Pope Francis has appointed a group of cardinals to advise him on how to reform the Vatican’s often arcane bureaucracy.
The Catholic Church’s new leader chose eight cardinals and a bishop who between them represent nearly every continent, and only one of whom is currently a Vatican official.
The bureaucracy, or Curia, has been blamed for the Church’s hesitant response to sex abuse and other crises.
It is nearly 50 years since the Vatican’s last major reforms.
The cardinals who elected Pope Francis last month were strongly critical about basic failings of the Curia under Pope Emeritus Benedict.
Pope Francis has appointed a group of cardinals to advise him on how to reform the Vatican’s often arcane bureaucracy
The cardinals include two Europeans (from Italy and Germany), two from Latin America (Chile and Honduras), one from the US, one from Asia (India), one African and one Australian. An Italian bishop will act as secretary.
Announcing the appointments, the Vatican said Pope Francis had got the idea of forming the advisory body from meetings ahead of his election by cardinals last month.
Pope Paul VI undertook the last major reform of the Vatican bureaucracy in 1967.
The new group is to have its first meeting on October 1-3.
Earlier this week the pontiff met personally all 300 staff members of the Vatican’s secretariat of state, the body responsible for carrying out Church policies.
Some radical reforms are expected soon, although Pope Francis is moving cautiously given the complexity and sensitivity of Church government.
Scandals have included clerical sexual abuse, financial problems at the Vatican bank and the theft of documents from Pope Benedict’s desk.
Eric Schmidt, Google chief and one of the world’s influential figures in digital technology, has called for civilian drone tech to be regulated, warning about privacy and security concerns.
Cheap miniature versions of the unmanned aircraft used by militaries could fall into the wrong hands, Eric Schmidt told TheGuardian newspaper.
Quarrelling neighbors, the Google chief suggested, might end up buzzing each other with private surveillance drones.
Eric Schmidt also warned of the risk of terrorists using the new technology.
He is believed to have close relations with President Barack Obama, whom he advises on matters of science and technology.
Eric Schmidt has called for civilian drone technology to be regulated, warning about privacy and security concerns
“You’re having a dispute with your neighbor,” he told The Guardian in an interview printed on Saturday.
“How would you feel if your neighbor went over and bought a commercial observation drone that they can launch from their backyard. It just flies over your house all day. How would you feel about it?”
Warning of mini-drones’ potential as a terrorist weapon, he said: “I’m not going to pass judgment on whether armies should exist, but I would prefer to not spread and democratize the ability to fight war to every single human being.”
“It’s got to be regulated… It’s one thing for governments, who have some legitimacy in what they’re doing, but have other people doing it… it’s not going to happen.”
Small drones, such as flying cameras, are already available worldwide, and non-military surveillance were recently introduced to track poachers in the remote Indian state of Assam.
The US and Israel have led the way in recent years in using drones as weapons of war as well as for surveillance.
America’s Federal Aviation Administration is currently exploring how commercial drones, or unmanned aircraft systems, can be safely introduced into US airspace.
Tom Cruise let his guard down for the Late Night With Jimmy Fallon on Friday as he played a game of egg roulette with the show host and lost.
Tom Cruise, 50, picked from an assortment of raw and boiled eggs for the gag, and found out soon in the game things were about to get really messy.
The actor and the show host took turns picking from a carton holding eight boiled eggs and four raw eggs and smashed their chosen egg against their head. The game ends when someone breaks two raw eggs on their head and loses.
Tom Cruise went first and promptly smashed a raw egg against his hair, prompting Jimmy Fallon to double over in laughter.
“I told you I didn’t have a good feeling about this, man,” Tom Cruise told Jimmy Fallon with a smile.
Tom Cruise let his guard down for the Late Night With Jimmy Fallon on Friday as he played a game of egg roulette with the show host and lost
Jimmy Fallon went next and picked a hard-boiled egg.
Tom Cruise on his second pick again chose a raw egg and broke it against his head.
It wasn’t the first time that Tom Cruise and Jimmy Fallon squared off.
They went eye-to-eye last December in a Water War game, which is based on the card game War and includes lots of water.
The winner of each hand got to douse his opponent with a cup of water and the first to run out of cups won the right to blast the loser with a toy water cannon.
Tom Cruise won and thoroughly drenched Jimmy Fallon.
The Hollywood star has been making the talk show circuit lately to promote his new sci-film Oblivion.
Tom Cruise visited Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Thursday night and also took part in a skit.
Jimmy Kimmel gave Tom Cruise an acting challenge by having him deliver ridiculous lines in a dramatic overtone.
“Is there a way to get the soup and the salad?” Tom Cruise asked as he was illuminated on the couch with a spotlight.
The actor ended the dramatic query with his patented muscle-flurrying jaw clench.
In his new movie, Oblivion, Tom Cruise plays Jack Harper, a former Marine commander, in the sci-fi flick set in a not-too-distant future of 2073.
Jack Harper is stationed on a fallen Earth following an alien invasion 60 years earlier.
The character comes across an enigmatic stranger played by Olga Kurylenko who crash lands in a spacecraft and Jack Harper is forced to question what he knows about Earth’s near-destruction and life as he knows it.
Oblivion also features British star Andrea Riseborough, Melissa Leo and Morgan Freeman and opens on April 19.
Kris Jenner was snapped having her legs touched up with what appeared to be spray tan while on a photoshoot for E! with daughter Kourtney Kardashain and future son-in-law Scott Disick in Los Angeles on Friday.
Kris Jenner, 57, was seen holding up her dress while a male make-up artist crouched down with a sponge and a bottle, spraying and blending the liquid on the back of her legs.
The momager then received further help as an assistant came on the scene to hold up her dress for her as her legs were attended to.
Kris Jenner was barefoot as she received the dedicated treatment, wearing just a short yellow dress and a crisp white shirt.
She upped the glamour factor with bright red lipstick and thick black eyeliner, made even more dramatic with her short jetblack hair.
Kris Jenner was snapped having her legs touched up with what appeared to be spray tan while on a photoshoot
Kris Jenner was also seen standing with Scott Disick, leaning in as she took a cellphone snap with him.
