Newly elected All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) head Edappadi Palaniswamy met with Tamil Nadu Governor C Vidyasagar Rao on Thursday and decided the way further to become the chief minister in the state.

“Governor invites Palaniswamy to form government in the state,” reports stated.

Palanisamy, picked by AIADMK General Secretary VK Sasikala for the post of chief minister, was called by Vidyasagar Rao to meet at Raj Bhawan at 11.30 am.

Palaniswamy and four party MLAs, who met with the Governor, were picked by Sasikala and they are her loyalists, according to the reports.

Meanwhile, Sasikala, convicted for corruption, on Wednesday surrendered before a trial court set up in the prison complex in Bengaluru.

Sasikala gave herself up at the Central Jail on the city's southern outskirts with her relatives Elavarasi and VN Sudhakaran after reaching from Chennai by road.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday, while holding Sasikala and two others guilty of amassing disproportionate assets, had directed Sasikala to surrender to the trial court to undergo her remaining sentence.

Secretary General Antonio Guterres has extended the term of Atul Khare, the highest ranking Indian civil servant at the UN, as the Under- Secretary General for Field Support till April 2018.

khare plays a key role in tamping down the sexual abuse and exploitation scandal in UN peace-keeping operations.

"The Secretary General has decided that the mandate of senior officials working in the Peace and Security pillar should be maintained for another one year," his spokesperson Farhan Haq said Wednesday.

This also related to Guterres setting up a team to review the working of the UN in order to carry out his promise of reforming the UN.

"This important work will require both expertise and experience from principals and all staff members," Guterres said while announcing the review.

Khare will also serve on the UN's Senior Management Group, the high-level body chaired by the Secretary-General that deals with policy and planning matters across the UN.

A medical doctor by training, Khare joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1984 and has since served in several UN positions, many relating to peacekeeping.

Appointed in 2015 by former Secretary-General as the head of the Department of Field Services, Khare has the crucial role of overseeing the agency that provides logistical, administrative and human resources support to the UN peacekeeping and political missions around the world.

Amid the scandal of sexual abuse and exploitation by UN peace-keepers, he emerged as the point person for dealing with it by enforcing a zero tolerance policy.

Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Herve Ladsous, under whose leadership the UN peacekeeping suffered a blow to its image and reputation because of the sex scandals, is leaving the the world body when his term ends in March.

Haq said that Jean-Pierre Lacroix will succeed Ladsous. Both men are French and France has traditionally held the top peacekeeping spot under the UN spoils system for Security Council permanent members.

China, which has dramatically increased its participation in the peace-keeping operations in recent years, had unsuccessfully lobbied for that job, according to diplomatic sources.

It is expected to keep the Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs position now held by Wu Hongbo.

The term of Jeffrey Feltman, the Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, was also extended till April 2018, Haq said. That slot is held by an American.

With a push for a woman to succeed Ban failing, Guterres promised to increase the number of women at the UN, especially in its top ranks. He has appointed Amina Mohammed of Nigeria to the second highest post of Deputy Secretary General and Maria Luiza Ribeiro Viotti of Brazil as his chef de cabinet or chief of staff.

Vijay Nambiar of India, who was Ban's Special Adviser on Myanmar and served on the Senior Management Group left the UN when Ban's term ended in December. Earlier, he was Ban's chef de cabinet.

Actor Vince Vaughn has joined the cast of former WWE star Dwayne Johnson's wrestling film Fighting With My Family 

The film written and directed by Stephen Merchant is based on the life of WWE superstar Paige.

Vaughn is "playing a man who I know all too well and those of you who follow wrestling history know well too," Johnson wrote on Instagram.

"The 80's wrestling star who squandered his money and opportunities because he didn't have the capacity to handle his fame. One bad decision after another, but these days he owns his past actions and does everything he can to give back to the wrestling business he loves," he added.

The movie follows the son and daughter (played by Jack Lowden and Florence Pugh) of a wrestling family who jump at their chance to enter the WWE. Johnson, who has a role and produces the film through his Seven Bucks Productions, previously announced the castings of Lena Headey and Nick Frost.

Actor Vince Vaughn has joined the cast of former WWE star Dwayne Johnson's wrestling film Fighting With My Family 

The film written and directed by Stephen Merchant is based on the life of WWE superstar Paige.

Vaughn is "playing a man who I know all too well and those of you who follow wrestling history know well too," Johnson wrote on Instagram.

