Dionne Warwick, Whitney Houston’s cousin, is opening up to Entertainment Tonight about the singer’s death and reveals what she thinks killed the pop superstar.
When asked what she expects to hear when authorities issue a final cause of death for Whitney Houston following the results of toxicology tests, Dionne Warwick said: “You know, in all honesty, I think she had a heart attack, that’s what I think happened to her.”
Dionne Warwick, 71, also spoke about the feelings she had while accompanying Whitney Houston’s body aboard the plane that transported the Grammy winner back to her native New Jersey.
“It was a combination of things, stories, laughter, tears. All the emotions that you feel when somebody very near to you passes.”
Dionne Warwick, Whitney Houston’s cousin, is opening up about the singer’s death and reveals what she thinks killed the pop superstar
When asked about possible drug use playing a role, Dionne Warwick added: “I don’t know if it’s that or not. I think her heart just gave out.”
Dionne Warwick said she felt Whitney Houston “had everything in the world to live for.”
NBC News has reportedly licensed photos from Whitney Houston’s hairstylist Tiffanie Dixon for two of its shows.
The network nabbed an exclusive interview with Tiffanie Dixon, one of the few people present in Whitney Houston’s hotel room at the time of her death.
NBC News, which has spoken out against the practice of “paying” for interviews, reportedly licensed photos from Tiffanie Dixon, Whitney Houston’s hairstylist, when they interviewed her for two of its shows, “Dateline” and “Today.”
NBC‘s Tamron Hall had said that they were licensed when they appeared on-screen.
NBC News has reportedly licensed photos from Whitney Houston's hairstylist Tiffanie Dixon for two of its shows
While American networks forbid “paying” people for interviews, they sometimes pay individuals licensing fees for their photos or videos in exchange for exclusive interviews. The controversial practice is seen as unethical by some.
Rival news bureaus NBC and ABC had a rather testy exchange about this very subject in July 2011. ABC News announced that the network was suspending the practice after some heated criticism.
The declaration opened up a war of words with NBC, which said: “We agree that their recent activity has been bad for journalism and the news industry. And we welcome them back to the practices that we work hard to uphold.”
ABC‘s Barbara Walters recently stuck to the new standard after rumors swirled that she was reportedly asking ABC News to pay Pippa Middleton a six-figure sum for an exclusive interview.
“ABC News does not pay for interviews,” Barbara Walters pressed during her daytime talk show “The View.”
A new world speed record for creation of a 3D-printed nano-object has been claimed by researchers at Vienna University of Technology in Austria.
The Austrian team is able to create sculptures as small as a grain of sand in a fraction of the time than had previously been required.
To demonstrate the process the group created a model of a Formula 1 racing car 0.285 mm (0.011in) in length in just over four minutes.
The scientists said the technique could be used to make small biomedical parts.
To produce the car about 100 layers, each consisting of 200 single printed lines, were created by Vienna University of Technology’s equipment.
“The technology itself is quite well known in the science arena, but the problem was that it was always extremely slow,” said Prof. Jurgen Stampfl.
“It was good as a showcase, but for real world applications it was much too time-consuming. Making complex large 3D structures would take hours or even days.
“Using our set-up and materials, we can speed that up by a factor of 500 or in some cases 1,000 times.”
The formal name for the process is “two-photon lithography”.
It involves focusing a laser beam onto liquid resin to harden it, leaving behind a line of solid polymer just a few nanometres wide.
A new world speed record for creation of a 3D-printed nano-object has been claimed by researchers at Vienna University of Technology in Austria
Unlike traditional 3D-printing techniques which build up an object by adding layers to its surface, the laser can create solid material anywhere within the liquid material.
The process gets its name because the resin only sets if the molecules within it absorb two photons of the laser beam at once – which only happens at the very centre of the beam.
The team’s breakthrough involved improving the control mechanism for mirrors used to focus the laser, and developing the special type of resin involved in the process.
The researchers are now developing bio-compatible resins so that the objects they create can have be used by doctors.
One suggested application is to create scaffolds which cells could use to build new biological tissues.
Engineers at Washington State University have already shown how 3D-printers can be used to build scaffolds to promote the regrowth of damaged bone.
Prof. Jurgen Stampfl said his team’s technique can work in water-based environments meaning it is also capable of creating scaffolds suitable for softer tissues such as cartilage and muscle tissue.
“We can also <<write>> these structures in the presence of cells as we use an infrared laser which is completely harmless for biological tissue,” Prof. Jurgen Stampfl added.
“This is not possible with other 3D-printing techniques which first rely on making the scaffolds and then seed the cells, or use a thin inkjet nozzle to push through the cells which may damage them.
“The two-photon lithography technique lets us do the writing in the same space as the cells – what we call in-vivo writing.”
Jessica Simpson looks like she’s ready to drop, but she says she still has a few weeks to go until she gives birth.
Jessica Simpson, 31, also admitted she had the fright of her life recently during a bout of contractions which seemed like her first child was about to be welcomed into the world early.
Speaking on an episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, which aired today, Jessica Simpson shared that she “freaked out” when the pains started.
“I had contractions last night and I freaked out a little bit. You know those Braxton Hicks things?”
Jessica Simpson went on to explain the special terminology: “Like these contractions that pregnant woman has towards the end. It prepares your body for delivery. I’m prepared. It’s scary. It’s like, <<Oh God, this can happen right now.>>”
Jessica Simpson also told Ellen DeGeneres that she and her fiancé Eric Johnson are surprised that when they call her bump by the name they wish to give their daughter, she responds by kicking.
However amid promotion for her Fashion Star show, which also stars Nicole Richie and Elle Macpherson and begins on NBC tonight, JessicaSimpson is keeping mum about the moniker their first baby will receive.
Jessica Simpson is refusing to put her feet up as she does the rounds for her newest career venture.
She donned a red pair of wedges on to join the comedienne on the famous red guest chair and looked stunning as she did it.
The blonde teamed her daring footwear choice with a demure cream frock with graduated hemline and the mother-to-be looked over-excited to show the studio audience her size of her burgeoning belly.
Jessica Simpson even joked about donning high heel slippers in the delivery room and spoke of a special gown for the occasion.
The star can be seen caressing her stomach as the comedian looks shocked at the sheer size of it.
Jessica Simpson looks like she's ready to drop, but she says she still has a few weeks to go until she gives birth
However, Jessica Simpson confirmed that definitely was not expecting twins despite what it may look like when she appeared with Jay Leno yesterday.
Jessica Simpson said: “No, it’s not twins I know it looks like it.”
Earlier in the show before she stepped on the stage Jay Leno introduced her by saying: “She’s about to have a baby at any minute.”
Jessica Simpson strutted out onto the stage in a black dress, an animal print cardigan and a pair of sky-high heels.
After greeting the co-host she said: “We’re waddling at this point.”