Her cellphone bore a sticker that said: “Queen of f****ing everything.”
They were photographed near a swimming pool at the luxury home of good friend, attorney Mark Garagos.
Kris Jenner appeared excited to be on the shoot, tweeting a picture of herself as she had her make-up done with the caption: “Glammin for our E! Shoot with @joycebonelli #familyfunday.”
The reality star also tweeted a link to a video of Khloe Kardashian having her hair and make-up done for the shoot, while her husband Bruce Jenner and Scott Disick milled about.
Laurene Powell Jobs – Steve Jobs’ widow – opened up for the first time since her husband’s death speaking about his lasting legacy that inspires her to fulfill her passions in an interview with NBC’s Brian Williams on Rock Center that aired Friday night.
Laurene Powell Jobs spoke about how Steve Jobs left both a personal and a private legacy, only one of which she feels comfortable talking about now that he is dead.
“In the public [legacy] we see the products that he created, that he cared so deeply about that changed all of our lives- the way that we function and communicate,” she said.
“What he wanted to do in his life was create tools that allow people to work at the highest level, and I think he did that. So that legacy is beautiful for me to live with.”
Laurene Powell Jobs speaks out for the first time since Steve Jobs’ death on Rock Center
Laurene Powell Jobs, who continues Steve Jobs’ tradition of being notoriously private, agreed to be interviewed because she is working with a documentary filmmaker to promote immigration reform.
As part of the preconditions for the interview, Laurene Powell Jobs made it clear that she would not talk about her famous husband’s death.
She paid a small tribute to her husband of 20 years by praising him as a father and partner.
“His private legacy with me and the kids is that of husband and father, and we miss him every day,” Laurene Powell Jobs said.
Steve Jobs was known for his intense work ethic, and even he admitted that part of the reason why he allowed a biographer to interview him repeatedly before his death was so that his children could get a full portrait of the work he did while away from his family.
In addition to the more than 650-page tome, Laurene Powell Jobs told how the myriad of Apple products that he created also serve as living memorials.
“Having the body of work surrounding us is actually a really beautiful reminder and I find it touching and inspiring for me to make sure that I continue to do what I’m most passionate about and I hope my kids feel the same way,” she said.
That passion has driven Laurene Powell Jobs to work with Academy Award-winning director Davis Guggenheim to create and promote the film The Dream is Now which unveils the plight of students raised in the US who are pushed out of the country because they are undocumented immigrants.
Chinese authorities have reported the first case of H7N9 “bird flu” in Beijing after a 7-year-old girl has been hospitalized in the capital.
The girl, whose parents are poultry traders, developed a fever, sore throat and headache on Thursday. Her condition is said to be stable.
Two people in close contact with the child were quarantined for observation but have shown no symptoms so far.
The UN had recorded 28 cases and nine deaths in China as of Wednesday.
Chinese authorities have reported the first case of H7N9 bird flu in Beijing after a 7-year-old girl has been hospitalized in the capital
There are no reported cases outside the country, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
China’s national disease control centre confirmed on Saturday that the girl take ill in Beijing had the H7N9 virus.
The first cases of the virus were reported in February, in eastern China.
According to the WHO, there is no evidence that the H7N9 virus is being transmitted between people, and most cases come from poultry.
International health experts have commended China on its transparency in reporting the spread of the virus, in sharp contrast to its handling of a Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak in 2003, when 8,096 people were infected worldwide and 744 died.
Tiger Woods is facing investigation and could be disqualified from the Masters over claims he took an illegal drop.
World’s No 1 Tiger Woods suggested his drop at the 15th was taken “two yards away” from the original position, which should have incurred a two-stroke penalty, one more than his final score.
Tiger Woods currently lies three shots behind second-round leader Jason Day.
In his press conference afterwards the golfer said that he found it preferential to take a couple of extra yards back to play that shot.
If he did take two yards back he’s in breach of the rules. Tiger Woods was therefore liable to an extra penalty that should have been added on to his scorecard before he signed it last night.
Tiger Woods is facing investigation and could be disqualified from the Masters over claims he took an illegal drop
It wasn’t, and therefore Tiger Woods may be liable to disqualification from the Masters and that’s what the officials will be discussing this morning.
The US Golf Association rule 26-1a states that a player must take their drop “as nearly as possible at the spot from which the original ball was last played”.
Explaining the circumstances around his drop Tiger Woods said: “I went down to the drop area, that wasn’t going to be a good spot, because obviously it’s into the grain.
“And it was a little bit wet. So it was muddy and not a good spot to drop.
“So I went back to where I played it from, but I went two yards further back.
“I tried to take two yards off the shot of what I felt I hit – that should land me short of the flag and not have it either hit the flag or skip over the back.”
A giant statue of Pope John Paul II is to be unveiled on a hill above the city of Czestochowa in southern Poland.
The statue is said to be the tallest of the former pontiff anywhere in the world.
Weighing five tonnes, the 13.8 m (45-ft) white fibreglass statue shows Pope John Paul II standing with outstretched arms.
Czestochowa is home to the country’s most important pilgrimage site, the Jasna Gora monastery, and its icon of the Black Madonna.
A choir, an archbishop and an actor who will read from selected texts written by the Polish pope, are scheduled to take part in Saturday’s unveiling ceremony.
A giant statue of Pope John Paul II is to be unveiled on a hill above the city of Czestochowa in southern Poland.
Constructed around a steel framework, the statue has been built by a company that manufactures fibreglass statues such as ones of dinosaurs seen in theme parks.
The man funding the project, Leszek Lyson, said he wanted to give thanks to John Paul II for the life of his son, whom Lyson saved from drowning during a family holiday in Croatia three years ago.
Poland is one of the most Roman Catholic countries in Europe but the statue has not won universal acclaim.
A protest campaign has been launched on Facebook because the pope is facing away from the city.
And Czestochowa’s architects’ association says the fibreglass structure lacks quality.
Born Karol Wojtyla in Wadowice, the 58-year-old Archbishop of Krakow’s election as pope in 1978 stunned the Catholic world.
