Santosh Sivans film "Before the Rains" captures Beautiful Kerala

By CNN's Mairi Mackay

LONDON, England (CNN) -- It is roads, of all things, that Indian director Santosh Sivan cites as the inspiration behind his exquisite English-language debut "Before the Rains."
Director-cinematographer Santosh Sivan on the set of "Before the Rains"

"As a kid I used to travel to all these fantastic hills which had all the spices and there used to be these beautiful curving roads going deep into the jungles," he remembers.

In "Before the Rains" Sivan has managed to conjure up the Kerala of his childhood recollections -- and there can be few films that evoke India's natural beauty more breathtakingly.

"I got to know that these [roads] were made by the British people and it always interested me how British people must have interacted with my forefathers because we never had a chance to interact with them," Sivan continues. Watch a clip of Santosh Sivan talking to CNN about "Before the Rains."

It is in the dying days of the Empire among the colonialists of the 1930s -- the ambitious men who hacked paths through the Keralan jungle to their fortunes in the spice plantations -- that Sivan sets his tale of passion and nationalism.

English spice baron Henry Moores (Linus Roach) and faithful aide T.K. (Rahul Bose) are racing to finish the road to his cardamom and clove plantation before the torrential rains of the monsoon hit.

Complicating matters is Moore's affair with a village woman (Nandita Das) which ignites colonial tensions and pushes T.K. -- a man caught between two cultures -- to the limits of his allegiance.

The film's original premise comes from a short film set in Israel called "Red Roofs" by little-known writer-director Dany Verete. It concerns the affair between an Israeli and his housemaid, the Bedouin assistant who is forced to deal with it and the tragic outcome.

Sivan liked the idea but not the setting: "We discussed the possibility of maybe making it into a feature film and setting it in a colonial kind of past in India." Sivan and screenwriter Cathy Rabin then set about transforming the basic story into a 'hothouse of lust, empire and guilt.'

It comes as no great surprise that the film is presented by Merchant Ivory, the production company famous for beautifully-crafted period dramas like "A Room with a View" and "Howard's End."

But the inevitable comparison is with "A Passage to India," Merchant Ivory's arid and frightfully pukka evocation of 1920s colonial India.

Both films deal with some of the syndromes characterized in the days of the Raj -- the Indian who thinks he is equal with the Englishman only to discover he is not and the ways in which India was both subjugated by the Empire and able to use the lessons of its rule to gain independence.

David Lean's Oscar-winning film is probably more successful at dealing with the political issues and some critics have said it is a more accomplished film.

In a review, The Hollywood Reporter said "Before the Rains" was: "Lacking the emotional power necessary to fuel its contrived plot elements, the film is a minor entry in the Merchant Ivory canon."

In his film's defence, Sivan says: "I thought the film had a very universal appeal because it is what happens in a place like New York or any metropolitan place where people from different cultures are together."

"Each culture is very curious about the other... it makes them attracted to each other and then you find all these other problems that each culture has of its own, so the film also resonates in that way."

But to anyone who remembers the dust and parched mountains of "A Passage" the awe-inspiring beauty of the landscapes rendered by Sivan will seem like another country. They are the film's great achievement.

"The visual language, the camera as such and the way you do things has such a fantastic universal appeal. So, I think the visual language is the film," he says of the attention lavished on the film's imagery.

Sivan who played the role of both director and director of photography on "Before the Rains" started his film career as a cinematographer and has credits on 45 films. He has received India's national award for best cinematographer five times.

"Before the Rains" is Sivan's eighth film as a director -- he has since directed "Tahaan: A Boy with a Grenade" a Hindi-language terrorism drama which premiered at Cannes this year -- an indication of the Indian expatriate community's growing appetite for films that deal with controversial or sexual themes without falling back on musical dance routines.
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A household name in India, international acclaim came in 1998 when "The Terrorist," Sivan's ultra-low budget Tamil-language thriller about a girl suicide bomber won the Best Director, Best Actress Awards and the Golden Pyramid Award at the Cairo International Film festival.

