More than 100 children walk 1.5km to raise funds

SINGAPORE: More than 100 children from the Children's Charities Association of Singapore participated in a 1.5-kilometre walkathon along Orchard Road on Saturday.They were treated to a Christmas fair, with games, pony rides and food. Supported by MediaCorp and held for the eighth consecutive year, Patron of the association, Mrs Mary Tan, graced the Christmas fair to spread some cheer.The...

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India misguided, paranoid over China: Guha

MUMBAI: A good half-hour into the discussion on 'India, China and the World', historian Ramachandra Guha issued a disclaimer—all the three members on the panel had been to China only once. "We should learn their language, promote quality research, and have a panel on China driven by Chinese scholars," he said. And that was the general tenor of the debate—that the Indian attitude to China was influenced...

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Plants Grow Fine Without Gravity

When researchers sent plants to the International Space Station in 2010, the flora wasn't meant to be decorative. Instead, the seeds of these small, white flowers—called Arabidopsis thaliana—were the subject of an experiment to study how plant roots developed in a weightless environment.Gravity is an important influence on root growth, but the scientists found that their space plants didn't...

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Federal Agencies Brace for Deep Cuts Post-'Cliff'

Dec 7, 2012 4:22pm Toby Jorrin/AFP/Getty ImagesWith the “fiscal cliff” quickly approaching, federal agencies are stepping up preparations for deep automatic budget cuts that will kick in Jan. 2 unless the White House and Congress can reach a deal.The Office of Management and Budget told ABC News that a memo went out to federal agencies earlier this week seeking “additional...

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Troubled UN climate talks enter final day

DOHA: UN talks seeking to halt the march of global warming enter their final day in Doha on Friday with key points still outstanding - extending the greenhouse gas-curbing Kyoto Protocol and funding for poor countries.Delegates are preparing for a long day and night of final haggling to find consensus on interim ways to rein in climate change and smooth the way to a new deal that must...

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Salwa Judum leader gunned down in Bastar

RAIPUR: Armed Maoists gunned down Chinnaram Gota, a leader of the controversial anti-naxalite movement 'Salwa Judum', and one of his body guards at village Kuprel in Farsegarh area in tribal Bijapur district of Chhattisgarh. Police said the incident took place when Chinnaram Gota, who had actively participated in the anti-naxalite movement which began in June 2005, went to his farm accompanied...

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Space Pictures This Week: Lunar Gravity, Venusian Volcano

Cassiopeia’s BubbleImage courtesy T.A. Rector, UAA/WIYN/NOAO/NSFA new camera called the One Degree Imager, located at Kitt Peak National Observatory in Arizona, is responsible...

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November Unemployment Falls to 7.7 Percent

The economy generated 146,000 new jobs in November and unemployment fell to 7.7 percent, better than economists expected, despite worries that superstorm Sandy and the looming fiscal cliff would dampen hiring.There are still 12 million people unemployed in the country, but the Labor Department said Sandy did not significantly affect jobs.Many economists had expected employers to...

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Employers urged to engage with foreign workers on grievance channels

SINGAPORE: Human resource experts say it is important for employers to engage with their foreign workers in light of the two labour disputes that have taken place in the past weeks. They said more can be done to ensure employees have and are aware of the right avenues to air their grievances.The two labour disputes involving foreign workers have been in the limelight.And it has been called...

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Narhari Modi nets prize catch as Narhari Amin joins BJP

AHMEDABAD: In a prize catch for BJP, Narhari Amin, a former Gujarat deputy chief minister, who recently quit the Congress after being denied ticket to contest the assembly elections, joined the state's ruling party on Thursday. Amin's entry into the BJP is expected to boost its prospects in the Saurashtra region where renegade saffron party leader and former chief minister Keshubhai Patel's newly...

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A 2020 Rover Return to Mars?

NASA is so delighted with Curiosity's Mars mission that the agency wants to do it all again in 2020, with the possibility of identifying and storing some rocks for a future sample return to Earth.The formal announcement, made at the American Geophysical Union's annual fall meeting, represents a triumph for the NASA Mars program, which had fallen on hard times due to steep budget cuts....

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Kate Middleton Leaves London Hospital

Kate Middleton left King Edward VII Hospital in London this morning after being admitted four days ago following the palace's announcement that she is pregnant and being treated for hyperemesis gravidarum."The Duchess of Cambridge has been discharged from the King Edward VII Hospital and will now head to Kensington Palace for a period of rest," Nick Loughran, the assistant press...

