Cubicle Bioscope

Researchers have found the wild orgy gene

2012-03-31T02:00:00.001-07:00

Ménage à trois? Wild orgies? One night stands? Who says science can't be sexy?

Certainly not Binghamton University researchers, who are hard at work uncovering the sultry secrets behind human sexual behavior.

The team - led by Dr. Justin Garcia - recently identified a dopamine receptor gene known as DRD4 that is purportedly linked to chronic infidelity and "uncommitted" one-night stands.

And wouldn't you know it?

The very same gene has already been linked to alcoholism, gambling addiction and a predilection for really bad horror movies.

Oddly enough, another study claimed the mysterious gene was responsible for political liberalism, along with "openness" to new social situations.

"What we found was that individuals with a certain variant of the DRD4 gene were more likely to have a history of uncommitted sex, including one-night stands and acts of infidelity," Garcia confirmed.

"The motivation seems to stem from a system of pleasure and reward, which is where the release of dopamine comes in. In cases of uncommitted sex, the risks are high, the rewards substantial and the motivation variable - all elements that ensure a dopamine 'rush.'"

Garcia also noted that individuals carrying the "thrill-seeking" gene were twice as likely to have a history of one-night stands as those without the variant.

"[Still], the study doesn't let transgressors off the hook. These relationships are associative, which means that not everyone with this genotype will have one-night stands or commit infidelity.

"Indeed, many people without this genotype still have one-night stands and commit infidelity. The study merely suggests that a much higher proportion of those with this genetic type are likely to engage in these behaviors," he added.

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British firm advertises for female web coders

2012-03-21T21:48:00.001-07:00

Now here's a dream job. An advertisement has appeared on the UK version of Craigslist looking for female web coders who are prepared to work in the nude.

Chris Taylor of Nude House says he's a naturist himself, and that the office is warm and private - and great fun. Customers never meet the staff, he promises, and won't know they're in their birthday suits.

On the company website, he says it's the "ultimate experience for nudist self-expressions" and suggests that "The company may also operate the other nude activities - if the staff desire."

His requirements are simple. "There is nothing hard with this other than understanding the web and being able to design web pages," reads the ad. "You can work part-time or full-time - it is up to you."

But there is just one more thing that applicants apparently need for the job - breasts.

Taylor is remarkably unabashed about the stipulation, which he seems to think is perfectly normal. "It's because they'll be working for me in my house, and I want females," he told News Agency. "I don't want to look at men."

Somehow, though, I don't think I've got the job.

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Kajal Aggarwal is Furious

2011-09-07T09:08:00.000-07:00

‘I NEVER POSED TOPLESS’

Kajal Aggarwal who was in the news recently for a topless photo-shoot for a magazine, says the photos were altered ~ Srinivasa Ramanujam

Kajal Aggarwal is furious. The recent buzz that she had gone topless for a photoshoot for a men’s magazine has irked the actor. Kajal claims that the picture was distorted and she says, “I shot for the magazine, but not this way. They have photo-shopped the picture and changed it.”

The peeved actor says that she had never posed topless for the shoot. “I was wearing a black tube top while shooting. In fact, I still have the pictures that I shot in the tube top, which they sent for my approval. Moreover, I did not give them an interview,” she clarifies. Kajal is supposed to have said that she would never wear a bikini or do a kissing scene in the interview for the mag.

Kajal, who is currently shooting for the Tamil film Maatran, is upset with the final outcome of the pictures and the story. “I’m not the kind of person who would ever do a topless shoot. My reputation and work stands by me. Publishing a distorted version of the photo is wrong and unethical,” she states. The actor signs off by saying, “My team will take this up with the magazine.”

Diary of a Single Girl

2011-08-06T05:49:00.000-07:00

I’m looking forward to the usual tamasha...

So the fashion week starts. It’s going to be hectic — the meetings, fittings, the rehearsals, and finally the madness backstage. The bitching has already begun. Some are whining about curbing the partying to look their best on the ramp, others are moaning about why some models are being more than them, and some are cribbing about the very designers they will be walking for. Everyone has their own set of complaints. But almost everyone is pissed about a leading actress being the face of this fashion week.

