Generally, elections in Tamil Nadu are like temple festivals -- there are lights, fireworks, music, dance and colourful people. But Election 2009 seems to be muted in the state.

AC Milan surged up to joint second in Serie A thanks to Filippo Inzaghi's hat-trick in a 5-1 home thrashing of lowly Torino on Sunday.

Filippo Inzaghi scored a hat-trick to help AC Milan strengthen their grip on third spot in Serie A with a 3-0 home win over Atalanta on Sunday.

Atul Nakhasi is among several students from Iowa University attending Barack Obama's inauguration as the 44th President of the United States. "Iowa had a special place in the election as the first state to conduct the caucus. When Obama appeared on the campaign scene there, he was virtually unknown compared to Senator John Edwards or Senator Hillary Clinton," Nakhasi, who was called the 'campus king maker' during the election cycle, said.

Ferrari presented a new-look 2009 Formula One car on Monday with team boss Stefano Domenicali recognising that new regulations would make it harder for the Italian team to defend their title. Formula One has to contend with major changes this year, including slick tyres and revised aerodynamics designed to make overtaking easier. There are also cost-cutting measures, such as a ban on testing during the season, due to the global financial crisis.

India-born author Salman Rushdie and Indian Canadian filmmaker Deepa Mehta will collaborate to produce a movie based on his prize winning novel Midnight's Children.

India-born British novelist Sir Salman Rushdie, voted the best of the Bookers in a public poll in Britain for his Midnight's Children, has even failed to make it to the shortlist for the '2008 Man Booker Prize'.

Francesco Valiani scored a stunning goal as promoted Bologna beat AC Milan 2-1 at the San Siro on Sunday to spoil Ronaldinho's Serie A debut.

Three Indian authors are on the 2008 Booker Prize long-list. Will any of them win the feted prize?

Debut writer Mohammed Hanif and former winner Salman Rushdie were among 13 writers selected for the longlist of this year's Man Booker Prize for fiction. The judges chose writers from Australia, India, Ireland, Pakistan and the UK from 112 entries.

A creative writing workshop by Renu Balakrishnan who wrote book reviews for Elan Magazine and has conducted writing workshops for teachers in schools and colleges.

In a letter to The Guardian, Rushdie, who last week won the Best of the Bookers award, said that he had broken wine writer Malcolm Gluck's record for book signings. Gluck's claimed his record is 1,001 copies in 59 minutes, set at a wine warehouse in London in 1998.

Salman Rushdie was named winner of the Best of the Booker award for Midnight's Children. When voting closed on July 8, over 7,800 people had voted (online and SMS) for the six shortlisted titles, with 36 percent voting for Midnight's Children.

The world champions face Belgium in a friendly in Florence on Friday ahead of their Euro 2008 Group C matches against the Netherlands, Romania and France.

Juventus striker Alessandro Del Piero and Sampdoria forward Antonio Cassano have been included in Italy's provisional 24-man squad for Euro 2008, coach Roberto Donadoni said on Tuesday. Del Piero, 33, has not played for the world champions in eight months but was expected to be included after finishing as Serie A's top scorer for the first time with 21 goals this term.

If your blood pressure is high, do not fret. Just breathe slowly, turn on some quiet, slow rhythmic music and watch your blood pressure tumble drastically. According to researchers at the American Society of Hypertension's 23rd Annual Scientific Meeting and Exposition, patients with mild hypertension who listened to just half an hour of classical, Celtic or raga music a day for four weeks experienced significant reductions in 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure.

Inter Milan will retain their title if they defeat AC Milan in next weekend's derby after the Serie A leaders beat Cagliari 2-1 on Sunday.

Kaka netted a hat-trick to help AC Milan keep their Champions League qualification hopes alive with a 5-1 win over relegation-threatened Reggina on Sunday.

Second-half goals by Mauro Camoranesi and David Trezeguet gave Juventus a 2-1 win at Serie A leaders Inter Milan on Saturday, while second-placed AS Roma beat Empoli 2-1 to move within four points of the champions.

A Christian Panucci goal gave 10-man AS Roma a 2-1 home win over strugglers Empoli on Saturday, cutting Inter Milan's lead in Serie A to four points before the champions take on Juventus.

Alessandro Del Piero's Euro 2008 hopes suffered a fresh blow on Saturday when Italy coach Roberto Donadoni left the striker out of his squad for Wednesday's friendly in Spain.

Marcelo Zalayeta capitalised on an early blunder by Inter Milan keeper Julio Csar as Napoli ended the leaders's unbeaten record in Serie A on Sunday with a 1-0 home win.

Jamaica's Veronica Campbell-Brown has no intention of relinquishing her Olympic 200 metres title at this year's Beijing Games, even if she will probably start as favourite for the more prestigious 100 metres crown. The 25-year-old won the world title in the shorter sprint in Osaka last year and is aiming to become the first woman -- barring the now disgraced Marion Jones -- to win both in one Games since Florence Griffiths Joyner two decades ago.

According to a survey carried out in Britain, many believe that Mahatma Gandhi and Churchill are just mythical figures like Florence Nightingale, popularly known as the 'Lady with the Lamp'. In fact, almost a quarter of the population has the popular notion that Churchill, who has often been hailed as "the greatest Briton of all time", was made up.

In a damning article, the Vatican's official newspaper L'Osservatore Romano has condemned the popular teenage boy wizard for promoting witchcraft and occult.

Why does bad shopping happen to good travelers? Lynn Yaegar ponders vacation-induced shopping anxiety.

Florence can overwhelm a visitor. Very few cities in Europe or even the world match it for its atmosphere.

Milan are still looking for their first league win at the San Siro this season and after eight games they are 11th with 10 points.

In a rare gesture, touching tributes were paid to 5,782 Indian soldiers who laid down their lives during the World War II, fighting for Italy against fascist forces.

Paul Dryden, Third Secretary (Consular and Visa) at the British Deputy High Commission in Kolkata, answered questions about UK universities and student visas during a July 23 expert chat.

Dr Sreenivasan was one of the 72 new members, whose election was announced by NAS.

Justice Carol Berkman of the State Supreme Court who apparently agreed with the prosecution's description of Sinha, said that Sinha's privileged background did make "all the more culpable."

In the seven intervening years since his "dream" Budget of 1997, the only thing that doesn't seem to have changed about him is his name.

China struggles to build a livable city inside a world-class business capital.

Policeman Filippo Reciti's death could be a turning point in Italy.

ForbesTraveler's definitve list finds the most interesting, accommodating and overall best hotels and resorts around the globe.

Italy defender Fabio Grosso has been ruled out of Saturday's European Championship qualifier against Ukraine due to a thigh strain.

A quiz on business literature.

The controversial author has said that his experience of living with fundamentalism has relevance for all people now.