WIKI INFO ZONE

US gives Pakistan deadline to capture Mullah Omar

2011-06-02T21:53:00.001-07:00

Washington - The United States has given Pakistan time till July to capture Al Qaeda leader Ilyas Kashmiri and Afghan Taliban chief Mullah Omar.
It has also warned of a military offensive in North Waziristan if they are not captured.
The July deadline coincides with NATO and allied forces withdrawing from Afghanistan. Last week, the US had handed over to Pakistan a list of five terrorists, seeking immediate intelligence information on them. It reportedly also wanted Pakistan to possibly target these terrorists in joint operations, claimed NDTV.
Besides Ilyas Kashmiri and Mullah Omar, the list included Al Qaeda's second-in-command Ayman al Zawahiri, the operating chief of Haqqani network Sirajuddin Haqqani and the Libyan operations chief of Al Qaeda Atiya Abdel Rahman. Abdel Rahman had emerged as a key intermediary between Osama bin Laden and Qaeda's affiliate networks across the world.The list was discussed during two meetings between Pakistani and US officials in the past two weeks, and also during US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's talks with Pakistani leaders in Islamabad on Friday, ABC News quoted a US official as saying.
The US views the list as a test of whether Pakistan is "serious about fighting terrorists who have long enjoyed safe havens within its borders", the ABC report said.

Waqas Younes and Shahid Afridi

2011-06-02T21:51:00.000-07:00

Pakistan’s cricket coach Waqar Younis has denied any rift with former captain Shahid Afridi and pointed out that he works within his limits.
Talking to journalists here at the Gaddafi Stadium after meeting the PCB chairman, he said that he never interfered with the captain’s affairs and he works within his own drawn boundaries. He said that he was disappointed with Afridi’s conditional retirement from international cricket.
“Afridi’s remarks that I intervened in his job is something surprising and its beyond understanding why Afridi said so,” he added.
Waqar said: “I have told what the chairman asked him and the meeting was held in a very healthy atmosphere and the next course of action would be decided by the board,” he maintained.
He also refused to compare Afridi and Misbahul Haq as captains. However, he said that Misbah has proved his worth as captain both in the West Indies and Ireland.
Earlier, on his arrival in Islamabad, Waqar said: “I am disappointed at his decision to retire. I don’t want to make too many comments before meeting PCB officials. There are no personal differences; we all play for Pakistan and I have only come to know about my differences with Afridi through the media and will not comment on them until I know what Afridi has said.”
Afridi’s outburst on Waqar’s interference on the team selection led to the sacking of Afridi from captaincy. But Waqar said that he had nothing to do with removal of Afridi from the captaincy.
“It’s not in my hand to appoint captains. The PCB chairman appoints the captain so you better ask him why the change was made,” Waqar said.
Afridi has faced disciplinary action for violating PCB’s code of conduct and they have terminated his central contract.
Waqar Younis, along with four other players, returned after completing West Indies and Ireland tour. The other four players who accompanied him include Saeed Ajmal, Abdul Rehman, Umer Akmal and Wahab Riaz.
The national coach said that he has no information about the on-going battle between Afridi and the PCB as he was concentrating on the Ireland series and he cannot give his comments before meeting the board.
When was asked about the team’s performance in the recent Ireland series, Younis said that he is proud of the player’s performance and termed it as satisfactory.
Afridi quit international cricket on Monday, saying he was dejected after being replaced as one-day captain following a fiery clash with Waqar. Last month the PCB replaced Afridi as captain with Misbah-ul-Haq.

Murder Of Saleem Shahzad

2011-06-02T21:50:00.000-07:00

LAHORE - The news of murder of Syed Saleem Shahzad, a well-known journalist from Islamabad and Bureau Chief of Asia Times, was a fresh shock for the journalist community all over the country. When Shahzad published his two-part report saying that the Pakistan Navy had Al Qaeda infiltration, everyone believed him. It was not the garbage published by someone, who only worked for sensational publication, following the leads of yellow journalism. This man was an expert on Al Qaeda, having seen it operate closely and having covered them during several integral points of time during the past. Therefore, it was no surprise that he went missing a couple of days after on Sunday May 29, 2011. But the hope against hope of his family, friends, and colleagues of him turning up soon, was battered after his brutally tortured body was found on Tuesday (two days later) along with his missing car.
In October, Shahzad had sent an email to the group Human Rights Watch, "in case something happens to me or my family in future," detailing how he was called into the offices of the ISI after publishing a story saying that Pakistan had quietly freed Mullah Bahadar, the deputy leader of the Afghan Taliban who was arrested in February 2010. It has been recorded by the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) that during the past eight to nine years, over 45 journalists have been killed, some in terrorist attacks, others picked up by unidentified men, after which they went missing only to turn up dead later. Until now, there has certainly been no bias from the side of the perpetrators in the killing of these journalists, because no one media group or news agency has been targeted. From Sindh to Khyber Pukhtunkhwa, and especially in Baluchistan, journalists have been reported tortured, missing and murdered belonging from almost every organization including PPI, Dawn TV, Daily Baluchistan Express, Waqt TV, The News International, Geo, Jang, etc.
Many of the journalists did not belong to the national media. They were part of the regional press and were associated with news they had published which could threaten the security and intelligence agencies of the country, while in several other cases, they were reportedly picked up by militants themselves and killed afterwards. Some have been murdered in mysterious circumstances. For example On May 21, 2009, Ibrahim, 45, from Express TV was returning home after a high profile interview of Maulvi Omar, the chief of Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), when unidentified gunmen killed him. The PFUJ strongly condemned the incident, but not much action was taken to investigate the incident. In another incident, Hayatullah Khan who was a reporter of the AFP in the area of FATA was abducted. He had written extensively about Al Qaeda, Taliban and the heavy fighting in Waziristan. After being abducted in October, 2005 his body was found six month later in July 2006. Later, his wife and brother were also killed.
CR Shamsi, elected member and former secretary general of the PFUJ, claims that mercilessness and indifference has reached a level where no one is moved by such incidents. “This crisis that has hit the Pakistani journalist community seems to be growing worse and worse each year. Still I don’t see any noise being made by the lawyers, the civil society, the government officials. If one journalist is murdered an entire society is murdered – this should be remembered,” he says. Shamsi says that journalists were never so blatantly treated, not even during the martial law era. “This is terrifying: to be abducted and then turn up tortured or murdered with horrendous marks over your body. Who are these people and what signals are they trying to give?” According to a statement by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), this was an action to muzzle the media. While expressing grief, HRCP condemned the murder and said that this was a depraved attempt to silence the media. The identity of the perpetrators may only be established through a transparent probe but the quick disposal of his body and burial strengthens doubts of the involvement of state actors.
HRCP Chairperson Zohra Yousuf says, “All media organizations should collaborate over this issue and the government should flex its authority,” she says. “Leaving the defense and intelligence forces and giving them absolute power to act on their own whims is wrong. This is why human rights defenders and journalists are in worst circumstances. This is also why Reporters Sans Frontiers (RFS) have declared Pakistan the most dangerous country in the world for journalists, even though countries like Afghanistan have a militant war going on in them too.” Zohra opines that for the past 10 years, the role of the intelligence agencies has changed and they have become stronger because of the war against militancy, and these killings have increased because sensitive matters have been exposed. Last year 12 of them were murdered, she said.
PROTESTS: Various media and human rights organizations held protests on Wednesday to condemn Shehzad’s murder. Lahore Press Club and South Asia Free Media Association (SAFMA) held a joint protest. They asked the authorities to take action against the killers of Shahzad. SAFMA secretary general and other notables were present at the protest. PFUJ has also announced two-day mourning. Several human rights organizations also demanded immediate justice for Shahzad’s family. HRCP demands a professional and scientific investigation to apprehend the killers. If it must, the government should seek help from other countries in this regard. HRCP statement reads, “The government must give compensation to the bereaved family and consult media organizations with a view to allay journalists’ apprehensions about their safety and security.”

crossfit

2011-01-05T07:20:00.001-08:00

CrossFit is a strength and conditioning brand. CrossFit combines weightlifting, sprinting, and gymnastics.[1] CrossFit says that proficiency is required in each of ten fitness domains: cardiovascular/respiratory endurance, stamina, strength, flexibility, power, speed, agility, balance, coordination, and accuracy. It defines fitness as increased work capacity across all these domains and says its program achieves this by provoking neurologic and hormonal adaptations across all metabolic pathways.[2][3][4] [5]

CrossFit athletes run, row, jump rope, climb rope and carry odd objects. They frequently move large loads quickly over long distances, and use powerlifting and Olympic weightlifting techniques. CrossFit athletes also use dumbbells, gymnastics rings, pull-up bars, kettlebells, and many bodyweight exercises.[6] CrossFit is used in nearly 2,000 gyms worldwide and by many fire departments, law enforcement agencies, and military organizations including the Canadian Forces, and the Royal Danish Life Guards.

california lottery

2011-01-05T07:19:00.003-08:00

The California State Lottery, also known as the California Lottery, began on November 6, 1984, after California voters passed Proposition 37, the California State Lottery Act of 1984, authorizing the creation of a lottery. The first tickets were purchased on October 3, 1985.

The minimum age to purchase or redeem California Lottery tickets is 18

illinois lottery

2011-01-05T07:19:00.001-08:00

The Illinois Lottery is run by the government of Illinois. The Lottery was founded in 1974, when U.S. lotteries were confined to the Northeast and Midwestern states. Televised drawings are based at the West Bradley Place studios of Chicago's CW affiliate WGN-TV (channel 9), and occur twice daily, with the midday drawing occurring at 12:40 p.m. CT during that station's noon newscast Monday-Fridays and on weekend afternoons during syndicated programming, and the evening drawing occurring at 9:20 p.m. CT during the 9 p.m. newscast seven nights a week. The drawings are supervised by the accounting firm of E.C. Ortiz & Co., LLP and verified by the auditing firm of Mayer Hoffman McCann, P.C. Illinois' is the only lottery to have their non multi-jurisdictional drawings televised nationwide (via WGN-TV's national superstation feed WGN America).

The Illinois Lottery is one of 42 members of Mega Millions, and among 44 members of Powerball (whose drawings are also broadcast by WGN-TV in the Chicago area and nationally on WGN America). It also runs Illinois Lotto (players pick 6 of 52 numbers) with a smaller jackpot on a Monday-Wednesday-Saturday night drawing schedule. Pick 3 and Pick 4 numbers are drawn twice daily; the same numbers apply to those playing the same games in neighboring Iowa. Little Lotto (5/39), with a minimum jackpot of $100,000, is drawn nightly

texas lotto

2011-01-05T07:18:00.003-08:00

Lotto Texas was the first Texas in-house drawing game offered, with sales beginning on November 7, 1992; its first drawing on November 14, 1992, and the first jackpot won on November 28, 1992. By its first anniversary, the Texas Lottery sold over $1 billion in tickets.[13]

Initially sold as an annuity game with no cash option, and the purchaser having to pick numbers, and the drawings held only on Saturdays, Lotto Texas later added the "Quick Pick" option (random selection of numbers, added on May 29, 1993, the Lottery's first anniversary),[14] the "Cash Value" option,[15] and changed the drawings to twice weekly, adding Wednesdays.

Among notable winners was Thomas "Hollywood" Henderson, the former Dallas Cowboys linebacker, who claimed a winning jackpot in excess of $14 million in 2000.[16]

The current format utilizes 54 balls; players choose 6 numbers. The jackpot is paid either in 25 annual payments, or in lump sum (discussed further below). Non-jackpot payments are in lump sum. Each game costs $1, the minimum jackpot is $4 million, and drawings are held at 10:12 PM Central time on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

ga lottery

2011-01-05T07:18:00.001-08:00

The Georgia Lottery is overseen by the government of Georgia, United States. Headquartered in Atlanta and run by the Georgia Lottery Corporation, the lottery takes in over US$1 billion yearly. By law, half of the money goes to prizes, one-third to education, and the remainder to operating and marketing the lottery. The education money funds the HOPE Scholarship, and has become a successful model for other lotteries, including the South Carolina Education Lottery.

washington state lottery

2011-01-05T07:17:00.002-08:00

Washington's Lottery is run by the government of Washington. Its games include Mega Millions, Powerball, Keno, Hit 5, and scratch games.

sugar bowl

2011-01-05T07:17:00.001-08:00

The Sugar Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Sugar Bowl has been played annually since January 1, 1935, and celebrated its 75th anniversary on January 2, 2009. The Sugar Bowl, along with the Orange Bowl and Sun Bowl, are the second-oldest bowl games in the country, behind the Rose Bowl (first played 1902, played annually since 1916).[2] The Sugar Bowl is also a member of the Bowl Championship Series. Presently, its official title is the Allstate Sugar Bowl after its current sponsor.

The Sugar Bowl hosted the BCS National Championship Game in 2000 and 2004. However, since the 2006 season, the BCS National Championship Game has been a stand-alone event one week following the New Year's Day bowl games (including the Sugar Bowl). Under the current BCS format, the Sugar Bowl itself will not host the BCS National Championship Game, but the Superdome will be one of the four rotating stadiums used to host the BCS National Championship Game.

The Sugar Bowl hosts the Southeastern Conference (SEC) champion unless (under the current BCS alignment) the team is selected to play in the national championship game; in that case the Sugar Bowl can select a team at-large from any conference as the host team. The SEC champion has participated in every standalone BCS National Championship Game since 2006; the Sugar Bowl has used its replacement selection on an SEC at-large team. As such, an SEC team has played in the Sugar Bowl every year since the 2000–01 game.

The payout for the 2006 game was $14–17 million per participating team. According to Sports Illustrated, the 2007 salary for Sugar Bowl CEO Paul Hoolahan was $607,500

texas lottery

2011-01-05T07:16:00.002-08:00

The voters of Texas approved an amendment to the Texas Constitution in November 1991 authorizing lottery sales in Texas.[2]

The Texas Lottery Commission created an unusual contest for the Lottery logo – designs from a contracted ad agency were pitted against designs from the general public. One logo from each source was placed in head to head competition, and the winning logo – a cowboy hat thrown high in celebration (still in current use) – was the public design (the winner was Susan Holten, from Carrollton).[3]

The Lottery's first game was the scratch-off ticket Lone Star Millions, with the first ticket sold to Gov. Ann Richards at Polk's Feed Store in Oak Hill. First-day sales of 23.2 million tickets set a then-world record, with first-week sales (ending June 5, 1992) also setting a world record.[4]

Lotto Texas began sales on November 7, 1992, with the first drawing on November 14, 1992 and the first jackpot (from Schulenburg) won on November 28, 1992.[5] By November 1993, Texas Lottery sales would exceed $1 billion, breaking the Florida Lottery's record set in 1989.[6]

The Texas Lottery Commission was formed via legislation in 1993 to take over management of the Lottery from the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts; the legislation also gives the Commission oversight of charitable bingo games (moving that duty from the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission).[7]

Texas joined the Mega Millions consortium in 2003, with sales beginning December 3 and the first drawing to include Texas was two days later. Though no Texas ticket won the jackpot, one ticket matched the first five numbers for $175,000.[8] The first Texas jackpot winner of Mega Millions was not until the drawing of October 4, 2004; a Carrollton player took home the $101 million prize.

As part of the cross-selling arrangement between the operators of Mega Millions and Powerball, the Texas Lottery Commission agreed to begin selling Powerball tickets on January 31, 2010; the first drawing including Texas was three days later.

In 1997 a major scandal rocked the Texas Lottery. Accusations of fixed contracts with the company that manages the lottery surfaced. The scandal went away when the director simply appointed the previously accused management company as the winning bid after a different company had already been chosen. [9]

[edit] General rulesAll lottery players must be at least age 18.

Winning tickets must be claimed within 180 days or be forfeited. For scratch-off tickets, the time limit begins when a game is officially closed by the Commission; for drawings the time limit begins the date of the drawing.

According to the Texas Lottery Commission, the allocation of lottery sales is as follows:[10]

62 percent is paid out in prizes
27 percent is paid to the Foundation School Fund, which is used to support state public education
5 percent is paid to retailer commissions
5 percent is retained to cover lottery administration costs
Approximately 1 percent (specifically, the value of unclaimed prizes) is transferred to the Texas Legislature for allocation to other state programs

mega millions

2011-01-05T07:16:00.001-08:00

Mega Millions is a US multi-jurisdictional $1 lottery game. Since it replaced The Big Game in May 2002 (see below), Mega Millions' advertised jackpots have started at $12 million, paid in 26 yearly installments (unless the cash option is chosen), increasing when there is no jackpot winner.[1] Reflecting common practice among American lotteries, the jackpot is advertised as a nominal value of annual installments. A cash value option, when chosen by a jackpot winner (see below), pays the approximate present value of the installments. Mega Millions currently uses a 5/56 (white balls) + 1/46 (the Mega Ball) double matrix to select its winning numbers. Each game costs players $1; in most of the 42 Mega Millions jurisdictions, players may opt to pay an extra $1 per game to multiply their non-jackpot prizes by 2x, 3x, or 4x with the Megaplier. (The Megaplier will be available to all Mega Millions players in January 2011.) Mega Millions is drawn at 11 PM Eastern time Tuesdays and Fridays, including holidays. The drawings usually are held in Atlanta, Georgia.[2]

Mega Millions holds the record for the largest US lottery jackpot, set on March 6, 2007, when two tickets, one each from Georgia and New Jersey, split a prize of $390 million (annuity). Both sets of winners chose the cash option.

bank of baroda

2011-01-05T07:15:00.001-08:00

Bank of Baroda (BoB) (BSE: 532134) (Hindi: बैंक ऑफ़ बड़ौदा) is the third largest bank in India, after the State Bank of India and the Punjab National Bank and ahead of ICICI Bank.[1] BoB has total assets in excess of Rs. 2.27 lakh crores, or Rs. 2,274 billion, a network of over 3,000 branches and offices, and about 1,100 ATMs. IT plans to open 400 new branches in the coming year. It offers a wide range of banking products and financial services to corporate and retail customers through a variety of delivery channels and through its specialised subsidiaries and affiliates in the areas of investment banking, credit cards and asset management. Its total business was Rs. 4,402 billion as of June 30.[2]

As of August 2010, the bank has 78 branches abroad and by the end of FY11 this number should climb to 90. In 2010, BOB opened a branch in Auckland, New Zealand, and its tenth branch in the United Kingdom. The bank also plans to open five branches in Africa. Besides branches, BoB plans to open three outlets in the Persian Gulf region that will consist of ATMs with a couple of people.

