Stadium made of 1 Million Legos

Stadium made of 1 Million Legos

Perseverance and love for LEGO blocks are made a masterpiece of replicas. Ohio State University physiology and professor Paul Jannsen has created a Lego replica of Ohio State’s horseshoe-shaped football stadium, complete with a decorated archway and scoreboard made of the small, interlocking blocks.

For this masterpiece he needed one million LEGOs. If we know that all LEGOs are mostly rectangular, we don`t have to be surprised because he spent 2 years to build and 1,000 hours to finish a 1:100 scale replica. The stadium itself can be divided into 10 pieces, each weighing up to 50 pounds. He only used blocks from his personal collection. Had Janssen bought all new parts, he figures the project would have cost $50,000 to $75,000. Paul hopes to have this unique structure displayed at the University.

Cannes film festival unveils line-up

Cannes film festival unveils line-up

PARIS: The Cannes film festival on Thursday unveils its pick of Hollywood giants and arthouse newcomers to compete at the world's top movie showcase on the French Riviera next month.

Organisers will announce the 50-odd films awarded a slot at the May 16-27 event at a press conference in Paris, half of them in the official race for the Palme d'Or and half in the parallel new talent section, Un Certain Regard.

Cannes' general delegate Thierry Fremaux selected the line-up from among some 1,700 submissions, from the biggest names in film right down to first-time directors from North America, Europe, Asia, Latin America or Africa.

Star-wise, Nicole Kidman is tipped to make a double appearance after Fremaux warned in an interview the Australian actress was "going to surprise us."

Kidman holds lead roles this year in two very different thrillers: "Stoker" by South Korea's Park Chan-wook, and the 1960s-set "The Paperboy" by US director Lee Daniels.

The French press is betting on Marion Cotillard, star of three Cannes-tipped films: "Of Rust and Bone" by Frenchman Jacques Audiard, "Low Life" by US director James Gray about an immigrant woman tricked into a life of burlesque, and Christopher Nolan's new Batman movie, "The Dark Knight Rises".

"On the Road" by the Brazilian Walter Salles is all-but-assured of a slot: based on the Jack Kerouac novel the movie stars Kirsten Dunst, Kristen Stewart and Viggo Mortensen.

David Cronenberg's "Cosmopolis", starring Robert Pattinson as a billionaire asset manager, is seen as a strong contender, as is Australia's Andrew Dominik with the gangster flick "Killing Them Softly" starring Brad Pitt.

Austrian director Michael Haneke - whose "The White Ribbon" won the 2009 Palme d'Or - is seen as a likely choice with "Amour" (Love), starring Isabelle Huppert as a woman hit by a stroke.

Veteran Frenchman Alain Resnais, who will shortly turn 90, is expected to bring his new film "Vous n'avez encore rien vu" (You Haven't Seen Nothing Yet).

And from Britain, Ken Loach - who has brought 16 films to Cannes in the past - could be in with "The Angel's Share", about an ex-offender on the mend.

\This year's jury is headed up by Italian director Nanni Moretti, who scooped a Palme d'Or for "La stanza del figlio" ("The Son's Room") in 2001 and who told he would be "looking for films that are still able to surprise me."

The jury for Un Certain Regard is to be chaired by the British actor and director Tim Roth.

Berenice Bejo, co-star of the hit French silent movie "The Artist", is to host the festival's opening and closing ceremonies.

Wes Anderson's 1960s teen love story "Moonrise Kingdom" will open the festival, while Claude Miller's "Therese Desqueyroux" will close it, in a tribute to the French filmmaker who had barely finished editing the movie when he died this month aged 70.

Julia Roberts eyes Bollywood, home in India

Julia Roberts eyes Bollywood, home in India

MUMBAI: According to Indian media, Hollywood actress Julia Robert is set to buy a house in India as well take a shot in the kaleidoscopic tinsel town called Bollywood.

Julia’s fascination for India is not new. The ‘Pretty woman’ fell in love with the sub-continent while she was here to shoot for her movie ‘Eat, Pray, Love’.

The 44-year-old, who converted to Hinduism in 2009 confirmed this report saying, “I can see something like that (buying a house here) happening in the future. I would love to live near Haridwar or Varanasi, since they are such holy spots for Hinduism. I’ve heard land prices are astronomical there, though.”

Interestingly, it’s not just Julia who is in awe with India, the love is shared by her entire family. In her last interview with a daily she said that her daughter Hazel wants to live in India when she grows up.

So is her plan to book a property in India a step towards materializing her daughters dream? She said, “I wish I could give a concrete answer to that, since I really enjoyed my first visit here. But, unfortunately, given my line of work, I can’t promise anything. However, whenever I come to India, I’ll bring my kids along.”

Asked if she is teaching her kids about Indian culture? “Right now, they’re too young to grasp the nuances of culture and religion. However, as they grow up, I’d like them to be knowledgeable and respectful towards all cultures. I’ll make sure they know about India.”

Roberts confessed that she is herself on a learning mode. “My Hindi is terrible! The only things I can manage are basic greetings like ‘Namaste’.” That, though, doesn’t stop her from loving Bollywood. “I’m fascinated by Bollywood ... I don’t know much about it, but I’d love to give it a try,” she said.

Julia’s new film ‘Snow White’ directed by Tarsem Singh, an American of Indian origin is set to release in India on 20th April.

Doctors save life of baby with six legs

Doctors save life of baby with six legs

KARACHI: Doctors at the National Institute of Child Health (NICH) have successfully operated on a baby boy born with six legs, Geo News reported.

The operation which lasted more than two hours, ended successfully during which the doctors removed the extra limbs and the baby is now said to be in stable condition.

The baby, who was born in Sukkur, was brought to Karachi on Monday for treatment. The infant was born to the wife of an X-ray technician a week ago, Jamal Raza, the director of the NICH in Karachi told reporters.

"It is not one baby actually. They are two, one of them is premature," he said. A doctor at the institute who did not wish to be named said the extra limbs were the result of a genetic disease which would affect only one in a million or more babies.

"The doctors are examining the infant to plan for necessary treatment to save the baby's life and ensure he lives a normal life," said a statement from the provincial health department.

Imran Shaikh, the baby's father who lives in Sukkur, said he was grateful his son was being treated. "We are a poor family. I am thankful to the government for helping us treating my baby," he told the media.

Prominent gynaecologist and President Pakistan Medical Association Dr Samrina Hashmi said the abnormality in the baby could be because of several factors, including improper medicines taken by the pregnant mother and contaminated water.

