Refreshing News

Hackers can read your credit cards through clothes

2012-02-03T08:12:00.000-08:00

Pickpockets no longer need to touch their victims — they can use cheap technology to read credit cards through peoples’ pants.

Hacker Kristin Paget proved as much with a demonstration at the Shmoocon hacker conference in Washington last week.

With a $50 Vivotech RFID (radio frequency identification) credit card reader, she wirelessly read a volunteer’s credit card standing near her on a stage before using a $300 magnetizing tool to put the data onto a blank card, reports Forbes’ Andy Greenberg.

Paget then used a credit card-swiping iPhone attachment and voila! She stole $15 bucks from her “victim” before paying him back immediately, Greenberg wrote.

Fears that hackers will steal personal or banking information have also sparked an industry of wallets, passport covers and individual credit card holders made of stainless steel or even aluminum foil to block unwanted radio signals from lifting information.

While Paget’s demonstration has been possible for years, questions about contactless payments are rising to the surface as RFID-enabled credit cards become ubiquitous (just look for a triangle made of arches to see if your credit card is RFID equipped).

In Canada, Visa’s payWave and MasterCard’s PayPass make it easy for consumers to tap their RFID-enabled cards on a terminal and pay quickly at thousands of merchants across the country, including Impark and McDonald’s.

The terminals may not accept transactions of more than $50.

MasterCard uses encryption technology and Visa embeds chips to prevent theft over the contactless systems, according to their websites. Both say the cards must be waved very near to the machines to work, and Visa adds that “only secure readers at authorized merchants” can process its cards.

But with the right machine, stealing credit card numbers, expiry dates and transaction codes is as simple as waiting for people to walk by on a crowded street, said project scientist and hacker 3ric (pronounced Eric) Johanson.

Consumers shouldn’t be too worried — at least not yet, Johanson said. Criminals will choose the easiest method to steal credit card information, which at the moment is hacking insecure websites “from the comfort of their own home,” he said.

If data was stolen, it would be difficult to use online as most websites require an address for confirmation, he said. Each contactless transaction involves a unique CCV code, but an “ample” number of those can be collected in just a few seconds, he explained. Scams would only be detected if the consumer used their card before the attacker had time to make fraudulent purchases.

Despite the logistical challenges, it’s just a matter of time before RFID hacks become commonplace, Johanson said.

There are additional steps credit card companies can take to protect consumers, such as demanding a pin number, yet that’s unlikely to happen because it would slow down the payment process, he said.

“My general advice to people is to demand that their credit card companies offer them a non RFID-enabled card,” he added.

By the end of 2012, all Canadian passports will come equipped with RFID technology, according to Passport Canada. The RFID information will only become accessible if bar code on the second page has already been scanned, meaning the passport needs to be open for people to get data. New American passports already have this technology.

Yale Discovers a Fungus That Eats Plastic

2012-02-03T08:10:00.000-08:00

Plastic is possibly the greatest commercial creation of last 150 years. It's made it into tupperware, saran wrap, toys, car parts, computer parts, smartphones, and shopping bag all over the world. The only problem is that polyurethane is not biodegradable, and recycling plastic can be equated to just turning it into another product, so all that plastic already in landfills will stay there for centuries to come.

Scientists have not found a single way to break down polyurethane--luckily, nature has found a way on its own. Yale scientists recently found a fungus in the Amazonian rainforest that naturally eats polyurethane.

This is the first fungus species, identified by the Yale researchers as Pestalotiopsis microspore, which exclusively subsists on polyurethane. It can also grow in an anaerobic (air-less) environment, which will hopefully allow it to take root in the deepest regions of our trash heaps.

Jonathan Russell, a Yale scientists of the group, has managed to isolated an enzyme the fungus uses decompose plastic. The scientists hope to use the extracted chemical to eliminate plastic trash and to help in bioremediation projects.

Sorry, Most of Your Tweets Are Worthless

2012-02-03T08:09:00.000-08:00

While some of your tweets might be of utmost importance to you, most people could not care less, according to a study from a group of researchers at Carnegie Mellon University, MIT, and Georgia Tech.

The team created a Web site called Who Gives a Tweet? to assess the value of thousands of tweets. Over the course of 19 days in December, 1,443 people visited the site to analyze 43,738 tweets from 2,014 accounts. The site found that people enjoyed just over one third (36 percent) of tweets. On the other hand, they felt neutral toward 39 percent of tweets and disliked 25 percent.

"A well-received tweet is not all that common," Michael Bernstein, a doctoral student at MIT and one of the researchers, said . "A significant amount of content is considered not worth reading, for a variety of reasons."

The study found that 140-character messages about someone's mood, such as "so excited for the weekend," or current state, like "making a sandwich," were among the most repulsive. However, tweets that included questions, information, or links to articles promoted by journalists, were more likable.

"If we understood what is worth reading and why, we might design better tools for presenting and filtering content, as well as help people understand the expectations of other users," said Paul Andre, another researcher and a doctoral fellow at Carnegie Mellon.

From the results, the researchers cobbled together some advice for people looking to increase the value of their feed. For example, they warned against whining , divulging inane personal details, and posting old news (see slideshow below). They also indicated that it's important to offer an opinion and keep tweets short.

Among the 200 million tweets that Twitter said its users send per month, there's bound to be a gold mine of detestable content. Who Gives a Tweet is no longer accepting users to have their tweets analyzed, but you can still sign up on the site to rate the tweets of others.

US announces changes in the F-1, H-1B visas

2012-02-03T07:05:00.001-08:00

Amidst pending comprehensive immigration reform, the United States has proposed several steps including changes in the F-1 and H-1B visas to attract foreign skilled workforce, a move likely to benefit professionals from countries like India.

Prominent among these reforms include providing work authorisation for spouses of certain H-1B visa holders, 17-month extension of optional practical training (OPT) for F-1 international students to include students with a prior degree in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, allow for additional part-time study for spouses of F-1 students and allow outstanding professors and researchers to present a broader scope of evidence of academic achievement.

In addition, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced that on February 22, it would launch its 'Entrepreneurs in Residence' initiative with an Information Summit in Silicon Valley.

This will bring together high-level representatives from the entrepreneurial community, academia and federal government agencies to discuss how to maximize current immigration laws' potential to attract foreign entrepreneurial talent.

These moves are in support of President Barack Obama's, efforts to meet 21st century national security and economic needs, the Department of Homeland Security said, adding that he is deeply committed to fixing our broken immigration system so that it meets national security and economic needs.

As a part of comprehensive immigration reform, Obama supports legislative measures that would attract and retain immigrants who create jobs and boost competitiveness in the US, including creating a "Startup Visa," strengthening the H-1B programme, and "stapling" green cards to the diplomas of certain foreign-born graduates in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields.

Coldest day of winter expected as frozen Britain to hit -12C and six inches of snow forecast

2012-02-03T06:51:00.000-08:00

Britain's whiteout weekend will deliver up to six inches of snow and ice this weekend with temperatures falling to -12 and windchill making it feel significantly colder.

The Met Office said snow will deliver what is expected to be the biggest and most widespread snow dump of winter.

Saturday is expected to be the coldest day of winter, with -12C temperatures due in the early hours feeling like -15C due to bitter windchill.

The majority of England will remain at 0C or lower all day - but feeling like -6C in Siberian winds.

Transport chaos is forecast, with widespread ice and snow lying until at least Monday, while weekend sport faces postponements, including football and horse racing.

Twitter users have reported frozen canals and lakes, while other tweeters dug out toboggans ready for a weekend of sledging.

Powys, dropped to a teeth-chattering -11.3C in the early hours of Friday morning - Britain’s coldest temperature recorded this winter, beating the -10.5C in Aboyne, Aberdeenshire, on January 16.

The sub-zero freeze hit nationwide early yesterday, with Braemar, Aberdeenshire at -10.9C, Benson, Oxon, at -10.8C and Woburn, Beds, at -9.9C.

Some places spent all day anchored below freezing, with Wainfleet, Lincs at -2.5C at 12noon, while other parts scraped 1C or 2C for a few hours before tumbling back below 0C, with snow flurries in the east again.

Friday night was due to see widespread -6C to -8C lows, with a new record winter low of -12C in places, a severe frost and up to two inches more snow from Kent to The Wash.

The Met Office issued an amber “be prepared” warning for today (Sat) for almost all of England bar the south-west and far north, predicting between two and four inches of snow between 12noon and midnight.

Most other parts of England, Wales and southern Scotland are on yellow alert for an inch to two inches of snow.

move east - with all parts including in low-lying areas due to be affected.

A third yellow warning was issued for almost all of England and Wales for snow to continue overnight until tomorrow lunchtime. (Sun)

Independent forecasters Netweather and Weatherquest both predicted up to 15cm of snow in parts of the midlands and east.

Today (Sat) is also expected to be the coldest day of winter, with the Met Office forecasting that most of the country away from the south-west will remain below 0C all day.

The snow is expected to lie until Monday at least, with widespread ice and freezing fog making for nightmare travel conditions.

The Met Office said windchill is making temperatures feel colder than they are - meaning overnight -12C temperatures were feeling like -15C.

Forecasts said windchill will double this afternoon (Sat), taking 6C off how temperatures feel, making most places feel sub-zero as 30mph wind gusts hit England, with up to 45mph on Irish Sea coasts and in Scotland.

Tonight (Sat night) will be less cold at -4C due to cloud cover - but feeling like -10C due to windchill.

A sheep watches as it stands in snow that has settled on Dartmoor

Met Office forecaster Dave Britton said: “Temperatures fell to their lowest level this winter in many places on Thursday night.

“Friday night was due to see temperatures fall to -6C to -8C in many places, and perhaps as low as -11C in rural areas. We could even see temperatures as low as -12C.

“Windchill is also affecting how temperatures feel. It affects the body and makes temperatures feel several degrees or more colder than they actually are.”

Netweather forecaster Paul Michaelwhite said: “Snow amounts are likely to peak in central and eastern parts on Saturday night, with 10-15cm possible in places, perhaps more on hills.

“Travel disruption is very likely, although there is uncertainty over which areas are at highest risk.

“At least the snow will encourage people to venture out by sledge rather than by car.”

Independent Weatherquest forecaster Dan Holley tweeted: “Expecting 15cm of snow in Norfolk and Cambridgeshire on Saturday night.”

US Fed's Ben Bernanke warns on eurozone stress

2012-02-02T16:27:00.001-08:00

The chairman of Federal Reserve said that there have been "positive" developments in eurozone debt crisis in recent weeks, but warned that a slow US recovery remains vulnerable to any shock from the troubled region.

Mr Bernanke warned that a slow US recovery remains vulnerable to any shock from the troubled eurozone.

Testifying before Congress, Ben Bernanke said that the decision in December by the European Central Bank to offer cheap three-year loans to Europe's banks "has taken away some of the financial stress and given it a little more breathing space".

The comments from the world's most powerful central banker came as the latest batch of US economic data offered some hope that America's recovery is at least sustaining the momentum it finished last year with.

The number of new applicants for weekly jobless benefits dropped 12,000 to 367,000 last week, a steeper declined than economists had forecasted.

Questioned by the House Budget Committee in Washington yesterday, Mr Bernanke acknowledged that "fortunately, over the past few months, indicators of spending, production and job market activity have shown some signs of improvement".

The release today of a jobs report for January is expected to show that 145,000 Americans found jobs during the month, as the unemployment rate held at 8.5pc.

While encouraging, it's unlikely to dislodge Mr Bernanke's fundamental view that the recovery in the world's biggest economy remains frustratingly slow. The strength of that conviction was underlined last week when the Fed surprised some on Wall Street by pledging to keep interest rates at record low levels until the end of 2014.

And though highlighting the blitz of ECB money as a positive in Europe, the Fed chairman added that "it is important to conclude that there are still deep fundamental problems, not just fiscal issues, slow growth issues, but also issues of competitiveness."

Leon Panetta 'believes Israel could attack Iran in the spring'

2012-02-02T16:24:00.001-08:00

US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta believes there is a "strong possibility" that Israel will strike Iran's nuclear installations this spring, it was reported today.

Reports claimed the defence secretary anticipates an attack in the spring

A column in the Washington Post newspaper claimed the Pentagon chief believes that a Israeli strike could go ahead within months.

When asked about the opinion piece by reporters travelling with him to a Nato meeting in Brussels, Mr Panetta did not deny the claim.

"I'm not going to comment on that. David Ignatius can write what he will but with regards with what I think and what I view, I consider that to be an area that belongs to me and nobody else," he said.

"Israel indicated they're considering this (a strike), we've indicated our concerns," he added.

The Post columnist said Mr Panetta "believes there is a strong likelihood that Israel will strike Iran in April, May or June before Iran enters what Israelis described as a 'zone of immunity' to commence building a nuclear bomb."

President Barack Obama and Panetta are "said to have cautioned the Israelis that the United States opposes an attack, believing that it would derail an increasingly successful international economic sanctions program and other non-military efforts to stop Iran from crossing the threshold," he said.

"But the White House hasn't yet decided precisely how the United States would respond if the Israelis do attack."

Mr Panetta said Sunday in an interview with CBS that Iran needed "about a year" to produce enough enriched uranium for a nuclear weapon, and one or two more years to "put it on a deliverable vehicle."

Iran insists its nuclear project is peaceful and has threatened retaliation over the fresh sanctions, including possibly disrupting shipping through the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

Israeli media reported in October last year that the option of pre-emptive air strikes on Iran was opposed by the country's intelligence services but favored by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Ehud Barak.

Israeli television said Mossad chief Tamir Pardo raised the possibility of a unilateral strike on Iran during a visit last week to Washington.

Groundhog Day: Six more weeks of winter in US says Punxsutawney Phil

2012-02-02T16:21:00.000-08:00

Americans are braced for six more weeks of winter after Punxsutawney Phil – the rodent weather forecaster who makes his annual prediction on Groundhog Day – ruled out an early spring.

Groundhog handler John Griffiths holds Punxsutawney Phil

In a ceremony made famous by the 1993 film Groundhog Day, the beaver-like animal was watched as he emerged from his lair on Gobbler's Knob, a small hill in the town of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. He was judged to have seen his shadow when he came out at dawn, ushering in six more weeks of winter.

Phil's predictions are reported by meteorologists to be correct between 75 and 90 per cent of the time.

However, this year may be one in which he is proved wrong. The East Coast of the United States has been basking in unseasonably warm temperatures, and no major snow falls are expected in February.

Around 20,000 people watched the ceremony just before 7.30am, many dressed in top hats and tuxedos, on a morning which was around 10 degrees warmer than usual.

The tradition began in 1886, and is rooted in an old German superstition which says that if a hibernating animal casts a shadow on February 2 – the Christian holiday of Candlemas – then winter will stay for another six weeks.

Following the film starring Bill Murray, about a television weatherman covering the event who is forced to relive the day over and over again, Groundhog Day has come to mean a sensation of repeating oneself.

Sun ‘punched’ Earth with powerful radiation

2012-02-02T07:00:00.000-08:00

A strong follow-up solar flare, which cropped up on Friday, just days after the Sun launched the biggest coronal mass ejection (CME) seen in almost a decade, delivered a powerful radiation punch to Earth’s magnetic field even though it was targeted away from our planet, a new study including Indian origin scientist has revealed.

University of New Hampshire scientists currently studying and modelling various aspects of solar radiation said that this was due to both the existing population of energetic particles launched by the first CME and a powerful magnetic connection that reeled particles in towards Earth from the Sun’s blast region, which had spun to an oblique angle.

“Energetic particles can sneak around the ‘corner,’ as was the case in Friday’s event when it was launched at the Sun’s limb, or edge,” said astrophysicist Harlan Spence, director of the UNH Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans, and Space (EOS) and principal investigator for the Cosmic Ray Telescope for the Effects of Radiation (CRaTER) instrument onboard NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) mission.

