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A patent that Facebook was awarded about a month ago, called “Visual tags for search results generated from social network information,” is suddenly getting some industry attention.

The official description of the patent says:

Search results, including sponsored links and algorithmic search results, are generated in response to a query, and are marked based on frequency of clicks on the search results by members of social network who are within a predetermined degree of separation from the member who submitted the query. The markers are visual tags and comprise either a text string or an image.

Greg Sterling at Search Engine Land calls it a patent on social search – an area, where Google is placing more focus these days (with good reason).

We’ve talked repeatedly about how important it is for the search engines to get social search right, and without Facebook data, it seems unlikely that Google will be able to do that – at least as long as Facebook continues to be the dominant form of social communication. Luckily, there are third party tools emerging to help bridge the gap.

We’ve also talked about how Facebook could become an important contender in the search market. This patent only adds more fuel to the fire in that department. Facebook has been doing other things to improve its search feature, and this isn’t the first search-related patent for the company either.

The bottom line is that with so much social interaction going on among true friends and family, the most trusted (by any given user) opinions are most likely to be obtained via Facebook than on any other site on the web. That information is incredibly valuable for many types of searches.

Meanwhile, Facebook is about to do something interesting with Deals:

n case you can’t read that, it says, “Subscribe now to get notified when Deals are available in your area and receive regular updates about new offers.”

Right now, the only cities listed are Atlanta, Dallas, Austin, San Diego, and San Francisco, but “more cities coming soon.”

Things are going to continue to get more interesting for companies like Groupon and Foursquare, as we see more overlap between the Deals space and the location-based service space. While this particular offering from Facebook is more Groupon than Foursquare, Foursquare is increasingly becoming more of an interesting place for businesses to turn to for customer offers.

On a side note, having just got back from Austin, I’ll say that Foursquare’s presence was felt tenfold over Facebook’s throughout SXSW Interactive. CEO Dennis Crowley (pictured below, playing an actual game of Foursquare at a company party at SXSW) said that Google would make an interesting partner.  He also said that he is not opposed to potential Facebook Places integration, though he doesn’t hear demand for it very often.

Deals and location are both areas that Facebook and Google may find themselves competing with each other more and more. Foursquare could end up being a key component to that, as a leader in the LBS space.

Do you think Facebook poses a threat to Google? Tell us what you think. 

Three people suspected to have been attempting to detonate an explosive at a church in Jos North council of Plateau State were on Sunday killed.Lucky escape, priest of the ECWA church. Photo

Eye witnesses say two men riding on a motor cycle were killed when the explosive they were carrying detonated.

The third person was riding alone and turned to escape from the scene of the explosion when a crowd of residents caught and killed him before setting his body ablaze.

The incident which occurred at about 9:45am took place around the premises of ECWA church, Nassarawa Gwong, some 300 meters from Angwa Rukuba junction scene of the multiple explosions of December 24, last year.

The Pastor in charge of the ECWA parish, Satti Adamu said he was in the church when he heard the sound the explosion. He said "when I came out, I was told that some Hausa boys wanted to throw a bomb and it exploded and killed them".

A church pastor is facing jail after trafficking children into Britain and keeping them as servants in her home in a case described as "modern day slavery", it can be revealed today.

Lucy Adeniji, 44, smuggled two children and a 21-year-old woman into Britain from Nigeria on false passports claiming they were her own.

With disturbing echoes of the Victoria Climbié tragedy, the Nigerian, an illegal immigrant and mother of five, promised the children's parents she would give them a better life in the UK, but instead delivered vicious beatings if they failed to please her.

The alarm was raised when the older "servant" ran from Adeniji's Barking home in just a towel after being beaten and forced to strip and kneel down.

Adeniji, who has written a series of books on child care, was convicted of assault, child cruelty and facilitating illegal entry into the UK of a child.

She also admitted six counts of obtaining false passports for herself and her own children and two counts of facilitating illegal entry.

Detectives from the Met's Operation Paladin squad which tackles child trafficking say the case highlights growing concern over children brought to Britain for domestic servitude or benefit fraud.

Adeniji faces a separate inquiry into thousands of pounds she claimed in benefits for her own children.

Two of her "servants" gave evidence against her at Isleworth crown court.

A jury heard how Adeniji took Olubukols 'Buki' Adeniji into her five bedroom home in Ray Gardens, Barking, after she was brought into the country aged 11 from Nigeria on a false passport.

Buki, who arrived in 1997, was supposed to be continuing her education in Britain but was never sent to school and was forced to wait on Adeniji's own children. Her day started at 5am and she was not allowed to bed until 1am.

She was regularly beaten, prosecutor Tim Starkey said, and on one occasion pepper was put in her eyes and genitals as punishment and she was struck with a meat cleaver.

Adeniji also brought Solomon Ordu, who arrived when he was 15 in 2000, and Dorcus Amoo, who was 21, when she arrived, into the UK on false passports. Both were kept as house workers and routinely beaten, the court heard. Mr Starkey said: "All three stayed at her house, effectively as domestic servants and worked unpaid carrying out chores looking after her own five children. They were physically mistreated."

Detective Inspector Gordon Valentine, of Paladin, said : "At just 11-years old, a time when any child should rightfully be at school, this poor young girl was forced to feed her keepers' children, wash their clothes and do the household cleaning, with little or no access to the outside world.

"Not only this, but she was in a strange country and beaten. This is an illustration that even in our society that slavery still exists and is happening within in our communities. We are asking people to be aware of this and bring these matters to the attention of the authorities."

Adeniji faces sentencing next month after being convicted on Friday. Victoria Climbié was eight when she died at the hands of her guardian, great-aunt Marie Therese Kouao, who was found guilty of murder along with her boyfriend Carl Manning in 2003.

The girl's parents sent her to London from Ivory Coast for a better life but she was beaten and tortured and died in

Olubukols 'Buki' Adeniji described a number of assaults to police, One particular assault in April 2006 was described in detail whereby Adeniji repeatedly hit her with a stick following an argument over a fish meal, to the extent that Olubukols 'Buki' Adeniji fell to the floor unconscious and was then kicked in the head by Adeniji. Olubukols 'Buki' Adeniji states that Dorcus Amoo witnessed this assault, and then told her that Adeniji was going to kill her.

At around the same time as the alleged assault and threat, a pastor at church gave a sermon about parental responsibility and childcare.

