Yasmin Chaudhry, a young mother from Norway, drowned her baby daughter in a bucket while her boyfriend watched live on Skype.
Yasmin Chaudhry, 26, killed the one-year-old girl by plunging her into a bucket of water during a 3:00 a.m. Skype video call with her British partner.
The mother said she had just wanted to discipline her baby for waking up and “disobeying her”.
Yasmin Chaudhry called an ambulance and initially told paramedics that the baby had fallen into the bucket by accident.
The little girl was unconscious when the paramedics arrived and was pronounced dead the next day, in October 2010.
Yasmin Chaudhry was initially arrested on suspicion of negligence because of inconsistencies in the stories she gave to police and the paramedics, but is now facing a preliminary charge of murder.
“This has been a long investigation and she eventually admitted it to us in October 2011,” said Norwegian police prosecutor Kristin Rusdal.
“She said it was done to discipline the child. She had been holding her under water.
“She had discussed the discipline with this friend, with whom she had a relationship. They met online and had met in person only once.”
Yasmin Chaudhry claimed that her boyfriend – who is not the child’s father – told her to do it.
Both of them deny wanting to kill the baby.
The British man has not yet been named because his name does not appear in any of the court documents published in Norway.
Kristin Rusdal confirmed a preliminary murder charge had been filed against the British man and said police were discussing extradition.
Officers from Oslo flew to UK just before Christmas to question the boyfriend with the help of Scotland Yard.
“We could issue a formal request to the British authorities to see if they wan to investigate the case, but because it is so closely tied to our investigation we would like to see them together,” said Kristin Rusdal.
Yasmin Chaudhry’s five-year-old son was taken into care following the horrific episode in October 2010.
Yesterday, Yasmin Chaudhry was remanded until February 4.
The baby’s father now lives in Pakistan after splitting with the mother.
Yasmin Chaudhry’s lawyer said: “He is, of course, very shocked.”
At the end of 2011 internet rumours claimed Beyonce had given birth to her baby girl, but the pregnant singer has been seen today for the first time since the speculation began.
Beyonce has been exclusively pictured stroking her tummy as she was escorted out of a New York office building by a body guard.
The 30-year-old singer, who was dressed in skinny jeans and a blazer, used a huge patterned scarf to cover her stomach.
Beyonce was wearing gold heels, albeit much lower than her usual six inch favourites.
Beyonce has been exclusively pictured stroking her tummy as she was escorted out of a New York office building by a body guard
It was the first time Beyonce has been pictured since December 21 but witnesses had spotted the star celebrating New Year’s Eve with her husband Jay-Z at Buttermilk Channel in Brooklyn, New York.
Her younger sibling Solange, 25, confirmed her sister was very much still pregnant when the clock struck midnight.
Solange tweeted: “Shout out to my sister for being THE cutest pregnant woman ever!”
Baby rumours reached fever pitch on December 30 with reports that Beyoncé had given welcomed a daughter called Tiana May Carter.
The news came after reports suggested that staff at St Luke’s Roosevelt Hospital – a private facility in New York – had been told to prepare for a VIP arrival.
A 4-year-old boy – who historians believe could have been Adolf Hitler – was saved from drowning in the icy waters of the River Inn in Passau, Germany, in January 1894.
The story has surfaced from a newspaper report chronicling how the little boy was saved from drowning in a German archive.
Max Tremmel, a priest who went on to become one of Europe’s most famous organists, said his predecessor Johann Kuehberger had rescued the terrified Hitler.
Father Max Tremmel told before his death in 1980 how Father Johann Kuehberger, around the same age as Hitler, had seen the other boy struggling in the waters of the River Inn and dived in to rescue him.
The story was never verified by Hitler during his lifetime. But now a small cutting from the Donauzeitung – Danube newspaper – of 1894 has been found in Passau.
The report described how a “determined comrade” – the paper at the time was left-wing – went into the freezing water to save the boy who would grow into mankind’s biggest monster.
Father Johann Kuehberger saved 4-year-old Adolf Hitler from drowning in the icy waters of River Inn of Passau in 1984
The near-drowning episode also featured in a German book called “Out of Passau- Leaving a City Hitler Called Home” by Anna Elisabeth Rosmus, a personal history of her family’s connections with it.
Anna Elisabeth Rosmus wrote: “The banks of the River Inn provided an idyllic setting for the children to play.
“In 1894, while playing tag with a group of other children, the way many children do in Passau to this day, Adolf fell into the river.
“The current was very strong and the water ice cold, flowing as it did straight from the mountains.
“Luckily for young Adolf, the son of the owner of the house where he lived was able to pull him out in time and so saved his life.”
Hitler would, as a young man and later among his generals, tell stories of how he played cowboys and Indians on the banks of the river but he never once related the near-drowning tale.
“In Passau, however, everyone knew the story. Some of the other stories told about him were that he never learned to swim and needed glasses,” the writer said.
No name is given for the child in the old Passau newspaper but historians believe it gives credence to Father Max Tremmel`s claim that it was indeed Hitler.
Later this month, Bavarian Radio is to run a news feature programme on the incident.
Called “If Hitler had drowned. The legend of a fatal lifesaving” will feature several elderly Passau residents confirming that they heard the story of Hitler’s near-brush with death as they grew up in the city.
It is likely that Hitler airbrushed the incident out of his life history.
Being rescued by a boy who went on to represent a religion he despised would not have sat well with the myth Hitler had built around himself of being called by destiny to save Germany.
At least 10 people have been killed and 46 have been injured in a suicide attack on a district in central Damascus, Syria, according to the state media.
National state TV showed pictures of the blood-spattered streets of Midan district following the attack, which it blamed on “terrorists”.
Two weeks ago 44 people died in similar blasts the authorities also blamed on terrorists. Opposition activists accused the government of staging them.
Arab League monitors are in Syria on a month-long observer mission.
They are trying to ensure compliance with a peace plan, but activists say a Syrian government crackdown has continued, with scores of people killed.
At least 10 people have been killed and 46 have been injured in a suicide attack on a district in central Damascus, Syria
A resident of Midan – the scene of reported anti-government protests in recent weeks – told Reuters news agency that ambulances were in the area.
Most foreign correspondents have been barred from reporting within Syria itself.
“Immediate information indicates that a suicide terrorist blew himself up at a traffic light in the Midan neighbourhood,” Reuters news agency quoted state television as saying.
According to state TV, at least 10 people are confirmed dead with authorities fearing the toll could rise to 25 and state news agency Sana said 46 had been injured.
According to Syrian authorities, most of those killed were civilians, but some security personnel were among the casualties.
TV pictures showed the shattered blood-splattered windows of what appeared to be a bus carrying policemen.
The Syrian government blamed a similar bombing two weeks ago on al-Qaeda, but no proof has been offered. Damascus blames the wider protests and violence in the country on Islamist militants.
Many observers are skeptical of those claims and opposition groups accuse the Syrian leadership of staging the blasts to try to influence Arab League observers, who are in the country to monitor the ongoing violence.
