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Re:

2011-03-18T23:21:00.001-07:00

I�ve send a kink we�ve told about!.
http://comitemarnebillard.com/links.php?jaolid=474

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Yeshwant Bafna

Google's online library runs into trouble

2005-08-13T01:27:00.000-07:00

Saturday, 13 August , 2005, 10:11

US search Goliath Google has put on hold its internationally criticised plan to amass an online library of the world's books, the company website indicated on Friday.

The posted announcement by Google's print product manager Adam Smith was apparently intended to take the Silicon Valley company out of the cross-hairs of publishers who opened fire on the company after it launched the project.

"We know that not everyone agrees, and we want to do our best to respect their views, too," Smith said in a website posting. "So now, any and all copyright holders can tell us, which books they'd prefer that we not scan if we find them in a library," he continued.

Google won't scan any more copyrighted books until November, to give publishers a chance to figure out what books they want kept from the planned online library, according to Smith.

Google unveiled its project, "Google Print," in October 2004. In April, 19 European national libraries announced a multi-million euro counter-offensive aimed at blocking Google's quest to create a global virtual library.

The alliance, organised by France's national library, formed after Michigan University and four other top libraries -- Harvard, Stanford, New York Public Library and the Bodleian in Oxford -- made a deal with Google to digitise millions of their books and make them freely available online.
"As with many ambitious ideas, Google Print has sparked a healthy amount of discussion," Smith wrote. "And we've been listening." Google has consulted with publishers, authors and trade organisations to assuage concerns about copyrights, according to Smith.

Google is inviting publishers to provide lists of copyrighted works they want logged in the online library so the search engine can refer potential readers their way to buy the books in one form or another.

Company to sell trips around the moon

2005-08-10T20:50:00.000-07:00

Thursday, 11 August , 2005, 08:10

New York: The company that pioneered commercial space travel by sending "tourists" up to the International Space Station is planning a new mission: rocketing people around the far side of the moon.

The price of a round-trip ticket: $100 million.

The first mission by Space Adventures could happen in 2008 or 2009 and is planned as a stepping stone to an eventual lunar landing by private citizens.

"For the first time in history, a private company is organizing a mission to the moon," Space Adventures CEO Eric Anderson said at a Manhattan news conference Wednesday, a day after space shuttle Discovery safely returned to Earth. "This mission will inspire countries of the world, citizens ... our youth."

Anderson said he already has prospective "private explorers" who are interested in the trip and could afford the ticket.

The initial travelers would be the first to orbit the moon in more than 33 years, according to the Arlington, Va., company. Only 27 people have ever made such a journey.

The trip, aboard a modified Russian spacecraft, will offer the chance to see the Earth rise from lunar orbit and a view of the far side of the moon from an altitude of 62 miles.

The far side of the moon has a special appeal, Anderson told The Associated Press in an interview, because it takes most of the hits from asteroids, meteorites and other objects from deep space. That results in many more craters than on the side seen from Earth.

"It's much more interesting to look at than the near side," he said, adding that the lunar orbits will be done when the far side is illuminated by the sun.

Space Adventures plans to offer multiple trip itineraries aboard Russia's Soyuz TMA spacecraft. One possibility is a 5 1/2-day lunar flight and up to 21 days at the International Space Station; another is a nine-day mission with three days of free flight in low-Earth orbit and the rest flying around the moon. In both cases, the spacecraft would dock with a booster, carried up by a separate launch vehicle, to propel it to the moon.

The Soyuz was originally designed for lunar missions, although none ever occurred. Anderson called it the most reliable craft in the history of space travel.

It has 10 cubic meters of crew space, about the size of a large SUV. The cosmonaut and two passengers will sleep in reclining chairs, said Nikolai Sevastyanov, president of rocket maker Rocket and Space Corporation Energia.

Space Adventures has a partnership with the rocket maker and the Federal Space Agency of the Russian Federation, through which they have sent American businessman Dennis Tito and South African Mark Shuttleworth on a Soyuz for stays on the space station.

The next mission is slated to send a team up to the space station for 10 days starting Oct. 1. One of the crew members is Gregory Olsen, a New Jersey scientist who has been training for the mission in Russia on and off since 2004.

"Who wouldn't want to go to the moon?" said Olsen, 60, a surprise guest at the news conference. "I'm really interested, but one flight at a time."

Modifications to the Soyuz will include altering its docking system and installing an 18-inch window so passengers can take high-resolution photos of the lunar surface.

Shuttle's future unclear after landing

2005-08-09T20:43:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, 10 August , 2005, 07:56

Edwards air force base, California: Safely back on Earth, though not quite home. Now the shuttle faces an uncertain future.

Signaling its arrival with two thunderous sonic booms, Discovery hurtled out of a black desert sky to a smooth touchdown Tuesday after scrapping four landing attempts at its Florida base because of rain and lightning.

The landing at a backup site was met with cheers and palpable relief after a tense two-week mission that raised fears of a Columbia-like disaster.

"Congratulations on a truly spectacular test flight," Mission Control said after Discovery came to a stop on the concrete runway at 5:11 a.m. PDT. "Welcome home, friends."

The mission exposed how vulnerable the shuttle fleet remains, despite a tremendous amount of money and effort invested in the first U.S. manned space mission in the 2 1/2 years since the Columbia tragedy.

Shortly after liftoff July 26, a 1-pound chunk of foam insulation fell from the fuel tank ・the very thing that doomed Columbia ・but it missed Discovery. Still, NASA grounded all shuttle flights until engineers fix the problem.

"We're going to try as hard as we can to get back in space this year," NASA Administrator Michael Griffin said at a post-landing news conference. "But we're not going to go until we're ready to go."

Shuttle managers freely acknowledged the foam mistake, while stressing that the inspection, photography and other shuttle data-gathering systems put in place for this flight worked well. What's more, NASA officials said no severe damage was detected on Discovery while it was in orbit.

"I hope this shows people that we're coming back," NASA spaceflight chief Bill Readdy said from Cape Canaveral, Fla. "We've got some more work to do. We know what we need to do and we'll do it."

The Columbia disaster weighed heavily on everyone's minds as the shuttle made its descent to Earth. Co-pilot James Kelly said he was "honestly hoping that we'd make it farther than they did. And I wished that they had made it all the way home."

Unlike previous Edwards landings, in which throngs of spectators gathered for a shuttle return, the public was barred from viewing Discovery due to increased security after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

The 17,000-mph plunge from orbit took Discovery through a passage of the same kind of intense heating that exposed the mortal wound in Columbia's wing. The shuttle soared across the Pacific and over Southern California, passing just north of Los Angeles on its way to Edwards as it completed a journey that spanned 5.8 million miles and 219 orbits of Earth.

NASA adjusted the flight path in order to skirt Los Angeles because of new safety considerations in the wake of the Columbia disaster, which rained debris onto Texas and Louisiana.

During Discovery's approach, Dr. Jon Clark, a NASA neurologist and husband of Columbia astronaut Laurel Clark, said he quietly remembered his wife and closely compared the two missions.

"I thought, 'This is when the tire light went on,'" Clark said from Kennedy Space Center, referring to an initial sensor reading that Columbia was breaking up. "I was paralleling the two missions."

Two hours after touchdown, the astronauts walked around the shuttle to inspect for possible damages.

"It looks fantastic," Commander Eileen Collins said.

Collins said the United States should continue launching shuttles until the scheduled completion of the international space station in 2010 ・a sentiment echoed by NASA Administrator Michael Griffin.

"Some people say we should stop flying the shuttle because we had an accident ・frankly we've had two accidents ・but we are people who believe in this mission and we are going to continue it," Collins said.

President Bush congratulated the Discovery team.

"It was a great achievement," Bush said. "It was an important step for NASA as it regains the confidence of the American people and begins to transition to the new mission we've set out for NASA."

NASA said it will be a week before Discovery leaves California, riding piggyback atop a modified Boeing 747 back to Cape Canaveral. The cross-country trip is expected to cost the space agency about $1 million.

Of the 111 shuttles that have landed since 1981, 49 came in at Edwards. The last shuttle to land at Edwards was Endeavor in 2002.

Discovery's crew accomplished its main objectives to resupply the international space station and fix broken equipment. The first shuttle to visit the space station since 2002, Discovery spent nine days docked to the orbiting lab.

Astronauts performed two planned spacewalks to test new repair techniques and replace a failed 660-pound, washing machine-sized gyroscope which helped control the station's orientation. It is the first time in three years that all station's gyroscopes were working simultaneously.

In a third unprecedented spacewalk, astronaut Stephen Robinson went beneath Discovery's belly to pull out two protruding thermal tile fillers that engineers on the ground feared could cause overheating during re-entry and lead to another Columbia-type disaster. NASA canceled a fourth spacewalk to repair a torn thermal blanket near the cockpit window, saying that it posed little danger to the shuttle.

Collins said she could not see the torn blanket from orbit, but a ground inspection revealed that it was not significantly damaged.

The switch to landing in California was a big disappointment for the astronauts' families, who had been waiting two weeks to greet their loved ones in Florida. Astronauts planned to reunite with their families on Wednesday, when they all plan to meet in Houston.

In Rochester, N.Y., Collins' 79-year-old father, James, a retired postal worker, described it as "the day of my life."

"We're always the parents of Eileen," he said. "Eileen right now to me belongs to all of us. Right at this point, I can say she belongs to the world."

Flirting keeps marriage running: Kate

2005-08-08T20:31:00.000-07:00

London, August 8, 2005

Kate Hudson has disclosed that flirting and hotel room romps are the secrets of her happily married life.

The stunning actress says, that a husband and a wife relationship becomes boring with time, and hence, one should always experiment with new ideas to keep it fresh and full of love.

She also claims that she keeps hubby Chris Robinson still interested, by acting as though they are still dating.

"When you're married you can get too settled. I like to keep my husband on his toes. How do I do that? Flirting," Femalefirst quoted her as saying to In Style magazine.

Kate also admitted that she and Chris, also enjoy a passionate night in a hotel room, after hiring a baby-sitter for their son, Ryder.

"When you have kids, you usually get a babysitter, leave the house, maybe get a hotel room for us, that would be any place with a big tub," she said.

Hudson says monogamy is tough
Kate Hudson, the Oscar nominated actress and daughter of screen legend Goldie Hawn, says even though monogamy is a tricky business she has remained faithful to her husband.

According to People magazine, she said: "I don't believe (monogamy) is realistic, but I believe that we, as people, have the power to make it happen." She was quick to add, "I will not disrespect my husband and stray."

On whether she thinks her husband, rocker Chris Robinson, has remained faithful to her, she said, "If you focus your attention on that, then you are always wondering if your husband or men are out there cheating on you. ... If for some reason, that's what he has to go do, I just don't want to know. As long as things are good in our house, just please, don't get caught."

Hudson and Robinson have a baby son name Ryder who was born last year.

Hollywood producer, daughter found dead

2005-08-04T21:02:00.000-07:00

Friday, 05 August , 2005, 06:05

Clearlake Oaks, California: A one-time Hollywood producer and his 9-year-old daughter were found dead in their car two days after vanishing and Lake County authorities on Thursday were investigating what they called a bizarre case.

The bodies of Terry Martin Carr and his daughter, Arieka, were found in their Jeep a day after Carr abandoned his wife at a grocery store in Ashland, Ore. and drove off with the girl.

The bodies, which were in the Jeep parked outside a convenience store, showed no obvious signs of trauma and autopsies performed Wednesday were inconclusive, said Lake County Detective Tom Andrews.

He described the circumstances surrounding the deaths as "too bizarre."

Carr's wife, Chica Carr, filed missing person reports Monday morning, the day after the two vanished, said Brent Jensen, an Ashland police detective.

The bodies were found Monday afternoon, but it took two days to link the cases.

Carr, 62, took off with the girl while his wife was in a grocery store restroom Sunday afternoon, Chica Carr told police. She said they had not been fighting.

"She said it was totally out of character, totally out of the blue. She was stunned," Jensen said. "She was stunned again when they delivered the news."

Carr's Hollywood credits include serving as producer of "An Almost Perfect Affair" and "Coast to Coast," co-producer of "Predator 2" and "The Boost," and writing and directing "Welcome to 18." He also worked as a production manager or supervisor for the films "Jagged Edge," "The River," and "On Golden Pond," according to the Internet Movie Database.

Jensen said the Carrs moved from Los Angeles in late June and had been looking at properties in southern Oregon before renting an apartment in Ashland on July 29.

That day, police received a call from a man who said that someone driving a Jeep had dumped bags and boxes of clothes and personal mementos into his pasture. The items have since been linked to Terry Carr.

"It's not stuff you would throw away ・60-year-old photos, files ・and the way they were disposed off suggests some sort of closure or starting a new chapter in life," Jensen said.

Adidas to pay €3bn for rival Reebok

2005-08-03T21:06:00.000-07:00

World's second and third-largest sportswear companies join forces to take on the might of Nike.

Thursday August 4, 2005

Adidas, the German sportswear and goods maker, set its sights yesterday on challenging Nike as the world's leading brand in the booming sector by sealing an agreed €3.1bn (£2.15bn) takeover of Reebok.

The group was the global leader until the late 1980s when it ran into severe financial problems. It made it plain that the combined business would take on Nike in its home territory of the US, and in China, which stages the 2008 Olympic games. The two marriage partners are second and third in the world market.

Herbert Hainer, Adidas chief executive, said: "It is definitely a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, a perfect fit for both companies and a milestone in the industry."

Adidas is paying a 34% premium for Reebok at $59 (£33) a share in cash. The deal, first suggested at a chance meeting between Mr Hainer and Paul Fireman, Reebok's chairman, at last year's Athens Olympics, could net Mr Fireman and his family about $700m.

Mr Fireman, who bought into the company in 1979, and his family own 17% of the Reebok equity and will cash it in, he said, when the deal was finalised, probably early next year. But he said he had been paid no transaction bonus. Reebok's shareholders have yet to approve the deal.

The combined group, which has aggregate revenues of €8.9bn against Nike's €11bn, will have 20% of the US market, where Reebok, through a host of deals in basketball, American football and ice hockey, has pioneered expansion into lifestyle products such as fashion and music.

Both Mr Hainer and Mr Fireman stressed that the two brands would be complementary but would retain their identity and be run separately, with Reebok continuing to be based in Massachusetts and headed by Mr Fireman. The TaylorMade golf business will also keep its identity.

For Adidas, which sponsors a range of football teams, the England captain David Beckham and the 2006 World Cup in Germany, the deal represents a chance to break more decisively into the lifestyle side of the sportswear business.

Mr Hainer said: "Reebok has brought a new business to the table, which is a fusion of sport, lifestyle and music and they have done it better - and faster - than us." Mr Fireman said Reebok would be "empowered".

The head of the Bavarian-based Adidas added that the combined group would also focus its plans on expanding in China, where Adidas hopes to increase sales to €1bn a year by 2010. Reebok sponsors Yao Ming, a Chinese basketball player with the Houston Rockets who has legions of fans in his homeland.

But the fact that the two companies will continue to compete until the deal has been completed and will then be run as separate businesses concerned some analysts, who worried about debt and doubted whether there would be genuine synergies.

Robin Stalker, Adidas's chief financial officer, said the cost-savings - expected to be €125m by the third year - would swiftly outweigh the costs. He said the deal, which has yet to be approved by US and EU competition authorities, would enhance earnings in the first full year. Job losses among the combined 26,000-strong workforce will supposedly be kept to a minimum.

Adidas simultaneously reported an 8% increase in second-quarter sales to €1.5bn, despite a slight fall in Europe and operating profit up 25% to €123m, with net income up from €70m to €94m. It is selling its winter sports business Salomon, which lost €27m.

Last month, Reebok reported a 9% rise in second-quarter sales to $876m, with net income up 71% at $37m.

From the ancient Greeks to microprocessors

Nike

Nike was to be Dimension 6 until an employee came up with naming it after the Greek goddess of victory. Today its "swoosh" is one of the world's most familiar brands.
Phil Knight, then an accountancy student and a runner, began it in 1962 with Bill Bowerman, an athletics coach at Oregon University. As Blue Ribbon Sports, they sold cheap Japanese trainers from a van. The change of name came in 1972 as they began designing and selling their own shoes.

Nike grew on high-profile deals with sports stars. It signed the tennis player John McEnroe in 1978 and Steve Ovett, the British middle-distance runner who became Nike's first Olympic gold medallist, in 1980. Sponsorship deals with the golfer Tiger Woods, the basketball icon Michael Jordan and the cyclist Lance Armstrong have become eye-popping. In 2003, Nike signed a $90m (£56m) deal with LeBron James, an 18-year-old basketball prodigy who had never played a professional game.

Nike employs 23,000 people and has annual sales of $12bn. Its record on manufacturing in the developing world made it a target for anti-globalisation activists. Nike bought Converse in 2003. What had been an anti-establishment choice of footwear has become one of the world's top brands.

Mr Bowerman died in 1999 and Mr Knight retired as chief executive in November. - David Teather in New York

Reebok

Reebok began 110 years ago, making running shoes with the first spikes by hand. JW Foster & Sons of Bolton, supplied shoes for the gold-medal winning runners of the 1924 Olympics who were celebrated in Chariots of Fire.

In 1958 two of the founder's grandsons set up a sister firm that became Reebok, named after an African antelope and based in Massachusetts. It retains links with Bolton, whose Wanderers play in the Premiership at the Reebok Stadium. Paul Fireman, now chief executive, introduced three trainers to the US in 1979 - at $60 a pair, then the most expensive. The aerobics craze of the 1980s turned the brand into a streetwise label. It later floated on the market and launched Pump, which incorporated an air bladder.

It now supplies teams in American football, basketball, ice hockey and Indy motor-racing. This year it lost its sponsorship of Wimbledon's runner-up, Andy Roddick, but keeps Venus Williams, the women's champion.

Reebok had sales of $1.5m 25 years ago. Last year it turned over $3.8bn, with a 26% jump in net income to $192m. Once linked to sweatshop labour, it now sponsors a human rights award and proclaims its environmental credentials. Its footwear unit was the first to be accredited by the Fair Labour Association.

But it still skirts controversy, withdrawing an advert with the rapper 50 Cent over claims that it glorified gun violence. - David Gow

Adidas

Adidas sprang to fame in 1954 when it supplied the boots for the West German football team, underdogs in the World Cup final in Bern against the dominant Hungarians, whom they beat.
The boots had screw-in studs so that, when the pitch was hard, short ones could be used or, when it rained, as it did in the final, long ones were fitted. The Miracle of Bern even became a film, featuring the studs. The firm was founded in 1949 by Adolf "Adi" Dassler. His brother, Rudolf, set up the rival label Puma in the same town.

Supplier of the shoes worn by the high-jumper Dick "The Flop" Fosbury in the 1960s, the company ran into serious problems in the late 1980s when Adi's son and successor, Horst, died and it was bought by Bernard Tapie, the now-disgraced French businessman and politician in 1990.
It was controversially sold by the state-owned Crédit Lyonnais to Robert Louis-Dreyfus, a friend of Tapie, in 1993 and floated in Frankfurt and Paris two years later.

Adidas expanded in 1997 by acquiring the winter sports firm Salomon. It has agreed to sell the loss-making Salomon to its Finnish rival Amer for €485m (£336m) and will drop the name from its title when the deal with Reebok is completed.

This year Adidas introduced what it calls the world's first "intelligent" shoe, fitted with a microprocessor which constantly adjusts the shoe. - David Gow

Flood outside Mumbai Airport!

2005-08-02T22:20:00.000-07:00

Hackers demonstrate their skills at conference

2005-08-01T20:25:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, 02 August , 2005, 04:31

Las Vegas: Even the ATM machines were suspect at this year's Defcon conference, where hackers play intrusion games at the bleeding edge of computer security.

With some of the world's best digital break-in artists pecking away at their laptops, sending e-mails or answering cell phones could also be risky.

