The new women’s 800 metres world champion has received an enthusiastic welcome in her native South Africa. Eighteen-year-old Caster Semenya was greeted by thousands of cheering fans and well-wishers at Johannesburg airport. She hit the headlines last week after officials at the World Athletics Championships questioned her gender. She finished the race a massive 2.45 seconds ahead of the runner-up and defending champion. The BBC reports that athletics authorities tested Ms Semenya hours before the final. The results showed testosterone levels three times higher than those that are usual in females. Officials decided to test her because her personal best time improved by seven seconds in the month before the race.
South Africans are furious at the way the athletics body has treated Ms Semenya. President Jacob Zuma personally welcomed her at the airport. He publicly congratulated her and spoke of his “displeasure” at the International Amateur Athletics Federation for “publicly humiliating” her. Nelson Mandela’s ex-wife Winnie told a press conference: "We are here to tell the whole world how proud we are of our little girl." There is now a Facebook group called In Support of Caster Semenya and African Women. It started "to show support for the running sensation who has received unfair treatment". The president of Athletics South Africa said Caster’s gender was a non-issue, saying: “It's very simple: She's a girl.”
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An Australian scientist says his country needs an extra couple of seasons. And he isn’t joking. Dr. Tim Entwisle, boss of Sydney's Royal Botanic Gardens, told Australia’s ABC News that Australians should stop thinking there are four seasons. He said this idea was “inherited” from Britain centuries ago. Dr. Entwisle said Australia really has at least five or six seasons. The country has many different regions and weather conditions. The far north is tropical and the south gets snow. In between there are deserts and mountains. Entwisle suggested some names for the new seasons. He proposed "sprummer" is the season between spring and summer, and "sprinter" covers the post-winter, early-spring period.
There is actually a lot of sense in Entwisle’s proposal. Aboriginal Australians have up to eight seasons. They have lived on the land for thousands of years and are experts in understanding local conditions. By contrast, non-indigenous people living in the north of Australia say there is just a dry and wet season. Some northerners say there is an extra "mango madness" season when it gets really humid. Dr. Entwisle believes different regions would need a different number of seasons, saying: "Five or six seasons would better reflect what we experience. If we're going to detect changes due to climate change, it's important that we get our seasons a little more in tune with the environment." He didn’t say whether there would be a silly season.
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Europeans have remembered a picnic that changed the course of history. The ‘Pan-European Picnic’, was held on the Austrian-Hungarian border on 19 August 1989. It was a peace demonstration that led to the fall of the Berlin Wall and the Iron Curtain. Twenty years later, European leaders met at the same place to celebrate the famous, historical event. Hungarian President Laszelo Solyom and German Chancellor Angela Merkel were among those who took part in the festivities. It was a special moment for Merkel as she was born and spent her youth in communist East Germany. The picnic two decades ago was the first in a series of events that led to the reunification of Germany and freedom for millions.
The event took place on the same field in the Hungarian town of Sopron. Angela Merkel said: "My trip…is a thank you to Hungary and to the people who live there.” She added her thanks to the organizers of the original freedom picnic, “who showed courage and foresight and who helped speed up the process of democratization in Central and Eastern Europe". European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said the event 20 years ago "helped to change the course of European history….It led to a brief opening of the Iron Curtain and contributed to its final fall.” That day twenty years ago also helped to increase the pace of globalization. Without it, Russia and China might still be closed.
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The reading of facial expressions may not be universal. This is the conclusion of researchers from Glasgow University in Scotland. They report that people from different cultures read facial expressions differently. In particular, they said there were big differences between the way Westerners and East Asians interpret facial expressions. The study suggests East Asians focus mostly on people’s eyes to read an emotion, but Europeans and Americans scan the whole face. Researcher Rachael Jack said: ''We show that Easterners and Westerners look at different face features to read facial expressions.'' She added: "Westerners look at the eyes and the mouth in equal measure, whereas Easterners favour the eyes and neglect the mouth."
Ms. Jack suggested there are similarities in interpreting facial expressions and the use of emoticons. She said East Asians use the eyes in emoticons to show emotion, for example ^_^ means happy and ;_; is sad. Westerners, however, use the mouth. For example :) is for happy and :( is for sad. She added: “Interestingly, there are clear cultural differences in the formations of these icons. Emoticons are used to convey different emotions in cyberspace as they are the iconic representation of facial expressions.” The researchers said their findings showed intercultural communication is more complicated than we thought. They said: "When it comes to communicating emotions across cultures, Easterners and Westerners will find themselves lost in translation."