The Arab League mission has been criticized by opposition groups for failing to stem government violence and even for failing to report accurately the situation in Syria.
Burhan Ghalioun – the head of the main opposition group, the Syrian National Council – said he feared the observers could be providing political cover for the regime to suppress street protests.
Opposition activists have urged Syrians to take to the streets in mass protests ahead of an Arab League meeting in Cairo on Sunday, which will debate the initial findings of the observer mission.
A 15-year-old girl from Iowa, who was vacationing with her family on a Royal Caribbean cruise liner for Christmas, has accused two fellow passengers of raping her on the ship.
Luiz Scavone, 20, and another 15-year-old boy are accused of luring the teenager from a teen nightclub on the ship to a private room where the incident is said to have occurred.
Both suspects, Brazilian nationals, were arrested when the ship returned to Port Everglades, Florida on Tuesday.
According to the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports, the girl’s family departed Fort Lauderdale on Christmas for a ten-day cruise to St Thomas, St Maarten, St Kitts and Haiti aboard Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas.
Luiz Scavone, 20, and another 15-year-old boy are accused of luring the girl from a teen nightclub on the ship to a private room where the incident is said to have occurred
The girl told police she met the 15-year-old boy on the last night of the cruise at an on-board teen club called Fuel, and he invited her to a party in his private room, where Luiz Scavone was waiting.
According to arrest documents, both males refused to allow her to leave and raped her.
The girl immediately reported the alleged incident to ship officials, who alerted the FBI. Both suspects were arrested once the ship returned to Port Everglades.
Luiz Scavone is accused of one count of committing a lewd and lascivious act.
Appearing in court on Wednesday, Luiz Scavone’s bond was set at $10,000. He was being held at the Broward County Main Jail on Wednesday pending an immigration hold.
According to the probable cause affidavit obtained by the Sentinel, the second defendant was charged with lewd and lascivious battery and taken to Broward’s Juvenile Assessment Center.
Cynthia Martinez, the manager of Global Corporate Communications for Royal Caribbean, said in a statement: “Royal Caribbean’s guest care team offered the female guest a variety of assistance, including medical care and counseling.”
Cynthia Martinez said Royal Caribbean “will continue to support law enforcement agencies during their investigation”.
International maritime law states that cruise ships must take every measure possible to ensure the safety of their passengers. However, since each country has its own version of laws on the high seas, they can be difficult to sort out.
There is no federal law for statutory rape on the high seas.
This isn’t the first case of an alleged underage sexual assault seen aboard a cruise liner in recent memory.
The incident comes only weeks after a Carnival Cruise Lines employee was accused of sexually abusing a 14-year-old girl who was on holiday with her family.
And only ten days prior, 19-year-old Dylan Cole Bloodsworth, from Alabama, was sentenced to ten years in prison for raping a 13-year-old girl on-board a Carnival cruise ship in Mexico, where she was vacationing with her family.
The brain’ skills can start to decline as early as 45, much earlier than previously thought, suggests a study published in the British Medical Journal.
A major study shows the brain’s capacity for memory, reasoning and comprehension starts waning in middle age rather than in the 60s.
Researchers say the finding is important because younger people should be encouraged to boost their brain power with healthier living, while some may benefit from medicines to stave off further decline.
Centre for Research in Epidemiology and Population Health in France and University College London in the UK studied more than 7,000 people over a 10-year period.
The study participants were civil servants aged between 45 and 70 working in London when cognitive testing began in 1997 to 1999.
Cognitive function was measured three times over 10 years to assess memory, vocabulary, hearing and visual comprehension skills.
Tasks included recalling in writing as many words beginning with the letter S as possible and as many animal names as could be thought of.
All cognitive scores, except vocabulary, declined among all age groups during the study, and there was evidence of faster decline among older people.
The brain' skills can start to decline as early as 45, much earlier than previously thought, suggests a study published in the British Medical Journal
The study found that, in men group, there was a 3.6% drop in reasoning after 10 years among those who were aged 45 to 49 at the start of the study and 9.6% among those aged 65 to 70. In women group, the decline was 3.6% and 7.4% in the same age groups.
Dr. Archana Singh-Manoux, who led the study, said there had been debate over when mental skills started failing, with some researchers concluding there was little evidence of problems before 60.
But this was disproved by the study findings, she added.
Dr. Archana Singh-Manoux said: “Cognitive decline is already evident in middle age, between 45-49 years.
“The results for all tests, except vocabulary, showed significant declines in all age categories in both men and women.”
The study says diseases such as dementia are believed to take at least 20 to 30 years to develop but promoting healthy lifestyles and good heart health could help.
“There is emerging consensus that ‘what is good for our hearts is also good for our heads, making aggressive control of behavioural and cardiovascular risk factors as early as possible key targets for clinical practice and public health” it said.
Medicines and other medical interventions are more likely to work at an earlier age, so could be used in people whose cognitive decline is faster than the average, it said.
Previous research suggests around half of people with diagnosed mild cognitive impairment (MCI) develop Alzheimer’s.
In cases of MCI, a person has cognitive or memory problems which are more marked than typical age-related memory loss, but not yet as severe as those found in Alzheimer’s disease.
Dr. Anne Corbett, research manager of the Alzheimer’s Society in UK, said: “This large, important study adds vital information to the debate over when cognitive decline begins.
“However, the study does not tell us whether any of these people went on to develop dementia, nor how feasible it would be for GPs to detect these early changes.
“More research is now needed to help us fully understand how measurable changes in the brain can help us improve diagnosis of dementia.
“An early diagnosis is essential as it can provide access to support and potential treatments which can vastly improve people’s quality of life.”
Kim Kardashian took the Twitter and unveiled a photo promoting her new perfume and has made it clear that she was inspired by Hollywood icon Elizabeth Taylor.
Kim Kardashian, 31, tells her fans that she is “channeling [sic] ElizabethTay [sic]” in her True Reflection ad campaign.
The reality star has smokey-eye and wears a silver, sleeveless dress with a plunging neckline.
It is the second photo that she has posted online from the upcoming promotion.
Kim Kardashian tweets: “Another pic from my True Reflection fragrance ad campaign…ultra glam!
“LOVE red lips! #Channeling ElizabethTay.”
Kim Kardashian unveiled a photo promoting her new perfume True Reflection inspired by Hollywood icon Elizabeth Taylor
She has made no secret of her love of Elizabeth Taylor, who died at the age of 79 in March 2011.
At the end of the last year, Kim Kardashian spent $65,000 at a Christie’s auction to buy a set of three gold and jade Lorraine Schwartz bangles once owned by Elizabeth Taylor.
Kim Kardashian was one of the final people to interview Elizabeth Taylor in an article that was published in the March issue of US Harper’s Bazaar.
She said to the Oscar-winner: “You are my idol.
“But I’m six husbands and some big jewels behind. What should I do?”
