source: http://www.channel24.co.za/Movies/News/Brad-Pitt-becomes-real-life-hero-20110829

Los Angeles - Janet Jackson said on Monday that she won't attend a planned tribute concert for her older brother Michael in Wales because the show coincides with the trial of a doctor charged in the King of Pop's death.
The singer's one-sentence statement did not criticise the show, as her brothers Jermaine and Randy had done, but cited the court case as her reason for not attending.
"Because of the trial, the timing of this tribute to our brother would be too difficult for me," her statement reads.

Her statement was released on what would have been her brother's 53rd birthday.

Organisers of "Michael Forever - The Tribute Concert" have struggled to line up top-name acts and have been criticised by fans and the late singer's estate for multiple reasons, including its costly tickets, timing and remote location.

The show is scheduled for October 8 in Cardiff and the singer's mother, Katherine, and some of her children are scheduled to attend.

Christina Aguilera, Smokey Robinson and Cee Lo Green are the top-names listed as performers so far.

Organisers had to rescind an offer to the band Kiss after fans and Michael Jackson's estate noted that singer-bassist Gene Simmons had harshly criticised the pop singer over the years.

Opening statements in the involuntary manslaughter trial of Dr Conrad Murray are scheduled to begin on September 27.

Murray, who has pleaded not guilty, could face up to four years in prison if convicted.

Authorities allege he gave Michael Jackson a lethal dose of the anaesthetic propofol and other sedatives in the bedroom of his rented mansion on June 25 2009.

source: http://www.channel24.co.za/News/International/Janet-Jackson-wont-attend-tribute-20110829

Read more: http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20110810/OEM02/110819986/1193#ixzz1UetLRByl

With many people around the country having seen Harry Potter at midnight screenings last night - here's tvnz.co.nz's movie expert to give his opinion.

Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows: Part 2

Rating: 8/10

Cast: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Ralph Fiennes, Robbie Coltrane, Alan Rickman, Michael Gambon

Director: David Yates

And so it ends.

The final part of the final Harry Potter film is unleashed on the world - and with it, the end of a saga which has entranced a world and created a multi million dollar lifestyle for creator JK Rowling.

As you'll remember from the first part of the Deathly Hallows film ( read the review from last year here), Harry, Hermione and Ron set out to find the Dark Lord's Horcruxes (a sort of magical object which gives Voldemort his power) and destroy them - in the hope that that will end this battle once and for all.

This film takes up right after the end of the last, with Dobbie the elf despatched, the battle lines drawn and Harry aware the ultimate battle is nearing a final perhaps fatal end.

But as the fate and destiny of Voldemort and Harry Potter play out, the path leads back to Hogwarts and to a dark secret which will finally settle the score between the Wizarding world and the Muggle World....

Yes, it's finally here - the in some ways, reviewer proof final film of the franchise which has spanned a lot of Rupert Grint gurning as well as millions (or is it billions) of books since its launch back in 1997.

And quite frankly, what a stunning, magical epic and emotionally rewarding end to the long running and much loved saga.

I'll preface this by saying I'm unaware of the source material and how it played out on the page, so this film was a genuine surprise in many ways - and an unexpectedly sumptuous narrative treat, blessed with some great acting. I for one didn't know how it ended for Potter et al, so I was suitably spellbound from beginning to end (which, as an aside, is probably a good thing as fans will flock to this regardless - but non-fans may be wary.)

Granted, viewing of the previous films is probably helpful, but in many ways, this closing chapter has everything it needed to finally wrap it up and satiate those of us (well, mainly me) who felt JK Rowling had dragged out the books and the resulting films which simply saw Harry threatened and then deal with the threat summarily.

It's a truly unexpected film - there are moments of absolute silence where the acting simply takes the foreground and the soundtrack goes silent and thematically, there is much to engage the grey matter (although a spiritual flight of fantasy does feel a little unnecessary and meandering even though it's a metaphysical jaunt into Harry's psyche- and don't even get me started on the "19 Years Later" epilogue which is cloying and sickly saccharine and ultimately unnecessary and disappointing).