Olubukols 'Buki' Adeniji told police that this spurred her on to leave the house and she ran away to stay with friends. Metropolitan Police Service, Detective Inspector Gordon Valentine, from Operation Paladin, said: "At just 11 years old, a time when any child should rightfully be at school, this poor young girl was forced to feed her keepers' children, wash their clothes and do the household cleaning, with little or no access to the outside world. Not only this, but she was in a strange country and beaten for her loyalty".

Julie Reene, assistant director, UK Border Agency, said:

"This was a truly shocking case in which vulnerable children were trafficked into the UK and treated appallingly. Adeniji exploited her victims in the most terrible ways. We will continue to work closely with the police and other law enforcement partners to prevent and prosecute this kind of awful crime". "On 19 May 2009, Adeniji's home address was searched by police and she was arrested on suspicion of trafficking for the purpose of domestic servitude".

Get rich or grow old while trying .President Goodluck Jonathan and his running mate think so little of Nigerians that they have so far fled any venue where the presidential candidates have been invited to hold a debate. But when young Nigerians invited all the candidates to a debate tagged “What About Us?” to be anchored by acclaimed novelist, Chimamanda Adichie, many of them were certain that Mr. Jonathan would not say no to them.

They obviously didn’t know the man.

Instead of facing Adichie, Mr. Jonathan arranged his own one-man “debate,” inviting Nigeria’s hip-hop star, D'banj (whose real name is Dapo Daniel Oyebanjo) to ask him questions in a low-grade, soft session.

On March 17, 2011, D’banj took off his so-called Kokomaster hat and replaced it with that of the voice of the Nigerian youth as he took it upon himself to ask President Jonathan questions "concerning the youth."

We would not have bothered if Jonathan was being prepped for a reality show on D'banj's Koko mansion, but this was a session with a man asking Nigerian voters, including young ones, to entrust him with the highest political office in their country.

Having decided to duck from a debate organized by numerous Nigerian youth groups, Mr. Jonathan nevertheless wanted to show off that he's got the backing of the Nigerian youth. He chose a well-known popular entertainer as collaborator in a patently deceptive game.

Jonathan got it wrong!

Jonathan must have figured that the interview occurred at an opportune moment. It was his attempt to divert attention from the calls for real debates on an independent platform. Yet, in giving D’banj the job of asking him questions, Mr. Jonathan sought to give the impression that he’s in touch with the youth—and has great regard for them. But by choosing a rich stage performer who is obviously out of touch with the realities of the average Nigerian youth, President Jonathan showed himself up as a clueless leader who is out of tune with the vast majority of Nigerian youth and their top issues in the upcoming elections.

D'banj was an embarrassment. He spent much of the interview nodding blankly at Goodluck Jonathan's uninformed answers. The social media universe was merciless. It twittered insults at D’banj and his sponsor, Jonathan. On facebook, more barbs were flung at the two men. Many of D’Banj’s fans pointed to their newfound disrespect for the artist who is now seen as a man with a purchase price.

Many critics were disgusted that D’banj, who’s on Jonathan’s payroll, would dare appoint himself to represent the Nigerian youth.

By granting an interview to the likes of D’banj, Jonathan has ignored the politically aware coalition that formed “What About Us?”—a collection of talented, imaginative, articulate, highly educated and globally acclaimed Nigerian youth.

“Why would this man ignore the youth-led initiative for a real debate and give a comical interview to a hireling like D’banj?” asked a disappointed youth. “Is President Jonathan so scared that he won’t take questions from Chimamanda Adichie?” asked another.

D'Banj’s performance was so bad that he came out looking like a brainless political pawn, too grateful to sit across from a candidate who appears too timid and too unsure of himself to submit to any real debate.

Jonathan and the PDP may be misjudging the youth who are determined to put an end to the era of mediocrity and criminal showmanship that has dragged their nation backward for several decades.
 
For D’banj it was a regrettable moment, marking his career as an anti-youth crusader.

Adding to D’Banj’s miscalculation is the discovery that the Jonathan campaign is a sponsor of the Koko Concert scheduled to be held on the 25th of March, the same day as the Adichie-anchored youth debate. Many young people have reacted furiously to the news.

While this move might have been packaged by the Jonathan campaign as an ostensible outreach to the youth community, it came off as a huge gaffe, leaving the President looking disconnected from the core concerns of young people—and a man too afraid to speak to the youth without a script.

As for D’banj, the question is whether he’s going to ever regain respect within the Nigerian youth community. One former fan tweeted: "See d cheap propaganda of Dbanj n GEJ. I see y naija youths cant be trusted. Dbanj na west."

The entertainer’s huge public relations misstep might not matter to him, though; he’s making trips to the bank to lodge his lucre!

But one thing is certain, Nigerian youths don’t seem in any mood to be manipulated by politicians who hold them and their issues in contempt—or by their hirelings, whatever seductive songs they may sing!

culled from SR. report yourself 

Pop sensation Justin Bieber meets wax double

Teenage pop sensation Justin Bieber took time out from touring on Tuesday to visit the Madame Tussauds museum in London and pose next to a waxwork model of himself.

The model, dressed in a red and black checked shirt and black jeans, was one of three Bieber replicas being unveiled -- the others were in Amsterdam and New York. "It's pretty incredible to see," said the 17-year-old, before joking about how small the waxwork was. "As you can see, you know, I'm at least six feet taller than this guy." Liz Edwards, spokeswoman for the museum, said the real Bieber would naturally change quickly over the eight months it took to create the life-like model.

"So we really wanted to make sure we made a ‘moment in time' figure," she said.

"But it's the hair that everyone is paying the biggest attention to. So,

I'd say it's the hair that's been the biggest challenge." The singer, already one of the world's biggest pop stars with albums ‘My World' and ‘My World 2.0', was accompanied to the event by his mother, and he greeted a small crowd of fans.

He said that he would ideally like his waxwork figure to stand next to U.S. rapper Tupac Shakur.

TuFace, J.Martins & Fally Ipupa, to perform at ‘Choose Or Lose'

Nigeria musicians TuFace, J.Martins and Congolese act, Fally Ipupa, will be performing at the maiden edition MTV Live, the music channel's new live music night show, on Friday, April 1, 2011 at Tribeca in Lagos. Themed ‘Choose or Lose', MTV Live "is MTV's voter mobilization campaign, and is designed to inspire and empower young Nigerians to exercise their right to vote ahead of the upcoming April elections," a release from MTV reads. The event would feature some of Nigeria's finest DJs including the resident DJ at Lagos based Rhythm FM, DJ Humility; Beat FM's DJ Caise and the celebrity DJ, Jimmy Jatt.

