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World News Updates: Riot over arrival of new iPhones at Apple store in Beijing

2012-01-12T22:41:00.000-08:00

Beijing: Thousands of Chinese tech fans queued in freezing temperatures on Friday as the new iPhone 4S went on sale, sparking violent scenes when staff at the Beijing Apple store refused to open its doors.

Police detained at least two people after customers scuffled, threw eggs at the glass front of the store in Beijing's upmarket Sanlitun shopping district, and shouted at staff to open the doors so they could buy the new phone.

An AFP reporter at the scene saw frustrated shoppers attack a security guard outside the shop after police with megaphones shouted at the 1,000-strong crowd to go home and said the new iPhone would not go on sale.

"We waited here all night. It's not fair," said 18-year-old Tom Sun. "We're angry because this American company told us it would open its doors at 7:00 am."

Another, Li Tianye, had travelled for two days by bus from eastern China's Shandong province to get to Beijing for the launch.

"IPhone 4S is Steve Jobs' best, that's why I want one. I will be really upset if they don't open the doors," said the 29-year-old.

Apple did not immediately return calls for comment on why the retailer, one of only two official stores in Beijing, had not opened. Police declined to comment on the violence.

Some of the 1,000 or so people gathered outside the store from the early hours on Friday told AFP they had been paid 100 yuan (around $15) each by touts to stand in line and wait for the doors to open.

One young Chinese man who refused to give his real name said he planned to buy as many of the phones as he could and resell them at a profit of at least 500 yuan a piece.

"These are not fake iPhones," he said. "People want Steve Jobs' best."

Reselling is a major industry in China, where the new iPhone has been on sale for months at a premium on the black market, after being smuggled in from neighbouring countries and from Hong Kong.

But not everyone was disappointed. Some Beijing shoppers said they had bought the phone from a nearby electronics retailer after being turned away from the official Apple store.

"There was a problem at the Apple store. Too many angry people," said one, a young Chinese man who gave only his surname, Du, and said he had been waiting since Thursday evening to buy the phone.

Calmer scenes were witnessed in Shanghai, where an AFP reporter said Apple stores had opened to large crowds and the phone was on sale.

Greater China -- which includes Hong Kong and Taiwan -- has become Apple's fastest growing region, with revenue there second only to the United States.

Die-hard fans in China, which has the world's largest online population with more than 500 million users, have been known to line up for days to get their hands on the latest Apple products.

The California-based company has recently expanded aggressively in China, opening its first store in Hong Kong and its third in Shanghai last September, which brings the total to six in Greater China.

But Apple's popularity has also brought problems, with widespread counterfeiting and illegal smuggling of its products.

In July, an American blogger uncovered fake Apple stores in the southwestern city of Kunming, where even staff working there did not appear to know they were fake.

Kollywood Superstar: Rajinikanth Turns 62

2011-12-12T01:20:00.000-08:00

Kollywood superstar Rajinikanth, also known as 'Thalaivar' among his fans, is celebrating his 62nd birthday on Monday. Rajinikanth does everything in style and his birthday plan is supposedly grander than it may seem.

Apparently through Rajinikanth Narpani Iyakkam (Welfare Movement), 20-25 fans will be selected from each district of Tamil Nadu who will on Monday meet the superstar, reports say.

Famous for his style statements, Rajinikanth's fans want 'December 12' to be better known as 'World Style Day'. Months ago, a fan proposed the idea on the wall of Rajinikanth fan page on Facebook.

The actor, with at least 150 movies to his credit, was honoured with the Padma Bhushan Award in the year 2000.

Meanwhile, his some of fans are reportedly planning a lavish bash for the superstar's birthday, some Rajini fan clubs will be starting an online campaign reportedly asking Madame Tussauds to have a waxwork of the star.

The actor has been keeping a low profile after facing health-related problems during the shooting of his upcoming movie Rana, earlier this year.

After his 2010 sci-fi Enthiran (Robot), a blockbuster at the box office, Rajini was last seen in Shah Rukh Khan's Ra.One in a cameo.

We wish the superstar a very happy birthday!

Latest Sports News: Poonia wins gold in Portland - Discus Thrower

2011-10-13T04:52:00.000-07:00

Commonwealth Games gold medallist Krishna Poonia on Thursday won gold in women's discus throw event in the Harvest Throw Meet in Portland, United States.

Poonia came up with her season's best throw of 59.39m but her effort fell short of 2012 London Olympics qualification 'B' standard of 59.50m.

She began with 59.39m before her next two efforts were foul throws. She could not improve upon her first attempt mark as she came up with 59.29m, 59.37m and 59.22m in her last three efforts.

Poonia expressed confidence that she would qualify for the Olympics in her next two meets coming up in the United States.

"I am happy to win gold medal and has full confidence to throw 61 to 62 meter in coming events. I was feeling little bit nervous today because of the knee problem I had a couple of months back," she said.

Poonia has been training at the Throws Centre at Concordia University at Oregon, Portland since July under the guidance of former Olympic champion Mac Wilkins.

