People with superior language skills early in life may be less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease decades later, research suggests.

A team from Johns Hopkins University studied the brains of 38 Catholic nuns after death.

They found those with good language skills early in life were less likely to have memory problems - even if their brains showed signs of dementia damage.

The study appears online in the journal Neurology.
Dementia is linked to the formation of protein plaques and nerve cell tangles in the brain.

But scientists remain puzzled about why these signs of damage produce dementia symptoms in some people, but not others.

The researchers focused on nuns who were part of an ongoing clinical study.

They divided the women into those with memory problems and signs of dementia damage in the brain, and those whose memory was unaffected regardless of whether or not they showed signs of dementia damage.

And they also analysed essays that 14 of the women wrote as they entered the convent in their late teens or early 20s, assessing them for complexity of language and grammar.

The study showed that language scores were 20% higher in women without memory problems than those with signs of a malfunctioning memory.

The grammar score did not show any difference between the two groups.

Lead researcher Dr Juan Troncoso said: "Despite the small number of participants in this portion of the study, the finding is a fascinating one.

"Our results show that an intellectual ability test in the early 20s may predict the likelihood of remaining cognitively normal five or six decades later, even in the presence of a large amount of Alzheimer's disease pathology."

Leaders of the G8 leading industrial countries have agreed to try to limit global warming to just 2C (3.6F) above pre-industrial levels by 2050.

The summit, in the Italian city of L'Aquila, also set tough new targets for carbon emissions considered necessary to achieve the goal.

Developed nations are to cut carbon emissions by 80% by 2050, to allow a global 50% reduction by the same date.

Analysts say there is no indication of how the targets, or costs, will be met.

Developed nations have been criticised for ducking interim goals, and difficult talks still lie ahead as negotiators try to firm up the ambitious goals, correspondents say.
Also, the cut in carbon emissions is only a target and will need the co-operation of rapidly industrialising such as China and India.

BBC economics correspondent Andrew Walker adds that the baseline for the cuts could be later than 1990.

That could allow some countries more modest cuts, as emissions in most rose after that date.

UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown said he was confident non-G8 countries would back the commitments when climate change was discussed on Thursday.

Mr Brown said the G8 deal paved the way for a global agreement at the UN conference in Copenhagen in December.

"I hope tomorrow when we meet other countries we'll follow that through and this is a very significant development, the first time it's ever been done," he said.

Security summit

The summit agenda also includes the global economic downturn, food security, terrorism, and nuclear proliferation.

On Wednesday, the G8 leaders issued a statement reaffirming that they were "deeply concerned" by Iran's nuclear programme.

They also condemned North Korea's recent nuclear test and missile launches.
US President Barack Obama announced he would call a summit on nuclear security in Washington next March.

The G8 - Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, UK and the US - are joined at the summit by leaders or representatives from the G5 group of emerging economies - Brazil, China, India, Mexico and South Africa.

Chinese president Hu Jintao flew back to Beijing amid continuing unrest in the western region of Xinjiang.

On the global economy, an official statement noted "some signs of stabilisation" but that the outlook remained uncertain, with "significant risks".

"We will take, individually and collectively, the necessary steps to return the global economy to a strong, stable and sustainable growth path," the statement said.

Mr Brown said G8 leaders recognised that the path out of recession was not yet secure, citing the recent rise in oil prices to $75 a barrel and fears of rising unemployment.

Earthquake zone

The area where the three-day summit is being held is still suffering aftershocks from the April quake and an evacuation plan is in place in case a serious tremor should hit.

African leaders will join the summit on Friday to push for a new initiative to fund farming in the developing world and tackle global hunger.

Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi moved the summit from Sardinia to L'Aquila to show solidarity with the victims of April's earthquake.

He took Mrs Merkel on a tour of Onna, a village almost flattened by the quake, and later Mr Obama was given a tour of L'Aquila to survey the damage.

On Wednesday, dozens of protesters occupied four coal power plants in different regions of Italy, demanding tougher measures in fighting climate change, Greenpeace said.

In Rome on Tuesday police said they had arrested 36 people after masked protesters blocked roads, threw objects and set fire to tyres.

The BBC's Bridget Kendall in L'Aquila says the big question hovering over the summit is whether the whole concept of G8 has been outdated and if a bigger gathering - a G20 - is needed to tackle today's problems.

Efforts by those trying to sell tickets they won to the Michael Jackson memorial service are being thwarted.

Hours after lottery winners collected their passes, postings went up on Craigslist and eBay offering tickets to the highest bidder.