MTV Live will also give room for the screening of the MTV sponsored music video collaboration, ‘Rep 4 Naija', between Nigerian musician's eLDee, Sound Sultan,

Black Twang, Naeto C, D'banj and M.I.

For the event, Fally Ipupa who led the winners at the third edition of the MTV Africa Music Awards with Airtel (MAMA) will be performing his signature, hip-shaking song ‘Sexy Dance', with his full band and back-up dancers while TuFace, will be showcasing the trademark blend of reggae, R&B and traditional African musical influences. Later on, there will be an on-stage reunion between J. Martins and Fally Ipupa as they reprise their 2010 collaboration on the remix of Martins' hit ‘Jupa Remix'. MTV Live is produced in association with The Beat 99.9 FM.

Janet Jackson signs film deal with Lionsgate

Janet Jackson is becoming a movie producer. The singer/actress has signed a production deal with Lionsgate, the studio that released three Tyler Perry films in which she starred. "Many people forget I started out as an actor," Jackson told The Hollywood Reporter, referring to her TV stints on ‘Good Times' and ‘Diff'rent Strokes'. "I have been fortunate to work in the film industry, though not as much as I would like. I have a passion for storytelling, and have been doing it through my music for some time." Jackson was in theaters last November with Perry's ‘For Colored Girls', which grossed about $38 million. She also appeared in Perry's ‘Why Did I Get Married' and ‘Why Did I Get Married Too'. Her other credits include John Singleton's 1993 romantic drama ‘Poetic Justice'. Jackson said she is drawn to diverse material, and is particularly captivated by film noir. She just released her memoirs, ‘True You: A Journey to Finding and Loving Yourself', and is currently on a tour of North American arenas.

Jermaine Jackson to pen memoir on brother Michael

Singer Jermaine Jackson is detailing the life of his famous family and late brother Michael Jackson in a memoir that its publisher promises gives a close look at the complex life of the King of Pop.

The book, titled ‘You Are Not Alone: Through a Brother's Eyes' and set for release in fall 2011, will look at the Jackson family from growing up in working class Gary, Indiana to Michael Jackson's private life behind the gates of his Neverland ranch in southern California.

‘You Are Not Alone' also will examine his complex relationships with his mother Katherine and father, Joe. "It is a frank, but sophisticated examination of the human, not the legend, with revealing insights and no subject off limits," publisher Touchstone said on Wednesday.

In a statement, Jermaine Jackson noted the upcoming trial and said that his family does not want what is said in court to remain the final word on the life of his mega-star brother. "We want the world to remember his truth, his legacy, and some wonderful memories we shared as brothers, as a family. We don't want Michael's life to be an eternal mystery," Jermaine Jackson said.

Petrol scarcity has hit Nigeria's capital, Abuja, and the nation's commercial capital, Lagos, as long queues were noticed at some filling stations on Friday. When NEXT visited the NNPC MEGA station on Olusegun Obasanjo way in Abuja, both private and commercial motorists were seen struggling to fill their tanks. A petrol attendant who simply identified herself as Esther said "petrol tankers are on strike". In Lagos also, many motorists were seen in lines for fuel.

fire in the airway:

It was confusion on Friday at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos as a fire outbreak at the eight floor of the terminal made hundreds of passengers and airport users scramble for safety.

The fire, which affected the equipment and control room of the airport, was noticed by witnesses at the airport around noon, and lasted for a few minutes before the arrival of the fire fighters from the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN).

"We were standing here when we saw a thick smoke coming out of that room upstairs and we had to raise alarm so that people will evacuate this place before any harm is done," said Stephen, a traveler at the terminal.

According to this eyewitness, the incident necessitated a "mad rush" out of the airport terminal, as people hurried outside the airport in order not to be caught in the flame.

Movements in and out of the airport was however, highly restricted by the Aviation Security personnel of the airports authority, as they provided specific assistance to the team of fire fighters.

The situation was calmed within minutes, but Akin Olukunle, the public affairs manager of the airports authority had his phones switched off, and was not available at his office to respond to the press on the development.

Meanwhile, Supo Atobatele, the public affairs manager for the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) disclosed that no harm was done to the equipment in the control room, adding that the prompt arrival of the fire fighters saved the day.

The spokesperson for the agency commended the arrival of the team and noted that the ambulance from the airports authority was in place should there any form of casualty.

"It is electrical spark from the distribution box in the equipment room. The spark did not affect our equipment. Flight operations were not affected. We are now on uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS)," he said..

"It did not affect the tower from doing its job. Engineers from FAAN and NAMA are already working on it.''

President Goodluck Jonathan snubbed a television debate with election rivals on Friday, drawing criticism from the Facebook generation he sought to woo at his campaign launch six months ago.

There was an empty podium next to his rivals, ex-military ruler Muhammadu Buhari, former anti-corruption chief Nuhu Ribadu and Kano state governor Ibrahim Shekarau, at the event, broadcast live on Nigerian news channel NN24 and the Internet.

"Why don't Ribadu, Shekarau and Buhari agree under one party and kick this PDP (ruling party) out of power," said one posting on a Facebook page dedicated to following the NN24 debate.

"GEJ (Jonathan) should have at least sent a Senior Special Assistant on Debates and Challenging Interviews," said one commentator on Twitter, mocking the ruling party's reputation for setting up committees without solving problems.

The presidency said NN24's request was one of several from media organisations seeking to organise a televised debate and had been received while he was busy on the campaign trail.

"The request came late, it was one of ten. He's going to participate in a debate on the 29th...It's unfair to the president to suggest he's avoiding a debate," said Ken Saro-Wiwa, his special assistant on international affairs.

The presidential vote is due to be held on April 9, with parliamentary elections a week earlier and state governorship elections a week later.

Jonathan announced his intention to run in the elections on social networking site Facebook in September, stealing the thunder from Buhari, who was holding a campaign launch in the capital Abuja at the time.

Jonathan's aides spun the strategy as a sign he was a "breath of fresh air" in touch with Nigerian youth. Political commentators acknowledged the stark contrast with the traditional pomp of Buhari's launch was a publicity coup.

