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Saturday, December 31, 2011

Man with explosives stopped at Texas airport

explosive
Exclusive stopped in Texas
SAN ANTONIO Dec 31 (Reuters) - A man found to be carrying explosives in "military grade wrapping" was detained at a western Texas airport on Saturday, forcing the evacuation of the area, officials said.

The explosives were found during a routine inspection at a security checkpoint inside Midland International Airport, Midland city spokeswoman Tasa Watts said. The Transportation Security Administration evacuated the terminal and conducted a security sweep, she said.

The incident at the airport in Midland, which is about 280 miles northwest of San Antonio, came as many Americans set out on airplane trips for the New Year's Day holiday.

No details were immediately available about the man or why he had the explosives, which Watts said were "wrapped in military grade wrapping."

TSA spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein said the "suspicious item" was found in a carry-on bag.

"The checkpoint was closed for approximately one hour while officials investigated and removed the item from the checkpoint area," Farbstein said.

News by Reuters


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Romney leads Paul in Iowa poll, Santorum surges

united states
Romney
(Reuters) - Republican Mitt Romney narrowly leads rival Ron Paul in Iowa three days before the state kicks off the party's presidential nominating race, according to a Des Moines Register poll released on Saturday.

The closely watched poll, which has a strong track record in Iowa races, showed Rick Santorum surging past Newt Gingrich into third place in a fluid race where 41 percent of likely caucus-goers said they could still change their minds.

The newspaper's poll, conducted Tuesday through Friday, showed Romney with 24 percent support, Paul with 22 percent, Santorum with 15 percent and Gingrich 12 percent. In fifth place was Rick Perry with 11 percent while Michele Bachmann was sixth with 7 percent.

The poll was released as candidates launched the final stretch run for Tuesday's contest in Iowa, the first in the state-by-state battle to choose a Republican challenger to Obama, a Democrat, in the November election.

The results were a huge boost to Romney, who has resumed his front-runner's role in the Republican presidential race in the last few weeks after the slide of Gingrich.

A victory for Romney in Iowa, combined with a win in the next contest on January 10 in New Hampshire could put the former Massachusetts governor on a path to clinching the Republican nomination early.

But Santorum was the candidate with the momentum. The Register poll was taken over a four-day period and the newspaper said that in the final two days of that period, Santorum was in second place with 21 percent. Romney stayed the same at 24 percent.

The poll was more bad news for Gingrich, the former House speaker who led the race a few weeks ago but has faded under an onslaught of attack ads from Paul and an outside group that backs Romney.

At a stop in Iowa earlier on Saturday, Gingrich said he would adjust his campaign strategy to respond more forcefully to the attacks.

'NASTIER AND DISHONEST'

"We're learning a lot about what our opponents will do. They are nastier and more dishonest than I expected. So we'll have to make some adjustments," Gingrich said in Atlantic, Iowa.

But Gingrich said he would not respond directly to negative ads run by the group that supports Romney.

"We may go to a much more clearer contrast but we're not going to respond in kind," Gingrich said. "Those ads are dishonest and he knows it. They are factually false and he knows it. And we're not doing anything like that."

The candidates rolled across Iowa in buses on Saturday, stopping at coffee shops, restaurants and even a car museum to try to win over doubters and energize supporters to turn out to the caucuses.

In Iowa's quirky caucus system, voters gather to cast ballots in public meetings after listening to pitches on behalf of the candidates.

Paul, known for his libertarian views, is taking the holiday weekend off in Texas before returning to Iowa on Monday.

Santorum, a former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania with a strong social conservative message, is trying to unite Iowa's influential evangelical Christian voters behind him and score an upset with a surge in the final days.

"If you really want to transform America, it has to be about values, faith and freedom," he told a crowd in Knoxville, Iowa.

Gingrich, along with Santorum, Bachmann and Jon Huntsman, also joined a lawsuit already filed by Perry against Virginia's Board of Elections to qualify for the state's 2012 primary election.

Romney and Paul were the only candidates who managed to submit the required 10,000 verifiable signatures collected by registered voters in the state in order to get on Virginia's ballot for its March 6 primary.


News by Reuters


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Nokia launches the 801T for China TD

nokia 801T
Nokia 801T
Designed exclusively for China's TD-SCDMA 3G network, Nokia has announced a new Symbian-powered smartphone, the 801T, described as 'a special design for business-focussed elite high-end users'. It's notable for being the 'industry's first stainless steel unibody smartphone' and has a 4" CBD display, NFC, an 8 megapixel EDoF camera with dual-LED flash, 720p HD video recording and built-in CMMB mobile TV (with antenna). More below.


The Nokia 801T is a continuation of Nokia exquisite craftsmanship, and is simple yet elegant... Its 4-inch large CBD touch screen is perfect to display messages, information and photo content; there's a built-in telescopic TV antenna, so that business people can experience anytime, anywhere mobile TV (CMMB) to bring an audio-visual feast.

Nokia 801T largely fills the gaps in the field of high-end TD (3G) products... It features a Nokia TD-SCDMA smart terminal using NFC technology in the first of its kind. For business users, NFC functionality makes work and life more efficient and convenient.

Built-in CMMB mobile TV, capable of receiving TV signals with clear, smooth playback quality, can sync TV shows, and does not generate data traffic during playback, so that business people can spend their leisure time watching their favourite TV programs.

Overall form factor and specs are roughly similar to those of the X7, though with a LCD screen rather than OLED:
Specifications

Developer Platform: Symbian Anna
Screen Resolution: 360 x 640 pixels
Screen Color Depth: 24 bits
Screen Size: 4 inches
Display Technology: ClearBlack, LCD transmissive

Device Size: 125.2 x 65 x 12.75 mm
Volume: 83.2 cc
Weight: 170 g
Frequency Bands: GSM 1800, GSM 1900, GSM 850, GSM 900, TD-SCDMA 1880-1920, TD-SCDMA 2010-2025
CPU Count: Single CPU
CPU Type: ARM 11
CPU Clock Rate: 680 MHz
Graphics Processor: 2D/3D Graphics HW Accelerator, BCM2727 chip, GPU @ 200 MHz with 32 MB, with OpenVG1.1 and OpenGL ES 2.0 support

CMOS Sensor: 8.0 Megapixels
Camera Digital Zoom: 2 x
Camera Focal length: 33 mm
Camera F-Stop/Aperture: f/2.8
Camera Focus range: 50 cm to infinity
Video Recording Resolution: 1280 x 720 pixels
Video Digital Zoom: 3 x
Video Recording Formats: H.263, H.264/AVC, MPEG-4
Video Playback Formats: 3GPP formats (H.263), Flash Video, H.264/AVC, MPEG-4, RealVideo 8,9,10, Sorenson Spark, VC-1, VP6, WMV 9
Audio Features: Audio Equalizer, Audio Recording AAC, Audio Streaming, Bluetooth Stereo, Handsfree Speaker, Loudness, Music Player, Stereo Audio Recording, Stereo FM RDS Radio, Stereo Widening

Maximum User Storage: 230 MB
Mass Storage Memory: 8 GB
ROM Memory: 1 GB
RAM Memory: 256 MB
Graphics Memory: 32 MB

Memory Card type: Micro SD
Local Connectivity: Bluetooth 3.0, Bluetooth Stereo Audio, Micro USB, MTP (Multimedia Transfer Protocol), NFC, Nokia Adapter Cable for USB OTG CA-157Connector, Nokia AV 3.5mm, USB 2.0 High-Speed, USB Mass Storage, USB OTG 1.3

Bluetooth Profiles: A2DP, AVRCP 1.0, BIP, DUN, FTP, GAP, GAVDP, GOEP, HFP, HSP, OPP, PBAP 1.0, SDP, SPP 1.0
Email Solutions: Mail for Exchange, Nokia Messaging, OMA E-mail Notification v1.0

Power Management: 2.0mm Charger Connector, USB Charging

Battery model: BP-3L 3.7V 1300 mAh
GSM Talk Time up to: 5.7 hours
TD-SCDMA Talk Time up to: 8.0 hours

News by Allaboutsymbian


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Retired linebacker’s wife dies one month after their wedding

chris draft
Chris Draft
One month after getting married, former NFL linebacker Chris Draft lost his wife today after a long bout with lung cancer. She was so weakened by the disease that she was in a wheelchair for the private wedding, just one month before she died.