The Maharajah of Baroda, Sir Sayajirao Gaekwad III, founded the bank on 20 July 1908 in the princely state of Baroda, in Gujarat. The bank, along with 13 other major commercial banks of India, was nationalised on 19 July 1969, by the government of India.

wipro careers

2011-01-05T07:14:00.000-08:00

Wipro Ltd (BSE: 507685, NYSE: WIT) is a giant information technology services corporation headquartered in Bangalore, India. According to the 2008–09 revenue, Wipro is one of the largest IT services company in India and employs more than 115,900 people worldwide as of September 2010.[3] It has interests varying from information technology, consumer care, lighting, engineering and healthcare businesses. It is 9th most valuable brand in India according to an annual survey conducted by Brand Finance and The Economic Times in 2010. [4] Azim Premji is the Chairman of the board.

hpcl

2011-01-05T07:13:00.000-08:00

Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) (BSE: 500104, NSE: HINDPETRO), a state-owned oil company of the Government of India located at Mumbai, India and is a Fortune 500 company of India listed at number 311[3] in the global 500 rankings, with an annual turnover of over 1,16,428 Crores and sales/income from operations of Rs 1,31,802 Crores (US$ 25,618 Millions) during financial year 2008-09, about 20% Marketing share in India and a strong market infrastructure. Corresponding figures for financial year 2007-08 are: Turnover- Rs 1,03,837 crores, and sales/income from Operations- 1,12,098 Crores (US$ 25,142 Million).

HPCL operates 2 major refineries[4] producing a wide variety of petroleum fuels & specialties, one in Mumbai (West Coast) of 6.5 Million Metric Tonnes Per Annum (MMTPA) capacity and the other in Vishakapatnam, (East Coast) with a capacity of 8.3 MMTPA.[5] HPCL holds an equity stake of 16.95% in Mangalore Refinery & Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL), a state-of-the-art refinery at Mangalore with a capacity of 9 MMTPA. Another Refinery of 9 MMTPA is under construction in Bathinda, Punjab by HMEL, a Joint Venture with Mittal Energy Investments Pte.Ltd.

HPCL also owns and operates the largest Lube Refinery in India producing Lube Base Oils of international standards.[6] With a capacity of 335 TMT. This Lube Refinery accounts for over 40% of the India's total Lube Base Oil production. Presently HPCL produces over 300+ grades of Lubes, Specialities and Greases.

The marketing network of HPCL consists of 13 Zonal offices in major cities and 101 Regional offices[7] facilitated by a Supply & Distribution infrastructure comprising Terminals, Aviation Service Facilities, LPG Bottling Plants, Lube filling plants, Inland Relay Depots, Retail Outlets (Petrol Pumps) and LPG & Lube Distributorships.

HPCL has, over the years, moved from strength to strength on all fronts. The refining capacity steadily increased from 5.5 million metric tonnes in 1984/85 to 13.00 million metric tonnes (MMT) now. On the financial front, the turnover grew from 2687 crores in 1984-85 to Rs 1,31,802 Crores in Financial year 2008-09.

amravati

2011-01-05T07:12:00.004-08:00

Amravati (Marathi: अमरावती) is a city in the state of Maharashtra, India and the seventh most populous metropolitan area in Maharashtra. It is also the administrative headquarters of the Amravati district. Among the historical landmarks in the city are the temples of Goddess Amba, Lord Shri Krishna and Shri Venkateshwara.

Amravati is also the headquarters of the "Amravati Division" which is one of the six divisions of the state of Maharashtra (Amravati and Nagpur divisions together form Vidarbha region). Apart from Amravati district itself, following four districts also come under Amravati Division:[1]
1. Akola, 2. Yavatmal, 3. Buldhana and 4. Washim.

cibil

2011-01-05T07:12:00.003-08:00

CIBIL is India's first credit information bureau. [4] Its a repository of information, which contains the credit history of commercial and consumer borrowers. CIBIL provides this information to its members in the form of credit information reports.[5]

As on September 2009, CIBIL has an information base on over 160 million consumer trades, and 4 million commercial trades which continues to grow at a fast pace and shares credit information with its 175 member base on the principle of reciprocity.[6] CIBIL’s members include all leading banks, financial institutions, non-banking financial companies, housing finance companies, state financial corporations and credit card companies

alagiri

2011-01-05T07:12:00.001-08:00

Muthuvel Karunanidhi Azhagiri (Tamil: முத்துவேல் கருணாநிதி அழகிரி), generally known as M. K. Alagiri, is an Indian politician and a Cabinet Minister. He is the second son of the head of Dravida Munnetra Kazagham, M. Karunanidhi. His mother, Mrs. Dayaalu Ammal, is the second wife of M. Karunanidhi. His son is the film producer, Dayanidhi Azhagiri.

Although he harbored hopes of eventual accession to the post of President, Karunanidhi always appeared to prefer his younger son, M. K. Stalin, a former mayor of Chennai and currently the Deputy Chief minister of Tamil Nadu. In fact, in 2000, orders went out that party members should 'distance' themselves from Azhagiri.[1]

Following clashes between the supporters of M. K. Stalin and M. K. Alagiri, he was sent to manage the party in the southern districts of Tamil Nadu from Madurai, while M. K. Stalin was retained in Chennai to manage the party in the northern districts. M. K. Azhagiri, was acquitted along with 12 others on Thursday, by a sessions court of Chittor, Andrapradesh, in a case relating to the murder of a former DMK minister for want of reliable evidence.[citation needed]

The succession crisis came out into the open when party members loyal to Alagiri attacked the Madurai office of Dinakaran and set it to fire, in which three staffs were burnt. Dinakaran is a part of the Sun TV group owned by Kalanidhi Maran.[2] He is also accused of conspiring in the murder of the former DMK Minister, T. Kiruttinan

mandira bedi vogue

2011-01-05T07:11:00.001-08:00

Mandira Bedi (Punjabi: ਮੰਦਿਰਾ ਬੇਦੀ, Hindi: मन्दिरा बेदी (born 15 April, 1972) is an Indian actress, model and television presenter who gained celebrity status playing the title role in the 1994 television serial Shanti: ek ghar ki kahaani, shown on India's national channel, Doordarshan.

She continued a high profile career in the next decade with hosting duties for Cricket World Cups[1] and presentations alongside top TV personality Charu Sharma.[2

WikiLeaks cables claim al-Jazeera changed coverage to suit Qatari foreign policy

2010-12-06T21:01:00.001-08:00

Qatar is using the Arabic news channel al-Jazeera as a bargaining chip in foreign policy negotiations by adapting its coverage to suit other foreign leaders and offering to cease critical transmissions in exchange for major concessions, US embassy cables released by WikiLeaks claim.

The memos flatly contradict al-Jazeera's insistence that it is editorially independent despite being heavily subsidised by the Gulf state.

They will also be intensely embarrassing to Qatar, which last week controversially won the right to host the 2022 World Cup after presenting itself as the most open and modern Middle Eastern state.

In the past, the emir of Qatar has publicly refused US requests to use his influence to temper al-Jazeera's reporting.

But a cable written in November 2009 predicted that the station could be used "as a bargaining tool to repair relationships with other countries, particularly those soured by al-Jazeera's broadcasts, including the United States" over the next three years.

Doha-based al-Jazeera was launched in 1996 and has become the most watched satellite television station in the Middle East. It has been seen by many as relatively free and open in its coverage of the region, but government control over its reporting appears to US diplomats to be so direct that they said the channel's output had become "part of our bilateral discussions – as it has been to favourable effect between Qatar and Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria and other countries".

In February, the US embassy reported to Washington how "relations [between Qatar and Saudi Arabia] are generally improving after Qatar toned down criticism of the Saudi royal family on al-Jazeera". In July 2009, the US embassy said the channel "has proved itself a useful tool for the station's political masters".

In one dispatch, the US ambassador, Joseph LeBaron, reported that the Qatari prime minister, Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani, had joked in an interview that al-Jazeera had caused the Gulf state such headaches that it might be better to sell it. But the ambassador remarked: "Such statements must not be taken at face value." He went on: "Al-Jazeera's ability to influence public opinion throughout the region is a substantial source of leverage for Qatar, one which it is unlikely to relinquish. Moreover, the network can also be used as a chip to improve relations. For example, al-Jazeera's more favourable coverage of Saudi Arabia's royal family has facilitated Qatari-Saudi reconciliation over the past year."

Although LeBaron noted that the station's coverage of the Middle East was "relatively free and open", he added: "Despite GOQ protestations to the contrary, al-Jazeera remains one of Qatar's most valuable political and diplomatic tools."

US allegations of manipulation of al-Jazeera's content for political ends also contradict Qatar's claim to support a free press. "The Qatari government claims to champion press freedom elsewhere, but generally does not tolerate it at home," the US embassy said after the French director of the Doha Centre for Media Freedom resigned in June 2009, citing restrictions on the centre's freedom to operate.

In a clear example of the regional news channel being exploited for political ends, the Doha embassy claimed Sheikh Hamad (HBJ) told the US senator John Kerry that he had proposed a bargain with the Egyptian president, Hosni Mubarak, which involved stopping broadcasts in Egypt in exchange for a change in Cairo's position on Israel-Palestinian negotiations.

"HBJ had told Mubarak 'we would stop al-Jazeera for a year' if he agreed in that span of time to deliver a lasting settlement for the Palestinians," according to a confidential cable from the US embassy in Doha in February. "Mubarak said nothing in response, according to HBJ."

The US has benefitted, too. "Anecdotal evidence suggests, and former al-Jazeera board members have affirmed, that the United States has been portrayed more positively since the advent of the Obama administration," a cable in November 2009 said. "We expect that trend to continue and to further develop as US-Qatari relations improve."

In 2001 the emir, Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, refused a US request to stop al-Jazeera giving so much airtime to Osama bin Laden and other anti-American figures, saying: "Parliamentary life requires you to have a free and credible media, and that is what we are trying to do.

"Al-Jazeera is one of the most widely watched [TV stations] in the Arab world because of its editorial independence." The Gulf state has frequently held up al-Jazeera as evidence of its relative openness. The independent Visit Qatar website states: "What makes al-Jazeera such a unique channel in the Middle East is its editorial independence.

"This has been seen by many as evidence that Qatar is one of the region's more liberal and democratic countries, and one which provides freedom of press and speech."

Qatar maintains a working relationship with Iran, and the US embassy was concerned by the lack of al-Jazeera coverage of the civil unrest in Iran after the disputed presidential election in the summer of 2009.

"Al-Jazeera's coverage of the Iranian election and its aftermath has been scanty by comparison to other hot topics in the region, such as Gaza," reported the embassy at the time.

Al-Jazeera "has proved itself a useful tool for the station's political masters", the cables said.

Local media are also affected by government interference. "Over the past three [visits] we have assessed as steady the lack of overall media freedom in Qatar," the November cable said.

"Although overt and official censorship is not present, self and discreet official censorship continue to render Qatari domestic media tame and ineffective."

Al-Jazeera last night denied the claims. A spokesman for the station said: "This is the US embassy's assessment, and it is very far from the truth. Despite all the pressure al-Jazeera has been subjected to by regional and international governments, it has never changed its bold editorial policies which remain guided by the principles of a free press." The embassy of Qatar in London declined to comment on the story last night

Sharm el-Sheikh tourist killed in new shark attack

2010-12-06T21:00:00.000-08:00

A 70-year-old German tourist died after being mauled by a shark off the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh today – the latest in a series of shark attacks in the Red Sea over the past five days.

Egypt's Chamber of Diving and Watersports (CDWS) sent an urgent message to its members in Sharm el-Sheikh, instructing them to clear the water.

"Following reports of another incident in Middle Garden local reef, CDWS is calling for all its members in Sharm el-Sheikh to stop any snorkelling activities happening from any boats or shore. Please tell all your boats to immediately recall any snorkellers who may be in the water," it said.

The group's chairman, Hesham Gabr, told the Guardian: "We are busy dealing with the crisis. I can confirm that a German woman was injured and she passed away."

According to security officials quoted by the Associated Press, the woman's arm was severed in the attack and she died within minutes.

Last week three Russians and a Ukrainian were badly injured.

The Egyptian authorities had said they were confident that the capture and killing of two sharks on Thursday had eliminated the threat to swimmers.

A 48-hour ban on entering the water had been lifted yesterday but all watersports, except for diving sites, have been closed again following today's attack.

Jochen Van Lysebettens, manager of the Red Sea Diving College at the resort, said the latest victim was a regular guest at the luxury Hyatt Regency hotel. He told Sky News: "The woman was just swimming to stay in shape. Suddenly there was a scream of help and a lot of violence in the water. The lifeguard got her on the reef and he noticed she was severely wounded."

Van Lysebettens said 40 diving instructors had been out in the waters in recent days to check for sharks after the initial catch. "They found nothing," he said. "Based on that the authorities opened the dive sites again and opened the watersports activities again."

He thought the same shark had been responsible for all the attacks. He suggested it may have been drawn to the coast by dead sheep left in the water. "I have no idea why this shark is behaving so aggressively," he continued.

"This must have been triggered by something in the past. Unfortunately in this case he is now looking at snorkellers."

A British couple tonight told the Guardian they were in a group of snorkellers that had to leave the water hurriedly on Saturday after a large shark circled round them. Christina Stafel-Collins, from Broughton, north Lincolnshire, said: "It was definitely an oceanic whitetip. We saw it so close-up. My husband is six foot and it was loads larger than him … I am so upset this woman has died. They should have shut the beaches ."

Her husband, Terry Collins, who was in the army for 24 years, said the shark had acted aggressively. "It was about three metres long. I was about 10 metres behind everyone else. I saw it come out of the depths and it went towards our leader. It circled him and began circling the group.

"It was deep grey and was that close I could see electric blue fish swimming in front of it. It was circling lazily but with intent," he said.

The boats that brought them to the area were on the other side of a reef the group had been circling.

Terry said when he raised his head he saw people on the board shouting warnings.

The swimmers had to make their way to the reef and rested there before swimming one by one across about 100 metres of open water to the boats.

"We tried to keep the splashing down."

Around three million tourists visit Sharm el-Sheikh each year, with the winter months peak season. The Red Sea, with its exotic fish and spectacular corals, is a magnet for divers and snorkellers.

Last week's victims were thought to have been attacked by an oceanic whitetip shark, which rarely swims close to the shore. Experts blamed tourists for throwing food into the water to lure fish in order to get a better close-up view.

"It is clear from our initial discussions with shark behavioural experts that this highly unusual spate of attacks by an oceanic whitetip shark was triggered by an activity, most probably illegal fishing or feeding in the area," Gabr said in a statement on Friday.

Conservationists from the South Sinai National Park caught two sharks on Thursday following the earlier attacks, which happened on Tuesday and Wednesday. The animals were dissected to examine the contents of their stomachs, although the results of the autopsy procedures were not released.

Tourists who witnessed one of last week's attacks, near Tiran beach, were shaken by the experience. Speaking before today's attack, many said they would not return to the water even if the authorities gave the all-clear.

"I was very close by," Uri, a tourist from Moscow, said. "I will be spending the rest of my holiday sitting on the beach."

But Anthony Bradbury, a 38-year-old from Oldham, said he was confident the authorities would catch the shark responsible.

"They'll look after the tourists – they want the trade, don't they? You can't live your life being scared of everything," he said.

Nobel winner Mario Vargas Llosa rules out Peru presidency rerun

2010-12-06T20:57:00.003-08:00

Nobel literature prizewinner Mario Vargas Llosa said today he would not run again for the presidency of Peru, saying his 1990 candidacy was due to exceptional circumstances.

While in Sweden to collect his 10m krona (£600,000) prize, Vargas Llosa said he stood against Alberto Fujimori 20 years ago because the country's "very fragile democracy was shaking and on the point of collapse".

He added: "We had practically a civil war … we had hyper-inflation … it was because of those circumstances that I had the necessity of political participation. I certainly won't repeat this experience."

Vargas Llosa was among the leaders of the resurgence in Latin American literature in the 1960s. He lost to Fujimori, who tackled the country's inflation and Maoist guerrillas but is now in jail for human rights abuses.

Vargas Llosa, 74, said he hoped the presidential election in Peru next year would strengthen democracy and the rule of law, and build on the peace of recent years.

A champion of the left in his youth, Vargas Llosa shifted later in life across the political spectrum, angering much of Latin America's leftist intelligentsia.

He said, however, he remained a liberal: "I am totally against all forms of authoritarianism and … totalitarianism."

Vargas Llosa made his international breakthrough in the 1960s with The Time of the Hero, a novel about cadets at a military academy in Lima. Many of his works are built on his experiences of life in Peru in the late 1940s and 1950s.

"The point of departure for all [my] stories are some personal experiences that are preserved by my memory and that awake in my imagination the enthusiasm to fantacise around," he said.

The Swedish Academy singled out his "cartography of structures of power and his trenchant images of the individual's resistance, revolt and defeat".

Vargas Llosa said winning the prize had been a shock and that his life had "entered into a vortex" afterwards.

"The way in which the Nobel prize is deserved, for me, is a total mystery," he said. "I still wonder if it is real or a kind of universal misunderstanding."

He picked French novelist Gustave Flaubert as having the most influence on him. He also said he would give the Nobel Literature prize to Argentinian writer Jorge Luis Borges – after resurrecting him, as only living writers can be honoured by the Nobel committee.

L'Oréal heiress Liliane Bettencourt and daughter call truce in legal dispute

2010-12-06T20:57:00.001-08:00

France's richest woman, L'Oréal heiress Liliane Bettencourt, and her daughter have called a truce in the three-year family feud that sparked a political crisis.

The pair have agreed to cease the squabbling and hostilities that have torn apart one of the country's most famous families, cost a government minister his job, and thrown suspicion on the president.

