NEW WORLD ISSUES

The rich and unique biodiversity of the Mekong region, which has been discovered only in recent years, is likely to be put at risk by environmental impacts that climate change is expected to bring, says the World Wide Fund For Nature (WWF) in a report launched here Friday.A total of 163 new species have been discovered in the Mekong region – which comprises Cambodia, China, Burma, Thailand, Vietnam and Laos – just over the past year.These...

Dennis Hopper's taken an uneasy ride to an emergency room.The iconoclastic star of Easy Rider, Hoosiers and Blue Velvet was taken by ambulance today to an unidentified New York hospital.While eyewitnesses told Entertainment Tonight the 73-year-old was brought into the E.R. wearing an oxygen mask, his publicist says Hopper is merely suffering from a flulike stomach ailment.Hopper was in New York to promote his role as an unhinged...

A piece of skull with a bullet hole through it that Russian officials claimed belonged to Adolf Hitler actually came from a woman, scientists at the University of Connecticut concluded.The cranium fragment is part of a collection of Hitler artifacts preserved by Soviet intelligence in the months after Hitler and Eva Braun reportedly committed suicide in a Berlin bunker in April 1945.The collection, now housed in the Russian State...

When Captain Moussa Dadis Camara took control of Guinea last December in a bloodless coup, tens of thousands of cheering supporters thronged the streets of the capital, Conakry, shouting: "Welcome to this change! Welcome to this change!" What a difference 10 months can make.The capital was a scene of chaos on Sept. 28, when soldiers opened fire on crowds of unarmed civilians at a pro-democracy rally in a stadium, killing dozens of people...

Could the U.S. block sales of refined gasoline to Iran as a way of ratcheting up pressure on Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and the Iranian regime? That's a prospect U.S. politicians have talked up for months. But as the U.S., Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China prepare for crucial talks with Iran in Geneva on Oct. 1, there's a growing realization that the strategy might not work. "The hype around blocking gas is hugely overdone," says Richard...

"We both agree that it is absolutely critical that we are successful in dismantling, disrupting, destroying the al Qaeda network, and that we are effectively working with the Afghan government to provide the security necessary for that country," said Obama after his meeting with Rasmussen in the Oval Office."This is not a American battle, this is a NATO mission as well. And we are working actively and diligently to consult with NATO at...

A semi-final berth well within their grasp despite the wash-out against India, defending champions Australia take on a rejuvinated Pakistan in their final group A match of the Champions Trophy here on Wednesday.If Australia win, they would book their place in the semi-final no matter what happens in the India-West Indies match.But if they lose and India win, Ricky Ponting's world champion side has to ensure that its net run rate remains...

Centurion, Sep 29 (IANS) Heavy rains spoiled India's hopes of making it to the semi-finals of the Champions Trophy after their must-win Group A match against defending champions Australia was called of at the SuperSport Park here Monday.Australia were on course for a big total and were 234 for four in 42.3 overs with Cameron White batting on 35 and Callum Ferguson on two when heavy rains stopped the match.Even after an hour, rain...

Just in time for Fashion Week in New York, Turner Classic Movies is unveiling the network’s 15 Favorite Fashion Trendsetting Films. “Flashdance,” “It Happened One Night” and “Shaft” made the list.Movies have long had a pivotal role in setting new fashion trends as well as being inspirations to designers. To assemble its list, TCM’s experts used guidance from two great contemporary designers, Manolo Blahnik and Todd Oldham.They picked iconic films such as “Rebel Without a Cause” (1955), which featured James Dean setting a new...

The season premiere of “Dexter” posted a series high for the acclaimed Showtime drama, reaching a total of 1.5 million viewers in its first airing (and 1.9 when the same-night encore was included).Not only the best “Dexter” draw to date, the figure is also Showtime’s best-drawing telecast since the premium network implemented a new ratings system in 2004.“Californication,” which also premiered, jumped 57% from last year with 821,000 viewers. The encore brought the night’s total to 1.2 million.– TLC has confirmed that “Jon &...

In Manila, millions of residents now live in a world of mud. Torrential rain over the weekend triggered the worst flooding the Philippines' capital has seen in over four decades, submerging more than 80% of the city, killing at least 246 people and displacing hundreds of thousands more. By Tuesday, the water had receded in many places, but it left behind ruined homes and swept-away neighborhoods, and according to health officials,...

The big page one news in the music world today is the release of Britney Spears' new single, 3.Britney Spears today releases her new single, 3. It's the only new song that will be on her upcoming greatest hits package to be released later in the year (well in time for the Holiday season of course).It has to be said that the lyrics to 3 aren't exactly one of Shakepeare's sonnets:1, 2, 3Not only you and meGot one eighty degreesAnd...