Does Bollywood have to take over everything? And why couldn’t the bosses have picked an actress who is young and upcoming, if there was one needed? Does it have to be a 30-plus actress who is getting ready to bid adieu to tinsel town. She is already picking out her wedding trousseau.

Maybe she will get her trousseau free from one of the designers. We all know which one! It’s going to be a busy week. But I am looking forward to the usual tamasha. We models know how editors of top magazines call to get front row seats even though they know n o t h i n g ab o u t fashion. Socialites and actresses confirm a presence on conditions.

Then there are friends of ‘influential’ people from corporate sponsors who have their own VIPs, who need to be catered to. It’s all so predictable. Nothing ever changes. You just learn to laugh at it, or ignore it — like everyone ignores this model who has developed this habit for coke. No one talks about it. I don’t blame her. The pressure gets to you after a while. Once the novelty of walking down the catwalk and having flashbulbs go off in your face wanes, little else remains. No wonder, if you ever walk backstage before or after a shoot, you will breathe in funny-smoking air. It never gets better.

Last year, a good-looking actor, who hasn’t walked for years, strutted down the catwalk for his designer buddy in Delhi, and even though he’s so far away from the modelling scene, he still needs his daily fix of high. He’s using so much that it’s showing on his face. One never knows when you go from trying it, to enjoying it, to needing it. Yes, I have tried it all, but cut it out before I got addicted. I can give you a list of models and actors who need to check into rehab right now. But even their family or friends are afraid of suggesting it. And then one day, he or she will quietly overdose in their home and there will be tributes like the ones on Amy Winehouse in all the papers recently. Dead at 27.

There’s enough pressure as it is. We’ve seen two female models end their lives in the last few years, and there are more cases just waiting to happen. Most of these beautiful people who shine on the ramp are dark on the inside. Disillusioned and disconnected. Is it this world that breaks them? Or is it that the spotlight attracts these broken souls?

A Love Triangle and a Steamy Bedroom Scene

2011-07-20T00:43:00.000-07:00

Reason enough for the film adaptation of Saratchandra Chatterjee’s novel to be re-released ~ P Sangeetha

A critically acclaimed Bengali film is being marketed as Tamil soft-porn. Well, you heard that right. And the actor in the midst of the storm is none other than Reemma, who has impressed the audience with films like Minnale, Chellamey and the recent Aayirathil Oruvan.

The Kollywood industry is abuzz with the news that one of Reemma’s Bengali films, Iti Srikanta, which released in 2004, has been dubbed into Tamil as Ilavarasi and is being marketed as soft porn. The story of Iti Srikanta revolves around a man, who is torn between two women — Reemma and Soha Ali Khan. The film, which marked the debut of Soha Ali Khan in Bengali cinema, is a love triangle based on a novel by the legendary Bengali writer Saratchandra Chatterjee. The film directed by Anjan Das reportedly had a steamy bedroom scene which had Reemma in a comprising position. Sources say that the members of the Regional Censor Board, who saw the film, felt that the film did not suit family audiences because of the scene, and hence, gave it an A certificate. The posters of the film, (which is expected to hit screens soon), have triggered a lot of interest among the audience and Tamil distributors are lapping up the film, as it is expected to sell like hotcakes.

MORE FOR THE VOYEUR - The trend seems to be catching on in Kollywood. Amala Paul, one of the fast rising stars in Kollywood, whose movie, Deiva Thirumagal just hit the screens, is also in a fix. The actor, who made her debut in Tamil with the controversial Sindhu Samaveli, is upset that her maiden venture has been released again (with the same name), but this time as a soft-porn. The director of the film, Samy, claims that Amala’s picture in the provocative posters have been morphed and that he is clueless about the re-release of the film. We hear that the producer of the original, Michael Royappan, had sold the film to another person, who then released it again as soft porn.

Crazy Bartenders

2011-07-17T08:57:00.000-07:00

Wanna Have Great Sex - Try These Foods

2011-07-13T23:07:00.000-07:00

They say sex is a great stressbuster. They are right because love-making has been found to relive the pressure of the burdens of life, ease stress, soothe chronic aches and pains, spur creativity and rev up the energy levels.

Experts say that anything that makes you feel good, alive and physically excited will make you feel as if you've shed years. And all these things are associated with sex.

