Scientist Terry Moore of the New York-based Radius Foundation explains in a three-minute presentation to a TED conference that he found out he’d been tying his laces the wrong way his whole life – and shows the audience why.
“I have reason to believe that many, if not most, of you are actually tying your shoes incorrectly,” Terry Moore says.
“I know that seems ludicrous.”
Speaking to the TED audience, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to “Ideas Worth Spreading”, Terry Moore says he made the discovery after buying a new pair of running shoes.
Terry Moore says that while the shoes were great, he disliked the laces, and so returned them to the store.
The store manager told him: “You’re tying them the wrong way.”
Terry Moore insists on going the other way, wrapping it in the opposite direction to usual, thus creating a stronger form
Terry Moore then uses the video presentation to pass on his newfound knowledge to the audience, demonstrating how to tie your shoe laces using the stronger method of bow tying.
Most of us are taught that after making the first bow, you wrap the lace in an anti-clockwise direction around it.
But Terry Moore insists on going the other way, wrapping it in the opposite direction to usual, thus creating a stronger form.
“It will come untied less often, and will let you down less often,” Terry Moore assures the audience.
George Michael narrowly escaped death last year after contracting a serious bout of pneumonia, but it seems he is well on his way to making a full recovery, judging by pictures of the singer enjoying his sunshine holiday this week.
Fadi Fawaz, George Michael’s boyfriend, posted a picture of them cuddled up on his Twitter page with the caption: “Isn’t he cute?!”
In the picture, George Michael is seen smiling widely while hugging Fadi Fawaz, who is also beaming with delight.
In another close-up shot of the pair, they are seen grinning from ear to ear as they don sunglasses to shield themselves from the bright sunshine.
George Michael is seen smiling widely while hugging Fadi Fawaz, who is also beaming with delight
While George Michael has not disclosed where he and Fadi Fawaz are holidaying, he did reveal they are still in the “southern hemisphere”.
And it seems the sunshine is doing wonders for George Michael’s recovery, as he has been keeping his followers updated with his progress on his Twitter page.
George Michael wrote earlier this week: “People, I’m excited….just finishing a ballad that I think is going to make you think my eighties self has been re-born hich I suppose it has in a way 🙂
“Even my tracheostomy scar is healing nicely in the sun, was looking a bit Bride of Chucky for a while.
“Spoke to doctors before I came away and they told me my recovery is way quicker than can usually be expected so I’m happy as Larry!”
George Michael recently revealed he is hoping to find time to play the 14 dates he originally shelved on his Symphonica tour last year after he was taken ill.
The singer said: “Realistically, I can’t see my vocal cords being ready till the summer.
“But then I have to think about people losing out if they are on their summer hols. So, September seems most likely.”
British naturopath and nutritionist Max Tomlinson teaches us how to fight against the stubborn fat deposits in his new book, “Target Your Fat Spots: How To Banish Your Bulges”.
For the past 25 years, Max Tomlinson is been running a successful fat spot reduction programme at his London clinic, targeting what he calls the “weird, disproportionate fat deposits” that frustrate so many of his clients.
Max Tomlinson says: “I see young women who have tried rigorous diets and exercise regimes to get rid of a big bottom, only to lose weight from their chests and faces, and menopausal women who tend to accumulate fat on their stomachs and under their upper arms as they age.”
He believes the reason fat gets laid down in specific areas is often hormonal.
“A multitude of processes in the body are co-ordinated by hormones, and hormones govern where we store fat,” naturopath says.
Problems arise because many of us live in a state of hormonal imbalance caused by poor diet, stress, environmental pollution and lack of effective exercise.
British naturopath and nutritionist Max Tomlinson teaches us how to fight against the stubborn fat deposits in his new book
Max Tomlinson believes that each fat spot (whether it’s stomach fat, the bra-bulge kind, big thighs and bottom fat or “bingo wings”) is caused by the action or inaction of a specific hormone.
By correcting your own personal hormonal imbalance through targeted diet, exercise, supplements and lifestyle changes, he is convinced you can shift those stubborn fat spots.
Max Tomlinson recommends a healthy Mediterranean-style diet (fruit, vegetables, fish, a little meat, healthy oils, but no sugar, junk food and little dairy or alcohol), a daily multi-vitamin and mineral and fish oil capsule, and a programme of regular exercise.
But then the advice for each troublesome fat spot is very specifically tailored to redress the hormonal imbalance that might be causing it.
Here is an extract from his book, in which Max Tomlinson shows you how to zap those problem areas.
LOVE HANDLES
Fat bulging over the back and sides of your jeans could be a sign of a problem with the hormone insulin, which regulates blood sugar levels and can lead to unsightly deposits of fat above the hips.
A sugary diet forces the body to pump out insulin (to move the sugar out of the bloodstream). But over time, if sugar intake remains high, the cells can stop responding correctly, causing more insulin to be released, excess glucose to build up in the bloodstream and stubborn areas of unsightly fat are laid down.
ACTION PLAN: To calm insulin production and trim “love handles” you need to manage the sugars and carbohydrates in your diet. So stick to a Mediterranean diet and avoid sugar and quick-burn foods (alcohol, white bread, biscuits, cakes, chips, crisps, processed sweetened breakfast cereals, rice, sweets and fizzy drinks).
Eat foods rich in antioxidants (this helps prevent damage from free radicals and reduces insulin resistance) such as cinnamon, cloves, turmeric, fresh herbs, chilli, cranberries, blueberries, broccoli and green tea.
In addition to multi-vitamins and fish oils, consider supplements in the form of chromium (great for controlling blood sugar levels), magnesium, zinc (helps insulin bind to receptors in cells) and glucomannan fibre in water which improves blood-glucose control and reduces cholesterol levels.
BRA-BULGE FAT
Fat that bulges out of the sides of your bra could be a sign of a sluggish thyroid. This gland governs the rate at which you burn calories from food. Low thyroid function can cause bra-bulge fat as well as stubborn overall weight gain, fatigue and depression.
ACTION PLAN: Certain raw foods can interfere with the correct functioning of the thyroid gland, so limit intake of broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, kale, swede, turnips, peaches, soya bean products, spinach and strawberries. But cooking these foods appears to deactivate the bad compounds.
Boost your intake of iodine and selenium to support your thyroid by eating Brazil nuts, brown rice, garlic, kelp, liver, onions, salmon, tuna, wheatgerm and wholegrains.
And relax – the stress hormone cortisol can alter thyroid function. Also, use fluoride-free toothpaste as fluoride can mimic the action of one of the thyroid hormones.
BINGO WINGS
Fat accumulation on the underside of your upper arms can be due to falling testosterone levels as women reach middle age. Boosting testosterone levels can, along with targeted exercise, help to restore shape to the arms.
ACTION PLAN: Have more sex! Falling in love increases your testosterone levels and regular sex sends out signals to the body to make more of the hormone.
Ensure you’re getting enough sleep to maximize testosterone production.
Relax and de-stress – stress suppresses testosterone production.
