Sydney, Jan 30 : Unusual patterns of eye contact could help detect developing autism symptoms in babies just six months old, reveals a study.La Trobe University psychologist Kristelle Hudry, a key researcher in the study, says the results of the study are linked with emerging autism.

Hudry and her UK colleagues studied six to 10-month-old babies who were at risk of developing autism because they had a sibling with the condition, the journal Current Biology reported.

Sydney, Jan 5 - Captain Michael Clarke posted the highest Test score at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) while Mike Hussey struck the third century of the innings to take Australia to a massive 583 for four in the first innings, in reply to India's 191, at lunch on the third day of the second cricket Test here Thursday.

Clarke was batting on 293 and Hussey on 111, and their 258-run unbroken stand for the fifth wicket stretched Australia's first innings lead by 392 runs after a dominating first session's play.

Sydney, Sep. 28 : Experienced Australian left-arm fast bowler Mitchell Johnson has been left out of the national T20 squad for the upcoming tour of South Africa, while Victorian batsman David Hussey loses his spot in the one-day lineup.

Young fast bowlers Patrick Cummins and James Pattinson have won selection in both squads, while rising all-rounder Mitchell Marsh claimed a berth in the T20 lineup, the Sydney Morning Herald reports.

Sydney, Sep 22: Australian skipper Michael Clarke is backing left-arm
fast bowler Mitchell Johnson's selection for the South Africa tour
saying that he remains an integral part of the Test side despite his
dreadful form in recent months.

Johnson collected just six
wickets at an average of 52 in Sri Lanka, and was outperformed by Ryan
Harris, Trent Copeland and Shane Watson.

Also in Johnson's favour is his excellent record against South Africa, whom he terrorized in 2009.

"He

Sydney, Sept 19 : The myth that red wine is good for preventing heart attacks has come under question from health experts, who have said that any type of alcoholic drink can only do a drinker damage.

The Alcohol Policy Coalition has challenged the red wine "myth" with recent international research showing that light drinkers are at less risk of heart disease than abstainers.

The coalition cites studies finding that the harms from alcohol are likely to outweigh any benefits.

Sydney, Sept 8: Australian cricket captain Michael Clarke's mother Debbie is recovering at home after recently suffering a brain haemorrhage.

The Australian captain''s mother spent two weeks in hospital in early August, but she is now on the mend and back in her southern Sydney home, The Daily Telegraph quoted sources close to Clarke, as saying.

Sydney, Sept 8 : Former Australian cricket captain Ricky Ponting and wife Rianna has been blessed with a second baby daughter, whom they have named Matisse Ellie.

Ponting flew home from the tour of Sri Lanka to be present for the birth of their second daughter, telegraph. com. au reports.

The Pontings have a three-year-old daughter, Emmy.

It is expected that Ponting will return to Sri Lanka for the third and final Test, which is scheduled to begin on September 16 in Colombo.

Sydney, Aug 31 : Brad Pitt has revealed that he was "obsessed" with making his new movie `Moneyball'.

The movie, based on the true story of a baseball team manager who revolutionised the sport by introducing a form of statistical analysis, has faced more than the standard Hollywood hurdles in nearly a decade of its development.

The flick was on the brink of being filmed two years ago but Sony pulled the plug and one of its directors, Sodeburgh left, with Pitt holding it together all alone in a "dark week".

Sydney, Aug. 20 : Now with the Argus review out in the public domain, the criticism and assessment of outgoing chairman of selectors Andrew Hilditch is gaining ground.

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, the kindest assessments of Hilditch paint him as an intelligent but busy man who is uncomfortable in the spotlight and struggled to keep his finger on the pulse of Australian cricket.

More brutal assessments accuse him and his colleague, Greg Chappell, of incoherent selection policies and bafflingly poor communication.

Sydney, August 08 : Indian actress Freida Pinto has revealed that though she is living "all over the world" nowadays, she wants to own a house in Mumbai one day.