Defcon is a no-man's land where customary adversaries ・feds vs. digital mavericks ・are supposed to share ideas about making the Internet a safer place. But it's really a showcase for flexing hacker muscle.

This year's hot topics included a demonstration of just how easy it may be to attack supposedly foolproof biometric safeguards, which determine a person's identity by scanning such things as thumb prints, irises and voice patterns.

Banks, supermarkets and even some airports have begun to rely on such systems, but a security analyst who goes by the name Zamboni challenged hackers to bypass biometrics by attacking their backend systems networks. "Attack it like you would Microsoft or Linux," he advised.

Radio frequency identification tags that send wireless signals and that are used to track a growing list of items including retail merchandise, animals and U.S. military shipments_ also came under scrutiny.

A group of twentysomethings from Southern California climbed onto the hotel roof to show that RFID tags could be read from as far as 69 feet. That's important because the tags have been proposed for such things as U.S. passports, and critics have raised fears that kidnappers could use RFID readers to pick traveling U.S. citizens out of a crowd.

RFID companies had said the signals didn't reach more than 20 feet, said John Hering, one of the founders of Flexilis, the company that conducted the experiment.

"Our goal is to raise awareness," said Hering, 22. "Our hope is to spawn other research so that people will move to secure this technology before it becomes a problem."

Erik Michielsen, an analyst at ABI Research, chuckled when he heard the Flexilis claims. "These are great questions that need to be raised," he said, but RFID technology varies with the application, many of which are encrypted. Encryption technology uses an algorithm to scramble data to make it unreadable to everyone except the recipient.

Also on hand at the conference was Robert Morris Sr., former chief scientist for the National Security Agency, to lecture on the vulnerabilities of bank ATMs, which he predicted would become the next "pot of gold" for hackers.

The Internet has become "crime ridden slums," said Phil Zimmermann, a well-known cryptographer who spoke at the conference. Hackers and the computer security experts who make a living on tripping up systems say security would be better if people were less lazy.

To make their point, they pilfered Internet passwords from convention attendees.

Anyone naive enough to access the Internet through the hotel's unsecured wireless system could see their name and part of their passwords scrolling across a huge public screen.

It was dubbed the "The Wall of Sheep."

Among the exposed sheep were an engineer from Cisco Systems Inc., multiple employees from Apple Computer Inc. and a Harvard professor.

An annual highlight of the conference is the "Meet the Feds" panel, which this year included representatives from the FBI, NSA and the Treasury and Defense departments. Morris and other panel members said they would love to hire the "best and brightest" hackers but cautioned that the offer wouldn't be extended to lawbreakers.

During the session, Agent Jim Christy of the Defense Department's Cyber Crime Center asked the audience to stand.

"If you've never broken the law, sit down," he said. Many sat down immediately ・but a large number appeared to hesitate before everyone eventually took their seats.

OK, now we can turn off the cameras, Christy joked.

Some federal agents were indeed taking careful notes, though, when researcher Michael Lynn set the tone for the conference by publicizing earlier in the week a vulnerability in Cisco routers that he said could allow hackers to virtually shut down the Internet.

Lynn and other researchers at Internet Security Systems had discovered a way of exploiting a Cisco software vulnerability in order to seize control of a router. That flaw was patched in April, but Lynn showed that Cisco hadn't quite finished the repair job ・that the same technique could be used to exploit other vulnerabilities in Cisco routers.

Cisco and ISS went to court to try to stop Lynn from going public, but Lynn quit ISS and spoke anyway. In the wake of his decision, Lynn has become the subject of an FBI probe, said his attorney Jennifer Granick.

Many at the conference praised Lynn.

"We're never going to secure the Net if we don't air and criticize vulnerabilities," said David Cowan, a managing partner at venture capital firm Bessemer Venture Partners.

And the vulnerabilities are plenty.

During his session on ATM machines, Morris said thieves have been able to dupe people out of their bank cards and passwords by changing the software in old ATM machines bought off eBay for as little as $1,000 and placing the machines out in public venues.

London police nab 7 more in blasts probe

2005-07-31T19:56:00.000-07:00

Sunday, 31 July , 2005, 23:13

London: Police arrested seven people in southern England on Sunday in connection with the failed July 21 London transit bombings and reportedly were investigating the attackers' ties to Saudi Arabia and Italy.

Police made the arrests during raids on two properties in Brighton, on the coast, a spokeswoman for the Metropolitan Police said, providing no other details.

In northern Italy, police took a second brother of a main suspect into custody for questioning Sunday, the Italian news agency ANSA said. Another brother of Osman Hussain, also known as Hamdi Issac, was detained Friday.

Sunday's arrests follow dramatic raids earlier this week in London and Rome that netted the four men police believe tried to set off bombs in three subway trains and a bus July 21, two weeks after the deadly July 7 attacks.

Police were searching for those who may have recruited and directed the bombers and built the explosives, while also looking for links between the two terror cells, one made up mostly of Britons of Pakistani descent, the other mainly of east African-born Britons.

In Rome, investigators were interrogating Hussain, 27, an Ethiopian-born British citizen suspected of trying to bomb the Shepherd's Bush subway station in west London.

Hussain was arrested Friday at a Rome apartment reportedly belonging to a brother after police traced calls he made on a relative's cell phone. His brother Remzi Issac also was detained. Britain has requested Hussain's extradition for questioning, and an initial hearing was held Saturday.

His attorney, Antonietta Sonnessa, said no formal charges had been filed against Hussain, adding that he was likely to fight extradition.

A second brother, identified as Fati Issac, was detained Sunday in the northern Italian town of Brescia on suspicion of destroying documents sought by investigators.

Mumbai turns Water World!!!!

2005-07-28T21:49:00.000-07:00

Microsoft faces Vista trademark challenge

2005-07-26T20:47:00.000-07:00

US software company not happy with new Windows name.

A US software company is threatening legal action against Microsoft after the giant chose its company name as the title for its next version of Windows.

Previously codenamed Longhorn, Microsoft announced late Friday that its upcoming operating system would be called Windows Vista - something that a company based in the same town as Microsoft's headquarters, Vista Inc. was not happy about.

John Wall, CEO of Vista Inc., said the company was "considering all of its options" for a potential case against Microsoft. Wall said the naming of Windows may violate a trademark his company has and potentially create confusion over the software and services Vista provides.

Vista provides small businesses with online information systems, including custom applications, as well as with consulting services. "If people call it Windows Vista, thatfs not a problem," he said. "If people call it 'Vista,' that confuses it with our business and what we do."

Wall said Vista will be analyzing traffic to its website, www.vista.com, to see what effect the Windows Vista name may have on visitors to the site. If the effect is significant - that is, if a surge of visitors come to Vista.com looking for information about Windows Vista - the company may decide to take legal actions over the trademark.

One of the key tests for whether a new trademark can be challenged or not is if it creates confusion over another company's products and services, said Bill Lozito, president of Strategic Name Development, a brand naming consultancy in Minneapolis.

Vista potentially has a good case against Microsoft because its software and services are similar to what the software giant offers, he said. Because Microsoft is a larger, more recognisable company, the name confusion might drive some of Vista's potential customers to Microsoft.

The issue for Vista is particularly prickly because the company deals mainly in the small business market, a segment where Microsoft also figures prominently.

But then it can be guaranteed that Microsoft has already reviewed likely trademark issues surrounding the choice of its new Windows name and has a strategy in place. Not only that but there are dozens of businesses using the name "Vista", several of which work in the IT industry.

There are at least two other software companies named Vista Software, that might have a good argument against Microsoft, Lozito said. "Anyone using that name thatfs doing business in this category runs the risk of being overshadowed by Microsoft Windows Vista," he said.

However, the presidents of the two companies called Vista Software, both of which provide add-on technology for Microsoft products, separately said their companies will most likely benefit from Microsoft's choice of name.

"Fortunately for our small company, all of our products are targeting the Windows platform, so I'm anticipating that the new 'Windows Vista' name will have a positive effect for us," said Steve Nerby, president of Arizona-based Vista Software Inc.

Anthony Carrabino, founder, chief executive officer and president of Lorant Corp.'s Vista Software in California, shares Nerby's sentiment. Carrabino said he "couldn't be happier" about Microsoft's choice of a name because his company's main product, Vista DB, is a database engine specifically engineered for Windows developers. In fact, the company has been working on the Longhorn release of Vista DB for more than three years.

Carrabino said the hits to his company's website have quadrupled since Friday when Microsoft announced the new name for Windows, and he hopes this increased traffic will introduce developers "in droves" to Vista Software's products.

A Microsoft product manager said his team came up with the name because it reflects the three main design principles of the next version of Windows, which is expected to be available in the last calendar quarter of 2006. The new OS would provide users with a higher level of confidence in the system; give them a clearer view of their information and files; and help them be more connected to other systems and other modes of communication. "When we take those all together, when I really think about my view into this world, my personal view of all this digital content, this is how we arrived at the name 'Vista,'" he said.

Even if Vista Inc. decides not to press forward with a trademark case against Microsoft, it will almost certainly benefit from the added exposure stories such as this one have given it.

85 per cent Brits say Iraq war caused 7/7

2005-07-25T05:59:00.000-07:00

Monday, 25 July , 2005, 16:10

London: Nearly 85 per cent of all Britishers believe that the 7/7 London blasts were connected with Britain's participation in the US-led Iraq war, with a quarter of them believing, that it was a direct outcome of the war.

The YouGov survey for the 'Daily Mirror' and GMTV revealed that 23 per cent of the total population believes that the Iraq war was the "main cause" of the attacks, while 62 percent said it was only a "contributory factor", the 'Daily Mail' reported.

Only 12 per cent of the Britishers were of the view that the attacks on underground trains and a bus were "not a significant cause" of Britain's involvement in the Iraq war, the survey found out.

According to the paper, the UK government had consistently rejected the argument that the bombings were the result of Britain's involvement in Iraq, insisting that extremist Islamic terror attacks began long before the invasion.
While, a majority of people, nearly 58 per cent, said that they did not believe the security forces could have done any more to prevent the attacks, 71 per cent thought the police could not have done anything to prevent the attacks.

Potter mania could negatively affect kids: psychiatrists

2005-07-24T08:11:00.000-07:00

New Delhi: As Harry Potter, a young man now, enters into a chilling saga of revenge and dark magic, psychiatrists wonder if the Potter-crazy children the world over are ready for this sudden and violent transition into a hitherto unknown world.

As Harry Potter, a young man now, enters into a chilling saga of revenge and dark magic, psychiatrists wonder if the Potter-crazy children the world over are ready for this sudden and violent transition into a hitherto unknown world.

The 'Boy Who Lived' now knows he is the 'Chosen One' and his fate is entwined with that of the evil Lord Voldemort. But psychiatrists say, author J K Rowling, who introduces Harry to some "seriously dark magic," has not kept in mind the negative imprint the violence would leave on the minds of kids.

As Potter-fever gripped the world on the eve of July 16 and the sixth book of the Harry Potter series flew off the shelves, children eagerly awaiting Harry's escapades found them entering a dark world, psychiatrists say that may be a little more than they can handle.

"Sometimes books and films that are full of thrilling images may provoke their instincts," Dr Jitender Nagpal, a psychiatrist with the VIMHANS says. 'Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince' - the latest from Rowling's stable not only takes Potter through an advanced course in magic, some of it dark, but leaves some serious tragedies in the wake that children say they never expected and saddened them.

"Children as young as five years, especially of the upcoming public schools, now imbibe images that percolate to them, affecting their progressive behaviour," Nagpal says.

"I was dying to read this book as it holds some of the answers to where book five left off - Harry posed with the gargantuan challenge of facing Lord Voldemort and either of them winning the unto-death battle," says Neha Aurora, a student.

"Intoxicatingly thrilling" - despite her glorious verdict for the book, she claims "it is downright chilling at many places." The world around Harry has suddenly become dangerous with the rejuvenation of Lord Voldemort and he has had to pick up and use new complicated spells to cope with adverseries.

"While his previous spells simply caused objects to fly, zoom or at best stupefy his enemies, in this book he actually draws blood, though unwittingly," she says.

"Ghastly details, vivid images of violence," Nagpal says, "can bring about extreme emotional instability in children." "Fanatic involvement in larger than life characters can affect their cognitive profile, as they do not differentiate the line between fantasy and reality," he says.

However, psychiatrist Sanjay Parekh defends the author saying the book is not necessarily so-called children's literature.

"The book is a progressive series and the youngsters must have grown up along with Harry. Though anything violent is not condoned, but adolescents can easily identify with the boy wizard's emotions, his passing phases," Parekh says.

As for the generous smatterings of romance in the book, he says "romance can never be a matter of concern for children. Violence is. Parents of little children thereby must also themselves read any literature they hand to their kids, to answer their curiosity," he says.

However, book critics say Harry's gradual shedding of puppy fat to grow into the young man who is discovering his hormones and gathering his wits to hunt down the 'Dark Lord' reflects the only natural human transition from childhood to adolescence and would not affect minds of very young readers.

As for death and devastation, the book only prepares little ones for the harsh world, where the "good people" are not necessarily invincible, they say.

"For one thing, children very young these days capture violence and adult emotions and somehow tend to ventilate them through diverse channels," Nagpal says adding that not all of the ventilation process is constructive.

"However there is a difference between violence in real life images, as in television and films and violence in fantasy, which is more toned down," Parekh says.

Book six shows Harry concocting more complicated potions, slashing his arch enemy Malfoy's face with one single dark spell, albeit unknowingly, he is more aggressive, inquisitive and definitely outgrowing his childish crushes.

Unidentified Illness in China

2005-07-24T08:09:00.000-07:00

Kills Nine People of 20 Infected

July 24 (Bloomberg) : An unidentified illness in China's southwestern province of Sichuan has killed nine people of the 20 infected in the last month, the World Health Organization and China's official Xinhua news agency said.

The ill were farm workers who probably contracted the disease from sick pigs or sheep they had butchered, Xinhua said, citing provincial health officials. The disease caused fever, nausea, fatigue and bruises, with those who died first becoming comatose, it said.

SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, prompted greater attention from health officials toward emerging diseases after it jumped to people from wild animals. The illness probably originated in southern China's Guangdong province.

"This is a good job of disease surveillance, and shows China has vastly improved its system since the SARS period in 2003,'' World Health Organization spokesman Bob Dietz said in a phone interview from Manila.

China's health authorities discovered an outbreak of 20 cases over a month treated at three different hospitals, Dietz said. Dietz wouldn't comment on the possible identity of the disease, which doesn't appear to have been passed between humans.

The outbreak, which began on June 24, affected 19 men and one woman between the ages of 30 and 70 who came from 15 villages in the Yanjiang and Jianying districts, Xinhua said. Of the 20 people infected, nine had died by July 21 and 10 remained hospitalized, six in critical condition, it said.

Hong Kong Alert

Radio Television Hong Kong, a government broadcaster, cited unidentified residents of the affected area as saying the number of people infected was underreported. Hong Kong's Centre for Health Protection yesterday issued a statement saying it had been alerted of the outbreak by China's Ministry of Health.

Possible causes of the outbreak include anthrax, the pig streptococcus bacteria and the Nipah virus, Hong Kong's South China Morning Post reported, citing infections diseases specialist Lo Wing-Lok. Dietz said the symptoms don't appear similar to those caused by bird flu.

China's ministries of health and agriculture have sent a joint team of experts to Sichuan to provide medical help and conduct an investigation, Xinhua said.

Brazilian govt seeks explanation for London shooting

2005-07-24T08:07:00.000-07:00

07.24.2005, 11:17 AM

SAO PAULO (AFX) : Brazil demanded an explanation for why one of its nationals was shot dead on a London underground railway train by British police probing bomb attacks in the city.

'The Brazilian government is shocked and perplexed to learn that a Brazilian citizen was killed (Friday) ... in London by police, apparently the victim of a lamentable error,' the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

'The government awaits the explanation British authorities must supply about the circumstances which led to this tragedy.'

London police, which at first said the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes, 27, was linked to its probe of Thursday's failed attacks in London's public transportation system, later said he was not connected to the case after all.

Man killed in London not linked to blasts

2005-07-23T22:15:00.000-07:00

Sunday, 24 July , 2005, 08:23

London: Police identified the man who was chased down in a subway and shot to death by plainclothes officers as a Brazilian and said on Saturday they no longer believed he was tied to the recent terror bombings.

Friday's shooting before horrified commuters prompted criticism of police for overreacting and expressions of fear that Asians and Muslims would be targeted by a "trigger-happy culture" after two well-coordinated attacks in two weeks.

Police expressed regret for the death of the man at the Stockwell subway station, identified Saturday as Jean Charles de Menezes, 27. Witnesses said he was wearing a heavy, padded coat when plainclothes police chased him into a subway car, pinned him to the ground and shot him about five times in the head and torso.

Hours after the shooting, Police Commissioner Ian Blair said the victim was "directly linked" to the investigations into attacks Thursday and July 7. In the latter, suicide bombings on trains and a bus killed 56 people, including four attackers.

Police initially said the victim attracted police attention because he left a house that was under surveillance after Thursday's bungled bombings, in which devices planted on three subway trains and a double-decker bus failed to detonate properly. Stockwell is near Oval station, one of those targeted.

"He was then followed by surveillance officers to the station. His clothing and his behavior at the station added to their suspicions," police said Friday.

But Saturday, a police official said on condition of anonymity that Menezes was "not believed to be connected in any way to any of the London bombings."

"For somebody to lose their life in such circumstances is a tragedy and one that the Metropolitan Police Service regrets," a spokesman said on condition of anonymity, which is police policy.

However, police did not explain what went wrong or say whether Menezes had done anything illegal.

In Brazil, the Foreign Ministry said it was "shocked and perplexed" by the death of Menezes, whom it did not name but described as "apparently the victim of a lamentable mistake."

The ministry said it expected British authorities to explain the circumstances of the shooting, and Foreign Minister Celso Amorim would try to arrange a meeting with British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw during a visit to London.

Brazilian media reported that Menezes was an electrician who had been legally living and working in England for the past three years. He originally came from the small city of Gonzaga, some 500 miles northeast of Sao Paulo in the state of Minas Gerais.

"He spoke English very well, and had permission to study and work there," Menezes' cousin Maria Alves told the O Globo Online Web site from her home in Sao Paulo.

Menezes' family was Roman Catholic. When asked if he had become Muslim in Britain, Agostino Ferreira Rosa, a policeman in Gonzaga said: "According to his family, he had nothing to do with Muslims or Islamism. He was Catholic."

"There was no reason to think he was a terrorist," Menezes' grandmother, Zilda Ambrosia de Figueiredo, told the Globo TV late Saturday. "He was very easygoing and very communicative with everybody. It's terrible what they have done to him."

Mayor Ken Livingstone said the killing was a "human tragedy" that was a consequence of the attacks.

"The police acted to do what they believed necessary to protect the lives of the public," he said. "This tragedy has added another victim to the toll of deaths for which the terrorists bear responsibility."

Livingstone drew a hard line before the mistake became clear, declaring that anyone believed to be a suicide bomber faced a "shoot-to-kill policy."

The shooting was an indication of the nervousness and anxiety around the city of about 8 million people. A police watchdog organization, the Independent Police Complaints Commission, said it would investigate the shooting but make sure not to hinder the bombings probe.

Shami Chakrabarti, director of the civil rights group Liberty, said such an investigation was critical for reassuring the public.

"It's incredibly important that society remains united at such a tense time, it's very important that young Asian men don't feel that there is some kind of trigger-happy culture out there," Chakrabarti said.

The Islamic Human Rights Commission said "in the current climate of anti-Muslim hysteria, IHRC fears that innocent people may lose their lives due to the new shoot to kill policy."

Iqbal Sacranie, secretary-general of the Muslim Council of Britain, said, "It's absolutely vital that the utmost care is taken to ensure that innocent people are not killed due to overzealousness."

Police have made two arrests in the Stockwell neighborhood following Thursday's attacks. The second arrest was made late Friday "in connection with our inquiries" into those attacks, Metropolitan Police said.