Daily News: SC disappoints us, say families of Uphaar victims

2011-10-13T04:46:00.000-07:00

Disappointing the families who lost their loved ones in the 1997 Uphaar Cinema fire incident, the Supreme Court on Thursday slashed the compensation awarded to the victims of the tragedy. Compensation to the families of deceased older than 20 years has been cut from Rs 18 lakh to Rs 10 lakh each, while for those below 20 years of age, compensation has been reduced from Rs 15 lakh to Rs 7.5 lakh.

The apex court said that that the responsibility lies with the Ansals and the Delhi Vidyut Board (DVB). The Ansals have been told to pay 85 per cent of the compensation, while the DVB will have to pay 15 per cent of the compensation.

The punitive damages imposed by the Delhi High Court on Ansals has also been reduced from Rs 2.5 crore to Rs 25 lakh.

"They have reduced punitive damages from 2.5 crores to 25 lakhs. 25 lakh is nothing for corporates. I fail to understand how this puny amount will will discourage corporates in the future," said Navin Sahni, family member of a victim.

The apex court also ruled that the MCD and Delhi Police, the licencing authority, cannot be held responsible for the tragedy.

"We have already lost everything. We have nothing else to lose. The MCD should have been made liable. People will continue to die in such tragedies and passing the buck will go on," said Neelam Krishnamurthy, family member of another victim.

However, MCD lawyer Sanjeev Sen said, "Total quantum of compensation awarded by the HC to the victims has been maintained. But the liability of MCD in this whole episode has been set aside and so has of the Delhi Police, which is the licensing authority."

"The stand of the MCD was always that we were not liable, we complied with all the statutory obligations. We had made timely reports, pointed out illegal constructions," said Sen.

With the Supreme Court order, it appears that the civil litigation is over in the case. Now the petitioners will push for criminal proceedings, asking for a higher quantum of punishment, fine and compensation.

Daily news: Ban lifted on Samsung Galaxy tablet... but did Apple mislead court with 'squashed' photo of rival device?

2011-08-17T03:59:00.000-07:00

Samsung can sell its latest iPad rival in most of Europe again after a German court yesterday lifted most of an injunction it had imposed at Apple's request.

But just hours after the ban was lifted, Apple faced accusations of misrepresenting the Galaxy Tab's similarity to its iPad in a legal document that helped gain the original injunction.

A comparison image taken from page 28 of a filing made by Apple's lawyers featured a 'squashed' picture of the Galaxy Tab that looks identical in size and shape to the iPad.

In reality, the Galaxy Tab is far narrower than the iPad.

Misleading? This comparison image taken from legal papers filed by Apple's lawyers featured a 'squashed' picture of the Galaxy Tab that looks identical in size and shape to the iPad

Apple had said Samsung's Galaxy line of mobile phones and tablets 'slavishly' copied the iPhone and iPad. It has sued in the U.S., Australia and elsewhere.

But a Dusseldorf regional court yesterday said it was questionable whether its authority extended to international companies operating outside Germany, so it restricted a preliminary ban imposed last week on Samsung Electronics to Germany.

Samsung's Galaxy Tab line of tablet computers is considered the most credible alternative to Apple's iPad, which has taken the market by storm, selling about 30million since its launch a year and a half ago.

Apple and others have moved aggressively to defend their intellectual property in maturing markets, especially against Google's Android software platform, on which the new Samsung Galaxy 10.1 tablet is built.

Android, a latecomer to the mobile market, has become a target by rapidly turning into the world's most popular smartphone platform.
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Google is relatively defenceless because it owns few wireless patents, in contrast to older rivals.

However, Google yesterday announced a deal to buy Motorola Mobility, the descendant company of cellular phone pioneer Motorola, for $12.5billion, largely for its vast patent library.

The Dusseldorf court said its ban still applied to Germany, and also to the German unit of Samsung, Samsung GmbH, throughout the European Union.

A hearing in the case is now due next week.

Samsung said in a statement: 'We look forward to the opportunity to reassert our intellectual property rights at the hearing scheduled on August 25.'
Samsung has been locked in a battle with Apple over smartphone and tablet patents since April.

The Galaxy gadgets are seen as among the biggest challengers to Apple's mobile devices, which have achieved runaway success.

In Australia, Samsung has agreed to show Apple an Australian version of the Galaxy Tab 10.1 one week before its launch there, a Samsung spokesman said.

2G Scam hot news : Raja opposes hearing of arguments from July 21

2011-07-20T04:40:00.000-07:00

NEW DELHI: Former Telecom Minister A Raja and former Telecom secretary Siddhartha Behura , arrested for their alleged roles in the 2G spectrum allocation scam, today opposed a Delhi court's schedule to begin hearing arguments on framing of charges against them from tomorrow.

The duo opposed the scheduled commencement of arguments by Special CBI Judge O P Saini from July 21, saying it should be slated to a later date after filing of the third chargesheet in the case.

They sought the postponement contending that completion of the probe is a pre-requisite for beginning of arguments on the charges.

Contending that Raja and other accused allegedly involved in the 2G scam were questioned by the CBI on July 18 in Patiala House court complex, the former minister's counsel argued this shows the probe is still on.

