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In a stem cell breakthrough that could speed-up treatment of dementia, American scientists have claimed to have developed a method to directly convert skin cells into nerve cells. "We actively and directly induced one cell type to become a completely different cell type," claimed study author Dr Marius Wernig from Stanford University in California. "These are fully functional neurons. They can do all the principal things that neurons in the brain do," Dr Wernig wrote in the journal Nature. The breakthrough could "revolutionise the future of human stem cell therapy" for the regeneration of brains, said the researchers.

Apple wowed many in the tech world with the launch of a new tablet computer - the iPad - that could pioneer a new style of media use in the digital age. But some critics said Apple's new device fell short of expectations. Hopes for the device had been high. In the words of The Wall Street Journal: "The last time there was this much excitement about a tablet, it had some commandments written on it."

For those who thought that the fans of Bollywood (Tamil film industry) were one crazy lot, we are sure that this piece of news will just not be a 'Moonwalk' (quite literally) for them. It's general knowledge that Shahrukh Khan is called the King Khan for enough reasons that would fill many pages of an Encyclopedia. And the fan following that he has is nothing short of hysteria.

Flames between India and Pakistan seem to be dousing over the controversy regarding the non-bidding of Pakistani players for the third season of the Indian Premier League. After allegations and counter allegations for more than a week both the sides seems to be moving towards a mean path. Controversy erupted after none of 11 Pakistani players available for auction were hired by any of the eight teams. Pakistan alleged that India had snubbed it's cricketers after pre-planning

Oil Prices fall on China Concerns Oil prices have dropped on concerns that China will make further moves to tighten credit, energy analysts said. New York's main futures contract, light sweet crude for delivery in March, slid 75 cents to 74.51 dollars a barrel. London's Brent North Sea crude for March delivery decreased by 59 cents to 73.10 dollars at about 1230 GMT. Prices were driven lower on "concerns that China might further restrict bank lending," said Victor Shum, an analyst at energy consultants Purvin and Gertz. "That's what's driving the market." Policymakers in China have taken steps to tighten credit lending in a bid to slow down a roaring economy, which grew by 10.7 percent in the fourth quarter. China is the world's second biggest oil consuming nation after the United States.

Nancy Kerrigan's low-key family, which struggled with the attention brought on after an attack at a skating competition nearly derailed her Olympic dreams, has again been thrust into the spotlight with the death of her father after what authorities said was a violent struggle with his troubled son. At his arraignment on Monday, the son, Mark Kerrigan, repeatedly rubbed the knuckles of his handcuffed hands and pleaded not guilty to assaulting 70-year-old Daniel Kerrigan at the family's home in the Boston suburb of Stoneham, where he had been living with his parents. The 45-year-old put his head in his hands and wept but did not speak at his arraignment.

Call it bad luck or foolish optimism, but the decision by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to double the size of its Best Picture Oscar field from five to 10 nominees this year has put it at risk of not having a full ballot when nominations are announced Feb. 2. And it has given itself an absolute assurance of having nominees that don't belong. The Academy's screwy preferential voting system begins by separating ballots by movies listed first. Every ballot with 'Avatar' as No. 1, for instance, goes in one stack, every one with 'The Hurt Locker' first goes in another, and so on. That's no problem for those two movies, or for 'Inglourious Basterds,' 'Up in the Air' and 'Precious,' all slam-dunk Best Picture nominees.

Taiwanese model Alicia Liu (Xun Ai) has admitted that she is a transsexual. The 24-year-old model-cum-actress, nicknamed Xiao Ai, said she underwent sex-change surgery at the age of 18. "My ex-boyfriend paid for it," she said in an interview with a Taiwan magazine on Friday. Liu, whose original name was Zi Hua, became popular following her appearances on a parody television programme. A photo of Liu before she underwent a sex change operation.She was described as having a face as innocent as an angel with sexy curves and a sweet voice. She is 171cm in height and weighed 50kg with a vital statistics of 34C-25-34.

A SWARM of vintage 50s Citroen DS cars and a bunch of lookalikes of Oscar-winning film-maker Jacques Tati took over an iconic Paris square on Saturday as Kenzo showed his latest menswear at Paris Fashion Week. Traffic near the late 17th century Place des Victoires, one of the city's rare circular squares, came to a halt as the once futuristic cars labelled by some as the most beautiful of all time slowly circled a smaller circle of male models dressed to mirror Tati's Mr Hulot. Tati, who won an Oscar for 'Mon Oncle' (My Uncle) in 1959, himself played the dreamy Hulot character who starred in several of his films, pacing about with an umbrella in a raincoat and a hat. 'He had an inimitable silhouette,' said Kenzo designer Antonio Marras. 'I liked his eccentricity and anarchism.'

Latest news on Apple, BT, Nokia and Samsung The latest news on BT's superfast broadband, new Samsung digital cameras, Nokia turning its mobile phones into sat navs, the Orange T-Mobile merger and Apple iSlate tablet rumours. Which? brings you its top five technology news stories of the week in one easy roundup to keep you up-to-date on the latest happenings in the world of technology.

