Volcano erupted in Mexico, ash cloud scattered in one mile area (Mian Shakeel Aslam)

Mian Shakeel Aslam— Water, ash and rocks are flowing down the flanks of the Popocatepetl (po-po-ka-TEH-peh-tel) volcano southeast of Mexico City.

Mexico's national disaster prevention agency says it has warned the communities near the volcano to be alert, but doesn't see any need for evacuations.

Authorities say similar activity in 2001 posed no risk to the population. Still, officials are urging people to stay at least seven miles (12 kilometres) from the crater.

The mountain has been shaking and spewing ash plumes since Monday evening.

The 17,886-foot (5,450-meter) volcano is about 40 miles (65 kilometres) southeast of the capital.

Posted By: Mian Shakeel Aslam

Source: http://www.facebook.com/mianshakeelaslam

World's largest Food Fight (Mian Shakeel Aslam)

Mian Shakeel Aslam..World's largest food fight. People fighting for fun using food. Have a look at it and make fun. it's rocking and joking.

Posted By: Mian Shakeel Aslam

Source: http://www.mianshakeelaslam.posterous.com/

Gaddafi's son vows to continue fight till death (Mian Shakeel Aslam)

Mian Shakeel Aslam -- Two sons of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi appeared to offer divergent and sometimes contradictory answers Wednesday to a question many of their countrymen are grappling with: Keep fighting or surrender?

"Victory or martyrdom!" a defiant Saif al-Islam Gadhafi told Rai TV, a Syrian television station, in a telephone call during which he called on his countrymen to rise up.

"Everyone should move now, begin to attack these gangsters," he said. "Attack everyone, day and night, until we clean this country from those gangsters and those traitors."

He added, "Wherever you see the enemy, attack them. They are weak, they have suffered lots of losses and they are now licking their wounds."

Gadhafi did not divulge the whereabouts of his father, but said, "The leader is fine. We are fighting and we are drinking tea and drinking coffee and sitting with our families and fighting."

Gadhafi said he was speaking from a suburb of Tripoli, where he had met with residents and found their morale was high. He also said he had recently visited the family's compound Bab al-Aziziya in Tripoli, an improbable statement.

"No one is afraid or frightened," he said.

Rebel forces were largely composed not of Libyans but of foreign mercenaries, he said. Any Libyans who may have appeared with rebel forces were acting under duress and threat, he said. "They hold them hostage and they tell them either we rape your women or you will have to make this announcement."

Referring to the rebels' ultimatum to the people of Sirte to surrender by Saturday or face attack, Gadhafi predicted rebel attackers would find 20,000 fighters "ready, willing and able" to defend the loyalist stronghold where his father was born.

Saif al-Islam said he had spoken with tribal leaders who were meeting in Bani Walid "and they all agreed unanimously that this is our country and we will defend it."

In response, NTC member Abdulrazag Elaradi told CNN that he is not aware of any meeting by tribal leaders in Bani Walid to support Gadhafi. He said the rebels were not involved in any negotiations with loyalist forces.

Saif al-Islam's brother, Saadi Gadhafi, appeared to be open to the possibility of surrender, but with a catch. "If this will prevent bloodshed, we will do it, just give us guarantees," said a man identified by Al Arabiya as Saadi Gadhafi.

"We need to stop the bloodshed right away," Saadi Gadhafi said, adding that he was speaking on behalf of his father.

He said he could not say whether he was in close touch with Moammar Gadhafi, but added, "If the rebels want to lead this country; we don't have an objection to that. In the end we are all Libyans and we are all together."

Asked if his father was willing to surrender, Saadi said, "Stop the fire and all ways of negotiations are open."

Asked if he was willing to hand Sirte to rebel forces without a fight, he said, "Nothing is impossible."

Whatever happens, he added, "I don't have a weapon and will never fight a Muslim Libyan."

Despite that talk, Saadi Gadhafi told CNN Wednesday in an e-mail that he was leaning against surrendering to the rebels. "Since they don't want to negotiate, I don't think I will go to them and surrender myself," he wrote. "They have already killed thousands of people and destroyed the country. I'd rather surrender myself to a real government than ... to those guys."

Moammar Gadhafi and Saif al-Islam along with the former head of military intelligence, Abdullah Al-Senussi, have been charged by the International Criminal Court in The Hague for crimes against humanity.

The scions' comments came as Libyans celebrated their first Eid al-Fitr in four decades free of the iron grip of their father.

Eid marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan.

But the enthusiasm in the capital was tempered by grim humanitarian conditions.

The United Nations estimated that 60% of Tripoli's 1.6 million residents had no access to clean drinking water as temperatures approached 100 degrees Fahrenheit. U.N. agencies have sprung into action to supply water and food in what the global body described as an "alarming" situation.

 Posted By: Mian Shakeel Aslam

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Arsenal injects new blood in team, Arteta and Benayon signed (Mian Shakeel Aslam)

Mian Shakeel Aslam...Arsenal have signed Everton's Mikel Arteta for £10m after the Spanish midfielder submitted a transfer request to force through the move.

Arteta, 29, joined the Gunners on a four-year contract just before the transfer window closed.

The deal had looked dead earlier after talks between the two clubs broke down but Arteta handed in the transfer request an hour before the deadline.

