Refreshing News

Last man on the Moon backs Mitt Romney's race to White House orbit

2012-01-28T19:38:00.000-08:00

Luminaries of America's space industry, including the last man on the Moon, are pushing Mitt Romney towards the final frontier in the Republican presidential race.

Apollo 17 moonwalker Gene Cernan

In an open letter endorsing Mr Romney's candidacy, veterans including Apollo 17 moonwalker Gene Cernan, first space shuttle pilot Bob Crippen and former head of Nasa Mike Griffin, feted him as the only contender capable of reversing the "disarray" wreaked on Nasa by President Obama.

Their boost comes after several days of campaigning by the Republican hopefuls on Florida's Space Coast, a region that thrived during Nasa's glory days but which is now facing economic gloom following the retirement of the space shuttle last year and confusion over what will succeed it.

On Friday, Mr Romney admitted to a crowd at Cape Canaveral - home to Nasa's Kennedy Space Centre - that if elected, he would assemble expertise to help chart a new course for the space programme. Mr Gingrich said that he already had one in mind: colonizing the Moon by the end of his second term as president.

"Restoring the US space programme to greatness will require the leadership, management skill, and commitment to American exceptionalism possessed by only one candidate in this race: Mitt Romney," Mr Cernan and his associates stated in the letter, saying that their favoured candidate "will produce results instead of empty promises."

They added: "We have watched with dismay as President Obama dismantled the structure that was guiding both the government and commercial space sectors, while providing no purpose or vision or mission. This failure of leadership has thrust the space programme into disarray and triggered a dangerous erosion of our technical workforce and capabilities. In short, we have a space programme unworthy of a great nation."

How I woke up to the untruths of Barack Obama

2012-01-28T19:35:00.000-08:00

The President's State of the Union address was as weaselly as any politician's could be.

President Obama delivers his State of the Union address

When I happened to wake up in the middle of the night last Wednesday and caught the BBC World Service’s live relay of President Obama’s State of the Union address to Congress, two passages had me rubbing my eyes in disbelief.

The first came when, to applause, the President spoke about the banking crash which coincided with his barnstorming 2008 election campaign. “The house of cards collapsed,” he recalled. “We learned that mortgages had been sold to people who couldn’t afford or understand them.” He excoriated the banks which had “made huge bets and bonuses with other people’s money”, while “regulators looked the other way and didn’t have the authority to stop the bad behaviour”. This, said Obama, “was wrong. It was irresponsible. And it plunged our economy into a crisis that put millions out of work.”

I recalled a piece I wrote in this column on January 29, 2009, just after Obama took office. It was headlined: “This is the sub-prime house that Barack Obama built”. As a rising young Chicago politician in 1995, no one campaigned more actively than Mr Obama for an amendment to the US Community Reinvestment Act, legally requiring banks to lend huge sums to millions of poor, mainly black Americans, guaranteed by the two giant mortgage associations, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

It was this Act, above all, which let the US housing bubble blow up, far beyond the point where it was obvious that hundreds of thousands of homeowners would be likely to default. Yet, in 2005, no one more actively opposed moves to halt these reckless guarantees than Senator Obama, who received more donations from Fannie Mae than any other US politician (although Senator Hillary Clinton ran him close).

A later passage in Obama’s speech, when he hailed the way his country’s energy future has been transformed by the miracle of shale gas, met with a storm of applause. Not only would this give the US energy security for decades, creating 600,000 jobs, but it could now go all out to exploit its gas and oil reserves (more applause). Yet this was the man who in 2008 couldn’t stop talking about the threat of global warming, and was elected on a pledge to make the US only the second country in the world, after Britain, to commit to cutting its CO2 emissions from fossil fuels by 80 per cent within 40 years.

Even more telling than his audience’s response to this, however, was what happened when Obama referred briefly to the need to develop “clean energy on enough public land to power three million homes”. But no mention now of vast numbers of wind turbines – those props beside which he constantly chose to be filmed back in 2008. No harking back to his boast that “renewable energy” would create “four million jobs”. And even to this sole fleeting reminder of what, four years ago, was his flagship policy the response of Congress was a deafening silence.

A few months after Obama entered the White House, I suggested here that the slogan on which he was elected – “Yes we can” – seemed to have changed to “No we can’t”. It was already obvious that, having won election as an ideal Hollywood version of what “the first black President” should look and sound like, he was in reality no more than a vacuum. His speech last week was as weaselly as any politician’s performance could be, not least in its references to the sub-prime scandal.

But on no issue has this been more obvious than political America’s wholesale retreat from the great fantasy of global warming – which leaves Britain as the only country committed to the insanity of cutting “carbon emissions” by four-fifths in less than four decades. President Obama and the rest of the world have moved on.

UN envoy consigns Iranian exiles to 'prison’ in a shameful deal with Tehran

The week before Christmas, I reported on what appeared to be a fast-looming tragedy. In Iraq, 3,300 unarmed Iranian exiles, who had lived since the 1980s at Camp Ashraf, a neat town they built in the desert near the Iranian border, were being threatened with massacre on December 31.

The threat was issued by Iraq’s prime minister Nouri al-Maliki, acting in conjunction with Iran’s murderous Revolutionary Guards, who regard the People’s Mujahideen of Iran (the PMOI), part of the National Council for Resistance in Iran, as their most hated enemies. As the deadline neared, following intense diplomatic activity, not least by the US government (which gave a written guarantee of protection to each of the Ashraf residents in 2003, in return for the surrender of their arms), the UN signed an agreement with the Iraqi government, brokered by the UN’s special representative in Iraq, Martin Kolber, a former German diplomat.

The Ashraf residents would be transferred to Camp Liberty, a former US base covering 25 square miles near Baghdad, from where the UN would arrange their transfer to third countries. On Christmas Day, this was welcomed by the US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton.

It then emerged, however, that the 3,300 exiles would only be permitted to occupy a tiny corner of Camp Liberty, barely quarter of a mile square, which had been completely looted, was without running water and around which the Iraqis were erecting a 15ft concrete wall. They would not be allowed to bring vehicles or personal belongings, or leave the camp. Far from being offered a safe haven, it seemed, they were to await their fate crammed into what the European Council last week denounced as “a prison”, watched inside and out by armed Iraqi and Iranian guards.

As scandalous as anything in the past month has been the part played by the UN’s Mr Kolber who, far from protesting at this betrayal, met in Baghdad with the Iranian ambassador, himself a senior Revolutionary Guards commander. After the meeting he announced first that 750, then 1,250, of the exiles were willing to return to Iran. There is nothing they could dread more, since they know that they would either be imprisoned or killed. But Kobler’s claim has been trumpeted by Tehran as a victory, and the deadly impasse remains.

General David Phillips, the former head of the US Military Police, who gave the Ashraf residents those personal guarantees of their safety, has expressed his anguish at these developments. He has now been joined in protesting at the betrayal by an array of distinguished international figures, including Rudy Giuliani, the former mayor of New York.

But on what authority could a UN official become party to this inhuman deal? And why does our Government appear to condone what is going on? The Foreign Office recently confirmed to me that they still regard the PMOI as terrorists, despite being told in 2008 that they must remove it from their list of proscribed terrorist organisations, when Lord Chief Justice Philips ruled that they had been unable to produce a shred of evidence to justify this. What dark game are they all playing – in our name?

US Secret Service probes bullet-ridden Obama image

2012-01-28T06:15:00.000-08:00

The US Secret Service is investigating the origins of a photo on an Arizona police officer's Facebook page that shows a group of armed youths posing in the desert with what appears to be a bullet-ridden image of President Barack Obama on a T-shirt.

Max Milien, a Secret Service spokesman, said on Friday that the agency was looking into the picture taken of seven youths, four of them toting guns, that turned up on the Facebook page of Sergeant Pat Shearer of the Peoria, Arizona, police department.

"Any time information is brought to our attention where an individual or a group of individuals expresses unusual direction of interest in one of our protectees, we conduct appropriate follow-up," said Milien.

He said individuals have a right of freedom of speech, but "we certainly have the right and duty to speak to individuals to determine what their intent is”.

The Peoria police also said they were conducting an internal inquiry into whether the officer's actions violated any department policy. Peoria is a suburb west of Phoenix.

The department was informed of the situation by the Secret Service early on Thursday afternoon, a spokesman said.

The photo, which was shown on local TV with the youths' faces blanked out, has since been removed from Shearer's Facebook page.

In an interview with a local television station, Shearer said the picture was taken by him, and he did not feel it was "that big of a deal”. He called it a "political statement”.

He told the station he stands by Obama and would give up his life for him.

"It's not like they (the youths) were going to go out and shoot the President," Shearer said.

The 25-year veteran officer has not been placed on administrative leave, Peoria police spokesman Jay Davies said.

He could face a range of disciplinary action if found to be in violation of department's policy governing use of social and electronic media.

That police states: "Employees shall not post, transmit, reproduce, and/or disseminate information (text, pictures, video, audio, etc.) to the Internet or any other forum (public or private) that would tend to discredit or reflect unfavourably upon the department or any of the department's employees."

Davies declined to discuss specific details of the department's investigation.

Danielle Airey, a Peoria Unified School District spokeswoman, confirmed that one of the youths in the picture is a district high school student but did not know about the others.

She declined comment on whether any action has been taken against the student.

"Our first step really is working with authorities as they conduct their investigations," she said.

Obama seeks to rally Democrats to election-year fight

2012-01-28T06:13:00.000-08:00

President Barack Obama vowed on Friday to push back hard against Republicans who try to obstruct his election-year proposals on taxes and jobs, as he sought to rally congressional Democrats and move past a period of strained relations.

Wrapping up a cross-country tour to promote a populist agenda laid out in this week's State of the Union address, Obama hammered home a reelection campaign appeal for greater economic fairness and called on fellow Democrats to close ranks with him.

Obama, who must convince voters to give him a second term despite a fragile economy and high unemployment, used his speech to a Democratic lawmakers' retreat in Maryland to turn up the heat on their Republican opponents.

Republicans accuse him of pursuing the "politics of envy" and have assailed his State of the Union proposals, including higher taxes on wealthier Americans.

"Where they obstruct, where they're unwilling to act, where they're more interested in party than they are in country ... then we've got to call them out on it," Obama said to loud applause. "We've got to push them. We can't wait. We can't be held back."

The White House believes that by casting Obama as a champion of the middle class, he can tap into voter resentment over income inequality and Wall Street excess, while painting the Republicans as the party beholden to the rich.

But Obama's economic proposals are unlikely to make headway in a deeply divided Congress, where Republicans control the House of Representatives and the president's legislative agenda remains stalled.

Pledging to "push hard" for his proposal that people earning more than $1 million a year pay a minimum of 30 percent in tax, Obama dismissed Republican criticism this was class warfare.

"Nobody envies rich people. Everybody wants to be rich ... the question is, are we creating opportunity for everybody?"

Relations between Obama and Democratic lawmakers suffered after Republicans won the House in the 2010 congressional elections, with some Democrats complaining Obama had made too many concessions to his political opponents.

But ties have improved in recent months as Obama has taken a more combative line toward Republicans over taxes and jobs and has drawn a stark contrast with Republican presidential hopefuls vying to face him in the November election.

Starting his appearance with a standing ovation from the audience, Obama thanked the House Democrats for giving him a compact disc in which they all performed a rendition of Al Green's 'I'm so in Love with you.'"

Former Tenn. Officer Won't Face Drug Charges

2012-01-28T05:44:00.000-08:00

Cop who admitted to snorting hydrocodone on the job, including in his cruiser, won’t face criminal charges 'because his admission of drug use to police investigators couldn't be used against him in a criminal case.'

The DA said Josh West won't be prosecuted because his admission of drug use to investigators couldn't be used against him in a criminal case

A Cleveland police officer who resigned this month was so addicted to hydrocodone he was acquiring the drugs in uniform and snorting the crushed pills in his cruiser, an investigation report shows.

Officer Josh West resigned Jan. 6 during an internal affairs investigation in which he admitted he was addicted to hydrocodone, a morphinelike painkiller, the report states.

Steve Bebb, district attorney for the 10th Judicial District, said Tuesday that West will not be prosecuted because his admission of drug use to police investigators couldn't be used against him in a criminal case.

"As I understand it, our total proof would be two straws which may or may not be drug-related," Bebb said. "He's probably addicted to painkillers; he's lost his job; he's had his picture plastered everywhere, and I just think he's been punished enough."

West could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

The Chattanooga Times Free Press obtained the internal affairs investigation report under the state's open records laws.

Cleveland Police Department Chief Wes Snyder said in an email that a Bradley County deputy first raised suspicions about West, who was suspended with pay while an investigation was started.

West admitted to investigators that he had been taking prescribed hydrocodone for back and neck pain since January 2011, the report stated. Asked why he had not informed his supervisor about the drug use, he said he didn't know he was required to do so.

He said he sometimes took a higher dosage than prescribed, and admitted he sometimes crushed the pills and snorted them. Authorities say snorting increases a pill's effect.

Sometimes he ran out of pills, West said, and "borrowed" more from a friend, Brad Delk, the report stated. According to the report, Delk's criminal history includes charges of possessing drugs and drug paraphernalia.

Delk could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

West admitted that he sometimes "borrowed" pills while on duty and in uniform, according to the report.

"Officer West would make regular visits to Brad Delk's residence on duty and off duty to trade hydrocodone. Officer West would perform these transactions while other people were present at Delk's residence as well," according to the report.

A search of West's city police cruiser turned up suspected hydrocodone pills, other pills and straws used to snort the crushed drugs, the report states.

He was found to have violated departmental policies against alcohol and narcotics use and addiction, unlawful conduct, improper association and failing to comply with policy and procedures.

West had worked for the department since November 2007 and was on medical leave from June 7, 2010, to Aug. 15, 2010, according to records with the Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission.

Snyder said West had passed a drug test months earlier, and that West had good evaluations except for a three-day suspension some months ago for mishandling a call on a domestic situation.

West's case isn't the first instance of Cleveland officers misusing prescription drugs.

In late 2008, an off-duty Cleveland officer who was high on pills shot another officer in the hand. Eventually, three officers admitted abusing hydrocodone while two of them also were prosecuted and jailed for having sex with teenage girls.

Active duty cop: ‘The war on drugs is a war on people’

2012-01-28T05:39:00.000-08:00

Active Duty Cop: "The war on drugs is a war on people. I did not get in law enforcement to destroy a person’s future because that person had marijuana or a pill in their pocket. Why would you want to destroy that person’s future and cause them great harm because of that? It’s not worth it.”

An active duty police officer who asked not to be named threw down the gauntlet over the part of his job he hates most: the drug war.

“I did not get in law enforcement to destroy a person’s future because that person had marijuana or a pill in their pocket,” the officer explained. “Why would you want to destroy that person’s future and cause them great harm because of that? It’s not worth it.”

Like many Americans, the reality of the drug war was was nothing like what he’d been taught to believe in his youth. But statistics like a citizen being arrested for drugs every 19 seconds in 2010, and 1.6 million people incarcerated over drugs in 2009, were nothing compared to what he actually experienced in the front lines of the drug war on America’s users.

But for those officers who put their lives on the line every day to protect the public from dangerous, violent criminals, the drug war isn’t always just another part of the job. For this officer in particular, it’s much more than that: “The war on drugs is a war on people,” he claimed.

“I just didn’t see problems from illegal drug users that I’d been led to believe,” the officer explained. “Most of the calls that we get on drug use, as police, are alcohol related. Alcohol is a serious drug that can be abused, but I just didn’t see the calls on other drugs like I had been led to believe. I didn’t see these drug-crazed people out there doing crazy things… Even growing up before entering law enforcement, I was always led to believe that the drug war was meant to stop all these people from doing crazy things. But on the street, that’s not what you see. That’s a lie.”

In his view, the officer said that the American public would be much better off if the government would “regulate drugs and keep the control out of the hands of the black market criminals.”

“The cartels have been running a serious drug operation in America for decades, and I don’t think most Americans are really aware of it,” he said. “The money comes from the prohibition of drugs. These criminals are making their money because of the prohibition. If you legalize and regulate it, their profits go to zero.”

For more than two decades in law enforcement, he said that he’s carried an immense guilt: his first drug arrest.

“I was in training, on ‘the other side of the tracks,’ for lack of better words, and we pulled a vehicle over,” he explained. “The guy, I think he had a defective taillight or something. He was sober, polite, respectful, no problems, and my training officer said, ‘Oh yeah, he’s gonna have drugs.’ So, I asked if we could search his vehicle and he gave me permission. Within no time, I found a small amount of (hard) drugs, so he was facing a serious charge. The whole time I was thinking, ‘This is not right. This guy’s keeping to himself, not hurting nobody, he’s a peaceful person.’ I instinctively knew this was wrong. I changed my perspective immediately. This was not the war on drugs that I thought it would be.”

Carrying this guilt for his participation in such a system, he got away from making narcotics arrests and received a transfer to another division. There he worked for years, until one day in 2006. Acting on a whim, he ran a Google search for the peculiar terms, “cops against the drug war,” and rather abruptly found a new calling: an activist group called Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP). He’s followed their work ever since, and in 2012, the officer finally decided that he too must raise his voice against the drug war.

Today, he’s acquired a unique extra-curricular activity: an anonymous blog served up by LEAP, examining the innards of the drug war from a perspective rarely put on public display. If his superiors knew, he explained, “I would probably be terminated.”

And, he claims, it’s not just him that’s come to some stark, personal conclusions on the drug war: fellow officers are coming around as well — especially those who’ve been doing it for a while.

“I remember a case just here recently when an officer was trying to find marijuana on one guy, and another officer started looking around in this area where there’s actual crime, and he was kind of making fun of him for wasting time,” he said. “There’s plenty of officers that do want to get away from the petty, small drug arrests that distract them from fighting real crime, which is what a lot of them get into law enforcement for individually.”

Oklahoma High School Student Suspended For Photographing Teacher Napping

2012-01-28T05:30:00.000-08:00

A teacher's nap in class ended up becoming a rude awakening for a student.

Mustang Public Schools officials said a ninth-grader snapped a photo of a snoozing substitute with a cellphone last Friday at Mustang Mid-High School.

The student was later suspended. The move is not sitting well with some parents.

"If anything, they should have been reprimanded for having a phone, but they probably took it to an extreme because they caught a teacher doing something they weren't supposed to be doing," parent Steven Graulich said.

District officials said they won't discuss potential disciplinary action against any student or staff member.

However, officials said, "A student may possess a telecommunication device while on school premises, but the use of a telecommunication device is not permitted during the school day."

Graulich said he agrees with the police but "maybe that was the only way to prove the teacher was sleeping. If the teacher was sleeping, then the school needs to investigate that."

School officials said they "will take appropriate follow-up action as this type of behavior by staff is not tolerated."

Grape seed extract kills head and neck cancer cells, leaves healthy cells unharmed

2012-01-28T00:50:00.001-08:00

Nearly 12,000 people will die of head and neck cancer in the United States this year and worldwide cases will exceed half a million.

A study published in the journal Carcinogenesis shows that in both cell lines and mouse models, grape seed extract (GSE) kills head and neck squamous cell carcinoma cells, while leaving healthy cells unharmed.

"It's a rather dramatic effect," says Rajesh Agarwal, PhD, investigator at the University of Colorado Cancer Center and professor at the Skaggs School of Pharmaceutical Sciences.

It depends in large part, says Agarwal, on a healthy cell's ability to wait out damage.

"Cancer cells are fast-growing cells," Agarwal says. "Not only that, but they are necessarily fast growing. When conditions exist in which they can't grow, they die."

Grape seed extract creates these conditions that are unfavorable to growth. Specifically, the paper shows that grape seed extract both damages cancer cells' DNA (via increased reactive oxygen species) and stops the pathways that allow repair (as seen by decreased levels of the DNA repair molecules Brca1 and Rad51 and DNA repair foci).

"Yet we saw absolutely no toxicity to the mice, themselves," Agarwal says.

Again, the grape seed extract killed the cancer cells but not the healthy cells.

"I think the whole point is that cancer cells have a lot of defective pathways and they are very vulnerable if you target those pathways. The same is not true of healthy cells," Agarwal says.

The Agarwal Lab hopes to move in the direction of clinical trials of grape seed extract, potentially as an addition to second-line therapies that target head and neck squamous cell carcinoma that has failed a first treatment.

15 Foods that Boost Workout Results

2012-01-28T00:48:00.000-08:00

Most supermarkets stock more than 30,000 items, yet every time we race up and down the aisles of the grocery store, we toss into our carts the same 10 to 15 foods. Which isn't such a bad thing, as long as you're taking home the right foods--ones that will keep you healthy and fuel your workouts. These 15 foods fit the bill-add them to your must-buy list:

Almonds These are an excellent source of vitamin E, an antioxidant that many of us fall short on because there are so few good food sources of it. And the form of vitamin E found in the nuts, called gamma-tocopherol (a form not typically found in supplements), may also help protect against cancer.

Eggs One egg fulfills about 10 percent of your daily protein needs. Egg protein is the most complete food protein short of human breast milk, which means the protein in eggs contains all the crucial amino acids your hard-working muscles need to promote recovery.

Sweet potatoes Just a single 100-calorie sweet potato supplies over 250 percent of the DV for vitamin A in the form of beta-carotene, the powerful antioxidant. Sweet potatoes are also a good source of vitamin C, potassium, iron, and the two trace minerals manganese and copper.

Whole-Grain Cereal with Protein Look for whole-grain cereals that offer at least five grams of fiber and at least eight grams of protein. If you pour on a cup of milk or soymilk, you'll get 30 to 40 percent of your protein needs in one bowl.

Oranges Oranges supply over 100 percent of the DV for the antioxidant vitamin C, and a recent study from the University of North Carolina Greensboro showed that taking vitamin C supplements for two weeks prior to challenging arm exercises helped alleviate muscle soreness.

Canned Black Beans One cup of these beauties provides 30 percent of the DV for protein, almost 60 percent of the DV for fiber (much of it as the cholesterol-lowering soluble type), and 60 percent of the DV for folate, a B vitamin that plays a key role in heart health and circulation

Mixed Salad Greens Rather than selecting one type of lettuce for your salad, choose mixed greens, which typically offer five or more colorful delicate greens such as radicchio, butter leaf, curly endive, and mache. Each variety offers a unique blend of phytonutrients that research suggests may fend off age-related diseases, such as Alzheimer's, cancer, heart disease, and diabetes.

Salmon Besides being an excellent source of high-quality protein (you get about 30 grams in a four-ounce serving), salmon is one of the best food sources of omega-3 fats. These essential fats help balance the body's inflammation response, a bodily function that when disturbed appears to be linked to many diseases including asthma.

Whole-Grain Bread Whole-grain bread may help the weight-conscious. One study showed that women who eat whole-grain bread weigh less than those who eat refined white bread and other grains.

Frozen Stir-fry Vegetables Research shows that eating a combination of antioxidants, such as beta-carotene and vitamin C, may lessen muscle soreness after hard workouts by reducing the inflammation caused by free-radical damage.

Whole-grain Pasta Whole-grain versions are a must over refined pastas because they contain more fiber to fill you up, additional B vitamins that are crucial to energy metabolism, and disease-fighting compounds such as lignans.

Chicken Along with protein, chicken contains selenium, a trace element that helps protect muscles from the free-radical damage that can occur during exercise, and niacin, a B vitamin that helps regulate fat burning during exercise.

Frozen Mixed Berries The colorful compounds that make blueberries blue, blackberries deep purple, and raspberries a rich shade of red are called anthocyanins--a powerful group of antioxidants that may help stave off Alzheimer's disease and some cancers.

Dark Chocolate Chocolate contains potent antioxidants called flavonols that can boost heart health. In one study, a group of soccer players had lower blood pressure and total cholesterol levels, and less artery-clogging LDL cholesterol after just two weeks of eating chocolate daily. Other research suggests that the chocolate flavonols ease inflammation and help prevent blood substances from becoming sticky, which lowers the risk of potential blood clots.

Low-fat Yogurt Besides being a good source of protein and calcium (one cup provides 13 grams of protein and 40 percent of the DV for calcium), low-fat yogurt with live cultures provides the healthy bacteria your digestive tract needs to function optimally.

Health Benefits of Wheatgrass

2012-01-28T00:47:00.002-08:00

Wheatgrass are the edible young shoots of the Agropyron plant. It is most commonly consumed as a juice which is made from the crushed wheatgrass but also can be found in a freeze dried powdered form. Wheatgrass is best known for being a good source of chlorophyll.

Growing Wheatgrass

Wheatgrass can be easily grown at home year-round. It takes a little patience and care but is well worth the minimal effort. In order to optimize your results the seeds should be pre-sprouted in water before transferring to trays of soil. Wheatgrass loves sunlight however it does not grow well in direct sunlight which is too hot.

It is important to keep the wheatgrass adequately watered without excessively watering which can cause mold growth. Harvest the wheatgrass by cutting when the shoots are about 6 inches in height. The process from pre-sprouting to harvest takes about 2 weeks.

Wheatgrass Nutritional Values

The following nutritional information is for approximately 3 ounces or 100 grams of wheatgrass juice.
Calories 21.0 Cal
Fat 0.06g
Carbohydrates 2.0g
Dietary Fiber 0.1g
Chlorophyll 42.2mg
Vitamin C 3.64mg
Vitamin A 427 IU
Vitamin B1 0.08mg
Vitamin B2 0.13mg
Vitamin B3 0.11mg
Vitamin B5 6.0mg
Vitamin B6 0.2mg
Vitamin B12 1mcg
Vitamin E 15.2 IU
Folic Acid 29mcg
Iron 0.61mg
Magnesium 24mg
Potassium 147mg
Phosphorous 75.2mg
Zinc 0.33mg
Calcium 24.2mg
Sodium 10.3mg
Selenium 1ppm

Wheatgrass Health Benefits

Wheatgrass is a good source of many vitamins, minerals, and chlorophyll. Many claims have been made concerning the health benefits of consuming wheatgrass. However, little research has been done to substantiate those claims. Some research has shown that a diet high in chlorophyll such as that found in wheatgrass and other leafy green vegetables can aid in lowering the risk of colon cancer.

Getting the Most Out of Wheatgrass

The best way to utilize wheatgrass is in the juice form. In order to get the most nutrition from your wheatgrass it is important to minimize the amount of time between cutting, juicing, and drinking. Wheatgrass can also be found in a freeze dried powdered form although this is not the preferred method for peak benefits.

Wheatgrass Concerns and Cautions

When beginning to add wheatgrass into your diet it is important to start slowly. Wheatgrass juice should be drank on an empty stomach and immediately followed with a balanced meal. It is recommended to start with 1/2 to 1 ounce of wheatgrass juice then slowly increase to the recommended 2 ounces once or twice a day.

It is recommended by some wheatgrass users that wheatgrass juice should be consumed on a rotational basis with 3 weeks of consumption followed by 1 week of avoidance. It is also important to ensure that your wheatgrass is not contaminated by mold which can cause severe allergic reactions in some people.

Health Benefits of Mint

2012-01-28T00:47:00.001-08:00

Mint, or Minta Spacata, is an herb that is used in summer dishes from lamb to iced tea and even as a garnish on pies. The cool flavor is a welcomed and refreshing relief on hot sultry days. It grows wild near cool running ravines and streams. Common varieties are spearmint and peppermint.

Growing Mint

Mint is an invasive plant that can quickly take over a garden. One way to reduce spreading is to plant it in a clay pot, then sink that pot into your herb garden. However, that requires monthly monitoring, especially in the summer, to make sure the roots do not creep out of the pot into the loose soil. Mint loves some shade, but if it gets too much it can become leggy with fewer leaves. Transplant a runner in the early spring after the last frost. Be sure that it gets good air flow from the soil. If the soil seems heavy, mix in some pea gravel, bark chips, or coir.

Keep it well irrigated and well weeded. Some people plant mint as a ground cover under the water spigot. Once it flowers, the growing season is over. It is supposed to die down in the winter but should return in the spring.

You can also grow mint fairly easily indoors or bring it inside for the winter months. Plant the runner in a 10 inch pot with good compost. Keep it trimmed to 6 inches in height so it will bush rather than sprawl. But don’t cut it too much or it may thwart its growth cycle through the year.

Mint is susceptible to rust spots, an orangey growth that can invade its leaves. If you see any, be sure to cut away those leaves so the whole plant does not become infected. Bugs also love mint as much as humans.

Mint Nutritional Content

100 grams of mint has:
Calories 48
Protein 4.8 g
Fat .06 g
Fiber 2 g
Calcium 200 mg
Iron 15.6 mg
Vitamin C 27 mg
Carbohydrates 5.8 mg

Mint contains good amounts of Vitamin A, C, B12, folic acid, thiamine and riboflavin, as well as, minerals such as, calcium, copper, fluoride, iron, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, selenium and zinc.

Mint Health Benefits

Mint brewed in tea or hot water has been a remedy for digestive problems and stomach cramps for centuries. Of course it is a natural breath freshener. It is also a natural diuretic and has been used to relieve IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) and colitis. The oil may reduce and relieve the pain of hemorrhoids.

Its main oil contains menthol which is excellent for the sinuses when inhaled. The oil may also be used as a muscle rub. It is found in many over the counter products from antiseptics to sun burn relief to cough drops and nasal sprays.

Herbalists believe inhaling mint oil incense helps open the mind and calms the nerves. It has some antioxidant properties and can be used as an anti-itch relief for bug bites or other skin irritations.

Some believe that, due to its fluoride content, crushed dried mint leaves can whiten the teeth and remove tough organic stains like wine and coffee.

Ways to Prepare Mint

Mint can be served as a fresh garnish or dried and crumbled into soups, especially cold summer ones. Toss it in summer fruit for a fresh flavor enhancer. Brew it in teas and even fresh squeezed citrus drinks.

Ancient cultures of Greece and Rome hung dried mint as natural air fresheners in their temples. It can be boiled as a potpourri.

Mint Cautions or Concerns

If you are allergic to oregano or basil, you may be allergic to mint. Though often used to relieve heartburn, in a few percentage of adults it may actually worsen heartburn symptoms.

Magnesium (Mg) a Key to Good Health

2012-01-28T00:44:00.000-08:00

Magnesium, (Mg), is an essential mineral that accounts only for 0.05 percent of the body’s total weight. Approximately 70 percent of the mineral is located in the bones and the rest in soft tissues such as muscles and in body fluids. Magnesium, like calcium is a cation (divalent). It is heavily involved in many metabolic processes and it is widely distributed in foods especially green leafy vegetables. It’s an essential element of chlorophyll

Approximately 50 percent of the magnesium from dietary sources is absorbed in the small intestine through passive and active absorption. The rate of absorption is influenced by the parathyroid hormones and the amount of calcium, phosphate and lactose in the body. High magnesium intake reduces the rate of absorption and low intake increases the rate. Aldosterone a hormone produced by the kidneys regulates the rate of magnesium loss through kidneys. Diuretics and alcohol increase magnesium loss in the urine.

