News of the hour that hits the crowd

1&1 Makes 50 percent Price Reductions Across Product Lines

2009-05-08T13:41:00.000-07:00

1and1 PROMO

(WEB HOST INDUSTRY REVIEW) -- The first full week of May had a number of significant promotions such as LCN.com's 40 percent off sale on high-end shared hosting and 1&1 Internet offering 50 percent off all its product lines.

PowerDNN Unveils First Summer Promo

DotNetNuke-based hosting and solutions provider PowerDNN (www.powerdnn.com) began rolling out a series of promotions May 4 which will continue throughout the summer. The initial promotion, is its "Power 1 Enterprise" dedicated server with a dual core box, 160 Gb RAID 1 hard drives, and 4 Gb of RAM all for $450 per month. The package also includes features such as disaster recovery, advanced monitoring, and SmarterMail Pro.

LCN.com Offers May Savings On Top Web Hosting Package

Until the end of May, UK registrar and web host LCN.com (www.lcn.com) is offering a 40 percent discount off the regular price of its high-end "Dynamic Hosting" package. New customers can purchasing the shared hosting package for only £30 (or $42) per month for up to a year-long contract. Existing LCN.com customers are also being given the opportunity to upgrade their current packages to Dynamic Hosting at no charge.

1&1 Makes 50 percent Price Reductions Across Product Lines

Web host 1&1 Internet (www.1and1.com) is holding a promotion providing 50 per cent or more off the first six months across its very wide range of products including all its web hosting packages, dedicated, managed and virtual servers as well as eShops, which are only £2.49 (about $3.75) per month plus VAT for the first six months. The promotion is in effect until 30 June 2009.

BlackSun Offers $7.99 Per Month Hosting

Canadian web host BlackSun (www.blacksun.ca) has announced changes to its pricing structure for domain and web hosting plans, offering new and existing clients hosting for as little as $7.99 per month on a multi-year plan.

Source: http://www.thewhir.com/web-hosting-news/050809_Web_Hosting_Sales_and_Promos_Roundup

Rocky Mountain News promises 'spectacular' finale

2009-02-26T16:39:00.000-08:00

DENVER (AP) — The Rocky Mountain News will say goodbye to Colorado on Friday, and the boss promises the last edition will be a doozy.

"It's going to be spectacular," John Temple said with a smile Thursday, hours after owner E.W. Scripps Co. announced it would close the newspaper because of mounting losses.

"It's very rare that you get to play the music at your own funeral, so you want to make sure you do it well," said Temple, the newspaper's editor, publisher and president.

"I want to play something that you can listen to for years to come," he said.

Managing Editor Deb Goken said the last edition will include a 52-page special section on the newspaper's history with "Goodbye Colorado" as the headline.

The regular newspaper will be inside the wraparound commemorative edition.

Goken said the press run would be 350,000. The newspaper's normal weekday circulation is around 210,000.

Feb. 26 (Bloomberg) -- The Rocky Mountain News, Colorado’s oldest newspaper, will put out its final edition tomorrow after publisher E.W. Scripps Co. failed to find a buyer.

Scripps began seeking offers for the 150-year-old Denver daily in December after declining advertising sales made the publication its only unprofitable newspaper. Shutting down the Rocky, which lost $16 million last year, leaves the Denver Post as the city’s only major newspaper.

The closure signals other publishers seeking to sell newspapers, including Hearst Corp. and Gannett Co., may have difficulty finding buyers. Hearst and Gannett said they may shut down their respective San Francisco Chronicle and Tucson Citizen, in Arizona, if they can’t sell the publications.

“This is not a good time to try to sell a newspaper,” said John Morton, president of Morton Research Inc. in Silver Spring, Maryland. “This deep recession for newspapers doesn’t make these particularly compelling properties to buyers.”

Scripps, based in Cincinnati, will turn over its 50 percent stake in an eight-year-old joint operating agreement with MediaNews Group Inc., owner the Denver Post. Scripps, which bought the Rocky in 1926, had attempted to sell the stake along with the newspaper.

Employees will remain on the payroll until April 28, Scripps said. The Rocky Mountain News won four Pulitzer Prizes in the past decade, according to a statement on its Web site.

San Francisco Chronicle

Tim King, a Scripps spokesman, wasn’t immediately available for comment.

The only party to express interest didn’t make a strong enough offer, Scripps said in a statement today. The deadline for submissions expired in mid-January.

Hearst said Feb. 24 it may close the San Francisco Chronicle if it can’t find a buyer “within weeks” and said last month it may shutter the Seattle Post-Intelligencer or turn it into a Web- only operation if it’s not sold by March. Gannett set a March 21 deadline to unload the Tucson Citizen.

Scripps dropped 10 cents to $1.08 at 2:30 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. The shares had fallen 47 percent this year before today.

Source:
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5h09UKeBLvq76fWMH69PoOhfXB51AD96JISVG0
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=aJ.XFQ14Qu9M&refer=us

Jennifer Aniston/ Angelina Jolie Fight

2009-02-23T15:27:00.000-08:00

Oscars Really Wanted That Jennifer Aniston/ Angelina Jolie Fight

Buzz up!Like this story?
Then buzz it up

February 23rd, 2009 at 11:00 by Stuart Heritage

The Oscars, while ostensibly about giving little statues to humourless men, were only really about one thing.

That’s right - Jennifer Aniston and Angelina Jolie. Last night’s Oscars marked the first time that Jennifer Aniston and Angelina Jolie had come within punching distance of one another for years.

They didn’t fight, but at least the Oscars producers tried their hardest. As Jennifer Aniston walked on stage, they instantly cut to a close-up of Angelina Jolie’s face. Then they told her that Jennifer thinks her Mum’s a slag before chanting the word ’scrap’ until Hugh Jackman got excited and passed out. We heard.

Forget all the hoo-ha about Slumdog Millionaire and Sean Penn and Hugh Jackman, because there was only one way to watch the Oscars popular this year - a full-on, hair-pulling, eye-gouging, vaguely-lesbian catfight between Jennifer Aniston and Angelina Jolie on the Oscars red carpet.

And it could have happened, too - as we’ve already reported, last night’s Oscars saw Jennifer Aniston and Angelina Jolie forced together in a way not seen since we read some disturbingly specialist fan fiction about them the other week.

Would Jennifer Aniston still be so filled with bitterness about her divorce from Brad Pitt that she’d fling herself at Angelina Jolie on the Oscars red carpet and start punching away? Would Angelina Jolie respond by turning her arm into a Terminator-style metal spike and pushing it through Jennifer Aniston’s skull? Literally about 12 people on the internet were breathless with anticipation.

However, while the long-awaited physical fight between Jennifer Aniston and Angelina Jolie didn’t transpire at the Oscars, that didn’t stop the producers from doing their best to give the people what they want. Last night, Jennifer got to introduce a segment with Jack Black and - as Oscars segment-introduction tradition dictates - Jennifer Aniston was nervous, stilted, awkward and unfunny for the duration of it.