The first non-Italian pope in more than 450 years, Pope John Paul II went on to become one of the most familiar faces in the world, visiting more than 120 countries in a 27-year pontificate that earned him a reputation as an international fighter for freedom.
Pope John Paul II died aged 84 in 2005 after a long illness. He was beatified – the penultimate step towards sainthood – in 2011.
Kim Kardashian was escorted out of a Los Angeles court house flanked by ten LA County sheriffs.
Walking directly in the middle of the group of men, Kim Kardashian, 32, made sure she had the utmost protection as she made her way to a chauffeured car.
The reality star wore her most demure maternity-style outfit yet for the court hearing.
Gone were the low-cut tops, tight dresses and leather trousers, and instead Kim Kardashian opted for a decidedly conservative look.
She slipped on a grey patterned jacket, which was buttoned all the way up to her neck and billowed out at the waist into a somewhat baby doll style.
Kim Kardashian wore the dress over a pair of white trousers and accessorized with demure black stilettos.
Scraping her hair back into a tight ponytail, her features looked stronger than ever and she highlighted her famous pout with lashings of red lipstick.
With a look of steely determination on her face, Kim Kardashian star appeared as though she had just come back from battle.
Kim Kardashian was escorted out of Los Angeles court house flanked by ten sheriffs
The usually smiling star stared straight ahead and put on a pout.
It appears as though Kim Kardashian came out as the winner in her first round battle with estranged husband Kris Humphries.
Kris Humphries had been intent on taking his ex-wife to the cleaners in their divorce case, but he seemingly dropped the ball after not showing up to court on Friday.
While Kim Kardashian arrived punctually for the hearing, Kris Humphries was still in New York.
A source told TMZ that the NBA player was spotted in New York at 1 a.m. on Friday morning.
The source said that Kris Humphries looked “visibly upset”.
The settlement conference was scheduled for 8.30 a.m. in LA, but the only New York to Los Angeles bound flight on Friday morning was 6.30 a.m., arriving in at LAX at 9.15 a.m.
That would mean that Kris Humphries would have been late for the hearing anyway.
According to TMZ, while the court was told that Kris Humphries was detained in New York, Judge Goldberg, who was presiding over the case, was unimpressed and set a sanction hearing, which means Kris could face fines for not turning up.
During the court hearing, Kim Kardashian reportedly sat in the jury box, her hands crossed on her lap as the case was called.
A judge sealed the proceedings, citing rules mandating confidentiality for divorce settlement discussions.
Attorneys did not reach a settlement. Kris Humphries’ attorneys declined to comment on settlement discussions but said a May 6 trial date remains.
While Kris Humphries, who is seeking an annulment based on his claim the pair’s 72-day marriage was fraudulent, did not appear in court, he was represented by three attorneys.
Kim Kardashian arrived in court under heavy security and was brought into the courtroom through a back entrance.
Russia has decided to publish a list of 18 US officials barred from the country, in response to a similar list published by the US Treasury on Friday.
A Russian statement described the US move as a severe blow to relations, and said blackmail could not be ignored.
The US published its list under an act – Magnitsky Sanctions Listings – named after Russian lawyer Sergei Magnitsky who died in jail in 2009 in disputed circumstances.
Senior officials from President Vladimir Putin’s entourage who had been expected to be included were left off, including Russia’s top police official Alexander Bastrykin.
Russia’s list, announced by the foreign ministry, includes two former Bush administration officials who are said to have advocated harsh interrogation techniques and two former commanders of the detention centre at Guantanamo Bay.
David Addington, chief of staff to former Vice-President Dick Cheney is one of them.
Sergei Magnitsky was arrested in 2008 for tax evasion after accusing Russian police officials of stealing $230 million from the state
The other 14 were named as having violated the rights of Russian citizens abroad.
“The war of lists is not our choice, but we cannot ignore outright blackmail,” a statement from the Russian ministry said.
“It’s time for Washington politicians to finally understand that there are no prospects in building relations with a country like Russia with the spirit of mentoring and undisguised dictating.”
Russia’s Itar-Tass news agency quoted Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov as saying there was also a secret section to the list with more names, as the US list had.
A Russian law barring Americans from adopting Russian orphans, regarded as a response to the US law, has already been passed.
The final US list published on Friday included people born in Russia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan, 16 of them linked to the Magnitsky case. Some 250 names had originally been put forward by US politicians.
The others are officials deemed to have participated in recent Kremlin moves to restrict Russians’ political rights.
Sergei Magnitsky was arrested in 2008 for tax evasion after accusing Russian police officials of stealing $230 million from the state through fraudulent tax rebates. His family and rights groups say he was badly beaten and denied medical treatment in custody.
The Magnitsky Act passed by Washington in 2012 blacklists Russian officials accused of involvement in his death. All the names on the list had until Friday been kept secret.
Those affected by the American measures have had their US accounts frozen and have been added to a list of people who will be denied US entry visas. Some European nations are taking similar measures.
Correspondents say that the argument threatens to cast a shadow over a visit to Russia by President Barack Obama’s National Security adviser Tom Donilon, who is to hold high-level talks in Moscow on Monday.
The posthumous trial of Sergei Magnitsky – who died in 2009 aged 37 in pre-trial detention after developing pancreatitis – opened in Moscow in March but was adjourned shortly afterwards.
Legal experts say they are unaware of any precedents for the trial of a dead man in Russian history.
US Secretary of State John Kerry has arrived in Beijing to urge China’s leaders to use their influence on North Korea to reduce regional tensions.
Speaking to China’s President Xi Jinping, John Kerry said the world was facing a “critical time”.
John Kerry’s four-day tour of Asia comes amid speculation that North Korea is preparing for a missile launch.
The secretary has said that as the closest ally of Pyongyang China should “put some teeth” into urging restraint.
A flurry of warlike statements from Pyongyang has prompted speculation that it might launch a missile – possibly on April 15, when the country marks the 101st birthday of the nation’s founder and former leader, Kim Il-sung.
North Korea has reportedly moved at least two Musudan ballistic missiles to its east coast, but on Saturday, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency quoted officials in Seoul as saying that no new movement of the mobile launchers had been detected for two days.
