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The New iPad: thousands of fans spent hours in line outside Apple’s flaship store across the world to get the tablet

Nancy Clayson
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The New iPad: thousands of fans spent hours in line outside Apple’s flaship store across the world to get the tablet

More than 750 gadget fans spent hours of waiting in line outside Apple’s flagship store in New York to get their hands on the new iPad, which went on sale at 8:00 a.m. today.

The lines outside the Fifth Avenue store were even longer than experts expected, with people huddling together in sleeping bags – and others making money off their places in the line.

Amanda Foote, who camped for nearly 48 hours, received an offer of $1,000 for her spot, behind only two other customers – but was hoping to collect even more for the coveted position.

The queues through the night – across the United States and the nine other countries where the iPad was launched – came despite Apple accepting online orders a week ago.

According to experts, the lines through city centres are worth $700 million to Apple. Not only are customers forking out $499 for an iPad, but they are giving Apple millions in free publicity.

Analysts told SmartMoney that the coverage is worth more than Apple’s worldwide marketing budget, which was nearly $700 million in 2010.

“The Apple lines have become a cultural phenomenon,” social psychologist Matt Wallaert said.

“You couldn’t advertise your way into the images of adoring fans that led to Beatlemania. Apple has achieved exactly that.”

Patient customers across the country said the product was well worth the wait.

“The screen resolution is amazing,” Robby Grossman told the Boston Globe. Tech reviewer Daniel Romero added: “After an hour of use I can say it was worth spending $500 and waiting in line for.”

More than 750 gadget fans spent hours of waiting in line outside Apple's flagship store in New York to get their hands on the new iPad
More than 750 gadget fans spent hours of waiting in line outside Apple's flagship store in New York to get their hands on the new iPad

Others were battling the queues to make a profit.

Dan Krolikowski, 34, was first in line at a Madison, Wisconsin mall after arriving 14 hours early.

“Last year I sold one on eBay and made over $500 in profit,” Dan Krolikowski said from his reclining chair at the head of the line.

“I’m hoping to do that again this year.”

At the flagship Apple Store on New York’s Fifth Avenue, the way many customers were paying for two iPads each suggested many of the tablets were destined to be resold abroad.

“My buddy’s paying me $120 to wait in line for him,” he said.

“He’s going to come over here at eight and pay for the iPads – he’s buying two of them.”

The line-up of fanatics at the store was comprised of many people who turned out for the launch of the iPad 2 last year, according to Russian Michael Sochin, 29.

When asked why he felt the need to get the iPad on the day of its release, rather than skipping the queues and waiting for a week, Michael Sochin said: “I don’t know… it’s like a drug.”

Reviewers are gushing over the new iPad 3.1million pixel screen, comparing the experience to that first moment of putting on prescription glasses after years of poor eyesight
Reviewers are gushing over the new iPad 3.1million pixel screen, comparing the experience to that first moment of putting on prescription glasses after years of poor eyesight

A queue has already formed outside the flagship Apple store on London’s Regent Street as people wait to snap up the gadget when it goes on sale.

Zohaib Ali, 21, of Uxbridge, who is the first in line after queuing for five days, said: “The iPad is the best product of the year and there won’t be any more until 2013 so I am happy to queue. I love Apple products.”

Zohaib Ali suffers from autism and his mother, Rahat Ali, believes that Apple products have helped him overcome his disability.

Rahat Ali said: “Apple products are very good for autism. They are very easy to use and he is relaxed when he is using them. Usually he doesn’t want to go out in a crowd but he is very happy queuing here.”

The tablet computer, which has a higher resolution screen than previous models and a five megapixel camera with auto focus and auto exposure, ranges in price from £399 ($630) to £659 ($1,040) in UK.

Despite competition from cheaper rivals the iPad remains the most popular tablet computer. Apple has sold more than 55 million iPads since its launch in 2010, including 40 million last year.

Zohaib Ali’s friend, Ali Tarighi, 18, of Acton, has been queuing with him since Saturday morning. He said of the new iPad: “I wanted to be one of the first to get my hands on it really.”

Ali Tarighi added: “It can be hard at times, especially at nights. It gets really cold but it’s going to feel great when I hold the iPad up in triumph.”

Those waiting were handed free food and drink by companies they had contacted through Twitter.

Harry Barrington-Mountford, 22, of Upminster queued to buy the iPad 2 with his girlfriend Fenella Barnes, 30, and is now waiting for the newest model.

He said: “We had such a great time queuing last time that we decided to do it again. People always stop to talk to us. I am exhausted though, I have only had about 45 minutes of sleep.”

Fenella Barnes is not intending to buy an iPad for herself but is queuing up to buy one for a friend. She said: “I have been tempted to get one but I haven’t been tempted enough. If I had a spare £500 [$790] then maybe I would consider it!”

Customers have also been queueing overnight in other countries including France and Singapore.

The very first customer in the world to buy the new device was 34-year-old construction manager David Tarasenko, who grabbed one at the stroke of midnight at a Telstra store in Melbourne, Australia.

While the new pad is more of an evolution than a revolution in most areas, it is not hyperbole to refer to the display as a revolutionary jump, and it appears to be love at first sight for every single person who gets a glimpse.

Reviewers are gushing over the 3.1million pixel screen, comparing the experience to that first moment of putting on prescription glasses after years of poor eyesight.

While Apple are notoriously clever at pre-launch PR, and cherry-pick their review outlets, even the most unbiased of reviewers, such as the highly-regarded Walt Mossberg of AllThingsDigital, can’t help but fall in love with the crystal-clear display.

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Belgium: day of national mourning to remember victims of the Switzerland coach crash

Diane A. Wade
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Belgium: day of national mourning to remember victims of the Switzerland coach crash

Belgium is holding a day of national mourning by coming to a standstill for a minute’s silence at 11:00 a.m. and with flags being flown at half mast to remember the 28 victims of the Switzerland coach crash.

After the minute’s silence, church bells rang out.

Two planes carrying the bodies of those killed have landed at Melsbroek military airport in Belgium.

The C130 planes left Switzerland following a memorial ceremony.

Twenty-two of those killed when the coach struck the wall of a tunnel on the way back from a school skiing trip were children.

Eight of the injured children were flown home on Thursday, but many survivors are still in hospital.

It has emerged that one of the victims was an 11-year-old British boy who had been a pupil at St. Lambertus School in Heverlee.

Sebastian Bowles’s parents Edward and Ann flew to Brussels on Thursday night after identifying their son’s body in Switzerland, a school spokesman confirmed.

The four most seriously injured children are being treated at hospitals in Lausanne and Bern.

Belgium is holding a day of national mourning to remember the 28 victims of the Switzerland coach crash
Belgium is holding a day of national mourning to remember the 28 victims of the Switzerland coach crash

Family members of the dead children who had travelled to Switzerland visited the crash site on Thursday, some laying flowers in the tunnel.

They also faced the daunting task of identifying their children’s bodies.

Most of the victims of Tuesday night’s disaster were around 12 years old. In addition to the British boy, six of the dead children had Dutch nationality; the others were Belgian.

The authorities have refused to comment on suggestions in Swiss and Belgian media that the coach driver may have been changing a DVD at the time of the crash.

Swiss police spokesman Renato Kalbermatten said CCTV from the tunnel did not confirm the disk theory, which he described as “pure speculation at this stage”.

All the adults on board the coach were killed in the crash.

The group had spent a week skiing in Val d’Anniviers in the Swiss Alps and were travelling home on one of three buses hired by a Christian group. The other two coaches reached Belgium safely.

Those on board the bus that crashed were from the Stekske primary school in Lommel, near the Dutch border, and from St. Lambertus in Heverlee, near Leuven (Louvain).

A memorial service was held in Lommel on Thursday evening.

