Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Mid Day International News

Mid Day International News

Alexander the Great poisoned by deadly river bug

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A deadly river bacterium found in river Styx, Greece, killed Alexander the Great, rather than a fever brought on by an all-night drinking binge in ancient Babylon.

Alexander fell ill during such a party at the palace of Nebuchadnezzar II in Babylon, in modern Iraq.

He complained of a "sudden, sword-stabbing agony in the liver" and had to be taken to bed, where over the next 12 days he developed a high fever and excruciating pains to his joints, says a Telegraph report from the US.

His condition worsened, he fell into a coma, and is believed to have died June 10-11, 323 BC - just shy of his 33rd birthday.

Earlier, historians speculated that Alexander's death was brought about by heavy drinking, typhoid, malaria, acute pancreatitis, West Nile fever or poisoning - either accidental or deliberate.

However, Stanford University experts have reasons to believe instead that he may have died from calicheamicin, a dangerous compound produced by the bacterium.

"It is extremely toxic," said Antoinette Hayes, co-author of the Stanford research paper and a toxicologist at Pfizer Research in the US.

Stanford researchers believe the Macedonian king, who conquered vast swaths of territory between Greece and India, could have been poisoned with a vial of water from the Styx, says a Telegraph report from the U.S.

The ancient Greeks maintained that Styx waters were so poisonous that they would dissolve any vessel, except those made of the hooves of horses or mules.

The river was the mythical entrance to the underworld but is believed to have been based on a real stream now known as the Mavroneri, or Black Water, which springs from mountains on the Peloponnesian peninsula.

"Notably, some of Alexander's symptoms and course of illness seem to match ancient Greek myths associated with the Styx.


Iranian President Ahmadinejad survives 'bomb' attack

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Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Wednesday survived an attempt on his life, according to reports.

The website khabaronline.ir reported that the president's car was about 100 yards away from a bomb attack on his convoy.

Al Arabiya television said an attacker threw a bomb at Ahmadinejad's convoy before being detained.

Ahmadinejad, who was travelling from the airport in the western city of Hamadan to give a speech in a sports arena, was unharmed and addressed the rally after the attack.

The Telegraph quoted the website as reporting that the president's car was about 100 yards away from the site of the blast, and added that there was no information about injured people.

However, an official from Ahmadinejad's media office said that the explosion was from a firecracker.

Meanwhile, state-run Press TV quoted a source, saying that Iran's presidential office has rejected as false the reports of grenade attack on Iranian President.

The source denied the reports, saying no such attack took place.

Meat of cloned cow offspring enters British food chain

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Meat from the offspring of a cloned cow has entered the British food chain, authorities have admitted for the first time.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) said that meat from the slaughtered three-year old bull was sold and eaten last year. It is thought the meat, likely to have ended up in a pie or burger, was sold in Scotland.

The admission comes despite two days of strong denials from both the FSA and the dairy industry that no milk or meat from cloned animals or their offspring had ever entered the food chain, reports the Telegraph.

Food from a cloned animal or the offspring of a cloned animal is illegal, according to the FSA.

Though there was widespread disagreement between the FSA and Brussels over the interpretation of the law with European officials - in charge of setting all British food safety laws - saying it was "probable" that thousands of cheese and meat products on sale in British supermarkets had come from animals that were derived from clones.

An EU official said that because there were no restrictions on importing semen which had come from a cloned animal, it was possible that thousands of pigs and cows in Europe were the offspring of cloned animals.

Millions of shots of semen are imported into Britain every year and the Department for Agriculture confirmed it did not monitor whether they were from cloned animals or not.

There is no evidence that eating milk or meat from an animal that has been cloned or its offspring is detrimental to human health but animal welfare campaigners argue the cloning process is very harmful for the animals themselves and produces sheep and cows with a shortened lifespan.

David Bowles, a spokesman for the Royal Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA), which opposes cloning, said: "I am horrified that meat from a clone has already entered the food chain, without us knowing about it.

"Some unsuspecting person has eaten this meat. And we just don't know whether it is harmful for human health but we do know there are serious welfare issues. Cloned meat should not be on sale."

The row over cloning erupted after an unnamed farmer claimed in an American newspaper that he had illegally sold milk from the offspring of a cloned cow.

