Melbourne, July 28 : New South Wales Supreme Court Judge John Clarke has said that he is ready close his inquiry into the Mohamed Haneef affair on grounds that much of the information he has seen cannot be made public.

Clarke has also said that he will not be seeking the powers of a royal commission to conduct the remainder of his inquiry, which effectively could mean that the entire affair may remain shrouded in secrecy.

Sydney, July 28 : Over 150,000 students in years 11 and 12 at schools across North South Wales (NSW) reportedly need to relearn the art of using a pen and paper quickly, a skill they have lost after years of using computers, laptops, and mobiles.

Sue Marks, a senior English teacher at Barker College on the North Shore, has revealed that remedial classes are being held to get students’ handwriting legible enough for Higher School Certificate examiners to read.

Dr. John Vallance, the headmaster of Sydney Grammar School, says that typed essays will not be accepted in the later years of high school.

He says that the school places a very strong emphasis on ensuring every student can write legibly.

Melbourne, July 28 : Kids and adolescents in Australia are so scared of the outdoors that it has restricted them to hang out in shopping centres, play computer games or go to school, according to a new survey.

According to the study of Sydney kids, both primary school-aged boys and girls and adolescents have nowhere to play in a modern city.

The data from the New South Wales child watchdog, the Commission of Children and Young People, comes after the New South Wales (NSW) Government failed to act on a two-year-old inquiry that warned children were missing out on playtime.

Canberra (Australia), July 28 : Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith has condemned the serial bombings in both Bangalore and Ahmedabad.

"The Australian Government condemns the bomb attacks in Ahmedabad and Bangalore ... and extends its condolences to the Indian Government and people," The Australian quoted Smith, as saying.

His comments came as Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, Congress leader Sonia Gandhi and India’s Home Minister Shivraj Patil are heading for Ahmedabad to visit the survivors of the blasts in various hospitals and also be briefed about the security situation in the city.

Melbourne, July 28 : Rising petrol prices are adversely affecting businesses, according to a survey.

About 49 per cent of the 1000 businesses surveyed said that the impact was “very significant”.

The survey conducted by CNET for 3 Mobile showed that 66 per cent of the respondents were businesses with fewer than 100 employers, while 27.8 per cent had just two to nine employees.

Such respondents covered a range of industries, including construction, education, heat, retail and IC&T (installation, checkout and test).

Sydney - Athletes given what they thought was a human growth hormone improved their performance markedly, Australia researchers found.

In contrast, those who guessed correctly they were being given a placebo showed no significant gain in strength, endurance, power or sprint capacity.

"It's a very simple message," said Ken Ho from Sydney's Garvan

Institute of Medical Research. "If someone, whether they are an athlete or a patient who is unwell, is receiving something they think gives them a benefit, they will feel better and do better."