Coins

Coin Shortage leads to chocolate sales

The sale of fifty paise chocolates in the city has picked up manifold not because of people's sudden love for it, but to tide over acute shortage of 50 paise coins. The chocolates are given in some government and private buses, canteens, hotels, drug stores and parking places in place of coins and sholesale dealers.

Some scrap dealers attribute this shortage to mas purchase of coins by blade manufactures in Mumbai for making high quality razor blades. The dealers said they were paying two rupees for one rupee coin and one rupee for a 50 paise coin. The companies in turn would pay more margin to the scrap dealers.

Though the business was at a peak till a month ago, there's a shortage of coins at present, they had a deal with employees who were managing the vehicle parking areas and some bus conductors to supply coins. But they too were facing proglems in procuring the coins now.

The branded chocolates are selling bottles of chocolate instead of one bottle. Even in hospital canteens, where a cup of coffee or tea costs Rs. 3.50, chocolates were given for 50 paise balance. Conductor or a parking site employee whould earn about Rs. 15.00 if he is able to use a bottle of chocolates for the purpose of giving the change.

In some city buses chocolates are given without authorisation. The corporation officials had approached some co-operative banks and temples to provide 50 paise coins. The scaracity of 50 paise coins are artificial. Chocolates are being thrust on the people. It is a ploy of the chocolate dealers to sell their product.

I think that there should be an immediate action on this

Zimbabwean tills

Obsolete coins cause chaos at Zimbabwean tills

Facing stratospheric inflation in the millions of percentile, the central bank has cut 10 Zeros from the currency

Zimbabweans hunted out coins squirreled away years agon in jars and cupboards and headed for the shops, where lines built up as overburdened tellers used to counting mounds of hyper-inflated dollar notes instead were juggling silver.

The central bank, overwhelmed by stratospheric inflation in the millions of percentile, this week cut 10 zeros from the currency and reintroduced coins made obsolete in 2002 when they became worthless. A one-doller coin now is worth 10 billian of the old dollars.

On Friday, about 20 one-dollar coins or 200 billion Zimbabwe dollars could buy a loaf of scarce bread if it could be found in a downtown supermarket. That is about (US)$5 at the official rate and $2 at the black market rate that better reflects the value of the courrency.

It has been a chaotic day a teller filling plastic banking bags with coins at a small supermarket at closing time. Customers have been digging out their old coins. Lines built up as staff counted the coins.

It's a bonous for anyone like me who didn't know what to do with coins and didn't throw them away, says businessman, who carried a cookie jar full that bought him a small sachet of powdered milk.

Mr. Chikomba said he received a few new 10 and 20 dollar notes issued by banks. But most purchasers still used coins, old notes or checks. The old currency remains effective until December, being used alongside new bills in the revalued currency rate introuced.

The biggest new bill is $500, equivalent to 5 trillion in the old denominations. Two weeks ago, the bank had introduced a $100 billion dollar note.

Bank executives said many branches still were waiting for deliveries of new currency from the central bank from the first day of issue. In setting prices on its menu, a downtown cafe mistakenly slashed nine zeros from its prices instead of the required 10. Until December, prices must be quoted in both new dollars and old dollars, accordingly to a central bank directive. Everyone is totally confused. May be things will settle down in a few days. Its farcical at the moment, said the cafe manager, who asked not to be identified for fear of repercussions

Inflation, the highest in the world, is offically running at 2.2 million percent in Zimbabwe but independent economists say it is coloser to 12.5 million percent. Analysts say the slashing of the 10 Zeros and the issue of new lower denomination notes failed to address the root causes of inflation, and in real terms zeros will soon return unless inflation is slowed.

Hydro Therapy

If you are suffering from any of the following symptoms Arthritis, Rheumatism, Sciatica, Aching Joints, Back Pain, Fatigue, Insomnia, Circulation, Stress, Muscular pain, Stiffness, Cramps or Tension, see how Hydrotherapy can target these problems very effectively.

Pain Relief -

Hydrotherapy is proven to be a highly effective form of natural therapy which works by stimulating the endorphins which in turn helps you to control pain and alleviate tension. The hydro-bath works by releasing millions of large bubbles, which relaxes your muscular tension and helps to reduce swollen joints giving you increased mobility and more importantly lessens your pain. The hydro-bath also releases very fine bubbles, this has a soothing tranquil effect on your body which helps relieve your stress and tension.