Police there said 2,500 people attended the service, at St Joseph’s Catholic church next to the school, AFP reports.

Rows of chairs were set up outside the church for residents to watch the service on a large screen.

A message of condolence from Pope Benedict XVI was read out.

A Vatican statement said the Pope was praying for the bereaved families and expressed his deepest sympathy for the injured and the emergency workers. He had conferred a special apostolic blessing on all affected by the tragedy.

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North Korea plans rocket launch next month to mark Kim Il-Sung 100th birthday

Roy Siemens
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North Korea plans rocket launch next month to mark Kim Il-Sung 100th birthday

North Korea has announced the launch of a satellite mounted on a rocket to mark the 100th birthday of its late former President Kim Il-Sung.

The rocket launch will take place between 12 and 16 April, a spokesman for the Korean Committee for Space Technology said.

South Korea said the launch would be a “grave provocation” and Japan urged the North to “exercise restraint”.

The move is seen as violating UN Security Council resolutions passed after a similar launch in 2009.

Japan is particularly concerned as North Korea’s April 2009 rocket was launched over the country.

Japan’s chief cabinet secretary, Osamu Fujimura, told a news conference on Friday that his country had set up a crisis management taskforce to monitor the situation and was co-operating with the US and South Korea.

“We believe a launch would be a move to interfere with our effort toward a dialogue, and we strongly urge North Korea not to carry out a satellite launch,” Osamu Fujimura said.

North Korea plans of launching a rocket in April is seen as violating UN Security Council resolutions passed after a similar launch in 2009
North Korea plans of launching a rocket in April is seen as violating UN Security Council resolutions passed after a similar launch in 2009

South Korea’s foreign ministry said such a move would be a “clear violation” of UN Security Council Resolutions.

“It would be a grave provocation threatening the peace and security of the Korean peninsula and north-east Asia,” the ministry said in a statement.

Last month, Pyongyang agreed to suspend long-range missile tests.

The agreement was part of a deal for the United States to supply 240,000 tons of food aid to North Korea.

In the 2009 launch, Pyongyang said the satellite made it into orbit and characterized it as a test of its satellite technology.

The move drew condemnation from the US and South Korea and led to the UN resolutions prohibiting the North from nuclear and ballistic missile activity.

Foreign officials said there were no indications that a satellite had reached space and that the launch was a cover for Pyongyang to test long-range missile technology.

The launch next month of a ”working satellite”, the Kwangmyongsong-3, is an opportunity for ”putting the country’s technology of space use for peaceful purposes on a higher stage”, said a North Korean spokesman.

The rocket would be launched from the Solace Satellite Launching Station in Cholsan county, North Pyongan province on the country’s west coast.

State media also reported that the North has already launched two experimental satellites.

 

Afghan massacre US soldier had received body and brain injuries while serving in Iraq

Roy Siemens
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Afghan massacre US soldier had received body and brain injuries while serving in Iraq

The US soldier accused of the Afghan massacre on Sunday, when he shot dead 16 civilians, had received body and brain injuries while serving in Iraq and was unhappy about going for another tour of duty, his lawyer John Henry Browne says.

John Henry Browne said the soldier – who has not been named – had already completed three tours in Iraq.

The lawyer also said the accused had witnessed his friend’s leg blown off the day before the killings.

Sunday’s shootings have placed new strains on the US in Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, a NATO helicopter carrying Turkish troops has crashed into a house on the outskirts of the capital Kabul killing at least 12 soldiers and two children on the ground.

The death toll is the heaviest single loss of life so far for Turkish troops in Afghanistan, of whom there are currently more than 1,800.

A technical fault was to blame, according to police.

The Taliban called off peace talks in the wake of the deadly rampage – in which men, women and children were shot and killed at close range – although they made no mention of the massacre in the statement.

However, the US later stressed it remained committed to Afghan reconciliation despite the move by the Taliban.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai has also told the US that it must pull back its troops from village areas and allow Afghan security forces to take the lead in an effort to reduce civilian deaths.

Speaking in Seattle, where the accused soldier is based at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, John Henry Browne said his new client was a "mild-mannered" man who bore no antipathy towards Muslims
Speaking in Seattle, where the accused soldier is based at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, John Henry Browne said his new client was a "mild-mannered" man who bore no antipathy towards Muslims

Speaking in Seattle, where the accused soldier is based at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, John Henry Browne said his new client was a “mild-mannered” man who bore no antipathy towards Muslims.

The lawyer described the US soldier as “a decorated soldier” with an exemplary record before the shooting.

He also suggested the soldier was not fit to serve in Afghanistan because of injuries he had suffered on previous tours of duty.

“I think it’s of interest that we have a soldier who has an exemplary record, a decorated soldier who was injured in Iraq, to his brain and to his body and then despite that was sent back,” John Henry Browne said.

John Henry Browne, who has represented a number of high-profile clients including serial killer Ted Bundy and a teenage thief known as the Barefoot Bandit, said his client was a happily married man with two children, aged three and four.

He denied reports that the accused had problems either with alcohol or his marriage, which John Henry Browne described as “fantastic”.

The US military has not yet charged the soldier, and Jonh Henry Browne said he would not release the accused’s name until it was made public by officials.

However, despite the shock of the killings, John Henry Browne called for calm and for the soldier to receive a fair hearing.

“It’s a tragedy all the way round, there’s no question about that.

“I think the message for the public in general is that he’s one of our boys and they need to treat him fairly.”

Separately, an un-named US military official told the New York Times that the suspect had simply “snapped”, and confirmed that he was on his fourth combat tour.

“When it all comes out, it will be a combination of stress, alcohol and domestic issues – he just snapped,” the official said.

The soldier was flown out of Afghanistan on Wednesday and taken to a US military base in Kuwait.

According to the New York Times, the soldier may be moved to a US facility, such as Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, as early as Friday.

The newspaper said Kuwaiti protests over the presence of the accused soldier within their borders had prompted the US to move him quickly.

The attack, in Kandahar province, was the latest in a string of damaging incidents involving US troops in Afghanistan.

Last month, the burning of Korans by troops sparked a string of violent protests in several areas.

The latest attack has also caused uproar, with about 2,000 people demonstrating in the southern province of Zabul on Thursday, the second major protest outside Kandahar this week.

 

NATO helicopter crashed in Kabul kills at least 12 Turkish soldiers and 2 children

Roy Siemens
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NATO helicopter crashed in Kabul kills at least 12 Turkish soldiers and 2 children

At least 12 Turkish soldiers and two children have been killed after a NATO helicopter has fallen on a house in Kabul, Afghan officials say.

The Turkish helicopter crashed into a house in Bagrami, a suburb of the Afghan capital, after developing technical problems, a police source told Reuters.

According to a NATO official, there were no reports of insurgent activity.

At least 12 Turkish soldiers and two children have been killed after a NATO helicopter has fallen on a house in Kabul
At least 12 Turkish soldiers and two children have been killed after a NATO helicopter has fallen on a house in Kabul

Turkey, the only Muslim-majority member of NATO, currently has 1,845 soldiers serving as peacekeepers in Afghanistan.

Its soldiers with the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) are limited to patrols and do not take part in combat operations.

A diplomat at the Turkish foreign ministry in Ankara confirmed for AFP news agency that a Turkish helicopter had crashed in Kabul.

 

Male Fruit Flies Rejected by Females Drink More Alcohol, Say Scientists

James J. Williams
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Male Fruit Flies Rejected by Females Drink More Alcohol, Say Scientists

Scientists have discovered that male fruit flies that have been rejected by females drink significantly more alcohol than those that have mated freely.

Published in Science, the study suggests that alcohol stimulates the flies’ brains as a “reward” in a similar way to sexual conquest.

