Barack Obama wins Nobel Peace Prize

PRESIDENT Barack Obama has won the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize for "his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples", the Norwegian Nobel Committee said.

""Only very rarely has a person to the same extent as Obama captured the world's attention and given its people hope for a better future," the committee said.

"His diplomacy is founded in the concept that those who are to lead the world must do so on the basis of values and attitudes that are shared by the majority of the world's population."

Obama's name had been mentioned in speculation before the award but many Nobel watchers believed it was too early to award the president.

The committee said it attached special importance to Obama's vision of and work for a world without nuclear weapons.

"Obama has as president created a new climate in international politics. Multilateral diplomacy has regained a central position, with emphasis on the role that the United Nations and other international institutions can play."

READ MORE - Barack Obama wins Nobel Peace Prize

Mega Millions Winning numbers

Mega Millions winning numbers for $200M lottery jackpot:-

The winning Mega Millions lottery numbers drawn tonight for the jackpot worth an estimated $200 million were: 10, 13, 18, 33 and 51 with the Mega Ball, 43.

The amount grew because no player matched all the winning numbers to win the $170 million grand prize Tuesday night. Although there was no grand prize winner, 10 tickets were worth second prizes of $250,000 each.

The largest payout so far has been a $390 million jackpot shared by a New Jersey couple from Cape May County and a truck driver in Georgia in 2007. In March, 10 co-workers from the information technology department of Chubb Insurance in White House station split a $140 million jackpot.

eople are interested to know about the mega millions winning numbers for the draw scheduled on Friday night. The jackpot of Friday night was worth of a whooping $200 million. The jackpot amount would increase further if none of the players will be able to match the lucky numbers. As stated by the sources, the winning numbers for the Mega Millions lottery are 51, 33, 18, 13 and 10. It was also stated by the sources that 43 was the number for Mega Ball.

The winning sum of Mega Millions lottery was earlier fixed at one hundred and seventy million dollars. However, the jackpot amount increased as none of the players could match all winning number on Tuesday night’s draw. Tuesday night’s draw had ended without a jackpot winner. Ten tickets matched the number for second prize and each were worth 250,000 dollars. 24 was the Mega Ball number for Tuesday Mega Million’s draw. Lottery numbers for the Tuesday draw were 51, 45, 34, 31 and 17.

The amount of the Mega Millions lottery has grown for the last one and half month. Earlier a man in Georgia had matched all the numbers of the lottery and had won a sum of twelve million dollars. The sum had been increasing after this win as no one had all the numbers. As stated by the sources, in the year 2007, a Georgian truck driver and Cape May County couple had been declared as the winner of biggest jackpot money. They had won a three hundred and ninety million dollars jackpot. The Mega Millions jackpot amount will cross three hundred dollars if the players cannot match the winning numbers. Players of all the participating states are excited to know the results of the draw.

READ MORE - Mega Millions Winning numbers

Pink plane to fly at Oceana Air Show 2009

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. - The world famous Blue Angels and The Canadian Snowbirds are in Virginia Beach getting ready for the Naval Air Station Oceana Air Show. But they are not the only groups that will grab attention.

The weather is going to have a lot to do with who takes to the air and who doesn't, but there is one message at the NAS Oceana Air Show that won't stay grounded. October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and the air show is proudly sporting the pink to show support.

Air show pilot Mike Rinker pilots a pink, aerobatic plane named Pink Floyd in honor of his sister, who is a breast cancer survivor. He says it's not just the wings that keep his plane afloat, it's the will to survive.

"When I started doing air shows I felt like I wanted to do more than just go up and flop around," Rinker told WAVY.com.

So Rinker decided to make a statement with Pink Floyd, a statement that no one in attendance could miss.

"I title it love, promise, and hope," Rinker said.

Between rolls, flips and dives Rinker draws a pink heart, a pink ribbon and a pink cross in the sky.

"The heart signifies the love we share, the ribbon signifies the work to create awareness and the cross signifies the hope and the promise today and forever," he said.

Rinker's sister, Kim White says watching her brother fly brings a satisfaction that's difficult to describe. On October 17, 2009 Kim will mark the 8th anniversary of being cancer free.

"If you could see me, you'd see the tears rolling, it really makes me proud," said White.

But Pink Floyd might not take to the air this weekend; mother nature will be left to decide that. Pilot Ken Pietsch told WAVY.com what's got to happen to get planes in the sky this weekend. "We need one thousand above the ground and three miles of visibility, is what we need to fly in the show," said Pietsch.

