Tokyo Sea Life Park is trying to locate an escaped Humboldt penguin seen heading for Tokyo Bay.
The one-year-old penguin was spotted swimming in a river mouth in the Japanese capital.
An official from the harbor-front aquarium said the escapee penguin appeared to have scaled a wall in its bid for freedom.
The 60-centimetre long penguin hatched last January and lives with 134 penguins in an enclosure at Tokyo Sea Life Park.
“We first noticed the penguin might have fled when the director of a neighbouring zoo e-mailed us Sunday with a photo,” park official Takashi Sugino told AFP news agency.
Tokyo Sea Life Park is trying to locate an escaped Humboldt penguin seen heading for Tokyo Bay
Takashi Sugino said officials were struggling to recapture it because it swam “at a tremendous speed”.
The Humboldt penguin was snapped bathing in the mouth of the Kyu-Edo river, which runs into Tokyo Bay.
A park official said that great efforts were being made to find it – and that exactly how the penguin got out remained unclear.
Humboldt penguins breed on the Pacific coast of South America and offshore islands of Chile and Peru.
They are thought to be declining in number. One of the reasons is due to increasing water temperatures caused by the El Nino effect and reduced food supply.
Pikaia gracilens, a two-inch-long worm-like sea creature, is the earliest-known animal to have the beginnings of a backbone, according to Cambridge University scientists.
This makes Pikaia gracilens, which evolved more than 500 million years ago, a precursor of modern vertebrates, including humans.
The latest study resolves a debate about whether it is the first member of the chordate family.
Chordates are distinguished by having a “notocord” – a flexible rod supporting the nerve running down their back- which, over millions of years, would become the spine in their more advanced descendants.
On both sides of Pikaia’s notocord in a neat zig-zag pattern are around 100 tiny blocks of muscle tissue – called myomeres – which are thought to have allowed it to propel itself quickly through the water by bending its body from side-to-side.
Pikaia had no eyes or teeth but has a clearly defined head, gills to take in oxygen, and two tiny tentacles which may have had some sensory ability to find chemicals to feed on in the water.
Simon Conway, a Cambridge University professor, who led the study, said: “The discovery of myomeres is the smoking gun that we have long been seeking.
“Now with myomeres, a nerve cord, a notocord and a vascular (blood vessel) system all identified, this study clearly places Pikaia as the planet’s most primitive chordate.
“So, next time we put the family photograph on the mantlepiece, there in the background will be Pikaia.”
Pikaia gracilens, a two-inch-long worm-like sea creature, is the earliest-known animal to have the beginnings of a backbone, according to Cambridge University scientists
The researchers, whose study is published this week in the journal Biological Reviews, analyzed 114 specimens found in the Burgess Shale in Canada’s Rocky Mountains, one of the world’s most celebrated fossil fields with specimens dating back 505million years.
They used a range of new imagery techniques such as scanning electron microscopes, to reveal finer details in the Pikaia fossils.
It is not clear why Pikaia began to develop a backbone but it may have needed to escape more quickly from predators.
Dr. Jean-Bernard Caron, from the University of Toronto in Canada, who took part in the research, said: “Fossils of primitive chordates are incredibly rare.
“Pikaia would stand no chance of preservation in normal conditions outside exceptional sites like the Burgess Shale.
“We hope that, with continuing explorations and field work studies there, other species will be discovered, allowing us to refine our understanding of the early history of our own group.”
Asteroid 2012 DA14, a 150-foot space rock orbiting Earth, will pass closer than geostationary satellites to our planet on February next year.
NASA’s Impact Risk report said that the odds of the space rock actually hitting Earth are very low indeed – but on February 15, 2013, it will pass just 17,000 miles from Earth, closer than “geostationary” satellites.
If an asteroid of that size hit Earth, it would cause an explosion similar to a nuclear blast.
Two astronomers from the Observatorio Astronómico de La Sagra in Spain spotted 2012 DA14 in late February and its orbit has been calculated to be very similar to Earth’s.
Some reports suggested that on February 15 next year an impact was a possibility, but U.S astronomer Phil Plait, the creator of the Bad Astronomy blog, has ruled out an impact.
Phil Plait wrote: “Asteroid 2012 DA14 is almost certainly not going to hit Earth next February. And by <<almost certainly>>, I mean it. The odds of an impact are so low they are essentially zero. This does not rule out an impact at some future date, but for now we’re safe.”
Asteroid 2012 DA14, a 150-foot space rock orbiting Earth, will pass closer than geostationary satellites to our planet on February next year
The asteroid will come within 17,000 miles of Earth, which is closer than some of our satellites, but Phil Plait says this is nothing to worry about.
The astronomer adds: “Seventeen thousand miles is well beneath many of our own orbiting satellites. To the best of my knowledge, this is the closest pass of a decent-sized asteroid ever seen before the actual pass itself. However, let’s again be very clear – it will miss. In astronomical terms, 17,000 miles is pretty close, but in real human terms it’s a clean miss.”
After 2013, 2012 DA14’s closest brush with Earth will come in 2020, but Phil Plait said that even then the odds of an impact will be less than the chance of being hit by lightning in your lifetime – 1 in 100,000.
What are the chances of a major impact?
NASA’s latest scan for “impact event” threats used the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE and took two infrared scans of the entire celestial sky between January 2010 and February 2011.
The scan aimed to find asteroids and comets “near Earth” – i.e. within 120 million miles.
The scan found there are 20,500 asteroids and comets that could destroy a city-sized area within 120 million miles of earth – previously the figure was thought to be 36,000.
NASA says the risk of impact is less than previously thought. The likelihood of a “planet-killer” – the mountain-sized asteroids in the “large-sized” range, above 3,300ft – appears to have fallen more significantly.
There are only 981 of these objects near Earth, and NASA has found 911 of them.