John Malkovich, the actor known for roles in "Dangerous Liaisons" and "Being John Malkovich," was a member of the Cairo jury that gave Sivan the top award.

During the director's last trip to the U.S. -- to promote "Before the Rains" at the Tribeca film festival in New York -- Malkovich asked Sivan to direct him in the screen adaptation of Nobel Prize-winning author J M Coetzee's 1980 masterpiece "Waiting for the Barbarians."
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"I met him and we had a long chat and he offered me a new film and it was a great meeting," says Sivan, although he does not confirm if will take Malkovich up on his offer.

Whatever he decides, it is likely international audiences will be hearing a lot more of this Keralan director with an eye for a beautiful shot, even if he remains superstitious about success: "I think sometimes it is just plain lucky," he shrugs.

Source: CNN

A Day made Special by that someone truly Special!!

There are some days that can change your destiny,

alter the course of your life and make it worthy.

These are the days that you look back and treasure,

and its importance is something u cant truly measure.

This day is special for a special person u met,

who has left a mark on ur life that will always be felt.

This person is the one u care to live today,

without whom you will perish right away.

She is the one who was there through good and bad,

making her presence felt for which u r glad.

She was always there just a whisper away,

Not caring how bad or what the world had to say.

She was there when u were not all that pleasant and stable,

caring and loving so much that u stop being a rebel.

The world seems against you but she was there by ur side,

not caring for the world resembling a symbol of pride.

They are the one who taught u what loving meant,

And made you realize what it could achieve and help prevent.

When u look back u thank god for the day you crossed roads,

feeling a sense of pride feeling ur strength and spirit soar.

You feel a sense of purpose for what life had in store,

And feel an urge to struggle through all the hurt and sore.

Now you forget all the hurt and feel like an ace,

You want to live one more day for glimpse of her face.

Your life is made beautiful by her beauty and grace,

You could run a million mile for her single smile.

Many years pass by like a moment in space,

I will let go off all if togetherness is displaced.

I will always be by ur side no matter what the case,

Granting all ur wishes and fulfilling all that u crave.

Jnvvvvsk

Asus R2E Ultra Mobile PC introduced in India

MONDAY, July 14, (News Locale) - Taiwanese firm Asus has announced the introduction of its new R2E Ultra Mobile PC in India. The R2E notebook is a high-end one and is priced at Rs 64,900.

Asus claimed its latest product would satisfy every "on-the-go computing need" consumers had. The R2E is equipped with a 7-inch LCD screen and is powered by 800MHz Intel Stealey A110. It runs on Genuine Windows Vista Premium edition with Microsoft Origami Experience Pack software and includes a 1.3 megapixel camera.

One of the most important features available in the Asus R2E notebook is the presence of SunRead glare-proof panel that allows users to access important information from their device even when they are outdoors in the sun.

Media features include live TV access courtesy an external antenna and a remote controller. Furthermore the built-in GPS facilitates Anywhere Connection.

Corporate users can rest easy knowing the data sent to and through the R2E is secure. Asus has included built-in AuthenTec fingerprint scanner with TruePrint technology to enable strict security. This technology reads from the live layer of skin, thus preventing common skin surface conditions from interfering with accuracy of the scanner.

Asus has also incorporated InfoPen software for handwritten input capability. The DigiPen stylus enables consumers to use an eraser end and mouse control buttons for navigating applications.

The ASUS R2E notebook comes bundled with a USB keyboard and will be distributed throughout India by Rashi Peripherals Pvt. Ltd. and Net Place Technologies Pvt. Ltd.

Connectivity features in the R2E notebook include built-in Bluetooth 2.0 as well as EDR (Enhanced Data Rate), Wireless LAN 802.11 a/b/g and a high-resolution webcam.

