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Rowhani officially becomes Iran president

Written By Unknown on Sabtu, 03 Agustus 2013 | 21.29

MODERATE cleric Hassan Rowhani has assumed Iran's presidency with supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei officially endorsing him.

"There is a clear message in electing a competent individual with more than three decades of service to the (Islamic republic's) establishment," Khamenei said in a statement on Saturday.

"The message is of loyalty to the (Islamic) revolution, hope in the establishment ... and trust in individuals determined to add to its success and reduce problems" in Iran, he added.

Khamenei said Rowhani, 64, "hails from the clerical stronghold which has confronted the enemies".

He called on the new president to "defend the goals of the Islamic establishment and the rights of the nation, and to stand up to arrogance and bullies", in reference to Western powers.

Rowhani begins his term as the Islamic republic's seventh president facing challenges over its ailing economy and international isolation due to the controversial policies of his hardline predecessor, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Rowhani's public inauguration will take place on Sunday when he takes the oath of office in parliament.

He defeated several conservative rivals in the June 14 presidential election, having pledged to resolve tensions with world powers and shore up an economy hit hard by international sanctions.


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NSW premier honours top melanoma expert

Written By Unknown on Jumat, 02 Agustus 2013 | 21.29

INTERNATIONALLY recognised melanoma expert Professor John Thompson has been named NSW's top cancer researcher of the year.

Prof Thomson received the Premier's Award at a Cancer Institute NSW function hosted by Barry O'Farrell on Friday.

"Melanoma is Australia's national cancer challenge," said Mr O'Farrell, praising Prof Thompson's work at the Melanoma Institute Australia and the University of Sydney.

He said Prof Thomson and his team were making important advances in the prevention, detection and treatment of melanoma.

It was a big night for the Melanoma Institute. Apart from Prof Thomson's award, honours also went to Dr Georgina Long and Dr Pascale Guiterra.

A team from the University of New South Wales (UNSW) won the inaugural Big Data, Big Impact grant program.

The team comprised of Dr Jason Wong, Dr Luke Hesson, Associate Professor John Pimanda and Dr Joe Thurbon will be funded to work on a project called Exploring the Dark Matter of Cancer Genomes.

Explaining the new award, Professor David Currow, CEO of the Cancer Institute NSW, said: "Cancer research has entered a new era - and NSW is at the forefront.

"Gone are the days when researchers toiled in isolated labs with limited samples."

He said there was much data available but "the challenge is unlocking it".

Another UNSW winner was Professor Neville Hacker, who won the Professor Rob Sutherland Make a Difference Award for his pioneering work in the field of gynaecological oncology.

His centre at the Royal Hospital for Women has become a model for similar centres throughout Australia.

Other awards went to Dimitri Conomos, outstanding research scholar; Goldie Yuan Lam Lui, Pfizer oncology scholarship; TROG Cancer Research, innovation in cancer clinical trials; Anthony Gill and Roderick Clifton-Bligh, excellence in translational cancer research; and Dr Orazio Vittorio, the kids' cancer project.


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Polish couple get 30 years for killing son

A POLISH mother and her partner who systematically starved her four-year-old son before savagely beating him to death have been jailed for a minimum of 30 years by a British judge.

Magdelena Luczak and Mariusz Krezolek subjected Daniel Pelka to a six-month ordeal in which he was held underwater, locked in a room and force-fed salt before suffering fatal head injuries in a vicious assault.

The case has raised questions about why Daniel's stepfather Krezolek was not deported to Poland despite having been jailed three times in Britain, and about the failure of Daniel's school and social services to save him.

The case was "deeply shocking and disturbing" and involved "unimaginable acts of cruelty and brutality", said Judge Laura Cox as she sentenced the pair on Friday at Birmingham Crown Court in central England.

Cox gave Luczak and Krezolek each life sentences and said the couple, who were found guilty by a jury on Wednesday, must serve a minium of 30 years in prison before they can be considered for release.

The pair both arrived in Britain from Poland in 2006.

A juror wiped away tears as the sentences were read out. Luczak and Krezolek, who are both originally from Poland stared straight ahead and listened to their interpreters.