US Secretary of State John Kerry has arrived in Beijing to urge China’s leaders to use their influence on North Korea to reduce regional tensions
Since the UN imposed fresh sanctions on North Korea in February, its leadership has promised to restart a mothballed nuclear reactor, has shut an emergency military hotline to South Korea, and has urged diplomatic staff to leave, saying it cannot guarantee their safety.
North Korea says it has also been angered by joint US-South Korean military exercises.
Though North Korean rhetoric has been more bellicose than usual, analysts say it fits a long-standing pattern, and may be intended to boost the popularity of Kim Jong-un, who came to power last year.
After arriving in Beijing on Saturday and holding talks with his counterpart, Wang Yi, John Kerry told Xi Jinping the world was facing “a critical time with some very challenging issues”.
Among them were Korean tensions but also “the challenge of Iran and nuclear weapons, Syria and the Middle East, and economies around the world that are in need of a boost”, he said.
John Kerry later said he and Xi Jinping had had “constructive and forward-leaning” talks, without giving further details, Reuters reports.
On Friday, during a visit to the South Korean capital, Seoul, John Kerry said the US would protect itself and its allies, and that his talks in Beijing would aim to “lay out a path that will defuse this tension”.
He said no country had a closer relationship with Pyongyang than China.
Beijing, like Washington, wanted denuclearization on the peninsula, he said, adding: “If that’s your policy, you’ve got to put some teeth into it.”
He warned North Korea against any missile launch, saying it would be a “provocation and unwanted act” which would further isolate North Korea and its people who, he said “are desperate for food, not missile launches”.
China is North Korea’s only ally and major trading partner, but has grown increasingly frustrated with its growing belligerence.
John Kerry will be pressuring China to use its economic leverage to force its rebellious ally to tone down its threats.
But in turn, China is pushing the US to do more to make North Korea feel secure.
In Seoul, John Kerry voiced his support for the vision of a reunified Korean peninsula – so far a development neither Chinese nor Korean leadership want to see.
Russia has also expressed growing concern over North Korea and said on Friday that it had issued “an urgent appeal” to Pyongyang “to refrain from actions which could lead to further escalation of tension”.
US officials including John Kerry have been playing down a leaked report from the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) which warned there was “moderate” confidence Pyongyang had developed the technology to mount a nuclear warhead on a missile.
White House spokesman Jay Carney said Pyongyang had “not demonstrated the capability to deploy a nuclear-armed missile”.
Everyone aboard a Lion Air passenger jet has survived after the plane has overshot a runway and ended up in the sea off Bali.
At least 130 people were on board the plane belonging to Indonesia’s Lion Air, which was attempting to land at the island’s Denpasar airport.
Photos posted on Twitter show a jet with a cracked fuselage sitting in water near rocks, with dinghies nearby. Some people were reportedly injured.
It appears the Boeing was on a domestic flight from Bandung in West Java.
Australia’s AAP news service says it tried to land at 15:00 local time.
Everyone aboard a Lion Air passenger jet has survived after the plane has overshot a runway and ended up in the sea off Bali
It came to rest 200-300 m (yards) from the end of the runway, Reuters news agency reports, quoting local media.
An AFP news agency journalist in Denpasar saw seven passengers, all of whom appeared to be Indonesian, arrive by ambulance at a hospital with light wounds to their heads, arms and legs.
It was not immediately clear how many people were injured or what the nationalities of the passengers were, the agency added.
Bali is one of Indonesia’s top holiday destinations, popular with foreign tourists.
Judge Mustafa Hassan Abdullah presiding over the retrial of ousted Egypt’s President Hosni Mubarak has withdrawn himself from the case as the trial opened in Cairo.
There were chaotic scenes as the judge said he was referring the trial to another court.
Hosni Mubarak was convicted in June 2012 of conspiring to kill protesters during the 2011 revolt that ended his rule.
The former president was sentenced to life but a retrial was ordered in January after he appealed against the sentence.
About 850 people were killed in the 2011 crackdown.
Judge Mustafa Hassan Abdullah announced his decision at the start of the retrial at a police academy on the outskirts of Cairo.
Amid shouting in the courtroom – delaying the start of proceedings – the judge said he was referring the case to the Cairo appeals court as he felt “unease” in reviewing the case, Reuters news agency reported.
That court is then expected to appoint a new panel to hear the retrial.
Hosni Mubarak, 84, is in poor health and currently being held in a military hospital in Cairo.
Judge Mustafa Hassan Abdullah presiding over the retrial of ousted Egypt’s President Hosni Mubarak has withdrawn himself from the case as the trial opened in Cairo.
On Saturday, he was flown by helicopter to the courthouse at a police academy on the outskirts of Cairo.
State TV showed Hosni Mubarak being wheeled into the building on a stretcher, wearing a white outfit. Wearing dark glasses and with an intravenous cannula on his hand, he later waved to the courtroom from inside a cage.
His first trial, at which he also appeared on a stretcher, lasted 10 months.
Two sons of the former leader, former interior minister Habib al-Adly and six aides will also be re-tried, facing the same charges as before.
Habib al-Adly was sentenced to life last year for contributing to the killing of protesters, and for five and 12 years for corruption charges.
Hosni Mubarak’s sons, Gamal and Alaa, will be retried on corruption charges for which they were acquitted in June, because of the expiry of a statute of limitations.
The former leader was also found not guilty of corruption.
Businessman Hussein Salem, a close associated of Hosni Mubarak, is being retried in his absence – he went to Spain after being cleared of fraud in his first trial.
The 18-day uprising in 2011 ended Hosni Mubarak’s 29-year rule of Egypt.
Families of protesters who died in the crackdown were disappointed that the former leader was not convicted of ordering the killings.
There was also been anger among some that he has not faced trial for abuses allegedly committed earlier in his rule.
News of the retrial has been overshadowed by the political instability and insecurity which followed the revolution.
Deaths during the uprising were largely blamed on the police at the time, but last week a report was leaked which implicated the army in serious human rights abuses at the time, including the killing and torture of protesters.
