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Osama Bin Laden, al-Qaeda leader, dead - Barack Obama

2011-05-07T00:09:00.000-07:00

Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden has been killed by US forces in Pakistan, President Barack Obama has said.

Bin Laden was shot dead at a compound near Islamabad, in a ground operation based on US intelligence, the first lead for which emerged last August.

Mr Obama said US forces took possession of the body after "a firefight".

Bin Laden is believed to have ordered the attacks on New York and Washington on 11 September 2001 and a number of others.

He was top of the US' "most wanted" list.

DNA tests later confirmed that Bin Laden was dead, US officials said.

Bin Laden was buried at sea after a Muslim funeral on board an aircraft carrier, Pentagon officials said.

Announcing the success of the operation, Mr Obama said it was "the most significant achievement to date in our nation's effort to defeat al-Qaeda".

The US has put its embassies around the world on alert, warning Americans of the possibility of al-Qaeda reprisal attacks for Bin Laden's killing.

CIA director Leon Panetta said al-Qaeda would "almost certainly" try to avenge the death of Bin Laden.

Crowds gathered outside the White House in Washington DC, chanting "USA, USA" after the news broke.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the operation sent a signal to the Taliban in both Afghanistan and Pakistan.

"You cannot wait us out, you cannot defeat us, but you can make the choice to abandon al-Qaeda and participate in a peaceful political process," she said.

And she said there was "no better rebuke to al-Qaeda and its heinous ideology" than the peaceful uprisings across the Arab world against authoritarian governments.

Compound raided

Bin Laden, 54, approved the 9/11 attacks in which nearly 3,000 people died.

He evaded the forces of the US and its allies for almost a decade, despite a $25m (£15m) bounty on his head.

Mr Obama said he had been briefed last August on a possible lead to Bin Laden's whereabouts. He authorised the operation last week once he determined there was enough intelligence to take action.

"It was far from certain, and it took many months to run this thread to ground," Mr Obama said.

On Sunday, US forces said to be from the elite Navy Seal Team Six undertook the operation in Abbottabad, 100km (62 miles) north-east of Islamabad.

US officials said Bin Laden was shot in the head after resisting.

Mr Obama said "no Americans were harmed".

US media reports said that the body was buried at sea to conform with Islamic practice of a burial within 24 hours and to prevent any grave becoming a shrine.

Giving more details of the raid, one senior US official said a small US team conducted the attack in about 40 minutes.

Three other men - one of Bin Laden's sons and two couriers - were killed in the raid, the official said, adding that one woman was also killed when she was used as "a shield" and two other women were injured.

One helicopter was lost due to "technical failure". The team destroyed it and left in its other aircraft.

One resident, Nasir Khan, told Reuters the helicopters had come under "intense firing" from the ground.

The size and complexity of the structure in Abbottabad "shocked" US officials.

It was surrounded by 4m-6m (12ft-18ft) walls, was eight times larger than other homes in the area and was valued at "a million dollars", though it had no telephone or internet connection.

The US official said that intelligence had been tracking a "trusted courier" of Bin Laden for many years. The courier's identity was discovered four years ago, his area of operation two years ago and then, last August, his residence in Abbottabad was found, triggering the start of the mission.

Another senior US official said that no intelligence had been shared with any country, including Pakistan, ahead of the raid.

"Only a very small group of people inside our own government knew of this operation in advance," the official said.

The Abbottabad residence is about a kilometre from the Pakistan Military Academy - the country's equivalent of West Point or Sandhurst.

The BBC's Aleem Maqbool in Abbottabad says it will undoubtedly be a huge embarrassment to Pakistan that Bin Laden was found not only in the country, but also on the doorstep of the military academy.

He says residents in the town were stunned the al-Qaeda leader had been living in their midst.

The senior US official said the "the loss of Bin Laden puts the group on a path of decline that will be difficult to reverse".

Bin Laden's probable successor, Ayman al-Zawahiri, was "far less charismatic and not as well respected within the organisation", according to reports from captured al-Qaeda operatives, the official said.

However, the root causes of radical Islam - the range of issues that enabled al-Qaeda to recruit disaffected young Muslims to its cause - remain, for the most part, unaddressed, Islamic affairs analyst Roger Hardy told the BBC.

"The death of Bin Laden will strike at the morale of the global jihad, but is unlikely to end it," he warned.