But his campaign has since lost momentum, with the turnout at some of his rallies in recent weeks less than overwhelming.

A pre-recorded television interview with local music star D'banj, broadcast on Thursday evening, was pilloried by some as a patronising attempt to engage with the youth.

"Jonathan and the PDP may be misjudging the youth who are determined to put an end to the era of mediocrity and criminal showmanship that has dragged their nation backward for decades," said one comment doing the rounds on Blackberry messenger.

Opposition Eyes Run-Off

The ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP) candidate has won every election since the end of military rule 12 years ago and Jonathan remains the front runner, but opposition parties are hoping they may be able to force a run-off.

Jonathan must win at least a quarter of the vote in two thirds of the 36 states to secure victory in the first round.

Buhari has strong grass roots support in parts of the north, while Ribadu's Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) is dominant in the southwest, and while they have no formal alliance they are hoping to prevent Jonathan clinching a first-round win.

Diplomats were in the front row at the debate and members of the audience were asked to submit questions in advance.

Buhari was grilled on his reputation as an authoritarian during military rule, Ribadu on why he was standing for a party whose members include people he has accused of graft, and Shekarau on the Hisbah Islamic squad he set up in Kano to enforce sharia law even on a Christian minority.

The opposition has called for the order of the parliamentary and state governorship votes to be amended, saying the timetable favoured the ruling party because if Jonathan won the presidential race then voters would be more inclined to vote PDP at state level a week later.

The electoral commission ruled out the suggestion on Friday, saying it was too late for such a change.

"It is like a moving train, it cannot suddenly be brought to a stop because you see something by the rail," electoral commission spokesman Kayode Idowu said.

opts for march 29th

President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, who was conspicuously absent from the president debate organized t by NN24, has said he will make himself available for next rounds of debate, scheduled for March 29.

A press statement issued by Ima Niboro, Special Adviser to the President on Media & Publicity, said, “President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan has accepted an invitation to participate in presidential debate being organized by the Broadcasting Organizations’ of Nigeria (BON) in collaboration with the Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria”.

 
“The debate is scheduled for Tuesday, March 29 and will be broadcast live on the network service of the African Independent Television, AIT, Channels TV, Silverbird TV,  Nigerian Television, Authority, Radio Nigeria and other public and private broadcasting stations in the country”.

 

“President Jonathan looks forward to seizing the opportunity of the debate to further present his case for the renewal of his mandate to Nigerian voters”.

In related development, Mr. Ide Eguabor, director of media and publicity, of  Jonathan/Sambo campaign organization  adduced reason why President Jonathan was unable to make to the NN24 presidential debate.

In his words:
“The Jonathan/Sambo Campaign Organisation has watched with utter consternation, efforts by some individuals and groups to feed the Nigerian public with inaccurate and distorted information to suit their selfish ends.

“A presidential debate to be organised by the management of NN24, a subscriber to Multichoice’s DSTV cable, is deliberately being heated up by those who now see what the president will do or will not do as an opportunity for political capital.
“The truth of the matter is that several applications from various groups, including that of NN24, have reached the Jonathan/Sambo Campaign Organisation seeking to organise the presidential debate, preparatory to the April general elections.

“The campaign organization sent its officials to sit as observers at some of the meetings called to deliberate on modalities. However, after a thorough examination of the reports of its observers to these meetings, a collective decision was taken to retain the body that had organized presidential debates since 1999 and has performed creditably well and so, saw no need to discard the platform and template for another.

“The fact is that, the Nigerian Election Debate Group (NEDG), organisers of the presidential debate series, is an amalgamation of the Nigeria’s mass media, print and electronic, the Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN), the Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria (BON), the Nigeria Bar Association, National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), market women and other civil society groups.
“The Jonathan/Sambo Campaign Organisation does not believe that this relevant and credible body, made up of Nigerians and who will moderate a presidential debate watched by Nigerians on all television and radio stations nationwide should be jettisoned for any other on the eve of crucial national elections.
“Furthermore, President Goodluck Jonathan who has a carefully drawn out schedule leading up to the elections will not be able to cancel any of his appointments now to attend to a debate that is only the result of a fresh application.
“Having only just concluded his tour of the 36 states of Nigeria, President Jonathan has a hectic schedule ahead before the grand finale of the state campaigns at Abuja on March 26, 2011.
“The Jonathan/Sambo Campaign Organisation regrets that President Goodluck Jonathan will unavoidably be unable to attend the debate organised by NN24.

Shocking news! According to The National Enquirer, Whitney Houston and her daughter with Bobby Brown, Bobbi Kristina were photographed doing cocaine. 

The singer is well known for her drugs problems. In 2006, The National Enquirer released a photo of her room complete with a crack pipe and drug paraphernalia.

In 2009 though, Whitney told Oprah that she was sober, adding that she took Bobbi Kristina with her to an "Atlanta drug rehab for mothers and children". Last year, Whitney had an erratic behavior on her tour and there were rumors claiming she was still using drugs.
As for 17-year-old Bobbi Kristina, she must have been very affected by her parents' addictions. In 2008, she attempted to stab Whitney. Then she tried to slit her wrists and she was put under observation in a hospital in Atlanta. In 2009, she was photographed with a semi automatic gun, which is illegal for a girl of her age. So it doesn't come as a surprise the fact that she's snorting cocaine. This is what she saw her parents doing.

The National Enquirer reported last week that Bobbi Kristina Brownhas been caught doing cocaine, and although she's since publicly denied any drug use, the tabloid has revealed now that not only is this false, but that her mother, Whitney Houston, ENABLES her drug use!

According to sources, Whitney not only gives her daughter $1,000 a week in cash, which she uses to buy drugs and alcohol, but that the singer has also been known to buy BEER for her and her teenaged friends!

The insider also goes on to claim that the 18-year-old has slept with over 30 men.

Hmmmm. We're not sure we're buying it all!

Real or made up - or a little bit of both???

Thoughts??

Last week my phone rang. It was my mother ... and she was upset.

"Tony!" she exclaimed, "I just came from the coffee shop and there's an [adjective omitted] man down there who says NASA never landed on the Moon. Everyone was talking about it ... I just didn't know what to say!"

That last bit was hard to swallow, I thought. Mom's never at a loss for words.

