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Monday, April 13, 2009

Thai army moves to quell protests  

The protesters reacted by hurling petrol bombs and driving buses they had commandeered at the lines of troops.
The government has said it is taking measures to secure major ports and airports.
Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva declared a state of emergency on Sunday after the protests forced the cancellation of a major meeting of Asian leaders in the resort city of Pattaya.
The red-shirted protesters - many thousands of whom are camped outside Bangkok's Government House - have vowed to stay until Mr Abhisit resigns.

Water cannon
Monday's clashes broke out after the military moved in the early hours to clear around 200 protesters at Din Daeng intersection, around 2km (1.2 miles) from government buildings.

There were hours of skirmishes as demonstrators threw petrol bombs and rocks at lines of troops, who were carrying riot shields and automatic weapons, reports the BBC's Alastair Leithead from the scene.
The soldiers did not break their line until a bus, one of several commandeered by the protesters, was set alight.
They then moved in with water cannon to put out the flames, before opening fire with live rounds.
Many soldiers shot above the protesters' heads, but some were clearly firing into the crowd, our correspondent said.
A second round of firing came after a bus was driven towards the military, before crashing into a motorway barrier.
The prime minister said 70 people had been injured, including 23 soldiers.
Monday is the start of a three-day holiday for the Thai New Year and many people have already left the capital for the provinces.

Scientists find 'pleasure nerves'  

A team, including scientists from the Unilever company, have identified a class of nerve fibres in the skin which specifically send pleasure messages.

And people had to be stroked at a certain speed - 4-5cm per second - to activate the pleasure sensation.
For many years, scientists have been trying to understand the mechanisms behind how the body experiences pain, and the nerves involved in conveying those messages to the brain.
This is because people can suffer a great deal.
Neuropathy, where the peripheral nervous system is damaged, can be very painful and sometimes the messaging system goes wrong a people feel pain even when there is no cause.

Federer weds long-term girlfriend  

The couple, who are expecting their first child, met when they competed at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney.
Next week, Federer is due to take part in the Monte Carlo Masters - the opening clay-court tournament of the season - after he was given a wildcard.
A three-time finalist, Federer originally chose to skip the event for scheduling reasons but has had a change of heart as he tries to find some form.
Federer has not won a tournament since October and played poorly in his most recent loss to Novak Djokovic in Miami.
The Swiss has finished runner-up three times in Monte Carlo, losing 7-5 7-5 to Rafael Nadal in last year's final.
World number one Nadal will be going for a record fifth straight title this year.
American Andy Roddick will be the only member of the world's top 10 missing at the clay-court tournament.