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Saturday, March 7, 2009
Panasonic Debuts 150-Inch Plasma TV
LAS VEGAS A 150-inch high-definition plasma TV unveiled by Panasonic is the world's largest to date, the Japanese consumer electronics company claimed Monday at the International Consumer Electronics Show. The plasma panel features an 8.84-million-pixel image resolution. Its screen is the equivalent of nine 50-inch sets, with an effective viewing area of 11 feet, the company said. It's a step up from Panasonic's 103-inch version, which cost $70,000 when it launched. The company did not say in a news release how much the 150-inch panel will cost.
Game Review: 'Killzone 2' Gives 'Halo' a Worthy Challenger
'Vampire' Found Buried in Venice Mass Grave
Is it a vampire or just a dead woman with a brick in her mouth? An Italian archaeologist claims to have found the skeleton of a "vampire" among the bodies of plague victims buried in a mass grave in Venice in 1576, New Scientist magazine reports. Matteo Borrini of the University of Florence says it was common at the time to place objects in the mouths of suspected vampires who had died of the plague. That "prevented" them from chewing on the burial shrouds, which was thought to further spread the disease, he explained at a recent gathering of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences in Denver. Borrini says his excavation shows the earliest "exorcism evidence against vampires," but another archaeologist dismisses the entire notion. "Claiming it as the first vampire is a little ridiculous," Peer Moore-Jansen of Wichita State University tells New Scientist.
Zardari to request Ahmadinejad to lower IPI gas price
The Iranian authorities have given a March 19 deadline to
Triple-top Strauss puts England in charge
PORT OF SPAIN Andrew Strauss batted the entire day to reach his third hundred of the series, and lead another solid England batting performance in the fifth and final Test against West Indies on Friday. The England captain was undefeated on 139 - his 17th Test hundred - and shared century partnerships with Owais Shah and Paul Collingwood to guide England to a respectable 258 for two when stumps were drawn on the opening day at Queen's Park Oval. Strauss won the toss and chose to bat on another hard, true Caribbean pitch under sunny skies, and used the conditions to fashion another hundred to follow scores of 169, 14, 142, and 38 in his four previous innings. ‘It's been a nice little purple patch for me,’ said Strauss. ‘When you are in form you've got to cash in. Thankfully I was able to do that today.’ ‘I feel I am concentrating well and playing the balls on their merit. Long may it continue.’ The left-hander added 107 for the second wicket with Shah before his Middlesex teammate was forced to retire hurt on 29 with severe cramps in his left-hand. Strauss reached his milestone from 186 balls, when he drove West Indies captain Chris Gayle, plying his uncomplicated off-spin, through cover for a single about 20 minutes after tea.
Women’s World Cup: India beat Pakistan
NASA's Kepler Planet Hunter Blasts Into Night Sky
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. NASA's planet-hunting spacecraft, Kepler, rocketed into space Friday night on a historic voyage to track down other Earths in a faraway patch of the Milky Way galaxy. It's the first mission capable of answering the age-old question: Are other worlds like ours out there? Its mission will last at least 3 1/2 years and cost $600 million. The goal is to find, if they're there, Earth-like planets circling stars in the so-called habitable zone — orbits where liquid water could be present on the surface of the planets. That would mean there are lots of places out there for life to evolve, said Kepler's principal scientist, Bill Borucki.
Clinton Goofs on Russian Translation, Tells Diplomat She Wants to 'Overcharge' Ties
Clinton adviser Philippe Reines said the typo would be fixed, noting that the correct translation for "reset" is only a couple letters off. "Since we're all learning a little Russian today, Opechatka is Russian for typo. So the 'Opechatka' is being fixed, the gift will correctly read 'Perezagruzka,'" he said.
No idea who attacked Lankan team: Boucher
WASHINGTON US Assistant Secretary of State for South Asian Affairs Richard Boucher said on Friday that he was not in a position to determine who was responsible for an attack this week on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore. ‘We have a lot of concerns about that attack but basically it’s for the Pakistani authorities to investigate and find out who did it,’ Mr Boucher told a briefing in Washington. He noted that Pakistan had already arrested some suspects and may soon find out who was responsible. Asked what he thought the terrorists were trying to achieve by attacking a cricket team, Mr Boucher observed that apparently, the terrorists did not want the people of Pakistan to live a normal life and that’s why they were targeting every thing, from a cricket team to a Sufi shrine. Mr Boucher said the US offer to help Pakistan investigate the Lahore attack was still there but so far Islamabad has not asked for assistance.
7 security men among 8 killed in Peshawar blast
U.N. to Probe Sudan's Aid Expulsion as Possible War Crime
GENEVA The U.N. human rights office will examine whether Sudan's decision to expel aid groups constitutes a breach of basic human rights and possibly a war crime, a spokesman said Friday. Rupert Colville said the Sudanese decision to expel relief workers from 13 of the largest aid groups constitutes a "grievous dereliction" of duty, putting the lives of thousands at risk.
Charges in Warrant Against Sudan's President
The World Health Organization said the loss of the aid agencies would tear a hole in the body's disease monitoring efforts that could lead to outbreaks of infectious diseases going unchecked. The U.N. refugee agency said refugee camps in neighboring Chad were ill-prepared to deal with an influx of people crossing the border from Sudan in search of help. Sudan ordered the organizations out after the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for President Omar al-Bashir for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Darfur conflict. It has accused the groups such as CARE and Save the Children of cooperating with the court and giving false testimony. The groups deny the accusations.
Beckham to stay at Milan for rest of season
Zimbabwe's Tsvangirai Hurt in Car Crash, Wife Killed
HARARE, Zimbabwe Zimbabwean Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's spokesman said Friday the premier was hurt in a car accident in which his wife died, Reuters reported. "I can confirm that Susan Tsvangirai has died following the accident," a source in his party told Reuters. Tsvaingirai's injuries are reportedly not life-threatening. Tsvaingirai's spokesman, James Maridadi, told Reuters an aide was also injured in the accident on the outskirts of Harare. They were traveling to a weekend rally south of Harare when their vehicle sideswiped a truck.
Lashkar denies involvement in Lahore attack
SRINAGAR Militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) on Friday denied involvement in the attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore, saying it was the 'handiwork' of Indian agencies. 'The attack on Sri Lankan cricketers is an attack on Pakistan, which Kashmiri Mujahideen and Lashkar-e-Taiba cannot even think of,' Abdullah Gaznavi, the spokesman for the group, told Reuters by telephone. 'The attack is the handiwork of Indian agencies to malign the freedom struggle of Kashmir and Pakistan,' Gaznavi said from an undisclosed location. Pakistani authorities said they were making progress in the investigation on the attack on Sri Lankan cricketers as they drove to the main stadium in Lahore on Tuesday. Seven Pakistanis, six policemen and the driver of a bus carrying match officials, were killed. Six Sri Lankan players and two team officials were wounded. 'Media reports suggesting Lashkar's involvement in the attack are lies and against journalistic ethics,' said Gaznavi. India says the LeT was behind November's attacks in Mumbai which killed nearly 170 people.