It looks the Nintendo folks who came up with the name 'Wii' were onto something - apparently if they had named it 'Vaiveahtoishi' it wouldn't have been as successful.  

'Whee' is a noise kids make when they're having fun and studies have suggested that we tend to perceive familiar products and activities as being less risky and hazardous than unfamiliar ones. If something is familiar, the thinking goes, it is comfortable and safe.

Researchers at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) in Beer-Sheva have determined that the once prevalent custom of female genital mutilation (FGM) among the Bedouin population in the Negev has virtually disappeared.

FGM, also known as "female circumcision" or "female cutting," is still practiced in many cultures around the world.  The World Health Organization has made the eradication of female genital mutilation a major goal in Africa, Asia and Australia, though why the UN doesn't care about men is subject to speculation.

TOKYO, February 20 /PRNewswire/ --

The Niwano Peace Foundation announced Friday it will award the 26th Niwano Peace Prize to Rev. Canon Gideon Baguma Byamugisha, an Anglican priest of Uganda, in recognition of his work to uphold the dignity and human rights of people living with HIV/AIDS.

An award presentation ceremony will take place in Tokyo on May 7. In addition to an award certificate, Rev. Byamugisha will receive a medal and 20 million yen.

Like sweet, tender romance?   Don't date a sand beetle.   Researchers at Uppsala University say what is good for one sex is not always good for the other sex and evolutionary conflicts between the two sexes cause characteristics and behaviors that are downright injurious to the opposite sex.

In both males and females in the animal world it is common – much more common that one might like to think – for one sex to evince characteristics and properties that are injurious to individuals of the other sex.

Roman artefacts which are nearly two thousand years old with similarities to ancient remains found at Pompeii in Italy will be examined at the Science and Technology Facilities Council’s ISIS neutron source in Oxfordshire this weekend.    Researchers hope to learn more about English heritage by discovering whether the items were imported from southern Italy, or manufactured using similar techniques in Britain.

Astronomers using the NASA Swift Satellite are tracking a spectacular comet as it closes in on Earth and sheds gas and dust from its vaporized ice.

A comet is a clump of frozen gases mixed with dust. These "dirty snowballs" cast off gas and dust whenever they venture near the sun. Comet Lulin, which is formally known as C/2007 N3, was discovered last year by astronomers at Taiwan's Lulin Observatory. The comet is now faintly visible from a dark site. Lulin will pass closest to Earth - 38 million miles, or about 160 times farther than the moon - on February 24.

CALGARY, February 19 /PRNewswire/ -- Penn West Energy Trust (TSX - PWT.UN; NYSE - PWE) is pleased to announce its results for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2008

Please note: All $ are Canadian unless otherwise stated.

BRUSSELS, February 19 /PRNewswire/ -- Q3 trading updates

(For the nine month period from 1 April 2008 to 31 December 2008)

Highlights - Continued revenue growth in Q3 (+2,1%) - Integration of acquisition continues in line with expectations, with synergies and benefits of a cost optimization program expected to come through in the next fiscal year - Convertible Bond buy backs in October and December improve net debt position by EUR10,6m and result in exceptional financial profit of EUR9,8m - Strong cash balance at the quarter end - Share consolidation approved: 100 existing shares into one bundled share

Bruno Segers, Chief Executive Officer of RealDolmen, commented:

MAARSSEN, Netherlands, February 19 /PRNewswire/ --

A BioPharma Pavilion at CPhI Japan and a Manufacturing Machinery Zone within P-MEC Japan will be among the new features at the 2009 staging of Japan's leading pharma services events by UBM International Media. The conference programme has also been significantly expanded.

The exhibitions -- completed by the contract services event ICSE Japan -- will be held on 21 - 23 April at Tokyo's Big Sight. Over 400 companies, approximately half from overseas, will exhibit at the events. Attendance is expected to be well over 14,000.

COLLEGEVILLE, Pennsylvania, February 19 /PRNewswire/ --

The Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP), the scientific committee of the European Medicines Agency (EMEA), today adopted a positive opinion recommending to grant a marketing authorization for CONBRIZA(TM) (bazedoxifene) for the treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis in women at increased risk of fracture. CONBRIZA, an investigational medicine, is in development by Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, a division of Wyeth (NYSE: WYE).