Magnesium plays an extensive and vital role in many biological and physiological processes. It is responsible for more than 300 enzymatic reactions in the body and its presence is required in many energy-yielding compounds in cells, ATP. It also contributes to the DNA and RNA synthesis, in bone structure by abiding calcium and potassium metabolism, nerve and heart function, insulin release from pancreas, decreasing blood pressure and prevention with heart rhythm abnormalities.

Magnesium also helps to promote the absorption of other minerals such as phosphorus, calcium, potassium and sodium and the utilization of the B-complex vitamins and C and E. The conversion of blood sugar in to energy it needs sufficient amounts of magnesium and for the regulation of body temperature. High cholesterol levels and high intake of proteins increases the need for this mineral. Magnesium also helps to prevent accumulation of calcium and phosphorus deposits in the urinary tract by keeping them soluble.

Approximately 50 percent of dietary magnesium comes from green leafy and other vegetables, fruit and grains and 30 percent from milk and its products, eggs and chocolate. The Recommended Daily Allowance is 310 mg/ day for adult women and 400 mg/day for men. Magnesium deficiency develops very slowly. The need of magnesium increases slightly with some individuals over the age of 30.
Toxicity it is not a problem in healthy people with a typical diet. However, large amounts can lead to diarrhea and toxicity can occur from not food source magnesium in older individuals, in the event of kidney failure or if kidney functions is compromised.

Asteroid near misses and the threats to come

2012-01-27T19:55:00.000-08:00

Figures show about 50 million NEO’s (Near Earth Objects) pass by every day. Here are some previous near misses as well as possible future threats.

A rock called FU162 skimmed the earth at an estimated distance of 6,400 kilometres in 2004

Threats past: Asteroid near misses

* In February last year a small asteroid made the closest near-miss on record after making a sharp turn away from the Earth.

It was spotted by scientists at Nasa who said the metre-wide asteroid called 2011 CQ1 was travelling 5480 km above the Earth's surface in the region in the mid-Pacific.

The previous record holder was a rock called FU162 that skimmed the earth at an estimated distance of 6,400 kilometres in 2004.

* In June last year a newly discovered asteroid the size of an office block narrowly missed Earth - coming 23 times closer than the moon.

The space rock, named 2011 MD, reached within 11,000 miles of our atmosphere and gave off a light bright enough to be seen through a small telescope.

It was first spotted by a robotic telescope in New Mexico. An alert was then put out by the International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center in Massachusetts.

* In September 2010 Nasa scientists revealed two asteroids had narrowly avoided Earth after passing within the moon and our planet’s orbit.

The two objects were identified by the Nasa-funded Catalina Sky Survey near Tucson, Arizona, during a routine sky scan.

The first asteroid, christened 2010 RX30, was about 65 feet (20 metres) in diameter and flew past at a distance of 154,000 miles.

The second, called 2010 RF12, was roughly two-thirds the size of its big brother and was estimated to pass within just 49,088 miles of Earth.

While they were visible to many amateur stargazers, space agency researchers said neither asteroid posed a risk.

Nasa estimates that asteroids smaller than 25 metres in diameter are likely to burn up while entering the atmosphere and cause no damage.

Threats to come: Known asteroids heading this way.

* In July 2010, Nasa experts gave details of an asteroid measuring more than 1,800 feet wide (548 metres), which has a one-in-a-thousand chance of colliding with Earth in 2182.

That collision promises to create more damage than that of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima.

Preceding this, Apophis, a 25 million ton celestial body is expected to narrowly miss our planet three times in succession.

The first near-miss is expected on the superstitious date of Friday 13th 2029.

US building 'mothership' for launching Navy Seal raids

2012-01-27T19:51:00.001-08:00

The US is rushing to convert an aging Navy vessel into a 'mothership' from which to launch commando raids into the Middle East and the Horn of Africa.

The United States amphibious assault ship USS Ponce is to be retrofitted for use by US Navy Seals

Documents released by the Pentagon show that the military is urgently refitting the USS Ponce, a 1960s transport ship, so that it can accommodate the speed boats and Blackhawk helicopters favoured by America's special forces.

The vessel had been scheduled for decommissioning but was given a new lease of life after requests from US Central Command, which has responsibility for American troops in the region, for a floating base that could remain anchored in one spot for weeks at a time.

It is expected to be deployed by early summer, the Washington Post reported.

The plan was revealed just days after US Navy SEALs swept into Somalia to rescue two hostages from pirates.

As the US military braces for cuts of around $487 billion over the next decade it is has increasingly turned to its elite commandos as a low-cost alternative to large numbers of ground troops.

Details of the plan for 'Afloat Forward Staging Base' emerged in procurement documents released by the US Defence Department this week.

The files also that the ship could be used to "support mine countermeasure" - possibly an indication that it would feature in American admirals' plans for re-opening the Strait of Hormuz should Iran ever follow through on its threat to block the vital oil channel.

The US Fifth Fleet is already based in the region and is usually supported by one or two aircraft carrier strike groups, so the new deployment would add little to America' overall firepower in the region but would commanders a useful tool for launching operations with a small but high-stakes, such as hostage rescue or the assassination of high-profile al-Qaeda leaders.

Man spends 2 years in solitary after DWI arrest

2012-01-27T06:33:00.000-08:00

Man spends 2 years in solitary after DWI arrest - A New Mexico man who said he was forced to pull his own tooth while in solitary confinement because he was denied access to a dentist has been awarded $22 million due to inhumane treatment by New Mexico's Dona Ana County Jail

A New Mexico man who said he was forced to pull his own tooth while in solitary confinement because he was denied access to a dentist has been awarded $22 million due to inhumane treatment by New Mexico's Dona Ana County Jail.

Stephen Slevin was arrested in August of 2005 for driving while intoxicated, then thrown in jail for two years. He was in solitary at Dona Ana County Jail for his entire sentence and basically forgotten about and never given a trial, he told.

"[Jail guards were] walking by me every day, watching me deteriorate," Slevin said. "Day after day after day, they did nothing, nothing at all, to get me any help."

Slevin's medical problems extended beyond his dental issues, he said. His toenails started curling around his foot because they were so long, he told.

And his countless requests to see a doctor for depression medication were ignored, he said.

He said his lawsuit "has never been about the money. I've always wanted this to make a statement."

The $22 million, awarded by a federal jury, is one of the largest prisoner civil rights settlements in U.S. history.

"I wanted people to know that there are people at The Dona Ana County Jail that are doing things like this to people and getting away with it," said Slevin, who now suffers from PTSD and believes he will have to take medication for life as a result. "Why they did what they did, I have no idea."

The mistreatment started from the moment his client was arrested, Slevin's attorney, Matt Coyte, told.

"He was driving through New Mexico and arrested for a DWI, and he allegedly was in a stolen vehicle. Well, it was a car he had borrowed from a friend; a friend had given him a car to drive across the country," Coyte said.

Slevin was depressed at the time, Coyte explained, and wanted to get out of New Mexico. Instead, he found himself in jail.

"When he gets put in the jail, they think he's suicidal, and they put him in a padded cell for three days, but never give him any treatment."

Nor did they give him a trial, Coyte said. Slevin said he never saw a judge during his time in confinement.

After three days in a padded cell, jail guards transferred Slevin into solitary confinement without explanation.

"Their policy is to then just put them in solitary" if they appear to have mental health issues, Coyte told.

Dona Ana County officials were tight-lipped about the case, refusing to answer questions about whether any jail employees were reprimanded or fired over Slevin's treatment.

"We do not discuss personnel issues," Jess Williams, Dona Ana County's public information director, told.

Williams also wouldn't comment on whether the $22 million the county was ordered to pay would come from taxpayer money, saying only, "Dona Ana County will appeal the verdict."

He said no county officials would answer questions about why Slevin was held for so long without going to trial, or any other questions related to the legal parts of the case.

'Insanity builds'

While in solitary confinement, a prisoner is entitled to one hour per day out of the cell, but often times, Slevin wasn't even granted that, Coyte said. He was deprived of showers and grew fungus underneath his skin. He lost his will to even want to get out and live in the outside world, Coyte told.

"Your insanity builds. Some people holler or throw feces out their cell doors," he said. "Others rock back and forth under a blanket for a year or more, which is what my client did."

By the time Slevin got out of jail, his hair was shaggy and overgrown, his beard long, and his face pale and sunken, a drastic contrast from the clean-shaven booking photo taken of him when he was arrested two years prior.

"Without that picture, we couldn't have gotten where we were," Coyte said of the lawsuit.

Slevin has support from friends and his sister, Coyte said.

"That's very helpful to him. He does have people to look after him."

While Slevin spoke very briefly on-camera after the jury awarded him his verdict, his attorney said he is hoping for some privacy now.

"Hs life has been devoted to survival [since his release from solitary]," Coyte told. "He is totally inequipped; he is hollow. They've removed his humanity from him."

His suffering hasn't been in vain though, Coyte said.

"He's a brave guy. When he says it's not about the money, he really means it. He wants no one to go through what he went through. And people do, in New Mexico and across this country."

Victim kills teen robber on trail, police say

2012-01-27T06:23:00.000-08:00

Teens knocked 65-yr-old man off his bicycle, and two of them assaulted him. Man pulled out a handgun and shot them both, one fatally - police decided to release the man and charge the juvenile

A 65-year-old man was justified in shooting two of three teenagers who were attempting to rob him as he rode his bicycle along a popular river trail Wednesday morning, authorities announced Thursday.

The ordeal unfolded shortly before 11 a.m. on the Thun Trail in Cumru Twp., Berks Co.

The teens knocked the man off his bicycle and onto the ground in their third random robbery attempt in about an hour's time, said Berks County District Attorney John Adams.

Two of the teens were assaulting the man when he pulled out a gun and shot them, police said.

"While I don't condone violence, the bike rider had no choice," said Adams. "He was in danger of death and serious bodily injury. The bike rider did not provoke the situation."

The man is licensed to carry a gun, said Adams.

One of the alleged assailants, Julius Johnson, 16, a student in the Reading School District who skipped school Wednesday, died at the scene of a gunshot wound to the chest, officials said.

Another teen, a 15-year-old student in the Governor Mifflin School District, was also shot and taken to a hospital for surgery. He is expected to be charged when he's discharged from the hospital, Adams said.

The third teen, a 16-year-old boy, was uninjured and committed to the county's Youth Detention Center.

Johnson had previous run-ins with the law and skipping school violated his probation, Adams said. Probation officers went to his home Wednesday morning, placed an electronic monitoring device on him and told the other two teens to go back to school, Adams said.

"Mr. Johnson and the two other juveniles did not go back to school, and Mr. Johnson did not obey his probation officers."

Instead, Adams said, the teens went into West Reading and assaulted an elderly man and another man before targeting the bicyclist.

US election 2012: Mitt Romney asserts his authority over Newt Gingrich in Florida debate

2012-01-27T06:02:00.000-08:00

Mitt Romney asserted his authority over Newt Gingrich in a Republican presidential debate on Thursday night, aggressively turning the former House Speaker's own attacks against him in advance of the crucial primary election in Florida.

The former Massachusetts governor, who over the past 48 hours has pushed back a surge in support for Mr Gingrich across the state, overpowered his rival during bitter disputes over immigration policy, personal finances and the former Speaker's proposal to build a colony on the moon.

After losing the South Carolina primary last weekend, Mr Romney is seeking to stabilise his campaign to be the Republican candidate to face President Barack Obama in November. Florida is the biggest state to vote in the party contest so far and is expected to be crucial in the general election.

He hit out at Mr Gingrich in the 19th debate's opening minutes for describing him as “anti-immigrant”, calling the attack “simply inexcusable”. He pointed out that Marco Rubio, the Cuban-American Florida senator, had backed him and called the criticism “inexcusable and inflammatory”.

Mr Romney has proposed that America's 11 million illegal immigrants “self-deport”. “Mr Speaker, I'm not anti-immigrant,” he said. “My father was born in Mexico, my wife's father was born in Wales. They came into this country. The idea that I’m anti-immigrant is repulsive.”

An animated Mr Romney drove the point home by saying that Mr Gingrich's remarks were “the kind of over-the-top rhetoric that has characterised American politics for too long”.

Speaking in one of the states most affected by the US housing market meltdown and financial collapse, Mr Romney also got the better of Mr Gingrich in a row over Freddie Mac, the government-backed mortgage lender that had to be bailed out for tens of billions of dollars.

Mr Gingrich was paid $1.6 million (£1 million) as a “consultant” to the firm. “Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were a big part of why we have the housing crisis in the nation that we have,” said Mr Romney. “Speaker Gingrich was hired by Freddie Mac to promote them ... throughout Washington”.

The former Speaker retorted that Mr Romney had investments in funds that held stock in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, but Mr Romney simply pointed out that Mr Gingrich did as well, leaving the former Speaker almost speechless. “To compare my investments with his is like comparing a tiny mouse with a giant elephant,” he eventually said.

Mr Romney’s strong showing appeared to demonstrate a return to confidence, underpinned by a series of new polls this week that placed him five points clear of Mr Gingrich in the race to win Florida.

The gathering momentum for Mr Romney ahead of next Tuesday’s vote is a major disappointment from Mr Gingrich, who now looks to have failed to sustain his own surge after scoring a spectacular win in South Carolina. Victory in Florida, which hands 50 delegates to the winner, would represent a major step forward for Mr Romney in his race to win the nomination.

Mr Gingrich was also ridiculed for his proposal earlier this week to establish an American colony on the moon. "If I had a business executive come to me and say they wanted to spend a few hundred billion dollars to put a colony on the moon, I'd say, 'You're fired'," said Mr Romney, who felt confident enough to use a phrase previously seen as toxic to his candidacy.

The former Speaker's bad night was compounded by a strong performance from Rick Santorum, the former Pennsylvania senator and a favourite of the religious Right, who could dent Mr Gingrich's support on Tuesday. Mr Santorum again put Mr Romney under pressure for the health care plan he implemented as governor of Massachusetts, which became the basis for Mr Obama's national scheme.

As his miserable night continued, Mr Gingrich resorted to requesting a “truce” with Mr Romney. Given an opportunity to repeat a criticism of Mr Romney's low personal tax rate that he has been making all week on the campaign trail, Mr Gingrich dismissed the suggestion as “a nonsense question”.

He then changed his mind, stating: “I don't know of any American president that has ever had a Swiss bank account”. But by then Mr Romney – who remarked it would be “nice if people didn't make accusations somewhere else that they weren't prepared to defend here – had won the argument.

After the debate, Mr Romney appeared to claim a victory for himself after a positive reaction from an audience that had cheered several of his answers. “I think it was a big step forward and it is going to give me the boost I need going into this primary,” he said.

Even R.C. Hammond, a spokesman for Mr Gingrich, appeared unable to disguise his boss's poor showing. Asked who had won the debate, he replied: “It was a push – I think Rick Santorum had a good night”.

Ron Paul, a 76-year-old Texas congressman and former doctor, provided a moment of humour when asked if he was prepared to release his medical records to prove he was fit enough to serve as US president.

"Oh, obviously, because it's about one page, if even that long," he said, adding: "I'm willing to challenge any of these gentlemen up here to a 25-mile bike ride any time of the day in the heat of Texas".

US military prepares to shed 100,000 troops

2012-01-27T05:45:00.001-08:00

The US military would lose 100,000 ground forces, mothball ships and trim air squadrons under proposed cuts that would reduce defence spending by $487 billion over the next 10 years.

The planned cuts are part of a major strategic review which will see America abandon its traditional capability of fighting two major wars at once

As the debt-ridden US winds down from a decade of war, the cuts would see the Army shrink from a high of 570,000 in 2010 to 490,000 by 2017. The Marine Corps would drop from its high of 202,000 to 182,000. Both would remain at a slightly higher level than they were on September 11, 2001.

The Navy would keep a fleet of 11 aircraft carriers but retire seven cruisers earlier than planned, and delay purchase of other ships. Introduction of F-35 stealth fighter jets would be delayed, six of the Air Force's tactical-air fighter squadrons would be eliminated and 130 cargo aircraft would be retired.

The planned cuts are part of a major strategic review which will see America abandon its traditional capability of fighting two major wars at once, becoming a "leaner and smarter" fighting force with an emphasis on counter terrorism, reconnaissance and cyber warfare, the Pentagon said.

In one of the most significant strategy shifts since the end of the Second World War, the US will also turn its focus away from Europe towards the Asian Pacific region to counter the rising influence of China.

The proposed spending cuts set the stage for a new struggle between President Barack Obama's administration and Congress over how much the Pentagon should spend on national security.

The cuts would represent less than 10 per cent of the current annual defence budget of $650 billion and US spending would still be larger than that of the next 10 countries combined.

In a bid to pre-empt election-year Republican criticism, Defence Secretary Leon Panetta said the plan shifts the Pentagon's focus from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to future challenges in Asia, the Midddle East and in cyberspace. More special operations forces like the Navy Seals who killed Osama bin Laden will be available around the world, he said.

Mr Panetta said: "This will be a test of whether reducing the deficit is about talk or action. We are at a strategic turning point after a decade of war and substantial growth in defence budgets." The Defence Department's budget accounts for about 20 per cent of total US federal spending.

Some Republicans sharply criticised the plan. Senator John McCain said it "ignored the lessons of history" by imposing massive military cuts.

And Senator John Cornyn, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee that will hold hearings on the Pentagon's budget plan, said: "Taking us back to a pre-9/11 military force structure places our country in grave danger."

Asil Nadir 'needed 135 tonnes of cash to balance books'

2012-01-27T05:41:00.000-08:00

The amount of cash Asil Nadir claimed had been paid into the accounts of his failing empire would have required a stack of banknotes 300 times the height of Nelson's Column, the Old Bailey heard.

Former business tycoon Asil Nadir

Nadir, who is accused of siphoning off £150 million from Polly Peck International, told investigators his mother put the money into banks using Turkish lira (TL).

He claimed she and others made deposits to a bank he owned in Northern Cyprus.

But Philip Shears, QC, prosecuting, told the jury the claim was ''not credible''.

He said one deposit slip in June 1988 to balance a £6 million transfer from PPI suggested 148.8 million TL were deposited in 100TL bank notes.

''Such a huge quantity of bank notes is likely to have weighed 135,185kg - over 135 tonnes,'' said Mr Shears.

''If the notes were piled on top of each other, they would reach a height 300 times the height of Nelson's Column.

''What is also open to question is how the defendant's mother was physically able to transport and deposit such vast quantities of banknotes on a regular basis.

''Without being flippant, we are now in the realms of forklift trucks and vans stuffed full of banknotes.

''Moreover, from where did she or others get all this money?''

Nadir, 70, of Mayfair, central London, denies 13 specimen counts of theft amounting to £34 million between 1987 and 1990.

He was arrested and was due to stand trial in 1993 but left Britain for Northern Cyprus, only to return in August 2010.

Mr Shears said his ''fleeing the country before his trial in order to avoid prosecution and trial, remaining out of the jurisdiction for some 17 years'' was evidence of his dishonesty.

The jury has heard that PPI was put into administration in October 1990 with debts of £550 million.

The administrators were unable to track down the large amounts sent to Northern Cyprus.

The prosecution said documents about the deposits said to have been made by Safiye Nadir were fake.

Accountants who went to Northern Cyprus were unable to speak to Mrs Nadir and had difficulty with Nadir's employees.

Mr Shears said: "Administrators were met with obstruction, and inaccurate and inconsistent accounts and explanations."

But Kemal Birgen, a former bank manager of IBK who has since died, implicated the finance director of PPI subsidiary Unipac and bank workers.

Mr Shears said the cash deposit claim "simply beggars belief". Mr Bergen said the bank did not have space for such large deposits.

He added: "Mr Birgen stated it did not happen - with regard to Asil Nadir's mother, she never had up to £70 million in her deposit account, and had no knowledge of 300 billion lira passing through the accounts."

Mr Birgen, manager of IBK from 1982 to April 1991, said he had been forced to resign.

He was interviewed by Christopher Howell for the administrators in July 1991.

Mr Shears said: "He later told Mr Howell that he had been threatened, had had dead chickens delivered, his house had been petrol-bombed, and an abusive phone call was received while Mr Howell was present."

The jury has heard that PPI was put into administration in October 1990 with debts of £550 million.

The administrators were unable to track down the large amounts sent to Northern Cyprus.

The prosecution said documents about the deposits said to have been made by Safiye Nadir were fake.

Accountants who went to Northern Cyprus were unable to speak to Mrs Nadir and had difficulty with Nadir's employees.

Mr Shears said: "Administrators were met with obstruction, and inaccurate and inconsistent accounts and explanations."

But Kemal Birgen, a former bank manager of IBK who has since died, implicated the finance director of PPI subsidiary Unipac and bank workers.

Mr Shears said the cash deposit claim "simply beggars belief". Mr Bergen said the bank did not have space for such large deposits.

He added: "Mr Birgen stated it did not happen - with regard to Asil Nadir's mother, she never had up to £70 million in her deposit account, and had no knowledge of 300 billion lira passing through the accounts."

Mr Birgen, manager of IBK from 1982 to April 1991, said he had been forced to resign.

He was interviewed by Christopher Howell for the administrators in July 1991.

Mr Shears said: "He later told Mr Howell that he had been threatened, had had dead chickens delivered, his house had been petrol-bombed, and an abusive phone call was received while Mr Howell was present."
The case continues.

Father Turns In Son for Viral Bullying Video

2012-01-26T02:31:00.000-08:00

video platform
video management
video solutions
video player

Michael Palomino made a tough decision when he saw video of a beating.

Diet foods that make you hungrier

2012-01-26T01:38:00.001-08:00

1. Light yogurt

The blast of sweet (often artificial) flavor causes the stomach to start producing gastric juices. With only four to six ounces of yogurt and no fat in a typical container, the body doesn't have enough food to digest leaving the tummy rumbling for more.

Better choice: Nolan likes the creaminess and high protein content of plain, low-fat Greek yogurt. Add fruit and a sprinkle of cinnamon for flavor. If you choose the non-fat variety, add a tablespoon of sunflower seeds for crunch and satisfaction-the fat in nuts and seeds is slow to digest so a small serving keeps you feeling full.

2. Puffed cereal with skim milk

The combo of skim milk and puffed cereal has too few calories to keep you energized for long. Many dieters reach for puffed cereal because it looks filling in a big bowl. However, the low fiber content leaves you wanting more soon after breakfast. Puffed cereal also has a high glycemic index, which causes blood sugar to drop after an initial boost of energy.

Better choice: Rolled or steel cut oats. Oatmeal is high in fiber, which makes it a satisfying breakfast. Add a spoonful of maple brown sugar if you need something sweet. Cooking your own plain oatmeal and adding a small amount of sweetener is much more nutritious than using pre-sweetened packets. Nolan likes to cook oats with low fat milk or stir in a tablespoon of peanut butter for even more stick-to-your-ribs goodness.

3. Big green salad with low fat or fat free dressing

The typical dieters' lunch of a salad with low fat dressing can have a boomerang effect on the appetite. It's full of fiber and visually filling but the low protein and fat content won't satisfy for long. Stay away from fat-free dressings, which are loaded with sugar.

Better choice. Add three to six ounces of lean protein such as lean beef, chicken, or beans (the leaner the choice, the more you should eat) to your salad bowl.

4. Rice cakes

One rice cake=good, four rice cakes=overindulgence. And that's about how many it will take to feel truly satisfied. Low in fiber with a high glycemic index, these classic diet snacks won't leave your tank full for long.

Better choice: Spread a tablespoon of peanut butter or cream cheese onto a rice cake for a more balanced nosh. Or choose whole grain crackers with a spread or small portion of cheese for fiber and carbs plus protein.

5. Chewing gum

A little stick of gum is a stealth saboteur. While some chewing gum advocates say that it can stave off snacking, Nolan disagrees. She explains that the burst of flavor gets the gastric juices flowing. The act of chewing revs the digestive system even more, preparing it for a meal. If you want an express ticket to the all-you-can-eat buffet, chomp on some gum.

Better choice: We all have our munchy days, so if you are just looking for something to keep your mouth busy, air-popped corn or raw veggies are a safer bet.

6. Diet soda

Like gum, the sweet flavor wakes up the digestive process with no nutritional pay off which stimulates the appetite. Caffeine and carbonation may dampen your hunger pangs for a short time only to have them come roaring back along with an energy slump. If that's not enough to make you rethink your daily fix, a study carried out by the University of Texas Health Center in San Antonio showed that people who consumed diet soda had a 70-500% increase of abdominal fat over ten years compared to those who didn't drink diet soda.

Better choice: Drinking a hot beverage can slow down the appetite and allow you to think through your craving. Also, sometimes thirst signals are confused with hunger, so you may just need hydration. Non-caffeinated herbal teas won't cause an energy crash.

7. Apple

Yes, apples are great for you-they contain lots of vitamins and fiber, but a single apple is not a balanced snack. If you don't eat anything else with your afternoon apple, you may overeat at dinner.

Better choice: Apple with 5-10 almonds or a cheese stick. Spend a few more calories on your snack so you won't be ravenous later

8. Low-calorie frozen entrees

Light frozen entrees contain little fiber and only about half the calories you will need to feel satiated. They are also loaded with salt. If you don't have another option, look for a frozen dinner that contains 400-500 calories, 20-30 grams of protein, around 5 grams of fat, and 5-10 grams of fiber.

Better choice: If you are too busy to cook, Nolan suggests an "assembly based meal." Roast chicken from the deli, a slice of whole grain bread, some salad bar vegetables, and a piece of fruit add up to a quick, healthy dinner.

9. Fat-free graham crackers or other baked goods

Nolan says people who are watching their weight tend to automatically reach for food labeled "fat free" on the package assuming it is more diet-friendly than the regular version. However, when manufacturers make fat-free foods, they often up the sugar content. Check the nutritional information on the back--the light versions sometimes contain more calories.

Better choice: Regular graham cracker. A small indulgence such as a graham cracker or square of quality chocolate keeps things interesting and won't break the bank calorie-wise. Nolan points out that boredom is the enemy of dieters and causes people to fall of the wagon. "You are better off eating real food and more calories and feeling physically and emotionally satisfied than eating 'diet food' and being hungry in an hour."

Cocoa can help protect against colon cancer

2012-01-26T01:37:00.001-08:00

Eating cocoa – the raw material in chocolate– can help in preventing intestinal complaints linked to oxidative stress, including colon carcinogenesis onset caused by chemical substances, according to a new study.

The growing interest amongst the scientific community to identify those foods capable of preventing diseases has now categorized cocoa as a ‘superfood’.

It has been recognised as an excellent source of phytochemical compounds, which offer potential health benefits.

The new study headed by scientists from the Institute of Food Science and Technology and Nutrition (ICTAN) supports this idea and upholds that cacao consumption helps to prevent intestinal complaints linked to oxidative stress, such as the onset of chemically induced colon carcinogenesis.

“Being exposed to different poisons in the diet like toxins, mutagens and procarcinogens, the intestinal mucus is very susceptible to pathologies,” explained Maria Angeles Martin Arribas, lead author of the study and researcher at ICTAN.

She said “foods like cocoa, which is rich in polyphenols, seems to play an important role in protecting against disease.”

The study on rats has for the first time confirmed the potential protection effect that flavonoids in cocoa have against colon cancer onset.

For eight weeks the authors of the study fed the rats with a cocoa-rich diet and carcinogenesis was induced.

Martin Arribas explained, “four weeks after being administered with the chemical compound azoxymethane (AOM), intestinal mucus from premalignant neoplastic lesions appeared. These lesions are called ‘aberrant crypt foci’ and are considered to be good markers of colon cancer pathogenesis.”

The results of the study showed that the rats fed a cocoa-rich diet had a significantly reduced number of aberrant crypts in the colon induced by the carcinogen.

Likewise, this sample saw an improvement in their endogenous antioxidant defences and a decrease in the markers of oxidative damage induced by the toxic compound in this cell.

The researchers said that the protection effect of cocoa can stop cell-signalling pathways involved in cell proliferation and, therefore, subsequent neoplasty and tumour formation.

Lastly, the animals fed with the cocoa-rich diet showed an increase in apoptosis or programmed cell death as a chemoprevention mechanism against the development of the carcinogenesis.

Although more research is required to determine what bioactive compounds in cocoa are responsible for such effects, the authors concluded that a cocoa-rich diet seems capable of reducing induced oxidative stress.

It could also have protection properties in the initial stages of colon cancer as it reduces premalignant neoplastic lesion formation.

The finding was recently published in the Molecular Nutrition and Food Research journal.

`Magic mushroom` trips point to new depression drugs

2012-01-26T01:35:00.000-08:00

The brains of people tripping on magic mushrooms have given the best picture yet of how psychedelic drugs work and British scientists say the findings suggest such drugs could be used to treat depression.

Two separate studies into the effects of psilocybin, the active ingredient in magic mushrooms, showed that contrary to scientists` expectations, it does not increase but rather suppresses activity in areas of the brain that are also dampened with other anti-depressant treatments.

"Psychedelics are thought of as `mind-expanding` drugs so it has commonly been assumed that they work by increasing brain activity," said David Nutt of Imperial College London, who gave a briefing about the studies on Monday. "But, surprisingly, we found that psilocybin actually caused activity to decrease in areas that have the densest connections with other areas."

These so-called "hub" regions of the brain are known to play a role in constraining our experience of the world and keeping it orderly, he said.

"We now know that deactivating these regions leads to a state in which the world is experienced as strange."

In the first study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) journal, 30 volunteers had psilocybin infused into their blood while they were inside magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners, which measure changes in brain activity.

It found activity decreased in "hub" regions and many volunteers described a feeling of the cogs being loosened and their sense of self being altered.

The second study, due to be published in the British Journal of Psychiatry on Thursday, involved 10 volunteers and found that psilocybin enhanced their recollections of personal memories.

Robin Carhart Harris from Imperial`s department of medicine, who worked on both studies, said the results suggest psilocybin could be useful as an adjunct to psychotherapy.

Nutt cautioned that the new research was very preliminary and involved only small numbers of people.

"We`re not saying go out there and eat magic mushrooms," he said. "But...this drug has such a fundamental impact on the brain that it`s got to be meaningful -- it`s got to be telling us something about how the brain works. So we should be studying it and optimizing it if there`s a therapeutic benefit."

"FUNDAMENTAL IMPACT"

The key areas of the brain identified -- one called the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and another called the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) -- are the subject of debate among neuroscientists, but the PCC is thought by many to have a role in consciousness and self-identity.

The mPFC is known to be hyperactive in depression, and the researchers pointed out that other key treatments for depression including medicines like Prozac, as well as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and deep brain stimulation, also appear to suppress mPFC activity.