Police have not released many details of the arrests, including the identities of those in custody.

Thousands of officers fanned out in a huge manhunt amid hopes the publication of closed-circuit TV images of four suspected attackers would lead to their capture. Blair declined to say if the men in custody were among the four pictured.

Security alerts kept Londoners on edge, and fears of a new terrorist attack led Italian soccer powerhouse Inter Milan to cancel its English tour because of safety concerns, a decision criticized by England's Norwich City soccer team.

"For Inter Milan to refuse to travel because of the threat of terrorism is simply giving in to the terrorists," said the team's chief executive, Neil Doncaster.

Hundreds of people also gathered Saturday to mourn Anthony Fatayi-Williams, a 26-year-old oil executive among those killed July 7.

"The cathedral is full. I can see Nigerians, people from different backgrounds, white and black, I can see people of all ages gathered here representing the different races of humankind," said his uncle, Tom Ikimi, a former Nigerian foreign affairs minister.

Indonesia confirms first human deaths from bird flu

2005-07-21T21:04:00.000-07:00

Thursday, 21 July , 2005, 02:10

Jakarta: Indonesia confirmed its first human deaths from bird flu, saying tests had shown that a man and his two daughters who died this month were suffering from the disease.

"It's confirmed. They died of the conventional bird flu virus which does not transmit from humans to humans," Health Minister Siti Fadillah Supari told AFP.

She said the tests in Hong Kong were based on specimens from the father and one of the daughters, but it could be concluded that all three had died of the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu.

"We don't distinguish between the three," she said Wednesday.

She said it was not known when and where the 38-year-old man, Iwan Siswara Rafei, and his two young daughters -- aged one and nine -- had been infected.
But authorities believed the three had contracted the disease at about the same time.

The family's house in Tangerang district, just southwest of Jakarta, is far from areas where there are bird flu outbreaks, she said.

Rafei and his daughters died within days of each other in hospital in the first half of July after suffering from severe pneumonia.

About 300 people who had contact with Rafei have been under observation -- including his wife, another daughter and the family's housemaid -- and they have shown no signs of sickness, Supari said.

Georg Petersen, a representative of the World Health Organisation in Jakarta, said Indonesia's bird flu deaths were not a "big surprise" because the country has had outbreaks of the disease since 2003.

"They may have had contact with chicken droppings," Petersen said.
He said the government should investigate how the three became infected and conduct surveillance to prevent further human infections.

Agriculture Ministry Anton Apriyanto has ordered a cull of poultry and pigs within a radius of three kilometers of any bird flu outbreak.

The ministry has confirmed the bird flu virus in pigs in Banten province, just west of Jakarta.

The H5N1 strain of bird flu has so far been mainly transmitted between animals but it has also killed more than 50 people in Southeast Asia since 2003.

Experts fear it could mutate into a highly infectious strain that can be easily transmitted from animals to humans or from humans to humans, unleashing a pandemic that could kill tens of millions of people.

Supari said there was no reported case of human-to-human infection so far and called on people to remain calm.

Last month the health ministry reported the country's first human case of bird flu in a farm worker but the man is healthy and shows no symptoms.

The agriculture ministry said at least 9.5 million fowl had died since bird flu was first officially confirmed in Indonesia early last year.

The government launched a massive vaccination drive following the outbreak but it has been criticized for carrying out only limited culling.

Bird flu has now killed 58 people -- 39 Vietnamese, 12 Thais, four Cambodians and three Indonesians -- since late 2003.

Four blasts rocked London: Police chief

2005-07-21T21:01:00.000-07:00

Thursday, 21 July , 2005, 19:34

London: Four explosions -- three on tube stations and one on a bus -- rocked London on Thursday bringing back grim memories of the July 7 terror attack that left 56 persons dead.

London police chief Ian Blair said that the explosions had taken place at Oval, Shepherds Bush and Warren Street and a bus on Hackney Road causing a small number of casualties.

Describing the incidents as "serious", Blair appealed to Londoners to stay where they are.

Emergency services were pressed into action and London was put on an alert following the explosions.

Prime Minister Tony Blair held an emergency meeting of the Cobra group, set up after the July 7 serial bombings.

Blair appeals for calm after blasts

Prime Minister Tony Blair said he hoped that London would return to "normal again as soon as possible" after a series of explosions on the Underground and a bus.

"We can't minimise incidents such as this," Blair said. "They're done to scare people, to frighten them and make them worried."

Australian Prime Minister John Howard told Blair at a joint press conference that Australia would remain a "steadfast partner" with Britain through the fight against terrorism.

"Terrorism is an enemy to all free people," he said. "Terrorism is not just about individual circumstances and individual events."

Star Trek's Scotty dead, ashes to be sent into space

2005-07-20T23:10:00.000-07:00

Thursday, 21 July , 2005, 08:06

Los Angeles: Actor James Doohan, who transported the crew of the "Star Trek" television series through space on the command "Beam me up, Scotty," died on Wednesday at the age of 85, his agent said.

While the closest Doohan came to orbit was playing engineer Montgomery Scott on the earthbound set of the Starship Enterprise, his wife Wendy plans to send the actor's ashes into space, according to his agent.

The couple had long ago agreed his ashes would be launched into the final frontier, space, his agent told AFP. They are to use Space Services Inc., a Texas-based company that rocketed the remains of "Star Trek" creator Gene Roddenberry and 1960s drug guru Timothy Leary into the firmament.

The Canadian-born actor died in his sleep at his home in the Pacific state of Washington after a long battle with Alzheimer's disease and after coming down with pneumonia, his agent and friend of 30 years Steve Stevens said. His wife of 28 years was at his side.

"He loved being Scotty," Stevens said, referring to Doohan's role as the curmudgeonly engineer in the "Star Trek" television series that debuted in 1966 and catapulted him to worldwide fame.

"He loved the whole 'Star Trek' thing. I don't think people knew what a terrific actor he was." Doohan immortalized the fantasy starship's engineer, a pragmatically blunt bear of a man who repeatedly managed miraculous repairs while crew members dealt with the adversities and adventures of "space, the final frontier."

Salary rise in India the highest in Asia

2005-07-20T23:08:00.000-07:00

Thursday, 21 July , 2005, 08:03
Chennai: India had the maximum average salary increase of around 10 per cent in Asia-Pacific in 2005, according to a study done by Watson Wyatt Asia Pacific, which provides services in the areas of human capital.

The Indian business process industry had the maximum average salary increase of around 15 per cent, followed by high-tech, engineering and logistics and shipping, Greg Sargeaunt, Managing Consultant, Data Management Centre, Hong Kong, Watson Wyatt, said.

Drawing a parallel between India and China, two of the fastest growing markets in Asia-Pacific, Sargeaunt said compensation levels in China were lower than India. The Chinese had an average increase of 6-8 per cent, he said at Summit HR 2005, a two-day conference organised by the National Association of Software and Service Companies. Soon the operational cost in Beijing and Shanghai in China will be as much as in Hong Kong. Every week around 1,000 new companies come up in Shanghai and an equal number of them close down in a week. This is because of labour movement, he said.

According to Sargeaunt, in India, the compensation level has been cited as the number one reason for employees leaving their jobs. Globally, companies are putting a strong emphasis on profitability and demand on employees to perform at higher levels would continue to grow, he said.

Prof Bala V. Balachandran, J.L. Kellogg Distinguished Professor of Accounting Information and Management, Kellogg Graduate School of Management, advised companies to adopt his 4-Ms - Measure (both revenue and cost correctly), Monitor (movement of both revenue and cost), Manage (for action plans, yield management, thru-put management and activity-based management) and Maximise profitability using the three. In his keynote address at the summit, Prof Balachandran said companies should focus on product innovation and excellence, operational excellence and customer intimacy to achieve and sustain leadership position.

Mathematics proves Christ was resurrected by God

2005-07-19T21:00:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, 19 July , 2005, 14:57

Melbourne: An Oxford University professor has on the basis of logic and mathematics claimed that Jesus Christ was resurrected by God.

Professor Richard Swinburne has said that it was 97 percent certain that God had raised Christ from the dead.

Swinburne, while giving a public lecture at the Australian Catholic University said that probability calculus showed a probability of 97 percent that Christ was resurrected.

He said that the conclusion was arrived at after a series of complex calculations, which began with the probability of God's existence as one in two, that is either God existed or did not, adding that it was also one in two that God became incarnate.

Arguing that the evidence for God's existence was an argument for the resurrection, and any evidence against God's existence was an argument against the resurrection, he said that the chance of Christ's resurrection not being reported by the gospels had the probability of one in 10.

These factors, all coming together, if the resurrection was not true, were one in 1000, he said.

"New Testament scholars say the only evidences are witnesses in the four gospels: that's only five per cent of the evidence. We can't judge the question of the resurrection unless we ask first whether there's reason to suppose there is a God. Secondly, if we have reason to suppose he would become incarnate, and thirdly, if he did, whether he would live the sort of life Jesus did," The Age quoted Professor Swinburne, a leading philosopher of religion as saying.

"Does he have reason to become incarnate? Yes, to make atonement, identify with our suffering and to teach us things. Even Jesus' life is not enough proof, he said. God's signature was needed, which the resurrection was, showing his approval of Jesus' teaching," he added.

Dr Swinburne has even provided the detailed calculations in his book 'The Resurrection of God Incarnate".

Not everyone, however, are willing to buy the theory.

Colin Sutherland, a professor of mathematics at the University of New South Wales and an agnostic, said that he suspected the resurrection was something mathematics could not prove.

"In general, mathematics is able to tell you that if one thing is true, that something else is true. But you have to make your assumptions very clear. The conclusions you reach in this kind of discussion often simply reflect the assumptions that you put in at the beginning," said Professor Sutherland.

Chocolate might be good for your blood pressure!

2005-07-19T20:56:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, 20 July , 2005, 02:00

Washington: At last, there may be a good reason to indulge in a daily chocolate bar binge -- it might be good for your blood pressure.

New research published by the American Heart Association on Tuesday said a daily bar-sized helping of dark chocolate could lower blood pressure and improve insulin resistance.

"Previous studies suggest flavonoid-rich foods, including fruits, vegetables, tea, red wine and chocolate, might offer cardiovascular benefits," said the study's author Dr. Jeffrey Blumberg.

"But this is one of the first clinical trials to look specifically at dark chocolate's effect on lowering blood pressure among people with hypertension," the report in 'Hypertension: Journal of the American Heart Association' said.

Flavonoids are natural antioxidants found in many foods and are found in plants.
Blumberg cautioned, however, the study did not just amount to a green light to chow down on chocolate -- but simply showed that certain kinds of dark chocolate could benefit vascular function and glucose sensitivity.

Research was conducted on 10 men and 10 women all of whom had hypertension, under controlled blood pressure conditions, at the University of L'Aquila in Italy.

"It is important to note that the dark chocolate we used had a high level of flavonoids," Blumberg said.

"Most Americans eat milk chocolate, which has a low amount of these compounds."

Europe pays silent homage to victims

2005-07-14T20:42:00.000-07:00

LONDON: In an unprecedented show of solidarity with Britain, millions of people across Europe observed a two-minute silence on Thursday in memory of the victims of last week's London train bombings as Prince Charles urged "every true Muslim'' to help root out extremists from their midst and police said they were looking for several more suspects, besides the four men of Pakistani origin already identified.

FACE OF TERROR: Hasib Hussain, suspected suicide bomber who blew up a double-decker bus in London on July 7 is seen in this image released by police on Thursday.

In London, there were poignant scenes at the sites of the bombings as hundreds of people gathered outside King's Cross, Liverpool and Edgware tube stations and at Tavistock Square where a bomb had exploded on a double-decker bus in last Thursday's orgy of violence.

Before joining the silence, the driver of the ill-fated bus read out a "message to the terrorists — you will not defeat us and you will not break us.''

Families and friends of the victims wept and prayed quietly reflecting on how their world had changed in the past week. They placed wreaths and messages at the make-shift memorials which have sprung up on bombing sites. London Mayor Ken Livingstone joined faith leaders at Trafalgar Square still remembered for scenes of jubilation after London won the bid to host 2012 Olympics, just hours before the terrorist attacks.

"This city has survived the past week because we didn't turn on each other, which is what the bombers wanted. We supported each other," Mr Livingstone said.

At the stroke of 12 noon — exactly seven days after the attacks — a hushed silence fell over Britain and much of mainland Europe as people instinctively stopped work in a collective tribute to the victims. They stood with their heads bowed, while buses, taxis and private vehicles came to a halt and businesses suspended transactions for two minutes. Television channels ran visuals of the event without the audio.

The Queen observed the ceremony at Buckingham Palace and Prime Minister Tony Blair led the tributes at Downing Street.

In Muslim areas, women wearing hijabs displayed placards condemning terrorists and declaring: "Not in our name''. Muslims came out in large numbers to express their "shock'' and "revulsion'' at the attacks.

Meanwhile, the media named the fourth suspect as Ejaz Faiz, believed to be in his 30s.

Planet has three suns

2005-07-14T20:41:00.000-07:00

LONDON: An astronomer has identified a planet with three suns far away in the galaxy the first of a class dubbed ``Tatooine planets'' after the home of Luke Skywalker, the young hero of the Star Wars films. Maciej Konacki, of the California Institute of Technology, describes in the magazine Nature how he trained a 10-metre telescope on three stars 149 light years from Earth, and found they shared a planet slightly larger than Jupiter. The stars are about as close to each other as Saturn is to the sun. ``The environment in which this planet exists is quite spectacular,'' Dr. Konacki said.

``With three suns, the sky view must be out of this world, literally and figuratively.'' In this region of the galaxy binary stars and even multiple star systems — heavenly bodies caught in a complex gravitational waltz — are more frequent than single stars. But no one expected that a planet could either form or survive for long in a group of triple suns. No life could survive there, but the outlook from the planet would be pretty bright.

Salman Khan `threatened' Aishwarya

2005-07-14T20:39:00.000-07:00

MUMBAI: Salman Khan is back in the news, and again for the wrong reasons. Even as he prepares to stand trial in a hit-and-run case here, a media report on Wednesday suggested his involvement in murkier issues.

The report is excerptedfromthe transcript of a taped conversation, purported to have taken place between Khan and fellow Bollywood star Aishwarya Rai, in which he threatens her with dire consequences if she does not perform for the Dubai-based gangster Abu Salem.

In the conversation, allegedly taped in August 2001, a male voice, said to be Khan's, boasts of his associations with the underworld, talks of the pressure under which he acted in the film `Chori Chori Chupke Chupke,' and even mentions his alleged foreknowledge of the 1993 Mumbai blasts.

A female voice, said to be Aishwarya Rai's, warns him that his telephone is being tapped and accuses him of being drunk.

The conversation, peppered with swear words, has caused a stir among the media, the police and the people of Mumbai.

Apart from the case of hit-and-run, in which one person was killed and four were injured, Khan is being tried for a 1998 case of poaching. He allegedly killed a blackbuck with unlicensed arms. Complaints of misbehaviour were made against him in the recent past, after he was said to have threatened Aishwarya Rai and actor Vivek Oberoi. Khan has also been summoned as a witness in the high-profile cases of T-Series owner Gulshan Kumar murder andfilm financier Bharat Shah's involvement with the underworld.

There are mixed reactions from legal experts and police officials to the tape case. Ujjwal Nikam, special public prosecutor in many high-profile cases, says, "It will have to be verified if the tapes are genuine. Voice samples of both the parties will have to be taken and a spectrography test has to be conducted. However, such tapes are weak evidence, as there is a possibility of mimicry. Legally speaking, it is weak evidence."

Deputy Commissioner Dhananjay Kamlakar told the media that the police would verify the authenticity of the four-year-old tape and that they were checking their records.

A senior police official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said: "If the tapes were in the possession of the police, and not produced or acted upon, then strict action can be taken. But one must see whether the tapes were with the police, or it is an external recording and so on. Nothing can be said at the moment."

Under Section 39 of the Criminal Procedure Code, it is mandatory for anyone who has knowledge of such taped conversation to inform the nearest police station immediately. So, experts say, it must be asked why this information has been kept under wraps for four years.

When the issue was raised in the Maharashtra legislature, Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh said there would be an inquiry. Advocate Dipesh Mehta, representing Khan, has termed this conversation fabricated. There has been no statement from Khan or Aishwarya Rai. Nor has she made any formal complaint in the last four years.

Nightmare for passengers in Pak rail crash

2005-07-14T01:33:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, 13 July , 2005, 20:04

Pakistan: The first thing many passengers heard was a huge bang that shocked them out of their sleep. And what they saw was right out of a nightmare.

"We saw several coaches skidded off the track and there were bodies lying scattered across the railway yard," said Mohammad Ahmed at the scene of Pakistan's rail disaster on Wednesday, which left up to 150 people dead.

"As the people in our train were screaming and shouting, there was another deafening explosion," Ahmed said. "The situation was so tragic that one cannot explain."

Day dawned on a panorama of twisted green, red and white striped train carriages lying on top of each other at impossible angles, or crushed together like rusted tin cans.

What had happened was a grisly pile-up unprecedented even on Pakistan's aging rail network.

At 4:00 am (2300 GMT) on Wednesday, Ahmed was one of hundreds of people crammed into the rickety Quetta Express as it underwent repairs at tiny Sarhad station, some seven kilometres from the remote town of Ghotki.

An express travelling from Lahore to Karachi at 120 kilometers an hour rear-ended the Quetta train, derailing a number of carriages onto another track, where a third locomotive ploughed into the wreckage.

Manzoor Hussain said he stepped off the stationary train for some air. "I saw the train coming up at speed from the other side and thought I was going to die," he said. "After the crash something hit my knee and i passed out. When i came round I saw bodies everywhere, and heard cries."

"I was sleeping and when I woke up I found my coach on the other side of the tracks. Everthing was a mess and I saw a man with his head blown off," said another survivor, Asif Ali.

Hours after the smash-up, the backs of two trains remained on the tracks -- and in between lay a tangle of ripped metal, train wheels and shattered glass, dotted with pieces of luggage and body parts.

Villagers were the first at the scene, which lies next to lush rice fields, bringing food, tea, water and cold drinks for the victims, followed by soldiers and rescue workers who scrambled over the carnage, looking for survivors.

"Most of the bodies were badly mutilated," said rescue worker Haider Bakhsh. "They were reduced into pieces of flesh. Many had no limbs."

Passengers sought frantically for their loved ones, and the sounds of the rescue effort were punctuated by wailing and cries.

"People are crying, fathers are looking for children, husbands for their wives and brothers for their sisters," one witness said.

Ten hours later, women, many of them holding babies, could still be seen weeping by the side of the wreck.

Some of the bodies recovered from the carriages were left at the side of the tracks hidden under white sheets, which passengers would occasionally lift to see if they could identify a family member or friend.

Above them, cranes had been moved into place and were removing five of the Karachi Express carriages.

The scene was also chaotic at local hospitals, where some of the injured had to be treated on the lawns outside.

Ghotki hospital said it had so far received 113 bodies and the number of injured there was 78. At least 24 were listed in serious condition. The hospital would update its list as the casualties continued to pour in.

Kalam reveals his recipe for success

2005-07-14T01:28:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, 13 July , 2005, 22:17

Kolkata: "Sweat, sweat, sweat," President APJ Abdul Kalam said on Wednesday, spelling out his recipe for success.

The president was replying to a query from a student of the Scottish Church Collegiate school here, who wanted to know the secret of his success.

Taking part in his trademark interactive session with students of the school at the concluding function of its 175th anniversary celebrations, Kalam touched on a wide range of subjects, including astronomy, India's achievements in science, the need for moral education as also the scourge of corruption.

"This nation is haunted by corruption, of power and money. Now, the time has come when only the youth can change the system," the president said, and dictated an oath to the students that exhorted them to strive to create a corruption-free India.

"West Bengal has played a pioneering role in our freedom movement and also in science. Time has come for Bengal to be the pioneer in another big movement (to free the country from corruption)," the 73-year-old space scientist said.