"Raja was illegally interrogated by CBI which shows investigation is on. Under what provision did the court allow CBI to quiz him if the probe had been completed?" asked senior counsel Ramesh Gupta appearing for Raja.

Gupta said before commencing arguments on framing of charges prosecution must make a specific statement before the court that their investigation is complete.

Counsel for Behura submitted that hearing of arguments on charges should begin only after CBI files its third charge sheet.

The court had yesterday decided to commence arguments on framing of charges in the case from July 21 after the agency and the defence counsel had submitted that the supply of documents, annexed with the two charge sheets in the case, has been completed.

Earthquake in New Delhi Today. 6.0 Magnitude Earthquake hit the India-Nepal border.

2011-04-04T04:51:00.000-07:00

New Delhi: An earthquake of magnitude 6.0 hit the India-Nepal border today.

The tremors were also felt in Delhi.

More details are awaited.

SNAP SHOT - Developments after major Japan earthquake- video

2011-03-14T04:26:00.000-07:00

(Reuters) - Following are main developments after a massive earthquake struck northeast Japan on Friday and set off a tsunami.

Death toll expected to exceed 10,000 from the quake and tsunami, public broadcaster NHK says. About 2,000 bodies found on two shores of Miyagi prefecture, Kyodo news agency reports.
Japan battles to prevent nuclear catastrophe. A hydrogen explosion jolts the No. 3 reactor of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, 240 km (150 miles) north of Tokyo. Operator Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) (9501.T) says 11 people were injured.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano says the core container at the reactor is intact and the explosion is unlikely to have produced a large escape of radioactivity.

Before the blast, officials said 22 people had suffered radiation contamination. Up to 190 may have been exposed.

Experts pursue efforts to cool down three reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi plant. Experts say the use of seawater in this operation is unprecedented.

Nuclear safety agency rates the incident a 4 on the 1 to 7 International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale, less serious than Three Mile Island, a 5, and Chernobyl at 7.

U.S. warships and planes helping relief efforts have moved away from Japan's Pacific coast temporarily because of low-level radiation.

Authorities have set up a 20-km (12-mile) exclusion zone around the Fukushima Daiichi plant and a 10-km (6 mile) zone around Fukushima Daini.

Strong aftershocks persist in the stricken area.
About 450,000 people evacuated nationwide in addition to 80,000 from the exclusion zone around the nuclear power plants. Almost 2 million households are without power in the freezing north and about 1.4 million households have no running water.

Reactor operator says rolling blackout to affect 3 million customers, including large factories, buildings and households.

Japan's Nikkei share index falls more than 6 percent, dragging European stocks to their lowest in three months.

The Bank of Japan (BoJ) offers to pump a record $85 billion into the banking system.
Credit Suisse estimates the loss at between 14 trillion yen and 15 trillion yen just to the quake region.

Hot Bollywood News: Now Priyanka's sister to enter Bollywood

2011-02-14T23:15:00.000-08:00

Priyanka Chopra's first cousin, Parineeti Chopra couldn't have asked for more. She has been signed in Yash Raj Films' next LADIES V/S RICKY BAHL, to be directed by BAND BAAJA BAARAAT fame Maneesh Sharma. Parineeti has been a part of the marketing team of Yash Raj Films.

Priyanka is ecstatic with the news. "Yes, Parineeti Chopra is my sister. This is the first time Yash Raj Films has launched someone in such a way. I am very happy YRF has signed her. She is a part of YRF's marketing department. In fact, she had worked on my own film PYAAR IMPOSSIBLE. I think it was one of her first films."

Being one of the leading actress, does Priyanka have any tips for the newcomer? "I think I will call her and do that," says Priyanka with a wry smile.

Parineeti will be one of the "ladies" who falls prey to the smooth talking guile of Ricky Bahl. LADIES V/S RICKY BAHL stars Ranveer Singh and Anushka Sharma in lead roles. The shooting starts early-April and plans to be in theatres on 9th Dec 2011, the same weekend BAND BAAJA BAARAAT released.

Mandira bedi, Raj Kaushal expecting a first baby

2011-01-27T23:35:00.000-08:00

Cricket’s sexiest female anchor Mandira Bedi is back in the news but for a very cute reason. Her husband, producer Raj Kaushal and she are expecting their first baby close to 11 years after they got married.

It was meant to be a secret but what gave Mandira away was a dress. She was spotted at the calendar launch of Gold’s Gym in Bandra on Monday night, in an outfit that revealed a slight baby bump. She came for a very brief while and was very careful with her movements.

While Mandira did not return our calls, a source close to her confirmed the news. “Yes, Raj and Mandira are set to become parents.

Since it’s just the second trimester, they don’t want to talk about it at the moment. The baby is due some time in June.”

Mandira’s plans of anchoring the Cricket World Cup stay. “These are early days with most people - especially the viewers - won’t have the slightest inkling that she’s expecting,” added the source.

