Tuesday, September 27, 2005

Nazar Pics - Very Hot





The Telegraph - Calcutta : Nation

Beeline for bite of Meera’s kiss
by AMIT ROY

London, Sept. 24: Asian movie fans in the Muslim-dominated city of Bradford were today flocking to have a nazar of Pakistani actor Meera, who was due to be “in conversation” at a film festival called Bite the Mango.

Her appearance has been well flagged by festival authorities, who said: “Meera — the star of Nazar and the talk of Bollywood at the moment — will talk on stage about her work as a Pakistani actor in India and, no doubt, the furore caused by her on-screen kiss with co-star Ashmit Patel.”

The festival’s director, Irfan Ajeeb, who has devoted much energy over the past decade to bringing Hindus and Muslims, Indians and Pakistanis, closer together through cinema, has concentrated on giving the entries a much needed “Pakistan focus” this year.

“There is more to Pakistani cinema than Lollywood, just as there is more to Indian cinema than Bollywood,” said Ajeeb, whose father Mohammed Ajeeb, a former Lord Mayor of Bradford, was the first Asian to hold such a position in the UK.

Read the full article at : The Telegraph - Calcutta : Nation

ABC News: Hostage Gave Meth to Atlanta Fugitive

Hostage Gave Meth to Atlanta Fugitive
In New Book, Woman Held Hostage by Man Accused in Courtroom Rampage Says She Gave Him Some of Her Drugs

By GREG BLUESTEIN, Associated Press Writer

ATLANTA Sep 27, 2005 — Ashley Smith, the woman who says she persuaded suspected courthouse gunman Brian Nichols to release her by talking about her faith in God, discloses in a new book that she gave him methamphetamine during the hostage ordeal.

Smith did not share that detail with authorities after she talked her way out of captivity.

In her book, "Unlikely Angel," released Tuesday, the 27-year-old Smith says Nichols had her bound on her bed with masking tape and an extension cord. She says he asked for marijuana, but she did not have any, so she dug into her illegal stash of crystal meth instead.

Read the full article at : ABC News: Hostage Gave Meth to Atlanta Fugitive

Trump Hires Another Heir - Sep 27, 2005 - E! Online News

Trump Hires Another Heir
by Josh Grossberg, Sep 27, 2005, 9:15 AM PT

Donald Trump, get ready for the littlest Apprentice.

The 59-year-old real-estate titan and his 35-year-old model wife, Melania Knauss, are expecting their first child together, a rep for Trump confirmed.

The baby is due in the spring, Trump's NBC spokesman Jim Dowd told E! There has been no word on whether it's a boy or a girl or what name the couple may choose.

Read the full article at : Trump Hires Another Heir - Sep 27, 2005 - E! Online News

Actress' remarks on sex kicks up controversy

Actress' remarks on sex kicks up controversy
Press Trust of India

Chennai, September 26: A recent remark by Kushboo, an actress of yesteryear, on virginity and pre-marital sex, has kicked up lot of dust and controversy, with some political parties in Tamil Nadu besides a section of her own fraternity, taking up the cudgels against her.

Advertisement
The volunteers of Dalit Panthers of India stormed the office of the South India Film Artistes' Association in the city with broomsticks and chappels, demanding an apology from the actress, who hails from Mumbai.

Read the full article at : Actress' remarks on sex kicks up controversy

Reuters Business Channel | Reuters.com

Microsoft, Intel throw weight behind HD DVD standard
By Reed Stevenson, Tuesday 27 September 2005, 0:01am EST

SEATTLE, Sept 26 (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp. and Intel Corp. on Monday threw their weight behind the next-generation HD DVD format being promoted by Toshiba Corp. in a blow to Sony Corp.'s, Blu-ray format.

The world's largest software maker and the world's largest microchip maker announced that their products would support Toshiba's HD DVD format. They said the HD DVD format would make it easier for consumers to copy high-definition movies to computer hard drives.

Next-generation DVD discs, designed to store movies and other content with much more detail and clarity, have sparked a three-year battle between Toshiba and Sony, over what is expected to be a multi-billion-dollar market for next-generation DVD players, PC drives and optical discs.

