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178,370 | 72f30680c69368bea6790368a6e3032c335d26ff | By . Adam Crafton . Follow @@AdamCrafton_ . For the first time since the introduction of permanent shirt numbers, Manchester United find themselves without a number 3, 5, 7, 9, 11 and 15. This odd sequence has been brought about following a summer of departures, as Patrice Evra, Rio Ferdinand, Ryan Giggs and Nemanja Vidic have all called time on their glittering careers at Old Trafford. It only underlines the size of the reconstruction job that Louis van Gaal faces in the coming weeks as he attempts to rebuild his defence and add some stardust to the final third. VIDEO Scroll down to watch Luke Shaw on target during Manchester United training . Where are the stars? Manchester United's squad train in Los Angeles on Wednesday during their tour . Packed his bags: Patrice Evra . Retired: Ryan Giggs . Gone: Rio Ferdinand . Left for Italy: Nemanja Vidic . Last No 9: Dimitar Berbatov . No lucky seven: Antonio Valencia . Big job on his hands: Louis van Gaal (centre) jokes with Wayne Rooney at the Rose Bowl . With the start of the Premier League season just over three weeks away, Sportsmail assesses who is likely to be filling some of the most iconic shirt numbers in United’s history.... Fantastic talent: Luke Shaw, watched by Ryan Giggs . No 3 - LUKE SHAW . Following the exit of Evra, the £31million Luke Shaw is likely be offered the No 3 shirt and United hope that it will be his to wear for the next fifteen years. He has already impressed United’s coaching staff by returning to pre-season training one week early and he has also been given the seal of approval by United great Denis Irwin, who describes Shaw as ‘fantastic player with great pace’. Even before the departure of Evra to Juventus on Monday, Shaw had been told that he would be the club’s first-choice left back this season and it is a testament of United’s confidence in this 19-year-old that he may start the season as United’s only player in this position. Alex Buttner has also left for Dinamo Moscow, leaving Shaw unchallenged, but United are considering a move for another left-back, although Thomas Vermaelen, if he is signed, would offer cover in that position. No 5 - Mats Hummels/Thomas Vermaelen/Stefan De Vrij . Van Gaal has identified German World Cup winner Hummels as his prime defensive target but there is also a realistic recognition that it may be difficult to cut a deal with Dortmund this summer. The Dutchman also remains keen to sign Arsenal defender Vermaelen who, at 28, offers Premier League experience. The player is understood to have agreed a wage package in principle with United and he is hopeful of completing a move to the club this summer. Mats amazing: German World Cup winning defender Hummels, with his girlfriend Cathy Fischer . VIDEO United will continue to spend - Woodward . Only last week, Vermaelen was pictured holidaying with United forward Robin van Persie and the pair’s great friendship, forged at Arsenal, is believed be one factor that has persuaded the Belgian to push for the move. Arsene Wenger, however, is proving a troublesome stumbling block and even though the player’s contract is set to expire in 12 months time, the Arsenal boss is reluctant to allow another defender to leave following the exit of Bacary Sagna to Manchester City. If a replacement can be found - or if United offer a player as a makeweight - a deal should be done. Stefan de Vrij is also expected to arrive at Old Trafford and a deal worth £8.5m could be struck in the coming weeks. No 7 - Angel Di Maria/Memphis Depay/Adnan Januzaj . The iconic shirt worn with such distinction by David Beckham, Cristiano Ronaldo, Bryan Robson and George Best has now been vacant for 12 months after Antonio Valencia felt his performances were suffering due to the pressure of the responsibility and reverted to his favoured No 25. As things stand, United have prioritised reinforcing the defensive and midfield positions, although a move for Real Madrid’s Di Maria or PSV’s Depay is not out of the question. Up for grabs: Angel Di Maria looks set to leave Real Madrid after James Rodriguez's arrival at the Bernabeu . Many within the club are also keen for the honour to be handed to Januzaj, although his close relationship with Giggs could see him take the No 11 shirt. It may be a case of waiting until next summer when a star name can be brought in. Time to step up: United forward Danny Welbeck . No 9 - Danny Welbeck . The No 9 shirt has brought underwhelming stints from Louis Saha and Dimitar Berbatov in recent times after happier days with Andy Cole and Brian McClair. This shirt number has been absent since the departure of Berbatov in 2012 and with a striker unlikely to arrive this summer, United may feel that the time is right to promote England forward Welbeck from 19 to 9 as the Van Gaal era dawns at Old Trafford. No 11 - Adnan Januzaj . The shirt worn by Giggs for over twenty trophy-laden years now needs filling. Giggs himself does not want the shirt number retired, although it is believed to have been suggested as a tribute by some. United, however, are taking the view that they should produce one great player after another and that it should be seen as an honour to follow in Giggs' footsteps. Januzaj leaned heavily on the current assistant manager for advice last season and the two worked closely on the training ground. He is the one player at the club with the potential to step into the Welshman’s shoes. Wing wizard: Adnan Januzaj has the outrageous talent to follow in Giggs's footstepds . No 15 - Daley Blind . Blind was a star performer for Van Gaal at the World Cup with Holland and as the Dutchman prefers to operate with a smaller squad of around 22 or 23 players, the Ajax man’s versatility appeals greatly. Blind, who would cost around £14m, would offer cover for Luke Shaw at left back and also act as a useful stop-gap in central midfield as Michael Carrick recovers from injury. He has also earned a reputation as a big-match player, successfully carrying out a fierce man-marking job on Alexis Sanchez in Holland’s 2-0 win over Chile in Brazil. Dutch of class: Daley Blind's rich potential was clear to see at the World Cup in Brazil . | Van Gaal has inherited a squad which has lost key players .
Manchester United have lost Ryan Giggs, Patrice Evra, Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand this summer .
Mats Hummels and Angel Di Maria are on United's shopping list .
Danny Welbeck and Adnan Januzaj could step up from within squad . |
264,103 | e20e55e8df59bfebe121763187643411a55e9681 | An amateur treasure hunter with a hand-held metal detector has turned Canadian history on its head after finding a 16th century shilling buried in clay on the shores of Vancouver Island. The 435-year-old coin discovered in western-most Canada has rekindled a theory that a British explorer made a secret voyage here two centuries before it was discovered by Spanish sailors. Official historical records show the Spanish were the first Europeans to set foot in what is now Canada's British Columbia province in 1774, followed four years later by British Royal Navy Captain James Cook. Retired security systems installer Bruce Campbell found the coin in mid-December, along with a rare 1891 Canadian nickel, a 1960s dime and penny from 1900. Retired security system specialist Bruce Campbell has found a coin that has revived a theory the Canadian pacific coast was not discovered in 1774 by the Spaniards, as officially thought, but in 1579 by British sailor Sir Francis Drake . This rare Edward VI shilling, minted in London between 1551 and 1553, was found Victoria, British Columbia, in mid-December . 'I was getting fat and tired of watching TV,' he said about what got him into his hobby, surrounded in his Victoria, British Columbia home by a trove of adventure novels and a few dug up treasures. He never imagined, he said, stirring up controversy with his latest find. According to conspiracy theorists and some historians, the silver coin (produced between 1551 and 1553) is evidence that English explorer Sir Francis Drake traveled as far north as Canada's Pacific Coast during an expedition to California in 1579, in search of the famed Northwest Passage. But he covered it up at the behest of Queen Elizabeth I, who supposedly wished to avoid confrontation over the new territory with Spain. At the time, Spanish explorers had kept to more southern parts of the continent after disappointment (seeing few apparent resources and natural ports) in California. Samuel Bawlf, a leading proponent of the so-called Drake theory and author of a 2003 book on the subject, says the coin is proof the English arrived here first. He noted two other finds that support the theory: a 1571 sixpence dug up in 1930 in the backyard of a Victoria home and another Tudor-era coin unearthed on nearby Quadra Island. History rewritten: The British are known to have visited California in 1579, while the Spanish are believed to be the first Europeans to arrive in Canada in 1774. However the discovery of the coin suggests the British also went to what is now British Colombia during Sir Fancis Drake's voyage . Drake would have given the coins to aboriginals he met 'to show to later comers that England had already found (and staked a claim to) these lands,' Bawlf told AFP. Royal British Columbia Museum curator Grant Keddie, tasked with examining the evidence, is skeptical. He said his analysis typically looks at 'what was written at the time, and archeological artifacts'. And there is currently not enough evidence to support this theory, he said, noting that Drake's logs were burned in a London fire a century later. If it is ever corroborated, it could have implications for Canada and the United States, whose shared border was drawn based partly on past European colonial land holdings. The 49th parallel was chosen in 1818 as the western boundary between the United States and the British colony, but disputes over interpretations of the treaty erupted on several occasions since then. The last row was settled in 1903 by a joint British, Canadian and US tribunal establishing Canada's boundary with Alaska. For Campbell, the coin is nothing more than a lucky find that will be hard to match. 'It's gonna be impossible to find something older,' he quipped. | Retired security systems installer Bruce Campbell started hunting for treasure with a hand-held metal detector because he was sick of TV and 'getting fat'
In December he found a rare Edward VI shilling - minted in London between 1551 and 1553 - in clay on the shores of Vancouver Island .
The find has reignited a theory that the British were the first Europeans to set foot in Canada and not the Spanish .
The coin is believed to have been placed by English explorer Sir Francis Drake during his circumnavigation of the world between 1577 and 1580 .
Drake is documented to have visited California in 1579, but was rumored to have traveled further north .
Official records show the Spanish were the first to reach Canada two centuries later, in 1774 . |
111,230 | 1b6e78e1a102d251794014ad1d5003753938dc8d | (CNN) -- High school athletic director Brian Bordainick felt like he'd been shot when he learned the crushing news about his "9th Ward Field of Dreams" project. Coach Shyrone Carey, left, and athletic director Brian Bordainick are rebuilding a once-dominant football team. Architects who had agreed to help the Katrina battered Carver High School in New Orleans, Louisiana, win an NFL grant to build a $2 million stadium were pulling out -- the weekend before a Monday deadline. The firm apologized, Bordainick said, but it would not be able to provide a design proposal for the facility, which was critical to winning the $200,000 grant. "I've never been shot, but I imagine it felt something similar to that," said Bordainick, recalling that day in December 2008. To make matters worse, swarms of news media were gathering at the school to interview the 23-year-old boy wonder -- the self-described "youngest high school athletic director in Louisiana" -- who was leading an effort to bring Carver's athletic program back from near death. "I sucked it up, did the story ... and when they left, I picked up the phone book and started calling architects in the city." Watch update on New Orleans' schools after Katrina » . In an amazing moment of serendipity and opportunity, an entrepreneur friend of Bordainick's happened to be at a party and cornered a partner in one of the city's top architectural firms. The friend called Bordainick and -- before handing the architect the phone -- told Bordainick: "You've got 30 seconds to give your best elevator spiel you've ever given." The architect was Steve Dumez, design director for Eskew+Dumez+Ripple, who agreed to help, despite Bordainick's preposterous plea. Watch Bordainick tell his story . "The one-day turnaround came as a bit of a shock," Dumez said. "What was crazy about it was trying to pull together an entire design proposal -- and that's just something that doesn't happen in 24 hours." Usually such design proposals require as long as a month to complete. "How could you not get sucked into such an amazing story?" asked Dumez's partner, Mark Ripple, a 30-year veteran New Orleans architect. "There really isn't a good outlet in the area where kids can develop skills and self-esteem and all the things that come with a healthy recreation program." The next day, the firm organized a small army of construction companies, civil engineers and architects who offered their support. "We got the satellite images and the renderings done in 8 hours," Bordainick said. The proposal worked. In March the school learned it had won the NFL grant. Nike also has backed the project -- donating $100,000 and joining thousands of individuals who have offered $1.5 million in pledges, cash and services so far. All this during one of the nation's worst-ever economies. Bordainick credits much of the fundraising success to a network of e-mailers who started with a Web site created by a Web-developer-turned-Carver teacher. He crafted an e-mail touting his "passion for building character through sports," and "creating something from nothing" while working with "people crazy enough to believe that they have the power to create change." "I made it a goal to just e-mail a couple hundred people a day," he said. "I was teaching and calling people during my lunch break, and trying to get other people to make calls during their lunch break, and e-mailing people and doing all these things to get the word out about what we're doing and what we're trying to accomplish." The proposed stadium -- which would host football, track, soccer and lacrosse -- is just one facet of Carver's struggle to regain its former self four years after the ravages of Katrina. A perennial football powerhouse, the team re-formed after Bordainick arrived at Carter in 2007, his first year in the Teach for America program. He touts athletics as "changing the dynamics of the school and having it not be someplace where the bus just drops you off in the morning." But four years after the storm, Carver students on the 65-acre campus are still struggling to learn without the benefit of permanent classrooms. All of Carver's 530 students -- down from more than 1,000 students before the storm -- still attend classes in FEMA trailers. The actual building which used to be the school is now boarded up. The cafeteria is a hollowed-out shell. The school district has plans to rebuild Carver's classrooms and other facilities, but it's not clear when. "If you kick a field goal on one side of our football field -- the ball goes into the gym, which was condemned after the storm," said Bordainick. "And, if you kick a field goal on the other side, it goes into a house which was knocked off its foundation from Katrina." The track team, he said, now practices on nearby city streets. Last season, the Carver Rams failed to win a single game. But many fans, school officials and alumni are hoping the proposed stadium will increase pride and confidence for the revitalized team and student fans. "If we give kids some constructive things to be involved in -- guide them and give them discipline, we can help them achieve their dreams," said Charles Webb, a project board member and 1965 Carver quarterback. "It'll bring back pride the way it used to be." "With a sense of pride and teamwork, anything can happen," said Carver head football coach Shyrone Carey. Carey -- a standout running back for Louisiana State University from 2001 to 2005 -- arguably couldn't have chosen a more challenging post as his first head coaching job than rebuilding Carver from the ground up. "The overall motivation that comes from athletics is an overall lifelong lesson," said Carey, who's pushing his players hard in advance of a big game Saturday. "If you make the right decisions then positive things can come." Backers of the 9th Ward Field of Dreams hope to break ground sometime next year and complete construction in time for the 2010 football season. Supporters are trying to bolster support by offering the stadium for use as a free jogging track and a venue for middle school sporting events. "If we're able to lock sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders in at a younger age, we'll be able to train and get them into mentors' hands so they're able lead a more successful life, ultimately," Bordainick said. "This school -- and these children overcoming the odds stacked against them -- can be a real catalyst for rebirth in this city," Bordainick said. "I think it can be something that people can look to, and something that people can rally behind." | High school hit hard by Katrina aims to build $2 million sports field with donations .
Four years after storm, all 530 students attend classes in FEMA trailers .
23-year-old athletic director leads fundraising campaign -- much of which is online .
Supporters: Facility will help students develop pride, discipline for successful life . |
122,286 | 2a11ec976205e2681a19e1d420ba68cf6af502fa | By . Alex Gore . PUBLISHED: . 08:53 EST, 2 December 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 06:58 EST, 11 January 2013 . Lothario: Former Greater Manchester Police chief Michael Todd had a string of affairs . Police officials are examining new claims of financial malpractice against a senior officer exposed as a love cheat who also made sexually explicit videos of his mistresses. Greater Manchester's new Police Commissioner has appealed for information about Michael Todd, former chief constable of the force, who had 'liasions' with 38 women in six years. The claims centre on Todd's role in drawing up unique contracts that allowed some staff to get enormous payoffs when they left the force. Married father-of-three Todd, 50, was found dead in mysterious circumstances on Mount Snowdon in 2008 after taking a cocktail of drink and sleeping tablets. An inquest ruled that he did not commit suicide but died of exposure while his mind was in turmoil. An inquiry questioned his 'judgment and integrity' and revealed he was linked to at least five women in the force - but said his private life did not affect his duties. It also cleared him of any misdemeanour in promotion of staff, and of inappropriate behaviour regarding expenses, hospitality, accommodation. But now Tony Lloyd, a former Labour Foreign Office minister who has just been elected Police Commissioner for the force, is to be handed a report into allegations of possible financial malpractice, including 'golden goodbye' redundancy packages of up to £300,000. According to The Sunday Telegraph, the West Midlands Inquiry into Todd failed to make crucial evidence public. The report contained details of Todd's computer, which contained sexually . explicit videos of his lovers, some of who were Greater Manchester police staff. A separate inquiry is now examining claims that the late police chief helped several employees - with whom he was romantically linked - to gain promotions or pay offs. These payoffs were then hidden in the force's accounts, The Sunday Telegraph reports. There is no suggestion of any wrongdoing against those who received the payments. Supt Alan Greene, head of the Great . Manchester branch of the Superintendents' Association, told the newspaper: 'These concerns were dismissed. 'Spending such monies, way in . excess of any normal redundancy certainly needs to be scrutinised and . its right that the police authority is doing so.' At the time of his death Todd - who was married to wife Carolyn - believed that his three-year affair with Angie Robinson, the head of Manchester Chamber of Commerce, was about to be exposed. Love rat: Todd had been cheating on his wife Carolyn, right, with Angie Robinson, left, for three years . As well as impacting on his family, this would have revealed his failure to adhere to police vetting procedures requiring him to disclose changes in his circumstances to prevent blackmail. Commissioner Tony Lloyd, a former Labour . minister, is awaiting a report on the allegations, and said: 'If . police officers or anyone else have evidence of criminal offences I . would urge them to come forward.' Greater Manchester Police has so far failed to return calls to MailOnline. Exposure: Todd died on Snowdon amid fears his affair was going to be made public . The redundancy packages said to be under examination include those given to Cathy Butterworth, 53, and Christine Brereton - although there is no suggestion of wrongdoing or that either were ever romantically involved with Todd. Ms Butterworth, who went from being a clerk at Rochdale police station to director of development earning £87,000 a year under Todd's leadership, apparently received a £117,000 pay off. The Sunday Telegraph quoted sources who claimed the total package was worth around £300,000. Ms Brereton, who was head of human resources and earned a £87,000 salary, received a £105,000 deal. Both packages were described as 'termination payments' and are much larger than the 'redundancy payments' given to others. These include the force's IT director, who earned £85,00 annually but got a pay out of £40,030, and the director of diversity, who was on £74,000-a-year but received £10,210. | New claims of malpractice against Manchester Police chief Michael Todd .
Late police boss accused of securing top redundancy deals for staff .
He made 'sexually explicit' videos of mistresses - but they were hidden . |
174,927 | 6e66b8f1246435f8ab38ff4d96a3b0596fd8db49 | (CNN) -- When pictures leaked out in December of the late Steve Jobs' new yacht, Venus, leaving The Netherlands, interest was once again sparked in the mysterious world of the super mega yachts, and in those who build them for the super mega rich. I say mysterious because the business of yacht building is full of rumors and speculation until the ship is seen leaving the sheds of the family-owned builders, whether in Amsterdam, Hamburg or Bremen. Read more: Steve Jobs' yacht impounded over pay dispute . A bit of the veil on this industry was lifted in London in January when the builders and designers of the biggest yachts celebrated the launch of the 2013 Top 100 Forecast from superyachts.com. The backers of this event are at pains to remind people this business employs thousands of people (craftsmen, architects, builders, designers, deckhands), and when a new anchorage is discovered by the rich and famous to park their yachts, it can generate a lot of income for a region. Read more: Sailing the world's most beautiful lakes . And since they aren't allowed to talk about those who buy these yachts, they are only to happy to talk all about the business. Herbert Aly, the CEO of Blohm+Voss, told me that superyacht building was actually hurt during the economic crisis. It took some time for the slowdown to filter through as orders can take five to seven years to fulfill, so 2011 and 2012 were the tough years. But that's coming to an end. Watch here: Yacht sales down amid austerity . "We've seen the rock bottom of it," Aly stressed. "And I think 2013 will be a promising year for the industry, for the big ones." Aly said the bigger yacht side of the business is coming back faster than the smaller side. Read more: Adventurers recreate 'greatest survival story' of the Antarctic . Aly's competitor Peter Lurssen would agree. His famed Lurssen shipyard in Bremen will soon unleash the world's longest mega yacht, codenamed Project Azzam. While Lurssen is not allowed to confirm the owner, or the specifics, he can talk a little bit more once aficionados caught a glimpse of it. "The yacht had to leave one shed and flowed through the river to the next shed, and even though the nose wasn't on, specialists were there with their instruments and they figured out it, yes it will be longer than what is flowing today." Watch here: 'Super yachts' gather in London . The '"specialists" estimate it will be around 180 meters long, beating out Roman Abramovich's Eclipse, built by Blohm+Voss, which comes in at 163.5 meters long. Will they just keep getting longer? "Maybe we will see 200 meters, but I think that's it," said Aly. "Why do you go for a bigger one if you are alone on it?" Read more: Olympic yachts glide into London for a colorful makeover . Well, not exactly alone, since some of the mega yachts need 60 to 80 employees when the boat is in full use. But he has a point. We could ask one of the owners, but they tend to like the yacht to do the talking. Henk de Vries of Feadship built the Venus for Jobs, though he won't confirm that. But he says building for the mega rich also means building an intimate relationship. "It's very personal. I have the cell phone number of my customers." And they have his. "Oh, yes, and they call me when something breaks down." Does that mean de Vries will do whatever it takes to strike a deal with a tech billionaire or Saudi sheik? "I had someone ask me the other day, 'but you can't say no to a prince?' I said, yes, we do. We do it all the time," de Vries said, laughing. All the builders stress that the ship takes on the personality of the person paying for it, and that things like the interior can change over the years it takes to build the ship. But since they only can book a profit once the yacht is delivered, they work hard to find a compromise. And de Vries has something new and special coming out of the shed soon. "Whereas the Venus was about eliminating everything, and going back to even than more than basic, just purity and form in design. This project that will be shown to the world, again I can't say anything, except that it is very large, and it's immensely complex and has everything that is included in that one." In other words, while the roofline of Venus looks like -- you guessed it -- an iPhone, the next one will be all about the bling. Project Azzam will be all about the yacht's length. With the business of big yachts coming back, it's possible other builders might want to get in on the action. Europe's family-run yacht builders caution against it. "We see military shipyards, commercial shipyards who think, 'oh, OK. I'll do a frigate, paint it white, put a nice interior in it, I have a nice yacht.' No way," said de Vries. It's about the personal touch, as Lurssen stressed. "We had a client that had in the contract that I could never resign as a director as long as the yacht is still not delivered, in fact not out of warranty." At a time that Europe is very worried about jobs, the uptick in interest for mega yachts should be looked at in a positive light, even if news reports will soon be filled with gossip (and jealousy?) over Project Azzam and the "bells and whistles" yachts to soon sail away from the shores of Europe to the Middle East. | Aly, CEO of Blohm+Voss, told CNN that super yacht building was hurt in the crisis .
Lurssen shipyard in Bremen will soon unleash the world's longest mega yacht .
Some of the mega yachts need 60-80 employees when the boat is in full use . |
135,755 | 3b9f973466a6e83b736341c215d8036b431e7541 | By . Associated Press and Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 16:00 EST, 22 August 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 16:53 EST, 22 August 2012 . Cover: The Dutton publishing company announced today that No Easy Day will be published on September 11 . A first-hand account of the Navy SEAL mission that killed Osama bin Laden is coming out September 11 - the 11th anniversary of the devastating terror attacks in New York and Washington, DC. The book's publisher announced on today that Mark Owen's 'No Easy Day' will 'set the record straight' on the raid in Abottabad, Pakistan, in May 2011 that led to the terrorist leader's death. 'Mark Owen' is a pseudonym for the combat veteran who was one of the first fighters to enter bin Laden's third floor hideout and also witnessed his death, according to Dutton, an imprint of Penguin Group. The co-author, journalist Kevin Maurer, has worked on four previous books - including two in the last year and a half about soldiers in Afghanistan. Maurer spent the last several years embedded with troops in Iraq and Afghanistan as a military correspondent for the Fayetteville Observer. One senior military official said the manuscript was not shared with special operations officials, to check for possible disclosure of classified information. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the vetting of classified information. The New York Times's Media Decoder blog reported that the book also goes into detail about Owen's incredible training that led him to become a Navy SEAL. The blog said that Owen's 'blow by blow' account of the raid will begin with the helicopter crash in bin Laden's backyard that almost killed him to the terror mastermind's death. Owen has since retired from active duty. Target: A member of Seal Team Six shot and killed Osama bin Laden during the elite squad's daring raid of his compound in Abbotabad, Pakistan . Tension: The raid of bin Laden's Abottabad compound was watched by President Obama and his closest advisers in the Situation Room of the White House . And just because the author is remaining anonymous does not mean that he won't do a book tour, as The Times reports that Owen will make TV appearances while wearing a disguise. No Easy Day's listing on Amazon.com says that among Owen's hundreds of missions around the world as a Team Six commando was the rescue of Capt Richard Phillips from Somali pirates in 2009. Owen's book comes on the heels of . another account of the bin Laden takedown that claims the raid was nixed . three times by Obama, but finally went ahead at the urging of Hillary . Clinton. Terror house: Bin Laden's compound has since been torn down . Watching: In this undated image from video seized from bin Laden's compound, the Al-Qaeda chief watches a TV programme showing an image of President Obama . That explosive allegation is contained in an expose by journalist Rich Miniter, who argues that the White House’s carefully-crafted narrative of Obama as a decisive leader who took out the al-Qaeda leader despite the doubts of advisers is a myth. Leading from Behind: The Reluctant President and the Advisors Who Decide for Him was published on Tuesday. A film about the bin Laden raid, Zero Dark Thirty - from Hurt Locker director Kathryn Bigelow - is due to be released December 19. Mission: Bin Laden was killed during the 40-minute operation by the elite Navy SEAL Team Six squad in his Abbottabad, Pakistan, compound, seen here . Setback: Mark Owen was reportedly aboard the helicopter that crashed in bin Laden's backyard . | Book will be published anonymously under the pseudonym 'Mark Owen'
Will hit bookstores on the 11th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks in New York and Washington, DC . |
218,262 | a690bc04944eea092cd47b9ddccc6d692f595bfe | (CNN) -- A New Jersey police officer plead not guilty on Friday, a day after he was arrested and charged with setting fire to the house of an Edison police captain and his family. Michael A. Dotro was arrested on Thursday at his home in Manalapan, New Jersey, after an investigation by the Middlesex County prosecutor's office and the Monroe Township Police Department. That investigation determined that a fire at the police captain's home early on May 20 had been intentionally started outside the house. Police, EMT personnel and firefighters were called to the two-story, colonial-style home of police Capt. Mark Anderko shortly before 4 a.m. on May 20. Anderko was in the house with his wife, two children and 92-year old mother. The fire was extinguished within 10 to 15 minutes and there were no injuries, but the house was damaged. "The investigators described it as considerable, one part of the house had damage on the first and second floor of the home, " said Jim O'Neil, spokesman for the Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office. Dotro, 35, was charged with five counts of attempted murder and one count of aggravated arson, authorities said. A nine-year veteran of the Edison police department, he was suspended from his job with pay. Dotro's lawyer, Lawrence Bitterman, said that his client is "in shock" and had told Bitterman that "he can't believe he's being arrested." Superior Court Judge Bradley Ferencz on Friday upheld previously set bail conditions on Friday, which included a $5 million bail. If the bail is posted, Dotro must surrender his firearms and passport and may not have any contact with the victims. "I believe they have the wrong guy," said Bitterman. Bitterman said that Dotro also told him, "The thought of anyone doing this to his brother officer makes me (Dotro) sick." Citing court restrictions, the prosecutor's office declined to give details of the evidence or to talk about the motive. The investigation is still ongoing but Bitterman said the search warrant didn't return any incriminating evidence. | Police officer Michael Dotro is charged with arson, attempted murder .
The fire occurred at the home of a police captain .
Both the officer and the captain are with the Edison, New Jersey, police department .
Dotro's lawyer says his client is "in shock" over charges against him . |
12,209 | 229e35c7a16389d08582994cc74ab246425dacb8 | By . Steve Nolan . PUBLISHED: . 04:25 EST, 21 January 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 09:58 EST, 21 January 2013 . Heart failure brought on by syphilis claimed the life of one of the UK's top composer, it has been claimed. In a new book to mark what would have been Benjamin Britten's centenary year, author Paul Kildea claims that by the time he was diagnosed he was beyond treatment. In his book Benjamin Britten: A Life In The Twentieth Century, Mr Kildea claims that Britten contracted the disease from his long term partner Peter Pears. Talented: Composer Benjamin Britten suffered from syphilis according to a biography released next month . Secret: Author Paul Kildea claims Britten was never told he had syphilis because he was beyond treatment . Britten died in 1976 having never fully recovered from heart surgery three years earlier because of the disease he was carrying. According to the book, Mr Pears never knew of his condition either and carried the disease without showing any symptoms. Mr Pears died a decade after Britten - who is credited with composing some of the finest music for the voice ever written and for a revival of English opera - and was buried next to him at Aldeburgh, Suffolk. Mr Kildea told the Guardian: 'It was a series of tragedies, syphilis did not kill him, but it meant that his heart was not in the condition required to recover fully from the procedure he underwent and from which his consultant (though not his cardiologist) expected him to make a full recovery.' The composer's former assistant Colin . Matthews, who is now on the board of the Britten-Pears Foundation, which . promotes the pair's work, said that he believes the claims are . 'probably true'. He added he is unsurprised that the decision was taken by doctors not to tell Britten . of his condition given the stigma then attached to the disease, and that . treatment would have had no effect. Partners: Britten, sitting at the piano, and Peter Pears met following the death of a mutual friend . Royal visit: The Queen Mother and Peter Pears at the Snape Maltings Concert Hall in 1971 . Mr Matthews said: 'Nothing could be . done. In those days people would undoubtedly have been shocked, and to . people of a certain generation it may still seem so today.' In the biography, Kildea says that Britten predicted his own ill health while working on Death In Venice in 1971. Syphilis is the oldest recognized STI and can result in death if untreated. The bacteria that cause syphilis are called Treponema pallidum. They can enter your body if you have close contact with an infected sore, normally during sex. Syphilis has three stages which can overlap and are not always experienced in the same sequence. Generally however, the first stage begins with a painless but very infectious sore on the gentials or around the mouth. It lasts between two to six weeks before disappearing. Secondary symptoms include flu-like symptoms such as fever, a skin rash and sore throat. These tend to disappear after a few weeks. There is then a latent stage that can last for years. The third stage is the last and most dangerous - it affects around a third of people who are not treated for the STI. It can damage the brain with symptoms ranging from tremors to mood disorders causing ravings and muscle weakness. Syphilis also has a tendency to damage the walls of the aorta, the artery that leads from the heart. It can also cause blindness. The third stage can develop up to 25 years after the initial infection. Between 2009 and 2010, there were 2,624 cases of syphilis diagnosed in the UK. If caught early the disease can be easily treated with antibiotics, usually penicillin injections. Mr Kildea makes the assertion that Britten may have suffered from syphilis from as early as 1940. He . writes: 'It seem likely that as he sweated and hallucinated his way . through a bout of streptococcal tonsillitis in the early months of 1940, . only two years after his heart was given the all clear and just as he . was about to write his love song to Pears, Seven Sonnets of . Michelangelo, his body was in fact reacting to syphilis, now in its . secondary stage. All the symptoms were there.' The book, which is published on February 7, is being serialised by the Telegraph prior to its release. The centenary of Britten's work is to be celebrated in 12 months of dedicated programming from the BBC. The Suffolk-born dentist's son showed . musical talent from a young age and went on to be a key figure iof . classical music in the 20th Century. His . earliest attempt at a composition, entitled Do You No[sic] That My . Daddy Has Gone To London Today, came in 1919 when he was just . six-years-old, and two years later he began piano lessons. Britten . attended the private school South Lodge, where he had viola lessons, in . his home town of Lowestoft, and later became a border at Gresham's . School in Norfolk before being awarded a scholarship at the Royal . College of Music in London. A . visit to the Norfolk and Norwich Festival in 1924 had left a lasting . impression on a young Britten after hearing the orchestral suite The Sea . by Frank Bridge. His viola teacher introduced him to the composer, who . had taken the budding musician under his wing. Britten, who became the first composer to become a lord when he was given a life peerage in 1976, had his first composition - Three Two-part Songs' which set three poems by Walter de la Mare to music - published in 1932. He began working at GPO Film Unit, writing music for the 1936 documentary Night Mail, which also featured poetry by W. H. Auden. Influence: Britten, pictured conducting on his 47th birthday, is sparked a revival of the English opera . Sufferer: Mr Kildea believes that Britten may have had syphilis from as early as 1940 . The composer met Pears, a young singer, a year later when a mutual friend Peter Burra died in a plane crash, and the pair struck up a friendship ahead of a homosexual relationship. The couple, who moved to the U.S. in 1939 before returning a few years later, both registered as conscientious objectors during the Second World War. Britten made a name for himself in 1945 with Peter Grimes, credited by the Britten-Pears Foundation for putting 'British opera back on the map'. It was first performed at Sadler's Wells in London. Another piece, Glorianna, was performed at the Royal Opera House in the capital to celebrate the Queen's coronation. Britten - interviewed by police in the 1950s over his homosexuality but was never charged - and Pears set up the Aldeburgh Festival in 1949, having moved to the Suffolk seaside town. New works by Britten were regularly performed at the festival. During his remarkable career, some of his most celebrated works included The Turn Of The Screw, Death In Venice, A Midsummer Night's Dream and Noye's Fludde - described as the first community opera, having been written for a church or large hall, with parts for younger performers. He was also asked to write for the renowned cellist Mstislav 'Slava' Rostropovich, and in 1962 completed the powerful choral masterpiece War Requiem, which mixes the Latin requiem mass with Wilfred Owen poetry. Honoured: Britten in 1964 receiving a honourary degree from the Queen Mother at University of London . | Author claims composer caught syphilis from partner Peter Pears .
Paul Kildea says Britten was unaware he had the disease when he died .
The composer may have had the illness as early as 1940, author claims .
Revelations comes in the centenary of the celebrated composer's birth . |
258,074 | da028ff871e7d1f984cdd89c5f849cfa5e3097b7 | A dozen young children chatter and giggle around me, taking my pad and pen to write down their addresses very carefully. This way, they tell me, I'll know where to send help. But how do you tell a six-year-old an address no longer means anything -- houses and roads are gone and in too many cases, so are families. It was not just the young who could not comprehend how their world changed on December 26, 2004. In Hambantota on the south coast of Sri Lanka, a parent stumbled through mangled debris in the area they assumed their house had once stood, looking for lost children. Siblings, children, cousins, all looking for a sign of relatives they lost in a split second when the water came. Standing in the middle of what was once the marketplace of this seaside town, I looked around at a landscape that was almost flat. No buildings for miles, giving a clear view of the sea that was deceptively calm and serene. Only one temple was left standing, the one structure built from concrete. Homes were washed away with residents still inside, market stalls and thousands of shoppers didn't stand a chance against the sheer force of mother nature. It is impossible to capture the extent of the devastation on camera and only those who lived through that day know its true horror. But one overwhelming memory for those who arrived afterward is the look in survivors' eyes. I accompanied a U.S. doctor working for Americares, Jonathan Fine, who had volunteered to help and deliver desperately needed supplies. He told me he would never forget "the victims, dead-eyed in their hospital beds, lying there, staring at us, wondering what their stories were, how they'll ever learn to cope with this, what they've seen, what they've lost." And yet in the midst of the misery I witnessed in Sri Lanka was incredible generosity. Residents who had lost everything, who had seen horror beyond imagination, running up to us to offer a face mask to help cope with the unmistakeable stench of death, trying to give us a bottle of water. One man even apologized we were not seeing his country at its best, begging me to come back when it was all over so I could experience the true beauty and hospitality of the island and its people. He then resumed the search for his brother, sister and parents. The sheer scale of the disaster was difficult to overstate. One Hambantota hospital that could take 300 patients at a push saw 1,000 serious injuries in the first two days alone. Basic drugs many of us take for granted ran out quickly and the bottleneck of relief, familiar in such disasters, took time to clear. And yet rarely did I see frustrations spill over. Residents helped each other and comforted each other. One textile factory had been badly damaged, some of the workers were dead or missing. But rather than wait for outside help to arrive, the workers cleared the building of mud, debris and bodies so they could go back to work. Many of the women were married to fishermen who had lost boats or were too scared to go back out on the water. Without the factory, their families had no income. Natural disasters are cruel and brutal. There is no one to blame and little comprehension. And yet they never fail to restore my faith in human nature. Strangers work together to pick themselves back up and rebuild their shattered lives. Many thinking of others rather than themselves. What I witnessed in Sri Lanka was both heartbreaking and inspiring at the same time. | CNN's Paula Hancocks was in Hambantota in 2004 when tsunami struck .
The landscape was nearly flat after the tsunami, with buildings washed away .
Amid incredible devastation, scenes of incredible humanity and generosity . |
120,765 | 281917a053a13f068c9b46b9c86e9c0c73759bec | Google CEO Larry Page stopped talking to co-founder and long-time friend Sergey Brin after his affair with Google Glass marketer Amanda Rosenberg emerged, friends have revealed. Brin, 40, split with his wife and mother of his two children, Anne Wojcicki, last year after she found 'alarming' emails between Brin and 27-year-old Rosenberg. The pair then began dating. But this did not sit well with Page, his co-founder and a friend since college who had witnessed Brin's blossoming romance with Wojcicki when the couple met in 1998. 'It was inappropriate,' a source told Vanity Fair of Brin and Rosenberg's relationship. 'Insanely upset': Larry Page, left, reportedly did not speak to fellow Google co-founder Sergey Brin, right, after it emerged he was having an affair with a 27-year-old Google Glass employee . 'Larry is so ethically . strict... I heard Larry was insanely upset by this whole situation . and wasn't talking to Sergey' for a time. Brin and Wojcicki, who had been married for six years before they split 10 months ago, began drifting apart after the launch of Google Glass, the article noted. In its early days, Rosenberg, a marketer on the project, had spent time with Wojcicki, a prominent Biotech analyst and businesswoman, to understand how to target mothers with the gadget. The two women became friends at the end of 2012 - close enough that Wojcicki bought Rosenberg a Christmas present - and Brin and Wojcicki went out to dinners with Rosenberg and her then boyfriend, Hugo Barra, a high-ranking executive for Google's Android team, Vanity Fair reported. Other woman: Amanda Rosenberg works as a marketer for Google Glass, where she met Brin . Model employee: Rosenberg, pictured wearing Google Glass, was friends with Brin's wife before the split . But around the same time, Wojcicki came across emails that 'caused her alarm', a source said, and she approached Rosenberg about it. In April 2013, Brin moved out of their $7 million Los Altos home to another property they owned nearby but they kept the split quiet until August. At the time, Rosenberg continued to date Barra, an M.I.T graduate and prized member of the creative product team, while also seeing Brin, the article noted. Barra, then unaware of the affair, was planning to move to Hong Kong with Rosenberg after being offered a job by a Chinese mobile phone company, sources said. But in May, Rosenberg broke up with him without giving him a reason, and after the Brin relationship publicly emerged a few months later, he announced he was moving to Hong Kong alone. Together: Brin is pictured in September 2012 with his wife, businesswoman Anne Wojcicki, months before they split. The couple were married for six years and have two children together . In January, Rosenberg revealed on her blog that she was being treated for depression. 'It became increasingly difficult for me to make decisions. I had no empathy for anyone, and I started to crave solitude,' the British-born Google employee wrote. 'The worst part was that it became harder to face people, even those I loved. It felt much better to be holed up on my sofa for unhealthy periods of time. 'Darkness surged through my veins and permeated my eyeballs. All the feelings I’d hoarded over the years were now rushing through me in one go and all I wanted was a one-way ticket back to numbsville.' She added: 'I'm in treatment and have been for 6 weeks. Reaching out for help is the single best and bravest decision I have ever made.' Linked: Before her relationship with Brin, Rosenberg dated Hugo Barra, who worked for Google Android . A family friend told Vanity Fair that her relationship with Brin has also seen its troubles. 'The two of them have horrible, screaming fights,' the friend said. 'It's part of the passion, the chemical attraction.' Brin and Wojcicki, who shared a $30 billion wealth and have two children under the age of six, are not divorced and have no plans to seek one, according to Vanity Fair. The . article also notes that it was not the only affair at Google, which . does not explicitly ban inter-office relationships. Page and Yahoo! CEO . Marissa Mayer also had a relationship, it claims. Rosenberg joined Google after graduating with a communications degree from Leeds University in England. She had previously been educated at £31,000-a-year Marlborough school, where Kate Middleton had previously been a pupil. Pippa Middleton was two years ahead of Rosenberg. In an internet profile Miss . Rosenberg wrote of herself: ‘I’m part of the master race that is the . Chinese Jew or Chew, if you will. 'Born in Hong Kong but bred in the UK. A . misanthrope who’s bad at maths, so I got the worst of both worlds.’ Elsewhere . she declared that her motto is: ‘He who hesitates is a damned fool.’ Miss Rosenberg is understood to have an English father and a Hong Kong . Chinese mother who worked as an investment banker. Long-time friends: Page and Brin, pictured in 2003, met while at Stanford University in the mid 1990s . She initially worked for the internet giant in London before last year moving to San Francisco to work at its Silicon Valley nerve center. She soon won a role promoting Google Glass, the glasses which enable users to film and broadcast over the internet everything they see non-stop, worrying privacy campaigners. She also came up with the idea to say 'OK, Glass' to switch it on. | Sergey Brin and Anne Wojcicki split last year after she found 'alarming' messages between him and Google employee Amanda Rosenberg, 27 .
Larry Page, who has been friends with Brin since college, refused to speak to him after the affair emerged, sources have claimed .
Wojcicki had considered Rosenberg a friend and had given her advice .
Rosenberg, who earlier this year revealed she was being treated for depression, has a fiery relationship with Brin, friends said . |
126,574 | 2f9ad9aecb40704fc042ba4dc8fccd75f7e1c00f | By . Simon Tomlinson . PUBLISHED: . 06:31 EST, 23 April 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 07:12 EST, 23 April 2013 . A mother who abandoned her three young children to go clubbing has been spared jail despite it being the second time she had left them home alone. The 40-year-old, of Leigh-on-Sea, Essex, spent a day shopping with her boyfriend before heading to a night club in London. She had taken an overnight bag with her and was planning on staying in a hotel. Her reckless actions were exposed when police were called to a heated dispute between her and her partner at the Coronet nightclub in New Kent Road in south-east London. 'Put pleasure before children': A mother left her three youngsters home alone to go clubbing at the Coronet nightclub (above) in London has been spared jail . The woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, admitted to officers she had left her three children at home, but claimed they were with a babysitter. Metropolitan Police contacted their counterparts in Essex and officers were sent to her home where they found lights on inside but nobody would answer the door. It was only when police warned they would force their way in to the home, that the mother finally admitted her three daughters - aged 12, six and four, were home alone without a minder. Basildon Crown Court was told the mother had left a mobile phone with the girls but did not have one with her so there was no way that she could be contacted. At her sentencing hearing yesterday, it emerged she had received a police caution for a similar offence in 2009 when she left her girls home alone. The mother, who appeared in the dock in a white blouse, wept as Judge Owen Davies QC told her she would not be jailed. Irresponsible: Basildon Crown Court (pictured) was told the mother had left a mobile phone with the girls but did not have one with her so there was no way that she could be contacted . She was instead sentenced to a 12-month supervision order having pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to neglecting and abandoning her children. During the hearing, Judge Davies said: 'Here we have for the second time, little girls left alone to fend for themselves whilst their mother thinks only of herself. 'It was her choice to leave her children, to take a change of clothes and go to a night club and to plan on staying in a hotel. Sentencing her, he said: 'You abandoned three little girls aged 12, six and four. The picture appears to be very clear. 'You put your own pleasure and desires before their safety and left them at great risk.' As the sentence was passed the mother wailed from the dock: 'I am so sorry, I am very sorry to everyone here. 'I will never do it again.' Judge Owen Davies . Peter Clark, prosecuting, told the court: 'There are no previous convictions but there was a police caution from four years ago for child cruelty. 'She abandoned three children aged between nine months and nine years same children and was given a police caution.' He said when officers quizzed the woman about her latest abandonment she initially said there was a babysitter back in Essex before later tearfully telling them 'I lied'. The children were taken into the police station and cared for - an experience described by the judge as 'frightening'. The court heard that the oldest daughter had been 'primed' to tell officers that their mother had only left them 20 minutes previously. Paul Vickers mitigating, said his client had suffered domestic abuse and was not able to say 'no' to her partner when he suggested that they go out together. The woman admitted a charge of wilfully assaulting, neglecting, abandoning, exposing or ill-treating children, in a way likely to cause them unnecessary suffering or injury. | Essex mother shopped then went clubbing in London .
Planned to stay in hotel, leaving children home alone .
Caught when police were called to heated row at club .