Arsenal also signed Chelsea's Yossi Benayoun, 31, on a season-long loan.

"Mikel indicated to me that he wished to join Arsenal if a bid came in," said Everton manager David Moyes.

"I am very disappointed to lose him but the prospect of Champions League football was something I wasn't able to offer him."

Arteta joined Everton from Real Socieded for £2m in 2005 and has scored 35 goals in 208 appearances.

He started his career with Barcelona before spells with Paris Saint-Germain FC and Rangers.

The Spaniard suffered a knee ligament injury in February 2009 and was sidelined for almost 12 months before signing a new five-year deal in August 2010.

Former Arsenal defender Martin Keown told BBC Sport that both Arteta and Benayoun were "solid signings".

But when asked if they would be adequate replacements for the departed Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri, Keown added: "No they're not, it's very hard to replace those players.

"I think back to the [Dennis] Bergkamp era, the impetus those players brought. Arteta is a great passer, Benayoun is not getting into Chelsea team. It's a mixed bag for Arsenal fans."

Benayoun, the Israel captain,wrote on social networking site Twitter: "I sign with Arsenal, very happy and excited about it, but now my head is only in the game against grecce on Friday, thanks for the support."

Both clubs later confirmed the move had gone through.

Chelsea offered Liverpool £8m plus Benayoun for Reds midfielder Raul Meireles on Tuesday, but that deal was rejected.

He joined Blues from Liverpool for £5m in July 2010 but was restricted to 10 appearances last season because of an Achilles injury and has seen only one minute of action this time round.

It had been rumoured Benayoun would be included in an offer from Chelsea for Tottenham playmaker Luka Modric.

Newcastle had also been linked with the Israeli.

Denmark striker Nicklas Bendtner completed a move away from Emirates Stadium just before the window closed, joining Sunderland on a season-long loan.

Posted By: Mian Shakeel Aslam

Source: http://mianshakeelaslam.posterous.com/mian-shakeel-aslam

 

Singer and Actress Christina Aguilera arrested by police (Mian Shakeel Aslam)

Mian Shakeel Aslam -- Pop singer and actress Christina Aguilera was detained early Tuesday "to ensure her safety" after her rumored boyfriend was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, authorities said.

Aguilera, 30, was a passenger in a car that was stopped about 2:45 a.m. (5:45 a.m. ET) in West Hollywood, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said in a news release.

"The driver, Matthew Rutler, was determined to be driving while under the influence of alcohol and arrested," the release said.

Aguilera was determined to be intoxicated, said Los Angeles County Sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore. "She was not capable of taking care of herself," he told reporters, but said she was "very cooperative, not belligerent in any way."

She was technically arrested on a public intoxication charge, Whitmore said, but "there was never the intent to prosecute." Such actions are routine in such instances -- when a driver is arrested and a passenger is determined to be intoxicated.

Since Aguilera was not able to care for herself "and no one was available to ensure her safety, Aguilera was taken into custody," the statement said. The department "stressed that she was not involved in any criminal activity."

Aguilera will have a record of the misdemeanor arrest, Whitmore said, and was booked, fingerprinted, put in a jail cell and monitored. However, she will not face charges, he said. "The law specifically allows for no desire to prosecute."

Aguilera was released about 7:30 a.m. (10:30 a.m. ET) after passing a sobriety test, he said.

Rutler's bail was set at $5,000, he said, not the $30,000 reported on the sheriff's website. He said Rutler was in the process of bailing out of jail Tuesday morning.

The car was pulled over after authorities noticed it "driving erratically," he said.

Aguilera divorced Jordan Bratman earlier this year.

 

Posted By: Mian Shakeel Aslam

Source: http://twitter.com/#!/MianShakeel

 

Jokovic moves to the next round of US-Open 2011 (Mian Shakeel Aslam)

Mian Shakeel Aslam -- World number one Novak Djokovic had the easiest of passages to the second round of the U.S. Open as his Irish opponent Conor Niland was forced to retire through illness.

Djokovic was detained on court for just 44 minutes against the qualifier, who was apparently suffering from a stomach upset.

The Serbian was leading 6-0 5-1 when world number 197 Niland finally called it a day to sympathetic applause on the Arthur Ashe Stadium Court.

The 29-year-old had been sick as he made his way to the showpiece court and could not summon the strength to offer much resistance.

The opening set took just 21 minutes and Niland salvaged just a little pride by claiming a single game in the shortened second before quitting.

Djokovic had come into the match as a slight injury doubt after retiring in the Cincinnati final against Andy Murray with a shoulder problem.

But he showed no sign of it against Niland as he began his bid for a third grand slam title of the season.

The top seed next faces either Pere Riba of Spain or Argentina's Carlos Berlocq for a place in the last 32.

Meanwhile, defending champion Rafael Nadal opened his U.S. Open account with a straight-sets win over Andrey Golubev.

But the world number two was made to work by the Russian, even saving seven set points in the second, before he eventually won 6-3 7-6 (7-1) 7-5.

Nadal's fellow Spaniard, Fifth seed David Ferrer, dropped the opening set to Russia's Igor Andreev but recovered to win 2-6 6-3 6-0 6-4.

