Bees join hunt for serial killers :

The way bumblebees search for food could help detectives hunt down serial killers, scientists believe.
Just as bees forage some distance away from their hives, so murderers avoid killing near their homes, says the University of London team.
This "geographic profiling" works so well in bees, the scientists say future experiments on the animals could now be fed back to improve crime-solving.
The team's work is reported in the Royal Society journal Interface.
"We're really hopeful that we can improve the model for criminology," Dr Nigel Raine, from Queen Mary, University of London (QMUL), told BBC News.

Thai school offers transsexual toilet :

With its spacious, tree-lined grounds and slightly threadbare classrooms, there is nothing obviously unusual about the Kampang Secondary School.
It is situated in Thailand's impoverished north-east, and most of the pupils are the children of farmers.
Every morning at 0800 they all gather outside to sing the national anthem and watch the flag being raised.
Then they have a chance to use the toilets, before heading off the first classes of the day.
Kampang is proud of its toilets. Spotless, and surrounded by flowering tropical plants, they have won national awards for cleanliness.
But there is something else about them too. Between the girls' toilet and the boys', there is one signposted with a half-man, half-woman figure in blue and red.
This is the transsexual toilet, and outside, in front of the mirrors, some decidedly girly-looking teenage boys preen their hair and apply face cream.

The strange decline of the paperboy :

People in many areas of the country struggle to get a newspaper delivered. It's the burning issue in the world of the newsagent - where did all the newspaper boys and girls go?
Becoming a paper boy or girl is a rite of passage for many children.
Perhaps more than any other part-time job, it educates the young future worker about the importance of getting up in the morning, of punctuality, of steadfastness.
POSSIBLE FACTORS IN DECLINE
Rising pocket money
Other job opportunities
Concerns over safety
Linked to tiredness in school
New regulations

Olympic boost for Mummy blockbuster ?

As all eyes turn to Beijing for the Olympics, the third instalment of the successful Mummy films offers its own take on China - swapping Egyptian Pyramids for the Tomb of the Dragon Emperor.
So is the timing a coincidence? Or are the filmmakers hoping for a box office boost from the Olympic Games?
Seven years after the bandages last came off, actor Brendan Fraser returns in The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor as archaeologist Rick O'Connell, this time retired, and with a grown-up son Alex.
When Alex, played by Australian actor Luke Ford, accidentally awakens the Dragon Emperor (Jet Li), his parents leap from their sedentary retirement to help save the world.

For Fraser, China offered the perfect setting for this latest romp.

Lebanese singer 'killed in Dubai'

Lebanese singer Suzanne Tamim has been found dead at her home in the Gulf emirate of Dubai, media reports say.
Police in Dubai have declined to comment on the case apart from to say they are investigating and will make an announcement soon.
Media reports say her body was stabbed repeatedly and her face mutilated.
Tamim won fame after appearing on a TV talent show in Lebanon in 1996, but her career was marred by stories about a troubled private life.
After winning a Gold Medal on the Studio al-Fann programme, she was a hailed both for her beauty and as well as a voice that was equally suited to pop tunes and classical Arabic melodies.
Tamim was reported to have fled Lebanon to Egypt some years ago after a number of bitter legal battles with her estranged second husband, music producer Adel Maatouk.
Reports say she disappeared from public view in Cairo in 2007 and was thought to be living in Dubai's exclusive Jumeira district.

MPs ask websites to vet content :

YouTube has been criticised by MPs, who say it must do more to vet its content.
In a review of net safety, the Culture, Media and Sport select committee said a new industry body should be set up to protect children from harmful content.
It also said it should be "standard practice" for sites hosting user-generated content to review material proactively.
YouTube's owners said the site had strict rules and a system that allowed users to report inappropriate content.

Row over video games ratings plan :

Planned changes to the way video games are rated have sparked a row about who should be in charge of giving games their official age classification.
Culture Minister Margaret Hodge has announced a consultation on whether the ratings for games should replicate the system for movies.
But games makers oppose plans, backed by MPs, for the British Board of Film Classification to rate games as well.
The games industry wants its own voluntary code to be made official.
Under the current system the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) only rates those games considered to have significant adult content such as sexual material or extreme violence.
About 3% of all the games sold in the UK fall into this category and can only legally be sold to those aged over 18.
All other games are rated under the Pan European Game Information system - an industry administered scheme.

Group tasks world over Darfur aid :

NEW YORK (AP) -- A Darfur advocacy group complained Wednesday that nations aren't doing enough to help the U.N. peacekeeping mission for the stricken Sudanese region, urging them to provide helicopters and other equipment needed to protect civilians.

