men’s Health Celebrity Six-Pack challengers has achieved incredible physical results.”

 

Lady Gaga becomes first person to pass 25 million followers on Twitter

Lisa.Felice
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Lady Gaga becomes first person to pass 25 million followers on Twitter

Lady Gaga became the first person to pass 25 million followers on Twitter as she immediately tweeted her gratitude to fans yesterday.

“#25milliontweetymonsters wow! I’m officially feeling like the luckiest girl in the world today,” the singer wrote.

Lady Gaga, 26, has more than two and a half million followers more than her nearest competitor, Justin Bieber, who has 22.5 million.

The singer is one of eight pop stars in the top ten most followed people on Twitter, with Barack Obama and Kim Kardashian and Oprah Winfrey making up the final two.

Lady Gaga was also the first person to reach the milestones of 10, 15 and 20 million followers respectively on the social networking site.

She has won legions of fans with her outlandish costumes, including the infamous meat dress which she famously wore to the 2010 MTV awards.

Lady Gaga became the first person to pass 25 million followers on Twitter as she immediately tweeted her gratitude to fans yesterday.
Lady Gaga became the first person to pass 25 million followers on Twitter as she immediately tweeted her gratitude to fans yesterday.

Lady Gaga, real name Stefani Germanotta, has a special relationship with her fans, dubbing them “little monsters” and herself “mother monster”.

However, she suffered a setback this week when she was forced to cancel a concert in Indonesia after Islamist hard-liners threatened violence, claiming her sexy clothes and provocative dance moves would corrupt the nation’s youth.

The singer has since moved on and was spotted strolling around Bangkok in a typically outlandish dress made of black PVC last week.

  

THE MOST FOLLOWED CELEBRITIES ON TWITTER

1. Lady Gaga – 25 million

2. Justin Bieber – 22.5 million

3. Katy Perry – 20.4 million

4. Rihanna – 19.7 million

5. Britney Spears – 17.2 million

6. Shakira – 16.3 million

7. Barack Obama – 16 million

8. Kim Kardashian – 14.8 million

9. Taylor Swift – 14.5 million

10. Nicki Minaj – 12.2 million

Source: twittercounter.com

 

Women’s sex history can be known from the way they walk

Kathryn R. Bown
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Women’s sex history can be known from the way they walk

Belgian researchers watched videos of women walking and were able to tell whether they regularly had orgasms from intercourse.

At the Universiti Catholique de Louvain, Institut d’itudes de la famille et de la sexualiti, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium, experts set about proving the theory right.

The researchers took women with known histories of either vaginal orgasm or inability to orgasm from sex and videotaped them walking on the street, and their orgasmic status was judged by sexologists blind to their history.

“In the sample of healthy young Belgian women, half of whom were vaginally orgasmic, history of vaginal orgasm that was triggered solely by penile-vaginal intercourse, was diagnosable at far better than chance.”

Belgian researchers watched videos of women walking and were able to tell whether they regularly had orgasms from intercourse
Belgian researchers watched videos of women walking and were able to tell whether they regularly had orgasms from intercourse

The researchers think that, as well as having an effect on people’s mental health, orgasms can “loosen” muscle groups.

They wrote: “Research has demonstrated the association between vaginal orgasm and better mental health. Some theories of psychotherapy assert a link between muscle blocks and disturbances of both character and sexual function. In Functional-Sexological therapy, one focus of treatment is amelioration of voluntary movement.

“The present study examines the association of general everyday body movement with history of vaginal orgasm.”

The team said the objective was to determine if appropriately trained sexologists could infer women’s history of vaginal orgasm from observing only their gait.

“Clitoral orgasm history was unrelated to both ratings and to vaginal orgasm history. Exploratory analyses suggest that greater pelvic and vertebral rotation and stride length might be characteristic of the gait of women who have experienced vaginal orgasm.

“The discerning observer may infer women’s experience of vaginal orgasm from a gait that comprises fluidity, energy, sensuality, freedom, and absence of both flaccid and locked muscles.

“Results are discussed with regard to previous research on gait, the effect of the musculature on sexual function, the special nature of vaginal orgasm, and implications for sexual therapy.”

 

Hubble Space Telescope works out on when Milky Way will crash into Andromeda

James J. Williams
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Hubble Space Telescope works out on when Milky Way will crash into Andromeda

Hubble Space Telescope has been used to work out on when precisely our Milky Way Galaxy will crash into its neighbor, Andromeda, astronomers announce.

Milky Way and Andromeda are being pulled together by their mutual gravity and the scientists expect them to begin to merge in about four billion years’ time.

A further two billion years on and they will appear as a single entity.

Our Sun’s position will be disturbed but the star and its planets are in little danger of being destroyed.

