US Archives unveils Magna Carta after repairs
The National Archives unveiled its 715-year-old copy of Magna Carta on Thursday after a conservation effort removed old patches and repaired weak spots in the English declaration of human rights that inspired the United States founding documents.
A $13.5 million gift from philanthropist David Rubenstein funded conservation and a new case for the only original Magna Carta in the United States. Rubenstein bought the historic document at auction in 2007 for $21.3 million and sent it to the National Archives on a long-term loan.
Rubenstein, who is co-founder of the private equity firm The Carlyle Group, said he bought the document previously owned by Texas billionaire H. Ross Perot because he wanted to keep it from leaving the country. The only other copies are in Britain and at Australia s parliament.
The U.S. copy was one of four reissued in the year 1297. It still carries the wax seal of King Edward I of England, which is attached by a ribbon under the document.
As a history buff, Rubenstein, 62, has become somewhat of an expert on Magna Carta s legacy dating to 1215. That s when noblemen came together to declare their rights to King John, including the right to a trial by jury and the first limits on arbitrary taxation that led to the principle of “no taxation without representation.”
“This became something that set the trend of common law” in Britain and later in the United States as founding fathers such as Thomas Jefferson and James Madison referred back to Magna Carta, Rubenstein said.
Rubenstein said he became interested in the ideas behind the Constitution while working for Congress in his 20s, which led him to study the Magna Carta. The document will likely remain at the National Archives permanently, he said.
“You can t be buried with these documents as far as I know,” Rubenstein said.
Magna Carta will return to public view at the National Archives on Feb. 17. A new interactive display will allow visitors to zoom in on an image of the parchment and see how it was repaired. They can read an English translation of Magna Carta s Latin words and see comparisons to language in the U.S. Constitution and Declaration of Independence.
On Thursday, conservators showed the document in its new protective case developed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology.
Rubenstein s gift also is funding an upcoming exhibit that will open in 2013. There, Magna Carta will be shown as a forerunner to the freedoms imagined in the U.S. Declaration of Independence, Constitution and Bill of Rights and will be paired with other documents declaring human rights for African Americans, women, immigrants and others.
Sri Lanka donates eyes to the world
January 22, 2012 by Trend PK
Filed under World News
COLOMBO: At 10:25 a.m., a dark brown eye was removed from a man whose lids had closed for the last time. Five hours later, the orb was staring up at the ceiling from a stainless steel tray in an operating room with two blind patients — both waiting to give it a second life.
S.P.D. Siriwardana, 63, remained still under a white sheet as the surgeon delicately replaced the cornea that had gone bad in his right eye following a cataract surgery. Across the room, patient A.K. Premathilake, 32, waited for the sclera, the white of the eye, to provide precious stem cells and restore some vision after acid scalded his sight away on the job.
“The eye from this dead person was transplanted to my son,” said A.K. Admon Singho, who guided Premathilake through the hall after the surgery. “He’s dead, but he’s still alive. His eye can still see the world.”
This gift of sight is so common here, it’s become an unwritten symbol of pride and culture for Sri Lanka, an island of about 20 million people located off the southern coast of India. Despite recently emerging from a quarter century of civil war, the country is among the world’s largest cornea providers.
It donates about 3,000 corneas a year and has provided tissue to 57 countries over nearly a half century, with Pakistan receiving the biggest share, according to the nonprofit Sri Lanka Eye Donation Society. The organization began promoting eye donation decades ago, but has since faced allegations of mismanagement and poor quality standards.
The supply of corneas is so great in Sri Lanka that a new, state-of-the-art government eye bank opened last year, funded by Singapore donors. It has started collecting tissue from patients at one of the country’s largest hospitals, hoping to add an additional 2,000 corneas to those already shipped abroad annually. Nearly 900,000 people have also signed up to give their eyes in death through the Eye Donation Society’s longstanding eye bank.
“People ask me, ‘Can we donate our eyes while we are living? Because we have two eyes, can we donate one?’” said Dr. Sisira Liyanage, director of Sri Lanka’s National Eye Hospital in the capital, Colombo, where the new eye bank is based. “They are giving just because of the willingness to help others. They are not accepting anything.”