Big Olympic spend, but little debate :

With total spending expected to exceed $40bn (£20bn), Beijing's Olympic Games may be the most expensive in history.
China has spent the money on new stadiums, infrastructure projects and cleaning up the capital's polluted environment.
In other host cities, this high cost would have led to heated public debate, but in China there has been little controversy.
In a country where information is not always accessible, many people seem not to know how much is being spent.
Calculating the costs associated with an Olympic Games is a tricky business, and the Beijing event is no different.
One problem is deciding what is - and what is not - an Olympic-related cost.
Sporting arenas certainly come under the former category.

Ex-Thai PM's wife guilty of fraud :

The wife of former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has been convicted of tax fraud by a court in Bangkok.
Pojaman Shinawatra was sentenced to three years in prison, in the first of a series of cases against the family.
She, her brother Bannapot Damapong and her secretary were charged with trying to avoid paying 546m baht ($16.3m) in tax when transferring shares.
The trio were freed on bail of 5m baht ($149,000) each pending an appeal, Thai court officials said.
Mrs Thaksin's brother was sentenced to three years in jail, while her secretary was handed a two-year sentence.

Karadzic due in war crimes court :

The former Bosnian Serb leader, Radovan Karadzic, is due to be formally charged by the UN war crimes tribunal.
Mr Karadzic, arrested in Belgrade last week after 13 years on the run, has been extradited to the Netherlands and is being held at a UN detention centre.
At the court in The Hague he will hear the exact charges concerning alleged crimes against humanity and genocide during the 1990s Bosnian conflict.
Mr Karadzic has said he intends to conduct his own defence.
The court appearance is likely to be just the opening skirmish in a long, legal battle, says the BBC's Dominic Hughes in The Hague.

Support for Darfur mission urged :

The international community has been accused of failing to provide basic equipment vital to the peacekeeping mission in Sudan's Darfur region.
The accusation was levelled in a report backed by 36 human rights groups and non-governmental organisations (NGOs).
It comes on the first anniversary of the decision to deploy a UN-African Union force in war-torn region.
Meanwhile, the UN Security Council is expected to vote on whether to extend the troops' mandate for another year.
The UN estimates that five years of conflict in Darfur have left 300,000 people dead and more than 2 million people homeless.
Khartoum says the scale of the violence and suffering has been exaggerated by the West for political reasons.
It denies charges that it organised the Arab Janjaweed militias, accused of widespread atrocities against Darfur's black African population.

England faces South Africa in third cricket test today :

BIRMINGHAM: Fast bowler Steve Harmison's return to the England team was put on hold Tuesday when he was left out of the starting eleven for the third Test against South Africa starting at Edgbaston today (Wednesday). Harmison and fellow fast bowler Stuart Broad were the two men to miss out from a 13-man squad when captain Michael Vaughan announced the team during his pre-match captain's press conference. Left-arm swing bowler Ryan Sidebottom returns from injury together with all-rounder Paul Collingwood, who was dropped for the second Test at Leeds, where South Africa won by ten wickets to take a 1-0 lead in the four-match series. Broad and Darren Pattinson are the players dropped. Vaughan said Harmison missed out when it was decided to go into the match with four specialist bowlers instead of five.

Aamir Atlas in World Junior Squash semis :

ZURICH: Aamir Atlas Khan of Pakistan has qualified for the semi-finals in the World Junior Squash Championship, being played in Zurich.Pakistan’s seed one Aamir Atlas Khan defeated Wagih Slaukry 9-1, 9-5 and 9-0 in straight set.The semi-finals of the tournament will be played today.

Oil prices steady in Asian trade :

SINGAPORE: World oil prices steadied in Asian trade on Thursday after a rebound of more than four dollars driven by an unexpected decline in US petrol stockpiles, analysts said. New York's main contract, light sweet crude for September delivery, fell 11 cents to 126.66 dollars a barrel.The contract rallied 4.58 dollars to 126.77 dollars at the close of floor trading Wednesday on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent North Sea crude for September delivery was 12 cents lower at 126.98 dollars a barrel following a rally of 4.39 dollars a barrel to 127.10 dollars Wednesday in London.

Rupee loses paisas 10 against dollar :

Updated at: 1715 PST, Wednesday, July 30, 2008 KARACHI: Rupee value registered decline by paisas 10 against dollar in inter-bank trading on Wednesday.

The closing rate of dollar at inter-bank today was Rs71.60 compared to Rs71.50 yesterday.

Dealers hope that the rupee value will become stable after the central bank’s announcement of hike in the interest rate.

Israel could strike Iran: Obama :

WASHINGTON: White House hopeful Barack Obama believes Israel will launch a military strike on Iran if nuclear sanctions fail, according to a US news agency.

