Saturday, December 31, 2011

AccuScore: The @AccuScore #NFL #Football Daily is out! http://t.co/wG03Kgiq ? Top stories today via @footballrs @findgreatgifts @desttorsipi

  • Passer la navigation
  • Twitter sur votre mobile ? Cliquez ici m.twitter.com!
  • Passer cette ?tape
  • Connexion
Loader Twitter.com
  • Connexion
The @AccuScore #NFL #Football Daily is out! bit.ly/nmoYII ? Top stories today via @footballrs @findgreatgifts @desttorsipi AccuScore

Pied de page

Source: http://twitter.com/AccuScore/statuses/152201225935392768

how old is justin bieber north dakota jobs referendum scarlett johansson glee project winner kris humphries remember the titans

Friday, December 30, 2011

'Afghan soldier' kills two foreign troops

A MAN wearing an Afghan army uniform has shot dead two members of NATO's US-led International Security Assistance Force, military officials say.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack which they said targeted French troops in Kapisa province, which is east of the capital Kabul.

"An individual wearing an Afghan National Army uniform turned his weapon against two International Security Assistance Forces service members in eastern Afghanistan, today, killing both service members," a coalition statement said.

ISAF said it was investigating but did not identify the nationality of the victims in line with policy.

"This morning one Afghan soldier named Ebrahim killed three French soldiers. He was also martyred," Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said.

The Taliban frequently exaggerate their claims.

He said the incident took place in Tagab district in Kapisa province, which is part of the volatile east of the country.

There have been several incidents over the past year in which Afghan government security forces - or those purporting to be - have turned their weapons on foreign troops.

On Christmas eve an Afghan soldier was killed after opening fire on US troops in southwestern Farah province.

Source: http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/breaking-news/afghan-soldier039-kills-two-foreign-troops/story-e6freonf-1226232886317?from=public_rss

snow storm reggie bush ufc 137 boston news matilda new jersey weather halloween movies

Thursday, December 29, 2011

Soyuz straight back into service

Five days after a failed launch, the Russian Soyuz rocket system has been pressed back into service.

The vehicle successfully put six spacecraft in orbit for US satellite phone and data company, Globalstar.

The Soyuz lifted away from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 1709 GMT, ejecting the last of the six Globalstar platforms an hour and 40 minutes later.

Last Friday, a Soyuz malfunctioned soon after launching from the Plesetsk spaceport in northern Russia.

Parts were reported to have crashed back down into the Novosibirsk region of central Siberia.

Last week's Soyuz was a type 2.1b, compared with the 2.1a version used for the Globalstar mission.

The two variants share many design features but use different engines in their third segment, or stage - the part of the Soyuz said to have been responsible for the failure five days ago.

Pressing concern

Wednesday's successful outing will come as a huge relief for Globalstar.

The company is the first of the major sat-phone concerns to start upgrading its systems. The six latest satellites follow 12 others launched in July this year and October last year.

The upgrade is a pressing concern for the company because its existing constellation is failing.

Rolled out in the late 1990s, many of these original satellites have suffered suspected radiation damage to their S-band transmitter equipment, which has limited their ability to handle two-way communications.

Globalstar is pinning its future on its second-generation constellation. It plans to put in orbit at least another six satellites to boost service reach and quality.

Following Wednesday's flight, Tony Navarra, Globalstar's president of global operations, was quick to thank the Soyuz team and Arianespace, the French company that markets commercial Soyuz launches through its Starsem subsidiary.

"These satellites were flawlessly placed exactly where we needed them so that our ground stations could find them on the very first pass," he said. "It's amazing that we can find six satellites within 30 minutes of them being placed into space."

Investigations continue into the cause of last Friday's launch malfunction, which resulted in the loss of a Russian Meridian telecommunications satellite.

It was the latest in a recent run of flight failures for the national rocket industry.

In August, a Soyuz failure on an unmanned mission to resupply the space station led to a six-week suspension of flights.

On 18 August, the week before the loss of the space station mission, a Proton rocket failed to put a communications satellite in its proper orbit.

Back on 1 February, a Rokot launcher also underperformed with a similar outcome.

And on 5 December last year, a Proton carrying three navigation spacecraft fell into the Pacific Ocean. This particular failure is widely believed to have contributed to the decision of the Russian government to replace the then space agency chief, Anatoly Perminov.

