NEW Zealand mountaineering legend Sir Edmund Hillary is in hospital after a fall, it was reported today.
The 87-year-old, famous for conquering the world's highest peak, Mt Everest, in 1953, was believed to have suffered a fall at the weekend, the New Zealand Herald reported on its website.
He was believed to be in Auckland Hospital and not in a life-threatening condition. No further information was available.
Virginia may close gun loophole From correspondents in Blacksburg, Virginia April 25, 2007 03:45am
VIRGINIA'S governor said he may be able to close the loophole that allowed student Cho Seung-hui to buy the guns he used to kill 32 people on the Virginia Tech campus.
In 2005, a court had ordered psychiatric counselling for Cho after determining he presented a danger to himself.
But because he was never committed to a mental hospital, that order never appeared in the background check database that gun dealers are required to check before selling a firearm.
Governor Timothy Kaine said that an executive order might be able to tighten that reporting requirement.
Scientists find Superman's 'kryptonite' From correspondents in London April 25, 2007 07:59am
A NEWLY-found mineral contains the same elements described in the fictional kryptonite used by the enemies of comic-book and film superhero Superman, a scientist says.
The white and powdery mineral at London's Natural History Museum has been named instead jadarite after the Serb region where it was found, museum mineralogist Chris Stanley said.
In the 2006 movie Superman Returns, the superhero's arch enemy Lex Luthor steals a kryptonite rock fragment from the Metropolis Museum. On the case are written the words "sodium lithium boron silicate hydroxide with fluorine".
Mr Stanley said he searched the web using the mineral's chemical formula - sodium lithium boron silicate hydroxide - and was "amazed'' to discover the same scientific name used in the film.
"The new mineral does not contain fluorine and is white rather than green, but in all other respects the chemistry matches that for the rock containing kryptonite,'' Mr Stanley said.
The mineral was unearthed in Serbia by geologists from mining group Rio Tinto, which eventually asked the Natural Museum of History for help in identifying it because it was unlike anything previously known to science.
Prosecutor's hoard of child porn exposed Geesche Jacobsen April 25, 2007
THE double life of Dr Patrick Power, SC - the former deputy senior crown prosecutor caught with thousands of images of gay and child pornography - was exposed by a glitch in his computer.
It had crashed, so he took it to work to ask a technician to look at it. When the technician at the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions backed up files, one caught his eye. Its title explicitly and profanely described a 10-year-old boy in a sexual act with his father.
Thus began an investigation which uncovered nearly 29,000 pornographic images, including more than 400 of children as young as five. Police also found 31 videos, including one rated in the worst category, called "sadistic/bestiality", which showed pain inflicted on a child.
The videos had been found in a folder associated with an accounting software program. A search of Power's home found more child pornographic pictures on a disk labelled "Thesis back-up".
His defence lawyer, Ian Barker, QC, told Downing Centre Local Court yesterday that Power, 54, had suffered from an internet addiction and depressive illness. He tendered 76 references from barristers, friends and family "attesting to his integrity and contribution to society". They said the highly regarded prosecutor had always behaved with "complete propriety" towards children.
"In one sense the community is indebted to him and he's now entitled to call in that debt," Mr Barker said after outlining some of Power's contributions to youth causes. Power had suffered public humiliation and had already been punished, and should be given a good behaviour bond, Mr Barker said. Also, he would be in obvious danger in prison, he said. "He is not a pedophile nor anything like it. … This is an extremely sad case. You have a good man, a person with integrity … who is ruined by his own conduct which was contributed to very substantially by matters beyond his control."
Power pleaded guilty to one charge of possessing child pornography in January.
But the prosecutor, the Victorian chief crown prosecutor, Jeremy Rapke, QC, said there was evidence a hard drive containing more child pornography had been hidden or destroyed in the two days between Power being told about the investigation by the office of the DPP and police searching his home.
"A man who was truly remorseful would not have declined to co-operate with police … by concealing or destroying evidence," he said.
Power had also initially tried to blame people staying at his house for accessing the computer, which was deceptive and showed "consciousness of guilt".
A day before Power was charged, in July 2006, he told a colleague: "I am deeply embarrassed … it satisfies a long sexual fantasy but I don't engage in that type of behaviour."
But a psychiatrist's report tendered in court said his sexual preference was for lean, blond men aged 18 or older. "Power either misled his psychiatrist or [his colleague]. It must raise doubts about his reliability and, perhaps, honesty," said Mr Rapke.
"Some of [the material], particularly the videos, was repulsive, degrading of the children in them, and disturbing. There can be no doubt that some of the children seen in Dr Power's collection have been subjected to serious and probably painful sexual assault and it is deeply troubling that a man such as Dr Power would voluntarily and presumably for his own sexual gratification, possess such material."
Mr Rapke cast doubt on the extent of Power's depression, which had not prevented him from exercising his demanding job.
Power had carefully catalogued the pornography and his engagement with it was "long-standing and intense".
Child pornography was not a victimless crime, and a person possessing it had contributed to the sexual exploitation of children, Mr Rapke said.
