Michael Jackson had a secret fling with Whitney Houston at the peak of her fame and even dreamt of getting married to her, it has been revealed.
Michael Jackson is said to have fallen in love with Whitney Hosuton after a series of romps at his Neverland ranch and never got over her when she ended it.
Their sensational affair came six years after Whitney Houston slept with Michael’s older brother Jermaine Jackson.
The passion between two of the world’s most tragic stars is among a string of revelations about Michael Jackson’s crazed life.
Michael Jackson’s British bodyguard, Matt Fiddes, who spoke to him three days before his death, last night lifted the lid on his most intimate secrets in a world exclusive interview on Saturday.
“I loved Michael so much but I finally feel it’s time to get everything that horrified and upset me over the years off my chest,” the Sun quoted multi-millionaire martial arts master Matt Fiddes as saying.
“I also know this affair will end all the myths that Michael was some kind of child molester – he was a straight man,” he said.
Michael Jackson had a secret fling with Whitney Houston at the peak of her fame and even dreamt of getting married to her
Matt Fiddes also told how Michael Jackson was impotent for years because of his huge intake of drugs and booze, was a Nazi sympathizer who needed psychiatric “re-programming”, a desperate attention-seeker, haunted by baldness, anorexic and riddled with needle marks he dismissed as “spider bites”.
“One of the many stories that have never been told about Michael is that he had an ultra-secret affair with Whitney Houston that he never got over.
“He was furious when he heard she had also slept with Jermaine but this didn’t stop him holding a candle for her his whole life,” Matt Fiddes said.
Matt Fiddes, 32, said that Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston met in 1991, when they were both global superstars. Jacko, then 33, had just renewed his recording contract with Sony for a record $60 million.
Whitney Houston, yet to spiral into crack cocaine addiction, was 28 and riding high on the worldwide success of her debut album which shifted 25 million copies and contained mammoth hits including Saving All My Love For You and How Will I Know.
“They met because they were two of the biggest recording artists on the planet and mixing in the same circles. They instantly connected as kindred spirits because they understood each other’s massive fame.
“Whitney practically moved in to Michael’s ranch and they had a fling like any other young couple. But Michael said later he had always hoped the relationship had gone further, and I know he dreamed of marrying her,” Matt Fiddes said.
The love affair only lasted two weeks but Michael Jackson never forgot his love for Whitney Houston. A year later she was married to Bobby Brown – the man some blamed for sending her into a downward spiral of addiction.
But ten years later Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston had a tearful reunion at the 2001 concerts at New York’s Madison Square Garden to celebrate his 30 years in pop.
“They were both a mess, to be honest. They shared what would be their final hugs and Michael begged Whitney to get off the drugs that were destroying her life.
“The two of them whispered that they loved each other as they hugged. The emotion was written all over their faces,” Matt Fiddes said.
Michael Jackson embraced Whitney Houston at the show despite his bitterness over her year-long affair with his older brother before they met.
Jermaine Jackson, now 57, had his fling from 1984 to 85, though he was married to Hazel Gordy, daughter of Motown founder Berry.
Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston then went on to die in horrifically similar circumstances – alone and hooked on drugs.
New reports say Chinese authorities have begun to round up relatives and associates of blind activist Chen Guangcheng, who fled from house arrest last week.
Several people involved in Chen Guangcheng’s escape have been detained or have disappeared in recent days, and fellow activist Hu Jia is being questioned.
Chen Guangcheng, 41, is believed to be sheltering at the US embassy in Beijing.
The US and international rights groups have frequently expressed alarm at the treatment of Chen Guangcheng and his family.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who has demanded his release in the past, is due in China this week for a previously arranged meeting which is now likely to be overshadowed by Chen Guangcheng’s case.
Chinese authorities have begun to round up relatives and associates of blind activist Chen Guangcheng, who fled from house arrest last week
The US government has not so far commented publicly on the whereabouts of Chen Guangcheng.
Analysts say the issue will be highly sensitive for both sides, and will not be easy to resolve.
If Chen Guangcheng is in the embassy, his case will raise memories of an incident in 1989 when another prominent activist, Fang Lizhi, fled to the US mission in Beijing.
He remained there for more than a year while the two sides attempted to broker a deal.
Chen Guangcheng was placed under house arrest in 2010 after spending more than four years in jail for disrupting traffic and damaging property.
He had exposed how local authorities in Linyi, Shandong province, forced thousands of women to have abortions or be sterilized as part of China’s one-child policy.
His colleagues said last Sunday’s escape had taken months to plan, and was carried out with the help of a network of friends and activists.
Chen Guangcheng scaled the wall that the authorities had built around his house, and was driven hundreds of miles to Beijing, where activists say he stayed in safe-houses before fleeing to the embassy.
His wife and six-year-old daughter remain under house arrest, but several of his family members have been detained and others are being sought by the authorities.
One of Chen Guangcheng’s friends, He Peirong – who wrote on her microblog that she had driven him to Beijing – is believed to have been detained in the city of Nanjing.
“I was actually talking to her and the last words she said were <<the PSB [Public Security Bureau] has arrived>>,” said Bob Fu, of the US-based ChinaAid pressure group.
He Peirong’s microblog was later deleted, and all searches on popular microblogging sites for Chen Guangcheng’s name and other related terms were being blocked by the censors.
On Saturday, the authorities detained Hu Jia, who had earlier said how he had met Chen Guangcheng since his escape.
Hu Jia’s wife, Zeng Jinyan, said late on Saturday that her husband’s detention had been extended for a further 24 hours.
“I asked where Hu Jia would sleep, they said on a chair,” Zeng Jinyan said.
The fate of other associates of Chen Guangcheng also remains unclear, with reports claiming several have disappeared.
The treatment of Chen Guangcheng and his family by local authorities has long been controversial.
Amnesty International regards him as a “prisoner of conscience” and has called on the authorities to end the “shameful saga” of his detention.
President Nicolas Sarkozy has rejected claims by Dominique Strauss-Kahn that his party was behind former IMF chief’s downfall.
Nicolas Sarkozy told reporters DSK should keep quiet and “spare the French his remarks.”
DSK told Britain’s Guardian newspaper that sex allegations against him were orchestrated by opponents.
DSK said although he did not believe he had been set up, events were “shaped by those with a political agenda”.
The Guardian said it was clear that he was referring to people working for Nicolas Sarkozy and his UMP party.
President Nicolas Sarkozy has rejected claims by Dominique Strauss-Kahn that his party was behind former IMF chief's downfall
DSK was forced to stand down as head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in May last year when he was arrested in New York and accused of sexually assaulting a hotel maid.
The charges were later dropped, but he has since been embroiled in new allegations that he was involved in a prostitution ring.
On the campaign trail Nicolas Sarkozy dismissed DSK’s interpretation of events.
“Enough is enough!” he said.
“I would tell Mr. Strauss-Kahn to explain himself to the law.”
Nicolas Sarkozy is trailing in the polls in the run up to the second and decisive round of France’s presidential election on 6 May.
And he is faced with further damaging allegations about his links to Libya under former leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi.
A left-wing political website, Mediapart, claims to have documentary evidence that Nicolas Sarkozy’s 2007 presidential campaign received 50 million Euros ($66 million) from the Gaddafi regime.
The document – dated 2006 and written in Arabic – appears to have been signed by the then Libyan foreign intelligence chief Musa Kusa.
It refers to an “agreement in principle to support the campaign for the candidate for the presidential elections, Nicolas Sarkozy, for a sum equivalent to 50 million Euros.”
The website made similar claims last month.
Nicolas Sarkozy said the claims were “grotesque”, and said that if Muammar Gaddafi had financed his campaign “I wasn’t very grateful” – a reference to the role he played in the former leader’s overthrow in 2011.
President Barack Obama shared a meal with politicians, journalists and stars like Kim Kardashian and Lindsay Lohan at the 98th annual White House Correspondents’ Dinner.
Barack Obama enjoyed a genial evening with the members of the press, thanking them for their time and dedication.
Nothing was off limits during Washington’s night of levity, including the recent Secret Service scandal in Colombia, “dog socialism”, and the state of media today. And of course, he didn’t shy away from the political arena.
Barack Obama appeared in high spirits as he began his comedic routine.
“We gather during a historic anniversary,” he said.
“Last year at this time, in fact on this very weekend, we finally delivered justice to one of the world’s most notorious individuals.”
That man wasn’t Osama bin Laden – no, a picture of none other than Donald Trump flashed on the screen.
Jabs at his likely GOP rival Mitt Romney came soon after.
“I’m not going to attack any of the Republican candidates – take Mitt Romney,” Barack Obama deadpanned, adding that the former Massachusetts governor would call the luxurious Hilton ballroom “a little fixer upper”.
The president continued: “[Romney] and I actually have a lot in common… We both have degrees from Harvard. I have one, he has two.” After a pause, he added: “What a snob.”
Four years ago, Barack Obama recalled, he was locked in a tough primary fight with Hillary Rodham Clinton, now his secretary of state.