Vladimir Popovkin took over as the head of Roscosmos in April.

The rocket failures come on top of the loss of Phobos-Grunt, Russia's most ambitious planetary mission in decades. It became stuck in Earth orbit after its launch in November and will probably fall back to Earth next month.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/science-environment-16349793

ufc 139 fight card houston nutt houston nutt peter marshall peter marshall zombie boy zombie boy

Japan eases ban on weapons exports

TOKYO Japan on Tuesday announced a decision to ease its decades-long weapons export ban in a bid to lower purchase and production costs and take part in arms-development projects with other countries.

For a nation with a war-renouncing constitution written after World War II, lifting the ban is a sensitive issue, especially in Asia, where neighboring countries suffered under Japan's wartime aggression.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Osamu Fujimura said Japan maintains its pacifist principles prohibiting export of Japanese-made weapons for use in global conflicts.

He said that the new rules, approved by the government's security council, will allow Japan to participate in arms-building projects with other countries. Exports will be limited to projects related to peacekeeping and Japan's partners cannot sell technology or weapons to a third country without Tokyo's consent.

Japan already has eased the ban in projects with the United States, its biggest ally. The latest change extends the exception to other defense partners, including European nations and Australia.

Japan and the U.S. have jointly conducted weapons research and development to step up their security alliance, but that's not enough as Japan is expected to play a greater role in international peacekeeping, humanitarian support and take steps against piracy and terrorism, Fujimura said. The easing of the ban also allows Japanese defense contractors to get access to cutting-edge weapons technology and lower costs and acquire more competitiveness, he said.

"As the international society experiences major changes, we strengthen the alliance with the U.S. but we need to cooperate with other defense partners as well," Fujimura said in a statement. "We should acquire the most advanced defense technology to upgrade the capability of Japanese defense industry and cut production costs by pursuing international joint development and production of defense equipment."

The arms export ban dates back to 1967. But the government has long been under pressure from Japanese defense contractors who said the strict policy would hamper their competitiveness and access to technology. Officials have gradually modified rules over time, and Japan has allowed supplying of weapons technology to the U.S. and joint development of missile shields between the two allies.

The U.S. military has also urged flexibility as strict use of Japan's policy would prevent Washington from selling weapons using Japan-made components to other countries.

Huge defense procurement cost is a big concern. Japan earlier this month announced a costly deal by ordering 42 F-35 fighter jets from Lockheed Martin Corp. The Defense Ministry is requesting a budget 55.1 billion yen ($706.9 million) just for the first four of them next fiscal year, which starts in April.

Development and export of weapons parts by Japanese contractors would help to hold down costs.

Defense Minister Yasuo Ichikawa said Japan will stick to its principles even though the new rules could address cost and technology issues.

"The idea is to create a new framework while we firmly keep the philosophy in place," Ichikawa told reporters Saturday before the official announcement.

Source: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2011/12/27/2878941/japan-eases-ban-on-weapons-exports.html

heath bell tiger woods greg oden eddie long ncaa bowl schedule ncaa bowl schedule occupy dc

Thursday, December 22, 2011

Is North Korea the 9th Nation in the World with Nuclear Weapons?

News | Technology

Russian and U.S. nuclear arsenals dwarf the rest


This is a NASA Blue Marble image of the estimated North Korean Nuclear Test site, 2006. Image: NASA

The death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has riveted international attention on the threat of nuclear weapons. Kim was widely reported to have been pursuing nuclear warheads and ballistic missiles to deliver them, and he presided over a pair of nuclear bomb blast tests (confirmed by seismograph). No one outside North Korea knows whether the secretive, totalitarian nation possesses an actual warhead. And no one is quite sure where Kim's youngest son and presumed successor Kim Jong-un stands on the goal of assembling a competitive nuclear arsenal.

It could only take one nuclear device and one maniacal leader to wreak global havoc, but the U.S. and seven other nations worldwide have many nuclear warheads in their arsenals. The latest tally (pdf), made at the end of 2009 by Robert S. Norris and Hans M. Kristensen at the Natural Resources Defense Council in Washington, D.C., is below. Stockpiles in Russia and the U.S. dwarf those of other countries.