Lack of exercise suppresses testosterone levels, too, but weight-bearing workouts (such as weight-lifting) cause muscles to signal the cells for more energy and to request more testosterone.
Cut sugar and refined carbohydrates from your diet as high blood sugar levels decrease testosterone production, but don’t starve yourself – long-term calorie restriction can further deplete levels of the hormone.
Boost your intake of healthy fats – found in oily fish such as salmon, linseed and avocados – which are required for testosterone production.
BIG THIGHS AND BOTTOM
The female hormone oestrogen promotes fat storage around the top of the legs, and many of us are exposed to high levels of both natural (in water and farmed meat) and synthetic oestrogens (chemicals in plastics and non-stick coatings) in the environment.
ACTION PLAN: Eat more fruit, vegetables and wholegrains as they contain special substances which bind to, and help excrete, excess oestrogen.
Cut down on alcohol, painkillers and drinks laden with chemical preservatives and colouring agents as these hamper the liver’s efforts to clear excess oestrogens.
Eat live natural yogurt to boost the friendly bacteria in your gut which help clear oestrogen via the gastrointestinal tract. And cut back on coffee. A study found that the caffeine in more than two cups per day can trigger the release of higher oestrogen levels in women.
POT BELLY
A paunch may indicate a problem with the adrenal glands and over-production of the hormone cortisol. Unmanaged long-term stress causes the body to produce too much cortisol which can raise blood glucose levels. This, in turn, triggers the release of insulin, which instructs the body to store excess glucose as stubborn deposits of fat around the stomach.
The main dietary culprit is too many sugar-based calories especially in the form of alcohol and refined (white) grains and flours.
ACTION PLAN: Relax – anything that helps you to unwind reduces stress levels and breaks the hormonal cycle that is causing your body to lay down belly fat. Studies show that rest will also decrease cravings for calorie-dense foods.
Keep blood glucose levels stable in the face of stress-induced cortisol surges. Increase consumption of slow-burn, low-GI foods (wholegrains, vegetables, pulses, fish and meat) and cut out high-GI foods (processed foods, cereals, sugar, dairy products, dried fruit, beer, wine, fruit juice and coffee).
Moderate exercise can reduce stress, but don’t over do it.
A recent study indicates that infants, under 3 years old, exposed to at least two general anesthesia procedures might have a higher risk of developing attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
The study was published this month in the journal Mayo Clinic Proceedings.
For the research, the Mayo Clinic scientists processed the data from a previous epidemiological study, that involved children born between 1976 and 1982 in Rochester, Minnesota, and identified those with learning disabilities or ADHD. There were 341 children younger than 19 with ADHD
Researchers looked for exposure to surgery and anesthesia before age 3 in the medical records of the Rochester Epidemiology Project, a decades-long database of all patient care in Olmsted County, Minnesota.
ADHD appeared in 7.3% of the children with no exposure to anesthesia and surgery, and the percentage in the children with one exposure to anesthesia and surgery was around 11.
“With Cesarean section with a general anesthetic, only a single anesthetic, we didn’t find any effect,” said study author Dr. Juraj Sprung, professor of anesthesiology at the Mayo Clinic.
Multiple general anesthesia exposures in infants under 3 might be associated with ADHD.
When children had at least two exposures to anesthesia and surgery, the percentage of ADHD rose to 17.9.
The scientists made adjustments for other factors (gestational age, sex, birth weight, co-morbid conditions, maternal age and education), but the rate of ADHD was still high.
These results may not be applicable to all racial or ethnic groups.
“The population in 1976 and 1982 was mostly white/Caucasian here in Minnesota,” said Dr. Juraj Sprung.
A previous research published in Pediatrics in November 2011, suggested an association between early multiple anesthesia exposures and learning disabilities in language, reading, and math. The study was performed by the same team.
There were animal studies that showed how anesthetics could affect the brain. Rats had damages in the cortical areas of the brains and became hyperactive after anesthesia. The abilities to perform tasks involving executive function were affected in monkeys exposed to ketamine for 24 hours as new-born.
However, it is important to take in consideration the influences of both procedures (anesthesia and surgery), as well as other factors that may lead to ADHD.
“Essentially, we did an observational study and we examined whether there is association with exposure to anesthesia, but not only to anesthesia,” said Dr. Juraj Sprung.
“This is an observational study. A wide range of other factors might be responsible for the higher frequency of ADHD in children with multiple exposures. The findings certainly do suggest that further investigation into this area is warranted, and investigators at Mayo Clinic and elsewhere are actively pursuing these studies,” said study author Dr. David Warner, Mayo Clinic pediatric anesthesiologist.
This study does not suggest that parents should avoid surgery for their infants (as a method to prevent ADHD), if the surgery is needed.
“At the present time, we shouldn’t make any recommendations based on the study, to do or don’t do the surgery. If you need the surgery, if you need the procedure, you certainly should go for it. What I would personally say: If it’s the type of surgery, the type of procedure that can wait, maybe it’s better to wait,” said Dr. Juraj Sprung.
ADHD appears in around 3-5% of children world wide and it is diagnosed in about 2-16% of children over 6 years old. It is a chronic disorder and almost half of those diagnosed in childhood have symptoms into adulthood. Around 4.7 percent of American adults have ADHD, it is estimated. Genetic and environmental factors are implicated in the development of this disorder. ADHD impede attention and focus, and includes restless and impulsive behavior.
Researchers at Newcastle University, UK, say the risk of birth defects quadruples if the pregnant mother has diabetes.
The study, published in the journal Diabetologia, analyzed data from more than 400,000 pregnancies in the north-east of England.
The risk of defects such as congenital heart disease and spina bifida were increased.
UK National Guidelines already recommend having good control over blood sugar levels before trying to conceive.
Both Type 1 diabetes, which tends to appear in childhood, and Type 2 diabetes, largely as a result of diet, lead to problems controlling the amount of sugar in the blood.
Researchers at Newcastle University, UK, say the risk of birth defects quadruples if the pregnant mother has diabetes
Diabetes is known to cause problems in pregnancy, such as birth defects, miscarriage and the baby being overweight due to too much sugar.
There is concern that rising levels of diabetes, particularly Type 2, could make the issue worse.
Researchers analyzed data from 401,149 pregnancies between 1996 and 2008 – 1,677 women had diabetes.
The risk of birth defects went from 19 in every 1,000 births for women without pre-existing diabetes to 72 in every 1,000 births for women with diabetes.
The report suggests that sugar levels in the run-up to conception were the “most important” risk factor which could be controlled.
The lead researcher, Dr. Ruth Bell from Newcastle University said: “Many of these anomalies happen in the first four to six weeks.”
Dr. Ruth Bell said the number of pregnancies with poor sugar control were “more than we would like”.
“It is a problem when the pregnancy is not intended or when people are not aware they need to talk to their doctors before pregnancy,” she said.
Guidelines from the National Institute of Health and Clinical Excellence say women should reduce their blood sugar levels to below 6.1% before trying to have a baby.