The comment was reportedly made in a meeting late Tuesday between Senator Obama and Democratic members of the House of Representatives, following the presidential contender's return from an overseas tour that included Israel."Nobody said this to me directly, but I get the feeling from my talks that if the sanctions don't work, Israel is going to strike Iran," an attendee at the meeting quoted Obama as saying, according to the news agency.

Meanwhile, Obama's national security spokeswoman Wendy Morigi declined to comment on the substance of the report. But she stressed: "Senator Obama has always said that Iran must end its illicit nuclear program".

Indian High Commissioner calls on Zardari :

ISLAMABAD: Indian High Commissioner Satiabrat Pal met with co-chairman Pakistan People’s Party Asif Ali Zardari here on Wednesday.According to sources, views were exchanged in the meeting regarding recent firing at the Line of Control.Peace, solidarity and bi-lateral relations were discussed during the 40-minute meeting.Both agreed that the two countries would resolve their issues through dialogue.

48 Taliban killed, 5 security personnel martyred in Swat clashes :

SWAT: More than 48 Taliban militants including 10 commanders have been killed in a fierce clash in the troubled Swat valley in the northwest, while 5 personnel of security forces were martyred, according to military sources.The fighting took place overnight in a village near Matta, a known stronghold of militants in the region."We have inflicted heavy losses on the militants. We have video footage showing bodies of the militants killed in t ... Full Story

Over 10 Taliban killed in Swat operation :

SWAT: More than 10 Taliban have been killed during fresh action in Swat whereas two hours curfew relaxation has been announced in the district.Security forces targeted Taliban hideouts with mortar shells in Sarbanda, Barmaba Khela, Peochar, Numl and Gutshor areas in tehsil Matta.Sources said that 10 Taliban were killed and several injured during the operation. Taliban attacked Kabal police station and Wanai check post. They were managed to flee after joint retaliatory action by police and security forces. Fresh contingents of FC have reached in Matta and Kabal areas.

According to ISPR, curfew has been relaxed from 10:00 am to 12: noon in the district.

Pakistan probables including Shoaib Akhtar clear dope test :

KARACHI: Pakistan’s 26 out of 30 probable cricketers including fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar, selected for the ICC Champions Trophy, have cleared dope tests.According to Pakistani Cricket Board (PCB) spokesman, Anti doping agency’s dope control officer Dr. Lubna Sibtain conducted these tests on July 20 in Lahore and the specimen were sent to a WADA’s certified laboratory in Penang, Malaysia for subsequent testing.As per dope test results, all 26 players have cleared. These players included Shoaib Akhtar, who tested positive before the Champions Trophy 2006."The tests were conducted on 26 of the 30 players in the preliminary squad for the Champions Trophy and I can say that it's a great relief that all the tests are negative," PCB chief operating officer Shafqat Naghmi said.

Three players – Azhar Ali, Yasir Arfat and Bazid Khan - missed the tests carried out last week as they were playing league cricket in England, while Younis Khan was in Saudi Arabia and their tests will be conducted later, said Naghmi. Fast bowler Mohammad Asif did not feature in the latest tests as he is fighting to clear his name after he tested positive for nandrolone during the Indian Premier League earlier this month.

A test on his 'B' sample is due on August 6.

No deadline discussed regarding nuclear program: Iran FM

TEHRAN: Iranian foreign minister Manuchehr Mottaki said no deadline was discussed with European Union’s Javier Solana regarding Iran’s nuclear program.He was speaking with reporters at the conclusion of the fifteenth Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) ministerial meeting in Tehran. In response to a question about how sure Iran was of NAM's support on the nuclear issue, he said: We do not make decisions concerning our programmes and activities based on the kind of support we receive from individuals, groups or places.

According to Mottaki NAM's support for Iran's peaceful nuclear activities serves chiefly to address the wrong mindset that exists in the international community concerning Iran. Responding to a question about Iran's nuclear case, Mottaki expressed optimism and said that the talks must proceed within a constructive, defined and defensible framework. He called on Javier Solana and representatives of the 5+1 who attended the Tehran meeting to remain committed to the Tehran talks and stressed: When Mr Solana presented the Iranian party with the so- called non paper, he said that these are our proposals for the negotiations and we are waiting for Iran's proposals on this issue.

Karachi milk sellers increase per litre price :

KARACHI: The milk sellers has increased the per litre price of milk by Rs.4.President Dairy Farmers Association Haji Akhter announced the increment in price of wholesale milk in an emergency meeting of milk sellers here.The wholesale price of milk has been increased from Rs. 38 per litre to Rs. 42 per litre after which the milk sellers have increased the price from Rs.40 to Rs. 44 per litre.The milk sellers said that they had repeatedly requested .... Full Story