  • Russia?13,000 nuclear warheads
  • U.S.?9,400
  • France?300
  • China?240
  • U.K.?180
  • Israel?80 to 100
  • Pakistan?70 to 90
  • India?60 to 80
  • North Korea?unknown

Norris and Kristensen estimate that 4,850 of Russia's warheads are operational; the rest are retired or waiting to be dismantled under arms reduction treaties. About 5,200 of the U.S. warheads are considered operational. In their report, Norris and Kristensen noted that "we are not aware of credible information on how North Korea has weaponized its nuclear weapons capability." They add that U.S. Air Force intelligence did not indicate that any of the country's ballistic missiles were capable of carrying a nuclear warhead at that time.

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=6f0150c9922f3df4eaf8fed99b5a2413

while you were sleeping while you were sleeping happy halloween happy halloween history of halloween eagles cowboys eagles cowboys

Saturday, December 17, 2011

Peru judge grants Berenson NY holiday (AP)

LIMA, Peru ? A Peruvian court has ruled that paroled U.S. activist Lori Berenson and her toddler son can travel to New York for the holidays, she and her father confirmed on Friday.

A three-judge appeals court on Wednesday overturned a lower court judge's ruling denying Berenson permission to travel, said Guillermo Gonzalez, spokesman for Peru's judicial system. He said she could leave the country from Dec. 16 to Jan. 11.

"I'm very glad that Peru is respecting its laws and human rights," Berenson's father, Mark, told The Associated Press by phone from Manhattan. "As Lori says, if she doesn't come home, let Interpol arrest her."

"She is not trying to ever break the law again," he added.

If she doesn't return to Peru by Jan. 11, the country's government could seek her extradition and return her to prison for violating parole, Gonzalez said.

Lori Berenson was paroled last year after serving 15 years for aiding leftist rebels, but she cannot leave Peru permanently until her sentence ends in 2015.

Her father said he is "petrified" a negative local reaction to the New York visit could prevent the trip, including celebrating his 70th birthday Dec. 29.

"My worry is that there's going to be screaming to stop this," he said. Some Peruvians consider her a terrorist, opposed her parole and have publicly insulted her on the street.

He said that as far as he knew, his 42-year-old daughter was still trying to buy a ticket for herself and son Salvador, who is 2 1/2.

"It's not going to be easy," he said. Flights are heavily booked and prices high at this time of year.

Reached by the AP, Lori Berenson confirmed her court permission but added by text message: "I am not speaking to the press."

She has been repeatedly hounded and mobbed by Peruvian news media, which has occasionally frightened young Salvador. Last month, one TV channel obtained her new address and showed video of her home on television, her father said.

"It was very dangerous," he added. "The (U.S.) Embassy complained."

"It's just not fair to Salvador or to her," he said. "They used her like she's a celebrity and she just wants to be a low-profile person and get on with her life and be a good citizen."

He said he would appeal to President Ollanta Humala to send his daughter home.

Humala could by law commute her sentence but has not indicated whether he might do so. The AP sought to reach a presidential palace spokesman for comment but its calls were not immediately returned.

Lori Berenson is separated from Salvador's father, Anibal Apari, whom she met in prison and who serves as her lawyer. He told the AP he signed documents letting her travel with the child.

Mark Berenson said his daughter is looking forward to seeing relatives she hasn't met since her 20s, including his 96-year-old aunt, and that he wants his grandson, who loves trees, see the New York Botanical Garden's holiday display.

Since her initial parole in May 2010, Lori Berenson repeatedly regret for aiding the rebel Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement.

Arrested in 1995, the former MIT student was accused of helping the rebels plan an armed takeover of Congress, an attack that never happened.

A military court convicted her the following year and sentenced her to life in prison for sedition. But after intense U.S. government pressure, she was retried in civil courts in 2001 and sentenced to 20 years for terrorist collaboration.

Berenson was unrepentant at the time of her arrest, but softened during years of sometimes harsh prison conditions, eventually being praised as a model prisoner.

Yet she is viewed by many as a symbol of the 1980-2000 rebel conflict that claimed some 70,000 lives. The fanatical Maoist Shining Path movement did most of the killing, while Tupac Amaru was a lesser player.

Berenson has acknowledged helping the rebels rent a safe house, where authorities seized a cache of weapons. But she insists she didn't know guns were being stored there. She denies ever belonging to Tupac Amaru or engaging in violent acts.

In an interview with the AP last year, Berenson said she was deeply troubled at having become Peru's "face of terrorism."

