tipship

Pictures of a 20kg Kid Born in Tehran

2011-02-10T09:52:00.005+05:00

Incredible cute pictures of seven month old 20 kilo (44 pound) baby of Iran’s capital Tehran. These photos were clicked by Hamed Jafarnejad for Fars News Agency.

Paid sex leaves men empty and terrible: Study

2010-01-20T07:24:00.002+05:00

As per a study, men who pay for sex are awfully confused people. Many people who go for prostitutes say they don't feel anything except a bad feeling when they have sex with prostitutes. These responses were published in a report in Guardian newspaper. While some subjects said they were unsuccessful getting close to women "through usual ways," half the men were married or committed.

Despite feeling disappointed and lonely after having empty sexual encounters, these men said they will continue to use prostitutes.

Aussies prefer curling up with books rather than having sex

2010-01-20T07:20:00.001+05:00

A new survey has found that most Aussies prefer reading a good book to making love with their partner.

The online poll by Swedish furniture giant IKEA saw one in three Aussies saying that they would rather read than have sex if they had an extra hour in the day, reports Stuff.co.nz.

Nearly 35 percent of the 1057 participants opted for reading, while only 20percent chose to spend one-on-one time with their other half.

However, women take the lead in reading, with 45percent saying they would choose a good novel; only 14 percent said they would opt for private time in the bedroom.

About 26 percent men preferred an hour of romance, with 25 percent favouring reading.

You can become a spaceship’s pilot in 20 years!

2010-01-20T07:17:00.002+05:00

A new report has concluded that a job as the pilot of a spaceship may soon come out of the pages of science fiction books and into reality, in just 20 years of time.

According to BBC News, this is one of the findings of a government study into jobs of the future, which also suggests people will be employed to make human body parts.
It names 20 jobs that could be common by 2030, including “vertical farmers” growing food in multi-storey buildings.

It also says that surgeons may be employed to give people extra memory capacity.

The report was carried out by market research group Fast Future, which tried to determine a list of both jobs that do not currently exist and current jobs that could become more prominent.
Potential jobs of the future will include more farmers of genetically engineered crops and livestock, specialists in climate change reversal, and personal branders who will help individuals to establish their own brand across social networking sites.

In addition, it predicts that police officers will be needed to monitor weather manipulation, and electronic waste data managers will be employed by people who do not want to be tracked online.

China tried to hack Indian computers: NSA

2010-01-19T07:15:00.001+05:00

Chinese hackers have tried to penetrate computers in the offices of National Security Adviser MK Narayanan, a British paper Monday quoted him as saying.

Narayanan said his office and other government departments were targeted Dec 15, the same date that US defence, finance and technology companies, including Google, reported cyber attacks from China.

"This was not the first instance of an attempt to hack into our computers," Narayanan told The Times in an interview, adding the would-be hackers sent an e-mail with a PDF attachment containing a Trojan virus.

The virus, which allows hackers to download or delete files, was detected and officials were told not to log on until it was eliminated, Narayanan said.

"People seem to be fairly sure it was the Chinese. It is difficult to find the exact source but this is the main suspicion. It seems well founded," he told The Times, adding that India was cooperating with the US and Britain to bolster its cyber defences.

The Chinese government has denied any role in the attacks, with a foreign ministry spokeswoman saying: "Hacking in whatever form is prohibited by law in China."

Narayanan said that while he expected China to be an increasingly high security priority for India, the main threat still came from militants based in Pakistan.

He said Islamabad had done nothing to dismantle militant groups since the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, and criticised Britain for accepting its excuse that such groups were beyond its control.

"The British are still blinkered on this. We believe Pakistan's policy of using terror as a policy weapon remains," Narayanan said, adding India is anxious to prevent an attack from Pakistan during the Commonwealth Games in October.

"From Pakistan's point of view, it's important to disrupt the Games so you can claim that India is not a safe place," Narayanan said.

Paid sex leaves men empty and terrible: Study

2010-01-19T07:12:00.002+05:00

As per a study, men who pay for sex are awfully confused people. Many people who go for prostitutes say they don't feel anything except a bad feeling when they have sex with prostitutes. These responses were published in a report in Guardian newspaper. While some subjects said they were unsuccessful getting close to women "through usual ways," half the men were married or committed.

Despite feeling disappointed and lonely after having empty sexual encounters, these men said they will continue to use prostitutes.

Dental implants becoming popular method for replacing teeth

2010-01-18T07:20:00.002+05:00

The method of using dental implants to replace teeth lost to an accident, gum diseases or tooth decay is becoming popular.

Sreenivas Koka, chair of Mayo Clinic Department of Dental Specialties, discusses the advantages of dental implants and what's involved.

To place an implant, an oral surgeon or periodontist cuts open the gum to expose the jawbone and then drills a small hole in the bone for the metal cylinder that serves as the implant.

All this is done when the patient is under anaesthesia.

"It's almost like drilling a screw into the wall," Dr. Koka said.

It takes three months for the area to heal and for the implant to fuse with the jawbone.

Patients may undergo a second procedure in which a post, called an abutment, is attached or screwed down into the implant. This can be done at the same time the implant cylinder is put in or after the area has healed.

In the final step, the dentist attaches a realistic-looking artificial tooth to the implant or to the post. The entire process takes about four months.

According to Dr. Koka, a big advantage of the method is that an implant acts as a substitute for the roots of a natural tooth.

"If you are missing a single tooth, this allows you to leave the other teeth around it alone," Dr. Koka said.

"With a bridge, you have to cut down the teeth on each side of the empty space so that a false tooth can be held in place by two crowns," Dr. Koka added.

Almost any adult in reasonably good health is a candidate for dental implants.

Dr. Koka says that patients often ask if osteoporosis would prevent them from getting dental implants. It doesn't.

Mayo Clinic research has shown that patients with osteoporosis or those taking oral bisphosphonates used to treat osteoporosis have about the same success rate as other patients.

And the success rates for dental implants are high -- 90 to 96 percent.

Cheers! Beer 'can prevent prostate, breast cancers'

2010-01-18T07:18:00.001+05:00

Not only men, even women now have another excuse to go down the pub, thanks to a new study which has revealed that downing a glass of beer daily could prevent prostate and breast cancers.

Researchers at the German Cancer Research Centre in Heidelberg have discovered that beer contains a powerful molecule which actually helps protect against the breast and prostate cancers.

Found in hops, the substance called xanthohumol blocks the excessive action of testosterone and oestrogen; it also helps to prevent the release of a protein called PSA which encourages the spread of prostate cancer, they say.

Scientists have long known that substances in hops help to block oestrogen. This is the first time, however, that they have been found to also inhibit testosterone.

"The research is still early but in trials we hope to further demonstrate that xanthohumol actively prevents prostate cancer development," the 'Daily Mail' quoted Clarissa Gerhauser of the Heidelberg centre as saying.

Xanthohumol is a powerful antioxidant derived from hops. It belongs to a family of chemicals called flavonoids found in fruits and vegetables that are known to have anti- cancer properties.

So which brews are likely to be rich in xanthohumol? "Hops give beer its bitter flavour so traditional bitters and ales will contain far more of this substance than light lagers," sad Ben McFarland, author of 'World's Best Beers'.

"Beers highest in hops, are India pale ales such as those made by the Meantime Brewery in Greenwich, South-East London. First brewed in the 1800s, these ales were made with high levels of hops to act as a natural preservative for export," he added.

Men prefer less leggy girls, reveals a new study

2010-01-17T10:34:00.001+05:00

You can now stop envying women with lengthy legs, for a new study claims that men prefer girls a little less leggy.
In the search to find the most attractive legs, UK researchers asked more than 1000 men and women to rate a series of images of female bodies, reports a news daily.

In each image the legs had been made shorter or longer, to alter the ‘leg-to-body ratio’, but the overall height remained the same.

The men interviewed were asked which pictures they liked the most while the women were asked to predict the men’s thoughts.

While most women surveyed thought men lusted after longer legs, the University of Westminster research found men preferred women of average height - where their legs accounted for half of their overall height

Man to stay in 10-days with snakes

2010-01-16T11:01:00.001+05:00

An expert in deadly animals is planning to stay for 10 days inside a box full of snakes at a Las Vegas Strip casino as part of a reality television show.

Donald Schultz will enter the clear glass box outside O`Sheas Casino on Sunday, starting with 50 snakes inside. Plans call for five new snakes to be added to the box each day until there are 100 snakes — including cobras, pythons and rattlesnakes.

The stunt will be filmed for Animal Planet`s "Wild Recon" series.

Po-rn video shown on Moscow highway billboard

2010-01-16T11:00:00.001+05:00

Drivers in downtown Moscow squinted in disbelief as an electronic highway billboard blazed a two-minute pornographic video instead of its regular advertising clips.

Late-night traffic on one of the Russian capital`s busiest roads slowed Thursday as a couple`s explicit escapades appeared on the 9-by-6-meter (yard) display.

Some people took pictures of the sight with their mobile phones and posted them on the Internet.

Passer-by Alyona Prokulatova told The Associated Press that she was "so shocked that I couldn`t even shoot video or take a picture of it."

The screen`s owner, 3 Stars, told the AP that a hacker attack was likely to blame. Police were investigating the incident.

A marriage website for HIV positive people

2010-01-16T10:48:00.001+05:00

Junali Devi, a widow living in Assam, is eagerly awaiting the launch of India's first matrimonial website for HIV-positive people.

Guwahati's 35-year-old Junali (name changed on request), who lost her husband three years ago to HIV/AIDS, is among thousands of HIV-positive people in northeast India and elsewhere excited by the prospects of finding a good match through the website.

"I am pinning all my hopes to find a genuine match on the proposed website. I want to live a life with dignity and want someone who is intelligent, sober, and caring," Junali said.

The website (www.hitchiv.com) to be launched later this month at the behest of the Indian Network for People Living with HIV/AIDS (INP+) has already generated a lot of interest among HIV- positive people.

"We have already got about 150 to 200 requests for membership despite the fact that the website is yet to be launched," Jahnabi Goswami, president of INP+, said.

Goswami, 32, is one of the few women in India fighting to raise awareness about the disease. She belongs to an even smaller group of people who have publicly declared that they are HIV- positive.

Membership to the website would be open only to people living with HIV/AIDS.

"Strict privacy would be maintained and only registered members will be able to log in and scan profiles of prospective partners," Goswami said.

There are thousands of people living with HIV/AIDS interested in marriage and leading a normal life with dignity, but since they cannot get in touch with like-minded people, their dreams remained unfulfilled.

"It is an excellent idea to have this website as marriages between an HIV- positive couple would enable them not only to lead a happy life but also to take care of and support each other, which is very important," S.I. Ahmed, head of the AIDS Prevention Society, a community healthcare group in Assam, said.

INP+ would arrange pre-marital counselling to prospective couples interested in having children post-marriage.

"When it comes to marriage the couple would surely be told about the pros and cons," Ahmed added.

Heavy hips, thighs good for health

2010-01-14T18:42:00.001+05:00

They can play havoc with your stress levels when you're trying to squeeze into skinny jeans. But big bottoms could be good for your health, according to British scientists.

A team at Oxford University has claimed that carrying extra weight on your hips, bum and thighs is good for one's health, protecting against heart and metabolic problems, the BBC reported.

Hip fat mops up harmful fatty acids and contains an anti-inflammatory agent that stops arteries clogging; big bums are preferable to extra fat around the waistline, which gives no such protection, the scientists said.

According to them, having too little fat around the hips can lead to serious metabolic problems because there is evidence that fat around the thighs and backside is harder to shift than fat around the waist.

Although this may sound undesirable, it is actually beneficial because when fat is broken down quickly it releases a lot of cytokines - linked to heart disease, and diabetes - which trigger inflammation in the body, say the scientists.

Lead researcher Dr Konstantinos Manolopoulos said: "It is shape that matters and where the fat gathers. Fat around the hips and thighs is good for you but around the tummy is bad."

Super-strong artificial collagen may help treat arthritis

2010-01-13T16:52:00.001+05:00

Scientists have created the strongest form of collagen known to science, a stable alternative to human collagen that could one day be used to treat arthritis and other conditions that result from collagen defects.

Collagen is the most abundant protein in the human body, forming strong sheets and cables that support the structure of skin, internal organs, cartilage and bones, as well as all the connective tissue in between.

"It''s by far the most stable collagen ever made," said Ron Raines, a University of Wisconsin-Madison professor of chemistry and biochemistry who led the study.

For decades, doctors have used collagen from cows to treat serious burns and other wounds in humans despite the risk of tissue rejection associated with cross-species transplants.

In 2006, Raines'' team figured out how to make human collagen in the lab, creating collagen molecules longer than any found in nature.

Now, with funding from the National Institutes of Health
, the researchers have taken this line of inquiry one step further, creating a form of super-strong collagen that may one day help millions.

Raines said that this artificial collagen holds promise as a therapy for conditions such as arthritis, which is caused by a breakdown of the body''s natural collagen.

The research has been published in the Jan. 12 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. (ANI)

Apples, onions good for diabetics

2010-01-13T16:51:00.001+05:00

Next time you visit a diabetic friend, gift him apples and onions. It might just help your friend fight and delay the usual medical complications related to heart, eyes and nerves that most diabetics suffer from during the later stages of the ailment.

A team of biochemists from the Allahabad University (AU) led by Dr SI Rizvi has found that Myricetin - a naturally occurring plant polyphenol found in large quantity in apples and onions - can protect diabetic red blood cells (RBCs) from the damaging effects of oxidative stress and increase anti-oxidant defence in Type 2 diabetics thereby delaying the development of diabetic complications.

The discovery has been reported in a prestigious international journal's December 2009 edition as 'Myricetin can mitigate altered redox status in type 2 diabetic erythrocytes'.

"For the common man, diabetes is a condition which is manifested by high glucose level. While the elevated glucose level can be managed by many different drugs or lifestyle changes, the basic condition of the diabetes still remains," said Dr Rizvi.

He said that at the genetic level, there are many causes, which can result in the diabetic condition. To treat this complex disease is therefore not easy. "One of the basic alterations during diabetes is the condition of oxidative stress. Oxidative stress which has been implicated in the development of several late complications of diabetes such as neuropathy (affecting nerves), vascular complication affecting the blood vessels and the heart, retinopathy (affecting the eyes) and the problem of kidneys," he added.

The biochemist said that a strategy for controlling oxidative stress as a result of diabetes was to use dietary supplements, which are high in natural anti-oxidants and the compound 'Myricetin' has been found to offset the increased oxidative stress in diabetic conditions. "Our study, part of a research in the use of plant polyphenols as possible supplementation for diabetic patients, has shown that several parameters which are also very good biomarkers of oxidative stress in human RBC (erythrocytes) are altered during diabetic condition.

"Using a strategy to induce oxidative stress in erythrocytes for both normal and diabetic patients, we found that 'Myricetin' is able to protect diabetic erythrocytes from the damaging effects of oxidative stress. Based on this interesting observation, it is hypnotised that food sources that containing 'Myricetin' can increase anti-oxidant defence in Type 2 diabetes and delay the development of diabetic complications," he added.

Sex twice a week cuts heart attack risk

2010-01-12T07:57:00.001+05:00

Two sex sessions in a week can reduce risk of heart disease in men, says a new research.

The study showed that men who indulged in regular lovemaking were up to 45 per cent less likely to develop life-threatening heart conditions than those who had sex once a month or less.

In the research of over 1,000 men, scientists found that sex apparently has a protective effect on the male heart but they did not examine whether women benefit too.

Thus, American researchers who carried out the investigation are now calling for doctors to screen men for sexual activity when assessing their risk of heart disease, reports the Telegraph.

Despite sex being considered good for physical and mental health, not much has been scientifically proven about the benefits of frequent intercourse on major illnesses such as heart disease.

In the latest study, scientists at the New England Research Institute in Massachusetts, tracked the sexual activity of men aged between 40 and 70 who were taking part in a long-term project called the Massachusetts Male Ageing Study, which began back in 1987.

Over a 16-year period, each man was regularly quizzed on how often they had sex and then checked for signs of heart disease.

Researchers took into account other risk factors, such as their age, weight, blood pressure and cholesterol levels.

The results showed men who made love at least twice a week were much less likely to have heart disease than those whose sexual encounters were limited to once a month or less.

Analyzing the findings, scientists said the benefits of sex could be due to both the physical and emotional effects on the body.

Men with the desire for frequent sexual activity and who are able to engage in it are likely to be healthier, but sex in some forms has a physical activity component that might directly serve to protect cardiovascular health.

Also, men who have frequent sex might be more likely to be in a supportive intimate relationship and this might improve health through stress reduction and social support.

The study was published in the American Journal of Cardiology.