"The 80's wrestling star who squandered his money and opportunities because he didn't have the capacity to handle his fame. One bad decision after another, but these days he owns his past actions and does everything he can to give back to the wrestling business he loves," he added.

The movie follows the son and daughter (played by Jack Lowden and Florence Pugh) of a wrestling family who jump at their chance to enter the WWE. Johnson, who has a role and produces the film through his Seven Bucks Productions, previously announced the castings of Lena Headey and Nick Frost.

January 2017 was just a little cooler than last year and its temperature matched that for the same month in 2007, making it the third warmest January in 137 years of modern record-keeping, according to NASA scientists.

Last month's temperature was 0.20 degrees Celsius cooler than the warmest January in 2016. However, it was 0.92 degrees Celsius warmer than the mean January temperature from 1951-1980, according to a monthly analysis of global temperatures by scientists at NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York.

The results showed that two of the three top January temperature anomalies have been during the past two years.

January 2016 was the hottest on record, at 1.12 degrees Celsius warmer than the January mean temperature, followed by 2007 at 0.96 degrees Celsius warmer. January 2017 placed third.

The monthly analysis by the GISS team is assembled from publicly available data acquired by about 6,300 meteorological stations around the world, ship- and buoy-based instruments measuring sea surface temperature, and Antarctic research stations.

The modern global temperature record begins around 1880 because previous observations did not cover enough of the planet.

January 2017 was just a little cooler than last year and its temperature matched that for the same month in 2007, making it the third warmest January in 137 years of modern record-keeping, according to NASA scientists.

Last month's temperature was 0.20 degrees Celsius cooler than the warmest January in 2016. However, it was 0.92 degrees Celsius warmer than the mean January temperature from 1951-1980, according to a monthly analysis of global temperatures by scientists at NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York.

The results showed that two of the three top January temperature anomalies have been during the past two years.

January 2016 was the hottest on record, at 1.12 degrees Celsius warmer than the January mean temperature, followed by 2007 at 0.96 degrees Celsius warmer. January 2017 placed third.

The monthly analysis by the GISS team is assembled from publicly available data acquired by about 6,300 meteorological stations around the world, ship- and buoy-based instruments measuring sea surface temperature, and Antarctic research stations.

The modern global temperature record begins around 1880 because previous observations did not cover enough of the planet.

US President Donald Trump has chatted briefly with his Argentine counterpart, Mauricio Macri, on telephone discussing the region and Venezuela "in particular", a media report said.

During the five-minute call on Wednesday, Trump reiterated his invitation to Macri to visit Washington and also said that he was "very happy" because new jobs were being created in the US, the Argentine President's office said in a statement.

This was the second of such calls between the two leaders since Trump won the November 2016 election. Argentina said that the two leaders' talk was very cordial, but provided no further details, Efe news reported.

The US and Venezuela got into their first diplomatic spat earlier this week when Washington blacklisted Venezuelan Vice President Tareck El Aissami on drug charges, a move he called "imperialist aggression."

Macri and Trump, who have known each other for several years through the latter's business dealings with the Argentine leader's father, agreed that the US Secretary of State and the South American nation's Foreign Minister, who on Thursday will meet in Germany during a G-20 meeting, will coordinate the scheduling for a visit by Macri to Washington.

The centre-right Argentine leader took the call from Trump at the Olivos presidential residence accompanied by his Cabinet Chief Marcos Pena, who on Wednesday morning said that the conversation occurred at the request of the US.

In November, in their first telephone contact after Trump's election win, the two men "recalled their … personal relationship and promised to work on a common agenda for the growth of the two countries," the Argentine President's office said at the time.

Trump said after that first conversation that Argentina is a great country and he was looking forward to having the closest relationship ever between the two governments.

US President Donald Trump has chatted briefly with his Argentine counterpart, Mauricio Macri, on telephone discussing the region and Venezuela "in particular", a media report said.

During the five-minute call on Wednesday, Trump reiterated his invitation to Macri to visit Washington and also said that he was "very happy" because new jobs were being created in the US, the Argentine President's office said in a statement.

This was the second of such calls between the two leaders since Trump won the November 2016 election. Argentina said that the two leaders' talk was very cordial, but provided no further details, Efe news reported.

The US and Venezuela got into their first diplomatic spat earlier this week when Washington blacklisted Venezuelan Vice President Tareck El Aissami on drug charges, a move he called "imperialist aggression."