"In every 10,000 child births one baby is born with an abnormality such as a hole in the heart," she said. "Then there is a possibility that several eggs were fertilised instead of one

US museum welcomes space shuttle Discovery

US museum welcomes space shuttle Discovery

CHANTILLY: Discovery on Thursday becomes the first spaceship of the retired US shuttle fleet to enter its permanent home as a museum artifact, marking a solemn end to the 30-year manned spaceflight program.

A few thousand tourists eager to see the shuttle up close streamed into a branch of the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum outside the US capital, where volunteers handed out miniature American flags.

"I feel like a little kid today," said aerospace engineer Kelly Scroggs, 24, passing a pair of young boys dressed as astronauts as she walked toward the shuttle Enterprise which sat outside the museum awaiting the arrival of Discovery.

A team of about 20 veteran astronauts who flew to space aboard Discovery are to surround the celebrated spacecraft and escort it to the the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in suburban Virginia.

Famous space travelers, including astronaut John Glenn, who was the first American to orbit the Earth in 1962 and later returned to space aboard Discovery in 1998, were to speak.

For several hours on Thursday, the shuttle will rest nose-to-nose on the tarmac with the prototype Enterprise, which has been on display at the same museum but will soon move to New York.

Discovery is the first of the three remaining shuttles that flew in space to enter a museum, where it will serve as a tourist attraction. The others, Endeavour and Atlantis, will follow in the coming months.

Two other shuttles, Challenger and Columbia, were destroyed in accidents. Challenger disintegrated shortly after liftoff in 1986 and Columbia broke apart on re-entry to Earth in 2003. Both disasters killed everyone on board.

The oldest surviving US shuttle, Discovery flew 39 missions to space beginning in 1984.

It drew cheering crowds and some tears from onlookers earlier this week when it toured the skies over Washington one last time, piggybacking atop a Boeing 747 that NASA keeps specifically for transporting the shuttles.

"It will be pretty humbling to see the space shuttle," said Andrew Manning, 15, who came from Connecticut with his Boy Scout group for the Discovery ceremony.

"To think that it was in space, and to think of all the people who risked their lives to go there."

Discovery ended its last mission to space in March 2011, and the return to Earth of Atlantis in July 2011 marked the end of the US shuttle program, leaving Russia as the only nation capable of sending astronauts to space.

Several private companies are competing to be the first to build a space capsule that would replace the US shuttles operated by NASA for three decades.

While a test cargo mission by SpaceX to the International Space Station is planned for April 30, the prospect of US-driven human space flight remains several years away.

To Loretta McHugh, a 35-year-old engineer, the end of the shuttle program is "disappointing."

"I went into engineering because of the space shuttle program. I grew up with the space shuttle since I was five years old," she said, standing near a group of tables where private companies handed out flyers about their aims for returning Americans to space.

"We need to be able to inspire the next generation of engineers and scientists. I know the commercial efforts are taking off literally, but I also think there needs to be a federal program too. Hopefully this is just a short break for us."

A host of dignitaries were on hand to say farewell to Discovery, headlined by John Glenn but also including NASA Administrator Charles Bolden and museum director Jack Dailey.

Other artifacts on display at the museum include the Boeing B-29 Superfortress "Enola Gay," which in 1945 dropped the first atomic weapon used in combat on Hiroshima, Japan.

There is also a supersonic Concorde airliner donated to the museum by France and a single-seat Kugisho MXY7 Ohka (Cherry Blossom) 22 bomber used for attacks on Allied warships, which was captured from Japan in 1945.

Later this year, Endeavour will move from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida to the California Science Center in Los Angeles.

The shuttle Atlantis, also still in Florida, will make just a short hop to a new exhibit at the Kennedy Center's visitor complex.

Enterprise, a prototype shuttle that never flew in space, will head to New York City on April 23 to go on display at the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum

Saudi might soon set minimum marriage age

Saudi might soon set minimum marriage  age

JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia is edging closer to setting a minimum age for marriage, a Justice Ministry official was quoted as saying     on Wednesday, following international criticism of cases of child brides.  

"The ministry has adopted a clear stance on under-age marriages and the issue was raised to the regulators," Mohammed al-Babetein, head of the Justice Ministry's marriages department, was quoted as saying in the daily al-Madina newspaper.  

"It supports setting unified regulations to deal with such practices, which will ensure the safety of young girls," he said.  

Babetein said the ministry was still in discussions over what age the limit should be set at, al-Madina reported.  

Last May the consultative Shoura Council, which advises the government on new laws, was reported in the local press as recommending the introduction of a minimum marriage age but there have been no concrete reports of further progress.  

Strong winds disrupt air,road traffic in Turkey

Strong winds disrupt air,road traffic in Turkey

ISTANBUL: Strong winds forced authorities to temporarily close bridges across the Bosphorus strait dividing the European and Asian sides of Istanbul on Wednesday, and Turkish Airlines suspended dozens of international and domestic flights.   

Traffic across the two Istanbul bridges was staggered in order to reduce risks of an accident, while high winds blowing through western and central Turkey caused havoc on the roads in
other cities.   

The winds kicked up a dust storm in the capital Ankara, while a motorcyclist was reported killed in the Aegean province of Denizli.   

Istanbul's fire department was flooded with calls from residents alarmed as high winds tore the roofs off buildings. Television images showed a collapsed unfinished building at a
construction site in the city.   

Turkey's flagship carrier Turkish Airlines also cancelled 43 domestic and international flights scheduled for Thursday due to the weather conditions.

Dramatic last flight for Discovery space shuttle

Dramatic last flight for Discovery space shuttle

WASHINGTON: Piggybacking aboard a Boeing 747, the space shuttle Discovery made a dramatic flyover of Washington Tuesday before touching down near its final resting place, a museum outside the US capital.


Riding atop a modified plane kept by NASA specifically for transporting space shuttles, Discovery lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, just after sunrise for its last journey in the skies.
Then the shuttle, which first flew in 1984, circled over the US capital for about an hour before landing at Dulles International Airport as crowds whistled and cheered, and some onlookers fought back tears.
Tourists wearing shorts on a sunny spring day gathered along the National Mall near the Washington Monument, staring skyward to catch a glimpse of the storied white and black shuttle, which appeared scuffed and grubby from its 39 journeys into space.
Office workers clustered at windows or climbed onto rooftops to see the aircraft and shuttle as they soared low over the US capital's historic landmarks.
Outside the Pentagon, a throng of military officers and civilian employees watched the shuttle fly a final time, reveling and applauding as it made two low passes over the building, escorted by a T-38 fighter jet.
Traffic slowed on some of Washington's major roadways as drivers pulled over to gape at the skies, according to some shuttle spotters who reported what they were seeing on the microblogging site Twitter.
"It's like sending someone from your family to go live somewhere else," said NASA astronaut Nicole Stott, a mission specialist on Discovery's final flight, STS-133.
"Discovery's leaving home and starting a new life."