Another winner Tuesday was 11th seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France, who scored an impressive 6-4 6-4 6-4 victory over Lu Yen-hsun.

Elsewhere, 14th seed Stanislas Wawrinka beat Maximo Gonzalez 3-6 6-4 6-1 6-3, while Latvia's Ernests Gulbis sent 16th seed Mikhail Youzhny crashing out after an impressive 6-2 6-4 6-4 win.

 

Posted By: Mian Shakeel Aslam

Source: http://www.selfgrowth.com/experts/mian-shakeel-aslam

 

Yelena Isinbayeva failed to win a medal as Brazilian Fabiana(Mian Shakeel Aslam)

Mian Shakeel aslam: Yelena Isinbayeva failed to win a medal as Brazilian Fabiana Murer takes women's pole vault gold.

 

Russia s athletics queen Yelena Isinbayeva became the latest upset at the World Athletics Championships in Daegu, South Korea as she failed to gain a medal in an event won by Brazilian Fabiana Murer.

 

Isinbayeva, the reigning Olympic champion and world record holder, failed to clear 4.80 metres, well short of her world record of 5.05m. Her best clearance of 4.65m left her down in sixth place. The 2005 and 2007 champion had also failed to gain a medal at the 2009 world championships in Berlin.

 

Murer took the gold with a 4.85m clearance. Martina Strutz of Germany took second with 4.80m with Russia s Svetlana Feofanova third with 4.75m.

 

World record holder David Rudisha of Kenya won gold in the men s 800 metres with a dominant display of front running.

 

The rangy Rudisha, who broke the world record twice in a week in 2010, took the title in Daegu in a time of 1:43.91 ahead of Abubaker Kaki of Sudan. The bronze medal went to Russian Yuriy Borzakovskiy.

 

Teenager Kirani James chased down defending champion LaShawn Merritt on the home straight to win 400 metres gold and Grenada s first medal at the world championships.

 

Jessica Ennis, Britain s brightest hope for athletics gold at next year s London Olympics, lost her heptathlon world title to Russia s Tatyana Chernova.

 

Bidding to become the first Britain to retain a world title, Ennis had held a 118-point lead after the morning s long jump but her chances of retaining the title she won two years ago all but disappeared in the second event, the javelin throw.

 

While Chernova managed a best of 52.95 metres with her second attempt in blinding sunshine at the Daegu stadium, Ennis was left counting the cost of failing to register a throw over 39.95.

 

The 25-year-old Ennis trailed the Olympic bronze medallist by 133 points going into the seventh and final event of the competition and the Russian was able to protect her commanding lead comfortably in the 800 metres.

 

Chernova clocked her season s best time of two minutes 08.04 seconds to clinch the gold with 6,880 points, while Ennis s personal best of 2.07.81 was only good enough for silver with 6,751. Jennifer Oeser of Germany took bronze with 6,572 points.

 

In the day s other two finals, Robert Harting of Germany won the men s discus with 68.97m and Yuliya Zaripova of Russia took the women s 3000m steeplechase in 9:07.03.
 

 

 

Posted By Mian Shakeel Aslam

 

Source : http://www.selfgrowth.com/experts/mian-shakeel-aslam

Europian Union wants to lift the Libya oil (Mian Shakeel Aslam)

Mian Shakeel Aslam : The sanctions will be lifted on Friday.

 

The European Union is expected to lift sanctions against Libya s ports and 22 economic entities including some oil companies by Friday, diplomats said.

 

The EU reached an agreement in principle on Wednesday and governments will formally adopt the decision on Thursday, the diplomats said. The sanctions will be lifted on Friday when the move is published in the EU s Official Journal.

 

Posted By Mian Shakeel Aslam

Source : twitter.com/MianShakee

David Honey Boy dies at 96 (Mian Shakeel Aslam)

Mian Shakeel Aslam..US blues musician David "Honey-Boy" Edwards has died at his home in Chicago at the age of 96, his manager has said.

Music historians say he was the last direct link to a unique generation of blues musicians and the last of the great pre-war bluesmen.

Known for his far-ranging travels, Edwards was still playing about 70 shows a year in his 90s.

He won a 2008 Grammy for traditional blues and received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement award in 2010.

Among his most famous songs were Just Like Jesse James, Long Tall Woman Blues and Gamblin' Man.

Legendary story-teller

The BBC's Peter Bowes, in Los Angeles, says Edwards' guitar-playing style was gritty and edgy.

Born in 1915 in Shaw, Mississippi, Edwards learned to play as a child and left home at the age of 14 to travel with some of the great Delta Blues musicians of the 1930s and 40s, including Howlin' Wolf and Little Walter. He started playing professionally, at age 17, in Memphis.

His manager said he had a photographic memory of every detail of his life and told legendary stories. Edwards, he has recounted, described witnessing the moment when bluesman Robert Johnson drank the glass of poisoned whisky that killed him at the age of 27.

"Blues ain't never going anywhere," Edwards told AP in 2008.

"It can get slow, but it ain't going nowhere. You play a lowdown dirty shame slow and lonesome, my mama dead, my papa across the sea I ain't dead but I'm just supposed to be blues.

"You can take that same blues, make it uptempo, a shuffle blues, that's what rock 'n roll did with it. So blues ain't going nowhere."