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Russian president Dmitry Medvedev has said alcoholism is a ‘national disaster’ in his country. He spoke of his shock at how much Russians drank each year. In particular, he said Russian people drank too much vodka, which is the nation’s most popular alcoholic beverage. Mr. Medvedev quoted a recent report that showed the average Russian drank 18 litres of pure alcohol each year. That means around 350 litres of beer or about 45 litres of vodka. That's almost a litre of vodka a week. The president said: “When you convert that into vodka bottles, it is simply mind-boggling.” He said measures aimed at reducing the levels of drinking have not worked. "This is a centuries-old problem and one cannot hope to solve it overnight," Medvedev said.
Doctors in Russia believe alcohol causes around half of all deaths of Russians between the ages of 15 and 54. An equally frightening statistic is that only 40 per cent of Russian school leavers are likely to live to the age of 60. This will have a huge impact on Russia’s economy. The country has one of the highest rates of alcohol-related diseases in the world. Health Minister Tatyana Golikova said: "We are the absolute leader in terms of alcohol consumption." One problem Russia has is bootlegging – making and selling vodka illegally to avoid paying taxes. Quite often the alcohol content in bootleg vodka is much higher than that in commercially produced liquor. Officials say up to 50 per cent of Russia's vodka market is illegal.
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A Chinese bride has set a new world record for wearing the longest wedding dress. Lin Rong, a 25-year-old schoolteacher, walked down the aisle wearing the record-breaking 2.2km gown at her wedding in China’s Jilin province. It took the 200 wedding guests more than three hours to stretch out the 2,162-meter-long train. The special dress was handmade by her groom's family. Lin’s new husband Zhao Peng said he wanted to show how much he loved her but didn’t want to spend money on a gorgeous wedding banquet. He also wanted to break the previous record of 1,579 metres, set in Romania in April 2009. The record is not yet official. Zhao has sent a video and details of the dress to Guinness World Records in London.
The dress was an impressive sight. It took three months to create. There were 9,999 silk red roses pinned to the two kilometres of material. An additional decoration took the form of 608 crystals sewn into the garment, one for each day the couple had dated. Mr. Zhao added another personal touch to the dress by cutting the length down to 1,984.1022 meters. This number represents his bride's date of birth – October the 22nd, 1984. The dress cost 40,000 yuan (around $US 5,800) to make. At first, his family were against the idea but soon changed their minds. His mother said it was a waste of money, but understood that her son wanted to show his love for his bride on his big day.
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Scientists in the USA have found a type of nerve cell may be the reason we itch. The team from Washington University suggested itchiness was from specific cells. They also believe itching is not a minor form of pain. For decades, many in the medical community have put itching in the pain category. The researchers said they think itching is a completely different and unique sensation. Their decades-long research was on mice. It focused on how the brain reacted to itching and pain. They discovered an “itch gene”, called GRPR. The mice were injected with a chemical to kill this gene. The rodents were still able to feel pain, suggesting the two feelings are different.
The new research has great potential for cures and treatments of itches and itching-related diseases. There are over 50 illnesses in which itching leads to a poor quality of life. In some cases, the itching can be unbearable for the sufferer. Severe itching can lead to excessive scratching, which results in bleeding and infection. Lead researcher Dr. Zhou Feng Chen said: "This finding has very important therapeutic implications. We have shown that particular neurons are critical for the itching sensation but not for pain….[These] can be explored or identified as targets for future treatment or management of chronic itching." He said cures for humans are still many years away.
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A British anti-bullying group has issued a report on the new problem of ‘sexting’ among teenagers. ‘Sexting’ is the sending of naked photos via text and e-mail. The word is a combination of ‘sex’ and 'texting’. BeatBullying.com’s research reveals that over a third (38%) of under-18s have received a ‘sext’, a text with an image of someone naked. The pictures young boys and girls are sending each other would be viewed as pornographic by most people. Many of the photos are breaking child pornography laws. Emma–Jane Cross, head of BeatBullying, said: “It is important that parents and schools are aware that sexting is a significant issue amongst our children…so together we can act to stop this kind of behaviour.”
BeatBullying says sexting is increasing at an alarming rate. More and more young people are using it to bully others online. This often leads to tragedy. Many teenagers have committed suicide after bullies spread their private photos online. One case that made Americans aware of the problem was that of eighteen-year-old Jessica Logan. She sent a nude photo of herself to her boyfriend. After she broke up with him, he sent the picture to hundreds of teenagers in her hometown. Jessica’s friends said she felt like “she was being attacked and tortured”. Jessica ended her own life because of the pain she felt. BeatBullying says sexting “is one of the biggest threats facing our young people today online”.
