Snippets: September 2009

Monday, September 28, 2009

Baba Ramdev buys Scottish island

It’s nothing quite like the buyout of Anglo firms by the Tatas, but iconic yoga guru ‘Swami’ Ramdev has acquired a Scottish isle for about £2 million to set up a wellness retreat.

The Little Cumbrae Island, off the fishing town of Largs in Scotland, will also serve as the guru’s base overseas, where his teachings of yoga as a means to cleanse the body and mind are gaining popularity.

The acquisition itself was carried out by a Scottish couple of Indian origin, Sam and Sunita Poddar, who saw recession and the resultant fall in property prices as an opportunity to expand the base of Patanjali Yogpeeth — the institution founded by Ramdev for scientific research and treatment in yog, spiritualism and ayurveda.

The island property inaugurated today with a ‘hawan’, a Hindu fire ritual, will be administered by the Patanjali Yogpeeth (UK) Trust.

“The island base is not about property as much as it is about spreading Indian values,” Ramdev said to a question if he saw any likeness between his acquisition and those carried out by the Tata Group, which has lapped up British brands Tetley, Corus and Jaguar-Land Rover over the last few years.

“My aim is to turn this island into a peace haven,” said Ramdev, who joins a handful of gurus to have set up international bases. One of them was the late Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, who shot to fame because of his association with The Beatles. He had shifted from Rishikesh to Vlodrop in Netherlands. Swami Ramdev will not move in here just yet.

“Swamiji (Ramdev) will naturally become a frequent visitor to this island,” one of his associates said, when asked if he would spend less time in his Haridwar ashram.

The conch-shaped island, spread over 1.25 sq km and home to a 13th century castle, was put on the block, according to a source familiar with the deal, by its previous owner due to developments related to the credit crunch.

Local media reports on the buyout were rife with taunts on Ramdev’s move to set up the health retreat and rechristen it as ‘peace island’. The Guardian reported that “a nun known as Saint Veya set up a religious sanctuary on Little Cumbrae in the seventh century, the ruins of which can still be seen today. Whether she too claimed that her breathing exercises could cure cancer is sadly unknown.”

The Telegraph’s report on the peace island described Ramdev as “India’s most controversial television lifestyle gurus, who claims homosexuality can be ‘cured’ by yoga.”

Residents of Largs, the nearest fishing town that has of-late reinvented itself as a tourist destination, said they couldn’t care less about such controversies. “Thank God for these small mercies (the retreat and investments into it)... In these times of credit crunch, any money people will spend here is good,” said a local, who wished not to be named as he has found work with the project.

About 1,000 people, mostly disciples of Ramdev and media persons, descended on the island for its inauguration today. Over the next 18 months, Patanjali Yogpeeth (UK) Trust plans to create a world-class health and wellness facility on the Little Cumbrae, island that derives its name from the Gaelic word for shelter or refuge.

“The first five-star Pranayam Yog and Ayurved medicine retreat for international visitors, global peace and harmony office, research centre for rare flora and fauna, technology mission for popular and useful herbs will be opened in 18 months,” the institution’s spokesman S K Tijarawala said. Patanjali Yogpeeth (UK) Trust trustee Sunita Poddar hoped that once the retreat was in place, people would prefer vedic teachings to rock bands. Ramdev’s close associate Acharya Balkrishna put it like this: “There are many ways for people to go astray in the West and there is need for a facility right here in the West to get them back on track.”

Asked about the rationale behind locating the retreat in Scotland, while options were dime a dozen in India, Balkrishna said the Scottish centre would help in reaching out to the youth, “especially the people of Indian origin who have lost touch with their values.” “Our aim is to make ...Cumbrae a worldwide destination with something for the whole family to enjoy,” said Poddar, who founded Lambhill Court Ltd, a care home business.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/Baba-Ramdev-buys-Scottish-island/H1-Article1-458920.aspx

Sunday, September 27, 2009

Condoms are cool in the Capital

Image via Wikipedia

It started when a condom brand launched www.sendsomerubber.com a site that lets you send an application to friends which ensures that, whenever your friend chats about sex online or types out "sexy" words such as '69' or 'horny', a condom drops onto the screen with a message to promote safe sex. Peter McCann of Ansell Ltd, who is associated with the project, explains, "Sendsomerubber is an initiative to bring forth a message of safe sex.