Rumors have swirled that Whitney Houston had an affair with the then-married Jermaine Jackson in the mid-1980s, and now sister La Toya is joining the fray.
During an appearance on The Talk today, La Toya Jackson says: “He has admitted that they had an affair.”
A report in The Sun, however, provides more salacious details.
The paper claims that Whitney Houston and Jermaine Jackson were together for a year, and that Houston’s hit song “Saving All My Love for You” – about a woman hooking up with a married man – was a thinly veiled ballad to her clandestine paramour.
The Sun claims that Whitney Houston and Jermaine Jackson were together for a year, and that Houston's hit song "Saving All My Love for You" was a thinly veiled ballad to her clandestine paramour
Michael Jackson reportedly knew about the affair but didn’t approve. At the time, Jermaine Jackson was married to Hazel Gordy, daughter of legendary Motown founder Berry Gordy.
After Whitney Houston’s death, a video surfaced of the couple singing a duet back in 1984, which – if The Sun’s report is to be believed – would have happened around the time of the affair.
Jermaine Jackson caused a small stir two weeks ago when he retracted a press release announcing that he had dedicated his song “The First Time You Love” to Whitney Houston, and claimed it had been sent out without his knowledge.
Bobbi Kristina Brown has marked her first birthday since the death of her mother Whitney Houston.
Bobbi Kristina Brown, the only child of Whitney Houston – whose lifeless body was found submerged in a bath tub at her Beverly Hills hotel suite on February 11 – turned 19 on Sunday and saw in the occasion with her close family.
A source said: ”Bobbi is now with the family and going through the grieving process just with them.”
Bobbi Kristina – whose father is Whitney’s ex-husband Bobby Brown – had to be hospitalized following Whitney Houston’s death, and went missing on the day of the funeral.
Bobbi Kristina Brown has marked her first birthday since the death of her mother Whitney Houston
But an insider reveals that Bobbi Kristina Brown has started to show signs of improvement since bonding with her maternal grandmother, gospel singer Cissy Houston.
The source told US Weekly: ”[They] have been getting along a bit better. She really needs her own space right now to heal, and Cissy knows that.
”Cissy has a team of people helping her through this … right now, the goal is to make her feel special and loved.”
Meanwhile, Michael Jackson’s sister LaToya has weighed in on rumors that Whitney Houston has a secret fling with her brother Jermaine in the 1980’s, while he was married to first wife Hazel Gordy.
During an appearance on American chat show “The Talk”, LaToya Jackson said of her brother Jermaine: “He has admitted that they had an affair.”
Almost 9,000 residents of Wagga Wagga town in New South Wales have been ordered to leave their homes as floods continue in southeast Australia.
The Murrumbidgee river is predicted to peak at 10.9 m, sparking fears that the town’s levee may be breached.
Police, the military and the emergency services were all helping with the evacuation, local media said.
Days of heavy rain have caused flooding across three Australian states and left at least two people dead.
Parts of Queensland and Victoria are also affected.
On Tuesday, emergency personnel and officials in Wagga Wagga said they were ”monitoring” the rising water and the levee.
The expected peak is higher than a major flood in the area in 1974, and reportedly the highest since 1844, Australian media said.
Prime Minister Julia Gillard told reporters that military resources have been deployed and are standing by to render aid if necessary.
“We’ve got floodwaters across New South Wales, Queensland and Victoria,” she said.
“For the people of Wagga particularly, this is a very anxious time.”
Almost 9,000 residents of Wagga Wagga town in New South Wales have been ordered to leave their homes as floods continue in southeast Australia
Police have gone door-to-door in the town to encourage people to leave.
“Should the levee fail and the water enters the CBD and other areas in Wagga Wagga, then people need to be in the evacuation centre, not in their homes or businesses,” said State Emergency Services deputy commissioner Dieter Geske.
There was no panic though and the scene was one of ”calm and reasoned emergency”, said Michael McCormack, the local MP.
“Down in the central business district of Wagga Wagga it resembles a scene from Escape from New York,” Michael McCormack told ABC News.
“There are cars coming in, there are cars coming out.”
Two men have been killed since the weekend, both swept away in their cars.
The first man was swept downstream over the weekend at Araluen in southern New South Wales as he tried to drive through the flood. His two companions were rescued.
On Monday a man died when his car was washed off a road in the town of Glenwood, near Gympie in southeast Queensland.
Authorities have cautioned people against trying to drive through floodwater.
Just last month thousands were evacuated in Queensland, which experienced its third major flood in less than two years. Parts of New South Wales were also cut off by severe flooding.
Thousands of travelers between London and Paris have been affected after Eurostar services were delayed by an overhead power cable fault in France.
Some passengers were delayed by up to nine hours and Eurostar has cancelled a number of trains scheduled for Tuesday.
It said a sagging overhead cable meant trains had to be switched from high-speed lines to slower ones, adding it was “very sorry for any inconvenience”.
Police boarded one train, although the purpose of their presence was unclear.
The journey between London and Paris usually takes about 2 hours and 15 minutes.
Eurostar later said all delayed trains heading for St. Pancras station in London had arrived.
The first scheduled service to Paris – at 05:40 GMT – is expected to run on time but four later services have already been cancelled.
Eurostar expects to run a normal service from lunchtime.
The company told passengers with tickets for cancelled trains to exchange them for another day if possible.
It said passengers booked on the 09:12 GMT service from London could travel either on the 07:54, 08:31, or 10:24 services.
Those booked on the service leaving Ebbsfleet at 09:31 and Ashford at 09:55 could join a later train departing those stations at 10:42 and 11:00 respectively, it added.
Thousands of travelers between London and Paris have been affected after Eurostar services were delayed by an overhead power cable fault in France
Kandy Woodfield, from London, was on a train that left the city at 14:01 GMT but she was still on the train seven hours later.
“It has been hellish. We have not been kept informed,” she said.