Some were offered for as much as $25,000 (£15,450) before being pulled or flagged by users.

"eBay will not allow Michael Jackson memorial service tickets to be listed on the site," eBay told the BBC.

"When found, eBay will remove them immediately. We believe it is inappropriate to allow the sale of tickets for the Michael Jackson memorial service," the e-mail concluded.

Some fans were so outraged by those cashing in on an event honouring the King of Pop that they bid up tickets to absurd sums like $100m (£62m) on eBay.

On Craigslist, similar advertisements were soon flagged by users for removal.

"Users very quickly flag off ads that are inappropriate, look fishy, or are miscategorised, and that is what we are seeing happening with regards to Michael Jackson," Craigslist spokesperson Susan MacTavish Best told BBC News.

"This is an example of community response in action," she said.

The majority of postings that remain on the site's Los Angeles page are ones from fans who did not win tickets in the lottery as well as some that decried the actions of sellers trying to make a fast buck.

"Thank you for trying to make money off of an icon's death," wrote one irate Craigslist user.

Another person warned "Trying to sell your MJ tickets? YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO SELL THEM! It's illegal (Called scalping and punishable by imprisonment.)"

"Beneath contempt"

It has been estimated that 1.6 million people applied to the online lottery for tickets to attend the service at the Staples Centre in Los Angeles.
The organisers AEG Live, which owns the Centre and had backed Jackson's London concerts, distributed 17,500 free tickets to the memorial via e-mail. The lucky ones had until 6pm last night to pick up their prized passes.

Each winner was given two tickets and while a special bracelet for the event was immediately placed on the ticketholders wrist, AEG spokesman Michael Roth confirmed they can give their second bracelet to anyone they like.

"Theoretically the second wristband can be sold," admitted Mr Roth.

"We are hopeful that they (the winners) have these vouchers because they are a fan and it's meaningful to them and they would also invite someone who it would also be very meaningful to them."

A Jackson family spokesman Ken Sunshine criticised those who would seek to make money out of the event.

"This is a memorial. Words can't describe how horrifying it is that people are ostensibly trying to do that. It's beneath contempt," said Mr Sunshine.
Streaming live

The tickets will admit 11,000 people to the Staples Centre plus 6,500 to the Nokia theatre overflow section next door.
With a star studded line up that is said to include Lionel Ritchie, Stevie Wonder, Mariah Carey, Usher and Brooke Shields scores of TV stations plan to stream the event live over the airwaves and the internet.

The world's biggest social networking site Facebook is teaming up with CNN while rival MySpace is taking its feed from AEG Live.

The service will also be shown on five main US television networks and the BBC is planning to stream it live in the United Kingdom. Plans to show the event outside the UK are being considered.

It is believed the service, which is scheduled to begin at 10am Pacific coast time, could be the biggest event in the web's history.

Certainly it will be a major test for the internet which slowed on the day Michael Jackson's death was announced. At one point Google News was so inundated by queries it thought it was under attack.

There is a species of spider that builds models of itself, which it uses as decoys to distract predators.

The spider may be the first example of an animal building a life-size replica of its own body.

So believe the scientists who made the discovery, which is published in the journal Animal Behaviour.

The arachnid's behaviour also offers one explanation for why many spiders like to decorate their webs with strange-looking ornaments.

Many animals try to divert the attentions of predators by becoming masters of disguise.

Some try to avoid being seen altogether by using camouflage to blend in against a background, such as the peppered moth evolving motley wings that blend into tree bark, or stick insects that look like sticks.

Others evolve more conspicuous ornaments designed to distract a predator, such as butterflies that grow large eyespots or lizards that quickly move colourful tails, which they detach from their bodies if grabbed.

This latter strategy has puzzled biologists, because attracting predators in the first place is usually a bad idea.

One hypothesis is that animals which grow conspicuous ornaments benefit overall, because directing a predator to attack an expendable part of the body, such as the lizard's tail, outweighs the costs of attracting the attention of the predator in the first place.

A ground-breaking laser treatment could prevent millions of older people from going blind, experts believe.

The technique helps reverse the effects of age-related macular degeneration - the leading cause of blindness in over 60s in the western world.

Developed by pioneering eye expert Professor John Marshall of King's College London, the laser returns the back of the eye to its youthful state.

Improvements to sight were reported in early proof of concept trials.

AMD affects more than 200,000 people in the UK and attacks the central vision.
It develops when a membrane at the back of the eye becomes clogged with natural waste materials produced by the light-sensitive cells, which clouds vision.