The work points to a brain chemical called neuropeptide F, which seems to be regulated by the flies’ behavior.

Human brains have a similar chemical, which may react in a similar way.

The connection between alcohol and this chemical, which in humans is known as neuropeptide Y, has already been noted in studies involving hard-drinking mice.

The new work explores the link between such reward-seeking and the study of social interactions, said the lead author of the report Galit Shohat-Ophir, now of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute in Virginia, US.

“It is thought that reward systems evolved to reinforce behaviors that are important for the survival of both individuals and species, like food consumption and mating,” said Dr. Galit Shohat-Ophir.

“Drugs of abuse kind of hijack the same neural pathways used by natural rewards, so we wanted to use alcohol – which is an extreme example of a compound that can affect the reward system – to get into the mechanism of what makes social interaction rewarding for animals.”

Working in the laboratory of Ulrike Heberlein at the University of California, San Francisco, Dr. Galit Shohat-Ophir and colleagues subjected a number of flies to a wide variety of fates.

In one set of experiments, male flies were put in a box with five virgin females, which were receptive to the males’ advances. In another, males were locked up with females that had already mated and which thus roundly rejected the males’ attempts at sex.

Offered either their normal food slurry or a version charged with 15% alcohol, the mated males avoided the alcohol, whereas the sexually deprived males went on a comparative bender.

The team then went on a hunt for a chemical that could tie the two parts of this story together, hitting on neuropeptide F (NPF).

Scientists have discovered that male fruit flies that have been rejected by females drink significantly more alcohol than those that have mated freely
Photo: Flickr by Jared B

Scientists found that the heavy-drinking rejected males had a lowered level of the chemical, and sated, mated males had an elevated level.

“What we think is that these NPF levels are some kind of <<molecular signature>> to the experience,” Dr. Galit Shohat-Ophir explained.

To show that the NPF is actually responsible for the change rather than just associated with it, the researchers actively manipulated just how much NPF was in the flies’ brains.

Those with depressed levels acted like the rejected males, and those with elevated levels behaved like the mated males.

“What this leads us to think is that the fly brain – and presumably also other animals’ and human brains – have some kind of a system to control their level of internal reward, that once the internal reward level is down-regulated it will be followed by behavior that will restore it back,” Dr. Galit Shohat-Ophir said.

It is tempting, given that humans share a similar brain chemical, to imagine that NPF drives human behavior as well.

However, in an accompanying article in Science, Troy Zars of the University of Missouri wrote that “anthropomorphizing the results from flies is difficult to suppress, but the relevance to human behavior is obviously not yet established”.

Nevertheless, he suggested, “links a rewarding social interaction with a lasting change in behavior”.

“Identifying the NPF system as critical in this linkage offers exciting prospects for determining the molecular and genetic mechanisms of reward and could potentially influence our understanding of the mechanisms of drugs of abuse.”

Avaaz.org – Donate to stop rape and murder for profit

Roy Siemens
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Avaaz.org – Donate to stop rape and murder for profit

Dear friends,

When security forces of a Canadian mining company brutally evicted Mayan families from their villages in Guatemala, eleven women were raped, a community leader was killed, and a young man paralyzed. Now villagers are standing up and suing HudBay Minerals for these horrific crimes — but they need our help to match the corporate legal firepower and win their case!

The victims have filed a lawsuit in Canada, where HudBay’s headquarters are located. But HudBay is asking that the court turn over the lawsuit to Guatemala, where its weak courts are likely to let them go free. Experts say that the ruling could have massive reverberations beyond Canadian borders — a win for the plaintiffs could force HudBay and other multinationals to clean up their acts abroad.

The court hearing is happening now and the plaintiffs need our help to cover the legal costs — if we raise enough funds, we can give these villagers the same legal firepower as HudBay’s corporate machine, achieve justice for the victims, and continue campaigning to protect human rights over profits around the world. Click on the link below to chip in. If just 20,000 of us donate today, we could help end these mining murders for good by setting a key legal precedent:

https://secure.avaaz.org/en/stop_murder_and_rape_for_profit/

Multinational companies are responsible for some of the most terrible crimes all over the world but shockingly, corporate abuses often go unpunished. In mining alone, corporate giants like Rio Tinto and Barrick Gold are accused of a wide range of atrocities that include environmental destruction, brutal gang rapes, and even thousands of deaths — from Tanzania to Papua New Guinea. Winning this case could begin to put corporate wrongdoing in check.

Companies like HudBay can often act with impunity because they think their countries’ courts won’t police the crimes they commit overseas. Or they set up shell corporations designed to protect their headquarters from liability. If we win this case, it could set a precedent that can help stop rapes, save entire villages, and protect fragile ecosystems — no matter where these companies operate.

These firms have millions of dollars and will do whatever it takes to win this and similar cases because they know it’s a game changer. Giving just a small amount will help in the fight to bring them to justice. Click here to help:

https://secure.avaaz.org/en/stop_murder_and_rape_for_profit/

Courts are supposed to be places where people go to get justice. But all too often, corporate interests have made them the bastions of the rich and powerful. We have taken on deep rooted corruption before and won. Now let’s stand with and empower these victims and help create a world where no one is above the law.

With hope and determination,

Emma, Jamie, Pascal, Ari, Ricken, Maria Paz, Diego and the whole Avaaz team

Donate Here

Sources

Widow files $12M suit against mining company (CBC)
http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2010/12/02/mining-lawsuit002.html

Guatemalan lawsuits to continue against HudBay, says lawyer (Mining Weekly)
http://www.miningweekly.com/article/lawsuits-against-hudbay-over-guatemalan-project-to-continue-says-lawyer-2011-08-10

Lawsuits against Canadian company HudBay Minerals Inc. over human rights abuse in Guatemala (Klippensteins)
http://www.chocversushudbay.com/

Award Winning Mining Company Being Sued for Violent Death of Community Leader: Industry Out of Step with Canadian Values and Expectations (Mining Watch Canada)
http://www.miningwatch.ca/fr/node/6609

U.S. court revives human rights case against Rio Tinto (Financial Post)
http://business.financialpost.com/2011/10/25/u-s-court-revives-human-rights-case-against-rio-tinto/

Claims of sexual abuses in Tanzania blow to Barrick Gold (Globe and Mail)
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/africa-mideast/claims-of-sexual-abuses-in-tanzania-blow-to-barrick-gold/article2040735/

About Avaaz.org:


Avaaz.org is a 13-million-person global campaign network that works to ensure that the views and values of the world’s people shape global decision-making. (“Avaaz” means “voice” or “song” in many languages.) Avaaz members live in every nation of the world; our team is spread across 13 countries on 4 continents and operates in 14 languages. Learn about some of Avaaz’s biggest campaigns here, or follow us on Facebook or Twitter.

US soldier who shot dead 16 Afghan civilians has been flown to Kuwait

Roy Siemens
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US soldier who shot dead 16 Afghan civilians has been flown to Kuwait

The American soldier who shot dead 16 civilians, including women and children, in Afghanistan on Sunday has been flown to Kuwait, US officials say.

Afghan MPs have demanded that the man be tried in Afghanistan, but the scenario is very unlikely.

Meanwhile an Afghan man who crashed a lorry at an airfield as the US defense secretary’s plane was arriving has died of his injuries, officials say.

US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta was not at risk at any time, US officials said.

Lt. Gen. Curtis Scaparrotti said the man had apparently tried to ram the stolen vehicle into a group of US Marines at Camp Bastion in Helmand.

Leon Panetta was in Helmand to address US troops, as fears mount that they could be the target of a backlash against foreign forces.

He also met Afghan President Hamid Karzai in an effort to rebuild relations rocked by incidents such as the massacre in Kandahar and the burnings of Korans at a US military base last month.