It's the emotional calm before the storm as we build upto the final showdown and the inevitable fight at Hogwarts. Every single member of this ensemble are perfect but Daniel Radcliffe really does up his game again, this time imbuing Harry with pathos, sadness, turmoil and pain as he sees what his fight has done to others and how it takes the ultimate toll on many. It's great to see how far he's come since the first film where his acting chops were quite frankly, obscured by his moptop and lack of age.

In an ultimate battle, there will be casualties - and sure, some fan favourites are despatched off screen, but you could argue that these deaths would have felt mawkish to watch, held back the story - and let's be honest, we've had some 14 years to get to know the characters so we do feel the emotional pain. It's also good to see that the smaller characters are the true heroes of the film - it's a nice touch in such an epic saga.

The other star of this film is director David Yates. The direction and perfect pace he brings to the film is its great saviour - and perhaps the franchise's saving grace. With swirling FX, a stunning and stirring score and some dark and portentous moments, this Potter is a restrained, mature and impressive, less is more kind of film which doesn't over indulge the fact it's the last time we'll see these characters or throw FX in for their own sake. There's none of the bloatedness which makes you feel the franchise has overstayed its welcome; in fact, it's perfectly wrapped up and left with the rich closure fans have sought for years.

This is the Harry Potter film I've been waiting for in many ways; perhaps, it was inevitable that it would be the final film which got it right, but as a closing chapter, it's near perfect and is the best send off it could ever have been given.

Movie Review By tvnz.co.nz's Darren Beva

Mumbai - Many were on their way home after work, while others were eating snacks in the narrow and bustling streets around Mumbai's abandoned opera house when a blast tore through the area just before 19:00.

Fire brigade floodlights showed the full extent of the damage in a claustrophobic side street in the area still known as Opera House, a crowded working class district and diamond trading hub between two main thoroughfares.

Sandals were abandoned among the muddy puddles and potholes overflowing with steady monsoon rain; roadside food stalls were overturned in the gutter, and the mangled remains of a car stood with its doors hanging off.

"More than 5 000 people pass through here every minute," said Jayesh Labdhi, a committee member of the Mumbai Diamond Merchants' Association near the wreckage of a white car.

"At about 18.50 there was a huge big blast. We didn't know what it was but after a couple of minutes we saw so much smoke everywhere. There were so many people lying on the ground just crying out and wanting help," he told AFP.

Others who heard the blast and felt the nearby buildings shake, shook their heads as they surveyed the site. Many of the victims had lost limbs, they said quietly.

A second explosion targeted Zaveri Bazaar, about five kilometres away, an area packed with precious metals traders and jewellery sellers shuttling between shops with consignments, amid cows, shoppers and curious tourists.

"There was a lot of damage. Buildings 30m away had their windows blown out," Rutavi Metha, a fashion photographer, told AFP.

Bodies and blood

"There were bodies lying on the ground and a lot of blood. Local people were trying to help, picking up the injured and putting them in cars to drive them to hospital."

Gohira Oza, 30, who runs a drinks store in the district, said he ran from his shop after hearing the explosion.

"I helped pick up three dead bodies and three injured," he added.

Mustafa Fatakadawala, a bearded stationery and tool shop owner, his white kurta shirt stained red with blood, did the same.

"I rescued about eight people before the ambulances arrived," he said.

Police quickly cordoned off the scene and mobile phone networks were jammed, as the injured were taken to hospital on makeshift stretchers made of tarpaulin sheets or bundled into taxis or private cars.

A third target was a bustling street in Dadar, a middle-class residential and commercial district surrounding the landmark Shivaji Park, where cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar learnt his craft.

School

A low intensity blast went off near a bus stop close to a school.

Hordes of worried friends and relatives pushed to get in to the privately-run Saifee Hospital, where many of the Opera House victims were taken.

"I don't know what has happened to my colleague, Jharilal Yadav," said security guard Ashok, who only gave his first name.