Some of the features of the Asus R2E Ultra Mobile PC are:

# Genuine Windows Vista Premium
# Built-in AuthenTec fingerprint scanner with TruePrint technology
# Built-in Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR (Enhanced Data Rate)
# Wireless LAN 802.11 a/b/g
# CPU: Intel Stealey A110 (800MHz)
# LCD: 7″ WVGA (Touch Panel) (Sun Readable)
# SunRead glare-proof panel
# VGA: Intel 945GU
# Web Cam: 1.3 M Camera
# Memory: 1 GB DDR II (1GBx1)
# HDD: 100G PATA
# Card Reader & Other features: FP Reader + GPS (WO/Map)

Talking about the newly launched UMPC, Stanley Wu - Product Manager, Notebooks, ASUS (India) said, “The ASUS R2E is our latest product offering in the UMPC segment. It is a very innovative notebook that achieves a fine balance between being feature rich and compact at the same time. We believe that an innovation such as the ASUS R2E will provide notebook users in India with a unique solution to their ever increasing on-the-go computing needs.”

The Asus R2E notebook comes bundled with a USB keyboard, car charger, link cable and a car bag. The notebook will be available at the price of Rs. 64,900.

Venezuelan beauty is Crowned Miss Universe 2008

Venezuela's Dayana Mendoza, 22, burst into tears when the presenter, US talk show host Jerry Springer, announced she had beaten finalists from Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Mexico and Russia.

The 178-centimetre (five foot 10) beauty, the favourite of pageant bloggers and online bookmakers, clinched the diamond-studded gold crown after answering a question on the difference between men and women."Men think that the fastest way to go to a point is to go straight," explained the trilingual aspiring interior designer.
"Women know that the faster way to go to a point is to go to the curves."

Mendoza, who was once kidnapped in her home country, later issued a call for an end to violence in the world."The kidnapping happened a year and a half ago," she said at a post-pageant press conference, answering questions in both English and Spanish. "It's something that happens in my country. You don't even have to have money to be kidnapped ... That's why I wanted to raise my voice and tell the world that violence is not the answer."

Asked how she felt during the pageant and what she would do next, the green-eyed brunette said she had said a series of prayers seconds before her victory, and quipped that she would now "go home and take off my shoes."

Her prize package includes cash, a year-long contract promoting Miss Universe, world travel, a rent-free New York City luxury apartment and a giftbag stuffed with free designer shoes, dresses and beauty products.

In the world of beauty contests, Venezuela -- where such contests are held in schools, villages and even prisons -- is considered a "pageant superpower" with four previous Miss Universe and five Miss World winners.

Kicking off the extravaganza, ex-"Spice Girl" Mel B shouted "Good Morning, Vietnam!" -- an apt greeting since the final was held at 8:00 am local time to coincide with prime-time Sunday evening TV slots in the Americas.

The 80 contestants were introduced in their national costumes, with Miss New Zealand sporting a Maori-style pretend-facial tattoo, Miss Korea twirling a martial arts sword and Miss Albania dazzling in a vampire theme.

Heartbreak came quickly for 65 of the beauties when the 15 semi-finalists were announced, a list chosen last week but kept highly classified by the event group, co-owned by US millionaire Donald Trump.

Also on the shortlist were the contestants from Kosovo -- represented for the first time -- and Australia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Italy, Japan, South Africa, Spain, USA and Vietnam.

A jury, including high-profile fashionistas and Donald Trump Junior, quickly thinned out their ranks to 10, based on how they negotiated the runway in skimpy bikinis, and what Mel B called the "wow factor."

Vietnam home girl Nguyen Thuy Lam was eliminated at this stage, to the dismay of local fans who had paid up to 1,800 dollars for tickets to the event held at the 7,500-seat Crown Convention Centre in Nha Trang.

Next came the evening gown section, a pageant minefield in which women must avoid tripping -- which is exactly what happened to 26-year-old Crystle Stewart, the second Miss USA in consecutive years to take a fall.

