The video of a FedEx employee lobbing a computer monitor into a garden has been viewed 200,000 times on YouTube and seemed to be hilarious, but, sadly, this isn’t the only box not being handled with care.
Other delivery men have been caught in the act of throwing, dragging and dumping special deliveries in the U.S.
A whole range of techniques are employed by the busy delivery guys. One man throws packages from his van without even looking where they are going to land. Another has perfected a horseshoe throw while one uses as much care as you would to toss out the garbage.
In another incredible clip, a FedEx truck on the highway was caught on video camera with what appears to be a kitchen appliance stuck to the front grille – with sparks flying up from the road.
Many delivery men have been caught in the act of throwing, dragging and dumping special deliveries in the US
FedEx had now identified their rogue employee but had not released his name and said he would be dealt with internally. Company spokeswoman Shea Leordeanu added: “This won’t be his best day.”
Shea Leordeanu said company executives were “shocked” when they saw the video yesterday and called the handling of the package “unacceptable”.
The 21-second clip, uploaded to YouTube by user goobie55 on Monday night, shows the delivery man taking the package from the back of a FedEx-branded van parked outside of the home’s front lawn.
Taking the package out, he walks alongside an iron gate and past what appears to be a security keypad that might buzz him in.
Without missing a beat, its fragile contents are tossed onto a driveway on the other side of the gate.
Peering over his shoulder, the unidentified male continues his march back to the van – and, presumably, his next delivery.
“All of us here at FedEx have seen the video and quite frankly we were shocked,” said Shea Leordeanu.
The customer who posted the video has not contacted the company yet, Shea Leordeanu said. However, FedEx officials asked the person to come forward so they could properly apologize.
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The acai berry supplement is often used in conjunction with colonic therapies to enhance the digestive system. This aids weight loss by removing any build ups within the intestines and allowing quicker, more efficient absorption of all the necessary nutrients. The acai berry is also renowned to reduce the appetite making it less likely that a chocolate binge will occur.
The acai berry can be purchased in many forms, from fresh or juice to supplement form. However, it can be expensive, so shop around before you buy. The acai berry needs to be taken, eaten or even drunk as part of a balanced diet. The acai berry alone won’t aid in weight loss, it has to be teamed with a calorie controlled diet and daily exercise.
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The Kardashians already have 4 reality series under their belt, but Kim Kardashian says her family could be on TV for years to come.
“These shows could really go on for years,” Kim Kardashian, 31, told The Hollywood Reporter.
“There are so many of us, but I think we’ll see more of my younger siblings [Kendall and Kylie].”
Kim Kardashian and her mother Kris Jenner appear in the latest issue of the entertainment bible that named the family one of its “rule breakers” of 2011.
The Kardashians are rumored to have made a total of $65 million last year through their TV series and a host of endorsement deals.
Kim Kardashian appears on one of four special covers of Hollywood Reporter's year-end double-issue
Their fame began with Keeping Up With the Kardashians, but they have starred in other offshoots including Kourtney and Khloe Take Miami, Kourtney and Kim Take New York and Khloe and Lamar.
As one of six children, Kim Kardashian says the family could keep on doing reality TV for a long time to come.
“The show could go on for years, but when the fun stops so will we.”
The past year has been one of incredible highs and lows for the Kardashians following Kim’s whirlwind romance and wedding to basketball player Kris Humphries.
At the end of October Kim Kardashian filed for divorce after just 72 days of marriage.
Kris Jenner, 56, – the family’s matriarch and manager – is philosophical.
“I’m really proud at how hard we’ve all worked this year and what we’ve accomplished,” she says.
“We roll as one big unit, so whether something’s sad, happy or tragic, we come together as a family and everything falls into place.”
Kim Kardashian appears on one of four special covers of Hollywood Reporter’s year-end double-issue.
DeAngelo Rashard Mitchell, a young man from South Carolina, who persuaded his brother to eat an ounce of cocaine after they were arrested is to be charged with causing his death.
Wayne Joshua Mitchell, 20, collapsed and died an hour after ingesting the drug as he sat in the back of a police car.
DeAngelo Rashard Mitchell, 23, who was captured on a police video cameras urging his brother to eat the drug, has been charged with his death.
The man is heard on the police film telling his younger brother that if he is caught with the drug he will spend the rest of his life in prison.
At his urging his younger brother swallows the drug.
“I love you, bro,” Wayne Joshua Mitchell says.
An hour later he was dead.
A toxicology test revealed the cause of death was from ingesting cocaine.
The brothers were pulled over while driving in North Charleston, South Carolina, after a patrol car noticed one of their headlights wasn’t working.
Officers put the brothers in the back of a police cruiser while they searched the car.
A video camera recorded what happened next as DeAngelo Mitchell told his brother he couldn't afford another strike against him and that he needed his brother to eat the cocaine he had in his possession
A video camera recorded what happened next as DeAngelo Mitchell told his brother he couldn’t afford another strike against him and that he needed his brother to eat the cocaine he had in his possession.
“You gonna eat it, you gonna chew it,” DeAngelo Mitchell tells his brother.
“You ain’t got no strike… I can get you out… I can’t afford another strike.”
DeAngelo Mitchell then appears to hand off the cocaine, which was stuffed in his buttocks, to his brother.
“One of us gotta do it,” he said.
“You the only one that don’t have no strikes… You my lil’ brother… I’m gonna get life… You gonna unwrap it? Want me to hand you it?”
According to police, Wayne Mitchell then ate the cocaine.
Minutes later the younger brother began having trouble breathing and holding his head up. DeAngelo Mitchell told police his 20-year-old brother had swallowed cocaine, but did not mention where it came from.
Despite being rushed to hospital doctors were unable to save Wayne Mitchell.
“It’s sickening,” said North Charleston police chief Jon Zumwalt.
“I got upset when I saw the thing, I’m pretty shocked about it.
“For me, an older brother is supposed to love his little brother, have his back and take good care of him. That’s not what was happening in this car.”
DeAngelo Mitchell has been charged with involuntary manslaughter.
