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Destroyed buildings in the earthquake-damaged town of Beichuan, Sichuan Province, China
Destroyed buildings in the earthquake-damaged town of Beichuan, Sichuan Province, China Photo: AFP/GETTY

The 511ft-high Zipingpu dam holds 315 million tonnes of water and lies just 550 yards from the fault line, and three miles from the epicentre, of the Sichuan earthquake.

Now scientists in China and the United States believe the weight of water, and the effect of it penetrating into the rock, could have affected the pressure on the fault line underneath, possibly unleashing a chain of ruptures that led to the quake.

Fan Xiao, the chief engineer of the Sichuan Geology and Mineral Bureau in Chengdu, said it was "very likely" that the construction and filling of the reservoir in 2004 had led to the disaster.

"There have been many cases in which a water reservoir has triggered an earthquake," said Mr Fan. "This earthquake was very unusual for this area.

There have been no seismic activities greater than a magnitude seven quake along this particular seismic belt before."

The 7.9 magnitude quake struck last May and left more than five million people homeless. It remains a raw and emotional topic for most Chinese, and the government has been quick to quash any suggestion that Zipingpu may have been responsible for the catastrophe. Researchers have been denied access to seismological and geological data to examine the earthquake further.

Zipingpu is only one of nearly 400 hydroelectric dams in the earthquake zone. Mr Fan said the government had been warned of the danger of building so many large-scale projects in a seismically active area, but that the warnings had gone unheeded.

"I not only opposed the construction of Zipingpu, but also the overdevelopment of the reservoirs on Minjiang River. There are ten major reservoirs on the main river, 29 on its tributaries and a lot more smaller-scale reservoirs, all of which block the flow of the entire river, and are very hazardous to the local geology," he said.

Although Sichuan is an earthquake-prone region, many scientists were caught by surprise by the magnitude of the quake. Christian Klose, a scientist at Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, said there had not been any "major seismic activity" on that fault line for millions of years.

He argued that the sudden shift of a huge quantity of water into the region could have simultaneously relaxed the tension between the two sides of the fault, allowing them to move apart, and also increased the direct pressure enough to cause a violent rupture. The effect was "25 times more" than a year's worth of natural stress from tectonic movement, he said.

Although the official government line is that its massive construction projects had nothing to do with the quake, some state researchers in Beijing have called for a full investigation. Lei Xinglin, of the China Earthquake Administration, said that the Zipingpu reservoir "clearly affected the local seismicity and it is worthwhile to study the role it played in triggering the earthquake further". He added that firm conclusions remain "premature" however.

There is a history of earthquakes triggered by dams, including several caused by the construction of the Hoover dam in the US, but none of such a magnitude.

[Article and image source]

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Natalie Dylan: Virgin auction: bidding reaches £2.5m
Natalie Dylan, 22, is auctioning off her virginity to fund her master's degree Photo: BARCROFT MEDIA

Natalie Dylan, 22, claims her offer of a one-night stand has persuaded 10,000 men to bid for sex with her.

A student who is auctioning her virginity to pay for a masters degree in Family and Marriage therapy has seen bidding hit £2.5million ($3.7m).

Last September, when her auction came to light, she had received bids up to £162,000 ($243,000) but since then interest in her has rocketed.

The student who has a degree in Women's Studies insisted she was not demeaning herself.

Miss Dylan, from San Diego, California, USA, said she was persuaded to offer herself to the highest bidder after her sister Avia, 23, paid for her own degree after working as a prostitute for three weeks.

She said she had had a lot of attention from a wide range of men, including "weirdos", "those who get really graphically sexual about what they want to do to me" and "lots of polite requests from rich businessmen".

Miss Dylan said she did not think it was particularly significant to be willing to sell your virginity and insisted that she was happy to undergo medical tests for any doubters.

She said: "I get some men who are obviously looking for a girlfriend but I try and make it clear that this is a one-night-only offer.

"I know that a lot of people will condemn me for this because it's so taboo but I really don't have a problem with that.

"My study is completely authentic in that I truly am auctioning my virginity but I am not being sold into this. I'm not being taken advantage of in any way.

"I think me and the person I do it with will both profit greatly from the deal."

She added: "It's shocking that men will pay so much for someone's virginity, which isn't even prized so highly anymore."

