Egypt to allow tourists inside Bent Pyramid

Egypt says it will soon allow tourists to see inside the inner chambers of the country's Bent Pyramid located in Menshat Dahshur. Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities chief Zahi Hawass announced that the 4,500-year-old pyramid's inner chambers would be opened for the first time in 2009. “This is going to be an adventure,” Archeology News quoted Hawass as saying. The country will open the chambers of the 330-foot pyramid in an effort to continue its “sustainable development campaign” for increasing the number of tourists visiting the country. Built by Pharaoh Sneferu, the Bent Pyramid dates back to about 2600 BCE and is considered the first pyramid with smooth sides.

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New Zealand confirms swine flu cases

New Zealand has confirmed three swine flu cases with a further eleven probable cases, increasing the country's total to fourteen. All 14 people have contracted influenza A -- the virus that causes swine flu. Three were confirmed to have the disease on Tuesday evening, while the remaining cases are thought to be probable swine flu infections. New Zealand's Health Ministry said all three confirmed cases were people who had traveled to Mexico or North America. "Because of their travel history... we need to assume that this is swine flu," said Julia Peters of the regional public health service in the capital Auckland. Officials added that an additional 31 suspected cases were being investigated and that 179 people are currently held in isolation. One of those confirmed as having the disease was part of a school group that had just returned from Mexico. All 10 students and teachers of the group are displaying flu-like symptoms and have been quarantined. So far the only deaths from swine flu have been recorded in Mexico -- the epicenter of the outbreak, where more than 150 people are either dead or believed to have contracted the virus.

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Ban urges efforts to protect children

UN Secretary General urges the Security Council and judicial systems to take serious measures to end abuse of children in conflict zones. Ban Ki-moon encourages national and international justice systems to take strong action to fight impunity for crimes against children committed within their jurisdictions. Ban called for immediate halt of violations of children rights in war zones and promotion of their protection. The Secretary-General's annual report to the Security Council lists countries that have committed grave violations against children rights in the period from September 2007 to December 2008, including 19 persistent violators who have been listed for more than 4 years. The report documents grave violations against children in 20 countries, namely Afghanistan, Burundi, Central African Republic, Chad, Colombia, Côte d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Georgia, Haiti, Iraq, Lebanon, Myanmar, Nepal, Occupied Palestinian territory and Israel, the Philippines, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Thailand and Uganda. Recruitment of children to serve as soldiers, the killing and maiming of children, grave sexual violence, abductions, attacks on schools and hospitals as well as denial of humanitarian access to children are six among the major violations against children covered in the report. “Persistent violators have to realize that their crimes will not remain unpunished,” noted Radhika Coomaraswamy, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Children and Armed Conflict. Coomaraswamy stressed that the child protection community was awaiting a strong signal from the Security Council on its commitment to tackle the protection of children during armed conflict when it discusses the report on 29 April.

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Cannes announces the 2009 lineup