Early puberty makes girls ‘aggressive

2010-01-12T05:52:00.001+05:00

Girls, who go through puberty before turning 12, are found to be more aggressive and more likely to steal, fight and take drugs than their later developing peers, according to a University of Queensland study.

The researchers found that early puberty makes girls "significantly" more aggressive than those who experience puberty later.

The study has also found that there``s no marked difference between boys`` and girls`` aggression levels when at the same stage of puberty.

The findings have come from Australia``s largest longitudinal study, which tracked more than 8,000 mothers and their children over 21 years.

Lead author and sociologist Professor Jake Najman said that girls who are early bloomers are more likely to steal, fight, smoke and take drugs, but the reasons behind such tendencies are not conclusive.

It``s also not known whether these characteristics carry on to womanhood.

Prof Najman says the findings, coupled with children reaching puberty earlier and earlier, may explain why girls are increasingly involved in anti-social behaviour such as drinking, smoking, drug-taking and bullying.

"It links together, in a sense, that what we``re seeing is probably more aggression and delinquent behaviour by females at younger ages as a social trend," the Sydney Morning Herald quoted him as saying.

"... We’re seeing women behaving more like men in terms of their behaviours,” he added.

The study also disproves the belief that boys are more aggressive than girls because of higher testosterone levels.

Najman said the study showed that intervention programs aimed at dealing with anti-social behaviour should be introduced before puberty to have the most effect.

Women living with partners put on more weight

2010-01-11T18:32:00.001+05:00

Women who live with a partner put on more weight than those without a partner or a child, according to a new study.

The study conducted by Wendy Brown, Annette Dobson, U-Q both professors and Richard Hockey of University of Queensland (U-Q), also found that women also experience a larger weight gain after having their first baby.

Researchers surveyed more than 6,000 women over a 10 year period to assess the factors associated with weight gain in young women.

Women with a baby and partner gained the most weight, followed by those with a partner and no baby. Women without a partner or children also gained weight, but at a lower rate.

Dobson and co-authors suggest that the weight gain among all women may be explained by changing social and behavioural factors, said an UQ release.

"This is a general health concern as obesity rates continue to increase," said Dobson.

These findings were published in the January edition of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

Online dating industry to grow by 25 pct in 2010

2010-01-11T16:19:00.002+05:00

With the increasing popularity of online dating, analysts have predicted that the industry is likely to experience 25 percent growth this year.

There are numerous dating sites that enable singles to look for romance by tailoring requests in terms of ethnicity, physicality, religion and sexual orientation.

The Australian online dating industry has already experienced a 5 per cent increase last year and is expected to grow by another 5 to 10 percent this year.

A survey of more than 3000 people by a dating website found that 50 percent had tried online dating, while 10 percent met their partner on the internet.

Business analysis group IBISWorld predicts the industry to earn almost 100 million dollars from subscriptions and advertising in 2010.

IBISWorld senior analyst Edward Butler said niche sites were becoming more user-friendly.

"Based on religion or interest, they will do a lot of that work before you even sign up and reduce the effort," a news daily quoted him as saying.

Study reveals why light worsens migraines

2010-01-11T10:07:00.001+05:00

A discovery among blind people has helped scientists resolve a mystery why light can make a migraine go from headache to head-splitter, according to a study published on recently.

The problem appears to lie with a newly-discovered bunch of cells in the retina, its authors say.

Researchers from Beth Israel Deaconess Center, an affiliate of Harvard Medical School, made the find after pondering why some blind people who suffer from migraines also experience photophobia -- an extreme sensitivity to light that horribly worsens these headaches.

In a paper published online in the journal Nature Neuroscience, the team reported how they probed two groups of migraine-suffering blind individuals.

One group, of six people, was totally blind and immune to the normal sleep-wakefulness cycle caused by daylight and night.

The other, numbering 14, was "legally blind" because of degenerative diseases of the eyes. They could detect the presence of light and followed the sleep-wakefulness cycle although they could not perceive images.

"While the patients in the first group did not experience any worsening of their headaches from light exposure, the patients in the second group clearly described intensified pain when they were exposed to light, in particular blue or grey," said senior author Rami Burstein.

"This suggested to us that the mechanism of photophobia must involve the optic nerve, because in totally blind individuals, the optic nerve does not carry light signals to the brain."

The team theorised that the culprit had to be recently-discovered retinal cells which have melanopsin photoreceptors -- light-sensitive biological triggers for sleep and wakefulness.

"These are the only functioning light receptors left among patients who are legally blind," Burstein explained.

The next step was to test the ideas on lab rats. Using dyes injected into the rodents' eyes, the scientists were able to trace the pathway from the melanopsin retinal cells through the optic nerve and to the brain, where they found a group of neurons which became activated during migraines.

Tiny electrodes inserted into the rats' brains determined that, within seconds, light unleashed a surge of electrical activity in these cells -- and the cells remained switched on even after the light was removed.

"This helps explain why patients say that their headache intensifies within seconds after exposure to light and improves 20 to 30 minutes after being in the dark," Burstein added in a press release.

The work could be a boon for migraine sufferers, the authors hope. It opens up exploratory options for drugs that block the pathway, enabling a migraine patient to endure light without added pain.

Migraines are a widely researched disorder, although the causes remain unclear.

They are believed to develop when protective membranes surrounding the brain become irritated. This stimulates pain receptors and, in turn, causes sensory neurons to become activated for long periods.

Men turn their thoughts to sex 13 times a day!

2010-01-10T09:18:00.001+05:00

An average man thinks about sex 13 times a day, according to a new poll.

A website questioned 3,000 people to come up with the finding.

Results showed that comparatively an average woman thinks of sex just fives time a day.

And, even though men think of sex at least a dozen times a day, they have it just twice a week, or 104 times a year.

"Men are well known for thinking about sex a lot but to find out exactly how often they do is staggering,” a news daily quoted the market research firm as stating.

It added, "It seems blokes have sex on the brain whether they are in a dry spell or jumping between the sheets on a regular basis."

However, three quarters of men were happy with the amount of sex they were getting.

NASA develops mirror to look into galactic past

2010-01-09T17:18:00.002+05:00

Once upon a time, shiny surfaces and mirrors were credited with magical powers that could look into the future. Now two centuries later, NASA is relying on them to look into the past.

The agency is developing a primary mirror 21.3 feet across, for use on the James Webb Space Telescope, to tell us about our beginning in the universe.

The primary mirror will serve as the telescope's eye and peer through dusty clouds to see stars forming planetary systems, connecting the Milky Way to our own solar system.

Handling delicate space hardware holds no superstitious myths for NASA, but it's still a delicate task that requires careful preparation.

On Friday, six of the 18 Webb telescope mirror segments will be moved into the X-ray and Cryogenic Facility, or XRCF, at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Centre in Huntsville, to experience mercury dipping to minus 414 degrees F to ensure they can withstand the extreme space environments.

When the primary mirror is assembled in space, it will include three different shapes of mirror segments: 6 are "A" segments, 6 are "B" segments and 6 are "C" segments.

This upcoming test in the XRCF will collect data from all three sizes "A, B and C" -- a first for these in the cryogenic facility.

This test will also include the engineering development unit, the first primary mirror segment of the Webb telescope that has met flight specifications at ambient temperatures.

"By the time testing in the XRCF concludes in 2011, all 18 flight segments will have been through multiple measurements while experiencing the extreme temperatures of space," said Helen J. Cole, James Webb Project Manager at NASA-Marshall.

"This process has been six years in the making and we're excited that we can support the Webb telescope development with our world class cryogenic test facility," Cole added, according to a NASA release

Marshall's X-ray and Cryogenic Facility is the world's largest X-ray telescope test facility and a unique, cryogenic, clean room optical test location.

Coming soon, breath-controlled cell phones?

2010-01-09T17:17:00.002+05:00

Thought touch-pad screen phone was the pinnacle of mobile technology? Well, here’s some news for you – Breath-controlled technology has hit the science town.

The new revolutionary technology, Sensawaft, developed by Zyxio, an American company, could soon aid hands-free mobile phones apart from other gadgets.

"You can move a cursor or character around a screen with as much accuracy as a finger moving a mouse,” the Telegraph quoted Celine Vignal, the co-founder of the company, as saying.

She added: "We think the possibilities are endless. It even has potential for the military and factory assembly workers, who need to use both their hands continually, but would benefit from another functionality.

"And with video games, just imagine playing a Harry Potter game, and blowing to cast a spell. It would be great."

Sensawaft is supported with microelectromechanical systems involving tiny chips that can be embedded in other devices, such as a video game or hands-free mobile phone headset.

The users basically need to blow on the screen to use applications.

Kat Hannaford, contributing editor to the Gizmodo website, said: "It is certainly intriguing and I can see it has enormous potential.

"But for it to get any traction it needs a major manufacturer to adopt it. And do video gamers really want to be huffing and puffing away into a headset? I am not so sure."

A marriage website for HIV positive people

2010-01-09T16:54:00.001+05:00

Junali Devi widow living in Assam, is eagerly awaiting the launch of India's first matrimonial website for HIV-positive people.

Guwahati's 35-year-old Junali (name changed on request), who lost her husband three years ago to HIV/AIDS, is among thousands of HIV-positive people in northeast India and elsewhere excited by the prospects of finding a good match through the website.

"I am pinning all my hopes to find a genuine match on the proposed website. I want to live a life with dignity and want someone who is intelligent, sober, and caring," Junali said.

The website (www.hitchiv.com) to be launched later this month at the behest of the Indian Network for People Living with HIV/AIDS (INP+) has already generated a lot of interest among HIV- positive people.

"We have already got about 150 to 200 requests for membership despite the fact that the website is yet to be launched," Jahnabi Goswami, president of INP+, said.

Goswami, 32, is one of the few women in India fighting to raise awareness about the disease. She belongs to an even smaller group of people who have publicly declared that they are HIV- positive.

Membership to the website would be open only to people living with HIV/AIDS.

"Strict privacy would be maintained and only registered members will be able to log in and scan profiles of prospective partners," Goswami said.

There are thousands of people living with HIV/AIDS interested in marriage and leading a normal life with dignity, but since they cannot get in touch with like-minded people, their dreams remained unfulfilled.

"It is an excellent idea to have this website as marriages between an HIV- positive couple would enable them not only to lead a happy life but also to take care of and support each other, which is very important," S.I. Ahmed, head of the AIDS Prevention Society, a community healthcare group in Assam, said.

INP+ would arrange pre-marital counselling to prospective couples interested in having children post-marriage.

"When it comes to marriage the couple would surely be told about the pros and cons," Ahmed added.

Charlie Chaplin to be animated star

2010-01-09T09:17:00.001+05:00

Charlie Chaplin is to be brought to life as a cartoon character via an Indian-French collaboration that will see the legendary British comedian featured in an animated television series.

DQ Entertainment, an animation and special effects firm based in the southern city of Hyderabad, is to reproduce the entertainer`s slapstick in 3D and computer-generated images for television.

The eight-million-euro (11.5-million-dollar) project is a joint venture with French media groups Method Animation and MK2, the companies said at a news conference in Mumbai Friday.

A total of 104 six-minute episodes without dialogue will be made, inspired by sketches and gags culled from 70 short films made by Chaplin involving his iconic bowler-hatted vagabond character with a toothbrush moustache and cane.

But there will also be original content, Method president Aton Soumache told reporters.

DQ chairman and chief executive Tapaas Chakravarti said the project, for which the firms have been given approval from the Chaplin estate, would be "better than Mr Bean" -- British comic Rowan Atkinson`s accident-prone buffoon.

"(Mr Bean) has delighted everyone for a number of years... It`s very, very clear that to tickle people`s funny bones you don`t really have to talk all the time and silent movies can work. Chaplin did it for so many years," he added.

"We are absolutely sure that we have to get Chaplin back for 21st century kids and parents."

The animated shorts -- aimed at children aged six and above -- are set to hit screens from early next year, Chakravarti said.

Soumache said pre-sale interest from international broadcasters had been high and that funding was "almost done".

Interested parties include companies in France, Germany, Britain, Switzerland and Scandinavia, India and Australia, he said, without revealing names.

"We`re raising from Europe almost 60 to 70 percent of the budget. We`re raising the rest on video and a few other international deals," he added.

Revenue from the first cycle is expected to be in the region of 45 million dollars, he said.

London-born Chaplin, who died in 1977, is recognised as one of the most influential and recognisable comic actors and directors of the silent film period.

His most famous works include "The Kid" (1921), "The Gold Rush" (1925), "City Lights" (1931), "Modern Times" (1936) and "The Great Dictator" (1940).

Soumache said last November that their baggy-trousered Chaplin character "won`t be a realistic portrayal but more like a puppet in an offbeat universe".

"We`ll put him in modern situations but at the same keeping his poetic, child-like view of the world with a retro feel," he added.

DQ Entertainment has worked with a number of high-profile studios and production houses, including Nickelodeon, The Disney Group, Cartoon Network and a host of international broadcasters.

The Indian firm has a 20 percent stake in Method and has previously worked with them on computer-animated adaptations of French children`s classics "Le Petit Prince" (The Little Prince) and "Le Petit Nicolas" (Little Nicolas).

MK2 is one of France`s biggest independent film companies and owns the international rights to the Chaplin films, which it has restored and reissued on DVD and in cinemas.

Animation and special effects have become a growth market in India, as the domestic film industry, including Bollywood, turns to more modern production methods.

The trend has led to the creation of a number of specialist companies, who are being increasingly used by Hollywood and other foreign studios because of their lower costs.

India`s animation and special effects industry is expected to be worth 23.3 billion rupees this year and is expected to grow to 39.4 billion rupees by 2013, consultants KPMG said last year.

The animation sector is projected to grow by 21.9 percent in the five years to 2013, it added in a report on the media and entertainment industry for the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry

Website discriminates against ugly people

2010-01-09T09:08:00.001+05:00

A dating website has kicked out 5,000 of its members simply because they gained weight over the festive season, but the good news for Indians, who form a substantial chunk of www.beautifulpeople.com, is that they were spared the chop.

The site has created quite a stir in the virtual world, after disowning members because they put on weight after Christmas and New Year festivities and no longer qualified for membership. The company said it expelled 1,520 users from the US, 88 people from Russia, 832 from the UK, 176 from Turkey, 533 from Canada, 220 from Denmark, 510 from Poland, 323 from France, 425 from Germany and 402 from Italy. No one from India was ousted.

Beauty Meter
So how beautiful do you have to be to qualify? Beautifulpeople.com has a running meter which decides your attractiveness after you upload your picture. And for those “too ugly” to make it, there’s an option to tour the website as a guest. The existing members vote in new ones, who qualify if they get a certain number of votes. The site declares that its members never have to “filter through unattractive people on mainstream sites” and ‘guarantees’ that “your date will always be beautiful”.

Offended visitors
“Letting fatties roam the site is a direct threat to our business model and the very concept for which BeautifulPeople.com was founded,” the site’s founder Robert Hintze reportedly said in a BBC interview. With 5,40,000 members from 16 countries and a traffic of 4 million visitors per day, the site also has a fair share of critics and anti-groups on social networking sites . Writes Laila Masiqbal, on Facebook group Say no to http://BeautifulPeople.com, “It is definitely not the sexiest website nor the most elite.” Max Randall, on Antibeautifulpeople.com writes, “What ignorance!” while Igor Zanetti from Croatia says, “It is pretty
stupid. Frustrated freaks.”

A blogger on iamugleeee says, “I hate this website. It’s like going back to the dark ages. Somebody please spam them!!!!” Shom Ray, director, eMakerz: E Branding Solutions, a Delhiite says, “They are discriminating on the basis on looks. Such sites should be banned.”

Goa to banish bikini babes from ads

2010-01-07T21:12:00.002+05:00

Fighting against the slur of turning into a sex-tourism destination, the Goa tourism department has decided to censor all advertisements.

"Goa is a family holiday destination and not sex tourism destination. We will make sure that bikini babes do not symbolise Goa tourism in future," state tourism minister Fransisco Pacheco said.

He said the tourism department will ask all empanelled advertisement agencies to desist from using scantily-clad women in their campaigns.

"The department has already stopped such ads but I will make sure that henceforth all advertisements are scrutinised by the department before being sent for printing," Pacheco said.

The tourism minister expressed concern over the recent incidents of rape in the state which, he said, had given a bad name to Goa, one of the most favoured tourist destinations for both Indian and foreign tourists.

Pacheco said that he will also ask all tour operators, including private players, to follow the guidelines on advertisements to help improve the state`s image.

Stating that foreigners sunbathing on the beaches in bikini should not be misconstrued as promoting sex tourism, he said, "Can you ask someone to be fully dressed and take a bath? Naturally, they will venture into the sea in bikini and later soak in the sun."

Men who do more housework get more sex

2010-01-07T21:10:00.001+05:00

Men who devote lots of time to paid work and household chores get more sex and the same applies to women.

