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WASHINGTON : Scientists have found what they say is the earliest clear evidence of organised feasting from a 12,000-year-old burial site, a discovery which suggests humans have developed this important social behaviour much before the advent of agriculture.

An international team of archaeologists uncovered the remains of at least 71 tortoises and three wild cattle in two specifically crafted hollows from a burial cave in the Galilee region of northern Israel.
 
The tortoise shells and cattle bones, according to the scientists, exhibited evidence of being cooked and torn apart, indicating that the animals had been butchered for human consumption.
 
Lead researcher Natalie Munro of the University of Connecticut said: "Scientists have speculated that feasting began before the Neolithic period, which starts about 11.5 thousand years ago.
 
"This is the first solid evidence that supports the idea that communal feasts were already occurring -- perhaps with some frequency - at the beginnings of the transition to agriculture."
 
Munro, who carried out the research along with Leore Grosman of Hebrew University, said each of the two hollows was manufactured for the purpose of a ritual human burial and related feasting activities.
 
The tortoise shells were situated under, around and on top of the remains of a ritually-buried shaman, which suggests that the feast occurred concurrently with the ritual burial, said the researchers who detailed their findings in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
 
On their own, they said, the meat from the discarded tortoise shells could probably have fed about 35 people, but it's possible that many more than that attended this feast.
 
Munro said: "We don't know exactly how many people attended this particular feast, or what the average attendance was at similar events, since we don't know how much meat was actually available in the cave.
 
"The best we can do is give a minimum estimate based on the bones that are present."
 
A major reason why humans began feasting -- and later began to cultivate their own foods -- is because faster human population growth had begun to crowd their landscape.
 
In earlier periods of the Stone Age, the researchers said, small family groups were often on the move to find new sources of food. But, around the time of this feast that lifestyle had become much more difficult.
 
Munro said: "People were coming into contact with each other a lot, and that can create friction. Before, they could get up and leave when they had problems with the neighbours.
 
"Now, these public events served as community-building opportunities, which helped to relieve tensions and solidify social relationships."
 
But when a once-nomadic group of humans settles down, that can put tremendous pressure on the local resources. The scientists noted that humans around the time of this feast were intensively using the plants and animals which their descendants later domesticated.
 
"The appearance of these feasts at the beginnings of agriculture is particularly interesting because people are starting to experiment with domestication and cultivation," she notes.
 
This combination of increased social interaction and changes in resources, Munro said, is what eventually led to the beginnings of agriculture.
 
"These kinds of social changes are the beginnings of significant changes in human social complexity that lead into the beginning of the agricultural transition."

Skullcandy is shedding its flab. Instead of the ear-muff-size head phones, the company has now come out with two noise isolating earbuds, the Skullcandy Full Metal Jacket and Skullcandy Titan.

The Full Metal Jacket is specially designed for Blackberry and iPhones and can also be used with IPod and other MP3 players. The shiny, metal buds are ideal for bass lovers and cost Rs 3,559. The Titan earphones, on the other hand, come with precision-tuned drivers with laser-cut aluminum housing to produce a listening experience that seems nothing less than out of this world. The buds come with a nylon and mesh carrying case and foam ear tip. Rs 2,099.
 
Cutting edge

The ASUS NX90 notebook is the perfect blend of style with cutting-edge technology. With an eye-catching polished aluminum body and an 18.4” LED backlit screen, the NX90 can take centrestage in any décor. The state-of-the art features include speakers placed alongside the screen to ensure the sound wraps the users and dual touchpad to double usability. The notebook has a stupendous 8GB memory, an unprecedented 1TB of storage plus a very handy BluRay optical drive. But all this will weigh 4.4kg with the six-cell battery and cost you Rs 1,31,999.
 
Droid, the sequel

The Droid2 looks like the first Droid, but is almost twice as fast. The Droid2 runs on the newest version of the Android operating system installed, 2.2, also called “Froyo,” which offers a pile of new features. Chief among them is the ability to view Flash video and animation, which is limited on iPhones and some other smartphones. It can also be used as a Wi-Fi hot spot, which means you can connect your computer — up to five devices, actually — to the Internet. If you prefer to use the keyboard, Motorola did away with the largish navigation control from the first Droid, leaving room to space out the keys for less cramped typing. If you have an original Droid, you can instantly upgrade it by adding 2.2, now available for it and the HTC EVO.

MUMBAI : Indices came off highs, after starting the day on a strong note on Thursday on the back of gains across Asia. Automobile stocks took over the lead from realty, pushing it to second place. Metals too gave in their third position to banking stocks. IT, telecom and entertainment stocks slipped into the red.

At 9:37 am, Nifty was at 5492.35, up 20.5 points or 0.37 per cent but off the early high of 5513.95. The National Stock Exchange benchmark had opened at 5471.90 against Wednesday’s close of 5471.85.

Sensex was at 18,283.85, higher by 77.98 points or 0.43 per cent. The Bombay Stock Exchange sensitive index had kicked off the session at 18,215.28 versus the previous close of 18,205.87. The 30-share index saw a high of 18,355.84 in early trades.

Top Sensex gainers were Jaiprakash Associates (2.68%), HDFC Bank (1.58%), Sterlite Industries (1.37%), Maruti Suzuki (1.32%), DLF (1.21%), ICICI Bank (1.20%), Tata Steel (1.13%), Hindalco (1.12%), ONGC (0.98%), Reliance Communications (0.95%), Bharti Airtel (0.80%), Tata Motors (0.71%), Wipro (0.67%).

Losers comprised Hero Honda (-0.51%), Infosys Technologies (-0.45%), Reliance Infrastructure (-0.28%), Jindal Steel (-0.16%), Tata Power (-0.14%), NTPC (-0.03%) and Tata Consultancy Services (-0.01%).

“Today, we expect the Indian markets to open in the green and move up further during the day. Next resistance to watch for on the Nifty is 5,500. Banks, FMCG, IT and metals could do well today,” said HDFC Securities in its morning note.
 

LONDON : Actress Lindsay Lohan thinks that sexism is rife in Hollywood - because female stars who misbehave are shunned, while their male counterparts keep their deals.

The 'Mean Girls' star has seen her career falter over the last few years.
 
She was engulfed in a series of personal struggles, which culminated in a jail stint this summer (10) for breaching her probation from a 2007 DUI arrest.
 
Lohan has struggled to land film roles during her troubled times, but she's convinced that she would have continued working despite her personal problems, if she was male.
 
"It's not OK. But they (men who misbehave) still keep their deals, they still keep their contracts, they still keep their roles, they still get their gigs," the Daily star quoted her as telling Vanity Fair magazine.