For parents Jose Perez and Flavia Lavorino, the wait is finally over. On Wednesday, the couple from Buenos Aires met their baby son Manu for the first time, 71 days after he was born to a surrogate mother 8,000 miles (12,875 km) away in Ukraine.

After long delay, parents finally meet surrogate baby in Ukraine

Belgium allowed almost all businesses to reopen on Monday (June 8), including bars and restaurants, but social distancing measures must remain.

Belgians return to bars, restaurants but not without virus fears

Life for New Zealanders returned to normal on Tuesday (June 9) as the government lifted all social distancing restrictions except for border controls, after declaring it was free of the coronavirus.

New Zealanders enjoy life back to normal after social distancing restrictions lifted

Artists in the Cologne and Bonn region of Germany have set up a drive-through gallery in an airport car park to exhibit their work.

Art fans visit drive-through exhibition in airport car park

Ever since her husband was killed six years ago in a suicide attack, Delkhah Sultani has been living on about $3 a day to raise her four young children. She washes clothes for a living, but ever since the coronavirus pandemic stalled Afghanistan's already fragile economy, jobs opportunities have completely dried up.

Afghan widow struggles to survive as work slows, prices rise amid pandemic

What happens after we die? Is there life after death? Can a dead body be brought back to life? 
 
Religion has a set of standard answers to these questions. 
But scientifically what is the truth? 
 
A company in Russia is offering services to deep freeze the bodies of dead people, in the hope that one day, science would be able to revive them to live. 
 
When Alexei Voronenko's 70-year-old mother passed away, he decided not to cremate or bury her. 
 
Instead, he called up a Russian firm Kriorus, which offers a rather a curious service. 
 
Alexei wants to keep his 70-year-old dead mother's brain frozen! 
 
So that on some far off day in the future, when science has made enough advancement, she could be brought back to life! 
 
This means that the brain of Alexei's mother has been kept in deep freeze with a temperature of minus 196-degree celsius. 
 
The brain is floating in liquid nitrogen so that it suffers minimal deterioration. 
 
"I reached out to 'Kriorus' to carry out the necessary procedures to cryo-preserve my mother, even though she did not express such a desire in any way. I did it at my own risk. I did this because we were very close and I think it is the only chance to meet in the future," said Alexei Voronenkov. 
 
But is this even remotely possible? Can a dead person's brain be revived? Will a brain kept in deep freeze retain its memories? 
 
Science has little to say about the existence of souls. 
 
It is largely understood that individuals are a sum of their experienced memories. 
 
So can cryo-preserving bodies aid in bringing people back to life in the distant future? 
 
Valeriya Udalova is Kriorus's director, she talked about how technology is advancing with time, she said "It is what the whole of medicine is heading towards. Today we can resuscitate a drowned person. We were not able to do it before, we did not even try. We can reanimate people. I think that cryonics is some sort of reanimation of the future,". 
 
Kriorus offers its services at a very steep price. 
 
They ask for $36,000 to keep the entire body under liquid nitrogen and $15,000 just to have the brain preserved. Kriorus claims hundreds have signed up for its service so far 71 cadavers have been kept in deep freeze. 
 
But experts have rubbished this as pseudo-science. 
 
So far, there is no demonstrable evidence that when an individual dies, and her brain stops working, there is a way to revive it. 
 
So why should people do it? 
 
"What can we do for our dying relatives or the ones that we love? A nice funeral ceremony, a photo album. They (cryonics enthusiasts) cross this line, they go further, proving their love even more. They try to give (people) hope," added Valeriya Udalova. 
 
The desire to live forever is as old as time. 
 
The Egyptian pharaohs built the magnificent pyramids and had their mummified bodies preserved inside in the hope that their souls would one day return to find their bodies. 
 
Similar such embalmed bodies have been found across continents. 
 
So is cryo-preservation of our bodies just another of human endeavours to live after death? 
 
Or is it just a pseudo-science employed to make a quick buck?

&nbsp;

What happens after we die? Is there life after death? Can a dead body be brought back to life? Religion has a set of standard answers to these questions. But scientifically what is the truth?

What happens after we die? Is there life after death? Can a dead body be brought back to life? Religion has a set of standard answers to these questions. But scientifically what is the truth? A company in Russia is offering services to deep freeze the bodies of dead people, in the hope that one day, science would be able to revive them to live. When Alexei Voronenko's 70-year-old mother passed away, he decided not to cremate or bury her. Instead, he called up a Russian firm Kriorus, which offers a rather a curious service. Alexei wants to keep his 70-year-old dead mother's brain frozen! So that on some far off day in the future, when science has made enough advancement, she could be brought back to life! This means that the brain of Alexei's mother has been kept in deep freeze with a temperature of minus 196-degree celsius. The brain is floating in liquid nitrogen so that it suffers minimal deterioration. "I reached out to 'Kriorus' to carry out the necessary procedures to cryo-preserve my mother, even though she did not express such a desire in any way. I did it at my own risk. I did this because we were very close and I think it is the only chance to meet in the future," said Alexei Voronenkov. But is this even remotely possible? Can a dead person's brain be revived? Will a brain kept in deep freeze retain its memories? Science has little to say about the existence of souls. It is largely understood that individuals are a sum of their experienced memories. So can cryo-preserving bodies aid in bringing people back to life in the distant future? Valeriya Udalova is Kriorus's director, she talked about how technology is advancing with time, she said "It is what the whole of medicine is heading towards. Today we can resuscitate a drowned person. We were not able to do it before, we did not even try. We can reanimate people. I think that cryonics is some sort of reanimation of the future,". Kriorus offers its services at a very steep price. They ask for $36,000 to keep the entire body under liquid nitrogen and $15,000 just to have the brain preserved. Kriorus claims hundreds have signed up for its service so far 71 cadavers have been kept in deep freeze. But experts have rubbished this as pseudo-science. So far, there is no demonstrable evidence that when an individual dies, and her brain stops working, there is a way to revive it. So why should people do it? "What can we do for our dying relatives or the ones that we love? A nice funeral ceremony, a photo album. They (cryonics enthusiasts) cross this line, they go further, proving their love even more. They try to give (people) hope," added Valeriya Udalova. The desire to live forever is as old as time. The Egyptian pharaohs built the magnificent pyramids and had their mummified bodies preserved inside in the hope that their souls would one day return to find their bodies. Similar such embalmed bodies have been found across continents. So is cryo-preservation of our bodies just another of human endeavours to live after death? Or is it just a pseudo-science employed to make a quick buck?