Narrating anecdotes about his teachers, Kalam urged school authorities to inculcate strong moral values in students.

The president also put questions to students and patiently listened to their answers.

UK police identify London bombings master planner

2005-07-13T20:34:00.000-07:00

07.13.2005, 10:55 PM
LONDON (AFX) - British police have identified the man thought to be the mastermind of last week's bombings in London in which at least 52 people died, a report said.

The British-born man in his 30s, of Pakistani origin, arrived at a British port last month and left the country again the day before Thursday's attacks, The Times newspaper reported.

The suspected suicide bombers were also Britons of Pakistani origin.

According to The Times, security sources say they believe the mastermind was involved with previous terror operations and had links with followers of Osama bin Laden's Al-Qaeda extremist group in the US.

It was believed he had visited the bombers in their home city of Leeds, and also identified targets on the London underground rail subway system, where three of the four bombs exploded, the paper said.

Security sources also said he was likely to have trained the recruits in how to trigger their rucksack-carried bombs, three of which went off almost simultaneously at the peak of Thursday morning's rush hour.

Police have reportedly switched their investigation towards seeking the mastermind of the attacks since learning that the four bombers killed themselves in the attacks.

Home Secretary Charles Clarke said earlier that the aim was now 'to attack the people who are driving, organizing and manipulating' bombers.

Video game has hidden sex scenes, parents warned

2005-07-10T22:22:00.000-07:00

11 July 2005

A media watchdog group denounced the maker of the hugely popular video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas at the weekend after learning that graphic sex scenes can appear in the game with the help of a freely available internet download.

The game's plot was already objectionable to many: its main character seeks bloody vengeance on gang-filled streets, picking up women along the way. After downloading a modification to the game – one of many "mods" available on websites – a new world opens up in which the girlfriends engage in explicit sex acts.

The new content fills in what publisher Rockstar Games left to the imagination in the rated M (Mature) version. Sexual content of this kind generally earns video games an AO (Adults Only) rating, which few retailers will sell.

The Entertainment Software Ratings Board has started investigating.

The mod's author, Patrick Wildenborg of the Netherlands, said his code merely unlocked content that was already in the code of each off-the-shelf game.

A "nationwide parental alert" was issued by the National Institute on the Media and the Family which monitors the entertainment industry.

Porn MMS: Mallika Sherawat seeks Mumbai Police help

2005-07-10T22:14:00.000-07:00

Mumbai, July 10: A lawyer representing Bollywood actress Mallika Sherawat has asked police to probe an MMS, featuring a ‘look-alike’ of the actress allegedly engaged in a sexual act.

In a letter written to Mumbai Police Commissioner A..Nroy, lawyer Vibhav Krishna said the six-minute long MMS was reportedly being circulated widely in the city and elsewhere.

It was the ‘handiwork of mischief mongers’, Krishna said adding “I have not seen the clip but have heard about it”.

Krishna said he had also written to the Social Security Branch at the Cyber Crime cell of Mumbai police, saying the “offence should be probed under Section 67 of the Information Technology Act, which provides for a punishment for a first-time offender of five years’ imprisonment and a Rs 1 lakh fine”.

No J&K link in Ayodhya hit yet: Patil

2005-07-10T22:11:00.000-07:00

Srinagar, July 11: Home Minister Shivraj Patil said today that investigations in the Ayodhya attack case are progressing and security agencies have found ‘‘some clues’’ about the perpetrators.

‘‘At this point, we are not going to blame anybody, but those involved in the attack will never be spared,’’ Patil told reporters after visiting the Amarnath shrine.

Asked whether Kashmiri militants are involved in the attack, Patil said it would be premature to deduce Kashmiri links. ‘‘The case is being probed and clues will be disclosed at an appropriate time,’’ he said.

Regarding dialogue with the Hurriyat leaders, Patil said: ‘‘We have already declared that the government is willing to talk to any leader at an appropriate time’’.

Deadly Dennis Hurricane!

2005-07-10T01:59:00.000-07:00

After pounding Cuba, deadly Hurricane Dennis strengthened again on Saturday as it moved over the Gulf of Mexico. The hurricane had killed 10 people and left around 1.5-million homeless in Cuba, after causing five deaths in Haiti.

In pic: A computer-generated satellite image released by the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration shows Hurricane Dennis over the US coast of the Gulf of Mexico.

Japan may be next terror target

2005-07-09T22:23:00.000-07:00

Sunday, 10 July , 2005, 08:48

Tokyo: The bomb attacks in London have raised fears that Japan, like Britain a key US ally, may be the next target of terror attacks as it deploys troops in Iraq and hosts the biggest US military base in Asia.

Tokyo has asked railway, bus and airline operators to boost their vigilance since Thursday's bombings, although experts say militants would have a tougher time infiltrating largely homogeneous Japan than multicultural London.

"In Japan, there would be huge casualties if a Shinkansen bullet train, subway line or airport were targeted by terrorists in urban areas," Japan's top-selling daily Yomiuri Shimbun said in an editorial on Saturday.

"The government needs to take more effective preventive measures as soon as possible by boosting international sharing of information and reinforcing surveillance systems," the daily said.

In the wake of the bombings on London's transport system that killed at least 50 people and injured some 700, the Tokyo Metro, which is used by 5.69 million passengers a day, said it would increase patrols and remove most remaining dustbins, which could be used as cover for
planted bombs.

Tokyo has already experienced an attack on its subway system. In March 1995, 12 people were killed and thousands injured in a sarin gas attack by the Aum Supreme Truth doomsday cult.

Haruo Fujii, a military analyst who has published books on US intelligence and Japan's military, said large-scale terror attacks like those in London could well happen in Tokyo.

"We must not underestimate terrorists. If they decide to do it, they will do it no matter how long preparation takes," Fujii said.

"For the people of Islam, Japan's dispatch of its military to Iraq was nothing but a grave insult and a source of anger," he said.

Like British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Japanese Premier Junichiro Koizumi is a steadfast ally of US President George W. Bush and supported the US-led Iraq war to overthrow dictator Saddam Hussein in 2003.

Under the Koizumi government, Japan, for the first time since World War II, sent its armed forces to a foreign country where there was active fighting. Some 600 Japanese troops are based in Samawa, southern Iraq, to provide humanitarian assistance and are forbidden by the pacifist 1947 constitution from using their weapons except in the strictest definition of self-defense.

Apart from the Iraq factor, Yoshitaka Murata, who heads the National Public Safety Commission, said Japan could become a terror target due to its hosting of 40,500 US troops, the biggest contingent in Asia.

"There is information that Al-Qaeda is targeting Japan as we host US military facilities," Murata said on Friday.

Al-Qaeda, which was responsible for the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States, has previously warned it would devastate Tokyo in retaliation for Japan's deployment in Iraq and close links to Washington.

But Shiro Kawamoto, an expert on international terrorism at the Council for Public Policy, said the nature of Japanese society reduced the possibility of massive coordinated attacks like those in London.

"To launch large-scale terror attacks, terrorists need infrastructure such as hideouts and training centers, as well as people who can speak Japanese. At this moment, we have yet to confirm the existence of such infrastructure," Kawamoto said.

"Also in Japan, there is no big Muslim community," he said, putting the number of foreign-born Muslims in the country at 90,000. Hisao Iwamoto, a military analyst who taught at the National Institute of Defense Studies, said Japan's tight immigration checks were also keeping suspected terrorists at bay.

"Compared with European immigration rules, our entrance screening is really strict. So the chances that we may have London-style terror attacks are relatively low," Iwamoto said.

Justice Minister Chieko Nono said Friday the ministry was planning to tighten immigration measures after the London bombings.

India not too happy with G-8 outcome: PM

2005-07-09T22:22:00.000-07:00

By Ashok Dixit in London
Saturday, 09 July , 2005, 15:33

Rounding up his three-day visit to the United Kingdom, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said on Friday evening that he was not completely satisfied with the results of the two-day Group of Eight (G-8) deliberations at Gleneagles, Scotland.

He said that the eight developed countries-US, Britain, France, Russia, Canada,Italy, Japan and Germany -- had not done enough to address the serious issues of climate change and sustainaible development through their statement released on Saturday.

Addressing a news conference at India House after unveiling the plaque to commemorate the 75th Founding Day of the building, Dr. Singh said that though India had had a limited role to play in the G-8, he had used the opportunity of his meetings with various G-8 leaders,
including President Bush, Prime Minister Blair, President Hu Jintao and President Chirac among others, to re- emphasise New Delhi's concerns over developed countries not wanting to take up the very realistic challenge of providing a cleaner global environment and promoting sustainable development of poorer nations.

"I must agree with you that the communique (of the G-8) has failed to come to grip on the issue of climate change. There are visible differences between the perceptions of the developed and the lesser developed nations on the issue of climate change," Dr. Singh said.

He, however, highlighted the point that in some sense, countries like the United States had acknowledged and made clear that what limits economic growth also affects the environment. This, he said, was one of the redeeming features of the G-8 deliberations, otherwise there
was nothing much to write home about.

Dr. Singh also touched upon other issues during his interaction with the media. These included the issue of terrorism, the way forward on Kashmir, results of talks with various G-5 and G-8 leaders, whether the issue of India's inclusion as a permanent member of the UNSC was
raised, praise for Indian security forces and intelligence outfits in dealing with the Ayodhya blast and its aftermath and his government's strategy for dealing with the malaise of corruption.

Fernando Alonso seizes pole : British GP

2005-07-09T22:20:00.000-07:00

Saturday, 09 July , 2005, 20:28

England: Formula One title favourite Fernando Alonso seized pole position for Sunday's British Grand Prix after a blown engine scuppered Kimi Raikkonen's chances. The championship leader's fourth pole for Renault in 11 races came as a surprise after he had talked down his team's chances in a race that appeared to favour Raikkonen's McLaren above all others.

His lap also dashed Jenson Button's hopes of starting his home race from the top slot.

The BAR driver had been in line for pole until the Spaniard, winner five times this year including last weekend's French Grand Prix, lapped the former wartime airfield circuit in one minute 19.905 seconds.

Button will still start alongside the 23-year-old after Raikkonen, who was second fastest and just 0.027 slower than Alonso, dropped 10 places as a penalty for having his car's engine changed.

It was the Finn's second engine failure in two races and he will start 12th. "It's obviously a great result for us," said Alonso, who leads Raikkonen by 24 points with nine races remaining. "I'm really, really confident.

"I think we are all surprised about this pole position. Well, not surprised for the pole but about how good the car was this morning," he added.

"I think yesterday... we were not really quick, I was seventh. And last night I think the team did a fantastic job on the setup and this morning the car felt much, much better.

"We should have a pretty strong race... maybe we can have the chance to win again."

MONTOYA THREAT

McLaren's Juan Pablo Montoya could prove a bigger threat than Raikkonen, the Colombian starting on the clean side of the track in third place with Italian Jarno Trulli for Toyota alongside.

Ferrari's seven times world champion Michael Schumacher, comfortable winner at Silverstone last year, qualified a disappointing ninth.

Raikkonen finished second in France after starting 13th and Silverstone is a circuit that plays to the McLaren's strengths. He refused to give up hope despite his evident frustration.

"It's not the ideal situation again," the Finn said in his deadpan voice. "There's nothing I can do, I just have to drive as quickly as I can and we'll see what happens.

"It's not the way to try to win the championship if you take every time 10 places penalty.

"It's not the first time it happens, it's nothing too new. But hopefully it's the last time."

Button, who scored BAR's first points of the season in France with fourth place, has been talking down his prospects for more than a week but confessed that he would not be disappointed not to finish on the podium.

"It's a great feeling. We didn't quite expect it," he said.

"I think we can do some pretty good things from there... there's always a chance of a podium. If we make a mistake we won't have it but there's a possibility."

Brazilian Rubens Barrichello, in a Ferrari, and Renault's Italian Giancarlo Fisichella will fill the third row with Japan's Takuma Sato in a BAR and Germany's Ralf Schumacher for Toyota behind them.

Williams, who took their first grand prix win at Silverstone in 1979, remained in the doldrums with Australian Mark Webber in 11th place and Germany's Nick Heidfeld 14th.

Red Bull's David Coulthard, the other Briton in the race, starts a distant 13th.

Survivors recall the horror of Srebrenica

2005-07-09T22:19:00.001-07:00

Sunday, 10 July , 2005, 08:18

Sarajevo: Tens of thousands of people are expected to gather near the Bosnian town of Srebrenica on Monday to mark the 10th anniversary of Europe's worst massacre since World War II, and also to bury the remains of some 600 victims.

The commemoration of the killing of an estimated 8,000 Muslim men and boys by Bosnian Serb forces is expected to be tense, particularly since police last week found large quantities of explosives near the memorial cemetery in Potocari, just outside the town.

International dignitaries including Foreign Ministers Philippe Douste-Blazy of France, Jack Straw of Britain and Bernard Bot of The Netherlands are expected to join massacre survivors and families of victims at the ceremony.

Organisers are expecting some 50,000 people to attend.

The United States has said that a "senior delegation" will attend, but no further details were immediately available. The President of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former
Yugoslavia (ICTY), American judge Theodor Meron and the EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn are also expected in Potocari.

Some 8,000 Muslim men and boys were killed in Srebrenica when Bosnian Serb forces and irregular Serbian police units backed by Belgrade overran the town, which was in theory under UN protection and guarded by Dutch troops, in July 1995.

Last week police discovered about 35 kilograms (77 pounds) of explosives near the memorial cemetery in Potocari.

The explosives, located following a tip off by the European Union peacekeepers, were rigged to blow up.

Three persons were briefly detained in connection with the discovery, but an investigation has not yielded any results so far.

Over 1,500 police are expected to secure the area around the memorial cemetery where 610 victims, aged between 14 and 75, are to be buried during the ceremony.

The remains of victims were found in mass graves, more than 60 of which have been uncovered in the area since the end of Bosnia's 1992-95 war. So far 1,300 bodies, identified by DNA analysis, have been buried at the cemetery but there are still more than 4,500 body bags filled with human bones awaiting identification.

Under strong international pressure Bosnian Serb authorities admitted last year to the horrific scale of the Srebrenica massacre. However, many ordinary Serbs continue to question whether the murders ever took place and regard the alleged masterminds, their wartime political
leader Radovan Karadzic and military commander Ratko Mladic, as heroes.

The carnage has been recognized by the UN war crimes tribunal as an act of genocide.

The genocide at Srebrenica is the basis of the key charges laid by the UN war crimes tribunal against the two fugitives, and former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic, who has been on trial at The Hague court for three years.

A decision by Dragan Cavic, president of the Serb-run part of Bosnia, to attend the ceremony on Monday had been met by strong public disapproval. The anniversary ceremony will also be broadcast live in Serbia where public opinion on the massacre still remains divided.

Last month Serbia was shocked by a gruesome video showing members of Serbian paramilitary units executing Muslim civilians near Srebrenica, which prompted the police to arrest several suspects.

For the first time a top Serbian delegation will attend the Srebrenica commemoration, with the delegation being led by President Boris Tadic. He has said he is going to "bow to the innocent victims."

Post-war Bosnia consists of two highly autonomous entities: the Serbs' Republika Srpska and the Muslim-Croat Federation. Srebrenica, in the east of the country, is in Republika Srpska.

Al-Qaeda statement claims London bombings

2005-07-09T22:19:00.000-07:00

Saturday, 09 July , 2005, 13:19

Dubai: Al-Qaeda claimed responsibility for this week's deadly bombings in London on Saturday in an Internet statement posted in Europe Division of the network's Abu Haf's al-Masri brigades.

"A group of mujahedeen from a division of the Abu Haf's al-Masri Brigades piled blow after blow on the infidel capital, the British capital, leaving dead and injured," said the statement, the
authenticity of which could not be verified.

This was the second claim posted on an Islamist website in the name of the group purporting to be an Al Qaeda affiliate.

I gave my 200 per cent at Wimbledon: Sania

2005-07-09T22:18:00.000-07:00

Sunday, 10 July , 2005, 10:08

Bangalore : Tennis star Sania Mirza on Saturday maintained that she had played her best and put in 200 per cent at Wimbledon, where she lost in the second round after putting up a spirited fight.

"I gave what I had and I played my best. Winning and losing is all part of the game. I gave it my 200 per cent," Sania, who was in Bangalore to participate in the celebrity golf organised by HISA, told PTI.

Sania said ranking was not a factor when one played at the Grand Slam level.

"It does not really matter whether you are playing against the fifth seeded or are 75th seeded, what matters is putting in all your best and playing the game. Rankings keep changing, sometimes you are up, sometimes down," she said.

To a query on whether it was the mounting pressure and expectation that had seen her losing out at Wimbledon, the world No. 70 said, "The pressure is always there. In sports you always face the pressure but you learn to live with it. As far expectations go, when I play a match
I do not think about it, I play for myself and my country." Dismissing criticism that she had shifted her focus from sports to modelling, she said, "I know what I am doing. Just because I happen to do a couple of advertisements does not mean I have shifted my focus from the game. Any sane person would know that it would be foolish to give up the sport for advertising."

Blasts Jolt London: Terror attacks stun London

2005-07-07T21:41:00.000-07:00

37 killed, over 300 injured as bombs go off on bus and at underground stations; Blair vows to defeat terrorism

LONDON: Britain was in a state of shock on Thursday after a series of blasts ripped through London's underground train network, killing at least 37 persons and causing mayhem in a city which only hours ago witnessed scenes of jubilation after winning the bid to host the 2012 Olympics.

Up to 300 persons were feared injured, some seriously, and many were being treated for trauma after they were rescued by emergency services personnel. Some were still trapped in trains and underground stations several hours after the blasts.

Seven explosions
In what was described as the "stuff of nightmare," at least seven explosions took place in less than an hour, triggering panic as thousands of shocked commuters — many bleeding, their faces covered with soot — streamed out of tube stations.

Till late in the evening, no group claimed responsibility for what was suspected to be a well-coordinated terrorist operation reminiscent of the Madrid train blasts last year.

Metropolitan Chief Ian Blair cautioned against "media speculation" but the BBC quoted unnamed Arab experts as saying the incidents seemed to fit the "pattern" associated with the Al-Qaeda. There had been no specific warning of an impending attack but he recalled previous police warnings about a terrorist threat to London.
"We have always said that London has been and is a terrorist target," Sir Ian said.

Al-Qaeda offshoot to blame?
There were reports that the web site of an extremist group, believed to be a European offshoot of the Al-Qaeda, had posted a statement claiming responsibility, and the "phraseology" appeared similar to that normally used by the outfit.

The first blast was reported shortly before 9 a.m. at the Aldgate station in East London. Within minutes, another explosion took place at the Liverpool Street station in the heart of London's business centre followed by blasts at the Edgware, King's Cross, Old Street and Russell Square stations.

At Tavistock Square, a device exploded on a double-decker tourist bus, ripping off its roof and resulting in several casualties. An eyewitness said the bus was "ripped open like a can of sardines and bodies were everywhere."

By mid-morning, the entire public transport system was shut down and the police advised people to "stay where they are" and remain calm. London remained without trains and buses throughout the day, leaving people stranded across the city and at airports, adding to the sense of panic and confusion.

Prime Minister Tony Blair, who was chairing a summit of world leaders in Gleneagles, Scotland, rushed to London to review the situation even as the summit continued.

In a TV address, a visibly shaken Mr. Blair said it was "reasonably clear" that the explosions were a "terrorist attack ... designed and meant to coincide with the G8" summit. He said terrorists would not be able to destroy "our values and our way of life."

"Whatever they do, it is our determination that they will never succeed in destroying what we hold dear in this country and in other civilised nations throughout the world," he said. Each of the leaders at the summit had "some experience of the effects of terrorism and all the leaders ... share our complete resolution to defeat this terrorism."

Deeply shocked: Queen
World leaders attending the summit condemned the attacks, calling them an assault on "civilised peoples everywhere." U.S. President George W. Bush said the war on terror would go on.

