NASA Pictures Show Mercury is Shrinking

Pictures from the unseen side of Mercury show wrinkles from the shrinking planet and residue from volcanic eruptions. There is also a large landmark that is shaped like a spider.

NASA’s Messenger probe brought back 1,213 pictures and images that show that there are ancient volcanoes on Mercury and the planet is shrinking as it gets older, causing ridges. It is assumed that as the core of Mercury cools down, it contracts and the entire planet shrinks. As the planet shrinks, crust is pushed over one another and forms ridges. Other images showed a spider like shape on the surface. It is made up of a crater with dozens of ridge lines coming from it.

Mercury is the closest planet to the sun and before it was thought that the planet was dull like our moon but recent photos show that the planet is more colorful and has areas of baby blues and reds. Mercury also has at least one crater that is filled with its own version of lava.

Cut the Risk of Cerebral Palsy in Premature Babies

The risk of cerebral palsy in premature babies can be cut by giving the mothers magnesium sulfate just before they give birth. The mineral compound is used already to treat pregnancy-related high blood pressure and to stop early labor. The mineral is cheap and not harmful.

Cerebral palsy is a serious condition and complication of premature babies. It is caused by damage to the part of the brain that controls movement. It would cause poor muscle control and coordination. It is not completely clear how magnesium sulfate words but it is assumed that it opens up the blood vessels in the infant’s brain. The mineral is also a sedative and can make the mothers and infants feel sleepy.

There also was a study that found that women that take folic acid for at least a year before they get pregnant could reduce their chances of premature birth by 50 to 70 percent. Taking folic acid is already recommended for women to prevent birth defects of the brain and spinal cord, such as spina bifada.

Montel Williams Ends His Talk Show

The syndicated talk show “The Montel Williams Show” will stop production after this television season. Stations that air his show will be offered a series of reruns. Stations would show the “Best of Montel,” which is 52 weeks of some of the most interesting episodes from the history of the show. The “Montel Williams Show” has been airing for 17 years.

Strange Man Arrested at Brad Pitt’s Home

A man who said that he was a freelance reporter was arrested outside of Brad Pitt’s Los Angeles home. A housekeeper called the police about noon on Wednesday after she saw a car blocking the driveway. The man got out of the car and asked whether the house belonged to Brad Pitt. The reporter was arrested for investigation of trespassing and was taken into custody. The housekeeper will be the one to decide whether or not to press charges. Neither Pitt nor Angelina Jolie was home at the time.

Poor Haitians Having to Eat Dirt

Due to rising food prices, many poor people in Haiti can’t afford food and have to resort to eating mud and dirt. A traditional Haitian remedy for curing hunger pains involves making cookies from dried yellow dirt from Haiti’s central plateau. For a long time the mud has been used by pregnant women and children as an antacid and a source of calcium.

Food prices around the entire world have increased due to higher oil prices and oil is needed for fertilizer, irrigation, and transportation. The increase in demand for biofuels is also affecting the food markets. The Caribbean islands depend heavily on imported goods and food prices have risen 40 percent in some areas.

The 2007 hurricane season caused floods and crop damage so bad that the U.N. Food and Agriculture Agency had to declare states of emergency in Haiti and other Caribbean countries. Leaders in the Caribbean held an emergency summit in December to talk about reducing food taxes and making large regional farms to decrease the dependence on imported goods.

The cost of the dirt isn’t free. The dirt to make 100 cookies costs $5. About 80 percent of the Haitian population lives on less than $2 per day. Merchants would bring the dirt by truck from a central town to the food market. Women would buy the dirt and then process it into mud cookies. They would have to strain out the rocks and clumps from the dirt on a sheet and stir in shortening and salt to make the cookies. The cookies would be left out in the sun to dry. Some people sell the cookies in the market or on the street to make money.

It is not safe to eat the mud cookies because dirt can have deadly parasites or toxins. The cookies can also cause malnutrition. A positive thing about the cookies though is that they can strengthen the immunity of fetuses in pregnant women.