Cryo-preservation: Russian firm offers 'never-ending' life for modest fee

Here's another hope for finding life on another planet. Water vapour detected in Exoplanet's atmosphere.

Discovery Outside of our solar system

Unlike many of its European neighbours, Portugal is currently trying to attract refugees, encouraging immigration to boost their workforce and combat a dwindling population.

From rescue in the Med, to a migrant's life in Portugal

Yulia Skripal survived an assassination attempt that UK authorities blame on Russia. But the daughter of one of Russia's most famous spies says she wants to return to her country "in the longer term", despite the poisoning.

"The fact that a nerve agent was used to do this is shocking," Skripal told Reuters in an exclusive statement. "My life has been turned upside down."

Yulia and her father Sergei Skripal, a former colonel in Russian military intelligence who betrayed dozens of agents to Britain’s MI6 foreign spy service, were found unconscious on a public bench in the British city of Salisbury on March 4.

Yulia Skripal, 33, was in a coma for 20 days.

"I woke to the news that we had both been poisoned," Skripal said in her first media appearance since the poisoning. She contacted Reuters through the British police.

Skripal was speaking from a secret location in London as she is under the protection of the British state. She was discharged from Salisbury District Hospital about five weeks after the poisoning and has not been seen by the media until now.

"We are so lucky to have both survived this attempted assassination. Our recovery has been slow and extremely painful," she said in her written English statement.

"As I try to come to terms with the devastating changes thrust upon me both physically and emotionally, I take one day at a time and want to help care for my Dad till his full recovery. In the longer term I hope to return home to my country."

Skripal spoke in Russian and supplied a statement that she said she had written herself in both Russian and English. She signed both documents after making her statement.

She declined to answer questions after speaking to camera.

British Prime Minister Theresa May said the Skripals were poisoned with Novichok, a deadly group of nerve agents developed by the Soviet military in the 1970s and 1980s. May blames Russia for the poisoning.

It was the first known use of a military-grade nerve agent on European soil since World War Two. Allies in Europe and the United States sided with May's view and ordered the biggest expulsion of Russian diplomats since the height of the Cold War.

Russia retaliated by expelling Western diplomats. Moscow has repeatedly denied any involvement and accused the British intelligence agencies of staging the attack to stoke anti-Russian hysteria.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he thought Yulia Skripal was speaking under duress.

"We have not seen her or heard from her," he said when asked to comment on the story.

After Reuters published a video of Yulia Skripal's statement, the Russian Embassy in London said it was glad Skripal was "alive and well" but that Russia still had concerns, and believed the text had been written by a native English speaker before being translated into Russian.

"With all respect for Yulia's privacy and security, this video does not discharge the UK authorities from their obligations under Consular Conventions," the Embassy said in a statement.

"The UK is obliged to give us the opportunity to speak to Yulia directly in order to make sure that she is not held against her own will and is not speaking under pressure. So far, we have every reason to suspect the opposite."

'NO ONE SPEAKS FOR ME'

Russia's ambassador in London, Alexander Yakovenko, has repeatedly demanded to see Yulia, who was a Russian citizen when she was poisoned.

"I'm grateful for the offers of assistance from the Russian Embassy. But at the moment I do not wish to avail myself of their services," Skripal, who wore a light blue summer dress and bore a scar on her throat, said.

"Also, I want to reiterate what I said in my earlier statement, that no one speaks for me, or for my father but ourselves." &nbsp&nbsp

Mystery surrounds the attack. The motive is unclear, as is the logic of using such an exotic nerve agent which has overt links to Russia's Soviet past.

Russian officials question why Russia would want to attack an ageing turncoat who was pardoned and swapped in a Kremlin-approved 2010 spy swap.

President Vladimir Putin, himself a former KGB spy, said earlier this month that Skripal would have been dead if he was attacked with a weapons grade agent. &nbsp

"I don't want to describe the details but the clinical treatment was invasive, painful and depressing," she said in Russian.&nbsp

Yulia's father was discharged from hospital on May 18. At one point doctors feared both patients could have suffered brain damage. He is no longer in a critical condition, Salisbury hospital said.

NERVE AGENT ATTACK

Born as a citizen of a superpower, Yulia grew up as the Soviet Union crumbled and then in the chaos that followed its 1991 collapse.

Her Facebook page says she started studying at Moscow's School No. 63 in 1991 before gaining admission to Moscow State Humanities University in 2001, a year after Putin was first elected as Russian president.

In December 2004, her father was arrested by Federal Security Service agents on suspicion of treason: passing secrets to Britain's MI6 intelligence agency.

Skripal, recruited by British spies while in Spain, ended up in Britain after a Cold War-style spy swap that brought 10 Russian spies captured in the United States back to Moscow in exchange for those accused by Moscow of spying for the West.

Yulia arrived in Britain from Russia at London's Heathrow Airport at about 1440 GMT on March 3 on one of her regular visits to her father. The pair were found unconscious a day later.

"I am grateful to all of the wonderful, kind staff at Salisbury hospital, a place I have become all too familiar with. I also think fondly of those who helped us on the street on the day of the attack."