Sugar levels at conception Risk of birth defect
6.1% One in 34
7% One in 26
8% One in 17
9% One in 12
10% One in nine
Dr. Ruth Bell said: “The good news is that, with expert help before and during pregnancy, most women with diabetes will have a healthy baby.
“The risk of problems can be reduced by taking extra care to have the best possible glucose control before becoming pregnant.”
The study was funded by charity Diabetes UK. Its director of research, Dr. Iain Frame, said: “We need to get the message out to women with diabetes that if they are considering becoming pregnant, then they should tell their diabetes healthcare team, who will make sure they are aware of planning and what next steps they should be taking.
“It also highlights the importance of using contraception if you are a woman with diabetes who is sexually active but not planning to become pregnant.”
Romanian Prime Minister Emil Boc has resigned today in order to “defuse political and social tension” after more than three weeks of protests against austerity measures.
Speaking after a cabinet meeting, PM Emil Boc said he had given up the government’s mandate as “it is the moment for important political decisions”.
Although Romania’s economy grew last year, the government has been hit by three weeks of demonstrations.
Emil Boc government has imposed a 25% cut in public sector wages and a freeze on pensions.
Sales tax was also increased to 24%, in a country seen as Europe’s second poorest.
Romania needs to implement the measures to qualify for the next installment of 20 billion Euros ($25 billion) bailout loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Romanian Prime Minister Emil Boc has resigned today in order to "defuse political and social tension" after more than three weeks of protests against austerity measures
In a statement, Emil Boc, 45, said that in a time of crisis, his centrist government had not taken part in a popularity contest but had acted to save the country.
“I know that I made difficult decisions, but the fruits have begun to appear,” PM Emil Boc said.
Elections in Romania are scheduled to take place in November and there is speculation that President Traian Basescu may seek to appoint a technocrat-led government until the vote.
Protests broke out last month, initially against the resignation of popular junior health minister Raed Arafat, but soon became an expression of discontent against austerity and corruption.
The left-wing opposition USL alliance, headed by Victor Ponta and Crin Antonescu, leaders of Social Democrat Party and Liberal Party, is currently leading the opinion polls. Victor Ponta suggested last week that Romania should either have early elections similar to Spain, or temporarily install a technocrat administration, like Italy.
A 6.8 magnitude earthquake struck the central Philippines on late Monday morning killing at least 13 people, official reports say.
The death toll includes at least two children, according to the government’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC).
The quake hit 70 km north of Dumaguete city on Negros island at 11.49 (03.49 GMT) at a depth of 20 km, according to the US Geological Survey.
Two aftershocks with a magnitude of 4.8 and 5.6 followed.
A 6.8 magnitude earthquake struck the central Philippines on late Monday morning killing at least 13 people
Dozens of people have also been reported as still missing. Search and rescue operations are currently ongoing in areas where houses and buildings had collapsed due to landslides.
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology issued a tsunami alert for the area, but had lifted it by 14.30.
The late morning quake in the Negros and Cebu region had caused panic in nearby cities, with people rushing out of schools, malls and offices. Officials in some areas suspended work and cancelled classes.
A child was reportedly crushed to death by a collapsed wall in Tayasan town in Negros, Benito Ramos, NDRRMC chief told reporters.
Buildings in the cities of Cebu and San Carlos shook violently and sustained damages such as broken windows and cracks on the walls, he added.
The Philippines is located in the Pacific “Ring of Fire” where earthquakes and volcanic activity are common. A 7.7-magnitude quake killed nearly 2,000 people in Luzon in 1990.
The New York Giants beat the New England Patriots 21-17 with a dramatic last-minute touchdown in a thrilling Super Bowl XLVI at the Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
NEW YORK GIANTS 21
• Touchdowns: Cruz, Bradshaw
• Field Goals: Tynes (2)
• Safety: Awarded against Brady
NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS 17
• Touchdowns: Woodhead, Hernandez
• Field Goal: Gostkowski
Giants quarterback Eli Manning, who destroyed New England in the Super Bowl four years ago, repeated the trick to set up Ahmad Bradshaw’s six-yard run.
There were still 57 seconds for Tom Brady to respond, though, but the Patriots quarterback fell just short.
As in Super Bowl XLII, Manning picked up the Most Valuable Player award.
Manning, who this season led his team to six victories after being in losing positions before the Super Bowl, kept his composure at the end of a keenly contested encounter to mount the winning drive.
He was helped enormously though by a stunning catch by Mario Manningham, which will be remembered for years to come.
It came on the first play of their final drive. Manning, on his own 12-yard line with less than four minutes remaining, signalled his intent by firing a long pass down the left sideline. Manningham defied gravity to produce a superb catch as he fell, somehow getting both feet down in bounds and holding on to the ball.
It provided the Giants – who began the game well, taking an early 9-0 lead – with fresh impetus after they wilted under some relentless pressure from the Brady-inspired Patriots.
New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning poses with the Vince Lombardi Trophy after the Giants defeated the New England Patriots by a score of 21-17 in Super Bowl XLVI at Lucas Oil Stadium
Eight plays later, and in surreal circumstances, Bradshaw fell into the endzone, completely untouched by the New England defence, who were prepared to concede the touchdown because it would have allowed Brady enough time for one final chance.
Were Bradshaw to have fallen at the one-yard line, Scottish-American kicker Lawrence Tynes would have had an easy field goal attempt to win the game as time expired.
Giants running back Bradshaw, who impressed throughout with 72 rushing yards from 17 attempts, could not stop himself from scoring, setting up a nailbiting final minute in which Brady – who completed a Super Bowl record 16 passes in a row during the game – did his utmost to snatch victory for New England.
But, with the last play of the game, his Hail Mary pass was batted to the ground by the Giants’ relieved defence.
It was cruel on Brady, playing in his fifth Super Bowl, who recovered superbly from conceding a safety with his first possession to complete 27 of 41 passes for 276 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
The Giants capitalized on Brady’s mistake to take a 9-0 lead when Victor Cruz snagged Manning’s perfectly thrown two-yard pass.
New England responded, hitting back with a well-measured drive before ultimately being stopped by the Giants’ defence. Kicker Stephen Gostkowski made no mistake from 29 yards though to get them on the scoreboard.
Danny Woodhead’s catch in the endzone then capped a masterful 14-play drive from Tom Brady, which saw the Patriots march 96 yards down the field at the end of the first half – tying the Super Bowl record for the longest drive.
Brady picked up where he left off at the start of the third quarter with another controlled drive before ultimately finding Aaron Hernandez with a short pass. The tight end fought off Deon Grant’s despairing tackle to run into the endzone to make it 17-9.
The Patriots defence, with a reputation for giving up a lot of yards but not so many points, then took inspiration from their offence. Some fearful hitting and tackling restricted the Giants, but nonetheless they got three more points onto the board courtesy of a 38-yard Tynes field goal.
New England failed to respond, but were unlucky soon afterwards when they failed to recover the Giants’ wide receiver Hakeem Nicks’s fumble.
New York failed to fully capitalise on their stroke of good luck and were forced to settle for another Tynes field goal, this time from33 yards, at the end of the third quarter to bring them back within two points at 17-15.
