Hamburg, Germany - The days of the huge SUVs such as the Hummer, Porsche Cayenne and Audi Q7 are numbered as high fuel prices and a bad eco-image are causing sales to plunge and comes as manufacturers are offering a better alternative in the compact SUV segment.

Hollywood stars such as Arnold Schwarzenegger and James Cameron were often seen driving the fuel-guzzling Hummer in the 1990s, making it the ultimate male status symbol in wealthy suburbia.

The trend toward full-sized SUVs then spread rapidly from the US to many European countries. In London, the Range Rover Sport was a favourite among the jet-set who did not have to worry about exorbitant parking fees, taxes or fuel prices.

Hamburg  - A tiny beer-swilling, rodent-like jungle creature which drinks the equivalent of a case of 3.8 per cent beer every night and never gets inebriated may hold the clue to the ultimate hangover cure for humans, according to German scientists.

The Malaysian pen-tailed tree shrew drinks the beer-like fermented nectar of the flowers of the bertram's palm in such quantities that the equivalent amount of alcohol would cause a human to collapse in a drunken stupor, say the scientists from Bayreuth University in Germany.

Hamburg - In this digital age, there are still plenty of opportunities, private and professional, to exchange business cards.

Companies generally print standardized business cards for their employees. But the self-employed often find the costs of printing sufficient numbers too high. Making your own cards on your PC is a cheaper alternative.

There are a variety of programs to create business cards. Office supply and software companies like Sigel, Avery, Zweckform and Data Becker offer sets of card-creating software and special paper with pre-punched cards. These easy-to-use programs also come with a variety of fonts and graphics.

Hamburg, Germany -

Hamburg - Having a best friend is especially important to women, a recent representative survey of women aged 25 to 55 in Germany shows.

Asked what really counts in life, 97 per cent answered "having and keeping good friends." In second place was a relationship: 95 per cent of the women questioned said it was especially important to have a long-term partner and to be happy in the relationship.

The study, which appears in the August edition of a lifestyle magazine published in Hamburg, also showed that 91 per cent consider financial independence an important life goal.

Hamburg - Too lazy to go to the gym? Several gadgets, that can easily be stored under lounge furniture, are on the market to help you keep up the training while you are watching TV or listening to music.

- A balance board is a wooden board with a ball underneath. It might take a little practise to stand on it but with time it can help improve coordination, body balance, foot and waist muscles.

- The Flexi-Bar looks like a bow with a rubber knob on either end. It was developed by physiotherapists. By swinging the gadget, vibrations are created which help to keep the deep spine muscles active, according to the manufacturers.