The attack in Kandahar province has caused outrage across Afghanistan and protests in several areas. On Thursday about 2,000 people demonstrated in the southern Afghan province of Zabul, the second major protest outside Kandahar this week.

NATO has insisted that the detained man carried out the killings on his own.

But the head of an Afghan parliamentary delegation said he has heard evidence from local villagers which suggests as many as 20 US soldiers were involved.

About 2,000 people demonstrated in the southern Afghan province of Zabul after the US soldier shot dead 16 civilians in Kandahar
About 2,000 people demonstrated in the southern Afghan province of Zabul after the US soldier shot dead 16 civilians in Kandahar

Sayed Ishaq Gillani, a leading Afghan MP, also claims that helicopters were heard overhead, and that they were seen dropping chaff – a measure designed to protect aircraft from ground attack.

Sayed Ishaq Gillani said local people believe the killings were carried out in revenge for an attack a week earlier in which several US troops were hurt.

The victims were shot in their homes in the remote Panjwai district of Kandahar, which is also the spiritual homeland of the Taliban.

According to the NATO version of events, the staff sergeant, who has not been named or charged, allegedly left his base in southern Afghanistan before dawn on Sunday, entered several houses in the area and shot men, women and children at close range.

The soldier was held by the US military in Kandahar until Wednesday evening, when he was flown out of the country “based on legal recommendation”, a Pentagon spokesman, Captain John Kirby said.

“We do not have appropriate detention facilities in Afghanistan,” Captain John Kirby said.

A NATO official later confirmed that the suspect had been flown to Kuwait.

Members of the Afghan parliament had demanded that he should be put on trial in their country.

But this was never going to happen. The US has always insisted that charges of wrongdoing by its soldiers be dealt with within the American military legal system.

US officials say the soldier handed himself in. Leon Panetta has said that if found guilty, he could face the death penalty.

Officials said the soldier had completed several tours in Iraq but was on his first tour of duty in Afghanistan.

NATO and the US administration have insisted that there will be no change of strategy in Afghanistan. The issue has been at the top of the agenda as the UK’s Prime Minister David Cameron makes a state visit to Washington.

NATO’s International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) plans to withdraw all of its combat forces by the end of 2014. American troops are also following that timetable.

 

Wallis Simpson hated Marilyn Monroe for being on the front page, revealed Charles Pick’s memoirs

Diane A. Wade
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Wallis Simpson hated Marilyn Monroe for being on the front page, revealed Charles Pick’s memoirs

The late literary agent Charles Pick’s memoirs revealed why Wallis Simpson hated Marilyn Monroe alongside other encounters with 20th century icons, including the Duke of Windsor and the Queen, that he racked up over the course of his career.

The memoirs, Charles Pick’s diaries, letters and photographs are available to view for the first time at the University of East Anglia, after the agent’s son Martin donated them.

Charles Pick, who died in 2000 aged 82, had a star-studded client list; John Steinbeck, JB Priestley, Roald Dahl, John Le Carré and Catherine Cookson were just a smattering of authors he represented.

He had been summoned to Paris by Wallis Simpson to discuss her 1956 autobiography The Heart Has Its Reasons.

Instead of greeting Charles Pick, Wallis Simpson’s first remark as she rose from her chaise longue, “a large, round box of Charbonnel et Walker chocolates” placed within arms reach, was about Marilyn Monroe.

“Can you please tell me who Marilyn Monroe’s publicity agent is?” Wallis Simpson asked.

Charles Pick said he had to confess he had no idea and asked why she wanted to know.

“Look, I have all the newspapers each day and I was generally on the front page. But now I see that Marilyn Monroe is on the front page. Well, somebody has pushed me off!” said Wallis Simpson.

“I could see I was in for a difficult time, but I explained that I wasn’t in any way able to help her in displacing Marilyn Monroe in her favor,” Charles Pick wrote.

Charles Pick's memoirs reveal Wallis Simpson was furious when Marilyn Monroe started to appear on newspaper front pages in place of her
Charles Pick's memoirs reveal Wallis Simpson was furious when Marilyn Monroe started to appear on newspaper front pages in place of her

The memoir offers a unique insight into a different age. Charles Pick mentions the time Out of Africa author Karen Blixen checked in for her Pan Am flight with a bottle of Moet et Chandon and a dozen oysters, so appalled was she by the airline’s “plastic” food.

Charles Pick also recalls accompanying The Grapes of Wrath author John Steinbeck, to his Nobel Prize dinner and noted he had “given up hard liquor and was just drinking beer” that evening.

He drank vermouths with Graham Greene in Antibes and was fed seconds of steak and kidney pie by author Catherine Cookson.

Charles Pick started his career as an office boy for Victor Gallancz in 1933 before moving into sales.

Two years later he went to a Hampstead bookshop and tried to sell copies of a “marvellous new book” called Burmese Days by a young lad named George Orwell.

An Eric Blair was behind the counter that day and said he knew George Orwell very well – of course, it was Orwell himself working as a part-time assistant using his real name.

After stints at Gallancz and Michael Joseph, Charles Pick moved to Heinemann where he eventually became chairman. After his retirement in 1984 he remained a literary consultant to Wilbur Smith, one of many authors he discovered.

Charles Pick had close friendships with his writers, but feared the loyalty he had enjoyed was becoming a thing of the past as authors would “go off to cheque book publishers and be snapped up if they were successful”.

He was proved right of course, but what he would make of today’s burgeoning self publishing industry we’ll never know.

 

President Hamid Karzai asked NATO troops to leave Afghan villages

Roy Siemens
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President Hamid Karzai asked NATO troops to leave Afghan villages

President Hamid Karzai called for NATO troops to leave Afghan villages and confine themselves to major bases after 16 civilians were shot dead by a U.S. soldier.

In a near-simultaneous announcement, the Afghan Taliban said it was suspending nascent peace talks with the United States seen as a strong chance to end the country’s decade-long conflict, blaming “shaky, erratic and vague” U.S. statements.

Hamid Karzai, in a statement after meeting U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta in Kabul, said as a consequence of the weekend massacre, “international security forces have to be taken out of Afghan village outposts and return to (larger) bases”.

In advance of his visit an Afghan man who apparently targeted U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta in a suicide attack at Britain’s main base in Afghanistan died of his injuries.

The civilian had sustained severe burns after driving on to a runway at Camp Bastion at the same time as Leon Panetta was landing for a visit to U.S. troops and local political leaders.

International security forces have to be taken out of Afghan villages, said President Hamid Karzai after meeting U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta in Kabul
International security forces have to be taken out of Afghan villages, said President Hamid Karzai after meeting U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta in Kabul

The US soldier accused of carrying out the shooting was attached to a small special forces compound similar to others around the country which underpin NATO’s anti-insurgent strategy ahead of a 2014 deadline for Western combat forces to pull out.

The incident has harmed relations between Afghanistan and the United States and “all efforts have to be done to avoid such incident in the future”, Hamid Karzai said on Thursday, warning it also had hurt the trust Afghans had in foreign forces.

The Sunday killings in Kandahar province on Sunday have raised questions about Western strategy in Afghanistan and intensified calls for the withdrawal of foreign combat troops.

The Taliban decision to suspend the talks was a blow to NATO hopes of a negotiated settlement to the war, which has cost the United States $510 billion and the lives of over 1,900 soldiers.

 

Google Semantic Search will soon answer questions instead of hunting words

Nancy Clayson
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Google Semantic Search will soon answer questions instead of hunting words

In a drastic makeover for the search engine, Google search will soon “answer questions” instead of just hunting words.

Google searches will no longer throw up a simple list of blue links – a huge change for the page that forms the world’s “doorway” to the web.

