Emboldened by Egypt and Tunisia, Iran opposition 'planning protests'

Amid reports of a low turnout for the annual march commemorating the anniversary of Iran's Islamic revolution on Friday, there are calls among opposition leaders for nationwide marches against the government on Monday.

Protesters, including university students, lorry drivers and gold merchants are said to be organising marches across the country under the umbrella of the country's Green movement, apparently inspired by recent demonstrations in Egypt and Tunisia.

The movement, also known as the Green Wave, made international headlines after the disputed 2009 presidential elections which saw Mahmoud Ahmadinejad win a second term in office.

Monday's protests have been called at the behest of Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, both of whom were backed by the movement as opposition presidential candidates in the election two years ago. Read more

Ontario museum investigates sudden death of 20,000 bees on display

A Toronto museum launched an investigation Friday into the sudden death of 20,000 bees on display in a glass encased hive. Thousands of visitors had viewed the bees at work in a specially designed hive in the Royal Ontario Museum's popular hands-on biodiversity gallery over the past two years. They were perfectly healthy until last week when they suddenly died. "All 20,000 bees died within 48 hours," said Amanda Fruci, publicist for the ROM. "The cause is being investigated but we know for sure that it wasn't colony collapse syndrome because that involves bees leaving a hive and never coming back, and in this case they all died in the hive." Bee communities naturally lose around 5% of their numbers, but with the syndrome known as colony collapse disorder, a third -- sometimes even 90% or all -- of the insects can be wiped out. Read more

BREAKING NEWS: 6.0 Magnitude Aftershock Chile - 13 Feb 2011

Another 6.0 aftershock registered offshore Bio-Bio, Chile this morning at 10:35:06 UTC

This is the 10th Aftershock in the past 36 hrs and they don't seem to be lessening in strength at are registering more shallow at a depth at 13.3 km (8.3 miles)

This 6.0 quake was registered 25 km (15 miles) NNW of Concepcion, Bio-Bio, Chile

No reports of damage and NO stunami warning issued at this time.

Source

Algeria shuts down internet and Facebook as protest mounts

Internet providers were shut down and Facebook accounts deleted across Algeria on Saturday as thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators were arrested in violent street demonstrations.

Plastic bullets and tear gas were used to try and disperse large crowds in major cities and towns, with 30,000 riot police taking to the streets in Algiers alone.

There were also reports of journalists being targeted by state-sponsored thugs to stop reports of the disturbances being broadcast to the outside world.

But it was the government attack on the internet which was of particular significance to those calling for an end to President Abdelaziz Boutifleka's repressive regime.

Protesters mobilising through the internet were largely credited with bringing about revolutions in Egypt and Tunisia.

"The government doesn't want us forming crowds through the internet," said Rachid Salem, of Co-ordination for Democratic Change in Algeria. Read more

'Facebook Girls' More Prone to Eating Disorders

The more time adolescent girls spend in front of Facebook, the greater the risk they will develop a negative body image and various eating disorders such as anorexia, bulimia and exaggerated dieting. This, according to a new study from the University of Haifa.

The study lists eating disorders that include a wide spectrum of abnormal mental and behavioral conducts related to food and body weight, such as anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa.

The results showed that the more time girls spend on Facebook, the more they suffered conditions of bulimia, anorexia, physical dissatisfaction, negative physical self-image, negative approach to eating and more of an urge to be on a weight-loss diet. Extensive online exposure to fashion and music content showed similar tendencies, but manifested in fewer types of eating disorders. As such, the more the exposure to fashion content on the Internet, the higher a girl’s chances of developing anorexia.

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UK Unemployment will not fall for two years, warns CBI

The business lobby group expects Britain’s unemployment rate to jump from 7.9pc last year to 8.4pc this year and remain unchanged in 2012, as private sector recruitment struggles both to offset public sector job losses and accommodate new entrants into the labour market.

Official forecasts from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) are for UK unemployment to peak at 8pc this year and fall to 7.7pc in 2012.

John Cridland, CBI director general, added that he still believes the private sector will be able to deliver enough jobs to offset the 410,000 public sector job cuts over the next five years, but that the increase in employment will be skewed towards the later years of the austerity programme.

“There are issues about regional employment and timing, but overall we still believe it is an achievable task,” he said. The CBI does not produce forecasts more than two years ahead.

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IMF: Japan's debt and deficit 'are not sustainable'

The comments by IMF deputy managing director Naoyuki Shinohara come weeks after Standard & Poor's lowered the country's credit rating and accused the government of not having a clear plan to ease the debt mountain.

"If you look at Japan's outstanding debts and fiscal deficits, I think they are not sustainable over the medium- and long-term," Shinohara told reporters on the sidelines of a seminar in Tokyo.

"If (Japan) leaves the fiscal situation as it is, it could leave the source of trouble for the future," he said.

"It is important to make a national consensus at the earliest possible time and form a concrete agreement on how to achieve fiscal rehabilitation."

He added, however that "we don't think serious problems will occur imminently," citing Japan's huge pool of savings.

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UFO fleets spotted over multiple areas in Mexico on Feb 5th, 2011

UFO (fleet?) at Taranto, Italy on 07.02.2011 at 1856 hrs