Psilocybin`s dampening action on this area may make it a useful and potentially long-acting antidepressant, Carhart-Harris said.

The studies also showed that psilocybin reduced blood flow in the hypothalamus -- a part of the brain where people who suffer from a condition known as cluster headaches often have increased blood flow. This could explain why some cluster headache sufferers have said their symptoms improved after taking the psychedelic drug, the researcher said.

The studies, which are among only a handful conducted into psychedelic substances since the 1960s and 1970s, revive a promising field of study into mind-altering drugs which some experts say can offer powerful and sustained mood improvement and relief from anxiety.

Other experts echoed Nott`s caution: "These findings are very interesting from the research viewpoint, but a great deal more work would be needed before most psychiatrists would think that psilocybin was a safe, effective and acceptable adjunct to psychotherapy," said Nick Craddock, a psychiatry professor from Cardiff University.

Kevin Healy, chair of the Royal College of Psychiatrists` faculty of medical psychotherapy said it was interesting research "but we are clearly nowhere near seeing psilocybin used regularly and widely in psychotherapy practice."

6 myths about freezing food

2012-01-26T01:34:00.000-08:00

Myth: You can freeze all foods.

While it's true most edibles freeze under the right conditions, there are some that should never see the inside of your freezer. Delicate vegetables like lettuce practically disintegrate when they're frozen then thawed. Creamy sauces that are frozen separate and "break" or curdle when thawed. Even coffee shouldn't be stored in the freezer-especially dark roasts. The oils that make them so special break down in freezing temperatures, allowing the coffee to readily absorb off- flavors. The USDA also advises not to freeze canned goods or eggs in their shell. (But you can freeze canned goods if they are removed from their original packaging, as well as eggs as long as they are removed from their shell.)

Myth: You can freeze food indefinitely.
This is true at least from a food-safety standpoint, but quality suffers the longer food is frozen. Here are some guidelines from the USDA as to how long to keep food in your freezer (at 0 degrees F) for optimal freshness:
Soups, stews and casseroles: 2-3 months
Cooked meat 2-3 months
Uncooked steaks, roasts or chops: 4-12 months
Cooked poultry: 4 months
Uncooked poultry: 9-12 months
Of course how you store the item will lengthen or shorten its freezer life. Air coupled with moisture is the enemy of frozen food (think freezer burn), so if you can keep those two elements out you'll give your frozen foods a longer life. That's why I love the vacuum sealer. It sucks air out of the packaging so foods last longer than if they're just stored in plastic bags or their original packaging.

Myth: Freezing kills bacteria.

Freezing foods renders bacteria inactive but doesn't actually kill anything. That means if your food went into the freezer contaminated, once thawed it will still harbor the same harmful bacteria. Cooking it to the recommended temperature is the only way to ensure that your food is safe.

Myth: Frozen food has fewer nutrients than fresh.

Actually, the opposite can be true. Frozen fruits and vegetables may be even more healthful than some of the fresh produce sold in supermarkets because they tend to be processed at their peak ripeness, a time when, as a general rule, they are most nutrient-packed. If you're worried about nutrient loss, eat your frozen fruits and veggies soon after purchase: over many months, nutrients in frozen vegetables do inevitably degrade. Finally, steam or microwave rather than boil your produce to minimize the loss of water-soluble vitamins.

Myth: Once thawed, food cannot be refrozen without cooking it first.

You can freeze and refreeze to your heart's content as long as the food has not been left outside the fridge for more than 2 hours (or 1 hour in 90-degree heat). One point to be aware of is that refreezing anything uncooked, especially meat, will degrade the quality due to the loss of moisture in the thawing process. So although it is technically safe to eat, from a culinary standpoint, it's best to avoid refreezing if at all possible.

Myth: You can store frozen food long-term anywhere in your freezer or anywhere that's cold.

The door of the freezer is a handy place to store frozen items, but not necessarily the best place for long-term storage. The temperature near and on the door fluctuates every time the door is opened. Although the food may remain frozen, the freezing process could be slowed, opening up the possibility for larger ice crystals to form inside the food and destroy its integrity. To prevent this, store frozen foods toward the back of the freezer where a constant 0 degrees F is more likely to be achieved and use goods stored near the front or on the door sooner. And if the power goes out? Don't open the freezer door! According to the USDA, a full freezer should remain frozen for 2 days. And if you're tempted to store your freezer overflow in a snowbank-don't. Even if the temperature is very cold, the sun can still heat up your frozen foods to dangerously warm temperatures. This is still an excellent way to store beer, though. So keep doing that.

5 myths and truths about peanuts

2012-01-26T01:32:00.000-08:00

Myth or Truth? All peanut products are off-limits for people with peanut allergies.

For the most part this is true, but there is one big exception-highly refined peanut oil. The Food and Drug Administration has said that highly refined oils, such as peanut oil, are not considered "major food allergens." That's because protein, which triggers the allergic response, has been removed from the oil. (There may still be a very small trace of protein in the oil, which the FDA says is not sufficient to trigger an allergic response. That being said, I can understand not wanting to take the risk, when there are so many other oils out there). Aromatic peanut oil, on the other hand, is less refined-it's basically extracted from pressing the peanuts-and therefore contains peanut protein and needs to be avoided.

Myth or Truth? Peanuts are fattening.

It's true that peanuts have fat, but it's the good-for-you mono- and polyunsaturated kind that tree nuts also have. They won't make you fat if you watch your portion size-1 ounce of peanuts (32 nuts) delivers 166 calories. Like other nuts, peanuts also contain fiber, which helps make them satiating. A recent study gave middle-schoolers peanuts as afternoon snacks. In combination with other lifestyle interventions, such as exercise and nutrition education, researcher Craig A. Johnston, Ph.D., has found a significant decrease in the students' BMIs compared to the group that did not receive the intervention. He in part attributes the decline to the fact that peanuts replaced other "empty calorie" snacks, such as chips and soda.

Myth or Truth? Peanuts contain some anti-aging compounds.

Peanuts, especially the skin-on variety, contain resveratrol, the same compounds found in red wine that may slow cellular aging and promote heart health. Boiled peanuts have the highest levels, but roasted peanuts also deliver a healthy dose.

Myth or Truth? Peanut flour is gluten-free.

Although this definitely would count as an allergen for sufferers of peanut allergies, peanut flour is gluten-free. It has a slightly nutty flavor and can be used in baking or to coat fish or chicken before sautéing. Interestingly, it's high in protein and fiber and comes in different levels of "defatted-ness" (flour that has had more oil pressed out of it is higher in protein).

Myth or Truth? People who eat peanuts have lower rates of some chronic diseases than those who don't.

Nut consumption has been shown to lower risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes, according to some studies (and, yes, even peanuts count).

In 1974 some guy in Alaska flew hundreds of tires into the crater of a dormant volcano and lit them on fire

2012-01-25T03:18:00.000-08:00

The Eruption of Mount Edgecumbe

Residents of Sitka, Alaska were alarmed when the long-dormant volcano neighboring them, Mount Edgecumbe, suddenly began to belch out billows of black smoke. Did this mean that the volcano was active again and would soon erupt? Terrified residents spilled out of their homes onto the streets to gaze up at the volcano, and calls poured into the local authorities. Luckily it turned out that man, not nature, was responsible for the smoke. A local prankster named Porky Bickar had flown hundreds of old tires into the volcano's crater and then lit them on fire, all in a (successful) attempt to fool the city dwellers into believing that the volcano was stirring to life. Six years later when Mount St. Helens erupted a Sitka resident wrote to Bickar to tell him, "This time you've gone too far!"

Top 3 Benefits of Vitamin D

2012-01-24T02:28:00.000-08:00

What exactly makes vitamin D so important to our health? Quite simply, it directly and indirectly influences most of what happens in our bodies every second of every day.

To understand, you have to shift your thinking a bit. Vitamin D isn’t actually a vitamin. Rather, it’s a hormone precursor that our biological ancestors made from being in the sun. When exposed to UV rays, a chemical cousin of cholesterol in the skin converts to vitamin D, which travels to the liver and is changed to the prehormone calcidiol. Calcitriol (the actual hormone) attaches to more than 2,700 sites on the human genome, and it turns on more than 1,000 genes, prompting them to do their jobs.

Creighton University’s Robert P. Heaney, MD, points out that vitamin D is a key part of the biochemical machinery that opens up our entire genome, so cells can tap into the vast information it contains. In a remarkable feat of biology, individual cells synthesize calcitriol, which then turns around to regulate those cells’ activities. It’s these fundamental roles of vitamin D that affect our risk for so many different diseases. In fact, says Heaney, “Vitamin D probably affects every disease.”

The evidence is particularly strong when it comes to vitamin D’s role in resisting infection, maintaining bone and muscle, and reducing cancer risks.

1. Cold and Flu Protection

Is it a coincidence that the vast majority of cold and flu outbreaks occur during the winter, when people have less sun exposure and lower levels of vitamin D? Probably not. In 2009 researchers analyzed patterns of deaths and disease complications (typically pneumonia) during the influenza pandemic that raged through the United States in 1918 and 1919, killing at least one-half million people. The researchers reported that the fewest flu deaths and complications occurred in southern cities, where the sun shone brighter throughout the year and, presumably, people had higher vitamin D levels. In contrast, the most deaths occurred in northern cities, where there was less sun exposure.

Granted, this association doesn’t prove cause and effect, but it’s certainly suggestive, and other evidence does support the protective role of vitamin D. Over the 2008–2009 winter months, doctors gave 1,200 IU of vitamin D daily to Japanese school children. Compared with children getting placebos, those taking vitamin D were 42 percent less likely to contract the flu and 83 percent less likely to suffer asthma attacks.

The underlying mechanisms are now understood. Numerous immune compounds depend on vitamin D, including PCL-gamma1, a molecule that activates immune cells so they’re capable of fighting infections. In addition, lung cells are among those that secrete 1a-hydroxylase, an enzyme that converts inactive vitamin D to its active form, helping fight respiratory infections. The vitamin D then turns on genes involved in immunity and boosts levels of cathelicidin, a powerful germ-fighting compound.

2. Stronger Bones and Muscles

Vitamin D has long been recognized as essential for normal bone formation, largely because it is essential for calcium utilization. Numerous studies have shown that the majority of seniors hospitalized for hip fractures are deficient in vitamin D.

But the problem might not be just weak bones. Heike Bischoff-Ferrari, MD, of University Hospital in Zurich, and others have made the case that weak muscles lead to falls and broken bones. The argument has its merits. Vitamin D is needed for normal muscle production and strength, and a lack of the vitamin leads to muscle weakness, a reduced range of motion, and increased physical frailty. With each passing year, seniors are more likely to be affected by sarcopenia, the age-related loss of muscle, along with osteoporosis. After analyzing 20 studies, which included more than 44,000 patients, Bischoff-Ferrari wrote in Osteoporosis International that 1,800 to 4,000 IU of vitamin D could greatly reduce the risk of falls in seniors. In contrast, the IOM recommended only 600 to 800 IU daily.

3. Lower Risk of Cancer

In 1980 epidemiologists reported that low vitamin D levels were associated with a greater risk of developing colorectal cancer.

Since then, researchers from around the world have linked low vitamin D levels to a higher risk of breast, ovarian, kidney, pancreatic and aggressive prostate cancer.

Would vitamin D supplements or greater sun exposure help protect against these cancers? The answer is yes, according to research by Cedric F. Garland, DrPH, of the University of California, San Diego.

Garland and his colleagues calculated that the incidence of colon cancer in the United States and Canada could be cut in half if people took 2,000 IU of vitamin D daily, and that women would reduce the incidence of breast cancer by half if they took 3,500 IU of vitamin D daily.

How Much Should You Take?

So all this comes back to the questions: Should you take vitamin D? And if so, how much? Here’s the best advice culled from experts.

• The ideal approach is to ask your doctor for a vitamin D blood test, which will eliminate the bulk of the guesswork — but not all of it. Because of individual differences in absorption and use, people may need to take differing quantities of vitamin D to achieve a healthy blood level. Make sure your doctor orders a “25-hydroxy vitamin D” test. Other tests might result in a false normal. Although levels below 30 ng/ml indicate a deficiency, many physicians haven’t kept up with the research on vitamin D and believe that this level is just fine. The optimal level is at least 40 ng/ml and perhaps 50 ng/ml, says Heaney. But higher amounts, within reason, aren’t necessarily bad. Surfers, lifeguards and people who spend a lot of time outdoors typically have levels of 70 to 90 ng/ml.

• If you don’t currently have a significant deficiency, and if during the summer you spend a lot of time in the sun, with at least your arms and legs exposed, and you are not always slathered with sunscreen, you probably don’t need to take vitamin D supplements. Holick, who wrote The Vitamin D Solution (Hudson Street Press, 2010), suggests getting approximately 10 minutes of sun exposure (depending on time of day, season, latitudinal location and skin pigmentation) before applying sunscreen. Vitamin D made from the sun actually lasts longer in the body, compared with vitamin D from supplements or foods (also note that with the exception of wild salmon and shiitake mushrooms, most foods aren’t great sources of vitamin D).

• If it’s fall, winter or early spring, if you don’t get a lot of sun exposure, or if you know you are D-deficient, you should definitely take vitamin D supplements (most health pros recommend vitamin D3, also known as cholecalciferol). Your need will be greater if you are north of the latitude of Atlanta, since you will make little if any vitamin D from sun exposure during the months of November through March.

• If you have not taken a vitamin D blood test and you’re looking for general guidelines, Holick suggests that children take 1,000 to 2,000 IU and adults take 2,000 to 3,000 IU daily. “The bottom line for me is that there is probably no evidence that these amounts pose any risk,” he says. Cannell’s recommendation: Don’t drive yourself crazy with all the qualifications. “Just take 5,000 IU a day, unless you’re going outside to work or to the garden or beach.” The higher amount might be particularly helpful for people with a chronic illness, such as fibromyalgia, arthritis or lupus, adds Hunninghake. “These high doses of vitamin D, while generally safe, should be monitored with follow-up blood level [tests],” he says.

And what of the risks? For most people, vitamin D toxicity occurs after taking more than 40,000 IU daily for months, says Cannell. So as long as you’re being moderate in your intake, don’t sweat.

10 Things Unhappy People Have in Common

2012-01-24T02:26:00.000-08:00

We all want to be happy in some way or another. We strive each day to find the path of happiness whatever we think it is. But some of us come up way short. Some of us make mistakes day in and day out that take us away from the shining beacon of happiness at the end of the tunnel.

Are you striving to find peace? Are you striving to locate that inner glow that you know must exist? Are you coming up short or finding happiness that’s always fleeting? Life is a journey and on it we find what works and what doesn’t work. However, the most unhappy people tend to have a few things in common. If you’re looking to find peace, balance, and joy in your life, here’s what NOT to do. These people have it all wrong:

1. They Hate Their Jobs

You spend eight hours, sometimes much more at work. If you hate your job you can’t help but hate your life because you’re spending 40 out of the 168 hours in a week doing something you can’t stand. What’s worse, we often take our anger from work home with us, bringing that disgruntled attitude into our homes. I’m not saying go out and quit your job tomorrow. Instead, take an aerial view of your life. Why don’t you love your job? What’s missing? Is it the career itself? Is it your boss or your company? What’s your passion? What are you good at? Take time to answer these questions and then make a plan to move towards change, however long it takes.

2. They’re Constantly Worried About Money

Studies have proven that being rich won’t make us any happier. A Princeton University study showed that people needed an annual income of $75,000 per year per household and no more to be happy. Above that amount, more cash has no effect on “emotional well-being.” What this really means is that you need to be able to comfortably pay bills and save without worrying about finances. On the other hand, financial uncertainty does make us unhappy so this is another chance for evaluation. Are you overspending? What can you downsize? How can you minimize your life so that you can afford it? This is in no way an easy question, but it’s part of the journey.

3. They Don’t Have Any Active Hobbies

Happiness is linked to activity level. You have to move to feel good. What about yoga, hiking, swimming, surfing, biking, or running? Happiness is also linked to doing what you love so find active hobbies that make you happy and get to it.

4. They Have Wandering Minds.

According to Science News, “[a] wandering mind often stumbles downhill emotionally. People spend nearly half their waking lives thinking about stuff other than what they’re actually doing, and these imaginary rambles frequently feel bad, according to a new study.” The more you can focus on what you’re doing when you’re doing it, the happier you are. Meditation allows you to learn to focus on the present moment so you can actually live the life you’ve been given.

5. They Commute a Long Distance

A long commute can take a toll on your life and after a while it can really bring you down. How much of your life are you losing in commute? It’s hard on a relationship as well. A recent Swedish study found that divorce rates were higher the longer the commute.

6. They Think “Stuff” Will Make Them Happy

Unhappy people are constantly trying to fill the void by consuming, whether it be alcohol, food, or shopping. But the problem is happiness can’t be consumed, it’s cultivated from within. Meeting desires only brings fleeting happiness.

Why We Lie

2012-01-24T02:25:00.000-08:00

Can you identify someone in your life who uses language carelessly, who agrees to things readily but then never seems to be able to show up for his or her agreements? Do you know individuals who spend a lot of their time speaking about things they have no experience with — who have plenty of opinions but little real, applicable knowledge to back it up? Do you have friends who frequently gossip or who say disempowering things about themselves? These are some of the common ways that people deprive themselves of the potential power of speech.

Language is meant to power our dreams into physical reality. When we “spend” our language on half-baked ideas, or passionate views we may have heard about but have no direct experience with, when we use language destructively or we say things we don’t really mean, we lose personal power. Personal power comes from being in integrity and diminishes whenever our integrity is undermined. Unfortunately, very few of us are taught the skills of using language as an integrity-building force.

White Lies

To find the roots of our dishonesty with ourselves, we need only look as far as our cultural patterns around language and lies. Most of us consider ourselves good people. We recycle our cardboard, give to charity and generally try to do the right thing when we have the opportunity. Yet most nice people also lie quite frequently. Why is that? And how has that become acceptable behavior?

The dictionary describes the word “lie” in the following way: v 1. to say something that is not true in a conscious effort to deceive somebody, 2. to give a false impression; n 1. a false statement made deliberately, 2. a false impression created deliberately.

In all four of these descriptions, one thing stands out clearly: that lying is something we do deliberately — that our purpose for lying is to intentionally deceive. Obviously, this type of activity seems at odds with being “nice.” How is it that we can consider ourselves good people and include lying? We may think our lying is for a good reason: to keep from hurting someone’s feelings, to smooth over conflict or to make someone happy. After all, what does it hurt to tell a little white lie every once in a while?

What lying does, as a rule, is to create multiple realities. When you lie, reality splits — it “dis-integrates.” You now have one reality that you know and live in, knowing the “truth” about a particular issue, and the reality that the people to whom you’ve lied live in, which is designed around somewhat or totally different information. The people to whom you have lied make decisions and choices based on the reality they inhabit, but it’s a different reality than the one you inhabit, so that split will now influence your relationship and your common future.

Presumably, you told the white lie to make these other people’s reality “nicer,” but you probably also told it to make your reality more comfortable (i.e., by lying, you avoided “feeling bad,” disappointing them or being the bearer of bad news). The problem is, you are creating this potentially huge disintegration without having any real way of knowing what the repercussions of that reality-split will be down the road. You can’t know how this separate reality might circle back in the future, and you can’t really know whether the net outcome for this other person will be better or worse than the course of the reality that might have resulted if you had told the truth. All you can know for sure is that you’ve now created a rift in a continuum of both your own and these other people’s lives, and you’ve taken charge, if even in a small way, of designing someone else’s reality.

The more lies you tell, of course, the more multiple realities you create and must live with. That’s an enormous responsibility, and it can also be energy draining, because it literally costs you integrity — the state of being connected, sound, consistent and undivided.

When enough “white lies” are floating around in your midst, your integrity becomes fractured. You may feel pulled in a thousand directions, and unable to make decisions without the fear that all these “custom made” realities could come crashing down around you. You may also not feel like you fully know or trust yourself at times.

Resurrecting Honesty

In his book, The Four Agreements (Amber-Allen Publishing, 1997), author and Toltec wise man don Miguel Ruiz presents a simple but profound code of personal conduct based on adhering to four basic principles or “agreements.” The very first agreement is “Be Impeccable With Your Word.”

The word impeccable comes from the Latin im, meaning “without,” and pecatus, which means “sin.” So impeccable (which we generally think of as meaning “perfectly clean”) really means “without sin.” According to Ruiz, to sin is to go against yourself, in word or in deed. To speak something other than your highest choice and truth is a form of fragmentation.

In the first section of The Four Agreements, he advises: “Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.”

Those are wise words, and they provide the basis for personal integrity. But if we accept that all of us are already wandering around in slightly different realities (thanks to each having access to different knowledge and experience), what is truth, really? How can we be sure we are speaking it, and speaking it with full integrity? How can we know when we are simply telling the truth, and when we are gossiping or talking out of turn?

At one time or another, most of us have been on the receiving end of someone who just had to “speak his or her truth,” but who also seemed to have had an agenda about making us wrong, guilt-tripping us or hurting our feelings. We’ve been in situations where someone says something totally inappropriate or unkind and then uses, “Well, it’s true!” as an excuse.

Insisting on speaking the whole truth and nothing but the truth all the time doesn’t seem practical or wise; it seems reckless and undiscerning. This is where we need to come back and revisit that last, very important bit of Ruiz’s counsel: “Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.”

That might mean love for another person, but it also means love of the greater good, for a principle or fundamental truth. Sometimes you may have to speak up in a way that hurts or angers someone close to you but that you feel is necessary for the benefit of a larger group or purpose. And yes, sometimes it means you may elect not to share a particular truth out of care or respect for another person. The intersection of love and truth is a complex territory. What you need is a personal code of integrity that you can live with and be proud of.

You will find yourself to be a much happier person when your words match your intentions and when your actions match your words. You will find yourself sleeping better when there are no niggling half-truths keeping you awake at night.

As your word becomes more and more powerful, your reality will begin to reflect that. As you speak from a place of integrity, and use powerful language in the service of your highest choices, you will start to manifest those choices very much as you have described them. When that happens, you’ll know you are on the right path and headed in the best possible direction — the direction of your dreams.

Health benefits of almonds

2012-01-23T02:03:00.000-08:00

While there’s no doubt that the popularity of the almond as a viable source of nutrition is well-known these days, the truth is that this might be due to the fact that the health benefits that it offers are becoming more and more obvious to many.

So, here are some of the reasons (read: health benefits) why they have gained acceptance:

More energy

While some of us take the time to eat before heading out to work, some of us have to rush, therein losing out on the best meal of the day. Almonds are an excellent snack to have since they contain a lot of protein that, in turn, fuels the body with energy.

Good for the Blood

Since almonds have a lot of potassium (which is excellent for the blood) and a tiny quantity of sodium (which is not good for the blood), it becomes an excellent snack to have especially in taking care of their health. Potassium ensures that the blood carries the nutrients to all parts of the body much more easily whereas sodium hampers progress.

Develops stronger bones

Snacking on almonds, which has a fair amount of calcium, is good for the bones and teeth in one’s body. Since calcium strengthens these parts of the body, one can prevent osteoporosis.

Lowers bad cholesterol

Since almonds have monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats in substantial quantities, this can result in the lowering of bad cholesterol.

Reduces the risk of heart disease

Since most nuts (almonds included) consist of low levels of saturated fat and cholesterol, the U.S Food and Drug Administration have authenticated the fact that these nuts can reduce the risk of heart disease.

Helps one to lose weight

Since almonds are a nutrient-dense food, this results in one feeling full after a pack of almonds. If you feel full, then there are fewer chances that you might not eat as much. And this increases your chances of losing weight.

The Importance of Alkaline Foods and pH Balance

2012-01-23T02:00:00.000-08:00

From increased energy to the prevention of cancer, alkaline foods and a healthy pH balance have been revered as a panacea in modern Western culture. While the science of using alkaline foods to keep a healthy pH balance may not yet be fully studied, there is certainly enough anecdotal (and documented) evidence to make the topic essential for overall health and wellness.

Even susceptibility to bone loss and fybromyalgia may be attributed to an acidic pH balance in the body. Direct links to these illnesses may have yet to be determined, but for those suffering from their symptoms, the hope of relief is enough to generate interest in a variety of alternatives. One option is to use alkaline foods that help the body manage a healthy pH balance.

The biggest offender in the acidification of body fluids and tissues is simply the fact that most people do not eat enough alkaline foods. Instead, the usual American diet leans heavily upon acid foods such as animal protein, white flour, sugar, and artificial ingredients.

Unlike alkaline foods such as fresh fruits and vegetables, highly processed foods, meats, and sugars are the fuel source for unwanted organisms in the body, such as yeast and bacteria. These organisms feed off of the sugars and proteins consumed. As a result, they excrete a variety of toxins, many of which are acid forming. This makes the body behave unnaturally in order to maintain pH balance, causing internal systems to fight for the alkaline condition that is required for optimal health. Food is not the only reason for unhealthy pH balance, however. Excessive stress can trigger the release of toxins, too. Environmental pollutants may also be blamed for the acidic nature of many bodies in modern society.

By adjusting the diet to include more alkaline foods, the body has the tools it needs to retain a healthy pH balance. Sustituting acid foods with alkaline foods gives the body a chance to perform in a far more natural state. Undesirable organisms such as fungus, bacteria, and yeast will not thrive in an alkaline environment. The same is true for many viruses. When they are unable to survive, they are less likely to cause deterioration to the body.

Some of these ailments and diseases are thought to be linked with the acidification of blood, tissues, and organ systems:

• Cancer
• Chronic Aches and Pains
• Depression
• Arterial Sclerosis
• Multiple Sclerosis
• Rheumatoid Arthritis

While the the thought of completely overhauling the diet is intimidating, it may very well be the smartest way to improve overall health. On the other hand, it can be smart to begin slowly but steadily introducing more alkaline foods while removing the acid foods. Often, changes are simpler than one might even expect. For example, rather than drinking coffee and sodas, which are highly acidic, choose herbal tea and alkaline drinks made with real fruit. Implementing changes like this can be a great start in restoring the body’s natural pH balance.

7 Foods to Avoid if You Have Asthma

2012-01-23T01:56:00.000-08:00

One dietary trigger that is well documented in relation to asthma attacks is sulfites. While sulfite sensitivity is generally limited to asthmatics who are steroid-dependant, this food additive can trigger attacks in 20 percent of people with asthma. Sulfites occur in foods as a result of fermentation and are found in processed foods.

Artificial Lemon or Lime Juice

You'd be much better off using real lemon or lime juice. It might take a little extra work, but not only will it taste fresher, you'll be able to breathe better too.

Beer, Wine, Hard Cider, Juice and Tea

Ever wondered why you had trouble breathing after drinking beer, wine or hard cider? Now you do! Sulfites are to blame.

Dried Fruit or Vegetables

Besides typical dried fruits, such as raisins, pineapple, apricots and cranberries, these foods also include things like maraschino cherries and pre-packaged guacomole.

Pickled Foods

Pickles, peppers and relish, oh my! Avoid anything pickled if you have a reaction to sulfites. Let the jar with murky liquid be the warning sign to stay away.

Packaged Potatoes

Things like frozen hash browns and french fries and dehydrated potatoes have sulfites, so beware. A healthier substitute would be a baked sweet potato or roasted potatoes with a touch of olive oil.

Shrimp

Frozen shrimp is another sulfite culprit. It is used to as a food additive to prevent black spots from developing on the shrimp. A better bet is to get fresh shrimp, which can be more expensive, but will keep you feeling better in the long run.

Naturally Occuring Sulfites

Other foods with sulfites include asparagus, chives, corn starch, eggs, garlic, leeks, lettuce, maple syrup, salmon, soy products and tomatoes.

Tired of Being Stuck Indoors?

Many allergy and asthma sufferers face spring's blooming season with dubious cheer. After all, it's hard to get swept up into the season when you're sneezy and wheezy. Even those on medication find that they need an extra boost during the most pollen-heavy months.

10 Tips to avoid vision loss

2012-01-23T01:51:00.000-08:00

1. Wear sunglasses

Wearing sunglasses that block 100 percent of ultraviolet (UV) rays can delay the development of cataracts by protecting your eyes from direct sunlight that can damage the retina. Sunglasses also protect the delicate eyelid skin and reduce your risk of wrinkles and skin cancer around the eye.

2. Don't smoke

Tobacco smoking is directly linked to many adverse health effects, including age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Studies show that current smokers and ex-smokers are more likely to develop AMD than people who have never smoked. Smokers are also at increased risk for developing cataracts.

3. Eat right

A vitamin or mineral deficiency can impair retinal function. The belief that eating carrots improves vision has some truth, but a variety of vegetables, especially leafy green ones, should be an important part of your diet. Researchers have found people on diets with higher levels of vitamins C and E, zinc, lutein, zeaxanthin, omega-3 fatty acids DHA and EPA are less likely to develop early and advanced AMD.

4. Get a baseline eye exam

Adults with no signs or risk factors for eye disease should get a baseline eye disease screening at age 40 (the age when early signs of disease and changes in vision may start to occur). Based on the results of the initial screening, an ophthalmologist will prescribe the necessary intervals for follow-up exams. If you have symptoms or a family history of eye disease, diabetes or high blood pressure, you should see an ophthalmologist to determine how frequently your eyes should be examined.

5. Wear eye protection

An estimated 2.5 million eye injuries occur in the US each year from sports, home repairs and other home projects. Many injuries can be avoided by simply wearing proper eye protection. Sports eye protection should meet the specific requirements of that sport; these requirements are usually established and certified by the sport's governing body and/or the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM). For most repair projects and activities around the home, standard ANSI-approved protective eyewear is sufficient.

6. Know your family history

Many eye diseases cluster in families, so knowing your family's history of eye disease and discussing it with your ophthalmologist can reduce your risk of vision loss and other eye conditions.

7. Early intervention

Age-related eye diseases, including cataracts, diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma and AMD are expected to dramatically increase from 28 million today to 43 million by the year 2020. Most serious eye conditions, such as glaucoma and AMD, are more easily and successfully treated if diagnosed and treated early. Left untreated, these diseases can cause serious vision loss and blindness. Regardless of your age, early intervention now will prevent vision loss later.

8. Know your eye care provider

When you go to get your eyes checked, there are a variety of eye care providers you might see. Ophthalmologists, optometrists and opticians all play an important role in providing eye care services to consumers. However, each has a different level of training and expertise. Make sure you are seeing the right provider for your condition or treatment. Ophthalmologists are specially trained to provide the full spectrum of eye care, from prescribing glasses and contact lenses to complex and delicate eye surgery.