And while Jay Leno joked she might give birth any minute she replied: “Not quite yet we have some time.”
Speaking about the upcoming birth of Jessica Simpson said: “Labor is really going to hurt I have so much respect for my mom and all the women across the world.
“It’s a tough thing here and I’m wearing six inch heels, it’s a lot of weight to carry on six inches.”
While Jessica Simpson was discussing her size she also revealed some of her pregnancy cravings which included something she described as “slutty brownies”.
They are three layer desert which include a layer of cookie dough and a layer of oreo cookie too.
When asked why they are called “slutty brownies” Jessica Simpson replied: “I don’t know I guess a lot goes into them I guess.”
Jessica Simpson also spoke about how she found out she was pregnant – she had a feeling of guilt over plans to drink cocktails with friends so she decided to take a test.
She joked: “We weren’t trying but we were practicising.”
Learning she was pregnant Jessica Simpson said: “I freaked out I was so excited, Eric didn’t even know I was doing it, he was completely shocked. He cried.”
When asked if she had set a wedding date Jessica Simpson replied: “I want him to be my husband so bad. I do still want to wear the pretty gown so I have to wait.”
Before adding: “Now she’ll just be in the wedding.”
Dionne Warwick is opening up about the death of her cousin Whitney Houston, revealing to ABC’s Good Morning America that she spoke to the pop superstar the day she died.
Dionne Warwick, 71, said she felt Whitney Houston “had everything in the world to live for”.
“I spoke to Whitney the day that she passed,” Dionne Warwick GMA’s Robin Roberts on Thursday.
“I spoke to her that morning. She said, <<You’re here, aren’t you? You’re coming to the party, aren’t you?>> I said, <<Yeah, I’m going to be there>> and she said, <<Thank you, I want you to be here. You’ve got to be here for me.>>”
Dionne Warwick said she felt her cousin Whitney Houston "had everything in the world to live for"
“I spoke to her that afternoon once I landed in L.A. and that was it,” Dionne Warwick revealed.
“She was so up and ready and happy. She had everything in the world to live for. She had a new film that was an absolute dream to make and do. She was getting ready to go back into the studio to record. She was getting her vocals together.”
Dionne Warwick said she is still struggling to cope with the untimely death of her cousin Whitney Houston, whom she called “the little girl I never had”.
“It’s very, very surreal. It hasn’t really sunk in yet. I have not had an opportunity to really mourn or completely break down, which I will do, I know that.”
The United States, EU and Japan have filed a case against China at the World Trade Organization (WTO), challenging its restrictions on rare earth exports.
US President Barack Obama announced the filing at the White House, accusing China of breaking agreed WTO rules.
Beijing has set quotas for exports of rare earths, which are critical to the manufacture of high-tech products from hybrid cars, to flat-screen TVs.
It is the first WTO case to be filed jointly by the US, EU and Japan.
They argue that by limiting exports, China, which produces more than 95% of the world’s rare earth metals, has pushed up prices.
“We’ve got to take control of our energy future and we cannot let that energy industry take root in some other country because they were allowed to break the rules,” President Barack Obama said in a Rose Garden press conference.
“If China would simply let the market work on its own we would have no objections.”
In the press conference, Barack Obama also said his newly established trade enforcement unit was ramping up operations.
Barack Obama announced the new unit in January.
The US, EU and Japan have filed a case against China at the WTO, challenging its restrictions on rare earth exports
China has denied the allegations in the WTO case, saying that it had enforced the quotas to ensure there was no environmental damage caused due to excessive mining.
“We think the policy is in line with WTO rules,” said Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Liu Weimin.
“Exports have been stable. China will continue to export, and will manage rare earths based on WTO rules,” he said.
The 17 metals are used in electrical products, as well as many renewable energy devices.
There have been concerns that Beijing has implemented the quotas in a bid to ensure that prices remain low within China, which would give its manufacturers an advantage.
But Ivor Shrago, chairman of the mining services firm Rare Earths Global, said the US was in trouble because it took the wrong decisions in the past.
“They took a deliberate decision about 20 years ago not to develop [rare earth mining] and instead to buy the completed products,” he said.
“Because of the deliberate decision that was taken, in China we have developed skills and expertise that the others do not have.”
Public buildings in Trenton City, the capital of the US state of New Jersey, face running out of toilet paper following a row.
Trenton’s city council has refused to approve a $42,000 contract for paper products after baulking at its $4,000 charge for paper cups.
The toilet paper, along with other supplies, is to be used in government buildings such as city hall.
Removing the cups from the contract has not allayed the council’s suspicions over the bidding process.
One council member told Bloomberg News that “we’re not going to send out any blank cheques”.
George Muschal said the council did not want to approve Mayor Tony Mack’s decision to include $4,000 of paper cups designed for hot drinks, citing unreasonably high costs for the items.
It voted down the contract three separate times, most recently in January.
According to reports, the paper cups were removed without a new bidding process. Council members have also questioned why the city did not solicit bids from Trenton-based suppliers.
Public buildings in Trenton City, the capital of the US state of New Jersey, face running out of toilet paper following a row
Fellow council member Kathy McBride, who voted for the contract during the January vote, said that move further raised the council’s suspicions.
“There’s enough blame to go around on both sides,” she said.
“I always have to function with one goal in mind, and that’s I represent the residents of the city.”
However, Kathy McBride told the Times of Trenton that the city council still had an obligation to keep the city running.
Mayor Tony Mack, who began his term in 2010, almost faced a recall election in 2011, following questions about his hiring practices.
The city has lost seven business administrators since the beginning of his term, including one who resigned pending an investigation of allegedly mishandling campaign money, and one who resigned before his first day of work.
Sometimes your eye symptoms could point to a deeper problem than you thought, so is important to know their potential causes.
Red eyes
Cold sore: Viruses or localized infections can cause the eye to redden – the problem usually starts in one eye, but can spread to both.
The cold sore virus, which 90% of us carry, can sometimes also infect the eye, causing inflammation. Other symptoms of an eye infection include throbbing pain around your eye, sensitivity to light, (photophobia) and a watery eye. You may need antiviral drops or ointment from your GP. If you have a cold sore on your mouth, always wash your hands after touching it.
Iritis: If the eye turns a deep red and you have throbbing pain at the front, this could be iritis or anterior uveitis – inflammation of the iris, the colored part of the eye. This is triggered by an over-reaction of the immune system, though its exact cause isn’t known. The redness tends to start at the centre of the eye and spreads in a red ring around the centre within 24 to 48 hours. It doesn’t usually spread to the other eye. Treatment initially involves corticosteroid eye drops, though if there is infection, you may need antibiotics.
High blood pressure: Persistent red blotches on the whites of both eyes can be a sign of hypertension, explains Ian Grierson, professor of ophthalmology at the University of Liverpool. High pressure causes the blood vessels to expand or even burst, leaving red marks across the white of the eye (but not the colored part).