The 2009 lineup for the Cannes International Film Festival has been announced in Paris with one feature film from Iran's Bahman Qobadi. Qobadi's latest production Nobody Knows about Persian Cats will be screened at the event's 'Un Certain Regard' sidebar, a section for movies that are often considered as 'discoveries'. This year's 'In Competition' section includes 20 films that will vie for the Palme d'Or of the 62nd edition of the prestigious event. Quentin Tarantino will be one of the notable figures in this section, whose World War II action movie Inglourious Basterds will compete with films by such renowned directors as Ken Loach. President of the 2009 main panel of jury is French actress Isabelle Huppert, supported by actresses Robin Wright Penn, Asia Argento and Shu Qi, and filmmakers Nuri Bilge Ceylan, Lee Chang-dong, Hanif Kureishi and James Gray. The 2009 Cannes Film Festival will open with animation Up on May 13 and will close with French filmmaker Jan Kounen's Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky on May 24. The lineup for the 62nd edition of Cannes Film Festival is as follows: In Competition Bright Star, Jane Campion (Australia, UK, France) Spring Fever, Lou Ye (China, France) Antichrist, Lars von Trier (Denmark, Sweden, France, Italy) Enter the Void, Gaspar Noe (France) Face, Tsai Ming-liang (France, Taiwan, The Netherlands, Belgium) Les Herbes folles, Alain Resnais (France, Italy) In the Beginning, Xavier Giannoli (France) A Prophet, Jacques Audiard (France) The White Ribbon, Michael Haneke (Germany, Austria, France) Vengeance, Johnnie To, (Hong Kong, France, US) The Time That Remains, Elia Suleiman, (Israel, France, Belgium, Italy) Vincere, Marco Bellocchio, (Italy, France) Kinatay, Brillante Mendoza, (Philippines) Thirst, Park Chan-wook, (South Korea, US) Broken Embraces, Pedro Almodovar, (Spain) Map of the Sounds of Tokyo, Isabel Coixet, (Spain) Fish Tank, Andrea Arnold, (UK, Netherlands) Looking for Eric, Ken Loach, (UK, France, Belgium, Italy) Inglourious Basterds, Quentin Tarantino, US Taking Woodstock, Ang Lee, US Out of Competition The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, Terry Gilliam, (Canada, France) The Army of Crime, Robert Guediguian, (France) Agora, Alejandro Amenabar, (Spain) Midnight Screenings A Town Called Panic, Vincent Patar and Stephane Aubier (Belgium) Ne te retourne pas, Marina de Van, (France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Italy) Drag Me to Hell, Sam Raimi, US Special Screenings Petition, Zhao Liang, (China) L'epine dans le Coeur, Michel Gondry, (France) Min ye, Souleyumane Cisse, (France, Mali) Jaffa, Keren Yedaya, (Israel, France, Germany) Manila, Adolfo Alix Jr. and Raya Martin, (Philippines) My Neighbor, My Killer, Anne Aghion, (US) Un Certain Regard Samson & Delilah, Warwick Thornton, (Australia) Adrift, Heitor Dhalia, (Brazil) The Wind Journeys, Ciro Guerra, (Colombia) Demain des l'aube, Denis Dercourt, (France) Irene, Alain Cavalier, (France) Air Doll, Hirokazu Kore-eda, (Japan) Independence, Raya Martin, (Philippines, France, Germany) Le Pere de mes enfants, Mia Hansen-Love, (France, Germany) Dogtooth, Yorgos Lanthimos, (Greece) Nobody Knows About Persian Cats, Bahman Qobadi, (Iran) Eyes Wide Open, Haim Tabakman, (Israel) Mother, Bong Joon-ho, (South Korea) The Silent Army, Jean van de Velde, (The Netherlands) To Die Like a Man, Joao Pedro Rodrigues, Portugal Police, Adjective, Corneliu Porumboiu, Romania Tales from the Golden Age, Hanno Hofer, Razvan Marculescu, Cristian Mungiu, Constantin Popescu and Ioana Uricaru, (Romania) Tale in the Darkness, Nikolay Khomeriki, (Russia) Tzar, Pavel Lounguine, (Russia, France) Nymph, Pen-ek Ratanaruang, (Thailand) Precious, Lee Daniels, US Directors' Fortnight Ajami, Scandar Copti and Yaron Shani (Israel) Amreeka, Cherien Dabis (USA) Les Beaux gosses, Riad Sattouf, (France) Carcasses, Denis Cote (Canada) Daniel y Ana de, Michel Franco (Mexico) Eastern Plays, Kamen Kalev (Bulgaria) La Famille Wolberg, Axelle Ropert (France) Go Get Some Rosemary, Benny and Josh Safdie (US) De Helaasheid der dingen, Felix Van Groeningen (Belgium) Here, Tzu-Nyen Ho (Singapore) Humpday, Lynn Shelton (US) I Love You Philip Morris, Glenn Ficarra and John Requa (US) Jai tue ma mere, Xavier Dolan (Canada) Like You Know It All, Hong Sangsoo (Korea) Karaoke, Chan Fui Chong (Malaysia) Navidad, Sebastian Lelio (Chili) Ne change rien, Pedro Costa (Portugal) Oxhide II, Liu Jia Yin, (China) La Pivellina, Tizza Covi and Rainer Frimmel, (Austria) Polytechnique, Denis Villeneuve, (Canada) Le Roi de levasion, Alain Guiraudie (France) La Terre de la folie, Luc Moullet (France) Tetro, Francis Ford Coppola (US) Yuki & Nina, Nobuhiro Suwa and Hippolyte Girardot (France, Japan) Short Films The History of Aviation, Balint Kenyeres (Hungary) American Minor, Charlie White (US) Anna, Runar Runarsson (Denmark) The Attack of the Robots from Nebula-5, Chema Garcia Ibarra (Spain) Song of Love and Health, Joao Nicolau (Portugal, France) Cicada, Amiel Courtin-Wilson (Australia) Drommar Fran Skogen, Johannes Nyholm (Sweden) Dust Kid, Yumi Jung (Korea) The Fugitives, Guillaume Leiter (France) Jagdfieber, Alessandro Comodin (Belgium) John Wayne Hated Horses, Andrew Betzer (US) Nice, Maud Alpi, (France) Superbarroco, Renata Pinheiro (Brazil) Thermidor, Virgil Vernier (France) Special Screening Montparnasse, Mikhael Hers, (France) Critics' Week: Competition Better Things, Duane Hopkins, (UK) The Stranger in Me, Emily Atef, (Germany) Everybody Dies But Me, Valeria Gaia Germanica, (Russia) Grown Ups, Anna Novion, (France, Sweden) Moscow, Belgium, Christophe van Rompaey, (Belgium) Blood Appears, Pablo Fendrik (Argentina, France, Germany) Snow, Aida Begic, (Iran, Bosnia, Germany, France) Competition Shorts Next Floor, Denis Villeneuve, (Canada) Skhizein, Jeremy Clapin, (France) I Hear Your Scream, Pablo Lamar, (Argentina, Paraguay) A Espera, Fernanda Teixeira, (Brazil) Ergo, Geza M. Toth, (Hungary) La copie de Coralie, Nicolas Engel, (France) Noseblood, Jeff Vespa, (US) Special Screenings Desierto adentro, Rodrigo Pla, (Mexico) Rumba, Dominique Abel, Fiona Gordon and Bruno Romy (Belgium, France), Les Sept jours, Ronit Elkabetz, Shlomi Elkabetz, (Israel, France)

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Chavez gift to Obama makes bestseller list

A book that Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez presented to the US President Barack Obama has become a bestseller in just two days. Open Veins of Latin America: Five Centuries of the Pillage of a Continent, was ranked 54,295 on the sales charts of Amazon.com before Chavez gave Obama the book. It has now jumped to number two. The book, written by Uruguayan author Eduardo Galeano, looks at the impact of foreign intervention in Latin America over the past five centuries. It was first published in Spanish in 1971, and offers a critique of the consequences of 500 years of European and US colonization of Latin America. President Chavez handed his American counterpart the book on the sidelines of the Summit of the Americas in Trinidad on Saturday. It was a Spanish-language paperback copy inscribed with the message: "For Obama, with affection." The Venezuelan President described Barack Obama as a 'poor ignoramus' in March 2009, adding that he "should read a little bit so that he learns about the reality," referring to Latin America.

