Cure Of All!

'There could be an Aids vaccine in four years,' says Nobel Prize winner

A French scientist awarded the Nobel Prize for discovering the Aids virus has predicted there would be a 'therapeutic vaccine' for the disease within four years. 

Luc Montagnier and his team discovered HIV at the French Pasteur Institute in Paris 25 years ago, and have been awarded the prestigious prize along with other scientists who worked on discovering the root of the virus. 

Montagnier, 76, said a treatment could be possible in the future with a 'therapeutic' rather than preventive vaccine for which results might be published in three or four years if financial backing is forthcoming.

'I think it will be possible with a therapeutic vaccine rather than preventative vaccinations. We would give it to people who are already infected. 

A therapeutic vaccine prevents disease from flourishing after it has taken hold.

The Nobel Assembly of Sweden's Karolinska Institute praised their work, saying: 'The discovery was one prerequisite for the current understanding of the biology of the disease and its antiretroviral treatment.' 

The other half of the Nobel prize was awarded for the German scientist's research that 'went against current dogma' by setting forth that oncogenic human papilloma virus (HPV) caused cervical cancer, the second most common cancer among women. 

HIV

'His discovery has led to characterization of the natural history of HPV infection, an understanding of mechanisms of HPV-induced carcinogenesis and the development of prophylactic vaccines against HPV acquisition,' the Assembly said. 

Medicine is traditionally the first of the Nobel prizes awarded each year. 

The prizes for achievement in science, literature and peace were first awarded in 1901 in accordance with the will of dynamite inventor and businessman Alfred Nobel.

The economics prize is a later addition, established by the Swedish Riksbank in 1968. 

The Nobel laureate for physics will be announced tomorrow, followed by the chemistry Nobel on Wednesday, literature on Thursday and the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday in Oslo.

Headline of The Week Weak

Iowa man faces charges after hugging officer

A hug has landed an Iowa City man in hot water.

An Iowa City man who thought a police officer just "needed a hug" faces several charges including assault on a peace officer and public intoxication.

Police said a 21-year-old man was arrested on Saturday. According to police records, the man ran up to the officer and stuck out his arms.

The officer told him to "get away," but the man didn't take the hint and embraced the officer.

When the officer told the man to put his hands behind his head, he refused. He was then handcuffed.

[Image via Wenn, by courtesy of Perez Hilton]

Can You Believe? Believe It!

Can you believe she is a transgender? Moreoever, she is on America's Next Top Model Cycle 11! Hot!

CLICK HERE to read more about this entry.

Joseph 'Joey' Democko - Hero Amongst us

One of my favourites, Rachel Ray Show previewed a hero among us, Joseph Democko. It moved me. The story of a single dad at 20 years old, adopting his sister's 3 kids. After i watched that amazing story on Rachel Ray, now i found the news article on People magazine and share it with you. Hope it moves you too!

"I don't want to force them to call me Dad. Whatever they want to call me, they can call me—as long as it's nothing bad. In the beginning, Chris would say, 'You are not my father.' This weekend, he kept saying, 'Dad, Dad, Dad.' It just rolled off his tongue, which was kind of cool. Then George said, 'No, it's Joey.'"

Photo by: Kenneth Jarecke

On a recent Wednesday evening, Joseph Democko had already clocked a full day as a medical billing clerk. Then his real work began. In the kitchen of his Anaheim, Calif., apartment, he tossed chicken breasts onto a skillet, dumped a packet of freeze-dried potatoes into boiling water and kept a watchful eye on his three boys – Chris, 6, Anthony, 5, and George, 3 – who scooted crazily in and out of the ground-floor flat on Razors. Clearing the table of Spider-Man toys, he set out three plates and juice boxes and called out, "Dinner's ready!"

"Taking care of Christopher is gigantic. He used to go a couple of times a week for physical therapy; now he goes every three months for an evaluation. And every six months he goes to a spina bifida clinic; I take the day off, unpaid. Then there are other doctor appointments, ultrasounds for the bladder. I try not to dwell on it. I can't change it. I love Chris the way he is."