“Now she can’t stop drunk texting me from Cartagena,” he said, referring to their recent trip to the Summit of the Americas in Colombia, where Hillary Clinton was photographed drinking a beer and dancing.
Next up was a video satirizing Mitt Romney’s highly politicized event of strapping his dog Seamus to the roof while on home from a family vacation.
In the faux-political video, the announcer hinted at what a horrible world it would be if “socialist” first dog Bo Obama were allowed another four terms in office.
“America’s dogs can’t afford four more years of Obama – that’s 28 years for dogs.”
The video finished with the slogan: “I’m an American, and dog gone it, I ride on the outside. (Paid for by the Wolf Pack of America.).”
President Barack Obama shared a meal with politicians, journalists and stars at the 98th annual White House Correspondents' Dinner
Throughout the routine, Michelle Obama could be seen laughing at the dinner table. First Lady was wearing a modified version of Naeem Khan’s one-shouldered paisley organza ball gown from the Fall/Winter 2011 collection.
The version that went down the runway had a twisted strap over the left shoulder, but Michelle Obama seemed to prefer a dress that better displayed her décolletage.
She accessorized the look with detailed gold hoop earrings and a loosely-waved bob, as well as a large cocktail ring worn on her left hand.
Michelle Obama also elected to wear a bright pink lipstick to match the colors of her gown.
Earlier, Barack Obama gave a knowing nod to several instances of “hot microphone” instances, lampooning himself in a monologue, asking who the Kardashians are, and why exactly they’re famous.
“What am I doing here,” he asked off stage.
“I’m opening for Jimmy Kimmel and telling knock-knock jokes to Kim Kardashian.”
The crack drew a thumbs up from former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, who dropped out of the presidential primary campaign earlier this month.
Rick Santorum had called Barack Obama a snob for encouraging young Americans to attend college.
But Barack Obama touched on serious themes as well, remembering The New York Times’ Anthony Shadid and Marie Colvin of the Sunday Times of London who died while covering the uprising in Syria.
“Never forget that our country depends on you to help protect our freedom, our democracy and our way of life,” he said.
Then he returned to the lighter side: “I have to get the Secret Service home in time for their new curfew.”
Barack Obama then passed the podium on to ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel, who he noted got his start on a program called The Man Show.
“In Washington, that’s what we call a congressional hearing on contraception,” he said.
Jimmy Kimmel began joking straight out of the gate, saying: “It’s an honor to be here. Mr. President, remember when the country rallied around you in the hopes of a better tomorrow?
“That was hilarious. That was your best one yet. There’s a term for guys like President Obama. Probably not two terms, but there is.”
No one was safe from the wry jokes of the outspoken host of Jimmy Kimmel Live.
He poked fun at everyone from New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (“I think you’re misunderstanding New Jersey’s slogan. It’s not the Olive Garden State”) to Newt Gingrich (“It’s great to see the Gingriches here, because that means the check cleared.”)
Jimmy Kimmel also picked up on the Secret Service prostitution scandal in Colombia, saying he told the Secret Service that for $800 he wouldn’t joke about them, “but they only offered 30”.
“If this had happened on President Clinton’s watch, you can damn well bet those Secret Service agents would have been disciplined with a very serious high five,” Jimmy Kimmel said.
Among those who attended Saturday night’s dinner were former Secretary of State Colin Powell, the cast of the hit TV show Modern Family, singer John Legend, actor George Clooney, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Virginia, director Steven Spielberg, and actress Zooey Deschanel.
Proceeds from the dinner go toward scholarships for aspiring journalists and awards for distinction in the profession.
The association was formed in 1914 as a liaison between the press and the president.
Every president since Calvin Coolidge has attended the dinner. Some of the proceeds from the dinner pay for journalism scholarships for college students.
Several journalists were also honored at the dinner, including:
• Matt Apuzzo, Adam Goldman, Eileen Sullivan and Chris Hawley of The Associated Press, for winning the Edgar A. Poe Award for their stories about the New York City Police Department’s widespread surveillance of Muslims after the Sept. 11 terror attacks. It’s the fourth major prize for the series, which has also won the Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting, the Goldsmith Prize for Investigative Reporting and a George Polk Award.
• ABC’s Jake Tapper and Politico’s Glenn Thrush, Carrie Budoff Brown, Manu Raju and John Bresnahan, for winning the Merriman Smith Award for excellence in presidential coverage under pressure. Tapper won in the broadcast category for breaking the news that rating agency Standard & Poor’s was on the verge of downgrading the federal government’s triple-A credit rating because of concerns over political gridlock in Washington. In the print category, Thrush, Budoff Brown, Raju and Bresnahan of Politico won for their report on the deal between Obama and congressional Republicans to raise the U.S. debt ceiling.
• Scott Wilson, of The Washington Post, for winning the Aldo Beckman award. Wilson was recognized for his “deeply reported and nuanced stories, his evocative writing and his clear presentation of complex issues, particularly on the foreign policy front”.
Cuban actors Javier Nunez Florian and Anailin de la Rua, who defected to the US, emerged from hiding a week after they had gone missing at Miami airport during a stop-over on the way to a film festival in New York.
Speaking on a Spanish-language TV channel in Miami, they said they would seek political asylum in the US.
Several Cuban artists have defected to pursue careers outside their country.
The two 20-year-old actors star in the film Una Noche (One Night), which depicts three Cuban teenagers trying to escape the poverty of their homeland to begin a new life in Miami. Una Noche tells the story of three young Cubans attempting to make their way from Havana to Miami by raft. It was filmed on location with the permission and cooperation of the Cuban government.
Javier Nunez Florian and Anailin de la Rua, who defected to the US, emerged from hiding a week after they had gone missing at Miami airport
Before their appearance on Miami-based Spanish-language channel America TeVe on Friday night, they had last been seen at Miami airport on a stop-over from Havana to New York.
They told film producer Sandy Perez Aguila, who was travelling with the pair, that they would meet him at the departure gate for the New York flight, but failed to turn up.
Sandy Perez Aguila told Miami police the two had gone missing, but police said he would have to wait for 24 hours before he could file a report.
He said that when he opened their suitcases when he arrived in New York, he found them empty.
The film won three awards at the Tribeca film festival, including the prize for best actor for Javier Nunez Florian, which he shared with another of the film’s actors.
Speaking on America TeVe, Javier Nunez Florian said he hoped he would be able to further pursue his acting career in the US.
In an interview with Reuters news agency, the pair said they had started thinking about defecting when they heard about the invitation to New York.
“In part, it’s hard to leave your family and friends behind,” Anailin de la Rua said.
“But at the same time you do it so you can help them, there’s no future in Cuba,” she said.
A Miami immigration lawyer representing the two actors told Reuters he planned to file for political asylum on the actors’ behalf “based on possible persecution if they return to Cuba”.
A string of Cuban artists and athletes has defected from Cuba over the past few years.
In 2005, Cuban ballet dancer Rolando Sarabia crossed the border into the US. In 2008 seven members of Cuba’s Olympic football team defected in Florida after a game with the US.
Last year, five members of the National Ballet of Cuba on tour in Canada decided to remain there after their performances.
Saudi Arabia has decided to shut its embassy and consulates in Egypt following protests over Egyptian lawyer Ahmed al-Gizawi, who has been detained in Saudi Arabia.
The Saudi ambassador to Egypt had also been recalled, according to the Saudi state news agency.
Egyptian protesters have demanded the release of human rights lawyer Ahmed al-Gizawi.
The head of Egypt’s ruling military council has expressed surprise over the Saudi move.
Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi contacted the Saudi government on Saturday to try to resolve the issue, the Egyptian Mena news agency reported.
Saudi Arabia shuts its embassy in Egypt following protests over lawyer Ahmed al-Gizawi, who is detained in Saudi Arabia
The Saudi closures affect the embassy in Cairo as well as consulates in the cities of Alexandria and Suez.
The Saudi action marks a sharp escalation of a row that has been going on for some days.
Ahmed al-Gizawi was detained earlier this month on arrival in Saudi Arabia and accused of insulting King Abdullah.
Egyptian activists say he was held after lodging a complaint against Saudi Arabia for its treatment of Egyptians in its prisons.
His family says he had gone to perform a minor pilgrimage – a detail which has angered many Egyptians who feel resentment at the kingdom’s treatment of Egyptians.
But Saudi authorities say Ahmed al-Gizawi was found by airport officials to be carrying drugs – allegedly more than 20,000 anti-anxiety pills – in his luggage.
They doubt Ahmed al- Gizawi was on a pilgrimage, as they say he was not wearing white pilgrims’ clothes.
Observers say it is the worst diplomatic falling-out between the two regional powers since Saudi Arabia severed ties after Egypt signed a peace deal with Israel in 1979.
Many Egyptians work in Saudi Arabia and there have often been cases where they say they have been mistreated under Saudi law.
It has been longtime argued that one mathematical formula known as Black-Scholes, along with its descendants, helped to blow up the financial world.