The dispute that split Bettencourt, 87, and her only child, Françoise Bettencourt Meyers, 63, began with claims that the heiress was not in her right mind when she gave gifts worth nearly €1bn (£850m) to a charming society photographer.

It rumbled on in weekly, daily and, at one point, hourly instalments, bringing allegations of illegal donations to Nicolas Sarkozy's ruling political party, tax evasion in secret Swiss bank accounts, and the use of France's secret services to spy on journalists.

"Liliane and Françoise have been reunited and want to end all this arguing," said Olivier Metzner, lawyer for Bettencourt Meyers. "We are bringing an end to all procedures following this family reconciliation. There is no more case as far as we are concerned."

The plot of the Bettencourt affair, as it became known, took more twists and turns than a cheap thriller. Bettencourt Meyers sought to have her mother made a ward of court after discovering she had given photographer François-Marie Banier, a 63-year-old socialite, art masterpieces, life insurance policies and gifts. Bettencourt met Banier, who has taken pictures for the New Yorker and Vanity Fair magazines, in 1985 when he was commissioned to take her picture with Italian film director Federico Fellini.

Banier, once described as a "strategic master on the battlefield of charm" and a friend of Salvador Dali, Pierre Cardin, Yves Saint Laurent, Samuel Beckett and Johnny Depp, among others, charmed, flattered and, if his critics are to be believed, bullied Bettencourt. Soon she was transferring treasures into his name, including works by Picasso, Mondrian, Delaunay, Man Ray and Matisse, and giving him enough money to expand his property empire.

Bettencourt Meyers accused Banier of taking advantage of her mother's state of mind and took legal action against him.

The feud turned political when secret tapes made by the butler at Bettencourt's luxury home in the chic Paris suburb of Neuilly-sur-Seine came to light.

They revealed that the heiress had employed the wife of the then budget minister, Éric Woerth, to manage part of her fortune, while at the same time allegedly hiding millions from the taxman in Swiss bank accounts.

Shortly afterwards, the heiress's former bookkeeper claimed Bettencourt had made illegal cash donations to Sarkozy's 2007 presidential election campaign, an allegation vehemently denied by the French leader and his entourage.

At the height of the scandal, police quizzed Bettencourt's financial adviser, Patrice de Maistre, who, it was also revealed, had received a Légion d'Honneur from Woerth.

When Banier's trial for "abuse of weakness" opened in July, fact surpassed any possibility of invention as France's most famous leading lawyers traded insults, threats – and almost blows – in court

Woerth was later dropped from the cabinet in a government reshuffle, but is still facing investigation over the alleged donations. Meanwhile, Sarkozy was accused by Le Monde of ordering France's secret services to spy on its journalists reporting on the Bettencourt case. The surprise reconciliation between Bettencourt and her daughter, who met again for the first time in more than a year today, came after three weeks of secret negotiations.

It was reported that Bettencourt had agreed to have nothing more to do with Banier and De Maistre, while her daughter had agreed to stop all legal action.

Metzner said the pair had signed an agreement to end their various disputes but the details were "private and confidential". A joint statement said they were "looking to the future".

"The decision Françoise and I have taken is a source of hope for me," it said. "This agreement will allow us to rediscover our family harmony."

The L'Oréal group welcomed a "happy ending" to an affair which has seen its image tarnished.

Jean-Paul Agon, director general, said the reconciliation was "very positive for our company".

Nick Clegg to make plea to divided party on eve of tuition fees vote

2010-12-06T20:56:00.002-08:00

A Liberal Democrat grassroots revolt over the party leadership's support for trebling tuition fees emerged tonight as members of the party's policy committee demanded powers to rein in ministerial independence from Lib Dem policy.

Separately, proposals were being put forward by some activists to make it easier for local parties to deselect Lib Dem MPs.

The moves came as David Davis, the Conservative MP and rightwing standard-bearer, announced that he will rebel in the key Commons vote on Thursday by voting against the trebling in tution fees.

Although Davis insisted he was "a rebellion of one," provoked by the damage he said the fees rise will inflict on social mobility, his move prompted coalition fears that a few other rightwing Tories might also break ranks, so reducing, but probably not endangering, the coalition majority in Thursday's Commons vote.

Davis told the Guardian: "The kids being helped are the very, very privileged indeed. Free school meals being the bar [for applying for the government's financial support fund plan] means quite a lot of aspirant working class kids will not be helped." He added he was concerned by rising indebtedness. "Kids are already leaving university with high levels of debt before they even go to work. I am worried making this worse will see the next generation significantly set back – unable, for instance, to get a mortgage."

His remarks will severely embarrass the Lib Dem leadership as they claimed the entire tuition fee package as a whole will help social mobility.

Nick Clegg, the Liberal Democrat leader, is to make a desperate final plea to persuade his MPs tomorrow night to retain unity, but that prospect was evaporating tonight. Two junior ministers, the transport minister Norman Baker and the equalities minister Lynn Featherstone are considering whether to abstain, or vote against a move that might require them to resign from the government.

The coalition agreement allows Lib Dem MPs to abstain on tuition fees, but it is not clear how this applies to ministers. At least 13 or 14 backbench MPs, including former party leaders Charles Kennedy and Sir Menzies Campbell, are going to vote against, with Vince Cable, the business secretary, leading a group determined to vote for the measures they support.

Lord Ashdown, the former party leader, today called on the party to back the coalition tuition fees package, but admitted that in the current political climate the public was not listening to Clegg. He added: "Nick could deliver the Sermon on the Mount. They are just not listening."

Clegg's main strategic goal has been to show that coalition politics works, and he will be disturbed that the tuition fees vote is prompting calls for a rethink in the constitutional relationship between the party and ministers.

Gareth Epps, a member of the Lib Dem federal policy committee, warned that "the policy committee elected in November will want to have the opportunity to put out clear policy statements if it feels coalition policies are at odds with the Liberal Democrat principles and policies.

"A more formal mechanism is needed to make ministers realise they need to think again, and this will become more important as the coalition continues and more proposals inevitably emerge that were not covered by the coalition agreement."

Epps said that the party's special conference, called to endorse the coalition agreement in May, was debarred from discussing two motions ordering MPs to stick by their pledge to oppose a rise in fees in line with the manifesto agreement.

Lord Ashdown had yesterday claimed that the special conference had unanimously endorsed the coalition agreement.

Epps said: "It's self-evident now that the failure to tackle this issue at Special Conference has been a significant contributory factor in the difficulties the Party has faced now, and particularly in the disconnect between Ministers and the Party at large.

"The conference organisers did the party a severe disservice by preventing the special party conference from discussing the specific issue of tuition fees. If it had, we might not be in the difficulties we are now and we would be able to rein in ministers as they veer from what was in the manifesto. This is now an issue of trust as much as the policy."

He said two motions demanding Liberal Democrat MPs stick by their election pledge to oppose a rise in tuition fees were not taken by the conference organisers. One motion, designed to refer to the pledge given to the National Union of Students by Liberal Democrat MPs not to support an increase in tuition fees read "no MP can be mandated in matters of conscience, including those matters where they have explicitly pledged a certain course of action to their electorate.'

Another called on the party to reaffiirm its aspiration to scrap tuition fees and to make|" the impact on student debt" the paramount consdieration of any decision.

There are also calls from party activists to change party rules on the deselection of MPs. The current rules, adopted at a time when the Lib Dems wanted to avoid the kind of civil wars that plagued Labour, limit local party ability to deselect MPs with the incumbent given preference. One source said: "Our MPs have to realise they cannot vote for this rise with impunity. It damages not just them but the whole party." In practice redrawing constituency boundaries will make it harder for sitting Lib Dem MPs to claim incumbency.

In a bid to hold the party together cabinet members, including Clegg, have been holding teleconferences with senior party figures including parliamentary candidates to explian his thinking.

More than 135 Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidates have signed a petition urging MPs to oppose the tuition fees increase, and currently the mood is against calling for a special conference, seen as the nuclear option.

'MP' is an impostor

A man interviewed on Radio 4's World at One today, who claimed to be a Liberal Democrat MP, was revealed to be an impostor. Presenter James Robbins thought he was apparent interviewing ministerial aide Mike Crockart, who said he would be prepared to quit over the rise in tuition fees, but the interviewee turned out to be an impostor.

The BBC blamed an incorrect number listed against his name in the corporation's directory of MPs' contact details. All the "usual pre-broadcast questions" had been asked of the man, over the phone, who had "maintained throughout that he was Mr Crockart and appeared credible", the BBC said.

A fake Crockhart was also quoted in today's London Evening Standard, saying he would resign over the issue of tuition fees.

The quotes were picked up by the Press Association, which later issued a correction saying that the quotes attributed to the MP were from an impersonator.

The Lib Dem press office posted on Twitter: "For the record, Lib Dem PPS Mike Crockart was not on Radio 4 resigning earlier – it was an impersonator (he wasn't even Scottish)."

"We are absolutely clueless as to who it was," said a Lib Dem insider. "We figured it out when our head of media was talking to Mike on the phone and the fake Mike Crockart was on the World at One."

The BBC's most famous case of mistaken identity came four years ago: its 24-hour news channel interviewed a man who had been waiting in the BBC's reception., thinkingStaff thought he was computer expert Guy Kewney. Guy Goma gamely bluffed out the interviewer's questions on screen and briefly shot to fame as the "wrong guy".

UK snow: Fresh blizzards grip Scotland with hundreds stranded in cars

2010-12-06T20:56:00.001-08:00

Fresh blizzards closed Scottish airports and disrupted rail travel as the army was called in to help ambulance crews reach patients trapped in remote areas.

Hundreds of drivers were stuck on the main route between Glasgow and Edinburgh as the snowy conditions blanketed the central belt of the country. Others opted to bed down in their offices rather than face the long commute home.

Breakdowns and drifting snow blocked major roads. Lothian and Borders police forces said there had been "numerous" problems that brought traffic to a standstill.

"We are trying to remove vehicles from the road and get people that have been stuck," said a police spokesman. "We are looking to put gritters and snowploughs out to clear the carriageway [on the main road between Edinburgh and Glasgow]."

One driver, Mustafa Elshani, said he had been stranded on the M8 for eight hours during a 17-mile journey that normally takes 30 minutes. "I left work early because of the snow chaos," he told Sky News.

"Some families are stuck in their cars, some car batteries are running out. People are totally desperate. There's absolutely no one coming to help. We're just being left here, stranded."

Military 4x4 vehicles were helping medics from the Scottish Ambulance Service reach patients. Pauline Howie, chief executive of the Scottish Ambulance Service, said: "Ambulance crews are battling through horrendous conditions across the central belt, and the additional 4x4 vehicles from the military provides valuable operational assistance to our teams."

The Met Office said that there was between 10cm and 40cm of lying snow in the central lowlands, around 32cm in Edinburgh and 11cm in Glasgow. Both Glasgow and Edinburgh airports were closed for part of the day. Dundee, Inverness, Kirkwall and Campbeltown airports were also closed.

Motorists were advised to drive only if their journey was absolutely necessary, and roads throughout the country were closed. Tayside was the only region with no major routes closed, but drivers were warned to exercise "extreme care" behind the wheel.

In the Highlands a bus with 21 passengers on board slid off the road in the wintry conditions and collided with rocks. No-one was injured and a spare bus was sent so the passengers could complete their journey.

The Forth Road Bridge was closed southbound from around 11am due to a jack-knifed lorry but reopened at 3.30pm. Motorists were warned that a large backlog of traffic had built up and it would be some time before the road cleared.

While 95% of schools in Scotland reopened, many schools sent pupils home early due to the weather. Temperatures are expected to plunge as low as minus 13C in central Scotland and parts of the north.

Severe weather warnings for icy roads were in place throughout the country, with further warnings of snow in Orkney and Shetland and the Highlands & Eilean Siar.

The Scottish government said more than 160 vehicles and almost 400 staff were working "round the clock" to keep the road network moving.

The Scottish transport minister, Stewart Stevenson, said: "Scotland has been in the grip of the worst snow and ice conditions in the early winter since the 1960s. Every effort has been made to keep disruption to a minimum.

"Snow was predicted for today but was significantly heavier than expected, and timing during rush hour made conditions worse. "

In the past 10 days Transport Scotland have spread approximately 50,000 tonnes of salt throughout the country.

Twenty-one Oxbridge colleges took no black students last year

2010-12-06T20:55:00.002-08:00

A bleak portrait of racial and social exclusion at Oxford and Cambridge has been shown in official data which shows that more than 20 Oxbridge colleges made no offers to black candidates for undergraduate courses last year and one Oxford college has not admitted a single black student in five years.

The university's admissions data confirms that only one black Briton of Caribbean descent was accepted for undergraduate study at Oxford last year.

Figures revealed in requests made under the Freedom of Information (FoI) Act by the Labour MP David Lammy also show that Oxford's social profile is 89% upper- and middle-class, while 87.6% of the Cambridge student body is drawn from the top three socioeconomic groups. The average for British universities is 64.5%, according to the admissions body Ucas.

The FoI data also shows that of more than 1,500 academic and lab staff at Cambridge, none are black. Thirty-four are of British Asian origin.

One Oxford college, Merton, has admitted no black students in five years – and just three in the last decade. Eleven Oxford colleges and 10 Cambridge colleges made no offers to black students for the academic year beginning autumn 2009.

Oxford's breakdown of its latest undergraduate admissions figures, published on its website, shows that just one black Caribbean student was accepted in 2009, out of 35 applications.

A total of 77 students of Indian descent were accepted, out of 466 applications. Six black Caribbean undergraduates were accepted at Cambridge the same year.

In advance of a crucial Commons vote on Thursday, ministers have said universities that want to charge students up to £9,000 a year in fees will face fresh targets on widening access to applicants from disadvantaged backgrounds. Oxford and Cambridge, which are expected to charge the maximum fee, say they are keen to recruit the brightest students from all backgrounds. Both have programmes to encourage applications from state school students, and those from black and working-class backgrounds.

But the FoI data shows white students were more likely to be successful than black applicants at every Cambridge college except St Catharine's, where black candidates have had a 38% success rate, compared with 30% for white students.

The starkest divide in Cambridge was at Newnham, an all-women's college, where black applicants had a 13% success rate compared with 67% for white students. The data for Oxford tells a similar story: at Jesus college white candidates were three and a half times more successful than black candidates over an 11-year period. Oxford says the figures are too low for the variation between colleges to be statistically significant.

The most selective universities argue that poor attainment at school level narrows the pool from which candidates can be drawn. But black candidates are more likely to apply to elite universities.

In 2009, more than 29,000 white students got three As or better at A-level (excluding general studies) and about 28.4% applied to Oxford; while 452 black students got three As or better, and nearly half applied to Oxford. A spokeswoman for Oxford said: "Black students apply disproportionately for the most oversubscribed subjects, contributing to a lower than average success rate for the group as a whole: 44% of all black applicants apply for Oxford's three most oversubscribed subjects, compared with just 17% of all white applicants. That means nearly half of black applicants are applying for the same three subjects … the three toughest subjects to get places in. Those subjects are economics and management, medicine, and maths.with 7% of white applicants. This goes a very long way towards explaining the group's overall lower success rate."

The FoI figures show large parts of the country never send students to the most prestigious universities. No one from Knowsley, Sandwell and Merthyr Tydfil has got to Cambridge in seven years. In the last five years, pupils from Richmond upon Thames have received almost the same number of offers from Oxford as the whole of Scotland.

Rob Berkeley, director of the Runnymede Trust, a thinktank that promotes racial equality, said: "If we go for this elite system of higher education … we have got to make sure what they are doing is fair. If you look at how many people on both frontbenches are Oxbridge-educated, Oxford and Cambridge are still the major route to positions of influence. If that's the case we shouldn't be restricting these opportunities to people from minority backgrounds."

Black students do not lack aspiration, but the opportunity to get into the most prestigious universities, Berkeley argued. "Of the black Caribbean students getting straight As at A-level, the vast majority apply to Oxbridge.... those who do choose to apply have a much lower success rate [than white applicants]. One in five in comparison with one in three for white students. That doesn't seem to have shifted for the last 15 years." A boom in university participation in recent years has led to a more diverse student body, but black students are concentrated in a handful of institutions. In 2007-08 the University of East London had half as many black students as the entire Russell group of 20 universities, which include Oxford and Cambridge.

Matthew Benjamin, 28, who studied geography at Jesus College, Oxford, said: "I was very aware that I was the only black student in my year at my college. I was never made to feel out of place, but it was certainly something I was conscious of.

"When I arrived and they wanted to do a prospectus, and have some students on the cover, they chose me, and one other Asian guy and another guy from Thailand. It was clear they wanted to project this image of somewhere that was quite diverse. The reality was very different – there were three [minority] ethnic students in a year.

"On open days, some black kids would see me and say 'you're the only black person we've seen here – is it even worth us applying?'"

A spokesman for Cambridge said 15% of students accepted last year were from minority ethnic backgrounds. "Over the five years to 2009 entry black students accounted for 1.5% of admissions to Cambridge, compared with 1.2% of degree applicants nationally who secure AAA at A-level. Colleges make offers to the best and brightest students regardless of their background, and where variations exist this is due to supply of applications and demand by subject."

WikiLeaks cables reveal secret Nato plans to defend Baltics from Russia

2010-12-06T20:55:00.001-08:00

Washington and its western allies have for the first time since the end of the cold war drawn up classified military plans to defend the most vulnerable parts of eastern Europe against Russian threats, according to confidential US diplomatic cables.

The US state department ordered an information blackout when the decision was taken earlier this year. Since January the blueprint has been refined.

Nine Nato divisions – US, British, German, and Polish – have been identified for combat operations in the event of armed aggression against Poland or the three Baltic states. North Polish and German ports have been listed for the receipt of naval assault forces and British and US warships. The first Nato exercises under the plan are to take place in the Baltic next year, according to informed sources.

Following years of transatlantic dispute over the new policy, Nato leaders are understood to have quietly endorsed the strategy at a summit in Lisbon last month.

Despite President Barack Obama's policy of "resetting" relations with Russia, which was boosted at the Nato summit attended by Russian president, Dmitry Medvedev, the state department fears that the major policy shift could trigger "unnecessary tensions" with Moscow.