Photo by: Kenneth Jarecke

The scene looks like an ordinary supper with Dad, except that Democko, 23, is actually the boys' Uncle Joey. Just a few years earlier, social services removed Chris, Anthony and George from the home of Democko's twin sister, Jody, who spent time in jail for drug possession and forgery. Visiting his nephews at their foster home, the soft-spoken Democko was torn up every time he said goodbye. "They would scream and cry. I would cry," he recalls. "I had to get them back or I couldn't live with myself. They're my blood."

"On the weekends I take the kids to the park or to a $2 movie. I have dated, but right now it's too much. I'll meet friends for a drink or two every three months or so. But I've never been one to go out. I get more enjoyment doing something for the boys. Seeing them happy makes me happy."

Photo by: Kenneth Jarecke

That choice would transform Democko from a carefree 20-year-old who hit the gym twice a week to a multitasking single dad. But first he had to convince social services he was up to the task. "They said men couldn't take care of themselves let alone a child," he says. And there was an extra challenge: Chris, born with spina bifida – an incomplete closure of the spine – needs to be catheterized every four hours. Even Democko's mother, Susan, asked, "Are you sure you want to do this? This is for the rest of your life."

He was sure – and proved it by attending a parenting class, taking Chris to physical therapy, even getting a night-janitor job at Disneyland so his days were free for the boys. On May 3, 2004, Democko brought home 3-month-old George, becoming the youngest foster parent in Orange County. Helped by his mom (who died in 2005) and roommates, he recalls the time as a blur of diaper changes and late-night feedings. "I was a zombie," he says. Several months later, Democko also brought home Chris and Anthony, adopting them last fall. "Twenty is very young to take on something like this, and what's so unusual is that there are three children," says Linda Reuter, adoption program manager for the Orange County Social Services Agency. Julie Akau, a social worker there, adds, "He's always been very committed to the boys – and they adore him."

"The moments that make it worthwhile? When I go home. When I pick them up from daycare and see how happy they are to see me. When they come out screaming, 'Joeeey!!' As hard as you work, when you finally see that, it makes everything worth it."

Photo by: Kenneth Jarecke

That devotion is something Jody Democko – the boys' mother – appreciates even as it sometimes pains her to watch her brother bring up her sons. "It hurts," says Jody, 23, who now lives nearby and visits several times a week. "But the boys are better off. It's more stable. He's always been the more responsible one." (The boys have little contact with their birth father.) Democko, who periodically asks his sister to take a home drug test when she comes over, has mixed feelings about her role in the boys' lives. "They sometimes call her Mom," he says. "But I can't count on my sister for anything, so the way I look at it, it's just me and kids."

Relying on himself is nothing new. He was just 6 when his father walked out, leaving the family to fend for themselves, living for years in a cramped motel room. Though his grandfather supported them, Democko helped out with chores and a part-time job. "That experience made me realize what kind of person I wanted to be," Democko says now. He and Jody, once close, drifted apart after she ran away at 15 and eloped in Las Vegas – but that didn't stop Democko from falling in love with his nephews from the moment they were born. "The bond was instant," he says.

Now, Democko is doing his best to be the kind of father he never had. Between his $14-an-hour job and his $2,000 monthly stipend from social services, many weeks it's a stretch to make ends meet. He's also put some dreams of his own on hold. In a few years, when Chris is old enough to catheterize himself, Democko hopes to start night classes, maybe learn about the film industry. "I didn't get to go to college, but I want to," he says. "My time will come." For now, he's too busy to think much beyond the boys' immediate needs. "The only time to myself is from 9 p.m. to midnight," he says. "I'll check e-mail or watch a movie. When I need to scream, I walk out the front door and hold it shut." Still, Democko has no regrets. "I enjoy being a dad so much," he says. "I don't want to miss a second of it."

