MaGic Avenue

India beef up security around Dhoni after threat

2009-01-04T08:43:00.000-08:00

Police have beefed up security around Mahendra Singh Dhoni after he received extortion letters from a man claiming to be an associate of the country's most wanted gangster.

Police said on Wednesday they had sent more than 45 commandos to Dhoni's house in his hometown of Ranchi, the capital of the eastern state of Jharkhand, one of India's poorest states.

The first letter, sent on Monday, threatened Dhoni's family with dire consequences if the player failed to pay 5 million rupees ($102,000), police said.

A second letter on Wednesday threatened to blow up the captain's family home if police were asked for help.

Dhoni arrived in Ranchi on Tuesday and met a local police official on Wednesday to discuss the threat.

"The letter has been sent by one Taslim who claims to be a close associate of Dawood Ibrahim," Satya Narayan Pradhan, a Jharkhand police spokesman, told Reuters.

Dawood Ibrahim is India's most wanted man for allegedly masterminding the country's most deadly bombings in 1993, which killed at least 250 people in Mumbai.

The underworld boss has eluded authorities for the past 15 years and is believed to be hiding in Pakistan. By the 1980s and 1990s, he was one of Mumbai's top gangland leaders, with a billion-dollar vice empire spanning gambling, drugs and prostitution.

Police say they have started an investigation into the letters.

Dhoni had already received extra security cover after Maoist rebels made death threats against him last year, police said.

But he was unhappy with the arrangements and applied for government permission for his security to carry more sophisticated weapons.

Event that changed India forever:Terroism on tourism

2008-12-28T05:45:00.000-08:00

This season has been wiped out. The situation we are facing is unprecedented. Already reeling under the economic slowdown, the incidents in Mumbai have seen more cancellations than ever before. There is an approximately 50% slowdown in the sector. Though with the help of the Ministry of Tourism, we are trying to get some groups reinstated, but I estimate that the overall loss will be about 30%.

For the tourism sector, hotels are the most important component. And if bookings are down there, then the whole sector is affected. The hotel industry should reduce tariff by 20-25 per cent and focus on domestic tourism to survive.

To revive the situation, along with the minister, we are trying out some innovative steps. One of the steps we have suggested is 'Buy One Get One Free,' which was something Sri Lanka tried out after 9/11. We have to get aggressively into marketing. We are also requesting the government to make some concessions - which includes a two year relief from service tax and luxury tax. While the tour operators have been asking for the tax holiday on service tax, the hotels want the luxury tax to be waived for a while.

There are silver linings too. The industry has stood solidly together and we should be able to do things together. There is no significant drop either for the business travelers in India or China, nor is there any effect on VFR, or Visiting Friends and relatives category, but the other categories are hurting.

India will weed out terrorism from Pakistan if global efforts fail

2008-12-27T20:45:00.000-08:00

India's Home minster PC in Puducherry conveyed following info to world with respect to Current situation in INDIA.
"The Mumbai terror attacks have awakened the world and international community is using its good offices to prevail on Pakistan to tread the right path. We hope these efforts succeed.

"If not, India is prepared to face the attacks from Pakistan squarely with the help of the people," he said addressing the students and faculty of Pondicherry University here.

The minister said everyone knew from where the terror attacks emanated and the cross border terrorism from Pakistan had been targeting India continuously for some years now. It cannot be denied that there were also supporters within India for such activities, he said.

"As far as India is concerned we are looking at Pakistan as friendly nation as there is no need for any enmity particularly when both the countries have third generation of people after their independence," he said.

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2008-11-19T10:56:00.000-08:00

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Obama's victory :A History

2008-11-15T05:32:00.000-08:00

Dawn op

One of the many ways the election of Barack Obama differed from recent presidential elections was that in the end, it did not all come down to one state.

The addition on Thursday of the electoral votes from North Carolina - a state that had not voted for a Democratic presidential candidate since Jimmy Carter in 1976 - brought Obama's total to 364, well above the 270 needed to win the presidency and the 162 won by Senator John McCain.

The final 2008 Electoral College tally is still not known because Missouri, which has 11 electoral votes, and Nebraska's 2nd Congressional District, which has one, are still considered too close to call. (Nebraska and Maine are the only two states that do not allocate their electoral votes on a winner-take-all basis.)

So how does Obama's 364, which could go as high as 376, measure up?

"It's a normal win," said John Fortier, a research fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, who edited "After the People Vote: A Guide to the Electoral College." Fortier called it a respectable, solid mandate.

"It was not a blowout and not a really close election," he said. "We got a little bit used to these close elections. Until 2005, we were legitimately talking about a 50-50 nation, where everything was close."

Obama's commanding victory does break the habit of decidedly close contests of the last two election cycles. This time around, there was none of the hand-wringing, nail-biting or teeth-gnashing that followed the 2004 election, which the Democrats could have won if they had carried Ohio.

And certainly none of the conceding, unconceding, recounts, halted recounts and Supreme Court intervention of the 2000 election, which the Democrats could have won if they had carried Florida or any of a number of other states.

For a real blowout, think of the 523 electoral votes that President Franklin D. Roosevelt won in 1936, when he ran against Alf Landon, who won eight. Or more recently the 525 electoral votes President Ronald Reagan won in 1984, when Walter Mondale won only 13. Or the 520 President Richard Nixon won in 1972 against George McGovern, who won 17. Those were the widest electoral vote margins.

The disputed 2000 election, by the way - in which George W. Bush ended up with 271 electoral votes - was not the closest on record. The 1800 election produced an electoral-vote tie between Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr and was decided by the House of Representatives. And the election of 1876 was a real squeaker: after the disputed election was put before a special commission of lawmakers and Supreme Court justices, Rutherford B. Hayes beat Samuel Tilden by a single electoral vote.

Obama's victory was more along the lines of Bill Clinton's in 1992, when he won 370 electoral votes to the first President George Bush's 168.

It was a margin wide enough that neither side made a major effort to contest or challenge votes to try to flip a state. In the waning days of the contest, the McCain campaign raised many complaints about possible voter fraud, which some Democrats feared was an effort to lay the groundwork to challenge a Democratic victory.

And that Obama won both the popular vote and the electoral vote means there has been little outcry questioning the fairness of the Electoral College, as there was in 2000 after Bush lost the popular vote but still won the presidency.

Robert Bennett, a law professor at Northwestern University who studies the Electoral College, said there were still a number of other potential problems - "land mines," he calls them - with the Electoral College system. The most serious, Bennett said, was the problem of what are called "faithless electors," or electors who decide not to follow the will of the voters in their states.

"It's unlikely to explode, but it could really be mischievous," said Bennett, who wants states to act together to pass uniform legislation to make it impossible.

Faithless electors have never changed the outcome of an election, but they do pop up from time to time. In 2004, one of Minnesota's 10 Electoral College votes was cast for John Edwards instead of for the Democratic nominee, John Kerry. Since the electors' votes were not signed, it was never discovered who gave Edwards his lone electoral vote; at the time other electors in Minnesota speculated that it had been a mistake.

And in 2000 - after the Supreme Court ruling dashed his hopes to win Florida's electoral votes, and with them the presidency - Al Gore lost yet another electoral vote. A faithless elector from the District of Columbia left her ballot blank to protest Washington's lack of a voting representative in Congress, an abstention that left Gore with 266 electoral votes, one fewer than he had expected.

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2008-08-03T08:20:00.000-07:00

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Greame smith at his best:So does South African cricket

2008-08-02T08:32:00.000-07:00

The curse is finally lifted, and the identity of the man who has delivered South Africa's first series win in England for 43 years comes as no surprise whatsoever. Graeme Smith's irrepressible willpower was first demonstrated to the English public way back in 2003, when - as the most mature 22-year-old imaginable - he scored back-to-back double-centuries, at Edgbaston then at Lord's, to announce a new chapter in his country's sporting history.

Today, however, he finally closed that chapter and looked forward to the next, after producing the innings that he declared, without equivocation, as his greatest yet. "I've had some really meaningful innings in my life, and the double-hundreds here last time have to go down among my greatest achievements," he said. "But ever since readmission, we have really strived for victory in England and have always been disappointed. It's bigger than just us, this victory, and so I have to say it's my best."

The importance of a South African victory in England cannot be overstated. When the coach, Mickey Arthur, declared on Friday evening that his side was "desperate" to win, he was speaking not only for the eleven men on the field, but those back home in South Africa who recognised that, almost two decades on from their readmission to international cricket, the time was nigh for closure. For Smith, it was as if he had set his agenda on his maiden tour five years ago, and was now ready to cement his ambitions.

"If you taken the whole bigger picture," said Smith, "of all the players who've come before us, those who've come here and given it their all and had the disappointment, as well as the many who haven't had the opportunity in the many years past, as well as the fans back home who can imagine what it's like. For us this was bigger than a cricket game, it was a huge moment and something we're really proud of."

South Africa's transformation since apartheid has been a long and often traumatic process, and the country's cricketing misfortunes have often been seen as a part of the healing. But under Smith the team has achieved a rare unity and consistency that, for the first time ever, has transcended racial politics. Their current series record reads seven wins and a draw in India, a run that ranks among the very best of all time.

What is more, it has been delivered by a team that can no longer be accused of tokenism. From Ashwell Prince to Hashim Amla, via the fading but unyielding Makhaya Ntini, and all the way to the young white stars, AB de Villiers, Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel - all have been worthy members of a team whose next major assignment is a mouthwatering trip to Australia in December, where further ghosts await exorcism. It would have been unjust for them to fail, especially when you consider the turbulance that afflicted the England camp after their rout at Headingley.

But ever since readmission, we have really strived for victory in England and have always been disappointed. It's bigger than just us, this victory, and so I have to say it's my best - Graeme Smith on South Africa's achievement

And yet, for all the magnificence of the current South African team, their efforts would have come to nought had it not been for their imperturbable captain. The day began as the previous one had finished, with England in the ascendancy, stretching their lead through the efforts of Paul Collingwood and Ryan Sidebottom and then, after a relatively calm opening stand of 65, instigating a chaotic collapse of four wickets for 28 runs.

Neil McKenzie and a steamed-up Jacques Kallis failed to pick Andrew Flintoff's full length against the problematic pavilion sightscreen, and as the Edgbaston crowd erupted in recognition of the moment, Smith feared that the "hot-headedness" that can characterise South African sporting teams was about to come to the fore once again.

Not that he was afflicted by the same emotions, however. Far from it. "I couldn't control that," he said. "I was just hoping that the right-handers could start picking up those low full-tosses. For me it was just about a real focus on my own game. Bat and hope someone could bat with me, because I knew if we could get a decent total on the board we could get close, England might get desperate and try a few things, and give us a few free deliveries."