Elizabeth Taylor told her: “I never planned to acquire a lot of jewels or a lot of husbands.
“For me, life happened, just as it does for anyone else.”
Kim Kardashian’s Twitter followers obviously agree that she has captured the spirit of the Cleopatra star.
One fan tweeted: “@Kim Kardashian is the modern day Elizabeth Taylor! Those pictures are timeless.”
Earlier Kim Kardashian posted another picture from the photo shoot, this time a side shot in which she is wearing a pale pink lipstick.
The reality star told her fans: “That was a pic from my new fragrance ad campaign True Reflection, which comes out this spring!
“It is so different than my other fragrances!”
Kim Kardashian has just returned to Los Angeles after a brief trip to Dallas, where she visited her sister Khloe, who moved to Texas with her husband, basketball player Lamar Odom.
The couple relocated after Lamar Odom was transferred from the LA Lakers to the Dallas Mavericks.
A new radioactive cream can obliterate tumours caused by the most common skin cancers without surgery or conventional radiotherapy in just two hours.
According to Italian scientists, the new technique has minimal side effects and the treatment does not even leave a scar.
The vast majority of those who suffer the less dangerous forms have surgery to remove the affected tissue.
Other treatments include radiotherapy and “freezing” of the tumours if they are small and superficial.
An estimated 3% of patients have deep tumours which are difficult to remove surgically because they are on sensitive areas such as the eyes, nose or ears. Others cannot have surgery due to age or medical conditions.
These patients are given radiotherapy, which involves at least ten sessions at a hospital and often results in serious side-effects.
For the new technique, the researchers harnessed rhenium-188, a radioactive isotope which was previously rare and expensive but is now being supplied in quantities large enough to treat thousands of patients a week by nuclear physicists at the British-funded Institut Laue-Langevin in France.
The treatment, which is said to be painless, involves putting a piece of surgical foil on the tumour area, painting on the radioactive paste and removing it one or two hours later.
Researchers believe that the radiation causes healthy skin to re-grow, so there is no scarring.
In the Italian trial, 85% of patients were cured after one treatment and up to 95% after three treatments.
Oliver Buck, chief executive of the German technology firm ITM which developed the therapy, said: “This means that patients with large and difficult-to-treat tumours not only have hope but keep their quality of life under what would otherwise be dire conditions.
“These people sometimes have to go through horrible surgery which removes part of their face. By contrast this treatment is generally done in a single non-invasive session.”
Trials are now being held in Germany and Australia, and Oliver Buck believes the treatment could be licensed in the UK within two years. He says it will “certainly” be cheaper than current therapies.
Oliver Buck said: “The radiation does not affect surrounding tissue and also seems to activate the body’s healing mechanisms.”
He stressed that surgery remains the “gold standard” as it removes all the cancerous tissue but said those who cannot have it for various reasons could benefit.
Twins Roku and Hex are the world’s first chimeric monkeys, who have been created with genetic material from six “parents” at Oregon Health and Science University in the U.S.
The monkeys’ birth has caused an ethical storm, with critics accusing scientists of disregarding the welfare of the animals.
Named after the fire-breathing creature in Greek mythology composed of parts of multiple animals, chimeras are organisms made up of cells from two or more genetically distinct sources.
Twins Roku and Hex, whose respective names come from the Japanese and Greek for “six”, have been created with genetic material from six monkeys.
Researchers extracted cells from six macaque embryos and combined them into a single embryo in a laboratory before implanting it into a surrogate mother monkey.
Twins Roku and Hex are the world’s first chimeric monkeys, who have been created with genetic material from six “parents” at Oregon Health and Science University
Three male babies were born using this process – Roku and Hex, who are twins, and Chimero.
However, to reach this stage, dozens more embryos were experimented on, and some surrogate pregnancies were aborted.
While most animals only contain cells in which the genetic material from their two parents has mixed together, the chimeric monkeys’ bodies contain six different types of cell – holding distinct DNA from each biological parent.
Although many mice and some rabbits, rats and farm animals have been born this way, no one has created chimeric monkeys before.
The researchers say that Roku and Hex are healthy and that their birth opens up “enormous” possibilities for science because of monkeys’ intelligence and close biological links to humans.
They say the technique could help us learn more about IVF and contraception, and growing human organs from scratch.
Critics of the study, published in the journal Cell, say that techniques such as these take a high toll on animal welfare and question what sort of experiments the monkeys will be put through in future.
The British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection (BUAV) called the research “deeply disturbing”.
Dr. Jarrod Bailey, the organization’s scientific consultant, said: “Using such highly sentient animals in this research raises enormous ethical concerns and imposes a heavy welfare burden, resulting in severe suffering to many animals.
“As few genetically modified animals show the <<desired>> characteristics, many will be killed even before any research can take place, while others will die of severe and unrelated malformations caused by the genetic modifications.
“The monkeys who do exhibit characteristics of ‘interest’ are destined to suffer greatly by their very nature, and via the experiments to which they will be subjected.
“The cells never fuse, but they stay together and work together to form tissues and organs,” said lead scientist Dr. Shoukhrat Mitalipov, from the Oregon National Primate Centre.
The UCLA researchers have found that a chemical from an ancient herbal remedy, seeds from the tree Hovenia Dulcis, makes rats almost immune to the effects of alcohol.
According to researchers, the rats who’ve consumed the drug can consume vast quantities of alcohol without passing out, show few signs of a hangover – and don’t become alcoholics, even after weeks of solid drinking.
The chemical is extracted from an ancient Asian remedy – a seed first used as a hangover cure in the year 659.
Researchers say that rats respond to alcohol in a very similar way to humans.
They now aim to find out if the compound will work in humans.
The Asian seeds from the tree Hovenia Dulcis were first used as a hangover cure in the year 659, according to ScienceDaily.
The researchers began their study by looking at herbal compounds that supposedly had “anti alcohol” effects.
They rapidly homed in on the Asian seed and tested one ingredient – called dihydromyricetin (DHM) in the rats.
The rats were given the equivalent of 15 to 20 bottled beers in two hours.
Most animals passed out, and remained motionless when flipped over.
When given DHM, the rats could “handle” their drink better. They took longer to get drunk, and seemed to sober up in about 15 minutes.
The compound seemed to help rats dealing with hangover anxiety, too.
Rats recovering from a binge seemed to perk up when given the compound.
Perhaps most importantly for medical professionals, the chemical seems to stop rats wanting to drink.
Although rats on DHM can drink more, they don’t.
“When you drink alcohol with DHM, you never become addicted,” says the lead researcher, Jing Liang in research published in Journal of Neuroscience.
The drug appears to work by blocking a brain receptor. Other promising anti-alcohol drugs have targeted the same receptor – but also caused seizures.
Scientists from McGill University, Canada, have created the “supersoldier” ants with huge heads and jaws by activating ancient genes.
Researchers believe the monster ants may be a genetic throwback to an ancestor that lived millions of years ago.
