What is this Creature?

Would anyone of my readers like to guess what creature this is?

I will post the answer later..

Grapes for Diabetics and those with blood cancers

Grapes skins 'may help diabetics' whereas Grape extract kills Cancer cells

Grape skins could be a natural solution to stop complications in people with diabetes, according to new research from a South West medical school and studies. In addition, Grape extract has been shown in laboratory experiments to stimulate leukaemia cells to commit suicide , as reported by scientists from the University of Kentucky. Lead researcher Professor Xianglin Shi said: "These results could have implications for the incorporation of agents such as grapeseed extract into prevention or treatment of haematological (blood) malignancies and possibly other cancers.

Details about both these articles can be found at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7803619.stm

Earthquakes rattle Yellowstone National Park

Yellowstone Park shaken by hundreds of earthquakes

Scientists are monitoring a cluster of earthquakes that have rattled Yellowstone National Park over the past few days amid concerns that a larger earthquake could be brewing.

Yellowstone is situated on a giant, geologically active feature known as a supervolcano and boasts some 75 per cent of the world's geysers Photo: AP

More than 250 tremors have been recorded since Friday including nine greater than magnitude 3.0 on the Richter scale, according to the University of Utah. The largest, a magnitude 3.9, struck on Saturday and the area was shaken by a 3.3 tremor just after midday on Monday.

While earthquakes are common in the giant park, which covers parts of Wyoming, Idaho and Montana and experiences about 1,000 to 2,000 tremors a year, the intense burst of seismic activity lasting several days has been described as unusual.

"They're certainly not normal," said Robert Smith, a professor of geophysics at the University of Utah. "We haven't had earthquakes of this energy or extent in many years."

Mr Smith, director of the Yellowstone Seismic Network, which operates seismic stations around the park, said the earthquakes have ranged in strength from barely detectable to Saturday's 3.9. A magnitude 4 earthquake is capable of producing moderate damage.

"This is an active volcanic and tectonic area, and these are the kinds of things we have to pay attention to," he said. "We might be seeing something precursory.

"Could it develop into a bigger fault or something related to hydrothermal activity? We don't know. That's what we're there to do, to monitor it for public safety."

So far, all the quakes have been centred beneath the northwest end of Yellowstone Lake. No damage has been reported and a park spokeswoman said there did not appear to be cause for alarm.

Yellowstone is situated on a giant, geologically active feature known as a supervolcano and boasts some 75 per cent of the world's geysers. Much of the park sits in a caldera, or crater, which was formed when the massive volcano erupted 70,000 years ago.

Last year a report in the journal Science found the park's central region was rising up at a rate of up to 7cm a year due to the movement of a pool of magma several miles below the surface.

Mr Smith said it was difficult to say what might be causing the current tremors. He added that the park's famous geysers and hot springs were a reminder of the magma underground.

"That's just the surface manifestation of the enormous amount of heat that's being released through the system," he said.

In 1959, a magnitude 7.5 earthquake near Hebgen Lake just west of Yellowstone National Park triggered a landslide that killed 28 people

(http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/environment/4032098/Yellowstone-Park-shaken-by-hundreds-of-earthquakes.html)

In defense of the Great White Sharks

Number of man-eating sharks in Australian waters is growing: experts

By Lauren Wilson and Debbie Guest December 31, 2008 (posted on news.co.au)

Back to the story of the Great White Sharks. I came across this further article on Sharks, but the comments by readers caught my attention...one in particular, which I have posted below. This is also how I feel as well............check it out

• Numbers of sharks are growing: experts
• Ban on killing predators to blame
• Australian law protecting numbers

THE number of man-eating sharks in Australian waters is growing, according to experts, who blame the surging numbers on a ban on killing the predators.

Marine biologist Adam Smith said initial research and accounts from fishermen and divers pointed to a rise in the number of sharks in Australian waters.

Dr Smith, who has created the Great Australian Shark Count to obtain firm data on numbers, said great white sharks were no longer allowed to be hunted and fishermen faced fines of about $20,000 and a possible jail sentence for breaking the law, The Australian reports.

"They were once targeted as trophy fish by game fishermen, or caught by commercial fishermen because they were a nuisance," he said. (blah, blah blah.....and on and on..........)

Full article can be read by visiting the new.com.au., but the purpose of this post was to post a reaction from a Sydney reader... well here it is.....

"I am thoroughly sick to death of this "news" outlet (& the telegraph) running these BS "killer shark" stories. What is your agenda? What are you going to do? campaign for a shark cull? STOP the scare tactics! Walking Sydney's streets is more dangerous than going in the ocean, why don't you do something about that rather than picking on the poor sharks. Sharks do what sharks do and humans need to respect that rather than thinking the can go where ever they want & do whatever they please. You go in their territory, you take the risk. Humans do not own the ocean! Once again, please STOP trying to scare people."

I'll let my readers make their own opinions............

President Barack Obama is a video game

President Obama is a video game

San Francisco: A computer game set to hit US stores on the day Barack Obama is sworn in as President challenges players to see whether they can do a better job running the country than he can. (TOI, Gaming, 29 Dec, 2008)

Interactive Gaming Software said it will make "Commander in Chief" available on January 20, the day of Obama's inauguration. "Player presidents" will make budget, health, education, military, diplomatic and other decisions in simulated environments and have to virtually live with the ramifications of their choices. "Commander in Chief" will give players information from 50 international organisations including the United Nations, G7, NATO, NAFTA, and OPEC to enhance the realism of the game made by France-based Eversim. "You can put your own political theories into action and see the domestic and international domino effect," Eversim lead designer Louis-Marie Rocques said when plans for the game was unveiled in April. "Anyone will now be able to develop their own exit strategy for Iraq, reverse the course of the economic recession, and attempt to prevent terrorist attacks from Al-Qaeda." Players will start by selecting cabinet members and then go on to tackle the same social, environmental, economic, energy, cultural, and military issues facing Obama's administration. Throughout the game there is a constant threat of terrorist strikes or invasion by foreign troops. "We are offering the chance to step into the president's shoes and take on those difficult and influential decisions," IGS chief executive Paul Lombardi said in a release. Players can lobby foreign leaders, invade neutral countries, topple unfriendly regimes, or plot assassinations but must bear in mind economic, political or military consequences.

