PRESIDENT Benigno C. Aquino III approved the promotion of 58 senior Philippine National Police officials led by deputy chief for operations Deputy Director General Benjamin A. Belarmino, Jr.

The three-star general was credited for his role in the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections as head of Task Force HOPE.

Apart from Belarmino, the President promoted to the rank of Director (equivalent to a 2-star general in the Armed Forces) Danilo Q. Abarzosa, Director for Human Resources and Doctrines Development; Rolando R. Anonuevo, head of the Directorate for Integrated Police Operations-Southern Luzon; Arturo G. Cacdac, Jr. of the Directorate for Investigation and Detective Management; Jaime D. Calungsud, Jr. of the Directorate for Plans; and Lani-o R. Nerez of the Directorate for Research and Development.

GUANGZHOU, China -- On another bleak day for the Philippines in nearly all fronts, GMs Wesley So and Eugene Torre put the smile back on the Filipinos’ faces in the 16th Asian Games here Monday.

So, undoubtedly the brightest Filipino chess player to emerge in recent years, outwitted GM Pentala Harikrishna in their keenly-watched board one showdown to lead the Filipinos to a morale-boosting 2.5-1.5 upset win over second seed India in the fifth round of the chess competitions at the Guangzhou Chess Institute.

Torre, the most recognizable figure in local chess since becoming Asia’s first-ever GM in 1974, capped the Filipinos’ big day when he defeated GM B. Adhiban on board four.

GM Rogelio Antonio, Jr. also did his part by drawing with GM Krishnan Sasikiran in board two.

Only GM John Paul Gomez, the hero in the Philippines’ 2.5-1.5 triumph over Kazakhstan last Sunday, did not count as he lost to GM Surya Shekhar Ganguly in board three.

The smashing win propelled the sixth-seeded Filipinos to solo second place behind top seed China with eight points on four wins and one loss in the tough, nine-round competition which attracted 25 countries.

China trounced Iran, 3-1, behind the victories of GMs Bu Xiangzhi and Zhou Jianchao over GM Homayoon Toufighi and IM Ashgar Golizadeh in the lower boards

The Chinese, who are widely favored to sweep the gold medals in both the men’s and women’s divisions, have now beaten all their five opponents, including the Filipinos in the third round.

National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) president/chairman Prospero “Butch” Pichay had kind words for the Filipino chessers.

“They (Filipinos) are really making all of us proud right now,” said Pichay, who congratulated the team through delegation head/coach Willie Abalos.

“The players are performing to expectations even against our traditionally-strong Asian rivals. I like our chances now even with still four rounds left,” added Pichay.

NCFP secretary-general and Tagaytay City Mayor Abraham "Bambol" Tolentino also congratulated the team, and urged them to continue to do well and bring honors to the country.

The Filipinos’ sixth-round opponent is former Russian republic Uzbekistan, which drew with Kazakhstan, 2.-2.

The Uzbeks are bannered by GM Rustam Kasimdzhanov and Anton Filippov.

Kasimdzhanov bagged the individual gold medal in the rapid chess competitions with six wins and three draws.

Overall, So, Antonio and Torre have three points apiece, while Gomez had two.

So and Torre had two wins and two draws apiece, while Antonio had one win and four draws.

Gomez, the only other player to see action in all five rounds so far, had one win, two draws and two losses.

GM Darwin Laylo had 1-1 win-loss record.

No.10 seed Kyrgyzstan shocked fourth seed Vietnam, 3.5-.5 to grab solo third place with seven points.

Unheralded Algis Shukuraliev shocked GM Le Quang Liem, Nurdin Samakov stunned GM Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son and Nasyr Akylbelkov toppled GM Cao Sang for Kyrgyzstan’s three victories.

IM Nguyen Huyn Minh Huy averted a shutout when he escaped with a draw against FM Semetey Tologontegin in board four.

In other fifth-round results, Qatar edged Bangladesh, 2.5-1.5; Iraq stopped Mongolia, 2.5-1.5; Korea nipped Maldives, 2.5-1.5; and Yemen outclassed Jordan, 3.5-.5.

India, Qatar and Uzbekistan now share fourth to sixth places with six points.

Standings after five rounds:

10 points -- China
8 -- Philippines
7 -- Kyrgyzstan
6 -- India, Qatar, Uzbekistan
5 -- Iran, Vietnam, Kazakhstan,  Iraq
4 -- Bangladesh, Mongolia, Korea
3 -- Maldives
2 -- Yemen
1 -- Jordan, Lebanon

Did you think that stuff used on that short promotional video was real? It isn't. It is, in fact, entirely computer-generated from start to finish.

