Doctors Baffled, Intrigued by Girl Who Doesn't Age

Brooke Greenberg is the size of an infant, with the mental capacity of a toddler.

She turned 16 in January.

"Why doesn't she age?" Howard Greenberg, 52, asked of his daughter. "Is she the fountain of youth?"

Such questions are why scientists are fascinated by Brooke. Among the many documented instances of children who fail to grow or develop in some way, Brooke'scase may be unique, according to her doctor, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine pediatrician Lawrence Pakula, in Baltimore.

"Many of the best-known names in medicine, in their experience ... had not seen anyone who matched up to Brooke," Pakula said. "She is always a surprise."

Brooke hasn't aged in the conventional sense. Dr. Richard Walker of the University of South Florida College of Medicine, in Tampa, says Brooke's body is not developing as a coordinated unit, but as independent parts that are out of sync. She has never been diagnosed with any known genetic syndrome or chromosomalabnormality that would help explain why.

(Courtesy:http://abcnews.go.com/2020/Health/Story?id=7880954&page=1)

Fishing puts a third of species at risk

The first World Conservation Union (IUCN) red list of oceanic sharks names 64 species as endangered. Sharks are vulnerable because they take decades to mature and produce few young

Overfishing threatens to drive a third of the world's open-ocean shark species to extinction, say conservationists. Hammerheads, giant devil rays and porbeagle sharks are among 64 species on the first ever red list for oceanic sharks produced by the World Conservation Union (IUCN).

Sharks are vulnerable because they can take decades to mature and they produce few young. The scalloped hammerhead shark, which has declined by 99% over the past 30 years in some parts of the world, is particularly vulnerable and has been given globally endangered status on the red list, which means it is nearing extinction. In the Gulf of Mexico, the oceanic whitetip shark has declined by a similar amount.

Scientists estimate that shark populations in the north-west Atlantic Ocean have declined by an average of 50% since the early 1970s.

Announcing the red list of open-ocean or "pelagic" sharks and rays today, scientists called on governments to set limits for catching the animals on the high seas and to enforce strict bans on "finning" – the practice of catching sharks, cutting off their fins and throwing the bodies back in the water.

"Despite mounting threats, sharks remain virtually unprotected on the high seas," said Sonja Fordham, deputy chair of the shark specialist group at the World Conservation Union and policy director for the Shark Alliance. "The vulnerability and lengthy migrations of most open-ocean sharks call for coordinated, international conservation plans. Our report documents serious overfishing of these species in national and international waters, and demonstrates a clear need for immediate action on a global scale."

Pelagic sharks are usually caught on the high seas in tuna or swordfish fisheries. In 2007, 21 shark-fishing nations reported catching more than 10,000 tonnes of shark. The top five – Indonesia, India, Taiwan, Spain and Mexico – accounted for 42%.

At one time, sharks were considered worthless bycatch, but they are increasingly being fished on purpose to serve emerging markets for their meat and fins, which are used in soups and can fetch more than £100 per kilogram. In places such as China, shark-fin soup could once only be afforded by the elite, but the growing numbers of middle-class people in the country has driven up demand.

To satisfy the growing market, some fishermen have taken to finning sharks. There are bans on this practice in operation around the world, but Fordham said the coverage is patchy and, in any case, enforcing the bans is difficult due to a lack of policing on the high seas.

"The overarching problem for sharks is that, for a variety of reasons, they've been considered low priority and they're traditionally low value compared with something like the tuna," said Fordham. "Also public image feeds into that – I don't know if there are people clamouring for their conservation."

Most species of pelagic shark take many years to mature and have relatively few young when they do reproduce. The IUCN's report highlights a study by scientists in Canada which showed that the population of porbeagle sharks, classified as vulnerable in the red list, has been so affected by fishing that it will take at least 100 years to recover. Yet the government still allows the animal to be fished in its waters.

The global dusky shark popualtion, also classed as vulnerable by the IUCN, could take up to 400 years to recover because the animals are not sexually mature until around 20 years of age and usually raise only one offspring at a time.

Fordham said that because many of the sharks on the red list are at the top of the food chain, their extinction could also cause major local ecological problems. "We know that most of these species are top predators and we know that removing the top predators usually has negative consequences to the system as a whole."

In 2007, Julia Baum of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in California, who is also a member of IUCN shark specialist group, published a study showing how a major decline in the numbers of predatory sharks in the north Atlantic after 2000 had allowed populations of cownose rays, which are their prey, to explode. The rays in turn decimated the populations of bay scallop off North Carolina. "There was a fishery for bay scallops in North Carolina that lasted over a century uninterrupted and it was closed down in 2004 because of cownose rays," she said last year.