Why You May Have Erectile Dysfunction

Health Tip: Why You May Have Erectile Dysfunction

(HealthDay News) -- Erectile dysfunction occurs when a man can't achieve or maintain an erection during sex. (Diana Kohnle, Medicinenet.com)

The American Academy of Family Physicians says the condition doesn't have to be a natural part of getting older. ED often is attributed to physical or psychological causes. Physical reasons may include:

• Having a side effect of surgery on the prostate or bladder, or radiation therapy to the testicles.
• Having low testosterone levels, kidney failure, liver failure, multiple sclerosis or Parkinson's disease.
• Having chronic conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure, or hardening of the arteries.
• Having had a stroke or an injury to the brain or spinal cord.
• Using too much tobacco or alcohol.
• Being tired.

Pancreatic Cancer: A Possible New therapy

New therapy for pancreatic cancer

Washington: A team of Indian and American scientists have found a new way of treating pancreatic cancer that kills 9 in 10 of the newly diagnosed 40,000 patients in the US each year. (TOI Health Section, 30 Dec, 2008)

The new personalised therapy involves targeting a receptor whose activation may be responsible for some pancreatic cancers, suggests a study by scientists at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center in Baltimore, Maryland and Institute of Bioinformatics in Bangalore.

The receptor identified by the team is called phosphorylated epidermal growth factor receptor (pEGFR). It is the activated form of a protein that binds to epidermal growth factor (EGF), which promotes cell growth and differentiation.

When EGF attaches to EGFR, it activates it as a tyrosine kinase enzyme, triggering reactions that cause cells to grow and multiply, according to a press release by the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center.

EGFR is found at abnormally high levels on the surface of many types of cancer

cells, which may divide excessively in the presence of EGF.

In a new study, published online in the Journal of Proteome Research, the researchers suggest that physicians potentially could test patients for signs of pEGFR, then direct therapies such as EGFR inhibitors directly at the signal pathway it is part of to shrink or prevent pancreatic tumours.

EGFR inhibitors and other targeted cancer therapies that interfere with specific molecules involved in cancer development so far have had limited success clinically.

But that may be because scientists are not hitting the correct molecular target, or applying them to all patients without selecting which ones are most likely to benefit, says senior study author Akilesh Pandey.

"You can't do targeted therapy without knowing that you have the right target," says Pandey, an associate professor at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center.

"We propose that the use of activated EGFR as a predictive tool for clinical response to EGFR inhibitors could lead to an improved outcome of clinical trials while sparing the large majority of the patients who might not benefit from these drugs," he adds.

For the study, Pandey and colleagues first analysed a series of pancreatic cell lines, looking for tyrosine kinase activity, finding that cells derived from one particular patient showed dramatic response.

Next, they studied these cells in greater detail using quantitative mass spectrometry, finding within the activated tyrosine kinase pathways an unusual activation of the EGFR pathway.

To test whether EGFR signalling was responsible for cell proliferation in the P196 cell line, researchers injected mice with cells from P196 and other pancreatic cell lines to grow tumours, then treated the mice with erlotinib, a drug that inhibits EGFR.

The drug made a dramatic difference in tumours from the cell lines that showed activation of EGFR, shrinking them almost entirely, but had no effect on tumours grown from cell lines that did not show activation of EGFR.

In additional experiments, the scientists used a technique called immunohistochemical labelling to study sections of tumour tissue, looking for presence of pEGFR.

While the sections of untreated tumours showed intense staining for pEGFR, the erlotinib-treated tumours showed no labelling - an indication that the drug had turned off the EGFR signal.

"By combining proteomic analysis with immunohistochemistry, we have shown EGFR as a novel target in a subset of pancreatic cancers," Pandey said.

"Three of three tumours that responded to erlotinib stained positive for pEGFR, as compared with zero of 11 that did not. This indicates pEGFR positivity is significantly associated with erlotinib sensitivity, and could be used as an efficient screening tool to select patients who are more likely to respond to EGFR inhibitors."

The study was supported by The Sol Goldman Trust for Pancreatic Cancer Research. Co-authors were H.C. Harsha, Antonio Jimeno, Henrik Molina, Anca B. Mihalas, Michael G. Goggins, Ralph H. Hruban, Richard D. Schulick, Ullas Kamath, Anirban Maitra and Manuel Hidalgo.

So a Russian predicts fall of USA by 2010....

Came across this article and I'll let my readers make their mind as to whether IP's predictions are childish and just a blabber...

Russian Professor Predicts Fall of U.S. in 2010

MOSCOW — For a decade, Russian academic Igor Panarin has been predicting the U.S. will fall apart in 2010. Now he's found an eager audience: Russian state media, who are interviewing him twice a day.

A polite and cheerful man with a buzz cut, Professor Panarin insists he does not dislike Americans. But he warns that the outlook for them is dire.

"There's a 55-45 percent chance right now that disintegration will occur," says Panarin. "One could rejoice in that process," he adds, poker-faced. "But if we're talking reasonably, it's not the best scenario — for Russia."

Prof. Panarin, 50 years old, is not a fringe figure. A former KGB analyst, he is dean of the Russian Foreign Ministry's academy for future diplomats. He is invited to Kremlin receptions, lectures students, publishes books, and appears in the media as an expert on U.S.-Russia relations.

Mr. Panarin posits, in brief, that mass immigration, economic decline, and moral degradation will trigger a civil war next fall and the collapse of the dollar. Around the end of June 2010, or early July, he says, the U.S. will break into six pieces — with Alaska reverting to Russian control.

Monday, December 29, 2008

An ant with a microship.. yea real ant

NANOTECHNOLOGY

I came across this image and I thought some of my readers may find it 'cool'...an ant with a microchip...

Tiny ... an image taken in 1999 showing an ant with a 1mm microchip, to
illustrate work in the fields of nanotechnology and ultra-precision engineering / Reuters
(news.com.au)

TOM Cruise and the German Press

Germans warm to Cruise

Some of my readers, those that are fans of TC may want to read this article:

BERLIN - TOM Cruise has defied expectations and won favourable reviews from German critics for his portrayal of a Prussian army officer who tried to assassinate Hitler in 1944 in the Hollywood film Valkyrie.

German reviewers who were initially highly suspicious have warmed to the film, describing it as a serious work, and Cruise has overcome unease about his suitability for the role.

'Valkyrie is neither scandalously bad nor the event of the century. Neither is it the action thriller we feared, but it is a well-made and serious film,' said public broadcaster ZDF.

'Cruise plays his part decisively, coolly - a solid performance, though he won't have a sniff at an Oscar.'

