Updates for you

   Dhoom 3 box office collections continue to rule the charts for the third consecutive weeks. Last week, the Aamir Khan-starrer rewrote Bollywood history with its gross box office collections touching never heard of numbers with figures released by Yash Raj Film showing a plus-Rs 500 crore worldwide figure, a first for an Indian film. The blockbuster raked in Rs 500 crore by making Rs 351.29 crore in India and Rs 150.06 crore abroad, according to the production house. Dhoom 3, has also broken multiple box office collections records in India as well as overseas and continues to do so. Dhoom 3's overseas collections has gone up to nearly Rs 160 crore this week. Trade analyst Taran Adarsh tweeted “#Dhoom3 3-week Overseas total: $ 25.78 million [₹ 159.74 cr].” According to Adarsh, Dhoom 3 has collected Rs 277.73 crore in domestic box office collections till Thursday (Jan 9). According to according to distributor Sunny Khanna, “The film is going strong in its t

Can sex make us smarter? In news set to elicit shrieks of sheer elation, the latest research shows that it just might. At the very least in mice. Psychologists from the University of Maryland found that sex enhances the number of neurons in the part of the brain associated with memory and learning. Whether the rodents used in the study had sex once or many times, their brain cells multiplied. Additionally, when they had sex regularly over time, "cognitive function was improved", the paper's authors said in April. The caveat here is that to preserve the perks, you have to persevere. The researchers found that, despite the generation of new neurons (cells that transmit information throughout the body), the cognitive benefits were lost when the rats stopped having sex for prolonged periods.  The findings, taken together, revealed that sex can stimulate and restore cognitive function, t

Nuts have gotten a bad rap for being too high in fat, but the truth about them is that nuts, especially walnuts, are a powerhouse of nutrition. Contrary to what people believe, walnuts are actually good for weight management since an ounce of walnut contains 2.5g of omega 3 fats, 4g of protein and 2g of fibre that help provide satiety, Diabetic Living India magazine reported. Any successful weight management plan must include the satiety factor; so walnut is undoubtedly the right food to consider if you are into a weight management programme. Despite being ‘dense in calories, walnuts can be an important tool in helping you lose weight. These nuts can also reduce the risk of breast cancer. Eating about 28 walnut halves a day provides antioxidants and phytosterols that may help reduce the risk of the disease. The nuts can improve sleep, as they contain hormone melatonin, that induces sleep and helps regulate sleep. Th

Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), which happens in the cold months can make people feel as gloomy as the bleak landscape. Here's how to battle it... Cold days may mean hot food, walks in the breeze and romantic weather, but for some it can also translate into feelings of sadness, loss of appetite etc. Called Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) or winter depression, this is said to occur more often in women than in men. And while it's not serious — SAD — which makes you feel moody, can ruin your social calendar as you feel withdrawn. Causes and how it affects The lack of sunlight is said to make the brain to work extra time and produce melatonin, the hormone linked to depression. Says psychologist Dr Seema Hingorrany, "In addition, what happens is when you have more sunrays on you, you tend to be outdoors and more active. The opposite then happens in the absence of this. I have had cases where the person's whole outlook changed when it got dark early

India enter the five-match ODI series against New Zealand at Napier on Sunday with their No.1 spot in the team rankings at stake. India are leading the table with 120 ratings points, and enter the series leading eighth-ranked New Zealand by 36 ratings points. If India do not win the series, they will lose the No.1 rank and as many as six ratings points. India have been at the top since January 2013, when they replaced England. For New Zealand, a series win against India by any margin will mean that they will push up a place to seventh, ahead of the West Indies. A series loss for New Zealand, however, will not make any difference to their position on the rankings table. If India do not manage to win the series, either Australia or England could stake a claim on the number-one rank. Australia and England are currently playing a five-match series, with the home team leading 1-0. India's Virat Kohli will start the series in New Zealand as the highest-ranked bats

A Test series in which many would say India punched above their weight. But, for MS Dhoni and his team, a win in the series would have been a sweet silencer to all the critics, who before the series started, doubted this team’s ability to withstand the South African barrage. If not for a few mistakes, India might have had a better crack at the total. And Dhoni himself must take responsibility for a few of them. Here is a look at some of the mistakes made by the skipper that played a part in turning the tide the Proteas’ way. 1. Defensive Fields In Jo’burg, when India had ample time to pick up the wickets, Dhoni diminished India’s chances by setting surprisingly defensive fields, and not giving his bowlers enough of a chance. For far too long, Dhoni didn’t have enough men in catching positions, and sure enough, there were a few chances on offer, that could have been taken had Dhoni showed a bit more positive intent with his field placements. 2. Too much faith in Za

The tour to South Africa is done, and as expected Team India have come out second best in the Test series. However, they didn’t surrender meekly. The first Test in Jo’burg was one that India will feel they should have won, and they surrendered the advantage in Durban after having a fantastic start through Murali Vijay and Cheteshwar Pujara on Day 1. Although South Africa played better than India, as a team, the Indians will feel let-down by a few of their players through the course of the two-match series. Here are 5 of them, whose places could be under the scanner when the selectors meet to pick the team for the tour to New Zealand. 1. Shikhar Dhawan Shikhar Dhawan Scores of 13, 15, 29 and 19 are no good for an opener in any form of cricket, let alone the highest level. Shikhar Dhawan, after a promising start to his career, came unstuck in a foreign land, and couldn’t come to terms with the conditions. It was essential that Dhawan combined with Murali Vijay

                                                          BCCI's anti-corruption unit chief Ravi Sawani.   After corruption scandals in consecutive years, bookies are said to be still in touch with players. A worried Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) of the BCCI has outlined that despite its enhanced efforts to check fixing in Indian cricket, unwanted people have found easy access to players during domestic matches recently and mixed freely with them, making a mockery of established guidelines. The ACU, particularly, noted with much concern that salespersons of a company that makes a well-known energy drink found access to at least two Ranji Trophy matches played in Delhi recently. In a detailed powerpoint presentation (PPP) made during Saturday’s working committee meeting in Chennai, ACU director and former police officer Ravi Sawani enlightened Board officials about its activities. "It was a very detailed presentation, in which Sawani highlighted the steps tha

With the wicket of Jacques Kallis, courtesy a dubious LBW, Zaheer Khan completed 300 Test wickets. Among Indians, Zaheer has the fourth-most Test wickets, and the most by a left-armer.  This Test record stands at 300 wickets in 89 Test matches. Zaheer had started his Test career in 2000 against Bangladesh in Dhaka. [ See his profile ] The opponent-wise break-up of Zaheer's 300 wickets.

New Zealand all-rounder Corey Anderson cracked the fastest century in one-day international cricket history on Wednesday as New Zealand thrashed the West Indies by 159 runs in a rain-shortened third ODI. His whirlwind performance in partnership with Jesse Ryder, who smacked the sixth fastest century of all time in that form of the game, took New Zealand to 283-4 in a match reduced to 21 overs each side. The West Indies then wilted when faced with a daunting run rate of nearly 13.5 an over and could only manage 124-5 in reply. The series is now all square at 1-1 with two matches to play. Anderson -- who finished not out 131 -- took a mere 36 deliveries to reach his century, beating the previous record set by Shahid Afridi, who needed 37 balls to reach three figures playing for Pakistan against Sri Lanka in 1996. Ryder faced 46 deliveries to reach his ton. The burly Anderson hit 14 sixes, the third highest in an ODI innings behind Rohit Sharma (16) for India against Au