The leaked chapter, reportedly presented to President Mohamed Morsi late last year, contains testimony relating to civilians detained at military checkpoints who were never seen again and reports that the army delivered unidentified bodies to coroners.
Egypt’s Defence Minister Abdel Fatah al-Sissi denied the accusations, calling them a betrayal.
Chinese golfer Guan Tianlang has become the youngest player to make the cut at a major golf tournament at the US Masters in Augusta.
Guan Tianlang, 14, was penalised for slow play at Augusta, but his overall score of four over was still enough to see him become the youngest player to make the cut.
He was given the one-stroke penalty after making par on the 17th, having earlier been warned for slow play during the Masters second round.
Guan Tianlang said: “I respect the decision. This is what they can do.”
Gregory Bourdy, at the 2010 US PGA, was the last to be penalised for slow play.
Guan Tianlang carded 16 pars in total, although the one on 17 became a bogey after the European Tour’s chief referee John Paramor alerted him of the penalty.
The teenager said he took extra time trying to gauge the tricky wind conditions.
Chinese golfer Guan Tianlang has become the youngest player to make the cut at a major golf tournament at the US Masters in Augusta
“This still is a wonderful experience,” he said.
“I enjoyed this week so far and think I did a pretty good job.”
Masters competition committee chairman Fred Ridley released a statement explaining that amateur Guan Tianlang and playing partners Ben Crenshaw and Matteo Manassero were deemed out of position on the 10th hole.
Guan Tianlang began being timed on the 12th hole, received his first warning after his second shot on the 13th, then was penalised after his second shot on the 17th “when he again exceeded the 40-second time limit by a considerable margin”.
Despite the setback, the teenager went on to par the last for a 75, to go with his first-round 73.
Guan Tianlang is exactly 10 shots behind tournament leader Jason Day of Australia.
Two-time winner Ben Crenshaw said: “This is not going to end pretty. I’m sick for him [Guan Tianlang]. I feel terrible. He is 14 years old. I’m so sorry this has happened.”
Matteo Manassero held the record of being the youngest to make a major cut when at the age of 16 he qualified for the last two days of the 2009 Open.
The Italian said Guan Tianlang did take too long on his shots.
“I think it’s the biggest thing he needs to be careful about, because I think he’s ready,” said Matteo Manassero, who is five over for the championship after shooting a 74.
“When the caddie pulls the club for him, I think he’s ready. But most of the times that he takes a little too long he just asks questions that I think he knows, but just to be sure, just to be clear in his mind.
“We all feel sorry, but this is the way professional golf goes.
“This will end up being a great experience for him.”
Clubhouse leader Fred Couples, the 1992 champion, was reluctant to criticise Guan Tianlang’s penalty saying the rules should be applied just as strictly to the teenager despite his tender years.
“The soft-coated answer would be I feel bad, but I also feel like they just don’t go around handing out one-shot penalties here,” he said.
“I don’t even know of anyone who has ever got one.
“It feels hard to give a 14-year-old a penalty, but he’s in the field. He beat a lot of guys yesterday, whatever the age he is.”
Guan Tianlang also became the youngest player to make the cut in a PGA Tour event, breaking the 56-year-old record held by Canadian Bob Panasik, who was 15 when he made it through to the last two rounds of the 1957 Canadian Open.
Comedian Jonathan Winters, whose breakneck improvisations and misfit characters inspired the likes of Robin Williams and Jim Carrey, has died at the age of 87.
Jonathan Winters, an Ohio native, died Thursday evening at his Montecito, California, home of natural causes, said Joe Petro III, a longtime friend.
The stand-up comedy legend was surrounded by family and friends.
“He was just a great friend and I was very lucky to be able to work with him for all the years I did,” said Joe Petro, an artist and printmaker who collaborated with Jonathan Winters for decades on numerous art projects.
“We’ve lost a giant and we’re really going to miss him.”
Jonathan Winters was a pioneer of improvisational standup comedy, with an exceptional gift for mimicry, a grab bag of eccentric personalities and a bottomless reservoir of creative energy. Facial contortions, sound effects, tall tales – all could be used in a matter of seconds to get a laugh.
“Beyond funny, he invented a new category of comedic genius,” comedian Albert Brooks tweeted Friday.
Comedian Jonathan Winters, whose breakneck improvisations and misfit characters inspired the likes of Robin Williams and Jim Carrey, has died at the age of 87
On Jack Paar’s television show in 1964, Jonatha Winters was handed a foot-long stick and he swiftly became a fisherman, violinist, lion tamer, canoeist, U.N. diplomat, bullfighter, flutist, delusional psychiatric patient, British headmaster and Bing Crosby’s golf club.
The humor most often was based in reality – his characters Maude Frickert and Elwood P. Suggins, for example, were based on people Jonathan Winters knew growing up in Ohio.
A devotee of Groucho Marx and Laurel and Hardy, Jonatha Winters and his free-for-all brand of humor inspired Johnny Carson, Billy Crystal, Tracey Ullman and Lily Tomlin, among many others. But Robin Williams and Jim Carrey are his best-known followers.
Johnny Carson in particular lifted Jonatha Winters’ Maude Frickert character almost intact for the long-running Aunt Blabby character he portrayed on The Tonight Show.
Jonathan Winters’ only Emmy was for best-supporting actor for playing Randy Quaid’s father in the sitcom Davis Rules (1991). He was nominated again in 2003 as outstanding guest actor in a comedy series for an appearance on Life With Bonnie.
The comedian also won two Grammys: One for his work on The Little Prince album in 1975 and another for his Crank Calls comedy album in 1996. He also won the Kennedy Center’s second Mark Twain Prize for Humor in 1999, a year after Richard Pryor.
Jonathan Winters was sought out in later years for his changeling voice, and he contributed to numerous cartoons and animated films. Fittingly, he played three characters in The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle movie in 2000.
The IMDb website credits him as the voice of Papa in the forthcoming The Smurfs 2 film. He continued to work almost to the end of his life, and to influence new generations of comics.
Jonathan Winters had made television history in 1956, when RCA broadcast the first public demonstration of color videotape on The Jonathan Winters Show.