You are probably aware of the basics of terrific sex, but let us suggest you a few aphrodisiacs which can add zing to your sex life.

Figs have been found to be brimming with minerals like magnesium, manganese and zinc and also Vitamin E. All of them can do wonders to spice up your sex life.
The flashy-red watermelons contain a substance called citrulline, which sends the body the signals to release arginine, which relaxes blood vessels. This produces an effect similar to Viagra. And need we give you details about what Viagra does?
You've tried whiskey, you've tried wine but didn't feel the buzz. Pick a bottle of champagne and feel the difference. It enters the bloodstream faster than the wine does, so make sure you don't drink too much of it. Many champagnes have been found to have the same amount of antioxidants as red wine.
The Red Hot Chilly Peppers can bring out the hotness in you. They help recreate the symptoms of arousal: flushed cheeks, a quiver on your tongue, and more kissable lips. They also up the heat in the body.
Cheese releases 10 times more endorphin's than the great ol' aphrodisiac - Chocolate. It will help you set the right mood.
Chocolate has been your trusted friend when it comes to having a great sex. You just need to maintain the bond. Its aphrodisiac property has been ascribed to two chemicals. One, tryptophan, which is the building block of serotonin, a brain chemical involved in sexual arousal. And two, phenyethylamine, a stimulant.

So the kind of food we gorge upon can do wonders with our sex life. Right food can make you positively sexual.

♥ Kids always Fun to Watch ♥

2011-07-07T00:55:00.000-07:00

Delhi Safari

2011-07-01T06:16:00.000-07:00

Hottest New Female Award Goes To...

2011-06-30T22:57:00.000-07:00

There are winners. And then there are HOT winners. With 3.43 lakh votes pouring in on itimes.com from all corners of the country, along with our vote, the Times Poll announces the winners of the hottest female and male making their debut this year. The faces enticing you on this page are not chosen because of their acting abilities or for being in the most commercially successful film of the year.

Hotness quotient is all that mattered to us and that is all that we asked you to judge them on. Forget talent for now. Forget the noise their movies did or didn’t make. This is what you said about their oomph factor. From Neha Sharma’s killer lips in Crook to Barbara Mori’s bikini moves in Kites to Shraddha Kapoor’s sweet charm in Teen Patti and Nidhi Subbaiah’s fresh appeal in Pancharangi (Kannada)... here’s what the numbers say about the hot, new female brigade that is catching the fancy of filmmakers and audiences alike. The list follows...

Fortune favors the Bold

2011-06-24T01:17:00.000-07:00

Future Aircraft Design by Airbus in 2050

2011-06-13T20:40:00.000-07:00

Chennai Rhinos win the inaugural CCL

2011-06-13T01:05:00.000-07:00

Yellow fever sweeps CCL - Chennai Rhinos win the inaugural tournament ~ Sarah Salvadore

V FOR VICTORY: CCL champions Chennai Rhinos

Chennai is red hot and how! The Chennai Rhinos bagged the top honours at the first edition of the Celebrity Cricket League (CCL). The final of the muchawaited CCL was all about glitz, glamour and cricket. The frenzy reached a new high as the Karnataka Bulldozers and Chennai Rhinos clashed in an epic encounter at the Rajiv Gandhi International stadium. The stadium was chock-ablock with fans who came to see their matinee idols slug it out with one another in a friendly game of cricket. With the IPL fever just subsiding, the match came at the right time and gave the crowds lots to cheer about. The captain of the Karnataka Bulldozers, Sudeep won the toss and decided to put the Chennai Rhinos to bat. Even though wickets fell at regular intervals, team Chennai put up a competitive score of 189/7. Despite having a great batting line-up the team from Karnataka fell short of target by 23 runs. The performance of the Chennai team has been consistent throughout the tournament. The fan support they received at the Uppal stadium was immense.

DHAN TE NAN - The match started with a bang as singer Anushka Manchanda took the stage and regaled the audience with hit numbers, including a Tamil song. During the innings break, the sizzling Shriya Saran made the audience groove along with her as she put up an energetic performance, dancing to popular tunes like Ringa Ringa, Dhinka Chika and Munni Badnaam among others.