Yahoo Lays Off 1,000 Workers

Yahoo Inc. is planning to lay off 1,000 of their 14,300 workers due to their 23 percent decrease in fourth-quarter profits and not being sure about their financial outlook for 2008. After the news was released, Yahoo shares hit their lowest levels in more than four years. Their market value has decreased more than 50 percent since the end of 2005.

Yahoo didn’t say which areas of its operations would be cut but some of the employees whose jobs are being eliminated might be offered new jobs in other parts of the company. Yahoo expects to pay between $20 million to $25 million for severance and other costs in the lay off. With the lay offs and cost cuttings, Yahoo could save more than$100 million dollars in costs and offset some of the financial loss that they expect from a re-negotiated partnership with AT&T Inc to provide high-speed Internet service. Yahoo and AT&T will share the revenue made through online advertising.

Yahoo hasn’t stopped making money but their profits fell by 12 percent in 2007 even though advertisers spent a lot of money on the Internet. The company is also working hard to try to attract more teenagers and young adults to the site.

Foxy Brown’s Travel Plea Denied

A New York judge has denied the rapper Foxy Brown’s request to get out of jail early so that she could go to California to get her ear examined and get her electronic ear implant repaired. Foxy Brown first revealed she had hearing problems during a 2004 court appearance. In her petition to the judge, she stated that her hearing condition was getting worse in jail and that it would get seriously worse unless she had the cochlear implant reprogrammed and repaired. She could get treatment in New York, but her attorneys say that she needs to be treated by specialists at House Clinic in California.

Actor Danny Glover Convicted of Trespassing

The actor Danny Glover was convicted on Thursday of trespassing in a hotel in Niagara Falls, Ontario during an union rally in 2006. He was convicted along with UNITE HERE union representative, Alex Dagg, and Ontario Federation of Labour President, Wayne Samuelson.

The three people were charged with trespassing at a Niagara Falls hotel during a Sept 16, 2006 protest. The protest was part of a larger campaign to increase salaries and improve the working conditions for hotel workers in the U.S. and Canada. The UNITE HERE organization represents 50,000 hotel, food service, garment, and manufacturing workers in Canada and 450,000 in North America.

Lil Wayne Charged with Felony Charges

On Friday, the Yuma County Attorney’s Office filed felony drug and weapons charges against the rapper Lil Wayne. He was charged in justice court in Welton, Arizona with one count of each possession of a narcotic drug for sale, possession of dangerous drugs, misconduct involving weapons, and one count of drug paraphernalia. On February 12^th, he is scheduled to appear at a preliminary hearing. While Lil Wayne was in court, the judge lifted a bail restriction that would prohibit him from leaving the state until his next hearing.

Lil Wayne was previously stopped at a U.S. Border Patrol checkpoint. He was traveling with a11 other people in Arizona when a Border Patrol canine unit alerted agents that there were illegal drugs on the bus. A search of the bus found 4 ounces of marijuana, over one ounce of cocaine, 41 grams of ecstasy, miscellaneous drug paraphernalia, and a .40 caliber pistol that was registered to Lil Wayne, who has a concealed weapons permit in Florida.

Lil Wayne Busted With Drugs at Border Checkpoint

The rapper Lil Wayne was arrested on three felony drug charges after federal agents found illegal drugs, including cocaine, on his charter bus at a checkpoint in southwestern Arizona. He was released from jail shortly after paying his $10,185 bail amount. He has not been formally charged with anything yet and his next court date is scheduled for Jan 25^th, where he will find out if the Yuma county attorney will file charges.

He faces charges of possession of dangerous drugs, narcotics, and drug paraphernalia. The drugs found with him included 4 ounces of marijuana, 41 grams of Ecstacy, and over an ounce of cocaine and drug paraphernalia. Also, a .40-caliber pistol that is registered to Lil Wayne was found, who has a concealed weapons permit in Florida.