" With 66,648 online rubbers already sent, the application seems to be a hit. On Facebook, an application named 'Send Your Friend A Condom' has over 30,000 users.

That's not all. Recently, a 'Cocktails and Kondoms' party was held at a popular nightspot in Delhi, with an aim to create awareness for safe sex among partygoers.

And, actor Ronit Roy, launched 'LOVE Condom', a campaign to promote AIDS awareness, in the Capital a few months ago. He said this generation is open about talking about sex and protection, "I've seen people go to chemists and ask for condoms in a hushed tone, but this generation is different".

Kaminey's Fatak song, which had actor Shahid Kapoor dressed up as a giant condom, has also been hailed for its message of safe sex.

http://in.news.yahoo.com/32/20090925/1074/tod-condoms-are-cool-in-the-capital.html

Now, parents go digital snooping

Image via Wikipedia

http://in.news.yahoo.com/32/20090926/1074/tod-now-parents-go-digital-snooping.html

Sat, Sep 26 01:15 PM

India, Sept. 25 -- Delhi parents have found the perfect festive season gift for their teenagers - mobile phones with spyware.

Parents have gone digital to keep tabs on errant children, with a newly launched spy software device called Maverick Secure Mobile (MSM). Called the "perfect spook" for parents, the spyware costs Rs 2,300 and enables parents to track calls and text messages and trace the location of the phone.

Anita Aggrawal (name changed) recently gifted her 18-year-old daughter an MSM enabled handset. "I used to have sleepless nights about what she's getting up to, now I'm quite relieved," she said.

Mobile dealer Nafees Ahmed said there is a sudden demand for the device, "It's only been a month or so and I'm getting queries almost daily from parents." Sushant Oberoi of a mobile store in CP, says, "I have been getting calls from parents for the past three months, the demand has increased.

" Rashmi Barua (name changed) got a handset for her 16-year-old daughter just before Navratras. She says, "Now I don't have to store all her friends' numbers and call them up every half an hour to check where she is.

" Sukhi Dahiya, a store dealer in Malviya Nagar said, "Last week a fanatic couple with two college-going daughters were ready to pay double for the software.".

Tandoori, butter chicken turn 90!

Chicken Makhani, murgh makhani, or "Butte...

Image via Wikipedia

New Delhi, Sept. 25 -- Foodies drool over these two dishes with unabashed abandon, making sure they don't waste a morsel.

A visit to a Mughlai restaurant without ordering them is akin to blasphemy. And they are hugely, if not singularly, responsible for lending saddi Dilli its jovial, boisterous image.

Yes, we're talking about butter chicken and tandoori chicken. This year, these two iconic dishes turned 90.

From their birth in a tiny samosa-cum-sherbat shop in Peshawar in 1928, their post-partition introduction to Delhi from a tiny corner in Daryaganj to their present day global renown, they have mapped a long and laudable trail. It all began when a young Kundan Lal Gujral began helping out at a small shop called Moti Sweets in Peshawar (now in Pakistan).

In 1929, at the request by the shop's owner, he 'invented' these dishes. "The owner wasn't well and told my grandfather to make him a light chicken dish," explains Monish Gujral, Kundan Lal's grandson.

"In those days, the tandoor was used only to bake breads. He decided to cook chicken in it, and what came out was tandoori chicken.

He put it on the menu and changed the shop's name to Moti Mahal," he adds. Soon after came the butter chicken.

Instead of letting leftover pieces of tandoori chicken go waste, an inspired Gujral came up with a rich, creamy gravy to dunk them into. The butter chicken or murgh makhani was born.

In 1947, Gujral migrated to Delhi and set up a shop at Daryaganj. The rest, as they say, is history.