The Hollywood actor plays Colonel Claus Von Stauffenberg, who planted a briefcase bomb under a table at Hitler's military headquarters in eastern Prussia on July 20, 1944. The heavy wooden table saved Hitler, who suffered only minor injuries.

Stauffenberg was executed the same night with his co-conspirators and his legacy helps ease the burden of guilt about World War Two and the Holocaust Germans still endure.

Fears unfounded?
Initially, Germans baulked at the prospect of Cruise, star of blockbusters such as Top Gun, playing Stauffenberg.

Stauffenberg's son even called on Cruise to 'keep his hands off my father' and go home.

Many Germans objected to the actor's ties to Scientology, the movement founded in the 1950s by science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard, and Berlin made it difficult for the crew to film in the Bendlerblock building and courtyard where Stauffenberg was shot dead.

Germany does not recognise Scientology as a religion and regards it as a cult masquerading as a church to make money.

Scientologists reject this view.

Valkyrie, directed by Bryan Singer, opened in the United States on Dec 25 and fared better than sceptics had predicted, reaching No. 4 in the North American box office ratings for the three-day weekend starting Dec 26.

Before its German release in January, some commentators said Cruise may help to boost the country's image by taking the tale of Stauffenberg to a broader audience.

Mr Frank Schirrmacher, co-publisher of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, said Cruise's depiction would change the image the world has of Germans.

In the ZDF review, German director Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, whose The Lives of Others won a foreign language film Oscar, described the casting as a stroke of good fortune.

'Germany's hope is called Tom Cruise'.

The Koelner Stadt Anzeiger added: '(The fear that) the myth of the German resistance would be put through a Hollywood filter has turned out to be wrong and prejudicial. On the contrary, the American origin of this film is its biggest advantage.' The coverage, however, was not all favourable.

'The film is well-crafted, no explosive, loud war drama but a calm, chronological tale ... the main weakness is Cruise himself, who appears in almost every scene but is stiff,' wrote the Badische Zeitung. -- REUTERS

Surprise package of Sony Ericcson

Sony Ericsson’s 8 megapixel camera phone, the C905 Cybershot, made its way to our labs recently. Allow me to give you my impression on the latest Cybershot camera phone that’s hit the shelves. COUNTDOWN TO 2009

Form factor
Even though the C905 may come across as a bit heavy and thick (18 mm) at first sight, it does have that feel-good factor that will immediately erase any doubts about it being uncomfortable to use. It weighs just 136 gm. The 2.4-inch TFT LCD display sports a 240 x 320 pixel resolution with 262 K colours. Just above the display, on either side of the earpiece, are shortcut keys for quick access to various camera settings. A secondary camera is located in between.

The five-way navigation pad also has camera shortcuts that become available in camera mode. The other keys are quite generic to Sony Ericsson handsets — ‘Call’, ‘Answer’ and ‘End’, two ‘Open’ keys, a ‘Cancel/Delete’ key and access to the shortcut menu.

The C905 is a brilliantly smooth slider phone with a well designed keypad that’s large enough to accommodate even stubby fingers. The keys are well placed. On one side of the handset are the volume/zoom keys, shortcut to the gallery, camera mode switcher (video to still) and the camera’s shutter release. An M2 card slot and SE’s proprietary port are located on the other side. The speaker and strap loop are at the bottom.

What really appealed to me was the camera, which is neatly hidden by a sliding panel at the rear. Just slide the silver panel down and voila — it reveals an 8 megapixel camera lens with a Xenon flash.

Plus there are a lot of other goodies thrown in. Like the sleek memory card reader for the 2 GB M2 card that’s part of the handset. Sony Ericsson has also finally answered our pleas to do away with their one-port-for-all system. The port is still present, but the charger now has a secondary port built in for plugging in the handsfree whilst the handset charges. I’d say this phone does really well in the looks department.

GPS
The C905 has an internal GPS receiver that supports A-GPS. Google Maps are preloaded, but the Wayfinder Navigator 7 application isn’t as user friendly as either Route 66 or even SatGuide, which feature in some WinMob devices. It’s a wee bit slow as it doesn’t store maps on the handset, instead it updates your routes on the go.

It has a 3D map display and a pedestrian mode for walking. I could’ve used a little more data on the points of interest that could’ve been preloaded. The application manages to find Wi-Fi hot-spots inside a certain range. Areas with low network pose problems, but it gets the job done without too much hassle.

The Geo-Tagging facility lets you take pictures and shows you exactly where the images were taken by pinpointing the location on Google Maps. One of the biggest problems though, is the lack of an uploading application for images.

Media
When it comes to media, there’s no real difference between the C902 or the C905 or most other higher end Sony Ericsson handsets. Media features include the usual editing applications for images, videos and MusicDJ. It has a built-in voice recorder, a Bluetooth remote for PC control and TrackID, which is handy for getting music information, either from the integrated FM radio (that has decent reception) or music playing through an external source. Three preloaded games — Tennis, Chess and Need for Speed — have been tossed in.

The audio capabilities of the handset are the best I’ve experienced in Sony Ericsson handsets, including some from the Walkman series. It supports MP3/AAC/MPEG4 playback. The bass-line is superb, with almost no distortion even at maximum volume.

You can download podcasts as well. The handsfree has normal earphones, not the in-ear type. Video playback is really good and the ‘Resume’ feature is great when you’re interrupted while watching a video or listening to music. It also has a TV Out feature for which you’ll need to buy the relevant cabling. (Reported by SRanaITechtree.com. TOI/Gadgets, Dec 23, 2009)

Watch shaped Phone - New craze for 2009

LG unveils watch-shaped phone
(29 Dec, 2008, 1542 hrs IST,AFP, TOI, Infotec section)

SEOUL: South Korea's LG Electronics has unveiled what it described as the world's first watch-shaped mobile video phone.

The "3G watch phone" model has a touchscreen dialling system with a camera and a speaker built in to enable users to make video calls over a high speed Internet connection, LG Electronic said in a statement.

It also recognises voices, transforms text to speech, has a Bluetooth function and plays MP3 music.

The product has a 3.63-centimetre (1.43-inch) screen and is 13.9 millimetres (0.56 inches) thick. It will be on display at the 2009 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas from January 8 to 11.

LG Electronics said it plans to launch the handset in European markets sometime next year.

Family requests that life of Great White Shark be spared

Victim's family call for shark to be spared

I came across this story published in the Daily Telegraph, UK, yesterday. I thought my readers would be interested and you can make your own judgement

Australian authorities have called off their hunt for a shark believed to have killed a swimmer after the victim's family said he would not have wanted the predator to die.