Bollywood divas Priyanka and Katrina are 'tax-free' now

2011-01-27T23:17:00.000-08:00

Bollywood divas Priyanka Chopra and Katrina Kaif both made public appearances on Thursday, their 1st since the I-T raids on their residences on Monday.

While Katrina is present at a Bandra Bookstore for the launch of a novel by Pritish Nandy and Kamala Das, Priyanka attended an award show at the MMRDA grounds at Bandra Kurla Complex.

Both actresses seemed to have found their stride and their voice, hitting out against the several unconfirmed news doing the rounds about claims of spectacular seizures made by the I-T department.

Agency reports on Thursday indicated that an unaccounted Rs 6 crore had been found at Priyanka Chopra's residence. Reacting almost immediately, a spokesperson of the actress said, "We deny the many malicious rumours being spread into the media on the basis of some unidentified sources.

We are extending all cooperation to the Income Tax authorities in their ongoing investigations and are restraining ourselves from commenting any further on the issue pending completion of the investigative process."

A senior I-T official told Mumbai Mirror that while prima facie there were definitely some doubts about some documents which indicated that an amount close to Rs 6 crore could be unaccounted for, it be much too early to categorically declare it tax evasion.

"First of all, no unaccounted cash was seized from her residence. And if there are some purchases - or documents related to some purchases - which were detected and there is no immediate clarity about the source of funds for them, the matter will have to be investigated further.

Even Priyanka will be set a chance to prove bona fides. This is an ongoing process and we cannot jump to conclusions at this point," said the official.

Earlier in the day, a terse statement was issued by Katrina Kaif's chartered accountants. "A search was conducted by the Income Tax Dept at the residence of my client Ms Katrina Kaif. My client is disturbed by the speculative reports circulating in the media to she has disclosed unaccounted income running into crores and unaccounted lockers were found.

The fact of the matter is that no unaccounted income has been declared by her. Katrina is fully cooperating with the IT Dept, whom she holds in high regard," the statement said.

Current Bollywood News: Hrithik Roshan plump avtaar in Guzaarish

2010-11-12T22:02:00.000-08:00

Hrithik Roshan has proved himself time and again with his sheer dedication to all his characters that he has played on-screen till date. He is definitely a star by carving a niche for himself with each of his films and portraying his character with a perfect ‘T’.

Right from his debut film Kaho Na Pyar Hai to Lakshya and Krissh, he has proved his mettle as being one thoroughbred performer. So has he done with his upcoming release. Keeping his perfection intact in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Guzaarish, Hrithik Roshan has slogged day and night to fit into the character of the magician that he plays in the film.

He actually ceased all his physical exercises and gym sessions for a couple of months at a stretch before shooting started. Well, you must be guessing that that why would health conscious man like Hrithik Roshan do that for? The answer to it is that since he plays the role of a magician in the film, who suddenly develops a disease and gets paralyzed, he was supposed to look the character by putting on a lot of weight.

This was definitely not an easy task for him. Hrithik who is admired for his toned physique has actually put in a lot of efforts to gain weight for the film. Amusingly the star had to eat and drink everything that a top rated star is not expected to eat like vada pau (fried cutlet and bread), samosa etc for months together.

However, this was a treat for him as he got a chance to relish all these foods to his hearts content as he must not have tasted them for years despite loving them so much. This role of a paraplegic gave him an excuse to just gorge on every bit of food that he could lay his hands on. Thus we get to see a plump Hrithik in the film.

The movie releases on the 19th of November.

Current bollywood news: “Hrithik and Katrina” are family friends!

2010-07-14T11:48:00.000-07:00

Katrina Kaif has become a family friend of the Hrithik Roshans. Yeah, she and Hrithik Roshan have been in Spain for the Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara schedule for over 40 days now.

And Sussanne with her two sons has also been there throughout the schedule. So, naturally Kat and Sussanne have become friends. Incidentally, sources say that Roshans and Kat look very hot together and there is one filmmaker in Mumbai who is planning to cast them together again. Guess that might not prove to be an issue because even Sussanne will approve.

PC World: Apple pressured to fix “iPhone” antenna flaw

2010-07-14T10:37:00.000-07:00

The flap over Apple's problems with the iPhone 4 antenna continues to grow, with marketing and shopper electronics experts calling on the company to take further steps to fix it’s reception problem.

Apple has acknowledged that holding the device a certain way interferes by signal quality and has promised a software update. However, on Monday, the influential technology magazine and website Consumer Reports gave the device — and Apple's response to the issue — a failing grade.

The publication said it could not recommend the product until Apple came up with a permanent and free fix, a sentiment a number of industry watchers agreed with on Tuesday.

"If Apple does what Apple should do, then absolutely there should be a recall," said Ken Wong, a marketing professor at Queen's University. "Apple took a silly stance at first. They didn't really express the kind of consumer concern that you would normally expect from Apple, and for which they're best known."

In the United States, several marketing experts said a recall of the iPhone 4 in the five countries where it has launched is "inevitable." Apple did not return a request for comment.

If a recall did happen, the company could find itself short of stock for impending launches in other countries, including Canada. All three of Canada's major wireless providers — Bell, Rogers and Telus — have plans to sell the device, but that could be delayed if a recall is issued, Wong said.