Yulia and her father Sergei survived an assassination attempt that UK authorities blame on Russia. Sergei was a former colonel in Russian military intelligence who betrayed dozens of agents to Britain’s MI6 foreign spy service

Yulia Skripal survived an assassination attempt that UK authorities blame on Russia. But the daughter of one of Russia's most famous spies says she wants to return to her country "in the longer term", despite the poisoning. "The fact that a nerve agent was used to do this is shocking," Skripal told Reuters in an exclusive statement. "My life has been turned upside down." Yulia and her father Sergei Skripal, a former colonel in Russian military intelligence who betrayed dozens of agents to Britain’s MI6 foreign spy service, were found unconscious on a public bench in the British city of Salisbury on March 4. Yulia Skripal, 33, was in a coma for 20 days. "I woke to the news that we had both been poisoned," Skripal said in her first media appearance since the poisoning. She contacted Reuters through the British police. Skripal was speaking from a secret location in London as she is under the protection of the British state. She was discharged from Salisbury District Hospital about five weeks after the poisoning and has not been seen by the media until now. "We are so lucky to have both survived this attempted assassination. Our recovery has been slow and extremely painful," she said in her written English statement. "As I try to come to terms with the devastating changes thrust upon me both physically and emotionally, I take one day at a time and want to help care for my Dad till his full recovery. In the longer term I hope to return home to my country." Skripal spoke in Russian and supplied a statement that she said she had written herself in both Russian and English. She signed both documents after making her statement. She declined to answer questions after speaking to camera. British Prime Minister Theresa May said the Skripals were poisoned with Novichok, a deadly group of nerve agents developed by the Soviet military in the 1970s and 1980s. May blames Russia for the poisoning. It was the first known use of a military-grade nerve agent on European soil since World War Two. Allies in Europe and the United States sided with May's view and ordered the biggest expulsion of Russian diplomats since the height of the Cold War. Russia retaliated by expelling Western diplomats. Moscow has repeatedly denied any involvement and accused the British intelligence agencies of staging the attack to stoke anti-Russian hysteria. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he thought Yulia Skripal was speaking under duress. "We have not seen her or heard from her," he said when asked to comment on the story. After Reuters published a video of Yulia Skripal's statement, the Russian Embassy in London said it was glad Skripal was "alive and well" but that Russia still had concerns, and believed the text had been written by a native English speaker before being translated into Russian. "With all respect for Yulia's privacy and security, this video does not discharge the UK authorities from their obligations under Consular Conventions," the Embassy said in a statement. "The UK is obliged to give us the opportunity to speak to Yulia directly in order to make sure that she is not held against her own will and is not speaking under pressure. So far, we have every reason to suspect the opposite." 'NO ONE SPEAKS FOR ME' Russia's ambassador in London, Alexander Yakovenko, has repeatedly demanded to see Yulia, who was a Russian citizen when she was poisoned. "I'm grateful for the offers of assistance from the Russian Embassy. But at the moment I do not wish to avail myself of their services," Skripal, who wore a light blue summer dress and bore a scar on her throat, said. "Also, I want to reiterate what I said in my earlier statement, that no one speaks for me, or for my father but ourselves." Mystery surrounds the attack. The motive is unclear, as is the logic of using such an exotic nerve agent which has overt links to Russia's Soviet past. Russian officials question why Russia would want to attack an ageing turncoat who was pardoned and swapped in a Kremlin-approved 2010 spy swap. President Vladimir Putin, himself a former KGB spy, said earlier this month that Skripal would have been dead if he was attacked with a weapons grade agent. "I don't want to describe the details but the clinical treatment was invasive, painful and depressing," she said in Russian. Yulia's father was discharged from hospital on May 18. At one point doctors feared both patients could have suffered brain damage. He is no longer in a critical condition, Salisbury hospital said. NERVE AGENT ATTACK Born as a citizen of a superpower, Yulia grew up as the Soviet Union crumbled and then in the chaos that followed its 1991 collapse. Her Facebook page says she started studying at Moscow's School No. 63 in 1991 before gaining admission to Moscow State Humanities University in 2001, a year after Putin was first elected as Russian president. In December 2004, her father was arrested by Federal Security Service agents on suspicion of treason: passing secrets to Britain's MI6 intelligence agency. Skripal, recruited by British spies while in Spain, ended up in Britain after a Cold War-style spy swap that brought 10 Russian spies captured in the United States back to Moscow in exchange for those accused by Moscow of spying for the West. Yulia arrived in Britain from Russia at London's Heathrow Airport at about 1440 GMT on March 3 on one of her regular visits to her father. The pair were found unconscious a day later. "I am grateful to all of the wonderful, kind staff at Salisbury hospital, a place I have become all too familiar with. I also think fondly of those who helped us on the street on the day of the attack."

Life turned 'upside down', says Yulia Skripal, but someday she wants to return to Russia

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan says she has often "walked away" from big films due to her adherence to schedules, something she hopes changes soon. 
In a video media interaction from Cannes, where she walked the red carpet for L'Oreal Paris for the 15th year, the actor said she should have been more "fierce".&nbsp;

"The fact that I have been very school girlish in my choices, I was very good at keeping with schedules... I have walked away from some very big films and acting opportunities because I was being very sincere to schedules," she said.

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&nbsp;

"Now, when I look back I feel I should have been more fierce and aggressive with wanting films and roles, and allowing the schedules to figure out themselves, as I see a lot of my colleagues worked over the years." 
Aishwarya does not regret her approach as she believes there are so many stories to be told and enough work in films to do.

"When I took a break with Aaradhya and even now, I get asked, 'Why don't we see more of you?' Yes, I want to do more films. I have been a little easy on my time planning.

"I have happily played mummy to Aaradhya and thrown work around here and there. Even now when I am offered a good script, I feel like doing but then I think, 'Let me take one more holiday this month. I will do the next one (film)'. I think this attitude needs to change."&nbsp;

This year, Aishwarya's name came up for three projects - "Jasmine" and the remakes of "Woh Kaun Thi" and "Raat Aur Din".

Director Shree Narayan Singh, who made "Toilet Ek Prem Katha", has written "Jasmine" and is expected to co-produce it with KriArj's Prerna Arora.

"When I heard 'Jasmine', I asked them to take it for a rewrite. So, it depends on what they do with it. It got announced before I even heard it. (When) I heard it, I requested for a rewrite. Let's see where that goes," she said.

Aishwarya has also been rumoured to greenlit two other KriArj projects - the remakes of Nargis Dutt's "Raat Aur Din" (1967) and Sadhana-starrer "Woh Kaun Thi" (1964).

