Scientists have discovered a keen sense of taste boosts immunity – a breakthrough that could lead to nasal sprays to ward off illness.
People who find some vegetables, such as sprouts and broccoli, unbearably bitter are better at fighting off bugs due to chemicals in their nose, a study shows.
Experiments found they have more receptors that pick up the flavor of these foods – and also work as an early warning system about bacterial invaders.
They were traditionally thought to be located only on the tongue but are now known to be in the linings of the nasal and sinus cavities as well.
And these receptors are involved in activating the body’s natural defences against common infections.
However, almost a third of the population do not have the specific version of the bitter taste receptor gene called TAS2R38 that activates an immune response.
Dr. Noam Cohen, of the University of Pennsylvania in the United States, said: “If you are a supertaster, it is going to be very rare you are going to get sinusitis.”
But he added this bitter-tasting ability does not protect against all infections.
The findings, published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, could lead to better treatments for chronic rinosinusitis, a condition of constantly inflamed and swollen sinuses which affects up to one in ten people.
Bitterness is the most sensitive of the tastes, and many find it unpleasant, sharp or disagreeable.
Common bitter foods also include marmalade, olives, citrus peel and wild chicory.
In the study the researchers grew cells in lab dishes, forming structures that resembled the multilayered lining of the nose and sinus, to test out how bitter receptors affect the initial stages of the infection process.
Chemicals produced by common bacteria called Pseudomonas aeruginosa activated the TAS2R38 bitter receptor, and caused the hair-like cilia that line the sinuses to start sweeping away microbial intruders.
The activation also resulted in the release into the sinuses of nitric oxide which kills bacteria.
The researchers looked at just one of 25 bitter receptors and it remains to be seen if the others affect the immune system.
In the past researchers have used phenylthiocarbamide (PTC) to identify people with functional bitter receptors.
Those who can taste the chemical are classified as supertasters,
The researchers said people who would say Brussel sprouts taste bitter are likely to be supertasters, having responsive bitter receptors.
The study also suggests supertasters may have a higher risk of chronic sinusitis, and that non-tasters have more upper respiratory infections.
Upon testing nasal tissue samples from patients who had undergone surgery related to sinus problems, the researchers found none of the eleven supertasters had Pseudomonas bacteria in their tissues, whereas seven out of twenty non-tasters had infections.
Dr. Thomas Finger, an expert in taste and smell at the University of Colorado, reviewed the research and said it could lead to an almost cost free test to distinguish supertasters from the more susceptible non-tasters.
He said certain bitter compounds could also be used to activate the immune system.
For example, a bitter nasal spray could be used to ward off an infection in the early stages.
But such potential therapies are a long way off.
Dr. Noam Cohen said his researchers will next look at whether genetics plays a role in people’s responses to sinusitis treatments.
Felix Baumgartner has been frustrated in his attempt to make the highest ever skydive.
Unfavorable winds at Roswell, New Mexico, have prevented the launch of the helium balloon that was to take him to more than 120,000 ft (36.5 km).
Meteorologists say Thursday now looks to be next best day for a record bid.
Felix Baumgartner – famous for jumping off skyscrapers – is hoping to become the first human to break the sound barrier unaided by a vehicle.
Because of the rarity of the atmosphere at 120,000 ft, he would accelerate rapidly once he stepped out of his balloon’s capsule.
Calculations suggest he could achieve Mach 1 – thought to be around 690mph (1,110 km/h) at the target altitude – within 40 seconds.
But this will all have to wait for another day.
Unfavorable winds at Roswell have prevented the launch of Felix Baumgartner’s helium balloon
Felix Baumgartner’s 30 million cu ft (850,000 cu m) polyethylene balloon has very strict launch requirements.
Wind speeds from the ground up to about 800 ft (250 m) must not exceed 3 mph (5k m/h), or there is a chance the envelope could shred as the support team try to release it and the capsule.
And although Tuesday morning’s conditions at the surface were dead calm, the winds at times were just too gusty.
Felix Baumgartner got as far as climbing into his capsule before the mission was postponed.
The latest weather intelligence had suggested there would be a good window to get airborne, but as the balloon filled, a sudden 25-mph (40 km/h) gust twisted the envelope and knocked it flat against the ground.
That could have damaged the thin skin of the balloon and so flight controllers felt they had no option but to abort.
The current weather window for this year probably extends for another month. Beyond that and the team will likely have to return next year.
Felix Baumgartner is trying to topple records that have stood for more than 50 years.
The previous highest skydive was made by retired US Air Force Col. Joe Kittinger, who leapt from a helium envelope in 1960. His altitude was 102,800 ft (31.3 km).
The adventurer first discussed seriously the idea of taking on the challenge in 2005.
Since then, he has had to battle technical and budgetary setbacks to make it happen.
What he is trying to do is extremely dangerous.
At an altitude of 120,000 ft (36.5 km), the air pressure is less than 2% of what it is at sea level, and it is impossible to breathe without an oxygen supply.
Others who have tried to break the records for the highest, fastest and longest freefalls have lost their lives in the process.
Felix Baumgartner’s team has built him a special pressurized capsule to protect him on the way up, and for his descent he will wear a next generation, full pressure suit made by the same company that prepares the flight suits of astronauts.
Although the jump has the appearance of another Felix Baumgartner stunt, his team has stressed its high scientific relevance.
The researchers on the Red Bull Stratos project say it has already provided invaluable data for the development of high-performance, high-altitude parachute systems, and that the lessons learned will inform the development of new ideas for emergency evacuation from vehicles, such as spacecraft, passing through the stratosphere.
NASA and its spacecraft manufacturers have asked to be kept informed.
The entire council of the city of Reggio Calabria in southern Italy has been sacked to stop it from being taken over by the mafia, officials say.
The move came after some councilors were suspected of having ties to the powerful ‘Ndrangheta crime syndicate.
Officials said it was the first time that the entire government of a provincial capital had been dismissed over suspected mafia links.
Three commissioners will run the city for 18 months until elections.
Mayor Demetrio Arena and all 30 city councilors were sacked to prevent any “mafia contagion” in the local government, Interior Minister Annamaria Cancellieri said.
Smaller city administrations have been dissolved in the past for similar reasons.
Calabria is the home of the ‘Ndrangheta, which experts say has become one of the world’s biggest criminal organizations.
Cocaine is thought to be its biggest source of revenue, along with extortion and money laundering.
Italy’s parliamentary anti-mafia commission has described the ‘Ndrangheta as the country’s most dangerous – and richest – mafia.
The network has used the migration of poor Calabrians to northern Italy or abroad to export its influence.
Many of us use elevator several times a day without really noticing. And yet the way we behave in elevators reveals a hidden anxiety.
“Most of us sort of shut down.
“We walk in. We press the button. We stand perfectly still.”
Taking the elevator could be the least memorable part of your journey to work, but Dr. Lee Gray of the University of North Carolina at Charlotte has made it his business to scrutinize this overlooked form of public transportation. People refer to him as “the Elevator Guy”.
“The lift becomes this interesting social space where etiquette is sort of odd,” he explains.
“They are socially very interesting but often very awkward places.”
Conversations that have been struck up in the lobby tend to be extinguished quite quickly in the thick atmosphere of the office elevator. We walk in and usually turn around to face the door.
If someone else comes in, we may have to move. And here, it has been observed that lift-travelers unthinkingly go through a set pattern of movements, as predetermined as a square dance.
On your own, you can do whatever you want – it’s your own little box.
