Amazing Photos |Amazing Facts | Latest News |Today's News Headlines |Current Breaking News

Beverly Clock

2011-09-24T11:11:00.002-08:00

Running since 1864, this clock has yet to be wound, possibly the longest running science experiment known

Despite many attempts, and many claims, of having built a perpetual motion machine, (see Steorn's recent Orbo device) no one has, for one very simple reason. They are impossible.

Not impossible however, is a device which uses available energy, solar or water for example, to do its work for it. Not so much a perpetual motion device, as just a very efficient (or should you be feeling judgmental, lazy) machine.

Such is the Beverly Clock, a clock invented in 1864 by Arthur Beverly and located in the foyer of the Department of Physics at the University of Otago in Dunedin, New Zealand. Run on atmospheric pressure and changes in the temperature, an airtight box inside the clock expands and contracts throughout the day pushing on a diaphram. It takes only a six-degree Celsius temperature variation over a day to raise a one-pound weight an inch. This in turn descends, powering the clock.

Despite having never been wound, the clock has indeed stopped running a number of times due to mechanical failure, for cleaning, and on a few occasions when the temperature and atmospheric pressure has remained steady for very long periods of time.

Despite this, because the mechanism continues to function, the Beverly clock is considered one of the worlds longest running experiments, and is the closest anyone will ever see to a "perpetual motion machine."

Join us on Obscura Day - March 20th, 2010 - at the University of Otago physics department where Paul Yates will put on an afternoon of scientific wonder, with an explanation of the Beverly clock, followed by demonstrations of a water manometer, equipment belonging to radio pioneer Robert Jack, a Wimshurst electrostatic generator, cloud chambers showing radioactive decay, as well as liquid nitrogen demonstrations.

Top 10 Castles of the World

2011-09-24T11:06:00.002-08:00

Neuschwanstein Castle

Royal palace in the Bavarian Alps of Germany, the most famous of three royal palaces built for Louis II of Bavaria, sometimes referred to as Mad King Ludwig, who grew up nearby at Hohenschwangau Castle. And my favourite and most beautiful of all

PALACE OF VERSAILLES

The Palace of Versailles was the official residence of the Kings of France from 1682 until 1790. It was originally a hunting lodge, built in 1624, by Louis XIII. It was expanded by Louis XIV beginning in 1669. He used it as a little lodge as a secret refuge for his amorous trysts with the lovely Louise de la Valliere and built a fairy tale park around it. Jules Hardouin Mansart, the king’s principal architect, drew the plans to enlarge what was turning more and more into a palace from A Thousand and One Nights. The terrace that overlooked the gardens was removed to make way for the magnificent Hall of Mirrors, the Galarie de Glaces. It is here from which the king radiated his power and where the destiny of Europe was decided over a century. The French classical architecture was complemented by extensive gardens.

CHENONCEAU

Chenonceaux, small agricultural community in the department of Indre-et-Loire in northwestern France,18 miles east of Tours. Located on the Cher River. Chenonceaux is best known as the site of the 16th-century Chateau de Chenonceaux, which is situated on the north bank of the river.
In 1515 Thomas Bohier, revenue collector for King Francis I, began the construction of the Chateau de Chenonceaux. Unfinished at the time of his death, construction of the chateau was completed by Bohier’s wife and son. In 1535, however, Francis I took the estate in payment of debts. King Henry II, son of Francis I, gave the chateaux to Diane de Poitiers, duchesse de Valentinois, who extended the structure by a bridge across the Cher. Catherine de Medicis, widow of Henry II, forced Diane de Poitiers to deed the chateaux to her. Catherine de Medicis constructed the gallery above the bridge and the stables known as the Batiment-des-Dames. The chateau became her favorite residence, and it was there that her son Francis II and Mary, Queen of Scots, were married in 1560.

The Chateau of Chambord

Chambord, chateau, park, and village in the department of Loire-et-Cher in central France. The chateau of Chambord was a retreat for French kings, especially Louis XIV It was under his auspices that French dramatist Moliere’s Monsieur de Pourceaugnac and Le bourgeois Gentilhomme were first produced there.

Linderhof

Ludwig II built this secluded hunting lodge, it was known as the Kings Hut. Ludwig decided that this will be a New Versailles. It was planned as a modest villa but had become a splendid Rococo palace in the ornate French style. Linderhof is the smallest of the three royal castles, and the only one which was completely finished. (1878).

Tower of London

Castle building was an essential part of the Norman Conquest; when Duke William of Normandy invaded England in 1066 his first action after landing was to build a castle.After his coronation in Westminster Abbey on Christmas Day 1066, William ordered the construction of a castle in London for his triumphal entry. nitially the Tower had consisted of a modest enclosure built into the south-east corner of the Roman City walls, but by the late 1070s, with the initial completion of the White Tower, it had become the most fearsome of all. Nothing had been seen like it in England before. It was built by Norman masons and English (Anglo-Saxon) labor drafted in from the countryside. It was intended to protect the river route from Danish attack, but also and more importantly to dominate the City physically and visually.The White Tower was protected to the east and south by the old Roman City walls (a full height fragment can be seen just by Tower Hill underground station), while the north and west sides were protected by ditches as much as 750m (25ft) wide and 3.40m (lift) deep and an earthwork with a wooden wall on top. It is important for us today to remember that the functions of the Tower from the 1070s until the late 19th century were established by its Norman founders. The Tower was never primarily intended to protect London from external invasion, although, of course, it could have done so if necessary. Nor was it ever intended to be the principal residence of the kings and queens of England, though many did in fact spend periods of time there. Its primary function was always to provide a base for royal power in the City of London and a stronghold to which the royal family could retreat in times of civil disorder.

Leeds, Kent

Leeds Castle, acclaimed as the most romantic castle in England, is located in south-east England, built on two adjacent island in the river Len.Leeds Castle was originally a manor of the Saxon royal family possibly as early as the reign of Ethelbert IV ( 856-860). The first castle was an earthwork enclosure whose wooden palisade was converted to stone and provided with two towers along the perimeter. This is now vanished. Traces of arches in a vault thought to be Norman were found at the beginning of this century. Around 1119 Robert Crevecoeur started to build a stone castle on the site, establishing his donjon where the Gloriette now is. Stephen, Count of Blois, and his cousin the Empress Matilda contested the crown of England. In 1139 Matilda invaded England with the help of his brother Robert, Earl of Gloucester, who held Leeds castle, but Kent was loyal to king Stephen and following a short siege he took control of the castle.The castle came into the possession of Edward I (1278) . He rebuilt much of the castle as it stood at the beginning of his reign, and enlarged it, providing an outer stone curtain round the edge of the larger island, with cylindrical open-backed flanking towers and a square-plan water-gate on the south-east. The gatehouse at the south-west, a single tower pierced by an arched passage was improved.Henry VIII, the most famous of all the owners of Leeds Castles, expended large sums in enlarging and beautifying the whole range of buildings. At the same time, he carefully retained the defenses of the castle for he often had cause to fear invasion from either France or the Spanish . The king entrusted the work of alteration to his great friend Sir Henry Guidford.Leeds has been constantly inhabited and rebuilt since then. Most of the castle today is the result of the nineteenth-century reconstruction and addition.

Blois

Dominating the Loire River, the royal castle of Blois is not only one of the most prestigious Renaissance monuments in France but also a brilliant illustration of the evolution of the French architecture from the Middle ages to the 17th century.About the middle of the 10th century, the name of Thibaud I is recorded Count of Blois, he was the founder of the family who remained in power until 1230. Blois became the most important town in the region. The first stone castle was built to protect the town dates back to that period. An independent bastion surrounded the castle, and followed the line of the headland on which it was erected. The numerous medieval remains still exists. The best preserved medieval tower is situated on a terrace overlooking the Loire.While the Franco-Anglo was (named the Hundred Years War) raged in the real, an event took place that determined the future of the county of Blois, the ancient fortress became a royal castle. At the end of the 14th. century, the county of Blois was sold to Prince Louis of Orleans, son of the king of France Charles V. He lived in the castle for 25 years attracting a small court of scholars and poets. His grandson, Louis XII became king of France in 1498 and decided to move to Blois, in this way, the small town became a royal town and the capital of the Kingdom.Under Louis XII and Francis I the town of Blois grew considerably. But after the disaster of Pavia in 1525, Francis I never returned to Blois and his successors only paid short visits to the town. According to French and Gothic tradition, the initials and emblems of the owners of the place are sculptured in the stone: fleur de lis for the king and ermine spots for the queen, Anne de Bretagne. The equestrian statue of the king crowns the main entrance of the castle. The emblem of the king, the salamander, is sculptured eleven times in high relief on the Francis I facade. The staircase, which was at the center of the facade before Gaston d”Orleans began to modify the castle is a masterpiece. When the Italianate straight flights of stairs appeared in the Loire Valley after the Gothic period, the shape of the spiral staircase in a protruding octagonal cage was considered rather ordinary. The staircase, with its three floors of balconies looking on to the Court of Honor, is perfectly suitable for the display of more and more sumptuous ceremonies.

Nymphenburg

The former summer residence of the rulers of Bavaria is located in the west part of the city in the middle of one of Munich’s most beautiful parks. Five generations of Wittelsbach rulers were involved in the construction of this Baroque castle.
The building of Nymphenburg Castle began in the reign of the Elector Ferdinand Maria: overjoyed by the birth of his son and heir, Max Emanuel, he had the central section built for his wife in the style of an Italian villa (Agostino Barelli, 1664-74). In about 1700, Max Emanuel commissioned Enrico Zuccali and Antonio Viscardi to extend the castle by adding galleries and pavilions.The central section owes its present appearance to the efforts of Josef Effner, who in 1715, designed the pilasters, arched windows and busts that now grace the exterior. A few years later, the south section of the castle was added to serve as the court stables. As a counterpart, the orangerie was added to the north.Central section: Stone Hall (Steinerner Saal; 1755-57) with ceiling frescoes by J. B. and F Zimmermann (Homage to the Goddess Hora); the Rococo stucco work is based on designs by Cuvillies.

Mont St. Michael

Le Mont-Saint-Michel, rocky, cone-shaped islet in northwestern France, in the Gulf of Saint-Malo, connected by a causeway with the mainland. The islet, celebrated for its Benedictine abbey, has small houses and shops on its lowest level. Above these stand the monastic buildings, many of which date from the 13th century and are considered outstanding examples of Gothic architecture. The entire islet is crowned by the abbey church, about 73 m (about 240 ft) above sea level.The first chapel on this site was founded in 708 by Aubert, Bishop of Avranches , after the Archangel Michael has appeared to him in a dream. The Archangel Michel appeared here in the year 708. The Abbey takes the name of Mont saint Michel. The oratory, consecrated in 709 was served by a community of canons. It apparently survived the Norman invasions, but the observance of the rule became very relaxed. In 966 Richard I, Duke of Normandy, established there the Benedictine monks from St. Wandrille Abbeyunder the direction of Abbot Maynard, who began the reconstructions of the church and other buildings. The church was burnt in 922 and rebuilt on a larger scale by Abbot Hildebert II from 1023, at the time of the monastic reforms in Normandy carried out by Richard II and William of Volpiano. Mont Saint-Michel was built in a strong rock that measures 84 meters height. It is pure granite and is so hard that has resisted the passage of time.Mont Saint Michel was built as a medieval castle. It has two large towers to defend the entrance to the castle. St. Michael is a surety for freedom and thus this sanctuary also became a symbol of the allied landing in Normandy during the Second World War.

Bill Gates : Facts

2011-09-24T10:35:00.001-08:00

Facts - 1995

1. Bill Gates earns US$250 every SECOND, that's about US$20 Million a DAY and US$7.8 Billion a YEAR!

2. If he drops a thousand dollar, he won't even bother to pick it up bcoz the 4 seconds he picks it, he would've already earned it back.