Within few months, the top of the Results page will be dotted with information that “answers questions” posed in Search.

The move echoes what Microsoft has done with its Bing search engine.

Bing is the second most-popular search engine in the U.S. – and built to deliver answers to questions.

“People today expect more than 10 blue links on a page,” says Microsoft.

Google has quietly amassed information on 200 million of “entities” – people, places, products – and the new version of search will feed users information about the “entity” they are searching for.

In a drastic makeover for the search engine, Google search will soon “answer questions” instead of just hunting words
In a drastic makeover for the search engine, Google search will soon “answer questions” instead of just hunting words

Instead of relying on Wikipedia, for instance, to provide facts and figures, Google will provide this information itself.

In 2010, Google acquired FreeBase, a “knowledge graph” company – and has expanded its database of “entities” from 12 million to 200 million today.

Unnamed sources speaking to the Wall Street Journal said that the change – a dramatic shift for Google – would start to appear over the next few months.

Amit Singhal, a senior vice president at Google said in a recent interview that most searches rely on other sites to provide an answer – not Google itself.

“We cross our fingers and hope there’s a Web page out there with the answer,” says Amit Singhal.

Amit Singhal claims that the changes are part of an ongoing process which could take years.

The Wall Street Journal claims that the process will be much more rapid.

The new version of search will use what’s called “semantic search”, which attempts to understand the meaning of searches, rather than simply hunting for words.

Google still accounts for roughly 66% of the search market worldwide.

But the new, beefed-up version of search could keep the giant ahead of competitors such as Microsoft’s Bing, and enable the search engine to compete with Facebook, if the social network ever unveils its own search engine.

 

Yoda, the world’s ugliest dog, has died at 15

Diane A. Wade
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Yoda, the world’s ugliest dog, has died at 15

Yoda, the “world’s ugliest dog”, has died at 15, her owner announced today.

Yoda, a Chinese crested and Chihuahua mix, shot to fame in 2011 when she won the World’s Ugliest Dog contest in California.

When Terry Schumacher found Yoda she initially mistook the abandoned dog for a rat, but the animal went on to win a $1000 prize for her looks.

Yoda had short tufts of hair, a protruding tongue and skinny bald legs.

Yoda, the "world's ugliest dog", has died at 15
Yoda, the "world's ugliest dog", has died at 15

The dog, which died in her sleep on Saturday, only weighed 1.8 lbs (0.8kg) and lived a rough life before she was found behind an apartment building.

After the competition Yoda appeared on television and even featured in makeover show.

Terry Schumacher says she will miss “her funny little ways” but she is “comforted knowing she will be joining my Mom and Dad who loved her so much. Her memories will live on forever.”

 

Afghanistan: Taliban militants suspended peace negotiations with US

Roy Siemens
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Afghanistan: Taliban militants suspended peace negotiations with US

Taliban militants in Afghanistan have suspended preliminary peace negotiations with the United States.

The militants blamed the Americans’ “ever-changing position”. One key stumbling block was reported to be US efforts to involve the Afghan authorities.

The group has objected to this, as they regard the Kabul government as illegitimate.

Meanwhile, President Hamid Karzai has called on NATO forces to leave Afghan villages after a US soldier killed 16 civilians.

According to officials, the priority for Afghan government was to avoid civilian casualties at any cost.

President Hamid Karzai told the visiting US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta that Afghan troops should take the lead for nationwide security in 2013.

President Hamid Karzai has called on NATO forces to leave Afghan villages after a US soldier killed 16 civilians
President Hamid Karzai has called on NATO forces to leave Afghan villages after a US soldier killed 16 civilians

In a statement issued on Thursday, the Taliban said the talks should focus on a political office being established in Qatar and on a prisoner exchange.

They said they were suspending the talks because of “the shaky, erratic and vague standpoint of the Americans”.

US diplomatic sources say the Taliban were told by US negotiators that the Afghan government had to be a part of any negotiations.

The Taliban statement reiterated that the group “considers talking with the Kabul administration as pointless.”

Other conditions reportedly set by the US in the talks include accepting of the Afghan constitution – which the Taliban have rejected – and publicly denouncing al-Qaeda.

The Taliban’s suspension of the talks is a significant setback for efforts to begin peace talks with the insurgents.

It was thought that a deal to exchange five Taliban fighters currently held at Guantanamo Bay for a kidnapped American soldier was only weeks away.

 

Costa Concordia: the ship’s bell has gone missing

Diane A. Wade
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Costa Concordia: the ship’s bell has gone missing

The Costa Concordia’s bell is reported to have gone missing, two months after the ship ran aground off Italy.

An investigation has been launched into the disappearance, the Italian news agency Ansa reports.

The images of the Costa Concordia’s bell, taken underwater by divers soon after the vessel sank, became a well-known image associated with the disaster.

At least 30 people are believed to have died when the ship struck rocks near the Tuscan coast in January.

Soon after the Costa Concordia capsized, images taken by divers showed the bell still hanging in position on the wreck, but several metres under water.

The location of the wreck, off the island of Giglio, is considered a crime scene and is continually patrolled by coastguard launches.

This would make it almost impossible for any diver intending to loot the wreck to enter and steal the bell.

The images of the Costa Concordia’s bell, taken underwater by divers soon after the vessel sank, became a well-known image associated with the disaster
The images of the Costa Concordia’s bell, taken underwater by divers soon after the vessel sank, became a well-known image associated with the disaster

It is likely that if the bell’s disappearance is confirmed, suspicion will focus on the search-and-rescue teams, who have constant access to the wreck.

It would have been difficult to get the large, heavy and gleaming bell onto the shore unnoticed – and it is possible that it has simply dislodged itself, he adds.

The Costa Concordia lies half-submerged in a precarious position on an underwater slope, and is considered to be at risk of slipping further into the depths.

Costa Concordia’s captain, Francesco Schettino, denies accusations of manslaughter, causing a shipwreck and abandoning ship before all those aboard were evacuated.

 

Whitney Houston’s The Bodyguard returns to cinemas to celebrate its 20th anniversary

Lisa.Felice
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0
Whitney Houston’s The Bodyguard returns to cinemas to celebrate its 20th anniversary

Whitney Houston’s The Bodyguard, one of the biggest box office hits of the 1990’s returns to movie theaters this month celebrating its 20th anniversary in a special one-night in-theater event on Wednesday, March 28 at 7:30 p.m. local time.

Starring Kevin Costner and Whitney Houston, The Bodyguard became one of the most popular hits of 1992, marking Houston’s acting debut.

Additionally, The Bodyguard: Original Soundtrack Album went on to become the No. 1 best-selling soundtrack of all time with nearly 12 million copies sold in the U.S., and the sixth best-selling album overall in the Nielsen SoundScan era. Featuring the hugely successful cover of “I Will Always Love You,” the album also launched four other hit singles for Houston: “I’m Every Woman,” “Queen of the Night,” and two Oscar nominated songs, “I Have Nothing” and “Run to You.”

Tickets for The 20th Anniversary of The Bodyguard event are available at participating theater box offices and online at www.FathomEvents.com. For a complete list of theater locations and prices, visit the NCM Fathom Events website (theaters and participants are subject to change).

Presented by NCM Fathom Events and Warner Bros., The 20th Anniversary of The Bodyguard event will be broadcast to more than 400 select movie theaters across the country through NCM’s exclusive Digital Broadcast Network.

Whitney Houston’s The Bodyguard returns to movie theaters to celebrate its 20th anniversary in a special one-night in-theater event on Wednesday, March 28
Whitney Houston’s The Bodyguard returns to movie theaters to celebrate its 20th anniversary in a special one-night in-theater event on Wednesday, March 28

“When originally released, the story and unforgettable songs of The Bodyguard, captured the hearts of audiences everywhere,” said Shelly Maxwell, executive vice president of NCM Fathom Events.