Draft, who played most of his 12-year career in Atlanta, released a statement on his wife on their family foundation website.

Not just an inspiration, but a light, and a force that led the way with a beautiful, sweet smile and bright shining eyes that both belied the pure steel of her strength and determination.

Strong is too pale, too shallow and too small of a word to describe Keasha's vibrancy… Quite simply, she was ferocious. She fiercely held onto life, and love with a forcefulness that was absolutely awe-inspiring and completely breathtaking. Rest in peace, Mrs. Draft.

Twitter was flooded with people moved by the Draft's love story. Hip hop mogul Russell Simmons  shared his condolences via Twitter, and a guestbook commemorating her quickly was filled with messages of support to the Draft family.


News by Yahoo


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Friday, December 30, 2011

Russell Brand files for divorce from Katy Perry after 14 months

katy perry
The pair attended a benefit for the David Lynch Foundation
Russell Brand has filed for divorce from Katy Perry after 14 months of marriage.

The 36-year-old comedian said in a statement today: 'Sadly, Katy and I are ending our marriage. I'll always adore her and I know we'll remain friends.'

The Arthur star was spotted in London today without his wedding ring for the second day in a row.

His legal team filed court documents at the Superior Court in Los Angeles today citing 'irreconcilable differences.'

The divorce documents, which refer to Perry by her give name Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson, show there are 'community property assets,' suggesting there may not be a pre-nuptial agreement in place.

It does not list a date of separation.

Perry is yet to comment on the split and there is some speculation she was blind-sided by Brand's official move to end their marriage.

The pair sparked rumours of trouble after celebrating Christmas 7,000 miles apart - he spent the festive day in Cornwall while the Teenage Dream singer, 27, was with friends in Hawaii.

Perry was not wearing her wedding ring either when she was photographed frolicking in the surf on December 25.

The couple's split comes just four weeks after Brand declared his relationship was going strong.

He told Ellen DeGeneres on December 2: 'I'm really happily married. I’m married to Katy. Perpetually, until death do us part was the pledge. I’m still alive.'

In November, Perry told the same TV host that that she 'would love to have children' with Brand.

She said: 'I think that's one of the reasons you get married, especially to the person that you marry. You think: "That person is going to be a good partner, a good parent.'''

Asked if she wanted a big family, Perry added: 'If it doesn't hurt the first time I'll keep popping them out.'

But there was clearly trouble brewing when the pair decided to spend Christmas apart, allegedly after a huge row.

A source was quoted as telling US Weekly magazine: 'They had a massive fight. She was like, "F*** you. I'm going to do my own thing."

Meanwhile the insider said that Russell replied: 'Fine, f*** you too.'

The couple had planned Christmas together and Perry was expected to jet her family in a private plane over to the UK to celebrate.

In November, Brand's mother Barbara had tweeted she was looking forward to spending the festive season with her son and daughter-in-law.

She wrote on Twitter: 'Spoke to Russell and Katy, they are so happy, it's lovely. We will all be together for Christmas.'

The California-born star began dating the British comedian in 2009 after she famously threw a bottle at his head at an MTV Music Awards party.

He proposed just four months later on New Year's Eve and they were married in October last year.

Their lavish ceremony at a five-star resort in India included two elephants, acrobats and jugglers.

Brand was once notorious in England as a hard-partying bachelor and self-confessed sex addict.

He later had a spiritual awakening and got sober after years of heroin and alcohol abuse.

He insisted he'd reformed his wild ways before settling down with Perry.

'I think I was ready for it,' he said. 'If you're wild, like a wild animal, marriage won't contain you. I think that's how a lot of people get into trouble.'

Brand will next appear in the Eighties musical film, Rock Of Ages, alongside Tom Cruise.

Perry, who has spent much of the year on tour, recently released the new single The One That Got Away.

The track is currently number three on the US charts. If it reaches number one, it will be her sixth chart-topping single from her Teenage Dream album, surpassing the record set by Michael Jackson's Bad.

News by Dailymail


Kelly Brook shows off her hourglass figure in sexy shoot

nude girls
Kelly Brook
She's widely considered to be one of the most beautiful women in the world, with millions of women looking up to her for being a positive role model for curvier ladies.

And now Kelly Brook has come forward to insist that while she might not look like some of the stereotypical models, such as Gisele Bundchen, she is proud of her figure.

Kelly made the admission as she showed off her hourglass curves by wearing just a patterned skirt in a sexy new shot for British Glamour magazine's Happy Body Issue.

She said: 'I’ve never been a size zero, and I’ve always had a really good relationship with my body.  I don’t diet, I don’t do crazy exercise.

'I’m not perfect - I don’t look like Gisele.  But there’s someone out there for everyone to look up to and emulate.  So if I’m the curvy one, that’s fine by me, I don’t mind.'
kelly brook with boyfriend
Kelly Brook with boyfriend
Kelly also spoke in the interview about how her relationship with boyfriend Thom Evans was strengthened following her tragic miscarriage in May.

The 32-year-old model, who lost the baby girl she had been expecting, said: 'I own everything to him, really.

'I’d do anything for him - I was a monster at some points, because your hormones are so all over the place.

'It’s bad enough when women have that time of the month let alone going through that.'

Talking about how she was supported by the public through the difficult time, Kelly explained: 'I found that women approached me and wanted to talk about things that they’d been through themselves.

'I think they probably take comfort in knowing that even though you seem to have a very blessed life, bad things happen to you and it’s not your fault.

'It happen to a lot of people, and it’s not such a taboo.

'It’s just one of those things, and probably the only positive thing to come out of something like that is that you can talk to people about it.'

And now Kelly and Thom, who are currently holidaying in Capri, Italy, are looking ahead to 2012, hoping to continue being a 'normal couple'.

Kelly explained: 'We’ve just had such a stressful year.  We’re happy to take a bit of a breather, work on our projects and spend some time together doing fun things.

'We never really had that opportunity when we first met… at the moment we’re being spontaneous, loving our new place and going shopping for cute tings for our house.  Just being a normal couple really.'


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Hackers plan space satellites to combat censorship

space satellite
Space Satellites
Computer hackers plan to take the internet beyond the reach of censors by putting their own communication satellites into orbit.

The scheme was outlined at the Chaos Communication Congress in Berlin.

The project's organisers said the Hackerspace Global Grid will also involve developing a grid of ground stations to track and communicate with the satellites.

Longer term they hope to help put an amateur astronaut on the moon.

Hobbyists have already put a few small satellites into orbit - usually only for brief periods of time - but tracking the devices has proved difficult for low-budget projects.

The hacker activist Nick Farr first put out calls for people to contribute to the project in August. He said that the increasing threat of internet censorship had motivated the project.

"The first goal is an uncensorable internet in space. Let's take the internet out of the control of terrestrial entities," Mr Farr said.

Beyond balloons

He cited the proposed Stop Online Piracy Act (Sopa) in the United States as an example of the kind of threat facing online freedom. If passed, the act would allow for some sites to be blocked on copyright grounds.

Whereas past space missions have almost all been the preserve of national agencies and large companies, amateur enthusiasts have in recent years sent a few payloads into orbit.

These devices have mostly been sent up using balloons and are tricky to pinpoint precisely from the ground.

According to Armin Bauer, a 26-year-old enthusiast from Stuttgart who is working on the Hackerspace Global Grid, this is largely due to lack of funding.

"Professionals can track satellites from ground stations, but usually they don't have to because, if you pay a large sum [to send the satellite up on a rocket], they put it in an exact place," Mr Bauer said.

In the long run, a wider hacker aerospace project aims to put an amateur astronaut onto the moon within the next 23 years.

"It is very ambitious so we said let's try something smaller first," Mr Bauer added.
Ground network

The Berlin conference was the latest meeting held by the Chaos Computer Club, a decades-old German hacker group that has proven influential not only for those interested in exploiting or improving computer security, but also for people who enjoy tinkering with hardware and software.

When Mr Farr called for contributions to Hackerspace, Mr Bauer and others decided to concentrate on the communications infrastructure aspect of the scheme.

He and his teammates are working on their part of the project together with Constellation, an existing German aerospace research initiative that mostly consists of interlinked student projects.

