All publications in this section in chronological order.

• The oldest national flag still in existence, that of Denmark, dates back to the 13th century
• The longest movie made lasts 85 hours and is fittingly titled "The Cure for Insomnia.
• The world's highest cricket ground is in Chail (HP), India, 2444 mts above sea level.
• The most common disease in the world is tooth decay
• Ninety percent of all species that have become extinct have been birds
• The youngest Pope was 11 years old.
• The quickest ascent of Everest, in 10 hours, 56 minutes, was achieved by Sherpa Lhakpa Gelu
• The longest fence in the world is in Australia and it runs for over 3,436 miles (5,530 km)
• The country with the most Post offices is India with over 152,792 compared with just over 38,000 in the United States.

Imam Ali (AS) was endowed with a quick, sharp, incisive, mathematical mind. Here are a few interesting stories in which Imam Ali's mathematical brilliance revealed itself.

Imam Ali's Mathematical Brilliance: DIVIDING INHERITANCE
What is a wife's share?
Imam Ali (AS) was once interrupted while he was delivering a sermon from the pulpit by someone who asked him how to distribute the inheritance of someone who had died leaving a wife, his parents and two daughters?

The Imam instantly answered: "The wife's share becomes one ninth."
 

How?
This answer is in fact the result of a long analysis with a number of steps. Ordinarily, we have to decide on the original share of each of these heirs, in the following way:
The wife takes one eighth, in view of the presence of an inheriting child. [Holy Quran 4:12]
The deceased's father and mother take one sixth each. [Holy Quran 4:11]
The two daughters take two thirds of the inheritance. [Holy Quran 4:11]
So the total will be:
1/8 + 1/6 + 1/6 + 2/3 = 3/24 + 4/24 + 4/24 + 16/24 = 27/24

This means the share becomes less than 1/8 in view of the increase of the total of the shares which are so fixed and prescribed. So the one eighth, the original share due to the wife out of twenty-four total shares, has become three shares out of a total of twenty-seven, which is one ninth.

Imam Ali's mind went through this complex mathematical process in a second!

Imam Ali's Mathematical Brilliance: WHOLE NUMBER AND NOT A FRACTION

One Day a Jewish person came to Imam Ali (AS), thinking that since Imam Ali thinks he is too smart, I'll ask him such a tough question that he won't be able to answer it and I'll have the chance to embarrass him in front of all the Arabs.
He asked "Imam Ali, tell me a number, that if we divide it by any number from 1-10 the answer will always come in the form of a whole number and not as a fraction."

Imam Ali (AS) looked back at him and said, "Take the number of days in a year and multiply it with the number of days in a week and you will have your answer."

The Jewish person got astonished but as he was a polytheist (Mushrik), he still didn't believe Imam Ali ibn Abu Talib (AS) He calculated the answer Imam Ali ibn Abu Talib (AS) gave him.

To his amazement he came across the following results:
The number of Days in a Year = 360 (in Arab)
The Number of Days in a Week = 7

The product of the two numbers = 2520

Now...
2520 ÷ 1 = 2520
2520 ÷ 2 = 1260
2520 ÷ 3 = 840
2520 ÷ 4 = 630
2520 ÷ 5 = 504
2520 ÷ 6 = 420
2520 ÷ 7 = 360
2520 ÷ 8 = 315
2520 ÷ 9 = 280
2520 ÷ 10= 252

Imam Ali's Mathematical Brilliance: DIVIDING 17 CAMELS

A person was about to die, and before dying he wrote his Will which went as follows:
"I have 17 Camels, and I have three sons. Divide my Camels in such a way that my eldest son gets half of them, the second one gets 1/3rd of the total and my youngest son gets 1/9th of the total number of Camels."

After his death when the relatives read his will they got extremely perplexed and said to each other that how can we divide 17 camels like this.
So after a long hard thought they decided that there was only one man in Arabia who could help them: "Imam Ali (AS)."

So they all came to the door of Imam Ali (AS) and put forward their problem.
Imam Ali (AS) said, "Ok, I will divide the camels as per the man's will."

Imam Ali (AS) said, "I will lend one of my camels to the total which makes it 18 (17+1=18), now lets divide as per his will."
The eldest son gets 1/2 of 18 = 9
The second one gets 1/3 of 18 = 6
The youngest gets 1/9 of 18 = 2
Now the total number of camels = 17 (9+6+2=17)

Then Imam Ali (AS) said, "Now I will take my Camel back."