Viewed from Earth, however, the night sky should look fairly spectacular. That is assuming, of course, that a human species is still around billions of years into the future to look upwards.

“Today, the Andromeda Galaxy appears to us on the sky as a small fuzzy object that was first seen by ancient astronomers more than one thousand years ago,” said lead researcher Roeland van der Marel from the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, US.

“Few things fascinate humans more than to know what our cosmic destiny and future fate will be. The fact that we can predict that this small fuzzy object will one day come to engulf and enshroud our Sun and Solar System is a truly remarkable and fascinating finding.”

Milky Way and Andromeda are being pulled together by their mutual gravity and the scientists expect them to begin to merge in about four billion years' time
Milky Way and Andromeda are being pulled together by their mutual gravity and the scientists expect them to begin to merge in about four billion years' time

It has long been known that the two galaxies have been heading in the general direction of each other.

They are separated by about 2.5 million light-years, but are converging at something like 400,000 km/h (250,000 mph). The new Hubble data provides fresh insight on when and how a union is likely to unfold.

This is possible because the orbiting observatory has measured in finer detail than ever before the motions of select regions of Andromeda, also frequently referred to by its catalogue name M31.

“It’s necessary to know not only how Andromeda is moving in our direction but also what its sideways motion is, because that will determine whether Andromeda will miss us at a distance or whether it might be heading straight for us,” explained Dr Roeland van der Marel.

“Astronomers have tried to measure the sideways motion for over a century. However, this was always unsuccessful because the available techniques were not sufficient to perform the measurement.

“For the very first time, we’ve been able to measure the sideways motion – in astronomy, also known as proper motion – of the Andromeda Galaxy using the unique observational capabilities of the Hubble Space Telescope.”

Computer simulations based on Hubble’s data indicate the two great masses of stars will eventually shape themselves into a single elliptical galaxy similar to the kind commonly seen in the local Universe.

However, although the galaxies will plough into each other, individual stars will not collide because the space between them will still be huge.

Nonetheless, the gravitational disturbance will shift the location of our Solar System, the researchers believe.

It is likely also that the merger will kick off a vigorous phase of new star formation as gas clouds are perturbed and collapse in on themselves.

From their observations, the scientists say it is quite possible Andromeda’s small companion, the Triangulum galaxy, or M33, will also join the fray.

 [youtube PrIk6dKcdoU]

Vibram, the footwear company that gave Five Fingers counterfeiters the boot

Clyde K. Valle
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2
Vibram, the footwear company that gave Five Fingers counterfeiters the boot

Tony Post, the chief executive of Vibram USA and former marathon runner, introduced the minimalist Five Fingers running shoe in 2007.

The footwear, which Tony Post describes as “ballet shoes with toes”, entered the market just as the so-called “barefoot” running craze took off in the US.

What started as a way to showcase the company’s design skills quickly ballooned into a multi-million dollar business.

Its revenues jumped from $400,000 in 2007 to $90 million last year, and Vibram struggled at first to keep up with demand.

It was an entrepreneur’s dream – and a counterfeiter’s.

During the summer of 2010 a package arrived at Vibram’s cosy offices, stationed in a former flannel mill in Concord, Massachusetts.

Inside were a pair of torn-up Five Fingers shoes and a complaint from a customer who said that the shoes fell apart easily.

Tony Post recalls that the shoes “looked like one of our products – it had our trademark on it – but it was made of different materials”.

When Tony Post asked the customer where they got the shoes, they named a website he hadn’t heard of.

When he looked it up, he saw that while the website included images from Vibram and even listed Vibram’s Concord address, something was wrong.

All of a sudden, Tony Post says he realized: “Oh my God, this is counterfeit product.”

Within months, his office had received more than 1,000 returned pairs. The shoes all looked similar to the original – with rubber soles and vinyl tops, and the distinctive colorful, reptilian look.

But Tony Post and his team of employees – almost all of who wear the shoes around the office – could spot the differences. They saw that the stitching between the toes was sloppy, and that the colors, while similar, were never exact duplicates of the models Vibram manufactured.

They realized that the company’s failure to keep up with demand had given counterfeiters an opportunity to move into the market.

Tony Post, the chief executive of Vibram USA and former marathon runner, introduced the minimalist Five Fingers running shoe in 2007
Tony Post, the chief executive of Vibram USA and former marathon runner, introduced the minimalist Five Fingers running shoe in 2007

By the autumn of 2010, more than half of the Google search results for Five Fingers led to counterfeit sites, according to BirthdayShoes.com, a fan website.

More than $178 million worth of counterfeit goods were seized at US borders last year, according to the country’s Department of Homeland Security.

Over the past decade, the most often item seized has been footwear, with more than two-thirds coming from China.