Conserving threatened shark species might not be difficult. Last year, Peter Klimley of the University of California, Davis, found that scalloped hammerhead sharks migrate along fixed "superhighways" in the oceans, speeding between a series of "stepping stone" sites near coastal islands ranging from Mexico to Ecuador. Focusing marine reserves around these hotspots might be a cost-effective way to conserve the species.

The IUCN sharks red list is published a few days before Spain is due to host an international meeting of the managers of tuna fisheries, where many of the sharks are caught. Scientists are also meeting in Denmark this week to produce advice for authorities on how to manage populations of Atlantic porbeagle sharks. "The completion of this global assessment of pelagic sharks and rays will provide an important baseline for monitoring the status of these keystone species in our oceans," said Roger McManus, vice-president for marine programmes at Conservation International.

(Courtesy:http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2009/jun/25/sharks-extinction-iucn-red-list)

US kids version of Ramayan

Sounds familiar.??!! Quite hilarious, though.

It is shocking to realise that all the good vocabulary have gone out of circulation and the 'chat' and 'slang' usages have creeped into mainstream formal level if you observe.

May Sriman Narayana save us.!

A young second generation Indian in the US was asked by his mother to explain the significance of "Diwali" to his younger brother, this is how he went about it...

" So, like this dude had, like, a big cool kingdom and people liked him. But, like, his step-mom, or something, was kind of a bitch, and she forced her husband to, like, send this cool-dude, he was Ram, to some national forest or something.... Since he was going, for like, something like more than 10 years or so.... he decided to get his wife and his bro along... you know...so that they could all chill out together. But Dude, the forest was reeeeal scary shit... really man...they had monkeys and devil s and shit like that. But this dude, Ram, kicked with darts and bows and arrows... so it was fine.

But then some bad gangsta boys, some jerk called Ravan, picks up his babe (Sita) and lures her away to his hood. And boy, was our man, and also his bro, Laxman, pissed.... all the gods were with him... So anyways, you don't mess with gods. So, Ram, and his bro get an army of monkeys... Dude, don't ask me how they trained the damn monkeys... just go along with me, ok...

So, Ram, Lax and their monkeys whip this gangsta's ass in his own hood.... Anyways, by this time, their time's up in the forest... and anyways... it gets kinda boring, you know... no TV or malls or shit like that. So,they deci ded to hitch a ride back home... and when the people realize that our dude, his bro and the wife are back home... they thought, well, you know, at least they deserve something nice... and they didn't have any bars or clubs in those days... so they couldn't take them out for a drink, so they, like, decided to smoke and shit... and since they also had some lamps, they lit the lamps also...so it was pretty cooool... you know with all those fireworks.... Really, they even had some local band play along with the fireworks... and you know, what, dude, that was the very first, no kidding.., thatwas the very first music-synchronized fireworks... you know, like the 4th of July stuff, but just, more cooler and stuff, you know. And, so dude,

that was how, like, this festival started."

The mother fainted...

Top 10 tallest building in india

You will find most high rise or tallest building in the commercial capital Mumbai - a city of west-central India on coastal Mumbai Island. It is India's main port and commercial center. No wonder both commercial and residenical space is a premium.

Remember a building above 24 metres is classified as a high-rise.

List of tallest buildings in India

• The Imperial, Mumbai - 60 Floors
• Ashok Towers 1, Mumbai - 53 Floors
• Planet Godrej Mumbai, 51 Floors
• Shreepati Arcade, Mumbai - 45 Floors
• RNA Mirage, Mumbai - 41 Floors
• Belvedere Court, Mumbai - 40 Floors
• Oberoi Spas, Mumbai - 40 Floors
• Kalpataru Heights, Mumbai - 39 Floors

(Courtesy:http://theos.in/woot-www/list-of-tallest-ten-buildings-india/)

Burger King 'Super Seven Incher'

Yesterday our Hamilton Nolan blamed BK's financial woes on their "edgy" ad agency. Now tonight our pal Copyranter sent us their newest advertisement, a reeking of desperation creation he called the "most overtly blow-jobby ad I've ever seen."

The ad agency behind this is Crispin Porter Bogusky and just look what the ad wizards over there have come up with now to stop BK's bleeding! I mean, what better way to sell oblong meat sandwiches than by suggesting fellatio?! How did they ever think of that? Just look at all that piping hot beef laden with creamy mayo aligned perfectly with the open mouth of a wide-eyed blonde, sitting just above the line "It'll Blow Your Mind Away." Who doesn't want to run on down to BK for one of those right now? For benefit of those of you who don't "get it," this is what's known as "branding" in the industry. Or something.