Handed caution three years ago for abandoning them . |
220,605 | a98f4f8827d312bd01f81e7bfea08ee7f06035d2 | Winger Brek Shea has left Stoke and returned to the United States to join Major League Soccer side Orlando City. The 24-year-old was signed by former Stoke boss Tony Pulis from FC Dallas for £2.5million in January 2013 but made only five appearances for the Potters in nearly two years at the club. Shea was loaned to Barnsley last season and returned to Stoke earlier this month after another loan spell with Birmingham but has failed to force himself into manager Mark Hughes' plans. Brek Shea, in action during a rare appearance for Stoke City, has moved back to America after two years . The American spent time on loan at Birmingham this season, but has been unable to establish himself . Stoke announced the news in a short statement on their website on Friday evening, saying: 'Stoke City can confirm that Brek Shea has left the Britannia Stadium to join American Major League Soccer side Orlando City. 'Stoke City would like to wish Brek every success in the future.' Shea has 27 caps for the USA but did not make the squad for the World Cup in Brazil. Shea's lack of playing time has seen him fall out of the United States squad in the past two years . | Brek Shea joins Orlando City in the MLS .
American winger failed to break into Stoke team in time at club .
Shea fell out of USMNT squad during his time at the Britannia Stadium . |
79,467 | e14bd7b1b760b185fbeb9a9e3f6c60954b208077 | A rookie police officer who was answering a domestic violence call has died from gunshot wounds, the Flagstaff, Arizona, Police Department said Saturday. Officer Tyler Stewart, 24, was shot several times in a residential area and died at a hospital, officials said. The gunman apparently killed himself, police said. "We are a very close-knit organization, and know that all members of the Flagstaff Police Department are grieving at this time," Chief Kevin Treadway said. A news release said that Stewart was trying to make contact with the gunman, who was the suspect in a domestic violence investigation, when he was shot Saturday afternoon. There were no other details released. "It is heartbreaking to lose one of our officers. We collectively mourn for his family and the entire department," Mayor Jerry Nabours said. According to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund website, Stewart is one of 125 police officers who have died while on duty in 2014. | Officer Tyler Stewart was shot multiple times, died at a hospital .
Gunman also killed himself, according to police . |
230,072 | b5ed60e0f1eac1d7963c895e4f3dc596f29564a0 | By . Alexandra Klausner . A stray dog from Chicago covered in matted fur and soaked in urine went through a miraculous transformation after being saved by animal care workers and will now live in a new and loving home thanks to her story becoming viral on social media. When Ellen the dog, 2, was discovered as a stray walking through the Chicago streets she was covered in matted fur and soaked in urine. Animal workers at the Trio Animal Foundation couldn't even tell if she was a girl or a boy. NBC reports that Ellen was once described as being a 'clump of pungent urine-soaked matted fur.'After being found by animal control in July, 8.5 pound Ellen was shed of her fur and her dramatic transformation became viral shortly after being posted on social media. Hidden: When animal rescuers found Ellen, she was so covered in fur that they could not tell if she was a girl or a boy . Severely abused: Ellen was covered in matted and urine soaked fur and was very hungry . Matted: Ellen's fur was stuck together and weighed a total of two pounds . Grooming: Ellen's grooming took two hours of hard work from rescuers . A posting about her rescue has over 3,000 likes on Facebook. 'Flies and gnats swarmed around the pup and what appeared to be the dog’s back legs dragged on the floor and left a watery trail… just like a snail,' wrote Sue Naiden of the Trio Animal Foundation. Ellen remained brave throughout her whole transformation and didn't once threaten the staff with barks or bites. 'Even though we had to pull out fur that had grown 2 inches down Ellen’s ear canal and shave matted fur away from her irritated paper-thin skin, never once did Ellen growl or show her teeth,' wrote Naiden. The grooming took an hour and a half and groomers shaved away two pounds of fur. 'The amount of grooming tools that [the groomer] had to use to break through the hard shell of fur was unbelievable, ‘Naiden wrote. 'The first time that she could feel the touch of my hand on her newly shaven back… She looked me in the eyes and it was as if she was saying thank you… Her past abuse was literally being shaved away,' she added. Heavy load: Ellen was walking around with two pounds of fur she is now relieved to have shaved off and tossed aside . Starting to emerge: After having fur shaven from her face, Ellen is able to breathe easily once again . Fur-get about it!: Little did Ellen know she would be able to feel free again after animal care workers took care of her fur problem . Road to recovery: After being groomed, bathed, and given vaccinations, Ellen will be able to live her life in a happy home . After being given more baths and getting up to date on her vaccinations, Ellen was taken to Naiden's home for further care until finding a permanent residence. Thanks to Ellen's story being such a hit on social media, hundreds applied to take the rescued puppy into their home. The foundation narrowed it down to three homes and it wasn't long before they found a perfect match. NBC reports that their project's rescue division, Project Rescue Chicago, found Ellen a home with another young dog named Linus who she quickly befriended. 'Ellen’s eyes lit up, and she ran right to him,' Naiden wrote. 'It was love at first site and she made it very apparent that this was the family that she wanted to call her own… it was then that our mighty girl picked her forever home.' Naiden said that Ellen is a special dog and that she will miss her very much. 'We will so miss seeing this resilient girl running around and jumping on the laps of those that aided in her recovery and fell in love with her. By far… saving Ellen is one of our proudest accomplishments,' she wrote. How's that feel?: Ellen gets a good scrubbing after she is shaved of all her excess fur . Barely recognizable: Ellen looks nothing like the matted dog she once was hours before . Proud moment: Ellen's rescuers say that saving her was one of their proudest career moments . Looking forward to a home: Ellen got hundreds of applications for adoption and now she will be living in a loving home with another dog named Linus . Big ball of fur: The matted fur is almost the same size as Ellen . Almost complete: shaving off all of Ellen's fur was the first big step in her amazing transformation . Friendly: Ellen loves playing with other dogs and will be living with a sweet canine named Linus . Toothy smile: Ellen may have had a tough past but she is looking forward to a bright and treat filled future . warm heart: Despite her rough past, Ellen is a loving dog looking forward to her new home . | When Ellen the dog, 2, was discovered as .
a stray walking through the Chicago streets she was covered in matted .
fur and soaked in urine .
Ellen was saved by the Trio Animal Foundation in July and after they posted her rescue story on social media she became a viral hit .
Hundreds applied to care for the severely abused Ellen who had 2 pounds of fur shaven off .
Ellen will live in a loving home with another dog named Linus . |
67,810 | c05aa047be9673d73766c930e3cd3f6fce87eb77 | By . Dominic King and Larisa Brown . PUBLISHED: . 05:19 EST, 15 January 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 12:58 EST, 15 January 2013 . Sepp Blatter has said England will stay in the shadow of Europe's elite unless influx of foreign players is brought under control . England will stay in the shadow of Europe's elite unless the influx of foreign players to the Premier League is brought under control, the FIFA president has said. Sepp Blatter is adamant the national team will fail to develop if managers keep looking abroad for players. He believes England are significantly in the shadow of Spain, Italy and Germany - and so will therefore never win a World Cup unless the buying of players from overseas is limited. He is however impressed with how the Barclays Premier League has been marketed and sold around the world. Mr . Blatter was speaking during a wide-ranging interview with Special . Report on Sky Sports News, in which he tackled subjects including . racism, future World Cups and the possibility of being succeeded by . Michel Platini. He said: ‘I . don’t think the Premier League is too global (but) you have too many . foreigners and not (enough) English players, so your national team is . not yet at the level of these national teams. ‘If you look to Spain, Italy and . Germany, you realise 80 per cent or even more of the players of the . national team play in their own league.’ Mr Blatter, who confirmed that goalline . technology will be trialled during this summer’s Confederations Cup, . called for clubs whose fans racially abuse players to be docked points. ‘A more radical solution would be deduction of points,’ said Mr Blatter. ‘Deduction would have a better impact. To have a match played without spectators is a warning. You can never solve a problem by running away.' The England team pictured during the Euros in 2012 . England's striker Wayne Rooney, England's midfielder Steven Gerrard and England's defender John Terry as they lost 4-1 against Germany in the 2010 World Cup . England was once one of the most fancied teams when entering into the World cup but betting odds this time round suggest otherwise. Betfair odds for England winning the cup in 2014 are 25:1 - relatively poor compared to previous years. The national team appears to have been on the decline for a while now, with most of the so-called 'Golden Generation' having retired from international football. England will take a new generation of players to the Brazil World Cup in 2014 and it is thought the team would do well to reach the Quarter Finals. In 1990 England did well, making it to the Semi Final but being eliminated on penalties against West Germany. But in 1994 the team did not even qualify. In 1998 the team were eliminated on penalties against Argentina in the first Knockout Round. They did better in 2001, where they made it to the Quarter Final but lost 2-1 again Brazil. Again in 2006 they made it to the Quarter Final but were eliminated on penalties against Portugal. 2010 saw an embarrassing 4-1 defeat against Germany in the Second Round. The team have so far had a shaky start in Group H, showing the road to Rio is set to be an uphill struggle. England drew with the Ukraine in September and drew again with Poland in October. They still have to play San Marino, Montenegro and Moldova and only group winners progress to the finals. The eight best runners-up from the nine Europe groups - according to all their matches except for games against the sixth-placed team in their group - play off for the four remaining spots. | Sepp Blatter claimed England will stay in the shadow of Europe's elite .
He said national team will fail to develop if managers keep looking abroad .
FIFA president believes England significantly behind Spain, Italy, Germany . |
243,118 | c6a6508b769f71b3576fdc9b75e8c3770e488ea5 | LONDON, England (CNN) -- As the lights went down in the theater the low murmur built to a thunderous ovation as the odd-looking man in the crumpled suit and bowler hat took to the stage. Tom Waits in Paris on the European leg of his tour. The excitement that greeted the eccentric American singer songwriter Tom Waits' appearance in Edinburgh last month may come as a surprise to the many, who have never heard of him. The 58-year-old has stayed for most of his four-decade career on the edge of the music mainstream. This is despite a showering of critical acclaim and a host of high-profile fans including the movie star Scarlett Johansson, who recently recorded an album of Waits covers. Waits' position on the periphery of pop music (he admits that the 60s scene largely passed him by), may be because he belongs to a bigger historical tradition -- that of the singer-storyteller that has its origin in folk music. His music comes from a different place from most artists. A laconic, bar room philosopher with a wry sense of humor, Waits is an avowed fan of the Beat generation writer Jack Kerouac and the author and poet Charles Bukowski. Many of his songs are stories containing a cast of characters from America's underbelly: the drunks and disenfranchised, the lost souls hiding out from life in seedy night spots. It is the same world that Kerouac chronicled in his writings, including his most famous work "On the Road," which describes a journey across America in the late fifties. Waits, who is notoriously interview-shy, acknowledged his debt to the author in a promotional interview to accompany the release of his 1974 album "The Heart of Saturday Night." He said the record was a search for the "center of Saturday night," a quest he said that Kerouac himself had "relentlessly chased from one end of this country to the other, and I've attempted to scoop up a few diamonds of this magic that I see." Waits' place in the folk tradition is something he has acknowledged, consciously or otherwise, in his music. In 1990, he wrote the music and lyrics for "The Black Rider: The Casting of the Magic Bullets," a theatrical collaboration with the American writer William Burroughs based on a German folktale. Like all great writers, Waits is a conscientious observer of people and their strange foibles. Born in Pomona, CA. he moved to Los Angeles in the late sixties to pursue his music career, finding work as a doorman at an LA nightspot. It was at this time that he honed his skills as a storyteller, eavesdropping on the lives of others. "I was picking up people's conversations in all-night coffee shops - ambulance drivers, cabdrivers, street sweepers," he said in an interview with The New Yorker. "I did research there as an evening curator, and I started writing gingerly. I thought at some point I'd like to forge it all into something meaningful, and give it dignity." The results of this labor are songs like "Frank's Wild Years," a hilarious and sinister tale of a man -- Frank -- trapped in suburbia with a wife and pet dog that has a skin disease. The song is spoken in a lounge room style over a soft jazz accompaniment, and like much of Waits' work it drips irony: "They had a thoroughly modern kitchen/ Self-cleaning oven (the whole bit)/ Frank drove a little sedan/ They were so happy." In a 1983 promotional interview published by his then record company Island, Waits credits a short story by Bukowski with giving him some of the inspiration for the song. "Bukowski had a story that essentially was saying that it's the little things that drive men mad," Waits said. "It's not World War II. It's the broken shoe lace when there is no time left that sends men completely out of their minds. "I think there is a little bit of Frank in everybody." In the song, Frank eventually runs amok, setting fire to the family home and blazing a trail up the Hollywood freeway because, as Waits quips in the pay-off "he never could stand that dog." This taste for the absurd carried into his recent live show with the set for the "Glitter and Doom" tour decked in a bizarre array of old speaker cones. Waits took to the stage dressed in a Chaplinesque suit, delivering his set from a slightly raised platform that gave up a cloud of dust each time he bashed his feet into it. In spite of the entreaties from the crowd he kept quiet between songs at first. Eventually after a few numbers he broke his silence. "This is a lopsided love song," he rasped, introducing the next track. "By that I mean the person doing it is lopsided, not the song itself." Lopsided or not, it's an authentic voice we could surely do with hearing more from. | Singer songwriter Tom Waits has won critical acclaim for his music .
His strange tales of the seedy side of America have attracted a cult following .
The actress Scarlett Johansson is a fan and recorded a recent tribute album .
Waits counts U.S. writers Jack Kerouac and Charles Bukowski as influences . |
947 | 02aa74a714235c99df4cd71b02065625d259b7c8 | By . Daily Mail Reporter . Todd and Pam Gunter turned their son into police when they discovered a hit-list he'd made last year of school bullies he intended to harm. A year later, the couple is speaking out about the discovery of their teen son's hit list that rocked Rigby, Idaho and turned them into crusaders for more mental health resources and education in America's schools. 'The reason we tell our story isn't so that people will look differently on us. We were also looking for the solutions,' Todd recently told KSL. Horrified parents: Todd and Pam Gunter turned their son into police when they discovered a hit-list he'd made last year of school bullies he intended to harm . The Gunters believe the solution is in prevention through education and school-based mental health resources. After their son plot was uncovered by fellow parents, the Gunters were flabbergasted. 'My first reaction was the same as any parent would be — "you've got the wrong child,"' Todd recalled. 'It's our son, what would change our son, a kind, generous, friendly, child to do something so cruel and mean. And I couldn't understand at what point he would have had to have reached to have gone to those drastic measures,' said Pam Gunter told KIDK. When the disbelief wore off, they turned the boy in to authorities and sought out professional advice. It was then that a sociologist suggested that it was perhaps the couples' unwillingness to display any sort of confict in front of their children that led him to feel so helpless when faced with it at school. The popular boy who'd run for class president and always had lots of friends was turned to violence after just a week of taunting, it was later revealed. Snapped: After a week of bullying, the boy snapped because--according to mental health professionals--he didn't have the training at home or at school on how to deal with difficult people and circumstances . 'We do have disagreements, but we don't openly fight,' Pam told KSL. ‘This is a juvenile reacting to that bullying, trying to take matters into his own hands,’ said Robin Dunn, Jefferson County prosecutor. Police said bullying led to the fight started by the boy. Police found a bag containing guns, ammunition, and knives. Investigators believe no one else was involved in planning the possible attack. Keith Hammon, Rigby’s police chief, said a police officer was looking into reports of bullying at the school before the parents reported their concerns. ‘The officer felt that there was more to what was going on with this young man and decided he needed to be evaluated,’ Hammon said. The boy was held at the St. Anthony Five County Detention and Youth Rehabilitation Center, where he underwent mental health evaluations and treatment. Included were classes on how to deal with difficult people and situations. The Gunters now believe such classes should be included in curricula at schools everywhere. As their son settles into a new school, the Gunters have developed a pilot program for dealing with bullying. 'You can't go through an experience like this and close your eyes and walk away from it. You have to take it and you have to take it, take everything you've learned and do everything in your power and control to make sure it doesn't happen to anyone else," said Pam Gunter told KIDK. Education: The boy no longer attends Rigby Middle, but his parents are pushing for his old school, and schools in general, to create anti-bullying education programs to prevent circumstances like the one they endured . | Idaho parents Todd and Pam Gunter's 13-year-old son was found with a list of classmates and authorities he wanted to harm, guns and ammo .
The unnamed boy was detained at a juvenile facility and underwent therapy and training for dealing with stressful situation sensibly .
The Gunters are speaking out in the hope of helping other parents deal with and prevent similar situations . |
257,206 | d8e1a1bfea4d466ba06f9de40c0efd8b460d71c3 | (CNN) -- Critics may have been divided over the MTV reality show "Buckwild" when it premiered last year, but fans weren't. According to the site TV By The Numbers, it ranked as the top-rated original cable series on Thursday nights among viewers 12 to 34, and pulled in an average of 3 million total viewers per episode since its premiere in January. So reports of the death of 21-year-old cast member Shain Gandee on Monday hit fans hard. Shain Gandee was happy with life before death . "I still cannot get over the fact that Shain Gandee died he was my favorite," tweeted one fan named Buffy Sue. "Rest In Peace. #Buckwild" The series, which follows a group of young people as they have fun in Sissonville, West Virginia, was controversial before it even aired. Many believed the show would fill the void of the wildly successful "Jersey Shore," which featured plenty of drunken shenanigans, hookups and fights. Before "Buckwild" premiered, Sen. Joe Manchin, D-West Virginia, sent MTV a letter calling it a "travesty." "This show plays to ugly, inaccurate stereotypes about the people of West Virginia," he wrote. John Stevens, the executive producer of the show, countered that the series was actually unlike any others on television, as the "Buckwild" bunch's idea of a good time was more hanging out in the woods than on Twitter or Facebook. "[I]t's not like looking at a train wreck. ... There is a certain coolness to it," Stevens told Entertainment Weekly. "It's different than a lot of the stuff that has been produced. I think it's going to get people talking and it might change people's perspectives. These kids are totally wild and carefree. It will be very refreshing to the MTV audience." In reviewing the show, The Hollywood Reporter said it "follows a slew of wild, drunken West Virginians in their late teens and early 20s." "Not only is it another tired portrayal of Southern stereotypes, but it's also inexcusably poorly executed," the review said. "The six girls and three boys (trouble is sure to brew with those odds) stumble through and stiffly carry out their force-fed cues." Hollywood.com was a bit more forgiving. "Sure, watching them might be amusing fun (I can't wait to see that insane lady in the red wig yell at them) but it's never going to be as good as 'Jersey Shore,' no matter how wild it purports to be," the website said. Despite the lackluster reviews, MTV recently renewed the show for a second season. On "Buckwild," Gandee was shown as a charming Southern guy who early on competed with fellow castmate Tyler for the affections of Cara. Gandee noted that he lived in a community surrounded by relatives ("They call it a holler 'cause when you holler, everybody can hear ya") and in a sneak peek of the show, his mother, Loretta, is shown expressing how much her son loved his job hauling trash. What happens when reality TV starts getting real . The nine cast members were shown partying, camping and "mudding," where participants spin a vehicle in the mud until everyone inside is covered. Mud played a role in Gandee's death. His body was found, along with his uncle, David Dwight Gandee, 48, and Donald Robert Myers, 27, inside the family's Ford Bronco. Authorities said the vehicle was partially submerged in mud, including the muffler. On Tuesday, an MTV representative told CNN that production on the series had been suspended. 'Buckwild' star, two others died of carbon monoxide poisoning . | "Buckwild" was a popular reality series on MTV .
The show was supposed to be a replacement for "Jersey Shore"
Shain Gandee was portrayed as a charming guy who loved his job . |
269,154 | e8a68a36b9004d32cb206039fe272accdf33c62a | Former Cabinet Minister Chris Huhne today lost his appeal against being asked to pay £77,750 towards his prosecution costs . Former cabinet minister Chris Huhne was today ordered to pay £77,750 towards the cost of prosecuting him for passing speeding points to his ex-wife. Mr Huhne had launched an appeal against the bumper bill ordered in May – but three judges today threw out his case. Prosecutors had originally demanded more than £100,000 from Mr Huhne, who pleaded guilty last February. His former wife, the economist Vicky Pryce, who was convicted by a jury, was ordered to pay £49,200. Mr Huhne and Ms Pryce served prison sentences for perverting the course of justice after she took speeding points for her then-husband in 2003. The speeding points scandal brought about the end of Mr Huhne's political career, forcing him to stand down as a cabinet minister and later to resign as an MP. At the conclusion of the hearing, Mr Huhne, 60, was ordered to pay an extra £1,279 prosecution costs relating to the appeal court proceedings. Mr Huhne's had insisted the sum the judge ordered him to pay was 'unjust', but the court said the £77,000 costs were 'just and reasonable'. Oliver Glasgow, defending the prosecution, said Mr Huhne 'sought to play the system and lost'. He told the court it was a 'gamble he took', and 'he knew if he lost it would cost him dearly'. Mr Huhne admitted last year asking Pryce to take his speeding points to avoid losing his licence, and Pryce was convicted of having agreed to do so. The pair were charged over an incident in March 2003 when Huhne's BMW car was caught by a speed camera on the M11 motorway between Stansted Airport in Essex and London. He was an MEP at the time and in danger of losing his licence, having already accrued nine penalty points. Mr Huhne, pictured with his new partner Carina Trimingham (left), was ordered to pay an extra £1,279 on top of the original court order to pay £77,750 towards the cost of his prosecution. His ex wife Vicky Pryce was told to pay just under £50,000 . Mr Huhne, pictured outside Southwark Crown Court last year, was found guilty of perverting the course of justice over speeding points a decade ago . The costs order was made in May by Mr Justice Sweeney at Southwark Crown Court, who rejected Huhne's legal team's original offer of £25,000. Pryce, who was convicted by a jury last year, was ordered to pay £49,200. During Pryce's trial, the prosecution alleged that she had chosen to take the points but later plotted to expose Huhne after he revealed he was having an affair with an aide and ended the couple's 26-year marriage. | Former Lib Dem minister found guilty of passing points to his wife last year .
Speeding points scandal brought an end to Mr Huhne's political career .
Judge ordered him to pay £77,750 to cover the costs of his prosecution .
Mr Huhne had launched an appeal against the bumper bill ordered in May .
But judges threw out his appeal today and ordered him to pay further costs . |
103,851 | 120166122b905583bc54ce98a7c879f513860f06 | The rookie Cleveland police officer who fatally shot 12-year-old Tamir Rice in a park had a poor job performance record and was forced out of a suburban police department after just a few months on the job, it was revealed today. Surveillance video released by police showed Tamir being shot by Officer Tim Loehmann within 2 seconds of a patrol car stopping near him at a park on November 22. It shows the boy reaching in his waistband for what police discovered was an airsoft gun, which shoots non-lethal plastic projectiles. He died the next day. Scroll down for video . Bad cop: Rookie officer Tim Loehmann, pictured left, quit the Independence Police Department in December 2012 after just six months on the job. His superiors described him as lacking in maturity, weepy and distracted . Final moments: In footage released by the Cleveland Police Department, a police car pulls up alongside Tamir Rice, who reaches for his belt and gets shot . In the blink of an eye: It took Officer Loehmann 2 seconds to shoot Rice after mistaking his BB gun for a real firearm . Police said Officer Loehmann believed the boy had a real firearm. Loehmann joined Cleveland police in March after spending six months in 2012 with the police department in Independence, Ohio - a community of about 7,100 located 12 miles southeast of Cleveland. Personnel files released Wednesday showed police supervisors in Independence decided he lacked the maturity needed to work in their department. A letter in his file said there was a pattern of a lack of indiscretion and of not following instructions. 'In law enforcement there are times when instructions need be followed to the letter, and I am under the impression Ptl. Loehmann, under certain circumstances, will not react in the way instructed,' the letter said. Loehmann's superiors within the department described the rookie cop as being 'weepy' and 'distracted' during firearms qualification training, reported Cleveland.com. 'He could not follow simple directions, could not communicate clear thoughts nor recollections, and his handgun performance was dismal,' according to the letter written by Deputy Chief Jim Polak. Polak concluded Loehmann's evaluation by stating that in his opinion, neither time nor training 'will be able to change or correct' the officer's professional deficiencies. Lackluster record: Officer Loehmann's (left) police file states that he once fell asleep during training, violated orders and on another occasion left his gun in an unsecured locker . Pointed remark: During a memorial service for Tamir Rice Wednesday, the boy's uncle told mourners that police need to revamp how they train officers . Loehmann resigned from the Independence Police Department in December 2012 after meeting his supervisors about their concerns. He was hired by the Cleveland Police Department in March 2013. The officer's father has said in a recent interview that his son quit the force in suburban Independence and joined the big-city department because he wanted 'more action.' It remains unknown if Cleveland police supervisors read Loehmann's personnel file from Independence before hiring him. Tim Loehmann's records indicate that the young officer's troubled relationship with his girlfriend adversely impacted his job performance during his six-month tenure at the suburban police department. According to a report written by one of his supervisors, Loehmann once fell asleep during training and was often seen weeping. On another occasion, he left his firearm in an unsecured locker, according to 19 Action News. In November 2012, Loehmann took off from the police dispatch center without permission and then lied about it to a supervisor. Loehmann told his superiors that he wanted to quit, move to New York City and join the NYPD where his father served for 20 years. The department was in the process of firing him when Loehmann quit of his own accord. Several hundred people attended the memorial for Tamir at Mount Sinai Baptist Church Wednesday . Pallbearers carry out the body of the 12-year-old boy from Gaines Funeral Home Wednesday . Despite all his apparent shortcomings, perceived lack of maturity and inability to follow directions, his files said he was 'eligible for rehire.' During a memorial service for Tamir Rice Wednesday, the boy's uncle told mourners that police need to revamp how they train officers while also looking closer at police brutality and the use of excessive force. A grand jury will consider whether to charge Tim Loehmann in connection to Rice's shooting. Just days after the tragedy, protesters marched past City Hall and temporarily blocked rush-hour traffic on a busy Cleveland freeway. Several hundred people attended the memorial for Tamir at Mount Sinai Baptist Church earlier today. Family members and friends, some wearing shirts with Tamir's picture, filed past displays of photos at the front of the church and stopped to hug his mother. One of his former teachers said Tamir liked to draw, play basketball and the drums. | Officer Tim Loehmann's personnel file at Independence Police Department contains letter describing the rookie as lacking in ability to follow orders .
Loehmann was allowed to quit the force in December 2012 and was hired by Cleveland Police Department in March .
His father, a 20-year veteran of NYPD, said his son left suburban police department because he wanted 'more action'
Records show Loehmann fell asleep during firearms training, was often seen weeping and once left his gun inside unsecured locker .
Tamir Rice was laid to rest on Wednesday . |
175,834 | 6f9be9f5a18f3adb046704704aa004ba98ba0774 | By . Hugo Gye . PUBLISHED: . 11:15 EST, 22 August 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 04:01 EST, 23 August 2013 . Neighbour from hell: Bill Seed admitted harassing William and Carolyn Maxwell . An 80-year-old has pleaded guilty to waging a five-year harassment campaign against his neighbours which they described as 'like a form of water torture'. William Seed would beep his car horn at all hours of day and night, make loud animal noises, scrape shovels along the ground in order to make a racket, and slowly drive past Carolyn and William Maxwell while staring at them in a bid to intimidate them. He repeatedly accused Mrs Maxwell of having an affair with an ex-policeman, and swore at the couple in front of children, a court heard. Mr and Mrs Maxwell told Blackburn Magistrates' Court that Seed's behaviour was 'like a form of water torture' and 'had a ruinous effect on what should have been the best years of our lives with our young family'. Seed, who was previously convicted of killing cats, started his campaign against the Maxwells when they erected a fence on their property in Longridge, Lancashire, soon after they moved to the town. When the couple complained about his behaviour, police asked them to keep a diary of his misdeeds. Officers also examined video footage captured on mobile phones and CCTV, and saw Seed banging on his neighbours' fence with a spade in an effort to wake their dog. Seed, a retired lorry driver who has lived on the same street with his wife for 44 years, initially refused to co-operate with police, but pleaded guilty at the last minute. However, he insists that he was provoked by the neighbours, and denies making up the affair rumours and swearing at the Maxwells. In an impact statement read to the court, the couple said: 'It has been absolutely soul-destroying and puts a chill in our blood. 'It means that we never get a lie-in at weekends as we wake up when Mr Seed does, and it makes the children think that this is what people do. 'This is not like living near to a public house or a train line, it’s an entirely voluntary act by this man who didn’t get his own way over one thing and has decided to make his neighbours' lives hell. 'We deeply regret ever having moved next to Mr Seed. It has had a ruinous effect on what should have been the best years of our lives with our young family. 'We thought about using the same mechanisms against him, but what example would that set for the children?' Street: Seed had lived with his wife for 44 years on this road in Longridge, Lancashire . Defence lawyer Scott Parker said that his client was 'apologetic about what's been going on', adding: 'Mr Seed is 80 years of age, and by his own admission is not as educated as his neighbours. 'He has been retired a long time and has a lot of time on his hands, and that's the problem in this situation. 'He maintains that he is always careful of his language in front of young people, but he was a working man and swearing is part of his common parlance.' The Probation Service drew up a report on Seed, which stated that he 'accepts that it has reached a point where a line has to be drawn'. He was sentenced to a 12-month supervision order and has to pay a total of £250 compensation to his victims. Speaking after the case, Mr and Mrs Maxwell said: 'All we ever wanted was to have quiet lives and now we want to be left alone.' Seed previously avoided jail in 2003 after he admitted killing up to 10 cats by smashing them over the head with a hammer and then drowning them in a dustbin filled with water. | William Seed harassed Carolyn and William Maxwell in Longridge, Lancs .
80-year-old beeped his car horn and drove around town staring at couple .
Retired truck driver fined £250 and sentenced to supervision order . |
230,100 | b5f521b54d86c1af7731f43aa622aa4ac88f2f8b | By . Ian Drury for the Daily Mail . Britain may need to introduce controversial privacy laws to meet the ‘challenges’ thrown up by lightning-fast internet communications, Britain’s most senior judge has said. Lord Neuberger, who is the president of the Supreme Court, said it was time to re-think the law because information spread quickly around the globe via social media including Facebook and Twitter. His comments were interpreted as a first step towards legislating to protect people’s privacy – which critics warn would hinder the Press’s ability to investigate and expose corruption and wrong-doing. Lord Neuberger, , pictured, said the speed of new technology means we may need to consider a privacy law . Britain has no single privacy law, unlike many other European countries. But UK judges have been accused of introducing a privacy law never debated or considered by Parliament, based only on the Human Rights Act – which contains a ‘right to private and family life’ – and their own successive judgments. The process began when law lords ruled it was wrong for a newspaper to have pictured model Naomi Campbell going to a drug rehabilitation clinic. In a speech in Hong Kong, Lord Neuberger said there had been ‘astonishing developments in IT – the ease with which information can be transmitted and received across the world, the ease with which words and scenes can be clandestinely recorded, and the ease with which information can be misrepresented or doctored.’ Media lawyer Mark Stephens said a privacy law enables 'scallywags and scoundrels' to hide their wrongdoing . He said: ‘These developments may make it inevitable that the law on privacy, indeed, the law relating to communications generally, may have to be reconsidered.’ He also gave a new interpretation on the ‘law on privacy’ in England and Wales, saying: ‘If I want to do or say something which I am only prepared to do or say privately, then it is an interference with my freedom of expression, if I cannot do it or say it because it will be reported in a newspaper.’ But Mark Stephens, a leading media lawyer, said Lord Neuberger’s intervention could be the first step towards a new privacy law in this country. He said: ’I think we can say without fear of contradiction that this is a first indication of new government policy on privacy. ‘This is very controversial. There is always a debate about whether scallywags and scoundrels use privacy laws to conceal their wrongdoing.’ | Lord Neuberger warned that there had been 'astonishing developments' in IT .
It is feared new restrictions will prevent the Press from exposing corruption .
Media lawyer Mark Stephens said privacy laws allow 'scoundrels ' to hide . |
225,421 | afe65b1a183082dfccceb33b420cccbef322aad5 | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 09:50 EST, 21 October 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 09:50 EST, 21 October 2013 . The last piece of legislation President John F. Kennedy signed - aiming to transform the way people with mental health problems were cared for - turns 50 this month. But the dream behind the Community Mental Health Act - to build 1,500 centres, halving the number of those living in state mental hospitals - was never realised. Signed on October 31, 1963, weeks before Kennedy was assassinated, the legislation aimed to build mental health centres accessible to all Americans so that those with mental illnesses could be treated while working and living at home, rather than being kept in neglectful and often abusive state institutions, sometimes for years on end. President John F. Kennedy signs a bill authorizing $329 million for mental health programs at the White House in Washington. The Community Mental Health Act, the last legislation that Kennedy signed, aimed to build 1,500 mental health centres . Kennedy said when he signed the bill that the legislation to build 1,500 centres would mean the population of those living in state mental hospitals — at that time more than 500,000 people — could be cut in half. The . legislation did help to usher in positive life-altering changes for . people with serious illnesses such as schizophrenia, many of whom now . live normal, productive lives with jobs and families. In 1963, the . average stay in a state institution for someone with schizophrenia was . 11 years. But only half of the proposed centres were ever built, and those were never fully funded. Meanwhile, . about 90 percent of beds have been cut at state hospitals, according to . Paul Appelbaum, a Columbia University psychiatry professor and expert . in how the law affects the practice of medicine. In many cases, several mental health experts said, that has left . nowhere for the sickest people to turn, so they end up homeless, abusing . substances or in prison, the Associated Press reports. In a special message to Congress earlier that year, he said the idea was to successfully and quickly treat patients in their own communities and then return them to 'a useful place in society.' Recent deadly mass shootings, including at the Washington Navy Yard and a Colorado movie theatre, have been perpetrated by men who were apparently not being adequately treated for serious mental illnesses. But only half of the proposed centres were ever built, and those were never fully funded . Those tragedies have focused public attention on the mental health system and made clear that Kennedy’s vision was never fully realised. The three largest mental health providers in the nation today are jails: Cook County in Illinois, Los Angeles County and Rikers Island in New York. 'The rhetoric was very highfalutin. The reality was a little more complicated, and the funds that were provided were not adequate to the task,' said Steven Sharfstein, president and CEO of Sheppard Pratt Health System, a nonprofit behavioral health organisation in Baltimore. 'The goals of deinstitutionalization were perverted. People who did need institutional care got thrown out, and there weren’t the programs in place to keep them supported,' said former U.S. Rep. Patrick Kennedy, the president’s nephew. 'We don’t have an alternate policy to address the needs of the severely mentally ill.' He is gathering advocates in Boston this week for the Kennedy Forum, a meeting to mark the 50th anniversary of his uncle’s legislation and an attempt to come up with an agenda for improving mental health care. The 1963 legislation came amid other changes in treatments for the mentally ill and health care policy in general, Appelbaum said. Chlorpromazine or Thorazine, the first effective antipsychotic medicine, was released in the 1950s. That allowed many people who were mentally ill to leave institutions and live at home. In 1965, with the adoption of Medicaid, the government program that provided health care coverage for the poor, deinstitutionalization accelerated, experts said, because states now had an incentive to move patients out of state hospitals, where they shouldered the entire cost of their care, and into communities where the federal government would pick up part of the tab. Later, a movement grew to guarantee rights to people with mental illness. Laws were changed in every state to limit involuntary hospitalisation so people can’t be committed without their consent, unless there is a danger of hurting themselves or others. Kennedy’s legislation provided for $329 million to build mental health centers that were supposed to provide services to people who had formerly been in institutions, as well as to reach into communities to try to prevent the occurrence of new mental disorders. Had the act been fully implemented, there would have been a single place in every community for people to go for mental health services. But one problem with the legislation was that it didn’t provide money to operate the centers long-term. 'Having gotten them off the ground, the federal government left it to states and localities to support,' Appelbaum said. 'That support by and large never came through.' Later, during the Reagan administration, the remaining funding for the act was converted into a mental health block grant for states, allowing them to spend it however they chose. Appelbaum called it a death knell because it left the community health centers that did exist on their own for funding. Robert Drake, a professor of psychiatry and community and family medicine at Dartmouth College, said some states have tried to provide good community mental health care. 'But it’s been very hard for them to sustain that because when state budget crunches come, it’s always easiest to defund mental health programs because the state legislature gets relatively little pushback,' he said. The three largest mental health providers in the nation today are jails: Cook County in Illinois, Los Angeles County and Rikers Island in New York (pictured) 'Services are at a very low level right now. It’s really kind of a disaster situation in most states.' Sharfstein points out that most mentally ill people are at a very low risk of becoming violent. He said it’s unthinkable we would go back to the era when people were housed in 'nightmare' conditions at overcrowded, understaffed and sometimes dangerous state hospitals. 'The opportunity to recover is much greater now than it was in 1963,' he said. But for those who do not take their medication, don’t recover from their first episode of illness and don’t seek treatment and support from professionals, they are vulnerable to homelessness, incarceration and death, he said. Linda Rosenberg, president and CEO of the National Council for Behavioral Health, counts among its 2,100 member organizations many of the original community mental health centers that were built under the 1963 legislation. 'Whenever you pass a piece of legislation, people would like to think that you’ve solved the problem,' she said. 'It did some very important things. It laid some ground work. It’s up to us now to move forward.' | Community Mental Health Act was designed to build 1,500 centres .
The aim was to halve the number in mental hospitals .
But only half of the proposed centres were ever built and never fully funded . |
114,469 | 1fb6f2fcc0925aa564bed8a6a4edf669802fa202 | By . Ellie Zolfagharifard . The mysterious strands of dark matter that hide beneath the visible universe may have been seen for the first time. Dark matter is considered crucial to theories explaining how the universe is expanding and how galaxies interact, but has so far eluded scientists. Now, astronomers have produced the first direct images of a part of its network using a quasar as a ‘flashlight’. Computer simulations suggest that matter in the universe is distributed in a 'cosmic web' of filaments, as seen in the image above from a large-scale dark-matter simulation. The inset is a zoomed-in, high-resolution image of a smaller part of the cosmic web, 10 million light-years across . A quasar is a type of active galactic nucleus that emits intense radiation powered by a supermassive black hole at the centre of the galaxy. This particular quasar, located 10 billion light-years away, illuminated a vast nebula of diffuse gas to reveal the network of filaments that connect galaxies in a cosmic web. For years, cosmologists have been running computer simulations of the structure of the universe to develop what they refer to as the ‘standard model of cosmology’. Their calculations suggest that as the universe grows, matter becomes clustered like a huge cosmic web, weaving its way into in filaments and nodes under the force of gravity. This deep image shows the nebula (cyan) extending across 2 million light-years that was discovered around the bright quasar UM287 (at the center of the image). The energetic radiation of the quasar makes the surrounding intergalactic gas glow, revealing the morphology and physical properties of a cosmic web filament . Dark matter surrounds galaxies across the universe, and is invisible because it does not reflect light. It . cannot be seen directly with telescopes, but astronomers know it to be . out there because of the gravitational effects it has on the matter we . can see. Galaxies, . for example, could not rotate the way they do and hold their shape . without the presence of dark matter, researchers say. The European Space Agency said: 'Shine a torch in a completely dark room, and you will see only what the torch illuminates. 'That does not mean that the room around you does not exist. 'Similarly we know dark matter exists but have never observed it directly.' Scientists are fairly sure it exists and . is crucial to the universe, but they do not know what it looks like or . where to find it. The latest results from the 10-metre Keck telescope in Hawaii, are reported by scientists from the University of California, Santa Cruz and the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy in Heidelberg. ‘This is a very exceptional object: it's huge, at least twice as large as any nebula detected before, and it extends well beyond the galactic environment of the quasar,’ said first author Sebastiano Cantalupo, a postdoctoral fellow at UC Santa Cruz. The distance to the quasar is so great that the emitted light is ‘stretched’ by the expansion of the universe from an invisible ultraviolet wavelength to a visible shade of violet by the time it reaches the Keck Telescope. ‘We have studied other quasars this way without detecting such extended gas,’ Professor Cantalupo said. ‘The light from the quasar is like a flashlight beam, and in this case we were lucky that the flashlight is pointing toward the nebula and making the gas glow.’ In an earlier survey of distant quasars using the same technique to look for glowing gas, researchers detected so-called ‘dark galaxies,’ the densest knots of gas in the cosmic web. These dark galaxies are thought to be either too small or too young to have formed stars. ‘The dark galaxies are much denser and smaller parts of the cosmic web,’ said Professor Cantalupo. ‘In this new image, we also see dark galaxies, in addition to the much more diffuse and extended nebula. ‘Some of this gas will fall into galaxies, but most of it will remain diffuse and never form stars.’ While the observations support the computer simulations' picture of a cosmic web, the researchers' results suggest there is around 10 times more gas in the nebula than predicted. They believe the discrepancy may be due to limitations in the spatial resolution of the current models. It could be because the current grid-based models are missing some aspect of the underlying physics of how galaxies form and interact with quasars, they suggest. ‘These observations are challenging our understanding of intergalactic gas and giving us a new laboratory to test and refine our models,’ Professor Cantalupo said. | Images of the cosmic web were taken using the Keck telescope in Hawaii .
Quasar acted as a 'flashlight' on a nebula to reveal a network of filaments .
Filaments are thought to be invisible dark matter that connects galaxies .
Scientists claim there is 10 times more gas in the nebula than predicted .
This suggests current universe models are missing some aspect of the underlying physics on how galaxies form . |
256,450 | d7f13d17fd2a5642e86be2f55de61d1ea13f15e7 | By . John Hall . and Alexandra Klausner . PUBLISHED: . 03:55 EST, 29 January 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 10:16 EST, 29 January 2014 . A man who claims to have captured and killed Bigfoot after luring it with pork ribs now says he is planning to take the corpse on an international tour. Rick Dyer, who describes himself as 'best Bigfoot tracker in the world' and claims to have shot the beast near San Antonio in Texas in September 2012, says the world tour will begin on February 6 in Flagstaff, Arizona, with further locations to be revealed over the coming weeks. Although he also released a second photograph supposedly showing the dead Bigfoot, there is a great deal of scepticism over their authenticity, not least because Dyer was previously involved in a Bigfoot hoax in 2008 when a 'corpse' he put on public display turned out to be a rubber suit. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO . On display: Rick Dyer released this new image, supposedly showing the Bigfoot he killed lying dead on the floor of his tent. He now plans to take the corpse on an international tour . Body of the beast: Rick Dyer claims that this is a photo of legendary creature Bigfoot, which he shot near San Antonio and now plans to take on tour . Mr Dyer claims that he lured the beast by nailing pork ribs he had bought from Walmart to a tree in San Antonio, Texas in September 2012. He initially released a grainy close up photograph supposedly showing the creature's face, but has now released a second photograph of it lying dead on the floor of his tent. Speaking about inevitable doubts over the authenticity of his supposed kill, 36-year-old Dyer told New York Daily News that he doesn't regret his 2008 hoax, as it put him in contact with people who now fund his full-time Bigfoot operations ever since. He claims that without the previous publicity stunt, he would never have been able to 'really' capture a Bigfoot. Speaking of killing the animal, he said: 'I nailed... pork ribs from the Walmart down the street to the side of the tree, and lo and behold, he came and started eating the pork ribs off the tree.' Mr Dyer claims to have filmed the creature as he was enjoying his last meal before going to get his gun and 'with tears in my eyes' shooting it dead. On the Bigfoot trail: Rick Dyer says he managed to lure the beast in by nailing some pork ribs that he bought at Walmart to a tree. While the creature was eating, Mr Dyer allegedly shot it . The excitement surrounding Mr Dyer's claims is tempered somewhat by the fact that he was involved in a Bigfoot hoax back in 2008. Back then, as now, he claimed he had the body of Bigfoot. But The National Geographic reported that, once the frozen body began to thaw, the body turned out to be nothing more than a rubber ape suit. This time Mr Dyer is adamant that his Bigfoot is 'for real'. He said: 'From DNA tests to 3D optical scans to body scans. It is the real deal. It's Bigfoot and Bigfoot's here, and I shot it and now I'm proving it to the world.' Mr Dyer has yet to produce the results of the DNA tests and optical scans, but he says he will be holding a press conference soon to answer any questions. Bigfoot sightings have been reported in forested areas all over the world, but physical evidence - such as a partial or complete body of the creature - has so far proven elusive. Video by Rick Dyer . Committed hunter: Mr Dyer is a self-proclaimed 'real' Bigfoot tracker, and he plans to embark on a tour of the U.S. with his specimen . Fuzzy face: What appears to be a large humanoid creature scowls at the camera in this grainy still from video footage. Mr Dyer claims it is none other than Bigfoot . | Rick Dyer claims to have killed the Bigfoot in Texas on September 6, 2012 .
Says he shot the creature dead after luring it with pork ribs nailed to a tree .
Dyer released a photo and claims to have performed DNA tests on the body .
