Aniston -- hottest woman of all time!

London: Beating big names like screen legend Marilyn Monroe, pop icon Madonna and actress Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Aniston has been named the hottest woman of all time in a new poll by online portal menshealth.com.

The 42-year-old was followed by American actress Raquel Welch at the second stop, Monroe at third and pop icons Britney Spears and Madonna at the fourth and fifth place respectively, reports contactmusic.com.

"Baywatch" beauty Pamela Anderson was at the eighth spot whereas Jane Fonda and Jolie took ninth and 10th place respectively.

According to the site, Aniston was a hands down winner because she is funny. "Funny is sexy, and Jennifer Aniston is funny. Her down-to-earth persona makes her seem attainable. And her all-too-human love life off screen inspires sympathy that not even a string of bland romantic comedies can diminish," the site reported.

Global attention, not business in focus at IRFW

Bambolim: The inaugural edition of India Resort Fashion Week (IRFW) has concluded and the participating designers say the focus was more on brand building and introducing India as a global market for resort wear, rather than doing business.

"Any new thing needs time to establish themselves. Since this is the first time a event like this is happening in India, so one can't expect good business. It was more of a formal introduction of resort fashion week to the world. I think there is a huge market for resort wear in India and it's a great opportunity for designers who are solely into resort line," designer Babita Malkani told IANS.

"No doubt that the market has potential to get some outstanding business... Resort wear collection in our kind of season is definitely saleable through out the year and I am hopeful that the next edition of IRFW will be one of its kind in terms of business," she added.

The four-day fashion fete, which concluded Saturday evening, saw designers James Ferriera, Shantanu and Nikhil, Manish Malhotra, Shivan and Narresh, Narendra Kumar, Anupama Dayal and Pria Kaataria Puri setting new trends in resort wear.

Designer Narendra Kumar says IRFW proved to be an outstanding platform for Indian resort wear designers craving for global recognition.

"This is fantastic platform for resort wear designers. However, I just want more enthusiasm and more people to come and show their support towards the concept like this which was an unknown territory till now. Nobody is thinking about business but the interaction and this is what one can expect from first edition," Kumar told IANS.

But that doesn't mean that business didn't happen. Shivan and Narresh, who launched first-ever swimwear brand in India, are flooded with enquiries and waiting to strike a deal.

"I think India is already five years late when it comes to launching their own resort fashion week, but it's better late than never. I think IRFW is a very promising platform for resort wear designers like us. We are also satisfied with the business as we got the enquiries and questions from Middle East and New York," said Narresh.

IRFW witnessed more than 20 international buyers from Amsterdam, New York and Beirut, as also the Middle East, along with some domestic buyers.

Khaled Mekkawi from Beirut feels India has the potential to sustain fashion weeks like this for years to come.

"This is the first edition so it is the measuring phase but I would say that the some of the designers are really impressive. India is the most potential country in the world; they have all the resource to live on. Some of the designers who impressed with their collection are Narendra Kumar and James Ferriera," he added.

Amsterdam-based buyer Marwa Zamaray is impressed with the way Indian designers bring variety to garments and added: "I was astonished to see how some of the designers experimented with resort wear line. I loved the sequin and embroidered work on swim wear designs and I am really looking forward to order few stuffs," she said.

IRFW COO Shalini Chuganee feels that the event proved an apt platform for designers.

"We have been working with fashion weeks, fashion brands and fashion designers for over a decade now. And we realised that there is a platform missing for resort wear and that's how this idea of IRFW came into being.

"India has some of the finest designers in resort line so we thought of promoting them not only on the national level but also on the global level. Now when the event is over, I am amazed to see the kind of queries people have got for resort wear line. I think designers are satisfied with the way event pulled of," Chuganee told IANS.

She also revealed that many international delegates have shown interest in organising resort week globally.

"There are many people who have come up to say that they want to run IRFW in different countries as well. I have delegates from Spain who showed their interest so I have quite a lot of global brands including five countries who are planning to run IRFW globally," she said.

Now Kochi sees a flashmob - for Mullaperiyar

Kochi: After Mumbai, New Delhi, Hyderabad, Bangalore,  Chennai and Pune it was the turn of Kochi to fall under the tech-spell of the flashmob.

For the uninitiated a flash mob is a group of people who suddenly assemble in a public place, perform an act for a while and then disperse.

It was 6.30 pm Friday and a group of around 150 youngsters descended at Oberon Mall, egged on by messages on their mobile phones or social networking sites. Their jig was based on a number from Salman Khan's bodyguard. 

The tagline for the event was a message of peace: ‘No Hate Mate: Not Keralites, Not Tamilians, But Indians’.

Chennai recently witnessed flashmobs as part of Chennai International Film Festival (CIFF) where youngsters danced to popular tunes of Kolaveri Di and  Boom Boom Robo Da and also Rajnikanth's 62 birth day.

Experts devise ’defence’ against Facebook spying

London: Scientists have created an interface that will help Facebook users to keep their personal information secret.

Signing up for an app or game, Facebook users could override their global privacy settings. But now Penn State University researchers have devised a sign-up interface to tackle the problem, the Daily Mail reported Monday.

Researchers claim that many Facebook app developers may try to profit from their games and tools by selling or sharing the data with advertisers and other companies.

The information could also be leaked to identity thieves.