UFC 126: Silva Takes Belfort Out with 1 Kick

2011-02-06T07:06:00.000-08:00

Even after a dozen straight wins during nearly a half-decade of unrivaled perfection in the UFC octagon, Anderson Silva still came up with another spectacular way to finish a fight.

Silva stopped Vitor Belfort with a single kick to the face in the first round, defending his middleweight belt for a record eighth time at UFC 126 on Saturday night.

After little action in the opening minutes of their bout, Silva (28-4) flattened his fellow Brazilian brawler with one magnificently placed kick that caught Belfort squarely on the jaw, bringing a dramatic end to Silva's 13th consecutive UFC victory at 3:25 of the opening round.

"Thanks to my coach for teaching me that kick," Silva said. "Everybody should respect Vitor. Before I even started fighting, he was a champion, so he deserves your respect."

The lightning-quick strike landed before anybody in the sold-out Mandalay Bay Events Center even realized Silva had done it. Belfort's eyes rolled while his knees buckled as he fell limply on his back, and Silva landed two punches to the prone Belfort's head before the fight was stopped.

"I've only seen that in a video game," UFC president Dana White said.

Belfort (19-9) blamed himself for failing to block the straight-ahead kick from Silva, whose athleticism and well-rounded style have kept him perfect since 2006.

"It's no excuse. He caught me with a kick," Belfort said. "I just got caught up. He faked the body, and he kicked to the head. Anderson is a great fighter."

Jon "Bones" Jones earned a light heavyweight title shot with a second-round submission victory over fellow prospect Ryan Bader on the undercard in the UFC's hometown. Forrest Griffin also won an unanimous decision over fellow veteran Rich Franklin in a meeting of former champions.

Silva is the longest-reigning champion in UFC history, largely dominating all contenders since winning his belt in October 2006 with a first-round stoppage of Franklin. The fighter known as "Spider" is considered the world's greatest mixed martial artist by White and most experts.

Yet Silva's aura had lost much of its luster in the past 10 months. He was ripped by White for embarrassing the UFC in Abu Dhabi by barely engaging Demian Maia during a title defense last April, then Silva was largely dominated on the ground for four rounds by Chael Sonnen in Oakland last August before escaping with a fifth-round submission victory.

Belfort was the youngest fighter to win a UFC bout 14 years ago, but the 33-year-old still known as "Phenom" had to fight his way back to the UFC after losing his light heavyweight title in 2004 to Randy Couture, who was part of Belfort's corner team Saturday night. After stops with four MMA promotions and his boxing debut, Belfort returned to the UFC in September 2009 with a knockout of Franklin, but hadn't fought since.

Earlier, Jones (12-1) won the bout between elite MMA prospects with a guillotine choke, stopping the previously unbeaten Bader (12-1) - and earning a stunning title shot just six weeks later.

Moments after the bout ended, the UFC announced Jones will get the next shot at light heavyweight champion Mauricio "Shogun" Rua's title at UFC 128 in Newark, N.J. on March 19. Rua was scheduled to fight Rashad Evans, Jones' training partner, but Evans was diagnosed with a knee injury earlier Saturday.

White said he made the deal for Jones to face Rua while Jones was still in the octagon. The 23-year-old Jones didn't flinch from a daunting task.

"I feel like it's my time," Jones said. "My confidence is really high. I'm already in shape, and I've got six weeks to make myself even better."

Jones' bout with Bader matched arguably the top two prospects in the loaded light heavyweight division. Jones is among the UFC's most tantalizing up-and-comers for his athletic, unorthodox approach and dramatic stoppage wins, while Bader forged an unbeaten record with remarkable strength and superb wrestling skills.

Jones dominated the first round on the ground, nearly submitting Bader with an unusual hold. The fighters spent most of the second round on their feet, but Jones took down Bader and landed a difficult guillotine choke, forcing Bader to tap out for the first time in his career.

Griffin capitalized on a strong first round, hanging on for a victory over Franklin in a meeting of former UFC champions who rank among the sport's most popular fighters. After Griffin (18-6) controlled nearly the entire opening round, he traded punches and avoided takedowns to grind out a win over Franklin (28-6), the former middleweight champion who has lost three of his last five fights.