Amy Winehouse Video Taped Smoking Crack

The Sun, a British tabloid, released a video showing singer Amy Winehouse smoking crack. The video was shot just hours before she went to a court hearing for her husband that is in jail.

See The Video and Read More: http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/bizarre/article710911.ece

Rapper Busta Rhymes Sentenced to Probation

A judge in Manhattan sentenced Busta Rhymes to three years on probation and 10 days of community service for previously assaulting his former driver and a fan. He was also fined $1,250 and court costs for driving while intoxicated with a suspended license. He pleaded guilty to all charges against him in Manhattan Criminal Court. He also must enroll in a DWI program.

Study Says Social People Get Fat and Worriers Lose WeightA new study from Japan finds that outgoing people are more at risk for being overweight and t

A new study from Japan finds that outgoing people are more at risk for being overweight and there is a link between weight, body mass index, and personality. The study is based on more than 30,000 people in northeastern Japan who were between the ages of 40 and 64. They were quizzed on their height and weight and given a personality test. The test concluded that outgoing men were 1.73 times more likely to be obese and outgoing women were 1.53 times more likely to be obese than people that were worriers.

Read More: http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,23092710-1702,00.html

Food Poisoning Causes Long-Term Health Problems

It is known that food poisoning, E. coli, and other food borne illnesses can cause serious health problems for months or years after the person survives through it. High blood pressure, kidney damage, and full kidney failure could happen even 10 or 20 years later in people who had a severe E. coli infection as a child. Arthritis could happen after suffer from Shigella. A mysterious paralysis could happen to people who had mild symptoms of campylobacter.

The late effects make up a small amount of the 76 million annual food poisonings in the U.S. Other illnesses could possibly be linked to food poisoning. Some people that had food poisoning earlier in their life have to get kidney transplants later in their life. Some people get scarred intestines that cause long term digestive problems. About 10 percent of people that have suffered E. coli develop a very severe problem called hemolytic uremic syndrome, where their kidneys and other organs would fail.

Some people who suffer from campylobacter, which is a diarrhea-causing infection that is spread by raw poultry, develop Guillain-Barre syndrome at least a month later. Their body would attack their nerves and cause paralysis that would require intensive care and a ventilator to breathe.

Some people develop reactive arthritis at least six months after they have salmonella. It would cause joint pain, eye inflammation, and possibly painful urination. It could also cause chronic arthritis.

Usher’s Father Dies

The singer Usher’s biological father, Usher Raymond III, has died in an Atlanta hospital on Friday of unknown causes. It is known that Usher, his wife Tameka, and his mother Jonetta Patton where by his side when he passed away.

Rapper DMX Ordered to Pay $1.5 Million Dollars

The rapper DMX has been ordered by a judge to pay over $1.5 million dollars to the mother of his child after he didn’t show up to court to defend himself against allegations of defamation. He was being sued by a woman named Monique Wayne for defamation of character after he told a magazine that Wayne raped him while at a Baltimore hotel in 2003, which caused her to get pregnant. Wayne then filed a $6 million dollar lawsuit against DMX in October of 2006. The judge ruled in favor of Wayne when DMX didn’t show up to court. He is ordered to pay her $518,400 in compensation and $1 million dollars in punitive penalties.

Singer Lily Allen Has Miscarriage

The singer Lily Allen has had a miscarriage. She first announced that she was pregnant last month. Her boyfriend is Ed Simons from the musical group The Chemical Brothers. Allen is expected to release her next album later this year.

Lily Allen: http://www.lilyallenmusic.com

Gary Coleman’s Pants Bought for $400,000

Someone on eBay bid $400,000 for a pair of actor Gary Coleman’s sweatpants. It won’t be known until the auction is over if the bidder is serious.