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UN World Digital Library now online

The UN has launched the World Digital Library aimed at promoting peace and global cultural understanding via digital Internet technology. The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) launched the website which offers information in seven languages -- Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Portuguese, Spanish and Russian -- on Tuesday. Some 32 libraries and research institutions from 19 countries helped to create the site, which includes manuscripts, maps, rare books, films, sound recordings, prints and photographs. The online library is a “great initiative that will help to bridge the knowledge divide, promote mutual understanding and foster cultural and linguistic diversity,” said UNESCO's director general, Koichiro Matsuura. According to UNESCO's Assistant Director-General for Communications and Information, Abdul Waheed Khan, the project aims to promote social progress and better standards of living around the world by helping to build what he calls "inclusive knowledge societies." "Any vision of building inclusive knowledge societies has to be based on some fundamental principles -- for example, universal access to information and knowledge, cultural and linguistic diversity, freedom of expression, and quality education for all," Khan said. "To all the four fundamental principles of building knowledge societies, the digitization of libraries contributes. But it also contributes to the overall mandate of UNESCO. That is, through mutual understanding promoting peace," he added. "There are hundreds of thousands of libraries. Once you empower them through the digitization process, then you create almost unlimited opportunities for people to access information and knowledge," he further explained. The website, currently in early stages, cost $10 million and was financed by private donors, including Google, Microsoft, the Qatar Foundation, King Abdullah University in Saudi Arabia and the Carnegie Corporation of New York. The World Digital Library is available at worlddigitallibrary.org.

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Oxfam warns of climate-related disasters

Oxfam says the world's relief agencies will be overwhelmed by a rise in the number of people affected by climate-related disasters by 2015. According to a new Oxfam report on Tuesday, hundreds of millions of people will become victims of climate change-related disasters over the next six years unless the quantity and quality of aid improves. Based on data of similar disasters since 1980, Oxfam estimates the number of people affected by climatic disasters would rise by an average of 54% to 375 million people a year by 2015. The British-based aid and development charity further urged governments to take action in order to change the way they respond to such events. "The response is often fickle -- too little, too late and not good enough," said Oxfam chief executive Barbara Stocking. "The system can barely cope with the current levels of disasters and could be overwhelmed by a substantial increase in numbers of people affected. There must be a fundamental reform of the system." "While there has been a steady increase in climate-related events, it is poverty and political indifference that make a storm a disaster," she explained. According to Oxfam policy advisor, Rob Bailey, the problem was not just about the amount of money. "We need to see that money spent in better ways," Bailey said. "At the moment, poor people in the developing world who are facing up to these disasters, they are almost facing a kind of lottery on a global scale." "There's a huge mismatch in where the money goes," he concluded.

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Rookie writer beats Tony Morrison

Debut British novelist beats Nobel Prize-winning American author Toni Morrison for the shortlist of the 2009 Orange prize for fiction. Samantha Harvey's Wilderness was selected over Morrison's 17th century slave trade novel A Mercy. Harvey's novel recounts the story through the mind of an old man, who is struggling not to let Alzheimer's take hold of his mind. Also on the shortlist are Ellen Feldman for Scottsboro, Marilynne Robinson for Home, Samantha Hunt with The Invention of Everything Else, Deidre Madden for Molly Fox's Birthday and Kamila Shamsie for Burnt Shadows. "We were right down to the wire on several of the books and choosing just six was far harder than I had imagined, but we all left the judging room proud of the list we have chosen," the Guardian quoted the chair of judges, broadcaster Fi Glover as saying. The winner, who will be announced on 3 June, will receive £30,000 and a bronze statue known as the Bessie which was created by artist Grizel Niven, sister of British actor and writer David Niven. The annual Orange Broadband Prize for Fiction is one of Britain's most prestigious literary awardss, which is given to the best original full-length novel by a female author of any nationality, written in English and published in the UK in the preceding year.