In the open-source spirit of Hackerspace, Mr Bauer and some friends came up with the idea of a distributed network of low-cost ground stations that can be bought or built by individuals.

Used together in a global network, these stations would be able to pinpoint satellites at any given time, while also making it easier and more reliable for fast-moving satellites to send data back to earth.

"It's kind of a reverse GPS," Mr Bauer said.

"GPS uses satellites to calculate where we are, and this tells us where the satellites are. We would use GPS co-ordinates but also improve on them by using fixed sites in precisely-known locations."

Mr Bauer said the team would have three prototype ground stations in place in the first half of 2012, and hoped to give away some working models at the next Chaos Communication Congress in a year's time.

They would also sell the devices on a non-profit basis.

"We're aiming for 100 euros (£84) per ground station. That is the amount people tell us they would be willing to spend," Mr Bauer added.

Complications

Experts say the satellite project is feasible, but could be restricted by technical limitations.

"Low earth orbit satellites such as have been launched by amateurs so far, do not stay in a single place but rather orbit, typically every 90 minutes," said Prof Alan Woodward from the computing department at the University of Surrey.

"That's not to say they can't be used for communications but obviously only for the relatively brief periods that they are in your view. It's difficult to see how such satellites could be used as a viable communications grid other than in bursts, even if there were a significant number in your constellation."

This problem could be avoided if the hackers managed to put their satellites into geostationary orbits above the equator. This would allow them to match the earth's movement and appear to be motionless when viewed from the ground. However, this would pose a different problem.

"It means that they are so far from earth that there is an appreciable delay on any signal, which can interfere with certain Internet applications," Prof Woodward said.

"There is also an interesting legal dimension in that outer space is not governed by the countries over which it floats. So, theoretically it could be a place for illegal communication to thrive. However, the corollary is that any country could take the law into their own hands and disable the satellites."
Need for knowledge

Apart from the ground station scheme, other aspects of the Hackerspace project that are being worked on include the development of new electronics that can survive in space, and the launch vehicles that can get them there in the first place.

According to Mr Farr, the "only motive" of the Hackerspace Global Grid is knowledge.

He said many participants are frustrated that no person has been sent past low Earth orbit since the Apollo 17 mission in 1972.

"This [hacker] community can put humanity back in space in a meaningful way," Farr said.

"The goal is to get back to where we were in the 1970s. Hackers find it offensive that we've had the technology since before many of us were born and we haven't gone back."

Asked whether some might see negative security implications in the idea of establishing a hacker presence in space, Farr said the only downside would be that "people might not be able to censor your internet".

"Hackers are about open information," Farr added. "We believe communication is a human right."

News by BBC



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World's Oldest Divorcees: 99-Year-Old Man Seeks Divorce

World's Oldest Divorcees

A 99-year old Italian man is filing for divorce after discovering letters from an affair his wife had over 60 years ago.

According to The Telegraph, "Antonio C" (as he is referred to in court documents) confronted his wife of 77 years, 96-year-old "Rosa C," about the letters and demanded a divorce. She reportedly confessed but was unable to convince him to stay, though she has not contested the divorce, UPI reports.

Court papers indicate she wrote the letters during an affair in the 1940s.

According to Newser, the couple will become the world's oldest divorcees. That record was last set by British couple Bertie and Jessie Wood, who divorced in 2009 and age 98.

Antonio and Rosa have five kids, 12 grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.

News by Huffingtonpost


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Answering all the questions you never knew you had

sexy boobs
Good shaped nails
Why do we have finger- and toenails?

You were born with built-in multitools, and you’re complaining? Think about it: What else can be used to fight off bears, open beers, and operate scratch ’n’ sniff stickers? According to Ellen Miller, an anthropologist at Wake Forest University, our ancestors used nails to pick up food, grasp trees, and basically not die. Today our nails still protect our digits, give them über-precision handling, and let us soulfully strum acoustics. And while you may not use your sock-blocked toenails for much, our ancestors used their feet like a second set of hands for tasks like peeling fruit and stripping bark. Fun fact: Our nails are made from the protein keratin—the same stuff that’s found in hooves and horns. So next time you give someone the finger, tell him you’re a unicorn!

Why can’t I drive a hovercraft around like a normal car?

Because you need turn signals for it to be street-legal. And because it won’t last long on your town’s pot-holed roads. Hovercrafts work by floating on a cushion of high-pressure air, which is kept in place by a balloon-like “skirt,” says University of Virginia physicist Louis Bloomfield. But while this air cushion tends to stay put grazing over even surfaces such as water, uneven roads give the trapped air escape routes and would cause your flying car to fall flat.

Is it possible to get permanently high?

Nope! “The brain eventually adapts to the drug, and it loses its effect,” says Wilkie A. Wilson, Ph.D., professor of pharmacology at Duke University Medical Center and coauthor of Buzzed. “In fact, the brain tends to adapt to anything that is repetitive—which is why we seek novel experiences in our lives.” That’s not to say that substances can’t seriously mess up your mind. Stimulants like methamphetamine and cocaine can cause long-term psychosis, which is less like being high and more like being shit-your-pants crazy.

How can I open a beer bottle with my teeth?

Trendspotting and an avid opener of beer bottles, tells us how it’s done. Decide on a beer and grab some gum. Unwrap two sticks.

Use one stick to cover the bottoms and insides of your front teeth like you would with a strip of that teeth-whitening crap.

Take the second piece and add gum coverage to the insides and tops of your bottom teeth. Be sure to coat as many of these biters as possible, since this is where the pressure will be.

Put the top of the bottle in your mouth, chomp down as hard as you can, and turn. Don’t pull—just turn. Keep at it for about a minute and the cap will pop out. Like a girl who ties the cherry stem, you will get quite a few fellas aroused.

News by Maxim


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Siege at Sydney's Chinese Consulate ends with one charged, another in hospital

Chinese consulate siege
Chinese consulate siege
A MAN has been charged and another remains in hospital under police guard after a robbery and armed confrontation outside a Chinese consulate in Sydney's inner west.

The pair allegedly burst into a hotel in Missenden Road, Camperdown, armed with a gun and a hammer at 1.30am (AEST) on Friday.

Police confirmed the men confronted staff and demanded cash.

One of the men, aged 32, was arrested as he left the venue. But his alleged accomplice, 27, fled from a side door and was chased by police into a nearby laneway, police say.

There, he allegedly exchanged gunshots with police before climbing a razor wire fence into the Chinese consulate in Dunblane St, injuring himself in the process.

Police arrested the man just after 7am, after a five-hour operation which closed surrounding streets.

He was taken to the nearby Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, where on Friday night he remained under police guard and was being treated for serious cuts to his arms and legs.

The 32-year-old was charged with robbery in company and being carried in conveyance taken without consent.
He is due to appear at Parramatta Bail Court today.

A critical incident investigation team will conduct an investigation into the operation, Assistant Commissioner Mark Murdoch said.

''During the course of that pursuit shots were fired,'' he told reporters outside Newtown Police Station.

''How many shots were fired and who fired them is still a matter for investigation.''

Camperdown resident Michelle Brown, an ABC journalist, said she was woken by the sound of gunfire that she at first thought was fireworks.

''I was woken by two loud bangs,'' she told ABC Radio.

''There was a pause and then another two loud bangs.''

News by Heralsun

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Thursday, December 29, 2011

Warehouse blast kills 17 in Mayanmar

warehouse blast in mayanmar
Warehouse blast in Mayanmar
YANGON — A pre-dawn blast at a warehouse in Myanmar's biggest city killed at least 17 people and injured dozens more on Thursday, sparking a blaze that took firefighters hours to tame, officials said.

Officials ruled out a bomb but said they had yet to determine the cause of the explosion in Yangon, formerly the capital.

Residents in several areas of the city were woken around 2:00 am (1930 GMT) by the blast, which appeared to have hit a medical warehouse in the eastern township of Mingalar Taung Nyunt, witnesses told AFP.

The flames engulfed several buildings in the warehouse compound and destroyed around 50 homes in the area, most of them wooden dwellings.

At least 17 people, including four firefighters, had died, while 79 others were injured, including around 30 firemen, a government official told AFP.

"It was not a bomb explosion," another official said, though he added that the cause of the blast, which sparked a large fire that destroyed many nearby storage units and houses, remained unknown.