A ceremony to mark the official induction of the Discovery will be held on Thursday at the National Air and Space Museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, outside the US capital in suburban Chantilly, Virginia.
Discovery flew its last mission to space in February and March of last year, on a 13-day trip to the International Space Station.
It is the oldest and most traveled craft in the US collection of three space-flying shuttles -- also including Endeavour and Atlantis -- and one prototype, the Enterprise, which never flew in space.
Two other shuttles were destroyed in flight. Challenger disintegrated shortly after liftoff in 1986 and Columbia broke apart on re-entry to Earth in 2003. Both disasters killed everyone on board.
Discovery spent a total of 365 days in space, and flew nearly 149 million miles (241 million kilometers), NASA's mission control said.
Discovery was the first of the three shuttles to retire last year. Endeavour began its final trip to space in April and the 30-year US program ended after Atlantis returned to Earth for the last time in July 2011.
Russia is now the only nation capable of sending astronauts to space aboard its Soyuz capsules.
Private US companies are competing to be the first to fill the gap left by the shuttles' retirement, with SpaceX set to attempt its first unmanned cargo mission to the ISS on April 30.
A flyover by the shuttle Enterprise is set for April 23 over New York City, NASA said.
The Enterprise, which had been a centerpiece attraction at the Udvar-Hazy Center, part of the Smithsonian museums, until Discovery was assigned to take its place, will pass by the Statue of Liberty and other landmarks, NASA said.
Enterprise is to go on display at New York's Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum.

Top Republicans in Congress finally back Romney

Top Republican in congress finally back Romney

WASHINGTON: They didn't come with a flourish or in a much-plugged TV appearance, but endorsements by the top two Republicans in the US Congress finally arrived Tuesday for Mitt Romney, the party's all-but-certain nominee.

Sensing the inevitability of a Romney victory in the battle to see which Republican squares off against President Barack Obama, House Speaker John Boehner ended his neutrality, saying he'd be "proud" to help him win the November election.
"It's clear now Mitt Romney is going to be our nominee," Boehner told reporters following a bruising, months-long nominations race.
"And I will be proud to support Mitt Romney and do everything I can to help him win."
A few hours later, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell followed suit.
"I support governor Romney for president of the United States," McConnell told reporters.
"He's going to be the nominee," he said, noting how the party "is in the process of unifying behind him."
Two weeks ago McConnell described Romney as an "outstanding" nominee who could prevent an Obama re-election.
But he had stopped short of a direct endorsement at the time, arguing that people in Wisconsin, Maryland and the US capital Washington, which were voting that week, did not need his help in choosing their candidate.
Romney won all three of those contests, and with his main challenger Rick Santorum dropping out of the race, it became clear that Romney was going to be the nominee.
"We're all behind him, and looking forward to the fall campaign which is actually underway," McConnell said Tuesday.
"I think it's going to be an incredibly close and hard-fought race."
Democrat Harry Reid, the Senate majority leader who spoke minutes after McConnell, seamed to revel in the campaign ahead as he made light of McConnell's endorsement, quipping to reporters: "I'm supporting the winner of the next election in November -- Barack Obama!"
Boehner had previously taken a neutral stance in the Republican race, citing fair opportunities for each candidate and his role as chairman of the national convention in late August, but his backing of Romney was now clear.
"Mitt Romney has a set of economic policies that can put Americans back to work, and frankly, contrast sharply with the failed economic policies of President Obama," said Boehner, who has repeatedly clashed with the White House incumbent on economic policy.
Several other leading party figures in Congress, including House majority leader Eric Cantor and Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, had thrown their support behind Romney, a former governor of Massachusetts, weeks ago.
Distinctly absent in Romney's endorsement column, however, is Santorum himself, and that could prove difficult down the road for Romney as he seeks to win over skeptical core conservatives like evangelical voters who supported Santorum more than Romney.
The religious ex-senator from Pennsylvania made no mention of Romney in his speech announcing his capitulation, leading to speculation there was bad blood between the rivals, who frequently clashed during the campaign.
Although two other candidates, former House speaker Newt Gingrich and Libertarian congressman Ron Paul, remain in the Republican race, neither has a real chance of winning.
Romney has this month switched his campaign focus to attacking Obama rather than other Republican contenders, a move that has become more pronounced since last week's withdrawal by Santorum.
On Tuesday Romney, campaigning in Santorum's home state of Pennsylvania, earned the endorsement of Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett, who said Romney "will restore fiscal sanity to Washington by cutting spending, lowering taxes, and reforming entitlements."
Corbett made waves in March when he backed a controversial mandatory ultrasound bill in his state, advising women who did not want to see a sonogram image of the fetus before an abortion to "close your eyes."

US eases Myanmar restrictions for NGOs

US eases Myanmar restrictions for NGOs

WASHINGTON: The United States on Tuesday eased financial restrictions to allow US-based non-governmental groups to operate in Myanmar, putting into place an incentive to encourage democratic reforms.
The Treasury Department said that it would no longer bar financial transactions in the country formerly known as Burma if the money is going toward projects that "meet basic human needs" or promote democracy.
Such projects include assistance to internally displaced people, English-language schools as well as delivery of clothes, food and medicine. The move also lets US missionaries spend money in the heavily Buddhist nation.
The actions were in line with an April 4 announcement by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who sought to reward reformers who permitted by-elections swept by the long-repressed opposition.
In a statement Tuesday to celebrate Myanmar's Thingyan new year, Clinton said that the once isolated country "has taken important steps on an historic new path toward democracy and economic development."
"As you build a brighter future filled with new opportunities, the United States will continue to work with you to strengthen mutual understanding and trust between our two countries and peoples," she said.
The April 1 by-elections saw Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel Peace Prize-winning democracy activist who had spent most of the past two decades under house arrest, win a seat in the military-dominated parliament.
The order issued by the US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control made clear that restrictions would remain in place against individuals in Myanmar seen as responsible for repressing democracy or violating human rights.
President Barack Obama's administration has promised to offer step-by-step incentives to Myanmar as President Thein Sein carries out reforms that few would have considered possible a little more than a year ago.
State Department spokesman Mark Toner said that the United States was also moving ahead to implement the other steps announced earlier this month by Clinton.
Clinton, who paid a landmark visit to Myanmar in December, promised on April 4 to quickly appoint an ambassador to the country to restore full diplomatic relations for the first time in more than two decades.
Clinton also pledged a wider lifting of financial restrictions on Myanmar that could allow US investment in select areas and potentially bring credit cards into the country, one of the few where MasterCard, Visa and American Express are never accepted.
Aung Din, a former political prisoner who heads the US Campaign for Burma advocacy group, said he supported Tuesday's action on non-governmental groups but was concerned about a larger easing of sanctions.
Easing the ban on financial services "may allow the cronies and the military to be able to use US dollars in their transactions," he said.
Noting that Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy will have only a sliver of seats in parliament, Aung Din said the United States needed to use sanctions carefully to ensure that national elections slated for 2015 are truly free and competitive.
US officials have said that they are refocusing sanctions to target institutions such as the military, seen in Washington as one of the biggest impediments to reform due to participation in abuses and ethnic conflict.
The US action comes one day after Australia said it would lift travel and other restrictions against President Thein Sein and more than 200 other people in Myanmar. The European Union is also expected to ease sanctions this month.
In the United States, the removal of most sanctions would require approval by Congress.