If there are two of you, you take different corners. Standing diagonally across from each other creates the greatest distance.
When a third person enters, you will unconsciously form a triangle (breaking the analogy that some have made with dots on a dice). And when there is a fourth person it’s a square, with someone in every corner. A fifth person is probably going to have to stand in the middle.
Now we are in uncharted territory. New entrants to the elevator will need to size up the situation when the doors slide open and then act decisively. Once in, for most people the protocol is simple – look down, or examine your phone.
Why are we so awkward in lifts?
“You don’t have enough space,” says Professor Babette Renneberg, a clinical psychologist at the Free University of Berlin.
“Usually when we meet other people we have about an arm’s length of distance between us. And that’s not possible in most elevators, so it’s a very unusual setting. It’s unnatural.”
In such a small, enclosed space it becomes vital, she says, to act in a way that cannot be construed as threatening, odd or in any way ambiguous. The easiest way to do this is to avoid eye-contact.
But perhaps there is more to it than just social awkwardness.
Elevator travelers always avoid eye-contact
“In the back of our minds we are a little anxious,” says Nick White, an office worker in New York who was unfortunate enough to be trapped in a lift for 41 hours.
“We don’t like to be locked into a place. We want to get out of the elevator as soon as possible, because, you know, it’s a creepy place to be.”
During his ordeal, he began to think of another enclosed space that lurks at the back of our minds – a tomb.
It would be understandable if Nick White refused ever to step in an elevator again. But if you work in a city built on a vertical plane, and if you have aspirations above being a receptionist, that isn’t an option.
“I certainly remember what happened to me every time I go in one,” he admits.
“It’s part of the commute, the part you have the least control over.”
Elevator Guy Lee Gray agrees that a sense of disempowerment is the main cause of lift anxiety.
“You’re in a machine that’s moving, over which you have no control. You cannot see the elevator engine, you don’t know how it’s working,” he says.
This sense of passivity in the hands of a machine may become more pronounced as we enter the age of buttonless “smart” elevators.
After swiping through security or touching a central control panel, travelers are directed to a lift that has been programmed to stop at their floor, removing the need for any further commands. The system is designed to cut down on unnecessary stops, but although more efficient, some people find the experience unnerving.
Regardless of the qualms and anxieties associated with elevators, Dr. Lee Gray is adamant that they are safer than cars – and significantly safer than escalators.
“It is in fact of one of the safest forms of transportation, if you look at the billions of miles that lifts travel every year and the very, very small number of accidents.”
We all know this, which is why we continue to take elevators every day, despite our anxieties.
“We have learned that we can take an elevator and it is safe to do so,” says Babette Renneberg.
“So in a way it’s a triumph of rationalism over our more animalistic instincts.”
This pleasing thought – that we become more sophisticated by travelling in elevators – is perhaps one to ponder next time you get in one.
Just don’t, whatever you do, start a conversation about it.
Riding high – a history of elevators
• 1st Century BC: The Romans operate elevators using pulleys with human, animal and water power.
• 1800: Steam-driven elevators are in use in English factories. An expert operator controls each car by manipulating a rope that passes through it.
• 1853: Elisha Graves Otis unveils a safety device to prevent freefall, paving the way for passenger elevators.
• Late 1800s: Stately “movable rooms” begin to appear in hotels and department stores – they feature cushioned benches and chandeliers.
• 1950s: Safety systems that automatically close both sets of doors eliminate the need for operators.
• Future elevators may employ magnetic levitation technology – a design has also been trialed for an elevator to move vertically and then horizontally to navigate larger skyscrapers.
The body of Heriberto Lazcano, the leader of Mexican drug cartel Los Zetas who was killed in a shootout with marines, has been stolen by an armed gang, state officials say.
The corpse of Heriberto Lazcano, founder of the brutal Los Zetas gang, was being stored by the authorities at a funeral parlor in northern Mexico.
The Mexican Navy said tests confirmed that the man killed was Heriberto Lazcano.
Infamous for mass killings, the Zetas control key drug-trafficking routes in north-eastern Mexico.
Heriberto Lazcano, also known as “the executioner”, was killed in a gun battle with marines on Sunday in Progreso, some 125 km (80 miles) west of the Texan border in Coahuila state, the navy said.
His identity had not been confirmed until now.
The Navy said that fingerprints taken from the body matched those on its database, and that photos of the corpse’s face were compared with previous photographs of Heriberto Lazcano.
The Navy said that the body had then been handed over to the local authorities in Coahuila.
But early on Monday, a group of armed men raided the funeral parlor where the body was being kept, and stole the corpse, attorney general Homero Ramos told a news conference.
Heriberto Lazcano is suspected of involvement in hundreds of killings, including that of crusading newspaper editor Francisco Ortiz Franco in 2004.
Heriberto Lazcano is suspected of involvement in hundreds of killings, including that of crusading newspaper editor Francisco Ortiz Franco in 2004
The US had put up a $5 million reward and Mexico another $2.3 million for information leading to Heriberto Lazcano’s capture.
Mexican police believe a recent surge in mass killings is due to a split within the Zetas cartel.
Heriberto Lazcano was thought to be the leader of one faction, while the other is led by Miguel Angel Trevino Morales.
In the nearly six years of Felipe Calderon’s presidency, more than 50,000 people are believed to have died in violence blamed on organized crime.
The navy has been at the forefront of operations against Mexico’s drug cartels.
On Monday, it said it had arrested suspected regional Zetas leader, Salvador Alfonso Martinez Escobedo, who the navy says was behind the 2010 murder of 72 migrants in northern Tamaulipas state.
Officials say Escobedo works for Trevino Morales.
Trevino Morales, known as Z40, has a reputation for equal if not greater brutality than Heriberto Lazcano and remains at large.
Chancellor Angela Merkel has pledged Germany’s continuing support to Greece, during her first visit to Athens since the eurozone crisis erupted nearly three years ago.
Angela Merkel said Greece had made good progress in dealing with its vast debt but that it was on a “difficult path”.
Thousands of people who blame Germany for forcing painful austerity measures on Greece are protesting in Athens.
Police have used teargas and stun grenades against demonstrators.
Correspondents say this highly symbolic visit is a show of support for Greece’s continued membership of the eurozone.
It comes as Greece prepares to pass new cuts of 13 billion euros ($17 billion) to qualify for more bailout cash, a policy that has sparked growing unrest.
While Germany has contributed the most money to the bailout, its chancellor is held responsible by many for demanding that Greece make swingeing cuts in exchange for the financing it has received.
Angela Merkel was met by Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras on arrival in Athens.
At a news conference after talks with Antonis Samaras and business leaders, Angela Merkel said the pace of reform in Greece had recently “picked up considerably” and that the country had “a good bit of the path” behind it.
“Much has been achieved but much needs to be done and Germany and Greece will continue to co-operate very closely together in this respect,” she said.
Angela Merkel acknowledged that there were “many people suffering in Greece” as a result of the financial crisis and austerity measures, but that the difficult path was necessary to ensure future generations could live in prosperity
Antonis Samaras said their meeting had been “dominated by frankness, mutual understanding, solidarity, a spirit of collaboration and a feeling that we can overcome the Greek problem, and obviously, the European problems alike”.
He said Greece was “determined to fulfill its obligations and overcome this crisis” and was determined to stay in the eurozone.
“The Greek people are bleeding right now, but they are determined to win the battle of competitiveness.”
Angela Merkel’s visit was a “token of proof” of the progress Greece has made, he said.
Athens is said to be carrying out its biggest security operation in a decade, with some 7,000 police on duty.
