WAALWIJK, The Netherlands, July 29 /PRNewswire/ --

- Revenue Increases 8% to EUR 35.7 Million

- Combined Revenue of Commerce, Payments and Fulfilment Activities Internet Service Company docdata Increases With More Than 50%

- All Divisions Contribute to Operating Profit (EBIT)

- Strong Order Portfolio IAI Will for the Largest Part be Delivered in the Second Half-Year 2008

Results and Financial position half-year 2008 (unaudited)

A frequent sign of the maturity of a spiral galaxy is the formation of a ribbon of stars and gas that slices across the nucleus, like the slash across a "no smoking" sign.

In a landmark study of more than 2,000 spiral galaxies from the largest galaxy census conducted by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, astronomers found that so-called barred spiral galaxies were far less plentiful 7 billion years ago than they are today, in the local universe.

The study's results confirm the idea that bars are a sign of galaxies reaching full maturity as the "formative years" end. The observations are part of the Cosmic Evolution Survey (COSMOS).

The age of your housing plan may influence your risk of obesity, according to a new study from the University of Utah. Neighborhoods built before 1950 tend to offer greater overall walkability as they more often were designed with the pedestrian in mind, while newer neighborhoods often were designed to facilitate car travel.

The study in the September issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, linked the body mass index (BMI) of nearly a half million Salt Lake County residents to 2000 Census data. The study found that residents were at less risk of being obese or overweight if they lived in walkable neighborhoods; more densely populated, more friendly to pedestrians and have a range of destinations for pedestrians.

Accurate measurement of thermal performance is crucial if legislation aimed at producing dramatic reductions in CO2 emissions is to be successful. The UK's National Physical Laboratory (NPL) is offering construction companies a way of meeting this mandate.

Two factors are making the need for accurate measurement of the thermal performance of building products ever more important. Firstly, the Code for Sustainable Homes published by the Department for Communities and Local Government in 2006 set a target of producing zero carbon homes by 2016. The second is the draft Climate Change Bill with its declared intention of setting a legal framework for ensuring a specific reduction in CO2 emissions by 2020 and a 60% reduction of 1990 levels by 2050. This will result in a constant stream of legislation and regulations aimed at minimising energy use in new buildings.

REDMOND, Washington, July 29 /PRNewswire/ --

- A new era of growth and expansion includes software plus services.

NEW YORK, July 29 /PRNewswire/ --

Castle Harlan, Inc., the New York private equity investment firm, announced today that it had agreed to sell AmeriCast Technologies, Inc., a North American leader in the design and manufacture of large, complex steel castings, to Bradken Ltd., a leading publicly-traded Australian manufacturer of cast steel and other products, primarily for the mining and railroad industries, in a transaction valued at approximately US$288 million.

According to research conducted by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention one in three Americans age 65 and older fall. Recent findings by experts at the University of Tel Aviv, Israel, found that Ritalin improves cognitive impairments in seniors, which may greatly contribute to a decrease in falls.

The findings may be a step into the treatment of falls within the senior population, but Prof. Jeffrey M. Hausdorff, of Sackler School of Medicine at Tel Aviv University isn’t counting chickens before they hatch. “While the notion of treating fall risk with a pill is an intriguing concept it is not likely to be a silver bullet solution, and it is still too early to recommend Ritalin on a wide scale basis,” he said.

In 2005, the CDC analyzed 16,000 deaths in the elderly population in which unintentional falls were the fundamental cause of death making it among the top ten leading causes of death in senior citizens, a statistic that holds true today.

LONDON, July 29 /PRNewswire/ --

Commenting on the announcement that BP has made approximately GBP4 billion ($7.8 billion) in profits in the last quarter, Tony Woodley, joint general secretary of Unite said:

"While ordinary working people struggle to make ends meet, BP's boardroom is wading through knee-deep profits. It is high time that our government moved to stop these fuel corporates picking the pockets of the poor and needy.

"A windfall tax now would ensure that the money was there to help the old and vulnerable through these tough times. Tax the fuel companies now so that those who helped to create these mega-profits get their rightful share of them."

For further information call Pauline Doyle, Unite press office, on +44-(0)7976-832-861

By the age of 18 years, two in every five South African schoolboys report being forced to have sex, mostly by female perpetrators. A new study, reported in International Journal for Equity in Health, reveals the shocking truth about endemic sexual abuse of male children that has been suspected but until now only poorly documented.

Some 28% of victims said a non-family member or teacher was the perpetrator. Another 28% had been forced by a fellow student, while 20% had been abused by a teacher and 18% by an adult family member.

Until 2007, forced sex with males in South Africa did not count as rape but as ‘indecent assault’, a much less serious offense.

MOUNT DORA, Florida, July 28 /PRNewswire/ --

Sundrop Systems, Inc. announced today that it has signed two separate licensing agreements under Sundrop's "Live and Work in America" program (http://www.sundropsystems.com/lwa) with successful entrepreneurs from the United Kingdom. The deals were closed in private transactions and grant each licensee an exclusive license to sell Showcast(R) managed digital signage solutions to businesses in defined central Florida territories. Additionally, each licensee received a non-exclusive license to sell Sundrop's other products and services.