Circulation -

our hydro-bath has a remarkable and almost magical ability to improve circulation. Your blood flow takes oxygen and nourishment to all your cells and tissues. When working correctly, this forms the basis of a healthy life. Good circulation also brings the benefit of good lymph drainage which helps to clear the body of toxins.

Immune System -

detoxifying regularly, leads to a stronger immune system which is able to cope with controlling viruses, bacteria and infections. Your immune system is your internal police force and when working efficiently, helps you overcome minor infections ranging from the common cold right up to deadly diseases.

Stress -

hydrotherapy can provide you with the vital key to breaking the stress cycle of everyday modern life. In today's busy world you can be prone to stress related illnesses which can cause a wide range of physical and psychological problems. For example, high blood pressure, headaches, digestive complaints, insomnia, depression, anxiety attacks, the list is endless. Unfortunately stress not only affects the mind but more importantly your immune system.

Complexion -

the hydro-bath helps to regulate your body's temperature control by improving the efficiency of your perspiration glands. This releases the toxins from your body and leaves you with a healthy glowing complexion. If you look better you will feel better. The oxygen flow is increased by the effect of the millions of bubbles and this activity can also help reduce fluid retention and even have a dramatic effect on other ailments such as cellulite. In short, Hydrotherapy offers an excellent way for you to regain and maintain a healthy and painless body. Any natural treatment that can help you to revitalize and de-stress, without producing the detrimental side effects of some of today's modern drugs has got to be the way forward.

What happens to you during Hydrotherapy?

When you are in pain or under stress, chemical changes in your body can cause the blood pressure and pulse rate to increase, Having regular hydrotherapy treatments can help you to reduce these symptoms by relieving swollen joints and slowing down the process of stress reaction. This will help you to relax and unwind, which is easier for you, helping you to deal with your pain.

In your first treatment :

After 5 minutes - your blood pressure and pulse rates start to drop.

After 10 minutes - your circulation improves in your hands and feet making them warmer.

After 15 minutes - your muscles will relax becoming more receptive to passive exercise , fibrous tissue becomes more pliable and responsive to stretching encouraging the release of lactic acid and other toxins from your system.

After 20 minutes - your aches and pains will experience a temporary decrease in severity.

Further Treatments :

After 3 treatments - your immune system will be improved.

After 5 treatments - tension, emotional and physical pain will noticeably be reduced.

After 10 treatments - your pain relief will be longer lasting, you'll experience a greater sense of well-being.

After 20 treatments - you will have a heightened tolerance to disease and depression, your skin will be clearer and glow with health and your muscle tone and mobility will improve.

"Crocodile Hunter" Death Extremely Rare, Caught on Film

Police investigating the incident told a packed press conference yesterday that his death was the result of a highly unusual accident.

"We're not going into the detail, but there's definitely no surprises," a police spokesperson said.

"Everyone knows how he died."

Caught on Film

A coroner was to begin an examination yesterday and will consider video footage of the attack, which happened as Irwin swam over Batt Reef, off the Australian state of Queensland.

Irwin's friend, director, and producer, John Stainton, who was on Irwin's boat Croc One when the attack happened, said yesterday at the press conference that it is too early to release the footage of his friend's fatal encounter to the public. Last night on CNN's Larry King Live talk show he went further.

"I mean, it should be destroyed," Stainton told King. "When that is finally released [from police custody], it will never see the light of day. Ever. Ever. I actually saw it, but I don't want to see it again."

The stingray attack was caught on film during the production of a new television special Irwin was making with his eight-year-old daughter, Bindi Sue. The documentary was to have been screened in the United States next year.

The footage shows Irwin pulling the stingray's barb out of his chest before losing consciousness, Stainton says.

"It's a very hard thing to watch, because you're actually witnessing somebody die … and it's terrible," Stainton said at the press conference.

Pluto Not a Planet, Astronomers Rule

"Whoa! Pluto's dead," said astronomer Mike Brown, of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, as he watched a Webcast of the vote. "There are finally, officially, eight planets in the solar system."