Scientists say they can create the supersoldiers at will by dabbing normal ant larvae with a special hormone – the larvae then develop into supersoldiers rather than normal soldier or worker ants.
Supersoldier ants can occur naturally in the wild, but only rarely. In the deserts of America and Mexico, their job is to protect the colony from raids by invading army ants.
Scientists say they can create the supersoldiers at will by dabbing normal ant larvae with a special hormone - the larvae then develop into supersoldiers rather than normal soldier or worker ants
he supersoldiers use their enormous heads to block the nest entrance and attack any enemy ants that get too close.
Scientists showed that ordinary ants of the species Pheidole morrisi contain all the genetic “tools” needed to turn them into supersoldiers – they just need a hormonal push.
The research is reported today in the journal Science.
Authors Dr. Rajendhran Rajakumar, from McGill University, and colleagues wrote: “We uncovered an ancestral development potential to produce a novel supersoldier subcaste that has been retained throughout a hyperdiverse ant genus that evolved 35 to 60 million years ago.”
The results suggest that holding on to ancestral development toolkits may play an important role in evolving new physical traits, say the researchers.
Nguyen Duy Hai from Vietnam has come through a 12-hour operation to remove a 198 lb tumour from his right leg
Nguyen Duy Hai from Vietnam has come through a 12-hour operation to remove a 198 lb tumour from his right leg.
Nguyen Duy Hai, 32, is said to be in a stable condition after the surgery at the France-Vietnam hospital in Ho Chi Minh City.
Leading U.S. surgeon McKay McKinnon led the eight-strong team who began operating on Nguyen Duy Hai’s leg at 8:55 a.m. local time this morning.
The surgeons didn’t finish until 9:15 p.m.
Dr. McKay McKinnon, who has successfully removed other large tumours in his 30-year career, had been positive about the surgery despite it carrying just a 50% success rate.
Speaking to Tuoitrenews, a Vietnamese website, before the procedure, Dr. McKay McKinnon said it was essential for his team to take out the “nidus” or origin of the tumour to stop the growth returning.
Nguyen Duy Hai suffers from neurofibromatosis, a disease that causes disfiguring tumors to form on nerves throughout the body.
The tumour began growing when Nguyen Duy Hai was a boy and is thought to be the biggest ever recorded in Vietnam.
Over the year it has grown from the base of his spine, snaking up his back and around his thighs.
It is intertwined with bloody vessels making cutting it away potentially deadly.
The strain on Nguyen Duy Hai’s already weakened heart was also a risk. To combat this, the team decided to keep him upright throughout the operation.
While the tumour is not cancerous, its sheer mass means it absorbs vital blood and nutrients from Nguyen Duy Hai’s body, making it weak.
Dr. McKay McKinnon agreed to waive his fee for the operation while the remaining costs of around VND 252million (around $12,000) has been raised by family and well wishers at home and abroad.
Nguyen Duy Hai’s family wept after being told he had survived the operation.
They had been anxious after an attempt to remove the tumour in 1997 was unsuccessful. Doctors had been forced to amputate Nguyen Duy Hai’s right leg below the knee.
Speaking before the operation Nguyen Duy Hai told Tuoitre News, a Vietnamese website: “It’s common for people to fear death, and I’m no exception.
“But when I heard Dr McKinnon had decided to come back to Vietnam one more time to give me a new life, I became more hopeful.”
Dr. McKay McKinnon successfully operated on a similar size tumour growing out of a Michigan woman in 1999.
He said this patient was older and in worse shape than Nguyen Duy Hai, but came through the operation and is now leading a normal life.
“She survived that surgery after 50 units of blood transfusion,” Dr. McKay McKinnon told Tuoitre News.
“She was in the hospital for about six weeks, and required physical therapy for about a year.”
Despite Nguyen Duy Hai’s operation being a success the healing process will not be an easy one.
An infection on the large open wound could easily kill him and he will later have to endure multiple skin grafts and reconstruction operations.
Nguyen Duy Hai will also be in intensive care for weeks and will then have to undergo physiotherapy for months.
Scientists at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, have found that by simply cutting calories, one person will lose body fat, regardless of the ratio of protein and carbohydrate consumed.
The study showed that people gained similar levels of fat no matter how much – or how little – protein they consumed.
Researchers studied the effects of protein in diet on a group of 25 people.
The participants were divided into three groups, the first was given a daily diet that was 6% protein, the second 15%, and the third, 26%.
Each group was given the same quantities of carbohydrate each day – 40%, which is a normal amount for an average diet.
The results showed that the group which had been eating the lowest amounts of protein lost the most weight.
But this group also lost muscle mass, not fat, which has serious health implications and can actually cause result in future weight gain because it lowers the rate of metabolism.
Dr. George Bray, who led the study, explained in the Journal of the American Medical Association: “The hypothesis was that the low-protein and high-protein diets might affect fat gain, but they didn’t.
“Fat gain isn’t modulated to any significant degree by protein intake.”
Dietitian Elizabeth Ward’s opinion echoed Dr. George Bray’s findings.
She told ABC News: “While the low-protein group didn’t gain as much weight as the other two groups, losing lean muscle tissue plus gaining any fat is a double-whammy when it comes to long-term weight maintenance.”
And indeed advice from the American Dietetic Association recommends a calorie-cutting regime for losing weight.
Spokesman Lona Sandon explained that though the amount of protein one should eat has been complicated by modern diets, if you are looking to lose weight, the advice is simple.
“What the public should take away here is that total caloric intake matters when it comes to weight gain,” Lona Sandon said.
Everton goalkeeper Tim Howard managed to score from roughly 100 yards away when his kick from inside his own penalty area bounced about 30 yards from the goal and sailed over Bolton Wanderers keeper Adam Bogdan’s head in a Premiere League match at Goodison Park.
U.S. international goalkeeper Tim Howard, 32, notched up a wind-assisted fluke goal last night – after making a clearance from inside his own penalty area.
In a strong wind, Tim Howard, Everton No.1, connected sweetly with the ball as it was rolled back towards him with the score at 0-0 in the home match with Bolton Wanderers at Goodison Park.
But he looked on in bemusement as the 92-yard clearance is allowed to hit the ground by the opposition team and takes an enormous bounce.
It then loops handily over rival goalkeeper Adam Bogdan as he desperately stretches to reach it, before nestling into the back of the goal.
It was Tim Howard’s 1st professional goal in his 250th appearance in England, but he refused to celebrate.
Tim Howard told Sky Sports: “For the back four and the goalkeepers at both ends, there was an awful wind swirling. You could see everybody was mistiming balls.
“Defenders were missing clearances that normally they would put up the field.
“I let [Bogdan] know that I was feeling for him. It’s not a nice place to be. I’ve been there before, a long, long time ago, and that was why I didn’t celebrate.”
In a strong wind, Tim Howard, Everton No.1, connected sweetly with the ball as it was rolled back towards him with the score at 0-0 in the home match with Bolton Wanderers at Goodison Park
Tim Howard becomes the second American goalkeeper to score in the English Premier League.