The desire to help transcends social and economic barriers. Prime ministers pass on their corneas here along with the poorest tea farmers. Many Sri Lankans, about 67 percent of whom are Buddhist, believe that surrendering their eyes at death completes an act of “dana,” or giving, which helps them be reincarnated into a better life.
It’s a concept that was first promoted a half century ago by the late Dr. Hudson Silva, who was frustrated by the massive shortage of corneas in his native Sri Lanka. Most eyes back then were harvested from the handful of prisoners hanged each year, leaving little hope for blind patients in need of transplants.
Silva wrote a newspaper piece in the late 1950s pledging to donate his own corneas and appealing to readers to also give “Life to a Dead Eye.” The response was overwhelming.
With no lab facilities or high-tech equipment, he and wife Irangani de Silva began harvesting eyes and storing them in their home refrigerator. They started the Eye Donation Society, and in 1964, the first cornea sent abroad was hand-carried in an ice-packed tea thermos aboard a flight to Singapore. Since then, 60,000 corneas have been donated.
While the Society’s eye bank was a pioneer, questions about quality emerged as international eye banking standards improved over the next 20 to 30 years. Concerns have recently been raised about less advanced screening for HIV and other diseases, and the eye bank has also faced allegations of mismanagement.
Many of its corneas are harvested from the homes of the dead in rural areas across the country, making auditing and quality assurance levels harder to maintain, said Dr. Donald Tan, medical director of Singapore National Eye Center, who helped set up the new eye bank. Once, he said, a blade of grass was found packaged with tissue requested for research.
Eye Donation Society manager Janath Matara Arachchi says the organization sends “only the good and healthy eyes” and has not received a complaint in 20 years. Arachchi said the organization checks for HIV, hepatitis and other sexually transmitted diseases by dipping a strip into blood samples and waiting to see if it changes color for a positive result. Sri Lanka’s Health Ministry also said it has received no complaints about the eye bank from other countries.
Medical director Dr. M.H.S. Cassim denied that anyone from the organization is making money off donations sent abroad. He said they charge up to $450 per cornea to cover operational costs and the high price of preservatives needed to store the tissue.
The cornea is the dome-shaped transparent part of the eye that covers the iris and pupil. It helps to focus entering light, but can become cloudy from disease or other damage. Corneas must be carefully extracted from donors to avoid damaging the thin layer of cells on the back that pump water away to keep it clear. They must be harvested within eight hours of death, and can today be preserved and stored in refrigeration for up to 14 days.
Sri Lanka has no official organ donation registry, as is provided in some countries when driver’s licenses are issued. Instead, the idea is passed down from generation to generation. Eye donation campaigns are organized at temples by Buddhist monks, but people of other faiths also give, including Hindus and Christians.
Future donors simply mail in the bottom half of a consent form distributed by Silva’s Eye Donation Society. The top portion, which looks like an award certificate with a fancy scroll lacing around it, is also filled out and often proudly displayed on the wall — serving as proof to the living that the pledge comes from a generous spirit.
“Just think if we had that level of organ donation and commitment and belief system in the United States, where we have these long lists of people waiting for hearts, livers and kidneys,” said Dr. Alfred Sommer of Johns Hopkins University, who spent more than 40 years fighting blindness in the developing world. “If we had that level of cultural investment, there would be no lists for organ transplants.”
The U.S. is the world’s biggest cornea provider, sending more than 16,000 corneas to other countries in 2010, according to the Eye Bank Association of America. But Sri Lanka, which is 15 times smaller, actually donates about triple that number of corneas per capita each year.
There is no waiting list for eye tissue in Sri Lanka, and its people get first access to free corneas. About 40,000 have been transplanted locally since the beginning, but that still leaves a surplus each year.
Pakistan, an Islamic country where followers are typically required to be buried with all parts intact, has received some 20,000 corneas since overseas donations began, Cassim said. Egypt and Japan are two other major recipients, receiving 8,000 and 6,000 corneas respectively to date, he said.
But Sri Lanka cannot meet global demand on its own. An estimated 10 million people — 9 out of 10 in poor countries — suffer worldwide from corneal blindness that could be helped by a transplant if tissue and trained surgeons were available, according to U.S.-based SightLife, an eye bank that partners with developing countries. It has been working with Sri Lanka’s new government facility.