 

Menthol smokers have more strokes: study

Menthol smokers have more strokes: study

NEW YORK: Among smokers, people who prefer mentholated cigarettes tend to have more strokes than non-menthol smokers - and this seems to be especially true for women and non-African Americans, according to a North American study.

 

he author of the study said that while no cigarettes are good for the health, the findings - published in the Archives of Internal Medicine - suggest people should especially stay away from mentholated varieties.
"They're all bad, but having said that, from a harm-reduction perspective this study does lend to the view of avoiding - at a minimum - mentholated types," said Nicholas Vozoris, a clinical associate at St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto.
For the study, Vozoris used information taken from U.S. health and lifestyle surveys that included 5,028 adult smokers. The surveys were conducted from 2001 through 2008.
Overall, about 26 percent of those participants said they usually smoked mentholated cigarettes, and the rest smoked non-mentholated ones.
Some experts say menthol makes it easier to start smoking and harder to quit because its taste masks the harshness of tobacco.
Of menthol smokers, 3.4 percent said on the surveys they'd had a stroke. That compared to 2.7 percent of the non-menthol smokers.
After taking into account smokers' age, race, gender and number of cigarettes smoked, Vozoris found mentholated cigarette smokers had more than double the risk of stroke compared to those who opted for non-mentholated cigarettes.
The difference was especially clear in women and people who reported a race other than African American on their surveys. Among those study participants, strokes were over three times more common in menthol smokers.
Vozoris told Reuters Health that the study couldn't prove that the mentholated cigarettes themselves caused the extra stroke risk, rather than some unmeasured difference between menthol and non-menthol smokers.
He added that women and non-African Americans seemed to be driving the link between mentholated cigarettes and strokes, but he wasn't sure why and the study didn't answer that either.
Choosing mentholated cigarettes wasn't tied to an increased risk of high blood pressure, congestive heart failure, chronic lung disease or heart attack compared to standard cigarettes.
Gordon Tomaselli, president of the American Heart Association and chief of cardiology at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, said it was interesting that the study showed an association between smoking mentholated cigarettes and strokes but not high blood pressure.
Vozoris said it's possible the menthol in cigarettes has an effect on the blood vessels that supply the brain in particular.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, smoking any type of cigarettes increases a person's risk of heart disease two- to four-fold compared to non-smokers.

Dental x-rays linked to common brain tumor

Dental x-rays linked to common brain tumor

NEW YORK: A new study suggests people who had certain kinds of dental X-rays in the past may be at an increased risk for meningioma, the most commonly diagnosed brain tumor in the US.

The findings cannot prove that radiation from the imaging caused the tumors, and the results are based on people who were likely exposed to higher levels of radiation during dental X-rays than most are today.
"It's likely that the exposure association we're seeing here is past exposure, and past exposure levels were much higher," said Dr. Elizabeth Claus, the study's lead author and a professor at the Yale School of Medicine in New Haven, Connecticut.
Claus and her colleagues write in the journal Cancer that dental X-rays are the most common source of exposure to ionizing radiation -- which has been linked to meningiomas in the past -- but most research on the connection is based on people who were exposed to atomic bombs or received radiation therapy.
There have been some studies that looked at dental X-rays, but they were from years ago and included fewer people than the current study, Claus noted. Still, they were generally in agreement with the new findings.
For her study, Claus' team recruited 1,433 people diagnosed with intracranial meningioma -- a tumor that forms in the tissues lining the brain -- between May 2006 and April 2011. All of the participants were diagnosed when they were between 20 and 79 years old and they were all from Connecticut, Massachusetts, North Carolina or the Houston or San Francisco Bay areas.
For comparison, the researchers also followed 1,350 people who were similar in age, sex and state of residence as the study group, but who had not been diagnosed with a tumor.
The study looked at how often people had three different types of dental X-rays. They included a focused image of one area, a number of images of the full mouth and a single panoramic view of the entire mouth. These are known in dentistry parlance as bitewing, full-mouth and panorex films, respectively.
Each person was interviewed by someone trained to administer a questionnaire that asked about demographic details, family history of cancer, pregnancy and medical history. The interviewers also asked -- among other things -- about the person's history of dental work and the number of times they had the three types of dental x-rays taken throughout their life.
The researchers found that those diagnosed with meningiomas were more than twice as likely as the comparison group to report ever having had bitewing images taken.
And regardless of the age when the bitewings were taken, those who had them yearly or more frequently were at between 40% and 90% higher risk at all ages to be diagnosed with a brain tumor.
To put that in perspective, Dr. Paul Pharoah, a cancer researcher at the University of Cambridge said in a statement the results would mean an increase in lifetime risk of intracranial meningioma in the U.K. from 15 out of every 10,000 people to 22 in 10,000 people.
Panoramic X-rays taken at a young age, especially if done yearly or more often before age 10, also raised the risk of meningiomas by up to five times.
There was no association between full-mouth X-rays and the tumors, although the authors note they saw a trend similar to that seen for the bitewing X-rays.
The lack of association with full-mouth X-rays led one expert to question the connection.
"They found a small risk (from) a pair of bitewings, but not a full mouth series, which is multiple bitewings. That inconsistency is impossible to understand to me," said Dr. Alan Lurie, president of the American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology.
Lurie also echoed Claus' caution that radiation levels from dental X-rays when some of the participants were younger was much greater than is used now.
He does warn, however, patients shouldn't assume it's fine for the dentist to take X-rays.
"They should ask why are (dentists) taking this image and what is the benefit to me," he said.
The American Dental Association put out a statement in response to the study noting that the interviews relied on participants' memories of how often they had different types of X-rays years earlier.
The statement added, "The ADA's long-standing position is that dentists should order dental X-rays for patients only when necessary for diagnosis and treatment. Since 1989, the ADA has published recommendations to help dentists ensure that radiation exposure is as low as reasonably achievable."
Dr. Sanjay Mallya, an assistant professor the UCLA School of Dentistry in Los Angeles, said that patients should be concerned whenever they are exposed to radiation, but "it's important to emphasize that this concern should not mean that we shouldn't get X-rays at all."
According to the researchers, "while dental X-rays are an important tool in well selected patients, efforts to moderate exposure to (ionizing radiation) to the head is likely to be of benefit to patients and health care providers alike."