“They eventually gave us free water but that is it. The bar has made an absolute killing. I think it is terrible. There are elderly people and young children on board.
“I saw at least six policemen get on the train, I don’t know if there has been any trouble but they keep walking up and down the train.”
Similarly, Therese Kelly, from London, who was stuck for eight hours, said: “We had no announcements about why the train was so delayed or why it kept stopping, the train didn’t move for hours.
“At one point policemen started walking through our carriage of the train, they wouldn’t speak to us and I thought ‘Oh God, are we in the middle of some security breach?’ I was really scared. The whole train journey was brutal, totally brutal.”
Six hours after leaving Paris Debbie Goodier, from Croydon, south London, had only reached Calais.
She had travelled to Paris for a day trip to celebrate her wedding anniversary.
“We were delayed two hours on the way out and now stationary on the way back. Not for the first time,” she said.
Ryan Armstrong, who was travelling to Amsterdam via London, missed his connecting flight because of the delays.
“We were basically on the train for nine hours. We hardly moved; there was a lot of standing still. At one point the power was cut so we couldn’t see anything or get any information,” said the London man, who added that the staff on his train had been “helpful and supportive”.
A Eurostar spokeswoman said journeys had been delayed by up to seven hours.
She said four train services had been cancelled on Tuesday morning to “regulate” the service.
“We are trying to do everything we can to get passengers to their destination. We are doing everything we can to make their journey as comfortable as possible,” she said.
On its website, Eurostar stated: “Due an overhead power cable on the line the services below will be cancelled on Tuesday 6th March.
“If you are booked to travel on one of these services, we recommend that you exchange your ticket for travel on another date as other services may also be subject to delay. You can do so for free at any time in the next two months by calling our contact centre on 08432 186 186.”
Lionel Richie believes that Whitney Houston was the only person who could have saved herself from drugs.
Lionel Richie, 62, was a friend of Whitney Houston, who tragically died after allegedly ingesting alcohol and prescription drugs last month, but knows from his experiences with daughter Nicole, who had problems with heroin and cocaine abuse, that she was the only person who could have turned her life around.
He told UK TV show BBC Breakfast: ”You know … I know from Nicole’s experience. At some point you’ve got to realize the only person that’s going to save you – Nicole, or Whitney – is going to be yourself.
”This is s a tough business, a very tough business and you don’t hear this story every day, about people who are in our business, but it happens every day.
”The stories you don’t hear are the stories of the people who are not famous.”
Lionel Richie believes that Whitney Houston was the only person who could have saved herself from drugs
Lionel Richie also said he can see how stars find it hard to see sense when they are surrounded by people who tell them everything they do is right.
Asked about being surrounded by such people, Lionel Richie added: ”I’m not immune to that, we’ve had that all the time.
”I get suspicious when from the time I wake up in the morning to when I go to bed in the evening everything I did was OK.
”That’s great but you know there’s nothing you could do all day that’s perfect, so you get suspicious and go, <<Something’s wrong if I’m right all the time.>> ”
Nicole managed to overcome her problems when she checked into rehab in 2003, and Lionel Richie recently revealed how he even went to stay in the facility with her to help her through the treatment.
Lionel Richie said: ”I was about to go out on tour and I said, <<Cancel the tour, we are checking into rehab>>. We as a family and, of course, I remember that look on her face when she walked down that hall and she said, <<Are you going to be here?>>
”I said, <<I’m right down the hall. I’m not going anywhere>>, because to me, there’s nothing more important, there’s no other greater signal you can send your kid – not only do I love you, but I want to demonstrate it.”
Bobby Brown, Whitney Houston’s ex-husband, claimed he was homeless while paying for singer’s rehab, according to divorce documents.
In the court papers obtained on RadarOnline, Bobby Brown stated: “Whitney took Bobbi Kris without my prior knowledge or consent, and moved to Orange County, California, where Whitney received treatment for her drug addiction.
“Although I was having severe financial problems, I did all I could to see my daughter. I came to California to be near Bobbi Kris. I also paid approximately $10,000 for Whitney and Bobbi Kris to live in a nice hotel while Whitney was going through rehab. At the same time, I basically lived out of my car.”
Bobby Brown, Whitney Houston’s ex-husband, claimed he was homeless while paying for singer's rehab, according to divorce documents
Whitney Houston, who claimed she had oral surgery at the time and made no reference to seeking treatment in a rehab facility, argued Bobby Brown was “trying to get child or spousal support from me, something he has done for some time now. Bobby is fully capable of working and earning substantial sums of money if he would control his personal behavior. It is his personal conduct that keeps him from earning substantial amounts of money.”
Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown married in 1992 and divorced in 2006. Whitney Houston maintained sole custody of daughter Bobbi Kristina, and Bobby Brown was never awarded any financial support from the singer.
Bobbi Kristina Brown and Whitney Houston’ “secret son” Nick Gordon were seen leaving a pharmacy in Atlanta near her gated neighborhood.
Bobbi Kristina Brown stepped out wearing big sunglasses, as she is doing her best to get back to her normal routine, according to HollywoodLife.
HollywoodLife.com spoke to an eyewitness who saw Bobbi Kristina Brown and her adopted brother Nicholas Gordon leaving a CVS near Whitney Houston’s town house.
Bobbi Kristina Brown and Whitney Houston’ “secret son” Nick Gordon were seen leaving a pharmacy in Atlanta after her birthday
“Bobbi was in the car with her brother leaving the parking lot,” the source said.
“She was in the passenger seat wearing big sunglasses. Her brother is always the one driving.”
Bobbi Kristina Brown spent the days leading up to her 19th birthday on March 4 doing a sit-down interview with Oprah. There are new reports that claim Cissy Houston wants to get Nick Gordon evicted from the home and have Bobbi Kristina come live with her.
Human brain actually has 86 billion neurons, not 100 billion, as previously thought, according to a Brazilian neuroscientist.
