The US marijuana cafe opened in which state?

First U.S. marijuana cafe opens in Portland | Reuters Sat Nov 14, 2009 | 7:36 AM EST First U.S. marijuana cafe opens in Portland By Dan Cook | PORTLAND, Oregon PORTLAND, Oregon The United States' first marijuana cafe opened on Friday, posing an early test of the Obama administration's move to relax policing of medical use of the drug. The Cannabis Cafe in Portland, Oregon, is the first to give certified medical marijuana users a place to get hold of the drug and smoke it -- as long as they are out of public view -- despite a federal ban. "This club represents personal freedom, finally, for our members," said Madeline Martinez, Oregon's executive director of NORML, a group pushing for marijuana legalization. "Our plans go beyond serving food and marijuana," said Martinez. "We hope to have classes, seminars, even a Cannabis Community College, based here to help people learn about growing and other uses for cannabis." The cafe -- in a two-story building which formerly housed a speak-easy and adult erotic club Rumpspankers -- is technically a private club, but is open to any Oregon residents who are NORML members and hold an official medical marijuana card. Members pay $25 per month to use the 100-person capacity cafe. They don't buy marijuana, but get it free over the counter from "budtenders". Open 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., it serves food but has no liquor license. There are about 21,000 patients registered to use marijuana for medical purposes in Oregon. Doctors have prescribed marijuana for a host of illnesses, including Alzheimer's, diabetes, multiple sclerosis and Tourette's syndrome. On opening day, reporters invited to the cafe could smell, but were not allowed to see, people smoking marijuana. "I still run a coffee shop and events venue, just like I did before we converted it to the Cannabis Cafe, but now it will be cannabis-themed," said Eric Solomon, the owner of the cafe, who is looking forward to holding marijuana-themed weddings, film festivals and dances in the second-floor ballroom. NO PROSECUTION The creation of the cafe comes almost a month after the Obama administration told federal attorneys not to prosecute patients who use marijuana for medical reasons or dispensaries in states which have legalized them. About a dozen states, including Oregon, followed California's 1996 move to adopt medical marijuana laws, allowing the drug to be cultivated and sold for medical use. A similar number have pending legislation or ballot measures planned. Pot cafes, known as "coffee shops", are popular in the Dutch city of Amsterdam, where possession of small amounts of marijuana is legal. Portland's Cannabis Cafe is the first of its kind to open in the United States, according to NORML. Growing, possessing, distributing and smoking marijuana are still illegal under U.S. federal law, which makes no distinction between medical and recreational use. Federal and local law enforcement agencies did not return phone calls from Reuters on Friday seeking comment on the Portland cafe's operations. "To have a place that is this open about its activities, where people can come together and smoke -- I say that's pretty amazing." said Tim Pate, a longtime NORML member, at the cafe. Some locals are hoping it might even be good for business. "I know some neighbors are pretty negative about this place opening up," said David Bell, who works at a boutique that shares space with the cafe. "But I'm withholding judgment. There's no precedent for it. We don't know what to expect. But it would great if it brought some customers into our store." (Writing by Bill Rigby; editing by Mohammad Zargham) ADVERTISEMENT


Which country qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup for the first time since 1982 after beating Bahrain in a play-off?

Nigeria/Cameroon: World Cup Organising Committee Congratulates Nigeria, New Zealand, Cameroon - allAfrica.com Nigeria/Cameroon: World Cup Organising Committee Congratulates Nigeria, New Zealand, Cameroon more Lagos — THE 2010 FIFA World Cup Organising Committee South Africa (OC) have congratulated the three teams that qualified last night for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa next year. In a great weekend of football, Nigeria, Cameroon and New Zealand all secured their spot for Africa's maiden FIFA World Cup. They join Japan, Netherlands, North Korea, Australia, South Korea, USA, Brazil, Ghana, England, Paraguay, Spain, Denmark, Ivory Coast, Chile, Germany, Italy, Mexico, Serbia, Switzerland, Argentina, Honduras, Slovakia and South Africa, as hosts, who have already qualified for the tournament. "These are exciting times. It is gratifying that the lineup for next year's tournament is almost complete," said Chief Executive Officer of the OC, Dr Danny Jordaan in a press release. Nigeria beat Kenya 3-2 to book their place in the football showpiece next year and they were duly congratulated by the Committee. "We are honoured to have this African football superpower in the 2010 FIFA World Cup. As we have seen from the three FIFA tournaments already held in Africa this year it is the African teams that are performing well. I am confident Nigeria has a good chance in 2010 and its team will certainly feel the full support of South Africans in the tournament," said Jordaan. Nigeria made their first appearance in the finals at USA 1994, where they progressed past the group phase at the first attempt, and they went on to play at the 1998 and 2002 tournaments. The team lost out to Angola for a place at the most recent edition of the FIFA World Cup. Along with Nigeria, Cameroon qualified by beating Morocco 2-0. "The Indomitable Lions are one of the best chances for a team from Africa to enjoy success at the tournament next year. We welcome our brothers from West Africa to football's biggest festival. With their skill, flair and experience, Cameroon is sure to win over hundreds of new fans during the tournament. Since the days of Roger Milla in the 1994 FIFA World Cup in the USA, they have become synonymous with entertainment and we expect next year to be no different," said Jordaan. Cameroon is Africa's most successful side and has now qualified for the FIFA World Cup six times - in 1982, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002 and now 2010 - more than any other African nation. They were the first African team to reach the quarter-finals of the World Cup, in 1990, losing to England in extra-time. They have also won four African Nations Cups, as well as the gold medal at the 2000 Summer Olympics. New Zealand qualified for the finals for only the second tme in their history after beating Bahrain 1-0 in Wellington in the second leg play-off having drawn 0-0 in the first. "It is a privilege to welcome New Zealand back to South Africa next year. They are certainly a welcome addition to the tournament and received great support from South Africans during the FIFA Confederations Cup earlier in the year. They can be assured that they will be part of a world-class tournament in 2010 and that the South African public will once again welcome them with open arms," said Jordaan. Their qualification last night has ended a long-standing FIFA World Cup drought for the All Whites who last qualified for the 1982 FIFA World Cup in Spain. The remaining nations are expected to qualify this Wednesday to complete the 32 places for the 2010 FIFA World Cup tournament.   Copyright © 2009 Daily Champion. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media ( allAfrica.com ). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here. AllAfrica publishes around 800 reports a day from more than 140 news organizations and over 500 other institutions and individuals , representing a diversity of positions on every topic. We publish news and views ranging from vigorous opponents of


Human rights activist Kumi Naidoo became the first African to head which organization?

Kumi Naidoo Join the Network Kumi Naidoo Kumi Naidoo is a South African human rights activist and the former International Executive Director of the international environmental group Greenpeace, the first African to head the organization. After battling apartheid in South Africa in the 1970s and 1980s through the Helping Hands Youth Organisation, Naidoo led global campaigns to end poverty and protect human rights. He has served as the Secretary-General of both the Global Call to Action Against Poverty and Civicus, an international alliance for citizen participation. Recently, he has led the Global Call for Climate Action, which brings together environmental, aid, religious and human rights groups; labor unions; scientists; and others and has organized mass demonstrations around climate negotiations. GTI Contributions


The Original of Laura, an incomplete novel by which Russian author was published 32 years after his death?

In Sketchy ‘Original of Laura,’ Nabokov Jousts With Death - The New York Times The New York Times Books |In a Sketchy Hall of Mirrors, Nabokov Jousts With Death and Reality Search Books | Books of The Times In a Sketchy Hall of Mirrors, Nabokov Jousts With Death and Reality Continue reading the main story Given the shape of Vladimir Nabokov ’s own life, it’s hardly surprising that death — and its cousin loss — permeated his fiction like a potent but noxious perfume. Nabokov’s wealthy, aristocratic family was forced to flee Russia in the wake of the Revolution, and in 1922 his father, a liberal politician, was shot at a rally in Berlin, trying to protect another man from an assassin. The Nazis would later drive Nabokov and his wife and son from Europe to America, where they moved from sublet to sublet, motel to motel. Although he gave up his beloved Russian and reinvented himself as one of the great prose stylists of the English language, an exile’s detachment and nostalgia would always lurk beneath the surface of his playful, glittering prose, and a heightened awareness of mortality would create a powerful undertow in his novels and short stories. Indeed, death comes to Nabokov characters with astonishing swiftness, variety and heartlessness. He famously dispatched the narrator’s mother in “Lolita” with a two-word parenthesis “(picnic, lightning)” and subjected other creations to death by fire, poison, ski jump, suicide, bus accident, strangulation, gunshot, assorted illnesses and firing squad. In “The Original of Laura” — fragments of a novel that Nabokov left unfinished at his death and that his son, Dmitri, decided, after much agonizing, to publish against his father’s wishes — he imagines the death of his protagonist, a writer and neurologist named Philip, as a sort of Nietzschean act of will, as an exercise in self-erasure conducted body part by body part, beginning with his toes. It is the ultimate fantasy of a writer who wants to exert complete control over the narrative of his own life. “The process of dying by auto-dissolution,” Philip asserts, “afforded the greatest ecstasy known to man.” Advertisement Continue reading the main story Philip’s grotesque story was sketched out by Nabokov on index cards, which, according to his son, he worked on “feverishly” during the last months of his life in a hospital in Lausanne, Switzerland; he left express instructions with his wife, Vera, that “Laura” should be burned if it remained unfinished at the time of his death. Vera Nabokov (who had once saved “Lolita” from going up in smoke, when her husband became convinced that it would always remain a victim of incomprehension) failed to carry out this task, her procrastination due, her son writes, “to age, weakness and immeasurable love.” After years of procrastination himself, Dmitri decided that his father, who died in 1977, or his “father’s shade,” would not “have opposed the release of ‘Laura’ once ‘Laura’ had survived the hum of time this long.” Photo Nabokov Credit Jerry Bauer Was Dmitri right to publish “The Original of Laura: (Dying Is Fun)”?  Do the index cards (reproduced with meticulous care by the publisher, Alfred A. Knopf, in an ingenious punch-out format) represent, as Dmitri has said, “the most concentrated distillation” of his father’s creativity? Does this fragmentary manuscript constitute the makings of “a brilliant, original and potentially radical book”? Or does the unfinished manuscript — like works left behind by Ernest Hemingway and published after his death by his estate — simply feel like an embarrassing and unfortunate coda to the master magician’s oeuvre? In many respects, the release of a rudimentary version of his last novel does a disservice to a writer who deeply cherished precision and was practiced in the art of revision. Just as “The Enchanter,” a precursor to “Lolita” that was written in 1939 and published after his death, reads like a crude, often flat-footed version of its famous descendant, so these fragments of “Laura” — so cryptic and sketchy — represent an incomple


Who apologised for his handball foul which helped eliminate Ireland from the 2010 FIFA World Cup Finals?

