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Alfonso Soriano hit a tiebreaking homer in the seventh inning, and the Chicago Cubs beat the Philadelphia Phillies 3-2 Friday for their seventh straight win,

Soriano’s first homer in 15 days and 23rd of the season came off Clay Condrey (3-4). Chicago made the most of four hits and improved its record to a major league-best 85-50, including 51-19 at Wrigley Field.

Philadelphia had put runners at the corners with two outs in the top of the seventh before Ryan Howard’s hard grounder went off Derrek Lee. The first baseman retrieved the ball and flipped to pitcher Jeff Samardzija for the out, but replays showed Howard beat the throw. Phillies third-base coach Steve Smith was ejected by plate umpire Bill Welke during the ensuing argument.

Samardzija (1-0), a former Notre Dame receiver, got his first major league win. Carlos Marmol struck out two with two on in the eighth and pitched a perfect ninth for his seventh save in nine chances.

Philadelphia, which began the day one game behind the NL East-leading New York Mets, lost its third in a row.

Matched against former Oakland teammate Rich Harden, Phillies starter Joe Blanton held the Cubs hitless until Aramis Ramirez hit a two-out single in the fourth. With a 2-0 lead, he ran into trouble the following inning when Mark DeRosa walked, stole second and moved to third on Henry Blanco’s infield single to third.

Pinch-hitter Daryle Ward hit a perfect double play grounder to second with one out but, after taking Chase Utley’s toss for the forceout, shortstop Jimmy Rollins sailed a throw over Howard at first as DeRosa scored.

Chicago tied it in the sixth on four walks, three by Blanton and one by former-Cub Scott Eyre to Kosuke Fukudome.

Harden and Blanton were traded within nine days of one another in July and had chatted with each other behind the batting cage on Thursday.

Harden allowed two runs, three hits and four walks in five innings. In his first appearance against the Cubs, Blanton gave up two runs and two hits in 5 2-3 innings.

Pat Burrell hit an RBI single in the first, and the Phillies made it 2-0 in the fifth. Utley singled and raced to third when Howard singled to right, then scored when Fukudome’s throw to first apparently hit Howard for an error, and the ball got away from Lee.

Currently, the planet Venus is visible, albeit very low in the western evening sky right after sundown. Those with obstructions such as trees or buildings toward the west may not be able to see Venus yet, thanks to its low altitude. But this current evening apparition of Venus is going to evolve into a very good one in the coming days and weeks, so let’s get into a fuller explanation of what is to come.

Venus passed superior conjunction (appearing to go behind the sun as seen from Earth) back on June 9. Initially, it was mired deep in the brilliant glare of the sun. Nonetheless, in the days that followed it moved on a steady course toward the east and pulled ever-so-slowly away from the sun’s vicinity.

And now, during the last days of August and into early September, Venus has finally begun climbing up out of the sunset glow in earnest and is now about to reclaim its role as the brilliant “evening star,” a title it has not held since the end of July 2007. Look for it now with binoculars shortly after sundown very low in the southwest. Venus will stand about 10 degrees high in the western sky at sundown (your clinched fist held at arm’s length is roughly 10 degrees wide) and will touch the horizon just a few minutes shy of a full hour after sunset, giving less experienced sky watchers a chance to get a good glimpse.

Fall and winter spectacle

In the following weeks, it should gradually become easier to see. By October 1, it will set about 30 degrees south of due west nearly 75 minutes after sunset. Continuing to swing east of the sun as the fall season progresses, Venus will become plainly visible in the southwestern evening sky even to the most casual of observers. On the evening of December 1, Venus will team up with the planet Jupiter and a lovely crescent moon in the southwest sky right after sundown: the three brightest objects in the night sky gathering in a dramatic celestial tableau that will turn heads even of those who normally do not look up at the sky at night.

Appearing as a brilliant silvery-white starlike object of magnitude ?4.3, our sister planet will set almost four hours after the sun by Christmas Day. In fact, if the air is very clear and the sky a good, deep blue, you might try looking for Venus shortly before sunset. As the sky darkens, it will seem to swell from a tiny white spark to a big, almost dazzling Christmas-season star.