Now plans to take the corpse on an international tour starting in February .
Dyer was previously involved in a high-profile Bigfoot hoax back in 2008 .
Hoax was revealed when frozen Bigfoot turned out to be a rubber ape suit . |
267,901 | e6f363d62897a015aef3779827eb4c654484ba2c | By . Jason Groves, Chief Political Correspondent . PUBLISHED: . 19:19 EST, 14 October 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 03:39 EST, 15 October 2013 . Boris Johnson took a swipe at George Osborne’s plans for visa reform yesterday – as the potential Tory leadership rivals went head to head in China. The London Mayor, whose aides are irritated by Mr Osborne’s presence on the trip, suggested that an overhaul of Chinese visas does not go far enough. In the first part of a week-long charm offensive, the Chancellor announced plans to fast-track the visa system for wealthy Chinese tourists and businessmen. Mayor of London Boris Johnson (right) said George Osborne's (left) plans for Chinese visa reforms is 'unclear' But Mr Johnson, who has campaigned for a much more liberal regime, said: ‘We will have to see how this scheme actually works. The detail is a little bit unclear to us at the moment.’ Mr Johnson yesterday went out of his way . to steal the limelight from the Chancellor, with a series of florid . speeches and interviews. His bid to win over students at Peking University misfired slightly when he joked that Harry Potter’s first kiss with Chinese Hogwarts pupil Cho Chang illustrated the future for China and the UK. But critics pointed out that Cho Chang is thought to have been Scottish and the relationship quickly fizzled out. Mr Johnson insisted he and the Chancellor were like ‘a pair of harmonious doves’. Mr Osborne, whose speech was received in near silence, replied they were like the ‘yin and yang’ of politics. But behind the scenes there is some . resentment in the Mayor’s camp at the Chancellor’s decision to time his . visit to China to coincide with Mr Johnson’s. The two Tories are in China at the same time and Mr Johnson went out of his way to steal the limelight from the Chancellor . Mr Johnson insisted he and the Chancellor (pictured together at Peking University) were like a pair of 'harmonious doves', whereas Mr Osborne said they were the 'yin and yang' of politics . Chinese banks will be able to apply to set up wholesale branches in the City of London under plans announced by George Osborne. The Chancellor described the move, agreed with China after two days of talks, as 'good for UK jobs and investment'. The Prudential Regulation Authority will enter discussions with Chinese banks in London which will allow them to apply to set up wholesale banks in the UK. Chinese banks will not be able to open high street branches under the plans but will be able to conduct business with other banks and companies.The agreement also contains plans to cement London's position as the global hub for trading in the Chinese currency renminbi (RMB) by giving investors the chance to invest RMB directly into China through London under a pilot scheme. Mr Osborne said: 'A great nation like China should have a great global currency. 'Today we agreed the next big step in making London - already the global centre for finance - a major global centre for trading and now investing the Chinese currency too. 'More trade and more investment, means more business and more jobs for Britain.' The Mayor had hoped to . be the first senior British politician to visit China following a recent . thaw in relations, which had been in the deep freeze since David . Cameron met the Dalai Lama last year. But Mr Osborne then announced he would . visit China at the same time - a move which some in the Johnson camp . view as a ‘spoiler’. Both men yesterday faced criticism for failing to raise China’s abysmal human rights record with communist party officials. Amnesty International described the pair’s attitude to China’s human rights record on their visits as ‘disappointing’. Allan . Hogarth, of Amnesty UK, said: ‘We are very concerned about continued . use of the death penalty in China, police torture and harassment of . human rights and political activists and minority groups, and . restrictions on freedom of expression.’ Mr Osborne said the purpose of . the trip was to strengthen trade relations with the emerging economic . superpower. He said Britain should show more respect for China and stop treating the country like a ‘sweatshop on the Pearl River’. He added that there was ‘no limit on the amount of business we can do together.’ Meanwhile, . the Mayor said it was not his role to challenge China on human rights . adding: ‘I don’t walk into a meeting and say, “I say, you chaps, how’s . freedom doing?” ’ 'I’m not . saying there isn’t a role for the British government to stand up for . what is right in the world, or what the British government sees as being . right. 'All I’m saying is . it’s not really my core function as Mayor of London to go around . aggrandising myself in that way and presuming to take on all the pomp . and panoply of foreign secretary and international relations and all the . rest of it.’ However Mr Johnson's attempt to sell . Britain's relationship with China mis-fired with a Harry Potter . analogy which lacked magic. The . London Mayor is in Beijing talking up closer links with China, claiming . it was like the wizard's first girlfriend 'Cho Chang - who is a Chinese . overseas student at Hogwarts school'. But . the latest attempt to upstage Mr Osborne quickly unravelled, with fans of the JK Rowling . series pointing out that Cho Chang was British, and their relationship . fell apart soon after starting. Both men have been criticised for failing to raise China's poor human rights record during their trip . Highlighting Britain's close relationship with China, Mr Johnson drew on the literary works of JK Rowling. Speaking at a Q&A session at . Peking University, he said: 'If you want one final proof of how fast the . world is changing, the cultural interpenetration between Britain and . China, let me ask you a question, brilliant students of Peking . University. 'Who in English . literature is the most famous student? Who is the most famous student . in contemporary British writing, would you say? I will give you a clue - . he sometimes has a wand... Harry Potter.' He . went on: 'Where does the train go from which Harry Potter has to catch . to go to his school? King's Cross, absolutely right, which is where? London. 'Where does Harry Potter buy his . uniform and his wand and stuff like that and his books? I think it's in . Diagon Alley which is in London. Where is the location of the Ministry . of Magic? London. 'And who . according to JK Rowling, the author of the Harry Potter novels, was . Harry Potter's first girlfriend? Who is the first person he kisses? That's right, Cho Chang - who is a Chinese overseas student at Hogwarts . school. 'Ladies and gents I rest my case. I don't think I need to argue any further, that is the future of Britain and of London.' However, . it was quickly noted that Cho Chang was not described as a Chinese . overseas student in the series of novels, and was played in the films by . British-Asian actress Katie Leung with a Scottish accent. | Boris Johnson suggested George Osborne's plans do not go far enough .
Told reporters: 'The detail is a little bit unclear to us at the moment'
Osborne says plans to fast-track visas for wealthy Chinese businessmen . |
254,021 | d4c060b2bb6a7564caf351cb4b97af779e004dce | By . Elsa Mcalonan . It may be getting colder, but the continuing trend for fake tanning shows no signs of cooling off. Strictly, X Factor and I’m A Celebrity have done much to boost sales of self tanning products and with Christmas parties about to kick off, more bottles will be flying off the shelves as shoppers prepare for the party season. I used to think I had to spend at least £20 and upwards to get a decent self tanner. The earliest budget self tanners produced unattractive tangerine hues that were less than lovely and don’t even think about the unforgettable whiff of some of the first self-tanning products - seriously stinky. Cheap and cheerful? Elsa McAlonan puts the new Anovia £1 fake tan to the test for Femail . But the quality (and smell, thankfully) of products under £10 is improving all the time - Cocoa Brown (the tan pictured here) is an affordable self tanning range that is proving a winner with self-tanning fans. Despite the lower price tags, some of these budget self tanners are proving every bit as good as the premium ranges. And now there's an even cheaper range to try. Love the Tan (a range of four products that cost £1 each) has just been launched by Anovia, the low-cost skin and body range, which is developed and manufactured in the UK. All products are ph balanced and enriched with active natural ingredients that are kind to skin. But I thought this sounded too good to be true, so decided to try them. Bargain beauty: Anovia's £1 tanning range includes moisturiser, primer and smooth-on instant bronzer . Elsa's favourite: Femail's tester adored the self tan moisturiser and said it didn't streak . LOVE THE TAN EXFOLIATING PRIMER . You should always exfoliate before applying self tanner, so it is well worth using this in your tanning routine. For best results, massage into damp skin and rinse off thoroughly. Pat skin dry before applying tanner. It does the job well, smells pleasant and is not too granular, so gentle on the skin.LOVE THE TAN SELF MOISTURISER . This is enriched with cocoa butter and vitamin E and works in three hours to produce a natural glow. Available in either light/medium or medium/dark. Amazingly it didn’t streak. I tried light/medium, which was dark enough for my skin tones. I think the medium/dark would have been too dark and not natural looking. LOVE THE TAN SMOOTH ON INSTANT BRONZER . I prefer wash off bronzing gels if I just need a bit of colour on my arms or legs. Go easy when you open the tube as it comes out in a huge globby chocolate sauce spurt. For best results exfoliate first definitely use an application mitt or gloves with this – the colour is good and it certainly looks natural. It comes off easily with soap and water, but be warned – it takes a bit of rubbing to remove it. Love the Tan is a collection of self-tanning products available for only £1* each and all available to buy now at Poundland. FASTEST WORKING: Cocoa Brown 1 Hour Instant Tan, £7.99 (Superdrug) This . is great for last-minute fixes as it dries really quickly. The colour . goes on evenly, but make sure the skin is prepared first, as it will . stick to any dry patches. It’s best if washed off after an hour, but . leave it on for up to three hours for a darker shade. LONGEST LASTING:Garnier Ambre Solaire Gloss Bronzer Self-Tanning Gel, £8.99 (Boots) A . light gel that slides on easily and works well if it’s buffed when . applying with a mitt – don’t even try applying this with just your . fingers, as it streaks. Its big advantage is that it lasts well – use . every day for up to three days and the colour will last for a week. EASIEST TO APPLY: St Moriz Instant Self-Tanning Mousse Medium, £4.99 (Boots) This . mousse is really quick and easy to apply as you can see exactly where . you’re putting the colour. This is best applied with gloves so you can . really blend it into skin and rub away any streaks as you’re applying . it. You need to keep skin well moisturised and the colour won’t flake . off, and will fade gradually. BEST COLOUR: Tanatomicals Self Tan Cream, £6.99 (Superdrug) This . is a great range that doesn’t always get the credit it deserves. Although creams can sometimes be difficult to apply as they can easily . streak, you won’t go wrong with this one. Apply with a tanning mitt and . it gives a light colour instantly. Leave overnight and you’ll be pale . golden in the morning – even with fair skins, it won’t leave an orange . hue. | Poundland has launched a range of £1 tans called Anovia .
Included is an instant bronzer and a gradual tanning moisturiser .
Femail's bargain beauty queen Elsa McAlonan put them to the test . |
219,367 | a7f20015ea0a843ff05e475f6384435fec7fc1c1 | (CNN) -- San Antonio defeated the Miami Heat 104 to 87 to claim the NBA championship Sunday night. "This is a team, and that's what makes this so, so great," Spurs guard Manu Ginobili said. San Antonio dominated the series, winning four games to one. Each Spurs victory was by at least 15 points. "Hard to believe, isn't it? Ginobili said. "We played at a really high level." The victory snaps the Heat's two-year championship run and hands San Antonio its fifth NBA title. Spurs forward Kawhi Leonard was named the series MVP. | San Antonio wins the series 4-1 .
Each win was by 15 points or more .
This is the Spurs' fifth NBA title .
Kawhi Leonard is named the series MVP . |
65,594 | ba381de0cebc77b5e18ec11fa9f53701f34a5120 | By . Paul Thompson . PUBLISHED: . 00:20 EST, 3 December 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 05:17 EST, 3 December 2012 . A postal worker has been accused of trying to kill her husband with a tuna fish sandwich. Beth Dickison Richards is alleged to have crushed anti-depressant pills and put them in his lunch sandwich. The 37-year-old is alleged to have admitted to the murder attempt when confronted by detectives at her home in Lake Wales, Florida. Home problems: Beth Dickison Richards, of Lake Wales, Florida, who tried to kill her husband by putting antidepressants in his tuna fish sandwich . Investigators said they had yet to establish a motive for the attempted murder. According to the Polk County Sheriff's Office, deputies were called to Richards' home where they were met by her husband, Gregory Lawrence Richards, and her step-sister, Jessica Jarvis. Jarvis told police Richards had told her earlier in the day that she had crushed a quantity of Trazodone pills and put them in her husband's lunch. Mr Richards said he had eaten part of the sandwich and felt sick. He was taken to Lake Wales Medical Center, where he was treated for nausea and dizziness. Killer meal: A tuna fish sandwhich (not the one Richards tried to use) According to the National Institutes of Health, Trazodone is used to treat depression and increases the amount of serotonin, a natural substance in the brain that helps maintain mental balance. During the investigation into Richards, who works as a US Mail carrier, a small quantity of cannabis was found. Richards faces charges attempted First Degree Murder, Poisoning Food with the intent to Kill, Possession of Cannabis and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. She is being held in Polk County Jail without bail. | Beth Dickison Richards is alleged to have crushed anti-depressant pills and put them in her husband's lunch sandwich .
Gregory Lawrence Richards was taken to Lake Wales Medical Center, where he was treated for nausea and dizziness .
Richards is being held in a local prison without bail . |
79,801 | e23b9d6a62ba2f1cd5bcdcea4f085b076bd5c631 | Glen Turner was shot and killed on a property near Moree in northern NSW over an environmental dispute . The 79-year-old Moree wheat farmer accused of the shooting murder of a state government worker has been hit with two new charges and will remain behind bars. Ian Robert Turnbull was refused bail after two further charges were laid against him at Moree Local Court on Tuesday. Glen Turner was allegedly shot dead by Mr Turnbull on Talga Lane, near Moree in north-west NSW, about 5.40pm on July 29. Mr Turnbull is accused of also assaulting Mr Turner's colleague Robert Strange on the same day, the Sydney Morning Herald reports. The farmer had allegedly stopped his car next to the environmental compliance officers, who were both carrying out an on site inspection, before he armed himself with a rifle and opened fire. Mr Turner was allegedly shot several times before he was found by police. Mr Turnbull was arrested five hours later at a nearby property. Mr Turnbull will return to court in September. Mr Turner was working for the department and is survived by his wife Alison and their two children, aged nine and 10. Scroll down for video . The state government worker was shot as he served a notice to an elderly man accused of illegally chopping down trees in the Croppa Creek area . Mr Turnbull had previously been served notices by Mr Turner for illegally clearing vegetation on his property and in the Croppa Creek area. The Land and Environment Court had ordered the farmer to remediate the land after it found the Native Title Vegetation Act had been breached. In the wake of the tragedy, Mr Turnbull's family hope to see the legislation changed so farmers have more control over how they clear their land after persistent calls from farming communities. The family member said Mr Turnbull was the 'respected elder' who people into the community turned too and not a 'hermit'. 'He was out in the community - he was helping to build old people's homes, he was collecting trampolines at school fetes, he did Meals on Wheels,' the family member told The Daily Telegraph. 'He has held this all in, he has crumbled, he has tried to carry this all to himself.' The Turnbulls said the tragedy had catastrophic impacts for both families and offered their condolences to the Turners. They added that the death was not right and Mr Turner's children had been robbed of their father. Police and paramedics were called to a Croppa Creek property about 55 kilometres north of Moree on the Newell Highway, where they found the body of the victim late on Tuesday afternoon. A post-mortem will be held to determine exactly how the 51-year-old died. He was informing Mr Turnbull that there would be a formal inspection of his property in relation to the suspected illegally clearing of vegetation before the incident occurred. Another worker was with the victim when he was shot, a department source who did not wish to be named said. The other worker is understood to be in shock but is otherwise uninjured. Friends of the alleged shooter have described Mr Turnbull as even-tempered but admitted the whole town knew that he had cleared too many trees. The wheat farmer owned five properties in the area and the shooting took place about a kilometre from one of those. Moree Plains Shire mayor Katrina Humphries said the shooting highlighted the volatile issue of land clearing in northern NSW. The 79-year-old Moree man who was arrested at a nearby property had been served previous notices for illegal clearing on his land and around the Croppa Creek area (pictured) Environmental issues including land clearing and coal seam gas exploration have been a source of frustration in the rural community, she said. 'This is why I say, and I am not saying it flippantly and I mean it, I am not surprised this has happened,' she said. 'Because I know people have been pushed and pushed and pushed. This is their life and this is their livelihood,' Ms Humphries said. Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce agreed with these comments, and said this was a tragedy but not an isolated incident, just the worst one. Northern NSW ecologist Phil Spark said the farmer had cleared about 100 hectares of land. 'And a lot of that is koala habitat so that has been a real conflict between conservation and this farmer having the right to clear his land,' he told ABC Radio. The NSW Public Service Association says the tragedy highlights the need for better risk assessment. 'The protection of the environment is an issue that generates great passion with strong feelings on both sides of the argument,' acting general secretary Steve Turner said in a statement. NSW Environment Minister Rob Stokes said he was deeply saddened by the death. | Ian Robert Turnbull, 79, of Moree, faces two new charges, including the assault of another environmental officer .
Glen Turner, 51, was shot dead on Talga Lane, near Moree in north-west NSW, about 5.40pm on July 29 .
The wheat farmer will remain behind bars after being refused bail in court on Tuesday . |
245,431 | c9a7763a54a03402d133783a48b412c0b2d189c3 | John Bercow has been accused of ‘rank hypocrisy’ after pocketing thousands of pounds from ‘second jobs’ outside Westminster . Commons Speaker John Bercow has been accused of ‘rank hypocrisy’ after pocketing thousands of pounds from ‘second jobs’ outside Westminster – while criticising other MPs who do the same. Mr Bercow infuriated Tory MPs last week by appearing to back Labour plans to crack down on MPs being allowed outside earnings on top of their Commons work. He said that ‘a lot of members of the public would expect MPs to do a full-time job’. But this newspaper has established that before becoming the £142,800- a-year Speaker in 2009, Mr Bercow himself earned large sums from ‘outside earnings’ as a backbench MP. The MPs’ register of interests shows Mr Bercow had a job worth up to £40,000 a year advising a firm in the Priory Group, the mental health treatment company behind the well-known Priory ‘rehab’ clinics. Based on his declarations, Mr Bercow began the work in November 2008 but gave up the job in June 2009 when he was made Speaker. He also declared income for providing ‘communications training’ to staff of Chase Manhattan Bank between 1998 and 2002 but no further details were given. And in 2002 and 2003, he was also a paid non-executive of energy firm Kent and Essex Wind Energy. Mr Bercow, who has been MP for Buckingham since 1997, gave up his outside interests when he took the Speaker’s chair in 2009. The promotion led to his basic MP’s salary being more than doubled while he and his family also moved into the taxpayer-funded, ‘grace-and-favour’ residence in the Commons. Last night, Tory critics said Mr Bercow had no right to criticise MPs, who earn a basic £67,000, for having second jobs. Tory MP Michael Fabricant said: ‘Given that the Speaker used to have outside jobs, many people will think his comments against them are rank hypocrisy. Former Conservative Foreign Secretary Malcolm Rifkind, pictured, told undercover reporters that he had a usual fee of between £5,000 to £8,000 for a half-day's work for representing private companies . It is pretty rich for him to talk about MPs’ extra earnings as he lives in a grace-and-favour house, gets paid as much, if not more than, the Prime Minister and also has a very generous pension.’ Mr Fabricant also pointed out that Mr Bercow, who has previously been accused of ‘Labour bias’, made his latest remarks ahead of an attempt by Ed Miliband to change Commons rules and bar MPs from paid directorships and consultancies. Mr Bercow’s remarks on the long-established practice of MPs having second jobs, but having to declare them, came after two former foreign secretaries, Tory Sir Malcolm Rifkind and Labour’s Jack Straw, were embroiled in a ‘cash-for-access’ row. He said: ‘People should not be in Parliament to add to their personal fortune.’ Last night Mr Bercow declined to comment on the ‘hypocrisy’ claims. But his spokesman said: ‘The Speaker has held no paid position outside his office since his election to the chair in 2009. Details of his salary and pension are matters of public record.’ | Commons Speaker has been accused of ‘rank hypocrisy’ after appearing to back Labour plans to crack down on MPs being allowed outside earnings .
Said that ‘members of the public would expect MPs to do a full-time job’
But he's pocketing thousands from ‘second jobs’ outside Westminster . |
255,703 | d6f4abbec595f6e579512687d8aad51f73eb9e6c | By . Neil Ashton . Follow @@neilashton_ . When the English obsession with Andrea Pirlo turns to the ‘panenka’ penalty he scored against Joe Hart at Euro 2012, England’s keeper can’t remember a thing. Perhaps it is better that way. It was in Kiev, with England leading 2-1 in the shoot-out at the Donbass Arena, when Hart raised his arms and stuck his tongue out at the Italian as he took aim from 12 yards. Hart guessed to his right and the great Italian clipped his penalty down the centre of the goal. Soon enough, England were heading home. ‘I’ll never regret how it was, I saw it as the best way for us to win the shoot-out,’ said Hart. Cheeky: Andrea Pirlo executes a clever chipped 'panenka' penalty over Joe Hart at Euro 2012 . Life through a lens: Hart leads his team-mates as England arrive at their hotal in Manaus before re-facing Italy . ‘I don’t think there was personal vengeance from him and there certainly wasn’t any from me. He did what he thought he needed to do for his country and I did what I thought was best for mine. 'I couldn’t even tell you what I did. But it felt right at the time. It obviously wasn’t.’ Now a two-time Premier League winner with Manchester City, these are good times for Hart, 27, and he has come to appreciate the demands of playing at the highest level. ‘I want to do well for this team and this nation,’ he added. ‘A lot of time and effort has gone into it and the more you’re involved the more you realise that it is more than football. It means an awful lot to a lot of people. Through his paces: Hart trains at the Urca military base in preparation for the ultimate test against Italy . 'A lot of money has been invested and a lot of time and care, from me personally, has gone into this. I want to make it all worthwhile.’ At the last World Cup, in South Africa, Hart became increasingly irritated with the Italian coaching staff who appeared to be calling him ‘John’. Fabio Capello was the main culprit and Hart admitted: ‘I did take offence about that, but I’ve calmed down. Since then I’ve been called “John” by a lot of Italians who know me — I think it’s just how they talk. It was just a mispronunciation.’ Loggerheads: Hart (second left) admits frustration over his relationship with ex-boss Fabio Capello (left) A goalkeeper’s life is a fragile one and there have been times this season when City’s keeper has been under fire. But he finished the campaign well, and added: ‘It means a lot to have your club and country behind you. ‘I’ve got to keep working hard because potentially I could go through another bad patch again.’ | Joe Hart has no regrets over the Euro 2012 penalty shoot-out .
England keeper wants to make all the World Cup preparation worthwhile .
Hart became irritated at Fabio Capello's staff calling him 'John' |
264,552 | e2aac455ba7d4aeb4f68f2ad05acec64f7bebc1b | By . James Rush . PUBLISHED: . 07:28 EST, 26 June 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 11:53 EST, 26 June 2013 . A self-proclaimed knight who pocketed £1.8m in disability benefits while performing beachball tricks in a luxury pool has been ordered to pay back £270,000. 'Sir' Barry Brooks, 50, was jailed for eight years last August for claiming he was disabled and so weak he could not pick up a telephone. In reality, the fraudster took the wheel of a string of luxury cars and ran his own motorcycle shop. 'Sir' Barry Brooks has been ordered to pay back £270,000 after pocketing £1.8m while claiming he was disabled . Brooks was filmed dive-bombing into a swimming pool during a holiday in the south of France in 2008 . He was filmed serving meals in a pub, carrying plumbing equipment, and dive-bombing into a swimming pool during a holiday in the south of France in 2008. Brooks, who insists on being called Sir, claimed up to £29,000 a month under the Access to Work Scheme. Together with Derek Arnold, 56, and Stephen Isaac, 55, they pocketed £1.88m by submitting bogus claims for travel, support staff, and office equipment, for themselves and for disabled employees at the bogus firm they ran Access Audit Corporation (AAC). Claims were even submitted for daily taxi fares in Brooks' name while he was holidaying in Koh Samui, Thailand, and Gran Canaria. At a hearing into the profits of their scam, Brooks tried to claim the Rolls Royce and Jaguar bearing the personalised numberplate BAZ belonged to his father John and could not be seized as a proceed of crime. He also tried to claim four houses registered in his name belonged to relatives. The court heard Brooks had plans to buy properties in the Caribbean and Florida, and hoped to buy Duncraig Castle, in Scotland . But Brooks refused to attend Southwark Crown Court to back up his arguments, and Judge Martin Beddoe ordered Brooks to repay £268,910.40 or face a further three years in prison. 'Baz is an abbreviation for the name Barry and not for the father's name, John', he said. 'The Jaguar and Rolls Royce were used by the defendant on foreign trips, and there was evidence to suggest he arranged the finance for the purchase, as well as the storage after his arrest. 'Mr Brooks has declined to appear today and put forward no evidence to support these claims.' The conman, who stood in the dock for his earlier . sentencing with the aid of a walking frame, earned £1,810,161.67 from . the scam, and put forward no evidence of what he could realistically pay . back. The judge . agreed with prosecutors that the benefit of his crime could be judged . through bank accounts, luxury cars, a property portfolio, as well as . more than £53,000 in cash found at his home. But he said it was clear Brooks had nowhere near that amount to repay. Brooks claimed up to £29,000 a month under the Access to Work Scheme . Brooks suffered minor whiplash in a 1993 car crash, but had routinely overstated his injuries ever since. When Brooks was arrested he owned six properties, including a penthouse on the Costa del Sol. The . court heard he had plans to buy properties in the Caribbean and . Florida, and hoped to buy Duncraig Castle, in Scotland, and a £2m . mansion in the English countryside. At . the house he shared with Arnold in Bromley, Kent, officers discovered a . designer kitchen, collection of fine wines, and around £50,000 in cash. 'What the evidence has revealed is a . wholesale assault on a part of the benefit system designed to assist . some of the more vulnerable members of our society' - Prosecutor Andrew Marhsall . They owned a pub in Dockenfield, Surrey, where Brooks was secretly taped serving food to undercover investigators. The duo was also plotting to expand their scam in an attempt to build up 'some sort of empire'. Prosecutor Andrew Marshall said: 'Throughout all the time he was under surveillance Barry Brooks was walking freely all the time he was seen. 'He was never seen in a wheelchair and was never seen using crutches or a stick at all. 'What . the evidence has revealed is a wholesale assault on a part of the . benefit system designed to assist some of the more vulnerable members of . our society.' He . described AAC as being set up purely to 'control the claims' of . employees, though there was 'no evidence' of any work being done. 'Any . good that came out of AAC was entirely collateral to its main purpose . which was to be a vehicle for systematic fraud,' said the barrister. He added: 'Staggering amounts of money went to funding a wealthy, greedy lifestyle.' Brooks declined to attend Southwark Crown Court (pictured) where he was ordered to repay £268,910.40 or face a further three years in prison . The Access to Work Scheme is a government programme designed to assist disabled people in obtaining and remaining in employment. Arnold, who was also found guilty of . claiming disability living allowance on the grounds he was 'dependent on . his children for lifting and carrying', was also recorded on film . driving, shopping, and carrying plumbing to and from different vehicles. In sentencing Brooks, the judge said he was sure the fraudster did not need to use a wheelchair. 'What . I am satisfied of is that when it suited you, you exaggerated the fact . of that accident and the claims to a disability requiring you to use a . wheelchair were then as they remain now a sham', he said. 'You purported to be champions of the disabled but throughout this period you have been their enemy, encouraging suspicion by what you did rather than succour. 'The Jaguar and Rolls Royce were used by . the defendant on foreign trips, and there was evidence to suggest he . arranged the finance for the purchase, as well as the storage after his . arrest' - Judge Martin Beddoe . 'You eroded public trust in a systematic way and have made it harder for genuine claimants to get help for what they need. 'The jury saw through the nonsense you have been pedalling for years about yourself and they saw through the dishonest web the two of you had so carefully and craftily weaved. 'This was a brazen, callous, sophisticated, and entirely parasitical fraud by the two of you over several years.' Brooks and Arnold, both from Bromley, Kent, were convicted of conspiracy to defraud between January 1, 2004, and March 3, 2010 after a trial last year. Brooks was found guilty of a further charge of fraud between January 16, 2007, and March 17, 2010 after claiming £18,745 in disability living allowance. Brooks was ordered to sell his two luxury cars and pay back £268,910.40 in the next three months or face a further three months behind bars. Isaac, from Cardiff, admitted conspiracy to defraud before the trial. Arnold was also convicted of claiming £2,874 in disability living allowance after saying he was dependent on his two children for lifting and carrying. Arnold was jailed for eight years and Isaac two-and-a-half years. A separate hearing into how much Arnold will pay back will be held on July 11, but the court has been told he only has £114.20 to his name. | Barry Brooks was jailed for eight years for falsely claiming he was disabled .
He has now been ordered to pay back £270,000 after pocketing £1.8m .
Was filmed serving meals in a pub and dive-bombing into a swimming pool . |
65,703 | ba86e117e35d108d5ad5d1f5c18ef86b9310bf61 | By . Matt Chorley, MailOnline Political Editor . Many politicians might have dreamed of getting their own back on veteran broadcaster Nick Ferrari after a difficult on-air grilling. But today Boris Johnson got the chance for retribution when he poured freezing water over the radio presenter in the latest ice bucket challenge. The stunt took place live on LBC radio at the end of the London Mayor's monthly phone-in, with the two men using a paddling pool to prevent water damaging the studio. Scroll down for video . LBC breakfast show host Nick Ferrari sat in a paddling pool in the studios, while Boris Johnson poured two buckets of water over his head . Mr Johnson appeared reticent at first, fearing he might be nominated himself to take part in the ice bucket challenge which has become an internet craze . As Mr Johnson asked 'do you want both buckets?', Mr Ferrari replied: 'I want as much as you want to give me!' Millions of pounds have been raised for charity through the internet craze, which sees videos of the challenge, and nominations, posted on social media. Mr Ferrari revealed he had been nominated by hair stylist Nicky Clarke and former cricketer Darren Gough. He reassured Mr Johnson: 'You're not involved in this in any way, and I'm not gonna nominate you.' But he called on the London Mayor to help out with dumping the freezing water over his head. 'I'm not going to nominate you, but will you throw the water over my head now, if we go outside...there's a paddling pool standing by...would you throw a bucket...? Mr Ferrari vowed to give money to Mr Johnson's Mayor's Reading Fund, as well as to cancer and motor neurone disease charities . Mr Ferrari promised to make a donation to cancer and motor neurone disease charities, and to the Mayor's Reading Fund. Mr Johnson appeared taken back, and was heard saying 'well hang on'. But Mr Ferrari insisted: 'There's no hang on, just throw the water over my head.' Mr Johnson joked 'is it a dumper truck full of water' and likened it to his previous promise to be blasted by a water cannon, which he wants police to be able to use on the streets of London. The stunt happened at the end of Mr Johnson's monthly phone-in on the national radio station . As he was handed the bucket, Mr Johnson exclaimed: 'Oh my god… I'm gonna use this bucket here.' Mr Ferrari went on: 'Oh my goodness, that's a lot of water. Right. Thank you Mr Mayor. This is thanks to Nicky Clark and Darren Gough. 'I nominate my two sons, Nico and Seb, and I also nominate Julie Assange. And there's money going to the Mayor's fund.' As Mr Johnson asked 'do you want both buckets?', Mr Ferrari replied: 'I want as much as you want to give me!' Meanwhile George Osborne suggested that he will duck the ice bucket challenge - preferring a bigger donation and spending time pouring cold water over his Labour rival's plans. Shadow chancellor Ed Balls nominated Mr Osborne for the challenge last week after undertaking it himself - but despite mentioning it in the Commons, he pledged not to try and enforce it over the Despatch Box. But the Chancellor immediately rebutted: 'Can I thank you for nominating me for the ice bucket challenge. I'd rather make the extra donation to charity and pour the cold water over your economic policies.' | LBC host asked the London Mayor to do the honours with two buckets .
Presenter sat in a paddling pool in the studios as icy water fell on his head .
Mr Johnson, fearing a nomination, asked 'do you want both buckets?'
Mr Ferrari replied live on air: 'I want as much as you want to give me!'
Chancellor George Osborne ducks challenge after nomination from Ed Balls . |
104,243 | 127de56a45bdcf460da86490942e8fa9d065d4e2 | The Afghan villager who rescued a Navy SEAL and became the inspiration for the Hollywood film Lone Survivor is now on the run from the Taliban. Mohammad Gulab, 40, was hailed as a hero by Mark Wahlberg when he came over to California to meet the family of Marcus Luttrell, the man he saved. But less than a year after his story hit theaters - taking $125 million at the box office - the father has never felt so afraid. 'My life is in worse danger than ever,' he told Vocativ. Scroll down for video . Fear: Mohammad Gulab, 40, was the inspiration for a 2013 Hollywood film but now fears for his life . He has been splitting his time between his family home in the mountains of Kunar, northeastern Afghanistan, and a secret hideout for months to stop Taliban bombers targeting his wife, daughters and sons. He only spends a few hours a day with his family before retreating to the undisclosed location. In April, someone threw a makeshift bomb at his feet, missing by just a few steps. Days later, a gang of men descended on his house in the middle of the night while he was out, banging on the door pretending to be neighbors. Incredible story: He hid Marcus Luttrell from the Shah after the Navy SEAL was left stranded in Afghan hilltops . Lone survivor: Luttrell turned his experience of the struggle to escape into a best-selling novel in 2007 . Movie material: Here Mark Walhberg (left) plays Luttrell and Ali Suliman (center) plays Gulab in the 2013 movie . Eventually, after the family refused to unlock the door, they threw a bomb at the property. Gulab waited until daylight to take his injured daughter to hospital. In June, a sniper fired a bullet at Gulab's head. It missed him by inches and instead wounded his cousin walking beside him. He revealed to Vocativ that he had been planning to move to the US and hoped that Marcus Luttrell could secure him a green card, but Luttrell's family insist that was a misunderstanding. His story was turned into a film after Marcus Luttrell penned the 2007 book Lone Survivor. True story: This is a picture of Luttrell with a team of Navy SEALs. He is still in touch with his rescuer Gulab . Hit: Lone Survivor made $125 million at the box office and Gulab flew to America to attend the premiere . It described how he saw three of his friends die in an ambush on an Afghan mountain when their squad was ambushed by up to 50 fighters, armed with mortars, machined guns, rocket-propelled grenades and AK-47s. When the SEALS scrambled a rapid reaction force to rescue their stranded comrades, the militants opened fire and managed to shoot down one of the helicopters carrying rescuers. It crashed, killing eight SEALS and eight Marine pilots. Days later, he was discovered by Gulab who hid him from Shah, the group of fighters trying to track him down. | Mohammad Gulab, 40, hid Navy SEAL Marcus Luttrell from the Shah .
His story was the subject of 2013 Mark Walhberg film Lone Survivor .
Less than a year later he is more scared than ever, running from Taliban .
He has been shot at and bombed, splits time between home and a hideout . |
38,030 | 6b97e55b9dc113ebd2784101eb433e6ae8db5f13 | By . Nick Pisa . PUBLISHED: . 04:50 EST, 31 May 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 04:52 EST, 31 May 2013 . Angry: Mario Balotelli at training this week. He has furiously denied a Mafia informant's claims that he had sold drugs to an addict 'as a joke' Footballer Mario Balotelli has furiously denied a Mafia informant's claims that he had sold drugs to an addict 'as a joke.' Balotelli, 22, was drawn into controversy after the supergrass gave evidence at a Mob money laundering trial. Former gangster Armando De Rosa claimed the player had sold drugs as 'a joke' while in the company of senior gangsters. But in a furious denial on Twitter Balotelli said: 'Ah..so now I'm a drug dealer. First I was a shag...Then maybe I took it up the a...You should be ashamed. You are using my name just to publicise yourselve' he wrote in a dig to prosecutors involved in the case. Balotelli posted his response minutes after TV news reports emerged of De Rosa's claims during a trial in Naples, the heart land of the local Mafia known as the Camorra. De Rosa had told the court: 'A friend called and said 'Would you like to see Balotelli' who was in Scampia (area of Naples). I thought it was a joke but he asked me to come and see him at a syringe exchange he had. 'Balotelli was there with members of the Russo and Amato-Pagano clams. 'Among them was a lad who was a dealer, he had a bag with doses of cocaine and heroin. I remember that Balotelli watched as a few deals took place. Then for a joke he asked if he could do a sale. 'So he handed a dose to the next client. I remember asking him if he had recognised Balotelli but he didn't know what was happening or believe me.' Balotelli's tweet was later removed from . his account with Italian media reporting his new club AC Milan, where . he moved to from Manchester City earlier this year, ordered him to. Angry: In a furious denial on Twitter, Balotelli said: 'Ah..so now I'm a drug dealer. First I was a shag...Then maybe I took it up the a...You should be ashamed. You are using my name just to publicise yourselve.' He later deleted it . However Balotelli unleashed his anger yet again late last night on Twitter aiming his fury at a local TV station in Naples saying: 'Your newsroom should be closed down. Unless you apologise you will sweat the tears of my mother.' Balotelli's visit to Naples where he was shown round by mobsters is said to have taken place in 2011 and he has admitted being there but insisted he left when he realised he was in a 'dangerous area.' He has been questioned by prosecutors in connection with his visit but has never been charged with any offence or suspected of any wrongdoing. Battle: AC Milan's Mario Balotelli fights for the ball with Siena's Manuel Coppola during their Italian Serie A football match at Artemio Franchi stadium in Siena on May 19 . | Mario Balotelli, 22, furiously denied a Mafia informant's claims .
Supergrass gave evidence at a Mob money laundering trial .
Angrily denied the accusation on Twitter account - post was later deleted . |
221,252 | aa6914393dae351ad749842bf6bcbcb5bd1188bf | (CNN) -- Apple has called it the biggest change to the iPhone since the very first one launched in 2007, but does the latest software, iOS 7, make the iPhone a more compelling buy for travelers than its Android- and Windows-powered competitors? While iOS 7 sports a significant redesign alongside improved battery life and multitasking ability, it's the assortment of new photo functions that iPhone-toting tourists will find most useful in the iOS 7 update. The big deal is a faster, easier way to scroll through that endless stream of photos you've amassed over the years and trips. In previous versions, those photos all existed as part of one, big linear stream. The iOS7 automatically organizes photos into categories called Collections, Moments and Years, what Apple describes as "smart groupings of your photos and videos based on time and place." Collections is a grouping of moments -- say, a trip to Canada. Moments are organized according to date and location. Years are obvious -- groupings of photos by year. The cool part of the Years organization is a collage of thumbnails of every picture from a given year that appears on the user screen. This can look a little overwhelming -- the more photos, the more intricate the collage -- but it's actually a handy way to find images quickly. A redesigned photo Share panel adds a number of functions that users should welcome. The most useful is a new Shared Photo Stream that not only allows the user to share photos with others, but allows others to add photos to someone else's photo stream. Just back from a family vacation in Greece? In the past you might have streamed all of your vacation photos to family members -- with the iOS7, those same family members can now add their photos to the same stream. Better Maps app . Another key asset is the new built-in Maps app, which will now include spoken turn-by-turn navigation for pedestrians. Instead of bumbling down Las Ramblas or Lan Kwai Fong, eyes glued to an app and smacking into other people, wandering tourists can pocket their iPhones, stick in an earbud and listen out for the next turn, in the same way drivers use sat-nav apps -- and similar to how Google Maps works on Android smartphones. The App Store on iPhones with iOS 7 will also incorporate GPS location to suggest locally popular apps, which is potentially useful for first-time visits to an area -- for example, firing up the App Store in Hong Kong's Sheung Wan district shows two bus schedule apps and a "taxi translator" that gives the names of streets and places in phonetically spelled Chinese. Other minor traveler-friendly refreshes include an enhanced camera with vintage filters and a square viewfinder mode -- all the better to share those holiday snaps on Instagram; and additional security for a lost iPhone that prevents would-be thieves from erasing it in order to sell it. Passbook now a bigger plus . An app that launched with last year's iOS 6 software remains one of the iPhone's biggest travel boons. Passbook is a travel wallet app that holds digital boarding passes, hotel confirmations and other booking tickets, then uses the iPhone's GPS sensor to pop up the required boarding pass around the location of use. Though it launched with relatively few airlines and hotels on-board, the app now supports boarding passes for dozens of airlines and travel companies, including Airbnb and Booking.com. Of course, boarding pass apps, trip organizers and other travel helpers are readily available on Android (and to a lesser extent, BlackBerry and Windows Phones). For now, Passbook is an advantage only for multi-stop trips where travelers are likely to be carrying more than a couple of boarding passes or hotel bookings at a time. Should existing iPhone users upgrade to iOS 7? "Software updates fix bugs, enhance performance and add new features," says Richard Lai, editor in chief of consumer tech blog Engadget China. "It's up to developers then to take advantage of the new tools in their apps." Users of the iPhone 5, iPhone 4S and iPhone 4 will be prompted by Apple to update sometime this month, while iOS 7 will be available for the second-, third- and fourth-generation iPads plus the iPad Mini later in the year (rumored to be October). As for whether an iPhone packing iOS 7 is a worthy alternative to the slew of other smartphones, it comes back down to those nice new photo/camera features and the apps. Great travel apps for iPhone such as Skyscanner flight booking and TripAdvisor guides are usually also available for Android, while major apps such as TripIt travel organizer and Skype calling will also support Windows Phone and BlackBerry. For current iPhone owners, iOS 7 will make photo organization simpler, but it won't revolutionize their next trip away -- the next generation of iOS 7 apps could. CNN's Brent Deverman contributed to this report. | New iOS7 offers easier way to sort and scroll through photos -- a big plus .
App Store suggests locally popular apps .
Older iOS 6 Passport app is still the best travel-related resource .
Another new feature -- turn-by-turn audio navigation for walkers . |
242,847 | c650b801c8d0ed409d39471912503cd492614a91 | With players banned from wearing anything but white and visitors exhorted to dress smartly, Wimbledon's dress codes are almost as famous as its tennis. But two fans decided to put neat dresses and tidy chinos to one side, and turned up wearing unusual bikini tops made from tennis balls instead. Completing their unusual ensembles were novelty sunglasses, one pair topped with a model Big Ben and the other with a tropical palm tree. Are you sure that's allowed? A pair of tennis fans brave the weather at Wimbledon in tennis ball bikini tops . Despite the chilly weather - and the occasional shower that left other Wimbledon fans running for cover - the patriotic pair looked cheerful, perhaps helped along by their glasses of Pimms. Although Wimbledon has no formal dress code, the official guide to the tennis tournament warns that 'the removal of shirts or [wearing] any clothing likely to cause offence' could result in ejection from the south London venue. Members of the All England Lawn Tennis Club do, however, have to adhere to a strict set of rules about what they can wear, with distressed denim, midriff baring tops and leggings all outlawed. Instead, the club asks guests to wear a 'lounge suit or tailored jacket, shirt, tie, trousers and dress shoes. Ladies are expected to dress to a similar standard.' Brrr! Fans arriving at Wimbledon were forced to unfurl umbrellas and don their rain macs this morning . Chilly: A patriotic fan sits down to watch the tennis on Murray Mount safely beneath a huge umbrella . Although anything goes on Murray Mount, . those watching from the Member's Enclosure are warned that rigid . standards of dress will be 'strictly enforced'. Players too have strict rules to follow, with many introduced following years of colourful, bottom-scraping tennis dresses and equally wacky men's shorts. According to the latest set of rules, players must wear outfits that are 'almost entirely white', with large manufacturers’ logos 'not encouraged'. Underwear must also be white, while caps, headbands, wristbands and socks must also be white, although coloured trims no wider than a centimetre are allowed. Strict: The rules for players such as Caroline Wozniaki specify 'almost entirely white' garments . Nice to meet you: Carole Middleton beams at Terry Wogan as she takes her seat in the Royal Box . On court: Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark was part of the crowd watching Danish Wozniaki beat Konjuh . Today sees Andy Murray back on court for the third time, with Spain's Roberto Bautista Agut providing the opposition. Also on court today are Novac Djokovic and Venus Williams, while Danish star Caroline Wozniacki has already beaten Croatian challenger Ana Konjuh in straight sets. Despite the big-hitters on the court, the crowds of tennis fans have garnered almost as much attention this time around - thanks in no small part to the celebrity quotient. Today saw Carole and Michael Middleton join Terry Wogan in the Royal Box, as did Denmark's Crown Prince Frederik and Speaker of Parliament John Bercow. | The fans were on court ahead of Murray's third round match this afternoon .
Wore tennis ball inspired bikini tops and cheerful novelty sunglasses .
Wimbledon has a dress code but only for those in the Members Enclosure .