Its most famous prisoner, she also became a politically convenient scapegoat, she said.

___

Associated Press writer Martin Villena contributed to this report.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/latam/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111216/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/lt_peru_lori_berenson

end of the world end of the world jerome harrison ryan leaf ryan leaf carlos santana jahvid best

Friday, December 16, 2011

This Week's Most Popular Posts: December 2-December 9 [Highlights]

This Week's Most Popular Posts: December 2-December 9This week we learned how music can affect your brain, how to overclock your video card, how to do our favorite Photoshop tricks in the GIMP, getting the most out a job interview, and more. Here's a look back.

This Week's Most Popular Posts: December 2-December 9

Set Your Desktop to the Wallpapers We're Currently Using (2nd Edition)

Last week you shared some of your favorite wallpapers. This week we're sharing ours. Here the the desktop images your Lifehacker editors, writers, and interns are currently using. More ?


This Week's Most Popular Posts: December 2-December 9

How Music Affects the Brain and How You Can Use It to Your Advantage

Music can often make or break a day. It can change your mood, amp you up for exercise, and help you recover from injury. But how does it work exactly, and how can you use it to your advantage? More ?


This Week's Most Popular Posts: December 2-December 9

Most Popular Top 10s of 2011

Lifehacker's been around for a few years, so every week we like to round up some of our favorite posts-new and old-on a particular topic. Here's a look back at our most popular top 10 lists of 2011. More ?


This Week's Most Popular Posts: December 2-December 9

Most Popular How-To Guides of 2011

We handle a lot of different topics throughout the year, and our how-to guides come in a wide range of sizes and subjects. Here's a look back at our most popular how-to features of 2011. More ?


This Week's Most Popular Posts: December 2-December 9

How to Overclock Your Video Card and Boost Your Gaming Performance

While it won't likely mean your old card can magically run the latest games on ultra settings, overclocking your video card is a solid way to eke a bit of extra gaming performance out of your computer. More ?


This Week's Most Popular Posts: December 2-December 9

Top 10 Photoshop Tricks You Can Use Without Buying Photoshop

You can do just about anything to an image with Photoshop, but if you don't have the cash to shell out, free program the GIMP-available for Windows, Linux, and OS X-can take you pretty far. More ?


This Week's Most Popular Posts: December 2-December 9

How Do I Sync My iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch with a New Computer Without Wiping Out All My Data?

Dear Lifehacker, I've been syncing my iPhone with laptop, but now I want to start syncing with my desktop. When I connect it to the desktop, iTunes wants to erase everything in order to start syncing with his new machine. More ?


This Week's Most Popular Posts: December 2-December 9

Ask These Questions at Your Next Job Interview to Learn What's Going on Behind the Scenes

When you're in a job interview and an interviewer asks if you have any questions for them, the worst thing you can do is say no. You should always have some questions to ask. More ?


This Week's Most Popular Posts: December 2-December 9

Five Best Video Editors

Whether you're editing home movies to send to family and friends, or you're planning your web video takeover of YouTube, it's important to have the right tools to edit your videos before you put them where the world can see. More ?


This Week's Most Popular Posts: December 2-December 9

Show Your Coworkers You Care with These Awesome Under-$20 Gifts

Part of celebrating the holidays is the dreaded coworker Secret Santa. Here are a few Lifehacker suggestions for your office Secret Santa so you give a gift that's useful, saves them time and energy, and most importantly doesn't suck. More ?


This Week's Most Popular Posts: December 2-December 9

Floss Hacks, iOS Music, and Full Screen Chrome

Readers offer their best tips for tricking yourself into flossing more often, getting more info about a track in iOS, and using Chrome in full screen mode in OS X. More ?


This Week's Most Popular Posts: December 2-December 9

The Best Services That Give You Discounts for Cancelling

We've always known you can reduce your bills by just asking, but lots of companies will give you an immediate discount if you say you're going to cancel?even if you don't talk to someone on the phone. More ?


This Week's Most Popular Posts: December 2-December 9

Paint Your Car for Less than $100

If your car is starting to show its age, one way to breathe a little cosmetic life into a new vehicle is to give it a new paint job. At the same time, a good paint job can cost thousands of dollars. More ?


Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/aj9aJ7FpZbo/this-weeks-most-popular-posts-december-2+december-9

adam shulman adam shulman nfl power rankings week 13 nfl power rankings week 13 patrice patrice tether

Missouri woman gets $6.1 million from unclaimed property (Reuters)

KANSAS CITY, Mo (Reuters) ? The holidays this year will be especially memorable for a Kansas City woman who has received a state record $6.1 million from a Missouri unclaimed property fund consisting of a single security.

The Missouri state treasurer maintains some $600 million of unclaimed property, most of it cash from bank accounts, the contents of safe deposit boxes, stocks and bonds, according to the treasurer's office. The average payout is about $300.

"While we aren't disclosing this person's name, what I can tell you is we found this person and worked quickly to get the money back in her hands," Missouri Treasurer Clint Zweifel said on Wednesday in a statement.

Zweifel said assets become unclaimed property for many reasons in Missouri, whether a death in the family, misplaced documents or changes in address. The woman's name and other details were not disclosed for privacy reasons.

In Missouri, financial institutions, insurance companies, public agencies and other businesses are required to turn over to the state treasurer assets that belong to customers, clients or employees if there have been no documented transactions or contact with the owner for five or more years.

Thirty-eight accounts of more than $100,000 each remain unclaimed in Missouri.

Brandon Fuhr, a spokesman for the treasurer, said all states keep unclaimed property and he encouraged residents to contact their state treasurer or comptroller or look at their websites for details.

(Reporting by Kevin Murphy and Greg McCune)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oddlyenough/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111214/od_nm/us_missouri_property_windfall

make your mark make your mark stop loss stop loss thurston moore the island the island

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

Feds warn Alabama on immigration enforcement

Dave Martin / AP file

Protestors march outside the Alabama Capitol during a demonstration against Alabama's immigration law in Montgomery, Ala.on Nov. 15.

By Pete Williams and Kari Huus

The Justice Department has sent a letter to dozens of local law enforcement agencies in Alabama that receive federal money, warning them that they risk losing that funding if they're not careful in how they enforce the state's tough new immigration law.

The Obama administration has already sued the state, claiming that the law is unconstitutional. Now it's keeping the pressure on by addressing how the law is carried out.

The law, HB56 passed by the Alabama Legislature in June, attempts to combat illegal immigration by establishing harsh penalties for employers who hire undocumented workers, requiring public schools to report children and parents who are not legal residents, and forbidding illegal migrants from having any transactions with the government. The law creates new immigration crimes, and puts local police in the position of enforcing immigration.


Federal justice officials were in Birmingham last week to investigate the civil rights impacts of HB56, which is designed to make it extremely uncomfortable, if not impossible, for illegal immigrants to live in the state. Among the officials was Thomas Perez, assistant attorney general of Justice Department?s civil rights division.

In an unusual letter addressed to 156 Alabama sheriff's offices and police departments, Perez tells them that the federal government is monitoring how they enforce the part of the law that requires checking the immigration status of people who are stopped for questioning.

It is critical, Perez says, that local law agencies "ensure that your enforcement of this law does not result in unlawful stopping, questioning, searching, detaining, or arresting" in violation of the Constitution "or targeting of racial and ethnic minorities."

Other states have passed similar laws, but they've been blocked by federal courts. A federal judge in Alabama, however, allowed the law to go into effect.

State Sen. Bill Beasley, a?Democrat,?is leading an effort to repeal HB56 in the upcoming session.

In the meantime, there are forces aside from the federal government chipping away at various provisions in the law.

Courts have put some provisions on temporary hold, including Section 13, which makes it a crime to transport or shelter an undocumented immigrant ? putting many charitable and religious operations at risk of prosecution.

A court also enjoined Section 28 of the bill, which requires school officials to inquire about the legal status of public school children and their parents. The ruling came?after the state?s Education Department reported that more than 2,200 Latino students, were suddenly absent from school.

The bill was touted as a way to provide jobs for Alabama?s legal residents amid a tough economy. There has been a backlash from the farm, poultry and construction industries, which started seeing an exodus of Hispanic workers ? including many with legal status ? after the bill was passed.

In the late summer and early fall, Alabama farmers who lost workers were unable to get their tomatoes, potatoes and other labor-intensive crops in time, and watched them rot in the fields.