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2009 Pulitzer Prize winners announced

The 2009 Pulitzer Prize winners have been announced in 21 categories during a ceremony at Columbia University in the city of New York. Established by journalist and newspaper publisher Joseph Pulitzer, the annual prize is an award for achievements in newspaper journalism, literature and musical composition. Only reports and photographs published by US-based newspapers or daily news organizations can be nominated for the journalism prize. Since 2007, however, online elements have also been permitted in all journalism categories except for the competition's two photography categories, which restrict entries to still images. The complete list of the 2009 Pulitzer Prize winners is as follows: Journalism: Public Service, Las Vegas Sun Breaking News Reporting, The New York Times staff Investigative Reporting, David Barstow, The New York Times Explanatory Reporting, Bettina Boxall and Julie Cart, Los Angeles Times Local Reporting, Detroit Free Press staff and Ryan Gabrielson and Paul Giblin, East Valley Tribune, Mesa, AZ National Reporting, St. Petersburg Times staff International Reporting, The New York Times staff Feature Writing, Lane DeGregory, St. Petersburg Times Commentary, Eugene Robinson, The Washington Post Criticism, Holland Cotter, The New York Times Editorial Writing, Mark Mahoney, The Post-Star, Glens Falls, NY Editorial Cartooning, Steve Breen, The San Diego Union-Tribune Breaking News Photography, Patrick Farrell, The Miami Herald Feature Photography, Damon Winter, The New York Times Letters, Drama and Music: Fiction Elizabeth Strout for Olive Kitteridge (Random House) Drama Lynn Nottage for Ruined History Annette Gordon-Reed for The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family (W.W. Norton & Company) Biography Jon Meacham for American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House (Random House) Poetry W.S. Merwin for The Shadow of Sirius (Copper Canyon Press) General Nonfiction Douglas A. Blackmon for Slavery by Another Name: The Re-Enslavement of Black Americans from the Civil War to World War II (Doubleday) Music Double Sextet by Steve Reich, premiered March 26, 2008 in Richmond, VA (Boosey & Hawkes)

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Iran, Pakistan to hold StarPeace party

Iranian astronomers are set to hold an open-to-public star party near the Iran-Pakistan border as part of the StarPeace project. Amateur Iranian astronomers will observe stars in Goatr village in Chabahar on the coast of the Gulf of Oman on May 1, 2009. A group of amateur astronomers will also hold a star party in Pakistan's Gwadar Port. The event aims to show the vastness of cosmos to the people, who live in border areas and are therefore more exposed to political turbulences, IRNA reported. Organized by Iran's Astronomical Society and the non-profit, non-governmental SkyPeace Organization, the project is held to celebrate the International Year of Astronomy. StarPeace project is meant to show there is no border in the real World and borders are a political concept made by humans. Four StarPeace parties have been held up to now, the first of which was held on Iran's Qeshm Island and Dubai in the UAE on Jan 1, 2009.

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UK unveils Laurel, Hardy statue

The UK has unveiled a bronze statue of the renowned comedian, Stan Laurel and his comic partner Oliver Hardy in Ulverston, Cumbria. The £60,000 bronze sculpture was unveiled by the 81-year-old British comedian Ken Dodd in front of a crowd including members of the international appreciation society of Laurel and Hardy, 'The Sons of the Desert'. The statue has been placed in the town's County Square where the duo appeared on the balcony of the Coronation Hall during a flying visit in 1947. This is while many art enthusiasts believe the cities will lose their beauty with so much bronze placed everywhere. The Guardian quoted Burlington Magazine editor, Richard Shone as saying that bronze statues are “not artistic” and “occasionally competent”. "There should be a society for the demolition of statues now because, in London especially, it's getting full." Chief executive of the public art think tank Ixia, Jonathan Banks also believes that using too much bronze is a "lazy, unimaginative" and "default" way of commemorating celebrities. The Laurel and Hardy sculptor Graham Ibbeson, however, says, "Some may say there are too many, but it is the will of the people." Stan Laurel (1890-1965) and Oliver Hardy (1892-1957) were among the most popular comedians of the early half of the 20th century and were known for their motion pictures and stage performances throughout America and Europe.

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Quake reveals ancient dwelling in Italy

The recent earthquake in Italy's central region of Abruzzo has unearthed a prehistoric human residence in the capital city of L'Aquila. According to the Italian daily La Stampa, the 6.3-magnitude quake revealed a number of vaulted caves as high as five meters. One of the biggest caves is found near L'Aquila's bus terminal and dates back to 15,000 years ago, Adnkronos International reported. "Some of the caves were hollowed out by the first shepherds to inhabit the area, who would also use them as shelters for their animals," said Antonio Moretti of L'Aquila University. While archeologists have been fascinated by the findings, geologists are concerned about the “fragility of the sediment on which the area is built.” The L'Aquila earthquake, which occured on March 6, 2009, destroyed and seriously damaged several thousand buildings in the city and its surrounding villages, killing 295 people and leaving 55,000 others homeless.

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Uncensored 'Madame Bovary' goes online

Some 4,500 pages of French writer Gustave Flaubert's Madame Bovary have been posted online, including the novel's censored parts. According to The Independent, the released pages includes the ones cut or revised by the author as well as the original 500 pages of the published version. Some 130 volunteers from around the world helped transcribe the texts which are available at bovary.fr. "No one person in a single lifetime could have achieved what they have," said project leader Yvan Leclerc, a professor at the University of Rouen. "It can take between three and 10 hours to decipher a single page of Flaubert's writing." The site also contains images of the Flaubert manuscripts and some interactive controls which help users re-instate the passages edited or cut by Flaubert and his publishers. When Madame Bovary first appeared in serial form in La Revue de Paris, Flaubert and his publishers were prosecuted for "outraging public and religious morals." Flaubert was acquitted, however, and his novel became a bestseller that continued to be one of the most influential novels ever written.

