Sunday, 16 February 2014

Datuk lapan cucu ditahan menagih dadah

KUALA KEDAH: Seorang lelaki warga emas mempunyai lapan cucu ditahan polis bersama 41 penagih yang lain ketika diserbu polis di Jambatan Tok Pasai, Kuala Kedah pada pagi tadi.

Dalam serbuan kira-kira jam 6 pagi itu, sepasukan anggota dari Ibu Pejabat Polis Daerah Kota Setar bersama anggota dari Ibu Pejabat Polis Kontinjen Kedah menyerbu kawasan berkenaan yang dipercayai menjadi ‘port’ penagih dadah sejak lebih dua tahun lalu.

Ketika serbuan, beberapa penagih terbabit cuba melarikan diri bagaimanapun gagal berikutan kawasan itu telah dikepung.

Lelaki warga emas yang dikenali dengan panggilan ‘Pak Long’ itu mengakui sudah 42 tahun menagih dadah jenis heroin sejak menuntut di sebuah universiti di Kuala Lumpur atas alasan untuk menghilangkan tekanan serta pengaruh daripada rakan sebaya.

Dia yang mendakwa dirinya pernah bekerja sebagai penasihat undang-undang di Johor mengakui terpaksa melepaskan gian dengan membeli satu straw heroin berharga RM10 setiap hari dengan menggunakan wang simpanan sehingga sanggup menjual harta pusaka yang ada.

Dia turut mengakui pernah tiga kali ditahan polis ketika menagih dadah serta turut ditahan di Pusat Rawatan Pemulihan di Rawang, Selangor pada tahun 2003.

Bagaimanapun dia dikatakan tidak boleh melupakan ketagihan dadah yang sudah sebati dalam diri.

Dengan nada yang kesal dia berkata bahawa keluarganya pernah melarang selain meminta supaya dia berhenti menagih dadah.

Namun menjadi satu kesukaran buat dirinya berikutan beberapa kali cubaan untuk berhenti tetapi gagal.

Menurut Ketua Operasi, Insp Muhammad Amin Mat Yasin, kesemua penagih terbabit datang ke kawasan itu pada waktu awal pagi untuk mendapatkan bekalan dadah yang dihantar melalui tokan yang datang ke kawasan itu sebelum melepaskan gian menghisap dadah jenis heroin di situ.

Ia berdasarkan penemuan peralatan yang digunakan untuk menghisap dadah di sekitar kawasan terbabit.

Bagaimanapun bagi memudahkan urusan jual beli, dikatakan tokan tersebut turut mempamerkan nombor telefon untuk dihubungi yang ditulis di tiang konkrit jambatan berkenaan.

“Antara yang ditangkap di sini lebih kurang 22 orang tempatan Kuala Kedah selebihnya orang di sekitar Kuala Kedah faktor kawasan ini menjadi tumpuan kerana mudah didapati dan disamping itu pekerjaan penduduk tempatan sebagai nelayan memberikan faktor utama kawasan ini menjadi tumpuan penagihan dadah,” katanya.

Kesemua mereka yang ditahan berusia antara 22 hingga 62 tahun kini ditahan mengikut seksyen 3(1) Akta Penagihan Dadah 1983 Pindaan 1988 kerana disyaki penagih dan sabit kesalahan boleh dihantar ke Pusat Pemulihan Dadah selama dua tahun atau di bawah pengawasan polis selama dua tahun.

Mereka kemudian dibawa ke ipd kota setar untuk siasatan lanjut dan berdasarkan ujian saringan awal air kencing yang dilakukan terhadap mereka mendapati kesemuanya positif opiate dan morfin.

Astro Awani 

KWSP isytihar dividen 6.35% untuk 2013


KUALA LUMPUR:  Kumpulan Wang Simpanan Pekerja (KWSP) mengumumkan pemberian dividen 6.35 peratus bagi tahun kewangan berakhir 31 Disember 2013.

Ia merupakan bayaran dividen paling tinggi sebanyak RM31.2 bilion kepada ahlinya, meningkat 13.66 peratus daripada RM27.45 bilion pada 2012.

