Archive for June 24th, 2008
A drug that combats shyness and social awkwardness, dubbed “social Viagra”, could be developed after scientists investigated a hormone released by new mothers.
Scientists in the US found that oxytocin, a natural hormone that assists childbirth and helps mothers bond with newborn babies, helps reduce anxiety and calm phobias. There are also signs it may help people with autism.
Teams in the US, Europe and Asia are now racing to commercialise a drug based on the hormone, which can be produced synthetically. Paul Zak, a professor of neuroscience at California’s Claremont Graduate University, who has tested the hormone on hundreds of patients, said:
“Tests have shown that oxytocin reduces anxiety levels in users. It is a hormone that facilitates social contact between people. What’s more, it is a very safe product that does not have any side effects and is not addictive.”
There is speculation that oxytocin might be able to help new mothers who have trouble bonding with their babies or orphans whose mental scars from neglect make it hard for them to love adoptive parents.
It could have other commercial benefits. For instance, it could be sprayed in restaurants to put diners at ease, or be used as an alternative to tear gas to calm rioters.
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LINKAGE
- Can you guess whose bare ass this is? - CS
- Is Tori Spelling’s husband gay? Toe nail polish pics - CK
- “The punk scene must truly be dead” - AB
- Shaq tells Kobe to tell him how his ass tastes - RR
- Heidi’s song “Fashion” is true magic - IBBB
- Sexy over cards? - PB
- Which singer says she has suicidal tendencies? - GB
- She kicks Miley Cyrus’ ass! Move ova - ND
- Paris should wear this more often - SOW
- Snoop Dogg goes country? - DS
- Spencer Pratt says his new website with Heidi will be bigger than MySpace and Facebook - AIW
Radio host Don Imus has found himself in another controversy involving race.
On his WABC show Monday, Imus was discussing the arrest of suspended Dallas Cowboys cornerback Adam “Pacman” Jones.”What color is he?” Imus asked.
When the sports announcer replied, “African-American,” Imus said: “There you go. Now we know.”
(Civil rights leader Al Sharpton said Imus’ comments “play into stereotypes.”)
But on Tuesday Imus said he was trying to “make a sarcastic point.”"What people should be outraged about is that they arrest blacks for no reason,” he said. “I mean, there’s no reason to arrest this kid six times.”
In 2007, Imus was fired from CBS after making a racist comment about the Rutgers women’s basketball team.People are monitoring every word Imus says, he’s gotta be careful.
Race issues are way too biased. If we really wanna bring people together, we have to go after Caucasians like Imus who make offensive, racial comments AND African Americans who make offensive, racial comments. There’s a strong shift where it’s socially acceptable for blacks to diss whites but whites can’t diss blacks. The status quo isn’t uniting people, we’re simply justifying behavior that shouldn’t be tolerated from anyone. Period.
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Sex and the City star Cynthia Nixon says a new report that she had a breast augmentation is “totally false.”The New York Post claimed that she went to a NYC hospital “on the quietest day of the week” for the surgery.
But Nixon, 42 — who has been open about her battle with breast cancer — told New York’s Daily News that she was there for a checkup.
“I was in the oncology department,” she said. “I guess they think that means ‘plastic surgery.’”
The actress — who appeared topless in the new Sex and the City movie — added, “If I was going to get a boob job, wouldn’t it make sense that I’d get it before Sex and the City?”
She said the story “would be annoying and disheartening in any case, but particularly [more so] because I’ve been so open about my breast cancer.”
She also hinted that she is open to wedding girlfriend Christine Marinoni, who is now a stay-at-home mom to her two kids.
“In an ideal world, we’d like to do it in New York, when it becomes legalized,” she said when asked about California recently lifting its ban on gay marriage. “Hopefully, it won’t take 20 years.”
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She’s still putting in the effort to look nice with her huge baby bump. I wear moo moos now and I’m not even pregnant. I’ll probably be walking around braless in togas with absolutely no part of my body shaved or trimmed, all sweaty and stanky. It’s not gonna be pretty. But Gwen’s so adorable and stylish. She even has her nails painted. Cute.
