News Headlines (144) 3 February 2013

ONLINE TODAY

► Reviewing my previous post on January 29, 2013, AP video - Iran send monkey into space | Iranian official: Photo of monkey sent to space shows wrong primate. One of two official packages of photos depicting Iran's famed simian space traveler depicted wrong monkey, but a primate really did fly into space and return safely to Earth, a senior Iranian space official has confirmed. By The Associated Press | Feb.02, 2013 

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Machine gun fire from military helicopters flying over downtown Miami Fl. Published on Jan 26, 2013



► Forget metro sexual man, move over bonnet boasters like Jeremy Clarkson they are in the past as a new generation of men are winning over the hearts and minds of their female counterparts. The Rise Of Techno-Sexual Man. Reality - check women admire tech savvy gents over petrol heads - 31 January 2013 ||  ► The rise of the 'techno-sexual': Why women are saying goodbye to David Gandy and hello to the geeky likes of Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg :: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2267220/The-rise-techno-sexual-Why-women-saying-goodbye-David-Gandy-hello-geeky-likes-Facebook-founder-Mark-Zuckerberg.html


► Bolivia Erects Virgin Statue That's 150 Feet Tall To Kick Off Oruro Carnival (PHOTOS) - 02/01/13   ||  ► Bolivia mining town erects huge statue of Virgin - Associated Press – Fri, Feb 1, 2013  

► 'Red Tails,' Kerry Washington among NAACP Image Award winners  ||  ► Actress Kerry Washington wins big at NAACP Image Awards


► Cathinone - Khat: a legal high, but should it be banned? 

■ Drugs and dance as Israelis blot out intifada -Nightlife in Tel Aviv on a par with the best in London and New York | The Guardian, Saturday 4 September 2004

► Baby brain, adult disease - Scientists find signs of Alzheimer's disease in the brains of infants | By Stephen Ornes / January 24, 2013  


► 1 February 2013  - 'Induce older mums early to cut stillbirth risk'


► How NASA's Communications Satellite Net Works (Infographic) - Ross Toro, SPACE.com Infographics Artist Date: 30 January 2013  ||  ► NASA launches communication satellite - By MARCIA DUNN | Associated Press – Wed, Jan 30, 2013 


► Trichobatrachus robustus  -'Horror frog' breaks own bones to produce claws -  28 May 2008 by Catherine Brahic


► ScienceShot: A 270-Million-Year-Old Tapeworm Infection - by Rachel Nuwer on 30 January 2013 


► ScienceShot: Giving Birth at 10 Million Years Old - by Lizzie Wade on 30 January 2013 ||  ► TW Hydrae: There's More to Astronomers' Favorite Planetary Nursery Than Previously Thought. Jan. 30, 2013 — Using ESA's Herschel Space Telescope, astronomers including Thomas Henning from the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy in Heidelberg have used a new method to determine the mass of the planetary nursery around the star TW Hydrae. 


► Scale weighs black holes better than before. Ground-based microwave telescopes determine masses of supermassive objects - By Andrew Grant. Web edition: January 30, 2013  || ► New Cosmic 'Scale' Could Weigh Distant Black Holes - by Charles Q. Choi, SPACE.com Contributor. Date: 30 January 2013  ||   ► A black-hole mass measurement from molecular gas kinematics in NGC4526



► Discovery Offers New Insights into Formation of Retrograde Exoplanets - Jan 25th, 2013 :: http://www.sci-news.com/astronomy/article00848.html ||  ► ATMOSPHERE AND SPECTRAL MODELS OF THE KEPLER-FIELD PLANETS HAT-P-7b AND TrES-2  



by VICE

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The Rise of Psychedelic Truffles in Amsterdam. Published on Oct 8, 2012 :: We took a trip to Amsterdam to learn about the ban of psychedelic mushrooms and the rise of truffles that contain psilocybin (the stuff that makes you trip balls).



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Investigating the Haitian Zombie (Part 1/6). Published on Nov 16, 2012 :: Rumor has it that there is a secret drug in Haiti that can turn the living into Zombies. In part 1, Hamilton takes off for Port-Au-Prince on a quest for the secret poison.