9. Follow your eye doctor's contact lens instructions

Follow your eye care provider's instructions regarding the care and use of your contact lenses. Abuse, such as sleeping in contacts that are not approved for overnight wear, using saliva or water as a wetting solution, using expired solutions, and using disposable contact lenses beyond their recommended wear can result in corneal ulcers, severe pain and even vision loss.

10. Be aware of eye fatigue

If your eyes are tired from working at a computer or doing close work, you can follow the 20-20-20 rule: Look up from your work every 20 minutes at an object 20 feet away for 20 seconds. If eye fatigue persists, it can be a sign of several different conditions, such as dry eye syndrome, presbyopia, or spectacles with lenses that are not properly centered. See an eye doctor to determine why you are having eye fatigue and to receive proper treatment.

Police Cut Way Into Mansion To Arrest Megaupload Founder

2012-01-21T20:51:00.000-08:00

New Zealand police on Saturday revealed bizarre details of the arrest of the suspected kingpin of an Internet copyright theft case against the James Bond-like backdrop of a country mansion hideaway with electronic locks, a safe room and a pink Cadillac.

German national Kim Dotcom, also known as Kim Schmitz, was one of four men arrested on Friday, a day before his 38th birthday, in an investigation of the Megaupload.com website led by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation.

The group was accused of engaging in a scheme that took more than $500 million away from copyright holders and generated over $175 million in proceeds from subscriptions and advertising.

A police official said dozens of officers, backed by helicopters, forced their way into the mansion, nestled in lush, rolling farmland, after Dotcom refused them entry, a scene more reminiscent of a high-octane spy drama than the usual policeman's lot in rural New Zealand.

"Despite our staff clearly identifying themselves, Mr Dotcom retreated into the house and activated a number of electronic-locking mechanisms," said Detective Inspector Grant Wormald from the Organised and Financial Crime Agency New Zealand.

Officers broke the locks and Dotcom barricaded himself into a safe room which officers had to cut their way through to gain access.

"Once they gained entry into this room, they found Mr Dotcom near a firearm which had the appearance of a shortened shotgun," he said. "It was definitely not as simple as knocking at the front door."

ROLLS-ROYCE PHANTOM

Two firearms were seized and a 55-year-old New Zealand man has since been charged with illegal possession of a pistol. Computers and documents were also retrieved and more than NZ$10 million ($8 million) was seized from financial institutions.

Television footage showed vehicles, including a pink Cadillac and a Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe, being removed from the property.

The house where Dotcom was arrested was one of the largest and most expensive in the country, worth around NZ$30 million.

Located in hills northwest of New Zealand's largest city, the mansion is surrounded -- at suitably discreet distances -- by other substantial country homes and luxury lifestyle blocks complete with stables, swimming pools and tennis courts.

Dotcom leased the property after being blocked from buying it last year by the government after failing to meet a "good character" test for migrants, although he was granted residency in 2010.

Dotcom has previous convictions for insider trading and embezzlement from his time in Germany and Thailand, according immigration authorities, leading some opposition politicians to question why he was allowed to settle in the first place.

"New Zealand is under the radar, away from Interpol and a better lifestyle than Eastern Europe," Jeffrey Carr, an Internet security expert founder of Taia Global Inc, said of Dotcom's decision to settle in New Zealand.

"They obviously weren't aware how closely the FBI has been building its international relationships over the past few years."

The FBI said Dotcom personally made $42 million from Megaupload in 2010 alone.

Standing some 6'7" tall and reportedly weighing around 300 pounds (136 kg), Dotcom appeared to revel in his outlaw reputation.

Personalized number plates on some 20 vehicles seized from the site included KIMCOM, HACKER, STONED, GUILTY, MAFIA, GOD and POLICE, according to the indictment.

One video on YouTube shows him racing a Mercedes in the Gumball 3000 road rally and talking about bribing a Moroccan official.

Another clip shows a 2011 New Year's Eve fireworks display over Auckland organized and paid for by Dotcom to celebrate his family being granted residency. The display was reported to have cost $500,000.

PIRACY DEBATE

The arrests were made as the debate over online piracy reaches fever pitch in Washington where Congress is trying to craft tougher legislation.

Lawmakers stopped anti-piracy legislation on Friday, postponing a critical vote in a victory for Internet companies that staged a mass online protest against the fast-moving bills.

The movie and music industries want Congress to crack down on Internet piracy and content theft, but major Internet companies like Google and Facebook have complained that current drafts of the legislation would lead to censorship.

Dotcom and the other men made a brief court appearance on Friday will appear again on Monday. They face extradition and a trial in the United States.

On Friday, in a show of support, hackers attacked and temporarily disabled a number of government and entertainment company websites, including the U.S. Justice Department's website.

U.S. Justice Department officials have said that the estimate of $500 million in economic harm to copyright holders cited in a U.S. indictment was at the low end.

The allegations included copyright infringement as well as conspiracy to commit copyright infringement, conspiracy to commit money laundering and conspiracy to commit racketeering. Two of the offences carry a maximum penalty of 20 years.

The companies charged, Megaupload Ltd and Vestor Ltd, were both registered in Hong Kong and owned either in large part or solely by Dotcom.

Some 100 officers raided four premises in Hong Kong on Friday including luxury hotel rooms, seizing computer equipment and freezing HK$330 million ($42.5 million) in financial assets, according to Hong Kong Customs.

Megaupload has boasted of having more than 150 million registered users and 50 million daily visitors, according to the indictment. At one point, it was estimated to be the 13th most frequently visited website on the Internet.

Users could upload material to the company's sites which then would create a link that could be distributed. The sites, which included video, music and pornography, did not provide search capabilities but rather relied on others to publish the links, the U.S. indictment said.

Megaupload's U.S. lawyer said the company would "vigorously defend itself" and was trying to recover its servers and get back online.

The Megaupload group used more than 1,500 computer servers in Virginia, Washington D.C., France and the Netherlands to host its sites, according to the FBI.

Atheist faces jail after Facebook remark

2012-01-21T08:38:00.000-08:00

AN Indonesian civil servant who declared himself an atheist on Facebook was arrested and is now facing jail for blasphemy after being attacked by an angry mob, police said.

Alexander An, 30, who wrote "God doesn't exist" on his Facebook page, was beaten by a mob of dozens in his hometown in Pulau Punjung, West Sumatra province.

"He is suspected of having blasphemed against Islam," local police chief Chairul Aziz told AFP.

"The man told police investigators that if God really exists and has absolute power, why didn't he prevent bad things from happening in this world."

An said on his Facebook page that he was brought up as a Muslim, like the vast majority in Indonesia, where blasphemy is a punishable crime carrying a maximum five-year prison term.

Dozens of locals stormed into his office after a heated debate with them on Facebook over religion, police said.

An was also an administrator of a Facebook group promoting atheism with 1243 followers. His postings no longer appeared online following his arrest.

US man jokes after nail is removed from his brain

2012-01-21T05:24:00.000-08:00

Chicago man Dante Autullo was recovering yesterday after having a nail removed from his brain – which he hadn't known was there.

X-ray of a nail embedded in Dante Autullo's brain

Dante Autullo, shows how he injured himself during a news conference at Advocate Christ Medical Center

Dante Autullo thought his doctors were joking, and that he had merely cut himself with a nail gun while building a shed. But they assured him that the X-ray was real: a nail was lodged in the middle of his brain.

Mr Autullo, from Chicago, was recovering on Friday after undergoing surgery at Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, where doctors removed the 3.75-inch (7.62cm) nail, according to agency reports.

The nail had come within millimeters of the part of the brain that controls motor function.

"When they brought in the picture, I said to the doctor, 'Is this a joke? Did you get that out of the doctors joke file?'" the 32-year-old recalled. "The doctor said, 'No man, that's in your head.'"

As he was rushed by ambulance to another hospital for surgery, he posted a picture of the X-ray on his Facebook page.

Mr Autullo, who lives in Orland Park, said that he was building a shed on Tuesday and was using the nail gun above his head when he fired it. With nothing to indicate that a nail hadn't simply whizzed by his head, his long-time companion, Gail Glaenzer, cleaned the wound with peroxide.

"It really felt like I got punched on the side of the head," he said, adding that he continued working. "I thought it went past my ear."

While there are pain-sensitive nerves on a person's skull, there aren't any within the brain itself. That's why he would have felt the nail strike the skull, but he wouldn't have felt it penetrate the brain.

Neither he nor Miss Glaenzer thought much about it, and Mr Autullo went on with his day, even ploughing a bit of snow. But the next day when he awoke from a nap, feeling nauseated, Miss Glaenzer sensed that something was wrong and suggested they go to the hospital.

At first Mr Autullo refused, but he relented after the two picked up their son at school on Wednesday evening.

An X-ray was taken a couple hours later. And there, seeming to float in the middle of his head, was a nail.

Doctors told Mr Autullo and Miss Glaenzer that the nail came within millimetres of the part of the brain that controls motor function, and he was rushed by ambulance to the other hospital for more specialised care.

"He feels good. He moved all his limbs, he's talking normal, he remembers everything," Miss Glaenzer said. "It's amazing, a miracle."

Neurosurgeon Leslie Schaffer acknowledged that Mr Autullo's case was unusual, but not extremely rare. The surgeon said that having a nail penetrate the skull is not like being shot in the head, noting that a bullet would break into multiple pieces.

"This [the nail] is thinner, with a small trajectory, and pointed at the end," he said. "The bone doesn't fracture much because the nail has a small tip."

Dr Schaffer said that the man's skull stopped the nail going farther into his brain. He said he removed the nail by putting two holes in Mr Autullo's skull, on either side of the nail, then pulled the nail out along with a piece of the skull.

The surgery took two hours, and the part of the skull that was removed for surgery was replaced with a titanium mesh, said Mike Maggio, a hospital spokesman.

Colombia: Blood of ex-Pope John Paul II displayed

2012-01-21T05:17:00.001-08:00

Hundreds of faithful have converged on a cathedral in the Colombian capital to see drops of blood of the late pope John Paul II, who was beatified last year.

The blood, contained in a glass case, was brought to Colombia from Germany and placed at Bogota's Central Cathedral on public display.

"Colombian Catholics want to ask John Paul II through his blood to intervene and make peace possible in the country," said Friday Juan Vicente Cordoba, secretary of the Episcopalian Conference of Colombia.

Pope John Paul II headed the Catholic Church from 1978 until his death in April 2005. He was beatified in May 2011. Thousands of Colombians have perished in a guerrilla war launched by leftist rebels in 1964.

Things Not to Say to a Cancer Patient

2012-01-21T01:58:00.000-08:00

1. Don't ask, "Is there anything I can do?" unless you mean it. If you do, then just do something! When you're sick, asking for help is tiring -- and it can make you feel guilty or pathetic.

2. Don't ignore someone with cancer because you don't know what to say. Say something authentic and from the heart (just not anything on this list!). The old joke about voting applies: do it early and often.

3. Avoid questions about mortality. "What are your chances?" and "How long do you have?" are major no-nos.

4. Don't talk about your friend/cousin/uncle who died of the same cancer.

5. Don't use nicknames that refer to the person's disease. They can come off as offensive, even if they're meant as a joke. These are a few names that I've actually been called: fuzz head, baldy, Suleikemia (really?!).

6. Don't say to someone who's just lost all of her hair, "You look like [insert: an alien, avatar, Pinky or The Brain, Gollum]." This is not the time for the Beat-poet game of "first thought, best thought."

7. Don't put undue pressure on a patient to change doctors or therapies. You may mean well (and you may be right), but be aware that how you offer input can be as important as what you're offering. What worked for you may not apply to someone else.

8. Don't just repeat phrases like "everything will be OK" if the patient is feeling scared or upset. Instead, just be a good listener.

9. Don't tell someone, "Wow, that sucks" upon hearing of their illness. Yes, we know it sucks. Reminders are not necessary.

10. If you say or do something awkward, rude or out of line, don't pretend that it never happened. Apologize, and ask for a redo! It's OK to make mistakes. Cancer patients are used to these kinds of blunders. We'll understand. Just don't play the ostrich in the sand.

Medical Myths Even Doctors Believe

2012-01-21T01:56:00.000-08:00

Indiana University School of Medicine researchers explored seven commonly held medical beliefs. selected seven medical beliefs, espoused by both physicians and members of the general public, for critical review. They then searched for evidence to support or refute each of these claims.

The researchers explored various myths including:
People only use 10 percent of their brains
Hair and fingernails continue to grow after we die
Eating turkey makes you sleepy
People should drink at least eight glasses of water a day
Shaving hair cause it to grow back faster or coarser
Reading in dim light ruins your eyesight

These beliefs are commonly accepted, not only by the general population, but also by many physicians. The authors' surprising findings, when they reviewed medical literature -- all the beliefs were unproven or untrue.

"We got fired up about this because we knew that physicians accepted these beliefs and were passing this information along to their patients. And these beliefs are frequently cited in the popular media. We didn't set out to become myth busters," said co-author Aaron Carroll, M.D., M.S., assistant professor of pediatrics and a Regenstrief Institute, Inc. affiliated scientist.

"Whenever we talk about this work, doctors at first express disbelief that these things are not true. But after we carefully lay out medical evidence, they are very willing to accept that these beliefs are actually false," said co-author Rachel Vreeman, M.D., a pediatrics research fellow.

The first belief they explored -- people should drink at least eight glasses of water a day. This advice has been promoted as healthful as well as a useful dieting or weight control strategy.

"When we examined this belief, we found that there is no medical evidence to suggest that you need that much water," said Dr. Vreeman. She thinks this myth can be traced back to a 1945 recommendation from the Nutrition Council that a person consume the equivalent of 8 glasses (64 ounces) of fluid a day. But an important part of the Council's recommendation has been lost over the years -- the large amount of fluid contained in food, especially fruits and vegetables, as well as in the coffee and soda people drink each day should be included in the recommended 64- ounce total. Drinking excess water can be dangerous, resulting in water intoxication and even death, the study authors note.

Dr. Vreeman and Dr. Carroll also explored the popular belief that we use only 10 percent of our brains. Frequently cited by everyone from physicians to comedians (Jerry Seinfeld) and erroneously credited to Albert Einstein, the authors found that there are a lot of ways to disprove this belief. MRI scans, PET scans and other imaging studies show no dormant areas of the brain, and even viewing individual neurons or cells reveals no inactive areas of the brain. Metabolic studies of how brain cells process chemicals show no nonfunctioning areas.

Dr. Carroll and Dr. Vreeman think this myth probably originated with self improvement experts in the early 1900s who wanted to convince people that they had yet not reached their full potential. With the help of these self proclaimed experts (perhaps the descendents of snake oil salesmen), one could tap into the 90 percent of the brain supposedly not being used.

Finger nails and hair grow after death. Most physicians the study authors queried initially assumed this belief was true. But when they thought about it, they knew it couldn't possibly be valid. This myth likely persists because of an optical illusion -- and because it's just so creepy.

"As the body's skin is drying out, soft tissue, especially skin, is retracting. The nails appear much more prominent as the skin dries out. The same is true, but less obvious, with hair. As the skin is shrinking back, the hair looks more prominent or sticks up a bit," said Dr. Vreeman.

The two researchers also explored another frequently held belief related to hair -- that shaved hair grows back faster, coarser and darker. They found a 1928 randomized clinical trial which compared hair growth in shaved patches to growth in non-shaved patches. The hair which replaced the shaved hair was no darker or thicker, and did not grow in faster.

So why has this myth persisted almost 80 years after it was disproved and in the light of more recent studies which confirm the 1928 work? Again, optical illusions may be partially responsible, according to the study authors. When hair first comes in after being shaved, it grows with a blunt edge on top. Over time, the blunt edge gets worn so it may seem thicker than it actually is. Sun naturally bleaches hair over time, so hair which is just emerging after an individual has shaved seems darker, but actually is no darker than any new hair growth.

Even before Abe Lincoln was told that reading in dim candle light was bad for his eyes, people have believed that reading in dim light causes permanent eye damage. Generation after generation of parents have warned children (future physicians included) caught reading with flashlights under their blankets that reading in poor light ruins your vision. The study authors found no evidence that reading in dim light causes permanent eye damage. It is true, they say, that eye strain can occur in dim light, causing some temporarily decreased acuity, but after rest the eyes return to their full potential.

Both Dr. Vreeman and Dr. Carroll admit that they believed that eating turkey makes one especially drowsy. Scientific evidence supports that tryptophan, which is contained in turkey, can cause drowsiness. But they found that turkey doesn't contain an exceptional amount of tryptophan. In fact, turkey, chicken, and ground beef contain about the same amount of tryptophan and protein sources like pork and Swiss cheese contain more tryptophan per gram than turkey.

So why do people believe eating turkey makes them sleepy but never feel that way after a burger or pork chop? Again, this is a belief that the media, and other pop culture icons frequently repeat, popularizing the myth in spite of the easily accessible data on percentage of tryptophan in various products. Most likely, according to the study authors, this myth gained credence because turkey is often consumed during large, heavy dinners. It's the total content of the meal that makes one feel lethargic.

Why have these myths been perpetuated? Dr. Carroll and Dr. Vreeman believe it's because they are told by experts. "Until someone takes the time to question and look for evidence, medical myths will remain accepted beliefs. We have tried to show through science and research why certain widely accepted beliefs are untrue. To some extent this is what we do in our regular jobs every day, teaching medical students and residents (physicians in training) to question what they hear," said Dr. Carroll.

"This study was a light-hearted way to remind people that first they might believe things because they have heard them from other people, especially from experts; and second, staying current is not just a matter of adding new knowledge onto the things we already believe. Sometimes you really have to look back on things already in your head or things you already believe to be true and reinvestigate or investigate for the first time whether those things are true," said Dr. Vreeman.

Drugs Doctors Would Never Take

2012-01-21T01:53:00.000-08:00

Advair

It‘s asthma medicine that can make your asthma deadly. Advair contains the long-acting beta-agonist (LABA) salmeterol. A 2006 analysis found that regular use of LABAs can increase the severity of an asthma attack. Researchers estimate that salmeterol may contribute to as many as 5,000 asthma-related deaths in the United States each year.

Avandia

Diabetes is destructive enough on its own, but if you try to control it with rosiglitazone, better known as Avandia, it could cause a heart attack. A study found that people who took rosiglitazone for at least a year increased their risk of heart failure or a heart attack by 109 percent and 42 percent, respectively.

Celebrex

This painkiller has been linked to increased risks of stomach bleeding, kidney trouble, and liver damage. And according to a 2005 study, people taking 200 mg of Celebrex twice a day more than doubled their risk of dying of cardiovascular disease. Those on 400 mg twice a day more than tripled their risk.

Ketek

This antibiotic, which has traditionally been prescribed for respiratory-tract infections, carries a high risk of severe liver side effects. In February 2007, the FDA limited the usage of Ketek to the treatment of pneumonia.

Prilosec and Nexium

The FDA has investigated a suspected link between cardiac trouble and these acid-reflux remedies, although they did not find a "likely" connection. But whether this is true or not, they can raise your risk of pneumonia, and result in an elevated risk of bone loss. The risk of a bone fracture has been estimated to be over 40 percent higher in patients who use these drugs long-term.

Visine Original

These eye drops “get the red out” by shrinking blood vessels. Overuse of the active ingredient tetrahydrozoline can perpetuate the vessel dilating-and-constricting cycle and may cause even more redness.

Pseudoephedrine

This decongestant, found in many drugs, can raise blood pressure and heart rate, setting the stage for vascular catastrophe. Over the years, pseudoephedrine has been linked to heart attacks and strokes, as well as worsening the symptoms of prostate disease and glaucoma.

Aspartame Side Effects

2012-01-21T01:42:00.000-08:00

There are over 92 different health side effects associated with aspartame consumption. It seems surreal, but true. How can one chemical create such chaos?

Aspartame dissolves into solution and can therefore travel throughout the body and deposit within any tissue. The body digests aspartame unlike saccharin, which does not break down within humans.

The multitude of aspartame side effects are indicative to your genetic individuality and physical weaknesses. It is important to put two and two together, nonetheless, and identify which side effects aspartame is creating within you.

The components of aspartame can lead to a number of health problems. Side effects can occur gradually, can be immediate, or can be acute reactions.

According to Lendon Smith, M.D. there is an enormous population suffering from side effects associated with aspartame, yet have no idea why drugs, supplements and herbs don’t relieve their symptoms. Then, there are users who don’t ‘appear’ to suffer immediate reactions at all. Even these individuals are susceptible to the long-term damage caused by excitatory amino acids, phenylalanine, methanol, and DKP.

Adverse reactions and side effects of aspartame include:

Eye

blindness in one or both eyes
decreased vision and/or other eye problems such as: blurring, bright flashes, squiggly lines, tunnel vision, decreased night vision
pain in one or both eyes
decreased tears
trouble with contact lenses
bulging eyes

Ear

tinnitus - ringing or buzzing sound
severe intolerance of noise
marked hearing impairment

Neurologic

epileptic seizures
headaches, migraines and (some severe)
dizziness, unsteadiness, both
confusion, memory loss, both
severe drowsiness and sleepiness
paresthesia or numbness of the limbs
severe slurring of speech
severe hyperactivity and restless legs
atypical facial pain
severe tremors

Psychological/Psychiatric

severe depression
irritability
aggression
anxiety
personality changes
insomnia
phobias

Chest

palpitations, tachycardia
shortness of breath
recent high blood pressure

Gastrointestinal

nausea
diarrhea, sometimes with blood in stools
abdominal pain
pain when swallowing

Skin and Allergies

itching without a rash
lip and mouth reactions
hives
aggravated respiratory allergies such as asthma

Endocrine and Metabolic

loss of control of diabetes
menstrual changes
marked thinning or loss of hair
marked weight loss
gradual weight gain
aggravated low blood sugar (hypoglycemia)
severe PMS

Other

frequency of voiding and burning during urination
excessive thirst, fluid retention, leg swelling, and bloating
increased susceptibility to infection

Additional Symptoms of Aspartame Toxicity include the most critical symptoms of all
death
irreversible brain damage
birth defects, including mental retardation
peptic ulcers
aspartame addiction and increased craving for sweets
hyperactivity in children
severe depression
aggressive behavior
suicidal tendencies

These are not allergies or sensitivities, but diseases and disease syndromes. Aspartame poisoning is commonly misdiagnosed because aspartame symptoms mock textbook ‘disease’ symptoms, such as Grave’s Disease.

Aspartame changes the ratio of amino acids in the blood, blocking or lowering the levels of serotonin, tyrosine, dopamine, norepinephrine, and adrenaline. Therefore, it is typical that aspartame symptoms cannot be detected in lab tests and on x-rays. Textbook disorders and diseases may actually be a toxic load as a result of aspartame poisoning.

Ever gone to the doctor with real, physical symptoms, but he/she can’t find the cause? Well, it’s probably your diet, your environment, or both.

Aspartame is the common denominator for over 92 different health symptoms at the root of modern disease. The Aspartame Detoxification Program demonstrates the most effective way to reverse disease symptoms is removing the underlying cause - aspartame.

Begin with detoxifying your body of all residual chemical toxins from aspartame's chemical make up of phenylalanine, aspartic acid and methanol and their toxic by-products, and see if any adverse health symptoms remain. Try the Aspartame Detoxification Program, and within 30 days your symptoms should disappear.

Steps:

Remove all sugar-free products with aspartame from your diet.
Learn to 'read' your body. Begin recording any health changes.
Get a hair analysis.
Be happy with yourself.
Detoxify.
Restore depleted nutrients.
Exercise and get plenty of rest.
Eat 75% raw foods at every meal.
Drink water, water, water.
Get control of your life.

Aspartame may trigger, mimic, or cause the following illnesses:

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Epstein-Barr
Post-Polio Syndrome
Lyme Disease
Grave’s Disease
Meniere’s Disease
Alzheimer’s Disease
ALS
Epilepsy
Multiple Sclerosis (MS)
EMS
Hypothyroidism
Mercury sensitivity from Amalgam fillings
Fibromyalgia
Lupus
non-Hodgkins
Lymphoma
Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)

What can you do about aspartame side effects?

Set an example by changing your diet.

Tell everyone you know.

Talk to the schools and day care centers. Offer to speak at parent-teachers meetings.

Contact your local, state, and Federal government representatives.

If you see someone with a diet drink, ask if they have had any of the typical aspartame side effects.

Spread the word at your work.

Distribute the Aspartame Consumer Safety Network and Pilot's Hotline

Tell your doctor about the scientific research available proving the negative side effects of aspartame.

Return all food products with aspartame, opened or unopened, to your grocer. Tell him/her the products make you sick. The grocer can return them to the manufacturer for a store refund. The manufacturer should get the message. So, will the grocer.

Spread the word on computer networks.

Publish articles in newsletters at your church, place of work, or neighborhood association.

Set a personal example for health and wellness.

Why Butter is Better

2012-01-21T01:36:00.000-08:00

Why Butter is Better

Vitamins ...

Butter is a rich source of easily absorbed vitamin A, needed for a wide range of functions, from maintaining good vision to keeping the endocrine system in top shape.

Butter also contains all the other fat-soluble vitamins (D, E and K2), which are often lacking in the modern industrial diet.

Minerals ...

Butter is rich in important trace minerals, including manganese, chromium, zinc, copper and selenium (a powerful antioxidant). Butter provides more selenium per gram than wheat germ or herring. Butter is also an excellent source of iodine.

Fatty Acids ...

Butter provides appreciable amounts of short- and medium-chain fatty acids, which support immune function, boost metabolism and have anti-microbial properties; that is, they fight against pathogenic microorganisms in the intestinal tract.

Butter also provides the perfect balance of omega-3 and omega-6 fats. Arachidonic acid in butter is important for brain function, skin health and prostaglandin balance.

Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA) ...

When butter comes from cows eating green grass, it contains high levels of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), a compound that gives excellent protection against cancer and also helps your body build muscle rather than store fat.

Glycospingolipids ...

These are a special category of fatty acids that protect against gastrointestinal infections, especially in the very young and the elderly. Children given reduced-fat milks have higher rates of diarrhea than those who drink whole milk.

Cholesterol ...

Despite all of the misinformation you may have heard, cholesterol is needed to maintain intestinal health and for brain and nervous system development in the young.

Wulzen Factor ...

A hormone-like substance that prevents arthritis and joint stiffness, ensuring that calcium in your body is put into your bones rather than your joints and other tissues. The Wulzen factor is present only in raw butter and cream; it is destroyed by pasteurization.

Butter and Your Health

Is butter really healthy? Let us count the ways …

Heart Disease

Butter contains many nutrients that protect against heart disease including vitamins A, D, K2, and E, lecithin, iodine and selenium. A Medical Research Council survey showed that men eating butter ran half the risk of developing heart disease as those using margarine.

Cancer

The short- and medium-chain fatty acids in butter have strong anti-tumor effects. Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) in butter from grass-fed cows also gives excellent protection against cancer.

Arthritis

The Wulzen or "anti-stiffness" factor in raw butter and also Vitamin K2 in grasss-fed butter, protect against calcification of the joints as well as hardening of the arteries, cataracts and calcification of the pineal gland. Calves fed pasteurized milk or skim milk develop joint stiffness and do not thrive.

Osteoporosis

Vitamins A, D and K2 in butter are essential for the proper absorption of calcium and phosphorus and hence necessary for strong bones and teeth.

Thyroid Health

Butter is a good source of iodine, in a highly absorbable form. Butter consumption prevents goiter in mountainous areas where seafood is not available. In addition, vitamin A in butter is essential for proper functioning of the thyroid gland.

Digestion

Glycospingolipids in butterfat protect against gastrointestinal infection, especially in the very young and the elderly.

Growth & Development

Many factors in the butter ensure optimal growth of children, especially iodine and vitamins A, D and K2. Low-fat diets have been linked to failure to thrive in children -- yet low-fat diets are often recommended for youngsters!

Asthma

Saturated fats in butter are critical to lung function and protect against asthma.

Overweight

CLA and short- and medium-chain fatty acids in butter help control weight gain.

Fertility

Many nutrients contained in butter are needed for fertility and normal reproduction.

Why You Should Avoid Margarine, Shortening and Spreads

There are a myriad of unhealthy components to margarine and other butter imposters, including:

Trans fats: These unnatural fats in margarine, shortenings and spreads are formed during the process of hydrogenation, which turns liquid vegetable oils into a solid fat

Trans fats contribute to heart disease, cancer, bone problems, hormonal imbalance and skin disease; infertility, difficulties in pregnancy and problems with lactation; and low birth weight, growth problems and learning disabilities in children.

A U.S. government panel of scientists determined that man-made trans fats are unsafe at any level. (Small amounts of natural trans fats occur in butter and other animal fats, but these are not harmful.)

Free radicals: Free radicals and other toxic breakdown products are the result of high temperature industrial processing of vegetable oils. They contribute to numerous health problems, including cancer and heart disease.

Synthetic vitamins: Synthetic vitamin A and other vitamins are added to margarine and spreads. These often have an opposite (and detrimental) effect compared to the natural vitamins in butter.

Emulsifiers and preservatives: Numerous additives of questionable safety are added to margarines and spreads. Most vegetable shortening is stabilized with preservatives like BHT.

Hexane and other solvents: Used in the extraction process, these industrial chemicals can have toxic effects.

Bleach: The natural color of partially hydrogenated vegetable oil is grey so manufacturers bleach it to make it white. Yellow coloring is then added to margarine and spreads.

Artificial flavors: These help mask the terrible taste and odor of partially hydrogenated oils, and provide a fake butter taste.

Mono- and di-glycerides: These contain trans fats that manufacturers do not have to list on the label. They are used in high amounts in so-called "low-trans" spreads.

Soy protein isolate: This highly processed powder is added to "low-trans" spreads to give them body. It can contribute to thyroid dysfunction, digestive disorders and many other health problems.

Sterols: Often added to spreads to give them cholesterol-lowering qualities, these estrogen compounds can cause endocrine problems; in animals these sterols contribute to sexual inversion.

How to Purchase Butter

The BEST butter is raw butter from grass-fed cows, preferably organic. Next is pasteurized butter from grass-fed cows, followed by regular pasteurized butter from supermarkets. Even the latter two are still a much healthier choice than margarine or spreads.

20 Anti-Aging Herbs and Spices to Add to Your Diet Now

2012-01-21T01:28:00.000-08:00

The typical American diet that is high in simple carbohydrates -- white flour, white salt, and processed food -- is aging us. We are getting all the bulk without the nutrients, plus adding to our propensity for developing real food cravings. So whether you are a vegetarian or an omnivore, you can start to reverse aging by simply choosing to eat the right foods to keep you full of vim, vigor, and vitality, especially over the holidays.

