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A Chinese factory worker has become an Internet sensation after a picture of her smiling and flashing a peace sign to a co-worker testing an Apple iPhone stayed on the phone that was sold to a man in Britain.

Photos of the unidentified, smiling woman were posted on the Apple discussion website MacRumours.com by a customer identified as “markm49uk” from Kingston-upon-Hull and quickly posted around other sites.

“Not sure if this is or is not the ‘norm’ but I just received my brand new iPhone here in the UK and once it had been activated on iTunes I found that the home screen (the screen you can personalize with a photo) already had a photo set against it!!!!” he wrote.

“It would appear that someone on the production line was having a bit of fun - has anyone else found this?”

Some people voiced concern that the woman could now lose her job while others joked on the website that they were considering returning their phones because they did not come loaded with a photo.

“I think its a kind of personal touch. It’s nice. Maybe every phone that gets a full quality test should have its tester’s picture taken and left on there. And the working conditions look pretty good,” wrote one.

Taiwanese company Foxconn assembles the iPhones for Apple in Shenzhen in southern China but calls to the company by Reuters went unanswered.

However Foxconn spokesman Liu Kun told the South China Morning Post in Hong Kong that the woman had been identified but her details would not be released. She had also been assured by her bosses that her job was safe.

Liu said the photos were taken in the testing department as part of a normal procedure and only one phone was known to be affected so far.

Sony’s (6758.T) joint venture with cell phone maker Ericsson (ERICb.ST) must do better, Sony’s chief executive was quoted as saying by a German newspaper on Wednesday.

Asked whether Sony is planning to end its Sony Ericsson joint venture, Howard Stringer told Die Welt: “It’s certainly been a difficult year but buying out a partner is never an easy thing.”

Sony lowered its group net profit forecast for the year to March by 17 percent, citing a slump at Sony Ericsson and weakening prospects for its electronics division amid tough price competition.

“We have to work together again as we did two years ago. Or the joint venture will have to find its own solution,” Stringer said.

He added that it was hard for a company to be as nimble as possible when it works in a joint venture.

“You’re always engaged in discussion and negotiation. We and Ericsson are always discussing ways of making Sony Ericsson as successful as it possibly can be,” he said.

Digital video recorder maker TiVo Inc (TIVO.O) is set to enter into an agreement with Time Warner’s (TWX.N) Entertainment Weekly that will allow its users to automatically record shows suggested by the magazine’s staff, the Wall Street Journal said.

TiVo expects to make the announcement on Wednesday, the paper said.

The alliance is part of a push by TiVo to differentiate itself from digital video recorders offered by cable companies, which have managed to find a bigger audience.

The financial terms of the deal are not being disclosed, the paper said.

Digital video recorder maker TiVo Inc (TIVO.O) is set to enter into an agreement with Time Warner’s (TWX.N) Entertainment Weekly that will allow its users to automatically record shows suggested by the magazine’s staff, the Wall Street Journal said.

TiVo expects to make the announcement on Wednesday, the paper said.

The alliance is part of a push by TiVo to differentiate itself from digital video recorders offered by cable companies, which have managed to find a bigger audience.

The financial terms of the deal are not being disclosed, the paper said.

Low or high levels of LDL cholesterol are associated with an increased risk of cancer in patients with type 2 diabetes, according to a Chinese study that noted the increasing evidence of an association between type 2 diabetes and cancer risk.

The study included 6,107 diabetes patients. None of the patients were taking cholesterol-lowering statins.

The researchers found that LDL levels below 2.80 mmol/L were associated with an increased risk of cancers of the digestive organs and peritoneum, genital and urinary organs, and lymphatic and blood tissues. LDL levels above 3.80 mmol/L were associated with increased risk of oral, digestive, bone, skin, connective tissue and breast cancers.

The findings suggest “the use of these levels as risk markers may help clinicians to assess their patients more fully and thus to prevent premature deaths in patients who have high risk,” wrote the team from the Hong Kong Institute of Diabetes and Obesity, the Li Ka Shing Institute of Health Sciences and The Chinese University of Hong Kong.

The study was published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.

The researchers recommended a re-analysis of data from clinical trials to confirm or refute their findings.

Confounding factors such as lifestyle, socioeconomic status and indication for use of statins need to be considered when examining the association between LDL levels and cancer risk, Drs. Frank Hu and Eric Ding of the Harvard School of Public Health, wrote in an accompanying commentary.

