LIFE AFTER DEATH

An Australian woman (41) was ,on Monday,brought back to life,in Melbourne,after having been declared clinically dead for 42 minutes,following a cardiac arrest. Doctors at the Monash Medical Centre used a Lucas-2,the only compression device of its kind in the country-to circulate blood to Vanessa Tanasio's brain while attempting to unblock her main artery. 

The device,as during cardiopulmonary resuscitation,physically compresses the chest and allows doctors to insert a stent into a blood vessel. Her heart was then shocked back into a normal rhythm. Tanasio, a mother of two,said she remembered," being on the couch,then on the floor,then arriving at the hospital and then two days go missing.I was dead for nearly an hour and only a week later,I feel great.It's surreal."

Source: The Hindu, dated 20/8/2013

LEANING TOWER OF PISA

The Leaning Tower of Pisa is continuing its steady return to "straightness",according to reports.According to a group in charge of monitoring the structure,the tower has recovered roughly 2.5 cm of its vertical incline between 2001 and 2013.Since 1992,the vertical inclination of the tower has moved from 4.5 meters to 4.1. Several "rescue" interventions,some of which are underground,were conducted to stabilize the tower and the researchers were able to achieve a 2.5 cm decrease over the last decade.The slight progress has allowed the tower to retain its popular modifier and experts say that it can now be considered safe for the next two to three centuries.
(SOURCE: The Economic Times dated 14/8/2013)

MARCH TO MARS

More than one lakh people have applied for a one way trip to Mars, as part of the ambitious multi-million dollars Mars-One Project.It sets the price based on GDP-per Capita of each nation.As far as the first crew is concerned,the mission will cost US Dollar 6 billion,Bas Lansdrop,Mars One CEO and co-founder said.They are set to leave for Mars in September,2022,landing in April,2023.Another group will follow two years later.None of them will return to Earth,according to the mission plan.
(Source: The Hindu dated 12/8/2013)