The easiest way to make sure you are getting more nutrients into every meal, even when you are grazing at the office cocktail party or the neighborhood potluck dinner is by choosing foods that are loaded with spices. Every time you flavor your meals with herbs or spices you are literally "upgrading" your food without adding a single calorie. You are taking something ordinary and turning it into something extraordinary by adding color, flavor, vitamins, and often medicinal properties. Here's why:

* Spices and herbs maximize nutrient density. Herbs and spices contain antioxidants, minerals and multivitamins. At the cocktail party, choose the Thai chicken satay stick over the tried and true fried chicken strip.

* Spices and herbs create a more thermogenic diet. Because spices are nutrient dense, they are thermogenic, which means they naturally increase your metabolism.

* Some spices and herbs increase your overall feeling of fullness and satiety, so you'll eat less. One study conducted at Maanstricht University in the Netherlands showed that when one consumes an appetizer with half a teaspoon of red pepper flakes before each meal, it decreased their calorie intake by 10-16 percent.

* Spices and herbs have real medicinal properties. Study after study shows the benefits of distinct herbs and spices. For example, one 2003 trial of 60 people with type 2 diabetes reported that consuming as little as two teaspoons of cinnamon daily for six weeks reduced blood-glucose levels significantly. It also improved blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels, perhaps because insulin plays a key role in regulating fats in your body.

Choose flavor over blandness every time, and try to incorporate these specific herbs and spices into your diet if you have the following health concerns:

* rosemary and basil for their anti-inflammatory power

* cumin and sage for their dementia-fighting power

* cayenne and cinnamon for their obesity-fighting power

* coriander and cinnamon for their sugar regulating powers

* lemon grass, nutmeg, bay leaves and saffron for their calming effects on your mood

* turmeric for its cancer fighting power

* oregano for its fungus-beating power

* garlic, mustard seed and chicory for their heart-pumping power

* basil and thyme for their skin-saving power

* turmeric, basil, cinnamon, thyme, saffron, and ginger for their immune-boosting power

* coriander, rosemary, cayenne, allspice and black pepper for their depression-busting power

Foods to AVOID to Keep Your Mind Sharp

2012-01-21T01:22:00.000-08:00

A healthy diet is about more than keeping yourself fit and free of heart disease, wrinkles and impotence (yes, all are related to food!). It’s about preserving your memory, too.

For instance, eating high amounts of saturated fat--more than four grams in an hour--can raise the levels of bad cholesterol in your blood, which can stick to your arteries, and, even worse, turns on inflammatory genes that result in those wrinkles, poor orgasm quality, and you got it, that gunk in your brain that makes your memory be less than it is now.

The same arterial plaque buildup from this saturated fat--we call it a food felon--that leads to heart disease is a major culprit for vascular dementia--when the brain neurons become inflamed or don't get enough oxygen and blood flow. Inflammation and lack of oxygen (resulting from that donut or sugary soda) result in accelerated memory loss.

This gives serious meaning to the phrase "eating to forget."

Poor food choices cause poor cognitive functioning: the eight southern states in America that make up the "Stroke Belt" also have higher incidences of obesity and and greater chance of dementia. Of course, many factors are at play when it comes to developing dementia, but lifestyle factors like a high saturated fat diet (from four-legged animal fat, two legged animal skin, palm and coconut oil), coupled with little physical activity, are certainly big contributors to memory problems as well as wrinkles, orgasm decay and heart attacks.

A recent study of healthy adults and adults with mild cognitive impairment tested out the effects of two diets. One was the "high diet," which was high in saturated fat (at least 25 percent of the diet) and simple carbohydrates (glycemic index greater than 70). The other was a "low diet," which was low in saturated fat (less than 7 percent of the diet) with a fewer simple carbs (glycemic index less than 55).

Not surprisingly, the low (low in the food felons) diet improved or made the levels of three important markers of health better for you.

Firstly, this diet was associated with decreased plasma lipids (read: less lousy or bad cholesterol). Secondly, the low diet was linked with lower insulin levels. Current research is looking at an optimal insulin dose to help cognitive functioning in people with mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease.

Lastly, the low in food felons diet lowered CSF F2-isoprostane concentrations, which is a fancy way of saying it lessened the biomarkers of free radical injury, a signal of oxidative damage to, or damaging inflammation in, your central nervous system (the brain and spinal cord).

What does this all mean for the bigger picture? After just one month of the low saturated fat/low carbs diet, "visual memory" improved for healthy adults and adults with cognitive impairment. This was a small study of 49 subjects, but the implications have big promise for your enjoyment of life and brain functioning!

Starting today, what can you do? Look out for the five food felons, which are guaranteed to age your brain and body. We like to kick the felons totally out, but truth be told, the felons don't have to be exiled from your diet--they just have to be put under very close watch.

Here's a quick review of how they can age you, so you can steer clear:

1) Trans fat: Look out for "partially hydrogenated vegetable oils." Trans fat alters metabolic processes and hardens your arteries. How much to have? Zilch!

2) Saturated fat: Leads to the buildup of fatty tissue on the inner linings of your arteries and turns on inflammatory genes. How much to have? No more than 4 grams per hour.

3) Added sugar: Excess sugar causes the proteins in your body to function improperly, aging your arterial system. How much to have? Main dishes and desserts should contain no more than 4 grams of added sugar per serving. Side dishes should contain no more than 2 grams of added sugars per serving. Total should be less than 4 grams added sugar per hour.

4) Syrups: All syrups. Not just that high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS)--the man-made sugar that does the same things as sugar--all syrups, like all added sugars increase the risk of dysfunctional proteins, obesity and metabolic syndrome. Be wary of maple and malt syrups, as well. How much to have? Stay away! In total, you want to keep you added sugar count to less than 24 grams, or 6 teaspoons per day , and less than (when combined with added sugars) 4 grams of added sugar an hour.

5) Any grain but 100-percent whole grain: Whole grains contain a lot of fiber, which helps preventing arterial aging. How much to have? Nada, Never have any--why age unnecessarily? Why forget what your ideal hunk looked like? Anytime you can swap simple carbohydrates for complex carbs with 100-percent whole grain, go ahead!

Google+ hits 90 million users

2012-01-20T19:30:00.000-08:00

Larry Page, Google’s chief executive, announced the new number last night during the company’s quarterly earnings call.

He said: “With Google+, we’ve shipped on average a new feature every day since we launched in June. That’s more than 200 updates in total.

“I’m also pleased to announce that there are over 90 million Google+ users - well over double what I announced just a quarter ago on our earnings call. Engagement on Google+ is also growing tremendously. I have some amazing data to share there for the first time: Google+ users are very engaged with our products - over 60per cent of them engage daily, and over 80 per cent weekly.”

Despite revealing some engagement data, the company has crucially not revealed what percentage of the 90 million accounts are active.

Since launch, more than one million Google+ Pages have been created and in excess of 3.4 billion photographs shared on the site.

Facebook, which is 800 million members-strong, has more than six billion photos posted to its network every month and approximately 100 billion photos stored on its servers – making it the largest image-sharing platform in the world.

For the last six years Google has been consistently struggling to compete against Facebook and create a successful social product that can compete effectively for people’s time and personal data on the internet.

As a result of this, prior to Google+’s launch in June 2011, Page, in his first week of being the company’s new chief executive in April 2011, prioritised the company’s social media strategy by making employees’ bonuses dependent upon the success of all social products.

Twenty-five per cent of all Google employees’ annual bonuses were then tied to the success or failure of Google's social strategy in 2011.

Interestingly, in November last year, Nikesh Arora, Google’s chief business officer, denied that Google+ was a social network which competes with Facebook, despite having been launched by the search giant as a “new social project”.

He told The Telegraph: “Google+, for us, is not a social network.

“It is a platform which allows us to bring social elements into all the services and products that we offer. So you have seen YouTube come into Google+; you’ve seen Google+ with ‘direct connect’ go into our search business. We are trying to make sure we use social signals across all of our products... It’s not just about getting people together on one site and calling it a social network.”

In 2004, it took Facebook 10 months to reach 1 million users.

Iran's economy in shambles after sanctions: Obama

2012-01-20T19:27:00.001-08:00

US President Barack Obama has said US-led sanctions had reduced Iran's economy to a "shambles," in a robust defence of his policy towards Tehran following sharp Republican attacks.

Obama had previously been reticent in responding to Republican campaign attacks over his efforts to deter Iran's nuclear programme, but addressed the issue at a fundraising event in New York, a centre of the US Jewish community.

Yesterday, he said that he had mobilised the world and built an "unprecedented" sanctions regime targeting Iran to state "unequivocally that we're not going to tolerate a nuclear weapon in the hands of this Iranian regime."

"We've been able to organise folks like China and Russia that previously would have never gone along with something like this," Obama said, referring to the support for sanctions of fellow UN Security Council permanent members.

"And it's been so effective that even the Iranians have had to acknowledge that their economy is in a shambles."

"When I came into office, Iran was united and the world was divided. And now what we have is a united international community that is saying to Iran, you've got to change your ways."

But Obama admitted that Iran had not yet decided to throw open its nuclear program to international scrutiny in a way that would help it move out of isolation.

Obama spoke hours after European Union nations agreed to sanction Iran's central bank, freezing assets used to finance its nuclear drive, in a move that further penalised and isolated the Islamic state.

The US leader signed into law a new set of US sanctions last month which target Iran's oil sector and seek to make foreign firms choose between doing business with Tehran or the United States.

Republicans seeking to turf Obama out of office in November's election have savaged his approach on Iran, saying that it shows weakness and have even said that the president has failed to prepare for the possibility of a military attack against Tehran's nuclear programme.

7 charged in taped Bridgeport beating

2012-01-20T07:14:00.000-08:00

Seven teenagers have been charged in the beating of a 17-year-old Chicago boy recorded on video and posted on YouTube.

The attack happened in a Bridgeport alley Sunday afternoon.

All of the alleged perpetrators were charged as juveniles except Raymond Palomino, 17. He has been charged as an adult with one count of robbery and one count of aggravated battery. A judge ordered Palomino held on $100,000 bond Wednesday.

Three 15-year-old boys, two 16-year-old boys and a 15-year-old girl, who allegedly lured the victim to the alley where he was beaten, have been charged in connection with the case. Their identities are not being made public.

The video shows six teens punching, kicking, and beating the boy with fists, shoes and ice. The victim, a Curie High School senior, was eventually able to get away and was treated for cuts and bruises. He is expected to be OK.

His attackers allegedly stole his gym shoes, wallet and cash and shouted racial slurs at him. Authorities say, however, they do not believe the attack was racially motivated.

A student at Kelly High School, Raymond Palomino was the only suspect not wearing a mask in the video. His father spoke out as his son appeared in court.

"I think it's very disturbing what they did to him [the victim]. When I asked him [son, Raymond Palomino] why he did it, he said he didn't know why he did it," Michael Palomino told ABC7 Chicago Wednesday. "I told him I was really upset, what he did was wrong. Like I said, it's very disturbing what I've seen in the video."

Raymond Palomino's father has worked for the Cook County sheriff's office for 30 years. When he found out his son may have been involved, he says he turned him into police.

"He's not a bad kid. I guess the people he hung out with may have been a bad influence on him," Michael Palomino said. "What he did was wrong, and now he's got to suffer the consequences."

Palomino's family left court wondering where they will find money to put up for Palomino's bond. The teen's attorney said his client will plead not guilty.

"He's a 17-year-old kid," said Ilia Usharovich, Palomino's attorney. "He goes to school. He's got a job. He's got a family. He's got friends. He's normal. He has no criminal background. He's never been arrested before."

Police say the incident stems from a previous fight last October involving a boyfriend-girlfriend dispute amongst the teens.

"This is very clearly mob type of behavior, said Chicago Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy. "They get a lot of courage when it's six or seven beating up one person. And this just isn't tolerable."

"This was a group of high school kids who didn't know how to manage anger, frustrations. It was just general ongoing teenage disputes that escalated and escalated to a physical altercation in October and a subsequent altercation this past week," said Commander Patricia Walsh, Chicago Police Dept.

Police say the video generated numerous tips from the public, but it's also led to a rash of false claims and even threats on the Internet.

"Other people are posting on YouTube saying that this person is one of the offenders and this person is one of the offenders. Much of that information is incorrect," said McCarthy.

"Any other threats on offenders towards victims, anything else that's on the social media out there, will not be accepted or tolerated," said Chief of Detectives Tom Byrne, Chicago Police Dept.

The juvenile suspects were turned over the juvenile detention center for processing.

15-year-old arrested in beating of veteran

2012-01-20T07:09:00.000-08:00

Police say a teenager arrested Thursday night was the one who initiated the beating of a 64-year-old war veteran in Olney.

The 15-year-old boy was brought in to police custody around 10:00 p.m.

One more teen will be arrested Friday and the others in the group, police say, were witnesses.

Detectives hit the streets Thursday night and were able to quickly identify all of the young men in the surveillance video they released earlier in the day.

The 15-year-old boy was charged with the beating of 64-year-old war veteran Edward Schaeffer.

Police say the teens, ranging from ages 14 to 17, were walking on North 5th Street in Olney Tuesday around 6:12 p.m. when the 15-year-old and another boy beat Schaeffer while the others stood and watched.

One of the teens in the video came forward to help authorities find the suspects that took part in the beating; tips also started coming in after Action News aired this video.

"We had a lot of help from juvenile probation, the school district police, a lot of citizens and a lot of phone calls and a lot of tips online," Lt. George McClay of the Philadelphia Police Department said.

Lt. McClay says they've made contact with all of the teens except one and he needs to come forward.

Investigators have also learned the motive for the attack was robbery.

"The complainant was on a cell phone as he walked by, so it was actually a robbery, what they did after that, no has been able to explain to me yet," McClay said.

Edward's wife Kate says she could barely recognize her husband when she saw him in a bed at Albert Einstein Medical Center.

"I never ever expected him to be as beat up as he was; my first impression was that someone took a baseball bat to his face and his head," Kate said.

Schaeffer lost his eye in the Vietnam War and he retired last year from a job where he helped disabled vets find work.

He and his wife want swift justice for the teenagers who apparently thought they had nothing better to do on a Tuesday night.

"This was just done out of nastiness. I have nothing to say to them or about them," Kate said.

Police have not released the names of the two suspects. At this point, they are facing minimum charges of robbery and aggravated assault.

Schaeffer's next door neighbor says she's sick about what happened. She says he's one of a kind.

"He's a good guy, I'm really, really sorry that happened to him," neighbor Michelle Harris said.

Schaeffer retired from the state labor department in May after spending 37 years helping disabled veterans find jobs.

Residents of the neighborhood were horrified to hear of the attack.

"People don't have hearts no more, they don't care and it's a shame. Where do you start caring about your other human beings? Come on. You got the fellow man to care about. It's just a shame. It really is," Olney resident Marion McCloud said.

Schaeffer will undergo surgery tomorrow for his facial and skull injuries.

Engineer reworks the Kindle for his disabled sister

2012-01-20T07:00:00.000-08:00

Most people choose a tablet computer based on what it can do, but the man you're about to meet is not most people. He decided it was more important to make the device he chose work the way he wanted it to.

If Glenn Johnson's bedroom in Santa Cruz looks more like a miniature radio shack, there's a good reason. He's spent hundreds of hours there building a surprise gift for his sister Amberly who suffers from cerebral palsy.

"She loves to read, so just holding a book on her wheel chair turning pages is difficult," he said.

He wanted to give Amberly the gift of reading back by using the popular Kindle reader, but since the disease had devastated the motor control in her hands, even a tablet was difficult to use.

"Device like the kindle is great for reading, but requires a certain amount of dexterity to use," he said.

So Johnson set out to build an oversized control panel, with large buttons that Amberly could navigate. That turned out to be the easy part. Marrying it to the Kindle's miniaturized circuitry to months more work for the electrical engineering graduate.

"So I circumvented it, and through lengthy trial and error process, figured out how their keyboard works and mimicked it," he explained.

He says the final step involved cracking the Kindle's software and adding extra code to make the controller work. But six months after he started, Johnson was finally able to bring the device he calls the "Franken-Kindle" to his sister. It was a moment he captured on home video. After a few minutes of trial and error, Amberly was turning the pages of a virtual book.

Using his sister's feedback, Johnson is now working on streamlining the design. He says his ultimate goal is a device that could help not only Amberly, but other disabled readers as well.

Johnson says the initial project cost him about $300 in parts, but he believes a commercial version could be made quite inexpensively.

US election 2012: Barack Obama serenades supporters at New York fundraiser

2012-01-20T06:55:00.000-08:00

President Barack Obama burst into song to woo supporters at a fundraising event in New York before calling on them to boost his re-election bid.

US President Barack Obama capped off an evening of back-to-back fundraising events in New York, with a stop at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, where he reiterated his pitch for re-election in 2012.

During the evening, the president wooed the audience with his singing skills, at one moment launching into Al Green's hit song "Lets Stay Together".

"I'm ..... so in love with you," Obama crooned in homage to the soul legend who was in the audience.

"Those guys didn't think I would do it," he told the crowd after his impromptu serenade, apparently referring to aides offstage.

Later, Obama touted his administration's record on an array of issues, including healthcare, job creation and the end of the Iraq war. He thanked campaign donors for their support, but warned them against complacency in this election year.

"It shouldn't make you satisfied, because everything we did over the last three years is now at stake in this election," Obama said.

"America is not going to win if we do the same things, if we respond to our economic challenges with the same old, tired "cut taxes for wealthy people; let companies do whatever they want even if it's harming other folks, and somehow prosperity is going to trickle down to everybody else," he warned.

Fuhgeddaboutit: New York accent may be dying out

2012-01-20T06:52:00.001-08:00

The traditional New York accent – where residents pronounce coffee "cawfee" among other things – could be on the wane, it has been claimed.

New Yorker Woody Allen coming to terms with his "linguistic insecurity"

Kara Becker, an assistant professor of linguistics at Reed University, in a recent article for the New York Post, wrote that "Current linguistic research finds that many of the defining features of local speech are losing ground".

"Research shows that not all accents are created equal in the US," she writes. "When Americans are asked to rank locations in descending order from most to least 'correct' speech, the New York City accent is rated second to last (only the South rates lower). Speakers of the New York City accent, it turns out, are associated with a number of negative attributes, like being unfriendly and unkind."

She adds that New Yorkers themselves suffer from "linguistic insecurity".

As a result, recent research has shown that there are "big differences" across age groups in New York, where older speaker have the classic New York accent – "fuhgeddaboutit" – but younger speakers did not replicate it.

The present day New York accent comes from a varied history. The area has seen settlers from the Netherlands, England, Germany, and still maintains a prominent Italian, Irish and Jewish population. The influence of Yiddish is apparent.

George Jochnowitz, emeritus professor of linguistics at the College of Staten Island, Long Island, told The Times: "Both Yiddish and Italian did not make a distinction between the pronunciation of 'ng' in singer and finger."

Long Island for example, was "Lawn Gyland". But, he claims such sounds have now faded from New York City.

Violinist saved children before dying in Concordia cruise ship disaster

2012-01-20T06:51:00.000-08:00

The first victim from the Costa Concordia diaster was identified Wednesday - a 38-year-old violinist from Hungary who had been working as an entertainer on the stricken cruise ship.

Sandor Feher's body was found inside the wreck, and identified by his mother who traveled to the Italian city of Grosetto, according to Hungary's foreign ministry.

The $450 million Costa Concordia cruise ship was carrying more than 4,200 passengers and crew when it slammed into a reef Friday off the tiny Italian island of Giglio after the captain made an unauthorized maneuver. The death toll stands at 11, with 22 people still missing.

Italian rescue workers suspended operations Wednesday after the cruise ship shifted slightly on the rocks near the Tuscan coast, creating deep concerns about the safety of divers and firefighters searching for the missing.

Jozsef Balog, a pianist working with Feher on the ship, told the Blikk newspaper that Feher was wearing a lifejacket when he decided to return to his cabin to pack his violin. Feher was last seen on deck en route to the area where he was supposed to board a lifeboat.

According to Balog, Feher helped put lifejackets on several crying children before returning to his cabin.

Below, watch a video of Sandor Feher playing violin in a video created to apply for a teaching position:

Eggs & Food Safety

2012-01-20T01:19:00.000-08:00

The risk of an egg being contaminated with Salmonella bacteria is very low, about 1 in 20,000 eggs. But there's no reason to take the risk of contracting foodborne illness. Proper handling of eggs can reduce, and even entirely elimate, the risk.

What is foodborne illness?

The way food is processed and prepared is important because all foods have the ability to carry microorganisms (like bacteria and viruses) or toxins that can cause illness. If microorganisms or toxins are introduced to food or if bacteria are allowed to grow in or on food without being killed (usually by heat) before eating, foodborne illness can result. Common symptoms of foodborne illness include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, cramps and headache.

How safe are eggs?

The risk of getting a foodborne illness from eggs is very low. However, the nutrients that make eggs a high-quality food for humans are also a good growth medium for bacteria. In addition to food, bacteria also need moisture, a favorable temperature and time in order to multiply and increase the risk of illness. In the rare event that an egg contains bacteria, you can reduce the risk by proper chilling and eliminate it by proper cooking. When you handle eggs with care, they pose no greater food-safety risk than any other perishable food.

The inside of an egg was once considered almost sterile. But, over recent years, the bacterium Salmonella enteritidis (Se) has been found inside a small number of eggs. Scientists estimate that, on average across the U.S., only 1 of every 20,000 eggs might contain the bacteria. So, the likelihood that an egg might contain Se is extremely small – 0.005% (five one-thousandths of one percent). At this rate, if you’re an average consumer, you might encounter a contaminated egg once every 84 years.

Other types of microorganisms could be deposited along with dirt on the outside of an egg. So, in the U.S., eggshells are washed and sanitized to remove possible hazards. You can further protect yourself and your family by discarding eggs that are unclean, cracked, broken or leaking and making sure you and your family members use good hygiene practices, including properly washing your hands and keeping them clean.

Are eggs the only source of Salmonella bacteria?

No. Salmonella bacteria are widely found in nature and easily spread. The bacteria can be found in the intestinal tracts of animals, birds, reptiles, insects and people. While the egg itself may not be contaminated when you buy it, it can become contaminated from improper handling, such as with unclean hands, pets, other foods and kitchen equipment, too.

Are Salmonella bacteria most likely to be found in the egg’s white or yolk?

Bacteria, if they are present at all, are most likely to be in the white and will be unable to grow, mostly due to lack of nutrients. As the egg ages, however, the white thins and the yolk membrane weakens. This makes it possible for bacteria to reach the nutrient-dense yolk where they can grow over time if the egg is kept at warm temperatures. But, in a clean, uncracked, fresh shell egg, internal contamination occurs only rarely.

Doesn’t the eggshell protect an egg from bacteria?

Yes and no. The egg has many natural, built-in barriers to help prevent bacteria from entering and growing. These protect the egg on its way from the hen to your home. But, although it does help, the porous shell itself is not a foolproof bacterial barrier. For additional safety, government regulations require that eggs be carefully washed with special detergent and sanitized.

Other protective barriers include the shell and yolk membranes and layers of the white which fight bacteria in several ways. The structure of the shell membranes helps prevent the passage of bacteria. The shell membranes also contain lysozyme, a substance that helps prevent bacterial infection. The yolk membrane separates the nutrient-rich yolk from the white.

In addition to containing antibacterial compounds such as lysozyme, layers of the white discourage bacterial growth because they are alkaline, bind nutrients bacteria need and/or don’t provide nutrients in a form that bacteria can use. The thick white discourages the movement of bacteria. The last layer of white is composed of thick ropey strands which have little of the water that bacteria need but a high concentration of the white’s protective materials. This layer holds the yolk centered in the egg where it receives the maximum protection from all the other layers.

Does a blood spot mean an egg is contaminated?

No. You can’t see bacteria with the naked eye. Blood or meat spots are occasionally found on an egg yolk and are merely an error on the part of the hen. They’re caused by the rupture of a blood vessel on the yolk surface when it’s being formed or by a similar accident in the wall of the oviduct. Most eggs with blood spots are detected by electronic spotters and never reach the market. But, even with mass scanners, it’s impossible to catch them all. Both chemically and nutritionally, eggs with blood spots are fit to eat. You can remove the spot with the tip of a knife, if you wish.

Are the twisted, ropey strands of egg white safe?

Yes. These strands are the chalazae which anchor the yolk in the center of the thick white. They’re composed of nutritious egg albumen and do not indicate contamination. In fact, the more prominent the chalazae, the fresher the egg. These natural parts of the egg don’t interfere with cooking or beating of the white and you don’t need to remove them, although some cooks like to strain them from stirred custard.

What will happen if I eat an egg containing Salmonella?

If an egg containing Salmonella has been kept refrigerated and someone who uses good hygiene practices serves it to you immediately after proper cooking, you’ll simply have a nutritious meal. If the egg has been improperly handled, though, you might experience the foodborne illness called salmonellosis. You could have symptoms of abdominal cramps, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, chills, fever and/or headache within 6 to 72 hours after eating. The symptoms usually last only a day or two in healthy people but can lead to serious complications for the very young, pregnant women, the elderly, the ill and those with immune system disorders. Anyone who has had salmonellosis may pass along the bacteria for several weeks after recovering, but salmonellosis is seldom fatal. While the risk of getting salmonellosis is very small, there’s no need to take chances because cooking kills Salmonella.

What usually causes salmonellosis?

Salmonellosis outbreaks are most often associated with animal foods, including chicken, eggs, pork and cheese, but have also been reported related to cantaloupe, tomatoes, alfalfa sprouts, orange juice and cereal, among other foods. Human carriers play a big role in transmitting some types of salmonellosis. Salmonella bacteria can easily spread from one food to another, too.

The majority of reported salmonellosis outbreaks involving eggs or egg-containing foods have occurred in foodservice kitchens and were the result of inadequate refrigeration, improper handling and insufficient cooking. If not properly handled, Salmonella bacteria can double every 20 minutes and a single bacterium can multiply into more than a million in 6 hours. But, properly prepared egg recipes served in individual portions and promptly eaten are rarely a problem. You can ensure that your eggs will maintain their high quality and safety by using good hygiene, cooking, refrigeration and handling practices.

What is being done about Salmonella in eggs?

The egg industry, the public health community and government agencies have been working diligently to deal with Salmonella enteritidis.

Egg industry programs start by keeping breeder flocks free of Salmonella. Ongoing research is dedicated to discovering how Se gets into flocks and how it might be blocked. The industry also uses strict quality-control practices and sanitation procedures all through production, processing and preparation. This includes testing chicks to be sure they’re free of Salmonella, bio-security (such as washing and sanitizing not only the eggs, but facilities, too) and other measures. To block Se from multiplying in the egg in the rare event it’s present, eggs are held at cool temperatures following packing and throughout transportation. Important, too, are industry education programs which encourage food preparers to use safe food-handling practices.

Along with state representatives, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are developing new national standards with the aim of reducing and eventually eliminating egg-related salmonellosis. The strategies will include a scientific, risk-based, farm-to-table plan covering production, processing, transport, storage, retail handling and delivery. The plan will also include education on the responsibilities of consumers, inspectors and food handlers at all levels.

Is the risk of salmonellosis from eggs increasing?

No. The number of salmonellosis incidents related to eggs has decreased markedly since the early to mid 1990s. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which track foodborne-illness outbreaks, have found that the number of egg-associated outbreaks has decreased over the years. The fact that there are fewer cases of egg-related salmonellosis is considered to be the result of on-farm quality-control programs, refrigeration during transport and storage, and food-safety education for home and foodservice preparers.

Omega 3 Fish Oil Supplements: What You Need to Know

2012-01-20T01:17:00.000-08:00

Is it possible to get enough omega-3 from a typical diet today?

In today’s society, our typical diet is high in cereal type grains, vegetable oils, grain fed meat and processed foods; all of which are high in omega-6 fatty acids, and extremely low in omega-3. This has led to a deficiency in omega-3 fatty acids, where the ratio of omega-3 to omega-6 ranges from 1:15 to 1:30 instead of an optimal 1:1. The only way to modify this ratio is to include more omega-3 (specifically the active long-chain fatty acids EPA & DHA) in our diet.

While consuming fatty fish is a good way to increase your intake of omega-3, you would need to eat 2-3 servings weekly to obtain the optimal amount of omega-3 from your diet. Considering that 25% of North Americans don’t eat any fish at all, supplementation is a more reliable method. Also, note that many health experts believe that a high level of fish consumption would lead to accumulation of heavy metals and PCBs in the tissues. Therefore, a high-quality, pure fish oil supplement is the easiest and safest way to obtain your daily omega-3.

What should one look for when purchasing an omega 3 fish oil supplement?

When looking for a fish oil, consider these 4 simple things:

Taste = quality. Look for a product that has no fishy taste or smell. If the quality of fish oil is compromised it will lead to oxidation and a fishy taste and smell. Generally, the better the taste the better quality the fish oil.
Purity. Fish oils should be pure and free from contaminants. The type of purification used is not the most important variable; what matters is what’s in the final product. Look for products from manufacturers that can give you assurance of the purity of the oil by making purity test results readily available. Through its industry leading Pure Check quality program, Ascenta allows consumers to view a complete third party quality and purity test report for their specific bottle of product with the click of a mouse.
Potency. Look for a product that is potent and one where the potency is guaranteed. It is critical that what is described on a label is actually delivered in the product. Approximately 60% of fish oil products do not meet label claims for listed EPA and DHA. Many manufacturers take advantage of loopholes in label claim regulations to formulate products with quantities of active ingredients less than what is listed on the label, which saves on costs. Also, look for a product from a company that manufactures their own products, which means they have more control over the complete process. The vast majority of fish oil brands do not manufacture their own products, which translates into lack of quality controls.
Other quality indicators. There are many factors which can influence the quality of fish oil, such as the proper use of packaging, the choice of antioxidant, and the chemical type of the oil itself. For instance, omega-3 liquids should always be packaged in amber glass bottles. The glass prevents oxygen from transferring through the container and the amber tint blocks out most of the harmful UV light, both of which can cause oxidation. Because omega-3 fish oils are highly susceptible to oxidation they require antioxidants to keep them stable. Laboratory stability testing has revealed that vitamin E (alpha tocopherol) does not adequately stabilize fish oil. Instead look for products that use phenolic antioxidants such as rosemary or green tea catechins. If the oil tastes or smells fishy you can be assured it has not been properly preserved with the right antioxidants. Finally, although product labels do not usually indicate the chemical form of the oil it is very important to know whether the oil is in a Triglyceride (TG) form versus the Ethyl Ester (EE) form. Ethyl ester forms are most common with fish oil concentrates and unfortunately they lack stability and bio-availability versus the Natural Triglyceride form. Recent studies published by Dyerberg and Neubronner clearly demonstrate natural TG fish oils are much better absorbed and incorporated into cells than EE fish oil. An easy way to tell if your fish oil is an ethyl ester is put some of the oil in a glass then place a small piece of Styrofoam in it. After a few minutes the EE fish oil will dissolve the Styrofoam whereas the TG fish oil will have no effect.