Other observers said a full recall may not be necessary. Kaan Yigit, president of Solutions Research Group consumer electronics consultancy in Toronto, said Apple could simply issue a plastic cover for the iPhone 4, which would obviate the antenna issue.

"My guess is that they may offer some sort of a credit or a free bumper and consideration for a future purchase or similar," he said. "I disagree with the commentators that this is a disaster for Apple – recall or not, the brand has plenty of equity with a range of products now. Sure it's a slip-up, but it won’t really damage in a grand scale."

Wong, however, said issuing a free plastic cover would counter one of the iPhone 4's best features — its smaller size and weight. And, he added, unless Apple acts quickly and decisively to fix the issue, it could indeed suffer long-term brand damage because the company has had remarkable success in getting people to snap up its new devices early.

"You don't get that type of acceptance if people are apprehensive about whether the original version is going to work. Apple does not want to play with that reputation," he said. "If they recover beautifully then they're the Apple everyone knows and loves. If they don't, they're just the Microsoft of old."
Despite the antenna issue, the iPhone 4 has sold briskly. Apple said it sold more than 1.7 million units in the first three days after its June 24 launch.

Iain Grant, president of the SeaBoard Group telecommunications consultancy in Montreal, said he's seen no sign of waning interest in the iPhone 4, despite the well-publicized issue.

"I do know I am still in queue for one ... and three people at lunch today all affirmed that they are all intending to move to [the new phone]."
The Consumer Reports review made Apple shareholders antsy on Tuesday, sending the company's stock sliding by four per cent on the Nasdaq.

Current bollywood news: Suriya in 'Rakta Charitra'

2010-05-19T02:52:00.001-07:00

Suriya be all set to enter Bollywood with Ram Gopal Varma’s 'Rakta Charitra'. The Hindi movie is also being made in Telugu and Tamil. The title for the Tamil version is 'Raththa Sarithiram'. The screenplay differs in the two south Indian language versions. A full-length film, it will be released in August. Photos: Special Arrangement

Latest Space Shuttle News: Crew to Complete Transfers from Leonardo

2010-04-14T22:20:00.000-07:00

At 12:21 a.m. EDT Mission Control awakened the STS-131 crew with the song "The Earth in the Color of Lapis Lazuli" by Seiko Matsuda for Naoko Yamazaki, who served as the loadmaster, supervising the unloading and loading activities for this mission.

Space shuttle Discovery's seven-member crew will begin their day by unloading the last transfer items in the Leonardo Multi-Purpose Logistics Module and then closing the hatches between it and the Harmony node in preparation for its return to the shuttle's payload bay.

Space Shuttle Mission: STS-131

Image above: A portion of the aft section of the docked space shuttle Discovery, Mexico, Baja California, and the Gulf of California (Sea of Cortez) are featured in this image photographed by an Expedition 23 crew member on the International Space Station. Image credit: NASA

› Meet the STS-131 Crew

No Fourth Spacewalk Needed; Crews to Finish Unloading Leonardo

Space shuttle Discovery’s seven-member STS-131 crew will begin their day by unloading the last transfer items in the Leonardo Multi-Purpose Logistics Module and then closing the hatches between it and the Harmony node in preparation for its return to the shuttle’s payload bay.

Overnight International Space Station and Space Shuttle mission managers agreed there is no need for a fourth spacewalk to replace the nitrogen tank assembly that has a jammed valve. Station ground teams have determined the station can operate for an extended period of time in the current configuration. The team is continuing to troubleshoot the stuck valve and is looking at options for future replacement of the nitrogen tank assembly should that be necessary.

The stuck valve is in a nitrogen tank assembly needed to pressurize a new ammonia tank installed on the station during this mission’s three spacewalks. It keeps ammonia circulating through radiators that dissipate the heat generated by the station’s electronic systems.

Ground teams were concerned a high beta angle would cause the ammonia in the new tank assembly to expand and exceed the capacity of the radiators without the nitrogen to keep the system circulating. The beta angle – the angle between the sun and the plane of the orbit – is increasing, creating higher temperatures.

At 8:41 a.m. EDT, Mission Specialists Naoko Yamazaki and Stephanie Wilson will use the station’s robotic arm to move Leonardo back into the shuttle’s cargo bay. This is the seventh time Leonardo has carried supplies and equipment to the station. The next time it returns with the STS-133 crew in September it will remain berthed to the station.

World wide daily news: Earthquake in China Over 600 dead “videos”

2010-04-14T21:56:00.000-07:00

Exactly two years after an earthquake devastated this province in western China, another quake of similar magnitude tore through its neighbouring region, leaving at least 400 dead and more than 10,000 injured.

A 7.1-magnitude quake struck a remote border area in north-west Qinghai province early on Wednesday morning, bringing down houses, temples, schools and government buildings, and leaving thousands trapped under the debris.

The epicentre of the quake was in Yushu county, in a Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture which borders Sichuan. State media reported that the quake, and a series of aftershocks including one measuring 6.3 in magnitude, left the worst-hit town of Jiegu in a pile of rubble and triggered landslides that had cut off many of the affected regions.