"'Woh Kaun Thi' and 'Raat Aur Din' were fabulous ideas but I need to come back and hear the team out on how they want to make them and probably then make the announcements. 
"The originals were great ideas, but I need to see how the two directors make them for the current audience. Once that's set on the paper, we will go for it," the actor said.

Aishwarya Rai Bachan talks about her life in industry and how she goes according to schedules .

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan says she has often "walked away" from big films due to her adherence to schedules, something she hopes changes soon. In a video media interaction from Cannes, where she walked the red carpet for L'Oreal Paris for the 15th year, the actor said she should have been more "fierce". "The fact that I have been very school girlish in my choices, I was very good at keeping with schedules... I have walked away from some very big films and acting opportunities because I was being very sincere to schedules," she said. A post shared by AishwaryaRaiBachchan (@aishwaryaraibachchan_arb) on May 12, 2018 at 10:16am PDT × Circle of Life ??✨ A post shared by AishwaryaRaiBachchan (@aishwaryaraibachchan_arb) on May 12, 2018 at 10:15am PDT × "Now, when I look back I feel I should have been more fierce and aggressive with wanting films and roles, and allowing the schedules to figure out themselves, as I see a lot of my colleagues worked over the years." Aishwarya does not regret her approach as she believes there are so many stories to be told and enough work in films to do. "When I took a break with Aaradhya and even now, I get asked, 'Why don't we see more of you?' Yes, I want to do more films. I have been a little easy on my time planning. "I have happily played mummy to Aaradhya and thrown work around here and there. Even now when I am offered a good script, I feel like doing but then I think, 'Let me take one more holiday this month. I will do the next one (film)'. I think this attitude needs to change." This year, Aishwarya's name came up for three projects - "Jasmine" and the remakes of "Woh Kaun Thi" and "Raat Aur Din". Director Shree Narayan Singh, who made "Toilet Ek Prem Katha", has written "Jasmine" and is expected to co-produce it with KriArj's Prerna Arora. "When I heard 'Jasmine', I asked them to take it for a rewrite. So, it depends on what they do with it. It got announced before I even heard it. (When) I heard it, I requested for a rewrite. Let's see where that goes," she said. Aishwarya has also been rumoured to greenlit two other KriArj projects - the remakes of Nargis Dutt's "Raat Aur Din" (1967) and Sadhana-starrer "Woh Kaun Thi" (1964). "'Woh Kaun Thi' and 'Raat Aur Din' were fabulous ideas but I need to come back and hear the team out on how they want to make them and probably then make the announcements. "The originals were great ideas, but I need to see how the two directors make them for the current audience. Once that's set on the paper, we will go for it," the actor said.

Should have been more aggressive in career planning: Aishwarya Rai

A meteorite that struck a village near Rajasthan just 20 kms from the capital Jaipur in June 2017 could reveal many mysteries about the origin of life and provide clues about&nbsp;the evolution of the solar system, the Geological Survey of India stated.

The meteorite had struck Mukubdpura near Rajasthan in the early morning of June 6, 2017, creating a 6 feet deep crater in an agricultural land.

Reports say that some think it is because of the &#39;meteorite impact&#39;while others suggest that it could be shaped out because of &lsquo;tectonic&rsquo; or &lsquo;structural&rsquo; activity or &lsquo;magmatism&rsquo;.

When the meteorite hit last year, the Geological Survey of India&#39;s state experts and Forensic Science Team found hard black stone pieces of what looked like a black coal of about 4 kgs from the crater that measured three feet.&nbsp;

Reports say that it looked like a reddish-yellow fireball coming from the sky and created a massive thud on the ground. Scientists at GSI stated that the carbonaceous chondrite meteorites, unlike other meteorites, contain very primitive traces of carbon. And carbon forms the backbone of all life on earth.

They stated that there could be a likelihood that this meteorite could contain substances from space which could have been formed during the early stages of the evolution of the solar system and help discover the origins of life.&nbsp;

Scientists also said that another meteorite had struck Tinsukia in Assam just prior to the Mukundpura meteorite on June 5. It had hit the floodplains of the River Lohit. 
&nbsp;

The meteorite had struck Mukubdpura near Rajasthan in the early morning of June 6, 2017 creating a 6 feet deep crater in an agricultural land

A meteorite that struck a village near Rajasthan just 20 kms from the capital Jaipur in June 2017 could reveal many mysteries about the origin of life and provide clues about the evolution of the solar system, the Geological Survey of India stated. The meteorite had struck Mukubdpura near Rajasthan in the early morning of June 6, 2017, creating a 6 feet deep crater in an agricultural land. Reports say that some think it is because of the 'meteorite impact'while others suggest that it could be shaped out because of ‘tectonic’ or ‘structural’ activity or ‘magmatism’. When the meteorite hit last year, the Geological Survey of India's state experts and Forensic Science Team found hard black stone pieces of what looked like a black coal of about 4 kgs from the crater that measured three feet. Reports say that it looked like a reddish-yellow fireball coming from the sky and created a massive thud on the ground. Scientists at GSI stated that the carbonaceous chondrite meteorites, unlike other meteorites, contain very primitive traces of carbon. And carbon forms the backbone of all life on earth. They stated that there could be a likelihood that this meteorite could contain substances from space which could have been formed during the early stages of the evolution of the solar system and help discover the origins of life. Scientists also said that another meteorite had struck Tinsukia in Assam just prior to the Mukundpura meteorite on June 5. It had hit the floodplains of the River Lohit.

Jaipur meteorite-hit could help discover evolution of solar system: Geological Survey

He misses driving, feels as if he is in a cocoon, and is surprised how hard his new job is.

President Donald Trump on Thursday reflected on his first 100 days in office with a wistful look at his life before the White House.

&quot;I loved my previous life. I had so many things going,&quot; Trump told Reuters in an interview. &quot;This is more work than in my previous life. I thought it would be easier.&quot;

A wealthy businessman from New York, Trump assumed public office for the first time when he entered the White House on Jan. 20 after he defeated former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in an upset.