Dalam satu kenyataan yang dikeluarkan hari ini Pengerusi KWSP Tan Sri Samsudin Osman berkata prestasi KWSP konsisten dan stabil terutamanya bagi lima tahun lepas.

“Sejak tahun-tahun kebelakangan ini, KWSP telah mempelbagaikan portfolio dengan memperluaskan skop aset pelaburan bagi menguruskan risiko pasaran dan menjana pulangan yang konsisten.

“Sejak krisis kewangan global 2008, KWSP telah mengisytiharkan dividen dikompaun melebihi RM120 bilion kepada ahlinya. Saiz aset pelaburan KWSP termasuk caruman tahunan bersih telah mencatatkan peningkatan kukuh; daripada RM342.01 bilion pada 2008 kepada RM586.66 bilion pada penghujung tahun 2013.”  tambah beliau.

Kadar dividen ini diisytiharkan hasil daripada pendapatan pelaburan kasar yang mencatatkan rekod tertinggi sebanyak RM35.00 bilion, meningkat 12.81 peratus daripada RM31.02 bilion yang dicatatkan pada 2012.

Pembayaran dividen 2013 diperoleh setelah ditolak peruntukan rugi terjejas bersih ke atas aset kewangan, perbelanjaan pelaburan dan operasi, caj berkanun serta dividen untuk pengeluaran.

Dengan jumlah ahli KWSP meningkat kepada lebih daripada 13 juta, sebanyak RM4.91 bilion diperlukan untuk membayar setiap satu peratus kadar dividen bagi 2013.

Ini merupakan 10.06 peratus lebih tinggi berbanding RM4.46 bilion yang dibayar untuk setiap satu peratus kadar dividen pada 2012.

Penyata akaun KWSP yang telah dikreditkan dividen 2013 boleh disemak mulai sekarang secara online melalui i-Akaun di laman web MYEPF.

Ahli juga boleh mendapatkan penyata akaun mereka dari kios KWSP atau cawangan KWSP yang berdekatan mulai hari Isnin, 17 Februaru 2014.

Astro Awani 

Lebih 40 hektar hutan dan belukar terbakar di Negeri Sembilan

Api kelihatan marak membakar belukar di Kampung Belangkan, Kuala Sawah. Lebih 40 hektar kawasan hutan dan belukar di Negeri Sembilan terbakar akibat kejadian pembakaran terbuka hari ini. -Foto BERNAMA


SEREMBAN: Lebih 40 hektar kawasan hutan dan belukar di Negeri Sembilan dilaporkan terbakar pada Sabtu, kata Pengarah Jabatan Bomba dan Penyelamat Negeri Sembilan Norazam Khamis.

Beliau berkata pihaknya menerima 32 panggilan mengenai kebakaran hutan dan belukar pada Sabtu dan yang terkini mengenai kebakaran hutan di daerah Rembau bersempadan dengan Tampin melibatkan kawasan seluas 8.1 hektar.

"Pada hari ini (Sabtu) juga saya telah mengarahkan cuti semua anggota dibekukan dan diarahkan untuk bertugas membantu pemadaman api hutan di kawasan berkenaan. Operasi untuk mengawal api daripada merebak melibatkan pasukan Balai Bomba Rembau dan Tampin," katanya kepada pemberita di sini, hari ini.

Katanya lapan unit chalet dan dua kabin yang dijadikan pejabat di kawasan peranginan yang telah lama ditinggalkan dan terbengkalai di Kampung Belakang, Kuala Sawah dekat sini turut musnah dalam kebakaran kira-kira 2.20 petang Sabtu.

Bagaimanapun, katanya bomba berjaya menyelamat tiga unit chalet daripada musnah dalam kebakaran itu.

"Siasatan awal kami mendapati kebakaran itu berpunca daripada kebakaran kawasan hutan dan belukar seluas 15 hektar berhampiran dan merebak pantas ekoran tiupan angin dan cuaca kering," katanya.

Norazam berkata empat pegawai termasuk dirinya dan 26 anggota beserta tiga jentera terlibat dalam kerja-kerja pemadaman.