Imam Ali's Mathematical Brilliance: THE FIVE LOAVES OF BREAD

Zarr Bin Hobeish relates this story: Two travelers sat together on the way to their destination to have a meal. One had five loaves of bread. The other had three. A third traveler was passing by and at the request of the two joined in the meal.

The travelers cut each of the loaf of bread in three equal parts. Each of the travelers ate eight broken pieces of the loaf.

At the time of leaving the third traveler took out eight dirhams and gave to the first two men who had offered him the meal, and went away. On receiving the money the two travelers started quarrelling as to who should have how much of the money.

The five-loaf-man demanded five dirhams. The three-loaf-man insisted on dividing the money in two equal parts.

The dispute was brought to Imam Ali (AS) (the Caliph of the time in Arabia) to be decided.
Imam Ali (AS) requested the three-loaf-man to accept three dirhams, because five-loaf-man has been more than fair to you. The three-loaf-man refused and said that he would take only four dirhams.

At this Imam Ali (AS) replied, "You can have only one dirham." You had eight loaves between yourselves. Each loaf was broken in three parts. Therefore, you had 24 equal parts. Your three loaves made nine parts out of which you have eaten eight portions, leaving just one to the third traveler. Your friend had five loaves which divided into three made fifteen pieces.

He ate eight pieces and gave seven pieces to the guest. As such the guest shared one part from your loaves and seven from those of your friend. So you should get one dirham and your friend should receive seven dirhams.

Imam Ali's Answering Difficult Questions : EARS INSIDE AND OUTSIDE


One day another Jewish person came to Imam Ali (AS). He was planning to ask Imam Ali (AS) such a question, which would take Imam Ali (AS) a long time to answer and because of that his Maghrib Prayers would be delayed.
He asked, "Imam Ali you say you know everything in the world, then tell me which animals lay eggs and which animals give birth to their young ones."

Imam Ali (AS) looked back at him smiled and said, "The animals who have their 'EARS' outside their body give birth to their young ones and the animals who have their 'EARS' inside their body lay eggs."

Propping Up the War on Terror: Lies about the WTC by NIST and Underwriters Laboratories

Taking a Closer Look: Hard Science and the Collapse of the World Trade Center

Why Did the Trade Center Skyscrapers Collapse?

1. This, too, shall pass.

Nothing stays the same. The only constant in life is change. With every decision we make, we initiate change. Even when we decide not to decide, life still goes on, and changes still occur. When we are in a state of discomfort, sadness, grief, or pain, we know that because life goes on, change will bring us some kind of relief. And because even comfort, happiness, and all good things also pass, we know that we need to appreciate and cherish each precious, fleeting moment.

2. Time heals.

The timepiece of life never stops. Neither does it pause for those who celebrate, speed up for those who are impatient, nor slow down for those who fear tomorrow. Time ticks a regular rhythm that steadily brings new moments, new days, and new seasons. As time pushes forward, we take new steps, face new challenges, and create new opportunities. And as life goes on, we are forced to move past our episodes of disappointment, sorrow, or despair. More than anything else, time heals not just broken bones but broken hearts as well.

3. Ask, and you shall receive.

People won t know what you want unless you ask for it. Dreams and goals are just wishes until you act on them, and acting on them often requires that you ask for answers, for assistance, or for something tangible. It takes a lot of courage to ask for help, but when you come forward, only then will the world know what to give you. Just ask and know that miracles can happen.

4. You can have anything, but not everything.

Life offers us infinite possibilities. With hard work, determination, and perseverance, we can achieve anything. If we re willing to pay the price and go the extra mile, we can have whatever our hearts desire. But no matter how hard we try, we can t have everything. Life is a balancing act of wins, losses, and trade-offs we gain some and we lose some.

5. What goes around comes around.

It s the universal law of nature: do to others what you want others to do to you, because whatever you sow, you reap; whatever you give, you get back ten-fold. It doesn't hurt to smile, or be kind, or extend a helping hand. You never know when or how, but every act of goodness always returns to the GIVER Give one today and receive ten tomorrow.

#1 Condoleezza Rice

Secretary of state
U.S

She is the first African-American woman to become the U.S. secretary of state. She advises the leader of the world's largest superpower and has an unparalleled level of trust with and access to the president. And she has served two other U.S. presidents, George H.W. Bush and Ronald Reagan. For all of these reasons, and more, Rice, 50, is the most powerful woman in the world.

After a four-year role as national security adviser, Rice assumed the mantle of secretary of state in January. Rice has played a key, behind-the-scenes role in all of President George W. Bush's major decisions. "During the last four years, I've relied on her counsel, benefited from her great experience and appreciated her sound and steady judgment," the president said when announcing Rice's promotion. Bush needs her now more than ever, as his approval ratings and credibility sag, his domestic agenda is stalled, and the country grows more bitterly divided over the war in Iraq.