Vietnam, the first communist nation to host the pageant, was promoted heavily as a tourist destination during the two-hour show seen in 170 countries -- and Mendoza said a month-long stay here had worked its magic on her.

"When we were young we studied and we saw Vietnam as a country with wars and troubles," she said. "But once I got here, I realised that it's just like being in Venezuela. It doesn't matter what happens, you always have a reason for smiling. We share the same will to be great countries. I like it, I love it."

Doping slur disgraces Cricket; Asif doping confirmed.

NEW DELHI: Pakistan fast bowler Mohammad Asif tested positive for banned substances during this year's Twenty20 Indian Premier League (IPL), organisers said on Monday.

The 25-year-old Asif returned a positive sample in random tests undertaken by a World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) accredited laboratory, the IPL said in a statement.

"The Indian Premier League compared the result from the WADA-approved laboratory in Switzerland with the data collected by IDTM, the Sweden-based independent agency which organised the anti-doping testing in accordance with WADA standards, to confirm the player in violation is Mohammad Asif," it said.

The lucrative league was organised in April-May. The statement said the bowler, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and his franchise team have been informed and that Asif had not applied for any therapeutic use exemption. It did not mention the drug involved.

Asif has the right to request the B sample result before the case goes to the IPL's three-member drug tribunal of medical and legal experts plus former India skipper Sunil Gavaskar.

The second doping controversy involving Asif could seriously jeopardise the international career of the talented bowler.

Last month, he was detained in Dubai for 19 days while returning from the IPL until authorities dropped charges against him of possessing an illegal drug.

Asif, who has played 11 Tests, said on his return home that he was innocent and had never used drugs or banned substances.

In 2006, Asif and fellow strike bowler Shoaib Akhtar tested positive for the banned steroid nandrolone when the PCB held tests before the ICC Champions Trophy in India.

They were initially handed one and two-year bans respectively by the PCB's anti-doping commission until the suspension was controversially lifted on appeal.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) tightened its doping laws after WADA made an unsuccessful appeal against the reprieve to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in July.

CAS said it was forced to dismiss the appeal because the PCB did not recognise the court in its regulations.

Source : TOI

The Hyde Act

The Henry J. Hyde United States-India Peaceful Atomic Energy Cooperation Act of 2006, also known as the "Hyde Act", is the legal framework for a bilateral pact between the United States and India under which the U.S. will provide access to civilian nuclear technology and access to nuclear fuel in exchange for International Atomic Energy Agency-safeguards on civilian Indian reactors. This act provides the legal basis for a 123 Agreement with India. The 123 agreement requires separate U.S. congressional approval and Indian cabinet approval and will define the exact terms and conditions for bilateral civilian nuclear cooperation.

What is 123 agreement between India and USA?.Why is it called 123 agreement?

The 123 agreement between India and USA refers to Sec. 123 of the U.S. Atomic Energy Act. There is a ban on transfer of nuclear technology to other countries under this Act. The Hyde Act was passed by U.S.A to make an exception for India, to enable transfer of technology for civil nuclear energy. The 123 Agreement is the terms of engagement which operationalizes the treaty agreement between india and u.s.a for transfer of civil nuclear technology. The next step is to enter into agreement with the IAEA ( international atomic energy agency) for safegaurds of the civil nuclear reactors to be set up under the 123 agreement and to enter into an agreement with the NSG ( nuclear suppliers group) for supply of nuclear fuel i.e uranium for the civil nuclear reactors. Once India completes the agreements with IAEA and NSG, then the U.S. Congress will vote on the 123 agreement. Once it is approved by the U.S. Congress, then the deal is complete and India and U.S.A can enter into nuclear commerce i.e supply of nuclear reactors, transfer of technology, supply of nuclear fuel etc.

Source: Yahoo Answers

Salman Rushdie wins "Best of Booker" award

Thu Jul 10, 2008 5:51pm IST

By Mike Collett-White

LONDON (Reuters) - British author Salman Rushdie won the "Best of the Booker" prize on Thursday to mark the 40th anniversary of one of the world's most prestigious literary awards.