“If bags were the thing in the ’90s, shoes are the thing in the new millennium,” says Susan Scafidi, the director of the Fashion Law Institute at Fordham University.

The growth in confiscated footwear has mirrored the growth in online sales, which has made it more difficult for authorities to track counterfeit products.

“Mail is particularly challenging because we don’t have the same information that we would have on ocean container loads of shipments,” says Therese Randazzo, director of Intellectual Property Rights Policy & Programs Division at US Customs and Border Protection, a division of Homeland Security.

This is why the agency has stepped up enforcement at areas other than the traditional ports of entry. Since 2007, there has been an 84% increase in the amount of product seized from mail centres.

Vibram’s Tony Post initially tried to go to Congress to ask for help, and even hired private investigators to take photos of the factories making the shoes.

However, he quickly realized that “Congress doesn’t work at the speed of business”, and that shutting down one counterfeit factory just led to another opening up.

Ultimately the most helpful step for Vibram was to make customers aware of the counterfeit goods.

It was a risky move, according to Susan Scafidi, who says that a company associating its name – however tangentially – with counterfeit goods could damage its brand.

Tony Post says he didn’t have a choice: “We knew if we didn’t react quickly enough, they [the counterfeits] were only going to get better… so we needed to be sure to put them in their place quickly.”

Vibram offered vouchers to customers who had unwittingly bought fake Five Fingers, so that they could buy the real product at cost price.

The company also put up a page on its website alerting customers, enlisted the help of bloggers and asked fans of its Facebook page to get the word out.

Within a year, the deluge of complaints from customers who had bought fake products slowed to a trickle.

“Candidly, you have to realize that intellectual property only gets you so far,” says Tony Post

“At the end of the day it’s really about your relationship with the consumer.”

Vibram seems to be out of the woods – but not everyone is as lucky.

Steve Behling lost his ski- and snowboard-binding business Kobe International Trading Company in 2002 to Chinese counterfeiters, who he says flooded the market with knock-offs of his proprietary designs.

“They basically drove me out of business and anybody else that was in that type of business,” he says.

“They ruined a whole industry.”

By most measures, the counterfeiting industry is growing.

A report published last year by the business group the International Chamber of Commerce estimated that from 2008 to 2015, the amount of counterfeit goods is expected to increase by more than two-fold.

Dan Harris, a lawyer with Harris & Moore and author of the popular China Law Blog, says that while American companies have got smarter about protecting their products, there is still one golden rule.

“The key is if you don’t register your intellectual property – your trademark, your copyright, your patent – you have pretty much no chance,” says Dan Harris.

But, he adds, focusing on how to protect your business can drive you crazy – and at the end of the day: “Sometimes you have to ignore it and focus on making money.”

 

Spain denies IMF bailout rumors

Clyde K. Valle
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0
Spain denies IMF bailout rumors

Spanish Economy Minister Luis de Guindos has dismissed talk of it seeking a bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as “senseless”.

And the IMF denied that Spain had asked to discuss rescue loans.

The IMF has contributed to bailouts of all the other eurozone nations, such as Greece, that needed help.

Meanwhile, the European Central Bank (ECB) president Mario Draghi described the current set-up of the eurozone as “unsustainable”.

There were rumors that Spain had already gone to the IMF, after the Spanish deputy prime minister went to meet the IMF’s managing director Christine Lagarde.

Spanish Economy Minister Luis de Guindos has dismissed talk of it seeking a bailout from the IMF as senseless
Spanish Economy Minister Luis de Guindos has dismissed talk of it seeking a bailout from the IMF as senseless

“My desire is to not come out and deny these rumours because they are senseless,” Spanish Economy Minister Luis de Guindos said on Spanish television.

Spain has taken Greece’s place as the epicentre of the eurozone crisis as concerns over the health of Spanish banks have shaken markets.

Bankia, Spain’s fourth largest bank, has asked for another 19 billion Euros recently from Madrid, but many question whether Spain will be able to afford it.

Speaking to the European Parliament, Mario Draghi said: “Can the ECB fill the vacuum of lack of action by national governments on fiscal growth? The answer is no. Can the ECB fill the vacuum of the lack of action by national governments on the structural problem. The answer is no.

“The next step… is to clarify what is the vision a certain number of years from now. The sooner this is specified, the better it is.”

And EU economics commissioner Olli Rehn said more austerity was needed if the eurozone was to avoid disintegration.

Olli Rehn talked down the idea of European states issuing joint bonds, saying that austerity and closer co-operation were needed.

“We need a genuine stability culture and a much upgraded common capacity to contain common contagion,” he told a conference.

New figures also showed eurozone inflation slowed more than expected this month.

Inflation in the 17 countries that use the euro eased to 2.4% in May from 2.6% in April.

