Tuesday, December 14, 2010

#BP sells #Pakistan assets to #United Energy Group #Business

BP sells Pakistan assets to United Energy Group.

LONDON: BP said Tuesday that it will sell most of its Pakistan assets to Britain-based firm United Energy Group, as part of sales to pay for the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

"BP announced today that it has entered into an agreement to sell almost all of its exploration and production assets in Pakistan to United Energy Group Limited (UEG)," it said in a statement.

Aerobic exercise

In physical exercise, aerobic exercise is complementary to anaerobic exercise.

Aerobic literally means "with oxygen", and refers to the use of oxygen in muscles' energy-generating process.
Aerobic exercise includes any type of exercise, typically those performed at moderate levels of intensity for extended periods of time, that maintains an increased heart rate.

Facebook crimes soar by 7,400%.

WASHINGTON: Crimes committed on Facebook have soared 7,400% in the past three years.

The website has been used by perverts to groom victims and by criminals to make threats, intimidate, bully and harass people.

Campaign groups claim sex offenders use such websites to conceal their identity to snare children and women.

The figures were released by police in Cambridgeshire, where 1,640 Facebook crimes have been reported this year, compared to 22 in 2007.

Facebook was linked to 255 incidents of domestic violence, 426 of malicious nuisance and 210 of anti-social behaviour in the county this year.

A force spokesman said: “Everyone seems to be using it. It’s used to make threats.”

#World’s oldest #Christmas #tree marks its 124th yule

World’s oldest Christmas tree marks its 124th yule

One hundred and twenty-four years after it marked its first Yuletide, the world’s oldest Christmas tree is proudly on display once again.

The 14-inch tree was originally bought in 1886 and now belongs to Paul Parker, 45, of Bath, England. It was passed down to him by his mother Janet, who received it from her great-great-aunt Lou in the 1940s

His mother passed away in 2008, but Parker still plans to carry on the family tradition and display the tree on his mantel this Christmas.

More Than 25% of Teenagers Have Suffered Cyber Bullying in the Past Year

Cyber bullying is an emerging phenomenon that is becoming increasingly common among teenagers. Research by the University of Valencia (UV), based on a study carried out in the region, shows that between 25% and 29% of all teenagers have been bullied via their mobile phone or the internet over the past year.

Low-Allergenic Wines Could Stifle Sniffles and Sneezes in Millions of Wine Drinkers

ScienceDaily (Nov. 17, 2010) — Scientists have identified a mysterious culprit that threatens headaches, stuffy noses, skin rash and other allergy symptoms when more than 500 million people worldwide drink wine. The discovery could help winemakers in developing the first low allergenic vintages -- reds and whites with less potential to trigger allergy symptoms, they say.

Wikileaks founder Assange bailed, but release delayed

The founder of whistle-blowing website Wikileaks, Julian Assange, has been granted bail in London on conditions including cash guarantees of £240,000.

But he will remain in prison pending an appeal against the bail decision lodged by Swedish prosecutors.
Mr Assange is fighting extradition to Sweden, where he is accused of sexually assaulting two women earlier this year.
He denies the charges, which he says are politically motivated and designed to discredit him.
His lawyer Mark Stephens said the case was turning into a "show trial".

Bangladesh clothes workers die in factory fire

At least 25 people have been killed by a fire that swept through a clothes factory near the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka, officials say.

At least 45 people were also hurt in the blaze, which raged for five hours before firefighters put it out.
Dhaka police said some people had been killed jumping from the 11-storey building to escape the flames.
The police said an electrical fault was the likely cause for the fire in the Ashulia industrial zone.

Florida school shooting: Board meeting targeted

A gunman has opened fire during a school board meeting in the US state of Florida.

It was not immediately known if there were any fatalities or injuries at Florida Panhandle school in Panama City.

Italy: #Silvio #Berlusconi vote win sparks #Rome clashes

Italy: Silvio Berlusconi vote win sparks Rome clashes

Police fired tear gas as cars were set on fire and demonstrators threw eggs, paint and stones at parliament buildings.