In the final analysis, that is precisely what happened, as the combative Mark Boucher emerged to exorcise his own demons from the 1998 Test series, not to mention the World Cup semi-final on this very ground one year later. But there was nothing free about the runs that Smith accumulated. It was fitting that his final score was 154 not out, because there cannot have been a more brilliant and meaningful matchwinning century scored in England since Graham Gooch took down the West Indians at Headingley in 1991.

Like Gooch 17 years ago, Smith batted through a barrage and, until Boucher's late role, found only token support from his colleagues. And symbolically he too batted on into the gloaming when others might have called it quits and returned to complete the job in the morning. Instead, he claimed the extra half-hour on the stroke of seven o'clock, and hurtled to victory in five further overs.

"I knew we had England tired because their seamers had bowled a lot of overs," he said. "The new ball was at the back of my mind - if we'd lost a wicket we had a bit of a tail - but eventually I thought: 'Let's go for it. We've got England on the ropes, so let's back ourselves.'"

And to think Smith might not even have taken part in this match. He pulled out of training on the eve of the game after suffering a back complaint while batting against Bangladesh A, and admitted afterwards that the problem had never entirely gone away. "It's been a bit sore, but I'm thankful I got on the field," he said. "I've been on a few painkillers, but at the moment there's a lot of adrenalin so I'm not feeling any pain."

Victory is always the best painkiller, but in South Africa's case, it extends beyond the fitness of their captain. The capitulations of 1994, 1998 and 2003 can at last be forgotten, and by blotting the date "1965" out of their record-books, the final link with the apartheid era has been severed. South Africa are a team going forward at high speed, and for their captain, the journey has never been so pleasant.

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2008-07-10T05:10:00.000-07:00

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US warns Iran on missile threat !!!!!

2008-07-10T05:00:00.000-07:00

The US has said it will not hesitate to defend its interests and those of its allies as Iran continues missile tests.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the US had increased its security in the region and Iran should not be "confused" about US capabilities.

Iran tested missiles on Wednesday that could reach Israel, and on Thursday carried out further tests.

Meanwhile French energy giant Total has said it will not invest in Iran because it is too politically risky.

New tests

Condoleezza Rice was speaking during a visit to Georgia.

She said: "We take very strongly our obligation to defend our allies and we intend to do that.

Map of missile range

Tensions mount over Iran
Easy gas riches on hold for Iran

"In the Gulf area, the United States has enhanced its security capacity, its security presence and we are working closely with all our allies... to make [sure] they are capable of defending themselves."

The Iranian military said on Thursday its Revolutionary Guards had carried out further medium- and long-range missile tests overnight.
The tests included the first night test of the Shahab-3 missile, said to have a range of 2,000km (1,240 miles), along with shore-to-sea, surface-to-surface and sea-to-air missiles, state media reported.

The BBC's Jon Leyne in Tehran says this appears another gesture of defiance following the international condemnation of Wednesday's tests. Media reports appeared to be delivered as a matter of pride.
Big blow'

Meanwhile, the head of Total, Christophe de Margerie, told the Financial Times the company's planned development of the huge South Pars gas field in southern Iran would not go ahead.

"Today we would be taking too much political risk to invest in Iran because people will say: 'Total will do anything for money'," he said.

Total was the last major Western energy group to have seriously considered investing in the country's huge gas reserves.

Analysts say the move will be a big blow to the Iranian energy industry.

It means Iran is now unlikely to significantly increase its gas exports until late into the next decade, they add.

Source:BBC

Bugatti Veyron:Costly,Costlier,THE Costliest Car---># 1

2008-07-02T02:23:00.000-07:00

The Bugatti Veyron 16.4 is the quickest accelerating and decelerating street-legal production car in the world, and was the world's fastest street-legal production car until the introduction of the SSC Ultimate Aero Twin Turbo produced by Shelby SuperCars.

Powered by a 1,001 PS (987 hp/736 kW) W16 engine,[2] it is able to achieve an average top speed of 407.47 km/h (253.19 mph).[3] The car reached full production in September 2005, and is handcrafted in a factory Volkswagen built near the former Bugatti headquarters in Château St Jean in Molsheim (Alsace, France). It is named after French racing driver Pierre Veyron, who won the 24 hours of Le Mans in 1939 while racing for the original Bugatti firm.

Each Veyron is being sold for €1,100,000 (net price without taxes), prices vary by exchange rates and local taxes (like value added taxes). Prices for the UK or the US are over £800,000, or around $2,000,000.

The Veyron features a W16 engine—16 cylinders in 4 banks of 4 cylinders, or the equivalent of two narrow-angle V8 engines mated in a "W" configuration. Each cylinder has 4 valves for a total of 64, but the narrow V8 configuration allows two camshafts to drive two banks of cylinders so only 4 camshafts are needed. The engine is fed by four turbochargers and displaces 8.0 L (7,993 cc/488 in³) with a square 86 mm (3.4 in) by 86 mm (3.4 in) bore and stroke.

Putting this power to the ground is a dual-clutch Direct-Shift Gearbox computer-controlled manual transmission with 7 gear ratios via shifter paddles behind the steering wheel boasting an <150 ms shift time, designed and manufactured by Ricardo of England. The Veyron can be driven by full automatic transmission. The Veyron also features full-time four-wheel drive based on the Haldex Traction system. It uses special Michelin run-flat tires designed specifically for the Veyron to accommodate the vehicle's top speed. Curb weight is estimated at 1,888 kg (4,160 lb). This gives the car a power to weight ratio of 529 bhp/ton.

The car's wheelbase is 2710 mm (106.7 in). Overall length is 4462 mm (175.7 in). It measures 1998 mm (78.7 in) wide and 1204 mm (47.4 in) tall.
The Veyron's hydraulic spoiler.
The Veyron's hydraulic spoiler.

The Bugatti Veyron has a total of 10 radiators

Top speed was initially promised to be 407 km/h (253 mph) but test versions were unstable at that speed, forcing a redesign of the aerodynamics. In May, 2005, a prototype Veyron tested at a Volkswagen track near Wolfsburg, Germany recorded an electronically limited top speed of 400 km/h (249 mph). In October 2005, Car and Driver magazine's editor Csaba Csere test drove the final production version of the Veyron for the November 2005 issue. This test, at Volkswagen's Ehra-Lessien test track, reached a top speed of 407.5 km/h (253.2 mph). The top speed was verified once again by James May on Top Gear, again at Volkswagen's private test track, when the car hit 407.9 km/h (253 mph), which equated to precisely one-third of the speed of sound at sea level. When getting close to the top speed during the test he said that "the tires will only last for about fifteen minutes, but it's okay because the fuel runs out in twelve minutes." He also gave an indication of the power requirements, at 249 km/h (155 mph) the Veyron was using approximately 270 bhp (201 kW), but to get to its rated 407 km/h (253 mph) top speed required far more from the engine.

Aerodynamic friction or drag is proportional to the square of the speed; for example doubling speed quadruples drag. Work is a product of force applied over a distance travelled. Comparing a vehicle travelling at 100 mph (160 km/h) with one travelling at 200 mph (320 km/h), over a given period of time (e.g. 1 second), the faster vehicle must overcome 4 times the aerodynamic drag, and travel twice the distance of the slower one. Thus it does 8 times the work of the slower vehicle in that period of time. As power is work done / time taken it follows that the faster vehicle, travelling at twice the speed requires 8 times the power of the slower one. German inspection officials recorded an average top speed of 408.47 km/h (253.8 mph)[3] during test sessions on the Ehra Lessien test track on 2005-04-19.

The car's everyday top speed is listed at 375 km/h (233 mph). When the car reaches 220 km/h (137 mph), hydraulics lower the car until it has a ground clearance of about 8.9 cm (3½ inches). At the same time, the wing and spoiler deploy. This is the "handling mode", in which the wing helps provide 3425 newtons (770 pounds) of downforce, holding the car to the road.[10] The driver must, using a special key (the "Top Speed Key"), toggle the lock to the left of his seat in order to attain the maximum (average) speed of 407 km/h (253 mph). The key functions only when the vehicle is at a stop when a checklist then establishes whether the car—and its driver—are ready to enable 'top speed' mode. If all systems are go, the rear spoiler retracts, the front air diffusers close and the ground clearance, normally 12.5 cm (4.9 inches), drops to 6.5 cm (2.6 inches).

SMITH & CRUISE'S AUTOGRAPH SIGNING COMPETITIONS

2008-06-30T20:31:00.001-07:00

Will Smith and Tom Cruise have autograph signing competitions.

"Hancock" star Will has revealed he and his close friend Tom always try to outdo each other by spending the most time with their fans on the red carpet.

Will said: "It's hard to beat that dude. He has another gear."

"He did two-and-a-half hours in France for 'Mission: Impossible' on the red carpet."

"Now when I go to France, people will say, 'You know, Tom was out here for over two-and-a-half hours.'"

The 39-year-old actor also revealed playing boxing legend Mohammad Ali in 2001 hit "Ali" inspired him to have more confidence in himself.

Will - whose performance earned him an Oscar nomination - explained: "When I was doing 'Ali,' I realized that he kept saying, 'I'm the greatest, I'm pretty,' to make himself believe it."

"He doesn't believe it, but he was dealing with racism. He was reacting to pain and rejection."

"He said it so much that he started to really believe it. That is what I've tried to do for myself."

Source: BANG Showbiz

LINDSAY LOHAN HAS SECRET HALF-SISTER :)

2008-06-28T20:33:00.000-07:00

Lindsay Lohan has a secret half-sister, it has been revealed.

The "Mean Girls" actress' dad Michael fathered a daughter while he was still married, although estranged at the time from Lindsay's mother Dina.

Speaking about the relationship over 13 years ago, Michael - who has three other children, Michael, Ali and Cody, with Dina - told America's OK! magazine: "Years later the woman contacted me, convincing me that I was the only person she was with and that she had my child."

Michael - who married Dina in 1985 before they divorced in 2007 - has even written letters to the girl's mother saying his illegitimate daughter "is beginning to look a lot like Linds, with a mix of Cody, believe it or not."

He also sent his daughter a photograph of himself, which he signed "Love Daddy."

The girl's mother says that while Michael called his daughter on her 13th birthday in June and has had many conversations with her, he has never visited her or provided financial support.

She said: "It's time for Michael to take responsibility."

Source: BANG Showbiz

Hot News: Megan Fox Naked in Jennifer’s Body

2008-06-25T20:27:00.000-07:00

Jennifer’s Body is Diablo Cody’s follow-up to Juno.

The Oscar-winning screenwriter has reportedly penned a movie about a possessed cheerleader who murders her male classmates.

That sounds cool enough and, as fans of Juno, we’d likely line up to see the film when it hits theaters in 2009 no matter what. But after producer Jason Reitman went on The Howard Stern Show this week? We’ve never been more excited about a movie.