The figure is still above the ECB’s target to keep inflation below 2%, but the lower-than-expected number could fuel calls for an interest rate cut next week.

In other figures released on Thursday, Germany’s unemployment rate fell below 7% as Europe’s biggest economy continued to perform strongly.

The jobless rate dropped to 6.7% in May, from 7% in April, as the number of people unemployed fell by 108,000 to 2.86 million.

However, there was more bad news from Greece as figures showed that Greek retail sales volumes fell by 16.2% in March compared with a year earlier. This followed February’s decline of 12.9%.

 

Windows 8 Release Preview: Microsoft launches the most complete preview of its latest OS

Nancy Clayson
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Windows 8 Release Preview: Microsoft launches the most complete preview of its latest OS

Microsoft launches the most complete preview yet of its upcoming Windows 8 operating system.

Microsoft said that tens of thousands of improvements have been made to what it calls the most important redesign of its interface since Windows 95.

Consumers can now download the release preview of Windows 8, a system which Microsoft says is its most tested operating system ever.

It is expected to go on sale in the autumn, three years after Windows 7.

Microsoft launches the most complete preview yet of its upcoming Windows 8 operating system
Microsoft launches the most complete preview yet of its upcoming Windows 8 operating system

The new operating system is designed to bring Windows into the touchscreen, smartphone era.

It adopts the Metro interface of the company’s mobile operating system, Windows Phone 7.

Windows, which still dominates the desktop PC software market, has been much slower to make an impact on mobile phones and tablet computers.

The release preview has features not available in the last version, the consumer preview, launched in February.

There will be new apps for the Bing search engine, news and sports, and improvements to the mail and photo applications unveiled previously.

The latest version of Microsoft’s browser Internet Explorer 10, optimized for touchscreen, is also included for the first time. Users are promised greater personalisation of the start screen, and more control over privacy.

Internet Explorer 10 will be the first browser with “do not track” turned on by default, meaning users can easily decide not to accept cookies.

Microsoft said manufacturers and developers are at work on new devices and apps designed to make the most of Windows 8’s features.

[youtube  NJxQezX9L8U]

Zhang Ziyi pictured on the beach with ex-fiancé Aviv Vivi Nevo

Lisa.Felice
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0
Zhang Ziyi pictured on the beach with ex-fiancé Aviv Vivi Nevo

Zhang Ziyi, the Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon star, vehemently denies Chinese media reports she earned $100 million by prostituting herself to a string of powerful Chinese men.

During the period in question Zhang Ziyi was alleged to have slept with disgraced politician Bo Xilai, she was happily in a long-term relationship with Aviv “Vivi” Nevo.

In the photos taken four years ago, Zhang Ziyi, 33, is seen holidaying with her former fiancé in St Barts.

Several reports in China this week, alleged Zhang Ziyi had earned millions by sleeping with wealthy businessmen, including Bo Xilai, who was ousted from China’s powerful politburo amid allegations he and his wife were involved in the murder of British businessman Neil Heywood last November.

Zhang Ziyi is seen frolicking with her then-fiancé on a towel, with him fiddling with her bikini bottoms.

At one point, she removes her bikini top to avoid getting unsightly tan-lines.

In this photo taken four years ago, Zhang Ziyi is seen holidaying with her former fiancé Aviv Vivi Nevo in St Barts
In this photo taken four years ago, Zhang Ziyi is seen holidaying with her former fiancé Aviv Vivi Nevo in St Barts

Vivi Nevo, now 47, is an Israeli-American venture capitalist, who is a major shareholder in Time Warner.

According to reports in China, Zhang Ziyi slept with Bo Xilai at least ten times between 2007 and 2011 in exchange for “huge” monetary gifts. The secret trysts are alleged to have taken place in Beijing and to have netted the actress around $1.5 million each time.

Zhang Ziyi confirmed on Wednesday she had met with lawyers from Hong Kong law firm Haldanes and sent an official notice to Apple Daily following the allegations.

She said in a message of her Weibo page (the Chinese version of Twitter): “I met with my lawyer in Hong Kong in the morning to discuss legal measures and just arrived in Hainan. The truth is bound to come to light. And since I have the support of my fans and the law, this will not be a lonely battle.”

Zhang Ziyi was outraged when Apple Daily picked up on the story, which originated on Boxun.com, a Chinese-language site operated in the United States.

Boxun.com alleged Zhang Ziyi was introduced to Bo Xilai through a billionaire friend, Xu Ming, who is said to be worth $700 million but is reportedly under investigation by the Beijing government over alleged corruption.

Xu Ming, 41, has reportedly claimed to authorities that he paid Zhang Ziyi $1 million to have sex with him for the first time in 2007 and that he later negotiated a deal for a similar liaison with Bo Xilai.

