News Headlines (114) 3 January 2013

ONLINE TODAY

► Space Travel May Be Harmful to the Brain, Study Suggests; Prolonged Cosmic Radiation Exposure Could Hasten Alzheimer's

► Apple Is Already Testing The iPhone 6 - by Jay Yarow 

► Next-generation iPhone, iOS 7 discovered in website logs - By Brad Reed | BGR News

► China eyes April opening of world's largest building - Chengdu's New Century Global Centre is latest symbol of China's economic might and massive ambition | By CNN Travel staff 28 December, 2012 

► Hillary Clinton - The woman most admired by Americans 

► Naomi Watts: Playing Princess Diana was the hardest thing I've done -  By Eleanor Gower  PUBLISHED 5 December 2012 

► Leonardo DiCaprio's Bi-Continental New Year's Eve - By Richard Lawson | The Atlantic Wire

► Effect of fiscal cliff  to taxpayers  ||  Has the 'fiscal cliff' fight changed how Washington works?  ||  The Cliff is Dead. Long Live the Cliff.  ||  Debt Ceiling Doubt and Its Costs  ||  VIDEOS - Jeffrey Miron 

► 'World to be dominated by China-US connection'. Published on May 6, 2012 by RussiaToday :: China's rampant economic growth and political influence continues raising numerous questions about the outcomes of this growth. China expert and author John Naisbitt told RT that the world is soon to be dominated by US-China relations.




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Odessa Girls - Ukraine. Published on Nov 8, 2012 by journeymanpictures :: With its seemingly endless supply of beautiful young, single women, Odessa, on the frontier of the ex-Soviet union, is fast becoming the seedy new tourist magnet for single American men of all ages.

"I'm already too old for the men here... Getting a man here is very competitive, because there are so few of them." In a city where women outnumber men almost five to four, Julia's situation is typical of many. Following an abusive marriage she signed up with one of the many local agencies that offer the chance to be paired up with hopefuls from abroad. Paying upwards of three and a half thousand dollars, men from across the globe travel to Odessa in the hope of meeting beautiful young women. But despite accusations of being little more than a legalised pimping service, clients such as Arthur, a 65 year-old veteran of six romance tours, have no qualms with the service they offer. "It's like purchasing a very nice used Cadillac," he explains. "I need to drive it before I make a decision about taking it home and putting it in my garage." But for the women who don't get picked it's frequently a case of disappointment and heartbreak. "It feels like we're goods in a market," explains Julia. "No one there looks inside our hearts."



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Teenage Heroin Epidemic. Published on Jun 20, 2012 by VICE :: Swansea Love Story: An award-winning look at a generation lost to heroin, as told through the tragic love story of Amy and Cornelius.

In 2009, Swansea drug agencies reported a 180 percent rise in heroin use, and it's visible on the city's streets. Early one morning we meet a young, homeless couple named Amy and Cornelius in a city centre alley. As heroin-addicted alcoholics, they're smack in the middle of two of South Wales's most harrowing epidemics.




► Le Libre Penseur (Dr Salim Laïbi), Novembre 2012.  Published on Nov 23, 2012 ::  "La faillite du monde moderne". (VIDEO) 





► Clinton Leaves Hospital After Treatment for Clot. Published on Jan 2, 2013 :: Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has been released from a New York hospital where she was treated for a blood clot in her head. (Jan. 2)  (VIDEO)


► Christie Blames Boehner for Sandy Aid Inaction. Published on Jan 2, 2013 :: New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is fuming over the House's decision to not hold a vote on Superstorm Sandy relief package. Christie said Wednesday that the only group to blame for decision is the House's GOP majority and Speaker John Boehner. (Jan. 2) (VIDEO)

► Rep. King Says Boehner Promises Sandy Aid Votes. Published on Jan 2, 2013 :: Rep. Peter King says House Speaker John Boehner has promised votes to aid victims of Superstorm Sandy by Jan. 15. King says the speaker will schedule a vote Friday for $9 billion in flood insurance and another on Jan. 15 for $51 billion. (Jan. 2) (VIDEO) 