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Taiwan is getting tough on mail order brides. Starting from August 1, 2009, there is a ban on companies that arrange international marriages. Taiwan’s Immigration Agency says it wants to stamp out the practice of Taiwanese men choosing Chinese or South-East Asian brides online. Companies can no longer take Taiwanese men on blind-date tours of Asian countries to select a bride. All Taiwanese men hoping to marry a foreign woman must now apply to an approved government agency. These organizations cannot charge a matchmaking fee. The only money that can now change hands is for airfares and hotels for overseas visits. Companies that attempt to charge for arranging marriages will be fined up to $US 30,000.
The new regulations are part of Taiwan’s new Immigration Act. The island nation wants to reduce the number of fraudulent marriages. The previous laws meant many women entered the country after marrying Taiwanese men, only to work as prostitutes. There were many other crimes such as insurance scams. The number of foreign brides arriving in Taiwan has increased dramatically. Immigration officials report that around 420,000 foreign spouses, mainly brides, entered Taiwan in the first half of 2009. This figure compares with 410,000 for the whole of 2008. Taiwan’s men are finding it hard to find a Taiwanese bride. Many women are putting their career ahead of marriage, marrying at a later age, or not marrying at all.
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The California couple who were arrested for abducting an 11-year-old girl are denying the charges. Phillip Garrido and his wife Nancy have denied kidnapping Jaycee Lee Dugard in 1991 and keeping her captive for 18 years. Police charged Mr Garrido with a series of terrible crimes, including rape, kidnapping a child under 14, and imprisonment by violence. Jaycee Lee Dugard, now 29, escaped from the Garrido family home and went to a local police station. She has been re-united with her parents. Her stepfather Carl Probyn said Jaycee had very mixed emotions about her sudden freedom. He said she "expressed some regret, like guilt, when she saw her mother, that she hadn't escaped earlier".ABC.
Jaycee Lee Dugard was on her way to school back in 1991 when Phillip Garrido bundled her into his car. Carl Probyn saw the incident and tried to chase the vehicle on his bicycle, but could not keep up with it. Probyn was a suspect in the case for many years. Jaycee was kept in a series of tents in a compound in the Garridos’ back garden. Mr and Mrs Garrido abused her over many years and she had two children. She gave birth to the first child when she was just fourteen. Phillip Garrido was a convicted rapist. In 1977 he was sentenced to prison for 50 years, but nine years later he was released. In a telephone conversation to a local radio station, Garrido told a reporter, “you're going to find the most powerful, heart-warming story”.
Hollywood insiders say a star is not really a star until he, she or they have appeared on ‘The Simpsons’. The latest act to reach these greater heights is the British rock band Coldplay. The UK rockers follow a long list of artists to appear in the long-running animation. Previous musicians include Michael Jackson, U2 and the Red Hot Chili Peppers. The cartoon versions of Coldplay will feature in the 21st season of The Simpsons, which starts on the 27th of September. The band give a private concert at the Simpson’s house after Homer and Bart win millions of dollars in the lottery. The latest report on the storyline is that the band has to stop playing when Bart answers a call of nature, and goes to the bathroom.
The members of Coldplay are big fans of ‘The Simpsons’. They are looking forward to seeing themselves as yellow-faced cartoon characters in the upcoming episode. They will record the voiceovers for the show and provide the music. The band is currently ending its latest tour of North America. They will soon return to Europe to complete their ‘Viva La Vida’ world tour. The album of the same name has turned multi-platinum and has won many awards. The new season of ‘The Simpsons’ sees the TV show enter the record books. The Guinness Book of World Records reports the hugely popular cartoon is the longest-running sitcom in the world. It has a back catalogue of over 450 shows and doesn’t look like it’ll stop any time soon.
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Pop superstar Justin Timberlake has just opened his own golf course. He bought it at the end of 2007 in his hometown of Memphis, Tennessee. It was about to go up for auction and Timberlake wanted to save it from property developers. He has called it Mirimichi, which means ‘place of happy retreat’. Timberlake invested in the new course to make it more environmentally friendly. The 18-hole, par-72 course has a cutting-edge drainage system. This means it uses water more efficiently. There are also many restored areas of natural beauty, including waterfalls, lakes and streams. Timberlake said: "I was able to pose the question, is it possible for a golf course to actually be green, and I'm sure you all know I mean, eco-friendly.”
The new course is now open to the public. Timberlake bought it because he loves golf and because he wanted to help his local community. He has already hosted his own PGA Tour tournament and regularly plays with professional golfers. His new course will bring in tourists from all over the world and help the local economy. Timberlake said: "Its amazing to do something to give back to your community, a place you grew up.” He commented on why Mirimichi has a special place in his heart. “Right over there on the tenth tee is where I hit my first golf ball ever," he said. The singer has other business ventures besides golf. He has opened restaurants and has his own clothing brand.