3. The US national debt is about 5.62 trillion, if Bill Gates were to pay the debt by himself; he will finish it in less then 10 years.

(Read more facts after the break......

4. He can donate US$15 to everyone on earth but still be left with US$5 Million for his pocket money.

5. Michael Jordan is the highest paid athlete in US. If he doesn't drink and eat, and keeps up his annual income i.e. US$30 Million, he'll have to wait for 277 years to become as rich as Bill Gates is now.

6. If Bill Gates was a country, he would be the 37th richest country on earth.

7. If you change all of Bill Gate's money to US$1 notes, you can make a road from earth to moon, 14 times back and forth. But you have to make that road non-stop for 1,400 years, and use a total of 713 BOEING 747 planes to transport all the money.

8. Bill Gates is 40 this year. If we assume that he will live for another 35 years, he has to spend US$6.78 Million per day to finish all his money before he can go to heaven.

Last but not the least: If Microsoft Windows' users can claim US$1 for every time their computers hang because of Microsoft Windows, Bill Gates will be bankrupt in 3 years !!!!!!!

In Cage With A Lioness

2011-09-24T10:21:00.001-08:00

Do you think predators are dangerous and need to be avoided? Well, there are people who will disagree with you.

An animal painter Alexander Pylyschenko who owns a small private zoo in Ukraine set his mind to stay inside the cage with a pregnant lioness Katya for 5 weeks and even help her deliver the cub.

Alexander came to know about the record set by an American zoologist and insists on beating the record. Money he can get will be spent on food for his animals.

The cage has a shower and WC. Alexander is going to sleep on a straw carpet and eat as often as the animals in the cage do. The cage is also equipped with 3 cameras broadcasting the events happening inside to a special site that was created for the project.

His wife is worried for her husband. According to her words, Katya has been with this family for 9 years and loves Alexander a lot. But the thing is that she is s predator and it’s not possible to predict her behavior. Alexander has no place to hide and the entire project is based on trust.

During the month that will be spent in the cage Alexander will paint pictures and talk to his friends who promised to come every day.

10 World Biggest Holes on Earth

2011-09-24T10:17:00.001-08:00

Mirny Diamond Mine of Siberia

It is believed that holes are wrath of god on this earth and are pathway to hell. Most people reading this would agree but here it is certainly not the case. Holes created in different parts of the world either due to human works like mining, as sum of these are diamond mine shafts that have been abandoned or due to wrath of god as we all know through meteor shower or something similar falling that made the dinosaurs extinct are today popular vacation spots as they are a visual extravaganza.

Whether it’s the Great Blue Hole of Belize, Mirny Diamond Mine of Siberia or the Burning Gates of Turkmenistan, all of these attract a hell lot of tourists and adventure seekers every year just to get a glimpse and experience the ultimate souvenir of nature. Check these cool pictures.

Great Blue Hole – Belize

Burning Gates of Turkmenistan

Kimberley Big Hole - South Africa

Bingham Canyon Mine – Utah

Glory Hole in Monticello Dam California

Diavik Diamond Mine – Canada

Guatemala Sinkhole

Chuquicamata Copper Mine – Chile

Udachnaya Pipe – Russia

Another Seven Wonders Of The World

2011-09-24T10:14:00.000-08:00

01 Banaue Rice Terraces (Philippines)

The Banaue Rice Terraces are 2000-year old terraces that were carved into the mountains of Ifugao in the Philippines by ancestors of the indigenous people. The Rice Terraces are commonly referred to by Filipinos as the "Eighth Wonder of the World". It is commonly thought that the terraces were built with minimal equipment, largely by hand. The terraces are located approximately 1500 meters (5000 ft) above sea level and cover 10,360 square kilometers (about 4000 square miles) of mountainside. They are fed by an ancient irrigation system from the rainforests above the terraces. It is said that if the steps are put end to end it would encircle half the globe.

Cargo Loading

2011-09-24T10:00:00.000-08:00

How to move the impossible — Cargo loading more

images after the break...

The Richest Royals in the World

2011-09-24T09:51:00.001-08:00

Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej, worth $30 billion

Here is a list of the world's richest kings, queens and other royals, according to Forbes’s new ranking.

More after the break...

Brunei's Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah, worth $20 billion

Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, worth $18 billion

UAE's President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahayan, $15 billion

Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, worth $4.5 billion

Liechtenstein's Prince Hans-Adam II, worth $3.5 billion

Morocco's King Mohammed VI, worth $2.5 billion

Qatar's Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, worth $2.4 billion

Prince Albert II of Monaco, worth $1 billion

His Highness the Aga Khan, worth $800 million

Oman's Sultan Qaboos bin Said, worth $700 million

Britain's Queen Elizabeth, worth $450 million

Kuwait's Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Ahmad Al Jaber Al-Sabah, worth $350 million

The Netherland's Queen Beatrix, worth $200 million

Swaziland's King Mswati III, worth $100 million

Old NASA satellite to crash to Earth today

2011-09-23T01:38:00.003-08:00

Defunct NASA satellite to crash to Earth Friday

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (Reuters) - A defunct NASA science satellite is expected to fall back to Earth on Friday, showering debris somewhere on the planet although scientists cannot predict exactly where, officials said.

The 6.5-ton Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite, or UARS, was carried into orbit during a space shuttle mission in 1991. It operated for 14 years, collecting measurements of ozone and other chemicals in the atmosphere.

Since completing its mission in 2005, UARS has been slowly losing altitude, tugged by Earth's gravity. On Friday, the 35-foot-long, 15-foot diameter (10.6-metres long, 4.5-metres diameter) satellite is expected to plunge into the atmosphere, NASA reported on its website.

While most of the spacecraft will be incinerated, scientists expect up to 26 pieces, with a combined mass of about 500 kg to survive the fiery re-entry and fall down somewhere on Earth.

The satellite's orbit passes over most of the planet, from as far north as northern Canada to the southern part of South America.

NASA said the chance a piece of UARS debris will strike a person is about one in 3,200. The debris will mostly likely fall into an ocean or land in an uninhabited region of Earth.

Satellites as large as UARS re-enter Earth's atmosphere about once a year.

NASA said there have been no reports of any deaths or injuries to people from falling debris.

The largest chunk of wreckage from UARS is expected to be about 151 kg, says Nicholas Johnson, chief scientist of NASA's Orbital Debris Program office at the Johnson Space Center in Houston.

Watch the slideshow for further details

The Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite, shown in this conceptual image, was launched in 1991 by space shuttle Discovery. The 35-foot-long, 15-foot-diameter UARS was decommissioned on December 14, 2005. The nearly 12,500-pound (5,668-kilogram) satellite will fall over a stretch of land more than 500 miles (804 kilometers) long somewhere between northern Canada and southern South America, said NASA officials.
NASA

What will Paris Hilton do in Mumbai?

2011-09-23T00:56:00.007-08:00

The Paris Hilton pocketbook to Mumbai

Paris Hilton, the world's most famous hotel heiress, known for her jet set lifestyle and celebrity status, will be paying a working visit to Mumbai between September 24 and 26.

Hilton's here to launch her handbags and accessories line with Brand Concepts, who also license Tommy Hilfiger and Barbie in India.

The collection will be unveiled at Inorbit Mall in Malad on September 25 where Hilton will greet fans, business partners and media.

"We are very excited to launch the Paris Hilton brand in India, which is the first celebrity lifestyle brand to launch in the country," said Abhinav Kumar, CEO of Brand Concepts.

Since this will be 30-year-old Paris Hilton's first trip to India, we've put together a quick guide for a three-day stay.

This is not just a list of most expensive places but is inspired by what her Tweets tell us she digs.

Partying: Aurus beach-side electro dancefloor

Aurus

Paris Hilton will love Aurus' star-studded crowd, electro DJs and beach views.

Whine as she might about people thinking she only dances on tabletops, it is no secret that Paris Hilton's two favorite party places in the world are St. Tropez and Ibiza.

Aurus, known for its packed weekends and posh crowds, would be the perfect spot for Hilton to mingle with Mumbai's most affluent. It's where Madonna hung with B-Town.

This Mumbai nightspot overlooking Juhu beach, hosts great food and the most original electro DJs to rival European standards, playing Deadmaus and David Guetta -- some of Paris Hilton's favorite acts.

Aurus starts Sunday Sundown sessions in October -- though Paris will have left by then.

Aurus, G/F, Nichani Kutir, Juhu Tara Road, Juhu;

Shopping: Glitzy Indian designers and boutiques

We recommend Pria Kataria Puri, The Collective and The Bombay Store. The Collective at the Palladium mall has movie-star worthy international brands such as J brand jeans, Juicy Couture and Vivienne Westwood -- Paris Hilton can also check out rival competition for her new accessories line. Eclectic fashion boutique Bombay Electric has a similar concept to Collete in Paris, which Hilton Tweeted she loves. She would also visit designer Pria Kataria Puri's store in Bandra to pick up more designs like the Pria dress she wore on her show "My new best friend." "She [Paris] also bought many more of my clothes to wear in Los Angeles -- she loved my collection and had most of the contestants dress in them for her show," says Puri. Also recommended for Hilton are Indian designers Falguni and Shane Peacock (who have also appealed to Jennifer Lopez and Britney Spears), Bollywood's celebrity fashion designer Manish Malhotra and master couturier Rohit Bal. Paris Hilton is also a fan of scrapbooking and creating albums for close friends, she says, as well as sketching designs. We recommend a trip to Chimanlals for hand-crafted papers and The Bombay Store for Indian related home decor, gifts, and stationery. Bombay Electric; Colaba, 1 Reay House, BEST Marg;

Hakkasan

Michelin-starred Hakkasan will be ideal for Paris Hilton's tastebuds. Paris Hilton, often spotted dining out at Japanese eateries, is a fan of pan-Asian cuisine and we think she'd be a regular at the newly-opened Hakkasan, designed by Paris-based Gilles & Boissier. Roughly a third of the menu is created from scratch for India, including the edadame dumplings and an Indian-roasted silver cod dish. There's also a Peking duck with Ossetra caviar on the menu. That's 30 grams of caviar and the dish requires 24 hours of prep time. Hakkasan's 16-meter back-lit blue bar, and box-like seating enables celebrities to control privacy. Other famous fans of the Michelin-starred Hakkasan include Beyoncé, Jay-Z and Lady Gaga. Hakkasan, Krystal, 206 Waterfield Road, Bandra (W)

Sleeping: Taj Mahal Palace suite

Ultra-chic suite with a gilded canopy and antique bed linens. While the Hilton might be the obvious option, the Taj Mahal Palace is one of Mumbai's most recognizable landmarks and the perennial hotel of choice for all celebrities and dignitaries. The Taj recently hosted Barack Obama, who booked out the entire hotel for his two-day Mumbai stay, all 570 rooms. While fans are sure to be queuing to see Paris Hilton, security will be an important factor in choosing where to stay, and this hotel (a target of the 26/11 terror attacks) is well-equipped for security threats. There are also panoramic views of the Gateway of India, the harbor and the sea, while the building itself is an architectural landmark. The Taj Mahal Hotel, P J Ramchandani Marg, Apollo Bandar;

Sightseeing: Mount Mary Church

Bandra's Mount Mary Church is one of Mumbai's oldest landmarks. Paris Hilton, who is a Roman Catholic, often Tweets about being inspired by sermons in her local church. If she's serious, we'd recommend visiting Mount Mary Church in Bandra. Built in 1640 in sight of the sea, this church holds the Bandra fair which celebrates the Virgin Mary's birthday every September. The church attracts all faiths, and this would suit Hilton who has dabbled in other religions including Zen Buddhism. Mount Mary Church also has had its share of celebrity visits such as B-town's Lara Dutta and Dino Morea. Mount Mary Church, Bandra (W)

Relaxing: Spa day with dog

Tinkerbell accompanies Paris Hilton on nearly all her travels.