Its popularity reached such heights that Maulana Azad, then education minister, told the visiting Shah of Iran: 'Going to Delhi and not eating at Moti Mahal is like going to Agra and not seeing the Taj Mahal'! Ask him about the secret ingredient and Gujral says: "my grandfather's love." Today, these venerable dishes have acquired international stature.

Among the Capital's diners, Gulati, Karim's and Pindi rank among the top places for these dishes. Says Zain-ul-Abedin, co-owner, Karim's, "Logon ki zabaan par sharaab ke baad butter chicken aur tandoori chicken hi hota hai.

It's become very common. Thirty to forty years back, no one had heard of it.

" Food blogger Siddhartha Khullar, who counts Moti Mahal restaurants as his favourite place for butter chicken, says the dishes have played a "very important" role for India's culinary map. "Everyone I've met all over the world knows two things about India - butter chicken and naan.

http://in.news.yahoo.com/32/20090926/1074/tod-tandoori-butter-chicken-turn90.html

Saturday, September 26, 2009

Kareena and Saif go topless!

By glamsham
Friday Sep 25 11:15 AM

Bollywood Trade News Network

The first look of the Dharma Productions' much touted film KURBAAN is out showing Kareena and Saif's topless photo tagged with a painful message read - Some Love Stories Have Blood On Them.

Starring Saif Ali Khan, Kareena Kapoor and Vivek Oberoi in pivotal roles, KURBAAN is directed by Rensil D'Silva (RANG DE BASANTI writer) and produced by Karan Johar and Hiroo Yash Johar.

Other cast includes Dia Mirza, Sunil Shetty, Om Puri and Kirron Kher. The audiences will get a glimpse of the theatrical trailer of this romantic thriller on October 2nd, when Dharma Productions' yet another film WAKE UP SID hits the screens.

KURBAAN is slated for a 27th November 2009 release.

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Sriharikota, September 23, 2009 PSLV-C14 successfully launches Oceansat-2 satellite

Three days after it celebrated its 16^th birthday, a Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle named PSLV-C14 roared its way to success from the spaceport at Sriharikota on Wednesday, putting in orbit India’s Oceansat-2 and six nano satellites from abroad. This was the 15^th successful flight of the PSLV in a row. The first PSLV flight took place on September 20, 1993.

It was a spectacular mission on Wednesday when everything went all right for the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). The countdown was smooth, there was a perfect lift-off at the appointed time of 11.51 a.m., the first stage of the PSLV kicking into life with the brute force of its motor, the vehicle galvanising itself as it climbed into the sky, its four stages igniting and separating on time and the satellites being precisely injected into their orbits.

At the end of 18 minutes of flight, the PSLV’s fourth stage injected Oceansat-2 into orbit at a velocity of 25,000 km an hour at an altitude of about 728 km. Thereafter, spring-loaded action mechanisms catapulted four nano satellites called Cubesat 1, 2, 3 and 4 into orbit one after another. Two more nano satellites named Rubinsat 9.1 and 9.2 remained permanently attached to the PSLV’s fourth stage.

“The PSLV is like a wine. With age, it only improves,” said G. Madhavan Nair, ISRO Chairman. He called the mission “a fantastic achievement” and “a thrilling moment for the ISRO team.” Read More at >>

http://beta.thehindu.com/sci-tech/technology/article23841.ece?homepage=true

Lisa Ray's film a hit at international fests

After screening his film Cooking With Stella at the Toronoto International Film Festival, Dilip Mehta went to Cinfest Sudbury with his directorial debut that kickstarted the event.

"Seema Biswas and I flew to Sudbury where our film was opening the Cinefest Sudbury International Film Festival. The unusual feature for the Gala opening was that the film was shown simultaneously in four theaters and each theater was packed," Dilip told IANS on phone from Toronto.

"Seema and I were thrilled with the response Cooking With Stella received. At a reception following the screening, Seema was mobbed by the invitees who had remembered her strong performance in (Dilip's sister) Deepa's Water. We returned to Toronto on Sunday and Seema continued on to London and then Mumbai," he added.

The light comedy revolves around the family of a Canadian diplomat Maya (Lisa Ray), her husband Michael (Don McKellar), their cook Stella (Seema Biswas) and nanny Tannu (Shriya Saran).