Brady’s trademark composure slipped at the start of the fourth quarter when, after successfully evading two tackles, his long bomb down the field was intercepted by Chase Blackburn.
Bradshaw then nearly gave the ball straight back to New England but again the Giants got lucky when Chris Snee recovered the fumble.
The Patriots then aimed to run down the clock in the knowledge that the Giants had already blown two of their three timeouts.
But, after punting the ball back, Manning – who completed 30 of 40 throws for 296 yards – was able to weave his magic and set up yet another fairytale ending for the Giants.
An explosive book claims that John F. Kennedy took the virginity of a White House intern in a side room, just feet away from where administration staff were drinking at an after-work party.
Mimi Alford, now 69, told how former president John F. Kennedy led her into “Mrs. Kennedy’s room” during a personal tour, where he proceeded to have sex with her.
Mimi Alford, a retired New York church administrator and grandmother, also revealed in her tell-all memoir details how, during a passionate 18-month affair with the commander-in-chief, he told her to perform a sex act on his friend as he watched.
She also claims the then 45-year-old president also stuffed party-drug amyl nitrate, more commonly known as poppers, under her nose after telling her it would enhance their sex life.
But during their romance, Mimi Alford said JFK never properly kissed her and that she was often forced to play “a waiting game” as to when she would see him.
John F. Kennedy led the former intern into “Mrs. Kennedy’s room” during a personal tour, where he proceeded to have sex with her, Mimi Alford claims
Mimi Alford’s book “Once Upon a Secret: My Affair with President John F. Kennedy and Its Aftermath” tells the story of when the 19-year-old debutante from New Jersey landed a job in the White House press office.
It was just four days into her internship that Mimi Alford was invited for a midday swim in the White House pool, where JFK exercised to ease his chronic back pain, and where they spoke briefly.
Later that day, Mimi Alford was invited by his best friend Dave Powers to an after-work party, it was reported in The New York Post.
After drinking several cocktails, JFK took her on a “personal tour”, where she says he moved “closer and closer” until he was standing above her, guiding her onto the edge of a bed.
Mimi Alford wrote in the book: “Slowly, he unbuttoned the top of my shirtdress and touched my breasts. Then he reached up between my legs and started to pull off my underwear.
“I finished unbuttoning my shirtdress and let it fall off my shoulders.”
Mimi Alford said John F. Kennedy pulled down his trousers, but kept his shirt on, and paused when he noticed she seemed reluctant.
He asked her if she had done this before and she initially replied “No” but then changed her mind and said “Yes”.
After intercourse, Mimi Alford said: “He hitched up his pants and smiled at me.” She claims he pointed her to the bathroom and went back to the West Sitting Hall where they had met.
She said: “I was in shock. He, on the other hand, was matter-of-fact, and acted as if what had just occurred was the most natural thing in the world. On the ride home, it kept echoing in my head: I’m not a virgin anymore.”
Mimi Alford's book “Once Upon a Secret: My Affair with President John F. Kennedy and Its Aftermath” tells the story of when the 19-year-old debutante from New Jersey landed a job in the White House press office
Mimi Alford said she went swimming with him again the next week and, although he “barely acknowledged” her arrival, they later ended up in another bedroom which was, she says, the start of the affair.
She said: “The fact that I was being desired by the most famous and powerful man in America only amplified my feelings to the point where resistance was out of the question. That’s why I didn’t say no to the president. It’s the best answer I can give.”
Mimi Alford, who ironically went to the same Miss Porter’s school as JFK’s wife Jackie, described the former president as “playful”, the sex as “varied and fun” and said he could be “seductive and playful”.
She said they spent a lot of time “taking baths” and that if they spent the night together, she would wear his own soft-blue cotton nightshirts.
But Mimi Alford also revealed complications in the relationship, saying they never kissed, and that she was often subjected to a “waiting game” where she was told to stay in her hotel until he called for her.
There is also a dark undertone to some of JFK’s actions in the book, such as when he “forced” her to sniff amyl nitrate, commonly known as poppers, during a Hollywood party at Bing Crosby’s desert ranch.
Mimi Alford said: “I was sitting next to him in the living room when a handful of yellow capsules – most likely amyl nitrate, commonly known as poppers – was offered up by one of the guests.
“The president asked me if I wanted to try the drug, which stimulated the heart but also purportedly enhanced sex.
“I said no, but he just went ahead and popped the capsule and held it under my nose. He didn’t try it himself. This was a new sensation, and it frightened me. I panicked and ran crying from the room.”
Mimi Alford also tells of how JFK asked her to “take care” of his friends Powers who “looked a little tense” while they were swimming in the White House pool.
“It was a dare, but I knew exactly what he meant. This was a challenge to give Dave Powers oral sex. I don’t think the president thought I’d do it, but I’m ashamed to say that I did… The president silently watched,” she said.
During the October 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, where the U.S. and USSR had a nuclear stand-off, JFK reportedly told Mimi Alford that: “I’d rather my children red than dead.”
Mimi Alford, then Mimi Beardsley, also tells of how she erroneously believed at one point she was pregnant with JFK’s child, and another moment of when her lover reached out to her following the death of his infant son Patrick Bouvier Kennedy.
Mimi Alford wrote: “I had never seen real grief in my relatively short life. He invited me upstairs, and we sat outside on the balcony in the soft summer evening air. There was a stack of condolence letters on the floor next to his chair, and he picked each one up and read it aloud to me… Occasionally, tears rolling down his cheeks, he would write something on one of the letters, probably notes for a reply. But mostly he just read them and cried. I did, too.”
She said she saw President John F. Kennedy for the final time at The Carlyle hotel in Manhattan on November 15, 1963, just a week before his assassination in Dallas.
At this point Mimi Alford was due to be married to her college sweetheart, Tony Fahnestock.
“He took me in his arms for a long embrace and said, <<I wish you were coming with me to Texas>>. And then he added, <<I’ll call you when I get back>>. I was overcome with sudden sadness. <<Remember, Mr. President, I’m getting married>>.
“<<I know that>>, he said, and shrugged. <<But I’ll call you anyway>>.”
A greedy cormorant came inland for a meal at the Sevenoaks Wildfowl Reserve in Kent, UK, and tried desperately to gulp down a huge 5 lb pike.
Having thrashed around on the surface of the water for around five minutes the ravenous cormorant appeared to have won the battle, swallowing most of the pike’s body.
But just when it seemed like it was ready to move on to dessert the seabird suddenly regurgitated the freshwater pike having decided it was simply too big to go down.
Adamant that he could finish the fish in one it made one more token attempt, seizing the pike again, before finally giving up.
A greedy cormorant came inland for a meal at the Sevenoaks Wildfowl Reserve in Kent, UK, and tried desperately to gulp down a huge 5 lb pike (Photo Fred O'Hare)
The pike floated away and photographer, 68-year-old Fred O’Hare, who took the amazing pictures was unsure whether it survived.