The latest trend is to climb the corporate ladder with the help of plastic surgery. Today, more and more, people are opting to go under the knife as a way to get ahead at the office. If your features start to droop, the theory is, your career will go sour.Why do people take such desperate measures to get ahead? Joe Scarborough discussed this with Dr. Anthony Griffin (Plastic surgeon in Beverly Hills) and Dr. Robi Ludwig(Psychotherapist).According...

NFL Power Rankings Week 4 for 2009 and the Heisman Watch dominate a football themed Sports Fix! Tim Tebow may have been knocked out of last week's game but he still leads the Heisman race. ESPN lines up a panel of their 'experts' and they try here to guess the winner.NFL Power Rankings Week 4 - are the New York football Giants the number one team in the NFL? It is only week four and they are as good as choice as any where in an odd season...

Khloe Kardashian's wedding pictures are worth a six figure sum, according to Celebglitz.com. Kris Jenner, Khloe Kardashian's manager-mom brokered a deal with OK! magazine to sell Khloe Kardashian's wedding pictures for $300,000.Lamar Odom, Khloe Kardashian's husband, will not get one cent from the deal. Khloe Kardashian's wedding photos will land an easy $300,000 in the youngest Kardashian sister's pocket.You have to admit that Kris...

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Ken Burns was well along in making his much anticipated national parks documentary before he had the experience that for many crystallizes why the parks have such a hold on the American consciousness. He saw Yosemite for the first time."I've never in my life felt the way I felt at that moment," Burns says recalling his first look at Yosemite Valley. Weary from a promotional appearance in San Francisco, the East Coast native had driven to the California park to catch up with his camera crew there."It was like losing your virginity,...

Anyone waiting for Israeli generals and political leaders to face war crimes charges at The Hague over January's Gaza invasion ought not to hold their breath, despite a new report by a U.N. Human Rights Council accusing both Israel and Hamas of war crimes during the confrontation. And despite Israel's disquiet over losing the battle for international public opinion and growing criticism over its actions in Palestinian territories, the...

Acne is a diabolically cruel thing: somehow it strikes your most visible feature just at the age when you become most vulnerable to a gaze. Not surprisingly, acne is often accompanied by serious depression among teenagers. In fact a 1999 study found that kids with acne bad enough to prompt a trip to the dermatologist reported having emotional and social problems as severe as those reported by patients with disabling diabetes and epilepsy.Other...

Leon Panetta knew it was going to be a hard sale and so the CIA Director dished out some serious hard-sell as he tried to drum up support for the Agency from Arab-Americans in the most Arab city in the country. On Wednesday, the CIA invited 150 community leaders in Dearborn, Michigan, to a lavish iftar, the traditional evening feast at the end of each day's fasting during the month of Ramadan. The CIA and the FBI have made strenuous efforts...

The Taliban today in Afghanistan is a markedly different movement from those warriors whose one-eyed leader, Mullah Omar, riding on a motorcycle, escaped capture from American forces in Kandahar in December 2001. Mullah Omar is still their leader, even though, as a senior Afghan intelligence official told TIME, he is thought to be hiding across the border in Pakistan, moving between the towns of Quetta and Zob in the scorched...

Discussions began on Thursday by a Farabi Cinematic Foundation committee to determine the Iranian representative for the 82nd Annual Academy Awards for the Best Foreign Language Films category.The Committee for Selecting a Film for the Academy Awards will select the Iranian representative from among four films: “Penniless”, directed Hamid Nematollah, “Twenty” by Abdorreza Kahani, “Hesitation” by Varuj Karim-Massihi), and “About Elly”...

The H1N1 flu, commonly called swine flu, is expected to make many people sick this flu season. And if you're one of them, you're in for some serious at-home time, recovering and sparing other people from your germs. To make that time a little easier on yourself, consider taking these 10 steps now, before you come down with swine flu. 1. Make a backup plan. Let's say you get sick, or you need to take care of someone with swine flu....

Last night Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz appeared on the new Jay Leno show. The segment wasn't quite what I expected. It wasn't the typical Jay Leno interview from his former late night show. The two movie stars were a part of the new 10 at 10 segment in which Jay Leno interviews stars from anywhere in the world via satellite, asking them 10 questions.Tom and Cameron on their new movie set in Worcester, MA. Since there were two stars,...

Farah Pandith, an Indian- American, has been formally sworn in as the first US Special Representative to Muslim communities as part of the Obama Administration's efforts to reach out to the Islamic world. At a ceremony held at the Foggy Bottom headquarters of the State Department, Farah's mother held the Quran on which she took the oath administered by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton yesterday.41-year-old Pandith, whose...

President Obama has proposed barring illegal immigrants from a possible government-arranged health insurance marketplace -- even if the immigrants pay with their own money.The move has surprised some of Obama's fellow Democrats and infuriated immigrant advocates, who on Tuesday attacked the position as political pandering and bad policy.The White House revealed its stance Friday, after a renewed debate over illegal immigration that...