Macri and Trump, who have known each other for several years through the latter's business dealings with the Argentine leader's father, agreed that the US Secretary of State and the South American nation's Foreign Minister, who on Thursday will meet in Germany during a G-20 meeting, will coordinate the scheduling for a visit by Macri to Washington.

The centre-right Argentine leader took the call from Trump at the Olivos presidential residence accompanied by his Cabinet Chief Marcos Pena, who on Wednesday morning said that the conversation occurred at the request of the US.

In November, in their first telephone contact after Trump's election win, the two men "recalled their … personal relationship and promised to work on a common agenda for the growth of the two countries," the Argentine President's office said at the time.

Trump said after that first conversation that Argentina is a great country and he was looking forward to having the closest relationship ever between the two governments.

Joe Root hopes becoming a Test captain will take his batting to the "next level", just as it's done for India's Virat Kohli and Australia's Steve Smith.

Root was confirmed as England's new Test skipper, following Alastair Cook's resignation, despite the likes of former Test spinner Graeme Swann saying it could adversely affect his batting.

The 26-year-old Yorkshireman already boasts an impressive batting average of nearly 53 in his 53 Tests to date.

Yet Kohli averages over 67 as captain of the India side now top of the world Test rankings compared to a shade above 41 when a player in the ranks.

The corresponding figures for Smith are equally stark, at 71 and 53 respectively.

"That excites me," said Root at his Headingley home ground on Wednesday.

"It's a great motivator to make sure I do everything I can to get my batting in the best place possible and set the example for the rest of the guys in the team."

Root added: "You look at other guys who've taken similar roles like Virat and Steve Smith and they've gone on to bigger and better things and taken their game to the next level. I don't see why I can't look at it in the same light.

"It's a great opportunity to take that added responsibility and really motivate me to get better. Every kid dreams of being England captain one day… I'm just really looking forward to getting my teeth into it and putting my mark on things." 

Root insisted he had no hesitation in accepting the captaincy when it was offered to him by England and Wales Cricket Board director Andrew Strauss.

"I think it's the biggest honour in the game, simple as that," he said.

Meanwhile Strauss, Cook's predecessor as England captain, forecast an initial upsurge in the form of Root, a regular in all three international formats.

"When you get to the end of a captaincy career, you look at Alastair Cook and talk about him feeling a bit drained," said Strauss.

"The opposite is also true. Early on in your captaincy career, it's incredibly energising. You walk a bit taller, you are passionate about taking the team forward, and you want to contribute to winning games of cricket.

"We've seen with a lot of captains that it's had a really positive effect on their game generally. There's no reason why that wouldn't happen to Joe for the next 18 months. And it's 18 very important months for both him and the England team."

Root has plenty of time to ease himself into his new role as England's next Test is not until they face South Africa at Lord's in July, with their focus for the time being on limited overs cricket, including June's Champions Trophy on home soil.

For a team that prides itself on its Test results, 2016 was a tough year for England. They lost eight Tests in all, culminating in a 4-0 series loss in India — Cook's final campaign as captain.

After this year's home series against South Africa and the West Indies, England's packed schedule continues with the defence of the Ashes in Australia in November.

But an undaunted Root said of his promotion to captain: "It's a good opportunity to give something back to the game that has given me so much.

"I'm very lucky to have inherited an exciting team with a great blend of experience, raw talent and a core group of players who have played 20-30 games and are ready to take some more responsibility."

He added: "I'd like to be a captain that wins, tough to play against, and I like to hope we'll play cricket that is enjoyable to watch.

"It should be entertaining Test cricket and that's something I want to get across to the team and the people watching.

Joe Root hopes becoming a Test captain will take his batting to the "next level", just as it's done for India's Virat Kohli and Australia's Steve Smith.

Root was confirmed as England's new Test skipper, following Alastair Cook's resignation, despite the likes of former Test spinner Graeme Swann saying it could adversely affect his batting.

The 26-year-old Yorkshireman already boasts an impressive batting average of nearly 53 in his 53 Tests to date.

Yet Kohli averages over 67 as captain of the India side now top of the world Test rankings compared to a shade above 41 when a player in the ranks.

The corresponding figures for Smith are equally stark, at 71 and 53 respectively.

"That excites me," said Root at his Headingley home ground on Wednesday.

"It's a great motivator to make sure I do everything I can to get my batting in the best place possible and set the example for the rest of the guys in the team."