Police records show he has numerous convictions for drug arrests.
The incident happened on November 30th but police waited for the toxicology results before charging DeAngelo Mitchell with involuntary manslaughter.
Kevin Trudeau, the veteran US infomercial, has been fined with almost $38 million after allegedly scamming customers for decades.
Kevin Trudeau, 48, has made millions flogging what he claims are natural cures for serious and potentially fatal illnesses.
The 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court’s decision that Kevin Trudeau must pay the huge fine.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has been after Kevin Trudeau, originally from Massachusetts, for several years.
The FTC said that he has made millions of dollars by telling followers that coral calcium can cure cancer among other claims.
FTC put the value at $37.6million as to how much consumers were defrauded by “deceptive infomercials” that Kevin Trudeau filmed in order to plug his book – “The Weight Loss Cure <<They Don’t Want You to Know About>>”.
On one episode of his radio show The Kevin Trudeau Show, he said: “Coral calcium is the best form of calcium.”
Kevin Trudeau then tells his listeners: “Every single one of you are deficient in vitamin D3 and calcium.
“If you take those two things, it’s virtually impossible to get cancer and it’s impossible to get sick.”
Kevin Trudeau, who claims to be “America’s number one freedom fighter and consumer advocate”, has also sold thousands of weight loss books, baldness remedies, addiction treatments and investment plans.
Kevin Trudeau, the veteran US infomercial, has been fined with almost $38 million after allegedly scamming customers for decades
In 2004, Kevin Trudeau became to first ever person banned from selling a product on TV by the FTC but flouted the ruling.
He had argued that the courts decision violated his First Amendment rights but the appeals court upheld the decision and even suggested the amount he was being fined was not enough.
The 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago said Kevin Trudeau’s infomercials played 32,000 times after being told to stop by the FTC.
Judge John Tinder said: “The figure is conservative – it only considers sales from the 800-number, not sales in bookstores carrying his <<As Seen on TV>. titles.”
Kevin Trudeau, in an interview with ABC News, says he intends to fight on to defend his First Amendment right to speak and write freely, taking his appeal, if necessary, to the Supreme Court.
He said his only “crime” is telling truths that challenge big pharmaceutical companies.
The presenter has been making late-night infomercials for more than 20 years.
Doctors have expressed concern in the past about his book Natural Cures They Don’t Want You To Know About which has sold more than 5 million copies and appeared at the top of non-fiction bestseller lists.
His claims include: “The sun does not cause cancer. Sun block has been shown to cause cancer.”
Another one of his statements is that AIDS is “one of the greatest hoaxes and deceptions ever perpetrated on the American public”.
The FTC first came after Kevin Trudeau in 1998 for making false claims on TV. He claimed his alternative medicines could cause dramatic weight loss and cure addictions to alcohol, cigarettes and heroin. He even said the herbal remedies could give users a photographic memory.
More than 25 million Americans have purchased products from Kevin Trudeau.
Donna Kelly from UK, who suffered two miscarriages in the past, spent ten weeks, 24 hours a day, laid “upside down” in a hospital bed until she gave birth to a healthy daughter.
When doctors told five months pregnant Donna Kelly, 29, that she was at high risk of losing another baby, she readily agreed to their radical solution.
Ultrasound scans had shown that damage to the neck of Donna Kelly womb, or cervix, meant the baby had dropped too far down.
To alter the force of gravity on her cervix, Donna Kelly lay in a bed tilted at a 45 degree angle with her feet pointing upwards.
Donna Kelly had to eat, read and watch television in the bed at University Hospital in Coventry, only getting out of it to go to the toilet.
Donna Kelly, who gave up work as a gynaecology nurse following the birth of her son Joshua four years ago, said: “I was surprised when she told me to lie in bed at a tilt but I was ready to give anything a try.
“It made me feel sick at first but after a couple of days my body adjusted and I soon got used to it.
“I propped myself up with pillows and the barrier round the bed kept me from falling out.
“I’d even have to stay in the bed to eat by rolling on to my side, but I’d always have a dead arm by the end. It could be boring at times but I knew it wouldn’t be as painful as losing my baby.”
Doctors told Donna Kelly and husband Mark, 32, a Sky television installation engineer, that Joshua’s natural birth may have permanently weakened her cervix. They think this caused her to miscarry in January 2009 at 23 weeks and again in May 2010 at 19 weeks.
This time Donna Kelly was given cream containing the hormone progesterone to help strengthen the cervix and prevent infection.
She also underwent a cervical stitch at 14 weeks to strengthen the neck of the womb but by 23 weeks the cervix had re-opened.
Professor Siobhan Quenby, an expert in recurrent miscarriages, told the couple the only chance of preventing another miscarriage was to reduce the pressure on her cervix by making her lie at a tilt.
While his mother was in hospital, Joshua went to nursery but visited her each evening with his father. Donna Kelly gave birth to 4lb 15oz Amelia by emergency caesarean in August after her waters broke six weeks early.
Baby Amelia spent two weeks in an incubator in intensive care before the couple was allowed to take her to their Coventry home, where she is now thriving.
Donna Kelly added: “The other day Joshua said to me, <<Mummy, I love being a big brother>. For me that makes it all worthwhile.”
Prof. Siobhan Quenby said there were several causes of cervical weakness, including damage from previous births and miscarriages, smear tests and treatment for pre-cancerous cells.
“Donna’s cervical weakness was bad as you can get,” she added.
“It’s the weakest I’ve ever dealt with.
“The concept of keeping a woman at a tilt is relatively simple – it’s basic physics – and while it may sound strange, it is very effective.”
Prof. Sionhan Quenby said it costs around £300 ($450) per day to keep a patient in hospital, but the cost of caring for a premature baby in hospital is around £2,000 ($3,000) per day.
Linda Gipson, a mother-of-five from Ypsilanti, Michigan, who mistakenly loaded her children’s Christmas presents into the trunk of the wrong car, is counting on the kindness of its owner to return the missing items this season.