CELEB CHEERLEADERS - If the field was teeming with stars competing against one another, stars were lined-up at the dugouts of both the teams, cheering their hearts out. Leading the brigade were veteran actors Mohan Babu and Shatrughan Sinha who came before the match could begin to wish both the teams. Players from the Mumbai Heroes — Sohail Khan, Shabbir Ahluwalia, Ashish Choudhary among others led by skipper Suniel Shetty, came to extend their good wished to both the teams. Dabangg girl Sonakshi Sinha too was present. Sridevi Boney Kapoor and Subhash Ghai enjoyed every moment of the game, while actor Priya Mani was cheering hard for the Karnataka team.

GAME SET - The presentation ceremony was equally exciting. Vishnu from the Chennai Rhinos bagged the man of the match award for his exceptional performance, while actor Dhruv from the Karnataka Bulldozers was adjudged man of the series. Sridevi then handed over the winners trophy Abbas and Sarath Kumar and the runners-up trophy to the skipper of the Karnataka team, Sudeep.

Priyamani at Clebrity Cricket League 1

2011-06-11T11:11:00.000-07:00

Back in Action - Sonia Agarwal

2011-06-10T23:35:00.000-07:00

SECOND TIME LUCKY?

Tamil actor Sonia Aggarwal seems to making all the right moves in her second innings in the industry ~ P Sangeetha

Sonia Aggarwal is enjoying her comeback in Kollywood to the hilt. The actor, who had bid goodbye to films at the peak of her career, after tying the knot with Tamil director Selvaraghavan (actor Dhanush’s brother) is now back with a bang. Films are back on top of her list of priorities following her divorce from Selva, and the actor has been on a signing spree. Post divorce, her first release, Vaanam, which had an ensemble cast including Simbu, Anushka and Prakash Raj, fetched her rave reviews, bringing Sonia back into the spotlight.

“Even though my role in the film was short, I got a lot of accolades on a micro-blogging site for my performance. I should thank director Krish for considering me for the role,” says Sonia. Her follow up to Vaanam is the forthcoming Tamil flick Maata Pitha Guru, which deals with a social issue. “The film is based on the subject of child abuse. You can call it cerebral cinema. It was a challenging role as I had to portray three avatars in the film — a saint, a woman with negative shades to her character and an investigative television reporter,” says the actor.

Sonia is also testing new waters in Mollywood with a film opposite Mukesh. “I play an innocent, homely woman who handles the pressures of a family delicately. It’s a family entertainer directed by Mohan Kupleri. I always wanted to make a debut in Malayalam and have been waiting for a good offer to come my way. But it didn’t happen for long. So when I got this one, I just couldn’t resist it. It’s a role that I have been looking forward to do,” says Sonia.

The spate of films apart, Sonia has also been turning heads with her new svelte look. “Yes, I have knocked off a few kilos and I’m really feeling confident now. My friends are quite impressed with my new look,” she laughs. With her glam avatar and meaningful projects in her kitty, Sonia is on a roll. “I have moved on from my divorce and I’m very happy now. I’m also cheering for the men in yellow — the Chennai team of the Celebrity Cricket League. I’m loving my comeback,” she signs off.

Priyamani still looking for Mr Right

2011-06-08T20:10:00.000-07:00

Priyamani dismisses rumours of her impending marriage plans and talks about her next Kannada film

Priyamani has her hands full. The actor has almost wrapped up the shoot for her two Kannada films — Vishnuvardhana opposite Sudeep and Lakshmi with Shivraj Kumar, and has just signed her next Kannada project, Koko. It was during the shoot of Lakshmi, that filmmaker Adi Narayana, came up with the script of Koko. “I loved the storyline and immediately agreed to do the film,” she says. “Later, Adi briefed me about Chandru, who will be donning the director’s cap for this film. His last film Mylari, had Shivraj Kumar and Sada in the lead, and was widely appreciated by the audience. I am not very familiar with Kitty either, who is the lead actor of the film, but I consider this an opportunity to get to know another person. Kitty’s recent release, Sanju Weds Geetha, is the talk of the town today. So, why not?”

The most exciting part of the new film is the fact that she will be wearing just one costume for most of the film. “I have not done this before and it sounds very interesting,” she says. “Also, I’m really looking forward to working with Chandru.”