In youthful eyes, enzymes clear away the debris, but as the ageing process sets in this system can fail.

The painless "short pulse" laser works by boosting the release of the enzymes to clean away the waste without damaging the cells that enable us to see

A simple supplement could help treat people with an impulse disorder that manifests in hair-tearing, say experts.

Trichotillomania suffers are blighted by uncontrollable urges to pluck the hair of the scalp and even eyebrows and lashes, often to the point of baldness.

Although seen as a behavioural and psychological problem, scientists are hopeful that the problem could be solved with an amino acid pill.

Archives of General Psychiatry reports promising early trial findings.

A group of 50 people with trichotillomania were asked to take part in a 12-week trial of the pill containing the amino acid N-acetylcysteine.
The same supplement has shown promise for treating people with compulsive disorders and is thought to work on the glutamate system, the largest nerve signal transmission system in the human brain.

Indeed, some studies suggest that abnormalities in the natural brain chemicals serotonin and dopamine may play a role in trichotillomania, although genes may also be involved.

In the trial, half of the volunteers were given the treatment and the other half a dummy pill.

After 12 weeks, patients taking the active medication had significantly greater reductions in hair-pulling symptoms than those taking placebo.

Overall, 56% of patients were considered to be "much or very much improved" with N-acetylcysteine use compared with 16% taking placebo.

The private gene testing industry must be more tightly regulated, peers say.

The House of Lords Science and Technology Committee said a code of conduct was needed to stop bogus claims being made.

The report also said the tests, which predict the risk of disease later in life, needed to be more thoroughly reviewed before being marketed.

But the unequal provision of services in the NHS was criticised as well. Experts welcomed the report.

The completion of the human genome map in 2000 has led to a boom in genetic research and services.

Until then, much of the focus was on single-gene disorders, such as Huntingdon's and cystic fibrosis.

But the breakthrough led to the possibility of new and better screening and treatment for a range of more complex disorders.
Health firms have already started to exploit the issue by offering genetic testing, which can give people an idea of the risk they face of getting a range of diseases from heart disease to Alzheimer's.

The committee said it was concerned that unproven claims were being made and that individuals were not being offered the proper support and counselling to understand and cope with the results.

It said a voluntary code should be introduced to improve standards - official regulators are powerless to act as many of the companies offering such tests are based outside the UK and sell their services over the internet.

The peers said the EU could also re-classify genetic testing from low to medium risk to reflect the psychological impact the results can have.
This would mean they would be subject to more through pre-market reviews.

It also said mainstream NHS staff outside specialist genetic departments needed more training to help them deal with the "increasing demands" being placed on them by people worried about test results.

But the committee also said there was unequal access to genetic services provided by the NHS.

Genetic testing and subsequent treatment is already available for a range of disorders, such as breast cancer, as well as to work out which drugs an individual responds best to.

The report said individual trusts needed more help to develop and set up specialist genetic services as the issue was only going to become more pressing in the future.

At least 12 militants have died in missiles fired by a suspected US drone in north-west Pakistan, intelligence officials and residents said.

The attack targeted a stronghold of Pakistan's Taliban commander Baitullah Mehsud in South Waziristan, near the Afghan border.

The missiles flattened a compound in the Makeen area, officials said.

There have been more than three dozen US strikes since last August, killing over 340 people, it is estimated.

Most strikes have taken place in the North and South Waziristan areas.

It is the second deadly strike in less than a week. At least 10 militants were killed after a suspected US airstrike on a Taliban target last Friday.

Critical

"Our initial reports from agents in the field say at least 12 to 14 Taliban have died in today's [Tuesday's] American missile attack," news agency Associated Press quoted an official as saying.

He said several militants were also wounded in the attack.

Pakistan has been publicly critical of drone attacks, arguing that they kill civilians and fuel support for the militants.

The US military does not routinely confirm drone attacks but the armed forces and the Central Intelligence Agency operating in Afghanistan are believed to be the only forces capable of deploying drones in the region.

Recently the Americans carried out their deadliest drone strike here, with Pakistani officials and local residents saying at least 50 people were killed.

The strike brought renewed public calls from the government for the US drone attacks to stop.

In March, US President Barack Obama said his government would consult Pakistan on drone attacks.

Police in the US say they have shot dead a serial killer who had terrorised a town in South Carolina.

Patrick Tracy Burris, 41, was killed during an attempted burglary 30 miles (48km) from Gaffney, South Carolina.

Bullets in his gun reportedly matched those used in the murders, which saw five residents of Gaffney shot and killed within a few days of each other.