Protests have been banned for the day in much of central Athens, and within a 100 m radius of the route Angela Merkel’s motorcade will travel.
However, outside the lockdown zone, thousands of people gathered, some carrying banners with slogans such as “No to the Fourth Reich”.
A three-hour strike was also called for the early afternoon.
The crowds have largely been peaceful, though some protesters threw bottles, masonry and rocks towards police lines.
The situation in central Syntagma Square turned nasty, with police firing teargas and stun grenades against grounds of protesters.
Dozens of people have been detained.
Christina Vassilopoulou, a 37-year-old teacher taking part in the unrest, said she objected to “the decisions taken at European meetings where Merkel manipulates the participants”.
“I have a doctorate and I make 900 euros a month, 400 less than before. We have children that go hungry and most of the parents are unemployed,” she told AFP news agency.
Vana Koronaiou, a shop owner selling German-made handbags near Syntagma Square, told AFP Angela Merkel’s visit “pours oil on the fire”.
“If she wanted to help, she should have done it sooner,” she said.
But some Athens citizens were upbeat about the visit.
Constantinos Siathas told Associated Press: “I think most people, at least those who think and don’t act based on feelings or utopian ideas, are pleased and are expecting a lot from Angela Merkel’s visit.”
Earlier, a spokesperson for the leftist Syriza party, Yiannis Bournos, said people were “frustrated and enraged because they clearly understand that Mrs. Merkel’s visit is just a theatre play for the political support of a collapsing coalition”.
The trip is a gamble, chaos on the streets would only underline for the German public that Greece is a lost cause.
But the visit – Angela Merkel’s first to Greece in five years – is sending a symbolic message that she wants Greece to stay in the eurozone.
Speaking on Monday, Jean-Claude Juncker, chairman of the Eurogroup finance ministers of the eurozone, raised the pressure on Greece, calling on the government to demonstrate it could implement planned reforms “by 18 October at the latest” to qualify for the next bailout installment of 31.5 billion euros.
He was speaking as the eurozone’s new permanent fund to bail out struggling economies and banks was formally launched at the finance ministers’ meeting.
Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund said on Monday that the global economic recovery was weakening, with government policies having failed to restore confidence.
It added that the risk of further deterioration in the economic outlook was “considerable” and had increased.
Mila Kunis appeared to have rolled out of bed in her pyjamas as she went on a coffee run with boyfriend Ashton Kutcher make-up free.
Mila Kunis was obviously at ease in Ashton Kutcher’s company, not bothering with styling her hair as she tied it up in a scruffy ponytail, and throwing on a baggy hoodie to drown her petite body.
She walked along in Ugg boots and grey tracksuit trousers embossed with a large peace symbol, that looked like a DIY job she had scrawled on in black nail varnish or maker pen.
Ashton Kutcher, 34, was similarly dressed down in a backwards baseball cap, jeans, checkered shirt and comfortable woolen cardigan thrown over for their walk in the Big Apple.
Later on the couple headed out for dinner in the West Village area of New York.
It appeared Ashton Kutcher’s casual outfit had inspired Mila Kunis, who switched her jogging bottoms for a pair of skinny jeans and a matching buttoned cardigan.
The two appeared closer than ever, with Mila Kunis kissing Ashton Kutcher on the shoulder as they ordered dinner.
He then threw an arm around her shoulder and held her close as they walked back to their apartment.
In contrast to her dressed-down approach, Mila Kunis is currently on newsstands across the country in a racy topless spread for Esquire magazine, covering her breasts with her hands for modesty.
According to a new research, dinner lady arms, bingo wings, dubble chubble or rump lumps … whatever you call those wobbly upper arms are women’s most hated part of their body.
The research found that three-quarters of women hate their bingo wings, the flaps of skin which hang under the triceps – and they plague some men, too.
Caused by sagging skin and excess weight, they are almost impossible to shift with ordinary exercise routines, no wonder then that a cream claiming to banish the bulge almost instantly has become a sell-out, shifting one million units in the UK in just two months.
The £12.95 ($20) NIP+FAB Upper Arm Fix contains natural ingredients that target fatty acids and firm the skin to reduce lines and wrinkles and trial results showed a significant reduction in upper arm size in six weeks along with 23% smoother skin, according to its makers.
“Studies have shown that 73 percent of women hate their bingo wings more than any other part of their body,” said Maria Hatzistefanis, of Nip+Fab.
“The majority of women are unhappy with the appearance of their arms and struggle to achieve the toned look. Sadly it affects us all at some stage and for many women it happens when they are still quite young.”
“This helps banish the curse of bingo wings and allows women to dress in fashions they may have avoided because they wanted to keep their upper arms under wraps.”
NIP FAB Upper Arm Fix contains natural ingredients that target fatty acids and firm the skin to reduce lines and wrinkles and trial results showed a significant reduction in upper arm size in six weeks
The “wonder” cream also comes with a celebrity following: Tess Daly, Alexandra Burke and Towie’s Sam and Billie Faires are already fans.
Alexandra Burke says: “I love Nip + Fab Upper Arm Fix for sculpting and toning my arms – it’s definitely one of my beauty hero’s.”
And Sam Faiers says: “I love the NIP+FAB range and the Upper Arm Fix is my personal favorite. I’m all about toned arms for strapless evening dresses.”
Former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky was today sentenced to 30 years in prison for child sex abuse charges, effectively meaning he will spend the rest of his life in jail.
Wearing a bullet-proof vest and red jumpsuit, a defiant Jerry Sandusky gave a long, rambling statement in which he denied the allegations, talked about his life in prison and the pain of being away from his family.
The sentence, which came hours after he defiantly claimed his innocence and blamed his victims for orchestrating a conspiracy against him, means the 68-year-old cannot be released on parole before the minimum term is up. He plans to appeal.
Three of his victims told the court today of the emotional impact the abuse had on them and are said to have broken down as his sentence was read out.
One victim – who is now a father – talked about not being able to let his son out of his sight because of what happened to him at the hands of the former coach.
The judge said as he was handing down the sentence that the fact Sandusky continued to deny the crimes, ‘in my view makes you dangerous’.
Despite the fact Jerry Sandusky will die in prison after being handed a minimum 30 year sentence, many are questioning why he wasn’t given a life sentence.
Last night, the convicted child abuser released an extraordinary recorded statement from his jail cell, insisting he is innocent and blaming a slew of people for orchestrating a conspiracy against him.
Completely in denial over the decades of depravity he visited upon vulnerable young boys in his care, Jerry Sandusky: “They can take away my life, they can make me out as a monster, they can treat me as a monster, but they can’t take away my heart.”
Aired on Penn State radio, the recording continued: “In my heart, I know I did not do these alleged disgusting acts.”
“Why have so many people suffered as a result of false allegations? What’s the purpose?”
Jerry Sandusky also said he is the victim of a “well-orchestrated effort of the media, investigators, the system, Penn State, psychologists, civil attorneys” to set him up and frame him for the crimes.
In particular, Jerry Sandusky blamed the boys who came forward with the accusations of seeking “information, attention and potential perks” and calls one boy “a veteran accuser [who] always sought attention”.
In what will be a tough to hear stream of consciousness for many, the convicted sex offender went as far as to suggest that his case would “maybe it will help others”.
“Some vulnerable children who could be abused might not be because of all the publicity,” Jerry Sandusky said.
“That would be nice, but I’m not sure about it. I would cherish the opportunity to become a candle for others, as they have been a light for me.