Linda Gipson was overloaded with $700 worth of merchandise during her shopping trip to Twelve Oaks Mall in nearby Novi, so she put her bags in what she thought was her daughter’s car before returning inside.
When Linda Gipson finished shopping an hour later, she returned to the parking lot to find the car she had filled up with gifts was gone.
Linda Gipson told Detroit Free Press: “The first thing I thought was, <<Please, don’t tell me I put my things in the wrong car>>.”
But when she realized what had happened that Thursday afternoon, she broke down.
“I just started crying,” Linda Gipson said.
Linda Gipson, who described herself as an in-home health aide who currently has no clients, estimated the value of the missing items at $700
Linda Gipson said a similar silver 2003 Focus parked nearby opened with the same key as her car.
She told ABC News she and her husband reported the incident to mall security, who in turn called police.
But until the stranger behind the wheel of the other car comes forward, several items will be missing from under the family tree, including a pair of boots, perfume, sweaters, a hat and a scarf – and two gifts her husband had bought for Linda Gipson.
Linda Gipson, who described herself as an in-home health aide who currently has no clients, estimated the value of the missing items at $700.
Assistant Police Chief Tom Lindberg of the Novi, Michigan Police Department, told ABC surveillance cameras did not capture Linda Gipson leaving the mall with the packages.
A Ford spokesman was unaware of any other instance where someone was able to unlock a vehicle using the key to a different car.
The company is said to be investigating the incident.
But Linda Gipson is meanwhile pleading for anyone who may have parked at the shopping mall driving a similar car on the same day to check their trunk and come forward if her purchases are found.
“I’m hoping that whoever has the gifts.. is going to have a heart and return everything back,” Linda Gipson said.
Melissa and Vanessa, two self-professed witches were detained in Romania on blackmail and extortion charges last week in a high-profile case involving a TV star and reportedly other public figures.
According to police spokesman Christian Ciocan the two witches approached public figures promising to help them overcome work or love difficulties, and help them break curses.
Christian Ciocan said witches Melissa and Vanessa initially charged very little, but then, as their victims became hooked on their services, increased their prices.
Police spokesman cited one case where the victim – who later publicly identified herself as TV star Oana Zavoranu – handed over 450,000 Euros ($630,000) in cash and property in exchange for spells.
Christian Ciocan said the witches practiced voodoo, and sacrificed animals in graveyards and near rivers, claiming this would protect Oana Zavoranu from her mother and in-laws who had put a curse on her.
The witches, however, claim Oana Zavoranu is being vengeful because she asked them to cast a spell on her mother that would kill her, but the mother is still alive.
It was also reported that the ex-wife of businessman Cristi Borcea, one of two owners of Romanian football team Dinamo Bucharest, was cited as a victim, but she has neither confirmed nor denied the case.
Vanessa (left) and Melissa (right) were released last Wednesday, following a court ruling that they should not be detained awaiting trial
Christian Ciocan said if the victims tried to cease payment, the two women would threaten to put a spell on them, or disclose details of their personal lives.
Melissa and Vanessa were released last Wednesday, following a court ruling that they should not be detained awaiting trial.
The decision has been appealed today.
Romania has recently been trying to introduce legislation to limit witchcraft, as Member of Parliament Nicolae Paun, who represents the Roma, or Gypsies, said legislation must be enacted to stop what he called “backward practices”.
Generally, the self-professed witches in Romania are gypsies.
A group of Italian scientists say that the Shroud of Turin could actually be Christ’s burial robe despite years of tests proving the contrary.
Using a series of advanced experiments, Italian researchers say that the technology available when it was created was simply not available to likely “fakers”- and that marks on the shroud were created by a blinding flash of light at short wavelengths.
Carbon dating tests carried out in 1988 in Oxford, Zurich and Arizona suggested that the shroud was created some time between 1260 and 1390.
That research was disputed, however, because there was a possibility of contamination from patches of cloth that had been sewn on following a fire in Chambery, France, in 1532.
Burn marks sustained during the fire are visible along the edges of the shroud where molten silver dripped onto the cloth and in a series of triangular patches on both sides of the piece.
Theologians have suggested that the shroud, which is stored in the royal chapel at the Cathedral of St John the Baptist in Turin, was created when Jesus was resurrected.
Scientists from the National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Development tried to recreate the piece, but found that they could only do so with advanced machinery, according to the Daily Telegraph.
According to Italian scientists, the kind of technology needed to create the Shroud of Turin simply wasn't around at the time that it was created
Intense beams of UV light were fired at a piece of cloth but when they were unable to recreate the marks on the shroud they concluded that “some form of electromagnetic energy (such as a flash of light at short wavelength)” must have created the image.
Professor Paolo Di Lazzaro said: “When one talks about a flash of light being able to colour a piece of linen in the same way as the shroud, discussion inevitably touches on things like miracles and resurrection.”
Professor’s report states that: “The double image (front and back) of a scourged and crucified man, barely visible on the linen cloth of the Shroud of Turin, has many physical and chemical characteristics that are so particular that the staining… is impossible to obtain in a laboratory.”
Rather than offering a non-scientific explanation, however, Prof. Paolo Di Lazzaro continued: “We hope our results can open up a philosophical and theological debate but we will leave the conclusions to the experts, and ultimately to the conscience of individuals.”
In 2009 it was claimed that Leonardo da Vinci had created the image and it could even have been a self-portrait.
Lillian Schwartz, a graphic consultant at the School of Visual Arts in New York, claims that the image is a self-portrait, which was made using a crude photographic technique.
Using computer scans she found that the face on the Turin Shroud and a self portrait of Leonardo da Vinci share the same dimensions.
Earlier this year an Italin art expert Luciano Buso suggested that the 14 ft length of fabric was made by medieval artist Giotto.
What is the Turin Shroud?
The Vatican owns the Turin Shroud, and hails the relic as an exploration of the “darkest mystery of faith”.
But the church has shied away from any definitive statement over whether the shroud – which is supposed to have formed Christ’s burial robe – is real.