Compatriot Brad Friedel, 40, who now plays for Tottenham Hotspur, scored for Blackburn Rovers against Charlton Athletic in February, 2004.
The two other goalkeepers to score are Denmark’s Peter Schmeichel and England’s Paul Robinson – who has managed the feat twice.
They’ve all got some catching up to go with the world’s most prolific goalkeeper, Paraguayan Jose Luis Chilavert, who managed an impressive 52 goals for club and country during his career.
Bolton Wanderers went on to win the match 2-1.
Tim Howard
Born: March 6, 1979 in North Brunswick, New Jersey.
Height: 6ft 3in
Made his professional debut aged 18 for the North Jersey Imperials in May, 1997.
Then signed for New Jersey MetroStars, for whom he made 88 appearances between 1998 and 2003.
Became the youngest player to win the MLS Goalkeeper of the Year award in 2001 at the age of 22.
Signed for Manchester United for $4m in 2003, but after initially doing well lost his position.
Loaned to Everton in 2006, and eventually transferred to the club the following year.
Won first cap for the U.S. against Ecuador in March, 2002 and was 1st choice goalkeeper at the World Cup in South Africa in 2010.
Tim Howard was awarded the MLS Humanitarian of the Year award in 2001 for his work with children with Tourette’s syndrome. He was diagnosed with the condition in middle school.
A shocking video captures the moment a double-decker bus plunged off a cliff on Camino de la Muerte, the world’s most dangerous road, in Bolivia.
The footage shows the driver creeping past the cliff’s edge on a treacherous stretch of the Bolivian pass while a crowd tries to help guide his way.
One man who steps forward and gestures to the driver to help him steer further away from the edge does so in vain as it eventually tips forward with the weight of it carrying it over the side.
A shocking video captures the moment a double-decker bus plunged off a cliff on Camino de la Muerte, the world's most dangerous road, in Bolivia
Heavy rain had made the Camino de la Muerte (Road of Death) muddy and slippery making it especially dangerous to drive on.
The crowd looked on in horror as the bus fell 50 meters down the ravine killing the driver.
According to The Sun, the 38-mile pass from La Paz to Coroico, Bolivia’s Amazon region, claims an estimated 200 to 300 lives a year.
In 1995 the Inter-American Development Bank reportedly christened it the “world’s most dangerous road”.
According to reports, the driver had been alone in the bus as he had unloaded his 50 passengers before attempting to negotiate the dangerous track.
50 Cent made a series of tweets in which he said he was convinced death was just around the corner.
The 36-year-old hip hop star said: “Ill be honest I don’t think I’m gonna live much longer.”
50 Cent also insisted he is “good if I die tonight”.
It came after he had a lengthy Twitter rant about the state of his career.
50 Cent said: “I have lost all the faith in the team I’m on. I having nothing left to say I will not be promoting my music.
“I’m going to deliver this album then I have a film I wrote to focus on.
“I’m not upset I’m just convinced this is not how I want to remembered.”
The rapper was alluding to his high profile falling out with his record label Interscope.
50 Cent has been attacking them in a flurry of internet messages, previously saying: “Were suppose to be on the same team with me.
“Music was so much fun for me now the people and politics involved disgust me.”
50 Cent made a series of tweets in which he said he was convinced death was just around the corner
Perhaps the reason they are at loggerheads is the 50 Cent’s failure to replicate the sales success he enjoyed earlier in his career.
50 Cent’s 2003 debut album sold a whopping 8 million copies in the US alone, and is the fourth biggest selling rap album of all time.
It’s follow up The Massacre also did well, selling just short of 5 million copies in the States on its way to going five times platinum.
However 2007’s Curtis only went platinum, with sales of more than 1.3 million, while his most recent album 2009’s Before I Self Destruct fared even worse selling just 446,000 copies.
At least the rapper has been able to enjoy a profitable career away from the world of music.
50 Cent is believed to have made $100 million after tax after Coca Cola bought the drinks company Glaceau in 2007.
Fiddy, real name Curtis Jackson, had a stake in the company after producing the Vitamin Water drink Formula 50.
A young basketball fan at a college game in Los Angeles has been embarrassingly refused by his girlfriend when he made proposal in front of a stadium of booing spectators.
The pair was captured on the stadium camera during the half-time entertainment during a game between UCLA and Richmond on December 23.
The crowd watched the scene unfold as the young man knelt down to ask for his girlfriend’s hand.
A young basketball fan at a college game in Los Angeles has been embarrassingly refused by his girlfriend when he made proposal in front of a stadium of booing spectators
Initially showing great excitement at being given the chance to kiss her partner on the big screen, she affectionately reached for his face with a big smile.
But as the young man stood up and the UCLA host came over to offer him the microphone, her smile turned into a look of mild confusion and surprise.
Her boyfriend then reached into his pocket, produced a box and said: “I knew that I was going to do this since the first day that I met you, and I figured now was as good a time as any.”
When he opened the box to present the ring, the young woman’s attitude appeared to change.
She asked him a barely audible question which could have been: “Is this a joke?” To which he quite clearly replied: “No, it’s serious.”
The girlfriend hesitated for a moment and then picking up her bag, left the scene in a hurry.
Offering words of consolation the host said: “Sometimes we get a little camera shy,” but the rejected lover departed shortly after with his head hanging low in shame.
Several blogs are now debating whether the proposal was even genuine, since couples have been known to stage such performances at basketball and hockey games in the past.
Also up for debate is whether, since what is intended to be a romantic gesture can quickly become a spectacle of public ridicule, proposing in front of an audience is a clever idea at all.
The Los Angeles Times confirmed that a UCLA spokesman had said the proposal was not staged.
At least 50 people have been killed and more than 70 have been injured in bomb attacks in southern Iraq and in the capital Baghdad.
Provincial officials said at least Shia pilgrims died in a suicide attack near the city of Nasiriya.
Earlier, Iraq’s Interior Ministry said at least 24 people were killed in blasts in Shia areas of Baghdad.
The attacks come amid a rise in sectarian tensions after the last US combat troops withdrew in December.
The head of the provincial council in Nasiriya, Qusay al-Abadi, said at least 30 pilgrims were killed and more than 70 injured in the attack near Nasiriya. AFP quoted the official Dhi Qar provincial website as saying the pilgrims were walking to the holy city of Karbala.
At least 50 people have been killed and more than 70 have been injured in bomb attacks in southern Iraq and in the capital Baghdad
The Baghdad attacks occurred during the city’s rush hour and the Interior Ministry says they targeted gatherings in of civilians in the Sadr City and Kadhimiya areas and injured at least 66 other people.
Unnamed officials told the AFP news agency that between 14 and 15 people had been killed when two car bombs exploded simultaneously in Kadhimiya at around 09:00. The Associated Press (AP) said 15 people died in the blasts.