Black-Scholes was first written down in the early 1970s but its story starts earlier than that, in the Dojima Rice Exchange in 17th Century Japan where futures contracts were written for rice traders. A simple futures contract says that I will agree to buy rice from you in one year’s time, at a price that we agree right now.
By the 20th Century the Chicago Board of Trade was providing a marketplace for traders to deal not only in futures but in options contracts. An example of an option is a contract where we agree that I can buy rice from you at any time over the next year, at a price that we agree right now – but I don’t have to if I don’t want to.
You can imagine why this kind of contract might be useful. If I am running a big chain of hamburger restaurants, but I don’t know how much beef I’ll need to buy next year, and I am nervous that the price of beef might rise, well – all I need is to buy some options on beef.
But then that leads to a very ticklish problem. How much should I be paying for those beef options? What are they worth? And that’s where this world-changing equation, the Black-Scholes formula, can help.
“The problem it’s trying to solve is to define the value of the right, but not the obligation, to buy a particular asset at a specified price, within or at the end of a specified time period,” says Professor Myron Scholes, professor of finance at the Stanford University Graduate School of Business and – of course – co-inventor of the Black-Scholes formula.
The young Myron Scholes was fascinated by finance. As a teenager, he persuaded his mother to set up an account so that he could trade on the stock market. One of the amazing things about Myron Scholes is that throughout his time as an undergraduate and then a doctoral student, he was half-blind. And so, he says, he got very good at listening and at thinking.
When Myron Scholes was 26, an operation largely restored his sight. The next year, he became an assistant professor at MIT, and it was there that he stumbled upon the option-pricing puzzle.
One part of the puzzle was this question of risk: the value of an option to buy beef at a price of – say – $2 a kilogram presumably depends on what the price of beef is, and how the price of beef is moving around.
But the connection between the price of beef and the value of the beef option doesn’t vary in a straightforward way – it depends how likely the option is to actually be used. That in turn depends on the option price and the beef price. All the variables seem to be tangled up in an impenetrable way.
Myron Scholes worked on the problem with his colleague, Fischer Black, and figured out that if I own just the right portfolio of beef, plus options to buy and sell beef, I have a delicious and totally risk-free portfolio. Since I already know the price of beef and the price of risk-free assets, by looking at the difference between them I can work out the price of these beef options. That’s the basic idea. The details are hugely complicated.
“It might have taken us a year, a year and a half to be able to solve and get the simple Black-Scholes formula,” says Myron Scholes.
“But we had the actual underlying dynamics way before.”
The Black-Scholes method turned out to be a way not only to calculate value of options but all kinds of other financial assets.
“We were like kids in a candy story in the sense that we described options everywhere, options were embedded in everything that we did in life,” says Prof. Myron Scholes.
But Fischer Black and Myron Scholes weren’t the only kids in the candy store, says Ian Stewart, whose book argues that Black-Scholes was a dangerous invention.
“What the equation did was give everyone the confidence to trade options and very quickly, much more complicated financial options known as derivatives,” Ian Stewart says.
Myron Scholes thought his equation would be useful. He didn’t expect it to transform the face of finance. But it quickly became obvious that it would.
“About the time we had published this article, that’s 1973, simultaneously or approximately a month thereafter, the Chicago Board Options Exchange started to trade call options on 16 stocks,” he recalls.
Myron Scholes had just moved to the University of Chicago. He and his colleagues had already been teaching the Black-Scholes formula and methodology to students for several years.
“There were many young traders who either had taken courses at MIT or Chicago in using the option pricing technology. On the other hand, there was a group of traders who had only intuition and previous experience. And in a very short period of time, the intuitive players were essentially eliminated by the more systematic players who had this pricing technology.”
It has been longtime argued that one mathematical formula known as Black-Scholes, along with its descendants, helped to blow up the financial world
That was just the beginning.
“By 2007 the trade in derivatives worldwide was one quadrillion [thousand million million] US dollars – this is 10 times the total production of goods on the planet over its entire history,” says Ian Stewart.
“OK, we’re talking about the totals in a two-way trade, people are buying and people are selling and you’re adding it all up as if it doesn’t cancel out, but it was a huge trade.”
The Black-Scholes formula had passed the market test. But as banks and hedge funds relied more and more on their equations, they became more and more vulnerable to mistakes or over-simplifications in the mathematics.
“The equation is based on the idea that big movements are actually very, very rare. The problem is that real markets have these big changes much more often that this model predicts,” says Ian Stewart.
“And the other problem is that everyone’s following the same mathematical principles, so they’re all going to get the same answer.”
Now these were known problems. What was not clear was whether the problems were small enough to ignore, or well enough understood to fix. And then in the late 1990s, two remarkable things happened.
“The inventors got the Nobel Prize for Economics,” says Ian Stewart.
“I would argue they thoroughly deserved to get it.”
Fischer Black died young, in 1995. When in 1997 Myron Scholes won the Nobel memorial prize, he shared it not with Fischer Black but with Robert Merton, another option-pricing expert.
Myron Scholes’ work had inspired a generation of mathematical wizards on Wall Street, and by this stage both he and Robert Merton were players in the world of finance, as partners of a hedge fund called Long-Term Capital Management.
“The whole idea of this company was that it was going to base its trading on mathematical principles such as the Black-Scholes equation. And it actually was amazingly successful to begin with,” says Ian Stewart.
“It was outperforming the traditional companies quite noticeably and everything looked great.”
But it didn’t end well. Long-Term Capital Management ran into, among other things, the Russian financial crisis. The firm lost $4 billion in the course of six weeks. It was bailed out by a consortium of banks which had been assembled by the Federal Reserve. And – at the time – it was a very big story indeed. This was all happening in August and September of 1998, less than a year after Myron Scholes had been awarded his Nobel prize.
Ian Stewart says the lessons from Long-Term Capital Management were obvious.
“It showed the danger of this kind of algorithmically-based trading if you don’t keep an eye on some of the indicators that the more conventional people would use,” he says.
“They [Long-Term Capital Management] were committed, pretty much, to just ploughing ahead with the system they had. And it went wrong.”
Myron Scholes says that’s not what happened at all. “It had nothing to do with equations and nothing to do with models,” he says.
“I was not running the firm, let me be very clear about that. There was not an ability to withstand the shock that occurred in the market in the summer and fall of late 1998. So it was just a matter of risk-taking. It wasn’t a matter of modeling.”
This is something people were still arguing about a decade later. Was the collapse of Long-Term Capital Management an indictment of mathematical approaches to finance or, as Myron Scholes says, was it simply a case of traders taking too much risk against the better judgement of the mathematical experts?
Ten years after the Long-Term Capital Management bail-out, Lehman Brothers collapsed. And the debate over Black-Scholes and LTCM is now a broader debate over the role of mathematical equations in finance.
Ian Stewart claims that the Black-Scholes equation changed the world. Does he really believe that mathematics caused the financial crisis?
“It was abuse of their equation that caused trouble, and I don’t think you can blame the inventors of an equation if somebody else comes along and uses it badly,” he says.
“And it wasn’t just that equation. It was a whole generation of other mathematical models and all sorts of other techniques that followed on its heels. But it was one of the major discoveries that opened the door to all this.”
Black-Scholes formula changed the culture of Wall Street, from a place where people traded based on common sense, experience and intuition, to a place where the computer said yes or no.
But is it really fair to blame Black-Scholes for what followed it?
“The Black-Scholes technology has very specific rules and requirements,” says Myron Scholes.
“That technology attracted or caused investment banks to hire people who had quantitative or mathematical skills. I accept that. They then developed products or technologies of their own.”
Not all of those subsequent technologies, says Myron Scholes, were good enough.
“[Some] had assumptions that were wrong, or they used data incorrectly to calibrate their models, or people who used [the] models didn’t know how to use them.”
Myron Scholes argues there is no going back.
“The fundamental issue is that quantitative technologies in finance will survive, and will grow, and will continue to evolve over time,” he says.
But for Ian Stewart, the story of Black-Scholes – and of Long-Term Capital Management – is a kind of morality tale.
“It’s very tempting to see the financial crisis and various things which led up to it as sort of the classic Greek tragedy of hubris begets nemesis,” he says.
“You try to fly, you fly too close to the sun, the wax holding your wings on melts and you fall down to the ground. My personal view is that it’s not just tempting to do that but there is actually a certain amount of truth in that way of thinking. I think the bankers’ hubris did indeed beget nemesis. But the big problem is that it wasn’t the bankers on whom the nemesis descended – it was the rest of us.”
Earlier this week, Bo Guagua, the son of fallen Chinese politician Bo Xilai, has been fighting claims of his playboy lifestyle and denied that he ever drove a Ferrari.
However, an official with the Massachusetts Department of Transportation said Bo Guagua, currently a Harvard graduate student, received three traffic tickets over the course of two years while driving a black Porsche.
According to state records, Bo Guagua received two citations for running a stop sign, and another for speeding – he was caught going 58 in a 30 mph zone.
The official, who requested anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the story, said that Bo Guagua was driving a 2011 Porsche Panamera, though the car was not licensed to him, CNN reported.