Bernama

Quitting smoking makes you happier


Moderate or heavy smokers who quit tobacco get a boost in mental wellbeing that, for people who are anxious or stressed, is equivalent to taking anti-depressants, a study said Thursday.

British researchers examined 26 published investigations into the mental health of smokers.

They looked at standardised scorecards for symptoms of anxiety, depression, stress and quality of life, derived from questionnaires completed by volunteers.

The smokers were 44 years old on average and smoked between 10 and 40 cigarettes a day. They were questioned before they tried to give up smoking and again after their attempt -- an average of six months later.

Those who succeeded in quitting reported reduced depression, anxiety and stress and had a more positive outlook on life compared with those who continued smoking.

"The effect sizes are equal or larger than those of anti-depressant treatment for mood and anxiety disorders," said the study, published by the British Medical Journal (BMJ).

Quitters who had been diagnosed with psychiatric disorders enjoyed a similar improvement.

Lead investigator Gemma Taylor of the University of Birmingham's School of Health and Population Sciences said she hoped the findings would dispel a widespread misconception about smoking.

"It's a common myth that smoking actually is good for your mental health -- 'smoking relieves stress,' 'smoking helps you relax,' 'smoking helps you enjoy things' -- and that common myth is really hard to overcome," Taylor told AFP in a phone interview.

But actually, the study showed that "when you stop smoking and you break the nicotine withdrawal cycle, your mental health improves."

Taylor pointed to a mainstream theory in tobacco addiction research: that a smoker's psychological state fluctuates throughout the day as a result of exposure to nicotine.

The sense of calm or wellbeing from a cigarette is followed immediately afterwards by classic withdrawal signs of a depressed mood, anxiety or agitation.

Smokers, though, tend to misattribute these symptoms and blame them on stress or other factors.

And because nicotine has a calming effect, they perceive that cigarettes improve their mental health.

Smoking is already blamed for a wide range of physical diseases and disorders, ranging from cancer, blindness and cardiac problems to diabetes, gum disease and impotence.

The UN's World Health Organisation (WHO) estimated last July that tobacco kills almost six million people each year, a toll that will rise to eight million annually in 2030.

About four out of every five deaths will occur in low- and middle-income nations, it said.

Despite a decline in smoking prevalence in some nations, in overall terms the number of people smoking today is greater than in 1980, due to population growth, according to a paper published last month in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

AFP RELAXNEWS 

Locally-assembled Mitsubishi ASX CKD now on sale, RM128,879


Mitsubishi Motors Malaysia has announced that the locally-assembled Mitsubishi ASX is now on sale in showrooms nationwide. The CKD ASX, the first modern Mitsubishi to be made in Malaysia, was given a line-off ceremony at Tan Chong Motor Assemblies in Segambut last month. TCMA is the contract assembler.

The facelifted CKD ASX is powered by a 2.0 litre four-cylinder with 150 PS and 197 Nm of torque. The MIVEC engine is paired to an INVECS-III CVT gearbox with six virtual ratios, and one can choose between 2WD and 4WD variants, the latter with the ability to lock drive at 50:50 for both axles.

The ASX has been available here as a CBU import from Japan since late 2010, but only in front-wheel-drive form – the 4WD variant is new to our market.


Prices start from RM114,743.50 for the 2WD (CBU car was RM139,982), while the 4WD is priced at RM128,879.50, both on-the-road without insurance. Available in four colours – Black Mica, Titanium Grey, Cool Silver and Solid White – the ASX comes with a five-year unlimited mileage warranty. The first 300 customers will also get a “special leather case” from MMM.

Click on the brochure scans below to view the spec differences between 2WD and 4WD. The ASX, in CBU form, participated in our five-car SUV shootout, which you can read here.



Source: Paultan.org

Snow storm kills three in Japan


TOKYO: Japan's road, rail and air travel services faced further disruptions Saturday, reports and officials said, after a fresh snow storm killed three people and injured 850 others following last week's deadly blizzard.

Snow began falling Friday morning in the capital Tokyo and piled up to 26 centimetres (10 inches) by early Saturday, a week after the heaviest snowfall in decades left at least 11 people dead and more than 1,200 injured across the nation.