With the help of colleagues, Dr. Suzana Herculano-Houzel found out the true figure in a rather grisly manner – by turning four brains into “brain soup” and counting the number of cell nuclei belonging to neurons.
The brains belonged to four adult males aged 50, 51, 54 and 71 who donated them to science and none had died of a neurological disease.
Dr. Suzana Herculano-Houzel told Nature: “We found that on average the human brain has 86billion neurons. And not one that we looked at so far has the 100 billion.
“Even though it may sound like a small difference the 14 billion neurons amount to pretty much the number of neurons that a baboon brain has or almost half the number of neurons in the gorilla brain. So that’s a pretty large difference actually.”
Human brain actually has 86 billion neurons, not 100 billion, as previously thought, according to a Brazilian neuroscientist
The figure came as a surprise because most textbooks and articles about neurons, which are nerve cells that carry messages around, agree that there are 100 billion of them in a human brain.
Dr. Suzana Herculano-Houzel, however, was unable to find out where this figure had come from.
Her study represents a leap forward for neuroscience, but it only came about after she had come to terms with making “brain soup”.
Dr. Suzana Herculano-Houzel told Nature: “It took me a couple of months to make peace with this idea that I was going to take somebody’s brain or an animal’s brain and turn it into soup. But the thing is we have been learning so much by this method we’ve been getting numbers that people had not been able to get.
“It’s really just one more method that’s not any worse than just chopping your brain into little pieces.”
Although her results mean our brain power has been downgraded, we still have superior minds to other primates because we have more neurons in the brain that are devoted to cognition – mental processes – and behavior as a whole.
Ashton Kutcher was spotted out with his rumored new love Lorene Scafaria yesterday in Los Angeles.
Though his rep insisted they’re “just friends”, Ashton Kutcher, 34, and screenwriter Lorene Scafaria, 33, appear to be anything but.
Ashton Kutcher was all smiles as he and screenwriter Lorene Scafaria headed out with a group of friends to LA’s popular game spot, Ultrazone.
The pair arrived with their faces painted and ready to go as they boarded a party bus.
Ashton Kutcher was dressed casually in a dark cardigan and ball cap, a white T-shirt and grey trousers.
His concessions to color were an orange belt and a matching pair of trainers.
The hue matched his new lady love’s hair color: Lorene Scafaria appears to have dyed her brunette locks red in recent days.
Ashton Kutcher was spotted out with his rumored new love Lorene Scafaria yesterday in Los Angeles
Ashton Kutcher and Lorene Scafaria were first spotted touring Italy together over the holidays, immediately after Demi Moore, 49, announced their split.
Though his spokesperson insisted they were platonic friends, a slew of recent reports have more than suggested otherwise.
RadarOnline.com says that Ashton Kutcher took Lorene Scafaria to Madonna’s post-Oscar party last weekend.
Screenwriter Lorene Scafaria is best known for her work on the 2008 film Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist.
Lorene Scafaria is also good friends with fellow writers Diablo Cody (Juno) and Dana Fox (What Happens in Vegas), who she collaborates with in their writing group they call the “Fempire”.
She is currently working on her directorial debut for her self-penned script Seeking A Friend for the End of the World a romantic comedy that focuses on one man’s quest for a meaningful connection amid the “end of days”.
Us Weekly reported Ashton Kutcher and Lorene Scafaria engaged in some public kissing at a charity event on February 25.
An insider told the magazine: “They were affectionate.
“When they thought no one was watching, they held hands, and she rubbed his back and his neck.”
The event took place just before Demi Moore left rehabilitation treatment at Utah’s Cirque Lodge.
Demi Moore checked in to the centre after a health scare in late January and is said to now be on vacation at an undisclosed location.
People magazine reports that Ashton Kutcher did the right thing by his ex-wife (this time) and visited her while she was in rehab.
Demi Moore was hospitalized after going into convulsions whilst smoking an incense-like product.
The actress reportedly checked in for “stress and exhaustion”.
According to US researchers, children who snore, or who have other night-time breathing conditions, are at risk from behavioral problems.
Sleep apnoea and snoring made conditions such as hyperactivity more likely later on, researchers said.
The study, published in the US journal Pediatrics, looked at data on 11,000 children living in the UK.
Lead researcher Dr. Karen Bonuck, from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine at Yeshiva University in New York, said the sleep problems could be harming the developing brain.
One estimate suggests one in 10 children regularly snores and 2% to 4% suffer from sleep apnoea, which means the breathing is obstructed and interrupted during sleep.
Often enlarged tonsils or adenoids are to blame for the conditions.
According to US researchers, children who snore, or who have other night-time breathing conditions, are at risk from behavioral problems
In adults, the result can be severe day-time tiredness, and some studies have hinted that behavioral problems such as attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder might be linked to the condition in children.
The latest study is sufficiently large to offer a clearer view of this.
Parents were asked to fill in a questionnaire in which both the level of snoring and apnoea were recorded in the first six or seven years of life, and contrasted with their own assessment of the child’s behavior.
Dr. Karen Bonuck said that children with breathing issues during sleep were between 40% and 100% more likely to develop “neurobehavioral problems” by the age of seven.
She believes that the sleep breathing issues could cause behavioral problems in a number of ways – by reducing the supply of oxygen to the brain, interrupting the “restorative processes” of sleep or disrupting the balance of brain chemicals.
She said: “Until now, we really didn’t have strong evidence that sleep-disordered breathing actually preceded problematic behavior such as hyperactivity.
“But this study shows clearly that symptoms do precede behavioral problems and strongly suggests that they are causing these problems.”
London gallery Tate Modern bought Chinese artist Ai Weiwei’s “sunflower seeds”, a work made up of 10 tons of porcelain seed replicas.
Tate Modern has acquired around eight million of the 100 million porcelain reproductions.