CRaTER is designed to measure and characterize aspects of the deep space radiation environment.

Space weather events can disrupt Earth-based power grids, satellites that operate global positioning systems and other devices, can lead to some rerouting of flights over the polar regions, and pose severe risk to astronauts beyond low-Earth orbit.

The first explosion, which occurred Monday, Jan. 23, 2012, fell just short of being rated an X-class flare – the most powerful type of solar storm. When Friday’s X-flare exploded from the same sunspot region that was the source of the week’s earlier blast, the Sun’s west limb was pointing away from Earth.

Nonetheless, the resulting high-energy protons that speed toward Earth even faster than the four-million-mile-per-hour solar wind demonstrated that dangerous “space weather” can affect us even when the planet is not in the direct path.

“The magnetic field lines on which energetic particles travel curve from the Sun to Earth unlike CMEs, which travel in straight lines. In the case of the second flare, energetic particles were magnetically connected to Earth even though the second CME from this active region missed us entirely,” explained Madhulika Guhathakurta, lead program scientist of NASA’s Living with a Star program.

“And the situation was worsened, from the standpoint of radiation, because there was a pre-existing energetic particle population, from the first CME, when the second one arrived,” Spence added.

CRaTER's primary goal has been to characterize the global lunar radiation environment and its biological impacts. It does so by measuring galactic and solar cosmic radiation from behind a “human tissue-equivalent” plastic. During the two and a half years the LRO mission has been making measurements, the latest solar events are the most significant with respect to incoming radiation.

Treasure hunters 'find $3 billion in platinum on sunken WW2 British ship'

2012-02-02T06:19:00.000-08:00

Treasure hunters claim to have found the sunken remains of a British steamer torpedoed during the Second World War filled with platinum, now worth $3 billion (£1.9bn).

The treasure hunters said that there are at least 30 boxes of platinum scattered around the shipwreck

The Sub Sea Research, a company based in the northeastern US state of Maine, found the British ship SS Port Nicholson on the ocean floor around 30 miles off Provincetown, Massachusetts, the Boston Globe reported.

Greg Brooks of Sub Sea Research claims a US Treasury Department ledger shows platinum bars were on board, as part of a payment from the Soviet Union to the US for war supplies.

He also says he has video footage showing the platinum bars, although none of the bounty has been raised to the surface yet.

"I'm going to get it, one way or another, even if I have to lift the ship out of the water," he said.

"There's a good possibility there are about 10 tons of gold down there, too, and maybe some industrial diamonds," he added.

However, the claim should be viewed with scepticism, said Robert F. Marx, an underwater archaeologist, maritime historian and owner of Seven Seas Search and Salvage LLC in Florida.

Both an American company and an English company previously went after the contents of the ship years ago and surely retrieved at least a portion, Marx said. The question is how much, if any, platinum is left, he said.

"Every wreck that is lost is the richest wreck lost. Every wreck ever found is the biggest ever found. Every recovery is the biggest ever recovery," Marx said. Maritime law would also complicate ownership claims.

The Port Nicholson was sailing from Halifax in Canada to New York when it was torpedoed and sank in 1942. Four people died when the ship went down and 87 were rescued.

The Sub Sea Research team discovered the sunken treasure in August 2008 with help from a remote control machine tethered to their ship, the Sea Hunter, the paper said.

The cargo, valued in 1942 at about $53 million, was a lend-lease payment to the United States from the Soviet Union.

The treasure hunters said that there are at least 30 boxes scattered around the shipwreck.

10 foods that ruin your mood

2012-02-02T01:02:00.000-08:00

It's been said that you are what you eat. Is something you're eating causing your bad moods?

Bagels

Doesn't it seem like bagels get bigger every year? These growing breakfast staples are anything but benign, wreaking havoc on both your mood and your waistline.

How do bagels mess with your mood? At first bagels boost a person's energy, but after a few hours you come crashing down looking for another fix in the modern American diet. That crash can cause people to feel irritable, lightheaded, or sad.

The carbs can also take a toll on your waistline when the body converts and stores them as fat. But bagels aren't the only carbs that can ruin a person's mood: Pancakes, waffles, and cereal should be avoided if you want to maintain a stable mood and slim figure.

Egg whites

You were told to avoid egg yolks because they're high in cholesterol. What you probably weren't told is that the yolk is where all the nutrients reside. These nutrients, including omega-3s, vitamin D, B12 and folate, regulate mood by improving the health of brain cells and contribute to feeling more stable, energetic, and less blue. People who eat egg whites miss these essential nutrients,

But don't just take our word for it. Even the Harvard School of Public Health has reversed course and acknowledged eggs are brain food.

Soda

We now eat as much as sugar in a week as we used to in a year. This is biggest change to the human diet since the invention of farming. And sugar tops our list of mood busters because it not only makes us fat - which in it of itself is a risk factor for mental illness - but some studies using state-of-the-art imaging techniques show that over time obesity and diabetes actually decreases our brain volume. One of the top sources of this mood-killing food? Soda. It's now estimated that the average American drinks 600 of these sugar bombs a year.

Margarine

This butter alternative was promoted as "heart healthy" for decades before scientists realized it was one of the top sources of trans fats. These are the worst kind of fats for your heart and recent studies have tied trans fats to depression. According to a study out of the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria in Las Palmas, Spain, people who eat the most trans fats are about 50% more likely to be depressed.

Soy yogurt

America's obsession with animal fats led to the rise of "healthier" alternatives such as corn and soy oil, which eventually paved the way for a number of new, factory-made foods that aren't exactly natural. These are foods like no-fat cheese, egg substitutes, and soy yogurt. Soy yogurt might sound healthy, but it's high in omega-6 fatty acids, which squash the mood-boosting effects of omega-3 acids in our diet. How? Your brain is made out of fat and studies have shown without the right fats you're much more likely to suffer from mood disorder. What's worse is that this yogurt is loaded with sugar. Stick with real foods like real, full-fat yogurt that'll keep you full longer and provide your body with the right fats - the ones we should be eating.

Non-organic celery

A recent study conducted by the Environmental Working Group found 57 different pesticides on non-organic celery. According to the Pesticide Action Network at least 12 of those were neurotoxins, which is science speak for substances that poison the brain. And anything that's toxic for the brain is toxic for a stable, well-balanced mood. Neurotoxins have been linked to an increased risk of feeling depressed.

Fruit smoothies

They may sound healthy, but fruit juice and fruit smoothies are hidden sources of sugar - and lots of it. Take a popular pre-packaged bottle of a smoothie drink. What could be healthier? It turns out a lot. This bottle might contain a staggering 44g of brain-shrinking, waistline-expanding sugar, which is much more than the 30g found in a can of soda. Sure smoothies might have some vitamins, but sugar is sugar and there's no question about its role in the epidemics of obesity, diabetes, and depression.

Canned soup

We've all read about the chemical Bisphenol-A (or BPA) by now, and how it's being linked to all kinds of disorders, from depression and anxiety to early puberty and heart disease. New studies show that one of the top sources is canned soup. According to researchers at Harvard, eating canned soup can cause BPA levels to spike by as much as 1,200 percent! A recent study published in the journal Pediatrics found that kids who were exposed to high amounts of BPA in the womb were much more likely to suffer from anxiety, depression, and, the researchers noted, a diminished capacity for self-control.

Agave nectar

No doubt you've heard some experts talk about the dangers of high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). But this list includes something that - ounce to ounce - might be worse: agave nectar. HFCS is 55 percent fructose and fructose is a sugar that our body hasn't adapted to and causes weight gain when we eat it in excess. Agave nectar, on the other hand, happens to be anywhere from 70 to 100 percent fructose. Remember anything that makes the waistline expand has the opposite effect on your brain, increasing the risk of depression and mood disorders.

Deli meats

Not all deli meats are created equal, but the majority at your local deli counter are highly processed foods. They are injected with sugars and starches and contain food dyes and nitrate preservatives, the latter two which are linked to cancer. A small serving of daily deli meat can increase the risk of heart disease by 42 percent and researchers have also linked a diet high in these processed meats to a greater risk of midlife depression. Why would that be? For one thing, these are usually cheap cuts made from animals that aren't eating a natural diet. That means too many omega-6 fatty acids and not enough brain-healthy omega-3s. Secondly, most of the artificial colors used in food processing are derived from petrochemicals, which have long been linked to mood disorders.

5 Tips to Get Omega-3 Fatty Acids Into Your Diet

2012-02-02T00:57:00.000-08:00

Eat small, cold water fish

Eat small, cold water fish, such as wild salmon and light canned tuna, 2-4 times per week. If you are pregnant, nursing, or thinking of becoming pregnant, limit your weekly fish and shellfish consumption to 12 ounces or less of canned light tuna, shrimp, and salmon.

Use oils rich in Omega-3

Use oils rich in omega-3 fatty acids, such as flaxseed, canola, olive, and primrose seed.

Cut down on processed foods

Cut down on processed foods and animal fat that contain pro-inflammatory omega-6 fatty acids.

Eat more leafy greens

Eat green leafy vegetables and tofu to supplement your omega-3 fatty acid consumption.

Supplementation

If you have no contraindications, and only after a discussion of the pros and cons with your physician, consider taking fish oil, evening primrose seed oil, flaxseed oil, or borage seed oil supplements. Remember that these supplements may interact with certain medications and so be sure to talk to your doctor first. Also, all of these supplements can have a blood thinning effect so, again, be sure to talk with your doctor to make sure it is safe for you to take one or more of them

Ten Consumer Products You Should Avoid

2012-02-02T00:50:00.000-08:00

The amount of consumer products that contain harmful chemicals are so overwhelming that one conventional store can carry over tens of thousands of these products. Many of these chemicals are intentionally put into products for mostly business purposes. It is all about saving as much money as possible even if it is harmful to consumers. Whenever a harmful chemical becomes well known, manufacturers would try to change its name to fool consumers. An example of this is aspartame which is now being named as AminoSweet. Manufactures will also try to use long scientific names to confuse consumers. These marketing strategies are designed to trick the consumers into buying their so called “safe and healthy products.”

Sugar free products: A lot of consumers believed that sugar free products are healthy and great for preventing weight loss. These consumers have been tricked by the food industry. Sugar free products usually contained artificial sweeteners. The most popular ones are sucralose (also known as Splenda) and aspartame (also known as Equal, AminoSweet, NutraSweet). These two artificial sweeteners are considered by independent researchers as neurotoxins. Artificial sweeteners are great for causing weight gain even though they contain less calories. Artificial sweeteners are also found in baby products. If you have babies, please do not feed them baby food that contains artificial sweeteners.

Soda: One of the most dangerous ingredients found in soda is high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). HFCS is not like regular sugar. Most HFCS has been genetically modified because it is a product of corn. Many studies have linked HFCS to obesity, heart disease and certain cancer. Diet soda is even worst because it contains artificial sweetener which is great for causing weight gain and destroying brain cells. If you are pregnant, you should stay twice as far away from diet soda because you have twice as many reasons to not drink it.

Conventional shampoo: Most of the shampoo in conventional stores are filled with harmful chemicals. The common ones are sodium lauryl sulfate and methylisothiazoline (MIT). Some of the chemicals found in shampoo are known to be harmful to the skin and hair. Some of them are even considered to be neurotoxins. If you are worried about going bald or having skin problems, you may want to avoid conventional shampoo. When buying shampoo read the ingredients list.

Cow milk: The health claims made by the dairy industry about milk are very misleading. They are designed to trick you into buying its product. Cow milk does little to strengthen bone. Cow milk is full of harmful chemicals, animal proteins and synthetic vitamins. In order for your body to effectively absorb calcium it needs assistance from vitamin D. The vitamin D in milk is synthetic and does not have all the necessary components to help your body effectively absorb calcium. The best source of calcium is not from cow milk but from plant-based food. Many plant-based food contains more calcium per calorie than milk, plus it contains other nutrients that are necessary for the utilization of calcium. Examples of plant-based food that contains more calcium per calorie than milk are: arugula, bok choy, turnip greens, collard greens, mustard greens, spinach and broccoli.

Cell phone: This consumer product is a little off topic but I decided to put it in the list because of its tremendous growth. Cell phone has changed the way we communicate so much that it can make us crazy when we go a day without it. Cell phone is a great technology but its manufacturers has lied to you about how it affects your health. One of the main problem with cell phone is electromagnetic pollution which is caused by scalar waves. Scalar wave is an electromagnetic longitudinal wave that is of multi-dimensional quality. It is one of the mediums that fills the empty space between all things. Scalar wave can be used for good or for bad. When scalar wave is used for good, it can rejuvenate the body back to its original state. It is very important for your health because your cells use this wave to communicate. Unfortunately, the scalar wave generated by cell phone vibrates at certain frequencies that are harmful to your cells. In the long-run, this may cause cellular mutations which can lead to cancer. To reduce electromagnetic pollution do not use your cell phone for too long. If you use your cell phone a lot, you may want to buy a wave shield for cell phone. This type of wave shield is designed to reflect most electromagnetic radiation emitted from cell phone.

Fluoride toothpaste: Toothpaste that contains fluoride is dangerous to your health because it is a toxin. Before fluoride was introduced as a cavity fighter, it was used as a rat poison. The health claims about fluoride is very misleading. It does little to prevent tooth decay but does a great job destroying your thyroid gland, metabolism, and increasing your risk of cancer and sterility. Toothpaste that contains toxic ingredients, such as fluoride and sodium lauryl sulphate (SLS), will usually have warning labels on the back of its tube. On the other hand, toothpaste that does not contain toxic ingredients usually has no warning labels. Now, why would fluoride toothpaste manufacturers put warning labels on their product? The main reason is because they know that it is toxic. People have been known to die from swallowing fluoridated toothpaste. A good rule of thumb when buying consumer product is to look for warning labels. If the warning labels tell you information that is life threatening, you should avoid it, especially if it is something that you put in your mouth or on your body.

Bottled water: According to researchers, about half of the bottled water in the market is filtered tap water. The laws and regulations that govern the bottled water industry are not very specific. As a result, bottled water manufacturers can easily manipulate their labels to mislead consumers. In many cases, chlorine is added to bottled water as a sanitizer to prevent organisms from breeding in the water. Chlorine is not dangerous in small amounts but it still affects your health. Another chemical found in bottled water that may even be more dangerous than chlorine is phthalates. High doses of phthalates have been known to disrupt hormones in rodents, and cause damages to the liver, testes and increase birth defects.

Chips: This product is one of the most popular consumer products. Chips contain a large variety of harmful synthetic ingredients. One of the most dangerous is monosodium glutamate (MSG). Have you ever wonder why after eating a bag of chips you get headaches? One of the main reasons is because most chips contain MSG which is an excitotoxin. Independent studies have shown a significant relationship toward Alzheimer’s and MSG. In animal studies, the animals that consumed large doses of MSG experienced permanent brain damage due to the destruction of their pyramidal neurons.

Corn products: Most corn products in the United States, such as corn oil, flour, meal, starch, gluten and syrups are genetically modified. Corn that has been genetically modified is known to produce its own pesticides so insects cannot eat it. Genetic engineering is something that scientists is very poor at doing because they still have little clues to how genes truly work. Many of the studies done on genetically modified food lacked the concrete data to support their claims. Because of scientists immature and naive studies, the consumers are the ones that end up suffering from health problems. To avoid genetically modified corn products only buy the ones that are labeled non-GMO or organic.