Headline of the Week Weak

Hospital tells grandfather, 71, that he's pregnant  

PORTLAND, Ore. - A patient treated for agonizing abdominal pain received this surprising news in the hospital's paperwork: "Based on your visit today, we know you are pregnant."

Surprising indeed for 71-year-old John Grady Pippen.

The staff at Curry General Hospital in Gold Beach gave the retired mechanic and logger the ridiculously happy news this month, along with some pain pills.

Hospital administrator William McMillan says an errant keystroke caused the hospital's computer to spit out the wrong discharge instructions for the grandfather.

[By courtesy of Perez Hilton]

Stolen Masterpiece Found After 33 Years

33 years ago, a painting of a nude woman by French master Pierre Auguste-Renoir was stolen from the art collection of a family in Milan, Italy.

On Friday, that family was reunited with the painting, valued at $730,000.

Italian police were able to reclaim the painting by acting on a tip-off from a prominent art critic, Vittorio Sgarbi, who had been contacted by an art gallery owner for a valuation of the master's work.

Police arrested the gallery owner and two other suspects.

Shady McShade!!!

Interesting note: the owner's daughter vouched for the authenticity of the painting through the mark of a ball she hit it with in the early 1970s.

See! Kids running amok in the house isn't a bad thing all the time!

[Image via Tiziana Fabi/AFP/Getty Images, by courtesy of Perez Hilton.]

Miz Carey is Back!

Divalicious Mariah Carey is trying to give back to those less fortunate.

This Thursday, Miz Carey will be named the Global Hunger Ambassador for the Yum! Foundation's World Hunger Relief campaign.

The campaign was created to help raises fund for the United Nation's World Food Programme.

World hunger is a serious issue, and we're glad to see Mimi has a big heart.

Carey will have her posters up in over 36,000 stores owned by Yum, which include Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, KFC, A&W, and Long John Silver's.

The ads and the promotion will be viewed in over 112 countries.

Aside from asking for donations, Mimi will also be encouraging people to pick up a coded card at any of the Yum chains around the world.

The card will allow people to download her song, Love Story, via the campaign's website, www.FromHungerToHope.com.

For every download, Yum will donate money to help the cause.

And Mimoo probably won't mind the exposure her song will get either. She needs it!

Her new album is BOMBING.

[By courtesy of Perez Hilton]

Closing Ceremony of 080808 Beijing Olympic

The 2008 Summer Olympics Closing Ceremony will conclude the Beijing Games on August 24, 2008. It is scheduled to begin at 8:00pm China Standard Time (UTC+8), and to take place at the Beijing National Stadium.

British singer Leona Lewis is scheduled to perform at the closing ceremony, representing the change from Beijing to London.

The Ceremony will also include the handover of the games from Beijing to London. Guo Jinlong, the Mayor of Beijing will hand over the Olympic flag to the Mayor of London Boris Johnson, and there will be a performance by the London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (LOCOG). (Adapted from Wikipedia)

Anyway, my friends in China told me that the ticket to the Bird's Nest is cut-throat and only the richer family can afford to pay for it. And the ticket is entitled to be sold one to each person. Wow~ It was a great and superb opening ceremony on 8th of August; so, we are hoping for the best to come for the closing ceremony! Bravo, China!

888, 080808, Beijing Olympic

Today, 08.08.08 is the 2008 Beijing Olympic! It will be held at 08Hour 08Minute 08Second! All of them are 8!

Euro Leads To Death

Do not bet your life with money. It costs you everything...

The Quake

512 Earthquake

We Have A Cheap FUEL PRICE? Who SAYS???

UAE - RM1.19/litre
Eygpt - RM1.03/litre
Bahrain - RM0.87/litre
Qatar - RM0.68/litre
Kuwait - RM0.67/litre
Saudi Arabia - RM0.38/litre
Iran - RM0.35/litre
Nigeria - RM0.32/litre
Turkmenistan - RM0.25/litre
Venezuela - RM0.16/litre
MALAYSIA - RM2.70/litre