In Parliament, Home Secretary Charles Clarke confirmed only four incidents, saying "precise details" were still not available. He "strongly advised" people not to travel. The Queen said she was "deeply shocked."

Dazed eyewitnesses said everything happened suddenly. One commuter recalled that there was "a massive bang" and then "smoke everywhere." "It was hot and everybody panicked. People started screaming and crying," he said.

Another eyewitness said the train in which she was travelling was "running along another train when there was suddenly a loud bang and electricity in our coach went off." People did not know what had happened until emergency services started evacuating them.

One passenger, who was on a train at King's Cross, said: "The train didn't get very far out of the station when there was an explosion. Loads of glass showered down over everyone. The glass on the doors in between all the carriages shattered. There was a lot of smoke and a lot of dust. ... I could hear screams. People were trying to work out what happened. A lot of people were covered in blood."

Security across Britain was tightened and community leaders called for harmony amid fears over possible attempts to disturb the peace.

Serial blasts throw London into chaos

2005-07-07T21:39:00.000-07:00

The mood in the city was sombre and subdued, but there was little sign of outright panic

LONDON: Buses had to be used as ambulances. An emergency medical station was set up at a hotel. Rescue workers, police and ordinary people streamed into the streets to help.

Nearly simultaneous blasts on three subway trains and a double-decker bus brought chaos to the streets of London on Thursday.

Ambulances sped from the wreckage of the bus torn apart by a blast near central London's Russell Square.
Mangled remains

Its mangled upper deck was open to the sky and debris littered the street. The facade of a nearby building was blackened and scarred by shrapnel.

``I could see the bus with the roof ripped off and one side peeled down,'' said Jenny Gimpel, who was on her way to work when she saw the blasted bus. ``It looked absolutely horrific.''

Just a day before, London had been basking in the glory of winning the 2012 Olympic Games, with wild celebrations on Trafalgar Square. On Thursday, an eerie quiet had taken hold in some parts of the city.

``Yesterday we were quite glad that we got the Olympic bid,'' said Arvind Mavji, a transport worker at Euston Station, near the site of the Russell Square bus blast. ``Today we are wondering if it was worth it.''

Buses were pressed into service as ambulances as dozens of casualties were taken to hospitals. At the scene of several blasts, specialist emergency workers in orange biochemical suits searched for evidence of biological, chemical or nuclear agents.

At the London Hospital, a medic pumped the chest of a man who lay on a stretcher, clothes ripped and body blackened.

``There was an explosion and the flash of flames down the side of the train,'' said Derek Price (55), who was on a subway train near Liverpool Street station. ``It was all very quick — a loud bang happened in a matter of seconds.''

Emergency workers set up a medical command post in a Hilton hotel near Edgware Road subway station, where an explosion ripped through a crowded train.

Deep underground, a Swedish woman riding the subway toward the station said she heard the blast behind her train.

``The car quickly filled with smoke and a lot of people used their umbrellas to try to break the windows so that we could get air. A mother with her two small children sat next to me and cried desperately.''

When passengers were evacuated, there were body parts scattered around them, she said.

American Sean Barron (20), said he helped treat the wounded at Edgware Road station.

``One gentleman told me that the floor of the train he was on was blown out, it was just gone. I believe another gentleman was ejected from the train''.

Gary Lewis (32), was evacuated from a subway train at King's Cross station and described a scene of panic as medics tended to casualties brought to a ticket hall.

``People were covered in black soot and smoke. People were running everywhere and screaming. It was chaos,'' he said.

"The one haunting image was someone whose face was totally black and pouring with blood.''

Subways shut down
As police shut down subways and buses across the city, central London streets became all but empty of traffic. Some commuters tried to make their way to work or home on foot.

Groups gathered around corner shops with televisions, watching in silence pictures of a mangled red bus.
The mood was sombre and subdued, but there was little outright panic. People tried to call loved ones on cell phones, and many loaned their phones so strangers could make calls.

Many tourists in central London were caught up in the blasts.

``I think these were terrorists. They were successful,'' said Nadia Ivanova from Bulgaria. — AP

Eclipsed by London blasts, Gleneagles summit grapples with climate change

2005-07-07T21:14:00.000-07:00

GLENEAGLES: The G-8 Summit at Gleneagles, and the coordinated as well as separate efforts of the five big developing countries, including India, invited to participate in the meeting, were clearly eclipsed by the terrible carnage, the human tragedy, wrought by the multiple and coordinated terrorist bomb explosions in central London.

Thursday dawned brilliantly bright but the mood at this idyllic golfing resort in Scotland darkened visibly as, coinciding with the opening of the G-8 (plus 5) Summit, confused information began to dribble in about a massive "power surge" creating havoc in the London underground. It had been reported somewhat breathlessly in the British media, already high on the ecstasy of snatching Olympics 2012 from the French (one tabloid evoked memories of Lord Nelson's 1805 victory at the Battle of Trafalgar), that Tony Blair had taken "personal charge" of intensive negotiations on Africa and climate changes, evidently in the face of much Bush administration obduracy.

The British Prime Minister was hoping to get some movement within the G-8 towards a minimum common position on climate change, a nod to the "science of climate change," and some kind of decent formulation on human greenhouse gas emissions. Mr. Bush was reported to be prepared, in some unspecified way, to go along with the proposition that `climate change was happening,' with a post-Kyoto process that would make demands on the leading developing countries, including India and China; also to `accept that global warming was, to some extent, manmade.' But, the calamity, long anticipated by British security experts, struck in the capital, forcing Mr. Blair to leave the Summit and return to London.

Mini-summit
Meanwhile, the governments of Brazil, China, India, Mexico, and South Africa held their mini-summit at Gleneagles and came up with an interesting enough Joint Declaration. It called for providing "a greater voice to developing countries in U.N. decision-making," promoting "multilateralism," enhancing North-South cooperation, and a renewed commitment to "sustainable development and the harnessing of the benefits of globalisation for all." Somewhat hearteningly, it reaffirmed "the role of South-South cooperation in the context of multilateralism" and committed the five large developing countries to "close coordination and cooperation to meet the challenges arising from globalisation, and to promote the common interest of developing countries by striving to more effectively bring together our priorities and international engagement strategies."

While the issues of mass hunger and poverty in the developing world at large did not get anything like the focus African poverty has got in the Summit and in the run-up to it, it raised trade issues connected with barriers to products and services of interest to developing countries and spotlighted the "fundamental requirement" of achieving "substantive progress, by the end of July 2005, regarding agricultural negotiations, access to non-agricultural markets, services, trade facilitation and rules." It demanded a reduction in "trade-distorting" domestic support for agriculture in developed countries, and an end to all forms of export subsidies by a date to be agreed.

On the gamut of issues relating to climate change, the Joint Declaration highlighted the key point that the international regime represented by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and its Kyoto Protocol rest on "the differentiation of obligations among Parties," according to "the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities of States," namely the developed as distinct from the developing countries. It will be tough sailing for the informally banded group of five in a world where the Bush administration, and like-minded developed country governments, refuse to accept any such dictum.

Olympics returns to London after 64 years

2005-07-07T21:00:00.000-07:00

ECSTASY UNBRIDLED: British Olympian Kelly Holmes hugs athlete Steve Cram as they celebrate after London was chosen to host the 2012 Olympic Games on Wednesday.

SINGAPORE: London earned the right to host the 2012 Olympic Games, emerging winner in a tight race among five candidate cities, as the International Olympic Committee (IOC) held the much-awaited election here on Wednesday.

With Moscow, New York and Madrid getting eliminated one after the other in the first three rounds, London edged out Paris in the decisive round by 54 votes to 50. The required majority was 53 and the number of IOC member-voters was 104.

While a member of the presentation team from Paris remarked that his city did not lose but London won, Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov said, "We will bid for the right to become the host city for the 2016 Olympic Games."

Asked what clinched the issue in London's favour in the fourth and final round, its visibly pleased Mayor Ken Livingstone said it was the theme of the final presentation. The ideals of the Olympic movement, along with the theme of "personal best" during competition, were well packaged by the London team.

Hard to digest
The French are finding defeat even harder to bear since the winner is its traditional archrival, Britain. "We clearly had the better project. The British indulged in a lot of tough lobbying, quite a bit of it underhand. This was not gentlemanly behaviour and the Olympic spirit was nowhere in sight," said Monique, referring to a British official's denigrating remarks about stadium facilities in France.

Most Parisians questioned said they would not have minded if New York, Madrid or Moscow had won the bid. What hurt them most was London pipping them to the post. This is Paris' third failed attempt. It was a hot favourite till the very end and the French were convinced that they would emerge victorious.

The French are finding defeat even harder to bear since the winner is its traditional archrival, Britain. "We clearly had the better project. The British indulged in a lot of tough lobbying, quite a bit of it underhand. This was not gentlemanly behaviour and the Olympic spirit was nowhere in sight," said Monique, referring to a British official's denigrating remarks about stadium facilities in France.

Protesters march on G8 hotel in Scotland

2005-07-07T00:13:00.000-07:00

GLENEAGLES: Thousands of anti-G8 protesters marched on a heavily fortified Scottish hotel on Wednesday where world leaders, under pressure to tackle climate change and poverty in Africa, were due to meet.

Chanting, blowing whistles and carrying placards bearing images of George W Bush and his Group of Eight counterparts, the demonstrators walked from the small town of Auchterarder in central Scotland to within a few hundred metres (yards) of the Gleneagles hotel, where they were blocked by police. The demonstration passed peacefully, in contrast to earlier in the day when a handful of hooded protesters broke car windows, threw bricks and clashed with riot police in the nearby town of Stirling.

Police said they arrested 60 people, and eight officers needed hospital treatment. Protesters put up impromptu barricades and threw obstacles on the roads around Gleneagles, blocking parts of the main highway in central Scotland for more than four hours. Police needed cutting gear to remove some activists who chained themselves together across the north-south highway.

The failed history of the G8

2005-07-06T22:01:00.001-07:00

"Since it was set up in 1975 to discuss the "economic problems of the day", the G8 has failed to provide any viable solution. "

There are a number of reasons why protest against the G8. Some facts about the G8 summit:
Tony Blair was recently handed the presidency of the G8 and announced a Commission for Africa. Yet, existing reports, including the highly acclaimed Brandt report, already show what needs to be done to help people in Africa. Britain for instance, has still not fulfilled its promise that it made 30 years ago to the United Nations to increase aid to 0.7% of national income (Britain currently gives 0.34% which is approximately £3.83 billion). On the other hand, Britain reserved £3.8 billion for the Iraq war and the costs of this war are still rising. A recent opinion poll reported in the Guardian shows that 60% of the public say that money spent on the Iraq war would have been better spent on tackling poverty in poor countries. And Blair has still not apologised for this war despite the lies about the reasons for going to war and torture in Abu Ghraib.

The G8 could immediate cancel Third World debt. It would cost $18 billion to cancel the debt owed by the 41 most heavily indebted countries to the IMF and World Bank. The United States spent $100 billion on the war in Iraq.

The G8 has consistently imposed a neo-liberal economic model that benefits the rich and powerful at the expense of the most impoverished people in the world. An increase in international trade for the world's poorest countries has not led to any real reduction in poverty in these countries. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development reported that the majority of people in countries that opened up their markets for free trade were still surviving on less than a $1 a day.

The G8 could also tackle HIV/AIDS. An estimated 40 million people in the world have the disease, and 28 million of them live in sub-Saharan Africa. An estimated 6,300 people die of HIV/AIDS every day because they cannot afford medication. HIV/AIDS did not even reach this year's G8 agenda; instead, it was discussed for 2 hours over a 'working lunch.' The G8 endorsed co-ordinated international research for a HIV/Aids vaccine. Yet, the United Nations estimates that Africa needs $10 billion to fight HIV/AIDS each year. The World Aids Campaign is still waiting for the G8 to honour the United Nations Global Aids Agreement that it signed 3 years ago.

The G8 continues to demand that poor countries open up their borders to free trade. Like vultures, trans-national corporations circle over these countries waiting to feed off the profits. The G8 insists that to qualify for debt relief poor countries must privatise public utilities including water, gas, electricity and transport. Privatisation has increased the costs of these essential services, which means that poor people can no longer afford them. Debt relief was denied to 7 heavily indebted countries because they had not abided by IMF and World Bank neo-liberal economic agreements.

Given the failed history of the G8 it is no surprise that people have protested whenever the G8 meets. Gleneagles in 2005 is likely to be no different. The leaders of the 8 richest countries in the world make take their photo-opportunities but there are millions of us ready to point out their hypocrisy and reveal the G8 for what they really are: a rich cabal disguised as pious philanthropists.

J&K minister escapes bid on life

2005-07-06T22:01:00.000-07:00

Jammu and Kashmir minister of public health engineering Syed Bashir Ahmad narrowly escaped a bid on his life on Wednesday evening.

The minister's car was damaged and three security men were injured in the militant attack at heavily guarded Lal Chowk of Srinagar.

The unidentified militants chased the minister's car before firing at it on a busy intersection.

Ahmad remained trapped inside his bullet-proof car 30 minutes as the militants fired at his car from close range.
Early reports had given conflicting version of the incident. Agencies had even quoted the minister as saying that he was not in the car at all.

Security forces were caught off guard and it took a shocked administration some time to organise rescue operations.
While the police rescued the minister, the militants managed to escape the scene.

"I watched helplessly as they pumped bullets into my car bursting its tires," the visibly shaken minister said after he reached his residence. "I thought for a moment that it was all over for me."

The entire Lal Chowk area shook with gunfire as evening commuters and shopkeepers ran for cover.
Traffic went berserk in the main commercial hub of Srinagar.

Senior ministers and top bureaucrats were shifted to safety after the news of the shooting reached the secretariat.
No militant group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Police recovered two AK-47 rifles in a search conducted after the incident.

I will never coach a foreign team: Kapil

2005-07-06T21:58:00.001-07:00

Former India captain Kapil Dev says he will never accept an offer to coach a foreign team and if ever he wants to do that job, it will only be for his home country.

Talking at a press meet to announce the induction of former India sprinter Ashwini Nachappa as a member of the Hero Indian Sports Academy, the legendary all-rounder said he had never ever aspired to coach a foreign team.

"If I ever want to do (coaching), I will only do it for my country," Kapil Dev said. "I am a passionate person. I feel that way. I am not saying that those who are serving other countries are not passionate. Every individual is different".

On Sourav Ganguly's poor run with the bat, he said the Indian captain should be given some more time to deliver.

"Give him time. It will be unfair if we start raising doubts about his work. Give him three months (or) six months. At the moment, I will like to support him. The entire Board has supported him. We should support him. Result (Ganguly coming good with the bat or not) is the best answer".

Asked about the new ICC rules regarding one-day internationals, he said if those were aimed at making the game more enjoyable and spectator-friendly, then it was a welcome move.

However, Kapil Dev cautioned against going in for too many experiments, saying these could kill the game.
On his take on having a bowling coach for India, he said there was nothing wrong in having one. "BCCI is rich and does not face a dearth of funds," he said, but added "too many cooks can spoil the food".

Kapil Dev also wanted achievers in other sports to be treated on par with cricketers, saying they need a better deal from the public and media.

Cricket has got everything going for it in India in terms of organisation, money and publicity. Deserving achievers in other sports need far more media spotlight and a pat on the back, he said.

HISA, of which he is the founder Chairman, was unhappy about the poor budget allocation for sports, he said. India's annual sports budget is equivalent to what the top 10 American sportspersons spend in a year, said the former all-rounder.

"We do neglect other sports", Kapil said. "The media is partly responsible".

Meanwhile, Ashwini, an Asian Track and Field silver medallist, became the fifth sportswoman to become a member of HISA, which is into promoting sports and sports talent, after Diana Eduljee, Bachendri Pal, Elisa Nelson and P T Usha.

Ashwini stressed on making sports a part of the education system and encourage students to take up a career in sports.

Otherwise, India would continue to lack quality sportspersons, she said.

Oil cos stumble on Olive Ridley ground

2005-07-06T21:58:00.000-07:00

Oil exploration companies operating in the Mahanadi basin and in the adjoining Krishna Godavari basin may now have to closely watch the path of half-a-million endangered Olive Ridley turtles that come there to nest every year from January to March.

After two years of discussions and studies, the government seems to have made up its mind on giving the go-ahead to exploration work by Reliance Industries and Oil and Natural Gas Corporation in these areas.
Officials told Business Standard that after resisting a decision, the environment ministry recently asked RIL to proceed with exploration but stop drilling during the nesting season.

These turtles nest annually during January-March on the beaches of Gahirmatha at the Bhitarkanika Wildlife Sanctuary in Orissa's Kendrapara district, the mouth of the river Rushikulya (Ganjam district), and the mouth of the Devi (Puri district).

While Orissa beaches are the main nesting sites for these turtles, experts said beaches further north along the coasts of West Bengal and Bangladesh also host some of these endangered species every year.

Two Reliance exploration blocks, NEC-OSN-97/2 and MN-DWN-98/2, were awaiting environment clearances due to migration of the threatened turtles. One of the blocks is right on the return path of these migratory turtles who travel long distances to nest along the Orissa coast.

Over the past few decades, the Olive Ridley population has dropped due to poaching at nesting sites for the female's skin and meat. It nests at only five beaches in the world with the Orissa coast being the most significant.

At a recent meeting, the petroleum ministry had asked the ministry of environment and forests to let Reliance proceed with the second stage of development activity. A tracking study of the turtles could simultaneously be carried on by the Dehradun-based Wildlife Institute of India, it felt.

"The study was initially suggested to be funded by the directorate-general of hydrocarbons under the ministry of petroleum but now it will be part-funded by the two companies," said an official. In the event of any adverse impact of the exploration work on the species, it was noted, the companies would be asked to take conservation measures.

In a presentation during the meeting, RIL maintained that the turtles only congregate on the near shore, which is within 10 kms of the coast, and that the presence of offshore rigs beyond 50 kms would not influence the activities of the Olive Ridleys.

The company also cited examples of the US, and countries in West Asia and Southeast Asia, where the area within 3 nautical miles of turtle-feeding and breeding grounds is notified as restricted.It also said that in petroleum-rich regions like the Gulf of Mexico, turtles are known to co-exist with the offshore platforms, drilling rigs and pipelines with no major consequences.

A people's movement that hopes to plant one lakh trees in the next five years

2005-07-06T21:31:00.000-07:00

GOOD START: President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam dropping a scoop of red earth into a pot holding Pachai Nayagi, as part of Project Siruthuli's `Pasumai Payanam' on Wednesday.

COIMBATORE: To strains of M. S. Subbulakshmi's Vande Mataram, President A. P. J. Abdul Kalam scooped red earth into a pot and watered Pachai Nayagi, a peepul tree that is Coimbatore's Kalpakavriksha.

With this, he launched Pasumai Payanam, an urban afforestation project of Project Siruthuli, a people's movement that hopes to plant one lakh trees in the next five years.

"It is a model worth praising. My desire is that there must be more Siruthulis across the country," Mr. Kalam said.

Referring to the organisation's efforts to revive water bodies in and around Coimbatore, Mr. Kalam said, "water is very important and children should take interest in such `big movements' because when they grow, they will see a beautiful Coimbatore. They will see a beautiful Tamil Nadu. They will see a beautiful India."

He cited the work of Baba Balbir Singh who helped clean the 160-km Kali Bein rivulet of sewage and weeds in Punjab as `kar seva', or religious duty. "Let these models be spread in all places of religious worship," the President said.

Mr. Kalam proposed seven tasks: educating five students for three years, activating at least one pond, planting five fruit-bearing trees, treating male and female children equally in education, not gambling or succumbing to any addiction, removing enmity and withdrawing court cases against family members and leading a righteous life free of corruption.

"Even if 10 per cent of devotees take one vow and practise it," he said, "it will bring great peace and stability to society."