Berlusconi's Political Fight

Italian PM Silvio Berlusconi has narrowly won a vote of confidence in the lower house of parliament by 314 to 311, prompting street protests.

In Rome, violent clashes have left 50 police officers and at least 40 protesters injured.
The marchers set fire to cars, threw stones and overturned bins in Italy's worst street violence in recent years.
Mr Berlusconi's critics say he is too deeply mired in scandal and corruption allegations to remain in office.
The Italian prime minister, 74, is halfway through a five-year term but his position has been weakened by a series of scandals, largely involving his relationships with women.
He has also lost the support of his closest political ally, Gianfranco Fini, along with dozens of his supporters, depriving him of his automatic majority in the lower house.

Margin of survival

Lower house: 314 in favour, 311 opposed (out of 630 seats)
Senate: 162 in favour out of 308 votes cast

Opposition remains

Thousands of people gathered in Rome and Italy's other major cities to demand a change in government.

Police fired tear gas on the protesters in Rome and several explosions - thought to be fireworks - were heard. Demonstrators threw eggs, paint and stones at parliament buildings.
Inside, two opposition deputies switched sides for the final vote, giving Mr Berlusconi a narrow victory.

At the scene

David Willey BBC News, Rome

In the historic centre of Rome, teeming both with Christmas shoppers and with student protesters, there were at first scenes of jubilation, quickly followed by shouts of anger that the media mogul had once again confounded his critics and pulled off another apparent victory.
One prominent commercial TV channel news anchorman (who does not work for Mr Berlusconi) initially got the result wrong, causing temporary confusion.
The centre of Rome had been cut off all day from the rest of the Italian capital by hundred of armed police.
They blocked the narrow streets with their vehicles to try to prevent student protesters from disrupting the vote.
In the Via del Corso, Rome's High Street, police charged one group of demonstrators who had set light to a rubbish lorry and tables and chairs snatched from nearby bars.
In the distance, clouds of black smoke rose into the bright blue winter sky as other protesters set cars on fire near the Piazza del Popolo.
The smell of tear gas continued to hang heavy in the air around parliament.

Scuffles broke out in the lower house after opposition MP Katia Polidori voted in favour of Mr Berlusconi, and voting was briefly suspended.

Speaking in parliament, former anti-corruption judge Antonio Di Pietro - who now leads the opposition Italy of Values party - told Mr Berlusconi he was finished.
"Whatever the result of the vote you have bought, one thing is clear. You do not have a political majority that would allow you to govern," he said.
"Whether you like it or not, you have reached the end of the line for your political experience."
Last week, Mr Pietro made a formal complaint alleging that Mr Berlusconi was trying to buy votes. Rome magistrates have now begun an investigation.
There were also protests elsewhere.
In the Sicilian regional capital, Palermo, 500 students occupied the main airport runway.
In Turin in the north, students occupied the railway station, while in Venice they held a demonstration on the famous Rialto Bridge.
The demonstrations follow weeks of bitter protests against the government, which has announced austerity measures, including cuts in education spending.
The BBC's Duncan Kennedy in Rome says although Mr Berlusconi's lobbying has paid off for now, he will still face considerable opposition to his leadership.
Mr Berlusconi has become notorious for his gaffes. At a dinner with his MPs the night before the vote, the newspaper Corriere della Sera quoted him as saying: "I am unable to say 'No', I have never been able to, I've been lucky that no gay person has ever come to proposition me."

#Microsoft already has the ideal #tablet #OS, and it's not called #Windows 7

Microsoft already has the ideal tablet OS, and it's not called Windows 7.