Haemorrhage: If one eye suddenly becomes red without any other symptoms, then it could be a subconjunctival haemorrhage – where blood leaks in the thin layer of skin at the front of the eyeball. This is very common, particularly in older people. It can be brought on by a violent coughing fit, vomiting, or if you are prone to nose bleeds or bruising. It should clear up by itself within a couple of weeks, says Prof. Ian Grierson.
Dry eyes
The menopause: This causes changes in hormone levels, affecting, among other things, the lubrication mechanisms of the eye, says David Allamby, an ophthalmic surgeon and medical director of the Focus Laser Eye Clinic in London. There is less fluid for the tear film which washes over the surface of the eye – so leading to dry eyes. To tackle the problem, close your eyes for 20 seconds every ten minutes, suggests James Ball, consultant ophthalmic surgeon at St James’s Hospital in Leeds. Working in an air-conditioned office, or leaving contact lenses in for too long can also cause dry eyes (air conditioning is drying, while contact lenses absorb a lot of moisture in the eyes).
If you need eye drops for dry eyes – known as artificial tears – choose a brand without the preservative benzalkonium chloride, which can cause irritation, says Andrew Lotery, professor of ophthalmology at the University of Southampton. “You tend to find it in eye drops that come in bottles,” he says. Most eye drops contain preservatives to inhibit bacteria because they are used again and again. Eye drops without preservatives come in one-dose tubes – once they’re opened, they should be used up or thrown away after one day. As well as using eye drops, dry eyes can be helped by taking a supplement of omega 3, 6 and 9.
Sjogren’s syndrome: An auto-immune condition that causes the body to attack its own moisture-producing glands, leading to abnormal dryness of the eyes, says Dr. David Allamby. Other symptoms include extreme dry mouth and muscle fatigue. The slow-onset condition affects women more than men, and is typically diagnosed in your 40’s and 50’s. The symptoms can be eased with artificial tears.
Exposure keratitis: Here the cornea, the dome at the front of the eye, has become dry. It can be caused by not closing the eyes properly during sleep. “You wouldn’t notice this yourself, but a loved one might,” adds James Ball. Other causes include injury to the eye or not blinking enough which leads to dryness of the cornea. Treat with artificial tears.
Sometimes your eye symptoms could point to a deeper problem than you thought, so is important to know their potential causes
Itchy eyes
Blepharitis: This is an irritation and infection of the skin of the inner eye lids. Sometimes flakes appear on the eyelids which look like dandruff but are actually flakes of skin from the eyelid. It can be caused by a bacterial infection, but is also associated with rosacea, a skin condition which causes the face to redden, explains Robert Scott, consultant ophthalmologist at the NHS Birmingham and Midland Eye Centre and the BMI Priory Hospital, Birmingham.
There’s no cure for blepharitis – Robert Scott advises treating it by putting a tiny pinch of bicarbonate of soda in a cup of hot water, dipping in a cotton wool bud and then running this along the eye lash margin. Do this twice a day to reduce irritation.
Allergy: Itchy eyes are often a symptom of allergies, a problem known as allergic conjunctivitis. There are two types: seasonal allergic conjunctivitis (which typically happens because of exposure to grass, pollen, trees and weeds), and perennial allergic conjunctivitis (which happens all year long due to the exposure to household allergens such as mould, dust and pet hair). Symptoms may subside when away from the cause. Antihistamines and steroid nasal sprays can often control the eye symptoms.
Colored rings round the iris
High cholesterol: A milky-white ring around the iris can be a sign of high cholesterol. Known as arcus senilis, this white ring is caused by the deposition of fat in the cornea, the clear area at the front of the eye, explains ophthalmic surgeon Oliver Backhouse, of the Yorkshire Eye Hospital. The ring should disappear with treatment and lifestyle changes. Not everyone with high cholesterol will develop this symptom.
Wilson’s disease: A coppery-colored ring round the eye can be a sign of Wilson’s disease, a rare genetic disorder which causes too much copper to build up in the body. Untreated it can cause damage to the liver and brain. Treatment is through medication and avoiding foods with a high concentration of copper such as liver, chocolate, nuts and mushrooms.
Watery eyes
Blocked tear ducts: If the tear ducts are blocked, this means fluid can’t drain away. As the fluid stagnates, it can lead to infection and a sticky discharge in the duct, making the eyes water. You may also develop a painful swelling on the side of the nose next to the eye. The problem is more common with age, because collagen – a protein in skin – can shrink within the tear duct, blocking it off, says Dr. David Allamby. It can also be caused by a cold. If the problem is caused by a chronic blockage, a common option is surgery.
Dry eyes: Dry eyes can also cause watery eyes. When eyes are dry, this acts as an irritant, which will produce watering.
Droopy eye
Cysts: Another potential cause of a droopy eye is a large, internal cyst which is not necessarily painful, says Robert Scott. Known as a chalazion, it is caused by a blockage of one of the oil glands in the eye. Fluid can’t drain properly, so it builds up to form a smooth pea in the eyelid. Hot compresses can soothe the area and may help the duct drain. Sometimes, chalazions need to be surgically removed. Always see your doctor to have it checked out.
Diabetes: Drooping can sometimes be a sign of muscular problem or nerve damage elsewhere in the body, says Robert Scott. “Diabetes can damage the fine blood vessels that support the nerves at the back of the eye. However, if it comes on suddenly, it could be a caused by a small aneurysm (bulge in a blood vessel) in the brain, a brain tumor or a tumor on the top of the lung, so seek medical attention immediately.”
Eye pain
Scratch to the eye: A corneal abrasion, as it is known, causes a very sharp pain and instinctively the eye lid will close to protect the cornea from bright light says Dr. Oliver Backhouse. These kinds of injury usually heal by themselves, although antibiotic eye drops from your pharmacist can prevent further infection. If you are still in pain after a week, see your GP.
Ulcer: A corneal ulcer can cause a sharp, constant pain in the eye but also make the brightness of the eye look dull. The ulcer itself can look like a speck of cottage cheese. The condition mostly affects contact lens wearers, as these might cause a slight breach on the surface of the cornea when inserted and removed, but ulcers can also be the result of an eye infection. It is important to get help quickly – treatment involves antibiotic drops or steroids – to avoid damage.
Glaucoma: A deep-boring pain can be a sign of glaucoma, which occurs when the eye’s drainage tubes become blocked, explains James Ball. This tends to affect the elderly, particularly women “but only half are diagnosed because they don’t go to the opticians regularly”, he says. Left untreated it can lead to blindness. Drugs such as prostaglandin analogues increase the flow of fluid out of your eye, while beta blockers can reduce fluid production.
Polish born Pawel Kuczynski (Pawła Kuczyńskiego) was born in 1976 in Szczecin. He graduated the Fine Arts Academy in Poznan with specialization in graphics.