Whether it's jet setting for movie premieres, film festivals or grands prix, Paris Hilton rarely leaves her adored pet chihuahua, Tinkerbell, behind.

She takes Tinkerbell very seriously. And that includes grooming.

Tinkerbell's routine salon experience would take place at Whiskers & Tails, which offers nail and skin care grooming, massages and aromatherapy for all dogs.

In the meantime, Paris can have her own spa day at the Taj Wellington Mews' Jiva Spa.

Taj Wellington Mews Jiva Spa, 33 Nathalal Parekh Marg, Colaba;

Whiskers & Tails, Sierra Towers, C-14, Lokhandwala Township, Kandivali East;

Tattoo girl to breathe fire soon

2011-09-23T00:35:00.002-08:00

The pace and quick cuts in 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo' trailer promises enough thrill

The fast-paced extended new trailer of David Fincher's 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo', promises enough action this Christmas and may well be as good as Niels Arden Oplev's earlier Swedish-language release. There is enough build-up in the promo as journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig) and hacker Lisbeth Salander (Rooney Mara) team up to solve a decades-old murder on a remote Swedish island.

Those who have read Stieg Larsson's original novel will be worried that Fincher might have taken certain liberties (The explicit scene where Lisbeth is torturing her guardian is not there) which may weaken the subplot showing Lisabeth's personal troubles. But then, if Fincher's film is to be a copy of Oplev's film, why bother seeing it?

For those not familiar with the story of 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo':

Disgraced journalist Mikael Blomkvist is hired by rich businessman Henrik Vanger to investigate the disappearance of Vanger's great-niece Harriet, who vanished 40 years ago. Henrik suspects that someone in his family murdered and disposed her body.

As soon as he starts his investigation, Mikael realizes that Harriet's disappearance is linked to series of gruesome murders which started before her disappearance. He meets a young computer hacker, Lisbeth Salander who has a history of violence. Together they investigate into the violent past of the secretive Vanger family.

As sparks fly, Pakistan warns US: "You will lose an ally

2011-09-23T00:30:00.003-08:00

ISLAMABAD/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Pakistan warned the United States it risks losing an ally if it continued to accuse Islamabad of playing a double game in the war against militancy, escalating the crisis in relations between the two countries.

Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar was responding to comments by U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen, who said Pakistan's top spy agency was closely tied to the Haqqani network, the most violent and effective faction among Islamic Taliban militants in Afghanistan.

It is the most serious allegation levelled by the United States against nuclear-armed and Muslim-majority Pakistan since they began an alliance in the war on terror a decade ago.

"You will lose an ally," Khar told Geo TV in New York in remarks broadcast on Friday.

"You cannot afford to alienate Pakistan, you cannot afford to alienate the Pakistani people. If you are choosing to do so and if they are choosing to do so it will be at their (the United States') own cost."

Mullen, speaking in Senate testimony, alleged Haqqani operatives launched an attack last week on the U.S. embassy in Kabul with the support of Pakistan's military intelligence.

The tensions could have repercussions across Asia, from India, Pakistan's economically booming arch-rival, to China, which has edged closer to Pakistan in recent years.

A complete break between the United States and Pakistan -- sometimes friends, often adversaries -- seems unlikely, if only because Washington depends on Pakistan as a route to supply U.S. troops fighting militants in Afghanistan, and as a base for unmanned U.S. drones.

Pakistan relies on Washington for military and economic aid and for acting as a backer on the world stage.

But support in the U.S. Congress for curbing assistance or making conditions on aid more stringent is rising rapidly.

The unilateral U.S. Navy SEALs raid that killed Osama bin Laden in Pakistan in May took already fragile relations between Pakistan and the United States to a low.

Relations were just starting to recover before the Kabul attack. Both sides are now engaged in an unusually blunt public war of words.

The dangers could be enormous if Washington fails to arrest the deterioration in relations with Pakistan, a largely dysfunctional state run by a feckless, military-cowed government and teeming with Islamist militants.

At stake are the fight against terrorism, the security of Pakistan's nuclear arsenal and - as Islamabad plays off its friendship with China against the United States - regional stability.

HUMILIATION

"Anything which is said about an ally, about a partner, publicly to recriminate it, to humiliate it, is not acceptable," said Khar.

The United States has long pressed Pakistan to go after the Haqqani network, which it believes operates from sanctuaries in North Waziristan on the Afghan border.

Pakistan says its army is too stretched fighting its own Taliban insurgency. But analysts say the Islamabad government regards the Haqqanis as a strategic counterweight to the growing influence of old rival India in Afghanistan.

The Haqqani network, Mullen said, is a "veritable arm" of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence agency (ISI).

The charges come amid mounting exasperation in Washington as the Obama administration struggles to curb militancy in Pakistan and end the long war in Afghanistan.

Mullen, CIA director David Petraeus and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton all have met with their Pakistani counterparts in recent days to demand Islamabad take action against the Haqqani network.

Any Pakistani offensive against the Haqqanis would be risky. The group has an estimated 10,000-15,000 seasoned fighters at its disposal and analysts say the Pakistani army would likely suffer heavy casualties.

(Writing by Michael Georgy; Editing by John Chalmers and Raju Gopalakrishnan)

A camera the size of a fingertip!

2011-09-22T11:20:00.000-08:00

The world's smallest camera is the size of a fingertip, but can take 2 MP images and shoot videos

London, Sept 21 (ANI): A New York firm has developed the world's smallest commercially-available camera that is around the size of a fingertip, but can take two megapixel images and can even shoot video.

Hammacher Schlememr insists that the 28-gram, one inch-squared device works perfectly well, despite being the size of a marble.

The gadget is set to hit the shelves for 100 dollars.

"Although The World's Smallest Camera is only slightly larger than a marble, it takes still images and records video just like much larger cameras," the Daily Mail quoted Schlemmer's General Manager Fred Berns, as saying.

"It comes with a wrist lanyard that keeps it close to hand and enables ease of portability," he added.

The camera can reportedly take JPEG images with a resolution of 1600x1200 and comes complete with autofocus.

Just like regular pieces of photography equipment, this camera also connects to a computer via a USB cable

Will you ‘friend’ your mom and dad?

2011-09-22T11:11:00.001-08:00

Facebook craze has reached all age groups. At times to keep a watch or to be at pace with the world, moms, dads, aunts and uncles are getting on to Facebook. The big question is will kids add parents to their friend list? Will they unfriend a few others to be friends with mom and dad? Parents commenting on posts, pictures and reading comments from other friends. Is this fun? Will it restrict your activity on Facebook? Or is it a great way for the two generations to come together?

As with gold, miners bullish on silver prices

2011-09-22T10:57:00.001-08:00

By Ernest Scheyder

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Reuters) - All that glitters is not just gold, with prices for silver also expected to strongly rise within the year due to a worsening economic landscape.

Silver , the second-most popular precious metal, has historically traded in tandem with gold prices , and in the past 12 months its price has more than doubled to roughly $40 an ounce.

"What we're seeing in prices of silver now is a completely natural response to the economic malaise," John Smith, chief executive of Silver Standard Resources, said on Tuesday at the Denver Gold Forum, one of the largest gatherings in the world of mining investors, analysts and executives.

"This is not a sector to rent. This is a sector to hold," Smith said. "What we're seeing in the world is not an issue that going to be solved quickly."

Economic concerns in the United States and Europe, as well as political unrest in the Middle East, were all cited as contributors to silver's rise.

Silver is cheaper than gold, has scores of uses that gold does not -- it is the best metallic conductor of electricity -- and there's about 15 times more of it in the earth's crust than gold.

"I'm very bullish on silver, and I think we'll see it at $50 (an ounce) within the next six months," said Silver Wheaton Corp CEO Randy Smallwood said.

"I'm very bearish on the U.S. dollar," he added. "As long as we continue to value silver in terms of U.S. dollars, I see continued opportunity for silver to keep growing."

Some silver miners are going so far as to link their dividend payouts to silver's price, mimicking a move by some gold miners.

Hecla Mining became the latest silver producer to take such a step on Tuesday, saying that for every $5 increase in the price of silver it would increase its quarterly dividend by a penny.

For graphic on silver vs. gold ratio, click http://r.reuters.com/cud83s

Gold prices, also, are expected to jump, with many executives expecting them to breach $2,200 an ounce from their current levels around $1,800.

"So much of what happens to silver happens to gold, and with gold being such a safe haven there's a crisis of confidence," said Coeur d'Alene CEO Mitchell Krebs. "Investment demand is going to continue on the gold side and translate into the silver side."

Steve Busby, chief operating officer at Pan American Silver, said a weak euro and dollar are fueling the silver price jump.

"I personally believe that the futures of the world hard currencies looks bleak, and this will continue to drive silver prices upward," Busby said.

Busby is not alone, with many silver CEOs seeing their product as a sure defense against whatever comes down the economic pike.

"When you look at the critical mass that's trying to solve these issues, it just really highlights the fact that perhaps there isn't a solution," Silver Wheaton's Smallwood said.

"Maybe the only way you can solve this is devalue your currency down to the point where people are just losing faith in fiat currencies."

(Reporting by Ernest Scheyder; Editing by Richard Chang)

Two IITians among 400 richest Americans

2011-09-22T10:41:00.002-08:00

IITians Bharat Desai & Vinod Khosla are among Forbes' list of richest Americans

Washington, Sep 22 (IANS) Two Indian Institute of Technology alumni have made it to Forbes' list of the 400 richest Americans topped for the 18th year in a row by Bill Gates with Warren Buffett second.

While Microsoft co-founder Gates' fortune swelled by $5 billion in a year to $59 billion, according to the US business magazine, Bharat Desai with $1.35 billion gets the 329th spot with Vinod Khosla two notches below at 331st place with $1.3 billion.

Kenya born Syntel co-founder Desai, 58, an IIT, Bombay graduate founded the outsourcing outfit in 1980, took the company public in 1997 and now has some 16,200 employees. Shares have jumped 20 percent over the past year.

Fellow IITian Vinod Khosla, 56, according to Forbes 'is the rare Silicon Valley venture capitalist able to generate profits from a clean tech portfolio.'

The Indian-born engineer, who made his early fortune as a cofounder of Sun Microsystems, recently vowed to give away half his fortune to charity when he signed Bill Gates' and Warren Buffett's Giving Pledge last April.

The Berkshire Hathaway Inc. chairman and CEO Buffett's fortune decreased by $6 billion - the largest dollar-amount loss by anyone on the Forbes 400 this year, to $39 billion, the magazine said.

He was the only person among the top 20 on Forbes' list to see his fortune shrink from a year ago.

Oracle CEO Larry Ellison rounds out the top three richest Americans with a net worth of $33 billion, $6 billion more than last year.

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg was the biggest dollar gainer on the list, with a net worth of $17.5 billion that earned him the No. 14 spot.

Forbes said the combined wealth of the 400 people, including 42 women, on this year's list is $1.5 trillion, with an average net worth of $3.8 billion, up 12 percent from last year.

Japanese government agencies websites hit by cyber attacks

2011-09-22T08:37:00.000-08:00

Websites of some Japanese government agencies were hit by cyberattacks over the weekend, temporarily blocking access to them,Kyodo news agency reported on Monday, citing national police.

The attacks affected the websites of the National Personnel Authority, a video distribution service and a site run by the Cabinet Office, the National Police Agency said, according to Kyodo.

Police said they believed the websites were hit by distributed denial-of-service attacks in which hackers overwhelm a target website with massive amounts of data using a multitude of compromised "zombie" computers.

The NPA said online messages were posted in China calling for attacks on Japanese websites ahead of Sunday, the 80th anniversary of the "Mukden incident" which led to the Japanese invasion of China.

China has been accused of spearheading online attacks on government agencies and companies, allegations Beijing has always denied.