“Sri Lanka has long been known to be a country with an incredible heart for eye donation and a willingness to share surplus corneas to restore sight around the world,” said SightLife president Monty Montoya. “While efforts have been made to share information with other countries, I am not aware of any one location being able to replicate Sri Lanka’s success.”
Where possible, eye tissue should be transplanted within hours of death. That was done in the Colombo operating room where patients Siriwardana and Premathilake were stitched up with what looked like tiny fishing hooks, then bandaged and helped outside.
For Premathilake — whose sight was lost when an open can of acid spilled onto his face while working at a rubber factory — this is his last hope. His right eye still blinks, but there is nothing but an empty pink cavity inside. The stem cells attached to his left eye should help create a new window of sight that he hopes will allow him to go back to work, or at least carry out daily tasks without depending on his parents.
“I am extremely happy,” he said. “I didn’t know the man who died in his previous life, but I’m always going to say blessings for him during his next births.” AGENCIES
Oscars 2011 Summary
March 1, 2011 by Trend PK
Filed under Entertainment
The 83rd Academy Awards took place last night in Hollywood. The critics have been fairly harsh on this year’s hosts, James Franco and Anne Hathaway, but Franco took most of the flack. The Academy was attempting to target a younger audience but it seems they missed the mark with this year’s hosts who’s comedic attempts fell a bit flat.
As for what the night is really all about, the big winner was, “The King’s Speech” which took home the coveted awards for best picture, original screenplay and best director. Colin Firth won the best actor award for his role in “The Kings Speech”.
Natalie Portman took home the best actress honor for her role in “Black Swan”. “The Fighter” was represented by Melissa Leo winning best supporting actress and Christian Bale won best supporting actor for his role. Censors had to “bleep” Leo’s speech after she got caught up in the moment and ended up using the f-word.
Here’s the complete list of the 83rd Academy Award nominations and winners:
Best Picture
“127 Hours”
“Black Swan”
“Inception”
“The Fighter”
“The Kids Are All Right”
“The King’s Speech” — WINNER!
“The Social Network”
“Toy Story 3″
“True Grit”
“Winter’s Bone”
Best Actor
Javier Bardem, “Biutiful”
Jeff Bridges, “True Grit”
Jesse Eisenberg, “The Social Network”
Colin Firth, “The King’s Speech” — WINNER!
James Franco, “127 Hours”
Best Actress
Annette Bening, “The Kids Are All Right”
Nicole Kidman, “Rabbit Hole”
Jennifer Lawrence, “Winter’s Bone”
Natalie Portman, “Black Swan” — WINNER!
Michelle Williams, “Blue Valentine”
Best Director
Darren Aronofsky, “Black Swan”
Joel and Ethan Coen, “True Grit”
David Fincher, “The Social Network”
Tom Hooper, “The King’s Speech” — WINNER!
David O. Russell, “The Fighter”
Best Supporting Actress
Amy Adams, “The Fighter”
Helena Bonham Carter, “The King’s Speech”
Melissa Leo, “The Fighter” — WINNER!
Hailee Steinfeld, “True Grit”
Jacki Weaver, “Animal Kingdom”
Best Supporting Actor
Christian Bale, “The Fighter” — WINNER!
John Hawkes, “Winter’s Bone”
Jeremy Renner, “The Town”
Mark Ruffalo, “The Kids Are All Right”
Geoffrey Rush, “The King’s Speech”
Best Original Screenplay
“Another Year”
“The Fighter”
“Inception”
“The Kids Are All Right”
“The King’s Speech” — WINNER!
Best Adapted Screenplay
“127 Hours”
“The Social Network” — WINNER!
“Toy Story 3″
“True Grit”
“Winter’s Bone”
Music (Original Song)
“Coming Home” from “Country Strong”
“I See the Light” from “Tangled”
“If I Rise” from “127 Hours”
“We Belong Together” from “Toy Story 3″ — WINNER!
Film Editing
“Black Swan”
“The Fighter”
“The King’s Speech”
“127 Hours”
“The Social Network” — WINNER!
Visual Effects
“Alice in Wonderland”
“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1″
“Hereafter”
“Inception” — WINNER!