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Sea Lion As Scientist: Animals Help Stop Decline. Published on Jan 2, 2013 :: Seventy-five percent of Steller Sea Lions have vanished in the North Pacific. Now, a team of researchers near Vancouver, British Columbia, is working with trained sea lions to figure out why the population is in such steep decline. (Jan. 2)



► Obama: Deal Makes Tax Code More Fair. Published on Jan 1, 2013 ::  President Obama says the fiscal cliff deal makes the tax code more fair, while helping the US avoid falling back into recession. The President spoke after the House passed the bill Tuesday night. (Jan. 2) (VIDEO) 

► Obama Praises Deal, Says There's More to Be Done.  Published on Jan 2, 2013 :: President Obama is praising the bill that staves off the fiscal cliff tax hikes and spending cuts. The House of Representatives followed the Senate's lead, and passed the bill late Tuesday. (Jan. 2) (VIDEO) 

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Raw: President Heading to Hawaii.  Published on Jan 1, 2013 :: President Obama is returning to Hawaii to resume his vacation. The President left the White House after the House of Representatives approved the deal to avert the fiscal cliff. (Jan. 2) || ► Raw: Obama Returns to Hawaii. Published on Jan 2, 2013 ::  President Barack Obama is back in Hawaii for vacation after a tense, end-of-the-new-year standoff with Congress over the fiscal cliff. (Jan. 2)

► McConnell: Fiscal cliff deal not great, but it shields Americans from tax hike - By Sen. Mitch McConnell, Special to Yahoo! News 

► 'Fiscal cliff' deal: What will it mean for you? Some aspects of the fiscal cliff deal are well-known – such as rising tax rates on the rich. But, actually, everyone will be paying more taxes. Here's a look at the deal's details. By Mark Trumbull | Christian Science Monitor  

► Budget deal leaves U.S. defense sector in limbo - By Jim Wolf and David Alexander 

► Obama Signs 'Fiscal Cliff' Bill With Autopen - By Mary Bruce | ABC OTUS News 

► Obama's Push for Immigration Reform Starts Now - By Adam Clark Estes | The Atlantic Wire

► How Obama won and lost in 'fiscal cliff' deal - President Obama would have looked incompetent if the nation had gone over the fiscal cliff. But now he faces three more cliffs early in 2013, and those could limit his scope. By Linda Feldmann | Christian Science Monitor 

► Obama begins second term facing pessimistic public: Poll 

► U.S. economy to row against austerity tide in 2013 - By Jason Lange 

► US still faces political fights on spending, debt -  By PAUL WISEMAN and CHRISTOPHER S. RUGABER | Associated Press

► The new normal for politics - By Marc Ambinder | The Week :: http://news.yahoo.com/normal-politics-151200353.html  

► Congress' OK of fiscal cliff deal gives Obama a win, prevents GOP blame for tax boosts - By Alan Fram, The Associated Press

► 'Fiscal cliff' deal leaves everyone bruised, but some more so than others 

► How Much Should We Really Fear the Next Budget Fight? - By Michael Santoli | The Exchange

► Obama's Hawaii vacation: Day 1 - Associated Press

► Venezuela opposition: government not providing enough information about ailing Hugo Chavez - By Ian James, The Associated Press || Venezuela opposition: Chavez secrecy feeds rumors - By By IAN JAMES

► Mandela's recovery 'on track' at home: S.African government

► Yellow is the new red on China's roads - New traffic rule deems yellow the new red on China's rules, confusing and angering drivers | By Louise Watt, Associated Press 

► Grandma Delivers 1st New Year Baby - By Christina Lopez | ABC News Blogs

► Sun Rings In New Year with Solar Eruption - By SPACE.com Staff

► Never-Before-Seen Stage of Planet Birth Revealed - By Nola Taylor Redd | SPACE.com 

