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PENGEN JADI TESTER

va_g — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 01:58:30 GMT

`Panic' Strikes East Europe Borrowers as Banks Cut Franc Loans

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:08:45 GMT

Imre Apostagi says the hospital upgrade he's overseeing has stalled because his employer in Budapest can't get a foreign-currency loan. The company borrows in foreign currencies to avoid domestic interest rates as much as double those linked to dollars, euros and Swiss francs. Now banks are curtailing the loans as investors pull money out of eastern Europe's developing markets and local currencies plunge. ``There's no money out there,'' said Apostagi, a project manager who asked that ...

TIME MACHINE

Wawcutray — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 11:14:17 GMT

Pengen punya mesin waktu? Yuk melintasi waktu, sebelumnya tentu saja kita hrs mengenal tiap2 zaman yg pengen kita kunjungi 1. Zaman Prekambrium (4,5 milyar tahun lalu); zaman terbentuknya bumi, saat itu permukaan bumi blm stabil dan msh byk letusan gunung berapi hingga saat bumi mendingin dan penuh air 2. Zaman Arkean (3,5 milyar tahun lalu); munculnya bakteri dan mahluk bersel 1 3. Zaman Proterozoic (580jt tahun lalu); munculnya hewan bersel banyak dan hewan lunak sebangsa ubur2. 4. ...

Shoes incident

broken_nino — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 17:22:42 GMT

bkn hnya david beckham yg prnah "dpet" spatu wktu brmsalah sma sir alex ferguson d Manchester.. kmarin gliran presiden amerika george.w.bush yg dpet insiden ini,, dya d lempar spatu oleh seorang wartawan irak..bkn cma sbelah,tpi spasang how do u think about that guys? gue salut sma tuh wartawan.. eat that shoes mr.bush

Obama's grandmother dies a day before election

naughtypaola — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 01:27:11 GMT

HONOLULU � Barack Obama's grandmother, whose personality and bearing shaped much of the life of the Democratic presidential contender, has died, Obama announced Monday, one day before the election. Madelyn Payne Dunham was 86. Obama announced the news from the campaign trail in Charlotte, N.C. The joint statement with his sister Maya Soetoro-Ng said Dunham died late Sunday night after a battle with cancer. "She's gone home," Obama said as tens of thousands of rowdy supporters ...

IRAN VS USA

sang_garuda — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 02:53:05 GMT

Fourth inning of the Iran-U.S. game (AFP) Iran's Revolutionary Guards fire missiles during military manoeuvres in the central desert in 2006 In the past 4 weeks I have been in Washington, I heard people speak more of Iran than of the local Nationals baseball team, because the Nationals are not playing well and the Iranians are. By Rami G. Khouri WASHINGTON - If the tensions in the Middle East between the American-Israeli-led side and the Iranian-Syrian-led side were a baseball game, ...

Dubai Art Sale Totals $16.9 Million, Half Christie's Estimate

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 12:00:47 GMT

Christie's International sold $16.9 million of paintings and jewels in a two-day sale in Dubai, below estimates, as falling oil and equity prices dented the boom in Middle East art. The highlight, a trio of vast calligraphy works called ``Triptych (La Passion avec croix, ame et bagages, and triangle bigames)'' by Algerian artist Rachid Koraichi sold for $482,500, compared with a $400,000-$600,000 estimate. The auction house had estimated the sale of jewelry on Oct. 29 and ...

Kravis, Fuld Brace for N.Y. Auctions as Collectors Lower Prices

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:59:39 GMT

Henry Kravis and Richard Fuld are among the art collectors who will make millions of dollars at New York's auctions next week while many other sellers' hopes could be dashed. Christie's International and Sotheby's are mounting their two-week, bellwether November sales of impressionist, modern and contemporary art starting on Monday -- with many of the works gathered before the brunt of the global financial crisis. Kohlberg, Kravis, Roberts & Co. co-founder Kravis and Lehman Brothers ...

NBA to Play 2010 All-Star Game at New Dallas Cowboys Stadium

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:58:07 GMT

The National Basketball Association will stage its 2010 All-Star Game at the stadium being built by the Dallas Cowboys, bringing the league's mid-season exhibition back to the area for the first time in 22 years. The announcement was made by Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, NBA Commissioner David Stern and Cowboys owner Jerry Jones at a press conference before the Dallas Mavericks' season-opening game against Houston. The 59th All-Star Game is scheduled for Feb. 14, 2010. ``We appreciate ...