Firefighters battled through the night to douse the flames and finally succeeded in extinguishing the massive fire at around 6:45 am, revealing a scene of utter devastation.

An AFP photographer saw rescue workers frantically searching for survivors, carrying young children to safety and pulling a dead body from the burnt-out rubble.

The blaze left hundreds homeless, a third official said.

"Around 900 people are homeless now and they are sheltering at nearby monasteries serving as rescue centers," he said.

"About seven warehouses were totally destroyed. The responsible officials are still trying to find out what happened," he told AFP.

One resident, Khin Hla Kyi, said she feared for her life as she fled the encroaching fire, which devoured her home and all of her possessions.

"We had to run for our lives," she told AFP. "Now we have nowhere to go. My house was destroyed."

The blast also created a huge crater at least 10 metres (yards) wide and several metres deep, filled with plastic and metal debris.

Dozens of rescue workers and onlookers crowded around the gaping hole to take stock of the damage on Thursday, when white smoke could still be seen billowing from the site.

An exhausted firefighter said he was unable to give details about the blaze, saying only: "We are really tired because we have been putting out the fire all night."

The first funerals for the victims were due to be held Thursday afternoon.

In a city not unused to bomb blasts, the sound of the unexplained explosion overnight brought hundreds of worried locals into the streets.

"We heard a very loud noise from the explosion and saw smoke in the sky. Our building was also shaken by the explosion. We have no idea what's happening," a resident in nearby Botahtaung township told AFP.

Last week, a blast caused by an explosive device killed one woman and wounded another in northern Yangon.

Myanmar has been hit by several bomb blasts in recent years, most of them minor, which the authorities have blamed on armed exile groups or ethnic minority fighters.


News by AFP


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Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Unable To Find 12th Woman Of The Year, BBC Crowns Panda Instead

women of 2011
Faces of 2011 (Pic:BBC)
In a move that is sure to go down in adorable bear history, the BBC has named a female panda named Sweetie one of its female Faces of the Year. 2011 was either lacking severely in girlchievements or a banner year for lady pandas. So what was Sweetie's glorious achievement that elevated her, a bear, over that of all female humans who did stuff?

She got off of an airplane in Scotland, to great fanfare. That's it. Hooray for Sweetie the panda, woman face of the year.

Not only is a bear deemed to appropriately fit the "woman" category, the rest of the list will leave people who were hoping for a progressive set of female movers and shakers disappointed. Sure, it includes Michele Bachmann, who, for all of her frothing, hateful votemongering, is at least a politician, and Dilma Rousseff, the first female President of Brazil. But the list also includes Charlene Wittstock, a woman famous for almost not marrying a prince, a very wealthy Spanish duchess who married a younger man, and Pippa Middleton, a woman famous for being related to a woman who married a prince. We've also got two sexual assault victims on the list— Eman al-Obeidi, the Libyan woman who was dragged away from reporters while trying to tell them she'd been raped by Gaddafi forces, and Nafissatou Diallo, the woman who accused Dominique Strauss-Kahn of trying to rape her in his $12 zillion per night hotel room. And then there's the US Marine who successfully asked Justin Timberlake to go to a dance with her.

All in all, more than half of the BBC's "Faces of the Year: Women" are rape victims, princesses and thereabouts, or bears.

We really can have it all, ladies. Girl power.

News by Jezebel

Why Windows 8 Tablets Will Surprise Everyone

windows 8 tablet
Windows 8 Tablet
Windows-based tablets haven’t been treated kindly by the test of time. Those released in the Windows XP era relied on wonky, stylus-based data entry, and even modern, touch-based tablets running Windows 7 are poor performers.

Indeed, Microsoft has a troubled tablet history that the public isn’t soon to forget. This November, Forrester released a study that showed consumer interest in a Windows-based tablet dropped significantly this year. At the start of 2011, 46 percent of potential tablet owners wanted a Windows device. By Q3, that number slipped to 25 percent.

Forrester’s report stated, “Windows 8 hasn’t entered the consciousness of tablet buyers yet.”

That’s a shame because Gadget Lab has seen a Windows 8 tablet in action, and the experience opened our eyes to just how useful — and, yes, even fun — a Windows 8 tablet might be. Sure, Microsoft was demoing a mere reference design, but what we saw was so intriguing, we’re legitimately excited to see final, shipping products.

Windows 8 is being developed from the ground up to elegantly run on both traditional computers (desktops and notebooks) as well as touch-based tablets. The OS can run on either ARM or x86 processors, though apps written specifically for the x86 desktop environment won’t be able to run on ARM-based mobile devices.

Is this a terrible handicap? No, not based on what we’ve seen. Windows 8 tablets will run an updated version of the Metro UI found on Windows Phones, and the UI appears to transfer remarkably well to larger touch screens. You’ll get that same fun, friendly and animated “Live Tile” home screen found on Windows Phones, but with (theoretically) much more processing power to drive more powerful apps.

Windows 8 will go beta in February, which would peg a full software release around June 2012. Everything we’ve seen thus far suggests that Microsoft has really taken the time to develop a platform that will succeed on tablets, without abandoning the company’s PC roots.

Still a skeptic? You should be. Windows tablet wanna-haves have been burnt before. But please consider these four reasons why Microsoft’s upcoming push into the tablet space may surprise everyone by ultimately proving successful.

Microsoft Has a Chance to ‘Think Different’


“If Windows is to have any hope, its product strategists must not only bring new features to the platform but also must fundamentally reinvent the experience,” analysts J.P. Gownder and Sarah Rotman Epps say in the Forrester report.

Many current upstart tablets are just iPad copycats. They share essentially the same UI (multiple pages of identically sized home screen icons), they operate with nearly identical touch gestures, and they basically look the same. But by being such a relative latecomer to the modern tablet party, Microsoft has a great opportunity to look at what’s not being done, what can be done better, and what can be done differently.

And all this observation can inform a better Windows 8 tablet. Take, for example, Windows 8’s ability to switch from a tablet UI to a desktop UI. This could be a winning innovation.

“We are reaching a point where ARM platforms can deliver us desktop experiences in mobile form factors,” mobile developer Kelly Sommers told Wired.com. If this is true, and if Windows 8 tablets in desktop mode can overcome the performance issues that plagued Windows 7-based tablets, Microsoft might strike gold by delivering two operational environments for the price of one.

“In my opinion, the ideal user experience allows both [a desktop UI and touch-based UI], but not at the same time,” Sommers told Wired.com. “What if you dock your tablet, and it becomes a desktop experience on your monitor, with keyboard and mouse, for non-power uses? Undock your tablet, and it transitions to a tablet experience.”

Indeed, who wouldn’t want a dual-OS device that can serve as both a casual tablet, and as a no-excuses productivity computer? Neither Apple nor the Android contingent have answered this very real consumer problem.

Windows Phone Mango Shows Microsoft Can Do Mobile Well

Microsoft had a rocky start entering the mobile space, but has finally found its footing with Windows Phone 7 (and in Mango, Windows Phone 7.5, in particular). Consumers aren’t flocking to Windows’ new mobile OS like they are to iOS or Android, but if you haven’t gotten a chance to try it out, you should — it’s very well done. For a first-hand look, open up http://aka.ms/wpdemo in your mobile browser to give it a whirl.

“I think that what Microsoft learned with Windows Phone will carry over and influence Windows 8,” Display Search analyst Richard Shim says.

Microsoft is working hard to reach out to developers and provide support, marketing guidance, and app visibility through programs like BizSpark and Mobile Acceleration Week to fill out its still meager app offerings. These programs are by all accounts successful, so we can expect that Microsoft will continue them for Windows 8.

Indeed, if Windows 8 is as well-executed as Windows Phone Mango, it will be a positive experience for users. That’s something most Android tablets can’t claim.

And therein lies a very powerful strong point for Microsoft: The Windows Phone platform may not have a copious catalog of apps, or even that many adoptees, but most everyone who actually uses a Windows Phone enjoys the essential OS experience. So, if Windows 8 tablets can somehow get a foothold among vocal opinion leaders, consumer adoption could self-perpetuate as users evangelize the tablets on Microsoft’s behalf.

Windows Could Provide a Consistent Computing Experience

“I think that ultimately what users are looking for is for their computing experience to follow them around,” Shim says. “Creating a consistent UI across devices is the first step.”