► 100 Billion Alien Planets Fill Our Milky Way Galaxy: Study - By SPACE.com Staff  

► Politics Is Key to Avoiding Global Warming Catastrophe - By Stephanie Pappas, LiveScience Senior Writer 

► Cities where homes are the most expensive -By Alexander E. M. Hess and Michael B. Sauter | 24/7 Wall St.com – Wed, Dec 12, 2012




► Lost Bicycle Swallowed by Wash. Tree - By Kevin Dolak | ABC News Blogs 

► Identical Twins in Ohio Give Birth Two Hours Apart - By Eliza Murphy | ABC News Blogs 

► Women Lose Half Their Weight: How They Did It - By ABC News | ABC News Blogs




► Bigger Tax Bite for Most Under Fiscal Pact - By BINYAMIN APPELBAUM and CATHERINE RAMPELL | New York Times


► 76 Year Old Circus Great Still Performing in Family Business

► Pakistan militant leader 'killed'

Senior Pakistani militant leader Mullah Nazir is killed by a US drone strike in the tribal area of north-western Pakistan, local security officials say.
* Inside Pakistan's drone country
* Afghan-Pakistan militant nexus 
* How do drones work?

► Delhi rape suspects to be charged

Five men are due to be charged in India with the murder of a 23-year-old student whose gang-rape on a Delhi bus sparked nationwide outrage.
* 'India has to change' - VIDEO
* Family remember 'brave' woman
* Rape victim whispered 'I'm sorry' - AUDIO
* Why are Indian women treated so badly? 
* 'Eve teasing' in India
* India's rulers 'too slow' over rape protests 

► 3 January 2013 - Five-a-day campaign: A partial success Michael Mosley From BBC Radio's You and Yours  ||  N u t r i t i o n  - BBC Health 

► 2 January 2013 - Banquet-loving Hong Kong grapples with mountain of food waste | By Katie Hunt Business reporter, BBC News, Hong Kong 

► 14 December 2012 - Why Japan's 'Fukushima 50' remain unknown | By Rupert Wingfield-Hayes BBC News, Tatsuno, Japan

► Hell-bent: Transcending pain in competitive yoga.  3 January 2013 -  For the millions of people who have made a new year's resolution to lose weight in 2013, yoga is an enticing option.But they are fooling themselves if they think it will be an easy route to a better body and a more relaxed mind. In a bid to lose 45lbs (20.4kg), Benjamin Lorr began attending super-heated Bikram yoga classes in Brooklyn, New York.It was the beginning of a sweaty two-year journey which he documented in his book "Hell-Bent: Obsession, Pain, and the Search for Something Like Transcendence in Competitive Yoga".  The BBC attended a class at Bikram Lower East Side, one of Mr Lorr's favourite studios, and filmed him practising in his apartment with US Yoga gold medallist Courtney Mace.  Produced by Anna Bressanin; camera by Ilya Shnitser. (VIDEO) 

► 'Truth' demand over Chavez health 
Venezuela's opposition calls for an "objective" account of the health of President Chavez, who is said to be "stable but delicate" in hospital.

► 3 January 2013 -  North Korea: Bringing modern music to Pyongyang (Alexander Liebreich) 

► Münchner Kammerorchester in Pyongyang, DPRK, North Korea. Published on Nov 13, 2012 :: Münchner Kammerorchster performing Arirang with musicians of the Kim Won Gyun Academy, on 09.Nov. 2012, under the conductor Alexander Liebreich



► Playboy founder Hugh Hefner marries 'Playmate' Crystal Harris. 3 January 2013 - Hugh Hefner, the founder of Playboy, has started 2013 as a married man once again. The 86-year-old exchanged vows with his "runaway bride" Crystal Harris at a private Playboy Mansion ceremony on New Year's Eve. The 26-year-old was "Playmate of the Month" in 2009 and previously broke off her engagement to Hefner in 2011, just days before they were due to be married. The couple's ages are separated by six decades. But Hefner has previously spoken about their prospects for a long life together. Alpa Patel reports. (VIDEO)