Jonathan Winters was born November 11, 1925, in Dayton, Ohio. Growing up during the Depression as an only child whose parents divorced when he was 7, he spent a lot of time entertaining himself.
The comedian, who himself battled alcoholism in his younger years, described his father as an alcoholic. But he found a comedic mentor in his mother, radio personality Alice Bahman.
Jonathan Winters joined the Marines at 17 and served two years in the South Pacific. He returned to study at the Dayton Art Institute, helping him develop keen observational skills. At one point, he won a talent contest (and the first prize of a watch) by doing impressions of movie stars.
After stints as a radio disc jockey and TV host in Ohio from 1950-53, he left for New York, where he found early work doing impressions of John Wayne, Cary Grant, Marx and James Cagney, among others.
Jonathan Winters’ wife, Eileen, died in 2009 and he is survived by two children, Lucinda Winters and Jay Winters.
Portia De Rossi has revealed that she will never have children with Ellen DeGeneres as she posed for a new issue of Out magazine.
Portia De Rossi and Ellen DeGeneres have been together for over eight years and married for nearly five, but they never had the desire to start a family.
“You have to really want to have kids, and neither of us did. So it’s just going to be me and Ellen and no babies,” 40-year-old Portia De Rossi says in the interview.
She says she never felt the pressure to procreate like many women do when they are in their mid-30’s.
Portia De Rossi has revealed that she will never have children with Ellen DeGeneres as she posed for a new issue of Out magazine
“There comes some pressure in your mid-30s, and you think, <<Am I going to have kids so I don’t miss out on something that other people really seem to love?>>” she explains.
“Or is it that I really genuinely want to do this with my whole heart? I didn’t feel that my response was <<yes>> to the latter.”
The Australian actress poses in a black and white portrait on the cover of the popular style magazine.
With her hair styled in a similar elfin-like crop as Ellen DeGeneres, it is almost hard to tell the difference between the two.
While Ellen DeGeneres continues her daily daytime talk show, Portia De Rossi will be returning to the small screen on May 26th when Netflix premieres a brand new 15 episode season of the top-notch comedy Arrested Development.
Maria Tallchief, one of America’s first great prima ballerinas who gave life to such works as The Nutcracker and Firebird,has died at the age 88.
Her daughter, Elise Paschen, revealed today that her mother had passed away in Chicago on Thursday.
Maria Tallchief danced with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo from 1942 to 1947, but her career was most associated with the New York City Ballet, where she worked from 1948 to 1965.
George Balanchine, the Russian-born dance genius, was not only the company’s director; in 1946, he became Maria Tallchief’s husband for some years.
Maria Tallchief told Women’s Wear Daily in 2003 that when she first worked with George Balanchine she thought: “I am seeing music. This is it! I was a musician myself, and I thought, <<I am in my place now>>. I knew that that’s the way I wanted to dance.”
Maria Tallchief, one of America’s first great prima ballerinas who gave life to such works as The Nutcracker and Firebird, has died at the age 88
She was one of five Oklahoma natives of American Indian descent who rose to prominence in the ballet world from the 1940s through the 1960s.
Maria Tallchief retired in 1965, when she started teaching the next generation of dancers.
“My mother was a ballet legend, who was proud of her Osage heritage,” Elise Paschen said in a statement.
“Her dynamic presence lit up the room. I will miss her passion, commitment to her art and devotion to her family. She raised the bar high and strove for excellence in everything she did.”
Maria Tallchief created roles in many of George Balanchine’s ballets, including Orpheus, in 1948, and Scotch Symphony, in 1952. She was the Sugar Plum Fairy in his original production of The Nutcracker in 1954.
In the 1970s, Maria Tallchief served as artistic director of the Lyric Opera Ballet in Chicago.
She later founded and was artistic director of the Chicago City Ballet.
In 1996, Maria Tallchief became one of five artists to receive the Kennedy Center Honors for their lifelong contributions to American culture.
Maria Tallchief was born Elizabeth Marie Tall Chief in 1925, on a reservation in Fairfax, Oklahoma, a small town about 60 miles northwest of Tulsa.
Visiting teachers gave her lessons, and her mother later moved the family to Los Angeles so that she and her sister could receive proper training.
Kelly Brook sizzles in a new set of adverts for deodorant brand Axe, which sees her living the good life in a space station.
Kelly Brook, 33, features in two new adverts which see her relaxing in outer space and working on her tan.
In one advert Kelly Brook wears a gold bikini that shows off her curves as she works on her tan.
Using the sun and its hot ball of glowing gases to improve her hue she lies back in a reclined chair looking seductive.
The model also has a bottle of champagne placed next to her ready to be popped as she enjoys some alone time.
Kelly Brook sizzles in a new set of adverts for deodorant brand Axe, which sees her living the good life in a space station
In a second short advert, which is being shown in Turkey, Kelly Brook is woken up from her slumber as she again lies down, this time in comfy looking bed.
Wearing her best lingerie she enticingly sprays herself with the deodorant as she writhes around on the mattress.
Kelly Brook, who wore a lace top with black pants and matching bra, seemed to be in a state of ecstasy thanks to the deodorant.
However, much she enjoyed filling the air with Axe, she had to eventually get out of bed to attend to her job on the space station.
Slipping on a silver catsuit, viewers see Kelly Brook float around as she zips up her out uniform and heads through the facility in a daze.
Kelly Brook signed a 1.5 million deal with the deodorant company in 2007 to be the face of the brand.
Ireland and Portugal are to be granted an extra seven years to pay back their emergency bailout loans.
The EU and the IMF bailed out the Republic of Ireland in 2010 and Portugal in 2011.
The eurozone agreed to the terms at a meeting of finance ministers in Dublin.
Meanwhile, the eurozone finance ministers also said a 10 billion euro ($13 billion) EU bailout loan for Cyprus was ready for approval by member states.
That could happen by the end of the month and, if the IMF also gives the go-ahead, the first bailout money could be released by mid-May.
The plan for Ireland and Portugal is intended to give the countries’ financial systems more time to recover from the debt crisis after their bailout loans run out.
Ireland’s bailout money will run out later this year, and Portugal’s will run out in 2014.