Stuart Law gets new job at Australia cricket academy

Stuart Law gets new job at Australia cricket academy

 SYDNEY: Stuart Law, who announced he was quitting the Bangladesh national coach's job on Monday, has taken up a coaching role with Cricket Australia's Centre of Excellence (COE).

The former Australia batsman will return to his home city of Brisbane to spend more time with his family. The Australian cricket academy is also located in Brisbane.

Law, who acted as interim coach for Sri Lanka before joining Bangladesh, will start in his new role after serving his notice period as Bangladesh coach.

"The opportunity to return home to be closer with family and work in Brisbane with Australia's established and emerging talent was too good to pass up," Law was quoted as saying in a CA statement.

"I thank the Bangladesh Cricket Board and the Bangladesh players for their support and will be watching their progress with keen interest over the coming months and years."

The 43-year-old, who played one test and 54 one-day internationals for his country, will be the high performance coach, deputy to COE head coach Troy Cooley.

"Stuart is a current international coach with recent demonstrable success and we're fortunate to have secured his services in the Australian cricket landscape," COE manager Belinda Clark said in a statement.

"He has experienced success with two international teams, periods that included an ICC Cricket World Cup final appearance with Sri Lanka in 2011 and Bangladesh's first Asia Cup final last month.

"His knowledge of the sub-continent and England, and his experience with Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, will bring a global perspective to the COE."

The high point of Law's coaching tenure came at the Asia Cup last month, where hosts Bangladesh defeated regional heavyweights India and Sri Lanka during the group stage before narrowly losing the final to Pakistan

Japan to live without nuclear power after May 5

Japan to live without nuclear power after May 5

TOKYO: Japan will within weeks have no nuclear power for the first time in more than 40 years, after the trade minister said two reactors idled after the Fukushima disaster would not be back online before the last one currently operating is shut down.

Trade Minister Yukio Edano signaled it would take at least several weeks before the government, keen to avoid a power crunch, can give a final go-ahead to restarts, meaning Japan is set on May 6 to mark its first nuclear power-free day since 1970.

"If we thoroughly go through the procedure, it would be (on or) after May 6 even if we could restart them," Edano told a news conference, adding that whether they can actually be brought back online is still up to ongoing discussions.

The crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, where a huge earthquake and tsunami in March 2011 triggered radiation leaks, has hammered public faith in nuclear power and prevented the restart of reactors shut down for regular maintenance checks, with all but one of 54 reactors now offline.

Nuclear power accounted for about 30 percent of Japan's electricity demand before the Fukushima crisis.

In discussing restarts of the No.3 and No.4 reactors at Kansai Electric's Ohi nuclear power plant, in western Japan, the first to clear the government's technical review on resilience against a severe event, Tokyo has said it wants local backing even though it is not legally required.

The hosts of the Ohi plant - the governor of Fukui prefecture and mayor of Ohi town, some 360 km (225 miles) southwest of Tokyo - told Edano on Saturday that some conditions should be met before they can make a decision.

These included a safety review by an expert panel formed by the prefecture and backing from areas neighboring Fukui that are becoming increasingly vocal about possible radiation damage in the event of an accident at any of the 13 reactors in Fukui.

Exactly when Fukui Governor Issei Nishikawa and Ohi Mayor Shinobu Tokioka will make decisions is unclear.

Members of the expert panel will be visiting the Ohi plant on Wednesday and are likely to meet several more times before they reach a conclusion, while the Fukui assembly may meet as early as next week to discuss whether they can back the restarts, Masao Sato, a member of the assembly, told Reuters.

Ohi town told Reuters in March that it conditionally backed the restart. Fukui governor Nishikawa told Edano on Saturday that, while the government has addressed some of Fukui's concerns, more discussions were needed on safety.

While a looming summertime power crunch is a headache throughout Japan, Kansai Electric's service region, including Japan's second biggest metropolitan area of Osaka, is particularly vulnerable as nuclear power met more than 40 percent of power needs prior to the Fukushima crisis.

Electricity generated by the Ohi No.3 and 4 reactors accounted for around 1.8 percent of the total amount of electricity generated in Japan in the business year 2009/10, data from the trade ministry and the Federation of Electric Power Companies in Japan showed.

Edano said that the government may have to protectively come up with plans for rolling blackouts.

"We absolutely cannot let power go out suddenly," he said.

The governors of Shiga and Kyoto prefectures, bordering Fukui, on Tuesday outlined recommendations for the central government on restarting reactors, including publicizing views from independent organizations on reactor safety.

The last time Japan saw a nuclear power-free period was the five days ended on May 4, 1970, when the two reactors then existing were both shut for maintenance, according to the Federation of Electric Power Companies of Japan.

Siachen search operation continues; Swiss, German teams leave after completing tasks

Siachen search operation continues; Swiss, German teams leave after completing tasks

RAWALPINDI: After completing their assigned task of assisting search and rescue mission, Swiss and German teams have gone back to their counties.

The report submitted by Swiss and German teams validated earlier indentified sites by Pakistan Army. Meanwhile Norway and US Teams are at Gayari to assist the ongoing rescue operations.

According to an Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) press release, the search and rescue Operation at Gayari continues round the clock at its full pace.

The rise in temperature has increased the chances of slides, however necessary safety precautions are being taken to ward off danger.

The tunnel at site 1 has been widened slightly; however, the work on the tunnel is hampered due to presence of toxic gases in it.

The work on other sites indentified by experts is in progress at full pace using all available resources. 