The World Cup / YMMV - TV Tropes WMG Acceptable Targets : Many, throughout the long history of the tournament. The vuvuzela and anyone that uses it. Facebook fanpages sprung up regarding it in seconds, several video games such as Garry's Mod soon ended up with the vuvuzela as an almost unstoppable weapon that killed the user, you get the gist of it. Argentina, after Diego Maradona's "Hand of God" in the 1986 quarterfinals against England. Argentina went on to win that year. Hilariously, during the 2010 cup, Maradona said in a press conference "Que la sigan chupando" ("Keep sucking it") in response to criticism from local journalists regarding his team's performance. It displaced everything else in the news in Argentina for almost a full week, everyone was talking about that and nothing else. France, after Thierry Henry's "Hand of Frog" during qualifying in 2010 against Ireland; eliminating them in the process. France went on to be eliminated in the Group Stage - after a complete team meltdown in which the players, manager, and coaches ended up refusing to have anything to do with each other in a mutual hatefest that resulted in government investigation. Newspapers in France said about this that "Bad enough that we have the worst team in the tournament, we also have the stupidest." Three years on, Henry himself is still unacceptable in Ireland, and right after the initial match, received death threats from Irish people in the crowd. Although if their performance in the next World Cup was anything to go by, we'd have sucked anyway . Sepp Blatter for most European fans, with Qatar 2022 also a huge target. Luis Suarez (from Uruguay) has been this since South Africa 2010 after his blatant attempt to handball during a match. After that, his biting a player in 2014 was met with similar scorn and an avalanche of memes. Ecuadorian referee Byron Moreno for the Italians due his controversial decisions in the match between Italy and South Korea. He earned, among other shows of scorn, a song wishing him to get run over by a train, and a town named their public toilets after him. Award Snub : The Golden Ball is voted before the final is played. Thus thrice they were given to a player who in the actual decision embarrassed himself (1998: Ronaldo, who had a convulsive fit in the matchday and performed badly; 2002: Oliver Kahn, who had only taken one goal that far but then gave in two, one a shameful rebound - though both happened after he broke a finger when his hand was kicked by accident during an earlier safe, so the question was more if he should have called for an substitute than the level of his abilities; 2014: Lionel Messi, who couldn't push Argentina to the title - and even Sepp Blatter unofficial 2014 song, which is basically a tribute to Zinedine Zidane (amidst mentions of other footballing greats), complete with headbutt (most notably, it left Marco Materazzi out). It got popular enough for Vaudeville Smash to release an extended version . Big Lipped Alligator Moment : In France 4-1 Kuwait (1982), a goal was annulled because a Sheikh convinced the Soviet referee that the Kuwaiti team stopped after hearing a whistle! In their second round match in Italy 1990, the Netherlands' Frank Rijkaard spat on West Germany's Rudi Völler's Funny Afro . Twice.note  This contributed to both players getting booked, and then sent off, by the middle of the first half. Broken Base : What is a great victory for one team is a harrowing defeat for the other. And those are just the victories that don't contain a big controversy of some kind. Creator's Pet : In England, the victorious Argentinians in 1986. After the whole Hand of God thing. In spite of Suarez's blatant biting of an individual and a huge dose of Blatant Lies when he tried explaining what "really" happened, Uruguay will not take any criticism of him. Trying to criticise him in his home country is a very good way to be called a traitor or offensive foreign national, and also a good way to have death threats sent your way. Outside of Uruguay, his behaviour is considerably more hated. De


The European Court of Justice ruled airlines must compensate passengers for delays exceeding how many hours?

Flight delay compensation gets a boost - TravelSkills TravelSkills Flight delay compensation gets a boost October 27, 2014 In Europe, airlines must compensate passengers in cash when a prolonged delay is their fault. (Photo: Flickr / Tony Hisgett) Flying to Europe and facing delays? Unlike in the US, airlines in Europe are required to compensate passengers in cash for prolonged flight delays. A recent European Court of Justice ruling redefines flight arrival time and its decision favors passengers, according to FlightRight.com , a company that helps travelers claim compensation from airlines. The European Court of Justice recently decided that the actual arrival time of an aircraft at its destination is defined by when at least one aircraft door is opened. This ruling has particular significance for passengers who seek compensation for a flight delayed by three hours or more, especially in cases in which the aircraft lands close to the three-hour threshold. For anyone flying between North America and Europe, the new ruling can boost their chances of collecting compensation of as much as $800. (EU’s compensation rules only apply when the delay is fault of the airline– which means delays due to storms or labor actions, etc., don’t count.) Related: Dealing with delays and cancellations in the US (VIDEO) In this recent case, the court took a clear position in favor of delayed passengers by noting that, so far as passengers are concerned, they are confined in the aircraft for the entirety of the flight. The court decided that flight delays should be calculated based on the time at which one of the doors of the aircraft is opened, at which time passengers can leave the aircraft and resume their activities. The time the aircraft lands on the runway or reaches its parking position is therefore irrelevant when calculating a flight’s arrival time. Marek Janetzke, managing director of Berlin-based flightright , which fights for compensation owed to passengers when their flights are delayed or cancelled, says that the ruling will be crucial for determining the outcome of ‘edge’ cases: “For years, we have heard from passengers that their claims for compensation were denied because their airline maintained that the flight had arrived on time, based on when the aircraft landed or came to a standstill. But as many passengers know, a lot can happen between when a plane lands and when a door actually opens. For them, the clock is still ticking while they wait to deplane.” Helpful: EU Air Passenger Rights Five things to do if your flight is delayed The ramifications of this decision are significant. For example, about 2.6 million passengers fly from London to New York every year, of which approximately 21 thousand passengers would be directly affected by the regulation. Collectively, they would be eligible for compensation of around $17 million. In light of the court’s decision, flightright recommends that passengers take the following steps whenever it looks like their flight will be significantly delayed: If the delay occurs at the departing airport, ask a gate agent what is the cause of the delay. The weather? A technical issue? Crew staffing problems? Note the reason the airline provides, and when it was given. Document any other pertinent information provided by airport or airline staff. Record the time that you boarded the aircraft, when the aircraft pushed back from the gate, and when it took off. During the flight, ask a member of the flight or cabin crew if they know the cause of the delay. Document any information provided, who provided it, and the time. Upon arrival at the destination airport, note when the aircraft landed, when it came to a standstill, and when it docked at the gate or parking area. Document the exact time that the first door was opened. US and Canadian citizens/residents benefit from European flight delay compensation laws The European Air Passenger Rights Regulation 261/2004 and subsequent decisions of the European Court established minimum rights for passengers when they are denied boarding against their wil


What is big particle accelerator on the French-Swiss border, restarted in 2009 after extensive repairs?

The Large Hadron Collider | CERN The Large Hadron Collider This content is archived on the CERN Document Server The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is the world’s largest and most powerful particle accelerator . It first started up on 10 September 2008, and remains the latest addition to CERN’s accelerator complex . The LHC consists of a 27-kilometre ring of superconducting magnets with a number of accelerating structures to boost the energy of the particles along the way. Inside the accelerator, two high-energy particle beams travel at close to the speed of light before they are made to collide. The beams travel in opposite directions in separate beam pipes – two tubes kept at ultrahigh vacuum . They are guided around the accelerator ring by a strong magnetic field maintained by superconducting electromagnets . The electromagnets are built from coils of special electric cable that operates in a superconducting state, efficiently conducting electricity without resistance or loss of energy. This requires chilling the magnets to ‑271.3°C – a temperature colder than outer space . For this reason, much of the accelerator is connected to a distribution system of liquid helium, which cools the magnets, as well as to other supply services. The Large Hadron Collider is the world's largest and most powerful particle accelerator (Image: CERN) Thousands of magnets of different varieties and sizes are used to direct the beams around the accelerator. These include 1232 dipole magnets 15 metres in length which bend the beams, and 392 quadrupole magnets, each 5–7 metres long, which focus the beams. Just prior to collision, another type of magnet is used to "squeeze" the particles closer together to increase the chances of collisions. The particles are so tiny that the task of making them collide is akin to firing two needles 10 kilometres apart with such precision that they meet halfway. All the controls for the accelerator, its services and technical infrastructure are housed under one roof at the CERN Control Centre. From here, the beams inside the LHC are made to collide at four locations around the accelerator ring, corresponding to the positions of four particle detectors – ATLAS , CMS , ALICE and LHCb. Explore the CERN Control Centre with Google Street View (Image: Google Street View)


Oasis of the Seas became the world's largest what, when completed in 2009?

Construction is Completed on the MS Oasis of the Seas, the World's Biggest Passenger Ship | World History Project Oct 30 2009 Construction is Completed on the MS Oasis of the Seas, the World's Biggest Passenger Ship MS Oasis of the Seas is a cruise ship in the fleet of Royal Caribbean International. The first of her class, she is expected to be joined by her sister ship MS Allure of the Seas in November 2010. Both vessels are expected to cruise the Caribbean from Fort Lauderdale, Florida in the United States. The ship replaces the Freedom-class cruise ships (also owned by Royal Caribbean) as the world's largest passenger vessel.For a sense of the scale, the ship is approximately 5 times the size of the RMS Titanic in terms of registered tonnage.


Two fingers and a tooth belonging to what famous father of science were rediscovered after being missing for over 100 Years?

