Top News Stories –

Australian banker caught ogling pictures of semi-naked model on TV keeps job –
Macquarie Group broker David Kiely, who was seen live on television opening an email carrying pictures of model Miranda Kerr, will remain at the investment bank. After initial speculation that he had been sacked, it emerged that he had been holed up in his Sydney home on suspension while Macquarie Bank, known locally as the “millionaire’s factory’, undertook an investigation into the embarrassing incident. The subject of the semi-naked photos – model Miranda Kerr – backed a campaign to save Mr Kiely’s job. [Daily Telegraph]
Miranda Kerr

Honda recalls thousands of cars amid fire fears
Honda has become the latest car manufacturer to recall thousands of vehicles amid fears that one of its models could catch fire. The Japanese motor company has recalled 171,372 of its Jazz models in Britain, as part of a larger worldwide recall, after several accidents including one in which a South African child died. Honda’s recall comes after Toyota called in at least 180,000 cars amid concerns over faulty accelerator pedals and means that more than 350,000 cars have now been recalled in Britain due to safety fears in less than a week. [Daily Telegraph]

Scientists invent wafer-thin plastic that can store electricity –
The battery, which has powered our lives for generations, may soon be consigned to the dustbin of history. British scientists say they have created a plastic that can store and release electricity, revolutionising the way we use phones, drive cars – and even wear clothes. It means the cases of mobiles and iPods could soon double up as their power source – leading to gadgets as thin as credit cards. Dr Emile Greenhalgh, from Imperial College London’s Department of Aeronautics, said the material is not really a battery, but a supercapacitor – similar to those found in typical electrical circuits. His team’s prototype – which is around five inches square and wafer-thin – takes five seconds to charge from a normal power supply and can light an LED for 20 minutes. [Daily Mail]

Video of the Day –

Los Angeles: in motion from Michael Marantz on Vimeo.

Other News Stories –

• At least 22 people are killed and more than 50 are injured in two separate bombings in Karachi. (The Hindu) (BBC) (euronews) (The Guardian)
• At least 40 people are killed and more than 140 are wounded in at least two explosions in Karbala during the final day of Arba’een. (Al Jazeera)(The Guardian) (The New York Times)
• A private helicopter crashes in the Dominican Republic, killing two. The helicopter was returning from relief work for the 2010 Haiti earthquake.(AP)
• Civil servants in Zimbabwe go on strike, demanding a wage increase. (Zimbabwe Times) (Business Day) (Press TV)
• Cyclone Oli hits Tahiti and other islands of French Polynesia, killing at least one man. (AP) (BBC)
• The last native of India‘s Andaman Islands fluent in the Aka-Bo language dies, rendering the language extinct. (Daily Mail)
• Danish special forces storm a ship captured by armed Somali pirates and free the 25 crew on board. (Miami Herald)
• The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) and Sinn Féin agree to devolution from Westminster from 12 April 2010 after two weeks of discussions, the longest ever during the Northern Ireland peace process. (RTÉ) (BBC)
• Five Russian soldiers are killed and six injured in clashes with militants in Chechnya. (RIA Novosti) (Press TV) (News24)
• Four British politicians will face criminal prosecution over their expense claims in the ongoing expenses scandal. (BBC) (Washington Post)
• New images of the dwarf planet Pluto reveal rapid changes on its surface. (BBC) (National Geographic) (Xinhua)
• Uganda‘s deputy Foreign Minister Henry Okello Oryem says the country’s anti-homosexuality Bill “will be changed”. (BBC)
• North Korea announces it will release an American man who entered the country on December 25, 2009. (The Guardian) (Yonhap) (Korea

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