Many people feel that taking a good omega 3 fish oil supplement is expensive. Do you see the costs coming down in the future? Do you typically get what you pay for?

Yes, you do get what you pay for in terms of fish oil. Keeping all the above factors in check means quality and purity come at a price and a heavily discounted supplement will most surely have compromised one of these steps along the way. For example, many of the cheaper fish oils on the market tend to be in the ethyl ester form, which is far less costly to manufacture. Regardless, when compared with the costs of consuming a diet high in fresh fish, a quality fish oil is an affordable supplement to, on a daily per serving basis, obtain the omega-3 your body needs for optimal health.

For maximum health benefits, what is the best way to consume an omega 3 fish oil supplement?

Fish oil is best absorbed when taken with a meal. For simple compliance purposes the liquid form is often the easiest and fastest option since you avoid swallowing many large capsules. A high quality liquid fish oil can taste very good and is a great option for everyone from young children to seniors.

How can omega 3 fish oil supplements improve athletic performance?

The high omega-6 intake of today’s typical diet creates an internal environment in the body prone to increased inflammation and tissue breakdown. Since the omega-3 fats EPA and DHA are anti-inflammatory they help support the physical stress endured during strenuous exercise. EPA and DHA supplementation has been shown to improve recovery from exercise and exercise induced inflammation. Furthermore studies have also demonstrated other benefits of omega-3 related to physical exercise and athletic performance:

Omega-3 fatty acids lead to higher fat breakdown, weight loss, and greater decreases in BMI.
Omega-3 fatty acids improve heart parameters during exercise by reducing heart rate and improving oxygen delivery to the heart.
Omega-3 fatty acids reduce exercise induced asthma/bronchoconstriction.

Is there much room to improve the quality of the omega 3 fish oil supplements on the market today? What is current omega 3 fish oil research focusing on?

There are many opportunities for improving the quality of fish oil supplements. Because fish oils are highly prone to oxidation, improvements to the stability of these fatty acids will result in products that last longer and taste better. Consumers are also looking for the convenience of fish oil concentrates, which results in the need to take fewer capsules. Unfortunately fish oil concentrates are more challenging to stabilize which is why most taste worse than non-concentrated fish oil supplements. Aside from the bad taste (fishy repeat) these fish oil concentrates oxidize rapidly and can increase free radical load in the body after consumption.

All fish oils must undergo some level of purification, and while none of the methods being employed today completely eliminate environmental contaminants, the levels currently present in high quality fish oils are very safe. Advances in the processing of fish oils should eventually remove all trace of contaminants.

One example of a significant area of omega-3 research underway is in the development of non-fish sources that offer the same active fatty acids as fish oil, EPA and DHA. Recently there have been products introduced to the market derived from omega-3 sources such as squid (calamari), as well as vegetarian options such as algae and Echium. These innovative omega-3 sources offer the same benefits as fish oil.

The algae and Echium sources offer vegetarians a product that can significantly increase blood levels of EPA and DHA for the first time, something that is not possible with traditional flax seed oil.

Beer Nutrition

2012-01-20T01:16:00.000-08:00

Beer and nutrition? You don't usually see those two words together, but perhaps beer is a bit misunderstood. It may actually be good for you when consumed in very moderate amounts.

Beer has been brewed for just about as long as humans have been cultivating crops and is actually made with some very healthy ingredients. Those ingredients are hops, brewer's yeast, barley and malt. There are different styles of beer and each style has a distinctive flavor and color. Tasting and learning about the different types of beer is as much fun as tasting and learning about the different types of wine.

Part of a Healthy Diet

Drinking one beer per day may be good for your health because it has been associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular disease. Why? Some experts suggest these reasons:

The folate found in beer may help to reduce homocysteine in the blood and lower homocysteine levels mean a lower risk of cardiovascular disease.
Lab studies have found constituents in beer that lower triglycerides and LDL-cholesterol in mice.
Drinking one beer per day reduces blood clotting so some studies found that cardiovascular patients who drank one beer per day also lived longer.

Other studies have found that women who consume one beer each day have improved mental health. Drinking beer and other alcoholic beverages in moderation may also improve bone density.

Of course that doesn't mean that if one beer is good, three or four must be better. That isn't true. Drinking more than one beer or any alcoholic beverage per day can put too much alcohol in your system and that isn't good for you. Heavy drinking has been associated with several health problems, so moderation is definitely the key with drinking beer. The studies also point to one beer per day as being beneficial, not drinking all seven beers in one day per week. That type of binge drinking will overload you system with alcohol too.

The benefits of beer nutrition probably have nothing to do with the alcohol and there are some low-alcohol beers and non-alcohol beers available which offer the same heart-protective effect as regular and light beers.

Nutrition Information

According to Michael Jackson, the Beer Hunter, Trappist monks drank beer to sustain themselves during their Lenten fasts. They called their beer "liquid bread."

We don't tend to think much about the nutritional aspects of beer, but according to the USDA National Nutrient Database, one 12-ounce serving of regular beer has the following nutrients:

Calories: 153
Protein: 1.64 g
Carbohydrates: 12.64 g
Calcium: 14 mg
Magnesium: 21 mg
Phosphorus: 50 mg
Potassium: 96 mg
Sodium: 14 mg
Zinc: 0.04 mg
Thiamin: 0.018 mg
Riboflavin: 0.089 mg
Niacin: 1.826 mg
Pantothenic Acid: 0.146 mg
Vitamin B6: 0.164 mg

Beer is actually a good source of folate, niacin, magnesium, potassium and niacin.

Drinking Too Much

While drinking one beer per day may improve your health, heavy drinking will not. In fact heavy drinking has the opposite effect. Heavy drinking is defined as more than 21 drinks per week for women and more than 35 drinks per week for men. Drinking heavily leads to liver damage, cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, pancreatic diseases, severe thiamin deficiency and some cancers.

Who Shouldn't Drink Beer?

Beer drinking isn't for every one. Some people have personal or religious reasons for not drinking beer or other alcoholic drinks. That's OK. All of the health benefits of beer can be found in other foods beverages. The following people should not drink beer, or should speak with their doctor before drinking beer or other alcoholic beverages:

Pregnant or breast-feeding women should not drink beer. Even small amounts of alcohol can damage a developing fetus.
People with alcoholism or drug addictions should not drink beer.
Young people. In the United States the drinking age is 21, in Canada the drinking age is 18 or 19. Other countries vary.
People with liver, pancreatic diseases, or really, any type of chronic disease should speak with their doctor.
People with gout should avoid beer. Gout is very painful and is triggered by alcohol.
Diabetics should speak with their doctor.
People taking any type of medications should speak with their doctor. This includes over-the-counter medications.

Horse Radish Health Benefits And Nutrition Facts

2012-01-20T01:14:00.000-08:00

Horse Radish Information And Health Benefits Of Horse Radish

Horse radish can be made into a tangy sauce by shredding as well as pounding it and mixing it with lemon juice. Eat this sauce to cure your cold and sinus infection and for several other health benefits.

Horse Radish Can Do A World Of Good For Your Health?

A sinus infection can be irksome and annoying, but consuming horseradish can provide relief from the symptoms of a sinus infection. If you make some horse radish sauce and eat it first thing in the morning, then the pungent taste of the radish will work like a charm and clear the congestion from mucus.

You can complement this treatment by drinking fresh juices of carrot as well as the leaves and root of the radish as these will rebuild the body tissues that have been damaged by the sinus infection. Eat a well-balanced diet to give yourself a nutritional boost.

Horse radish is known to cure dropsy or water retention. This happens because the radish has a stimulating effect on the capillaries. Radish has a therapeutic element, a glycoside in it that is called sinigrin.

Horseradish is rich in vitamin C; in fact it is believed that this radish has the highest concentration of vitamin C amongst all vegetables. It is also rich in calcium, sulfur and potassium. Horse radish is also used to treat diabetes, for catarrh, and for treating circulatory problems.

You can use horse radish as a sandwich condiment, in a sauce or in any other food preparation to help you remain healthy. It is known to clear sinuses, clear out mucus from the upper respiratory passages, and increase facial circulation. Horse radish has been used as a medicine for centuries.

If you often get sinus infections, then snack on some horse radish the moment you feel that you’re getting a cold. It will stop the mucus from pooling in your sinus cavities. Herbal therapists often prescribe horse radish for curing lung congestion, influenza and common cold. After you eat horse radish your eyes and nose will water, and the free-flowing mucus is in fact a sign that the body is purging itself of toxins and wastes.

A mild antibiotic, horse radish can stimulate urine too and is often used to treat urinary infections.

Sometimes horse radish can be used to bring relief from pain causes during nerve irritation and arthritis.

Horse radish can be made into a poultice and used to treat wounds that have been infected. It can sometimes cure rashes too

Oranges Nutrition Facts

2012-01-20T01:12:00.000-08:00

Oranges are one of the world’s most popular citrus fruits. Originally from Southeast Asia, they are now grown in almost every area with the appropriate warm climate. While many people prefer to enjoy just orange juice, the whole orange possesses more impressive nutrition stats when eaten whole.

While oranges may vary in size, it is possible to take some average nutritional values by examining at the content of 100 grams of this fruit. In this portion, there are roughly 50 calories and no fat at all. Additionally, some 87% of the orange is made up of water. This makes the orange a very diet-friendly fruit. Additionally, 100 grams of oranges are 12 percent carbohydrates, mostly from natural fruit sugars. However, some of these carbohydrates also come from fiber, and an average orange has 5 grams of this important nutrient. Since fiber is only found in the pulp, though, orange juice only has carbohydrates from sugar. Finally, oranges have more protein than some other fruits, with nearly 2 grams per orange.

Oranges are best known for being rich in vitamin C. In fact, 100 grams of the fruit can provide more than 80 percent of the recommended daily value of this nutrient. Vitamin C is important for preventing cell damage and is particularly associated with a decreased risk of colon cancer. It can also diminish inflammation associated with arthritis, asthma, and other uncomfortable conditions. Oranges are also a great source of potassium, which is essential in aiding muscle growth and health. A single organe has roughly 10% of a person’s daily potassium needs. Oranges also contain some vitamin A, calcium, and even a minimal amount of iron.

Oranges are especially powerful antioxidant foods because antioxidants increase effectiveness when they interact with vitamin C. Thus, oranges have been associated with preventing cancer and other dangerous diseases. They are loaded with bioflavanoids and carotenoids, which are known to protect the body from cancer, as well as phytochemicals that fight heart disease. Oranges are also high in herperindin, which is associated with helping to lower blood pressure and cholesterol.

Other nutrients found in oranges include folate, potassium, and even some small percentage of calcium. Folate is a B vitamin that is especially important to pregnant women. Meanwhile, potassium aids in muscle performance and can also counteract excess sodium in one’s diet. Finally, calcium helps build strong bones and is essential for all people.

Ultimately, oranges are one of the world’s most common and healthiest fruits. In fact, a study done in Finland found that orange eaters halved their risk of heart disease. Meanwhile, other studies showed oranges, with their high fiber and water content, can suppress a dieters’ appetite for up to four hours at a time. These are just a few of the orange’s many benefits, and it should be included as part of a healthy diet.

Europe poses twin threats to a second term for Obama

2012-01-19T16:27:00.001-08:00

Should Barack Obama lose the White House in November, he may well drive up Pennsylvania Avenue cursing those investors who gorged on Greek bonds.

Europe will wield a bigger influence on this US presidential race than any other in recent memory.

He would not be the first leader to pin the blame for his downfall on someone else's financial crisis. It would be no surprise if Gordon Brown still really believes America's sub-prime mortgage owners are to blame for his exit from Downing Street.

While Britain's last General Election always looked likely to sling Brown out of power, it's far harder to make breezy predictions about the fight for the US presidency. The polls suggest that the battle between Obama and Mitt Romney – his most likely Republican challenger – will be tight.

What's much clearer, though, is that Europe will wield a bigger influence on this US presidential race than any other in recent memory. It's a sharp contrast to just 18 months ago when any discussion of America's economic future was dominated by China.

The burgeoning Asian superpower hasn't gone away; it's still America's biggest trading partner and remains the country most likely to evict the US from the top of the economic charts.

Indeed, Larry Summers, the former US Treasury Secretary and now touted as a possible World Bank president, has said that when historians come to write about this period, the financial crisis in the West will be a chapter in the longer story of the rise of China.

Maybe, but right now the talk here is of Europe rather than China.

It's strangely fitting that John Huntsman, a challenger in the Republican race who would occasionally switch into his fluent Mandarin to the bafflement of voters, threw in the towel last weekend.

The central influence that Europe will wield on the race will be economic. That is, of course, what we saw in the second half of last year when the endless summits of European leaders, jumpy Italian bond yields and plunging European bank shares dominated stock markets and headlines across the US.

Although last month's move by the European Central Bank to unleash a wave of cheap money has tamed bond yields and helped the Dow Jones Industrial Average rally 3pc this year, real optimism has been hard to find on Wall Street this week as banks released their fourth-quarter results.

David Viniar, chief financial officer at Goldman Sachs, said he feels a "tiny bit better" about Europe's debt crisis. Citigroup, meanwhile, complained that European leaders hadn't done enough to assure financial markets that "complete disaster" really was off the menu in 2012.

These bankers will have been bruised after seeing the share prices of Wall Street banks buckle last summer. Citi's shares ended 2011 down 44pc, while Goldman's were 46pc worse off. With the US jobless rate at 8.5pc, there won't be any sympathy if the bankers have started 2012 feeling gloomy.

More worrying, though, for the far larger number of Americans who don't work on Wall Street is the other message that the banks have delivered this week: that, with no further clarity on how Europe's woes will be resolved, many of their customers, which include big businesses and major employers inside the US, are likely to remain extremely cautious about doing anything.

That prediction is poison for an economy that, despite the run of improving data over the past couple of months, is not expected to grow much faster than 2.5pc this year. Obama's advisers will also know it has the potential to be fatal for the president's re-election ambitions too.

With the election just nine months away, Obama has very limited ammunition to accelerate growth. He will try, and probably succeed in, extending a cut in an employee tax that is due to expire next month. And should the "complete disaster" that Citigroup talked about this week unfold in Europe, Obama and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner will no doubt do what they can to help staunch the bleeding.

But a purely economic threat is not the only one that Europe poses for Obama. Republicans have already turned the Continent's crisis into a potentially powerful weapon, arguing that keeping Obama in office will give the US its own debt crisis next year.

Obama "wants to turn America into a European-style entitlement society", Romney said this month. "This president takes his inspiration from the capitals of Europe; we look to the cities and small towns of America."

Beneath the rhetoric, there are two serious points.

It's an attack with the potential to hurt Obama because he's failed to deliver a long-term strategy to tackle the country's $15 trillion (£9.7 trillion) debt. And it also echoes what will be one of the defining issues of the election: the role and size of government.

There's little Obama can do to shape the outcome of Europe's crisis but his advisers will still need to work quickly to prevent opponents turning Europe into a political weapon that topples him.

Australia on verge of historic decision to recognise Aborigines as first people of continent

2012-01-19T16:22:00.001-08:00

Australia is poised to make historic changes to its constitution recognising Aborigines as the first people of the continent and removing the last clauses permitting racial discrimination by the state.

Successive Australian governments have grappled with the problem of overcoming Aborigine disadvantage, including high rates of poverty, social dysfunction and lawlessness

Proposals presented on Thursday would ask Australians to approve a clause recognising that Aborigine and Pacific islanders were the first occupants of the land mass. A second clause prohibiting racial discrimination would override measures that allow the authorities to intervene on the grounds of races.

Only eight of 44 referendums have been approved in the 111 year history of the Australian Commonwealth. The last successful nationwide vote was held in 1967.

A report unanimously adopted by a panel of 19 experts was endorsed by Julia Gillard, the prime minister, who pledged to put the amendments to a vote before the next general election expected in 2013.

The prospects for change were bolstered by support from Tony Abbott, the Opposition leader, who said he would support any measure that did not amount to a Bill of Rights.

Ms Gillard said Australia was "big enough" to back changes.

"It is the right time to say yes to an understanding of our past, to say yes to constitutional change, and to say yes to a future more united and more reconciled than we have ever been before," she said. "It is going to require each and every one of us involved in politics to find it in ourselves to be our best selves, to advocate this case for change with the maximum degree of unity."

Ms Gillard wants to hold a referendum before the next election – due in 2013 – but admitted that bipartisan support would be crucial to its success. She noted that the 1967 referendum – which allowed the Government to count Aborigines in population statistics and make special provisions for them – received 90 per cent support.

Mr Abbott said he hoped the referendum would serve as a "a unifying moment for the nation".

"We have some reservations about anything that might turn out to be a one-clause bill of rights. But we accept that millions of Australians' hopes and dreams are resting on constitutional recognition of indigenous people," he said.

Successive Australian governments have grappled with the problem of overcoming Aborigine disadvantage, including high rates of poverty, social dysfunction and lawlessness.

A 1999 referendum included a proposal for a preamble to the constitution that recognised Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders as first peoples was soundly defeated, attracting a higher "no" vote than a parallel republic proposal.

The expert panel included a mix of prominent Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal lawyers, political and community leaders and academics has sought to avoid old pitfalls.

Its 300-page report, based on more than 3,500 submissions, said recognition should come within the body of the constitution. It also left open the possibility of state intervention to specifically assist failing Aborigine communities. Parliaments should still be able to make laws for the purpose of "overcoming disadvantage, ameliorating the effects of past discrimination, or protecting the cultures, languages or heritage of any group", it said.

"For many Australians, the failure of a referendum on recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples would result in confusion about the nation's values, commitment to racial non-discrimination, and sense of national identity," the report said. "The negative impact on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples would be profound."

Professor Patrick Dodson, an Aborigine who headed the expert panel, said the stakes were high for a country that needed to take "a remarkable step forward".

"This is a time when truth and respect for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples needs to be achieved in our, through the recognition in our constitution. Strong leadership and our national interest are critical for our nation to go forward."

Australia's indigenous population is around half a million, out of 23 million.

Alexander Graham Bell letter to parents about telephone sells for $92,000

2012-01-19T16:14:00.000-08:00

An 1878 letter from Alexander Graham Bell to his parents that includes rare and elaborate drawings of the telephone he invented has sold for more than $92,000 (£59,000), an auctioneer said Thursday.

The letter was written two years after Alexander Graham Bell, inset, obtained the patent on the telephone

The letter instructs the Scotland-born Bell's parents on how to ground the telephone to avoid harm from lightning strikes. He instructs them to run a sturdy copper wire from their house to the duck pond and bury it there.

"If you have a good connection with a permanently moist stratum of earth, you need never fear lightning and your posts will be safe," Bell wrote.

The letter was written two years after Bell obtained the patent on the telephone and made his first call to his assistant, Thomas Watson.

Bidding on the letter offered by RRAuction began in December and ended Wednesday, with the top bid coming in at $92,856.

Oldest working television set expected to sell for £5,000 04 Apr 2011

RRAuction Vice President Bobby Livingston wouldn't name the top bidder, but he described him as "a prominent document collector in Texas who has an eye for the best stuff."

Livingston said the letter came from an archive kept by an associate of Bell's. He said the letter is particularly valuable because of Bell's detailed discussion and drawings.

"You're not going to see a better Alexander Graham Bell on the market," Livingston said.

Bell and his family moved to North America in 1870 and settled in Canada. Bell moved to Boston the following year, where he taught the deaf and became a professor at Boston University.

Genetic healthy ageing test predicts chances of reaching 100

2012-01-19T06:02:00.001-08:00

Scientists claim they can predict whether someone will live to 100 with up to 85 per cent accuracy after developing a genetic test for healthy ageing.

The test is between 60 and 85 per cent accurate

Researchers came up with the complex formula after studying the DNA of centenarians and identifying common genetic variations which may have contributed to their unusual longevity.

They found a series of markers which appeared to have made people genetically predisposed to a long and healthy life, for example by helping to delay or prevent the onset of age-related diseases such as heart disease and dementia.

These genes could help explain why living beyond 100 appears to run in families, despite the importance of lifestyle factors like smoking and diet on our long-term health.

The test is between 60 and 85 per cent accurate depending on the subject's age and is most reliable late on in life, meaning it is unlikely to be useful as an early predictor of an individual's lifespan.

But its ability to pick out long-lived groups who share certain genes could be useful to scientists hoping to find new treatments for age-related conditions.

Dr Thomas Perls, one of the lead authors, said: "Further study of these genetic characteristics may yield a better understanding of the genetic and biological bases of delaying or escaping age-related diseases and achieving longer survival."

The study by Boston University researchers expands on work in a 2010 paper which was published in the Science journal but later retracted due to problems with the data.

In the new paper, which was independently validated by Yale University experts, an additional sample of extremely old participants, with an average age of 107, was studied.

People who lived beyond 100 are an ideal model for healthy ageing because they generally do not begin to experience disability until their mid-nineties.

While genetic factors are only thought to influence our chance of living to 85 by about 20 to 30 per cent, the study suggests they could play a much greater role in the late eighties and beyond.

Researchers scanned the genomes of 801 centenarians and cross-referenced them with similar samples from 914 normal, healthy people to find DNA characteristics which were concentrated in the older group.

They identified 281 genetic variants which appeared to play a role in ageing, and found that they could be grouped into 26 different "genetic signatures", which characterised 90 per cent of participants.

Tim Spector, Professor of Genetic Epidemiology at Kings College London, said: “This is an interesting study of rare centenarians - it suggests that genes are much more important in deciding if you live to 100 or beyond than if you live to 85.

"With hundreds of genes contributing, personal prediction is never going to be good.

"The big news is is that there is not one gene for ageing, it is literally hundreds of genes and some might be inherited in clusters but we do not yet know how they work. If we can work it out then there is the possibility of anti-ageing therapies."

Phone hacking: Murdoch pays out millions of pounds

2012-01-19T05:59:00.001-08:00

Media baron Rupert Murdoch's group on Thursday agreed to a multi-million pounds out-of-court-settlement with 19 high-profile victims who had filed cases when they realised their phones had been hacked by the now defunct News of the World.

Ex-Deputy Prime Minister Lord Prescott and actor Jude Law are among those who have agreed to the settlement.Footballer Ashley Cole and Labour MP Chris Bryant have also reached settlements.

Most people pursuing damages from the paper's publisher News International had now settled, lawyers said. Hearings in the cases were due to start on February 13, but this may not take place in relation to the cases launched by the 19 individuals.

Overall, the settlement against the individuals is likely to cost Murdoch's company around 10 million pounds. The level of payments made today is likely to influence future claims against the now defunct tabloid from potentially hundreds of victims of phone-hacking.

Scotland Yard has said that there were 742 victims of phone-hacking, some of whom are yet to be contacted. The settlements reached today included Labour MP Chris Bryant and Alistair Campbell, former aide of Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Murdoch's group had earlier paid millions of pounds to the family of the murdered teenager Milly Dowler, whose phone was allegedly hacked. It was the report of Milly's phone being hacked that set off a chain of events last summer, leading to several changes in British press, politics and the police.

The group had settled similar claims in December with seven individuals, including former army officer, James Hewitt. There are so far 58 claimants who have fought to prove their phones were hacked by the News of the World.

The claimants alleged that senior employees and directors at News Group Newspapers (NGN), the News International subsidiary that published the News of the World, knew their journalists were engaging in illegal practices, and that the group deliberately deceived investigators and destroyed evidence.

The NGN has not admitted or denied the claims, but has agreed that compensation to the claimants can be assessed on that basis. Bindmans, the solicitors company representing the victims, said that the claims had achieved the erosion of News Group's original position, "forcing them into a sequence of significant admissions about their unlawful behaviour and about their attempts to cover it up".

It said in a statement that the claimants had also achieved "substantial compensation for victims of illegal intrusion by journalists and private investigators.

"The sums paid are far in excess of the usual range of compensation payments for misuse of private information, reflecting the aggravating features in these cases".

The claimants, Bindamans said, now knew much more about what private messages were listened to, who intercepted their messages and who authorised it, how and why the interceptions were carried out, what was done with the information, who was paid and how much.

They are also now aware of the vast scale of the illegal behaviour and the attempts by News International to deceive the police and public, it said.

Winston Churchill library to open at George Washington University

2012-01-19T05:53:00.000-08:00

A Winston Churchill library and research centre will be built at George Washington University.

Born in 1874, Churchill's career in politics spanned 60 years, and he served as prime minister for 10 years

The new National Churchill Library and Center will be established between 2013 and 2015 at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., with an $8 million (£5.2 million) pledge from the Chicago-based Churchill Centre.

Rare books and research materials will be transferred to the university's library and housed in a new street-front centre with exhibit space, officials told The Associated Press.

University President Steven Knapp said the centre will become a destination for scholars and students of the former British prime minister along with Washington's many museums, archives and libraries.

"We're going to be able to study the 20th century through the study of one of the towering figures of the 20th century, Winston Churchill," he said. "The idea here is to look at him not just in isolation but also setting him in his life and times."

Born in 1874, Churchill's career in politics spanned 60 years, and he served as prime minister for 10 years. He died in 1965.

The Churchill Archives Centre at the University of Cambridge is the primary repository for his documents and personal papers with over 1 million items. Other major Churchill institutions in Britain include the Churchill War Rooms and Museum and Chartwell, the Churchill family's home.

Much of Churchill's memorabilia has never been shown in the United States, so the new centre could borrow materials from the British institutions.

Members of the US-based Churchill Centre will build a collection to be housed in Washington, said Lee Pollock, the group's executive director. Several members have personal collections they seek to donate to a permanent library, rather than sell. The Washington collection could amass more than 1,000 volumes, he added.

The gift will also create endowments to support a professor and a curator position devoted to Churchill and 20th-century British history.

"Americans are especially devoted Churchillians," Pollock said. The British icon is "probably the most collectable and collected statesman" of at least the last century, having written over 15 million words and about 50 different books as a historian and writer, Pollock said.

Churchill thought of himself as a "personal bridge" between Britain and the United States, with an American mother and British father, Knapp said. His work with President Franklin D. Roosevelt helped draw the US into the Second World War against Japan and Nazi Germany.

"Of course that produced a tremendous alliance that had extremely important consequences," Knapp said. "Although he is from outside America, he in many ways stands for America's relationship with the larger world."

American teacher resigns after assigning maths questions on slavery

2012-01-18T16:40:00.000-08:00

A US teacher has resigned after an investigation found they were assigning math homework with flippant questions about slavery.

One problem given to primary school students in the southern state of Georgia asked: "Each tree has 56 oranges. If eight slaves pick them equally, then how much would each slave pick?"

Another question read: "If Frederick got two beatings per day, how many beatings did he get in one week?”

In a third, students were told to calculate how many baskets of cotton Frederick filled.

The questions were part of a maths assignment with a historical twist - the 'Frederick' referred to was Frederick Douglas, a 19th century slave who escaped to freedom and became a leader of the abolitionist movement.

The Gwinnett County school district promised an immediate investigation after parents reacted with horror to their children's assignment.

"Something like that shouldn’t be embedded into a kid of the third, fourth, fifth, any grade," said one father. “I’m having to explain to my 8-year-old why slavery or slaves or beatings are in a math problem. That hurts.”

On Wednesday it emerged that one unnamed teacher had resigned but three others were remaining in post after the investigation concluded.

Ron Butchart, the department head for the University of Georgia’s College of Education, told WSB-TV that it sounded like the teacher had made “an honest effort to integrate math and social studies.”

"But God, have some sensitivity…I’m absolutely dumbfounded,” he added.

LA to lose title as 'p -orn capital of America' over condom ruling

2012-01-18T14:53:00.001-08:00

The city of Los Angeles could lose its unofficial title as the "pornography capital of America" after the local council sponsored a move to ensure male performers wear condoms.

Around 90 per cent of US pornographic films are made in Los Angeles, almost all of them in the city's San Fernando Valley

Producers of erotic movies said they would pack up and go elsewhere if the measure by Los Angeles City Council was enforced.

The council voted 9-1 to grant final approval to a new local law that would deny film permits to production companies who do not comply with the condom requirement. The measure now has to be approved by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.

Around 90 per cent of US pornographic films are made in Los Angeles, almost all of them in the city's San Fernando Valley, and the industry produces an estimated $8 billion (£5.2 billion) a year in revenue.

The new law would require filmmakers to pay a permit fee, and the money raised would be used to pay for surprise inspections at shoots.

Ged Kenslea, spokesman for the Aids Healthcare Foundation, said the measure is needed because the industry has failed to properly police itself.

But Steven Hirsch, co-founder of Los Angeles-based Vivid, one of America's most prolific makers of erotic movies, said: "Ultimately I think what they will find is people will just stop shooting in the city of Los Angeles. That's a given.

"It's going to be interesting to see how in fact they do try to enforce it, and whose going to fund it, and all of the time and effort they're going to spend."

Under the current self-regulatory system in Los Angeles production companies require performers to be tested for sexually transmitted diseases at least every 30 days, and no cases of HIV have been directly linked to pornographic films since 2004.

Veteran erotic actress and producer Tabitha Stevens said: "It shouldn't be up to the government to decide."

Wikipedia and Google join anti-piracy bill protest

2012-01-18T14:43:00.000-08:00

Wikipedia, Google and Craigslist are among the websites joining a protest about proposed anti-piracy legislation in the United States.

Wikipedia and Reddit have a huge daily audience, equivalent to the population of three of the world's largest cities checking the site every day.

Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia, has voluntarily suspended its website for 24 hours. The English version of the website became inaccessible at 5am GMT on Wednesday morning. Instead of a database of more than 3.8 million articles, visitors are greeted with an open letter encouraging them to contact Congress in protest.

Google joined the protest against two proposed pieces of legislation, the Stop Online Piracy Act and the Protect Intellectual Property Act. The search engine blacked-out its logo on the US version of its website and added a link encouraging Americans to oppose the bills.

In a blogpost, David Drummond, Google's chief legal officer, said that the company was supporting the protest because "we think there’s a good way forward that doesn’t cause collateral damage to the web".
Craigslist, the popular online classifieds service, has suspended its US sites, while other websites, including Reddit, WordPress, Flickr, Twitpic and hundreds of others have agreed to support the day of action.

Sopa and Pipa are attempts to deal with the problem of online filesharing by granting powers to close down websites that are making material, such as films, music and television programmes, available without the permission of the rights holder.

Following a complaint by a rights holder, these acts would allow website domains to be seized. If the website in question is not a US site or is not hosted in the US, then supporters of the bills want the power to force US search engines to remove links to the website and for US payment networks and advertisers to stop doing business with the site.

Critics of the bills argue that this would give rightsholders too much power and could lead to legitimate websites being suspended or seized without due process.

