Latest and Most Recent News from Oceania

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Australian scientists have found medications taken for osteoporosis, known as bisphosphonates may extend five years to lifespan, Australia Associated Press reported on Thursday.

Source: Australian study reveals possible secret to long life

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British midwife on holiday in Cairns helped deliver one of three babies born as northern Australia was battered by cyclone Akiko Pruss, from Cairns, went into labour surrounded by 1,000 other people in a shelter.

Source: Queensland baby arrives in cyclone Yasi shelter

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Obesity rates worldwide have doubled in the last three decades even as blood pressure and cholesterol levels have dropped, according to three new studies.

Source: Global obesity rates double since 1980: study

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Expect to pay five times as much for bananas Jared Lynch Banana crops decimated by Yasi First reports from Innisfail warn of widespread crop damage.

Source: Banana prices to rocket

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That person is former Prime Minister Sir Geoffrey Palmer, whose rare combination of intellectual power, academic background and appetite for hard work shocked a tired and worn-out Parliament when he became an MP in 1979.

Source: Scholarly take on a sharp mind

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TULLY HEADS, Australia: Torrential rains and flash floods trapped scores of people in homes and cars following a massive cyclone, piling more misery on Australia after weeks of record inundations.

Source: Torrential downpours pile misery on Australia

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ALMOST 2,000 defence personnel seconded to Queensland's flood recovery effort have finished their task and about 400 will remain to help the devastated areas rebuild.

Source: Defence focus shifts to Qld flood recovery

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New Zealander of the Year Sir Paul Callaghan says the honour is bittersweet due to his battle with an aggressive cancer that doctors last year did not think he would survive.

Source: NZer of the Year battles aggressive cancer

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A family in Tully, north Queensland, surveys the damage inflicted to their now open-air home by Cyclone Yasi.

Source: Hurricanes, floods, fires ... no worries?

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Wildfires threatened homes and new flooding forced evacuations in embattled Australia Sunday, as officials warned that last week's monster cyclone would compound economic woes.

Source: Fires, floods hammer Oz