Expectant mom Gwen Stefani takes a well-deserved break from frolicking with 2-year-old son Kingston at a London playground on Monday.
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Beyonce’s fug sister, Solange, looks bad. And remember how everyone was saying Beyonce is sperminated just because she had a ghetto ass shotgun wedding? Obviously that’s not true. She’s holding off on having kids, good for her.
They do look cute here, though.
They were celebrating Solange’s bday. Samantha Ronson must be pretty damn good. She was the dj for the bash.
Beyoncé Knowles and her sister hit the dance floor during a party to celebrate Solange’s 22nd birthday at a Hollywood Hills mansion, where Lindsay Lohan stopped by, Samantha Ronson played music and the champagne flowed.
Heather Locklear is seeking treatment for psychological issues at an Arizona facility, her publicist confirms.
“Heather has been dealing with anxiety and depression. She requested an in-depth evaluation of her medication and entered into a medical facility for proper diagnosis and treatment,” says Locklear’s rep, Cece Yorke.”This is a confidential medical matter and no further statement will be released.”
How sad is this? Heather’s “friend” steals her husband and now she’s the one in a treatment facility for anxiety and depression?! If this shiz took place in the hood Denise would have been beat down in the street like she deserves! If there’s one good thing about living in the hood it’s always having friends who offer to eff people up who mess with you.
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I heart the old Britney and K-Fed pics.
Brit Brit and Daddy Douche arrived at a L.A. court this morning for a custody hearing. Britney is seeking to change her visitation schedule, but they won’t effing tell us why!
At 8:40 a.m., a somber-looking Federline, wearing a beige suit, entered the courtroom along with his lawyer Mark Vincent Kaplan
Spears, also looking somber, entered shortly thereafter with her father. Her blonde hair was straight and long and she wore a white shirt, beige pants, and wedges. She took a seat in the right side of the courtroom, while Federline was seated on left side.
Laura Wasser, Spears’s original divorce lawyer, is reportedly rejoining the singer’s legal team. Wasser was seen entering the courtroom along with a lawyer working for Spears’s conservatorship.The pop star currently has monitored visitation with her sons, Preston, 2, and Jayden, 1, three times a week. The ex-couple faces a custody trial in August if they’re unable to settle their case out of court.
Spears’s father remains in legal control of his daughter’s affairs until a July 31 hearing.
What’s gonna happen when Jamie can’t force Britney to shower and check if she’s wearing panties anymore?! The custody trial’s in August, Jamie’s conservatorship ends July 31. I smell trouble.
UPDATE: Britney got a change in her visitation, but no details were given:
A Los Angeles court ordered a “change” in Britney Spears’s visitation arrangement with her two sons, a court rep said Tuesday after a hearing attended by the pop singer and her ex, Kevin Federline.
The new terms were not revealed. “Britney’s demeanor in court was businesslike. I think any judge is pleased to see progress being made by parties in a case.”
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Oh shiz! Read the last sentence of this article. 
Italian businessman Raffaello Follieri, whom Get Smart actress Anne Hathaway broke up with earlier this month, has been arrested for fraud and money laundering.Follieri, no stranger to scandals, has been accused of lying to investors, claiming to be the CFO of the Vatican, the Associated Press reports. He is due in Manhattan federal court Tuesday.
Hathaway, 25, is not mentioned by name in the complaint against Follieri, 29, but he’s accused of using the swindled funds in question for a trip to the Dominican Republic over New Years 2005/2006 with his “then girlfriend” and another couple.
According to the papers filed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, he also used the funds for his $37,000-a month-apartment rent, medical bills for himself and his “then girlfriend” as well as orthodontist bills for his father.
The complaint also charges that he kept clergy robes in his office and once asked a monsignor to change into the uniform of a more senior clergyman in order to beef up his alleged Vatican connections.
According to another new press release the U.S. Attorney’s Office issued, Follieri could go to prison for life.
People
