Learn from Shakespeare, study tells doctors
PARIS (AFP) — Doctors should read up on Shakespeare, according to an unusual medical study that says the bard was exceptionally skilled at spotting psychosomatic symptoms. Kenneth Heaton, a doctor at the University of Bristol in western England, trawled through all 42 of Shakespeare’s major works and 46 genre-matched works by contemporaries. He found Shakespeare stood out for his ability to link physical symptoms and mental distress. Vertigo, giddiness or dizziness is expressed by five male characters in the throes of emotional disturbance, in “The Taming of the Shrew”, “Romeo and Juliet”, “Henry VI Part 1”, “Cymbeline”, and “Troilus and Cressida”. Eleven instances of breathlessness linked to extreme emotions are found in “Two Gentlemen of Verona”, “The Rape of Lucrece”, “Venus and Adonis” and “Troilus and Cressida”. Grief or distress is conveyed through symptoms of fatigue in “Hamlet”, “The Merchant of Venice”, “As You Like It”, “Richard II” and “Henry IV Part 2”. Disturbed hearing at a time of mental crisis crops up in “King Lear”, “Richard II” and “King John”. Meanwhile, coldness and faintness, emblematic of deep shock, occur in “Romeo and Juliet”, “Julius Caesar”, “Richard III” and elsewhere. The study appears on Wednesday in a British publication, the Journal of Medical Humanities.
Badminton at Olympics ‘could have skirts-only rule’
SHANGHAI (AFP) — Badminton officials are to resume talks over a controversial measure to force women players to wear skirts which could be in force at next year’s Olympics, an official told AFP. The proposal, which is aimed at boosting the sport’s popularity but was shelved in May after complaints that it was sexist, will be on the agenda when the Badminton World Federation (BWF) council meets next month in New Zealand. The council could decide to proceed with the hotly debated measure, abandon it or defer a decision again, a spokeswoman said. The BWF council has 14 members including 12 men and two women, according to its website. “If the discussion is conclusive there’ll be a decision,” said media spokeswoman Jan Lin before this week’s China Open in Shanghai. She confirmed that if the measure was approved it would influence the dress code at the 2012 London Olympics. China, Indonesia and India are among a host of countries which have raised objections, while in Malaysia, the opposition Pan-Malaysia Islamic Party called for a boycott of tournaments.
Thieves make off with two trains in Switzerland
GENEVA (AFP) — Two trains, including one weighing almost a tonne, have been stolen from a miniature train park in western Switzerland, the park said Saturday. The Swiss Vapeur Park said in a statement online that “the offenders have forced open the doors of two different depots, and took the two trains”. One is a petrol-run train called BVB, while another is a steam train that runs on gas, said the park located at Le Bouveret. “We do not understand how they have managed to load these trains, knowing that the BVB train alone weighs about 800 kilogrammes,” it added. The park said that its employees are “very affected by the theft” and appealed for anyone with information to contact police. The value of the trains could not be quantified, said the park, “because these models were manufactured by volunteers who are passionate about mechanics”. “What has been stolen is thousands of hours of work,” it added.
‘I itch’ to kill off corrupt civil servants, jokes Medvedev
MOSCOW (AFP) — Dmitry Medvedev joked that he “sometimes itches” to execute civil servants convicted of corruption, Russian news agencies reported Saturday. “The severity of punishment has never been the most important thing for us. Of course, in other countries, you gun down civil servants in public but in our society it is not the same,” he said. “But I sometimes itch to do something like that,” he said, during a visit to the southern Urals’ Bashkortostan region. Medvedev made the remark as he called for “effective” anti-corruption measures. Though Medvedev has made tackling corruption one of his key priorities, he has admitted only having limited success at beating the problem. Medvedev, who has been president since 2008 has agreed to step aside to let Prime Minister Vladimir Putin run for his old job again in presidential elections due in March. He is currently campaigning for legislative elections next month.
Red faces at China talks hotel over ‘Amornini’ store
CHENGDU, China (AFP) — US officials in China for trade talks could be forgiven for doubting Beijing’s claims it is doing all it can to stamp out piracy. Especially if they happened to spot the “Amornini” store in the hotel hosting the talks. The clothing store, whose bird logo closely resembles that of Italian fashion house Giorgio Armani, is just metres away from the hotel conference centre where top US and Chinese officials were holding their annual trade talks on Monday. The expensive-looking shop, along with others in the Jinjiang Hotel in the southwestern city of Chengdu, is closed due to security for the senior American and Chinese officials attending the two-day talks, which began Sunday. Vice Premier Wang Qishan, China’s top official on financial affairs, told the meeting that the Asian country had made “positive progress” addressing US concerns, which include piracy, market access and the value of the yuan.