Ice cream: Most ice creams found in conventional stores are full of harmful synthetic chemicals. Three of the most popular synthetic chemicals found in ice cream are acetiel C17, benzyl acetate and pepernial. Acetiel C17 is an aniline dye that is used in the manufacture of plastic, rubber and pharmaceuticals. It is used to mimic the cherry flavor in ice cream. Benzyl Acetate is a nitrate solvent that is widely used as artificial strawberry flavoring. Pepernial is a chemical that is popular for killing lice. Pepernial is used in ice cream to mimic the vanilla flavor

'US’ combat role in Afghanistan to end in 2013'

2012-02-01T19:52:00.000-08:00

Defence Secretary Leon Panetta laid out the administration's most explicit portrayal of the US drawdown in Afghanistan, saying on Wednesday that US and other international forces in Afghanistan expect to end their combat role in 2013 and continue a training and advisory role with Afghan forces through 2014.

Panetta's remarks to reporters travelling with him to a NATO defence ministers meeting in Brussels showed how the foreign military role in Afghanistan is expected to evolve from the current high-intensity fight against the Taliban to a support role with Afghans fully in the lead. The timeline fits neatly into the US political calendar, enabling President Barack Obama to declare on the campaign trail this year that in addition to bringing all US troops home from Iraq and beginning a troop drawdown in Afghanistan, he also has a target period for ending the US combat role there.

It also serves to possibly bridge an apparent gap between France and the rest of the NATO partners of the US on defining the end game in Afghanistan.

All NATO members in November 2010 endorsed a plan to keep forces in Afghanistan until the end of 2014. But France this week appeared to throw that plan into doubt when President Nicolas Sarkozy proposed, with Afghan President Hamid Karzai at his side and seemingly in agreement, that NATO end its mission in 2013 — one year earlier than planned.

Sarkozy also said, however, that France would provide support for the training of Afghan forces beyond 2013, so his approach might not be entirely different from the one Panetta outlined in which allied troops shed their combat role in the second half of 2013 but remain through 2014 to train, advise and assist.

Panetta said he hoped to hear more from the French delegation at the NATO talks on Thursday and Friday.

Panetta called 2013 a critical year for the Afghanistan mission that has dragged on for more than a decade with little sign that the Taliban will be decisively defeated. He noted that NATO and the Afghan government intend to begin a final phase of handing off sections of the country to Afghan security control in mid-2013.

"Hopefully by the mid to latter part of 2013 we'll be able to make a transition from a combat role to a training, advise and assist role," he said. He added that this "doesn't mean we're not going to be combat-ready”, but rather that the US and other international forces will no longer be in "the formal combat role we're in now”.

Panetta said the administration wants to make sure that the Afghan forces, after foreign troops depart, are "sufficient and sustainable”, but noted that will require continuing financial support not only from the United States but also from allies and many other countries.

"One of the things we'll be discussing (in Brussels) is what the size of that (Afghan) force should be, but a lot of that will be dependent on the funds that are going to be put on the table in order to sustain that force," he said. "That's one of the things, frankly, I'm going to be pushing at this (meeting)."

A senior defence official travelling with Panetta said the US believes Afghanistan will not need as big a force as is now being built. NATO has set a target of 352,000 Afghan soldiers and police. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity under ground rules set by the Pentagon, said the US thinks a smaller force would be adequate, but he would not be more specific

He likened this approach to the way Obama managed the final two years of US military involvement in Iraq. Obama declared an end to the US combat role there on August 31, 2010 but kept tens of thousands of troops there through the end of last year to continue training and advising Iraqi security forces.

Panetta said no decisions have been made about how many US troops would be required to remain there once the combat role has ended. He suggested, however, that large reductions, below the 68,000 troop level projected for this September, were unlikely in the months immediately after the shift. The US now has about 91,000 troops there as part of the International Security Assistance Force. The fact that much military work will remain after 2013 "demands that we have a strong presence there”, he said.

Although Panetta made no mention of it, US Marines in Afghanistan already are making that transition out of a combat role. They are operating in Helmand province in southwestern Afghanistan, where the Taliban have been greatly weakened, and are on track to reduce their numbers significantly this year. Panetta's remarks indicated that this switch into a support role will be applied across Afghanistan, assuming no major setbacks against the Taliban and continued progress in training Afghan forces.

Many US forces already are training and advising Afghan forces. Marine General John Allen, the overall commander of international forces in Afghanistan, has been talking publicly since last fall about converting the military role from combat to what he has called "security assistance”. But Panetta went further in identifying mid- to late-2013 as the target for completing this conversion countrywide.

Panetta was in Brussels to attend a NATO meeting at which this and other issues related to the war in Afghanistan are expected to top the agenda. The session is intended to help pave the way for key decisions to be announced at a summit meeting of NATO heads of government in Chicago in May.

In Washington, a senior European diplomat said Sarkozy's initial comments caused confusion among other NATO allies. The diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity to relate internal discussions, said the French president was referring to the shift from combat operations to a training mission in 2013, although he acknowledged that Sarkozy appeared to be calling for all operations to end next year. The diplomat said NATO plans to leave the 2014 deadline in place.

On his second trip to Europe since becoming Pentagon chief last July 01, Panetta is gathering with his counterparts at a delicate time for NATO, not only because of the uncertainty surrounding the military mission in Afghanistan but also because of a growing gap in military power between the US and nearly all other European members of the alliance.

That chasm is not expected to narrow even as the US reduces its defence budget by nearly USD 490 billion over the coming decade and reduces the size of the Army and Marine Corps.

The US remains the leader of a 28-nation NATO, but the Obama administration has made no secret of its intention to shift focus toward Asia and the Middle East. It announced last week that it will remove two Army brigades from Europe in the next two years, leaving one in Germany and one in Italy. The alliance also is quietly discussing the possible withdrawal of American nuclear weapons from Europe in coming years. The nuclear issue is on the agenda for the Brussels meeting.

General Ray Odierno, the Army chief of staff, said last week that the two brigades being removed from Europe will be eliminated rather than reassigned to US bases. Both are based in Germany — the 172nd Infantry Brigade, in Grafenwoehr, and the 170th Infantry Brigade, in Baumholder. Odierno said that in the long run this change will benefit both the United States and its European partners because US Army combat and support units will periodically rotate in and out of Europe for training and joint exercises that are designed to meet the needs of the European forces.

Ferry reported to have sunk off Papua New Guinea

2012-02-01T19:46:00.000-08:00

Rapper K'Naan is upset that Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney used his song "Wavin' Flag" during his Florida primary victory speech.

K'Naan said he would be happy for his song to be used by Obama

Mitt Romney's campaign played the song during his Florida victory celebrations

In a statement, K'naan said Mr Romney's campaign did not seek approval to use the song and that he would not have granted permission if it had.

The Somali-born, Canadian-based rapper says he would happily grant President Barack Obama's campaign the use of the song.

K'Naan says he wants to make sure Mr Romney does not use his song again and is seeking legal action.

Romney spokesman Rick Gorka says the song was used through the campaign's regular blanket license but, out of respect for K'Naan's statement, won't be used again.

"Wavin' Flag" was an international hit for K'Naan in 2010, co-written and co-produced by Bruno Mars' production team, The Smeezingtons.

It featured heavily during the 2010 World Cup.

At least 80 killed as Europe cold snap sees temperatures plunge

2012-02-01T09:32:00.000-08:00

At least 80 people have died from a severe cold snap in central Europe saw temperatures drop as low as -22F (-30C)

A child runs past a wave protection dam covered in ice as the waters of the Black Sea are frozen near the shore in Constanta, Romania

Two more people have died in Bulgaria amid the cold snap

The temperature today in Kiev was -17C

In Ukraine on Wednesday the emergency ministry said that death toll had now reached 43 after 13 people died overnight. Most of the victims so far have been homeless people who froze to death on the streets, but at least seven have died in their homes. Another 720 people suffering from hypothermia or frostbite have required hospital treatment.

Poland's interior ministry said Wednesday morning that a further five people had been found dead in the previous 24 hours, bringing the death toll attributed to the freezing winter weather to 27.

Further south in the Czech capital Prague at least 10 people have died while reports of other deaths have come in from numerous towns across the country. In Romania, where temperatures have fallen to -7.6F (-22C) in Bucharest and below -20F (-29C) in the countryside, eight have succumbed to the cold, including a baby who died in an unheated house.

Bad weather has also spread to western Europe with Germany reporting two deaths, while heavy snow in Italy has disrupted transport, led to the cancellation of Serie A football matches and prompted northern cities to brace themselves for their coldest weather in 27 years.

The area of high pressure from Siberia which has brought the cold is expected to tighten its grip in the coming days. Weather forecasters expect temperatures to continue to fall, and remain well below freezing into the middle of next week.

Across the areas stricken by the cold authorities and charities have rushed to provide emergency shelter and food. Ukraine has deployed 1,730 temporary heated shelters, while in Prague the Salvation Army reported in that it was operating beyond its capacity with 100 people sleeping on the floor its hostel's dining room.

In Poland Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz, minister for labour and social policy, said the cold "could become a serious problem" and called on people to show "solidarity" by helping anybody in distress.

Multi-storey marijuana farm found in New York

2012-02-01T09:31:00.000-08:00

New York police find a five-story marijuana farm capable of producing $250,000 of marijuana a month after raiding a residential building in the the Bronx, New York.

Investigators discovered 593 marijuana plants, some which stood seven feet tall, and confiscated about 1,500lb (680kg) of cannabis in the raid.

The building had been fitted with an intricate ventilation and watering system, with each floor of the building used for a different stage of growth for the plants.

Three men were arrested in connection with farm, which had been under surveillance for two months following a complaint from a neighbour about residents acting suspiciously.

Police estimated that up to 60lbs (27kg) of the drug was being produced each month with a street value of approximately $250,000 (£157,700).

Siberian cold front sweeps across Europe, bringing record low temperatures (28Pics)

2012-02-01T07:16:00.000-08:00

Plummeting winter temperatures have claimed dozens of lives across Central and Eastern Europe as the region battles a big freeze that is expected to worsen over the next few days. At least 50 people have died, mainly in Ukraine and Poland, as an icy continental weather front from Siberia has dragged temperatures to as low as -27 degrees Celsius, and forecasters in Poland have said that thermometers could hit -30 later in the week. The cold weather has even travelled as far south as Bulgaria where temperatures in the capital Sofia fell to -20, the lowest in 50 years.

A train makes its way through a snow-covered forest in the Harz national park near Schierke, central Germany

A girl looks out from a bus window covered with frost as temperatures reached -15 degrees Celsius in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv

People climb the frozen Radau waterfalls near Bad Harzburg, Germany

A monument for Jewish writer Sholem Aleichem is covered with snow after heavy snowfalls in the Ukrainian capital Kiev

A man walks in the snow covered Sultanahmet square in Istanbul with the Ottoman-era Sultanahmet Mosque, also known as the Blue Mosque, in the background

Ice floes are seen on the Oder river covered with drift ice near Hohenwutzen, Germany, near the Polish border

Frost-covered trees can be seen at the Essigberg near the central German city of Kassel, as temperatures dropped to minus 10 degrees Celsius

A dog walks across a frozen lake in a park in Bucharest. Temperatures plunged to minus 27 degrees Celsius in central Romania.

A snowman is seen in a park in Turin, northern Italy. The coldest weather Europe has seen in years is set to continue this week across the continent.

A squirrel curls up to protect itself from freezing daytime temperatures which have dropped to minus 15 degrees Celsius in Warsaw's central Lazienki Park

People skate on a frozen lake near Lytse Wielen, in the north of the Netherlands

Petre Andrei, 56, shovels the snow covering his car in Movilita, 45 km northeast of Bucharest. Romania drafted in the army to rescue hundreds of travellers stranded by blizzards that dumped up to a metre of snow in 24 hours, derailing a train and forcing authorities to shut down motorways and ports and cancel flights.

A group of skiers walks up to the snow covered Wendelstein church on top of the Wendelstein mountain near Bayrischzell, southern Germany

A view over Turin in northern Italy, following heavy snowfall overnight

Icicles form on a house in the southern German town of Mitterfirmiansreut. The Siberian cold front "Cooper" has brought icy temperatures, dropping to -10 degrees Celsius in some parts of the country.

The sun sets on the freezing Wisla river in the Polish capital Warsaw, where temperatures plunged to minus 27 degrees Celsius

An ice fisherman waits for a catch on a frozen lake near the Bulgarian capital Sofia. A Siberian cold front hit the Balkan country with temperatures dropping to -24 degrees Celsius in some places.

Inmates Inmates from the nearby Jilava prison carry shovels to help clear a snowed-in stray dog shelter in Glina, Romania

A resident takes a walk at the shore of frozen River Spree in Berlin's Mitte district

People watch their dogs play as they stand at a frozen lake in Tiergarten park during a cold winter day in Berlin

A person walks through the snow protected by an umbrella at the Cimetiere des Rois, in Geneva

Public buses are seen from the observation deck of Sapphire Tower in Istanbul

Houses in the old centre of Utrecht in the Netherlands are covered with a thin layer of snow

A man walks as the sun rises behind chimneys of a thermal power station in Sofia. Record low temperatures were registered around Bulgaria on Tuesday, as the mercury continued to drop, threatening shipping on the Danube and closing hundreds of schools.

A municipal worker spreads salt on a road covered by snow in Vodable, central France, after the first snowfall of the season

Reed sprouts are covered with thick ice at lake Zwischenahner Meer ind Bad Zwischenahn, northern Germany. After months of mild winter weather, a Siberian cold front has reached central and eastern Europe.

A woman walks past a heart drawn on a light sprinkling of snow in front of the Haus der Kulturen der Welt in Berlin

A tourist skis with novelty warm clothing in the Thuringian Forest near Oberhof, central Germany

'Dead' trader found working in Las Vegas casino fined $90,000

2012-02-01T06:40:00.000-08:00

A former Chicago commodities trader who disappeared in 1979 in murky circumstances and was found last year working in a Las Vegas casino was fined nearly $90,000 on Tuesday but was spared jail time for fraud, authorities said.

Arthur Gerald Jones was found working at the Rampart Casino in Las Vegas

Arthur Gerald Jones, 73, who was arrested in July after he was discovered living under an assumed name, admitted to one count of fraud in September stemming from a driver's license application.

Jones had disappeared over three decades earlier from Highland Park, Illinois. Police believed at the time that he might have been a victim of foul play, citing gambling debts and possible links to organised crime, according to the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles.

He was declared dead in 1986.

But earlier this year, Jones was found working at the Rampart Casino in an upscale Las Vegas neighbourhood, a job he had held for a decade, the Nevada vehicles department said at the time of his arrest.

Jones, who had originally had been charged with four felony charges related to identify theft and fraud, will serve three years of probation on a suspended 18- to 48-month jail term, the Nevada Attorney General's office said in a statement.

He was ordered to pay roughly $90,000 in fines, the bulk of that to the Social Security Administration for payments made to his family after he was declared dead. Of the total, another $11,400 will go to a man whose identity Jones stole.

After Jones resurfaced, an investigator concluded that he had "voluntarily left his family and friends in 1979, possibly fleeing the mob" to start a new life, according to an affidavit.

Jones, who once held a seat on the Chicago Board of Trade, told authorities that following a trading mistake, he had been forced to sell his seat to pay his debt, the affidavit said.

He then decided to leave his family, citing a troubled marriage, unemployment, and a desire for a "fresh start," according to the affidavit.

His former wife gave a different story, telling authorities he sold his seat to pay personal gambling debts. She said he once bet $30,000 on a basketball game and at one point took out a second mortgage to pay gambling debts, the affidavit said.

US election 2012: Michelle Obama describes life in the White House

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

Speaking on Jay Leno's The Tonight Show, First Lady Michelle Obama talks about life in the White House as the US general election approaches saying they "take each day as it comes."

As part of a charm offensive for her husband's election campaign, Michelle Obama is hitting the American talk show circuit kicking off with an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno in Los Angeles.