The Shroud is thought to have travelled widely before it was brought to France in the 14th century by a Crusader.
The Shroud was kept in a French convent for years – by nuns who patched it, and where it was damaged by fire.
It was given to the Turin Archbishop in 1578 by the Duke of Savoy and has been kept in the Cathedral ever since.
Carbon dating tests in 1988 dated it from between 1260 and 1390 – implying it was a fake.
Scientists have since claimed that contamination over the ages from patches, water damage and fire, was not taken sufficiently into account.
In 1999, two Israeli scientists said plant pollen found on the Shroud supported the view that it comes from the Holy Land.
There have been numerous calls for further testing but the Vatican has always refused.
Greenhill & Co investment banker Jeffrey Buckalew, his wife and his children are believed to be among five people killed after a small aircraft crashed on to a New Jersey motorway.
The small plane went down on Interstate 287 by the town of Harding in the north of the state, said aviation officials.
The single-engine plane spiraled out of the sky and exploded upon impact, said witnesses.
TV news helicopter footage showed wreckage strewn across the motorway, which was closed in both directions.
Investment bank Greenhill & Co said in a statement that the dead were believed to include its managing directors Rakesh Chawla, 36, and Jeffrey Buckalew, 45.
Jeffrey Buckalew’s wife, Corrine, and their children, Jackson and Meriwether, are also thought to have died, the bank added.
Greenhill said the plane had belonged to Jeffrey Buckalew, describing him as “an experienced pilot, whose passion was flying”.
Robert Greenhill, chairman of the bank, said: “The firm is in deep mourning over the tragic and untimely death of two of its esteemed colleagues and members of Jeff’s family. Jeff was one of the first employees of Greenhill.
“He and Rakesh were extraordinary professionals who were highly respected by colleagues and clients alike. They will be sorely missed and our sympathies go out to their families and friends.”
A dog, also aboard the plane, is said to have been killed, authorities said.
Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Jim Peters said the aircraft was a turboprop Socata TBM-700.
It took off from New Jersey’s Teterboro Airport before disappearing from radar, he added.
The aircraft was bound for DeKalb-Peachtree Airport in Atlanta, Georgia.
Witnesses said a wing came off the plane in mid-air, and debris was scattered across almost a quarter of a mile.
A section of the aircraft landed in a tree near a home before it crashed in the middle of the motorway.
Interstate 287 is a busy motorway that wraps around the New York City area.
Fred Zajonczloski is going to miss his father’s funeral because Continental Airlines was charging him almost $675 to change his flight – on top of the $1,200 he had already paid.
The grieving son Fred Zajonczloski flew from his home in San Antonio, Texas, to Rochester, New York, as soon as he found out his father Walter, 85, was dying.
Fred Zajonczloski was scheduled to return on Saturday December 17 but when he found out his father’s funeral was being changed to tomorrow, he tried to change his flight and his fiancee’s.
Continental Airlines informed him that the changes would cost a total of $675.
Fred Zajonczloski’s sister Julie Knapp told News10 they are “just a normal family” and could not afford that kind of money.
Julie Knapp said: “All we wanted was some compassion.”
Now, Fred Zajonczloski is going to miss his father’s burial tomorrow as he has already flown back on the original ticket.
Julie Knapp said: “I understand that people have jobs and people have things to do, but have a heart. Have a heart. I mean there’s somebody there that could have said yes, it’s okay to switch this flight.
“It’s frustrating and it’s very disappointing when I put my brother on that airplane and I said goodbye to him and knew he wasn’t going to be here.”
Julie Knapp also revealed that it was her father’s last wish to be buried beside his son Dale, who was just three when he died.
“That’s why it is so important that Freddie was here. To have that closure to be able to see his dad be buried with his son.
“He should be here with his family so he can say goodbye.”
Continental Airlines believe that a simple mistake has been made as their highest charge fee for changing flights is $200 – and that is for international flights.
A Continental Airlines spokesman said they are looking into the story.
He said: “Continental customer care will contact the customers directly. We certainly offer them our deepest condolences.”
Teenage model Gabrielle Joseph from UK killed herself under a train after a text from a boy cancelling a date at the cinema, an inquest heard today.
16-year-old Gabrielle Joseph told friends on Facebook: “I am going to kill myself tonight” after being upset when the date fell through.
Gabrielle Joseph, known as Gabby when she modelled for top fashion chain Hollister – was left “distressed” after receiving a message cancelling the date at 8:15 p.m.
The inquest heard Gabby Joseph died just 75 minutes later from multiple injuries after she was hit by the 75 mph Milford Haven to Cardiff train near her home on Easter Monday.
Teenage model Gabrielle Joseph killed herself under a train after a text from a boy cancelling a date at the cinema
Gabrielle Joseph told friends on Facebook that she was upset that the boy had cancelled their trip to the cinema the following night.
The teenager, who was studying for her A-levels, lived with mother Julie Joseph, a hairdresser, and father Terry.
Weeks before Gabrielle Joseph’s death, her portrait had been chosen as an image of the week by Digital Photographer magazine.
Gabby Joseph wrote a three-page message on Facebook to her friends just before she died in April.
Coroner Philip Rogers gave copies of the message to the jury but he did not read it aloud.
Philip Rogers said: “The last part of the message is a clear indication on Gabby’s part that she is going to take her own life.”
Gabrielle Joseph was described as “bubbly” and “outgoing” with a busy life attending college along with two part-time jobs – including with one fashion retailer Hollister at its store in Cardiff.
The teenager dreamed of being a top fashion model – and on her own modelling website, she wrote: “In order to be irreplaceable, one must always be different.”
But her father Terry Joseph described her as being “groggy and pale” on the day of her death near her home in Briton Ferry, South Wales.
A jury in Swansea returned a verdict of suicide.
A statement from her family after the inquest said they were “devastated by the loss of our precious Gabrielle”.
The statement added: “We have received an overwhelming amount of support from family and friends, to whom we will always be extremely grateful.
“We are trying to move forward positively by attempting to increase awareness and understanding of the issues surrounding youth suicide and the impact it has on those left behind.