"His entire body was covered in blood. I don't know how he is. We found him in a pile of rubble. I only recognised him by his uniform," he said.

Hem Narain Shukla said his brother Ram, a 48-year-old painter, was being treated at the hospital.

"His condition is not very good. He has suffered multiple head wounds. I don't know what's going to happen," he said.

source: news24.com

The first hour of today’s Le Mans 24 Hour race was marred by a huge accident for Audi’s Scottish driver Allan McNish.

McNish had enjoyed a superb start from fifth on the grid to be running second shortly before the hour mark when he clipped the number 58 GTE Pro Ferrari of Anthony Beltoise while attempting to lap the back marker as the cars headed down towards the Esses, crashing violently into the barriers.

The Audi R18 suffered a high impact and slewed over the Armco railing throwing debris over trackside marshals and photographers.

McNish was extracted safely from his stricken car but there was no immediate word on whether any spectators had been hurt.

The accident forced the safety car onto the track and left last year’s winner Timo Bernhard up front in the lead Audi ahead of its remaining sister car and the three Peugeots.

Video:



source: tawnet.com

 Children born to mothers who smoke while pregnant are at higher risk of having non-inherited defects such as clubfoot, missing or deformed limbs and facial disorders, according to the first ever comprehensive systematic review to establish which specific defects are linked to smoking in pregnancy. Led by scientists from University College London (UCL) in the UK, the review authors concluded that public health messages should now encourage more women to quit before or during pregnancy.

You can read a report on the review in the 11 July online issue of Human Reproduction Update.

Despite public health warnings that smoking while pregnant can increase the risk of miscarriage and babies being born prematurely, many women still smoke during pregnancy, write the authors. For instance in England and Wales, 17% of women smoke in pregnancy, while in the US that figure is a bit lower at 14%.

This overall figure varies considerably with age, education and across professions. In the UK, 45% of women under the age of 20 smoke during pregnancy, a figure that lead author Professor Allan Hackshaw, of the UCL Cancer Institute, describes as "staggeringly high". This compares with 9% of women over the age of 35 smoking during pregnancy. 7% of women in occupations classed as managerial or professional smoke during pregnancy in the UK compared to 29% of those in routine or manual jobs.

For their systematic review and meta-analysis, Hackshaw, who is also on the Tobacco Advisory Group of the Royal College of Physicians,where he is a member, and colleagues, searched the Medline database for observational studies published between 1959 and 2010 and picked them out if they reported the Odds Ratio (OR) for babies being born with non-chromosomal birth defects to women who smoked during pregnancy compared with non-smokers.

They found 172 reports that met their criteria, and these gave data on a total of 173,687 babies with malformations and 11,674 332 unaffected controls.

When they analyzed the pooled data they found that smoking in pregnancy raised the risk of babies being born with defects as follows:

• 33% raised risk of baby being born with skull defects.
• 28% raised risk of being born with clubfoot, 28% for cleft lip/palate, 27% for gastrointestinal defects, and 26% for missing or deformed limbs.
• However, the greatest increased risk was for gastroschisis, a defect where parts of the stomach or gut protrude through the skin of the abdomen.

The authors concluded that smoking in pregnancy is an important risk factor for many major birth defects, and:

"These specific defects should be included in public health educational information to encourage more women to quit smoking before or early on in pregnancy, and to particularly target younger women and those from lower socio-economic groups, in which smoking prevalence is greatest."

Hackshaw said in a statement:

"Maternal smoking during pregnancy is a well established risk factor for miscarriage, low birthweight and premature birth. However, very few public health educational policies mention birth defects when referring to smoking and those that do are not very specific - this is largely because of past uncertainty over which ones are directly linked."

But now, thanks to the results of this study, we can "be more explicit about the kinds of serious defects such as deformed limbs, and facial and gastrointestinal malformations," and he urged women to quit smoking before they get pregnant, or very early in pregnancy so as "to reduce the chance of having a baby with a serious and lifelong physical defect".