Bo Guagua painted himself as a sympathetic character in a letter to the Harvard Crimson student newspaper published Tuesday.
In it, Bo Xilai’ son said he attended social events as an Oxford University undergraduate to broaden his perspective.
Bo Xilai is believed to have been a leading candidate for one of the nine seats on the ruling Communist Party’s all-powerful Politburo Standing Committee, but his political career is now considered over.
He fell out of favor with some in the leadership over his flashy personal style, suspected corruption, and the excesses of a dual campaign to fight gangsters and promote Mao Zedong-era Communist culture in the southwestern mega-city of Chongqing.
Bo Guagua hit out at claims that he had cashed in on his parents’ wealth and influence by spending more partying than studying while he was at Oxford University.
He became renowned for hosting champagne and shisha parties in his room at Balliol College, where he read Politics, Philosophy and Economics.
Bo Guagua hit out at claims that he had cashed in on his parents’ wealth and influence by spending more partying than studying while he was at Oxford University
It was also claimed that Bo Guagua’s performance fell short of what was expected and he was made to sit “penal” exams.
But in an extraordinary twist – and in an astonishing example the influence of Bo Guagua’s parents before their spectacular fall from grace – Chinese officials tried to intervene to prevent tutors from disciplining him over his lack of work, it is understood.
However, Bo Guagua – the son of former Chongqing party boss Bo Xilai and his lawyer wife Gu Kailai – did not refer to all these allegations.
In a statement published by the Harvard Crimson student newspaper, he:
• Dismissed claims he has an obsessive love for luxury cars, writing: “I have never driven a Ferrari”;
• Said his academic record was “solid” and had earned a string of top grades – although failed to address the penal exam claims;
• Admitted that he “participated in <<Bops>>”, a type of common Oxford social event – but did not mention the parties in his room; and
• Insisted he had never “lent my name to nor participated in any for-profit business or venture, in China or abroad”.
In the statement, Bo Guagua said he felt compelled to provide “an account of the facts” in response to speculation about his private life and family.
Bo Guagua wrote: “Recently, there has been increasing attention from the press on my private life. As a result of these speculations, I feel responsible to the public to provide an account of the facts.
“I am deeply concerned about the events surrounding my family, but I have no comments to make regarding the ongoing investigation.
“It is impossible to address all of the rumors and allegations about myself, but I will state the facts regarding some of the most pertinent claims.”
Bo Guagua also sought to dampen speculation about financial improprieties over his costly overseas tuition, explaining the fees had been covered by “scholarships earned independently, and my mother’s generosity from the savings she earned from her years as a successful lawyer and writer”.
College dropout Jason Padgett has been hailed a unique maths genius after his brain was damaged in a brutal attack by muggers.
Jason Padgett, 41, was left concussed after he was ambushed outside a karaoke club and repeatedly kicked in the head.
Now, wherever he looks, Jason Padgett sees mathematical formulas and turns them into stunning, intricate diagrams he can draw by hand.
He is the only person in the world known to have the skill and experts say it was caused by his head injury.
They believe the damage to Jason Padgett’s brain has left him with a “remarkable gift” for figures, much like the brilliant mathematician John Nash.
Jason Padgett, who works behind the counter at a furniture store in Tacoma, in the U.S. state of Washington, told ABC News: “I’m obsessed with numbers, geometry specifically.
“I literally dream about it. There’s not a moment that I can’t see it, and it just doesn’t turn off.”
Jason Padgett does not have a PhD, a degree or even a background in maths.
Instead, his talent was born out of a true medical mystery that scientists around the world are still trying to unravel.
Ten years ago, Jason Padgett was only interested in two things: working out and partying.
One night Jason Padgett was walking out of a karaoke club in Tacoma when he was set upon by muggers who beat and kicked him in the head repeatedly.
The unlikely genius thought he was going to be killed as his attackers went for his $99 leather jacket.
“All I saw was a bright flash of light and the next thing I knew I was on my knees on the ground and I thought, <<I’m gonna get killed>>,” he said.
College dropout Jason Padgett has been hailed a unique maths genius after his brain was damaged in a brutal attack by muggers
At the time, doctors said he had a concussion, but within a day or two, Jason Padgett began to notice something remarkable.
A college dropout who could not draw became obsessed with producing intricate diagrams, but he had no idea what they were.
“I see bits and pieces of the Pythagorean theorem everywhere,” Jason Padgett said.
“Every single little curve, every single spiral, every tree is part of that equation.”
Jason Padgett draws diagrams called fractals.
He can produce a visual representation of the formula Pi, the infinite number which begins with 3.14.
Jason Padgett said: “A fractal is a shape that when you take the shape a part into pieces, the pieces are the same or similar to the whole.
“So say I had 1,000 pictures of you, that were little and I put all those little pictures of you in the right spot to make the exact same picture of you, but bigger.”
Much like John Nash, who was played by Russell Crowe in the 2001 film, A Beautiful Mind, researchers believe Jason Padgett has a remarkable gift.
To better understand how his brain works, neuroscientist and philosophy professor Berit Brogaard and her team flew Jason Padgett to Finland to run a series of tests.
A scan showed damage that was forcing his brain to overcompensate in certain areas that most people do not have access to.
Prof. Berit Brogaard, who is based at the Center for Neurodynamics at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, said the result that Jason Padgett is now an acquired savant, meaning brilliant in a specific area.
“Savant syndrome is the development of a particular skill, that can be mathematical, spatial, or autistic, that develop to an extreme degree that sort of makes a person superhuman,” the professor added.
Jason Padgett said his goal was to get out of the furniture store and into the classroom to hopefully teach others that maths is as beautiful and natural as the world around us.
When asked if he thought his talent was a burden or a gift, Jason Padgett said it was a mixture of both.
“Sometimes I would really like to turn it off, and it won’t,” he said.
“But the good far outweighs the bad. I would not give it up for anything.”
Venus Palermo is a 15-year-old British girl who chooses to style herself as a “living doll” and who became an internet sensation.
Venus Palermo has a porcelain pale, enormous sky-blue eyes that are framed by thick, dark lashes, and her mouth is as perfect as a rosebud.
Her hair has been styled into tousled blonde bunches, which hang coquettishly either side of the ruffled collar of her Victoriana blouse.
And this isn’t something she does in the privacy of her bedroom – Venus Palermo uploads footage of herself on to the internet and has gained a cult following around the world.
At last count, Venus Palermo’s free internet TV channel had around 30,000 viewers, and her social networking pages 20,000 followers.
Venus Palermo’s online tutorials showing how to mimic her look have been watched 10 million times across the globe – including by a host of British schoolgirls desperate to imitate her image.
The girl says: “I get lots of messages from young girls. They tell me they love the way I look and they want to be like me.”
It’s all rather strange and a little bit disturbing. But looking like a doll seems to be a growing trend.
In recent months, scores of teenage girls have amassed online followers after posting footage of their doll-like features and instructions on how to perfect the bizarre look.
Most have their own special doll name – in Venus Palermo’s case “VenusAngelic” – and all look eerily as if they wouldn’t be out of place in the window of a toy shop, if only they were a tad smaller.
This trend, of course, could be seen as nothing more than a passing teenage fad – and one that is less worrying than most.
In an age where many of the role models available to young girls are overtly crude and raunchy, Venus Palermo might be accused of nothing more sinister than peddling a heightened version of fancy dress.
However, another description hovers in the background alongside “living doll”. It also begins with “L” but has rather more sinister connotations. Yet Venus Palermo’s mother will not hear of her daughter being called a Lolita.
Margaret Palermo, 37, is fully supportive of her daughter’s eccentric hobby, and any suggestion there is something a little alarming about it astonishes her.
“This is not about Lolita – that’s the last thing she wants to be,” Margaret Palermo says.
“Venus is an innocent girl. She doesn’t drink, she doesn’t smoke, she’s not even remotely interested in boys. She works hard at her studies.
“I would be far more upset if she was rolling around drunk in the street.
“This is not about attracting men. This is something she likes to do for herself and she enjoys it. Why would I stop her doing something she loves, that she’s good at and that is doing no harm? There is nothing sexual about this – she just wants to look pretty.”
Whether Venus Palermo’s look is pretty, or pretty odd, depends on your perspective. What’s beyond dispute though, is that the teenager as a doll is incredibly convincing.
Venus Palermo looks like what can only be described as a souped-up Tiny Tears, clad in a plaid playsuit with a frilly high-collared blouse, topped with that powder-white face.
The only difference with the plastic version is that this one speaks.
The voice is Tinkerbell on helium.
Venus Palermo dresses like this full-time, day after day, resisting the usual teenage uniform of comfy sweatpants or jeans with steely resilience.
“I don’t even own a pair of sweatpants,” the teenager says, her eyes widening to saucer-like proportions.
“I would never dress that way.
“If I want to be cosy, I will wear my frilly pyjamas. I feel comfortable this way – I would not feel like myself if I dressed any other way.”