Galileo's stolen fingers put on display in Florence museum (a tooth and a third digit) | Daily Mail Online comments A tooth, thumb and finger cut from the body of the famous renaissance astronomer Galileo will go on display this week in Florence after an art collector found them by chance last year. The body parts, along with another finger and a vertebrae, were cut from Galileo's corpse by scientists and historians during a burial ceremony 95 years after his death in 1642. 'The laymen and masons that were attending the ceremony thought that they should have some souvenir of Galileo's body,' Paolo Galluzzi, director of Florence's Galileo Museum said. 'They thought that having a piece of the man would have been a homage to his tradition. The idea of having relics of science is very similar, is a mirror of the relics of religion,' he said. A woman looks at two fingers of Italian 17th century astronomer Galileo Galilei on display at the newly reopened Galileo Museum of science, in Florence The remains, along with two telescopes, a compass and a wealth of other instruments designed by Galileo, are the main attraction at the refurbished -- and renamed -- Galileo Museum, which reopens on June 10 after two years of renovation work. While one of Galileo's fingers and the vertebrae had been conserved in Florence and Padua since 1737, the other finger, the thumb and the tooth had passed from one collector to another until they went missing in 1905. Alberto Bruschi, a renowned Florence art collector, unknowingly bought them with other religious relics last October at an auction, where they were being sold as unidentified artefacts contained in a 17th century wooden case. Galileo, born Galilei Galileo at Pisa in Pisa in 1564, is considered one of the fathers of modern science. Galileo was subjected to the Inquisition and spent eight years under house arrest for spreading Copernicus's ideas about the planets moving around the Sun His achievements include developing the telescope and observing that the Earth revolved around the Sun. British physicist once said: ‘Galileo, perhaps more than any other single person, was responsible for the birth of modern science.’ But he became an enemy of the Catholic Church, of which he was a member, by challenging its teachings. Clerics eventually denounced him to the Roman Inquisition in 1615 over his support of a heliocentric, or Sun-centered, view of the universe. Although he was cleared of any offence at that time, the Church condemned his belief as ‘false and contrary to Scripture’ and Galileo promised to stop publicising it. But in 1632, when he defended his views in his most famous work, Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems, he was again tried by the Inquisition. It found he was ‘vehemently suspect of heresy’ and Galileo was forced to recant and spend the rest of his life under house arrest. However, following his death, evidence for a heliocentric universe became so overwhelming that the Vatican’s opposition gradually buckled. In 1737 they finally allowed his body to be buried in consecrated ground and he now lies in Florence’s Santa Croce church, opposite the tomb of Michelangelo By now because he was so revered, it was decided that parts of his body should be removed and preserved for posterity. Telescopes belonging to Galileo go on display at the renamed museum Giovanni Targioni Tozzetti, a science historian who cut away the parts and wrote about the ceremony, ‘confessed he had found it hard to resist the temptation to take away the skull which had housed such extraordinary genius’, the museum said. The newly-found relics had passed from one collector to another until they went missing in 1905. The remaining finger and the vertebrae have been conserved since 1737 in a mummified state in museums in Florence and Padua. His body now lies in Florence's Santa Croce church, opposite the tomb of Michelangelo. 'My wish is that at some stage those fingers and tooth will be placed with him in his grave,' said Bruschi. 'That way, if one day he rises from his tomb, he'll be in one piece.'


The Netherlands won the 2009 junior version of which international entertainment competition?

Eurovision Song Contest 20:15 Germany Eurovision Song Contest - Unser Song 2017 National Final 11 Estonia Eesti Laul 2017 Semi-Final 11 Ukraine Ukrainian National Selection 2017 Semi-Final 11 Hungary A Dal 2017 Semi-Final 11 Poland Polish National Final National Final 11 Italy San Remo 2017 National Final 11 20:00 Sweden Melodifestivalen 2017 Semi-Final 12


A 2009 referendum in which country banned the construction of new Islamic minarets?

Swiss Ban Building of Minarets on Mosques - The New York Times The New York Times Europe |Swiss Ban Building of Minarets on Mosques Search By NICK CUMMING-BRUCE and STEVEN ERLANGER NOV. 29, 2009 Continue reading the main story GENEVA — In a vote that displayed a widespread anxiety about Islam and undermined the country’s reputation for religious tolerance, the Swiss on Sunday overwhelmingly imposed a national ban on the construction of minarets, the prayer towers of mosques, in a referendum drawn up by the far right and opposed by the government. The referendum, which passed with a clear majority of 57.5 percent of the voters and in 22 of Switzerland ’s 26 cantons, was a victory for the right. The vote against was 42.5 percent. Because the ban gained a majority of votes and passed in a majority of the cantons, it will be added to the Constitution. The Swiss Constitution guarantees freedom of religion, but the rightist Swiss People’s Party, or S.V.P., and a small religious party had proposed inserting a single sentence banning the construction of minarets, leading to the referendum. The Swiss government said it would respect the vote and sought to reassure the Muslim population — mostly immigrants from other parts of Europe, like Kosovo and Turkey — that the minaret ban was “not a rejection of the Muslim community, religion or culture.” Advertisement While such concerns “have to be taken seriously,” she said in a statement, “The Federal Council takes the view that a ban on the construction of new minarets is not a feasible means of countering extremist tendencies.” Photo An illuminated minaret in Zurich. New ones are banned. Credit Alessandro Della Bella/European Pressphoto Agency The government must now draft a supporting law on the ban, a process that could take at least a year and could put Switzerland in breach of international conventions on human rights. Of 150 mosques or prayer rooms in Switzerland, only 4 have minarets, and only 2 more minarets are planned. None conduct the call to prayer. There are about 400,000 Muslims in a population of some 7.5 million people. Close to 90 percent of Muslims in Switzerland are from Kosovo and Turkey, and most do not adhere to the codes of dress and conduct associated with conservative Muslim countries like Saudi Arabia, said Manon Schick, a spokeswoman for Amnesty International in Switzerland. “Most painful for us is not the minaret ban, but the symbol sent by this vote,” said Farhad Afshar, who runs the Coordination of Islamic Organizations in Switzerland. “Muslims do not feel accepted as a religious community.” The Swiss vote reflected a growing anxiety about Islam, especially its more fundamentalist forms, in many countries of Western Europe. France, for example, has been talking about banning the full Islamic veil as a way to stop the influence of the more fundamentalist Salafist forms of Islam, popular among some of the young and also converts. Pre-referendum polls had indicated a comfortable, if slowly shrinking, majority against the proposal, after a controversial campaign that played aggressively on the same fears of Muslim immigration and the spread of Islamic values that resonate in other parts of Europe. Media Tenor International, which monitors television coverage, said that the main Swiss evening news programs tended to report about Islam “primarily in the context of terrorism and international conflict.” Representatives of Islam “were quoted only infrequently,” said the group’s president, Roland Schatz. Photo Walter Wobmann, president of the committee “Yes for a Ban on Minarets,” gave a thumbs-up in Egerkingen, Switzerland, on Sunday. Credit Marcel Bieri/Keystone, via Associated Press “That Switzerland, a country with a long tradition of religious tolerance and the provision of refuge to the persecuted, should have accepted such a grotesquely discriminatory proposal is shocking,” said David Diaz-Jogeix, Amnesty International’s deputy program director for Europe and Central Asia. Advertisement Continue reading the main story Campaign posters depicting a Swiss flag


Which country saw court battles surrounding gay marriage and specifically the ceremony for Alex Freyre and Jose Maria Bello?

GAY-MARRIAGE LAW: US threatens to sanction Nigeria by Vanguard Media Limited - issuu Fresh Boko Haram attack claims 18 lives in Borno •CDS assures of peace by April 8 I'll rescue PDP 16 — Mu'azu GAY-MARRIAGE LAW: US threatens to sanction Nigeria •To scale down aid for HIV/AIDS, anti-malaria programmes •More Nigerians, CAN, laud Jonathan, urge him to call US bluff BY OKEY NDIRIBE, SAM EYOBOKA & VICTORIA OJEME A BUJA—LEADING western countries piled pressure on the Federal government, yesterday, following President Goodluck Jonathan’s signing of the Same-Sex Prohibition Act 2014. The latest country is the United States of America, whose Ambas- Continues on page 5 We'll disobey the court — APC REPS •P.11 COLUMNISTS: •P.49 Mr & Mrs NEW PDP CHAIRMAN—President Goodluck Jonathan (r) congratulating the new National Chairman of the People's Democratic Party, PDP, Alhaji Adamu Mu'azu after his emergence at the 64th National Executive Committee meeting of the ruling party at the party's Headquarters, Wadata House, Wuse, Abuja, yesterday. Photo: Abayomi Adeshida. Okonjo-Iweala laments high recurrent vote in Budget 2014 9 C M Y C M Y 2 — Vanguard, TUESDAY, JANUARY 21, 2014 C M Y Vanguard, TUESDAY, JANUARY 21, 2014—3 C M Y 4— Vanguard, TUESDAY, JANUARY 21, 2014 Vanguard, TUESDAY, JANUARY 21, 2014—5 POCKET CARTOON SESSP MEETS OKONJO-IWEALA—From left: President/CEO of Coscharis Group, Dr. Cosmas Maduka; Group chairman/CEO, Chisco Transport, Chief Chidi Anyaegbu; Former Nigerian Ambassador to the United States, Prof. George Obiozor; Chairman, Honeywell Plc, Dr. Oba Otudeko; Prof. Anya O. Anya, and former Secretary-General of the Commonwealth of Nations, Chief Emeka Anyaoku, during an evening with Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, organised by S-East/S-South Professionals,SESSP, in Lagos on Sunday. Photo: Bunmi Azeez. GAY-MARRIAGE LAW: US threatens to sanction Nigeria Continues from page 1 sador to Nigeria, Mr James Entwistle threatened that the United States will scale down its support for HIV/AIDS and anti-malaria programmes in response to the Federal Government’s position on the gay rights issue. Member countries of the European Union and Canada have expressed their objection to the law but United States Ambassador to Nigeria said he was worried about “the implications of the antisame sex marriage law TAKE HEART BY ELLA RANDLE S OMETIMES our light goes out but is blown again into flame by an encounter with another human being. Each of us owes the deepest thanks to those who have rekindled this inner light — Albert Schweitzer The old man smiled at me from across the table at the coffee shop, a Caucasian, with snowy silvery hair and looked probably about three score and ten and still counting. There is a gentleness about him that exudes inner strength, a calm that seemed divinely inspired. I was puzzled at first; he looked familiar but a stranger still. I had a lot on my mind and was a bit startled when he said to me, you’re very beautiful! I see your heart is beautiful too, always remember to thank God and your parents for they made you beautiful! We both knew he was referring to the heart as a beautiful place, and the nurturing and grooming comes from divine love! This kind of experience comes to me often as a reminder to stay focused on the beautiful. I asked the old man, if there was something I could do for him, maybe I could buy him a coffee drink perhaps? He smiled and said to me. I am good, but yes there is something you can do, always remember to keep giving love! Keep on giving your love’! It is love that makes you beautiful! I couldn’t help but smile,and my troubling thoughts dispersed into the winds. No matter what comes our way in life, take heart, these situations will resolve themselves as you advance, the solution of light will dawn, and shine with increasing clearness in your life. “I stood up to leave and thanked the old man, as I walked away to the substation, the Sun on my face and the light in my heart could literally flame the whole sky. which seems to restrict the fundamental rights of a section of the Nigerian population.”


The new Dreamliner passenger aircraft launched in 2009 is Boeing number what?