"Rusty, rusty," said Griffin, who hadn't fought since late 2009 while recovering from a shoulder injury. "It's great to be back. I was so nervous. Camp didn't go right, but I feel good now. It's hard to come back after a year when you haven't gone full speed. Fortunately I got him down in that first round and was able to grind on him a bit."

These long hair styles win celebrity best tressed survey!

2011-02-06T03:32:00.000-08:00

Jennifer Lopez, Beyonce Knowles & Katy Perry topped the charts (in that order) in the 16th annual Sally Beauty Best Tressed Survey. The survey polled results from 1,000 American women on the best and worst celebrity hair styles of the year.

Long layered haircuts have clearly been the trend in celebrity hair styles for the last year and more. This poll is another indication that long hair styles are here to stay for a while longer. These long hair styles have varied mostly with the cutting in of bangs or no bangs. Side swept bangs, blunt bangs, wispy bangs or choppy bangs all contribute to changing the overall look of long hair styles, so find out if bangs are right for you.

Best Women’s Celebrity Hairstyles

Jennifer Lopez Long Hair Style

Jennifer Lopez’s long hair style with multi-dimensional color has always been a winning combination. Here her hair takes on an ombre color affect with lighter blonde on the bottom half of her strands.

Beyonce Long Hair Style

Beyonce’s long hair style resembles Jennifer’s in both the haircut sans side swept bangs and the multi-dimensional brown hair color. Chocolate brown with warm cinnamon highlights are perfectly fit with her skin tone and soft face framing waves are beautiful too!

Katy Perry Long Hair Style

Katy Perry makes a statement with her light pale skin-tone and deepest darkest brunette hair color. She adds some bling at the 2010 MTV Awards with pink, purple and blue highlights. Once again a curled long hair style is the haircut and hair style that wins best tressed!

Best Men’s Celebrity Hairstyles

Tom Selleck wins with Gotee

Ryan Reynolds

Justin Bieber 3rd Place

Worst Hair Styles Women

Lady Gaga at the Grammy's

Worst Hair Styles Men’s

Here are some added results from the Sally Beauty Survey

26% want their hair to be shiny

24% want their hair to be smooth and/or curly

60% turn to hairstylist for recommendations for special event hair

29% choose special event hair based on trends

11% choose from celebrity photos

42% do not rely in reviews when purchasing styling tools

32% say $20. is the most they will pay on a beauty product

20% say $10. is their limit

75% believe the right hair care products & hair style can take 5-10 years off their look

60% say price is biggest influence over what hair care products they buy

27% purchase products based on hairstylist recommendation

General Effects of Smoking on the Body

2011-02-05T10:12:00.000-08:00

For most it is not surprising to hear that smoking harms your body in many different ways. Not only does smoking damage the immune system it increases the risk of infections. Generally, smokers tend to be less healthy than non-smokers.

Compared to non-smokers illnesses tend to last longer for smokers and because of this more time is missed at work. If hospitalized due to an illness smokers tend to require longer stays.

Smokers have a greater risk of complications and have a lower survival rate after surgery because of damage to the body’s defenses. They are at increased risk of infections, pneumonia, and other respiratory complications.

At times we all know what it feels like to be growing old. Sometimes our muscles and bones remind us vividly how we are aging. Compared to non-smokers, smoker's bone density tends to be lower.

Although arteriosclerosis is more commonly thought of as a heart disease, it can affect arteries anywhere in the body, including those in the legs and brain. Healthy arteries are strong, flexible and elastic, and the inner walls are smooth, allowing blood to flow freely through them to nourish tissues and organs.

Smoking causes many types of cancer, especially lung cancer, which is the second leading cause of death among Americans. It is responsible for one of every four deaths in the United States. Each year more than half a million Americans, more than 1,500 people a day, die of cancer.

Lung cancer was one of the first diseases linked to smoking. In 1964, the first Surgeon General’s report on smoking and health concluded that smoking causes lung cancer. In later years, the list of diseases linked to smoking has grown.

Texting improves kid's literacy skills

2011-02-05T09:54:00.000-08:00

Scientists have claimed that children who are fluent at text messaging have better literacy skills than youngsters who do not use mobile phones.

Researchers discovered that rather than destroying their use of English, texting improves children's ability to recognise rhymes and speech patterns.