Last Updated: 12:54PM GMT 28 Dec 2008

Australian authorities have called off their hunt for a shark believed to have killed a swimmer. Photo: GETTY IMAGES

Police suspect that avid diver and fisherman Brian Guest, 51, was taken by a large shark as he was snorkelling with his son near Rockingham, south of Perth on Australia's west coast, on Saturday.

Witnesses saw flashes of fins and blood in the water and nothing has been found of Guest except some shreds believed to have come from his wetsuit.

Fremantle Water Police, who were searching the area for any remains over the weekend, said there would be no attempt to hunt the shark.

"There's no way of knowing which shark it would be," Senior Sergeant Greg Trew said. "We could hunt down every shark from here to eternity without knowing whether we had the right one."

Mr Guest's family and friends said he had a deep respect for the ocean and its hazards and would not have wanted the animal killed.

Guest's 24-year-old son Daniel, who had been snorkelling for crabs with his father, said his father was aware of the risks of the sea.

"Dad loved and respected the ocean environment," he said.

Writing on a fishing website forum, Brian Guest made clear his love of the water and its creatures, saying in 2005 he did not think sharks should be killed to reduce the risk to swimmers.

A year earlier he had written: "I have always had an understanding with my wife that if a shark or ocean accident caused my death then so be it," national news agency AAP said.

A helicopter searching for Guest spotted a large shark about 200 metres off Perth's popular Cottesloe Beach early Sunday, forcing its closure and that of surrounding beaches.

But leading shark researcher Rory McAuley said despite the idea perpetuated by Hollywood movies such as "Jaws" that sharks repeatedly attack, this view was not held up by science.

Top 10 quotes of 2008, Oh so funny

Associated Press and posted on MSNBC
Dec 29, 2008

I came across this list and once again I think my readers will have fun reading these.

The Top 10 quotes of 2008, as compiled by the editor of the Yale Book of Quotations:

1. "I can see Russia from my house!" — Comedian Tina Fey, while impersonating Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin on the TV comedy show "Saturday Night Live," broadcast Sept. 13.

2. "All of them, any of them that have been in front of me over all these years." — Palin, responding to a request by CBS anchor Katie Couric to name the newspapers or magazines she reads, broadcast Oct. 1.

3. "We have sort of become a nation of whiners." — former Sen. Phil Gramm, an economic adviser to Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, quoted in The Washington Times, July 10.

4. "It's not based on any particular data point, we just wanted to choose a really large number." — a Treasury Department spokeswoman explaining how the $700 billion number was chosen for the initial bailout, quoted on Forbes.com Sept. 23.

5. "The fundamentals of America's economy are strong." — McCain, in an interview with Bloomberg TV, April 17.

6. "Decisions by the Secretary pursuant to the authority of this Act are non-reviewable and committed to agency discretion, and may not be reviewed by any court of law or any administrative agency." — the Treasury Department's proposed Emergency Economic Stabilization Act, September 2008.

7. "Maybe 100." — McCain, discussing in a town hall meeting in Derry, New Hampshire, how many years U.S. troops could remain in Iraq, Jan. 3.

8. "I'll see you at the debates, b------." — Paris Hilton in a video responding to a McCain television campaign ad, August 2008.

9. "Barack, he's talking down to black people. ... I want to cut his ... off." — Rev. Jesse Jackson, overheard over a live microphone before a Fox News interview, July 6.

10. (tie) "Cash for trash." — Paul Krugman discussing the financial bailout, New York Times, Sept. 22.

10. (tie) "There are no atheists in foxholes and there are no libertarians in financial crises." — Krugman, in an interview with Bill Maher on HBO's "Real Time," broadcast Sept. 19.

10. (tie) "Anyone who says we're in a recession, or heading into one — especially the worst one since the Great Depression — is making up his own private definition of "`recession.'" — commentator Donald Luskin, the day before Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy, The Washington Post, Sept. 14.

Botanical Vitality radical night repair cream

ZO skin Health Ossential Radical Night Repair .
I came across this article that is making a lot of buzz online and I am my lady readers would be interested in this products. I am sure men can also use it too...why not..

By Tammy | December 27, 2008

I’ll admit, I had some really great product just waiting for me to try and I kept putting it off. Why? Because the philosophy behind the skin care line was that moisturizers are basically a waste and you shouldn’t use them. WHAT?! My whole life, I’ve been taught the 4 skin care rules: Wash, exfoliate, tone and moisturize. Simple and seemed to work.

Finally, I pulled out the Anti-Aging Jumpstart Program from ZO Skin Health. To be fair, I should tell you a bit about Dr Obagi’s philosophy before telling you about the products. From his website, ZOSkinHealth.com:

Dr. Obagi’s philosophy is simple, “To win the battle on aging, give it your best shot.” He believes that you must restore skin health before you see skin vitality. His philosophy and methods are aggressive, and they work - if you are committed. So if you’re ready to fight aging and you’re willing to fight hard, see how ZO Skin Health can:

* Create change at the cellular level
* Re-energize aging skin and constantly stimulate cellular function
* Saturate skin with stabilized retinol, advanced peptides and powerful anti-oxidants for continuous stimulation and repair
* Diminish the look of fine lines and wrinkles, improve tone and texture and increase skin firmness and elasticity
* Calm your skin from the constant activation and stimulation with anti-inflammatory and anti-irritant agents

Regarding the lack of moisturizer in the ZO Skin Health line, Dr. Obagi believes that if your skin is healthy, you don’t need to ADD moisturizer to it. So, get your skin healthy with his products and your skin will be able to nourish, repair and maintain itself.

I’ll just admit up front that I am AMAZED at how wonderful these products are. I had been using some 5% hydroquinone that I bought from my dermatologist and was frustrated with the results. The spots I was trying to fade weren’t and my skin was just dry and flaky. With Zo Skin Health, my spots are fading and my skin is healthy, not flaky.

You can read the full article at: http://amominredhighheels.com/zo-skin-health-ossential-radical-night-repair

John Lennon makes a commercial 28 yrs after his death

Lennon in TV ad 28 yrs after death

28 Dec 2008, IST, REUTERS

an article published by Reuters in NY
Through the use of digital technology, the Beatle urges people across the United States to support a campaign by “One Laptop per Child” to deliver tough, solar-powered XO laptop computers to the world’s poorest children.

“Imagine every child no matter where in the world they were could access a universe of knowledge. They would have a chance to learn, to dream, to achieve anything they want,” a voice and video image of Lennon has been created to say.