America's First Lady talked about several issues including what life was like in the White House as the presidential race gained momentum ahead of November's election.

"There is no way you can prepare for it. You just take each day as it comes," she said.

"I think Barack and I, our motto is that we try to do the best job that we can do every single day. Our hope is that will speak for itself. We wake up every day and think what this country needs," she added.

When asked what she thought about Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney leading an impromptu chorus of America The Beautiful in Florida on Tuesday she sheepishly described it as, "beautiful."

Mrs Obama went on to talk about her project work with childhood obesity and military families.

She also touched on what life was like in the White House for her two daughters, Malia and Sasha.

"You know they are doing really well, the girls are good and they are normal, we always check in and they have a regular life, they have friends and sleepovers."

"To them it is home. It's been a blessing for us," she added.

The First Lady is scheduled to appear at several fund raising events while in Los Angeles and has also booked an appearance on the The Ellen Degeneres Show.

Daredevil climbers tackle vertical ice walls and frozen waterfalls (15Pics)

2012-02-01T05:46:00.000-08:00

Sam Elias climbs on the Fang, a 100-feet high ice pillar in Vail in Fairplay, Colorado. He spent the day hauling photographic equipment up into the Rocky Mountains before ice climbing so that his photographer friend, Keith Ladzinski could record the moment for prosperity.

The photographer said: "It's an almost dead vertical 100-foot-tall roman column made from ice. Not only is it world class because of its looks - and therefore gorgeous to look at - but it's a great climb that attracts people from all over the world to test their skill. That day it took some serious effort because I wanted to light up the column with strobes to get the perfect shot. This meant hiking with 22 lights and eight stands in total." The Fang ice waterfall collapsed only two years ago, seriously injuring a climber, who fell the equivalent of ten floors. The ice waterfall has formed again this year.

Keith Ladzinski has photographed many daredevil climbers tackling sheer ice walls and frozen waterfalls in Colorado and Canada.

Jon Walsh on a long technical pitch of mixed rock and ice climbing deep in the ice fall brook valley in Golden, British Columbia

Matt Lloyd and Lauren Lee explore the Ice Cave, Rifle in Fairplay, Colorado

Matt Lloyd climbs on the Rigid Designator, a WI5+ ice pillar in Vail in Fairplay, Colorado

Sam Elias climbing at the Ice Palace, a seldom-formed section of ice in Rifle in Fairplay, Colorado

Sam Elias gears up for an ice climb

Chris Alstrin climbs a steep technical pitch in Ouray in Fairplay, Colorado

Matt Lloyd climbs a seldom-formed ice wall in Rifle State Park in Fairplay, Colorado

Chris Alstrin climbs a steep technical pitch in Ouray in Fairplay, Colorado

Sam Elias begins an ice climb in Vail, Fairplay, Colorado

Sam Elias climbing on the Fang

Chris Alstrin climbs a steep technical pitch in Ouray in Fairplay, Colorado

Sam Elias climbs on the Fang

Vaccine to treat breast cancer 'promising' say experts

2012-02-01T05:16:00.000-08:00

A pioneering vaccine to treat breast cancer using a patient's own cells has been developed by scientists.

The vaccine was described as "promising" after 85 per cent of women with a ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) - the most common non-invasive form of the disease - were still showing protection after four years.

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania in the United States enrolled 27 patients and isolated specialised white cells using standard techniques similar to blood donation.

The cells were manipulated in the laboratory to allow the immune system to recognise the cancerous cells as foreign and attack them.

Each patient received four weekly injections of their personalised vaccine and had surgery two weeks later to remove any remaining disease.

The study, published in the Journal of Immunotherapy, compared pre-vaccination samples with post-vaccination samples and found five patients, almost 20 per cent, had no disease visible, indicating their immune system had wiped out the tumour.

Of the remaining 22, damaging proteins had been eliminated in 11 and reduced by 20 per cent or more in another two.

Study leader Dr Brian Czerniecki said: "We are continuing to see this pattern in our second, ongoing trial."

The researchers say the results provide new evidence therapeutic breast cancer vaccines may be most effective for early, localised disease, and when the treatment goes after a protein critical to cancer cell survival.

Dr Czerniecki said: "I think these data more than prove that vaccination works in situations where the target is right.

"Previous vaccines targeted tissue antigens that were expressed on the cancer cells, but were not necessary for tumour survival.

"So a vaccine response would cause the tumour to just stop expressing the antigen and the tumour would be fine.

"Here we are going after HER2/neu, which is critical for survival of early breast cancers. If we knock it out with the immune response, we cripple the tumour cells."

Importantly, some patients maintained their immune responses for more than four years, meaning they continue to have some protection from recurrence.

The results of the study show the vaccine is safe and relatively easy for the women, with only low-grade side effects.

The most common side effects were malaise (72 percent), injection site soreness (59 percent), chills or rigors (38 percent), fever (28 percent) and headaches (24 percent).

While the numbers of patients treated in the trial are relatively small, Dr Czerniecki believes they will have some idea whether the vaccination reduces the risk of disease recurrence within the next two years.

Meanwhile, the team continues enrolling patients in a larger study and is designing another study to test the approach in women with early invasive breast cancer.

There are dozens of cancer treatment vaccines in trials for use in breast cancer.

They aim to shrink the tumour, to prevent it from returning or to eliminate cancerous cells that have not been erradicated by treatment.

The vaccines must flag up the cancerous cells to the immune system so they can be recognised as something that needs to be destroyed.

Honey can be used to treat chronic wound infections

2012-02-01T05:09:00.000-08:00

Manuka honey could be effective at treating chronic wound infections and even prevent them from developing in the first place, researchers suggest.

Streptococcus pyogenes is a normal skin bacterium that is frequently associated with chronic (non-healing) wounds. Bacteria that infect wounds can clump together forming ‘biofilms’, which form a barrier to drugs and promotes chronic infection.

Researchers at Cardiff Metropolitan University have shown that manuka honey can not only destroy fully-formed S. pyogenes biofilms in vitro but also prevent the bacteria initially binding to components of wound tissue.

Honey has long been acknowledged for its antimicrobial properties. Traditional remedies containing honey were used in the topical treatment of wounds by diverse ancient civilisations.

Manuka honey is derived from nectar collected by honeybees foraging on the manuka tree found growing in New Zealand and parts of Australia. It is included in modern licensed wound-care products around the world.

Manuka honey has been reported to inhibit more than 80 species of bacteria, yet the antimicrobial properties of honey have not yet been fully exploited by modern medicine, as its mechanisms of action are not fully understood.

Wounds that are infected with S. pyogenes often fail to respond to treatment. This is largely due to the development of biofilms, which may be difficult for antibiotics to penetrate - in addition to problems of antibiotic resistance.

The results of the study showed that very small concentrations of honey prevented the start of biofilm development and that treating established biofilms grown in Petri dishes with honey for 2 hours killed up to 85per cent of bacteria within them.

The latest study reveals that honey can disrupt the interaction between S. pyogenes and the human protein fibronectin, which is displayed on the surface of damaged cells.

“Molecules on the surface of the bacteria latch onto human fibronectin, anchoring the bacteria to the cell. This allows infection to proceed and biofilms to develop,” explained Dr Sarah Maddocks who led the study.

“We found that honey reduced the expression of these bacterial surface proteins, inhibiting binding to human fibronectin, therefore making biofilm formation less likely. This is a feasible mechanism by which manuka honey minimizes the initiation of acute wound infections and also the establishment of chronic infections,” Dr Maddocks added.

Ongoing work in Dr Maddocks’ lab is investigating other wound-associated bacteria including Pseudomonas aeruginosa and meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Manuka honey has also been shown to be effective at killing these bacteria.

"Smart bomb" mouthwash aims to end tooth decay: Will it work?

2012-02-01T01:45:00.000-08:00

Colgate developed a targeted mouthwash that eliminates only the primary bacteria involved in tooth decay. Not only that, but the bacteria didn't surface again for four days

Dentists are smiling over a new report that UCLA researchers have developed a new mouthwash that might make dental cavities go the way of the dodo bird, CBS Los Angeles reported.

For the study - published in the Nov. issue of the journal Carries Research - researchers tested the new mouthwash on 12 patients. After only one rinse, the mouthwash completely eliminated the S. mutans bacteria - the main cause of tooth decay. The patients were S. mutans-free for the entire four-day duration of the study.

How does the magic mouthwash work?

It uses a new antimicrobial technology known as specifically targeted anti-microbial peptides, or STAMP for short. The researchers developed it with financial support from toothpaste heavyweight Colgate-Palmolive. The lead researcher, Dr. Wenyuan Shi, calls the mouthwash a "smart bomb" since it eliminates harmful bacteria for an extended period of time.

"With this new antimicrobial technology, we have the prospect of actually wiping out tooth decay in our lifetime," Dr. Shi, chair of the oral biology section at the UCLA School of Dentistry, said in a written statement.

But how does this mouthwash differ from all those other antiseptic mouthwashes on the market? Don't they also fight cavity-causing bacteria?

Dr. Shi explained to CBS News that the mouth is a "true jungle," with over 100 trillion bacteria residing in it. But most of the bacteria doesn't cause tooth decay.

"99.9 percent of them are good guys," Shi said.

But most mouthwash products are "broad-spectrum" according to Shi, which means they wipe out all bacteria in the mouth. He compared that effect to how an herbicide kills both weeds and surrounding healthy grass. The "smart bomb" mouthwash targets and destroys S. mutans bacteria, leaving healthy bacteria that help protect teeth.

"We let the mouth grow grass, and we prevent the weeds from coming back," Shi told CBS News.

Shi said based on that principle, his lab's research might lay the foundation for developing more "smart bombs" to fight other bacterial diseases residing in the gut or nose.

But "smart bomb" mouthwash won't hit store shelves this year. Based on this study's success, researchers sent an approval application to the FDA with the hopes that more studies can start as early as March 2012. Shi said the researchers need to find out if the mouthwash's effects last for days, or even weeks. If approved, it will be the first anti-cavity "drug" licensed in nearly 60 years.

The last one approved? You may have heard of it - fluoride.

Dr. No-Hee Park, dean of the UCLA School of Dentistry summed up everyone's excitement over the research:

"We are proud that UCLA will become known as the birthplace of this significant treatment innovation."

Dental cavities are fairly common. More than 50 percent of kids get them, and 92 percent of adults get cavities in their permanent teeth at some point.

25 Vegan Sources for Calcium

2012-02-01T01:43:00.000-08:00

The dairy industry has done a great job marketing milk as the best way to build healthy bones, but you can actually get calcium from all sorts of plant-based sources, and they’re often better for your bones than dairy products!

We need between 1000 and 1200 milligrams of calcium per day for healthy bones, and it’s not just vegans who need to plan carefully to get enough calcium each day. Over 75 percent of Americans are deficient in calcium, so plenty of omnivores aren’t getting enough, either. No matter what your diet, you just need to make sure to include two or three servings of calcium-rich foods and/or calcium-fortified foods in each meal, and you’ll be able to hit that target for bone health.

Unlike milk, plant-based calcium sources contain vitamins C and K and the minerals potassium and magnesium, which are all important for bone health.

25 Vegan Sources for Calcium

1. Kale (1 cup contains 180 mg)

2. Collard Greens (1 cup contains over 350 mg)

3. Blackstrap Molasses (2 tablespoons contains 400 mg)

4. Tempeh (1 cup contains 215 mg)

5. Turnip Greens (1 cup contains 250 mg)

6. Fortified non-dairy milk (1 cup contains 200-300 mg)

7. Hemp milk (1 cup contains 460 mg)

8. Fortified orange juice (1 cup contains 300 mg)

9. Tahini (2 tablespoons contains 130 mg)

10. Almond butter (2 tablespoons contains 85 mg)

11. Great northern beans (1 cup contains 120 mg)

12. Soybeans (1 cup contains 175 mg)

13. Turnip greens (1 cup contains 200 mg)

14. Raw fennel (1 medium bulb contains 115 mg)

15. Blackberries (1 cup contains 40 mg)

16. Black Currants (1 cup contains 62 mg)

17. Oranges (1 orange contains between 50 and 60 mg)

18. Dried apricots (1/2 cup contains 35 mg)

19. Figs (1/2 cup contains 120 mg)

20. Dates (1/2 cup contains 35 mg)

21. Artichoke (1 medium artichoke contains 55 mg)

22. Roasted sesame seeds (1 oz. contains 35 mg)

23. Adzuki beans (1 cup contains 65 mg)

24. Navy beans (1 cup contains 125 mg)

25. Amaranth (1 cup contains 275 mg)

What Are Functional Foods?

2012-02-01T01:42:00.000-08:00

If you think any food can be functional, think again. “Functional food” is a unique term that refers to foods with health promoting qualities, following the well-revered Hippocrates ancient advice to let “food be your medicine.”

Centuries later, in 1980, the Japanese government developed a process to recognize and approve functional foods that were called Foods for Specified Health Use. Sweden and Canada followed Japan’s lead in establishing laws to define products that earn the classification as functional foods.

For people are more interested in super foods than super-sizing, functional foods are their choice to sustain health. Both fresh and processed foods can be classified as functional foods depending on the nutritional value.

For that reason, you may also see these foods called “nutraceuticals,” a nutrient dense food that has the positive benefits of pharmaceuticals for certain diseases and conditions. Among the processes acceptable for functional foods are vitamin–enriched or fermented.

Some foods have added vitamins and minerals. Fermented foods use live cultures to deliver useful probiotics. Food science is reaching sophisticated levels in identifying the nutrients and in designing nutritional interventions.

Personalizing nutrition plans and foods for individuals is a new field of food science called “Nutrigenomics.” The idea is to use an individual’s genetic pattern as the basis for designing nutritional interventions to protect against diseases.

Functional foods are being found in more places than the typical grocery store shelves. From the depths of the ocean comes Sea Aloe, a powerful antioxidant functional food and dietary supplement.

Flavanoids in citrus, berries and red grapes are another popular taste that offers real health benefits. Chocolate and tea fans will be pleased to know that the Flavanols in these favorites are as potent as what’s found in apples.

If “an apple a day keeps the doctor away,” then maybe the same can be said for a chocolate bar or a pot of tea! Prebiotics found in onions, garlic, honey and leeks can be as valuable for gastrointestinal health as that of Probiotics such as yeast and lactobacilli in yogurts and some cultured dairy products.

No individual food is the magic pill for optimal health. To reach and sustain good health, your body needs more functional foods instead of junk foods or foods with poor nutritional quality, which are too often found in restaurants and in home kitchens. Functional foods include a variety of tastes and textures that are enjoyable as well as foods that help you live longer.

Healthy Benefits of Soy

2012-02-01T01:41:00.000-08:00

Soybeans are used in all sorts of food products to add nutrition and texture, and as extenders. They're grown across the United States as part of a typical corn-and-beans crop rotation that supports dairy and meat production farms, concentrated mainly in the Midwest.

Soybeans are fabulously nutritious, containing 30 to 50 percent protein, more than any other plant product and more than most meat. But because they are legumes, the protein is not complete (that is, it doesn't contain all the essential amino acids). Eating soybeans with rice or whole grain pasta will make a complete protein, however. Good amounts of the B vitamins and minerals complete the nutritional package.

Reduce Cancer Risk

Higher intake of soy foods has been linked with reduced incidence of heart disease and some forms of cancer. Studies on humans have established that soy consumption is significantly associated with reduced levels of blood cholesterol.

Epidemiological data show that consumption of soy is particularly associated with reduced risk of breast, lung, and prostate cancers, as well as leukemia.

Menopausal Benefits

Menopausal problems, including osteoporosis, are favorably affected by consumption of soy isoflavones, making soybeans especially beneficial for women. Hot flashes are significantly reduced in some women who consume soy isoflavones either as soy products or supplements. Studies show that the isoflavone daidzein has demonstrated a significant ability to prevent osteoporosis in both animals and humans.