"Maternal smoking in pregnancy and birth defects: a systematic review based on 173 687 malformed cases and 11.7 million controls."
Allan Hackshaw, Charles Rodeck, and Sadie Boniface.
Hum. Reprod. Update (2011)
source: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com

Bulimia nervosa is a severe eating disorder associated with episodic binge eating followed by extreme behaviors to avoid weight gain such as self-induced vomiting, use of laxatives or excessive exercise. It is poorly understood how brain function may be involved in bulimia.

A new study led by Guido Frank, MD, assistant professor, Departments of Psychiatry and Neuroscience and Director, Developmental Brain Research Program at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, studied the brain response to a dopamine related reward-learning task in bulimic and healthy women. Dopamine is an important brain chemical or neurotransmitter that helps regulate behavior such as learning and motivation. Frank found that bulimic women had weakened response in brain regions that are part of the reward circuitry. This response was related to the frequency of binge/purge episodes. Overeating and purging episodes thus could cause such a weaker response and set off a vicious cycle of altered brain function. These findings are important for several reasons. First, they directly implicate the brain reward system and related dopamine function in this disorder. Second, bulimic behavior appears to directly affect brain reward function and it is uncertain whether such alterations return to normal with recovery or not. Third, brain dopamine could be a treatment target in bulimia nervosa using specific medication that targets those abnormalities.

"This is the first study that suggests that brain dopamine related reward circuitry, pathways that modulate our drive to eat, may have a role in bulimia nervosa. We found reduced activation in this network in the bulimic women, and the more often an individual had binge/purge episodes the less responsive was their brain. That suggests that the eating disorder behavior directly affects brain function. These findings are important since the brain dopamine neurotransmitter system could be an important treatment target for bulimia nervosa," said Frank.

This study was published in Biological Psychiatry June 28, 2011.

Source:
Jackie Brinkman
University of Colorado Denver
 
source: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com

EUR/USD bulls show fatigue, unable to hold 1.4000 handle

European markets in panic

The financial turmoil occured on the back of an emergency meeting by FinMin held on Monday, discussing the Greek mess and a potential debt contagion to Italy; After the meeting, the EU issued an official statement, failing to animate the Euro, as none of the headlines were ground-breaking. Leaders seem unable to keep pace with the fast-growing concerns of the sovereign debt woes.

Main highlights:

• Ready to take further measures to improve EZ ability to withstand contagion

• This includes enhancing flexibility and scope of EFSF

• Also includes lengthening loan maturities and lowering interest rates

• Proposals are to be presented to ministers

Key events to watch in the Euro zone crisis

Europe will be closely watching Spanish and Italian yields over Germany's, as further widening of the spread is likely to drive Euro even lower.



Debt rating agencies will also be in the spotlight, as they remain stubborn to give the blessing at extending creditos holdings for new, longer-maturing bonds. Bureaucrats in Europe can not afford a declaration of a Greek default, likely to push investors away from all bonds issued by peripheral Euro zone economies, including Spain and Italy.

"We believe that Portugal will further be downgraded by S&P and Fitch Rating much lower than current levels. A junk status could further push EUR/USD to the downside" said Andrei Tratseuski, Analyst at Forex Club.

Why Italy is a Much Bigger Deal than Greece - Kathy Lien

The following image is from the FT showing bank holding of PIIGS’ sovereign debt


If a second rescue deal to Greece is satisfactory to rating agencies, contagion effects to Italy can be contained. With the headlines this week focused on European sovereign debt crisis and the EU stress tests results due on Friday, there could be more volatility in the EUR/USD as investors speculate on the outcome, warned Kathy Lien, Director of Currency Research at GFT.

source: http://www.fxstreet.com

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- The U.S. trade deficit widened in May to the largest level in more than 2-1/2 years, as exports slowed during an economic soft patch, and imports picked up along with higher oil prices.

The nation imported $50.2 billion more than it exported in May, up from a revised $43.6 billion trade deficit in April, the Commerce Department said Tuesday.