But wait, if that's not enough for you, here's the actual text of the ad:

Fill your desire for something long, juicy and flame-grilled with the NEW BK SUPER SEVEN INCHER. Yearn for more after you taste the mind-blowing burger that comes with a single beef patty, topped with American cheese, crispy onions and the A1 Thick and Hearty Steak Sauce.

The only thing this ad is missing is the disclaimer that you'll actually get fewer blowjobs if you eat these sandwiches, but perhaps that's the "genius" of advertising that we simpletons on the outside just don't get.

UPDATE: We've been informed that Crispin Porter Bodusky may not have created this ad due to the fact that it's running outside of the U.S.—Burger King may have hired a foreign ad agency.

UPDATE #2At 10:19pm on Wednesday, we received this statement from Burger King via email:

Burger King Corporation (BKC) values and respects all of its guests. This advertisement is running to support a limited promotion in the Singapore market and is not running in the U.S. or any other markets. It was produced by a locally-based Singapore agency and not by BKC's U.S. advertising agency of record, Crispin Porter and Bogusky.

The New King of Blowjob Ads [Copyranter]

(Courtesy:http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=8286439525414307195)

Things I wish some people wouldn't install on their PCs

Our readers are a pretty savvy bunch. You're up to speed on what software is and isn't worth downloading, and you're likely the "friend that knows about computers" to a lot of people. Wouldn't it be nice if some of those people started paying attention to our advice - and quit downloading things like... 1. A second (or third...or fourth) antivirus program. Despite what we tell them, some people think "more is always better" when it comes to PC protection. Inevitably, those people end up bringing their computers in for service saying "it just slowed right down" and - here's the kicker - "maybe it has a virus." So wait...You installed Norton, AVG, Spyware Doctor, and Ad-Aware because you thought it would keep out all the badness and you still think it's a virus slowing down your machine? /facepalm 2. Just...one...more...toolbar (thank you J-Walk blog for the image). Apparently a lot of people love to search. So much, in fact, that they need dedicated toolbars for Google, Yahoo, Ask, Live, MyWebSearch, and a handful of others. They wind up with less browser real estate than an iPhone on their 22" LCD. I launch their browser to download something, and it's like a punch in the face. Enough is enough, people. Use your browser's search box already.

3. Apps with annoying avatars. Incredimail, I'm looking at you. Bonzi Buddy is dead, and for a good reason. Isn't an AOL-style "You've Got Mail!" alert good enough? Apparently not for some people. No, they need to have some snooty butler announce the arrival of every message like he's Alfred bringing Bruce Wayne a phone call from the mayor. 4. P2P apps. Don't get me wrong - it's not apps like Frostwire, uTorrent, and eMule that I have a problem with. But if you're not going to take the time to learn how to configure these things, don't use them. And don't call and get uppity when your internet connection slows to a crawl and tell me I screwed things up. 5. Piggybacked programs. I'm shocked how much software people wind up with on their PCs that they never use and claim to not know how it got there. Checkboxes are there for a reason, folks. You don't have to install Safari. You don't have to install Adobe Media Player. Remember that Ask toolbar? You probably could have opted out of that, too - if you would take a second to read before you click. If I put food in front of you, you wouldn't just grab it and eat it without looking, right? What about you - what do you wish people would stop installing?

(Courtesy:http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/06/23/5-things-i-wish-some-people-wouldnt-install-on-their-pcs/

Frank Introduces Legislation To Decriminalize Marijuana

(Massachusetts Congressman Barney) Frank has filed a bill that would eliminate federal penalties for personal possession of less than 100 grams of marijuana.

It would also make the penalty for using marijuana in public just $100.

"I think John Stuart Mill had it right in the 1850s," said Congressman Frank, "when he argued that individuals should have the right to do what they want in private, so long as they don't hurt anyone else. It's a matter of personal liberty. Moreover, our courts are already stressed and our prisons are over-crowded. We don't need to spend our scarce resources prosecuting people who are doing no harm to others."

Frank filed a similar bill last year, but it failed.

The law passed in Massachusetts last November.

Given the general timidity of the majority party and the hay that most certainly would be made by the minority party, I don't have much hope that this sensible and long-due bill will succeed, but more power to Barney Frank.

(Courtesy:http://crooksandliars.com/nicole-belle/barney-frank-introduces-legislation-d)