Derren Brown's Blog, page 50

Libraries of the Rich and Famous

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"Celebrities may live glamorous lives, but at the end of the day, we'd like to think that a good number of them curl up at home with a good book. And that's why it's so gratifying to learn that a completely unexpected famous person possesses a ton of books. We gained newfound respect for Karl Lagerfeld, for instance, when the Observer published a photo of his enormous (and, of course, gorgeous) home library. Curious to find out which other celebrities are bookworms behind closed doors, we rounded up ten photos of famous bookshelves, from Woody Allen and Oprah to Greta Garbo and Michael Jackson."

Read more at Flavorwire (Thanks Christopher C)

44% of Danish think religion is a bad thing

Close to half of Danes believe that religion makes the world a worse place. At the same time as many believe in God. But there is big difference between faith and religion, says a researcher. Religion is the root of all evil, says a proverb, based on past bloody religious conflicts. But there is some evidence that attitudes are returned when 44 percent of the Danish population responded that religion makes the world a worse place.

This is the result namely of a Gallup poll conducted last month.

By comparison, only 18 percent said religion makes the world better. The results related to the fact that Danes do not really understand religion, explains lecturer in Religion at Aarhus University Phil Zuckerman: "The Danes are among the least religious and thinks very rationally. They simply do not understand religion, which is something very irrational. Therefore influenced their understanding of what they experience in the media. "

Full Story at Berlingske

Zodiac signs change – or do they?

For those of you daft enough to think your zodiac in the newspaper actually means anything there's been a lot of noise in the very same publications about the fact things have moved a bit – or have they?

There's two forms of astrology – Tropical astrology and Sidereal astrology. Tropical astrology is the silliest of all the forms because it's basis in anything reliable has just been proven (as no surprise to some people) to be both wildly inaccurate and not just out by a little bit – but out by few THOUSAND years.

Sidereal astrology is the system of astrology used by some Western and all Jyotish astrologers who base their interpretation around the use of the sidereal zodiac. Its primary feature is that the signs of the sidereal zodiac approximately align to the sky constellations of the same name. The signs therefore run between dates which are different from the tropical zodiac used by most Western astrologers. For example, Aries runs from about March 21 to April 19 in the tropical zodiac but extends from April 14 to May 14 in the sidereal zodiac (although the precise dates may vary depending on the differing sidereal system used).

So for those of you still using the old western form it's time to update – there's new dates and a new sign known as Ophiuchus (Nov. 29-Dec. 17) – here they are:

Capricorn: Jan. 20-Feb. 16.

Aquarius: Feb. 16-March 11.

Pisces: March 11-April 18.

Aries: April 18-May 13.

Taurus: May 13-June 21.

Gemini: June 21-July 20.

Cancer: July 20-Aug. 10.

Leo: Aug. 10-Sept. 16.

Virgo: Sept. 16-Oct. 30.

Libra: Oct. 30-Nov. 23.

Scorpio: Nov. 23-29.

Ophiuchus: Nov. 29-Dec. 17.

Sagittarius: Dec. 17-Jan. 20.

So for those of you who we're a little skeptical and weren't sure – hopefully this will convince you. For those of you determined to find a response to this – do post in the comments below.

Scientists plan to probe Uranus ;)

"British space scientists are leading plans to send a probe to explore giant ice planet Uranus. They have put forward a detailed proposal to the European Space Agency to launch a joint mission with NASA to the distant world, 1.8 billion miles from the sun.

It would give scientists their first close-up views of Uranus since NASA's Voyager 2 flew past and captured fleeting pictures 25 years ago.

The £400million mission is designed to go in orbit to study the rings around Uranus and answer questions such as why it gives off so little heat.

Uranus – first spotted by Sir William Herschel from Bath, England, in 1781 – also has the most powerful wind observed in the solar system, blowing at more than 500mph.

The planet is unusual because it is tilted right over on its side. Astronomers believe this was caused when Uranus was given a mighty whack by another world in a cosmic collision.

More than 160 scientists are backing the Uranus Pathfinder project which is led by Dr Chris Arridge, of University College London's Mullard Space Science Laboratory in Surrey.

He told Skymania in an exclusive interview: "We've only really scratched the surface of Uranus. It is very difficult to observe from Earth because any detail is smeared out."

Read more at CS Monitor

Cases dropped against malaria homeopaths

"Officials have dropped charges against pharmacies alleged to have advised people to take homeopathic remedies to protect them against malaria instead of anti-malarial drugs. The General Pharmaceutical Council's decision has been described as "shabby and irresponsible" by some who helped bring the case against the pharmacies. Charges were bought after an undercover investigation by campaigning group Sense about Science and BBC Newsnight. Experts advocate anti-malaria drugs.

Speaking about the latest decision, Tracey Brown, director of Sense about Science said "we may as well have no regulation of pharmacists at all". It comes days after the Royal Pharmaceutical Society said they were "shocked" that one of the pharmacies involved, Ainsworths in London, is still suggesting taking homoeopathic remedies to prevent serious diseases such as typhoid, polio and malaria instead of proven drugs and vaccinations.