A driver was killed Friday in a crash involving his car and a truck on an icy road in Shiga, central Japan, while a farmer died after a tractor overturned on a snow-covered road in southwestern Oita, local media said.

In a separate snow-related accident, a driver was killed and three others injured on an expressway in central Shizuoka, the news reports said.

Public broadcaster NHK said some 850 people, including one in a coma, have been injured in snow-related accidents across the nation since snow hit western Japan late Thursday.

Drivers were struggling to move their cars in the capital's residential district of Setagaya, while snow started melting and flooding some roads in downtown Tokyo.

Television footage showed hundreds of passengers resting on benches and floors under blankets at Haneda airport in Tokyo as public transport services were suspended due to heavy show.

At least 628 flights, mostly on domestic routes, were cancelled on Saturday at Haneda and other airports in eastern Japan, NHK said, a day after more than 260 flights were grounded due to heavy snow.

Two commuter trains collided at Motosumiyoshi station in Tokyo early Saturday leaving 19 passengers injured, officials said.

The accident occurred as train services were disrupted due to the storm but it was not immediately clear if the collision was directly related to the bad weather. Transport authorities are investigating the case.

The storm also caused delays and suspensions on the "shinkansen" bullet train services and the closure of a number of highways across the country.

Some 187,000 households lost power mainly in eastern Japan due to snow and strong winds, NHK said.

The meteorological agency continued warning of heavy snow in eastern Japan as well as strong winds and high waves along coastal areas, which may cause snowslides.

Last week, as much as 27 centimetres of snow was recorded in Tokyo, the capital's worst snowfall for 45 years.

While much of that snow had melted, the remains of larger piles as well as some slightly diminished snowmen were still in evidence across the city. - AFP 

Apakah cara terbaik anda untuk mengatasi masalah air?


KUALA LUMPUR: Ketika dua juta warga Lembah Klang bersedia untuk berhadapan gangguan bekalan air ekoran musim kering melanda negara, Astro AWANI sekali lagi meminta pembaca untuk berkongsi cara-cara untuk menangani masalah ini.

Adakah anda menggunakan telaga, tangki besar atau anda tinggal dengan rakan apabila krisis melanda?

Adakah anda mempunyai cara yang lebih baik untuk menyimpan air ketika berhadapan dengan situasi yang tidak dijangka ini.

Berikut adalah keputusan undian setakat ini.


 
 
 
Astro Awani 

Floods in Sabah claim second victim


KUALA LUMPUR: The floods in Sabah have taken a turn for the worse after it claimed its second victim on Friday.

According to The News Straits Times, an 8-year-old boy had drowned near his home in Kampung Lubak after he had fallen from a bridge.

The first casualty was a 2-year-old girl on Thursday who had drowned after falling in floodwaters from a rescue boat at a plantation in Kampung Mempikit in Keningau.

The incident has been confirmed by the Sabah Fire and Rescue Department.

Although the state had seen a respite from the downpours since yesterday, water levels at rivers remain at dangerous levels with many roads still impassable to traffic.

According to the National Security Council (MKN) website, up until 11.53am on Saturday some 5,453 floods victims from 1,172 families are still seeking shelter at 28 relief centres in Tenom and Beaufort.

The Meteorological Department in a statement said thunderstorms in the waters off Perak, Selangor, Labuan and Sabah are expected to continue today.

It added the condition could cause strong winds of up to 50 kph and choppy seas with waves of up to 3.5 metres high, which is dangerous to small boats.

Similar conditions are also expected to occur in the waters off South Reef, North Reef, Layang-Layang and Sulu.

Residents affected by the floods in Sabah have also turned to Social Media websites to give a picture on how bad the situation is in the state.

Astro Awani 

2014 Honda City specs teased by Honda Malaysia


Honda Malaysia has put up a teaser on its website for an upcoming car, and we’re guessing it’s the new 2014 Honda City. The teaser is in the form of a three by three grid of nine icons, each representing a feature of the new Honda City. No launch date is mentioned.