Edwards earned his nickname "Honey-Boy" from his sister, who told his mother to "look at honey boy" when he stumbled as he learned to walk as a toddler.

Posted By: Mian Shakeel Aslam

Source: http://www.mianshakeelaslam.posterous.com/

 

Hannah arrested for sit-in protest in front of White House (Mian Shakeel Aslam)

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Mian Shakeel Aslam -- Actress Daryl Hannah was arrested Tuesday during a sit-in in front of the White House protesting a pipeline expansion project that would significantly increase the amount of oil the United States imports from Canada's controversial Alberta oil sands.

The "Splash" actress was among more than 100 people arrested at the demonstration, according to the group that organized the protest.

"We stand here today to just say no to slavery, to just say no to tar, sands, oil, and no to the Keystone pipeline," Hannah said before her arrest.

A representative for the actress was unaware of the arrest when contacted by CNN Tuesday afternoon.

The State Department is set to issue what could be a final ruling to allow a massive new pipeline expansion from central Alberta to the Gulf of Mexico. A decision is expected by the end of the year, State Department spokeswoman Heide Fulton said at a briefing last month.

Known as Keystone, the project is an expansion of an existing pipeline that now terminates in Oklahoma. Stretching over 1,600 miles -- twice the length of the Trans-Alaska system -- the new pipeline would be one of the biggest in the country.

Canada's oil sands have drawn numerous critics who say the way the oil is extracted harms the environment.

Posted By: Mian Shakeel Aslam

Source:http://www.selfgrowth.com/experts/mian-shakeel-aslam

 

Zoo animals suffered from war in Libya (Mian Shakeel Aslam)

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Mian Shakeel Aslam -- The residents of zoos are often the first to be neglected when cities are hit by man-made or natural disasters.

CNN Senior International Correspondent Nic Robertson discovered a dire situation Tuesday at the Tripoli Zoo, struggling to function as a nationwide conflict rages around it.

Robertson found the gates locked and was told the zoo was under renovation -- that there were no animals there.

But a big cat's roar told a different story, and Robertson followed the sound -- underscored by the echo of gunfire in the distance -- to find enclosures holding a tiger, lions, giant tortoises, hippos, hyenas, bears, monkeys, deer, emus and more.

All the animals appeared undernourished and struggling as they waited for food and for water where there was little or none to be found.

A tiger, loose skin hanging on its frame, prowled its enclosure when it sensed visitors.

"Just looking at him, you can see how thin he is in the way he is walking -- those back thighs, they're so skinny," Robertson said of the big cat.

"There's no one here to tell us how often they're being fed or how much they're getting fed," Robertson said as he walked the deserted grounds. "We don't even know if there's a vet here to take care of them."

During the CNN visit, the zookeeper arrived and explained that for seven days amid the turmoil of conflict in Tripoli, the animals got nothing. Now 10 of the 200-person staff have returned and are trying to feed all the animals.

The big cats get only half of what they need. And all the animals languish with one essential in very short supply.

"Water is these animals' most pressing need," Robertson said. "And it seems without help in these sweltering temperatures, all the animals here will continue to suffer."

Posted By: Mian Shakeel Aslam

Source: https://www.facebook.com/mianshakeelaslam

 

Jokovic and Nadal move to the 2nd round of US Open 2011 (Mian Shakeel Aslam)

Info  PR: n/a  I: 13,400,000  L: 0  LD: 11,636,567  I: 931,000  Rank: 472  Age: April 24, 2008  I: 0  whois source Robo: yes Sitemap: yes  Rank: 4175  Price: 41632 Links: 2|1 Density

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Mian Shakeel Aslam...Rafael Nadal opened the defence of his US Open title with a straight-sets win over Andrey Golubev that was anything but straightforward for the Spaniard.

Nadal recovered from deficits in all three sets and saved seven set points in a thrilling second before coming through 6-3 7-6 (7-1) 7-5 in New York.

World number one Novak Djokovic earlier needed just 44 minutes to secure his place in round two.

Ireland's Conor Niland had to retire from their match because of illness.

There were times in the night session that Nadal could do nothing in the face of some extraordinary hitting from Golubev, but the world number 98 from Kazakhstan endured a 17-match losing streak earlier this year and there were plenty of spectacular errors too.

Golubev had a great chance serving at 5-3, 40-0 in the second set but failed to capitalise, and let a double-break lead slip away from 5-2 in the third as the far steadier Nadal prevailed.

"For sure I was nervous," said the Spaniard. "That's normal. It's normal to start the tournament like this with some nerves. I was a little bit lucky to win today in straight sets. He was a very difficult player to play.

"And what happened today, he didn't help because he played very fast all the time. All the shots, he was trying to hit a winner on almost every shot. So it was difficult for me to find the rhythm.

"But it's a positive start winning in straight sets," Nadal said after the two hour, 49 minute struggle. "I'm happy I'm through (to the second round)."

Nadal was broken six times in the match, losing his serve more times than he had during his entire championship run at Flushing Meadows last year.

And the world number two saluted his opponent's performance. He said: "Today, I lost my serve six times. In my opinion, it was not the fault of my serve. It was that he was returning very fast all the time."

