April 18, 2015

Top News Stories –

Tony Abbott filmed downing a beer in only seven seconds –
Some may say it is behaviour unbecoming of a prime minister. Others have applauded it. Footage has emerged of the Australian Prime Minister, Tony Abbott, knocking back a large glass of beer in only seven seconds. But the incident is not a first in Australian politics – and is not all that unusual for Mr Abbott. The prime minister was at a bar in east Sydney on Saturday along with players from the UTS Bats Australian Rules football team. [BBC]
Tony-AbbottTony Abbott

Kate Middleton’s friend holds orgies in sharia hotel –
Emma Sayle, owner of Killing Kittens, a members-only sex-club, said the Bermondsey Square hotel in London is one of her preferred destinations for the self-styled ‘sexual elite’. The Duchess of Cambridge’s friend has been staging sex parties in the country’s first sharia hotel. A friend of Kate Middleton’s, Miss Sayle, 36, who attended Downe House boarding school with Prince Michael’s daughter, Lady Gabriella Windsor, has used the four loft suites on the seventh floor of the hotel for her parties. According to Miss Sayle, who is a member of Kate’s rowing crew, The Sisterhood, the rules at Killing Kitten events state men can’t approach women at parties unless they know them, everyone wears a mask and single men aren’t allowed. [Daily Telegraph]
Catherine-MiddletonCatherine, Duchess of Cambridge

Zayn Malik collects Asian Award and thanks bandmates –
Zayn Malik has taken a step in a new direction, showing off a new look for his first public appearance since quitting One Direction. He was in London for the fifth annual Asian Awards, where he picked a gong for his contribution to music and paid tribute to his former bandmates. Malik also thanked God and his parents, “for making me Asian”. [BBC] He also had a radical change of look with an almost shaved head compared to the long hair he used to sport.
Zayn-Malik-April-2015-Thecount.com Zayn Malik (image – thecount.com)

Video of the Day –

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice – Official Teaser Trailer

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June 27, 2015

Top News Stories –

Taiwan Water Park Blast Leaves Hundreds Injured –
Hundreds of people were injured at a water park in Taiwan on Saturday when a cloud of colored powder ignited in the air over a crowd during an event, erupting into a huge fireball. No deaths were reported, but at least 516 people were injured, 194 seriously, including eight with life-threatening injuries, the island’s official Central News Agency reported. The injured, many suffering burns, were overwhelmingly young, in their 20s or younger, according to a roster posted on the news agency’s website. Color Play Asia bills itself as Asia’s biggest color party, an event where people dance to music while spraying each other with colored powder. A promotional video for the event on its Facebook page shows employees on a stage blasting colored powder onto the crowd. [NY Times]

Thousands attend London Pride march –
Thousands of people have taken to the streets of London for the annual Pride parade. More than 250 groups took part in the parade, which started in Baker Street at 13:00 BST. Police said there was extra security on the route following terror attacks in France, Tunisia and Kuwait on Friday. The United States flag joined Ireland and Mozambique’s at the front of the march, recognising recent gay rights progress in the three countries. [BBC] See List of the Day below
BBC London Pride Tweet

2 Charged in Confederate Flag Removal at South Carolina Capitol –
A protester climbed a 30-foot flagpole and removed the Confederate battle flag from its perch outside the South Carolina State House early Saturday, before she was arrested and the flag replaced, the police said. The protester, an African-American woman, was nearly halfway up the pole when a State Capitol police officer on routine patrol ordered her to come down. The authorities said the woman, who was wearing climbing gear, had ignored the command. She continued her climb to the top of the flagpole and unhooked and removed the flag before descending. An officer from the Bureau of Protective Services arrested her and a white male who had aided her. [NY Times] See Video of the Day

 

Video of the Day –

#KeepItDown Confederate Flag Takedown

List of the Day –

Legal status of same-sex marriage [from Wikipedia]

Performed
Argentina
Belgium
Brazil
Canada
Denmark:
· Denmark proper
· Greenland*
Finland*
France
Iceland
Ireland*
Luxembourg
Mexico:
· CH, CA, QR,
· DF
Netherlands:
· Netherlands proper1
New Zealand:
· New Zealand proper
Norway
Portugal
Slovenia*
South Africa
Spain
Sweden
United Kingdom:
· England and Wales
· Scotland
· Pitcairn Islands
United States**
Uruguay
Recognized