Police said Burris had a long criminal record, and had been released on parole in April after serving eight years.

A New Zealand company is seeking EU approval to market honeybee venom to help people with arthritis ease their pain.

Nelson Honey & Marketing says two teaspoons a day of its honey with added venom milked from honeybees has anti-inflammatory power to soothe joints.

The venom concept is not new - some clinics even offer up bee stings.

The UK's Food Standards Agency said it would be considering the application in the coming months.
The Manuka honey with added bee venom has been available in New Zealand for 13 years and its makers say although it does contain a venom, it has proved extremely safe.

It contains a blend of honey derived from the native New Zealand Manuka tree and dried venom harvested from the Apis mellifera honeybee using electrical milking machines that send impulses to stimulate worker bees to sting through a latex film onto a glass collector plate.

Anecdotal benefit

The Nectar Ease label advises consumers to start with a quarter of a teaspoon a day and increase this to one or two as required.

It also warns that people with allergies to honey or bee venom should seek medical advice prior to use, and that it should not be given to infants under 12 months of age.

Honey has long been hailed for its healing properties, but the Arthritis Research Campaign said it was sceptical about the beneficial properties of honeybee venom in the treatment of arthritis.

The charity's medical director Professor Alan Silman said: "We recently compiled a report on the effectiveness of complementary medicines in treating the common types of arthritis based on available scientific evidence and honeybee venom didn't feature, as no research has been done into this product.

"As a result, it's difficult to postulate the action of honeybee venom or how it purports to work, because any available evidence is entirely anecdotal."

The Guest House
This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.
A joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
as an unexpected visitor.
Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they are a crowd of sorrows,
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture,
still, treat each guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out
for some new delight.
The dark thought, the shame, the malice,
meet them at the door laughing and invite them in.
Be grateful for whatever comes.
Because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond.
--Jelaluddin Rumi,
translation by Coleman Barks

The Pulse Of God
The limbs of a tree reached
down and lifted me, thinking
I was it's child,
and
in the meadows
my spirit becomes so quiet
that if I put my cheek
against the earth's body
I feel the pulse of God,
"tell me the way you
do that birds....
enter the private chambers
of my Lord?"
and they all sang,
they just SANG.
I gathered it was time
to become a musician,
and I did.
Years passed, and the
sky reached down
one day and lifted
me
and the birds noticed and spoke,
"how do you enter
the sun like
that and
know
the
pulse
of
God?"
From Saint Thomas Aquinas

Vegetarians are generally less likely than meat eaters to develop cancer but this does not apply to all forms of the disease, a major study has found.

The study involving 60,000 people found those who followed a vegetarian diet developed notably fewer cancers of the blood, bladder and stomach.

But the apparently protective effect of vegetarian did not seem to stretch to bowel cancer, a major killer.

The study is published in the British Journal of Cancer.

Researchers from universities in the UK and New Zealand followed 61,566 British men and women. They included meat-eaters, those who ate fish but not meat, and those who ate neither meat nor fish.

Overall, their results suggested that while in the general population about 33 people in 100 will develop cancer during their lifetime, for those who do not eat meat that risk is reduced to about 29 in 100.

Special protection?

The researchers said they found marked differences between meat-eaters and vegetarians in the propensity to cancers of the lymph and the blood, with vegetarians just over half as likely to develop these forms of the disease.

In the case of multiple myeloma, a relatively rare cancer of the bone marrow, vegetarians were 75% less likely to develop the disease than meat-eaters.

The reduction was less notable for fish-eaters with these cancers. The reasons, researchers said, were unclear, but potential mechanisms could include viruses and mutation-causing compounds in meat - or alternatively that vegetables confer special protection.

There were also striking differences in rates of stomach cancer. Although the numbers of cases were small, fish-eaters and vegetarians were about a third as likely to develop the disease as meat-eaters.

Previous research has already implicated processed meats in stomach cancer, so these findings were not entirely surprising. It is thought N-nitroso compounds found in these meats may damage DNA, while the high temperatures they are cooked at may also produce carcinogens.

But the same reduction for vegetarians was not found with cancers of the bowel, one of the most common forms of the disease. The vegetarians in the group in fact had a slightly higher rate of cancers of the colon and the rectum, although not significantly so.

But the relative risk for fish-eaters and vegetarians of cervical cancer was twice that of meat-eaters. The number of cases was small, and could be down to chance but the researchers said it was possible that dietary factors influenced the virus behind cervical cancer.

Professor Tim Key, the lead author, said it was impossible to draw strong conclusions from this one single study.