So what one thing could compound Jennifer Aniston’s fear even further during her time on stage? That’s right, multiple close-ups of Angelina Jolie’s great big face. Fox News reports:

Oscar telecast producers panned to Brad and Angelina not once, but twice, as a visibly nervous Aniston did her schtick. In the first pan to Brangelina, Jolie was gamely guffawing as Aniston, whom Pitt left in 2005 in order to be with Jolie, hammed it up. In the second pan, the couple looked on with the bemused half-grins we’ve come to know from literally thousands of paparazzi pics over the past three years.

Depending on who you are, Angelina Jolie’s cutaway reactions to Jennifer Aniston will mean completely different things. Team Jolie will praise Angelina for smiling at Jennifer with grace and dignity, while team Aniston will think that Angelina was laughing at Jennifer’s discomfort like some sort of awful witch.

The truth? Nobody knows. What we do know, though, is that if producers really wanted to turn the Oscars into an episode of Jerry Springer, then they really needed to put a little triangle in the corner of the screen reading ‘Hey bitch, I stole your husband and we both think you’re an asshole’ while a podgy redneck whoops and takes his shirt off. And they didn’t even invite Tim Allen to the show as far as we know. A trick missed, Oscars, a trick missed.

Source: http://www.hecklerspray.com/oscars-really-wanted-that-jennifer-aniston-angelina-jolie-fight/200921109.php

Samsung Sway SCH-u650 on Verizon

2008-10-06T19:39:00.000-07:00

Verizon Wireless today unveiled a new slim slider phone designed for them by Samsung. It is called the Samsung Sway and you’ll find it pricing around $70 after rebate and contract.

The Samsung Sway offers your typical array of media and lifestyle features to make it more than just a mobile. It includes being a MP3 player which can be loaded with music via a USB cable, a 2.0-megapixel digital camera with video recording and digital zoom and Bluetooth support.

Other features of the Sway include expandable memory up to 8GB via microSD, a bilingual user interface, a weight of only 3.56 ounces and chat time of up to 270 minutes. It will be available later this month.

As we know Nokia is the number one selling phone maker and the No.2 spot had been taken up by Motorola, however Samsung has now taken it away from them. It is because of phones like the upcoming Samsung Sway SCH-u650, which has helped the Korean electronics giant reach this success.

The new Samsung Sway SCH-u650 will be available on the Verizon carrier on October 14. The handset is a slider phone and has a brushed steel finish. The camera is nothing special, just 2-megapixel, but does come with NightShot mode.

The Samsung Sway takes the microSD card up to 8GB; the phone has a standby time of 321 hours and 270 minutes talktime. The Samsung Sway will cost $69399 after a mail-in $50 rebate with Verizon.

Knight Industries Three Thousand (KITT)

2008-09-24T21:15:00.000-07:00

KITT is back! But like almost everyone else on TV these days, the star of the revived "Knight Rider" has had a little work done. He's still KITT, but that now stands for Knight Industries Three Thousand. And instead of the classic Pontiac Firebird Trans Am, he's now a Ford Mustang Shelby GT500KR with nanotechnology and the ability to take on the temporary appearance of other cars.

Though KITT may be the most recognizable name and grill from TV's recent past, he's not alone. They may not ever grab the cover of Rolling Stone or TV Guide, but these TV star cars have charisma to spare.

The new KITT is one cranky back-seat driver.

The reboot of the kitschy ’80s action show “Knight Rider” (premiering Wednesday night at 8 on WHDH, Ch. 7) comes with some solid CGI work, a few pretty people and an annoying spin on the retooled vehicle.

The new KITT (Knight Industries Three Thousand) is one cool car, and in this age of big-screen “Transformers,” it better be. KITT is capable of morphing into just about any vehicle. It possesses the weaponry of a jet fighter and an artificial intelligence so great it borders on psychic.

The plot in the opener - no, really, I’m being generous - centers on a missing package, the villainous agents out to get it and our hero - and nominal driver - Michael’s (Justin Bruening, “All My Children”) inability to recall several years of his life, including one significant marriage proposal.

The espionage is just a front to show the car in action. After being blasted with a chemical weapon, the vehicle races down highways aflame, hitting speeds of over 330 mph.

In another brazen stunt, the vehicle morphs from a truck to its natural “turbo charge” self and shifts Michael and fellow agent Sarah (Deanna Russo) from the truck’s bed to the front seats.

That’s power steering.

At first, Michael and KITT’s bantering is humorous, in a Picard-Data kind of way.

“Keep your eyes peeled, KITT,” Michael says.

“Michael, I do not have eyes,” KITT replies.

There’s an hour of this, and KITT gets twice as much dialogue as anyone else. He scolds Michael about his diet, his drinking and his sex life. He embarrasses him about his connection to Sarah. He corrects him about his knowledge of classified information.

Other than Michael and Sarah, the humans here have about as much to do as a car freshener. Knight Industries leader Alex Torres (Yancey Arias) might be evil. Technician Billy Morgan (Paul Campbell) is the geek you’d expect him to be. Office administrator Zoe (Smith Cho) seems to be a Valley Girl stereotype.

Kids are going to want to watch this, but parents must consider the violence. In one segment, though not explicit, a woman cuts off a man’s thumb.

Val Kilmer voices the role as if he were playing “2001: A Space Odyssey’s” HAL 9000, but it’s easy to imagine the same dialogue being handed to Doris Roberts’ overbearing mother from “Everybody Loves Raymond.”

Is anyone’s need for speed so great that they’d put up with such a relentless nag?

September 11, 2001 to September 11, 2008

2008-09-10T21:31:00.001-07:00

New York to observe seventh anniversary of 9/11 attacks
Seven years after the Sep 11 terrorist strikes, New Yorkers Thursday will remember the attacks that killed more than 2,700 people with the destruction of the World Trade Center's twin towers.

The city will observe the anniversary with renewed calls for vigilance against the constant threats of new terrorist attacks. Names of the dead will be read yet again.

The presidential nominees of both US major parties, Republican senator John McCain and his rival, Democratic senator Barack Obama, plan to attend ceremonies at Ground Zero, site of the destroyed towers.

Both candidates have agreed to call off their election rhetoric and suspend campaign television ads on that day out of respect for the dead from the 9/11 attacks, which targeted New York and Washington.

McCain and Obama issued a joint statement this week: "All of us came together on 9/11 - not as Democrats or Republicans but as Americans. We were united as one American family. On Thursday, we will put aside politics and come together to renew that unity."

The emphasis on the seventh anniversary has shifted to educating new generations about terrorist threats and the way families of victims survive the loss of loved ones.

The National Sept 11 Memorial and Museum this week unveiled programmes for classroom remembrances, distributed to selected schools across the United States. The outreach scheme will identify teachers to work in partnership with the memorial foundation to teach in classrooms about the attacks on September tember 11, 2001.

The memorial - for the nearly 3,000 victims of the 2001 terrorist attacks against New York and the Pentagon defence headquarters outside Washington, plus the prelude attack of the 1993 the World Trade Center truck bombing - is being built at Ground Zero, site of the original towers.