As the year draws to a close it’s time to start speculating as to what 2011 will bring. One item that’s bound to dominate discussions are tablet PCs and whether Microsoft can make Windows work on this emerging platform.
2010 has proved to use several things about the tablet market that we didn’t know in 2009. First, Apple have proved to everyone that there’s a market for tablet systems. A huge market, and one that’s not confined to the enterprise market. It seems that ordinary people want tablets, and are willing to pay $500 for them.
We also found out that people are happy to accept a tablets running non-desktop operating systems. Apple put a different flavor of the iOS platform to the one on the iPhone, and we’ve also seen tablets running the Android OS.
But we’re still left with a big question - can Microsoft make the Windows OS work on tablets?
OK, before we go any further, allow me to point out that Windows-based tablets do indeed exist. Take the HP Slate 500 for example. This device features an Intel Atom Z540 processor and comes with 2GB of RAM and 64GB of flash-based storage, all of which is topped off with an 8.9-inch multi-touch display. It runs Windows 7. How well does it run Windows 7? Well, it runs as well as you’d expect a system based on an Atom processor to run Windows. If pressed for a single word to describe the experience, I’d choose “mediocre.”

Note: No, you can’t play Crysis on the Slate 500 … or Angry Birds!

But the problem isn’t just down to speed and power,

Sweden to appeal WikiLeaks founder's bail.

Swedish authorities said Tuesday they will appeal a British judge's decision to grant bail for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.
The decision means the 39-year-old Australian will remain behind bars for at least another 48 hours.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's relief at his bail ruling evaporated when Swedish authorities announced they would be appealing it, his lawyer Mark Stephens told reporters. (Lennart Preiss/Associated Press) Britain's High Court will now hear the Swedish appeal, although it is not clear when.
District Judge Howard Riddle granted Assange bail earlier Tuesday.
Less than two hours later, prosecution lawyer Gemma Lindfield told the court she would challenge the decision, but did not elaborate.
Assange's lawyer, Mark Stephens, said it was "unfortunate" that "the Swedes won't abide by the umpire's decision," and that his client's relief at the bail ruling had evaporated.
"They clearly will not spare any expense but to keep Mr. Assange in jail," Stephens told journalists outside the City of Westminster Magistrates' Court in London. "This is really turning into a show trial."
Before the appeal was announced, it appeared as if Assange would be free to leave prison once he posted bail, which was set at £200,000 ($317,663).
Assange is wanted for questioning by Swedish police in connection with a sex-crimes investigation.
He has been imprisoned at Wandsworth Prison in southwest London since his arrest on Dec. 7. He was denied bail at a hearing that day after Riddle said he had "substantial grounds" to believe Assange would not appear for his next hearing.

'An innocent man'

Assange would have had to abide by strict bail conditions as he fights extradition to Sweden in a sex-crimes investigation, the judge ruled.

A supporter of Julian Assange stands outside the courtroom where the WikiLeaks founder was granted bail on Tuesday in London. (Karel Prinsloo/Associated Press)

Facebook connections map the world

Facebook intern Paul Butler has been poring through some of the data held by the social networking firm on its 500m members.

The map above is the result of his attempts to visualise where people live relative to their Facebook friends. Each line connects cities with pairs of friends. The brighter the line, the more friends between those cities.
After tweaking the graphic and data set it produced a "surprisingly detailed map of the world," he said in a blog post.
"Not only were continents visible, certain international borders were

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange granted bail

The founder of whistle-blowing website Wikileaks has been granted bail in London on conditions including cash guarantees of £240,000.

But Julian Assange will remain in custody as prosecutors have two hours to lodge an appeal against bail.
The 39-year-old Australian is fighting extradition to Sweden, where he is accused of sexually assaulting two women - charges he denies.
Other bail conditions include having to give up his passport.
Mr Assange was bailed on condition he provides a security of £200,000 to the court, with a further £40,000 guaranteed in two sureties of £20,000 each.
He will also have to obey a curfew at an address in Suffolk, wear an electronic tag and report to a local police station every evening.
Mr Assange was refused bail last week despite the offer of sureties from figures including film director Ken Loach.
A number of demonstrators gathered outside City of Westminster Magistrates' Court for the bail hearing on Tuesday.
Mr Assange is due to return to the court on 11 January.
'Common sense'

“Start Quote

If he had been refused bail, it would have meant the court had become a political arena”

End Quote Yvonne Ridley Author

A large crowd of reporters and a number of Mr Assange's high-profile supporters were also outside the court.