Now that the actor has made a name for herself in the southern film industry, she is contemplating her future plans and is hoping to turn director too. “My friends have been asking me to take up film direction. But I still have a long way to go and have enough time ahead to take it up. As of now, I only have acting on my mind. One day, I will definitely take up direction as I have always wanted to work behind the camera.”

Ask her about the rumours about her alleged romance with Telugu actor Sumanth and she says, “Sumanth and I are good friends and my family knows him very well. There’s no romance brewing between us. Love and marriage can wait as I am still looking for Mr Right and haven’t found him yet. Tying the knot is a distant dream.” [Photo Shoot]

To Save the Planet - Japanese Workers Dress Down

2011-06-03T00:04:00.000-07:00

Japanese Environment Ministry, encouraging its employees to dress more causally in-order to help reduce the use of air conditioners and reduce electricity consumption following the March 11 disasters. Environment Minister Ryu Matsumoto has announced a souped-up "Super Cool Biz" campaign this year to relieve the pressure on the electricity grid after the March 11 quake-tsunami and ensuing nuclear emergency.

A fashion show organised by the government in a chilly Tokyo on Wednesday to highlight the campaign caused a stir on the Twitter microblogging site, with mixed reactions to the launch.

"Take a salaryman out of a suit, and he still somehow looks like a salaryman," said illustrator mister_tim.

"Japan launches 'Super Cool Biz' to dress down and save energy at work. People complain it's too cold. Put a bloody jacket on, then," university researcher Kanetaka Maki offered.

When the earthquake struck the northeast coast of Japan, the crisis at the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant and other power stations triggered a drop in energy output.

Electricity companies have been scheduling power cuts and businesses have been cutting usage by dimming lights and turning off heated toilet seats, as well as installing low-energy bulbs.

Super Cool Biz encourages businesses and government departments to set the dial on air conditioners to 28 degrees Celsius (82 degrees Fahrenheit).

Employees in the ministry will set an example to corporate Japan by wearing cotton trousers, T-shirts and even loud Aloha shirts.

It is unclear how well the new regime will go down in a country where many are loath to challenge the status quo. In previous years, Cool Biz adherents have taken ties to work in their pockets and sneaked blazers into briefcases.

The prefectural government of disaster-hit Iwate has decided not to go as far as allowing jeans in the office to avoid making visitors feel "uncomfortable", the Kyodo news agency reported.

But the more conservative salarymen will be relieved to hear that the change in sartorial direction does not allow for flip-flops, shorts or vests.

The environment ministry announced results of the first Cool Biz campaign in October 2005, estimating that the campaign resulted in a 460,000-tonne reduction in CO2 emissions, equivalent to the CO2 emitted by about a million households for one month.

But for Wednesday's launch of this year's Cool Biz campaign the streets of downtown Tokyo's Ginza district have been more remarkable for the number of umbrellas and scarves on show than Hawaiian shirts.

The temperature in Tokyo on Wednesday morning was six degrees below the June 1 average of 21.8 Celsius, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency website.

Source-AFP

Japanese Research: Elders can’t Lie Convincingly Nor can Detect a Liar Easily

2011-05-28T23:02:00.000-07:00

Elders can’t lie convincingly nor can detect a liar easily. It all could be due to age-related decline in emotion recognition, new University of Otago research suggests.

Department of Psychology researchers Ted Ruffman, Janice Murray and Jamin Halberstadt compared young and older adults’ skills at deception as judged by listeners within and outside their age group. Dr Murray presented the findings at the Association of Psychological Science’s annual convention in Washington, D.C.

The study involved 60 participants being shown video clips of 20 people expressing their actual or false views on topical issues such as factory farming and stem cell use in humans. Ten of the speakers were aged 30 or under and 10 were 60 or over. Two clips of each speaker were shown; one in which they were lying, and the other being truthful.

The 60 listeners, who consisted of two equal-sized groups with average ages of 21 and 71, were asked to determine if the person in each clip was being truthful or lying. They also underwent tests that required judgments of emotional expression and age in faces.

Associate Professor Halberstadt says the results of the lie detection test showed that both young and older listeners found it easier to differentiate truths and lies when the speaker was an older adult compared to a young adult.