Venus Palermo has a porcelain pale, enormous sky-blue eyes that are framed by thick, dark lashes, and her mouth is as perfect as a rosebud
Venus Palermo’s clothes are mainly purchased from high-street shops – including Topshop and Next – although she does buy some of her more off-beat items from internet sites.
“I don’t have many outfits, say ten,” Venus Palermo explains.
“But I can mix and match tops and bottoms to create lots of different looks.”
Her mother says: “This is absolutely her choice.
“Venus has enjoyed dressing up since she was a child, and this is just an extension of that. She has got her own mind.
“As a parent you have to understand that, in some instances, if your child is determined to do something, they will find a way to do it no matter how much you forbid them. Besides, I don’t see any harm in it at all.”
It is perhaps not insignificant that Margaret Palermo, who works for a local opticians, is the only parental influence. It’s hard to imagine the average father feeling comfortable with his daughter dressing this way.
As it is, mentioning Venus Palermo’s father is strictly off-limits. The mother says firmly: “We don’t talk about him or even use that word.”
All Margaret Palermo will say is that she met him in her teens while studying in Switzerland. After a whirlwind romance they got married and she gave birth to Venus, her only child, when she was 21.
However, the marriage did not last, and Margaret Palermo raised her daughter alone.
They stayed in Switzerland until Venus was 11, when Margaret Palermo decided to move to Tenerife then, later, London.
And there is no doubt that mother and daughter have a close bond – Margaret Palermo admits that occasionally they still share a bed.
Although money is tight, Margaret Palermo has saved enough from working to enable them to travel far afield on holidays.
In 2008 they went to Japan, where Venus first encountered the cult of “anime” – highly stylized cartoons – that inspired her look.
By then, Venus Palermo was already a keen performer, having attended dance classes from an early age. When she was 13 she set up her own YouTube account, posting footage of herself dancing and miming to music.
Venus Palermo’s clips attracted a large group of followers, among them a number of Japanese fans who told her she looked so much like a doll that she should start to dress up like one.
Spurred on by their comments, Venus Palermo started experimenting with make-up to mimic doll-like features.
It’s something you might imagine would ruffle the feathers of the average parent. Not Margaret Palermo, though.
“I wasn’t alarmed,” the mother says.
“Why would I be? It was incredibly innocent. When she was a little girl, she loved frills and ribbons. The make-up was a natural progression.”
Yet there is, of course, nothing “natural” about Venus Palermo’s look. It is highly contrived, from the opaque contact lenses to make her irises look bigger and the baby powder to lighten her skin to her bleached hair and eyebrows.
Venus Palermo is helped by her mother, who whips out the peroxide bottle every month to lighten her daughter’s naturally dark locks.
The teenager says: “I didn’t like my hair that color. I’m very pale and some of my fans told me I looked like a corpse. I much prefer it blonde.”
Statements like this contribute to the strange combination of naivety and knowingness that hovers over proceedings.
Venus Palermo is switched on enough to mastermind her enormous following, and navigates her state-of-the-art computer like a professional.
Yet she also seems much younger than her years.
Her bedroom is notable more for its fluffy toys than boy-band posters. And she insists she is not interested in having a boyfriend.
“I don’t need to rush – I’ve got lots of years ahead of me, so time is on my side,” she says.
“I know a lot of other girls my age have a boyfriend but I don’t think it’s right.”
That has not stopped Venus Palermo attracting her fair share of online admirers, presumably some more dubious than others. It’s hard not to see a site like hers appealing to paedophiles, although her mother insists she has proved effective in blocking any unwanted visitors.
“When Venus first asked to set up her own YouTube channel, I said no because I was worried about the sort of people it might attract,” Margaret Palermo says.
“I didn’t give in for several months, and when I did it was on the basis that while she could have artistic freedom, I would see everything before she posted it and monitor all the comments.
“There were some bad messages from older men who were trying to meet her, but I blocked them immediately and quite quickly they stopped. I am incredibly vigilant.”
But Margaret Palermo can do little about the glances of lascivious older men when she and her daughter are out in London.
Venus Palermo, however, insists that the reaction to her is almost always favorable.
“No one has ever been horrible,” the girl says.
“Old ladies in particular love it, they tell me they think it’s very sweet.
“Even teenagers are nice. Some make horrible comments online but in real life they have all been very complimentary and ask me where I get my clothes from.
“And to be honest I don’t care if some people think it’s odd. I don’t think it’s creepy, but cute. It’s fun and sweet.”
It is not a big surprise to learn that Venus Palermo is home-schooled. It’s hard to picture her sitting behind a desk at an average comprehensive.
Margaret Palermo claims that the decision was thrust upon them after the local authority failed to provide Venus with a place.
She and Venus have now made a virtue out of necessity, with the mother giving lessons when she’s not at work, and letting textbooks do the rest.
“It’s perhaps for the best because I think it would be difficult for Venus to go to a conventional school,” Margaret Palermo admits.
In fairness, Venus is far from a dunce: she speaks five languages, including Spanish and Japanese, and is articulate and thoughtful behind the child-like gaze and bat-squeak voice.
But she also seems rather isolated. Apart from the “online community” Venus Palermo interacts with every day and some Japanese penpals, she has no real friends.
Margaret Palermo admits: “I do think it would be healthy for her to meet people her own age. Of course that would normally happen at school but we are looking at her joining some clubs or dance classes so she can socialize.”
Admittedly, it is hard to see the living doll shooting pool at the local youth club.
And soon Venus Palermo may not have the time to do so anyway. Such has been the growing interest in her unusual appearance that, in recent weeks, she has been approached with a number of potentially lucrative commercial offers, including becoming the face of a skin-care line in Japan.
The thought is highly attractive to her. “If I can do this as a job I would be very happy,” Venus Palermo says.
“I enjoy it so much, and what better thing than to make a living doing something you love?”
One factor is against her, though: time. While she now looks much younger than she is, in reality she can only carry off the Living Doll look for so long.
However, Venus Palermo is emphatic that she will not grow out of it – but that the look will instead grow with her.
“There is a way of adapting it as I get older so it remains true to the spirit of the idea but is in keeping with my age,” Venus Palermo insists.
“I don’t think I should be wearing my hair in pigtails when I’m 18.”
Some people may think that 15 would be a good time to remove them, but there seems little chance of that.
Hugh Grant became a father for the first time last year when his ex-girlfriend Tinglan Hong gave birth to his daughter Tabitha.
However, while the world exhaled a gasp of shock, no one was more surprised than Hugh Grant himself.
Speaking on the Ellen DeGeneres Show yesterday, Hugh Grant admitted that becoming a dad has been “life changing” and he would highly recommend it to everyone.
Hugh Grant said: “Everyone was right all these years, saying, <<Hugh, why don’t you have some children? It changes your life>>.
“Now that I have a child, it is life changing. I recommend it. Get some!”
Speaking on the Ellen DeGeneres Show yesterday, Hugh Grant admitted that becoming a dad has been “life changing” and he would highly recommend it to everyone
Hugh Grant said it came as a surprise when his former flame Tinglan Hong gave birth to Tabitha, who is now six months old.
He added: “I can’t pretend it wasn’t a little bit of a surprise. But it’s a very nice surprise. In fact, the baby’s name in Chinese, because the mother is Chinese, means Happy Surprise.”
When Ellen DeGeneres asked what the name is, Hugh Grant revealed: “Jingxi. It’s one of the baby’s names.”
Hugh Grant has certainly changed his tune from a few months ago when he said Tabitha had yet to change his life.
He said: “[People] said never let anyone know, but the baby period is not that exciting. But I am excited, actually.
“I thought, well, I’ll bluff through – but very little bluffing has been required. I like my daughter very much. Fantastic.
“Has she changed my life? I’m not sure. Not yet. Not massively, no. But I’m absolutely thrilled to have had her, I really am.”
While on Ellen’s show, Hugh Grant met Sophie Grace and Rosie, the two little girls from Essex who shot to fame when they became You Tube sensations with their memorable interpretation of Nicki Minaj song Super Bass last year, and stopped for a chat and some afternoon tea.
While in the US to promote his new film The Pirates! Band of Misfits, Hugh Grant also revealed that a third installment of Bridget Jones, in which he played the dastardly Daniel Cleaver, is being planned.
Speaking to MTV, Hugh Grant said: “I’ve seen some scripts. They haven’t quite hit the nail yet, but they will. They’re working on it.”
A dramatic footage shows the terrifying ordeal pilots and air passengers endured while landing at Loiu Airport in Bilbao as high winds batter northern Spain this week.
Footage of planes landing at Loiu Airport in Bilbao shows aircraft being blown sideways and shaking almost uncontrollably as pilots battle to bring them down safely on to runways.
While one intrepid pilot manages to successfully guide his plane on to the landing strip, another is forced to pull back into the air as the huge crosswind means he just cannot hit the runway.
Footage of planes landing at Loiu Airport in Bilbao shows aircraft being blown sideways and shaking almost uncontrollably as pilots battle to bring them down safely on to runways
The State Meteorological Agency reported that winds have reached 40 mph at the airport, while high winds of 80 mph were reported in the rest of the Basque region.