You can see more of Paul Kuczinski’s images on capu.pl, and below you can see some samples from that site. These images definitely make you think about what’s going on in the world today.
Visitors to London in 2012 will pay twice as much to stay in the city as last year, according to an annual survey of hotel room prices.
The new study ran by Hotels.com found prices for booking in March this year for August are 102% higher than for the same months last year.
The website, which is part of the Expedia group of companies, says the average price of a hotel room in London will be £213 ($337) this summer.
Between 2010 and 2011 room prices worldwide rose 4%.
UK travelers generally saw rises in prices in more than two thirds of popular destinations, with increases in 69 of the 88 city or resort locations analyzed across the world, one of the main reasons for the rise was currency movements.
The survey, of 142,000 properties in almost 20,000 locations found political events had a marked impact.
Visitors to London will find hotel prices higher this year thanks to the 2012 Olympics
Greece’s economic woes led to a 10% fall in the price of a hotel room in Athens.
Elsewhere there were sharp movements in accommodation prices as a result of the Arab Spring and prices in Japan were affected by the earthquake.
Japan’s earthquake and subsequent tsunami in March 2011 saw price cuts in Hiroshima by 16% to $106 and in Kyoto by 11% to $144.
The Arab Spring protests and war in Libya hit prices across the Middle East and North Africa with average rates falling in Egypt by 22%, in Tunisia by 9%, in Lebanon, which borders Syria, by 21% and in Qatar by 27%.
Last year, prices fell 2% in Asia year-on-year but rose in all other areas: 8% in the Pacific, 5% in North America, 4% in Latin America, 3% in the Caribbean and 2% in Europe and the Middle East.
The average hotel price in Australia rose 13% to $171 reflecting the country’s strong currency and robust economy and other fast-growing economies registered similar rises, with Rio de Janeiro in Brazil up 13% and Hong Kong up 18% thanks to growth within China’s economy.
David Roche, president of Hotels.com, said: “Price volatility in 2011 meant UK travelers found it more expensive to stay in the majority of their favorite destinations abroad.
“A variety of factors, including currency movements and a growth in corporate travel, pushed up prices at a time when many consumers were already struggling to pay their bills at home.”
David Roche added though that room rates were still generally lower than they were in 2005.
Whitney Houston’s daughter Bobbi Kristina Brown, sat down with Oprah Winfrey on Sunday on “Oprah’s Next Chapter,” where she opened up about her mother’s death and how she’s coping.
Here are some highlights of Bobbi Kristina Brown interview with Oprah Winfrey:
Whitney Houston’s last moments
Whitney Houston was found in a bathtub at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California, on February 11. Bobbi Kristina Brown, 19, said the night before Whitney Houston’s death, she asked her mother to spend the night with her. “I slept in her arms all day, all night long.”
Whitney Houston is always there for Bobbi Kristina
“She’s always with me,” said Bobbi Kristina. “Her spirit is strong, it’s a strong spirit. I feel her pass through me all the time. I can hear her voice in spirit talking to me.”
Bobbi Kristina Brown sat down with Oprah Winfrey and she opened up about Whitney Houston's death and how she's coping
Bobbi Kristina’s family is helping her to cope
Bobbi Kristina credited her family and God for helping her cope. “It comes in waves. One moment I can be happy and laughing, but then it comes over me. It’s my mom,” she said.
Coming Home
Bobbi Kristina has been spending time in her mother’s Atlanta mansion. The 19-year-old explained: “Sometimes, it’s so surreal. I still walk into the house like, <<Mom?>> But I’ve accepted it.”
Carrying on Her Mother’s Talent
“I have to carry on the legacy,” says Bobbi Kristina. “We’re going to do the singing thing. Some acting, some dancing.”
Oprah Winfrey’s interview with Whitney Houston’s daughter Bobbi Kristina Brown on Sunday gave OWN network its biggest viewership yet.
Whitney Houston’s family interview, which aired on OWN’s “Oprah’s Next Chapter” from 9:00 to 10:30 p.m., racked up 3.5 million total viewers, according to the network.
That’s a dramatic improvement over OWN’s previously most-watched program Oprah Winfrey’s January 8 interview with celebrity pastor Joel Osteen, which drew 1.6 million total viewers.
Oprah Winfrey's interview with Whitney Houston's daughter Bobbi Kristina Brown on Sunday gave OWN network its biggest viewership yet
Oprah Winfrey’s Bobbi Kristina Brown interview also drew a 3.1 rating in the key women 25-54 demographic, with a 3.3 household rating.
Sunday’s installment in “Oprah’s Next Chapter” represented a 444 percent increase over the season average in the key demographic. It jumped 417 percent boost in total viewership and 378 percent in the household rating.
Courtney Love moved out of her West Village, New York townhouse, last month, after winning her vicious, legal battle with her ex-landlord.
Now, Courtney Love, 47, is hoping to a smoother domestic situation in her new home.
Courtney Love is now living in a rented condominium in the Nolita district of Manhattan and is getting on famously with her new landlords.
The singer revealed she is now living in “the Lafayette building – everyone calls it that – near the New Museum”.
When Courtney Love moved in last month, she even got U2 rocker Bono to write her a character reference.
The singer told the New York Daily News: “They didn’t even credit-check. They chose Bono (from my character references). And he wrote me a paragraph.”
So far, Courtney Love was only run into one clash with neighbors, when she was playing loud music, but has vowed to keep the volume down from now on after finding out one was pregnant.
The singer said: “It’s all good now. I didn’t know! I don’t do noise complaints.”
Courtney Love moved out of her West Village, New York townhouse, last month, after winning her vicious, legal battle with her ex-landlord
In January, Courtney Love won her legal battle against her Chicago-based landlady Donna Lyons, who had accused the singer of owing her $50,000 in rent.
Judge Jean Schneider of New York County Housing cancelled the case saying Donna Lyons had improperly relied on outdated lease provisions.
Courtney Love had been renting the $27,000-a-month townhouse on West 10th Street for 11 months, but has apparently not been missing payments.
Her lawyer Eric Sherman said: “We are pleased with the court’s decision.
“The judge decided there was no <<non>> in the non-payment. She has always paid her rent on time, in fact sometimes in advance of when it was due.”
Given her recent tweeting, Courtney Love is very happy in her new abode.
She wrote on March 10: “I like this pad better – and my landlord teddy and mrs teddy are so very very cool and chic and live next-door – not a nasty fatty from Chi.”
A handful of studies found that a name not only reveals clues about a person’s class, education and ethnic origin, it can also influence the bearer of the moniker and the choices they make in life.
Scientists have even drawn conclusions to suggest that people are often drawn to things and people that sound like their own names.
These experts claim that “implicit egotism” is the reason that someone called Dennis might become a dentist or even that a child whose name begins with a B or C may fare worse in school examinations.
A controversial 2007 study linked higher scoring peers to names that begun with A or B.