The decision to draft contingency plans for Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania was taken secretly earlier this year at the urging of the US and Germany at Nato headquarters in Belgium, ending years of division at the heart of the western alliance over how to view Vladimir Putin's Russia.

The decision, according to a secret cable signed by Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, marks the start of a major revamp of Nato defence planning in Europe.

The strategy has not been made public, in line with Nato's customary refusal to divulge details of its "contingency planning" – blueprints for the defence of a Nato member state by the alliance as a whole.

These are believed to be held in safes at Nato's planning headquarters in Mons, Belgium.

According to a secret cable from the US mission to Nato in Brussels, US admiral James Stavridis, the alliance's top commander in Europe, proposed drawing up defence plans for the former Soviet Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia.

The policy was put to top military officials from Nato's 28 states. "On January 22 Nato's military committee agreed … under a silence procedure", the cable notes, referring to a decision carried by consensus unless someone speaks up to object.

Attempts by Stavridis's predecessor, General John Craddock, to push through defence planning for the Baltic were stymied by German-led opposition in western Europe, anxious to avoid upsetting the Kremlin.The policy shift was decided by senior military officials rather than Nato's top decision-taking body, the North Atlantic Council, in order to avoid repeating the splits and disputes on the issue over the past five years. The plan entails grouping the Baltic states with Poland in a new regional defence scheme that has been worked on in recent months and is codenamed Eagle Guardian.

In parallel negotiations with Warsaw the US has also offered to beef up Polish security against Russia by deploying special naval forces to the Baltic ports of Gdansk and Gdynia, putting squadrons of F-16 fighter aircraft in Poland and rotating C-130 Hercules transport planes into Poland from US bases in Germany, according to the diplomatic cables, almost always classified secret.

Earlier this year the US started rotating US army Patriot missiles into Poland in a move that Warsaw celebrates publicly as boosting Polish air defences and demonstrating American commitment to Poland's security.

But the secret cables expose the Patriots' value as purely symbolic. The Patriot battery, deployed on a rotating basis at Morag in north-eastern Poland, 40 miles from the border with Russia's Kaliningrad exclave, is purely for training purposes, and is neither operational nor armed with missiles.

At one point Poland's then deputy defence minister privately complained bitterly that the Americans may as well supply "potted plants'.

Since joining Nato in 2004, the three Baltic states have complained they are treated as second-class members because their pleas for detailed defence planning under Nato's "all for one and one for all" article 5 have been being ignored. Article 5 is the heart of Nato's founding treaty, stipulating that the alliance will come to the rescue of any member state attacked. The only time it has been invoked was following 9/11 when the European allies and Canada rallied to support America.

The Poles and the Baltic states have long argued that rhetorical declarations of commitment to article 5 are meaningless without concrete defence planning to back them up.

The Baltic demands for hard security guarantees became much more desperate in the past three years.

A cyber-attack on Estonia in 2007 was believed to have originated in Russia, and the Kremlin invaded Georgia a year later.

Nerves were further set on edge last year when the Russians staged exercises simulating an invasion of the Baltic states and a nuclear attack on Poland.

The eastern European calls for hard security guarantees, however, were stymied by western Europe, led by Germany, which did not want to antagonise Russia.

"We've found the way forward with Russia. The Baltic states have received strategic reassurance," said a well-placed source. "That's backed up with contingency planning that did not exist before. It's done now. We told them we'll give you your reassurance if you agree to the reset with Russia. That made it easier for the Germans."During intense – if discreet – diplomacy last year, the resistance was overcome by the Americans, and the new policy was tabled as a joint US-German move.

"Most of the information on this is not in the public domain.

But the bottom line is that there is enough political will in Nato now to do defence plans for the Baltic states. The opposition has melted away over the past 18 months," said Tomas Valasek, defence analyst at the Centre for European Reform. He worked with Madeleine Albright, the former US secretary of state, on drafting Nato's new "strategic concept" this year.In a meeting last December in Brussels with the Nato ambassadors from Poland, the three Baltic states and the Nato secretary-general, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, together with the US and German ambassadors, Ivo Daalder and Ulrich Brandenburg, secured agreement on the new policy.

"Ambassador Daalder acknowledged in these meetings that Germany had initiated the proposal," says another secret cable .The east Europeans were delighted. Paul Teesalu, a senior Estonian diplomat, described the policy shift as "an early Christmas present" when told last December in Tallinn, according to a cable.

Another secret report from the US embassy in Riga says the Latvian foreign ministry's security policy chief "expressed his government's profound happiness."

The Poles, although keen supporters of concrete Nato defence plans for the Baltic, were neverthless worried that the new policy could dilute alliance commitments to their defence, since a limited Polish contingency plan was being turned into an expanded regional blueprint for the four countries.

Poland's late deputy defence minister, Stanislaw Komorowski, told US diplomats in Warsaw that he was "sceptical that a regional approach was the best way ahead. Komorowski said Warsaw would prefer a unique plan for Poland.".

Komorowski, the Polish ambassador in London until 2004, was one of 98 people killed with the country's president, Lech Kaczynski, when their plane crashed at Smolensk, Russia, in April.

The Americans argued that adding defence planning for the Baltic states would reinforce rather than dilute Polish security.

"After two years, contingency plans have been successfully prepared for Poland," Bogdan Klich, the Polish defence minister told Warsaw newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza last month.

In January, after the decision was taken, the state department in Washington instructed US missions and embassies how to proceed, making clear that the drafting of defence blueprints for the Baltic was the beginning of a more ambitious overhaul of Nato's core military planning.

"This is the first step in a multi-stage process to develop a complete set of appropriate contingency plans for the full range of possible threats – both regional and functional – as soon as possible," said the secret cable.

The diplomatic traffic seen by the Guardian is from US state department and US embassies worldwide, but not from Pentagon or CIA communications, meaning that the cables reveal the policy and political decision-making processes but contain little on the specifics of hard military planning.

Details of the nine divisions earmarked for the plan and the prominence of the port of Swinoujscie, on Poland's Baltic coast, were leaked to Gazeta Wyborcza.

It is clear that the defence plans for Poland and the Baltic are to be orchestrated from Nato's Shape planning headquarters at Mons in Belgium and from the Joint Forces Command at Brunssum in the Netherlands, the nerve centre for overseeing the crucial German theatre during the alliance's cold war heyday.

The policy shift represents a sea change in Nato defence planning and in assessments of the threat posed by what a Polish official calls "a resurgent Russia."

Officially the US and Nato term Russia a "partner" and not an adversary, with the Germans, French, and Italians in particular tending to be deferential in dealings with Moscow. But the east Europeans, with their bitter experience of Moscow domination, argue that the Russians respect strength, despise and exploit weakness and division, and that Nato will enjoy better relations only if its most exposed and vulnerable members feel secure.

"The whole point is not to paint Russia as a threat. It is about reassuring those countries that are seriously worried.

The debate is primarily about Poland and the Baltic. Geography has a lot to do with it," said Valasek.

Repeatedly calling for the Baltic military plans to be kept utterly secret, Clinton and other senior US officials acknowledge that the policy shift "would also likely lead to an unnecessary increase in Nato-Russia tensions … Washington strongly believes that the details of Nato's contingency plans should remain in confidential channels."

Gérard Houllier returns to a muted reception from Liverpool's Kop

2010-12-06T20:54:00.002-08:00

It was never going to be Roma revisited for Gérard Houllier on his Anfield return and, on the basis of his reception, it may be a good while yet before Phil Thompson sees his former manager placed alongside Bill Shankly, Bob Paisley, Joe Fagan, Kenny Dalglish and Rafael Benítez on the Kop banner that reads "Success has many fathers". Lukewarm not only described Aston Villa's commitment to attack.

There was polite applause from Liverpool supporters sat around the dugouts when the club's former manager reappeared for his first competitive game at Anfield since 2004. There was also a banner on the front of the Kop proclaiming "Gérard's Heart Beats", which may have resonated with Houllier in terms of sentiment if not taste. Only in the dying minutes, with Liverpool 3-0 up, did the Kop sing his name.

Otherwise it was a modest reception that spoke of respect for a man who restructured the club, restored discipline, pride and a place on the European stage, but whose final years scarred the legacy to an extent it is still painful to revisit them.

In mitigation, it could just have been that no one was in the mood for tributes on a night of sub-zero temperatures on Merseyside and following the news that Fernando Torres had joined Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher on the sidelines after his wife had gone into labour. Not that star absentees detracted from a comfortable Liverpool victory. Far from it.

Those who prospered under Houllier at Liverpool had been keen to offer their appreciation ahead of his return, Thompson, with his assertion that "he nearly gave his life for Liverpool, just so he could make the club great again", being chief among them. Carragher's dislocated shoulder did not prevent the Liverpool vice-captain sparking debate with an assertion that the Uefa Cup, FA Cup and League Cup treble of 2001 ranked higher than victory in the 2005 Champions League final.

"The treble is a better achievement than Istanbul. Istanbul as a one-off will never be beaten by anyone but someone wins the Champions League every year," claimed Carragher, perhaps revealing where Benítez ranks in his own affections rather than where a golden-goal victory over the 10 men of Alavés, Michael Owen's virtuoso display against Arsenal and a penalty shoot-out defeat of Birmingham City stands alongside those infamous nights against Juventus, Chelsea and Milan.

No one disputes Houllier's dedication to the Liverpool cause and the internal revolution he conducted after the joint-management ticket with Roy Evans – surely the politest sacking in Liverpool's history – was brought to an inevitable early end. The night he defied doctor's orders to return against Roma in the Champions League, five months after being told to telephone his family before undergoing emergency heart surgery lest he should not survive, remains imprinted on all present.

But the decline started soon after, the football deteriorated as the excuses increased, and Liverpool demanded better. They still do.

Benítez met that requirement and elevated Liverpool to a place they are pining for again. Without Carragher and Gerrard on display, however, it was hard to identify a lasting Houllier legacy at Anfield.

For the Villa manager's sake, it must be hoped the emphasis on youth pays dividends quickly at Villa Park.

After a passionless first half devoid of one meaningful attack, the visitors were booed off at Anfield and, with only one win in 10 league games, they languish two points above the relegation zone. Houllier may have to savour the Anfield reception on this form.

The Ashes 2010: England run riot against Australia to win second Test

2010-12-06T20:54:00.001-08:00

It was only a morning, but it was one of the great mornings for England cricket in modern times. No weather to save Australia. In winning the second Test overwhelmingly, by an innings and 71 runs, they have achieved what no England side has managed for 24 years and won a Test in Australia while the Ashes were still at stake.

This represents a hammer blow to Australia, who must now win two of the final three Tests if they are to regain the Ashes, a prospect not helped by the news that their opener Simon Katich will miss the remaining matches with an Achilles injury.

There were tense final moments as England, a bowler down because of the injury to Stuart Broad which has also finished his involvement in the series, sought the final wicket with the two Australian tailenders at the crease. To gasps from the crowd and players, balls beat the bat.

Finally, at 11.27am precisely, almost an hour and a half into the day, Graeme Swann spun an off-break through the gate left by Peter Siddle to hit off stump and spark celebrations.

Swann had taken the last three wickets to finish with five for 91 and confirm his status as the leading spinner in world cricket. It was Swann who took the final wicket at The Oval when the Ashes were won last year. Only Marcus North, for almost an hour, offered resistance as Mike Hussey went to Steve Finn and the new ball for 52, and the tail folded. In 17 overs England took six for 64.

Such has been the efficiency of England's approach into the Ashes series and dominance of the second Test that it almost seemed too good to be true, with a setback lurking round the corner waiting to mug them.

At first it seemed as if a little of the spirit had drained from the England team as Broad watched from the dressing room, contemplating a lonely journey home, and his team-mates took to the field without him.

The team is one that thrives in adversity, however: the rearguard actions in Cardiff last year and Brisbane last week have both been followed by outstanding performances in their next games. There was also the manner in which they shrugged off the 2009 Headingley debacle in the fourth Test to win at The Oval.

There are also replacements ready to step in, good ones who bowled England to an overwhelming win against Australia A last month. None of Chris Tremlett, Ajmal Shahzad or Tim Bresnan can quite capture the abrasive competitive edge of Broad, but each would serve well.

For this morning, there was a potential heap of work in the hands of Finn and Jimmy Anderson. With North new to the crease, England delayed taking the new ball which was due immediately. Kevin Pietersen finished his over from the previous evening, Swann switching ends.

It was during the second over from there, the City end, that the day's first drama came. First, with Swann round the wicket, North was hit low on the pad as he pushed forward, England opting to refer the not-out decision. The ruling was that the batsman had been struck a smidgen outside the line of off-stump so the decision of the umpire Marius Erasmus remained.

Immediately Hussey clipped a boundary beneath the diving body of the substitute fielder Eoin Morgan to bring up his half century, from 98 balls with five fours and a six. Finally Swann got one to turn and bounce wickedly to Hussey, the feathered edge proving too much for Matt Prior. Would it be one of those mornings?

Strauss decided to take the new ball after six overs, at 248 for four, and immediately North took boundaries from Finn, to third man, and Anderson, through extra cover. Finn has a wicket-taking knack, however, and with the second delivery of his next over he made a vital breakthrough as Hussey, attempting to pull, miscued to Anderson at mid-on, who made no mistake, sending the ball into orbit in celebration.

It was going to be important for England's plans that Swann played a major role, enabling Andrew Strauss to rotate his two seam bowlers, and after two overs the off-spinner returned at the Cathedral end. Immediately North slapped him away to the point boundary.

Throughout this game Anderson, seeking swing, has pitched a full length and leaked runs as a result. But when there is movement none in world cricket is more dangerous, and suddenly he propelled England onwards, wickets coming with successive deliveries. First Brad Haddin, not on Anderson's Christmas card list, edged an away-swinger in routine fashion to Prior, and then Ryan Harris, on a king pair, duly completed that indignity, padding up to a clever inswinger, his inevitable referral confirming the decision.

The gates were open and two balls later Swann removed North, who had pushed forwards to a ball that pitched in line and turned, England's referral overturning the not-out decision of Tony Hill.

Three wickets then for no runs in four balls. Another almost came when Peter Siddle's inside edge hit the stumps firmly but incredibly failed to dislodge a bail. Swann was not to be denied, though. Xavier Doherty was bamboozled by a ball that went straight through the left-hander's defence, and Siddle was befuddled by the turn. This was a majestic performance.

Julian Assange to be questioned by British police

2010-12-06T20:52:00.000-08:00

Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, is expected to appear in a UK court today after his lawyers said he would meet police to discuss a European arrest warrant from Sweden relating to alleged sexual assaults.

As the legal net continued to close around the whistleblowers' website and the US attorney general, Eric Holder, said he had authorised "a number of things to be done" to combat the organisation, Assange appeared to be reconciling himself to a lengthy personal court battle to avoid extradition to Sweden.

Jennifer Robinson, a solicitor with Finers Stephens Innocent, which represents the Australian freedom of information campaigner, told the Guardian: "We have a received an arrest warrant [related to claims in Sweden]. We are negotiating a meeting with police."

Another lawyer representing Assange, Mark Stephens, added: "He has not been charged with anything. We are in the process of making arrangements to meet the police by consent, in order to facilitate the taking of that question and answer that is needed. It's about time we got to the end of the day and we got some truth, justice and rule of law."

Stephens explained that the interview would happen in the "foreseeable future" but he could not give a precise time. According to other sources, it is thought that Assange would appear before a court to negotiate bail .

Assange is seeking supporters to put up surety and bail for him. He said he expected to have to post bail of between £100,000 and £200,000 and would require up to six people offering surety, or risked being held on remand.

In recent days, Assange, 39, has told friends he is increasingly convinced the US is behind Swedish prosecutors' attempts to extradite him for questioning on the assault allegations.

He has said the original allegations against him were motivated by "personal issues" but that Sweden had subsequently behaved as "a cipher" for the US.

Assange has also said that he declined to return to Sweden to face prosecutors because he feared he would not receive a fair trial, and prosecutors had requested that he be held in solitary confinement and incommunicado.

This weekend Assange said he was exhausted by the effort of running his defence against the allegations in Sweden and the release of the US embassy cables at the same time, as well as running WikiLeaks itself, which has split since some supporters became disaffected over Assange's handling of the Afghanistan war logs. Once he turns himself in to the police, he will have to appear before a magistrates' court within 24 hours, where he will seek release on bail. A full hearing of his extradition case would have to be heard within 28 days.

In the past, Assange has dismissed the allegations, stating on Twitter: "The charges are without basis and their issue at this moment is deeply disturbing."

Last week Stephens added: "This appears to be a persecution and a prosecution. It is highly irregular and unusual for the Swedish authorities to issue [an Interpol] red notice in the teeth of the undisputed fact that Mr Assange has agreed to meet voluntarily to answer the prosecutor's questions."

Stephens has said that the claims stem from a "dispute over consensual but unprotected sex". While the latest US diplomatic cables released on WikiLeaks have been stirring international political alarm and recriminations, Assange is understood to have been staying out of public sight in south-east England.

Prosecutors in Sweden issued a warrant for his arrest last month but it could not be enforced because of a technical blunder. The Australian's details were also added to Interpol's most wanted website after a red notice was issued, alerting police worldwide to his status.

Detectives in Sweden want to question Assange after two women claimed they were sexually assaulted by him when he visited the country in August. The country's supreme court upheld an order to detain him for questioning after he appealed against two lower court rulings.

The sex assault claims may be Assange's most pressing legal issue, but it may not be the only legal complication he faces as several countries consider the impact of his diplomatic cable disclosures.

He has come under growing pressure after WikiLeaks started publishing excerpts from a cache of 250,000 secret messages.

In the US, the level of political vituperation has become more vengeful. The former vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin has described Assange as "an anti-American operative with blood on his hands". The senior Republican Mike Huckabee said that "anything less than execution is too kind a penalty".

Meanwhile WikiLeaks has been forced to move to a Swiss host after being dumped by US internet companies as it comes under siege from cyber attacks.

PostFinance, the financial arm of the Swiss post office, said it had closed Assange's account after he provided "false information".