Following the reports, her publicist sent a lengthy statement to English-language newspaper TodayOnline reading: “We read this outrageous report in the Apple Daily. It sent stone-cold chills down our spines and has left us with a feeling of deep sadness. Friends have advised us to release a short statement and not take this seriously.

“The more you argue, the more you will stir up. It would be better to step aside until people lose interest and the lies disappear. The innocent will always be innocent.

“We just want to help her get rid of this disturbance and seek justice. Then she will be able to shoot her films in peace and quiet and present you, her fans, with more and better films in return.”

Zhang Ziyi is currently filming a new movie in southern China so missed her latest film première Dangerous Liaisons at the Cannes Film Festival.

 

Bobbi Kristina Brown is refusing to attend Bobby Brown’s wedding to Alicia Etheridge

Lisa.Felice
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0
Bobbi Kristina Brown is refusing to attend Bobby Brown’s wedding to Alicia Etheridge

Bobbi Kristina Brown is reportedly refusing to attend Bobby Brown’s upcoming Hawaiian wedding to Alicia Etheridge.

According to various reports, Bobbi Kristina Brown, 19, seriously doesn’t like her father’s future wife.

Bobbi Kristina Brown is reportedly refusing to attend Bobby Brown’s upcoming Hawaiian wedding to Alicia Etheridge
Bobbi Kristina Brown is reportedly refusing to attend Bobby Brown’s upcoming Hawaiian wedding to Alicia Etheridge

Since Bobbi Kristina really doesn’t get down with her future step mother and she has a strained relationship with her dad, Bobby Brown, she has opted not to make the attempt to play nice on her father’s wedding day.

 

“Bobbi Kristina won’t repeat my mistakes,” says Bobby Brown

Lisa.Felice
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0
“Bobbi Kristina won’t repeat my mistakes,” says Bobby Brown

Bobby Brown says he trusts his daughter Bobbi Kristina will not make the same mistakes he did.

Bobby Brown, 43, and Whitney Houston have both struggled with drug addiction and although their daughter Bobbi Kristina Brown has been forced to deny rumors she has also been abusing illegal drugs.

The singer believes his daughter is ”smart enough” not to follow in his footsteps.

Bobby Brown told MTV: ”Any parent that has a teenager in their life, they go through things. They go through phases that they might not be doing exactly what you want them to do in life, but they grow out of it, and my baby girl has grown out of it. I trust and believe that she’s smart enough to not go down the same road that maybe I did in the past or her mother did in the past. She’s extremely smart.”

Bobby Brown says he trusts his daughter Bobbi Kristina will not make the same mistakes he did
Bobby Brown says he trusts his daughter Bobbi Kristina will not make the same mistakes he did

Bobbi Kristina Brown is now focusing on launching an acting and music career since her mother died of accidental drowning caused by cardiac failure after taking cocaine in February and her dad is extremely proud of his daughter.

Bobby Brown said: ”That’s my baby girl. She’ll forever be my baby girl. She’s doing what she’s doing, and I’m extremely proud of her. She’s acting and she’s working on music and she’s doing what she has to do to recover from her loss – our loss.”

While father and daughter have a difficult relationship, Bobby Brown has denied reports that Bobbi Kristina wants to ditch the surname Brown.

Bobby Brown said: ”She can’t change her last name, her name is her name. She’ll forever be known as Bobbi Kristina Brown. There’s no changing that, there’s no taking that back.”

 

The Power of Bacon, a parody of Celine Dion’s hit The Power of Love

Lisa.Felice
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0
The Power of Bacon, a parody of Celine Dion’s hit The Power of Love

“I wake up in the morning / And smell your sweet delight / You linger in my kitchen now / I still smell you at night…”

The following clip, The Power of Bacon, is a love song about crisp, salty, artery-clogging bacon. It is sung to the tune of The Power of Love, Céline Dion’s earth-shattering anthem.

Featured by Anna Sudac, The Power of Bacon video itself is a shot-for-shot parody of Céline Dion’s own Power of Love music video, complete with creepy close-ups of heavily made up eyeballs and oodles of soft caresses
Featured by Anna Sudac, The Power of Bacon video itself is a shot-for-shot parody of Céline Dion’s own Power of Love music video, complete with creepy close-ups of heavily made up eyeballs and oodles of soft caresses

Featured by Anna Sudac, the video itself is a shot-for-shot parody of Céline Dion’s own Power of Love music video, complete with creepy close-ups of heavily made up eyeballs and oodles of soft caresses.

Most importantly, though, its star has some pipes even if nobody can really out-diva Céline Dion.