► 2 January 2013  - Weight is healthy' study criticised

► Tomorrow's world: A guide to the next 150 years

► The new 'Australian made'

► Award-winning dining in Hong Kong 

► Will Eurozone fare better in 2013?. 2 January 2013 - After a year of economic stagnation most people expect a tentative recovery in 2013. However, hopes for a prosperous new year look bleak across Europe and unemployment across the Eurozone could top 12%. Tighter government spending, higher taxes and unemployment will not just affect Europe's economic health could also have an impact across the globe.  Nigel Cassidy reports. (VIDEO)

* Eurozone crisis: Troubling year ahead 
* Merkel warns of tough times ahead
* Portuguese budget sent to court
* France: Treading troubled waters

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What's Left To Cut? 'Greece sacrifice on Euro altar'.  Published on Nov 12, 2012 by RussiaToday :: Another year of pain looms for Greece as the country's Parliament approves an austerity budget which will force more biting cuts upon an already struggling population. It's been a pre-condition from international lenders who've been delaying another bailout cash injection for months now. Thousands of Greeks gathered outside Parliament to voice their opposition to next year's budget. It's approval follows another even more extensive austerity package, that sparked violent protests last week. For more on the story RT talks to joined by John Laughland, director of studies at the Institute of Democracy and cooperation in Paris.



► Today's African Proverb :: "The buttocks are like a married couple - though there is constant friction between them, they will still go to the grave together" - Sent by Mubita Lubinda, Lusaka, Zambia

► 'Fiscal cliff deal brings no relief to struggling Americans'. Published on Jan 2, 2013 :: The U.S. House of Representatives has approved a controversial bill, designed to prevent the country from potentially sliding back into recession. The fiscal cliff deal - passed earlier by the Senate - will prevent nationwide tax hikes and spending cuts from coming into force, at least for the time being (VIDEO) || NEWS - House approves 'fiscal cliff' deal 

► CrossTalk: 2013 Tea Leaves.  Published on Jan 2, 2013 :: What will happen in 2013? Can we expect any good news? Where is the Arab Spring headed this year? Will average American families see more prosperity? How will the Asia-Pacific region fare in 2013? And will this be a good year for Europe? CrossTalking with John Glaser, Anne-Elisabeth Moutet and Will Durst. (VIDEO) 

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Verbal Camouflage: How US newspeak softens hard truths.  Published on Jan 2, 2013 :: The political forum is often the place where new words and phrases are invented to soften the hard truth. But as RT's Marina Portnaya asks, can the new vocabulary really distract public attention away from urgent issues?


► White House wins fight to keep drone killings of Americans secret

► US taxes to go up in 2013 regardless of 'fiscal cliff' deal

► Gun control legislation advances in Illinois state Senate 

► Free Syrian Army claims chemical weapons capability

► Step off the scales: New study says overweight people live longer

► Six-year-old suspended from school for pretend gunshot

► Israeli military preparing hospitals for chemical attacks – report

► Gaddafi millions: French judge hears shady details of Sarkozy's campaign funding

► Another tax exile? French electronic composer Jean Michel Jarre may move to London's 'Tech City' 

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Jean-Michel Jarre: Les Concerts En Chine / Concert in China FULL ALBUM || Equinoxe 4

► US Congress passes 'fiscal cliff' deal. Published on Jan 1, 2013 :: The US House of Representatives has passed the "fiscal cliff" bill, ending a months-long dispute over the measure that averts tax hikes and spending cuts. After a day of deliberation, Republicans voted in favour of the Senate-approved bill on Tuesday evening. The legislation will now head to the White House for President Barack Obama to sign it into law. Al Jazeera's John Terrett reports from Washington, D.C. (VIDEO)

