Islamabad, Sept: Rebutting media reports that the British government had declared Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman as persona non-grata (an unwelcome person), the British High Commission has said that the Maulana still held a valid visit visa to the UK.

“The British government has not excluded Maulana Fazlur Rehman, nor does it have any plans to do so. Indeed Maulana currently holds a valid visit visa to the UK,” the Daily Times quoted a statement issued by the British High Commission as saying.

London, September 12 : An attempt to break the world land-speed record for a wind-powered vehicle has failed due to bad weather conditions, which the Brit duo attribute to global warming.

Dale Vince and Richard Jenkins said that uncharacteristic heavy rain over Lake LeFroy, a 500 sq km salt lake in Western Australia, had left their attempt high and dry.

The two Britons had hoped to see their carbon-neutral vehicle, Greenbird, beat the record of 187kmph. 

London, September 12 : If reports are to be believed, the US military is training psychiatrists to interrogate terrorism suspects, in defiance of internationally agreed codes of conduct which bar doctors from involvement in interrogation.

“It undermines the notion of psychiatrists as healers, and undermines trust in the profession,” Jonathan Marks, a professor of bioethics and law at Pennsylvania State University, University Park, told New Scientist.

London, September 12 : Ecologists have warned that global warming might result in species shrinking in size.

According to a report in New Scientist, Kaustuv Roy, a biologist at the University of California in San Diego, believes that scientists need to think now about how they are going to preserve large species.

“Our collective actions are negatively affecting body sizes of many living species,” said Roy.

London, September 12: A recent flyby of the Cassini spacecraft has shown that Saturn’s moon Titan is temporarily magnetised by encounters with its host planet.

According to a report in New Scientist, the new find could help researchers understand the ultimate fate of Titan’s atmosphere. It may also help reveal whether Titan hides a salty ocean beneath its surface.

Titan’s atmosphere is a thick soup of nitrogen, as well as hydrocarbons like methane. It is thought to be very similar to the early Earth.

But researchers don’t know how much of its atmosphere is gradually escaping into space.

London, September 12 : Cars that can shrink into tight parking spaces, are wind-powered, and can even do a u-turn on the spot are among the 29 vehicles that have made the shortlist for the Peugeot Design Contest 2008.

The list even includes a car that can bend in the middle to allow the driver a better view of the road ahead, and a two-wheeler that is operated by a joystick rather than a steering wheel.

Participants in the event were told to concentrate on environmental awareness, social harmony, interactive mobility and economic efficiency, while retaining the Peugeot style.

Ying Hui Choo, a participant from Singapore, said that his Peugeot Blade is designed for "pure driving enjoyment".