Senate House on the road to resurrection

2005-07-06T21:24:00.000-07:00

CHENNAI: Madras University Vice-Chancellor S.P. Thyagarajan is an excited man. A historic landmark, the Senate House, is all set to regain its pristine glory — very soon.

HERITAGE WATCH: Senate House of the University of Madras being renovated.

If all goes according to plan, the huge wooden doors will be thrown open again and the shady corridors of the red-bricked building echo with the footsteps of academics and students; sunlight will stream in through the now-clean stained glass windows to cast colourful patterns on the floor.

A building more than a century old will come back to life again.

A shining example of what is called the Indo-Saracenic style of architecture, the building, begun in 1869, was completed in 1873. A prominent Chennai landmark, it bears testimony to the genius of its architect Robert F. Chisolm. The Senate House is built on the site of the Nawab of Carnatic's artillery park, from where salvoes were fired to greet visiting dignitaries, according to the Madras University's website.

At a press conference on Wednesday, Dr. Thyagarajan said, "The roof is done, the woodwork is done, the coloured glass work is done, the lime plastering is done, and the fresco restoration is also done with vegetable dyes." The renovation is estimated to cost around Rs. 6 crores, of which the University has raised Rs. 3.8 crores through donations. It has already spent around Rs. 2 crores towards the restoration.

The deadline set for completing it is December, and President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam will open the renovated building in February, marking the formal inauguration of the university's 150th year celebrations. On Teachers Day next year (September 5, 2006) a function will be held to mark "our Foundation Day," Dr. Thyagarajan said.

But the Senate House, restored to its original splendour, would be Step One.

Kabini dam gates opened; outflow 20,000 cusecs

2005-07-06T21:22:00.000-07:00

MYSORE: Low-lying areas along the banks of the Kabini river in parts of Mysore district have been inundated after the crest gates of the Kabini reservoir at H.D. Kote were opened due to a rapid rise in the reservoir level. This follows good rainfall in the catchment area of the river in Wyanad in Kerala.

The water level on Wednesday was 2,280.08 ft as against the full reservoir level of 2,284 ft, and the inflow was 17,374 cusecs. The authorities said the inflow into the reservoir is expected to be steady on account of heavy rain in the catchment area.

The outflow from the reservoir was 15,465 cusecs on Wednesday morning and this increased to 20,000 cusecs in the evening. Sources said the outflow from the reservoir is likely to be increased further. Normally, the crest gates are opened when the water level exceeds the 2,280-ft mark. People living in the low-lying areas along the riverbank have been asked to move to higher ground.

The inflow into the Krishna Raja Sagar has been subsiding and there was no appreciable increase in the inflow, which declined from 13,917 cusecs on Tuesday to 10,410 cusecs on Wednesday.

40,000-yr human footprints in Mexico

2005-07-05T22:22:00.000-07:00

British scientists on Tuesday claimed to have unearthed 40,000 year-old human footprints in central Mexico, challenging previous studies that put the arrival of the first humans in the Americas at about 13,500 years ago.

Scientists Silvia Gonzalez, from Liverpool John Moores University, and Matthew Bennett, of Bournemouth University, found the footprints in an abandoned quarry close to the Cerro Toluquilla volcano in the Valsequillo Basin, near Puebla, south of Mexico City in 2003.

Gonzalez said the footprints were preserved as trace fossils in volcanic ash along what was the shoreline of an ancient volcanic lake.

"Climate variations and the eruption of the Cerro Toluquilla volcano caused lake levels to rise and fall, exposing the Xalnene volcanic ash layer," Gonzalez said.

She said the footprints, which were preserved when water levels rose, were now hard as concrete and had been uncovered without excavation as quarry workers had already removed two to three metres of lake sediment that had been deposited on top of the volcanic ash layer.

The footprints were analysed and dated by a team of international scientists using laser technology.

The findings challenge previously held ideas about the settlement of the Americas.
Scientists have long believed that the first humans came to North America after the last Ice Age ended about 13,500 years ago.

LeT suspected to be behind attack

2005-07-05T22:18:00.000-07:00

As efforts are on to identify the group behind Tuesday's terror attack at the makeshift temple in Ayodhya, security agencies suspect the hand of Pakistan-based Lashker-e-Taiba outfit in it.

LeT has been planning to target the makeshift temple for long and one such plot had been uncovered when the Border Security Force killed a top leader of the outfit in Kashmir in 2003, security sources said.

After striking the Akshardham temple in Gandhinagar in 2002, LeT had planned a suicide attack in Ayodhya to arouse communal passions and trigger riots the same year, ahead of the anniversary of demolition of the disputed structure, they said.

The plan, however, could not be executed as the terrorists assigned the task were killed in an encounter with Delhi Police in Tughlakhabad in South Delhi in November 2002 while they were on their way to Ayodhya.

The plot came to light after the BSF killed LeT militant Manzoor Zahid Choudhary in Budgam in Kashmir on August 8, 2002 following specific information. The plan was contained in the documents and laptop computer recovered from Zahid, the sources said.

Examination of the same also disclosed the outfit's plan to carry out a suicide attack on Amarnath pilgrims that year.

Govt. softens stand on smoking ban in films & TV serials

2005-07-05T22:14:00.000-07:00

New Delhi, July. 6 (PTI): Under pressure from the entertainment industry over the proposed ban on smoking scenes in films and TV serials from October 2, the Government on Tuesday appeared to hint that it may be headed for dilution.

"The category of exceptions to the ban on smoking scenes could be expanded. It is a continuous process. Whatever comes in the way of aesthetic appeal may be given up," Information and Broadcasting Minister S Jaipal Reddy, told reporters after a workshop, which saw participation from filmmakers and TV producers, social activists, Health Ministry officials and medical experts.

The four-hour long workshop on certification issues, organised by the Information and Broadcasting Ministry, ended with the Government agreeing to more of "self-censorship by the industry" and "expansion of creative freedom."

On June 15, the Government had announced that smoking scenes in films and TV serials will be banned from October 2, though it said that exceptions would be made in case of situations such as treatment of historical personality, historical period and social messaging against smoking itself.

Sharmila Tagore, Chairperson of the Central Board for Film Certification (CBFC), said that such kind of a near blanket ban was not possible as it "impinged on artistic expression" of filmmakers.
Tagore's view was seconded by renowned film director Mahesh Bhatt, who also objected to any such ban.

Reddy said that a Steering Committee, comprising representatives of the Government, industry, consumer and social activists group would be formed to "take forward this process of consultation in regard to all societal concerns."

High alert in Delhi, tight vigil at public places, temples

2005-07-05T21:47:00.000-07:00

"Railway stations, bus terminals, markets and Metro stations under surveillance Police to search guest houses for new tenants who have not furnished their particulars; car dealers being asked not to sell vehicles without proper verification "

NEW DELHI: The Delhi police on Tuesday sounded a high alert in the Capital and stepped up security at temples and vital installations following the terrorist strike at the Ramjanmabhoomi complex in Ayodhya. Raids are also being mounted at suspected terrorist hideouts.

Police Commissioner K. K. Paul summoned an urgent meeting of senior police officers in the afternoon to review security arrangements across the city. Dr. Paul asked the officers to step up deployment at the Jhandewalan, ISKCON, Lakshminarayan and other prominent temples.

As a precautionary measure, the police along with the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) have tightened security at Indira Gandhi International Airport. Only this past week four men allegedly working as conduits for Pakistan's Inter-State Intelligence (ISI) network were arrested in South-west Delhi with arms and ammunition and a map of the airport.

Police patrols at crowded places like railway stations, bus terminals, busy markets, cinema halls and Delhi Metro stations have been intensified. The police said extra security personnel have also been deployed at the Jhandewalan headquarters of Rashtriya Swayam Sewak Sangh (RSS) and in the sensitive Walled City area of Delhi.

Dr. Paul has also directed the Deputy Commissioners of Police to conduct searches at guest houses and gather details about new tenants in their districts who have not furnished their particulars to the local police.

Meanwhile, officers of intelligence agencies held meetings with the special cell of the Delhi police to discuss the movement of suspected terrorists in different parts of the Capital. Intelligence officials have been asked to mount raids at suspected terrorist hideouts, especially in South Delhi, North-east Delhi and North-west Delhi.

Specific info helped swift reaction: Centre

2005-07-05T21:42:00.000-07:00

"Meetings held at May-end to review security "They were not locals. Nobody has claimed responsibility for the attack."

NEW DELHI: The Government had intelligence information that militant groups could target religious places, vital installations and places of national importance. Tuesday's "unqualified success" of the Ayodhya operation, in which six terrorists were killed, indicated the high level of alertness of the security forces, Union Home Secretary V.K. Duggal told a press briefing here.

He had held two meetings with the chiefs of the Central paramilitary forces and the State police in the last week of May on receipt of the information.

"We held detailed discussions and meetings after receiving inputs from intelligence agencies on the possibility of militant strikes at a religious place or vital installation. India is a vast country and the intelligence at the national level has to be matched with the information from the States and at the local level."

Mr. Duggal refused to divulge either the names of the militant groups or the identity of the terrorists who were killed at Ayodhya.

"They were not locals. Nobody has claimed responsibility for the attack."

Advisories were sent to all State Governments and police chiefs, asking them to ensure that vested interests and mischievous elements did not exploit the situation to spread communal disharmony.

Mr. Duggal and Central Reserve Police Force Director-General, J.K. Sinha, asserted that there was no damage to the makeshift temple as the CRPF personnel shot down all the terrorists at the outer periphery itself.

"All terrorists have been accounted for, and no person except the driver of the car that brought the terrorists has been arrested. The driver is being questioned," Mr. Duggal said.

Images: Gujurat Flood

2005-07-05T00:22:00.000-07:00

Surendra Nagar

Nadiad (Near Ahemdabad)

Four persons enter Ram Janambhoomi, open fire

2005-07-04T23:02:00.000-07:00

Ayodhya, July 5. (PTI): Breaking the security cordon, four unidentified persons, suspected to be militants, gained entry into the disputed Ram Janambhoomi campus here and fired indiscriminately, leading to heavy exchange of fire with security forces in which one of the attackers was killed and another captured, police sources said.

The sources said the militants were in a jeep and entered the campus around 9 a.m.
The attackers were immediately challenged by security forces, leading to the exchange of fire and it was still on.

Security forces have cordoned off the entire area and roads leading to the temple town from Faizabad and other adjoining districts have been sealed, the sources said.

Senior officials, including Commissioner, Faizabad, have rushed to the spot, they said.

Quake hits Indonesia's Sumatra; no casualty reports

2005-07-04T21:30:00.000-07:00

JAKARTA, July 5 (Reuters) - A strong earthquake struck Indonesia's Sumatra and islands near it on Tuesday, but there were no immediate reports of casualties, authorities said.

The U.S. Geological Survey put the magnitude of the quake at 6.7, while Indonesian officials put it at 6.0 on the Richter scale.

The quake hit at 8:52 a.m. (0152 GMT) with the epicentre at a depth of 30km (18.6 miles) in the sea near Nias island, west of the Sumatra mainland.

"At this point, we don't have any damage reported," Fauzi, the head of North Sumatra's Geological and Meteorology Agency, told Reuters, adding that there were also no initial reports of deaths or injuries.

However, El Shinta news radio said the quake caused fresh damage to Gunungsitoli town on Nias. That island and others near it were hit by a more powerful earthquake last March which killed around 1,000 people and damaged tens of thousands of buildings and houses.

The Indian Ocean quake and ensuing tsunami of Dec. 26 had also affected Nias.
Some frightened Gunungsitoli residents rushed to higher ground after Tuesday's quake but there were no reports of casualties, El Shinta added.

Scientists bring dead dogs back to life!

2005-07-04T21:00:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, 28 June , 2005, 17:55

London: Zombies rising from the dead may no longer be just the plot of a horror flick as scientists have now discovered a way to bring dead dogs back to life.

Using a so-called 'suspended animation' technique, they emptied the blood from the dead animals' veins and filled it with ice-cold saline solution to preserve the tissues and organs, reports the Daily Mail.

The animals used had no heartbeat or brain activity and were classed as being clinically dead.

The saline solution was then replaced with fresh blood and electric shocks were used to restart the heart. The dogs appeared unharmed by their suspension and had suffered no brain damage.

Scientists at the Safar Centre in Pittsburgh hope to use this technique on humans within a year and are in talks with hospitals about trials on trauma patients.

They believe it could save the lives of people who have suffered massive blood loss.

"The results are stunning. They have these dogs with complete cardiac standstill for three hours and they recover to normality," said trauma surgeon Howard Champion.

New robots help patients walk, touch, feel

2005-07-04T20:59:00.000-07:00

Thursday, 30 June , 2005, 10:38

Chicago: A 225-kilogram robot that follows a stroke patient down a hallway and catches him when he falls.
A machine that suspends a gunshot wound victim over a treadmill and teaches her legs how to walk again.

A virtual reality game that helps people with Parkinson's disease grasp coffee cups.

These were just some of the new medical tools on display at a conference on rehabilitation robotics in Chicago this week.

"We're still learning how and discovering how to use these robots," conference chairman James Patton of the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago said Tuesday.

Robots can help people with limited mobility become more independent by feeding them and carrying out other household tasks.

They can also help physicians diagnose and treat patients through teleconferencing or by collecting home therapy session data. And they are helping people with severe injuries or illnesses gain greater control over their movements.

People like Gernard Fulton, who was shot in the shoulder in October 2004. With a damaged spine and no feeling in her legs, doctors were worried the 35-year-old mother of two wouldn't walk again.

Afraid of falling, Fulton was nervous performing muscle-strengthening exercises with the physical therapists who would hold her up and move her legs to teach them how to walk.

Then she was taken to the Lokomat, a Swiss-designed machine that suspended her in a harness while straps moved her legs in a normal walking pattern.

At first, the machine did all the work. But as Fulton recovered she pushed herself to move with the machine while a monitor showed her how well she was doing.

"I knew I'd recover one day, but I didn't expect to recover so quickly," she said as she stepped shakily across a conference room.

Aside from reducing the number of clinicians needed to treat a patient, the machine also allows patients to exercise for longer periods. Traditional treatment sessions generally last no more than 10 minutes because they make such intense physical demands on therapists.

Another new machine that is helping patients learn to walk again is the KineAssist exercise and balancing system which will begin clinical trials soon.

Developed by a private company associated with the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, the KineAssist allows clinicians to focus on the patient's progress without the fear that they will fall.

The 225-kg robot on wheels follows patients as they walk while a harness protects them from falling if they stumble and allows for a greater range of motion.

In traditional treatments, "someone would have been holding on to him and the very act of holding onto him restricts his movement," David Brown, co-founder of ChicagoPT, which developed the device, said as a 65-year-old stroke victim demonstrated the device.

Patients supported by the KineAssist can explore the limits of their stability by balancing on foam cushions, reaching forward to catch balls or even walking a tightrope.

"It pulls people around (in a way) similar to what happens in daily life when you get on a bus or a subway," Brown said.

Brown said he hopes to get the device to market in the next few years at a price tag of between 50,000 and 100,000 dollars.

Another device which will soon undergo clinical trials is a virtual reality robotic system that is aimed at helping people with brain injuries such as strokes develop new neural pathways.

"This is really a game," said Patton, who is developing the technology at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago. "The patient wants to come back because it's fun. It's very flashy."

Patton and his team uploaded a popular computer game, Doom, into the virtual reality machine and had patients play in order to practice grasping objects.

They found in early studies that the repetitive motions used in virtual reality therapies allowed patients to more easily adapt to life after a stroke.

One important discovery was that patients learned faster when they played games that distorted reality and made them reach farther for an object that it looked like they would have to.

More than 300 researchers and clinicians from over 20 countries are expected to attend the International Conference on Rehabilitation Robotics which will run through July 1.

Short men more suicide-prone, says study

2005-07-04T20:58:00.000-07:00

Sunday, 03 July , 2005, 14:35

Stockholm: Swedish researchers said they had discovered a link between height and suicide among males in their country.
"Suicide is more common among short men," according to Stockholm's Karolinska Institute in a paper published by the American Journal of Psychiatry. "An increase in height of five centimetres (two inches) cuts the risk of suicide by nine per cent."

"Short men are twice as much at risk of suicide as tall men," the study said, underlining its findings did not extend to women or old people.

The study covered almost 80 per cent of Swedish males born between 1950 and 1981 and gave no detailed figures for the point at which the risk of suicide increased.

It suggested that shorter people were more likely to be victims of psychoses than their taller counterparts. It was also suggested there was a link with social class since the least advantaged and most suicide-prone members of society tended to be the least tall.

Oceans set to become acidic by 2100: Study

2005-07-04T20:57:00.001-07:00

Friday, 01 July , 2005, 18:57

Washington: A new study has revealed that oceans around the world are fast turning into acidic water bodies.

The study conducted by Dr Ken Caldeira from the Carnegie Institution's Department of Global Ecology in Stanford, California says that human activities are producing so much carbon dioxide that under the present circumstances the world's oceans are all going to turn acidic by 2100 and severely threaten marine life.

"If Carbon dioxide from human activities continues to rise, the oceans will become so acidic by 2100, it could threaten marine life in ways we can't anticipate," the report issued by the Royal Society, UK, quoted Caldeira co-author of the report as saying.

Around the world in just 25 watts!

2005-07-04T20:56:00.001-07:00

Tuesday, 05 July , 2005, 01:39

London: British teenager, 13-year-old Jack Dex, has unveiled a new car, BOC Ech20, which is claimed, can go around the world (a total of 25,000 miles) using energy less than it takes to power a light bulb.

The hydrogen-powered car, which has been co-sponsored by the British industrial gases major, BOC, just needs 25 watts of electricity for the entire journey and emits only water.

The car, with a top speed of 30mph, would take a month to finish the journey, without any stops, reports The Sun.

Bradman autographed bat surfaces in junkyard!

2005-07-04T20:56:00.000-07:00

Monday, 04 July , 2005, 16:45

London: Two sisters - Jean and Pauline - have discovered an old cricket bat buried under junk in a shed, which may be worth 30,000 pounds.

That bat, according to The Mirror, has turned out to be a souvenir of the 1930 Ashes signed by the England and Australia teams.

Jean, 60, and Pauline, 66, are hoping their bat - with the signatures of legends such as Don Bradman and Sir Jack Hobbs - will be valued the same.

Jean, of Nuneaton, Warks, said her mother won it in a raffle in 1931 and left it to them.

"I almost choked on my coffee when I saw an identical bat was valued at 30,000 pounds," she said.

"It was the second-to-last thing we took out of the shed. We let out a little whoop when we found it," she added.

Russian astrologist sues NASA over comet crash

2005-07-04T20:54:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, 05 July , 2005, 06:36

Moscow: A Russian astrologist who says NASA has altered her horoscope by crashing a spacecraft into a comet is suing the US space agency for damages of $300 million, local media reported on Monday.

NASA deliberately crashed its probe, named Deep Impact, into the Tempel 1 comet to unleash a spray of material formed billions of years ago which scientists hope will shed new light on the composition of the solar system.

"It is obvious that elements of the comet's orbit, and correspondingly the ephemeris, will change after the explosion, which interferes with my astrology work and distorts my horoscope," Izvestia daily quoted astrologist Marina Bai as saying in legal documents submitted before Monday's collision.

A spokeswoman for a Moscow district court said initial preparations for the case were underway but could not say when the hearing would begin. NASA representatives in Moscow were unavailable for comment.

Become a Hindutvawadi or quit, VHP to Advani

2005-07-04T20:53:00.001-07:00

Tuesday, 05 July , 2005, 02:57

New Delhi: Not satisfied with the exit of Sudheendra Kulkarni from the BJP, the VHP on Tuesday continued its attack on LK Advani, saying he was not a "Hindutvawadi (pro-Hindutva)" and that the party should be led by somebody who is.

"Was Kulkarni ever the issue of debate? The issue of debate is the leadership of BJP... The party should be headed by a Hindutvawadi leader," VHP's senior leader Acharya Giriraj Kishore told reporters here.