“I tried to do it through my music, but now you can do it in a very different way. You can give a child a laptop and more than imagine, you can change the world,” says the musician in a play on one his best known songs — 1971’s ‘Imagine’.

Lennon was shot and killed as he and his wife, Yoko Ono, arrived at their Manhattan apartment building on December 8, 1980.

23 Days left for George W Bush

23 days and counting until George W Bush leaves the White House

I came across this article on GWB in the Telegraph, UK and I thought it is an excellent and a very well written piece. My readers can make their own judgement

As George W Bush prepares to leave the White House, his supporters are busy putting a positive spin on his eight years in office. Tim Shipman reports from Washington on how history will judge a 'consequential' presidency.

On one thing his friends and enemies agree. As Vice-President Dick Cheney puts it: 'He?s been a very consequential president.' Photo: EPA

On Wednesday Mundtadhar al-Zaidi will go on trial in Iraq, charged with throwing his shoe at George W Bush. In Istanbul, entrepreneur Ramazan Baydan has had 300,000 orders for the same shoe. He is renaming it the “Bye Bye Bush.” In Washington, the President of the United States has just 23 days left in power and an approval rating of 28 per cent, the lowest in recent White House history.

There is much about his reaction to the shoe-throwing that illuminates the real George W Bush. If his initial response (“So what if the guy threw a shoe at me?”) smacks of the casual disdain for Arab customs that his critics blame for his foreign policy mistakes, there were also shades of the presidential candidate who charmed Americans with an easy humour eight years ago. “I didn’t know what the guy said but I saw his sole,” he quipped to journalists on his flight home.

Bush’s allies are already seeking to shape the first draft of a history that will judge the President positively, making the case that Bush helped prevent another terrorist atrocity after 9/11, successfully changed a failing strategy in Iraq, and did what was necessary to prevent total economic meltdown.

On one thing his friends and enemies agree. As Vice-President Dick Cheney puts it: “He’s been a very consequential president.”

Peter Feaver, who served as special adviser for strategic planning on Bush’s White House National Security Council, agrees: “He’s had a once-in-a-century natural disaster, Hurricane Katrina, a once in a history of the Republic terrorist attack and he’s had a once-in-a-century financial crisis. Any one of those would be a pivotal moment. To have three is extraordinary.”

In his response to each of those crises, Bush and his presidency were driven in large part by his personality and, Jacob Weisberg, author of The Bush Tragedy argues, by his relationship with his father.

“His father was a great athlete, a great student, a war hero, went into the oil business and made a lot of money and then succeeded in politics,” explains Weisberg.

“Bush tried to emulate him and failed. It was very frustrating for him. It fuelled his drinking and this anger he has which is very close to the surface. He had a mid-life crisis moment [when he awoke from a severe hangover on his 40th birthday], decided he wanted to be his own man and things started to go better.”

But when Bush entered the White House in January 2001, he still needed some form of family. David Frum, the speech writer who helped coin the phrase “Axis of Evil”, believes Condoleezza Rice and Karen Hughes, Bush’s chief image maker, were sister-mother figures, while Weisberg sees Dick Cheney as his political father.

In the aftermath of the seismic shock of 9/11 that shaped Bush’s presidency, Cheney “had a world view ready to go”, a long-held constitutional vision that, in a war, the president’s hands should not be tied by Congress, the judiciary or the United Nations.

This appealed to Bush because it differed from his father’s approach. “The second Bush followed a reverse playbook of the first,” says Weisberg. “He gravitated to the neo-conservative view of foreign policy, which is heavily moralistic, heavily idealistic, interventionist, militaristic and aggressive, and very much defined in counterpoint to the realist diplomatic policy of the first George Bush.”

His father’s failure to oust Saddam Hussein in 1991, his critics argue, predisposed his son to complete the job.

Weisberg argues that the younger Bush rebelled against his father’s style as well as his policies. “His father thought decisions were matters of probability,” Mr Weisberg said. “The son thought problems were matters of moral certainty. He made decisions quickly and never revisited them. He saw open discussion as a challenge to his authority.”

This is the most eloquent version of the widely held critique of Bush: impulsive, simplistic, uninquisitive. The Bush camp says in key respects it is wrong.

“There are some on the Left who think that unless you are constantly conducting a college seminar, which was the way Bill Clinton governed, that you’re not engaged, you’re not up to it intellectually,” says John Bolton, former ambassador to the United Nations. “That’s just false.”

There is much more and If my readers would like to read the full article, they can visit the Daily Telegraph, UK website.

Sikh Gurudwara in remote Northern Argentina

The ONLY Sikh Temple (Gurudwara) in remote Northern Argentina.
Sikh community were brought here by the British to build the railway....well similar to the arrival of the Sikh community in East Africa (Kenya) by the British in the early 1900's. I hope the sikh community around the world will keep in touch with them. Check this awesome video.

Joost

Apple iPhone and iPod Touch Get Joost Wi-Fi Web Videos

Hot news about Joost and I thought I'll bring it to the attention of my readers.

Joost has completed its Web video application for the Apple iPhone and iPod Touch. The free app enables the mobile devices to view videos over a Wi-Fi connection.

Joost has deployed a new application for the Apple Inc iPhone 3G and iPod Touch to watch videos over a Wi-Fi connection. The wireless devices can get the free application from Apple's App Store.

"Offering Joost on the iPhone and iPod touch is an important step for Joost as we endeavor to offer users premium entertainment, where they want it and when they want it," Joost CEO Mike Volpi said in a statement.

The global Web video service recently expanded with 11 new content partners. Wireless devices such as the iPhone 3G can now watch thousands of hours of anime, comedy, drama, movies, music, documentaries, sci-fi, and sports over their Wi-Fi connections.

Full article by Mary Couchman can be seen at: http://www.newsoxy.com/iphone/article11540.html

"Barack the Magic Negro" latest followup

"Magic Negro" Follow up

Well, "Barack the Magic Negro" youtube issue has not died as one would have expected..read on and check it out for yourself...............

December 27th, 2008
By DORIAN DE WIND

According to Politico.com, Republican National Committee Chairman Mike Duncan has issued a statement Saturday distancing the party’s leadership from Chip Saltsman, who distributed a CD containing “Barack the Magic Negro” as part of his campaign to be elected chairman of the Republican National Committee next month.

Duncan’s statement, in full:

The 2008 election was a wake-up call for Republicans to reach out and bring more people into our party. I am shocked and appalled that anyone would think this is appropriate as it clearly does not move us in the right direction.