Boeing: 787 Dreamliner Connecting the World New Routes and the 787 Dreamliner Family With its unparalleled fuel efficiency and range flexibility, the 787 Dreamliner family is helping airlines open new nonstop routes profitably. At more than 120 new routes and counting, the 787 family is connecting cities and people around the world while meeting passengers’ expectations for direct flights. Connecting the World New Routes and the 787 Dreamliner Family With its unparalleled fuel efficiency and range flexibility, the 787 Dreamliner family is helping airlines open new nonstop routes profitably. At more than 120 new routes and counting, the 787 family is connecting cities and people around the world while meeting passengers’ expectations for direct flights.


A Ryanair jet slid off the runway at which Scottish airport?

Ryanair jet slides off Glasgow Prestwick airport runway | Business | The Guardian Ryanair jet slides off Glasgow Prestwick airport runway No passengers or crew injured in accident caused by icy weather conditions The Ryanair passenger jet after sliding off the runway at Glasgow Prestwick airport. Photograph: AP Ryanair jet slides off Glasgow Prestwick airport runway No passengers or crew injured in accident caused by icy weather conditions Wednesday 23 December 2009 07.00 EST First published on Wednesday 23 December 2009 07.00 EST Close This article is 7 years old A Ryanair jet slid off the runway at Glasgow's Prestwick airport this morning but there were no casualties among the 129 passengers and cabin crew. Treacherous conditions saw the Boeing 737-800 slide on to a grass verge of Glasgow's second-largest airport as it taxied to the terminal. "When you come on to the runway it's full of black ice," Ryanair passenger Alex Paton told the BBC. Prestwick was closed temporarily while emergency services attempted to remove the jet. A Ryanair spokesman said passengers and crew on the Dublin-to-Gatwick service were bussed to the terminal after leaving the aircraft routinely, albeit on to a muddy patch of grass rather than the tarmac. "Ryanair engineers are at the aircraft, which appears to have suffered no damage, and they are working with Glasgow [Prestwick] to return the aircraft to the stand area so that the runway can be reopened with minimum delay," the spokesman said. The airport reopened at 11am. Icy conditions that have caused chaos on the roads continue over Christmas period as cold weather lingers Published: 24 Dec 2009 Cornwall council defends decision to grit only a fifth of roads after vehicle overturns injuring 47 people, five seriously Published: 23 Dec 2009 Gifts bought online fail to reach some destinations and supermarkets struggle to deliver orders Published: 23 Dec 2009 Christmas is the season to be jolly so stop moaning about the weather and pass on some winter warmth instead Published: 23 Dec 2009


From whom did Susan Sarandon announce a split after a long partnership?

Susan Sarandon 'ends relationship' with boyfriend of five years Jonathan Bricklin, 37 | Daily Mail Online comments Susan Sarandon has split from her boyfriend of five years, Jonathan Bricklin.   The 68-year-old actress and entrepreneur Jonathan, 37, have reportedly gone their separate ways because the Lovely Bones star struggled to cope with having their lives filmed for Morgan Spurlock's AOL reality series Connected, which follows six people are their partners over six months. A source told The New York Post's Page Six : 'It caused a lot of strain in the relationship.It's documented for the show that Susan breaks up with him because she doesn't want to be involved with the show. She says, "You're a cast member, I'm not."' Scroll down for video  End of the road: Susan Sarandon has reportedly separated from boyfriend of five years Jonathan Bricklin However, the couple's relationship may not be over for good. RELATED ARTICLES Share The source added: 'As of now, they're working on things.' Susan has previously admitted she and Jonathan - who she met while on a road trip to Chile - are not an 'ordinary couple' and insisted the 31-year age gap has never bothered her. All too much: The 68-year-old actress and entrepreneur Jonathan, 37, have reportedly gone their separate ways because the Lovely Bones star struggled to cope with having their lives filmed for Morgan Spurlock's AOL reality series Connected She said: 'We don't live under the same roof. We're not an ordinary couple. 'It's the soul of a person that interests me. When you are in love, the question of age, sex, colour no longer hold any importance.' The Tammy actress has also spoken of how she found it difficult to move on from Tim Robbins, whom she split from in 2009 after 23 years together. She said: '(It was) exciting and simultaneously terrifying because there are certain comforts you take for granted in long-term relationships.  The past: The Tammy actress has previosuly spoken of how she found it difficult to move on from Tim Robbins, whom she split from in 2009 after 23 years together 'Even though in my business I meet lots of people, you think of yourself differently when you're on the market than when you're not. So, yes, I'd be lying if I said it was an easy transition.'  Susan was last seen at the annual Goldene Kamera awards in Hamburg, an event she attended without Jonathan, on Friday evening.  The veteran star was on hand to collect a Mid-Life Achievement award for her services to acting. MailOnline have contacted Susan's representatives for further comment.  Going solo: Susan was last seen at the annual Goldene Kamera awards in Hamburg, an event she attended without Jonathan, on Friday evening Refresh your eveningwear with mesh like Susan Sarandon Thigh Split Dress With Mesh Shop similar styles below The Oscars may be over, but Susan Sarandon has given us our much-needed fix of red-carpet glamour with this stunning look. We love the midnight blue v-cut dress, featuring a saucy thigh-high split that Susan pulls off with stylish aplomb. What we especially adore about the dress though, is how the mesh panels instantly give it a fresh look that brings something a bit different to the red-carpet. Mesh is a favourite with top designers, especially Stella McCartney who has used it throughout several of her collections, as it provides a real fashion-forward tone with a sexy edge. With that in mind, get inspired by Susan's dress with our edit of mesh beauties below that are perfect for your next night out. Don't mesh about - get shopping now! * PRICES MAY NOT BE AS ADVERTISED ...NOW GET ONE LIKE IT


Porfirio Lobo Sosa was elected president of which central American nation?

Joint Statement to the Press by Vice President Joe Biden and Honduran President Porfirio Lobo Sosa | whitehouse.gov Joint Statement to the Press by Vice President Joe Biden and Honduran President Porfirio Lobo Sosa Presidential Palace Tegucigalpa, Honduras 4:45 P.M. CST PRESIDENT LOBO SOSA:  [As interpreted by Government of Honduras interpreter] Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen of the national and international press and the media.  It’s a true honor for us that today we count with the attendance of Vice President Joe Biden.  Welcome to the Republic of Honduras, sir.  (Applause.)  Likewise, it’s a true pleasure to receive the Presidents Otto Peréz Molina of Guatemala, Mauricio Funes of El Salvador, Daniel Ortega of Nicaragua, Laura Chinchilla of Costa Rica, Ricardo Martinelli of Panama, and Chancellor Carlos Morales Troncoso on behalf of the President Leonel Fernéndez of the Dominican Republic.  We held a joint meeting, the presidents of the Central American Integration System, SICA, together with Vice President Biden.  It’s been a fairly -- a meeting concentrated in citizen security and how to continue our endeavors, efforts between the people and country of the United States of America and the peoples and governments of Central America on the struggle against organized crime and drug traffic.  We are doing our best efforts and also using the best collaboration efforts from the people and government of the United States.  Vice President Biden, it’s a true honor for us, and to President Barack Obama, please mention that we count with your eternal friendship and the support of brotherly country.  And you’re accompanying us in this struggle that we need so much in order to generate spaces that are in our interest as we have lots of poverty that is the scourge of our country.  So, thank you for attending, being here with us.  Thank you. VICE PRESIDENT BIDEN:  Mr. President, it’s an honor -- it’s a genuine honor to be here.  I appreciate President Lobo hosting me today and hosting our colleagues across the region.  And the leader of the Senate is here, Congress is here.  I thank you, Mr. President.  And to the Vice Presidents, I thank you.  Madam Vice President, thank you for traveling an hour and a half to meet my aircraft.  The hospitality was much appreciated.          The United States and Honduras have had a long and close partnership, and we reaffirmed that today.  The President and I discussed a wide range of topics, especially security and economic development.  We understand the grave threats of narcotrafficking and the gang violence, and the threat it poses to the people of Honduras, but quite frankly to the entire region as well as to my country.  And the United States is absolutely committed to continuing to work with Honduras to win this battle against the narcotraffickers. One important area in which we can hopefully be of help -- and their legislature is already leading down here -- is in vetting the police, the prosecutors, and the judges.  My experience has been, and the experience of all of us is, that the people of a country have to be able to have confidence in the integrity of each of those institutions if progress is going to be made.   I was pleased to meet with the presidents of the Central American countries to discuss the upcoming summit, the Summit of the Americas, and a wide range of regional issues.  I held a similar meeting in Costa Rica in 2009, March of 2009, immediately after President Obama and I were sworn into office.  And although many of the faces have changed around the table as new leaders have been elected, our common interests have not and the fundamental agenda has not changed.   Security was an important part of our discussion in 2009, when President Obama and I came to office.  And we underscored, again, our commitment to work to build a safer future for the citizens of this region.  Last March, in El Salvador, President Obama announced the Central American Citizen Security Partnership, which recognizes that a secure and prosperous Central America is in the interest of all our


Which band claimed the UK Christmas number one after an internet campaign against Simon Cowell's X-Factor?

Rage Against the Machine beats Simon Cowell to UK Christmas Number 1. Rage Against the Machine beats Simon Cowell to UK Christmas Number 1. shares If you needed more proof of the weight behind social media, this is it. Rage Against the Machine  have just had their first UK Number 1. They got it thanks to an Facebook group campaign, beating X-Factor winner Joe McElderry. FIND OUT WHY Killing in the Name, the single, was released over 15 years ago. RATM spent nothing on marketing and yet they made it to Christmas No.1. In taking the title for 2009, Killing In The Name also sets two new landmarks, becoming the UK’s first download-only Christmas number one and notching up the biggest one-week download sales total in British chart history. A week ago X-Factor Winner Joe McElderry appeared to be a Shoo in for Christmas No.1. Every year, for four years, the Winner of X-Factor has been number one at Christmas. But this year Jon and Tracy Morter , of Essex, who decided to set up a protest campaign on Facebook and promote Rage Against the Machine as a possible contender. Cowell praised the couple behind the anti-X Factor online drive. He said: “I am gutted for Joe because a number one single meant a lot to him but I have to congratulate Jon and Tracy, who started the Facebook campaign. “I called Jon on Saturday to congratulate the two of them that, win or lose, they turned this into a very exciting race for the Christmas number one. HMV’s Gennaro Castaldo said: “This is a truly remarkable outcome – possibly the greatest chart upset ever, which few people could have imagined when Joe claimed the X Factor crown last weekend. Rage Against The Machine sold 502672 copies, beating X Factor Joe by approximately 50,000 sales. Former CEO of The Next Web. A fan of startups, entrepreneurship, getting things done faster, penning the occasional blog post, taking photos, designing, listening to good music and making lurrrve. Contact


Who famously withdrew from his own Chevron World Challenge charity sports event?