 [youtube ach6Ffn5qcY]

Bobbi Kristina Brown is not adopting Whitney Houston’s last name, says Bobby Brown

Lisa.Felice
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1
Bobbi Kristina Brown is not adopting Whitney Houston’s last name, says Bobby Brown

Bobby Brown has dismissed rumors that his daughter, Bobbi Kristina, is planning to adopt her late mother Whitney Houston’s last name in a bid to distance herself from her father.

Bobbi Kristina Brown, 19, is currently throwing herself into acting and singing to take her mind off the tragic death of her mother on February 11.

Bobbi Kristina Brown was rumored to be planning a name change to launch her career in the spotlight.

Bobby Brown has dismissed rumors that Bobbi Kristina is planning to adopt her late mother Whitney Houston’s last name in a bid to distance herself from her father
Bobby Brown has dismissed rumors that Bobbi Kristina is planning to adopt her late mother Whitney Houston’s last name in a bid to distance herself from her father

However, Bobby Brown is adamant his daughter will not change her name.

“She can’t change her last name, her name is her name. She’ll forever be known as Bobbi Kristina Brown. There’s no changing that, there’s no taking that back,” contactmusic.com quoted Bobby Brown as saying.

 

Bobbi Kristina Brown did a great job filming for the new series of Tyler Perry’s For Better or Worse

Lisa.Felice
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0
Bobbi Kristina Brown did a great job filming for the new series of Tyler Perry’s For Better or Worse

Bobbi Kristina Brown did a ”great job” filming for the new comedy series of Tyler Perry’s For Better or Worse.

Bobbi Kristina Brown, 19, publicly received the praise from screen writer Tyler Perry after she was reported to have walked off the set of For Better or Worse.

The aspiring singer and actress was thought to have recently quit the program as she was still mourning the death of her entertainer mother in February.

Bobbi Kristina Brown did a ''great job'' filming for the new comedy series of Tyler Perry’s For Better or Worse
Bobbi Kristina Brown did a ''great job'' filming for the new comedy series of Tyler Perry’s For Better or Worse

Perry Tyler wrote on his personal website: ”Yes she was grieving, but grief aside, she managed to finish her obligation and did a great job at the same time.

”PLEASE LEAVE THIS BABY ALONE!!! AND SHE IS A BABY. Please stop the lies and give this child some room to breathe and grieve.”

Bobbi Kristina Brown is going ahead with plans to work on a reality show that will also star Whitney Houston’s sister-in-law Pat, brother Gary, mother Cissy and Pat’s daughter Rayah.

The 42-year-old director and actor lent his private jet to the Houston family to shuttle Whitney Houston’s remains back to New Jersey for her burial, and pleaded with people to give her offspring the privacy she deserves in his post.

 

Grammy Awards 2013 set for February 10

Lisa.Felice
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0
Grammy Awards 2013 set for February 10

The 55th Annual Grammy Awards will take place on Sunday, February 10, 2013, at Los Angeles’ Staples Center, and will be broadcast on CBS from 8 to11:30 p.m. (live ET/delayed PT).

Also coming back is the nominations special, The Grammy Nominations Concert Live!, which is scheduled for Wednesday, December 5, 2012.

The 55th Annual Grammy Awards will take place on Sunday, February 10, 2013, at Los Angeles’ Staples Center
The 55th Annual Grammy Awards will take place on Sunday, February 10, 2013, at Los Angeles’ Staples Center

The eligibility year for the 55th Grammys is October 1 2011, to September 30, 2012. This year’s 54th Grammy Awards, which followed Whitney Houston’s death, drew 39.9 million viewers, the largest Grammy audience since 1984 and the second-largest in history.

 

Bobbi Kristina Brown didn’t walk off For Better or Worse, says Tyler Perry

Lisa.Felice
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0
Bobbi Kristina Brown didn’t walk off For Better or Worse, says Tyler Perry

Tyler Perry posted a message on his personal website yesterday denying that Bobbi Kristina Brown had quit his TBS sitcom For Better or Worse because she was upset about her mother, the late Whitney Houston.

“Leave This Baby Alone and Stop the Lies Please!!!” Tyler Perry headlined the post on his website.

“I woke up this morning to my publicist calling me saying that there were reports that Bobbi Kristina walked off the set of <<For Better Or Worse>>. NOT TRUE AT ALL PEOPLE!!! There is no way that she could have walked off the set because we have finished taping the season.”

RadarOnline reported earlier on Wednesday that Bobbi Kristina Brown, who signed on for a recurring role on For Better or Worse in March, had quit the show “a few weeks ago.”