"Midnight's Children" won the Booker Prize in 1981, and the Indian-born writer was hot favourite to take the award decided by the public from a shortlist of six in an online poll.

The 61-year-old, whose 1988 novel "The Satanic Verses" outraged many Muslims and prompted death threats against him, also won the 25th anniversary Booker prize in 1993.

"I think it was an extraordinary shortlist and it was an honour to be on it," Rushdie said in a recorded message from the United States, where he is on a book tour.

His sons, Zafar and Milan, accepted a trophy in London on his behalf, and the author said it was apt that "my real children (are) accepting a prize for my imaginary children."

Milan, the youngest, added: "I'm really looking forward to reading it when I'm older. Well done Dad."

Victoria Glendinning, chair of the panel who drew up a shortlist, said the entries were dominated by themes of the end of empire and two world wars.

"These are the nettles we have been compelled to try and grasp," she told reporters.

But there was some criticism of the award, partly because the choice was narrowed to just six nominees.

"It's an artificial exercise, simply because the general public only got to pick from six of the previous winners," said Jonathan Ruppin, promotions manager at Foyles bookshop.

"Readers have not been able to vote for some of their most enduring favourites," he added, mentioning, among others, Arundhati Roy's "The God of Small Things" and Kazuo Ishiguro's "The Remains of the Day".

ONLINE POLL

Around 8,000 people from around the world took part in the online poll, and Midnight's Children won 36 percent of votes.

At least half the voters were under 35, and the largest age group was 25-34, "a reflection of the ongoing interest in quality fiction amongst readers of all ages", organisers said.

Midnight's Children, an example of Rushdie's magical realist style, follows Saleem Sinai who is born on the stroke of midnight on the day of India's independence in 1947 and whose life loosely parallels the fortunes of his nascent country.

Some critics believe it is Rushdie's finest work, eclipsing subsequent novels including The Satanic Verses, for which he remains best known.

What was perceived to be the questioning of the tenets of Islam in The Satanic Verses led to book burnings and riots across the Muslim world culminating in a death edict against Rushdie by Iran's supreme religious leader.

The author was forced into hiding for nine years.

The other nominees included Nobel Prize winners J.M. Coetzee and Nadine Gordimer, both born in South Africa.

The full list comprised Rushdie, Pat Barker (The Ghost Road), Peter Carey (Oscar and Lucinda), Coetzee (Disgrace), J.G. Farrell (The Siege of Krishnapur) and Gordimer (The Conservationist).

Both Coetzee and Carey have won the Booker Prize twice.

The Booker rewards the best novel each year by a writer from Britain, Ireland or a Commonwealth country.

Source: Reuters

CHRONOLOGY - Twists and turns in the India-U.S. nuclear deal

REUTERS - India is pressing for a civilian nuclear deal with the United States despite the communist allies withdrawing their crucial parliamentary support from the government this week.

Here is a timeline of some key developments over the past three years:

* July 2005: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and U.S. President George W. Bush agree in principle to a landmark civilian nuclear cooperation deal. The deal reverses 30 years of U.S. policy opposing nuclear cooperation with India because it developed nuclear weapons and never signed the Non-Proliferation Treaty, or NPT.

* March 2006: Bush pays a three-day visit to India during which the two countries agree on India's plan to separate its civilian and military nuclear reactors, a key requirement for the deal to go through.

* Dec. 2006: U.S. Congress overwhelmingly approves the deal. Three other approvals -- from the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and a second time by Congress -- are still needed before nuclear transfers to India can actually take place.

* Dec. 2006: Bush signs the law approved by Congress, which makes changes to the U.S. Atomic Energy Act. Analysts say the deal could be fully approved in roughly six months.

* July 2007: The two countries announce finalisation of the deal after months of tough negotiations on a bilateral pact. India had objected to what it said were new conditions in the agreement unacceptable to it.