Last month, an article in the Stanford Law Review described the bills as "an unprecedented, legally sanctioned assault on the Internet’s critical technical infrastructure".

Senior figures in the entertainment industry, which is pushing for the legislation, have dismissed the boycott.

Chris Dodd, the chairman and CEO of the Motion Picture Association of America, said in a statement: "A so-called 'blackout' is yet another gimmick, albeit a dangerous one, designed to punish elected and administration officials who are working diligently to protect American jobs from foreign criminals."

Last month, Dodd argued that if the Chinese government was able block websites then it should be possible in the US too.

Rupert Murdoch, the chairman of News Corp, which backs Sopa and Pipa, equated copying a film with publishing pornography and hate speech.

Sopa has been halted, at least temporarily, following opposition from the White House. However, Jimmy Wales, the founder of Wikipedia argued that the day of action still needed to go ahead.

He told his Twitter followers: “We have no indication that SOPA is fully off the table. We need to send Washington a BIG message.”

Wales added that Pipa, which is still under consideration by the US Senate, also posed a threat to websites.

'Obama proposed talks in secret letter to Iran'

2012-01-18T14:42:00.001-08:00

US President Barack Obama has called for direct talks with Iran in a secret letter to the Islamic Republic's supreme leader that also warned Tehran against closing the strategic Strait of Hormuz, a conservative Iranian lawmaker was quoted as saying on Wednesday.

Iran has threatened to close the waterway, the route for about one-sixth of the global oil flow, because of new US sanctions over its nuclear program.

Conservative lawmaker Ali Motahari revealed the content of the letter days after the Obama administration said it was warning Iran through public and private channels against any action that threatens the flow of oil from the Persian Gulf.

"In the letter, Obama called for direct talks with Iran," the semiofficial Fars news agency quoted Motahari as saying Wednesday. "The letter also said that closing the Strait of Hormuz is (Washington's) red line."

"The first part of the letter contains threats and the second part contains an offer for dialogue," he added.
Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast confirmed that Tehran received the letter and was considering a possible response.
The White House had no immediate comment today. National Security Council spokesman Tommy Vietor pointed to the administration warning efforts that were revealed Friday.
Spokesmen have been vague on what the United States would do about Iran's threat to block the strategic Strait of Hormuz, but military officials have been clear that the US is readying for a possible naval clash.

Iran's Revolutionary Guard, the country's most powerful military force, says Tehran's leadership has decided to order the closure of the oil route if Iran's oil exports are blocked.

A senior Guard officer said earlier this month that the decision has been made by Iran's top authorities.

Iranian politicians have made the threat in the past, but this was the strongest statement yet that a closure of the strait is official policy.
Iran's regular army recently held naval war games near the vital waterway that were described by hard-liners as part of preparations to close the strait if sanctions are imposed. The Guard is planning major naval military exercises next month in the same region.

Louisiana Official Moves to Ban Wearing Pajamas in Public

2012-01-18T06:57:00.000-08:00

The pajama party might be over for residents of Caddo Parish in northwest Louisiana, the Shreveport Times reports.

Michael Williams, a Caddo commissioner, is proposing an ordinance that will prohibit locals from wearing pajama pants in public after an incident at a local Walmart offended the official and other customers. Williams said one of a group of young men clad in pajama pants revealed his private parts, inciting the idea for the ban.

“If you can’t [wear pajamas] at the boardwalk or courthouse, why are you going to do it in a restaurant or in public? Today it’s pajamas,” Williams told the Times. “Tomorrow it’s underwear. Where does it stop?”

Underwear tomorrow might be a little extreme. But some residents are bothered by the idea of banning pajamas in public. Tracy Carter, a resident of Shreveport, told the Times she and her three young children wear pajamas in public often. “I can get out of the bed and go to the store, and they’re covering everything,” she said. “I’ve got a 3-year-old, a 5-year-old and a 12-year old to deal with.”

A major issue with the ordinance is defining what constitutes pajamas. Williams said a possible solution is specifying any item sold in the sleepwear section of department stores. He also suggested violators do community service rather than serve jail time.

The city of Shreveport, which resides in Caddo Parish, has experience with public dress code. The city instituted a no-saggy pants law, and reported 31 misdemeanor summons for locals wearing pants too low in 2011, according to police spokesman Bill Goodin.

Perhaps pants prohibition will continue in Louisiana, when Williams plans to poll his commission colleagues in February on the possible ordinance.

IBM Shrinks Computer Memory Into Only Twelve Atoms

2012-01-18T06:35:00.000-08:00

IBM announced last week that it had successfully created the smallest magnetic memory storage yet – they were able to record a bit into just 12 iron atoms. The results of this research can be found in the current issue of Science.

“It begins with a simple question,” IBM researcher Andreas Heinrich told me. “How small can you make a magnetic structure, and still act as a classic magnet for data storage?”

The traditional way to approach this is the simple Moore’s Law approach – starting from the top down, keep shrinking storage. The other approach, which is what Heinrich’s team is working on, is to actually build the magnet up, atom by atom.

They did this by using a scanning, tunneling electron microscope, placing iron atoms one at a time on a copper-nitrogen surface. By placing the atoms one at a time, the researchers could start to understand how small it was possible to make the storage of one bit.

As it turns out, the absolute limit is 12 atoms – a magnetic storage unit for data just can’t get any smaller. That’s because when there are fewer than 12 atoms, quantum effects dominate. For example, a structure of six iron atoms switches quantum spin states about 1,000 times per second. At eight atoms, it was significantly less – about once per second. But at 12 atoms, there was no quantum switching at all. In other words, as long as you have at least 12 atoms, the iron structure will behave like a classical magnet, and it’s possible to store a single bit of information in the structure.

Below you can see eight of the 12-atom structures, each storing one bit. This is one byte of information in only 96 atoms.

Another challenge of building on such a small scale is the ferromagnetic properties of most magnetic storage. In a ferromagnetic piece of metal, like a compass needle, all of the atoms have their magnetic moments aligned, producing a large magnetic field that can be sent across large distances. While this works great for storing bits in a hard drive, “it’s bad on the nanoscale,” according to Heinrich. That’s because the atoms are packed so closely together. If the atoms have the same magnetic moment, they’ll repel each other.

Instead, the atoms in this memory system are anti-ferromagnetic. In other words, says Heinrich, “One points north, then south, then north. Locally, the magnetic fields cancel, which means they can be packed closely together. Bits are literally next to each other on the atomic scale.”

Of course, this is just the first step in a long road to practical application. Building bits like this are expensive. But Heinrich is optimistic about the potential. He expects practical applications in the area of spintronics within the next 5-10 years, and is also excited about the possibility of applying his methods to computation – possibly even quantum computation. “What I’m going to be doing is focusing on whether quantum effect can be enhanced to do quantum computation using the scanning, tunneling microscope,” he said. His team is looking into different materials to apply potential quantum computing applications to, including silicon.

Put Down Your Smartphone To Feel Better

2012-01-18T06:32:00.000-08:00

A study by the British Psychological Society found a link between stress levels and the number of times a person picks up their smartphone to check messages and mails. In short, the more you do it, the worse you feel.

Oddly, the study found that less stress was induced when checking work e-mail rather than other online interactions. The group conducted a survey of 100 Britons in different lines of work.

The study found something they called a “helpful-stressful cycle” in which a smart phone is purchased to help manage the workload and then becomes the bane of their existence, inciting compulsive behaviors and stress.

Quoth the BPS:

“Organizations will not flourish if their employees are stressed, irrespective of the source of stress, so it is in their interest to encourage their employees to switch their phones off; cut the number of work emails sent out of hours, reduce people’s temptation to check their devices,” said psychologist Richard Balding from the University of Worcester, who presented the findings.

Anyone with a passing familiarity with the monkey mind will recognize that cell phones, while making us more connected, actually change our brain chemistry and encourage some obsessive behaviors.

What we really need, is a Gmail plug-in that will shut down e-mail for certain period of time during the day – perhaps a three-hour window of freedom during the workday and another evening window that prevents all e-mail from rolling in while eating dinner and enjoying some family conversation. The assumption that everyone is always on and always available is a rude one and this study only points to further proof that our mobile lives are encroaching negatively on our corporeal existence.

Strike on Iran will be a 'catastrophe', warns Russia

2012-01-18T06:21:00.000-08:00

Russia on Wednesday warned that a military strike on Iran would be a "catastrophe" with the severest consequences which risked inflaming existing tensions between Sunni and Shiite Muslims.

"As for the chances of this catastrophe happening, you would have to ask those constantly mentioning it as an option that remains on the table," Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said when asked on the chances of military action.

Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak earlier said in Jerusalem today that his country was not even close to deciding to attack Iran and believed that a military option remained "very far away".

Lavrov warned of the "severest" consequences of an attack that he warned would spark a regional refugee crisis and incite inter-communal tensions in the region.

"I have no doubt in the fact that it will only add fuel to the fire of the still-simmering Sunni-Shiite conflict. And I do not know where the subsequent chain reaction will end.

He added that punitive sanctions aimed at winning more transparency from Iran had "exhausted" themselves and only hurt the chances of peace.

"Additional unilateral sanctions against Iran have nothing to do with a desire to ensure the regime's commitment to nuclear non-proliferation," Lavrov told reporters at an annual briefing outlining Russia's foreign policy views.

"It is seriously aimed at suffocating the Iranian economy and the well-being of its people, probably in the hope of inciting discontent."

His comments came as EU diplomats closed in on a July date for a full oil embargo that would suit nations such as Italy with a strong reliance on Iranian supplies.

Lavrov said Russia had evidence that Iran was ready to cooperate more closely with inspectors from the United Nations IAEA nuclear watchdog and was preparing for "serious talks" with the West.

He also hinted that Europe and the United States were imposing the measures with the specific purpose of torpedoing new rounds of talks.

"Iran is now waiting for an (IAEA) delegation so that it can discuss serious issues. So the sanctions that can now be adopted by the European Union can hardly improve the atmosphere or make the talks productive," said Lavrov.

"All possible sanctions that could impact Iran's behaviour in the nuclear sphere or its cooperation with the IAEA have been exhausted," said Lavrov.

White House locked down after 'smoke bomb' thrown over fence

2012-01-18T06:15:00.000-08:00

The White House was locked down on Tuesday night as authorities investigated what appeared to be a smoke bomb that was tossed over the fence of the White House compound.

More than 1,000 Occupy protesters had been holding a rally outside the White House when the device was propelled over a fence on the north side of the building.

George Ogilvie, a spokesman for the US Secret Service, said the suspected smoke bomb was thrown after the majority of demonstrators had left.

A small amount of smoke is believed to have been dispersed from the projectile and police pushed protesters back so they could perform a thorough sweep of the area.

People inside the White House were initially prevented from leaving but were later released through a side exit.

President Obama and wife Michelle were not inside the White House at the time but returned while the investigation was under way.

There were no arrests, according to the Secret Service.

Last night, police had cordoned off a section in front of the White House following the disturbance, while they worked to clear away debris from the device.

Charles Holsopple, who mans a 24-hour vigil protest outside the north face of the White House, told The Daily Telegraph: "There were around 1000 people here and in all the commotion we couldn't see the smoke bomb but it filtered back that something had been thrown over the fence of the White House.

"The police made a moderate show of force with around 30 police with batons and helmets but no shields. There wasn't any confrontation."

President Obama and wife Michelle had been celebrating Mrs Obama's 48th birthday at a dinner party when the device was thrown.

Four people were arrested earlier in the day as hundreds of Occupy demonstrators converged outside Capitol Hill.

President Obama: St Louis Cardinals the 'greatest comeback team in the history of baseball'

2012-01-17T17:24:00.000-08:00

President Barack Obama welcomed the St Louis Cardinals to the White House and lauded the team's improbable run to reach the playoffs and then to go the distance for baseball's biggest prize.

The Cardinals trailed in each playoff round and were twice within a strike of elimination in game six of the series with the Texas Rangers before a walk-off home run saved them.

"That has to be one of the best baseball games of all time," said Mr Obama.

Also at the event was the first lady Michelle Obama, celebrating her 48th birthday.

Team owner Bill de Witt gave both Obamas team jerseys and souvenir bats.

"I'm a little bit worried about giving my wife a bat," the president joked. "If I mess up..."

His wife nearly stole the show when she deadpanned, "I'll take my bat," then hefted it and glanced meaningfully in her husband's direction.

US joins EU effort to develop space 'code of conduct'

2012-01-17T17:21:00.000-08:00

The United States has pledged to join an EU-led effort to develop a space "code of conduct" that would set out rules for orbiting spacecraft and for mitigating the growing problem of debris.

Russian specialists preparing Phobos-Grunt probe for launch from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, last November

"The long-term sustainability of our space environment is at serious risk from space debris and irresponsible actors," said a statement from Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

"In response to these challenges, the United States has decided to join with the European Union and other nations to develop an International Code of Conduct for Outer Space Activities."

Such a code should "help maintain the long-term sustainability, safety, stability, and security of space by establishing guidelines for the responsible use of space," Mrs Clinton added, noting that work on the code was just beginning.

The proposal was put forth to the Conference on Disarmament by the European Union in 2009 just days after a disused Russian military satellite and a US communications satellite owned by the Iridium company collided.

A draft code on civilian and military use, which includes pledges on the integrity of orbiting space objects, had been previously approved by EU ministers in late 2008.

Countries signing up to the code would pledge to maintain freedom of access and use of outer space "for peaceful purposes without interference, fully respecting the security, safety and integrity of space objects in orbit," according to the text released in Geneva in 2009.

They would also pledge to co-operate to "prevent harmful interference in outer space activities" and seek to prevent outer space from being an area of conflict even if they were engaged in military activities in space.

Mrs Clinton said Washington "has made clear to our partners that we will not enter into a code of conduct that in any way constrains our national security-related activities in space or our ability to protect the United States and our allies."

However she said the United States is "committed to working together to reverse the troubling trends that are damaging our space environment and to preserve the limitless benefits and promise of space for future generations."

The US announcement came days after a defunct Russian Mars probe weighing 13.5 tons crashed into the Pacific Ocean after orbiting the Earth for more than two months.

A six-ton NASA satellite that launched in 1991 met a similar fate in September last year, plunging into the Pacific Ocean off California.

Iran promises to return US drone - as a pink toy

2012-01-17T17:15:00.000-08:00

It may not have been quite what Barack Obama meant when he called on Iran to return a US drone that crashed in the Islamic Republic.

An Iranian toymaker has begun producing replicas of the RQ-170

Rather than giving back the multi-million dollar piece of spyware, which has been gleefully paraded for the world's cameras, an Iranian toy maker has promised to send the White House a pink plastic toy replica of the downed drone.

The Ayeh Art group has been doing a brisk trade in models of the RQ-170, producing around 2,000 a day, and in an inspired moment of self-publicity has promised to reserve one for President Obama.

“He said he wanted it back, and we will send him one,” said Reza Kioumars, the company's head of cultural production.

As well as coming in a garish range of colours unlikely to considered by the US military, the model drones have one other addition, courtesy of the regime.

Each toy aircraft carries the slogan "We will America under our feet," a favourite saying of Ayatollah Khomeini.

Progress on return of the real drone is going less well: Iran last demanded an apology from the US before it would even considering handing back the craft.

There was no immediate reaction from the White House.

Mitt Romney to wheelchair-using medical marijuana patient: "I don't support medical marijuana. Bye."

2012-01-17T06:54:00.000-08:00

In this old video, an 80 lb man with muscular dystrophy in a wheelchair explains to Mitt Romney that his qualified physician believes that medical marijuana is the only medication that helps him. Mitt tells him he should take synthetic marijuana, and the man explains that this makes him violently ill. The man then asks Mitt whether he believes that he and his doctor should be arrested over medical marijuana, and Mitt turns his back on him and walks away. Lucky for Mitt, the gravely ill man in the wheelchair he was running away from after callously dismissing him wasn't able to chase him because he was so gravely ill. Lucky, lucky Mitt!

TSA agents steal $40,000 from passenger luggage; sentenced to only five months in prison

2012-01-17T06:52:00.000-08:00

Any normal person found guilty of stealing $40,000 from, say, a bank or an employer, would likely be sentenced to at least five years of prison. But when you work for the US Transportation Security Administration (TSA), you can expect to be given special legal treatment and sent on your way.

The Associated Press reports that two former TSA screeners, 44-year-old Coumar Persad and 31-year-old Davon Webb, both of which worked at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, have pleaded guilty to grand larceny, obstructing governmental administration, and official misconduct, for stealing nearly $40,000 from an airport traveler's luggage. But rather than receive a normal prison sentence for such crimes, the two were sentenced to just six months in prison with five years of probation.

Reports indicate that Persad, who was an X-ray luggage screener at the time, had spotted the wad of cash in a suitcase while monitoring the X-ray screen. He reportedly then contacted Webb, who worked in another baggage area, to watch for the bag and mark it with special tape. Persad later intercepted the bag in another baggage handling area, and proceeded to open it up and take the cash.

All in all, the two thieves snagged $39,980, which was later retrieved by police from the men's homes. But based on typical sentencing guidelines, the punishment the two men received for their crimes is inadequate, and indicative of the lax manner in which TSA agents who violate the law are treated within the justice system.

Grand larceny alone is enough to warrant a much longer prison sentence than just six months. And when you add the other two charges into the mix, sentencing could easily top 15 or 20 years. But because these agents worked for the government, they apparently are not subject to the same treatment as the rest of the general public.

TSA "agents" are not actually agents at all, however. They are not law enforcement, and they do not legally or constitutionally hold any type of special authority over anyone. The TSA you see working at airports, in fact, are hired screeners that are technically all in violation of the law for impersonating law enforcement officers.

The top 20 things that are more dangerous to children than lead paint in Mattel toys

2012-01-16T23:48:00.000-08:00

1. Mercury fillings
Often called "silver fillings" to hide the fact that they're made from mercury, these highly toxic fillings are placed directly into the mouths of children where they are inhaled (mercury vapor) and swallowed, causing systemic mercury poisoning to the child and leading to long-term neurological damage.

2. Vaccines
Think vaccines are safe? You've been hoodwinked by the popular media parroting drug company propaganda. Vaccines are preserved with methyl mercury, one of the most dangerous chemical forms of the toxic heavy metal. This mercury is injected directly into the bodies of children where it causes severe neurological damage. And yes, it does cause Autism, despite what you've read in the dumbed-down press. Only a fool would inject their child with mercury-preserved vaccines.

3. Hot dogs
Hot dogs are made with horrifying processed meat parts , then preserved with a cancer-causing ingredient called sodium nitrite. This ingredient causes brain tumors in children, not to mention leukemia, pancreatic cancer, colon cancer and other cancers. Hot dogs are far more dangerous to a child's health than lead paint in , and yet parents keep feeding them to their children!

4. Antibacterial soap
How about a little nerve toxin in your soap? That's what's found in antibacterial soap. It's a toxic cocktail of chemicals designed to kill life. That's how it kills bacteria. The problem is that it also harms people -- especially infants and children who are trying to develop healthy nervous systems. Avoid all products claiming to be "antibacterial." You're better off using natural soap and letting your child's immune system fight off common bacteria. The world isn't sterile, after all. You can't turn your house into a germ-free bubble.

5. ADHD drugs
Would you give your child street drugs like speed or meth? Probably not, but what if your doctor wrote you a prescription for speed and said your child needed it because he was ADHD? If you're like most parents, you'd fall in step and start giving your child speed. But wait, you say: ADHD drugs are not speed, are they? But of course they are. They belong to a class of drugs called amphetamines. They used to be illegally sold as speed. Now they're prescription drugs, and they're given to children in schools all across America (and elsewhere). Psychiatrists and drug companies are making a killing dosing up kids and infants on substances that used to be considered illegal street drugs (and that have no legitimate medical use whatsoever).

6. Sports drinks
For some reason, parents irrationally believe sports drinks are healthy because they contain the word "sports." Didn't they notice the neon green artificial coloring? Sports drinks are, in my opinion, a nutritional joke. Made from salt water, processed sweeteners and petrochemical coloring, many of their ingredients are actually harmful. Drinking water would be smarter, and feeding your child some healthy trace minerals would be even better. Low on potassium? Eat a banana.

7. Cough syrup and over-the-counter medicines
Nearly all children's over-the-counter medicines contain multiple toxic substances such as chemical sweeteners, preservatives and additives. Cough syrup, in particular, has been scientifically proven to be absolutely worthless in preventing coughs. Many "children's" medicines are actually more toxic than their adult counterparts because they're sweetened up and cosmetically enhanced with artificial colors made from petrochemicals. Yet parents poison their children every day with over-the-counter medicine.

8. Sunscreen
The sunscreen industry is a huge scam. Most popular sunscreen products actually cause skin cancer due to the numerous toxic chemicals they contain (which are quickly absorbed into the skin where they cause DNA mutations that lead to cancer). Even worse, sunscreen blocks the UV radiation that allows the skin to manufacture all-important vitamin D -- the most powerful anti-cancer nutrient yet known to modern science. It prevents over a dozen different cancers, yet parents block it by slathering toxic sunscreen on their children, all while mistakenly believing they're "protecting their children from cancer!"

9. Fluoride in the water
I've always found it amazing that city water officials were dumb enough to actually buy a toxic waste substance and arrange to have it dripped into the public water supply where it would be ingested by infants and children. The result? Mass fluorosis and toxicity to children everywhere. Didn't these people realize that fluoride only works topically? (That is, it only works if you rub it on your teeth, then spit it out, and even that only works if you're using natural fluoride, not the chemicals spit out as byproducts of the fertilizer industry, which is what city water departments are buying and dripping into the water supply.)

Whoever heard of drinking a topical medication in the first place? It's like swallowing sunscreen to prevent sunburn. Even worse, putting this into the public water supply effectively mass medicates everyone with a bioactive chemical substance that no one has been given a prescription for. This is all done with no regard for the level of natural fluoride children might already be ingesting from other sources. The situation is so crazy that it's difficult to find a more insane example of medical tyranny than the mass fluoridation of public water supplies. The fact that doctors and dentists so vehemently support it demonstrates just how crazy they really are.

10. Processed milk
Children as young as 10 years old are now being diagnosed with heart disease and clogged arteries. Ever wonder how it happened? . Not only is the milk contaminated with pus, blood and detectable levels of pesticides and other chemicals, it's also homogenized, meaning the fats are artificially modified in a way that makes them stay in suspension. This homogenization also makes milk fats dangerous to cardiovascular health. While I support the consumption of raw, unprocessed milk, I think that consuming processed, homogenized milk is dangerous to the health of infants, children and adults alike!

11. Fast food
Fast food is extremely unhealthy for children. Not only are the foods often fried, homogenized, hydrogenated and otherwise altered, they're also laced with chemical additives, taste enhancers, processed sugars, petrochemical food coloring and other unhealthy substances. Strangely, many parents actually reward their children for good behavior by buying them unhealthy fast food meals, thereby creating a psychological association between good feelings and junk food. (Fast food restaurants further exploit this psychological link by building playgrounds and running feel-good advertisements that emphasize friends and fun, then link those good vibes to their food products.)

12. Antidepressant drugs
Children as young as six months old are now being put on psychotropic drugs such as SSRIs (antidepressants). These drugs, we now know, cause suicidal thoughts and violent behavior, especially in young boys. They imbalance brain chemistry and even alter the body's metabolism of sugar, promoting diabetes and leading to rapid weight gain. These drugs are so dangerous that feeding them to children should be considered a crime. Every single school shooting involving a child in the United States in the last 15 years has been linked to antidepressant drug use.

13. Chemical laundry detergents
Parents are shown fancy ads on television depicting how wonderful and clean their clothes will be if they wash them in brand-name laundry detergent. What they're not shown, however, is the toxicity of all the synthetic chemicals that go into most laundry detergent products. The fragrance chemicals alone are often carcinogenic, and they're just as bad for the environment as they are children's health. A new alternative has appeared, however: Soap berries! It's laundry soap that grows on trees.

14. Flame retardant chemicals
Did you know that new mattresses for infants and children are often sprayed with extremely toxic flame retardant chemicals? These are easily absorbed through the skin of infants and children where they contribute to numerous neurological disorders and immune suppression. Many clothing products are also sprayed with flame retardants, as are some carpeting products. In the push to make everything fireproof, state regulators .

15. Soda
Aside from directly promoting diabetes and obesity, sodas also contain high amounts of phosphoric acid, a substance that dissolves bones and causes a loss of bone mineral density. This causes massive tooth decay as well as a shrinking jaw bone and overall skeletal fragility. Diet sodas are even worse, since they contain chemical sweeteners linked to neurological disorders and learning disabilities.

16. Air fresheners
Air fresheners contain cancer-causing chemicals. Unleashing them in the house exposes children to these chemicals, promoting asthma and other respiratory problems. If you value the health of your children, avoid air freshener products and just use essential oils or citrus peels instead. (Peel an orange and hang the peel in your kitchen.)

17. Synthetic vitamins
Many children's vitamins are made with cheap, synthetic "vitamin" chemicals that actually harm people who take them. Plus, many are loaded up with artificial colors, sucrose and chemical sweeteners. Avoid cheap, store-bought children's vitamins or anything containing cyanocobalamin (a toxic form of vitamin B12).

18. Dryer sheets
Most popular dryer sheets and fabric softeners are made with toxic synthetic chemicals that are not safe to use on children's clothing. The fragrance chemicals alone are often highly carcinogenic, and the other chemicals contribute additional toxicity to the clothing. Children's clothes should never be washed or dried in chemicals. Only use natural detergents and fabric softeners, or avoid the fabric softeners altogether.

19. Bacon
Most bacon and sausage are processed meat products made with sodium nitrite (like the hot dogs, above) and contaminated with various chemicals lodged in the animal fats. Conventionally-raised beef, pork and chicken products are, in my opinion, extremely toxic to the human body and contribute to colon cancer, breast cancer, prostate cancer and many other diseases and disorders. If you make meat for your children, shop for 100% organic, free-range, antibiotic-free meats that have no nitrites or nitrates.

20. Shampoo and bath products
Virtually all popular shampoo and bath products sold on the market contain cancer-causing chemicals. The ingredients read like a top-40 list of toxic chemicals. Virtually none of these chemicals have ever been tested or approved for use on humans (they are simply ignored because the FDA astonishingly believes the skin won't absorb chemicals).

15 Superfoods for Under $20

2012-01-16T23:45:00.000-08:00

You want to eat healthy but it costs too much. Fruits, vegetables, and whole foods in general are pricey and when you’re trying to feed a family of four on the cheap, choosing nutrient dense eats without draining your wallet may seem like an impossible mission. But that’s not really the case. In fact, some of the healthiest foods in the world are cheap.

1. Kale
At just over a dollar a bunch, kale is a member of the dark, leafy greens group. It’s loaded with vitamin C and vitamin B as well as calcium. Want to relieve depression? Eat kale.

2. Broccoli
This low cost cruciferous vegetable has it all. Cruciferous vegetables are known for a compound that neutralizes toxins in the liver and helps cleanse the system.

3. Winter Squash
Winter squash is only a few dollars a pound and when compared to the summer squash variety, it’s much better for you. They’re a good source of vitamin B6, which is important for the nervous and immune system, as well as folate for heart and pregnancy health.

4. Sweet Potatoes

Sweet, savory, and downright delicious, nothing beats this winter staple. Sweet potatoes are loaded with fiber, protein, vitamin A, and vitamin C.

5. Cabbage
Roger Doiron says, “what cabbage lacks in sex appeal and trendiness it makes up for in dependability and productivity.” He’s right. Cabbage is cheap and just like broccoli, it’s a cruciferous super veggie.

6. Apples
Apples are our best foodie friends. Sweet, tangy, crunchy, and low in calories, apples have fiber and tons of phytochemicals or antioxidants that serve to fight free radicals in the body that cause disease and aging.

7. Quinoa
At $3-5 a pound quinoa is cheap and nutrient dense. Quinoa is a complete protein and can substitute for less sustainable proteins. Compared to other grains, quinoa is higher in calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, potassium, iron, copper, manganese, and zinc.

8. Brown Basmati Rice
Talk about cheap, rice is one of the least expensive foods in the world. At just a few dollars a pound, a little goes a long way. I also love brown basmati rice, It’s an excellent source of manganese and a good source of the minerals selenium and magnesium.

9. Barley
Barley is one of my favorite grains. The little bubbles burst in your mouth, full of flavor. Barley is rich in manganese, selenium, phosphorus, copper, magnesium, iron, zinc and potassium.

10. Adzuki Beans
Beans are one of the least expensive protein sources. In fact, these little guys contain some of the highest levels of protein and the lowest levels of fat of any variety of beans. They also contain high levels of potassium, fiber, B vitamins, iron, zinc, and manganese. (

11. Black Beans
This is an obvious one, but no less important. Black beans are a good source of folate, dietary fiber, manganese, protein, magnesium, vitamin B1 (thiamin), phosphorus, and iron.

12. Flaxseed
Omega 3 fatty acids are an ever important building block nutrient that like B12, the body cannot produce on its own. Don’t worry because you can get the nutrient without fatty fish.

13. Sunflower Seeds

Sunflower seeds are one of the least expensive seeds that you can buy in bulk and if you buy the raw variety, they’re quite good for you as well. Sunflower seeds have 76 percent of the RDA for vitamin E.

14. Sesame Seeds
Great for sprinkling on all your favorite Asian dishes, who knew that they were so good for you? Again, a little goes a long way with this one. You don’t need a whole lot to absorb the benefits. Sesame seeds are rich in calcium and magnesium. Who knew?

15. Almonds

I saved the best for last. If you’re not eating almonds, it’s time to start. Almonds are good for heart health and loaded with vitamin E, an antioxidant that keeps you from aging.

Green beans nutrition facts

2012-01-16T23:43:00.000-08:00

Tender, flexible green beans are delight of vegetarian lovers for their wholesome nutritional qualities. They are unripe or immature pods obtained from the bean plant belonging to common fabaceae family and known scientifically as Phaseolus vulgaris.

Broadly, tender beans are classified depending on their growth habits as "bush beans" which stand erect without support and "Pole Beans" that need climb supports. The other varieties of unripe fruits of beans family include Shell beans, Pinto or mottled beans, White beans, Red or kidney beans, Black beans, Pink beans and Yellow wax beans. All most all the varieties are available year around across the world.

Fava or broad beans (Vicia faba) are large, flattened light green pods usually eaten shelled for their delicious beans. Lima beans (Phaseolus lunatus) are large, plump, pale green pods with kidney shaped seeds.