That’s because, according to Reel Movie News, star Megan Fox gets topless in a scene. Granted, Reitman added that Fox’s hair covers most of her breasts, and that she’s wearing a skirt.

Still, though: Megan Fox? Remotely naked? Sign us up.

Lindsay Lohan plays DJ, a tale of two dresses, and more.

2008-06-21T10:45:00.000-07:00

The Gap looked rather hip Wednesday evening, when Lindsay Lohan took to its portable turntables on the street in New York's Meatpacking District to celebrate the launch of the Gap's Rock Color Bus, which will be pulling into a town near you this summer and selling such items as T-shirts and hoodies on site.
A tale of two dresses...The celebrity gown game is always fun to watch, and the red carpet for Sunday night's Tony Awards brought a delicious moment in which Oprah Winfrey's best pal, Gayle King, and actress Alfre Woodard arrived within minutes of each other wearing the same flowing tangerine frock by Pamella Roland. The duo handled it well, actually posing for photos together . King admitted to ELLE.com that she got the dress for the Academy Awards but didn't wear it then. While the label's designer, Pamella DeVos, was in the Galapagos Islands and unavailable, her chief operating officer, Steve Fox, said, "Gayle has been a customer of ours and she bought the dress at Nordstrom." And Woodard's stylist worked with the company to get her sample-size dress. ... Easy come, easy go. Tommy Hilfiger Corp.'s purchase of Karl Lagerfeld's brands and debut of the Karl Lagerfeld contemporary collection in New York for fall was almost too good to be true. New Hilfiger owner Apax Partners has pulled the plug on this brilliantly styled, well-priced collection. If you want it, run, do not walk, into Neiman Marcus or Bergdorf Goodman, as the fall shipments will be the last for this brand. Lagerfeld Collection, the former Lagerfeld Gallery line produced out of Paris, will, however, go on. ...

After years of bare legs with skirts and dresses, the pendulum has finally swung back. And it's not hosiery that the fashion flock is donning, but leggings. Layered looks from Japanese street fashion (see "Street Chic: Tokyo") and the runways of the fashion capitals are now really hitting the streets in a big way. For summer, we're seeing women wearing leggings with short skirts and ballet flats. "Every other woman I see is wearing leggings," Geri Fagan, Fashion Director at Bloomingdale's, told ELLE.com. "Leggings are flying out of the store in every color and novelty. People are covering up the body more—girls don't want to be so obvious anymore." Fagan pegs the resurgence to the Marc by Marc Jacobs show for spring 2006 (see it here) and also to the 1980s revival. "When you think of the 1980s, you think of leggings." And it's not too late to get your pair. "For fall, we'll see the trend with boots and platforms. Sweater dresses work best with leggings." ... Shopping for fall at Saks Fifth Avenue will be a study in polar opposites. The retailer released its must-haves for the season this week and though we agree with its choices, shopping could be confusing with all the wide and narrow silhouettes. We suggest pairing voluminous sleeves with skinny jeans, textured knit sweaters with leggings, romantic blouses with narrow pantsuits or even wide-leg pants if they're not overwhelmingly ruffle-y. It's all about how you mix the silhouettes. And though we know summer has barely arrived, the best choices for fall can be found when these fabulous items start arriving next month. ...

The baby boom is happening in fashion too. Chaiken designer Julie Chaiken celebrated the joys of motherhood with an afternoon tea Thursday for fashion editors, execs, and other designers. ... Hair maestro John Sahag was remembered on the first anniversary of his death Tuesday evening by Holly Hunter, Carole King, Estée Lauder's John Demsey, and Siberian model Irina Pantaeva. ... WGSN reports that a French environmental agency suggests denim jeans should be washed after five wearings and be allowed to drip dry to save the impact the incessant washing has on the environment.

Obama's $22 million May a down month

2008-06-21T08:31:00.000-07:00

Democrat Barack Obama raised $22 million in May for his presidential campaign, his weakest fundraising month this year, and ended the month with $43 million cash on hand, while former rival Hillary Rodham Clinton sank deeper in debt.

Obama, who has been the fundraising leader throughout the presidential contest, entered June on virtually the same financial footing as Republican rival John McCain — a level of parity that would have been unimaginable just a few months ago.

Details of the candidates' May fundraising, filed Friday in reports to the Federal Election Commission, came a day after Obama announced he would become the first major party candidate to forgo public financing in the general election. McCain has said he will accept the public funds, which will limit him to spending about $85 million from September until Election Day in November.

McCain raised $21 million in May and ended the month with $31.6 million in the bank. Of Obama's cash on hand, $10 million is available only for the general election, leaving him with about $33 million to use between now and the party conventions in late summer. Obama reported debts of $304,000; McCain had debts of $1.3 million.

Obama's decision to forgo public funds permits him to use leftover primary money in the general election. McCain cannot.

Clinton, who bowed out of the Democratic contest on June 7, reported a $22.5 million debt at the end of May, more than half of which came from personal loans to her presidential campaign. The former first lady lent her campaign nearly $2.2 million during the month, bringing her total personal investment in the campaign to $12.175 million. She had $3.4 million cash on hand left for primary
spending. She also had more than $23 million for the general election, money her campaign cannot use to pay off her debts.

Clinton campaigned actively through the last Democratic primaries on June 3 before succumbing to Obama and is expected to have even greater debt at the end of this month. In a call to
donors on Thursday, she said she would concentrate on paying off money owed to vendors, not her personal loans.

Obama reported spending $26.6 million in May. His heaviest spending was on advertising — he spent more than $4 million buying time for television commercials. Clinton reported total disbursements of $19.2 million for the month.

The two Democrats traded primary victories during the month but Obama continued to build his delegate advantage. He secured the nomination June 3, winning that day's Montana primary but losing to Clinton in South Dakota.

Obama's decision to forgo public money in the general election gives greater significance to his efforts to capitalize on Clinton's support for the general election. Her donors would be a
rich vein to tap.

First, however, Clinton needs substantial help retiring her debt. Many of her loyal donors have already contributed the maximum to her campaign, so she needs some new sources of money. That's
where Obama comes in — his donors help her out, her donors help him.

"It's far more productive for Obama to have Hillary 100 percent focused and engaged on campaigning and raising money for him in the fall rather than having to do fundraisers at the same time to
retire her debt," said Hassan Nemazee, a Clinton national finance chairman.

"It would clearly make life easier for those of us in the Clinton world who would like to help Senator Obama raise the types of moneys that are necessary from the Clinton world to be in a position to point out, 'Look what Senator Obama has done for Senator Clinton."'

Clinton and Obama will meet with her top fundraisers next Thursday in Washington, then both will campaign together Friday.

Obama said he is expecting McCain to have significant help from the Republican Party and from outside groups.

So far, though, few conservative outside groups have stepped into the presidential election and those that have have spent little money. In a news conference Friday, Obama defended his decision to go outside the public financing system.

"There are a lot of outside groups that are potentially going to be going after us hard," he said. He also pointed out that McCain advisers have made a point of featuring the RNC's financial advantage.

"So you know, this isn't speculative on my part," he said. "I think it's something that we've seen in the past and it's something that we continue to be concerned about."

Wonder drug that cuts breast cancer chances by a third

2008-06-16T22:03:00.000-07:00

There is a ray of hope for breast cancer patients as researchers have developed a new drug called Zometa, which prevents bone loss during breast cancer treatment and cuts the chance of the disease returning by one-third.

Breast cancer kills 502,000 women globally every year according to the World Health Organisation.

Liza Marshall was diagnosed with an aggressive form of breast cancer more than two-years-ago. It's now in remission, but Liza fears the return of the cancer every day. "I'm 45-years-old and I'd like to see my children grow up," says Liza.

Results of a new study are offering patients like Liza Marshall hope. The study involved 1,800 pre-menopausal women taking hormone treatments for early-stage breast cancer.

Zometa, also known as zolodronic acid, cuts the chances that cancer would recur in their bones or anywhere else by one-third. The new study was sponsored by Zometa's maker, Swiss-based Novartis, and British-based company AstraZeneca PLC.

It's still unclear exactly why Zometa slowed the cancer, but doctors hope it could help patients with other forms of the disease.

"Zometa could help fight prostate cancer which can also spread to the bone," says Dr Claudine Isaacs who is with the Georgetown University Lombardi Cancer Centre.

However, the study was limited to patients of a pre-menopausal age who had not undergone chemotherapy. Today three quarters of breast cancers occur in women after menopause.

"Zolodronic acid should not be an automatic choice for treatment of breast cancer as it should be confined to those who develop the disease before menopause," says Dr Eric Winer who is with Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston.

But for Liza Marshall the new findings are encouraging, "I have plans for retirement with my husband, and I would like to see this come to fruition," she says.

Liza is now enrolled in a new research study for Zometa

Yahoo! makes Google ad deal, Microsoft talks fail

2008-06-13T22:29:00.000-07:00

Yahoo Inc and Microsoft Corp ended months of deal talks on Thursday as the Web pioneer agreed to let archrival Google Inc sell search ads on its site, the companies said.

Separate statements from Microsoft and Yahoo signaled a real rift between the two after their agonizing on-again, off-again talks, and Yahoo shares fell 10 per cent as final hopes of a full or partial acquisition faded for many.

Microsoft shares rose more than 4 percent as investors showed relief that the company would not be paying too high a price for a deal they considered risky -- and even though it faces the joining of forces of its biggest rivals on the Web.

Yahoo said it had agreed to let Google put search ads on its site in what it called an $800 million annual revenue opportunity that would boost cash flow by $250 million to $450 million in the first 12 months.

"Google has made an enormous gain strategically. This move might well have shut Microsoft out of the online space altogether," said Sanford Bernstein analyst Jeffrey Lindsay.

Missing something? Get great insurance coverage today...

2008-06-10T04:12:00.000-07:00

Everyone Needs a life insurance.Online makes security and safety.It also makes time conservation.Here comes Life Insurance Online As human beings most of us have a fundamental desire to be surrounded by people, to never be alone, to want someone to always have our backs. It is a pretty basic desire, this is a hard world and sometimes we need someone to lean on. Insurance won't make us stop feeling alone, it won't provide the warmth of family and it is not someone you can hang out with. However, insurance will always have your back. Insurance is here to protect you from all the worst things that could possibly happen to you. Insurance is a state of mind. Without it and you are always worrying, with it and you never have to worry about what will happen to your finances incase the worst happens. You need to feel safe, you need to guarantee your assets, you need someone to have your back, and you need insurance.

HomeOwner's Insurance:

As the name states, homeowners insurance basically protects your home if it is damaged, destroyed, or comprised in any way stated in the contract that you have signed with the insurance company. The coverage applies to the house itself, the property inside of the house, and any medical or property damage sustained in the area. Basically any homeowner should have this insurance because it allows you the peace of mind that if something tragic does happen to you and your family.