"PostFinance has ended its business relationship with WikiLeaks founder Julian Paul Assange," the bank said in a statement. "The Australian citizen provided false information regarding his place of residence during the account opening process."

Last night hackers claimed they had targeted the firm's websites in support of WikiLeaks.

MasterCard also said it would block payments to WikiLeaks, according to the CNET News website, a move that will dry up another source of funds for the website.

"MasterCard is taking action to ensure that WikiLeaks can no longer accept MasterCard-branded products," a spokesman for MasterCard Worldwide said yesterday.

The credit card firm said it was cutting off payments because WikiLeaks was engaging in "illegal activity". "MasterCard rules prohibit customers from directly or indirectly engaging in or facilitating any action that is illegal," its spokesman, Chris Monteiro said. The online credit firm PayPal has already refused to allow payments through for WikiLeaks.

In Sweden, a WikiLeaks spokesman called for action against those who have attacked Assange. "There have been death threats to his life and incitement to murder," he added.

Canadian newspapers reported that police are investigating whether there is evidence to proceed against a former adviser to the prime minister after he called for Assange to be killed.

Tom Flanagan, now a professor at the University of Calgary, suggested on television last week that Assange "should be assassinated, actually", adding: "I think Obama should put out a contract and maybe use a drone or something."

Flanagan later retracted his statement saying it was not meant seriously.

In Assange's homeland, however, Australian police are investigating whether he has broken any laws

air force football

2010-10-17T05:16:00.003-07:00

The Air Force Falcons are the college football team from the United States Air Force Academy, located just outside of Colorado Springs, Colorado. The team is a mid-major program that competes in Football Bowl Subdivision of NCAA Division I and the Mountain West Conference.

jerry mathers

2010-10-17T05:16:00.001-07:00

Gerald Patrick "Jerry" Mathers (born June 2, 1948 in Sioux City, Iowa) is an American television, film, and stage actor. Mathers is best known for his role in the television sitcom series Leave It to Beaver (1957 –1963), in which he played Theodore "Beaver" Cleaver, the younger son of archetypal suburban couple June and Ward Cleaver (played by Barbara Billingsley and Hugh Beaumont), and the brother of Wally Cleaver (played by Tony Dow).

tony dow

2010-10-17T05:15:00.003-07:00

Tony Lee Dow (born April 13, 1945) is an American film producer, director, sculptor, and a television child actor of the 1950s and 1960s.

Dow is best known for his role in the television sitcom Leave It to Beaver, which ran in primetime from 1957 to 1963. Dow played "Wallace 'Wally' Cleaver" the older son of "June" (Barbara Billingsley) and "Ward Cleaver" (Hugh Beaumont) and the brother of "Theodore 'Beaver' Cleaver" (Jerry Mathers).

columbus marathon

2010-10-17T05:15:00.001-07:00

The Columbus Marathon, first run in 1980, features a flat, fast course which saw nearly 20 percent of finishers qualify for the Boston Marathon in 2005. The cloverleaf design of the course also makes it easy for spectators to see their athletes at several different points – all within a block walking distance. The course begins in downtown Columbus and takes athletes east through Bexley, Ohio, past the Governor’s Mansion and Capital University; back through the festive neighborhood of Old Town East; south through German Village; up High Street through downtown Columbus and the Short North Arts District; a jaunt through Upper Arlington, down through the campus of The Ohio State University, through the tree-lined streets of Victorian Village and back to a huge crowd awaiting finishers outside Nationwide Arena in the Arena District.

The 2007 marathon and half marathon reached a record field of 10,000 participants. The overall marathon winner was Robb Kestner with a time of 2:31:48. The female winner was Kelly Stewart, who achieved a time of 2:43:28. During the second annual running of the half marathon, Thomas Lentz led with a time of 1:09:32. The female winner was Jill Scully at 1:20:27.

The 2006 marathon is the first year to feature a half marathon. It is limited to 3,000 places.[1]

The 2005 overall winner was Teren Jameson (USA) in a time of 2:16:26. The female winner that year was Lyudmyla Pushkina (Ukraine), who achieved a time of 2:29:57.

hugh beaumont

2010-10-17T05:14:00.003-07:00

Eugene Hugh Beaumont (February 16, 1909 – May 14, 1982) was an American actor and television director. He was also licensed to preach by the Methodist church. Beaumont is best known for his portrayal of Ward Cleaver, the husband of June Cleaver (Barbara Billingsley) and the father of Wally (Tony Dow) and Beaver (Jerry Mathers) on the television series, Leave It to Beaver (1957–1963).

mandelbrot

2010-10-17T05:14:00.001-07:00

Benoît B. Mandelbrot[note 1][note 2] (20 November 1924 – 14 October 2010) was a Franco-American mathematician. Born in Poland, his family moved to France when he was a child. Mandelbrot spent much of his life living and working in the United States, acquiring dual French and American citizenship.

Mandelbrot worked on a wide range of mathematical problems, including in mathematical physics and quantitative finance, but is best known as the father of fractal geometry. He coined the term fractal and described the Mandelbrot set. Mandelbrot extensively popularised his work, writing books and giving lectures aimed at the general public.

Mandelbrot spent most of his career at IBM's Thomas J. Watson Research Center, including as an IBM Fellow. He later became Sterling Professor of Mathematical Sciences at Yale University. Mandelbrot also held positions at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Université Lille Nord de France, Institute for Advanced Study and Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique.

the lovely bones

2010-10-17T05:13:00.003-07:00

The Lovely Bones is a 2002 novel by Alice Sebold. It is the story of a teenage girl who, after being raped and murdered, watches from heaven as her family and friends struggle to move on with their lives while she herself comes to terms with her own death. The novel received a great deal of critical praise and became an instant bestseller. A film adaptation of the novel, directed by Peter Jackson who personally purchased the rights, was released in American theatres on January 15, 2010, and in the UK on February 15, 2010.

tower prep

2010-10-17T05:13:00.001-07:00

Ian is a rebellious teenager who had recently been suspended from his school. One day, he wakes up in a mysterious preparatory high school, with no idea how he got there or where it is located. The school itself is focused on finding the "unique potential" of its students. Along the way, he makes friends with CJ, Gabe, and Suki; together, they investigate the mysteries of the school while trying to escape. On the first episode they try to escape but then creatures make them go back to the school. They then later play a prank on the school bullies, by stealing their clothes while they are in the shower and putting them in the front lawn; causing them to go out and get in trouble for being naked.

rain man

2010-10-17T05:12:00.004-07:00

Rain Man is a 1988 American comedy-drama film written by Barry Morrow and Ronald Bass and directed by Barry Levinson. It tells the story of an abrasive and selfish yuppie, Charlie Babbitt, who discovers that his estranged father has died and bequeathed all of his multimillion-dollar estate to his other son, Raymond, a man with autism of whose existence Charlie was unaware.

The film stars Tom Cruise as Charlie Babbitt, Dustin Hoffman as Raymond Babbitt, and Valeria Golino as Charlie's girlfriend, Susanna. Morrow created the character of Raymond after meeting Kim Peek, a real-life savant; his characterization was based on both Peek and Bill Sackter, a good friend of Morrow who was the subject of Bill, an earlier film that Morrow wrote.[1] Rain Man received overwhelmingly positive reviews at the time of its release, praising Hoffman's role and the wit and sophistication of the screenplay.

The film won four Oscars at the 61st Academy Awards (March 1989), including Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay, Best Director, and Best Actor in a leading role for Hoffman. Its crew received an additional four nominations

tetris friends

2010-10-17T05:12:00.003-07:00

Tetris (Russian: Те́трис) is a puzzle video game originally designed and programmed by Alexey Pajitnov in the Soviet Union. It was created on June 6, 1984,[2] while he was working for the Dorodnicyn Computing Centre of the Academy of Science of the USSR in Moscow.[3] He derived its name from the Greek numerical prefix tetra- (all of the game's pieces, known as Tetrominoes, contain four segments) and tennis, Pajitnov's favorite sport.[4][5]

The Tetris game is a popular use of tetrominoes, the four element special case of polyominoes. Polyominoes have been used in popular puzzles since at least 1907, and the name is given by the mathematician Solomon W. Golomb in 1953. However, even the enumeration of pentominoes is dated to antiquity.

The game (or one of its many variants) is available for nearly every video game console and computer operating system, as well as on devices such as graphing calculators, mobile phones, portable media players, PDAs, Network music players and even as an Easter egg on non-media products like oscilloscopes.[6] It has even inspired Tetris serving dishes[7] and been played on the sides of various buildings,[8][9] with the record holder for the world's largest fully functional game of Tetris being an effort by Dutch students in 1995 that lit up all 15 floors of the Electrical Engineering department at Delft University of Technology.[10][11][12]

While versions of Tetris were sold for a range of 1980s home computer platforms, it was the hugely successful handheld version for the Game Boy launched in 1989 that established the reputation of the game as one of the most popular ever. Electronic Gaming Monthly's 100th issue had Tetris in first place as "Greatest Game of All Time". In 2007, Tetris came in second place in IGN's "100 Greatest Video Games of All Time".[13] It has sold more than 70 million copies.[14] In January 2010, it was announced that Tetris has sold more than 100 million copies for cell phones alone since 2005

barbara billingsley

2010-10-17T05:12:00.001-07:00

Barbara Billingsley (December 22, 1915 – October 16, 2010)[1][2] was an American film, television, voice and stage actress, who in her five decades of television came to prominence in the 1950s on the big screen in The Careless Years opposite Natalie Trundy, followed by her best-known role, that of June Cleaver on Leave It to Beaver and its sequel Still the Beaver (also known as The New Leave It to Beaver).

fractals

2010-10-17T05:11:00.001-07:00

A fractal is "a rough or fragmented geometric shape that can be split into parts, each of which is (at least approximately) a reduced-size copy of the whole,"[1] a property called self-similarity. Roots of mathematically rigorous treatment of fractals can be traced back to functions studied by Karl Weierstrass, Georg Cantor and Felix Hausdorff in studying functions that were continuous but not differentiable; however, the term fractal was coined by Benoît Mandelbrot in 1975 and was derived from the Latin fractus meaning "broken" or "fractured." A mathematical fractal is based on an equation that undergoes iteration, a form of feedback based on recursion.[2]

A fractal often has the following features:[3]

It has a fine structure at arbitrarily small scales.
It is too irregular to be easily described in traditional Euclidean geometric language.
It is self-similar (at least approximately or stochastically).
It has a Hausdorff dimension which is greater than its topological dimension (although this requirement is not met by space-filling curves such as the Hilbert curve).[4]
It has a simple and recursive definition.
Because they appear similar at all levels of magnification, fractals are often considered to be infinitely complex (in informal terms). Natural objects that are approximated by fractals to a degree include clouds, mountain ranges, lightning bolts, coastlines, snow flakes, various vegetables (cauliflower and broccoli), and animal coloration patterns. However, not all self-similar objects are fractals—for example, the real line (a straight Euclidean line) is formally self-similar but fails to have other fractal characteristics; for instance, it is regular enough to be described in Euclidean terms.

Images of fractals can be created using fractal-generating software. Images produced by such software are normally referred to as being fractals even if they do not have the above characteristics, such as when it is possible to zoom into a region of the fractal that does not exhibit any fractal properties. Also, these may include calculation or display artifacts which are not characteristics of true fractals.

scream awards 2010

2010-10-17T05:10:00.000-07:00

The Scream Awards is an award show dedicated to the horror, sci-fi, and fantasy genres of feature films, hosted and sponsored by Spike TV. The show was created by executive producers Michael Levitt, Cindy Levitt, and Casey Patterson.

gomez

2010-10-17T05:09:00.004-07:00

He began his playing career at a team called the Banjul Hawks and Flamemins F.C.[1]. Gómez joined Manchester United in July 2001. Having played internationally at a young age, the English club had spotted him and he was soon apart of the youth ranks. Gómez was recommended to United by the Swedish club Göteborg.

Gómez was quickly sent on loan to Royal Antwerp FC[2] in the Belgian Second Division from the 2002/03 season till 2004/05 season before joining Dessel Sport for the 2005/06 season. After taking no part in the team he soon left and moved to the Chinese giants Henan Construction for the 2006 season. He left Henan after two seasons and is currently without a club.

jamie mcmurray

2010-10-17T05:09:00.003-07:00

James Christopher "Jamie" McMurray (born June 3, 1976) is an American race car driver. McMurray is best known for winning the 2002 UAW-GM Quality 500 as a substitute driver in his second Winston Cup start and winning both the Daytona 500 and Brickyard 400 in 2010. He currently drives the #1 Bass Pro Shops/McDonald's Chevrolet Impala in the Sprint Cup Series for Earnhardt Ganassi Racing crew chiefed by Kevin Manion.

france strikes

2010-10-17T05:09:00.001-07:00

The 2007 strikes in France were a series of general strikes, mostly in the public sector, which started on 13 November 2007.[1][2] The strike was over President Nicolas Sarkozy's and Prime Minister François Fillon's attempt to reduce early retirement benefits for 500,000 public employees. Sarkozy had stated that pension reform is the first in a series of measures designed to roll back protections for trade unions in France, and both unions and Sarkozy saw the pension strikes as a key political test

one piece episode

2010-10-17T05:08:00.003-07:00

One Piece is an anime series adapted from the manga of the same title written by Eiichiro Oda. Produced by Toei Animation, and directed by Konosuke Uda, Munehisa Sakai and Hiroaki Miyamoto, the series premiered in Japan on Fuji Television on October 20, 1999. As of September 26, 2010 (2010 -09-26)[update], 468 episodes of the series have aired, spanning thirteen seasons. One Piece follows the adventures of Monkey D. Luffy, a 17-year-old boy, who gained supernatural abilities by eating a magical fruit, and his ragtag crew of heroic pirates, named the Straw Hat Pirates. Luffy's greatest ambition is to obtain the world's ultimate treasure, One Piece, and thereby become the next King of the Pirates.

In 2004, 4Kids Entertainment licensed the series for an English-language broadcast. This dub was heavily edited for content, as well as length, reducing the first 143 episodes to 104.[1] The series premiered in the United States in September 2004 on the Fox network as part of the Fox Box block, and later premiered on the Cartoon Network as part of the Toonami block in April 2005. In December 2006, 4Kids cancelled production due to financial reasons.[2] In April 2007, Funimation Entertainment acquired the license of One Piece from 4Kids and would use their in-house voice cast in preparation for the series' DVD releases.[3] The new dub of the series aired from September 2007 until it was canceled in March 2008.[4] In Australia, Cartoon Network resumed airing new One Piece episodes in November 2008, starting with episode 170,[5] lasting until January 2009 following episode 195.[5] The first unedited, bilingual DVD box set, containing 13 episodes, was released on May 27, 2008.[6] Similarly sized sets followed with eleven sets released as of July 6, 2010 (2010 -07-06)[update].[7]

The series uses thirty different pieces of theme music: thirteen opening themes and eighteen closing themes. Several CDs that contain the theme music and other tracks have been released by Toei Animation. After experimenting with an English dubbed version of "We Are!", 4Kids decided to create its own theme music with "Pirate Rap" voiced by Russell Velasquez. 4Kids created four vocal versions of the rap as opening themes, one of them unused, and two instrumental versions as ending themes before they lost the rights.

jimmie johnson

2010-10-17T05:08:00.001-07:00

Jimmie Kenneth Johnson (born September 17, 1975), nicknamed "Superman" by fellow driver Mark Martin, is an American stock car racer from El Cajon, California. Johnson started his NASCAR career in 1996 and currently drives the 48 Lowe's / Kobalt Tools Chevrolet Impala co-owned by Rick Hendrick and his teammate Jeff Gordon operated by Hendrick Motorsports. Johnson is a four-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion, and in 2009 he became the only driver to win four consecutive Sprint Cup Series Championships.[1] He is the 2009 Athlete of the Year by the Associated Press, 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Driver of the Year, as well as being considered as 2000's "Best Driver of the Decade."

Shanghai Rolex Masters 1000

2010-10-17T05:07:00.003-07:00

The Shanghai Rolex Masters (formally the Shanghai ATP Masters 1000 presented by Rolex) is a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It is currently part of the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 of the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) World Tour. It will be held annually in October at the Qizhong Forest Sports City Arena in Shanghai, People's Republic of China.[1] The inaugural edition took place from October 11–18, 2009

wisconsin badgers

2010-10-17T05:07:00.001-07:00

The Wisconsin Badgers are the collegiate athletic teams from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. This NCAA Division I athletic program has teams in football, basketball, ice hockey, volleyball, soccer, cross country, tennis, swimming, wrestling, track and field, rowing, golf, and softball. The Badgers have several major on-campus facilities, including Camp Randall Stadium, the UW Field House, and the Kohl Center. They compete in the Big Ten Conference in all sports except men's and women's ice hockey and crew. Ice hockey competes in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association and crew in the Eastern Association of Rowing Colleges (EARC).

The athletic director is Barry Alvarez, former head coach of the football team. The Badgers team colors are cardinal and white, and the team mascot is named "Buckingham U. Badger," known as "Bucky Badger." Additionally, people sometimes use "Bucky" to refer to the university's teams, much like what is done with "Sparty" at Michigan State University.

carlos condit

2010-10-17T05:06:00.001-07:00

Background and training
Condit formerly fought in the UFC's sister promotion, World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC), where he was the final WEC welterweight champion[1] and also competed for Pancrase.

Condit now trains at Jackson's Submission Fighting out of Albuquerque, NM. Condit is currently ranked the #10 welterweight in the world by Sherdog.[3]

[edit] World Extreme Cagefighting
Condit made his debut for the WEC at WEC 25 where he defeated Kyle Jensen in the first round via submission (Rear Naked Choke). Condit's second fight would be for the vacant WEC Welterweight Championship against John Alessio at WEC 26. Condit would win this fight in the second round, once again, by Rear Naked Choke and became the WEC Welterweight Champion.

Condit would then defend the title against Brock Larson at WEC 29 and Carlo Prater at WEC 32, defeating both by submission in the first round. Condit's final defense would be against Hiromitsu Miura at WEC 35. The fight would end via TKO in the fourth round, winning Fight of the Night honours, which meant that Condit would be the last ever WEC Welterweight Champion after the UFC dissolved the title and division. Condit's record in the WEC would end at a perfect 5–0.