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Traffic costs Tehran 20M hours per day

Citizens of the Iranian capital waste about 20 million hours in traffic jams each day, the latest analysis by Tehran Municipality shows. By several measures, the report found Tehran had the worst traffic in the entire country. The report stated that an average Tehran rush-hour driver wastes more than 1.5 hours a day in slow or stopped traffic. Based on the analysis of transportation experts in Tehran, traffic jams in the Iranian capital waste 13 million Tehran citizens around 20 million hours per day. Roads and alternatives like public transportation and telecommuting are not keeping pace with the increased number of kilometers people are driving, which is causing the congestion. “Tehran Municipality has put public transportation at the top of priorities of its urban policies,” said Tehran deputy mayor for transportation and traffic affairs, Jafar Tashakkori-Hashemi. "There's a combination of factors, like the amount of people, the amount of roadway to be considered in the matter. The demand-supply relationship in Tehran is falling apart. The capital is experiencing a lot more demand than there is supply." “In order to remedy the crisis, the government and the municipality need to cooperate. Tehran's subway system needs a $120-million investment, which should be provided jointly by the government and Tehran municipality,” Tashakkori-Hashemi noted.

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19 dead, scores hurt in Mexico bus crash

At least 19 people have been killed and 62 others injured in a deadly highway collision in the southeastern Mexican State of Chiapas. Early reports say that one bus was about to overtake another vehicle when it collided with another incoming bus. The Chiapas' Department of Civil Protection (DPC) said in a statement on Friday that eleven women and two children are amongst the dead. Luis Manuel Garcia, Civil Protection official said, "It was a head on collision and emergency teams arrived at the scene immediately to rescue the injured, and they have been taken to different hospitals in Tuzla Gutierrez and in Cintalapa, Chiapas." The accident took place on a highway near the border town of Ocozocoautla just across the Guatemalan border. Reckless driving and poor road conditions are among the key reasons for driving casualties in Mexico.

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24 injured in Germany's train accident

At least 24 people have been injured after their commuter train was derailed around Berlin, disrupting the capital's transportation. Twenty two passengers plus two railway staff were hurt in the accident which took place around Berlin-Karow region late on Thursday. The victims, five of them in critical condition, were taken to nearby hospitals. German police say they have been looking into the matter but have not so far been able to establish the root cause of the derailment. Rescue efforts continue as fears of further casualties forced authorities to shut down the area's railway lines.

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Nuremburg to auction Hitler paintings

Two signed watercolors by the former German dictator Adolf Hitler will be sold at auction later this month in Nuremburg, Germany. According to the local daily Nurnberger Abendzeitung on Thursday, the landscape paintings -- entitled "Farmstead" and "Farm Buildings On The River" -- will go under the hammer on April 25. The paintings date from 1914. The Weidler auction house, which is offering the works for sale, said in a catalogue that the bidding was due to start at 3,500 euros (4,600 dollars). One of Hitler's paintings was sold by the same auction house for 11,000 euros in 2006. Thirteen Hitler watercolors, including an apparent self-portrait, are also slated to be sold at auction in the British town of Ludlow on April 23. The watercolors were found in a suitcase in an attic in Belgium. The Academy of Arts in Vienna rejected Hitler's application to study when he was young because his painting showed insufficient merit.

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Three dead at US hospital shooting

A US hospital worker has killed two colleagues at a medical center before committing suicide amid a surge in deadly shootings in the country. Police said on Thursday that Mario Ramirez of Alhambra killed the two people at Long Beach Memorial Medical Center in Southern California. Hugo Bustamante of Cypress and Kelly Hales of Redondo Beach were the victims, according to investigators. Bustamante died at the scene but Hales died several hours later from injuries suffered in the shooting, police said. Police Chief Anthony Batts told AP that Ramirez's motive remains under investigation. Last week, an American student killed his classmate at the Henry Ford Community College in Detroit before shooting himself dead. The Long Beach hospital is one of six health care facilities in Southern California operated by the not-for-profit Memorial Care system, run by Memorial Health Services.

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Long-lost tomb of Cleopatra 'discovered'

Archeologists believe that they have finally found the final resting place of 'Cleopatra' -- the celebrated queen of ancient Egypt. Zahi Hawass, director of Egypt's Superior Council for Antiquities, said Wednesday that a radar survey of the Tabusiris Magna temple has found a complex tunnel system that may contain the tombs of Cleopatra VII and celebrated Roman general, Mark Antony. Teams from Egypt and the Dominican Republic will next week begin excavating the sites, which lie some 17 miles from the city of Alexandria. The archeologists had previously found a bust of Cleopatra made of alabaster, 22 coins bearing her image, as well as a mask believed to belong to Mark Antony. According to historic takes, Cleopatra and Mark Anthony committed suicide after being defeated in the battle of Actium. Their remains were never found. A recent study by British scholars claimed that Cleopatra, was of Macedonian stock and contrary to popular belief not a beauty. Academics at the University of Newcastle have also argued that Cleopatra was a pointy-nosed, thin-lipped woman with a jutting jaw line - an assessment based on a Roman coin.