Air travel had been affected, with four planes being re-routed to different airport, according to AENA, the airport authority.
Pilot heading towards Bilbao, however, have had to struggle on the airport remained open during the hazardous conditions and no flights were cancelled.
Google users searching for the term “Zerg Rush” had a big surprise; the colored letters “O” turn into aliens that devour the page – and the users could click on the little “aliens” to kill them.
The hidden “Easter Egg” is a reference to the space strategy game Starcraft, where using a “Zerg Rush” with the game’s “Zergling” creatures is often a winning strategy.
Google has a long tradition of hidden “Easter Eggs” – as well as its famous Google Doodles.
Even by Google’s standards, though, this joke is particularly geeky.
The “Zerg” is one of the races in a strategy game, Starcraft – and experienced players often rely on the “Zerg rush” to win games.
The verb “to Zerg” is now often used in other online games, meaning to overwhelm an enemy through sheer force of numbers.
The game Starcraft was released in 1998, but is still played today.
If you search for “Zerg Rush” on Google, the colored letters “O” turn into aliens that devour the page
Maker Blizzard entertainment says: “In the distant future, the newly formed Terran Dominion faces the arrival of two hostile alien races: the savage Zerg and the enigmatic Protoss. Gather resources and expand your forces to lead them to victory. The only allies are enemies. The only choice is war.”
You have to search from the Google home page to make the “trick” work, and it may not work in mobile browsers or some desktop browsers.
The gamer joke is similar to an earlier Google “Easter Egg”.
Entering “do a barrel roll” as a Google search prompted computer screens to do a 360-degree turn.
Google told ABC News: “Today’s fun query, <<do a barrel roll>>, was created by a Google software engineer with the primary goal of entertaining users – while showcasing the power of CSS3, a presentation feature of modern browsers.”
The phrase quickly became a trending topic on Twitter as users urged their followers to try it for themselves.
The feature can also be used if one searches the phrase “Z or R twice”, Google’s homage to the Nintendo 64 video game Star Fox.
The barrel roll maneuver in the popular 1990s game could be completed by toggling the Z or R buttons twice.
Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon have already renewed their wedding vows three times, but they clearly haven’t found enough ways to say “I do”.
The famous couple piled on the romance as they renewed their vows for the fourth time in front of the backdrop of the Eiffel Tower.
Mariah Carey, 42, looked stunning in a fishtail white gown with a black sash which hugged her curves.
She sported a chunky diamond necklace and matching earrings at the Parisian hotel, while her long light brown hair, was tied in a sophisticated half ponytail.
And in a rather cheesy touch, husband Nick Cannon, 31, ensured he matched her in a white suit and black tie.
Rather unusually, Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon invited the press to witness their happy occasion at a photocall at the French capital’s La Maison Blanche hotel.
And the couple showed how comfortable they were in front of the cameras, with Nick Cannon going down on one knee in a mock proposal.
Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon have already renewed their wedding vows three times, but they haven't found enough ways to say “I do”
Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon wed at a private resort in the Bahamas on April 30, 2008, and like to celebrate by renewing their vows once a year.
They also mark the birth of their twins Moroccan Scott and Marilyn Monroe on the 30th, although the babies were kept out of sight yesterday.
Mariah Carey tweeted about the upcoming big day during her shopping trip this afternoon, writing: “Shopping for Roc & Roe’s bday in Paris…Dembabies dembabies dembabies!”
She last week revealed the Cannon-Carey family will be celebrating big time, tweeting: “We have put together some very festive plans: ) LYM! Can’t wait to see you soon in Paris and Ischgl.. x0x0 MC.”
Earlier, Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon had looked equally lovey-dovey as they strolled around the city together.
They shared kisses and held hands as they went shopping and sight-seeing in the City of Light.
Mariah Carey couldn’t resist flaunting the results of her 70 lb weight loss as she strolled around the city.
She wore a tight-fitting red and black lace belted mini-dress underneath an open black coat.
Her ever-present oversized sunglasses rested on her face, while a matching pair of ankle strap heels adorned her feet.
Her husband also looked dapper, though far more low-key in a grey turtle-neck sweater underneath his wool coat, and paired his red, black and tan suede trainers to match Mariah Carey’s shoes.
Jessica Simpson is due to give birth any day now but she is still waiting to go into labor.
While Jessica Simpson, 31, must be getting incredibly impatient, her fellow stars are also eager for the baby to be born.
Katy Perry and Chelsea Handler each took to their Twitter pages to wonder why Jessica Simpson still hasn’t given birth.
The pop star and comedienne even expressed concern as they respectively claimed to be “anxious” and “frightened” for Jessica Simpson.
Katy Perry last night tweeted: “Has Jessica Simpson had that baby yet?! I’m getting anxious.”
And Chelsea Handler echoed the sentiment this morning when she posted on her own page: “How has jessica simpson still not given birth to this baby? I’m getting frightened.”
Jessica Simpson is due to give birth any day now but she is still waiting to go into labor
While Katy Perry and Chelsea Handler have been worrying for the pregnant celebrity, not all stars are quite so sympathetic.
Jersey Shore star Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi has revealed she’s avoiding fatty foods in a bid to keep her pregnancy weight in check.
Nicole Polizzi, 24, says, rather unkindly, that Jessica Simpson served as a warning to her and added she “would die” if she got as big as she did.
The Jersey Shore star is expecting her first child with her fiancé Jionni LaValle.
“I would die if I were her size,” she told Us Weekly, adding that she won’t be enjoying buttered Pop Tarts and treats like Jessica.
“She said she indulged in everything that she wanted. I’m trying to each healthy – fruits, lots of jelly and Italian ices. Nothing fattening at all.”
Jessica Simpson is due to give birth to a daughter with fiancé Eric Johnson.
Sony studio revealed clips of Jordin Sparks, Cee Lo Green and late singer Whitney Houston during its Thursday presentation at CinemaCon 2012.
CinemaCon attendees got an extended look at Whitney Houston’s Sparkle on Thursday, as Sony presented footage from the upcoming musical film.
The preview focused mostly on Jordin Sparks in her role as the title character, who is transformed from the modest girl-next-door to a glammed up superstar. Whitney Houston is also seen flashing a brilliant smile and dancing around a living room. She is also featured prominently in the newly released poster for the film.
CinemaCon attendees got an extended look at Whitney Houston’s Sparkle, as Sony presented footage from the upcoming musical film
Cee Lo Green and Mike Epps also star in the remake of the 1976 film, which will mark Houston’s first return to the big screen since 1996’s The Preacher’s Wife.
Whitney Houston, who served as an executive producer on the film, pushed for many years to have the project made. Sadly, the singer was found dead in a bathtub at the Beverly Hilton Hotel just one day before this year’s Grammy Awards.
Cee Lo Green, making his feature film debut, also sings in the movie.
The US Secret Service has decided to tighten its staff guidelines in an attempt to stop any repeat of the Colombia sex scandal.
Agents travelling overseas will be banned from drinking on duty, visiting “disreputable establishments” and bringing foreigners into hotel rooms.
“Consider your conduct through the lens of the past several weeks,” Director Mark Sullivan reportedly told staff.
The agency will also hold ethics sessions for staff as it attempts to move on from the Cartagena episode.
Twelve Secret Service agents and several US military officers were implicated in a night of sex and drink in the Colombian port city ahead of President Barack Obama’s visit for a regional summit earlier this month.
All 12 agents have now either resigned or are facing disciplinary action.
The US Secret Service has decided to tighten its staff guidelines in an attempt to stop any repeat of the Colombia sex scandal
The Secret Service has also said it is investigating a report that members of another advance team visited strip clubs and paid for prostitutes in El Salvador in 2011.
A spokesman said on Thursday that no “credible” evidence had been found to back up the report.
The agency described the changes as “common-sense enhancements” of existing rules – “refinements of existing rules” governing employee responsibilities and conduct.
Agents deployed on foreign assignments will in future receive briefings on arrival that include “off-limit zones and off-limit establishments”.
Drinking within 10 hours of being on duty will be banned, as will allowing foreigners into hotel rooms, with the exception of hotel staff and official counterparts. At other times only “moderate” alcohol consumption is permitted.
The 12 Secret Service agents linked to the Cartagena scandal enjoyed a night out at a well-know strip bar in the city’s port area, reported to have involved large quantities of vodka.
They later returned to the five-star Hotel Caribe accompanied by a clutch of Colombian women.
The next morning a row over payment saw one woman fly into a rage and led to the discovery of as many as 20 women in American rooms.
The Secret Service removed the men from active duty and replaced them before President Barack Obama arrived for the Summit of the Americas, insisting that the president’s safety was never compromised.
Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano told Congress earlier this week that the incident in Colombia appeared to be an isolated case, saying she would be surprised if it represented a broader cultural problem.
According to research firm Strategy Analytics, Samsung Electronics has overtaken Nokia to become the world’s largest maker of mobile phones.