[edit] Transition to the UFC
Condit would make the move to UFC after the WEC buyout and he made his debut in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) organization, losing via split decision against Martin Kampmann at UFC Fight Night 18.

He was then scheduled to fight Chris Lytle on September 16, 2009, at UFC Fight Night 19, but Lytle had to drop out due to a knee injury.[4] UFC newcomer Jake Ellenberger would step up to replace Lytle.[5] Condit then defeated Ellenberger via split decision to get his first win in the UFC. Condit later had to drop out of a scheduled fight at UFC 108 against Paul Daley due to a hand injury.[6]

Condit defeated Rory MacDonald via third-round TKO at UFC 115[7] in a bout that earned the Fight of the Night award. Although MacDonald seemed to get the better of the first two rounds with effective striking and takedowns, Condit came back with a more aggressive attitude in the final stanza, finishing MacDonald with a combination of elbows and short punches that prompted the referee to end the bout with only seven seconds remaining.[8] It was later revealed after analysis of the judges' scorecards, that had MacDonald not been finished in the last seven seconds, then he would have picked up a split decision victory.[9]

Condit faced Dan Hardy on October 16, 2010 at UFC 120. In the first round, Condit connected with a powerful left hook during an exchange, which dropped Hardy. Condit then landed two punches to Hardy on the ground before the referee stopped the fight at 4:27 of the first round. This victory made Condit the first man to defeat Hardy by way of KO, and was also Condit's first KO victory via a punch

amanda knox

2010-10-17T05:05:00.000-07:00

The murder of Meredith Kercher occurred in Perugia, Italy, on 1 November 2007. The following day, police discovered the body of the 21-year-old British student in the upstairs flat that she shared with three other young women.

On 6 November 2007, police arrested three suspects: Amanda Knox, an American student who shared a flat with Kercher, Raffaele Sollecito, an Italian student, and Patrick Lumumba, a bar owner. On 20 November 2007, Rudy Hermann Guede, a resident of Perugia, was also arrested and Patrick Lumumba, completely exonerated, was released.

Guede was convicted on 28 October 2008 of the sexual assault and murder of Kercher. He was sentenced to 30 years in prison. On appeal, his sentence was reduced to 16 years. Guede filed a second appeal in May 2010.

On 4 December 2009, Knox and Sollecito were found guilty of murder, sexual violence and other charges. Knox was sentenced to 26 years in prison, while Sollecito received 25 years. Appeals in these two cases are expected to be held in the autumn of 2010.

The case received much media attention in Italy, the United Kingdom and the United States with some questioning the fairness of the trial.

weeds season 6

2010-09-07T22:51:00.001-07:00

The sixth season premiered on Monday August 16, 2010 at 10ET/PT on Showtime. In May 2010, Elizabeth Perkins (Celia Hodes) announced that she will be leaving the series.[10][11] Linda Hamilton will be joining the cast as Linda; along with her partner Fiona, Linda will help Nancy in her business.[12] It has been confirmed that Mark-Paul Gosselaar has been cast in one episode in the upcoming season.[citation needed] A teaser for the new season was released on June 3, 2010, depicting Nancy disposing of the croquet mallet and evading the police. Jennifer Jason Leigh and Alanis Morissette will also be reprising their roles.[13] Actor Richard Dreyfuss has signed on to appear in at least four episodes of the season.[14] The season premiere was leaked on August 1, 2010.[citation needed]

On the run again, Nancy abruptly leaves—along with Shane, Silas, and the baby—bringing the croquet mallet with her, which she later disposes. In need of a larger car, the three stop off in Ren Mar to pick up Andy's minivan. Discovering Audra to be held at bay with a cross bow by an anti-abortionist, Nancy helps Andy subdue the attacker. Audra rejects Andy because he had fled and left her alone with the armed attacker, causing their relationship to end. Reluctantly, Andy flees with the family. Meanwhile, Cesar and his brother-in-law have discovered security footage of the murder, which Cesar orders destroyed. Esteban and the FBI begin a hunt for Nancy and the rest of the family as Nancy continues to ignore their persistent phone calls. Andy has new identities created for the family in order to become hidden—switching from the Botwins to the Newmans. Shane's alias is Shaun; Silas' is Mike; Nancy's is Nathalie; and Andy's is Randy. Nancy resides with her sons and brother-in-law in Seattle, Washington, while believing they can establish a real family with ordinary lives. In more recent episodes, Nathalie (Nancy Botwin) is sprung back into the world of marijuana by making hash.

cloverfield monster

2010-09-07T22:50:00.001-07:00

Clover is the production name given to the giant, fictional monster that appears in the 2008 film Cloverfield. The creature was originally conceived by producer J. J. Abrams and was designed by artist Neville Page. In the film, the monster is never named; the name "Cloverfield" is only given to the US Department of Defense case file of the incidents depicted in the movie.[1] The Department of Defense names the creature "LSA" for Large-Scale Aggressor in the movie's Blu-ray special feature called "Cloverfield Special Investigation Mode". The name Clover was the nickname affectionately given to the monster among the production staff.

Minka Kelly

2010-09-07T22:43:00.002-07:00

Minka Dumont Kelly (born June 24, 1980) is an American actress. She starred in the NBC series Friday Night Lights as Lyla Garrity from 2006 to 2009.Kelly was born in Los Angeles, California.[1] She is the only child of former Aerosmith guitarist Rick Dufay[2] and the late[citation needed] Maureen Kelly, a former Vegas showgirl. According to Kelly, her childhood was "pretty rough". She resented Dufay, as he had abandoned her and her mother. However, at seventeen, she decided to try to reconcile with him by inviting him out to New Mexico.[3] She is of Irish and French descent

Anne Knight

2010-09-07T22:43:00.001-07:00

Anne Knight 1786 - 1862 was a social reformer noted as a pioneer of feminism.

johnny weir

2010-09-07T22:42:00.002-07:00

John Garvin "Johnny" Weir [1] (born July 2, 1984) is an American figure skater. He is a three-time U.S. National Champion (2004–2006), the 2008 Worlds bronze medalist, a two-time Grand Prix Final bronze medalist, and the 2001 World Junior Champion.

As of April 2010[update] Weir is ranked 12th in the world by the International Skating Union (ISU).[2]. He does not intend to skate competitively in the 2010–11 season.

trace cyrus

2010-09-07T22:42:00.001-07:00

Trace Dempsey Cyrus[1] (born February 24, 1989) is an American musician. He was a guitarist, songwriter and vocalist in the band Metro Station before the band broke up. He is the owner of a clothing company called From Backseats to Bedrooms.[2] Cyrus is the adopted son of country singer Billy Ray Cyrus. He is the older brother of Miley Cyrus, Braison Cyrus, and Noah Cyrus, and the younger brother of Brandi Cyrus.Cyrus was born in Ashland, Kentucky. Cyrus's mother is Leticia "Tish" Finley Cyrus. His biological father is Baxter Neal Helson,[3] but he was adopted by Billy Ray Cyrus.[4][5] He spent the summers of his youth on tour with Billy Ray. Cyrus is the older brother of Miley Cyrus, the star of the Disney Channel original television series Hannah Montana. In an interview with MTV, he discussed recording with Miley: "Actually, I'm going to sing on one of the tracks on her next album," he said. "I can't say much about it right now, but we will be collaborating."[6] Cyrus has many tattoos on his arms and chest, including the words "stay gold" tattooed on his knuckles.[5] Cyrus once worked at a shopping mall in Burbank, California before dropping out of La Cañada High School.[5] Cyrus briefly dated Disney singer/actress Demi Lovato, but the relationship ended because of conflicting schedules

santorum

2010-09-07T22:41:00.001-07:00

Richard John "Rick" Santorum (born May 10, 1958) is a former United States Senator from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Santorum is a member of the Republican Party and was the chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, the number-three job in the party leadership of the Senate.

Santorum is considered a social and fiscal conservative.[2] He is particularly known for his stances on the U.S. invasion of Iraq, Social Security, intelligent design, homosexuality, and the Terri Schiavo case.[3] Santorum was defeated 59% to 41% in the 2006 U.S. Senate election by Democratic candidate Bob Casey, Jr. This was the largest margin of defeat for an incumbent Senator since 1980.

In March 2007, Santorum joined the law firm Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott, LLC. He will primarily practice law in the firm’s Pittsburgh and Washington, D.C. offices, where he will provide business and strategic counseling services to the firm's clients. In addition to his work with the firm, Santorum also serves as a Senior Fellow with the Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington, D.C., and is a contributor to Fox News Channel. Santorum is currently considering a bid for president in 2012.

sons of anarchy season 3

2010-09-07T22:40:00.001-07:00

Sons of Anarchy is an American television drama series created by Kurt Sutter about the lives of a close-knit outlaw motorcycle club operating in Charming, a fictional town in Northern California. The show centers on protagonist Jackson "Jax" Teller (Charlie Hunnam), the Vice President of the club who begins questioning the club and himself. Sons of Anarchy premiered on September 3, 2008 on cable network FX. Its second season debuted on September 8, 2009, and its third season began on September 7, 2010.

The show's first season averaged 5.4 million viewers weekly making it the network's most successful show since Rescue Me

americas got talent vote

2010-09-07T22:39:00.002-07:00

America's Got Talent is a British-owned American reality television series on the NBC television network. It is a talent show that features singers, dancers, magicians, comedians and other performers of all ages competing for the advertised top prize of US$1 million. The show debuted in June 2006 for the summer television season. Starting in the third season, the Talent top prize included US$1 million, payable in a financial annuity over forty years (or the present cash value of such annuity), and a show as the headliner on the Las Vegas Strip.

Among its significant features were that it gave an opportunity to talented amateurs or unknown performers, with the results decided by an audience vote. The format is a popular one and has often been reworked for television in the United States and the United Kingdom.

The current incarnation was created by Simon Cowell, and was originally due to be a 2005 British series called Paul O'Grady's Got Talent[1] but was postponed due to O'Grady's acrimonious split with broadcaster ITV. As such, the American version became the first full series of the Got Talent franchise.

Despite being heavily involved in the show's production, Simon Cowell does not appear as a judge. This is due to the conditions of his American Idol contract. However he does appear as a judge on Britain's Got Talent. America's Got Talent began airing season one in the United Kingdom on ITV1 on 22 June 2007, TV3 Ireland on July 2007 and in New Zealand on Prime Television on 9 July 2007. The third season of Talent premiered on ITV2 beginning 4 June 2009.

samcro Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club

2010-09-07T22:39:00.001-07:00

The Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club (SOAMC), also known as the Reaper Crew, is a fictional outlaw motorcycle club from the FX television series Sons of Anarchy. The club was formed by John Teller and Piermont "Piney" Winston, two Vietnam War veterans, in 1967 in Charming, California. Six of the original nine members were war veterans.[1] Their logo is a Grim Reaper wielding an M-16 rifle with scythe blade and holding a crystal ball. The Sons' mottos are "Fear the Reaper" and "Ride Free or Die", and their colors are blue and black. The club has 28 chapters worldwide. In North America, these are located in Alaska, Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, New England, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah, Washington and Wyoming in the United States, and Alberta and Manitoba in Canada. There are also a number of chapters in England, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands and Scandinavia.[2]

The series follows the club's Mother Chapter, the Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club, Redwood Original, or SAMCRO. The chapter's President is Clay Morrow and his Vice-President is Jax Teller. Their primary business is importing illegal weapons and selling them to drug gangs in the East Bay, along with protection runs for local businesses by protecting valuable truck shipments from hijacking. They also protect Charming from outside gangs who try to manufacture and sell drugs, mainly methamphetamine, there. Naturally, their main enemy is the White supremacist Nordics gang who specialize in the meth trade. The fact that the Sons of Anarchy are racially diverse also puts them at odds. They also have to deal with a rival Oakland-based motorcycle club, the Mayans, who control the neighboring territory of Nevada, and the League of American Nationalists, another criminal racist organization. The Sons of Anarchy also have a number of allies, in the form of the True IRA, which supplies them with illegal Russian-made guns, and the One-Niners, an African American street gang to which SAMCRO sells weapons, and various affiliates in the state prison system.

brian warner Marilyn Manson

2010-09-07T22:38:00.000-07:00

Marilyn Manson (born Brian Hugh Warner; January 5, 1969) is an American musician and artist known for his controversial stage persona and image as the lead singer of the eponymous band, Marilyn Manson. His stage name was formed from the names of actress Marilyn Monroe and convicted murder-planner[1] Charles Manson.[2][3] He has a long legacy of being depicted in the media as a bad influence on children. The seemingly outrageous styles for which he models and the controversy surrounding his lyrics have led to his very pronounced public appeal

glenn shadix

2010-09-07T22:36:00.000-07:00

Shadix was born William Glenn Shadix in Bessemer, Alabama. He attended Birmingham-Southern College for two years, studying with absurdist playwright-director Arnold Powell. He lived in New York City prior to moving to Hollywood in the late 1970s. He got his breakthrough film role in Beetlejuice while doing a stage play, portraying Gertrude Stein. According to Shadix, it was the play that his agent warned him against doing, since it was a role that seemed too risky. But the actor went on instinct and played the role. As fate would have it, Tim Burton was one of the people sitting in the audience that night. Shadix became personal friends with Burton while making Beetlejuice, and the two would go on to make two more films together: 1993's The Nightmare Before Christmas and the 2001 remake of Planet of the Apes.

In 2005, Shadix was cast as the Brain and Monsieur Mallah in season five of the Teen Titans animated series. Other voice work done by Shadix includes the aforementioned Nightmare, and episodes of Jackie Chan Adventures and Justice League Unlimited. He reprised his Nightmare Before Christmas role in the sequel, Oogie’s Revenge, and the Square-Enix video game Kingdom Hearts II.

His television work included the HBO drama Carnivàle, the NBC television comedy Seinfeld, in which he played Jerry's landlord, and playing the roles of giant brothers Typhoon and Typhon in "Hercules: The Legendary Journeys".

On stage, Shadix was set to begin rehearsals for History Boys, the award winning Broadway play by Alan Bennett. It would have been Shadix's first time back in Birmingham Theatre since 1973 when he appeared in Boys in the Band at the Birmingham Festival Theatre.

baylor football

2010-09-04T23:51:00.001-07:00

The Baylor Bears football team represents Baylor University in Division I FBS college football. They are a member of the Big 12 Conference. The team plays its home games at Floyd Casey Stadium in Waco, Texas.

paul conrad cartoons

2010-09-04T23:50:00.002-07:00

Paul Francis Conrad (June 27, 1924 – September 4, 2010 [1]) was an American political cartoonist from Cedar Rapids, Iowa. During college, Conrad started cartooning at the University of Iowa for the Daily Iowan.[2] While serving with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, during World War II, Conrad received a B.A. in art in 1950.[3] After receiving his degree, he worked for the Denver Post, where he spent 14 years before joining the Los Angeles Times.

He was chief editorial cartoonist for the Los Angeles Times from 1964 to 1993 and had been syndicated to hundreds of newspapers worldwide. Conrad drew numerous cartoons about Richard Nixon's downfall. One cartoon showed Nixon, during his last days as president, nailing himself to a cross.[4] Another example, the Los Angeles Times refused to run. Just prior to the vote to impeach President Nixon, Conrad drew the president in only a pair of tight fitting underwear, with the caption "The Last Nixon Supporter in Washington."[citation needed] He was also named in Richard Nixon's enemy list in 1973.[5]

Conrad wrote several books and his work is in the permanent exhibition of the United States Library of Congress.

He earned the Pulitzer Prize for editorial cartooning in 1964, 1971 and 1984.[6] Conrad has also won two Overseas Press Club awards (1981 and 1970) and in 1988, the Society of Professional Journalists/Sigma Delta Chi (SDX) honored him with his seventh Distinguished Service Award for Editorial Cartooning.

Conrad is survived by his wife, Kay King, a former society writer for The Denver Post, two sons, two daughters and one grandchild.

vanderbilt football

2010-09-04T23:50:00.001-07:00

The Vanderbilt Commodores football program is a college football team that represents Vanderbilt University. The team currently competes in NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision as a member of the Southeastern Conference. The Commodores currently play their home games at Vanderbilt Stadium, located in Nashville, Tennessee.

nebraska football

2010-09-04T23:48:00.001-07:00

The Nebraska Cornhuskers represent the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in college football. The program has established itself as a traditional powerhouse, and has the fourth-most all-time victories of any NCAA Division I-A team. The Cornhuskers recently completed their 119th season and hold an all-time record of 827–341–40. Nebraska is one of only 8 football programs in NCAA Division I-A history to win 800 games. The Cornhuskers are the winningest college football program over the last 50 years, both by winning percentage and number of wins

Alabama Crimson Tide football

2010-09-04T23:47:00.003-07:00

The Alabama Crimson Tide football program is a college football team that represents the University of Alabama (variously Alabama, UA, or 'Bama). The team currently competes in NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision[6] as a member of the Southeastern Conference. The Crimson Tide is one of the most storied and decorated programs in NCAA history. Since beginning play in 1892, the program has claimed 13 national championships,[2][3][7] and is tied with Notre Dame with eight poll-era wire (AP or Coaches) national titles.[8] From 1958 to 1982, the team was led by Hall of Fame coach Paul "Bear" Bryant, who won six national championships with the program.[3] Despite multiple national and conference championships, it was not until 2009 that an Alabama player received a Heisman Trophy, when running back Mark Ingram became the university's first winner.[9]

Alabama has 792 victories[a][b] in NCAA Division I, has won 26 conference championships (4 Southern Conference and 22 SEC championships) and has made an NCAA-record 57 postseason bowl appearances. Other NCAA records include 22 10-game win streaks, and 16 seasons with a 10-0 start. The program has 29 10–win seasons,[10][11] and is tied with the USC Trojans with 31[b] bowl victories, also an NCAA record.[12] The Crimson Tide leads the SEC West Division with seven division titles and seven appearances in the SEC Championship Game. Alabama holds a winning record against every current and former SEC school.[13] The Associated Press (AP) currently ranks Alabama 5th in all-time final AP Poll appearances, with 47.[14]

Alabama currently plays their home games at Bryant-Denny Stadium, located on the campus in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.[1] With a capacity of 101,821, Bryant-Denny is the 7th largest non-racing stadium in the world and the fifth largest stadium in the United States

washington huskies football

2010-09-04T23:47:00.001-07:00

College football has a long history at the University of Washington. The Washington Huskies have won 15 Pacific-10 Conference Championships, 7 Rose Bowl Titles, and 4 National Championships. Washington's all-time record of 653-398-50 (as of 2008) ranks 20th by all-time winning percentage and 21st by all-time victories. The team has two of the nation's longest winning streaks and holds the Division I-A unbeaten record at 63 consecutive games.[4] Washington is one of four charter members of what became the Pacific-10 Conference and one of only two schools with uninterrupted membership. Through the 2008 season, its 342 conference victories rank second in league history.[5] The Huskies play on-campus in historic Husky Stadium.