Further, according to Politico:

In the “Republican Plan for Victory” that is Saltsman’s platform in the chairman’s race, he writes: “I believe that countering an emboldened Democratic Party, led by the Obama-Reid-Pelosi troika, requires an aggressive national strategy. This campaign’s message cannot depend upon traditional media outlets or communication methods. It will require building upon new media and developing and mastering new tactics.”

Mr. Saltsman, you are correct that, by choosing the Limbaugh smear way, you certainly are not depending “upon traditional media outlets or communication methods” to get your biased message across.

But, at the same time, you are totally incorrect in your claim that it “will require…mastering new tactics.”

The tactics you have chosen to use are not new—they are the same ugly ones that were used in the days of divisiveness, prejudice, and racism.

And to Republican National Committee Chairman, Mike Duncan: I salute you, Sir, for condemning such reprehensible tactics.

American Slangs that really annoys a British guy

Top 10 most annoying Americanisms

I came across an article posted below, by Toby Harnden on his Telegraph Blog. I thought that I had to share this with my American friends and my Blog readers. Comments would be most welcome

Michelle Obama just sent me an email wishing me "Happy Holidays" and asking me to give money "to causes that are especially meaningful to me and my family" (food banks and deployed troops - not the Obama campaign this time).

She doesn't mention Christmas at all, instead talking vaguely of "a time to celebrate our blessings, the new year, and a new era for our country".

The term "Happy Holidays" is certainly one that grates on this British ear and I confess it's not the only one. Every day, I have to navigate the common language which, as George Bernard Shaw put it, divides our two nations.

But I don't mean simple Americanisms like stroller (pushchair), diaper (nappy), ladybug (ladybird), Mom (Mum), entrée (main course), Santa (Father Christmas), takeout (takeaway), pre-owned (secondhand), mad (angry), chill (calm down), Santa (Father Christmas) etc etc but the phrases that really make you want to go postal.

Here are the top 10 that, after nearly seven years here, infuriate me most:

1. "Happy Holidays."

Translation: "Merry Christmas but I realise you might be Jewish, Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim, Bahai, something even more exotic, agnostic or Godless and I don't want to offend you."

2. "Have a Nice Day."

Translation: "I would like you to have a pleasant time today" or "I hate you" - or anything in between.

3. "You're welcome."

Translation: Meaningless Pavlovian response to thank you.

4. "Do the math."

Translation: "Work it out yourself, stupid."

5. "Let's visit with each other."

Translation: "We should spend time together."

6. "How are you today?"

Translation: "We mean nothing to each other, but let's pretend."

7. "Good luck with that."Translation: "You have no chance at all."

8. "Oh my gosh!"

Translation: "I fear you may feel that taking the Lord's name in vain is blasphemous."

9. "Can I use your bathroom?"

Translation: "I would like to use your lavatory."

10. "Not so much."

Translation: "That's completely wrong." Used on me in classic fashion by a Clinton aide back in February.

Maybe there are others that make your blood boil - or some Britishisms that really get under your skin.

Evidence that Cauliflower and Cabbage combat breast cancer

Scientists show cauliflower, cabbage combat breast cancer

Eating vegetables like cauliflower and cabbage are known to prevent breast cancer. But the mechanism by which the active substances in these vegetables inhibit cancer cell proliferation was unknown - until now.

Leslie Wilson, professor of biochemistry at the University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB) and Mary Ann Jordan, adjunct professor in molecular, cellular and developmental biology, have shown how the healing power of these vegetables works at the cellular level.

"Breast cancer, the second leading cause of cancer deaths in women, can be protected against by eating cruciferous vegetables such as cabbage and near relatives of cabbage such as broccoli and cauliflower," said co-author Olga Azarenko, a graduate student at UCSB.

"These vegetables contain compounds called isothiocyanates which we believe to be responsible for the cancer-preventive and anti-carcinogenic activities in these vegetables. Broccoli and broccoli sprouts have the highest amount of the isothiocyanates.

"Our paper focuses on the anti-cancer activity of one of these compounds, called sulforaphane, or SFN," Azarenko added. "It has already been shown to reduce the incidence and rate of chemically induced mammary tumours in animals. It inhibits the growth of cultured human breast cancer cells, leading to cell death."

The paper was published in this month's journal Carcinogenesis.

Azarenko made the surprising discovery that SFN inhibits the proliferation of human tumour cells by a mechanism similar to the way that the anti-cancer drugs taxol and vincristine inhibit cell division during mitosis.

Mitosis is the process in which the duplicated DNA in the form of chromosomes is accurately distributed to the two daughter cells when a cell divides, said an UCSB statement.

"SFN may be an effective cancer preventive agent because it inhibits the proliferation and kills precancerous cells," said Wilson. It is also possible that it could be used as an addition to taxol and other similar drugs to increase effective killing of tumour cells without increased toxicity.

Indo-Asian News Service

Washington, December 24, 2008

Watch Free Movies

Watch Free Movies over the weekend
A friend of mine sent me links for free movies. I thought I will share this with my readers. Relax and enjoy:
Check it out:

http://www.watch-movies.net/movies/back_to_the_future

http://www.watch-movies.net/movies/b...future_part_ii

http://www.watch-movies.net/movies/b...uture_part_iii

Afghan Warlords, Viagra and CIA agents

US offers Viagra to win over Afghan Warlords

I came across this article written by Agence France-Presse, Washington, Dec 26, 2008. I will let my readers make their own opinions as to how the Federal Govt is spending our tax dollars in the name of war!

CIA agents are offering the potency drug Viagra and other gifts to win over Afghan warlords in the US-led war against Taliban insurgents, the Washington Post reported on Friday.

Paying for information is nothing new for the Central Intelligence Agency, but officers have started employing unusual incentives to persuade Afghan local leaders to share intelligence about the Taliban's movements, the Post wrote, citing unnamed sources in the spy service.

"Whatever it takes to make friends and influence people -- whether it's building a school or handing out Viagra," one CIA operative who has worked in Afghanistan was quoted as saying.

CIA agents have offered pocket knives and tools, toys and school equipment, travel visas, medical services including surgeries and sometimes the erectile dysfunction drug Viagra for Afghan chieftains, the paper said.

The aging chieftains often have up to four wives and are open to the Viagra pill as a way to "put them back in an authoritative position," said another official.

More customary bribes such as cash and weapons can create problems, because guns fan fall into the wrong hands and a sudden influx of cash can draw too much attention, agents told the paper.