The ten-year study, funded by the British Academy, examined the effect of the use of text messages on eight to 12-year-olds.

Researchers found children as young as five who used mobile phones are better at understanding rhymes and syllables in speech.

Psychologist Dr Clare Wood, who led the study at Coventry University, said the use of abbreviations, commonly used in text messaging, helped in the development of children's reading and writing skills.

"We were surprised to learn that not only was the association strong, but that text use was actually driving the development of phonological awareness and reading skills in children," the Daily Mail quoted Wood as saying.

The study also showed that children were subconsciously practising their spelling by regularly sending text messages.

"Texting also appears to be a valuable form of contact with written English for many children, which enables them to practice reading and spelling on a daily basis," Wood added.

Massa endures fiery session in new Ferrari

2011-02-05T09:49:00.000-08:00

LONDON: Felipe Massa found his new Ferrari Formula One car too hot to handle on Thursday when it caught fire after he had completed only a few laps of the Valencia circuit in eastern Spain.

The Brazilian was testing for the first time this year after Spanish teammate Fernando Alonso had spent Tuesday and Wednesday in the F150.

The Italian team said on their website (www.ferrari.com) that Massa pulled over when the car suffered an oil leak caused by a broken clamp.

"Unfortunately the lubricant ended up on the exhausts which led to a small fire breaking out and that caused some damage to the car.

"The mechanics immediately set to work on repairing the damage, but it is unlikely that the car will be back on track much before 3.00 in the afternoon."

Massa was sixth overall last season, with double world champion Alonso runner-up, and has plenty of pressure on him to improve after enduring continuing speculation about his future with the team.

The first race is in Bahrain on March 13.

ICC bans Pakistan trio for five years

2011-02-05T09:43:00.000-08:00

Doha: Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt and fast bowlers Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif were banned for at least five years on Saturday after they were found guilty of corruption by an International Cricket Council (ICC) tribunal.

Michael Beloff, the lawyer who headed the tribunal, announced that Butt, 26, was banned for 10 years with five of them suspended.

Asif, 28, was ruled out for seven years -- two of which are suspended -- while 18-year-old Amir was banned for five.
Pak trio charged with corruption offences

News of the bans came a day after British prosecutors announced the trio would face criminal charges over their part in last year's spot-fixing scandal, specifically over their actions in the fourth cricket test against England at Lord's.

Britain's Crown Prosecution Service said the trio, along with 35-year-old sports agent Mazhar Majeed from Croydon, England, had been charged with conspiracy to obtain and accept corrupt payments and with conspiracy to cheat.

The trio have denied spot-fixing, the offence of pre-arranging individual events within a match which may not affect the result.

Plans to distance Mubarak from power being discussed, says report

2011-02-05T03:55:00.000-08:00

WASHINGTON: New Egyptian vice president Omar Suleiman and top Egyptian military leaders are discussing plans to limit President Hosni Mubarak's authority and possibly remove him from the presidential palace in Cairo, The New York Times reported on Saturday.

Citing unnamed US and Egyptian officials, the newspaper said these plans did not call for him to be removed from presidency immediately. But they would allow for the formation of a transitional government headed by Suleiman, which would negotiate with opposition figures amendments to Egypt's constitution and other democratic changes.

In Cairo, state news agency MENA said Mubarak held talks with members of his newly-appointed cabinet but gave no further details.

The ageing leader has shown no intention of stepping down imminently, despite huge demonstrations on Friday at Cairo's Tahrir Square -- the epicentre of the protests -- and in Alexandria.

But The Times said that among the ideas that had been discussed were suggestions that Mubarak move to his home at Sharm el-Sheikh or embark on one of his annual medical leaves to Germany for an extended checkup.

Such steps would provide him with a graceful exit and effectively remove him as the central political player, the report said.

Suleiman and top Egyptian military officers are also being encouraged to hold detailed discussions with opposition groups on opening up the political system, establishing term limits for the president and adopt some key democratic principles ahead of September elections, The Times noted.

"None of this can happen if Mubarak is at the center of the process," the paper quotes an unnamed senior US administration official as saying. "But it doesn't necessarily require the president to leave office right now."

India lose again, finish last in Pool A

2011-02-04T09:58:00.000-08:00

NONTHABURI (Thailand): In a disappointing result, India ended at the bottom of Pool A in the Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Group I after losing 1-2 against Thailand in its last league engagement on Friday.