Fred O’Hare, a retired fireman from West Wickham, Kent, had turned up hoping to photograph another bird, a bittern, but his lens was attracted to the life or death battle between the cormorant and the pike.
He said: “I saw the cormorant surfacing with something and couldn’t make out what it was to start with. It became apparent it was a pike and it was clearly too big for the cormorant.
“It tried really hard to swallow it but got fed up in the end and the pike drifted off. I’ve never seen anything quite like that before.”
There are thought to be around 24,000 wintering cormorants in the UK.
Some species of cormorant can dive to a depth of 45 metres in the hunt for fish.
US director Abel Ferrara announced that French legend Gerard Depardieu is to star as Dominique Strauss-Kahn in a film about the sex scandal that caused the former IMF chief to resign.
Abel Ferrara told Le Monde newspaper he would be making the film, with Isabelle Adjani playing Dominique Strauss-Kahn’s wife, Anne Sinclair.
Dominique Strauss-Kahn left the International Monetary Fund in May last year after being charged with raping a New York hotel maid.
The case was dropped but ended his ambitions for the French presidency.
Before the scandal, DSK, a former French finance minister, was thought to have had aspirations to run as a Socialist contender for the post.
French writer Tristane Banon later accused DSK of trying to sexually assault her during an interview in 2003, claims he denied. No action was taken because of a three-year statute of limitations but Tristane Banon has indicated she may still file a civil suit.
Abel Ferrara told Le Monde the film would be shot in New York, Paris and Washington.
“In all the places of power: It’s a film about the rich and powerful,” said the director.
US director Abel Ferrara announced that French legend Gerard Depardieu is to star as Dominique Strauss-Kahn in a film about the sex scandal that caused the former IMF chief to resign
The project has long been rumored, but Abel Ferrara confirmed he would be going ahead with it in June, despite the doubts of his producers Wildbunch.
“I am the director. No one is going to stop me talking about my film,” said Abel Ferrara.
Abel Ferrara met Gerard Depardieu, 63, at the Deauville film festival in September and said the French star was everything a director could wish for in an actor.
Abel Ferrara is best known for hard-hitting films dealing with the dark and seedy side of life, such as Bad Lieutenant, starring Harvey Keitel as a corrupt New York policeman with a drug and gambling addiction.
The cold snap that hit Europe in the last week has already claimed more than 260 lives across the continent.
Ukraine continues to be hardest hit, with another 9 deaths overnight. According to officials, 131 have died up to now, most of them homeless people, and 1,800 people have been taken to hospital.
Eight people died in Poland overnight, police say, bringing the toll to 53.
In Romania, another 6 people died overnight rising the death toll to 34, the Black Sea is still frozen on the coastline and dozens of roads are closed due the freezing rain that hit the country after the snowfalls.
The cold snap that hit Europe in the last week has already claimed more than 260 lives across the continent
Transport hubs have also been hit, with London’s Heathrow airport expecting to run only 50% of services on Sunday.
At least 4 people have died in France since the Arctic spell began and 43 departments in France have been put on alert for “exceptional” weather conditions.
The Italian capital Rome has seen its heaviest snowfall in more than 25 years, with runs on essential goods at supermarkets reported.
“The snow is beautiful, but let’s hope spring comes soon,” Pope Benedict XVI told the small number of pilgrims who braved the cold to go to St. Peter’s Square.
The Italian national rail operator is facing class action lawsuits after hundreds of people were trapped in trains due to the weather, AFP news agency reports.
Three helicopters were being used over eastern Bosnia on Sunday to deliver food and pick up people who needed evacuation.
A state of emergency is in force in the capital, Sarajevo, where snow has paralyzed the city.
In neighboring Serbia, 70,000 people remain cut off and 32 municipalities throughout the country have introduced emergency measures, according to senior emergency official Predrag Maric.
The Netherlands marked temperatures of -21.8C in the town of Lelystad on Saturday, the lowest recorded in the country for 27 years.
Activists for animal rights have demanded a boycott of Liam Neeson’s new film, The Grey, after the British actor revealed he ate wolf stew to prepare for his role.
In the movie, Liam Neeson, 59, plays the leader of a group of oil workers being hunted down by a pack of wolves after surviving a plane crash in the Arctic.
During the making of the film, the director suggested that cast members eat real wolf meat to “get into character”.
But while some were reluctant, Liam Neeson revealed that he “went up for seconds of the wolf stew”.
Furious members of animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) said in a statement: “Neeson’s stance on kindness to animals is sorely out of step with the rest of the world.”
And arguing that instead of being predatory, wolves normally shy away from human contact, PETA urged cinema-goers: “Don’t just shy away. Run away from The Grey.”
Activists for animal rights have demanded a boycott of Liam Neeson’s new film, The Grey, after the British actor revealed he ate wolf stew to prepare for his role
Most of the wolf scenes in The Grey were shot using special effects, but PETA claims the film’s director Joe Carnahan ordered wolf carcasses from a trapper and that the animals would have suffered “horribly” before they died.
“Many animals caught in traps chew off their own limbs in order to escape,” said PETA spokeswoman Jane Dollinger.
“These animals go on to die of gangrene or other secondary infections, sometimes leaving nursing puppies abandoned to fend for themselves.
“Wolves are intelligent, family-oriented animals who mate for life and live in tightly bonded packs.
“Breaking up a wolf family causes loneliness, separation-anxiety, depression and grief.”
At a press conference to promote The Grey, Liam Neeson, who was born in County Antrim, said that while some cast members had been sick after eating the wolf meat, he was not fazed by the experience.
Liam Neeson said: “It was very gamey. But I’m Irish, so I’m used to odd stews. I can take it. Just throw a lot of carrots and onions in there and I’ll call it dinner.”
Wolf experts have joined PETA in its protest, claiming the film, which was shot in British Columbia in Canada, will incite Americans to slaughter wolves after falsely portraying them as man-eaters.
“Wolves pose no threat whatsoever to human beings,” said Jane Dollinger.
The animals faced extinction in the US until they were added to the endangered species list in many states.
In British Columbia, though there are just 8,000 left, it is still legal to kill them in traps.
Despite the animal rights protesters’ anger, The Grey has topped the American box-office charts since its release.
And reviews of the film have been sympathetic to Liam Neeson, noting a parallel with his character and tragic events in his own life.
Liam Neeson’s wife and mother of his two teenage sons, the English actress Natasha Richardson, died in 2009 from a head injury sustained in a skiing accident.
In The Grey it is suggested that Liam Neeson’s character has a death wish as a result of a tragedy involving his wife.
“Let’s just say that I had to do very little research,” Liam Neeson said of the role.
“I knew the emotions that had to be accessed. We just played the scenes of a man whose heart is broken.”
In addition to eating wolf meat, Liam Neeson did survivalist training to prepare for Canada’s sub-zero temperatures.
“I saw a documentary about this British man a few years ago who liked to swim through icebergs in Antarctica,” he said.
“He started preparing by taking freezing-cold showers for ten minutes every morning. I did the same thing to prepare for this movie, but I only got up to seven minutes.”