Even I had to to do a double take on the video. Only when the fruit appeared to shatter like glass on the kitchen worktop did I realize that there was more at work here than mere photography.

Even close analysis of each frame, it is almost impossible to tell that the lemons and tomatoes that tumble past the screen are not actually the real thing.

Created by artist Alex Roman using 3dsmax, Vray, AE and edited on Premiere, this 60sec TV commercial for Silestone has been a hit after posting it on a CGI website. Truly an ultimate in CGI trickery.

Meet Japan's newest police dog - all 6.6 lb of her.

In what is a world first, a long-haired Chihuahua named 'Momo' has passed exams to become a police dog in the western Japanese prefecture of Nara.

The brown-and-white dog was one of 32 successful candidates out of 70 dogs, passing a search and rescue test by finding a person in five minutes after merely sniffing their cap.

'Any breed of dog can be entered to become a police dog in the search and rescue division,' said a Nara police spokesman.

But he admitted that news a Chihuahua had been entered may still come as a surprise to many.

'It's quite unusual,' he said.

Television footage showed the seven-year-old Momo bounding across grass or sitting proudly, long hair blowing in the breeze.

Momo will be used for rescue operations in case of disasters such as earthquakes, in the hope that she may be able to squeeze her tiny frame into places too narrow for more usual rescue dogs, which tend to be German Shepherds.

The public response to the news of Momo's selection took police by surprise, the spokesman said, adding: 'The phone's been ringing all afternoon.'


'It's quite rare for us to have a chihuahua work as a police dog,' the spokeswoman said.

Chihuahuas, named after a Mexican state, are the smallest breed of dog.

'We would like it to work hard by taking advantage of its small size,' a Nara police department official told the Sankei Shimbun daily.

[Dennis Principe | fightnews.com] Freddie Roach and Robert Garcia have started to provide the verbal fireworks that is sure to prop up whatever is left of the opportunities to promote this weekend’s much-anticipated bout between their respective wards Manny Pacquiao and Antonio Margarito. During separate interviews with this writer, both Roach and Garcia sounded livid when told about a brewing duel between the prominent trainers.

It all started when Garcia, in a previous internet report made a claim of having a 2-0 edge in his head-to-head clash with Roach.

Garcia said he scored his first win when his American ward Steven Luevano won by disqualification over Roach’s Filipino pupil Bernabe Concepcion last August 2009 in Las Vegas.

The second win, Garcia asserted, was when he first handled Margarito in the Mexican’s return from a much-publicized suspension opposite Wild Card Gym-trained Roberto Garcia staged May of this year in Mexico.

Roach meanwhile refuted his rival’s claim by first stating that he never trained Garcia for the Margarito fight.

“I wasn’t in his corner. He trained at my gym, that’s all. He is Eric Brown‘s fighter” said Roach.

Roach then went ballistics when asked for his comment on Garcia’s 2-0 tally.

“Tell him to go (expletive) himself because I’m bringing my ace this time. What’s this childish? Like ‘Oh I beat one of your fighters before’.. What does that do with this fight?” said an irked Roach.

Roach also belittled Concepcion’s defeat where the Filipino got disqualified for punching Luevano after the bell sounded ending the seventh round that illegally knocked the then world champion out.

“But whose fighter ended up being knocked out?“ said Roach.

In an apparent retort, Garcia lambasted Roach’s insistence that he had nothing to do with Garcia’s fight against Margarito.

“Now he’s trying to change the story but I remember clearly when Freddie Roach made some comments to the press saying Roberto Garcia hitting so hard and he was going to knock out Margarito. To say that, obviously he was training Roberto Garcia,” said Garcia.

Garcia went on with his critical remark on Roach.

“He didn’t want to go to Mexico because he knew he was going to lose. He didn’t want to look bad inside the ring that night,” said Garcia. “For Freddie not to show up was a disrespect to Roberto Garcia who deserves to have Freddie Roach in his corner. If my fighter lose a fight, I take responsibility even if I don‘t show up in his corner.”

Meantime, Pacquiao and Margarito made their final public workout yesterday at the Gaylord Texan Hotel where they did several rounds of mitts, jump rope and shadow boxing in front of an appreciative crowd.

Fight promoter Bob Arum addressed the crowd by stating one of his few more remaining sales pitches, and that is to sell the hugely underdog Margarito as a livewire opponent for Pacquiao.

“Manny will overwhelm him early on with his speed and the question can Manny maintain that speed over the 12 rounds because this guy doesn’t wear down, Margarito, and he throws a lot of punches and that’s going to tell the story”, said Arum.

Today protagonists and their entourage will hold their final press conference that will be open to the public at the East End Zone Platform of the fight’s stadium.