While the Sudbury film festival started on September 19, the Atlantic Halifax festival too opened same day.

"My film once again opened the festival. Our producer David Hamilton represented the film and did the honours. And according to him, the response in Halifax was the same. The audience loved the film, performances, humour, and biting satire.

"On the 25th of September we go to Edmonton where my film is once again opening the international film festival," said Dilip.

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Udita Goswami Shocking Photoshoot

The green-eyed, 5'8" actress started her career in modeling, then made her jump into the Bollywood industry. She modeled for PepsiCo, Titan Watch and Nokia among other companies.

Her first film was Paap directed by Pooja Bhatt. Her next film Zeher, which also starred Emraan Hashmi and Shamita Shetty, was her breakthrough role and she became a well known face in the industry. Her role was that of a femme fatale. The film was controversial as it included some controversial scenes. She also acted in the movie Aksar, opposite Dino Morea and Emraan Hashmi. She was featured with Upen Patel in Ahmed Khan's music video of the remix of Kya Khoob Lagti Ho.

A day at the ashram of 'sadhvi' Julia

BEVERLY, CA - OCTOBER 13: (FILE PHOTO) Actres...

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

GURGAON: Call it the western fascination for Oriental mythology or a genuine gesture to appreciate Indian spirituality, Hollywood actress Julia

Roberts in Haryana for a film shoot has renamed all her three children after Hindu gods and a goddess.
Swami Dharam Dev, president of the Ashram in Pataudi where the film `Eat, Pray, Love' is being shot, on Tuesday told Times City: "Julia came for my blessings this morning along with her children. She told me that she has named her five-year-old twins Hazel and Phinnaeus as Mahalaxmi and Ganesh. Her two-year-old son Henry will now be known as Krishna Balram.'' But the Swami has no clue whether the name-change has been for good or not.
When Times City visited the Ashram on Tuesday, it saw the crew working on the `pray' part of the film. "A langar was organized on Sunday, for the script required Julia to be present in the langar with devotees of the Ashram. She seems to have metamorphosed herself into a sadhvi for the role. I asked Julia to step into sadhvi's role in her real life whenever she is in self doubt,'' the Swamiji said.
Julia on Tuesday shot a cooking scene in the mess of the Ashram on Tuesday. "She was seen cooking food along with other woman sadhvis for the film. In another shot, she performed kirtan in the Mandir hall of the Ashram,'' said an inmate.
The 25-acre Ashram, otherwise a quite place hosting a Sanskrit Mahavidyalaya with 500 students, hostels for boys and girls, a hospital and a 100-bed old-age home, is suddenly bustling with activities and will be in the thick of action for at least 20 days. But Swami Dharam Dev is not complaining. He was all praise for the cast and crew of the film. "They have not disturbed the sanctity of the Ashram even as they complete everything as per schedule,'' he said.
The Laxmi Narayan Mandir on the campus is the main shooting area. "A wooden extension has been erected at the Krishna Niwas on the first floor. A small, white marble mandir has been erected at the Atithi Niwas where some of the scenes will be shot,'' said an inmate.
The shooting has brought relief to the inmates of the Ashram. "The Ashram has turned into an air-conditioned fortress as the crew can't tolerate the searing heat. Thanks to them, we now have uninterrupted power supply. Normally, there is no power back-up and electricity keeps playing hide and seek,'' said one of the inmates.
The film, being produced by actor Brad Pitt's company, is about New York resident Elizabeth Gilbert's search for everything across Italy, India and Indonesia. Gilbert arrives in India on a spiritual tour after her four-month stay in Italy and then proceeds to Bali in Indonesia. The 41-year-old Roberts is playing Elizabeth Gilbert who gives up on her pretty home near New York, a comfortable life and a husband when she realises that she is not happy with life. Directed by Ryan Murphy, the film is based on the international bestseller memoir, `Eat, Pray, Love' by Gilbert.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/news/city/delhi/A-day-at-the-ashram-of-sadhvi-Julia/articleshow/5044130.cms

Monday, September 21, 2009

Malaika Arora Khan :: Lakme Fashion Week September 2009

Bollywood actor Malaika Arora Khan walks the ramp for Mandira Wirk show on the fouth day of the Lakme Fashion Week. The five day event has seen Bollywood stars walking the ramp right from the first day.