With her steely nerve and delicate manners (she has been called the "Warrior Princess"), Rice lately has reinvigorated her position with diplomatic activism, whether it's promoting Israel's withdrawal from the Gaza Strip to ease the Palestinian conflict, or encouraging six-party talks to get North Korea to stop its pursuit of nuclear weapons, or trying to stop Sudan's genocide—to the point where her diplomatic party was recently roughed up by Sudan's strongmen. Rice also has close relationships with world leaders, having accompanied the president on numerous trips to Europe and Iraq. Rice has visited 31 countries and logged in over 119,000 miles by midyear. An unofficial Web site proclaims, "Condoleezza Rice for President 2008," which might be a long-shot idea. But a run by Rice for the presidency would make history in the U.S.

—Tatiana Serafin

 

#2 Wu Yi

Vice Premier, minister of health
China

Having risen up the ranks of China's Communist Party leadership since 1962, Wu Yi, 66, became a member of the Central Committee in 2002, adding the post of minister of health in 2003. Wu Yi has been busy this year as she helps China battle disgruntled textile manufacturers, due to the lifting of World Trade Organization quotas. In a bold June speech in Hong Kong, Wu Yi called for an end to politicizing economic issues. One key move by her country should help here. Bowing to international pressure, in July China revalued the yuan by a modest 2.1%, scrapping the yuan's ten-year-old peg to the U.S. dollar and replacing it with a tightly managed float against a basket of unspecified foreign currencies, in which the dollar will likely occupy a prominent place.

—T.S.

 

#3 Yulia Tymoshenko

Former prime minister
Ukraine

Tymoshenko, 44, was one of the leaders of Ukraine's Orange Revolution last fall that toppled a stagnant, corrupt regime. For her support, the country's new president, Victor Yushchenko, appointed her prime minister, a post she is using forcefully to shake up Ukrainian oligarchs. Her bold moves to re-privatize industrial assets, allegedly bought on the cheap by billionaires like Rinat Akhmetov and Victor Pinchuk, have met with criticism both inside and outside Ukraine. The discontent has finally caught up with her. Tymoshenko was sacked by Yuschenko in September. But don't count her out quite yet. Tymoshenko is used to controversy, having fallen out with the sitting government in 2001, leading to her arrest and later dismissal. She will be back in parliamentary elections scheduled for March 2006.

—T.S.

 

#4 Gloria Arroyo

President
Philippines

Arroyo, 58, is now fighting to hold on to her job as the opposition party seeks to file impeachment charges against her over a series of scandals, and her attempts to fix Manila's weak finances are falling apart, causing frustrated technocrats to bolt from her government. After donning the mantle of president in 2001, Arroyo tried to work diligently on her governing platform, which includes the eradication of poverty, which helped her win re-election in 2004. Nevertheless, despite a growing economy (in 2004, the Philippines economy grew an estimated 6.1%, up from 4.7% in 2003), Arroyo's stewardship has been burdened by a Muslim insurgency and the Philippines' designation as the second most corrupt country in Asia, according to a survey of businessmen conducted by the Hong Kong-based Political and Economic Risk Consultancy. Arroyo, a former classmate of Bill Clinton's at Georgetown University and a onetime economics professor, is currently under investigation by lawmakers into allegations she cheated to win last year's election; to date Arroyo has declined to testify before her government's Congress.

—T.S.

 

#5 Margaret (Meg) Whitman

Chief executive, eBay
U.S.

As ruler of the world's biggest online auction site, Whitman, 49, has successfully beaten back stiff competition from Amazon.com and Yahoo!. To do that, she has swiftly fixed any problems, has faithfully tried to weed out the fakes on her site and has posted a consistent flow of profits, making eBay the world's most valuable Internet brand. All this is to be expected. Whitman has an impressive, blue-chip résumé, with executive stints at Hasbro, the Walt Disney Co. and Bain & Co., among others. Whitman also serves on the boards of eBay as well as DreamWorks Animation, Procter & Gamble and the Gap. Despite her stock's volatility, her personal holdings are valued at $1.6 billion, making Whitman one of the richest people on the planet.