It was India's third consecutive defeat in as many days, as it earlier suffered defeats against China and Uzbekistan.

Now India will clash against Chinese Taipei, who finished last in Pool B. This will be India's last chance to stay in Group I as the loser will be relegated to Group II of the Asia/Oceania zone.

Earlier, the tie was locked at 1-1 on Friday after the singles matches and yet again the doubles rubber became decisive, which India lost with Sania Mirza and Rushmi Charavarthi frittering away a one-set lead once again.

The Indian pair lost 6-3, 0-6, 5-7 to Noppawan Lertcheewakaran and Nungnadda Wannasuk.

Ashwarya Shrivastav made her debut in Fed Cup when she played the first singles against Nicha Lertpitaksincha, which the Indian lost 2-6, 0-6.

Sania, however, kept Indian chances alive with a 6-2, 6-0 win over Lertcheewakaran but could not help India record its first win in the event.

India were promoted to Group I last year when they won all the three ties - beating Singapore, Malaysia and Kyrgyzstan - without losing a rubber.

India's best Fed Cup performance came in 2006, when it ended as the runners-up in Asia/Oceania Zone Group I.

Devvarman reaches semis after seesaw struggle

2011-02-04T09:57:00.000-08:00

JOHANNESBURG: Reigning Commonwealth Games and Asian Games champion Somdev Devvarman from India reached the South African Open semifinals Friday by ousting local Rik de Voest.

The 25-year-old Davis Cup star triumphed 3-6, 7-6, 6-1 after a seesaw 138-minute struggle at Montecasino entertainment centre in a plush northern suburb of the South African financial hub.

It was second time lucky for the native of Assam in north-east India, who was eliminated in straight sets by Spaniard David Ferrer at the quarter-final stage of the ATP World Tour event last year.

A couple of early third-set service breaks set up Devvarman for his untimately comfortable victory which moved him within two matches of a $76,500 first prize and 250 ATP World Tour points.

Devvarman broke serve in the first game and led 3-1 before De Voest stormed back and two service breaks helped the South African win five games on the trot and take the opening set.

The second set saw a similar tale unfold with the Indian quicker into his stride to move 4-1 ahead before he dropped serve in the seventh game and De Voest took full advantage to force a tiebreaker.

Devvarman seemed his own enemy at times, surrendering an early three-point advantage as the South African levelled via a superb backhand cross-court passing shot, before winning 7/5 and taking the duel to a third set.

The four-match centre-court show got off to a good start for the host nation with 1.96-metre Izak van der Merwe overcoming German Simon Greul 7-6, 6-2 in stamina-sapping early afternoon heat.

"I executed my game plan really well today, delivering some good serves when necessary," boasted Van der Merwe, who drilled 10 aces but double faulted four times and committed 37 unforced errors.

Greul was the second consecutive German victim for the 27-year-old after he beat Dustin Brown in the previous round having started his campaign with a triumph over 2010 runner-up Stephane Robert of France.

Van der Merwe appeared in trouble when trailing 40-15 in the ninth game before winning four consective points to hold service and a tiebreaker was needed to separate the pair.

There was a spate of mini-breaks before Van der Merwe held his service twice to lead 6-3 and although Greul pulled back two points it was the South African who successfully served to take the opening set.

It was not as close in the second set with the South African breaking service twice as he comfortably qualified for his first ATP World Tour semifinal.

The two surviving seeds will play later with Kevin Anderson (four) of South Africa facing Slovak Karol Beck after Adrian Mannarino (six) of France tackles Canadian giantkiller Frank Dancevic.

Sharapova leads Russia against France in 1st round

2011-02-04T09:55:00.000-08:00

MOSCOW: Three-time Grand Slam champion Maria Sharapova will play Virginie Razzano on Saturday when Russia hosts France in the first round of the Fed Cup.

In the opening singles match of the best-of-five series, two-time major winner Svetlana Kuznetsova will face Alize Cornet.

"It will be my first time playing for Russia in Moscow," Sharapova said. "And I think my experience of playing in a team environment a couple of years ago will definitely help me."

Sharapova made her debut for Russia in the first round against Israel in 2008, winning both her matches. She beat Razzano in the second round of the Australian Open.