NYC Marathon Ponders License Sales for Permanent Entry in Race

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:56:46 GMT

First came personal seat licenses. Next may be personal feet licenses in the New York City Marathon. Organizers of the annual marathon were among those interested in the online auction of PSLs by the New York Jets for the team's new football stadium and may adapt the idea to race entries. ``We watched that with some attention,'' Race Director Mary Wittenberg said in an interview that will air Nov. 1 on Bloomberg's ``On the Ball'' radio program. ``You can see how it could make sense ...

Iconic Porsche 911 Gets Extra Gear, More Zing on Less Gas: Cars

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:51:49 GMT

No car on today's market is as iconic as the Porsche 911. Still carrying a rear-mounted engine and the same basic shape as the first model in 1963, it's like a sacred cow with wheels. So when Porsche adds major new technology to their most famous car, aficionados take notice. The 2009 model gets not one significant push forward but two. The first is an all-new engine that is more powerful, more fuel efficient and less polluting. At a time when consumers are looking for a better bang ...

Quirky New Zealanders Master Finicky Pinots, Target Burgundy

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:49:41 GMT

The Burgundies our pinot noirs resemble most are Volnay and Pommard,'' says Larry McKenna, one of New Zealand's star winemakers and co-owner of Escarpment Vineyard in Martinborough. Really? I'm taking a wait-and-taste attitude as his chocolate Labrador retriever, Milo, follows us into the concrete barrel room. It's built into the steep escarpment of gravelly soil for which McKenna's winery is named. Eco-friendly, the cellar has grass growing on top and fermenting tanks outside. The ...

Politics Flunks Test as Stock-Market Predictor: Caroline Baum

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:47:40 GMT

The 2008 presidential election campaign is coming to a close, and for most Americans, it's good riddance. We won't miss you when you're gone. Whether financial markets will be happy with the outcome is a different matter. Everything points to a Democratic sweep of the executive and legislative branches on Nov. 4. So why isn't the U.S. stock market euphoric instead of wallowing near five-year lows? According to the New York Times, which ran the numbers and a graphic on Oct. 14, ...

Search Is on for Iceland-Like Hedge Fund in Asia: William Pesek

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:45:30 GMT

It used to be that we searched for economic icebergs in Asia. Now we are on the lookout for Icelands. Last week, Iceland became the first developed economy to seek aid from the International Monetary Fund since 1976. It needed a $2.1 billion bailout after investors realized it wasn't running an economy, but a hedge fund. While Ukraine, Belarus, Hungary and Pakistan are also lined up at the IMF's door, Iceland's woes are getting special attention. The thought that even a western ...

Diabetes Cases Almost Double in U.S. in 10 Years, Led by South

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:43:57 GMT

New cases of diabetes almost doubled over 10 years in the U.S., a trend worsened by high rates of obesity and inactivity in the South, a study of 33 states found. The U.S. rate of diabetes increased to 9.1 cases for every 1,000 people in 2005-2007 from 4.8 in 1995-1997, according to the study by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It's the first study to describe the geographic distribution of diabetes cases, the Atlanta-based agency said. Diabetes is the seventh-leading ...

Childhood Anxiety Found Best Treated With Both Drugs, Therapy

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:41:05 GMT

Children suffering from separation anxiety, social phobia and generalized anxiety disorders benefit most when treated with both Pfizer Inc.'s antidepressant Zoloft and psychotherapy targeting behavior, researchers said. Although each method alone is effective, the combination works best, according to the study published online today in the New England Journal of Medicine. The study, funded by the U.S. government, also found no instances of attempted suicide, a ``rare'' side effect of antidepressants ...

Gold May Pay Only in Case of Maximum Despair: Jane Bryant Quinn

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:39:03 GMT

Gold is for rich guys -- buying physical gold, that is. The metal's highest and best investment use is as insurance policy against a currency collapse. For that purpose, you need a lot of it, stored around the world. Owning 20 or 30 coins is nice but won't protect your standard of living in a world where dollars are dust. Gold isn't even a reliable hedge against inflation. It reached $850 an ounce in January 1980, a price not seen again until January 2008. During those intervening 28 ...