“Low serum cholesterol is commonly observed in individuals with ill health (e.g., cancer patients) and those with unhealthy lifestyle characteristics such as smoking and heavy drinking,” they noted.

Several blogs (see Techmeme) are reporting that Apple will roll out new products on September 9. As previously rumored, starting with missive from Digg’s Kevin Rose, Apple may be revamping the iPod Nano and tweaking the iPod Touch with new software, as well delivering iTunes 8.0 with a recommendation engine and selective price cuts.

Per usual with the cone of silence that encapsulates Steve Jobs and the Apple troops surrounding new product announcements, it’s uncertain what will actually be unveiled next month.

However, from various sources CNET News is hearing that Apple is gearing up its engine for something the week of September 8, so the September 9 date is likely more accurate than the rumors so far of what will be delivered to the Mac and iPod devotees. Stay tuned as the build up to the next appearance of Steve Jobs and the unveiling of Apple’s latest wares continues.

Metabolic syndrome, a cluster of conditions that increases the risk of heart disease, stroke and diabetes, in extremely obese patients can be cured by gastric bypass surgery, according to the findings from a new study.

“Reversibility of metabolic syndrome depends more on the percentage of excess weight lost than on other clinical or demographic characteristics,” the research team reports in the journal, Mayo Clinic Proceedings.

To determine the effect of major weight loss on the metabolic syndrome, Dr. Francisco Lopez-Jimenez and colleagues evaluated patients being considered for bypass surgery at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, between 1990 and 2003.

All patients met at least three of the five criteria for the metabolic syndrome - high levels of triglycerides (a “bad” fat), low levels of high-density lipoprotein “good” cholesterol, increased blood pressure, high blood sugar levels and obesity.

The study group included 180 patients who underwent gastric bypass and 157 patients who did not undergo the procedure, either because they declined surgery, were denied coverage by insurance providers, or did not maintain lifestyle interventions during their evaluation. All patients received medical and dietetic care and extensive counseling about the importance of physical activity.

The mean body mass index (BMI) was 49 in the surgical group and 44 in the nonsurgical group. A normal BMI is considered to be between 18.5 and 24.9.

During an average follow-up of 3.4 years, the prevalence of metabolic syndrome decreased from 87 percent to 29 percent in the surgical group, and from 85 percent to 75 percent in the control group. The authors estimate that the number of patients needed to treat with bypass surgery to cure one patient of metabolic syndrome was 2.1.

Weight loss averaged 44 lbs in the surgical group and 0.2 lbs in the nonsurgical group. Additional analysis showed that the percentage of excess weight lost was the primary factor that determined the resolution of the metabolic syndrome.

“Our study provides robust data to practicing clinicians about the benefits of counseling weight reduction in metabolic syndrome patients,” Lopez-Jimenez and his associates conclude.

They recommend “gastric bypass surgery should be considered as a treatment option in patients with metabolic syndrome that has not responded to conservative measures” in those eligible for surgery.

In a move to cash in on the back-to-school mobile phone-buying sprees, Verizon Wireless on Monday launched a new phone dubbed “Blitz.”

Verizon Wireless is billing the phone as a device designed for the heaviest of texters. Loosely translated, that means tweens, or preteens.

The Blitz comes with a slide-out QWERTY keyboard and a dedicated My Messaging key. The tween-friendly phone also offers a 2.2-inch screen for browsing the Web or checking e-mail.

Also important to the youth demographic, the Blitz is a music player. Verizon’s latest product comes equipped with an MP3 player that can access the Verizon V CAST Music with Rhapsody service.

“The nice part about technology, as with most things, is that mature platforms fragment,” said Michael Gartenberg, vice president of mobile research for Jupiter Media. “So we have these youth-optimized devices that we really have never seen just a few years ago.”

Priced to Sell

The Blitz is selling for $69.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate and a new two-year customer agreement with Verizon. Customers can sign up for V CAST Music with Rhapsody for a $14.99 monthly subscription.

“What’s nice about it is that it appeals to a demographic that doesn’t have a whole lot of money in their pocket,” Gartenberg said. “These kids don’t have $200 or $300 dollars to spend on a phone, although they’d like to. The Blitz is cool enough that you don’t have to be branded as the person using the cheap phone in school.”

The Blitz also incorporates a 1.3-megapixel camera with color effects and a self-portrait mirror. It supports Bluetooth devices; is mobile Web-capable; offers mobile e-mail functionality through MSN, Hotmail, America Online and Yahoo; and offers a media center that lets young people download games, ringtones, wallpapers, location-based services and other media.