?I certainly don?t feel the Legislature wanted legals leaving Alabama,? says Jay Reed, president of the Alabama Associated Builders Contractors, and co-chair of a group called Alabama Employers for Immigration Reform. ?However, that is the case. For right at 30 years, employers have followed the hiring guidelines and to change that overnight left a void in Alabama?s work force."

Pete Williams is NBC News' justice correspondent. Kari Huus is an msnbc.com writer.

More stories and features on msnbc.com

?

Source: http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/12/06/9258266-justice-department-warns-alabama-law-enforcers-on-immigration

rocky horror picture show rutgers risky business weather nj weather nj nyc weather nyc weather

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Smart headset gives food a voice

Melissae Fellet, contributor

Devouring the heads of gummy worms may make you feel like a wild animal, but now a new headset developed by Masahiko Inami and his team at Keio University in Japan will let you hear the candy scream.

The device is designed to enhance the texture of a meal by synchronising sound effects with chewing. It could improve the sensation of eating mushy food or, according to the researchers, let you role-play as a monster chewing on living things.

An arm attached to the headset contains a light sensor that detects jaw movements during chewing. At the same time, a microphone taped to a person's jawbone picks up chomping sounds inside the mouth. A computer programme then enhances the sound - by adding extra crunch to potato chips, for example, or putting in scary screams. The altered sound is played into headphones while a person eats.

The team has called the system the Chewing Jockey since it can change the mood of a room like a disc jockey spinning tunes at a night club. According to Inami, a tiny version of the device could be installed in dentures to help restore the sensation of food textures.

The system will be presented this year at Siggraph Asia, a conference on computer graphics and interactive techniques, from December 13-15 in Hong Kong.

If you enjoyed this video, check out this suit that simulates the feeling of pregnancy or take a look at the other technologies in our Siggraph video special.

Subscribe to New Scientist Magazine

Source: http://feeds.newscientist.com/c/749/f/10897/s/1aaaabc8/l/0L0Snewscientist0N0Cblogs0Cnstv0C20A110C120Csmart0Eheadset0Egives0Efood0Ea0Evoice0Bhtml0DDCMP0FOTC0Erss0Gnsref0Fonline0Enews/story01.htm

bill of rights toys r us toys r us shame shame hedy lamarr syracuse basketball

Monday, December 5, 2011

Crowds rampage in Iraqi Kurdish city after sermons (AP)

BAGHDAD ? Rioters attacked liquor stores, a massage parlor and hotels after being stirred up by fiery sermons in a predominantly Kurdish city in north Iraq, police officials said Saturday. Pro-government crowds then attacked Islamist party offices in retaliation, they said.

Thirty people including 20 policemen were reported injured in the rampage, which followed Friday midday prayers in the town of Zakho, some 300 miles (475 kilometers) northwest of Baghdad. Zakho lies within the territory controlled by Iraq's Kurdistan Regional Government.

Some 30 liquor stores, four hotels, and a massage parlor in and around the city near the Turkish border were ransacked, set on fire or otherwise damaged, they said.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity, as they were not authorized to speak to the media.

Angry crowds then attacked offices belonging to a Kurdistan-based Islamist party in retaliation, officials said. Six headquarters of the Kurdistan Islamic Union in and around Zakho, and in the nearby city of Dohuk, were set on fire or otherwise assaulted, said Zakho police officer Ahmed Doski.

Islamic Union activist Salahudden Babekir blamed the attacks on his party on activists of the ruling Kurdistan Democratic Party, and denied that his group had any role in Friday's violence.

Islamists have become more active recently in Kurdistan as the secular-leaning KDP and its partner in government and sometime-rival, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, have become preoccupied with internal conflicts.

The Kurdistan government's interior ministry issued a statement late Friday condemning the violence, describing them as an attempt to inflame the situation in the northern self-rule enclave, and promised to bring those involved to justice. It called on citizens to show self-restraint and to solve their problems through dialogue.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/iraq/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111203/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_iraq

theo epstein theo epstein darknet james ray williston nd williston nd mists of pandaria

Plant seeds protect their genetic material against dehydration

Friday, December 2, 2011

Plant seeds represent a special biological system: They remain in a dormant state with a significantly reduced metabolism and are thus able to withstand harsh environmental conditions for extended periods. The water content of maturing seeds is lower than ten percent. Researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research in Cologne have now discovered that the genetic material in seeds becomes more compact and the nuclei of the seed cells contract when the seeds begin to mature. The seeds probably protect their genetic material against dehydration in this way.