Investors Pull $9.2 Billion From Stock Funds, TrimTabs Says

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:37:21 GMT

Investors pulled $9.2 billion from stock mutual funds in the past week, extending a streak of withdrawals that began in the last week of July, according to data compiled by TrimTabs Investment Research. Equity funds that invest in U.S. stocks had redemptions of $7 billion in the week ended Oct. 29, while those that invest outside the U.S. had outflows of $2.2 billion, the Sausalito, California-based firm said today in a statement. Withdrawals rose 43 percent from the prior ...

More U.S. Homeowners Have Mortgage Higher Than House Is Worth

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:35:18 GMT

Almost 20 percent of U.S. mortgage borrowers owed more on their loans in the third quarter than their house was worth as foreclosures depressed prices and the economy weakened, according to First American CoreLogic. More than 7.5 million properties already have negative equity and another 2.1 million will follow should home prices decline another 5 percent, Santa Ana, California-based First American, a seller of economic and real estate data, said in a report today. Six states account for ...

Small-Caps Trail S&P 500 By Most in 6 Years on Hedge Fund Sales

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:33:34 GMT

The smallest U.S. companies are trailing larger stocks by the widest margin in six years after hedge funds sold equities to pay back customers. The Russell 2000 Index, where hedge funds own an average 13 percent of shares, lost 24 percent in October, ending a five- month streak of beating the Standard & Poor's 500 Index, data compiled by Bloomberg and Citigroup Inc. show. Hedge funds hold 10 percent of S&P 500 companies, according to Citigroup data. Selling by money managers ...

Southern Democrats Find Obama No Hindrance, and Maybe a Benefit

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:32:10 GMT

Running in a special congressional election last May, Republican Greg Davis used a tried-and-true Mississippi tactic: a commercial linking Democrat Travis Childers to liberals, especially presidential candidate Barack Obama. ``Obama says Childers will help build his liberal movement,'' an ominous-sounding narrator said. It didn't work. On Election Day, Davis lost by 8 percentage points and now -- engaged in a rematch with Childers -- he strikes a different tone. ``Since this past ...

McCain Set to End Campaign With Biggest Hurdles in Modern Era

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:30:32 GMT

Republican presidential candidate John McCain goes into the campaign's final weekend a bigger underdog than any victorious candidate in a modern election. With four days until Election Day, national polls show his Democratic rival Barack Obama leading by an average of 6 percentage points, and battleground polls show Obama ahead in more than enough states to win the decisive 270 Electoral College votes. ``This election is cooked and done, it's in the warming tray,'' said Larry Sabato, ...

Japan Inflation Slows, Job Prospects Worsen; BOJ May Cut Rate

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:28:56 GMT

Japan's inflation slowed in September and employment prospects worsened, giving the central bank more scope to cut interest rates. Consumer prices excluding fresh food climbed 2.3 percent from a year earlier, after rising 2.4 percent in August, the statistics bureau said today in Tokyo. The unemployment rate fell to 4 percent from 4.2 percent as job seekers stopped looking for work amid the economic slowdown. The Bank of Japan will probably halve the benchmark lending rate to 0.25 ...

Bank of Japan Cuts Rate to 0.3% to Fend Off Prolonged Recession

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:26:43 GMT

The Bank of Japan cut its benchmark interest rate to 0.3 percent to help stave off a prolonged recession. Governor Masaaki Shirakawa cast the deciding vote to lower the key overnight lending rate from 0.5 percent after four of the eight board members dissented, the central bank said in Tokyo today. Three wanted to cut the rate to 0.25 percent, and one voted to leave it unchanged, Shirakawa said. Shirakawa, 59, came under pressure to lower borrowing costs for the first time ...

`New Bretton Woods' Rendezvous Beckoned by Old One's Host Hotel

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:23:19 GMT

The Mount Washington Hotel in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, has a message for world leaders: There's still room at the inn. With French President Nicolas Sarkozy and others calling for a ``new Bretton Woods'' -- a reference to the 1944 international conference at the hotel that created the modern global economic system -- the inn wants everyone to know it would be delighted to stage a repeat performance. ``We wrote a letter right away to President Sarkozy to please come back,'' says ...