Car Insurance:
A car may just be a tool to get you from point A to point B but it is an extremely expensive tool. Get into an accident and see how much money it costs to fix your car. Cause an accident and see how much money it costs to pay for the other guy’s damages. If a house is your most important asset then your car is your most important asset on wheels. You are going to want some insurance in case you have major auto problems.

Life Insurance:

As long as we are talking important assets, it is a safe bet that your most important asset is your health. Although death will not really affect you in a financial since it could have devastating consequences to your family. You are going to want to make sure that, in case were to die, your family will be compensated to make up for the loss of your income. Don’t gamble with your family’s life, make the safe play and get assurance that your family will never have financial hardships after you are gone.

Health Insurance:
Lets think big picture here, in order to avoid your life insurance going into affect you are going to need to maintain your health. The problem is that health costs are astronomical! Health insurance can help you absorb these costs so you never have to worry about not being able to pay for a necessary medical procedure. The last thing you need is not having access to something that can make you feel a lot better then you are currently feeling.

Oil prices surge, touch new record at $139 a barrel

2008-06-10T04:10:00.000-07:00

Oil prices have shot up more than $11 to a new record above $139 after Morgan Stanley predicted prices would hit $150 by July 4.

Oil's meteoric surge, which pushed prices more than 8 per cent higher in a single day, added to a huge increase on Thursday to cap oil's biggest two-day gain in the history of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The burst higher - which also came on rising Middle East tensions - also raised the prospect of accelerating inflation by adding to already strained transportation costs.

That gloomy outlook sent stocks tumbling, taking the Dow Jones industrials nearly 400 points.

Light, sweet crude for July delivery jumped as high as $139.12 on the Nymex, before easing slightly to settle at $138.54, up $10.75. Prices hit a previous record of $135.09 a barrel on May 22, and settled Thursday at $127.79.

Brent crude on the ICE futures exchange settled $10.15 higher at a record $137.69 a barrel, after hitting an all-time high of $138.12 a barrel.

Prices pushed sharply higher on Thursday after Morgan Stanley analyst Ole Slorer predicted strong demand in Asia could drive prices to $150 by American Independence Day (July 4), when millions of citizens are expected to take to the roads. Slorer said shipments from the Middle East are mimicking patterns seen in the third quarter last year, when Morgan Stanley based an oil price spike prediction on falling supplies in the Atlantic.

Traders also zeroed in on remarks by an Israeli Cabinet minister, who was quoted as saying his country will attack Iran if it doesn't abandon its nuclear programme. Transportation Minister Shaul Mofaz added that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad "will disappear before Israel does," the Yediot Ahronot daily reported.

Payday Loans by Personal Cash Advance

2008-06-10T04:03:00.000-07:00

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Musharraf scared of death sentence, says Imran

2008-06-10T03:57:00.001-07:00

Cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan has said that the Pakistani government cannot resist the impending public movement to reinstate sacked judges.

Imran, Chairman of Tehrik-i-Insaaf, said Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf doesn't want to reinstate the judiciary because he's scared of a death sentence.

"There is no way the government will be able to resist this movement - led by the lawyers, but it is a public movement. The civil society is behind it, the human rights organisations, the NGOs, almost all the political parties who are for democracy are behind this movement, but I think this is just the beginning," Imran told CNN.

Lawyers and opponents of President Musharraf held a rally in Karachi on Monday and started a protest march called 'Long March' against the President for restoration of sacked judges.

Pakistan's new government is yet to reinstate Pakistani Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry and about 60 other judges who were sacked by President Musharraf on November 3, 2007.

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2008-06-10T03:54:00.000-07:00

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Ash may play sex worker in Meryl Streep film

2008-06-10T03:50:00.000-07:00

Plans are afoot to bring Aishwarya Rai and Meryl Streep together in an American production of Chaos, Colin Serreau's 2002 French movie.

Says a source, "They ran the concept with Meryl and Ash and they were game. They need to Americanise the theme because Chaos was a very French movie. But, yes, in principle Ash is on for this film."

Ash is slated to play a sex worker in the film.

Another international project Aishwarya has agreed to is Roland Joffe's Singularity with Brendan Fraser.

Ash says she has asked for the final draft of the script. "Now the time factor has to be worked out. The time they want is devoted to Mani (Ratnam) Sir's project. New dates have to be worked out. There're so many projects that I want to do but because of the dates or a delay I can't. There're only that number of assignments I can take on. I've never done more work than I can do. I never can."

In the meanwhile, Aishwarya gets ready to shoot for Shankar's Robot and Mani Ratnam's film with Abhishek.

"There has been a little delay in Shankar's Robot because of his writer Sujata 's death. That has delayed 'Robot' a bit. All kinds of rumours have been floated about the project. The dates situation does get tighter for me because I was supposed to shoot 'Robot' now and Mani Sir's film a little later during the year. We just have to work under a tighter schedule now."

Consolidate Debt With No Debt Today

2008-06-10T03:47:00.000-07:00

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WHO says no global AIDS epidemic outside Africa

2008-06-10T03:45:00.000-07:00

The World Health Organisation has declared that the threat of a global heterosexual epidemic outside Africa might have passed.

The head of WHO's HIV/AIDS department Kevin de Cock has said that unlike Africa where the HIV virus has been found to be self-sustaining in the general population, a similar trend has not emerged in Asian countries.

The WHO experts also said that in Asian nations, the prevalence is mostly concentrated in high-risk groups like homosexual men, sex workers and their clients.

Meanwhile, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said that the numbers of people newly infected with HIV are far and away outpacing the numbers beginning antiretroviral drug treatments.

Ban said that 2.5 million people were infected with HIV in 2007 as compared with 1 million who started using important antiretroviral drugs.

"Unless greater and swifter advances are made in reaching those who need essential services, the epidemic's burden on households, communities and societies will continue to mount," Ban said.

Some 2.1 million people died of AIDS last year and at least 33 million people worldwide have the HIV infection, according to UN figures.

Everything About Car Insurance

2008-06-09T22:51:00.000-07:00

CarInsuranceRates.com is a full service quote website providing instant car insurance quotes since more than ten years. They have also built a large archive of car insurance articles, tips, and expert advice.This is an Online Car Insurance Site.
Comprehensive Coverage: This coverage provides protection in the event of damage not caused by a collision (that kind of damage would be covered by your collision coverage). These other kinds of damage can include theft, fire, damage by extreme weather, etc.They provide various kind of Coverages.

Continuous Coverage: The length of time that you have maintained the legally required insurance on your vehicle. Lapses in coverage can result in higher rates.

Continuously Insured: The amount of time that you’ve been insured, without gaps. You can switch companies as many times as you want, but if you’ve let your coverage lapse, you could end up with higher premiums.

Credit Rating: Each individual consumer has a credit file with each of the three major credit bureaus - Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. Each company uses a formula developed by Fair Issac's & Co. (FICO) to determine the consumer's credit rating. Insurers consider your credit rating when determining your insurance rates, since their own advanced statistical models have determined that consumers with good credit are better insurance risks, and vice versa.

Deductible: This is the amount that you are required to pay towards any damages. Your car insurance will cover any costs above this amount. The size of your deductible can greatly affect your car insurance costs.

Bigger, better ICL T20 in October: More

2008-06-09T22:40:00.000-07:00

After witnessing the highly successful Indian Premier League (IPL) Twenty20 tournament, backed by the cash rich Indian Cricket Board (BCCI), their parallel body the Indian Cricket League (ICL) is all set to launch a bigger and better Twenty20 tournament in October.

"We have lots of innovative plans for this edition of the ICL and we are planning a bigger and better Twenty20 tournament for sure some time in October. Everything is still at the planning stages and it will be disclosed to the media in due course of time," former Indian stumper and one of the ICL board members Kiran More told Cricketnext.com on Monday.

"Due to the rainy season, we can only plan things right now as the next three months will not be conducive for any serious cricket but I am sure we will have lots of innovative ideas for the third edition of our tournaments though everything is at the planning stage right now, we are hopeful of finalizing most of the activities within the next ten days," he added.

Speaking about the stupendous success of the IPL, More said, he enjoyed every minute of the inaugural event while watching with his family and friends and was happy that IPL had done a world of good for all the youngsters who showcased their talents.

"Twenty20 has really caught up with cricket buffs everywhere and I personally enjoyed watching the matches. To me, a battle royal between two good teams in any sports is worth watching especially when you can witness it in the comforts of your drawing rooms," he pointed out.

"I sincerely hope like the youngsters in IPL, the ICL players too get recognised one day as the main intentions of both the leagues is to popularise the new format," More observed.

The Best Stop for Mortgage Loans

2008-06-09T22:29:00.000-07:00

Buying a home is exciting, but can also be stressful with so many decisions to make regarding which types of loans to have and which lender to obtain it from. Should you deal directly with a lender or have a broker? What's the point compensation for having a broker? How much of a loan payment can you afford? How much should the loan amount and loan term be? Is the interest rate fixed or adjustable? The questions keep rolling in, but you can ease your mind now that you are here. Mortgage Finders Network will help you with your mortgage loan process.There are so many different types of loans out there to accomodate the many different situations home buyers and home owners need. From first time home buyers to current homeowners, we provide all sorts of loan financing such as mortgages, refinancing, and home equity loans. Be sure to research, shop, and compare all loan types to find which one best suits you.
Here is how an extra mortgage can actually save you a ton of money:

Lets say you current mortgage was for $200,000 for 30 years at a 6% APR. Your mortgage monthly payment would be $1199.10. Let’s say after five years you are doing pretty will with your income and decide you can afford to pay more, so you decide to start making two mortgage payments each month. So you make two $650 payments every two weeks. This will end up costing you $100 more dollars a month to $1,299. Since you have accelerated your payments you can actually save on your interest and shorten the length of your mortgage. In this case, by adding $100 a month, you shave almost four years and $31,582 off your mortgage.

Just like refinancing a mortgage will lower your monthly payment by extending the length of your loan, making second mortgage payments do the opposite. If you can afford to pay another $100 a month you can really save a lot of money in the long run. It is worth your money, if you can spare it, to shorten your mortgage and pay less interest. Don’t you want $30,000 plus dollars saved in the future? It doesn’t seem like to much to ask to come up with another $100 each month. If you can afford it, it becomes a great idea.

Asif stays in detention, no decision on trial

2008-06-09T22:27:00.001-07:00

Mohammad Asif continues to languish in detention with the Dubai Attorney General and Public Prosecutor's office on Monday not taking any decision on whether to trial the Pakistani pacer for alleged possession of contraband drugs or deport him.

The law firm hired by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to bail out Asif also declined to make any comments on the issue that has become an increasing source of embarrassment for Pakistan's cricket authorities.