A spokeswoman for Liam Neeson referred questions about animal rights issues to the film’s producers, who declined to comment.
More than 100 dolphins have now beached off Cape Cod, Massachusetts, as mammals continue to get inexplicably stranded on the region’s beaches.
Three of them died on Friday, meaning that of 116 common dolphins that have beached since January 12, 84 have died, though rescuers have managed to save the rest.
This year’s strandings dwarf the average of 37 common dolphin strandings annually over the last 12 years, and no one can explain why the numbers have mysteriously spiked this year.
Scientists have theories, ranging from geography, weather changes or behavior of their prey.
Mike Booth of the International Fund for Animal Welfare, which is leading rescue efforts, said dolphins remain close off the Cape Cod and more strandings are possible.
Massachusetts lawmakers held a Congressional briefing on the issue Friday and campaigned for federal funding to hep the staff and some 300 trained volunteers, the Cape Cod Times reported.
More than 100 dolphins have now beached off Cape Cod, Massachusetts, as mammals continue to get inexplicably stranded on the region's beaches
Friday’s death came after ten dolphins approached Wellfleet, and four beached. Three died and one was rescued.
Although this time of year is known to be “high season” for dolphin stranding near Cape Cod, IFAW aren’t sure why so many dolphins are beaching now.
One theory is that the marine creates get stranded during low tides while hunting for food. When the tide goes out, the dolphins become stranded.
Katie Moore, a Cape Cod dolphin rescue veteran of 15 years, told CNN that this is only the second time she has seen this many dolphins washing ashore.
“Sometimes they come up one at a time, other times we see them 10 at a time,” Katie Moore said.
IFAW’s stranding coordinator B. Sharp said: “This might be the largest dolphin stranding geographically speaking that we’ve had.”
According to a Student British Medical Journal report, sexually transmitted diseases (STD’s) among older adults have more than doubled in the past 10 years, as the age group is having more sex than ever.
Of those between 50 and 90 years of age, 80% are sexually active, according to the report, spreading opportunity for disease with the aid of possibly overlooked symptoms.
“A 56 year old man has trouble with his <<waterworks>>. A 61 year old woman reports lower abdominal pain. The chances are that sexually transmitted infections are not high on your list of differential diagnoses – but increasing evidence indicates that they should be,” state the co-authors.
Sexually transmitted diseases among older adults have more than doubled in the past 10 years, as the age group is having more sex than ever
In the editorial discussion by Rachel von Simson, a medical student at King’s College London, and Ranjababu Kulasegaram, a consultant genitourinary physician at St Thomas’ Hospital London, cases like HIV among the group now composes 20% of the UK’s reported HIV population.
That’s up from 11% in 2001.
With the increase in reports of HIV among older populations, the authors write on increased cases of other diseases like syphilis, chlamydia and gonorrhoea in the UK, United States and Canada’s older demographic.
The authors write that the cause is in part because of prolonged health and survival.
This news brings several words of caution in the report, as well as by experts, suggesting seniors may want to consider STD testing.
“You never have to retire from sex,” clinical psychologist Judy Kuriansky told CNN, “but you should always behave as the 20-30 year-olds do. You need to be cautious about it.”
“Just as we spend a lot of time advising kids to practice safer sex, we need to do the same things for ourselves and our parents,” sex therapist Ian Kerner told CNN.
Ian Kerner points out that those on their 50’s and up compose the fastest-growing demographics for those who use online dating.
But with some older women into or past menopause believing a condom as unnecessary or men finding them contributors of erectile dysfunction, according to the CNN report, safe sex has dwindled while the more unfavorable, ailing figures rise.
Britney Spears and Jason Alexander were married for a mere 55 hours in 2004 before their union was annulled, and now he has opened up about their short-lived marriage, insisting that he was in love with the singer.
In a new interview with ABC’s 20/20 show, Jason Alexander says that the decision to end the marriage had not been his.
He said: “I was in love with her. … I feel like she felt the same way.”
Jason Alexander said that when they broke the news of the marriage to Britney Spears’ management team: “They didn’t want to hear anything … and [Spears] came back, and it ended. That was pretty wild.”
In the annulment papers for the marriage, it was claimed that Britney Spears “lacked understanding of her actions, to the extent that she was incapable of agreeing to the marriage”.
But Jason Alexander says of that claim: “Bull***t. That was probably the hardest part about it. I had obviously got my feelings involved.”
Jason Alexander has opened up about his short-lived marriage to Britney Spears, insisting that he was in love with the singer
Asked what he had learned from the marriage, Jason Alexander replied: “Nice guys finish last. Look out for yourself.
“If you are going to really get involved into a relationship with a celebrity and you are just an average Joe, make sure you are thinking business!”
Following the annulment, Britney Spears said in an interview: “It was me being silly, being rebellious.”
Since the annulment, Britney Spears has been married to dancer Kevin Federline, the father of her two sons, and is now engaged to marry her former agent Jason Trawick.
However, Jason Alexander spoke last year about Britney Spears’ engagement to Jason Trawick, labelling it “fake”.
Jason Alexander said: “I know everyone wants me to be happy about this, but I am not. I think it’s fake and I think people are afraid to say it.
“They look like they are going through the motions. It seems like an answer to the court thing. Sort of a nice way to sew it all up she marries her handler.”
Lion King-ing, the latest internet phenomenon, sees pet owners around the world lifting their animals above their head.
The phenomenon, copying a famous scene from the film The Lion King, follows other such memes as planking, owling and Tebowing.
The videos take their inspiration from the famous scene in the beginning of The Lion King where the wise mandrill Rafiki presents the young Simba to the herd.
In the movie, the Elton John “Circle of Life” song is heard, and many of the online videos have the same music.
“I think that everyone with a cat or a small dog has done it before,” said Jeff Wysaski, a blogger on Pleated-jeans.com who made a viral video of the phenomenon from clips other pet owners had posted on YouTube.
“I checked on YouTube, and, lo and behold, there were a ton of videos of people doing it. I thought it would be funny to put them together.
“I think most people don’t talk about it, but when you bring it up other cat owners, they’re like, <<I do that>>, <<I have done that>.”
Lion King-ing, the latest internet phenomenon, sees pet owners around the world lifting their animals above their head
Jeff Wysaski admitted he “Lion Kings” his own tabby cat.
“She’s not too happy about it,” he said.
“A lot of the animals are … just putting up with us and our ridiculousness.”
Lion King-ing is the latest internet phenomenon to join the ranks of planking, Tebowing and owling.
Planking involved people posting pictures of themselves lying flat in random places for no apparent reason.
Tebowing took its name from the Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow, who dropped to one knee and paused with a hand resting on his forehead as he prayed during a game.
Images soon starting spring up all over the internet of people pulling the exact same pose.
Owling consisted of people crouching on their haunches and staring into the middle distance, like an owl.
Two civilians and at least five police officers have died in a car bomb attack on police headquarters in the city of Kandahar, southern Afghanistan.
Other 19 people were wounded in the blast in a car park outside the police building, the local government said.