Ireland and Portugal are to be granted an extra seven years to pay back their emergency bailout loans
The Irish and Portuguese repayment extensions are expected to be backed by all 27 EU members, which includes those outside the eurozone, later on Friday.
Eurogroup President and Dutch Finance Minister, Jeroen Dijsselbloem, said the ministers in Dublin had commended Portugal on its success in implementing the bailout programme but “asked them to maintain the reform momentum despite the difficult economic and domestic conditions”.
He added: “Ireland is a living example that adjustment programmes do work, provided there is a strong ownership and genuine commitment to reforms.”
The deal could be seen as something of a reward “for good behavior”, but also as recognition that an austerity-first approach was not always the best option.
The extension is especially important for Portugal. When it received a 78 billion euro bailout two years ago, it pledged to take various measures in its budget to reduce public spending.
However, last week Portugal’s Constitutional Court ruled that several of these measures in the 2013 budget were unlawful.
If Portugal was to drop the measures because of this, it may not remain eligible for more funds under its bailout.
On Thursday, it emerged that Cyprus would need to raise an extra 6 billion euros to secure the 10 billion euro bailout from Brussels and the IMF.
While confirming that up to 10 billion euros in loans will be provided to Cyprus, the eurozone finance ministers also rejected reports that the country might be granted more financial assistance.
An Orthodox Jewish passenger took his beliefs a step further by covering himself in a plastic bag for the whole of his journey because his religion forbids him to fly over cemeteries.
It was believed the man is a Kohein, a religious descendant of the priests of ancient Israel, who are banned from flying over cemeteries.
Many wrap themselves in plastic bags as a compromise measure.
The startling image, which has now gone viral after being posted on Reddit, shows fellow passengers straining over their seats to get a look.
Beneath his plastic wrapping, the man is dressed entirely in black, and appears to be wearing a Jewish skullcap or “kippah”.
The Orthodox Jew took his beliefs a step further by covering himself in a plastic bag during flight as his religion forbids him to fly over cemeteries
As a controversial solution – not entirely allowed by those in the Jewish Orthodox – the plastic bag creates a kind of barrier between the Kohein and the surrounding tumah, or impurity.
Rabbi Jeffrey W. Goldwasser, of Temple Beit HaYam in Israel, explained: “In orthodox and Conservative communities, Kohanim are expected to abstain from coming in contact with the dead, which includes a prohibition on visiting cemeteries except for the funerals of close relatives.”
Even if they can be secured by a seat belt, the passengers wouldn’t be able to reach an oxygen mask or quickly escape the plane in the event of an emergency.
There is also the question of how they can breathe.
Pre-punched holes in the plastic are said to invalidate the barrier, according to Jewish newspaper YatedNe’eman.
“Only if when the kohein is putting on this bag it accidentally rips can there be some leniency,” the article claims.
“Kohanim have a duty to protect their taharah, purity,” according to the article.
“They have been bestowed with extra kedushah which makes them worth of being meshorsei Hashem. At times, there may be extra demands made upon them in order to maintain that standard of kedushah and taharah.”
Some flights go to great lengths to take specific paths to avoid cemeteries.
And passengers can also be made aware in advance if a body will be aboard the plane in cargo.
The photo, which was posted on the Reddit this week, had a caption which read: “An Orthodox Jew in an airplane with women – so he covers himself with a plastic bag…”
A strict code of conduct prevents Orthodox Jewish men and women from mixing in public, with Israeli airline El Al seeing an increase in the number of religious men demanding to be reseated away from women in recent years.
While ultra-Orthodox Jews do follow to strict guidelines which include gender segregation in public, it is claimed this photograph does not show that.
One user of the Reddit site wrote: “This has nothing to do with women. He is a cohen, descendant from the high holy priests of the temple and they are not allowed to walk into or fly over a cemetery, which would render them impure.”
It is not known when the photograph was taken, or what airline the man was travelling on, but it is more than likely it was an El Al aircraft flying out of Tel Aviv, which is surrounded by a number of cemeteries, according to internet users.
In 2001, El Al Airlines decided not to allow ultra-Orthodox Jews cover themselves in plastic because “flight safety considerations do not allow for passengers to board while covered in sealed plastic bags”.
A year later it was reported that flight crew got into an argument with a passenger who attempted to fly wrapped in plastic. The confrontation eventually led the pilot to turn the plane around.
One woman even sued the airline after staff moved her to the back of a plane when an ultra-Orthodox man refused to sit next to her.
Kohanim (plural of Kohein) are the male-line descendants of the priests of ancient Israel.
Descendants are shunned from flying over cemeteries and being in contact with the dead.
Contact with the dead is believed to inflict him with impurity.
Why a plastic bag?
Some consider that the bag provides a potential barrier from the impurities/dead
How can they breathe?
Pre-punched holes invalidate the barrier.
If the kohein is putting on the bag and it accidentally rips some leniency to breathe is provided
Contact with the dead would consequently inflict him with impurity.
Problems:
Flights have been delayed or turned around because of the ensuing safety hazards.
The passengers would not be able to reach an oxygen mask or quickly escape the plane in the event of an emergency.
Actress Gwyneth Paltrow, cyclist Victoria Pendleton and TV presenter Emma Forbes are all fans of Bee Prepared when it comes to staying fighting fit.
Bee Prepared, a daily defence vitamin being dubbed the latest “It Vit”, is an immune support vitamin packed with powerful antioxidants and one key nutrient: bee propolis.
The tablets – which come in a pack of 30 and taken daily – are designed to fight colds, flu, hay fever, and are also ideal for sports training and fitness, so it’s no wonder Olympic gold-winning cyclist Victoria Pendleton is a fan.
Bee propolis is a resinous mixture honey bees collect from tree buds, sap flows or other botanical sources, and has been used to treat colds and flu, immunity, mouth ulcers and wound healing.
The tablets also contain powerful nutrients such as astaxanthin, elderberry, olive leaf and beta glucans – a unique blend of ingredients from the hive, field and forest that aren’t often found in a regular diet or multivitamin.