READ MORE - Pink plane to fly at Oceana Air Show 2009

Probation extended for Lindsay Lohan

Lindsay Lohan's probation has been extended for another year so that she can finish alcohol education classes, a Beverly Hills Municipal Court judge ruled today.
TMZ reports that Lindsay's lawyer told the judge the actress/ leggings designer/spray tan creator has been extremely busy and has only been able to complete about half her classes.

Specifically, TMZ says, Lindsay has completed 15 of 26 individual alcohol classes and 13 of 26 group alcohol classes and 13 of 28 self-help sessions. She completed all six education classes. The court appearance stems from a 2007 incident in which she crashed her car on Sunset Boulevard in Beverly Hills and was arrested for driving under the influence.

Lindsay's lawyer says her client is "moving to Texas" -- she's shooting a movie there. But all sides will be back in court for another progress hearing on December 15.

READ MORE - Probation extended for Lindsay Lohan

Larry Birkhead: Anna Nicole's drugs 'were kind of overwhelming'

Larry Birkhead, the father of Anna Nicole Smith's daughter, took the witness stand today and testified he regularly saw Smith take prescription drugs such as methadone and spotted bottles of valium and other narcotics in her home. Birkhead was at a preliminary hearing in L.A. to decide if three people should be tried for supplying the ex-model with drugs.

But Birkhead elaborated in an interview with Entertainment Tonight, saying Ann Nicole would often take more than she should. "Sometimes if one said take two pills three times a day, she'd take four pills six times a day," he says.

Recalling the 2004 American Music Awards, he says, "The night before she went into seizures and the next day she wanted to present this award so she took something to offset the seizures and it caused her to be loopy. The amounts of prescriptions were kind of overwhelming to me, not being used to that kind of stuff. But to see some of the things that I saw it didn't make me happy, and that was what kind of led up to some of the tension that led to our breakup."

By Mario Anzuoni, Reuters

READ MORE - Larry Birkhead: Anna Nicole's drugs 'were kind of overwhelming'

Bad loans hand Bank of America a $2.23 billion loss

Bank of America, the largest U.S. bank by assets, reported a net loss of $1 billion for the third quarter, failing to match high market expectations after banner earnings reports from rivals JP Morgan Chase and Goldman Sachs.

When accounting for dividends on preferred shares, including $893 million related to dividends paid to the U.S. government, the loss shot up to $2.24 billion.

"Credit costs remain high, and that is our major financial challenge going forward," said CEO Kenneth Lewis. This is the last quarterly earnings report that will be overseen by Lewis, who will retire by year-end, in the wake of lawsuits and federal and state investigations over the circumstances surrounding the bank's acquisition of broker Merrill Lynch last year. Lewis has agreed to give up his 2009 salary and bonus.

Bank of America, the largest U.S. bank by assets, reported a net loss of $1 billion for the third quarter, failing to match high market expectations after banner earnings reports from rivals JP Morgan Chase and Goldman Sachs.

When accounting for dividends on preferred shares, including $893 million related to dividends paid to the U.S. government, the loss shot up to $2.24 billion.

"Credit costs remain high, and that is our major financial challenge going forward," said CEO Kenneth Lewis. This is the last quarterly earnings report that will be overseen by Lewis, who will retire by year-end, in the wake of lawsuits and federal and state investigations over the circumstances surrounding the bank's acquisition of broker Merrill Lynch last year. Lewis has agreed to give up his 2009 salary and bonus.

Bank of America's results were helped by profit from Merrill Lynch, including income from bond, stock and currency trading.

The bank hasn't announced a successor for Lewis yet or when such an announcement might come. In a conference call with analysts after the earnings release, Lewis said, "(The board) is striking a balance between getting it right and doing it with a sense of urgency, but I can't give you a date."

Bank of America stock (BAC) traded lower Friday. It also helped drag down the broader market.

As the largest lender to consumers, Bank of America, based in Charlotte, was badly hurt by increasing unemployment, which rose to 9.8% in September. Losses grew in all its consumer-related businesses. [Read More]

READ MORE - Bad loans hand Bank of America a $2.23 billion loss

After Vista, Windows 7 is a giant leap for Microsoft

It is fitting that Microsoft's new Windows 7 operating system arrives ahead of Halloween. When Microsoft buries Windows Vista for good on Oct. 22 and replaces it with Windows 7, the ghostbusters in Redmond will have exorcised a demon.

If you haven't experienced the frights of Vista firsthand, you've no doubt heard about them: how it takes forever to power up and shut down, how the software constantly nags you, how it hogs precious PC resources and how it's incompatible with all-too-many third-party peripherals and programs.