Washington is often referred to as one of the top Quarterback U's due to the long history of quarterbacks to play in the NFL. 16 of the last 18 starting quarterbacks dating back to 1970 have gone onto the NFL, with the current starter Jake Locker almost certain to be the next one.

As of 2009, Washington is one of only four of the 120 Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A) teams to have never played a Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA) team since Division I was split in 1978.[6]

Washington are current holders and 2009 winners of the Apple Cup, defeating Washington State University 30-0 at Husky Stadium.

northwestern football

2010-09-04T23:46:00.001-07:00

The Northwestern Wildcats football team, representing Northwestern University, is a NCAA Division I team and member of the Big Ten Conference, with evidence of organization in 1876. The mascot is the Wildcat, a term coined by a Chicago Tribune reporter in 1924, after reporting on a football game where the players appeared as "a wall of purple wildcats." Northwestern achieved an all-time high rank of #1 during the 1936 and 1962 seasons, then plummeted to extended levels of futility from the mid-1970s to 1995. Recent years have been far kinder to the Wildcats, who have been "bowl eligible" (a status that requires at least a .500 regular-season record) six out of the last seven seasons. Northwestern consistently ranks among the national leaders in graduation rate among football teams, having received the AFCA Academic Achievement Award four times since 2002. [1] Despite the stricter academic standards, Northwestern has produced many notable athletes, such as former first-round draft picks Luis Castillo and Napoleon Harris.

The Wildcats have played their home games at Ryan Field (formerly Dyche Stadium) in Evanston, IL, since 1926.

jacksonville state

2010-09-04T23:45:00.003-07:00

Jacksonville State University is a regional public coeducational university located in Jacksonville, Alabama, USA. Founded in 1883, Jacksonville State offers programs of study in four academic units leading to Bachelor's, Master's, and Education Specialist degrees, in addition to continuing and distance education programs.

The university was founded as Jacksonville State Normal School, and in 1930 the name changed to Jacksonville State Teachers College, and again in 1957 to Jacksonville State College. The university began operating as Jacksonville State University in 1967. In 2008, the university celebrated its 125th anniversary.

JSU currently has an enrollment of more than 9,000 students, with 400 faculty members (300 of whom are full-time). Jacksonville State's Business School was ranked with in the nations top ten percentile by the Princeton Review. The current University President is Dr. William A. Meehan.

With a focus on providing a quality education, Jacksonville State University is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). In addition, 38 academic programs (79% of programs that can be accredited) earned specialized programmatic accreditations. These programs include business, education, engineering and technology, nursing, social work, drama, art, music, computer science, family and consumer science, and communication.

229 international students were enrolled in the 2005-06 academic year. The University has run its International House program, an international exchange program, for over 60 years.[1] JSU is also nationally recognized for its marching band, the Marching Southerners, which performs before thousands each year at marching exhibitions, football games, and parades.

texas a m football

2010-09-04T23:45:00.001-07:00

The Texas A&M Aggies football team represents Texas A&M University in Division I FBS college football. The Aggies have competed in the South Division of Big 12 Conference since the conference's inception in 1996. Texas A&M football has earned one national title and 19 conference titles since becoming a charter member in the Southwest Conference in 1915. The team plays all home games at Kyle Field, an 83,002-person capacity outdoor stadium on the university campus. Mike Sherman, a former NFL coach who had been the Offensive Line Coach at A&M from 1983–93 and 1995–96, currently coaches the team

auburn football

2010-09-04T23:44:00.002-07:00

The Auburn Tigers football team represents Auburn University in college football as a member of the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, competing in the Western Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). Auburn's Jordan-Hare Stadium has a capacity of 87,451, ranking as the ninth-largest on-campus stadium in the NCAA. The team is coached by Gene Chizik, who was hired on December 13, 2008, replacing Tommy Tuberville, who resigned at the end of the 2008 season.

harold dow cause of death

2010-09-04T23:44:00.001-07:00

Journalist credentials
Dow was born in Hackensack, New Jersey. He attended the University of Nebraska at Omaha. Dow had been a correspondent for the CBS TV investigative news series 48 Hours since 1990, after having served as a contributor to the broadcast since its premiere on January 1988. He had been a contributing correspondent for 48 Hours on Crack Street, the critically acclaimed 1986 documentary that led to the single-topic weekly news magazine. Dow conducted the first network interview for 48 Hours with O. J. Simpson following the murders of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ron Goldman. Dow graduated from the University of Nebraska at Omaha.

Prior to his work with 48 Hours, Dow was a correspondent for the CBS News magazine Street Stories (1992–93), and had reported for the CBS Evening News and CBS News Sunday Morning since the early 1970s.

[edit] Other accomplishments
Before joining CBS News, Dow had been an anchor and reporter at Theta Cable TV in Santa Monica, California. He was also a freelance reporter for KCOP-TV in Los Angeles, a news anchor for WPAT Radio in Paterson, New Jersey, and a reporter, co-anchor, and talk-show host for KETV-TV in Omaha, Nebraska. Dow was a member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc.

Dow joined CBS News in 1972, first as a broadcast associate, then as a correspondent with their Los Angeles Bureau while with KCOP-TV. Dow reported on the return of POWs from Vietnam and the kidnapping of Patricia Hearst, with whom he had an exclusive interview in December 1976.

[edit] Death
A resident of Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, Dow died from complications of asthma on August 21, 2010 at a New Jersey hospital.[2]

tcu football

2010-09-04T23:43:00.003-07:00

The TCU Horned Frogs football team is the intercollegiate football team of Texas Christian University. TCU competes as a member of the Mountain West Conference. The Frogs have won two national championships and fifteen conference championships. Additionally, the program has had a few legendary players, including, Bob Lilly, Sammy Baugh, Davey O'Brien, and LaDainian Tomlinson.

The Horned Frogs play their home games in Amon G. Carter Stadium, which is located on campus in Fort Worth. The stadium opened in 1930 and holds 44,008.[3] On November 14, 2009, TCU posted on its official Twitter page that night's game against Utah "broke the attendance record in Amon Carter Stadium with 50,307.".[4] The current head coach of the program is Gary Patterson.

unlv football

2010-09-04T23:43:00.001-07:00

The UNLV Rebels football program is a college football team that represents the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (commonly known as "UNLV"). The team is currently a member of the Mountain West Conference, which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A) of the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA). The program which began in 1968, is coached by former Eddie Robinson Award finalist Bobby Hauck. The team's home games are played at Sam Boyd Stadium in Whitney, Nevada. The Rebels are not very popular with Las Vegas locals, and have only sold out games on four occasions in their history, all four being against Wisconsin, beating them once out of the four meetings in 1987.

fresno state football

2010-09-04T23:42:00.003-07:00

The Fresno State Bulldogs football team represents California State University, Fresno and the California Central Valley, especially the San Joaquin Valley, in NCAA Division I FBS college football. The Bulldogs proudly display a green “V” on their helmets, uniforms, and on the field symbolizing the agricultural valley from which they draw their support. The current head coach is Pat Hill, who began his tenure in 1997.

summer of 42

2010-09-04T23:42:00.001-07:00

Summer of '42 is a 1971 American "coming-of-age" drama film based on the memoirs of screenwriter Herman Raucher. It tells the story of Raucher as a boy, in his early teens on his 1942 summer vacation on Nantucket Island, off the coast of New England, who embarked on a one-sided romance with a woman, Dorothy, whose husband had gone off to fight in World War II.

The film was directed by Robert Mulligan, and starred Gary Grimes as Hermie, Jerry Houser as his best friend Oscy, Oliver Conant as their nerdy young friend Benjie, Jennifer O'Neill as Hermie's mysterious love interest, and Katherine Allentuck and Christopher Norris as a pair of girls whom Hermie and Oscy attempt to seduce. Mulligan also has an uncredited role as the voice of the adult Hermie. Maureen Stapleton (Allentuck's real life mother) also appears in a small, uncredited voice role (calling after Hermie as he leaves the house in an early scene).

Raucher's novelization of his screenplay was released prior to the film's release and became a runaway bestseller, to the point that audiences lost sight of the fact that the book was based on the film and not vice-versa. Though a pop culture phenomenon in the first half of the 1970s, the novelization went out of print and slipped into obscurity throughout the next two decades until a Broadway adaptation in 2001 brought it back into the public light and prompted Barnes & Noble to acquire the publishing rights to the book.

unemployment

2010-09-04T23:41:00.004-07:00

Unemployment occurs when a person is able and willing to work but currently is without work.[2] The prevalence of unemployment is usually measured using the unemployment rate, which is defined as the percentage of those in the labor force who are unemployed. The unemployment rate is used in economic studies and indices including the United States' Conference Board's Index of Leading Indicators a macroeconomic measure of the state of the economy.

The causes of unemployment are disputed. Keynesian economics emphasizes unemployment resulting from insufficient effective demand for goods and services in the economy (cyclical unemployment). Others point to structural problems and inefficiencies inherent in labour markets; structural unemployment involves mismatches between demand and supply of laborers with the necessary skillset, sometimes induced by technologies or globalisation. Classical or neoclassical economics tends to reject these explanations, and focuses more on rigidities imposed on the labor market from the outside, such as unionization, minimum wage laws, taxes, and other regulations that may discourage the hiring of workers (classical unemployment). Yet others see unemployment as largely due to voluntary choices based on how much someone values their own work and how that compares to current wage rates and the time it takes to find a new job (frictional unemployment). Behavioral economics highlights phenomena such as sticky wages and efficiency wages which may lead to unemployment.

There are also different ways national statistical agencies measure unemployment. These differences may limit the validity of international comparisons of unemployment data." [3] To some degree these differences remain despite national statistical agencies increasingly adopting the definition of unemployment by the International Labor Organization.[4] To facilitate international comparisons, some organizations, such as the OECD, Eurostat, and International Labor Comparisons Program, adjust data on unemployment for comparability across countries.

Different countries experience different levels of unemployment; traditionally, the United States tends to experience lower unemployment levels than countries in the European Union,[5] although there is some variation there, with countries like the UK and Denmark outperforming Italy and France and it also changes over time (e.g. the Great Depression) throughout economic cycles.

yorba linda fire

2010-09-04T23:41:00.003-07:00

The Yorba Linda firestorms were a series of major wildfires in 2008 that originated in Corona, California and quickly spread throughout the San Fernando Valley. The fire was most likely ignited by a spark from a motorist's vehicle; the flames were fueled by a long standing drought, the driest conditions in Southern California since 1887, and Santa Ana winds up to 70 miles per hour (110 km/h) which allowed the fire to spread rapidly and jump freeways, roads, and rivers

boise state

2010-09-04T23:41:00.001-07:00

Boise State University is a public university located in Boise, Idaho. Originally founded in 1932 by the Episcopal Church, the university became an independent institution in 1934, and has been awarding baccalaureate and master degrees since 1965. As of 2009, the university has over 70,000 living alumni.

Ranked among the top 100 Regional Universities in the Western United States by the U.S. News & World Report,[1] Boise State offers 201 degrees in 190 fields of study. With nearly 19,000 students, Boise State is both the largest and fastest-growing institution of higher education in the state of Idaho.

christchurch

2010-09-04T23:40:00.001-07:00

Christchurch (Māori: Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of Christchurch.

The city was named by the Canterbury Association, which settled the surrounding province of Canterbury. The name of Christchurch was agreed on at the first meeting of the association on 27 March 1848. It was suggested by John Robert Godley, who had attended Christ Church, Oxford. Some early writers called the town Christ Church, but it was recorded as Christchurch in the minutes of the management committee of the association.[2] Christchurch became a city by Royal Charter on 31 July 1856, making it officially the oldest established city in New Zealand.

The river that flows through the centre of the city (its banks now largely forming an urban park) was named Avon at the request of the pioneering Deans brothers to commemorate the Scottish Avon, which rises in the Ayrshire hills near what was their grandfathers' farm and flows into the Clyde.[2]

The usual Māori name for Christchurch is Ōtautahi ("the place of Tautahi"). This was originally the name of a specific site by the Avon River near present-day Kilmore Street and the Christchurch Central Fire Station. The site was a seasonal dwelling of Ngāi Tahu chief Te Potiki Tautahi, whose main home was Port Levy on Banks Peninsula. The Ōtautahi name was adopted in the 1930s. Prior to that the Ngāi Tahu generally referred to the Christchurch area as Karaitiana,[3] a transliteration of the English name.

On 4 September 2010, a major 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck Christchurch at 4:35 a.m. local time, causing about NZ$2 billion in damage.[4] The epicentre was located approximately 30 kilometres (19 mi) northwest of the central city, near Darfield.[5]

djokovic

2010-09-04T23:39:00.002-07:00

Novak Djokovic (Serbian: Новак Ђоковић, Novak Đoković), pronounced [ˈnɔvɑk ˈdʑɔːkɔvitɕ] ( listen) (born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player, who is currently ranked the World No. 3.

He has won one Grand Slam singles title, the 2008 Australian Open, becoming the first player representing Serbia to win a Grand Slam singles title and the youngest player in the open era to have reached the semifinals of all four Grand Slam events.[1] He was also the runner-up at the 2007 US Open and a bronze medallist representing Serbia at the 2008 Olympic Games. In addition, Djokovic won the Tennis Masters Cup in 2008 and has won five Masters Series tournaments.

lsu

2010-09-04T23:39:00.001-07:00

Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, most often referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is a public coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.[7] The University was founded in 1853 in what is now known as Pineville, Louisiana, under the name Louisiana State Seminary of Learning & Military Academy. The current LSU main campus was dedicated in 1926, and consists of more than 250 buildings constructed in the style of Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio, and occupies a 650-acre (2.6 km²) plateau on the banks of the Mississippi River.

LSU is the flagship institution of the Louisiana State University System, and the largest institution of higher education in Louisiana in terms of student enrollment. In 2009, the University enrolled 21,000 undergraduate and 4,000 graduate students in 17 schools and colleges. Several of LSU's graduate schools, such as the E.J. Ourso College of Business and the Paul M. Hebert Law Center, have received national recognition in their respective fields of study.[8] Designated as a land-grant, sea-grant and space-grant institution, LSU is also noted for its extensive research facilities, operating some 800 sponsored research projects funded by agencies such as the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.[9][10]

LSU's athletic department fields teams in 20 varsity sports (9 men's, 11 women's), and is a member of the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) and the SEC (Southeastern Conference). LSU Tigers football began in 1893, with national championship wins in the 1958, 2003, and 2007 seasons. The University is represented on the field by its mascot, Mike the Tiger.

new ipod touch

2010-09-04T23:38:00.002-07:00

The iPod Touch (stylized, trademarked, and marketed as iPod touch) is a portable media player, personal digital assistant, and Wi-Fi mobile platform designed and marketed by Apple Inc. The product was launched on September 5, 2007, at an event called The Beat Goes On.[4] The iPod Touch adds the multi-touch graphical user interface to the iPod line. It is the first iPod with wireless access to the iTunes Store, and also has access to Apple's App Store, enabling content to be purchased and downloaded directly on the device. Apple Inc. has sold over 32 million iPod Touch units as of the end of 2009.[5]

The 2nd generation iPod Touch, featuring external volume controls, a built-in speaker, a contoured back, built-in Nike+, Bluetooth support, and the ability to connect a microphone, was unveiled on September 9, 2008, at the "Let's Rock" keynote presentation.

The 3rd generation iPod Touch with iPhone OS 3.1 was announced and subsequently released on September 9, 2009.[6] It is available with 32GB or 64GB of flash memory. Apple also continued offering the 2nd generation 8 GB version.[7] The new 3rd generation iPod Touch[8] includes faster hardware (the same microprocessors, graphics engine, and RAM as the iPhone 3GS), a slightly lower battery life, voice control, light sensor, and bundled earphones with a remote and microphone. The 2nd and 3rd generation iPod Touch can now be updated to iOS 4.x for free, but can not take advantage of features using the iPhone's camera or GPS receiver.

Apple unveiled the 4th generation iPod Touch on September 1, 2010. It features Apple's Retina display and two cameras; one for FaceTime and the other for photos and HD video recording. It also contains Apple's A4 chip for faster processing, a microphone for communication and voice memos and a three-axis gyroscopic sensor which enables the device to recognize approximately how far, fast, and in which direction it has moved in space . The new device will ship with iOS 4.1 which adds Game Center to iOS along with the ability to use FaceTime through WiFi. It will be sold at the starting price of $229.99 (£184.99

tony blair

2010-09-04T23:38:00.001-07:00

Anthony Charles Lynton "Tony" Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007; he resigned from all these positions in June 2007.