Daniel was described as a healthy little boy when he started school in the industrial city of Coventry in September 2011. Pictures showed a smiling blond-haired boy in a red uniform.

But the time he died in March 2012 experts "likened his appearance to those who failed to survive concentration camps, and the comparison was not made lightly," the judge said.

His mother, 27, and her partner, 34, who were both drug and alcohol abusers, subjected him to multiple beatings and repeated punishments.

They repeatedly poured neat salt into his mouth, causing him to vomit.

Daniel was also subjected to a "cold water punishment" in which he was held under water to the point of unconsciousness, the judge said, adding that the boy's six-year-old sister had witnessed it.

The couple regularly locked the little boy inside a bare box room with no toys, removing the inner door handle so he could not escape and making him to go the toilet on his bed.

But the judge said the "particularly grave aggravating feature" of the case was the "chronic and systematic starvation" that they subjected him to.

Daniel's sister smuggled him food because he was so hungry, while the little boy was forced to scavenge for food from other children's lunch boxes or from rubbish bins.

The judge said Daniel died after a "brutal assault" by shaven-headed Krezolek, just after the child was again given salt and held beneath the water.

The pair failed to call for an ambulance for 33 hours, during which time they looked on the Internet for medical advice as he lay unconscious in his box room.

An autopsy found 23 injuries on his emaciated body.


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Chevron's Q2 profit falls 26 per cent

CHEVRON'S quarterly profit is huge - $US5.37 billion ($A6.04 billion) - but it's down 26 per cent from last year on lower oil prices and maintenance work at some refineries.

The results follow similar profit declines at Exxon Mobil and Shell, and they lag behind Wall Street expectations as well.

Chevron Corp said on Friday that it earned $US2.77 per share in the second quarter, down from $US3.66 per share. Year-ago net income was $US7.21 billion.

Analysts were expecting earnings of $US2.97 per share. Revenue was down 8 per cent but still came in higher than expected at $US57.37 billion.


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US stocks fall after soft jobs report

US stocks have fallen in opening trade with a soft employment report showing weaker than expected jobs growth in July.

After 10 minutes of Friday trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 59.21 (0.38 per cent) at 15,568.81.

The broad-market S&P 500 had shed 4.79 (0.28 per cent) at 1,702.08, pulling back from Thursday's record closing high.

And the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite had dropped 9.05 (0.25 per cent) to 3,666.69.

The Labor Department says the United States added 162,000 jobs in July, well below the 175,000 expected on average by analysts.

The unemployment rate fell to 7.4 per cent from 7.6 per cent in June.

"The downside of the disappointing employment report is that it shows growth isn't as strong as participants wanted to believe yesterday," said Patrick O'Hare of Briefing.com.

"The upside for the stock market is that creates an opening for the Fed to maintain its asset purchase program at the current pace past September."


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US stocks jump on good economic news

Written By Unknown on Kamis, 01 Agustus 2013 | 21.30

US stocks have opened solidly higher on strong economic data from China, Europe and the US.

Five minutes into trade on Thursday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 128.56 (0.83 per cent) to 15,628.10.

The broad-based S&P 500 rose 14.93 (0.89 per cent) to 1,700.66, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index increased 32.83 (0.91 per cent) to 3,659.20.

Briefing.com analyst Patrick O'Hare said markets were reacting to a "battery of better-than-expected headlines."

These included data that showed strong manufacturing activity in the eurozone and China and the lowest reading of weekly US jobless claims since January 2008. O'Hare also cited decisions by the European Central Bank and Bank of England to maintain low interest rates.


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Doctors blamed for antibiotic tragedy

BY Clifford Fram, AAP National Medical Writer

SYDNEY, August 2 AAP - Doctors around the world have breached their duty of care by misusing antibiotics, says an Australian infectious diseases expert.

The way in which bugs have become resistant to antibiotics within two generations of their discovery is one of the great tragedies of human history, says Dr Krispin Hajkowicz, an infectious diseases physician and a senior lecturer at the University of Queensland.

"My view is yes doctors are to blame," he has told colleagues at a Gold Coast conference hosted by the Australasian Society for Infectious Diseases (ASID).