Root added: "You look at other guys who've taken similar roles like Virat and Steve Smith and they've gone on to bigger and better things and taken their game to the next level. I don't see why I can't look at it in the same light.

"It's a great opportunity to take that added responsibility and really motivate me to get better. Every kid dreams of being England captain one day… I'm just really looking forward to getting my teeth into it and putting my mark on things." 

Root insisted he had no hesitation in accepting the captaincy when it was offered to him by England and Wales Cricket Board director Andrew Strauss.

"I think it's the biggest honour in the game, simple as that," he said.

Meanwhile Strauss, Cook's predecessor as England captain, forecast an initial upsurge in the form of Root, a regular in all three international formats.

"When you get to the end of a captaincy career, you look at Alastair Cook and talk about him feeling a bit drained," said Strauss.

"The opposite is also true. Early on in your captaincy career, it's incredibly energising. You walk a bit taller, you are passionate about taking the team forward, and you want to contribute to winning games of cricket.

"We've seen with a lot of captains that it's had a really positive effect on their game generally. There's no reason why that wouldn't happen to Joe for the next 18 months. And it's 18 very important months for both him and the England team."

Root has plenty of time to ease himself into his new role as England's next Test is not until they face South Africa at Lord's in July, with their focus for the time being on limited overs cricket, including June's Champions Trophy on home soil.

For a team that prides itself on its Test results, 2016 was a tough year for England. They lost eight Tests in all, culminating in a 4-0 series loss in India — Cook's final campaign as captain.

After this year's home series against South Africa and the West Indies, England's packed schedule continues with the defence of the Ashes in Australia in November.

But an undaunted Root said of his promotion to captain: "It's a good opportunity to give something back to the game that has given me so much.

"I'm very lucky to have inherited an exciting team with a great blend of experience, raw talent and a core group of players who have played 20-30 games and are ready to take some more responsibility."

He added: "I'd like to be a captain that wins, tough to play against, and I like to hope we'll play cricket that is enjoyable to watch.

"It should be entertaining Test cricket and that's something I want to get across to the team and the people watching.

Scribbling rapidly on a paper, time ticking, pin drop silence with so many questions still left unanswered. Suddenly, from a corner of the examination hall someone sneezes! The silence breaks and so does the act of blessing — “God bless you” from someone’s mouth.

This unforgettable memory from school and the habit of responding to a sneeze with ‘God bless you’ is something that we tend to keep for the rest of our lives.

Interestingly, there is a story that explains the reason behind the response.

Responding to a sneeze with a ‘God bless you’ was declared as the correct response to someone’s sneeze on February 16, 600 AD by Pope Gregory I.

According to history, due to the plague of 590 AD, blessings were imparted on people to save them from being affected by the plague. Hence, as a precautionary measure, whenever a person sneezed, ‘God bless you’ became the most used response. However, there are lesser known facts about it.

Sneezing is like falling in love

When you see your crush in front of you, your heart skips a beat. It is said that when a person sneezes the heart skips a beat which is not exactly what the heart does. A sneeze changes the blood flow rate and blood pressure due to which the rhythm of the heart undergoes a change which is generally called skip of the beat.

Sneezing makes our body reboot

Just like the smartphone in your pocket needs to reboot once in a while, the human nasal cavity needs to be reset, according to a research at University of Pennsylvania, and to do that we sneeze.

Sneeze can travel around 100 miles an hour

The air moves out of the nose so quickly because of which a noise is produced. The faster the air moves, the louder the sneeze. The speed with which the air comes out is equivalent to around 100 miles an hour of speed.

Spray of the sneeze can reach five feet

So when the teacher asked to cover the face while sneezing, it had a significant reason behind it. With basic etiquettes it also helped in saving the people in vicinity.

Sneeze and sleep don’t go hand in hand

A person cannot sneeze while sleeping hence, if your roommate sneezes while sleeping you now know that there is some pretention in front of your eyes.

Try to sneeze with eyes wide open

This is that one challenge that you can pose and never lose. A person can never sneeze with eyes open. Eyes tend to close automatically when a person sneezes.

Sneezing vs Workout

One sneeze engages throat, chest, diaphragm, and abdomen. Hence, it is not less than a workout!

So next time when you sneeze and no one is around to say ‘God bless you’ to you, don’t worry just let your heart skip a beat.

Scribbling rapidly on a paper, time ticking, pin drop silence with so many questions still left unanswered. Suddenly, from a corner of the examination hall someone sneezes! The silence breaks and so does the act of blessing — “God bless you” from someone’s mouth.