In June, Internet giant Google said a cyber-spying campaign originating in China targeted Gmail accounts of senior US officials, military personnel, journalists and Chinese political activists.

Pakistan conveys anger, shock over Burhanuddin Rabbani assassination

2011-09-22T08:36:00.000-08:00

Pakistan's top leadership "condemned in the strongest terms" the assassination of Afghan High Peace Council chief Burhanuddin Rabbani, who was playing a key role in negotiations with the Taliban to end the war in Afghanistan.

President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani "condemned in the strongest terms the terrorist attack" that killed the former Afghan President in his home in Kabul, said a statement issued by the Foreign Office.

"On behalf of the people and government of Pakistan, the Pakistani leadership has conveyed to the brotherly people and government of Afghanistan extreme anger and shock on the terrorist attack," the statement said.

The Pakistani people "stand by their Afghan brothers and sisters in this moment of grief on losing a visionary leader who was actively pursuing peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan", it said.

The statement described Rabbani as a "friend of Pakistan" with whom Islamabad was "working closely within the Afghanistan-Pakistan Joint Commission for Reconciliation and Peace on a vision for peace and prosperity in Afghanistan".

Rabbani was "martyred by the enemies of peace in Afghanistan," it said.

A suicide bomber with explosives hidden in his turban killed Rabbani in the latest in a string of high-profile assassinations in Afghanistan.

His death is being seen as a major blow to the effort to begin negotiations with the Afghan Taliban.

Google+ opens up, takes fight to Facebook

2011-09-22T08:34:00.001-08:00

Google Inc and Facebook trotted out a variety of new social networking features in back-to-back announcements on Tuesday, underscoring their intensifying competition for Web surfers.

Google integrated its flagship search engine into its 3-month old social network -- with membership now open to the Internet public -- and expanded its "Hangouts" video-chat feature to allow mobile use and broadcasting.

The company said on its official blog its well-received Hangouts feature -- where up to nine people can link up and chat with a user on video -- will be available on camera equipped smartphones powered by its own Android software. Support for Apple Inc iOS devices "is coming soon", it added.

And a user can now host an online broadcast with this feature -- recording a session and broadcasting it live for public access online. Black Eyed Peas front man will.i.am will host the first "Hangout on Air" on Wednesday, Google said.

"Hangouts should keep pace with how you socialize in the real-world, so today we''re launching it on the one device that's always by your side: your mobile phone," senior vice president of engineering Vic Gundotra said on the blog post.

For its part, Facebook said it was introducing a new "ticker" on its users'' home pages, providing real-time notifications of what friends are doing on the service. Facebook also revamped the service''s main news feed to flag important items -- such as a new baby announcement -- for Facebook users who have not logged on for a few days. Facebook also changed the way photos are displayed on the site, increasing the size of pictures that appear in a users' news feed.

Facebook is the world's No 1 social networking service, with more than 750 million users. The company has rolled out a series of improvements to its service recently, many of which seem designed to match features Google has used to set apart its rival social networking service, Google+.

Google did not say how many people had signed up for Google+ so far, but confirmed the social network was now open to all, whereas previously it had been invitation-only. Analysts estimate upward of 25 million users have joined Google+ since its inception.

The company also made its search engine available from within the social network. Users can search from Google+ and get results not just on the network, but from the worldwide Internet.

Google's infant social network, which counts Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg as a member, has met skepticism so far. Some are waiting to see if it can maintain the rapid momentum of its first months.

If CEO Larry Page's brainchild -- which some say mimics better than Facebook the instinctive categorizing of friends that occurs in real life -- takes off, it will come at a pivotal moment for its bigger rival. Facebook is widely expected to go public in 2012.

"We're nowhere near done, but with the improvements we've made so far we're ready to move from field trial to beta," Gundotra said.

Legendary cricketer Tiger Pataudi passes away at 70

2011-09-22T08:30:00.003-08:00

Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi, one of India's greatest cricket captains ever and whose flair and acumen inspired a generation of cricketers, passed away in Delhi on Thursday after battling a lung infection for the last few months.

The 70-year-old cricketer, one of India's early superstars and who was known as 'Tiger' in the cricket fraternity, was suffering from interstitial lung disease, a condition in which the passage of oxygen to the two lungs is less than normal.

He is survived by his wife Sharmila Tagore, his actor son Saif Ali Khan and his two daughters Soha and Saba Ali Khan. His entire family was at his bedside when the end came at 5.55pm this evening.

"He passed away around 5.55pm. His condition had deteriorated since yesterday. He was suffering from interstitial lung disease (interstitial pneumonitis) which worsens rapidly inspite of the best treatment available," Dr SP Byotra, Department of medicine in Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, where Pataudi was admitted, said.

"He was unable to maintain his oxygen level in spite of maximal treatment. He continued to remain in the ICU for nearly a month. He had this disease which had been static since the last three months and worsened very acutely over the last four weeks, the doctor said.

Dr Sumit Ray, vice chaiman, critical care, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital said he died of respiratry failure leading to cardiac arrest. He was was admitted on August 29 and was concious till yesterday evening.

"He was in the Intensive Care Unit for last three days and his condition did not improve. His family in all probability will take his body tomorrow morning", he said.

Pataudi, who lost his right eye because of an accident, played 46 Tests between 1961 and 1975 and was regarded as one of India's greatest captains.

Pataudi was given the leadership of the Test team in his fourth Test, when he was only 21, in Barbados in 1962, because the regular captain Nari Contractor was in hospital after getting hit on the head by Charlie Griffith.

Pataudi, who was also known for his amazing sense of humour, was the youngest Test captain, a record that stood until 2004. He led India in 40 Tests and had a successful career despite impaired vision in his right eye, which was damaged in a car accident. He also captained Sussex and Oxford University.

He scored 2793 runs in 46 Tests at an average of 35 and made six centuries, the biggest of which was an unbeaten 203 against England in Delhi in 1964.

However, many experts rate his 75 against Australia in Melbourne in 1967-68 as his finest since he played that knock with an injured leg. Pataudi retired in 1975 after West Indies' tour of India.

After retirement, Pataudi served as a match referee between 1993 and 1996, officiating in two Tests and ten ODIs, but largely stayed away from cricket administration.

Under Pataudi's captaincy, India won nine Tests but it was he who instilled the belief in the team that it could win international matches. India achieved their first overseas Test victory under him, against New Zealand in Dunedin in 1968. India then went on to record their first overseas series win by beating New Zealand 3-1.

The cricket fraternity reacted with shock and sorrow at the death of Pataudi and said his demise has left a huge void.

Current cricketers like Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid and a gallaxy of former stars paid tribute to Pataudi and recounted his immense contribution to Indian cricket.

Pataudi was the ninth and last Nawab of Pataudi until 1971, when the Indian government abolished royal entitlements through the 26th Amendment to the Constitution.

He was also the editor of Sportsworld, the now defunct cricket magazine, and a television commentator in the 1980s but gradually withdrew from an active role, though he remained a strong voice in Indian cricket.

Since 2007, bilateral Test series between India and England have been contested for the Pataudi Trophy, named after his family for their contribution to Anglo-Indian cricket.

Pataudi's father, Iftikhar Ali Khan, represented both England and India in Tests. Pataudi had taken ill since his return from England this summer after presenting the Pataudi Trophy to Andrew Strauss at the end of the four-Test series.

He was also a part of the first IPL governing council but refused to continue in the role in October 2010, when the BCCI made significant changes to the league following the sacking of Lalit Modi as its chairman.

Army steps up Sikkim rescue operations

2011-09-21T22:59:00.001-08:00

Mortal remains of earthquake victims are being air lifted from Mangan helipad, about 70 km away from Gangtok. Photo: Ritu Raj Konwar

Madhya Pradesh CM announces Rs. 5 crore for quake-hit Sikkim

2011-09-21T22:58:00.000-08:00

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Thursday announced an assistance of Rs. five crore for the quake-affected in Sikkim.
Mr. Chouhan spoke to Sikkim Chief Minister Pawan Chamling over phone and assured him full support from the people of Madhya Pradesh in this hour of tragedy.
The state government will provide all possible help needed in this time of natural calamity, he said.

House G.O.P. Tightens Its Bond With Netanyahu

2011-09-21T22:43:00.003-08:00

WASHINGTON — When the Obama administration wanted to be certain that Congress would not block $50 million in new aid to thePalestinian Authority last month, it turned to a singularly influential lobbyist: Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.

At the request of the American Embassy and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, Mr. Netanyahu urged dozens of members of Congress visiting Israel last month not to object to the aid, according to Congressional and diplomatic officials. Mr. Netanyahu’s intervention with Congress underscored an extraordinary intersection of American diplomacy and domestic politics, the result of an ever-tightening relationship between the Israeli government and the Republican Party that now controls the House.

On Tuesday, one of President Obama’s potential rivals in 2012, Gov. Rick Perry of Texas, delivered a speech in New York criticizing Mr. Obama’s stance toward Israel as “naïve, arrogant, misguided and dangerous.” Mr. Perry said that he would be a guest soon of Danny Danon, the hard-right deputy speaker of the Israeli Parliament.

The relationship between the Israeli government and the Republican Party has significantly complicated the administration’s diplomatic efforts to avert a confrontation at the United Nations this week over the Palestinian bid for full membership as a state, limiting President Obama’s ability to exert pressure on Mr. Netanyahu to make concessions that could restart negotiations with the Palestinians.

One of the members of Congress who attended the meeting with Mr. Netanyahu in August, Representative Michael G. Grimm of New York, a Republican, said that it was carefully explained to the delegation that the money would be used for training Palestinian police officers who work closely with the Israeli government.

Mr. Grimm said he felt more comfortable receiving the explanation from the prime minister than from Obama administration officials.

“I think the credibility is different,” he said, “in the sense that this is his country and he certainly would not support something that would have negative effects within his country.”

For the Republicans, the relationship with the Israeli government has created what many see as an opportunity. Mindful of Mr. Obama’s strained relationship with Mr. Netanyahu and emboldened by a special election victory last week in a heavily Jewish Congressional district in New York, Republicans hope the tensions between Mr. Obama and Israel — underscored by the latest developments at the United Nations — will help propel future political victories for their party.

Even as Mrs. Clinton continued this week to pursue what she called “extremely intensive ongoing diplomacy” to find a compromise between the Israelis and the Palestinians, Republicans sought to leverage support among Jewish voters here at home who traditionally have favored Democrats.

The National Republican Congressional Committee has drawn up a list of several Democrat-rich Congressional districts — including one on Long Island now held by Representative Steve Israel, who leads a rival Democratic group — where it believes Republicans have a fighting chance by appealing to Jewish voters.

The House speaker, John A. Boehner, addressed a Jewish group in his home state, Ohio, last weekend, contrasting his invitation to Mr. Netanyahu to address Congress in May with the Israeli leader’s more frosty relationship with the administration; Mr. Boehner plans another speech this week to the Republican Jewish Coalition in Washington.

Unbending support for Israel has long been a bipartisan fact of American politics, but Mr. Netanyahu’s popularity in Congress now runs deeper than ever. When he appeared before Congress in the spring, his speech rebutting Mr. Obama’s ambitious peace proposals was interrupted by nearly three dozen standing ovations.

Mr. Netanyahu’s standing has complicated American diplomatic and financial support for the Palestinians as Mr. Obama tries to reach a peace between the two sides that would establish a Palestinian state, the stated goal of the last two presidential administrations.

As the Palestinian bid for recognition at the United Nations gained momentum this summer, both Republicans and Democrats warned that Congress would sever the American financial assistance that began under President George W. Bush if the Palestinians proceeded in that effort.

“The U.S. Congress has generously supported Palestinian efforts to build infrastructure and build the capacity of institutions in the past,” Representative Kay Granger of Texas, the Republican chairwoman of the House subcommittee overseeing foreign aid, and her Democratic counterpart, Representative Nita M. Lowey of New York, wrote in a letter to the Palestinian leader, Mahmoud Abbas.