"The people of the world want to hold someone accountable. Using the approach of a medical litigation claim, it can be shown that the current crisis was largely foreseeable, that doctors had a duty of care to preserve the precious resource of effective antimicrobials and that they breached this duty of care," says Dr Hajkowicz.

He points to evidence from studies showing up to half of all antibiotic prescriptions are inappropriate. At the same time attempts to improve standards are failing.

He says national guidelines enforced by law are necessary to bring public and private doctors into line.

"Additionally, doctors must promote the development of novel antimicrobials and then use these responsibly. Perhaps a new generation of doctors will undo what we have so foolishly done."

Another delegate , Joshua Freeman of the Auckland District Health Board, says international air travel is providing an unprecedented opportunity for the transfer of drug-resistant bugs.

"Travel to high-prevalence countries and, in particular, hospitalisation within those countries should be viewed as an important risk factor.

Dr David Grolman of Pfizer Australia & New Zealand says antibiotics have been a major contributor to improved life expectancy.

"It is not the development of the drugs per se that has resulted in accelerating the rate of bacterial antibiotic resistance, but the inappropriate and excessive usage of the drugs."

He says: "We need a concerted effort by all players in healthcare and governments to develop new antibiotics."


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US stocks rise on home prices, earnings

Written By Unknown on Selasa, 30 Juli 2013 | 21.29

US stocks have bounced back from Monday's losses and moved higher on a solid report on home prices and decent earnings results.

Five minutes into trade on Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 66.00 (0.43 per cent) to 15,587.97.

The broad-based S&P 500 added 6.90 (0.41 per cent) at 1692.23, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index increased 14.29 (0.40 per cent) to 3613.43.

Stocks had retreated on Monday ahead of a busy week of economic news, including a Federal Reserve monetary policy meeting that opens on Tuesday and the monthly jobs report on Friday.

Tuesday's gains came after the S&P/Case-Shiller index of home prices showed prices in the 20 largest US cities increased 2.4 per cent in May compared with April, and were up a better-than-expected 12.2 per cent from May 2012.

Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer and a number of smaller companies also reported earnings, with most of the bigger companies meeting or exceeding profit expectations.

AFP jel


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US stocks open lower

Written By Unknown on Senin, 29 Juli 2013 | 21.29

US stocks have opened lower as investors looked ahead to a busy week of economic news and corporate earnings.

About 10 minutes into trade on Monday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 32.94 (0.21 per cent) at 15,525.89.

The broad-based S&P 500 fell 3.63 (0.21 per cent) to 1688.02, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index slipped 1.49 (0.04 per cent) to 3611.68.

Analysts said investors are unlikely to place big bets ahead of this week's high-profile economic calendar, which includes a meeting of the US Federal Reserve's policy-making committee and releases on second-quarter US economic growth and monthly jobs data.


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Economic growth might soften: report

AUSTRALIA may be heading towards softer economic growth with interest rates falling to record lows and resources construction activity expected to peak soon.

Deloitte Access Economics says the value of the 947 Australian investment projects in its Investment Monitor database, that are valued at $20 million or more, fell 5.6 per cent in the June quarter from the March quarter.

The economic forecaster believes that with interest rates at record lows, the Australian dollar falling to around 90 US cents and the value of the resources projects in its database falling, Australia's economy may have reached "somewhat of a turning point".

"All these pieces of data coming together are pointing towards a bit of a softer outlook," Deloitte Access Economics partner Stephen Smith told AAP.

The profile of work in the database suggests a peak in activity through 2013/14.

Beyond that, the sheer volume of work in the pipeline indicates a plateau rather than a free fall may be in store for the economy.

Even so, it might hamper growth prospects, considering engineering investment spending has contributed 40 per cent to gross domestic product (GDP) over recent years.

"We've got mining investment coming away and no other area of investment that's really looking like filling the gap," Mr Smith said.

That could also drag federal government revenue down in the coming years.

"If you're expecting softer growth, then you'd be expecting slower tax return growth as well," he said.


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NSW power generator put up for sale

NSW'S largest state-owned electricity generator is being put up for sale as the state government continues to offload its power assets.

Critics are expected to pounce on it as further evidence the O'Farrell government is moving towards full-scale electricity privatisation.