Austin Shops Fight Nordstrom Tax Aid in Drive to Keep the Weird

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:21:12 GMT

Mom-and-pop shops are asking voters in Austin, Texas, to revoke city tax breaks for shopping malls that invite competition from big chains such as Neiman Marcus Group Inc. and Nordstrom Inc. It's homegrown boutiques and bookstores that give Austin an aura of individuality, according to the Web site of Stop Domain Subsidies. The group of more than 500 local businesses opposes incentives given to Simon Property Group Inc. for developing Domain Mall on the city's northwest side. They ...

Students in U.K. Schools Grow Food Amid Credit Crisis

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:17:55 GMT

Growing food is on the curriculum at Leaden Hall private school for girls in southwest England, and students can thank the credit crisis. ``Pupils are growing potatoes, tomatoes, runner beans and courgettes,'' said Diana Watkins, the head teacher of the school of 231 students, including 40 boarders, in the town of Salisbury. Planting took place in the spring, crops are tended by children and staff, and ``every patch of grass is being used,'' Watkins said. The money-saving strategy ...

Subbarao's Inflation Fight Hit By Volatile Markets

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:16:12 GMT

Reserve Bank of India Governor Duvvuri Subbarao, in the job two months, insists his priority is to fight inflation. The trouble is, the battlefield keeps changing. India's money-market rates tumbled earlier this month after Subbarao reduced the amount of money that lenders must hold in reserve, giving the new central bank chief room to keep benchmark interest rates unchanged in his first quarterly monetary-policy statement on Oct. 24. Since then, the rate at which Indian banks lend ...

Gulf Citizens Beg for Bailout as Stock Rout Signals End of Boom

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:14:50 GMT

Abdullah Hajeri led a march on the Emir's palace in Kuwait this week, demanding the oil-rich nation's ruler stop stocks from plunging. Adnan Mohammed Saleh, down the Persian Gulf coast in Dubai, said he wants more government protection from the global financial crisis. ``Every day the market is crashing,'' said Saleh, a 42-year- old trader, staring dumbfounded last Tuesday as company names scrolled across the Dubai Stock Exchange's outdoor ticker in red. The region's rulers are under ...

Five-Foot Bat, African Delicacy, Is Out in Force for Halloween

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:06:56 GMT

Halloween is getting spookier on Pemba, an island off Tanzania. A giant bat species on the edge of extinction more than a decade ago has quadrupled in number to at least 22,000. The increase is due to efforts to protect the forest habitat of the creature, known as the Pemba flying fox, and to stop locals from eating the mammal, Fauna and Flora International, a conservation group that's worked for 13 years to preserve the species, said today in an e-mailed statement. ``It's considered ...

Zambia's `King Cobra' Takes Lead in Presidential Vote

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:05:21 GMT

Zambian opposition leader Michael Sata, known by supporters as ``King Cobra'' for his attacking style of politics, took an early lead in the southern African nation's presidential election, preliminary results showed. Sata, leader of the Patriotic Front, has won 59.5 percent of the ballots cast in 19 out of 150 constituencies, Florence Mumba, chairwoman of the Electoral Commission of Zambia, told reporters today in the capital, Lusaka. Acting president and ruling party candidate Rupiah ...

Consumer Spending in the U.S. Probably Declined in September

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:03:28 GMT

Spending by U.S. consumers probably dropped in September, capping its weakest quarter in three decades and signaling the economy will continue to slump in coming months, economists said before a report today. Purchases fell 0.2 percent after no change in August, according to the median forecast in a Bloomberg News survey of 73 economists. Separate figures may show consumer confidence plunged by the most on record this month. Job losses, soaring food and fuel costs, and falling property ...

Mitsubishi UFJ, Mizuho Cut Forecasts as Bad-Loan Costs Swell

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:01:22 GMT

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. and Mizuho Financial Group Inc., Japan's largest banks by revenue, cut profit forecasts by more than half after a slowing economy pushed bad-loan costs higher. Mitsubishi UFJ reduced its estimate for net income in the year that ends March 31 by 66 percent to 220 billion yen ($2.3 billion). Mizuho cut its forecast by 55 percent. Resona Holdings Inc., Japan's fourth-largest bank by market value, also trimmed its profit projection. Japan's five ...