* Aug. 2007: Text of the bilateral pact, called the 123 agreement, is unveiled simultaneously in both countries. Indian analysts say it meets most of New Delhi's demands, but communist allies of the government coalition threaten to withdraw support over the pact, saying it compromises India's sovereignty. Singh defends the deal as crucial to India's prosperity.

* Oct. 2007: Fraught meetings between the left and the coalition government take place after Sonia Gandhi, head of the Congress party, describes opponents of the deal as enemies of development. A snap election is averted after the government agrees to delay approaching the IAEA.

* Nov. 2007: The left briefly softens its position and allows the government to begin talking to the IAEA about the safeguards agreement India needs to clinch the deal. But later in the month, communist politicians accuse the government of misleading the country.

* Dec. 2007: Communists tell the government to stop talking to the IAEA.

* Feb. 2008 - The United States urges India to close the deal before Bush leaves office, saying the deal was unlikely to be offered again under the new administration.

* June 25: The coalition meets with its leftist allies to try and resolve the impasse, but no agreement is reached.

* July 1: The Communist Party of India (Marxist) says it is discussing the timing of its withdrawal of support, saying the government appeared to be pressing ahead with the deal.

* July 9: The left withdraws support for the government, and calls for a vote of no-confidence in the government.

* July 9: India submits a draft nuclear safeguards accord to the IAEA governors for approval.

* July 10: IAEA Draft accepts Indian civilian Nuclear Plans.

Source: Reuters

IAEA draft allows India's nuclear defence

A day after Left parties formally withdrew support, the government released the draft text of the India-specific safeguards agreement with IAEA, which fully supports India’s plans to separate its civilian and military reactors and observes the sovereign rights of India.

The agreement, which basically accepts that India will continue to develop its military programme and accepts India as “a state with advanced nuclear technology”, said that the safeguards will only apply to civilian nuclear facilities that are ``solely’’ identified by India.

This basically fulfils the government’s assurances that India’s strategic nuclear programme will remain untouched by the safeguards agreement. At the same time, the text clarifies that India should not use any items produced in the safeguarded facilities and material received for them in the manufacture of nuclear weapons or other military purposes.

While the agreement has been cleverly crafted to incorporate the other assurances given by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Parliament on fuel supply guarantees and corrective measures, it remains `vague’ on how this will actually be achieved.

In the preamble of the safeguards agreement, the IAEA draft notes that India has accepted the safeguards agreement on the grounds that it will conclude international cooperation arrangements for uninterrupted fuel supply.

“An essential basis of India’s concurrence to accept agency safeguards under an India-specific safeguards agreement is the conclusion of international cooperation arrangements creating the necessary conditions for India to obtain access to the international fuel market, including reliable, uninterrupted and continuous access to fuel supplies from companies in several nations,” the draft text says.

It further says that India”may take corrective measures’’ to run its nuclear reactors in the event of a disruption of fuel supplies. However, the agreement remains ambiguous on how both these aims will be achieved. There is only one reference to fuel supply guarantees and corrective measures in the text.

``Indeed, the only reference to fuel supply occurs in the preamble, in the form of a note by India. There is, however, no reference in the body of the text to `fuel supply’ or to a `strategic reserve of nuclear fuel’. The ornamental reference in the preamble was inserted to save face because its language makes explicit that India is not tying the IAEA to assured fuel supply,’’ said expert Brahma Chellaney, an analyst at the Centre for Policy Research in New Delhi.

The wording and placement of the paragraphs in the preamble has also invited criticism from two nuclear scientists who say that there is nothing India-specific about the agreement.
``The way this was going to be India specific was through fuel supply guarantees and corrective measures. This kind of vague statement just opens it out to dispute,’’ said former Atomic Energy Regulatory Board chairman A Gopalakrishnan.