“We would like to take this opportunity to urge young people to share their problems by talking to someone they trust.
“No problem is insurmountable and there is always help available.”
Gabrielle Joseph’s mother said in April following the death: “She was the most beautiful girl in the world, both inside and out. Nothing will take away the pain and devastation this has brought to us as a family. We wouldn’t want anyone to go through this.”
On April 12, Gabrielle Joseph had written on her Twitter account: “So much to look forward to this summer.”
Dutch researchers who developed a deadly strain of bird flu to help create vaccines have been told their research is a terrorist threat.
Scientists have for the first time been able to mutate the H5N1 strain of avian influenza so that it can be transmitted easily through the air.
Previously it was thought that H5N1 bird flu could only be transmitted between humans if they came into very close physical contact.
The research team of the Erasmus Medical in Rotterdam was hoping their work would help with the development of drugs and vaccines to counter mutations of the disease.
However, the groundbreaking investigation may never see the light of day amid fears that it could be used to develop a biological weapon.
Last month it was reported that there were fears the modified strain of the H5N1 virus is more dangerous than anthrax.
At the time, virologist Ron Fouchier admitted the strain is “one of the most dangerous viruses you can make”, but is still adamant he wants to publish a paper describing how it was done.
Last month it was reported that there were fears the modified strain of the H5N1 virus is more dangerous than anthrax
The findings had been due to be published in the American journal Science, but the U.S. National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity is now reviewing the paper to assess whether it should be blocked from publication.
One senior scientific advisor to the U.S. Government was last night quoted as saying: “The fear is that if you create something this deadly and it goes into a global pandemic the mortality and cost to the world could be massive. The worst-case scenario here is worse than anything you can imagine.”
The mutated virus is being stored under lock and key in a basement building at the centre in Rotterdam, but is without armed guards.
Dr. Ron Fouchier, who led the study, said that by experimenting on ferrets, whose immune system is very similar to humans, it is possible to create a highly-infectious strain through just a few mutations.
The decision on whether the findings should be published has divided academics as well as security specialists.
Thomas Inglesby, of the Center for Biosecurity at the University of Pittsburgh, in Pennsylvania, told the New Scientist: “The benefits of publishing this work do not outweigh the dangers of showing other how to replicate it.”
Some critics have said that the research should never have been carried out because there is a risk that the dangerous form of flu could escape from the laboratory.
But Dr. Ron Fouchier defended the experiment, saying: “We know which mutation to watch for in the case of an outbreak and we can then stop the outbreak before it is too late. Furthermore, the finding will help in the timely development of vaccinations and medication.”
A second team of independent researchers at the universities of Wisconsin and Tokyo have carried out a similar study and are thought to have found similar results, which show how easy it is to create a more contagious strain.
The H5N1 strain of bird flu is fatal in 60% of human cases, but its spread has been limited because it is not passed between humans easily.
It has led to the deaths of millions of birds, but has only killed around 300 people since 2003.
There are more than a dozen strains of bird flu in the wild. The most virulent are H5 and H7, while the H5N1 subtype is the deadliest.
Scientists have previously warned that H5N1 could mutate into a new, deadly form of human flu.
Paul Keim, chairman of NSABB, said: “I can’t think of another pathogenic organism that is as scary as this one. I don’t think anthrax is scary at all compared to this.”
Traditionally scientific research has always been open so that fellow scientists can review the work of others and repeat their methods to try and learn from them.
But numerous scientists have said they believe research on the avian flu should be suppressed.
However bio-defense and flu expert Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, said the work carried out was medically important.
He added he could not discuss the papers because he was a member of NSABB but said if they were published certain information could be withheld and made available to those who really need to know.
“We don’t want to give bad guys a road map on how to make bad bugs really bad,” Michael Osterholm said.
Dead body of North Korean “Dear Leader” Kim Jong-Il has been laid in state in a glass coffin as weeping mourners filled public squares across the country.
State television showed still images of the Kim Jong-Il body in the open coffin, surrounded by wreaths and covered with a red blanket.
Kim Jong-Un – his third son and successor – paid his respects to his father along with top military and Workers’ Party officials during a “solemn ceremony”.
North Korea declared an 11-day period of official mourning, with flags flown at half-mast at all military units, factories, businesses, farms and public buildings.
The streets of the capital Pyongyang were quiet, but crowds of people gathered at landmarks to mourn Kim Jong-Il who died suddenly on Saturday from a massive heart attack at the age of 69.
Kim Jong-Il ruled North Korea for 17 years in a brutal and repressive dictatorship.
Under his regime’s economic mismanagement, a terrible famine in the 1990s caused the death of millions from starvation and hardship.
The tyrant imprisoned thousands of political “opponents” and there is no access to freedom of the press, the internet or health care in the country.
North Korean state television showed still images of the Kim Jong-Il body in the open coffin, surrounded by wreaths and covered with a red blanket
The dictator’s body was lying in state in the Kumsusan Memorial Palace, a mausoleum where the embalmed body of his father – national founder Kim Il-Sung – has been on display in a glass sarcophagus since his death in 1994.
A state funeral will be held there on December 28.
Ri Ho-Il, a lecturer at the Korean Revolutionary History Museum, said: “Our General is our people’s benevolent father. He defended our people’s happiness, carrying on his forced march night and day.”
Since Kim Jong-Il’s death, state media have stepped up their lavish praise of his son Kim Jong-Un in an effort to strengthen a cult of personality around him similar to that of his father.
Although there have been no signs of unrest or discord in Pyongyang’s somber streets, the possibility of a power struggle in a country seeking nuclear weapons and known for its secrecy has heightened tensions in the region.
North Korean officials said they will not invite foreign delegations and will allow no entertainment during the mourning period.
The Korean Central News Agency described Kim Jong-Un as a “great person born of heaven”, a propaganda term only his father and grandfather Kim Il-Sung had enjoyed.
The Rodong Sinmun, the newspaper of the ruling Workers’ Party, described Kim Jon-Un as “the spiritual pillar and the lighthouse of hope” for the people.