Nadal has battled recent injuries and is still also smarting from being beaten five times in finals this season by Djokovic, who supplanted him as world number one on his way to victory over the Spaniard in the Wimbledon final.

"When you are having tough losses like the final of Wimbledon... you need to recuperate after that," Nadal said.

"Everybody knows it's not easy to lose five finals this year."

The unlucky Niland came through qualifying and was playing the biggest match of his life, but walked onto court apparently suffering with food poisoning, and when Djokovic went 6-0 5-1 up, the ailing Irishman admitted defeat.

"I've been feeling pretty rotten for a couple of days and basically it was bad timing," Niland told BBC Radio 5 live.

Asked if he had considered not playing the match, Niland added: "It was something I wanted to do. I thought maybe if there was a miracle I could do OK, but I wasn't able to eat the last two days so I had nothing in my legs energy-wise.

"It was great to qualify. I got a lot out of it and I still got quite a bit out of today.

"Obviously the timing seems pretty cruel to me. I've been a couple of years without getting any sort of food poisoning and to get it two days before the biggest match of my career seems pretty weird."

Not surprisingly, Djokovic had contrasting emotions, saying: "I felt great on the court, and that's something that's really important for the start of the tournament. Today was a great opening performance.

Posted By: Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4

Rafael Nadal opened the defence of his US Open title with a straight-sets win over Andrey Golubev that was anything but straightforward for the Spaniard.

Nadal recovered from deficits in all three sets and saved seven set points in a thrilling second before coming through 6-3 7-6 (7-1) 7-5 in New York.

World number one Novak Djokovic earlier needed just 44 minutes to secure his place in round two.

Ireland's Conor Niland had to retire from their match because of illness.

There were times in the night session that Nadal could do nothing in the face of some extraordinary hitting from Golubev, but the world number 98 from Kazakhstan endured a 17-match losing streak earlier this year and there were plenty of spectacular errors too.

Golubev had a great chance serving at 5-3, 40-0 in the second set but failed to capitalise, and let a double-break lead slip away from 5-2 in the third as the far steadier Nadal prevailed.

"For sure I was nervous," said the Spaniard. "That's normal. It's normal to start the tournament like this with some nerves. I was a little bit lucky to win today in straight sets. He was a very difficult player to play.

"And what happened today, he didn't help because he played very fast all the time. All the shots, he was trying to hit a winner on almost every shot. So it was difficult for me to find the rhythm.

"But it's a positive start winning in straight sets," Nadal said after the two hour, 49 minute struggle. "I'm happy I'm through (to the second round)."

Nadal was broken six times in the match, losing his serve more times than he had during his entire championship run at Flushing Meadows last year.

And the world number two saluted his opponent's performance. He said: "Today, I lost my serve six times. In my opinion, it was not the fault of my serve. It was that he was returning very fast all the time."

Nadal has battled recent injuries and is still also smarting from being beaten five times in finals this season by Djokovic, who supplanted him as world number one on his way to victory over the Spaniard in the Wimbledon final.

"When you are having tough losses like the final of Wimbledon... you need to recuperate after that," Nadal said.

"Everybody knows it's not easy to lose five finals this year."

The unlucky Niland came through qualifying and was playing the biggest match of his life, but walked onto court apparently suffering with food poisoning, and when Djokovic went 6-0 5-1 up, the ailing Irishman admitted defeat.

"I've been feeling pretty rotten for a couple of days and basically it was bad timing," Niland told BBC Radio 5 live.

Asked if he had considered not playing the match, Niland added: "It was something I wanted to do. I thought maybe if there was a miracle I could do OK, but I wasn't able to eat the last two days so I had nothing in my legs energy-wise.

"It was great to qualify. I got a lot out of it and I still got quite a bit out of today.

"Obviously the timing seems pretty cruel to me. I've been a couple of years without getting any sort of food poisoning and to get it two days before the biggest match of my career seems pretty weird."

Not surprisingly, Djokovic had contrasting emotions, saying: "I felt great on the court, and that's something that's really important for the start of the tournament. Today was a great opening performance.

Posted By: Mian Shakeel Aslam

Source: http://twitter.com/MianShakeel

 

Russian manned space station mission delayed (Mian Shakeel Aslam)

Mian Shakeel Aslam -- The Russian space agency on Monday postponed the launch of a new manned mission to the International Space Station due to last week's accident in which an unmanned cargo craft was lost, the state news agency RIA Novosti reported.

Alexei Krasnov of the space agency, Roscosmos, said the next manned mission, originally planned to launch on September 22, now would occur in late October or early November, according to the RIA Novosti report.

In the United States, NASA's space station program manager told reporters Monday that the timing of the rescheduled mission could force the temporary de-manning of the space station later this year.

However, the NASA official, Mike Suffredini, said no decisions can be made until a commission appointed by Russia completes its investigation of the August 24 crash involving a Soyuz rocket -- the same kind used to power the flights of crew members to the space station.

With a planned rotation of the six crew members aboard the space station scheduled to begin next month, a delay in using the Soyuz could prevent the ability to bring replacements, Suffredini said.

"If we don't have Soyuz flying by the middle of November -- the 16th or so, the normal landing time for the last crew -- we would have to de-man ISS at that point," Suffredini said.

The six astronauts at the space station are three from Russia, two from the United States and one from Japan.