“Iron Man 2″
Documentary Feature
“Exit through the Gift Shop”
“Gasland”
“Inside Job” — WINNER!
“Restrepo”
“Waste Land”
Short Film (Live Action)
“The Confession”
“The Crush”
“God of Love” — WINNER!
“Na Wewe”
“Wish 143″
Documentary Short Subject
“Killing in the Name”
“Poster Girl”
“Strangers No More” — WINNER!
“Sun Come Up”
“The Warriors of Qiugang”
Costume Design
“Alice in Wonderland” — WINNER!
“I Am Love”
“The King’s Speech”
“The Tempest”
“True Grit”
Makeup
“Barney’s Version”
“The Way Back”
“The Wolfman” — WINNER!
Sound Editing
“Inception” — WINNER!
“Toy Story 3″
“Tron: Legacy”
“True Grit”
“Unstoppable”
Sound Mixing
“Inception” — WINNER!
“The King’s Speech”
“Salt”
“The Social Network”
“True Grit”
Music (Original Score)
“How to Train Your Dragon” John Powell
“Inception” Hans Zimmer
“The King’s Speech” Alexandre Desplat
“127 Hours” A.R. Rahman
“The Social Network” Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross — WINNER!
Best Foreign Language Film
“Biutiful” (Mexico)
“Dogtooth” (Greece)
“In a Better World” (Denmark) — WINNER!
“Incendies” (Canada)
“Outside the Law (Hors-la-loi)” (Algeria)
Best Animated Film
“How to Train Your Dragon”
“The Illusionist”
“Toy Story3″ — WINNER!
Short Film (Animated)
“Day & Night”
“The Gruffalo”
“Let’s Pollute”
“The Lost Thing” — WINNER!
“Madagascar, carnet de voyage (Madagascar, a Journey Diary)”
Best Cinematography
“Black Swan”
“Inception” — WINNER!
“The King’s Speech”
“The Social Network”
“True Grit”
Best Art Direction
“Alice in Wonderland” — WINNER!
“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1″
“Inception”
“The King’s Speech”
“True Grit”
”Toy Story 3,” ”Social Network” top film review list
January 1, 2011 by Trend PK
Filed under Entertainment
LOS ANGELES: They are two movies that figure in Hollywood”s Oscar race, and there is good reason why. “Toy Story 3″ and “The Social Network” are the best-reviewed films of the year, according to website Rotten Tomatoes.
As 2010 draws to an end, members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, who received their Oscar nomination ballots this week, will be looking at which movies earned the most stars from critics, and Rotten Tomatoes provides answers.
The website (www.rottentomatoes.com) compiles reviews, scores them, and offers readers a way to separate the good from the bad and the just plain rotten.
Judging by their Tomatometer index, Buzz, Woody and all the toys from the Disney/Pixar animated film “Toy Story 3″ rank No. 1 with critics, scoring a 99 percent “fresh” rating based on an average from 247 reviews.
Facebook film “The Social Network” is not far behind with a 97 percent positive average from 258 reviews, but Rotten Tomatoes editor-in-chief Matt Atchity said that with a few days left in 2010, more critiques for the October release could possibly come in and tilt the balance.
“If five or six more positive reviews came in, it could change that. But what I can tell you is that it”s down to those two movies,” Atchity told Reuters when poring over the list of seeking the moniker, “best-reviewed film” of 2010.
“Toy Story 3″ was released in June, and all its reviews have been read and scored.
Atchity gave an outside chance to another Oscar hopeful, western “True Grit,” saying that if “another few dozen reviews” came in and were all positive, it could be in contention.
Currently “True Grit,” which premiered only a week ago, scores a 95 percent positive rating from a compilation of some 167 reviews, and is just behind November drama “The King”s Speech” with 96 percent from some 142 reviews saying it was a good choice at movie theaters.
For reviews that are mixed — not easily deemed good or bad — Atchity and senior editor Tim Ryan said they sometimes contact the critics to discuss whether that reviewer was positive or negative toward a film.
Atchity said that in the past, generally speaking, there has been a good correlation between the best-reviewed films of the year and Academy Award nominees.