Tony Blair was elected Leader of the Labour Party in the leadership election of July 1994, following the sudden death of his predecessor, John Smith. Under his leadership, the party adopted the term "New Labour"[1] and moved away from its traditional left wing position towards the centre ground.[2][3] Blair subsequently led Labour to a landslide victory in the 1997 general election. At 43 years old, he became the youngest Prime Minister since 1812. In the first years of the New Labour government, Blair's government implemented a number of 1997 manifesto pledges, introducing the minimum wage, Human Rights Act and Freedom of Information Act; and carrying out regional devolution, establishing the Scottish Parliament, the National Assembly for Wales, and the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Blair's role as Prime Minister was particularly visible in foreign and security policy, including in Northern Ireland, where he was involved in the 1998 Good Friday Agreement. From the start of the War on Terror in 2001, Blair strongly supported United States foreign policy, notably by participating in the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan and 2003 invasion of Iraq. In his first six years, Blair had British troops ordered into battle five times — more than any other prime minister in British history.[4]

Blair is the Labour Party's longest-serving Prime Minister; the only person to have led the Labour Party to three consecutive general election victories; and the only Labour Prime Minister to serve consecutive terms, more than one of which was at least four years long. He was succeeded as Leader of the Labour Party on 24 June 2007 and as Prime Minister on 27 June 2007 by Gordon Brown, who was Chancellor of the Exchequer.[5] On the day he resigned as Prime Minister, he was appointed the official Envoy of the Quartet on the Middle East on behalf of the United Nations, the European Union, the United States, and Russia.

In May 2008, Blair launched his Tony Blair Faith Foundation.[6] This was followed in July 2009 by the launching of the Faith and Globalisation Initiative with Yale University in the USA, Durham University in the UK and National University of Singapore in Asia to deliver a postgraduate programme in partnership with the Foundation

bristol palin

2010-09-04T23:35:00.002-07:00

Bristol Sheeran Marie Palin[3] (born October 18, 1990) is the second child and eldest daughter of the 11th Governor of Alaska Sarah Palin and her husband, Todd. After becoming a teenage single parent, Bristol began to publicly advocate abstinence for unmarried teens and is now a paid speaker
Bristol Palin was born and raised in Wasilla, Alaska.[3][5] Sarah has explained that she named her after the Bristol Inn where she had formerly been employed, Bristol, Connecticut, the headquarters city of ESPN where she had anticipated to work for as a sportscaster, and the Alaskan town of Bristol Bay, where her husband Todd grew up.[6][7]

She began dating Levi Johnston in 2005, during her freshman year at Juneau-Douglas High School.[8][9] She lived in Anchorage with her aunt and uncle in 2008 and attended West Anchorage High School before graduating from Wasilla High School on May 14, 2009.[10][11]

When Sarah Palin was chosen as John McCain's vice presidential running mate in late August 2008, his advisers already knew of Bristol's pregnancy, which they believed would be a political liability.[1] On September 1, the opening day of the 2008 Republican National Convention, it was publicly announced that Palin was pregnant and engaged to Johnston, the father of her unborn child.[8] Palin's entire family, along with Johnston, appeared at the convention.[8][12] In late September 2008, McCain's advisers thought a wedding between Johnston and Palin would boost the waning popularity of the McCain-Palin ticket.[1] Johnston denied claims that he was being pressured into a shotgun wedding, stating, "We were planning on getting married a long time ago with or without the kid. That was the plan from the start."[8] The couple's son, Tripp Easton Mitchell Johnston, was born on December 27, 2008.[13][14] They broke off their first engagement in March 2009.[15] Bristol denied claims that her mother's pro life views influenced her decision to give birth to and raise Tripp, stating, "It doesn't matter what my mom's views are on it. It was my decision."[16][17]

In November 2009, a custody and child support case involving Johnston and Palin was filed in a local, Alaska court. Palin asked the court to use pseudonyms for herself and Johnston to keep the normally public proceedings private, arguing that the media attention would not be good for the child.[18] Johnston argued for open proceedings, saying he just wanted the case to be decided on the merits, [18] and that he did "not feel protected against Sarah Palin in a closed proceeding."[19]. In December 2009, on Tripp's first birthday, the judge sided with Johnston, and it was publicly announced that the pair had been battling for legal custody. Palin, who wished to win full custody rights, and child support consistent with Johnston's income, stated that Johnston had "exercised sporadic visitation rights" and "wants the rights for his own self-promotion".[18][19][20] Johnston sought shared custody and lower child support payments.

Palin originally had thought she would move away for college after high school, but her plans changed with the realities of single parenthood.[21] In February 2010, she and her son began living in a condo she had purchased in Anchorage, where she was working at a dermatologist's office and taking business courses at a community college.[21][22] Eventually, she moved out of the condo and returned to her parents' house in August 2010.[23]

yasir hameed

2010-09-04T23:35:00.001-07:00

Yasir Hameed Qureshi (Urdu: یاسر حمید قریشی) (born 28 February 1978 in Peshawar[1]) is a Pakistani cricketer. He scored two centuries on his Test debut against Bangladesh, becoming only the second player to do so. During his first thirty One Day International innings, he scored more runs than any other batsman, as well as scoring four successive opening partnerships of 100 or more with Imran Farhat, a unique achievement.

He was then left out of the squad because of a dip in form. He came back in the final ODI in the Bank Alfalah Series against England in 2005/6, scored 57 but was again ignored only to return against West Indies in the fourth match in November 2006, where he scored 71 runs from 118 balls.

Yasir has since impressed the selectors with good form in the domestic season with the bat but has not been given a real chance to cement his place in the side. He has recently been touring with the team but has only been given the odd match.

In September 2007, Yasir played a major role in defeating Australia A in a comprehensive 3-0 defeat while representing Pakistan A. He scored two centuries out of the three matches and was given good support by Naved Latif and Taufeeq Umar while the bowlers also did well in the series.

In 2003 on his Test debut he scored 170 runs in Karachi. This is the highest score by a Pakistani on debut.[2] He also scored 105 in the second innings of the same match.[3][4]

He played 22 further Tests before losing his place in the side following Pakistan's unsuccessful tour of India in 2007. He was recalled nearly 18 months later for Pakistan's two-match series against Australia, played in England owing to the security situation in Pakistan. [5]

News of the world, a British tabloid which exposed Cricket's 'spot fixing' controversy posted the following message on their website.

An explosive claim by a member of the Pakistan touring team that some of his team-mates ARE cheats. Opening batsman Yasir Hameed tells us bent teammates were fixing "almost every match". He said: "They've been caught. Only the ones that get caught are branded crooks. "They were doing it (fixing) in almost every match. God knows what they were up to. Scotland Yard was after them for ages. "It makes me angry because I'm playing my best and they are trying to lose

Martin Luther King, Jr.

2010-09-04T23:23:00.000-07:00

Martin Luther King, Jr. (January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American clergyman, activist, and prominent leader in the African American civil rights movement. He is best known for being an iconic figure in the advancement of civil rights in the United States and around the world, using nonviolent methods following the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi. Also a leader of the Christian left in the 20th Century,[1][2] King is often considered representative in the history of modern American liberalism.[3]

A Baptist minister, King became a civil rights activist early in his career.[4] He led the 1955 Montgomery Bus Boycott and helped found the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in 1957, serving as its first president. King's efforts led to the 1963 March on Washington, where King delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech. There, he expanded American values to include the vision of a color blind society, and established his reputation as one of the greatest orators in American history.

In 1964, King became the youngest person to receive the Nobel Peace Prize for his work to end racial segregation and racial discrimination through civil disobedience and other nonviolent means. By the time of his death in 1968, he had refocused his efforts on ending poverty and stopping the Vietnam War.

King was assassinated on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee. He was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1977 and Congressional Gold Medal in 2004; Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was established as a U.S. national holiday in 1986.

Paul Ladewski

2010-09-04T23:22:00.004-07:00

Paul Ladewski is an American sportswriter and columnist for the SouthtownStar (formerly known as The Daily Southtown) in the southern suburbs of Chicago. He is a 23-year veteran of the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) and a voter for the Baseball Hall of FameMade headlines in January, 2007, when he confirmed in an article that he turned in a blank Hall of Fame ballot, rather than vote for any player from the "Steroid Era". Ladewski disclosed the result of the secret vote to a Baltimore sportswriter in a poll of BBWAA members.[1] Including his blank ballot, eight writers did not vote for Cal Ripken, Jr. and 13 did not vote for Tony Gwynn.[2]

During a January 9, 2007 interview on ESPN Radio's Mike and Mike in the Morning Ladewski also said that he does not vote for any player on his first year of eligibility. He stated that he believes that no player should go in unanimously because no player, not even the first class consisting of Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Honus Wagner, Christy Mathewson and Walter Johnson has been voted in unanimously.[3] At least one contributor to ESPN.com, Jim Caple, blasted this stance, saying "Sorry, but the slap in the face came from the narrow-minded writers who refused to vote for [Willie] Mays and Hank Aaron in the first place."[4]

"To say the least, I'm disappointed how quickly some of my peers have forgotten perhaps the greatest scandal in baseball history," said Ladewski. "We need to demand more answers about the subject and pay less attention to the Boston Red Sox third-string catcher. Until then, there remains too many questions about an era that tarnished the game forever

Russell Brand

2010-09-04T23:22:00.003-07:00

Russell Edward Brand[3] (born 4 June 1975) is an English comedian, actor, columnist, author and presenter of radio and television.

Brand achieved fame in the UK for presenting a Big Brother spin-off, Big Brother's Big Mouth, and for his radio show, among other television series and award ceremonies. He has also appeared in a number of films, including the romantic comedy Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Bedtime Stories, St Trinian's, Get Him to the Greek, and most recently, Despicable Me. He is noted for various controversies that have surrounded him in the British media, such as the 2008 prank calls that led to his resignation from the BBC. He is engaged to Katy Perry.

Nexus One

2010-09-04T23:22:00.001-07:00

The Nexus One (codenamed 'HTC Passion'[5]) is Google's flagship smartphone manufactured by Taiwan's HTC Corporation. It became available on January 5, 2010 and uses the Android open source mobile operating system.[6][2][7] Features of the phone include the ability to transcribe voice to text,[8][9] noise canceling dual microphones,[10] and GPS guided turn-by-turn voice directions to drivers.[11][12]

The device is sold unlocked (not restricted to use on a single network provider). Google offered T-Mobile and AT&T versions of the phone online in the United States before closing the online store in July 2010. A version for use on Vodafone (European) networks was announced on 26 April 2010, available in the UK on 30 April 2010.[13] On March 16, 2010, the Nexus One device became available on the Google web store for sale in Canada for use with Rogers Wireless, Telus, Bell and Wind Mobile.[14] In May 2010 Google announced the closing of the web store, with the intention to distribute the phone through partners around the world.[15]

Apple is targeting the Nexus One in a patent lawsuit against HTC

Chris Dodd

2010-09-04T23:21:00.003-07:00

Christopher John "Chris" Dodd (born May 27, 1944) is an American lawyer and Democratic Party politician serving as the senior United States Senator from Connecticut.

Dodd is a Connecticut native and a graduate of Georgetown Preparatory School in Bethesda, Maryland, and Providence College. His father, Thomas J. Dodd, was one of Connecticut's United States Senators from 1959-1971. Chris Dodd served in the Peace Corps for two years prior to entering law school at the University of Louisville, and during law school concurrently served in the United States Army Reserve.

Dodd returned to Connecticut, winning election in 1974 to the United States House of Representatives from Connecticut's 2nd congressional district and was reelected in 1976 and 1978. He was elected United States Senator in the elections of 1980, and is now the longest-serving senator in Connecticut's history, the 8th most senior of current senators and one of three from the 1980 freshman class who is still serving.[1][2]

Dodd served as general chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 1995 to 1997. He serves as Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee.[3] In 2006, Dodd decided to run for the Democratic nomination for President of the United States, but eventually withdrew after running behind several other competitors. In January 2010, Dodd announced that he would not run for re-election in the 2010 midterm elections

Pat White

2010-09-04T23:21:00.001-07:00

Patrick Christian White (born February 25, 1986) in Daphne, Alabama) is an American football quarterback who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the Dolphins in the second round of the 2009 NFL Draft and cut by the Dolphins on September 4, 2010. He played college football at West Virginia.

UFC 108

2010-09-04T23:20:00.001-07:00

UFC 108: Evans vs. Silva was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) on January 2, 2010 in Las Vegas, Nevada at the MGM Grand Garden Arena
The card for UFC 108 was plagued with numerous injuries, with multiple potential fights being called off as a result.

A proposed main event featured UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva facing off against former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Vitor Belfort. However, it was announced by Silva's manager, Ed Soares, that the fight would not happen at UFC 108 because Silva would not be fully healed from elbow surgery.

A bout between Brock Lesnar and Shane Carwin for the UFC Heavyweight Championship was rescheduled from UFC 106 to UFC 108, but this fight did not take place due to a continuing medical condition suffered by Lesnar.[4]

The winner of a bout between Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira and Cain Velasquez was to be guaranteed a title shot for the UFC Heavyweight Championship against the eventual winner of the Lesnar vs. Carwin bout.[5] The planned bout was later scrapped when Nogueira was forced to pull out of the fight due to a severe case of staph infection.[6] A possible Velasquez vs. Carwin match for an interim belt had been ruled out as a new main event due to Carwin undergoing knee surgery,[7] although there were talks of the fight possibly happening at a later date.[8][9] The Nogueira/Velasquez bout was scheduled for February 21, 2010 at UFC 110,[10] though it was not for the interim belt.

Gabriel Gonzaga was forced to pull out of his bout with Junior dos Santos on November 25, due to illness.[11] Gonzaga was replaced by Gilbert Yvel.[12]

Paul Daley was scheduled to face Carlos Condit, but on December 9, it was announced that Condit had pulled out due to injury.[13] Condit was replaced by Dustin Hazelett.[14]

On December 11, Tyson Griffin pulled out of his bout with Jim Miller, citing an injury.[15] Sean Sherk, who originally had a fight with Rafaello Oliveira, stepped up as Griffin's replacement.[16] However, on December 17, Sherk pulled out of the fight; Duane Ludwig would eventually replace Sherk.[17]

Martin Kampmann vs. Rory Markham was also called off days later due to a knee injury. On December 14 it was announced that Jacob Volkmann would be replacing Markham. Volkmann came off short rest after last fighting at UFC 106.[18]

On December 29, it was announced that Steve Cantwell had pulled out of his scheduled bout with Vladimir Matyushenko. Since there was no time to find a suitable replacement to face Matyushenko, the bout was called off.[19]

[edit] Results

Charlie Sheen

2010-09-04T23:19:00.002-07:00

Carlos Irwin Estévez (born September 3, 1965), known professionally as Charlie Sheen, is an American actor. His character roles in films have included Chris Taylor in the 1986 Vietnam War drama Platoon, Jake Kesey in the 1986 film The Wraith, and Bud Fox in 1987 film Wall Street. His career also included more comedic films, such as Major League, the Hot Shots! films, and Scary Movie 3 and 4. On television, Sheen is known for his roles on two sitcoms: as Charlie Crawford on Spin City, and as Charlie Harper on Two and a Half Men.

Katy Perry

2010-09-04T23:19:00.001-07:00

Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson (born October 25, 1984), better known by her stage name Katy Perry, is an American singer-songwriter and musician. Perry was born in Santa Barbara, California, and raised by Christian pastor parents; she grew up listening to only gospel music and sang in church as a child. After earning a GED during her freshman year of high school, she began to pursue a music career. She released a self-titled gospel album in 2001 as Katy Hudson which failed with the closing of its record label that year. She recorded an album with production team The Matrix and completed most of a solo album from 2004–2005, neither of which were released.

After signing on with Capitol Music Group in 2007, her fourth record label in seven years, she adopted the stage name Katy Perry and released her first Internet single, "Ur So Gay", that November, which garnered attention but did not chart. She rose to fame with her second single "I Kissed a Girl" in 2008, which topped international charts. Perry's first mainstream album, One of the Boys, followed later that year and was eventually announced to be the thirty-third best selling album of 2008 worldwide.[1] It was accredited platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America; "I Kissed a Girl" and her second single "Hot n Cold" both received multi-platinum certifications. Perry was ranked the 97th Artist of the 2000–10 decade by Billboard.[2] She became known for wearing unconventional style of dress, often combining bold colors and vintage fashion. Her next album, Teenage Dream, was released on August 24, 2010 in the United States and Canada. It was released August 30, 2010 worldwide and debuted at number one on the Billboard Hot 100.[3]

Perry had a long relationship with Travis McCoy; she is currently engaged to Russell Brand.

Casey Johnson

2010-09-04T23:18:00.001-07:00

Sale Trotter Case "Casey" Johnson (September 24, 1979 – January 2, 2010) was an American heiress, socialite and celebutante, as well as an occasional actress, model and author. She was one of the great-great-granddaughters of Robert Wood Johnson I (co-founder of Johnson & Johnson).
Johnson was born in Florida.[1] Her father was Robert Wood Johnson IV, New York Jets owner and multimillionaire with a estimated net worth of around $900 million USD, and her mother was Nancy Sale Frey, a socialite and former model. She was also niece of Jamie Johnson who directed the documentary Born Rich.[2] Johnson was raised in Manhattan and lived in a triplex penthouse apartment at 834 Fifth Avenue (in which her father was a member of the board) and attended the exclusive Chapin School, and the Marymount School, and Dwight School after being asked to leave. She later enrolled in Brown University for one semester.[1]

As a child, Johnson was diagnosed with diabetes.[3] She and her father were both involved with the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, working to find a cure for the disease.[4] During her teens in the late 90s Johnson received attention from the local Manhattan media and paparazzi as a New York party girl and socialite celebutante who ran in the same circles as fellow heiresses Paris Hilton and Amanda Hearst.

india today tamil

2010-09-02T01:40:00.001-07:00

India Today is an Indian weekly newsmagazine published by Living Media India Limited, in publication since 1975 based in Mumbai[2]. India Today is also the name of its sister-publication in Hindi. Aroon Purie is its editor-in-chief from 1975, a position he has held continuously for the last three decades.

It is part of the India Today group also founded in 1975 and which now includes 13 magazines, 3 radio stations, 4 TV channels, 1 newspaper, a classical music label (Music Today), book publishing and India's only book club. With the publication of its 30th Anniversary issue in December 2005, the magazine which had commenced publication in 1975 with a circulation of 5000 copies, currently has five editions and a circulation of over 1.1 Million copies with a readership of over 5.62 million.

In March 2009 the news magazine arranged the visit of former President of Pakistan, Pervez Musharraf to the country where he delivered a lecture on the "Challenges of Change". Musharraf thanked the newspaper for the reception and protocol it had offered him during his trip there.