But even more incredible was the controversy that swirled through her small-town diner and places like it across the country. After a long absence, the "Moon Hoax" was back.

Above: Astronaut Buzz Aldrin on the surface of the Moon in 1969. [more information]

All the buzz about the Moon began on February 15th when Fox television aired a program calledConspiracy Theory: Did We Land on the Moon? Guests on the show argued that NASA technology in the 1960's wasn't up to the task of a real Moon landing. Instead, anxious to win the Space Race any way it could, NASA acted out the Apollo program in movie studios. Neil Armstrong's historic first steps on another world, the rollicking Moon Buggy rides, even Al Shepard's arcing golf shot over Fra Mauro-- it was all a fake!

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Shows like Conspiracy Theory ought to be as tongue-in-cheek as they sound. Unfortunately, there was an earnest feel to the Fox broadcast, enough to make you wonder if the program's makers might have fallen under their own spell.

According to the show NASA was a blundering movie producer thirty years ago. For example, Conspiracy Theory pundits pointed out a seeming discrepancy in Apollo imagery: Pictures of astronauts transmitted from the Moon don't include stars in the dark lunar sky -- an obvious production error! What happened? Did NASA film-makers forget to turn on the constellations?

Most photographers already know the answer: It's difficult to capture something very bright and something else very dim on the same piece of film -- typical emulsions don't have enough "dynamic range." Astronauts striding across the bright lunar soil in their sunlit spacesuits were literally dazzling. Setting a camera with the proper exposure for a glaring spacesuit would naturally render background stars too faint to see.

Here's another one: Pictures of Apollo astronauts erecting a US flag on the Moon show the flag bending and rippling. How can that be? After all, there's no breeze on the Moon....

Not every waving flag needs a breeze -- at least not in space. When astronauts were planting the flagpole they rotated it back and forth to better penetrate the lunar soil (anyone who's set a blunt tent-post will know how this works). So of course the flag waved! Unfurling a piece of rolled-up cloth with stored angular momentum will naturally result in waves and ripples -- no breeze required!

Left: Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin deploy a U.S. flag on the Moon in 1969. [more]

The Fox documentary went on with plenty more specious points. You can find detailed rebuttals to each of them at BadAstronomy.com and the Moon Hoax web page. (These are independent sites, not sponsored by NASA.)

The best rebuttal to allegations of a "Moon Hoax," however, is common sense. Evidence that the Apollo program really happened is compelling: A dozen astronauts (laden with cameras) walked on the Moon between 1969 and 1972. Nine of them are still alive and can testify to their experience. They didn't return from the Moon empty-handed, either. Just as Columbus carried a few hundred natives back to Spain as evidence of his trip to the New World, Apollo astronauts brought 841 pounds of Moon rock home to Earth.

"Moon rocks are absolutely unique," says Dr. David McKay, Chief Scientist for Planetary Science and Exploration at NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC). McKay is a member of the group that oversees theLunar Sample Laboratory Facility at JSC where most of the Moon rocks are stored. "They differ from Earth rocks in many respects," he added.

"For example," explains Dr. Marc Norman, a lunar geologist at the University of Tasmania, "lunar samples have almost no water trapped in their crystal structure, and common substances such as clay minerals that are ubiquitous on Earth are totally absent in Moon rocks."

"We've found particles of fresh glass in Moon rocks that were produced by explosive volcanic activity and by meteorite impacts over 3 billion years ago," added Norman. "The presence of water on Earth rapidly breaks down such volcanic glass in only a few million years. These rocks must have come from the Moon!"

Right: A glass spherule (about 0.6 mm in diameter) produced by a meteorite impact into lunar soil. Features on the surface are glass splashes, welded mineral fragments, and microcraters produced by space weathering processes at the surface of the moon. SEM image by D. S. McKay (NASA Photo S71-48109).

Fortunately not all of the evidence needs a degree in chemistry or geology to appreciate. An average person holding a Moon rock in his or her hand can plainly see that the specimen came from another world.

"Apollo moon rocks are peppered with tiny craters from meteoroid impacts," explains McKay. This could only happen to rocks from a planet with little or no atmosphere... like the Moon.

Meteoroids are nearly-microscopic specks of comet dust that fly through space at speeds often exceeding 50,000 mph -- ten times faster than a speeding bullet. They pack a considerable punch, but they're also extremely fragile. Meteoroids that strike Earth's atmosphere disintegrate in the rarefied air above our stratosphere. (Every now and then on a dark night you can see one -- they're called meteors.) But the Moon doesn't have an atmosphere to protect it. The tiny space bullets can plow directly into Moon rocks, forming miniature and unmistakable craters. 

"There are plenty of museums, including the Smithsonian and others, where members of the public can touch and examine rocks from the Moon," says McKay. "You can see the little meteoroid craters for yourself."

Right: Nick-named "Big Muley," this 11.7 kg Moon rock was the largest returned to Earth by Apollo astronauts. One side of Big Muley was peppered with meteoroid "zap pits." Below right: A close-up view of 1 mm diameter zap pits shows tiny craters lined with black glass surrounded by a white halo of shocked rock. [more]

Just as meteoroids constantly bombard the Moon so do cosmic rays, and they leave their fingerprints on Moon rocks, too. "There are isotopes in Moon rocks, isotopes we don't normally find on Earth, that were created by nuclear reactions with the highest-energy cosmic rays," says McKay. Earth is spared from such radiation by our protective atmosphere and magnetosphere.

Even if scientists wanted to make something like a Moon rock by, say, bombarding an Earth rock with high energy atomic nuclei, they couldn't. Earth's most powerful particle accelerators can't energize particles to match the most potent cosmic rays, which are themselves accelerated in supernova blastwaves and in the violent cores of galaxies.

Indeed, says McKay, faking a Moon rock well enough to hoodwink an international army of scientists might be more difficult than the Manhattan Project. "It would be easier to just go to the Moon and get one," he quipped.

And therein lies an original idea: Did NASA go to the Moon to collect props for a staged Moon landing? It's an interesting twist on the conspiracy theory that TV producers might consider for their next episode of the Moon Hoax.

"I have here in my office a 10-foot high stack of scientific books full of papers about the Apollo Moon rocks," added McKay. "Researchers in thousands of labs have examined Apollo Moon samples -- not a single paper challenges their origin! And these aren't all NASA employees, either. We've loaned samples to scientists in dozens of countries [who have no reason to cooperate in any hoax]."