“My wife has been my only sex partner, and that was after marriage. Our love continues.”
Flanked by sheriff’s deputies, Jerry Sandusky’s bullet-proof vest can visibly be seen under his jumpsuit
Joe Amendola, Jerry Sandusky’s lawyer, said he will make similar claims in court today.
Nobody else is expected to speak on Jerry Sandusky’s behalf during the sentencing hearing in Bellefonte, defense attorney Joe Amendola said.
“What I anticipate he’ll say is that he’s innocent,” Joe Amendola said outside the courthouse yesterday.
The attorney said others, including Jerry Sandusky’s wife, have submitted letters on his behalf and that Dottie Sandusky stands by her husband and will attend the sentencing.
“He’s going to fight for a new trial,” Joe Amendola said.
He said “the important thing” about sentencing for the defense “is it starts the appellate process”.
Joe Amendola made the comments yesterday afternoon before he participated in a closed-door meeting with prosecutors and Judge John Cleland to discuss hearing logistics.
Lawyers for the attorney general’s office said they would comment to reporters after the meeting.
Sentencing is expected to begin with a hearing to determine if Jerry Sandusky qualifies as a sexually violent predator under Pennsylvania’s version of Megan’s Law, after which Sandusky will be sentenced.
Jerry Sandusky will likely spend the rest of his life in prison, given his age and serious nature of his convictions of which many carry mandatory minimum sentences of five or 10 years.
Assuming Judge John Cleland gives him at least two years – the minimum threshold for a state prison sentence – Jerry Sandusky’s first stop will be the Camp Hill state prison near Harrisburg, where all male inmates undergo a couple weeks of testing to determine such things as mental and physical health, education level and any treatment needs.
Prison officials will assign him a security level risk and decide which “home prison” to send him to.
Although Jerry Sandusky’s home in the Lemont area of State College is only a couple miles from Rockview state prison, there is no way to predict where he will end up.
Because of who he is and what he’s done, depending on what kind of facility he finds himself locked away in, Jerry Sandusky could be in particular danger of sexual assault when behind bars.
His lawyer, Joe Amendola, said he expects Jerry Sandusky will be housed with nonviolent offenders at a minimum-security prison, and the Pennsylvania Corrections Department said it is committed to the safety of all inmates, though it would not comment on what it plans to do to protect Sandusky.
With thousands of inmates raped in prison in the U.S. each year, statistics compiled by the federal government show that sex offenders are roughly two to four times more likely than other inmates to fall victim.
In some ways, Jerry Sandusky, who has been held in isolation in a county jail since he was found guilty in June, is not a prime target for assault. Inmates who are young and small in stature are more likely to be sexually victimized; Jerry Sandusky is a senior citizen with an imposing frame.
Other inmates at high risk include gay men, those who have been previously victimized and those seen as timid or feminine.
But a convicted sex offender who spent 10 years in prison, and who works with other released sex offenders through the Pennsylvania Prison Society, said Jerry Sandusky won’t be able to keep a low profile.
Jerry Sandusky speaks out from behind bars
I’m responding to the worst loss of my life.
First, I looked at myself. Over and over, I asked why? Why didn’t we have a fair opportunity to prepare for trial?
Why have so many people suffered as a result of false allegations? What’s the purpose? Maybe it will help others.
Some vulnerable children who could be abused might not be because of all the publicity. That would be nice, but I’m not sure about it.
I would cherish the opportunity to become a candle for others, as they have been a light for me.
They can take away my life, they can make me out as a monster, they can treat me as a monster, but they can’t take away my heart. In my heart, I know I did not do these alleged disgusting acts.
My wife has been my only sex partner, and that was after marriage. Our love continues.
A young man who was dramatic, a veteran accuser and always sought attention, started everything.
He was joined by a well-orchestrated effort of the media, investigators, the system, Penn State, psychologists, civil attorneys and other accusers. They won.
I’ve wondered what they really won: attention, financial gain, prestige – will all be temporary.
Before you blame me, as others have, look at everything and everybody. Look at the preparation for the trial and the trial. Compare it to others.
Think about what happened. Why, and who made it happen?
Evaluate the accusers and their families. Realize they didn’t come out of isolation. The accusers were products of many more people and experiences than me. Look at their confidants and their honesty.
Think about how easy it was for them to turn on me given the information, attention and potential perks. I never labeled or put down them or their families. I tried and I cared, then asked for the same.
Please realize all came to the Second Mile because of issues. Some of those may remain.
We will continue to fight. We didn’t lose the proven facts, evidence, accurate locations and times.
Anything can be said. We lost to speculation and stories that were influenced by people who wanted to convict me.
We must fight unfairness and consistency and dishonesty. People need to be portrayed for who they really are.
We’ve not been complainers. When we couldn’t have kids, we adopted. When we didn’t have time to prepare for a trial, we still gave it our best. We will fight for another chance.
We have given many second chances, and now we’ll ask for one. It will take more than our effort.
Justice will have to be more than just a word, fairness more than just a dream. It will take others: Somebody apolitical with the courage to listen, to think about the unfairness, to have the guts to stand up and take the road less traveled.
I ask for the strength to handle everything and willingness to surrender only to God, regardless of the outcome.
According to a new study, for the first time in its history, the United States does not have a Protestant majority.
The rising numbers of Americans with no religious affiliation is on the rise, which led to the percentage of Protestant adults in the U.S. reaching a new low of 48%.
This is the first time that Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life has reported with certainty that the number has fallen below 50%.
The drop has long been anticipated and comes at a time when there no Protestants are on the U.S. Supreme Court, and the Republicans have their first presidential ticket with no Protestant nominees.
Among the reasons for the change are the growth in nondenominational Christians who can no longer be categorized as Protestant, and a spike in the number of American adults who say they have no religion.
The Pew study, released Tuesday, found that about 20% of Americans say they have no religious affiliation, an increase from 15% in the last five years.
Scholars have long debated whether people who say they no longer belong to a religious group should be considered secular.
Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life has reported with certainty that the number of Protestants in US has fallen below 50 percent
While the category as defined by Pew researchers includes atheists, it also encompasses majorities of people who say they believe in God, and a notable minority who pray daily or consider themselves “spiritual” but not “religious”.
Still, Pew found overall that most of the unaffiliated aren’t actively seeking another religious home, indicating that their ties with organized religion are permanently broken.
Growth among those with no religion has been a major preoccupation of American faith leaders who worry that the United States, a highly religious country, would go the way of Western Europe, where church attendance has plummeted.
Pope Benedict XVI has partly dedicated his pontificate to combating secularism in the West. This week in Rome, he is convening a three-week synod, or assembly, of bishops from around the world aimed at bringing back Roman Catholics who have left the church.
The trend also has political implications.
American voters who describe themselves as having no religion vote overwhelmingly for Democrats.
Pew found Americans with no religion support abortion rights and gay marriage at a much higher-rate than the U.S. public at large.
These “nones” are an increasing segment of voters who are registered as Democrats or lean toward the party, growing from 17% to 24% over the last five years.
The religiously unaffiliated are becoming as important a constituency to Democrats as evangelicals are to Republicans, Pew said.
The Pew analysis, conducted with PBS’ “Religion & Ethics Newsweekly”, is based on several surveys, including a poll of nearly 3,000 adults conducted June 28-July 9, 2012.
The finding on the Protestant majority is based on responses from a larger group of more than 17,000 people and has a margin of error of plus or minus 0.9 percentage points, Pew researchers said.