Players must wear 'almost entirely white' clothes and undergarments . |
112,744 | 1d793d7a2fa7c49217527ac3e010ecda5f8f421a | (CNN)You log on to a website and place a rush order. Minutes later, your order is processed and boxed at a warehouse. Within an hour, a speck appears on the horizon. It's an unmanned aerial vehicle -- commonly called a UAV or a drone -- and it's coming to deliver your order right to your front door. It sounds like science fiction, but it's reality -- in fact, it happened this month in China, where e-commerce giant Alibaba launched a limited pilot program using UAVs to deliver to customers who ordered a specific brand of tea. No one can say for sure whether drone delivery of consumer goods will become anything close to common. But it should concern every American when other nations are on the cutting edge of new technology and the United States is lagging behind. Drone technology is literally taking off all across the world. Foreign governments have quickly embraced its potential and have passed safety rules allowing a diverse array of commercial users to operate UAVs. Alibaba experimenting with drones for delivery is just one high-profile example of UAVs' possibility. Already, UAVs are used to help increase crop yields on farms and to inspect wind turbines, power lines and offshore drill flares. The possible applications for UAVs in the future seem constrained only by the limits of human creativity. But the United States has fallen behind in the race to explore where this new technology can take us. A big reason why is that we have been slow to adopt rules of the road for drones to address the understandable concerns some have over how best to guarantee safety and protect privacy. Indeed, safety and privacy are paramount and must be addressed in a comprehensive manner. Yet while other countries acted quickly to do so -- in some instances, years ago -- the commercial use of drones in the United States has remained illegal with the exception of a small handful of commercial users who have successfully filed for waivers at the Federal Aviation Administration. At long last, this weekend, the FAA announced a proposed regulatory framework that would permit the commercial use of UAVs. Additionally, the Obama administration released a presidential memorandum outlining rules of the road for drone privacy. I'm pleased they have finally acted with these initial steps. Unfortunately, they are long overdue, and the pace of rule setting is inhibiting America's competitiveness in the UAV technology race. For us to remain globally competitive, there's not a moment to spare: The FAA should fast-track the approval of these safety regulations and privacy protections. Until then, we'll diminish our ability to develop a potential economic driver -- and develop applications that could change the way we look at and solve some big problems. Imagine a firefighter using a UAV to gain a bird's-eye view of emergencies and use that new perspective to contain flames better. Or officials using a UAV to increase the efficiency of search and rescue operations for missing persons. Or American-made UAVs enabling the delivery of supplies such as medicine to remote, impoverished villages in the developing world, better enabling us to track and prevent diseases such as tuberculosis and Ebola. For people in every corner of our rapidly changing planet, new technology is a powerful tool for economic empowerment and social mobility. Whether it's a UAV or something yet unimagined, emerging technologies are transforming the way the world works in the 21st century, providing businesses, individuals and governments with potentially game-changing opportunities. America should embrace opportunities such as these, not sit on the sidelines as other countries reap the benefits of pro-innovation policies. As technology advances rapidly, government must pick up the pace and catch up. If we don't, the United States risks forfeiting our position as the world's technology leader. | Sen. Cory Booker: Drone technology is literally taking off all across the world .
America should embrace the opportunities, Booker says . |
219,353 | a7ee4a3e14e4925c27e04adf63abe9fc96282f2b | Tragedy: Dawn Aubrey-Ward, a former RSPCA officer, was found hanged after she had given an interview critical of the organistion . The RSPCA is being scrutinised by the Charity Commission over claims that it uses intimidatory and bullying tactics, particularly when bringing prosecutions for animal cruelty. The Mail on Sunday has learned that the watchdog has written to various organisations and voluntary groups asking for specific examples of such behaviour by the RSPCA. The concerns are expected to be raised by the Commission at a meeting with RSPCA trustees. The incidents that have triggered the review include the suicide in May of Dawn Aubrey-Ward, 43, a former RSPCA inspector whose character and integrity the charity had publicly attacked. After she accused the RSPCA of unnecessarily killing healthy animals, the charity posted a critical statement about her on its website and she was besieged by hate mail, death threats and abusive telephone calls. The charity has also been accused of ‘hounding’ barrister Jonathan Rich, who defended hundreds of people it prosecuted. He claims he had to spend £1 million to protect himself against spurious complaints made to his professional body, the Bar Standards Board. His allegations are echoed by Norfolk vet Colin Vogel, who has appeared for the defence in numerous animal cruelty cases. He says the RSPCA attempted to discredit him with complaints to the Society of Expert Witnesses, the Law Society and the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons. There have been scores of similar claims over recent years and a so-called Self Help Group has even been set up for farmers and pet owners experiencing difficulty with the animal charity. Anne Kasica, a spokeswoman for the SHG, declined to comment on the Charity Commission’s action. However, in a blog post three weeks ago, she accused the RSPCA of ruining lives with its ‘heavy-handed investigations’ and said: ‘They prosecute the vulnerable, the elderly . . . Animals die in RSPCA care.’ The charity has also been criticised by the Countryside Alliance for using a large proportion of donors’ money on bringing cruelty prosecutions, as well as by a judge in a recent case. In the action against the Heythrop Hunt, in David Cameron’s Oxfordshire constituency, the judge suggested that even though the case was successful, the public might feel the £330,000 spent by the RSPCA ‘can be more usefully employed’. Cambridge-educated Jonathan Rich, who defended hundreds of people against the RSPCA over 20 years, said he has spent almost £1million defending professional allegations made by the charity . In a leaked document, the RSPCA’s own deputy chairman, Paul Draycott, revealed an estimated £3 million budget deficit this year and questioned the charity’s strategy. The Charity Commission denied there was a formal investigation into the RSPCA but confirmed that a new officer had taken over responsibility for liaising with it. A spokeswoman said the official ‘had been undertaking some fact-finding research. This involved corresponding with various parties about their experience with the charity’. She added that the officer could raise any problems with RSPCA trustees and that, if there were serious questions to be answered, a formal inquiry could be launched. Questions: RSPCA chairman Gavin Grant, right, pictured here with Queen guitarist Brian May, is expected to liaise with the charity watchdog . She said: ‘We are now taking the opportunity to meet personally with the trustees for an informal dialogue.’ A spokesman for the RSPCA said: ‘The Charity Commission has confirmed that it is not investigating.’ But Barney White-Spunner, the Countryside Alliance’s executive chairman, said it did not matter what the Commission called the talks: ‘It amounts to the same thing, an investigation or an enquiry. ‘We are very pleased that the RSPCA’s role as a private prosecutor is being examined.’ | Charity Commission to raise concerns in a meeting with trustees .
Suicide of a former inspector who RSPCA publicly attacked sparked review .
Bosses face claims of discrediting barristers who represented opponents . |
192,254 | 84ec54fdcc3c829329a1ad7f9e37090bbca89084 | By . Simon Jones . PUBLISHED: . 17:31 EST, 22 January 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 14:06 EST, 23 January 2014 . Sportsmail's Matt Barlow has everything you need to know about Chelsea's new signing Mohamed Salah - dubbed the 'Egyptian Messi' Chelsea have beaten Liverpool to land FC Basle's Mohamed Salah for £11million, according to Sportsmail sources in Switzerland. Sportsmail revealed the Reds' interest in the Egypt forward and talks were . reaching an advanced stage until Chelsea gazumped Brendan Rodgers' side on Wednesday. With . Juan Mata sealing his exit to Manchester United, the Blues have looked to . replace the Spaniard with Salah, who impressed against them in the . Champions League this season scoring in both of their group stage games, . including the winner in Switzerland. VIDEO Scroll down to watch some of Mohamed Salah's best goals . No worries: But Mourinho said there was no issue, insisting they would help the player . Gazumped: Jose Mourinho's side beat competition from Liverpool for the £11m Egyptian forward . Salah's . preference was understood to have been Liverpool, believing he will get . more game time, but Chelsea's financial muscle - plus the persuasive powers of Jose Mourinho - have swung the deal. Chelsea confirmed on their official website on Thursday afternoon: 'An agreement has been reached with FC Basel for the transfer of their 21-year-old attacking midfielder Mohamed Salah. 'The move is subject to the Egyptian international agreeing personal terms and completing a medical examination.' Salah later tweeted: 'Mohamed Salah Officially in @chelseafc.' While impressing in Europe, the forward has also scored 17 goals in 27 games for Egypt. But he has struggled to find the net as often in Switzerland this season, scoring just four times in the league for Basle to go with those strikes against Chelsea. On his way out: Chelsea midfielder Juan Mata will be allowed to leave the club by Jose Mourinho . Well-known threat: Salah also scored for Basle in last season's Europa League semi-final against Chelsea . | Jose Mourinho signs Basle's Mohamed Salah after hijacking Liverpool's move .
£11m Salah is dubbed 'the Egyptian Messi'
Forward scored twice against Chelsea in Champions League this season .
Salah tweets to confirm the switch .
Juan Mata on his way from Chelsea to Manchester United . |
121,205 | 28b3774d1912aebcd0c5899aa1dcf850cc6cedf0 | By . Ryan Gorman . PUBLISHED: . 11:54 EST, 11 December 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 12:29 EST, 11 December 2013 . A New Mexico father is fighting the state of Utah for his daughter that was given up in 2008 for adoption without his consent. Robert Manzanares, 36, of Las Cruces, is in Colorado for a three-day juvenile court hearing that will determine the fate of daughter Kaia – he wants sole custody, the adoptive parents want a joint agreement. The case is in a Colorado court because he filed an injunction there before the baby was born in Utah. He wants his daughter back: Robert Manzanares is in court this week to determine who will get custody of his daughter . The joint custody agreement proposed by . the adoptive parents, who are related to the six-year-old girl’s . biological mother, treats Mr Manzanares ‘like a divorced, out-of-state . father with visitation rights,’ he told the Salt Lake Tribune. Mr Manzanares has been fighting for custody of his daughter since before she was born, he filed a court injunction while the mother was still pregnant after he learned of her plans to give the baby up for adoption. She traveled to Utah just before the young girl was born in 2008. She is accused by Mr Manzanares of giving birth in the state to circumvent his filing for custody so she could give the baby to relatives. ‘It’s just unbelievable that it can take a father five years to gain visitation, much less six years to get to who has the right to raise his child,’ he told the paper. ‘Constitutionally [I] should have every right to raise [my] child,’ he added. Mr Manzanares isn't opposed to having the adoptive parents in Kaia's life, but he wants full custody of his daughter. 'I want to to live with you': Kaia did not want to go back to the Utah couple raising her, Mr Manzanares claims . A Colorado court ruling in January of last year sided with Mr Manzanares’ contention that he was improperly barred from intervening to gain custody of his daughter. He has been gradually reintroduced into his daughter’s life during visits to Utah in the time since that ruling. She even spent an extended period of time with him in New Mexico. ‘The visit to NM was very successful and Kaia was so happy to meet a lot more of her family and to bond with her step sisters and brother,’ he posted on Facebook shortly after she left. ‘She said, ‘I want to live with you… my other family is not my real family only you are, why do I have to live with them?’ He said she asked, before adding that it broke his heart, but had to let the court process play out. Subsequent postings had Mr Manzanares . saying he had nothing but the best interests of his daughter at heart, . and that the adoptive parents even tried to bully him into paying child . support. ‘They messed with the wrong father,’ he wrote. 'THey messed with the wrong father': Mr Manzanares has vowed to fight for as long as it takes to gain custody of daughter Kaia . Lawyers for both sides declined to speak to the Tribune and were unable to be reached by MailOnline because they are in court. This case echoes a number of others recently that have garnered national attention as fathers fight to gain custody of children given up for adoption without their consent. The most recent involves 19-year-old Preston King, who is fighting for custody of son Wyatt after the child's teen mother put her up for adoption when she couldn't afford to raise him. This case has yet to be decided. The most famous case involves 'baby Veronica,' whose soldier father waged a custody war with her adoptive parents that saw the girl shuttled between Kansas and South Carolina multiple times. He was almost arrested for refusing to hand her back to her adoptive parents after a court ruled he must, and then famously ended the custody battle in a teary-eyed press conference. | The girl's biological mother gave birth and handed the baby to family members for adoption without father Robert Manzanares' consent .
He has been in court trying to gain custody since before the now-six-year-old girl was born .
He only regained partial custody this year, but a three-day hearing this week in Colorado is set to determine who she will live with . |
202,242 | 91d52fb17eb2cc448e1f9ea8bc526b5bd34d3186 | It will probably never amount to more than a comfort prize, but this mushroom may be the closest thing nature has to the World Cup trophy. The shroom, which looks exactly like the coveted football prize, was found growing in a valley in Liguria, Italy. The fungi, an inedible Strap Coral mushroom was found by Claudio Pia, as he was taking a stroll near his home. Look-a-like: The Strap Coral mushroom, which looks exactly like the coveted football prize, was found growing in a valley in Liguria, Italy . It was not until the 47-year-old . shopkeeper saw a picture of the FIFA trophy that he remembered his . strange find and its uncanny resemblance to the prize. Claudio, . who will be supporting Italy in the tournament this summer, said: ‘I . was wandering through the woodland looking for tiny mushrooms to take . some macro shots when I came across it. ‘I . remember thinking it was a really strange but familiar shape and . afterwards when I saw a picture of the World Cup trophy I realised why. ‘It's almost exactly the same. I suppose they have taken inspiration from nature because it looks as though nature invented this shape first. The real deal: The FIFA trophy, which will be in the UK next week, will be awarded to the winning team in Brazil this summer . ‘Where I live it's very rare to see a mushroom like this. Nature really is a wonderful thing.’ The cup dwarfs the mini mushroom discovered by Claudio, which stands just one inch high. The . FIFA trophy which stands at 14.5 inches tall was in Italy last month . during its 267 day tour and will be in the UK next week from March 12 to . March 18. The World Cup tournament itself kicks off in June in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. | Italian shopkeeper finds fungi that has uncanny resemblance to trophy .
Strap Coral mushroom looks exactly like the World Cup prize . |
119,962 | 270b2d24081f7324161e4e361ecac9cf0759541e | By . Wills Robinson . PUBLISHED: . 09:03 EST, 11 March 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 11:39 EST, 11 March 2014 . In the late 1930s, the jet engine was confined to a collection of sketches produced by a British engineer. His initial designs were ignored, but the blueprints would end up revolutionising the planes are powered and, 80 years on, they still influence the way aircraft is put together. Now the paperwork which documented the development of the turbojet engine is being sold at auction, and is expected to fetch at least £30,000. Concept: A 1941 drawing of the first prototype jet engine, using the ideas of inventor Frank Whittle. It is part of a collection of paperwork which documents the development of the first turbine-powered engine . Secret sketch: The jet expansion chamber designed by one of Sporborg's engineers. The collection of sketches and letters are expected to fetch at least £30,000 at auction . The paperwork collection of memos and . letters were kept by Henry Storborg, whose engineeering company produced . prototypes for inventor Frank Whittle. The . documents, which were marked as 'secret', include specification and . memos which led to the completion of the first turbine-powered engine in . 1937. Sporborg was the senior director and chief engineer of Thomson-Houston BT-H. He kept the material knowing it was of great scientific and historic importance. The material is now being sold by auctioneers Bonhams, and is expected to be sold for at least £30,000. Among the documents is the original 1938 contract between the Air Ministry, Whittle's firm Power Jets Ltd and BT-H. There are also technical pencil drawings showing the engine as it was developing. What resulted from these first engines was the 'jet age' that would go on to transform air travel. First design: The Gloster Meteor was Britain's first operational jet, and was used by the Allies during WWII . Turbojet: The designs kept by Sporborg led to the production of the first turbine engine, the W2BWelland, which powered the first jet planes . Though Whittle had submitted his first . patent for the jet engine in 1930 it was only eight years later that . the Air Ministry took an interest following the creation of a prototype. In . 1939, the ministry's director of scientific research, David Pye, was . shown a demonstration of the prototype and was totally convinced of its . importance. The ministry . then placed an order for a flyable version and Whittle began work on the . Type W1.The following January the ministry placed an order for a larger . more advanced engine, the W2. Linked: The expansion chamber would be connected to the main jet engine's turbine design . Top secret: Minutes from the meeting where the upgrade from the W2 engine, the first turbine-propelled design, to the more advanced Mark II was discussed . With the Germans developing their own engine, the race was on, and this archive logs the important stages of the development through the early years of World War Two. One letter from David Pye, the air minister, in January 1940, records the moment that the ministry decided the project was valuable. It was written to Sporborg and states: . 'I hope that if you are fully aware of the great importance that the . Air Ministry attach to the development of this Whittle engine you will . take all steps in your power to ensure that no unnecessary delay occurs . in the completion of these engines and that you will do all you can to . assist Power Jets Limited in their work.' Looking to the future: A letter from the Air Ministry urging Sporborg to continue the jet-building programme, which was advancing military aircraft at the time . The . documents also highlight the strain and stresses between the various . parties as they tried to complete the project in time to influence the . war. The jet-powered Gloster Meteor finally entered service with the RAF in July 1944. Matthew . Haley, head of the books and manuscripts department at Bonhams, said: . 'Whittle had offered his idea to the Air Ministry in 1930, but it wasn't . until much later that they become interested, after he had joined with . Sporborg's company to make them. Official g-ahead: A telegram from Air Vice Marshall Tedder belatedly giving permission for Sporborg's engineers to build the prototype jet engines . 'These documents were commercially sensitive and because it happened during the war there was an added level of classification. 'Sporborg saved the documents he deemed important; the cream of the crop. 'When we think of aeroplanes in World War Two we probably think of Spitfires, but not long after the war we entered the jet age because of Whittle's work. The archive will have wide appeal.' While Whittle and BT-H were developing their jet engine, the Germans were also working on their own. Hans von Ohain had started work on a prototype in 1935, and after the war told Whittle: 'If you had been given the money you would have been six years ahead of us. 'If Hitler or Goering had heard that there is a man in England who flies 500mph in a small experimental plane and that it is coming into development, it is likely that World War II would not have come into being.' Innovative: Frank Whittle applied for the first jet engine patent in 1930. He had completed the first prototype by 1937 . The 'Jet Age' saw the development of aircrafts powered by turbine engines, rather than propeller blades or pistons. The term was coined in the 1940s, but most of the early jet planes were military designs rather than commercial. Frank Whittle would lead Britain into Jet Age, producing the first engine in 1937, but he was nearly beaten by a German, who completed his design just five months later. Whittle applied for a patent of his design in 1930, after rising through the RAF ranks from an apprentice mechanic to reporting to the man in charge of the research. His ideas were initially shot down, and his patent ran out in 1935, but some of his colleagues invested in his future ventures. Competition: Whittle was up against German physicist Hans von Ohain in the race to complete the first design . Whittle set up a small company called Power Jets in 1936, which began work on a prototype engine. The same year Hans von Ohain, a young physics and aerodynamics student at . Germany's . University of Göttingen, applied for a patent for a 'Process and . Apparatus for Producing airstreams for Propelling Airplanes.' The race to design the first turbojet engine was on. Whittle was on a shoestring budget while von Ohain, whose family were from the Prussian aristocracy, had a virtually unlimited amount of money. But Whittle made the breakthrough on April 2, 1937, after fitting a simple drainage system to his design to stop fuel from pooling in the combustion chamber. Fighter plane: The Me 262 had a similar design to the Gloster Meteor, but became operational first when it was drafted into the Luftwaffe in 1944 . Two years later, despite ignoring his ideas for years, the Air Ministry tested his prototype and decided they would use it in military aircraft. Many would be used during the Second World War and Whittle was able to pilot his first jet-propelled plane in 1945, reaching 606mph. Hans von Ohain had started work on a . prototype in 1935, and after the war told Whittle: 'If you had been . given the money you would have been six years ahead of us. 'If . Hitler or Goering had heard that there is a man in England who flies . 500mph in a small experimental plane and that it is coming into . development, it is likely that World War II would not have come into . being.' Despite creating the first engine, the Germans produced the first operational jet-powered fighter plane, the Me 262 Schwalbe. Initially it was beset by engine problems, but it became a part of the Luftwaffe in 1944. Whittle's 1928 thesis and 1930 patent had led to a true revolution in . military and civilian air travel. Thirty years after fighters and . bombers had been hard-pressed to exceed 200 mph, their successors were . traveling at 10 times that speed, and long-distance travel times were . halved. | Henry Sporborg's company manufactured engines in the 1930s .
They produced early prototypes for inventor Frank Whittle .
Documents include 'secret' drawings, specifications and memos .
Kick-started the 'Jet Age', which would go on to revoluntionise air travel .
It led to the design of the Gloster Meteor, Britain's first operational jet . |
233,366 | ba1ed1703937b59273a2c22c1c166a58c30308f1 | George W Bush has made no secret of his ambitions as a portrait artist - but his latest subject is one really close to his heart. The former President has unveiled his newest oil painting, which shows him standing side by side with his father George H W Bush, who was President eight years before him. The Presidential double-act is the latest in a slew of paintings by George W Bush. Other subjects have included Russian president Vladimir Putin, British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Germany's Angela Merkel and the Dalai Lama. New work: Portrait artist and former U.S. President George W Bush has revealed a new work - showing himself (right) with his father, 41st President George H W Bush (left) Father and son: George W Bush (left, with his father in November 2013) has written a new book discussing the life, political and private, of his father . Bush Jnr has also indulged in less serious subject, including the cat belonging to his mother, Barbara, and his own legs in the bathtub. He discussed his latest work on the Today Show this morning, where he said he tried to capture the 'gentle soul' of his father. He has previously painted his father individually. Speaking about his artistic process, he said: 'I was very proud to be standing next to a man I admire greatly. First thing I wanted to make sure is I got the noses right. I've tried to paint a gentle soul, and I did it. As for me, I kind of bumbled through.' It is part of a promotional drive for a new book by Bush Jnr about his father, who was in the White House from 1988 to 1992. The book, named 41 because his father was the 41st president, sees the leader open up about his father, covering topics such as Bush family life, meetings with world leaders and the Watergate scandal. Political influence: Bush has written how his father helped arrange a meeting with Vladimir Putin, also the star of one of the former President's portraits (left), in 2007 . World leaders: Bush also painted Tony Blair, who was British Prime Minister for almost his entire time in the White House . Bathtime: Bush also took on less serious scenes, such as himself in the shower . Splish, splash: Another one of Bush's works showed his own legs in the bathtub . A section dealing with Vladimir Putin shows that Bush Snr was continuing to play a part on the world stage well into his 80s. Although the two almost talk politics, George W Bush would still use his father to help host world leaders - such as Putin in 2007, according to a preview of the book by Drudge Report. In an excerpt from the book, Bush told how he asked his father to invite Putin to the family compound at Walker's Point, Maine, so the two leaders could talk about missile defense programs. In a surreal episode, Bush Snr, then 83, took Putin into the Atlantic on a speedboat. While the idea 'startled' the Russian leader at first, he 'loved' being driven at top-speed by the octogenarian politician when the time came. On display: President Bush showed off his works at a display earlier this year - featuring likeness of leaders including German chancellor Angela Merkel (center) Spiritual: As well as political figures, Bush's attentions were turned towards men such as the Dalai Lama . Art AND politics: Bush is shown above smiling next to a portrait of Barbara Bush's pet dog . They also went fishing, Bush wrote, though only Putin managed to catch anything. Elsewhere the book shows how a shocked Bush Snr told President Nixon to resign after learning he would lose an impeachment hearing over revelations he lied to the American people. Bush Snr, then chairman of the Republican National Committee, sent a letter to Nixon urging him quit for his own good and that of the country, according to a preview of the book by Drudge Report. It said: 'I now firmly feel that resignation is best for this country, best for this President... If you do leave office, history will properly record your achievements with a lasting respect'. The next day, he resigned. 41 is due to be released tomorrow. 'A portrait of my father': George Bush, whose book (right) comes out Tuesday, has previously drawn his father (left). He described that portrait as his favorite . | Former President revealed portrait in TV interview about his father .
George W Bush said he paid special attention to getting the noses right .
Has also written book about life of his father, President from 1988 to 1992 .
Bush double-act portrait joins host of other world leaders painted by Bush . |
160,115 | 5af262cf68a1563440e090f351b727aa03883a70 | Brazil are in action for the first time since their humiliating 7-1 World Cup semi-final defeat and subsequent 3-0 thrashing by Holland in the third-place playoff. Their friendly against Colombia in Miami is the first match since those results exposed the reality of their poor team and dealt crushing blows to the World Cup hosts which knocked the national team to the ground. New manager Dunga, who replaced Luiz Felipe Scolari, has been tasked with hauling them back to their feet and turning them into the heavyweight world champions they once were. Here, Sportsmail takes a look at what changes he has made and what to expect... VIDEO Scroll down for Neymar shows off some unbelievable skill in Brazil training . Ouch: Brazil return to the pitch for the first time since their humiliating World Cup efforts on home soil . Crestfallen: Marcelo lies on the pitch after Brazil's 7-1 loss in the World Cup semi-final by Germany . Return: Their friendly against Colombia in Miami is the first match since those results exposed the poor team . THE CULLED . Dunga took a hatchet to Brazil's World Cup squad and only 10 of the 23-man group made the cut – less than half. The biggest casualties were Barcelona right-back Dani Alves and Real Madrid full-back Marcelo. Both are known for their marauding style on the flanks which has been horribly exposed in the past, something Dunga is no longer prepared to stand for. Tottenham's Paulinho and former first-choice goalkeeper Julio Cesar are also two major names to have been left out. Lifted: Dunga (right) lifts the 1994 World Cup trophy aloft after captaining Brazil to glory 10 years ago . In charge: Dunga took a hatchet to Brazil's World Cup squad and only 10 of the 23-man group made the cut . The chop: The biggest casualties were Barcelona right-back Dani Alves and Real Madrid full-back Marcelo . THE NEW CROP . Three players will have the chance to prove themselves on their international debuts; Cruzeiro's attacking midfielders Everton Ribeiro and Ricardo Goulart and Corinthians centre-back Gil. Of the three, Goulart is the most exciting addition. He is currently joint-top scorer in the Brazilian top-flight with nine goals, playing in the No 10 role for Cruzeiro. In July he scored a wonder goal from his own half in a friendly against Chivas. He is relishing his call-up, saying this week: 'Forget the World Cup. Now we are a different group and have a new coach.' Another to be handed a chance many felt he was unfairly denied by Scolari is Philippe Coutinho. The Liverpool forward was frozen out by Scolari, but has finally got a real opportunity to prove his place in the national side. Happy about that, Philippe? Coutinho can prove his worth for Brazil against Colombia after being called up . RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE POSTER BOY . Neymar made a return to action at the weekend after a fractured back ended his World Cup dreams, coming off the bench in Barcelona's win against Villarreal. The poster boy of the Brazil World Cup has been handed the captaincy, and if his performances in that tournament, when he dragged an average side through to the semi-final before his injury, is anything to go by he will lead by example. It is likely that this friendly will pit him against defender Juan Camilo Zuniga, who was responsible for the flailing knee which struck Neymar's back and put him out of the tournament. Dunga, himself a World Cup-winning Brazil captain, is confident he has made the right decision. 'Neymar has responded very well to it,' he said. 'He is a player who likes challenges and like to win. We talked to him when we first broached the subject and we told him what we wanted. He's a player with a lot of quality, despite his age is experienced. The captain has to set the standard for the others.' Guess who's back: Neymar returned to action at the weekend after a fractured back ended his World Cup . Recovered: Neymar came off the bench in Barcelona's win against Villarreal as the poster boy returns . LUIZ THE LIABILITY . Another player who survived Dunga's savage cuts is David Luiz – and the world's most expensive defender will also be expected to shoulder more responsibility. A friendly against Colombia is no better way to test the often inconsistent centre-back. Trying to deal with Manchester United's new striker Radamel Falcao and Real Madrid's £71million signing James Rodriguez could turn brutal. Falcao is back from the knee injury which ruled him out of the World Cup. The last time he faced Luiz he tore him to shreds, scoring a hat-trick in Atletico Madrid's 4-1 Super Cup win back in 2012. Rodriguez is also no longer 'El Nuevo Pibe' – The New Kid – the nickname he was initially given by Colombia fans in tribute to legend Valderrama who was called 'El Pibe.' The pair are a frightening prospect. Brazil scraped through against Colombia when they met in the quarter-finals during the summer, but this could be very different. Pressure: Another player who survived Dunga's savage cuts is David Luiz, who must shoulder responsibility . A big challenge: A friendly against Colombia is no better way to test the often inconsistent centre-back . VIDEO Dunga discusses his Brazil squad . NO ROOM FOR SENTIMENT . Despite wholesale changes there are still no recalls for Ronaldinho or Kaka, and Robinho was also omitted from the squad until Hulk got injured and he was brought in as a replacement. They were the big names who Scolari largely ignored and it appears that Dunga has no interest in changing that decision. The attitude of Ronaldinho, now 34, was questioned by the last regime while Kaka's career has been on a downward spiral since the 32-year-old left Milan in 2009. But Robinho, another with so much promise so young, now 30, has a glimmer of hope. No comeback: Ronaldinho, now 34 years old, has not been recalled to the Brazil squad for the friendly . No Kaka: They were the big names who Scolari largely ignored and Dunga has no interest in changing that . | Brazil's World Cup squad diminished by less than half as just 10 of the 23-man group made the cut under manager Dunga .
Barcelona right-back Dani Alves and Real Madrid full-back Marcelo among those who did not make the cut for the friendly against Colombia .
Cruzeiro's attacking midfielders Everton Ribeiro and Ricardo Goulart and Corinthians centre-back Gil are the three new players introduced .
Injured Neymar and David Luiz return to shoulder responsibility for Brazil .
Ronaldinho and Kaka don't make the cut but Robinho replaces injured Hulk . |
266,315 | e4f11a5a5e368067afbdabee37b08e7a4fc787f9 | (CNN) -- Early this year, a crime spree hit the usually quiet residential neighborhood of Grandview, northeast of downtown Phoenix, Arizona. Over a period of three months, there were 25 home burglaries in the neighborhood, often carried out while residents were out for just a few hours. When police work failed to produce any arrests, the community took to the Internet to do some sleuthing on its own. They crowdsourced details of the crimes on Nextdoor.com, a private social network for urban neighborhoods, and began noticing patterns. The burglars would wait to see a homeowner leave and then enter the house and stuff a pillowcase with high-value items like jewelry, guns and cameras before slinking out. Sometimes, they'd hit as many as three houses in a day. The residents started a virtual neighborhood watch using Nextdoor, sending out detailed alerts about any suspicious cars or people and essentially live-blogging strangers' movements throughout the 1 square-mile area. Led by Grandview neighborhood association President Slade Grove, the community eventually gathered enough information and attention to push the local police department into action, resulting in an undercover sweep of the area and multiple drug busts. Though no arrests have yet been specifically tied to the break-ins, the rate of burglaries fitting that pattern in Grandview has plummeted. "Before, they didn't have these tools. It was people chit-chatting in their front yards," Grove said. "I think it has shown the police department that we are an active neighborhood and that we are very concerned about crime. "I think it has also shown them that we will stand up for our neighborhood, and by God, you better pay attention to us." A sheriff in your pocket . Neighborhood watch groups have been around for decades. They are meant to empower residents to report suspicious activities to police without acting on them directly. Now, thanks to mobile devices and social media, today's homeowners are using a new arsenal of digital tools to fight crime, coordinate in an emergency and revitalize the neighborhood watch. The National Sheriff's Association is working on an app that will help neighborhood watch members share real-time video surveillance footage shot on a smartphone with law enforcement and with each other. The hope is that the program will shorten response times between when civilians believe they've witnessed something suspicious and when police respond. "After the Trayvon Martin case in Florida, we started looking at our program," said Chief John Thompson, deputy executive director of the National Sheriffs' Association. Martin, 17, was shot and killed in February 2012 by George Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch coordinator in his gated community of Twin Lakes, near Orlando. Zimmerman was not on duty at the time, and his actions were quickly disavowed by neighborhood watch associations, which frown upon vigilante violence. "We don't want people to get involved, and this app would pretty much stop that. You wouldn't have to get out of your car. You wouldn't have to leave your house," Thompson said. If a neighborhood watch member spots a crime in progress or suspicious activity, they can take out their smartphone, open the free iOS/Android app and hit the emergency button to record photos, video, audio and the precise GPS location of their phone. The information is automatically uploaded every few seconds to a secure cloud server, where it cannot be deleted. The mapped alert with the video can be sent directly to the local police, other neighbors in the group and even a custom list of personal emergency contacts. It can also dial 911. The new initiative, called Neighborhood Watch NOW, is a collaboration between the Sheriffs' Association and a company called ICE BlackBox, which developed the app. The tool has been in development for 2½ years and is rolling out this month in a handful of pilot neighborhoods, starting with two counties in Arizona and Minnesota. Local members and law enforcement agencies will need to be trained on the technology. "It's going to be the future of neighborhood watch," said Thompson. Going Nextdoor . Although the Neighborhood Watch NOW app is designed to be used during emergencies, much of what happens daily in a neighborhood is far from 911-worthy: a stolen bike, broken car windows, loud parties and so on. For the past year, the San Diego Police Department has used the Nextdoor app to field local concerns and improve communication with residents. Members also use Nextdoor to coordinate social events, announce garage sales, find contractors and track down missing pets. They say it makes them feel more connected to their neighbors. Residents of Westgate Village, a suburb of San Jose, California, use Nextdoor to coordinate block parties and revive the quaint ideal of a neighborhood where people know each other's names and look out for one another. During a recent rash of garage robberies, members used Nextdoor to remind people to lock their garage doors. To start a Nextdoor community, one person fills out an application and must sign up at least 10 neighbors in 21 days to make it official. More than 33,000 neighborhoods across the country now use the network. In San Diego, each Nextdoor network is assigned a community relations officer who can use the platform to field questions, post crime updates and safety tips, and chat with members. "It gives everyone a chance to actually get to know the officers that are working for them," said Matthew Tortorella, a San Diego police officer who oversees much of the department's social media. He said the officers like Nextdoor as a way to address minor complaints, such as telling residents whom to call to remove graffiti. Tortorella also would like to see the app become even more hyperfocused, say on an apartment building with as few as 15 units. A single building could have its own network, and property managers could be trained on how to use the app to reduce crime. Police also receive tips through the Nextdoor app. Recently, a resident in San Diego's northwest division spotted a Ford pickup that had been parked facing the wrong way for a number of days. They reported the car on Nextdoor, and when an officer went to check it out, they discovered that the vehicle was stolen and had been used in several burglaries in the area. "We don't want (Nextdoor) to become a way of reporting crimes," said Tortorella. "We still want people to call the police." Finally, Nextdoor could become another way for police and fire departments to quickly broadcast warnings, Amber Alerts and evacuation instructions. It's been used during California wildfires and the polar vortex that froze much of the U.S. over the winter. "I believe that the best information comes from the authorities, but a lot of times, the authorities don't have a way to reach people," said Nextdoor CEO Nirav Tolia. | Neighborhood watch associations add smartphones, social networking to arsenals .
The National Sheriffs Association is rolling out an app that uploads live video to police .
Nextdoor is connecting neighbors, local police officers in non-emergency situations . |
45,966 | 8176f62434e088ae88eb74ae47bf2e314d9e8618 | Five time gold medalist Ian Thorpe has pulled the plug on his Aboriginal education charity following funding cuts from the Federal government. The decision to terminate the Fountain for Youth charity was revealed in a letter from Thorpe and the company chief executive, Jeff McMullen. He claims budget cuts took a 'devastating' toll, despite the literacy program of the company being hailed as a success story, reports The West Australian. Scroll down for video . Cathy Freeman and Ian Thorpe pose at the Ian Thorpe Foundation event on November 2010. Thorpe claims the indigenous budget cuts introduced by the Abbott government in 2014 had a devastating effect on his charity the Fountain for Youth, which was liquidated last week . Thorpe said he is planning to continue mentoring high-school students and improving education in indigenous towns . Australian Securities and Investments Commission records show the company was liquidated last week. Thorpe founded the charity in 2000 to improve indigenous literacy and health in remote areas. In an interview with Michael Parkinson last year, he said the company was 'starting to see results'. In 2012, Thorpe was granted the the prestigious Human Rights Medal for his work with the Fountain for Youth charity. The Gillard Government had previously listed the charity on their website as an outstanding success. But in March last year the Abbott Government announced $534 million will be cut from Indigenous programs. Ian Thorpe at the 2013 Human Rights Awards. He was granted the medal in 2012 for his role in establishing the Fountain forYouth . A thank you message on the Fountain for Youth website to those who supported the charity throughout its fifteen years in operation . In the letter from Thorpe, he announced the they were planning to continue mentoring high-school students and improving education in indigenous towns. 'Ironically, as the devastating indigenous education cuts began around the end of 2012, the Literacy Empowerment Project was being hailed on the Federal government's own website as an outstanding success,' they said. 'Many years of sharp Budget cuts to indigenous education programs and organisations have convinced us we must work directly with our Aboriginal partners and not compete for the meagre funding available from public and corporate donations.' The Fountain Of Youth website displays a thank you message to those who supported the charity throughout its fifteen years in operation. Daily Mail Australia has contacted the former manager of the Fountain for Youth but they were unavailable for comment at the time of publication. | Ian Thorpe's Fountain of Youth charity was liquidated last week .
The Abbott Government has cut $534 million from Indigenous programs .
Thorpe said the cuts had a 'devastating' effect on the company .
The charity had previously been hailed as an oustanding success story . |
175,487 | 6f2021af547e7b5533520e3e7c604b4ee2f6cada | Diego Costa up against Thiago Silva is a mouthwatering prospect: one of the world’s best strikers versus one of the game’s best defenders. I watched Silva a lot at the World Cup for Brazil and he was immense. When he was missing, they lost 7-1 to Germany in the semi-final. Silva is an aggressive and brave defender who attacks the ball well. He’s not the tallest at barely 6ft but that gives him extra mobility. Diego Costa has been in formidable form for Chelsea since signing from Atletico Madrid last summer . Thiago Silva is one of the most respected defenders in world football and will try to stop Costa on Tuesday . Costa (right) will pose one of the toughest challenges that Silva has faced in a Paris Saint-Germain shirt . He’s good on the ball and is not afraid to bring it out from the back. Also, when opponents try to put pressure on him he will find a way out with a bit of skill. He makes it look easy. He is a threat in the opposing penalty area too but hasn’t scored for Paris Saint-Germain in Ligue 1 or Europe for more than a year so he will know that needs to improve. Perhaps Silva’s biggest weakness is the league he is playing in. Ligue 1 does not offer enough of a regular test for PSG’s players so all of a sudden facing someone as brilliant as Costa could be a shock to the system. He and his central defensive partner David Luiz will want to show they are capable of stopping Chelsea, the competition’s highest scorers so far. Luiz’s professional pride will have been wounded when Chelsea sold him so he also has a big point to prove. But he and Silva will leave space in behind as they like to bring the ball out, and that could give Chelsea opportunities. Former Chelsea player David Luiz (right) is set to partner Silva in central defence for PSG . Silva (left) has criticised the decision of Costa to switch nationalities from Brazil to Spain . Silva and Luiz will also have to stifle the attacking threat of Eden Hazard (left) when they play Chelsea . Maybe they can get a hold of Costa but that might just leave space for Eden Hazard or Willian to run in behind. Costa can be the decoy. And as if the tactical battle isn’t enough, Costa switching nationality from Brazil to Spain will add even more spice. Silva has already said he wouldn’t do the same and probably wondered how well Brazil could have done in the World Cup with Costa in their side. Get ready for some niggles. | Diego Costa is set to return to Chelsea's line-up at Paris Saint-Germain .
He will go directly up against Brazil defender Thiago Silva in the game .
The battle between the pair could hold the key to who wins the clash .
PSG vs Chelsea team news, match stats, odds and more .
CLICK HERE for all the latest Chelsea news . |
61,157 | adb1c4b127873a18022887a79fda583b5a76ffde | (CNN) -- Two weeks ago, South Sudan was best known as the youngest African country, created with much international fanfare in 2011. Today, it is possibly the next Rwanda. A flash-fire conflict threatening to escalate into full-blown civil war combines trademark elements of African tragedy -- resource wealth coveted by global powers, in this case oil, and longstanding political and ethnic divisions. Here's a quick primer to get you up to speed on the escalating situation: . 1) First things first. Tell me about South Sudan. South Sudan is a landlocked country of more than 11 million people in central Africa, bordering Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Democratic Republic of Congo and the Central African Republic. It gained independence from Sudan on July 9, 2011, making it the world's newest nation after decades of ethnic and political conflict between the Sudanese government in Khartoum and opposition elements in the South. Two years later, South Sudan remains one of Africa's most impoverished countries despite containing the majority of known Sudanese oil reserves. 2) Who is fighting whom? The South Sudanese government and military, dominated by the Dinka ethnic group of President Salva Kiir, is fighting rebels allied with former Vice President Riek Machar of the Nuer ethnic group. At stake for now is control of oil-rich regions responsible for more than 95% of the country's economy, and perhaps leadership of the country. Mass killings and other violence in the past two weeks have caused tens of thousands of people to seek shelter under protection from U.N. forces in Juba, the capital, and some other cities. More U.N. peacekeepers from Africa and perhaps elsewhere may be coming soon, and 150 U.S. Marines are on standby in Djibouti to assist if needed in evacuating American government and aid workers from the country. 3) Is this something new? Yes and no. While the sudden escalation of the conflict in recent days caught many by surprise, the causes were familiar. South Sudan's independence two years ago followed decades of rebellion by various ethnic and political groups against the Khartoum government in Sudan. Kiir and Machar were longtime rivals who had an uneasy relationship atop the government, with Machar making clear his presidential ambitions. The valued oil resources and history of ethnic divisions amounted to a recipe for political mayhem, noted Jon Temin, an Africa specialist at the United States Institute of Peace. "It didn't start about oil," Temin told CNN on Tuesday, adding that the political rivalry at the top was "no secret to anybody." 4) What triggered the recent violence? Kiir fired his Cabinet, including Machar, in July in a shuffle considered "not uncommon" for such a fledgling African nation, Temin said. While the move caused concern, a relatively calm aftermath bolstered hopes of continued stability. However, that unraveled in mid-December with gunfire between security forces loyal to Kiir and Machar. It remains unclear who fired the first shot, according to Temin. Kiir accused forces backing Machar of launching a coup attempt, and retribution attacks erupted with top allies of Machar detained. Machar has denied any coup attempt occurred. "It has been surprising in how quickly it spread," Temin said. 5) Where do things stand? The situation is both dire and uncertain. Consider this grim report Tuesday from Ravina Shamdasani of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, who said an official saw more than 30 bodies in two mass graves and that the global body was trying to verify the existence of others. "It is very difficult, and there are reports that some bodies may have already been burned," Shamdasani added. The United Nations said fighting had spread to five of South Sudan's 10 states, and that it had credible reports civilians were being attacked and killed based on their ethnicity. Meanwhile, U.N. officials struggled to make accommodations for some 45,000 people crowding its compounds seeking shelter from the violence. Nearly as many people were seeking shelter elsewhere. The U.N. Security Council voted unanimously on Tuesday to increase the 6,800-strong U.N. force in South Sudan by another 5,500 troops to try to ensure the safety of the displaced, a role that peacekeepers failed to fulfill in the Rwanda genocide of 1994 that killed 800,000 people. "Even with additional capabilities, we will not be able to protect every civilian in need in South Sudan," U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon warned after the vote, adding that "there is no military solution to this conflict." On Monday, Ban said in a message to the people of South Sudan that "the U.N. stood with you on your road to independence," and that "we will stay with you now." 6) Where does the United States stand? The United States was one of the strongest supporters of South Sudan's independence for a few reasons. A democratic South Sudan could be a regional hedge against the Khartoum regime, which the United States lists as a sponsor of terrorism, and President Omar al-Bashir, who has been indicted on charges of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. In addition, the possibility exists of future U.S. involvement in South Sudan's oil industry. U.S. oil companies have no role now in South Sudan due to sanctions against Sudan, which still plays a major role in overall oil production. Secretary of State John Kerry has urged Kiir and Machar to enter peace talks, but there was no clear signal that the fighting would ease. Kerry also dispatched his special envoy to Sudan and South Sudan, Donald Booth, to the country. In a statement Monday, the U.S. military's Africa Command said it was positioning 150 Marines in Djibouti in East Africa to be able to respond should conditions in South Sudan deteriorate even more. CNN Pentagon Correspondent Barbara Starr reported Tuesday that 50 of the Marines then proceeded to Entebbe, Uganda, to be even closer to South Sudan if needed. The decision grew out of last year's experience in Benghazi, Libya, when no U.S. forces were close enough to respond quickly to the attack that killed U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans. According to a senior administration official, 380 Americans and about another 300 third-country nationals have been evacuated. "Based on registration, there are American citizens in other towns and areas throughout South Sudan," the official said. "We are trying to track down how many may still be there." CNN's Mike Pearson, Khushbu Shah, Jennifer Rizzo, Marie-Louise Gumuchian, Barbara Starr and Antonia Mortensen and journalist Mading Ngor in Juba, South Sudan, contributed to this report. | The world's newest country descends into violence and chaos .
The United Nations scrambles to ease the carnage and protect civilians .