Even Dr. Robert Park, Director of the Washington office of the American Physical Society and a noted critic of NASA's human space flight program, agrees with the space agency on this issue. "The body of physical evidence that humans did walk on the Moon is simply overwhelming."

"Fox should stick to making cartoons," agreed Marc Norman. "I'm a big fan of The Simpsons!"

Talabi (not real name) was a sexual addict. He had been an addict for 35 years. At age 15, he had been exposed to pornography, courtesy of his older cousin, who would sneak in with pornographic films at night. At 17, Talabi started to experiment with near- nude images of prostitutes which his cousin had introduced him to. Talabi got married at 25, to a morally sound and spiritually inclined lady in his church, thinking that would help him out of his problems.

But seven days after the wedding, he went berserk because he had not seen any nude materials, even after two children, as he still could not stop being at the mercy of porn. ‘I lived everyday of my life on the materials even after several years of marriage. I had to go into ministry, thinking that would be my saving grace. It was hell on earth for me and I didn’t know what to do,” he lamented.

A cursory look at Talabi’s upbringing reveals that he was born and raised a strict Christian with special emphasis on the principles of the Bible. His father was a strict clergy and the mother a member of the good women association. He was the first and an only son, with three sisters, whom everyone felt would take up the ministry like his father. He did actually take up the ministry after his father retired and his sermons focused on fornication and adultery.

But he had a problem. He loved pornography. He would stash them in a private safe in his library and under the pretence that he was researching for his sermons and receiving from the divinity, would lock himself up to quietly enjoy several sessions with his porn. At first, his wife of five years didn’t know what was going on until her husband began to go out at odd evenings to evangelise. She later discovered that his lost sheep were prostitutes who he paid heavily to have sex with, carrying out his pornography fantasies on them...

After each incident, he would beg God for forgiveness and would swear never to find himself in that position again. But again and again, he found himself going back. This continued until he travelled abroad, where he confided in a fellow minister, who introduced him to a therapist. The therapist found that what triggered Talabi’s adulterous acts was pornography use.

In Talabi’s wife reminiscence of her husband’s addiction, she said that at the point of escalation, her husband would demand, “Even sometimes pushed me into doing increasingly bizarre and unusual sexual activities.” She added that in many cases, this resulted in a break in their relationship, as she refused to go further. Bimpe, Talabi’s wife said she almost divorced him because of “so much conflict and rift in the home. Our children were beginning to feel the pressure too.” Eventually, they stopped having sex altogether.

The effects of pornography on anyone, most especially the youth, Dr Amos Ayeni, a Psychotherapist, said, are very damaging. He explained that as a psychotherapist and a clinical psychologist, he had over the years, treated an approximate of 300 sex addicts, who don’t even have an idea that they were. He said other individuals; about 75 per cent of them, were males with sexual illnesses. He said such cases of illnesses include unwanted compulsive sexual acting-out, plus such things as child molestation and rape, among others.

He may not be wrong, if one goes with 35-year-old Nasiru, who raped and brutalised a 16-year-old daughter of his neighbour. While blaming the devil for his actions, he confessed that he took to the act  as a result of what he had seen “on the television.” When asked to elaborate, he said “when my wife start(ed) to not have sex again, my friend showed me how to find pleasure in films. That fateful day, I was watching the film when the girl came back from school and the devil made me to rape her.” He added that he frequented “prostitutes but they don’t want to go with me again,” because he made them act out his fantasies.

Ayeni explained that addiction was usually the first effect pornography has on its viewers. Once a viewer got hooked, he said, it was just inevitable, he/she will keep coming back for more and still more. The material seemed to provide a very powerful sexual stimulant or aphrodisiac effect, followed by sexual release, most often through masturbation

An addict, who declined to have his name in print said, once addicted, they just kept going at it without the strength to break away from it. This is in spite of the negative effects on the family and possible encounter with the law. A psychologist, Dr Kunle Awopeju, in a telephone conversation, said that once a person becomes addicted to anything, pornography inclusive, what is known as escalation, occurs.

Escalation, he said, was a phase that became traumatic to the patient. He said with time, the addict would desire rougher, explicit, more deviant, kinds of sexual materials to boost motivation. According to him, as escalation progresses, there will nearly always be an increasing need for more of the stimulant to get the same initial effect.

“The worst part of being in this state,” Awopeju said, was that being a relationship with a willing partner in the “bizarre demand does not always mean that their problems are solved. These addicts most often prefer the sexual imagery derived from pornography accompanied with masturbation to get a release, instead of sexual intercourse in itself.” This, a published article said “nearly always diminished their capacity to love and express affection to their partner in their intimate relations. The fantasy was all-powerful, much to the chagrin and disappointment of their partner. Their sex drive had been diverted to a degree away from their spouse. And the spouse could easily sense this, and often felt very lonely and rejected.”

“Many times, when you see grown up men raping children, one begins to suspect the effect of pornography on the perpetrators of these devious acts,” Dr Oluwakemi Fakeye, a sociologist said. “The heart-breaking part of pornography,” she said, “is not that is on a daily basis becoming a bigger business than ever before; it is also more acceptable, more fashionable, more of a statement of awareness in the world now. You find pornography in music, in movies, in advertisements and so on; it has come to be an acceptable part of our lives. And the sad thing is that people have come not only to embrace this trend, they have come to see it as nothing harmful.”

The Delta State governor, Emmanuel Uduaghan, yesterday stressed the need for increased funding for the police, especially during the electoral processes, saying the reported N17 billion allocated to the Nigeria Police Force for the purpose of monitoring the conduct of the forthcoming April elections was inadequate.

Mr. Uduaghan made the criticism at the opening ceremony of a two-day national conference on partnering the police for free, fair, and credible 2011 elections, organised by the management of Vanguard Newspapers in collaboration with the South-South governors in Asaba, capital of Delta State.

According to the state governor, the call to increase funding to the police was as a result of its key role in all the stages of electoral processes in the country, which he noted was as important as that of INEC in ensuring free, fair, and credible elections...

He observed that as a result of concerns about the success in the forthcoming general elections, the National Assembly has always considered speedily the budget and demands of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Asking for more

"I think INEC has the fastest budget ever passed by the National Assembly members in the history of Nigeria. This means that funding is required for the conduct of successful elections," Mr. Uduaghan said.