DTCC May Raise Credit-Default Swap Disclosure Amid Criticism

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 10:58:59 GMT

The Depository Trust & Clearing Corp., which operates a central registry for the $55 trillion credit- default swap market, may agree to disclose more data to counter criticism the derivatives amplified the financial crisis. New York-based DTCC has discussed with banks, brokers and others that own the company ``whether or not there's any broader access to information we might provide,'' spokesman Stuart Goldstein said in an interview yesterday, declining to elaborate on what data ...

Yen, Dollar Rise as Recession Woes Hit High-Yielding Currencies

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 10:57:13 GMT

The yen and the dollar rose, heading for record monthly gains against the euro, as signs of a global recession prompted investors to sell higher-yielding currencies. Japan's currency advanced against the Australian and New Zealand dollars as commodities including gold and copper fell. The yen also gained after the Bank of Japan's interest-rate cut was less than expected. The euro, introduced in 1999, declined on speculation the European Central Bank will lower rates. ``Investors are ...

Global Stocks, U.S. Index Futures Fall; L'Oreal, BT, BHP Drop

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 10:55:38 GMT

Stocks fell in Europe and Asia, extending the MSCI World Index's worst monthly slump on record, as concern deepened the economic slowdown will stifle profit growth. U.S. index futures retreated before a report that will probably show consumer spending dropped. L'Oreal SA lost 9.1 percent after the world's biggest cosmetics company reduced its profit forecast as consumers cut purchases. BT Group Plc, the U.K.'s largest phone company, tumbled 21 percent after saying second-quarter earnings ...

Bank of Japan Cuts Rate to 0.3% to Fend Off Prolonged Recession

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 10:54:00 GMT

Barclays to Raise $11.8 Billion From Investor Group

sang_garuda — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 10:51:00 GMT

Barclays Plc, Britain's second-biggest bank, will raise 7.3 billion pounds ($11.8 billion) by selling securities to investors including funds in Abu Dhabi and Qatar to restore capital without tapping the U.K.'s bailout plan. Barclays will sell 5.8 billion pounds of convertible notes and preferred shares paying as much as 14 percent annual interest to the Mideast investors, the London-based company said in a statement. The bank also plans to sell as much as 1.5 billion pounds of securities ...

Thai, Cambodian officials hold peace talks

naughtypaola — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 06:52:01 GMT

PREAH VIHEAR, Cambodia - Thai and Cambodian troops faced off at a disputed border as military officials held urgent peace talks Thursday, a day after a deadly gunbattle near an 11th-century temple sparked fears of war. Thousands of Cambodian villagers living near the hilltop Preah Vihear temple fled their homes, fearing more violence. Families packed rice, clothes and chickens into cars, pickup trucks and carts pulled by motorized plowing machines, forming long convoys heading ...

Dubai M&A Oasis Lures London Bankers With Bigger Desert Bonuses

sang_garuda — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 01:23:41 GMT

Christopher Laing, a managing director at Deutsche Bank AG in London, moved with his wife and twin boys to Dubai this month, joining a rush to the only region in the world where fees earned by securities firms are growing. ``It's bigger than it has ever been,'' said Laing, 39, co- head of equity capital markets for central and eastern Europe, the Mideast and Africa, referring to the number of public offerings on the horizon. ``I'm lucky it was my choice to move.'' Laing joins scores ...

Spinach, Lettuce Can Be Zapped to Kill Germs in U.S.

sang_garuda — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 01:33:26 GMT

Fresh spinach and iceberg lettuce can be zapped with ionizing radiation to kill germs and extend shelf life under a new rule from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The rule, which takes effect tomorrow, follows a 2000 petition from the National Food Processors Association on behalf of the Food Irradiation Coalition, according to a notice posted today on the FDA's Web site. The groups initially asked for permission to use the process in a variety of ready-to-eat foods, and narrowed ...

Arsenic in the U.S. Water Supply Linked to Diabetes, Study Says

sang_garuda — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 01:34:31 GMT

Arsenic, a toxic chemical often found at low levels in U.S. public drinking water, may increase the risk of developing diabetes, researchers said. In the first study of its kind, scientists found Americans with high levels of arsenic in their urine were almost four times more likely to have diabetes than those with trace levels. The risk was apparent at levels generally considered harmless and grew with increasing exposure, according to the study in the Journal of the American Medical Association. ...

