Buddhist faces threat from China

Few thought they would do it until they did, firing fusillade after fusillade into two giant statues of the Buddha that had weathered 1,500 turbulent years of conquest and chaos, but could not withstand the Taliban's tanks. As shells and anti-aircraft rounds thudded into the sandstone giants, Afghans who eked out their lives in the shadow of the statues were aghast.

Now, almost 10 years to the month after Taliban fundamentalists blew the Bamiyan Buddhas apart, Afghanistan's archaeological treasures face a new threat: capitalism. Just south of Kabul, French and Afghan archaeologists have unearthed a 5th-century Buddhist monastery at a 4,000 hectare site called Mes Aynak — and are racing against time to excavate more ruins before Chinese miners obliterate them in their quest for natural resources.

In 2007, China Metallurgical Group, a Beijing-based mining group, signed a $3bn deal with the Afghan government —the biggest foreign investment in the country to date — to exploit vast copper deposits less than 1,000m from the then yet-to-be-discovered monastery. In its day, the building would have stood 15m (50ft) high, and measured 80m by 40m .Now it sits half-concealed by the mound it rises from beside the main road to Kabul; a warren of newly excavated halls and passages with giant feet, hands and faces emerging from earth.


Following a recent visit to Mes Aynak (it means "little copper well"), archaeologist Joanie Meharry described the treasures emerging from the dig. "Among the ruins were found a stupa more than 9m tall, frescoes with details in black and red paint, plaster statues adorned with jewelled ornaments, some laced in a fine layer of gold, and shards of pottery," she wrote.

The team of 16 French and Afghan archaeologists conducting the dig at Mes Aynak has 38 months before the Chinese miners move in, although the hope is that Afghanistan's mining and culture ministries will step in to protect some of the settlement's remains. nyt news service

Some of the Intersting Facts

1. A pig's orgasm lasts for 30 minutes.

(How'd they figure this out, and why?)

2. Banging your head against a wall uses 150 calories an hour.

(Still can't get over that pig thing)

(Don't try this at home...maybe at work?)

3. Humans and dolphins are the only species that have sex for pleasure.

(Is that why Flipper was always smiling?)

(And pigs get 30-minute orgasms? Doesn't seem fair)

4. The strongest muscle in the body is the tongue.

(Hmmmmmmmmm........)

5. Right-handed people live, on average, nine years longer than left-handed people do.

(If you're ambidextrous do you split the difference?)

6. The ant can lift 50 times its own weight, can pull 30 times its own weight and always falls over on its right side when intoxicated.

(From drinking little bottles of...?)

(Did taxpayers pay for this research??)

7. Polar bears are left handed.

(Who knew....? Who cares? How'd they find out, did they ask them?)


8. The catfish has over 27,000 taste buds.

(What can be so tasty on the bottom of the pond?)

9. The flea can jump 350 times its body length.

It's like a human jumping the length of a football field.

(30 minutes...can you imagine?? And why pigs?)

10. A cockroach will live nine days without it's head, before it starves to death.

(Creepy)

11. The male praying mantis cannot copulate while its head is attached to its body. The female initiates sex by ripping the male's head off.

(Honey, I'm home. What the....)

(Well, at least pigs get a break there...)


13. Some lions mate over 50 times a day.

(In my next life I still want to be a pig ... quality over quantity)


15. Butterflies taste with their feet.

(Oh, Geez) (That's almost as bad as catfish)

14. An ostrich's eye is bigger than it's brain.

(I know some people like that.)

15. Starfish don't have brains.

(I know some people like that too.)

Interesting Facts II

1. Mosquito repellents don't repel. They hide you. The spray blocks the mosquito's sensors so they don't know you're there.

2. Dentists have recommended that a toothbrush be kept at least 6 feet away from a toilet to avoid airborne particles resulting from the flush.