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Rubio, Ryan look to the future during award dinner speeches

Two high-profile Republican members of Congress who stand at the forefront of the effort to rebuild the party after a stinging presidential defeat delivered speeches Tuesday night aimed at turning the page with a fresh emphasis on inclusion and a renewed focus on growing the middle class. “Nothing represents how special America is more than our middle class. And our challenge and our opportunity...

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Myanmar's Union Minister Soe Thane calls on PM Lee

SINGAPORE: Singapore and Myanmar have affirmed warm relations when Myanmar's Union Minister in the President's Office U Soe Thane called on Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Wednesday.During the meeting, Mr Soe Thane, who is also chairman of the Myanmar Investment Commission, expressed appreciation for Singapore's consistent support for Myanmar's reforms and developments. The two men...

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Mulayam spoke against FDI, but was absent during vote, Sushma Swaraj says

NEW DELHI: In a dig at Mulayam Singh Yadav, BJP leader Sushma Swaraj said that while the Samajwadi Party chief during the parliament debate spoke against allowing FDI in multi-brand retail, his presence in the Lok Sabha during voting would have ensured the economic move is defeated. In her speech concluding the debate in the Lok Sabha, Sushma Swaraj said: "Mulayam Singh had appealed to Sonia...

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Scientific Results From Challenger Deep

Jane J. Lee The spotlight is shining once again on the deepest ecosystems in the ocean—Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench (map) and the New Britain Trench near Papua New Guinea. At a presentation today at the American Geophysical Union's conference in San Francisco, attendees got a glimpse into these mysterious ecosystems nearly 7 miles (11 kilometers) down, the former visited by filmmaker...

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Majority Back Clinton for Presidential Bid in 2016

Kevin Lamarque/AP PhotoCarried by a new high in personal popularity and broad approval of her work as secretary of state, Hillary Clinton closes out her diplomatic career with majority support as a candidate for president in 2016.Fifty-seven percent in the latest ABC News/Washington Post poll say they’d back a run by Clinton to succeed Barack Obama, vs. 37 percent opposed. That includes a broad...

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Top designers, projects awarded at President's Design Award

SINGAPORE: A record number of 139 nominations were received for the President's Design Award this year with the highest honour accorded to designers and design projects.A final thirteen received honours, from fields as diverse as architecture, advertising and product design.The prestigious Designer of the Year award went to four individuals this year for a portfolio of creative works throughout...

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Pak Hindu Council express fear of migration of Hindus from Pakistan

AMRITSAR: Pakistan Hindu Council has expressed fear of mass migration of Hindu's from Pakistan if the government didn't take action against the builder who have demolished a century old Sri Rama Peer Mandir for commercial purpose on last Saturday.While talking to TOI over phone from Pakistan , Patron of Pakistan Hindu Council Ramesh Vankwani said, "The issue has to be highlighted worldwide and if...

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Mars Rover Detects Simple Organic Compounds

NASA's Mars rover Curiosity has detected several simple carbon-based organic compounds on Mars, but it remains unclear whether they were formed via Earthly contamination or whether they contain only elements indigenous to the planet.Speaking at the American Geophysical Union annual meeting in San Francisco, Curiosity mission leaders also said that the compound perchlorate—identified...

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Insiders Reveal 2012 Election Secrets

Pete Souza/White HouseThe 2012 election cycle came full circle last week when representatives from the Obama and Romney campaigns, as well as top advisers to many of the GOP primary candidates and several influential outside groups, gathered at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government for a 2012 debrief — finally answering some of the lingering questions about the race.On neutral ground in Cambridge,...

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AMF Bowling World Cup champion Shayna Ng eyes more world titles

SINGAPORE: Singapore's newest bowling champion is already setting her sights on another world title.Shayna Ng was crowned the AMF Bowling World Cup champion in Poland on Saturday, and returned to a hero's welcome on Monday.Officials from Singapore Bowling, friends and family were at the airport to welcome her home.And Ng, the second Singaporean to win an AMF World Cup title -- after Jasmine...

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Photos: Kilauea Lava Reaches the Sea

Into the Sea Photograph by Hugh Gentry, ReutersA spectacular natural phenomenon was on display early this week as lava from a vent in Hawaii's Kilauea volcano flowed into...

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Will Mortgage Deduction Survive Fiscal Cliff?

When politicians talk about closing tax loopholes, it seems like they're targeting greedy corporations. But they're also talking about Jaclyn Picarillo, 33, mom of two and American homeowner.The home mortgage interest tax deduction is one of the biggest tax breaks available and it allows individuals to deduct the interest they pay to their mortgage company.It has encouraged...

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