Though their 12-round bout is for the vacant World Boxing Council 154lb crown, Margarito and Pacquiao agreed to a catch weight of 150lbs with a penalty of $500,000 for every excess pound during the official weigh-in set the day before fight night.

[Pacquiao Versus] It's no secret that Manny Pacquiao's best formula for beating his opponents has been his speed. His opponents from Joshua Clottey, Miguel Cotto, Ricky Hatton, Oscar De La Hoya, David Diaz, Juan Manuel Marquez, Marco Antonio Barrera and others all attest it was Manny Pacquiao's speed that conquered them.

And it is with this speed that Manny Pacquiao will defeat the bigger and stronger Antonio Margarito for his record eigth world title next Saturday at the Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

“Yung speed pa rin ang magdadala,” said Manny Pacquiao following a rigorous two-and-a-half hour of training at the Wild Card gym with trainor Freddie Roach.

“We can use that easily. If there’s speed, there’s nothing to worry about,” Manny Pacquiao added. “I know he (Antonio Margarito) has the advantage in reach, but we will use our advantage in speed.”

In the air, the smoke spewed out of Mount Merapi in Indonesia produced spectacular images which hid the terrifying situation on the ground.

Mount Merapi claimed four more lives as it continued to spew deadly molten rocks into the air and covering Indonesians with as up to 20 miles away.


With the death toll climbing, soldiers and rescuers helped thousands of frightened of villagers flee the devastation that is Mount Merapi.

Indonesia, a vast archipelago of 235 million people, is prone to earthquakes and volcanoes because it sits along the Pacific 'Ring of Fire,' a horseshoe-shaped string of faults that lines the Pacific.



Mount Merapi is Indonesia's most active volcano and one of the most active in the world. Although Mount Merapi has erupted many times in the last century, but according to Surano, a geologist monitoring the Mount Merapi situation, fears the worst may yet to come. "It's never acted like this before. It looks like we may be entering an even worse stage," Surano said.

Try it. Blink. That's the time it takes to fall in love and not the six months of romantic dinners and sharing according to a recent study using functional magnetic resonance imaging to see how love affects the brain. Its calculations of love has attracted plenty of attention.

For example, the time taken to "fall in love" clocks in at about one-fifth of a second--a blink.

[Discovery News] Also, 12 areas of the brain work together during the love process, releasing euphoria-inducing chemicals like dopamine, oxytocin, adrenaline and vasopressin. Love's high is similar to cocaine's rush.
Love influences sophisticated intellectual processes of the brain too. When a person feels in love, their mental representation, metaphors and even body image are also affected.

Researchers from Syracuse University, West Virginia University and the Geneva University Psychiatric Center retrospectively reviewed pertinent neuroimaging literature. They published their findings in a recent issue of the Journal of Sexual Medicine.

Overall, they found, love is really good for you.

Couples who had just fallen in love had significantly higher levels of nerve growth factor, or NGF. NGF is crucial to the survival of sympathetic and sensory neurons. Some believe NGF can reduce neural degeneration. Not a bad side effect.

Just as love is diverse, the part of the brain affected is also different.

Unconditional love, the type often seen between a mother and child, lights up the common and different brain areas, including the middle of the brain.

Not surprisingly, passionate love fires the reward part of the brain, but it also affects the higher-order cognitive function seen in body image.

[Yahoo! Sports] For one night, losing LeBron didn’t hurt so bad.

After nearly four months of emptiness, anger and worry, the Cleveland Cavaliers returned to the floor and realized they can still win.

Maybe they’re going to be OK after all.

Playing their first game in seven years without LeBron James(notes), the Cavaliers stunned the Boston Celtics 95-87 in their season opener Wednesday night, a win that gave heartbroken Cleveland fans reason to believe that life will be fine minus the two-time MVP.

“This was for the city,” forward Antawn Jamison(notes) said. “It was for the fans to let them know the Cavs will survive and this is a place where you can still watch good basketball. And most of all, you can watch a team that wins.”

J.J. Hickson(notes) scored 21 points, Daniel Gibson(notes) added 16—all in the second half—and the Cavaliers made several big, clutch plays in the closing minutes to hold off the Celtics, who defeated James and the Miami Heat on Tuesday night.

Rajon Rondo(notes) scored 18, Paul Pierce(notes) 13, Ray Allen(notes) 12 and Kevin Garnett(notes) had 15 rebounds for Boston, which led by 11 points in the third quarter but shot only 6 of 16 and was outscored 27-14 in the fourth.

“We took them a little bit too lightly,” said Shaquille O’Neal(notes), who spent last season with Cleveland.