"I also believe that police require appropriate funding if we want to achieve violence-free, fair and credible elections in 2011 and beyond. What I read in the newspapers, I don't know if it was correct, that the federal government approved N17 billion for the police for the purpose of elections monitoring.

"If that is correct, then it is underfunding of the police for this coming elections. If it is N17 billion for the police to cover the whole Nigeria for the purpose of the April general elections, I want to say that money is not enough and not adequate.

"Except it is officially allowed or permitted that the states have to do something. I want to appeal that we should have a second look at the money budgeted for the police," Mr. Uduaghan said.

He said the logistics need for the police is quite high, and called on government to find a way to assist the police in meeting its expectations for the polls.

The publisher of Vanguard Newspaper and chief facilitator of the event, Sam Amuka, said Nigeria had an unpalatable history of democracy resulting from disputed elections results.

He observed that the imperfections in the nation's electoral process has degenerated since the 1999 political dispensation, especially with the "do or die" syndrome that was built into the 2007 general elections, adding that the process led to political war between candidates of different political parties.

The conference was aimed at identifying causes of violence during elections in the country.

condemn the use of corpers:

Politicians at a stakeholders election forum organised by Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Asaba, Delta State, have cautioned against plan that could turn youth corps members as sacrificial lambs in the forthcoming April polls.

They  also called on the Federal Government to double the strength of the police force in order to effectively man polling units, which in the  past witnessed ballot snatching and changing of results.

Leading the campaign for INEC to reconsider its stand on the use of  corps members, Delta north senatorial candidate for All Nigeria People’s Party (ANPP), Ambassador Elizabeth Ogbon-day, said the corps members would be exposed to great risk in an environment they were not familiar with and that when pressure mounted on them, they could compromise their integrity.

According to her, the corps members would be exposed to more dangers in the light of a poor security arrangement where the few unarmed policemen at the voting centres would not be able to match the horde of thugs and other political rascals.

Ogbon-day recalled the January 6 rerun election in the state  at her community, Ogoni in Olomu clan where corps members used as INEC officials had to obey instructions from thugs in order to remain alive.

Another speaker maintained that in case of litigation after election, the  corps members used for election would not come to testify at tribunals.

The participants were of the view that INEC should purge itself in the discharge of its duties, because people, including the international community were watching.

Earlier, Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Delta State, Dr. Gabriel Adah, said INEC had resolved to use corpers in the election and that any who fumbled would have their services extended.

According to him, two corpers who faked their kidnap and others who were involved in fraudulent practices in the re-run election in the state in January  had their services extended by six months.

However, he commended some corpers who returned to INEC as much as N20,000 given to them as gratification by politicians to do their bidding.

Dr. Adah disclosed that any polling unit where ballot boxes were snatched or the number of votes cast exceeded the number of accredited voters would be cancelled and a fresh election conducted after two days, all to sanitise the electoral process.

The Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, yesterday in Kaduna blamed the current leaders in the North for the under-development of the region and their inability to sustain the legacies of the late Premier of the region, Ahmadu Bello.

Mr Sanusi, in a paper titled "Mobilizing Capital for the Economic Transformation of Northern Nigeria", which he delivered at the maiden Northern Economic Summit held in Kaduna, said recurring crises in Jos, Maiduguri and some other parts of the region were a result of the high poverty level caused by poor leadership.

The summit, which has as its theme, "An Agenda for Economic and Social Transformation of the North", was attended by only the host governor, Patrick Yakowa. The other 18 northern governors were absent at the event.

President Goodluck Jonathan; his vice, Namadi Sambo and a former head of state, Yakubu Gowon were, however, in attendance.

"How many people have taken statistics of collapsed industries in the North? It is because of government's negligence to provide power that led to the closure of these industries," Mr Sanusi said.

"If there are right economic policies, every part of this nation will benefit. Agriculture is 42 percent of the country's GDP and the North accounts for a greater percentage of the agric products, yet the North is very poor and backward because of lack of good agricultural policies."

Nigeria's number one banker, who said the economic problem of the North cannot be removed from the problem facing the country, explained that Nigeria suffers from the same resource curse that afflicts other countries that are endowed with natural resources.

Past glory

Mr. Sanusi advised Northern political leaders not to continue to give tribute to late Ahmadu Bello who, during his time, was able to give to the people the needed basic infrastructure. He said they should rather find ways to address poverty and infrastructure problems facing the region.

Mr Sanusi said the key to addressing the high poverty rate in the north is fixing the agricultural value chain so that real farmers can have access to finance and the necessary policies and infrastructure. He stated that the summit will be an exercise in futility if it does not address the problems of the ordinary people on the street.

"The immediate post-independence leaders in the north articulated a blueprint for industrial development akin to the model of the South Asian economies. The outcome of that vision was evident with the emergence of industrial, commercial and manufacturing concerns that were once the pride of the North," he said.

"The thriving textile industries, groundnut pyramids and other numerous business concerns that provided a means of livelihood for the thousands of families are now only mentioned in the past tense."

He said if subsequent leaders in the region fail to build on the foundation laid by their predecessors, they could have sustained those legacies, pointing that rather than creating the enabling environment for the enormous potentials of the region to be effectively harnessed, leadership in the region has largely fallen short of the standard set by the post-independence leadership.

"This has resulted in pervasive poverty, poor infrastructure base, reliance on statutory allocations, general under-development and insecurity occasioned by incessant religious or ethnic unrest", the CBN Governor stated.

Mr Sanusi, who explained that about $1billion was spent only on importation of rice last year, also stressed the need for the federal government to remove subsidy on imported rice and fertilizer, which he said can be manufactured locally as a way of creating employment in the country.

He said the same people benefiting from the importation are the ones frustrating the manufacturing of the products locally.

Mr Sambo described the summit as timely because it came at a transitional period to another democratic dispensation. He emphasized that for the summit to be termed successful, it must address the areas of high poverty rate, decayed infrastructure, education backwardness and under-utilization of the potentials of the North in Agriculture.

While calling on all northern leaders to improve on the existing infrastructure built by past leaders, such as the Ahmadu Bello University, Unity Bank, New Nigerian Newspapers and Kaduna Polytechnic, Mr Sambo expressed the determination of the Goodluck Jonathan's administration to address the problems of power, education and revival of moribund industries across the country.