The memorial, designed and created by Michael Arad and Peter Walker, consists of two pools resting on the original two footprints of the 100-storey twin towers, which collapsed soon after being struck by hijacked airliners on September 11.

But construction costs have soared to nearly $1 billion, forcing several reviews of the plan and delay in the construction of the memorial.

Sonnet Takahisa, education director for the Memorial and Museum, said: "The record of the events of Sep 11, the significance of those events, and our understanding of their impact are still evolving. We know that teachers feel ill-prepared to address 9/11 in
their classrooms, and we hope to provide resources for teachers to use that will encourage and facilitate discussion."

Among material offered for classroom remembrances are documentaries recounting the events of 9/11 from the perspectives of family members, survivors and rescue workers.

US classrooms currently have no formal curriculum on 9/11.

The new World Trade Center, also besieged by soaring construction costs and constant reviews to make it an attack-proof fortress, will not be completed until after 2011, two years later than originally planned.

A Freedom Tower will adorn the center at 1,776 feet, a height chosen to recall the US Declaration of Independence of 1776.

The 9/11 attacks killed more than 2,700 people in New York, including 300 firefighters and police trapped after rushing into the towers to save the thousands of people working inside. The trauma has lingered with thousands of New Yorkers who lost friends or relatives or who continued to suffer mentally or physically.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg recently launched a programme to reach out to New Yorkers who still suffer health problems related to the terrorist attacks, with ads spanning television, radio and print media. The programme is part of a $5 million campaign to provide free health care to those who need help.

List of September 11th events

In addition to the ceremony at Ground Zero, here is a sampling of events on Thursday marking the seventh anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks.

Point Lookout: 7:30 a.m., Town of Hempstead memorial ceremony, Point Lookout Beach, Lido Boulevard.

Rockville Centre: 7:45 a.m., memorial Mass celebrated by Bishop William Murphy, St. Agnes Cathedral, 29 Quealy Place.

Fire Island: 8-9:30 a.m., "Lonelyville to the Lighthouse Walk for Peace," Plank Walk, Lonelyville to Fire Island Lighthouse.

Share your thoughts about Sept. 11, 2001, and the ensuing five years.

If the media would stop giving this attention, maybe the 9/11 families could start spending the millions of dollars given to them, and stop costing the city and country millions more in construction delays.

Everyday we do not build they have won. It is time to for the families to accept what has happened and move on. Would those you are grieving about want it this way? Or would they want to show the terrorists that nothing can keep the USA Down. Let us all let them build a bigger better New York.

Albertson: 8:30 a.m., Town of North Hempstead ceremonies, Clark Botanic Garden, 193 I.U. Willets Rd.

Bellport: 8:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., wreath-laying ceremony honoring Eastern Suffolk BOCES alumnus Glen Pettit, police officer killed on Sept. 11, Brookhaven Technical Center, 350 Martha Ave.

Manhattan: 10 a.m.-7 p.m., public invited to sign steel beams to be used in construction of National September 11 Memorial and Museum, Battery Place, Greenwich and Washington streets.

Oakdale: 10 a.m.-11 a.m., remembrance ceremony at outdoor memorial garden by Connetquot students, faculty and administrators and local elected officials, Idle Hour Elementary School, 334 Idle Hour Blvd.

Manhattan: 11 a.m., 3 p.m., screening of documentary, "In Memoriam: New York City, 9/11/01," Museum of the City of New York, 1220 Fifth Ave., free with museum admission, $9 adults, $5 seniors and children. 212-534-1672, ext. 3395.

Mineola: 11:30 a.m., Nassau County Court System ceremony honoring Sept. 11 victims, with Court Officer Sgt. Frank Barry, a first responder on 9/11, to speak, Nassau County Supreme Court, central jury courtroom, first floor, 100 Supreme Court Dr.

Hempstead: 1 p.m., memorial service hosted by Hempstead Village Mayor Wayne Hall and the board of trustees, with the Hempstead High School choir, Denton Green (across from Village Hall), 99 Nichols Ct.

Central Islip: 5 p.m., memorial service, including reading of the names of 456 Long Islanders who died at the World Trade Center, followed by 6:35 p.m. game between the Long Island Ducks and the Somerset Patriots, Citibank Park, 631-940-3825.

Manhattan: 5 p.m., memorial service led by Archbishop Demetrios of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, at the site of St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, which was destroyed in the collapse of the South Tower, corner of Greenwich and Liberty streets.

Lynbrook: 6 p.m., memorial service, 9/11 Memorial Park, Lynbrook Village Hall, 1 Columbus Dr., 516-599-8300.

Freeport: 6 p.m., American Legion ceremonies on the "Miss Freeport," docked at Woodcleft Canal.

Commack: 6:30 p.m., candlelight ceremony honoring two Commack High School graduates who died at the World Trade Center. Commack High School, 1 Scholar Lane.

Seaford: 7 p.m., tribute to five Seaford High School graduates who died at the World Trade Center, Seaford High School, 1575 Seamans Neck Rd.

Manhattan: 7 p.m., "Hands Across The Sea," a special concert by the Oriel Choir of Oxford University, England, in tribute to victims and rescue workers. Soldiers', Sailors', Marines', Coast Guard and Airmen's Club, 283 Lexington Ave., between 36th and 37th streets.

Manhattan: 7:30 p.m., Concert for Peace, including U.S. premiere of "Iraqi Requiem" by Mohammed Amin Ezzat, Merkin Concert Hall, 129 W. 67th St., $35-$125, 212-501-3330.

Amantadine and Huntington's disease

2008-09-02T20:30:00.000-07:00

Amantadine and Huntington's disease

Medication and Treatment for Huntington's disease

Susceptibility to Oseltamivir and Amantadine of Human Influenza Viruses Circulating in Portugal

Background:
Since 2002, increasing incidence of amantadine resistance has been detected worldwide. In a minor extent, emergence of oseltamivir-resistant strains has been identified during 2007/2008 winter season.
This study aims to contribute to global surveillance on antiviral resistance and to risk assessment of drug use with continuous liberation of national data. Its main objective is to evaluate influenza virus susceptibility to oseltamivir and amantadine during 2004/2005-2007/2008, in Portugal.

Methods:
Susceptibility to oseltamivir was evaluated by fluorescence assay in 233 strains from 2004/2005-2007/2008. NA and HA1 gene sequencing was performed in statistical outliers and in 30% of susceptible strains, identified by fluorescence.
Resistance to amantadine was evaluated by pyrosequencing in 128 strains from 2004/2005-2006/2007.

Results:
All 89 A(H3N2) and 94 B influenza strains tested shown to be oseltamivir-susceptible. Of the 50 A(H1N1) strains tested, 3 of the 14 from 2007/2008 were drug-resistant by exhibiting fluorescence-IC50 values approximately 400 times higher than the median value and mutation H274Y in NA sequence.
Susceptibility to amantadine was detected in all 23 A(H1N1) strains tested. Resistance was found, by identification of mutation S31N in M2 sequence, in 24 of the 105 A(H3N2) strains tested: in the single strain from 2005/2006 and in 23 of the 35 strains from 2006/2007.