Twelve people had earlier been killed when two bombs were detonated in Sadr City, AP reported officials as saying. It said the first was a motorbike bomb, which exploded near where labourers were gathering to look for work.
It quoted anonymous hospital officials as saying that 30 minutes later a roadside bomb exploded near a tea shop, killing one. AFP quoted security officials as saying nine people were killed and 35 wounded in the Sadr City attacks. Reuters put the toll at 10.
“There was a group of day labourers gathered, waiting to be hired for work. Someone brought his small motorcycle and parked it nearby. A few minutes later it blew up, killed some people, wounded others and burned some cars,” a police officer told Reuters at the scene of the first attack.
Iraq’s power-sharing government has been in crisis since an arrest warrant was issued for Sunni Vice-President Tariq al-Hashemi on terror charges two weeks ago. He has denied the accusations against him.
The al-Iraqiyya group, the main Sunni bloc in parliament, is boycotting the assembly in protest. It accuses Prime Minister Nouri Maliki, a Shia, of monopolizing power.
Tariq al-Hashemi is currently in Irbil in Iraqi Kurdistan, under the protection of the regional government, but Nouri Maliki has demanded that they give him up.
“Political leaders fight each other for power, and we pay the price,” Labourer Ahmed Khalaf told AFP at the site of one of the Sadr City explosions.
“How is it our fault if al-Hashemi is wanted, or someone else is wanted?” he asked. “Why should we pay instead of them?”
Jorge Saavedra, a 15-year-old boy from Florida, has become the youngest person in the U.S. to escape a murder charge under a controversial “Stand Your Ground” law.
A judge ruled that Jorge Saavedra was in danger from the older boy and acted in self-defense when he stabbed 17-year-old Dylan Nuno to death.
Jorge Saavedra, who was 14 at the time, stabbed his attacker 12 times with a pocket knife.
He had been charged as a juvenile with second-degree murder and faced spending the next seven years in jail if he was convicted.
However, a judge ruled Jorge Saavedra was within his right to use deadly force to defend himself.
Jorge Saavedra, 15, from Florida, has become the youngest person in the US to escape a murder charge under a controversial “Stand Your Ground” law
Under the “Stand Your Ground” law people living in Florida are allowed to use deadly force if they fear their life is in danger.
The self-defense law was introduced in Florida by Governor Jeb Bush in 2005 and has mostly been used by homeowners protecting themselves from burglars.
According to legal experts, Jorge Saavedra was the youngest person to escape criminal prosecution under the seven-year-old law.
Dylan Nuno’s family criticized Collier County Circuit Judge Lauren Brodie’s decision, calling it “unbelievable and heartbreaking”.
“We know this wasn’t the right decision,” said Dylan’s aunt, Adriana Nuno.
“(The judge) is showing those kids it’s OK to get away with murder.”
In a nine-page written judgment Judge Lauren Brodie concluded that Jorge Saavedra was being bullied and had attempted to avoid a fight with the older boy who also attended Palmetto Ridge High in Naples.
She said Jorge Saavedra had got off the school bus a few stops before the location where he was expected to fight Dylan Nuno.
Witnesses said Jorge Saavedra tried to run away, but ended up fighting with Dylan Nuno and used his knife in the brawl that was witnessed by other students.
Dylan Nuno died after being stabbed 12 times in the chest and abdomen. One of the blows pierced the teenager’s heart.
In her decision, signed December 30, 2011, Judge Lauren Brodie said Jorge Saavedra had “no duty to retreat” and was “legally entitled to meet force with force, even deadly force”.
She stated: “The defendant was in a place where he had a right to be and was not acting unlawfully.
“He had more than enough reason to believe he was in danger of death or great bodily harm … (He) was under attack from the first punch to the back of his head until he stabbed Dylan Nuno.”
A spokesman for the State’s Attorney’s Office said they accepted the decision and would not be appealing.
The “Stand Your Ground” law states that an individual has no duty to retreat, no matter where an attack takes place.
Under the 2005 law people have the right to use deadly force as long as they “reasonably believe” their life is in danger.
Criminal defense lawyer Eddie Suarez, said the law had redefined when you can act in self-defense.
Eddie Suarez said: “The statute provides immunity for a citizen who reasonably believes they are in danger of serious bodily injury or death or the commission of forcible felony.
“That person has the right to use deadly force. They don’t have to retreat. They can use deadly force to protect themselves. The key is that belief has to be reasonable.”
Gun control groups criticize the legislation as encouraging citizens to “shoot first, ask questions later”.
“Stand Your Ground” law exists in states including Florida, Alabama, Texas, Georgia and Nevada.
18-year-old Sarah McKinley from Oklahoma lost her husband to lung cancer on Christmas Day, leaving her the sole caregiver to their three-month-old son. On New Year’s Eve, the teenage mother proved she was anything but defenceless after she shot and killed an intruder breaking into her home.
Two men tried breaking into Sarah McKinley’s house, one armed with a 12-inch hunting knife. While on the phone with 911, the young mother shot and killed one of the intruders with a 12-gauge shotgun after he passed the threshold.
After her husband’s funeral the previous week, a man named Justin Martin stopped by Sarah McKinley’s house, claiming he was a neighbour and only wanted to introduce himself.
Sarah McKinley was suspicious and she said he was calling late at night, when it was “pitch black outside”.
Justin Martin returned on New Year’s Eve, this time in the middle of the day and armed with a hunting knife and an accomplice – a man identified as 29-year-old Dustin Stewart.
Sarah McKinley told KOCO News that the men started knocking aggressively on her door, Justin Martin in front and Dustin Stewart in the back.
The young mother described to the Oklahoma station what she did: “I walked over and got the 12-gague, went in the bedroom and got the pistol, put the bottle in his mouth, and then I called 911”
She also barricaded the front door with a sofa.
Sarah McKinley asked the 911 dispatcher what to do should the two men break in.
“I’ve got two guns in my hand – is it okay to shoot him if he comes in the door?” she said.
“I’m in here by myself with my infant baby, can I please get a dispatcher out here immediately?”
Once the 911 dispatcher confirmed with the young mother that her doors were indeed locked, Sarah McKinley asked again if she could shoot the intruders.
“I can’t tell you that you can do that but you do what you have to do to protect your baby,” the dispatcher told her.
Sarah McKinley was on the phone with two dispatchers – which represented two neighbouring counties – for a total of 21 minutes.
Sarah McKinley, 18, from Oklahoma, who lost her husband to lung cancer on Christmas Day, shot dead an intruder breaking her home on New Year’s Eve
Around 2:00 p.m., Justin Martin kicked in the door and Sarah McKinley shot him once in the torso. Since police said the shooting was in self-defense, she will not be charged.
Police found Justin Martin, 24, slumped over a floral-print sofa with a single gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
His accomplice, Dustin Stewart, told police he fled after he heard the gunshot and later was later driven to the police station by his parents, Newson6.com reports.
Dustin Stewart was being held in Grady County jail on felony murder charges and will be arraigned later today, NewsOK.com reports.