3. The liquid inside young coconuts can be used as substitute for blood plasma.

4. No piece of paper can be folded in half more than 7 times.

5. Donkeys kill more people annually than plane crashes.

6. You burn more calories sleeping than you do watching television.

7. Oak trees do not produce acorns until they are fifty years of age or older.

8. The first product to have a bar code was Wrigley's gum.

9. The king of hearts is the only king without a mustache.

10. A Boeing 747s wingspan is longer than the Wright brother's first flight.

11. American Airlines saved $40,000 in 1987 by eliminating 1 olive from each salad served in first-class.

12. Venus is the only planet that rotates clockwise.

13. Apples, not caffeine, are more efficient at waking you up in the morning.

14. The plastic things on the end of shoelaces are called aglets.

15. Most dust particles in your house are made from dead skin.

16. The first owner of the Marlboro Company died of lung cancer.

17. Michael Jordan makes more money from Nike annually than all of the Nike factory workers in Malaysia combined.

18. Marilyn Monroe had six toes. (rumor)

19. All US Presidents have worn glasses. Some just didn't like being seen wearing them in public.

20. Walt Disney was afraid of mice.

21. Pearls melt in vinegar.

22. Thirty-five percent of the people who use personal ads for dating are already married.

23. The three most valuable brand names on earth: Marlboro, Coca-Cola, and Budweiser, in that order.

24. It is possible to lead a cow upstairs...but not downstairs.

25. A duck's quack doesn't echo and no one knows why. (Or does it?)
26. The reason firehouses have circular stairways is from the days when the engines were pulled by horses. The horses were stabled on the ground floor and figured out how to walk up straight staircases.

27. Richard Millhouse Nixon was the first US president whose name contains all the letters from the word 'criminal.' The second was William Jefferson Clinton.

28. Turtles can breathe through their butts.

29. Butterflies taste with their feet.

30. In 10 minutes, a hurricane releases more energy than all of the world's nuclear weapons combined.

31. On average, 100 people choke to death on ball-point pens every year.

32. On average people fear spiders more than they do death.

33. Ninety percent of New York City cabbies are recently arrived immigrants.

34. Elephants are the only animals that can't jump.

35. Only one person in two billion will live to be 116 or older.

36. Women blink nearly twice as much as men.

37. It's physically impossible for you to lick your elbow. (or can you?)

38. The Main Library at Indiana University sinks over an inch every year because when it was built, engineers failed to take into account the weight of all the books that would occupy the building.

39. A snail can sleep for three years.

40. No word in the English language rhymes with 'MONTH.'

41. Average life span of a major league baseball: 7 pitches.

42. Our eyes are always the same size from birth, but our nose and ears never stop growing. SCARY!!!

43. The electric chair was invented by a dentist.

44. All polar bears are left handed.

45. In ancient Egypt, priests plucked EVERY hair from their bodies,

including their eyebrows and eyelashes.

46. An ostrich's eye is bigger than its brain.

47. TYPEWRITER is the longest word that can be made using the letters only on one row of the keyboard.

48. 'Go', is the shortest complete sentence in the English language.

49. If Barbie were life-size, her measurements would be 39-23-33. She would stand seven feet, two inches tall. Barbie's full name is Barbara Millicent Roberts.

50. A crocodile cannot stick its tongue out.

51. The cigarette lighter was invented before the match.

52. Almost everyone who reads this will try to lick their elbow.

china - serious gender imbalance

 
Chinese men may soon find it difficult to get a life partner amid a serious gender imbalance as marriageable males will outnumber marriageable females by 24 million in 2020.

There is currently a serious gender imbalance among the population below the age of 19 in China, and the country's marriageable men will outnumber marriageable women by 24 million in 2020, according to the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

 
According to the "2010 Social Blue Book" released by Academy, it is estimated that up to 10 million marriageable men will find it difficult to find a life partner.

"China's highly imbalanced sex ratio at birth has lasted for more than 20 years and the cumulative effects have already emerged," said Yuan Xin, a professor from the Institute of Population and Development under Nankai University.

 
The balanced sex ratio is the law of natural evolution, but the imbalanced sex ratio in China has already become a major "obstinate disease" of society.

"During a period as short as 20 years, the regions with highly imbalanced sex ratios have rapidly expanded from eastern to western China, and from the countryside to cities, and cover almost the entire country," Yuan was quoted as saying by the People's Daily Online.

In 1982, the highly imbalanced sex ratio was seen in only 18 provinces, but by 2005 it has spread to all of the provincial-level regions except for Tibet.

 
The direct impact of a long-term imbalanced sex ratio at birth is the emergence of "gradient marriage squeeze," it said.

Tian Xueyuan, deputy president of China Population Research Institute, said that it is estimated males outnumber females by more than 23.8 million at and below the age of 19.

Over the next 20 years, males at the threshold of the marriage will outnumber females by 1.2 million per year on average. Given the shortage of marriageable females at the same age, males will find wives among the females at the lower age, the report said.

divorce by text message

Tajik religious authorities say divorce by text message will soon be banned, as they seek to stamp out the practice in the mainly Muslim Central Asian nation.
State religious affairs committee head Abdurakhim Kholikov said Monday that sending SMSs with the "triple talaq," a Muslim ritual whereby a husband can end a marriage by reciting the term for divorce three times, breaches Islamic law.