Discussion:
The origin of oseltamivir-resistant A(H1N1) strains in Portugal (2007/2008), and concurrently in other European countries, remains unclear. Their persistence through influenza seasons and their effect in viral evolution could become clearer with subsequent and continuous data analysis. Conversely, emergence of amantadine resistance in Portugal, identified in 2005/2006 and persistent through 2006/2007, probably derived from global spread of A(H3N2) virus bearing mutation S31N.

These preliminary findings can presently contribute to monitor international dispersion of resistant viruses. Continuous and timely input of national data onto global surveillance constitutes the basis for risk assessment on antiviral drug use.

Author(s): V. Correia, H. Rebelo-de-Andrade, L. Santos, M. Gíria
Affiliation: Centro Nacional da Gripe, Instituto Nacional de Saúde (Research grant supported by Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation - Portugal), Lisboa, Portugal

Source: http://www.setbb.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?mforum=fluwiki2&p=1078#1078

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Xenazine (tetrabenazine) for the treatment of chorea in people with Huntington’s disease. Chorea is the jerky, involuntary movement that occurs in people with this disease.

Xenazine is the first medication of any kind approved in the U.S. by the FDA for the treatment of any symptom of Huntington’s disease. According to the FDA, “Serious side effects reported with use of Xenazine include depression and suicidal thoughts and actions.”

Huntington's disease, which affects about 30,000 people in the U.S., is a rare, inherited neurological disorder that causes degeneration of brain cells. The deterioration of brain cells causes the uncontrolled movements, loss of intellectual powers, and emotional difficulties. Huntington’s disease is passed from parent to child and each child of a parent with the disease has a 50% chance of inheriting the condition.

Huntington’s disease is an autosomal dominant inherited disorder characterized by a triad of motor, cognitive, and psychopathological symptoms (1). Currently, the only treatment options available for the disease are symptomatic. Aripiprazole is a novel antipsychotic drug that possesses the pharmacological characteristics of a partial agonist of the dopamine D2 and serotonin 5-HT1A receptors and antagonist of the 5-HT2A receptor. We report the use of aripiprazole in the treatment of psychotic symptoms in a patient with Huntington’s disease whose diagnosis was confirmed by DNA analysis.

Proteus Syndrome makes a Giant Leg

2008-08-19T21:02:00.000-07:00

Doctors can’t tell Mandy Sellars why her legs keep expanding – all they say is that her only option is a drastic amputation. She travelled to the US for a new TV show in search of an alternative...

It’s not easy being Mandy Sellars. She has hugely outsized legs that make having a normal life nearly impossible.

People stare whenever she leaves the house, she needs a special car to get around and can’t work full time.

What’s more, her condition is getting worse and doctors say she needs an amputation so severe she won’t be able to sit up.

And she doesn’t even know what’s caused it.
But the cheerful 33-year-old from Accrington, Lancs, just won’t be told. She’s challenged medics’ verdict and has just got back from America where she went to find a new treatment.

And now she’s on a mission to find out once and for all what’s the matter with her.

“As you can imagine the size of my legs and clubfoot make walking difficult and I need crutches just to get around my ground floor flat.

“And people can be very cruel. I was in a park a few months ago when a group of teens started pointing at me, they were saying to each other, ‘Look at the size of her legs.’

“I wish they could experience how it feels to have strangers laugh at you.

“I don’t mind curiosity – it’s the laughing and nudging that gets to me. ”

It’s no wonder some people stare. Mandy’s legs are wider than the average man’s waist and heavier than most women.

Her left leg is five inches longer than her right and has a clubfoot, which has turned 180 degrees backwards. She says: “I weigh about 20 stone – 15 of which are my legs.”

She has never had a firm diagnosis, but it could be linked to Proteus syndrome, which causes abnormal skin and limb growth. John Merrick, the Elephant Man, is believed to have had it.

“I use an electric wheelchair when I go out,” says Mandy.

“I live alone and what takes the average person half an hour takes me an hour, if not longer. Just getting dressed in the morning is a mammoth task.

“By the time I go into the kitchen to get breakfast, I can be exhausted. I can’t just pop to the shops, it all has to be planned.”

Mandy has a specially adapted hand-controlled car so she can still get out to meet friends and go round for a coffee and a chat.

“I try to lead a normal life but I do get frustrated,” she says. “The worst thing about my condition is that my mobility is getting worse and I have no control over it.”

When Mandy was born doctors gave her a week to live.

Her left leg was three inches longer than her right, and both were out of proportion. No one knew what her condition was or how to treat it.

Despite the odds, Mandy proved everyone wrong and at 18 months she began walking.

“I could never run as fast as my friends but I was still outside playing. I also learned to ride a bike but I kept the stabilisers on until I was 16.

“It’s embarrassing now when I think about it, but I didn’t care then,” she says laughing. “My legs started to grow when I was really small. I saw a lot of doctors, then when I was seven, one specialist told my mum I should have my legs amputated.”

Mandy’s mother June, 57, was horrified by the doctor’s suggestion and argued if her daughter could still run and play with friends there was no need to have her legs cut off.

“Mum was brave to stand up to the consultant. My parent’s have always been supportive and told me that I can do whatever I want to do.

“They realise that they won’t always be here and have encouraged me to be independent, so at 19 I left to live on my own.

Source: http://www.mirror.co.uk/life-style/real-life/2008/08/14/doctors-don-t-know-why-my-legs-are-getting-bigger-115875-20697469/

Leroi Moore died in ATV accident complications

2008-08-19T20:39:00.000-07:00

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A publicist for the Dave Matthews Band says saxophone player LeRoi Moore has died of injuries suffered in an all-terrain-vehicle accident in June.

Publicist Ambrosia Healy says Moore died Tuesday at Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center in Los Angeles.

He was initially hospitalized in late June after the accident on his farm outside Charlottesville, Va.

Moore had recently returned to his Los Angeles home to begin physical rehabilitation when complications forced him back into the hospital.

Moore was 46.

Moore was injured in an ATV accident on June 30 in Charlottesville. He reportedly punctured a lung and broke his ribs. He was released from hospital but was readmitted following complications.

"LeRoi Moore, saxophonist and founding member of Dave Matthews Band, died unexpectedly Tuesday afternoon, August 19, 2008, at Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center in Los Angeles from sudden complications stemming from his June ATV accident on his farm near Charlottesville, Virginia. Moore had recently returned to his Los Angeles home to begin an intensive physical rehabilitation program," a rep for the band told the web site.

TMZ reports that Matthews and his band will play a scheduled date tonight in Los Angeles.