Tiger Woods withdraws from his own tourney, won't attend comment THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. -- Tiger Woods still isn't talking. Now he's not playing, either. Woods withdrew Monday from his own golf tournament, citing injuries from a car crash near his Florida home. His decision comes as questions continue to mount regarding what exactly happened in the wee hours of the morning last Friday -- questions that most certainly would have been asked of him had he played. The world's No. 1 golfer posted a statement on his Web site saying that unspecified injuries prevented him from playing in the Chevron World Challenge. He had been scheduled to hold a news conference Tuesday for the tournament, which he hosts annually for a small, invited, field. "I am extremely disappointed that I will not be at my tournament this week," Woods said. "I am certain it will be an outstanding event and I'm very sorry that I can't be there." Headaches and soreness will keep Woods from traveling to attend the tournament, The Golf Channel reported. Tournament officials said fans who bought advance tickets with the hope of seeing Woods could get refunds beginning next week. Those who keep their tickets will get a 20 percent discount when they buy them next year. Woods' decision to withdraw comes amid a report saying the Florida Highway Patrol has sought a search warrant for hospital records that would document the treatment he received after the accident. The Florida state police, according to the report on TMZ.com, want to determine if the injuries Woods sustained resembled those from an auto accident or domestic violence. When contacted Monday by ESPN, Florida Highway Patrol spokeswoman Kim Miller said the FHP has made no statements to anyone regarding Woods and warrants. Woods sustained cuts and bruises when he crashed his SUV into a fire hydrant and a tree at 2:25 a.m., outside his home in an exclusive, gated community near Orlando. He was treated and released from a hospital, and has not been seen in public since. By skipping the tournament, Woods will escape having to face TV cameras and a horde of media seeking more details about the smashup. The tournament was to be the last of the year for Woods anyway, and he did not say when or where he would make his return next year. The first tournament of the 2010 PGA Tour is the SBS Championship in Hawaii, an event for winners from the previous year, beginning Jan. 7, but Woods wasn't expected to be there. He's more likely to play at Torrey Pines in La Jolla, Calif., the week of Jan. 25. Woods released a statement Sunday saying the accident was his fault and asked that it remain "a private matter." But with the Florida Highway Patrol still investigating and the media in full pursuit, Woods may not get his way. Woods even faced questions from fans who left comments on his Web site. Most voiced support for him, but some said he should address the questions about his own actions and those of his wife, Elin Nordegren, before and after the accident. Woods hasn't answered questions from Florida troopers, either, turning them down three days in a row when they came to his house. Four cars were parked in Woods' driveway Monday, but no lights appeared to be on inside. A new fire hydrant had already replaced the one that Woods plowed into. A dirt hole and an orange barricade remained in the old hydrant's place. A woman at the address listed on a FHP news release as the scene of the crash told the Orlando Sentinel that her husband didn't call emergency responders, but that someone else in the house did. The tape of the call was released Sunday. The Associated Press called the home of Linda and Jerome Adams on Monday morning and asked to speak with the Adams' son. The woman who answered the telephone told a reporter to call back later in the day. When the AP called back Monday evening, attorney Bill Sharpe answered and said he was representing the family. He said there was no comment at this time, but said a statement might be made Tuesday. Woods, who both hosts and plays in the Chevron World Challenge, was there last


Who won a third term as Mayor of New York City in 2009?

Bloomberg Narrowly Wins 3rd Term as New York City Mayor | Fox News Bloomberg Narrowly Wins 3rd Term as New York City Mayor Published        November 03, 2009 Facebook 0 Twitter 0 livefyre Email Print Nov. 3: New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg address supporters after winning reelection at the Sheraton New York. (AP) NEW YORK -- Billionaire Mayor Michael Bloomberg heads toward a third term bruised by a surprisingly close re-election battle that exposed lingering anger over his reversal on term limits and his prodigious campaign spending. In the days leading up to the election, Bloomberg was expected to secure an easy victory, perhaps by double digits. But he won by just five percentage points -- an advantage of less than 51,000 votes. The mayor called it a "hard-fought victory in a very difficult year," and promised that New Yorkers "ain't seen nothing yet" from him. "I'm committed to working twice as hard in the next four years as I did in the past eight," Bloomberg said. Facing an underdog Democratic opponent who had little money and no name recognition, Bloomberg still waged the most expensive self-financed political campaign in U.S. history. But city Comptroller William Thompson Jr. hammered the mayor relentlessly on term limits, saying Bloomberg went back on his word when he orchestrated a change to a term-limits law that voters had upheld by referendum twice in the 1990s. Thompson also blasted Bloomberg as an out-of-touch elitist who abandoned the middle class. But Thompson gave voters few other reasons to support him. Some voters expressed their discontent in the voting booth, even though they did not believe Bloomberg could lose. Pedro Fuertes said he voted for Bloomberg in 2005 but abandoned him this year. A vote for Thompson, he said, sent a message to the mayor. "He will know how people feel," Fuertes said. Bloomberg is only the fourth New York mayor ever to win re-election twice. But the close race and the simmering voter resentment this year have energized the political opposition in City Hall, and Democrats suggested that Bloomberg's third term could be his most difficult. "There will be moments where I'm going to have to be very aggressive in speaking up for people who aren't being heard," said Democrat Bill de Blasio, who won the job of City Hall ombudsman Tuesday. Before this campaign, Bloomberg was mostly known as a nonpartisan, pragmatic philanthropist who turned the city around after the 2001 World Trade Center attack. "He may be remembered as one of the greatest mayors in New York history," the New York Times said when endorsing him in 2005. But then the mayor reversed his long-held support for term limits and persuaded the City Council to change the law. The richest man in New York and founder of the financial information company Bloomberg LP, Bloomberg said his economic expertise was crucial to steering the city through the recession. He then went on to pour millions of his personal fortune -- estimated at $17.5 billion -- into his campaign. He had spent nearly $90 million by Oct. 29 and could top $100 million when all the bills are paid. "I didn't like the idea that King Mike thinks he can buy anything he wants, including my vote," said Democrat Kevin Anterline, a 56-year-old university employee who voted for Thompson. Thompson, who will probably end up spending one-tenth as much as Bloomberg, gave the mayor a scare by running up huge margins in black and Hispanic neighborhoods, winning by a 3-to-1 margin in some election districts. "This campaign was about defying conventional wisdom. ... this campaign was about standing strong, standing tall and never backing down in the face of a formidable challenge," Thompson said after conceding defeat. He beat the mayor handily in predominantly black neighborhoods such as Bedford-Stuyvesant in Brooklyn and Jamaica in Queens. He won Harlem and East Harlem easily, along with other heavily Hispanic districts in upper Manhattan and the Bronx. By contrast, Bloomberg won easily on Staten Island, which has a much larger white population. He also fared better


Which English town became the first to be twinned with Walt Disney World in Florida?

Walt Disney World twinned with Swindon, England - Wikinews, the free news source Walt Disney World twinned with Swindon, England From Wikinews, the free news source you can write! Image: Katie Rommel-Esham . Swindon , England , has an unusual new twin town : Walt Disney World in Florida. The Wiltshire town beat 24 others in a competition to become the first ever to be twinned with the famous resort. Rebecca Warren, a local building society worker, created a poem and video praising Swindon which won over the judges. Among other features she highlighted the town's well-known Magic Roundabout , a complicated junction composed of five interlinked mini-roundabouts, comparing it to Disney World's teacup rides. Image: Dickbauch . A sign marking the twinning is planned for the roundabout. Ms. Warren will travel to Florida with her eleven-year-old nephew and five-year-old niece to unveil a similar sign at the resort. A celebration will be held in Swindon in January, and it will also be the focus of an exhibit at Walt Disney World's Epcot park. "Britain clearly has a love for Walt Disney World and long-standing affinity with the parks and their magic, which is probably why the number and quality of entries received was so high," said Disney's Hugh Wood. Other towns shortlisted in the competition included Aberdeen , Blackpool , Milton Keynes , and Cambridge . Have an opinion on this story? Share it! Sources


The body of which country's former president was stolen from its grave a day before the anniversary of his death?

Cypriot 'Al Capone' suspected of stealing president's body - Telegraph Cyprus Cypriot 'Al Capone' suspected of stealing president's body A notorious Cypriot villain, known as "Al Capone", is suspected of  ordering the theft of the corpse of the former president Tassos  Papadopoulos. Police in Cyprus conduct an investigation at a graveside 9 March 2010 after discovering the stolen corpse of former President Tassos Papadopoulos, which was snatched from his grave in December 2009 Photo: EPA Tabitha Morgan in Nicosia 5:21PM GMT 12 Mar 2010 Antonis Kitas is suspected of giving the order to snatch the body from his prison cell and had hoped to use it as a bargaining tool to secure his release. Police are questioning Kitas, who is serving a double life sentence in Nicosia prison for multiple rape and murder, about the theft. Mr Papadopoulos's body was stolen from its grave in a Nicosia cemetery last December, the day before the first anniversary of his death. In pouring rain, thieves lifted a 650lb granite tomb stone and removed the corpse from the coffin. Police initially believed the theft was politically motivated because the former president was an uncompromising nationalist with many enemies. Suggestions were also made that criminals were seeking to extort money from the Papadopoulos family for the return of the body. However, information from a retired prison official led police to investigate whether the mastermind might be the gangland boss, Kitas. Panikos Kyriacou, a former prison governor, said he remembered a convict on a life sentence some years earlier discussing a plan to steal the body of another former president as a means to securing his release from prison. A tip-off earlier this week led police to search a Nicosia cemetery close to the one where Mr Papadopoulos had originally been laid to rest. There, they found the missing body. The tip was said to have come from one of the accomplices who named "Al Capone" and his brother as the ringleaders. According to former inmates, Kitas enjoys a lifestyle of comparative luxury behind bars, financed by his criminal empire, which he continues to control. Kitas escaped from custody, briefly, two years ago, giving his guards the slip while being treated for a minor illness at a private Nicosia clinic. During his six-month stay in the clinic, despite the presence of prison guards, Kitas was frequently joined for the night by his Chinese wife, and had access to a laptop computer and several mobile phones. A prison guard said Kitas was never handcuffed during his stay in the clinic, and warders were told not to complain about the lax security. "As ever," a retired prison official said: "Al Capone was a law unto himself." Kitas, his brother, Mamas, and two other men have been remanded to appear in court in Nicosia on 18 March.