“It could be that older people are less convincing liars because the kinds of cognitive abilities required for successful deceit are also those that tend to deteriorate with age,” he says.

Lying places demands on memory and planning ability (e.g., formulating a plausible argument, keeping story facts straight) and on social understanding (e.g., judging whether a particular argument will convince a listener, as well as keeping track of a listener’s response as the lie unfolds to potentially alter the argument).

“In our study, we also found that older participants in the lie detection test were not as good as their younger counterparts at differentiating between lies and truths.”

Further analysis showed that older people’s scores in the emotion recognition test strongly predicted how well they would do in the lie detection task.

“As with our recent findings on older people’s worse abilities in detecting social gaffes, and also older men’s tendency to talk for too long and go off topic when talking, age-related decline in emotion perception was again linked to a poorer performance in the phenomenon being studied.”

The research team also examined an idea proposed by previous researchers that recognising brief flashes of negative facial emotions such as guilt, fear or disgust, known as “micro-expressions”, plays a key role in detecting lies.

To do this, in the emotion recognition test the team showed participants images of faces displaying one of six different types of emotion, varying the duration of the images on the computer screen. The three durations used were 1/20th of a second, ¼ of a second, or until the participant assigned an emotion to the face.

“While emotion recognition ability explained the difference in lie detection between young and older adults, there was no particular advantage associated with correctly identifying facial emotions displayed for the shorter times. These results suggest that recognising micro-expressions is perhaps not necessarily key to detecting deceitfulness after all,” Associate Professor Halberstadt says.

He says that people who are lying could well be sending out detectable signals with some emotional content, but these may or may not solely revolve around facial expressions, and do not necessarily leak out only briefly.

“Emotion recognition also involves auditory and body-language aspects, so the giveaway signals might additionally, or instead, be heard in the voice or seen in emotions expressed through the body. We still don’t know what exactly allows listeners to correctly detect lies, although we know that people can differentiate lies and truth at a rate above chance level - though they are far from perfect.”

Associate Professor Halberstadt says that it would be interesting to study whether older adults’ difficulties telling and detecting lies affects their susceptibility to fraud schemes and their general social well-being.

“As well as problems arising from being more easily deceived, a reduced ability to tell white lies that spare others’ feelings may impair their relationships, for example.”

The team’s findings are also being published in the US journal Psychology and Aging. Tina Vater, who is now with the University’s Injury Prevention Research Unit, was also a study co-author.

Source-Medindia

Kids Fighting over Getting Married

2011-05-26T03:53:00.000-07:00

♥ Mr. Sheila Ki Jawani ♥

2011-05-10T22:22:00.000-07:00

Webcam hacker uses "hot steam" ploy to get pics

2011-03-07T03:02:00.000-08:00

This Apple repair tech wanted a little more than just the ability to remotely tap into women's webcams.

He wanted to increase his chance of seeing them naked. 20-year-old Trevor Harwell allegedly installed malware on the computers he was supposed to be fixing, which would cause them to randomly display the following bogus error message: "You should fix your internal sensor soon. If unsure what to do, try putting your laptop near hot steam for several minutes to clean the sensor."

Harwell is reported to have been arrested, but only after his scheme actually worked, according to the local authorities. While even the least tech-savvy person would probably be able to realize the error was bogus, all of the victims were clueless. It took one of Harwell's customers' mother to realize how unusual the message was, as she's the one who kicked off the investigation. According to a report in the LA Times, hundreds of thousands of pictures were taken from Harwell's PC as part of the criminal case against him. This isn't the first time people taking their computers in somewhere to be fixed found they had been tampered with.

There have been reports of people finding porn on their PC after sending it in for repairs, or of other malicious software being installed. People bringing in their computers have also faced legal action, as companies like Geek Squad find child pornography or other illegal material during their check-up of a PC, which they turn over to authorities.

In short, be careful when you send something as personal as your computer into a third-party entity, because it's never fully safe.

The Real Tongue Twister

2010-09-04T22:59:00.000-07:00

Never Trust a Three Year Old

2010-08-31T22:54:00.000-07:00

Beautiful Babe

2010-08-22T05:23:00.000-07:00

Survival of the Fittest

2010-08-15T01:26:00.000-07:00