It’s not exactly clear whether all Windows 8 experiences will be able to deliver on Shim’s vision described above, but if any platform has a chance to execute this, it will likely be Microsoft’s. Google doesn’t have a desktop environment to speak of (unless you include browser-based apps), and Apple’s iOS and Mac OS X environments are cleanly split with no easy paths to unification.

But Windows 8 will be a cloud-powered experience through Windows Live SkyDrive. As a result, data, apps and settings will be synced across Windows 8 devices using your Microsoft account. Much like what iCloud is striving to accomplish with a more unified iOS experience, SkyDrive will similarly do for Windows 8.

“A truly consistent experience across every Microsoft device is something new to the space,” Resolve Market Research analyst Randy Hellman says.

So how will this work? Well, first it’s important to note that Metro apps (i.e., Windows 8 tablet apps) are HTML5-based, and will therefore work in any environment — on x86 and ARM devices, on tablets, laptops and full-fledged PCs. This alone provides a windfall for users seeking a harmonious computing experience.

It remains to be seen whether current Windows Phone apps will run on Windows 8 tablets; Microsoft hasn’t officially commented on that possibility. Nonetheless, by using HTML5 as a bridge between tablets and computers, Microsoft has a distinct advantage. For the broad swath of software that HTML5 can support, users should be able to appreciate seamless integration.

Microsoft Will Offer Differentiated, But Not Fragmented, Options

For Windows Phone, Microsoft provides a list of mandatory specs in order to ensure a quality experience across all Windows Phone devices. Microsoft will likely implement the same policy for its Windows 8 tablet devices.

Android, by comparison, lets manufacturers (and carriers) essentially do whatever they want with both software and hardware. This has led to some serious fragmentation issues ranging from OS version incompatibility to inconsistent home button placement. Even the popular Kindle Fire tablet is a huge departure from other Android tablets, with its own Amazon-centric UI.

“Windows 8 tablets will come in different sizes and different orientations, and have different battery lives depending on their capabilities,” Microsoft representative Christopher Flores told Wired.

But fragmentation? “Never software fragmentation,” Flores said. Former Windows Phone 7 GM Charlie Kindel wrote in a recent blog post that Android “enables too much fragmentation“, which “will eventually drive end users nuts.”

This means Windows 8 could become a refreshing, consistent, easy-to-use alternative purchase for anyone not interested in an iPad, whether for philosophical or financial reasons.

Of course, there’s still much we don’t know about Microsoft’s tablet initiative, and all of the what-if’ing above goes out the window once we have real hardware to evaluate.

But Microsoft definitely has the potential to deliver, and from what we’ve seen of Windows 8 tablets so far, the future is promising. Could a Windows 8 tablet be the focus of Microsoft’s final CES keynote? We’re excited as anyone to find out.
News by Wired

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What is the World's most-visited museums

musee-du-louvre-paris
Musée du Louvre, Paris
"Musée du Louvre" is the world's most-visited museums located in the city of France, Paris.

The world’s most-visited museum does not seem to be in danger of losing its top ranking; annual visitors to the Louvre have held strong at eight-and-a-half million for several years. While the museum is indeed an art-lover’s paradise of roughly 35,000 masterpieces – including the Venus de Milo and the Mona Lisa – it is also the subject of controversy: IM Pei’s 69ft-high glass pyramid, added to the entrance in 1989, has not been appreciated by all.

News by BBC

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Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Dutch Cup game abandoned after goalkeeper attacks pitch invader at AZ Alkmaar vs Ajax

AZ Alkmaar
AZ Alkmaar's goolkeeper fights with supporter
A FOOTBALL match was abandoned after a goalkeeper fought with a pitch invader - and was then sent off for protecting himself.

The Dutch Cup game between AZ Alkmaar and Ajax ended when AZ keeper Esteban Alvarado was shown a red card for battling the drunk 19-year-old hooligan.

The Costa Rican keeper, 22, launched into a kung-fu kick when the thug attempted to attack him, before kicking him twice after he had been floored.

Security guards dragged the drunk away before referee Bas Nijhuis dismissed the keeper for violence and insisted Esteban should have walked away.

Furious Alkmaar coach Gertjan Verbeek then ordered his side to walk off in protest after just 36minutes, forcing the game on Wednesday night to be abandoned.

Referee Nijhuis said: “I understand that Esteban was defending himself, but he walked to him (the supporter) and kicked him multiple times. He could also have walked away.”

Ajax apologised for the security lapse and said the supporter would receive a lifetime ban from games.

Jeroen Slop, a director of the Dutch giants, said: “This was a terrible incident and we deeply regret it and offer our sincere apologies.

“The supporter has been handed over to the police.

“It was a 19-year-old man who was probably under the influence of alcohol. He said he hated the AZ goalkeeper and had therefore attacked him.”

Toon Gerbrands, an Alkmaar club director, said his players “didn’t feel safe any more in this situation” at the Amsterdam Arena.

Ajax were leading the game 1-0 at the time, and Dutch Football Association director Bert van Oostveen said that although organisation was considering the incident, but is not certain whether the game will be replayed.

The Dutch FA today rescinded the red card, saying Alvarado’s reaction was triggered by the unprovoked attack on him - but adding that referee Bas Nijhuis was right according to the rules when he sent the goalkeeper off.

They confirmed that Alvarado’s reaction “will not result in a ban.”

It also emerged the fan responsible had already been banned from Ajax’s stadium for a year due to a previous run-in with security guards, but managed to sneak into the cup match with a ticket purchased by a friend.

He has now received a lifetime ban from all Ajax matches.

WHEN SPORTSMEN ATTACK
- Eric Cantona: The temperamental Manchester United star famously kung-fu kicked a racist Crystal Palace fan in January 1995. He received an eight-month ban from the FA.

- Brian Clough: The legendary Nottingham Forest manager punched one of his own pitch-invading fan in 1989 after beating QPR.

- Trevor Brennan: Toulouse Rugby Union star Brennan punched an Ulster fan who had been hurling abuse at him during a Heineken Cup game in 2007. He was given a life ban from the dame.

- Peter Schmeichel: The giant Man United keeper hurled an invading fan of Turkish club Galatasaray off the Old Trafford pitch in 1993.

- Ty Cobb: a legendary baseball players who rarely went a game without fighting fans, oppostion players or his own team-mates. He once said: “I had to fight all my life just to survive. They were all against me.”

News by Mirror


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Christmas whale gives a wave

whale
A white whale, also known as beluga, puffs a ring at Kamogawa Sea World
THIS friendly beluga whale appears to be waving its flipper at the camera as it blows a circular bubble into the water.

The incredible image, taken at Kamogawa Sea World in east Tokyo, shows the white whale saying a cheery Christmas day hello to the photographer.

He certainly knows how to have a whale of a time...

News by Mirror


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Katy Perry and Russell Brand spend Christmas 7,000 miles apart

katy perry
Katy Perry and Russell Brand
WHEN you’re trying to convince everyone your marriage is not on the rocks, pictures like these won’t help your cause.

Katy Perry and Russell insist that all is well in their marriage despite spending Christmas apart. Over 7000 miles apart for that matter.

While the 27-year-old singer soaked up the sun in Hawaii, her husband wrapped up warm at a charity swim in chilly Cornwall.

And her splashing in the waves without her wedding ring will do nothing to quash the rumours the couple are about to split. Nor will the snaps of 36-year-old Russell grinning like a Cheshire cat while surrounded by a host of girls – one in a bikini.

katy perry
Katy Perry

Russell spent his Christmas in the rather less glamorous ­surroundings of a pub in the Cornish fishing village of Coverack. He later went to his comedian friend David Baddiel’s charity swim nearby where he was mobbed by fans.

Hmm, Hawaii or Cornwall – tough call that one.

Russell was also spotted at celeb favourite festive haunt Winter Wonderland in London’s Hyde Park on Tuesday, again without his wife.

The couple are constantly batting away speculation over the state of their marriage with Russell defending their relationship on The Ellen DeGeneres Show earlier this month.

When asked about rumours of a split the British comedian joked: “What?! She should have told me!” before adding: “I’ve treated the whole Internet now as a wicked little liar” – Russell was referring to allegations of a split that surfaced on Twitter at the beginning of December.