150 Marines are positioned in Djibouti to help evacuate Americans .
The United States urges opposing leaders to talk instead of fight . |
228,986 | b48049d176a4d3a8b02e462822e9aa0a41aaf686 | By . Associated Press Reporter . The weather kills at . least 2,000 Americans each year and nearly two-thirds of the deaths are . from the cold, according to a new government report. That . may surprise some people, the researchers acknowledged. Hurricanes, . tornadoes and heat waves 'get more publicity, for some reason, than . cold-related deaths,' said Deborah Ingram, one of the report's authors. The . report released Wednesday by the Centers for Disease Control and . Prevention analyzed U.S. deaths attributed to the cold, the heat, . storms, floods and lightning. The weather kills at least 2,000 Americans each year and nearly two-thirds of the deaths are from the cold, according to a new government report . It used national death certificate . information for five years. The report found: . - . Of the 10,649 deaths attributed to the weather, about 63 per cent were . tied to exposure to the cold or hypothermia. Those who more often fall . victim to the cold include the homeless, alcoholics, those who take part . in wilderness activities and winter sports, and fragile people already . fighting illnesses who live in under-heated homes. - . About 31 per cent of the deaths were caused by heat, heat stroke or sun . stroke. The remaining 6 percent were blamed on storms, floods or . lightning. Over five years, 63 per cent of the 10,649 deaths attributed to the weather were tied to exposure to the cold or hypothermia . - More than two-thirds of . weather-related deaths were men and boys, and men were twice as likely . as women to die from storms, floods or lightning strikes. And people 65 . and older had much higher death rates than younger people, perhaps . because it's harder for them to endure temperature extremes, the . researchers said. - The highest heat-related . death rates were in cities and very rural areas; the most isolated areas . also had the highest rates related to the cold and to storms, floods . and lightning. Low-income counties had higher weather-related death . rates than high-income counties. That could be due to people in poor . rural or urban places lacking heating, air conditioning or help during . blizzards or heat waves, the researchers said. Cold victims include the homeless, alcoholics, those who take part in wilderness activities and winter sports, and fragile people already fighting illnesses who live in under-heated homes . - . For blacks, the heat-related death rate was about 2.5 times higher than . the rate for whites, and about twice as high as the Hispanic rate. Blacks also died at a higher rate from the cold. That finding may be . tied to higher concentrations of low-income blacks in large cities or . very rural areas. Also, blacks might be more vulnerable to weather . extremes because they have more heart disease and other chronic health . problems. Whites, however, died at twice the rate of blacks from floods, . storms and lightning strikes. | Centers for Disease Control and Prevention finds weather kills at least 2,000 Americans every year with nearly two-thirds of those death tied to the cold .
Report analyzes deaths attributed to cold, heat, storms, floods, and lightning .
Victims of the cold include the homeless, alcoholics, those who take part .
in wilderness activities and winter sports, and fragile people already .
fighting illnesses who live in under-heated homes . |
38,679 | 6d5b5b4a2c09013be03eea06674933ac607c7bc8 | Thrifty consumers with an eye for a bargain may be in for a shock when they see their favourite Soft Serve Cone has gone from 30 cents to 50 cents. The popular fast-food chain McDonalds has taken the beloved ice-cream off the 'Loose Change' menu since last Tuesday and nearly doubles the promotional price. The favourite dessert was not the only item that rose, the Small Fries has also been dropped from the menu, now costing consumers $1.95 instead of $1. The menu is designed for the Australian market, and allowing consumers to take advantage of the idea that finding coins between cushions did have some value. Consumers will no longer be able to purchase their favourite treat - the Soft Serve Cone at 30 cents . But a McDonald’s spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia that: ‘Our Soft Serve Cone was 30 cents whilst it was on the Loose Change Menu which was a promotional item for a limited time only. ‘We’re proud to offer our customers great food at great value every day. 'We recently added $1 Frozen Coke and $1 Choc Waffle cone to the Loose Change Menu.’ Some Australian customers have raised their concerns over the new prices . Apple Pies has also been taken off the Loose Change menu, jumping from $1.50 to $1.95 . The Small Fries and Soft Serve Cone have been taken off the Loose Change menu since last Tuesday . While a McDonald’s customer service representative told Daily Mail Australia that the apple pies has also been taken off the Loose Change menu, jumping from $1.50 to $1.95. In 2011, some apple pie fans started up a Facebook group called 'Australia Demands the Return of Macca's $1 Apple Pies' after it hiked to $1.95. Matt Jackson, from South Australia, opened the page and even started an online petition. After months of signing and writing letters to the board, the page posted in June 2012: 'SUCCESS! Apple pies are $1.50 at the moment!!' The small fries has also been taken off the Loose Change menu, jumping from $1 to $1.95 . A McDonald’s customer service representative said the apple pies has jumped from $1.50 to $1.95 . With some items hiking up in prices on the menu, McDonald's is still Australia's most popular fast food chain. According to a report released by Roy Morgan, the global burger business was visited by 29.5 percent of the population. It was also found to have the highest customer return rate, with Australians visiting the chain 2.7 times in an average four week period. Consumers will no longer be able to purchase their favourite treat at 30 cents . | Soft Serve Cone has gone from 30 cents to 50 cents since last Tuesday .
Small Fries and Apple Pies have also been taken off the 'Loose Change' menu .
A McDonald’s spokesperson said the Soft Serve Cone was 30 cents whilst it was a promotional item for a limited time only .
But new items have been added to the menu, including $1 Frozen Coke and $1 Choc Waffle cone .
The 'Loose Change' menu is designed to sell items no more than $2 . |
199,814 | 8eabfadf0999669db2d01d5fd7ad13710b874afe | It seems that Hollywood may no longer be the place to go if you want to get rich and famous. A recent breakdown of Tinseltown salaries in The Hollywood Reporter noted that jobs out in sunny California were not only paying less, but getting harder and harder to come by. That being said, it was a great year to be Leonardo DiCaprio in 2013 - just not so much Jonah Hill. Scroll down for video . Queen B: Sandra Bullock (above) took home over $70 million for her work in Gravity . Jo-no: Leonard0 DiCaprio (right) made $25 million for starring in The Wolf of Wall Street, while his buddy Jonah Hill (left) only banked $600,000 . For his work in The Wolf of Wall Street, DiCaprio pocketed a very nice $25 million, while his less genetically blessed costar, Hill, only took home $600,000. Both also walked away from the project with Oscar nominations. When it comes to making bank however, it is all about the back end, something stars like Sandra Bullock and Robert Downey Jr. profited hugely from in 2013. Downey took home $75 million thanks to getting 7% of the earnings from the Marvel blockbuster Iron Man 3, while Bullock really had cause to celebrate after a 15 percent, first-dollar deal on Gravity, a film that made over $700 million worldwide and, as a result, netted her over $70 million. Her efforts also earned her another Best Actress nomination. The iron touch: Robert Downey Jr. (above) made $75 million last year thanks to a 7% back end on the film Iron Man 3 . If film isn't working out however, television is still very welcoming to former big screen stars, with studios getting out their checkbooks for ladies like Halle Berry, Tea Leoni and even Katherine Heigl, who will all appear in American homes every week this season at the cost of $150,000 an episode. Then there is Crystal the monkey, an adorable little creature who earned $108,000 in 2012 for appearing on just nine episodes of the failed NBC sitcom Animal Practice. Had it gone the entire season, she would have taken home $264,000. That's a whole lot more than her porn star pals in the San Fernando Valley are taking home, averaging a salary of $120,000 for an entire year's worth of far more rigorous work. Monkey business: Crystal the monkey (above) made $108,000 for working on just nine episodes of the sitcom Animal Practice . Porn pays: Workers in the adult film industry take home about $120,000 a year . The biggest problem facing many in Hollywood now is that many productions are moving to Louisiana, Georgia and other low-cost states, grabbing local workers who cost far, far less. A stunt person in Los Angeles commands a far higher sum, around $50,000 a film, than a stunt person working in another low-cost state, and to keep costs down many productions are happy to film on location. As for the $50,000, that may seem like a lot, until one takes into account the huge insurance premiums these men and women pay given their line of work. And it does not pay to get hurt. 'I was doubling for Jim Carey in Yes Man, on the back of a scooter on Sunset Boulevard with the girl doubling as Zoeey Deschanel,' recalled stuntman Tom McComas. 'A car that was supposed to slide by us hit us at 50 miles per hour. She shattered her pelvis; I jumped, flipped in the air and herniated a couple of disks.' He went to work the next day, got fired, and was suddenly collecting disability rather than a paycheck. 'Basically we're blue-collar workers who punch the clock,' he added. Safety first: One stunt man recalls getting fired after an injury on the set of Yes Man (above), a movie that made millions for Jim Carey . Speaking of Yes Man, Carey took home 36.2% on the back end of the 2008 release according to Deadline, a move they mocked the actor for at the time as he agreed to forgo any salary for the film. The film made almost $225 million at the box office, which comes out to a little more than $81 million. Even better, Carey herniated no discs during production. | A new report reveals how much everyone in Hollywood is making these days, from actors and assistants to porn stars and animal talent .
Sandra Bullock scored the biggest check last year when she took home over $70 million for Gravity thanks to a back end deal .
Also cashing in was Crystal the monkey, who made over $100,000 for appearing on the failed NBC sitcom Animal Practice . |
61,867 | afbf64767f45ab63f36905dcce6fe295089747b4 | By . Sarah Michael . and Candace Sutton . Murdered student Jamie Gao was living his Australian dream: A first-class education at Sydney's University of Technology, a happy family life in a $1.5-million Hurstville home, an active social life, and even a budding romance with a girl whom he'd 'liked for a while'. But that dream turned into a nightmare on Tuesday, May 20. That afternoon began, police allege, with Mr Gao wading 'in over his head' into a high-stakes drug deal, and ended with the university student being shot twice in the chest, his body wrapped in a blue tarpaulin before being dumped into the ocean off Cronulla. The body found floating off Shelly Beach has now been formally identified as the 20-year-old student. Scroll down for video . Jamie Gao's girlfriend (pictured right kissing him) is in shock over his death . The day before, though, was reportedly as normal for Mr Gao as any other. He went to his morning university classes before stopping for lunch at a nearby cafe with a uni friend. At no stage, the friend says, did he seem nervous or on edge. Nor did he mention his plans for the following day. Instead he spent his time gushing about his new girlfriend - a young woman he'd had a crush on for some time and had been dating for just 'a couple of months'. Pictures posted to Mr Gao's girlfriend's Facebook page show the couple hugging and kissing. Mr Gao's girlfriend told MailOnline she was struggling to cope with the news. She declined to comment in detail, saying it was a 'very hard time' for her. On Monday May 19, the UTS business student went to class in the morning and afternoon as normal. During a break between 11am and 1pm he lunched with a friend at Caffe Tiamo on Pitt St in Sydney's CBD. The 19-year-old female friend, who did not want to be named, told MailOnline Mr Gao did not talk about his plans for the next day. 'He was fine, normal. we had lunch,' she said. 'He didn't tell me about the meeting.' Mr Gao's girlfriend told the MailOnline it was a 'very hard time' for her . Police allege Mr Gao was murdered on Tuesday, May 20 at Padstow in Sydney's southwest between 1.40pm and 2.30pm after allegedly meeting two young Asian men and former detectives Glen McNamara and Roger Rogerson. Mr Gao's friend told MailOnline that, before the body was formally identified, his girlfriend was still hopeful he'd return, saying she 'still expects him to come back'. 'They've only officially been together a couple of months, but he liked her for a while,' she said. She told MailOnline that his involvement in a drug deal seemed completely out of character, describing him as a 'nice guy' who was swayed by peer pressure. 'People say he's dealing drugs and he's bad. But his intention is not to be bad,' she said. 'He doesn't do anything on purpose to hurt anyone, I think he was just persuaded by his friends and by peer pressure.' Mr Gao lived with his mother Catherin Sui Ying Gao and grandmother in a $1.5 million house in Hurstville. A woman at the home on Monday declined to comment. Mr Gao (left) and his girlfriend (right) started dating at the beginning of the year . Police say CCTV footage shows Mr Gao arriving in his own vehicle at Arab Road, Padstow, last Tuesday and meeting with two young Asian men before he allegedly met up with former detectives McNamara and Rogerson. Footage shows one man, believed to be Mr Gao, getting out of a car and carrying a large bag to a station wagon. A body found floating off Shelly Beach near Cronulla was formally identified as Mr Gao on Tuesday afternoon . He is seen getting into the station wagon before it drives away. The car was driven to a storage unit nearby, where police will allege Mr Gao was killed for the bag's contents just before 2.30pm.' Mr Gao's friend said she was shocked the student, who graduated from Caringbah High School in 2011, was allegedly involved in drug dealing. 'He doesn't tell us about all the stuff he does,' she said. 'He does tell us about his private life, family and girlfriend but not about the illegal stuff.' The friend described Mr Gao as social and naturally smart. 'He wasn't crazy about study, he wasn't the nerdy type that studies every day, he was more social,' she said. Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article. | Murdered student Jamie Gao went to university as normal and ate at a cafe with a friend the day before his murder .
He chatted about his new girlfriend, who told MailOnline she is struggling to cope with the death of the 20-year-old student .
A body found floating off Shelly Beach was formally identified as Mr Gao's .
He'd suffered two gunshots to the chest before his body was dumped . |
254,937 | d5f977c5c0fbb6354c05844dd8d5f042a8e2358e | By . Vanessa Allen . PUBLISHED: . 05:45 EST, 27 April 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 15:03 EST, 27 April 2012 . Former Labour MP Margaret Moran is a 'broken woman' and mentally unfit to plead to charges of falsely claiming £80,000 in expenses, a court ruled yesterday. The 56-year-old is at times suicidal and has tried to harm herself since the allegations of defrauding the taxpayer ended her political career, doctors said. She was also said to feel 'abandoned' by the Labour Party. The judge ruled Moran was too 'mentally fragile' to appear in court, meaning that the case will be heard in her absence by a jury later this year. Showing the strain: An aged Margaret Moran cried as she left court last year after hearing charges regarding her expenses. Right, the ex-MP at Westminster during better times . The former MP for Luton South faces 15 charges of false accounting and six other counts of submitting forged invoices. Moran is accused of repeatedly . 'flipping' her designated second home to allow her to claim . Parliamentary expenses for work to properties in London, Luton and . Southampton over four years. She is alleged to have claimed £22,500 . to treat dry rot at a home in Southampton, more than 100 miles from her . constituency. The home was originally owned solely by her then fiancé . and now husband, Michael Booker. Moran, who stood down at the last . election, is also said to have dishonestly claimed £4,756 for kitchen . units and £14,805 for emergency boiler repairs and work on a . conservatory. Forensic psychiatrist Dr Philip Joseph . told yesterday's hearing she should not take part in court proceedings . because she was suffering from a depressive illness, extreme anxiety and . agitation. He told Lewes Crown Court in East . Sussex that she would find a trial stressful, saying: 'She has feelings . of abandonment from the Labour Party. It remains a concern she may . commit suicide. Bear in mind she has attempted to harm herself.' Allegations: Margaret Moran is accused of 'flipping' around her home address, including to this one in Luton, to make improvements at the taxpayers' expense . Dr Joseph said Moran's mental problems . affected her ability to concentrate and remember events, and became . 'most severe' when she discussed the case. Asked if Moran might be . exaggerating her 'catastrophic reaction' he said it was unlikely. Three . psychiatric reports were commissioned and all agreed she was not fit to . plead. Dr Joseph said Moran felt she was . 'being punished for past mistakes [and] for incidents in her childhood . and adolescence' but did not explain further. He told the court: 'When she was an MP . she was an exuberant personality. When that was taken away, she looked . physically crushed and hunched.' He added: 'Everything she used to . bolster her self-esteem in her adult life has come crashing down and . that feeling of public shame and vilification was causing her to become a . broken woman.' Moran did not have to attend yesterday's hearing. The judge, Mr Justice Saunders, said . Moran had told a psychiatrist, 'I just want to plead guilty and be . punished', but said she was unlikely to have given the allegations . 'proper consideration'. He adjourned the case to Southwark Crown Court in London for a three-day hearing with a jury in November. Moran is the fifth Labour MP to face . prosecution over the expenses scandal. David Chaytor, Eric Illsley, . Elliot Morley and Jim Devine were all jailed, as were Tory peers Lord . Taylor of Warwick and Lord Hanningfield. | Former Luton South MP accused of falsely claiming huge sums and is suffering from extreme anxiety .
Lewes Crown Court told her ruined career and being abandoned by the Labour party have caused her mental decline . |
105,048 | 1384e78e80539a0dbb0825c7e181aa78f7ff75b4 | By . Larisa Brown . PUBLISHED: . 12:17 EST, 5 October 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 12:19 EST, 5 October 2012 . Two sisters who were killed in a car crash while on a holiday of a lifetime in Morocco were today described as the 'brightest of stars' at their funeral. Tara Darlington, 23, and her sister Pippa, 21, were remembered by their loved ones at a service held in a church in their home town of Whiteparish, near Salisbury in Wiltshire. The 'beautiful' sisters died last month . in a road accident near the city of Rabat as they were both due to enter . their final year of study at their respective universities. Scroll down for video . Pippa, 21, left and Tara, 23, right, who were killed in a car crash in Morocco. Their father Patrick said at their funeral today his daughters had 'made the world a better place to be in' Tragic: The coffins of the two sisters are carried out of the church as hundreds pay tribute to the 'beautiful' girls . Their father Patrick, 62, said his daughters had 'made the world a better place to be in'. Mr Darlington and his wife Emma, 52, arrived at the church near their home on foot. The girls also leave a 15-year-old brother, Oscar, who was supported by friends during the service. Hundreds of people packed into All Saints’ Church church to hear a number of moving tributes. Mr Darlington said: 'Our darlings, who would ever have thought that you would not return from Africa, that we would be mourning your loss and looking back at the wonderful girls that you were, rather than looking forwards, at all the possibilities that were opening up for you. 'Mummy and I are so very sorry. We have been cheated. It seems so unfair. We loved you so much. 'Each of you were the brightest of stars - burnt out in your prime.' During the service seven readings were given by friends and the girls’ godparents. The Rev Nils Bersweden gave the address and there was music including the songs All You Need is Love by the Beatles, Driving Along In My Automobile by Chuck Berry and Elgar’s Salut d’Amour performed on the cello by the girls’ friend Angus Reid. Devastated: Parents Emma and Patrick Darlington arrive at the funeral where Mr Darlington paid a moving tribute to his daughters, saying: 'Each of you were the brightest of stars - burnt out in your prime' Mourners gather outside All Saints' Church in the girls' home town of Whiteparish, near Salisbury in Wiltshire to pay their respects . Flowers are laid on the grass outside the church and the girls' parents Emma and Patrick can be seen walking behind their daughter's coffins . Mr Darlington, a former wine merchant and director of the Yellow Bike Company, said his family would mourn the loss of the girls for the rest of their lives, but that today they wanted to celebrate their lives. He described Tara as 'buzzing with energy, joy, fun and new ideas'. 'You (Tara) were strong and vibrant, like a little lioness,' Mr Darlington said. 'You were fiercely loyal, had a quick wit, and were full of love for the world and what it had to offer. We are so pleased you saw so much of the world.' He said his younger daughter Pippa was 'soft, kind, beautiful, sensitive, loyal and incredibly loving'. 'Pippa loved to travel, meet different people and learn their ways,' he added. Friends and family of the girls weep at the funeral of the sisters who were about to enter into their final year at their respective universities . 'She loved the sun and being by the sea collecting shells. Tall, elegant, willowy, with a gracious swan-like neck and perfect hour glass figure, Pippi had wonderful eyes - you could look right into her soul.' He ended the tribute saying his daughters would have been 'amazed' by how many people had attended the service. 'It is clear that they touched many,' he said. 'We were very lucky to have two such golden girls.' The two wooden coffins adorned with flowers were carried from the church by their friends before they were placed into a hearse side by side. The sisters were driving home on September 17 with their friend Joshua Stump, 21, from Salisbury, who was seriously injured in the crash. Tara was studying media, journalism and sociology at Goldsmiths University in south east London, while her younger sister studied law at Newcastle University. Their rented car collided with another vehicle on the same road where Tara’s godfather, David Windmill, said there had been 25 other deaths in the two previous weeks. 'Each other's soulmates': Tara and Pippa were the best of friends . Mr Windmill, 63, from Edinburgh, said the sisters were both well-travelled and had been to Australia and Europe, and Tara had also been to America, but they were drawn to Morocco and Africa as part of 'taking on the world'. 'This was another part of them exploring life,' Mr Windmill said. 'Nobody would want this to happen. It was just one of those very very tragic accidents, I have to say in a country which does have a huge number of road accidents. 'I think people should go and explore and should go and look at different cultures but, for example, in the two weeks before they died 25 people had been killed on that piece of road in Morocco, so if there is one lesson there, it is just to be aware.' He added: 'The initial shock was obviously awful. The suddenness of it all was just terrible. 'But what’s really impressed me is the way the village and the way Tara’s friends have come around (to the house) just allowing the family to grieve but grieve in a positive way.' The sisters had been keeping in touch with their family and friends using their mobiles. A friends told the service that one of the last texts Tara and Pippa had sent him said they were about to go horse riding on the beach at sunset and that this was how he was going to remember them. Follow the service the family said in a statement: 'We are so grateful for the amazing support, generosity and kindness everyone has shown us. 'The service today was a lovely tribute to our beautiful daughters and Oscar’s sisters, Tara and Pippa, and we would like to thank so many friends who helped with it. 'We hope they will be remembered for how they lived life. We will always be proud of them.' | Tara, 23, and Pippa, 21, 'made the world a better place to be in', says father .
Sisters died last month as they were due to enter final year of university .
Hundreds of mourners gathered to pay their respect to the 'beautiful' pair . |
83,456 | ecba286d43d7583a5527e7d9fe81062b73bddc84 | By . Helen Collis . PUBLISHED: . 07:23 EST, 23 July 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 12:33 EST, 23 July 2013 . A woman who hired a private eye to catch the vandal trashing her family grave was sickened when she discovered the culprit was - her cousin. Sue Pullin, 67, called in a surveillance expert after her mother Mavis Budd’s resting place was repeatedly damaged over a three year period. But she was disgusted when covert camera footage captured her cousin Amanda Lester trampling on flowers, pulling up blooms and pouring dirty water over the headstone. Scroll down for video . Hidden camera: Footage captured with a hidden camera showed the vandal was Mrs Pullin's cousin, Amanda Lester, pictured . Lester was caught on film pouring dirty water over the gravestone of Mavis Budd . Mrs Pullin called the police and Lester, 57, has now been convicted of criminal damage and given a conditional discharge. Devastated Mrs Pullen is still unclear what motivated her cousin, but suspects she was unhappy that Mrs Budd’s ashes were scattered on the same plot as her own mother. She said: 'It was horrible. I just didn’t know what I was going to find when we set up the camera. 'I was having sleepless nights and was so upset. It was tearing the family apart. 'When I saw it was Amanda it made me feel sick and I had to go outside to get myself together. 'The tape showed her putting all the flowers in a bag and throwing them into a copse.' Mrs Budd was 89 when she died on December 27th 2009. Sue Pullin was shocked to find that her cousin was the one who was trashing her mother's grave after she hired a private investigator . She was cremated and the ashes were spread at St Anne’s Church graveyard in Oldland Common, Bristol, in March the following year. Mrs Pullin, a supermarket trainer, explained: 'As soon as we put mum’s ashes down and put some floral tributes down, the trouble started. 'Everything was being damaged, taken away or destroyed. 'It was devastating for us and we had no idea who was doing it. We just assumed it was children. 'There was a bend in the graveyard I would go around and my stomach would lurch, because it was then I would see if anything had happened.' She was also caught trampling on flowers left by the headstone for Mrs Pullin's mother . Mrs Pullin and her retired husband Michael, 69, were so distressed that they contacted police who told the couple they would need evidence before they could act. She said: 'We had no idea who was doing it so hired a private eye.' The couple spent £250 on a private detective, who recorded footage of Lester bagging flowers from the grave and dumping them in a nearby copse. Mrs Pullin handed the video to police and Lester, whose mother is also buried at the site, was handed a caution. But when the damage continued Mrs Pullin and her husband spent £100 on a motion sensor camera which they concealed in a hedge at the site. Again, they caught Lester pouring dirty flower water over the headstone and stamping on flowers. Lester, from Bristol, pleaded guilty to criminal damage when she appeared at North Avon Magistrates’ Court on July 9. She was handed her a six-month conditional discharge and ordered her to pay £85 costs, a £15 victim surcharge and £8.50 compensation to Mrs Pullin. Mrs Pullin says she has never received an explanation of Lester’s actions but believes it is down to the shared burial plot. She explained: 'What’s really sad is that when Amanda’s mum died she asked my mum whether it was okay to bury her in the family grave and she said yes. 'At that time my mum said that is where she would like to buried as well. We can only assume she didn’t like that mum was buried there. Caught: Lester was convicted of criminal damage and was handed a six-month conditional discharge and ordered to pay £85 costs, a £15 victim surcharge and £8.50 compensation to Mrs Pullin . 'As far as we were concerned there was a good relationship between Amanda and my mother. 'Her mother would come and help me look after mum when she was bed-bound and take in her meals to help me out. 'The relationship is irreparable now. How can you forgive someone who has done that?' Since the court date, the grave has been left untouched. | Sue Pullin brought in a surveillance expert to find out who was vandalising her mother's grave, in Bristol .
She was shocked when footage revealed it was her cousin, Amanda Lester .
Lester was convicted of criminal damage but never gave an explanation .
Mrs Pullin says relationship between the two cousins in now 'irreparable' |
236,013 | bd89e6918c15a034580ba18b85d811f44f1a1084 | By . Fiona Macrae . PUBLISHED: . 19:05 EST, 31 December 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 10:05 EST, 1 January 2013 . Close up: Sir David Attenborough reveals the secrets of the rare pink iguana for the first time on screen from its home in the Galapagos Islands . At his age, David Attenborough thought he’d seen most things - but his extraordinary career still holds surprises. For the first time on screen, the veteran broadcaster reveals the secrets of the very rare pink iguana from its remote home on the Galapagos Islands. Sitting 600 miles west of Ecuador in the Pacific Ocean, the archipelago’s treasure trove of weird and wonderful wildlife intrigued Charles Darwin and inspired his theory of evolution. Now, almost two centuries later, Sir David reveals a spectacular lizard that Darwin missed. In his latest TV series, the 86-year-old naturalist introduces the world to a pink iguana that is so rare that it took until 2009 for it to be documented by science, despite the islands being among the most studied in the world. Describing the reptile, which can grow to more than three feet in length, Sir David said: ‘It’s a remarkable thing in this day and age when you think about the number of scientists per square metre in the Galapagos and yet suddenly we have discovered a new species. ‘A little periwinkle or something which nobody has identified before is one thing. But this is more than that, it’s a large pink iguana. ‘I used to collect stamps and this was a Penny Black of the natural world in a very big way.’ In Galapagos 3D with David Attenborough, the broadcaster describes how he placed his hands on the creature, thought to be one of fewer than 100 in existence, to calm it ahead of filming. Sir David said: ‘This is a very rare animal I’ve got sitting here and it was a privilege to see it.’ Unfortunately, the iguana took flight mid-way through filming and almost damaged the delicate 3D camera equipment. Scroll down for video . Rare: Sir Richard Attenborough with Dr Gabriele Gentile (right) and a pink iguana that he filmed while he worked on his new Sky series Galapagos 3D in the Galapagos Islands . Anthony Geffen, who produced the three-part series for Sky 3D, said: ‘When he finally came face to face with the iguana it was just one of the most extraordinary moments that I’ve ever experienced: here was the world’s greatest naturalist coming face to face with a new species. ‘In the footsteps of Charles Darwin, but almost 200 years later, David Attenborough was capturing the rare species on film for the first time.’ The pink iguana is believed to be one of fewer than 100 and related to a more yellow iguana that is found on the islands. No one knows why it is pink but scientists think the two species can mate with one another, with studies showing a yellow iguana has genetic material that points to a pink grandfather. Last filming: Sir David was the last to film Galapagos Islands legend Lonesome George who was a 100-year-old giant tortoise - the last of his species . Sir David was also the last to film another of the islands’ icons – Lonesome George, the last of his species of giant tortoise. Thought to be around 100 and with several failed mating projects behind him, he became famous as the world’s rarest creature. He died last June, just ten days after being filmed by Sir David. Sir David, who first visited the Galapagos in 1978 while working on his groundbreaking Life On Earth series for BBC, said: ‘I can’t say I was surprised but I was saddened when the news came two weeks after we’d filmed our interview, old Lonesome had just not woken up and that was his end but he will be… . ‘I know his effigy will be around in the Galapagos for a long time yet.’ The new iguana will feature in the third episode of Galapagos 3D With David Attenborough. The series begins today at 7pm. The Blue Footed Booby is one of the extraordinary creatures native to the Galapagos Islands . Marine iguanaDescribed as ‘hideous looking’ by Darwin and the only sea-going lizard in the world, these digest their own bones to make themselves smaller and more energy-efficient when a change in weather makes food scarce. Found solely on the Galapagos, they can hold their breath underwater for 40 minutes and spit out excess salt from their food through glands near their noses – creating a white ‘wig’ effect.Galapagos penguins With the Galapagos just north of the equator, these live further north than any other type of penguin. Their feet sit underneath their bodies to prevent sunburn in temperatures of 86f-plus (30c+). Only found on the cooler side of the archipelago, they are a petite 16 to 18in tall and weigh just 5lb. Translucent spiders These live in a network of hollow volcanic ‘pipes’ beneath the islands. The lack of daylight means they don’t need to waste energy making a coloured pigment that provides camouflage, leaving them see-through.Lava lizards Territorial males threaten intruders by perching on rocks in the sun and doing ‘press-ups’. It is thought that the seven different species of lava lizard on the islands had a common ancestor that evolved in different ways to live in different habitats. They live for up to ten years with survival mechanisms including the ability to jettison their tail when a predator grabs hold of it and grow a new one as necessary.Blue-footed boobies Found along the northern Pacific coast of Central and South America, half of all breeding pairs are found on the Galapagos Islands. Male birds show off their feet to prospective mates with a high-stepping strut. The bluer the feet, the more attractive, and likely younger, the suitor. Ungainly on land, blue-footed boobies are exceptional divers and will plunge into the water in search of a meal at speeds of up to 60mph. | Sir David Attenborough examines the iguana in his new series Galapagos 3D .
The lizard is so rare it wasn't documented by science until 2009 .
Islands which were beloved by Charles Darwin are famous for unique wildlife . |
182,788 | 78b99fb0c6d9819b3a5e8241e7037b2081180dc0 | (CNN) -- The 2012 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut was tragic enough, but what has been playing out over the last few weeks has made the story even more stomach-wrenching. More than half the money raised by the 26.4.26 Foundation, a Tennessee-based charity that ostensibly was established to help the shooting victims' families, has turned up missing along with one of the organization's co-founders. As I write this column, law enforcement officials here in my state and elsewhere are trying to figure out why about $70,000 of the more than $100,000 raised by the group never made it to those families. Unfortunately, this type of story has become far too common among charitable organizations. There are unscrupulous people in the world who try to exploit tragedies in order to enrich themselves. These people take advantage of the wonderful human trait of compassion for others. They undermine the most noble of selfless acts made on behalf of our brothers and sisters in need. So while our generous response to tragic events such as floods, fires, earthquakes or horrific crimes is admirable, it needs to be tempered with a sense of caution. When we spend our hard-earned money to buy goods or services, it is reasonable to compare prices and research product quality. We do this because we want to make wise purchasing decisions. It is imperative that we apply the same logic to our charitable contributions. In Tennessee, with a few exceptions, charitable organizations are required to register with the Secretary of State's Division of Charitable Solicitations and Gaming and file annual financial reports. Many other states have similar reporting requirements. Would-be donors who take the time to review these reports can learn a lot about charities that are soliciting funds -- such as how much of their funds are used for administrative costs and other expenses and how much are used to actually provide services to the needy. Of course, not all charities follow the law. The 26.4.26 Foundation didn't register in Tennessee. If a charity hasn't registered in a state where it's required to do so, then that should raise a red flag for potential donors. In addition to the information charities must provide to state governments, there are nonprofit organizations such as the Better Business Bureau, Charity Navigator, Charity Watch and GuideStar that can be useful resources. Also, it helps to follow some basic rules before making a donation to a charity. Reputable charities shouldn't object if you want to do some research and send them a donation later. Ask questions such as: . -- How will the money you donate be used? -- How long has the charity been in operation? Where are its offices? -- What types of programs and services would your donation help fund? -- How much of the donation would be spent on the organization's administrative expenses and other costs? -- Would a portion of the donation be kept by the solicitor as a fee? If you get vague or unsatisfactory answers to those types of questions, you need to carefully consider whether your money might be better spent elsewhere. Also, don't ever make cash contributions. It's much easier for cash to be misspent and it's more difficult for donors to claim cash contributions as deductions on their tax forms. When paying by check, make the check payable to the organization, not an individual. And only pay with a credit card if the organization is well established and highly trusted. Otherwise, you may be opening yourself up to the potential of identity theft. When tragedy strikes, we should help victims as quickly as possible. However, by taking the time to do a little research before giving to a charity, donors could prevent their money from falling into the wrong hands. And that, in turn, would help ensure that the truly needy get the aid and comfort they deserve. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Tre Hargett. | Money from a charity to help victims of Sandy Hook shooting has gone missing .
Tre Hargett: Sham charities that exploit compassionate people are more common .
He says Americans must do some research on charities before donating money .
Hargett: Don't let your money fall into the wrong hands, and never give cash . |
9,200 | 1a0e051dd5d840120e8ec2ae228808e53d6b39d4 | New Orleans, Louisiana (CNN) -- Oil left on the surface of the Gulf of Mexico is breaking down naturally now that the flow of crude has been cut off beneath the surface, a Coast Guard admiral said Sunday after touring the scene. Rear Adm. Paul Zukunft said the remnants of Tropical Storm Bonnie did little to affect the oil slick, which is breaking down "very quickly." "The storm itself was not that significant," Zukunft told CNN after an aerial survey of the northern Gulf on Sunday. "We've had nine days of no new oil being released, so what we're seeing is the remnants of oil that was released nine days ago." BP crews managed to temporarily cap the undersea well at the heart of the three-month-old disaster on June 15. But efforts to close off the gusher permanently by drilling a relief well were delayed by the storm, which forced the ships involved in the process to evacuate the area. Those ships have returned to the area since the storm, he told reporters Sunday night. Zukunft told reporters that he saw only one large patch of emulsified oil, about 12 miles off Grand Isle, Louisiana, during his six-hour aerial tour. No oil could be seen in Louisiana's Lake Borgne, Lake Pontchartrain or Chandeleur Sound, while only a light sheen was visible in other parts of the Gulf. "The oil is basically approaching the end of its life cycle," he said. Oil had gushed from the ruptured well for nearly three months after the Deepwater Horizon rig exploded April 20, leaving 11 workers dead. Officials have said a relief well is the only permanent solution to the disaster, which saw as much as 60,000 barrels (2.5 million gallons) of crude spewing into the Gulf every day. Ships critical for drilling the well started evacuating Thursday and returning Saturday afternoon, once Bonnie lost her punch after crossing southern Florida. The weather forced officials to temporarily scale back efforts to search beneath the surface for leaking oil and permanently plug the leak, drawing some criticism from local officials that the federal government was overreacting to the storm. But retired Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, who is leading the federal government's response to the spill, emphasized the need to move and protect equipment before a storm. He said told reporters Friday that he was still "haunted" by the sight of submerged school buses "that could not be used for the evacuation" after Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans in 2005. "We're going to be playing a cat-and-mouse game for the remainder of the hurricane season," Allen said. Sunday, Allen said officials were examining new oil deposits on the shoreline created by the storm, and booms that were in sensitive marsh areas caused damage during the storm and may need to be removed before another surge happens. But with the storm's passing, work on the relief well is scheduled to continue, he said. And by August 1, he said crews could begin pumping drilling "mud" into the ruptured well to force oil back into the reservoir below -- a process known as a "static kill." CNN's David Mattingly, Rich Phillips and Matt Smith contributed to this report. | NEW: Admiral says oil on the surface is breaking down "very quickly"
NEW: Drill ships returned to the well site Sunday .
Tropical Storm Bonnie forced ships to evacuate Thursday night .
"Static kill" effort could start August 1, Allen says . |
91,443 | 019f22967cfd4075ec33ceb537bde0f2cc89346e | Mary Galvin, 67, admitted taking the money from the two elderly women at Lyndon Residential Care Home . A former nurse stole thousands of pounds from vulnerable elderly women at the care home she managed, claiming they used heaters too much or owed her money for sleeping in a double bed. Mary Galvin, 67, claimed she took the money from two residents at the Greater Manchester care home, which has now been closed, because she was told she had been undercharging then. She pilfered £3,000 from a 94-year-old woman because she felt she was using the heater excessively and that the pensioner owed her more because she was a single resident and slept in a single room. Another woman had £3,500 taken directly from her bank account without being informed first . Bolton Crown Court heard that Galvin, who ran Lyndon Residential Care Home, had managed to take the money because she had direct access to residents' bank accounts to take their fees. Judge Timothy Stead said that by helping herself to the money Galvin had 'breached a high degree of trust.' The problems started at the home in 2011 when nine deaths registered at the 16-bed residential home meant a loss of income and financial difficulties for Galvin. The home had to be sold after a police investigation into the thefts uncovered how Galvin had misused her access to the accounts. At Bolton Crown Court Galvin, of Whitefield, pleaded guilty to theft but escaped prison. The court heard Galvin and her husband bought the care home in 1997, after she had spent 30 years working as a nurse. But Hugh Edwards, prosecuting, said Galvin had carried out the thefts after being given access to the residents' bank accounts in order to take their fees. He said the amounts taken were 'over and above what she was allowed to withdraw'. Defending Galvin, Philip Parry said she had been suffering mental health problems, following her son taking his own life in August 2012, and her daughter battling alcoholism. The court heard she had since paid back the money back in full to the two estates of the victims. He added that the defendant was of fragile mentality and needs to see a psychiatrist. Mr Parry added: 'Mrs Galvin's use and misuse of bank accounts of two complainants was initially permitted. It wasn't a case where she helped herself to the money. 'The basis of the plea and the prosecution accepted, there was a time when both residents paid fees by cheque.' Mary Galvin pictured leaving Bolton Crown Court . But he added that there came a time when they didn't and Galvin was allowed to take the money. 'There was an agreement that allowed her to take the money for the accounts to the sum of the fees. The dishonesty accumulated over a year, the taking of money went beyond what she was permitted to take in lieu.' Galvin was sentenced to 20 months in prison suspended for two years. She must also complete 100 hours unpaid work and pay £60 costs and a statutory victim surcharge of £100. Judge Timothy Stead told her: 'I seriously hope that this is the last time you stand in the dock. What you did in stealing money from vulnerable persons in your care, you knew well to be wrong. As far as the courts are concerned the theft breached a high degree of trust.' After the case Labour Councillor Simon Carter who represents the Tottington ward said: 'I can't see how anybody should descend the conduct of running a care home like that and acting like that. You have to build a business model and you have to predict the unpredictable, if there is a loss of income you don't start nicking money off residents you go to the bank. 'It's reprehensible. She was exploiting people who were clearly vulnerable. I imagine from what I read about social care it's not cheap. It's a serious breach of trust - you can't put a gloss on it - you can't tell it in any other way. I'm sorry it came to that but nobody made her do it.' | Mary Galvin stole thousands from accounts of elderly residents, one aged 94 .
She took cash and cheques for 'excessive' use of heater and for higher fees .
Galvin admitted she took the cash as she thought she was undercharging .
Judge said she 'breached a high degree of trust' by stealing from women .
The care home in Greater Manchester had to be sold after thefts uncovered .
Local councillor said 67-year-old former nurse 'exploited the vulnerable' |
196,986 | 8af43fa464419de0fef777e7af31de6047ac57a0 | By . Laura Clark . White teenagers are the least likely group to apply to university after being overtaken by black pupils, figures revealed yesterday. Rising numbers from all ethnic groups are setting their sights on a degree but white teenagers are less likely to apply than black, Asian or Chinese pupils. The statistics also show that pupils on free school meals due to family poverty are half as likely to seek a place as their more privileged peers. Just one in seven schoolboys on free meals is aiming for university. Rising numbers from all ethnic groups are setting their sights on a degree but white teenagers are less likely to apply than black, Asian or Chinese pupils, according to the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service . The analysis from the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service examined applications from 18-year-olds at England’s state schools to start university this autumn. It shows that 31 per cent of white teenagers applied – compared with 61 per cent of Chinese, 45 per cent of Asian and 39 per cent of black. The report compares the figures with those from 2006 and finds that demand among black teenagers has overtaken the proportion of white pupils applying. While the application rate of white teenagers rose from 25 to 31 per cent, black pupils increased their applications more rapidly, from 24 per cent to 39 per cent. ‘Application rates for all groups are higher in 2014 than in 2006 with the largest increase being for the black ethnic group,’ the report said. The findings will focus fresh attention on under-achievement among white working-class pupils, who are fast falling to the bottom of the educational heap. An inquiry by the Commons Education Select Committee last month called for radical measures to help reverse the ‘real and persistent’ under-performance of poorer white pupils, including longer school days to help children complete their homework. It called for further research on the role of poor parenting and the ‘effects of historical funding and strategies’. UCAS revealed that this year has seen the second highest total number of university applications submitted on record. The figure suggests demand for higher education is recovering following a sudden drop in applications sparked by the introduction of higher fees in 2012. But the latest analysis shows wide variation between groups. Record numbers of pupils on free school meals are aiming for university but they are still half as likely to apply than peers whose parents can afford to pay for their lunches. Some 18 per cent of pupils eligible for free meals applied this year – compared with 37 per cent of more privileged youngsters. Among poorer pupils, girls were 50 per cent more likely to apply than boys. Pupils from a Chinese background were nearly twice as likely to apply than pupils from white families . UCAS warned earlier this year that weak demand among male pupils was becoming a more pressing issue than under-representation of youngsters from poor homes. UCAS chief Mary Curnock Cook said: ‘There remains a stubborn gap between male and female applicants which, on current trends, could eclipse the gap between rich and poor within a decade.’ Separate research earlier this week – based on university applications in 2008 – found that although ethnic minority groups were over-represented on campus, applicants from these groups were less likely to receive offers of places than white pupils with the same academic record. The study, from the London School of Economics, also found that boys were losing out to girls in the university race even when they have the same A-level grades. Pupils from comprehensives and those from working-class backgrounds were also at a disadvantage. Researchers suggested the quality of personal statements on university application forms may help explain the findings. Speaking about the latest figures, Professor Les Ebdon, director of Fair Access to Higher Education, said: ‘The upwards application trends are good news, but stark gaps remain between application rates from young people from different backgrounds. ‘That means many talented, intelligent young people are missing out on the economic and social mobility that higher education helps to support, and the country is missing out on a pool of potentially excellent graduates who could be enriching our economy and society.’ A Department for Business spokesman said: ‘This data confirms that the proportion of 18-year-olds from the most disadvantaged backgrounds applying to university has reached its highest level ever. The Government is committed to providing access to all students irrespective of background.’ | Students from a Chinese background are most likely to want to study .
Largest increase among black applicants, up 15 per cent over eight years.