Build on your strengths

The Chairman of the occasion, Yakubu Gowon, said the summit was to articulate strategies to transform the economy of the states in the North, adding that it would also produce practical and implementable economic charter for all the states in the region.

He recalled with nostalgia the disappearance of high quality groundnut and cotton pyramids in Kano, Gusau, Katsina and other places, as well as the textile industry in Kaduna, Kano and the high quality tin ingots from Jos.

"Where are they today? We must ask questions, where do we want to be today and tomorrow, and how do we want to get there at least by 2020? These are some of the questions we must address at this summit," Mr Gowon said.

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Dimeji Bankole while observing that it took the region a long time to organise such a summit, said the development of the region will go a long way in developing the entire country.

The United Nations authorised military strikes to curb Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, hours after he threatened to storm the rebel bastion of Benghazi overnight, showing "no mercy, no pity".

"We will come. House by house, room by room," Gaddafi said in a radio address to the eastern city late on Thursday.

Al Jazeera television showed thousands of people listening to the speech in a central Benghazi square, then erupting in celebration after the U.N. vote, waving anti-Gaddafi tricolours and chanting defiance of the man who has ruled for four decades.

Fireworks burst over the city and gunfire rang out.

The U.N. Security Council, meeting in emergency session, passed a resolution endorsing a no-fly zone to halt government troops now around 100 km (60 miles) from Benghazi. It also authorised "all necessary measures" -- code for military action -- to protect civilians against Gaddafi's forces.

But time was clearly running short for the city that has been the heart of Libya's month-old revolution.

French diplomatic sources said military action could follow within hours, and could include France, Britain and possibly the United States and one or more Arab states; but a U.S. military official said no immediate U.S. action was expected.

While other countries or NATO may play roles in military action, U.S. officials expect the United States with its extensive air and sea forces would do the heavy lifting in a campaign that may include airstrikes on tanks and artillery.

Gaddafi warned Benghazi residents that only those who lay down their arms before his advancing troops would be spared the vengeance awaiting 'rats and dogs'.

"It's over. The issue has been decided," Gaddafi said. "We are coming tonight...We will find you in your closets.

"We will have no mercy and no pity."

Air strikes

Residents said the Libyan air force unleashed three air raids on the city of 670,000 on Thursday and there has been fierce fighting along the Mediterranean coastal highway.

Ten of the Council's 15 member states voted in favour of the resolution, with Russia, China and Germany among the five that abstained. There were no votes against the resolution, which was co-sponsored by France, Britain, Lebanon and the United States.

Apart from military action, it expands sanctions against Gaddafi and associates imposed last month. Among firms whose assets it orders frozen are the Libyan National Oil Corp and the central bank.

U.S. President Barack Obama called British and French counterparts David Cameron and Nicolas Sarkozy and agreed to coordinate closely on their next steps.

Libya said the resolution, which also demands a ceasefire by government forces, was not worth the paper it was written on.

Rebel National Council head Mustafa Abdel Jalil told Al Jazeera television air strikes, beyond the no-fly zone, were essential to stop Gaddafi.

"We stand on firm ground. We will not be intimidated by these lies and claims... We will not settle for anything but liberation from this regime."

It was unclear if Gaddafi's threat to seize the city in the night was anything more than bluster. But at the very least it increased the sense that a decisive moment had arrived in an uprising that only months ago had seemed inconceivable.

Some in the Arab world sense a Gaddafi victory could turn the tide in the region, weakening pro-democracy movements that have unseated autocrats in Tunisia and Egypt and raised mass protests in Bahrain, Yemen and elsewhere.

Gaddafi's Defence Ministry warned of swift retaliation, even beyond Libyan frontiers, to any military action against the oil-exporting nation.

"Any foreign military act against Libya will expose all air and maritime traffic in the Mediterranean Sea to danger and civilian and military (facilities) will become targets of Libya's counter-attack," the ministry said in a statement.

Retaliation

John Drake, senior risk consultant at UK-based consultancy AKE said he did not think Gaddafi would strike against oil facilities or oil companies. "He would be hurting himself."

"We don't think they have the capability to impose a no-fly zone over the whole country immediately, although they could try to impose one over Benghazi and maybe also Tripoli," he said.

Proposals for action could include no-fly and no-drive zones, a maritime exclusion zone, jamming army communications and intelligence help. Air strikes would almost certainly be launched to knock out Libyan radar and air defences.

An Italian government source told Reuters Italy was ready to make its military bases available. The airbase at Sigonella in Sicily, which provides logistical support for the United States Sixth Fleet, is one of the closest NATO bases to Libya.

Past no-fly zones have had mixed success.

The U.N. imposed a no-fly zone over Bosnia in the 1990s, although some analysts say the measure did nothing to stop massacres such as the 1995 slaughter of more than 8,000 Muslim men and boys in the town of Srebrenica.

Former British foreign minister David Owen saw the vote as reflecting a serious division in NATO and the EU, with Germany abstaining and declaring that the venture carried "considerable dangers and risks".

"It's very late for this no-fly zone," Owen said. "Gaddafi's forces are very close to Benghazi and may now push on."

The resolution followed a sharp shift in tone by the United States, which had resisted calls to military action. Diplomats said Washington's change of mind was influenced by an appeal to action by the Arab league and the prospect of a Gaddafi government flush with oil wealth fomenting unrest in the region.

"Mission creep" poses a serious danger. Western powers, chastened by protracted wars in two other Muslim countries, Afghanistan and Iraq, would be wary of getting drawn into any ground action in Libya.

Rebels have retreated over the last two weeks as Gaddafi, dubbed the 'mad dog of the Middle East' by president Ronald Reagan in 1986, has brought air power and heavy armour to bear.

Residential areas of Ajdabiyah, a strategic town on the coast road to Benghazi, were the scene of heavy fighting on Thursday and around 30 people were killed, Al Arabiya reported.

On the approaches to Ajdabiyah, burned-out cars lay by the roadside while Libyan government forces showed the foreign media artillery, tanks and mobile rocket launchers -- much heavier weapons than those used by the rebels.

In Libya's third city, Misrata, about 200 km (130 miles) east of Tripoli, rebels and residents said they were preparing for a new attack by Libyan troops, who had shelled the coastal city overnight. A government spokesman said Gaddafi's forces expected to be in control of Misrata by Friday morning.