Trendy News & Articles

An Indonesian volcano that had been dormant for more than four centuries erupted in western Indonesia early Sunday, causing thousands of people to flee their homes. Their abandoned homes and crops were blanketed in heavy, gray soot, and the air was thick with the smell of sulfur. Mount Sinabung in North Sumatra had been inactive for more than 400 years. It had been classified as inactive by the Center for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation. Around 30,000 people were send into temporary camps as authorities ordered everyone within a six-kilometre (four-mile) radius to leave.

The Volcano spewing smokes up to over 2,000 meters high, potential to disturb international flight, Volcanology Agency and Meteorology Agency said. Spokesman of Transport Ministry Bambang Ervan said that the eruption is potential to diturb aviation. Ervan said,

"It will depend on the direction of wind blow. Should it direct to the north, it will hamper international flight because most of international flights to the main airport in the province and other airports in the island come from north and if the wind blow direct to the east, it will disturb domestic flight ."

Government volcanologist Agus Budianto said: "The volcano continues to spew smoke and ash but the cloud is only 50 metres high compared to 2,000 metres yesterday. Visually, its activities have significantly reduced.

"But our instruments have recorded continuous tremors in the volcano, which means that there is magma trying to push upward."

Officials said about 7,000 people had returned to their villages Tuesday but those from within the evacuation zone were not being allowed to go home.

"People are asking us if they can go home to tend to their animals and guard their homes but they're not allowed to leave the camps," disaster response official Mohammad Agus Widisono said.

The rumbling started a few days ago and the minor eruption early Sunday morning had mostly stopped. Mount Sinabung last erupted in 1600, so observers don't know the volcano's eruption pattern and are monitoring it closely for more activity. Evacuations on the volcano's slopes started Friday at the first signs of activity. Meanwhile, relief workers are now providing shelter and medical aid to the villagers who have been affected by the volcano's eruptions. The government has distributed thousands of face masks to refugees and set up public kitchens so people can cook food, said Priyadi Kardono, spokesman for the National Disaster Management Agency.

La Tomatina is a food fight festival held on the last Wednesday of August each year in the town of Buñol in the Valencia region of Spain. This year tens of thousands of revellers from around the world pelted each other with ammunition from a pile of 150,000 ripe tomatoes in a food fight for charity. La Tomatina en Reno began at 3 p.m. Sunday, lasting about 30 minutes and sparing no one in the City Plaza area. The participants, who each paid $10 and signed a waiver,wore a variety of costumes and protection.

"There was just a huge pile of tomatoes, and we just dove right into the center," said Victoria Sanderson, 18, a student at the University of Nvada, Reno. The festival frenzy drew thousands of people raising an estimated $20,000 for the American Cancer Society.

The festival is taking place since 1945 and has become one of the much awaited event of the year. thr origin of the festival is still mystery, some people believe it started as a food fight in the group of friends which turned into the huge festival. Another popular theory is that on this day people of Bunol attacked the councilmen with the tomatoes, since then it has become the tradition. It takes place on the last Wednesday of every August. Tens of metric tons of over-ripe tomatoes are thrown at each other in the streets during this day. The week-long festival features music, parades, dancing, and fireworks among other things. On the night before, participants of the festival compete in a paella cooking contest. It's estimated, up to 500,000 tourists come to the town each year to throw tomatoes for a week.

The Bemaraha National Park(lacally known as Tsingy), situated in the west of Madagascar,is home to an unusual type of “forest” made of otherworldly rocky spires. This 666 square kilometer region has been classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1990 because of its unique, breathtaking geography and preserved mangrove forests. From Morondava it took us 10 driving hours in a 4x4 vehicule , over punishing roads, to reach Bekopaka the door to the the strange mineral forest of Bemaraha's Tsingy. Tsingy de Bemaraha Nature Reserve comprises karstic landscapes and limestone uplands cut into impressive 'tsingy' peaks and a 'forest' of limestone needles.

This geological formation, called karst, is the result of erosion, as acid rains have gradually dissolved the stone of the chalky plateau and carved out sharp ridges that can rise to heights of 30 m. The Tsingy rise up to 70 meters from the ground. At these heights, the tops are bare and razor sharp. At lesser heights, one gets to see vegetations with roots tens of meters below.

The formation of these unusual rocks actually began some 200 million years ago when layers of calcite accumulated at the bottom of a Jurassic lagoon, forming a thick limestone bed. Later tectonic activity elevated the limestone, and as sea level fell during the Pleistocene ice ages, even more of the limestone was exposed. Eventually, the ancient sediments were carved by monsoon rains, finally creating what we see today.