In a move that's already generating controversy and will force textbooks to be rewritten, Pluto will now be dubbed a dwarf planet.

But it's no longer part of an exclusive club, since there are more than 40 of these dwarfs, including the large asteroid Ceres and 2003 UB313, nicknamed Xena—a distant object slightly larger than Pluto discovered by Brown last year.

"We know of 44" dwarf planets so far, Brown said. "We will find hundreds. It's a very huge category."

A clear majority of researchers voted for the new definition at a meeting of the International Astronomical Union (IAU) in Prague, in the Czech Republic. The IAU decides the official names of all celestial bodies.

The tough decision comes after a multiyear search for a scientific definition of the word "planet." The term never had an official meaning before.

What Is a Planet Today?

According to the new definition, a full-fledged planet is an object that orbits the sun and is large enough to have become round due to the force of its own gravity. In addition, a planet has to dominate the neighborhood around its orbit.

Pluto has been demoted because it does not dominate its neighborhood. Charon, its large "moon," is only about half the size of Pluto, while all the true planets are far larger than their moons.

In addition, bodies that dominate their neighborhoods, "sweep up" asteroids, comets, and other debris, clearing a path along their orbits. By contrast, Pluto's orbit is somewhat untidy.

Noah's Ark Discovered in Iran?

The team discovered the prominent boat-shaped rocks at just over 13,000 feet (4,000 meters) on Mount Suleiman in Iran's Elburz mountain range.

"It looks uncannily like wood," said Robert Cornuke, president of the Bible Archaeology Search and Exploration Institute (BASE), the Palmer Lake, Colorado-based group that launched the expedition.

Photos taken by BASE members show a prow-shaped rock outcrop, which the team says resembles petrified wood, emerging from a ridge.

"We have had [cut] thin sections of the rock made, and we can see cell structures," Cornuke said.

Cornuke acknowledges that it may be hard to prove that this object was Noah's ark. But he says he is fairly convinced that the rock formation was an important place of pilgrimage in the past.

The BASE team has uncovered evidence of an ancient shrine near the outcrop, suggesting that this was an important place to people in the past, Cornuke says.

"We can't claim to have conclusively found the ark, but it does look like the object that the ancients talked about," Cornuke said.

Noah and the Flood

The story of Noah's ark is told in three major world religions: Christianity, Judaism, and Islam.

The Book of Genesis describes a great flood created by God "to destroy all life under the heavens."

But before the flood, God told Noah, one of his human followers, to build an ark and fill it with two of every species on the Earth.

Lost Gospel Revealed; Says Jesus Asked Judas to Betray Him

But was Judas only obeying his master's wishes when he betrayed Jesus with a kiss?

That's what a newly revealed ancient Christian text says.

After being lost for nearly 1,700 years, the Gospel of Judas was recently restored, authenticated, and translated. (Get the full, twisting tale of the document's discovery and authentication.)

The Coptic, or Egyptian Christian, manuscripts were unveiled today at National Geographic Society headquarters in Washington, D.C. (National Geographic News is part of the National Geographic Society.)

What Does It Mean?

Some biblical scholars are calling the Gospel of Judas the most significant archaeological discovery in 60 years.

The only known surviving copy of the gospel was found in a codex, or ancient book, that dates back to the third or fourth century A.D.

The newly revealed gospel document, written in Coptic script, is believed to be a translation of the original, a Greek text written by an early Christian sect sometime before A.D. 180.

The Bible's New Testament Gospels—Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John—depict Judas Iscariot, one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus, as a traitor. In biblical accounts Judas gives up Jesus Christ to his opponents, who later crucify the founder of Christianity.

The Gospel of Judas, however, portrays him as acting at Jesus' request.

"This lost gospel, providing information on Judas Iscariot—considered for 20 centuries and by hundreds of millions of believers as an antichrist of the worst kind—bears witness to something completely different from what was said [about Judas] in the Bible," said Rodolphe Kasser, a clergyman and former professor in the Faculty of Arts at the University of Geneva in Switzerland.

Gospel of Judas Pages Endured Long, Strange Journey

Kasser is an expert in Coptic, or Egyptian Christian, history and literature. He led the effort to piece together and translate the Gospel of Judas.