Divorce by text message has become common in Tajikistan, particularly among migrant labourers living abroad.
Households in deeply impoverished Tajikistan depend heavily on cash remittances and divorce usually dooms wives to deep penury.
With many marriages in Tajikistan not documented, performing "talaq" is usually a mere formality, although Islamic legal scholars have condemned the practice.
Many describe Tajikistan as Central Asia's poorest country. Regardless, it is ruled by a firm and wealthy dictator, Emomali Rahmon. In a Wikileaks cable, an ambassador said: "Rahmon and his family control the country's major businesses, including the largest bank, and they play hardball to protect their business interests, no matter the cost to the economy writ large."
Recently, the situation in Tajikistan deteriorated so badly that the government was forced to ration the electricity supply throughout the country, despite its abundant energy reserves.

happy family is having two daughters

The key to a happy family is having two daughters, according to a new study. Researchers concluded that two girls are unlikely to fight, will play nicely together, rarely annoy their parents and tend not to wind each other up. Scientists also claimed that they also make little noise, seldom ignore each other and are more likely to confide in their mother or father.

Researchers questioned thousands of mothers and fathers of under-16s to come up with the recipe for a harmonious family life.

Those with two girls were most likely to say their children were easy to reason with, helped around the house and generally got on well with each other.
After two girls, the second most appealing combination of children was one girl and one boy, with 86% of parents saying their little boy and little girl were genuine friends.
The third most favourable combination was two boys, with parents saying their sons pay each other lots of attention and are close friends — but are less likely to confide in their mum or dad as they grow up.

woman slapped, husband in hospital

In a role reversal, a woman slapped her husband on Monday night because she was irritated with their scuffles. With the impact of the assault, the man fell on a sharp object on the floor. He received head injuries and had to be admitted to Hospital.

Kagdapith police station officials said, the incident took place at 2 am on Monday. Ramesh Parmar, 35, returned home in Bordi mill compound in Kankaria area and had a fight with wife Madhuben, 32, over expenses.

Parmar was out of job for a fortnight and was hunting for job. However, when he failed to find one, he used to hang out with friends and did not contribute towards household expenses.


"The duo had arguments over the issue but Parmar got angry on Monday and tried to hit her. She stopped him and instead slapped him hard. Due to the impact, Parmar staggered and fell on the floor when he was hit by a utensil and got injured on the forehead.the couple has two children and have been married for over 10 years.

red-light Taiwan

Taiwan's government said on Thursday it is planning to create legal red-light districts so that it can police the sex trade more easily and protect sex workers' rights.
Under the proposal, sex workers would be able to apply for licences to operate in authorised zones and would be punished for plying their trade elsewhere, along with their clients.
Prostitutes currently face three days in jail or a fine of up to Tw$30,000 ($1,000) if they are caught providing sexual services while their clients go unpunished.
"The government intends to open up the sex industry to a moderate degree to better regulate it in accordance with the majority of public opinions," said Liu Wen-shih, of the interior ministry, which is due to submit the proposal to the cabinet next month.

A poll commissioned by the ministry late last year found that 76.5 per cent were in favour of conditionally opening up the sex trade while 14.5 per cent wanted a ban and 7.6 per cent supported unconditional opening.
The ministry dropped an earlier plan to allow small-scale brothels without zoning because it would be too difficult to keep a tab on them, Liu said.
While there is no official figure for the scale of Taiwan's sex industry, observers estimate it involves hundreds of thousands of people and generates billions of dollars a year.

my life style usa

Meat production is environmentally problematic. The emissions are worse than your car. The ethical issues are worse than those in any Ed Norton film.

Oh, the resources. Meat is so packed with protein and fats that a stomachful is much more than you need. And there's the fact that making meat requires vast amounts of food and cleared land. Problems abound – but so does the demand for meat, despite it being patently clear that we need to eat less of it.

According to the New York Times, the world's total meat supply in 2007 was 284 million tons. Since Americans eat an average of 8 ounces of meat every day – or over 180 pounds a year – this means that if the entire population of the world switched to American meat-eating habits, it would require around 550 million tons a year. Put another way – we'd need two planet Earths to produce enough meat to feed everyone.



Asking the calorie needs of the average human being is a little like asking how long a piece of string is – but as a broad, shot-in-the-dark figure that neglects to account for fitness, exercise, metabolism and a host of other factors, the average human male needs around 2,500 calories and the average woman about 2,000. That's what we need to function. Any extra gets stored away by our bodies for a rainy day.


Americans are not efficient eaters. The calories consumed per day by the average American in 2008 was 3,750 (in a population of 303 million), according to the World Resources Institute. Compare this with the 2,500-calorie average in India (population – 1,147 million). Put thus, the food consumed by Americans could feed 39% of India's population – even though America contains a quarter of the people.