Four Viagra pills transformed the attitude of one influential 60-year-old warlord who had been wary of the United States.

"He came up to us beaming," one official told the Post.

Lawrence of Arabia

Lawrence of Arabia’s home up for sale

So, I cam across this article in a Welsh paper and asked a friend if he knew who LofA was? Well, he said he may have been an Arab....but alas he was a welshman. Well, his house is for sale..

THE North Wales birthplace of Lawrence of Arabia has been put up for sale.The Grade II Lawrence House/Snowdon Lodge in Tremadog, near Porthmadog, is on the market for £900,000. Legendary T E Lawrence, who reportedly said he was born a Welshman and will die a Welshman, was born at the property in 1888 and lived there for 18 months.

He went on to become one of the most famous and enigmatic characters of the 20th century leading an Arab revolt against the Turks in the First World War. The property has been turned into a popular youth hostel.

Three years ago owners Carl Borum and Anja Grunert won permission to build a 30 room extension in the grounds. The development with planning permission is now being sold through Sterling Estates. Nigel Crabtree, from Sterling Estates, said: “This is a special property, it is interesting in its own right and is an exciting development but there is also the historical side as it is the birthplace of Lawrence of Arabia.

“It is a very impressive site with a great deal of potential. “The property is listed Grade II for historical reasons as the birthplace of TE Lawrence and lies within the boundary of the Tremadog Conservation Area.” The existing Victorian property, which has 10 bedrooms, sits in four acres of land.

Lying in the foothills of Snowdonia it has been a popular hostel location for climbers and walkers with dormitories, double bedrooms and family rooms. In 2005 the owners received planning permission for a major tourists development to provide additional bedrooms along with a retail unit, restaurant, exhibition and conference facilities, together with the formation of a new vehicle access, car parking and landscaping work.

This was won at appeal. The plans had originally been rejected by the planning committee of Gwynedd Council.

Dec 24 2008 by Owen R Hughes, Daily Post. Full article at http://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/2008/12/24/lawrence-of-arabia

Barack the Magic Negro

I came across this youtube video online and I will let my readers make their own judgement.

(CNN) -- A candidate for the Republican National Committee chairmanship said Friday the CD he sent committee members for Christmas -- which included a song titled "Barack the Magic Negro" -- was clearly intended as a joke.

The title of the song about President-elect Barack Obama was drawn from a Los Angeles Times column. "I think most people recognize political satire when they see it," Tennessee Republican Chip Saltsman told CNN. "I think RNC members understand that."

The song, set to the tune of "Puff the Magic Dragon," was first played on conservative political commentator Rush Limbaugh's radio show in 2007. Its title was drawn from a Los Angeles Times column that suggested President-elect Barack Obama appealed to those who feel guilty about the nation's history of mistreatment of African-Americans. Saltsman said the song, penned by his longtime friend Paul Shanklin, should be easily recognized as satire directed at the Times.

The CD sent to RNC members, first reported by The Hill on Friday, is titled "We Hate the USA" and also includes songs referencing former presidential candidate John Edwards and the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, among other targets. According to The Hill, other song titles, some of which were in bold font, were: "John Edwards' Poverty Tour," "Wright place, wrong pastor," "Love Client #9," "Ivory and Ebony" and "The Star Spanglish Banner." By Rebecca Sinderbrand
CNN.

Please leave a comment.

TOM BRADY-Patriots Boy

Gisele Bündchen & Tom Brady Just Plane Engaged!

Dimitrios Kambouris/WireImage.com

Tom Brady may be out for the rest of the football season, but he's officially found his Angel.

E! News has confirmed that the benched New England Patriot popped the question to supermodel girlfriend Gisele Bündchen and she accepted.

On Christmas Eve, the gorgeous exes of Leonardo DiCaprio and Bridget Moynahan (with whom the QB has a child) hopped on a private jet from New Jersey's Teterboro Airport to Boston. Also on board were four dozen white roses, champagne and the bride-to-be's parents.

Cue fantasies of a row of Victoria's Secret Angel bridesmaids and linebacker groomsmen.

Today 11:50 AM PST by Breanne L. Heldman (E Online)

Lack of sleep precursor to Heart problems

Skipping sleep 'hardens arteries'

Clogged arteries can cause angina

People who scrimp on sleep are more likely to develop hardening of their arteries, a precursor to heart disease, research suggests.

Calcified arteries were found in nearly a third of people who slept fewer than five hours a night.

This dropped to around one in 10 for those who slept an extra hour, the Journal of the American Medical Association study of 495 adults found.

Experts said getting enough sleep was important for good heart health.

In the study, the volunteers underwent two CT scans, designed to assess the build-up of calcium in the heart's arteries, five years apart.

Although this single study does not prove that short sleep leads to coronary artery disease, it is safe to recommend at least six hours of sleep a night Dr Diane Lauderdale, lead researcher

They also filled out sleep questionnaires, kept a sleep diary and wore a wrist monitor for six nights that measured movement to give an estimate of how long they were actually lying still and asleep.

At the first scan, none of the volunteers had any calcification in their arteries but five years later 61 of them did.

This calcification appeared to be linked with lack of sleep.

The risk was lowest for those who regularly had more than seven hours sleep each night.

Lead researcher Dr Diane Lauderdale, of the University of Chicago, said there were several possible explanations for the link that they found.

Stress-related

Firstly, there may be some factor not yet identified that can both reduce sleep duration and increase calcification.

Or it might be down to blood pressure - high blood pressure increases the likelihood of calcification and blood pressure goes down during sleep.

Alternatively, stress or a stress hormone like cortisol, which has been tied to decreased sleep and increased calcification, may play a role.

She said: "Although there are constant temptations to sleep less, there is a growing body of evidence that short sleep may have subtle health consequences.

"Although this single study does not prove that short sleep leads to coronary artery disease, it is safe to recommend at least six hours of sleep a night."

Ellen Mason, of the British Heart Foundation, said: "It is not yet clear quite how sleep affects our heart disease risk, but this study adds to previous research suggesting that getting enough sleep may help to keep our heart and circulation healthy.

"Sleep is essential for our body's ability to repair itself and with the party season in full flow, it is important to try and get enough rest.