It described him as “born of Mount Paektu” – one of Korea’s most cherished sites and Kim Jong-Il’s official birthplace.
Yesterday, North Korea’s military pledged to “uphold the leadership of comrade Kim Jong-Un” and called him a “great successor”.
A hilariously sad clip of a FedEx delivery man chucking a computer monitor over a fence before returning to his van was posted on YouTube.
“Here is a video of my monitor being <<delivered>>,” the YouTube user wrote to describe surveillance footage taken outside a gated residence.
The 21-second clip, uploaded to YouTube by user goobie55 on Monday night, shows the delivery man taking the package from the back of a FedEx-branded van parked outside of the home’s front lawn.
Taking the package out, he walks alongside an iron gate enclosing the residence and past what appears to be a security keypad that might buzz him in.
Without missing a beat, its fragile contents are tossed onto a driveway on the other side of the gate.
Peering over his shoulder, the unidentified male continues his march back to the van – and, presumably, his next delivery.
A hilariously sad clip of a FedEx delivery man chucking a computer monitor over a fence before returning to his van was posted on YouTube
“The sad part is that I was home at the time with the front door wide open. All he would have had to do was ring the bell on the gate,” the YouTube user who uploaded the clip wrote in the description.
“Now I have to return my monitor since it is broken.”
Within hours of the footage being uploaded, several others shared similar horror stories.
One commenter, claiming to be a former FedEx employee, attempted to explain – suggesting the package might have been in pieces long before the botched delivery.
“I can tell you that that incident pails in comparison to the way they [sic] packages are handled behind closed doors,” the user wrote.
Basketball star Kobe Bryant was almost served with divorce papers four years ago it has emerged.
Kobe Bryant’s estranged wife Vanessa saw divorce lawyers after being pushed to the limit by the NBA legend’s antics, according to RadarOnline.
But Vanessa Bryant had a change of heart after he promised to change his ways and attend marriage counseling.
A source close to them said: “Vanessa almost threw in the towel four years ago. “Kobe has always had a slew of girlfriends, and the cheating was almost blatant.
“Vanessa had consulted with a divorce attorney, not Laura Wasser, who she has hired to represent her now. Kobe promised Vanessa he would stop cheating, and the two went to marriage counseling.
“Kobe did seem like a devoted husband, and Vanessa decided not to go through with filing at that time.”
Vanessa Bryant filed for divorce from Los Angeles Lakers star citing “irreconcilable differences”
Vanessa Bryant, 29, even stood by Los Angeles Lakers star when he was accused of sexually assaulting a worker at a hotel in Colorado.
Kobe Bryant, 33, admitted having sexual relations with 19-year old hotel employee Katelyn Faber, but denied assault.
The case was dropped by prosecutors after she refused to testify in the trial, but a separate civil lawsuit was eventually settled out of court for an undisclosed amount.
However, Vanessa Bryant decided to call time on their marriage of almost 11 years after growing tired of his philandering, despite hoping they could work things out for the sake of their two daughters.
The source said: “Vanessa wanted to stay together for the children. Vanessa stood by Kobe during his darkest hour, and she believed him when he said there would be no more women.
“Vanessa began to get suspicious again about 16 months ago about Kobe cheating on her, he knew that if he wasn’t faithful, she would leave him. Vanessa had no other choice.”
The revelation follows claims Kobe Bryant was growing close to one of Kim Kardashian’s best friends, Carla DiBello.
Several websites claimed Carla DiBello, 27, has been on close terms with Kobe Bryant for the last couple of years, according to Radar Online.
Some note that Carla DiBello has been spotted courtside at Lakers games.
Carla DiBello is one of Kim Kardashian’s closest friends, and is also a producer on Keeping Up With The Kardashians and Kourtney & Kim Take New York.
She travels around the world with the reality behemoth, and most recently was by her side during Kim Kardashian’s trip to Dubai.
Carla DiBello was director of strategic relations for SBE Group which owns a number of exclusive hotels and clubs in Hollywood.
She was also Steve Wynn’s assistant at his luxury hotel casino of the same name in Las Vegas.
Meanwhile, TMZ are reporting that Kobe Bryant is worth much less than the $400 million that was being suggested in some quarters, with his net worth instead being around $150 million.
Still a small fortune, but with a divorce settlement looming, every dollar will count as Kobe Bryant prepares to negotiate spousal and child support.
Vanessa Bryant filed for divorce from Los Angeles Lakers star citing “irreconcilable differences”.
TMZ further claims that she has caught Kobe Bryant with “multiple women” over the years – but the latest affair was the one that broke the camel’s back.
Sources did not tell the website how Vanessa Bryant found out about his alleged fling with Carla DiBello – but apparently it was through text messages.
Vanessa Bryant has been married to the LA Lakers player for ten years.
They have no pre-nuptial agreement, according to TMZ, so Vanessa Bryant will be entitled to substantial monies and has requested spousal support.
It is said that Kobe Bryant has already moved out of the mansion in Orange County that the couple once shared.
According to TMZ, Kobe Bryant purchased the abode ten years ago, but his wife will get the home as part of the couple’s divorce settlement.
They met when Vanessa was just 18, when she was working as a backing dancer in a studio where he was recording, though that material was never released to the public.
According to the legal documents obtained by TMZ, Vanessa Bryant is asking for joint custody of their two daughters – eight-year-old Natalia and five-year-old Gianna.
But she is asking that Kobe Bryant get visitation rights, which means she wants the kids in her care most of the time.
Vanessa Bryant is being represented by Laura Wasser and attorney Samantha Klein, whose clients include Britney Spears, Angelina Jolie, Maria Shriver and Kim Kardashian.
A CCTV camera in a shopping centre in Uzbekistan captured the image of how people encountered difficulties in using the escalator.
The video shows Uzbek shoppers as they try to get to grips with an escalator for the first time – and luckily they seem to have a much better understanding of the emergency stop button.