[Article and image source]

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Olivia Newton-John's former partner, who was presumed dead after disappearing four years ago, is alive and well and living off the coast of Mexico, according to private investigators.

Patrick McDermott vanished during a fishing trip in San Pedro, California, in 2005, leaving behind his passport, wallet and keys. The 48-year-old was initially thought to have fallen overboard, but his body was never recovered.

US investigators believe they have traced him via the website they set up as a high-tech trap, www.patrickmcdermott.com They claim Mr McDermott has been regularly logging on to the site in a bid to stay one step ahead of the search, unwittingly giving away his location through his computer's IP address.

Mr McDermott is believed to be on a boat sailing along the Mexico coastline between Puerto Vallarta and Acapulco.

He is convinced that the former cameraman faked his own death to escape mounting debts and to enable his teenage son, Chance, to receive a $100,000 insurance payout. Mr McDermott had filed for bankruptcy and fallen behind on child support payments.

[Article and image via]

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wenn5235784.jpg

Potato Head's stepfather, in his own words:

"a brief retort to the critics
Current mood: chipper

140 characters works for some things. Sometimes you need more space. I would like to address the spin factories around the world. Over the last week my posts on twitter have received a lot of attention. I have not begged or pulled or asked for any of it. Let me set a few facts straight.

1) I do not think that going off on my neighbor was a horribly offensive thing to do. I have been woken up every morning for the last four months by hammering and construction on a structure that is very close to our property line after being told the land was being purchased to build a park. Yes, there may have been a more diplomatic way to do it and maybe broadcasting it for the net wasn't the wisest choice. My father is a contractor my step father is a contractor. I grew up hiking shingles to the roof of houses and driving nails at 7 am for a living. I have absolute compassion and understanding for the workers. I do however have a job that sometimes forces me to work into the night (sometimes the movie business requires that) and occasionally I like to sleep past 7 am. Yes I live a very fortunate life and for that I am very greatful, I do however work for a living. I have a family that I support and a company that I run daily. And I cherish the 4 to 6 hours that I sleep a day.
2) I didn't "chuck beverages" at the construction workers. They were very happy to see us and laughing at the whole ordeal. I asked them if they wanted something to drink and they said yes. I thought that it would be a nice gesture. I am sorry if some found this offensive. But I know that the workers loved it.
3) I don't feel that my distain for the unwarranted attack on my step daughters by a blogger I will not name is out of line at all.
4) I don't smoke marijuana and any statement to the contrary is a lie. I simply feel that Michael Phelps is entitled to his privacy. The kid made a mistake (he is only human) and anyone who has been in the public eye knows the magnification of minor missteps can be blown way out of proportion. Yes he is a role model and a great one at that. But I'm sure that in his lapse of judgment he wasn't thinking, "boy I hope the whole world can see this so that kids everywhere can copy me." And truth be told, if they went out and trained and worked as hard as he has to reach the great heights of success in their careers I wouldn't hammer them about a slip up either. And in kind I would like to retract any negative statement that I made about the kid who published the pic. I'm sure he/she wasn't in a sober head space while taking it or publishing it for that matter (you are the company you keep). I leave perfection to the creator of this great universe and wouldn't assume that duty on any human being.
5) I find it exceedingly disappointing that the press coverage of my wife and my blog posts have not included the philanthropic pursuits that we have adopted and encourage. Our intention in becoming more active on the web has been with the effort to connect to the community in an effort to create a greater bond with the amazing fans that we have adopted over several years. We are sharing our lives our thought our ideas and yes our faults with the hope of using connectivity and oneness to build a greater unity and take down the walls that divide us. We have dedicated ourselves to building a coalition to abolish 21st century slavery and are smart enough to know that we can't do it alone. But truth be told we are having fun connecting with people and if we are to be defamed for doing so, so be it. We aren't publishing news. We are sharing with a community of people that are sharing back with us. So I only ask that you don't take our conversation out of context and please stop printing half truths in the media so as to drive up your user consumption and sell more ads on the content that you claim to be news."