He continued: “I’m really happily married. Being famous is like a little bit of you is taken away and goes off and lives on its own and does what it wants. I wish it would do more interesting things.”

Russell said: “I’m married to Katy. Perpetually, until death do us part was the pledge. I'm still alive.”

The comedian also admitted he’d love to start a family with wife Katy saying: “I would like one [NB a baby]. I love those little babies in the beginning.”

We’re with Russell on this one – partly because we don’t think we can handle another Hollywood split.

But mainly because their babies would be so cute – and if Russell has his way, they’d probably be walking dictionaries by the time they were, er, walking.

News by Mirror


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Japan relaxes decades-old arms exports ban

japanese fighter
Japanese Fighter
(Reuters) - Debt-riddled Japan Tuesday relaxed its self-imposed decades-old ban on military equipment exports in a move that will open new markets to its defense contractors and help the nation squeeze more out of its defense budget.

The government's security council agreed to the relaxing of the ban to allow Japan to take part in the joint development and production of arms with other countries and to supply military equipment for humanitarian missions, Chief Cabinet Secretary Osamu Fujimura said at a news conference.

"The new standards (on weapons exports) are a result of the government considering measures that required attention amid recent changes to the environment surrounding international defense equipment," Fujimura said, referring to rising arms costs that could put strain on the government, with public debt twice the size of its economy.

The rule adopted in 1967 banned sales to communist countries, those involved in international conflicts or subject to United Nations sanctions.

It later became a blanket ban on exports and on the development and production of weapons with countries other than the United States, making it impossible for manufacturers to participate in multinational projects.

"The regulations on weapons exports are based on the concept that as a pacifist country Japan should aim to avoid fanning international conflicts, and we will keep a close watch on exports," Fujimura said.

The relaxing of the rules does not mean Japan will begin openly selling its military products to the world -- exports will be limited to strategic allies like the U.S.

The move could still allow companies such as Mitsubishi Heavy (7011.T) to join the development of Lockheed Martin's (LMT.N) F-35, which Tokyo picked last week as its next frontline fighter, planning to buy 42 machines at an estimated cost of more than $7 billion.

MORE THAN DOUBLE

Although Japan is the world's sixth-biggest military spender, it often pays more than double other nations for the same equipment because local export-restricted manufacturers can only fill small orders at a high cost.

Removing the ban would stretch its defense purse further as military spending in neighboring China expands.

This year, Beijing raised military outlays by 12.7 percent. That included money for its own stealth fighter, the J-20, which made its maiden flight in January.

In contrast, Japan's defense budget has been shrinking in past years as ballooning costs for social security and servicing its growing debt pile squeeze other spending.

Given fiscal restraints, Tokyo is keen to make its defense program more efficient to maintain its military capability in the face of China's rise and growing uncertainties in the region.

The relaxation of the ban, that has been modified in the past to allow sharing of military technology with the U.S., could also be a boon for Japanese manufacturers as the strong yen weighs on their civilian exports and weak domestic demand and budget constraints restrict growth at home.

Read current news at http://bbc-cnn-worldnews.blogspot.com

Top 10 Most Popular Male Singers in 2011

David Guetta
David Guetta
6. David Guetta
David Guetta was born on 7th November 1967 and he is an amazing DJ, songwriter and record producer he started his career in 1996 and released his first album in 2001 den later he also released some singles called When Love Takes over, Getting Over You, Sexy Bitch, Memories and Little Bad Girl. These are among the top UK charts.

Chris Brown
Chris Brown
7. Chris Brown

Chris Brown was born on 5th May, 1989. This young singer, Songwriter, dancer and actor has gained fame in such a small age. Chris Brown started his career in 2005 and produced many amazing songs like Run it, Kiss Kiss, with you, Beautiful people and Next To You with Justin Bieber. He has been topping the Billboard hot 100 chart. His dance routines have been liked a lot like Michael Jackson. This year is going great for Chris Brown as he still has many songs in the Billboard hot 100 songs.


akon
Akon

8.  Akon
Akon was born on 16th April, 1973; he is an amazing singer and a Song Writer. Akon started his career in 1996 and till now he has been producing awesome songs like Smack That, I Wana Love You and Right Now. He has earned many music Awards like 6 Grammy Awards and has 45 Billboard Hot 100 songs. He has also produced many hits for different other artists like Lady Gaga, Colby O’Donis and Leona Lewis.

Taio Cruz
Taio Cruz
9. Taio Cruz
Taio Cruz was born on 23rd April, 1983 and he is a British singer, songwriter and a rapper. He even wrote, arranged and produced one of his albums in 2008; his huge hits include Dynamite, Break Your Heart, Higher and Telling the World. Since 2002 he has been working hard and has been producing very good music, 2011 is no doubt a great year for him.

usher
Usher
10.  Usher
Usher Terry Raymond IV was born on 14th October, 1978 and he is an amazing dancer, singer and a songwriter. Usher started his career in 1992 and up till now he has been producing amazing music. He has been part of the Billboard top 100 like always, his huge hits include Yeah!, Love in this Club, OMG and DJ Got Us falling in Love, which had been a really huge success and it reached to number four on the Billboard Hot 100. This year 2011 has been an amazing year for Usher and he has won numerous awards including seven Grammy Awards, four World Music Awards, six American Music Awards and twenty two Billboard Music Awards.

News by Tiptopten



Page: 1  2


Top 10 Most Popular Male Singers in 2011

Hello Everyone!
Here I am with you guys with a post about the top 10 most popular male singers in 2011. As we see the UK Top 40 charts and the Billboard charts it was very difficult to sort out the list because every singer has the best songs that totally moves you with the beat but anyhow we have managed to subtract some singers from a long list so, let me proceed with the list I am sure you will like the ranking, and yeah don’t forget to give us a feed back by commenting on the post.

Justin Bieber
Justin Bieber
1. Justin Bieber
Justin Bieber has given his BIEBER FEVER to almost every person on this planet. This young kid was born on 1st March, 1994 and started his career in 2009 and his magical voice has made the world especially girls crazy! He started his career with the help of Usher who introduced him and then he sang the songs like Baby, One Time and many more which are superb. He is such a talented that he has gained fame in just no time! This year has been all about him and his girl friend Selena Gomez. They were even the Teen choice Male and Female Hottie in the Teen Choice Awards.


bruno marz
Bruno Marz
2. Bruno Mars
Bruno Mars is an amazing singer, song writer and a record producer. He was born on 8th October, 1985 and started his career in 2005. In such a short span of time he has rocked the world with his amazing voice. He has co-written the songs like Nothin in You, Billionaire, Right round and Waving Flag. His songs like Grenade, Just the Way You Are and Lazy song are at the peak in Billboard 200, and were nominated for the Grammy awards too. This year is going rocking for Bruno mars and his songs are in everybody’s iPod for sure.


pitbull
Pitbull
3. Pitbull
Pitbull’s original name is Armando Christian Perez and his stage name is Pit-bull. He was born on 15th January, 1981 and is an amazing rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer and a TV host. He started his career in 2003 with an album called Kings of Crunk and later in year 2004 another album called M.I.A.M.I. in 2009 he again released his single called “I Know You want Me” which was a huge hit and then later his songs like Blanco, Hotel room Service, Give Me everything, and Rain over me are topping the Billboard top 100 charts.

enrique iglesias
Enrique Iglesias
4. Enrique Iglesias
Enrique is a HOTTIE! :p and he was born on 8th May, 1975 and he started his career in 1995. He is an amazing singer, song writer, actor, producer and a model. He has this magical voice which suits all type of songs whether it is an intense romantic ones or the dance numbers. The last year and this year 2011 are going superb for him; his songs like I Like it, Tonight and Dirty Dancer are topping the Billboards top 100. This person has sold over 12 million albums in US and still he is the star, yeah! A sexy star.

Tinie Tempah
Tinie Tempah
5. Tinie Tempah
Tinie Tempah was born on 7th November 1988, and he is an amazing British rapper who started his career in 2005 and till present he has been producing amazing music. His singles like Pass Out, Written in the Stars, Frisky, Miami 2 Ibiza and Till I am Gone are topping the charts. And this year 2011 has been an amazingly awesome year for him.