Nokia took the top spot in 1998 from Motorola, but in the first quarter of 2012 Samsung shipped 93 million phones compared to almost 83 million by Nokia.
Samsung also reported its highest quarterly profit since 2008.
Net profit was 5.05 trillion won ($4.5 billion) in the quarter ending 31 March, up 81% from 2.78 trillion won last year.
Samsung is also the world’s biggest TV and flat screen maker.
“We cautiously expect our earnings momentum to continue going forward, as competitiveness in our major businesses is enhanced,” said Robert Yi, head of investor relations at Samsung.
Samsung said its IT and mobile communications division, which manufactures the smartphones, made an operating profit of 4.27 trillion won during the period, as revenues in the division surged 86% from a year earlier.
Samsung Electronics has overtaken Nokia to become the world's largest maker of mobile phones
Samsung will unveil the latest version of its Galaxy range of phones on 3 May.
The Galaxy range has been very popular and helped Samsung overtake Apple to become the world’s biggest seller of smartphones.
“The smartphone market has almost only two players, Samsung and Apple,” said Lee Sei-Cheol of Meritz Securities.
“Since its Galaxy3 phone is being unveiled in May, Samsung will keep enjoying sales growth in its mobile phone division.”
Global demand for smartphones is expected to increase further in coming years, with research firm IDC forecasting that global smart phone shipments will rise by a third to 659.8 million units in 2012.
Analysts said that given its robust growth and dominance in the sector, Samsung was well placed to benefit from this growth and boost its market share.
However, given the robust growth in the sector, other smartphone makers are also keen to introduce new products and tap into the fast-growing market.
Samsung is facing stiff competition from rivals such as US-based Apple, Finland’s Nokia, and Taiwan’s HTC.
Apple, which said earlier this week that it sold 35 million of its iPhones in the first quarter, is expected to launch a new version of its handset later this year.
Analysts said that as more models are launched, manufacturers may have to the cut price of their handsets in a bid to attract consumers, a move that may see profit margins shrink.
“Samsung’s handset earnings may weaken in the latter half of this year, with the possible launch of Apple’s iPhone 5,” said Brian Park of Tong Yang Securities.
Another area of concern for Samsung is likely to be its chip manufacturing unit, which has been hurt by slowing global demand for personal computers.
The firm is one of the world’s biggest makers of dynamic random-access memory (DRAM) chips, which are widely used in personal computers.
However, demand for these chips has been declining as consumers turn to tablet PCs, which mostly use flash memory chips.
At the same time, falling prices have also hurt profitability in the sector.
Samsung’s memory-chip division saw its profits slide by 54% during the first quarter when compared with the same period a year earlier.
The company said it expected the demand for DRAM chips to rebound in the coming months, but warned that growing competition in the sector “will lead to a price decline”.
Blind Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng is in the US embassy in Beijing following his dramatic escape from house arrest, said activist Hu Jia.
Hu Jia said Chen Guangcheng had scaled a high wall and was driven hundreds of kilometres to Beijing.
Other, unconfirmed, reports say Chen Guangcheng is under “US protection” while talks take place with Chinese officials.
Chen Guangcheng escaped on Sunday, activists say, and has since released a video addressed to Prime Minister Wen Jiabao.
There are reports that his brother and nephew have now been held by police.
The rights group Human Rights in China quoted a source, who knew about Chen Guangcheng, and said his nephew Chen Kegui was taken away from his home by more than 30 police officers.
Chen Guangcheng’s escape complicates already tricky relations between China and the United States and could overshadow a visit to Beijing next week by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. She has repeatedly called for the dissident’s release.
The US state department has refused to comment on the claim that Chen Guangcheng is in its embassy. The US embassy in Beijing has also not commented.
In the latest development, the Texas-based ChinaAid group released a statement on Saturday saying it had “learned from a source close to the Chen Guangcheng situation that Chen is under US protection” in Beijing.
“High-level talks are currently under way between US and Chinese officials regarding Chen’s status,” said the group, which is led by Bob Fu, an American-based human rights campaigner and friend of Chen Guangcheng.
UN human rights chief Navi Pillay said she was concerned for the wellbeing of Chen Guangcheng and his family, who live in Dongshigu town, Shandong province.
“I’m disturbed to hear reports that other family members, including his brother Chen Guangfu and nephew Chen Kegui, have now been detained,” she said in a statement.
Unconfirmed reports say Chen Guangcheng is under "US protection" while talks take place with Chinese officials
Blogger Yaxue Cao says he spoke to Chen Kegui on Friday at about 01:30 local time, and he has transcribed the interview on his blog Seeing Red in China.
The transcript suggests that at the time of the interview Chen Guangfu had already been detained.
Chen Kegui was awaiting police arrest, having initially resisted an attempt to detain him by unidentified men less than two hours before by slashing at them with kitchen knives.
“Around midnight, about two hours ago, they entered our property by jumping over the enclosed walls, they pried open the locks and kicked on the doors. I heard my mother crying inside, helplessly: <<Please don’t come in! Please don’t come in!>>”
Chen Kegui, who often sobs during the interview, insists: “I did not take knives to go out to kill anyone. I was defending myself in my own home. They attempted to apprehend me without showing any warrant.”
The interview ends with Chen Kegui saying: “I don’t know whether the police are coming. Perhaps they will send a sniper to kill me. They would accuse me of killing. It’s all possible.”
Chen Guangcheng, 40, was placed under house arrest after being released from a four-year jail sentence in 2010. Reports suggest authorities only realized he had escaped on Thursday.
Hu Jia – a friend of Chen Guangcheng and himself a prominent activist and dissident – said he had met him in the last 72 hours, since his escape.
He said Chen Guangcheng had fled to the US embassy in Beijing.
In his video addressed to Prime Minister Wen, delivered from a darkened room, Chen Guangcheng said outwitting his guards had not been easy.
In the appeal, posted online by Boxun, a Chinese dissident news website based in the United States, he asks that:
• Prime Minister Wen investigate and prosecute local officials Chen Guangcheng says beat up his family members
• The safety of his family be ensured
• Corruption in general in China be dealt with and punished according to the law
The Chinese authorities have come under international criticism for their treatment of him. At one point his daughter was barred from school. Many sympathizers who have tried to visit his home say they have been beaten up.
A self-schooled legal activist, Chen Guangcheng is known for revealing rights abuses under China’s one-child policy and has accused officials in Shandong province of forcing 7,000 women into abortions or sterilizations.
He Peirong, another China-based activist who had also campaigned for Chen Guangcheng, has also been detained at her home in Nanjing according to other activists.
The Chen affair comes at an unwelcome time for China’s leaders, who have been embroiled in a lurid political scandal involving disgraced former party boss Bo Xilai.
Chen Guangcheng
• Born 12 November 1971
• Nickname: The Barefoot Lawyer
• Went blind as a child
• Campaigned for women forced to have abortions or sterilization under China’s one child per family policy
• Jailed for four years in 2006 for disrupting traffic and damaging property
• Released from jail in 2010 placed under house arrest
• Daughter barred from school during much of 2011, reports say
Microsoft has announced it quickly found a fix for a serious bug in its Hotmail webmail services.
The bug allowed a hacker to reset the password for a Hotmail account, locking out its owner and giving the attacker access to the inbox.
The fix was put together because the bug was starting to be actively exploited online.
One security news site reported that some hackers were offering to hack Hotmail accounts for $20.
Computer security researchers discovered the vulnerability in early April and told Microsoft about it soon afterwards. The bug revolved around the way Hotmail handles the data that must pass back and forth when a user wants to reset their password.
Microsoft has announced it quickly found a fix for a serious bug in its Hotmail webmail services
Details of the bug leaked out and led to attackers trying to find a way round it.
Using add-on tools for the Firefox browser, hackers realized they could tamper with the data passing between a user and Hotmail servers in a way that handed them control over an account they targeted.
As knowledge of the bug spread, some started offering to hack accounts for cash and others posted YouTube videos of Hotmail accounts being taken over in real time.
It is not clear how many Hotmail accounts have been hacked by attackers exploiting the bug. Those who have fallen victim will know because they will find they are locked out of their Hotmail account.
With the bug being “actively exploited”, Microsoft found a way to fix it and updated Hotmail to close the loophole a day or so later. Now Hotmail servers return an error when attackers try to manipulate data exchanges.
Microsoft issued a short statement about the fix and said no further action was needed by customers.
Hotmail is the world’s largest web-based email service and Microsoft claims that it has about 350 million users.
Athena Hohenberg’s quest make Nutella pay for advertising their hazelnut spread as a “nutritious” part of a “healthy breakfast” has yielded millions in rewards.
Ferrero U.S.A. Inc., an affiliate of Nutella’s Italian-based parent company, has to pay $4 to every person who purchased a jar of their chocolate treat between January 1, 2008 and February 3, 2012 in the entire country United States, a California court has ruled.
San Diego mother Athena Hohenberg said she was “shocked” to learn that the food she was feeding her family was not, in fact, “nutritious” but contained “dangerous levels of saturated fat”, her complaint alleges.