Gibson, who missed his first eight shots, made four free throws in the final 17.2 seconds for Cleveland, dealt a devastating blow in July when James announced he was leaving as a free agent. The loss rocked a city that hasn’t celebrated a pro sports championship since 1964 and triggered predictions the Cavaliers would slide back among the NBA’s bottom dwellers.

Not just yet.

“Guys in this locker room believe,” said Jamison, who joined the Cavs last season thinking he could win a title with James. “We’ve been listening to what people are predicting for us. We’re going to let our game do the talking. It’s probably going to take a month or so for people to realize, ‘Hey, this is a team that can win and compete for the playoffs.”’

As the final seconds ticked off, Cleveland fans jumped for joy, owner Dan Gilbert pumped his fist and hugged those sitting near him, first-year coach Byron Scott smiled and confetti fell from the ceiling of Quicken Loans Arena like it did so many times while James was around.

All night, the Q quaked.

“It felt like Game 7 of the finals,” said Cavs guard Ramon Sessions(notes), who scored 14 and started in place of injured Mo Williams(notes). “I’ve never been to the finals, but that was the type of atmosphere here.”

With the score tied 86-all, Cleveland’s Anthony Parker(notes) drilled a 3-pointer with one tick left on the 24-second shot clock. Boston got a tip-in from Glen Davis(notes), and during a timeout, the officials reviewed Parker’s shot and determined it was in fact a 3.

Celtics coach Doc Rivers disagreed, shaking his head and saying “No way.” Rivers didn’t think Parker got the shot off in time, and it did appear to take him several seconds to gather himself and shoot.

“That was the longest second in NBA history,” Rivers cracked. “I wasn’t going to argue. Somebody didn’t push that button quick enough.”

Scott wasn’t complaining.

“We’re at home,” he joked. “It’s supposed to be a long second.”

The Cavs played without Williams, still working his way back from a groin injury before camp training camp opened.

Things have changed dramatically since the teams met in the playoffs last season. James is with Miami; former Cavs coach Mike Brown is looking for work after being fired; O’Neal and Delonte West(notes) swapped wine-and-gold jerseys for green-and-white ones, and Scott returned to coaching after a spin as a TV analyst.

There wasn’t a trace of James inside an arena he helped put on the NBA’s map. Earlier in the day on a building outside, a giant black-and-white banner depicting Cleveland’s skyline was hung in the exact spot where James’ iconic image once towered.

No. 23 is gone, but hardly forgotten. He’ll be back on Dec. 2, and Cleveland is waiting.

While walking around the city, Rivers received congratulatory handshakes from Cavs fans who thanked him for beating James.

“I got lots of them,” Rivers said, laughing. “I thought it was pretty funny.”

Afterward, Rivers felt even more love.

“We’re the most popular team in Cleveland right now, beating Miami and losing to the Cavs,” said Rivers, who praised the Cavs. “That’s what the Cleveland fans want to see. This is blue-collar town. This team will fit them very well.”

Before the game, Gilbert said he did not regret criticizing James in the hours after the superstar announced he was leaving as a free agent. Gilbert sent a scathing letter to Cleveland fans, calling James “narcissistic” and “cowardly.” Later that night, James told The Associated Press that he felt James quit on the Cavs in Game 5 last season against the Celtics.

Gilbert didn’t back off from any of his remarks, and believes the Cavs remain a playoff team without James.

“Not a lot of teams have the quality of Antawn Jamison and Daniel Gibson coming off the bench,” he said. “When you think of it in that sense, and having the kind of quality coach we have, anything can happen.”

It already has.

Notes: The Miami Heat won 97-87 against the Philadelphia Sixers
October 27, 2010 Scores:

New Jersey Nets 101 Detroit Pistons 98
New York Knicks 98 Toronto Raptors 93
Miami Heat 97 Philadelphia Sixers 87
Cleveland Cavaliers 95 Boston Celtics 87
Oklahoma Thunders 106 Chicago Bulls 95
Sacramento Kings 117 Minnesota Timberwolves 116
Atlanta Hawks 119 Memphis Grizzlies 104
New Orleans Hornets 95 Milwaukee Bucks 91
San Antonio Spurs 122 Indiana Pacers 109
Dallas Mavericks 101 Charlotte Bobcats 86
Denver Nuggets 110 Utah Jazz 88
Portland Blazers 98 Los Angeles Clippers 88
Golden State Warriors 132 Houston Rockets 128

[ChucksGlee] In a telephone conversation with one of her godfathers, Charice confirmed her return as Sunshine Corazon on GLEE's sixth episode of season two titled "Never Been Kissed." In the said conversation, Charice also denied she will be singing a Celine Dion song for this upcoming episode.

After a two episode hiatus, Puck is also going to be back from 'juvy' on this episode.