Read More: http://www.eonline.com/news/article/index.jsp?uuid=9b50afff-fb30-4826-b08c-6ffdb450bd1d

Lindsay Lohan Sentenced to Work In Morgue

The actress Lindsay Lohan was court-ordered to spend two four-hour days working in a morgue for part of her punishment for misdemeanor drunken driving. She also has to spend two days working in a hospital emergency room. She has already spent two months in rehab, has done some community service, and spent 84 minutes in jail after she was arrested and pleaded guilty last August to drunken driving and possession of cocaine.

Read More: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,323737,00.html

Judge Seeks To Let Foxy Brown Out of Jail

Supreme Court Justice Melissa Jackson says that she wants more information on rapper Foxy Brown’s hearing problems before she lets her get out of jail to go to California for the repair of a defective electronic ear implant. She says that she wants proof of the rapper’s deafness. Foxy Brown, whose real name is Inga Marchand, revealed her hearing issues during a court appearance in 2004. Her petition says that her hearing problems are getting worse in jail and she needs to have the cochlear implant reprogrammed and repaired.

Foxy Brown was sentenced to a year in prison in September of 2007 for violating her probation. She was placed on probation for a misdemeanor assault of two manicurists at a Manhattan nail salon in August of 2004.

Time Warner Basing Internet Prices on Web Usage

This year, Time Warner Cable will experiment with a new pricing structure for their high-speed Internet service that will charge customers based on how much data they download each month.. A trial will start in Beaumont, Texas, where they will sell new Internet customers service based on how much data they download each month instead of having a fixed price with unlimited downloads. They want to make it more expensive for people that download a lot of content, especially videos.

Cold Medicines Bad for Toddlers and Babies

The government is recently stating that over-the-counter cough and cold medicines are not safe for toddlers and babies. In October, drug companies stopped selling dozens of nonprescription cold medicines that were targeted towards young children and babies. The Food and Drug Administration’s scientific advisers voted that the drugs don’t work in small children and shouldn’t be used on any children under the age of 6 years old.

The Food and Drug Administration hasn’t decided yet if OTC decongestants, antihistamines, and cough suppressants are okay for children older than 6 years old. The FDA is warning that serious and possibly life-threatening side effects can happen. The possibilities of serious side effects are small but they do happen to some children. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported more than 1,500 babies and toddlers had to go to the emergency room over a two-year period because of the drugs and medicines. The biggest risks come from giving a child an overdose of medicine.

If a toddler or baby is sick, it is best to give the child plenty of liquids, let the child get lots of rest, give the child saline drops if it has a stuffy nose, and use humidifiers while the child is sleeping.

Scientists Produce Human Embryo Clones

There are scientists in California that have made embryos that are clones of two different men. The embryos were made using ordinary skin cells. The next big thing they are waiting for is to make a human embryonic stem cell line from cloned human embryos. Scientists think that stem cells from cloned embryos could be used to study diseases, screen drugs, and make transplant materials to treat conditions, such as diabetes and Parkinson’s disease.

The problems with cloning human embryos include, creating human lives in a laboratory purposely to destroy them to benefit and help other people, there are health risks involved in the process, and exploiting the women who are asked to provide eggs.

The cloning process works by injecting DNA from a person into an egg. The egg would grow into an embryo in about five days. Then, stem cells would be extracted from the embryo.

Journal of Stem Cells: http://stemcells.alphamedpress.org

Info on Stem Cells: http://stemcells.nih.gov

Dog Barks Translated By Computer

There are scientists at Eotvos Lorand University in Budapest, Hungary that has recorded more than 6,000 dog barks, which were by 14 different Hungarian sheepdogs, and fed the sounds to a computer program which was able to categorized the barks into categories that included “stranger,” “fight,” “alone,” “ball,” “walk,” and “play.” The computer also was able to pick out different dogs by their bark.