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World celebrates Chaplin's birthday

Well-wishers celebrate the great comic artist Charlie Chaplin's 120th birthday, commemorating his lifelong endeavor as silent film king. Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin, Jr. (16 April 1889 - 25 December 1977), better known as Charlie Chaplin, was an Academy Award-winning English comedic actor and filmmaker. The art of Charlie Chaplin came out most clearly in pantomime as he expressed the deepest emotions. Chaplin's amazing appearances reached their peak for movie audiences in Kid Auto Races at Venice. “The Little Tramp" character makes his first appearance in this film. The silent film depicts a spectator at a “baby-cart race” in California. The spectator keeps getting in the way of the camera and interferes with the race, causing great frustration to the public and participants. “I had no idea of the character,” Chaplin admits when recalling the Tramp's conception in his autobiography, “but the moment I was dressed, the clothes and makeup made me feel the person he was.” The clothes he'd grabbed on his way from wardrobe were over-sized, loose-fitting pants, big shoes, a cane, and a derby hat. “I wanted everything a contradiction: the pants baggy, the coat tight, the hat small and the shoes large.” The Little Tramp's spirit captured the entire universe, sometimes presenting a bitter view of reality; he introduced various paradoxes of life. Let's follow the example of Charlie Chaplin and never be afraid of giving expression to the many faces of life. We can counter bitter faces with wise laughter.

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ISS room not to be named after Colbert

NASA has named its new ISS room 'Tranquillity', despite TV comedian Stephen Colbert's attempts to name the new Node 3 after himself. Astronaut Sunita L. Williams announced the news on 'The Colbert Report' show, saying that NASA is set to make a new Combined Operational Load-Bearing External Resistance Treadmill (COLBERT) as an important part of the International Space Station. "Your name will be in space in a very important place," Williams told Colbert on his TV show. "Everyday somebody will have to jump on the COLBERT." Comedian Stephen Colbert won an online NASA poll, held in March to name the new Node 3, which will be launched aboard the Endeavour space shuttle later this year and house life support equipment. The late-night comedian won the contest by urging viewers of his Comedy Central show, 'The Colbert Report', to write in his name, Reuters reported. This is not the first time that the comedian encourages his fans to enter the name Colbert in competitions. He urged his viewers to nominate his name for a bridge in Hungary, and to write him on the South Carolina presidential primary ballot. Colbert has so far been successful in putting his name on a peregrine falcon in California, a flavor of Ben and Jerry's ice cream and a Virgin Atlantic plane.

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French writer Maurice Druon dies at 90

The renowned French writer and former culture minister, Maurice Druon, who fought in the World War II resistance movement dies at 90. Known for his series of historical novels, The Accursed Kings, Druon died at the age of 90 on Tuesday, the Academie Francaise announced. Druon wrote over 50 books between 1942 and 2006 and received the 1948 Prix Goncourt, France's most prestigious literary prize, for his novel Les Grandes Familles. Druon was elected to the Academie Francaise to succeed Georges Duhamel in 1966, and served as the French culture minister in the early 1970s, AFP reported. Druon, who was known as a fervent protector of the French language and traditions, was hailed by President Nicolas Sarkozy as a 'grand scribe and a grand soul.'

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Jews used human skulls in Talmudic era

Archaeologists have found evidence suggesting that ancient Jews used human skulls in ceremonies, despite their religious beliefs. Although there is a strict Halakhic prohibition on touching human remains, recently published findings suggest that ancient Jews might have ignored the rules. Southampton University researchers said that human skulls were found in present-day Iraq (formerly Babylonia) that are believed to have been used during the Talmudic era. According to researcher Dan Levene, some of the skulls bear Aramaic inscriptions and at least one of them seems to belong to a woman. "When I presented these findings in Israel, people told me, 'It is not possible that this is Jewish,'" said Levene. "But it is certainly Jewish." Levene says many desperate people used talisman in the past and skulls were also used to ward off ghosts or demons, Haaretz reported. "The fact remains that belief in demons was widespread at this time among Jews as well as other peoples," writes Levene in a report published in Biblical Archaeological Review. "Incantation bowls are known not only from Jewish communities but from other communities as well."

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London holds Afghan cultural festival

London's Tricycle Theatre has held an Afghan cultural festival, presenting plays, films, concerts, exhibitions, and discussion sessions. The two-month Great Game festival aims to provide a better understanding of Afghanistan's cultural and historical situation. The plays staged at the festival have been divided into three sections of Invasions And Independence (1842-1930), Communism, The Mujahideen and The Taliban (1979-1996) and Enduring Freedom (1996-2009), each focusing on a particular period of Afghan history. Ron Hutchinson's Durand's Line, Stephen Jeffreys's Bugles at the Gates of Jalalabad, David Edgar's Black Tulips and Richard Bean's On The Side Of The Angels are among the plays that will be staged during the festival. The Tricycle director Nicholas Kent, who is known for his efforts to highlight injustice with documentary plays, says the festival aims to convey the message that how the lessons from history could help making future decisions, BBC reported. The term 'Great Game', which was introduced by British novelist Rudyard Kipling in his 1901 novel Kim, refers to the strategic rivalry and conflict between the British Empire and the Russian Empire for supremacy in Central Asia. The classic Great Game period covered approximately from the Russo-Persian Treaty of 1813 to the Anglo-Russian Convention of 1907.