That a person’s name may be bound to his or her destiny is far from a new phenomenon.
The Ancient Romans promoted the concept “nomen est omen”, meaning “name is destiny”.
Studies have indeed shown that those with more conservative, “Caucasian” names are more successful when submitting resumes for employment.
And a recent poll conducted in Australia revealed that people respond more warmly to colleagues and politicians with names they can easily pronounce.
Yet parents nowadays are putting that much more effort into giving their offspring original names that are largely unfamiliar.
A handful of studies found that a name not only reveals clues about a person's class, education and ethnic origin, it can also influence the bearer of the moniker and the choices they make in life
Though historically names have been passed down through families of gleaned from the Bible, in recent days the tendency has been to think outside the box and consider movies, songs and stories for inspiration.
When Britney Spears rose to fame the slightly altered Brittaney became wildly popular among new parents and recently, thanks to the Twilight series, Isabella has made a comeback.
In 1912, when John and Mary were the top choices in a list of the 200 most popular baby names, 80% of parents would chose from that selection.
But today, about half of all boys and girls born are given names in the current top 200 list.
One study found that 30% of African American girls born in California during the 1990’s were given unique names that they shared with not a single person born in the same year in the same state.
Most surprisingly, however, are the statistics that show how these trends differ across the nation.
According to naming expert Laura Wattenberg, “classic, Christian, masculine” names like Peter and Thomas prevail in the more liberal states whereas an “androgynous, pagan newcomer like Dakota” would not be out of place in a red states.
Dr. Martin Ford of George Mason University, however, believes a name does not stand for much either way.
He explained: “Names only have a significant influence when that is the only thing you know about the person. Add a picture, and the impact of the name recedes.
“Add information about personality, motivation, and ability, and the impact of the name shrinks to minimal significance.”
Nick Gordon, Whitney Houston’s “adopted son”, took the Twitter to confirm his relationship with Bobbi Kristina Brown, the late singer’s daughter.
Bobbi Kristina Brown, 19, and Nick Gordon, 22, were spotting kissing and holding hands together last Friday outside a Target store in Johns Creek, Georgia, Hollywoodlife.com have reported.
And now it appears Nick Gordon, who has lived with Whitney Houston and Bobbi Kristina since he was 12-years-old, confirmed their relationship status.
Nick Gordon tweeted: “Yea we got a little closer and what!!!”
He also posted a picture of himself and Bobbi Kristina to his Twitter page on Friday.
Nick Gordon, Whitney Houston’s “adopted son”, took the Twitter to confirm his relationship with Bobbi Kristina Brown
Nick Gordon, who was never officially adopted by Whitney Houston, also told fans only to follow Bobbi Kristina’s real account.
He tweeted: “Good morning everyone. Their lots of fake people pretending to be MY Krissi. The real one is @REALbkBrown. Fakes need to get un followed (sic)”
Bobbi Kristina Brown has not been on the social networking website since December but she and Nick Gordon tweeted each other regularly in the months towards the end of last year.
While they appeared to each other as sister and brother, Nick Gordon’s latest tweets seem to suggest their relationship has become something more.
Researchers at Harvard Medical School have found that a diet high in red meat can shorten life expectancy.
The study of more than 120,000 people suggested red meat increased the risk of death from cancer and heart problems.
Substituting red meat with fish, chicken or nuts lowered the risks, the authors said.
According to The British Heart Foundation, red meat could still be eaten as part of a balanced diet.
The researchers analyzed data from 37,698 men between 1986 and 2008 and 83,644 women between 1980 and 2008.
The researchers said adding an extra portion of unprocessed red meat to someone’s daily diet would increase the risk of death by 13%, of fatal cardiovascular disease by 18% and of cancer mortality by 10%.
The figures for processed meat were higher, 20% for overall mortality, 21% for death from heart problems and 16% for cancer mortality.
The study of more than 120,000 people suggested red meat increased the risk of death from cancer and heart problems
The study said: “We found that a higher intake of red meat was associated with a significantly elevated risk of total, cardiovascular disease, and cancer mortality.
“This association was observed for unprocessed and processed red meat with a relatively greater risk for processed red meat.”
The researchers suggested that saturated fat from red meat may be behind the increased heart risk and the sodium used in processed meats may “increase cardiovascular disease risk through its effect on blood pressure”.
Victoria Taylor, a dietitian at the British Heart Foundation, said: “Red meat can still be eaten as part of a balanced diet, but go for the leaner cuts and use healthier cooking methods such as grilling.
“If you eat processed meats like bacon, ham, sausages or burgers several times a week, add variation to your diet by substituting these for other protein sources such as fish, poultry, beans or lentils.”
Afghan militants have launched an attack on a government delegation visiting the site where a US soldier killed 16 civilians.
Two of President Hamid Karzai’s brothers and several top security officials are in the delegation in Panjwai in Kandahar province.
Afghan forces are returning fire and it is unclear whether there are any casualties.
The US soldier who allegedly carried out Sunday’s attacks is under arrest.
The unnamed 38-year-old staff sergeant is being held at an undisclosed location.
A senior Afghan official said: ”I can confirm that the Taliban have launched an attack from several directions against a government delegation. The delegation was there to meet villagers and tribal elders. This is an area where the Taliban exist and operate. At this stage, our forces are returning fire.”
The US soldier’s attack in Kandahar has severely strained relations between Afghans and foreign forces.
Anti-US sentiment was already high after soldiers burned some copies of the Koran at a NATO base in Kabul last month, sparking deadly riots across the country.
On Tuesday morning, some 600 students took part in a rally in the eastern city of Jalalabad, condemning the Kandahar attack and chanting “Death to America! Death to Obama!”.
Afghan militants have launched an attack on a government delegation visiting the site where a US soldier killed 16 civilians
US President Barack Obama said the shooting was “absolutely heartbreaking and tragic”.
But he said international forces must be withdrawn from Afghanistan in a responsible way, and would not “rush for the exits”.
Barack Obama said the international forces had to make sure Afghans could secure their borders and stop al-Qaeda from getting back into the country.
US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta said the soldier in question could face the death penalty, if found guilty.
The Taliban has renewed threats of revenge attacks, saying it would behead “sadistic” American soldiers.
Details about Sunday’s shootings are still unclear, but the American soldier left his base in Kandahar in the early hours and went on a rampage in nearby villages.
Locals told reporters how they cowered in fear as the man made his way from door to door, trying to get into their houses.
“I saw a man, he dragged a woman by her hair and banged her head repeatedly against the wall. She didn’t say a word,” one witness said.
The soldier broke into three houses and killed 16 people, most of them women and children. He then burned their bodies, according to reports.
The US defence secretary said the soldier “came back to the forward operating base and basically turned himself in, told individuals what had happened”.
Pentagon officials said they would not release his name while the investigation was going on.
Reports said the soldier, who has three children, had been deployed to Afghanistan in December for his first tour of duty there after serving three times in Iraq.