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1 #carrotnight #1yearof5SOSalbum #ArmedForcesDay
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3 #1yearof5SOSalbum #carrotnight #1yearof5SOSalbum
4 #SumaPuntosSi #FreeBree #carrotnight
5 #NoMeGustaQue #AskTroye #clypegate
6 Phineas and Ferb Bob Costas #MakeAFilmSkeptical
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8 동성애 #MakeAFilmSkeptical Boca Juniors
9 #HappyBdayLaurenFromBrazil Hagelin #FreeBree
10 フォロワーの大半 Fav Song Florence

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July 14, 2015

Top News Stories –

Large Hadron Collider discovers new particle – the pentaquark –
A new kind of particle, called the pentaquark, was discovered by scientists at the Large Hadron Collider yesterday [July 13, 2015]. Physicists had theorised the existence of the pentaquark since the 1960s, but had never been able to prove it until its detection by the world’s most powerful particle smasher at Cern. The discovery of the pentaquark comes after the LHC was used in 2012 to prove the existence of another particle, the Higgs Boson, which confers mass. Large Hadron Collider spokesman Guy Wilkinson said the pentaquark represented a way to combine quarks – the sub-atomic particles that make up protons and neutrons. [Daily Telegraph]
CMS_detector_LHC_CERN The CMS detector at the Large Hadron Collider

Deal Reached on Iran Nuclear Program –
Iran and a group of six nations led by the United States reached a historic accord on Tuesday to significantly limit Tehran’s nuclear ability for more than a decade in return for lifting international oil and financial sanctions. The deal culminates 20 months of negotiations on an agreement that President Obama had long sought as the biggest diplomatic achievement of his presidency. Whether it portends a new relationship between the United States and Iran — after decades of coups, hostage-taking, terrorism and sanctions — remains a bigger question. Mr. Obama, in an early morning appearance at the White House that was broadcast live in Iran, began what promised to be an arduous effort to sell the deal to Congress and the American public, saying the agreement is “not built on trust — it is built on verification.” [NY Times]

New Horizons: Spacecraft survives Pluto encounter –
A signal received from the New Horizons spacecraft shows that it survived its historic encounter with Pluto. Data in its first call home since Tuesday’s flyby suggest the spacecraft experienced no upsets as it hurtled past the icy world at 14km/s (31,000mph). The signal came through a giant dish in Madrid, Spain – part of a Nasa network of communications antennas. The message took four hours 25 minutes to traverse 4.7 billion km of space. [BBC]
Pluto-by-New-Horizons-spacecraft Pluto by the New Horzons spacecraft – from NASA

Raheem Sterling: Manchester City sign Liverpool winger in £49m deal –
Manchester City have signed Liverpool and England forward Raheem Sterling for a fee that could reach £49m. City will pay an initial £44m for the 20-year-old, making him the most expensive English player ever. Sterling had asked to leave Anfield and was the subject of two bids from City in June, both of which were rejected. City boss Manuel Pellegrini described Sterling, who has signed a five-year deal, as “one of the best attacking players in world football”. Sterling, who is only behind Gareth Bale on the list of most expensive British players, will wear the number seven shirt. [BBC] See List of the Day
Raheem-SterlingRaheem Sterling

Video of the Day –

Great white shark beaches and is saved in Cape Cod

List of the Day –

Highest transfer fees for Football (soccer) players (as of 14 July 2015)

Rank Player From To Fee
(M £)
Fee
(M )
Year
1 Wales Gareth Bale England Tottenham Hotspur Spain Real Madrid £85.3 €100 2013
2 Portugal Cristiano Ronaldo England Manchester United Spain Real Madrid £80 €94.4 2009
3 Uruguay Luis Suárez England Liverpool Spain Barcelona £75 €94 2014
4 Colombia James Rodríguez France AS Monaco Spain Real Madrid £63 €79.5 2014
T-5 Argentina Ángel Di María Spain Real Madrid England Manchester United £59.7 €75 2014
T-5 France Zinedine Zidane Italy Juventus Spain Real Madrid £46 €75 2001
7 England Raheem Sterling England Liverpool England Manchester City £49 €69.5 2015
8 1 Sweden Zlatan Ibrahimović Italy Inter Spain Barcelona £59 €69 2009
9 Brazil Kaká Italy Milan Spain Real Madrid £56 €65 2009
10 Uruguay Edinson Cavani Italy Napoli France Paris Saint-Germain £55 €64 2013

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