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Brightly-painted mummies found in Egypt

Egyptian Archaeologists have found dozens of brightly-painted 4,000-year-old mummies in an oasis located south of the capital Cairo. According to Egypt's antiquities chief, Zahi Hawass, The linen-wrapped mummies were unearthed in a necropolis near the Ilahun pyramid in Fayoum oasis. "The mission found dozens of mummies in 53 rock-hewn tombs dating to the Middle Kingdom", Hawass told AFP. "Four of the mummies date back to the 22nd Dynasty (931 to 725 BC) and are considered some of the most beautiful mummies found," he said. The mummies are painted in bright turquoise, terracotta and gold, which were the traditional colors of ancient Egypt. Led by Abdel-Rahman El-Ayedi, the team also found a funerary chapel with an offering table, which dates back to the Middle Kingdom and was probably used until the Roman era (30 BCE to 337 CE). According to Hawass, 15 painted masks were also discovered during the excavation along with amulets and clay pots.

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Deadly fires, tornado rage through US

Firefighters have battled deadly wildfires across Texas and Oklahoma while tornados turn houses into rubble across Tennessee and Arkansas. Three people were killed and 32 homes were destroyed on Friday in Texas as high winds fueled fires which burned 100,000 acres (40,500 hectares) in the Lone Star state and filled the skies with thick clouds of smoke, the Texas Forest Service said. The fires devastated two small towns north of Dallas as high winds and bone dry conditions fueled the flames which raced across parched fields and swallowed homes, the station reported. Oklahoma's governor declared a state of emergency in 31 counties on Friday after 49 people were injured and 100 homes were destroyed by the fires which flared up on Thursday. Elsewhere, three people were killed and 23 were hurt after a tornado touched down in the town of Mena on Thursday evening, the Arkansas Department of Emergency Management said. The storms damaged more than 150 homes and businesses in 11 counties.

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Indian fireworks blaze kills 23

Tens of workers are killed and scores are injured in a blaze at a fireworks factory in western India, the country's emergency services says. Fire broke out on Friday afternoon at the Savitri Fireworks Factory in Parola, west of the town of Jalgaon in the Maharashtra state, some 465 kilometers northwest of Mumbai, killing 23 people and injuring nearly 50 others. No immediate cause was given for the fire. An explosion at an illegal fireworks factory in northern India in October of last year had also killed at least 23 people, 10 of them children. A month earlier in September 2008, five children and three adults died after a house exploded where firecrackers were being made for the Hindu 'festival of lights' -- Diwali.

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US to build first solar-powered city

An American developer is planning to construct the country's first solar-powered city in southwestern Florida, on the Gulf Coast. Sponsored by FPL Group Inc's utility Florida Power & Light and Kitson & Partners realty group, the city will be built with a $2 billion budget less than 20 miles from Fort Myers. The utility says the solar plant will be the world's largest photovoltaic solar plant in an environment-friendly city. The 'Babcock Ranch' city will have 19,500 houses and about 6 million square feet of retail, light industrial, and office space. "Babcock Ranch will be a living laboratory for companies, workers and families ready to reap the rewards of innovation," chief executive of Kitson & Partners, Syd Kitson told a press conference introducing the project. The project is expected to create 20,000 jobs, use solar power for daily activities and have the ability to export solar power by producing more than the amount it needs. According to Reuters, the city will also have wireless Internet access and electric-car chargers. Construction of the city-center will begin in June 2010, while building the first residential and commercial structures will start in late 2010.

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World Digital Library nears launch

The count down has begun for the launch of the World Digital Library which is expected to grant users free access to multilingual material. The website, to be launched on April 21 at UNESCO's Paris headquarters, will offer rare books, maps, manuscripts, films and photographs from libraries and archives from around the globe. Users will be able to access the material in seven languages - Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish. Some 32 partner institutions from Brazil, Britain, China, Egypt, France, Japan, Russia, Saudi Arabia and the US helped UNESCO with the project which was developed by the world's biggest library, the US Library of Congress, AFP reported. The World Digital Library was first proposed to UNESCO in 2005 by the Librarian of Congress, James Billington. The World Digital Library will be available at worlddigitallibrary.org.

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Three police officers killed in US

The latest shooting in the United States has claimed the lives of three police officers after a rampage in New York State killed 14. 

The incident happened in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where a gunman wearing a bullet-proof vest opened fire on the officers. 

Police Chief Nathan Harper said the motive for the shooting is not clear but friends said the killer had been upset about losing his job and feared the Obama administration was planning to ban guns. 

The gunman identified as Richard Poplawski was wounded in the battle and surrendered. 

The three dead officers were named as Eric Kelly, Stephen Mayhle and Paul Sciullo III. 

Two other officers were also wounded in the shooting. 

The shooting occurred just two weeks after four police officers were fatally shot in Oakland, California.

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Canada parliament recognizes 'Nowruz Day'

The Canadian parliament has designated the vernal equinox or the first day of spring as 'Nowruz Day', marking the Persian New Year. 

Liberals' motion, which was initially rejected by conservatives last week, passed through the House of Commons by unanimous consent on March 30th, 2009, Toronto Iranians reported. 

Establishing Nowruz Day is breakthrough in recognizing the influential role of the Iranian-Canadian community in Canadian life and culture, said Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff. 

Despite resistance from Conservative government members, I am happy to see that the Parliament of Canada has designated the first day of spring as Nowruz Day, he said. 