Due to the schedule change announced Monday, the three Russian astronauts on board will return to Earth eight days later than originally planned, on September 16 instead of September 8, Krasnov said. They will fly a Soyuz vehicle already at the space station.

Suffredini said another Soyuz vehicle at the space station, which is set to fly back the other three crew members, will have its certification for the return mission expire by mid-November.

If there can't be a new manned mission from Earth by then, administrators will have to decide whether to take extensive steps to extend the vehicle's certification for the return flight, proceed on a return flight without certification, or de-man the space station by flying back the remaining crew members within the certification period, he said.

"We're going to do what's safest for the crew and for the space station," Suffredini said.

He acknowledged that leaving the space station without any crew members increased the risk for trouble.

"There is a greater risk of losing the ISS when it's unmanned than if it were manned," Suffredini said, adding that the risk increase "is not insignificant."

The commission in Russia investigating last week's accident will determine the new launch date for the next manned mission, Krasnov said, according to the RIA Novosti report. Prior to that mission, Roscosmos will make two unmanned Soyuz launches, "either an automated one or a freighter or both," he said.

On August 24, a Progress M-12M space freighter carrying food and other items to the space station broke up over southern Siberia after failing to separate from its Soyuz-U carrier rocket, RIA Novosti reported.

It was the first loss of a Progress freighter in more than 30 years of operation, according to the report, which said the cause was believed to be a rocket engine failure.

However, it was the second failed space launch in Russia in less than 10 days. On August 18, Russia lost a sophisticated Express-AM4 telecommunications satellite when the launch vehicle put it into the wrong orbit.

The Progress M-12M that went down last week was to deliver more than 3.8 tons of cargo to the space station crew, including food supplies, medical equipment, personal hygiene items and scientific equipment needed for experiments, according to Roscosmos and space officials.

 

Posted By: Mian Shakeel Aslam

Source: https://profiles.google.com/100767719452602896999/about

Irene is followed by flood in the hit areas (Mian Shakeel Aslam)

Mian Shakeel Aslam: -- As a much-weakened Irene entered Canada, it left parts of the U.S. East Coast still grappling Monday with dangerous floodwaters, widespread power outages and stranded residents.

At least 24 deaths in nine states were blamed on Irene, which fizzled to a post-tropical cyclone and headed over eastern Canada on Monday.

Flooding was ongoing, particularly in New England, said Craig Fugate, director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

"A lot of the activities are moving into recovery phases, but we are still very concerned about the flooding," he told reporters in a conference call.

Southern states were affected primarily by power outages and the effects of storm surge, particularly on the Outer Banks of North Carolina, where Highway 12 had been chopped into pieces in several place by the pounding surf.

As of early afternoon, about 5 million customers were without power, Fugate said, citing figures from the Department of Energy. That was down from about 6 million, he said.

"Hurricane Irene, from our vantage point, was a very well-behaved, New England breed of hurricane," said David Vallee, a hydrologist for the National Weather Service in charge of the Northeastern forecast center in Taunton, Massachusetts. "Lots of rain west of the track."

Did Irene affect you? Share photos and video, but stay safe

Rainfall reached 15 inches in some places, he said. The fact that much of the affected area was already heavily saturated by rainfall in the weeks prior to Irene made things worse, he said.

As of Monday morning, moderate to major flooding was occurring from New York into the Connecticut Valley, through much of northern New Hampshire "and a good chunk of Vermont."

Many of the river crests set records, he said.

Though the flash flood threat had largely abated, some of the larger rivers had not yet crested, he said.

Asked how FEMA has changed its approach to handling disasters six years after Hurricane Katrina laid waste to much of the Gulf Coast, Fugate said the agency now has more authority to act prior to receiving a request from a governor. That translates into "not having to wait" until the impact of the storm is clear. "We have to act quickly and be prepared to support that."

Six years after Katrina, praise for Irene response

In Washington, President Barack Obama vowed, "We will make sure folks have all the support they need." He added that "it will take time" to recover.

They may need that support from North Carolina through New England, where a number of homes, businesses, roads and bridges were torn apart by floodwaters.

Some of the worst flooding since 1927 ravaged Vermont's normally tranquil countryside, turning babbling brooks into turbulent rivers and knocking homes from their foundations.

In Wilmington, Vermont, a young woman who had been standing near a river was swept away by the water. Her body was recovered Monday.

In all, 260 roads were affected, many of them underwater, Vermont's Emergency Management Agency said Monday.

Four to six covered bridges were destroyed and others were washed out, it said.

In the capital city of Montpelier, water crested overnight at 19.5 feet, just shy of the 20-foot prediction, but levels throughout the state were receding Monday.

Posted By: Mian Shakeel Aslam

Source: http://www.mianshakeelaslam.posterous.com/

Mel Gibson and his girl friend Oksana at the eve of settlement (Mian Shakeel Aslam)

Mian Shakeel Aslam: After a long, bitter battle, Mel Gibson and ex-girlfriend Oksana Grigorieva have reached a financial and custody settlement, CNN confirms.

The couple’s daughter Lucia was born in October 2009. By April 2010, they made their separation public.

After a January 2010 fight with Grigorieva, Gibson was charged with misdemeanor domestic battery. He pleaded no contest earlier this year. The case blew up after racist and sexist rants by Gibson were recorded and leaked to RadarOnline.com.