This is yet to be proved but Holstein UK, responsible for registering all pedigree cows and bulls on farms, has confirmed that there are 97 calves in a herd in Scotland - all derived from the offspring of a cloned cow.

All the animals ultimately come from Vandyk-K Integ Paradise 2, a cloned cow in America. She was cloned using cells from the ear of a Holstein, a milking cow about five years ago.


Non-stop, 32-hour yoga sets Guinness record

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A Canadian yoga teacher Tuesday claimed to have created a Guinness record by performing yoga non-stop for 32 hours.

The current Guinness Record of marathon yoga is 29 hours and four minutes.

But yoga instructor Yasmin Fudakowska-Gow, 28, Tuesday claimed that she has completed her 32-hour yoga marathon at her Om West yoga studio in Pointe Claire Village on the Island of Montreal.

Pending Guinness World Record certification, she said, she holds the record for the longest yoga marathon. Guinness records need at least six people to be present at the venue of the event all the time to authenticate them.

During her yoga marathon, the Canadian also raised money for the Stephen Lewis Foundation which is working to combat AIDS in Africa.

Before undertaking the yoga marathon, she completed 108 surya namaskars, or sun salutations, for 108 consecutive days.

"August 3 is my final day of this 108x108 project. It has been an unbelievable adventure so far and a profoundly transformational experience. I have learned from so many great yoga teachers," she said.

"To complete this journey, on August 2 and 3, I am exploring what it would be like to do a prolonged practice and in doing so, have decided to challenge the Guinness World Record for longest yoga marathon, which is 29 hours and 4 minutes. This record has never been attempted by woman nor by a Canadian. My goal is 32 hours,'' the Canadian said.

Like the US, yoga has also become very popular among Canadians in recent years. Major cities like Toronto and Montreal boast a large number of yoga centres.


British teacher quits class to turn porn star

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A British woman has left working as a teacher to produce and star in explicit adult films. Her former students who stumbled upon her videos have encouraged her, with one of them saying: "Best career move. Well done."

Liselle Bailey left teaching a year ago to be a part of adult films. She used to teach English and Drama at Grindon Hall Christian School in Sunderland.

After four years she quit, hoping to focus on her dream of an acting career.

The Sun reported that she was offered a job making porn films for women last year.

She told Love It! magazine: "With each film I made, my confidence grew. Telling the actors which positions and sex acts I wanted wasn't difficult. I really was a natural."

Now, many of her ex-students have spotted her hardcore videos on the internet.

They have praised her and posted messages of support online.

A former pupil called Daniel wrote: "Love you, Mrs Bailey. Good luck on the new job."

Another wrote: "Best English teacher ever. Best career move. Well done."

9/11 mosque project clears major hurdle

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The much-debated mosque is set to open near the Ground Zero, the site of WTC towers which were downed by Al-Qaeda, after it received green signal on Tuesday from a city panel which voted 9-0 in favour of the 'controversial' construction.

The debate and controversy about a building a mosque on the Ground Zero site has been raging in the US for several months dividing New Yorkers, families of the victims of 9/11, civil society organisations and politicians.

Last week, leading Jewish organisation in the US, the Anti-Defamation League, came out strongly against the construction of a mosque and Islamic centre near the site where the twin towers of the World Trade Centre collapsed on 9/11.

The Landmarks Preservation Commission, the city panel voted 9-0 for the construction to begin. "But ultimately this is not a question of rights, but a question of what is right. In our judgement, building an Islamic Centre in the shadow of the World Trade Centre will cause some victims more pain unnecessarily and that is not right," the League said in a statement.

At least 3,000 people were killed in September 11, 2001 when two aircrafts were crashed into the WTC twin towers in New York by Al-Qaeda terrorists. Parties that oppose the building a mosque, which will be called Cordoba House, insist this project us inappropriate since the terrorist attacks were carried out by extremist Muslims.

Last month, former Alaskan government joined the fray by speaking out against the mosque. "Twin Towers site is too raw," Palin wrote on twitter. "Peace-seeking Muslim, please understand, Ground Zero mosque is UNNECESSARY provocation," she tweeted. "Please reject it in interest of healing."