“Through this special anniversary presentation, fans will be able to come together for one night and see it once more on the big screen.”

Directed by Mick Jackson, Kevin Costner stars as a former Secret Service Agent-turned bodyguard who is hired to protect Houston’s character, a music star, from an unknown stalker. The bodyguard ruffles the singer’s feathers and most of her entourage by tightening security more than they feel is necessary. Eventually the bodyguard and the singer start an affair, and she begins to believe his precautions are necessary when the stalker strikes close to home.

Warner Bros. will release The Bodyguard 20th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray™ on March 27. Special features include Whitney Houston’s well-known “I Will Always Love You” music video and “Memories of The Bodyguard,” a making-of documentary. Featuring director Mick Jackson, writer/producer Lawrence Kasdan, actors Whitney Houston and Kevin Costner and others, the cast and crew will discuss the story’s 17-year path to the screen, reworks of the script, how Jackson and Houston joined the production and more.

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Cissy Houston on Bobbi Kristina Brown’s relationship with Nick Gordon: “This is incestuous!”

Lisa.Felice
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Cissy Houston on Bobbi Kristina Brown’s relationship with Nick Gordon: “This is incestuous!”

Cissy Houston, Whitney Houston’s mother, has reacted fiercely to the pictures and video showing granddaughter Bobbi Kristina Brown and Whitney’s “adopted” son Nick Gordon in a romantic grip, and then kissing.

Cissy Houston, 78, told a close friend: “What they’re doing is incestuous.”

Bobbi Kristina’s grandmother feels her granddaughter has problems and Nick Gordon is taking advantage of her.

Cissy Houston has reacted fiercely to the pictures and video showing granddaughter Bobbi Kristina Brown and Nick Gordon in a romantic grip
Cissy Houston has reacted fiercely to the pictures and video showing granddaughter Bobbi Kristina Brown and Nick Gordon in a romantic grip

Although Whitney Houston never formally adopted Nick Gordon, she considered him her son and Bobbi Kristina called him her brother. For his part, Nick Gordon called Bobbi Kristina his sister.

Cissy Houston is so concerned that Bobbi Kristina has become impressionable and therefore an easy target for Nick Gordon, she’s asking the Whitney Houston Estate to take legal steps to get him evicted from Whitney’s home in Atlanta, where Bobbi Kristina is also living.

Bobbi Kristina Brown and Nick Gordon were seen showing some heavy PDA in Atlanta on March 13
Bobbi Kristina Brown and Nick Gordon were seen showing some heavy PDA in Atlanta on March 13

 

 

Bobbi Kristina Brown heavy PDA with Nick Gordon at Romeo’s New York Pizza

Lisa.Felice
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Bobbi Kristina Brown heavy PDA with Nick Gordon at Romeo’s New York Pizza

Even though they have denied their romance, Bobbi Kristina Brown and Nick Gordon definitely are still getting hot and heavy, they can’t deny the passion.

New pictures and video show Whitney Houston’s daughter Bobbi Kristina, 19, engaged in heavy PDA with her pseudo-adopted brother Nick Gordon, 22.

Bobbi Kristina was seen in a full-on lip-lock with Nick Gordon during a lunch run in Atlanta on Tuesday, confirming suspicions the two are romantically involved.

Nicholas Gordon has denied a relationship with Bobbi Kristina Brown, but the pair was just spotted making out and canoodling again in Atlanta
Nicholas Gordon has denied a relationship with Bobbi Kristina Brown, but the pair was just spotted making out and canoodling again in Atlanta

Nicholas Gordon has denied a relationship with Bobbi Kristina Brown, but the pair was just spotted making out and canoodling again in Atlanta.

Bobbi Kristina Brown and Nick Gordon were seen showing some heavy PDA in Atlanta on March 13, TMZ reports.

According to HollywoodLife.com, Bobbi Kristina Brown and Nick Gordon were spotted at Romeo’s New York Pizza in John’s Creek, Georgia.

Bobbi Kristina Brown and Nick Gordon were seen showing some heavy PDA in Atlanta on March 13
Bobbi Kristina Brown and Nick Gordon were seen showing some heavy PDA in Atlanta on March 13

Their lunch date was super-romantic, according to a source inside the restaurant, who also confirmed that they frequent the pizza place and are often seen around town.

“A few of my friends went to school with Bobbi and they definitely know her around here,” the source said.

“They were here Tuesday and Monday and they’re in here a lot.”

Furthermore, the source said that they do not hide their PDA at all.

“They’re always all over each other,” the source said.

“They don’t try to hide it at all. I’m surprised they’re saying that they’re not together.”

Whitney Houston unofficially “adopted” Nick Gordon into the family roughly 10 years ago after learning he was having problems at home. He’s been living with the Houstons ever since.

 

Dustin Hoffman drama “Luck” cancelled by HBO after a third horse died on the set

Diane A. Wade
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0
Dustin Hoffman drama “Luck” cancelled by HBO after a third horse died on the set

HBO has decided to cancel TV horse-racing drama Luck, which stars Dustin Hoffman and Nick Nolte, after a third animal was injured and put down during production.

The series was filming its second season when the incident happened.

In a statement, HBO said it was “with heartbreak” that it was ceasing “all future production” on Luck.

Produced by Michael Mann and David Milch, the series looks at the seedy side of life in US horse-racing.

It sees Dustin Hoffman play a crime kingpin scheming to gain control of a racetrack and introduce casino gambling.

Luck debuted in the US in January and will see its first season finale broadcast on 25 March.

It is currently being shown in the UK on the Sky Atlantic channel.

HBO has decided to cancel TV horse-racing drama Luck, which stars Dustin Hoffman and Nick Nolte, after a third animal was injured and put down during production
HBO has decided to cancel TV horse-racing drama Luck, which stars Dustin Hoffman and Nick Nolte, after a third animal was injured and put down during production

The decision to cancel the entire series came one day after filming was suspended pending an investigation into the horse’s death.

“It is with heartbreak that executive producers David Milch and Michael Mann together with HBO have decided to cease all future production on the series <<Luck>>,” HBO said in its statement.

“While we maintained the highest safety standards possible, accidents unfortunately happen and it is impossible to guarantee they won’t in the future. Accordingly, we have reached this difficult decision.”

On Tuesday the American Humane Association (AHA) issued the suspension order, pending a “thorough and comprehensive investigation”.

HBO said the horse was being led to a stable by a groom when it reared and fell back, suffering a head injury.

The animal was put down at the track in suburban Arcadia, California, where Luck was filming.

Although the AHA – which oversees Hollywood productions – noted the accident did not occur during filming or racing, it issued the demand “that all production involving horses shut down”.

On Tuesday, California Horse Racing Board vet Dr. Gary Beck said he had just examined the horse as part of routine health and safety procedures before it was to race later in the day.

“The horse was on her way back to the stall when she reared, flipped over backwards, and struck her head on the ground,” Dr. Gary Beck said in a statement.

A second vet determined that euthanasia was appropriate, he added.

Dr. Rick Arthur, medical director of the state racing board, said such injuries occurred in stable areas every year and were more common than thought.

During filming of the first series in 2010 and 2011, two horses were hurt during racing scenes and were subsequently put down.

The AHA called for a production halt at the Santa Anita Racetrack after the second horse’s death, and racing resumed in February after new protocols were put in place.

The first two horse deaths drew criticism from animal rights group PETA, which said the safety guidelines were “clearly inadequate” as they failed to prevent the deaths.

On Tuesday, PETA vice-president Kathy Guillermo said: “Three horses have now died and all the evidence we have gathered points to sloppy oversight, the use of unfit, injured horses, and disregard for the treatment of thoroughbreds.”