These are the conclusion of a new US study of almost 7000 married couples, reports The Sydney Morning Herald.

Published in the Journal of Family Issues, the study denies the ideology that the time crunch has killed passion stone dead.

"As life gets busier and time gets tighter, a select group of go-getter spouses can successfully balance multiple time commitments," say the authors, Constance Gager, of Montclair State University, New Jersey, and Scott Yabiku, of Arizona State University.

Barbara Pocock, the director of the Centre for Work and Life at the University of South Australia, in a study of Australian working women found resentment over housework killed libido.

"Women's feelings about their husband were shaped by perceptions of fairness around housework," she said. "If the resentment factor was high that's when their sex life was not great. The best sex aid a man could use was a vacuum cleaner.''

The US researchers said: "The much-lamented speed-up of everyday life does not appear to have adverse effects on sexual frequency."

Marriage can affect your waistline

2010-01-07T12:31:00.002+05:00

They say being married is good for health, especially for men. But as far as women are concerned, it turns out that they've to pay a higher price for marriage - extra weight gain.

That's the conclusion of the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health, a 10-year study from the School of Human Movement Studies at the University of Queensland. The findings appear online and in the February issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

"The weight gain appeared to start when they married, then worsened when they had their first child," said lead author Wendy J. Brown, Ph.D. "There was no effect on the rate of weight gain of having a second baby."

From 1996 to 2006, researchers periodically surveyed a randomly selected group of 6,458 Australian women ages 18 to 23 at study's start.

"Women with no partner and no baby averaged 11 pounds over 10 years. With a partner and no baby they gained about 15 pounds, and if they had a partner and a baby they gained 20 pounds," Brown said.

"The so-called energy-balance variables like eating too much and moving too little had an effect, but the estimates of weight gain are adjusted for differences in these factors," she said.

Brown said that young women ages 18 to 33 are gaining weight at a higher rate than their mother's generation.

The expert added: "If it continues, this generation will end up with more health problems later in life. It is important to understand the causes of this weight gain."

NASA's Kepler finds five planets

2010-01-06T19:32:00.003+05:00

Nasa's Kepler Space Telescope has detected its first five exoplanets, or planets beyond our Solar System. The observatory, which was launched last year to find other Earths, made the discoveries in its first few weeks of science operations. Although the new worlds are all bigger than our Neptune, the US space agency says the haul shows the telescope is working well and is very sensitive. The exoplanets have been given the names Kepler 4b, 5b, 6b, 7b and 8b. They were announced at an American Astronomical Society meeting in Washington DC.

How men and women respond differently to sex

2010-01-05T18:12:00.003+05:00

When it comes to sexual responses, men and women are poles apart, concludes a new study.

Led by Queen's University Psychology professor Meredith Chiversk, the study found that men's reports of feeling sexually aroused tend to match their physiological responses, while women's mind and body responses are less aligned.

"We wanted to discover how closely people's subjective experience of sexual arousal mirrors their physiological genital response – and whether this differs between men and women," said Chiversk.

Although a gender difference has been reported in individual studies of sexual arousal, until now there has been no systematic analysis.

In the study, researchers analysed 134 studies, published between 1969 and 2007, involving more than 2,500 women and 1,900 men.

Participants were asked how aroused they felt during and after exposure to a variety of sexual stimuli.

This subjective measure of arousal was compared with physiological responses—changes in penile erection for men and changes in genital blood flow for women.

The men's subjective ratings more closely matched their physiological measures than the women's; men's brain and bodies were almost always in agreement, while there was more often a reported inconsistency between women's bodies and minds.

"Understanding measures of arousal is paramount to further theoretical and practical advances in the study of human sexuality. Our results have implications for the assessment of sexual arousal, the nature of gender differences in sexual arousal, and models of sexual response," said Chiversk.

The study will be published in the international journal, Archives of Sexual Behavior.

Men’s minds and bodies more in sync sexually than women`s

2010-01-05T12:14:00.001+05:00

When it comes to sexual responses, men and women are poles apart, concludes a new study.

Led by Queen`s University Psychology professor Meredith Chiversk, the study found that men`s reports of feeling sexually aroused tend to match their physiological responses, while women`s mind and body responses are less aligned.

"We wanted to discover how closely people`s subjective experience of sexual arousal mirrors their physiological genital response – and whether this differs between men and women," said Chiversk.

Although a gender difference has been reported in individual studies of sexual arousal, until now there has been no systematic analysis.

In the study, researchers analysed 134 studies, published between 1969 and 2007, involving more than 2,500 women and 1,900 men.

Participants were asked how aroused they felt during and after exposure to a variety of sexual stimuli.

This subjective measure of arousal was compared with physiological responses—changes in penile erection for men and changes in genital blood flow for women.

The men``s subjective ratings more closely matched their physiological measures than the women``s; men``s brain and bodies were almost always in agreement, while there was more often a reported inconsistency between women`s bodies and minds.

"Understanding measures of arousal is paramount to further theoretical and practical advances in the study of human sexuality. Our results have implications for the assessment of sexual arousal, the nature of gender differences in sexual arousal, and models of sexual response," said Chiversk.

The study will be published in the international journal, Archives of Sexual Behavior.

Here is why powerful men most often cheat

2010-01-05T07:25:00.001+05:00

Tiger Woods, David Letterman, former senator John Edwards and South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford—these are some of the men who recently came into the limelight for their philandering ways. And now researchers are trying to figure out why power and cheating go hand in hand for men.

Researchers have pointed out that despite the genetic propensity to sleep around, cheating remains a choice, not a DNA-bound destiny restricted to men.

They said that men who cheat might not have been thinking consciously about their acts at all.

"I’m guessing these things don’t happen at the forefront of their brain. They aren’t things he sits down and calculates out. It’s in the background," Live Science quoted Scott Reynolds, assistant professor of business ethics at the University of Washington in Seattle, as saying.

Even if their brains did register the infidelities, high-profile philanderers have so much power and control over their lives they couldn’t imagine getting caught, say scientists.
Scientists have said that even the most upright, squeaky-clean person can have an extramarital affair, and perhaps they are more likely to do so.

"People don’t necessarily practice what they preach. It’s not clear to what extent people’s ethical values are actually running what they do or don’t do," said Lawrence Josephs, a clinical psychologist at Adelphi University in New York.

Whatever the cause of each extramarital act, mistresses and multiple romantic partners are here to stay, say scientists.
From an evolutionary perspective, men are here to sow their seeds—they desire more sexual partners and even lower their standards when it comes to one-night stands, studies have shown.

"Guys would naturally be more promiscuous if given the opportunity," said Daniel Kruger, a social and evolutionary psychologist at the University of Michigan’s School of Public Health.

And added with status and power, extramarital affairs are an easy bet.

"These people are not only high in power, but also somebody like Tiger Woods is going to be traveling a lot and have a lot more opportunities to meet women. Women fawn over these guys," said Kruger.

One third young jobless in UK felt suicidal, finds study

2010-01-05T07:19:00.001+05:00

One in every three youths who lost jobs in the wake of the recession in the UK has shown suicidal tendencies, a new report has said.

The Prince`s Trust youth index, the largest of its kind, shows that those, aged 16 to 24, who are out of work, training and education are significantly less happy with their lives, health and family than those with jobs.

"This is because unemployment has a knock-on effect on a young person`s self-esteem, emotional stability and overall well-being. The longer a young person is unemployed, the more likely they are to experience psychological scarring," David Blanchflower, a former member of the Monetary Policy Committee
and contributor to the report said.

"Previous research suggests a correlation between economic downturns and suicide levels nationwide."

The hardships forced one in every three jobless persons to feel like committing suicide at some point in their lives, said the report.

The survey, which was carried out by YouGov, quizzed 2,088 young people, of whom 130 were unemployed.

It found that a quarter of those who are, or have been, unemployed argue with their parents and families.

They also face a lifetime of poorer health, with one in 10 claiming that being out of work drove them to drugs or alcohol, The Daily Mail reported.

Painting a grim picture of a lost generation of young people who find themselves out of work, the report said nearly half of those struggling to find a job believe their life lack direction and a third feel depressed all or most of the time.

Statistics released last month revealed that nearly a fifth of 16 to 24-year-olds - more than a million young people - are not working, the highest figure since records began.

The Office for National Statistics data showed that the recession had disproportionately affected young people, with an 8 percent rise in unemployment among 16 and 17-year-olds.

According to the Prince`s Trust report, the jobless were three times more likely to say that they had no hope for the future than those in employment.

Sex' makes men spendthrift!

2010-01-04T09:34:00.001+05:00

Promise of sex makes men open their wallets like nothing else, American researchers have claimed.

A study by researchers from the Arizona State University in Tempe and the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque showed that thinking about mating influences men's decisions about spending and giving.

In the experiment, the team led by Vladas Griskevicius and Josh Tybur, invited college students to the lab in small groups. Each was randomly assigned to one of two conditions: "mating" or "non-mating", Journal of Personality and Social Psychology reported.

The mating subjects looked at three photographs of people of the opposite-sex on a computer screen, picked which one they thought most desirable, and spent a few minutes writing about an ideal first date with that person.

The non-mating subjects looked at a street scene photograph and spent the same amount of time writing about the ideal weather for walking around and looking at the buildings it featured.

Then, all subjects were asked to imagine that they had a modest windfall of money, such as a lottery win of a few thousand dollars, and must choose how much they wanted to spend on a variety of conspicuous luxuries - such as a new watch, European vacation or new car - and how much they would save in a bank account.

The results were dramatic: men in the mating condition said they would spend much more money than men in the non-mating condition.

Israeli magician creates ice record

2010-01-04T07:17:00.002+05:00

You may call it an illusion, but an Israeli magician spent 66 hours in an eight-tonne block of ice to create a new world record.

Hezi Dayan, 29, had himself sealed into a specially constructed transparent ice cube in Tel Aviv's Rabin Square, where he apparently stayed for nearly three days wearing just jeans and a thin T-shirt.

"My aim is that at two or three in the morning, people on their way home from a night out will say, 'Come let's go to the square and see if that loony is in his ice'," Dayan told the Haaretz newspaper before attempting the feat.

At the stroke of the New Year, assistants cut open the ice block and removed the weak-looking illusionist, taking him straight to a waiting ambulance. However, his condition wasn't immediately clear.

Some 200 onlookers celebrated the arrival of the new decade with Dean, many of the them carrying signs - from the encouraging "Hezi the great", to the more practical "Don't die Hezi Dayan".

Dayan broke the record of the American magician David Blaine who spent 63 hours in a similar ice cube in New York's Times Square in 2000.

High blood sugar 'raises cancer risk'

2010-01-03T17:35:00.001+05:00

Too much glucose in the blood is unhealthy, doctors have said for long. Now, a new study has found that high blood sugar can raise the risk of developing cancer, with women sufferers being the most vulnerable.

Scientists in Sweden have carried out the study and found people, particularly the women, with high blood sugar levels face a greater danger of developing cancer and die from the disease as well.

"The results suggest that, for women, the higher the level of sugar in the blood, the higher the risk. For men, there was still an association, but it was weaker," Dr Tanja Stock, lead scientist at Umea University, told 'The Observer'.

For their study, the scientists examined blood sugar levels in 274,126 men and 275,818 women from Norway, Austria and Sweden with an average age of 44.8, then followed them up a decade later to see how many developed or died from cancer.

According to the scientists, the study is significant because it found the increased likelihood of cancer occurred regardless of the participants' body mass index levels.

Though it does not prove that blood glucose of itself leads to cancer, but it suggests that it might promote tumour growth by acting as a source of fuel for tumour cells, especially fast-growing, highly proliferative cells.

"Significant increases in risk among men were found for incident and fatal cancer of the liver, gallbladder, and respiratory tract, for incident thyroid cancer and multiple myeloma, and for fatal rectal cancer.

"In women, significant associations were found for incident and fatal cancer of the pancreas, for incident urinary bladder cancer, and for fatal cancer of the uterine corpus, cervix uteri and stomach," the scientists wrote in the 'Public Library of Science Medicine' journal.

Dr Panagiota Mitrou, Science Programme Manager at World Cancer Research Fund which funded the study, said the findings "raise the possibility that controlling blood sugar levels may be a way to reduce risk of some cancers".

However, disagreed Dr Iain Frame, Director of Research at Diabetes UK: "It would be wrong to conclude that high blood glucose levels alone are causing the increase in cancer cases and deaths. Nor can we say that, by controlling blood glucose levels alone, we could lower the risk of cancer."

Added Dr Laura Bell of Cancer Research UK: "This is an interesting study looking at blood-sugar levels and cancer risk but it's really only looking at one part of a complicated picture."

Women love cell phones more than boyfriends: Survey

2010-01-03T17:30:00.002+05:00

Mobile phone seems to have become first love of many girls as a survey found that losing their cell phones is more upsetting for women than splitting with their boyfriend.

In a survey of 4,000 women living in Australia, carried out by British pawnbroker Borro to know their most treasured possessions, four in every 10 women said they would be lost without their mobiles, but would happily go without a man in their life.

Majority of the women surveyed consider their mothers to be their most prized possession followed closely by their photographs and then their mobile phone, The Daily Telegraph reported.

Besides mother and mobile, women treasured their friends more than then their boyfriends, the study claimed.

Other items which made it to the list of most treasured items in a woman's life were diamond rings, pets, laptops and hair straighteners.

As part of the survey, when the women were asked whether they would dump their boyfriends for money, a large chunk said they would consider doing so if offered more than USD one million in cash.

The survey's results showed the changing focus of what is important in many women's lives, said Anne Hollonds from Relationship Australia.

"I think it fits within the fact that we are very focused on our own lives these days," Hollands added.

Twitter bans 370 words as passwords

2010-01-03T07:23:00.001+05:00

Social networking site `Twitter` has banned 370 words it considers "too obvious" to be used as passwords.
Twitter rejects certain words like "123456" and "password" to be used as passwords because it thinks they are too easy to guess and put users data at risk, The Telegraph reported.

Along with, names of famous cars such as "porsche" and "ferrari", and football teams like "Chelsea" and "Arsenal" are also banned.

A few science fiction words are also a part of the banned word list of the website.

"THX1138" -- title of the first film by Star Wars fame director George Lucas, is banned. So is "NCC1701" – the registry number of Star Trek`s starship Enterprise – and "trustno1", Fox Mulder`s password in The X-Files, the report said.

A recent research by insurer CPP has shown that people are often too predictable when it comes to choosing passwords.

Security experts advise that a strong password should consist of letters, numbers and even punctuation symbols. They should be changed regularly and one should not use the same
password for their online services.

Husband`s extra-marital affair ‘good for marriage’!

2010-01-02T07:34:00.001+05:00

.’If your husband is enjoying a secret rendezvous with another women, don’t run after him with a knife, for the extra-marital affair is a sign that your marriage is a healthy one.

That’s the claim of France`s most prominent female psychologist Maryse Vaillant in controversial new book on the effects of infidelity on married life, Men, Love, Fidelity, reports The Telegraph.

Vaillant reckons that men who keep mistresses actually improve their marriage.

"[Most] don`t do it because they no longer love them, on the contrary," she said. "They simply need breathing space. For such men, who are in fact profoundly monogamous, infidelity is almost unavoidable".

Once women accept that the "pact of fidelity is not natural but cultural", and that infidelity is essential to the "psychic functioning" of certain men who are still very much in love, it can be a "very liberating" for women, she added.

In her book, Vaillant insists that fidelity is not, by definition proof of love.

"They are often men whose father was physically or morally absent ... during their childhood. These men have a completely idealised view of their father and the paternal function," she said. "They lack suppleness and are prisoners to an idealised image of a man of duty."

Secret to married bliss, the wife is always right!

2009-12-31T09:28:00.001+05:00

Liu Fuben and his wife Shi Jihui are the world`s oldest still living married couple. And they`ve revealed the secret of 85 years of married bliss - the wife is always right!

Fuben, 95, and Jihui, 100, spoke after registering their claim with the Guinness Book of Records.

Liu said: "We are still very much in love and always will be. As to the secret of a long marriage - avoid arguments like the plague and remember the golden rule - she`s always right."

His wife Shi added: "It`s true I am but that doesn`t stop him doing what he wants anyway."

The Beijing couple had an arranged marriage when they were very young as was common in China at that time. Liu was only ten at the time and Shi 15, reports The Telegraph.

Shi added: "I suppose being older meant I could bully him a bit and train him to be a good husband. They say you can`t teach an old dog new tricks so get them while they are young.

"In our village at that time, men used to marry at a very young age while the wife should be a several years older than the man so she can better take care of the family and be more mature."

The couple`s son Liu Shuxi, 64, said: "They still really love each other."