No Harmful Side Effects

In addition to these very significant health benefits, soybeans lack the glycosides that can be so harmful when raw common beans (Phaseolus) are eaten. They do, however, contain a trypsin inhibitor. To inhibit the enzyme trypsin is to inhibit the body's ability to utilize proteins. But there's conflicting medical opinion on whether this is significant, especially at the level of soybean ingestion in the American diet. The trypsin inhibitor is destroyed by one hour of boiling before simmering. Anyway, there's no quarrel about soybeans' anticancer properties, which have been shown in many tests on lab animals.

Healthy Uses

In their whole form, soybeans remain tough even after long cooking. They have a bitter, beany flavor that's not very appealing, and they're not very digestible due to the trypsin inhibitor, which prevents much of their nutritional value from being absorbed by the body.

So in areas of the world where soybeans are a staple-Indonesia, China, Korea, Japan-people have learned ways of processing the beans to render them tasty and digestible. They are processed into nutritious milk, which can be used as a milk substitute or processed further into cheese-like tofu. The whole beans can be inoculated with a mold that predigests them, producing tempeh.

Tempeh is a fermented food made by the controlled fermentation of cooked soybeans with a starter of Rhizopus mold. The fermentation binds the soybeans into a compact white cake

Tempeh fermentation also produces natural antibiotic agents, which are thought to increase the body's resistance to intestinal infections. Fermentation leaves the desirable soy isoflavones intact. It also increases the flavor of the beans, giving them a mushroom-like taste.

Soybeans can also be fermented into tamari (soy sauce), Chinese black beans, or a paste called miso, which dissolves in hot broth to give miso soup.

Soybeans are the world's chief source of cooking oil. Fourteen to 20 percent of the bean is oil, mostly unsaturated, containing good amounts of healthful linoleic and oleic acids.

5 Essential Heart-Healthy Habits

2012-02-01T01:37:00.000-08:00

Adopt New Habits Today

It's true that heart disease is the leading cause of death in America, but there are many changes you can make to help prevent it, such as quitting smoking, eating a low-cholesterol diet and exercising. In fact, you probably already follow some heart-healthy habits without even realizing it. If not, it's never too late to get started!

Get Out And Walk -- With Your Pooch or for Pleasure

If you walk your dog once or twice a day, you're already on your way to a healthier heart. A lack of physical activity is a major risk factor for developing heart disease. But according to the American Heart Association, even moderate-intensity activities, like walking for pleasure, can have long-term heart benefits if done daily. Even people who start exercising regularly after a heart attack have higher survival rates. So aim for at least 30 minutes of walking a day. If you don't have a dog, persuade a friend to join you.

Make the Switch to Whole Grains

Pureg your pantry of white bread, pasta and rice and stock it with whole-wheat and brown versions. This simple switch can do wonders for your heart. Whole grains are a good source of vitamins and minerals, and also contain fiber, which can help lower your cholesterol and keep you feeling fuller longer.

Get Enough ZZZs

A good night of sleep can do more than just help you feel rested -- it can boost your heart health, too. Untreated sleep problems are linked to heart disease and stroke, according to the National Sleep Foundation. Consistently getting less than seven hours of sleep a night may boost blood pressure, and getting less than five hours a night is associated with increased risk of heart disease, studies find. So strive for 7 to 9 hours of sound sleep per night. Talk to your doctor if you’re having a hard time getting the rest you need.

Brush Your Teeth

Something as simple as looking after your teeth and gums may help keep heart disease away. Researchers have found that people with gum disease are almost twice as likely to suffer from coronary artery disease, according to the American Academy of Periodontology. And if you have a heart condition, gum disease can make it worse. It's still not exactly clear why, but brushing your teeth regularly, flossing, treating gum disease and keeping up with dentist appointments may help keep your heart in top shape.

Make Pleasure a Part of Your Day

Doing something pleasurable every day may help your heart, since doing things you enjoy is a natural stress buster. It's not clear whether stress can directly increase your risk for heart disease, but it can definitely raise your blood pressure (high blood pressure is a risk factor for heart disease) and may be associated with smoking and physical inactivity (two behaviors that may increase your risk of heart disease). So try to do at least one thing you enjoy every day, whether it's reading a book, meeting a friend or getting a massage -- even if it's only for 15 minutes.

30 Winter Foods to Help You Lose Weight

2012-02-01T01:27:00.000-08:00

Kumquats

The sweet rind offsets a tart interior making these gems a zingy treat. “At only 13 calories a piece, you can pop a generous handful and still have a low-calorie snack,” says Tracy Cherry, RD, CDN at the University of Rochester Medical Center. Also try tossing in salads for color and a burst of flavor.

Oranges

Don’t just think navels. Tangerines, mandarins, clementines and cara caras (our seasonal favorite) are rich in Vitamin C too. Cherry suggests swapping your morning OJ for a whole orange. “It has more fiber and takes longer to eat than the juice, to help you feel full on fewer calories.” That’s 45 calories per orange, to be precise. Clementines are the perfect snack: small, easy to peel and pop, with soluble fiber that “breaks down upon digestion and forms a gel to stabilize your blood sugar levels,” says Sophie Pachella, an ACE-certified weight-loss expert and founder of sophieyogurt.com. You can also try throwing in a few slices of the orange family in with your winter vegetables or stews to boost their flavor.

Grapefruit

Starting your meal with half a grapefruit (50 calories) means you’ll eat fewer calories overall, studies show. “Grapefruit reduces insulin levels; and the smaller the insulin spike after meals, the less likely your food is stored as fat,” says Pachella. For a spicy spin on this citrus powerhouse, mix with cilantro and chili peppers for a salsa you can use on top of fish, salads or chicken.

Persimmon

It may look like a tomato, but this exotic winter fruit packs a sweet, cinnamon-clove flavor that adds character to any dish, especially of the Asian persuasion. Its rich flavor also makes it a great dessert for only 118 calories.

Mango

This “super fruit” scores high marks for nutrients and fiber that promotes fullness. Use fresh slices for garnish on oatmeal, add to your favorite stir-fry dish, or mix with spinach for a vibrant low-cal salad. “If they’re soft to the touch, they’re ready to eat,” says Cherry, “and eating them warm intensifies the sweetness.” So, try throwing them in a sauté. Adding a squirt of lime and a few dashes of salt and cayenne pepper also make it a great snack.

Cabbage

Cool weather brings out the “frost-kissed sweetness” of this fiber-rich and versatile veggie. Use as a low-cal wrap for lunch (blanch before rolling for a bit more malleability) or steam wedges and drizzle with flavored oil (think truffle, tarragon or thyme) for a snack. If a dinner option is what you’re craving, try tossing shredded cabbage into a stir-fry.

Carrot

A crunchy stick dipped in hummus is a great go-to snack -- but also try roasting, steaming or sautéing your carrots for hearty side dishes that won’t bust your belt. “Replacing some of the meat on your dinner plate with veggies like carrots will help you cut calorie intake” without going hungry, says Cherry.

Celeriac

The “ugly duckling” of root vegetables, celeriac has a knobby exterior disguising smooth white flesh that can be mashed, roasted or pureed like a potato, but with fewer calories and a more satisfying, smoky flavor. “Mash like you would cauliflower, or roast to bring out its sweetness,” says Cherry. Cooked with potatoes, broth and a hearty protein like lamb or pork, it makes a delicious, warming stew. Or, for a sweet crunch, shred and toss in a salad.

Winter Squash

Kabocha, acorn, delicata are among the many varieties of winter squash that deliver a medley of flavors that are both low in calories and high in fiber. Puree with cinnamon and a few drops of maple syrup for a guiltless dessert, suggests Pachella. For an added weight-loss boost, scoop and roast the seeds, which contain the “good” monounsaturated fat that can help burn calories.

Sunchoke

This brown nub resembles small pieces of fresh ginger, with a sweet nutty flavor that complements soups. It’s rich in both fiber and prebiotics, which stimulate the growth of “good” bacteria in the digestive system to safeguard intestinal health and keep you regular. Its high potassium levels also aid muscle contraction and electrolyte balance to boost the fat-burning power of your workouts, says Pachella.

Jicama

This crunchy cousin of the sweet potato can be eaten raw like the sunchoke (sliced onto salads, chopped into salsa or shredded in cole slaw), sautéed with other veggies or simmered in stews. It’s got plenty of Vitamin C to keep winter colds at bay.

Black Kale

Spicier than the green variety, black kale is loaded with nutrients (including infection-fighting Vitamin A) and fiber. Sprinkle with salt and olive oil, then bake into chips that will slake your salt craving for only 35 calories per cup.

Broccoli Rabe

This fiber-rich green is a super source of Vitamin A and calcium, which has been shown to help torch abdominal fat, says Pachella. Sautee with garlic or blanch in salt water (to cut bitterness) before steaming into a healthy side dish.

Brussels Sprouts

A filling helping of 10 sprouts is just 45 calories. And these mini cabbages can help fight cancer and lower cholesterol. Toss steamed ones with sea salt, pepper and chopped garlic; or roast in olive oil until the leaves begin to blacken.

Swiss Chard

With more than three dozen antioxidants and nutrients, Swiss chard has a flavonoid (a plant pigment that keeps blood vessels healthy and fights free radicals, inflammation and possibly even cancer) that works to stabilize blood sugar and “cut down cravings for simple carbs, leading to less fat storage and helping you obtain optimal weight,” Pachella explains. Chard makes for a great side. But for a quick, waist-friendly, more-filling meal, sauté with olive oil and garlic, add chopped green olives, and sprinkle parmesan and chickpeas for protein. Because the stems require more time to cook than the leaves, Cherry advises separating the two parts and sautéing the stems for a minute before adding the rest of the ingredients.

Radish

“Radishes may be small,” says Pachella, “but they’re packed with fiber and water to fill you up.” And their peppery bite can counter the boredom of bland diet food. “To tame the spice, cook them,” says Cherry. “I also enjoy them julienned and added to cole slaw for spice, crunch and color.”

Fennel

Crunchy and slightly sweet, fennel has a refreshing licorice flavor that can help quell your candy craving. Plus, “it reduces inflammation and bloating; and helps in the metabolism of fats and sugars -- helping them to be burned as energy, rather than stored as body fat,” says Pachella. Toss in soups and salads, sauté with onions in oil or chop and slip in a sandwich.

Onion

“Onions are fabulous for weight loss because they contain chromium, a mineral that helps cells respond to insulin and stabilize blood glucose levels to ease cravings,” says Pachella. There’s always onion soup but you can also rely on them to season almost any dish -- from casseroles to stir-fries. “Roasting onions along with other vegetables will mellow them out and give them a sweeter flavor while retaining their crunch,” says Cherry. If they bring you to tears, cut them under cold running water.

Leeks

Leeks contain iron and calcium, which is “linked to lower abdominal fat” in some women, says Pachella. “Pureed leeks make soups taste richer without adding calories, which gives you a filling and healthy lunch to warm you through the winter months.” They also make a great broth by themselves. Cherry’s favorite recipe: sautéing leeks and chopping potatoes to make crunchy, low-cal hash browns. If you find this low-cal veggie a little tricky to clean, try soaking them in cold water for 15 minutes.

Potato

“Potatoes have gotten a bad rap due to the low-carb craze, yet they can actually aid with weight loss,” says Pachella. “They contain both soluble and insoluble fiber that can lower ‘bad’ cholesterol while slowing digestion.” A baked potato topped with tuna clocks in at a mere 250 calories, for a healthy mid-day meal that will keep you full till dinner. Eat with the skin for a fiber boost. Which spud’s for you? “The Yukon Gold type is great for mashing because its yellow tinge makes it look as if there’s butter,” says Cherry -- a treat for the eye and the waist.

Collard Greens

Have a generous serving for a healthy dose of fiber, calcium and immunity-boosting Vitamin C and A -- all under 50 calories. Simmer in seasoned water till wilted, or sauté with onions.

Endive

These little guys are low in calories and also pack a punch of Vitamins A and C; potassium, calcium, iron and fiber. You see them most in salads but you can cook them too. Try slow-cooking them or throwing them in soups.

Frisee

Like endive, frisee is the foundation of a hearty, filling salad that can satisfy the fiercest appetites for the fewest calories. Try mixing with toasted walnuts and oil.

Escarole

High in fiber, low in calories, “escarole can bulk up soups and casseroles to help you lose weight,” says Pachella. Enjoy with white beans to round out a fiber-rich meal. “Beans and greens are always a great, fat-fighting combo,” says Cherry.

Radicchio

Crisp and peppery, this rich red chicory adds zing to salad, especially when combined with other greens. Or, broil till brown and crisp to make a toasty “bed” for sausage or steaks. “The high fiber content keeps you feeling satiated,” says Pachella. “It’s also full of minerals linked to reduced storage of body fat.”

Spinach

When it comes to weight loss, fiber is your friend -- and spinach offers twice as much fiber as other greens, according to Pachella. Plus, its antioxidants can promote increased energy levels on sluggish days. If nibbling the raw stuff doesn’t excite you, try it sautéed with garlic and olive oil. You can even throw in some pine nuts for good measure -- the leaf itself is so low-cal, you can afford a little healthy fat.

Arugula

“This peppery green pairs well with other greens for a vibrant salad,” says Cherry. It packs a nutritional crunch with only two (yup, two) calories per serving, so feel free to pile it on the plate! You know it served raw but it also works great on pizza and with pasta.

Parsnip

Don’t know what to do with the "white carrot?" Try it roasted with herbs and other root veggies to bring out its earthy best. They can also be used as a general substitute for the potato -- try mashing, throwing in stews or making soup. “Parsnips are higher in soluble fiber than potatoes, which helps keep blood sugar on an even keel to prolong digestion and stave off hunger,” says Pachella.

Turnip

It can bulk up a stew or make a rib-sticking side dish at only 45 calories a serving, thanks to its abundant fiber and water. “Don’t throw away the greens,” Pachella adds; “they have excellent health benefits too, and taste great sautéed with olive oil and lemon juice.”

Rutabaga

It’s sweet, nutty and rich in nutrients: “a very good source of fiber, potassium and manganese,” says Pachella. Serve it pureed or cut into strips and oven-baked to replace French fries.

Iran 'willing to stage attacks on US soil’

2012-01-31T19:23:00.001-08:00

America’s top intelligence official has warned that Iran was actively willing to stage attacks inside the US in a change of its policy on use of force overseas.

James Clapper, right, the US director of National Intelligence, testifies on 'World Wide Threats' on Capitol Hill

Relations between Iran and the West have suffered a sharp deterioration as Tehran blames foreign agents of waging a campaign of sabotage against its nuclear programme.

James Clapper, the US director of National Intelligence, said that a plot to kill the Saudi ambassador in Washington demonstrated Iran had taken a new tact as it sought to respond to convert threats.

It “shows that some Iranian officials — probably including Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei — have changed their calculus and are now more willing to conduct an attack in the United States in response to real or perceived US actions that threaten the regime,” he said.

Mr Clapper also told the Senate Intelligence Committee that American targets overseas were more vulnerable.

The committee will be briefed on America’s overall intelligence assessment on Iran at a session on Wednesday.

Mr Clapper said while Tehran is “keeping open the option to develop nuclear weapons,” Washington officials concluded “we do not know” the outcome of the programme.

Iran has blamed the United States and Israel for a series of mysterious developments, including the apparently targeted killing of yet another Iranian nuclear scientist in Tehran in January, as well as a crippling cyber attack on the country’s largest uranium enrichment facility. Meanwhile Iranian opposition activists raised fears over the vulnerability of its nuclear facilities to attack yesterday claiming that an F-14 fighter jet was shot down by its own air defence systems during a suicide attack on the Bushehr atomic reactor. Major Ali Reza Karimayi, the pilot and a co-pilot, were killed last week when the US-made fighter crashed shortly after take-off into the Gulf, according to a brief report in the state media.