"I am shocked that a regulatory body would ignore its responsibility to protect patients"

Dr Simon Singh

Science writer and broadcaster

The 2006 undercover investigation showed that homeopathic pharmacies were recommending sugar pills which include no active ingredients instead of drugs and vaccinations for travellers to countries where malaria is endemic. At the time the head of the Royal London Homeopathic Hospital Dr Peter Fisher told Newsnight "there is absolutely no reason to think that homeopathy works to prevent malaria… people may even die of malaria if they follow this advice"."

Read more at BBC News (Thanks Katie)

Can you help?

A friend has had her car and two gorgeous dogs stolen in Worcester: can you help?

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"CAN YOU HELP FIND 2 MISSING PUPPIES?

LARGE CASH REWARD, NO QUESTIONS ASKED!

A chocolate and red coloured smooth hair miniature daschund 7 months old, male dog, wearing a chocolate brown leather and brass collar,

and a brindle coloured wired hair miniature daschund, also 7 months old, male dog are missing… Can you help return them to their family?

The puppies were in the back of a blue Land Rover Defender, registration number: 888 DAX, which was stolen from outside St Peter's Church, Worcester Road, Bromsgrove on Thursday 6th January 2011, whilst the owner was attending a funeral. It's likely the thieves didn't know the dogs were in the back of the car.

The puppies were in a white wire dog carrier, approximately 28″ x 28″, with a pillow and dog blankets.

The dogs are well looked after and from a very loving home, and are desperately missed by their family.

LARGE CASH REWARD is offered for information leading to the return of the dogs. NO QUESTIONS asked about the theft of the car or other contents, the family just want their dogs to come back home.

If you have ANY information about these two puppies, or the white wire dog carrier please send a facebook message or post on the wall of this page.

Or if you don't want to leave your name and details, please contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555111 or the RSPCA national hotline on 0300 1234999."

Click here for more information

Derren Brown Night ch4 – 8 Jan 2011

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Thank you all for your lovely comments and emails, they are so nice – the team are answering as many as possible. We've had literally hundreds of people who didn't realise that Derren was also a talented portrait painter. For those of you who want to see his work head on over to the Derren Brown Art Site here.

Tickets for the new live show Svengali are still available here (click the venue name to link to sales point) but they're going rather fast and many venues are now sold out. Otherwise feel free to leave your comments below and thank you all for watching.

Derren Brown Night – Tonight 9pm

Derren Brown Night starts tonight at 9pm with 'Derren Brown: Behind the Mischief' (see trailer below), followed by 'Derren Brown: Viewers' Choice' which is a classic Derren Brown show as voted for by fans, then finished by another showing of Enigma, filmed last year at Wimbledon.

For those of you who haven't seen it yet here's the CH4 Trailer.

Romanian witches to cast anti-government spell

Double, double toil and trouble: witches in Romania are planning to cast a spell on the country's rulers because of laws that will force them to pay tax for the first time. Cat excrement and dead dogs, rather than eye of newt and toe of frog, will go into their cauldron – but they are hoping to put a Macbeth-style hex on the country's president, Traian Basescu, and his government after the imposition of a tax regime aimed at tackling the recession.

Witches will gather on Romania's southern plains and the banks of the Danube to protest against the laws and cast spells on the politicians who implemented them. A dozen witches will hurl the poisonous mandrake plant into the river "so evil will befall them", a witch named Alisia said.

The threatened curse is not being taken lightly in a country with a long tradition of superstition. Basescu and his aides have been known to wear purple on certain days in an attempt to ward off evil.

The new law is part of the government's drive to collect more revenue and crack down on tax evasion. It will force the likes of witches, astrologers and fortune tellers to register their professions and become liable for 16% tax in line with other self-employed Romanians.

The Queen witch Bratara Buzea said she would lead a chorus in casting a spell using a concoction of cat excrement and a dead dog. "They want to take the country out of this crisis using us? They should get us out of the crisis because they brought us into it," she said.

Guardian

Hundreds of NY Churchgoers Exposed to Hepatitis From Communion

Hundreds of people who attended Christmas Day Mass at one Long Island, New York church may have unknowingly been exposed to hepatitis A, the Nassau County Health Department has warned.

Parishioners who went to service at Our Lady of Lourdes church in Massapequa Park may have been exposed to the virus while taking Communion, health officials are warning.

"An individual tested positive for hepatitis A who is involved in the Communion process," Nassau County health department spokeswoman Mary Ellen Laurain told Newsday. Our Lady of Lourdes has a congregation of roughly 7,500. Both priests and lay eucharistic ministers assist with Communion services at Roman Catholic churches.

Sean Dolan, a spokesman for the Diocese of Rockville Centre, told the newspaper that the investigation is ongoing. The health department is encouraging parishioners that attended Mass on Christmas Day to get vaccinated for the virus.

Full Story AOL