Queen Mary 2 in town

LIVERPOOL: One of the biggest passenger ships ever built — the Queen Mary 2 — is making its maiden visit to Liverpool. The Cunard vessel, the 15th liner to call at the cruise liner terminal in 2009, is the largest liner ever to sail up the Mersey. The ship is in the city as part of its fifth birthday UK tour and will spend about 10 hours berthed in the terminal. The vessel was constructed at the Saint-Nazaire yard in France. Cunard was founded in Liverpool in 1839 and had its main offices in the city for almost 130 years. — Agencies

Stop age clock at 50

LONDON: Centenarians with the bodies of 50-year-olds will one day be a realistic possibility, say scientists. Half of babies now born in the UK will reach 100, thanks to higher living standards, but our bodies are wearing out at the same rate. To achieve “50 active years after 50”, experts at Leeds University are spending £50m over five years looking at innovative solutions. They plan to provide pensioners with own-grown tissues and durable implants. New hips, knees and heart valves are the starting points, but eventually they envisage most of the body parts that flounder with age could be upgraded. — Agencies

Iran talks rescheduled

VIENNA: After the removal of France from the list of potential suppliers of highly-enriched uranium to Iran, nuclear talks between Tehran and world powers have been rescheduled. UN nuclear watchdog chief Mohamed ElBaradei opened the first day of the meeting in Vienna on Monday in which delegations from Iran, France, Russia and the United States as well as experts from the agency discussed a deal to supply highly-enriched uranium for an Iranian research reactor. France had been removed from the list of potential suppliers as Iran says the country has failed to deliver nuclear materials in the past. A French Foreign Ministry spokesman said that the country was participating in the meeting on Tuesday. — Agencies