Leryn Franco | World’s hottest javelin thrower

2008-08-19T20:08:00.000-07:00

I'm sure some of you remember the lovely Leryn Franco. She was the attractive Paraguayan picked up by NBC cameras during the Beijing Opening ceremonies. It took people a little while to figure out that she competes in the javelin, but it took people almost no time to figure out she has her own modeling calendar.

Anyway, there's not much debating her attractiveness, so how about we find out how she did in the javelin?

Uh, not so good.

As Fourth Place Medal informs us, Franco competed this morning and finished second-to-last in the qualifying round with a throw that was 12 meters short of her personal best. I don't know a lot about javelin, but I know that when you come in second to last, the only person worse than you probably comes from a country where javelins don't even exist. In other words, you suck.

But at least Franco made an impression on us and taught us all a valuable and important lesson: Don't be ugly.

Leryn Franco bridges the gap between sports and hot women in her role as the world’s hottest javelin thrower. Of course Janis Lusis is probably the greatest javelin thrower in history.

2004 Athens Summer Olympics

She competed at the 2004 Summer Olympics for Paraguay where she was 21st in Group A and finished 42nd overall.

Olympic 2008

She competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics in the javelin representing Paraguay, where she finished next-to-last at 51st. During the Games’s opening ceremony she garnered some media attention because of her good looks.

The javelin event has been part of the Olympic tradition for a hundred years, but it is could be argued that no one as beautiful as Leryn Franco ever threw a javelin in an Olympic event. Franco, 26, is competing for her native Paraguay in the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing. This is her second Olympics; she competed in Athens in 2004.

Athletic competitions aren't the only events Franco competes in. She was runner-up for 2006 Miss Paraguay.

Franco is making news at the 2008 Summer Olympics not because she has won a medal, however, but because of the news circulating that she has been featured in a personal calendar where she goes topless (a true enough statment, but a bit misleading). This will no doubt spark more interest in the javelin throwing competition this year than usual. Nothing like a little nudity to spice up a javelin event.

The Beijing games seem to be seeing a lot more skin than the average Olympics.

American swimmer Amanda Beard set tongues to wagging when she unveiled her nude PETA poster outside the Olympic Village in Beijing on August 6. The poster shows the swimmer in profile on her knees in water, the words "Be comfortable in your own skin. Don't wear fur." placed strategically across her thigh. The poster is part of PETA's anti-fur campaign.

But Beard's poster had nothing on France's swimmer, gold-medal winning Laure Manaudou, who had nude photos and a sex tape (Manaudou denies she is the woman in tape) distributed via the internet in late 2007, only to have them become a topic of international interest again as she vied for the gold in Beijing. The distraction may have been the partial cause of her coming in last in the 400 metre freestyle and seventh in the 200 metre freestyle, both for which she won the gold in Athens in 2004. To make matters worse, the 200 metre freestyle was won and a new record set by ex-teammate Frederica Pellegrini of Italy, who also happens to date Manaudou's ex-boyfriend.

mary beth dunnichay | Team USA's youngest Olympican

2008-08-12T20:07:00.000-07:00

Olympic disappointment for Hoosier divers

Anne Marie Tiernon/Eyewitness News

Beijing - More Hoosier athletes in action Monday night in Beijing.

Two divers took to the platform and took a shot at bringing home a medal.

Thrilling day for the men's gymnastics team getting the bronze medal and not expected to be on the podium without the help of the Hamm brothers.

Not the case for our hoosier divers David Boudia and Thomas Finchum who were expected to medal and did not.

Hopes were high and gratitude was overflowing from Audrey Finchum, mother of Hoosier diver. "Everybody pooled their fund to help us get here and we are just so thankful, it really means a lot, thank you."

The Boudia and Finchum families arrived at the Water Cube, the diving venue, to see Noblesville's David Boudia and Indianapolis' Thomas Finchum compete in the synchronized ten meter platform.

But the families also shared a concern: "I want him to do the best he can do so that he is happy with his performance," said Audrey.

After a series of dives and a fifth-place finish, that concern was realized.

"I am definitely a little disappointed - that wasn't our best performance and I know that we were both capable of performing and going out there and winning a medal and we were so close with the sub-par competition so I mean it gives you hope for the future but it is still disappointing for right now," said Thomas Fincum.

But the practices had gone well, they felt calm and confident, but to be interviewing instead of on the podium when the Chinese got gold was not what they wanted.

"I don't know how Thomas did I wasn't watching replays or anything but I felt solid on every dive and I guess I will go back and watch and see what we did do," said Boudia.

The boys have nearly a week off to re-adjust and study tape before they compete against each other in the individual event.

Mary Beth Dunnichay

Marian Dunnichay watched as her daughter Mary Beth approached the diving platform. Mary Beth is Elwood's hometown hero at just 15 years old. She is also Team USA's youngest Olympican.

"I hope she enjoys the experience and takes it all in," her mom said.

Eleven family members made it from Madison County for a whirlwind stay, and Eyewitness News was there when they saw Mary Beth for the first time since she left for the games in July.

"She looks a little bit older. I think she definitely looks like an Olympian now," said Marian Dunnichay. "It is soaking in but great to see her back with her brother and sister."

Teenagers Wang Xin and Chen Ruolin lived up to their status as favorites, winning the women's 10-meter synchronized platform title Tuesday and making the home team 3-for-3 in Olympic diving.

Chen and Wang totaled 363.54 points in an event China has won since it was introduced at the 2000 Sydney Games.

"They were amazing as always," Mary Beth Dunnichay said.

Australia's Briony Cole and Melissa Wu took the silver at 335.16, while Mexico's Paola Espinosa and Tatiana Ortiz earned the bronze at 330.06.

Dunnichay and her partner Haley Ishimatsu were fifth among eight teams at 309.12.

"We really want to have fun and soak it all in and just dive our best list we ever have and hopefully not let us down and bring home a medal and everything but however it goes we just want to have fun and do our best list," said Mary Beth before the competition.

"I hope she dives well as long as she is happy with her performance whether she bring a medal home or not as long as she is happy we support her. She is top eight in the world and at 15 that is pretty good," said Marian Dunnichay.

In women's gymnastics, the decision is out today - Bridget Sloan will compete for the USA team in the vault and in the team competition Wednesday. Sam Peszek is out.

Source: http://www.wthr.com/Global/story.asp?S=8827069

David Boudia and Thomas Finchum try to disrupt China'

2008-08-11T19:46:00.000-07:00

BEIJING -- David Boudia and Thomas Finchum couldn't deliver the United States' first Olympic diving medal since 2000, finishing fifth today in the synchronized 10-meter event at the Water Cube.

Boudia, Noblesville, and Finchum, Indianapolis, won the Americans' only diving medal at the 2007 World Championships and had one streak of 10 consecutive international meets in which they won medals.

They were less than five points from a bronze medal.

As expected, China's Lin Yue and Huo Liang won the gold, scoring 468.18 points.

Germany's Patrick Hausding and Sascha Klein were second, 450.42, and Russia's Gleb Galperin and Dmitriy Dobroskok third, 445.26. Australia was fourth at 444.84.