"We wanted to choose the format that has the highest probability of this market taking off," said Stephen Balogh, director of optical media standards and technologies at Intel.

The announcement from Intel and Microsoft, which together supply the technology behind at least 9 out of every 10 personal computers sold worldwide, came as no surprise, since Microsoft said in June that it would work with Toshiba to develop technology for the HD DVD format.

Read the full article at : Reuters Business Channel | Reuters.com

Muslim American Society

High-Ranking Al-Qaeda Leader in Iraq Killed
Date Posted: Tuesday, September 27, 2005

BAGHDAD, Sep 27 (MASNET & News Agencies) - Iraq claimed a major coup with the killing of a high-ranking al-Qaeda member, described as the second-in-command of al-Qaeda in Iraq, as a suicide bomb attack on a police recruitment center south of Baghdad left 10 people dead.

Abu Azzam, also known as Abdallah Nahim, but whose real name was Abdallah Mohammed al-Juhaari, was "the second-most wanted al-Qaeda person in Iraq," according to the U.S. military, reports Agence France-Presse (AFP).

Read the full article at : Muslim American Society

Thursday, September 22, 2005

Guardian Unlimited | The Guardian | The beauty products from the skin of executed Chinese prisoners

The beauty products from the skin of executed Chinese prisoners
· Cosmetics firm targets UK market ·
Lack of regulation puts users at risk


Ian Cobain and Adam Luck
Tuesday September 13, 2005, The Guardian


A Chinese cosmetics company is using skin harvested from the corpses of executed convicts to develop beauty products for sale in Europe, an investigation by the Guardian has discovered.

Agents for the firm have told would-be customers it is developing collagen for lip and wrinkle treatments from skin taken from prisoners after they have been shot. The agents say some of the company's products have been exported to the UK, and that the use of skin from condemned convicts is "traditional" and nothing to "make such a big fuss about".

Read the full article here : Guardian Unlimited | The Guardian | The beauty products from the skin of executed Chinese prisoners

Monday, September 19, 2005

CNN.com Specials

SATELLITE IMAGES
New Orleans under water

Much of New Orleans was flooded after Hurricane Katrina broke through levees that protected the low-lying city. The extent of the flooding is especially apparent when comparing satellite images of the city taken before and after the storm. In both images, Lake Pontchartrain is along the top and the Mississippi River is in the lower right corner.

Read the full article here : CNN.com Specials

You should definately check out this link as it has satellite images of March 9,2004 and August 31, 2005. So you can compare yourself.

Friday, September 16, 2005

Blogger Status

Blogger Status

This site serves to keep Blogger users informed about Blogger's development, upgrades, outages and related issues. Here, we will detail problems that exist and what's being done about them.:

Read the full article here : Blogger Status

Thursday, September 15, 2005

Blogger Help : Blog Search FAQ

Blog Search FAQ

What is Blog Search?

Blog Search is Google search technology focused on blogs. Google is a strong believer in the self-publishing phenomenon represented by blogging, and we hope Blog Search will help our users to explore the blogging universe more effectively, and perhaps inspire many to join the revolution themselves. Whether you're looking for Harry Potter reviews, political commentary, summer salad recipes or anything else, Blog Search enables you to find out what people are saying on any subject of your choice.

Read the full article here : Blogger Help : Blog Search FAQ

Blog Search

Search blogs from all over the web.

Blog Search

New mom Britney Spears delivered a baby boy: reports

New mom Britney Spears delivered a baby boy: reports
Posted on : Thu, 15 Sep 2005 21:06:00 GMT | Author : Emma Price


The world's most celebrated mother-to-be, pop star Britney Spears, has finally delivered a baby boy. According to media reports, the baby was born through a caesarean section at Santa Monica's UCLA Medical Center near Los Angeles at 1 pm local time on Wednesday.

According to sources, the baby, fathered by Britney's husband Kevin Federline, would be christened either London Preston or Preston Michael. Earlier, Britney had said if she had a baby boy she would name him London, after the place where she met her spouse. “Ever since I was a little girl I thought, for a boy I love Sean Preston – or London Preston. Isn't London pretty?”