In the first sequence, a brightly dressed mother approaches the escalator with her son, who is young enough to be only half her height.
She stands, apparently sizing up the moving stairs before gingerly stepping on – and almost immediately tumbles head over heels backwards.
Gallantly, her tiny boy – who, typically of the young, seems to have a much better grasp of the modern technology – holds her and stops her tumbling further until another woman can shut it off.
The video shows Uzbek shoppers as they try to get to grips with an escalator for the first time - and luckily they seem to have a much better understanding of the emergency stop button
In the second sequence, three young women courageously step straight on to the escalator. But they immediately get into trouble.
They tumble into each other, trying to find their footing. One twigs that the key is to actually stop trying to walk and is carried away.
But her two friends are in a pickle, trying to escape the infernal machine and stop each other from getting hurt until a quick-thinking young man can hit emergency stop and they are able to walk up the now stationary stairs, as they are used to.
The third and final clip shows two old gents. The first, wearing a black jacket, steps on comfortably.
All seems to be going well for the first second until he tries to grab the handrail for support, then apparently changes his mind and tries to walk backwards.
He hasn’t noticed that a second man has embarked on the escalator behind him – and apparently had similar doubts.
The two men struggle with the moving stairs, close to disaster, until they are finally rescued – again – by the emergency stop.
Andre Curry, a young father from Chicago, is now the subject of a police probe after a shocking photo of his daughter with her hands and feet bound was posted on Facebook.
Andre Curry, 21, has generated intense internet backlash after he posted the photo in July.
Last week, the shocking photo appeared on websites like TheDirty.com and The Smoking Gun.
In the image, the tape holds the girl’s arms and legs together at the wrists and ankles, with another large piece of tape across her mouth.
The picture is slapped with the caption “this is wut happens wen my baby hits me back”.
Je’Vanna Cobbins, a friend of Curry’s, told The Smoking Gun that he was just “playing around”, and would “never do anything to harm anyone”.
She said: “[He was] being playful with his child. People play with their child differently.”
Andre Curry, 21, has generated intense internet backlash after he posted the photo in July
The Chicago Police Department said they were tipped off to the photo and their special investigations unit is looking into it.
A police spokesman said: “It’s an ongoing investigation.”
Andre Curry has not commented on the issue.
He has since taken the photo off Facebook, but as the image has spread on the internet, angry users have targeted his page.
One commenter called Andre Curry a “nasty child abuser”.
Another commenter said: “I hope you fall down the stairs and land on a bunch of bullets. Hate hate hate hate!”
Ellen DeGeneres and her wife Portia De Rossi have reportedly bought Brad Pitt’s Malibu mansion for $12 million.
It appears that Ellen DeGeneres and Portia De Rossi may have gotten special mate rates, as they purchased the property for $2 million under the asking price.
The new purchase comes as Ellen DeGeneres, 53, just put her $49 million Beverly Hills compound up for sale and is now looking for something smaller.
Brad Pitt’s mansion consists of two separate houses, a pool, a tennis court and expansive lush gardens.
The sprawling 4,100 square foot property also has private beach access and is set back off the Pacific Coast Highway by a long private driveway.
The main house has four bedrooms and four baths, a large chef’s kitchen with stainless steel appliances, bamboo floors, three fire places and a top of the range security system.
Ellen DeGeneres and her wife Portia De Rossi have reportedly bought Brad Pitt’s Malibu mansion for $12 million
The mansion has had extensive renovations in the past couple of years with an additional story added by the environmentally conscious designer Christopher R. Sorensen.
The house was just one part of a property portfolio belonging to Brad and Angelina Jolie that also includes homes in Malibu, Los Angeles, New Orleans, France and Italy.
No one knows why they chose to sell the property, which is set into a hillside overlooking the Pacific Ocean.
Cher’s transgender son, Chaz Bono, and his fiancée Jennifer Elia have decided to end their engagement.
Chaz Bono, 42, and Jennifer Elia – who have dated since 1999 – have not only cancelled plans to get hitched but have decided to end their relationship entirely.
Howard Bragman, Chaz Bono’ spokesperson, said yesterday: “They leave this relationship with great love, respect and affection toward one another.
“No further amplification will be forthcoming and they ask that you respect their privacy at this time.”
Earlier in the day, Chaz Bono tweeted: “Thanks for your concern about our separation. I’m doing fine, and we remain on good terms with nothing but respect and affection 4 eachother.”
Chaz Bono and his fiancée Jennifer Elia have decided to end their engagement
Just last month, Chaz Bono was shown popping the question during his one-hour TV-show special Being Chaz, which aired on the Oprah Winfrey Network.
The programme was a follow-up to his Emmy-nominated documentary Becoming Chaz which focused on his transition from female to male.
Jennifer Elia – who writing a book – supported Chaz Bono during his gender reassignment process and later said she found her partner “more attractive” as a man.
She said that their intimate relationship as “straight couple” improved “for the good”.
Chaz Bono, who is now almost four years into the transition, also agreed they were enjoying a healthy sex life.
“We feel very lucky,” Chaz Bono told Piers Morgan in May.
Jennifer Elia was also regularly seen cheering him on from the audience during his time on Dancing With The Stars earlier this year.
Jennifer Elia also revealed that the process of dealing with Chaz Bono’s transition was difficult at times, admitting that she started drinking again when he told her that he made the final decision about changing genders.
“Well I can’t blame it solely on Chaz’s transition, my sobriety has always been a problem,” Jennifer Elia told Piers Morgan during the same May interview.
“When he told me about this, I used it as a pass to fall off the wagon which is what alcoholics tend to do.”
“I was sober when we meet, when things go bad I drink. When Chaz told me about this, I told him I needed a drink.”
Jennifer Elia said she was a year and two months sober, and that she felt that the transition had become easier for the couple.
“Things have leveled out,” Jennifer Elia said.
Chaz Bono is the only child of American artists Sonny and Cher although both have offspring from other relationships.
Few days ago, Angelina Jolie was on the brink of death because of her obsession to lose pounds.