Page: 1  2


Monday, December 26, 2011

Missing 9-Year-Old Indiana Girl's Body Discovered; Family Friend Charged With Murder

Aliahna Lemmon
Aliahna Lemmon
 FORT WAYNE, Ind. -- A missing 9-year-old Indiana girl has been found dead, and the family friend who was watching her before she disappeared was charged Monday night with murder, authorities said.

Allen County sheriff's spokesman Cpl. Jeremy Tinkel said investigators found the body of Aliahna Lemmon in the county, but he wouldn't say where. He also said 39-year-old Mike Plumadore was "interviewed by police and taken into custody at 9 p.m. and charged with murder."

Plumadore, who had been watching Aliahna and her sisters before she was reported missing late Friday, is scheduled to appear in court Tuesday.

Earlier Monday, FBI agents descended on the rundown mobile home park in Fort Wayne where Aliahna lived. It's a known haven for registered sex offenders, though Plumadore isn't on Indiana's registered sex offenders list. He has a criminal record in Florida and North Carolina that includes convictions for trespassing and assault.

More than 100 emergency workers searched Saturday for Aliahna around the mobile home park, where she was last seen. No active search was done Sunday for the girl, but search dogs and FBI agents were at the park and the girl's home on Monday.

According to a state website, 15 registered sex offenders live at the mobile home park that numbers about two dozen homes.

Aliahna's mother, Tarah Souders, 28, told The Journal Gazette earlier Monday that her daughter had vision and hearing problems and suffered from attention deficit disorder and emotional problems. Aliahna and her sisters were staying at a family friend's nearby home because their mother had been sick with the flu and Aliahna's stepfather works at night and sleeps during the day.

Plumadore told the newspaper Sunday that he left the three girls in his mobile home about 6 a.m. Friday and went to a gas station about a mile away to buy a cigar. Authorities have said the store's surveillance video shows him there about that time.

"I had dead-bolted the door," he said. "When I got back, all the girls was here."

He said he smoked his cigar and went back to sleep, then woke up about 10 a.m. when Aliahna's mother called. After that call, he realized the door to the home was unlocked and that Aliahna was gone. He said Aliahna's 6-year-old sisters told him Aliahna had left with her mom.

Plumadore said it wasn't until he talked with Aliahna's mom about 8:30 p.m. that they realized she was missing and police were notified.

Tarah Souders said miscommunication between the two of them caused the delay in determining that Aliahna had vanished.

"She's never wandered off," Souders said. "She's never done anything like this before."

News by Huffingtonpost

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7 People Shot Dead In Texas Home, Motive Unclear

texas
                                       7 People Shot Dead In Texas
GRAPEVINE, Texas -- Investigators believe that seven people who were found dead Christmas Day were cleaning up holiday wrapping paper when they were shot inside a suburban Fort Worth apartment, but a motive remains unclear.

All of the victims appeared to be related, and Grapevine police said they believe the shooter was among the dead. Investigators were meticulously searching the apartment, along with three vehicles parked outside, and didn't expect to finish until dawn on Monday.

"It appears they had just celebrated Christmas. They had opened their gifts," Grapevine Police Sgt. Robert Eberling said, adding that the apartment was decorated for the holiday, including a tree.

The four women and three men, aged 18 to 60, were found dead in an adjoining kitchen and living room area when police arrived midday Sunday, shortly after receiving a 911 call in which no one was on the other line, Eberling said. Two handguns were found near the bodies, he said.

None of the victims has been identified, but Eberling said it appears they all died of gunshot wounds. He said authorities still don't know what sparked the incident.

Grapevine Police Lt. Todd Dearing said investigators believe that the victims were related, though some were visiting and didn't live in the apartment. He said police are looking for other relatives to inform of the deaths.

"Seven people in one setting in Grapevine, that's never happened before. Ever," Dearing said.

Police and firefighters first rushed to the Lincoln Vineyards complex after receiving the open-ended 911 call at about 11:30 a.m., Eberling said.

"There was an open line. No one was saying anything," he explained.

So police went into the apartment, located in the middle-class neighborhood of Grapevine, not far from the upscale Fort Worth suburb of Colleyville. The apartment was at the back of the complex, overlooking the athletic fields of Colleyville Heritage High School.

But many of the nearby apartments are vacant, and police said no neighbors reported hearing anything on a quiet Christmas morning when many people were not around.

Jose Fernandez, a 35-year-old heavy equipment mechanic who moved to the complex with his family about six months ago, said he always felt safe in the area, but is now afraid to let his 10-year-old son play freely outside.

"This is really outrageous especially on Christmas," said Fernandez, who was visiting family for the holiday and returned to find several police cars parked outside his home.

"This has shocked everybody. It has scared everybody. I guess something like this can happen anywhere, but seven people dead. It's just very scary," he added.

Eberling agreed the area is fairly quiet, noting this would be the first homicide in Grapevine since 2010.

Christy Posch, a flight attendant who moved to the complex about six months ago so her son could attend the high school, said she lives a few buildings away and did not hear any gunshots.

"It's all families. That's why I moved here. No burglaries, no nothing," Posch said.

News by Huffingtonpost


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50 Secrets Your Nurse Won’t Tell You

nurse
Nurse giving advice to the patient
Dirty Little Secrets

1. "We're not going to tell you your doctor is incompetent, but if I say, 'You have the right to a second opinion,' that can be code for 'I don't like your doctor' or 'I don't trust your doctor.'" — Linda Bell, RN, clinical practice specialist at the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses in Aliso Viejo, California

2. "When a patient is terminally ill, sometimes the doctor won't order enough pain medication. If the patient is suffering, we'll sometimes give more than what the doctor said and ask him later to change the order. People will probably howl now that I've said it out loud, but you have to take care of your patient." — A longtime nurse in Texas

3. "Feel free to tell us about your personal life, but know that we're here for 12 hours with nothing to talk about. So the stuff you tell us will probably get repeated." — A nurse in St. Petersburg, Florida

4. "A lot of my patients are incontinent, and I'm supposed to just use a wet washcloth to clean them. But if it's a patient who's been really nice and appreciative, I'll go all the way to intensive care to get some of the heated wet wipes, which are a lot more gentle. Somebody who's constantly yelling at me? I just use the washcloth." — A nurse in St. Petersburg, Florida

5. "I've had people blow out arteries in front of me, where I know the patient could bleed to death within minutes. I've had people with brains literally coming out of their head. No matter how worried I am, I'll say calmly, 'Hmmm, let me give the doctor a call and have him come look at that.'" — A longtime nurse in Texas

6. "I'd never tell a patient that he's a moron for waiting a week for his stroke symptoms to improve before coming to the hospital. Although I'd like to. Especially if his wife then complains that we're not doing anything for the guy." — A longtime nurse who blogs at head-nurse.blogspot.com

7. "If you're happily texting and laughing with your friends until the second you spot me walking into your room, I'm not going to believe that your pain is a ten out of ten." — A nurse in New York City

8. "When you tell me how much you drink or smoke or how often you do drugs, I automatically double or triple it." — A longtime nurse in Texas

9. "Your life is in our hands — literally. We question physicians' orders more often than you might think. Some of the mistakes I've headed off: a physician who forgot to order a medication that the patient was taking at home, a doctor who ordered the incorrect diet for a diabetic, and one who tried to perform a treatment on the wrong patient." — A nurse from Pennsylvania

10. "These days, you can't get admitted unless you're really sick, and you'll probably get sent home before you're really ready. So we don't get any easy ones anymore." — Kathy Stephens Williams, RN, staff development educator for critical care at St. Anthony's Medical Center in St. Louis, Missouri

11. "People have no idea of the amount of red tape and charting we have to deal with every day. We spend hours at the computer just clicking boxes. They tell us, 'If it wasn't charted, it didn't happen.' So I always chart with a jury in the back of my mind." — An intensive-care nurse in California

12. "Despite nurses' best efforts, hospitals are still filthy and full of drug-resistant germs. I don't even bring my shoes into the house when I get home." — Gina, a nurse who blogs at codeblog.com

13. "The No. 1 thing you should never say to me: 'You're too smart to be a nurse.' I went to nursing school because I wanted to be a nurse, not because I wanted to be a doctor and didn't make it." — A longtime nurse in Texas

14. "Grey's Anatomy? We watch it and laugh. Ninety percent of the things doctors do on the show are things that nurses do in real life. Plus, there's no time to sit in patients' rooms like that." — Kathy Stephens Williams, RN