Primetime Emmy Award 2010 Winners Revealed on Aug 29, 2010. The stars from different drama series were present at this huge event. All the celebrities were gathered in unity to

wait for their rewards for the performances they had done throughout the whole year. For the first time ever, the Emmys were shown live in Los Angeles. NBC recognized they were up against very stiff competition this year. This years Emmy Award was a diverse group with quite a few brand new additions to the list. With the all new shows in the running, older Emmy winners had a more difficult time, with the additional competition. With the varied mix of nominees for the Prime Time Emmy, everyone knew it would be an interesting night. The ceremony itself opened with a big, Glee-style opening number set to Bruce Springsteen’s “Born To Run” featuring the cast performing with Jimmy Fallon, Tina Fey, Jon Hamm, Betty White, Joel McHale, Kate Gosselin, Jorge Garcia, Tim Gunn, and Randy Jackson. And much like Glee, this set the stage for an entire night of musical numbers substituting for actual jokes, as seen in Jimmy Fallon’s later impressions of Elton John and Billie Joe Armstrong.

In one of the true upsets of the night, Modern Family took Best Comedy away from fellow

freshman Glee after also nabbing trophies for Best Supporting Actor and Best Writing. But

don’t feel bad for Glee: Jane Lynch took home her first Emmy for playing Sue Sylvester, likely setting her up to be the next perennial nominee in the Jeremy Piven or Christine Baranski mold, while Ryan Murphy grabbed one for Best Directing.Mad Men won Best Drama again. Breaking Bad’s Bryan Cranston won Best Actor again. Cranston’s co-star Aaron Paul took Best Supporting Actor in another of the night’s surprise (and most deserved) wins. Both shows thanked AMC profusely and basically called it the only network with any balls. Finally, the stranglehold that The Amazing Race has held over the Best Reality Show category was broken. It was a triumphant moment—except for the poor staff member who tripped on her way to the podium and ensured she would be mentioned in just about every Emmy wrap-up.

Here is a list of the major winners for the 62nd Annual Prime Time Emmy Awards

Outstanding Drama Series - The Bold and the Beautiful

Outstanding Writing Team - The Bold and the Beautiful

Outstanding Directing Team - General Hospital

Outstanding Lead Actor – Michael Park as Jack Snyder on As the World Turns

Outstanding Lead Actress – Maura West as Carly Tenney Snyder on As the World Turns

Outstanding Supporting Actor – Billy Miller as Billy Abbott on The Young and the Restless

Outstanding Supporting Actress – Julie Pinson as Janet Ciccone on As the World Turns

Outstanding Younger Actor – Drew Tyler Bell as Thomas Forrester on The Bold and the

Beautiful

Outstanding Younger Actress – Julie Marie Berman as Lulu Spencer on General Hospital

Outstanding Entertainment Talk Show - The Ellen DeGeneres Show

Outstanding Informative Talk Show - The Doctors

Outstanding Talk Show Host - Mehmet Oz on The Dr. Oz Show

Outstanding Morning Program - The Today Show (NBC)

Outstanding Lifestyle Program – Martha

Tens of thousands of conservatives and advocates of the Tea Party movement attend at the Lincoln Memorial On Saturday, at the ""Restoring Honor"" rally. The event was led by right-wing icons such as Fox News conservative talk show host Glenn Beck. Conservative favorite Sarah Palin joined Beck, telling the tens of thousands who stretched from the marble steps of the Lincoln Memorial to the grass of the Washington Monument that calls to transform the country weren't enough.

"We must restore America and restore her honor," said the former Alaska governor, echoing the name of the rally, Restoring Honor.

Glenn Beck’s much larger “Restoring Honor” rally at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. — which drew criticism for being held on the 47th anniversary of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech. Reverend Timothy McDonald of the First Iconium Baptist Church in Atlanta urges people to prevent "'the radical religious" from attempting to "'redefine history and redefine the freedom movement'". By choosing August 28th for its rally, McDonald believes that right-wing conservatives are misusing the 1963 march "to give [false] credence to their cause" and to distract society from the ideas that Martin Luther King Jr. fought for.

Tom Seaver of Kimball Township, who attended the rally said,

“It’s all about restoring the values that our country was founded on, and the sacrifices that our Founding Fathers made. Martin Luther King was mentioned several times as one whose values we should emulate. Every time he was mentioned, there was a tremendous ovation. This was definitely not a racist rally.”

Another person Mr. Miller, a resident of Port Huron area who traveled hundreds of miles to join the huge rally said,

“You go to these types of events and somehow, politics enters the picture.No one did that. What they’re talking about is restoring the honor of this country, and what we can do as individuals in bringing this country back to greatness.”