He was reacting to a query on whether the resignation of Kulkarni had satisfied his organisation, which had been highly critical of Advani's remarks praising Pakistan founder Mohammad Ali Jinnah.

"Today, the leadership of BJP is not Hindutvawadi. We don't consider Advani Hindutvawadi," he said and demanded the BJP President transform himself, failing which he should be replaced.

Kishore also disagreed that Advani was a "nationalist", saying in that case the "definition" of nationalism had to be changed.

He also refused to buy the theory that Kulkarni influenced Advani into making the controversial statements on Jinnah during his Pakistan visit.

"How could Kulkarni, only a secretary, become the guide?" Kishore asked.

Under attack from within the BJP and the Sangh Parivar for Advani's Jinnah remaks, Kulkarni resigned on Monday as the party National Secretary, Secretary to party President as well as a member of the National Executive.

Couple exchange wedding vows by mobile phone

2005-07-04T20:53:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, 05 July , 2005, 05:13

Ahmedabad: A couple exchanged wedding vows by mobile phone after the bridegroom could not make it to the marriage ceremony because of the torrential rains in Gujarat.

The innovative marriage was solemnised by a chief priest at the weekend after severe flooding in prevented Ashifkhan Jahurkhan, 25, from reaching the bride's house in Bombay, the country's commercial capital.

"We made the best use of technology. It was impossible for me and my family to reach Bombay as roads are flooded with water," said the groom, who's still to meet his bride after the wedding.

Witnesses on both sides kept their phones on speaker mode to ensure all relatives heard the bride and groom's assent in the 30-minute ceremony.

Gujarat has been pounded by heavy rain over the past week, leaving more than 125 people dead and thousands homeless.

Normal life has come to a standstill with rail links in the state disrupted for days.

Britain planning major Iraq troop pull-out

2005-07-04T20:52:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, 05 July , 2005, 07:57

London: Britain's defence ministry has drafted plans for a significant troop withdrawal from Iraq over the next 18 months and a big deployment to Afghanistan, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday.

When asked about the article however, a defence ministry spokesman stuck to the official position that British troops would be on the ground in Iraq for as long as necessary to support the Iraqi government.

"In what would represent the biggest operational shake-up involving the armed forces since the Iraq war, the first stage of a run-down in military operations is likely to take place this autumn with a handover of security to Iraqis in at least two southern provinces," the Financial Times said.

Without citing sources, the newspaper reported that the plans depended on the ability of Iraq's home-grown security forces to take over responsibility for peacekeeping operations -- a job they have so far failed to do in violent areas in Baghdad and to the north.

British forces, however, are based in the Shia-dominated south of the country, where there are far fewer rebel attacks compared with the US monitored Sunni areas in and around the Iraqi capital.

"Senior UK officers believe the four south-east provinces under UK command, which are largely Shia and have not seen the same violence as more Sunni-dominated areas north of Baghdad, may be ready for a handover earlier than those under US command," the Financial Times reported.

The economic daily said any withdrawal could be timed to coincide with plans being developed to deploy up to 3,000 troops to Afghanistan before the end of 2005.

"This deployment would take the lead in a NATO force to take over from US troops in the south of Afghanistan," it reported.

"In that role, the UK forces would help fight insurgents and provide support for the war on narcotics in the region."

The Financial Times said the Ministry of Defence insisted that no decision had been made on Afghan or Iraqi deployments.

At the same time, it noted that Defence Secretary John Reid said Iraqi forces could begin to take charge of security in their country within a year.

Reid made the comments in an interview on BBC radio on Monday, while acknowledging that the insurgency in Iraq could go on for some time.

India, China at frontline in battle against HIV

2005-07-04T20:50:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, 05 July , 2005, 08:39

Kobe, Japan: With their growing economies leading to greater exchanges with the outside world, China and India are at the frontline in the fight to prevent an explosion of new HIV infections, experts at an AIDS conference in Japan said.

The world's two most populous nations have low infection rates in percentage terms, which spells danger as policymakers may not see the scale of the HIV problem when viewed by the raw number of cases.

"These two are very large countries. Even small prevalence of HIV infections can mean a huge number of affected people," said J.V.R. Prasada Rao, director of the Asia-Pacific regional support team at the Joint UN Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS).

Because of the low infection rates, "it is a big challenge to sensitise the political leadership of the two countries," Rao, a former top health policymaker in India, told AFP on the sidelines of the meeting.

Asia accounts for roughly 20 percent, or 8.2 million people, of the 40 million people infected with HIV worldwide. But the prevalence rate remains a relatively low 0.4 percent of the adult population, according to UNAIDS.

China officially has an estimated 840,000 people infected with HIV, including 80,000 with full-blown AIDS. The prevalence rate is 0.1 percent. But the Asian economic dynamo faces what may be one of the largest HIV/AIDS epidemics in the world, with experts predicting more than 10 million Chinese could be infected with HIV by 2010.

Premier Wen Jiabao last month said China was "determined and capable" of controlling HIV.

Rao said China learned lessons from the 2002 outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), when Beijing was accused of hiding the true scale of the disease and saw droves of tourists and business travelers canceling visits.

"I think that really shocked them," Rao said. "They realised that there could be a communicable disease which can also have serious impacts on their economy and image of the country...Now they are able to see that particular threat of HIV," he said.

India has more than 5.13 million people living with HIV/AIDS, second only to the number in South Africa with 5.3 million cases. But the country's prevalence rate was at 0.9 percent of adults, compared with South Africa's 21.5 percent, UNAIDS said.

The rapid economic growth of both China and India has triggered greater exchanges of people, with migrant workers at particular risk of infection, UNAIDS said in a report.

Sex education, condom distribution and needle exchanges are proven parts of anti-HIV programs, but with low infection rates policymakers may not feel pressure to pursue such ideas, said Shigeru Omi, director for the Western Pacific at the World Health Organization.

"AIDS is a very difficult problem," he told AFP. "It has the image of sex, gay sex and IV (intravenous) drug users.

"In some communities, people get arrested for coming out about their HIV status. That drives them to go underground and hide from authorities and refuse treatments," Omi said.

Rao said India had no "organized opposition" to anti-AIDS programs but efforts were inconsistent. "In some provinces, they are not doing anything. Their political leadership are not sensitised. The prevalence level is low," he said.

Richard Feachem, executive director of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, called on Asian leaders to back their vocal support for measures to fight AIDS with action.

"This is not a poor region. But political priorities put on HIV/AIDS is too low," he said. "It is a question of political choice and political priority."

The Seventh International Congress on HIV/AIDS in Asia and the Pacific started in Kobe on Friday and ends Tuesday.

Deep Impact Kicks Off 4th of July With Deep Space Fireworks

2005-07-04T05:21:00.000-07:00

After 172 days and 431 million kilometers (268 million miles) of deep space stalking, Deep Impact successfully reached out and touched comet Tempel 1.The collision between the coffee table-sized impactor and city-sized comet occurred at 1:52 a.m. EDT.

"What a way to kick off America's Independence Day," said Deep Impact Project Manager Rick Grammier of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. "The challenges of this mission and teamwork that went into making it a success, should make all of us very proud."

"This mission is truly a smashing success," said Andy Dantzler, director of NASA's Solar System Division. "Tomorrow and in the days ahead we will know a lot more about the origins of our solar system."

Official word of the impact came 5 minutes after impact. At 1:57 a.m. EDT, an image from the spacecraft's medium resolution camera downlinked to the computer screens of the mission's science team showed the tell-tale signs of a high-speed impact.

"The image clearly shows a spectacular impact," said Deep Impact principal investigator Dr. Michael A'Hearn of the University of Maryland, College Park. "With this much data we have a long night ahead of us, but that is what we were hoping for. There is so much here it is difficult to know where to begin."

The celestial collision and ensuing data collection by the nearby Deep Impact mothership was the climax of a very active 24 hour period for the mission which began with impactor release at 2:07 a.m. EDT on July 3. Deep space maneuvers by the flyby, final checkout of both spacecraft and comet imaging took up most of the next 22 hours. Then, the impactor got down to its last two hours of life.

"The impactor kicked into its autonomous navigation mode right on time," said Deep Impact navigator Shyam Bhaskaran, of JPL. "Our preliminary analysis indicates the three impactor targeting maneuvers occurred on time at 90, 35 and 12.5 minutes before impact."

At the moment the impactor was vaporizing itself in its 10 kilometers per second (6.3 miles per second) collision with comet Tempel 1, the Deep Impact flyby spacecraft was monitoring events from nearby. For the following14 minutes the flyby collected and downlinked data as the comet loomed ever closer. Then, as expected at 2:05 a.m. EDT, the flyby stopped collecting data and entered a defensive posture called shield mode where its dust shields protect the spacecraft's vital components during its closest passage through the comet's inner coma. Shield mode ended at 2:32 a.m. EDT when mission control re-established the link with the flyby spacecraft.

"The flyby surviving closest approach and shield mode has put the cap on an outstanding day," said Grammier. "Soon, we will begin the process of downlinking all the encounter information in one batch and hand it to the science team."

The goal of the Deep Impact mission is to provide a glimpse beneath the surface of a comet, where material from the solar system's formation remains relatively unchanged. Mission scientists expect the project will answer basic questions about the formation of the solar system, by offering a better look at the nature and composition of the frozen celestial travelers known as comets.

The University of Maryland is responsible for overall Deep Impact mission science, and project management is handled by JPL. The spacecraft was built for NASA by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corporation, Boulder, Colo.

For information about Deep Impact on the Internet, visit http://www.nasa.gov/deepimpact .

NASA discovers India-Lanka bridge

2005-07-04T04:33:00.001-07:00

Friday, July 1, 2005 (Washington):Every child who's heard the Ramayana is aware that Ram built a bridge of rocks across the sea to reach Lanka.

And now, NASA has released satellite pictures, which indicate that such a bridge does exist.

Recently discovered in the Palk Strait between India and Sri Lanka, the bridge has been named Adam's Bridge.

Made of a chain of shoals, it is 30 km long. The bridge's unique curvature and composition by age reveals that it is man made.

According to legend and archeological studies, the first signs of human inhabitants in Sri Lanka date back to the primitive age, about 17,50,000 years ago and the bridge's age is also almost equivalent.

The pictures for the first time provide evidence to the existence of such a bridge between the two countries.

Alert against epidemics in Gujarat

2005-07-04T04:26:00.000-07:00

Monday, 04 July , 2005, 13:19

Ahmedabad: Health officials Monday sounded an alert against possible epidemics in Gujarat state, where floods have affected some 25 million people, as relief teams rushed clean water, food and medicine to hardest-hit areas.

More than 570 medical and paramilitary teams have been dispatched to parts of central and southern Gujarat in an attempt to keep waterborne diseases at bay, said Ashok Bhatt, the law minister coordinating relief efforts. Images: 'Aerial tsunami' hits Gujarat

Ninety tonnes of relief material -- including food, medicine and water packets -- had been dropped in the western state in 50 sorties by air force helicopters taking advantage of a lull in the heavy rains, Bhatt said.

Some 54 boats shifted people from the flood-devastated districts of Anand, Vadodara and Nadiad to safer areas.

The state government has opened 572 relief camps in six districts to house those whose homes have been inundated, Bhatt added.

D Thara, a senior state official, said municipal authorities in Ahmedabad were destroying all garbage and carcases of animals to help prevent epidemics.

Chlorine-treated water and chlorine tablets were being distributed to people and municipal workers were spraying waterlogged localities to kill mosquitoes, she said.

"We are aiming to keep the immunity of the people living in waterlogged areas up so that they do not contract diseases," she said.

Thara said the state health ministry had called in non-governmental groups to help relief efforts.

The state-wide death toll crept up to 135 with the recovery of three more bodies in Ahmedabad, the Gujarat state revenue department said.

Many victims were washed away. Others were crushed when portions of buildings collapsed or were buried in mudslides.

So far, 425,000 people had been evacuated to safer places.

The state weather office Monday revised its weather advisory, predicting the next few days would be rain-free.

"The weather is dry today. The weather system causing rainfall has weakened," said R K Bakliwal, Gujarat's senior weather officer.

SC rejects TN Govt plea on CET

2005-07-04T04:23:00.000-07:00

Monday, 04 July , 2005, 13:43

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday rejected the Tamil Nadu government plea to stay the Madras High Court judgement striking down a recent state government order abolishing the CET with immediate effect.

"Let the students be admitted on the basis of the Common Entrance Test. No case is made out for any interim relief," a bench comprising DM Dharmadhikari and Justice SH Kapadia said, refusing to even issue notice on the state government's appeal.

The matter will be heard after the summer vacation.

India now dumping ground of the West

2005-07-04T04:22:00.000-07:00

Monday, 04 July , 2005, 13:30

Kochi: Many cities in India have turned into favourite dumping grounds for e-waste from the West, especially the United States, thanks to high computer penetration rate.

The computer men term it 'rubbish process outsourcing (RPO)' on the lines of buzz word BPO.

"About 500 million computers were outdated in America during the last 10 years. They could recycle only 25 per cent of them. So, they have targeted countries like India where computer penetration is picking up fast," All Kerala IT Dealers Association Secretary L M Ashraf said.

An estimated 50 to 80 per cent of e-waste collected in the United States for recycling is exported to developing countries like India where it enters ports like Mumbai, Chennai, Kandla and Kochi.

E-waste covers computers, monitors, printers, scanners, modems, servers, cellphones, fax, copiers and telecommunication devices.

Kochi alone has received eight containers of outdated computers during the last few months. Even the Association members, before they were waken up by the impacts of this menace, sold at least 1000 computers.

At least fresh 1000 PCs, branded and assembled, are sold every month in Kerala on an average still. But industry sources said they had already lost 40 to 60 per cent of sales to the imported second-hand computers.

Rane claims support of 42 MLAs

2005-07-04T04:20:00.000-07:00

Monday, 04 July , 2005, 10:23

Mumbai: Shiv Sena was on Monday hurtling towards a virtual split as it expelled senior leader Narayan Rane from the party and the latter claiming support of 42 legislators.

Blasting the party executive president Uddhav Thackeray, his aide Milind Narvekar and Sena leader Subhash Desai for "conspiring against him for the last four-five years," Rane said, "The Sena had lost its lustre under Uddhav's command."

Quoting a Marathi proverb Aitya Bilavar Nagoba(snake on a readymade burrow) to take a swipe at Uddhav, Rane said he had "toiled for the party." "What have Uddhav, Narvekar and Desai done?," he asked.

Rane, who claimed that he respected the Sena chief Bal Thackeray, did not spare him either, saying "the love for son (Uddhav) had scored over everything else."

Earlier in the day, Bal Thackeray, who addressed a meeting of party legislators and office-bearers here, said that Rane was being expelled from the party and the Sena would not tolerate his "gangsterism." Rane said he had yet to decide about floating his own party or joining another party.

"I still think I am a Shiv Sainik", he told reporters at his official residence as Opposition leader, after he was expelled from the party.

Asked about his cordial relations with Bal Thackeray's nephew Raj Thackeray, Rane said "I do not want to make anyone martyr by discussing names of people."

An aerial view of a flood-submerged area near Ahmedabad

2005-07-03T22:50:00.000-07:00

India claims 24 medals in C'Wealth Games

2005-07-03T21:48:00.003-07:00

Chandigarh, July 4. (UNI): With India claiming eight more medals, including four gold, in Greco-Roman style their final overall medals tally stood at 16-5-3 in the Commonwealth Wrestling Championship which concluded at Cape Town in South Africa on Sunday.

According to information received by Wrestling Federation of India president Dr Mahinder Singh Malik, Indians claimed gold medals in Greco-Roman through Kripa Shankar (55kg), Ravinder (60kg), Gurvinder (66kg) and Satish (90kg).

Olympian Palwinder Singh Cheema could win silver in 120 kg category.

In the freestyle category he struck gold while Sanjay claimed the second silver in 96 kg.
Ramesh and Kuldeep finished third for bronze medals in 74 kg and 96 kg categories, respectively.

Bentley Continental Flying Spur launched in India

2005-07-03T21:48:00.002-07:00

New Delhi, July. 4 (UNI): UK-based Bentley Motors on Sunay made its India launch of Continental Flying Spur, the fastest four-door car in the company's history with a top speed of 312 kmph, here today.

Speaking at the launch, the company's Regional Director Ian Gorsuch, said the Continental Flying Spur is a four-door Grad Tourer born of a coupe.

"It is a performance car but not at the cost of comfort. As such, it represents a unique proposition -- a sumptuous and spacious four-door Grand tourer with the heart and soul of a high-performance coupe," he noted, recalling that it had made its international debut at the Geneva Salon on March 1 this year.

The car's new model has taken its name from the 1952 Bentley R-Type Continental and 1957 four-dour Continental Flying Spur.

Satya Bangla, Director of Exclusive Motors Pvt Ltd, the India partner of Bentley Motors, said the cost of the car is Rs 1.65 crores. "Its commercial delivery will begin next month. Till now, six cars have been booked and the company has the target of selling ten cars this year," he informed.

"It is a global car which is suitable for every kind of road. Right now, we plan to sell the car mainly in Delhi and Mumbai and depending on the response we will chalk out our future strategy. We have an exclusive showroom of this car in Delhi. Soon we will be opening one more showroom in Mumbai too."

The car has a 6-litre, twin-turbocharged 12-cylinder engine, which propels the car to 60 mph in 4.9 seconds.

Agricultural and allied exports 9% up

2005-07-03T21:48:00.001-07:00

New Delhi, July. 4 (PTI): Exports of agricultural and allied products from India recorded over nine per cent increase touching Rs 27,111.41 crores (US $6.03 billions) in 2004-05 from Rs 24,844.48 crores (US $5.4 billions) during 2003-04.

The increase was over 11 per cent in dollar terms.

Agricultural and allied products showing a substantial increase in exports were rice, pulses, tobacco, spices, nuts and seeds, cashew, guar gum meal, castor oil and processed food items, an official release said.

Dairy and poultry products showed a record increase of over 65 per cent in dollar terms in 2004-05 compared to the previous fiscal.

Gems and jewellery exports rose by over 29 per cent to reach a level of 13.7 billion dollars in 2004-05 compared to 10 billion dollars in 2003-04.

Exports of chemicals and related products also showed an impressive growth of over 27 per cent having gone up from 9.9 billion dollars in 2003-04 to 12.6 billion dollars in 2004-05.

India emerged as a major exporters of petroleum products in 2004-05 with exports reaching a record high of 6.7 billion dollars, up by over 90 per cent from 3.5 billion dollars achieved in 2003-04.

Egypt's envoy kidnapped in Baghdad

2005-07-03T21:48:00.000-07:00

BAGHDAD: An Egyptian envoy expected to become Iraq's first Arab ambassador since its new Government took office was kidnapped in Baghdad, weeks after arriving in the country, diplomats said on Sunday.

Witnesses said gunmen accosted Ihab al-Sherif as he stopped to buy a newspaper late on Saturday, pistol-whipped him and accused him of being an ``American spy.''

The kidnapping could undermine U.S.-backed efforts to encourage Iraq's Arab neighbours to send high ranking diplomats to Baghdad.

The abduction occurred hours before U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales paid a heavily guarded surprise visit to Iraq. Mr. Gonzales praised Iraqis' commitment to democracy in the face of sustained deadly attacks by militants.

In violence on Sunday, a car bomb killed three Iraqi policemen north of Baghdad, while two U.S. soldiers were wounded in a suicide attack near a checkpoint in the volatile western city of Ramadi.

Also in Ramadi, a U.S. military helicopter caught fire, destroying the $13.5-million CH-47 Chinook and injuring one crewman, the U.S. military said on Sunday. No further details were released pending an investigation.

Two Egyptian diplomats said Mr. Al-Sherif was kidnapped late on Saturday in the Iraqi capital. He has been in Iraq since June 1.