Kuznetsova has played in three of Russia's four Fed Cup title wins and has a 18-6 record.

France will be without its two highest-ranked players, Marion Bartoli and Aravane Rezai. In their absence, coach Nicola Escude chose the 67th-ranked Cornet to lead the team.

Cornet lost to eventual champion Kim Clijsters in the third round of the Australian Open for the best showing among French women in the event. But Cornet, who is 1-8 in the Fed Cup, hopes she is ready to challenge the Russian stars.

"I played two good matches at the Australian Open and it was a good start of the season," Cornet said. "I came to Moscow really self-confident and I hope I can now forget about the two poor last seasons in my career."

The Frenchwoman beat Kuznetsova in their only previous meeting on the WTA Tour in 2008.

"Our chances are good," Escude said. "We know we are not favourites for the tie but we are fit perfectly and we are ready to do our best to win."

But Russia captain Shamil Tarpischev downplayed Escude's enthusiasm.

"If we put away the rankings, I can say that both Cornet and Razzano can play a single match on a very high level," Tarpischev said. "But frankly speaking, the result of the tie will depend on us."

Russia is 8-0 at home since losing to France in the 2003 semifinals. The streak includes a win over France in the 2004 final. Russia prevailed again in the 2005 final, the last time the teams met.

In Sunday's reverse singles, Sharapova will play Cornet, while Kuznetsova will take on Razzano. In the doubles match, the Russian pair of Dinara Safina and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova will face the French duo of Julie Coin and Pauline Parmentier.

The reverse singles and doubles nominations can be changed depending on the results of the previous matches.

The winner will play either two-time defending champion Italy or Australia in the semifinals on April 16-17.

David Moyes warns Everton must stem dangerous drift to retain stars

2011-02-04T07:53:00.000-08:00

Everton are not entering administration and David Moyes has not quit, contrary to a virulent rumour mill, but the financial balancing act at Goodison Park has prompted the manager to warn his board that key players may leave should a lack of investment continue.

Deadline day passed on Monday with the Everton squad reduced, their trading in profit and not one loan signing made. January was the fifth successive transfer window when Everton did not make a net spend on players, or the sixth if the January 2008 sale of James McFadden is taken into account for the following summer. Inactivity in the market has rekindled criticism of the chairman, Bill Kenwright (his fellow directors Robert Earl and John Woods are rarely mentioned), and tormented Moyes to the point where every defeat fuels whispers of his exit. The Scot has never indicated he would walk out on Everton but he is now prepared to concede that others might.

Marouane Fellaini, the club's £15m record signing, reaches the final two years of his existing contract at the end of the season and could grace most midfields in Europe. Arsenal continue to monitor Phil Jagielka, Leighton Baines had admirers at Bayern Munich, while Steven Pienaar has gone and it took a club record contract to keep Mikel Arteta last summer. Poor results are, of course, to blame for Everton's deterioration this season but Moyes admits a talented but underperforming squad will need to be convinced this summer that the club's ambitions tally with their own.

"It is a problem and something as we go towards the end of the season I will need to have a chat with the chairman and the board about," said Moyes on extending Fellaini's contract. "They are important players for us and we have to keep a strong side together. We have to give them some hope and encouragement over what we are going to do. It is a discussion I can't have with the players at the moment, I need to speak to the club. I think Marouane has been looking a really good player but I have been saying that for a year now."

Everton have spent only what they have raised for the past three years. The £15m for Fellaini came from the sales of Andrew Johnson and McFadden in 2008, while 2009's £21m investment in Sylvain Distin, Diniyar Bilyaletdinov and John Heitinga followed Manchester City's £22m purchase of Joleon Lescott. Last year Moyes spent what money was available on securing Arteta, Baines, Tim Cahill and Jack Rodwell on new long-term contracts. No one at the time disputed the wisdom of keeping together a team who had lost only two of their final 24 games in 2009-10.

Kenwright has still to find a buyer for his majority shareholding and there is no new stadium planned after two failed attempts to relocate. In the last available accounts, to May 2009, Everton posted a record turnover of £79.7m having finished fifth in the Premier League for a second successive season and reached the FA Cup final but still recorded an overall operating loss of £6.7m. They are a business with all its assets on the pitch.