Detective Dan Huff told KOCO-TV that under some circumstances, shooting a person is permissible.
“You’re allowed to shoot an unauthorized person that is in your home,” he said.
“The law provides you the remedy, and sanctions the use of deadly force.”
The Oklahoma Castle Doctrine, otherwise known as the Make My Day law, states you can only shoot an intruder if they have entered your home.
Attorney Doug Frieson told Newson6.com that the law always protects someone in their home, no matter the circumstances.
“The simple fact that you’re unauthorized in the home is enough that allows the homeowner to use deadly force.”
Sarah McKinley said that though the shooting was justified, it was by no means an easy decision to make.
“It was either going to be him or my son. And it wasn’t going to be my son,” she said.
She added: “There’s nothing more dangerous than a woman with a child.”
Detectives will continue their investigation after they obtain a search warrant for Justin Martin’s car.
According to Grady County Sheriff Art Kell, a shooting case like this is rare. “Around the state, maybe two to three people get shot,” he said.
He said there are three deputies to cover the county’s 12,000 square miles, meaning a response could hardly be immediate.
Sheriff Art Kell added: “When (our dispatcher) got the call, we need to get more information, what’s the reason for the guy outside.”
Since Sarah McKinley was calling from a cell phone, her exact location was hard to pinpoint. But, he added, “the deputy was en route within seven minutes.”
He said that Sarah McKinley’s husband was in his 50s and the couple were married two years ago.
Art Kell said one of his dispatchers, Diane Graham, handled the call 911 call.
“I knew she was scared because she was whispering,” Diane Graham, a 911 dispatcher from the Grady County Sheriff’s Office told KFOR-TV.
“Anything can be serious in a moment’s notice, so you need to believe what they say when they call and get the help to them as quick as you can,” Diane Graham explained.
The dispatcher stayed on the phone with the scared mother before transferring her to the Blanchard Police.
Sarah McKinley was gracious to the dispatchers for helping her in the difficult situation.
“The 911 dispatcher was awesome,” Sarah McKinley told KFOR-TV.
“I was feeding off her and she was calm, so I could be calm.”
Detective Dan Huff told KFOR-TV that he and his fellow detectives believe the home invasion to have been “premeditated”.
The attack, as new reports reveal, may have been premeditated. Sarah McKinley’s mother told Newson6.com that Justin Martin stalked her daughter at a rodeo two years ago.
The two have since bumped into each other at a nearby convenience store. Sarah McKinley said she didn’t know who he was until after the shooting, when she pieced everything together.
In addition, two of her dogs were recently found dead.
Since news has spread, members of the Blanchard community are eager to help the young widow, donating clothes and gifts, as well as starting long-term funds for her son.
Sarah McKinley is touched by the kindness. She told KFOR-TV: “You don’t realize how many good people there are until tragedy happens and then they step forward.
“Kinda lose faith in the human race, but when people help, it puts that back in.”
Sarah McKinley’s 911 call to Grady County Sheriff
DISPATCHER: What’s going on?
SARAH MCKINLEY: There’s a guy at my door. I’ve got some dogs that keep coming up missing. This guy’s up to no good. My husband just passed away. I’m here by myself with my infant baby. Can I please get a dispatch out here immediately?
DISPATCHER: Hang with me a second. Are your doors locked?
SARAH MCKINLEY: Yes, I’ve got two guns in my hands. Is it okay to shoot him if he comes in this door?
DISPATCHER: Well, you have to do whatever you can do to protect yourself. I can’t tell you that you can do that, but you do what you have to do to protect your baby. Is he trying to get in the door?
SARAH MCKINLEY: He just keeps knocking.
DISPATCHER: Okay. Alright. Do you have like an alarm on your car that you can set off with your remote control that might scare him and get him away?
SARAH MCKINLEY: No, I don’t.
DISPATCHER: Alright, that’s okay.(rustling)
The dispatcher then transfers Ms McKinley to a neighbouring county. That call was not recorded.
What is Make My Day law?
Castle Doctrine – colloquially called the Make My Day Law from the 1983 Clint Eastwood film Sudden Impact – are legislated by individual states. Not all states have the law, which allow people to defend themselves in their homes. Oklahoma law states that anyone unlawfully entering a person’s home can be defended against by using physical or deadly force. The law was recently expanded in Oklahoma to include businesses.
Trade unions in Nigeria have announced an indefinite strike and mass demonstrations unless the removal of a fuel subsidy is reversed.
The fuel subsidy’s withdrawal has led petrol prices to more than double since Monday, prompting anger countrywide.
“We have the total backing of all Nigerian workers on this strike and mass protest,” said the Nigeria Labour Congress’s Chris Uyot.
Nigeria is Africa’s biggest oil producer, but imports refined petrol.
Both the NLC and the Trades Union Congress (TUC) have agreed to the strike.
NLC spokesman Chris Uyot told the BBC’s Focus on Africa programme there was no room for dialogue with the government, which has said it will spend the money saved by removing the subsidy on improving the country’s erratic electricity supply, as well as on health and education.
Trade unions in Nigeria have announced an indefinite strike and mass demonstrations unless the removal of a fuel subsidy is reversed
Prices have increased from 65 naira ($0.40) per litre to at least 140 naira in filling stations and from 100 naira to at least 200 on the black market, where many Nigerians buy their fuel.
“After exhaustive deliberations and consultations with all sections of the populace, the NLC, TUC and their pro-people allies demand that the presidency immediately reverses fuel prices to 65 naira,” a statement signed by the heads of the two unions said.
If the government failed to do so, “all offices, oil production centres, air and sea ports, fuel stations, markets, banks, amongst others will be shut down” from Monday 9 January, the statement said.
“We advise Nigerians to stockpile basic needs especially food and water,” the statement added.
There has been a furious reaction this week to the fuel price increase – one protester was killed on Tuesday in Irolin, Kwara state, and thousands of Nigerians have demonstrated in cities across the country.
Nigeria’s Central Bank Governor Lamido Sanusi said the subsidy – which he said cost the government about $8 billion last year – was “unsustainable”.
“Subsides should be for production and not consumption,” he told Focus on Africa.
In December, the Nigerian government released a list of the people who benefit most from the subsidy, which include some of Nigeria’s richest people – the owners of fuel-importing firms.
Years of mismanagement and corruption mean Nigeria does not have the capacity to refine oil into petrol and other fuels.
Several previous governments have tried to remove the subsidy but have backed down in the face of widespread public protests and reduced it instead.
The IMF has long urged Nigeria’s government to remove the subsidy.
Scientists discovered a mysterious phenomenon that has decimated honey bee populations across US and Western Europe, which could be linked to a “zombifying” parasitic fly.
Colony collapse disorder (CCD) is marked by the sudden disappearance of worker bees from a colony.
CCD was first recognized as a serious problem by U.S. beekeepers in 2006, but has also affected bee colonies across Western Europe.
In some of the recorded cases, bee losses have reached levels of up to 90%.