HE may only be four years old, but Sasha Hartmann is brave beyond his years.
The young Gold Coast boy is being hailed a hero for saving his mother's life after she collapsed on the floor of their Robina home on Monday.
Sasha dialled triple-0 and stunned the operator by providing his full name, address and phone number.
He also gave details about his mother Melita's heart condition, and answered questions about her illness until the ambulance arrived.
"When he was about three, we taught him how to call triple-0 for the fire brigade, ambulance or police," his proud mum said.
"When I collapsed from my heart condition he did exactly what he had been taught and said his whole name, his address, gave his telephone number and said: `My mum has a heart problem and she's sick and she needs the doctors really quickly'.
"You can tell them what to do but, obviously, you don't know what's going to happen until the day ... We thought he might panic or forget or cry but he didn't do any of that."
Ms Hartmann said Sasha also used his quick thinking to let the ambulance officers into the house after he couldn't get the front door open.
"They couldn't get through the front door because the lock was too high so he went through the garage and opened it with the remote to let them in because he knew he had to get them in some way," she said.
"He's definitely my hero."
Ms Hartmann said Sasha had not left her side since she collapsed, but had been remarkably modest about his new-found fame.
"We tell him he's a hero and that he did really good," she said.
"But he doesn't think that he did anything special ... He's just happy he's been on TV."
As a reward for his bravery, Ms Hartmann and her husband Dennis are going to give Sasha what every kid dreams of.
"We're going to take him to Toys `R' Us and say: `Pick what that you want'," she said.
"He saved my life ... that's the least we can do."
Relatives of yachtsmen fear foul play Christine Flatley | April 24, 2007 - 2:51PM
Relatives of the skipper of a mystery yacht found off the coast of north Queensland believe the three missing crew members may have been kidnapped.
Hope Himing, niece of Derek Batten, 56, said today there were many unusual circumstances surrounding the yacht, which was found adrift off the coast of Townsville last Wednesday, that suggest foul play.
Emergency service crews found the engine running, computers turned on, food on the table and the GPS system operating but no sign of the boat's crew.
"It just doesn't all add up," Ms Himing said today.
"If it was bad weather why would their fishing line be out?
"Why would their clothes be piled up (and) if it was that bad that it would have knocked three experienced sailors off, why wouldn't they have put on their life-jackets?
"It just doesn't add up for us."
Ms Himing said her family dismissed police suggestions that her uncle - known to the family as "Des" - and his crew members - brothers Peter and James Tunstead, aged 69 and 63, all from Perth - were washed overboard in bad weather.
She said she strongly believed that the 9.8-metre catamaran, KAZ II, was boarded, and the trio may have been kidnapped.
"The fenders were out on their yacht, and the only reason you ever put them out is when another boat comes aside or if you come to rest against a wharf," she said.
Skinny dip earns world's attention April 24, 2007 - 8:13AM
A 40-year-old woman from Milan has become an international celebrity after being caught on camera skinny-dipping in Rome's Trevi fountain.
Images of the naked tourist, identified only by her first name Roberta, were published by Italy's leading newspapers today.
A brief video of her swimming and sunbathing in the city's landmark has been broadcast on Italian television and is reportedly circulating on the internet.
Quoted by daily Corriere della Sera, Roberta said she had decided to strip and dive into the fountain's shallow waters because she was feeling hot amid unusually high temperatures of 29 degrees celsius.
"The water belongs to everyone and it was hot. What's wrong (with taking a dip),'' she was quoted as saying.
When a policeman came to apprehend her and lead her to a police station on charges of indecent exposure, she was greeted by rapturous applause from hundreds of onlookers, many of whom were equipped with cameras.
The 17th century fountain was made famous by Anita Ekberg in Federico Fellini's masterpiece La Dolce Vita.
The scene in which the Swedish model is shown frolicking in the fountain is one of the most celebrated in the history of cinema.
Last night I saw a report on the news where foreign named shops and restaurants, primarily Asian, are going to be made to put the english translation of the name on display also. From recent experience I know that many Asian words either dont have a straightforward english translation or the translation means an entirely different thing.
personally i still want to know what things say. we live in australia and the nationally recognized language we speak is english therefore all australian citizens should be able to read and identify everything written in a public place italian restaurants have the englsh translation written on their menus why shouldnt asians have to do the same
And we complain about our IR laws. I think he would have a case for unfair dismissal. But then again how many times did he need to be reminded to milk those bloody cows.
“Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery.” ~ Winston Churchill
What is the little ginger nutter thinking, does he really think he's serving a noble cause by going to Iraq?
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Harry...will be responsible for 11 soldiers and four Scimitar reconnaissance vehicles.
I can't believe they're putting the same person who wore a nazi uniform to a costume party in charge of 11 lives.
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Prince Harry will go to Iraq: army chief Tuesday May 1, ninemsn
Prince Harry will serve in Iraq with his regiment, the head of the British army said, despite fears that insurgents could target the third in line to the throne.
"I have taken the decision as chief of general staff. It's my decision as chief of general staff. I have full command of everyone in the army, including Prince Harry," General Sir Richard Dannatt said in a statement.