The blast – thought to have been caused by explosives hidden inside a parked car and detonated remotely – was strong enough to shatter nearby windows.
No-one has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.
Two civilians and at least five police officers have died in a car bomb attack on police headquarters in the city of Kandahar, southern Afghanistan
Kandahar is the largest city in southern Afghanistan and the province is considered to be the spiritual homeland of the Taliban.
Militants frequently launch attacks against government and military targets in the province, despite intensive efforts by NATO-led forces in recent years to improve security there.
The United Nations said on Saturday that civilian deaths in Afghanistan had risen for the fifth year in a row – with 3,021 deaths in 2011 compared with 2,790 in 2010 and 2,412 in 2009.
Film and Broadway actor Ben Gazzara has died on Friday in New York at the age of 81.
Ben Gazzara was best known for playing tough characters and villains in the films Anatomy of a Murder in 1959 and 1970’s Killing of a Chinese Bookie.
The actor, who had been suffering from pancreatic cancer, later appeared in cult comedy The Big Lebowski, directed by the Coen Brothers.
Ben Gazzara began his career in the theatre, starring in the original Broadway production of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.
Longtime family friend Suzanne Mados said Ben Gazzara died on Friday.
The son of Italian immigrants, Ben Gazzara was a proponent of method acting and it helped him achieve stardom early in his career.
In 1955, Ben Gazzara originated the role of Brick Pollitt, the disturbed alcoholic son and failed football star in the Tennessee Williams’ play Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.
Ben Gazzara left the show after only seven months to take on the role of Johnny Pope, the drug addict in A Hatful of Rain, which earned him the first of three Tony Award nominations.
Film and Broadway actor Ben Gazzara has died on Friday in New York at the age of 81
In 1965 Ben Gazzara starred in the TV series Run for Your Life which saw him twice nominated for an Emmy during the show’s three-year run.
His other films included The Strange One, The Thomas Crown Affair and Opening Night, one of three appearances directed by his friend John Cassavetes.
Ben Gazzara’s marriages to actresses Louise Erikson and Janice Rule, ended in divorce. He married his third wife, the model Elke Krivatand, in 1982.
Clara Lazen, a 10-year-old girl from Missouri, may be the youngest in history to discover a new molecule after a brief introduction on molecular formation by her middle school science teacher.
Clara Lazen of Kansas City was piecing together over-sized atoms from an educational model in her Border Star Montessori School classroom when she composed something her teacher had never seen before.
“I just saw that these go together more,” Clara Lazen told Fox4 while holding up her molecule’s model.
“Like, they fit more together and they look better. And all the holes have to be filled in for it to be stable.”
When Clara Lazen showed it to her teacher Ken Boehr, he in turn reached out to a friend and PhD chemistry professor at Humboldt State University in Arcata California for advice.
Clara Lazen of Kansas City was piecing together over-sized atoms from an educational model in her Border Star Montessori School classroom when she composed something her teacher had never seen before
Sure enough, after completing a computer analysis on her formation, the University professor Dr. Robert Zoellner turned back to the two to say it looked real, just previously unheard of.
Today Clara Lazen’s molecule is the highlight of a scientific publication in a major theoretical chemistry journal by Dr. Robert Zoellner which features her name as well as her teacher’s as co-authors.
“I have never partnered with a middle school student, a 10 or 11 year old student. Never happened before,” Dr. Robert Zoellner told Fox4.
What remains to be seen however are the tests behind her possible discovery.
Can it be synthesized by chemical engineers?
Dr. Robert Zoellner says he’s working to capture a major research university to begin the experiments and find out.
Being able to synthesize or physically create her molecule could lead to the possible creation of products like medicine, batteries and even, as Clara Lazen notes, explosives.
“And I was like, <<Yeah, I can sell this to the military for money>>,” Clara Lazen laughed.
She’s already discussed splitting the money with Ken Boehr.
“Hopefully in Clara’s case and in her classmates’ cases, as well, this [discovery] will keep their interest in science going,” Dr. Robert Zoellner said.
Fidel Castro, the former Cuban president has made a rare public appearance to launch his memoirs.
The book, “Guerrilla of Time”, is almost 1,000 pages long and relates his childhood and rise to power in the Cuban Revolution.
He said it was every Cuban’s duty to fight until the last moment, for Cuba, the planet, and humanity.
Fidel Castro, 85, had not been seen in public since April last year.
Communist Party newspaper Granma said the launch at the Havana Convention Centre lasted more than six hours.
The two-volume memoir is based on conversations between Fidel Castro and journalist Katiuska Blanco.
It starts with former President Fidel Castro’s earliest childhood memories and takes the reader up to December 1958, the eve of the overthrow of Fulgencio Batista by Castro and his followers.
Culture Minister Abel Prieto and Director of the Cuban Writers’ Union Miguel Barnet were among those speaking at the launch.
Miguel Barnet said the memoirs were “as vivid as a 3D film”.
At the event, Fidel Castro spoke about current affairs, praising Latin American students for “standing up for their right to free education”.
Fidel Castro also paid tribute to his friend, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, who “had done more than anyone else for the Venezuelan people”.
It was the first time Fidel Castro had appeared in public since the closing session of the Communist Party Congress in April 2011.
Fidel Castro handed over the presidency to his brother Raul in 2006, and has kept a low profile since, fuelling speculation over his health.
Peter Huybers, a Harvard earth sciences professor, has finally proved the idea that slight shifts in Earth’s axis are enough to trigger the ice ages using computer models to test competing ideas – and finding that earth’s tilting axis is the only one that works.
The finding could have profound implications for our understanding of our planet’s climate and could, its author says, be crucial to “predicting long-term changes in future climate”.
Two “cycles” in the way Earth’s axis spins have an effect on the cycle – one lasting 10,000 years and one lasting roughly 40,000 years.
When they align correctly, ice melts. At the other extreme, glaciers advance.
The idea that these could dictate the cycles of glaciation in Earth’s climate was first proposed by Serbian geophysicist Milutin Milankovitch in the first half of the 20th century.
“These periods of deglaciation saw massive climate changes,” Prof. Peter Huybers said.
“Sea level increased by 130 meters, temperatures rose by about 5 degrees C, and atmospheric CO2 went from 180 to 280 parts per million.
“We ought to understand what caused these massive changes in past climate if we are to predict long-term changes in future climate with any confidence.
“And at least now we know with greater than 99% confidence that shifts in earth’s axis are among the factors that contribute to deglaciation.”
Prof. Peter Huybers has finally proved the idea that slight shifts in Earth's axis are enough to trigger the ice ages using computer models to test competing ideas
When both cycles align “correctly”, the glaciers retreat rapidly.
“When you get that alignment, the radiation that the Northern Hemisphere receives during summer increases by tens of watts per meter squared, and if large Northern ice sheets are present, they tend to disintegrate.
“These statistical findings agree exactly with what Milutin Milankovitch, a Serbian geophysicist, proposed in the first half of the 20th century.”
Prof. Peter Huybers emphasizes that these cycles are only one factor among many.