Read the full article here : New mom Britney Spears delivered a baby boy: reports

Wednesday, September 14, 2005

Aamir, Kareena in Maqbool director's next

Aamir, Kareena in Maqbool director's next
Subhash K Jha | September 13, 2005 16:38 IST

It's the love story of two people who aren't married to each other," says music composer-turned director Vishal Bharadwaj about his new and by far most ambitious film, Mr Mehta & Mrs Singh.

While Aamir Khan was finalised as Mr Mehta a few months ago, the casting of Mrs Singh comes as a surprise.

"Kareena Kapoor is an actress I've been watching since Refugee. Her performance in Mani Ratnam's Yuva finally convinced me of her extraordinary talent," says Vishal. "After working with Shabana Azmi in Makdee and Tabu in Maqbool, I'm spoilt. I only want to work with the best actresses in the country. And you have to agree, Kareena is among our best today."

Vishal admits he approached Rani Mukerji and Preity Zinta to play the female dates were not matching Aamir's dates. So I had to look elsewhere. But I'm glad Kareena is in the project. Aamir has lead. "But their worked with Rani and Preity before but not with Kareena. This is a completely untried pairing. That adds a special edge to the on-screen romance."

Read the full article here : Aamir, Kareena in Maqbool director's next

Sunday, September 11, 2005

Wired News: CardSystems' Data Left Unsecured

CardSystems' Data Left Unsecured
By Kim Zetter, 02:00 AM Jun. 22, 2005 PT

CardSystems Solutions -- the credit-card processing company that recently exposed 40 million debit and credit-card accounts in a cyber break-in -- failed to secure its network, even though the network had been certified secure to a data security standard, according to Visa.

Since 2001, Visa and MasterCard have been touting a data security industry standard they developed in an effort to prevent credit-card data theft and stave off federal regulation. The standard has become a required criteria for businesses handling credit-card transactions.

Read the full article here : Wired News: CardSystems' Data Left Unsecured

Wired News: Did 'Spam Factory' Steal Data?

Did 'Spam Factory' Steal Data?
Associated Press, 12:47 PM Aug. 12, 2005 PT

LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas -- On the hunt for a hacker two years ago, security officials at data-management company Acxiom discovered that an internet address at one of its clients' contractors was taking far more data than it should have.

The e-mail marketing contractor, Florida-based Snipermail.com, gathered contact information and sent bulk-e-mail advertisements and sweepstakes offers on behalf of advertisers. But downloading 1.6 billion customer records -- the equivalent of 550 telephone books filled with names, e-mail and postal addresses -- wasn't part of the job.

Prosecutors say the company and its owner, Scott Levine, were stealing the data from Acxiom servers for its own purposes.

Read the full article here : Wired News: Did 'Spam Factory' Steal Data?

Wired News: Hackers Admit to Wave of Attacks

Hackers Admit to Wave of Attacks
By Kevin Poulsen, 02:00 AM Sep. 08, 2005 PT

An Ohio computer hacker who served as a digital button man for a shady internet hosting company faces prison time after admitting he carried out one of a series of crippling denial-of-service attacks ordered by a wealthy businessman against his competitors.

In a deal with prosecutors, Richard "Krashed" Roby, 20, pleaded guilty in federal court in Toledo last month to intentionally damaging a protected computer, after launching a 2003 attack on an online satellite TV retailer that caused at least $120,000 in losses.

Read the full article here : Wired News: Hackers Admit to Wave of Attacks

New Zealand Herald - Peter Griffin: They can cripple Kazaa, but downloading will continue - Thursday 08, September 2005 19:11.00 PM - Technology & Sci

They can cripple Kazaa, but downloading will continue
by Peter Griffin, 09.09.05

With the rabid zeal for which it has become famous, the music industry chased file-sharing bandit Kazaa to the bottom of the world. But as the outcome of an Australian court case looks to crush Kazaa once and for all, the record companies find themselves cornering a rogue whose day has passed.

Kazaa sprang in all its lime-green gaudiness to the attention of web users in 2001 when it filled the vacuum left by Napster, which itself was toppled by legal challenges.