"This recognition by the Canadian Parliament of such an important cultural tradition underscores our commitment to the multicultural society we have built together." 

Liberal parliamentarian for Richmond Hill Bryon Wilfert also expressed his delight saying, "This is a victory for multiculturalism and specifically for all those Canadians of Persian descent that hold the celebration of Nowruz so dear." 

"This is not just a matter of recognition, but gives Iranian-Canadians the respect they deserve."

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Gabriel Garcia Marquez quits writing

Celebrated Colombian author Gabriel Garcia Marquez has retired from writing, the Nobel Prize winner's agent told a Chilean paper. 

"I don't think that Garcia Marquez will write anything else," Carmen Balcells was quoted as saying by the La Tercera newspaper on Thursday. 

Garcia Marquez, the pioneer of the literary school of magical realism, won a reputation in 1967, when his One Hundred Years of Solitude was published. 

The 82-year-old has not written anything since the publication of Memoirs of My Melancholy Whores five years ago. 

His biographer, Gerald Martin, also told La Tercera that he doubted if anything new will be published in Garcia Marquez's lifetime. 

"I also believe that Gabo won't write any more books, but I don't think this is too regrettable, because as a writer it was his destiny to have the immense satisfaction of having a totally coherent literary career many years before the end of his natural life." 

This is while Plinio Apuleyo Mendoza, a Colombian writer and a friend of Garcia Marquez, had said last year that Garcia Marquez was working on a new novel. 

The Colombian media had also said earlier that a new book by Garcia Marquez, tentatively titled We Will See Each Other in August was to be published later in 2009. 

Marquez, the 1982 winner of the Nobel Prize for literature, had told fans at a Mexican book fair last December that he was becoming worn out by writing.

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Scientists do marriage survival math

Scientists believe a mathematical model can determine whether a couple will live happily ever after or end up seeking a divorce. 

Researchers claim that their technique has an accuracy of 94 percent and can predict the length of a marital relationship long before problems arise. 

Developed by a team of British and American mathematicians, the formula has been tested on 700 newlyweds so far. 

The team filmed couples while they discussed contentious issues such as money or in-laws - for 15 minutes and then scored their statements using a points system. 

Statements made with humor or affection were given positive points, while those made with anger, coldness, eye rolling or mockery were given negative ones. 

The scores were then plotted on a graph and the results were put into a mathematical model used to determine whether the relationship would last. 

“If both partners are what we call validators - that is they are calm in discussions, have shared experiences and have shared attitudes - their marriage is stable,” said Professor James Murray of Oxford University who helped devise the formula. 

“If both partners avoid conflict or confrontation, then that is also stable,” he added. 

The couples were then tracked over a period of 12 years to see whether their marriages stood the test of time or not, Dailymail reported. 

“What astonished me was that a discussion, sometimes highly charged and emotional, could so easily and usefully be encapsulated in what is actually a simple mathematical model of a couple's interaction,” said Professor Murray. 

“Another surprising result was that marriages can be classified into only five general types, some of which are stable and others not. In fact some couples might as well get divorced right away.”

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Louvre most visited museum in 2008

With some 8.5 million visitors, the Louvre in Paris has been announced as the world's most visited museum in 2008 by The Art Newspaper. 

The British Museum in London with 5.93 million and the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. with 4.96 million visitors came in second and third. 

London's Tate Modern, New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art and The Vatican Museums in Rome ranked next with 4.95, 4.82 and 4.44 million visitors respectively. 

The highest-ranked Asian museum was Tokyo's National Art Center which won the 13th place with 2.47 million visitors. 

The newspaper also listed the 2008 exhibitions with the largest number of daily visitors and Japan won the first two spots with the 60th Annual Exhibition of Shoso-in Treasures at the Nara National Museum ( with about 17,926 visitors a day) and the National Treasures from Yakushi-ji Temple at the Tokyo National Museum ( with approximately 12,762 viewers a day). 

The rankings were based on the figures received by The Art Newspaper from each museum.

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Kids' Choice Awards names 2009 winners

The Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards (KCAs) has announced its 2009 winners during a ceremony held at the Pauley Pavilion, Los Angeles. 

The winners of the 22nd KCAs are as follows: 

Favorite Movie: 

High School Musical 3: Senior Year 

Favorite Movie Actor: 

Will Smith for Hancock 

Favorite Animated Movie: 

Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa 

Favorite Movie Actress: 

Vanessa Hudgens for High School Musical 3: Senior Year 

Favorite Voice from an Animated Movie: 

Jack Black as Po in Kung Fu Panda 

Television 

Favorite TV Show: 

iCarly 

Favorite Reality Show: 

American Idol 

Favorite Television Actress: 

Selena Gomez for Wizards of Waverly 

Favorite Television Actor: 

Cole Sprouse for The Suite Life of Zack and Cody 

Favorite Cartoon: 

SpongeBob SquarePants 

The Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards (KCAs) is an annual awards show, which chooses the year's biggest television, movie and music acts based on the votes cast by the people (mostly kids). 

The KCAs is broadcast in the UK, Europe, Russia, Asia, Australia, Latin America and Brazil. It also produces nine fully localized annual Kids Choice Awards in the UK, Germany, Sweden, Holland, Italy, Brazil, Australia and China.

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