"My mother takes very good care of my father still," Liu said.

Do all men watch sexually explicit material?

2009-12-30T21:10:00.002+05:00

Naturally all blokes don`t watch pornography, but when scientists recently launched a search in Canada for men who had never looked at such sexually explicit material -- believe it or not, they couldn`t find any.

In fact, an international team was conducting a study comparing the views of men in their 20s who had never been exposed to pornography with regular users. But, their project stumbled at the first hurdle when they failed to find a single man who had not been seen it.

"We started our research seeking men in their 20s who had never consumed pornography. We couldn`t find any," The Daily Telegraph quoted the team`s leader Prof Simon Louis Lajeunesse as saying.

Although hampered in its original aim, the study examined the habits of those young men who used pornography -- which would appear to be all of them.

The team interviewed 20 heterosexual male university students who consumed pornography, and found on average, they first watched pornography when they were 10 years old.

Around 90 percent of consumption was on the internet, while 10 percent of material came from video stores. Single men watched pornography for an average of 40 minutes, three times a week, while those in relationships watched it 1.7 times a week for around 20 minutes.

Women find fitting into older jeans better than sex!

2009-12-30T17:20:00.002+05:00

Women in the UK find fitting into an old pair of jeans better than sex, says a study.

More than a quarter of surveyed confessed they stored a pair of "trophy" jeans they used to fit into.

As many as 35 per cent said they kept the pair hoping they would slim down and get into them again, reports the Scotsman.

And when quizzed how would trying them on again make them feel, 29.1 per cent rated it would be better than sex.

Rush to a dentist for an HIV test!

2009-12-30T07:17:00.002+05:00

American dentists are now offering saliva tests that can detect HIV within minutes.

"The surprise factor is you are offering this," the New York Post quoted Dr. Catrise Austin, who has tested some 100 patients for HIV at her Midtown clinic, since July this year, as saying.

She added: "The topic of HIV can be uncomfortable for some, so we decided we would talk about it with patients in a matter-of-fact way, the way we talk about cavities and gum disease."

Testing for HIV is simple: a patient’s upper and lower gums are swiped with a 15dollar OraQuick Advance kit.

In 20 minutes, the swab changes colours to show if the result is positive or negative.

New York is now funding dental HIV tests at Metropolitan Hospital, Harlem Hospital, Jacobi Medical Center and some small community dental clinics.

Couples healthier than singles

2009-12-30T07:14:00.002+05:00

Marital status plays a vital role in helping people cope with disability and health shocks in economic terms, says a new report.

University of British Columbia (UBC) economists Giovanni Gallipoli and Laura Turner found that in marriages, "main-earners" (husbands) tend to transfer income and compensate "second-earners" (wives).

The second-earners, in turn, provide conditional time and care in periods of need (such as illness and disability of main-earner).

Gallipoli and Turner based their findings on data from the Canadian Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID).

The researchers also find that the relative value of marriage changes in different ways for men and women as they age. Marriages become more stable the longer the couple is together, and uncertainty is resolved.

"Low-risk" marriages, where the main-earner is in a low-risk health state, are more stable and encounter less renegotiation and termination of marital contracts at every stage of the life-cycle.

Men who are at high risk of receiving health and disability shocks value marriage early in life, when they are poor in both assets and work experience, says a UBC release.

As these husbands age, their gains from marriage decrease as "buffer stocks" of human capital and assets are accumulated and they become more likely to trigger a renegotiation of the marital contract.

These later renegotiations are referred to by the authors as a "midlife crisis."

Sex for one night does not affect the psyche

2009-12-29T19:56:00.002+05:00

casual sex does not put young people at increased risk of any mental condition, according to therapists, University of Minnesota / USA /. Although the study focused on the psychological impact of such relationship, doctors warn that we should not forget about the physical risk “sex for one night”.

The review was conducted among 1 thousand 311 sexually active young people with an average age of 20 years, which surveyed about their intimate life and emotional state, said AMI-TASS. In 55% of sexual partner was a man with whom the young people met in a long time, 25% – fiance / fiancee or spouse. Far fewer respondents reported that their most recent sexual partner / in 12% of cases / in their lives was an acquaintance, but not close, while in 8% – just a casual acquaintance. The men reported casual sexual relations twice as often as young women.

While in psychiatry has long considered the question of potential harm neromanticheskih sex between casual acquaintances in his youth, physicians found no differences in psychological well-being among young people, who long ago met with his companion / companion of life and were faithful to him / her, and those who adhered to casual or short-term sexual relationships. Despite the findings, experts still tend to believe that we should not forget about the educational programs aimed at sexual education of youth.

Childhood tobacco smoke exposure leads to emphysema

2009-12-29T18:39:00.002+05:00

Kids who are regularly exposed to tobacco smoke at home tend to develop early emphysema in adulthood, according to researchers at Columbia University''s Mailman School of Public Health.

The finding suggests that the lungs may not recover completely from the effects of early-life exposures to tobacco smoke (ETS).

The population-based research is the first to examine the association of childhood ETS with early emphysema by CT scan in non-smokers.

Almost fifty percent of the participants in this large multiethnic cohort had at least one regular cigarette smoker in their childhood home. Participants with more childhood ETS exposure had more emphysema-like lung pixels— an average of 20 pct of scan pixels were emphysema-like for those who lived with two or more smokers as a child, compared with 18 pct for those who lived with one regular smoker, or 17% for those who said that they did not live with a regular inside smoker as a child.

The researchers studied CT scans of 1,781 non-smokers without clinical cardiovascular disease recruited from six communities in the United States, including northern Manhattan and the Bronx, New York.

Those reporting childhood ETS exposure were somewhat younger, with an average age of 61; were more likely to be non- Hispanic white; and less likely to have been born outside the United States.

"We were able to detect a difference on CT scans between the lungs of participants who lived with a smoker as a child and those who did not. Some known harmful effects of tobacco smoke are short term, and this new research suggests that effects of tobacco smoke on the lungs may also persist for decades," observed Dr. Gina Lovasi.

Previous studies have found evidence that childhood ETS exposure affects perinatal and childhood health outcomes, and that adult exposure may affect adult respiratory health outcomes, including lung function and respiratory symptoms.

Although childhood ETS was not associated with adult lung function in this healthy population, this does not contradict the results for early emphysema, since airflow obstruction and anatomic damage are theoretically and clinically distinguishable.

"However, emphysema may be a more sensitive measure of damage compared with lung function in this relatively healthy cohort," said Lovasi.

"The association between childhood ETS and early emphysema among participants whose mothers did not smoke, suggests that the effect we are detecting is for smoke exposure in the home during childhood rather than in utero exposure alone," she added.

The study is published in the American Journal of Epidemiology.

Lingerie gets men's pulses racing!

2009-12-29T11:08:00.001+05:00

Women's lingerie gets male shoppers' pulses racing, a new study has revealed.

But, when it comes to women, it's the sight of sparkly evening dresses or a glamorous pair of shoes that do the trick.

The study, which was conducted by Debenhams in a bid to establish in which department customers get the most enthusiastic, used monitor devices to track the heart rates of 1,000 shoppers, reports The Daily Express.

And the study of customers aged 20 to 40 revealed stark differences between what gets the pulses racing for the two sexes.

Lingerie topped the list of goods that boosted men's heart rates, followed by high-tech TVs and sound systems.

Debenhams spokesman Ed Watson said: "It seems men enjoy buying something special for their loved ones."

Said Watson: "Women appear to embark upon an emotional roller-coaster when they step into a shop, with heart rate peaks throughout the experience. The shopping climax comes late for men â it's all about closing the deal at the till."

Sore throat could be a sign of something worse: Scientists

2009-12-29T07:47:00.001+05:00

Sore throat, or pharyngitis, could be a sign of something worse, say scientists from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB).

Currently, physicians are taught to suspect group A streptococcal bacteria as the primary cause of pharyngitis.

However, new findings suggest that physicians also should look for the presence of bacteria called Fusobacterium necrophorum when treating sore throat in young adults and adolescents that worsens or is strep-negative.

"F. necrophorum, which only has been recognized as a potential cause of pharyngitis in adolescents and young adults in the past five years, may cause up to 10 percent of sore throat in those 15-24 years of age," Science Daily quoted Robert Centor, professor of internal medicine, associate dean of medicine at UAB and the paper''s lead author, as saying.

"More important, F. necrophorum is associated with a rare but life-threatening complication called Lemierre syndrome," Centor added.

Lemierre syndrome mostly affects adolescents and young adults and rarely is seen in pre-adolescents. It begins with a sore throat, followed by an infected jugular vein after four to five days. Abscesses in other parts of the body may occur.

Group A strep also is associated with a serious complication – rheumatic fever – but the incidence rate of Lemierre syndrome following exposure to F. necrophorum is much higher and associated with greater morbidity and mortality.

"The risk of Lemierre syndrome exceeds the risk of acute rheumatic fever, which is the classic reason that physicians worry about sore throats," said Centor.

Centor said that clinicians should expand their diagnostic process for adolescents and young adults with sore throat to consider F. necrophorum, especially if the sore throat does not improve within three to five days.

He said that physicians need to be aware of the red flags that might indicate Lemierre syndrome, including unilateral neck swelling, rigors, night sweats or high fevers.

Aggressive treatment with antibiotics such as a combination of penicillin and metronidazole or with clindamycin alone is appropriate. Centor said he hopes this analysis will lead to better diagnostic tests for the presence of F. necrophorum.

The study has been published Dec. 1 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Disciplined meal and exercises can prevent diabetes

2009-12-28T07:12:00.001+05:00

Maintaining timely eating habits, and a disciplined lifestyle can help Indian prevent Diabetes, especially the type II that is prevalent in the country.

"So just by managing and disciplining the meals coupled with compulsory exercise at least for few minutes everyday , it is possible to prevent the so called disease complications," Director, diabetes endocrine Nutrition Management and Research studies, Prof H B Chandalia told media here.

Refined carbohydrates such as those found in white bread, white rice and soft drinks including sports drinks should be completely avoided as they all breakdown rapidly in the human system which means after eating and drinking the sugar in the blood rises quickly to high levels, Chandalia said.

"Since the current lifestyle, elevated stress levels and fierce competition hardly gives time to focus on our diet, but everyone should realise that the managing the body metabolism is more important for leading a healthy life than anything else," he said.

The researcher said that considering the fact that a diabetic patient has a lot of restriction, there is a definite absence of optimum nutrition.

Foods with complex carbohydrates that break down more slowly such as whole grains, vegetables and beans will not only have less impact on the sugar levels in the blood making nutrition a part of diabetics lifestyle but also be most compliance with a nutritious diet, Chandalia added.

On meal management and exercises, Dr Farhad Zangeneh, assistant clinical professor of Medicine of George Washington University, said there is an increasing tendency of doubling of weight in rest of the world while it is trebling in Gulf countries.

"Diabetes is not a disease and is simply the bad eating habits and in large quantities in frequent intervals thus burdening the system," he said.

In US even children are facing the obese syndrome. There is gestational diabetes in pregnant women all over the world, as doctors recommend bed rest and rich food during pregnancy, he said.

Zangeneh also said there was a large deficiency of vitamin
B-12 and Vitamin D in diabetic patients and population in general due to various reasons.

As natural Vitamin D (from the Sunlight) is not available to the people adequately, people should be going for supplementary forms, he said.

On the meal replacement, Zangeneh said it was important to take meals rich in minerals and microelements and completely avoid soft drinks and fruit juices. Instead have one serving of fruits so that there will be slow release of carbohydrate into the system, the doctor said.

Chandalia said that in a survey conducted in South Mumbai school, his institute found the 11 per cent ratio of obesity.

Poor quality condoms irk sex workers!

2009-12-27T19:04:00.003+05:00

The government will look into the concerns raised by sex workers of the red-light area here regarding the health problems resulting from "poor quality" of free condoms supplied to them.

Sex workers in the national capital`s infamous Garstin Bastion (GB) Road have alleged that free condoms provided to them by different NGOs supplied by the Government are causing itching and other similar problems.

These male contraceptives are distributed free of cost through non-government organisations and NACO to prevent sex-workers from being infected by sexually transmitted diseases, including AIDS.

The sex workers have told PTI that they are planning to take the matter to the Government and will hold demonstration if the issue was not resolved to their satisfaction.

"Condoms given to us are really of very bad quality. We do not feel like using them. Irritation and other infections are some of common side effects," said Sunita, a sex worker.

When contacted, Joint Secretary at National AIDS Control Organisation Aradhana Johri said the department has not received any complaint regarding the health problems resulting
from the use of condom.

"But as you have brought the issue to our notice, we will direct the concerned officials to immediately look into the matter and submit their report," Johri said.

Johri also said that all the free condoms distributed meet the standards.

Kanta, another worker and owner of a brothel in the area said, "Condoms even get ruptured and make us susceptible to various sexually transmitted diseases like AIDS."

Radhika, a worker at a brothel said, "It is really irritating to use these condoms. There is always a danger of the condoms getting burst. We prefer to use a good quality product and bear the expenditure on our own."

There are about 116 brothels at the GB road in which about 5,000 women from across the country and some from neighbouring countries work.

NACO distributes about 220 crore free condoms annually across the country with the help of state AIDS control societies and voluntary groups to curb the spread of HIV.

"It is true that sex workers are given bad quality condoms. I have also written to Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad and apprised him of the problem. Government has assured us to look into the issue but we will again press the issue," said Khairati Lal Bhola, President, Bhartiya Patita Uddhar Sabha, an NGO working for the upliftment of the sex workers.

Indian Council of Medical Research scientist S Mokkapati said, "Condoms without quality result in various STD including
HIV AIDS and generate other psychological problems."

Planets' movement can set off tremors: Study

2009-12-27T09:50:00.001+05:00

Scientists have discovered that even faint gravitational tug of the sun and moon can set off tremors deep underground, confirming the thousands of years old belief of astrologers.

The American researchers, who studied the San Andreas Fault - the infamous crack in the ground which triggered the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, found the same gravitational tugs that create tides, also trigger small tremors that originate around 15 miles below the ground.

The report, which will come in print in journal Nature, said, although the pull of planetary objects is too weak to set off a full blown quake but the findings suggest that they could set in motion a chain of events, leading to devastation on the surface, the Daily Mail said.

Dr Roland Burgmann, a professor of earth and planetary science at University of California, Berkeley, said: "Tremors seem to be extremely sensitive to minute stress changes".

"Seismic waves from the other side of the planet triggered tremors off the coast of Washington state after the Sumatra earthquake last year, while the Denali earthquake in 2002 triggered tremors on a number of faults in California," Burgmann said.

"Now we also see that tides - the daily lunar and solar tides - very strongly modulate tremors".

American earthquake experts compared records of 2,000 small tremors in the Parkfield region 170 miles north west of Los Angeles with the movement of the sun and moon over eight years.

New method to cure high BP developed in UK

2009-12-27T09:49:00.001+05:00

Offering hope to hundreds of thousands of people who suffer from high blood pressure, scientists here have developed a revolutionary procedure to effectively cure the condition under an hour.

The new procedure, called renal sympathetic-nerve ablation, involves inserting a wire into a blood vessel close to the kidneys to burn through nerves which carry signals that stimulate high blood pressure, media reported today.

It disrupts signals from the brain telling the kidneys to keep blood pressure raised. Initial tests suggest it can be effective within three months.

Anthony Henry, 68, a retired chef from Stratford in east London, became the first person in Britain to have the operation.

About 15 million people in Britain suffer from high blood pressure, also known as hypertension, with as many as half of those cases undiagnosed.

About one in ten sufferers cannot control the condition with medication or cannot tolerate the drugs, leaving them at greater risk.

Hundreds of thousands of people face a lifetime on medication to reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke or kidney failure.

Claiming it as the most exciting development in the field in the last 50 years, doctors said they could treat the condition with a simple procedure in under an hour.

Daily sex `helps improve sperm quality`

2009-12-26T19:42:00.001+05:00

Having sex every day improves men`s sperm quality, an Australian study has revealed.

In a study of men with fertility problems, researchers found that daily ejaculation for a week cut the amount of DNA damage seen in sperm samples.

"All that we knew was that intercourse on the day of ovulation offered the highest chance of pregnancy, but we did not know what was the best advice for the period leading up to ovulation or egg retrieval for IVF," Dr David Greening, an obstetrician and gynaecologist with sub specialist training in reproductive endocrinology and infertility at Sydney IVF, Wollongong, Australia, said.

"I thought that frequent ejaculation might be a physiological mechanism to improve sperm DNA damage, while maintaining semen levels within the normal, fertile range," he added.

To investigate this hypothesis, Greening studied 118 men who had higher than normal sperm DNA damage as indicated by a DNA Fragmentation Index (DFI).