It was reported that Angelina Jolie came to the hospital in serious condition after an overdose of amphetamines. The person who called the emergency services was right her husband, actor Brad Pitt.
For Angelina Jolie, risk meant this time, an African weight loss drug based on amphetamines. The pills almost killed her, according to U.S. tabloids. The actress was unconscious and not breathing when Brad Pitt called the paramedics. The doctors barely managed to revive her.
Angelina Jolie’s amphetamine dependence began three years ago, when she decided to take drastic measures to regain the body size she had before the birth of twins Knox and Vivienne
Angelina Jolie’s amphetamine dependence began three years ago. At that time she decided to take drastic measures to regain the body size she had before the birth of twins Knox and Vivienne, especially because she had to return on filming set where she was preparing her role in the super-action movie Salt and that required the best form.
Angelina Jolie has meanwhile become dependent on amphetamines and obsessed with weight loss. At a certain point the actress was weighing just 43 kilograms, very little for a woman of 1,72 meter in height. Tabloids wrote that she was influenced also by her African missions in refugee camps. Shockingly, Angelina Jolie told Brad Pitt that if adults and children in Africa have nothing to eat, therefore she must not eat as well.
Now, Angelina Jolie is currently under recovery. She showed up on Saturday, along with Brad Pitt and the six children at a Cirque De Soleil show in Las Vegas.
Eye Secrets is a miracle anti-wrinkle eye patch which claims to banish bags under the eyes in just 15 minutes and will go on sale in the UK this week.
Eye Secrets is a collagen-based patch which works by instantly reducing fine lines, dark circles and puffiness by 92%.
The patch manufacturer claims it reverses ageing by one year every two minutes and can knock up to eight years off the eyes.
The eye patches are favorites of celebrities Jennifer Aniston and Christine Bleakley.
And demand for the product is so high there is a waiting list of over 12,000 orders.
“The result is exposed wrinkles and lack of skin hydration and so the battling ageing process begins.
“The skin around your eyes is about considerably thinner than anywhere else on your face which is why wrinkles will hit this area first.
“The product can be used in the comfort of your own home and has no downtime unlike cosmetic treatments which can not only be extremely painful but can leave you with a recovery time of up to seven days.”
Eye Secrets is a miracle anti-wrinkle eye patch which claims to banish bags under the eyes in just 15 minutes
The Collagen and Q-10 Technology optimizes the skin’s natural repair process, locking in vital nutrients lost through environmental damage, poor diets and lack of sleep.
The revolutionary formula continues to work throughout the day protecting the skin against further dehydration with high levels of soothing anti-irritants preventing dark circles reappearing.
As the skin around your eyes is about 4 times thinner than anywhere else on your face, it’s more vulnerable to environmental damage and premature ageing.
During trials “Eye Secrets Collagen and Q-10 Technology” provided the optimal environment to immediately create the effects of nine hours sleep.
Actress Michelle Collins revealed the product was one of her beauty secrets.
Michelle Collins said: “I think there are many lifestyle factors which can mean looking well, for me it’s getting lots of sleep and going to the gym.
“My secret to looking good has to be my hero beauty product – Eye Secrets. It’s very quick and it’s not visible.
“They are these little strips that you can put on your eyes to firm and brighten them.
“It just makes you feel brighter and I think you can carry on those extra hours and feel bright-eyed and bushy-tailed as they say.”
Researchers say airborne traces of illegal drugs could pose a health risk for people as the air pollution does.
Scientists at the Institute of Atmospheric Pollution Research in Rome found traces of cocaine and cannabis in the air around dozens of sites in Italy.
Researchers also discovered statistical correlations between cocaine levels and certain types of cancer – and between cannabis levels and mental disorders.
The project’s leader, Angelo Cecinato, was cautious about drawing firm conclusions from his study, but epidemiologist Wilson Compton of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, Bethesda, Maryland, told Science Now:
“The researchers did find this link, and it’s worth further exploration.
“Second-hand cigarette smoke wasn’t considered a health threat either, until comparatively recently.”
Angelo Cecinato and his team tested air quality in 59 sites in Italy across various regions in the summer and winter months, screening it for cocaine and cannabinoids, the active ingredient in marijuana.
As well as the links with health problems, researchers found higher airborne concentrations of the drugs in areas where police had made big seizures, where higher than average numbers of people requested treatment and with cocaine levels and certain types of crime.
The results left the team wondering if air-testing for drugs might be a cheaper and more efficient way for authorities to target drug abuse.
Wilson Compton added: “We’re always looking for more accurate ways to gauge the amount of drug use in communities.”
A model in an advert for Bloomingdales appears to have lost her entire pelvis thanks to some creative use of Photoshop as she presents the latest sweater dress.
The description for the Max & Cleo turtleneck sweater dress says it “boasts a waist-cinching belt for the most flattering fit”.
Models tend to be on the skinny side, but it looks like this woman’s belt has managed to squash her hips and completely remove her bottom.
A close-up of the dress shows it has been digitally altered to make it “drape” over her body.
The software is regularly used to create the ideal look for magazine or advertising purposes.
The description for the Max & Cleo turtleneck sweater dress says it “boasts a waist-cinching belt for the most flattering fit”
In May this year, Grazia magazine came under fire after a picture of the Duchess of Cambridge on its cover appeared to have been altered to slim down her waistline.
Less than a week after the Royal Wedding, the image of Kate in her wedding dress revealed a discrepancy between the line of her corset and the fabric of her Alexander McQueen skirt.
The Duchess of Cambridge was already slim, so it hardly seemed necessary to doctor the image.
H&M was also guilty of altering its images after a campaign featuring model Gisele Bündchen this year was deemed too risqué for the Middle East.
Despite revealing only her bare arms or a hint of cleavage, t-shirts or vests were Photo-shopped into the images for adverts running in Dubai.
In November, Beyoncé’s usually voluptuous legs were shaved until they were virtually stick-thin for the front cover of Harper’s Bazaar.
The image also did not show any hint of a baby bump – despite the fact her first child is thought to be due in February.