Yahoo has decided to file an intellectual property lawsuit against Facebook claiming that the social network has infringed 10 of its patents including systems and methods for advertising on the web.
Facebook denies the allegation.
The move comes ahead of Facebook’s planned flotation later this year.
Patent litigation has become common between the smartphone makers, but this marks a new front in the battles between the tech giants.
A statement from Yahoo suggested the web portal believed it has a strong case.
“Yahoo’s patents relate to cutting edge innovations in online products, including in messaging, news feed generation, social commenting, advertising display, preventing click fraud and privacy controls,” Yahoo suit said.
“Facebook’s entire social network model, which allows users to create profiles and connect with, among other things, persons and businesses, is based on Yahoo’s patented social networking technology.”
Yahoo has decided to file an intellectual property lawsuit against Facebook claiming that the social network has infringed 10 of its patents including systems and methods for advertising on the web
Facebook signaled that it believed that Yahoo had not tried hard to settle the matter without involving the courts. It described Yahoo’s action as “puzzling”.
“We’re disappointed that Yahoo, a longtime business partner of Facebook and a company that has substantially benefited from its association with Facebook, has decided to resort to litigation,” it added.
The case has echoes of Yahoo’s decision to sue Google ahead of its flotation in 2004. That dispute centred over patents that Yahoo had acquired the previous year as part of its takeover of pay-per-position specialist Overture.
Google ultimately settled the case by issuing 2.7 million shares to its rival.
“It’s reasonable that Yahoo would want to try this tactic again as it worked in the past,” said BGC Partner’s New York-based technology analyst Colin Gillis.
“But there’s an air of desperation about this – it’s unlikely that they will get easy money from Facebook. This isn’t going to derail the IPO.”
Yahoo recently overhauled its board appointing Scott Thompson as its chief executive in January. The former Paypal executive replaced Carol Bartz who had been ousted in September.
Yahoo’s co-founder, Jerry Yang, also resigned from the board in January. The firm’s chairman and three other board members announced their decision to step down shortly afterwards.
The Wall Street Journal had reported that many Yahoo employees expected fresh job cuts following consecutive quarters of revenue declines.
Scott Thompson’s decision to sue may secure fresh funds or other assets if the courts rule in his favor.
“This is particularly interesting as it is one of the first patent cases concerning social media,” said Andrea Matwyshyn, assistant professor of legal studies at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.
“The patentability of computer code is uncertain and recently several groups such as the Electronic Frontier Foundation and the Computer and Communications Industry Association have asked the US Supreme Court to examine the state of the law and accept a case to clarify when computer code can be protected through patent.
“This may be a case that advances past the district court and at least reaches the appellate court level – one notch below the Supreme Court – if the two parties do not settle first.”
The latest suit was filed in the US district court for the northern district of California.
Stacy Francis offered more details about her recent night club spat with Whitney Houston, a squabble that happened just two days before the singer’s death.
In an interview with “Extra,” the former X Factor contestant talked about the February 9 tussle.
Stacy Francis explains that “there was an exchange, but it wasn’t a violent exchange…She didn’t push me in the head…If it were not Whitney Houston, it could have been very bad.”
She adds more color to the event, saying: “I looked at her and she moved my face away.”
Stacy Francis offered more details about her recent night club spat with Whitney Houston, a squabble that happened just two days before the singer's death
Radar Online has previously reported that Whitney Houston and Stacy Francis got into it at Hollywood’s Tru Nightclub. It appears that the cause of the ruckus was when Stacy Francis was talking to Whitney Houston’s sometimes boyfriend Ray J. But for that, Stacy Francis explained that they’re just family friends.
“It was a misunderstanding. We went back and forth for a little while, but all I kept saying to her is that <<I love you very much and I respect you so much>>. I’ve known [Ray J’s] family for a long time. Ray is honestly like a brother to me,” Stacy Francis said.
Two days after the incident, Whitney Houston was found dead in a Beverly Hilton hotel room. The cause of her death is not yet known.
Israeli President Shimon Peres launched his new Facebook page with a MTV-style video that sets his call to “be my friend, share peace” after he visited Facebook Inc. headquarters in Menlo Park last week.
The two-minute video mixes techno music with Shimon Peres asking viewers to “speak up and save the world …world … world.”
During a 41-minute interview with Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg, streamed on Facebook Live, President Shimon Peres said Facebook is a technology that can be used as an instrument of peace, especially as the youth of the world use social media to communicate directly with each other.
“I don’t look upon it as a technology, I look upon it as a change, a revolution, for the better,” Shimon Peres said.
Israeli President Shimon Peres launched his new Facebook page with a MTV-style video that sets his call to “be my friend, share peace” after he visited Facebook Inc. headquarters
Peace “is no longer the business of governments, but the business of the people,” he said.
“Today, the people are governing the governments. And when they begin to talk to each other, they are surprised, they can be friends. Why should we hate each other?”
Shimon Peres also had meeting with Cisco Chairman and CEO John Chambers and other Silicon Valley executives to encourage more investment in technology in Israel.
Nan Weidong and Nan Weiping, two brothers from Beijing, have carved out an unusual career – making musical instruments from carrots, potatoes and other vegetables.
The Chinese brothers grew up surrounded by vegetables on a farm in central China with a music teacher father.
The idea of playing music with vegetables came to Nan Weidong, 43, and Nan Weiping, 41, only two years ago, but it has since become a passion and a career.
Now they specialize in making and playing musical instruments fashioned from vegetables.
Nan Weidong and Nan Weiping have been making playable flutes with everything from leeks to carrots.
Frequent projects see them using a sweet potato as an ocarina, a bamboo shoot as a flute, and a yam might become a whistle.
Nan Weidong and Nan Weiping have been making playable flutes with everything from leeks to carrots
Nan Weidong and Nan Weiping make a living from their instruments which have seen them appear on Chinese talent shows and other high-profile performances, which pay up to $8,000 a time.
Each does, however, require a new set of instruments, as the vegetables begin to rot after just a few days.
The brothers learned to play conventional instruments from their father, a music teacher, when they were children. Now Nan Weidong and Nan Weiping live and work in a narrow apartment in Beijing, drilling holes in carrots, marrows, lotus roots and Chinese yams to make vegetable instruments that they perfect using an old electronic tuner.
According to the brothers, different vegetables have different scales and are therefore suited to different melodies: a sweet potato makes an ocarina, a bamboo shoot becomes a flute, a yam, a whistle.
But controlling the pitch is still extremely difficult, because changes in the air temperature, humidity and other factors can warp the shape of the holes and put the notes out of tune.
The Nan brothers, whose repertoire ranges from traditional Chinese flute music to modern pop to western folk songs like Auld Lang Syne, have appeared on talent shows in China and can receive payments of 30,000 to 50,000 yuan ($5,000 to $8,000) for a performance.