Uncertain future for Japan's cat cafes

Uncertain future for Japan's cat cafes

TOKYO: For the young women whiling away their evenings with a cappuccino in hand and a cat on their lap, Tokyo's "neko cafes" are the ideal place to unwind and soothe their stresses.

"After a long day at work, I just want to stroke cats and relax," said saleswoman Akiko Harada.

"I love cats, but I can't have one at home because I live in a small apartment. I started coming here because I really missed having fun with cats and touching them."

For Harada and others like her, the "neko cafes" of the Japanese capital are a harmless institution where customers pay a premium for their coffee in exchange for the chance to pet the cats that stroll among them.

But for animal rights activists, these cafes are exploitative places where animals are subjected to unnatural stress.

They welcome a new ordinance, coming into force later this year, that will ban the display of animals after 8:00 pm.

The rules were drawn up by the environment ministry after it received more than 155,000 requests for action from the public -- an unusually high number in politically ambivalent Japan.

The law is primarily aimed at the pet shops in Tokyo's entertainment districts that regularly raise the eyebrows of Western visitors with their brightly-lit windows displaying dogs and cats in cramped glass tanks late into the night.

But cat cafe manager Shinji Yoshida says he will also be snared by the law and will have to close in the evenings -- his busiest time.

Yoshida's cat cafe in Ikebukuro, a busy commercial and commuter hub in Tokyo, keeps 13 cats in a carpeted room where they have the freedom to jump around and climb all over the large fake tree.

"It is a huge blow to us cat cafes, and it's nothing to do with protecting cats' health," said Yoshida, 32.

"As you see, cats can walk and play freely. I ask customers not to touch them if they are sleeping. At night, we dim the room light," he said. "And cats can rest during daylight."

He says about 80 percent of his customers are salaried workers who drop in for a welcome change from the daily grind of work and long commutes.

"If I close this cafe at 8:00 pm, I'll see red ink," he said.

Yoshida's customers definitely want the cafe to be allowed to stay open.

Office worker Ayako Kanzaki, 22, began visiting cat cafes three years ago because she loves cats but her apartment is too small to keep one.

"I like to do things at my own pace, and I must say I am not a very social person. So I come here alone, because I want to focus on the cats," she said.

"During the day, cats are mostly sleeping, and if they are awake, they often don't pay attention to the people. In the evening they are very lively, it's more enjoyable."

Saleswoman Harada agrees.

"If cat cafes are shut down at night, I won't have many opportunities to come any more," she said.

Animal welfare campaigner Chizuko Yamaguchi says the sheer number of customers in cat cafes can make life difficult for the animals.

"From morning to night these cats are being stroked by people they do not know. For the animals, that is a real source of stress," she said.

Fusako Nogami, head of animal rights group ALIVE, said the rule change banning the display of animals in the evening was a good thing, but acknowledges the cat cafes are not the target.

Nogami said the commodification of animals in Japan was a real problem, with many people looking at them purely as fashion accessories, and not as lives in their own right.

"What deserves more public attention is the way pets are sold in Japan," she said.

"We need to ban the trade of newborn kittens and puppies just because they are pretty and sell well."

One fifth of rich want to flee Britain

One fifth of rich want to flee Britain

LONDON: One in five Britons with more than 250,000 pounds in savings are thinking of living abroad because they are tired of crime, poor weather and the high cost of living, said the wealth management arm of Lloyds Banking Group.

Britain, facing the worst economic crisis in nearly a century, is grappling with how to preserve its image as a safe-haven for the international rich while increasing taxes and slashing public spending.

But the research from Lloyds TSB International Wealth showed that 19 percent of wealthy Britons were thinking of moving to euro zone countries like France and Spain or further afield to the United States, Australia, New Zealand or Canada.

"It is clear that a significant and growing minority see opportunity and a better quality of life overseas," Lloyds TSB International Wealth Director Nicholas Boys Smith, who oversaw the report, said in a statement.

"Our research suggests the number of wealthy people leaving the UK is set to increase in the next two years," he said.

"Clearly there's a growing minority that is worried about the outlook; infrastructure, crime, anti-social behaviour, tax, red tape and do believe that there are better options abroad," Boys Smith told Reuters.

"What's interesting is one of the highest proportions of people looking to leave are wealthy people living in London, and the highest proportion of wealthy people looking to leave are aged 25-34.

"It is people who are out there with a career in front of them, looking to go out and make money, do things and make their own impact in the world, not just people retiring to France or Spain for a place in the sun," he added.

About half a million people in Britain have more than 250,000 pounds in savings or investments that exclude property.

More than half of those interviewed cited crime and anti-social behaviour as reasons to leave, while poor weather and the high cost of living were also cited.

"This includes the large number of successful, affluent individuals who play an important role in powering the UK economy," said Boys Smith. "We're talking about real people doing real jobs in the real economy."

So what could stop the rich from fleeing Britain's green and pleasant shores?

More than 60 percent of those interviewed said that investing in better infrastructure would make the UK a more attractive place to live in, while about half said they wanted less red tape for businesses and lower taxes.

With most of Britain's 62 million people facing the pinch of rising prices and muted wage growth, the taxation of the rich has become a headache for the Conservative-Liberal coalition government.

Chancellor George Osborne has expressed shock at the scale of legal tax avoidance by multi-millionaires while the Labour party has accused ministers of pandering to the rich by lowering income tax for those earning more than 150,000 pounds. 

India likely to cut interest rates first time in 3-year

The rate rises have subdued inflation that was near double-digits for most of last year.

India s central bank was widely expected to cut interest rates on Tuesday -- its first reduction in three years -- to help spur growth that has slowed markedly due to relentless monetary tightening.

Economists forecast the rate reduction despite official data on Monday showing inflation climbed in March to an unexpected 6.89 percent from a year earlier -- above market expectations of a 6.7 percent rise.

"We expect a 25-basis point cut," said Siddhartha Sanyal, chief India economist at Barclays Capital. "The central bank will rebalance its priorities somewhat to boost growth, while not completely letting go of its anti-inflationary stance," he said.
The central bank s policymakers were due to announce their decision at around 0530 GMT.

Emerging market nations have been cutting rates to bolster expansion and shield their economies from Europe s sovereign debt crisis as well as the weakened US economy and to offset a slowdown in China.

But Asia s third-largest economy has kept rates at their highest level since 2008 to tame inflation, which has caused huge hardship to India s hundreds of millions of poor and is a political tripwire in the nation of 1.2 billion people.

The rate rises have subdued inflation that was near double-digits for most of last year and now policymakers  attention is focused on the slowing economy.