In May, however, a New York community board approved the building of a 13-storey mosque and Islamic cultural centre close to the site but the project still faces resistance from some groups. The plan is being pushed by a Kuwaiti-born imam, Feisal Abdul Rauf and will cost USD 100 million.

"My colleagues and I are the anti-terrorists. We are the people who want to embolden the vast majority of Muslims who hate terrorism to stand up to the radical rhetoric. Our purpose is to interweave America's Muslim population into the mainstream society," Imam Rauf wrote in the New York Daily News in May. But not everyone is convinced.

After the commission voted, several members of the audience shouted "Shame on you!" and "Disgrace!" The New York Times reported. One woman carried a sign reading, "Don't Glorify Murders of 3,000; No 9/11 Victory Mosque."

On Tuesday, Rick A Lazio, a Republican candidate for governor, appeared at the vote, in an auditorium at Pace University near City Hall, to oppose the project, according to The Times. Lazio called for an investigation into the finances of the group spearheading the project, the Cordoba Initiative.

"Let's have transparency," Lazio said. "If they're foreign governments, we ought to know about it. If they're radical organisations, we ought to know about it." He added, "This is not about religion. It's about this particular mosque."

On the other hand, the decision also has its set of supporters. "To cave to popular sentiment would be to hand a victory to the terrorists," said Mayor Michael Bloomberg, standing with religious leaders in front of the Statue of Liberty, following today's voting. Bloomberg has been supporting the project since it was first proposed several months ago.

"I think it's fair to say if somebody was going to try, on that piece of property, to build a church or a synagogue, nobody would be yelling and screaming," he said in May. "And the fact of the matter is that Muslims have a right to do it, too."

The Islamic center will have a swimming pool, basketball court, meeting rooms, a 500-seat auditorium, banquet facilities, theatrical programming, art exhibitions and cooking classes.

Sandra Bullock tops Forbes list of highest paid actresses

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It may have been a rough year for superstar Sandra Bullock on the personal front, but she has come out on top as she has become the highest paid actress in Hollywood.

The Academy award winning actress saw off competition from Reese Witherspoon and Cameron Diaz to top Forbes magazine's best-paid actress list, taking in USD 56 million between June 2009 and June 2010.

The Miss Congeniality star's career is at an all-time high despite her personal woes, she separated from husband of five years Jesse James after he confessed to cheating on her. Securing Bullock's top spot were her roles in The Proposal and The Blind Side, which won the star her first Oscar last year (09), for best leading actress.

Witherspoon and Diaz followed, each earning USD 32 million. The pair is followed by Jennifer Aniston in fourth place with USD 27 million and 'Sex and the City' star Sarah Jessica Parker, who ranks fifth on the list with USD 25 million.

Forbes editors looked at income from film roles in addition to money that stars might have earned from perfume deals, clothing lines and ad campaigns.

Italian PM caught between the sheets

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Berlusconi at the centre of sex scandal, accused of four-in-a-bed romps with high profile escorts

Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi was at the centre of allegations, as he took part in four-in-a-bed sex sessions.

Woe is me: Escort Maria Teresa De Nicolo alleged she had a romp with Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and two other women.
File Pic

Berlusconi (73), is due to have a working dinner with David Cameron today and the two will then give a joint press conference -- with aides of the Italian fearing potentially embarrassing questions.

Last summer the media tycoon was embroiled in a scandal when it emerged escorts had been among guests invited to parties he had hosted at his official residence in Rome.

Group sex claims
In a statement to prosecutors by escort Maria Teresa De Nicolo (38), known as Terry, was published by Italian newspaper La Repubblica, which revealed the group sex claim.

De Nicolo's involvement in the parties last year was known but her claim that she and two other escorts were in bed with Berlusconi had not been known.

In her statement she said, "In the bed there was me, two girls from Rome and Berlusconi."

She added how the scene had unfolded at Berlusconi's Palazzo Grazioli residence in Rome.

De Nicolo had been invited to the party by businessman Gianpaolo Tarantini, who is at the centre of a corruption probe in his hometown of Bari in southern Italy.

Details of escorts attending Berlusconi parties emerged after intercepted telephone calls between Tarantini and others were leaked in which he spoke of the girls.