The Hoosiers scored 440.63. They were in third place through four of the six rounds but dropped to fifth after their fifth dive.

No U.S. diver has won a medal at the Olympic Games since Laura Wilkinson's gold on platform at Sydney in 2000. No U.S. male diver has won a medal since Indiana University graduate Mark Lenzi took a bronze at Atlanta in 1996.

It could be a banner night in the pool for U.S. world-record holders. Michael Phelps is a favorite in the 200m free, while Aaron Peirsol and Natalie Coughlin look to better the world records they set in the men's and women's 100m backstroke at the U.S. Trials. On land, the U.S. expects to challenge the world-champion host nation in the team final in men's gymnastics. On sand, Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh defend their 2004 gold medal in women's beach volleyball. "Everybody's better — we don't take any team for granted," says May-Treanor. Finally, the synchronized platform final may be the top U.S. chance for a diving medal, with David Boudia and Thomas Finchum trying to disrupt China's dominance in the sport. "You try and look at it like you're right behind the Chinese, and if you hit your dives, you can beat them," says Boudia.

Gmail Down! Gmail is down!

2008-08-11T19:42:00.000-07:00

Google's e-mail service Gmail is offline for many users right now. Those wondering if they are alone in experiencing the outage can find comfort on Twitter, which is up and sizzling with Gmail down alerts. To track the spread of the outage (and to find out when it is corrected), take a look Twitter Search, which is posting dozens of items a second about the outage.
Some Webware readers are reporting that Gmail's business e-mail service is also down.

Users already logged into Gmail when the outage started may be able to read messages in their in-box, although sending messages generates an error.

Update: Many users are reporting that the straight HTML version of Gmail is still working (some say it does not). Likewise, access via IMAP is still functioning for some users.

More updates: Google's blogs are strangely silent on the topic, but the Gmail Help Discussion in Google Groups has the official updates about the outage. Also, some users are reporting that Gmail is working for them again.

Update, 3:40 P.M. Pacific Time: Gmail is recovering, according to Google and reports from users. The Gmail Help Discussion saw this post added at 3:30 P.M.: "Engineers have pinpointed the issue causing the 502 errors and it looks as if users should start to regain normal functioning of their account. Thanks for being patient while we worked to sort out this problem."

The first official notice of the outage was at 2:31 P.M.
Update, 5:30 P.M.: According to a Google spokesperson, "The issue was caused by a temporary outage in the contacts system used by Gmail which prevented Gmail from loading properly. "

Source: http://news.cnet.com/8301-17939_109-10014389-2.html

Raymond Hunter Geisel Arrested for Death Threat

2008-08-07T16:54:00.000-07:00

Raymond Hunter Geisel was arrested Wednesday for a death threat geared toward Sen. Barack Obama.

According to a Secret Service affidavit, Geisel, 22, was in a class for bail bondsmen when he "allegedly referred to Obama with a racial epithet and continued, 'If he gets elected, I'll assassinate him myself.' "

"Another person in the class quoted Geisel as saying that 'he hated George W. Bush and that he wanted to put a bullet in the president's head,' according to the Secret Service.

"Geisel denied in a written statement to a Secret Service agent that he ever made those threats, and the documents don't indicate that he ever took steps to carry out any assassination. He was charged only with threatening Obama, the presumptive Democratic nominee, but not for any threat against President Bush."

Geisel was interviewed on Saturday by agents of the US Secret Service's Miami field office and arrested a day later.

Geisel denied making threats against Obama or Bush but "did state, however, that if he wanted to kill Senator Obama he simply would shoot him with a sniper rifle, but then he claimed that he was just joking,"

While searching Geisel's car and house, officials found a machete, a loaded nine-millimeter handgun, a combat-style hatchet, knives, 40 rounds of 9mm armour-piercing handgun ammunition, two canisters of tear gas, and other items, according to the document.

However, officials did not determine if Geisel was preparing to make an assassination attempt.

Source: http://www.transworldnews.com/NewsStory.aspx?id=55798&cat=5

Invisible Water | Sulfur Hexafluoride

2008-08-06T21:26:00.000-07:00

mythbusters kari tricks

What is it that makes the water in this container invisible? Is it sulfur hexafluoride?

You have probably heard of the gas Helium which is lighter than air, well that glass container is filled with a gas called Sulfur hexafluoride. Sulfur hexafluoride is a colorless, odorless gas which is heavier than air. Because it is so dense you can float a light aluminium boat on top of it.

What’s even more interesting is that it has the opposite effect on your voice to the effect helium has.

When you breathe in helium it makes your voice higher pitched, but when you breathe in Sulfur hexafluoride your voice become deeper.

There are a lot of videos found in youtube.com illustrating how true they used the invisible water but putting something in the water and it really floats and later on sinked when the demonstrator pour the invisible water on the top of the floating object.

Space Age Clothing Line of Speedo

2008-08-06T20:57:00.000-07:00

BEIJING -- Whenever U.S. swimmer Michael Phelps or Australian Libby Trickett breaks a world record, it is not just the spectators in the stands that jump to their feet and applaud.

As the photographers happily snap away and the television commentators start yelling themselves hoarse, the swimmer's sponsors are laughing all the way to the bank.

World records never last long in swimming but a flood of records in the lead-up to the Beijing Olympics has created an unlikely controversy because most were achieved in Speedo's new space-age swimsuit.

The jury is out still out on whether the suits are actually responsible for all the records. The manufacturers wink and smile whenever they're asked about their benefits but scientists who have tested them have found no real evidence proving there are any advantages.

Whatever the case, the controversy has been a marketing dream for the sponsors whose product has suddenly become one of the most recognizable brands of the Games even though they are not an official sponsor.

The traditionalists have cried foul, claiming technology is ruining their sport, but for most of the swimmers, it's all just a storm in a teacup.

"What's the big deal about having such advancements with products in swimming?" said Australian Grant Hackett, whose team is sponsored by Speedo and will wear custom-made outfits in Beijing.

"In other sports we want to see Michael Jordan jump higher, Roger Federer play better tennis, we want to see Lance Armstrong on a better bike in his heyday."

The Australian head coach Alan Thompson said the new suits were just the latest innovation in a long series of costumes changes over the last century.

"The aim of the game is to break world records. That's what our sport's about ... that's what we come to watch," he said.

"We want to see what the boundaries are and we want to take them as far as we can within the rules of the game."

The United States, who will also been fitted out with their own custom-made Speedo suits when they plunge into the Water Cube, were also wondering what all the fuss was about.

"I know it's an Olympic year but I've seen training the previous nine months before our trials like nothing I've ever seen before," U.S. head men's coach Eddie Reese said.

"They don't train in the suits so it's got to be a combination.

"Maybe if they had little invisible outboards or jet engines then you could give all the credit to the suits."

Source: http://www.nationalpost.com/sports/beijing-games/story.html?id=704871

Dark Knight dedicated to Ledger

2008-06-27T05:35:00.000-07:00

Actor Heath Ledger, who died following a drug overdose earlier this year, will be remembered in an on-screen tribute in his final film, The Dark Knight.