Right now, world hunger is a pressing issue. Some people aren't even getting the minimum they need to survive. In 2006, world salt production was an estimated 240 million tons. Of this, around 17% goes towards making edible salt. If the entire world switched to eating 12g of salt a day, that would be around 30 million tons of salt, or just 12.5% of total world production levels. There's the worry – it could happen. (The reason is that world salt production is higher than ever – in fact it appears to have tripled since 1960′s estimated 85 million tonnes).

world's most powerful rocket

A high-tech entrepreneur unveiled plans to launch the world's most powerful rocketsince man wentto the moon.
    Space Exploration Technology has already sent the first private rocket andcapsule into Earth's orbit as a commercial venture.Itis now planning a rocket that could lift twice as much cargo into orbit as the soon-to-be-retired space shuttle. The first launch is slotted for 2013 from California with follow-up launches from Cape Canaveral in Florida.
    Space X's new rocket called Falcon Heavy is big enough to send cargo or even people out of Earth's orbit to the moon, an asteroid or Mars. Only the long retired Saturn V rocket that sent men to the moon was bigger. "This is a rocket of truly huge scale," said Space X president Elon Musk.
    The Falcon Heavy could put 117,000 pounds into the sameorbit astheInternational Space Station. The space shuttle hauls about 54,000 pounds into orbit. The old Saturn V could carry more than 400,000 pounds of cargo. The old Soviet Union had a giant moon rocket bigger than the Falcon Heavy, but it failed in all four launch attempts. Another Soviet rocket, also bigger than Falcon Heavy and designed to launch its version of the space shuttle, had one successful flight more than 20 years ago.
  
Musk said if Nasa does buy rideson commercial rockets, he would be able to fly astronauts to the space station in his smaller Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon capsule within three years. He said Falcon Heavy willbefar cheaper than government or private rockets. Launches are about $100 million each.

youngsters are now dying globally

In a complete reversal of a 50-year trend, more youngsters are now dying globally than toddlers.

In a first-of-its-kind study — published in the British medical journal The Lancet on Tuesday — it quantifies the patterns of death in children over five years old from 50 countries during the second half of the 20th century. It has been found that death rates in young people (15-24 years) are now higher than children (1-4 years) across most high and low-income countries. Death rates in young men (15-24 years) are two to three times higher than boys (1-4 years).

The majority of deaths in young people are due to injury, limiting improvements in mortality in this age-group over the past 50 years to just half that of children.

Russell Viner from UCL Institute of Child Health, London, and his colleagues said, "A strong international focus on reducing mortality in children below five years has not been matched by a similar response in older groups even though more than two-fifths of the world's population is in the 5-24 year age group."

The findings showed that in the 1950s, mortality in the 1-4 age-group greatly exceeded in all the regions studied. Death rates in children, aged 1-9, declined by 80-93% due to a drop in mortality from infectious diseases in 2004.

Decrease in death in young people, aged 15-24 years, was only about half of that in children. This is largely because of increase in injury-related deaths, particularly, of young men. By the start of the 21st century, injuries were responsible for 70-75% of all deaths in young men aged 10-24 years.


The research also showed that violence and suicide have become key causes of death in young people, responsible for a quarter to a third of deaths in young men aged 10-24 years.

The authors pointed out, "The high injury burden in young people means that they are particularly affected by the persistent low global investment in non-communicable diseases and injury relative to global disease burden."


They concluded, "Future global health targets should include the causes of death in people aged 10-24 years."

Goa does not have its own forensic laboratory

On an average, one foreign tourist died per week over the last three years in Goa. Of the 161 deaths, the cause of death in 53 cases is not known as the histopathology examination and chemical analysis report of the victim's viscera has not yet been received.

While 25 foreigners drowned, 16 of them died following motor vehicle accidents and 15 due to natural cause while holidaying in the state. However, a majority of them have died due to drug overdose, it is alleged. Japanese tourist Kiego Yshiki is suspected to have died due to injection of plant origin narcotic substance in 2008. This was revealed on Thursday by home minister Ravi Naik in a written reply to a question by opposition leader Manohar Parrikar regarding deaths of foreigners in the state.

The delay in verifying the cause of death is mainly because Goa does not have its own forensic laboratory and is dependent on the central forensic sciences laboratories in Hyderabad and Mumbai and now Surat for analysis.

Of the 53 cases in which viscera analysis reports are pending, 29 are of Britons, 12 of Russians, 3 of Germans, besides persons of other nationalities.

Naik's written reply, however, states that the number of foreigners' deaths linked to drugs, directly or indirectly, in the last three years as only one, that too in 2008.


Apparently, doubting the veracity of that figure, Parrikar said that in almost 60% of the foreigners' deaths, their viscera has been sent for chemical analysis because they are suspected to have died from drug overdose or related complications.