NSW Treasurer Mike Baird on Tuesday called for expressions of interest for Macquarie Generation's two big power stations: Liddell and Bayswater.

"Being located in the Hunter Valley, (it is) well placed to meet its long-term fuel supply needs," he said.

There's been a string of state-owned plants offloaded to the private sector after the Tamberlin report, which found their sale was consistent with a competitive energy market.

EnergyAustralia last week snapped up state-owned Delta Electricity's Mount Piper and Wallerawang power stations for $160 million.

Once the two black coal-fired stations owned by Macquarie Generation are gone there will be only a pair left on the central coast.

However, Delta Electricity's power stations at Vales Point and Colongra aren't expected to be sold off until next year.

Macquarie Generation is the largest single participant in the national electricity market, representing about 26 per cent of the state's generation capacity.

Two of its development sites will also be offered for sale, including a site adjacent to the Bayswater power station with planning approval for a coal or gas fired generator.

Mr Baird said the sell-off was part of the government's strategy to raise money for critical infrastructure projects.

The government has undertaken not to sell its most valuable electricity asset, Transgrid, the so-called "poles and wires", in this term of parliament.

But the opposition claims it's "selling off anything that isn't bolted down".

Last month it leased the Port of Newcastle for 99 years in a deal expected to net the government more than $700 million, while a similar arrangement was finalised in April for Port Botany and Port Kembla for over $5 billion.

Sydney's desalination plant was leased for 50 years in 2012 in a $2.3 billion deal.


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Aust must rethink cyber security policies

Written By Unknown on Minggu, 28 Juli 2013 | 21.29

CANBERRA, July 29 AAP - Australia urgently needs to update its cyber security policies to meet the growing threats from criminal organisations and state hackers, a think tank says.

The Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) says a cyber security white paper must be produced within 12 months after the federal election to help business and government better respond to cyber threats.

The last major government policy paper on cyber security was published in 2009.

"In a rapidly technologically evolving environment, it's unacceptable for cyber policy to be left without updating for four years," ASPI said in its report released on Monday.

"This must be addressed as a matter of urgency."

ASPI warned Australia risked falling behind on cyber security globally if it does not act soon on developing better policies.


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Heart survivors dice with death: report

THOUSANDS of heart attack survivors are risking death by eating badly, smoking and not exercising, according to research that shows loved ones are highly distressed by their lifestyle.

Around 40 per cent of survivors admit to not following their GP's instructions, fewer than half eat well and even fewer exercise regularly, according to research led by the Baker IDI Heart and Diabetes Institute and sponsored by AstraZeneca.

More than 10 per cent smoke and 35 per cent have failed to control their cholesterol.

Although heart attacks are the biggest killer in Australia, two thirds of victims survive and 55,000 are admitted to hospital a year. Nearly a third of the hospitalisations are for repeat attacks.

Most survivors know a healthy lifestyle is important, according to the research, but 83 per cent of women and 73 per cent of men say this is a challenge.

The study entitled Two Hearts One Future was conducted among 536 survivors and 511 people who care for a survivor. It shows carers carry a great emotional burden.

Around 45 per cent of carers feel the person they care for is not taking responsibility for themselves, but those who attend cardiac rehabilitation programs tend to manage better.

The findings are a major wake up call, says Professor Simon Stewart, head of preventative cardiology at Baker IDI.

"People need to understand there is a lot of work to do after a heart attack," he says.

"Many don't realise they have to make a life-long commitment to minimising their risk."

The chances of having a second or third heart attack are high and the more you have the more deadly they become, he says.

"Carers are carrying a great burden. They can see what the person they are caring for needs to do, but they often feel powerless and traumatised."

Peter Morgan, president of patient organisation Heart Support-Australia, says repeat heart attacks are preventable and the report highlights a need for better education and support programs.

Heart Foundation national director of cardiovascular health Dr Rob Grenfell says discharge from hospital is the start of the heart disease journey and recovery.

But he is concerned about limited communication and connection between services.

"Essential lifestyle programs are disjointed or, frankly, unsupported," he says.

"We know the person most likely to have a heart attack is a person who has already had one, and so a united effort to prevent secondary events in Australia is critical."


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