However the opposition website Peiknet said that the jet was shot down, not the casualty of mechanical failure as the state media had reported. The fact that the pilots did not eject pointed to the plane being shot down not encountering difficulties.

It also said the fighter had taken off from the 8th Airforce Base near the eastern city of Isfahan. Although a media blackout had been imposed there was speculation in the military that the pilots had attempted to attack the plant.

Nuclear experts have expressed a variety of concerns over the safety of the Bushehr reactor which has been built with Russian assistance.

Although it is designed to feed energy into Iran’s nuclear grid, Western intelligence agencies have expressed fears that sabotage or seismic activity could damage the facility.

Iran retains a fleet of US-manufactured aircraft that it bought before the Islamic revolution of 1979.

Sanctions against Iran’s controversial nuclear programme have taken a heavy toll on Iran’s ability to maintain the fleet.

Iran has suffered a string of serious air accidents over the past decade that have cost more than 900 lives.

US election 2012: Mitt Romney styles himself as the inevitable nominee after key Florida win

2012-01-31T19:11:00.000-08:00

Mitt Romney won the Republican presidential primary in Florida on Tuesday night, trouncing Newt Gingrich to claim a key second victory in his bid to become the challenger to President Barack Obama.

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney tosses snacks to reporters on his plane

Mitt Romney has turned his attention back to Barack Obama

Mitt Romney at his campaign headquarters

The former Massachusetts governor styled himself as the party's inevitable nominee after a terrible night for Mr Gingrich, whose prediction that the party's Right-wing vote would outnumber Mr Romney's was disproved.

Mr Romney, a relative moderate, won about 46 per cent of the vote, according to exit polls. Mr Gingrich, a former House Speaker, received 32 per cent. He defiantly vowed to fight on until August's party convention.

Addressing a victory rally in Tampa, Mr Romney looked beyond the party contest to present America with a choice between him and Mr Obama, in November. "I stand ready to lead this party and lead this nation," he told supporters. "My leadership will end the Obama era and begin a new era of American prosperity.”

Paraphrasing the political philosopher Thomas Paine's dictum to “lead, follow or get out of the way”, Mr Romney told Mr Obama: “As president you were elected to lead. You chose to follow. And now it's time for you to get out of the way”.

Such a decisive victory in this large swing state, which is expected to be crucial in November, greatly bolstered Mr Romney's claim to be the party's only realistic prospect of ousting the Democratic president amid ongoing scepticism from its Right wing, due to his past stances on abortion and gay rights in his liberal-leaning home state.

Having spent the week – and millions of dollars – aggressively attacking Mr Gingrich for his record in Washington and allowing high-profile political allies to attack him as an "unhinged" and "erratic" character, Mr Romney played peacemaker on Tuesday night, calling on the party to unite to defeat Mr Obama.

“Primary contests are not easy,” he said. “And they are not supposed to be.” Dismissing Democratic claims that the campaign would leave the eventual nominee fatally bloodied, he said: “I've got news for them. A competitive primary does not divide us, it prepares us – and we will win".

Looking forward to the party convention, which is also due to be held in Tampa, Mr Romney predicted: “Ours will be a united party with a winning ticket for America".

The result put Mr Romney back on a clearer path to the party's nomination after a volatile three weeks since he won the New Hampshire primary. As well as his South Carolina loss, he had his Iowa Caucus win overturned on a recount, destroying his claim to a historic double victory.

While Mr Gingrich remains arithmetically able to win after losing Florida so badly, he faces a prolonged struggle against the vastly better financed Romney campaign that many party strategists believe is practically impossible.

He remained strident and defiant at a primary night event in Orlando on Tuesday night, where he declared that Florida had made clear the contest was now “a two-person race between the conservative leader Newt Gingrich and the Massachusetts moderate Mitt Romney”.

Standing amid placards and banners declaring “46 states to go”, he said: “We are going to contest every place, and we are going to win, and we are going to be in Tampa as the nominee in August”. He declined to congratulate Mr Romney on his victory.

Despite his humbling loss, Mr Gingrich stubbornly continued to outline his plans for his first day in office and pledged to devote "my life, my fortune, and my sacred honour" to the presidency.

He earlier said that Rick Santorum – a fellow conservative who finished a distant third, with 12 per cent – should now step aside, clearing the way for a head-to-head contest between him and Mr Romney.

Mr Santorum, a former Pennsylvania senator who has rejected those overtures, turned the attack against Mr Gingrich on Tuesday, declaring that the former Speaker should pull out himself. "Newt Gingrich had his opportunity,” Mr Santorum said in Nevada, site of the contest's next vote on February 4. “We can't allow our nominee to become the issue in the campaign”.

Ron Paul, a libertarian-leaning Texas congressman who barely campaigned in Florida, finished fourth with seven per cent of support. Also speaking in Nevada, he told supporters: "If enthusiasm wins elections, we would win hands down".

Scores injured as 6.3 magnitude earthquake hits Lima

2012-01-31T07:40:00.000-08:00

A powerful earthquake injured scores of people, buckled buildings and caused power outages on the coast south of Lima early Monday morning, with no immediate reports of fatalities, officials said.

Most people were injured when they fled their homes in panic, or when they were struck by collapsing walls

The epicentre of the magnitude 6.3 quake, which struck 11 minutes after midnight on Sunday (0511 GMT Monday), was 15 miles southeast of the city of Ica, the US Geological Survey said.

Memories are still fresh of the powerful 8.0 magnitude earthquake that struck the Ica region on August 15, 2007, killing more than 500 people and injured about 200,000.

While residents remain jittery, there were no known fatalities on Monday, Civil Defense officials said.

However at 145 people were injured and most were taken to hospitals, though the injuries were mostly minor, the Health Ministry said.

The quake also destroyed 125 homes and damaged 581 buildings, said the Civil Defense Institute (INDECI) in its latest report.

Most people were injured when they fled their homes in panic, or when they were struck by collapsing walls, said Raul Huaman with the Ica Regional Hospital.

Among the damaged buildings was the Cathedral of Ica, which had already been damaged in a 2007 earthquake.

The jolt caused people to flee their homes in Ica, the port of Pisco, and the towns of Palpa, Nasca and Canete. Dozens of Ica residents spent the night in parks and gardens fearing aftershocks.

The quake epicentre depth was 24 miles, according to the USGS.

The reading was based on the open-ended Moment Magnitude scale used by US seismologists, which measures the area of the fault that ruptured and the total energy released.

Peru is in the "Pacific Ring of Fire," which is the site of 85 per cent of global seismic activity.

A former slave's letter in response to his old master's request to work for him again

2012-01-31T05:33:00.000-08:00

In August of 1865, a Colonel P.H. Anderson of Big Spring, Tennessee, wrote to his former slave, Jourdan Anderson, and requested that he come back to work on his farm. Jourdan — who, since being emancipated, had moved to Ohio, found paid work, and was now supporting his family — responded spectacularly by way of the letter seen below.

Dayton, Ohio,

August 7, 1865

To My Old Master, Colonel P.H. Anderson, Big Spring, Tennessee

Sir: I got your letter, and was glad to find that you had not forgotten Jourdon, and that you wanted me to come back and live with you again, promising to do better for me than anybody else can. I have often felt uneasy about you. I thought the Yankees would have hung you long before this, for harboring Rebs they found at your house. I suppose they never heard about your going to Colonel Martin's to kill the Union soldier that was left by his company in their stable. Although you shot at me twice before I left you, I did not want to hear of your being hurt, and am glad you are still living. It would do me good to go back to the dear old home again, and see Miss Mary and Miss Martha and Allen, Esther, Green, and Lee. Give my love to them all, and tell them I hope we will meet in the better world, if not in this. I would have gone back to see you all when I was working in the Nashville Hospital, but one of the neighbors told me that Henry intended to shoot me if he ever got a chance.

I want to know particularly what the good chance is you propose to give me. I am doing tolerably well here. I get twenty-five dollars a month, with victuals and clothing; have a comfortable home for Mandy,—the folks call her Mrs. Anderson,—and the children—Milly, Jane, and Grundy—go to school and are learning well. The teacher says Grundy has a head for a preacher. They go to Sunday school, and Mandy and me attend church regularly. We are kindly treated. Sometimes we overhear others saying, "Them colored people were slaves" down in Tennessee. The children feel hurt when they hear such remarks; but I tell them it was no disgrace in Tennessee to belong to Colonel Anderson. Many darkeys would have been proud, as I used to be, to call you master. Now if you will write and say what wages you will give me, I will be better able to decide whether it would be to my advantage to move back again.

As to my freedom, which you say I can have, there is nothing to be gained on that score, as I got my free papers in 1864 from the Provost-Marshal-General of the Department of Nashville. Mandy says she would be afraid to go back without some proof that you were disposed to treat us justly and kindly; and we have concluded to test your sincerity by asking you to send us our wages for the time we served you. This will make us forget and forgive old scores, and rely on your justice and friendship in the future. I served you faithfully for thirty-two years, and Mandy twenty years. At twenty-five dollars a month for me, and two dollars a week for Mandy, our earnings would amount to eleven thousand six hundred and eighty dollars. Add to this the interest for the time our wages have been kept back, and deduct what you paid for our clothing, and three doctor's visits to me, and pulling a tooth for Mandy, and the balance will show what we are in justice entitled to. Please send the money by Adams's Express, in care of V. Winters, Esq., Dayton, Ohio. If you fail to pay us for faithful labors in the past, we can have little faith in your promises in the future. We trust the good Maker has opened your eyes to the wrongs which you and your fathers have done to me and my fathers, in making us toil for you for generations without recompense. Here I draw my wages every Saturday night; but in Tennessee there was never any pay-day for the negroes any more than for the horses and cows. Surely there will be a day of reckoning for those who defraud the laborer of his hire.

In answering this letter, please state if there would be any safety for my Milly and Jane, who are now grown up, and both good-looking girls. You know how it was with poor Matilda and Catherine. I would rather stay here and starve—and die, if it come to that—than have my girls brought to shame by the violence and wickedness of their young masters. You will also please state if there has been any schools opened for the colored children in your neighborhood. The great desire of my life now is to give my children an education, and have them form virtuous habits.

Say howdy to George Carter, and thank him for taking the pistol from you when you were shooting at me.

From your old servant,

Jourdon Anderson.

Barack Obama confirms unmanned drone programme

2012-01-31T05:10:00.001-08:00

President Barack Obama has confirmed the used of unmanned drones to kill suspected terrorists in Pakistan's tribal areas, a programme that has intensified during his term and is a constant source of friction with the government in Islamabad.

It is the first official confirmation of a so-far secret programme, run from the CIA's headquarters in Langley.

Analysts believe it may be the result of wide-ranging debate about the legality of using unmanned aircraft to kill American citizens, following the death last year of Anwar al-Awlaki, an al-Qaeda cleric and propagandist.

In a web chat with users of Google+ and YouTube on Monday night, Mr Obama said many of the strikes had been carried out in Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas.

"For the most part, they've been very precise precision strikes against al-Qaeda and their affiliates, and we're very careful in terms of how it's been applied," he said.

"This is a targeted focused effort at people who are on a list of active terrorists, who are trying to go in and harm Americans, hit American facilities, American bases, and so on."

America's drone programme was one of the worst-kept secrets in Pakistan.

According to a tally kept by the AFP news agency, 45 missile strikes were reported in Pakistan's tribal belt in 2009, 101 in 2010 and 64 in 2011.

Last year the Bureau of Investigative Journalism published research showing that 160 children had died in the attacks during the past seven years.

The number of attacks escalated under Mr Obama as the focus appeared to change from high-value targets to al-Qaeda and Taliban foot soldiers.

Earlier this month, a drone strike claimed the life of Aslam Awan, an al-Qaeda operative who had studied in Manchester.

Pakistan has publicly denounced the attacks but its leaders have privately given their approval, according to diplomatic cable released by WikiLeaks.

Hasan Askari Rizvi said Washington had been questioning its position on drones since al-Awlaki, an American citizen whose internet broadcasts lifted him to prominence with al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, was killed in September.

"Because of this debate it looks as if they may have decided to go public," said Mr Rizvi.

He added America's openness would leave Pakistan with an awkward dilemma, as it tried to placate anti-Western sentiment while remaining an ally of the US.

"Now the government will have to take a definite position," he said.

US election candidates target Twitter users

2012-01-31T05:05:00.000-08:00

This year’s US presidential race will be ‘the Twitter election’, according to the site’s chief executive, Dick Costolo.

The Twitter boss has revealed that the majority if the Republican candidates are buying adverts, otherwise known as promoted tweets, trends or accounts, in the lead up to the election.Speaking at an ‘All Things D’ (the digital division of The Wall Street Journal) technology conference in California last night, Costolo said that most of the candidates were buying adverts and would continue doing so.

“Candidates that don’t participate on Twitter while the conversation is happening will be left behind,” he explained.

Costolo, who has run the company as chief executive for the last 15 months, predicted that political adverts would make up a significant part of the company’s advertising business in 2012.

He cited the example of high Twitter activity during President Obama’s ‘State of the Union’ speech last week – during which 766,681 tweets (more than 14,000 a minute) were posted throughout the 95-minute event.

Costolo also defended the company’s recent decision to block tweets country by country.

“There’s been no change in our stance or attitude or policy with respect to content on Twitter,” he said.

It’s just that the tweet will be removed only in the country where it is illegal as opposed to being deleted off the system around the rest of the world.

He said the new system was not about cracking China or Iran, where Twitter is blocked.

“I don’t think the current environment in China is one in which we could operate,” Costolo explained.

Separately yesterday, Colin Crowell, Twitter’s head of global public policy, told the UK’s Joint Committee on Privacy and Injunctions that a new system to restrict access to unlawful tweets on a country-by-country basis could be triggered if British users discuss gagging orders.

It means foreign Twitter users would be able to read tweets naming super-injunction holders but British users would be prevented.

It follows the identification by tens of thousands of Twitter users of the footballer Ryan Giggs as the holder of a super-injunction, in defiance of a High Court ruling.

Cancer 'slowed by cooked tomatoes'

2012-01-31T05:03:00.000-08:00

A nutrient in cooked tomatoes has been shown in laboratory studies to slow the growth of - and even kill - prostate cancer cells, scientists said today.

Dr Mridula Chopra and colleagues at the University of Portsmouth tested the effect of the nutrient lycopene on the simple mechanism through which cancer cells hijack a body's healthy blood supply to grow and spread.

They found that lycopene, which is what gives tomatoes their red colour, intercepts cancer's ability to make the connections it needs to attach to a healthy blood supply.

The researchers, from the university's School of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, are now calling for tests to check if the same reaction occurs in the human body.

Director of the research Dr Chopra said: ''This simple chemical reaction was shown to occur at lycopene concentrations that can easily be achieved by eating processed tomatoes.''

Lycopene is present in all red fruits and vegetables, but its concentrations are highest in tomatoes and it becomes more readily available and biologically active when it comes from processed tomatoes with a small amount of cooking oil added.

Dr Chopra said: ''I stress that our tests were done in test tubes in a laboratory and more testing needs to be carried out to confirm our findings, but the laboratory evidence we have found is clear - it is possible to intercept the simple mechanism some cancer cells use to grow at concentrations that can be achieved by eating sufficient cooked tomatoes.''

The research, which is published in the British Journal of Nutrition, was part-funded by Heinz after the food manufacturer asked for more research to follow up earlier studies by the same researchers which showed a significant increase in lycopene levels in blood and semen samples after subjects ate 400g (14oz) of processed tomatoes for two weeks.

