U.S. researchers said a combination of talk therapy and antidepressant medication was the best treatment for children and adolescents suffering from disabling anxiety disorders.

Washington, Oct 31: A new study that documented unusually strong vertical "bouncing" motions during a magnitude 6.9 earthquake in Japan in June 2008, which was four times stronger than Earth''s gravity.

According to a report in National Geographic News, the study suggests that side-to-side shaking during earthquakes can also be accompanied by up-and-down jolts, which may increase the threat to buildings and other structures.

Singapore - Singapore's service sector is less upbeat about business prospects for the second half of the fiscal year, according to a quarterly business expectation survey released Friday.

Fifteen per cent of the firms surveyed said they thought the business climate would improve from October to March while 30 per cent projected less favourable conditions, according to the survey conducted by the Department of Statistics.

The majority of the firms, 55 per cent, expected the business situation to remain unchanged.

The data, collected from September to mid-October, indicated a drop in positive expectations after 23 per cent surveyed about the same period a year ago felt positive.

Lusaka, Zambia - The results of Zambia's presidential by- election were trickling in Friday, showing opposition leader Michael Sata polling well in his strongholds in the capital Lusaka and the Copperbelt mining region.

Results from 16 constituencies in the Copperbelt showed him leading acting president Rupiah Banda by around two votes to one.

Sata had also taken two constituencies in Lusaka region, including Lusaka Central, while Banda had won two constituencies in his home region of Eastern Province.

With only around 20 of a total 150 constituencies announced, it was too early to call the election for either candidate. The final results could take several days.

Tel Aviv - Israeli Interim Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has sent a message to Syria, saying he wants to step up peace negotiations with Damascus now that it has become clear he will stay in power for a few more months, an Israeli newspaper reported Friday.

Olmert asked Turkish Defence Minister Vecdi Gonul in a meeting in Tel Aviv to convey the message to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Yediot Ahronot reported.

Olmert resigned last month from the premiership and the leadership of his ruling Kadima party to fight corruption allegations.