US hopes visa law will not hurt India ties
Washington, Aug 14 - The United States hopes that a new law to secure US-Mexico border by raising $600 million through steep work visa fee hikes would not affect its "close, robust and vital relationship" with India.
"I think this administration has a very close relationship with India and we hope to sustain it as such," US Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano told reporters Friday when asked about fears the law, which largely affects India's IT and outsourcing industries, would hurt their relationship.
Obama aims to make India-US ties a 'defining partnership'
Washington, Aug 14 - Wishing India a happy and safe Independence Day, US President Barack Obama has said he was looking forward to his India visit aimed at making their relations "one of the defining partnerships of the 21st century".
"The strategic partnership between our countries will continue to grow, and I am looking forward to my November visit to India," he said in a message on India's Aug 15 Independence Day.
"Our goal is to make this one of the defining partnerships of the 21st century," Obama said noting "Ties between our two peoples have never been stronger."
US approves five-day emergency contraceptive
Washington, Aug 14 - US regulators have approved an emergency contraceptive that can prevent pregnancy when taken within five days of unprotected sex, but which has drawn ire from anti-abortion advocates.
The Food and Drug Administration approved Friday the medication ulipristal acetate, known by the brand name ella, for use in the US.
It is effective much longer than other emergency contraceptives available in the market, which are ineffective after three days. It prevents pregnancy by delaying or inhibiting ovulation in women and was found to be safe in clinical trials, the FDA said in a statement.
7.2-magnitude quake hits Guam
Washington, Aug 14 - A major 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck southwest of US territory Guam Saturday, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) reported on its website.
The quake occurred at 7:19 a. m. Saturday (local time), 375 km southwest of Hagatna (formerly Agana), capital of Guam, at a depth of 4.7 km, the USGS said.
The Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said that, based on historical earthquake and tsunami data, no destructive widespread tsunami threat exists, Xinhua reported.
BP must ensure stopping of oil spill
Washington, Aug 14 - Oil giant BP must complete work on a relief well in order to be certain that the worst oil spill in US history has been stopped for good, government officials said Friday.
But new tests taken Thursday raised fresh warnings and left engineers uncertain how to proceed with drilling the relief well, currently idle about 10 metres away from the source of a months-long ecological disaster in the Gulf of Mexico.
US continues push for Middle East direct talks
Washington, Aug 14 - US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called key regional leaders, continuing the America's push to start Middle East direct talks, the State Department said Friday.
"Secretary Clinton discussed with Israeli Prime Minister (Benjamin) Netanyahu on issues to be resolved for direct negotiations to begin," State Department spokesman Philip Crowley said in his Twitter messages.
"Secretary Clinton also talked with Jordanian Foreign Minister Judeh and Egyptian Foreign Minister Aboul Gheit about negotiation details," Crowley was quoted as saying by Xinhua.
Times Square to re-enact famous V-J Day kiss
New York, Aug 14 - The famous kiss between a US sailor and a nurse in Times Square was to be repeated Saturday to mark the 65th anniversary of the end of World War II in the Pacific with the defeat of Japan.
The war ended Aug 14, 1945, after the US dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, forcing Japan to surrender to allied forces. The date has been known as V-J Day.
Groups of Americans and certainly some tourists in crowded Times Square will re-enact the embrace in "kiss-in" demonstrations next to the statue of the sailor and the nurse, Edith Shain, who died in June this year at age 91.
Obama lends assistance to combat wildfires in Russia
Washington, Aug 14 : US President Barack Obama offered condolences and lent assistance to Russian President Dmitry Medvedev as a wave of wildfires have swept across the former Soviet Republic, the White House said Friday.
Obama accepted Medvedev's request for help during a telephone call Thursday and expressed "his deepest condolences for the tragic losses that Russia has suffered," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said.
Firefighting equipment was to be sent to Russia from the US aid agency, the Pentagon and the state of California, which is routinely forced to deal with wildfires.
UN launches International Year of Youth
New York, Aug 13 : The UN Friday called on governments, civil society, individuals and communities worldwide to support activities for children as it launched the International Year of Youth.