De Nicolo described how Tarantini had called her and given her 30 minutes notice to get ready for a flight from Bari to Rome and that he had said, "Tonight we are going to dinner with Berlusconi."

She added, "I thought it was a joke. Then he gave me the details and told me to 'dress sexy'."

In her statement she described how she was driven to Palazzo Grazioli and was surprised at the lack of security.

De Nicolo said there were fifteen girls at the party and she added that at the evening Tarantini had 'made it clear he wanted me to stay the night.'

Lavish gifts
She went on, "I spent some hours sleeping alone and some hours with the girls, these two from Rome and Berlusconi," before adding that when she left the next morning he had given her jewellery as a gift.

Her statement also added how Tarantini had given her 1,000 euros (Rs 62,000) as well as paying for her travel expenses.

Last year another escort Patrizia D'Addario, revealed how she had also spent the night with Berlusconi and she later released a tape in which he told her to 'touch herself during sex.'

D'Addario later published a book in which she recounted her time at Palazzo Grazioli.

She also praised Berlusconi for his sexual stamina saying he "deserved a place in the Guinness Book of Records."

Today there was no one immediately available at Berlusconi's office to comment on the claims, which also come ahead of a confidence vote on junior justice minister Giacomo Caliendo who has been questioned in a corruption probe.

Berlusconi has also lost his majority in parliament after he threw his Party of Freedom ally Gianfranco Fini out of his party pushing his centre right government coalition to the brink of crisis.


Naomi Campbell preps for war crimes testimony

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The spotlight in Charles Taylor's war crimes trial shifts to supermodel Naomi Campbell when she testifies about an uncut diamond he allegedly sent to her room after they met at a 1997 dinner.

Prosecutors say the feisty model's evidence will disprove the former Liberian president's claim that he never possessed rough diamonds, but Taylor's lawyer says it is "nothing but a cheap publicity stunt."

"Already the public gallery, we are told, is packed out. It has never been the case throughout the proceedings," said defence lawyer Courtenay Griffiths.

"It (the media attention) will bring to the public mind again all the negative things said about Charles Taylor over the years," he claimed of the prosecution's motive.

Taylor's defence has applied to the Special Court for Sierra Leone for a last-minute delay of 40-year-old Campbell's testimony, saying they had not been given a summary of her evidence and could not prepare a response.

Prosecutors claim that Taylor (62), had men deliver a so-called 'blood diamond' to Campbell's room after he met the model at a celebrity dinner hosted by then South African president Nelson Mandela in 1997.

It is relevant because Taylor, accused of seeking to "take political and physical control of Sierra Leone in order to exploit its abundant natural resources ... diamonds," has denied ever dealing in or possessing rough diamonds.

"Campbell is a material witness ... as it was to her that the accused chose to give the diamond he supposedly did not have," said a prosecution filing.

Campbell's former agent Carole White and actress Mia Farrow, who both attended the dinner, are to testify about the late-night gift next Monday.

White claims she was present when the diamond was delivered, while Farrow says Campbell told her about it the next morning over breakfast.

Campbell herself has refused to talk to prosecutors, citing fears for her family's safety, which prompted them to get a court subpoena for her testimony.

A spokesman for the court said more than 200 journalists from around the world had sought accreditation for Thursday's hearing.

Taylor has been on trial in The Hague since 2008 on 11 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity for his alleged role in the civil war in Sierra Leone -- accused of arming rebels in return for illegally mined diamonds.


Indonesia's porn scandal bodes ill for censorship

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Indonesian journalists got a bit of a shock yesterday, when they were treated to an X-rated video courtesy of the government.

Computer monitors outside the parliament press office, screened hardcore porn for ten minutes before being shut down by security staff.

General Nining Indra said that the unscheduled screening was likely caused by a member of staff trying to access a porn site on the building's computer system. The House Speaker, Marzuki Alie, told reporters that the guilty party would be punished.

The incident comes as internet service providers in Indonesia " the world's most populous Muslim nation
prepare for a ban on online porn. The block is due to come into force next week as Ramadan begins.

But while the country's information minister, Tifatul Sembiring, has announced the ban, he says he doesn't know how to implement it.

"It's really a hard thing to do in technical terms. For me, it's almost an impossible task," he said.


Posted by Harshad at 7:35 AM

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