This unforgettable memory from school and the habit of responding to a sneeze with ‘God bless you’ is something that we tend to keep for the rest of our lives.

Interestingly, there is a story that explains the reason behind the response.

Responding to a sneeze with a ‘God bless you’ was declared as the correct response to someone’s sneeze on February 16, 600 AD by Pope Gregory I.

According to history, due to the plague of 590 AD, blessings were imparted on people to save them from being affected by the plague. Hence, as a precautionary measure, whenever a person sneezed, ‘God bless you’ became the most used response. However, there are lesser known facts about it.

Sneezing is like falling in love

When you see your crush in front of you, your heart skips a beat. It is said that when a person sneezes the heart skips a beat which is not exactly what the heart does. A sneeze changes the blood flow rate and blood pressure due to which the rhythm of the heart undergoes a change which is generally called skip of the beat.

Sneezing makes our body reboot

Just like the smartphone in your pocket needs to reboot once in a while, the human nasal cavity needs to be reset, according to a research at University of Pennsylvania, and to do that we sneeze.

Sneeze can travel around 100 miles an hour

The air moves out of the nose so quickly because of which a noise is produced. The faster the air moves, the louder the sneeze. The speed with which the air comes out is equivalent to around 100 miles an hour of speed.

Spray of the sneeze can reach five feet

So when the teacher asked to cover the face while sneezing, it had a significant reason behind it. With basic etiquettes it also helped in saving the people in vicinity.

Sneeze and sleep don’t go hand in hand

A person cannot sneeze while sleeping hence, if your roommate sneezes while sleeping you now know that there is some pretention in front of your eyes.

Try to sneeze with eyes wide open

This is that one challenge that you can pose and never lose. A person can never sneeze with eyes open. Eyes tend to close automatically when a person sneezes.

Sneezing vs Workout

One sneeze engages throat, chest, diaphragm, and abdomen. Hence, it is not less than a workout!

So next time when you sneeze and no one is around to say ‘God bless you’ to you, don’t worry just let your heart skip a beat.

Nepal has urged the European Union to lift an air traffic ban imposed, stating that the Himalayan country has made significant progress on aviation safety, the foreign affairs ministry said here on Thursday.

Foreign Affairs Minister Prakash Sharan Mahat made the request to European Commission President Jean Claude Juncker during their recent meeting in Brussels, Xinhua news agency reported.

"The European Commission President assured the foreign minister of looking into the matter positively based upon the facts to be provided by the government of Nepal," the ministry said.

The EU imposed a blanket ban on all airlines from Nepal from flying into the 28-nation bloc since December 2013 under the changes to a list of unsafe carriers better known as "the EU air safety list".

During the meeting, Mahat also sought enhanced level of support from the EU in Nepal's infrastructure development and post-earthquake reconstruction efforts, the statement said.

The Nepalese minister also held a meeting with EU's Vice President Federica Mogherini where the latter expressed the bloc's commitment to support in Nepal's development efforts, post-earthquake reconstruction process, constitution implementation and electoral support.

Nepal has urged the European Union to lift an air traffic ban imposed, stating that the Himalayan country has made significant progress on aviation safety, the foreign affairs ministry said here on Thursday.

Foreign Affairs Minister Prakash Sharan Mahat made the request to European Commission President Jean Claude Juncker during their recent meeting in Brussels, Xinhua news agency reported.

"The European Commission President assured the foreign minister of looking into the matter positively based upon the facts to be provided by the government of Nepal," the ministry said.

The EU imposed a blanket ban on all airlines from Nepal from flying into the 28-nation bloc since December 2013 under the changes to a list of unsafe carriers better known as "the EU air safety list".

During the meeting, Mahat also sought enhanced level of support from the EU in Nepal's infrastructure development and post-earthquake reconstruction efforts, the statement said.

The Nepalese minister also held a meeting with EU's Vice President Federica Mogherini where the latter expressed the bloc's commitment to support in Nepal's development efforts, post-earthquake reconstruction process, constitution implementation and electoral support.

Stocks resumed their upward climb on Thursday as traders beat back a 2-day decline in prices and investors focussed their buying energies on large cap software companies in anticipation of a potential buyback by managements.

The Nifty rose 26 points to 8,751 points in the first two hours of trade on the National Stock Exchange. The index continues to consolidate near 4-month highs in the absence of fresh buying momentum.