“It could also be that orbital forcing causes a rise is atmospheric CO2, and that it’s the increased CO2 that drives the loss of ice sheets,” he said.
“In all likelihood, both CO2 and increased summer radiation contribute to deglaciation. They’re both expected to push the climate system toward less ice.”
A controversial Canadian study says that right-wingers (conservatives) tend to be less intelligent than left-wingers, and people with low childhood intelligence tend to grow up to have racist and anti-gay views.
The Canadian academics say conservative politics work almost as a “gateway” into prejudice against others.
The study, by academics at Brock University in Ontario, Canada, analyzed large UK studies which compared childhood intelligence with political views in adulthood across more than 15,000 people.
The authors claim that people with low intelligence gravitate towards right-wing views because they make them feel safe.
Crucially, people’s educational level is not what determines whether they are racist or not – it’s innate intelligence, according to the academics.
Social status also appears to play no part.
The study, published in Psychological Science, claims that right-wing ideology forms a “pathway” for people with low reasoning ability to become prejudiced against groups such as other races and gay people.
“Cognitive abilities are critical in forming impressions of other people and in being open minded,” say the researchers.
“Individuals with lower cognitive abilities may gravitate towards more socially conservative right-wing ideologies that maintain the status quo.
“It provides a sense of order.”
The study used information from two UK studies from 1958 and 1970, where several thousand children were assessed for intelligence at age 10 and 11, and then asked political questions aged 33.
The 1958 National Child Development involved 4,267 men and 4,537 women born in 1958.
The British Cohort Study involved 3,412 men and 3,658 women born in 1970.
It’s the first time the data from these studies has been used in this way.
In adulthood, the children were asked whether they agreed with statements such as: “I wouldn’t mind working with people from other races” and “I wouldn’t mind if a family of a different race moved next door”.
They were also asked whether they agreed with statements about typically right-wing and socially conservative politics such as: “Give law breakers stiffer sentences” and “Schools should teach children to obey authority”.
The Canadian researchers also compared their results against a 1986 American study which included tests of cognitive ability and questions assessing prejudice against homosexuals.
The authors claim that there is a strong correlation between low intelligence both as a child and an adult and right-wing politics.
The researchers also claim that conservative politics is part of a complex relationship that leads people to become prejudices.
“Conservative ideology represents a critical pathway through which childhood intelligence predicts racism in adulthood,” says the paper.
“In psychological terms, the relation between intelligence and prejudice may stem from the propensity of individuals with lower cognitive ability to endorse more right wing conservative ideologies because such ideologies offer a psychological sense of stability and order.
“Clearly, however, all socially conservative people are not prejudiced, and all prejudiced persons are not conservative.”
Ioana Spangenberg, a Romanian model with a waist of just 20 inches, has insisted she eats three square meals a day, including fatty foods such as crisps, pizza and kebabs.
She told The Sun: “No one seems to believe it, but every day I eat three big meals and I snack on chocolate and crisps all the time. I just have a small stomach. It’s a bit like a gastric band, if I eat too much I feel sick.”
Ioana Spangenberg was born a very normal weight of seven pounds, and only saw her body transform into what it is now when she was a teenager.
When she was 13, Ioana would get friends to put their hands completely around her 15 in waist.
Ioana Spangenberg, a Romanian model with a waist of just 20 inches has insisted she eats three square meals a day, including fatty foods such as crisps, pizza and kebabs
Ioana Spangenberg says she has tried to fatten up, eating sweets like Mars bars to do so, but to no avail.
It was only in 2006 when she met her German husband Jan Spangenberg, that she says she finally became comfortable in her own skin.
Her husband encouraged her to become a model after photographs he posted of her online received a fantastic reaction.
“I would still like to gain weight so I don’t look so shocking. And now that I live in Germany I can’t get enough pizza or kebabs.”
More than 200 people were killed by Syrian government forces which bombarded the city of Homs with tank shells and mortars, opposition groups say.
Activists say a massacre has occurred but the government denied attacking, accusing the opposition of propaganda.
But opposition fighters, though outgunned, plan to launch a “general offensive”.
A vote is expected later on a UN draft resolution, despite Syrian ally Russia voicing strong objections.
Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Saturday the current draft included measures against President Bashar al-Assad’s government, but not against armed opposition groups.
Sergei Lavrov said Moscow had tabled amendments to the text to try and ensure the UN would not appear to be taking sides in a civil war.
Homs appears to have come under a “pretty relentless” bombardment, which targeted areas outside government control.
Funerals have already begun in large numbers, amid reports of a death toll as high as 260.
Russia’s foreign minister said it would be a “scandal” to ask the UN Security Council to vote on the resolution in its current form.
Russia is Syria’s main ally on the council, and has said it will veto any resolution calling on President Bashar al-Assad to stand down.
Moscow has continued to supply weapons to Syria despite the protests.
However, French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said the Homs assault was a “further step in savagery” and warned against a veto.
“Those who would hinder the adoption of such a resolution would assume a heavy responsibility in history,” he said.
In another blow to the Assad regime, Tunisia’s government said it had begun the process of expelling the Syrian ambassador and withdrawing recognition from the government.
A death toll higher than 200 at Homs would make it by quite a long way the bloodiest day since protests began.
More than 200 people were killed by Syrian government forces which bombarded the city of Homs with tank shells and mortars, opposition groups say
Homs was one of the first cities to join anti-Assad protests, and became one of the focal points of dissent after government forces fired on crowds in April last year. Many army defectors have sought refuge in the city.
Activists said most of the deaths were in the residential area of Khalidiya.
Reports said a hospital had been destroyed in Khalidiya, and residents said more than 30 houses had been wrecked in the barrage.
“We were sitting inside our house when we started hearing the shelling. We felt shells were falling on our heads,” Khalidiya resident Waleed told Reuters news agency.
Video footage emerged on the internet showing several bodies covered in blood with a voiceover saying the bombardment was still going on.
State media dismissed the Homs casualty reports as a “hysterical campaign of incitement” by armed gangs designed to influence the UN.
“The civilians shown by satellite television stations are citizens who were kidnapped and killed by armed gunmen,” said a report on Sana news agency.
International media outlets are restricted in Syria, making it difficult to verify the claims of either side.
Meanwhile, activists have attacked Syrian embassies around the world
• Around 50 mainly Syrian protesters broke into their country’s embassy in Athens early on Saturday, smashing windows and
• About 20 protesters forced their way into the Syrian embassy in Berlin late on Friday and damaged offices, police said. German TV showed a Syrian resistance flag hanging from one of the windows and graffiti sprayed on the outside of the building
• About 150 demonstrators gathered outside the Syrian embassy in London early on Saturday and five people were arrested after entering the building
• In Cairo, protesters stormed the embassy building, smashing furniture and setting fire to parts of the building
Syria has been gripped by nationwide protests against Bashar al-Assad’s regime for almost a year.
The UN stopped estimating the death toll after it passed 5,400 in January, saying it was too difficult to confirm numbers.
The Syrian government says at least 2,000 members of its security forces have been killed fighting “armed gangs and terrorists”.