The features being teased are from the first row to the bottom, left to right – ECON mode, Push Start Button, 16 inch alloy wheels, seven inch display audio, cruise control, 1.5 litre i-VTEC engine with CVT gearbox, rear air conditioning, platinum front grille, and six airbags.

Yes, it appears that the CVT gearbox will make a return to the Malaysian spec Honda City in this generation, instead of a five speed automatic. Both the Indian market and Thai market cars that we’ve seen unveiled this year so far also use CVT gearbox.




Despite the mention of six airbags, curiously VSA stability control isn’t mentioned as one of the features. We hope this could just mean the extra mention would cause inconvenience in fitting every feature in a 9 box grid and the car eventually ends up with VSA stability control as standard on all models. 

With the second generation car, only the E and E+ variants get VSA stability control. It would be great if VSA was standard on the Malaysian spec cars just like how it is in Thailand, where airbag count varies but VSA remains standard across all six Thai spec variants.

The features being teased will of course very likely only be standard for the top end variants, with niceties like cruise control and the seven inch display likely to be omitted from the cheaper variants. It’s still a question right now how many variants the third gen City will get.

An ad on our sister car classifieds website oto.my claims we’ll get four variants – S, S+, E and V, with a price range of between RM74k to RM89k. An estimated launch date of mid March 2014 is given, with first batch deliveries claimed to be in April.

Other than the features listed in Honda Malaysia’s official teaser, the oto.my ad also mentions VSA stability control, keyless entry, as well as HDMI and USB ports.

Source: Paultan.org

China plans to build world's longest underwater tunnel


China plans to build the world's longest underwater tunnel, an expert involved in the project told AFP Friday, a $36 billion shortcut between two northern port cities in an earthquake-prone region.

The scheme will see cars loaded onto railway carriages before travelling at 220 kilometres per hour (136 miles per hour) along the 123-kilometre tunnel connecting Dalian in Liaoning province and Yantai in Shandong province.

"The underwater tunnel is expected to be completed within the period of the 13th five-year plan (2016 to 2020)," said Wang Mengshu, a tunnel and railway expert at the Chinese Academy of Engineering.

"The cost will be around 220 billion yuan and it will be the world's longest underwater tunnel," added Wang, who has worked on the plan since 2012.

A blueprint for the mammoth project is expected to be submitted to the all-powerful State Council in April, a report in the China Daily said Friday.

Wang told the newspaper that journey time would be cut to 40 minutes after completion of the tunnel, which follows the coastline to the west of Yantai, before veering north across the Bohai Sea.

The tunnel would surpass the combined length of the world's two longest tunnels, Japan's Seikan Tunnel linking Honshu and Hokkaido and the Channel Tunnel between Britain and France.

It would drastically cut the current travel time between the two cities, which are currently separated by a 1,400-km drive or about eight hours by ferry.

Three tunnels in total will be built at least 30 metres below the sea bed, two about 10 metres in diameter, and a third between them for maintenance and emergency vehicles, the China Daily added.

Officials involved with the project have identified safety as a "top concern", the newspaper said.

The tunnel runs across two earthquake fault lines, and in 1976 the industrial city of Tangshan in Hebei province -- between Shandong and Liaoning -- was levelled by an earthquake with a magnitude of at least 7.5, although figures vary.

Beijing puts the official death toll at 242,000, while some outside estimates are as high as 655,000, the US Geological Survey says on its website.

China's transport infrastructure has developed rapidly in recent years, particularly its high-speed rail network, which was only established in 2007 but has fast become the world's largest.

But while it is a symbol of China's emergence as the world's second largest economy, it has also been plagued by graft and safety scandals, such as a collision in July 2011 in the eastern province of Zhejiang that killed 40 people.

The accident caused a torrent of public criticism of the government amid accusations that authorities compromised safety in their rush to expand the network. - AFP RELAXNEWS 

Canon's new Rebel T5 DSLR camera is for beginners


If you're angling to upgrade from your smartphone or your point-and-shoot to something a little more serious, you're probably not going to jump for the top model out -- unless you have that kind of money. 

