Physics Nobel goes to Serge Haroche and David Wineland

Serge Haroche (l) is based at the College de France and David Wineland
is based at the US National Institute for Standards and Technology

This year's Nobel prize in physics has been awarded to two researchers for their work with light and matter at the most fundamental level.

Serge Haroche of France and David Wineland of the US will share the prize, worth 8m Swedish kronor (£750,000; $1.2m).

Their "quantum optics" work deals with single photons and ions, the basic units of light and matter.

It could lead to advanced modes of communication and computation.

The Nobel citation said the award was for "ground-breaking experimental methods that enable measuring and manipulation of individual quantum systems".

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Tomatoes are 'stroke preventers'

A tasty way to reduce stroke?

A diet rich in tomatoes may reduce the risk of having a stroke, according to researchers in Finland.

They were investigating the impact of lycopene - a bright red chemical found in tomatoes, peppers and water-melons.

A study of 1,031 men, published in the journal Neurology, showed those with the most lycopene in their bloodstream were the least likely to have a stroke.

The Stroke Association called for more research into why lycopene seemed to have this effect.

The levels of lycopene in the blood were assessed at the beginning of the study, which then followed the men for the next 12 years.

They were split into four groups based on the amount of lycopene in their blood. There were 25 strokes in the 258 men in the low lycopene group and 11 strokes out of the 259 men in the high lycopene group.

The study said the risk of stroke was cut by 55% by having a diet rich in lycopene.

'Major reduction'
Dr Jouni Karppi, from the University of Eastern Finland in Kuopio, said: "This study adds to the evidence that a diet high in fruits and vegetables is associated with a lower risk of stroke.

"The results support the recommendation that people get more than five servings of fruits and vegetables a day, which would likely lead to a major reduction in the number of strokes worldwide, according to previous research."

He said lycopene acted as an antioxidant, reduced inflammation and prevented blood clotting.

Dr Clare Walton, from the Stroke Association, said: "This study suggests that an antioxidant which is found in foods such as tomatoes, red peppers and water-melons could help to lower our stroke risk.

"However, this research should not deter people from eating other types of fruit and vegetables as they all have health benefits and remain an important part of a staple diet.

"More research is needed to help us understand why the particular antioxidant found in vegetables such as tomatoes could help keep our stroke risk down."

-  BBC.co.uk

Skydiver Felix Baumgartner set to break sound barrier

Baumgartner aims to open his parachute about 5,000ft
(1.5km) above the ground

The Austrian skydiver Felix Baumgartner will attempt to become the first human to break the sound barrier unaided by a vehicle.

He is going to jump out of a balloon at more than 120,000ft (36.5km) above Roswell, New Mexico.

In the near vacuum at that altitude, he should accelerate beyond about 690mph (1,110km/h) within 40 seconds.

If all goes well, he will open a parachute near the ground to land softly in the desert, 10 minutes later.

The 43-year-old adventurer - famous for jumping off skyscrapers - is under no illusions about the dangers he faces.

Where he is going, the air pressure is less than 2% of what it is at sea level, and it is impossible to breathe without an oxygen supply.

Others who have tried to break the existing records for the highest, fastest and longest freefalls have lost their lives in the process.

"If something goes wrong, the only thing that might help you is God," says Baumgartner.

"Because if you run out of luck, if you run out of skills, there is nothing left and you have to really hope he is not going to let you down."

Difficult wind conditions at Roswell airport mean that lift-off for the balloon will occur no earlier than 1130 local time (1730 GMT; 1830BST).

The absolute mark for the highest skydive is held by retired US Air Force Col Joe Kittinger.

He leapt from a balloon at an altitude of 102,800ft (31.3km) in August 1960.

Now an octogenarian, Kittinger is part of Baumgartner's team and will be the only voice talking to him over the radio during the two-and-a-half hour ascent and the 10-minute descent.

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Karachi: Brain-eating amoeba kills 10

A rare brain-eating amoeba is responsible for at least 10 deaths in the Pakistani city of Karachi in recent months, health officials believe.

The source of the parasite is not yet known, but it is thought victims may have been exposed to it when using water to rinse their nasal passages, a common practise in the region, as the amoeba travels to the brain through the nasal passages.