Indeed, it will be during the winter of 2009 that Venus will perform like a sequined showgirl, calling attention to herself each evening.

An evening and morning star

Viewed in the western twilight, this planet always appears dazzlingly bright to the unaided eye, and more so in binoculars. Venus reaches its greatest elongation — its greatest angular distance — 47 degrees to the east of the sun on January 14. It will appear at its brightest in midwinter as it heads back down toward the sun, reaching its greatest brilliancy for this apparition on February 19 at magnitude ?4.6. The planet will be most striking then, shining nearly twice as bright as it does now. Venus will then slide back toward the glare of the sun, but because it will appear to pass more than eight degrees north of it when it passes inferior conjunction on March 27, a most unusual circumstance will take place for a few days around that time: Venus will be visible as both an evening and morning object, glowing low in the west right after sunset and also low in the east just before sunrise. It finally (almost reluctantly) will vanish for evening viewers view by the end of March.

Getting thinner … and bigger

Between now and the end of March, repeated observation of Venus with a small telescope will show nearly a complete range of its phases and disk sizes. Currently, the planet appears almost full (92 percent sunlit on August 29), and through the first half of the upcoming fall season will display nothing more than a tiny, dazzling gibbous disk. It will start becoming noticeably less gibbous by early December. In mid January 2009, Venus reaches dichotomy (displaying a “half moon” shape). Then, during February, it shows us an increasingly large crescent phase as it swings toward Earth. Indeed, those using telescopes will note that while the Earth-Venus distance is lessening, the apparent size of Venus’ disk will grow, doubling from its present size by January 3. When it has doubled again in size on February 26, its large crescent shape should be easily discernable even in steadily held 7-power binoculars.

But even after it passes inferior conjunction on March 27, our Venus show will not be over, for it dramatically reemerges as a dazzling “morning star” low in the eastern sky by the beginning of April. Then, a repeat performance will begin, with the above sequence of events reversed. And that will continue right through to the end of 2009.

England star bowler Isa Guha has revealed her excitement at the challenge of taking on India in a five-match ODI series that begins on Saturday.

Charlotte Edwards’ side, that comprehensively defeated West Indies and South Africa earlier this summer, will face a tough challenge against a strong India side which will be led by Mithali Raj, with both sides also facing each other in a Twenty20 International at Taunton.

“I am really looking forward to the upcoming series. I am interested to see how far India has come since we last played – we have certainly moved on – and they are an equally strong side,” said 23-year-old Guha.

“We have just got to be going out there and win every game of cricket in preparation for the World Cup and obviously we want to keep putting in good performances.”

Guha is relishing the challenge of taking on two of the best players in the women’s game – leading batter Mithali Raj and Jhulan Goswami, ICC Women’s Player of the Year in 2007. “Obviously, Mithali is a very competitive cricketer. She leads from the front and she is an excellent timer of the ball. We have got some different plans for both of these players which we will talk about in the next few days in preparation for the first game on Saturday.”

“We want to bowl consistently to her and make sure she doesn’t get off to a good start,” said Guha.

The series will benefit from increased media exposure, as one of the ODI matches and the Twenty20 game, which will take place on 5 September, will be broadcast live on television in the UK.

“It is great for women’s cricket because it’s just raising the profile even more and the more coverage we get, the better it is for the game. I am very excited by it,” admitted Guha.

“With two strong sides competing, it will be a great advert for women’s cricket and hopefully they can see England and India are two of the best sides in the world, along with Australia and New Zealand.”

England won 4-0 last time these two sides met in an ODI series on English soil, although India did claim two wins at the Quadrangular Series in 2007 in Chennai before England won the 3rd/4th play-off.

And Guha believes that this series is excellent preparation for the ICC Women’s World Cup 2009.

“We really believe as a team now that we can go out to the World Cup and win it. We are taking it every step at a time, taking each game as it comes. We just want to make sure we win every game of cricket,” said Guha.

The U.S. Embassy in Egypt has offered monetary compensation to the family of a man shot dead by American naval personnel in the Suez Canal.

In the March 24 incident, a security team on a ship contracted to the U.S. Navy fired on several motor boats after warning them not to approach, killing Egyptian Mohammed Fouad.