Analysis shows that 31 per cent of white teenagers applied to university . |
242,457 | c5d4932fcddd0aa09cfd16f1911cfeda6a525da9 | Dozens of compassionate Australians have learnt this week that a woman who told her friends and family she had terminal cancer had been running a scam to extort money from donations. Elizabeth 'Elle' Edmunds, 31, had reported that she was diagnosed with stage six ovarian cancer in April, and had been told she had only three years left to live. The mother-of-six from Lake Macquarie, NSW, went to great lengths to convince friends, family, and strangers that she had cancer, shaving her head and faking hospital visits for chemotherapy treatments. Scroll down for video . Elizabeth 'Elle' Edmunds, 31, had reported that she was diagnosed with stage six ovarian cancer in April, and had been told she had only three years left to live . The mother-of-six from Lake Macquarie, NSW, went to great lengths to convince friends, family, and strangers that she had cancer, shaving her head and faking hospital visits for chemotherapy treatments . Crowdfunding pages and Facebook charity groups were set up in support for Ms Edmunds, raising significant funds through charity functions and online auctions for her ongoing medical bills. Last week it was revealed by an unnamed man who claimed to be Elle's partner that she had never had cancer, and that she had tricked him into believing she did, reported The Daily Telegraph. Jessica McKay, the administrator of the 'Help for Elle' Facebook page wrote a post detailing her fury with Ms Edmunds. 'With Elle not even having cancer we have had our say and hopefully over the next few days everyone will see what an evil person she really is,' she wrote. 'What has happend with Elle faking cancer and trying to scam money of people hasn't gone unnoticed and we will be heard [sic]' Ms McKay organised a $150-a-head fundraiser for the Lake Macquarie woman, and was just one of many strangers taken in by Ms Edmunds cancer scam. Compassionate Australians have learnt this week that a woman who told her friends and family she had terminal cancer had been running a scam to extort money from donations . Crowdfunding pages and Facebook charity groups were set up in support for Ms Edmunds, raising significant funds through charity functions and online auctions for her ongoing medical bills . The group's page contains several photos of Ms Edmunds with a child, shown in the process of shaving her head and then bald, and detailed efforts to raise money for her, and periodic updates about her health. Members of the group who had contributed financially or had been raising awareness for Ms Edmunds labeled her actions 'disgusting', and called for jail time. One member posted that she hoped Ms Edmunds 'got what she deserved', and labeled her a 'disgrace to humanity, filthy lying cheating human, some will forgive you, many will not, and for someone thats lost loved ones to cancer, I feel no sadness any further for what karma comes your way [sic]'. 'The only truth you have admitted to is being very sick mentally, You are sick mentally, sick, sad and twisted and I feel devastated for your loved ones, let alone mine that were sucked into your evil bull***t.' On Sunday Ms Edmunds was asked to explain her behaviour, and claimed that she had 'serious mental health issues'. The Daily Telegraph reported that police had launched an investigation into the claims but that charges were yet to be laid. | Elizabeth 'Elle' Edmunds told friends, family, and strangers that she had been diagnosed with stage six ovarian cancer and had only six months left to live .
The mother-of-six shaved her head and faked trips to the hospital for chemotherapy treatment .
Crowdfunding pages and Facebook groups were set up to raise money for her living expenses and ongoing medical costs .
A man claiming to be her partner exposed her scam this week, prompting furious responses from those who had supported her . |
247,351 | cc18def60537ccdb37a57f9d8ad7045085fbd185 | By . Sam Adams . PUBLISHED: . 07:35 EST, 2 November 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 08:56 EST, 2 November 2012 . Vanished: Hany Nabil Mustapha, 46, was trying to sail from Poole, Dorset, to Hayling Island, Portsmouth when he disappeared. His body has now be found . The body of a businessman who disappeared at sea just hours after buying a new yacht has been discovered. Hany Mustapha, 46, was reported missing on October 27 after setting sail from Poole harbour in Dorset with plans to meet his wife at Hayling Island in Portsmouth. The 21ft vessel, Brigand, was found hours later unmanned off the coast of the Isle of Wight and an investigation was launched to locate Mr Mustapha. His body was found four miles off Sandown and was identified by Dorset Police yesterday. A spokeswoman for Dorset Police said: 'Initial identification of the body has confirmed it is that of missing London man Mr Hany Mustapha. 'The family of Mr Mustapha have been informed but formal identification has not yet taken place.' Mr Mustapha, of Worcester Park, south west London, was last seen sailing out of . Poole harbour with his new purchase on Saturday - the day after he had . celebrated his 46th birthday. He was planning to travel 46 miles to Hayling Island, near Portsmouth, where his wife Liz, 44, was to join him the next day. But . his yacht, Brigand, was found grounded on a sandbank with the engine . still running and one sail up, near Brighstone, on the Isle of Wight, at 5.15pm . on Saturday. Despite . an extensive search by coastguard helicopters and RNLI lifeboats, no . sign of him was found and the search had been called off on Sunday. Coastguards had received no distress signal from the Brigand and it is believed Mr Mustapha was wearing a buoyancy aid rather than lifejacket when he left the harbour. An experienced yachtsman who is studying for his Master Yachtsman certificate, Mr Mustapha was a member of the Thames Motoring Yacht Club. Mystery: 'Brigand', which Hany Mustapha had bought the same morning, washed ashore with nobody on board . Empty: Rescue services began a land, sea and air search after a member of the public found the boat . Mystery: The small boat was found on the Isle of Wight with its engine running and one of its sails still up . Described as ‘fit and active’ by his . surgeon father Nabil, he was also a keen sportsman who cycled and played cricket and golf. The . day before picking up the new yacht, he had celebrated his birthday at a . Chinese restaurant in Surrey with his wife, his daughter from his first . marriage, Nadia, 19, his parents, his sister May, 47, and her three . children. His family said he had been excited about collecting the boat and his trip to Hayling Island. He had driven down to Poole after the meal so he could be ready to pick it up in the morning. Mr Mustapha is thought to have paid £750 for the boat, a 21-foot pocket cruiser, that had been advertised on eBay. Beached: The boat ran aground on the Isle of Wight. Rescue workers had searched an area around The Needles (pictured) Mr Mustapha was director of several IT businesses and was described by his family as ‘very successful’ and ‘determined’. His parents are of Egyptian origin but he and his sister were born in Aylesbury. Neighbours in the cul-de-sac where Mr Mustapha lived described him as ‘always smiling’. | Hany Mustapha's body found four miles off the Isle of Wight .
He went missing on Saturday after setting sail from Poole, Dorset .
The 46-year-old had only bought the yacht the same morning .
Massive sea, air and land search had found no trace of skipper . |
244,479 | c868270bc496afe18d01826f287ca39e5c5e44e7 | By . Ted Thornhill . PUBLISHED: . 04:43 EST, 27 April 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 04:45 EST, 27 April 2012 . Some of the secrets of Saturn’s pock-marked moon Phoebe have been revealed, with Nasa scientists discovering that it is actually remarkably planet-like. Thanks to data beamed back from the agency’s Cassini probe, which has been loitering nearby, astronomers now know that the moon is far rounder than previously thought. What’s more, they believe that the moon may have actually been warm for tens of millions of years – and probably hosted water. Rock on: Phoebe's true nature is revealed in startling clarity in this mosaic of two images taken during Cassini's flyby on June 11, 2004, from 20,200 miles away . Scientists had their first close-up look at Phoebe when Cassini began exploring the Saturn system in 2004. Using data from multiple spacecraft instruments and a computer model of the moon's chemistry, geophysics and geology, scientists found Phoebe was a so-called planetesimal, or remnant planetary building block. ‘Unlike primitive bodies such as comets, Phoebe appears to have actively evolved for a time before it stalled out,’ said Julie Castillo-Rogez, a planetary scientist at Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. ‘Objects like Phoebe are thought to have condensed very quickly. Hence, they represent building blocks of planets. They give scientists clues about what conditions were like around the time of the birth of planets and their moons.’ Cassini images suggest Phoebe originated in the far-off Kuiper Belt, the region of ancient, icy, rocky bodies beyond Neptune's orbit. Rounding out the facts: This panel of images shows the nearly spherical shape of Phoebe . Saturn lies 890 million miles from the Sun on average. It has a diameter of 74,897 miles. It’s a very very cold planet, with an average temperature of -140C (-220F). It’s made of liquid and solid hydrogen and helium and is so light it would float on water. It’s most famous for its rings, which were first discovered in the 17th-century. They extend 46,000 miles out and have a total diameter of almost 170,000 miles. It has 60 moons – more than any other planet in the solar system, bar Jupiter. One of them, Titan, is the second largest in the solar system and actually has an atmosphere – composed mainly of nitrogen. Saturn is extremely stormy, with winds gusting at 1,000mph at the equator. Data show Phoebe was spherical and hot early in its history, and has denser rock-rich material concentrated near its centre. Its average density is about the same as Pluto, another object in the Kuiper Belt. Phoebe likely was captured by Saturn's gravity when it somehow got close to the giant planet. Saturn is surrounded by a cloud of irregular moons that circle the planet in orbits tilted from Saturn's orbit around the sun, the so-called equatorial plane. Phoebe is the largest of these irregular moons and also has the distinction of orbiting backward in relation to the other moons. Saturn's large moons appear to have formed from gas and dust orbiting in the planet's equatorial plane. These moons currently orbit Saturn in that same plane. ‘By combining Cassini data with modeling techniques previously applied to other solar system bodies, we've been able to go back in time and clarify why it is so different from the rest of the Saturn system,’ said Jonathan Lunine, a co-author on the study and a Cassini team member at Cornell University, Ithaca, New York. Analyses suggest that Phoebe was born within the first three million years of the birth of the solar system, which occurred 4.5 billion years ago. The moon may originally have been porous but appears to have collapsed in on itself as it warmed up. Phoebe developed a density 40 per cent higher than the average inner Saturnian moon. Objects of Phoebe's size have long been thought to form as ‘potato-shaped’ bodies and remained that way over their lifetimes. If such an object formed early enough in the solar system's history, it could have harboured the kinds of radioactive material that would produce substantial heat over a short timescale. This would warm the interior and reshape the moon. Stunning: Saturn's rings stretch 46,000 miles into space . ‘From the shape seen in Cassini images and modelling the likely cratering history, we were able to see that Phoebe started with a nearly spherical shape, rather than being an irregular shape later smoothed into a sphere by impacts,’ said co-author Peter Thomas, a Cassini team member at Cornell. Phoebe likely stayed warm for tens of millions of years before freezing up. The study suggests the heat also would have enabled the moon to host liquid water at one time. This could explain the signature of water-rich material on Phoebe's surface previously detected by Cassini. The new study also is consistent with the idea that several hundred million years after Phoebe cooled, the moon drifted toward the inner solar system in a solar-system-wide rearrangement. Phoebe was large enough to survive this turbulence. More than 60 moons are known to orbit Saturn, varying drastically in shape, size, surface age and origin. Scientists using both ground-based observatories and Cassini's cameras continue to search for others. The findings appear in the April issue of the Journal Icarus. | Phoebe was probably warm for tens of millions of years before it froze up . |
178,022 | 72751628be63a42090801035b83e896da7843292 | A star-studded private memorial was held this afternoon for veteran CBS News reporter Bob Simon who was killed in a horrific car crash last week. Dozens of fellow broadcasters, writers and other prominent public figures gathered at the Metropolitan Opera in Manhattan earlier today to say goodbye to the highly regarded 60 Minutes correspondent. CNN presenter Anderson Cooper, PBS host Charlie Rose, former NBC news anchor Tom Brokaw and ex-NYPD Commissioner Raymond Kelly were among those invited to the service intended only for family and close friends. Famous guest: CBS This Morning anchor Charlie Rose, left, arrives at the Metropolitan Opera House in Manhattan, New York, for Bob Simon's memorial service February 17 . At the conclusion of the service, Charlie Rose described the somber event as a tribute to a man who loved life and culture, and who lived his life well . News giant: Tom Brokaw, 75, praised Bob Simon as a wonderful professional friend . New York City's former top cop Ray Kelly said Simon, whom he'd known since 1980, was a 'legend' and 'quite a guy' Cooper eulogized the veteran journalist in a touching statement released a day after his tragic passing. ‘I dreamed of being, and still hope to be, a quarter of the writer that Bob Simon is and has been. ... Bob Simon was a legend, in my opinion,’ he said. The New York Daily News reported that a team of six pallbearers carried the casket containing Simon's body into the palatial concert venue for the intimate memorial, which lasted about 90 minutes. The well-respected newsman was eulogized by his 60 Minutes colleague Morley Safer, reporter Steve Kroft, CBS News Chairman Jeff Fager, his long-time producer Joel Bernstein and his daughter, Tanya Simon. Tom Brokaw, 75, also paid tribute to Simon, whom he praised as a wonderful professional friend. 'We both thought we were two of the luckiest guys you could possibly imagine because we got to race off and cover the things we always cared about,' the anchor said. Familiar face: The front of the program for Bob Simon's memorial service at the Metropolitan Opera House in Manhattan . The service lasted about 90 minutes and included speeches by Simon's friends and colleagues, as well as musical interludes . Mourner: CNN host Anderson Cooper (left and right) was among the dozens of newscasters invited to the private memorial for Mr Simon . Tears and laughter: As many as 100 people came out to mourn and remembers the legendary newsman, who died in a car wreck last week . CBS chief medical correspondent Jonathan LaPook (left) attended the solemn gathering along the likes of Tom Brokaw (right) and Anderson Cooper . Colleague speaks: CBS 60 Minutes correspondent Steve Krofts was among the speakers at Simon's memorial . The ever-laconic New York City's former top cop Ray Kelly said Simon, whom he'd known since 1980, said Simon was a 'legend' and 'quite a guy.' 'He'll be missed,' he added. It was no coincidence that the famed New York City opera house was chosen as the venue for Simon's memorial service, as he was known as a life-long music lover and opera connoisseur. The speeches at the memorial were interspersed with musical compositions that were among Simon's favorites, including Giuseppe Verdi's 'Ingemisco,' Richard Wagner's 'Liebestod,' and The Beatles classic 'Let It Be.' Simon, 73, died Wednesday in a devastating two-car collision on the West Side Highway. Police said he suffered fatal injuries when he was thrown from the back to the front of a livery cab when the car careened out of control near 30th Street. Simon is survived by his wife, Francoise, their daughter, Tanya, who is a producer for 60 Minutes, and his beloved grandson, Jack. At the time of his death, Simon was awating the arrival of his second grandchild. At the conclusion of the service, Charlie Rose described the somber event for a group of reporters assembled outside as a tribute to 'a life lived well and lived around the world, and lived with courage and lived with a great sense of the human spirit.' Somber task: Tanya Simon, Bob Simon's daughter and one of the producers of 60 Minutes, over the weekend accompanied her mother to a funeral home to make preparations for his memorial service . Tanya Simon is six months pregnant with her second child . Francoise Simon, Bob's wife of nearly a half-century is pictured in Manhattan just three days after her husband's tragic death in a car accident . Funeral home to the stars: Tanya and her mother, Francoise, are pictured arriving Saturday at the Frank E. Campbell Chapel. The same Manhattan funeral home handled Joan River's final arrangements last year . Last sign-off: Bob Simon's final report for 60 Minutes about the search for an Ebola cure aired Sunday on CBS . A larger public memorial service for Bob Simon will be held at a later date. 60 Minutes remembered its longtime correspondent Sunday by airing a story he finished on the day he died, four days earlier. The story looked into a possible new treatment for the Ebola virus. Following the report, fellow correspondent Steve Kroft spoke of Simon's 'sense of justice and his sense of the absurd,' both of which informed his journalism. Kroft said Simon was 'both a model and an inspiration' to his colleagues at CBS News during 47 years at the network. 60 Minutes will devote its full hour next Sunday to Simon and his storied career. | CNN's Anderson Cooper, PBS' Charlie Rose, former NBC anchor Tom Brokaw and ex-NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly were in attendance .
The memorial service was only for Bob Simon's family and close friends .
Simon, 73, was killed in a car crash on West Side Highway Wednesday .
60 Minutes paid tribute to Simon Sunday by airing his final report, produced by his daughter, on Ebola . |
121,967 | 29abd472e6c028212be7c3c639e229605da21aab | WESTERN DESERT, Iraq (CNN) -- The hot wind swirls around the human bones and cracked skulls that litter the forsaken desert lands in Western Iraq. The entrance to the bunker complex where al Qaeda terrorized enemies in Iraq. We are standing in the middle of what was an al Qaeda execution site, just outside an intricate bunker complex that the organization used to torture and murder its victims, the bodies left to rot or be eaten by animals. From the back of the police truck the opening to the first bunker is barely discernible in the distance. "Al Qaeda came in as a massive force" one of the officers says as we bump along the harsh terrain. "They stole our cars, our personal cars. They kidnapped two of my brothers. They blew up the house over there." In the distance we can see his village -- a set of sand colored homes surrounded by parched farmlands. As we approach grubby children chase the truck and then stand to the side, despondent, as the officer points to their home. "Their father was killed by al Qaeda," he says. In 2007 the U.S. military launched a series of airstrikes that drove out al Qaeda. As we enter the first bunker Captain Khaled Bandar tells us they found the floor littered with bodies. A gaping hole is evidence of the U.S. firepower. Insurgents used the layered and intricate labyrinth of passageways and hatches to carry out summary trials and executions. The police show us clothing and shoes, saying they are leaving them in place in case the families of the victims decide to come back. The stench of decay still lingers. Al Qaeda has been on the defensive in recent years, notwithstanding spectacular attacks attributed to the group like last week's blasts in the capital, including suicide truck bomb attacks on the ministries of foreign affairs and finance. At least 100 people were killed and more than 500 wounded. But the concerted security campaign against the group has forced it to change its structure and strategy. According to one man who has close connections to al Qaeda in Iraq and asked not to be identified, the group lost support because it lost the protection of the people. "There is an old saying about the basics of war. Whoever wins the people wins the war. So when al Qaeda didn't win the people over, it lost its battles," he explains. "Al Qaeda's strategy of taking control of areas has been abandoned for now. Their method is propaganda, instilling fear, terrorizing." He adds that the group stopped recruiting over the last six months because of a shortage in funding and increased infiltration. "Al Qaeda is moving towards selecting the elite and condensing its forces rather than expanding. The Americans nearly defeated al Qaeda by cornering it and reducing its operations," he says. But those operations are still deadly, and the war is by no means over. "No, the war is not over in Iraq, a type of battle is over, but there are new battles cloaked in politics. Now politicians try to pay militias, al Qaeda, or armed factions ...in order to eliminate political foes," the man with knowledge of al Qaeda says. And al Qaeda is still able to send a message to those who dare oppose them. The police officers show us blood stains in the desert near the bunkers and tell us how they found two beheaded bodies just a month ago. They were identified as being the brothers of two police officers from another city, Ramadi. Meanwhile, al Qaeda's global war has sifted to a place it believes it can still win -- Afghanistan. "Al Qaeda in Afghanistan is made up of true believers, those who believe in jihad and fighting, and that's why they joined," the man with connections says. "As for most of al Qaeda in Iraq's members, they are just looking to benefit themselves, or they join out of resentment for a certain sect or to avenge their families." As for Iraq's longterm stability, that very much still hangs in the balance. He says: "Peace will not be achieved by a magic wand or the rhetoric of a politician. Peace will be accomplished through the will of the Iraqi youth. We have to wait for this generation to change ... so that a generation that hates (the violence) will emerge." Yousif Bassil and Jomana Karadsheh contributed to this report . | Abandoned al Qaeda in Iraq bunker base littered with bones of its enemies .
U.S. bombed bunkers in 2007 but stench of decay remains in desert base .
Source close to al Qaeda says it lost in Iraq as it lost support of the people .
He says al Qaeda's focus is now Afghanistan . |
158,216 | 5891c11f5c2532f06396073ac1b986319dd96f14 | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 19:27 EST, 15 September 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 19:32 EST, 15 September 2013 . A man searching for prehistoric fossils in a river has found an entirely different type of treasure. Dr Brian Tovin was swimming in South Carolina's Cooper River when he saw something shiny at the bottom. The water was so inky that a diving light provided only about 3 feet of visibility, The Post-Courier reports. Instead of a shark tooth, Tovin was surprised to find a large class ring from the College of Charleston. The ring was inscribed with the initials RLP and the year 1974. Dr Brian Tovin was swimming South Carolina's Cooper River, left, when he found the ring, right . Tovin hunted down the ring's original owner by first calling the college's alumni association, CNN reports. The college confirmed that only two people graduated in 1974 with the initials 1974, including one female student. Tovin determined he was looking for Robert LeVaughn Phillips. Phillips graduated from the College of Charleston with a degree in business administration. The ring was the last gift his mother gave him before she died from pancreatic cancer. Tovin searched on social media to find Robert's son, Eric Phillips, CNN reports. When he contacted the younger Phillips, Tovin quizzed him to confirm the ring owner's identity. Phillips submitted an emailed copy of his father's college diploma as proof. Tovin presented the ring to Phillips, who is now fighting cancer and recently underwent brain surgery. He presented Phillips with the ring in front of his family. Brian Tovin left, got on bended knee to present Robert Phillips, seated, with his lost ring . 'I was down there fighting strong currents and alligators trying to get you your ring back,' he said. Phillips lost the ring when it came loose when he got stuck on a pop top while opening a beer can, The Post-Courier reports. He had been boating on the Cooper River with his future wife Nancy. 'Thank you Lord that I got it back,' Phillips said to CNN. 'I had a nightmare the other night that I lost it again. 'No more beer cans.' Tovin, in blue, presents Phillips in pink, with the ring. Phillips lost the ring in 1974 after his finger got stuck on a beer can's pop top . | Phillips lost ring in 1974 ring after his finger got stuck opening a beer can .
Ring was last gift from his mother before she died .
Phillips is currently battling cancer .
Ring was found and returned by Brian Tovin . |
66,869 | bdad05d8490dbdf8446a50a9a253aa099a4360b5 | By . Mark Prigg . PUBLISHED: . 08:38 EST, 3 April 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 12:46 EST, 3 April 2013 . Astronomers have managed to study the death throes of a giant star in unprecedented detail. A team of astronomers led by the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR) have produced an astonishing image of their observation of Supernova 1987A. It shows radio emissions and a Hubble image of the supernova first spotted in 1987. The death of a star: Contours of different wavelengths of radio emissions and a Hubble space telescope image of Supernova 1987A combined to provide a unique view of its death throes . In February of 1987 astronomers . observing the Large Magellanic Cloud, a nearby dwarf galaxy, noticed the . sudden appearance of what looked like a new star. In fact they weren’t watching the . beginnings of a star but the end of one and the brightest supernova seen . from Earth in the four centuries since the telescope was invented. By the next morning news of the . discovery had spread across the globe and southern hemisphere stargazers . began watching the aftermath of this enormous stellar explosion, known . as a supernova. In the two and a half decades since . then, the remnant of Supernova 1987A has continued to be a focus for . researchers around the world, providing a wealth of information about . one of the Universe’s most extreme events. In research published in the Astrophysical Journal today, a team of astronomers in Australia and Hong Kong have succeeded in using the Australia Telescope Compact Array, CSIRO radio telescope in northern New South Wales, to make the highest resolution radio images of the expanding supernova remnant at millimetre wavelengths. 'Imaging distant astronomical objects like this at wavelengths less than 1 centimetre demands the most stable atmospheric conditions,' said lead author, Dr Giovanna Zanardo of . ICRAR, a joint venture of Curtin University and The University of . Western Australia in Perth. 'For this telescope these are usually only possible during cooler winter conditions but even then, the humidity and low elevation of the site makes things very challenging.' Unlike optical telescopes, a radio telescope can operate in the daytime and can peer through gas and dust allowing astronomers to see the inner workings of objects like supernova remnants, radio galaxies and black holes. 'Supernova remnants are like natural particle accelerators, the radio emission we observe comes from electrons spiralling along the magnetic field lines and emitting photons every time they turn. 'The higher the resolution of the images the more we can learn about the structure of this object,' said Professor Lister Staveley-Smith, Deputy Director of ICRAR and CAASTRO, the Centre for All-sky Astrophysics. Scientists study the evolution of supernovae into supernova remnants to gain an insight into the dynamics of these massive explosions and the interaction of the blast wave with the surrounding medium. 'Not only have we been able to analyse the morphology of Supernova 1987A through our high resolution imaging, we have compared it to X-ray and optical data in order to model its likely history,' said Professor Bryan Gaensler, Director of CAASTRO at the University of Sydney. Image of the remnants of 1987A as seen at optical wavelengths with the Hubble Space Telescope in 2011 . The team suspects a compact source or pulsar wind nebula to be sitting in the centre of the radio emission, implying that the supernova explosion did not make the star collapse into a black hole. They will now attempt to observe further into the core and see what’s there. The mysterious body first baffled researchers. In February of 1987 astronomers . observing the Large Magellanic Cloud, a nearby dwarf galaxy, noticed the . sudden appearance of what looked like a new star. A Radio image of the remnant of SN 1987A produced from observations performed with the Australia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA) In fact they weren’t watching the . beginnings of a star but the end of one and the brightest supernova seen . from Earth in the four centuries since the telescope was invented. By the next morning news of the . discovery had spread across the globe and southern hemisphere stargazers . began watching the aftermath of this enormous stellar explosion, known . as a supernova. In the two and a half decades since . then, the remnant of Supernova 1987A has continued to be a focus for . researchers around the world, providing a wealth of information about . one of the Universe’s most extreme events. A Red/Green/Blue overlay of optical, X-Ray and radio observations made by 3 different telescopes. In red are the 7-mm (44GHz) observations made with the Australian Compact Array in New South Wales, in green are the optical observations made by the Hubble Space Telescope, and in blue is an X-ray view of the remnant, observed by Nasa's space based Chandra X-ray Observatory. | Image shows radio emission and a Hubble space telescope image of Supernova 1987A in its death throes .
Team now hope to be able to look inside the core of the dying giant star . |
71,647 | cb0a0782789459e13734b2b9cb37aace9880f9de | BBC director general Tony Hall asked KPMG to look into historic golden goodbye deals, but his decision was questioned . The firm investigating the BBC severance deal scandal has spent thousands of pounds wining and dining some of the executives responsible for the most controversial payoffs, it has emerged. The corporation’s official auditor KPMG was asked by director general Tony Hall to look into historic golden goodbye deals following last month’s report by the National Audit Office, which found the BBC handed staff £369million over eight years. But his decision was questioned yesterday after it emerged the company lavished some of the key figures in the scandal with hospitality including concert tickets, champagne and meals at top restaurants. The BBC’s former chief financial officer Zarin Patel, who stepped down last month, accepted concert tickets on at least four occasions from KPMG. Along with human resources director Lucy Adams she also attended a dinner hosted by the firm at a top London restaurant. In 2011, Miss Patel attended a Coldplay concert at London’s O2 Arena as a guest of KPMG associate partner Karen Wightman. The same year, she was their guest at the Royal Opera House. Miss Patel and Miss Adams were jointly responsible for signing off all BBC severance payment deals over £500,000. Miss Adams personally approved some of the most controversial deals including a £1.02million payment to former deputy director general Mark Byford. The BBC's group finance director Beverley Tew has also enjoyed concerts at the firm's expense. She saw blind Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli in concert and in 2010 she saw Rod Stewart perform at the O2 Arena . Other executives to benefit from KPMG’s hospitality include Miss Adams’ deputy in the human resources department, Rachel Currie, who was taken to watch a tennis match by the firm. The BBC’s group finance director Beverley Tew has also enjoyed concerts at the firm’s expense. Last year, it took her to a . performance by blind Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli and in 2010 she saw . Rod Stewart perform at the O2 Arena. Tory MP Rob Wilson wrote to the head . of the National Audit Office this week asking whether KPMG ‘ought to . have picked up on and highlighted the widespread breach of policies in . the granting of severance payments and wider benefits by the BBC to . departing senior managers.’ He added: ‘I am concerned KPMG might not be a . suitable party to carry out such a review.’ A KPMG spokesman said: ‘An audit only . looks at whether payments have been accounted for and disclosed . appropriately in the financial statements, not whether there have been . any breaches of policy. Occasional proportionate hospitality is a normal . part of working life.’ A . BBC spokesman said: ‘The BBC has strict guidelines in relation to . accepting corporate hospitality and no guidelines have been broken. Neither Zarin Patel, Lucy Adams, Rachel Currie or Beverley Tew were . involved in appointing KPMG to undertake the review of severance . payments.’ THE BBC discriminates against Right-wing views by making its online readers aware of the ideological viewpoint of conservative think tanks but not of Left-wing ones, according to a study. The corporation is five times more likely to include a ‘health warning’ pointing to the party affiliation of Right-wing institutions than of those of the Left when quoting their research on its website, the Centre for Policy Studies found. Its journalists are also more likely to refer to Left-wing think tanks as being ‘independent’, implying they are more reliable. Economist Oliver Latham’s Bias At The Beeb report looked only at BBC online articles rather than its TV and radio broadcasts. He said the findings prove the BBC shows a ‘Left-of-centre slant’ in its reporting. A BBC spokesman said it provided ‘impartial and independent coverage’ to a quarter of a billion people across the world. He added: ‘The CPS claims to have found bias in the way we describe think tanks. We use descriptions to help our audiences understand more about each think tank and think carefully about the words used.’ | KPMG lavished some of the key figures in the scandal with hospitality including concert tickets .
Other treats included dinners at top restaurants, tickets to tennis matches and the Royal Opera House .
But the BBC says there are 'strict guidelines in relation to accepting corporate hospitality and no guidelines have been broken' |
120,566 | 27cf926de3761f800c31186a17f2d9e6a71cd203 | (CNN) -- In the fall of 2011, Jen Corn was the heaviest she had ever been. At 5 feet 6 inches, Corn weighed more than 300 pounds. Her mother and aunt had just offered to pay for her to have weight-loss surgery. But Corn knew the price tag was hefty: around $15,000. "I told them no," said Corn, then 39, recalling the exact moment. "I felt like I was not worth that." Her mom, Jean Corn, said the two older women knew something had to be done since diabetes runs in the family. "We were just desperate," Jean Corn said. "We (also) knew her heart wasn't going to be able to carry this weight forever." Corn's rejection of the offer devastated her family. But Corn had made up her mind to take matters into her own hands to lose the weight. "If I was going to do this, I (was) going to do it the right way. I (was) going to do it the healthy way, and I (was) not going to rely on somebody else," she said. In denial . Corn's weight problem had begun in high school in Woodstock, Georgia. She played sports, which helped her feel like she hid some of the weight, but she said she ate everything in sight. "There were a lot of self-esteem issues growing up, which of course only added fuel to the fire to make it worse," she said. She wouldn't address her weight with anybody. She got into fights with her mom about it; at one point, she told her mom never to mention it again. She avoided shopping, scales and mirrors. "As long as I didn't see it, it wasn't true," she said. In 2011, she realized she couldn't walk from her front door to her mailbox, a distance of 30 feet. "I'd get to the mailbox sounding like I smoked 12 packs a day," she said, recalling how she complained about pain in her knees, back and feet. "It was ridiculous." She thought about joining Weight Watchers again. In 2008, Corn had tried the program, an attempt that lasted six months. She had also failed at other diets -- Nutrisystem, the South Beach Diet and Sugar Busters among them. But this time, her resolve to get healthy was strong. 'A snowball effect' Corn joined Weight Watchers shortly after the talk with her mom and aunt. This time around, her mind-set was different. She had made a commitment to herself to go to the meetings, pay attention and adhere to the plan. She had heard the plan would work if she followed it precisely. Shortly after joining the program, Corn saw something at the doctor's office that would end up changing her life. She went to see the doctor about her foot hurting. A note written on her chart classified her as morbidly obese. Corn was not even sure what the term meant. "He told me it was because I was heavy and offered me tips on what to do for my foot but not about how to lose weight," she said. Corn persevered. She attended her weekly Saturday morning meetings without the dread she had in her 2008 attempt. Instead of focusing on her goal of losing 150 pounds, the Bradenton, Florida, resident attempted to achieve smaller goals like 5, 10 and 25 pounds. The first six months of her weight-loss journey, Corn focused strictly on her diet. After she had lost about 40 pounds, she started walking the neighborhood in addition to using her treadmill at home. "It was kind of like a snowball effect," she said. "I was losing more weight, which caused me to exercise more." Corn also slowly overhauled her diet. "Before I knew it, I was not eating as much food as I used to," she said. "It was a slow process, so my body had time to adjust to less food." Her daily diet before had been filled with fast food, fried chicken and little vegetables. Now it's all about high-protein and high-fiber foods, salads and healthy snacks. And, of course, lots of water throughout the day. "I do allow myself a piece of chocolate here and there, some ice cream here and there, as long as I pre-arrange for it in my mind," she said. "I would feel deprived if I couldn't have those, and then that's usually when I go completely off the rails." One step at a time . Corn hit her goal weight of 163 pounds in March. Now, almost three years after the start of her journey, Corn weighs 161 pounds. She struggles every day, keeping healthy snacks around her at all times. She blogged about her weight-loss journey, which she refers to as her "road trip." "To me, it's not about being skinny, it's about being healthy," she said. Corn has a message for others facing their own weight problems. "First, you don't have to have a movie-star budget to do this," she said. "It won't be easy, but it's your life you're dealing with, and there's nothing more precious on this earth than your own life." An avid power walker, Corn walks five miles a day. Her goal is to walk a half-marathon in Sarasota, Florida, in March. Her self-confidence has also increased as a result of the "new" her. "I'm still kind of shy, but I'm not afraid to walk up to somebody and talk to them, as opposed to standing back and waiting for them to come talk to me," she said. And her mother couldn't be prouder. "This was a person (who), if I would have paid her $1,000 to step on a treadmill, she wouldn't have done it," Jean Corn said. "This is a person (who) doesn't have a personal trainer, (who) doesn't have a chef, (who) doesn't have makeup artists. She is living proof that there is no gimmick, no magic pill; it's absolutely take one step at a time." | Jen Corn weighed more than 300 pounds in the fall of 2011 .
She started watching her diet and power walking to lose weight .
Since she started her "road trip," Corn has lost 150 pounds . |
153,101 | 51d91a8d462e8f66316490404724aa2a9b66a8b0 | By . Suzannah Hills . PUBLISHED: . 04:44 EST, 4 March 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 02:57 EST, 5 March 2013 . The toyboy lover of a married secretary jailed after conning her bosses out of hundreds of thousands of pounds has told how she showered him with designer clothes and promised him a Lamborghini for his 21st birthday. Helen Hart, 46, who swindled more than £300,000 from the firm in Cornwall to fund a lavish lifestyle of five star hotels and private jets, 'dazzled' student Adam Cope, then 20, with shopping sprees in Harrods and tickets to international rugby games. After spotting the sports student in a gym in Truro and contacting him on Facebook, the conwoman told Mr Cope she was the heir to a multi-million pound gangland fortune, and showed up to their first date driving a Porsche. 'Dazzled': Married Helen Hart, 46, left, lavished thousands on her then 20-year-old lover Adam Cope, right . 'I was just dazzled,' he told the Sun. 'It was private planes, posh hotels, mansions and shopping, like the £3,000 she spent on clothes for me in Harrods. 'Who at my age wouldn't hook up with a rich, gorgeous older woman?' Mr Cope said Hart bought him expensive gifts including a £1,400 Breitling watch, an iPad, an iMac computer and a £700 iguana skin belt, and that the couple spent the night together for the first time at London's opulent Dorchester Hotel. Hart, who earned a modest £20,000 a year in her role as company secretary at PDP Green Consulting Ltd in Truro, even whisked the student and his friends to see a rugby international in Cardiff on a private jet - all funded by her fraud. But Mr Cope grew suspicious when some of Hart's promised gifts - including a Lamborghini sports car - failed to materialise. He had begun to distance himself from his older lover when police arrested him in September 2011, before releasing him when they realised he too had been taken in by Hart's scam. Mr Cope returned the gifts to police and jetted to Australia to work in a copper mine, and has said he now wants to forget about his 'fantasist' ex. Guilty: Helen Hart, pictured left, admitted used money from the company owned by Philip Desmonde, pictured right with his wife Susanne, to pay her rent, water and Marks & Spencer shopping bills, as well as £2,000 on a kitchen and £5,000 on 48 bottles of wine . Offices: The money was taken from PDP Green Consulting (pictured), an architecture and civil engineering firm run based in Truro, Cornwall, where Hart worked as company secretary, the court heard . Victims: PDP Green Consulting Ltd boss Philip Desmonde, who ran the company Helen Hart stole from, and his wife Susanne arrive at the Truro Crown Court to see her sentenced . The missing money was first discovered when . the accounts of Cornish engineering firm PDP Green Consulting were wiped out - leaving . it facing an unpaid £271,000 tax bill in May 2011. Hart was accused of stealing more than £380,000 from the firm between October 2005 and May 2011, but she disputed the amount of money stolen - claiming she had merely embezzled £190,000. But a court heard on Friday that there was a financial loss to the firm of £325,000 through Hart's fraud, deception and theft. The 46-year-old forged official court documents, solicitors' letters and the signature of the firm's company director Philip Desmonde in an effort to secure finance and back up claims of her wealth. The secretary ran up astonishing bills . including £5,990 for a return trip to Paris, £7,816 on a hotel stay in . Devon, and £4,752 on tickets and hospitality for a Premier League . football match. She also spent £31,368 on renovation work at her home. She was sentenced to four years in prison on Friday after previously admitting 25 separate charges spanning the period between October 2005 and May 2012. Passing sentence, Judge . John Neligan told Hart: 'These . frauds - that is what they are - were committed over six and a half . years, while you were an employee in a senior and trusted position. 'You used the company money to fund a . lavish lifestyle, you used the company money to fund expensive luxurious . cars, in all about £65,000 one way or another was spent on cars.' Hart admitted using the company’s . cash to pay her rent and water bills, as well as spending £2,000 on a . kitchen, £4,985 on 48 bottles of wine and an undisclosed sum on shopping . at Marks and Spencer. She also confessed to spending the firm’s money on luxury cars including a Porsche Boxster and a Range Rover. Hart spent another £46,500 on a Mercedes, using money kept in her Coutts bank account. Luxurious location: Hart spent £7,800 on staying at the posh Bovey Castle hotel in Dartmoor, Devon . PDP Green Consulting Ltd boss Mr Desmonde and his family have claimed Hart spent much of the money trying to look and dress like his wife Susanne 'to push her out of his life'. Hart is accused of visiting the same hair salon, wearing the same clothes and even hiring the same fitness instructor as Susanne - echoing the plot of the 1992 movie Single White Female. She told her boss she inherited the fortune from a gangland uncle who was pals with the Kray Twins. At an earlier hearing Hart, of Illogan, Cornwall, admitted siphoning off cash to pay her £600-a-month rent and bills for four years. Jailed: Hart, 46, was sentenced to four years in jail for the scam . In March 2007 she ran up a hotel bill of £8,000 at Bovey Castle, a luxury hotel and golf course in Dartmoor National Park where rooms cost up to £689 a night. Roger Green, managing director of PDP Green, has said the firm was left disappointed by Hart's sentence. He said at the time: 'We are of course very pleased with the outcome of this case, although we feel the severity of Mrs Hart's crimes warranted a longer sentence. 'She has defrauded the company over a long period of time, abusing the trust placed in her by the directors of the company and her work colleagues and has shown no remorse for her actions.' Another victim was the charity Ella's Memory - founded by Martyn and Emmillie Selley in honour of their second child, who was stillborn in December 2009. Married Hart offered the charity £10,000 in November 2010, claiming to have had a child who suffered a cot death, but the cheque bounced. She also promised to sponsor Truro Rugby Club after meeting one of its players, claiming she was a multi-millionairess with £10 million inheritance to spend. Detective Constable Nick Stidwill said: 'She drove luxury cars and dressed well giving the appearance of having money, all based on a fantasy that she had inherited enormous wealth. But the reality was PDP Green was funding it.' Trips: Hart spent money on a private jet to Paris (left) and on shopping at Marks & Spencer (right) (file pictures) | Secretary Helen Hart, 46, swindled bosses out of hundreds of thousands .
Splashed out on five star hotels and designer watches for toyboy lover .
Told student Adam Cope she was heir to a gangland fortune .
Says he was 'dazzled' by lavish lifestyle of older woman .
Unwitting student was arrested by investigators but released shortly after . |
137,015 | 3d3decef2aa8cd27e1dad2ee33de5b4ea262fd3d | Manchester City are confident of agreeing a new contract with James Milner despite interest from Liverpool. The England midfielder has become an important member of the City squad and has even been deployed in a central striker role recently due to the injuries suffered by Sergio Aguero, Edin Dzeko and Stevan Jovetic. And it appears the 29-year-old will remain at the Etihad beyond their 2014-15 campaign. James Milner (centre) has attracted interest from Liverpool and has yet to sign a new deal . But City remain confident that Milner, pictured scoring against Sheffield Wednesday, will sign a new deal . Milner has not rushed signing a new deal as he looks for reassurances over the amount of first-team football he will play under Manuel Pellegrini. The delay in signing a new deal has given Brendan Rodgers hope that Milner could be tempted to move to Anfield. The 53-cap midfielder has played 170 times for City since moving to the club in 2010, contributing 13 goals. Milner runs over to the Manchester City fans and jumps into the air after scoring against Wednesday . | Liverpool have shown an interest in England midfielder James Milner .
But Manchester City are confident Milner will sign a new deal at Etihad .
The 29-year-old has made 170 appearances for City since signing in 2010 . |
17,468 | 316f09a70f91a845a5fb0f21fceadd5c6c89ff3c | (CNN) -- All the tech world's eyes will be on Apple Monday, when the computing giant's 24th annual Worldwide Developers Conference kicks off in San Francisco. As its name suggests, the weeklong gathering lets Apple host presentations and workshops for the people who make a living writing the apps and other software that run on its products. But its opening keynote almost always makes news. The conference has been the launching pad for two phones (the iPhone 3GS in 2009 and the iPhone 4 in 2010) and several new, or updated, Macs. This year, the former seems highly unlikely. The latter? Maybe not so much. Fans are clamoring for some excitement, because Apple hasn't introduced a major new product since the iPad Mini last October. And with growing competition from such rivals as Amazon and Samsung, there's always the chance that the secretive folks from Cupertino are cooking up something big. So here's a look at what to expect from WWDC 2013. Apple's keynote begins Monday at 1 p.m. ET. A new iOS . The safest bet for WWDC is that Apple will introduce iOS 7 to the world. For the first time, Apple vice president Jonny Ive is responsible for the update, and reports have suggested the mobile operating system will be "black, white and flat all over." Unnamed Apple sources have popped up on the Web, saying that much of the color, gloss and shine will be removed from the look of iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch screens in favor of a simpler black-and-white theme. Style aside, there will almost certainly be a host of new features to announce as well. Reports have centered on improved in-car support for Maps and Siri, along with new integration for third-party (and non-Google-owned) apps like video site Vimeo and photo site Flickr. The update also could bring Airdrop, which allows easy Wi-Fi sharing between Apple devices, to mobile. New MacBooks . The MacBook and MacBook Air laptops are both due to be updated, according to Apple's once-a-year pattern. And the timing is right: Intel just announced a more powerful processing chip. It will be a challenge for Apple to shrink the already ultra-slim MacBook Air much further. But if the rumors are true, the beefier MacBook Pro may give way to a new, sleeker version of itself. Apple also could introduce a refreshed Mac Pro desktop tower for those deep-pocketed office managers who prefer to order the freshest machines. A streaming-music service? It seems like only a matter of time before Apple leaps into the increasingly crowded streaming-music market led by Pandora, Spotify and others. Apple's been making deals with record labels such as Universal Music and Warner Music Group, which would allow them to stream songs to users as part of a free or paid-subscription service. Observers expect such a platform, possibly called iRadio, would exist apart from iTunes, Apple's digital-media service, and focus on mobile devices. Longshots . Sure, there are realistic expectations. Then there are the really fun ones. Hope springs eternal in the fanboy's breast, so we won't be the ones to shoot down hopes for a big, "one more thing" surprise. And, hey -- CEO Tim Cook has already teased "exciting new product categories" this year. According to observers, an Apple TV set has been on the verge of being released for years now. (Experts are just sure the company is going to roll out a TV set. Eventually.) A little over a year ago, there was a bizarrely specific Best Buy survey asking loyal customers about the "concept" of an Apple TV. It seems like too much of a real thing to never happen. But will it happen next week? Not likely. Joining the mythical "iTV" is an Apple watch -- another product everybody is sure is coming, despite Apple having said no such thing. Wearable tech is becoming a huge field and Apple would surely like to cool off some of the heat generated lately by Google Glass. A watch feels slightly more likely than a TV, but not by much. This fall, just in time for holiday shopping, seems a more likely release date for one or both. And, quite possibly, for a new iPhone. There have been some rumblings about a possible new iPad. It has been a little more than seven months since the iPad Mini was unveiled, though, and only four months since Apple offered a 128GB version of its bigger counterpart. So a new model would be a surprise. What do you want to see from Apple? Let us know in the comments. | Apple's annual Worldwide Developers Conference kicks off Monday .
Observers expect a new mobile operating system and refreshed MacBooks .
A rumored smart watch and a possible Apple TV set remain longshots for now .