Following the bail decision, novelist Tariq Ali said: "I'm very pleased that he is out. I think the extradition charges should now be dealt with in the same way.
"His barrister made the same point, that this is not rape under English law and there is absolutely no reason for extradition.
"We are delighted he is out and he should never have been locked up in the first place."
Author Yvonne Ridley said: "It is a victory for common sense. If he had been refused bail, it would have meant the court had become a political arena."
In his first appearance at court last week, Mr Assange was refused bail on the grounds he could flee.
He is accused of having unprotected sex with a woman, identified only as Miss A, when she insisted he use a condom.

Protesters supporting Julian Assange outside City of Westminster
Magistrates' Court

Protesters gathered outside City of Westminster Magistrates' Court

He is also accused of having unprotected sex with another woman, Miss W, while she was asleep.
Mr Assange claims the charges are politically motivated and are designed to discredit him.
In recent weeks, Wikileaks has published a series of US diplomatic cables revealing secret information on topics such as terrorism and international relations.
The latest release, published by the Guardian newspaper, shows that the US had concerns after the 7 July bombings that the UK was not doing enough to tackle home-grown extremists.

#UK #inflation rate rises to 3.3% in #November

UK inflation rate rises to 3.3% in November

The UK Consumer Prices Index (CPI) inflation rate rose to 3.3% in November, up from 3.2% in October, official figures show.
The increase was driven by a record rise in food, clothing and furniture prices, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.
CPI inflation remains well above the government target of 2%.
Retail Prices Index (RPI) inflation - which includes mortgage interest payments - rose to 4.7% from 4.5%.
Food and non-alcoholic drink prices were up by 1.6%, compared with a rise of 0.6% a year ago, the ONS said.
Clothing prices also rose by a record amount - of 2% - between October and November, with the biggest price rises found in men's outerwear.
Furniture, household equipment and maintenance also showed a record price rise of 1.6%.
Spending slowdown The Bank of England expects inflation to remain high into next year, pushed higher by rises in VAT from 17.5% to 20% at the start of the year.
Some believe this will provide a screen that will allow retailers to put through more extensive price increases.
A report released on Tuesday by KPMG said that 60% of retailers and consumer product manufacturers planned to increase their prices over and above the VAT rise.

Julian Assange: Readers' Choice for TIME's Person of the Year 2010.

The man behind WikiLeaks has won the most votes in this year's Person of the Year poll.
Readers voted a total of 1,249,425 times, and the favorite was clear. Julian Assange raked in 382,020 votes, giving him an easy first place. He was 148,383 votes over the silver medalist, Recep Tayyip Ergodan, Prime Minister of Turkey.
(See the top 10 everything of 2010.)
But Assange wasn't the winner in all aspects -- Lady Gaga trounced him on Facebook, receiving 65,417 "likes" on Facebook to Assange's 45,643. See the top 10 readers' choices below, and view the full poll here.

Julian Assange
Recep Tayyip Ergodan
Lady Gaga
Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert
Glenn Beck
Barack Obama
Steve Jobs
The Chilean Miners
The Unemployed American
Mark Zuckerberg

#WikiLeaks: #Britain's attempts to engage #Muslim communities 'made little progress'

WikiLeaks: Britain's attempts to engage Muslim communities 'made little progress'

British Muslims remained separate from mainstream society despite the investment of “considerable time and resources” in schemes to integrate them, the American embassy in London said.

The comments were written in August 2006 against the backdrop of the failed attempt to blow up transatlantic aeroplanes using liquid bombs.

An American diplomat based in London wrote: “Since 7/7, HMG has invested considerable time and resources in engaging the British Muslim community.
The current tensions demonstrate just how little progress has been made.”
The cables, seen by The Guardian, also lay bare how the US embassy in London formulated its own plans to win the sympathy of Muslims.

Wikileaks cables: US worry over UK homegrown extremism

One cable focused on UK government attempts to engage the British Muslim community

One cable said the British government made "little progress" in engaging with the UK's Muslim community after the 7 July 2005 terror attacks in London.
The communication was delivered to Washington from the American embassy in London in August 2006.
The cable said tensions continued, with some British Muslims blaming UK foreign policy for inciting extremism.
'Time and resources'