The embassy says the U.S. ambassador met with the family Thursday and offered an apology and 750,000 Egyptian pounds, or about US$140,000. In return, the family agreed not to sue the U.S. government.

The slain man’s brother-in-law, Hussein Abdel-Aaly, says he felt pressured to accept the offer and that his lawyer wasn’t allowed in the room when the deal was agreed upon.

While all eyes were set on the athletes participating in the Beijing Olympics, a Japanese firm was organising an athletic competition for radio-controlled humanoid robots in Tokyo.

Participants in the Robot Athletic Meet 2008, held in the Akihabara district, competed in a range of disciplines, including battling it out in the “sprint” over a distance of two meters.

Hundreds were on hand to cheer on the 15 bipedal competitors during the event, reports the Telegraph.

Akihabara is famous the world over as the home of the anime, gadgets, computer games, and manga that are purchased by technology freaks. It is renowned as the marketplace for the newest and most intricate gadgets and gizmos.

The district offers visitors an opportunity to test out various types of off-the-shelf robot, including walking them through a complicated maze.

The shops there have everything that one wanting to custom-build one’s own imitation human would need.

Gripping hands, power packs, feet in various sizes, heads, wiring, and nuts and bolts are all on display.

Nokia unveiled two new high-end phone models, the N79 and the N85, as the world’s top cellphone maker battles against increasing competition from the likes of Apple and Samsung.

The news lifted shares in Nokia more than 2 percent on Tuesday as it reassured investors the company was on track to refresh its offering for the key Christmas sales period.

“Nokia sailed through first half of the year with little changes in its phone portfolio. Now the portfolio renewal has started and this should boost profitability,” said Pohjola analyst Hannu Rauhala.

Newer and more expensive models usually have higher profit margins than older and cheaper phones.

The N79 and N85 models will go on sale in October. Both new phones, upgrades of Nokia’s older models, will have 5 megapixel cameras and pre-loaded games.

The N85 will retail for 450 euros ($662), excluding operator subsidies and taxes, and the N79 will go on sale for 350 euros.

Nokia, which controls 40 percent of the global cellphone market, has an even higher market share among the most expensive phones, helped by the success of its flagship N95 model.

“All manufacturers are trying to sustain or extend their high-tier device portfolios because of the higher margins they offer,” said Ben Wood, research director at CCS Insight.

“Furthermore in saturated markets, in Western Europe and North America replacement sales depend on offering consumers something compelling over and above voice and text,” Wood said.

Since last year Nokia’s leading position has been under attack from sleek touch screen models from LG Electronics, Samsung and Apple.

Nokia is set to come out with its first touch screen phone, codenamed “Tube”, this year.

Shares in Nokia were 2.7 percent higher at 17.78 euros by 7:37 a.m. EDT, outperforming a firmer DJ Stoxx European technology shares index.

Affluent Mexicans, terrified of soaring kidnapping rates, are spending thousands of dollars to implant tiny transmitters under their skin so satellites can help find them tied up in a safe house or stuffed in the trunk of a car.

Kidnapping jumped almost 40 percent between 2004 and 2007 in Mexico, according to official statistics. Mexico ranks with conflict zones like Iraq and Colombia as among the worst countries for abductions.

The recent kidnapping and murder of Fernando Marti, 14, the son of a well-known businessman, sparked an outcry in a country already hardened to crime.

More people, including a growing number of middle-class Mexicans, are seeking out the tiny chip designed by Xega, a Mexican security firm whose sales jumped 13 percent this year. The company said it had more than 2,000 clients.

Detractors say the chip is little more than a gadget that serves no real security purpose.

The company injects the crystal-encased chip, the size and shape of a grain of rice, into clients’ bodies with a syringe. A transmitter in the chip then sends radio signals to a larger device carried by the client with a global positioning system in it, Xega says. A satellite can then pinpoint the location of a person in distress.

Cristina, 28, who did not want to give her last name, was implanted along with seven other members of her family last year as a “preventive measure.”

“It’s not like we are wealthy people, but they’ll kidnap you for a watch. … Everyone is living in fear,” she said.

The chips cost $4,000 plus an annual fee of $2,200.