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British parents could soon face a fine and prison if their children misbehave at school. Britain’s government wants to introduce tough new laws to improve discipline in schools. They want to make parents more responsible for their sons and daughters. Some of the new measures include making parents attend parenting courses, paying a $1,700 fine or going to prison. The Schools Secretary Ed Balls said current policies on unruly behaviour are not strict enough. Many British schools suffer from high levels of bullying, truancy and low academic achievement. He wants parents to play their part in making sure their children achieve. "Every parent has a responsibility to back our teachers and make sure the rules are [followed]," he said.
The measures are part of a new focus on the relationship between schools and parents. Mr. Balls also has plans to help parents and students. He proposes to give pupils private tutors if they are doing badly in reading and maths. He also wants doctors, health workers and social workers in schools to provide better community services. Under Mr. Balls’ plans, parents will have a bigger voice in how schools operate. They will complete satisfaction surveys on how their children’s school performs. Critics say the plans are unlikely to be popular with parents. There are also fears about poorer parents not having enough money to pay the fines and whether they should go to prison for their children’s actions.
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Israel and Hamas have rejected an Amnesty International report into the 22-day Gaza conflict that started on December 27, 2008. The 117-page document accuses both sides of war crimes. Amnesty says: "The scale and intensity of the attacks on Gaza were unprecedented." The report observes that: "Some 300 children and hundreds of other unarmed civilians who took no part in the conflict were among the 1,400 Palestinians killed by Israeli forces." Other accusations include Israel’s use of weapons that should never be used in built-up areas like Gaza. Amnesty accused Hamas of killing three Israelis in rocket attacks during the conflict. Israel invaded Gaza to stop Hamas firing rockets on Israeli towns.
Israeli officials believe Amnesty International is naturally biased towards Hamas. A military spokesman said the report clearly showed the human rights group siding with Hamas, and called it “unbalanced”. He said it was “a distorted view of the laws of war that does not comply with the rules implemented by democratic states battling terror." Israel insisted it did “everything humanly possible” to reduce the risk of civilian casualties. Officials accused Hamas of committing war crimes, saying they used children as human shields. A Hamas spokesman told reporters: "Hamas rejects all the accusations made against it in Amnesty's report," because Amnesty "haven't met or heard from any of Hamas' leaders".
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Michael Jackson has died aged 50 after having a heart attack at his Los Angeles home. He was rushed to hospital, where doctors spent over an hour trying to save him. His brother Germaine told reporters: "The family request that the media please respect our privacy during this tough time." Jackson was perhaps the greatest singer and dancer the world has ever seen. He transformed the music industry forever. The pop icon greatly influenced generations of singers with his unrivalled professionalism. Michael was known as the king of pop and there is perhaps no one close to challenging his legendary status. He will be remembered forever for his talent, his unforgettable songs, and his Moonwalk dance.
Tributes to Michael Jackson have poured in from all over the world. Pop star Madonna said: "The world has lost one of its greats, but his music will live on forever." Jackson’s ex-wife Lisa Marie Presley said she was “so sad and confused”. She added: "This is such a massive loss on so many levels, words fail me." Pop star Justin Timberlake wrote online: "We have lost a genius and a true ambassador of not only pop music, but of all music." Jackson began his career as a child in his family group The Jackson 5. He went on to become globally famous as a solo artist with smash hits such as Billie Jean and Bad. His album Thriller, released in 1982, is the biggest-selling album of all time. It has sold 65 million copies worldwide.
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It may be a waste of time sending children to the dentist to have fillings. The BBC reports on the opinion of 50 British dentists who attended a dental conference. They suggested it could be unnecessary to fill baby teeth. Many of the dentists said many young children go to the dentist when they don’t have to. This could be good news for kids who hate the dentist. Many children develop a fear of dentists because of fillings, injections and the sound of the drill. This can become a phobia and continue into adulthood. The BBC says: “Experts already know there is wide variation in care, which means that a young child with signs of tooth decay could have no treatment, a filling or the tooth pulled out depending on which dentist they attend.”
Dental decay is one of the most common childhood health problems. As soon as a baby's first teeth appear, they are at risk of decay. From as young as six months, a baby tooth could get “baby bottle decay”. Later on there are early childhood cavities. The American Dental Association says these can affect speech, communication, nutrition and quality of life. They say the good news is that decay is preventable. A dental expert, Dr Gail Topping, is currently researching what the best treatment is. She will look into fillings, improved dental hygiene, and the child eating fewer sugary things. She said dentists currently use their own judgment to decide what’s best for a child’s decayed teeth on a case-by-case basis.