The agreement, he said, is based on the IAEA Information Circular 66 which is for non-weapon states.
Former Atomic Energy Commission chairman P K Iyengar pointed out that anyway the IAEA is not the body for getting assurances of fuel supply.

``If India gives a list of facilities, they will say in what method they will police it. The agreement is in great detail on inspections, design features and reports. This is a much more intrusive document,’’ he said. Mr Iyengar opined that India will not only have to open up its reactors for inspection but it will also have to pay for the costs. The accord lays out the cost of inspection of each Indian facility at e1.2 million annually and India had agreed to place 16 reactors under safeguards in a phased manner.

“India and the Agency shall each bear any expense incurred in the implementation of their responsibilities under this agreement,” one of the clauses said.

Source : The Economic Times

Eight New Natural Wonders Named

Andrea Thompson
Senior Writer
LiveScience.comWed Jul 9, 12:51 PM ET

Eight new natural wonders, including the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve in Mexico and what has been dubbed "the Galápagos of the Indian Ocean," have been added to the World Heritage List.

World Heritage Sites are named by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The sites, both cultural and natural, added to the list are deemed "of outstanding value to humanity" and deserve protection and preservation, according to the UNESCO Web site.

With the new additions, the World Heritage List now boasts 878 sites (679 cultural, 174 natural and 25 mixed) in 145 countries. The eight new natural sites added this year include:

Joggins Fossil Cliffs (Canada) Mount Sanqingshan National Park (China) Lagoons of New Caledonia: Reef Diversity and Associated Ecosystems (France) Surtsey (Iceland) Saryarka - Steppe and Lakes of Northern Kazakhstan (Kazakhstan) Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve (Mexico) Swiss Tectonic Arena Sardona (Switzerland) Socotra Archipelago (Yemen)

"These eight stunning natural sites are amongst the best of what nature has to offer," said David Sheppard, head of the IUCN's Protected Areas Program, which recommended the sites. (IUCN stands for International Union for Conservation of Nature.)

Below are details on all the sites:

The Socotra Archipelago is known as "the Galápagos of the Indian Ocean" and is home to 825 plant species of which 37 percent can only be found there. Ninety percent of its reptile species can be found nowhere else. Its marine life is also diverse, with 253 species of reef-building corals, 730 species of coastal fish and 300 species of crab, lobster and shrimp.

Socotra is already well set up for long-term conservation, IUCN officials say, as about 75 percent of its land area is already included in natural sanctuaries and national parks.

The Joggins Fossil Cliffs have also drawn a comparison to the diverse Pacific Islands made famous by Charles Darwin's work, as they are sometimes called "the Coal Age Galápagos." The cliffs are considered to be an excellent reference site to the Coal Age (about 300 million years ago). The rocks there bear witness to the first reptiles in Earth's history and preserve upright fossil trees.

"This is a fascinating site where you can literally see a slice of history," said Tim Badman, World Heritage advisor of IUCN's Protected Areas Program.

Surtsey, a new island formed by volcanic eruptions off the southern coast of Iceland from 1963 to 1967, is interesting for the new life forms that have settled there. The young bit of land has provided a unique scientific record of the ways in which plants and animals colonize land.

The Mariposa Monarca Biosphere Reserve protects eight areas of wintering habitat of the monarch butterfly in the oyamel fir forests of central Mexico. After traveling thousands of kilometers, as many as a billion monarchs overwinter there.

More than 200,000 hectares of Central Asian steppe, a vast region of open grassland, is found in Saryarka, Kazakhstan - more than half of it is pristine. The area's Korgalzhyn-Tengiz lakes provide feeding grounds to around 16 million birds and support hundreds of thousands of nesting waterfowl.

"The wetlands of Korgalzhyn and Naurzum State Nature Reserves are key stopover points for migratory birds," Sheppard said. "Some of these species are globally threatened. Saryarka offers them a safe haven on their journeys from Africa, Europe and South Asia to their breeding grounds in Western and Eastern Siberia."