 Since their breakup, Gibson and Grigorieva have been battling in court, but a rep for Gibson tells CNN their legal problems have been worked out: "I can confirm that the parties have settled and we appreciate all the judge’s help."

The financial terms and conditions of the settlement will be decided at a hearing on Wednesday, according to a statement from Los Angeles Superior Court. Custody issues regarding baby Lucia will be heard in a closed session.

To add to Mel’s messy legal issues, Robyn Gibson, the star’s wife of 28 years, filed for divorce in April 2009, just months before Grigorieva gave birth. The Gibsons recently reached a divorce settlement.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Mel’s attorney announced that the case should be finalized by Tuesday. Gibson and Robyn have seven children together.

Posted By: Mian Shakeel Aslam

Source: http://www.selfgrowth.com/experts/mian-shakeel-aslam

 

 

 

The draws for the US Open 2011 announced (Mian Shakeel Aslam)

Mian Shakeel Aslam: Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer could meet in the semifinals for the fourth year in a row, while Victoria Azarenka was perhaps the unluckiest player in the field as she could face 13-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams in the third round, as the men’s and women’s draws for the 2011 US Open were revealed live Thursday in a special one-hour edition of SportsCenter on ESPN.

On Thursday, the 32 seeded players in both the men’s and women’s fields were placed on the drawsheets with the assistance of defending US Open champion Rafael Nadal. The remaining 96 players in each field were randomly assigned to the draw the night before.

The singles main draw begins Monday, August 29, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic enters Flushing Meadows as the favorite in the men’s field after one of the greatest seasons in the Open Era, including defeating Nadal to win his first Wimbledon crown and also winning the Australian Open on his way to a 57-2 record this year.

His path to the semifinals looks fairly smooth, with a potential quarterfinal opponent in No. 7 Gael Monfils. In the semifinals last year, Djokovic scored his first US Open triumph over Federer, as he came back from two sets down to defeat the five-time champion in five in one of the most exciting matches of the tournament. He advanced to the final, where he fell to Nadal, who completed the career Grand Slam with his first US Open title.

To meet Djokovic yet again in the semifinals, No. 3 Federer will have to get past perhaps either the top-ranked American Mardy Fish at No. 8 or No. 11 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the quarterfinals. Fish has been playing some of the best tennis of his career this year and recently scored his first-ever win over Nadal in Cincinnati.

On the other side of the men’s draw, Nadal will likely have to get past No. 4 Andy Murray in the semifinals. Nadal has won all three of their meetings this year and holds a 12-4 career advantage. Some concern around Nadal as of late has been blisters on his right hand that were caused by a burn from a hot plate in Cincinnati, although at the draw Thursday, he said his fingers were doing much better.

“It looks a little bit better,” he said of his hand. “I feel great. I am here, and I will try my best. Last year was a really emotional year for me. It was the tournament I didn’t play my best in the past. (But) last year, I played one of my best matches in the final. I finally won.”

Before he potentially gets to Murray, Nadal has 2003 US Open champion Andy Roddick in his section of the draw, whom he could face in the quarterfinals or his compatriot and No. 5 seed David Ferrer.

Murray is coming off a title win in Cincinnati and has an interesting section of the draw in which No. 28 seed John Isner plays former top-10 player Marcos Baghdatis in the first round. The winner could face No. 6 Robin Soderling, who has not played since early July due to injury. Also in that section of the draw is 2009 US Open champion Juan Martin del Potro, who is still looking to regain his championship form after his wrist injury.

Del Potro has not advanced past the quarterfinals at an event this summer but could lurk as a quarterfinal opponent for Murray.

Looking at the men’s draw, though, as a whole, ESPN analyst and seven-time Grand Slam champion John McEnroe still sees the Big Four as the ones to beat, considering for someone else to win, he would likely have to beat at least two, if not three of them.

“Del Potro, you want to see where he is. Soderling is hurt; he is unpredictable,” McEnroe said on ESPN. “One of the top four guys to me is going to win this thing. It is almost impossible (for others) to go all the way (having to beat likely two, if not three of the top four).”

On the women’s side, the looming Serena-Azarenka third-round match-up is one of the most intriguing. With Serena having played just four tournaments since returning from her foot injury and then serious health problems, including a pulmonary embolism and a hematoma earlier this year, she is seeded at No. 28.

Azarenka, at No. 4, was the unlucky top-10 seed to be in Serena’s section. Serena just scored a straight-sets win over Azarenka in Toronto on her way to winning the title and, even with her inactivity, is still considered the favorite in the women’s draw, along with 2006 US Open champion Maria Sharapova, who she cannot meet until the final.

And that is the final matchup that McEnroe is predicting.

“Poor, poor, poor Victoria Azarenka,” he said. “She has an immediate stomach ache (with Serena). This is a pretty good set-up for Serena. She and Sharapova are the two favorites to win this.”

If she gets past Azarenka, a talented young player in search of her first major title, Serena’s quarterfinal opponent could be No. 7 Francesca Schiavone or No. 11 Jelena Jankovic. In the semifinals, Serena could meet No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki, who is still looking for her first Grand Slam title but who has not had a great summer, including opening-round losses at Toronto and Cincinnati.