Which city hosted the 2009 UN Climate Change Conference?

Copenhagen: Host city of UN Climate Change Conference Copenhagen: Host city of UN Climate Change Conference (Xinhua) Large Medium Small HELSINKI: The 15th United Nations Climate Change Conference will take place from 7 to 18 December in Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark, with the international community seeking agreement on reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Xinhua reporters visited the city at the end of November to check the pre-session atmosphere of this famous Nordic city. Related readings:   UN leader still has high expectations for Copenhagen climate summit Denmark says leaders from 98 of the 192 members of the UN, including US President Barrack Obama and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, have confirmed their attendance, with about 12,000 delegates and specialists from more than 170 countries planning to join the event as well. About 3,000 journalists and correspondents have already arrived in the host city and more are expected. Participants are committed to sorting out a new arrangement for tackling global warming and its impact beyond 2012, when existing commitments under the Kyoto Protocol expire. Bella Center, the venue of the conference, situated in the city's south, is among Europe's leading exhibition and meeting centers, with a total capacity of 20,000. A giant wind turbine, the symbol of Bella Center, stands in front of the building, whose main entrance is decorated with a full-size fan blade. In keeping with its upcoming role, Bella Center, originally built in the high-energy consumption tradition of the past, has been seeking to green its operations by exploring measures to minimize environmental impacts and maximize the efficient consumption of raw materials, water and other energy resources. With a "Green City" reputation, Copenhagen has been actively tapping ideas to cope with climate change. In March of this year, Copenhagen's municipal administration outlined its ambitious intention to become the world's first carbon-neutral city by 2025. On the ground in the square at City Hall, this carbon-neutral goal is strikingly written on a big footprint. Also well-known as "Cycle City", over a third of residents here commute by bicycle on weekdays to office or school. The number cyclists is impressive and the Copenhagen City Museum has promoted this with an exhibition to display the city's history "on bikes" and its long cycling tradition. Prior to next week's global summit, Copenhagen has launched a series of such campaigns to promote the summit and publicize knowledge of environmental protection, according to the city's authority. The world's largest container shipping company, Copenhagen-based conglomerate AP Moller-Maersk, offered an exhibition in the square of the downtown pedestrian street by using a remodeled container as an exhibition platform. The exhibition contributes to raising public awareness about the impact of climate change and the urgent need for environmental protection, by telling visitors in vivid and intuitive ways that a single 15km drive to the electronics store in a neighboring block emits much more carbon gases than the entire sail from Asia to Europe. In the famous King's New Square, located in downtown Copenhagen, there are 16 creative and colorful models of the Earth, which attractively draws people's attention. These are "Cool Globes", presented by the Art and Environmental Exhibition, in an effort to stimulate the public to get involved in carbon emissions reduction and energy saving, even in small ways, to prevent the global climate from further deterioration. On the other side of the square, a large-scale photo exhibition "100 Places to Remember Before They Disappear" grabs the attention of citizens and tourists. The photos show 100 places on earth facing the risk of disappearance within next few generations due to climate change and other influences from human activities, to warn people that living conditions will be dramatically changed as a consequence of climate change. The United Nations Climate Change Conference is by far the largest international conference held in Denmark


What invertebrate species what filmed for the first time using a tool?

First tool-using invertebrate: octopus with a mobile home « Why Evolution Is True I’m a Penguin! » First tool-using invertebrate: octopus with a mobile home Yes, I know that P. Z. has already posted on it, but I think it deserves a bit fuller explication, for it’s the first reported instance of tool use in an invertebrate (reported in the news here , and at the journal Current Biology here ). In this case the creature is the veined octopus, Amphioctopus marginatus, and the “tool” is a coconut shell that it uses as a protective home, just like a hermit crab uses another creature’s shell.  What makes this real “tool use,” as opposed to what hermit crabs do, is that the octopus carries the coconut shell around with it, like an Airstream, and assembles the two halves into a protective hideaway.  They’re smart little buggers. Here’s the (pardon me) meat of the story; I’ve put the direct links to the movies below: Between 1999 and 2008, we undertook more than 500 diver hours (day and night) on subtidal soft-sediment substrates to 18 metres deep off the coasts of Northern Sulawesi and Bali in Indonesia. Over this period, we studied more than 20 individuals of the Veined Octopus, Amphioctopus marginatus (Figure 1). Octopuses were encountered in a range of behavioral states — emerged and active on the seafloor (Figure 1A); occupying empty gastropod shells, discarded coconut shell halves (Figure 1B) or other human refuse; or buried within the substrate (with or without accompanying shells; see Supplemental Movie S1 in the Supplemental Data available on-line with this issue). When flushed from shells by the observer, individuals quickly reoccupied the shells. On four occasions (three in Northern Sulawesi, one in Gilimanuk, Bali), individuals were observed to travel over considerable distances (up to 20 m) while carrying stacked coconut shell halves below their body (Figure 1C; Movie S1 ). For all instances of this behaviour, observing divers (JF, MN) remained static for up to 20 minutes at 1–2 metres from stationary octopuses, which emerged from the cover of one or two shells halves, arranged the shell(s) under the arm crown, and departed. Two shell-less octopuses were also observed to extract previously un-encountered coconut shells buried in the substrate, aided by jets of water to flush mud from shells (Movie S1 ). To carry one or more shells, this octopus manipulates and arranges the shells so that the concave surfaces are uppermost, then extends its arms around the outside and walks using the arms as rigid limbs. We describe this lumbering octopedal gait as ‘stilt walking’ (see Movie S1 ). This unique and previously undescribed form of locomotion is ungainly and clearly less efficient than unencumbered locomotion (i.e. costly in terms of energy and increased predator risk compared with normal walking or the faster jet swimming escape; see Movie S2 ). While ‘stilt-walking’ the octopus gains no protective benefits from the shell(s) it is carrying as the head and body are fully exposed to potential predators. The only benefit is the potential future deployment of the shell(s) as a surface shelter (Figure 1B) or as a buried encapsulating lair (Movie S1 ). The fact that the shell is carried for future use rather than as part of a specific task differentiates this behaviour from other examples of object manipulation by octopuses, such as rocks being used to barricade lair entrances [10]. Further evidence that this shell-carrying behaviour is an example of tool use comes from the requirement of the octopus to correctly assemble the separate parts (when transporting two shells) in order to create a single functioning tool. One of the scientists describes his reaction to the behavior, and I include it here because only an Aussie scientist, God love them, would describe it this way: “I was gobsmacked,” said Finn, a research biologist at the museum who specializes in cephalopods. “I mean, I’ve seen a lot of octopuses hiding in shells, but I’ve never seen one that grabs it up and jogs across the sea floor. I was trying hard not to laug


In what TV soap did Tony confess to murdering Liam?

Tony to confess all in Corrie? Tony to confess all in Corrie? Coronation Street's murderous Tony Gordon apparently confesses his sins to an unlikely resident. Don't Miss Share 14 hours ago 3:16 PM Share November 28 2016 12:01 AM Share September 28 2016 9:15 PM Share July 23 2016 3:11 PM June 14 2016 1:35 PM Latest News Share 3 hours ago 1:54 AM Share 4 hours ago 1:15 AM 8 hours ago 9:48 PM Must Read Share January 01 2017 12:01 AM Share 15 hours ago 2:38 PM 20 August 2009 7:00 PM Shares Advertisement - Continue Reading Below WARNING: Major Spoiler Alert Reports in today's Daily Star suggest that Tony Gordon (Gray O'Brien) will confess to having Liam Connor (Rob-James Collier) killed. The shock revelation apparently comes after Tony suffers a health scare and in an attempt to clear his conscience, the knicker factory boss confides in unassuming café owner Roy Cropper (David Neilson). The script is said to read: "You're a good man, Roy Cropper. So I need to make a confession to you. I killed him, Roy‚ I killed Liam, I killed Liam!" Earlier this year, Corrie boss Kim Crowther teased that Tony's 'undoing' would stem from 'none of the players you'd expect'. I think Roy's classified as 'unexpected', no? Let me know your views on the above theory using the usual form below!


What was Dan Brown's 2009 bestselling and Christmas number one book?

