Stephen Hawking: Large Hadron Collider vital for humanity The work of the Large Hadron Collider is crucial for the survival of humanity, according to Professor Stephen Hawking. 09 Sep 2008 Prof Hawking said the £4.4bn machine, in which scientists are about to recreate conditions just after the Big Bang, is "vital if the human race is not to stultify and eventually die out." And he sought to ease fears that the machine could have apocalyptic effects. "The world will not come to an end when the LHC turns on," Prof Hawking said, adding: "The LHC is absolutely safe." Scientists at the CERN research centre in Switzerland are aiming to use the machine to gain a better understanding of the birth and structure of the universe, and to fill gaps in our knowledge of physics. They hope that by recreating the moments after the Big Bang - the massive explosion thought to have created the universe - the experiment will make clearer what the universe is made of, what makes it expand and also to predict its future. Prof Hawking, the Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at the University of Cambridge, said: "The LHC will increase the energy at which we can study particle interactions by a factor of four." However, he doubts that the machine will have the power to unravel some of the universe's more elusive secrets such as the putative Higgs boson particle - thought to have given mass to all other particles. Prof Hawking said he has placed a bet of $100 that the scientists won't find the Higgs boson - the so-called "God particle." "Another discovery that we might make is superpartners, partners for all the particles we know ... they could make up the mysterious dark matter that holds galaxies together," he told BBC Radio 4. "Whatever the LHC finds or fails to find, the results will tell us a lot about the structure of the universe," Prof Hawking added. However he dismissed speculation that the world could be put in grave danger by the force of the experiment. "The LHC is absolutely safe. If the collisions in the LHC produced a micro black hole - and this is unlikely - it would just evaporate away again, producing a correctoristic pattern of particles," he said. "Collisions releasing greater energy occur millions of times a day in the earth's atmosphere and nothing terrible happens. The world will not come to an end when the LHC turns on."

Sep 10, 2008 11:00 pm US/Central 'Twist' Named Top Song Of Billboard Hot 100 Era NEW YORK (AP) ― How's this for a twist: Of all the No. 1 songs in the 50 years of the Billboard Hot 100 chart, Chubby Checker's "The Twist" ranks as the most popular single. Elvis and the Beatles didn't even make the top five. Checker's ranking may come as a surprise to some, but not to the classic rocker. "I'm glad they've finally recognized it," said Checker of his early 1960s hit. He compared "The Twist" — named by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum as one of the 500 songs that shaped rock 'n' roll — to the creation of the telephone as a groundbreaking moment because he said it was the first time people were dancing "apart to the beat." "Anyplace on the planet, when someone has a song that has a beat, they're on the floor dancing apart to the beat, and before Chubby Checker, it wasn't here, and I think that has a lot to do with me being on the charts," he said. Santana's "Smooth," featuring Rob Thomas, is the No. 2 most popular, followed by Bobby Darin's "Mack the Knife," Leann Rimes' "How Do I Live" and "The Macarena" by Los Del Rio. The Beatles did make the top 10, coming it at No. 8 with "Hey Jude." But Olivia Newton-John's "Physical" and Debby Boone's "You Light Up My Life" are ahead of that hit. Rounding out the top 10: Mariah Carey's "We Belong Together" at No. 9 and Toni Braxton's "Un-break My Heart" at No. 10.

Health News Chemicals in Marijuana May Fight MRSA Study Shows Cannabinoids May Be Useful Against Drug-Resistant Staph Infections WebMD Health News Sept. 4, 2008 -- Chemicals in marijuana may be useful in fighting MRSA , a kind of staph bacterium that is resistant to certain antibiotics. Researchers in Italy and the U.K. tested five major marijuana chemicals called cannabinoids on different strains of MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus ). All five showed germ-killing activity against the MRSA strains in lab tests. Some synthetic cannabinoids also showed germ-killing capability. The scientists note the cannabinoids kill bacteria in a different way than traditional antibiotics, meaning they might be able to bypass bacterial resistance. At least two of the cannabinoids don't have mood-altering effects, so there could be a way to use these substances without creating the high of marijuana. MRSA, like other staph infections, can be spread through casual physical contact or through contaminated objects. It is commonly spread from the hands of someone who has it. This could be in a health care setting, though there have also been high-profile cases of community-acquired MRSA. It is becoming more common for healthy people to get MRSA, which is often spread between people who have close contact with one another, such as members of a sports team. Symptoms often include skin infections, such as boils. MRSA can become serious, particularly for people who are weak or ill. In the study, published in the Journal of Natural Products , researchers call for further study of the antibacterial uses of marijuana. There are "currently considerable challenges with the treatment of infections caused by strains of clinically relevant bacteria that show multi-drug resistance," the researchers write. New antibacterials are urgently needed, but only one new class of antibacterial has been introduced in the last 30 years. "Plants are still a substantially untapped source of antimicrobial agents," the researchers conclude.

One aim: carnage in the skies September 09, 2008 03:57am Article from: Agence France-Presse Three members of an Islamist cell accused of plotting to blow up transatlantic aircraft with liquid explosives in 2006 were found guilty by a court in London today. Abdulla Ahmed Ali, described as the leader of the eight-man group, was convicted at Woolwich Crown Court of conspiring to murder hundreds of people, as were two others, Assad Sarwar and Tanvir Hussain. The trial considered charges that the men planned to smuggle the explosives in soft drink bottles on board aircraft flying from London's main Heathrow airport to North America. The home-made devices would then have been set off in flight, causing carnage in the skies, prosecutors alleged during the three-and-a-half-month trial. The men's arrest in August 2006 prompted new restrictions on carrying liquids on board aircraft from Britain, which had been on high alert since July 2005 suicide bombings which killed 52 people in London.