Seeking to highlight the gravity of the drugs problem in Goa, Parrikar urged the home minister to address the issue seriously.

Naik replied saying, "We will seriously look into the issue." According to statistics furnished by Naik, 42 foreigners died in Goa in 2008, 65 in 2009 and 54 in 2010. In all three years, the highest number of foreigners died in Calangute, which recorded 45 deaths.


Anjuna came second with 32 deaths. Some other places where foreigners died are Pernem (19), Colva (18) and Canacona (17).

British tourists lead the list with 62 of them dying in the state from 2008 to 2010, followed by 27 Russians, 16 Nepalis and 10 Germans. The others are from various other countries. Of the 161 tourists who died in the state in the last three years, 126 are male and 35 female.

Smart Bird soar higher

One of mankind's oldest and most elusive dreams has been to recreate the effortless, swooping flight of a large bird.
Now scientists have invented a robot that not only perfectly mimics that flight, but could be mistaken for the real thing.
The SmartBird's revolutionary design allows it to start, fly and land autonomously.
Its wings not only beat up and down, they also twist at specific angles, providing the ultra-light model with 'excellent aerodynamic qualities and extreme agility'.
Controlled by a radio handset, it can also simply glide through the skies if left to its own devices.

Steering is achieved when the SmartBird, which weighs just 450grams, moves its tail and turns its head from side-to-side.
Inspired by the herring seagull, scientists at technology firm Festo control the up/down flapping motion of the wings by spinning two wheels inside the robot's torso.
Similar to the wheels on a steam train, these are connected by rods that in turn provide the wings with their flapping movement.
The angle of the wings is adjusted by using 'torsional motors' that point the wings upwards on the up-stroke, making the SmartBird soar higher, and point downward on the down-stroke.

A spokesman for Festo said: 'The minimal use of materials and the extremely lightweight construction pave the way for efficiency in resource and energy consumption.'
While undeniably impressive from a technological viewpoint, it is the SmartBird's uncanny resemblance to an actual bird that astounds.
From the ground it is easily mistaken for the real thing, so realistic are its movements and the flapping of its wings.

On closer inspection, of course, it is clearly a robot.

sex as one of the grounds for seeking divorce

A husband, who cited denial of sex as one of the grounds for seeking divorce, has been granted separation by the Delhi High Court.

Justice Kailash Gambhir took note of the fact that the wife left the husband in 2005 and "did not return to fulfill any of her matrimonial obligations" while allowing a decree for separation filed by the husband Rampal (name changed).


"Had there been any intention of the wife to resume cohabitation with the husband then at least she would have come forward to contest the divorce petition... her conduct gives sufficient grounds to construe the necessary intention on her part to bring cohabitation permanently to an end," Justice Gambhir observed in his order.

Rampal, through his lawyer Prabhjit Jauhar, had appealed against the decision of a lower court to decline a divorce decree to him, despite his claim that refusal of sex by his wife amounted to mental cruelty.

In his plea to HC, the husband narrated how marriage between the couple was solemnized in 1990 but no child was born out of the wedlock. He alleged that his wife was cruel to him from the very beginning and didn't fulfill her matrimonial obligations by refusing to have sex with him. Moreover, he pointed out in his plea that his wife deserted him in 2005 and never returned. This made Rampal seek divorce on the grounds of cruelty and desertion, which was however dismissed by the lower court.

It was also brought to the attention of the HC that the feuding couple had initially agreed to seek divorce by mutual consent, which was duly signed by the wife but then she refused to appear before the court to pursue the proceedings. Later, in a similar manner the wife also ignored divorce proceedings in HC, choosing not to state her version of events.

medically induced coma

Only ten days after giving birth, Stevie Caffrey collapsed. With her heart and kidneys failing, doctors put her into a medically induced coma – and saved her life.
But when she came round four weeks later, she couldn't remember that she had a daughter.

Miss Caffrey, 20, had short-term memory loss as a result of being pumped full  of drugs, and has had to learn to walk again.
As she came to, a nurse said her father would be in shortly with her baby Maisie. Miss Caffrey recalled yesterday: 'I said, "I haven't got a baby''.'
Her boyfriend Andy Stafford – who she had also forgotten – and father Lyndon Caffrey desperately tried to jog her memory.
After two days she remembered the baby girl, but the details of her pregnancy and the birth were just a haze.
It was another three months before she could finally return home and begin  to bond with Maisie, who is now four months old.