—Anne Mintz

 

#6 Anne Mulcahy

Chief executive officer, Xerox
U.S

Having pulled Xerox out of a near-fatal slump in 2002, Mulcahy, 52, is now looking to get her company back to the top of the tech world. Her ideas: color printing and lucrative consulting services. It's a tough space to exist in, with competitors like HP, Kodak and Dell battling for pieces of the printing, copying and services businesses. To highlight how Xerox has changed, Mulcahy, who took over the top job in 2001, has yanked the company's tagline, "The Document Company," in favor of going solo with the Xerox name. A Xerox veteran, she started as a lowly field-sales rep 30 years ago. Working at Xerox is all in the family for Mulcahy. Her husband is a retired Xerox exec, and her older brother now runs the global services group. One of the few elite women to run a top public company, Mulcahy is a coveted choice on corporate boards, serving on the boards of Citigroup and Target.

—Chana R. Schoenberger

 

#7 Sallie Krawcheck

Chief financial officer, Citigroup

U.S

 

 

This former equity analyst, dubbed "Mrs. Clean" thanks to her frank demeanor and focus on ethics, has risen at a blistering speed to the top ranks on Wall Street. After two years heading Smith Barney, the business unit containing Citigroup's previously ailing equity research and global private-client groups, Krawcheck, 40, was tapped to be the finance chief of Citigroup. She is viewed as one of the company's next generation of leaders and is undoubtedly one of the most influential women on Wall Street. Her power may increase as upheaval in the top ranks roils her company, notably, the imminent departure of Citigroup President Robert Willumstad. But Krawcheck has been regarded as a stabilizing force. So far, the former Sanford C. Bernstein chief executive has received good grades for restoring the reputation of a division tarnished by charges of "spinning" initial public offerings and biased stock recommendations.

—Victoria Murphy

 

#8 Chief executive officer, Sara Lee
U.S

Barnes, 51, became chief executive earlier this year after Sara Lee announced a major restructuring that included the planned sale of product lines totaling $8.2 billion in revenue. At the same time, Barnes is tackling corporate inefficiencies by encouraging shared purchasing between divisions and less bureaucracy. Barnes raised eyebrows when she left PepsiCo in 1998 to spend more time with her family. Ever since Barnes got back on the "on-ramp" into the corporate world, she has been the most oft-cited example in the business press of a woman who ditched her corporate career to spend time with her family, only to regain corporate power.

—V.M.

 

#9 Oprah Winfrey

Chairman, Harpo
U.S

With a net worth of more than $1 billion, an Academy Award nomination, a hit television show, a successful magazine (O, The Oprah Magazine) and a cable channel (Oxygen Media), there seems to be little else that Winfrey, 51, can do to add to her status as an international media phenomenon. According to her spokesperson, The Oprah Winfrey Show, launched in 1986, is aired in 112 countries, which includes the United States. Winfrey is also a vocal advocate for the education and well-being of women and children around the world, giving to those in need via Oprah's Angel Network and her personal charity, the Oprah Winfrey Foundation.

—Suzanne Hoppough

 

#10 Melinda Gates

Co-founder, The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
U.S

The numbers are both staggering and disturbing. Millions of children die every year of diseases that are preventable. Just half of all African-American and Hispanic students graduate from high school. Thousands of homeless people sleep on the streets every night. These are the statistics that have so distressed Melinda Gates, 41, and her husband, billionaire and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, that the two started an endowment, now at $28.8 billion, to fight for better health care and education for the poor around the world, as well as for at-risk families in Washington State and Oregon. Gates is also on the boards of The Washington Post Co. and drugstore.com.

—A.M.

14 things you didn't know about Bill Gates*

1. Many books have be written about Bill Gates, Amazon brings up 137,632 results.

2. The first company he founded was Traf-O-Data<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traf-O-Data>.

3. Microsoft used to be written "Micro-Soft".

4. His great-grandfather was a lawmaker and mayor, his grandfather a national bank's vice president, and his father a successful lawyer.

5. In 1968 when the first computers were installed in the Lakeside Academy, his grades degraded because he would spend days and nights learning the new device.

6. Gates, Pual Allen and their friends caused the computers in Lakeside Academy to crash because of hacking activity.

7. When he was young he used to rock back and fourth <http://www.msboycott.com/media/gates_rocking.avi>. Today he still does it when he's deep in thought.

8. In Harvard he got bored and passed most of his time programming and playing poker.

9. Gates told his teachers in university he would be a millionaire by age 30.

10. Gates turned into a billionaire at age 31.

11. One of his teachers said about him "Bill was an amazing programmer, but a disgusting person".

12. The reckless life in Harvard made him sick during summer 1974 and he quit his studies.

13. His first programming job was in high school making a program that organizes an efficient schedule. He used it to sign up to classes that had the hottest girls and have easy fridays.

14. Gates married his wife, Melinda, on January 1994 in an island in Hawaii which he rented for the wedding