■ Investigating the Haitian Zombie (Part 2/6)
■ Investigating the Haitian Zombie (Part 3/6)
■ Investigating the Haitian Zombie (Part 4/6) 
■ Investigating the Haitian Zombie (Part 5/6)
■ Investigating the Haitian Zombie (Part 6/6)


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Tripping on Hallucinogenic Frogs (Part 1/3). Published on Oct 19, 2012 :: VICE heads to the Amazon on a hunt for its most hallucinogenic tree frogs. There is an Amazonian frog called Phyllomedusa Bicolor or the Sapo which I have been reading about for years. It is totally different from the psychedelic toads found in North America. The Sapo's venom produces an effect much closer to morphine than LSD, but really it's not like either of those things. It's a distinctly vomitous dissociative experience unlike anything else I've ever encountered.

There has been a lot written about the chemistry of the venom, and it has been said to have a diverse array of effects. Some people think it's a miracle opioid which will yield new non-addictive painkillers. Others think it's a super-potent stimulant and appetite suppressant, and even a strange psychedelic capable of tuning hunters on to the mindset of their prey. In the 80s researchers found one of the constituents of Sapo venom in the urine of autistic children, and developed an entire theory of autism around it.

I had to find out what this frog really does, but supposedly it cannot produce its venom in captivity. The only way to experience its unique trip is to travel down the Amazon River and catch one yourself, which is exactly what I did. — VICE Correspondent Hamilton Morris



■ Tripping on Hallucinogenic Frogs (Part 2/3)
■ Tripping on Hallucinogenic Frogs (Part 3/3)
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Shanghai Property Bubble - China. Uploaded on May 10, 2010 by journeymanpictures  :: Whilst China woos investors at the Shanghai Expo, residents are abandoning the city in search of more affordable housing. Shanghai is rapidly becoming one of the most expensive cities to buy property in the world.



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How to Build A Nuclear Submarine (Full). Uploaded on Jan 14, 2012 by lloydtshare :: Fourteen years to design and build and costing around a billion pounds, nuclear submarine the Astute is one of the most technologically advanced and controversial machines in the world.








► Homosexual Poles hopeful for change. Published on Feb 2, 2013 :: Despite the Polish parliament's recent decision to vote down three bills on civil unions for unmarried couples, the country's homosexual community are hopeful that the ongoing debate will eventually bring about change.

► Hollande meets with Mali's interim leader in Sevare. Published on Feb 2, 2013 :: President Francois Hollande arrived in Mali Saturday to push for African troops to replace French forces who led a lightning advance that drove back radical Islamists from the country's desert north.

► Proud Russia remembers Stalingrad 70 years on. Published on Feb 2, 2013 ::  The city of Volgograd was renamed Stalingrad for a day Saturday as Russia marked the 70th anniversary of a brutal battle in which the Red Army defeated Nazi forces and changed the course of World War II.

► US, Russia seek to iron out Syria differences. Published on Feb 2, 2013 ::  US Vice President Joe Biden and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov met at the Munich Security Conference in Germany on Saturday in a new bid to iron out differences over Syria's war. 

► Getting lost at the world's biggest festival. Published on Feb 2, 2013 ::  The Maha Kumbh Mela in India, the world's biggest religious festival, is meant to be spiritually uplifting. But for the thousands who get lost in the swell of humanity, the experience can be terrifying. 

► Berlin offers safe injection facilities to addicts. Published on Feb 2, 2013 ::  Each day, between 20 and 40 people visit a safe injection facility in Berlin, where drug addicts can take heroin, crack and cocaine legally. 




► On a Beach, Dog Sniffs Out Valuable Whale Vomit. Published on Feb 1, 2013 :: A man in England walking along the beach with his dog stumbles on a smelly piece of rock. It turns out he discovered ambergris, a kind of whale vomit that may bring him riches. (Feb. 1)  || My previous post - ONLINE TODAY  : 2 Feb 2013


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Biden: Would Hold Direct Talks if Iran Serious. Published on Feb 2, 2013 ::  The U.S. is prepared to hold direct talks with Iran in the standoff over its nuclear ambitions, Vice President Joe Biden said Saturday, but insisted that Tehran must show it's serious and Washington won't engage in such talks "just for exercise." 