Members who sign up for an app must agree to new terms of information disclosure that are often different from their main Facebook privacy settings, they say.

Penn State assistant professor of information sciences and technology Heng Xu pointed out that although each app must provide a link to its terms and conditions, the consequences for your privacy settings are obscure.

"The only way to find out how the information is going to be used is to go to each app's website and review the terms of use. And many people won't do that," the Mail quoted Heng as saying.

The sign-up screen currently is a general agreement that shows information third-party developers are requesting. If the member does not agree, the member cannot use the app.

The screen designed by the researchers allows members to decide what types of information they are comfortable sharing and with whom they want to share it.

The researchers, who presented their findings Sunday at the Association for Computer Machinery Symposium on Computer Human Interaction for Management of Information Technology, Boston, asked a group of Facebook members to try two app sign-up page designs.

Privacy settings allow members to determine how much information the member wants to display or share with their members of their network and Facebook.

This data can include birthdate, hometown and current city, as well as pictures the members uploaded to their pages.

Members may not consider data like hometown or birthdates vital information, but Heng said that hackers can use such information to guess social security numbers.

However, a Facebook spokesperson vigorously denied that using apps is a risky process for its users, according to the newspaper.

He said: "This research was conducted using a sample size of just 11 people and makes a number of misleading claims."

"Facebook has used feedback from the 800 million people who use the site to develop a strict app permissions process, where apps have to ask you what information they need in order to run."

Hazare begins daylong fast

New Delhi: Anna Hazare Sunday morning began his daylong token fast from Jantar Mantar in the national capital to protest the 'weak' government version of the Lokpal bill.

Stating that he will not say much, Hazare raised slogans like "Bharat mata ki jai", "Vande mataram" and "Inqilab zindabad" before starting the fast.

The activist reached the protest venue around 10.10 a.m. after paying tribute to Mahatma Gandhi at the Rajghat memorial, where he meditated for some 20 minutes.

Supporters had already gathered at the protest venue, waving the tri-colour and singing patriotic songs.

Team members Kiran Bedi, Manish Sisodia, Prashant Bhushan and Shanti Bhushan were seen on the stage with the activist.

ജീവിതം

ചിലപ്പോള്‍ അങ്ങനെയാണ് അത്.
...ചിലര്‍ നമ്മുടെ ജീവിതത്തിലേക്ക് എവിടെ നിന്ന്,
...എപ്പോള്‍ എന്നറിയാതെ കടന്നു വരുന്നു. അതില്‍ ആരൊക്കെയോ
...ഒരു മാത്ര നിന്ന് കടന്നു പോകുന്നു ഹൃദയത്തില്‍ ഒരു കൈയ്യൊപ്പിട്ട ശേഷം.
...നാം ഒരിക്കലും ഒരേ പോലെ ആവുന്നില്ല.
...ചില കഥകള്‍ പോലെ വ്യക്തമായ തുടക്കമോ, ഒടുക്കമോ ഇല്ലാതെ.
...അടുത്തത് എന്ത് എന്ന് അറിയാനാവാതെ.
...ജീവിതം പലപ്പോഴും ഒരു തിരിച്ചറിവാണ്.
...ഒരു നിമിഷത്തെ ഏറ്റവും മനോഹരമാക്കുന്നതും അതു തന്നെ.
...ചില സൌഹൃദങ്ങള്‍ ദൂരമോ, നിറമോ,
...ഒന്നും അറിയാതെ സമാന്തരങ്ങളില്‍, സമാനതകളില്‍ ഒത്തു ചേരുന്നു.
...അന്യോന്യം നിശബ്ദമായി സംസാരിക്കുന്നു...........

Onam - the state festival of Kerala

Onam - the state festival of Kerala - is celebrated with great enthusiasm. The festive season of Onam, which falls on the Malayalam month of Chingam, every year (between August and September), is a ten-day carnival for the Malayalees all over the state, country and abroad. Being a harvest festival, it is time to thank God for the bountiful yield. According to the stories in Hindu epics, Mahabali, the legendary King of Kerala, visits the state every year during the Onam festival, to ensure the wellbeing of the people. He is welcomed to his kingdom with reverence. The festival is all about relishing on the grand Onasadya (traditional feast of Onam), shopping, family reunion and welcoming King Mahabali by spreading good cheer.

A number of rituals are performed during the ten days of Onam, which starts on the Attam nakshatram of Chingam. Rituals such as Maveli Puja, Onathallu, Onakazhcha are rooted in the ancient legends and are followed in many parts of the state, since a long time. Apart from the rituals, enthralling games are played during the ten days, wherein small children, men and women take part with equal enthusiasm. Games such as 'Thumbi Thullal (folk dance performed by women), Kaikotti Kali, Pulikkali form a prominent part of the celebrations of Onam. In addition to this, sporting events such as Uthratadhi Vallamkali (snake boat race) are organized with zeal.

Onasadya is an inevitable part of Onam festival. Thiruvonam is the important day of Onam, wherein the lavish feast is organized. Lip-smacking recipes are prepared by the women in every Malayalee household. Intricate designs of 'rangolis' (with colored rice paste) and 'pookkalam' (with flowers) in front of the homes. There is a tradition of bestowing Onakkodi (new clothes especially purchased for Onam) upon the younger members of family by the elder ones. All the traditions and rituals of Onam attract thousands of tourists from across the country and the world, to Kerala, during the festival of Onam.