"At the moment these findings are not strong enough to ask for particularly large changes in the diets of people following an average balanced diet."

Vegetarian diets tend be lower in fat and higher in fibre, but they can require careful planning to ensure necessary protein and vitamins - notably B12, which is mainly derived from animal products - are taken in sufficient amounts.

'Complex process'

A spokesperson for Cancer Research UK, which funded the research, said: "These interesting results add to the evidence that what we eat affects our chances of developing cancer. We know that eating a lot of red and processed meat increases the risk of stomach cancer.

"But the links between diet and cancer risk are complex and more research is needed to see how big a part diet plays and which specific dietary factors are most important.

Myeloma UK said this was the first data of its kind for the bone marrow cancer "and for that reason we are treating it with caution.

"Dietary advice to myeloma patients remains aligned with national guidance - that they should eat a healthy, balanced diet high in fibre, fruit and vegetables and low in saturated fat, salt and red and processed meat."

Dr Panagiota Mitrou, Science and Research Programme Manager for the World Cancer Research Fund, said: "The suggestion that vegetarians might be at reduced risk of blood cancers is particularly interesting.

"However, this finding should be treated with caution since not much is known about the link between diet and these types of cancer. Further studies of vegetarians are needed before we can be confident this is actually the case."

Prince Michael Angel

an original Poem by Clarlita Zarate

In Memory of Michael Jackson


In a kingdom of all colors
dwells our beloved brother.
He has made his home in heaven
above where moments are made of
dreams come true.

It is where the greatest power is love.
Michael is dancing with angels now.
They sing his songs
because, my lord,
it pleases you.

The virgin calls out to him,
"Young Michael."
Her eyes are soft and kind.
Then she asks him as she takes his hands,
"Are you lonely for something you left behind?"

Michael answers, "I miss my fans."

By Clarita Zarate
written for Michael Jackson, forever.

One of the abiding images of the swine flu outbreak is the pictures from Mexico of people wandering the streets wearing masks.

And as the disease has spread from country to country, reports have emerged of people purchasing all sorts of products on the internet.

But while the scramble is understandable, experts are sceptical about just how useful they are.

Professor John Oxford, a virologist at leading London hospital, The Barts and the London, said: "Really, there is very little evidence that masks actually offer much protection against flu.

"I think handing them out to the public as has happened in Mexico just destroys confidence."

Health staff

It is these sorts of issues that has prompted officials from groups such as the World Health Organization and England's Health Protection Agency to steer clear of calling for them for general public use.

While Mexico has handed them out to members of the public, most other countries, including the UK, are just reserving them for health staff.

Others, such as Belgium, have bought some for flu patients, while several, including Spain, have handed them out to passengers on planes returning from affected areas.

It is believed there are enough masks for half the NHS workforce, but officials are already in discussion with suppliers about ordering another 30m to help cope if a pandemic develops.

Health workers have been told to wear them, along with special gloves, if they are in contact with potential victims.

Professor Oxford believes this approach is right.

"They are the people who will be most likely to be coming into contact with the virus and the ones who could be passing it on."

The Department of Health has focused on getting what are known as respirator masks. These have filters, which stop a person breathing in some particles in the air.

They are much more effective than the standard surgical masks or dust masks that are sometimes used by builders.

However, none of the masks can stop 100% of the particles getting through and become less effective once they become moist.

Instead, they are better at stopping the virus getting out.

Spread

Dr Ronald Cutler, deputy director of biomedical science at the University of London, said: "If you sneeze with a mask the virus will be contained so from that point of view if everyone wore them it might stop the spread.

"Or you could get the people with flu wearing them, but by the time they are diagnosed it could be too late.

"And the problem is that when someone sneezes they tend to take a mask off. I think masks give people a false sense of security.

"They are not bio-chemical suits. Masks are obviously just covering one part of the body so your hands and clothes could all have the virus on and when you take them off you will infect yourself.

"However, because people are wearing a mask they will think they are protected and may go into crowded areas.

"The best advice is to wash your hands and cover your mouth when sneezing."

Gail Lusardi, an infection control specialist at Glamorgan University, agreed.

"Masks alone will not prevent spread of the influenza virus and basic hygiene measures like hand washing, safe use and disposal of tissues and cleaning of environmental surfaces are key to preventing infection transmission."

She also said it was important they were correctly fitted - some of the more expensive respirator masks are molded to fit the face unlike standard masks that can be bought on the high street.

And she added: "A mask can be worn continuously for up to eight to 10 hours, but must be replaced if it is taken off at any stage."