Here are the major events of the trading day:

* Sun Pharma, Tata Motors, Infosys, and Tech Mahindra rose 1.5-2.3 per cent and were among 34 shares advancing on the Nifty.

* ICICI Bank, BPCL, ITC, Adani Ports and Dr. Reddy's fell 1.2-2.1 per cent and were among 14 stocks to fall on the Nifty.

* India's most valuable company, Tata Consultancy Services, rose 1.1 per cent to 2.440 rupees and was the top traded stock by value, with Rs.264 crore worth of shares changing hands on expectations that the parent Tata group will announce a buy back of shares in its board meeting to be held on February 20.

* Tata Motors, State Bank and Reliance Industries were also in heavy demand.

* Jindal Steel & Power, South Indian Bank and State Bank were on the list of most actively traded shares.

* The trend was positive in the broader market with the Nifty 100, 200 and 500 indices rising 0.3 per cent and the mid cap and the small cap benchmarks adding 0.7-1.1 per cent.

* Mixed directions were seen in the sectoral segment with PSU banks, Realty shares, software companies and Auto stocks rising smartly. Bit selling was seen on FMCG, Media and private banking stocks.

* The Sensex rose 54 points to 28,209 points on the Bombay Stock Exchange. Sun Pharma was the top gainer while ITC lost the most. State Bank was the top traded share by value on the Sensex.

* The mood was bullish in the wider market with 1,089 shares rising compared to 479 that declined.

* Sentiment was equally robust in the futures market with 149 futures rising versus just 30 that fell. Realty futures dominated the speculative buying side in the derivatives segment.

Stocks resumed their upward climb on Thursday as traders beat back a 2-day decline in prices and investors focussed their buying energies on large cap software companies in anticipation of a potential buyback by managements.

The Nifty rose 26 points to 8,751 points in the first two hours of trade on the National Stock Exchange. The index continues to consolidate near 4-month highs in the absence of fresh buying momentum.

Here are the major events of the trading day:

* Sun Pharma, Tata Motors, Infosys, and Tech Mahindra rose 1.5-2.3 per cent and were among 34 shares advancing on the Nifty.

* ICICI Bank, BPCL, ITC, Adani Ports and Dr. Reddy's fell 1.2-2.1 per cent and were among 14 stocks to fall on the Nifty.

* India's most valuable company, Tata Consultancy Services, rose 1.1 per cent to 2.440 rupees and was the top traded stock by value, with Rs.264 crore worth of shares changing hands on expectations that the parent Tata group will announce a buy back of shares in its board meeting to be held on February 20.

* Tata Motors, State Bank and Reliance Industries were also in heavy demand.

* Jindal Steel & Power, South Indian Bank and State Bank were on the list of most actively traded shares.

* The trend was positive in the broader market with the Nifty 100, 200 and 500 indices rising 0.3 per cent and the mid cap and the small cap benchmarks adding 0.7-1.1 per cent.

* Mixed directions were seen in the sectoral segment with PSU banks, Realty shares, software companies and Auto stocks rising smartly. Bit selling was seen on FMCG, Media and private banking stocks.

* The Sensex rose 54 points to 28,209 points on the Bombay Stock Exchange. Sun Pharma was the top gainer while ITC lost the most. State Bank was the top traded share by value on the Sensex.

* The mood was bullish in the wider market with 1,089 shares rising compared to 479 that declined.

* Sentiment was equally robust in the futures market with 149 futures rising versus just 30 that fell. Realty futures dominated the speculative buying side in the derivatives segment.

Scarlett Johansson says monogamy is "unnatural" and feels it requires "a lot of work" to be in a relationship with just one person.

The Captain America: Civil War star, however, understands the notion that marriage is very romantic," reported E! online 

"Well, with every gain there's a loss, right? So that's a loss. You have to choose a path. I think the idea of marriage is very romantic; it's a beautiful idea, and the practice of it can be a very beautiful thing. I don't think it's natural to be a monogamous person. I might be skewered for that, but I think it's work. It's a lot of work.

"And the fact that it is such work for so many people – for everyone – the fact of that proves that it is not a natural thing. It's something I have a lot of respect for and have participated in, but I think it definitely goes against some instinct to look beyond," Johansson said.

The 32-year-old actress sees getting hitched as a responsibility.

"I think marriage initially involves a lot of people who have nothing to do with your relationship, because it's a legally binding contract, and that has a weight to it.