Members of the international community marked the launch of the International Year of Youth, which will run till Aug 11, 2011, in the United Nations General Assembly Hall with an eclectic array of speeches, musical performances, videos and poetry.
Now, a robotic wheelchair that will teach kids how to ''drive''
Washington, Aug 13 : Scientists have developed a robotic wheelchair that will help disabled children learn to ''drive.''
University of California researchers described the testing of ROLY -RObot-assisted Learning for Young drivers - in a group of children without disabilities and one child with cerebral palsy.
"The conventional approach for powered wheelchair driver''s training is expensive and labor-intense, typically requiring the hand-over-hand assistance of a skilled therapist," said Laura Marchal-Crespo of University of California
Ancient Phoenician city may have been ‘relocated’
Washington, Aug 13 : By studying ancient maps and records, scholars at Britain''s University of Oxford have found that the site for an ancient city called Auza—the earliest African city of the Phoenician civilization that existed
3,500 years ago—might have been in a different spot than was believed.
While experts know that Auza existed from written records, but its exact location has never been proven.
And now, emeritus classics professor Sir John Boardman of the Beazley Archive at Oxford could locate a more likely site for the ancient city, he said.
Fermi makes ‘shocking’ discovery of gamma rays coming from a nova
Washington, Aug 13 : For the first time, astronomers using NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope have detected gamma-rays from a nova- a finding that stunned observers and theorists alike.
The discovery overturns the notion that nova explosions lack the power to emit such high-energy radiation.
A nova is a sudden, short-lived brightening of an otherwise inconspicuous star. The outburst occurs when a white dwarf in a binary system erupts in an enormous thermonuclear explosion.
Couples who pray together really do stay together
Washington, Aug 13 : Couples who share religious practices tend to be happier than those who don''t, according to a new study.
True to the aphorism, couples who pray together stay together, said study co-author W. Bradford Wilcox, director of the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia, and "African American couples are more likely to have a shared spiritual identity as a couple."
In the study, researchers found that 40 percent of blacks in marriages and live-in relationships who attended religious services regularly had a partner who did the same, compared with 29 percent of non-Hispanic whites and 29 percent of Hispanics.
Wipro Inks 5 Year Deal With ArcelorMittal
IT bellwether Wipro Technologies has declared that it has inked a 5-year deal with international steel making major ArcelorMittal with the aim to merge and transfer its messaging systems to the Microsoft Exchange 2010 messaging platform.
Sensex Hits New Intra Day Peak
The 30-share index Sensex today hit an intra-day peak during noon trade with Asian cues remaining steady.
The Sensex, which belled the day on a higher note at 18,080.29, was trading 18,220.65, up 146.75 points (0.81%) as against its earlier closure at 18,073.9.
In contrast, the broad-based Nifty zoomed 0.9% at 5,465.4.
The BSE midcap index was trading 1.13% up and the BSE smallcap index gained 1.27%.
Jet Posts Impressive Growth In July 2010
Taking advantage of the growth in global business and holiday passenger traffic to abroad destinations, Jet Airways, country's top private global airline, has attained remarkable seat factors of more than 83.1% for its worldwide functionings and recorded a sturdy 27.8% increase in worldwide revenue passengers that was 3.89 lakh during July 2010.
Ignoring Indian concerns, Obama set to sign visa fee hike bill
Washington, Aug 13 - Unmindful of India and corporate America's concerns, President Barack Obama is all set to sign into law a legislation to secure the US-Mexico border with $600 million raised by hiking work visa fees.
"Today's action by Congress answers my call to bolster the essential work of federal law enforcement officials and improve their ability to partner with state, local and tribal law enforcement" to stop the flow of undocumented immigrants, Obama said Thursday hours after the final passage of the bill.
US aid to flood-hit Pakistan totals $76 mn
Washington, Aug 13 - The US assistance to the flood-affected areas of Pakistan has totalled $76 million, the State Department said.
"As of this morning, the additional money that the US is providing is to Save the Children, and that's $4.1 million. That will be used for food vouchers enabling flood victims to purchase food in their local markets," department spokesman Mark Toner said Thursday.
Toner also said the 19 helicopters ordered by Defence Secretary Robert Gates to help the affected population will be in place over the next few days.