Pew said it had also previously calculated a drop slightly below 50% among U.S. Protestants, but those findings had fallen within the margin of error.
The General Social Survey, which is conducted by the University of Chicago’s National Opinion Research Center, reported for 2010 that the percentage of U.S. Protestants was around 46.7%.
Researchers have been struggling for decades to find a definitive reason for the steady rise in those with no religion.
The spread of secularism in Western Europe was often viewed as a byproduct of growing wealth in the region. Yet among industrialized nations, the United States stood out for its deep religiosity in the face of increasing wealth.
Now, religion scholars say the decreased religiosity in the United States could reflect a change in how Americans describe their religious lives.
In 2007, 60% of people who said they seldom or never attend religious services still identified themselves as part of a particular religious tradition. In 2012, that statistic fell to 50%, according to the Pew report.
“Part of what’s going on here is that the stigma associated with not being part of any religious community has declined,” said John Green, a specialist in religion and politics at the University of Akron, who advised Pew on the survey.
“In some parts of the country, there is still a stigma. But overall, it’s not the way it used to be.”
The Pew study has found the growth in unaffiliated Americans spans a broad range of groups: men and women, college graduates and those without a college degree, people earning less than $30,000 annually and those earning $75,000 or more.
However, along ethnic lines, the largest jump in “nones” has been among whites. One-fifth of whites describe themselves as having no religion.
More growth in “nones” is expected. One-third of adults under age 30 have no religious affiliation, compared to nine per cent of people 65 and older.
Pew researchers wrote that “young adults today are much more likely to be unaffiliated than previous generations were at a similar stage in their lives”, and aren’t expected to become more religiously active as they age.
A large section of coastline in South Africa has been closed after a 15-metre whale washed ashore following an attack by Great White sharks.
The giant whale was removed from the surf after its carcass attracted high numbers of great whites to the coast by Muizenberg beach, near Cape Town, on Sunday.
Authorities have since taken the southern right whale from the beach but have closed off a stretch of shore from Muizenberg to Monwabisi “as a precaution”.
Disaster response teams had moved swiftly to get the animal out of the water and onto a flat-bed truck – no easy task when dealing with a species of whale that can weigh up to 47 tons.
Wilfred Solomons-Johannes, a spokesman for Cape Town’s disaster risk management centre, said: “A decision was taken to begin the recovery operation immediately because of the increase of shark activity off beaches along the False Bay coastline.”
A large section of coastline in South Africa has been closed after a 15-metre whale washed ashore following an attack by Great White sharks
The warning did not stop curious onlookers streaming to the site.
Claire McKinnon, manager of the Cape Town cleansing and solid-waste management department, said samples were taken from the carcass to enable pathologists to establish the cause of death before it was disposed of at a landfill site.
Once the whale was out of the water, a bulldozer rolled it over the sand.
Wilfred Solomons-Johannes said it was not known whether the whale was alive when the sharks attacked it or had succumbed to an illness.
“Under normal circumstances predators such as sharks often sneak up on their prey from behind or underneath. Predators don’t usually face off in a fight,” he said.
“A predator goes in quickly and quietly attacks the prey. Predators choose the ill, injured, young or old animals to hunt because they are easier to catch.”
In 2005, local teen J.P. Andrews was attacked by a great white shark while surfing off Muizenberg beach.
Doctors pronounced him dead on the beach – but he survived, although he lost his right leg.
Experts have found that a blood test that reads genetic results like a barcode can pick out the most aggressive prostate cancers.
The test, which looks at the signature pattern of genes switched on and off in blood cells triggered by the tumor, can sort the “tigers” from the “pussycats”.
London’s Institute of Cancer Research trialled the test in 94 patients.
The findings are published in the Lancet Oncology medical journal.
Prostate cancer is a very diverse disease – some people live with it for years without symptoms, but for others it can be aggressive and life-threatening.
Currently, doctors take a small sample of the tumor – a biopsy – to examine under a microscope to get a better idea of how dangerous
Experts hope that ultimately the barcode blood test could be used to make a more accurate estimation.
In the study, the scientists were able to split the patients into four groups based on the results of the barcode test. One of these groups fared far worse, surviving for significantly less time than the other patients.
The researchers then confirmed their findings in another 70 US patients with advanced cancer, which revealed that nine genes could accurately spot who had the least chance of survival.
Patients with this “bad” gene signature survived for an average of nine months compared with 21 months for those without it.
US researchers at the Dana-Faber Cancer Institute and the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Centre have also been testing a similar prostate cancer blood test.
Their six-gene test could split patients into high and low risk groups.
Prostate cancer is the most common male cancer in the UK, accounting for almost a quarter of male cancers.
Each year, nearly 35,000 men are diagnosed and more than 10,000 die from the disease.
Daisy Lowe flaunts her enviable curves while bringing to life Jean Paul Gaultier’s tattoo bottle design for Diet Coke in the brand’s latest ad.
In the photo, the corset-style tattoo design from Jean Paul Gaultier’s stunning take on the classic Coca-Cola bottle is projected onto the 23-year-old model’s body.
Daisy Lowe flashes a bright red smile and matching hat – an ode to the drink’s signature bottle cap.
“I love Jean Paul Gaultier’s designs, they’re so iconic,” said the model, who also appeared in campaigns for Marc Jacobs, Louis Vuitton, Pringle of Scotland, DKNY, Mango and Esprit.
“Gaultier creates clothes that make women feel powerful and feminine,” said Daisy Lowe, who is currently signed to London modelling agency Select.
Daisy Lowe flaunts her enviable curves while bringing to life Jean Paul Gaultier’s tattoo bottle design for Diet Coke
The new look is meant to reflect Diet Coke’s approach to fashion, which is all about fun and celebrating the lighter side of life.
Jean Paul Gaultier dressed the Diet Coke bottle, reminiscent of the contour of the female body, in a tattoo in a design which reflected his past fashion collections.
This isn’t the first designer collaboration for Coca-Cola. They’ve been making over the iconic bottles since 2003.
Some big names who have put their designer touch to the label include Karl Largerfeld, Roberto Cavalli, Matthew Williamson and Marni.
The tattoo design is part of a three piece collection Jean Paul Gaultier designed for the brand this summer.
A raunchy teaser for Lindsay Lohan’s latest project, The Canyons, flashes the tagline: “Where the sex is as cheap as the budget… and the only way out is death!”
The grindhouse-style movie – written by Bret Easton Ellis and directed by Paul Schrader – stars Lindsay Lohan as Tara who “sold her pride for material comfort”, alongside X-rated film star James Deen.
Shot in a grainy, retro style, the teaser opens with a couple sitting in a hot tub before getting straight down to business and showing the stars stripping off.
“In The Canyons, Everything Goes”, reads a caption before cutting to a hunky man modeling a pair of silver briefs.
Next, an amorous couple are seen being filmed on a cell phone, but things soon take an ominous turn as a bloody gloved hand is seen picking up the phone and the cameras zooms in on a tearful and terrified looking Lindsay Lohan.
Lindsay Lohan’s character Tara is described as “sweet as sin” while James Deen is rather cheekily described as a ‘huge new talent’ and “the boy next door gone bad”.
Set in Los Angeles, the story centres on the dangers of sexual obsession and ambition, both personally and professionally, among a group of young people in their twenties.
“One chance meeting connected to the past unravels all of their lives, resulting in deceit, paranoia, cruel mind games and ultimately violence,” reads the press release.
Lindsay Lohan and James Deen in The Canyons
The Canyons, largely funded by a Kickstarter campaign, marks a change of direction for the Disney child star who appears fully nude in the movie.