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A top British professor has told a cutting-edge ideas conference he is close to building a replica human brain. Professor Henry Markham told the annual Technology, Entertainment, Design global conference that a working synthetic brain can be built in the next decade. He told his audience: "It is not impossible to build a human brain and we can do it in 10 years." He set himself a challenge by stating that if he succeeded, he would “send a hologram to T.E.D. to talk.” Professor Markram is director of the Blue Brain project, which aims to engineer mammals' brains from laboratory data. He has already had success with creating parts of a rat’s brain. Markham said the human brain was so complex, it was an “almost frightening organ”.
Professor Markham hoped his research would lead to new treatments for mental illnesses. He said: "There are two billion people on the planet affected by mental disorder." Markham believes synthetic brain technology will reduce the need for experiments on animals. "We cannot keep on doing animal experiments forever," he said. This will please many animal rights activists, who say such research is cruel. He hopes to create a kind of “Noah’s Ark” of animal brain models. Professor Markham provided a simple explanation of his work: "It's a bit like going and cataloguing a bit of the rainforest….But it is a bit more than cataloguing because you have to describe and discover all the rules of communication, the rules of connectivity."
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The world is getting older and older. Not the planet, but the people who live on it. A new report reveals the global population of older people is growing at its fastest rate ever. The United States Census Bureau calculated there were just over half a billion over-65s in 2008. Officials predict this number will more than double to 1.3 billion by 2040. Around 14 per cent of the world’s population will be retirement age. Researchers say the number of elderly will soon outnumber the young for the first time in human history. This will have a big impact on our societies, economy, and the way we live. An older population will push up pension and healthcare costs. The workforce will have to pay much higher taxes to look after more old people.
America’s National Institute of Aging reports: "Aging is affecting every country in every part of the world....Global aging is changing the social and economic nature of the planet and presenting difficult challenges." Japan is already dealing with these problems and they are expected to get worse. By 2040, experts predict one per cent of the Japanese population will be over 100 years old. There is a booming industry in Japan to cater for the aged. Engineers are developing robots to feed, and clean up after the elderly. There are now robot companions on sale to keep old people company. One positive effect of our aging population is that we need to think again when middle age and old age is. We now often view a 60-year-old as being young.
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The latest cost-cutting idea from budget airlines is for passengers to stand. Michael Ryan, the CEO of Ryanair, is seriously considering this option. Ryanair is one of Europe’s biggest airlines. It carried 5.84 million passengers in June, which is 13% more than a year earlier. Mr. Ryan says his airline is so popular because it is so cheap. Most of Ryanair’s flights are short hops to Europe. This makes the idea of standing for an hour or so on an airplane a workable one. Ryan said that many people stand for over an hour on a train, so it should be no problem on an airplane. He told reporters he would even be prepared to offer flights for free to passengers who stood. He said he could squeeze in 50 per cent more people and cut costs by 20 per cent.
Michael Ryan has changed the way many people think about air travel. His focus is on cutting out unnecessary services and so reducing fares. One idea he is still thinking about is to ask passengers to pay one euro (around a dollar) to use the toilet. He said he could remove two toilets on board the airplane and put in extra seats. The extra revenue would reduce costs and therefore the price of airline tickets. He said asking passengers to pay would encourage them to use the toilets at the airports. Ryan has also talked about a “fat tax” on overweight travelers. His standing room idea, however, might not take off. All airlines must stick to strict international safety standards. Everybody over the age of two must have a seat.
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Countries around the world are beefing up their Internet security systems following cyber attacks in South Korea. Up to 60,000 computers in South Korea have been hit by mystery hackers in the past few days. The virus is spreading and could erase all data on infected machines. South Korean computer security experts say there is more to come. They warn the hackers are aiming at government websites. This could create chaos with the country’s transport, hospitals, banks and social services. Philip Kim, CEO of South Korea's largest anti-virus software company Ahn Lab, wouldn't comment on where he thought the attacks originated. However, South Korean government officials are accusing North Korea.
The attacks in South Korea coincided with a similar series in the USA. Immediately after the death of Michael Jackson, hackers created viruses that fans unknowingly downloaded. Internet surfers believed they were clicking on a link to receive some Michael Jackson memorabilia. In fact, the link downloaded dangerous, malignant software, known as “malware”. Thousands of PC users then spread the virus worldwide. Cyber crime has evolved into an extremely serious issue. An attack by one country on another’s computer systems is pretty much an act of war. Nations have to protect their online security just as they protect their own country. The Internet is now very much a new battleground for international conflicts.
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