Nadeem Akram, the senior PCB official in Dubai, said no decision had been taken on Asif's case and they were still awaiting a word from the Attorney General's office.

"All these rumors off him being charged are not true. I will not substantiate them. The position is that the AG has yet to decide on the report of the Prosecutor and until that is done Asif will remain in detention," Akram said.

No official was willing to give a deadline on when a decision from the authorities in Dubai can be expected, an indication that perhaps the pacer's ordeal is far from over.

Sources close to the case said that the board, despite its best efforts, was also still not sure if Asif would be released as there was now a 50-50 chance of the case going either way.

Senior board officials also said to have raised the Asif issue with Pakistan's top security official Rehman Malik in Islamabad on the sidelines of a meeting held to review security arrangements for the Asia Cup and the Champions Trophy.

The pacer on Sunday appeared before the prosecutors along with his lawyers following which the case was forwarded to the Attorney General of Dubai.

Asif remained detained since he was caught with contraband drugs at the Dubai airport on his arrival from

Mumbai on June 1. Asif was going to Lahore after playing in the Indian Premium League for the Delhi Daredevils.

The fast-bowler would face a minimum of four years in prison if charged and found guilty.

Akram, meanwhile, told Khaleej Times that Asif's lawyers have sought a meeting with the Dubai Attorney General.

"Our lawyers have requested a meeting with the Dubai Attorney General but no time has been fixed as yet," Akram said.

Chief Prosecutor Mohammed Rustom told the daily that a decision was expected any time this week.

"If the case is referred to the court, what kind of charges will be pressed against him has still to be

determined. We cannot anticipate the results of the ongoing investigation," Rustom said.

Use our Credit Card Wisely

2008-06-09T22:22:00.000-07:00

When you get your first credit card, it can be very tempting to go on a spending spree buying all sorts of new things that you weren’t able to before. It’s difficult, but you must resist that temptation and use your credit wisely. But how to use it wisely? It’s not difficult - it just takes a little planning.

Our Credit Network was created to meet a growing demand for information about credit cards, credit card offers, and general information about financial planning. The original concept was an open forum where people could research, review, and share information about credit cards and relevant experiences, but Our Credit Network has made great efforts to expand the scope of its service to include both valuable information and the scoop on the latest and greatest credit cards offers available!

The first thing to remember is that you shouldn’t be spending more than you can afford. To figure that out, you need to have a budget. The details of making a budget are outside the scope of this article but, put simply, take your monthly income and then subtract your monthly expenses. The difference is your disposable income. This number determines how much you can afford to spend. Without a credit card, the only way to exceed this amount for a given month is to save money (spend less) in the previous months. A credit card can let you exceed your disposable income by letting you use some of your credit. Keep in mind that this will then increase your monthly expenses in the form of your credit card bill.

However, just because you can exceed your disposable income doesn’t mean you should. Eventually, you will reach your credit limit and won’t be able to spend any more on your credit card. This eliminates one of the best uses for a credit card: emergency spending. If you’re on vacation and your car breaks in the middle of nowhere, a credit card is a great way to pay for the repairs. Also, maxing out your credit cards isn’t a good idea if you’re trying to obtain other forms of credit, like car or home loan, as the ratio of credit extended to credit used is a factor in determining your eligibility for those loans.

It may sound like you shouldn't use your credit card except in emergencies, but that isn't necessarily the case; in fact, you should use your credit cards periodically. Repeatedly using your cards and paying them off in a timely manner demonstrates responsibility to the credit card companies which will lead to a higher limit and lower interest rates. A higher limit gives you a bigger cushion to pay for emergencies when they arise. As long as you’re not spending more than you can afford, there’s no reason not to pay with your credit card.

Romania hold France to a goalless draw

2008-06-09T22:14:00.000-07:00

France were held to a 0-0 draw by Romania on Monday in a defence-dominated match at the European Championship that lacked few clear scoring chances.

Without captain Patrick Vieira and record scorer Thierry Henry, the World Cup finalists dominated possession but failed to penetrate a backline led by Gabriel Tamas. Romania played with usual defender Cristian Chivu in a midfield role as part of a conservative formation drawn up by coach Victor Piturca.

It worked.

"Maybe the French are bored with playing at the highest level and let us Romanians win a point," Piturca said. "My players are exhausted."

The best chance fell to France striker Nicolas Anelka in the 33rd minute. After a short corner, Franck Ribery's cross into the Romanian box evaded everyone, bouncing up high to Anelka at the far post. The 29-year-old Chelsea player had time to pick a spot with his header, but sent the ball over the crossbar.

The result leaves both teams with one point in Group C, the competition's toughest. The Netherlands and Italy are also in the group.

"It's important not to lose to a direct opponent, so you can say it's positive," France coach Raymond Domenech said. "It was not easy."

France seemed intent to control the match early, spreading the ball around the midfield with ease but failing to penetrate Romania's defense. Without Henry, who has not trained in four days, France's tactical play lacked creativity. The team has yet to disclose the 30-year-old FC Barcelona striker's injury.

Ribery created the first chance in the ninth minute, curling a pass down the right into space to Anelka, who hit a first-time volley but sent it well wide. Strike partner Karim Benzema then shot over from 20 metres (yards) after good work holding the ball up by Claude Makelele.

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2008-06-09T22:06:00.000-07:00

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Technology lends a helping hand to disabled

2008-06-05T06:52:00.000-07:00

The Jaipur blasts have left many people maimed for life, but there is some hope in sight. A new technology, offered by companies like Touch Bionics makes it possible for people to be fitted with artificial limbs that can perform many functions akin to a human limb.

Says Malvika Iyer, "I was thirteen. I found this defused bomb near my house. I was playing with it. It exploded and I lost my hands."

Malvika Iyer did survive and how — 95 per cent in her school exams, the highest in Tamil Nadu, admission to Delhi's St Stephens college and glowing accolades in the media.

For six years, Malvika challenged life with an artificial limb. Yet, something was missing.

"There were still things I couldn't do like tying my hair or picking up a plate. That hurt, more so because I was trying so hard to be normal," she recalls.

That's when she discovered an artificial hand from the company, Touch Bionics. In the artificial hand, every finger moves individually, just like a real hand. Small batteries inside power them for up to 24 hours.

And a specially designed sheath looks and feels just like real skin. Yet, it's when this machine attaches to a human arm, that the real magic begins.

Director Touch Bionics, Gaurav Mishra says, "Once an amputation is done, the brain doesn't know a hand is not available. It still functions in the same manner."

When her brain orders Malvika's fingers to move, muscles in her forearm still jump. Sensors inside the artificial hand provided by Touch Bionics react to those twitches and convert them into electronic commands for her new hand.

Malvika is the first Indian ever to get an iLimb. At Rs 14.5 lakh, the limb is not cheap, but Malvika says it has changed her life.

India has more disabled people than anywhere else in the world. Bionic enhancements are available for the arms, the legs, even the eyes. But till the Government and insurance companies find a way to subsidise their cost, only a lucky few like Malvika will be able to take on life without a handicap.

Tendulkar ruled out of Asia Cup

2008-05-29T06:42:00.000-07:00

Sachin Tendulkar was on Thursday ruled out from the upcoming tri-series to be played in Bangaldesh and the subsequent Asia Cup as the master batsman has not recovered fully from his groin injury.

Tendulkar, who had missed the first seven matches of the Indian Premier League owing to the injury, has been declared unfit by Mumbai Indians physiotherapist Nitin Patel for the June 8-14 tri-series, also involving Pakistan.

"Tendulkar is not available for the tri-series as well as the Asia Cup on the advice of Mumbai Indians physiotherapist Nitin Patel. He has not recovered sufficiently from the groin injury," BCCI Secretary Niranjan Shah told reporters here.

Tendulkar will also skip the Asia Cup, which will be held in Pakistan from June 24 to July 6, he said. The batsman sustained the injury during the CB Series in Australia, which India won.

Kahn takes final bow from football :(

2008-05-27T23:43:00.000-07:00

gendary German goalkeeper Oliver Kahn took his final bow from competitive football before a capacity 1.20 lakh crowd at Yuva Bharati Krirangan as Bayern Munich decimated Mohun Bagan 3-0 in a friendly in Kolkata on Tuesday.

Kahn, who turns 40 next month, handed over the gloves to youngster Michael Rensing in the 55th minute of the match and took a seat in the reserve bench as the entire stadium stood up to give a sentimental farewell to one of the best goalkeepers of contemporary football, thousands of miles away from his home.

"It is a very special moment for me. Thank you for the great night," the golden ball winner of the 2002 World Cup said during the half time break as he was showered with gifts by match organiser Bengal Peerless, Mohun Bagan and the Indian Footbal Association.

After having a measure of their opponents in the first few minutes, Bayern established midfield control with medio Mark Van Bommel and Ze Roberto dictating terms on their rivals.

The fancied outfit shot into the lead in the 18th minute thorough a freak goal.

Schlaudraff cut into the box, looking dangerous, and a desperate Anand Vasan tried to thwart him with a close tackle, but only managed a deflection back to the German, who shot home.

Bayern doubled the lead 19 minutes later from a set piece. Ze Roberto let loose a curling left-footed free kick which foxed the wall and entered the net to the left of Bagan goalie Sangram Mukherjee who seemed to be totally clueless.

The insurance goal came in the 52nd minute when Schlaudraff finished off a measured pass from Christian Lell.

Bayern held sway, and could have returned home with a bigger margin but for Sangram, who brought off a couple of good saves.

In the 22nd minute, Sangram thwarted a Schlaudraff effort, and 10 minutes later flung himself in the air to punch out from harms way a thumping Roberto shot.

The second half saw Bagan trying to carry out raids into the rival territory, but the Bayern defence gave little away.

The closest Bagan came to making a dent in the scoreline was when Lal Kamal Bhowmick's 80th minute long ranger grazed the upright and went away.

But the second half would be remembered more for the rough play and frayed tempers among the players of the both sides.

Things turned ugly in the 82nd minute when Branco Cardozo, who substituted Lalampuiya in the 64th minute, brought down Brazilian defender Breno with a tackle from behind.

The Brazilian under-20 captain lost his cool, and immediately got up to kick the Bagan player, and the two soon came to blows. The other players rushed in, and the referee managed to separate the two after much effort.

The match was halted for a short while as the officials of both sides came to the ground and brought the situation under control after both the offenders were given marching orders.

Alcohol abuse leads to emotional violence

2008-05-27T02:23:00.000-07:00

There are increasing reports of violence and death in families as a result of alcohol abuse. Recently a child was reportedly killed because the parents were in the midst of a drunken brawl.

Many like Divya (name changed to protect identity) say alcohol brings physical violence but perhaps what’s even worse is the emotional violence.

Divya's alcoholic husband is sober for seven years now but she will never forget the emotional trauma and fear.