Saryarka is also home to the critically endangered saiga antelope (Saiga tatarica).

Mount Sanqingshan National Park in China was selected for its "outstanding natural beauty," the IUCN said. The park features a diverse forest and unusual granite rock formations, including shaped pillars and peaks, which can be viewed from suspended walking trails.

The Swiss Tectonic Arena Sardona, on the other hand, was picked for its geological value; it features a dramatic display of mountain-building, including an area called the Glarus Overthrust, where older rock overlays younger rock.

The highly diverse coral reef ecosystems of the Lagoons of New Caledonia put it on the new list - they equal or possibly surpass the larger Great Barrier Reef in coral and fish diversity.

These eight natural sites were accompanied by 27 cultural sites as inductees into the World Heritage program. The IUCN also helps monitor conservation at the natural sites. It has deemed several World Heritage sites as under threat, including the Galápagos Islands, in Ecuador, Machu Picchu, in Peru, and Virunga National Park, in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

101 Amazing Earth Facts Quiz: Test Your Knowledge of the Continents Images: The Seven Ancient Wonders of the World Original Story: Eight New Natural Wonders Named

Visit LiveScience.com for more daily news, views and scientific inquiry with an original, provocative point of view. LiveScience reports amazing, real world breakthroughs, made simple and stimulating for people on the go. Check out our collection of Science, Animal and Dinosaur Pictures, Science Videos, Hot Topics, Trivia, Top 10s, Voting, Amazing Images, Reader Favorites, and more. Get cool gadgets at the new LiveScience Store, sign up for our free daily email newsletter and check out our RSS feeds today!

Source: Yahoo News

Rediscover Life!!

Life at times is not always wholesome,

Rather at times it could get pretty lonesome.

This is when your mind starts playing games,

Giving u a feeling that things will never change.

Soon you'll get impression that everything is going wrong.

This is when you need a steady head and patience in plenty,

By this virtue you'll emerge through more mature and strong.

It might seem easy to throw it all away,

To throw in da towel and let ur life go astray.

But a cool head at this time can help tame all evil n pain,

Your strength and courage here can usher a lifelong worth of gain.

Look for inspiration and guidance where you can,

Learn from the right and chuck all that harm.

Learn to leave past in the past and salvage ur future,

Triumph through the testing times by being composed and calm.

Soon the cloud will lift and you'll embrace your life,

Your zest for living will soon shine through.

You'll soon forget how hopeless and lonely life once was,

By embracing the love and comfort that lie in your path.

A Long Night

Some night can seem unusually long,

Resembling a bottomless pit or a never-ending song.

Your whole life flashes in that one night,

It may even start off fine but end with a real fright.

You wish and plead for it to end,

But the harder you try the longer it extends.

All the creatures seem to have come out to play,

Rendering futile your efforts to salvage the impending day.

You complain and cringe at one and all,

Losing your senses to frustration and your logic gradually takes a fall.

You look back at those night that passed by peacefully,

And wince at those nights that were so heavenly.

In the morning you curse the night that was and the long day to follow.

You hope for the best all the while feeling a bit hollow.

By the evening you are tired and endured a lot of pain,

You try to look confident and hide your fear but all in vain,

By now all you ask god is not to let any nigh be the same.

When life is a Treason

Why do you live if you see no purpose?

When all you do resembles an exercise in futility?

You wonder what god had in mind when he gave you this form.

With no answer coming, you'll soon wonder why you were even born.

Why be alive when you are waiting for the end,

And searching for that something that you can call a friend.

If life is all about earning your daily bread,

And there is nothing to look forward to enjoy or even dread.

Just going through the motion without a goal,

Everyday looking less alive and more like the dead.

If this is life I renounce it here and now,

It's only a question of whether I can.

The only reason for my existence is the people I love,

As they need and care for me more than I ever will.

If god me and is proud of what he created,

I guess he's wrong because my life without reason is true treason and grossly overrated.