Moyes added: "You have to show the players that you are trying to progress and moving forward. You have to have a direction and a strategy. My strategy when I came to Everton was to change the age-group around to bring in young players who would give me value on the pitch, give me resale value, and it would take time to get that going. It is probably still the right way forward for Everton."

Accounts for 2010 are expected next week, although Everton have until 28 February to submit them to Companies House, and are likely to show turnover down and wages up. From fretting over how to keep ahead of Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City two seasons ago, the Everton manager is now being out-spent in the transfer market by clubs threatened by relegation. Moyes frequently expresses regret that football and money are inextricably linked but Everton are drifting dangerously with a strategy that relies on a manager conjuring tricks such as a £2m Arteta, £1.5m Cahill and a £60,000 Seamus Coleman.

Moyes rejects the view that no other strategy exists at Goodison. "We have done it [for players] to stay. A lot of clubs were interested in our players in the summer so the strategy was to keep them here. What we need to do is try and add to it and show them we mean a bit of business.

"We have tried to buy in one or two younger players and hope to get something out of them. I am aware that the age-group is starting to creep up and we have to start looking at the longer term and how we keep bringing that down. But we hope [Ross] Barkley, Jack [Rodwell], Victor [Anichebe] and Seamus [Coleman] start to push on. If you don't get players in then it gives your current players the space to push on. That's the other side of all the big spending; the young players get an opportunity here."

Ellis not an All-Star but leads Warriors over Bucks

2011-02-04T07:15:00.000-08:00

Warriors guard Monta Ellis was true to his word.

After being left off of the Western Conference All-Star team Thursday, Ellis said his focus remained on taking the Warriors to the playoffs, not individually proving the naysayers wrong.

Then, he went out and controlled the game against Milwaukee, refusing to force his own shot but instead quarterbacking an offensive plan in place of struggling Stephen Curry and leading the Warriors to a 100-94 victory in front of 18,008 at Oracle Arena.

On a night when Ellis could have had plenty of motivation to try to pile up points, he instead scored 24 to go along with five rebounds and six assists.

His shot was awry for the third consecutive game, but he found his stroke in the clutch. Ellis scored on a running scoop shot and followed a Vladimir Radmanovic steal with a dunk that gave the Warriors a 92-86 lead with 1:43 remaining.

Former Warriors forward Corey Maggette sandwiched six consecutive Milwaukee points around a Radmanovic runner to close the gap to 94-92 with 33 seconds remaining. Then, Ellis lost Ersan Ilyasova with a hesitation dribble and stepped back for a 19-footer that put the Warriors ahead 96-92.

It was an All-Star play from a guy who hasn't been granted the title just yet.

"It's all right. We've still got a chance to make the playoffs, so I'm just going to focus on that," Ellis said. "If it would have happened, it would have happened. It's a situation I can't control. I've just got to move on."

At No. 6, Ellis was the top scorer to be left out of the All-Star Game, first by the fans' starting votes and then by the coaches' reserve selections.

"I thought sometimes that I would make it, but, at the same time, I had to come back to reality," Ellis said. "This is my second year being in this position, and it's over with now. I'm just worried about playing basketball."

It's not quite over.

Commissioner David Stern will name an injury replacement for Houston center Yao Ming, and he might have to replace Utah point guard Deron Williams because of an injured wrist.

Stern will have to choose among Kevin Love, LaMarcus Aldridge, Lamar Odom, Steve Nash, Tony Parker and Ellis for one or two final spots.

Last season, Ellis was in the conversation for one of three injury-replacement spots, but he said he would rather go fishing.

Asked if he would attend the Los Angeles event as an alternate this year, Ellis said, "I'm going to stay away from that question."

Warriors power forward David Lee, who was an injury replacement in the East last season, said last week that he would probably get fined for negative comments if Ellis was left off the All-Star squad.

Upon seeing the loaded Western Conference roster, however, Lee changed his tune.

"I'm very disappointed. I can't take away from any guy who made the All-Star Game, but, with the season Monta has had and with our improvements, I think he's a guy who carries our team and plays like an All-Star," Lee said.

Ellis averaged 11.5 points on 7-of-33 shooting in his previous two games leading up to Thursday, when he had another rough shooting night, going 10-for-22. But his teammates picked up the slack with Dorell Wright, Lee, Curry, Reggie Williams and Radmanovic all in double figures.