The end credits of the Batman Begins sequel will include a farewell note to the 28-year-old who died in January.

At the time of his death the Brokeback Mountain star had just completed filming the role of The Joker.

Special effects technician, Conway Wickliffe, who was killed in a stunt accident, will also be remembered.

The special tribute reads: "In memory of our friends Heath Ledger & Conway Wickliffe."

'Iconic role'

The hotly anticipated Dark Knight film also stars Christian Bale as Batman, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman and Gary Oldman.

Ledger died from an accidental overdose of six different types of prescription drugs in his New York apartment.

In the production notes, British director Christopher Nolan wrote of Ledger: "I needed a phenomenal actor, but he also had to be someone unafraid of taking on such an iconic role."

"Heath created something entirely original. It's stunning, it's captivating. It's going to blow people away" he added.

The Dark Knight will premiere in London on 21 July and goes on general release in the UK on 25 July.

Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7477095.stm

Qdos: the importance of professional contract reviews

2008-06-27T04:32:00.000-07:00

For the next two weeks, Shout99 and Qdos Consulting is running a special offer for readers for full contract reviews at £50.
Here Qdos explains the importance of a contract review:

Qdos Consulting writes:

Those who are seasoned veterans of the contracting community will be familiar with the workings of agencies. These large organisations will typically assure any contractor they come across that they offer fully IR35-compliant contracts. They will invariably point to the fact that their terms and conditions have been drafted by legal experts and pass all the necessary IR35 tests.

Newcomers to the world of contracting, or those who were rushed through their agency or client’s processes in order to make a quick start on a particular assignment, may have taken solace in their agency’s comments. Unfortunately, the inconvenient truth is that a large number of agencies use contracts that are wholly inappropriate for those wishing to operate as a ltd company contractor.

Although many agency contracts will have been drafted by legal experts, the IR35 legislation is open to interpretation. Without up-to-date knowledge of recent case law, and a firm grasp of the taxation issues at hand, it is extremely difficult to draft an entirely IR35-compliant agreement. As such, even if an agency has the best of intentions, attempts to accommodate for all the necessary provisions of legitimate self-employment frequently fall short of the mark.

Additionally, agencies will often have blanket agreements with larger clients that are intended to govern their relationship with many contractors. As there are very few implications for agencies if a contractor using one of their agreements is caught by IR35, they will, understandably, be more inclined to cater for the end client’s requirements rather than those of the individual contractors. Frequently, these requirements can have negative implications from an IR35 perspective.

Many contractors will simply take their agency at their word and assume that they have an IR35 friendly agreement. More savvy contractors will want to seek assurances elsewhere. The first port of call for many of these contractors will be their accountants – many of which do offer IR35 contract review services. The downside of this approach is that many accountants, while familiar with the concept of IR35, may lack the specialist knowledge to complete a satisfactory appraisal of your status. This is acknowledged by many larger accounting firms who outsource their IR35 reviews to independent specialists.

Qdos have successfully defended over 1000 IR35 cases and are leading taxation specialists. Qdos’ team of IR35 consultants (many of whom have worked for HMRC directly) are able to offer full and detailed IR35 contract reviews to freelancers. These reviews will highlight all the strengths and weaknesses of your contract and provide you with all the necessary information to bolster your IR35 position.

Source: http://www.shout99.com/contractors/showarticle.pl?id=52150;n=250

Celtics select J.R. Giddens with 30th pick in NBA draft

2008-06-27T01:40:00.000-07:00

Look past guard’s college troubles, focus on ability and defense
The Celtics [team stats], with an eternity to decide on their next prospect and the very real chance that the 30th pick in the draft won’t crack their 15-man roster, selected a player some might consider a risk.

J.R. Giddens, an explosive, 6-foot-5 scorer from New Mexico, worked out for the Celtics twice Wednesday and impressed the staff enough to get picked last night in New York.

Giddens, whose involvement in a bar fight led to his transfer from Kansas to New Mexico in 2005, believes that experience is partly responsible in preparing him for his new role with the NBA champions.

“I feel like I’ve overcome all those things,” he said. “It helped to build the character that I have now. God does everything for a reason, and I believe he laid out this path for me now. I was a young guy, immature. I made a bad decision.”

As much as maturity issues led to his transfer and perhaps his slide down the draft board, the C’s coaching staff saw a competitiveness during Giddens’ workouts that was difficult to ignore.

“I like what he did (Wednesday,” Doc Rivers said at TD Banknorth Garden. “He was very competitive in that workout. His team lost a couple of games, and you could see from how he reacted that he didn’t like it.

“Seeing him work out helped me more than Danny (Ainge). Danny has seen these guys, but the workout sold me on liking him.”

The intensity of Giddens’ workout also helped the Celtics put aside the sore thumb that was the player’s past. Giddens was stabbed in the leg during the bar fight, and his transfer was a mutual agreement with Jayhawks coach Bill Self.

He moved on to have two exceptional years at New Mexico under coach Steve Alford, who told Ainge that Giddens was one of his favorite players ever.

“First, I’m confident that he’s a good kid,” Ainge said. “Second, the team we have will make him better. He’s not as mature as I would like to see, and he’s not as disciplined as our guys are, but they will help him to achieve both things.”

Giddens was named co-Western Conference Player of the Year last season, when he averaged 16.3 points on 51.5 percent shooting.

“Back then he was young and immature,” Rivers said of Giddens’ past. “Whenever someone transfers, you’re always concerned about it. He’s had some run-ins, but Steve Alford loved him.”

Rivers liked what he saw of Giddens’ ability, particularly at the defensive end.

“I really like J.R. He’s athletic, skilled, a great in-between game,” Rivers said. “He has a chance to fight for minutes right away because of his defense.”

Considering the nature of the roster, that will be quite a fight.

“I never thought about the Celtics until I worked out for them,” Giddens said. “After that, I was just praying to be part of it. Now I’m going to a place with so much history and tradition.”

Source: http://news.bostonherald.com/sports/basketball/celtics/view.bg?articleid=1103517

Half Man Half Tree

2008-01-16T21:55:00.000-08:00

Dede, now 35, baffled medical experts when warty "roots" began growing out of his arms and feet after he cut his knee in a teenage accident.

The welts spread across his body unchecked and soon he was left unable to carry out everyday household tasks.

Sacked from his job and deserted by his wife, Dede has been raising his two children - now in their late teens - in poverty, resigned to the fact that local doctors had no cure for his condition.

To make ends meet he even joined a local "freak show", parading in front of a paying audience alongside victims of other peculiar diseases.