Men who had a more than 15 percent of their sperm damaged were eligible for the trial. At Sydney IVF, sperm DNA damage is defined as less than 15 percent DFI for excellent quality sperm, 15-24 percent DFI for good, 25-29 percent DFI for fair and more than 29 percent DFI for poor quality; but other laboratories can have slightly different ranges.

The men were instructed to ejaculate daily for seven days, and no other treatment or lifestyle changes were suggested. Before they started, levels of DNA damage ranged between 15 percent and 98 percent DFI, with an average 34 percent DFI when measured after three days` abstinence.

When the men`s sperm was re-assessed on the seventh day, Greening found that 81 percent men had an average 12 percent decrease in their sperm DNA damage, while 19 percent men and an average increase in damage of nearly 10 percent. The average for the whole group dropped to 26 percent DFI.

"Although the mean average was 26 percent which is in the `fair` range for sperm quality, this included 18 percent of men whose sperm DNA damage increased as well as those whose DNA damage decreased," Greening said.

"Amongst the men whose damage decreased, their average dropped by 12 percent to just under 23 percent DFI, which puts them in the `good` range. Also, more men moved into the `good` range and out of the `poor` or `fair` range. These changes were substantial and statistically highly significant.

"In addition, we found that although frequent ejaculation decreased semen volume and sperm concentrations, it did not compromise sperm motility and, in fact, this rose slightly but significantly.

"Further research is required to see whether the improvement in these men`s sperm quality translates into better pregnancy rates, but other, previous studies have shown the relationship between sperm DNA damage and pregnancy rates," he added.

Greening said he thought the reason why sperm quality improved with frequent ejaculation was because the sperm had a shorter exposure in the testicular ducts and epididymis to reactive oxygen species - very small molecules, high levels of which can damage cells.

"The remainder of the men who had an increase in DFI might have a different explanation for their sperm DNA damage," he said.

The study has been presented at the 25th annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology in Amsterdam.

Scientists restore eye sight by stem cell treatment

2009-12-26T09:38:00.002+05:00

In yet another medical achievement, British scientists have restored eyesight of a partially blind person using pioneering stem cell treatment.

Eye surgeons at the North East England Stem Cell Institute (NESCI), has almost completely restored the vision of Russell Turnbull who was blinded in one eye by a chemical attack.

The attack, which badly burned and scarred Russell (38) as he intervened to stop a fight, left him with permanent blurred sight and pain whenever he blinked.

Now, however, his sight has been almost fully restored thanks to the new technique in which doctors regrown the outside membrane of his cornea from stem cells taken from his healthy eye.

According to the article published in journal Stem Cells, the new operation involved cutting away a millimetre squared section of his left eye completed with stem cells and growing it to 400 times that size in the laboratory.

The outer skin of the eye is then stitched onto the badly damaged cornea in place of the damaged membrane.

"Corneal cloudiness has been estimated to cause blindness in eight million people worldwide each year, Dr Francisco Figueiredo, Consultant Eye Surgeon at NESCI team, who co-led the project was quoted as saying by The Telegraph.

"The stem cell treatment option is aimed at total cure rather than symptom relief only. This new treatment will alleviate patient suffering and remove the need for long term multiple medications as well as returning the patient to functional and social independence."

Dr Sajjad Ahmad, who developed the Newcastle method for culturing limbal stem cells, said "This study shows that stem cell research conducted in the laboratory can have a major impact on the quality of life of patients with corneal disease".

He said, "This work has been a team effort involving stem cell researchers and hospital doctors working together effectively."

A larger study involving 24 new patients is currently underway with funding from the UK's Medical Research Council.

Turnbull, a storeman, said: "The operation was a complete success and I now have my sight back. This really has given me my life back."

Caller tunes reflect your state of mind

2009-12-26T09:35:00.002+05:00

When I questioned my friend Rohan why his caller tune rang to the song of Tum jo mil gaye ho, to ye lagataa hain… he admitted that with this tune he wanted to show his love for his college classmate Sheryl. On the other hand the caller tune Donon ne kiyaa thaa pyaar magar mujhe yaad raha tu bhool gayi confirmed that my neighbour had just broken up and was going through a low phase.

With a wide range of caller tune options being made available, technology has indeed changed the way we greet our callers.

Unknowingly and unintentionally, the choice of our caller tune does reflect a lot about our inward, temperamental, emotional and mental state of mind. In short, it serves as a blueprint of our personality.

Caller tunes not only reflect an individuals likes and dislikes but also their inward reflections.

However, individuals do play mind games with caller tunes, admits Rahul who broke off with his girlfriend recently. His caller tune goes Tum aa gaye ho noor aa gaya hai. Rahul says, in the unlikely event that his girl friend calls him back he does not want to show her that he is affected in any way. On the contrary he wants her to keep guessing with his caller tune. Then, there are individuals who don't like the idea of paying monthly user fee for a caller tune, which they never hear at all.

As a matter of fact, even telecom providers keep enhancing their caller tune collection.

Whatever might be the reason but the growing popularity of caller tunes have witnessed a mark improvement in the business for telecom providers.

Now, no amputation to cure breast Cancers

2009-12-25T07:22:00.002+05:00

A Goa-based doctor has invented a technology that can save women from amputating their Cancer-infested breasts.

"The treatment, known as the Targeted Intraoperative Radiotherapy (TARGIT), can cure the fatal diseas in just 25 minutes," Dr Jayant Vaidya, who is currently placed in UK, said.

TARGIT treats the tumour by delivering radiotherapy within the breast. The patient can go home the same day the surgery is conducted, he said.

Vaidya, who began his research during his stint at Tata Memorial hospital in Mumbai, later perceived it in University College at London.

Vaidya has also worked on Intrabeam machine used for brain treatment. "The machine was developed for application on breast in 1996-98," he said.

Syndiastic` therapy could treat sexual dysfunction in men

2009-12-25T07:20:00.001+05:00

Underlining an important new development in German sex therapy- a form of the internationally familiar "couples" therapy called "syndiastic" therapy-scientists have found a solution for treating sexual dysfunction in men.

Modern, couple-oriented treatment for male sexual dysfunction takes the psychosocial aspects of sex into account, as well as focussing on the purely physical aspects of the problem.

The importance of this biopsychosocial approach, whether one looks at disorders of desire, arousal or orgasm, is supported by intercultural comparisons, among other data.

But sexual dysfunction can also arise as a consequence of a variety of diseases and their treatments, such as depression or diabetes, or can even be an early warning sign of serious physical illness such as heart disease.

Thus, there is a need for an interdisciplinary approach, drawing on both medical and psychological techniques and insights.

Thus, urologist Dirk Rosing and coauthors present an overview of current thinking and practice in the area of male sexual dysfunction.

They used research on prostate cancer to highlight the "syndiastic" therapy.

Questionnaire surveys to men with prostate cancer show that while the importance of the genital aspects of sexuality decreased in importance following radical surgery, the relationship and physical intimacy remained as important as before.

"Syndiastic" sex therapy was introduced in Germany in 2004, and focussed for the first time explicitly on fundamental psychosocial needs, in a wider way, rather than purely on sexual function itself.

Coming from Aristotle`s dictionary, meaning a disposition to "live in pairs" or "belonging," this approach differs importantly from some other somatic or psychological treatments, which focus mainly on restoring sexual function.

Instead, it aims to broaden the understanding of sexuality, extend the range of physical experience, and improve overall satisfaction within the relationship.

The study has been published in Deutsches Arzteblatt International.

Elderly people 'over-treated' for high blood pressure: Study

2009-12-24T07:13:00.002+05:00

The treatment for high blood pressure in elderly patients have been too aggressive that may do them more harm than good, says a new research.

After examining available data of blood pressure patients aged 80 and more in the UK, scientists at Cochrane Collaboration found that the octogenarians are being given too many drugs and in too large doses.

The guidelines in the UK and the US recommend that people over 80 should receive the same blood pressure treatment as people of any other age. This means using combinations of drugs to reach a target blood pressure of 140/90 mmHg.

But Dr James Wright, head of the Cochrane research group, said: "Clinicians should change what they are presently doing and move towards a more conservative approach for the over 80s. I have done so with my patients."

His review of existing studies, including data from two new trials which looked specifically at the effect of blood pressure drugs in this age group, found little evidence that aggressive treatment saves more lives, the BBC reported.

Although fewer patients died of strokes, the total number of deaths from all causes was unchanged.

Based on the findings, Wright suggested a target blood pressure of 150/80 mmHg is more sensible, and said doctors should not be worried if only half of their most elderly patients achieve it.

The only trial that found a significant reduction in overall mortality was the most conservative in terms of number of drugs and dose of drugs allowed.

Teenage sex ruins career prospects

2009-12-24T07:10:00.001+05:00

Boys and girls who lose their virginity before the age of 16 start thinking of themselves as adults and prefer to go to work than spend three years at college, finds a new study.

The six-year study of more than 5,000 pupils aged 14 to 18, by academics at the University of Glasgow, found that even after allowing for pregnancy, class and social background, there were still more school dropouts among those who lost their virginity earlier.

Indian surgeons, Oz aid give Iraqi boy new life

2009-12-23T07:32:00.001+05:00

Undertaking a rare and complicated brain surgery, doctors at the Indraprastha Apollo Hospital in Delhi have saved the life of a 14-year-old Iraqi student. The expensive surgery was funded by Iraqi Christians in Australia, doctors said here Tuesday.

"It was a very complicated operation. The planning and execution of the surgery was very, very complex and we had not handled such a case till this boy came in," Pranav Kumar, a leading neurosurgeon at the hospital, told.

Ahmed Hashmi from Iraq was brought to Apollo hospital with a large aneurysm in one of four main arteries in the brain. He had already suffered a stroke, resulting in slurred speech and weakness of right side of his body.

"To stop any further risk, the diseased artery had to be blocked immediately. However, the preliminary tests revealed that the brain could not have tolerated closure of this abnormal artery," Pranav Kumar added.

Shahin Nooreyezdan, a member of the team of doctors who treated Ahmed, said: "Though brain is a very small part of the body, it needs at least 20 percent of the total blood supply. But this problem was obstructing blood flow to his brain. The aneurysm was like a ticking time-bomb, capable of bursting anytime and causing massive brain haemorrhage."

"Had it been left untreated, Ahmed's life span would have been very short," added Hash Rastogi, another senior doctor at Apollo.

The surgery was carried out in two steps - on Dec 4 and Dec 11. The entire expenses of the surgery -Rs.1.4 million - were met by Iraqi Christians based in Australia.

"In stage one of the treatment, a delicate bypass surgery was carried out on his brain successfully. In this operation, a small artery from his face was connected to one of the fine arteries in the brain. This resumed blood supply to brain," Nooreyezdan said.

"A week later, we successfully blocked the abnormal artery. "The treatment has defused the time bomb, which Ahmed was carrying in his brain," Rastogi added.

Wearing a green hospital dress, holding a gift pack and a chocolate, Ahmed was happy. "I have suffered a lot and thank God I am out of it now. I thank all my doctors for giving me a new"He is out of danger. But, he needs to take care against any head injury in future," he said.

Ahmed, whose father is dead, belongs to a poor family. After he was diagnosed with the disease and Iraqi doctors were not in a condition to cure him, his sister contacted a foundation in Australia on the internet and requested help.

"This is how Ahmed got the funding and now you can see him smiling," said Walid M. Albakili, another doctor and research fellow in charge of Gulf and Arab region. life."

"I have already missed my school for six months and am eager to get back soon," said the 14-year-old who wishes to see Taj Mahal before leaving Delhi for his homeland.

Pranav Kumar said that the boy is now almost fit and in two weeks he will be ready to leave for Iraq.

Men prefer less leggy girls

2009-12-23T07:31:00.001+05:00

Women had got it all wrong all this while – a new study says men prefer girls a little less leggy.

In the search to find the most attractive legs, UK researchers asked more than 1000 men and women to rate a series of images of female bodies, reports The Courier Mail.

In each image the legs had been made shorter or longer, to alter the leg-to-body ratio, but the overall height remained the same.

The men interviewed were asked which pictures they liked the most while the women were asked to predict the men's thoughts.

While most women surveyed thought men lusted after longer legs, the University of Westminster research found men preferred women of average height - where their legs accounted for half of their overall height.

Men`s guide on how to spot single women!

2009-12-22T15:44:00.001+05:00

Wondering how to discover if the women you are interested in is single? A news channel has come up with several hints.

- She`s full of eye contact

If her eye contact is darting all over the room as if looking for potential mates, you may be able to approach her because usually people who are already in a relationship don`t bother to look around much.

- She`s making eye contact with you and smiling

Eye contact is usually one of the first signs of interest, and if she`s making intense eye contact with you from across the bar, then chances are she wants you to head on over and give her a try.

- She`s talking to every guy in the bar

If you see her talking to many guys from a distance, it may mean that she`s open to conversation.

- She looks at other couples with sadness

If you`re observing her from afar and you notice her looking at other couples, she could be longing for the days when she was once also attached.

- Her body language says it all

Body language says a lot about a person. If she`s not single, then chances are she won`t be twirling her hair and touching other men ever so casually. Try to observe what her body language is saying:

- Arms crossed, standing back: "Get away or I`ll kick my heel in your face."

Touches your arm or leg subtly, or her own arm (she wants you to touch her): "Let`s keep talking."

- She`s a chatterbox

If you start talking to a woman you work with, for example, and in one conversation she tells you that she has a dog named Max, does a lot of cooking, goes to the gym every week, and takes art lessons, chances are she doesn`t have a man to come home to.

- Out with the girls... again

Single women tend to go out and have fun with their girlfriends. If you see the same girl out with her friends more than once at the same bar, within a short period of time, chances are she`s solo.

- She dances with other men

If the two of you frequent the same club and she`s often seen dancing with different men (but you know she came with the same group of female friends she always comes with), it`s likely that she`s dancing to her own tune, unless her and her boyfriend have a very "open" relationship.

- She`s overly friendly

Generally women who are not single tend to be less friendly with other men. If you notice that a woman is very sweet and friendly with most men she encounters, it`s possible that she`s single.

- Spot a Single Woman With Stealth

You can always find out whether a woman is single by approaching her and asking for her number; she may say she already has a boyfriend, and whether or not that`s true is a toss up - but it`s always worth a try.

Although it`s difficult to directly approach a woman, you can use the aforementioned hints as clues to her status.

Why limb bones weaken with age?

2009-12-22T07:16:00.001+05:00

In a development that could help treat bone fragility or osteoporosis, scientists in the UK found the reason why our skull remains tough as compared to the bones in our arms and legs as we age.

Researchers at Queen Mary, University of London, have uncovered fundamental differences between the bone which makes up the skull and the bones in our limbs, which they believe could hold the key to tackling bone weakness and fractures.

Lead author, Dr Simon Rawlinson explained: "This research is exciting because it tells us why our skulls remain so tough as we age compared to the bones in our arms and legs".

"Now we understand this phenomenon better, we also understand osteoporosis better. And this has opened up many new lines of research into how the disease could be treated or even prevented," Rawlinson said.

People who develop osteoporosis have fragile bones which are prone to breaking. The condition becomes more common as we age, especially in post-menopausal women when levels of estrogen fall dramatically. In the over 50s it affects half of all women and a fifth of all men.

It is well known that bones in the arms and legs become weak and vulnerable to breaks when they are not maintained by weight bearing exercise, however skull bone that bears almost no weight remains particularly resistant to breaking but the new research, published in journal Plos One, offers an explanation for this phenomenon for the first time.

The researchers say that their new understanding of the differences between the two types of bone could lead to new ways to treat or prevent osteoporosis.

The team wanted to understand why the skull bones are resistant to bone thinning as they age, even in post-menopausal women and to investigate this, they looked in detail at rat bone cells from the skull and compared them with cells from limb bone.

They found differences between the appearance of the cells and how they behaved in the lab and also noticed that treating the cells with estrogen had a far greater effect on the cells from the limb bone.

Because the differences are so profound, they believed that they were set very early on in life -- probably when the bones are still forming in the womb.

The researchers also made a detailed genetic study of the two types of bone cell. They looked at which genes were active in the two types of cell and found a startling level of difference between the two.

They found a total of 1236 -- around four percent of the genome -- were showing different levels of activity in the two types of bone cell.

Among these they found a number of genes which are known to be involved in the process of forming healthy bones.

German scientists implant chip, enabling blind man to see

2009-12-21T07:02:00.002+05:00

German doctors have implanted a special microchip in the retina of a blind Finnish man, enabling him to see, the news magazine Der Spiegel reported on Saturday on its website.

The 1,500-pixel sensor chip can mimic the electrical signals sent by a healthy eye through the nervous system to the brain.

The patient, 45, who was identified only by his first name, Miika, was able to orient himself by sight and read letters of the alphabet, according to the magazine.