Viral and fungal infections and toxic chemicals in pesticides have all been suggested as possible explanations for CCD.
The new theory involves the parasitic fly Apocephalus borealis, which is already known to attack bumble bees.
Evidence has now emerged of the fly targeting honey bees.
Apocephalus borealis lays its eggs in the abdomens of bees, which start displaying “zombie” behaviour, abandoning their hives en masse to congregate near lights.
Finally they die, and the fly larvae emerge from their bodies.
U.S. scientists noted that hive abandonment is a primary feature of CCD.
Genetic tests also showed that both bees and flies were often infected with deformed wing virus and the fungus Nosema ceranae.
Both infections have previously been cited as possible causes of CCD, suggesting a link.
Professor John Hafernik, from San Francisco State University, said: “We don’t know the best way to stop parasitisation because one of the big things we’re missing is where the flies are parasitizing the bees.
“We assume it’s while the bees are out foraging because we don’t see the flies hanging around the bee hives. But it’s still a bit of a black hole in terms of where it’s actually happening.”
The research is published today in the online journal Public Library of Science ONE.
Analysis of the parasites confirmed they were the same flies that have been infecting bumblebees. The fly could be an emerging and potentially costly new threat to honey bees, say the scientists.
Prof. John Hafernik added: “Honey bees are among the best-studied insects in the world. So at one level, we would expect that if this has been a long-term parasite of honey bees, we would have noticed.”
Justin Timberlake is said to have proposed to girlfriend Jessica Biel just before Christmas in a romantic winter setting.
According to his friends, Justin Timberlake, 30, has “never been happier” following his decision to settle down with his girlfriend of four and a half years.
An insider told Us Weekly magazine that Justin Timberlake “knew it was the right time to propose”, and decided to pop the question in the mountains during a pre-Christmas break in Jackson, Wyoming.
The insider added: “Justin knows how much she loves snowboarding and the mountains, so it was the perfect place.”
Justin Timberlake is said to have proposed to girlfriend Jessica Biel just before Christmas in a romantic winter setting
Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel, 29, split for three months last year and sources close to the couple have said that marriage was on the cards after they got back together.
A source told us Weekly: “This was the basis for getting back together. When they reunited they had a conversation about taking the next step.”
The couple are said to have celebrated their engagement with their family and friends meeting up at Justin Timberlake’s home in Big Sky, Montana.
They were also seen dining at a Thai restaurant in the resort called Lotus Pad and an onlooker said they were having a “good time” with the happy couple “throwing back sake” in celebration.
Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel were first spotted together during a snowboarding break in January 2007 at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah.
They were said to have met earlier in the month at the Golden Globe Awards that year shortly after Timberlake split from Cameron Diaz.
Demi Moore has made a frank confession in her latest interview with Harper’s Bazaar that she fears she isn’t worthy of being loved.
Demi Moore, 49, made the startling statement to her friend Amanda de Cadenet during an interview in the February issue of the US magazine.
The actress revealed she originally feared being abandoned but said her biggest fear now is “not having the courage to reach her full potential”.
Demi Moore explained: “There is no way to reach your fullest potential if you don’t really find the love of yourself.
“What scares me is that I’m going to ultimately find out at the end of my life that I’m really not lovable, that I’m not worthy of being love. That there’s something fundamentally wrong with me.”
Demi Moore has made a frank confession in her latest interview with Harper’s Bazaar that she fears she isn’t worthy of being loved
Demi Moore also opened up about her body image, which has been the subject of much speculation following her split from Ashton Kutcher.
She admitted to having a “love-hate relationship” with her body but said she had a more positive feeling towards it now compared to her feelings in the past.
“I sit today in a place of greater acceptance of my body and that includes not just my weight but all of the things that come with your changing body as you as age to now experiencing my body as extremely thin.”
She added: “Thin in a way that I never imagined somebody would be saying to me, <<You’re too thin, and you don’t look good>>.”
While she has displayed a shockingly slim frame in recent months, Demi Moore looks happy and healthy in the accompanying photo shoot showing off her frame in a strapless beaded dress by Balmain, and a cut out black swimsuit by Gucci.
The interview comes ahead of Demi Moore and Amanda de Cadenet’s latest project, a television show called The Conversation which, comes to Lifetime television this Spring.
A-List stars including Gwyneth Paltrow, Lady Gaga and Jane Fonda are among the women who have spoken out about the challenges they face in their daily lives, with Demi Moore and Amanda de Cadenet acting as executive producers.
Following her recent split from Ashton Kutcher, Demi Moore appears to be throwing herself into her work and it has been reported that she is appearing in the upcoming movie Lovelace.
Demi Moore is said to be taking on the role of feminist Gloria Steinem according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The full interview is available in the February issue of Haper’s Bazaar which hits newsstands on January 17.
Lady Gaga is well known for her bizarre behavior, but her latest alleged eccentricities are sure to shock even hardened fans.
Lady Gaga, 25, has been accused of leaving a London hotel room bathtub drenched in blood.
Rumors have flown around the net that Lady Gaga has started taking part in morbid Satanic rituals to keep her safe from spirits.
Staff at the Intercontinental Hotel in London were shocked when they went to clean Lady Gaga’s room and found blood in the bath.
However, the red substance has not been identified as blood.
One housekeeper claimed Lady Gaga was “bathing in blood as part of a Satanic ritual”.
The hotel maid told website Truthquake: “Lady Gaga left large amounts of blood in the suite during a stay this summer. The incident was reported to the concierge, who was told to put it out of her mind.”
Staff at the Intercontinental Hotel in London were shocked when they went to clean Lady Gaga's room and found blood in the bath
But other sources remain skeptical the “blood” was real and say it was more likely that the red liquid as part of a “weird” stage costume or prop.
An insider said: “All of the hotel’s staff are convinced she was bathing in it or, at the very least, using it as part of one of her new costumes or weird stage routines.”
It is unclear if Lady Gaga had actually bathed in the liquid last summer.
Lady Gaga is believed to be terrified of evil spirits and reportedly has every hotel and tour venue scanned by a team of paranormal investigators before she will agree to stay there.
The pop superstar, who is inspired by the spirit of her dead aunt, allegedly splashed out $45,000 on state of the art Electro Magnetic Field meters to detect spectres.
TMZ claim Lady Gaga has been named in a $380,000 lawsuit filed by a disgruntled former employee Jennifer O’Neil, who claims she is owed payment for 7,168 hours of overtime.
Jennifer O’Neil alleges that she was responsible for “ensuring the promptness of a towel following a shower and serving as a personal alarm clock” for the singer.
She also claims that Lady Gaga expected her to be at her service from the “earliest waking hour” and wanted her duties to extend to “stadiums, private jets, fine hotel suites, yachts, ferries, trains and tour buses”.
Jennifer O’Neil alleges that the schedule meant that she was unable to take breaks “or even at times sleep”.
A representative for Lady Gaga insisted to TMZ allegations were “completely without merit”.