She said: 'The last two months were horrible. I just wanted to come home. I was upset because I had not seen her for a long time.'
Maisie was born on November 5 last year but after just three days Lyndon, who works for Delta Taxis, and Andy became worried when Stevie started being sick.
When she collapsed at 2.30am on November 15, paramedics took her to Fazakerley Hospital.
After a blood test, she was rushed to Liverpool Women's hospital at 5am.
Andy said: 'They thought her appendix was ruptured. But then I was told to go out of the room because her heart had stopped. It did not seem real.'
Stevie was resuscitated, rushed to the Royal Liverpool Hospital and taken straight to the operating theatre.

Andy said he watched in disbelief as her body swelled up.
He said: 'She had eyes like a gecko. I almost broke down crying.'

Doctors referred Stevie to specialists at Wythenshawe Hospital, in Manchester, and she was taken there by a police escort.
Surgeons operated on her heart and put her on the list for a transplant, but unable to risk the wait, they put a ventricular assist system into the left side of her heart instead to help it function.
Stevie woke up in mid-December but it was another three months before she could return home to Maisie, who was being looked after by Andy's mum and Stevie's grandmother and aunt.

Stevie said: 'I was upset because I had not seen her for a long time.'
'Knowing other people were looking after her, I thought she was going to call Andy's mum Mummy.
'She is my baby - how was I going to feel if she called anyone else Mummy?'
Stevie finally left hospital three weeks ago. Doctors gave her a portable monitor that measures her heart rhythm and are hopeful she will remain stable and will not need a heart transplant for some time.
Andy said: 'It is up to her from now on. The doctors have done the most they could.'
The new mother, who is due to start a dance course at college, said: 'The last two months were horrible. I just wanted to come home. I did not think I would be here.'

porn industry is about to get .xxx

The American porn industry is about to get .xxx as its own .com -- and after years of protests by the Bush administration, the Obama administration is standing on the sidelines as it happens.

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), the non-profit California corporation that oversees the creation of top-level domain names like .com, .net and .biz, is expected to approve the .xxx domain.

According to Politico, the move would cap a struggle that began in 2005 when a Florida company called ICM Registry applied to introduce .xxx as a new suffix for the adult-entertainment industry.

Religious groups protested with a letter-writing campaign, and the Bush administration urged ICANN to hold off. "The Department of Commerce has received nearly 6,000 letters and emails from individuals expressing concern about the impact of pornography on families and children," Michael Gallagher, an assistant secretary in the Bush Commerce Department, wrote in a letter to ICANN in 2005.


In 2007, the ICANN board denied ICM's application. ICM sued, and the issue went to an administrative panel, which reversed ICANN's decision.

Now the issue is back in ICANN's lap. The Bush administration is gone, and so too, it appears is US government opposition to .xxx. The Obama administration has not taken a public position on .xxx. Asked about the issue this week, a spokeswoman for the Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) said, "It is premature for us to comment at this time." The White House declined to comment.

Other countries, including Saudi Arabia, Iran and Brazil, have raised concerns.

naked treatment / naked therapy

There is something about getting a man to talk about his feelings that usually sends him running in the other direction.
But a 24-year-old psychology buff believes she has the answer - getting naked.
Sarah White has brought a brand new type of therapy to the people of New York.
By slowly peeling away the layers of her clothes during the session, she believes it will allow her to peel away the layers of her clients' subconscious.
She said: 'During the sessions I use the power of arousal to let you gain more control over your life.
'The goal is to use nakedness so you can understand yourself and your world better, so you can feel great and powerful, and so the excitement you feel during the sessions can lead to more excitement outside the sessions.'

The naked therapist's unique approach to helping people has aroused interest from dozens of people.

Unsurprisingly, most of her clients are men.
Miss White, from the Upper West Side, studied psychology as an undergraduate at university but believed there was something missing and uninspiring from the classical training - and that was an open interest in sexuality.

She told the New York Daily News: 'For men especially, who are less likely than women to go to therapy, it is more interesting, more enticing, more exciting. It's a more inspiring approach to therapy.
'I felt early on that something was missing from classical therapy, it seemed to encourage repression as opposed to encouraging people to open up.'
The 24-year-old begins the session with her clothes on, as the hour-long appointment progresses, she takes off every item of clothing until there is nothing left. The initial sessions, which cost $150, are conducted via a one-way web cam and text chat.

Once she builds a rapport with a client she moves to two-way Skype video appointments and then, in some cases, in-person consultations.
So far, she has around 30 clients which are an eclectic mix of college students with sexual issues, middle-aged men with relationship problems and even some women who enjoy a chat with a nude peer.
She said of her approach: 'Naked therapy has been very eye opening and worldly for my clients.
'The goal is to show patients I have nothing to hide, and encourage them to be more honest.
'For men in particular, seeing a naked woman can really help them focus, look deeply into themselves and speak their minds openly.
'Freud used free association. I use nakedness.'