It marked the deepest trade deficit since October 2008 and came in above forecasts. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com were expecting the trade gap to widen to $44 billion.

In May, imports totaled $225.1 billion, up 2.6% from the month before, but exports fell 0.6% to $174.9 billion.

Since 1975, the U.S. has imported far more goods and services than it exports to other countries, marking multi-billion dollar trade deficits.

While that's not likely to change any time soon, economists like to see exports grow and the overall trade gap narrow, because a smaller deficit can add to the nation's gross domestic product.


President Obama is pushing for exports to double by the end of 2014 for exactly that reason, So far, he claims he's "on track."

For the first four months of the year, exports were up 16%.

That progress stalled in May, when the economy hit a soft patch and high oil prices continued to inflate import growth. The exports were still up 14% for the first five months of the year.

Overall, imports of industrial supplies and materials including oil, capital goods and automotive vehicles, parts and engines increased, while imports of consumer goods fell.

The oil effect: The biggest driver behind the import surge was by far, crude oil imports which climbed 15% in May due to higher oil prices.

At $108.70 a barrel in May, oil was at its most expensive level since August 2008, the Commerce Department reported.

Paul Dales, senior U.S. economist with Capital Economics, expects the oil effect to reverse itself nearly entirely in June, reflecting crude prices that have fallen recently.

Overall, he predicts the U.S. economy grew about 2% in the second quarter -- due almost entirely to foreign trade.

"On first reflection, today's release suggests that net trade may have added something like 2 percentage points to annualized GDP growth in the second quarter," he wrote in a research report. "Without this, the economy might have ground to a complete halt."

The Japan effect: Meanwhile, the trade impact of Japan's earthquake and tsunami in March has started to fade.

Japan remains the United States' fourth largest trading partner, even after U.S. imports from Japan plummeted 23% in April. In May, they rebounded 5.9%, with the U.S. importing $2.6 billion more than it exported from Japan. To top of page

source: http://money.cnn.com

Chicago-based Groupon - testing America's appetite for bigger online deals - offered its first voucher on a new car or light truck today at a Michigan dealership.

The company, already known for popular restaurant and hotel vouchers, launched its first auto dealership deal at LaFontaine Buick GMC Cadillac in Highland Township, Mich.

Robert Milner, general sales manager at the dealership, said he was a little reluctant to be the first dealer in the country to try the Groupon deal but likes the idea of setting a precedent.

"We're dipping a toe in it," he said.

Consumers spend $199 for a voucher worth $500 toward the purchase of a car, redeemable this year. LaFontaine and Groupon split the consumer's money.

Between giving up $300 to consumers and $100 to Groupon, each sale will cost the dealership $400.

Unsure of how much demand there will be, LaFontaine capped the deal at 150 vouchers, Milner said.

"But if I get 150 people and it costs $400 per commitment, I'm all in on that," he said.

Milner said the typical advertising expense per car is $350 to $400, putting the Groupon cost in line with budgeted expenses.

Groupon, in a statement issued through its Chicago-based public relations firm SS PR, said car dealerships are a next step for the company.

"Since the beginning, Groupon's goal was to give service and structure out of the norm to local businesses so that local users would be able to shop with a discount," the statement said. "Groupon started with local businesses and went to spas and hotels. We thought the next step would be to go to a car dealership."

With the deal running for the rest of today and into Wednesday, Milner said it's too early to say whether the strategy will work. If the deal goes well, he said, he'll consider proposing it for other dealerships within the 14-franchise LaFontaine Automotive Group.

Groupon, with more than 80 million members, typically takes 50 percent of revenue generated by deals. Branching out into bigger purchases means that 50 percent cut will be bigger in dollar terms.

"The prospect of opening up markets like new cars and leases is attractive," said Ben Edelman, an associate professor at Harvard Business School who has been critical of Groupon. "To the extent they can still take 50 percent revenue share that's more money."