[Image via WENN.][ARticle via perez]

| 0 comments ]

wenn5235784.jpg

Potato Head's stepfather, in his own words:

"a brief retort to the critics
Current mood: chipper

140 characters works for some things. Sometimes you need more space. I would like to address the spin factories around the world. Over the last week my posts on twitter have received a lot of attention. I have not begged or pulled or asked for any of it. Let me set a few facts straight.

1) I do not think that going off on my neighbor was a horribly offensive thing to do. I have been woken up every morning for the last four months by hammering and construction on a structure that is very close to our property line after being told the land was being purchased to build a park. Yes, there may have been a more diplomatic way to do it and maybe broadcasting it for the net wasn't the wisest choice. My father is a contractor my step father is a contractor. I grew up hiking shingles to the roof of houses and driving nails at 7 am for a living. I have absolute compassion and understanding for the workers. I do however have a job that sometimes forces me to work into the night (sometimes the movie business requires that) and occasionally I like to sleep past 7 am. Yes I live a very fortunate life and for that I am very greatful, I do however work for a living. I have a family that I support and a company that I run daily. And I cherish the 4 to 6 hours that I sleep a day.
2) I didn't "chuck beverages" at the construction workers. They were very happy to see us and laughing at the whole ordeal. I asked them if they wanted something to drink and they said yes. I thought that it would be a nice gesture. I am sorry if some found this offensive. But I know that the workers loved it.
3) I don't feel that my distain for the unwarranted attack on my step daughters by a blogger I will not name is out of line at all.
4) I don't smoke marijuana and any statement to the contrary is a lie. I simply feel that Michael Phelps is entitled to his privacy. The kid made a mistake (he is only human) and anyone who has been in the public eye knows the magnification of minor missteps can be blown way out of proportion. Yes he is a role model and a great one at that. But I'm sure that in his lapse of judgment he wasn't thinking, "boy I hope the whole world can see this so that kids everywhere can copy me." And truth be told, if they went out and trained and worked as hard as he has to reach the great heights of success in their careers I wouldn't hammer them about a slip up either. And in kind I would like to retract any negative statement that I made about the kid who published the pic. I'm sure he/she wasn't in a sober head space while taking it or publishing it for that matter (you are the company you keep). I leave perfection to the creator of this great universe and wouldn't assume that duty on any human being.
5) I find it exceedingly disappointing that the press coverage of my wife and my blog posts have not included the philanthropic pursuits that we have adopted and encourage. Our intention in becoming more active on the web has been with the effort to connect to the community in an effort to create a greater bond with the amazing fans that we have adopted over several years. We are sharing our lives our thought our ideas and yes our faults with the hope of using connectivity and oneness to build a greater unity and take down the walls that divide us. We have dedicated ourselves to building a coalition to abolish 21st century slavery and are smart enough to know that we can't do it alone. But truth be told we are having fun connecting with people and if we are to be defamed for doing so, so be it. We aren't publishing news. We are sharing with a community of people that are sharing back with us. So I only ask that you don't take our conversation out of context and please stop printing half truths in the media so as to drive up your user consumption and sell more ads on the content that you claim to be news."

[Image via WENN.][ARticle via perez]

| 0 comments ]

Photokorn Media Gallery 1.54 PHP NULLED script


A flexible and stylish PHP/MySQL media gallery for private and commerical use. Basic features include: automatic creation of thumbnails for images, experimental support for creation of thumbnails from videos (with ffmpeg), creation of medium sized previews, video and audio streaming, integrated shopping cart with various payment options, zip download, rating system, bulk import functions, slide show, e-cards and multiple language support, SMTP authentification support, user upload, can read exif and IPTC data from images, image and text watermark support etc.