The surviving copy of the gospel was written in the third or fourth century A.D., but the text was known prior to A.D. 180.

In that year St. Irenaeus—then the bishop of what is now Lyon, France—published Against Heresies, a volume intended to help unify the Christian church.

St. Irenaeus's method was to savage alternative theological views and interpretations—including the Gospel of Judas—which he referred to as "fictitious histories."

In this gospel, the Apostle Judas Iscariot is not a traitor but a hero, the chosen disciple. Jesus Christ asks Judas to betray him to the authorities. (For more on the meaning of the gospel, see "Lost Gospel Revealed; Says Jesus Asked Judas to Betray Him.")

Diverse beliefs circulated during Christianity's early years. Many were suppressed in the early centuries A.D. as the religion coalesced into a more structured faith based on the New Testament Gospels—Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

Nonsanctioned texts, such as the Gospel of Judas, fell from favor. Scribes no longer copied them, and existing manuscripts were often destroyed. Those that survived were hidden for safekeeping.

The protectors of the newly revealed documents did their job well, stashing the ancient handwritten Coptic manuscripts so that it remained hidden for nearly 1,700 years.

Muslim Athletic Wear Covers Skin Without Cramping Style

The Koran requires women to cover everything except their faces, hands, and feet, says Tayyibah Taylor, editor-in-chief of Azizah Magazine, a publication geared toward Muslim-American women.

"The idea is that your modesty in dress and behavior is a passport to public space," Taylor said. "It makes the statement that a Muslim woman's body is not a part of the public conversation."

Recently Muslim women living in a Somali refugee camp in Kenya were given unique new volleyball uniforms.

Designed through a partnership between Nike and the United Nations, the uniforms permit the women athletes to dig, spike, and set while covering their bodies and heads in a way that remains true to their faith.

But don't look for such specialized gear at your local mall or sporting-goods store just yet.

Nike spokesperson Alan Marks says the Beaverton, Oregon, company currently has no plans to commercialize the product. And most other major sportswear manufacturers have no lines specifically targeting Muslim women.

Today a scattering of small companies is the only commercial source of sportswear for the modest-minded.

Modest Yet Fashionable

Finding appropriate exercise wear is something that Muslim women have struggled with for years, says Laila Al-Marayati, spokesperson for the Los Angeles, California-based Muslim Women's League.

She says some women and girls choose to work out in long-sleeved shirts and sweatpants, but that is only a partial solution.

"Muslim women sometimes will prefer to go to all-female gyms or work out at home, so they can exercise comfortably and not be overwhelmed with heat exhaustion," Al-Marayati said.

Family Walks on All Fours, May Offer Evolution Insight, Experts Say

Five adult siblings who can walk only on all fours have been found in Turkey, researchers say. These human quadrupeds may provide clues to how humans evolved to stand on two feet.

The three sisters and two brothers may offer insight into the way our apelike ancestors moved, according to scientists. Human ancestors are believed to have begun walking on two legs more than three million years ago.

(See "Fossil Pushes Upright Walking Back 2 Million Years, Study Says.")

Discovered in a remote area of southern Turkey last summer, the family of ethnic Kurds has sparked a scientific debate, which will be covered in a BBC television documentary that is set to air on March 17 in the United Kingdom. The family's exact location and last name have not been disclosed.

Born with a genetic brain abnormality, two of the sisters and one of the brothers are thought to have only walked on all fours their entire lives. The two other siblings can walk upright for short distances.

The siblings' parents are closely related and have had 19 children in all.

This bizarre case is not a hoax, according to experts who have studied the family.

The cause of the four-limbed locomotion, however, is a bone of contention among the researchers.

Uner Tan is a neurophysiologist—a doctor specializing in the functions of the brain, spinal cord, and nerves—at Cukurova University in Adana, Turkey.

He believes the siblings, who range in age from 18 to 34, are evolutionary throwbacks—a "missing link" to our forebears. (Related reading: "Was Darwin Wrong?")

Meanwhile German geneticists believe the siblings' genetic abnormality may have knocked out the gene responsible for bipedalism, or two-legged walking, in humans.