It's a Fiesta, But You're Not Invited 05 Sep 2008 The Ford Fiesta ECOnetic, a small, sporty five-seater that gets an impressive 65 miles per gallon, will the hit the road in November -- but only in Europe. "We just don't think North and South America would buy that many diesel cars," says Ford America President Mark Fields. The new generation of diesel cars , which are dramatically cleaner than old-school diesels and are at least 30 percent more fuel-efficient than gas-powered vehicles, haven't managed to shake Americans' longstanding aversion to the fuel: only 3 percent of cars in the U.S. are diesel-powered. But other automakers are betting that Americans can be swayed. Mercedes-Benz will by next year have three diesel vehicles on the market, and a handful of other automakers will introduce diesel models to the U.S. in 2010.

Buyer calls Plaza Hotel suite "attic-like" and sues Mon Sep 8, 6:28 pm ET NEW YORK (Reuters) – The buyer of a $53.5 million (30 million pound) penthouse apartment in New York's famed Plaza Hotel says the apartment turned out to be an "attic-like space" with low ceilings and obstructed views, and he is suing for a refund plus damages. The apartment's anonymous buyer, who made the purchase based on a video , is suing the hotel, developers El-Ad Properties and brokers Stribling & Associates for breach of contract, fraud, deceptive trade practices and negligence. The buyer, who local media have identified as Russian financier Andrei Vavilov, is asking for the return of his $10.7 million deposit and for an additional $30 million in damages. "This is a classic bait-and-switch," Y. David Scharf, the buyer's attorney, said on Monday. "My client was led to believe that it would receive one of the most luxurious apartments in New York history. It got far less than what it bargained for." The lawsuit claims that among its other flaws the apartment has small windows and ugly drainage grates, El-Ad and Stribling & Associates called the suit baseless. It was filed on Friday in New York State Supreme Court.

The Segway Centaur The Segway Centaur is a concept design by the maker that is made with four wheels but envisions a safe ride on all four or only two. MSU explained that a simple thumb throttle right beneath the handlebars will determine if the Segway can maneuver forwards or backwards, popping a wheelie would not be a hazardous ritual and just like the original, a forward movement will begin your ride.

Assault With An 8-Inch Sausage Meat and seasonings weapons of choice for hapless California burglar SEPTEMBER 8--Meet Antonio Vasquez. Wielding an eight-inch sausage, the California man, 21, allegedly broke into a Fresno home Saturday morning, stole $900, and assaulted one resident with the pork weapon and tossed seasoning into another victim's face. The bizarre crime is detailed in a Fresno County Sheriff's Department report , Vasquez, pictured in the mug shot above, robbed the home of a group of farmworkers, two of whom were assaulted during the 8 AM confrontation. Santiago Cabrera told deputies that he was sleeping on the home's front porch when he "felt something hit him in the face," the report notes. Struggling to awake, Cabrera found "an unknown male bent over him. The male continued to strike him in the face and head area with a sausage." Santiago, deputies reported, "said the sausage was about 8" long." Before fleeing the residence, Vasquez, for some reason, removed his shorts, which contained his driver's license, credit cards, school IDs, and cell phone. He ran into a nearby orange orchard, but was soon apprehended by a deputy who noted that the suspect was wearing "a white sleeveless tee shirt and green boxers." However, cops were unable to recover Vasquez's principal weapon. "I asked Santiago where the sausage was," Deputy George Ozburn wrote, "he advised his dog ate it." Facing a felony robbery charge, Vasquez in being held in lieu of $100,000 bail.

Lindsay Lohan is seen in the audience at the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards held at Paramount Pictures Studio Lot on Sunday, Sept. 7, 2008, in Los Angeles.

Pink is seen backstage at the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards held at Paramount Pictures Studio Lot on Sunday, Sept. 7, 2008, in Los Angeles.

A poster showing Jimi Hendrix with flaming guitar. The first guitar that rock legend Jimi Hendrix burned on stage fetched 280,000 pounds (345,000 euros, 495,000 dollars) at an auction in London on Thursday.

The first fully signed contract between the Beatles and Brian Epstein at the idea Generation Gallery. The first guitar that rock legend Jimi Hendrix burned on stage, the only remaining fingerprints of Elvis Presley and the Beatles' contract will all go on sale in a major auction of music memorabilia. The four-page document, signed on Oct. 1, 1962 by John Lennon, George Harrison, Paul McCartney and Richard Starkey — Ringo Starr's real name — carries an estimated price of 250,000 pounds (US$480,000).

September 09, 2008 Sarah Palin action figures now on sale (what, no Joe Biden with the kung fu grip? It seems that people can't get enough of Sarah Palin. Since the announcement that she was joining the Republican ticket as the vice presidential nominee, there have been magazine covers and appearances with running mate John McCain. Now Hero Builders toymakers are selling a Sarah Palin action figure . The three dolls, which cost from $27.95-$29.95, feature Palin as an executive in a dark suit; as an action hero a la Lara Croft , in a trench coat, mini skirt and what looks like a gun strapped to her leg; and as a faux- Britney Spears school girl in a low-cut blouse, peekaboo red bra and a plaid mini skirt. Not sure what kind of action they are going for there. Palin isn't the only one who has an action figure. Hero Builders also has dolls for McCain, Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama and former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.(The one for John Edwards wears a T-shirt that says, "Rogue." Did the National Enquirer suggest that one?) For Palin, I wonder if they will add a version that carries a hockey stick? Or maybe one with hunting clothes and a rifle? Of course, a genuine Momma action figure would show us doing about 47 things at once. But so far no toymaker has figured out how to make one that's both unbreakable and tender-hearted. TampaBay.com

We’ve already got our first Sarah Palin bikini pic! Unfortunately it’s a fake. Strictly in the interest of debunking a hoax.

This one is real.