Chewing Gum Helps Recovery After Colon Surgery, Study Finds

sang_garuda — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 01:36:51 GMT

Chewing three sticks of sugarless gum a day may help patients recover one day faster from colon surgery and save an estimated $119 million a year in U.S. hospital costs, researchers said. After colon surgery, patients often have trouble passing gas and having a bowel movement leading to abdominal swelling, nausea, vomiting and cramping. Gum chewing may stimulate nerves in the digestive system, triggering the release of hormones and increasing the production of saliva and digestive juices ...

Herbal Products Sold Online Contaminated in 20 Percent of Cases

sang_garuda — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 01:35:40 GMT

One in five herbal products used in so-called Ayurvedic medicine and sold over the Internet contain harmful levels of toxic metals, a study found. Herbal pills, powders and liquids are the foundation of Ayurvedic medicine, an ancient system of health care that originated in India. It has become more popular in the U.S. as interest in yoga and alternative medicine has grown. Almost 21 percent of 193 Ayurvedic products purchased online contained amounts of lead, mercury or arsenic that ...

Nuts, Popcorn Found Safe, Maybe Helpful, for Bowel Condition

sang_garuda — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 01:32:23 GMT

Men with abnormal pouches in their bowels can safely eat nuts and popcorn, and those foods may even lower the chance of intestinal flare-ups, a study found. The University of Washington research, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, contradicts the advice of doctors who have told people with the condition known as diverticulosis to avoid those products. No studies have shown that to be true, the researchers said. One-third of the U.S. population will develop ...

Doctors Who Refuse Abortions Shielded by U.S. Plan

sang_garuda — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 01:31:27 GMT

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services proposed a rule that would protect health-care workers who refuse to participate in abortions. The proposed regulation, published today in the Federal Register, seeks to ensure that doctors and other employees in institutions receiving federal funds can't be fired or lose professional certification if they don't participate in abortions, Secretary Michael Leavitt said today on a conference call with reporters. While the rule refers ...

Novavax Says Vaccine Protects Against Deadly Bird Flu

sang_garuda — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 01:30:22 GMT

Novavax Inc. said its experimental vaccine spurred an immune response in humans that can protect against a deadly strain of bird flu linked to more than 100 deaths. In the study, 160 patients each received two injections, in doses ranging from 15 to 90 micrograms. At the highest dose, the vaccine produced a response against one version of the lethal H5N1 bird flu in 94 percent of patients, Novavax said in a statement today. Novavax, based in Rockville, Maryland, has been working with ...

Cerebral Palsy Risk Curbed by Labor-Preventing Drug, Study Says

sang_garuda — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 01:29:11 GMT

A drug commonly used to prevent premature labor in pregnant women may also reduce the risk that their infants will develop cerebral palsy, researchers said. A review of health records more than a decade ago suggested that premature newborns whose mothers were treated with magnesium sulfate were less likely to have cerebral palsy, a neurological disorder that affects muscle tone and hampers movement and posture. Still, studies that followed yielded mixed results. The report in tomorrow's ...

Harvard's Cell `Makeover' May Spur Diabetes Therapy

sang_garuda — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 01:28:05 GMT

Using a kind of biological alchemy, Harvard University researchers have turned one type of cell found in the pancreas of mice into the variety that secretes the hormone insulin. If the technique can be used safely in humans, it may one day provide a treatment for diabetes, which occurs when the body either can't produce, or else makes too little of, the insulin needed to process blood sugar. The same approach might be used to make heart, brain, or liver cells from other existing cells and ...

Arctic Cabinet Meeting Risks New Cold War for Oil

sang_garuda — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 01:26:07 GMT

Beneath the melting ice of the Arctic Ocean, the world's last great land grab is under way. Global warming is opening the Northwest Passage that sailing ships sought 500 years ago, and some of the world's biggest oil reserves are becoming accessible under the polar sea. Russia, the U.S., Canada, Norway and Denmark are jockeying for territory in moves that could end up in clashing claims. With an eye on asserting Canada's stake, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and his cabinet ...