India, China should invest in green technology: Bundchen

Brazilian supermodel Gisele Bundchen, who has been named the goodwill ambassador of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) for climate change, has asked developing countries including China and India to invest in green technologies.

"They should invest on green energy and really put their money into that," Bundchen told PTI.

"The whole idea is to reduce the gas they are emitting and not create more of it so that they can continue to keep their development but just studying new forms of doing it in a different way," the 29-year-old model added.

In her first public appearance as the goodwill ambassador, Bundchen told a gathering near New York University that her attention was first drawn to climate change after witnessing severe water problems in villages in the Amazon jungle.

"We have to take responsibility otherwise it will be too late and this is why I am here and doing this," she added. The supermodel also runs a blog on climate change.

Top UN official for environment Achim Steiner, who came in from Nairobi spoke of the drought in Kenya and the severe water shortage in the city.

"Maybe New York will still have water but many parts of Africa, parts of Latin America will no longer know where to find their water," he said.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-China-should-invest-in-green-technology-Bundchen/H1-Article1-456271.aspx

Boy becomes a girl after holidays!

A 12-year-old boy in southern England returned to school as a girl after summer holidays. The boy, who has now had his name changed to a girl's, arrived at school in a dress.

Teachers had to call an emergency assembly to explain the massive change to confused pupils and tell them they must now treat as a girl.

German Kim Petras became the world's youngest transsexual at 16 earlier this year, changing her name from Tim.

"We are committed to ensuring the best for our child. We are working with other agencies to ensure our child's welfare is protected," his mother told The Sun.

But other parents reacted angrily and said the head teacher should have warned them before the school's announcement to their children.

"They behaved appallingly by throwing this hand grenade into the room and then leaving the inevitable questions about it for unprepared parents,' one mother said.

"Maybe we could have explained sexual politics and encouraged our kids to be more sensitive if we''d had a chance to be involved."

Another parent of a girl child said: "She told me the pupil is already a target for bullying.

"And what has really upset the parents is that the school didn''t see fit to send us a letter first so we could explain it to our children in our own way."

The transgender boy's mother said that all things possible is being done for the welfare of the kid.

She said: "We are committed to ensuring the very best for our child. We are working with other agencies to ensure our child''s welfare is protected."

The boy, who has for years told his friends he wants to be a girl, could now become the world's youngest sex change patient.

After taking the decision to return to school as a girl, he is preparing for hormone treatment and ultimately surgery.

Under UK law, this cannot happen until he has passed puberty.

German Kim Petras became the world's youngest transsexual at 16 earlier this year, changing her name from Tim.

Sunday, September 20, 2009

Super Somdev leads India to elite World Group

Not many gave Somdev Devvarman a chance. He was two sets and a break down in the third. Wesley Moodie and Rohan Bopanna, who were supposed to play the fifth rubber, had left their respective team benches to warm-up for the imminent decider.

But Somdev walked in for the changeover, screaming at his captain, “I am not losing today, I am not losing today!”

The fire had been stoked. Now, he had to consume Rik de Voest - South Africa no.1 and his good friend cum practice partner.

After an intense fight for four hours and 44 minutes, the longest rubber in Indian Davis Cup history, Somdev was the last man standing. He battled the ghosts that usually haunt India at this stage of the tournament, to script a 3-6, 6-7 (3), 7-6(5), 6-2, 6-4 victory. The long wait is over. India are in the World Group after 11 years. Somdev gave India an unassailable 3-1 lead in the play-off tie in Johannesburg.

“This is my biggest win ever,” said Somdev after the win. “I am proud of being an Indian. Playing and winning for my country is very very special.”

Like he did in his first match, De Voest came out all guns blazing. He raced through the first-set, pocketing it 6-3. He went on to take a 3-0 lead in the second. But Somdev did not give in. He fought for each ball, scampering around the court and showed great defence.