- MySQL database driven, PHP coding
- English/German language support (can be extended)
- Users can change and set their prefered language.
- Supports JPG, PNG (and GIF is some cases) using GD 2.x.x or GD 1.x.x
- Supports TIF, PSD, GIF, JPG and PNG etc. using ImageMagick
- Supports EXIF and IPTC information in JPG (and TIF if ImageMagick is used)
- Support of video files (AVI, RM, MPG, MPEG, MOV, 3GP and WMV)
- Support of audio files (MP3, MP4, M4A, M4V, WAV, MID, MIDI and WMA)
- Support of text files (PDF, DOC, RTF, TXT, PPT and XLS)
- Support for ZIP Archives
- Support of Macromedia Flash (SWF) content
- Upload of files in admin center from external URL
- Streaming support for WMV, WMA, MP3 and RM files
- Import of external Windows Media and Realplayer live streams possible
- Thumbnails and medium-sized images for videos, audio, text and zip files can be uploaded/created separately, otherwise standard Icon Thumb is shown
- Automatic thumbnail creation for images, with crop to square function
- Unlimited categories and subcategories
- Full sized original image linked as downloadable file
- Full sized original file linked also a ZIP download
- Categories can be password protected
- Categories can be hidden (with or without password protection)
- Visitors may upload own images to predefined categories
- Upload moderation with email-notification
- Integrated shopping cart (with PayPal, NoChex, WorldPay, 2checkout, bank transfer
or self defined payment possibilities). Shopping cart may be disabled if not required.
- E-card support for all media types (can be turned off)
- Printing support (can be turned off)
- Slideshow for images with user setable timing
- Hotlist of top 10 downloads, popular and most viewed files
- Integrated user contact form (can be turned off)
- Search and quicksearch function via form or URL
- Text-Watermark function
- Graphic watermark function (GD2 only)
- Display of newest, most popular and random images on start page
- Choose if middle-sized image is displayed in pop-up or on normal page
- Created of middle-sized images can be turned off and instead originals can be shown
- Images stored on hard drive in randomly named (for extra security) directories
- Rating system: Visitors can rate files on a scale of 1 to 5
- Tested on Unix/Apache and Windows environments
- Browser compatible; tested with IE 5/6, Netscape 4/6/7, Firefox, Safari 1.0
- XHTML 1.0 Transitional compliant
Administrative features
- Easy web-based installation script
- Password protected admin panel access
- Upload files via browser
- Bulk upload via ZIP archive and/or FTP-Upload
- Database backup with zip download
- Unlimited creation of categories and subcategories possible
- Automatic renaming of files to prevent accidental overwriting
- Set size and quality of thumbnail images
- Set size and quality of medium-sized images
- Number of downloads and views counted and logged
- Keyword entry, Keyword search
- Definition of up to unlimited additional databank fields
- Price categories with multiplicator setable for integrated shopping cart
- CD-ROM order option and shipping costs in integrated shopping cart possible
- Change font type, -colour and -size easily in css-file
- Configure your own colour scheme and gallery logo
- Header, footer and css style can be edited in admin panel
- Manage categories. Edit, Delete, Create, Move
- Manage (multiple) files: Edit, Delete, Upload, Move
- Modify description, date, rating and no. of views
- Create and rename categories and category descriptions
- Set download and e-card permissions per category and/or file
- Set upload and moderation permissions per category
- Set hide setting and password for each category
- Define number of thumbnails shown per page
- Define number of thumbnail columns in category overview
- Turn off automatic thumbnail creation
- Turn off automatic creation of medium-sized images and show only originals
- Turn ofsp;
- Rescan function (recreate thumbnails, medium images, watermark or read or delete IPTC and EXIF information)
- Flexible IPTC field to database field allocation

Download:

Rapidshare:
http://rapidshare.com/files/178293563/Photokorn.Media.Gallery.1.54.rar

DepositFiles:
http://depositfiles.com/files/uq46wkkiz

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Nancy-Cartwright-1.jpg


The Simpsons producers have denied any involvement with a Scientology-promoting voice mail recorded by Nancy Cartwright, who has provided the voice of Bart Simpson for 20 years, in which she advertises her current auditing level--new OT VII--and invites recipients of the message to the church's Flag World Tour event Jan. 31 in Hollywood, at which Cartwright is scheduled to speak.

But while her show might not be connected to the call, she sure didn't mind connecting her call to the show. The message begins with her saying, "Yo, what's happenin' man, this is Bart Simpson. Haha. Just kidding, don't hang up, this is Nancy Cartwright."

"It's gonna be a blast, man," she teases, sounding like Bart again, after providing the where and when.

But just because this particular Scientologist has a signature voice to help spread the word, it doesn't mean she speaks for anyone else. "The Simpsons does not, and never has, endorsed any religion, philosophy or system of beliefs any more profound than Butterfinger bars," said executive producer Al Jean in response to the implied connection.