A French software engineer said on Friday he was claiming a world record for calculating Pi, the constant that has fascinated mathematicians for millennia. Fabrice Bellard told AFP he used an inexpensive desktop computer - and not a supercomputer used in past records - to calculate Pi to nearly 2.7 trillion decimal places. That is around 123 billion digits more than the previous record set last August by Japanese professor Daisuke Takahashi, he said. Takahashi, using a T2K Open Supercomputer, took 29 hours to crunch Pi to 2.577 billion digits.

If you're looking for creative (and delicious!) ways to enhance your weight loss efforts, here's a fresh collection of six slimming foods you should add to your repertoire. I'm a firm believer that dieting and losing weight doesn't mean you have to subsist on bland, boring cardboard. With that in mind, I've put together a list of strategic skinny eats, each of which has its own unique way of satisfying your taste buds while blunting your appetite. I encourage you to peruse my list and use these tasty bites to your advantage!

Alicia keys New York "Saturday Night Live" welcomed the new decade with a duo of seasoned "SNL" vets, featuring basketball star Charles Barkley and R&B diva Alicia Keys in the show's first episode of 2010. Getty Images "Saturday Night Live" welcomed the new decade with a duo of seasoned "SNL" vets, featuring basketball star Charles Barkley and R&B diva Alicia Keys in the show's first episode of 2010. Barkley, who last hosted the show in 1993 alongside musical guest Nirvana, had bit parts in "SNL" sketches new and old in Saturday's episode, the last since James Franco's December gig ended the 2009 "SNL" season. Perhaps Barkley's funniest turn was as Keys herself, as the 6?5? former NBA player donned a curly wig and tight dress to play the sultry chart-topper during a sketch that aired before the show, during NBC coverage of the NFL playoff game. Barkley took a turn poking fun at himself, starring in a skit about getting professional help to fix his golf swing and joking about getting "arrested," a nod to his Jan. 2009 drunk-driving bust. The ex-NBA star also quipped about the league's infamous womanizers, saying as he hit on an audience member: "I been in the NBA a long time, I know a freaky white girl when I see one."

KARACHI: The death toll in the violence in the city has been increased to 14 in last 24 hours on Sunday as three more persons lost their lives on Sunday. Three more bodies have been found on Sunday which have been shot dead. At least 11 people have been killed in the target killing spree in the city Saturday. Bodies of 3 young men of Lyari kidnapped from Akbar Road have been recovered from Aram Bagh and Ranchor Line. They have been identified as Mohammad Alam, Shakir son of Shafi and Mohammad Nawaz son of Umair. One of them was a resident of Baghdadi whereas two are residents of Bakra Piri. Another man was killed in firing near Haji Camp whereas four people were killed in firing at a hotel in Dhobi Ghat area. The firing occurred when people were returning from funeral prayers of those killed on Friday. Meanwhile, two bosdies packed in sacks are recovered from Kharadar. One of the murdered persons is identified as Naeem son of Abdul Aziz. He was a resident of Lyari.

ISLAMABAD: British Foreign Secretary David Miliband continued his visit to Pakistan on Sunday, with an early morning visit to Islamabad's Faisal Mosque. Miliband was met by mosque religious leaders and given a tour of the mosque complex, one of the largest in the world. Faisal Mosque, Pakistan's national mosque, can accommodate up to 300-thousand worshippers inside and in the surrounding grounds. The mosque is named after the late Saudi King Faisal bin Abdul Aziz who supported and financed the project. Construction of the mosque began in 1976, after an international design competition was won by a Turkish architect. The Faisal Mosque doesn't have the traditional dome design, but is based on a traditional Arab Bedouin tent, with a large prayer hall and four pencil-like minarets.

WE have thrown away yet another Test and with it the series before it is over. Heart-breaking indeed, the manner in which our batsmen surrendered their wickets in quest of a comfortable target on a wicket which held no terror nor any demon if only they had applied themselves to the task and grafted their runs instead of having a bash at every delivery as if they were in a hurry to catch another flight. With a day to spare any team would have put their head down to concentrate on picking runs through the gaps as they came but the way the two openers launched the attack instead of building a partnership to set a solid base for others to build on to it was indicative of the danger that lurked around and that we all feared.

Talk about musical-comedy: comedian Russell Brand and singer Katy Perry are engaged, his rep confirmed Wednesday. Rumors to that effect began circulating over the holidays, and became especially loud Tuesday night. Perry, 25, Tweeted around 1 a.m. New York time from Thailand on Wednesday an oblique reference to an Alanis Morrisette song: "So when do I start walking the streets naked singing that Alanis song?" Morrisette's lines in "Thank You" include: "How about me just enjoying the moment for once" and "Thank you India" (where the couple vacationed recently).

It's Cleary a part of propaganda about the great young singers around the world. Internet rumors have added another young name in the death hoax when it was rumored that Justin Bieber dead. The news of Justin Bierber dead has hit very hard on the net and fans are not only confused but also in great anger due to these cheep stupid death hoaxes. Justin Bieber is alive and doing well, so first makes this thing clear.

Google is honoring Sir Isaac Newton with it's first animated logo design on the English scientist and thinker's birthday. Newton was born 367 years ago, January 4, 1643. The design (formally called a Doodle), on Google's main search page today features a branch of apples. After a second or two, one falls off the branch and onto Google's white background, a nod to Newton's fabled discovery of the law of gravity. Newton is celebrated for his work on motion, optics, gravity, and calculus. He also invented the reflecting telescope.