He leveled and then broke; only to see De Voest come back after trailing 5-6 and edge the set into a tie-break. The South African won it 7-3.

After another extreme battle for the third set, the Indian's perseverance was finally paying. The passing shots hit the right notes, the athlete in him pushing harder. He made De Voest play that extra ball and the South African, prone to mistakes as he showed in the first singles, misfired.

Somdev won the tie-break 7-5. One down, two to go!

The emotion of the third set seemed to drain away De Voest's energy as he showed the first signs of fatigue. Occasionally making a great volley, but the Indian pushed him to the limit. And De Voest snapped. Read More at >>>>

http://www.hindustantimes.com/Super-Somdev-leads-India-to-elite-World-Group-after-11-years/H1-Article1-456090.aspx

Anoushka Shankar’s photos accessed, being blackmailed: Cops

NEW DELHI: Delhi Police is investigating a case of blackmailing of young sitarist and legendary musician Pandit Ravi Shankar's daughter, Anoushka

Pt. Ravi Shankar and daughter Anoushka Shankar. (TOI Photo)

and has arrested a Mumbai-based man who allegedly accessed her photographs stored in her laptop.
The man, whose identity has not been revealed, has been arrested by the Special Cell of Delhi Police following investigations in Mumbai after Ravi Shankar approached police last month complaining about the harassment meted out to his daughter, a senior police official said.
Police had last week registered a case under Section 386 of Indian Penal Code which relates to extortion by putting in fear of death or hurt and provides for a maximum punishment of 10 years in jail.
The official said the musician, who lives in the US, has told police that Anoushka had given her laptop to a service centre in south Delhi in February.
"We think that the material in the laptop was copied by someone. We interrogated the staff at the Apple Services Centre. Later, we zeroed in on the Mumbai-based man and arrested him," he said.
The man allegedly sent a series of e-mails to 28-year-old Anoushka, demanding money for not making public the photographs. The alleged blackmailer even asked for USD one lakh in one e-mail.
Police did not state as to when the man was arrested.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/news/india/Anoushka-Shankars-photos-accessed-being-blackmailed-Cops/articleshow/5033383.cms

Saturday, September 19, 2009

Journo pays for criticizing Palin; loses dinner bid.

Image by smiteme via Flickr

Joe McGinnis, a Sarah Palin critic, had slammed her handling of Alaska's gaslines last fall. He finally paid the price for that when she snubbed his bid for a charity dinner with her, even as he was willing to shell out more than $60,000 to dine with her.

The dinner was offered as an auction for charity by Palin on eBay for the Ride 2 Recovery program, which supports wounded war veterans through cycling programs.

McGinnis evidently fitted the auction rule that said Palin had the right to reject dinner companions based "on her subjective standards of suitability, professionalism, background and other factors".

Cathy Maples of Huntsville, Alabama, eventually won the chance to dine with Palin.

Maqbool Fida Husain turns 94 in exile

Internationally acclaimed artist Maqbool Fida Husain, living in self-exile for the past 13 yearsturned 94 on Thursday.

Husain, who dresses flamboyantly and has a penchant for high-end cars like Ferrari but roams around barefoot, celebrated his birthday in New York City where he is currently on tour.

Image: M F Husain celebrates his 94th birthday in Tamarind Art, New York, on Thursday

Friday, September 18, 2009

Kareena Kapoor :: Maxim India Shoot : July 2009.

Kareena Kapoor sizzles on the cover of Maxim India edition for the month of July 2009. She looks quiet stunning and appealing on the cover of Magazine. She features as the cover girl for maxim for second time. Check out Kareena Kapoor on the cover of Maxim Magazine India and Kareena’s photoshoot for Maxim.

Malaika Arora Khan – Filmfare Magazine (September 2009).

Malaika Arora Khan - Scans from Filmfare Magazine (September 2009).Malaika Arora is one of the best mom of bollywood. She is one of the most sought after actresses even after having baby and can dare to be herself.A nice treat for all the bollywood babes lover.

Big B gets 126 crore for Bigg Boss!