They make up just under 10% of the original work, commissioned for the Tate’s 2010’s Unilever Series.
It saw 100 million seeds spread over the floor of the gallery’s vast Turbine Hall.
Shortly afterwards it was cordoned off over health and safety fears because of ceramic dust. The gallery initially had plans for visitors to be able to walk on the seeds.
London gallery Tate Modern bought Chinese artist Ai Weiwei's "sunflower seeds", a work made up of 10 tons of porcelain seed replicas
The work was on display at Tate Modern from June 2011 to February 2012.
Each porcelain seed had been individually handcrafted by skilled artisans in the city of Jingdezhen, which is famed for its production of Chinese Imperial porcelain.
The work has been purchased for an undisclosed figure with assistance from the Tate International Council, the Art Fund, and private donations.
It’s thought the remaining seeds will go back to the artist.
As well as being a popular Chinese street snack, sunflower seeds have a political meaning for the Chinese artist.
During the Cultural Revolution, propaganda images showed Chairman Mao as the sun and the mass of people as sunflowers turning towards him.
Chinese dissident Ai Weiwei was recently named as the most powerful person in the art world.
The announcement came after he spent more than two months in detention.
Ai Weiwei’s arrest in April 2011, as he boarded a Beijing flight bound for Hong Kong, prompted a global campaign for his release.
Juan José Padilla, the Spanish matador who lost his left eye in a horrific goring last year, made a remarkable return to the bullring yesterday.
Juan José Padilla, dubbed The Pirate because of the eye-patch he now wears, was given one of the highest accolades when his fellow bullfighters carried him out from the arena following the fight.
Despite not having two-eyed stereoscopic vision to judge distances and the speed of approaching objects accurately, Juan José Padilla showed little trouble killing his first bull in front of a crowd of 5,400.
The matador then dedicated the second 1,100lb beast to his tearful father, fulfilling what he described as an “unquenchable desire to face a fighting bull with the aid of only a cape and a sword”.
Juan José Padilla said: “This is like a dream come true after so many months. I am fully aware that nobody thought I would be back.
“But I am not a hero, just someone who has been given the chance to stay alive and continue his passion.”
Juan José Padilla, 38, known professionally as the Cyclone of Jerez, was the star attraction at the south-western town of Olivenza’s annual taurine festival.
The matador had previously said he was returning to the ring because of a need “to win, to triumph, to be a better man”.
Yesterday’s bullfight was the first time Juan José Padilla had professionally fought since October, when he was seen hobbling from a Zaragoza ring covered in blood screaming “I can’t see”.
Juan José Padilla was wounded in October after he slipped on the sand, a bull’s horn pierced his jaw and it came out through his eye.
The crowds at the Zaragoza’s Fiestas Del Pilar bullfight at the Misericordia ring were left stunned.
Juan José Padilla then underwent a life-saving five-hour operation to repair severe damage to his eye, bone, muscle and skin – his face reconstructed with titanium plates and mesh.
Juan José Padilla, the Spanish matador who lost his left eye in a horrific goring last year, made a remarkable return to the bullring yesterday.
It was not the first time Juan José Padilla, a popular matador who has won many fans for his courage and willingness to face the toughest bulls, had been gored.
In 2001, Juan José Padilla suffered serious injuries to his neck during a fight in Pamplona.
His return to the ring came as the intense debate over bullfighting in Spain continues – with supporters saying it is a key part of its culture and critics claiming it is animal cruelty.
The “spectacle” has come under pressure since the 2007 start of the economic crisis, as public funds to promote fights are cut, and the region of Catalonia banned it in 2011.
But Spain’s new conservative Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy is an avid fan and recently inspired the national television networks to start showing fights again.
Coverage had been abandoned in 2006 under the previous Socialist administration.
Researchers found that up to 900 species of tropical land birds around the world could become extinct by 2100.
The finding is modeled on the effects of a 3.5C Earth surface temperature rise, a Biological Conservation Journal paper shows.
Species may struggle to adapt to habitat loss and extreme weather events, author Cagan Sekercioglu says.
Mountain, coastal, restricted-range, and species unable to get to higher elevations could be the worst affected.
Depending on future habitat loss, each degree of surface warming could affect between 100-500 species, says Cagan Sekercioglu, assistant professor of biology at the University of Utah.
“This gives us a clear big picture. The problem is most species in the world are highly sedentary… the public perception is most birds are migratory and so climate change is not a problem for them,” Cagan Sekercioglu says.
Researchers found that up to 900 species of tropical land birds around the world could become extinct by 2100
Cagan Sekercioglu says tropical mountain species are among the most vulnerable. He says bird species will need to be able to adapt physiologically to changes in temperature and be able to move to higher altitudes if they are to survive.
He also says cooler, more humid forests could recede higher up mountains and combined with human settlements at higher altitudes, forest habitat could “get pushed off the mountain”.
This would create “an escalator to extinction” Cagan Sekercioglu says.
“Coastal species are also vulnerable – as coastal forest can be sensitive to salinity, and these forests can get hit harder by hurricanes and typhoons, and these events are also expected to increase.”
Birds in extensive lowland forests with few mountains in places such as the Amazon and Congo basins – may have trouble relocating, while tropical birds in open habitats such as savanna, grasslands, scrub and desert face shrinking habitats.
Tropical birds in arid zones are assumed to be resilient to hot, dry conditions, but they could suffer if water sources dry out.
Mike Crosby, senior conservation officer in Asia at Birdlife International says: “We know that quite a lot of tropical birds are not very good at dispersing so this could be a big issue in the future if the suitable climate moves several hundred kilometres or even tens of kilometres, some of the birds might not be able to move their ranges sufficiently quickly in response to that.
“We might have to take novel conservation measures in the future such as translocation of birds from one site to another.”
The study looked at how manakins, of which there are 45 species in the neotropical region, would cope.