The star, who grew up in Mumbai and rose to fame with Danny Boyle''s 2008 Oscar-sweeping film `Slumdog Millionaire', said she invested some money on a flat in Mumbai when she received her first significant pay
cheque but the sale never went through.

Despite a negative auditing in Western Sydney, NSW Premier Kristina Keneally denied the allegations of fudging of waiting lists in hospitals. The audit of Sydney West Area Health Services by the government established the hundreds of instances of patients being reclassified to keep the numbers of waiting list down.

Experts have once again asked for tanning beds to be banished after a shocking new study affirmed that they dramatically raise skin cancer risk.

The research is the first of its kind to probe all tanning beds types and comes only months after a scrutiny of salons across Sydney indicated that the majority of operators were flouting regulations by exposing clients to unnecessary dosages of UV radiation, and treating kids and fair-skinned adults.

But the Australian administration denied placing a ban on the tanning beds regardless of calls from the NSW Greens.

Sydney, Apr 27  : The report about the involvement of a famous Australian cricketer who allegedly helped fix Indian Premier League matches played in South Africa last year has been denied by Indian tax authorities.

Indian tax officials have denied issuing a report naming 27 cricketers, including a "famous Australian", for spot fixing during last year's IPL.

The story was first carried in Mid-Day newspaper, which quoted an income tax report as stating, "during IPL, the match fixing and betting racket has scaled new heights".

US retailer Costco announced today that its plan to set up its Australian headquarters in Sydney has got the approval from the NSW government. Costco plans to build its second store in Australia after the pilot store in Melbourne.

The new store will also be used as its headquarters in Australia. The NSW government approved the project saying that it will create around 230 permanent jobs.

According to the authorities in Sydney, they were looking for four boys as young as 10 who beat a Scottish tourist so severely he was hospitalized in critical condition.

The Australian Broadcasting Corp. has reported that Mark Willis, 25, was attacked by four boys of ages 10-15 early on Wednesday when he got off a bus with his girlfriend.

The broadcaster further said that he underwent emergency surgery for head injuries.

Sydney, March 20 - Cinema can go a long way in promoting positive bilateral relations between Australia and India, especially Bollywood films as they are "all about heart", said Rani Mukerji, who was here as chief guest at the 2010 Indian Film Festival - Bollywood and Beyond.

Bryan Smith, the master mariner, has been chosen as the new Chairman of Sydney Ports Corporation. It was told by Paul McLeay, the minister for ports and waterways, on Wednesday.

Talking about the new appointment, the minister said that these are very exciting times for the company because of various issues coming into play. One and the most important part is the recovery that the economy is seeing. This means more trade and that also means that future holds some really good prospects for the business.

In such a situation, a strong leader at the top is the need of the hour and Smith can provide just that.

An academic says that Sydney, a city known for its aggressive surfers, is one of the developed world's most hostile cities for bicyclists.

The Sydney Morning Herald reported on Friday that the Australian city did not invent "aggro," but to Rutgers University Professor John Pucher, who spent a sabbatical year in Sydney, it's downright hazardous there.

A new study concludes that women of greater genetic diversity have more sexual partners. Researchers in Western Australia have said that it can be explained why some women are more sexually successful than others.

Having a diverse set of genes was beneficial because it meant a person had more defenses against invading germs, said Professor Leigh Simmons, of the University of Western Australia.

The expert further claimed that such genetic 'success' was thought to influence mate choice.

Sydney, Jan 11 : A small marine creature, found in the murky mysterious depths of the Kermadec Ridge in New Zealand, is causing a stir among scientists.

The amphipod, now kept in ethanol at the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research's (NIWAR) collections, is believed to be a species never seen on dry land before.

Niamh Kilgallen of the institute said the amphipod had been collected by NIWAR scientists at the ridge, northeast of New Zealand, in 2002, but initially staff members had not believed it was a new species.

However, late last year staff at work reorganising and registering the 100,000 items held in the institute's collection took another look.