Read More: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/main.jhtml?view=DETAILS&grid=&xml=/earth/2008/01/16/scidog116.xml

Oprah Winfrey Getting Her Own Television Network

Oprah Winfrey is set to own her own television network. Discovery Communications and Winfrey made a deal where the Discovery Health network will be turned over to Winfrey next year. The deal didn’t involve any money but involved Winfrey turning over her Web site to Discovery. Winfrey will also be named chairman of the network. The new Oprah run network will focus on educating and inspiring people to live the best life they can.

Mayor of Hollywood Dies

The honorary mayor of Hollywood, Johnny Grant has died at the age of 84 of natural causes. Grant was found dead on a bed in the Hollywood Roosevelt hotel, where he lived, in a 14^th floor suite.

In his lifetime he inducted more than 500 celebrities into the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He hosted red carpet Oscar arrivals and Walk of Fame festivities. He was in bit parts of movies and produced Hollywood’s annual Christmas Parade. He was an USO ambassador that brought entertainers to war zones to perform in front of the U.S. military during the Korean and Vietnam wars and battles in the Middle East.

Singer Bono Asks For Help From France

The singer Bono from the group U2 has asked the leader of France, Nicholas Sarkozy, to increase the aid given to developing countries. He wants France to increase the development assistance to 0.7 percent of France’s national income instead of the 0.35 percent that it’s currently at.

Nicole Richie Gives Birth to Baby Girl

On Friday, Nicole Richie and her boyfriend, Joel Madden from the rock group Good Charlotte, welcomed a baby girl named Harlow Winter Kate Madden into the world. Richie gave birth at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center.

Nicole Richie is best known as the daughter of Lionel Richie and costarred in the reality show with Paris Hilton called “The Simple Life.” Last year, she was in jail for 82 minutes after she was convicted of driving under the influence of drugs.

Christina Aguilera Gives Birth to Baby Boy

The singer Christina Aguilera has given birth to a baby boy. She and her husband, Jordan Bratman, named the baby Max Liron Bratman. The baby was born Saturday night and weighs 6 pounds and 2 ounces. Aguilera and Bratman married in 2005 and she first found out that she was pregnant during her “Back to Basics” tour.

Marion Jones Sentenced to Prison Time

Marion Jones, the former Olympic Champion, was sentenced to six months in prison for lying about using steroids and for her involvement in a check-fraud scam. She is also given two years of probation and supervised release. She has to do 800 hours of community service. She was ordered to surrender on March 11^th to begin doing her time.

The U.S. District Judge, Kenneth Karas, gave her the maximum sentence under the plea deal to send a message to the athletes that have abused drugs and overlooked the values of hard work, dedication, teamwork, and sportsmanship.

Priest Caught With 7.7 Pounds of Coke Arrested

A Catholic priest was arrested on Friday at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport after he was caught carrying 7.7 pounds of cocaine under his robes. At first, the priest refused to go through the routine body check for religious reasons. The man was then seen lining up at a different entrance gate. He was stopped and searched and drugs were found in packages taped to his body.

The priest was traveling from Bolivia and argued that his rights were violated by the search. When traveling to Europe, a person can’t refuse a body search and has to pass a security check.

James Brown’s Possessions Auctioned

James Brown’s possessions are set to be appraised and auctioned to pay for taxes that his estate owes. It is not clear which items will be auctioned yet or how much the items are worth. Brown died in Atlanta in December of 2006 and his will stated that he wanted his possessions to be divided between his six adult children. His fourth wife, Toni Rae Hynie, contested the will and claims that she is entitled to half of the estate. His children are also contesting the will, which was signed 10 months before Brown died. Trustees have asked Brown’s children and Hynie to make a list of the items that they don’t want to be auctioned.

Eminem Recovering From Pneumonia

The rapper Eminem is currently recovering from pneumonia. He was hospitalized in Detroit from complications due to the disease over the holidays. He has been released from the hospital and is recovering at home.