Dannatt said the decision had been taken after the "widest possible consultation" but added that he could yet change his mind if circumstances changed.
"I will of course keep that decision continually under review and if circumstances are such that I change that decision, I will make a further statement," he told Sky News.
Speculation has been rife about Harry's deployment with the Blues and Royals regiment since the decision to send him was announced in February. The regiment was expected to begin its six-month tour of duty in May.
British media have said the 22-year-old second lieutenant — or Cornet Wales as he is known in the Blues and Royals — could be pulled from the front line because of the threat of kidnap or death and his presence could put comrades in extra danger.
Harry, second son the Prince Charles and the late Diana, Princess of Wales, will be responsible for 11 soldiers and four Scimitar reconnaissance vehicles.
A commander of Iraq's biggest Shiite Muslim militia, Abu Mujtaba, told The Guardian that insurgents would try and kidnap the prince when he gets to Iraq.
He said that the militia had "a special unit that would work to track him down, with informants inside the bases".
Any decision to pull him out is likely to infuriate the prince, who has said there was "no way" he would train to become an officer but do nothing while his soldiers fought.
An unnamed regiment source in the Household Cavalry, of which the Blues and Royals is part, told the domestic Press Association news agency last week that Harry would resign if he is not allowed to go.
But friends of the prince told the BBC that while he would be "very disappointed" if he was barred from going, he would stay with the Army.
April has been one of the deadliest months for British forces in Iraq since the US-led invasion of March 2003. To date 12 lives have been lost, including a corporal doing Harry's armoured reconnaissance troop leader job.
Were he to serve in Iraq, Harry would become the first British royal to see active service since his uncle Prince Andrew flew helicopters in the 1982 Falklands War with Argentina.
His brother William, 24, and second-in-line to the throne, is also an officer in the Blues and Royals.
He has talked in the past about his intention to fight in conflict zones but is unlikely to see front-line military action, given his status as a future monarch.
Britain has about 7,100 troops in Iraq, most of whom are in Basra and surrounding areas, but the government is planning to withdraw about 1,600 this year.
Further evidence the death penalty is not workable.
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Jury convicts LA man of killing 10 women Tuesday May 1, ninemsn
AP - A man described by prosecutors as possibly Los Angeles' most prolific serial killer was convicted of murdering 10 women and one victim's unborn foetus in the 1980s and '90s.
The jury also found Chester Turner guilty of the special circumstances of multiple murder and murder committed during rape. The six-man, six-woman jury had deliberated since April 26.
Turner did not appear to react as the jury's verdicts were read. He could receive the death penalty in the penalty phase of the trial.
Only a handful of victims' relatives were present because of short notice of the verdict.
Turner, 40, is already serving an eight-year prison sentence for the 2002 rape of a woman in the run-down Skid Row neighbourhood.
His DNA in that rape case linked him to the serial killings that spanned from 1987 to 1998.
Eight of the killings occurred in South Los Angeles when Turner was living in that area, the prosecution said.
One victim was Regina Washington, 27, who was six and a half months pregnant when she was strangled with an electrical cord behind a vacant house in September 1989. Her unborn daughter was one of the murder victims.
Another woman, Andrea Tripplett, 29, was five and a half months pregnant when she was strangled in April 1993.
Turner was not charged with killing Tripplett's unborn child, however, because California law specified at the time that a five and a half-month-old foetus was not considered viable.
There were no eyewitnesses to any of the killings, but a security camera recorded the murder of Paula Vance, 38, in February 1998. The grainy video made it hard to make out Vance and her assailant, but it did show her being thrown to the ground. After about 15 minutes, a man could be seen walking away from her body.
Before police identified Turner as a suspect, a mentally disabled janitor was wrongly convicted of three other slayings police believe are connected to Turner. Turner has not been charged with those murders.
David Allen Jones, 44, was released in 2004, after 11 years in prison. He received $US720,000 ($A868,675) in compensation.
What is the little ginger nutter thinking, does he really think he's serving a noble cause by going to Iraq?
Yes.
“Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery.” ~ Winston Churchill
Further evidence the death penalty is not workable.
How about all the people opposed to the death penalty pay for their prison and you all feed them and look after them. Thats fair.
“Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery.” ~ Winston Churchill
How about all the people opposed to the death penalty pay for their prison and you all feed them and look after them. Thats fair.
Since we know the justice system is imperfect I assume you find applying the law of averages to decide human life and death reasonable? If 1 in every 10th person executed is innocent you're willing to live with that because it keeps prisoner costs down?
...then to save every bit of money wasted on prisons let's just sentence every transgressor to death and set up mass gas chambers, wait hasn't that been attempted before?
Everyone is entitled to be stupid, but some abuse the privilege.
...then to save every bit of money wasted on prisons let's just sentence every transgressor to death and set up mass gas chambers, wait hasn't that been attempted before?
You feel better now
“Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery.” ~ Winston Churchill
At Sir Edmund's age it does not bode well, I am afraid to say. I hope he recovers fully and is with us for a good many years yet. 
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