Just two months before nationwide Congressional elections, which could cost U.S. President Barack Obama's Democrats their majority in the House of Representatives and perhaps the Senate as well, Beck's rally becomes only the latest symptom of rampant political partisanship that is splitting the country and drowning out voices of moderation.

President Barack Obama told that he didn't watch any of Glenn Beck's "Restoring Honor" rally on the National Mall on Saturday. But he said he doesn't find it surprising that "a Glenn Beck can stir up some of the people."

The crowd - organizers had a permit for 300,000 - was vast, with people standing shoulder to shoulder across large expanses of the Mall. The National Park Service stopped doing crowd counts in 1997 after the agency was accused of underestimating numbers for the 1995 Million Man March.

On Friday, Hiroshima marked the 65th anniversary of the U.S. atomic bombing in World War II . A U.S. representative participated for the first time Friday in Japan's annual commemoration of the American atomic bombing of Hiroshima, in a 65th anniversary event that organizers hope will bolster global efforts toward nuclear disarmament. Although President Barack Obama was not present, Washington sent John Roos, US Ambassador, to the annual memorial located at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial.Representatives from France and Britain, US allies during WWII, were also present as a symbolic gesture. It's hard to imagine that 65 years ago, these countries were, along with the US, were aligned against Japan, and today, they pay their respects. At Hiroshima's Peace Memorial Park, where Friday's ceremony was held, leftist groups in trucks blared anti-U.S. slogans to the crowds.

"The bombing of Hiroshima was totally unnecessary," said one group. "U.S., take your nukes and go home."

According to Wikipedia, After six months of intense strategic fire-bombing of 67 Japanese cities the Japanese government ignored an ultimatum given by the Potsdam Declaration. By executive order of President Harry S. Truman the U.S. dropped the nuclear weapon "Little Boy" on the city of Hiroshima on Monday, August 6, 1945, followed by the detonation of "Fat Man" over Nagasakion August 9.On Aug. 6, 1945, during World War II, the United States dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. About 140,000 people were killed or died within months when the American B-29 “Enola Gay” bombed Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945. Three days later, about 80,000 people died after the United States also bombed Nagasaki. Japan surrendered on Aug. 15, ending World War II. To this day, the bombings remain the only time nuclear weapons have been unleashed. The decision in the Hiroshima bombing was purely a strategic one that would tip the scales of the war in the US's favor. Hiroshima was a large city with a dense population. To the military, it was a prime target for bombing due to it being a communications hub for operations and the second command center for the Japanese Military. In the final analysis, the 65th Anniversary of Hiroshima and Nagaski and the dropping of the first atomic bomb was pivotal during the nations unrest. Lives were lost, ways of life would change, and the allure of building more weapons of mass destruction would define the "unthinkable".

Would you like to become diabetes-free but have a heart ailment instead? Unless you have suicidal tendencies, or would like to “get the better” out of your insurance policy, I think with a sane mind you would not. Diabetes treatment medications Avandia (rosiglitazone) and Actos (pioglitazone) were found to have the same risks of heart attack, heart complications, and death. The study found the risks for both diabetes drugs to be approximately 4%. The new study was published in the latest issue of Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes, an American Heart Association journal. Over 36,000 diabetes patients using one of the drugs took part in the study, and researchers found that 602 Avandia patients suffered from a heart attack, heart failure, or died, and 599 patients taking Actos suffered the same outcomes; 217 patients reportedly died from each drug group.

"This study provides patients and their doctors with another source of information about rosiglitazone and pioglitazone as they determine the best therapy for diabetes patients," said Debra Wertz of HealthCore, Wellpoint's research arm.

Glaxo’s once blockbuster diabetes drug Avandia, has been under constant fire for more than three years because of links to heart problems. Sen. Chuck Grassley, the Iowa Republican who has become the bane of drugmakers, and the Senate Finance Committee (of which Grassley is ranking member) have been investigating Glaxo and Avandia for over two years, and in February released dozens of internal Glaxo documents relating to those potential cardiovascular risks. The committee sent copies to the FDA.

Glaxo has always said that it’s provided all safety data to the FDA in a timely fashion and Avandia is safe when used appropriately. But FDA reviewer Robert Misbin, an expert on diabetes drugs, isn’t so sure. Misbin became very concerned about Avandia when, in late 2006, he saw data provided to the agency by Glaxo suggesting a 31% increase in heart attack risk associated with use of the drug. So the FDA shouldn’t have waited so long to alert doctors and patients about the potential risks of the drug.