► White House releases photo of Obama firing gun - Associated Press

► Shoe Obsessed? You'll Need to See This

► A Crowd-Pleasing 8-Layer Dip for Super Bowl Sunday 

► 3 February 2013  - Obama shooting picture released

The White House tweets a picture of Barack Obama skeet-shooting - seemingly to settle a row about whether the president had fired a gun before.
* In statistics: Guns in the US
* Could Obama's guns proposal work?
* Viewpoints: US gun laws
* Would more guns save lives? - VIDEO
* Sales up for US gun shops

► 3 February 2013  - Why Mali's Tuareg are lying low  |  By Tim Whewell BBC News, Bamako 


► 3 February 2013 - France vows to help rebuild Mali

French President Francois Hollande promises to help rebuild Mali, after launching an offensive against Islamists who seized the north of the country.
* Crowds chant 'Hollande is our hero' - VIDEO
* Harding: Elation in Timbuktu
* In pictures: Timbuktu greets Hollande
* Witness tells of Mali 'execution'
* 'Shadow war' looms
* Rise of Sahara's Islamist militants

► 2 February 2013 - Syria opposition chief invited to Moscow  ||  VIDEO - Russian FM Sergei Lavrov meets with Syrian opposition


► Iran unveils Qaher F313 'stealth fighter' plane. 3 February 2013 - Iran has unveiled a new home-made combat aircraft, which officials say can evade radar. The single-seat Qaher F313 (Dominant F313) is the latest design produced by Iran's military since it launched the Azarakhsh (Lightning), in 2007. In an unveiling ceremony on Saturday, President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad said he ranked the aircraft as "among the most advanced fighter jets in the world". Russell Trott reports.  ||  ► NEWS - 2 February 2013 Qaher F313: Iran unveils home-made 'stealth' fighter 


► 1 February 2013 - Africa in pictures: 25-31 January 2013 :: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-21279047


► When smart is not so smart 


► 3 February 2013 - A certificate for holiness in India  | By Narayan Bareth Gautameshwar  

► 10 things we didn't know last week

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Iranian Oops: US violated own sanctions buying Tehran's oil for war? Published on Feb 2, 2013 :: There is a high probability that US sanctions against Iran have been violated by its own army. Part of the $1.55 billion in fuel the US bought from Turkmenistan for the Afghan army in the last five years may have originated in Iran.



► Battle of Stalingrad: Russia marks 70th anniversary of key WWII fight (PHOTOS)

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'Stalingrad was hell': 70 years since bloodiest battle of WW2. Published on Feb 2, 2013 :: The bloodiest and longest standoff of WWII - the Battle of Stalingrad - lasted 200 days and claimed 2 million lives. Russia is marking the 70th anniversary of this epic struggle, which became the turning point leading to overthrow of Nazi Germany.



► US will not scale back drone warfare – Panetta 

► Hollande gets the hump in Mali, but he's happy about it! (VIDEO)

► Russia opposes humanitarian corridor in Syria, citing int'l air intervention fears

► Thaw time: Myanmar hosting its first international literary festival

(Is there delicious food festival in Myanmar, eh ? Give me a few recipes, spicy versatile menu, ok? eh, eh, but Suu Kyi is not my idol anymore.)

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Fragile People (RT Documentary). Published on Feb 2, 2013 :: A day in life of someone who lives with Osteogenesis Imperfecta - or brittle bone disease - is fraught with risk. Even the tiniest movement can lead to serious fractures. This documentary gives an insight into the strong community of those with the disease, and how neither young nor old are held back by their disability.



■ Children's Health - Osteogenesis Imperfecta
■ Close to th e Bone: 100 Gene Deletions in Mice Identifies Nine New Genes That Determine Bone Strength. Aug. 2, 2012 — Researchers have uncovered 9 new genes associated with bone health. This collaborative study found clues to the cause of bone disorders such as osteoporosis, osteogenesis imperfecta, and high bone density syndromes by investigating the bone mineral content, strength and flexibility.  || ■ A Step Towards the Prevention of Collagen-Related Diseases Oct. 1, 2012

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Talk to Al Jazeera - Daniel Barenboim : A musical path to peace. Published on Feb 2, 2013 :: Music, an escape from reality? Not to world-renowned Israeli Argentine-born conductor Daniel Barenboim, who believes that music rather creates a bigger reality. "A great piece of music is like a whole life, it deals in sounds with problems of mankind. You have everything you have in human life. You have conflict, love, strategy, possibility to develop ideas," he explains. During a visit to Doha, Daniel Barenboim talks to Al Jazeera about the power of music and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.