“However, American assistance has always been predicated upon Palestinian leaders’ commitment to resolve all outstanding issues through direct negotiations.”

Sensex falls over 300 pts; BPCL bucks trend

2011-09-21T22:24:00.004-08:00

The sell-off across sectors has pushed the equity benchmarks further down. The 50-share NSE Niftyplunged 100 points to 5,033 and the 30-share BSESensex lost 328 points to 16,737.

Federal Reserve flagged "significant downside risks" to the economy on the last day of FOMC meeting yesterday. Also, Moody's Investors Service cut debt ratings on financial companies like Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and Citi.

Asian markets were witnessing heavy sell-off. Hang Seng crashed 4%. Kospi and Taiwan lost 3% each. Nikkei slipped 2%. Shanghai and Straits Times were down 1.7% each.

Sharp fall in European futures too were pointing weak start to the European opening; France's CAC, Germany's DAX and Britain's FTSE were down 2-4%.

On the home turf, the BSE Realty, Metal, Auto, Bank and Capital Goods indices fell 2-2.6%. Power, IT, Oil & Gas and FMCG indices dropped 1-1.6%.

Heavyweights Reliance Industries, Bharti, TCS, SBI, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and L&T plunged 2-3%. However, BPCL bucked the trend; gained 1.5% on fall in crude oil prices. Nymex Crude was trading around USD 84 a barrel.

Market breadth too worsened; about five shares declined for every share gaining.

At 10:09 hours IST : Nifty slips over 1.5% on broad-based selling

The market extended losses on the back of broad-based selling, reacting to sharp fall in global markets after Fed signaled that there were downside risks to US economy. The 50-share NSE Nifty lost 86 points to 5,047 and the 30-share BSE Sensex fell 273 points to 16,791.

If Sandeep Bhatia, executive director and head of sales, Kotak Institutional Equities is to be believed, the fall can be sharper. "Since 2008, the market has only seen infusion of liquidity. There could be further downside to our market. It can trade down to 15,000 in October as it has been a historically bad month," he said.

Among Asian markets, Hang Seng, Kospi and Taiwan crashed 3-4%. Shanghai, Nikkei and Straits Times fell 1.7-2%. The Dow Jones Futures slipped 0.5%.

The Indian rupee was trading at 47.73 per dollar, down 0.41 from previous day's closing value.

Tata Motors, Sterlite Industries, DLF, Hindalco, Tata Steel, Tata Power, SAIL and Reliance Communications were top gainers among largecaps. These stocks gained 3-4%.

However, BPCL and ONGC were marginally in the green.

India Securities, SBI, Tree House, Stride Arcolab, Tata Steel, L&T, Reliance Industries and Tata Motors were most active shares on exchanges.

About 518 shares advanced as against 1381 shares declined on BSE.

At 9:19 hours IST : Sensex plunges over 250 pts on global sell-off; Re @ 48.8

The Federal Reserve in its meeting yesterday said there was "significant downside risks" to the economy. This weighed heavy on the Indian equity benchmarks, which fell 1.7% in opening trade.

At 9:18 hours IST, the 50-share NSE Nifty tanked 87 points to 5,046 and the 30-share BSE Sensextumbled 276 points to 16,790, led by fall in metal, technology, financial and ADAG stocks.

Technology stocks plunged 2-3% despite rupee falling over 1% from previous day's closing value to 48.8 per dollar.

Sterlite, Sesa Goa, Tata Steel, Hindalco, Reliance Communications, Reliance Infra, Reliance Capital, TCS, Wipro, HCL Tech, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, SBI, Reliance Industries, L&T, DLF and Ambuja Cements were witnessing selling pressure.

The CNX Midcap fell 95 points to 7,372. About 8 shares declined for every share rising.

Mundra Port plunged 5%. IVRCL, HDIL, Punj Lloyd and JSW Steel were down 2.5-3.5%.

However, Everonn Education was locked at 5% upper circuit for seventh consecutive session.

Global cues

Asian markets were trading sharply lower. Hang Seng, Kospi and Taiwan plunged 3-4%. Shanghai, Nikkei and Straits Times were down over 1.5%.

Kolkata qualify alongside Somerset for Champions League

2011-09-21T11:46:00.003-08:00

Knight Riders to push them to the brink of elimination, but an ice-cool Ryan ten Doeschate hauled them alongside their opponents into the main draw of the Champions League. Kolkata needed 153 to qualify after Somerset had waltzed to an imposing 166 for 6 on a track that kept slowing down through the day. At 57 for 4 in the 10th over, they seemed to have lost the final spot to Ruhunu, but ten Doeschate pulled off a special heist to ensure there will be four IPL teams in the main draw.

Scorecard

Ruhunu ended up the biggest losers of the day, and Kolkata celebrated jubilantly despite falling 11 short of victory, but Somerset deserved the most praise. They arrived for the qualifiers bleary-eyed and dispirited, two days after losing their fifth domestic final in two years, and without five of their first-choice players. If they were knackered, they didn't show it: Peter Trego batted with freedom despite not playing an ugly shot, Roelof van der Merwe was typically tigerish with bat and on the field, and the three-pronged spin attack was ruthless to the end.

Kolkata were at the other end of the spectrum, and their struggles were epitomised by the inability of Manoj Tiwary and Shreevats Goswami - batsmen bred on slow tracks - to force the pace against spin. That Kolkata had lost the in-form Manvinder Bisla and captain Jacques Kallis did not help matters, and things became worse when the legspinner Max Waller disloged both Tiwary and Goswami. Thereafter, ten Doeschate owned the night.

He announced himself with a lofted drive that Nick Compton palmed over the ropes at long-off, but that was the closest ten Doeschate came to being dismissed. With the asking-rate hovering out of reach, he dabbed Trego through point before whipping Arul Suppiah over midwicket. Yusuf Pathan was surprisingly subdued in his brief stay, but by the time he exited it was clear that the wicket that mattered was at the other end.

Shakib Al Hasan's stay was ended by a blinder in the outfield from van der Merwe, who single-handedly underlined the difference in fielding standards between the sides. Bhatia then held his nerve in a 30-run stand that took Kolkata close, while ten Doeschate continued to produce the fireworks with an audacious whip over midwicket for his third six. Van der Merwe dismissed both batsmen in the final over, but it wasn't enough to end Kolkata's campaign.

Earlier, Somerset showed they had better methods against spin than their county rivals Leicestershire had displayed earlier in the day. Trego went after Iqbal Abdulla despite not always managing to reach the flight, and his enterprise forced Kallis to rely on seamers more than he would have liked, a move that played into Somerset's hands.
Hyderabad: Somerset out-fielded and out-bowled Kolkata

Somerset were 56 for 1 after eight overs, at which point Trego shifted gears against Bhatia's mind-numbingly predictable lack of pace. Trego lost his balance while pulling him for four before cutting late for another boundary. The next over went for 17 as van der Merwe exploded against a raft of long-hops from Yusuf. Jaidev Unadkat gave Kolkata some respite when he got van der Merwe pulling to midwicket, and James Hildredt with a slower ball, but Trego bustled along unfettered, scoring his boundaries with a series of correct strokes. Unadkat was drilled through the covers, Kallis pulled through midwicket, and the Kolkata shoulders began to droop in a hurry.

Trego was starved of strike a touch in the end overs, but it did not seem to matter as Compton ramped Lee for six and stole a couple of inventive boundaries. More importantly for Somerset, Kolkata stayed generous right to the last over, with Unadkat making a hash of a regulation save at midwicket, and Lee getting a wicket of a no-ball. Kolkata's fielders had done themselves no favours, but the itinerary that gave them the chance to play the last innings of the qualifier stage was about to.

Google Says Oracle Seeking $2 Billion in Android Dispute (1)

2011-09-21T11:42:00.000-08:00

(Updates with request to judge in second paragraph.)

Sept. 21 (Bloomberg) -- Google Inc. said Oracle Corp. lowered its damages request to at least $2 billion in a patent and copyright dispute over Android software, according to a court filing.

Google, which said the estimate includes $1.2 billion in damages for unjust enrichment in 2012 alone, asked a federal judge to exclude parts of the calculation that it says aren’t supported by the evidence.

In July, U.S. District Judge William Alsup in San Francisco threw out Oracle’s earlier estimate that it’s entitled to as much as $6.1 billion in damages in a lawsuit claiming Google infringed its Java patents when it created the Android operating system, now running on more than 150 million mobile devices.

Oracle’s new damages report “ignores governing law and the guidelines of this court’s July 22, 2011, order,” Google lawyer Robert Van Nest said in a letter to Alsup yesterday.

Alsup ruled in July that a new estimate should start as low as $100 million, a figure that Mountain View, California-based Google was offered in 2006 to license Java from Sun Microsystems Inc. Google rejected that offer by Sun, which Oracle later acquired.

Deborah Hellinger, a spokeswoman for Redwood City, California-based Oracle, the largest maker of database software, declined to comment on the Google filing.

The two companies have made little headway this week in negotiations aimed at resolving the lawsuit, a person briefed on the talks said. Google Chief Executive Larry Page and Oracle CEO Larry Ellison participated in a settlement conference that lasted as long as 10 hours on Sept. 19 and returned to federal court in San Jose, California, today for further meetings with a magistrate judge.

“It’s good to be back,” Page said as he arrived this morning. “I look forward to a productive session.”

Ellison declined to comment when he arrived at court.

The case is Oracle America Inc. v. Google Inc., 10-03561, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California (San Francisco)

--With assistance from Pam McLean in San Jose, California, and Brian Womack and Aaron Ricadela in San Francisco. Editors: Peter Blumberg, Michael Hytha

Akshay Kumar donates Rs 2cr for ice hockey

2011-09-21T11:35:00.002-08:00

Actor Akshay Kumar is leaving no stone unturned to promote his first international production, Speedy Singhs or Breakaway (international title), with ice hockey as the backdrop. So, after dismissing reports that he is not planning to donate Rs 2 crore to the Ice Hockey Association of India (ICHAOI), Kumar has actually ended up donating over £250,000 (Rs1.9 crore) to the association.

“Akshay has donated over £250,000 to the Ice Hockey Association in India to promote the sport in the country,” confirmed his spokesperson on Tuesday.

The actor, who will make a cameo appearance in Speedy Singhs, had however completely dismissed reports of this donation during his visit to the Capital on Monday. “It is not true. We will try to do something for ice hockey but not in this manner. Just wait as you will soon hear about it in the right way,” he had said.

Well, Kumar surely loves his country and that is reflected not only through his love for Indian sports but also through his loyalties towards Bollywood. “I’m very happy acting in Hindi films right now. Though I’m producing an international project, I’m not thinking of acting in Hollywood right now,” says the 44-year-old, adding, “When I started my production house, I hadn’t thought that I would be producing an international film one day.”

The actor also spoke about his affiliation towards sports’ films. “I’m more inclined towards sports’ films. But, this film is not just about ice hockey, it is an emotional father-son story. People will love watching the Punjabi culture showed in the film ,” he said. When asked if he fears any competition from Shahid Kapoor starrer Mausam, which also releases on Sept 23, he said, “Both the films are very different from each other. I hope both films do well.”

Finance ministry note points 2G finger at PC

2011-09-21T11:24:00.002-08:00

A finance ministry note to the prime minister's office (PMO) this year said the 2G spectrum scam could have been avoided if then finance minister P Chidambaram had insisted on spectrum allocation through auction.
This revealed cracks within the UPA leadership and exposed the coalition to attacks from the opposition, which latched on to the note on Wednesday night, demanding the resignation of Chidambaram, who is now home minister.

Chidambaram said in a meeting with then telecom minister A Raja on January 30, 2008 that “he was for now not seeking to revisit the current regimes for entry fee or revenue share” of spectrum, says the note.