“There was always an anger and fear in the house. We were always worried about whether he will be able to reach home, whether he will bang his car on the way and what will happen when he reaches home,” Divya says.

Divya, who was heading a multinational company, didn’t walk out of the marriage. For her it was a disease the family was battling with.

"If the person had tuberculosis or cancer, you wouldn’t look at him as a person who’s done something wrong. The only thing with alcohol is that several ugly physical manifestations come across because of it,” she says.

Social scientists say domestic violence is rampant in families that have alcoholics. In most cases though alcohol itself is not the real reason for the violence.

"There is already a power relationship within the way family in India is structured. Drinking is not the cause of violence. It can probably provide an excuse as people feel less inhibited when they are drunk," sociologist S S Jodhka explains.

But the biggest victims of alcohol abuse are the children.

Fourteen-year-old, Jaikishan is the only breadwinner for his family. He sells the wastes of a vegetable market for a living. Jaikishan hesitates in accepting that his parents are alcoholics who sit at home because they are too drunk to work.

Jaikishan's elder sister does most of the household work. She carries the burden of her alcoholic parents.

Two years back a man in a drunken state shouted talaq three times and divorced his wife — just one of the several cases that showcased the collapse of family but cases such as these perhaps give us hope that there are fighters who believe that alcohol addiction will not hamper personal relationships.

Home monitors urged for all high blood pressure patients

2008-05-26T07:11:00.000-07:00

(AP) -- Everyone with high blood pressure -- 72 million Americans -- should own a home monitor and do regular pressure checks, the American Heart Association and other groups urged Thursday in an unprecedented endorsement of a medical device for consumers.

Blood pressure eadings of 140 over 90 are considered high at the doctor's office; 135 over 85 if taken at home.

High blood pressure is a leading cause of heart attacks, strokes and death. Having it checked a few times a year in a doctor's office or at the drugstore is not enough to keep tabs on it, and regular home monitoring is more accurate, the new advice says.

Closer checks would let doctors fine-tune the many medicines used to control high blood pressure, just as diabetics adjust their insulin levels by regularly monitoring blood sugar. Only a third of people with high blood pressure now have it under control.

"We need new approaches. Our current approach is simply not working," said Dr. David Goff, a preventive medicine specialist at Wake Forest University and a member of the panel that wrote the advice.

Outside experts strongly agreed. But some said the case would be more compelling if those pushing the monitors had no industry ties. For example, a leading device maker pays more than $300,000 a year to co-sponsor the heart association's blood pressure Web site. The company played no role in the new advice, the association said.

"This is not as clean a recommendation as it could be" because of the industry ties, said Dr. Sidney Wolfe of the consumer group Public Citizen. Still, home monitors are "an excellent idea," Wolfe said.

Tips for monitoring
Buy an automated monitor with an upper-arm cuff, not a wrist or finger device. Cost is $50 to $100.

Take two or three readings at a time, one minute apart, while sitting.

Readings should be taken at the same time each day for a week.

Bring the device to your next doctor visit to compare readings.

Source: Associated Press
They cost $50 to $100 on the Internet and at pharmacies. Insurance usually doesn't pay, though the heart groups say it should.

The heart association, the American Society of Hypertension and the Preventive Cardiovascular Nurses' Association all urged home monitoring in a statement published online Thursday in the journal Hypertension, the medical term for high blood pressure.

The condition occurs when blood pulses too forcefully through vessels, which can damage the heart, kidneys and other organs. It is more common as people age, and it leads to hundreds of thousands of deaths each year.

Readings of 140 over 90 are considered high at the doctor's office; 135 over 85 if taken at home. Pressure often goes up with the "white coat" effect, nervousness when seeing a doctor. Readings also vary throughout the day.

"So often we rely on a single measurement in the office, and it's so arbitrary," said Dr. Allen Taylor of Walter Reed Army Medical Center, a prominent researcher not involved in the new advice.

Many types of medicines can help control high blood pressure, and often more than one is needed. Finding the right dose or combo is tricky.

Home monitors can help by giving a better picture of pressure variations and the response to a drug. Sometimes, less medication is needed because doctors discover that pressure was artificially high when someone was in the office, Goff said. That spares people the cost and side effects of unnecessary treatment.

Often, though, the opposite is true: People need more or different drugs.

Home monitors are especially important for the elderly, pregnant women, diabetics and people with kidney disease, the panel said. Automated arm-cuff devices are recommended; wrist and finger ones are notoriously inaccurate. People should take their devices with them to their doctor's office and have measurements compared to make sure the machine isn't off.

Experts suggest taking two or three readings at a time, one minute apart, while sitting with the arm supported. Readings should be taken at the same time each day, such as morning and evening, for a week.

Twelve readings are recommended for doctors to make treatment decisions, and this can be repeated as often as a doctor feels necessary, depending on how stable the condition is.

Taking readings at home also may nudge people to cut risks: use less salt, exercise more, lose weight and limit alcohol.

"It's a great idea," said Dr. Joseph Drozda of St. John's Mercy Medical Center in Chesterfield, Missouri. He is a high blood pressure expert for the American College of Cardiology. "If you're graphically seeing where your blood pressure is all the time, it keeps it real to you," especially if you're not having symptoms, he said.

Health Library
MayoClinic.com: Hypertension
However, there is scant proof that home monitoring will cut heart attacks, strokes or deaths more than periodic office checkups do. Studies suggest that home monitors can improve blood pressure control, and that a 2-point drop in the reading results in a 4 percent drop in heart disease death rates, Goff said.

Many blood pressure drugs have been approved without evidence they lower deaths, said Dr. William White, a blood pressure specialist at the University of Connecticut and a reviewer of the new advice.

"We don't have direct evidence that it will reduce heart attacks and strokes but we have reason to believe that it will," said heart association president Dr. Daniel Jones, dean of the University of Mississippi School of Medicine.

Industry ties also should not make the public doubt the advice, Jones said. A leading home monitor maker -- Omron Healthcare Inc. of Deerfield, Illinois. -- is one of three sponsors of the association's high blood pressure Web site (the two others are drug makers).

Omron's $300,000 to $400,000 a year payment is a fraction of the association's $800 million in revenue, and companies have no role in the content of the Web site or any advice, Jones said.

Device makers also help sponsor projects and meetings of the hypertension society. The head of the panel urging home monitors, Dr. Thomas Pickering of Columbia University, is a paid speaker for Omron, and his university has had research grants from Omron and another device maker, Microlife

Tragedy At China

2008-05-24T03:15:00.000-07:00

China's Premier Wen Jiabao Saturday gave U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon a dramatic look at damage caused by the massive quake that hit Sichuan province earlier this month as the death toll from the catastrophe jumped past 60,000.

A woman hugs a picture of her daughter, who died with other students at a school in Wufu, China, on May 12.

more photos » A strong aftershock shook the town of Yingxiu, a small town near the epicenter of May 12's 7.9 magnitude quake, as Wen and Ban toured the area.

"The world will not forget," Ban told Wen, who appealed the U.N. chief to help raise international aid for the region.

China's central government announced Saturday that the death toll had risen to 60,560 with another 26,221 people missing and 353,290 injured.

Nearly every building in Yingxiu was destroyed and no residents remain there. About half of the town's 18,000 residents are either dead or missing and most survivors left on foot, leaving behind a ghost town.

Wen predicted that a return to "normal" life in the area would take about three months, adding that the lack of infectious disease outbreaks despite harsh living conditions for survivors had lessened the scope of the disaster.

The central government estimates that 45 million people, mostly in the Sichuan province, were affected by the massive earthquake and that five million were left homeless.

China put out an urgent call for tents and medical supplies to help victims of the earthquake.

Despite the passage of 12 days since the quake, searchers are still hoping to find people alive under collapsed structures.

A government official said Saturday that a rescue operation was under way for 24 coal miners believed trapped in three mines in the quake zone. The government said at least 176 coal miners were killed and 254 were missing in the 316 coal mines affected by quake.

Fat'' OO'' GENES

2008-05-20T01:13:00.000-07:00

If you are overweight, you can blame it on your 'fat' gene.

British scientists have identified a specific 'fat' gene called FTO that makes people, especially people of Indian origin more prone to obesity, diabetes and heart attack.

This also explains why some people easily put on weight while others with similar lifestyles remain slim.

“Those people who have this gene, given the same diet will develop more obesity than the people who do not have this gene,” explained Dr Anoop Mishra, a senior consultant in internal medicine.

The FTO gene comes in two varieties.

Sixteen per cent of people have two copies of the high-risk variant gene: 50 per cent have one high-risk and one low-risk variant, and 34 per cent of people have two low-risk variants

Those with two high-risk copies have a 70 per cent greater chance of obesity than those with two low-risk copies. They even weigh three kg more, on an average.

Those with one high-risk copy have a 30 per cent greater risk of obesity. They weigh an average of 1.2 kg more

However, it is not the fat gene alone that makes people obese – lifestyle is also a factor.

“The number of fat cells remain the same but that makes it all the more important for us to be extra careful about our diet and exercise, because the type of food that you eat will increase the size of fat cells,” explained nutritionist Dr Ritika Samaddar.

The good news is that the FTO gene might help design drugs that would help obese people control their weight.

Even though these findings are in a nascent stage, they're a source of great hope and excitement, both for the researchers as well as for people suffering from obesity.

Cannes 2008:Angelina Jolie stars in Pair

2008-05-16T04:41:00.000-07:00

Cannes 2008 is off to a sluggish start, this time with "Blindness" from Brazilian director Fernando Meirelles. (His previous features are "City of God" and the English-language screen version of John Le Carre's "The Constant Gardener.") Adapted from the Jose Saramago novel, "Blindness" stars Julianne Moore as the wife of a doctor, played by Mark Ruffalo. In an unspecified city most of the populace has been struck blind by a mysterious plague. Faster than you can say "Camus," the desperate quarantined citizens turn on each other, and their abandoned mental hospital turns into a battleground. Gael Garcia Bernal is the venal ward boss who trades sexual favors for food"Blindness" seemed to me to be a case of a miscast director. The extravagantly skillful Meirelles suffocates the story, which sits ponderously on the screen, with a grunge parade of artfully composed and manipulated images: milky-white "blindness" light, elegant dissolves depicting inelegant decay and misery. He and his cinematographer have a lot of wonderful camera subjects at their disposal, but the actors cannot make this material work on screen.

Coming off "Children of Men," "Blindness" marks the second post-apocalyptic landscape Moore has visited lately. As this allegory grinds on, you may find yourself focusing on matters unrelated to blindness, metaphorical or literal, such as the way Moore sounds exactly like Hillary Clinton on certain line readings.