More than five months after his victory and two days shy of the 100-day mark of his presidency, the election is still on Trump&#39;s mind. Midway through a discussion about Chinese President Xi Jinping, the president paused to hand out copies of what he said were the latest figures from the 2016 electoral map.

&quot;Here, you can take that, that&#39;s the final map of the numbers,&quot; the Republican president said from his desk in the Oval Office, handing out maps of the United States with areas he won marked in red. &quot;It&rsquo;s pretty good, right? The red is obviously us.&quot;

He had copies for each of the three Reuters reporters in the room.

Trump, who said he was accustomed to not having privacy in his &quot;old life,&quot; expressed surprise at how little he had now. And he made clear he was still getting used to having 24-hour Secret Service protection and its accompanying constraints.

&quot;You&#39;re really into your own little cocoon, because you have such massive protection that you really can&#39;t go anywhere,&quot; he said.

When the president leaves the White House, it is usually in a limousine or an SUV.

He said he missed being behind the wheel himself.

&quot;I like to drive,&quot; he said. &quot;I can&#39;t drive any more.&quot;

Many things about Trump have not changed from the wheeler-dealer executive and former celebrity reality show host who ran his empire from the 26th floor of Trump Tower in New York and worked the phones incessantly.

He frequently turns to outside friends and former business colleagues for advice and positive reinforcement. Senior aides say they are resigned to it.

The president has been at loggerheads with many news organizations since his election campaign and decided not to attend the White House Correspondents&#39; Dinner in Washington on Saturday because he felt he had been treated unfairly by the media.

&quot;I would come next year, absolutely,&quot; Trump said when asked whether he would attend in the future.

The dinner is organized by the White House Correspondents&#39; Association. Reuters correspondent Jeff Mason is its president.&nbsp;

(Reuters) 
&nbsp;

'This is more work than in my previous life,' he said

He misses driving, feels as if he is in a cocoon, and is surprised how hard his new job is. President Donald Trump on Thursday reflected on his first 100 days in office with a wistful look at his life before the White House. "I loved my previous life. I had so many things going," Trump told Reuters in an interview. "This is more work than in my previous life. I thought it would be easier." A wealthy businessman from New York, Trump assumed public office for the first time when he entered the White House on Jan. 20 after he defeated former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in an upset. More than five months after his victory and two days shy of the 100-day mark of his presidency, the election is still on Trump's mind. Midway through a discussion about Chinese President Xi Jinping, the president paused to hand out copies of what he said were the latest figures from the 2016 electoral map. "Here, you can take that, that's the final map of the numbers," the Republican president said from his desk in the Oval Office, handing out maps of the United States with areas he won marked in red. "It’s pretty good, right? The red is obviously us." He had copies for each of the three Reuters reporters in the room. Trump, who said he was accustomed to not having privacy in his "old life," expressed surprise at how little he had now. And he made clear he was still getting used to having 24-hour Secret Service protection and its accompanying constraints. "You're really into your own little cocoon, because you have such massive protection that you really can't go anywhere," he said. When the president leaves the White House, it is usually in a limousine or an SUV. He said he missed being behind the wheel himself. "I like to drive," he said. "I can't drive any more." Many things about Trump have not changed from the wheeler-dealer executive and former celebrity reality show host who ran his empire from the 26th floor of Trump Tower in New York and worked the phones incessantly. He frequently turns to outside friends and former business colleagues for advice and positive reinforcement. Senior aides say they are resigned to it. The president has been at loggerheads with many news organizations since his election campaign and decided not to attend the White House Correspondents' Dinner in Washington on Saturday because he felt he had been treated unfairly by the media. "I would come next year, absolutely," Trump said when asked whether he would attend in the future. The dinner is organized by the White House Correspondents' Association. Reuters correspondent Jeff Mason is its president. (Reuters)

Trump says he thought being president would be easier

A northern Indian state will soon begin a multi-million dollar search in the Himalayas for a mythical plant believed to hold life-saving properties, a local minister said today. 
 
Uttarakhand will spend 250 million Rupees ($37 million) of state money hunting the herb Sanjeevani Booti, which is credited in the ancient Hindu text Ramayana with restoring life to the brother of a god. 
 
While many wild plants with medicinal properties grow in the Himalayas, there is scant evidence that the plant ever existed, with sages and modern researchers failing for centuries to find it. 
 
&quot;We have to try and it will never go to waste. If we are determined we will certainly find it,&quot; Surendra Singh Negi, the state&#39;s minister for alternative medicine, told AFP. 
 
The minister said the search will focus on the Dronagiri range of Himalayas near the Chinese border, one mountain of which is mentioned in the epic Ramayana as being the site where the magical herb grows. 
 
&quot;We have set an initial budget of 250 million Rupees ($37 million) for the project,&quot; Negi said. 
 
Scientists will start work in August, the minister said, adding that the central government has refused to fund the project. 
 
Ancient texts say the plant has life-restoring properties, grows in the high mountains of the Himalayas and glows in the dark. 
 
According to Ramayana, the monkey god Hanuman was tasked by the god Rama with fetching the herb after a healer said it would cure his dying brother Laxman. 
 
But Hanuman failed to identity the plant, instead uprooting the entire mountain and carrying it thousands of miles to treat the mortally injured prince during a war with demons in what is now Sri Lanka. 
 
India&#39;s 5,000-year-old medicine system Ayurveda uses herbs to cure ailments and has seen a revival under Prime Minister Narendra Modi&#39;s government. 
 