Results showed that manakins limited to the lowland habitats of the Amazon and Cerrado in Brazil, would be most affected as they could lose up to 80% of their habitat; as many as 20% of the Cerrado manakin species are expected to go extinct.
Cagan Sekercioglu says: “Manakins show the importance of having a wide tropical area of mid-elevation forests, and being able to move to higher elevation forests.”
He says while overall “birds are one of the least threatened groups of animals” by climate change, “they are the ‘best case’ scenario”.
“The findings are likely to be much worse for all other groups of animals,” Cagan Sekercioglu says.
“We need to be planning protected areas with higher elevations in mind and leave breathing room for endangered species in higher elevation areas,” he says.
Mike Crosby says: “We’ve got to prepare ourselves to be measuring temperature in protected areas, and measuring rainfall, and monitoring what’s happening to species, so that we can respond in the appropriate way. It’s very difficult to predict very precisely what’s going to happen.”
He adds that visitors to the region could help protect the birds they travel to see.
“People who go bird watching in the tropics can gather very useful data, given that the current data that we have is basically pretty poor in many parts of the world. Amateur bird watchers can really make an important contribution.”
Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown’s prenuptial agreement, which was drawn up before they got married in 1992, has now been revealed.
Whitney Houston, who passed away last month at the age of just 48, signed the document on July 17, 1992, and as well as banning Bobby Brown from accessing her will, it stated the income both parties earned during their marriage would remain separate property.
RadarOnline.com has obtained the document, which states: “Houston shall have the right to dispose of her Separate Property by Last Will and Testament in such manner as she may, in her own uncontrolled discretion deem proper.
“All future earnings, income, and accumulations resulting from each of the party’s respective personal activities, skills, efforts and work (including but not limited to each party’s respective earnings, income and accumulations derived from recording contracts, movie contracts, other media contracts, concert tours, endorsements, personal appearances….shall remain separate.”
Whitney Houston signed the prenuptial agreement on July 17, 1992, and as well as banning Bobby Brown from accessing her will
Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown, who had a daughter, Bobbi Kristina, together, filed for divorce in 2006 after 14 years of marriage, but the prenuptial agreement stated the late singer had “no obligation” to support her former spouse.
The document stipulated: “Brown agrees that Houston shall have no legal obligation to support him, and that he shall have no right to require the payment of any alimony, support (including temporary support), or other maintenance, and no right to receive any rights, interests, or claims to Houston’s property, and Brown hereby waives releases, and forever renounces any and all such rights to the fullest extent permitted by law.”
Bobby Brown, who was believed to have introduced Whitney Houston to illegal substances, was rumored to have been possibly banned from attending the star’s funeral last month, but did attend, only to leave early after a seating dispute.
Whitney Houston’s death saw the sales of her records skyrocket and this is being seen as recurring trend in the event of the death of a pop star.
Amy Winehouse’s album sales jumped 37-fold the day after the singer died in July.
The following week Amy Winehouse had five singles in the UK Top 40, while her second album “Back To Black” claimed the No.1 spot.
Four months later Amy Winehouse topped the charts with a new album of unreleased tracks – “Lioness: Hidden Treasures”, the Daily Star reported.
Whitney Houston's death saw the sales of her records skyrocket and this is being seen as recurring trend in the event of the death of a pop star
Michael Jackson’s 2009 London shows were originally planned to help him get back in control of his $475 million debt. But it was only after his death in June 2009 that money really starting pouring in for Michael Jackson.
The following week Michael Jackson’ record sales soared 40-fold and the sales spike has continued ever since.
In 2010, Michael Jackson generated more money than any artist alive or dead by bagging $273 million in record sales and radio royalties.
Last year, only Irish rockers U2 managed to top the $170 million Michael Jackson’s estate raked in.
The second-highest earning dead celebrity last year was Elvis Presley, who died in 1977. He earned $55 million from his back catalogue, visitors to Graceland and ticket sales from a tribute show in Las Vegas.
Shigeyoshi Osaki of Japan’s Nara Medical University has used thousands of strands of spider silk to spin a set of violin strings.
The strings are said to have a “soft and profound timbre” relative to traditional gut or steel strings.
That may arise from the way the strings are twisted, resulting in a “packing structure” that leaves practically no space between any of the strands.
The violin strings will be described in a forthcoming edition of the journal Physical Review Letters.
Shigeyoshi Osaki has been interested in the mechanical properties of spider silk for a number of years.
Shigeyoshi Osaki of Japan's Nara Medical University has used thousands of strands of spider silk to spin a set of violin strings
In particular, Dr. Shigeyoshi Osaki has studied the “dragline” silk that spiders dangle from, quantifying its strength in a 2007 paper in PolymerJournal.
Dr. Shigeyoshi Osaki has perfected methods of obtaining large quantities of this dragline silk from captive-bred spiders and has now turned his attention to the applications of the remarkable material.
“Bowed string instruments such as the violin have been the subject of many scientific studies,” Shigeyoshi Osaki writes.
“However, not all of the details have been clarified, as most players have been interested in the violin body rather than the properties of the bow or strings.”
Dr. Shigeyoshi Osaki used 300 female Nephila maculata spiders – one of the species of “golden orb-weavers” renowned for their complex webs – to provide the dragline silk.
For each string, Dr. Shigeyoshi Osaki twisted between 3,000 and 5,000 individual strands of silk in one direction to form a bundle. The strings were then prepared from three of these bundles twisted together in the opposite direction.
Dr. Shigeyoshi Osaki then set about measuring their tensile strength – a critical factor for violinists wishing to avoid breaking a string in the midst of a concerto.
The spider-silk strings withstood less tension before breaking than a traditional but rarely used gut string, but more than an aluminum-coated, nylon-core string.
A closer study using an electron microscope showed that, while the strings themselves were perfectly round, in cross-section the strands had been compressed into a range of different shapes that all fit snugly together, leaving no space between them.