Last month, the Egyptian Government said it would upgrade its mission in Iraq to full embassy status headed by an ambassador, which would have made Mr. Al-Sherif the first Arab ambassador to Iraq's new Government. — AP

Army called in MP for relief operations

2005-07-03T21:36:00.003-07:00

Katni, July 4. (UNI): The Army was called on Sunday to carry out relief and rescue operation in this rain-ravaged district to tackle the flood situation, as rains continued to lash the district throughout Sunday.

Collector Anupam Rajan said several colonies had been inundated by water.

Police, district administration, and social organisations were taking people from the food-affected areas to safer places in boats. Mr Rajan and Mayor Sandeep Jaiswal were surveying the areas since Saturday.

The district recorded 143 mm rainfall overnight and 500 mm in the past four days. The water-level has reached till first-storey of builidngs at several places.

The district headquarters has been cut off, while several villages in Meher tehsil have been surrounded by water.

The tehsil's Sonavari village has been evacuated and 300 people have been put up in schools. Three motorboats from Jabalpur have arrived in the tehsil to carry out rescue operations.

Madhya Pradesh Minister of State (Law and Parliamentary Affairs), Narottam Mishra, surveyed flood-affected Satna, Meher and Reewa.

The Jabalpur-Katni road is blocked due to excessive rains in Katni. Jabalpur had registered 2 inch rainfall by 8:30 hrs in the last 24 hours and 39.4 mm from 8:30 am to 5:30 pm on Sunday.

The district lashed by rains since July 1, has registered 173.3 mm rainfall.

Some low-lying areas in Jabalpur's Adharataal region, including Pushpak Nagar, Jaiprakash Nagar, Cheritaal, Chandal Bhata, were inundated.

Gujarat set to suffer more, toll crosses 130

2005-07-03T21:36:00.002-07:00

Ahmedabad, July 4 (PTI): Water has receded to some extent in flood-hit Gujarat but the Meteorological Department has forecast heavy rainfall in parts of the state even as the death-toll crossed 130.

The Meteorological (Met) department said there could be heavy- to-very-heavy rainfall at a few places in Gujarat till noon today while thundershowers are likey to occur in most parts of the state.
Heavy rains in the flood-affected areas could worsen the condition of the people and also affect the relief operations.

The state government has alloted Rs 260 crore to the collectors of four districts of Gujarat which are facing the maximum brunt of the flood and they have been asked to expedite the relief works.

Revenue Minister Kaushik Patel briefing reporters on Sunday said with a let up in rain and water receding, vehicular traffic in state and national highways have opened to some extent.

He said the administration was taking special care to prevent any outbreak of epidemic by sending a team of doctors to the flood-affected areas.

Patel said the power supply which was disrupted in over 4500 villages has now improved.

But telecommunication system in the flood-affected areas, including Ahmedabad-rural, Anand, Amreli, Bharuch, Nadiad and Vadodara is badly affected.

Child abuse under scanner

2005-07-03T21:36:00.001-07:00

The study will focus on sexual exploitation of schoolchildren in Chennai

CHENNAI: A study on sexual abuse of schoolchildren in Chennai is being undertaken by Tulir, a charitable organisation. The 9-month study has a grant from Save the Children, Sweden.

Any behaviour committed for sexual gratification by an older or powerful person is defined as child sexual abuse (CSA). The results of the study will be published and 3,000 copies of the report will be distributed across India. It will be the first published study that deals with children in south India and one of the four published studies in the country.

Studies in Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata suggested prevalence rates between 46 and 71 per cent, suggesting India might have the highest CSA rate in the world.

Without enough information, especially in south India, it is easy to overlook this issue, says Vidya Reddy, Tulir executive director. "People are using the lack of information to sweep the entire issue under the carpet. Indians do not want to discuss sexual issues. They know what is going on, but they would like to believe otherwise. Once the results of this study are released, the issue is out in the open and it is harder for people to deny it," she says.

Tulir's research targets XI standard students and involves an awareness session on the CSA and the purpose of the study, followed by an anonymous, self-conducted questionnaire.

Students will be given booklets on personal safety. Tulir hopes to show the extent of the problem and plans to use the feedback to create awareness and design effective prevention and intervention programmes. "Hopefully, schools will see their responsibility here and help us with this project," says Alankaar, a project facilitator.

Putin backs UN reform based on majority approval

2005-07-03T21:36:00.000-07:00

Moscow, July 4. (PTI): Russia will support UN reform based on majority approval of member nations and as long as the enlargement does not lead to a split in the world body, President Vladimir Putin said on Sunday.

Addressing a joint news conference after his informal summit with French President Jacques Chirac and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder in Russia's Kaliningrad enclave on Baltic Coast.

Putin underscored that Moscow would be willing to support UNSC enlargement as long as "it does not transform the apex world body into a discussion club," state-run Radio Mayak reported.

"Russia has taken a simple position - the UN reform should make the organisation more effective and cause no split among UN members. We shall back the decision which most UN member states will approve and does not transform the Security Council into a discussion club," Putin was quoted as saying by Radio Mayak.

Wants Germany, India in bigger council
He also strongly supported German candidacy for the enlarged UN Security Council.

"We will continue to support Germany's candidature for the permanent member of the Security Council," Putin declared.

Germany is one of the members of G-4 nations.

The group includes India, Brazil, and Japan who have launched a joint bid for permanent seats in the UN Security Council.

Earlier, Putin had backed India's candidature,

However, due to its strategic ally China's objection to Japan, the Kremlin has so far refrained from supporting the G-4 proposal.

Lord of the Rings star to play Pope

2005-07-02T07:09:00.000-07:00

Saturday, 02 July , 2005, 02:06

London: Lord of the Rings star Ian Holm will play Pope John Paul II in a TV biopic.

Ian, who played Bilbo Baggins in the Tolkien trilogy, will star in a four-hour mini-series for US channel CBS.

The 73-year-old actor will portray him from the time he was elected to the papacy in 1978 until his death, escaping an assassination attempt in 1981 and his diagnosis with Parkinson's disease.

A younger actor will play his earlier years, from his time as a student in Poland. Variety magazine said the script has been supervised by historians from the Vatican.

The film-makers have been granted exclusive access to St Peter's Square and its surroundings.

Britney to give birth in style!

2005-07-02T07:08:00.000-07:00

Saturday, 02 July , 2005, 12:24

London : Pop babe Britney Spears who will deliver her first child in three months, is planning to give birth in luxury.

She has reportedly reserved a room in a hospital in Scottsdale, Arizona as well as all adjacent rooms to ensure privacy.

"Britney wants white and yellow roses in the room when she gets there. Britney also wants all the nurses serving her to be given background checks," a source was quoted by Star magazine, as saying.

Michael still in title hunt, says Ralf Schumacher

2005-07-02T07:07:00.000-07:00

Saturday, 02 July , 2005, 17:24

Magny-Cours: Ralf Schumacher has had a rethink after writing off older brother Michael's chances of winning the Formula One title for the sixth year in a row.

The Toyota driver said at the French Grand Prix he believed the Ferrari ace could still take a record eighth crown after last month's U.S. Grand Prix tyre crisis played straight into the 36-year-old's hands.

Schumacher took 18 points from Canada and Indianapolis while Renault's championship leader Fernando Alonso did not score in either race.

After the seven Michelin teams withdrew before the start of the U.S. Grand Prix due to tyre safety concerns, Schumacher won a six-car 'race' while all of his championship rivals were sidelined.

The champion is now third overall with 34 points to Spaniard Alonso's 59. There are 10 races remaining.

"It's great for him, it puts him back into the possibility of going for the championship again if the next few races run well," said Ralf, chose crash in practice in Indianapolis triggered the Michelin furore.

Events at Magny-Cours on Friday also favoured Schumacher, with McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen picking up a 10-place penalty on the starting grid after suffering an engine failure in practice.

NEAREST RIVAL: The Finn is Alonso's nearest rival and has won three races so far.

"Kimi had an engine problem so that's going to help him (Schumacher) as well," said Ralf, eighth in the standings with 20 points."I didn't think (Michael could win the championship) but in the given circumstances, especially when nobody else scores, it's a totally different issue, isn't it?

"I still think under normal circumstances it's going to be difficult but who knows how many technical problems another guy might have," added the German.Ferrari's Schumacher has won the French Grand Prix seven times and said on Friday he believed he had a chance of victory again on Sunday.

In May, when Schumacher was 34 points behind Alonso, Ralf told Bild newspaper: "Ferrari can forget about this world championship."As much as I would delight in an eighth family title - it will no longer be."

Security is our biggest technology challenge: Gates

2005-07-02T07:04:00.000-07:00

Saturday, 02 July , 2005, 05:59

Singapore: Internet security is Microsoft's greatest challenge while developing mainstream technology to be able to talk to a computer is a frontier about to be crossed, company chairman Bill Gates revealed.

Delivering a wide-ranging lecture on technology to thousands of delegates at a Microsoft forum,Gates said giving instructions to a personal computer by voice would become mainstream in "three to four years".

Gates, who is also Microsoft's chief software architect, said the company was investing "tens of millions of dollars" annually on this technology, although he expected the computer keyboard would remain an important device.

Asked what was the biggest technology challenge for Microsoft apart from piracy, Gates identified security on the Internet, which he explained included privacy issues and controlling spam e-mails.

"The thing we are investing the most in is our work on security," Gates said, adding that users should feel more secure in giving out their credit card numbers and other information online.

"I think the security challenge certainly for the forseeable future will be the biggest thing."

Gates also said the "next big thing" on the information technology horizon was pushing the functions of the Internet to a higher level, such as making online searches faster and easier.

"The Internet is so popular today that we need to just keep evolving ... the way we navigate information -- we need to make it easier to find.

"People are very impressed about searches today but it's really quite poor compared to what it should be," Gates said.

He said searching for information on the web directs the user to a lot of links instead of giving out the information immediately.

"(A) higher level of understanding (by the computer) -- that's the biggest thing because it means you will write a lot less code and you'll find anything you want very quickly," he said.

Gates said the next 10 years would be "far more interesting" than the past 30 years because technology gains will change at a faster pace the way people work and live.

Common infr for Radio in 9 cities likely

2005-07-02T07:02:00.000-07:00

Saturday, 02 July , 2005, 16:28

Chennai: The Union Government, which allowed 20 per cent Foreign Direct Investment in private FM radio services, will create common infrastructure for FM channels in nine cities, including Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad, said a note prepared by the Information and Broadcasting Ministry.

A total of 48 FM channels will be available for bidding by private sector on the common infrastructure network created by the Government in these nine cities, it said.

The other cities where the common infrastructure would be created by the Central Government for FM channels include Delhi, Kolkota, Mumbai, Jaipur, Pune and Surat.

In Chennai and Delhi, six channels each would be available for biddings on phase-II of private FM Radio Broadcasting, after earmarking a total of seven channels (Chennai-3 and Delhi-4) for IGNOU and other educational institutions, it said.

Hyderabad and Bangalore would have the highest number of channels available for bidding at seven each, while Kolkota and Mumbai would have five FM radio channels for bidding, it said.

The Centre on Friday announced the second phase of the private FM radio broadcasting, replacing the existing licensing model with a revenue sharing regime.

While five channels will be available for bidding in Jaipur, another four would be put for bidding in Surat. In Pune, the number of channels available for bidding is three.

A total of 24 channels in these nine cities would be earmarked for IGNOU and other educational channels, it said.

Coke appoints new CEO of Indian bottling ops

2005-07-02T07:00:00.000-07:00

Saturday, 02 July , 2005, 16:38

New Delhi: US coke giant Coca Cola today appointed John Ustas as CEO of its bottling operations in its Indian subsidiary amid reports that the company's India President Sanjeev Gupta may quit in protest.

According to an announcement by the Atlanta-based company, Ustas has been given charge of the Company-Owned Bottling Operations (CBO) in India effective July one.

Ustas will replace Vipul Sourabh who will work with John "over the next several months to ensure a smooth transition," the announcement said.

Following the transition, Sourabh will move to another assignment within Cokes international bottling system.

When contacted Gupta told PTI, "as of now I have not resigned and I cannot comment about the future."

Sources in the know, however, say that Gupta might put in his papers any day owing to differences with the new management and its future business strategies.

Coca Cola India division comprises India, Sri Lanka, Bhutan and franchisees as well as bottling operations in India.

Pak's IT dream turns into nightmare

2005-07-02T06:58:00.000-07:00

Friday, 01 July , 2005, 19:59

Islamabad: The ongoing Internet breakdown in Pakistan has hit the country's dream of matching India's standards in the Information Technology (IT) and call centre business, as it damaged Pakistan's credibility with the international IT community, IT experts in the
country say.

According to a call centre owner, there are nearly 40 call centers in Pakistan employing 3000-3500 people. "We were expecting a 300 per cent growth taking the number of jobs to 35,000, which would have been 10 per cent of the Indian call center market. Now, the dream has turned into a nightmare. I am not worried about the loss of money or the business opportunity, but I am scared of the damage to the country's image in longer term. This has put question marks on the reliability of Pakistan's telecom industry for investment," The Nation quoted him
as saying.

The IT experts feel that the Internet failure has not only resulted in an estimated loss of 40-60 million dollars, it has cost thousands of future call center jobs and foreign investment.

Squarely blaming the Pakistan Telecom Company Limited (PTCL) for negligence and reluctance which led to the damage, the IT experts and call centre operators say that it might take at least two weeks for the damage to be rectified.

They say that the PTCL had neglected an offer by the IT sector to place a back up IT system.

According to the paper, if the ship, which the PTCL claims had sailed off Dubai, does not reach its destination by this Sunday morning, the deep-sea divers will have to wait for the following Sunday to locate the fault and repair it.

Falsifying PTCL's claim that a back-up Internet link was being provided through the V-SAT satellite with enhanced bandwidth, Furrukh Aslam, another call centre operator, said, "they are simply lying......we have had complete link down for the first three days while today on fourth day we are only having 10 per cent of the connectivity with a bad quality."

The paper quoted Wahaj-us-Siraj, an IT and Telecom expert, as saying: "It has been a criminal negligence on part of the PTCL as well as the government. They knew about the likelihood of such a fault in the cable that was the sole provider for the entire country's linkage to
the outside world."

Soul singer Luther Vandross dead

2005-07-02T06:55:00.000-07:00

Saturday, 02 July , 2005, 08:43

New York: Legendary American soul singer Luther Vandross died on Friday at the age of 54, two years after suffering a devastating stroke that left him debilitated for the rest of his life.

The Grammy Award-winning musical star died at the John F Kennedy Medical Center in Edison, in the eastern US state of New Jersey.

The artiste dominated the rhythm and blues world for more than 20 years, his 14 albums selling more than 25 million records and winning a total of eight Grammy awards in the latter part of his three-decade career.

Asian tsunami to become a television movie

2005-07-02T06:54:00.001-07:00

Saturday, 02 July , 2005, 04:41

Los Angeles: - US and British television networks have reportedly teamed up to make the first movie about the tsunami that devastated Asia last year killing 220,000 people.

The NBC channel and the US arm of Britain's ITV, Granada America, have agreed to make a drama focusing on a coastal orphanage in one of the countries battered by the December 26 catastrophe, Daily Variety said.

Producers of the film, which has not yet been given a title, are searching for a writer to pen the script ahead of the movie's expected 2006 premiere.

The tsunami, sparked by a massive earthquake off Indonesia, left 220,000 people dead in nations fringing the Indian Ocean.

Indian scientist wins World Meteorology Award

2005-07-02T06:54:00.000-07:00

Friday, 01 July , 2005, 21:37

New Delhi: Gurfran Beig of the Indian Institute of Meteorology, Pune, is among 18 international scientists to bag the World Meteorological award for research on temperature trends.

The Norbert Gerber-Mumm International Award for 2005 by the World Meteorological organization in Geneva was given to the scientist on Wednesday for his research paper 'Review of Mesospheric Temperature Trends'.

The award is given annually to an original scientific paper on the influence of meteorology on various fields or influences of other fields on meteorology.

Beig's team was involved in a comprehensive review of long-term trends in the temperature from 50 to 100 km in the atmosphere due to human induced effects like greenhouse gases. The research paper was published in 2003 in the 'Reviews of Geophysics'.

Hyderabadi man makes ‘world’s tallest tricycle

2005-07-02T06:53:00.000-07:00

Saturday, 02 July , 2005, 12:05

Hyderabad: What is claimed to be the world's tallest tricycle, measuring 41 feet and seven inches tall, equivalent to a four-storey building, has rolled out of a workshop in Hyderabad.

Sudhakar, who has gained fame for designing different shapes of cars, mobikes, bicycles and has entered the Limca Book of Records for creating the smallest double decker bus, this time created the ''world's tallest tricycle.''

He made it move 50 metre using a specially trained rider, Ahmed, in the presence of the media, government officials and the general public.

He wants to enter the Guinness Book of World Records.

‘Sethu project is a disaster in the making’

2005-07-02T06:48:00.001-07:00

Saturday, 02 July , 2005, 15:18

New Delhi: The Sethusamudram Shipping Canal Project (SSCP) is "a disaster in the making," warns a leading geologist. "There are at least six reasons why the SSCP should be put on hold," says C P Rajendran of the Centre for Earth Science Studies, Thiruvananthapuram.

"The open question is that whether the deepening activities would create a new deep water route for a future tsunami to reach the west coast with a devastating impact," Rajendran said.

The cyclonic storms are a major risk factor in the region. "Another question is how would the cyclones rework the dredged material to be dumped at various sites, although fortified with embankments," he said.

He said, "With limited availability of borings, geologists were not certain if the substratum of the region was soft or hard, a crucial information that is required to decide on the safe disposal of the dredged material."

"The pollution that would be created by ships in such a narrow channel, the prospect of their grounding or even a collision of such ships containing coal or oil and the ensuing ecological disaster are other dangers," Rajendran warned.

India is a responsible nuclear power: PM

2005-07-02T06:48:00.000-07:00

Saturday, 02 July , 2005, 13:20

New Delhi: Asserting that India is a responsible nuclear power, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday underlined the need for blocking any further unauthorised proliferation of nuclear weapons.

Addressing the 2004 batch of IFS probationers at his residence, he said India was ready to cooperate with like-minded countries in this regard.

"We are nuclear power, .... A responsible nuclear power. We have declared no first use," he said.

On the issue of economic diplomacy overcoming the problems with India's neighbours, the Prime Minister said there were large number of economic complementarities and such processes cannot be stopped.

20 killed as fire breaks out at cracker factory in TN

2005-07-02T06:42:00.000-07:00

Saturday, 02 July , 2005, 15:28

Madurai: At least 20 persons were killed and 15 injured in a fire accident at a crackers manufacturing unit at Meenampatti, near Sivakasi, in Virudhunagar district of Tamil Nadu on Saturday afternoon.

The fire took place at Vadivel fireworks factory. The victims were all factory workers. The injured were rushed to the government hospital in Sivakasi. The flame was visible at least five km from the accident spot.

Torrential rains claim 123 lives in Gujarat

2005-07-02T06:41:00.000-07:00

Saturday, 02 July , 2005, 18:14

Ahmedabad: With torrential rains continuing unabated in Gujarat for
the seventh day on Saturday, the death toll has risen to 123 even as
the Army, Navy and Air Force personnel, that were carrying out rescue
operations, have evacuated more than 2.5 lakh people.

Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil conducted an aerial survey of some
parts of Ahmedabad district on Saturday morning, but he had to cut
short his survey of the worst affected areas of Vadodara and other
districts due to bad weather.

"The death toll due to rains has reached 123 and more then 2.5 lakh
people have been evacuated. The state government has appealed to the
Centre to send more army personnel," government spokesperson Kaushik
Patel said.

The situation is likely to worsen as the Meteorological department has
forecast heavy rains on Saturday and Sunday.

Another spell of heavy showers across the state can aggravate the
matter as most of the rivers and dams are overflowing.

Army, Navy, Air Force and Rapid Action force are working
round-the-clock to provide help to the flood-affected people.