Most kidnappings in Mexico go unreported, many of them cases of “express kidnapping” where the victim is grabbed and forced to withdraw money from automatic cash machines.

To overcome the increase in petrol and diesel prices, travellers in Punjab are taking to bikes powered by electricity, which reduce pollution and also reduce the commutation costs.

In Punjab, the low-cost, easy to maintain and “cool” e-bikes are all set to replace motorcycles and scooters. E-bike manufacturers in Punjab are gearing up to meet the demand for ‘plug in” and ‘ply” bikes.

These electric motorized bicycles or E-bikes are safe, convenient as well as economical. And, they are now catching the fancy of the common man in Punjab.

E-bikes, meanwhile, have grabbed the attention of two-wheeler manufacturers too. Among the 80 manufacturers of e-bikes in India, 10 to 12 are big players.

The world’’s largest bicycle-maker Hero, in a joint venture with UK-based Ultra Motors Company, is manufacturing E-bikes branded as ‘Hero Electric”, with the ‘ultra-powered” technology tag.

Gaurav Munjal, Deputy Chief Executive, Hero Cycles Ltd., says, “I think there is a huge potential for e-bikes because of it is economical. Their running cost is only 10 paise per kilometer while the scooter or motorbike costs around one rupee per kilometer. It is value for money.”

Munjal added, “They are safe. You can travel at 25 km per hour. You do not require license, registration and do not have to pay road tax. But, we recommend a helmet for safety.”

Taking China as its role model, the Ludhiana-based e-bike manufacturer is out to tap the unexploited Indian market.

Available in several variants, e-bikes come with a price tag of 400 (rupees 17,520.39) to 700 U.S. dollars (rupees 30,607.05). The annual demand is growing from 500,000 e-bikes at present.

Propelled by a perfect tailwind of technology, high oil prices and the trend for all things green, global sales of bikes driven by battery-powered electric motors have climbed nearly 20 per cent since 2005, a trend projected to accelerate especially in developing countries, where the middle class is rising.

Already a hit in China, Japan, Australia and United States, E-bikes are now catching the fancy of the Indians.

It’s important for a child to learn to be independent and care for himself. But how do you know when a child is old and mature enough to stay alone?

In general, a child younger than age 10 probably isn’t ready. But when it comes to older children, the Nemours Foundation says the time may be right to forgo a babysitter if your child:

• Feels comfortable with the prospect of staying alone.
• Shows a sense of responsibility with chores, doing homework, and following rules and directions.
• Stays calm in difficult or unexpected situations, and knows how to handle them.
• Clearly understands and regularly follows rules.
• Knows basic first aid.
• Knows and follows rules for staying away from strangers.

A federal judge who ruled last month that top White House advisers must comply with congressional subpoenas refused to put that ruling on hold Tuesday while the Bush administration appeals.

The House Judiciary Committee wants to force White House chief of staff Joshua Bolten and former White House counsel Harriet Miers to testify about the firing of federal prosecutors and the politicization of the Justice Department.

The White House contends that top aides are immune from such subpoenas.

U.S. District Judge John Bates rejected that argument last month but the Bush administration appealed. The White House said it should not have to comply with the subpoenas while the appeal plays out.

Bates, who was appointed by President Bush, said a delay would not be in the public interest.

If a delay is granted, he said, “There is a very strong possibility that the committee will be unable to complete its investigation before Congress expires. That may leave important public concerns regarding the nation’s federal criminal justice system unaddressed.”

Bates also rejected the core of the government’s argument: that it was likely to prevail at the appeals court.

“Simply calling an issue important — primarily because it involves the relationship of the political branches — does not transform the executive’s weak arguments into a likelihood of success,” Bates wrote.

Bates’ decision last month gave some teeth to Congress’ power to investigate the executive branch, because earlier disputes had been settled through political compromise instead of the courts.

The judge said Miers can assert executive privilege — the principle that the executive branch must be independent from the legislative branch — and refuse to testify, but she must appear on Capitol Hill and do so in person.

Tuesday’s ruling could reinvigorate negotiations between the two branches to settle the dispute, but the White House can still try to get the ruling put on hold if it asks an appeals court to do so.