A far richer experience, Israeli director Ari Folman's animated drama "Waltz with Bashir" made up for the arch inertia of the opening-night selection. It follows an Israeli Army veteran's inquiry regarding his own past, and his repressed memories of the early 1980s Lebanon War.

The collaborators work in a style of animation resembling the rotoscoping efforts of Richard Linklater ("Waking Life" and "A Scanner Darkly"), though none of the fluid, insinuating frames was actually rotoscoped. They were handmade, and you can tell: The look is deliberately flat in the graphic novel vein, but it doesn't have the robotic slickness that can devolve into pure mannerism. More crucially Folman's story has a lot to say about how a miserable conflict haunts those who wage it. Near the end Folman leaves animation behind for a few startling seconds, and the leap into low-def video news footage of a grieving Palestinian woman is shrewdly judged.

Some things are best shown with the least amount of emotional and visual distance possible.

And check out this trailer for "Three Monkeys," receiving its first Cannes press screening Thursday. (The official premiere comes Friday.) It's the latest film from the Turkish writer-director Nuri Bilge Ceylan, whose previous film, "Climates," was an extraordinary relationship story and a reminder that the cinema still has a few artists devoted to its calling.

I mean, it'll be fun to see "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" this weekend. Not to mention "Kung Fu Panda." But if "Three Monkeys" is half as intriguing as Ceylan's trailer looks....

Child Labout : A crime

2008-05-08T23:49:00.000-07:00

I dont believe all are blessed in this world.You know one thing.Whatever step may be taken by govt., still child labour continue.Especialy in poor developing countries like India child labour is said to be most concerned crime.

Why child labour?? i have been thinking for long time why there is child labour? wh all of the parents not able to board their ward in their school.The reaon may be politicians.But the real reason is poverty!! Governments change on every occasion.In every election campaign every politician says "I will give rice,i will give tv".. but no one is ready to say i will give free education.. May be because "If everyone studied then no one wil vote for the politicians.. ha ha ha ha".Anyways child labour makes the poor poorer in knowledge.Because of the child labour we lose many einsteins,newtons and great minds without knowing.The limits defined till now could be broken only by Knowledge.Knowledge is light in dark life!!!

Tragedy of Stripped Woman At Nandigram

2008-05-07T00:20:00.000-07:00

Oh no!! Is it India? Is this a place where Gandhi lived? Where Indira Gandhi ruled? Stupid politicians will do anything for money.Now this is too much.A woman has been stripped for refusal of participating in CPM rally.These barbarians forgot the culture of India.I did not mention all of politicians.But there are some who are good.Now My question is what are Indian Politicians upto?? They have only one thing in their minds.MONEY.Everything is next to it.Even Power is next to money.They will do anything for it.Who will be responsible for that woman who was stripped forcefully and made to run naked all over the public.This is third mass incident this year after most publicized raping of a foreigner.Woman rights are spoken for a long time.But the direction in development is moving in the opposite direction.

Dumb Dumber Dumbest People!!! Hollywood Celebrities

2008-05-06T23:55:00.000-07:00

A Man can be measured dumb with an IQ.But here a new method handled for celebrities of america to estimate who is the most dumber,dumbest.The reasons taken into account were delinquent behavior,Poor movie decisions and bad taste in men.First Name made my eyebrows to shake and my eyes to laugh!! Its Lindsay Lohan.She was enough fit to be chosen as Dumbest person in hollywood.But i dint expect it to be her.Next is Kim Kardashian and at third is Spencer Pratt.As I said earlier it has been reported the list was purely based on the poor life choices of the people.These people often come to limelight and also turned on often.
The list was compiled by Entertainment Weekly magazine, reports the New York Daily News.

The Dumbers with their ranks:

1. Lindsay Lohan, actress

2. Kim Kardashian, model/actress

3. Spencer Pratt, reality show star

4. Jeff Kwatinetz, manager of company the Firm

5. Shia LaBeouf - the 21 year-old "Transformers" star

6. Heidi Montag, reality television star

7. Jessica Simpson, singer

8. Kiefer Sutherland, actor

9. Tori Spelling, former teen actress/daughter of a media mogul

10. Rumer Willis, daughter of two famous people

11. Nick Hogan, son of pro wrestler

12. Courtney Love, rock singer

13. J.R. Rotem, music producer

14. Britney Spears, pop star

15. Brad Garrett, comedian

16. Ken Paves, celebrity hairdresser

17. Jennifer Love Hewitt, actress

18. Brad Womack, star of 'The Bachelor'

19. Michael Jackson, singer

20. Cash Warren, Jessica Alba's boyfriend

21. Audrina Patridge, "The Hills" star

22. Wilmer Valderamma, actor

23. Vanessa Minnillo, former VJ

24. Mel Gibson, actor

25. Michael Richards, comedian

26. Brandon Davis, a socialite

27. Isiah Washington, actor

28. Charlie Sheen, actor

29. Denise Richards, actress

30. Alec Baldwin, actor

31. Chad Michael Murray, actor

32. Steve-O, a daredevil performer

33. Nicole Richie, American celebutante

34. Janice Dickinson, former supermodel

35. Adrienne Curry, reality star

36. Anne Heche, actress

37. Bai Ling, Chinese-born American actress

38. Kevin Federline, Britney's ex-hubby, singer

39. Shar Jackson, American television and film actress and rapper/singer

40. Scott Baio, American actor

41. Dustin Diamond, actor, musician, and stand-up comedian

42. Tila Tequila, actress and singer

43. Russell Crowe, actor

44. Kristin Cavallari, actress

45. Nick Carter, Backstreet Boy

46. Vanessa Hudgens, Disney star

47. Michelle Rodriguez, The Fast And The Furious actress

48. David Hasselhoff, Baywatch hunk

49. Joe Francis, Girls Gone Wild creator

50. Tom Sizemore, actor (ANI)

Surya -Six Packed For Varnam Ayiram

2008-05-06T10:37:00.000-07:00

Come on man!! Thats my heroo..Cool guy.Now responsible to give yet another hit 'Varnam Ayiram'.Gautam Menon who gave the supreme hit 'Kaaka kaaka' before five years now ready to rock again.Both these Big Dealers of Tamil film industry have planned to plant a new bomb.For this film surya following SRK put up lots of muscle to him.he is trying to give best out of him.Considering tamil industry he is first one to give such an effort after the grea Kamal HAASAN. WOW!!! He is the best.i believe 'Varnam Ayiram' will help Gautam to regain his old position lost by 'Pachaikili muthucharam'.All the best guys.

PayperPost Rocks Bloggers

2008-05-06T07:52:00.000-07:00

Hey Cheer Up Bloggers Here is PayperPost!!! Is it not nice to earn online?? Ya it is!!But How?? Even Writing your own thinkings make you money.Even surveys for the product used makes you money>but how do you make it is little buit tricky.

Whom will approach.Man!! There should be some one who hears you who wants you who like your blog and thinking.If you are best at commenting use it.So all for what i have said there is Payperpost. Now what is Payperpost!!! Name itself says it dude!!You are paid for every own comment.I love commenting the products!! But Only if i used it and my comment should be valid so i think it should help others not to deceive someone.Payperpost just helps you.It acts as a intermediate anywhere and everywhere to connect the people who needs real useful comments and who really want to comment them.There you find many.But payperpost leads them all BOSS!!! Payperpost is guarateed no place for cheatings.I believe you would make use it.Cheers!!!!

Omega-3 fatty acids

2008-05-05T12:06:00.000-07:00

Omega-3 fatty acids, a type of polyunsaturated fat-What can it Do?? Its quite interesting to see it.

Its found in cereal,eggs, waffles, margarine spreads, milk, and even orange juice . As for now many are unaware of these acids and thus not aware of how much to consume.Various researches over omega Acids identified numerous benefits from consuming omega-3 fatty acids:
Depression Reduction,Improving inflammatory diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, reducing blood pressure and also increasing good cholesterol.
The supplementation must be under doctor's supervision.

Natural things containing omega-3s include flaxseed,fish (salmon, tuna, white fish), walnuts, broccoli and pinto beans.

Cruise vacations

2008-05-05T05:57:00.000-07:00

Cruise Vacation Center strives to provide clients with a cruise specifically planned to their tastes, always providing extraordinary personal service and the lowest prices.

A cruise specialist is happy to spend time with you to ensure that you find the cruise that meets your needs and expectations. When you call Cruise Vacation Center you will work with a professional cruise specialist that will give you the best service every time.

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Harbhajan On controversy again,Sreesanth joined him

2008-04-25T09:43:00.000-07:00

Bhajji slappped Sreesanth!!! It happened for on more time.India's two most hot heads of Cricket clashed in IPL. Everything is possible here Man LOLZ!!! No one expected such things in IPL.But as money plays everything as the players do.Mumbai lost matches in row.What a captain can do.Bhajji tensed.That too Sreesanth as usual noa new thing from him made himself an ugly guy in cricket once more.Later when the formalities of shaking hands between players it is said Sreesanth spilled those magic words of "Hard Luck " from his mouth.Harbhajan whose hands are very long cant tolreate anymore.The loss in match and sree's words made him lose his temper.He is not in control.He gave a sweet blow which sree dint experience. What 's the result??? Bhajji banned from rest of matches of IPL.

IPL Glitters in money

2008-04-18T22:54:00.000-07:00

After a long speculation and hype IPL glittered yesterday it proved to be some what worthy.Brendon McCullum,The first man of match award winner of IPL was excellent with his flow of bat.He provided chillness for this summer.He won $200,000 as cash prize.Wow!! what a huge amount one can expect to win due to man of match.IPL will destroy cricket.Though it is considered as a big thing in cricket it lures out everyone.Its fame,hype,money totally destroys the cricketing atmosphere.Thinking of the other sports in INDIA its worth criticising IPL.IPL affects indian economy by all means.People who gives money to IPL have to make things clear about going to movies,theme parks,enjoying out with children.Though its an 4 hour entertainer but it is not worth doing.

Olympic Flame and China's Blame

2008-04-17T03:21:00.000-07:00

Olympics in China have created a 'hot' fuzz this time since the tibetans started the protests.In India majority of the olympic torch 'runners' rejected to hold the torch for some reason.Now the Olympic Torch relay is held for two and half kilometer stretch from Rashtrapati Bhawan to India Gate in India's Capital on Thursday.Seventy celebrities and sportsperson would carry the Olympic torch in a short route guarded by paramilitary men and the policemen.No visitors are allowed even to government offices nearby the torch relayed arena. In Parallel against China 'Tibetians' planned to make their run showing agitation and opposition.Already forty tibetans were held protesting.Freeing Tibet was their major goal.China claims the protest to be a great flop.But the protest getting a bigger issue had awakened some fighters for sure.