Athena Hohenberg and her lawyers went on to claim that Nutella intentionally presents their product as part of a “balanced breakfast” and features happy, healthy families enjoying it alongside fruit and whole wheat bread.
In reality, just two tablespoons of Nutella contain 200 calories – 100 of which come from fat. That’s the same as eating a Three Musketeers candy bar for breakfast.
These high levels of saturated fat and other sugary ingredients “significantly contribute to America’s alarming increase in childhood obesity” and can cause type-2 diabetes, heart disease, and other “serious health problems”, the suit claims.
Athena Hohenberg and her lawyers claimed that Nutella intentionally presents their product as part of a “balanced breakfast” and features happy, healthy families enjoying it alongside fruit and whole wheat bread
Athena Hohenberg demanded that Ferrero be forbidden from advertising Nutella as “healthy” or “nutritious” and refund all the money they earned from a “fraudulent campaign”.
In one TV commercial, a mother muses to herself about the perils of preparing breakfast and how Nutella comes to the rescue.
“Breakfast? In this house?” a blonde mother opines from her kitchen.
“In the morning, I can use all the help I can get. That’s why I love Nutella, a delicious hazelnut spread that’s perfect on multi-grain toast and even whole wheat waffles.”
“It’s a quick and easy way to give my family a breakfast they’ll want to eat. And Nutella is made with simple, quality ingredients like hazelnuts, skim milk, and a hint of cocoa. They love the taste, and I feel good that they’re ready to tackle the day. Nutella – breakfast never tasted this good.”
Citing photographs and commercials like this as proof, a court sided with Athena Hohenberg and awarded her class-action suit $3million.
As part of the settlement, anyone in the United States who purchased Nutella between January 1, 2008 and February 3, 2012 (between August 1, 2009 AND January 23, 2012 for California residents) can file a claim and join in the class action rewards.
People can claim their purchases until July 5, 2012 and expect $4 for a single purchase and up to 5 jars for a maximum award of $20 per household.
Ferrero also has agreed to modify the Nutella label, certain marketing statements about Nutella, create new television ads, and change the Nutella website.
Enterprise, NASA’s original prototype for the space shuttle program, took to the skies today for the first time in nearly 27 years for a historic sky show above the Manhattan skyline.
Secured to the top of a modified 747 Boeing jetliner, Enterprise took off on Friday morning from Dulles International Airport in Virginia for New York, where it landed just under two hours later at John F. Kennedy International Airport in Brooklyn.
On the way, it thrilled thousands of spectators by flying at low-attitude above some of Manhattan’s most iconic landmarks, including the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building and One World Trade Center, as it followed the Hudson River to the Tappan Zee Bridge and back.
The spectacle is part of the space agency’s process of wrapping up the shuttle program and comes just ten days after Space Shuttle Discovery soared over the Washington Monument, White House and the Capitol before landing at Dulles International Airport in Virginia.
Crowds gathered at JFK Airport in anticipation of the arrival. Spectators flocked to piers along the Hudson River, to the harbor at Battery Park and scrambled onto roof tops for the best views as the shuttle approached the skyline at 10:30 a.m.
Enterprise was chased through the air by a NASA plane and by numerous ferries and other boats zooming along the Hudson. Photographs capture the moment it soared over landmarks including the Statue of Liberty and the Rockefeller Center and parts of the city, such as Long Island and Staten Island.
“There it goes: Space Shuttle Enterprise flying over,” staff at the Lincoln Center tweeted.
“An amazing view!”
It had been scheduled to fly on Monday and then again on Wednesday but NASA pushed the journey back due to bad weather. Fears of strong winds did not deter the flight on Friday and it took off on time at 9:39 a.m.
Enterprise landed at John F. Kennedy International Airport to cheers from thousands of spectators – including school children from New York, New Jersey and Connecticut – shortly after 11:20 a.m.
“Touchdown at JFK!” NASA declared on Twitter.
At the Kennedy tower, air traffic controllers had been busy fielding inquiries from pilots circling in other planes. They were told their planes would be delayed from landing because of “special activity”.
As the Boeing and its auspicious cargo landed, the controller said to the shuttle craft: “Welcome to New York, and thanks for the show.”
Enterprise took to the skies today for the first time in nearly 27 years for a historic sky show above the Manhattan skyline
Now there, it will be removed from the jetliner. In June, it will be transported by barge up the Hudson River to its final resting place – Manhattan’s Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum on the city’s west side.
It will be “the largest and most significant space artifact in the Northeast”, according to said Susan Marenoff-Zausner, the museum’s president.
She told CNN: “It is so exciting for school trips, for universities and other people we partner with. We’re so excited we now has this representation in the Northeast. It is the largest NASA artifact north of Baltimore.”
Visitors viewed the shuttle’s flight across the city from a vantage point at the Intrepid, a converted aircraft carrier used in World War II. The museum also invited 1,500 special guests to see the landing at the airport, including New York state and local elected officials.
Enterprise will be transported to the museum by barge in June and the museum expects to open its exhibit in mid-July.
“When somebody comes to visit, they will not only see the shuttle itself, but will have an engaging and interactive experience inside the pavilion,” Susan Marenoff-Zausner told the Associated Press.
NASA’s shuttle program ended last summer. After its flight two weeks ago, Discovery will take Enterprise’s place at the Smithsonian. Shuttle Endeavor will fly to Los Angeles, California and shuttle Atlantis is remaining at Florida’s Kennedy Space Center.
Unlike these other crafts, Enterprise has never been used in a space mission but was a prototype used to test atmosphere and for experiments on the ground. It was rolled out in December 1976 and was crucial to the development of the shuttle program before the agency launched Discovery in 1981.
Enterprise was originally going to be named the Constitution, but a campaign staged by fans of the 1960s sci-fi television series Star Trek persuaded officials to name it after the show’s fictional starship. A photograph taken shortly after shows the cast posing in front of the shuttle.
While Enterprise was constructed without engines or a suitable heat shield, it did fly in 1977 – after it was mounted to the top of a NASA 747, similar to the flight it will take over New York City today.
After carrying out tests throughout the late 1970s and early 1980s, Enterprise retired and some of its parts were used in other shuttles.
NASA sent Enterprise on a tour of Europe and Canada in 1983. It made a brief return to service as a ground test vehicle in 1984 and finally retired in November 1985 when it was transported to Washington D.C. and became part of the Smithsonian Institution.
Susan Marenoff-Zausner said the fact the shuttle has never been on a mission does not make it any less exciting.
“This is an institution in American history,” she said.
“This tested so many different things that without it, travel into space would never have happened.”
She believes interest in the shuttle will increase the number of annual visitors by 30%, to 1.3 million over the year.
Once at the museum, the Enterprise will be hoisted by crane to a deck. The museum is housed at a 900-foot-long aircraft carrier that was used during World War II and the Vietnam War and also served as a recovery vessel for NASA’s space program.
The U.S. retired its space shuttles last year after finishing construction of the $100 billion International Space Station to begin work on a new generation of spaceships that can carry astronauts to destinations beyond the station’s 240-mile-high orbit, Reuters reported.
NASA has been flying the shuttles to cities around the nation for display.
There had been a squabble over where Enterprise would be exhibited, with the Space Center in Houston, Texas making a bid for the shuttle. Yet NASA’s decision was based upon maximum exposure for the craft, CNN reported, meaning they were swayed by bids from New York, Florida and California.
Romania’s centre-right government led by PM Mihai Razvan Ungureanu lost a confidence vote today after 78 days of governing.
The no-confidence bill was filed by the liberal and centre-left opposition (USL) and won 235 votes in the 471-seat chamber, while the government was backed by only got 9 lawmakers. It is for the second time parliament has dismissed a government since the fall of Communism in 1989.
Romania's centre-right government lead by PM Mihai Razvan Ungureanu lost a confidence vote today after 78 days of governing
The issue at stake were cuts to wages and pensions aimed at scrapping some of the imbalances in the system and requested by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
President Traian Basescu will nominate a new prime minister who must then win parliament’s approval.
Opposition leader Victor Ponta welcomed the vote saying it marked the end of “an abusive system that uses any weapon possible”.
At least 27 people have been injured after four explosions have rocked the city of Dnipropetrovsk in eastern Ukraine.
The first two blasts happened at a busy central tram stop and near a local cinema, according to officials.
All the devices were apparently planted in rubbish bins.
No suspects have been identified yet and such an attack is unusual for Dnipropetrovsk. The industrial city is the birthplace of jailed opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko.
At least 27 people have been injured after four explosions have rocked the city of Dnipropetrovsk in eastern Ukraine
“This is yet another challenge for us, for the entire nation,” President Viktor Yanukovych said.
The first explosion injured five and the next, 30 minutes later, injured seven.
Tensions are running high over the alleged mistreatment of Yulia Tymoshenko. She was a leader of the pro-Western Orange Revolution in 2004 but her chief rival, Viktor Yanukovych, won an election in 2010 and forged closer ties with Russia.
Ukraine is also preparing to co-host the Euro 2012 football tournament this summer.