Bee Prepared is an immune support vitamin packed with powerful antioxidants and bee propolis
The stars take a capsule of Bee Prepared – which is available online and from health food shops – once daily to help maintain their healthy immune systems.
Gwyneth Paltrow wrote on her daily Goop blog: “I was recently given <<bee venom therapy>> for an old injury and it disappeared.
“I was recommended bee pollen, raw honey and propolis for various purposes. So far, these recommendations have worked for me.”
Emma Forbes also raved about it on her blog writing: “I am a firm believer in the power of honey.
“When my kids were little I used to make something called <<mummy magic>> which was manuka honey in hot water with lemon juice.
“It worked miracles on sore throats, you name it. To this day I believe honey is a really good cure for all sorts.”
Humans have been using bee propolis medicinally for centuries with Ancient Egyptians, Greeks and Romans using it for wound healing.
During both World War I and World War II, propolis was used in first aid to reduce wound infection and to speed healing.
Modern day bee propolis has been used in skin care, dental care, immune support, and even cancer treatment.
Kris Humphries failed to show up today for a pretrial divorce hearing in Los Angeles, according to TMZ.
The court date in question was a settlement conference, and required the NBA player’s attendance, yet the 28-year-old was a no show.
Meanwhile, Kim Kardashian is said to have turned up punctually for the hearing.
Ahead of the hearing, Kim Kardashian was seen heading the gym for her daily workout.
Sources tell TMZ that Kris Humphries was spotted in New York City at 1 a.m. on Friday morning.
Kim Kardashian and Kris Humphries are both expected to testify at the divorce trial, which will focus on their relationship and whether elements of it were staged for her reality show
The settlement conference was scheduled for 8.30 a.m., but the only New York to Los Angeles bound flight on Friday morning was 6.30 a.m., arriving in at LAX at 9.15 a.m.
That would mean that Kris Humphries would be have been late for the hearing anyway.
During the court hearing, Kim Kardashian reportedly sat in the jury box, hands crossed on her lap, as the case was called.
A judge sealed the proceedings, citing rules mandating confidentiality for divorce settlement discussions.
If an agreement cannot be reached, a public trial on Kim Kardashian and Kris Humphries’ marriage is schedule to begin on May 6.
While Kris Humphries, who is seeking an annulment based on his claim their 72-day marriage was fraudulent, did not appear in court he was represented by three attorneys.
Kim Kardashian arrived under heavy security and was brought into the courtroom through a back entrance.
“I always wanted to be a juror,” the reality star joked to deputies before taking her seat.
Kim Kardashian and Kris Humphries are both expected to testify at the trial, which will focus on their relationship and whether elements of it were staged for the show Keeping Up With the Kardashians.
Kris Humphries has not yet laid out his specifics to support his fraud claim. He claims the marriage should be annulled because Kim Kardashian only married him because of her reality show.
Meanwhile Kim Kardashian is expecting a child with boyfriend Kanye West later this year.
Kourtney Kardashian and Khloe Kardashian are not on their sister’s proposed witness list, but their mother, Kris Jenner, will likely testify about the pair’s relationship.
Kris Humphries has not yet filed his witness list for the trial, which is expected to last a week.
British police officer Jeremy Scott, who reportedly wrote on Twitter that he hoped Margaret Thatcher’s death was “painful and degrading”, has resigned.
Sgt. Jeremy Scott of the Metropolitan Police is understood to have published a number of offensive messages since Margaret Thatcher’s death.
He is said to have claimed her death was “87 years too late” and added that the world was a “better place”.
The Met described the comments as “completely unacceptable”.
After the tweets were widely reported Sgt. Jeremy Scott took the matter to the Directorate of Professional Standards.
Sgt. Jeremy Scott is understood to have published a number of offensive messages since Margaret Thatcher’s death
The 52-year-old police officer then submitted his resignation before a police suspension over the incident came into force. It was accepted with immediate effect.
He had reportedly described news of the death as “marvellous stuff” and expressed a wish that the current prime minister, chancellor and home secretary were next.
Commander Allan Gibson said: “This officer’s behavior was completely unacceptable and it is right that he has resigned.”
On Thursday, British PM David Cameron branded some reaction to the death of Lady Thatcher as “pretty distasteful”.
David Cameron went on: “I think the overwhelming sense across the country – and you can see it yesterday in the House of Commons – is that we are mourning the loss of someone who gave a huge amount to this country, an extraordinary leader.”
Margaret Thatcher’s funeral is to be held in London on Wednesday, April 17.
Airbus is offering airlines the option of installing extra-wide seats for overweight passengers on its A320 jets to cope with what it describes as “trends in demographics”.
The super-sized seats will measure 20 inches across instead of the standard 18 inches, and will likely be installed only as aisle seats.
Window and middle seats will each lose an inch of width to generate the extra space.
Airbus is selling the idea as an innovative way to “meet passenger needs” – even though two-thirds of passengers will have to make do with less space.
Airbus is offering airlines the option of installing extra-wide seats for overweight passengers on its A320 jets
The plans were announced this week at the Aircraft Interiors Expo in Hamburg, Germany.
Airbus first suggested the idea last year, but a poll back in July by the Skyscanner website found 80% of British fliers were opposed to losing seat space to accommodate larger passengers.
Airbus aircraft interiors marketing manager Stefanie Von Linstow told Flightglobal: “Passengers in the window seat are already happy and those in the centre seat might not be willing to pay as much for less width.
“The aisle seat seems the most attractive for the concept.”
Samoa Air recently became the world’s first airline to institute a “pay-by-weight” system, where the weight of a passenger and their luggage determines fare price.
Chief Executive Chris Langton said this was the “fairest” way to charge travelers while addressing the obesity crisis – an acute problem in Samoa’s Pacific region.
Another carrier, Southwest Airlines requires its “Customers of Size” who do not fit between the armrests to purchase another seat.
In a November 2012 report on the issue, Dr. Bharat Bhatta from Norway’s Sogn og Fjordane University College said that a “fat tax” is the way to price tickets “correctly”.
Dr. Bharat Bhatta said: “The model can be technically and economically feasible to implement and its proper implementation may provide significant benefits to airlines, passengers and society at large, not just economic transfers.”