Curry had his first seven-turnover game of the season and sat for nine second-half minutes.

Milwaukee (19-29) outrebounded the Warriors 49-36 despite playing without center Andrew Bogut (knee).

A sneeze can contaminate surroundings for hours

2011-02-03T10:19:00.000-08:00

London: A single sneeze infests a room with deadly bugs and the contamination can last for hours.

Microscopic droplets sneezed or coughed out float around the air in large enough concentrations to spread disease, researchers say.

A sneeze typically contain as many as 40,000 droplets, some of which leave the body at more than 160 kmph.

Breathing in airborne specks of virus found in a typical office, plane or train could infect a person after just one hour, the Journal of the Royal Society Interface reports.

It also highlights why so many holidaymakers pick up coughs, colds and sniffles at the start of their trip, following a flight, according to the Daily Mail.

Flu passes from person to person through direct physical contact, or when someone sneezes or coughs.

US researchers collected samples of air from the waiting room of a healthcare clinic, three rooms in a nursery and three cross-country flights. Half the samples contained small droplets containing the flu virus.

Scientists found that a typical cubic metre of air contained an average of 16,000 particles of flu virus. Most were less than 2.5 thousandths of a millimetre across, which remain suspended in the air for hours on end.

"Given these concentrations, the amount of viruses a person would inhale over one hour would be adequate to induce infection," said Linsey Marr, who led the study at Virginia Tech.

"The virus-laden aerosols are small enough that the smallest ones can remain suspended for days," she added.

Coffee beans roasted till dark brown produces valued antioxidants

2011-02-03T10:05:00.000-08:00

Washington: A study by food scientists has found that when coffee is roasted to a dark brown it produces very valuable antioxidants.

Researchers at the University of British Columbia have been able to trace the complex chemistry behind coffee’s much touted antioxidant benefits, and they found it all depends on the roasting process.

Lead author Yazheng Liu and co-author Prof. David Kitts found that the prevailing antioxidants present in dark roasted coffee brew extracts result from the green beans being browned under high temperatures.

Liu and Kitts analysed the complex mixture of chemical compounds produced during the bean’s browning process, called the “Maillard reaction”.

The term refers to the work by French chemist Louis-Camille Maillard who in the 1900s looked at how heat affects the carbohydrates, sugars and proteins in food, such as when grilling steaks or toasting bread.

Antioxidants aid in removing free radicals, the end products of metabolism which have been linked to the aging process.

“Previous studies suggested that antioxidants in coffee could be traced to caffeine or the chlorogenic acid found in green coffee beans, but our results clearly show that the Maillard reaction is the main source of antioxidants,” Liu, an MSc student in the Faculty of Land and Food Systems (LFS) said.

“We found, for example, that coffee beans lose 90 percent of their chlorogenic acid during the roasting process,” Kitts, LFS food science professor and director of the Food, Nutrition and Health program, added.

The UBC study sheds light on an area of research that has yielded largely inconsistent findings.

While some scientists report increased antioxidant activity in coffee made from dark roasted beans, others found a decrease. Yet other theories insist that medium roast coffees yield the highest level of antioxidant activity.

Their findings will appear in a forthcoming issue of Food Research International.

Food in early life affects fertility

2011-02-03T10:04:00.000-08:00

A new research by the University of Sheffield has revealed that the reproductive success of men and women is influenced by the food they receive at an early stage in life.

The research is the first study of its kind to show that early life food can have a serious influence on the life-long fertility of individuals.

The research team, led by Dr Ian Rickard from the Department of Animal and Plant Sciences at the University, used a combination of church record data on births in 18th century Finland and agricultural data on crop yields of rye and barley from the same time and place.

The study showed that in men and women born into poor families, food in very early life was related to the probability of reproducing. Approximately half of the poor people who were born in a year in which both rye and barley yields were low would not go on to have any children during their entire lives. However almost everyone from a poor family born in bumper harvest years, when both crops were high, would reproduce at least once in their life.

These results indicate that food received during prenatal or early postnatal life may limit the development of the reproductive system.

Rickard said: "Our results show that the food received by children born into poor families had an influence on their later reproductive success. These results have implications for our understanding of early environmental effects on human and animal health and will help shed light on our current understanding of fertility and whether it is influenced by individual or social factors."

The research has been published in the journal Ecology.