Dr Chopra and her colleagues Simone Elgass and Alan Cooper said they had a firm agreement they would publish their results irrespective of the outcome.

Cancer cells can remain dormant for years until their growth is triggered through the secretion of chemicals which initiate the process of linking cancer cells with endothelial cells which act as healthy gatekeeper cells lining blood vessels.

This allows the cancer cells to reach out and attach to the blood supply.

In the laboratory experiments, lycopene was shown to disrupt this linking process, without which cancer cells cannot grow.

The researchers explained that all cancer cells use a similar mechanism (angiogenesis) to ''feed'' upon a healthy blood supply.

They said there was added importance of this mechanism for prostate cancer because lycopene tends to accumulate in prostate tissues.

Dr Chopra said: ''The important thing is for sufficient lycopene to reach where it can matter. We know that in case of prostate tissues it gets there.

''We have tested this in the labs but we don't yet know if the same action will happen in the body.

''Individuals will vary in how much lycopene their bodies make available to fight cancer cell growth and the ability of lycopene to 'intercept' in this way in the body is likely to vary between tomato products - both processing and cooking with fat have previously been shown to make lycopene more effective biologically.

''The type of tomatoes which offer the most effective lycopene also differs and more tests need to be done to find the best breed of tomato for this purpose.''

It was suggested in their previous research that smokers might have to consume more tomatoes than non-smokers to achieve the benefits of lycopene due to the presence of high oxidative stress in smokers.

Eleanor Barrie, senior science information officer at Cancer Research UK, said: ''Some existing cancer drugs target the formation of new blood vessels, but more research is needed to show how they could be used to help cancer patients.

''This small study doesn't directly tell us if lycopene has any effect against cancer, but research like this can help us to understand more about how the chemical affects blood vessel formation.''

Madrid launches bid for 2020 Olympics with bizarre logo that says 20020

2012-01-30T18:55:00.001-08:00

Madrid launched its bid to host the Olympic Games in 2020 on Monday unveiling a logo that immediately sparked controversy and left many Spaniards confused.

The logo was designed by Luis Peiret, 22, a graphic arts student from Zaragoza and chosen in a competition by the Spanish Olympic Committee

The design purportedly consists of the letter M for Madrid and the number 20 in front of the coloured rings of the Olympics stylised into arches inspired by the Madrid landmark, Puerta de Alcala.

But the lettering appears to show "20020", an effect that has brought much derision in the Spanish press and on social networking sites.

Within hours of the logo being unveiled the subject was trending in Spain on Twitter with the majority of views expressed of the negative variety.

One twitter user said it looked "like a display of flip-flops for the beach" another said it resembled a "colourful array of Bishops' mitres".

But most questioned whether Madrid was bidding for the "2020" Olympic Games or the "20020".

"To me it is confusing and naff," tweeted Pedro J Ramirez, the editor of El Mundo newspaper.

The logo was designed by Luis Peiret, 22, a graphic arts student from Zaragoza and chosen in a competition by the Spanish Olympic Committee.

Reports said he had intended the script to say M20 but when officials modified the logo they trimmed the bottom of the design leading to the visual confusion.

Bizarrely even the colours used to represent the Olympic Rings were not faithful to the original with pink being chosen to replace black, the colour meant to symbolise the African continent.

A poll on the website of Spain's leading daily newspaper El Pais Monday afternoon asked readers how much they liked the new logo. 81 per cent replied: "not at all".

It will be the fourth bid for candidacy by Madrid which argues that it is the largest European capital never to have played host.

Despite the deep economic crisis engulfing Spain, support for the bid is strong with recent polls showing 84 per cent of Spaniards wanting Madrid to play host while 91 per cent think it will create new jobs.

"The Government is supporting the candidacy of the capital for the 2020 Olympics," said Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría, the country's Deputy Prime Minister.

"We want to give support to Madrid 2020 to help build the momentum behind Brand Spain and help generate trust and confidence in our country."

Other cities expected to apply on February 15 to host the 2020 Games include Tokyo, Rome, Istanbul, Baku in Azerbaijan and Doha in Qatar.

Barack Obama questioned on fate British student Richard O'Dwyer

2012-01-30T18:46:00.001-08:00

President Barack Obama has been questioned on the fate of a British student facing extradition to the United States on allegations of breaking American copyright laws.

Richard O'Dwyer and his mother Julia leave Westminster Magistrates Court

The case of Richard O'Dwyer was raised during an online questioning session in the White House, after thousands of web users voted it to the top issue to be put to the president.

Mr O'Dwyer, 23, is accused by American authorities of creating a website from his Sheffield university bedroom that would serve as a directory to guide viewers to illegal downloading sites.

His defence team have argued that the site breaks no British laws but earlier this month he was cleared for extradition to the US, where a conviction could see him serve 10 years in prison.

The case has sparked controversy on both sides of the Atlantic in the wake of proposed American anti-piracy legislation which led to protests from major websites like Wikipedia and Google.

American web campaigners rallied around Mr O'Dwyer and yesterday propelled a question on his extradition to the top of a list of 133,184 questions proposed by the US public. More than 6,000 YouTube and Google users voted for it to be asked during an interview with the president broadcast online.

"Why are you personally supporting the extradition UK citizen Richard O'Dwyer for solely linking to copyright infringing works using an extradition treaty designed to combat terrorism and to bring terrorists to judgement in the USA?" Mr Obama was asked.

He replied: "I'm not personally doing anything, I want to make sure everybody understands. One of the ways our system works is that the president doesn't get involved with prosecution decisions or extradition decisions and this has been a decision by the Justice Department."

Mr O'Dwyer's mother, Julia, told the Daily Mail: "The UK government’s passive acceptance of disproportionate extradition is shameful, but well known.

"Now even Americans have woken up to the US administration’s excessive use of the extradition laws between our countries.

"Given our government won’t protect its own citizens, it’s up to Mr Obama to put a stop to the ridiculous and appallingly harsh attempts to extradite Richard, and others facing similarly unnecessary treatment.

The case drew parallels with that Gary McKinnon, a Scottish computer hacker, who is fighting extradition to the US on charges that he broke into a secret US military network.

Lonely millionaire leaves chauffeur $1 million

2012-01-30T09:37:00.000-08:00

A lonely millionaire left his chauffeur a tenth of his fortune after crying on the driver's shoulder during his divorce.

Park Avenue, New York City

Alan Meltzer, who lived in a luxury apartment building on New York's exclusive Park Avenue, stated in his will that he would give $1 million (£638,000) to Jean Laborde, a 54-year-old father-of-five.

The former record label owner who had become a celebrity high stakes poker player in recent years also left a legacy of $500,000 (£319,000) to his doorman, Chamil Demiraj.

Mr Meltzer died in October at the age of 67, a year after he was divorced from his wife Diana, who he had been with for 13 years, and the contents of his will have now been disclosed.

Both of the former employees are said to have supported Mr Meltzer through the messy divorce. The former Mrs Meltzer said it was no business of hers if her ex left his fortune to "bums".

Mr Laborde said: "I don't know what to do exactly with the money, but one thing I know for sure – each year I'm going to bring the guy some flowers for his grave.

"He was always joking. He never looked down on anybody. He left me money, but it's not a good deal for me because it means he's no longer here." Mr Demiraj added: "I appreciate it. He was a really good friend of mine, and I was a good friend of his. It's a surprise. Peace and rest to him, that's all I can say."

Mr Meltzer's ex-wife said she was not concerned about the bequests. "He can leave it to whoever he wants," she told the New York Post. "I'm doing fine. I could care less.

"If he wants to give it to the bums, he can give it to the bums. He can give his money to whoever he wants. We're divorced. The man is dead."

Britain warns Russia not to block UN effort over Syria

2012-01-30T07:32:00.000-08:00

Downing Street warned Russia on Monday not to block efforts at the United Nations to bring a peaceful resolution to unrest in Syria.

Foreign Secretary William Hague was on Monday flying to New York to lend Britain's support to an Arab-backed draft resolution calling on the country's authoritarian leader Bashar al-Assad to step down and pave the way for a transfer of power.

The Arab League's secretary general Nabil Elaraby will on Tuesday brief Security Council members, including Mr Hague, on the findings of its recent mission to monitor the Assad regime's response to widespread protests against his rule.

The suspension of the mission at the weekend was followed by an upsurge in violence, with reports of at least 62 deaths as regime forces stormed rebel strongholds in the capital Damascus and around the country.

Western powers including Britain and France are pushing for the adoption this week of the resolution tabled by current Security Council member Morocco, which would give international backing to an Arab League timetable for the transition of power in Syria to a unity government, followed by free elections.

But Russia was on Monday resisting a swift vote, saying it wanted to "study the recommendations and conclusions of the observer mission in detail" before moving to a substantive discussion in the Security Council.

Deputy foreign minister Gennady Gatilov last week signalled that Moscow may wield its veto to block the draft resolution in its current form. In October, Russia and China blocked a Western-backed draft resolution condemning Assad's government for its crackdown on protesters.

Downing Street said: "We believe that the UN must act to support the people of Syria and that Russia can no longer explain blocking the UN and providing cover for the regime's brutal repression."

A spokeswoman added: "There is hope to agree a UN Security Council resolution this week and to make it very clear to President Assad and his regime that the killing must stop.

"We've been working in New York to support a text drafted by Arab members of the Security Council, which promotes a regional approach to the crisis.

"The Foreign Secretary is travelling to New York to show support for the Arab League and their work to bring a peaceful and Syrian-led solution to the current crisis."

Russia's Foreign Ministry says it has invited Syrian authorities and opposition for talks in Moscow.

The ministry said in a statement on Monday that Syrian authorities have already agreed to come. The ministry is hoping that opposition leaders will send their reply in the coming days. The opposition has balked at holding talks with the regime, saying the violence must end first.

World’s 1st wall-to-wall map for carbon estimation

2012-01-30T07:17:00.001-08:00

Using a combination of remote sensing and field data, researchers have produced the first-of-its kind wall-to-wall map that can give accurate estimates of carbon storage of forests, shrublands, and savannas in the tropics of Africa, Asia, and South America.

The study by scientists from Woods Hole Research Center (WHRC), Boston University, and the University of Maryland revealed that tropical vegetation contains 21 percent more carbon than previous studies had suggested.

The colour of the map - with a spatial resolution of 500 m x 500 m- represent the amount of carbon density stored in the vegetation in a continuum fashion, which can help in understanding the amount of carbon released into the atmosphere by changes in land cover and land use.

Based on new data in this study, researchers believe that current models may overestimate the net flux of carbon into the atmosphere due to tropical vegetation loss by 11 to 12 percent.

For countries trying to meet their greenhouse gases reporting requirements under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), these new data are particularly important.

Lead author Alessandro Baccini, an assistant scientist at WHRC, explained that the new data set provides a spatially and temporally consistent estimate of carbon stock and a stronger foundation for estimating carbon emissions by better characterizing the carbon density of the forest that has been lost.

“For the first time we were able to derive accurate estimates of carbon densities using satellite LiDAR observations in places that have never been measured,” said Baccini.

“This is like having a consistent, very dense pantropical forest inventory.”

In many developing nations, deforestation is the largest source of emissions of greenhouse gases.

In order to reliably report emissions to the UNFCCC, and to participate in international schemes such as Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+), which provides compensation for avoiding deforestation, these countries need an accurate way to calculate stored carbon and to track deforestation and reforestation.

“The paper is important for two reasons,” said co-author and WHRC senior scientist Richard A. Houghton.

“First, it provides a high-resolution map of aboveground biomass density for the world''s tropical forests. Previous maps were of much coarser resolution and yielded wildly different estimates of both regional totals and spatial distribution.

“Second, the paper calculates a new estimate of carbon emissions from land-use change in the tropics,” Houghton added. This was done using the co-location of biomass density and deforestation to assign a more representative carbon density to the forests cleared.

Previous estimates used ‘average’ biomass densities that may have biased emissions'' estimates. In short, the approach will lead to better tracking of changes in biomass density resulting from degradation and growth.

Molecules that gave birth to life itself recreated

2012-01-30T07:10:00.000-08:00

Scientists have for the first time recreated sugar molecules that gave birth to life itself, a breakthrough they say could soon lead them to understanding the origin of life better.

Researchers at the University of York and the University of Nottingham have recreated a pair of simple sugars molecules -- threose and erythrose -- in a process which could have occurred before the advent of life.

Dr Paul Clarke, who led the research, said they have made the first step towards showing how the basic building blocks of life developed.

"There are a lot of fundamental questions about the origins of life and many people think they are questions about biology," Dr Clarke said.

"But for life to have evolved, you have to have a moment when non-living things become living - everything up to that point is chemistry. We are trying to understand the chemical origins of life," he was quoted as saying by the Daily Mail.

According to the researchers, every biological molecule has an ability to exist in a left-handed form or right-handed form. All sugars in biology are made up of the right-handed form of molecules and yet all the amino acids that make up the peptides and proteins are made up of the left-handed form.

But, they found using simple left-handed amino acids to catalyse the formation of sugars resulted in the production of the predominantly right-handed form of sugars.

The finding, published in journal 'Organic & Biomolecular Chemistry', could explain how carbohydrates originated and why the right-handed form dominates in nature, they said.

Dr Clarke said: "For life to have evolved, you have to have a moment when non-living things become living, everything up to that point is chemistry.

"One of the interesting questions is where carbohydrates come from because they are the building blocks of DNA and RNA.

What we have achieved is the first step on that pathway to show how simple sugars -- threose and erythrose -- originated.

"We generated these sugars from a very simple set of materials that most scientists believe were around at the time that life began."

The research has echoes of the landmark Miller-Urey study in 1952, which simulated hypothetical conditions that may have been present on early Earth.

It showed how the building blocks of life can form from simple chemical reactions - for example, electrical activity like that associated with lightning can prompt the formation of amino acids.

US aid for security budget will be cut, Afghans warned

2012-01-29T18:43:00.000-08:00

America's financial contribution to the build-up of Afghanistan's security forces is "unsustainable" and will be cut as foreign forces complete a phased withdrawal from the country, a top US diplomat has said.

The warning came as President Hamid Karzai sought reassurance from David Cameron that Britain would maintain its financial commitment to Afghanistan during a weekend meeting at Chequers.

The pair signed an updated "enduring strategic partnership" agreement that details British contributions to efforts to establish security and stability in Afghanistan.

However, the US, which contributes 90 per cent of the Afghan security budget, is expected to more than half its current $12 billion contribution after 2014.

"We cannot sustain that funding over the long term nor can the United States be the only country for sustaining that," Ivo Daalder, the US ambassador to Nato, told a briefing of journalists in London.

"We are looking at finding a force level and size that is sufficient for the needs of the Afghans and we are working with the Afghans to decide what would be more or less that size."

He also said the current level of Afghan army and police was only a termporary "surge" to deal with the insurgency. "We are in the middle of an insurgency, do you need that kind of force, could you do with less? Hopefully the security situation in two or three years will be different."

It is understood Afghan forces could shrink by a third to 250,000.

Leading Afghan analysts have warned of the dangers of a rapid reduction in Western support. "Afghan forces are not self-sufficient yet," said Abdul Hadi Khalid, Afghanistan's former interior minister and a military analyst. "They still need more training, more equipment and they need to be stronger."

If funding becomes severely depleted the country could sink back into the civil war. When the Russians pulled out of Afghanistan in 1989, they continued financing its government and forces for another three years. When the money stopped, the country was almost instantly consumed by conflict.

Brig Ben Barry, a senior fellow at the Institute of Strategic Studies, said: "If the political and security situation of Afghanistan after 2015 requires Afghan security forces that cannot be afforded, that is going to be a major risk."

