Vienna (Ohio, US), Sept. 19  A New York Times report has claimed that Republican presidential candidate John McCain’s sense of humor, candor and observations has taken a backseat as the campaign enters its last lap.

According to the paper, there was a time when McCain never worked to a predetermined script. But now with pressure building up on him and on Democratic rival Barack Obama to see which of two will be successful in wresting the White House, McCain is a “candidate transformed.”

Islamabad, Sept 19: In order to help the poor among Pakistanis tackle the food problem amid rising prices of essential commodities and also encourage kids to attend schools, the US has decided to give Pakistan 8.4 million dollars in food aid, a statement released by the US embassy said.

The aid would be sent through the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and the United Nations World Food Programme. An agreement was signed to this effect here last evening.

Rawalpindi, Sept 19: The inside walls of toilets in Rawalpindi, be they in the universities, government offices, bus stands or airports, have become a platform for venting anti-US and anti-Bush feelings. They are inscribed with filthy anti-America and anti-Bush messages, and in some even Musharraf is rebuked, while others are written in words that can not be quoted.

Some of the samples of messages written on the walls are: “Yeh Bush Ka Ghar Hai” (This is Bush’s House), “Down with America”, “Down with Israel” and so on.

Washington, September 19 : A team of archaeologists has unearthed significant artefacts from the 14th and 15th centuries in Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Mt. Visocica.

These include eight pieces of Gothic architectural carvings and parts of glass vials dating back to the 14th and 15th centuries, imported from Venice and principalities of today’s Germany, as well as numerous pieces of ceramic.

They have also found 20 silver objects dating from the 15th-century.

Summer excavations at Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Mt. Visocica yielded these results, but not the kind an entrepreneur turned amateur archaeologist was looking for.

London, Sept 19: Election season is big business — especially for companies selling scores of Barack Obama, John McCain and Sarah Palin merchandise.

Now, Mirror. co. uk has gone through all of them and has found products that will surely make you laugh.

The top nine funniest and quirkiest US election merchandise are:

1. Obama print starting at 50 dollars on eBay

2. Candidate punching bags starting at 9.99 dollars on eBay

3. McCain t-shirt, 19.99 dollars

London, September 19: A new study has determined that a 740,000-year-old wedge of ice discovered in central Yukon Territory, Canada, is the oldest known ice in North America, thus suggesting that permafrost has survived climates warmer than today’s.

“Previously, it was thought that the permafrost had completely disappeared from the interior about 120,000 years ago,” said Duane Froese, an earth scientist at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada, who is the author of the study.

“This deep permafrost appears to have been stable for more than 700,000 years, including several periods that were warmer and wetter,” he added.