Clients schedule appointments through her website, sarahwhitelive.com.
She conceded that naked therapy is not approved by any mental health association. And she is not a licensed therapist.
While Miss White's boyfriend supports her new business, her parents are still in the dark.
She said: 'I should probably tell them before they read it in the paper.'

Not surprisingly, professional psychologists are not sold on her idea.

Diana Kirschner, a New York-based clinical psychologist, told the Daily News: 'She's using the word therapy here, but I don't consider this therapy. I consider this interactive soft-core Internet porn.'
Any sexual interaction between patient and therapist is considered highly unethical by the American Psychoanalytic Association, the largest and oldest such organization in the nation.

Even physical contact violates its code of professional conduct. 

But there is no physical contact in naked therapy. And, as Miss White points out:  'It's not like I'm having relationships with any of my patients.'

engineering with an interest in robotics and artificial intelligence

 robots are the helping hands everyone has always wished for. Deriving its origin from the Czech word robota, meaning forced labour;Though the first thing that comes to mind vis-a-vis a robot is an imitation of a human from Star Wars, the Terminator or Star Trek it's not always a man versus machine game. Robots we encounter in our daily lives are those that perform tasks that are too dangerous, boring or onerous, thus being the helping hands.
With over a million types of robots, their presence is seen in almost every industry especially the auto, medical, manufacturing and space industry. Robots are used in industries for speeding up the manufacturing process. They are also used in the fields of nuclear science, sea exploration, servicing of transmission signals and bio-medical equipment design.
Created as a result of the perfect blend of the human imagination and technological developments, robots can be described better as mechanical devices that are capable of performing a variety of complex human tasks on command or by being programmed in advance. It is an artificial agent guided by computer or electric programming and is able to do tasks on its own.
A combination of intelligence, energy, movement and senses, robots require these characteristics to fulfil their purpose. The branch of study that develops these robots is robotic engineering. It deals with design and application of robots and the use of computer for their manipulation and processing.
Professor Patricia H. Reiff, director, Rice Space Institute and a professor at the Department of Physics and Astronomy, Rice University, while highlighting new career trends says, "Robotics is very critical these days and one of the most upcoming career options. The expansion in space research these days will also boost robotics and its development."
To follow this career and develop an interest in robotics, an engineering background is a must. Mechatronics is the area of knowledge and practice interfacing mechanical and electronics engineering. Robotics is a subset of mechatronics, which involves automated machinery and components that move. Robotics being an inter-disciplinary course prefers students who have completed their graduation in mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, instrumentation engineering or computer engineering with an interest in robotics and artificial intelligence.
Though the specialisation is offered at an undergraduate level in a few private engineering colleges across the country, it is not the preferred choice. The popularity and growing demand for robotics is at the Master's level.
A course in robotics trains and educates a student in the field of artificial intelligence, computer-aided manufacturing, computer integrated manufacturing system, computational geometry, robot motion planning, digital electronics and micro processing. The different facets of building a robot include working on developing the hardware, software, intelligence control and adaptive control of this machine.
Robotics is not all about designing the robots. Its maintenance, developing new applications and conducting research are equally important. Specialising in design and control in robotics is close to mechanical engineering. For hardware design of robots, a B.Tech. in electrical or electronics and communication engineering forms a good base.

Computer engineers can look at hardware design in robotics and the controls part requires aspects of electrical engineering. This field also requires the application of computer-integrated manufacturing, mechanical engineering, electrical and software engineering and biological mechanics.
In India, work on robotics began in educational institutions and research centres such as the Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT) and the Indian Institute of Science. Now this field is the preferred choice of many budding engineers and contests are held among students across the country to encourage talent.
Robotics engineering can be studied at the IITs in Mumbai, Chennai, Delhi, Kanpur, Kharagpur and Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. A few other institutes that offer this specialisation are the National Institute of Technology, University of Hyderabad, Jadavpur University and the Birla Institute of Technology and Science.
A specialisation in robotics is a popular choice for students going abroad to study. This field offers job opportunities and a robotics engineer can apply his mastery in diverse fields like modern warfare, surgery, nano-technology and space-exploration. Many funding programmes and scholarships are available for research and PhD. students. Developing a robot comes with the goal of finding a solution to the problem. Along with the technical know-how, interest in research is essential. This field has no boundaries and will continue to grow until the machines take over!

women's trade union, SEWA

The prestigious Harvard University will honour Ela Bhatt, founder of the Self-Employed Women's Association (SEWA), for her "life and work" that has had a "significant impact on society" .