Washington currently spends $130 billion a year in Afghanistan and each US soldier costs $1 million a year.

The Afghan government is expected to require about $7 billion a year in outside help and will not be able to pay for its own military for years.

President Barack Obama will host a Nato summit in Chicago in May to discuss troop numbers and financing.

Iran predicts global oil prices to soar by 50 per cent

2012-01-29T18:41:00.000-08:00

Iranian officials predicted that global oil prices would soar by 50 per cent in the wake of EU sanctions as the country's oil minister declared exports to "some countries" would be cut off.

In what will be seen as evidence of brinksmanship, Iran's parliament postponed debate on a proposal immediately to halt oil deliveries to the EU, which accounts for 20 per cent of Tehran's exports of crude.

Despite postponing the parliamentary debate, Rostam Qasemi, Iran's energy minister, promised that exports to some countries, which he did not name, would be ended "soon".

Experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency arrived in Tehran on a three-day mission to investigate the suspected military dimensions of Iran's nuclear programme to a flurry of anti-Western invective.

A damning report released by the body in November accused Iran of military-related atomic activities for the first time.

The visit comes when Iran's relationship with the West is a fraught as at any time in recent years after the regime reacted with fury to a decision by the EU and the US this month to sanction the country's central bank and oil sector.

With the sanctions carrying the potential to trigger a deep economic crisis in the country, Iran has responded with a mixture of belligerence and conciliation.

That the government of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iran's prime minister, has allowed the inspectors in at all has angered hardliners.

Demonstrator met the inspectors at Tehran's airport carrying photographs of a nuclear scientist assassinated in the city earlier this month.

Ali Akhbar Salehi, the Iranian foreign minister who is seen as relatively moderate, spoke of his optimism about the IAEA's visit, promising that all the inspectors' questions would be answered.

"We have nothing to hide and Iran has no clandestine activities," he said.

But the hawkish speaker of parliament, Ali Larijani, was more hostile, threatening that Iran would sever relations with the IAEA if it showed that it was a "tool" of the West.

The EU is phasing in its sanctions on importing Iranian oil over six months to allow economically troubled Greece, Italy and Spain, Tehran's biggest European customers, to find alternative markets.

By seeking to pre-empt the sanctions, Iran had hoped to prove that the EU would suffer the more painful consequences from an embargo. A pre-emptive step could also cost some European energy firms who have paid for Iranian oil in advance more than a billion pounds But there is little doubt that Iran would suffer too. Although China and India could conceivably take up the excess oil, they would only do so at a heavily discounted price.

Ahmed Qalabani, the deputy oil minister, boasted that measures to curtail exports would send oil prices soaring to between $120-150 a barrel, up from $108 yesterday.

"We will not leave enemies' sanctions unanswered and we will impose other sanctions on them in addition to closing Iran's oil supplies to Europe," said Mohammed Karim Abedi, a senior Iranian legislator, who added that an ban on oil sales to the EU would last between five and 15 years.

New York police in fresh clashes with Occupy protesters

2012-01-29T18:38:00.000-08:00

Police and protesters have clashed in New York as the Occupy Wall Street demonstrations flare into life after weeks of inactivity.

Workers clean-up Zuccotti Park after New York City police in riot gear removed Occupy Wall Street protesters

Debris was pulled into the streets by marchers who headed from the north of Manhattan downtown towards the Financial District.

There were unconfirmed reports of a number of arrests, with claims that the police had used stun guns against marchers.
It came as hundreds of people were arrested in Oakland, California on Saturday following another OWS demonstration.

Protesters took to social media to call for donations to help with legal costs.

The protest movement had appeared to wind down since the turn of the year, with OWS abandoning a legal challenge to an eviction notice which barred protesters from Manhattan's Zuccotti Park, where they had been camping near to Wall Street since the demonstrations began last year.

Twitter's new censorship plans face opposition

2012-01-29T05:56:00.000-08:00

Twitter, a tool of choice for dissidents and activists around the world, found itself the target of global outrage after unveiling plans to allow country-specific censorship of tweets that might break local laws.

It was a stunning role reversal for a youthful company that prides itself in promoting unfettered expression, 140 characters at a time. Twitter insisted its commitment to free speech remains firm, and sought to explain the nuances of its policy, while critics — in a barrage of tweets — proposed a Twitter boycott and demanded that the censorship initiative be scrapped.

"This is very bad news," tweeted Egyptian activist Mahmoud Salem, who operates under the name Sandmonkey. Later, he wrote, "Is it safe to say that (hash)Twitter is selling us out?"

In China, where activists have embraced Twitter even though it's blocked inside the country, artist and activist Ai Weiwei tweeted in response to the news: "If Twitter censors, I'll stop tweeting."

One often-relayed tweet bore the headline of a Forbes magazine technology blog item: "Twitter Commits Social Suicide"

San Francisco-based Twitter, founded in 2006, depicted the new system as a step forward. Previously, when Twitter erased a tweet, it vanished throughout the world. Under the new policy, a tweet breaking a law in one country can be taken down there and still be seen elsewhere.

Twitter said it will post a censorship notice whenever a tweet is removed and will post the removal requests it receives from governments, companies and individuals at the website chillingeffects.org.

The critics are jumping to the wrong conclusions, said Alexander Macgilliviray, Twitter's general counsel.

"This is a good thing for freedom of expression, transparency and accountability," he said. "This launch is about us keeping content up whenever we can and to be extremely transparent with the world when we don't. I would hope people realize our philosophy hasn't changed."

Some defenders of Internet free expression came to Twitter's defense.

"Twitter is being pilloried for being honest about something that all Internet platforms have to wrestle with," said Cindy Cohn, legal director of the Electronic Frontier Foundation. "As long as this censorship happens in a secret way, we're all losers."

State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland credited Twitter with being upfront about the potential for censorship and said some other companies are not as forthright.

As for whether the new policy would be harmful, Nuland said that wouldn't be known until after it's implemented.

Reporters Without Borders, which advocates globally for press freedom, sent a letter to Twitter's executive chairman, Jack Dorsey, urging that the censorship policy be ditched immediately.

"By finally choosing to align itself with the censors, Twitter is depriving cyberdissidents in repressive countries of a crucial tool for information and organization," the letter said. "Twitter's position that freedom of expression is interpreted differently from country to country is unacceptable."

Reporters Without Borders noted that Twitter was earning praise from free-speech advocates a year ago for enabling Egyptian dissidents to continue tweeting after the Internet was disconnected.

"We are very disappointed by this U-turn now," it said.

Twitter said it has no plans to remove tweets unless it receives a request from government officials, companies or another outside party that believes the message is illegal. No message will be removed until an internal review determines there is a legal problem, according to Macgilliviray.

"It's a thing of last resort," he said. "The first thing we do is we try to make sure content doesn't get withheld anywhere. But if we feel like we have to withhold it, then we are transparent and we will withhold it narrowly."

Macgilliviray said the new policy has nothing to do with a recent $300 million investment by Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Mac or any other financial contribution.

In its brief existence, Twitter has established itself as one of the world's most powerful megaphones. Streams of tweets have played pivotal roles in political protests throughout the world, including the Occupy Wall Street movement in the United States and the Arab Spring uprisings in Egypt, Bahrain, Tunisia and Syria.

Indeed, many of the tweets calling for a boycott of Twitter on Saturday — using the hashtag (hash)TwitterBlackout — came from the Middle East.

"This decision is really worrying," said Larbi Hilali, a pro-democracy blogger and tweeter from Morocco. "If it is applied, there will be a Twitter for democratic countries and a Twitter for the others."

In Cuba, opposition blogger Yoani Sanchez said she would protest Saturday with a one-day personal boycott of Twitter.

"Twitter will remove messages at the request of governments," she tweeted. "It is we citizens who will end up losing with these new rules ... ."

In the wake of the announcement, cyberspace was abuzz with suggestions for how any future country-specific censorship could be circumvented. Some Twitter users said this could be done by employing tips from Twitter's own help center to alter one's "Country" setting. Other Twitter users were skeptical that this would work.

While Twitter has embraced its role as a catalyst for free speech, it also wants to expand its audience from about 100 million active users now to more than 1 billion. Doing so may require it to engage with more governments and possibly to face more pressure to censor tweets; if it defies a law in a country where it has employees, those people could be arrested.

Theoretically, such arrests could occur even in democracies — for example, if a tweet violated Britain's strict libel laws or the prohibitions in France and Germany against certain pro-Nazi expressions.

"It's a tough problem that a company faces once they branch out beyond one set of offices in California into that big bad world out there," said Rebecca MacKinnon of Global Voices Online, an international network of bloggers and citizen journalists. "We'll have to see how it plays out — how it is and isn't used."

MacKinnon said some other major social networks already employ geo-filtering along the lines of Twitter's new policy — blocking content in a specific jurisdiction for legal reasons while making it available elsewhere.

Many of the critics assailing the new policy suggested that it was devised as part of a long-term plan for Twitter to enter China, where its service is currently blocked.

China's Communist Party remains highly sensitive to any organized challenge to its rule and responded sharply to the Arab Spring, cracking down last year after calls for a "Jasmine Revolution" in China. Many Chinese nonetheless find ways around the so-called Great Firewall that has blocked social networking sites such as Facebook.

Google for several years agreed to censor its search results in China to gain better access to the country's vast population, but stopped that practice two years after engaging in a high-profile showdown with Chain's government. Google now routes its Chinese search results through Hong Kong, where the censorship rules are less restrictive.

Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt declined to comment on Twitter's action and instead limited his comments to his own company.

"I can assure you we will apply our universally tough principles against censorship on all Google products," he told reporters in Davos, Switzerland.

Google's chief legal officer, David Drummond, said it was a matter of trying to adhere to different local laws.

"I think what they (Twitter officials) are wrestling with is what all of us wrestle with — and everyone wants to focus on China, but it is actually a global issue — which is laws in these different countries vary," Drummond said.

"Americans tend to think copyright is a real bad problem, so we have to regulate that on the Internet. In France and Germany, they care about Nazis' issues and so forth," he added. "In China, there are other issues that we call censorship. And so how you respect all the laws or follow all the laws to the extent you think they should be followed while still allowing people to get the content elsewhere?"

Craig Newman, a New York lawyer and former journalist who has advised Internet companies on censorship issues, said Twitter's new policy and the subsequent backlash are both understandable, given the difficult ethical issues at stake.

On one hand, he said, Twitter could put its employees in peril if it was deemed to be breaking local laws.

"On the other hand, Twitter has become this huge social force and people view it as some sort of digital town square, where people can say whatever they want," he said. "Twitter could have taken a stand and refused to enter any countries with the most restrictive laws against free speech."

Barack Obama is trying to make the US a more socialist state

2012-01-29T05:41:00.001-08:00

The ideas the President outlined in the State of the Union are based on the very model that is causing the EU to implode.

President Barack Obama delivers the State of the Union address in Washington. He pledged to fight for a 'fairer America'

What was it everybody used to say about the United States? Look at what’s happening over there and you will see our future. Whatever Americans are doing now, we will be catching up with them in another 10 years or so. In popular culture or political rhetoric, America led the fashion and we tagged along behind.

Well, so much for that. Barack Obama is now putting the United States squarely a decade behind Britain. Listening to the President’s State of the Union message last week was like a surreal visit to our own recent past: there were, almost word for word, all those interminable Gordon Brown Budgets that preached “fairness” while listing endless new ways in which central government would intervene in every form of economic activity.

Later, in a television interview, Mr Obama described his programme of using higher taxes on the wealthy to bankroll new government spending as “a recipe for a fair, sound approach to deficit reduction and rebuilding this country”. To which we who come from the future can only shout, “No‑o-o, go back! Don’t come down this road!”

As we try desperately to extricate ourselves from the consequences of that philosophy, which sounds so eminently reasonable (“giving everybody a fair share”, the President called it), we could tell America a thing or two – if it would only listen. Human beings are so much more complicated than this childlike conception of fairness assumes. When government takes away an ever larger proportion of the wealth which entrepreneurial activity creates and attempts to distribute it “fairly” (that is to say, evenly) throughout society in the form of welfare programmes and public spending projects, the effects are much, much more complex and perverse than a simple financial equation would suggest.

It is probably obvious that the people from whom the wealth is taken will become less willing to incur the risks that entrepreneurial investment involves – and so will produce less wealth, and thus less tax revenue. But more surprising, perhaps, are the damaging changes that take place in the beneficiaries of this “fairness” and the permanent effect this has on the balance of power between government and the people.

There is, it turns out, a huge difference between being provided with a livelihood and feeling that you have earned it. The assumption that all the wealth that individuals create belongs, by moral right, to the state, to spend on benefits or phoney job creation schemes (sorry, public infrastructure projects), is proving phenomenally difficult to expunge in Britain, so ineradicably has it embedded itself in the public consciousness.

In the US, it has had only odd historical moments of favour (Roosevelt’s New Deal, Lyndon Johnson’s “Great Society”), which have been beaten back consistently by the dynamism of a country that sees its existential purpose as being to foster and promote individual achievement and self-belief. It is bizarre that Obama should be regarded (or should regard himself) as a kind-of European who is trying to bring a sophisticated kind-of socialism to American economic life, complete with government-run health care and “fair” (high) taxes on the wealthy. If his European credentials were up to date, he would know that this was precisely the social model that is causing the EU to implode, and whose hopeless contradictions the best economic minds on the Continent are attempting, unsuccessfully, to resolve.

A vendetta against the “wealthy” is one of Obama’s favourite themes, and it strikes a peculiarly familiar note. Back here, Nick Clegg is arguing (rightly) that a tax cut for the lower paid should be accelerated on both moral and economic grounds – because people are struggling, and because allowing them to keep and spend more of their earnings would stimulate growth. But he wants to balance this with a wealth tax or some such penalty on “the rich”. Both Obama and Clegg, by an extraordinary coincidence, used the same semantic trick to try to prove the injustice of their present tax systems. In his State of the Union address, the President slipped subliminally from the fact that his likely presidential opponent Mitt Romney paid tax at a lower rate (because his income came from profits and dividends which were taxed as capital gains) than his secretary (who would have paid income tax), to the claim that Mr Romney paid less tax than his secretary.

Mr Clegg made exactly the same charge against a putative hedge fund manager who “paid less tax” than his cleaner, neatly obscuring the fact that it was the rate of tax that was lower, not the amount which was paid. Needless to say, both Mr Romney and the imagined hedge-fund manager pay vastly more tax than their respective secretaries and cleaners. (The top 1 per cent of earners pay nearly a third of all federal taxes in the US.)

So what does this kind of verbal trick tell us about the honesty – or the desperation – of this argument? At the very least, it is crass populism designed to provoke a particularly counterproductive form of class resentment. What is needed here and in the US are tax cuts for the many, not the few, to adapt Mr Brown, and less demonising of the sorts of people who are able to invest and create the real wealth that will be our only chance for economic salvation.

Obama is clearly living the Left-liberal dream, which still survives in small pockets of American life. He wants to import the democratic socialism that Europe embraced after the war, which was, for European cultural reasons, imbued with aristocratic paternalism and Marxist notions of bourgeois guilt. But neither of these things are part of the American historical experience. The Left-wing intellectuals, including Obama himself, who adopt this language are talking dangerously uninformed rubbish: if democratic socialism was ever a solution to Europe’s problems (and the present crisis is making that seem less and less likely), it is certainly not an answer to any question that Americans are likely to ask.

The United States is a country that was invented to allow people to be free of domination or persecution by the state. Its constitution and political institutions are specifically designed to prevent the federal government from oppressing the rights, or undermining the sense of responsibility, of the individual citizen. If it ceases to stand by that principle, then it will suffer a catastrophic loss of purpose and identity – as well as making a quite remarkably stupid and unnecessary mistake.

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.