The Sex Scandals of American Idol

2008-04-15T01:33:00.001-07:00

The American Idol ,this season so far got sex scandals in stream.Antonella-gate was the first one in American Idol. Recently,On March 9,a complaint against productions of American Idol was filed by Magdaleno Olmos,.The court papers says,Vasquez sexually harassed Olmos from February 2005 .in March 2005,Vasquez was a contestant who was dropped from the show .It was said that Olomonos complained to a supervisor about that incident.But he was told to keep the complaint with himself.It is also specified that when The Idol started to investigate about the complaint Vasquez dropped out of the show and he said he is going to work on aspects of his life.Olmos in his suit expressed that Olomo was fired in May 2005 and that was direct result of his complaint of harrassment. Now he is suing for the damages.

Miss USA 2008- Crystle Stewart

2008-04-14T07:59:00.000-07:00

Crystle Stewart was crowned as Miss USA 2008 and thereby she became the 57th Miss USA beauty pageant.she was crowned last week,April 11,2008 at Nevada .The outgoing titleholder, Rachel Smith of Tennessee during the final night of competition crowned Crystle Stewart as Miss Texas USA, . So here she goes. Crystle is going to represent her country, the United States for the Miss Universe 2008 competition which is going to be held at Vietnam.The competition was on broadcast for the first time .

Name:Crystle Stewart,Texas,Missouri City
Height : 5' 9"
Age : 25

'Alzheimer’s Disease Afraid of Coffee' -->> Cheers

2008-04-13T09:33:00.000-07:00

Regular intake of caffeine protects the individual from the destructive effects of high cholesterol which is linked with Alzheimer's disease. The damage of Blood Brain Barrier which is caused of a high-fat diet can be protected by a daily cup of Caffeine . The work of BBB is to protect the central nervous system.It protects the CNS from the damage due to contamination that is blood borne, thus it provide the brain its own environment regulated.
The cholesterol level when high breaks the BBB thus making them that can then no longer a protection for the CNS from the entire body blood circulation contamination. BBB leakage also occurs in a numerous neurological disorders.

In a research the rabbits were given 3mg caffeine daily or equivalent coffee and also they were given diet with cholesterol. Twelve weeks later after a large number of tests it was published that in rabits, BBB showed more intact due to daily dose of caffeine.Cheers!!!!

'End of Anti-biotics Era ' : Future Prediction

2008-04-13T08:57:00.000-07:00

The end of World War II, was the beginning of the antibiotic era. Sixty years later, time has come for the end of Antibiotics era. It has been reported that the pathogens are becoming resistant to the antibiotics due to over consumption of the anti biotics. So as per the doctors report in fifteen years we will reacha stage where we have to go back to older medicines with antibiotics will become of no use.The major cause is due to the increasing consumption of antibiotics which is harder to be stopped since there is a greater access to medical facilities.
Self-Medication participates in large amount for this cause.All chemists claim that they sell thousand antibiotics per day.

Most communicable diseases started to show resistance to antibiotics.Some of the diseases which is reported to be more resistant towards the antibiotics were influenza,cholera, dengue,malaria, jaundice, and hepatitis.The last new antibiotic came sixteen years ago. Hope we develop a good environment for our future generation.

Horton hears a Who

2008-04-13T06:26:00.000-07:00

Yet another animation film!! yahoo!!! very nice film.Wow.The theme specified by this film is just a WOW..Wonderful.Marvellous and ultimate.Main theme of this film is that 'There may be smaller creatures living on every tiny substance in this world. '

Now on the juice of the movie.An elephant (Horton) hears a microscopic community in very small substance.The entire film is all about how it struggles for their protection from its neighbors.They never believed till the end.Horton was tortured and ordered to leave the place. Mid way there was a mayor of the microscopic community who hears Horton first and he wants to protect his society from danger.

this film succeeds in all aspects like Screenplay,Direction,Story,animation.Over all it can be rated as 8.0/10.

India's Ultimate win Level the Test Series

2008-04-13T06:21:00.000-07:00

Spinners made it again in India's way.They wrapped South Africa for 121 in second innings.Sourav,the Prince did it once again.He proved how dangerous he could be to the opponent teams.Batting was hard over past three days of test.All players found it difficult.But Sreesanth and sharma found it wasy batting.Their valuable aprtnership was one of the best runs India had in its Test Career.They reduced the lead and spinners did the rest.They packed South Africa and showed character.Especially Shewag did magic with his ball.He supported Harbhajan strongly from the other end. Man of the match 'The Prince' ganguly also said that he learned the pitch well from the ball that got Rahul Dravid's wicket in the first innings.This was a master knock by Ganguly.He rated this innings among his Best ones in his career.Anyways the series levelled,Bhajji announced the Man of the seeies.As usual the opponent team captain Smith said 'It is a well deserved Victory.'
Hats Off India.

Successful Program preventing HIV transmission from Mother to Baby Before Birth

2008-04-08T08:54:00.000-07:00

An expertised group in public health have found a successful way to protect the unborn babies mothers who are infected with HIV in Western Australia.They also mentioned this program could be utilised worldwide to prevent babies before they are born. A 100% success rate is observed following this program preventing the child from gettting infected though mother is found HIV positive over last 14 years.

A state-wide service went into various parts of the state and they treated pregnant women who are infected with HIV positive, and their children for a month after birth.

Mike Daube,Professor of Curtin University said that this program could be used worldwide to prevent HIV affected children before birth.He mentioned this would be very useful especially in Afria where number of HIV positives is high.But the Executive Director of the Western Australia Aids Council said that the success of this program in other countries around the world is doubtful due to lack of communication means and low availability of resources.

Global Warming takes another Step Ahead

2008-04-06T01:01:00.000-07:00

United Nations World Meteorological Organization said that The global warming is still increasingly continuing, though the La Nina weather phenomenon brings out a cooler temperature on the Equatorial Pacific region.

Acccording to WHO's report 'This year it is expected that the Worldwide temperatures will go above the long-term average, inspite of the La Nina will be there till the middle of 2008'. It was also reported that even though there are ups and downs in average temperature from on year to another the temperature is moving upwards considering the overall trends.For detecting climate change temperatur of a particular year should not be overlooked.Instead temperature at a long period of time should be considered.In that Way,Some Cooling effect has been obsevered over China and Asian continent and also found over Pacific Ocean.But its opposite in case of Australia, Russia, the western U.S., north-eastern Brazil and the southern part of South America.

Google's Voice Search

2008-04-06T00:26:00.000-07:00

Voice Search over phone service is the new facility launched by Google in Hyderabad after doing it in US last month. The Google Local Information service is available at 1800-41-999-999.This was the Toll Free Number started from March 31. This is a 24X7 facility provided by google in Hyderabad(India) after launching in US.

Now, Google is givin out the timing of movie show ans the status of local business news alon.The SMS facility also provided such that any user could ask the details to be messaged to his mobile number.Though Google is a king there is some errors found in Numbers provided by them in database.Google ends the spec of ‘voice search’ facility in Hyderabad and wish to continue in all other metropolitan citis over India.

End of King's Ride in Nepal: Nepalese want modern democracy

2008-04-05T10:47:00.000-07:00

King Gyanendra's dynasty is from 1769, where a regional ruler conquered Katmandu and later united Nepal. Due to inefficiency of the king to maintain good public relationships , their 269-year-old Shah dynasty is going to end by days.Voting is going to be held at Nepal on Thursday for an assembly fore rewriting Nepal constitution,transferring it into a modern democratic country.Gyanendra lost favour of Nepalese.He failed in every aspect, and his popularity destroyed by himself.In any means nepalese are going to get out of his torturous period where he made even his admirers to think "Do we need a king??"
Publish Post

Sachin Absence For Third test Will hurt India More

2008-04-05T10:33:00.000-07:00

The Living Legend-Little Master-Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar is not fit for the third test against SA.This will hurt a lot for India.South Africans after winning the second test will be more happier.The confidence level of Indian players seems to be very low.But India have time to regain their strength and to pick their plot.India have to be united and show their spirit in the field as they did against Australians in Perth.Hopes of millions of Indians would be desperate winning of the third test to level the series

Mess at Sonia's rally

2008-04-05T09:41:00.000-07:00

Months ago a great Leader Benzir Bhutto was murdered.From that venture each and every VIP is given a special protection.In farmers rally which was headed by Sonia Gandhi today at Karaikudi( TamilNadu),a man named Shanmugavel was caught in a metal detector by a Sub-Inspector holding a gun.First it was told as real loaded gun.This created a mess at the place.Later after long scrutiny he was found to be a congress worker.the gun is just a toy gun.In between all this mess,the rally carried on peacefully helping to increase support for Congress in TamilNadu.In TamilNadu Congr4ess and BJP are still weaker and not competitive a regional parties.

Assassins Creed: The Killer game

2008-04-05T08:02:00.000-07:00

Assasins creed,the long time awaiting game looks ultimate and it could be compared to Prince of Persia. The character models and animations are extremely done well . some of the issues which is to be dealt with is while running around We have enemies pop up some steps from us and attacks us.I think its worth to hirer this assassin!!!

This is craziest game i have ever played.Gameplay is superb, the knife out of his sleeve is amazing and climbing any wall with grooves is exciting.

AB DE Villers:First South African hit a Double Ton Against Strong INDIA in test Match

2008-04-04T06:26:00.000-07:00

South Africa a nation of The BEST Cricketers of the past decade have never developed LEGENDS in cricket as INDIA.But De Villers Proved it worng.Got the first double ton he also kicked his pedals to get his man of the match award which he fully deserved.India without any plan without the great Sachin and living legends failed once again left handicapped against most powerful South Africa.Athletic,Cute,Damn Brave AB DeVillers made South Africa Proud to enter the record list against INDIA.Gettting a ton against INDIA is very proudest moment for AB De Villers.He will try to keep the same momentum throughout the series and his career.

Indiana Jones tops the Most Awaited film of year 2008

2008-01-25T11:21:00.000-08:00

As per poll conducted officially online it is found that "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" takes the first place as the most more awaited film of the year 2008.In this movie Harrison Ford performs as adventurer Indiana Jones,pairing with Karen Allen releasing on May 22, 2008.Earlier Sean Connery Ex-James Bond 007 was said to be appearing which created a hype to this movie.The next on the list is The Batman's next adventure " The Dark Knight ".National Treasure which was just released also found as the third most awaited.The next film of series Mummy is also found in the top 10 awaited movies.

Your-Freedom : Tunneling software

2008-01-05T07:40:00.000-08:00

Your-Freedom is a tunneling software tunnels the internet connection providing a way to access any blocked sites in office.In most offices sites like orkut are banned from being accessed. Your-Freedom have the most reliable tunneling software to access such sites.Even people who want to hide themseleves from the attackers and the hackers can use Your-Freedom software for safety.
Steps to use it:
Download the Your-Freedom Sotware from http://your-freedom.net
install it
Register with your-freedom site and configure the software.