“Reviewers and academy members are both made up of film professionals, and they both know good films,” he said.
Academy members give out nominations on January 25, and award winners will be named at a ceremony on February 27.
Meanwhile, the question of which movies are the best-reviewed begs the opposite of what titles were the most rotten. Atchity and Ryan said they had not perused final numbers yet, but a quick look at the site shows little-known title “Vampires Suck” with only three positives from a total 71 reviews for a 4 percent rotten rating.
They are not alone, big-time Hollywood studio production “The Last Airbender” from “Sixth Sense” director M. Night Shyamalan scored a mere 6 percent positive ranking.
Following is a list of the best-reviewed movies on Rotten Tomatoes, organized by their month of their release date:
January – “Fish Tank” – 90% positive with 127 reviews
February – “A Prophet” (Une Prophete) 97% with 142 reviews
March – “How to Train Your Dragon” – 98% with 156 reviews
April – “Exit Through the Gift Shop” – 98% with 93 reviews
May – “The Father of My Children” (Le Pere De Mes Enfants) 91% with 54 reviews
June – “Toy Story 3″ – 99% with 247 reviews
July – “The Kids Are All Right” – 94% with 192 reviews
August – “Animal Kingdom” – 96% with 108 reviews
September – “The Town” – 94% with 201 reviews
October – “The Social Network” – 97% with 258 reviews
November – “The King”s Speech” – 96% with 142 reviews
December – “True Grit” – 95% with 167 reviews
Suspected Gift Reported by Irfan Pathan, Team Officials
According to team officials of Indian team fast bowler Irfan Pathan reported to them that he had received suspected gift from a stranger. Team officials said that the man was suspected as match fixer but it was convey to all players not to accept any gift from stranger. The incident happened in 2006 when India was on tour to Pakistan. M Baladitya was assistant manager of Indian team.
M Baladitya said that Irfan reported suspected gift by a person who was never seen again and he report it to team officials. He said that Irfan reported that some one left expensive gift for him in his room and he didn’t know who him was. He advised Irfan to return the gift but Irfan didn’t know the person who left that gift.
M Baladitya said that he was part of team and he immediately reports the matter to BCCI but not to ICC anti corruption unit. He added that it was his responsibility to inform BCCI and after that BCCI were under obligation to inform ICC. He also said that Niranjan Shah was secretary of BCCI during that tour. When Niranjan Shah was asked about the matter he replied that he hasn’t remember anything.
Matt Simms Latest News
Chris Simms had a brother and the son of Phil Simms, Matt Simms, their ratios, but little experience in the college football champion. In this regard, we must rely on the receivers, which are even less experienced than he. Reported wounded two, both for shoking Sims died.
Gerald Jones, the leading receiver, will miss at least two weeks, as he suffered a broken arm. More than that, the senior receiver JD Moore was also injured feet, and it is unlikely to play.
Mr. Sims died that someone should replace injured in 11 Oregon ? come to the city on Saturday. Said Matt Sims to receive new students and Rogers Da’Rick Hunter Justin: “It’s not a question they are prepared – better be ready for that.”
He added that there is talent. Hunter is known to be a great athlete, and has a good height of 6 feet 4, and Rogers is the gift of 5 stars.
Priyanka’s parents surprise her to tears
Normally Priyanka Chopra is not the kind of girl who displays emotions, not even in front of her own family. But on the night of 16 July when her parents threw a small pre-birthday party at home for her and her close friends, Priyanka for the first time cried openly.
It was not the well-organized party where her mother cooked her favourite Punjabi dishes. It was the gift that her parents bought her, a 6-carat diamond ring, which made Priyanka bawl like a baby.
Says a close friend who was at the get-together. “The minute she saw the gift Priyanka burst into tears. We were shocked because we had never seen her like that.” Apparently, Priyanka proudly wore the ring to her beachside holiday although her parents warned her she might drop it in the water.
Priyanka’s brother Siddharth who celebrates his birthday a week before his sister kept teasing her about hiding the ring before she left.
Incidentally, Priyanka had arranged a surprise birthday party at China House at the Grand Hyatt for her brother.