Throngs of PC users found Vista so scary that they stuck with the Windows XP operating system Microsoft launched in 2001, a lifetime ago in the tech world.

Microsoft doesn't have to apologize for Windows 7. Vista's replacement represents a monster leap forward. It's Vista done right – at last. Microsoft claims hundreds of small improvements, and a few big ones.

"We'll see what happens when Windows 7 is with (customers) all day every day, but I'm cautiously optimistic that we really have hit the right note there," Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer told me in a phone interview.

What you'll notice is that Windows 7 is snappier than its predecessor, more polished, and simpler to navigate. Screens are less cluttered. It has better search. Windows 7 rarely nags. I've been testing various versions for months on numerous computers. It sure seems more reliable so far. With a few exceptions, compatibility hasn't been a major issue. [Read More]

READ MORE - After Vista, Windows 7 is a giant leap for Microsoft

Auto ads help Google earnings gain 27%

As far as Google (GOOG) is concerned, the recession is practically over.

"We believe the worst is behind us and now feel confident about investing heavily in our future," Google CEO Eric Schmidt said Thursday as the company reported a 7% increase in third-quarter revenue from a year ago, to $5.9 billion.

Earnings were up 27% to $1.6 billion, mostly from increased auto advertising – thanks to the government's "cash-for-clunkers" program – and retail. Both travel and finance continued to be weaker than they were.

"Google is clearly taking advantage of companies looking for advertising they perceive to get more bang for their buck," says Whit Andrews, an analyst at Gartner. "Despite being under renewed pressure from a variety of different sources, Google has been quite strong."

Google, which had cut back on hiring, plans to begin beefing up its engineering staff. It has 20,000 employees. [Read More]

READ MORE - Auto ads help Google earnings gain 27%

Easy steps can cut winter heating bills

Natural gas and heating oil prices rose again Thursday, continuing a recent upward tick. Even so, the cost of heating your house, apartment or condo should dip this winter, according to recent projections by the government.

But you don't have to simply hope for lower prices and milder weather to reduce costs – you can cut 5% to 30% of your energy bills by taking a few simple steps, says Christina Kielich of the Department of Energy.

Start by combating myths and learning how your home works.

Myth:

Exhaust fans only remove odors.

Reality: Your kitchen or bathroom exhaust fans can drain your house of heated air in one hour, says Gordon Holness, president of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers.

Myth:

Duct tape seals ducts.

Reality: It's good for almost everything else, but it curls and unravels on heating ducts. Buy a mastic or tape designed for hot areas. Turn on the heat and follow the ducts wherever you can fit. Put your hand near the joints to feel where hot air is escaping, then apply the mastic or tape. A tip from George Stuckey of Fox Service in Austin: If you choose the shiny, foil-like tape, rub it briskly with a spoon or an old credit card after you apply it. That activates the glue and helps it adhere.

Myth:

Really small openings don't matter.

Reality: Tiny openings around dryer vents and garden faucets allow cold air to enter your home all winter long. Inexpensive sealing putty, which comes in rope form and has the consistency of Play-Doh, can solve your problem quickly. It works indoors and out and stays in place for decades, Stuckey says. [Read More]

READ MORE - Easy steps can cut winter heating bills

Easy steps can cut winter heating bills

Natural gas and heating oil prices rose again Thursday, continuing a recent upward tick. Even so, the cost of heating your house, apartment or condo should dip this winter, according to recent projections by the government.

But you don't have to simply hope for lower prices and milder weather to reduce costs – you can cut 5% to 30% of your energy bills by taking a few simple steps, says Christina Kielich of the Department of Energy.

Start by combating myths and learning how your home works.

Myth:

Exhaust fans only remove odors.

Reality: Your kitchen or bathroom exhaust fans can drain your house of heated air in one hour, says Gordon Holness, president of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers.

Myth:

Duct tape seals ducts.

Reality: It's good for almost everything else, but it curls and unravels on heating ducts. Buy a mastic or tape designed for hot areas. Turn on the heat and follow the ducts wherever you can fit. Put your hand near the joints to feel where hot air is escaping, then apply the mastic or tape. A tip from George Stuckey of Fox Service in Austin: If you choose the shiny, foil-like tape, rub it briskly with a spoon or an old credit card after you apply it. That activates the glue and helps it adhere.

Myth:

Really small openings don't matter.

Reality: Tiny openings around dryer vents and garden faucets allow cold air to enter your home all winter long. Inexpensive sealing putty, which comes in rope form and has the consistency of Play-Doh, can solve your problem quickly. It works indoors and out and stays in place for decades, Stuckey says. [Read More]

READ MORE - Easy steps can cut winter heating bills