The department of economic affairs note, dated March 25, 2011, was issued with finance minister Pranab Mukherjee's approval. Finance Ministry's note

The turn of events has given a fresh twist to India’s most high-profile corruption case — valued at as much as R176,000 crore by the CAG — in which Raja, former secretary S Behura, and several promoters and top executives of telecom companies are behind bars in Delhi’s Tihar jail.

BJP spokesperson Prakash Javadekar said, “It was very clear from day one that Chidambaram agreed to A Raja’s formula. If he had stuck to the finance ministry officials’ position that the spectrum shouldn’t be allocated in 2008 at 2001 prices…he should step down.”

CPI national secretary D Raja said the note was a serious issue and the PM should explain what action he had taken since March. “The CBI should probe the entire matter and once that happens, Chidambaram's position as home minister becomes untenable.”

The Congress declined to comment on the issue. “BJP is jumping to conclusions. It should stop being in a hurry on every issue. Let's wait for a while,” party spokesperson Renuka Chowdhary said.

The document said Chidambaram wrote a “secret note” to the prime minister on January 15, 2008, five days after the department of telecommunications granted licences to new operators.

He recommended an auction-based mechanism for future allocation (beyond the start-up spectrum of 4.4 Mhz) and treat previous spectrum allocations — in this case, the 2G — as a “closed chapter”.

Even then, finance secretary and current RBI governor D Subbarao said in February 2008 — after allocation was fixed — that the department of telecom could still have gone for an auction, irrespective of the decision taken earlier.

“The DoT could have invoked this clause for cancelling the licences in case the ministry of finance had stuck to the stand of auctioning the 4.4 Mhz spectrum,” said the note provided by the PMO to an RTI activist, Vivek Garg.

Amazing volcanic activity seen from space

2011-09-20T11:11:00.001-08:00

Astronauts and satellites capture images of some of the world's most violent eruptions.

This May 23, 2006, photo released by NASA shows the eruption of Cleveland Volcano, Aleutian Islands, Alaska, as photographed by an Expedition 13 crew member on the International Space Station. The image captures the ash plume of the very short-lived eruption. (AP Photo/Courtesy of Earth Sciences and Image Analysis Laboratory, NASA Johnson Space Center)

Was Aishwarya rude to Abhishek?

2011-09-20T10:52:00.002-08:00

Did Ash really tell Abhishek to shut up at a recent public event? That's certainly what it looked like. Watch the video to find out if Abhishek did as he was told.

Excessive airfare hikes will be monitored

2011-09-20T10:05:00.002-08:00

To passengers' relief, DGCA said it would not allow unreasonable fair hikes during the festive season.

New Delhi, Sept. 18: The directorate general of civil aviation (DGCA) is trying to ensure that airlines do not resort to excessive fare hikes during the festive season.

The regulator believes the airlines, including the low-cost ones, are likely to raise fares by at least 10 per cent. Airlines expect the passenger load factor to touch 85 per cent to 90 per cent in the next three months.

Players such as Jet Airways have already resorted to a round of hikes after the oil companies raised aviation fuel rates by 2.5 per cent last week. Jet has increased the fuel surcharge on its tickets by Rs 200 from September 17.

"Depending on the route the price of tickets will increase. While there would be a 10-per-cent hike on the price of tickets of tier II destinations, the prices for tier I cities will increase as much as 15 per cent," said an official of an NCR-based low-cost airline.

The DGCA is taking steps to prevent any steep hikes. Airlines have been asked to keep it informed about any increases.

The tariff analysis unit, set up by the DGCA to monitor abrupt rise in prices, is also monitoring fare patterns.

"It is being monitored every day on an hour-to-hour basis. We will ensure that airlines stick to norms and do not increase prices exorbitantly. Prices are bound to increase as demand would be highest during the coming months but checks and balances are already in place to tackle them," said a senior DGCA official.

Asif Ali Zardari sought US deal: WikiLeaks

2011-09-13T08:14:00.000-08:00

Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari had sought a deal with the United States in 2010 to strengthen his political position, a secret cable released by WikiLeaks said.

Zardari, the cable said, had told US senator John Kerry that he needed a “deal with the Unites States” to strengthen his political position in order to show the people of Pakistan that he had something to offer them.

In a diplomatic cable sent by then US ambassador Anne W. Patterson on February 23, 2010, about a meeting held between Zardari and Kerry, the latter said India was “very open” to constructive talks with Pakistan and urged Pakistan to reach an agreement with India on counter-terrorism.

“Zardari said with US support, talks could move forward. He said he doubted broad talks with the Taliban were possible, specific regional efforts might succeed. Pakistan was fighting militants on a ‘shoe-string’ budget, but Zardari said that he was committed to finding ways to undermine the pull towards militancy in Pakistani society. Kerry said the GOP needed to rebuild conflict-affected areas to cement military gains against the insurgency”, said the cable.

Encouraging an Indo-Pak agreement, Kerry opened the February 16 meeting with Mr Zardari by referring to his recent talks with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Pakistani premier Gilani. Kerry said Mr Singh was “very open” to negotiation with Pakistan.

‘Pervez wanted Afghan ties intact’

Even as he accepted key US demands after 9/11 when Washington mulled military action against the Taliban regime, then Pakistan president Pervez Musharraf underlined Islamabad’s aim to have a “friendly government” in Afghanistan, say declassified documents.

Angolan beauty wins Miss Universe crown

2011-09-13T08:11:00.001-08:00

Angola's Leila Lopes became the new Miss Universe on Monday, edging out beauties from Ukraine, Brazil, the Philippines and China in the final as the pageant marked its 60th anniversary.

Statuesque Lopes, 25, takes the on crown from last year's winner Ximena Navarrete of Mexico.

Ninety-eight young women took part in the contest - in South America's largest city, Brazil's industrial hub of Sao Paulo - watched by an estimated one billion people around the world.

Pakistan's ad in WSJ on 9/11 draws flak in US

2011-09-13T08:09:00.001-08:00

An advertisement by Pakistan in America's leading daily the Wall Street Journal on the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks has not gone down well with readers here with some calling the ad a ‘joke’ and questioning how a country where Osama bin Laden was hiding safely for years can ‘claim to be a victim of terrorism’.

Readers posted their reaction to the half-page advertisement in 'The Threat Matrix,' a blog of the Long War Journal, which is a publication focused on providing reporting and analysis on the global war on terror.

"This is quite humorous. They could do a hell of a lot for world peace by destroying their plethora of militant groups. Does any other nation have such an inflated sense of self worth (sic)," reads one of the over a dozen comments posted on the blog.

Another reader comments, "It would be nice if you would purge the ISI of Taliban/al Qaeda sympathisers, then launch assault into the FATA supported by heavy weapons and armour".

In the advertisement, which has a picture of assassinated former Pakistan Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, Pakistan asks, "Which country can do more for your peace". It goes on to give statistics of bomb blasts, assassination plots against Pakistani leaders and civilian and military casualties that a ‘nation of 180 million’ suffered while ‘fighting for the future of world's seven billion’.

One reader comments, "Still no explanation how Osama bin Laden happened to live comfortably for a decade in a garrison town. Or the Haqqani network or the Quetta Shura, or their fertiliser factory providing the fuel for IEDs in Afghanistan".

Another says, "a country, which is the epicentre of global terrorism, on record of running terrorist training camps since the 1980s, protecting the Afghan Taliban that kills NATO soldiers, claims to be a victim of terrorism??!!" "The sheer audacity of this advert comes from the fact that the Pakistani government and military leaders cannot or do not show any inclination to properly protect(ing) their own citizens let alone the worlds, as they continue to clandestinely support radical and extremist groups at the cost of their civilians lives".

One reader called the ad a ‘joke’ and ‘downright offensive,’ saying if there was one day when Pakistan should stop with the ‘pretence of being our ally, it was yesterday’.

He said a newspaper of the stature of the Wall Street Journal should not have published such an ad.

"Is this an ad or acceptance of a failed state. If one is not able to contain terrorism it is your own problem not of others. Pakistan has made a mockery of itself by broadcasting such an ad," read another comment.

Prince Harry: The record breaker!

2011-09-13T08:03:00.000-08:00

Prince Harry has reportedly become a record breaker for the largest foreign currency trade, worth a whopping 15.5 billion pounds after he took the call to wrap up the deal in London.

The 26-year-old third-in-line to the British throne was joined by a string of celebrities for a charity day on Monday in London, raising millions of pounds for 29 UK charities, 'The Sun' reported.

Harry was in the Canary Wharf offices of BGC Partners on behalf of Sentebale, the charity he co-founded to support vulnerable children and orphans in the southern African country of Lesotho.

Foreign exchange broker Robert Sully described his performance as ‘brilliant’. He said: "We told Harry to say '28-year choice', which means you can buy or sell."

Once the deal was done, Harry could proudly boast to have beaten the record set by his brother William last December when he completed a deal worth 14.6 billion pounds.

Harry praised the BGC staff during a pause in the trading, saying, "It's great to see everybody making an effort on Monday morning." Pointing at one group of traders, he joked: "Most of that corner down there have hangovers."

Speaking about his charity Sentebale, Harry added: "We're doing as much as we can in the time we've got available, but the fact these guys have chosen us as beneficiaries is absolutely fantastic."

29 injured as train derails in Pakistan

2011-09-13T07:59:00.000-08:00

At least 29 people were injured when a passenger train derailed on Saturday in eastern Pakistan, Xinhua reported. The accident occurred around 5.00 am.

At Sara-e-Alamgir village in Punjab province's Gujrat district, the local Urdu channel Duniya TV reported.

The train was travelling from Lahore to Rawalpindi. Five compartments derailed because the track was filled with mud brought on by the rain, railway officials said. Some of the injured were shifted to hospitals in Rawalpindi and Gujrat.

None of them was in critical condition. At least 120 people were killed in Punjab and Sindh provinces in incidents caused by heavy rains in August.

Pakistan school bus attack kills four children: police

2011-09-13T07:53:00.001-08:00

Gunmen ambushed a Pakistani school bus on Tuesday, killing four children and the driver in a hail of bullets and rocket fire on the outskirts of the northwestern city of Peshawar, police said.

The motive for the attack was not immediately clear, but the children studied at an elite English-language school of a type reviled by hardline Islamist militants who oppose what they as Western-imported, secular education.

The boys, aged nine to 14, were targeted in the Matani area close to Pakistan's northwestern tribal belt, which the United States considers the most dangerous region on earth and an Al-Qaeda headquarters.

Although there was no immediate claim of responsibility for Tuesday's attack, bombings blamed on Taliban and Al-Qaeda-linked networks have killed more than 4,630 people since 2007, destabilising the nuclear-armed state.

"Gunmen opened fire on a school van and also lobbed a rocket in Peshawar's suburb of Matani," senior police official Ejaz Khan said.

"We are checking why the bus was targeted," he said.

Habib Khattak, a doctor at Peshawar's Lady Reading Hospital, said 18 wounded were admitted after the attack. Twelve of them were children, he said, with the others teachers and passers-by.

The vehicle belonged to the private Khyber School, Khan said. Fee-paying, English-language schools are almost universally patronised by Pakistan's middle and upper classes, with English widely used by the federal government.

"The driver and four children have been killed," Kalam Khan, a senior police official said.

"The children are aged nine to 14. Five children are injured," he added.

Police said the bus was taking children home at the end of the school day, which in Pakistan finishes in the early afternoon.

"The gunmen were waiting for the bus in fields and attacked when it came close. They fired a rocket and then fired bullets on the van," said Kalam Khan.

Al Qaeda releases video supporting Arab Spring

2011-09-13T07:50:00.000-08:00

Al Qaeda has released a message in which Osama bin Laden's successor as the group's leader, Egyptian Ayman al-Zawahiri, said al Qaeda supported the Arab Spring.

The hour-long video was released to mark the 10th anniversary of al Qaeda's Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the United States.

