Sehwag, Sachin rise in ICC ODI rankings

Dubai: Their brilliant performance in the first couple of World Cup matches has helped Indian batsmen Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar to rise to fifth and 10th respectively in the ICC one-day rankings issued on Monday.

Sehwag, who smashed 175 against Bangladesh, is up six places in the latest chart, while Tendulkar, riding on his 120 against England, has risen five spots.

Indians are headed northward even in the bowling rankings with Zaheer Khan in 14th (up by nine places), Harbhajan Singh in 16th (up by four places) and Munaf Patel in 22nd (up by 11 places).

England captain Andrew Strauss, who struck a 158-run knock in Sunday's thrilling tie against India, is in 13th spot in the batting list, up by eight places.

Others who have gone up the charts are Tamim Iqbal in 23rd (up by three places), Misbah-ul-Haq in 32nd (up by 12 places), Younis Khan in 44th (up by four places) and Kevin O'Brien in 52nd (up by four places).

Australia's Shane Watson, JP Duminy of South Africa, Netherlands' Ryan ten Doeschate and South Africa's Dale Steyn have all achieved personal landmarks.

Watson has climbed four places to break into the top 10 for the first time in his career.

Duminy's has risen two places to share the 15th spot with captain Graeme Smith and West Indies' Chris Gayle while Ten Doeschate has jumped 12 places to 20th.

In the bowling list, Steyn has jumped four places to fourth position.

Batsmen losing ground are Virat Kohli in third (down by one place), Kumar Sangakkara in eighth (down by one place), Gautam Gambhir in 10th (down by one place), Jacques Kallis in 14th (down by six places), Chris Gayle in 15th (down by five places) and Ricky Ponting in 19th (down by six places).

South Africa's duo of Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers maintain the top two positions in batting chart.

Apart from Steyn, Mitchell Johnson of Australia has rocketed 12 places to fifth position after figures of 4-19 and 4-33 against Zimbabwe and New Zealand, respectively.

Also on the move are Shahid Afridi in 11th position (up by 12 places), Shaun Tait in 29th (up by eight places), Tim Bresnan in 30th (up by 11 places) and Shoaib Akhtar in 37th (up by seven places).

England's James Anderson has taken a nosedive in the latest rankings dropping 12 places to 24th after figures of 0-72 and 1-91 against Netherlands and India, respectively.

Daniel Vettori of New Zealand continues to lead the field with South Africa's Morne Morkel in second place and Ray Price of Zimbabwe moving up one place to third position.

In the rankings for all-rounders, Ten Doeschate has moved up four places to a career-best fifth as the top four remain unchanged with Bangladesh's Shakib-Al-Hasan leading the way.

Tanu & Manu all set to win hearts

Tanu Weds Manu" is one of the most awaited films of the season. This zany film has struck a chord with a cross section of audiences across the country. 

The engaging yet innocent storyline with Kangna playing the small town wild girl and Madhavan playing the simple NRI boy has managed to win a number of hearts already.

Not just that, the music of "Tanu Weds Manu" is fast becoming a rage too. First-time music director Krsna brings a mix of soulful melodies and foot tapping dance numbers and gets it just right. The signature tune "Saddi Galli" with some typical Punjabi beats, is a sensation. This quintessential party number, is already a rage at shaadis especially up north. Looks like "Tanu Weds Manu" has got all the elements that are needed for a perfect entertainer. 

A Nine-Planet Solar System Once More? NASA Telescope May Reveal New Planet, Tyche

A few years ago we all thought there were nine planets. But now space is a whole lot more complicated. The hunt for the giant planet is on.

When Pluto was demoted from its planet status five years ago, we were pretty shook up. Having eight planets just isn't so catchy. Classroom wall charts around the globe were taken down and new rhymes had to be learned. Luckily, scientists have strong evidence to suggest that there is a ninth planet lurking beyond Pluto, and what's more, it's a big one.

Evidence gathered by the NASA space telescope, Wise, offers proof that this gas giant is hidden in the outer Oort Cloud, the most remote part of the solar system. The suspected planet has been named Tyche (pronounced ty-kee) by the two astrophysicists proposing it for "planet" status, Daniel Whitmire and John Matese from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. The first batch of data on Tyche is due to be released in April. After that, the planet may reveal itself within two years, say the two scientists. "If it does, John and I will be doing cartwheels. And that's not easy at our age." ProfessorWhitmire said.

Once Tyche has been located, it is up to the International Astronomical Union (IAU)  whether or not it gains full "planet" status. The main problem the IAU could have with the proposal is that Tyche probably formed around another star and was later captured by the sun's gravitational field. They might even have to create a whole new category for the gas-ball giant.

Tyche is suspected to be four times the mass of Jupiter with an orbit around 15,000 times further from the Sun than Earth's, and 375 times further than Pluto's. It will probably be composed mainly of hydrogen and helium, with an atmosphere just like Jupiter's. Professor Whitmire added that the planet-in-waiting will have its own moons, like other outer planets, and its surface will be covered in colorful spots, bands and clouds. The Wise data also revealed that Tyche is four or five times warmer than Pluto, at a prediceted -73C (-99F). "The heat is left over from its formation," said Prof Whitmire, "It takes an object this size a long time to cool off."

In a few months time, we could be back to the good ol' nine-planet solar system, courtesy of the giant Tyche. Watch this space.

Happy valentine's day

Loving someone is not needing a special day to tell them that u do. Happy valentine's day anyway ;).