Millions of Chinese people in Henan Province have been tuning in every Saturday night to watch an extraordinary talk show called “Interviews Before Execution”, in which a reporter interviews murderers condemned to death.
The show ran for just over five years, until it was taken off air on Friday.
Every Monday morning, reporter Ding Yu and her team scoured court reports to find cases to cover on their programme. They had to move quickly, as prisoners in China can be executed seven days after they are sentenced.
To Western eyes the show’s format may seem exploitative, but reporter Ding Yu disagrees.
“Some viewers may consider it cruel to ask a criminal to do an interview when they are about to be executed.
“On the contrary, they want to be heard,” Ding Yu says.
“Some criminals I interviewed told me: <<I’m really very glad. I said so many things in my heart to you at this time. In prison, there was never a person I was willing to talk to about past events>>.”
“Interviews Before Execution” was first broadcast on 18 November 2006 on Henan Legal Channel, one of 3,000 state-owned TV stations in China. Ding Yu interviewed a prisoner every week until the programme was taken off air.
The move follows a handful of reports about the show in foreign media, which were triggered by a documentary to be screened on the BBC tonight and on PBS International in the near future.
The aim of “Interviews Before Execution”, the programme-makers say, was to find cases that would serve as a warning to others. The slogan at the top of every programme called for human nature to awaken and “perceive the value of life”.
In China, 55 crimes carry the death penalty, from murder, treason and armed rebellion to bribery and smuggling. Thirteen other crimes, including VAT fraud, smuggling relics and credit fraud, were only recently removed from the list of capital offences.
“Interviews Before Execution”, however, focused exclusively on cases of violent murder.
Millions of Chinese people in Henan Province have been tuning in every Saturday night to watch an extraordinary talk show called “Interviews Before Execution”, in which a reporter interviews murderers condemned to death
The reporter never interviewed political prisoners or cases where the crime was in question, and the team received the Henan high court’s consent in every case.
“Without their consent, our programme would end immediately,” said Ding Yu.
Broadcast every Saturday night, the programme was frequently rated one of Henan’s top 10 shows, with nearly 40 million viewers out of the 100 million who live in the province.
The programme made Ding Yu a star, known to many as “Beauty with the Beasts”.
If people failed to heed the warnings the programme offered, Ding Yu says, then it was right that they should face the consequences.
“I feel sorry and regretful for them. But I don’t sympathize with them, for they should pay a heavy price for their wrongdoing. They deserve it.”
Many of the cases featured in the programme were motivated by money and one case in particular stands out for Ding Yu.
The perpetrators were boyfriend and girlfriend – young, educated college graduates.
The couple planned to rob her grandparents but it went wrong and the young man, 27-year-old Zhang Peng, ended up killing them both.
“They are so young. They never had the chance to see this world, or to enjoy life, a career, work, and the love of family.
“They’ve made the wrong choice, and the price is their lives,” said Ding Yu.
But after more than 200 interviews, little surprises her.
“I’ve interviewed criminals even younger than that young student, some just 18 years old. That is the minimum age you can be sentenced to death.”
Homosexuality is still a huge taboo in China, and when in 2008 the show covered the case of Bao Ronting, a gay man who murdered his mother, ratings soared.
It was the first time Ding Yu had ever met an openly gay man.
“I had never come close to a gay man, so I really couldn’t accept some of his practices, words and deeds.
“Though he was a man, he asked me in a very feminine tone, ‘Do you feel awkward speaking to me?’ Actually I felt very awkward,” Ding Yu recalls.
Ding Yu and her team made a further three episodes on the case of Bao Ronting and followed him until the day he was executed in November 2008.
During one of these meetings, Bao Ronting asked Ding Yu: “Will I go to heaven?”
Remembering these words, Ding Yu reflects: “I witness the transition from life to death.”
Bao Ronting was paraded in an open top truck on the way to his execution with a placard around his neck, detailing his crime. The practice is illegal in modern China – but the law is not always observed.
Judge Lui Wenling, who worked closely with the programme-makers, says things are changing in the Chinese legal system.
“The present criminal policies in China are <<To kill less and cautiously>> and <<Combining lenience and strictness>>.
“It means, <<If the case is fit for lenient treatment, give it lenience>>, and, <<If the case should be strictly treated, give it a strict punishment>>,” he says.
Ding Yu recently covered the case of Wu Yanyan, a young mother who murdered her husband after allegedly suffering years of abuse.
She was initially sentenced to death for the murder. But since 2007, every execution verdict in China has to be approved by the Supreme Court, and in this case it took the view that the abuse provided mitigating circumstances.
The higher court kept returning the case to the local court until the death sentence was suspended.
Ding Yu visited the prison with Wu Yanyan’s daughter for an emotional reunion. If the young mother continues to behave well in prison, after two years she could ultimately be released – a small sign of changing attitudes in China.
One of China’s more liberal judges, Judge Pan, along with some other senior figures in the justice system, foresees more far-reaching reforms in future.
“A life could end in the twinkling of an eye after a trial. I’d say this is also very cruel,” he says.
“It’s also a means of getting rid of evil deeds through an evil deed.
“Should we abolish the death penalty? Since the death sentence for criminals is itself a violent act, then we should abolish it. However, I don’t think our country is ready yet.
“But in the future, it would be good to abolish it.”
Charles Darwin has finally been cleared of stealing ideas that helped shape his theory of evolution from fellow naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace more than 40 years after historians first accused him.
Researchers assumed Charles Darwin kept a letter from Alfred Russel Wallace, also with theories about natural selection, for two weeks – enabling him to revise elements of his own theory of evolution, before announcing it to the world in July 1858.
However, scientists turned detective have now vindicated Charles Darwin from the accusations by tracing historical shipping records to prove he received the letter a month later than previously thought.
Historians already know Alfred Russel Wallace had a “eureka” moment while living in Indonesia – discovering natural selection independently of Charles Darwin.
Alfred Russel Wallace wrote his ideas in an essay, sending it to Charles Darwin in 1858 to be passed on to noted geologist Charles Lyell.
Researchers accused Charles Darwin of keeping the letter for two weeks – lying about the date of receipt to give him time to revise his own ideas.
The essay was published alongside one by Charles Darwin in 1858, marking the first publication of the theory of evolution – one of the greatest revolutions in the history of science.
The controversy all began in 1972 after a researcher found another letter from Alfred Russel Wallace to a friend sent on the March 1858 steamer from the island of Ternate in modern Indonesia.
Researchers assumed Charles Darwin kept a letter from Alfred Russel Wallace, also with theories about natural selection, for two weeks - enabling him to revise elements of his own theory of evolution, before announcing it to the world in July 1858
The letter still had postmarks from Singapore and London that showed it arrived in London on 3 June 1858 – two weeks before Charles Darwin said he received the essay from Alfred Russel Wallace.