It seems Lindsay Lohan is thrilled with the results however as the latest update on the official Facebook page read: “Showed LL the film tonight. She saw and she understood. What a wonderful moment for her.
“Some tears, some hard words, some kisses but that’s life in Lindsayland. Sometimes the movie gods smile. Sometimes you get lucky. LL and I got lucky.”
And while Lindsay Lohan is seemingly never out of the headlines for all the wrong reasons, Paul Schrader – best known for his screenplays for Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver and Raging Bull – also had nothing by praise for the Mean Girls star.
“Lindsay Lohan is a huge fan of Hollywood glamour and performances from the Golden Era.
“Working with her every day on varied scenes I’ve been making a mental checklist of classic movie performances she’s touched upon,” he wrote on his Facebook page.
“There’s has been a lot of Ann Margaret, some Gena Rowlands and Faye Dunaway and of course some bits of Liz Taylor and Monroe as well as a little Rita Hayworth and even Gene Tierney (although the last may be more my creation than hers).
“Oh yeah, and Angie Dickinson. And Lee Remick. And Shelley Winters…”
Jewish boy next door turned James Deen, real name Bryan Sevilla from Pasadena, was also won over by the star, who is on informal probation for the necklace theft until May 2014.
“Working with her was awesome. She’s super professional. Super great. She’s a fantastic actress,” he gushed.
“I feel like I learned a lot from her. In the scenes we did together, those were my stronger scenes. Working with a really good actress [like Lindsay] that are really talented bring the best out of you.”
Kim Kardashian was caught intimately squeezing boyfriend Kanye West’s backside.
As Kim Kardashian and Kanye West sheltered under an umbrella while walking through Miami, Kim can be seen grabbing onto her beau’s derrière, sinking her pink nails in for fleshy feel.
And while the reality star is hardly known for her understated style, Kim Kardashian rocked an enormous pair of $750 sunglasses by designer Rick Owens on Monday.
Kim Kardashian, 31, posted a photo of herself and Kanye West on Instagram wearing the huge glasses with the caption: “So shady!”
Kim Kardashian was caught intimately squeezing boyfriend Kanye West’s backside
She wore a black leather mini with a silk shirt and a sexy pair of cutaway black heels as she strolled around Florida and later cruised in an all-black Rolls Royce with West.
Kanye West and Kim Kardashian had not been spotted together for several weeks sparking rumors that things between the two were cooling off.
Rapper turned designer Kanye West had been in Paris for Fashion Week, while Kim Kardashian had been in Australia on a promotional tour and Florida filming new episodes of her reality TV show.
But the couple reunited in Miami this week and seemed to be as good as gold as the fashionista was also showing off a new Louis Vuitton clutch purse and cuff bracelet.
2012 Nobel Prize in Physics has been awarded to Serge Haroche of France and David Wineland of the US for their work with light and matter at the most fundamental level.
Serge Haroche and David Wineland will share the prize, worth 8 million Swedish krona ($1.2 million).
Their “quantum optics” work deals with single photons and ions, the basic units of light and matter.
It could lead to advanced modes of communication and computation.
The Nobel citation said the award was for “ground-breaking experimental methods that enable measuring and manipulation of individual quantum systems”.
Light and matter, when the minuscule scales of single particles are reached, behave in surprising ways in a part of physics known as quantum mechanics.
Working with light and matter on this level would have been unthinkable before the pair developed solutions to pick, manipulate and measure photons and ions individually, allowing an insight into a microscopic world that was once just the province of scientific theory.
Their work has implications for light-based clocks far more precise than the atomic clocks at the heart of the world’s business systems, and quantum computing, which may – or may not – revolutionize desktop computing as we know it.
Serge Haroche and David Wineland share 2012 Nobel Prize in Physics
But for physicists, the import of the pair’s techniques is that they preserve the delicate quantum mechanical states of the photons and ions – states that theorists had for decades hoped to measure in the laboratory, putting the ideas of quantum mechanics on a solid experimental footing.
Those include the slippery quantum mechanical ideas of “entanglement” – the seemingly ethereal connection between two distant particles that underpins much work on the “uncrackable codes” of quantum cryptography – and of “decoherence”, in which the quantum nature of a particle slowly slips away through its interactions with other matter.
The prize is the second in quantum optics in recent years; the theory behind decoherence formed part of 2005’s Nobel physics prize citation.
Prof. Serge Haroche was reached by phone from the press conference. He had been told he had won just 20 minutes before telling reporters: “I was lucky – I was in the street and passing near a bench, so I was able to sit down immediately.
“I was walking with my wife going back home and when I saw the… Swedish code, I realized it was real and it’s, you know, really overwhelming.”
The Nobel prizes have been given out annually since 1901, covering the fields of medicine, physics, chemistry, literature, peace and economics.
The first-ever Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to Wilhelm Roentgen of Germany for his discovery of X-rays, and with this year’s winners the total number of recipients has reached 194.
On Monday, the 2012 Nobel Prize for Medicine or Physiology was awarded to John Gurdon from the UK and Shinya Yamanaka from Japan for changing adult cells into stem cells, which can become any other type of cell in the body.
This year’s chemistry prize will be announced on Wednesday, with the literature and peace prizes to be awarded later in the week.
Edward Archbold, the winner of a cockroach-eating competition, died shortly after eating dozens of the live insects and worms in Florida, authorities have said.
Edward Archbold, 32, became ill and collapsed at a pet shop where the contest took place in the city of Deerfield Beach on Friday.
About 30 others competed in the event at the Ben Siegel Reptile Store.
Officials are waiting for the results of an autopsy to determine Edward Archbold’s cause of death.
None of the other contestants became ill afterwards, the sheriff’s office said.
“We feel terribly awful,” said Ben Siegel, the owner of the shop.
“He looked like he just wanted to show off and was very nice,” he said, adding that Edward Archbold did not appear to be ill before the competition.
A lawyer for Ben Siegel said all the contestants had signed disclaimers “accepting responsibility for their participation in this unique and unorthodox contest”.
The grand prize for the winner was a python, and Edward Archbold had planned to sell the snake to a friend who took him to the contest, according to the shop owner.
Felix Baumgartner will attempt to become the first human to break the sound barrier unaided by a vehicle.
The Austrian skydiver is going to jump out of a balloon at more than 120,000ft (36.5 km) above Roswell, New Mexico.
In the near vacuum at that altitude, Felix Baumgartner should accelerate beyond about 690 mph (1,110 km/h) within 40 seconds.
If all goes well, Felix Baumgartner, 43, will open a parachute near the ground to land softly in the desert, 10 minutes later.
The adventurer – famous for jumping off skyscrapers – is under no illusions about the dangers he faces.
Where Felix Baumgartner is going, the air pressure is less than 2% of what it is at sea level, and it is impossible to breathe without an oxygen supply.
Others who have tried to break the existing records for the highest, fastest and longest freefalls have lost their lives in the process.
“If something goes wrong, the only thing that might help you is God,” says Felix Baumgartner.
“Because if you run out of luck, if you run out of skills, there is nothing left and you have to really hope he is not going to let you down.”
Felix Baumgartner will attempt to become the first human to break the sound barrier unaided by a vehicle
Weather permitting, lift-off from Roswell airport should occur about 07:00 local time (13:00 GMT).
The absolute mark for the highest skydive is held by retired US Air Force Col. Joe Kittinger.
He leapt from a balloon at an altitude of 102,800 ft (31.3km) in August 1960.