► Counting the Cost - Betting on Macau. Published on Feb 2, 2013 :: This week on Counting the Cost we look at one of the world's most unique economies. Macau's economy expanded 14 percent last year and shows no signs of slowing down. In fact, quite the opposite. If all predictions are correct, the former Portuguese colony will have the fastest growing economy in the world this year with an unemployment rate of two percent. But all this is dependent on gambling, which makes up 95 percent of Macau's economy. So, will its reliance on high-rolling gamblers put Macau's economy at risk?

► People &Power - Goodbye Indonesia. Published on Feb 2, 2013 (Actually, this video had been published by Aljazeera --- in my previous post was on January 31, 2013 --- but it has been removed by the user) ::In the face of state repression and international indifference West Papuan activists have been locked in a life or death struggle for independence. People & Power finds out what is behind one of the most forgotten conflicts in the world. 

► Listening Post - Iran's media: The new red lines. Published on Feb 2, 2013 :: On the Listening Post we track the treatment of media around the world. With the muzzling of news outlets, censorship of content and the arrest of journalists, Iran is a repeat offender. Over the past days, at least 14 reporters have been detained in a sweep of reform-minded news outlets in the country. The timing of these arrests is significant: In five months, Iran will hold presidential elections - the first after the 2009 polls that saw huge protests in Tehran, the footage of which was beamed around Iran and across the world.

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Inside Story Americas - Gangs and guns in America's inner cities. Published on Feb 2, 2013 :: The Newtown shooting in December, which left 20 school children and six teachers dead, has dragged the issue of gun control back into the national agenda. For the first time in years, US politicians are discussing serious gun control measures. But millions of people in the country's inner cities live with the threat of gun violence on a daily basis. In Baltimore, one of the most dangerous cities in the US, the police have reframed their 'war on drugs' as a 'war on guns'. In the third episode of our special series on guns in the US, Inside Story Americas travels to Baltimore to meet those trying to stop gun crime and others who say owning a gun is sometimes a matter of survival.  ||  ► Obama calls for research into violent games. Published on Feb 2, 2013 :: Barack Obama, the US president, has called for more research into violent video games in the wake of recent mass shootings. It is part of a range of new measures aimed at curbing gun violence in the US. The gaming industry is quick to point out there is no conclusive evidence linking video games and violence. Researchers have yet to prove a link between gaming and real world violence, but Al Jazeera finds there are strong ties between the industry and guns. Al Jazeera's Kristen Saloomey reports from Springfield in Illinois.  ||  ► White House releases photo of Obama shooting. Published on Feb 2, 2013 :: The White House has released a photo of US president Barack Obama firing a shotgun, looking to put to rest scepticism over his recent comments to a US magazine that he went skeet shooting "all the time." The photo, which was published on the White House's official Flickr account on Friday, shows the president skeet shooting at a range at his Camp David residence. Al Jazeera's Tom Ackerman reports from Washington DC.



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Cowboy poetry festival honours heritage. Published on Feb 3, 2013 :: The iconic figure of the cowboy has always been a cherished symbol for Americans, representing honesty, hard work and straight shooting. Al Jazeera's Rob Reynolds reports on how cowboys are preserving their heritage through a very special form of artistic expression.

(Haaaa.... Bonanza! Bonanzaaaa.... )

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► How a discordant Senate band got back together on immigration - By Brian Bennett and Lisa Mascaro :: An election in which Latinos spoke loudly, plus maneuvering behind the scenes, brought old Senate rivals back together on immigration reform. 

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► FRAMEWORK  - 2013 Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count - February 1, 2013 | Posted By: Marc Martin 

► City of No Angels: Govt washes hands of LA homeless. Published on Apr 1, 2012 by Russia Today :: The National Coalition for the Homeless has ranked Los Angeles as the meanest city in the US when it comes to dealing with its poverty stricken population. And while the government offers little help for the area's down-and-outs, many are left with little hope for a better future :  Madina Kochenova reports.  ||  ► Los Angeles battles chronic homelessness. Uploaded on Nov 21, 2010 by AlJazeeraEnglish :: As financial problems continue to plague the US, the Californian city of  Los Angeles has become the country's homeless capital. Almost 50,000 people sleep on the streets each night throughout the city. But a task force of business and community leaders say they have a new plan that aims to end Los Angeles' chronic homelessness in just five years : Rob Reynolds reports.