Bhatt (77), whose trade union has helped over a million women in India gain access to opportunities for themselves and their families, will be awarded the Radcliffe Institute Medal by Harvard University's Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study.

She would be presented the medal , awarded annually to individuals who have substantially and positively influenced society, on Radcliffe Day on May 27. Some of the illustrious past winners include Toni Morrison in 2007, Margaret Atwood in 2003, Billie Jean King in 2002 and Alice Walker in 1992.

"The Radcliffe Institute is proud to honour her this year, in which gender in the developing world is one of its dominant themes," the Institute said.


Recipient of several prestigious awards, Ela Bhatt founded SEWA in 1972. Conceived as a women's trade union, SEWA has grown into an NGO that offers micro-lending , health and life insurance and child care — all overseen by more than a hundred women-run cooperatives.

In January 2010, SEWA membership had reached 1.2 million.

Bhatt has been recognised for her long battle for social justice. In November last year, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had honoured Bhatt with the Global Fairness Initiative Award for helping move more than a million poor women in India to a position of dignity and independence.

Radcliffe Day is the Institute's annual celebration of women, as well as the alumnae and fellows of Radcliffe College and the Radcliffe Institute.

It is traditionally held on the day after Harvard's commencement.

The Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University is a scholarly community where individuals pursue advanced work across a wide range of academic disciplines, professions and creative arts. Within this broad purpose , the institute sustains a continuing commitment to the study of women, gender and the society.

dog lost its eye

Sandra said: 'We were both devastated and cried buckets on the night they told us they were going to remove his first eye.

After six years of loyal service, Graham Waspe was devastated when his guide dog Edward was left blind after developing cataracts.
But his devastation turned to joy when his replacement Opal turned out to be a real gem.

Mr Waspe's new dog is not just aiding his owner to carry out everyday tasks, but also helping Edward to get around.

Mr Waspe, of Stowmarket, Suffolk, received his new dog last November after Edward developed the inoperable problem which resulted in him needing both eyes removed.
And the two-year-old bitch has stepped in where Edward left off as they tour their old haunts together.
While Edward is well know across the schools and community groups of Suffolk, Opal is now building his own reputation as their owners give talks about the Guide Dogs charity, training for such special dogs and the incredible ways they help their owners.

Graham said: 'Opal's been great for both of us. I don't know what we'd do without her.'
And his wife Sandra, 58, said that despite the loss of his eyes, Edward still loved nothing more than to be around children, have his tummy tickled and receive lots of attention.
The eight-year-old has been retired for four months but the loss of his eyesight has shown no sign of slowing him down.
'Graham said then "do you think he will ever be happy again?" and then they said they would have to remove the second eye.'
She added: 'He is still very popular - just as much, if not more than before.

'People ask lots of questions about how he copes and he is probably more famous now because even more people stop to talk to him.'
Sandra said Opal had arrived shortly after Edward retired and the two dogs got along fine.
'Opal arrived far quicker than expected because, sadly, a couple of people in the Stowmarket area with fairly young guide dogs had died,' she said. 
'We got Opal on November 12 and she started training with Graham on the 16th and they were qualified in early December.'
Mr Waspe has limited vision in only one of his eyes following two separate incidents earlier in his life and coped without a guide dog until 2004.

As well as carrying out their school visits to raise awareness, the Waspes also do vital fundraising and run a local group.

The reports of a party at the prestigious Yale University where undergraduate students attending the soiree were asked to strip naked and forced to drink alcohol have triggered an investigation by the varsity authorities and police.

The party, hosted by 'The Pundits', a senior prank society at Yale, is now being investigated for sexual assault and hazing of undergraduates. About 50 students attended the invitation-only annual nude bash.

Students were told to arrive at the party in costume, but midway through the night were told to strip naked. Members of the Pundits "were force-feeding people alcohol" as well as forcing several students to kiss each other. Later, 10 students had to be hospitalised for excessive drinking.


Attendees were allegedly told that they would be evaluated for Pundits membership. The party was part of the Pundits' "tap" process in which individuals try to impress club members to win a tap on the shoulder to join the club.

Invitees said the Pundits forced alcohol on them throughout the evening and they felt they could not refuse as they sought to impress the group to receive a tap.

The Yale police department is investigating the February 19 event, examining whether it amounted to a form of hazing. Yale police chief Ronnell Higgins said the YPD is also investigating "possible sexual assault".

Yale College dean Mary Miller said Yale "does not tolerate hazing or intimidation". "I am deeply disturbed by reports of heavy drinking by underage students in a context that could be construed as hazing," she said.


The Pundits society was founded in 1884 and for years has regularly hosted elaborate parties in which Yale co-eds strip and socialise in their birthday suits.