(AFP)

The herb Sanjeevani Booti is credited in the ancient Hindu text Ramayana with restoring life, but there's scant evidence it exists

A northern Indian state will soon begin a multi-million dollar search in the Himalayas for a mythical plant believed to hold life-saving properties, a local minister said today. Uttarakhand will spend 250 million Rupees ($37 million) of state money hunting the herb Sanjeevani Booti, which is credited in the ancient Hindu text Ramayana with restoring life to the brother of a god. While many wild plants with medicinal properties grow in the Himalayas, there is scant evidence that the plant ever existed, with sages and modern researchers failing for centuries to find it. "We have to try and it will never go to waste. If we are determined we will certainly find it," Surendra Singh Negi, the state's minister for alternative medicine, told AFP. The minister said the search will focus on the Dronagiri range of Himalayas near the Chinese border, one mountain of which is mentioned in the epic Ramayana as being the site where the magical herb grows. "We have set an initial budget of 250 million Rupees ($37 million) for the project," Negi said. Scientists will start work in August, the minister said, adding that the central government has refused to fund the project. Ancient texts say the plant has life-restoring properties, grows in the high mountains of the Himalayas and glows in the dark. According to Ramayana, the monkey god Hanuman was tasked by the god Rama with fetching the herb after a healer said it would cure his dying brother Laxman. But Hanuman failed to identity the plant, instead uprooting the entire mountain and carrying it thousands of miles to treat the mortally injured prince during a war with demons in what is now Sri Lanka. India's 5,000-year-old medicine system Ayurveda uses herbs to cure ailments and has seen a revival under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government. (AFP)

Indian state to spend $37 million hunting mythical 'life-saving' plant

Egypt&#39;s ousted Islamist President Mohamad Morsi was today sentenced to life imprisonment by a Cairo court in an espionage trial in which six co-defendants were handed death penalties for leaking state secrets on military intelligence to Qatar and a Doha-based TV network. 
 
The Cairo Criminal Court upheld the death sentences of the six Muslim Brotherhood members and awarded life imprisonment to two others. 
 
Life in prison in Egypt is 25 years. But Morsi, who received life in prison for leading an unlawful group, was given an additional 15 years for stealing documents related to national security, increasing his jail term to 40 years. 
 
The six co-defendants were Ahmed Abdo Ali Afifi, a documentary film producer (who is in jail), Asmaa el-Khateeb, a reporter with Rasd News Network which is widely suspected of links to Morsi&#39;s Muslim Brotherhood (sentenced in absentia). 
 
Two more included Al-Jazeera employees - news producer Alaa Omar Mohammed and news editor Ibrahim Mohammed Hilal (both sentenced in absentia). 
 
Qatar, a wealthy Gulf state, was the main backer of Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood during his term in power between 2012 and July 2013, when the military overthrew and detained him.&nbsp;Today&#39;s verdicts are not final and can be appealed. 
 
Last month, the court ordered that case documents of the six defendants, excluding Morsi, be referred to the Grand Mufti, who according to Egyptian law must review all death sentences. His decision, however, is not binding. 
 
The co-defendents have been convicted for leaking classified documents to Qatar and selling them to Doha-based Al-Jazeera channel. The documents allegedly include information on general and military intelligence, the armed forces, its armaments and state policy secrets. 
 
Other charges include leading and joining the outlawed Brotherhood, that aims at changing Egypt&#39;s regime by force, and attacking army and police posts and public properties. 
 
Muslim Brotherhood&#39;s Supreme Guide Mohamed Badie and 35 other members of the proscribed Islamist group were last month sentenced to life for committing violent acts after the ouster of country&#39;s first democratically-elected President in 2013. 
 
Badie and Morsi were also sentenced to life in prison in the espionage case. Their sentences are currently in appeal. 
 
Morsi, Badie and 100 other leaders were sentenced to death in June last year for escaping from prison in 2011. 
 
However, an Egyptian court later quashed the death sentence against Badie. Hundreds of other Muslim Brotherhood members were also sentenced for life in various cases. 
 
The Egyptian government has been cracking down on the Muslim Brotherhood and its supporters since Morsi&#39;s ouster. The Muslim Brotherhood was designated as a terrorist group in November 2013 by the government. 
(PTI)

Six other co-defendants, including three journalists, were handed death penalties for leaking military secrets to Qatar

Egypt's ousted Islamist President Mohamad Morsi was today sentenced to life imprisonment by a Cairo court in an espionage trial in which six co-defendants were handed death penalties for leaking state secrets on military intelligence to Qatar and a Doha-based TV network. The Cairo Criminal Court upheld the death sentences of the six Muslim Brotherhood members and awarded life imprisonment to two others. Life in prison in Egypt is 25 years. But Morsi, who received life in prison for leading an unlawful group, was given an additional 15 years for stealing documents related to national security, increasing his jail term to 40 years. The six co-defendants were Ahmed Abdo Ali Afifi, a documentary film producer (who is in jail), Asmaa el-Khateeb, a reporter with Rasd News Network which is widely suspected of links to Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood (sentenced in absentia). Two more included Al-Jazeera employees - news producer Alaa Omar Mohammed and news editor Ibrahim Mohammed Hilal (both sentenced in absentia). Qatar, a wealthy Gulf state, was the main backer of Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood during his term in power between 2012 and July 2013, when the military overthrew and detained him. Today's verdicts are not final and can be appealed. Last month, the court ordered that case documents of the six defendants, excluding Morsi, be referred to the Grand Mufti, who according to Egyptian law must review all death sentences. His decision, however, is not binding. The co-defendents have been convicted for leaking classified documents to Qatar and selling them to Doha-based Al-Jazeera channel. The documents allegedly include information on general and military intelligence, the armed forces, its armaments and state policy secrets. Other charges include leading and joining the outlawed Brotherhood, that aims at changing Egypt's regime by force, and attacking army and police posts and public properties. Muslim Brotherhood's Supreme Guide Mohamed Badie and 35 other members of the proscribed Islamist group were last month sentenced to life for committing violent acts after the ouster of country's first democratically-elected President in 2013. Badie and Morsi were also sentenced to life in prison in the espionage case. Their sentences are currently in appeal. Morsi, Badie and 100 other leaders were sentenced to death in June last year for escaping from prison in 2011. However, an Egyptian court later quashed the death sentence against Badie. Hundreds of other Muslim Brotherhood members were also sentenced for life in various cases. The Egyptian government has been cracking down on the Muslim Brotherhood and its supporters since Morsi's ouster. The Muslim Brotherhood was designated as a terrorist group in November 2013 by the government. (PTI)

Egypt's ousted Islamist President Morsi sentenced to life in jail, plus 15 years

The new planet is in constellation Lyra and is likely to be rocky and possibly could have oceans, scientists said.