The amoeba, Naegleria Fowleri, lives in warm water and kills its victims by destroying brain tissue.

Officials are now increasing the amount of chlorine in the public water supply.

The deaths are in various locations across Karachi, Pakistan's biggest city.

Dr Shakeel Mallick, who works for the provincial health department, said nine of those killed were men, while one victim was a child of four.

Those infected have symptoms including fever, nausea and vomiting, as well as a stiff neck and headaches. Most die within a week.

The World Health Authority's Musa Khan says other cities across Pakistan have been put on alert.

An awareness campaign has also been launched among health workers and the public.

"People should avoid getting water too deep into their nostrils," Mr Khan said. "Those with symptoms should seek help immediately."

People are being advised to use boiled or chlorinated water to rinse their noses, and to clean out domestic water tanks where amoeba may flourish.

The amoeba cannot be passed from person to person.

Headline Oct 10,2012 /

''WHITHER O BEAUTIFUL ICELANDER FAIRIES?''

You want to believe this. But you had better do and read on this beautiful Post.

In Iceland, people take their Elves seriously -and not in an ironic, postmodern way.According to one recent survey, 54-4% of Icelanders believe that Elves exist. And it's just not Elves. They refuse to rule out trolls and dwarves, too. In a country that grew up on sagas and stories around the campfire, a majority of Icelanders are prepared to acknowledge that some things are beyond the ken of Science. Like God, for instance. So why not elves?

Back in 1971, the Icelandic government first planned a highway Number 1, the main road out of Reykjavik. In the planning process a 'Boulder' was discovered in the way. So they ordered the diggers to move it. But, one by one, alarmingly all the diggers broke down and nobody knew why. Until the government asked the locals.
The boulder, they said, wasn't a boulder at all. It was an Elf House.And the government would need to negotiate its removal. With the Elves.

Wise Heads got together. By speaking through a psychic, the Elves on Highway Number 1, brokered one heck of a deal.The road works got halted for a week, giving the Elves time to make new arrangements, before the boulder was lifted -very delicately,  -onto a grassy knoll. They would then be free to move back in and live, undisturbed on the slip road. ''It would have been hundred times cheaper to just blow the boulder up,'' says Historian Magnus Skarphedinsson. ''But nobody would dare do that. Not in Iceland.''

I like to think of myself as open minded. I've seen my mother take two hazel twigs and divine for water right in front of my eyes. I.ve witnessed the healing power of reiki. And I have been to Ashram in New York where they worship the bathwater and the toe nail clippings of a living Saint. Without Laughing. No-one could say that I am ''closed''; But ''Elves''? That had even me stumped. And Magnus Skarphedinsson wants everyone to have an opportunity to communicate with Elves!

In actual Skarphedinsson is a true Viking.His physical appearance makes you think that he doesn't believe in Elves. But he does. In fact  -now just hear this-  he's Headmaster of Reykjavik's Elf-School, where he offers up a full Elf-Based Curriculum. And a passing out Diploma. Remarkable! Hahaha!

This post continues but the feint hearted take Heed! What follows will thrill and scare the living daylights out of you! See ya all morrow!

Good Night & God Bless!

Man on a Ledge (2012)

Man on a Ledge is a 2012 American thriller film directed by Asger Leth, starring Sam Worthington, Elizabeth Banks, Jamie Bell and Ed Harris. Filming took place in New York City.

Plot: In New York City, Nick Cassidy (Sam Worthington) checks in to the Roosevelt Hotel under the false name of Walker, goes to his hotel room on the 21st floor, and climbs on the ledge, apparently ready to commit suicide. The crowd below sees him and calls the police. They isolate the area, with Dante Marcus (Titus Welliver) controlling the crowd, while Jack Dougherty (Edward Burns) tries to talk with Nick. However, Nick says he will only speak to negotiator Lydia Mercer (Elizabeth Banks), who is on a leave of absence after failing to convince a depressed policeman not to jump from the Brooklyn Bridge a month earlier.