The SITE Monitoring Service, which tracks jihadist statements, quoted al-Zawahiri as saying he hoped the protest movements that have overthrown leaders in Egypt, Tunisia and Libya would establish what he called true Islam.

The video was posted on jihadist websites on Monday and titled ‘The Dawn of Imminent Victory’, SITE said.

Al Qaeda, which called for the violent overthrow of secular Arab governments, lost a great deal of relevance as a result of the political upheaval across the Middle East and North Africa.

The video also included a message that al Qaeda said was recorded by Osama bin Laden before his killing in May by U.S. special forces, in which he warns Americans against "falling as slaves" to the control of major corporations.

Ahead of events on Sunday in the United States to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, officials had warned of a specific, credible but unconfirmed report of a threat to harm Americans, notably in New York and Washington.

SITE made no mention of any specific threat in its account of the contents of the video.

Libyan new leaders pledge 'moderate' Islamic rule

2011-09-13T07:47:00.000-08:00

Libya's new leaders pledged 'moderate' Islamic rule even as their fighters were accused by Amnesty International on Tuesday of committing possible war crimes.

A defiant Muammar Gaddafi, meanwhile, vowed from hiding to battle on until victory as his forces launched surprise fightbacks on three fronts.

Interim leader Mustafa Abdel Jalil received a hero's welcome when he made a public speech in Tripoli's main square late on Monday.

Thousands celebrated last month's fall of the Gaddafi regime in Martyrs' Square, two days after Abdel Jalil, the head of the National Transitional Council (NTC), arrived in Tripoli from Benghazi in the east.

Moderate Islam would be the main source of legislation in post-Gaddafi Libya, he told the crowd.

"We will not accept any extremist ideology, on the right or the left. We are a Muslim people, for a moderate Islam, and we will stay on this road," he said.

In a new report released on Tuesday, Amnesty International accused Gaddafi's regime of crimes against humanity but also said NTC fighters had committed possible war crimes.

While the London-based rights group's report consisted mainly of damning examples of violations by Gaddafi's regime, it said the NTC appeared unwilling to hold its fighters accountable for human rights violations.

Amnesty said in the first days of the uprising against Gaddafi's rule groups of protesters killed a number of captured soldiers and suspected mercenaries.

"Some were beaten to death, at least three were hanged, and others were shot dead after they had been captured or had surrendered, the report, 'The Battle for Libya - Killings, Disappearances and Torture', said.

"The NTC is facing a difficult task of reigning in opposition fighters and vigilante groups responsible for serious human rights abuses, including possible war crimes but has shown unwillingness to hold them accountable," the report said.

But Amnesty acknowledged that the war crimes allegedly committed by the now governing opposition were of a "smaller scale" than those carried out by Kadhafi's regime, which it says may be responsible for crimes against humanity.

Tears unite Americans on 10th anniversary of 9/11

2011-09-13T07:01:00.000-08:00

Tears flowed and bells tolled at Ground Zero on Sunday as Americans marked the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks in a rare moment of unity for a country still shaken by the horrific attacks.

President Barack Obama and his predecessor and political foe George W. Bush stood together in New York for the main ceremony at the site of the destroyed Twin Towers. Obama then left to pay homage at 9/11's other crash sites in Pennsylvania and at the Pentagon.

At Ground Zero, the Stars and Stripes flew from cranes used in the massive project to rebuild the World Trade Center, while below, relatives of 9/11's 2,977 victims touched the names of their loves ones inscribed in bronze around a new memorial.

With federal officials warning of a new terrorism scare, lower Manhattan was under police lockdown. Security in other major cities was also tight, as Obama called for a ‘heightened state of vigilance and preparedness’.

6 MINUTES OF SILENCE FOR THE VICTIMS

The ceremony began in New York with a procession of bagpipers and singing of the national anthem, before pausing for the first of six moments of silence marking the times when the four hijacked airplanes hit their targets and the Twin Towers collapsed.

The sky over the Big Apple was initially clear, recalling the brilliant backdrop to the horrific surprise attack on the World Trade Center, where 2,753 of the day's victims, including 343 firefighters, died in the inferno of collapsing skyscrapers.

As every year since September 11, 2001, relatives of the dead took turns reading out the names, a heartbreaking litany accompanied by virtuoso cellist Yo-Yo Ma.

3/4th OF ONE WORLD TRADE CENTER

Reflecting a growing sense that it is time to turn a corner from 9/11, the Ground Zero ritual this time was accompanied by signs of optimism.

Instead of the chaotic-looking construction site and vast pit that scarred lower Manhattan for years, the ceremony now features a gleaming, three-quarter-built One World Trade Center tower and other signs of progress.

TERRORISM WON’T WIN: OBAMA

Even as US intelligence agencies chased down what officials said was a credible but unconfirmed threat of an Al-Qaeda attack around 9/11, Obama assured terrorism would never win.

"We will protect the country we love and pass it safer, stronger and more prosperous to the next generation," he said earlier. "Today, America is strong and Al-Qaeda is on the path to defeat."

CEREMONIES ALL OVER US

Commemorations were also held at the Pentagon and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where one of the four hijacked planes fell into a field, after passengers overpowered the assailants.

At the Pentagon, where 184 people died when a hijacked airliner smashed into the exterior of the huge complex, the ceremony closed with an army sergeant playing "taps" and then a stirring rendition of "America the Beautiful."

At the crash site of Flight 93 in Shanksville, where 40 passengers and crew died, the president of the families' association, Gordon Felt, said that healing was not the same as forgetting.

9/11 REMEMBRANCE UNITE AMERICANS

The 9/11 remembrances unite Americans like almost no other event. According to a poll last week, 97 percent of people remember where they were when they heard the news, on a par with John F. Kennedy's assassination.

For at least a day, though, 9/11 was a time to reflect and for the world to recall the surge of sympathy for the United States 10 years ago.

British Foreign Secretary William Hague declared that Al-Qaeda ‘is now weaker than at any time in the decade since 9/11’.

But the Taliban hit back on Saturday saying the post-9/11 invasion of Afghanistan by the United States and its allies ‘will remain a permanent stigma on the face of Western democracy’.

Sri Lanka, Australia draw rain-hit second Test

2011-09-13T06:37:00.001-08:00

Resolute Sri Lankan batting and bad weather frustrated Australia's bid for a series-clinching win as the second Test ended in a draw in Pallekele on Monday.

Just 35.3 overs were bowled on the final day, in which Sri Lanka moved from their overnight score of 223-2 to 317-6 in the second innings, an overall lead of 80 with four wickets in hand.

Three half-centuries led a determined batting display by the hosts, who had faced defeat after being shot out for 174 in their first knock.

Seamer Ryan Harris finished with 3-54 as the tourists chipped away at the Sri Lankan middle order, but rain did not leave enough time for Michael Clarke's men to force the result that would have given them the series.

Angelo Mathews was unbeaten on 11 and Suraj Randiv was on four when play was halted midway through the post-lunch session. The match was finally called off two hours before the scheduled close.

Australia lead the three-match series 1-0 after their 125-run win in the first Test in Galle, with the final Test starting at the Sinhalese Sports Club (SSC) in Colombo on Friday.

"It was a disappointing end," said Clarke, who is leading Australia for the first time in a full Test series. "We lost almost 100 overs in the match and that was frustrating for both teams.

"If we had a full day's play, we had a very good chance to win. I was really happy with the way we bowled today.

"I am told it is raining in Colombo too. It will be a shame if the weather affects the game because this series has been played really well."

Sri Lankan captain Tillakaratne Dilshan said he was delighted at his team's batting in the second knock.

"We finally batted well after three bad innings in the series and that gives us a lot of confidence going into the final Test," Dilshan said, adding that he did not believe that Australia were guaranteed a win before the rain hit.

Sri Lanka, who trailed by 14 runs at the start of the day, lost both their overnight batsmen, Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene, within the first hour.

Australia removed the two star batsmen with the second new ball, which was taken as soon as it was due after one over from Trent Copeland with the old ball.

Sangakkara failed to add to his overnight score of 69 when he was squared up by a lifting delivery from Harris and edged a waist-high catch to Clarke at second slip.

The dismissal broke a threatening 101-run stand for the third wicket between Sri Lanka's main batting hopes.

Clarke then dived to his left to snap a stunning low catch in the slips and send back Jayawardene for 51 off the bowling off Copeland.

Jayawardene stood his ground as the umpires debated whether the ball had touched the ground before landing in Clarke's hand, but replays confirmed it was a clean catch.

Sri Lanka were 288-4, a lead of 51 runs, when a sharp shower drove the players back to the pavilion and the umpires ordered lunch 30 minutes early.

When play resumed, Australia grabbed two wickets in the space of six runs to reduce Sri Lanka to 307-6.

Harris picked up his third wicket of the innings when he forced Prasanna Jayawardene (21) to edge a catch to wicket-keeper Brad Haddin.

Thilan Samaraweera made a dogged 43 when he was dismissed in similar fashion by Shane Watson in the post-lunch session.

Industrial growth falls to 3.3% in July

2011-09-13T06:23:00.000-08:00

Industrial growth fell to a meagre 3.3 per cent in July this year on account of poor performance mainly by capital goods, manufacturing and mining sectors, reflecting sluggishness in the economy.

Growth in the factory output, as measured in terms of the Index of Industrial Production (LIP), had stood at 9.9 per cent in July last year.

During the April-July period of this fiscal, IIP growth stood at 5.8 per cent, as against 9.7 per cent in the corresponding four-month period last year.

Output of the manufacturing sector, which constitutes over 75 per cent of the index, grew by only 2.3 per cent in July compared to 10.8 per cent expansion in the same month last year, according the official data released today.

Production of capital goods declined by 15.2 per cent in July, in comparison to a growth of 40.3 per cent in the same month of 2010.

The growth in mining production was 2.8 per cent in the month, down from 8.7 per cent in the same month last year.

Production of intermediate goods fell by 1.1 per cent during the month under review against a growth of 8.5 per cent in July 2010.

Consumer durables grew by 8.6 per cent in July as compared to a growth of 14.8 per cent in the corresponding month of last year.

However, electricity production improved witnessing a growth of 13.1 per cent in July this year as against a growth of 3.7 per cent in July, 2010.

Non-durable consumer goods (FMCG) production also grew by4.1 per cent in July, compared to a decline of 0.9 per cent in the same month last year.

Meanwhile, the industrial growth number for June this year has been maintained at the provisional figure of 8.8 per cent. However, the IIP numbers for April has been revised downward to 5.3 per cent as per the final revision from the previous estimate of 5.7 per cent.

The fall the industrial production numbers, as shown by the latest data, suggest continuation of the sluggishness in the economy, experts said.

The IIP had expanded by 5.9 per cent in May but there was brief revival in June with industrial production growing by 8.8 per cent.

India's economy grew by 7.7 per cent in the April-June period, the slowest in six quarters.

India Inc had attributed the slowdown to rising interest rates which have led to an increase in the cost of borrowings, thus hindering fresh investments.

The Reserve Bank has hiked interest rates 11 times since March 2010 to tame inflation. Headline inflation has been above the 9 per cent mark since December last year.

Massive supernova visible from Earth

2011-09-11T04:36:00.000-08:00

Young, nearby supernova dazzles U.S. scientists

A supernova within the galaxy M100, that may contain the youngest known black hole …

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - California astronomers have found the closest, brightest supernova of its kind in 25 years, catching the glimmer of a tiny self-destructing star a mere 21 million light years from Earth and soon visible to amateur skywatchers.

The discovery, announced on Wednesday, was made in what was believed to be the first hours of the rare cosmic explosion using a special telescope at the Palomar Observatory near San Diego and powerful supercomputers at a government laboratory in Berkeley.

The detection so early of a supernova so near has created a worldwide stir among astronomers, who are clamouring to observe it with every telescope at their disposal, including the giant Hubble Space Telescope.