Kazaa's software has been downloaded 317 million times since and its users download three billion files a year. In contrast, the most successful legitimate music download service, iTunes, had racked up 500,000 paid-for song downloads by July, two years after it opened.

Read the full article here : New Zealand Herald - Peter Griffin: They can cripple Kazaa, but downloading will continue - Thursday 08, September 2005 19:11.00 PM - Technology & Science

New Zealand Herald - Sony's new PSP an instant hit - Thursday 08, September 2005 19:20.00 PM - Technology & Science

Sony's new PSP an instant hit
By Peter Griffin, 09.09.05

I wasn't using Sony's PlayStation Portable (PSP) for long before I'd made up my mind that it's the best bit of consumer technology to be released this year. It's a stylish, useful device that's priced within reach of the masses.

Kids and adults will love it. Everyone you show it to wants to touch it and look at its screen. Only Apple has been able to come up with devices that have such pleasing aesthetics.

First and foremost the PSP is a gaming machine that delivers graphics as good as you'll get out of the PlayStation 2 console. That alone would satisfy a legion of gamers. But Sony is going much further, making the PSP suitable for watching movies, listening to music, displaying photos and surfing the web. It has its limitations, but the PSP is the start of something new and big in personal technology.

Its best feature is its high-resolution, 480 by 272-pixel and 16.77-million-colours widescreen display. It's just big enough to allow you to comfortably watch a full-length movie or play a game. For watching movies, which are played off Sony's UMD (Universal Media Disc) media, you'll experience DVD-quality video.

Read the full article here :New Zealand Herald - Sony's new PSP an instant hit - Thursday 08, September 2005 19:20.00 PM - Technology & Science

New Zealand Herald - Intel narrows revenue range - Friday 09, September 2005 09:49.00 AM - Technology & Science

Intel narrows revenue range
By Daniel Sorid, 09.09.05 1.00pm

SAN FRANCISCO - Intel, the world's largest microchip maker, yesterday narrowed the range of its quarterly revenue forecast but left the midpoint unchanged, saying business remained within expectations.

Shares of the company fell just under 1 per cent in after-hours trading following the scheduled update, which came amid stronger-than-expected forecasts from two other large US chip makers.

Intel said it expects third-quarter revenue to be in the range of US$9.8 billion ($14.09 billion) to US$10 billion, tightening a forecast it issued in July calling for revenue of US$9.6 billion to US$10.2 billion.

The midpoint of the forecast remained US$9.9 billion, up about 16 per cent from the US$8.5 billion reported in last year's third quarter.

"The company continues to see double-digit year-over-year growth driven primarily by strong demand for notebook PC platforms," the Santa Clara, California-based company said in a statement.

Read the full article here : New Zealand Herald - Intel narrows revenue range - Friday 09, September 2005 09:49.00 AM - Technology & Science: " "

Wired News: Astrodome Radio Station Blocked

Astrodome Radio Station Blocked
By Joel Johnson, 09:53 AM Sep. 08, 2005 PT

HOUSTON -- KAMP 95.3 "Evacuation Radio Services", a low-power FM station for Hurricane Katrina evacuees housed at the Astrodome, is still stuck in limbo. Although the group trying to organize the station has wrangled three 90-day licenses from the FCC, as of Thursday, they were being stymied by a handful of temporary administrators content to maintain radio silence.

While basic needs -- food, water, clothing, shelter -- have been met with remarkable hospitality, the survivors of the hurricane inside the Astrodome complex say they continue to suffer from a lack of information. Parents struggle with paperwork to enroll their children in school while simultaneously attempting to locate housing and employment, not to mention lost family members. Most evacuees sit alone on cots, passing the time playing cards or dominoes. Short blasts of information periodically echo from the Astrodome's PA speakers.

Read the full article here : Wired News: Astrodome Radio Station Blocked

New Zealand Herald - Brain change in adolescence blamed for sulky teens - Friday 09, September 2005 18:11.00 PM - Technology & Science

Brain change in adolescence blamed for sulky teens
10.09.05

An explanation for teenagers' sulky outlook may have emerged from a study showing that adolescents suffer a form of brain regression at puberty.