Apple's keynote begins Monday at 1 p.m. ET in San Francisco . |
100,544 | 0d854a03cbd78281034e1434746183fb6b0392a7 | By . Joshua Gardner . PUBLISHED: . 23:42 EST, 20 October 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 01:03 EST, 21 October 2013 . A man was shot to death in front of his 15-year-old son in Los Angeles Saturday after they responded to a Craigslist for a cell phone. Police say Rene Balbuena was killed by three shots to the torso and his son was grazed by one of the bullets. Two men are accused in the crime, news of which came just hours after LAPD boasted of the city's 10-day murder-free streak. Murdered: Rene Balbuena was shot repeatedly in the torso by men two men in an apparent robbery attempt Saturday as his 15-year-old son watched in horror . The stretch was the longest in three years that LA has gone without such a crime. 'Homicides do happen,' LAPD spokesman Cleon Joseph said. 'We’re happy we had a streak of this nature.' Los Angeles police Sergeant Rudy Alaniz told NBC4 that the two men approached Balbuena and his son in their Mercedes SUV as they waited to buy a phone. The men then opened fire in what police say was an apparent robbery attempt. 'He's in a good place with God right now,' the husband and father of two's sobbing sister Ana Guerrero told reporters what a good person her brother was . Neighbors reported hearing hearing the gunshots and then the screams of Balbuena's son. Balbuena, a married father of two, was pronounced dead at a hospital where his son was treated for a graze wound. The suspects remain at large. Police had no description of the men or their getaway vehicle, reports KABC. 'He was a good person, really, really good person, and I know he's in a good place with God right now,' the victim's sister Ana Guerrero told reporters. 'But it's hurting. It hurts a lot.' The last murder in Los Angeles occurred on October 8, when a 27-year-old man was shot to death at a stoplight after he dropped his mother off at a bus stop. Despite the most recent killing and the end to the streak, LAPD says says homicides are down 9 percent this year. The apparently random murder occurred as Balbuena and his son were answering a Craiglist ad. It also ended a 10-day streak with no homicides in the LA city limits . | News of the South Los Angeles murder came just hours after LAPD boast of longest homicide-free stretch in three years . |
204,504 | 94c1dabb615d317cf387ed4e86a7b6906862da5b | By . Ellie Zolfagharifard . You might be fooled by tricks of the eye, but how about tricks of the ear? While it’s easy to mishear sounds when first heard, these auditory illusions are persistently misleading. For instance, the Shepard tone, also known as a ‘sonic barber's pole', seems to continually rise or fall in pitch. Scroll down for more audio clips... AUDIO: The Shephard Tone . It the audio version of the Penrose stairs optical illusion which depicts a ‘continuous staircase’ in which the stairs make four 90-degree turns as they ascend or descend. The sound of the Shepard tone is, in reality, a cycling between a limited set of tones, each separated by an octave, according to The Atlantic. Each tone in the scale is made up of several notes played simultaneously, and at each moment different notes in the tone are played at different volumes. The Shephard Tone is the audio version of the Penrose stairs illusion which depicts a continuous staircase . The trick involves not only which tones are played, but also the volume of the individual notes in the tones. Changes in volume cause the listener to focus on certain notes while ignoring the others. The illusion works because each tone seems to sounds lower than the preceding. The listener judges subtle changes in tone by comparing it to the preceding note, not to tones from twenty or thirty seconds ago. A similar audio illusion, featured on Meara O’Reilly’s Tumblr and discovered by Diana Deutsch, reveals how the human brain tends to automatically group similar notes together. AUDIO: The scale illusion . Scale Illusion from Meara O'Reilly on Vimeo. The Shepard tone seems to continually rise or fall in pitch. The sound of the Shepard tone is, in reality, a cycling between a limited set of tones, each separated by an octave. The trick involves not only which tones are played, but also the volume of the individual notes in the tones. Changes in volume cause the listener to focus on certain notes while ignoring the others. The illusion works because each tone seems to sounds lower than the preceding. The listener judges subtle changes in tone by comparing it to the preceding note, not to tones from twenty or thirty seconds ago. This audio must be listened through stereo headphones, or stereo separated loudspeakers. In the illusion two major scales are played with one ascending and the other descending. On its own, neither melody gives the impression of an ascending or descending pattern. But when the two melodies are played together most people hear this combination as being two scales that either ascend or descend in unison together. This is because the brain reassigns some of the notes to a different ear in order to make a coherent melody. People perceive these sounds differently, but the most commonly they group the high and low notes together. Right-handed people tend to hear the high melody in the right ear, and the low one in the left, while left-handers have a varied response. AUDIO: The Wessel illusion . The Wessel Illusion from Meara O'Reilly on Vimeo. In Meara O’Reilly’s blog, a number of other audio illusion are highlighted including The Wessel illusion. This demonstrates how tone can determine the way in which we perceptually group notes in a melody. Three notes, alternating in tone, are played slowly and most people hear a sequence that is rising in pitch. When this sequence is repeated faster, it’s no longer possible to hear the trajectory of the melody change. 'At a certain point we are forced to perceptually cut our losses—we begin to group the notes solely based on their timbre,' said Ms O'Reily. The Wessel illusion was discovered by David Wessel of U.C. Berkeley’s Centre for New Music and Audio Technologies. | Illusions include the Shepard tone, also known as a ‘sonic barber's pole'
It sounds like a scale that seems to be rising or falling forever with no end .
In reality it's cycling between a limited set of tones, separated by an octave .
In another illusion, two major melodies are played one after the other .
When played together, the scales either ascend or descend, but on their own, neither melody gives this impression . |
69,276 | c46fe577eaf905f6c7448a928ca82df17e06b7c9 | By . Becky Evans . PUBLISHED: . 06:04 EST, 20 December 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 05:52 EST, 21 December 2012 . Christmas letters from German Second World War soldiers have finally been delivered 71 years after they were stolen during the occupation of Jersey. The 86 cards and letters, written by Nazi soldiers to their loved ones back home, were discovered five years ago hidden in the back of a piano. After months of painstaking research the greetings, dated December 16 and 17, 1941, have finally been handed to their intended recipients. Emotional: Michael McNally, from Jersey Post, and Klaus Kaiser from Deutsche Post deliver a 71-year-old letter to farmer Engelbert Bergmann . It took months of research to find relatives such as Engelbert Bergmann, left . Engelbert Bergmann said it was 'very important' for such letters to be delivered for the families of the soldiers . Moving: One of the lost Christmas cards . Stolen: The cards lay hidden inside a piano after they were stolen by a group of teenagers during the occupation of Jersey . Michael McNally, head of international development at Jersey Post, which worked with their German counterparts on the project, said delivering the Christmas gift as ‘a really emotional experience for all’. Ten of the ninety letters were delivered on Tuesday - the date they would originally have been received. One letter said: ‘I wish you a merry Christmas and all the best for the New Year. ‘But what I hope most is that the war will come to an end soon, so that we can all enjoy life again.’ Farmer Engelbert Bergmann, 55, of Frankfurt, received a letter written by soldier Emil Adam, a neighbour of his grandfather. He . said: ‘I feel it is very important to have the other letters delivered . in these cases where family or sons and daughters are still around.’ Michael McNally of Jersey Post said being able to deliver ten of the lost letters was 'beyond our hopes' Another from Lance-Corporal Lothar Wilhelm's fiancee Kaete Schwartz read: 'Christmas won't be so happy for me this yer, because I'm only happy when I'm with you. God grant that we can spend next year's Christmas together again', according to The Times. They were delivered to her grandchildren. The bag of letters were stolen by a group of teenage boys from a German Army post office in St Helier in 1941 - 18 months after the invasion of the Channel Island. It was one of a number of small acts of resistance carried out by islanders. But even that small act could have resulted in deportation or even death. They remained hidden in the piano until 2007 when they were handed to the Jersey Archive by an anonymous man. Although the teenagers survived the war they vowed to never speak of the theft again. Jersey Post spokesman told The Times a 16-year-old friend had been asked to hold onto the letters and still feels 'very strongly' that it will be wrong to talk about it now. Handwriting experts, the German military and the German Red Cross were all consulted by Jersey Post and Deutsche Post during their research. One of the festive cards that never made it back to Germany . This envelope features a Nazi stamp . Ten of the 86 lost cards and letters have already been delivered . German soldiers stationed in Jersey during the occupation . Felix Blaich, from Deutsche Post, said finding the recipients was difficult because many had moved or were no longer alive, some were addressed to PO Box numbers which no longer existed and others were marked for places which were not part of modern Germany. He said: ‘We had to translate the old street names into the 2012 addresses. ‘Then we found out that not many of the addresses had people living with the same name any more so we used our address expertise, our databases, our military mail experts as well as registry offices.’ Mr McNally said: ‘When we were first asked to help we thought it would be an impossible task. So much time has passed and Germany has changed considerably, both geographically and demographically. ‘When we started out on this journey we thought it would be fantastic if we could find members of just one of the families involved to find ten is beyond our hopes. 'That’s the power of receiving something hand-written from someone close to you.' At the time of the theft, islanders were beginning to be prosecuted for small acts of resistance and insulting the authorities. The Channel Islands surrendered to Nazi forces in 1940 without a fight as Winston Churchill deemed them indefensible. In Guernsey children of school age were evacuated and most of Aldernay's residents chose to leave. In Sark islanders were encouraged to stay. In Jersey most islanders stayed, either through choice or because they could not get out. Shortly before the invasion, 23,000 people queued in St Helier for days to register for the few boats travelling to the mainland. Only about 7,000 managed to flee before the German invasion. The Channel Islands, including Herm, became heavily militarised as Adolf Hitler saw them as a strategic point from which to launch an invasion of France. During the occupation, the courts and the government were taken over and a register of the island's Jews was created. A curfew was also imposed on the islanders and people aged 14 or over had to carry identification cards. Radios were confiscated but many had been hidden to allow residents to listen to the BBC. Towards the end of the occupation, islanders were faced with starvation when routes to the islands were cut off following the D-Day landings. It was only averted when the Red Cross was permitted to drop off drastically needed food and supplies. The islands were liberated on May 9, 1945. | Teenagers took the bag of Christmas greetings as act of resistance in 1941 .
Lay hidden in a Jersey piano for 66 years before being given to archivists .
Jersey Post and Deutsche Post have now delivered ten of the 86 letters . |
8,601 | 183e8948ce8aa5a202810129b750c96d1acc6889 | Venus Williams continued her encouraging form with a 6-1 6-4 victory over Swiss Timea Bacsinszky. The elder Williams sister has enjoyed her best season for some time, reaching the final in Montreal earlier this month, and next meets Sara Errani, who she has never lost to. It is the first time Williams has made it through to the third round since 2010, when she went on to reach the semi-finals. Through: Venus Williams continued her encouraging form with a 6-1 6-4 victory over Swiss Timea Bacsinszky . Boost: It is the first time Williams (left) has made it through to the third round since 2010 . The 34-year-old said: 'The last couple of years I fought really hard and I really played red-hot opponents. So it wasn't like I didn't try. 'Sometimes you don't win them. That's why you get up and you live to fight another day. So that's really what it's about for me. 'I'm happy I won a match again. Finally I did something I couldn't do the last couple of years. That's good stuff.' Powerful: Williams has faced some 'red-hot' opponents in the opening rounds in the last few years . VIDEO US Open: Day three review . | The American beat Timea Bacsinszky 6-1 6-4 at Flushing Meadows .
Venus Williams is enjoying her best season for some time .
The 34-year-old reaches the third round for the first time since 2010 . |
137,151 | 3d6b44725479158f1abff346d4edb55b5fe57147 | (CNN)Football has faced plenty of problems over racist and homophobic chanting and now a British broadcaster wants action taken after fans allegedly sang songs which mocked people with disabilities. Kevin Kilbane, a former Republic of Ireland international who played with Everton in the English Premier League, reported West Ham supporters to the English Football Association for derogatory chants against Tottenham's Harry Kane during Sunday's game. The former winger, who now works for the BBC, was not at the game but was shocked to hear "mong" chants had been sung at the game. Kilbane was told about the chants by Andy Merriman -- a Tottenham season-ticket holder whose daughter lives with Down's syndrome. Kilbane's daughter Elsie has the same condition and he is a patron of the Down's Syndrome Association. "The club emailed every supporter who had bought a ticket to Sunday's game to remind them that they were acting as ambassadors for West Ham United" a West Ham spokesman said Monday. "If any individual is found to have behaved in an inappropriate way, the Club's simple, zero-tolerance policy dictates that they will face the strongest possible action, including the option of a life ban from the Boleyn Ground. "If anyone has any information on such behavior we would urge them to report it to the Club, Kick It Out or the police so it can be investigated thoroughly." Tottenham were not immediately available for comment when contacted by CNN. "I am sure they understand they are causing offence," Kilbane told the Guardian. "You cannot sweep it under the carpet and label it as ignorance. It is visible and clear and, like racist or homophobic chanting, it is intended to cause offence." The FA confirmed to CNN that Kilbane, among others, had reported the incident and has promised a thorough investigation into the allegations. "I want to be able to take my kids to football matches and when Elsie gets older she will understand about her condition and I would not want her to hear that kind of chanting," said Kilbane. "If her sister Isla heard it, she would be devastated too, as my friend's sons were" said Kilbane. In another incident on Sunday a group of men -- thought to be West Ham fans -- were filmed chanting anti-Semitic abuse on a train in North London. Both episodes follow the racism storm that engulfed Chelsea after its fans pushed a black man out of a Paris Metro carriage last week. | Footballer turned TV presenter Kevin Kilbane reported West Ham fans' disablist chants to the FA .
The chant allegedly focused on Tottenham Hotspur's Harry Kane and mocked people with disabilities .
Kilbane, who has a daughter with Down's syndrome, said his children would be devastated if they heard it . |
254,752 | d5c3bc68b5ae35b09837028aa83d6a9e3ef72b19 | By . Snejana Farberov . PUBLISHED: . 08:29 EST, 30 January 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 10:47 EST, 30 January 2013 . The six-month-old baby boy at the centre of a tug-of-love custody battle between a wealthy Pfizer executive and the family of his dead girlfriend will languish in foster care until it is resolved. Jonathan Sporn's girlfriend Leann Leutner - who was raising son Lincoln together with her 54-year-old partner in New York - committed suicide on New Year's Day, and her son was taken into care because Mr Sporn is not his biological father. Mr Sporn, a high-ranking executive with the pharmaceutical giant, yesterday faced his late girlfriend's sister at the Manhattan Supreme Court, where a judge said baby Lincoln would remain in foster care pending the outcome of the case. Tragic: Jonathan Sporn is fighting for custody of his late girlfriend Leann Leutner's six-month-old baby boy . Custody fight: Pfizer executive Jonathan Sporn, left, has filed a petition to get the baby back after the 40-year-old lawyer, right, took her own life on New Year's Day . His girlfriend's sister Susan Sylvester, 36, of Illinois, is fighting Mr Sporn for custody of the baby. Ms Leutner, a 40-year-old corporate lawyer, gave birth to Lincoln after undergoing IVF using an anonymous sperm donor. She and Mr Sporn had been raising the baby at Sporn's apartment in Manhattan until her death. Judge Laura Drager said at the start of yesterday's hearing: 'I believe it would be in the best interest of the child to have this matter resolved as soon as possible', but she added that the baby would remain in the care of social services until the dispute is resolved. 'I am begging this court to assist me in piecing together the shattered pieces of my heart,' Mr Sporn said in his petition for custody, according to a report in the New York Post. The newspaper quoted a long-time friend of Ms Leutner as saying she had been estranged from her family. Troubled: Leutner, a high-powered Manhattan corporate lawyer, had a history of mental illness and suffered from post-partum depression after giving birth to her son . Loving dad: Sporn said he was raising baby Lincoln as his own, even though the child was not biologically his because his girlfriend had been forced to use a sperm donor . Home: Leutner, Sporn and their baby lived in the Pfizer director's apartment on the Upper West Side for two years . Sporn said in the petition cited by DNAInfo.com that words cannot describe the joy he felt when little baby Lincoln was born last July. The 54-year-old man and his . 40-year-old girlfriend, a Manhattan corporate lawyer, could not . naturally conceive a baby, so Leutner had to undergo in-vitro . fertilization using an anonymous sperm donor. The couple and their new baby lived in Sporn's apartment on Riverside Drive in Manhattan for two years, but they never wed. The . family idyll came to a tragic end on New Year's Day when the . 40-year-old mother took her own life by jumping out the window of her . New Jersey apartment. Since . then, the New Jersey Department of Child Protection took the infant . away. In a desperate bid to get Lincoln back, Sporn submitted a . heart-rending petition to the Manhattan Supreme Court on Tuesday asking . the state to award him custody of the boy whom he considers his son. 'I . cannot change history, (the mother) is gone and while that in . unbearable in and of itself, the fact that my son is being cared for by . strangers and away from me, his dad, is equally unendurable,' Sporn . wrote. Sporn, a director of clinical . research for Pfizer with a six-figure salary, met Leutner, a brilliant but emotionally troubled . Yale Law School graduate, in 2010. The couple, both divorced, began . dating and soon became inseparable, spending every weekend together and . traveling around the country. According . to Sporn's petition, he and Leutner were very close and even made up . pet names for one another. She called him 'boysee,' while he nicknamed . her 'dollzy.' Caregiver: Leutner, left, was committed twice after making attempts on her life, during which time Sporn, right, was left to care for their son on his own . By December 2010, Leutner, a . high-powered attorney at the renowned Manhattan law firm Simpson, . Thatcher and Bartlett LLP, moved into Sporn's apartment on the Upper . West Side. 'As our love for one another deepened, . it was obvious that I wanted to spend eternity with Leann, to have a . family with her,' Sporn said in his petition. But . the couple soon discovered that they could not naturally conceive a . child. Determined to have a family, Leutner went to an IVF clinic at New . York University and began a grueling regimen of hormone injections and . other treatments. After . several failed attempts to have embryos implanted in her womb, Leutner . considered getting an egg donor, but Sporn urged her to keep trying . because he wanted her to have a baby that was biologically hers. The couple eventually decided to get a sperm donor, and Leutner finally became pregnant. When . baby Lincoln was born in July, the couple were elated, and Sporn . settled into the role of a caring father, reading to the infant, . changing his diapers and playing make-believe with him. But . Leutner had a tough time getting over her post-partum depression. The . woman had a history of mental illness, and during pregnancy she stopped . taking the anti-depressant Prozac, according to court documents. Around Thanksgiving, Leutner's emotional state took a turn for the worse, and she attempted to take her life but jumping out the window. Sporn and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, who was a close friend, admitted the mother at New York-Presbyterian Hospital. With Leutner temporarily out of the picture, Sporn said he became a hands-on dad, 'falling deeper and deeper in love with this child,' he wrote. 'I looked forward to his cries in the night just to have another opportunity to hold this child in my arms and soothe him back to sleep.' After 10 days in the hospital, Leutner was released home, but a few days later she made another attempt on her life by trying to jump down the shaft of a stairwell. She was committed again, but was determined to leave the hospital, which she ended up doing on December 17 with the help of a friend. The 40-year-old woman and her son went to New Jersey, where she rented an apartment of her own. Two days after settling in the new place, Leutner plummeted to her death from the 14th floor of her building. Sporn said he only learned of the tragedy from New Jersey caseworkers who informed him that the baby was in the custody of the state. According to the petition, before her death Leutner had executed a formal document naming Sporn as Lincoln's guardian, and she was in the process of changing his last name to Leutner-Sporn. | Pfizer exec Jonathan Sporn's girlfriend committed suicide on New Year's Day .
He is now fighting for custody of her six-month-old son, Lincoln .
The baby was taken into care as Mr Sporn is not his biological father .
Relatives of mother Leann Leutner claim they should raise her child . |
148,327 | 4bc97e74a7a11cf35925f4f9504ca28dc26201c2 | By . Sarah Fitzmaurice . PUBLISHED: . 17:05 EST, 26 November 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 07:27 EST, 27 November 2012 . She managed to break a jungle record by attempting five Bushtucker trials and failing to win a single meal and even revealed she couldn't even dry her own hair. But sadly for Helen Flanagan fans her stint in the jungle has come to an end after the 22-year-old actress was voted out by the public on Monday evening. After climbing out of camp Ant and Dec told Helen, who was famous for playing 'dozy' Rosie in Coronation Street: 'You've frustrated us, but we've loved you'. Scroll down for video . She's out: Helen Flanagan has left the jungle after being voted out of I'm A Celebrity . She's out of there! Helen Flanagan poses up as she leaves the jungle . After apologising for just waking up, . the former Coronation Street star said she would miss camp because . she's become so close to everyone. She also asked if she could have a pillow because she was going to 'cringe' when looking back at her best bits. When the presenters spoke to Helen about her tough time in the camp she admitted she had underestimated just how tough it would be. Bubbles in hand: Helen seemed relieved to be out of the jungle and carried her glass of champagne out of camp with her . Emotional moment: Helen was greeted by her mother Julia and the reunion proved a little too much for the actress . Overcome with emotion! Helen cries as she is met by her mother Julie . Walk to luxury: Helen heads over the bridge to see her family . She explained that her fear of heights, which was tested upon arrival with a bridge task, left her lacking confidence. Helen did say that she was proud of herself for managing to get some stars during her stint in the jungle. When . Ant and Dec told her she had set a new record after failing to get any . stars after being nominated for five trials, Helen exclaimed: 'This is . so humiliating.' Can I have a pillow: Helen asked Ant and Dec for something to hide behind because she was embarrassed about seeing her best bits . CRINGE! Helen asked for a pillow as she was forced to watch her best and worse bits . Hiding behind her hands: The former Coronation Street star was seen covering her face as footage of her time in camp was played . Say your goodbyes! Helen leaves camp . Helen backed David Haye saying she would 'love' to see him win the show. Helen made her way across the exit bridge with a glass of champagne in hand to be greeted by her mother Julia. The reunion proved a little bit too much for Helen who seemed a little overcome by it all. And it appears that Helen Flanagan's . chest has a strange power after the soap star revealed she goes up a cup . size every time she eats. On . Monday night's episode of I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here the WAG . was parading her big bust around the jungle in a leopard print bra, . when she explained her special talent. Magic boobs: Helen Flanagan told her camp mates that her breasts grow every time she eats . She told Ashley Roberts and . Hugo Taylor: 'Seriously, I go up a cup size when I eat after dinner and . then it goes down again later.' The former Pussycat Doll replied: 'I wish I did that - I would eat all the time! I would be snacking all day.' The conversation had turned to Helen's breasts after she tried to wear a big leopard print bra instead of a bikini. Hands on: The former Coronation Street star's chest looked huge in the leopard print bra and Ashley couldn't resist having a feel . Can I get away with this? Helen asked her camp mates if the bra could pass for swimwear . The lingerie item boasted large cups which made Helen's cleavage look even bigger than normal. Helen asked Charlie Brooks if she could get away with wearing her underwear instead of swimwear. She said: 'Does this look like a bikini top? Do you think I can get away with it?' Not convinced: Charlie Brooks suggested that maybe Helen could pull the look off but later admitted she was jealous of Helen's curves . You look silly: Hugo Taylor broke the news to Helen that she looked a little ridiculous in her bra . Charlie replied: 'Erm, well I suppose it does.' The . EastEnders star was clearly a little envious of Helen's well-endowed . shape and told viewers: 'The bra seems to have elevated and enhanced her . breasts by about four sizes. I mean, bitch! I am just jealous.' Hugo Taylor couldn't help but notice Helen's outfit and asked her whose bra she was wearing. He told her: 'It's huge. He added: 'I think the leopard print bra is a little too much it's a little OTT for me.' Jungle necessity: Helen was seen teaming the leopard print bra with bright red lips . Wild thing: Helene was seen pulling her hair band out as she paraded her shape around camp . Ashley was also shocked by the . appearance of Helen's chest and she told her: 'Your t**s look freaking . gi-normous. They look huge, I mean, wow.' The American singer couldn't keep her hands off Helen's chest and helped herself to a feel. Hugo decided to tell Helen she looked ridiculous and said: 'It looks a bit silly if you want my honest opinion.' 'If you like big bazonkas in your face then they are pretty hard to miss.' After capturing her reflection in the Bushtucker Telegraph Helen decided she couldn't really get away with the outfit. She . said: 'Oh they do look a bit big to be honest, I didn't actually . realise, Oh dear, maybe I think I will change - they do look a bit . ridiculous. | Actress Helen Flanagan was evicted on Monday evening .
Despite being scheduled to appear on ITV shows Daybreak and Lorraine the 22-year-old was noticeably absent on Tuesday .
She was replaced with past I'm A Celebrity contestants . |
172,848 | 6bb4e32a6a5ca34e29010291fd99f9d63365a578 | (CNN) -- The president of the Russian republic of Tatarstan declared Monday a day of mourning as crews continued to look for bodies in the wreckage of a Russian jetliner that crashed on landing a day earlier. All 50 people on board, including the son of Tatarstan regional President Rustam Minnikhanov, died in the crash in Tatarstan's capital, Kazan. Closed-circuit video, aired on Russian media outlets, shows the plane vertical to the ground as it crashes in the darkness, creating a large fireball and a wide fire on the ground. The victims ranged in age from 13 to 87, according to a list of names the airline posted on its website. Among them was Lt. Gen. Alexander Antonov, the regional chief of Russia's Federal Security Service, and a British national. "Not all the bodies have been located," Deputy Emergency Situation Situations Minister Vladimir Stepanov told local media Monday morning. "The main work will be completed today." Officials do not know why Tatarstan Airlines flight 363 crashed. Authorities say they have confiscated documents and fuel samples from Tatarstan Airlines. Part of the answer may lie in the Boeing 737's flight and data recorders. Russian officials say they've found the flight recorders, the state-run RIA Novosti news agency said Monday. Russia's Interstate Commerce Committee reports that the recorders' container was seriously damaged, the news agency said, but they've been sent to Moscow and could provide some information by Tuesday. Boeing is sending a team to assist with technical aspects of the investigation, the company said in a written statement that also offered its condolences to the families of the victims. The plane, carrying 44 passengers and a crew of six, took off from Moscow's Domodedovo International Airport, about 700 kilometers (435 miles) west of Kazan. The pilot tried to land once before the plane crashed on the second attempt, officials said. The jet was 23 years old and had been in service with at least eight airlines, including Air France, Uganda Airlines and Bulgaria Air, according to aviation industry websites. In a November 2012 flight, it was forced to cut short a flight to Moscow and return to Kazan after losing cabin pressure, according to the website AeroInside. Russia has tried to improve its checkered reputation for air safety in recent years. In 2011, then-President Dmitry Medvedev grounded two classes of Soviet-era aircraft after a pair of crashes that killed more than 90 people, including a charter plane crash that killed an entire professional hockey team. Medvedev said Russia would have to upgrade its aircraft fleet, step up safety standards and radically cut the number of airlines. 4 die in Bahamas plane crash . Plane crashes in Bolivia, killing 8 . Southwest Airlines pilot tells passengers "We're going down" CNN's Arkady Irshenko contributed to this report. | NEW: Boeing sending technical team to assist in investigation .
Russian media airs video that shows plane in vertical dive as it crashes .
Flight recorders have been found, could provide data Tuesday, news agency says .
The jet had 44 passengers and a crew of six aboard . |
164,856 | 612b3ad86606dcc6790215d3c2d315f7a80c6e22 | By . Snejana Farberov for MailOnline . A pregnant Georgia woman who was critically wounded in a brazen kidnapping that killed her fiance last weekend died after delivering a baby daughter. Briana Brooks, 21, of Decatur, succumbed to her injures Thursday. Her husband-to-be, 24-year-old Jeronta Brown, was shot dead during the incident in Decatur last Saturday. According to police, the young couple, who also had an 8-month-old baby, were kidnapped a week ago, handcuffed, shot in the head and dumped in the street 17 miles away from home. Scroll down for video . Slain couple: Briana Brooks, 21, died Thursday from injures sustained during a weekend kidnapping that resulted in the shooting death of her 24-year-old fiance, Jeronta Brown . Targeted: Brooks and Brown were returning to their home in Decatur, Georgia, August 30 when they were ambushed by masked men . The 21-year-old woman was seven months pregnant with the couple's second child, 11Alive Atlanta reported. Doctors at Grady Memorial Hospital were able to deliver her via C-section before taking the mother off life support. The couple's grieving relatives said that on August 30, Brooks and Brown took their infant and Jeronta's 14-year-old sister out to get some late-night dinner. When they returned home after midnight, they were allegedly ambushed by a group of masked men. The teenage girl with them was able to get away with Brooks' infant, but the couple were not as lucky. According to Brooks' aunt Myesha Brooks, after restraining the couple the abductors unsuccessfully tried to enter their family’s house by pretending to be FBI agents. The woman told WXIA that initially, Brown was able to escape but when he saw that his fiancee was not behind him, he came back for her. Growing family: The young couple, who were planning to get married soon, had an 8-month-old baby and another child on the way . Tragic end: four hours after their abduction, Brooks and Brown were found handcuffed and shot in the head in Atlanta . A short time after Brooks and Brown were pushed into the back of a brown van and whisked away, the man's mother and stepfather got a call demanding a $150,000 ransom. ‘These boys are not playing,’ Kawana Brown recalled her son telling her on the phone after she asked the kidnappers to speak to him. Jeronta Brown begged his mother to raise the money, and Mrs Brown promised to do all in her power to free him. Early Sunday morning, a motorist came upon the heavily pregnant woman and her fiance lying in the street in Atlanta with bullet wounds to the head. Brown was pronounced dead on the scene. In cold blood: Jeronta Brown died at the scene; his seventh-month pregnant fiancee was rushed to a hospital, where doctors were able to deliver her baby via C-section before taking her off life support . So far, no arrests have been made. Police are now trying to determine if the couple's abduction is related to another kidnapping that took place in the area Thursday. In the second case, the victim escaped unharmed. She was picked up in East Atlanta and found alive 18 hours later. Police say her abductors also issued a demand for ransom, according to Atlanta Journal Constitution. Investigators were quick to point out that they do not believe there is a kidnapping crew going around snatching people off the street at random. Jeronta Brown's stepfather Calvin Reddck suggested that the kidnappers might have learned about a large disability payment he had received. Brown's family are now offering a $15,000 reward for information leading to a conviction, CBS46 reported. | Briana Brooks, 21, was taken off life support after doctors delivered her baby via C-section two months ahead of schedule .
Brooks' fiance Jeronta Brown, 24, was found fatally shot in the head alongside the young mother last Saturday .
The couple were kidnapped by masked men outside their Decatur, Georgia, home; the abductors demanded $150,000 ransom .
Another similar kidnapping took place Thursday but the female victim escaped unharmed . |
23,661 | 432f4dcb8333349b2f7755f801248cfb8d3cfa5f | Editor's note: Virg Bernero is the mayor of Lansing, Michigan and chairman of the Mayors and Municipalities Automotive Coalition (MMAC). He is one of the mayors of U.S. cities appearing on "American Morning" this week. Mayor Virg Bernero says the American worker has been sold out by backers of free trade. (CNN) -- While America reels from the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, it is time that we take a deeper look at the root causes of our current predicament. The cold, hard truth is that the unholy alliance between Washington and Wall Street has sold out the American worker and exported our standard of living. Driven by the insatiable greed of Wall Street profiteers and accelerated by the false promise of free trade, our manufacturing base has been chased out of this country and along with it the livelihood of millions of hard-working Americans. It's fashionable these days among the politicians, pundits and so-called experts to claim that free trade is actually good for us. They say it enables us to buy cheaper goods made with cheap foreign labor and this, in turn, raises our standard of living. With all due respect, the free traders need to ask themselves a more fundamental question: how will Americans buy those goods when they don't even have a paycheck that covers their mortgage, much less the college tuition for their children? Watch Mayor Bernero speak to American Morning's John Roberts » . More than one pundit has told me I need to take a broader view. As the mayor of one of America's countless manufacturing communities, the only view that matters is the one my citizens see every day: Record job losses, home foreclosures and, thanks to the Wall Street wizards, a credit crunch so severe that it is nearly impossible to finance a new car. This isn't a predicament faced just by Michigan or the Midwest. This is the story of America, told in thousands of desperate households from Connecticut to California. The pundits claim our manufacturing sector is a relic of the old economy. We're told that we just can't compete anymore. We're told that our future is in the service economy, that jobs in health care and finance and knowledge-based industries will recreate the prosperity our nation once knew. The truth is that our industrial heritage is an example of everything that was right with our nation's economy. Good jobs with good benefits created the middle class in this country, and now it is being systematically dismantled under the banner of free trade and globalism. Those who continue to espouse free trade ominously warn that protectionism is the wrong path for our nation; that challenging the holy doctrine of free trade invites a global trade war. Yet we already face rampant protectionism across the globe. Pursuing a free trade agenda in a protectionist world is tantamount to unilateral disarmament. Our trading partners routinely employ taxes, tariffs and subsidies that underwrite their exports and restrict American products from entering their home markets. They use currency manipulation to reduce the relative cost of their goods here in the USA. The fact is we're not competing against other companies; we're competing against other countries. I've toured the Hyundai plant in Asan, Korea. The Koreans are wonderful people, but their technology isn't any better and they're not working any harder than Americans. The difference is that Hyundai doesn't have to pay legacy costs. The Korean government takes care of their retirees. Hyundai doesn't pay health care costs because they have national heath care. If you don't think that's an unfair advantage, you're kidding yourself. Many Americans are unaware that China sold 10 million cars last year -- more than General Motors or Toyota. I can assure you the Chinese government is part and parcel of that success. They're involved in their industry. The Korean government is involved in their industry. If we are going to have any chance to compete globally, our government must get involved in our industry and help us rebuild America's industrial might before it is too late. There's no question that we need this stimulus package. We need the reinvestment in America's infrastructure and in the working people of this country. We need tax cuts delivered directly to the American worker. We need education and retraining for the "green collar" jobs of the future. But we need more than a short term shot in the arm. We need a long-term strategy to rebuild the American economy that provides jobs and economic security to the millions of hard-working American families who have been sold down the river by unfair trade policies. We need fair trade agreements so that the most productive workers in the world -- American workers -- can put their skills to work and compete in the global economy. We recently watched our athletes successfully compete in the Olympics against nations of the world. When the playing field is level, Americans can compete against the best from any nation. With fair trade instead of free trade, American workers can once again bring home the gold. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Virg Bernero. | Virg Bernero: Washington and Wall Street have sold out the American worker .
He says we must rebuild America's industrial might before it is too late .
Bernero: Free trade in protectionist world is like unilateral disarmament . |
263,766 | e199ae2abc869f499528f10bb7aacc2cdeee5981 | By . Alex Finnis for MailOnline . A postwoman left a cancer-stricken elderly man and his wife without their post for two weeks - because she refused to duck under their handing baskets to deliver it for them. Peter and Hazel Kelly, from Woburn Sands, Buckinghamshire, missed out on bank statements, an invitation and a letter from the hospital, all because the postwoman said it hurt her back to avoid the two large hanging baskets. Until now they had received nothing but praise for their annual floral display, with photographs being used on calendars and postcards. Scroll down for video . Peter Kelly said that his local postman will no longer deliver mail to his house because of the hanging baskets . Not all roses round the door: Peter and Hazel Kelly complained after missing out on two weeks of post . Mrs Kelly, 76, said the gardening helps her 75-year-old husband - who is undergoing chemotherapy for cancer, having been diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin lymphoma. She said: 'We couldn't understand why we hadn't any post for two weeks. My husband was outside the front tidying up and saw the postwoman. He said: "Good morning my duck, we haven't had any letters for a while" and she said "No I am not delivering to you no more". 'She said it was damaging her back to get to the front door. They are tied in place securely at the front of the porch and if it was that much of a problem for her to get past she could have put them on the mat. 'We have always had big hanging baskets there and the postman and the postwoman we had before did not complain.' Video courtesy of Silverline Tools . Bloomin' heck! The postwoman refused to deliver to the couple because their hanging baskets 'hurt her back' Beautiful display: The elderly couple had only ever received praise for the floral displays before . The colourful baskets are full of trailing begonias and geraniums. and have always attracted a lot of attention. 'Until now we have had nothing but compliments about our hanging baskets and garden. People say it is a little ray of sunshine,' said Mrs Kelly - who has four children, 12 grandchildren and one great-grandchild. 'We have been doing the baskets for 30 years. A couple who had just got married knocked on the door and asked if they could have their pictures taken and one Chinese lady was so taken with our garden she bought 60 postcards of Woburn Sands to send as Christmas cards. 'We do the garden and baskets together and it helps my husband who has been going through a very hard time with his chemo.' It's not difficult! Mr Kelly, 75, who is undergoing chemotherapy, says he has no trouble getting to the front door . Mr Kelly, who was disabled while serving in the army, added: 'We're in our late 70s and duck, so I can't see why she can't do it. We have had bigger baskets than that in the past. The previous post lady used to just walk through.' The couple contacted the JVS consumer programme on Three Counties Radio. As a result, Royal Mail sent a Health and Safety investigator to the cottage and the deliveries have now been resumed. Royal Mail spokeswoman Felicity MacFarlane said: 'We'd like to apologise to Mr Kelly for his recent concerns over his mail delivery. 'There has been no formal delivery suspension but our postwoman has experienced difficulty on recent occasions delivering the mail. 'Mr Kelly's mail has been delivered to him today and Royal Mail is discussing the matter with the customer.' | Peter and Hazel Kelly, 75 and 76, missed out on two weeks of post .
Mr Kelly was disabled in the army and is undergoing chemotherapy .
They say they, like other postmen, have no trouble making it to the door .
Huge floral display has only received praise and caused no problems before . |
213,797 | a0e2cae6b12fd0f150354550bb3d4020e968e271 | Aussies have reacted with fury after new laws were passed by the government allowing the Australian Security Intelligence Organsiation to spy on all of us. Adapting the viral Ryan Gosling 'Hey Girl' trend, hundreds of Twitter users hash-tagged #HeyASIO to vent their frustration on the micro-blogging site and told the department exactly what they thought of them. The country's spy agency now has now been given extreme powers to monitor computer networks after the Senate passed the bill with 44 votes to 12, with bipartisan support from Labor. Aussies have reacted with fury after new laws were passed by the government allowing the Australian Security Intelligence Organsiation to spy on all of us . Using the #HeyASIO hundreds of Twitter users vented their frustration on the micro-blogging site and told the department exactly what they thought of them . There are concerns about the new powers because the new bill does not establish the definition of a 'network' and allows ASIO to access third party computers to reach the targeted computer. This means the whole internet is open for Australian spies to look at whatever they want. The use of hastags allow users to filter topics on various social media platforms, with 'trending' tags pointing to the most popular at a certain time. The Act states that anybody who 'recklessly' discloses "information ... [that] relates to a special intelligence operation". An authorised ASIO officer can declare any operation 'special'. The new laws come at a time when Australia is on a high terror alert warning and teen terrorist Numan Haider was shot dead in Melbourne on Tuesday by a Victorian police officer after he allegedly stabbed two police officers near the Endeavour Hills Police Station. The use of hastags allow users to filter topics on various social media platforms, with 'trending' tags pointing to the most popular at a certain time . #HeyASIO was the most popular hashtag on Twitter according to the micro-blogging site's official rankings . The Act states that anybody who 'recklessly' discloses "information ... [that] relates to a special intelligence operation" The passing of controversial anti-terror laws in Australia sparked a flurry of social media activity all over the internet . | The passing of controversial anti-terror laws in Australia sparked a flurry of social media activity all over the internet .
#HeyASIO was the most popular hashtag on Twitter according to the micro-blogging site's official rankings .
Australians penned some personal responses to the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) telling them exactly what they thought. |
195,478 | 89091aaf57851034c6543a6832e07967b12d4d4f | By . Emily Payne . PUBLISHED: . 04:35 EST, 28 May 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 04:38 EST, 28 May 2013 . New research shows that taking statins could reduce the risk of painful arthritis . Taking cholesterol-lowering statins every day could more than halve the chances of getting arthritis, according to a new study. Researchers at Keele University carried out the . research on the back of growing evidence that arthritis is not just down to . wear and tear as the body ages - but also inflammation in the joints. The study of more than 16,000 adults . found that people on the highest doses of statins – 18.5mg or more a day . – had 60 per cent lower osteoarthritis rates than people not taking the . drugs. As well as lowering cholesterol, statins have an anti-inflammatory effect, and are taken by eight million people to ward off strokes or heart attacks. They are also thought to protect against cancer . and Alzheimer’s and ease the symptoms of multiple sclerosis and . protect diabetes sufferers against heart disease. Keele university’s Health Services Research Unit, which is funded by Arthritis Research UK Primary Care Centre, found that people on very low doses seemed to be at higher risk of arthritis than patients not taking statins. The study, Statin Use and Clinical Osteoarthritis in the General Population:A Longitudinal Study, which is published in the Journal of General and Internal Medicine, said the findings suggest the condition may be more closely linked to heart disease than first thought. 'Our work has shown that the risk factors for cardiovascular disease are also associated with osteoarthritis,' said researchers. 'The co-occurrence of osteoarthritis and cardiovascular disease is common.' A spokeswoman for Arthritis Research UK . said: 'We welcome this study as it contributes to the idea that osteoarthritis (OA) in not simply wear and tear as we get older, and that in the future drug treatments can offer hope to people with OA.' Research suggests that arthritis may be more closely linked to heart disease than first thought . 'OA is an active disease that includes inflammation and active damage to the joint. 'The concept that OA is caused by the way that our body processes lipids is not proven, but this study provides some intriguing data to suggest that this warrants further work. 'Arthritis Research UK is committed to finding the causes of OA, new therapies for OA as well as treatments, such as pain relief, that help to manage the symptoms of OA. 'For example, we are funding a trial to investigate whether a drug called hydroxychloroquinone, commonly used to reduce inflammation in rheumatoid arthritis, is also effective for people living with OA.' Scientists believe that inflammation plays a larger role in osteoarthritis than first thought. They are investigating whether drugs used in rheumatoid arthritis, which occurs when the immune system attacks the joints, can also help in osteoarthritis. Around 10 million Britons suffer from arthritis. The charity Arthritis Care estimates the number of patients will rise to 17 million in the next 20 years. | Statins are known have an anti-inflammatory effect .
They can also protect against cancer, Alzheimer’s and ease the symptoms of MS, diabetes and heart disease .
Now, research by Keele University shows that those on high doses of statins have a lower risk of arthritis . |
230,773 | b6d49ecf773a50ed33908436a62ae5505dad693a | A man cut off his ex-girlfriend's nose with a steak knife leaving it hanging from her face by a thread after confronting her about a new boyfriend. Dale Hathaway, 27, has been jailed for eight years today after launching a savage attack on Maria Vella, 33, in the lobby of a Newport hotel as young children and families looked on in horror. She was found lying in a pool of blood screaming with the 'most horrific injuries' police officers had ever seen and needed 200 stitches to re-attach her nose, Cardiff Crown Court heard. The pair had spent the afternoon drinking together at the Newport Hilton hotel in April – but the conversation became heated when Hathaway confronted her about her new boyfriend. Dale Hathaway, 27, (left) has been jailed for eight years after slicing off Maria Vella's nose in the lobby of a Newport hotel . He then grabbed the steak knife and used it to 'effectively sever her nose from her face' after she asked him not to drive because he'd had too much to drink. Prosecutor Robert Buckland QC said: 'Dale Hathaway's ex-girlfriend was seriously injured and has been left with permanent scarring after this horrific steak knife attack. 'This injury had a major and lifelong impact on the victim.' 'Hathaway was drunk and used the steak knife deliberately with the intention of causing serious injury. Ms Vella was found lying in a pool of blood screaming with the 'most horrific injuries' police officers had ever seen . 'This offence was committed in public and in the presence of a young child.' Ms Vella's wounds were so deep that it caused part of her nose to hang forward on to her top lip. She continues to suffer from psychological trauma following the attack in April and says she is reminded of it every time she looks in a mirror. 'I never want to talk about this again,' she said. Hathaway from Cardiff was jailed for six years at the city's crown court in October after he admitted causing grievous bodily harm with intent. But his sentence has been increased to eight years by judges sitting at London's Criminal Appeal Court, who said the original term was 'unduly lenient'. He initially told police Ms Vella had fallen and hurt herself and then claimed he had 'thrown' the knife behind him and it had cut her accidentally. But when a surgeon analysed the weapon and said 'significant force' must have been used to inflict the injury with the knife, he admitted the offence. Increasing his sentence to eight years, Lady Justice Macur said the term was too short and did not reflect the 'aggravating factors' in this case. Sitting with Mr Justice Blake and Mr Justice Dove, she added: 'Bearing in mind the use of a weapon, and the manner in which it was used and the description of the injury, we consider that the correct sentence was one of eight years.' He launched the savage attack on Ms Vella in the lobby of the Newport Hilton hotel in April as young children and families looked on in horror . | Dale Hathaway jailed for eight years after slicing off his ex-girlfriend's nose .
Maria Vella, 33, needed 200 stitches and has been left scarred for life .
The pair had spent the day drinking together at the Newport Hilton hotel .
Hathaway confronted her about a new boyfriend and launched the attack .