Big B has been offered big money for Bigg Boss, if reports are to be believed. The 'Shahenshah' of Bollywood will take Amitabh Bachchan home Rs 1.5 crore per episode. He is being paid nearly twice of what he got for Kaun Banega Crorepati.

This would be Big B's great small-screen comeback after Kaun Banega Crorepati.

Amitabh has left behind 'Paanchvi Pass' Shah Rukh Khan who was reportedly paid Rs 1 crore per episode and Akshay Kumar whjo is believed to be charging a similar sum per episode for Khatron Ke Khiladi.

Despite hiking his fee from Rs 80 lakh per episode in Season 1 of Dus Ka Dum to Rs 1 crore in Season 2 of the show, Salman Khan also falls way short of the Bachchan mark.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/Big-B-gets-126-crore-for-Bigg-Boss/H1-Article1-455306.aspx

Sunday, September 13, 2009

Barrymore kisses Ellen Page, raves about her body

http://www.hindustantimes.com/Barrymore-kisses-Ellen-Page-raves-about-her-body/H1-Article1-453375.aspx

Hollywood beauty Drew Barrymore had created a stir when she confessed to being a bisexual and she has again grabbed headlines by kissing 'Juno' actress Ellen Page for a photoshoot.

The 'Charlie's Angels' star who is making her directorial debut with the film 'Whip It' was photographed passionately kissing her film's star Page in the photo spread of the October issue of Marie Claire magazine, reported Huffington Post.

And Barrymore, did not stop at that, she went on to rave about her 22-year-old co-star's "beautiful body".

Saturday, September 12, 2009

Force India back at the front again

Force India answered any lingering doubters on Saturday by roaring onto the front row of the Formula One starting grid for the second time in as many races.

Team owner Vijay Mallya allowed himself to savour the moment after Germany's Adrian Sutil qualified second at the Italian Grand Prix.

"To all my critics who said Spa might have been a lucky fluke, I hope that this result proves that Spa wasn't a lucky fluke after all," he said.

The team, without a point in 29 races before last month's Belgian Grand Prix, stunned the paddock when Italian Giancarlo Fisichella took pole position at Spa and then seized their first points with second place.

Fisichella has moved on to Ferrari since then but his replacement, compatriot Vitantonio Liuzzi, qualified seventh in his first race since 2007.

"It just shows that we've got it right, the car is very fast and very competitive. The drivers have done a brilliant job," said Mallya.

"A win is too much to ask with the KERS cars and we know that. But there's no reason why we shouldn't target a podium, no reason why we shouldn't hope that Tonio also is in the points," he added.

"And that's a long way forward from where this team has been."

McLaren's world champion Lewis Hamilton starts alongside Sutil but the Briton has the benefit of the KERS energy recovery system that will give a brief but significant boost at the start.

The two drivers behind Sutil, Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen and McLaren's Heikki Kovalainen, also have KERS which the Force India car lacks but he was still ecstatic.

"I was waiting for this chance for quite a long time," said Sutil. "I would never have thought that we would be able to be on the front row this year, and especially as three or four races ago we were fighting to reach the second qualifying (stage).

"I'm ready for it and now it feels really, really good."

Mallya still refused to take anything for granted.

"If I spoil myself trying to get used to all this, I will only come to grief. There's no point raising the bar of expectation too much," he said.

"We must make sure that we slowly and steadily move up and be really and truly competitive."

http://in.news.yahoo.com/137/20090912/736/tnl-force-india-back-at-the-front-again.html

Facebook Lite: Thanks, but No Apps

Image representing Facebook as depicted in Cru...

Image via CrunchBase

Facebook has made a potentially risky choice in designing Lite, the simpler version of its social network that is generating much buzz: Lite doesn't run any of the tens of thousands of external applications built for Facebook's main site.

While Lite was originally intended for countries with low-bandwidth users, the site has gotten an initial round of endorsements from pundits and experts in the blogosphere now that it's available to Facebook members in the U.S.