Says PC’s close friend, “It was his 21st birthday and very special. Priyanka looked into every detail personally although she was shooting for Saat Khoon Maaf. Siddharth who has just returned from a year-long course on the culinary arts from Switzerland cooked Priyanka’s favourite pasta for her birthday.”
august rush
May 23, 2010 by Trend PK
Filed under World News
August Rush is an American drama directed by Kirsten Sheridan. It is often referred as an updated story of Oliver Twist. The film is about a 12-year-old orphan boy who believes he can hear music from his parents. He actually believes he can hear music from everything, for example from leaves.
When young cellist Lyla (Keri Russell) and rock musician Louis (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) meet at a party in the mid 1990s, it’s love at first sight, and they spend the night in each other’s arms. But Lyla’s father forces them apart, even though she later learns she’s pregnant. Later, an accident lands Lyla in the hospital, and though her father tells her that her baby died, the child survives and is given up for adoption. AUGUST RUSH jumps to the present and begins to follow Evan (Freddie Highmore), an 11 year old who has grown up in a boys’ home. As Evan embarks on a crusade to find his parents, he imagines he can communicate with them through his gift for music.
His journey to New York City brings him into contact with Wizard (Robin Williams), a man eager to capitalize on the child prodigy’s talent. Wizard gives Evan the name August Rush as he begins performing all over the city, but the boy’s ultimate goal is to find the parents he has never met. From FINDING NEVERLAND to CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY, Highmore has displayed an almost prodigious talent himself. He’s a gifted young actor, and this emotional story is the perfect venue for his acting. AUGUST RUSH isn’t a film for the cynics, but even the hard-hearted in the audience will have difficulty not being touched by this sentimental film. As in Evan’s life, music plays a central role in AUGUST RUSH, and it’s tough not to let your heart soar along with the melodies. Though it could draw comparisons to OLIVER! and ANNIE, this is a unique and heartwarming film.
August Rush is a sweet little move with its heart in the right place, but it has two big strikes against it. First, it relies too much on coincidence. Less charitable reviewers would call it contrivance. Second, Robin Williams is in it.
flowers for mother s day
May 4, 2010 by Trend PK
Filed under World News
Mothers day is less than a week away and you are going to need that special gift for your mother. Don’t let mothers day sneak up on you this year and leave you without a gift. With so many gifts to choose from, selecting a mothers day gift can be a bit overwhelming. Healthy Financial Habits is here to help with mothers day gift ideas for moms of all ages.
This mothers day, get your mother something personalized. One truly unique and inexpensive way to show mom that you are thinking about her is to buy her a photo gift from a retailer such as Walmart, walgreens, or target. All of these retailers offer a wide selection of gift ideas from posters to puzzles and coffee mugs to ties.
Some retailers and even online stores are offering fast overnight shipping if you order in the beginning part of this week. Overnight shipping is a must because mothers day is this Sunday and you do not want to have to tell mom that her gift is in the mail and she will be getting it late.
Mom will be very disappointed if she doesn’t have her gift on mothers day.
Ahmadinejad says nuclear summit "humiliating"
April 12, 2010 by Trend PK
Filed under World News
TEHRAN: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad condemned a nuclear security summit which opens in Washington on Monday as humiliating to humanity.
U.S. President Barack Obama is hosting the summit, which is focused on preventing nuclear terrorism but where world leaders are also set to discuss his push for new sanctions against Iran”s atomic programme.
“World summits being organised these days are intended to humiliate human beings,” Ahmadinejad told delegates at a domestic tourism industry event, according to IRNA news agency.
Iran was not invited to the summit, which is being attended by leaders of China and Russia whose consent will be required to impose new sanctions which Obama wants agreed in the coming weeks.
Instead, Iran is holding its own nuclear disarmament conference in Tehran on April 16-17 and has said experts and officials from some 60 countries have been invited.
Ahmadinejad had harsh words for politicians who claimed to represent the international community: “These foolish people who are in charge are like stupid, retarded people who brandish their swords whenever they face shortcomings, without realizing that the time for this type of thing is over.”
Iran has said it will complain to the United Nations about what it sees as Obama”s implied threat to attack it with nuclear weapons.
Addressing the United States, Ahmadinejad said: “Your gift to the world is a nuclear bomb while Iran presents humanity.”