A planet which about 1,200 light-years away from Earth and 40 per cent larger than its size may be habitable, according to US researchers.

Kepler-62f, which is in the direction of the constellation Lyra, is within the range of planets that are likely to be rocky and possibly could have oceans, scientists said. 
 
NASA&#39;s Kepler mission discovered the planetary system that includes Kepler-62f in 2013, and it identified Kepler-62f as the outermost of five planets orbiting a star that is smaller and cooler than the sun, they said.

But the mission did not produce information about Kepler-62f&#39;s composition or atmosphere or the shape of its orbit.

Now, scientists from University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) and University of Washington came up with possible scenarios about what its atmosphere might be like and what the shape of its orbit might be to determine whether the planet could sustain life.

&quot;We found there are multiple atmospheric compositions that allow it to be warm enough to have surface liquid water.

This makes it a strong candidate for a habitable planet,&quot; said Aomawa Shields from UCLA.

On Earth, carbon dioxide makes up 0.04 percent of the atmosphere, researchers said.

Because Kepler-62f is much farther away from its star than Earth is from the sun, it would need to have dramatically more carbon dioxide to be warm enough to maintain liquid water on its surface, and to keep from freezing, they said.

Researchers ran computer simulations based on Kepler-62f having an atmosphere that ranges in thickness from the same as Earth&#39;s all the way up to 12 times thicker than our planet&#39;s.

Kepler-62f also has various concentrations of carbon dioxide in its atmosphere, ranging from the same amount as is in the Earth&#39;s atmosphere up to 2,500 times that level, and there are several different possible configurations for its orbital path, scientists said.

They found many scenarios that allow it to be habitable, assuming different amounts of carbon dioxide in its atmosphere.

Shields said that for the planet to be consistently habitable throughout its entire year, it would require an atmosphere that is three to five times thicker than Earth s and composed entirely of carbon dioxide.

Having such a high concentration of carbon dioxide would be possible for the planet because, given how far it is from its star, the gas could build up in the planet&#39;s atmosphere as temperatures get colder to keep the planet warm, she said.

Scientists made their calculations of the shape of the planet&#39;s possible orbital path using an existing computer model called HNBody, and they used existing global climate models to simulate its climate.

The findings were published in the journal Astrobiology.

Researchers have found a new planet 1,200 light-years from earth that might have life.

The new planet is in constellation Lyra and is likely to be rocky and possibly could have oceans, scientists said. A planet which about 1,200 light-years away from Earth and 40 per cent larger than its size may be habitable, according to US researchers. Kepler-62f, which is in the direction of the constellation Lyra, is within the range of planets that are likely to be rocky and possibly could have oceans, scientists said. NASA's Kepler mission discovered the planetary system that includes Kepler-62f in 2013, and it identified Kepler-62f as the outermost of five planets orbiting a star that is smaller and cooler than the sun, they said. But the mission did not produce information about Kepler-62f's composition or atmosphere or the shape of its orbit. Now, scientists from University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) and University of Washington came up with possible scenarios about what its atmosphere might be like and what the shape of its orbit might be to determine whether the planet could sustain life. "We found there are multiple atmospheric compositions that allow it to be warm enough to have surface liquid water. This makes it a strong candidate for a habitable planet," said Aomawa Shields from UCLA. On Earth, carbon dioxide makes up 0.04 percent of the atmosphere, researchers said. Because Kepler-62f is much farther away from its star than Earth is from the sun, it would need to have dramatically more carbon dioxide to be warm enough to maintain liquid water on its surface, and to keep from freezing, they said. Researchers ran computer simulations based on Kepler-62f having an atmosphere that ranges in thickness from the same as Earth's all the way up to 12 times thicker than our planet's. Kepler-62f also has various concentrations of carbon dioxide in its atmosphere, ranging from the same amount as is in the Earth's atmosphere up to 2,500 times that level, and there are several different possible configurations for its orbital path, scientists said. They found many scenarios that allow it to be habitable, assuming different amounts of carbon dioxide in its atmosphere. Shields said that for the planet to be consistently habitable throughout its entire year, it would require an atmosphere that is three to five times thicker than Earth s and composed entirely of carbon dioxide. Having such a high concentration of carbon dioxide would be possible for the planet because, given how far it is from its star, the gas could build up in the planet's atmosphere as temperatures get colder to keep the planet warm, she said. Scientists made their calculations of the shape of the planet's possible orbital path using an existing computer model called HNBody, and they used existing global climate models to simulate its climate. The findings were published in the journal Astrobiology.

A planet that may sustain life found 1,200 light-years away from Earth

In a city whose windows have been blasted from their frames, remaining residents of Syria`s war-torn Aleppo go about their daily lives behind gaping holes covered with plastic. 
 
For inhabitants of the battle-scarred and divided city, glass windows have become more of a liability than a luxury. 
 
&quot;Every window pane we have has been shattered by shelling,&quot; said Ammar Wattar, an English teacher, as he fitted a hard plastic sheet into the window frame of his home in the government-held district of Al-Midan. 
&quot;We changed it the first time, then the second time, the third time -- until this time, we decided not to change it anymore.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
The windows are regularly blown out in the frequent rocket attacks and air strikes on Aleppo city, turning the shards into dangerous projectiles.&nbsp; 
 
Replacing them is also prohibitively expensive - so residents have been opting to cover the empty frames with sheets of plastic.&nbsp; 
In many neighbourhoods, children can be seen slipping behind white tarpaulin hanging like curtains from the doorways of their apartments.&nbsp; 
Abandoned apartment buildings are often identified by the partly-smashed glass windows protruding like jagged teeth from the metal frames. 
 
Clashes and bombardment have carried on in Aleppo despite a February 27 truce across parts of Syria and multiple attempts to secure a local freeze on fighting in the city. 
 