Scientists behind the discovery at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the University of California at Berkeley say the extraordinary phenomenon -- labeled by the rather obscure designation PTF 11kly -- will likely become the most-studied supernova in history.

"It is an instant cosmic classic," said Peter Nugent, the senior scientist at UC Berkeley who first spotted it.

PTF 11kly occurred in the Pinwheel Galaxy, located in the Ursa Major constellation, better known as the Big Dipper. At a distance of roughly 21 million light years, that puts it, on a cosmic scale, practically "in our backyard," Nugent said.

By comparison, most supernova found with the 48-inch Palomar telescope are about 1 billion light years away and far too faint for the general public to see, Nugent said.

Initially detected on August 24, the PTF 11kly has literally grown brighter by the minute and was already 20 times more luminous in just one day.

It is expected to reach its peak sometime between September 9 and 12, when it will become visible to stargazers using a good pair of binoculars or small telescope.

It will appear blueish-white, just above and to the left of the last two stars in the Big Dipper handle.

"There are billions of stars in a galaxy. This supernova will outshine them all this weekend," Nugent told Reuters.

Supernovae of this type, classified as a "Type 1a" event, occur when a super-dense white dwarf star, about the size of Earth but containing somewhat more mass than our own sun, explodes like a gargantuan thermonuclear bomb.

The blast hurls matter in all directions at nearly one-tenth the speed of light -- matter that ultimately will form the building blocks of other stars and planets.

Such events, accounting for about one in five of all supernovae, are also used by scientists in measuring the expansion of the universe.

Similar supernovae are known to have occurred in the Pinwheel Galaxy at least three times before -- in 1909, 1951 and 1970. But instruments available to observe this one are far more sophisticated, and its early detection is giving scientists an unprecedented glimpse of such phenomena.

For astronomers, the royal straight flush of supernovae are those occurring in our own galaxy, which last happened in 1572 and was visible with the naked eye for months, Nugent said.

Records from antiquity indicate that an even more spectacular supernova in the Milky Way lit up the sky in 1006 A.D., Nugent said.

(Editing by Cynthia Johnston)

Delhi blast email traced to Kishtwar

2011-09-11T04:21:00.000-08:00

Delhi blast email traced to Kishtwar, cops hunt for suspect

Jammu, Sep 8 (IANS) Police had got vital clues about the person who had sent an email claiming responsibility for the Delhi High Court blast after raids on a cyber cafe in Kishtwar in the state, officials said Thursday.

On questioning owners of the Global Internet Cafe in Kishtwar, about 230 km from here, investigators garnered some information about how the man looked.

'We have got some details about the physical features of the person. Police parties have been deputed to trace him,' a senior police officer working on the investigations told IANS.

No formal arrest had been made so far, he said.

The owners, Khajwa Mehmood Aziz and his brother Khalid Aziz, were being questioned and police were scanning the records of the cyber cafe and the people who visited it Wednesday.

Jammu and Kashmir Police had conducted raids after it became known that the email, purportedly by Harkat-ul Jehadi Islami, had been sent from a cyber cafe in Kishtwar.

The National Investigation Agency zeroed in on Global Internet Cafe at Malik Market in Kishtwar as the place from where the email was sent.

The Pakistan-based HuJI had sent the email to two television channels demanding that the hanging of 2001 parliament attack convict Afzal Guru be immediately repealed.

The records of mails and details of all those who sent it are being scanned, they added.

Twelve people were killed and 91 injured when a powerful bomb concealed in a briefcase exploded at a gate of the high court in New Delhi Wednesday morning.

-Indo-Asian News Service

Trailblazing dealmaker: Naina Lal Kidwai

2011-09-11T04:20:00.000-08:00

She was a first in the male bastion of investment bankers and one of India's biggest dealmakers.

Long before the expression 'dealmaker' became commonplace in India, Naina Lal Kidwai, 54, currently country head of HSBC, was one of the biggest dealmakers in the country. It goes without saying that she was also one of the first women to enter the formerly male bastion of investment banking and rise spectacularly. "When I embarked on this journey, I didn't think women would be where we are today. It is very gratifying," she says.

Her first job, decades ago, was with Price Waterhouse, now PricewaterhouseCoopers. An economics graduate and a chartered accountant, she was bluntly told during the job interview that the firm did not employ women. Yet it hired her.

The list of Kidwai's firsts is staggering: she was the first Indian woman to graduate from Harvard Business School, or HBS; the first woman to be hired by PriceWaterhouse in India; the first woman to lead a foreign bank in India. Kidwai says she had to work "very hard" to find her space among the men.

"I am very inspired by her," says Smita Nair, director of investment banking at HSBC Securities and Capital Markets (India), who has worked with her for six years. "I want to be like her."

Kidwai reveals she was the first woman in her family to work. "I come from a very conventional north Indian family," she says "But my parents had aspirations for their children, and because I didn't have a brother those aspirations were transferred to me and my sister." She studied for a Masters in Business Administration at a time when her friends were mostly getting married. She was the youngest member of the HBS class of 1982. "It was good to know I had cut it," she says. Was current Chairman and CEO of General Electric, Jeffrey Immelt, a classmate? Indeed he was.

The years at Harvard, Kidwai says, altered her world view and greatly influenced her leadership style. Kidwai is charming, highly amiable, and possesses a lot of pizzazz. "The amazing thing about Naina is that everyone feels comfortable approaching her with any problem - personal or professional," says Ravi Menon, Managing Director and Head of Strategy at HSBC India.

"Her opinion is always honest and direct." Behind the genteel exterior, however, is a woman who has engineered some of the biggest deals in post-liberalised India. She arranged funding for infotech giants Infosys and Wipro; managed the initial public offerings, or IPOs, of Maruti Udyog and Bharti Tele-Ventures; was one of the key forces behind the Morgan Stanley-JM Financial joint venture and its subsequent turnaround, making it one of the top investment banks in India.

"I am proud of every deal," she says. "Doing deals is like having children. You enjoy them for what they are. The harder deals are more gratifying."

Despite her degrees and soaring career, Kidwai says she often faced tremendous pressure to give up. Her mother often asked her to quit once Kidwai herself became a mother. "You constantly have people telling you managing a home and a career is really difficult, are you sure you want to do this? People tell me this all the time."

But she persevered, inspired primarily by her father. "If I had stepped away, it would have reflected on all women," she says. "My whole experience was to show how to do it." There were no flexible working hours those days. Washrooms for women were usually located in a dark, dingy corner of the office. There were no laptops - reams of paper had to be carried home in bulky folders to work on at night.

Three decades of long hours, meetings at odd hours and constant travel have meant that Kidwai has missed attending important birthdays, anniversary celebrations, festivals and other important family moments. "My father was unwell but I kept delaying going to see him for three months," she says. "Two days before I was to see him, he passed away." Even now, Kidwai works out of two offices, one in Delhi and the other in Mumbai.

Apart from her father, Kidwai has drawn inspiration from "ordinary people who do extraordinary things". She remembers a subordinate during the 1993 riots, "Bombay was completely shut down," she says. "I went to work. But my executive assistant also came to work. She had to leave her three-year-old child with a neighbour. That was her work ethic."

After years of hectic deal-making and negotiations - during her 13 years at ANZ Grindlays, eight at Morgan Stanley and nearly a decade with HSBC so far - she is gearing up to do some pioneering work in water conservation and women's empowerment. She is also a non-executive director on the board of Nestlé, a member of the Audit Advisory Board of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India, and on the governing board of the National Council for Applied Economic Research.

At 54, she says she feels as enthused as when she started. "I thought 54 was an age when you get old, dull and retire. But I am nowhere near retiring!"

OBAMA & HIS JOB PLANS

2011-09-11T03:52:00.000-08:00

Obama confronts jobs 'crisis' with $447 bln plan

U.S. President Barack Obama challenged Congress to enact a $447 billion package of tax cuts and new spending to revive a stalled job market but he faces an uphill fight with Republicans.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama designed his jobs plan and his message to Congress on Thursday with one goal in mind: to get it passed.

The president, looking stern and frequently pointing his finger for emphasis, used measured language and an impassioned tone as he repeatedly urged Republican and Democratic lawmakers to act "right away" to pass a $447 billion package made up largely of tax cuts for workers and businesses.

Obama, a Democrat, refrained from overt criticism of the other party but politics were as important as pragmatism in his speech.

Below is a look at his goals and messages:

1. SET THE TONE

Obama, who has leveled harsh criticism against lawmakers in recent weeks, tried to stay upbeat and positive.

He got applause for urging members of Congress to avoid the "political circus" of Washington and made a point of emphasizing common ground between Democrats and Republicans on jobs policies.

John Boehner, the top Republican in Congress, seemed to return the favor, saying in a short statement after the speech that Obama's proposals merited consideration.

"We hope he gives serious consideration to our ideas as well," Boehner said.

Call that a first step toward getting something passed.

2. MAKE IT POLITICAL

Despite the tone, Obama's message was clearly political. In various ways, he told lawmakers to "pass this bill" some 17 times and then said he would take his message to every corner of the country.

Translation: This will be the president's rallying cry when he hits the campaign trail for the election in November 2012, which he will do more frequently as the Republican race to replace him heats up.

In an effort to make a political speech non-political, Obama noted that the election was still 14 months away -- too long for voters to wait for action on the economy.

3. OFFER SUBSTANCE TO BOTH SIDES

Obama hammered home the issue of bipartisanship in his speech and tried to offer initiatives palatable to both parties, like mortgage financing relief and help for small business.

He gave a nod to Republicans by promising to root out wasteful spending and do away with some regulations that are hard on business. He emphasized his proposals were "paid for" -- an effort to appeal to conservative lawmakers especially concerned about the U.S. deficit.

But the president also extended a hand to his own Democrats by saying he would not use the struggling economy as an excuse to roll back popular social programs.

Obama called on Americans to contact lawmakers and say they wanted action, a repeat of his successful strategy during this summer's rancorous debt ceiling debate to get voters to put pressure on their representatives to cut a deal.

"Tell Washington that doing nothing is not an option," Obama said. "Remind us that if we act as one nation and one people, we have it within our power to meet this challenge."

Whether or not voters agree with the substance of his proposals, the president tried to make it look like the American people were on his side.

Azhar’s son critical after accident

2011-09-11T03:02:00.000-08:00

Mohammad Azharuddin's son hospitalized after motorcycle accident

Hyderabad, Sep 10(ANI): Former Indian cricket captain Mohammad Azharuddin's son, Ayazuddin, has reportedly been hospitalized after suffering serious injuries in a motorcycle accident in Hyderabad today.

According to CNN-IBN, Ayazuddin has been admitted to the city's Apollo Hospital.

The 18-year-old has received head injuries in the mishap which occurred at around 6.30 a.m.

Azharuddin, who is a Congress leader and a member of the Lok Sabha, is reportedly on his way back to Hyderabad from London. (ANI)

Indian beauty queens

2011-09-11T02:52:00.000-08:00

Sushmita Sen, Aishwarya Rai, Priyanka Chopra...there was a time when Indian beauties made it to the top. Though Reita Faria won the Miss World title in 1966, it was Sushmita Sen and Aishwarya Rai who started the trend when they bagged the Miss Universe and Miss World titles respectively in the year 1994. Among all these divas, who do you think is the most beautiful? Choose your beauty amongst the beauties.

Aishwarya Rai, Sushmita Sen or Priyanka Chopra? Who according to you, is the most beautiful woman?

Sushmita Sen - Miss Universe 1994

Aishwarya Rai - Miss World 1994

Lara Dutta - Miss Universe 2000

Priyanka Chopra - Miss Universe 2000

Diya Mirza (right) - Miss Asia Pacific 2000. That year, India bagged all the top three crowns with Lara winning the Miss Universe title and Priyanka the Miss World crown.