That's where Canon's new entry-level DLSR comes in, with 18-55mm kit lens, for $550. The EOS Rebel T5 boasts an 18-megapixel sensor, ISO levels from 100-12800 and all the controls you'd expect to find on Canon's understandably popular DSLR series. 

As the entry-level model, however, there's bound to be some drawbacks -- and there were few that we noticed during our short playtime at CP+ 2014. With 9-point autofocus, you can expect some sluggish focusing: many DSLRs have 20 times the number of focal points. Once the camera does latch onto a subject, you can expect DSLR-quality shots.

The Rebel T5 also packs in a consecutive shooting mode, but at three frames per second (hold onto the shutter key while in the right mode, and it captures away), we were hoping for something more. 

Perhaps we've been spoiled by the leaps and bounds made by ILC cameras (including Canon's own) but the Rebel T5 is best seen as a gentle introduction to Canon's lens selection and those subsequent camera upgrades.

Engadget 

HTC will bring all 'major Android updates' to new flagship devices for 2 years


Members of HTC's US product team have just started taking questions from Android fans over onReddit, and they're already dropping some goodies. 

After conceding that the company's track record with updates isn't spotless, they confirmed that HTC plans to bring "all major Android updates" to its forthcoming North American flagship devices for a full two years after they've been released.

We can hazard a guess at what those new flagships may be, but it's heartening to see HTC pledge prolonged support for its new phones. After all, few things are as frustrating as buying a shiny new smartphone only to see its maker basically forget about it after a few months. 

Sadly, HTC isn't a stranger to that stuff: the company caught flack for refusing to update the One X past Android 4.2, a decision it made to maintain a level of software parity between the Tegra and Snapdragonvariants floating around out there. The move ruffled enough feathers to get HTC working onexploring the idea of an Android 4.4 update for the One X, but if the company sticks to its word such headaches will be a thing of the past.

Update: The original AMA post said HTC would "support all new flagship devices going forward with all major Android updates," but the company has clarified that it meant North American flagships specifically.

Source: Engadget 

Barbie stirs up frenzy with swimsuit issue debut


WASHINGTON: Barbie has been many things in her life: A doctor. A paleontologist. An astronaut. A cheerleader. A race car driver. A candidate for the presidency of the United States.

Now, on the threshold of her 55th birthday, the world's most famous doll is stirring up a social media frenzy with her debut in Sports Illustrated's 50th anniversary swimsuit edition.

In a tie-in with toymaker Mattel, the top-selling US sports weekly has cast the leggy -- if anatomically impossible -- all-American doll on a mock cover, sporting a black and white one-piece reminiscent of the one she wore when introduced in 1959.

"The Doll that Started it All," reads the headline on the cover, being wrapped around some issues of the magazine. The hashtag #unapologetic features in the joint marketing campaign, which will also include ads in the magazine.

"From its earliest days, Swimsuit has delivered a message of empowerment, strength and beauty," said M.J. Day, the Sports Illustrated senior editor responsible for the iconic and highly lucrative special edition.

"And we are delighted that Barbie is celebrating those core values in such a unique manner," she said in a statement.

The swimsuit issue comes out Tuesday with bikini-clad Chrissy Teigen, Nina Agdal and Lily Aldridge on the cover, posing on a sun-kissed tropical beach, smiling back at the camera, toned buttocks well exposed.

But it's Barbie -- or more precisely the notion of giving her top billing in a magazine that pitches sun, sea and sex to impressionable American males in the dead of winter -- that has fired up the blogosphere.

"This is what is known as obvious trolling," wrote Mary Elizabeth Williams at Salon.com.

"You plan on getting mad again this year about hot, barely clothed women in a sports magazine again this year, world? Here. Here's a plastic one ... a freaking mass-produced doll."

"Just as the swimsuit issue isn't for the kids, Barbie isn't for the grown-ups either," added Eve Vawter, editor of Mommyish.com.

"Barbie is no longer just a doll. She is a sex doll. Think about that the next time your daughter wants one in the toy aisle."

- Barbie losing her mojo? -

Alas, on the eve of the New York Toy Show, and hard on the heels of New York fashion week, Barbie is grappling with the middle-aged fear that she's no longer hot stuff.