The Blitz also comes with mobile instant-messaging capabilities and picture messaging, as well as a calculator, alarm clock, notepad and phone book that holds up to 1,000 entries.

On the music front, Blitz lets its users download more than 5 million songs to a PC. Most music downloaded onto the PC using V CAST Music with Rhapsody is free of digital rights management software, so kids can play the music on multiple devices.

“The Blitz looks like a nice addition to the lineup and really optimized in a way that this demographic uses their devices, where messaging and music is as important as phone calls,” Gartenberg said.

Expanding the Lineup

Verizon and LG Electronics also announced on Monday a new addition to the touch-screen phone world: The Voyager in Titanium. The new phone offers visual voice mail, which lets users delete, reply and forward voice-mail messages without having to listen to old messages or instructions. The LG Voyager in Titanium is available for $149.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate with a new two-year customer agreement.

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki says there can be no security agreement with the United States unless there is a “specific deadline” for the withdrawal of American troops.

Al-Maliki also says that unless some clauses in the draft agreement under discussion are changed, it will be “difficult” for the pact to be adopted. He did not identify all those clauses.

But the prime minister told tribal leaders Monday that he cannot grant “open immunity” to Iraqis or foreigners because that would violate the “sanctity of Iraqi blood.”

Baghdad and Washington are negotiating an agreement on the future of U.S. troops in Iraq. Al-Maliki aides say Iraq insists on 2011 as the target date for the withdrawal of the last U.S. soldier.

Expect America’s multi-millionaire National Basketball Association heroes to continue sacrificing their summers in quest of Olympic gold, even after returning the United States to global supremacy.

Smiles were still locked on the faces of the US NBA superstars after their 118-107 triumph over Spain in Sunday’s gold medal game when USA Basketball general manager Jerry Colangelo said half of them were ready to return in 2012.

“We’ll celebrate and then we will talk about going forward,” Colangelo said. “Five or six of these guys have said they want to be part of us going forward. But now it’s time for a rest.”

“Hell yeah,” answered US forward Carmelo Anthony. “I’ve been doing this for 40 years.”

Anthony, only 24, joined LeBron James and Dwyane Wade as seldom-seen reserves on the 2004 US team that settled for Olympic bronze. Their quest to redeem US honor and restore the once-mighty dynasty drove the US march to gold.

In the wake of that disappointing third-place finish, three US losses in Athens being one more than Americans had suffered at all prior Games combined, a new program was put in place to revive the US dynasty.

USA Basketball asked players for a three-year comittment to keep playing in the NBA off-season, assembling the same talent pool for the 2006 World Championships, 2007 Americas Olympic qualifying and 2008 Olympics.

The payoff was golden. Now James says NBA stars will continue signing on for three-year stints for the chance to uphold American honor starting in London in four years.

“I think so,” James said. “It has been a great experience for all 12 of us. Not all 12 of us are going to be together again 2012, but we can tell other guys this is one of the best experiences I ever had in my life.

“This is great. You’re playing basketball and you’re representing your country. It doesn’t get any better than this.

“Winning an NBA championship would never compare to winning a gold medal for my country.”

But with a rapidly improving group of global rivals, US players know they can no longer afford to deliver less than their best and expect to win gold.

“It means a lot,” US forward Chris Bosh said. “This is what you sacrifice your summers for. We’ve sacrificed being with our families - been away from home for a long time now.”

The core of the US team has had three years of bonding and learning about each other, the international style and its differences from the NBA and the value of reclaiming global supremacy for basketball’s birthplace, dominating rivals through an 8-0 Olympic run.

“A two- to three-year program is definitely working,” guard Jason Kidd said.

“It’s huge to see the maturing of a 19-year-old from 2004 to 2008. You talk about LeBron, you talk about Melo, you talk about the guys that were on that team that lost, they’ve all matured and they’ve all gotten better.

“That’s a big part when you’re playing against different countries because they’ve been together for a long time and they play together.”

US women ran unbeaten to gold as well, beating Australia 92-65 in the final for their fourth consecutive gold medal. The US women went 8-0, stretching their Olympic win streak to 33 and winning by an average of 37.6 points a game.

But the team that captured the hearts of Chinese fans was the US men, NBA stars adored from afar but cheered by sellout crowds in a rare Asian visit that produced memories to last a lifetime.