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Damage to the retina linked to cognitive decline

Diane A. Wade
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0
Damage to the retina linked to cognitive decline

US researchers have found that the examination of the back of the eye may offer an insight into the health of someone’s brain.

A small study, published in the journal Neurology, linked damage to the retina with declining brain function.

Researchers believe issues with the blood supply may be damaging both the eye and the brain.

The eye condition the researchers were looking at was retinopathy, which is common in patients with Type 2 diabetes or high blood pressure. Damage to the retina can eventually lead to blindness.

Scientists followed 511 women, who were 65 or older, for a decade. Some 39 were diagnosed with retinopathy.

Those with the eye condition tended to have lower scores in tests of brain function, including memory and abstract reasoning exams.

The eye condition the researchers were looking at was retinopathy, which is common in patients with Type 2 diabetes or high blood pressure
The eye condition the researchers were looking at was retinopathy, which is common in patients with Type 2 diabetes or high blood pressure

Brain scans also showed up more areas of damaged brain tissue, ischemic lesions, in those with retinopathy.

Dr. Mary Haan, from the University of California, San Francisco, said: “Problems with the tiny blood vessels in the eye may be a sign that there are also problems with the blood vessels in the brain that can lead to cognitive problems.

“This could be very useful if simple eye screening could give us an early indication that people might be at risk of problems with their brain health and functioning.”

There was only a small number of patients with retinopathy in the study. Much larger studies would be needed to see if the findings could be used as a clinical test for declining brain function.

While there was no suggestion of dementia in the patients, brain decline can be an early sign of the disease.

Dr. Simon Ridley, head of research at Alzheimer’s Research UK, who was not involved in the research, said: “Accurate early detection of the cognitive decline that can be associated with dementia could unlock our ability to treat it.

“This small study offers clues for another possible route doctors could consider when monitoring for the signs of cognitive decline.

“The study adds to mounting evidence linking vascular health to cognitive decline, and underlines the importance of looking after our hearts. It will be useful to see whether the people in this study went on to develop dementia.”

 

Bo Xilai sacked as Chinese Chongqing’s Communist Party leader amid Wang Lijun scandal

Diane A. Wade
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Bo Xilai sacked as Chinese Chongqing’s Communist Party leader amid Wang Lijun scandal

Bo Xilai, one of China’s most prominent politicians, has been removed from his post as Chongqing’s Communist Party leader, state news agency Xinhua reports.

Bo Xilai, 62, was a strong contender for promotion to China’s top rungs when the party changes its leadership later this year.

However, a scandal erupted when his former chief of police Wang Lijun spent a day at a United States consulate last month.

Vice-Premier Zhang Dejiang will replace Bo Xilai, said the Xinhua report.

The move comes just a day after the end of the country’s annual parliamentary session, the National People’s Congress (NPC), where Bo Xilai’s absence from a meeting sparked speculations about his future.

After a long silence, Bo Xilai spoke last week about the incident involving ex-police chief Wang Lijun, answering questions from journalists at a meeting on the sidelines of the NPC.

Bo Xilai said he had not imagined Wang Lijun would run off. It came suddenly, he said.

“I feel like I put my trust in the wrong person,” Bo Xilai added, speaking at a meeting of Chongqing delegates.

Bo Xilai, one of China’s most prominent politicians, has been removed from his post as Chongqing's Communist Party leader
Bo Xilai, one of China’s most prominent politicians, has been removed from his post as Chongqing's Communist Party leader

Wang Lijun has also been sacked from his job as deputy mayor of Chongqing, said another Xinhua report following the earlier announcement on Bo Xilai’s removal.

Wang Lijun’s visit to the US consulate in the city of Chengdu sparked rumors that he had intended to defect. State media reported that he was on vacation to recuperate from stress.

Wang Lijun, who led the crackdown on organized crime in Chongqing that propelled both him and his boss into the limelight, was later placed under police investigation for the incident.

Premier Wen Jiabao, answering a question at a news conference on Wednesday at the closing of the NPC session, said ”progress” had been made in the investigations, but did not reveal details.

He said local authorities must ”seriously” reflect and learn from the incident and that Beijing regarded this ”very seriously”.

Reactions to the brief announcement of Bo Xilai’s removal from his post in state media have been swift. The news spread quickly, prompting thousands of posts on the Sina Weibo microblogging site on Thursday morning.

“Swift and thorough! The ultra-leftish stronghold has finally come to an end. It’s a big fortune for China, a big fortune for the people!” posted a writer for Xinhua.com, Wang Ruogu.

“Bo Xilai might have his personal mistakes, what he has been pushing for might be problematic… but he has truly done a lot of great things for the people,” said another comment by a former journalist.

Bo Xilai is the nearest thing China has to a Western-style politician, correspondents say.

Like China’s leader-in-waiting Xi Jinping, Bo Xilai is the son of a famous communist hero, but he has gone on to forge his own unique public personality. Correspondents say the suave and charismatic Bo Xilai seems at home in front of the cameras and appears to enjoy pushing his policies in public.

Bo Xilai ran the big coastal city of Dalian and then became commerce minister, before moving to the post in Chongqing, a sprawling city in western China.

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Fossils from a previously unknown human species discovered in China

James J. Williams
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Fossils from a previously unknown human species discovered in China

The remains of at least five individuals from a previously unknown human species have been identified in southern China.

The bones have been dated to between 11,500 and 14,500 years ago.

Scientists are calling them simply the Red Deer Cave people, after one of the sites where they were unearthed.

The team has told the PLoS One journal that far more detailed analysis of the fossils is required before they can be ascribed to a new human lineage.

“We’re trying to be very careful at this stage about definitely classifying them,” said study co-leader Darren Curnoe from the University of New South Wales, Australia.

“One of the reasons for that is that in the science of human evolution or palaeoanthropology, we presently don’t have a generally agreed, biological definition for our own species (Homo sapiens), believe it or not. And so this is a highly contentious area,” he said.

Much of the material has been in Chinese collections for some time but has only recently been subjected to intense investigation.

The remains of at least five individuals from a previously unknown human species have been identified in southern China
The remains of at least five individuals from a previously unknown human species have been identified in southern China

The remains of some of the individuals come from Maludong (or Red Deer Cave), near the city of Mengzi in Yunnan Province. A further skeleton was discovered at Longlin, in neighboring Guangxi Province.

The skulls and teeth from the two locations are very similar to each other, suggesting they are from the same population.

But their features are quite distinct from what you might call a fully modern human, says the team. Instead, the Red Deer Cave people have a mix of archaic and modern characteristics.

The Red Deer Cave people have a mix of archaic and modern characteristics, say scientists
The Red Deer Cave people have a mix of archaic and modern characteristics, say scientists

In general, the individuals had rounded brain cases with prominent brow ridges. Their skull bones were quite thick. Their faces were quite short and flat and tucked under the brain, and they had broad noses.

Their jaws jutted forward but they lacked a modern-human-like chin. Computed Tomography (X-ray) scans of their brain cavities indicate they had modern-looking frontal lobes but quite archaic-looking anterior, or parietal, lobes. They also had large molar teeth.

Dr. Darren Curnoe and colleagues put forward two possible scenarios in their PLoS One paper for the origin of the Red Deer Cave population.

One posits that they represent a very early migration of a primitive-looking Homo sapiens that lived separately from other forms in Asia before dying out.

Another possibility contends that they were indeed a distinct Homo species that evolved in Asia and lived alongside our own kind until remarkably recently.

A third scenario being suggested by scientists not connected with the research is that the Red Deer Cave people could be hybrids.

“It’s possible these were modern humans who inter-mixed or bred with archaic humans that were around at the time,” explained Dr. Isabelle De Groote, a palaeoanthropologist from London’s Natural History Museum.

