Washington, October 2 : Using a powerful radio telescope to peer into the early universe, a team of California astronomers has obtained the first direct measurement of a nascent galaxy’s magnetic field as it appeared 6.5 billion years ago, which has revealed that it is at least 10 times greater than the average value in the Milky Way.

Astronomers believe the magnetic fields within our own Milky Way and other nearby galaxies—which control the rate of star formation and the dynamics of interstellar gas - arose from a slow “dynamo effect.”

In this process, slowly rotating galaxies are thought to have generated magnetic fields that grew very gradually as they evolved over 5 billion to 10 billion years to their current levels.

New York, Oct 2 : A US district judge has reportedly ordered that the Pakistani woman terror suspect, Dr Aafia Siddiqui shall undergo a month-long “medical assessment, treatment and psychological examination” to determine if she was “medically fit and competent” to stand the trial she was facing for allegedly attempting to kill US security men during interrogation after being apprehended in Afghanistan in July.

The US-trained neuroscientist, Dr Aafia was shot in the abdomen by an officer after allegedly grabbing a US soldier''s gun during questioning in July. She was subsequently brought to the US to face charges of attempted murder and assault.

New Delhi, Oct 2: The Congress party on Thursday termed the approval of the Indo-US nuclear deal by the US Congress a "historic moment" for India as it has joined the elite nuclear club without signing the Non Proliferation Treaty (NPT) or the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT).

Congress spokesman Abhishek Manu Singhvi said, "It is definitely a historic moment calling for celebration. There is no other entity ever in the history of the nuclear development in the globe which has no CTBT, no NPT, no other commitments except 123 (accord with the US) which brings us into the nuclear club."

Washington, Oct 2 : A French diplomat in Kabul has reportedly apprised his President Nicholas Sarkozy’s office that British envoy to Afghanistan has strongly opposed the operation by alliance forces there, saying that it would fail and that the best option was to appoint a “dictator” for strife-torn Afghanistan.

Sir Sherard Cowper-Coles, the British envoy, reportedly shared his bleak assessment of the seven-year NATO campaign in Afghanistan in a briefing with a French diplomat, claim French leaks.

Sao Paulo, Oct 2 : The Nov 2 US presidential poll seems to have made an impression on the Brazilian municipal polls too, with a host of candidates here prefixing or suffixing names like “Barack”, “Obama”, “Osama”, “Osama bin Laden” with their original names in a bid to stand out in the face of their political rivals.

Washington, Oct 2: People who know Sarah Palin, and have watched her swift rise from small-town mayor to Alaska Governor to history-making vice presidential nominee, say she needs to be herself in her debate Thursday with her Democrat rival Joe Biden even if it means slipping up or appearing to fall out of step with John McCain's campaign.

“What I would tell her is ... Let Sarah be Sarah,” FOX News quoted Palin’s former pollster David Dittman, as saying.