Publicly listed Mattel revealed in January that worldwide gross sales of its Barbie products fell six percent last year, and three percent in 2012, putting a drag on the profitability of the world's biggest toy manufacturer.

"We just didn't sell enough Barbie dolls," said Mattel chief executive Bryan Stockton in a conference call with financial analysts, although its other doll lines such as Monster High are faring better.

(Sports Illustrated launched the swimsuit edition in 1964 to prop up circulation between the American football and baseball seasons. Now a stand-alone product, it is the best-selling of all Time Inc. titles.)

Barbie -- whose brand is valued at $3 million, a tad more than Oprah Winfrey's estimated worth -- is no stranger to controversy.

She's regularly been faulted in the past for setting an unrealistic example for young girls with her impossibly lithe figure, fabulous wardrobe and storybook romance with dashing boyfriend Ken.

If 11.5-inch (29-centimeter) Barbie was a full-grown American woman, she'd have a 32-inch bust, a 16-inch waist and 29-inch hips, as well as a child's size three foot, according to Rehabs.com, a website that addresses eating disorders.

Lindsey Feitz, who lectures on gender and women's studies at the University of Denver in Colorado, considered it "ethically dubious" to use a girl's doll to sexualize girlhood in a magazine seen mainly by men.

"We've evolved from the ink drawings of pin-ups in the 1940s to chronic Photoshopping and digital body alterations of today's cover models," Feitz told AFP by email.

"And now the model has disappeared and been replaced with a plastic representation of a sexy girl/woman. It's ironic." - AFP 

Snore no more: smart pillow 'nudges' noisy sleepers


It might not be the best idea as a Valentine's Day gift, but the Snore Activated Nudging Pillow could well prove to be a purchase that helps to increase the romance in a relationship in the long term.

It does exactly what its name suggests. When the pillow registers a snore, it inflates sufficiently (7.62cm) to move the snorer's head and change his or her -- but let's face it, usually his -- sleeping position.

It means there's no need to convince your partner to sleep in pajamas with tennis balls stitched into the waistband; to dispatch a 'gentle' kick; or to engage in a conversation about the health benefits of sleeping on a sofa or in another room.

The pillow uses a built-in microphone to listen for snoring-related sounds and its sensitivity can be adjusted -- some people's snoring is louder than others -- as can the amount its internal bladder inflates.

Its makers believe that 7.6cm (3 inches) is optimum but that can be dialed right up to 17.8cm (7 inches) if must.

It also plugs straight into the mains so there's no need to worry about recharging batteries, although it does mean that the bed will need to be near a power socket.

The only downside seems to be that it comes with a machine-washable polyester cover as standard, which could cause some users to perspire. - AFP RELAXNEWS 

British storms claim lives, cause travel chaos


LONDON: Transport networks suffered major disruption and more than 140,000 homes were without power across storm-battered Britain on Saturday after the country's latest severe weather claimed two lives.

With southern England the worst affected by Britain's wettest start to a year in two and a half centuries, London's Heathrow airport said some plane services had been cancelled.

Train services were also stopped and roads gridlocked after the storms uprooted trees.

Work was being carried out to restore power to more than 140,000 properties, said the Energy Networks Association, which added that electricity had been re-connected to 310,000 properties.

Police said that a woman had died and a man was in hospital after part of a building collapsed onto their parked car close to London's West End theatre district late on Friday.

Out on the English Channel, high winds sent a "freak wave" smashing through a window of a cruise ship causing the death of an 85-year-old man, the ship's operator said.

More than 30 people were rescued from a flooded seafront restaurant in Milford on Sea, southern England, after wind-blown shingle shattered windows.

And with parts of the swollen River Thames expected to reach its highest level in 60 years over the weekend, Prime Minister David Cameron on Friday reiterated his promise to do "whatever it takes" to help stricken communities following criticism of the government's initial response to the flooding crisis.

More than 2,000 army, navy and air force personnel have now been deployed across Britain to help flood-hit communities, and 70 percent of England's fire and rescue services are working on the flood and storm effort.

Elsewhere, Bank of England governor Mark Carney has warned that Britain's fragile recovery from recession would be affected as the bad weather hits farming and transport.