Lydia arrives at the hotel room and manages to acquire Nick's fingerprints from a cigarette they share. Dougherty has them analyzed and discovers that Nick is an ex-policeman who was arrested for stealing a $40 million diamond from businessman David Englander (Ed Harris). Nick was given a 25-year sentence, but after being allowed to attend his father's funeral a month earlier, escaped from his guards. Nick, however, maintains that he is innocent and reveals that Englander used to employ cops to protect his multi-floor jewelry business. One day, while Nick was escorting Englander and the diamond, he was knocked unconscious by two men in ski masks. He awakened to find that Englander had framed him for stealing the diamond in order to get the insurance money, as he lost $30 million with Lehman Brothers and more money when the real estate market crashed.

Unbeknownst to the police, Nick is merely distracting them while his brother Joey (Jamie Bell) and Joey's girlfriend Angie (Génesis Rodríguez) break into Englander's upper floor jewelry vault in the building across the street to steal the diamond and prove Nick's innocence. Meanwhile, Dougherty informs Marcus of Nick's identity, and Marcus orders the security of the jewelry store to check the vault. Although Joey and Angie are able to evade them, they don't find the diamond. They set off the alarms, tricking Englander into retrieving the diamond from another safe that they did not know about, and return to his office, where they ambush him and steal the diamond at gunpoint.

Meanwhile, Nick's ex-partner, Mike Ackerman (Anthony Mackie), arrives at the hotel with evidence that Nick is planning something and demands to be allowed into the hotel room. Lydia does not trust him, and Dougherty backs her up. Ackerman claims he has found bomb schematics in Nick's hideout and is convinced that he will detonate an explosive somewhere. While the crowd is evacuated by the anti-bomb squad, Lydia, believing in Nick's innocence, calls Internal Affairs and discovers that three of the cops employed by Englander were suspected of being corrupt; Ackerman, Marcus and a deceased officer called Walker.

Englander calls Marcus, one of the men who helped him frame Nick, and has him capture Joey and Angie, but they have already given the diamond to a hotel concierge who passes it to Nick as he is being chased by the tactical team throughout the hotel. Marcus chases Nick to the roof where he orders Lydia to be arrested for obstruction. Englander brings Joey and Angie, and threatens to throw Joey off the roof if Nick does not give him the diamond. Nick does, and Englander leaves. Meanwhile, Lydia escapes custody and rushes back to the roof.

There, Marcus holds Joey at gunpoint in order to force Nick to jump off the roof, silencing him, when Ackerman arrives and shoots Marcus who in turn shoots back at Ackerman, wounding him. Nick rushes to Ackerman's side, and Ackerman apologizes, claiming that although he helped Englander to fake the diamond's theft, he never knew Nick would be framed. Marcus survives as he is wearing a bulletproof vest and is preparing to kill Nick when Lydia arrives and shoots him dead.

Nick jumps from the roof onto an airbag set up earlier by the police, catches up to Englander before he enters in his limo, beats him, and pulls the missing diamond from his pocket, revealing the truth. Englander is arrested, while Nick is proved innocent and released after intervention by the governor. He meets Joey, Angie, and Lydia at a bar, where he introduces Lydia to the hotel concierge, who is Nick's father—having faked his death in order to help his son. Joey proposes to Angie with a diamond ring stolen from Englander's vault, and they all celebrate together.

Esquire names Mila Kunis "sexiest woman alive"

(Reuters) - Actress Mila Kunis has been dubbed "the sexiest woman alive" by Esquire magazine in its November issue out this week.

Kunis, 29, a one-time star of the TV comedy "That '70s Show," was lauded by the men's magazine on its website as "the most beautiful, opinionated, talkative, and funny movie star that we've all known since she was nine."

As a grown-up, the native of Ukraine electrified audiences with a solid performance opposite - and sometimes in bed with - Oscar-winner Natalie Portman in 2010 ballet movie "Black Swan." She recently showed her comic chops in the surprise summer hit, "Ted."

Near year she will star in "Oz: The Great and Powerful," and she is the voice of Meg Griffin on the animated Fox comedy "Family Guy."

Runners-up this year included Jessica Chastain, Anne Hathaway, "Precious" star Gabourey Sidibe and newly divorced Katie Holmes.

Kunis joins the ranks of past Esquire choices, including Oscar winners Charlize Theron and Halle Berry, and last year's winner, Rihanna. (Reporting by Chris Michaud; Editing by Jill Serjeant and Jan Paschal)