Sydney - Politeness might help explain why Britons were 10 per cent more likely to be among the 1,517 who went down with the Titanic than those aboard who held United States passports, an Australian researcher said Wednesday.

"We think that maybe the British engaged in this queuing behaviour, where they stood back and waited their turn (to get into the lifeboats)," said Queensland University of Technology researcher David Savage. "American society is based on individualistic ideas and we think they were maybe better able to take advantage of the opportunities that came up."

The Titanic struck an iceberg and sank on its maiden voyage in 1912 and there were only 1,178 lifeboat places for the 2,223 on board.

Sydney - The 16-member Pacific Forum meeting in Papua New Guinea on Tuesday gave Fiji a May 1 deadline to name a date for returning to parliamentary democracy or risk sanctions.

Reports from New Zealand said that if a date was not set, and elections not held this year, the forum would not let Fiji attend leaders' meetings or receive aid from the grouping.

Fiji strongman Commodore Frank Bainimarama, who ousted the elected government in a bloodless coup two years ago, did not attend the meeting because he said he was required in Suva to oversee flood-relief efforts.

Sydney, Jan 27 : A team of Australian researchers has found that human behaviour, in the form of storing water to deal with shortages, will be the main factor in the spread of the Aedes aegypti mosquito that causes dengue.

According to a report by ABC News, the team believes that the finding has major implications for public health strategies in Australia and other regions of the world affected by dengue.

Sydney, Jan. 27 : IT was a day to celebrate all things Australian, but it quickly descended into an afternoon of violence and racism, with people of Asian origin being the prime targets.

Australia Day today became a scene of brawls and vandalism across New South Wales - with anger spreading from Shell Harbor in the south to Port Macquarie in the north, The Daily Telegraph reported.

Wild brawls were also reported on the Gold Coast at Burleigh Beach, with hundreds of teenagers coming together in a series of violent confrontation on the popular family beach.

The brawls occurred at about 3 p. m. and a heavy police presence was on hand. Several arrests were made.

Sydney, Jan. 27 : Australia's cricketers have made a hash of their performances in both the Test and the one-day series against South Africa, believes cricket columnist Peter Roebuck.

In an article for the Sydney Morning Herald, Roebuck says Australia's 50-over batting is ripe for reconstruction.

"Apart from Shaun Marsh and his captain (Ricky Ponting), none of the incumbents have batted with conviction," he says.

Melbourne  - After a lifetime based in Australia,  may be planning a possible move to the US in hopes of extending his tennis career.

Hewitt, 27, wife Bec Cartwright and the couple's two children could be set for a shift of continent within months, according to Melbourne's Herald Sun - all part of a strategy to dispel any notion that the former number one might soon retire after his ranking dropped out of the Top 100.

Hewitt crashed out in the Australian Open first round.