India s industrial output grew in February by a lower-than-expected 4.1 percent after expanding by just 1.1 percent in January, data last week showed.

The central bank hiked interest rates 13 times from March 2010, undertaking the most aggressive monetary policy tightening drive of all major economies, and it has kept rates on hold since late last year.

In a preliminary step to loosen monetary policy, the bank has twice reduced since the start of 2012 the amount of cash commercial banks must keep in reserve to a bid to boost lending and spur growth.

The government expects growth to improve in the new fiscal year which started April 1, targeted at 7.6 percent, but this is still far below the eight-to nine-percent growth for much of the past decade.

India s slowing growth comes as the Congress party-led government, battered by a string of graft scandals, has been under heavy financial market pressure to curb public spending and rein in a ballooning deficit.

But concerns about volatile global crude oil prices and a weak rupee remain, which means that the Reserve Bank of India will have to tread cautiously in lowering rates as it seeks to bolster the economy, economists said.

Analysts added that the country s inflation battle was far from won.

"India still has an inflation problem and is likely to have an inflation problem for the rest of 2012," said Moody s Analytics senior economist Glenn Levine.

 

Japan pledges $60b to IMF for Europe

Japan pledged $60 billion in loans to the International Monetary Fund Tuesday in an effort to ensure that the debt crisis in some European economies won t spread.


Japanese Finance Minister Jun Azumi announced the emergency loan, which will use the nation s foreign exchange reserves, his ministry said.
IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde welcomed the move and encouraged other fund members to do the same. "This is an important step forward in the ongoing international effort to strengthen the adequacy of the global resources available to prevent and fight crises and to promote global economic stability," Lagarde said in a statement.  
IMF lending is expected to be on the agenda when finance chiefs from the Group of 20 leading economies meet in Washington later this week.
Greece, Ireland and Portugal had to seek bailouts after their borrowing costs rocketed and there are concerns Spain might be next.

Spain has the fourth-largest economy among the 17 nations that use the euro and is widely considered too expensive to rescue.

The yield on Spain s benchmark 10-year government bond jumped above 6 percent Monday for the first time since November. Rising yields are a sign that investors are less confident in the country s finances.


"We can never be optimistic about the situation in Europe, even though the area is almost set to exit the crisis, thanks to policy efforts," Azumi was quoted by Kyodo as saying.

 

Euro falls against major currencies in Asian trade

The euro fell against other major currencies on stop-loss sales in Asian trade on Monday, while China s decision to widen the range at which its currency trades against the dollar had little impact.

The euro bought $1.3021 and 105.05 yen in Tokyo afternoon trade, down from $1.3078 and 105.83 yen in New York late Friday. The dollar was changing hands at 80.66 yen against 80.91 yen.

The euro s decline came after the single currency also fell on Friday amid investor worries over eurozone debt and slowing growth in China as its economy grew less than expected in the first quarter.

The common currency sank further on Monday as sell orders were triggered at around $1.3050, said a senior trader at a major Japanese trust bank. The move also dragged the euro down against the yen, traders said.

Renewed concerns about the eurozone s fiscal problems resurfaced after Spanish bank borrowing from the European Central Bank surged to record highs in March.

"The euro is on its knees thanks to renewed funding pressures for Spain and Italy. Until that gets resolved the euro will remain under the pump," said David Scutt, senior trader at Arab Bank Australia.

On Monday, Japan s finance minister declined to confirm a weekend report that Tokyo was considering a $60.0 billion loan to the International Monetary Fund to help boost a global firewall against financial turmoil.

IMF funding will be a key topic at talks Friday in Washington of the Group of 20 finance ministers and central bankers, with IMF chief Christine Lagarde saying last week the fund may need less rescue-funding than previously thought.

"It is likely to be a policy-focused week this week," National Australia Bank said in a note. France also holds the first round of presidential elections at the weekend, where Socialist challenger Francois Hollande is seen as a possibly destabilising force for the euro, the bank said.

Currency trading was barely affected by China s weekend decision to widen the yuan s trading band against the dollar.

Western critics, led by the United States, have kept up pressure on Beijing over its foreign-exchange policies, saying it keeps the yuan artificially low to boost the country s exports.

A senior official at the Japanese finance ministry said Monday that China s move was "a step in a positive direction." The dollar was largely higher against other Asian currencies, rising to 1,138.75 South Korean won from 1,135.40 on Friday, to 30.87 Thai baht from 30.73 baht and to Sg$1.2539 from Sg$1.2485.

It gained to Tw$29.52 frin Tw$29.49 and to 42.77 Philippine pesos from 42.72 pesos but declined to 9,149.00 Indonesian rupiah from 9,175.00 rupiah.

 

Argentine leader to nationalize oil company

In a bold move to gain control of Argentina s energy reserves, President Cristina Fernandez pushed forward a bill to renationalize the country s largest oil company on Monday despite fierce criticism from abroad and the risk of a major rift with Spain.

In a national address, Fernandez said the legislation put to congress would give Argentina a majority stake in oil and gas company YPF by taking control of 51 percent of its shares currently held by Spain s Repsol.

Both Repsol and Spain strongly oppose the move and have warned that it could turn Argentina into an international pariah. YPF is vital for Argentina s energy future, especially after its recent find of huge unconventional oil and natural gas reserves. But the company is under pressure from Fernandez s government to raise output while its shares have plunged in recent months on fears of possible state intervention.

Argentina this year expects to import more than $10 billion worth of gas and natural liquid gas to address an energy crisis even though it is an oil-producing nation, according to estimates from the hydrocarbon sector. "We are the only country in Latin America, and I would say in practically the entire world, that doesn t manage its own natural resources," Fernandez said. She said her proposal "is not a model of statism" but "the recovery of sovereignty."

Critics blame the government for an energy shortage and high gasoline prices. But Fernandez said the shortage is the result of Repsol s "emptying" of YPF, and that Argentina had a deficit of $3 billion last year partly due to energy imports.
Argentines gathered in Buenos Aires  main square shouting slogans, waving national flags and carrying banners supporting the government takeover.

One of them read: "Today, with Cristina, we recovered YPF." YPF was privatized in the 1990s. Repsol s subsidiary in Argentina holds 57 percent of YPF s shares. Fernandez said the renationalization was a long-held desire of her late husband and predecessor, former President Nestor Kirchner.

"I hope he s watching over me because he always wanted to recover YPF for the country," she said. But analysts said the planned takeover risks alienating foreign investors and prompting retaliation from Spain s government.