Health benefits of Green beans

Fresh green beans are very low in calories (31 kcal per 100 g of raw beans) and contain no saturated fat; but are very good source of vitamins, minerals, and plant derived micronutrients.
They are very rich source of dietary fiber (9% per100g RDA) which acts as bulk laxative that helps to protect the mucous membrane of the colon by decreasing its exposure time to toxic substances as well as by binding to cancer causing chemicals in the colon. Dietary fiber has also been shown to reduce blood cholesterol levels by decreasing re-absorption of cholesterol binding bile acids in the colon.
Green beans contain excellent levels of vitamin A, and many health promoting flavonoid poly phenolic antioxidants such as lutein, zeaxanthin and ß-carotene in good amounts. These compounds help act as protective scavengers against oxygen-derived free radicals and reactive oxygen species (ROS) that play a role in aging and various disease process.
Zea-xanthin, an important dietary carotenoid in the beans, selectively absorbed into the retinal macula lutea in the eyes where it thought to provide antioxidant and protective UV light filtering functions. It is, therefore, green beans offer some protection in preventing age related macular disease (ARMD) in the elderly.
Fresh snap beans are good source of folates. 100 g fresh beans provide 37 µg or 9% of folates. Folate along with vitamin B-12 is one of the essential components of DNA synthesis and cell division. Good folate diet when given during preconception periods and during pregnancy helps prevent from neural-tube defects in the offspring.
They also contain good amounts of vitamin-B6 (pyridoxine), thiamin (vitamin B-1), and vitamin-C. Consumption of foods rich in vitamin C helps body develop resistance against infectious agents and scavenge harmful oxygen free radicals.
In addition, beans contain healthy amounts of minerals like iron, calcium, magnesium, manganese, and potassium, which are very essential for body metabolism. Manganese is a co-factor for the anti oxidant enzyme superoxide dismutase, which is a very powerful free radical scavenger. Potassium is an important component of cell and body fluids that helps controlling heart rate and blood pressure.

Selection and storage

Raw fresh green beans, also called as snap beans or French beans, should be tender, long, stiff, but flexible and give snap sound when broken. Buy them from organic stores for their rich “beany” flavor.

Avoid limp or overly matured beans with tough skin.

To store, place them in a perforated plastic bag and keep inside the refrigerator set at high relative humidity. They keep well for up to a week.

Preparation and serving methods

Wash raw beans in cold water. Just before using, remove the strings and trim the ends.

Here are some serving tips:

Green beans are most favored vegetable items in stir-fry, stews, grilled-salads, Steamed along with carrots, cauliflower, peas, tomato...etc.
They mix well with cheese, nuts, mushroom, seafood, meat etc.
In Asian region, they are used in curries, soups, stir-fry with rice (rice pilaf) etc.

Safety profile

Green beans contain oxalic acid, a naturally occurring substance found in some vegetables, which, may crystallize as oxalate stones in the urinary tract in some people. It is, therefore, people with known oxalate urinary tract stones are advised against eating vegetables belong to brassica and fabaceae family. Adequate intake of water is therefore advised to maintain normal urine output to minimize the stone risk.

Five Foods To Eat for Healthy Hair

2012-01-16T23:42:00.000-08:00

Hair grows faster when it's nourished through a healthy diet. Learn what foods help hair to achieve great lengths.

Many people who want long hair think there is a way to achieve those flowing locks in rapid fashion. Unless one is willing to wear a wig or extensions, however, there is no quick solution to obtaining a Rapunzel-type hairstyle. Hair usually grows about six inches a year, though rates vary per person and genetics play a decisive part in what your hair looks like.

Shampoos, hair dyes, conditioners and other hair care products often come with the claim that they promote hair growth through strengthening hair follicles. Regular trims and hot oil treatments can help, but the best way to ensure that one's hair is healthy enough to grow to great lengths is to eat a diet high in vitamins and minerals.

Salmon and Oily Fish

Salmon and other fish like mackerel, sardines and tuna have Omega-3 fatty acids and Vitamin B12 in them. Ingesting this dietary requirement for long healthy hair will additionally improve the condition of the scalp. Oysters are also good to as they have zinc in them. It will make hair shine. Eat 3-4 servings per week.

Cereal and Nuts

Cereal not only has zinc, iron and B vitamins in it but, as it's often eaten in the morning, helps replenish hair follicles when they need it most. Hair benefits immensely from sleep, about 7-9 hours per night, but, come morning, the hair follicles are needy.

Eating a balanced breakfast including whole grains and nuts assists the follicles to send nutrients to the scalp, thereby stimulating growth. Cereal has the added advantage of often being eaten with milk or yoghurt, both of which intensify the health of hair.

Nuts are especially important. Brazil nuts contain selenium, vital for scalp health. Walnuts condition hair with their alpha-linolenic acid. Zinc is found in cashews, peanuts, and almonds, a mineral that prevents hair loss, fall out and shedding. Consume regularly.

Eggs

Hair is protein, so the more protein one eats, the healthier the follicles will be. Eggs are an excellent source of protein, regardless of how they are prepared. Try to us as little butter or oil as possible in their preparation however. They also contain vitamin B12.

Chicken, Red Meat and Beans/Lentils

Chicken is also an excellent source of protein to help hair grow quickly. It enables bodies to better absorb iron, increasing the likelihood that hair colour will remain bright and the follicles strong.

Red meat can also be consumed twice a week to give hair its fullest chance of potency.

Vegetarians need not worry that hair growth will be compromised by their diet though. Beans and lentils provide a superb source of protein, as well as iron, zinc and biotin to prevent brittle locks. Three or more servings can be eaten a week.

Vegetables

Those who desire a luscious mane can't go wrong by eating lots of vegetables, both leafy green ones and carrots. Dark green vegetables provide iron and calcium, as well as Vitamin A and C. These vitamins assist in the production of sebum, which the body needs to condition the hair and keep it in tip-top shape.

Carrots also provide Vitamin A. Good for vision as well as hair, these vegetables will encourage follicles to increase their production. Hair, well-fed, has no choice but to grow.

Maintain an excellent diet, low in fats, caffeine and alcohol, fortified with eight glasses of water a day and a multi-vitamin to increase the likelihood of hair growth.

Health benefits of Walnuts

2012-01-16T23:41:00.001-08:00

Our consumption of walnuts is usually limited since this nut is too energetic and rich in fats. It is a shame!
Walnuts do not only provide healthy fatty acids, they are also rich in vitamins and minerals that help us to stay healthy.

Health benefits

The list of nutrients provided by walnuts is long.
It includes potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, iron, calcium, zinc, copper, vitamin B9, B6, E, A...

Walnuts also contribute substantial amounts of dietary fiber which makes them useful in case of constipation.

The main interest of walnuts is their content in fatty acids. They are high in poly and monounsaturated fats and especially linoleic and alpha-linolenic acid. Those two acids cannot be synthesized by our body and must be provided daily. They are called Essential Fatty Acids.
They are involved in the manufacture of certain hormones, part of the cell's membrane, they regulate the cholesterol...

5 walnuts (28 g) supply our daily needs in those acids.

Alpha-linolenic acid is an omega-3 fatty acids. This family of acids has an anti-inflammatory action. Walnut is therefore useful in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and itchy skin conditions. (Dry skin is usually the first sign of an essential fatty acid deficiency).

The high amount of unsaturated fats in the walnut helps us keep our blood cholesterol down. Walnuts lower blood cholesterol with a rise in HDL (called "good" cholesterol) and a drop in LDL (called "bad" cholesterol). Therefore, walnuts may reduce heart disease risks.

Studies suggest that people who eat walnuts are less likely to develop coronary heart diseases and heart attacks.

Walnuts are also a good source of proteins. They contain 15.23 g. of protein per 100 g; it is equivalent to 100 g of chicken.

Walnuts are rich in calories. They can help people with small appetites, such as elderly and convalescents, to meet their daily calories requirements.

Caution: Never eat walnuts that taste bitter. This means oxidation has started with possible harmful effects.

How to eat it?
Freshly shelled walnuts are delicious eaten raw or cooked; you can add them to any type of dishes.

Roasted or toasted they can be served as an appetizer.
Raw, they can be added to many salads: carrots, celery root, lettuce...
Cooked, you will enjoy them in grain dishes such as rice pilaf or pasta. They can be added on a stuffing (stuffed zucchinis or tomatoes).
You can add them chopped to a baked apple or pear.
They are often used in the making of cookies, cakes, breads, muffins...
Combined with other nuts they can be an healthy snack.

Walnut oil is another way to benefit from their fatty acids (but not their fibers). Walnut oil is wonderful in salad but does not react well to heating.

Walnuts are soft and you can easily chop them by hand if you need large pieces, otherwise you can use a blender or a food processor.
Do not chop walnut until you are ready to use them.

How to roast walnuts? Simply spread them onto a baking sheet and place them in the oven for a few minutes (until lightly brown).
To toast them, place them in a skillet with a little bit of oil.

Peak season
Walnuts can be sold in or out their shell.
Walnuts in cans or vacuum-sealed bag can be found year round.
Fresh walnuts in the shell are abundant in the fall and early winter.
Choose those with undamaged shells. Look out for scars, tiny wormholes...
Each nuts should feel heavy and the kernel should not rattle when the shell is shaken.

Storage
Because of their high fat contents, walnuts quickly go rancid.
Heat, light and humidity will speed spoilage.

The best way to preserve them is to buy them in the shell.
If they are placed in a cold place you can keep them for several months and up to a year.

Chopped and ground walnuts turn rancid more easily than shelled walnuts.
Keep them in an airtight container, in a cool and dark place. You do not want to keep them more than a month.

Obamas join volunteers on Martin Luther King day

2012-01-16T16:44:00.000-08:00

President Barack Obama and his family marked Martin Luther King, Jr. Day with a volunteer service project at a local school.

Barack and Michelle Obama paints quotes of Martin Luther King Jr

This is the third year in a row the Obamas have participated in a service project on King's holiday

The Obamas joined other volunteers Monday morning at the Browne Education Campus in the District of Columbia to help build bookshelves in the school library and paint famous King phrases on the wall.

After greeting volunteers, the President and his family helped build bookshelves in the school's library.

This is the third year in a row the Obamas have participated in a service project on King's holiday.

Washington is home to the Martin Luther King Jr. memorial, where some braved temperatures around 30F (-1C) to visit the 30-foot statue of King.

Dorothy Drake, 61, and her sister Beulah Ashby, 59, were visiting the memorial from North Carolina. The women both went to segregated schools as children and remembered not being able to eat inside certain restaurants, sitting on the back of the bus, and not being allowed to stay in certain hotels.

Ms Ashby said she was proud that King now stands among the presidents honored with memorials in the nation's capital.

"I woke up this morning, and it gave me great joy to know that I was coming here," Ms Ashby said. "I know it's a piece of stone, and I know it's one man, but it was just pride. Pride. Happiness. Joy, in just knowing that I could come and just have a piece of that history, the changing in the world."

In Columbia, South Carolina, meanwhile, hundreds of people rallied outside the state capitol to honor King and to protest the state's voter identification law.

The US Justice Department has rejected the law.

On Monday, marchers carried signs that read: "Voter ID(equals)Poll Tax."

Several other states have enacted laws similar to the one passed in South Carolina, which requires voters to show a photo ID before casting ballots. Texas, Alabama, Kansas, Mississippi, Rhode Island, Tennessee and Wisconsin are among them.

Such laws already were on the books in Georgia and Indiana, and they were approved by President George W. Bush's Justice Department. Indiana's law, passed in 2005, was upheld by the US Supreme Court in 2008.

Critics have likened the laws to the poll taxes and tests used to prevent blacks from voting during the civil rights era. Supporters, many of whom are Republicans, say such laws are needed to prevent fraud.

Military, judiciary can't pack up govt: Gilani

2012-01-16T16:41:00.000-08:00

In what appeared as an attempt to prop up the beleaguered Pakistan government, the National Assembly on Monday approved a key resolution seeking endorsement for democracy, giving the Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, reasons to heave a sigh of relief as he asserted that the military and the judiciary can't "pack up the system".

The resolution was passed in the National Assembly by a two-thirds majority in the 342-member House.

The resolution was put forward Friday by the Awami National Party, part of the governing coalition led by Prime Minister Gilani's Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP).

The resolution sought endorsement and support for "efforts made by the political leadership for strengthening democracy" and calls for reposing "full confidence and trust" in the leadership.

While Pakistan Muslim League-N and PPP-Sherpao staged a walkout, an upbeat Gilani congratulated the Parliamentarians on passage of the resolution and said that it was the best day for democracy.

"I salute political leaders for passing the historical resolution and it will be remembered in the history," said Gilani.

Gilani also said that the Parliament was "supreme, responsible and sovereign" and that it was his duty to protect the constitution.

Asserting that the government enjoyed a majority, Gilani said, “The parliament is free to elect the leader of the house. If somebody does not like us, they are free to initiate a no-confidence movement.”

Gilani said his government may have differences of opinion with the judiciary and military but both institutions must play their role in defending democracy.

As members of the treasury benches thumped their desks, Gilani said the military and judiciary cannot "pack up the system" or derail it.

Without even mentioning the military, Gilani was seen pitching strongly for democracy though he also clarified that the government wasn't against any institution including the judiciary and that no one should degrade the mandate of the elected government.

In what came to be seen as an attempt to placate the judiciary, Gilani said that he respected the judiciary and would appear before the Supreme Court on January 19.

"After becoming the Prime Minister my first words were: Release the judges", Gilani said.

The Supreme Court had ordered the PM to appear before the court for failing to pursue long running corruption cases against President Asif Ali Zardari and other officials.

Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani offered to resign, hours after being served a contempt notice by the apex Court.

I will resign if the Parliament demands, said Gilani after holding talks with Zardari and attending a meeting of the Parliamentary Committee of the coalition partners.

PPP leader Qamar Zaman Kaira, Religious Affairs Minister Khursheed Shah and Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi of the PML-Q, a key partner in the coalition, were being considered as possible replacements for Gilani in the event of his resignation.

According to DawnNews, the politicians have advised Gilani to avoid colliding with state’s other institutions.

The Supreme Court's ruling against Gilani earlier in the day means he could be prosecuted, leading to his dismissal.

The court order was a sharp escalation in the government's battle for survival, in which it faces twin assaults from the military over a mysterious memo and from the Supreme Court over the implementation of numerous orders over the last two years.

And any hint of government instability sends shockwaves around the world, given the country of 180 million people faces a rampaging Taliban insurgency and has one of the fastest growing nuclear arsenals in the world.

While Gilani is the one facing a contempt hearing, most observers say the court's real target is President Asif Ali Zardari.

Gilani said his government may have differences of opinion with the judiciary and military but both institutions must play their role in defending democracy.

As members of the treasury benches thumped their desks, Gilani said the military and judiciary cannot "pack up the system" or derail it.

During the 1990s, Zardari had multiple cases of corruption and even murder lodged against him, all of which he says are false and politically motivated.

In the meantime, hearing into the memogate scandal, that has rocked Pakistan, has been postponed till January 24.

Rescue on Italian cruise ship halted

2012-01-16T07:56:00.001-08:00

Italian rescuers suspended efforts to find survivors Monday as the hulk of a giant cruise liner slipped in worsening weather on the steep rocky underwater slope on which it is lodged off Italy's west coast.

Earlier they recovered a sixth body from the 114,500-tonne Costa Concordia, which was holed by a reef Friday night and rolled onto its side just off the coast of the picturesque island of Giglio. In addition to the six known to have died, officials say 16 of the 4,200 passengers and crew are missing.

The vessel's captain, Francesco Schettino, was arrested on Saturday and has been accused of manslaughter and abandoning his ship before all those on board were evacuated.

The chief executive of the ship's owners, Costa Cruises, on Monday blamed human error by Schettino for the disaster. Pier Luigi Foschi told a news conference the company would provide its captain with any assistance he required. "But we need to acknowledge the facts and we cannot deny human error," he added.

The calm weather which since Friday has aided the rescue and search of the wreck, one of the biggest ever, took a turn for the worse with rougher seas and a light drizzle falling.

In mid-morning fire brigade spokesman Luca Carli told reporters: "There was a slippage of 9 cm (4 inches) vertically and 1.5 cm horizontally. We evacuated immediately. This is something we have been worried about.

"Operations are suspended. We will have to monitor the stability of the ship and we don't know when we will resume operations," he said.

A salvage expert on Giglio, who asked not to be named, told Reuters the ship was clearly moving after being held in place by sharp points of rock that had pierced the hull. Rougher seas could break it free, which would be a "big problem," he said.

Carli of the fire brigade said the rescuers could hear no noises from possible survivors inside the half-submerged ship.

"Obviously the more time passes, the less possibility there is of finding anyone alive," he said.

Cruise company chairman Foschi said Schettino's actions had caused the accident and were contrary to company rules. The captain denies being too close to the coast and says the rock he hit was not marked on charts.

Captain "overcome"

His lawyer, Bruno Leporatti, said Schettino was "overcome and wants to express his greatest condolences to the victims."

But he said Schettino's actions in anchoring the ship at one end to swing it closer to the shore after the collision, "saved the lives of thousands of people."

"It could have been an enormous tragedy," Leporatti added.

The United Nations' shipping agency, the International Maritime Organization, said it was important not to pre-judge the outcome of an inquiry but said it would examine changes to regulations if these were shown to be necessary.

Recalling the sinking of the Titanic in April 1912, IMO Secretary-General Koji Sekimizu said: "In the centenary year of the Titanic, we have once again been reminded of the risks involved in maritime activities."

Even before the wreck of the Costa Concordia moved, the rescue had been hampered by heavier seas.

A diver working to search the vast dark spaces inside the multi-storey liner told Reuters: "The sea is rougher today. It is much more difficult to work."

The disaster occurred as passengers were sitting down to dinner Friday night, triggering panic with thousands jostling to get on lifeboats and some leaping into the icy sea.

Investigators say the vessel was much too close to the shore and residents say its course was much nearer land than usual.

The father of the ship's head waiter told Reuters that his son had telephoned him before the accident to say the crew would salute him by blowing the ship's whistle as they passed close by Giglio, where the both the waiter, Antonello Tievoli, and his 82-year-old father Giuseppe live.

"The ship obviously came too close," the elder Tievoli said. "I don't know if Antonello asked the captain to come near, but the responsibility is always the captain's."

Passengers say there seemed to be unexplained delays in sending an SOS and organizing the evacuation of those on board and this had resulted in chaos. More than 60 people were hurt.

Italian passengers told newspapers they used their mobile phones to call the Carabinieri police in the city of Grosseto on the mainland to raise the alarm, while the crew were still insisting to them that there was only an electrical fault.

Three Rescued

Three people, a South Korean honeymoon couple and a crewman, were rescued Sunday and police divers also found the bodies of two elderly men, still wearing life vests. The bodies of two French tourists and a Peruvian crewman were found Saturday.

The vast hulk of the 290-metre vessel, lying on its side, loomed over the little port of Giglio, which sits on the island of the same name in a maritime nature reserve off the Tuscan coast.

A large gash could be seen in its hull but salvage experts said its fuel tanks did not appear to have been damaged, lessening the danger of an oil spill in the pristine waters.

A sixth body, that of an adult male passenger, was recovered just before dawn Monday, officials said.

Giuseppe Linardi, the national government prefect for the province of Grosseto, told reporters the number of those unaccounted for stood at 16 but that could change slightly as passenger lists were rechecked.

He said efforts to prevent an environmental disaster would have to wait until the rescue was over.

"The worsening of the weather could create a critical situation," he said. Forecasters said heavier seas were on the way.

Workers from Dutch salvage company Smit said equipment to pump fuel off the stricken liner was being sent by barge but the operation would depend on it remaining stable.

The ship is resting in about 20 meters (60 feet) of water but could go down by up to 130 meters if it becomes detached from the rocks.

Investigators were working through evidence from the equivalent of the "black boxes" carried on aircraft to try to establish the precise sequence of events behind the disaster, which occurred in calm seas and clear weather.

Carnival Corp, the ship's parent company, said it estimated the impact on its 2012 earnings for loss of use alone to be around $90 million. Its share price was down nearly 16 percent on the London market.

Italy's defense minister, Giampaolo Di Paola, who is also an admiral, said the disaster did not appear to have been caused by natural or technical factors.

"In my estimation there was a serious human error, which had dramatic and tragic consequences," he told RAI state television.

Prosecutors accused Schettino, who has worked for Costa Cruises since 2002 and who was promoted to captain in 2006, of refusing to return to the vessel when asked by the coastguard. Schettino said the ship hit rocks that were not marked on maps and were not detected by navigation systems. He said the accident occurred some 300 meters (yards) from shore.

There was deep anger in Italy about the accident.

In a frontpage editorial for the respected daily Corriere della Sera, Pierluigi Battista wrote: "Italy owes the world, international public opinion, the families of those who lost their lives, those who were injured and those who fortunately remained unhurt, a convincing explanation and the toughest possible sanctions against those responsible for this tragedy."

Ahead of key vote, Pak's Gilani offers to resign

2012-01-16T07:53:00.001-08:00

On what seems to be a an action packed day in Pakistan, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, who offered to resign, hours after being served a contempt notice by the apex Court, is slated to face a confidence vote on Monday.

Today is the vote on a resolution that seeks endorsement and support for "efforts made by the political leadership for strengthening democracy" and calls for reposing "full confidence and trust" in the leadership.

The Supreme Court, meanwhile, has also ordered the PM to appear before the court for failing to pursue long running corruption cases against President Asif Ali Zardari and other officials.

I will resign if the Parliament demands, said Gilani after holding talks with Zardari and attending a meeting of the Parliamentary Committee of the coalition partners.

According to DawnNews, the politicians have advised Gilani to avoid colliding with state’s other institutions.

They have further advised the PM to fulfil apex court’s directives and appear before the SC on January 19.

The Supreme Court's ruling against Gilani earlier in the day means he could be prosecuted, leading to his dismissal.

The court order was a sharp escalation in the government's battle for survival, in which it faces twin assaults from the military over a mysterious memo and from the Supreme Court over the implementation of numerous orders over the last two years.

And any hint of government instability sends shockwaves around the world, given the country of 180 million people faces a rampaging Taliban insurgency and has one of the fastest growing nuclear arsenals in the world.

While Gilani is the one facing a contempt hearing, most observers say the court's real target is President Asif Ali Zardari.

During the 1990s, Zardari had multiple cases of corruption and even murder lodged against him, all of which he says are false and politically motivated.

In the meantime, hearing into the memogate scandal, that has rocked Pakistan, has been postponed till January 24.

3 Misconceptions That Need to Die

2012-01-15T06:39:00.000-08:00

Misconception: Most of what Americans spend their money on is made in China.

Fact: Just 2.7% of personal consumption expenditures go to Chinese-made goods and services. 88.5% of U.S. consumer spending is on American-made goods and services.

"How can it only be 2.7% when almost everything in Wal-Mart is made in China?" Because Wal-Mart's $260 billion in U.S. revenue isn't exactly reflective of America's $14.5 trillion economy. Wal-Mart might sell a broad range of knickknacks, many of which are made in China, but the vast majority of what Americans spend their money on is not knickknacks.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics closely tracks how an average American spends their money in an annual report called the Consumer Expenditure Survey. In 2010, the average American spent 34% of their income on housing, 13% on food, 11% on insurance and pensions, 7% on health care, and 2% on education. Those categories alone make up nearly 70% of total spending, and are comprised almost entirely of American-made goods and services (only 7% of food is imported, according to the USDA).

Even when looking at physical goods alone, Chinese imports still account for just a small fraction of U.S. spending. Just 6.4% of nondurable goods -- things like food, clothing and toys -- purchased in the U.S. are made in China; 76.2% are made in America. For durable goods -- things like cars and furniture -- 12% are made in China; 66.6% are made in America.

Another way to grasp the value of Chinese-made goods is to look at imports. The U.S. is on track to import $340 billion worth of goods from China this year, which is 2.3% of our $14.5 trillion economy. Is that a lot? Yes. Is it most of what we spend our money on? Not by a long shot.

Part of the misconception is likely driven by the notion that America's manufacturing base has been in steep decline. The truth, surprising to many, is that real manufacturing output today is near an all-time high. What's dropped precipitously in recent decades is manufacturing employment. Technology and automation has allowed American manufacturers to build more stuff with far fewer workers than in the past. One good example: In 1950, a U.S. Steel plant in Gary, Ind., produced 6 million tons of steel with 30,000 workers. Today, it
produces 7.5 million tons with 5,000 workers. Output has gone up; employment has dropped like a rock.

Misconception: We owe most of our debt to China.

Fact: China owns 7.8% of U.S. government debt outstanding.

As of August 2011, China owned $1.14 trillion of Treasuries. Government debt stood at $14.6 trillion that month. That's 7.8%.

Who owns the rest? The largest holder of U.S. debt is the federal government itself. Various government trust funds like the Social Security trust fund own about $4.4 trillion worth of Treasury securities. The Federal Reserve owns another $1.6 trillion. Both are unique owners: Interest paid on debt held by federal trust funds is used to cover a portion of federal spending, and the vast majority of interest earned by the Federal Reserve is remitted back to the U.S. Treasury.

The rest of our debt is owned by state and local governments ($700 billion), private domestic investors ($3.1 trillion), and other non-Chinese foreign investors ($3.5 trillion).

Does China own a lot of our debt? Yes, but it's a qualified yes. Of all Treasury debt held by foreigners, China is indeed the largest owner ($1.14 trillion), followed by Japan ($937 billion) and the U.K. ($397 billion).

Right there, you can see that Japan and the U.K. combined own more U.S. debt than China. Now, how many times have you heard someone say that we borrow an inordinate amount of money from Japan and the U.K.? I never have. But how often do you hear some version of the "China is our banker" line? Too often, I'd say.

Misconception: We get most of our oil from the Middle East.

Fact: Just 9.2% of oil consumed in the U.S. comes from the Middle East.

According the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the U.S. consumes 19.2 million barrels of petroleum products per day. Of that amount, a net 49% is produced domestically. The rest is imported.

Where is it imported from? Only a small fraction comes from the Middle East, and that fraction has been declining in recent years. So far this year, imports from the Persian Gulf region -- which includes Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates -- have made up 9.2% of total petroleum supplied to the U.S. In 2001, that number was 14.1%.

The U.S. imports more than twice as much petroleum from Canada and Mexico than it does from the Middle East. Add in the share produced domestically, and the majority of petroleum consumed in the U.S. comes from North America.

This isn't to belittle our energy situation. The nation still relies on imports for about half of its oil. That's bad. But should the Middle East get the attention it does when we talk about oil reliance? In terms of security and geopolitical stability, perhaps. In terms of volume, probably not.

10 reasons the U.S. is no longer the land of the free

2012-01-15T06:35:00.000-08:00

Assassination of U.S. citizens

President Obama has claimed, as President George W. Bush did before him, the right to order the killing of any citizen considered a terrorist or an abettor of terrorism. Last year, he approved the killing of U.S. citizen Anwar al-Awlaqi and another citizen under this claimed inherent authority. Last month, administration officials affirmed that power, stating that the president can order the assassination of any citizen whom he considers allied with terrorists. (Nations such as Nigeria, Iran and Syria have been routinely criticized for extrajudicial killings of enemies of the state.)

Indefinite detention

Under the law signed last month, terrorism suspects are to be held by the military; the president also has the authority to indefinitely detain citizens accused of terrorism. While the administration claims that this provision only codified existing law, experts widely contest this view, and the administration has opposed efforts to challenge such authority in federal courts. The government continues to claim the right to strip citizens of legal protections based on its sole discretion. (China recently codified a more limited detention law for its citizens, while countries such as Cambodia have been singled out by the United States for “prolonged detention.”)

Arbitrary justice

The president now decides whether a person will receive a trial in the federal courts or in a military tribunal, a system that has been ridiculed around the world for lacking basic due process protections. Bush claimed this authority in 2001, and Obama has continued the practice. (Egypt and China have been denounced for maintaining separate military justice systems for selected defendants, including civilians.)

Warrantless searches

The president may now order warrantless surveillance, including a new capability to force companies and organizations to turn over information on citizens’ finances, communications and associations. Bush acquired this sweeping power under the Patriot Act in 2001, and in 2011, Obama extended the power, including searches of everything from business documents to library records. The government can use “national security letters” to demand, without probable cause, that organizations turn over information on citizens — and order them not to reveal the disclosure to the affected party. (Saudi Arabia and Pakistan operate under laws that allow the government to engage in widespread discretionary surveillance.)

Secret evidence

The government now routinely uses secret evidence to detain individuals and employs secret evidence in federal and military courts. It also forces the dismissal of cases against the United States by simply filing declarations that the cases would make the government reveal classified information that would harm national security — a claim made in a variety of privacy lawsuits and largely accepted by federal judges without question. Even legal opinions, cited as the basis for the government’s actions under the Bush and Obama administrations, have been classified. This allows the government to claim secret legal arguments to support secret proceedings using secret evidence. In addition, some cases never make it to court at all. The federal courts routinely deny constitutional challenges to policies and programs under a narrow definition of standing to bring a case.

War crimes

The world clamored for prosecutions of those responsible for waterboarding terrorism suspects during the Bush administration, but the Obama administration said in 2009 that it would not allow CIA employees to be investigated or prosecuted for such actions. This gutted not just treaty obligations but the Nuremberg principles of international law. When courts in countries such as Spain moved to investigate Bush officials for war crimes, the Obama administration reportedly urged foreign officials not to allow such cases to proceed, despite the fact that the United States has long claimed the same authority with regard to alleged war criminals in other countries. (Various nations have resisted investigations of officials accused of war crimes and torture. Some, such as Serbia and Chile, eventually relented to comply with international law; countries that have denied independent investigations include Iran, Syria and China.)

Secret court

The government has increased its use of the secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, which has expanded its secret warrants to include individuals deemed to be aiding or abetting hostile foreign governments or organizations. In 2011, Obama renewed these powers, including allowing secret searches of individuals who are not part of an identifiable terrorist group. The administration has asserted the right to ignore congressional limits on such surveillance. (Pakistan places national security surveillance under the unchecked powers of the military or intelligence services.)

Immunity from judicial review

Like the Bush administration, the Obama administration has successfully pushed for immunity for companies that assist in warrantless surveillance of citizens, blocking the ability of citizens to challenge the violation of privacy. (Similarly, China has maintained sweeping immunity claims both inside and outside the country and routinely blocks lawsuits against private companies.)

Continual monitoring of citizens

The Obama administration has successfully defended its claim that it can use GPS devices to monitor every move of targeted citizens without securing any court order or review. (Saudi Arabia has installed massive public surveillance systems, while Cuba is notorious for active monitoring of selected citizens.)

Extraordinary renditions

The government now has the ability to transfer both citizens and noncitizens to another country under a system known as extraordinary rendition, which has been denounced as using other countries, such as Syria, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Pakistan, to torture suspects. The Obama administration says it is not continuing the abuses of this practice under Bush, but it insists on the unfettered right to order such transfers — including the possible transfer of U.S. citizens.