Vittorio Hernandez

Because of the growing number of Australian women who are going for labiaplasty or the medical procedure to craft designer vaginas, the government is reviewing if it would publicly fund the surgery through Medicare.

More Australian miners are selling their mines as the prices of the yellow metal continues to decline in the world market. The latest to join the growing number of resources companies closing operations is Alacer Gold which would sell its Higginsville and South Kalgoorlie gold operations in Western Australia.

If Israel's military was shocked with the circulating photographs of its female soldiers almost naked, the Australian Army has its own sex scandal with male officers filming themselves while having sex with women and then emailing the videos among themselves.

It is not only Motorola's electronic tattoo which is still being developed that has the potential of being the mark of the beast. Another technology being developed in an American university is an implantable sensor that could detect the very early stages of organ transplant rejection.

The share of Androids in the tablet market may likely grow bigger and eat away whatever share that the iPad still currently holds. The reason behind such a development is the roll out of very affordable Android tablets by the third quarter of 2013.

The Australian share market touched 2013 lows today, with the All Ordinaries Index (XAO) closing at its lowest level since 28th December 2012. Because of a sharp gain on the market on the first trading day of this year (2nd January), the market remains in positive territory year to date, up 0.4 per cent. The ASX 200 Index (XJO) is up 1 per cent year to date.

The Australian share market is holding at lows for the year, following more falls on offshore markets overnight and despite a slight revision to Australia's unemployment rate.

Is there a growing shareholder revolt against the giant tech companies? Stocks of Apple, Facebook and Samsung are on a downtrend, and company stockholders have been vocal about their displeasure over the loss of value of their shares. In the case of Apple, stock market observers noticed that each time Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook opens his mouth, the California-based tech giant's stock does down.

Goldman Sachs warned on Wednesday that Australia has a 20 per cent chance of going through a recession in 2014 due to the slowdown in mining investments.

Although the spokesman of actor Michael Douglas insisted the star of Behind the Candelabra was misquoted when he attributed his throat cancer to oral sex, the incident has caused the medical community and health-conscious people to take a second look at the ailment.

The Coal Terminal Action Group (CTAG) in New South Wales (NSW) and the Greens Party are accusing the NSW government of altering an environmental study on the impact of dust from coal trains.

The Samsung Galaxy S4 continues to win over the Apple iPhone 5, not only in terms of units sold, but also in physical strength. The test conducted by CNET showed the two popular smartphones dunked underwater, scratched, dropped and then crushed by a truck.

Thanks to actor George Clooney's joke, a beauty and wellness procedure exclusive to men has boosted the popularity and male clientele of a Sta Monica clinic where the treatment began.

The Australian share market fell to a five month low today, with selling virtually across the board. The only sector to finish firmer was the telecom service sector, support by defensive buying in Telstra (TLS).

At midday, the ASX 200 Index is down by around 0.7 per cent. Gains from the telcos are not enough to offset the much more substantial falls elsewhere. Losses from the banks and the miners are contributing most to the falls.

When teaching children about sex, people use the birds and the bees as example to illustrate how reproduction takes place.However, bees may soon be no longer a good example because honey bee populations are under threat, prompting researchers at the Washington State University (WSU) to consider setting up a bee sperm bank as one solution.

The accusation by sobbing children that their mum or dad loves another sibling more than them has some basis after all.

Finnish phone maker Nokia is finally laying to rest its Symbian platform after it shipped and sold its last 500,000 mobile units using the old OS during the first quarter of 2013.

Three Oxford University academics are making a bid for eternity by signing up with the Cryonics Institute in Michigan to have their bodies frozen upon death in the hope of being brought back to life later.

A male was arrested by authorities last week because of a complaint by fellow Megabus passengers from DC to New York that he was masturbating for two hours during the entire trip.

Toyota Australia reported on Tuesday after tax profit of $149 million for financial year that ended March 31. It ended a three-year losing streak for the Japanese carmaker.

Australian flag carrier Qantas and 10 other air carriers got the 7-star rating for safety and product quality in a new airline ratings Web site, AirlineRatings.com.

Pope Francis confirmed the existence of a gay lobby in the Roman Curia, which administers the Roman Catholic Church. He promised on Thursday during an audience with the Latin American and Caribbean Confederation of Religious Men and Women to reform the Curia.

The local index was a conspicuous improver in the region on Tuesday for the fact that almost all other bourses ended lower. Investors dodged a bullet at the weekend with the release of some reasonable US jobs data. The figures were able to reassure the markets that the US economy is still creating jobs at a reasonable pace without escalating concerns about the Feds QE retreat.

The Australian share market is slightly firmer at lunchtime in the East, following a mixed night on offshore markets.

Despite pressure from some Australian Labor Party (ALP) members, Workplace Relations Minister Bill Shorten is not taking a shortcut to power by withdrawing support for Prime Minister Julia Gillard.

American sportswear manufacturer Under Armour aims to double its sales to $4 billion by 2016, and one of its strategies is to expand its overseas market. To achieve that, the retailer would open its first Australian store in 2014 and could expand its strategic relationship with Rebel Sport, said Kevin Plank, founder and chief executive officer of Under Armour.

After two lesbian admissions from the controversial daughter and mother team in one week, did Filipino TV viewers have had enough of tomboys? On Monday, a new afternoon soap opera went on air over GMA 7, one of the two biggest TV networks in the country, with a gay-themed soap opera, providing Filipinos another look at the flip side of the LGBT spectrum since the programme deals with male homosexuality.

While former Glee star Charice Pempengco may have outed in a Philippine television show, with technology plus her stature as an international singer, news of her admission the other Sunday that she is lesbian has been reported in international media also.