"It is a bad decision," said Emilio Apud, a former Argentine energy secretary who now works as a consultant. "It gives the Argentine government a bad image" and will discourage investment, he said. Apud also called the proposed law "a bad way to treat friendly governments like Spain."

In Madrid, Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo called the move arbitrary, and said it broke the climate of cordiality and friendship that had existed with Argentina. He said Spain would respond with "forceful measures" he did not describe.

The European Commission has warned that nationalizing YPF would be bad for the investment climate in Argentina, and has said it backs Spain in the standoff over the subsidiary. Fernandez, however, was unmoved by the risk of a row with Spain, Argentina s largest foreign investor.

"This president is not going to answer any threat, is not going to respond to any sharp remark.," she said to applause from business, union and political leaders. "I am a head of state and not a hoodlum," said Fernandez, who has also renationalized the country s Aerolineas Argentinas airline and nationalized the Anses state private pension funds.

There was no explanation of how, or how much, Repsol and its stockholders would be compensated. Analysts say that the government might have to use Central Bank reserves, or funds from the Anses to pay for the takeover.

"The issue that scares investors is not knowing how far the governmental participation will go, if it s only YPF or if it is going to include other petroleum companies in Argentina," said Joe Amador, Latin America director for Scotia Waterous, the oil and gas arm of Scotiabank, in Houston, Texas.

Even with its share prices depressed, YPF last week was valued at $13.6 billion, and buying half of that would deplete Argentina s treasury of funds it needs to maintain the populist subsidies that have kept the country s economy afloat.
Repsol released a statement promising to protect the interests of its shareholders. It called the move "unlawful and gravely discriminatory."

Spanish officials had earlier protested the plan, saying Argentina risks becoming "an international pariah" if it takes control of Repsol  subsidiary, Repsol YPF SA. Spain s foreign minister last week summoned Argentine Ambassador Carlo Antonio Bettini to convey concern over possible nationalization of YPF, which represents 42 percent of Repsol s total reserves, estimated at 2.1 billion barrels of crude.

Mexico s Economy Minister Bruno Ferrari said in recent days that Spain had requested that Mexico intervene in the row with Argentina over Repsol-YPF SA. But Ferrari said Mexico s role in the dispute is still to be determined. "We will hold talks with Spain over the next days to exactly determine what Mexico can do," he said ahead of the World Economic Forum on Latin America 2012 that will be held in the coastal city of Puerto Vallarta.

At the forum on Monday, Mexican President Felipe Calderon criticized Argentina s move, calling it "not very responsible and not very rational." In contrast, Venezuela s foreign ministry issued a statement voicing support for Fernandez s decision to renationalize YPF. Venezuela s state oil company also supported the Argentine decision and said it is willing to help strengthen Argentina s oil industry,

"Venezuela puts all its technical, operational, legal and political experience of Petroleos de Venezuela at the disposition of the government of Argentina and its people to strenthen the state oil sector," the foreign ministry said. Governors of oil-producing Argentine provinces have withdrawn about 15 oil leases, representing 18 percent of YPF s crude production, alleging the company failed to keep its promises to develop them.

YPF has countered that it has invested millions in those areas and plans to increase production, but Argentine officials have said that still falls short. How Argentina may try to displace Repsol has been the subject of wide speculation since the government s pressure campaign began in February.

The president s proposal would leave Repsol with just a little more than 6 percent of YPF s shares. Fernandez put Federal Planning Minister Julio de Vido and Economics Vice Minister Axel Kicillof in charge of handling the expropriation.
The president s proposal declares that the exploration and exploitation of hydrocarbons is "of national public interest" and declares that building up the nation s supply is a priority.

 

australian troops

Australia hints at early pullout from Afghanistan

Australia said Tuesday it will bring its troops home from Afghanistan a year earlier than planned with most soldiers withdrawn in 2013 after significant security gains over the past 18 months.

Canberra, a key coalition ally of the United States, has repeatedly said it intends to remain in the war-wracked nation until 2014 but Prime Minister Julia Gillard said Afghans would now be ready to take responsibility earlier.

She will take her pull-out timetable to a NATO summit in Chicago next month with her announcement coming a day ahead of NATO foreign and defence ministers meeting in Brussels to fine-tune their own troop withdrawals.

"I m now confident that Chicago will recognise mid-2013 as a key milestone in the international strategy," she said in a keynote speech shortly after a wave of coordinated Taliban attacks in Afghanistan left 51 people dead.

"A crucial point when the international forces will be able to move to a supporting role across all of Afghanistan." Australia has some 1,550 troops stationed in the strife-torn country and has so far lost 32 soldiers in the conflict.

Gillard said they would begin leaving as soon as Afghan President Hamid Karzai declared Afghans would take responsibility for Uruzgan province, where most Australian forces are based.

Karzai is expected to make the announcement "in the coming months" and once he did, the withdrawal should take 12 to 18 months.

"And when this is complete, Australia s commitment in Afghanistan will look very different to that we have today," she said.
"We will have completed our training and mentoring mission with the 4th Brigade.

"We will no longer be conducting routine frontline operations with the Afghan National Security Forces. The Australian-led Provincial Reconstruction Team will have completed its work.

"And the majority of our troops will have returned home." While most soldiers will head home, she made clear Australia stood ready to "provide niche training to the Afghan National Security Forces after 2014".

"We are prepared to consider a limited Special Forces contribution -- in the right circumstances and under the right mandate," she said. Canberra has faced increasing pressure over the long-running Afghan campaign and a 2013 pull-out will be a year in advance of the 2014 deadline previously laid down by NATO-led international forces.
It will also mean most Australian troops are likely to be home before the next election.

Gillard is struggling in opinion polls and many people are against the deployment to Afghanistan. Australia s Afghan deployment began in 2001 before Canberra pulled out, only to redeploy to the arena in 2005.

Gillard said while the challenges in Afghanistan remained significant, important gains had been made that helped fast-track a transition to full Afghan security responsibility.

"Bin Laden is dead. Most of Al-Qaeda s senior leaders have been killed or captured. We have pushed Al-Qaeda s remaining leaders to the Afghanistan-Pakistan border area," she said.

"The Afghan National Army s 4th Brigade is increasingly capable of planning and conducting operations on its own and the Afghan security presence across the province is expanding."

At the Chicago summit, Gillard added that she hoped to sign an agreement with Karzai setting out "Australia s enduring partnership with Afghanistan in development -- along with security, trade and investment".

 "Strengthening the capacity of the Afghan government, economy and institutions will be essential to ensuring that the gains made to date are not reversed," she said.