Now an octogenarian, Joe Kittinger is part of Felix Baumgartner’s team and will be the only voice talking to him over the radio during the two-and-a-half hour ascent and the 10-minute descent.
Engineers have done everything possible to limit the risks. They have built the Austrian a special pressurized capsule to carry him under the helium balloon.
Felix Baumgartner will also be wearing a next-generation, full-pressure suit, an evolution of the orange protective clothing worn by shuttle astronauts on launch.
Although the jump has the appearance of another Felix Baumgartner stunt, his team prefers to stress its high scientific relevance.
The researchers on the Red Bull Stratos project believe it will inform the development of new systems for emergency evacuation from high-performance, high-altitude vehicles. NASA and its spacecraft manufacturers have asked to be kept informed.
There are a few examples of pilots being ejected in supersonic airflows when their planes broke apart in the sky, but there is no detailed data on what happens to the human body as it goes supersonic and then, as it slows, goes subsonic again.
Felix Baumgartner will be instrumented to acquire this new data.
The concern is that he might be destabilized by shockwaves passing over his body, and that these might throw him into an uncontrolled spin.
“It’s very important he gets into a delta position,” said Felix Baumgartner’s trainer, Luke Aikins.
“This is hands at his side and his head low, ripping through the sky. This will be crucial to breaking the speed of sound and remaining stable.”
Engineers have incorporated an automatic device in his gear that would deploy a drogue stabilization chute if he gets into trouble. But the team’s medical director, former shuttle flight surgeon Dr. Jon Clark, hopes the stiffness of the pressure suit itself will suffice.
“We know that pressure suits limit mobility which we often consider as a bad thing, but in this scenario of going through the sound barrier, it actually adds a protection because it acts like an exoskeleton,” he explained.
“We don’t know what the human will endure accelerating through the sound barrier in coming back down without the aid of aircraft. And that is really the essence of the scientific goal of this mission.”
There is high confidence Felix Baumgartner will succeed in his quest. He has already completed practice jumps from 71,600 ft (21.8 km) and 97,100ft (29.6 km).
The second of these jumps he described as an extraordinary experience.
“It’s almost overwhelming,” he said.
“When you’re standing there in a pressure suit, the only thing that you hear is yourself breathing, and you can see the curvature of the Earth; you can see the sky’s totally black. It’s kind of an awkward view because you’ve never seen a black sky. And at that moment, you realize you’ve accomplished something really big.”
A suite of high-definition cameras will follow the action. Some of these will be attached to Felix Baumgartner himself.
But wary of broadcasting a tragedy to worldwide TV audiences, the organizers will be putting a 20-second delay on the live video feed.
Four GPS systems in the suit will gather the dive data required to satisfy the Federation Aeronautique Internationale (FAI) that records have indeed been broken.
“The data is recorded on an SD microcard in his chest pack,” said Brian Utley, who will file the official report to the FAI after the jump.
“I insert that card into the equipment. From that moment on, I have control over the equipment. I’m with it until Felix goes into the capsule, and when he lands I am the first person to approach him so I can take possession of that card again.”
A BBC/National Geographic documentary is being made about the project and will probably be aired in November.
Finnish researchers have found that a diet rich in tomatoes may reduce the risk of having a stroke.
They were investigating the impact of lycopene – a bright red chemical found in tomatoes, peppers and water-melons.
A study of 1,031 men, published in the journal Neurology, showed those with the most lycopene in their bloodstream were the least likely to have a stroke.
The Stroke Association called for more research into why lycopene seemed to have this effect.
The levels of lycopene in the blood were assessed at the beginning of the study, which then followed the men for the next 12 years.
They were split into four groups based on the amount of lycopene in their blood. There were 25 strokes in the 258 men in the low lycopene group and 11 strokes out of the 259 men in the high lycopene group.
The study said the risk of stroke was cut by 55% by having a diet rich in lycopene.
Dr. Jouni Karppi, from the University of Eastern Finland in Kuopio, said: “This study adds to the evidence that a diet high in fruits and vegetables is associated with a lower risk of stroke.
“The results support the recommendation that people get more than five servings of fruits and vegetables a day, which would likely lead to a major reduction in the number of strokes worldwide, according to previous research.”
He said lycopene acted as an antioxidant, reduced inflammation and prevented blood clotting.
Athens is tightening its security ahead of a visit by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, her first since the eurozone crisis erupted nearly three years ago.
Some 7,000 police officers are on duty, public gatherings are banned in certain areas of the city and protesters have been warned to “protect the peace”.
The visit comes as Greece bids to pass new cuts of 13 billion euros ($17 billion) to qualify for more bailout cash.
Analysts say Angela Merkel is regarded by many Greeks as the author of austerity.
While Germany has contributed the most money in the bailing out of Greece, its chancellor is held responsible for demanding that Greece make swingeing cuts in exchange for the financing it has received.
Analysts say Angela Merkel is regarded by many Greeks as the author of austerity
Speaking on Monday, Jean-Claude Juncker, chairman of the Eurogroup finance ministers of the eurozone, raised the pressure on Greece, calling on the government to demonstrate it could implement planned reforms “by 18 October at the latest” to qualify for the next bailout installment of 31.5 billion euros.
He was speaking as the eurozone’s new permanent fund to bail out struggling economies and banks was formally launched at the finance ministers’ meeting.
There has been growing unrest in Greece at the planned new cutbacks.
Police have banned protests on Tuesday in much of central Athens, and within a 100-metre (110-yard) radius of the route Angela Merkel’s motorcade will travel – although two planned protests elsewhere in the city will go ahead.
On Monday, public order minister Nikos Dendias appealed to protesters to “protect the peace, and above all our country’s prospects and our international image”, Reuters news agency reported.
Angela Merkel, a target for popular dissent, will be in Athens for about six hours, and will have talks with Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras.
The meeting is a gamble.
If there is chaos on the streets, it will only underline for the German public that Greece is a lost cause.
But Angela Merkel’s visit – her first to Greece in five years – is sending a symbolic message that she wants Greece to stay in the eurozone.
Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund said on Monday that the global economic recovery was weakening, with government policies having failed to restore confidence.
It added that the risk of further deterioration in the economic outlook was “considerable” and had increased.
North Korea says it has missiles that can hit the United States mainland, in a statement two days after South Korea unveiled a missile deal with the US.
The North Korean statement said US bases in “Japan, Guam and the US mainland” were within its “scope of strike”.
It follows Seoul’s announcement on Sunday that it would almost triple the range of its own missile system.
Pyongyang is thought to be working on a long-range missile, but two recent rocket tests ended in failure.
North Korea’s neighbors said the failed rocket launches – in April 2009 and April 2012 – were tests related to the development of the long-range Taepodong-2 missile system.
The system, which analysts believe is intended to put the US mainland within striking range, has not yet been tested successfully.
North Korea routinely issues strong rhetoric against Seoul and Washington.
But the Communist state does possess an array of short- and medium-range missiles, as well as artillery pointed towards South Korea.
The statement, carried by state-run KCNA news agency and attributed to North Korea’s National Defence Commission, said Pyongyang would match any enemy “nuclear for nuclear, missile for missile”.
It added that the missile deal between the US and South Korea was “another conspiracy of the master and the stooge to push the situation on the Korean Peninsula to the extreme… and ignite a war”.
On Sunday, South Korea announced it had reached an agreement with the US on extending the range of its ballistic missiles.
Under a previous security deal with the US, it had been restricted to missiles with a range of 300 km (186 miles). The new deal extends that range to 800 km.