On the other side of the channel, some 70,000 French homes were without power as meteorologists registered winds of up to 150 kilometres per hour (90 miles per hour).

An 80-year-old woman died on board a cruise ship after falling, as the vessel rolled in rough seas. - AFP 

Serena Williams dicabar Nicol David, rebut Anugerah Laureus 2014


KUALA LUMPUR: Jaguh tenis wanita nombor satu dunia, Serena Williams dijangka bakal berdepan saingan sengit dengan atlit-atlit sukan wanita ternama dunia termasuk ratu skuasy negara, Nicol Ann David dalam merebut Anugerah Sukan Dunia Laureus 2014.

Pemenang Grand Slam Terbuka Perancis dan Amerika Syarikat tahun lalu itu sekali lagi tercalon untuk merebut anugerah tersebut buat kali keempat selepas memenanginya pada tahun 2003, 2007 dan 2010.

Menurut lagenda tenis Martina Navratilova, antara atlit-atlit lain yang turut bertanding untuk anugerah tersebut adalah wanita terpantas dunia yang juga pemenang pingat emas Sukan Olimpik London 2012, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, perenang sensasi remaja, Missy Franklin dan Kate Ledecky, pemegang rekod ski dunia, Tina Maze dan jaguh skuasy negara yang juga pemenang kejohanan dunia sebanyak tujuh kali, Nicol Ann David.

“Sekali lagi Serena Williams telah melalui tahun yang hebat. Saya tidak terfikir beberapa tahun yang lalu bahawa beliau akan mengatasi saya dengan kejuaraan perseorangan Grand Slam, namun tumpuan beliau begitu jitu dan bertenaga, entahlah berapa lagi gelaran yang beliau akan pungut selepas ini. Beliau mungkin mampu mencipta sejarah baharu,” katanya dalam satu kenyataan media.

Tambahnya lagi, sepatutnya lebih sukar untuk beliau (Serena) memenangi Slam kerana beliau semakin berusia, namun kemenangan Serena kelihatan seperti begitu mudah.

“Namun, beliau sememangnya telah mendahului dalam pertandingan ini,”.

"Tiada had bagi beliau dalam tenis, namun begitu Serena menghadapi persaingan sengit tahun ini bagi Anugerah Laureus keempat beliau. Terdapat beberapa persembahan yang menarik dalam berbagai-bagai sukan, terutamanya daripada beberapa atlet muda seperti Missy Franklin dan Kate Ledecky, dan sudah tentu juara besar dalam sukan mereka sendiri seperti Inbee Park, Shelly-Anne Fraser-Pryce dan Tirunesh Dibaba. Mereka semua sememangnya berpeluang untuk memenangi Anugerah tahun ini, namun, saya yakin Serena akan menang."

Martina turut mengulas keupayaan ratu skuasy negara, Nicol Ann David yang dilihat mempunyai peluang yang cerah untuk memenangi anugerah tersebut.

“Nicol dari Malaysia telah mempamerkan penguasaan skuasy wanita sepenuhnya pada tahun lalu. Kemenangannya di kejohanan Terbuka Hong Kong pada Disember lalu merupakan gelaran keenam Jelajah Dunia tahun ini, termasuk Terbuka China dan Terbuka Amerika Syarikat. Ia juga merupakan kemenangan kerjaya Jelajah Dunia ke-71 beliau dan penampilan terakhirnya menyamai rekod ke-90 dalam acara Jelajah Dunia,” katanya lagi.

Untuk rekod, Nicol telah menduduki kedudukan nombor satu dunia sejak Ogos 2006 dan telah memenangi Kejohanan Skuasy Dunia sebanyak tujuh kali yang juga merupakan satu rekod.

Anugerah Sukan Dunia Laureus, kini menyambut tahun ke-15, dan diiktiraf sebagai acara kehormat terulung dalam kalendar sukan antarabangsa.

Pemenang akan diumumkan pada akhir bulan ini dan pemenang akan diumumkan di Majlis Kemuncak Anugerah tersebut di Kuala Lumpur pada 26 Mac.

Astro Awani