Scientists have found young teenagers begin to lose the ability to discern important emotions in the faces of adults, causing them to behave temporarily like much younger children.

Professor David Skuse of the Institute of Child Health in London said hormonal surges at puberty may cause a re-wiring of the brain of adolescents, which interferes with their ability to interact socially with their elders.

"There is a temporary deterioration in children's capacity to interpret accurately emotions from facial expressions. This may go some way to explaining the 'Kevin' phenomenon portrayed so perceptively by [comedian] Harry Enfield."

Read the full article here : New Zealand Herald - Brain change in adolescence blamed for sulky teens - Friday 09, September 2005 18:11.00 PM - Technology & Science

New Zealand Herald - Street urchin makes a difference to lives - Friday 09, September 2005 18:31.00 PM - Technology & Science

Street urchin makes a difference to lives
By Phil Taylor, 10.09.05

The man known in Himalayan hospitals simply as "Mr Ray" ushers me into his Mt Eden garage workshop with as much pride as any self-respecting do-it-yourselfer.

But in place of grease-smeared tools, it houses a pristine pharmaceutical production unit that makes Aids drugs in aerosol cans. It is designed to overcome the lack of child-sized doses of the medicine, an absence that often means death in Africa.

Read the full article here : New Zealand Herald - Street urchin makes a difference to lives - Friday 09, September 2005 18:31.00 PM - Technology & Science

New Zealand Herald - Hot wired: Portable screens are on a roll - Friday 09, September 2005 13:38.00 PM - Technology & Science

Hot wired: Portable screens are on a roll
PHILIPS READIUS, 11.09.05

Let's talk about the future of laptops for a moment.

Laptops, or "notebooks" if you want to get all 1996 on us, haven't changed much since they first appeared. The screen lifts up off the keyboard, and you know the rest. So far, so blah. Not for much longer though.

For years Toshiba has been discussing the possibility of a screen that rolls up, reducing laptop weight and giving users a roller-blind capability.

Read the full article here : New Zealand Herald - Hot wired: Portable screens are on a roll - Friday 09, September 2005 13:38.00 PM - Technology & Science

Wired News: DNA Testers Battle Time, Humidity

DNA Testers Battle Time, Humidity
By Randy Dotinga, 02:00 AM Sep. 09, 2005 PT

As they prepare to tackle the daunting task of matching hundreds of hurricane victims with their identities, the nation's DNA laboratories are facing major challenges, ranging from decomposition to the difficulties of tracking down relatives to be tested for familial links. It will take months, if not years, to analyze samples from both the living and the dead.

But there is some good news: Four years after the massive post-9/11 DNA identification efforts began, scientists say they have learned how to effectively test thousands of DNA samples. New technology allows investigators to do a better job of linking men to their family lines (female DNA is easier to match). And, perhaps more importantly, DNA has shown itself to be a remarkably hardy substance, often impervious -- at least temporarily -- to the worst the world can throw at it.

Read the full article here : Wired News: DNA Testers Battle Time, Humidity

New Zealand Herald - Flying dinosaur biggest airborne animal - Friday 09, September 2005 17:59.00 PM - World News

Flying dinosaur biggest airborne animal
By Steve Connor, 10.09.05

A flying reptile that lived 100 million years ago and had an 18m wingspan has entered the record books as the largest-known animal to have taken to the air. Scientists discovered the fossilised bones of the dinosaur-like creature at a site in Mexico and have calculated that its wingspan was nearly twice the length of a Spitfire's.

Details of the pterosaur, the first animals with backbones to fly, emerged at the British Association's Science Festival in Dublin. It was described by Dr David Martill of Portsmouth University from work carried out by Dino Frey of the German Staatlichen Museum fur Naturkunde in Karlsruhe.

Only fragments of wing bones have been discovered but their size and dimensions indicate that the animal must have had a wingspan of at least 18m.

The largest flying bird today is the wandering albatross, with a wingspan of about 3.5m, which means that some pterosaurs were more than five times the size.