Power supply to much of southern Qinghai had stopped, telecommunications had been disrupted and one reservoir had been feared to have cracked, said reports.

“The streets in Jiegu are thronged with panic, with injured people, with many bleeding from the head,” Zhou Huaxia, a spokesman with the local government, told State-run Xinhua news agency “Many students are buried under the debris due to building collapse at a vocational school. I can see injured people everywhere. The biggest problem now is that we lack tents, we lack medical equipment, medicine and medical workers.”

The epicentre, he said, was in a sparsely populated pasturing area. “I think the quake would not cause casualties as heavy as those in Jiegu,” he added, though officials expected the number of casualties to continue to rise as rescue work continued.

More than 5,000 rescuers, including soldiers and medical workers, had been sent to the affected areas. “Our top priority is to save students,” said Kang Zifu, an army officer in the rescue operations.

Wednesday's quake struck Qinghai just as thousands in neighbouring Sichuan prepared to mark the two-year anniversary of an 8-magnitude quake, which left 70,000 dead and 18,000 missing.

Yushu lies less than a day's drive away from Wenchuan, the town at the epicentre of the May 12 earthquake, that was left in ruins two years ago. Its residents said they did not feel the impact of Wednesday's quake.

They will, ironically, next month celebrate the rebuilding of their shattered lives and homes. “Schools have reopened, and many homes have been rebuilt,” said Cao Zong Han, a farmer in Yammen village, north of Wenchuan, speaking to The Hindu earlier this week. He lost his home and his farming land under a collapsing mountain when the quake struck. “Life is now slowly coming back to normal,” he said.

But just as one county finally struggles to come to terms with the tragedy and loss inflicted by disaster, another, just up the provincial highway, will now have to go through the traumatic process all over again.

In Bollywood style: Sania Mirza married Shoaib Malik "videos"

2010-04-12T21:41:00.000-07:00

He hero proposes to his girlfriend but his ex-beau enters the scene when the marriage Is all set to take place. However, the problem is solved miraculously and the wedding takes all of a sudden. If you think this happens only in Bollywood, think again, because Sania Mirza’s marriage with Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Malik was no different.

Sania and Shoaib announced earlier that the nikaah would take place on April 15 but they tied the knot yesterday (April 12) at a private ceremony attended by their close relatives and friends, taking everyone, including the journalists, unawares. The guests at the wedding offered zuhar namaz after the nikaah.

The Mehndi ceremony is taking place today followed by Sangeet tomorrow (April 14). The wedding reception will be held on April 15 in Hyderabad.

The wedding was supposed to take place on April 9 but it was postponed by 3 days after the Qazi refused to perform the nikaah without Shoaib’s passport, which was seized by the police following an FIR filed by his first wife Ayesha Siddiqui. However, Sania's family got a no-objection certificate from the Hyderabad police, thus paving the way for the marriage.

Well, Sania may not be able to fulfill her dream of acting in Bollywood films but her wedding was like one!

Nasa News Today: Expedition 23 and STS-131 Crews Work Together Aboard Station

2010-04-08T21:14:00.000-07:00

Image above: STS-131 Mission Specialists Clayton Anderson (top) and Rick Mastracchio prepare spacesuits for the mission’s first spacewalk. Image Credit: NASA TV

The Expedition 23 and STS-131 crews are continuing their joint operations aboard the International Space Station.

The crews have begun to unload the Leonardo Multi Purpose Logistics Module and transfer 17,000 pounds of science racks and other supplies into the station, a job that will take several days.

STS-131 Mission Specialist Clayton Anderson and Expedition 23 Flight Engineer Soichi Noguchi opened the hatch to the "moving van" at 7:58 a.m. EDT Thursday. The module was relocated from Discovery’s payload bay to a port on the Harmony node at 12:24 a.m.

The Italian-built module’s more than 17,000 pounds of cargo includes four experiment racks along with the final private crew quarters. This is the final roundtrip to the station for the 21-foot-long, 15-foot-diameter Leonardo. Once back on Earth, the module will be reconfigured with increased shielding on the outside for the STS-133 mission in September when it will be left on the station as a permanent module.

Anderson also reviewed procedures with Mission Specialist Rick Mastracchio for the mission's first spacewalk scheduled to begin at 1:41 a.m. Friday.

The STS-131 mission has three planned spacewalks, with work to include replacing an ammonia tank assembly, retrieving a Japanese experiment from the station’s exterior, and switching out a rate gyro assembly on the S0 segment of the station’s truss structure.

STS-131 is the 33rd shuttle mission to the station.

› Read more about STS-131

› Read more about Expedition 23
› View crew timelines

NASA’s International Space Station Program Wins Collier Trophy

The International Space Station Program has won the 2009 Collier Trophy, which is considered the top award in aviation. The National Aeronautic Association bestows the award annually to recognize the greatest achievement in aeronautics or astronautics in America.