Happy valentine's day

You're the reason for these butterflies
That are fluttering uncontrollable inside of me
These butterflies will never calm
They've taken over my whole body

You're the reason for this smile
That brightens my whole face
This smile will never frown
You've unknowingly became my all

You make me feel alive once again
You've erased my past with just a touch
Chased my fears with just one glance
You broke my mold with that first kiss

I thought my happiness was forbidden
Until you took my world and killed my demons
Read into all my deepest dreams
And gave them beautiful wings

You're the reason I believe in love

Rupee Reverses Losses On Dollar Inflows

MUMBAI: The Indian rupee reversed early losses in afternoon session on Friday aided by some dollar inflows from a large pharmaceutical company along with some other corporate dollar sales.

* Traders said despite gains in the equity market, sentiment continued to remain ...bearish and dollar demand from oil firms would continue to prevent any sharp rise in the rupee.

* At 2:40 p.m., the partially convertible rupee was at 45.6675/6700 per dollar, stronger than Thursday's close of 45.725/735.

* Dealers expect the rupee to trade in a range of 45.62-45.82 intra-day.

* Indian shares were up 0.4 percent, rebounding after a three-session decline, but trade was choppy and dealers said gains were unlikely to sustain.

* The dollar touched a one-month high against the yen on Friday after data underscored that the U.S. labour market was on the mend, while the Australian dollar fell after its central bank said interest rates were likely to stay on hold for some time.

* The dollar index, a measure of the greenback's performance against six major currencies, was up 0.33 percent at 78.506 points.

* One-month offshore non-deliverable forwards contracts were at 45.92, weaker than the onshore spot rate.

* In the currency futures market, the most traded near-month dollar-rupee contracts on the National Stock Exchange , MCX-SX and the United Stock Exchange were all at 45.7700. Total volume was $4.16 billion.

New costly stone in ring for ur loved ones

Mahatma Gandhi memorabilia to be auctioned in US

As many as 11 lots of Mahatma Gandhi memorabilia, including signed notes, letters and a khadi cloth, will hit the auction block in the US this month and expected to rake in over Rs 15 lakh.

The items will be offered in Bonhams auctioneers sale of Fine Books and Manuscripts on February 13 in California.

The auction house said the lots were acquired over several decades by a Los Angeles collector interested in the history of non-violent movements.

Of late, sale of personal belongings of Gandhi has created a lot of controversy and the government has tried in vain to stop a couple of auctions abroad. Bonhams said the Indian government has not approached it regarding this sale.

"Manuscript collectors seek out letters, documents, and historical memorabilia because of their great admiration of a particular person, or because of their great interest in a particular historical moment," Catherine Williamson, Bonhams' US director of Fine Books and Manuscripts, said.

"Most of the great libraries in the world were founded by private collectors, whose collecting activities saved many great rarities from oblivion," Williamson said.

Julian Roup, director of Press and Marketing, said the collector's primary focus has been letters and documents - one of the jewels of his collection is the two-page autograph letter of Gandhi in which he discusses his thoughts on the Catholic faith and other world religions.

In it, Gandhi makes a profound argument for global religious tolerance, "I have been confirmed in my belief that one can grow fully in one's own inherited faith (estimated at $ 5000-7000)".

"Other manuscripts in the collection include several notes by Gandhi written on the margins of telegram communications from university students in India and supporters in Pakistan, in which he sends words of inspirations or arranges visits, giving a unique glimpse into his daily correspondence ritual (estimated at $ 800-1200 each)," Roup said.

"Also present is a one-page blood report performed on Gandhi not long before his assassination, indicating that he was generally in very good health (estimated at $ 5000-7000). A related document was sold by Bonhams in 2010 for $ 6,100," Roup said.

Perhaps the most unusual Gandhi item in the sale is not a manuscript at all, but a white cotton khadi cloth, with a period note indicating it was hand woven in Gandhi's ashram, "It is the product advocated by him under his program of 'cottage industries', and has come to replace the materials made by Manchester, England, and other manufacturers of the Continent altogether under the nationalist movement" (estimated at $ 4000-6000).

Accompanying the cloth is a period photograph of students and staff of Lucknow Christian College and a note indicating that the cloth was originally collected and identified by an American missionary to India associated with the college in Uttar Pradesh.

"True students of Gandhi's work know the importance of his efforts to provide economic independence for the poor as a foundation for political independence. This cloth stands as a rare memento of a pivotal moment in modern history," Roup

said.

In July 2009, a series of letters and postcards signed and autographed by Mahatma Gandhi were bought in an Sotheby's auction by leading NRIs Sir Gulam Kaderbhoy Noon and Prof Nat Puri almost for double the pre-sale estimates.

Last October, rare photographs of Gandhi, taken during the Quit India movement days, sold for 2,880 pounds, nearly double the pre-sale estimates, at Bonham's "Travel and Photography: India and Beyond" sale.

India is also making desperate attempted to acquire Gandhi's house in Johannesburg, where he had lived a century ago, to convert it into a memorial.

After learning about the sale of the house, where Gandhi stayed from 1908 to 1910 as a young lawyer, state-owned Coal India Ltd. attempted to buy it in 2009 but it was snapped up by a French tourism company in an auction for what was believed at the time to be almost twice the asking price of $ 3,77,029.

Despite the auction, the house could not be sold as it was not registered. Coal India is now hoping that it would be able to purchase it.

The Silent Indian National Anthem