"A Spitfire has a wingspan of 11m and has to be powered by a Rolls-Royce Merlin engine," Martill said. "Pterosaurs did it on a diet of fish and a superb ability to utilise air currents, thermals and ground effects.

Read the full article here : New Zealand Herald - Flying dinosaur biggest airborne animal - Friday 09, September 2005 17:59.00 PM - World News

BBC NEWS | Americas | US pauses to recall 9/11 attacks

US pauses to recall 9/11 atta
Sunday, 11 September 2005, 13:31 GMT 14:31 UK

A memorial service to recall the 11 September 2001 attacks on the United States is under way at the former site of New York's World Trade Center.

he names of the 2,749 victims of the Twin Towers attack are being read out by their brothers and sisters.

The ceremony paused for a minute's silence at 0846 (1246 GMT) when the first plane hit the north tower.

In New Orleans, New York police helping with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina will be holding their own ceremony.

Read the full article here : BBC NEWS | Americas | US pauses to recall 9/11 attacks

Monday, September 05, 2005

Wired News: A Disaster Map 'Wiki' Is Born

A Disaster Map 'Wiki' Is Born
By Ryan Singel, 01:35 PM Sep. 02, 2005 PT

Of all of the websites tracking the Katrina disaster, surely one of the most remarkable is Scipionus.com.

Visitors swoop down over a map of the Gulf Coast that's awash in hundreds of red teardrops, each denoting information about specific geographical points in the area. That's pretty amazing in itself, but there's more: All of the information on the map has been provided by ordinary citizens, most of whom presumably have come to the site in search of information on the flood themselves.

Since Scipionus.com launched Wednesday, it has become a giant visual "wiki" page, attracting tens of thousands of visitors who are collaborating in creating a public document of astonishing detail. "Corner of 1077 and Brewster. Had contact with parents. Lots fo trees down, but no water damage. No electrucity and no phone at the monebt 8/31 2:00pm," reads one of hundreds of entries.

The site is the brainchild of Jonathan Mendez, a 24-year-old computer programmer living in Austin, Texas. Mendez says he grew frustrated combing message boards trying to find out if his family home -- the one his parents and brother had just fled from -- had been destroyed.

Read the full article here :
Wired News: A Disaster Map 'Wiki' Is Born

Wired News: File-Swapping Illegal Down Under

File-Swapping Illegal Down Under
Associated Press, 10:02 AM Sep. 05, 2005 PT

SYDNEY, Australia -- A federal court ruled Monday that the popular file-swapping program Kazaa infringes on copyright and gave its purveyors two months to alter the system so its users can no longer engage in music piracy.

Hailed as a victory by the recording industry, the court's decision has implications well beyond the borders of Australia, where Kazaa executives are based, due to the internet's global nature.

Federal Court Judge Murray Wilcox determined that Kazaa's owners and distributors, led by Sharman Networks, took no action to rein in illegal activity despite posted warnings on their website urging Kazaa users not to swap copyright material.

Wilcox said it had been in the financial interest of Sharman and its partners "to maximize, not minimize, music file-sharing."

Read the full article here : Wired News: File-Swapping Illegal Down Under

A technological activist's agenda

A technological activist's agenda Earlier : A technological activist's agenda

A technological activist's agenda NOW : A technological activist's agenda

Wired News: BitTorrent Whiz Extolled Piracy?

BitTorrent Whiz Extolled Piracy?
By Katie Dean and Kevin Poulsen, 02:00 AM Jun. 30, 2005 PT

BitTorrent programmer Bram Cohen may be in legal jeopardy after the discovery on Wednesday of an old agenda buried on his website saying he creates programs to "commit digital piracy."

The polemic would have been of little interest a week ago. But on Monday, the Supreme Court ruled that the intent behind a file-sharing program can be a decisive factor in determining whether the creator can be sued for its users' copyright infringement.

Cohen said the agenda was written years before he started work on BitTorrent, and that it was written as a parody of other manifestos.

"I wrote that in 1999, and I didn't even start working on BitTorrent until 2001," Cohen said. "I find it really unpleasant that I even have to worry about it."

Read the whole article here : Wired News: BitTorrent Whiz Extolled Piracy?