Groupon has done some other big-ticket deals recently, such as $500 off closing costs for real estate purchases, Edelman noted.

The car offering may be more problematic, he added.

"This voucher is for a very small portion of the cost of a car or lease, so it's basically an agreement to buy or lease a car from LaFontaine," Edelman said. "That's poor negotiating because the dealer could take advantage of that by offering the same car for more money."

In many Groupon offers, like restaurants and spas, prices are posted already, so customers know what they are getting, Edelman noted. In the case of the car voucher, it may not be clear what the discount will be applied to, he explained.

"They need to fix that before this part of the model can take off," Edelman said.

Reuters contributed to this report


source: www.autonews.com

DETROIT (Reuters) - The United Auto Workers, including its chief Bob King, is hosting executives from the big U.S. automakers this week to discuss future fuel-economy standards and their potential impact on union members' jobs, several sources said on Tuesday.

The meetings to discuss the new corporate average fuel efficiency (CAFE) standards for 2017 through 2025 are taking place Tuesday and Wednesday at the union's downtown Detroit headquarters, said people familiar with the meetings, who asked not to be identified.

In addition to King and other UAW officials, the meetings will include vice presidents from General Motors, Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler Group LLC, which is managed by Fiat, the sources said.

The sources initially said staff members from the Department of Transportation and the Environmental Protection Agency, jointly working to develop the new standards, also would attend, but later said that was not the case.

GM, Ford and Chrysler declined to comment on the meetings. Regulators and UAW officials could not be reached.

The push to boost fuel efficiency has forced automakers to redesign their vehicles and use lighter but more expensive materials. These efforts are likely to raise the cost of vehicles and may pinch automakers' margins.

The interest of the UAW, which opens labor talks with the big U.S. automakers this month, is simple -- protect jobs, said Jay Baron, chief executive of the Center for Automotive Research.

"As you go to a high level of CAFE, the demand for vehicles will go down and therefore production in the U.S. will go down," he said. "If the government forces too high a level of fuel economy, beyond what the average consumer wants to pay for, that will be a problem."

The union's concern about the impact of the new CAFE standards on jobs echoes those raised by 15 Republican state governors last month. The governors urged federal regulators to take into account jobs and the weak economy in formulating the standard, warning against "overreaching."

Companies and trade groups are sensitive to the economy, especially after Friday's dismal report that showed job growth ground nearly to a halt in June.

"The administration needs to take extra special attention in preserving jobs as we improve fuel economy," said Gloria Bergquist, a spokeswoman with the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers. The trade group represents 12 automakers, including the big U.S. companies.

Federal officials have been meeting regularly with the automakers regarding the CAFE standards for 2017 and beyond.

In 2009, the Obama administration raised CAFE standards, requiring automakers to boost the average fuel efficiency of their vehicles to 35.5 miles per gallon by 2016.

Regulators are now considering lifting CAFE standards to 56.2 miles per gallon for the 2017 to 2025 time period, according to a source familiar with the plans. The Obama administration has publicly said it is targeting a range between 47 mpg and 62 mpg.

The CAFE standard in 2010 was 29.2 mpg.

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood last month declined to say whether the U.S. government would consider sharing the cost of vehicle development with automakers and consumers. He said current talks with companies have focused solely on finding the right standard.

CAR, which recommends a new CAFE standard of 47 mpg, estimated that setting the level at 56 mpg would cause prices per vehicle to jump by about $6,700. The study has been criticized for overestimating the cost of the technology needed to boost fuel economy.

The National Automobile Dealers Association estimated that at under a 56 mpg standard the industry would lose 220,000 jobs, while another report by the U.S. Energy Information Agency estimated U.S. light vehicle sales would fall 14 percent at a 62 mpg standard.

The UAW has been losing membership since its peak in 1979, when it had nearly 1.5 million members. Last year was the first time the UAW gained members in six years.

The UAW had 376,612 members at the end of last year. That is still a fraction of its 2004 membership of about 655,000.

source: autonews.com

Watch Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 Free Online.