► Economics expert discusses 'fiscal cliff'. Published on Jan 1, 2013 :: Steve Keen, a professor of Economics and Finance at the University of Western Sydney, talks to Al Jazeera about the impacts of the fiscal cliff. (VIDEO)

► President Obama reacts to 'fiscal cliff' deal. Published on Jan 1, 2013 :: President Obama says the deal raises taxes on the wealthiest two percent of Americans, while preventing a middle class tax hike that could have sent the economy "back in a recession." (VIDEO) 

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Al Jazeera World - Camels in the Outback. Published on Jan 1, 2013 :: Wild camels in Australia are being culled because they are perceived to be an environmental problem and pests to farmers. Al Jazeera World goes to South Australia with Qatari businessman Ali Sultan Al Hajri to find a solution to mass killings.



► No longer silent. Published on Jan 2, 2013 :: We examine if the New Delhi gang rape tragedy is the tipping point that forces India to address violence against women. (VIDEO) 

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Myanmar refugees refused entry to Thailand. Published on Jan 2, 2013 ::The UN refugee agency is urging the governments of South East Asia to take in Rohingya refugees. A group of people, who say they are from Myanmar, were found in a boat off the coast of Thailand. But they have been turned away. In the last year, about 13,000 people are thought to have left the Bay of Bengal in search of a better life. Al Jazeera's Caroline Malone reports.

Latest Headlines

■ Iraqi Authorities to Release 11 Woman Detainees 
■ Shooter Kills 3 People, Injures 2 in Swiss Village 
■ Icelandic Girl Fights for Right to Her Own Name
■ India Set for Murder, Rape Charges in Gang Attack
■ Pakistan: U.S. Drones Kill 13, Including Commander
■ India May Suspend Lawmakers Accused of Sex Crimes
■ Burma Military Admits Airstrikes Against Kachin 
■ Google Exec Chairman to Visit North Korea

■ 'Tennessee Waltz' Singer Patti Page Dies at 85 



■ Stocks Surge After Congress Passes Budget Deal 
■ Malala's Father Given Diplomatic Role in U.K.
■ Colo. Theater Shooting Lawyers Head Back to Court

► Syria's Rising Death Toll: The Darkness Before Dawn or a Sign of Stalemate?

By Tony Karon
* Assad Rolls the Dice: Is Winter Coming for Syria's Rebels?
* Syria's Agony Portrayed: Photographers Reflect on Most Potent Images

► Clinton Leaves Hospital After Treatment for Clot

* CNN: Will Clot Change Hillary Clinton's Future? (VIDEOS)

► Inside the Taliban's Bomb-Making Industry

► Fiscal Cliff Deal: Washington Puts Off the Tough Stuff

► Google Set to Dodge Federal Antitrust Lawsuit with FTC Deal: Report

► Under Pressure, Boehner Agrees to Sandy Aid Vote

* 'Absolutely Disgraceful': Christie, Others Hit Congress on Sandy Relief Inaction

► Hong Kong's Embattled Leader Faces More Protests


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► Celebrity portraits by The Times - Celebrity photos taken by Los Angeles Times photographers.

► Polar bear swimmers plunge into freezing water to celebrate New Year around the world

► F R A M E W O R K  - Pictures in the News | Jan. 2, 2013 - Posted By: Marc Martin

PHOTOS TODAY

A swimmer with his face painted as the flag of Scotland, reacts as he sits in the water during the New Year's Day Looney Dook swim at South Queensferry in Scotland January 1, 2013. REUTERS/David Moir

A woman walks with her child on the banks of the Yenisey River in air temperatures of about minus 30 degrees Celsius during winter outside the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk Jan. 2, 2013. REUTERS/Ilya Naymushin

Spectator boats in Sydney Harbour look on as New Year's Eve fireworks erupt over the Sydney Harbour Bridge on January 1, 2013. Sydney kicked off a wave of dazzling firework displays welcoming in 2013, from Dubai to Moscow and London, with long-isolated Yangon joining the global pyrotechnics for the first time. AFP PHOTO / Greg WOOD