Tyler Perry denies that Bobbi Kristina Brown had quit his TBS sitcom For Better or Worse because she was upset about her mother
Tyler Perry denies that Bobbi Kristina Brown had quit his TBS sitcom For Better or Worse because she was upset about her mother

Tyler Perry wrote on his website: “Were there tough days for [Bobbi Kristina]? Yes of course. Not because of the acting or any job-related issues but because of the fact that she had just lost her mother. And being someone who knows about losing their mother, I know grief comes in different ways and you never know when it’s going to hit you or how it’s going to hit you … So yes she was grieving, but grief aside, she managed to finish her obligation and did a great job at the same time.”

The second season of For Better or Worse, which includes the episodes starring Bobbi Kristina Brown, premieres on July 13 on TBS.

 

Ray J sued by Marc Littlejohn for missing clothes from Whitney Houston’s death room

Lisa.Felice
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0
Ray J sued by Marc Littlejohn for missing clothes from Whitney Houston’s death room

Ray J is being sued for some expensive items that mysteriously disappeared from room 434 at the Beverly Hilton, where Whitney Houston died on February this year.

In recently filed legal docs, L.A. Stylist Marc Littlejohn claims he was hired to do Ray J’s wardrobe styling on February 10 for a Grammy related event.

Marc Littlejohn alleges all the duds he let the singer borrow were left in Whitney Houston’s room.

Ray J is being sued for some expensive items that mysteriously disappeared from room 434 at the Beverly Hilton, where Whitney Houston died on February this year
Ray J is being sued for some expensive items that mysteriously disappeared from room 434 at the Beverly Hilton, where Whitney Houston died on February this year

Whitney Houston died the next day in that room and, according to the lawsuit, the pricey clothes haven’t been seen since.

Now Marc Littlejohn is suing Ray J for $2,880 – the cost of the missing clothes – insisting he has reached out to both the singer and his mother/manager repeatedly to get some cash or the threads.

 

SpaceX Dragon spacecraft splashed down in the ocean

James J. Williams
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0
SpaceX Dragon spacecraft splashed down in the ocean

SpaceX Dragon cargo capsule has splashed down in the ocean off the California coast.

The return to Earth completes a historic first mission to the International Space Station (ISS) by a privately operated vehicle.

Impact with the water was confirmed at 08:42 Pacific Daylight Time.

Fast boats positioned in the splashdown zone were despatched to recover the unmanned capsule.

Early data suggested Dragon came down very close to its targeted location about 900 km (560 miles) from the Baja Peninsula.

The mission was intended as a demonstration of the freight service SpaceX plans to run to the platform.

SpaceX Dragon cargo capsule has splashed down in the ocean off the California coast
SpaceX Dragon cargo capsule has splashed down in the ocean off the California coast

It took half a ton of food and supplies up to the ISS astronauts, and brought down about two-thirds of a ton of completed experiments and redundant equipment.

A successful recovery of the capsule and its contents will trigger a $1.6bn (£1bn; 1.3bn-euro) contract with the US space agency (NASA) for 12 further re-supply trips.

Dragon’s fall to Earth was overseen by controllers at SpaceX’s headquarters in Hawthorne, California, and at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.

The journey home began early on Thursday when the vessel was unberthed from the ISS by the station’s 17.5 m (58 ft) robotic arm.

Astronaut Don Pettit, at the controls of the Canadarm2, then released the cargo ship to fly free at 09:49 GMT, just as the station was moving over the Southern Ocean.

Dragon fired its thrusters three times to take itself down and away from the platform. A final 10-minute burn some five hours later committed the capsule to a plunge into the atmosphere.

A range of ships and planes had been organized to track the return, which was slowed in the final minutes by three parachutes.

Once recovered, Dragon will be returned to port, and then transferred to Texas for inspection and for its cargo to be unloaded.

NASA has engaged SpaceX (Space Exploration Technologies Corporation) and another company, Orbital Sciences Corporation of Virginia, to fulfill logistics roles at the ISS.

The agency hopes the contracting out of freight duties will save it money that can then be re-invested in more daring activities beyond the station, at destinations such as asteroids and Mars.

The commercial cargo approach will be followed later this decade by crew transport services.

SpaceX wants this business as well, and is developing the safety and life-support equipment that would allow Dragon to double up as an astronaut taxi.

 

Hillary Clinton accuses Russia over Syria

Roy Siemens
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Hillary Clinton accuses Russia over Syria

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says Russian policy will contribute to a potential civil war in Syria.

Hillary Clinton’s comments came after Russia and China renewed opposition to tougher UN Security Council action.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has repeated a warning that Syria could be moving towards “catastrophic” civil war, in the wake of the Houla massacre.

Rebel commanders are split on whether to abandon a ceasefire if Syrian forces do not withdraw to barracks.

The FSA’s Colonel Qassim Saadeddine in Homs said that if there was no government response by Friday lunchtime the FSA would consider itself “no longer bound” by the plan.