Tree man 'who grew roots' may be cured

By Matthew Moore
Last Updated: 2:49am GMT 13/01/2008

An Indonesian fisherman who feared that he would be killed by tree-like growths covering his body has been given hope of recovery by an American doctor - and Vitamin A.
# Update: Tree root man is innocent victim
# Fighting the curse of the face-eating tumour
# Surfer dude stuns physicists with theory of everything

Dede, now 35, baffled medical experts when warty "roots" began growing out of his arms and feet after he cut his knee in a teenage accident.
Dr Anthony Gaspari and Dede
Watch: Dr Anthony Gaspari believes that he has diagnosed Dede's rare condition

The welts spread across his body unchecked and soon he was left unable to carry out everyday household tasks.

Sacked from his job and deserted by his wife, Dede has been raising his two children - now in their late teens - in poverty, resigned to the fact that local doctors had no cure for his condition.

To make ends meet he even joined a local "freak show", parading in front of a paying audience alongside victims of other peculiar diseases.
# Telegraph TV: Dr Anthony Gaspari examines Dede's lesions
# Update: Tree man says he wants to live to see grandchildren
# Weird Wired Web: Why can't gays climb Everest?

Although supported by his extended family, he was often a target of abuse and ridicule in his rural fishing village.

But now an American dermatology expert who flew out to Dede's home village south of the capital Jakarta claims to have identified his condition, and proposed a treatment that could transform his life.

After testing samples of the lesions and Dede's blood, Dr Anthony Gaspari of the University of Maryland concluded that his affliction is caused by the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV), a fairly common infection that usually causes small warts to develop on sufferers.

Dede's problem is that he has a rare genetic fault that impedes his immune system, meaning his body is unable to contain the warts.

The virus was therefore able to "hijack the cellular machinery of his skin cells", ordering them to produce massive amounts of the substance that caused the tree-like growths known as "cutaneous horns" on his hands and feet.

Dede's counts of a key type of white blood cell are so low that Dr Gaspari initially suspected he may have the Aids virus.

But tests showed he did not, and it became clear that Dede's immune condition was something far rarer and more mysterious.

Warts aside, he had enjoyed remarkable good health throughout his life - which would not be expected of someone with a suppressed immune system - and neither his parents nor his siblings have shown signs of developing lesions.

"The likelihood of having his deficiency is less than one in a million," Dr Gaspari told the Telegraph.

Dr Gaspari, who became involved in the case through a Discovery Channel documentary, believes that Dede's condition can be largely cleared up by a daily doses of a synthetic form of Vitamin A, which has been shown to arrest the growth of warts in severe cases of HPV.

"He won't have a perfectly normal body but the warts should reduce in size to the point where he could use his hands," Dr Gaspari said.

"Over the course of three to six months the warts should be come smaller and fewer in number. He will be living a more normal life."

The most resilient warts could then be frozen off and the growths on his hands and feet surgically removed.

Dr Gaspari hopes to get the necessary drugs free of charge from pharmaceutical firms. They would then be administered by Indonesian doctors under his supervision.

Still intrigued by the origins of Dede's peculiar immune condition, the doctor would like to fly him to the United States for further examination, but fears the financial and bureaucratic barriers would prove too difficult to overcome.

"I would like to bring him to the US to run tests on where his immune condition has come from, but I would need funding and to get him a visa as well as someone to cover the costs of the tests," he said.

William Hung Is Not Dead

2008-01-16T21:24:00.000-08:00

William Hung Is ALIVE

William Hung Is Not Dead

Previous News:
Las Vegas, NV - Kitschy American Idol Star William Hung, famous for his botching of Ricky Martin's "She Bangs," was found dead yesterday, apparently of an intentional heroin overdose. The announcement of his death sent shockwaves to the tens of people who still found him funny.

Ironically, Mr. Hung was found by a VH1 camera crew sent to begin filing "William Hung: Behind the 'Music.'" Viacom immediately decided to rename the special: "William Hung: fifteen minutes till death."

Friends of Mr. Hung say he had become despondent in recent days. "I don't know, it's just so sad," said Ming Tse, one of Hung's former classmates at Stanford, "I heard him the other day on Snotbubble's Morning Madhouse; he kept trying to make William say things like 'me so horny' and 'hey sailor' while playing the sound of a bomb falling. I just know William was hurting inside when Snotbubble got him to say, 'you wanna some-e egg foo young-e.' It was so sad. I just think he was tired of the commercialization of it all."

Recent News:
from: http://www.hoax-slayer.com/william-hung.html
A false news-story involving the death of American Idol celebrity William Hung is currently circulating. The story claims that Mr Hung "was found dead yesterday, apparently of an intentional heroin overdose". The story is being passed around via email and has generated a lot of discussion among those who frequent online message boards.

In fact, Mr Hung is alive and well. This rumour started from a story on the satirical "news" site, Broken Newz. Although it resembles a real news story, it is a complete fabrication apparently in the name of entertainment. Personally, I find this sort of satire in poor taste.

The following quote is from the Broken Newz "About" page:
Broken Newz is a satire news and entertainment site. All names, except when public figures are being satirized due to their own stupidity, are made up and purely coincidental if connected in any way. The stories listed on this site are not real (really).

These are strange days indeed! William Hung has become something of a celebrity because of a decided lack of musical talent rather than the reverse. Mr Hung even has his own website! I'm very glad to hear that the likeable gentleman is still with us. I just wish he'd stick to singing in the shower rather than in public (grin).

WILLIAM Hung is alive and kicking and still scheduled to come to
Singapore for a concert.

In fact, he will also be filming a TV special for SPH MediaWorks, which
will be shown on Channel U and Channel i.

His Father, Henry Hung, issued a statement recently to quell Internet
rumours that his son had died.

He referred to an article last week in the satirical website, Broken
Newz, which apparently started the rumours. The story said the American
Idol reject was found dead, “apparently of an intentional heroin
overdose”.

Hung said: “Anybody can say anything they want to say. I heard about
this last week. Well, he just performed in Atlanta a few days after the
article.”

His statement, relayed from Los Angeles where he and his son live, was
released to the media here by Keith Sim, the organiser of Hung’s Sept
12 concert in Singapore.

Sim said he had received about 10 calls from fans here and concert
promoters in Hong Kong and Taiwan about the rumours.

He said Hung is still scheduled to sing at the Esplanade.

The younger Hung, 21, will be in China before heading to Hong Kong to
film a comedy, My Crazy Mother, with actress Nancy Sit. He might also
hold a concert in Malaysia.

The civil engineering student will also film a TV special exclusively
for SPH MediaWorks, the TV station said.

Filming will start next month in China and he will also be filming in
Hong Kong and in Singapore.

There will be clips of him dancing and singing and he will also chat
about his debut movie in the two-part, half hour special, which will be
shown on Channels U and i in mid-September.

William Hung’s concert, presented by Novena Furnishing is at the
Esplanade on Sept 12 at 8pm. Tickets at S$45, S$58, S$68 and S$78 (RM99
to RM171) are available from Sistic (02-6348-555). The concert also
features local personalities Kumar, Leong, Abigail, Selena Tan, Hossan
Leong, Abigal Chay and Irene Ang. Part of the ticket proceeds will go
to the Kidney Dialysis Foundation. – The Straits Times Singapore/Asia
News Network

William Hung is Alive