Wozniacki could meet 2004 US Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova in the fourth round and perhaps 2011 French Open champion Li Na or Jo. 10 Andrea Petkovic in the quarterfinals. The US Open has been Wozniacki’s most successful Grand Slam, as she reached the semifinals last year and the final the year before.

In the other half of the draw, Sharapova could meet 2011 Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova in a rematch of the final, which Kvitova won over the favored Russian in straight sets for her first Grand Slam tournament title.

In the other quarter, No. 2 seed and 2010 US Open finalist Vera Zvonareva could face two-time US Open champion Venus Williams in the fourth round, as Venus is unseeded in the tournament due to hip and abdominal injuries earlier in the year and a virus that has allowed her to play just three tournaments in 2011.

Venus, however, could meet the power-serving German and No. 22 Sabine Lisicki in the second round before potentially meeting Zvonareva or No. 8 seed Marion Bartoli in the quarters.

ESPN analyst Mary Joe Fernandez, also the U.S. Fed Cup Captain, sees Sharapova likely reaching the final and does not know what to expect from Venus or perhaps even Wozniacki.

“I think Sharapova is the one to beat (in this section),” she said. “We don’t know what we are going to get with Venus. It is a tough third-round match for Azarenka. Wozniacki is trying to win some matches in New Haven this week, but she has had a rough summer.”

Posted By: Mian Shakeel Aslam

Source: http://www.facebook.com/mianshakeelaslam

Undaunted surfers plunging into Irene waves (Mian Shakeel Aslam)

Mian Shakeel Aslam..OOOpsss!!!!! hilarious scene as some brave surfers are plunging into the Irene waves.

 

Posted By: Mian Shakeel Aslam

Source: https://www.facebook.com/mianshakeelaslam

Irene still dangerous, Obama issued warning (Mian Shakeel Aslam)

Mian Shakeel Aslam...US President Barack Obama has warned that flooding and power cuts are still a risk as Tropical Storm Irene moves away north towards Canada.

The storm, downgraded from a hurricane, passed New York on Sunday but Mr Obama said the danger was not yet over as swollen rivers could burst their banks.

More than 300,000 people evacuated from low-lying areas in New York City are being allowed back home.

The storm has killed at least 18 people and caused extensive damage.

More than three million people have been left without power in New Jersey, Connecticut and New York.

Manhattan avoided major damage, despite some isolated flooding.

"Many Americans are still at serious risk of power outages and flooding which could get worse in the coming days as rivers swell past their banks," Mr Obama said in a televised address from Washington.

"I want people to understand that this is not over. Response and recovery efforts will be an ongoing operation and I urge Americans in affected areas to continue to listen for the guidance and direction of their state and local officials."

President Obama: "The impact of the storm will last for some time"

He added: "I want to underscore that the impacts of this storm will be felt for sometime and the recovery effort will last for weeks or longer."

On Sunday, Irene's wind speeds eased to 50mph (80km/h). The storm was expected to drift into Canada later Sunday or early Monday.

The BBC's Steve Kingstone in New York, said insurance and rebuilding costs would run into billions of dollars.

Although the weekend was not the doomsday scenario that some had feared, Irene is leaving behind deep scars, he adds.

New York City lifted its evacuation order for 370,000 people and said it hoped to have its subway - closed for the first time by a natural disaster - operational again by Monday, although perhaps not early enough for morning commuters.

"All in all we are in pretty good shape," Mayor Michael Bloomberg said.

The New York Stock Exchange said it would be open for business on Monday and officials at the 9/11 memorial at the World Trade Center site said they hadn't lost a single tree.

However, experts said the dire warnings and the evacuations had been justified.

"They knew they had to get people out early - I think absolutely lives were saved," said Max Mayfield, former director of the National Hurricane Center.

In Philadelphia, officials lifted the city's first state of emergency since 1986. Several buildings were destroyed by the storm but there were no deaths or injuries.

Some residents in Trenton, New Jersey, made light of the situation

Airlines said about 9,000 flights had been cancelled but services into New York and Boston were due to resume on Monday.

John F Kennedy International Airport in New York and Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey will reopen at 06:00 (10:00 GMT), while LaGuardia in New York reopens an hour later, the Federal Aviation Administration said on its website.

Some services on the New York City subway system will resume on Monday.

New Jersey Transit said most rail services would remain suspended on Monday due to damage inflicted by the storm. However, a modified bus and light-rail timetable would be in place on Monday, it added.

Further south in North Carolina, Governor Beverly Perdue said some areas of the state were still unreachable. TV footage showed fallen trees and power lines.

Officials in Virginia began the clear-up but said the damage was not a bad as feared.

The north-eastern seaboard is the most densely populated corridor in the US. More than 65 million people live in major cities from Washington DC in the south to Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York and Boston further north.

Mr Mayfield said computer models were showing that clouds forming off the coast of Africa could threaten the US east coast in two weeks' time. The hurricane centre gave it a 40% chance of becoming a named storm over the next two days.

Irene was classified as a category three hurricane, with winds of more than 120mph (192km/h), when it swept through the Caribbean last week.

 Posted By: Mian Shakeel Aslam

Source:http://twitter.com/#!/MianShakeel