Historians could not understand how two letters on the same steamer can travel along the same mail route back to London, yet Charles Darwin did not receive his until two weeks after the other letter arrived.
The mystery led to numerous conspiracy theories – including the accusations Charles Darwin stole ideas from the letter, which plagued Darwin’s reputation.
National University of Singapore researchers – in a paper for Biological Journal of the Linnean Society – began the almost impossible task of tracing the 154 year old letters back to prove Charles Darwin was innocent.
Dr. John van Wyhe – a historian of science and Senior Lecturer – said: “I initially assumed that it was impossible to solve since so many historians had examined it before. But it occurred to me that we really have no contemporary evidence of when Wallace sent the essay to Darwin, only his much later recollection that he sent it by the next post after writing it in February.
“That suggested that the essay was sent in March 1858. But this recollection from years later seemed to me not very reliable as evidence of what really happened at the time.
“The other evidence that Darwin received it on 18 June 1858 seemed more likely. All of his correspondence changed dramatically after that date for example.
“Since that side of the correspondence was all one really had to go on, it occurred to me to trace the letter from Darwin’s end, rather than Wallace’s.
“If Darwin really received it on 18 June- how could it get there? It had come to his house in the countryside from London the day before, the 17th.”
Dr. John van Wyhe discovered a steamer had arrived in England on the 16th – the day before – with mail from India and South East Asia – Alfred Russel Wallace’s letter must have been on that ship instead.
He traced back the remainder of the 9,240 mile journey from England, through the Mediterranean, across Egypt, to Sri Lanka, Penang, Singapore, Jakarta and so on.
His Dutch-speaking research assistant on the Wallace Online project, Dr. Kees Rookmaaker, checked the ship arrival and departure times in Dutch newspapers, while Dr. John van Wyhe trawled through English papers.
Dr. John van Wyhe added: “Eventually our mail itinerary was completed all the way back to Ternate and we were astonished to find that there was an unbroken series of mail connections to Ternate – not in March as all other writers before had assumed, but in April 1858.
“My further research has clarified why Wallace mailed it later than we assumed and many other parts of this famous, but misunderstood chapter in the history of science.
“First of all, we now know that Wallace was replying to an early letter from Darwin- and that letter from Darwin arrived in Ternate on the March steamer.
“We have assembled the first complete collection of all the surviving Wallace correspondence from Ternate and nearby islands.
“These reveal that he never replied to a letter on the same steamer which delivered it – apparently the turn over time was too short.
“Therefore this is an additional reason to doubt that Wallace could have sent the famous letter to Darwin in March as so long assumed.”
Dr. John van Wyhe is currently completing a major new book on Wallace in South East Asia, which aims to radically revise the traditional story of Alfred Russel Wallace and his famous independent discovery of evolution.
Italian art researchers say they may have found traces of a Leonardo Da Vinci work hidden under a Florentine fresco.
Tiny probes, sent through drilled holes in Giorgio Vasari’s The Battle of Marciano in the Palazzo Vecchio, found black pigment also used in the Mona Lisa, project workers claimed.
“These data are very encouraging,” said the project’s leader Maurizio Seracini.
However, art historians at a press conference in Florence stressed their research was “not conclusive”.
They added that further chemical analysis needed to be carried out.
“Although we are still in the preliminary stages of the research and there is still a lot of work to be done to solve this mystery, the evidence does suggest that we are searching in the right place,” said Maurizio Seracini, who works at the University of California in San Diego.
The probes also discovered red lacquer and brown pigment on the hidden wall.
The research has been controversial, with some art experts signing a petition to stop the investigation because the drilling is damaging Giorgio Vasari’s existing work.
Tiny probes, sent through drilled holes in Giorgio Vasari's The Battle of Marciano in the Palazzo Vecchio, found black pigment also used in the Mona Lisa
Tomaso Montanari, an art historian who has led the opposition to the research said that he did not “consider the source of these findings credible.”
He added: “What do they mean by saying the findings are compatible with Leonardo? Any painting from the Renaissance would be. Anything from that era could be painted on that wall.”
“What lacked here is a neutral team that has the scientific authority to evaluate this. It is very complex.”
Maurizio Seracini believes Leonardo Da Vinci’s unfinished The Battle of Anghiari lies beneath Giorgio Vasari’s work.
It is believed Leonardo Da Vinci started painting his fresco – which is considered by some to be his finest work – in 1504 but abandoned the project because of problems arising from his experimental oil painting technique.
The room was later renovated and Giorgio Vasari painted his fresco in 1563.
Maurizio Seracini believes Giorgio Vasari did not want to destroy Leonardo Da Vinci’s work and instead bricked it up behind a new wall on which he painted.
His theory was stimulated after finding a soldier on Giorgio Vasari’s work holding a small flag bearing the words: “He who seeks, finds.”
My Strange Addiction, the TLC hit show, took its viewers into the bizarre world of Shannon, a young woman addicted to drinking gasoline, on its latest episode.
Hailing from Welland, Ontario, Canada, 20-year-old Shannon began drinking gasoline a year ago and she is now consuming about 12 teaspoons per day.
“I am addicted to drinking gasoline,” said Shannon.
“It tastes like sweet and sour, like a tangy sauce. It tingles at first, then it burns the back of my throat.”
Always prepared for her fix, Shannon keeps jugs of gasoline under the sink in the washroom of her Ontario home. Then, when she is not a home, she packs a water bottle full of gasoline, keeping her fix handy.
Shannon is not the first person to drink the toxic chemical. Asian newspapers reported on a Chinese man last year who has been drinking petrol for 42 years. There is also the unconfirmed report of a young Chinese boy who wanted to be the fictional character, Optimus Prime, so he drank gasoline for 5 years to “obtain energy” so he could be more like his Transformer idol.
It is safe to say the inherent risk of drinking gasoline far outweighs the addictive properties for most people. It is even more surprising when you read about the dangers of toxic gasoline additives, including: benzene, toluene, naphthalene and trimethybenzene.
My Strange Addiction, the TLC hit show, took its viewers into the bizarre world of Shannon, a young woman addicted to drinking gasoline, on its latest episode
For Shannon, the addiction started at a young age. She says that her addiction began as a small child, hovering in the exhaust of her mother’s car, enjoying the aroma of unburned gasoline. The attraction to gasoline was then compounded by her mother and father splitting up when she was a young girl.
“When I fill up my car, I put it all over my hand,” admitted Shannon.
“Even though it hurts me, it makes me feel good.”
The latest episode of My Strange Addiction bounced back and forth between Shannon’s drinking binges and her loved ones pleading for her to stop the deadly addictive behavior. Shannon has consumed more than 5 gallons of gas in just one year, and her behaviors have escalated to other habits like eating gasoline soaked newspapers.
Convinced she cannot survive without her daily supply of gasoline, Shannon is forced to come face-to-face with a demon that very well may kill her the next time she swallows gasoline.