TiVo’s New Feature of Web Video

TiVo Inc. will soon have a new feature that will allow subscribers to view video from the Internet that would play on a television through their service. People using the service would have to use TiVo’s software on a computer to get this feature. TiVo will also provide a guide on its TV-based menu to record the selected Web videos. This new feature is set to be available in March.

The World’s Largest TV

Panasonic has just unveiled the world’s largest television. The television is a 150-inch high definition plasma TV that has an 8.81 million pixel image resolution. The screen is as big as nine 50-inch televisions. It is not yet released how much the TV will cost. Panasonic also plans to bring videos from YouTube directly to its line of Internet-enabled high-definition plasma televisions.

GM Looking Into Making Cars That Drive Themselves

General Motors is looking into making cars that could drive themselves and even park at their destinations. The cars could be ready for sale by the year 2018. The biggest problems that stand in the way of making the cars are government regulations, liability laws, and privacy concerns.

Automated vehicles could reduce the number of car collisions and reduce traffic jams. GM plans to use a computer chip and an antenna to link vehicles that have the driverless technology.

China Putting Limits on Internet Video

China is putting restrictions on the broadcasting of Internet videos by only allowing citizens to use sites that are ran by state-controlled companies. They are also requiring that providers report questionable content to the government. The regulations will start to take effect on January 31^st and were approved by the State Administration of Radio, Film, and Television and the Ministry of Information Industry.

Under the new policy, Websites that provide videos or allow people to upload videos have to get government permits and applicants have to be state-owned or state-controlled companies. The policy will also ban providers form broadcasting video that has national secrets, hurts the reputation of China, disturbs social stability, or has pornography. Video providers will be required to delete and report this kind of content.

The permits will have to be renewed every three years and video providers that commit major violations might be banned from providing online videos for five years. It is not clear if the popular Website YouTube will be affected since they are available in China and runs a Chinese-language Website. It also isn’t known if any of YouTube’s computer servers are located in China.

Netflix Delivering Movies Directly to Televisions

Netflix, a website where you can rent DVDs online, will start delivering movies and their other programs directly to televisions later this year through a set-top box that will deliver the movies and programs through a high-speed Internet connection. The set-top box will probably cost about $299 to $399. Netflix subscribers will still have to use a computer to choose what they want to watch and they can watch between 5 and 48 hours of programming without any extra costs to their current subscription plan.

How to Get Coupons to Get Digital Converters

There will be millions of $40 government coupons available stating this Tuesday to help people that own older TVs that might not work after the switch to digital broadcasting that starts on February 18, 2009. After that date, anybody who doesn’t have a digital converter will not get a picture on their TV and the television industry will complete its transition from traditional analog broadcasting to digital broadcasting. The converter boxes will cost between $50 and $70 and will be available at many major electronic retail stores.

Beginning on Tuesday, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration will start accepting requests for two $40 coupons per household to be used towards buying the converter boxes. People who have satellite or cable service will not need the converter boxes. A person can request a coupon at www.dtv2009.gov.

Visit This Site to Request a Coupon: http://www.dtv2009.gov

Eddie Murphy and Tracy Edmonds Get Married

It is reported that Eddie Murphy and his fiancée Tracy Edmonds has gotten married over the New Year’s holiday in French Polynesia. The ceremony took place in front of their close family and friends. The two were engaged this past July after Tracey was officially divorced from her husband Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds.

Read More: http://www.okmagazine.com/news/view/3529

Scientists Developing Surgical Robot for Surgeries

There are scientists in London that are developing a surgical robot that could help surgeons do complex surgical procedures without having to cut into the patient’s skin. A team at the Imperial College has been given $4.5 million to build and test a surgical robot that is called the “i-Snake”.

The robot is made up of a long tube that has special motors, sensors, and imaging tools inside of it. It would be inserted through the patient’s mouth or other orifice and would eliminate the need for a keyhole surgery, where several cuts would be made. The i-Snake would cause less invasive treatments, surgeries would be faster, and recovery times would be quicker.

Read More: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7155635.stm