New York Times Best Seller Number Ones Listing Number Ones Listing Fiction By Date This page is a listing of adult fiction books which have made number one on the New York Times Best Seller List along with the date that they first reached number one, in date order. Clicking on the date will take you to that week's list, if available. Currently, this listing starts at August 9, 1942. You may also view the non fiction number ones listing. As always, we want your feedback! Please let us know how you like this new feature and if you find it helpful. Comments may be sent to comments@hawes.com . And Now Tomorrow by Rachel Field (MacMillan) - August 9, 1942 The Song of Bernadette by Franz Werfel (Viking) - August 16, 1942 Drivin' Woman by Elizabeth Chevalier (MacMillan) - September 6, 1942 The Robe by Lloyd Douglas (Houghton Mifflin) - November 22, 1942 1943 Mrs. Parkington by Louis Bromfield (Harper) - March 14, 1943 So Little Time by John P. Marquand (Little, Brown) - October 17, 1943 1944 A Tree Grows In Brooklyn by Betty Smith (Harper) - January 2, 1944 Strange Fruit by Lillian Smith (Reynal) - May 14, 1944 Razor's Edge by Somerset Maugham (Doubleday) - July 2, 1944 Green Dolphin Street by Elizabeth Goudge (Coward-McCann) - October 15, 1944 Forever Amber by Kathleen Winsor (MacMillan) - November 14, 1944 The Green Years by A. J. Cronin (Little, Brown) - December 17, 1944 1945 Earth and High Heaven by Gwethalyn Graham (Lippincott) - April 22, 1945 Captain From Castile by Samuel Shellabarger (Little, Brown) - May 13, 1945 A Lion Is In the Streets by Adria Locke Langley (McGraw) - July 1, 1945 So Well Remembered by James Hilton (Little, Brown) - September 23, 1945 The Black Rose by Thomas Costain (Doubleday) - September 30, 1945 1946 The King's General by Daphne du Maurier (Doubleday) - February 3, 1946 Arch of Triumph by Erich Maria Remarque (Appleton-Century) - March 10, 1946 This Side of Innocence by Taylor Caldwell (Scribner's) - May 12, 1946 The Hucksters by Frederic Wakeman (Rinehart) - July 14, 1946 East River by Sholem Asch (Putnam) - November 24, 1946 B. F.'s Daughter by John P. Marquand (Little, Brown) - December 1, 1946 1947 Lydia Bailey by Kenneth Roberts (Doubleday) - February 2, 1947 Gentlemen's Agreement by Laura Z. Hobson (Simon & Schuster) - April 27, 1947 Kingsblood Royal by Sinclair Lewis (Random House) - July 6, 1947 The Moneyman by Thomas Costain (Doubleday) - August 17, 1947 House Divided by Ben Ames Williams (Houghton Mifflin) - November 9, 1947 1948 East Side, West Side by Marcia Davenport (Scribner's) - February 8, 1948 Eagle In the Sky by Van Wyck Mason (Lippincott) - March 7, 1948 The Ides of March by Thornton Wilder (Harper) - April 4, 1948 Raintree County by Ross Lockridge (Houghton Mifflin) - April 25, 1948 Pilgrim's Inn by Elizabeth Goudge (Coward-McCann) - May 23, 1948 The Naked and the Dead by Norman Mailer (Rinehart) - June 20, 1948 Shannon's Way by A. J. Cronin (Little, Brown) - September 5, 1948 The Young Lions by Irwin Shaw (Random House) - November 7, 1948 The Big Fisherman by Lloyd C. Douglas (Houghton Mifflin) - December 19, 1948 1949 Point of No Return by John P. Marquand (Little, Brown) - April 10, 1949 A Rage to Live by John O'Hara (Random House) - September 18, 1949 The Egyptian by Mika Waltari (Putnam) - October 30, 1949 The Wall by John Hersey (Knopf) - March 26, 1950 The Cardinal by Henry Morton Robinson (Simon & Schuster) - April 30, 1950 Across the River and Into the Trees by Ernest Hemingway (Scribner's) - October 15, 1950 The Disenchanted by Budd Schulberg (Random House) - December 3, 1950 1951 Joy Street by Francis Parkinson Keyes (Messner) - January 14, 1951 From Here to Eternity by James Jones (Scribner's) - March 25, 1951 The Caine Mutiny by Herman Wouk (Doubleday) - August 12, 1951 1952 My Cousin Rachel by Daphne du Maurier (Doubleday) - March 30, 1952 The Silver Chalice by Thomas Costain (Doubleday) - September 7, 1952 East of Eden by John Steinbeck (Viking) - November 2, 1952 1953 Desiree by Annemarie Selinko (Morrow) - March 8, 1953 Beyond This Place by A. J. Cronin (L


Michale Schumacher announced his Formula One 2010 comeback would be with what team?

BBC Sport - F1 - Michael Schumacher targets eighth Formula 1 title Michael Schumacher targets eighth Formula 1 title Advertisement Watch the full interview with Michael Schumacher Michael Schumacher says he intends to crown his Formula 1 comeback by challenging for the 2010 title. The seven-time champion announced his return for 2010 on Wednesday with Mercedes, the renamed Brawn GP team. Despite three years out of the sport, he insists he can threaten the likes of Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button - the 2008 and 2009 world champions. "I have won the title seven times and the team won both titles last year, so what do you expect?" said the German. Schumacher, 41 on 3 January, added: "Now Mercedes are team owners you cannot expect anything else other than the world title. That is what we aim for but we have to deliver and that is our job. Forget about winning races - I have him on my bill for winning the championship Bernie Ecclestone on Schumacher "Honestly, I can't wait until 1 February, when we will officially run the car." Schumacher retired in 2006 after competing in 250 grands prix, 180 of them for Ferrari. He won 91 races, 71 for Ferrari, on his way to his multiple world titles. F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone has welcomed Schumacher's return and believes he can even win the title at the age of 41. "Forget about winning races - I have him on my bill for winning the championship," Ecclestone told F1's official website. "It's fantastic for Formula 1 that he turned into a 'comeback kid' but at the same time it's good for Michael. "Now he has all his strength together and has 100% motivation that will give us many exciting races in 2010." ANDREW BENSON BLOG Schumacher will be more than good enough to win races assuming Mercedes provide him with a competitive car - a Michael Schumacher at 90% of his best is still better than the vast majority of the F1 grid Schumacher almost returned to F1 last summer. He was going to act as a stand-in for injured Ferrari driver Felipe Massa but pulled out because of a neck injury sustained in a motorcycle accident last February. Recent medical checks have been positive, though, and he is confident he is back to full fitness. Schumacher will reportedly earn £6.2m after reuniting with Mercedes team principal Ross Brawn, who masterminded all seven of his titles, the first two with Benetton in 1994-5 and the subsequent five with Ferrari from 2000-4. Lucas di Grassi, who will make his debut with Virgin Racing next season, believes Schumacher still possesses the will to win after losing to him in a recent karting event in Brazil. "He's the most competitive guy that I know," Di Grassi said recently. "Everybody I know goes there [to the karting event] to have a good time and enjoy it and have fun. Michael goes there and spends two hours making a seat one millimetre higher." Report - Schumacher returns to F1 Williams driver Rubens Barrichello, who drove with Schumacher at Ferrari, suggested the German driver's track record was the key to Mercedes' decision to lure him out of retirement. "Experience is all that matters in F1 now," former Brawn driver Barrichello wrote on his Twitter feed. "The team needed me last year and needs Schumi now. I hope for a great fight, but a clean one as well." BBC analyst Martin Brundle believes his former team-mate from his Benetton days will have to work hard on his return to the sport. "Michael says he has charged his batteries on his break, but I think he will need a couple of extra long life ones in his pocket," he said. "The last two championships he contested, Fernando Alonso won both and hasn't slowed down since then. "There are drivers like Button, Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel on the scene now, and Michael is going to have to pedal very hard to beat those guys. "I wouldn't bet against him winning some races, or even the championship, but he will have his work cut out." Classic F1 - Schumacher's first win Mercedes chief executive Nick Fry believes Schumacher's return has captured the imagination of their team rivals and the sport's fans. "The thing that has bee


Part of which iconic leader's palace was discovered by archaeologists in the Mediterranean Sea?

Threshold to Cleopatra's mausoleum discovered off Alexandria coast | Culture | The Guardian Threshold to Cleopatra's mausoleum discovered off Alexandria coast • Threshold to massive door found off Alexandria • Queen's mausoleum part of sunken palace complex Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor in Antony and Cleopatra. Photograph: Hulton Archive/Silver Screen Collection/Getty Images Wednesday 23 December 2009 17.10 EST First published on Wednesday 23 December 2009 17.10 EST Close This article is 7 years old They were one of the world's most famous couples, who lived lives of power and glory – but who spent their last hours in despair and confusion. Now, more than 2,000 years since Antony and Cleopatra walked the earth, historians believe they may finally have solved the riddle of their last hours together. A team of Greek marine archaeologists who have spent years conducting underwater excavations off the coast of Alexandria in Egypt have unearthed a giant granite threshold to a door that they believe was once the entrance to a magnificent mausoleum that Cleopatra VII, queen of the Egyptians, had built for herself shortly before her death. They believe the 15-tonne antiquity would have held a seven metre-high door so heavy that it would have prevented the queen from consoling her Roman lover before he died, reputedly in 30BC. "As soon as I saw it, I thought we are in the presence of a very special piece of a very special door," Harry Tzalas, the historian who heads the Greek mission, said. "There was no way that such a heavy piece, with fittings for double hinges and double doors, could have moved with the waves so there was no doubt in my mind that it belonged to the mausoleum. Like Macedonian tomb doors, when it closed, it closed for good." Tzalas believes the discovery of the threshold sheds new light on an element of the couple's dying hours which has long eluded historians. In the first century AD the Greek historian Plutarch wrote that Mark Antony, after being wrongly informed that Cleopatra had killed herself, had tried to take his own life. When the dying general expressed his wish to pass away alongside his mistress, who was hiding inside the mausoleum with her ladies-in-waiting, he was "hoisted with chains and ropes" to the building's upper floor so that he could be brought in to the building through a window. Plutarch wrote, "when closed the [mausoleum's] door mechanism could not open again". The discovery in the Mediterranean Sea of such huge pieces of masonry at the entrance to what is believed to be the mausoleum would explain the historian's line. Tzalas said: "For years, archaeologists have wondered what Plutarch, a very reliable historian, meant by that. And now, finally, I think we have the answer. "Allowing a dying man to be hoisted on ropes was not a very nice, or comforting thing to do, but Cleopatra couldn't do otherwise. She was there only with females and they simply couldn't open such a heavy door." The threshold, part of the sunken palace complex in which Cleopatra is believed to have died, was discovered recently at a depth of eight metres but only revealed this week. It has yet to be brought to the surface. The archaeologists have also recovered a nine-tonne granite block which they believe formed part of a portico belonging to the adjoining temple of Isis Lochias. "We believe it was part of the complex surrounding Cleopatra's palace," said Zahi Hawas, Egypt's top archaeologist. "This is an important part of Alexandria's history and brings us closer to knowing more about the ancient city." According to Plutarch, who based his accounts largely on eyewitness testimonies, Antony died within seconds of laying eyes on his beloved queen and mother of his children. Cleopatra, the most powerful woman of her day and Egypt's most fabled ruler, is believed to have taken her own life just days later, legend has it with the aid of an asp.


Who was announced as the eleventh Dr Who, replacing the outgoing David Tennant?

Doctor Who: The Eleventh Doctor is Matt Smith - YouTube Doctor Who: The Eleventh Doctor is Matt Smith Want to watch this again later? Sign in to add this video to a playlist. Need to report the video? Sign in to report inappropriate content. The interactive transcript could not be loaded. Loading... Rating is available when the video has been rented. This feature is not available right now. Please try again later. Uploaded on Jan 5, 2009 BBC Announced 26-year-old unknown actor Matt Smith as the new Eleventh Doctor, who will be replacing David Tennant on the Britain popular Sci-Fi hit Doctor Who! Here is my opinion about the casting! Category


Nashville based Mac McAnally was named for the second consecutive year Musician of the Year at which 2009 awards event?

Eight time Country Music Association Musician of the Year Mac McAnally is coming to Pascagoula http://www.macmcanally.com/index.php?page=news&n_id=669 f50fa1df94210d8ff978d7196b5a641dcd294cc5_669

Multi-talented Mississippi musician Mac McAnally has bounced around from the back roads of Belmont to the beaches of Biloxi over the past several decades. He's comfortable no matter where he lands. And in mid-January, he will once again find his way back to the Mississippi Gulf Coast for a pair of shows.