“The other option is that they evolved these more primitive features independently because of genetic drift or isolation, or in a response to an environmental pressure such as climate.”

Dr. Darren Curnoe agreed all this was “certainly possible”.

Attempts are being made to extract DNA from the remains. This could yield information about interbreeding, just as genetic studies have on the closely related human species – the Neanderthals and an enigmatic group of people from Siberia known as the Denisovans.

Whatever their true place in the Homo family tree, the Red Deer People are an important find simply because of the dearth of well dated, well described specimens from this part of the world.

And their unearthing all adds to the fascinating and increasingly complex story of human migration and development.

“The Red Deer People were living at what was a really interesting time in China, during what we call the epipalaeolithic or the end of the Stone Age,” says Dr. Darren Curnoe.

“Not far from Longlin, there are quite well known archaeological sites where some of the very earliest evidence for the epipalaeolithic in East Asia has been found.

“These were occupied by very modern looking people who are already starting to make ceramics – pottery – to store food. And they’re already harvesting from the landscape wild rice. There was an economic transition going on from full-blown foraging and gathering towards agriculture.”

Quite how the Red Deer People fit into this picture is unclear. The research team is promising to report further investigations into some of the stone tools and cultural artefacts discovered at the dig sites.

The co-leader on the project is Professor Ji Xueping of the Yunnan Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology.

 

New type of frog found living in New York City

James J. Williams
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0
New type of frog found living in New York City

A new species of frog has been found living in Staten Island, New York City, say US scientists.

While new species are usually discovered in remote regions, this so-far unnamed type of leopard frog was first heard croaking on Staten Island.

Jeremy Feinberg of Rutgers University in New Jersey noticed the frogs there had a call he had never heard before.

They look identical to other species, but genetic analysis showed they are a new species of leopard frog that probably once lived in Manhattan.

While studying leopard frogs Jeremy Feinberg noticed that instead of the long “snore” he was expecting, he heard a short, repetitive croak.

“When I first heard these frogs calling, it was so different, I knew something was very off,” Jeremy Feinberg said.

While new species are usually discovered in remote regions, this so-far unnamed type of leopard frog was first heard croaking on Staten Island
While new species are usually discovered in remote regions, this so-far unnamed type of leopard frog was first heard croaking on Staten Island

The frogs are currently found in Staten Island, mainland New York, and New Jersey, sometimes in sight of the Statue of Liberty.

By analyzing their current range of habitats the scientists believe they would have lived all over New York, with the centre of their population at the Yankees Stadium on the Bronx, to the north of Manhattan itself.

The research by scientists at the University of California, Rutgers, UC Davis and the University of Alabama has been published online in the journal Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution.

“For a new species to go unrecognized for all this time in this area is amazing,” said Professor Brad Shaffer, one of the authors from the University of California Los Angeles.

“Many amphibians are secretive and can be very hard to find, but these frogs are pretty obvious, out-there animals,” Prof. Brad Shaffer said.

“This shows that even in the largest city in the US there are still new and important species waiting to be discovered that could be lost without conservation.”

There are more than a dozen species of leopard frog found from Canada to Central America.

 

Jennifer Lopez has a male stunt double for her new video clip

Lisa.Felice
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1
Jennifer Lopez has a male stunt double for her new video clip

Jennifer Lopez was seen on the set of her music video Follow The Leader yesterday in Mexico, alongside her male stunt double.

The pair struck remarkable similarities with both their physiques clad in tight black leggings and matching black zip tops.

The male extra even had his long brown hair braided at the side, just like Jennifer Lopez.

The stunt double watched intently as Jennifer Lopez hopped into the back of a pick-up truck for the music video clip.

Jennifer Lopez was seen on the set of her music video Follow The Leader yesterday in Mexico, alongside her male stunt double
Jennifer Lopez was seen on the set of her music video Follow The Leader yesterday in Mexico, alongside her male stunt double

Jennifer Lopez has been filming the clip for the last couple of days, and it hasn’t been just her male stunt double that has had his eyes on the gorgeous Latina lovely.

Casper Smart has been with his girlfriend on the Acapulco set since she filming started over the weekend.

He was seen sharing an amorous moment with Jennifer Lopez, staring into her eyes as he stood shirtless showing off his tanned and tattooed torso.

The back-up dancer also lovingly fed Jennifer Lopez some donuts in-between takes, whilst also indulging in the tasty treats.

In return Jennifer Lopez gave her beau a tight squeeze as she continued her grueling action-packed day of singing and dancing.

 

Stacy Francis says she doesn’t care about Whitney Houston drama

Lisa.Felice
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0
Stacy Francis says she doesn’t care about Whitney Houston drama

Stacy Francis, the former X Factor contestant who once had so much to say about her run-in with Whitney Houston is suddenly keeping her mouth shut.

Just days before Whitney Houston‘s tragic death, the pop icon had a physical altercation with Stacy Francis over her rumored on-and-off again boyfriend Ray J.

When the incident was brought up during Oprah Winfrey‘s interview with Patricia Houston, Whitney’s sister-in-law and best friend, she made no effort to hide the fact that something had in fact transpired between the singers.

“[Stacy Francis] was wherever Whitney was at the party,” Patricia Houston told the talk show queen.

“Whenever I turned around, there she was!”

Stacy Francis, the former X Factor contestant who once had so much to say about her run-in with Whitney Houston is suddenly keeping her mouth shut
Stacy Francis, the former X Factor contestant who once had so much to say about her run-in with Whitney Houston is suddenly keeping her mouth shut

Following the interview, HollywoodLife.com reached out to Stacy Francis’ legal representative, Ed Shapiro, for a comment.

He said: “Stacy called me last night and told me that if anyone wanted a response from her with regard to Oprah’s interview with the Houstons, to tell them, <<I have nothing to say>>.”

Then, on March 12, someone tweeted: “They giving @stacyfrancis hell LOL!,” presumably about the Oprah’s Next Chapter interview, which aired March 11 on Oprah’s OWN Network.

Stacy Francis replied moments later, saying: “actually they r not.. I really really don’t care.. That’s how it is when u know the truth..”

 

Bobbi Kristina Brown and Nick Gordon defend their romantic relationship on Twitter

Lisa.Felice
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Bobbi Kristina Brown and Nick Gordon defend their romantic relationship on Twitter

Bobbi Kristina Brown has broken her silence on Twitter for the first time since December 26 to admit her romance with Nick Gordon.

Bobbi Kristina Brown, 19, and Nicholas Gordon, 22, are proud to be together.

“I’ve proved my loyalty to [Krissy] and the Houston family,” Nick Gordon tweeted on March 13.

“I don’t owe any of you anything. Ha I don’t even know y’all haters. And Kriss is doing really well, I’ve been so happy with her strength.”

Nick Gordon went on to say discuss that he is not blood related to Bobbi Kristina: “For the stupid ppl out there she gave birth to 1 child. And she trusted me with EVERYTHING!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

 

Bobbi Kristina Brown has broken her silence on Twitter for the first time since December 26 to admit her romance with Nick Gordon
Bobbi Kristina Brown has broken her silence on Twitter for the first time since December 26 to admit her romance with Nick Gordon

Bobbi Kristina Brown tweeted for the first time in three months about her relationship with Nick Gordon. The 19-year-old retweeted tons of positive tweets about her relationship by fans.

“@ndgordon I don’t understand why the world is so against LOVE!!!” Bobbi Kristina tweeted.

“Let @ndgordon love and support @REALbkBrown! Stop hating people.”

Bobbi Kristina Brown also retweeted this comment from a fan: “@ndgordon its no ones business what you and @REALbkBrown do. If people don’t understand that’s their problem. Do what makes you happy.”

 

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