› Read more about the award

› Read Heads of Agency International Space Station Joint Statement

› MCB Joint Statement Representing Common Views on the Future of the ISS (8 Kb PDF)

2010 International Space Station Calendar

NASA is offering a 2010 calendar that describes the work being done on the International Space Station and gives information about the crews that have lived there. The calendar contains photographs taken from the space station and highlights historic NASA milestones and fun facts about the international construction project of unprecedented complexity that began in 1998. (Please Note: To print this large calendar on 8.5 by 11 paper, printer may need to be set on a "shrink to printable area" option.)

Latest Space Shuttle News:First STS-131 Spacewalk Begins Tonight

2010-04-08T21:07:00.000-07:00

The crew of space shuttle Discovery awoke Thursday at 8:51 p.m. EDT to “Defying Gravity” by Idina Menzel and Kristen Chenoweth, played for Mission Specialist Dottie Metcalf-Lindenburger.

Spacewalkers Rick Mastracchio and Clay Anderson spent the night in the International Space Station’s Quest Airlock, which was dialed down to a lower cabin pressure than the rest of the complex to rid their bodies of nitrogen and prevent the bends when they start their excursion. Preparations for the spacewalk resume at 9:26 p.m. and the activity is scheduled to begin at 1:41 a.m. Friday. Mastracchio and Anderson will undertake the laborious job of changing out a spent Ammonia Tank Assembly on the station’s exterior, a task that they will continue during the second spacewalk on Sunday and the third on Tuesday. They also will retrieve an experiment from the outside of the Japanese Exposed Facility and replace a failed gyroscope that is part of the station’s navigation system. Lindenburger will choreograph the spacewalk and serve as a link between Mission Control in Houston and the spacewalkers.

Image above: STS-131 Commander Alan G. Poindexter (left) with Mission Specialists Stephanie Wilson (center) and Rick Mastracchio speak to members of the media on Earth. Image credit: NASA TV

› Meet the STS-131 Crew

Anderson, Mastracchio Prepare for First STS-131 Spacewalk

Mission Specialists Clayton Anderson and Rick Mastracchio will leave the Quest airlock for the mission’s first spacewalk to prepare a new ammonia tank and gyro assembly for the International Space Station and to retrieve a science experiment from the station’s porch, the Japanese Kibo Laboratory’s exposed facility.

The 6-½ hour spacewalk is scheduled to begin at 1:41 a.m. EDT Mastracchio, the mission's lead spacewalker, will wear a spacesuit marked with red stripes, while Anderson will wear an all-white spacesuit.

The two will perform three spacewalks during their time at the station. Anderson and Mastracchio performed two spacewalks together during the STS-118 mission in August 2007.

Sports News: “Sania Mirza and Shoaib Malik” the romance that gripped two nations

2010-04-06T21:11:00.000-07:00

When Pakistan's former cricket captain announced his engagement to India's top tennis player, it was the start of a very tangled and intriguing affair . . .

Sania Mirza with Shoaib Malik discusses his previous alleged marriage with the press on Monday Photograph: Mahesh Kumar A/AP

Bring on the puns about love games, fine legs and bowling a maiden over. Pakistan's former cricket captain, Shoaib Malik, is to marry India's top-ranked female tennis player, Sania Mirza. In India, the rightwing Hindu nationalist political party, the BJP, has asked Mirza to "reconsider" her decision to marry a Pakistani, while more centrist parties have remained silent. In Pakistan, the Islamic rightwing political parties – who would usually have a lot to say about women who wear tennis skirts – have remained silent, while more centrist parties have voiced their congratulations. The contrasting attitudes each side of the border actually reveal the same assumption: a wife belongs to her husband's "household", so an Indian woman marrying a Pakistani man is unpatriotic, whereas a Pakistani man marrying an Indian woman is carrying home the spoils of victory. Or, as the painfully sexist/ jingoistic joke doing the rounds in Pakistan goes: "Finally, we get to see Pakistan screwing India."
But wait, there's more.

Ayesha Siddiqui from Hyderabad, India – Sania's home town – has appeared, declaring she is already married to Shoaib. Many Pakistanis remember Ayesha from a news story in 2005 that hailed "cross-border love" as Pakistan's cricket team travelled to India and provided a first opportunity for Shoaib to meet the in-laws. According to the stories at the time, Shoaib and Ayesha had met once in Jeddah (by her account, which he neither corroborated nor denied), continued a romance via the internet and were married over the phone in 2002. As stories went it was a compelling one – love across the border but within the same religion (ie confronting prejudice without breaking taboo) and a pleasing mix of modernity and tradition (internet romances both break and maintain the strictures of arranged marriages by allowing couples to communicate while still maintaining a modest physical separation).

Three years later, Ayesha's father declared that the marriage was over, but Shoaib was refusing to grant Ayesha a divorce. Shoaib insisted that though there was an internet romance, the marriage never took place. Now he says that yes, she pressurised him into taking part in a nikah – marriage ceremony – over the phone, but the chief qazi (sharia judge) of Hyderabad says a phone nikah isn't valid in Islamic law and in any case, Shoaib says, the nikah is doubly invalid because he was deceived about who he was marrying.