 New CMA Awards Display Celebrating Fifty Years of Promoting and Preserving Country Music http://www.macmcanally.com/index.php?page=news&n_id=665 f50fa1df94210d8ff978d7196b5a641dcd294cc5_665

MIM recently unveiled a new display celebrating the fiftieth anniversary of the Country Music Association (CMA) Awards, the longest-running annual music awards program on television. MIM worked closely with the CMA to create the exhibit, which features instruments on loan from several CMA Musician of the Year nominees and winners.

 McAnally among MIAL winners in music, art and writing http://www.macmcanally.com/index.php?page=news&n_id=639 f50fa1df94210d8ff978d7196b5a641dcd294cc5_639

Two renowned Mississippi artists ï¿½ painter, muralist and lithographer William Baggett and ceramic artist and sculptor Ron Dale ï¿½ will share the Mississippi Institute of Arts and Letters' prestigious Noel Polk Lifetime Achievement Award this year. Much-awarded country music stalwart Mac McAnally...

 Mac McAnally Song "With A Straight Face" Looks Beyond Pain To Find Compassion http://www.macmcanally.com/index.php?page=news&n_id=620 f50fa1df94210d8ff978d7196b5a641dcd294cc5_620

"The album's masterpiece, however, is 'With a Straight Face,' a deeply empathetic ballad about the struggles faced by children growing up gay in intolerant households or communities." - Rolling Stone

 Mac McAnally talks about 8 CMA wins, new solo record, longtime friendship with Jimmy Buffett http://www.macmcanally.com/index.php?page=news&n_id=617 f50fa1df94210d8ff978d7196b5a641dcd294cc5_617

It's tough to imagine Mac McAnally bragging about his accomplishments, taking photos with a selfie stick or obsessively detailing his life on social media. You won't find him hogging the spotlight, posing for the paparazzi or...

 Mac McAnally Performing at SXSW http://www.macmcanally.com/index.php?page=news&n_id=616 f50fa1df94210d8ff978d7196b5a641dcd294cc5_616

Mac McAnally Performing at SXSW on Thursday, March 17th 10:30pm at the Garden & Gun Showcase St. David's Historic Sanctuary, 301 E 8th St

 GRAMMY Museumï¿½ Mississippi Announces Grand Opening Lineup http://www.macmcanally.com/index.php?page=news&n_id=615 f50fa1df94210d8ff978d7196b5a641dcd294cc5_615

CLEVELAND, MISS. - Following the opening of GRAMMY Museumï¿½ Mississippi on Saturday, March 5, a benefit concert will be held that evening at Delta State University's Bologna Performing Arts Center, headlined by eight-time CMA Musician of the Year recipient Mac McAnally and

 Nobody (AKA Mac McAnally) In High Demand Artist, Musician & Hall of Fame Songwriter Sets Busy Itinerary http://www.macmcanally.com/index.php?page=news&n_id=614 f50fa1df94210d8ff978d7196b5a641dcd294cc5_614

"I'm more of a direction guy than a goal guy. But either way my main directive every day is to get better... better Dad, better guitar player, better American ...

 Songwriter Spotlight: Mac McAnally on CMA Dominance and Chesney Hits http://www.macmcanally.com/index.php?page=news&n_id=603 f50fa1df94210d8ff978d7196b5a641dcd294cc5_603

When Mac McAnally nabbed the trophy for Musician of the Year at the 49th


Discovered in 1996, element 112, symbol Cp, was added to the periodic table with what name, in honour of a famous astronomer?

BBC News - New element named 'copernicium' New element named 'copernicium' The Periodic Table will be one element longer Discovered 13 years ago, and officially added to the periodic table just weeks ago, element 112 finally has a name. It will be called "copernicium", with the symbol Cn, in honour of the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus. Copernicus deduced that the planets revolved around the Sun, and finally refuted the belief that the Earth was the centre of the Universe. The team of scientists who discovered the element chose the name to honour the man who "changed our world view". The International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) will officially endorse the new element's name in six months' time in order to give the scientific community "time to discuss the suggestion". Scientists from the Centre for Heavy Ion Research in Germany, led by Professor Sigurd Hofmann, discovered copernicium in fusion experiments in 1996. "After IUPAC officially recognised our discovery, we agreed on proposing the name (because) we would like to honour an outstanding scientist," said Professor Hofmann. Copernicus was born 1473 in Torun, Poland. His finding that the planets circle the sun underpins much of modern science. It was pivotal for the discovery of gravity, and led to the conclusion that the stars are incredibly far away and that the Universe is inconceivably large. Under IUPAC rules, the team were not allowed to name the element after a living person. But when asked if, rules aside, he would have liked to have "hofmanium" added to the periodic table, Professor Hofmann told BBC News: "No, I think copernicium sounds much better." Bookmark with:


Which football club was the first to win the sextuple of all possible major competitions?

Top 10 UEFA Clubs of All Time | Bleacher Report Top 10 UEFA Clubs of All Time Use your ← → (arrow) keys to browse the slideshow 25.4K 22 Comments With the UEFA Champions League Final fast approaching it is the perfect time to look back at the history of European football and the best clubs the continent has to offer. It surely is difficult to narrow down the list to the Top Ten clubs in UEFA, as there are many tremendously elite clubs from the 52 represented nations in the association, but when picking the ten best the standards are held extra high. The ranking criteria included domestic league success, domestic cups won, and most importantly UEFA competition success (European Cup/UEFA Champions League and UEFA Cup/UEFA Europa League, etc). Lets get to the rankings… 2 European Cups/ UEFA Champions League Titles (2 Runner Ups) 3 UEFA Cup Titles (1 Runner Up) 17 Serie A Championships (13 Runner Ups) 5 Coppa Italia Titles (6 Runner Ups) 4 Supercoppa Italiana Titles (3 Runner Ups) Inter is looking to add to their trophy case in a major way in the upcoming weeks. They are finalists for the most coveted and prestigious crown in Europe as they are to face off against Bayern Munich in Madrid in the UEFA Champions League Final. Inter are also in the drivers seat to win yet another Serie A crown, as they sit two points atop the table with two fixtures remaining. This would be their fifth consecutive Serie A title. And to complete their treble aspirations Inter are set to reel in another Coppa Italia Title this week when they will do battle with Roma for the trophy. 3 European Cups/ UEFA Champions League Titles (1 Runner Up) 1 UEFA Cup Winners Cup 1 UEFA Super Cup 11 FA Cup Titles 4 League Cups It might surprise readers that Manchester United ranks so far from the top spot, but the Red Devils have nothing to be embarrassed about. They have won 11 of the past 17 Premier League Championships and their recent successes have helped them build one of the biggest global fan bases worldwide. Sir Alex Ferguson is the most successful manager in club history, as he has been running the show since 1986. His coaching era has been the most successful time period for United, as they have netted over 25 major titles. The 98-99 treble season is arguably the most memorable and accomplished season during the era. Manchester United still has slim hopes to win the Premier League this season, as they sit one point behind the league leaders Chelsea with one fixture remaining. 2 European Cups/ UEFA Champions League Titles (5 Runner Ups) 33 Portuguese Liga Championships (24 Runner Ups) 24 Taca de Portugal Championships (10 Runner Ups) 2 Taca da Liga Championships 4 Supertaca Candido de Oliveira Titles (10 Runner Ups) Benfica comes in at the eight spot in the prestigious rankings. The Portuguese giants have proven to be far away the top club in its nation. They have won 33 League titles and 30 domestic cups. Benfica have also been strong performers in Europe. They have reached 7 European Cup Finals, bringing home the Cup twice. The 1960s were Benfica’s grandest decade behind legendary scorer Eusebio. They made five European Cup Finals (winning twice in 61,62) and won eight League Championships. Benfica has faded from the spotlight and the upper echelon of clubs in Europe, but their history speaks for itself. 2 European Cups/ UEFA Champions League Titles (5 Runner Ups) 3 UEFA Cups Titles (1 Runner Up) 1 UEFA Cup Winners Cup 2 UEFA Super Cup Titles 27 Serie A Championships (20 Runner Ups) 9 Coppa Italia Titles (4 Runner Ups) 4 Supercoppa Italiana Titles (3 Runner Ups) Juventus is labeled the most successful club in Italy and for good reason, as they have netted over 40 domestic championships. The Bianconeri is also one of Europe’s most successful clubs winning five different UEFA competitions, totaling nine European titles. Juventus could easily be placed higher in the rankings because of their stacked trophy case and illustrious history, but the six clubs ranked above them outdo their two European Cups/ UEFA Champions League Titles. Either way Juventus is a


What was the destination city of the plane carrying Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the 'underpants bomber'?

Underwear bomber's explosives failed to detonate because he had worn them for three weeks | Daily Mail Online comments The notorious underwear bomber who tried to bring down a jumbo jet on Christmas Day had a dirty little secret - he'd been wearing the explosive skivvies for weeks. Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab wore them for three weeks to be exact, and it may have been the reason why he was unsuccessful in his 2009 terrorist plans aboard a Detroit-bound airliner. The new details were revealed by two FBI agents who played a role in securing a confession from Abdulmutallab, shortly after the bungled plot. Scroll down for video Bomber shorts: Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab wore this underwear outfitted with explosives for three weeks before the failed bomb attempt on Christmas Day 2009 Notorious: Abdulmutallab was focused on his mission to crash the plane over Detroit, because it was 'God's call' Agent Ted Peissig told WXYZ-TV : 'So basically for three weeks he wore this garment, these underwear with this device in it. ‘We think ultimately that is probably what caused the disruption in the sequence of events in the explosion.' Terror strike: Abdulmutallab, pictured in his 2009 mugshot, was sentenced to three life terms after pleading guilty Peissig, along with fellow agent Mike Connelly, told the network that Abdulmutallab wore the explosives-rigged underwear for three weeks in an effort to get accustomed to it, only taking it off when he showered. Connelly added that Abdulmutallab was focused on his mission to crash the plane, because it was 'God's call.' The agents admitted that Abdulmutallab did not look like a terrorist, but he spoke freely about how he was working for al-Qaeda and that had acted alone. The explosives failed to fully detonate aboard the flight, which was carrying nearly 300 people, but caused a brief fire that badly burned his groin. Passengers pounced on Abdulmutallab and forced him to the front of Northwest Airlines Flight 253 where he was held until the plane landed minutes later. Abdulmutallab talked freely to the FBI about his desire to commit martyrdom for his Islamic faith. In 2009, months before the attack, he said he travelled to Yemen to see Anwar al-Awlaki, an American-born cleric and one of the best-known al-Qaeda figures. He told investigators that his mission was approved after a three-day visit with his mentor. RELATED ARTICLES