The device, developed by the German company Retina Implant, was inserted at the University of Tuebingen medical school.

But under university science ethics rules, the experimental device had to be removed several weeks later.

"Miika showed that with an aid we can give people enough sight that they are no longer legally blind," Eberhart Zrenner, head of the team, was quoted saying. The implant fitted into the retina in a four-hour operation was just three millimetres across.

Zrenner said he would give about two dozen blind people the power of sight next year. Retina Implant's website said electrical power for the chip will be supplied wirelessly by high-frequency radiation.

A sweet way to keep the wrinkles away

2009-12-21T07:01:00.002+05:00

Two of the world`s biggest confectionery and cosmetics giants have joined hands to develop a sugar-coated tablet that they say can dramatically slow down ageing of the skin.
The anti-wrinkle sweetie, developed by Nestle and L`Oreal, the world`s biggest cosmetics company, uses a compound found in tomatoes to promote the regeneration of new skin cells and protect old ones from damage, The Sunday Times reported.

Called Inneov Fermete, the product of nutritional and dermatological science - a cosmeceutical - is already available in parts of Europe and South America.

Patricia Manissier, head of research and development at Inneov, a L`Oreal/Nestle joint venture, said: "We have done a lot of research which shows this product works and now we`re looking for ways of improving it.

"We know that good nutrition can prevent the skin from ageing and that there are clear links between certain nutrients and skin health."

The pill is based on lycopene, the red carotene pigment found in tomatoes, combining with a form of vitamin C and isoflavone chemicals extracted from soya bean.

The paper said one drawback is the cost - the new drug will cost about £25 for a 10-day supply. In addition, manufacturers say women may not notice a difference for three months.

Is your child watching po-rn?

2009-12-19T07:36:00.001+05:00

ChildrenSex was a hot online search topic for children in 2009, according to findings released by Internet security specialty firm Norton.

While the top three search terms for Internet users under the age of 18 were YouTube, Google, and Facebook, the words "porn" and "sex" took the next two positions, based on data from Symantec-owned Norton.

"These terms should raise a red flag to parents if they haven't had 'The Talk' with their children about content that may not be appropriate for kids," Symantec said in a release.

Boys' top 25 searches centered on social networking, games, shopping, and "adult terms," according to Norton. Girls were also interested in online social networking websites, but their top 25 searches leaned more toward music, movies, celebrities, and television shows.

The findings were derived from 14.6 million searches conducted between February 2 and December 4 by users of a free OnlineFamily.Norton service that parents can use to filter or monitor their children's Internet use.

"When it comes to online threats, parents need to be concerned about more than just their child running into inappropriate content," said Norton Internet safety advocate Marian Merritt.

"What makes OnlineFamily.Norton unique is that it gives parents insight into kids' online activities and what interests them most so that parents can ensure they have a discussion with them about topics they're curious about, as well as protect them from cyberthreats."

Christmas: How to avoid over-eating

2009-12-18T07:32:00.001+05:00

.Is that last crumb of chocolate cake too tempting? Are cookies a must-have even after you have had a sumptuous Christmas lunch? Do you always get up groaning from the dinner table, asking around for digestive pill and living the rest of the year under a sense of guilt of having not done enough to get that ‘perfect figure’?

You have a little gastronomic problem here, dear friend, and some tips can help you enjoy your festival meals better without a worry on your mind:

1. Eat a decent breakfast: Don’t starve yourself for the big meal, it’s a bad idea for your system. Nutritionists suggest you must always take small meals, so that the body has enough time and energy to break it all down. It’s best to have a base, moreover, on which you can build the rest of the meal!

2. Drink: Drink water before a meal. One or two glasses. You could also go for the appetiser soup.

3. Watch your plate: Fight temptation, that’s what Jesus did. You can always go for the second serving and no, it is not impolite. What is outright uncivilised is making a mountain of cakes, tarts, cookies, turkey, chicken breasts…

4. Refuse second helping: You read that right. Once you had your plate, don’t just agree to the gracious host offering you a second serving. It’s not impolite, but surely less sophisticated!

5. Go for carbs: Face it, carbohydrates are filling. Just a little bit of cheese and crackers or cereal with low-fat yogurt won’t harm you and will prevent you from eating more than you can manage.

6. Salad spree: Veggies are good- for your body and for your hunger. However, don’t fill up with cheesy salads: go for carrot or celery sticks, salads and fruits first.

7. Keep friends around: Festivals are time to bond, not hog! Keep good company that keeps your attention away from pastries and on to some sizzler of a topic.

8. Eat slowly: Chew slooooowly. Remember mom breathing down this mantra down your food filled throats. It’s true that if you chew the food properly and slowly, you tend to digest the food properly. And of course you get to savour every bite.

9. Imagine getting fat: Keep the image that you fear for yourself in your mind’s eye even as you eye the next morsel. It will stop you from over-eating ASAP.

10. Exercise: It’s tough to exercise when you are rustling up new ways to welcome guests. But do take a break of 20 minutes everyday to keep this festival fat-free. It will tone your body, make you eat at the right time and you need not dread having another love-handle at every treat.

11. Plan: Yes, even if you want to not over-eat, plan in advance. If you don’t plan when you will bring in the Santa in the party or prepare the kebabs as drinks catch on, you will not be left with much time to have a meal. End result: you will fast initially but eat double in whatever few minutes you are able to squeeze out for yourself.

12. Be happy: Remember it is ‘merry’ Christmas. Don’t get upset if the champagne isn’t there, you can always have some soda on ice with juice and lemon shots. If you are someone who eats more when they are upset, then festive season is the time for you to be alert for mood swings.

13. Favourite dish can be cooked anytime: Don’t succumb to the pressure that you won’t get cranberry sauce or rum balls again at any other time in the year. Remembering that most of all the dishes on table are available on other days will help you relax.

14. Forgive but don’t forget: Don’t go on a guilt trip if you still end up having more. It is okay, it is Christmas after all. Forgive yourself. But don’t forget the cramps and belching so that you can avoid over-eating in the next holiday.

Don’t binge on drinks

Do you see tipsy trees after a hearty session of laughs and liquor? Holidays are a season when booze flows freely and friends encourage for ‘one more round’ even after having had enough pegs. Drinking like a fish is a more serious problem, as it puts your life in danger immediate and long-term. Here are a few tips on how to walk out straight from a good party.

1. Know your limit and follow it: Most regular drinkers know how much they can hold. Even if it is holiday season, it doesn’t give you the freedom to overdo it and land in trouble.

2. Eat before drink: Having some solids down there before drinking helps prevent blood absorb alcohol quickly. So go for some sweet & sour meatballs or kebabs, cheese bits or grills. Lip smacking, too.

3. Drink milk: Don’t twist your nose like that. Milk is really healthy. But that’s not the reason we advise you to have it before a session of drinks. Milk forms a protective lining on the stomach and prevents easy absorption of alcohol.

4. Drink water: Avoid pure alcohol shots. Mix soda and water to your drink- will give it volume as well. Keep aspirin and water handy.

5. Go light: For one evening, forget serious drinks. Go for variants of Vodka and Gin instead of heavy brandy and rum. Avoid too much of Red wine- it produces worst chemicals leading to hangovers.

6. Avoid smoking: Don’t mix smoking with drinking. It constricts your lungs. Take breaks between drinking and don’t indulge in smoking during the break.

Marriage cuts down risk of depression

2009-12-17T07:43:00.002+05:00

.Getting married is good for the well being of both men and women, cutting down risks of depression, anxiety and substance abuse, says a new study.

The study was based on a survey of 34,493 people from 15 countries.

Conversely, ending marriage through separation, divorce or being widowed, is associated with much higher risks of mental disorders in both genders; particularly substance abuse for women and depression for men.

The wide-ranging study, led by clinical psychologist Kate Scott from the University of Otago in New Zealand is based on the WHO World Mental Health (WMH) surveys across developing and developed countries in the past decade.

"There have been a number of international studies about the impact of marriage on the mental health of men and women and this is quite a controversial area because of the gender politics involved," says Scott.

"But what makes this investigation unique and more robust is the sample is so large and across so many countries and the fact that we have data not only on depression, which has been much studied in the past, but also on anxiety and substance use disorders," she says.

"In addition we were able to look at what happens to mental health in marriage, both in comparison with never getting married, and with ending marriage."

"One of the more important findings is that in recent years it has been asserted that marriage is better for men than for women in terms of mental health. This study does not agree with that position," Scott says.

"We found that compared to never getting married, getting married is good for both men and women in terms of most mental health disorders."

This study was recently published in Psychological Medicine.

Social service can improve brain functions

2009-12-17T07:37:00.002+05:00

A new study has found that participating in social service activities can significantly improve brain functions of older adults.

The research team from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health showed that volunteer service, such as tutoring children, can help older adults delay or reverse declining brain function and enhance their quality of life.

They found that seniors participating in a youth mentoring program called Experience Corps- designed to both benefit children and older adults’ health- made gains in key brain regions that support cognitive abilities important to planning and organizing one’s daily life.

"We found that participating in Experience Corps resulted in improvements in cognitive functioning and this was associated with significant changes in brain activation patterns,” said lead investigator Michelle C. Carlson, PhD, associate professor in the Bloomberg School’s Department of Mental Health and Center on Aging and Health.

“Essentially the intervention improved brain and cognitive function in these older adults," she added.

During the study, researchers followed 17 women aged 65 and older. Half participated in existing Experience Corps programs in Baltimore schools, while the other half were wait-listed to enroll in Experience Corps the following year.

“While the results of this study are preliminary, they hold promise for enhancing and maintaining brain reserve in later life, particularly among sedentary individuals who may benefit most urgently from behavioural interventions like Experience Corps,” said Carlson.

“This study suggests that new kinds of roles for older adults in our aging society can be designed as win-win-for addressing important societal needs, such as our children’s success, and simultaneously the health and well-being of the older volunteers themselves,” said senior author Linda P. Fried, MD, MPH, dean of the Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University.

Woman craves sex 24/7 after car crash

2009-12-16T14:10:00.001+05:00

The accident damaged a nerve in her pelvis which controls desire, leaving it permanently switched on

A mother has told how her life has become "unbearable" after a car crash injury left her with a medical condition giving her an insatiable libido.

Joleen Baughman (39) was hurt in a collision two years ago, which damaged a nerve in her pelvis which controls desire, leaving it permanently switched on.

She now becomes sexually aroused by the slightest movement while sitting, bending over, or even simply walking across a room.

The mother-of-two from New Mexico, USA, said, "It's unbearable. Just my clothes rubbing against me gets me so aroused I can hardly think straight. It's very embarrassing and it's impossible to concentrate."

Baughman has been diagnosed with a rare condition called Restless Genital Syndrome, or Persistent Sexual Arousal Syndrome.

In the accident in April 2007, Joleen was in a pickup truck with her husband Brian (39), a plumber, when a man high on drugs crashed into them head on.

The ophthalmologist, who had just recovered from brain surgery, suffered severe injuries including a broken spine, and was in hospital for several weeks. Six months later, she began suffering the unexpected side effect.

"I started getting these intense sexual urges. They would come out of nowhere and completely engulf me.

It would last for most of the day. I was really shocked because normally I have practically no sex drive at all," she saidInitially she and her husband of 20 years were pleased about her new-found sex drive.

She added, "Brian was ecstatic. He was like, 'Wow for once in our marriage, she is the one who wants all the sex'."

But she soon discovered that having sex could not cure her urges and that it started becoming painful.

"We would have sex once and I would feel no release at all," she said. "So we would go again and then it would start really hurting but I would still want sex, even more than before.

If my husband managed to go for a third time it would be agony, but I would still feel no release."

Not Psychological

She sought medical help and was told that her condition was triggered by damage to her pudendal nerve, a nerve in the pelvis, close to the genitalia.

"I was very relieved to find out my condition was not psychological," she said. "For a while I thought I was going crazy or that it was somehow my fault.

"I think a lot of people go through those thoughts with this condition. Being aroused pretty much 24 hours a day is exhausting."

Website to trace missing people

2009-12-16T07:23:00.001+05:00

It is a small start to trace people who have gone missing.

The state government plans to design a website with details of missing people. It will have their photographs and will be accessible to all police stations, state Home Minister R.R. Patil said in the state legislative council on Tuesday.

Responding to a calling attention motion raised by the Shiv Sena’s Kiran Pawaskar, Patil said it would be helpful to police stations, particularly the railway and bus stand police outposts to get information to trace missing people.

Patil admitted that the number of missing children in the state, particularly in Mumbai, had risen sharply. There are around 3,800 to 4,000 children reported missing from Mumbai every year. Of them, on an average at least 300 children are never found.

The state government will launch a special drive across the state, particularly in Mumbai, to detect cases in which children are employed, forced into begging or used for other purposes.

Earlier, the Mumbai police had launched such a drive that helped the state to discourage exploitation of children.
More than 13,000 children were freed from the clutches of employers during the drive.

The proposed drive will be undertaken with the help of non-government organisations.

Patil said the government has already set up a special cell in the state police department to trace missing people and to detect cases of child labour.

Casual sex doesn't cause psychological damage

2009-12-15T08:13:00.001+05:00

Casual sex does not cause emotional or psychological damage in young people, says a new study.

Researchers at the University of Minnesota found that young adults engaging in casual sexual encounters do not appear to be at increased risk for harmful psychological outcomes as compared to sexually active young adults in more committed relationships.

While this study focused on the psychological impact, researchers warned that the physical risks of casual sex should not be overlooked.

Study author Marla E. Eisenberg and colleagues used data from Project Eating Among Teens (EAT), an ongoing study that assessed a diverse sample of 1,311 sexually active young adults.

From 2003-2004, 574 males and 737 females in Minnesota with a mean age of 20.5 were surveyed regarding sexual behaviours and emotional well-being.

Of the sexually active respondents, 55 percent reported that their last sexual partner was an exclusive dating partner followed by 25 percent whose most recent partner was a fiancÃ©e, spouse, or life partner.

Much lower percentages reported that their last sexual partner was a close but not exclusive partner (12 percent) or a casual acquaintance (8 percent). Over twice as many males as females reported that their last partner was casual.

Although there has been speculation in public discourse that sexual encounters outside a committed romantic relationship may be emotionally damaging for young people, this study found no differences in the psychological well being of young adults who had a casual sexual partner verses a more committed partner.

"While the findings from this study show that young adults engaging in casual sexual encounters do not appear to be at increased risk for harmful psychological outcomes compared to those in more committed relationships, this should not minimize the legitimate threats to physical well-being associated with casual sexual relationships, and the need for such messages in sexuality education programs and other interventions with young adults," Eisenberg said.

More alcohol ups risk of breast cancer recurrence

2009-12-15T07:11:00.002+05:00

Moderate to heavy alcohol consumption may trigger increased risk of breast cancer recurrence.

Post-menopausal or overweight women may be most susceptible to the effects of alcohol on recurrence, said the study conducted by Marilyn L Kwan, Kaiser Permanente research scientist.

"Women previously diagnosed with breast cancer should consider limiting their consumption of alcohol to less than three drinks per week...," says Kwan.

Kwan and colleagues examined the effects of alcohol on cancer recurrence and mortality in the Life After Cancer Epidemiology (LACE) Study.

LACE is a prospective study of 1,897 early-stage breast cancer survivors diagnosed with early-stage invasive breast cancer between 1997 and 2000.

The researchers recruited participants from the Kaiser Permanente Northern California Cancer Registry. Information on wine, beer and liquor consumption was documented via questionnaires.

Each year, participants also filled out information on health outcomes, including recurrence of breast cancer, which was then verified by their medical records.

After eight years of follow-up, Kwan and colleagues found 349 breast cancer recurrences and 332 deaths.

Among drinkers (50 percent of participants), wine was the most popular choice of alcohol (90 percent), followed by liquor (43 percent) then beer (36 percent). Increased risk of cancer recurrence was most predominant among those who consumed two or more glasses of wine per day.

The increased risk of recurrence appeared to be greater among participants who were postmenopausal and overweight or obese, and was present regardless of type of alcohol, says a Kaiser Permanente release.

These findings were presented at the CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, held from December 9-13

People who look young `live longer`

2009-12-15T07:07:00.002+05:00

Are you a baby face? Well, then chances are high that you will live to a ripe old age, says a new study.
Researchers, led by Professor Kaare Christensen of the University of Southern Denmark, have carried out the study and found that people who look young for their age are likely to enjoy a longer life.

For the study, the researchers tested the belief that a person`s perceived age gives a general indication of his health.

They looked at twins to see whether perceived age -- basically how old others think you are -- is linked with survival, as well as important age-related traits such as physical functioning and brainpower.

The researchers also examined evidence relating to chromosomes and DNA and their effect on longevity. But in the end, it seems, the best method of research was simply a long hard look in the mirror, a news daily reported.