She had also warned him not to drive home because he was too drunk . |
42,896 | 78faaf78d0be854bf33134d0a635580c6379b3f4 | By . Sara Malm . PUBLISHED: . 10:39 EST, 27 September 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 14:09 EST, 27 September 2013 . Hero: Mitul Shah, 38, pictured with his daughter Sarai, aged two, was killed by terrorist at the Nairobi shopping mall . A British man who offered himself as a hostage to save the lives of a group of children was today described by colleagues as a 'born leader'. Mitul Shah, 38, a sales executive from London attempted to strike a deal with the terrorists, replacing children with himself, a heroic act which gave several victims vital time to escape. The selfless father did not get through to the gunmen and was shot alongside a number of children in the Kenyan tragedy, leaving behind his wife and two-year-old daughter. Today his employers, the cooking oil company Bidco Oil, and his work colleagues spoke of their grief at his loss. The firm said in a statement: ‘He was a born leader and an inspiring soul loved by one and all.’ Mr Shah, who was born in April 1975 in North London, held dual British and Kenyan citizenship. After going to school in Kenya, he studied management science with . computing at Kent University in Canterbury, Kent and obtained a Bachelor . of Science degree. He then . joined Bidco Oil Refineries in Kenya as a management trainee and worked . his way up to become a team leader in the marketing department. Mr Shah, who leaves a widow, Rupal, and . daughter Sarai, was killed moments after he was helping 33 children . taking part in a TV cooking contest on the roof of the Westgate centre . in Nairobi. The event was being sponsored by his company. One of the directors of Bidco, Dipak Shah, said today that his family and colleagues were all devastated. He said: ‘He was trying to negotiate the freedom of the children in order for him to be taken as a hostage. ’Some had managed to save their lives, but unfortunately he, and others, did not. ’It . was a heroic and brave act - a true reflection of his soul. He was a . wonderful person who always went out of his way, beyond the call of . duty, to help others.’ Murdered: Mitul Shah, pictured with wife Rupal Shah and daughter Sarai, was unable to get through to the gunmen and was shot alongside several children in the Kenyan tragedy . Tribute: Mr Shah's employer and colleagues spoke of their grief at his loss, praising him as a 'born leader and an inspiring soul loved by one and all¿ . The body of 38-year-old Mitul Shah lies in the main hall of the Oshwal Community Centre in Westlands nearby to the Westgate Shopping Centre where hundreds of mourners and well-wishers come to pay their last respects . He said that, like his family, everyone at the company was grieving his death. He said: ‘We are anguished and . shell-shocked at the turn of events. The tragic loss of our colleague . and brother has created a vacuum in our heart as much as it has in our . organisation. ‘All employees . who have known him for long and short periods concur that he was an . immensely effective leader, easy to get along with - on a personal . level, very caring and concerned and on a professional level, highly . dedicated and motivated. ’He was highly talented and has enriched the lives of everyone he has come across. ’It . is a big, very big loss -not just for the family or for Bidco but for . Kenya also as he loved this country with great passion and fervour.’ Men were said to have been castrated and had fingers removed with pliers before being blinded and hanged . Their story: Portia Walton runs for the safety of Kenya mall hero Abdul Haji. The Waltons have now shared their harrowing tale, giving backstory to this now-iconic photo . Terrifying: Katherine Walton, left, is an American living in Kenya who was at the Westgate mall last Saturday with her five kids when the siege occurred. They got out alive with the help of Haji . The company said in a statement: ‘Bidco is grieved to announce the sad and untimely demise of Mr Mitul Shah. 'He was among the first casualties of the Westgate Siege - losing his life in the first bout of attack, presumably killed while trying to protect some children who were assembled to participate or witness a cooking challenge.’ He had helped the firm win a number of industry awards and was also an accomplished sportsman, the company said. He had taken part in endurance races, swimathons and had climbed both Mount Kilimanjaro and Mount Kenya. ‘He was young, dynamic, enterprising, . hardworking & well focused person as well as the youngest team . leader in Bidco, ‘the statement added. The avid Manchester United fan was also president of the company's football team. Yesterday, soldiers and doctors who were among the first people into the mall after it was reclaimed on Tuesday, spoke of the horrifying scenes inside . Bomb disposal experts with sniffer dogs were yesterday painstakingly combing the part of the building still standing for explosives before clearing forensic officers, police and troops to search for bodies . The collapse happened on Monday when government troops launched a massive assault on the mall where up to 150 people are thought to have been killed . Work colleagues paid tribute to Mr Shah on the internet. One, named Alkane, wrote: ‘He is a real hero and had an option to run away but he opted to become a saviour of kids without wasting a second. ‘This says it all about Mitul. I salute him for his decision. I am very much thankful to God that I had an opportunity to spend time with such great soul.’ Mr Shah's workmate Roberts Libosso said: ‘He touched every one of us through his warm affection and sensitivity coupled with brilliant leadership skills. ’Mr Shah was a born leader - the circumstances surrounding his death fit the above qualities because he was concerned about the lives of the children whom he could not leave behind.’ A third friend, Sarah Njeru, said: ‘I cannot even begin to describe the loss, the sadness, the love, the hole in our heart. ‘I want to see my office extension screen say 'Mitul calling' but I can't. We will forever cherish you. Rest In Peace boss.’ | London-born Mitul Shah was killed in the Kenyan mall massacre .
The 38-year-old died after he offered to become a hostage to save children .
Tributes have poured in honouring 'a selfless man and a born leader' |
217,339 | a55fda7a35b21d31844d8915b075fb8ad57fcc00 | PADUCAH, Kentucky (CNN) -- He arrives in the early morning hours, when the downtown streets here are empty and quiet. Former U.S. soldier Steven Green has been convicted of raping and killing a 14-year-old Iraqi girl. An electric gate jerks to life as the black sedan with tinted windows pulls into a parking lot protected by an iron fence. It's five blocks from the local county jail to the U.S. Federal Courthouse of Western Kentucky. Not even a five-minute drive. This is the only freedom Steven Green knows. He's ushered from the car by a contingent of U.S. marshals. It's 30 feet out in the open air. A brief chance to look up at the clouds. A moment to hear sounds not reverberated against cell walls: a bird, a car engine, a breeze in nearby trees. He is a lanky 24-year-old. He looks lean, like he could grow a little more. Not really a man, but too old to be called a boy. Regardless, he is a convicted murderer, rapist, and conspirator. The orange prison coveralls make him look a bit taller. The jury never sees Green in the fluorescent jumpsuit. Inside the federal courthouse there is a change of clothes. Usually it's a button-down shirt and a pair of khakis. He keeps his cuffs buttoned. He looks nerdish, and you half expect him to start working on the courtroom computers. Not like a man who once asked FBI agents if they thought he was "a monster." Evidence comes in a steady display of pictures and videos that seem oddly connected. The snapshot of a smiling woman lying in a field of bluebonnets. The image of a dead Iraqi strapped to the hood of an Army Humvee. A high school yearbook photo of a Texas football team. The diagram of a brain cell. Video of a firefight shot from an insurgent perspective. The most unusual trial exhibit sits against the wall behind the prosecutor's table: a small architectural mock-up of a home. Roughly 18 by 18 inches, it is like no home in Kentucky. A flat-topped square with a raised rectangular structure at the top providing access to the roof. It is beige in color. The tiny windows have tiny bars. It is a 3-D map of a crime scene. Earlier this month, a jury found Green guilty of a raping a 14-year-old girl who lived in the home in Iraq, then killing her and setting her body on fire to destroy evidence. Green also was found guilty of killing the girl's parents and 6-year-old sister. There is a casual manner to Steven Green's daily entrance into the courtroom. It defies the circumstances of the moment and the imagination without proper context. This is the sentencing phase of his death penalty trial and he is the defendant. Testimony resumes Monday, with the expectation of closing arguments as early as Wednesday. Green faces life in prison without the possibility of parole, or death in prison. The testimony transports the court to unusual places: across Texas following Green's dysfunctional childhood, into the sense of structure and order of Army basic training at Fort Benning, Georgia, and back to the chaos of horrendous combat situations four years ago in Iraq's Triangle of Death. Green is a former member of the 101st Airborne Division, inserted into a very bad section of Iraq during some of the worst fighting of the war. His memories are of a place known as Yusufiya, 20 miles south of Baghdad. Jurors form a mental picture of his life then as former members of his unit, Bravo Company, take the stand. Amid the military lingo, the witnesses pause occasionally, struggling to convey the contempt, confusion, exhaustion, and death they knew. They speak of being shot, of killings, booby traps and sudden bloody dismemberments. This toxic emotional mix is what former Pfc. Green knew in 2005 and 2006 almost every day, along with the very real possibility of his own death. If the jury opts for its most extreme option -- the death penalty -- unlike his daily death watch in Iraq, at least Green will see that coming. When a friend or family member enters the courtroom, Green tries to make anxious eye contact. He whispers a lot to his attorneys. His hands stay around his face and his gaze on the table when the victims' family speak through an interpreter. The Al-Janabis' relatives do not speak of details of the crime. The questions come only from the prosecution, and the defense does not cross-examine. They speak of an orchard worker, Kassem, and his wife, Fakhriya. They speak of a simple family who did not own either their home or the furniture. They speak of a funny 6-year-old girl, Hadeel, being chased through the orchard trees by siblings. They speak of a 14-year-old girl, Abeer, with dreams of living in the city and wearing nice clothes. The jury never hears the words "rape" or "murder" come from the translation. It is a testimony about loss. The defendant sits rigid the entire time. The mention of other names comes frequently in court. Spc. James Barker: The jury knows him as the soldier who concocted a plan over a card game to target the Al-Janabi family -- a mission of gang-rape and murder. Sgt. Paul Cortez: The defense counsel describes him as senior non-commissioned officer, the one who approved the mission as long as he was the first to rape Abeer. Pfc. Jesse Spielman: His name is familiar as the fourth member of the squad to leave their traffic checkpoint on March 12, 2006, after donning disguises, and enter the Al-Janabi home. Pfc. Bryan Howard is the soldier left behind to guard their post. Each is out of the Army, sentenced to prison time by a military court for his part in the crime and the failed coverup. Green, the trigger man, is the odd man out. He sits before the jury, convicted in civil court for this war atrocity. His early release from the Army two months after the crime is a possible death sentence, while three of his accomplices face the possibility of parole from an Army prison in 2016. Green still sports a military haircut. Seated at the table alongside his defense team, he often leans over and speaks with Darren Wolff, a former Marine Corps captain turned Kentucky defense lawyer. There are letters on file in the court docket from Wolff petitioning Defense Secretary Robert Gates to re-enlist Green in the Army, so the former private could face trial under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. It is not unheard of in this war. Wolff points out in conversation that the Pentagon re-activated two former Marines after word surfaced of an alleged murder in Falluja in 2004. He says Green should face a jury of his military peers. The fact that has not happened, and the former Army private sits in the U.S. District Court of Western Kentucky tried under the Military Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act for crimes committed in Iraq, may be a point of appeal. At the end of the day, Green exits the courtroom, climbs back into his prison garb and is shackled. There's another short walk to the car, then a five-block return drive to take in the world. He returns to solitary confinement. This is his human interaction for the day. | Steven Green was convicted of murder, rape in deaths of girl and her family in Iraq .
Jury in Kentucky to decide his sentence; death penalty a possibility .
Closing arguments could start as soon as Wednesday .
Green faces harsher penalty because he had left Army and was tried in civilian court . |
233,647 | ba798c5c2f8657e80eae10332668a75cac2fb578 | The six-year police veteran who was shot dead this weekend in a grisly murder-suicide at a Dallas apartment was allegedly abusive to the shooter, who told a 911 operator she was his girlfriend before turning the gun on herself. On Monday, police identified the shooter as 42-year-old Otto Machelle Thomas. They say Thomas called 911 around 6:15pm to report that she had murdered her boyfriend, 40-year-old Larry Tuttle, and that someone needed to come pick up her 6-year-old daughter. Thomas revealed her motives to the operator, saying: 'He was getting ready to hit me again and I just went off. I killed him because he was going to hit me again.' Scroll down for video . Murder-suicide: 42-year-old mother Otto Machelle Thomas, left, called 911 on Saturday to say she shot dead her boyfriend 40-year-old cop Larry Tuttle, right, because she feared he would hit her 'again'. When officers arrived on the scene, Thomas committed suicide by shooting herself . When officers arrived at the scene, they ordered Thomas to put away her weapon and unlock the door to Tuttle's apartment. Instead, she walked away from the window and a gunshot was heard. SWAT teams swarmed the apartment and found the couple dead, with Thomas' young daughter uninjured in a bedroom. Her daughter, who neighbors say is autistic, has been transferred to the care of Child Protective Services, which are trying to get in contact with Thomas' family in Mississippi. Police say there have been no prior disturbance or domestic violence calls to the apartment. Tuttle's wife Kandie Morgan told KXAS- TV that they had been separated for a few months, and that he had been a great father to their 10-year-old son. Police are unsure whether Thomas was living with Tuttle at the apartment. They say she recently lived in an apartment in Arlington. Left behind: SWAT teams stormed Tuttle's apartment and found the couple dead, with Thomas' 6-year-old daughter uninjured in a bedroom . Thomas was featured in a short article in a 2001 issue of Ebony magazine, which described her as a military police officer in the Army who counseled youth groups. At the time she was living in Kansas City, Kansas and that she had a son, suggesting that she has an older child. She has no other criminal record besides a 1996 harassment charge in Bell County, Texas that was dismissed. Tuttle's neighbor Jared Ingram said he often saw the father and his son around the Lake Highlands Landing apartments. '[They were] playing with different things, playing with his toys, cleaning up his house sometimes, things like that,' Ingram said, adding that Tuttle was a 'good neighbor'. The Dallas Police Association wrote on Facebook Monday that Tuttle was a 'great officer who will never be forgotten'. | Shooter has been identified as 42-year-old mother Otto Machelle Thomas .
Thomas called 911 Saturday to say she shot dead off-duty cop Larry Tuttle .
She said Tuttle, 40, was her boyfriend and that he was abusive .
When officers arrived on the scene, Thomas turned the fun on herself .
She leaves behind a 6-year-old daughter, who was uninjured . |
267,184 | e60ed8372bd3111837b46c471c4c409493b6b013 | New York (CNN) -- Defense attorneys for New York police officer Gilberto Valle, accused of a cannibalism plot, tried Thursday to show their client engaged in "fantasy role-play" during online conversations with his three alleged co-conspirators. Reviewing aloud the text during cross-examination of prosecution witness Corey Walsh, defense attorney Robert Baum sought to make the FBI agent counter his prior testimony that Valle's e-mails and online chats with others who said they were interested in cannibalism were real. Prosecutors have argued that Valle was "deadly serious" about online plans to allegedly kidnap, rape, torture, cook and eat women. None of Valle's alleged targets was ever victimized. Defense attorneys have argued that their client's conduct was "pure fiction," "make believe" and fantasy role-playing. Also Thursday, prosecutors submitted evidence to support their claim that Valle accessed a national database to look for information about three women -- twice in July 2011 and once in May 2012. The evidence presented revealed Valle's unique police officer identification number, which corresponds with the identification number used to search the names of his alleged victims. Graphic e-mails read at New York cannibalism plot trial . Prosecutors also presented evidence that Valle had twice trained on the system and that he would have been instructed not to access the database for personal reasons. Valle is also charged with accessing the National Crime Information Center database illegally. The defense Thursday tried to show that Valle provided false information about the alleged targets' locations to some people he wrote online. In one instance, Valle said the woman was at a college four hours away, even though she attended school in New York. In other instances, he said he was watching an alleged target, when she really lived in Ohio. Records indicate Valle never went to Ohio. Valle repeated the same conversations with the alleged co-conspirators months later, reintroducing the name of the alleged target, and renegotiating a price to kidnap her. Valle never gave addresses when asked and said in some instances he didn't have the women's addresses, records show. Court records show that Valle did have the addresses of his alleged targets, from sending them a police charity card that he claimed would "get (them) out of a minor traffic violation" if they are pulled over by police. Prosecutor Randall Jackson argued that the police charity card was a ruse -- an attempt to gain personal information about the women. Valle planned to kidnap three women during the week of February 20, 2012, prosecutors said, pointing to some of the e-mails and chats. Baum asked Walsh repeatedly if he still thought that those were real conversations. Walsh replied, "Yes, sir." The defense reviewed online chats between Valle and a man identified as "Moody Blues" or "Chris Collins" or "meatmarketman," who Valle met on the Dark Fetish Network. "Meatmarketman," who lives in the United Kingdom, bragged in one conversation about one of his past victims, sending Valle a picture, and saying "tried her alive first, actually it wasn't very good, very bloody." Prosecutors: Officer was 'deadly serious' "Meatmarketman" expressed concerns in the conversations about cooking his victim to death and how it might affect the meat, adding he "likes the idea of splitting the carcass." In July 2012, Valle told meatmarketman, "I am working on a document, everything we need to carry this out." Authorities said they found a document in Valle's account on his wife's laptop titled "Abducting and Cooking Kimberly -- A Blueprint." Walsh testified about the document, revealed in court, which contained a picture of Kimberly Sauer and personal information, including her bra size and shoe size. Sauer's testimony Tuesday revealed that some of the information -- a different last name, birthplace, birthday and college education -- was inaccurate. The same document listed "materials needed" and included a gag, rope, chloroform and a tarp for the trunk. The FBI never found any of these items in his possession. References to the blueprint were found in chats the FBI deemed "fantasy role-play," along with references to waterboarding and chloroform, terms frequently used in the online conversations. On redirect, the prosecution noted that none of the conversations between alleged co-conspirators made references to "just fantasy," "make believe" or had instances where Valle wrote "It's not real," and "I am just talking fantasy," as he did write in 80% of the conversations with 21 other people found in his e-mail account. Walsh testified that some of these fantasy conversations contained some "real" statements that reflected Valle's state of mind. In many of the chats deemed fantasy, the prosecution noted that Valle discussed story-writing fantasy partners. One story he was working on with another person featured "a restaurant that sells women in all varieties, sometimes grilled or roasted as whole, sometimes in steaks or pieces, sometimes a la carte, or in a buffet." This was the fourth day of the trial of Valle, who has been a New York police officer for six years. | Defense team tries to paint Gilberto Valle's conversations as fantasy .
Prosecutors say the police officer accessed database looking for info on women .
Prosecutors: Valle planned to kidnap three women during the week of February 20, 2012 . |
154,822 | 54126bfbd12ddc9c7d029538ae4c56757e9e37dd | (CNN) -- Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens, the Republican lawmaker convicted on felony corruption charges in October, officially conceded the Senate race to Democrat Mark Begich on Wednesday. "Given the number of ballots that remain to be counted, it is apparent the election has been decided and Mayor Begich has been elected," Stevens said in a news release. "It was a tough fight that would not have been possible without the help of so many Alaskans -- people who I am honored to call my friends. ... I wish Mayor Begich and his family well. My staff and I stand willing to help him prepare for his new position," he added. Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin also congratulated Begich on Wednesday. "I extend my congratulations to Mark Begich and his family. This is a new era for Alaska, and I look forward to working with Mark on the many issues that are important to our state. I am confident he will add a compelling new voice to the U.S. Senate," Palin said in a statement. Palin praised Stevens, saying his "tireless efforts on behalf of the state he loves have benefited all those who call it home." With 100 percent of Alaska's precincts reporting, Begich, the mayor of Anchorage, had roughly 48 percent of the vote, compared with about 47 percent for Stevens, according to CNN's latest tally. He bested Stevens by 3,724 votes. Alaska Elections Director Gail Fenumiai said that 2,500 overseas ballots remain to be counted. The full results will be certified during the week of December 1. A recount could take place, however, if the vote difference between Begich and Stevens is less than 0.5 percent. Stevens could have also asked for a recount, regardless of the difference, if he pays for it himself. The results of this race have national implications as Democrats seek a filibuster-proof 60-member majority in the Senate. With Begich's win, they hold 58 seats; races in Minnesota and Georgia are still unresolved. Stevens, who turned 85 on Tuesday, was convicted in October of filing false statements on his Senate financial disclosure forms. Prosecutors said Stevens hid hundreds of thousands of dollars in "freebies" from an oil-field services company in his home state. On Tuesday, his fellow Senate Republicans postponed a vote on whether to kick Stevens out of their caucus pending the final vote results. Stevens maintained his innocence even after the conviction. At a debate days before the election, he said he had "not been convicted of anything." In his statement claiming victory, Begich said he was "humbled and honored" by the apparent results. "It's been an incredible journey getting to this point, and I appreciate the support and commitment of the thousands of Alaskans who have brought us to this day," he said in the statement. "I can't wait to get to work fighting for Alaskan families." CNN political producer Ed Hornick contributed to this report. | NEW: "It is apparent the election has been decided," Stevens says .
NEW: Gov. Sarah Palin congratulates Begich, praises Stevens .
Democrat bested Stevens by 3,724 votes, according to posted results .
Anchorage mayor had roughly 48 percent of vote vs. 47 percent for Stevens . |
44,090 | 7c593640022f174784499b133929537d34992178 | Juba, South Sudan (CNN) -- South Sudanese wept openly as they celebrated their independence Saturday, cheering, whistling and dancing down the streets in a ceremony fitting for the birth of a new nation. "We are free at last," some chanted, flags draped around their shoulders. A man on his knees kissed the ground. The red, white and green flag of the newborn nation, readied at half-staff the day before, was hoisted over the capital of Juba. Among the world leaders bearing witness on this historic day: United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir and South African President Jacob Zuma. "This is liberation, a new chapter," said Abuk Makuac, who escaped to the United States in 1984 and came back home to attend the independence day activities. "No more war. We were born in the war, grew up in the war and married in war." South Sudan's sovereignty officially breaks Africa's largest nation into two, the result of a January referendum overwhelmingly approved by voters. The referendum was part of a 2005 peace deal that ended decades of civil war pitting a government dominated by Arab Muslims in the north against black Christians and animists in the south. The war killed about 2 million people. Amid the independence celebrations, some residents paid tribute to relatives killed in the war. "It is very emotional. I'm excited, but I'm also thinking of all the people who died for this to happen," said Victoria Bol, who lost dozens of family members. Salva Kiir Mayardit, a former rebel leader who is South Sudan's first president, said his people cannot forget years of bloodshed but must now forgive and move forward. He vowed his people would never again be marginalized. "As we celebrate our freedom and independence today, I want to assure the people of Darfur, Abyei and South Kordofan, we have not forgotten you," he said referring to three conflict-mired regions. "When you cry, we cry," he said. "When you bleed, we also bleed. In Washington, President Barack Obama issued a statement recognizing South Sudan's sovereignty. "Today is a reminder that after the darkness of war, the light of a new dawn is possible," Obama said. "A proud flag flies over Juba and the map of the world has been redrawn." There were shouts of joy, big hugs and hearty handshakes at South Sudan's new Washington embassy on Saturday. Others cried as a colorful new flag was raised. "This day means a lot to me because we achieved our victory. We got our own country," says Anai Aluong. "We are a new nation now. We are very happy because God answered our prayer." Aluong said she lost her father, brother, sister and friends during the decades-long civil war. British Foreign Secretary William Hague told the dignitaries gathered in Juba that his nation has opened an embassy there and appointed an ambassador. Al-Bashir stood with his former enemies from South Sudan and congratulated them on their new homeland. He said he believed a united Sudan was still the best option but supported the dream of the South Sudanese. The gracious tones sparked a ray of hope that the two sides would get past a bitter relationship to forge ahead. That journey will hardly be easy as many challenges await. South Sudan is among the world's poorest, with scores who fled the long conflict coming home to a region that has not changed much over the years. The infrastructure is still lacking -- with few paved roads in the new nation the size of Texas. Most villages have no electricity or running water. South Sudan sits near the bottom of most human development indices, according to the United Nations, including the highest maternal mortality and female illiteracy rates. Although the north has flourished, the South has not changed much over the years, said South Sudan native Moses Chol. "They have schools and clean water, and their children are not dying of simple diseases," Chol said, referring to the north. "In the south, people still drink stagnant water. They have nothing." There is also the threat of renewed fighting between the two neighbors. Clashes have erupted recently in the disputed border regions of Abyei and South Kordofan. And despite the 2005 peace deal brokered by the George W. Bush administration, forces aligned with both sides continue to clash. Abyei was a battleground in the brutal civil war between forces of both sides. A referendum on whether the area should be part of the north or the South has been delayed amid disagreements on who is eligible to vote. The two countries look set to divorce in name only -- they have not reached an agreement on the borders, the oil or the status of their respective citizens. The U.N. Security Council, which voted to send up to 7,000 peacekeepers and 900 uniformed police to South Sudan, is expected to meet Wednesday to discuss U.N. membership for the new nation. As dignitaries gathered in the new capital to celebrate the new nation, world leaders warned of a tough road ahead. "Their economic prospects are dim unless the two sides can come to agreement on how to share precious resources, cooperate in other economic areas and together promote the viability and stability of each other," the U.S. special envoy to Sudan, Princeton N. Lyman, said in an editorial to CNN. Lyman, who attended the ceremony, said both sides want food, education and security for their families. "They want the freedom to be able to express their opinions, choose their leaders and become active participants in political and social life," he said. South Sudan natives such as Makuac admit there are challenges ahead. However, she is pushing those thoughts to the back-burner for now. "We have waited so long to get here ... I will worry about that later," she said. "This weekend, we celebrate." CNN's Nima Elbagir reported from Juba, South Sudan, and Faith Karimi reported from Atlanta. CNN's Jennifer Rizzo and Moni Basu contributed. | NEW: Flag raised at embassy in Washington .
Leaders of north and the South strike a conciliatory tone .
"We are free at last," cheering crowds chant on the streets .
South Sudan's sovereignty breaks Africa's largest nation into two . |
14,819 | 2a054b8b8063213e66dac4845d9f3f9dd3727d84 | By . Nick Pisa . PUBLISHED: . 15:51 EST, 16 June 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 16:35 EST, 16 June 2013 . A British pilot has died after his light aircraft crashed into a mountain in thick fog, Italian police have confirmed. Flying club director Alan Tyson, 51, was killed instantly after his five seater Beechcraft 58 Baron twin turbo prop plane flew into Mt Mindino near the Italian Riviera at an altitude of 1,880 metres. Last night police and air accident officials were investigating the accident and looking at the possibility that the airplane's altimeter was faulty. Horror: The site of the plane crash on Mt Mindinio near the Italian Riviera where British pilot Alan Tyson, 51, died . Police said the alarm was raised by air traffic controllers at Albenga airport on the Italian Riviera near Savona after it disappeared from radar screens shortly after taking off on Sunday morning and at the same time by a walker who heard the low flying plane and seconds later the sound of a crash. At the time of the accident visibility was said to be poor with the mountains in the area covered in fog and Mr Tyson is thought to have delayed his departure because of the poor weather and had then tried to make the flight after a 'clear window' was forecast. However the plane crashed into the slopes of the mountain near Garessio, 30 miles north of Albenga and walkers further down the mountain reported hearing a loud explosion. Fire fighters and alpine rescue teams were quickly on the scene and the wreckage was found close to a cross that marks the summit of the mountain and which is a popular destination with walkers and climbers. Marshall Matteo Laurilio, of the . paramilitary police in Garessio said: 'The first call we got was from a . member of the public, who had heard a low flying plane and then the . sound of a crash. We then had a call from the airport to see it had . disappeared from the radar screens. Accident: Mr Tyler crashed his his five seater plane into the mountain side in thick fog, and Italian police and air officials are investigating the possibility that the airplane's altimeter was faulty . He added: 'The weather at the time was foggy but there were occasional breaks in the cloud but the plane did not clear the top of the mountain - we are looking at the possibility of a fault with the altimeter as he should not have been that low but at this stage is it too early for certain to say that was the cause. ''The plane had taken off at around 9.30 but it didn't crash until noon so it was flying around for more than two hours - there is also the possibility he may have got lost in the fog. 'Mr Tyson was killed instantly and no-one else was onboard. His body has been taken to a local hospital and the British Embassy in Rome has been informed of what happened. We think he was en route to France to pick up passengers but we are still investigating.'' Marshal Laurilio confirmed the plane's registration as G-CIZZ. Officials at Albenga said the plane had been headed towards Levaldilgi airport near Cuneo but refused to give any further details. The plane was owned by Mr Tyson who lived in Wargrave near Reading, Berkshire. He is the director of the Bonanza Flying Club which is based in Eaton Terrace, Belgravia and company records show him as being with the firm for 19 years, fellow director Nigel Meek could not be reached for comment. Tonight a Foreign Office spokesman said: ''We are aware of the incident and are providing consular assistance to the family.' | British man dead in plane crash near Italian Riviera .
Pilot Alan Tyson, 51, crashed into a mountain in thick fog .
British Foreign Office said they are 'aware of the incident' |
222,328 | abcc19b83ada10c47da22adc258a6cc3a7f2dc8f | (CNN) -- After years of challenging doping accusations -- and two days after giving up that fight -- Lance Armstrong said Saturday that he has no worries and, in fact, feels "more at ease now than I have in 10 years." The native Texan has long been one of the dominant forces in the cycling world, including amassing an unprecedented seven Tour de France titles. But his championship legacy, as well as those prestigious wins, may now be history after Armstrong announced Thursday that he would not participate in what he called a "one-sided and unfair" process to challenge doping charges brought against him by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. The famed cyclist's decision prompted the USADA to ban the 40-year-old athlete from competition and strip him of his wins dating to 1998, though there is a question of whether the organization has the authority to take such action. Your top Armstrong questions answered . Speaking publicly for the first time since announcing his position in a statement, prompting the USADA response, Armstrong insisted he had no worries and was happy and "focused on the future." "I don't have anything to worry about," he told reporters before Saturday's start of the two-day Power of Four Mountain Bike Race in Aspen, Colorado. "I've got five great kids, I've got a great lady in my life. I've got a wonderful foundation that is completely unaffected by any noise out there and we're going to continue to do our job," Armstrong said, referring to his namesake charity that supports cancer patients and research. In February 2011, Armstrong announced his retirement from professional cycling, though he continued to compete in triathlon events. Then, in June of this year, the USADA said it had filed doping charges against the cyclist -- accusations his attorney blasted as "wrong" and "baseless," much like Armstrong has vehemently denied other such claims in the past. The USADA, a quasi-government agency recognized as the official anti-doping agency for Olympic, Pan American and Paralympic sports in the United States, accused Armstrong of using, possessing, trafficking and giving to others performance-enhancing drugs, as well as covering up doping violations. What's behind the Armstrong headlines? "It is a sad day for all of us who love sport and our athletic heroes," U.S. Anti-Doping Agency CEO Travis Tygart said in a statement Thursday after Armstrong announced he would no longer cooperate with the agency. "This is a heartbreaking example of how the win-at-all costs culture of sport, if left unchecked, will overtake fair, safe and honest competition, but for clean athletes, it is a reassuring reminder that there is hope for future generations to compete on a level playing field without the use of performance-enhancing drugs." Armstrong has called Tygart's investigation an "unconstitutional witch hunt." But on Saturday, he made no mention of him, the USADA or performance-enhancing drugs. Rather, the athlete said he felt "pretty good" and said it felt "great to be out here." As to the public's reaction to his decision, Armstrong said that he believes they understand and accept his rationale -- including his desire to focus on other things besides fighting doping allegations. "I think people understand that we've got a lot of stuff to do going forward," he said. "That's what I'm focused on, and I think people are supportive of that." Armstrong's cancer foundation still strong . | Lance Armstrong participates in a mountain biking competition in Colorado .
He talks 2 days after announcing he won't challenge a doping agency's charges .
"I don't have anything to worry about," he says, insisting he's at ease with move .
An anti-doping agency has accused him of performance-enhancing drug violations . |
282,369 | f9b6d97856c572f0a50555e40c4aa7118958674a | Classroom assistant Rachael Regan (pictured appearing at Bradford Crown Court) was spared jail today after she taped a 7-year-old to her chair and shut her in a storeroom . A classroom assistant who carried out a five-month campaign of bullying against a seven-year-old pupil who was taped to her chair and shut in a storeroom has been spared jail. Rachael Regan 'singled out and bullied' the girl at a primary school in the Calderdale area of West Yorkshire, a court heard. Regan's trial last month was told about a catalogue of incidents against the pupil, who is now nine. They included sticking Post-it notes to her thumbs, tying her shoes on with string, calling her a nickname, goading her with a biscuit, hiding her doll and tearing up her photograph. Other children in the class laughed as the girl was subjected to the supposedly 'good-humoured' pranks by Regan. Today, at Bradford Crown Court, the 43-year-old was given a community order including a requirement to do 40 hours of unpaid work. Judge Neil Davey QC spared her jail after he criticised the length of time the classroom assistant had spent on bail before she was charged while the Crown Prosecution Service decided what to do. He added the wait was a punishment in itself. Regan, of Illingworth, West Yorkshire, was found guilty of child cruelty after the trial, which finished last month. A teacher colleague, Deborah McDonald, 41, was cleared of the same offence. Today, Judge Davey said to her: 'You have been convicted by a jury of cruelty to a small child, in effect of bullying her to the extent that it would properly be described as cruelty.' He said her conduct had been 'shameful' and a breach of trust. The judge said: 'You breached that trust by turning her into a figure of fun.' He said Regan invited others to ridicule the girl when she taped her to a chair. Judge Davey said the defendant had already lost the job she loved and would be barred from working with children. 'You have lost your job, and lost your good name. 'Having humiliated the girl, you have been professionally humiliated and now publicly humiliated.' Regan has been placed on the Barred List preventing her working with vulnerable people. The judge added: 'You were cruelly bullying her. Any such conduct by an adult would be shameful, made more shameful because your victim was only seven years old and in your care. 'She came from a challenging home environment and you were trusted to look after her. 'You betrayed that trust by turning her into a figure of fun by taping her to a chair and inviting children to look at her and laugh at her.' Judge Davey said the girl had now recovered from her ordeal and was 'back to her old happy, bubbly, extrovert self'. He pointed out that the allegations were made in January 2013 but Regan was not charged until last April. He told her this period of 'legal limbo' she lived through was 'substantial punishment' as she lived for months with the uncertainly of not knowing whether she would eventually face prison. Judge Neil Davey QC at Bradford Crown Court (pictured) spared Regan jail after he criticised the length of time the classroom assistant had already spent on bail before she was charged . Prosecutor Simon Waley told the week-long trial last year that an investigation was launched by the school and the police after the girl told her mother about the incident. The 7-year-old girl had came out of school at home time in a distressed state before telling her mother she had been fastened to the chair with Sellotape by a teacher and could not move for about ten minutes. The teaching assistant later said that she did it for 'a bit of fun' because the girl had been 'fidgety', the court heard. Mr Waley said: 'She said that the class had been laughing at her and that she was the 'class clown'.' Mr Waley said: 'She said that Mrs Regan put it all around the chair and it was hard breathing. 'She said that she couldn't get out to reach her things. She said that the whole class were laughing.' The girl's mother said the moment her daughter told her a teaching assistant had taped her to a chair was 'heartbreaking'. The woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, told the jury the young girl 'clung' to her 'for dear life' with tears streaming down her face after the incident. Mr Waley told the trial that the girl also said to police that Regan bound string to her legs and feet to keep her pumps on. He added: 'She said it was horrible and that, again, everybody had been laughing.' The girl told police that Regan put Post-it notes on to her thumbs when she had been sucking them and shut the door to a store room, leaving her on a chair inside. Other children had been given biscuits for good homework, the court heard, but she was left out and she was told her how delicious they were. The alleged bullying took place between September 2012 and January last year. Other staff members at the school told police they had witnessed some of the incidents. One support assistant said the girl's arms were 'fastened down by her sides with the Sellotape around her more than once' and said she was taped to the chair for around ten minutes. She said Regan went to another classroom to fetch another teaching assistant to show her what she had done. Mr Waley said Regan told her colleague: 'She'll not get up and wander around the classroom now.' He added that Regan had also pulled a photograph of the girl off the wall and ripped it to pieces in front of her. The court heard that the defendants denied ever bullying the girl when they were interviewed by the police and described some of the incidents as 'fun' and 'a joke'. Regan refused to answer questions today as she left court with a friend. | Rachael Regan 'singled out and bullied' the West Yorkshire primary pupil .
The classroom assistant Sellotaped the girl to a chair as 'a bit of fun'
Court heard she was also locked in a storeroom and Post-its stuck on her .
Regan, 43, had been found guilty of child cruelty charges last month .
Judge spared her jail after criticising the lengthy time had spent on bail . |
126,779 | 2fe3b45094dc24ddd42902d2668b378d9ae5abc0 | By . Rob Davies . Nationwide finance director Mark Rennison said efforts to cool London's booming housing market risk holding back recovery elsewhere in the country . Efforts to cool London’s booming housing market risk holding back recovery elsewhere in the country, the finance chief of Britain’s biggest building society has warned. Bank of England governor Mark Carney recently singled out the housing market as the biggest threat to Britain’s nascent economic recovery. Scaling back the Government’s Help to Buy scheme would be one way of taking the heat out of the London market, say some experts. But Mark Rennison, finance director of Nationwide, said such measures carried their own risks. ‘If you take a position to cool the London market you can have unintended consequences in places like the North East,’ he said and added that, while some London postcodes are ‘running pretty hot’, the rest of Britain was ‘by no means outside the norm’. His comments come ahead of figures released today on the Help to Buy scheme, which subsidises mortgages. The first stage, designed to help those with little money for a deposit get on the housing ladder, applied only to first-time buyers and new-build properties. But the second phase made the scheme available to more borrowers by providing a government guarantee on part of any home loan. The data will show how popular this second phase has been. Figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders yesterday revealed that first-time buyers in the capital were borrowing nearly four times their salary to get on the housing ladder. New homeowners borrowed £2.7billion in the capital in the first quarter of 2014, up 50 per cent from the same period a year ago. Scroll down for video . Nationwide is a major beneficiary from the Help to Buy scheme, providing some 31 per cent of loans during the scheme's first phase . Mr Rennison admitted the London market was ‘clearly unsustainable in the long term’. The Bank of England’s Financial Policy Committee is expected to take steps to scale back Help to Buy by introducing stricter affordability tests for would-be borrowers. But Mr Rennison told the Daily Telegraph: ‘I don’t believe that’s necessary at present,’ adding that it was ‘implausible’ that Help to Buy was behind rising prices. Nationwide is a major beneficiary from the Help to Buy scheme, providing some 31 per cent of loans during the scheme’s first phase. | Finance director Mark Rennison said such measures carried their own risks .
Comes after Bank of England governor singled out housing market as threat .
Figures show first-time buyers are borrowing nearly four times their salary .
New homeowners borrowed £2.7billion in London in the first quarter of 2014 . |
231,462 | b7b092e5d87cb9976ae7c168e39a0fefc0fead49 | By . Emma Glanfield . Four acoustic 'pings' which were at the centre of the search for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 are no longer believed to be from the aircraft's black box, a US Navy official has claimed. Australian search authorities narrowed the search for the jet, which disappeared in March, after picking up a series of pings near where analysis of satellite data put the last location of the Boeing 777, some 1,600 km off Australia's northwest coast. But according to Michael Dean, the US Navy's deputy director of ocean engineering, authorities now almost universally believe the pings did not come from the onboard data or cockpit voice recorders. Scroll down for video . Four acoustic 'pings' which were at the centre of the search for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 are no longer believed to be from the aircraft's black box, a US Navy official has claimed (file picture) Australian search authorities narrowed the search for the jet after picking up a series of pings near where analysis of satellite data put the last location of the Boeing 777, some 1,600km off Australia's northwest coast . He believes the pings instead came from some other man-made source unrelated to the jetliner which disappeared on March 8 carrying 227 passengers and 12 crew. Speaking to CNN, Mr Dean said: ‘Our best theory at this point is that (the pings were) likely some sound produced by the ship ... or within the electronics of the Towed Pinger Locator.’ He also said that if the pings had come from the plane’s flight recorders then searchers would have found them and confirmed other countries agreed with his theory. The discovery of the pings on April 5 and 8 was hailed as a significant breakthrough but no further promising signals were heard before the expiry of the batteries on the black box's locator beacons. A scan of the area around the pings with an unnamed submarine failed to find any sign of wreckage and no debris linked to the plane has ever been picked up despite the most extensive and expensive search effort in aviation history. Authorities have not ruled out mechanical problems as a cause but say the evidence, including the loss of communications, suggests it was deliberately diverted thousands of kilometres from its scheduled route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. The Inmarsat control room. The British satellite firm's data helped track MH370 . A scan of the area around the pings failed to find any sign of wreckage and no debris linked to the plane has ever been picked up despite the most extensive and expensive search effort in aviation history . The US Navy official’s claims come just days after underwater scientists said Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott's announcement that black box pingers had been found was premature and lacked detailed analysis. The acoustic experts, who wished to remain anonymous, said the four critical signals picked up by the pinger locator were almost definitely not from MH370’s black box and agreed they were likely to be from a different man-made source. The experts said the signals were detected too far apart to be from the black box and were also the wrong frequency. Unprecedented: Twenty-six nations have been involved in the search for Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 since it disappeared . The Phoenix team watches on as the Phoenix Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) Artemis begins a search for MH370 on 17 April. 26 nations have been involved in the search for Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 since it disappeared more than a month ago . 'As soon as I saw the frequency and the distance between the pings I knew it couldn’t be the aircraft pinger,' one of the scientists said. The pings had played a key role in shaping the search for the plane, which vanished on a routine flight as it crossed the South China Sea. Australian authorities have not yet commented on the most recent claims about the pings. | Four acoustic 'pings' were not from black box and could have been from a ship .
US Navy deputy director said they did not come from jet's onboard data .
Malaysia Airlines flight vanished on March 8 with 227 passengers and crew .
Despite extensive searches, there has been no sign of the Boeing 777 . |
64,404 | b6dadaaec991afdf57112c5892cd3bc86f9c3aab | Sitting proud and upright as he stares defiantly into the photographer's lens, this is one of the last images ever taken of the most famous Native American chief, Sitting Bull. His picture is among 127 rare images collected by English adventurer Charles Alston Messiter through the latter third of the 19th century, about to go under the hammer. A moving and intimate window into a way of life almost completely wiped out by the modern world, the collection reveals an ancient culture in transition. Proud: Sitting proud and upright as he stares defiantly into the photographer's lens, this is one of the last images ever taken of the most famous Native American chief, Sitting Bull (left). Two Crow Medecine Man, of the Cree tribe is on the left . Defiant: His picture is among 127 rare images collected by English adventurer Charles Alston Messiter through the latter third of the 19th century, about to go under the hammer. Pictured are Little Soldier (left) and Buffalo Cow of the Cree Tribe . The photographs - by early photographers including John Karl Hillers and the explorer and painter William H Jackson - were taken using the latest technology of the time: dry-plate . Culture: A moving and intimate window into a way of life almost completely wiped out by the modern world, the collection reveals an ancient culture in flux . The photographs - by early photographers including John Karl Hillers and the explorer and painter William H Jackson - were taken using the latest technology of the time: dry-plat. This image shows 'Big John and Brother of the Cree Tribe' The photographs - by early photographers including John Karl Hillers and the explorer and painter William H Jackson - were taken using the latest technology of the time: dry-plate. Dry-plate photography made it possible for photographers to go into the wilds of native USA and document everyday life. The iconic portrait of Sitting Bull was taken eight years after his legendary victory over General Custer at the Battle of Little Bighorn in 1886. In a bloody battle that would be seared into folklore, the chief led a united force comprising Sioux, Cheyenne and Arapaho Native American warriors to defend their camp against an invasion by the U.S. army. Dry-plate photography made it possible for photographers to go into the wilds of native USA and document everyday life . High price: Estimates for the group lots range from £100 to £5,000 . Custer launched a three-pronged attack against Little Bighorn, but was cut off and surrounded by Sitting Bull's larger army leading to a stand off that became known as Custer's Last Stand. Custer and all his troops subsequently lost their lives. Little Bighorn also is, to some Native Americans, as the Battle of the Greasy Grass. The United States prevailed in the Indian Wars, but Sitting Bull became, and remains, a hero to his people. Later in his life, he may have taken up -- the point is disputed -- the 'ghost dance' movement, which foretold that dead Indians would return to life and that white domination would end. This spooked U.S. authorities. They went after Sitting Bull, who had settled back at Standing Rock. He was killed in a battle with Native American police and U.S. soldiers on June 15, 1890. Under the hammer: The pictures will go under the hammer on October 23 2014 at 11am . Family values: This set is called 'Indians Of The Colorado Valley' by John K. Hillers . According to the Library of Congress' website: 'When European settlers arrived on the North American continent at the end of the fifteenth century, they encountered diverse Native American cultures—as many as 900,000 inhabitants with over 300 different languages' According to the Library of Congress' website: 'When European settlers arrived on the North American continent at the end of the fifteenth century, they encountered diverse Native American cultures—as many as 900,000 inhabitants with over 300 different languages.' 'These people, whose ancestors crossed the land bridge from Asia in what may be considered the first North American immigration, were virtually destroyed by the subsequent immigration that created the United States. 'This tragedy is the direct result of treaties, written and broken by foreign governments, of warfare, and of forced assimilation.' | They are among 127 images collected by English adventurer Charles Alston Messiter at the end of the 19th century .
They include Sioux chief Sitting Bull, famous for his legendary victory over General Custer at Little Bighorn .
The pictures are to go under the hammer at Special Auction Services on October 23 for between £100 and £5,000 . |
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