"But did you go to a hotel room with her?" an Indian journalist asked at the recent Sania-Shoaib press conference, voicing the question on everyone's mind. Shoaib looked pained. "First, tell me, who is Ayesha, and who is Maha? Tell her to come in front of me so I can be clear on this." This is the crux of the issue. Shoaib says he believed the woman he had agreed to marry, and whose photographs he had seen, was called Ayesha. But he later found out the woman in the photographs and the woman who he had been speaking to (and agreed to marry) were two entirely different women. He is refusing to release the photographs because the woman in them, he has discovered, is already married and he doesn't want to drag her into the scandal.

The "other woman" – who he agreed to marry – turned out to be someone called Maha. In a further twist, he says he had met Maha but believed she was an older relative of his fiancee Ayesha. Intriguingly, in 2005, prior to the Pakistan cricket team's arrival in India, the BBC named Shoaib's betrothed as "Ayesha (AKA Maha Siddiqui)".

This tiny detail is of little relevance to Shoaib's supporters, who point to photographs of Ayesha as proof that he clearly didn't know who he was marrying. "How could a hot young cricketer choose to marry someone who looks like that?" they ask. (In Pakistan, as all around the world, deception about personality traits are to be expected in courtship, but deception about physiognomy is entirely unacceptable.)

Meanwhile, Pakistan waits to greet Sania with open arms, and well-chosen wedding gifts. Pakistan's federal minister for population welfare has vowed to give the couple a "family planning kit". Pakistani comedian Sami Shah remarked, "She is going to give them a condom as a wedding present. I guess they can cross that off their wedding registry. Now, who's getting the blender?"

Latest Space Shuttle News: Astronauts Head to Launch Pad 39A

2010-04-05T00:02:00.000-07:00

Amid cheers and applause from space center workers, the seven STS-131 astronauts walked out of the Operations and Checkout Building that houses their crew quarters at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Dressed in their familiar, bright-orange launch-and-entry suits, they waved to the crowd before departing in the silver Astrovan. The trip to Launch Pad 39A takes about 25 minutes.

There are no technical issues in work and weather remains favorable for the 6:21 a.m. EDT launch time.

Image above: The STS-131 astronauts walk out of crew quarters to head to the launch pad. Image credit: NASA TV

› Meet the STS-131 Crew

Discovery and Crew Prepare for STS-131 Mission

Commander Alan Poindexter is set to lead the STS-131 mission to the International Space Station aboard space shuttle Discovery. Joining Poindexter will be Pilot Jim Dutton and Mission Specialists Rick Mastracchio, Clay Anderson, Dorothy Metcalf-Lindenburger, Stephanie Wilson and Naoko Yamazaki of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.

Discovery will carry a multi-purpose logistics module filled with science racks for the laboratories aboard the station. The mission has three planned spacewalks, with work to include replacing an ammonia tank assembly, retrieving a Japanese experiment from the station’s exterior, and switching out a rate gyro assembly on the S0 segment of the station’s truss structure.

STS-131 will be the 33rd shuttle mission to the station.

Nasa Latest News: New Expedition 23 Crew Members Welcomed Aboard Station

2010-04-04T23:57:00.000-07:00

Image above: The Expedition 23 crew speaks with family members and representatives on the ground. Image Credit: NASA TV

There are three new Expedition 23 crew members aboard the International Space Station. Following the completion of leak checks, the hatches between the Soyuz TMA-18 spacecraft and the station were opened at 3:19 a.m. EDT Sunday. A welcome ceremony for the new arrivals followed.

NASA astronaut Tracy Caldwell Dyson and Russian cosmonauts Alexander Skvortsov and Mikhail Kornienko lifted off aboard the Soyuz TMA-18 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan 12:04 a.m. Friday.

› View Soyuz TMA-18 launch video
› View Soyuz TMA-18 launch images

The trio docked to the station at 1:25 a.m. Sunday, completing the Expedition 23 crew.

The new crew members were welcomed by Expedition 23 Commander Oleg Kotov and Flight Engineers T.J. Creamer and Soichi Noguchi who arrived at the station Dec. 22 aboard the Soyuz TMA-17 spacecraft.

Space shuttle Discovery and the STS-131 crew are set to launch Monday from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, and dock with the orbital laboratory April 7. Discovery is delivering new science racks and ammonia tanks. While there, two shuttle astronauts will perform three spacewalks to switch out ammonia tanks on the station.

› Read more about Expedition 23
› View crew timelines

NASA’s International Space Station Program Wins Collier Trophy

The International Space Station Program has won the 2009 Collier Trophy, which is considered the top award in aviation. The National Aeronautic Association bestows the award annually to recognize the greatest achievement in aeronautics or astronautics in America.

› Read more about the award

› Read Heads of Agency International Space Station Joint Statement

› MCB Joint Statement Representing Common Views on the Future of the ISS (8 Kb PDF)

"WWE Wrestlemania 26 Videos" John Cena vs Batista

2010-04-01T01:35:00.000-07:00

WWE Wrestlemania 26 Videos: "Money in The Bank Ladder" Match

2010-03-31T06:23:00.000-07:00