"It`s probably easy to explain because people who`ve had a tougher life are more likely to die early -- and their life is reflected in their face," Professor Christensen was quoted as saying.

In fact, the research started back in spring 2001, when 1,826 Danish twins aged 70 years and over underwent physical and cognitive tests and had their faces photographed.

Three groups of assessors rated the perceived age of the twins from the photographs.

The assessors did not know the age range of the twins, and each twin of a pair had their age assessed on different days. Death records were then used to track the survival of the twins over a seven-year period.

Perceived age was significantly associated with survival, even after adjusting for chronological age, sex, and the environment in which each pair of twins grew up. And, the bigger the difference in perceived age within a twin pair, the more likely it was that the olderlooking twin died first.

The researchers also investigated whether longevity was linked to the length of telomeres, which are tiny `caps` on the ends of chromosomes that protect the strands of DNA from inflammation and other ageing processes.

Longer telomeres are a sign of being biologically younger and also of being healthier, but they dismissed the telomere tests as complicated.

Online sex service booming in Malaysia

2009-12-14T20:22:00.002+05:00

Sex services are said to be on a staggering rise in Malaysia with operators setting up more websites to advocate their businesses.
The websites reportedly hold information and pictures of around 1,000 sex workers from Thailand, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Vietnam, Philippines and Indonesia, between the age bracket of 17 and 35.

According to Guang Ming Daily, all transactions, usually between RM180 and RM2,400 for a maximum of six hours, were made online, reports a news daily.

An additional "overnight" price was charged beyond six hours while the company of underaged girls and Caucasians sex workers was apparently available on special request with a higher price.

Penang Timur Laut OCPD Asst Comm Azam Abd Hamid revealed several prostitution websites had been identified that were considered to be the work of local vice syndicates.

New genes for lung disease discovered

2009-12-14T09:38:00.001+05:00

An international team of scientists have discovered five genetic variants that are associated with the health of the human lung.

The research by an international consortium of 96 scientists from 63 centres in Europe and Australia sheds new light on the molecular basis of lung diseases.

The new findings provide hope for better treatment of lung diseases like Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and asthma. In the past, it has been difficult to develop new treatments because the molecular pathways that affect the health of the lung were not completely understood.

It is hoped the new pathways discovered could in the future be targeted by drugs.

The ground-breaking research involved a genetic study of 2.5 million sites across the human genome involving samples from 20,000 people across the world. The consortium was led by Dr Martin Tobin from the University of Leicester and Professor Ian Hall from The University of Nottingham.

The research published in Nature Genetics represents a significant advance because it is for the first time that these five common genetic variations have been definitely linked with lung function.

The scientists said, "This work is important because until now we have known very little about the genetic factors that determine an individual's lung function.

By identifying the genes important in determining lung function, we can start to unravel the underlying mechanisms which control both lung development and lung damage. This will lead to a better understanding of diseases such as COPD and asthma. Crucially, it could open up new opportunities to manage and treat patients with lung conditions".

The authors added, "A large reduction in lung function occurs in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which affects around 1 in 10 adults above the age of 40 and is thought to be the fourth most common cause of death worldwide.

Smoking is the major risk factor for development of COPD. Lung function and COPD cluster within families, indicating that variations in genes also predispose individuals to reduced lung function.

The scientists of the SpiroMeta consortium compared genetic variants at each of 2.5 million sites across the human genome in over 20,000 individuals of European ancestry with their lung function measures.

In five different locations in the human genome, genetic variants resulted in alterations in lung function.

The scientists showed that these were real findings by checking the effects of the same variants in over 33,000 additional individuals. They also compared their results to those of a second consortium, CHARGE, which has published a paper in the same issue of the journal.

The scientists emphasise that they do not expect these findings to lead to immediately to genetic tests to predict who will develop lung disease.

What is more important, they say, is that the findings will help understand the underlying causes of lung diseases and thus may indicate new ways of treating the condition.

Italy to ban breast enlargement for girls under 18

2009-12-13T14:51:00.005+05:00

With a number of operations going wrong, Italy is to soon ban breast enlargement or other plastic surgery for girls under the age of 18, officials said.

According to the latest figures, more than 10,000 teenage girls had surgery in 2008 -- with many of them getting the operation as a gift from their parents. Now the government would introduce a legislation which will make it illegal for females under 18 to have plastic surgery.

In fact, the authorities want to clamp down on the growing number of cases where unauthorised and authorized surgeons have caused problems with botched operations or sub- standard silicon implants.

Francesca Martini, an undersecretary within Italy's welfare ministry, said that the government wanted an official
register of surgeons qualified to perform plastic surgery drawn up.

"This legislation is primarily aimed at the growing number of girls under 18 who have breast enhancement surgery
purely for fashion reasons and have no idea of risks involved.

"Far too many adolescent girls are unaware of the fact that there are risks with this type of surgery and it should
not be used purely for fashion and looks. At the moment we've a Wild West, cowboy style system of plastic surgery for young women and this must stop," she told The Daily Telegraph.

Francesco D'Andrea, of the Italian Society of Plastic Surgeons, welcomed the proposed move: "Banning under 18's from having the surgery is also a good idea because these girls are just too young to be operated on. Some surgeons have no idea what they are doing and create huge risks."

Lingerie gets men’s pulses racing

2009-12-13T08:40:00.002+05:00

Women’s lingerie gets male shoppers’ pulses racing, a new study has revealed.

But, when it comes to women, it’s the sight of sparkly evening dresses or a glamorous pair of shoes that do the trick.

And the study of customers aged 20 to 40 revealed stark differences between what gets the pulses racing for the two sexes.

Lingerie topped the list of goods that boosted men’s heart rates, followed by high-tech TVs and sound systems.

Debenhams spokesman Ed Watson said: “It seems men enjoy buying something special for their loved ones.”

Said Watson: “Women appear to embark upon an emotional roller-coaster when they step into a shop, with heart rate peaks throughout the experience. The shopping climax comes late for men – it’s all about closing the deal at the till.”

Sea level rising along US’s Atlantic coast; fastest in 4000 yrs

2009-12-12T14:29:00.002+05:00

An international team of environmental scientists led by the University of Pennsylvania has shown that sea-level rise along the Atlantic Coast of the United States was two millimetres faster in the 20th century than at any time in the past 4,000 years.

Researchers corrected relative sea-level data from tide gauges using the coastal-subsidence values.

Results clearly show furthermore that the magnitude of the sea-level rise increases in a southerly direction from Maine to South Carolina.

This is the first demonstrated evidence of this phenomenon from observational data alone.

Researchers believe this may be related to the melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet and ocean thermal expansion.

“There is universal agreement that sea level will rise as a result of global warming but by how much, when and where it will have the most effect is unclear,” said Benjamin P Horton, assistant professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Science at Penn.

“Such information is vital to governments, commerce and the general public. An essential prerequisite for accurate prediction is understanding how sea level has responded to past climate changes and how these were influenced by geological events such as land movements,” he added.

The study provides the first accurate dataset for sea-level rise for the US Atlantic coast, identifying regional differences that arise from variations in subsidence and demonstrate the possible effects of ice-sheet melting and thermal expansion for sea level rise.

The results appear in the December 1 issue of the journal Geology.

Footie ace in soup over sex orgy

2009-12-12T14:28:00.002+05:00

English-born Turkish football ace Colin Kazim-Richards and three other players have reportedly been put up for sale after reports emerged that they had organised sex marathons at an Istanbul hotel.

According to The Sun, Sunderland, Blackburn and Hull are all on red alert to grab the former Sheffield United winger, who has been a big hit since moving to Fenerbahce and who has played for Turkey in Euro 2008.

Manager Christoph Daum said there is no way back for Kazim-Richards, Vederson, Fabio Bilica and Santos.

He said: "Sadly, I have to confirm that the rumours are true. I`m absolutely shocked to find out these kinds of things are happening."

Solo sex linked to cancer

2009-12-11T07:14:00.002+05:00

Young men who pleasure themselves are at increased risk of prostate cancer in later life, but masturbating in middle-age appears to protect against tumours, reports The Sun.

The link was discovered by researchers at Nottingham University who quizzed more than 800 men on their sex lives. Half had been diagnosed with cancer and half were free of the disease, as reported in The Sun.

They were asked how often they had sex, indulged in solo sex and the number of partners they had throughout their twenties, thirties, forties and fifties.

Researchers found that 40 per cent of men with prostate cancer reported the highest levels of sexual activity.

Just over a third said they indulged in solo sex between two and seven times a week in their twenties, compared with just under a quarter of the control group. The same pattern continued in the thirties.

But in middle-age the trend reverses, with men who masturbate the most having a lowest incidence of tumours, says The Sun.

It is known that prostate cancer is linked to levels of the male hormone testosterone which also regulates a man's sex drive.

Dr Polyxeni Dimitropoulou, who is now at Cambridge University headed the study. He explains: "A man's sex drive is also regulated by his hormone levels, so this study examined the theory that having a high sex drive affects the risk of prostate cancer."

He says: "We found a significant association between prostate cancer and sexual activity in a man's twenties and between masturbation and prostate cancer in the twenties and thirties."

Dr Dimitropoulou adds: "A possible explanation for the protective effect that men in their fifties appear to receive from masturbation is that the release of accumulated toxins during sexual activity reduces the risk of developing cancer in the prostate area."

Every year 34,000 men in the UK are diagnosed with prostate cancer - but it is largely a disease of old age, with most cases occurring in men over 70.

Dread talking to your kids about sex?

2009-12-11T07:09:00.002+05:00

Parents often wait too long to discuss sex with children, with the result that a significant number of kids become sexually active before the chat, says a new US study.

Researchers at Harvard University questioned 141 teenagers in the ages of 13 to 17 and their parents to come up with their findings. It was found that 40 percent of boys and 46 percent of girls had already become sexually active before their parents could talk to them about sex. Two-thirds of the boys reported they had not spoken to parents about condom use before having intercourse.

"I think parents today want to talk to kids but they don''t know where to begin," the New York Daily News quoted Dr. Mark Schuster, co-author of the study and chief of pediatrics at Children’s Hospital in Boston, told ABC News.

He added: "They're afraid they'll make mistakes or don't know the facts, afraid to admit that their kids are growing up. They avoid the topic altogether."

Alan Hilfer, director of psychology at Maimonides Medical Center in New York, told US News and World Report: "It''s a hard subject for many parents to broach, but the level of sexual activity in many kids has moved up in terms of initiation. It''s younger…talking about it is very helpful in terms of disease prevention, unwanted pregnancy and even issues around relationships."

Megan Beckett, co-author and a social scientist from the Rand Corp, has called upon parents to kick off the "talk", "earlier than (they) think."

High-flow oxygen can ease headaches

2009-12-10T18:40:00.001+05:00

Fifteen minutes of treatment with high flow oxygen significantly eased cluster headaches, according to a new study.

Cluster headache attacks, characterised by bouts of excruciating pain usually near the eye or temple, typically last for 15 minutes to three hours if untreated and have a frequency of up to eight attacks a day on alternate days.

High flow oxygen is given at a rate of six to seven litres per minute for 10 to 20 minutes at the start of a cluster headache.

Attacks usually occur in bouts, or clusters, lasting for weeks or months, separated by remissions lasting months or years, according to the study.

The current treatment for acute attacks of cluster headache is injection with the drug sumatriptan, but frequent dosing is not recommended because of adverse effects.

Another treatment option is the inhalation of high-dose, high-flow oxygen, but its use may be limited because of the lack of a good quality controlled trial.

Anna S. Cohen, of the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, and colleagues conducted a randomised, placebo-controlled trial of high-flow oxygen for the treatment of acute attacks of cluster headache.

The study included 109 adults (aged 18-70 years). Patients treated four cluster headache episodes alternately with high-flow oxygen (inhaled oxygen at 100 percent, or 12 litres per minute, delivered by face mask, for 15 minutes at the start of an attack) or placebo (high-flow air).

Patients were recruited and followed up between 2002 and 2007. The final analysis included 57 patients with episodic cluster headache and 19 with chronic cluster headache.

The researchers found that 78 percent of the patients who received oxygen reported being pain-free or to have adequate relief within 15 minutes of treatment, compared to 20 percent of patients who received air.

For other outcomes, such as being pain-free at 30 minutes or a reduction in pain up to 60 minutes, treatment with oxygen was superior to air. There were no serious adverse events related to the treatments, says a National Hospital release.

"To our knowledge, this is the first adequately powered trial of high-flow oxygen compared with placebo, and it confirms clinical experience and current guidelines that inhaled oxygen can be used as an acute attack therapy for episodic and chronic cluster headache," the authors write.

Exhibition reveals ancient Greeks’ sex life

2009-12-10T18:39:00.001+05:00

The ancient Greeks are till date the unbeaten heroes when it comes to love and lust – and now an exhibition featuring eye-popping art in Athens has exposed the practice of sex in the classical times.

"The Greeks were anything but prudes," said Nicholaos Stampolidis, director of the Museum of Cycladic Art, where the show will run for six months. "Theirs was a society of great tolerance and lack of guilt."

Stampolidis was able to narrate the story of love in antiquity after amassing around 272 objets d`art, including masterpieces from more than 50 international museums which date from the 6th century BC to the 4th century AD.

"The concept of Eros – love – was very broad in ancient times," the archaeologist said. "Sexual desire was, of course, a component but it was also a unifying force that encompassed the desire for anyone or indeed anything."

"It wasn`t an easy task," The Guardian quoted the professor, as saying.

He went on: "It`s easy to write about love in either poetry or prose. It`s much more difficult to represent it visually

Casual sex ‘doesn’t cause damage

2009-12-09T18:41:00.001+05:00

Casual sex does not cause emotional or psychological damage in young people, says a new study.

Researchers at the University of Minnesota found that young adults engaging in casual sexual encounters do not appear to be at increased risk for harmful psychological outcomes as compared to sexually active young adults in more committed relationships.

While this study focused on the psychological impact, researchers warned that the physical risks of casual sex should not be overlooked.

Study author Marla E Eisenberg and colleagues used data from Project Eating Among Teens (EAT), an ongoing study that assessed a diverse sample of 1,311 sexually active young adults.

From 2003-2004, 574 males and 737 females in Minnesota with a mean age of 20.5 were surveyed regarding sexual behaviours and emotional well-being.

Of the sexually active respondents, 55 percent reported that their last sexual partner was an exclusive dating partner followed by 25 percent whose most recent partner was a fiancée, spouse, or life partner.

Much lower percentages reported that their last sexual partner was a close but not exclusive partner (12 percent) or a casual acquaintance (8 percent). Over twice as many males as females reported that their last partner was casual.

Although there has been speculation in public discourse that sexual encounters outside a committed romantic relationship may be emotionally damaging for young people, this study found no differences in the psychological well being of young adults who had a casual sexual partner verses a more committed partner.

"While the findings from this study show that young adults engaging in casual sexual encounters do not appear to be at increased risk for harmful psychological outcomes compared to those in more committed relationships, this should not minimize the legitimate threats to physical well-being associated with casual sexual relationships, and the need for such messages in sexuality education programs and other interventions with young adults," Eisenberg said.

Scottish girls most likely to dress sexily

2009-12-09T18:40:00.001+05:00

Scottish girls are more likely to wear sexy clothes than other UK women, a new study reveals.
To reach the conclusion, experts asked more than 1,600 UK women.

In the poll by fashion website Brag ItUp.com, they were asked how they chose what to wear in the morning, reports The Sun.

In Scotland, 53 per cent admit it`s what they think men find attractive. Just 42 per cent dress for themselves and five per cent want to wow other women.

Scottish Sun columnist Martel Maxwell said: "I dress to feel good. It`s great if guys do a double take."

The study found only 12 per cent of English girls dress up for men.

Women more happier with life than men

2009-12-09T10:33:00.001+05:00

Women get more pleasure out of life than men - but only by 15 minutes a day, says a new study.

Social Policy Research Centre fellow Dr Roger Patulny, from the University of New South Wales: "If you add up all the times together - the good times and the bad times - men have about 10 minutes less time that they enjoy than women in a day and six minutes more time that they dislike."

"Women tend to enjoy the things that they do with their time more than men do," Patulny said.

In the study, the expert found that the biggest negative for women was housework: 90 minutes of it every day, reports The Daily Telegraph.

As for males, they did about 50 minutes of unenjoyable chores.

They also endured more "bad" time in paid work and commuting, the research added.

"Women seem happier," Patulny said. "They are happier if you ask them how satisfied they are with life but they also have more happy time."

He believes that the difference may be that males tend to be more socially disconnected because they spend less time with families and friends and are more likely to see themselves as lonely.