"Drinking alcohol late at night and getting up early can mean we're not getting enough quantity, or quality, of sleep."
(reported : BBC Health News, Dec 26, 2008)

SLINGBOX Solo...Hot item

Watch your DVR or home TV through the Internet on your computer or Mobile Phone
The Slingbox™ SOLO allows you to watch and control your favorite TV source from anywhere in the world on your laptop or cell phone. So now you can watch your DVR, digital cable, satellite receiver, or DVD player wherever you see fit. With the Slingbox SOLO, you can watch your favorite TV shows and sporting events from anywhere. For further details check out this site.
http://www.slingmedia.com/go/slingbox-solo

New Apps for X-mas Gift for iPhone or iPod

20 Great Apps For Your New iPhone Or iPod Touch (AAPL)

Got an Apple (AAPL) iPhone or iPod touch for Christmas? As you've probably heard, a lot of the fun is the App Store, Apple's wildly successful software store. Here's 20 of our favorite apps to load your phone up with -- many are free.

• Remote, free: Use your iPhone as a remote control for your computer's iTunes or your Apple TV.
• Facebook and/or MySpace, free: Catch up on your real-world friends and see their latest photos. Great for killing time in waiting rooms.
• Shazam, free: What's that song playing in the car/bar/store? Find out in a few seconds.
• Google Earth, free: The built-in Google Maps app is great for getting around, but Google Earth is a traveler's dream app. Gorgeous scenery, including 3D landscapes.
• Instapaper, free or $10 for Pro version: Save Web pages to read later. Great for saving news articles, blog posts for train rides, rainy days, whenever. Pro version has neat auto-scrolling feature powered by the iPhone's motion sensor.
• Tap Tap Revenge, free, or Tap Tap Dance, $5: The iPhone's equivalent of "Guitar Hero" or "Rock Band." Play along with music, including new live multi-player mode on the free edition. If you're not sick of Christmas music yet, check out Weezer's $2 Tap Tap Revenge Christmas edition, too.
• Sol Free, free, or Solebon Solitaire, $2: The cleanest, best looking solitaire game we've seen on the iPhone yet. Popular on the NYC subway.
• Rolando, $10: The iPhone's equivalent of "Mario" -- and the best iPhone game we've seen so far. Makes great use of the phone's motion sensor, touchscreen, and gravity. (Our review here.)
  
• Frenzic, $2 on sale: Addictive, speed puzzle game. Great for Tetris lovers. Fifteen minutes every morning will get your brain turned up to 11. (As of this afternoon, we're the 422nd best Frenzic player in the world.)
  
• Aqua Hoops, $1, or free Aqua Baller and Aqua Punt: Mimics those plastic kids' toys: Use the touchscreen and motion sensor to sink small basketballs/footballs into their goals. Beat others' scores on the Internet.
• Labyrinth LE, free, or $7 for full version: Tilt your iPhone or iPod touch to move steel marbles across a wood surface. Another classic board game that feels even more fun on the iPhone.
• Real Soccer 2009, $6: The reason we didn't buy a Sony (SNE) PlayStation Portable. A great soccer game -- just as good as you'd find on any other portable gaming system -- with wi-fi multiplayer mode.
• Amazon, free: Great way to make sure those after-Christmas sales are actually a good deal. Check the in-store price against the Amazon price.
• AOL Radio, free: Tune into local and Internet radio stations via your iPhone. Seeya, Walkman!
• Pandora, free: Another popular, free Internet music app. Hooks in to the Pandora Web site.
• Voice recorder, $1: Record a conversation, take verbal notes for later, or eavesdrop on the table next to you.
• Scribble, free: Make simple drawings, scribble on photographs, save and email them.
• Koi Pond, $1: Watch beautiful fish swim around your screen, and scare them away with a touch. Great for your kids or if you've had too much egg nog.
• Ocarina, $1: Neat, bizarre musical instrument. Also see/hear what others are playing around the world.
• Texas Hold'em, $5: Beautiful poker game built by Apple. Wi-fi multiplayer gaming for up to 9 people.
• Flashlight, free: Don't laugh. It's helped us find the lock on our door several times.
• (By Dan Frommer , Silicon Alley Insider, Dec 25, 2008)
  

Free MP3 Music downloads

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IHOP for Children's Charity

IHOP plans to raise million's for Children's Charity
IHOP, one of America's favorite restaurants for breakfast, lunch and dinner, has announced plans to serve millions of free pancakes in celebration of National Pancake Day on February 24, 2009. The celebration is designed to bring together friends and family, as well as to raise $1 million for Children's Miracle Network, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping children's hospitals, and other worthy causes. 2009 will mark IHOP's fourth year of celebrating the national event, and nearly 1,400 IHOP restaurants throughout the United States will once again invite guests to enjoy a free short stack of IHOP's signature buttermilk pancakes from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. In return, IHOP guests are asked to donate what they would have paid for the free pancakes, or more, to their local children's hospital or another worthy cause. Additionally, Miracle Balloons will be sold for $1 each, personalized and displayed at participating IHOP restaurants from February 1 through February 24, 2009, offering guests another way to show their support of Children's Miracle Network and contribute to the National Pancake Day fundraising effort.

"IHOP is thrilled to bring families and communities together in support of the efforts of Children's Miracle Network and other local charities on National Pancake Day," said Des Hague, IHOP's president. "We want to thank our guests who helped us raise $875,000 to support Children's Miracle Network and other local charities last year, and we ask them to join us again to surpass our fundraising goal for 2009."

Since the inception of National Pancake Day in 2006, IHOP has raised nearly $2 million to support charities in the communities in which it operates. In 2008, IHOP gave away more than 1.5 million pancakes and raised over $875,000 in support of Children's Miracle Network and other local charities, far exceeding its goal to raise $750,000. (Market Watch, Press release, Dec 18, 2008)

Vanessa Hudgens and Zac Efron....Worlds top Couple

HIGH School Musical sweethearts and real-life lovers Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens have been voted the Favourite Couple of 2008.

The sweethearts, who this year reunited for High School Musical 3: Senior Year, topped the list of the best pairings of the year .

Their relationship has been strong despite Hudgens being caught in a nude web scandal earlier this year.

The pair though are still hot for each other and two of the most sought after actors in the world.

They were photographed all over each other courtside at a Los Angeles Lakers and New York Knicks game in LA yesterday.

"They rode the little-TV-movie-that-could, High School Musical, to box office gold and worldwide fame in 2008. And they have perfect teeth. But their love cannot last post-High School Musical, as their careers pull them apart, forever," Fox News said.

"So appreciate them now, while their love burns with the heat of a million flashbulbs. Congratulations to our Favourite Couple of 2008!". (Daily Telegraph, Dec 18, 2008)