Considering how U.S. Internet users readily embrace simple online services that they find useful, such as Google and Twitter, it will be interesting to see what percentage of Facebook members will adopt Lite as their preferred Facebook site.

If it's a sizeable chunk, Facebook may have to consider opening Lite to the third-party applications, so that developers don't lose access to a big segment of Facebook users.

The question is whether it will be possible to maintain Lite's appeal as a stripped-down version of Facebook if it's tweaked to support external applications. A compromise solution might be to create a separate application platform for Lite.

What would seem unlikely would be to shut out developers entirely from Lite, considering how much Facebook credits them with helping the regular site grow in popularity in the past two years.

More than 1 million developers and entrepreneurs from more than 180 countries have created about 350,000 active applications for Facebook, which has become the most popular social-networking site in the world.

Lite isn't entirely devoid of third-party ties. Lite does support Connect, the data portability technology that lets people use their previously created Facebook accounts to sign in to other Web sites.

"If a user is logged in to the Lite site, they can access Facebook Connect sites across the Web," Facebook spokeswoman Malorie Lucich said via e-mail. "So if you are logged into the Lite site, you can access Connect sites as normal."

Of course, Facebook Connect, generally available since December 2008, is but a small part of the Facebook developer story, having been implemented in some 15,000 Web sites, devices and applications.

"We are evaluating Lite's performance now, and are considering incorporating more [application development] Platform elements in the future," she said.

In the meantime having a version of Facebook without third-party applications may be a revealing test of how attached members truly are to these programs.

According to Facebook, Lite could help attract new users. "We have found that people who are new to Facebook tend to be most interested in a simpler experience, and focus on establishing their network of friends and communicating with them by writing on their walls, sending messages, and looking at pictures. We have introduced the Lite site with these new users in mind," the company said in a statement. Lite lets people post and share videos, photos and events, as well as exchange one-on-one messages.

What Lite does seem to be doing is beginning to provoke a spirited discussion among Facebook officials, their throngs of third-party developers and the 250 million-strong user base, that will only grow louder as it rolls out to all users in the coming days.

Lite's impact could be rather heavy.

http://tech.yahoo.com/news/pcworld/20090911/tc_pcworld/facebooklitethanksbutnoapps_1

When someone is raised female and the genes say XY

South Africa's Caster Semenya

By SETH BORENSTEIN, AP Science Writer Seth Borenstein, Ap Science Writer – Fri Sep 11, 7:04 pm ET

WASHINGTON – It's the birth defect people don't talk about. A baby is born not completely male or female. The old term was hermaphrodite, then intersex. Now it's called "disorders of sexual development." Sometimes the person with the problem doesn't even know it and finds out in an all too public way.

That's been the painful plight of a few female athletes through history. And apparently that's the situation for South African track star Caster Semenya.

Two Australian newspapers reported Friday that gender tests show the world champion athlete has no ovaries or uterus and internal testes that produce large amounts of testosterone. The international sports federation that ordered the tests wouldn't confirm the reports.

Experts say Semenya should be allowed to race as a woman and they cringe at how her case is exploding publicly in the news media. They worry about psychological scars. Two years ago, a star female track athlete who tested male attempted suicide.

Unless she took some illicit substance, Semenya is a female with a birth defect, simple as that, said Dr. Myron Genel, a professor emeritus of pediatrics at Yale University. He was part of a special panel of experts convened by the International Association of Athletics Federations in 1990 that helped end much, but not all, genetic gender testing.

"It's no different in a sense than a youngster who is born with a hole in the heart," Genel said. "These are in fact birth defects in an area that a lot of people are uncomfortable with."

Semenya is hardly alone. Estimates vary, but about 1 percent of people are born with abnormal sex organs, experts say. These people may have the physical characteristics of both genders or a chromosomal disorder or simply ambiguous features.

Sometimes a sexual development problem is all too obvious when a baby is born. Other times, the disorder in girls may not be noticed until puberty, when she doesn't start her period. And still other times, especially with the androgen insensitivity syndrome experts think Semenya might have, it remains hidden until she tries to have a baby — or in the case of an athlete, until she's given a genetic test.

Monday, September 28, 2009

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