Dr. Shigeyoshi Osaki suggests that it is this feature of the strings that lends them their strength and, crucially, their unique tone.
“Several professional violinists reported that spider strings… generated a preferable timbre, being able to create a new music,” Shigeyoshi Osaki wrote.
“The violin strings are a novel practical use for spider silk as a kind of high value-added product, and offer a distinctive type of timbre for both violin players and music lovers worldwide.”
According to estimates in a new report, Americans are spending more on their pets than ever before.
The American Pet Products Association (APPA) says spending on pets in the US passed $50 billion in 2011.
Food and veterinary costs accounted for about 65% of the figure, but the category of “pet services” grew faster than any other, totaling $3.79 billion in 2011.
Pet services includes grooming, boarding, pet hotels, and pet-sitting.
Spending on pet services should continue to grow and reach $4.11 billion by the end of 2012, said APPA President Bob Vetere.
“We are seeing a boom in this category as people continue to work and require services such as pet-sitting, boarding and walking to care for their pets at home,” Bob Vetere said.
The American Pet Products Association (APPA) says spending on pets in the US passed $50 billion in 2011
Pet insurance is expected to be another growth area, with spending estimated at $450 million in 2011.
A wide range of pet clothes are available from US retailers, from polo shirts to wigs and fancy dress costumes.
“People are more interested in pets than ever before but they are taking their time, once they make the commitment, to do it right,” San Diego veterinarian Jessica Vogelsang told the Associated Press.
The pet services industry is becoming ever more adept at providing pet owners with items to meet their specific needs, Jessica Vogelsang says.
“We are seeing a lot of puzzle feeders for dogs – not just toys but ones that are geared toward the mental needs of the animal. Then there are bionic toys for destructive chewers, a lot of very niche items.”
Sony music confirmed that Michael Jackson’s entire back catalogue has been stolen by internet hackers.
Sony music suffered its second major security breach in a year, with thieves targeting songs and unreleased material by Michael Jackson.
It’s alleged the hackers downloaded more than 50,000 music files, worth over $250 million, in the biggest ever cyber attack on a music company.
The news comes just a year after Sony paid $395 million for the seven-year rights to the songs following Michael Jackson’s death.
The contract with Michael Jackson’s estate also allowed Sony music to release 10 new albums, including material from studio sessions produced during the making of some of the megastar’s biggest albums.
Michael Jackson, who died in June 2009 at the age of 50, had recorded unreleased duets with artists ranging from the late Freddie Mercury and Black Eyed Peas singer Will.i.am.
In April the details of 77 million gamers were stolen after Sony’s Playstation Network was hacked. The breach cost Sony $167 million and hugely damaged their reputation.
Sony music confirmed that Michael Jackson's entire back catalogue has been stolen by internet hackers
The attack on the Michael Jackson files occurred shortly afterwards but has not been revealed until now.
The hack was discovered during routine monitoring of social networking sites, Michael Jackson fan sites and hacking forums.
A source close to Sony said: “Everything Sony purchased from the Michael Jackson estate was compromised.
“It caused them to check their systems and they found the breach. There was a degree of sophistication.
“Sony identified the weakness and plugged the gap.”
The hack has compromised the work of other artists managed by the firm, including songs by Jimi Hendrix, Paul Simon, Olly Murs, the Foo Fighters and Avril Lavigne.
The source added that the second breach happening so soon after the first “would have made investors and artists think, <<What other part of Sony isn’t secure?>>”
Last night Sony admitted there had been a security breach and that the Michael Jackson material had been stolen but refused to say how much the hackers downloaded.
A source within the company said that although the Michael Jackson estate had been told about the hack the company did not have to make the knowledge public as there was no customer data involved.
They added that computer experts had traced the hack to the UK by examining a “fingerprint” allegedly left behind.
The Serious Organised Crime division took up the case and two men appeared in court last week charged with offences under the computer Misuse Act.
They denied all charges and were remanded on bail.
US government has filed a formal request for the extradition of Kim Dotcom, Megaupload’s founder, in New Zealand.
Prosecutors had had 45 days to make the application following Kim Dotcom’s arrest in January. The papers also call for the extradition of three other senior members of Megaupload’ staff.
The members of Megaupload’ staff are accused of helping make it possible for users to illegally download copyrighted material through their file-sharing site.
They denied criminal misconduct.
New Zealand court officials said the papers were filed on Friday. An extradition hearing has been scheduled for 20 August.
US government has filed a formal request for the extradition of Kim Dotcom, Megaupload's founder, in New Zealand
The US has accused Megaupload’s staff of racketeering, copyright infringement, money laundering and wire fraud among other charges.
Prosecutors allege that the website cost copyright holders more than $500 million in lost revenue.
However, Kim Dotcom has described the scale of the claim as “nonsense”, telling New Zealand’s Channel 3 News that: “I’m no piracy king, I offered online storage and bandwidth to users and that’s it.”
Kim Dotcom, a German national, was released on bail 12 days ago despite protests by the US that he posed an extreme flight risk.
However, a judge ruled that an electronic monitoring bracelet that he has to wear and the fact that his assets had been seized had reduced that risk.
Pending the hearing to determine if he should be sent to stand trial in the US, Kim Dotcom has been forbidden to use the internet and has been ordered to remain within the grounds of his leased Auckland estate.
R&B singer and Ray J’ sister Brandy dedicated a heartfelt performance to Whitney Houston during a concert last week in Los Angeles.
Ever since Whitney Houston and Brandy co-starred together in the 1997 TV movie Cinderella, the R&B singer has looked up to Whitney.
In her first performance since Whitney Houston passed away last month, Brandy, 33, sang her 2008 hit Right Here (Departed) and dedicated it to the late singer during a set at The Factory nightclub.
Before she sang the song, Brandy said: “If she was here with us now in the physical, this is what I would tell her.”