15. "The sicker you are, the less you complain. I'll have a dying patient with horrible chest pain who says nothing, because he doesn't want to bother me. But the guy with the infected toe — he can't leave me alone." — An intensive-care nurse in California

16. "No matter how many times you use your call light, even if it's every ten minutes, I will come into your room with a smile. However, if you don't really need help, I will go back to the nurses' station and complain, and this may affect how the nurses on the next shift take care of you." — A cardiac nurse in San Jose, California

17. "When your provider asks for a list of the medications you're taking, make sure you include over-the-counter drugs and herbals. People think that if an herb is 'all natural' and 'organic,' it's not a medication. But that's not true. Herbals can interact with other medications and can cause serious complications." — Kristin Baird, RN, a health-care consultant in Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin

18. "This is a hospital, not a hotel. I'm sorry the food isn't the best, and no, your boyfriend can't sleep in the bed with you." — A nurse in New York City

19. "I know you asked for mashed potatoes, but that sound you hear is my other patient’s ventilator going off." — A nurse in New York City

20. "If you ask me if your biopsy results have come back yet, I may say no even if they have, because the doctor is really the best person to tell you. He can answer all your questions." — Gina, a nurse who blogs at codeblog.com

21. "When you ask me, 'Have you ever done this before?' I'll always say yes. Even if I haven’t." — A nurse in New York City

22. "In my first nursing job, some of the more senior nurses on the floor refused to help me when I really needed it, and they corrected my inevitable mistakes loudly and in public. It's a very stressful job, so we take it out on each other." — Theresa Brown, RN, an oncology nurse and the author of Critical Care: A New Nurse Faces Death, Life, and Everything in Between

23. "It can be intimidating when you see a physician who is known for being a real ogre make a mistake. Yes, you want to protect your patient, but there's always a worry: Am I asking for a verbal slap in the face?" — Linda Bell, RN

24. "Every nurse has had a doctor blame her in front of a patient for something that is not her fault. They're basically telling the patient, 'You can't trust your nurse.'" —Theresa Brown, RN

25. "If you have a really great nurse, a note to her nurse manager that says 'So-and-so was exceptional for this reason' will go a long way. Those things come out in her evaluation — it's huge." — Linda Bell, RN

26. "If you've been a patient in a unit for a long time, come back and visit. We'll remember you, and we'd love to see you healthy." — An intensive-care nurse in California

27. "I once took care of a child who had been in a coma for more than a week. The odds that he would wake up were declining, but I had read that the sense of smell was the last thing to go. So I told his mom, 'Put your perfume on a diaper and hold it up by his nose to see if it will trigger something.' The child woke up three hours later. It was probably a coincidence, but it was one of my best moments as a nurse." — Barbara Dehn, RN, a nurse-practitioner in Silicon Valley who blogs at nursebarb.com

28. "Now that medical records are computerized, a lot of nurses or doctors read the screen while you're trying to talk to them. If you feel like you're not being heard, say, 'I need your undivided attention for a moment.'" — Kristin Baird, RN

29. "Never talk to a nurse while she's getting your medications ready. The more conversation there is, the more potential there is for error." — Linda Bell, RN

30. "Some jobs are physically demanding. Some are mentally demanding. Some are emotionally demanding. Nursing is all three. If you have a problem with a nurse or with your care, ask to speak to the charge nurse (the one who oversees the shift). If it isn't resolved at that level, ask for the hospital supervisor." — Nancy Brown, RN, a longtime nurse in Seattle

31. "If the person drawing your blood misses your vein the first time, ask for someone else. I've seen one person stick someone three times. They need to practice, but it shouldn't be on you!" — Karon White Gibson, RN, producer-host of Outspoken with Karon, a Chicago cable TV show

32. "Never let your pain get out of control. Using a scale of zero to ten, with ten being the worst pain you can imagine, start asking for medication when your pain gets to a four. If you let it get really bad, it's more difficult to get it under control." — Nancy Beck, RN, a nurse at a Missouri hospital

33. "Ask the nurse to wet your bandage or dressing before removal — it won’t hurt as much." — Karon White Gibson, RN

34. "If you're going to get blood drawn, drink two or three glasses of water beforehand. If you're dehydrated, it's a lot harder for us to find a vein, which means more poking with the needle."

35. "Don't hold your breath when you know we're about to do something painful, like remove a tube or take the staples out of an incision. Doing that will just make it worse. Take a few deep breaths instead." — Mary Pat Aust, RN, clinical practice specialist at American Association of Critical-Care Nurses in Aliso Viejo, California

36. "If you have a choice, don't go into the hospital in July. That's when the new crop of residents starts, and they're pretty clueless." — A nurse supervisor at a New Jersey hospital

37. "Doctors don't always tell you everything. They'll be in the hallway saying, 'She has a very poor prognosis. There's nothing we can do.' Then they don't say that in the room. Sometimes I try to persuade them to be more up-front, but I don't always succeed." — Theresa Brown, RN

38. "There are a few doctors at every hospital who just don't think that they need to wash their hands between seeing patients. Others get distracted and forget. So always ask anyone who comes into your room, 'Have you washed your hands?'" — Kathy Stephens Williams, RN

39. "Many doctors seem to have a lack of concern about pain. I've seen physicians perform very painful treatments without giving sedatives or pain medicine in advance, so the patient wakes up in agony. When they do order pain medicine, they're so concerned about overdosing, they often end up underdosing." — A nurse supervisor at a New Jersey hospital

40. "When you're with someone who is dying, try to get in bed and snuggle with them. Often they feel very alone and just want to be touched. Many times my patients will tell me, 'I'm living with cancer but dying from lack of affection.'" — Barbara Dehn, RN, NP

41. "It's the little things that make a difference for people who are sick. One of the best things you can do is wrap them in a warm blanket or towel. Throw the towel in the dryer before they are bathed. If they're in a hospital, find out where the blanket warmer is." — Barbara Dehn, RN, NP

42. "I'll never tell you to change your code status to Do Not Resuscitate, even though I might cringe at the thought of having to break your ribs during CPR. With certain patients, however, I may talk to family members to clarify their goals for the patient's care. This sometimes leads to an elderly person being placed on comfort care rather than being continually tortured by us with procedures that aren't going to help." — A cardiac nurse in San Jose, California

43. "Husbands, listen to your wives if they tell you to go to the hospital. Today a man kept fainting but wouldn't go to the hospital until his wife forced him. He needed not one, not two, but three units of blood — he was bleeding internally. He could have had a cardiac arrest. Another man complained to his wife that he didn't feel 'right.' His wife finally called me to come over to their house. His pulse was 40. He got a pacemaker that evening." — Barbara Dehn, RN, NP

44. "The doctors don't save you; we do. We're the ones keeping an eye on your electrolytes, your fluids, whether you're running a fever. We're often the ones who decide whether you need a feeding tube or a central line for your IV. And we're the ones who yell and screech when something goes wrong." — A longtime nurse in Texas

45. "If you do not understand what the doctor is telling you, say so! I once heard a doctor telling his patient that the tumor was benign, and the patient thought that benign meant that he had cancer. That patient was my dad. It was one of the things that inspired me to become a nurse." — Theresa Tomeo, RN, a nurse at the Beth Abraham Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation in Queens, New York

46. "At the end of an appointment, ask yourself: Do I know what's happening next? If you had blood drawn, find out who's calling who with the results, and when. People assume that if they haven't heard from anyone, nothing is wrong. But I've heard horror stories. One positive biopsy sat under a pile of papers for three weeks." — Kristin Baird, RN

47. "As a nurse, sometimes you do nothing but run numbers and replenish fluids. Sometimes you're also the person who reassures the teenager that 'everybody' gets her period on the day of admission, the person who, though 30 years younger than the patient, tells that patient without blushing or stammering that yes, sex is possible even after neck surgery. You're the person who knows not only the various ways to save somebody else's life but also how to comfort those left behind." — A longtime nurse who blogs at head-nurse.blogspot.com

ask us on a date. We're busy. It's unethical. And, really, I already know you better than I want to." — A longtime nurse in Texas

49. "Positive attitude is everything. I have seen many people think themselves well." — Nancy Beck, RN

50. "A simple 'Thank you' can really make my day." — A nurse in New York City


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