National Security Adviser Chun Yung-woo said the aim was to curb “military provocations by North Korea”.
The two Koreas remain technically at war following the 1950-53 Korean War, which ended in an armistice.
The US has more than 28,000 troops in South Korea and provides security guarantees for its ally.
Fourteen McDonald’s employees from Baltimore are suing co-worker Mirlande Wilson for allegedly stealing more than $100 million in lottery winnings from a ticket that they say they had purchased together.
The lawsuit claims that Mirlande Wilson bought a winning lottery ticket with the group’s pooled money and then avoided giving them their payouts – even though she never actually claimed the Mega Millions jackpot award.
Mirlande Wilson, 37, briefly won TV and Internet fame in April for claiming to have won a ticket for the Mega Millions jackpot, which totaled $656 million at the time, and then failing to produce the winning ticket. She eventually claimed that she had misplaced it.
Days after Mirlande Wilson claimed to have lost the ticket, three public school workers including two teachers and an administrator came forward with a winning ticket to claim their prize. The winners, who chose to remain anonymous, each received between $30 million and $40 million after taxes.
Mirlande Wilson briefly won TV and Internet fame in April for claiming to have won a ticket for the Mega Millions jackpot
The lawsuit against Mirlande Wilson claims that she had never lost the ticket, but that she gave it to the public school workers in order to split the prize money among fewer people.
One of the plaintiffs, Dominique Gordet, says he was Mirlande Wilson’s live-in boyfriend at the time and that she confessed the elaborate scheme to him.
“Since that time, defendant Wilson has repeatedly admitted that those individuals were mere nominees, on her behalf, and that arrangements had been made to ensure that she would later receive nearly all the lottery proceeds,” the lawsuit states.
The plaintiffs said they gave Mirlande Wilson more than $75 to buy lottery tickets at a Shell gas station near the McDonald’s where they worked.
“On information and belief, she purchased, or caused another to purchase, additional tickets, including the winning ticket at a 7-11 convenience store in Baltimore County. These additional tickets were purchased by virtue of additional monies being paid into the pool after the first purchase.”
News of the lawsuit was first reported by the Baltimore Sun.
Maryland lottery officials say there is no evidence of fraud in the Mega Millions winnings.
Mitt Romney won the first presidential debate in Denver by a whopping 52-point margin according to Gallup.
The result is the most resounding margin since the polling giant began tracking debates 20 years ago.
In results published today, three times more people thought Mitt Romney did a better job than Barack Obama in last week’s so-called Duel in Denver presidential debate, according to the polling giants.
The poll about the Wednesday night’s debate in Denver, watched by 67 million people, was conducted on Thursday and Friday. Of those who watched, 72% thought Mitt Romney did a better job compared to 20% for Barack Obama.
Even among Democrats, 49% thought Mitt Romney was the winner with only 39% of Barack Obama’s own party stating that he was victorious.
The previous largest margin was 42 points for Bill Clinton over President George H.W. Bush in the 1992 town hall debate in which Bush famously looked at his watch and Clinton proved masterful in expressing empathy for ordinary voters.
At the same time, Gallup detected a five-point national poll swing from Barack Obama to Mitt Romney, putting the two candidates on level pegging at 47 percentage points each over the three days after the debate and halting the movements towards Obama since the Democratic convention.
Meanwhile, the respected Pew Research Center reported the most dramatic shift in a national poll during the entire general election campaign, with Mitt Romney’s fortunes improving in almost every respect. The center reported also pulling even with Barack Obama on 46%.
His personal image has improved with favorable rating hitting 50% registered voters for the first time in a Pew survey and up five points since September. At the same, Barack Obama’s personal favorability has dropped six points to 49%.
Pew found that Mitt Romney made substantial gains over the past month among women, whites and those younger than 50. He even drew level among women, where Barack Obama has held a clear advantage for months and by 18 points a month ago.
The debate survey is a welcome turnaround for Mitt Romney from the Gallup poll taken after the Republican convention that found his speech was the worst received of all major party nominees stretching back to Bob Dole, the GOP candidate in 1996. Some 37% of people found Mitt Romney speech “Ok”, “poor” or “terrible”.
Pew registered a 46% margin of victory in the debate for Mitt Romney with 66% of registered voters saying he did the better job in Denver and 20% saying Obama prevailed.
Immediately after the debate, a snap CNN poll found that 67% believed Mitt Romney won compared to 25% who said Barack Obama was the victory. Another instant poll by CBS gave Mitt Romney 46%, 22% for Barack Obama and 32% a tie.
Jack Osbourne has married Lisa Stelly in an “emotional and fun-filled” Hawaiian ceremony.
TV star Jack Osbourne, 26, wed the model-and-actress Lisa Stelly on the Kona-Kohala coast of West Hawaii yesterday.
The nuptials were witnessed by 48 guests, including the couple’s six-month-old daughter Pearl, Jack’s famous parents Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne, sister Kelly Osbourne – who was a bridesmaid – and her boyfriend Matthew Mosshart.
In a statement the UK’s Hello magazine, which has bought the rights to cover the wedding, said the ceremony was “emotional and fun-filled”.
Jack Osbourne has married Lisa Stelly in an emotional and fun-filled Hawaiian ceremony
Although it was speculated last week that the couple – who got engaged last September – were to marry over the weekend, Jack Osbourne took to twitter to play down the reports.
Jack Osbourne wrote: “I love how going to Hawaii with my mum for her 60th has turned into my wedding. Hahaha people are funny.”
The happy news comes months after Jack Osbourne revealed he had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis soon after Pearl’s birth.
He said recently: “Honestly, I’m fine. Ultimately that is the toughest thing with this disease that I’m learning, one minute you can be fine, and the next I went blind in my right eye.
“It’s a completely unpredictable disease.”
Lisa Stelly added: “I think me and Jack are doing better than everyone else, honestly.
“We’re just really trying to stay positive and we don’t really have much time to be sad, because we have diapers to change and a little girl to look at and smile at.
Jennifer Aniston revealed her engagement in August but carefully kept the ring under wraps – until now.
The actress’ huge diamond was hard to miss on Saturday as she appeared in an affectionate display with her fiancé Justin Theroux.
They were spotted out in Santa Fe at the weekend, enjoying a break in the New Mexico region.
Jennifer Aniston was taking well-deserved hiatus from her latest project, We’re the Millers, which has been filming in Albuquerque.
Jennifer Aniston’s huge diamond was hard to miss on Saturday as she appeared in an affectionate display with her fiancé Justin Theroux
As the pair left their accommodation, the blonde bombshell, 43, flaunted her huge jewellery piece as she caressed her partner’s face, prompting him to smile.
The stone glimmered as she stroked Justin Theroux’s arm which was covered in his signature leather jacket.
He donned black jeans, biker boots and scarf with cool aviator shades.
And Justin Theroux was quite the gentleman as he carried out their luggage leaving the former Friends star to simply look stunning.
Jennifer Aniston also fashioned jeans and scarf, which she held in her hand, enabling her diamond to be all the more noticeable.
The couple announced their engagement in August after Justin popped the question on his 41st birthday.
She was spotted wearing a thin gold band shortly after, but this is the first sighting of the huge diamond.
Meanwhile, the pair is reported to have chosen their holiday destination as their wedding location.
A source told OK! Magazine:“Jen has fallen in love with New Mexico, it has a very relaxed vibe that fits both her and Justin perfectly, so it would be a great place for them to have the wedding.”