But the FSA head, General Riyad Asaad, later denied the deadline existed.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says Russian policy will contribute to a potential civil war in Syria
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says Russian policy will contribute to a potential civil war in Syria

Instead, he urged peace envoy Kofi Annan to issue a statement declaring his peace plan to have failed.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has come under intensified pressure to adhere to the ceasefire plan since the Houla massacre, in which more than 100 people – many of them children – died.

Hillary Clinton, speaking on a visit to Denmark, said the case for military intervention was growing stronger every day.

“[The Russians] are telling me they don’t want to see a civil war. I have been telling them their policy is going to help to contribute to a civil war,” she told an audience in Copenhagen.

Ban Ki-moon, speaking at a conference in Turkey, said UN monitors had not been sent to Syria “just to bear witness to the slaughter of innocents”.

“We are not there to play the role of passive observer to unspeakable atrocities,” he said.

“The massacre of civilians of the sort seen last weekend could plunge Syria into catastrophic civil war – a civil war from which the country would never recover.”

Colonel Qassim Saadeddine’s ultimatum, citing the Houla massacre, was given in a video released online, in which he said the government had to “implement an immediate ceasefire, withdraw its troops, tanks and artillery from Syrian cities and villages”.

“It should also allow immediate humanitarian aid to all affected areas and free all detainees… The regime should also enter into a real and serious negotiation through the United Nations to hand over power to the Syrian people,” he went on.

But General Riyad Asaad, speaking to al-Jazeera by phone from Turkey, insisted the FSA was “committed to the Kofi Annan plan and committed to international resolutions and implementing this plan”.

“There is no deadline; however, we hope that Kofi Annan will issue a statement to announce the failure of this plan,” he said.

The UN Human Rights Council will hold a special session on Syria on Friday looking into the killings, officials said.

As many as 15,000 people have been killed since the revolt against the rule of President Bashar al-Assad began in March of last year.

 

Aogashima, the spitting image of Tracy Island from Thunderbirds series

Diane A. Wade
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Aogashima, the spitting image of Tracy Island from Thunderbirds series

Tracy Island, the South Pacific paradise rendered in vibrant Supermarionation, was the setting for the home base of the Thunderbirds, a secretive organization created to help those in grave danger.

Aogashima is a tropical, volcanic island, in the Phillipine Sea that bears a remarkable resemblance to the home of International Rescue in Gerry Anderson’s hit Sixties series, Thunderbirds.

Part of the Izu Island chain, and politically part of Tokyo although it is 200 miles from the Japanese capital, volcanic island Aogashima is a geological curiosity.

Aogashima is a tropical, volcanic island, in the Phillipine Sea that bears a remarkable resemblance to the home of International Rescue in Gerry Anderson's hit Sixties series, Thunderbirds
Aogashima is a tropical, volcanic island, in the Phillipine Sea that bears a remarkable resemblance to the home of International Rescue in Gerry Anderson's hit Sixties series, Thunderbirds

With only about 200 residents, all living in one small town, the island is one if the country’s most remote and unspoilt.

There are only two ways to get on or off the outcrop: by helicopter or by boat. Those choosing to sail must arrive or depart from one, small, unreliable harbour which is often rendered useless by bad weather.

As such, it’s a far cry from the Tracy Island of Thunderbirds fame, with its fleet of technologically advanced rescue vehicles poised to save the world 24 hours a day.

Indeed, Aogashima is noted for its peace and quiet, as a place to escape the relentless bustle of urban life and commune again with nature.

 

Crown Prince Willem-Alexander ashamed of a toilet-throwing stunt

Diane A. Wade
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0
Crown Prince Willem-Alexander ashamed of a toilet-throwing stunt

Crown Prince Willem-Alexander, the heir to the Dutch throne, made a media splash by hurling a toilet for fun in a contest recently – but has now spoken of his shame.

Prince Willem-Alexander said the event on Queen’s Day last month was “a laugh”, but he also felt “shame at the thought of some 2.6 billion people around the world” who lack toilets.

He won a cup with a little toilet on top as a prize.

The 30 April festivities were held in the eastern village of Rhenen.

Crown Prince Willem-Alexander, the heir to the Dutch throne, made a media splash by hurling a toilet for fun in a contest recently
Crown Prince Willem-Alexander, the heir to the Dutch throne, made a media splash by hurling a toilet for fun in a contest recently

The crown prince’s younger brother Prince Constantijn also hurled a toilet in the contest, but not as far.

The annual festival marks the birthday of Queen Beatrix’s late mother Queen Juliana.

Crown Prince Willem-Alexander is also chairman of the UN’s water and sanitation advisory board (UNSGAB) and the Dutch government’s information service later insisted that he was not ashamed of his involvement in the contest.

He had taken part because the toilets were destined for a project in Gambia, it said.

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