Here's why men cheat

2009-12-08T06:48:00.001+05:00

The allegations of extramarital affairs are often associated with men who are perceived to be promiscuous. However, a Wake Forest University researcher debunks the stereotype with his new finding.

According to Andrew Irwin-Smiler, majority of boys and men prioritize and value emotional connection to their partner. "As a culture, we have a perception that men just want sex and that all men are promiscuous,” said Smiler. But the research shows that while men do have more partners than women, most men only have one partner at a time as majority of boys and men seek emotional connection with their partner.

Smiler’s research also shows that the popular media fuels the perception that men are promiscuous with television characters such a Fonzie in Happy Days, Hawkeye Pierce in Mash, Sam Malone in Cheers, Joey Tribbiani in Friends and Charlie Harper in 2 ½ Men.

The high-profile scandals involving public figures only add to the common misperceptions of men’s sexual behaviour. “The question is whether the media reflects reality or creates reality?” Smiler said.

What lies behind unsatisfying sex?

2009-12-07T18:46:00.001+05:00

An Asia Pacific sexual health survey in 13 countries including India has uncovered staggering levels of sexual dissatisfaction among 60 percent of Weak erections cheat two thirds of men, women of satisfying sex.

The Asia Pacific Sexual Health and Overall Wellness (AP SHOW) survey found that men with "suboptimal erections" are less satisfied with sex and other aspects of the sexual experience.

The survey also found that men and women who are "completely" or "very satisfied" with sex are more than three times more likely to feel good about their relationships and life overall compared to those who are only "somewhat" or "not at all satisfied" with sex.

Fifty four percent of men with optimal erectile function say that it is "very true" that they feel good about their relationships compared to 47 percent with suboptimal erections.

Among women, this difference is significantly more pronounced - 65 percent of women whose partners have optimal erection function say that it is "very true" that they feel good about their relationships, compared to only 32 percent of women whose partners have suboptimal erections.

The data was based on survey of 3,957 sexually active men and women (2,016 males and 1,941 females). The respondents were aged between 25-74 years and had had sexual intercourse at least once in the past 12 months.

The 13 countries surveyed were India, Australia, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and New Zealand.

Rosie King, sexual health physician, Sydney Centre for Sexual and Relationship Therapy, said: "A person`s willingness to talk about sexual health and performance is heavily influenced by diverse cultural beliefs and practices - most patients and even doctors are uncomfortable initiating such discussions. Therefore, a great many people remain untreated."

Suboptimal erections are a common problem, affecting more than 50 percent of men aged 40 to 70 years. Erection problems and suboptimal erections are not a normal part of ageing. An older male has just as much right to normal sexual functioning as younger men.

Suboptimal erections can be due to an underlying illness or medication, and is not always due to psychological factors alone. Suboptimal erections often have a mixed genesis, both organic and psychological. Concomitant physical disease is an important cause of suboptimal erections, said a Sydney Centre release.

Effective and convenient treatments are available and international medical consensus has affirmed that in suitable patients with suboptimal erections or ED, oral medications should be the first-line treatment.

Here’s why men cheat on women!

2009-12-06T15:58:00.001+05:00

The allegations of extramarital affairs are often associated with men who are perceived to be promiscuous. However, a Wake Forest University researcher debunks the stereotype with his new finding.
According to Andrew Irwin-Smiler, majority of boys and men prioritize and value emotional connection to their partner.

“As a culture, we have a perception that men just want sex and that all men are promiscuous,” said Smiler.

But the research shows that while men do have more partners than women, most men only have one partner at a time as majority of boys and men seek emotional connection with their partner.

Smiler’s research also shows that the popular media fuels the perception that men are promiscuous with television characters such a Fonzie in Happy Days, Hawkeye Pierce in Mash, Sam Malone in Cheers, Joey Tribbiani in Friends and Charlie Harper in 2 ½ Men.

The high-profile scandals involving public figures only add to the common misperceptions of men’s sexual behaviour.

“The question is whether the media reflects reality or creates reality?” Smiler said.

Free sex to defend trade!

2009-12-06T07:42:00.001+05:00

After Copenhagen Mayor Ritt Bjerregaard issued postcards to city hotels warning summit guests not to entertain Danish sex workers during the upcoming conference, the prostitutes struck back by offering free sex to anyone who produces one of the warnings.
Copenhagen’s city council in conjunction with Bjerregaard sent postcards out to 160 Copenhagen hotels urging COP15 guests and delegates to ‘Be sustainable – don’t buy sex’.

“Dear hotel owner, we would like to urge you not to arrange contacts between hotel guests and prostitutes,” a news website quoted the notice to hotel owners as saying.

But Copenhagen prostitutes, who are saying that the council has no business meddling in their affairs, did not meet the move with favour.

According to the Web site avisen.dk, they have now offered free sex to anyone who can produce one of the offending postcards and their COP15 identity card.

According to the report, the move has been organized by the Sex Workers Interest Group (SIO)

“This is sheer discrimination. Ritt Bjerregaard is abusing her position as Lord Mayor in using her power to prevent us carrying out our perfectly legal job,” SIO Spokeswoman Susanne Moller said.

“I don’t understand how she can be allowed to contact people in this way,” she added.

Moller adds that it is reprehensible and unfair that Copenhagen politicians have chosen to use the UN Climate Summit as a platform for a hetz against sex workers.

“But they’ve done it and we have to defend ourselves,” Moller stated.

Cellphones don't cause brain cancer

2009-12-06T07:26:00.002+05:00

It is official: cellphones don't increase the risk of brain cancer.

A long-term study has found there is no link between brain tumour and the use of cell phones. The study among Scandinavian people from 1974 and 2003 has found that the use of cell phones did not increase brain tumour risk among users.

"We did not observe (notice) an effect of mobile phones on the incidence of brain tumours,'' study leader Isabelle Deltour of the Institute of Cancer Epidemiology in Copenhagen told a Canadian television network. As part of this extensive study, 16 million people in Finland, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden were tracked for what happened to rates of glioma and meningioma brain tumours among them over 30 years.

But the researchers found that only 60,000 of them developed brain tumours. This rate of brain tumour was not higher than that seen before the use of cell phones began. The study found that there was no increase in risk. If there was any increase in risk, it was too small to be observed or the period needed for cell phones to cause brain tumours was longer than the period studied.

The Scandinavian study commenced just when cell phones were introduced.

"If there was a connection, we would have expected a sudden marked increase in the rates, especially among younger males, which were the first to use cells phones.We didn't see that,'' Deltour said.

However, the researchers stressed that more longer-term studies are needed to prove that the use of cell phone does not raise the risk of brain cancer. They said they will continue monitoring to see if it takes longer to detect changes in tumour rates.

Another international study on the link between cell phone use and brain cancer is likely to come out next year.

The Scandinavian study has appeared in Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

Physically active boys tend to be smarter

2009-12-05T07:34:00.001+05:00

Teenage boys who are heavily into sport get new respect in a Swedish study that found physically active teenagers tend to be smarter than their couch-potato counterparts.

Researchers from the Institute of Medicine at the University of Gothenburg set out to see if aerobic or cardiovascular fitness and muscle strength were associated with brain power and future socioeconomic status.

They analyzed a physical and intelligence snapshot taken of 1.2 million Swedish men born between 1950 and 1976 when they reported for mandatory military duty at age 18.

They also assessed genetic and family influences by looking at the scores of brothers and twins and, over time, the association between all initial scores and measures of success at midlife, including education level and occupation.

The researchers, led by Dr. H. Georg Kuhn, said the results showed a strong positive link between cardiovascular fitness and smarts but not between muscle strength and intelligence measures.

"Male subjects with improved predicted cardiovascular fitness between 15 and 18 years of age exhibited significantly greater intelligence scores than subjects with decreased cardiovascular fitness," Kuhn and colleagues report in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The ability to compare twins' scores was another important strength allowing the researchers to remove the "influence of genetic, social and family backgrounds.

Kuhn said with several thousand twins, they were able to show that, on average, the fitter twin also had the higher IQ score.

The researchers said the findings have important implications for the education of young people as increasing, not decreasing, physical education in schools can not only slow the shift toward sedentary lifestyles but also may help address "perhaps intellectual and academic underachievement."

But they said it was still unclear if more active boys are smarter or if smarter boys are more active and more studies addressing causality were needed.

"We cannot assume that fitness per se increases cognitive function, so joining a gym does not by itself make you 'smarter'. But in order for optimal cognitive function/development to take place, regular cardiovascular exercise is needed," Kuhn told Reuters Health.

"There is no reason to assume that this cannot be extrapolated to girls. Women have more or less the same cardiovascular risk factors and therefore benefit from cardiovascular exercise in the same way."

Avoid sex counselling before marriage

2009-12-05T07:33:00.001+05:00

A new study has revealed that men on the verge of marriage should avoid sex counselling if they want to have a "problem-free" love life.

The study looked into the sexual prowess of couples, and found that women who undergo pre-wedding counselling were more satisfied in the marital bedroom, whereas men who do not attend counselling were more satisfied in bed.

In the research, 36 couples were asked to undergo premarital sex counselling, while 35 were asked not to, and the results showed that the sessions reduced fear and reluctance in the bedroom.

"Through its ability to address and remove fear and misunderstanding and the resulting sexual reluctance and related problems, premarital sexual education and counselling can contribute to sexual satisfaction," News.com.au quoted the researchers as saying.

Almost 81 per cent of women who attended the sessions had a "problem-free sexual life", compared to their non-counselled counterparts of which 77 percent had a similar result.

But the researchers, from Pamukkale University and Ege University in Turkey, found that the sex lives of men were much better without the counselling.

Despite the difference in satisfaction between the genders, the researchers said that couples should attend the sex counselling.

"A recommendation to encourage engaged couples to attend premarital sexual counselling is made based on the findings," the research said of the findings published in the CSIRO journal Sexual Health.

"It is thought that an intervention plan ... will help nurses guide recently married couples to greater sexual satisfaction," the researchers added.

All men watch p-o-r-n, find scientists

2009-12-05T07:30:00.002+05:00

Naturally all blokes don't watch pornography, but when scientists recently launched a search in Canada for men who had never looked at such sexually explicit material - believe it or not, they couldn't find any.

In fact, an international team was conducting a study comparing the views of men in their 20s who had never been exposed to pornography with regular users. But, their project stumbled at the first hurdle when they failed to find a single man who had not been seen it.

"We started our research seeking men in their 20s who had never consumed pornography. We couldn't find any," The Daily Telegraph quoted the team's leader Prof Simon Louis Lajeunesse as saying.

Although hampered in its original aim, the study examined the habits of those young men who used pornography - which would appear to be all of them.

The team interviewed 20 heterosexual male students who consumed pornography and found on average, they first watched pornography when they were 10 years old.

Around 90 per cent of consumption was on the Internet, while 10 per cent of material came from video stores. Single men watched pornography for an average of 40 minutes, three times a week, while those in relationships watched it 1.7 times a week for around 20 minutes.

Rules for a second date

2009-12-04T09:28:00.002+05:00

Okay, you really like this guy and the first date went well. And he's called up asking for another one. But how do you make it work? It's confusing, right? Will he expect something for the money he's spending on you? Or should you go dutch, just so that you make it clear that you want to take it slow.

Men are really easy to read, so remember these second date rules to know what you should expect.

Show interest

Most people are aware of the fact that it does take two or more dates to really know a person. Make sure you have your dates cleared for a week after the first date, so you can go out with him again. If a man wants a second date he'll call back in 24 hours to three days.

If you have a common friend who set you up, let him/her know how much you liked the first one, and that you are looking forward to the second one.

Take charge

Of course, no one's stopping you from taking the initiative, if you are interested then go for it by asking him on a second date. But do make sure you've read him right and detected an interested on his part - it prevents a lot of embarrassment.

Don't jump to conclusions

Just because he asked for a second date doesn't mean he's ready to jump into marriage! Take it easy and don't share such personal feelings so fast yet.

Get to know each other

Find out his likes, dislikes and convey your own. This way you can check to see what your common interests are. Believe me, one or two dates are not enough to find out everything about each other, no matter how strong the attraction!

Hope these rules help and your second date translates into many more!

Hottest star in the galaxy discovered

2009-12-04T06:51:00.001+05:00

Astronomers have discovered one of the fieriest stars in the galaxy which is 35 times hotter than the sun.

The dying star which has a surface temperature of 200,000 degrees was captured by astronomers at Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics in the University of Manchester by using the recently refurbished Hubble Space Telescope (HST).

The star was located at centre of the Bug Nebula which is about 3,500 light years away in the constellation Scorpius.

The Bug Nebula is a bipolar planetary nebula in the constellation Scorpius -- one of the areas of the celestial sphere. Nebula is an interstellar cloud of dust, hydrogen gas, helium gas and plasma.

This is the first time the star has been pictured despite numerous attempts by stargazers across the world, The Daily Mail reported.

“This star was so hard to find because it is hidden behind a cloud of dust and ice in the middle of the nebula,” explained Prof Albert Zijlstra from the University of Manchester.

“Planetary nebulae like the Bug form when a dying star ejects much of its gas back into space and are among the most beautiful objects in the night sky,” he said.

The images were taken to show off the new improved HST, which space shuttle astronomers installed with a new Wide Field Camera earlier this year.

Don't do this in bed..Tips for Males n Females

2009-12-03T19:05:00.002+05:00

Anne is lying in bed with her boyfriend Jayesh. It has been a passionate evening. And while they're both whispering sweet nothings to the other, Anne says, "My ex-boyfriend had this funny habit of smoking right after we made love. I can imagine him lighting up now."
Anne now refers to Jayesh as her ex-boyfriend too.
As important as it is to know what your man likes in bed, it's even more important to know what he doesn't. So never, ever do the following:

Discuss your past sex life

Keep the names of whoever you've slept with to yourself. Your current guy is not interested - you are raving about him! Naina Malhotra, a 25-year-old copywriter, had a habit of talking about her ex all the time. "One day, I did it in bed. The guy I was with just got up, put on his clothes and left, leaving me wondering what went wrong," she says.

Talk too much

Yes, those post-coital conversations are important to cement a bond between the two of you. But it gets annoying if you keep yapping for hours on end. "I asked my girlfriend to carry a notepad to bed and write down all the things she wanted to say as I would be in a better frame of mind to listen to her the next morning," says Ajay Verma, a 27-year-old software programmer.

Ask about his feelings for you

Do not, absolutely do not ask him 'do you love me?' immediately after you have had sex. It's a rather pointless question, since he won't say 'No' even if he doesn't love you. Take him out during the day if you want to ask such profound questions.

Excessive cuddling

Yes, we love to do this right after the act, but men apparently, need to sleep. Really! Sex is a task that requires an immense input of time and energy. Vikram Sharma, a 25-year-old marketing manager, says "Sex can be exhausting sometimes! I want to sleep, but no, she wants to go cuddle."

Discuss relationship issues

As much as you have been wanting to talk to him about things between you, leave them for until the morning after. Time spent in bed together is supposed to be intimate and pleasurable. Discussing any sort of sensitive issues may actually wreck the relationship rather than help things for you.

One general rule is: Take everything easy without pushing things too much. Make him happy and the gesture shall be reciprocated!

Look at woman’s feet to know if she likes you

2009-12-03T17:41:00.001+05:00

Searching for the twinkle in her eye to tell if she is head over heels in love with you? Well, it’s time you turn your attention towards her feet, suggests a new study.

The research says the way to tell if a woman likes a man is to look at her feet.

It is believed that our feet gestures are the most powerful form of body language because we are less conscious of what we are doing with them.

As for how to know if a woman has a thing for you: if the female moves her feet away from her body while giggling, to adopt a more open-legged stance, then she is attracted to you. But if her legs are crossed or tucked under her body, then you should forget about her.

Bad news for women: the rules do not apply to men, reports The Telegraph.

Professor Geoff Beattie, one of Britain’s leading psychologists, made the findings after examining how people move their feet in response to different situations.

Prof Beattie, who is Dean of psychological sciences at the University of Manchester, said: “Whilst people might know what their facial expression or hands might be imparting, they will often have no idea whether their feet are moving or the messages their feet are sending out.

“People can mask smiles, or mask what they are doing with their eyes, but feet are actually a bit easier to read because people don't know what they are doing with them.

"The secret language of feet can reveal a great deal about our personality, what we think of the person we're talking to and even our emotional and psychological state, they are a fascinating channel of non-verbal communication.”

He added: “If you are meeting someone for the first time, laughter is not necessarily a good thing – people can be laughing at you, or with you.

"If a woman's feet move when she laughs, it is one of the most powerful signals that she likes you.

"If they are crossing the feet, or crossing the legs – not good.”

The research compiled on behalf of shoemakers Jeffery West also claimed that if a man is nervous, he will show his feelings by increasing his foot movement. Women however, do the opposite, and keep their feet still.