Brandy went on to wow the crowd with her emotional performance, although bowed out of singing any of Whitney Houston’s songs.
“I heard there was a rumor that I was doing a Whitney Houston tribute tonight – unfortunately that’s not true, because I would be an emotional wreck right now,” Brandy told the crowd.
“I’m just not ready to sing any of her songs. You guys know what that’s like.”
R&B singer and Ray J’ sister Brandy dedicated a heartfelt performance to Whitney Houston during a concert last week in Los Angeles
Brandy’s brother, Ray J, was left devastated by the death of his one-time girlfriend Whitney Houston last month.
At Whitney Houston’s funeral, Ray J was reduced to tears as he watched her casket being carried out of the church.
At the time of Whitney Houston’s death, Ray J released a statement which read: “Over the past few days I’ve tried to process the emptiness that I am experiencing.
“What my heart feels cannot be expressed in words. The world lost an icon, but I lost my close friend. Nippy, I miss you so much!
“You were so happy and full of love. Your smile will live in my heart forever.”
Whitney Houston and Ray J were first romantically linked back in 2010, and were said to have been in an on-off relationship until as recently as February 3rd, when they were apparently seen having dinner together in Los Angeles.
Shortly after Whitney Houston’s tragic death, Ray J was seen at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in LAwhere she died, but was turned away by police when he arrived.
Whitney Houston was 48-years-old at the time of her death on 11 February.
New reports claim that Jermaine Jackson, the older brother of Michael Jackson, had a year-long affair with late singer Whitney Houston.
Jermaine Jackson, 57, is said to have inspired the video for Whitney Houston’s 1985 single Saving All My Love For You, which tells the story of a woman’s romance with a married man, with the singer even hiring a lookalike of Jermaine for the footage.
The Sun Sunday claim that while Jermaine Jackson and Whitney Houston’s affair ended after a year, they never lost touch – with Whitney comforting Jermaine following Michael Jackson’s death in 2009.
When Whitney Houston died, Jermaine Jackson was left grief-stricken by the passing of his close friend and alleged former lover.
A source told The Sun Sunday: “Her death has devastated Jermaine because of the history between them.
“No one understood the scale of his grief because they didn’t know what they shared.”
It is claimed that Jermaine Jackson and Whitney Houston's affair began in 1984 when Jermaine was married to Hazel Gordy
It is claimed that Jermaine Jackson and Whitney Houston’s affair began in 1984 when Jermaine was married to Hazel Gordy.
While Jermaine Jackson wrote about his friendship with Whitney Houston in the HarperCollins book he released last year, You are Not Alone: Michael, Through A Brother’s Eyes, he has never spoken about reported affair.
But in the tome Jermaine Jackson does write that he struggled with his feelings for Whitney Houston, although put them aside for the sake of his marriage.
Jermaine Jackson wrote: “As much as I wanted to lose myself in all these feelings, I told her to wait. Ultimately, we had to go our separate ways and it killed us both.”
However, the source added to The Sun Sunday that Jermaine Jackson had deliberately left intimate details of his relationship with Whitney Houston out of his book to make it sound as if they were just friends rather than lovers.
The source added: “The reason it ended was because Jermaine wouldn’t leave his wife – and Whitney was angry. The video for Saving All My Love For You was about all of that.”
Jermaine Jackson and Hazel Gordy split three years after his reported affair with Whitney Houston, following a 14-year marriage
In his book, Jermaine Jackson also revealed that Michael had warned him off pursuing an intimate relationship with Whitney Houston.
The singer wrote: “He didn’t fuel the temptation as some guys would. He reminded me about Hazel, about family.”
Jermaine Jackson and Hazel Gordy split three years after his reported affair with Whitney Houston, following a 14-year marriage. He has since had three long-term relationships, and is now married to Halima Rashid – his third wife.
At least 27 police officers have been killed in the western Iraqi city of Haditha after dozens of gunmen launched a pre-dawn raid on police targets.
The attacks began on Monday at 02:00 a.m. with the kidnapping of two senior officers from their homes. They were later found shot dead.
The gunmen, some wearing military uniforms, then moved through the city, shooting police at checkpoints.
Al-Qaeda has been blamed for the attacks.
An al-Qaeda flag was raised at one of the checkpoints that was hit, according to the Associated Press.
This is the first major incident of violence in Haditha since a suicide bomber targeted a bank in the city in March 2011, killing nine people.
The gunmen entered the homes of a colonel and a captain in the interior ministry security force, kidnapping them both. The attackers claimed they had warrants for their arrests, Mohammed Fathi, a spokesman for the provincial governor, told AP.
At least 27 police officers have been killed in the western Iraqi city of Haditha after dozens of gunmen launched a pre-dawn raid on police targets
The two commanders were later found shot dead in the street not far from their homes, Haditha police said.
Mohammed Fathi told AP the gunmen had false arrest warrants for 15 police officials in the city.
The gang, driving interior ministry vehicles and wearing uniforms of the ministry’s special forces, then moved through the city in a convoy, which one local lieutenant said was 13 vehicles strong.
The attackers opened fire on the checkpoints they came to. Three of the assailants were also killed in the raids, which are said to have lasted half an hour.
“Al-Qaeda is responsible for this,” Maj Tareq Sayeh Hardan, a police spokesman in Haditha, said, adding that al-Qaeda literature had been found in one of the attackers’ vehicles.
Haditha lies in the Sunni Arab Anbar province, which became an al-Qaeda stronghold after the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.
Violence in the province dwindled after tribal leaders allied themselves with US forces in 2006.
However, attacks have risen across Iraq since US troops withdrew in December.
Last month, at least 55 people were killed and hundreds injured in a day of violence targeting mainly Shia areas across the country.
The violence in Haditha comes ahead of an Arab League summit, due to be held in Baghdad at the end of March.