Asraa al-Masri, a teacher in a regime-held district of the city, said a shard of glass flew into her daughter`s leg during a rocket attack.&nbsp; 
She has since stopped replacing her windows with glass, but she now faces a new set of worries.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;Bugs, dust, soot, loud noises, the burning smell of the generators, which are bad for your health and negatively affect our children while they`re studying,&quot; she listed.&nbsp; 
 
Perhaps no one has seen as much shattered glass as Mohammed Bouz, who used to sell it in a shop in Al-Midan. 
&quot;My stockpile has been destroyed many times during the shelling, and I haven`t been able to get new deliveries,&quot; he told AFP. 
Before Syria`s war erupted in March 2011, a square metre of glass cost 425 Syrian pounds (70 cents) -- but it now fetches about 3,300 ($6).&nbsp; 
 
Aleppo`s desperate residents -- many of whom have been left jobless since war came to their city in 2012 -- opt for the much cheaper plastic at a maximum of 500 Syrian pounds per square metre.&nbsp; 
 
But for Umm Ahmad`s conservative Muslim family, no proper windows means no privacy. 
Synthetic canvas billows in the wind, &quot;so my daughters and I can only change our clothes in the bathroom or in the hallways so our neighbours don`t see us&quot;, the 52-year-old woman said. 
 
Privacy &quot;is something really sacred for Aleppan families&quot;. 
 
Across the frontline in Aleppo`s rebel-held east, shopkeeper Ali Makansi recounts sitting in his grocery store one day &quot;when a mortar shell crashed into the roof of a nearby building&quot;.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;Because the explosion was so powerful, an entire window pane fell on me and cut the main nerve in my hand,&quot; said the 32-year-old whose shop is in the Al-Shaar neighbourhood. 
&quot;All the houses and commercial buildings in Aleppo are using plastic now instead of glass,&quot; he said. &quot;Plastic is cheap and won`t hurt anyone if there`s an explosion nearby.&quot; 
 
Mohammed Jokhdar, a 29-year-old Arabic language teacher, sent his family to Turkey after his brother was killed in shelling last year.&nbsp; 
He lives alone in his apartment in Bustan al-Qasr district where he has covered the windows with sheets of transparent plastic.&nbsp; 
&quot;But the plastic doesn`t protect from the weather and sometimes water leaks through. It doesn`t block the noise either -- I feel like I`m in the street.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
Abu Omar, 69, who lives in Tariq al-Bab neighbourhood, also complains about the noise and water leaks. 
But &quot;the biggest problem is the street cats... They tear the plastic and come into my home looking for food.&quot;

In a city whose windows have been blasted from their frames, remaining residents of Syria`s war-torn Aleppo go about their daily lives behind gaping holes covered with plastic. For inhabitants of the battle-scarred and divided city, glass windows have become more of a liability than a luxury.

In a city whose windows have been blasted from their frames, remaining residents of Syria`s war-torn Aleppo go about their daily lives behind gaping holes covered with plastic. For inhabitants of the battle-scarred and divided city, glass windows have become more of a liability than a luxury. "Every window pane we have has been shattered by shelling," said Ammar Wattar, an English teacher, as he fitted a hard plastic sheet into the window frame of his home in the government-held district of Al-Midan. "We changed it the first time, then the second time, the third time -- until this time, we decided not to change it anymore." The windows are regularly blown out in the frequent rocket attacks and air strikes on Aleppo city, turning the shards into dangerous projectiles. Replacing them is also prohibitively expensive - so residents have been opting to cover the empty frames with sheets of plastic. In many neighbourhoods, children can be seen slipping behind white tarpaulin hanging like curtains from the doorways of their apartments. Abandoned apartment buildings are often identified by the partly-smashed glass windows protruding like jagged teeth from the metal frames. Clashes and bombardment have carried on in Aleppo despite a February 27 truce across parts of Syria and multiple attempts to secure a local freeze on fighting in the city. Asraa al-Masri, a teacher in a regime-held district of the city, said a shard of glass flew into her daughter`s leg during a rocket attack. She has since stopped replacing her windows with glass, but she now faces a new set of worries. "Bugs, dust, soot, loud noises, the burning smell of the generators, which are bad for your health and negatively affect our children while they`re studying," she listed. Perhaps no one has seen as much shattered glass as Mohammed Bouz, who used to sell it in a shop in Al-Midan. "My stockpile has been destroyed many times during the shelling, and I haven`t been able to get new deliveries," he told AFP. Before Syria`s war erupted in March 2011, a square metre of glass cost 425 Syrian pounds (70 cents) -- but it now fetches about 3,300 ($6). Aleppo`s desperate residents -- many of whom have been left jobless since war came to their city in 2012 -- opt for the much cheaper plastic at a maximum of 500 Syrian pounds per square metre. But for Umm Ahmad`s conservative Muslim family, no proper windows means no privacy. Synthetic canvas billows in the wind, "so my daughters and I can only change our clothes in the bathroom or in the hallways so our neighbours don`t see us", the 52-year-old woman said. Privacy "is something really sacred for Aleppan families". Across the frontline in Aleppo`s rebel-held east, shopkeeper Ali Makansi recounts sitting in his grocery store one day "when a mortar shell crashed into the roof of a nearby building". "Because the explosion was so powerful, an entire window pane fell on me and cut the main nerve in my hand," said the 32-year-old whose shop is in the Al-Shaar neighbourhood. "All the houses and commercial buildings in Aleppo are using plastic now instead of glass," he said. "Plastic is cheap and won`t hurt anyone if there`s an explosion nearby." Mohammed Jokhdar, a 29-year-old Arabic language teacher, sent his family to Turkey after his brother was killed in shelling last year. He lives alone in his apartment in Bustan al-Qasr district where he has covered the windows with sheets of transparent plastic. "But the plastic doesn`t protect from the weather and sometimes water leaks through. It doesn`t block the noise either -- I feel like I`m in the street." Abu Omar, 69, who lives in Tariq al-Bab neighbourhood, also complains about the noise and water leaks. But "the biggest problem is the street cats... They tear the plastic and come into my home looking for food."

Life behind plastic in Syria`s window-less city

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