Plants prepare for changing environmental conditions in the best possible way by developing dormant seeds. Seeds that mature in autumn, for example, have no problem surviving the harsh conditions of winter. And when the seeds encounter more pleasant external conditions in spring, they germinate and reboot their metabolism, which has been running at a low speed. In archaeological excavations, seeds have even been found that had survived for several thousand years and were still able to germinate.

Dry seeds represent a transitional stage between embryonic and seedling stages. During developmental transitions, the genes that control the new state must be activated while the genes for the "old" stage are silenced. The genes in the cell nucleus are surrounded by proteins. This complex ? the chromatin ? can be tightly or loosely packed. The degree of compactness of the chromatin regulates the activity of the genes: the more "open" the chromatin, the better the genes can be read.

It was not known up to now whether the reduced metabolic activity or low water content of seeds was linked with changes in the chromatin. The research team working with Wim Soppe from the Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research has now shown in studies on the thale cress that the cell nuclei clearly contract during seed maturation and the chromatin compacts as part of this process. Both processes are reversed during germination. "The size of the nucleus is independent of the state of dormancy of Arabidopsis thaliana seeds," says Soppe. Instead, the reduction of the nucleus is an active process, the function of which is to increase resistance to dehydration. Again, the condensation of the chromatin arises independently of the changes in the nucleus.

Thanks to the discoveries of the Cologne-based researchers it may be possible to protect other organisms against dehydration, as the mechanisms that regulate the organisation of the chromatin have undergone little or no change over the course of evolution.

###

Martijn van Zanten, Maria A. Koini, Regina Geyer, Yongxiu Liu, Vittoria Brambilla, Dorothea Bartels, Maarten Koornneef, Paul Fransz, and Wim J. J. Soppe
Seed maturation in Arabidopsis thaliana is characterized by nuclear size reduction and increased chromatin condensation
Advance online publication 28 November 2011, doi: 10.1073/pnas.1117726108 PNAS

Max-Planck-Gesellschaft: http://www.mpg.de

Thanks to Max-Planck-Gesellschaft for this article.

This press release was posted to serve as a topic for discussion. Please comment below. We try our best to only post press releases that are associated with peer reviewed scientific literature. Critical discussions of the research are appreciated. If you need help finding a link to the original article, please contact us on twitter or via e-mail.

This press release has been viewed 26 time(s).

Source: http://www.labspaces.net/115679/Plant_seeds_protect_their_genetic_material_against_dehydration_

find my mac gumby derrick mason derrick mason lamichael james lamichael james epstein

Sunday, December 4, 2011

Rioters attack liquor stores in Iraqi Kurdistan (Reuters)

ARBIL, Iraq (Reuters) ? Rioters burned dozens of alcohol shops and damaged several hotels in Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdistan region after Friday prayers, prompting an attack a pro-Islamic party office, authorities and witnesses said Saturday.

Iraq's Kurdistan in the north of the country has enjoyed more stability and security since becoming largely autonomous in 1991, and has been governed by two ruling parties who have shared power since Saddam Hussein was ousted in 2003.

After Friday prayers, during which one religious leader criticized the sale of alcohol, protesters burned more than 30 liquor shops and bars and damaged three hotels in Zakho, 440 km (275 miles) north of Bagdad, officials and witnesses said.

"Dozens of people came out after Friday prayers and burned alcohol stores," one eyewitness said.

Fahad Mulla Saleh, a member of the Kurdish Islamic Union, said the party's headquarters had been attacked after the riots. But his party denied any responsibility for the attacks on stores in Zakho.

Kurdistan Regional Government President Masoud Barzani in a statement condemned the attacks, which he said appeared to have been triggered by religious leaders.

Kurdistan has enjoyed investment and growth even as the rest of Iraq still struggles with power shortages and the stubborn violence from Sunni Islamist insurgents and Shi'ite militias more than eight years after the U.S. invasion.

But many Kurdistan residents say they have seen little of the region's new wealth, complaining the two ruling parties have concentrated power in their hands. Two months of protests earlier this year demanded the two parties loosen their grip.

(Reporting by Baghdad newsroom; Writing by Patrick Markey; Editing by Sophie Hares)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/iraq/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111203/wl_nm/us_iraq_kurdistan_riots

madoff bernie madoff anna chapman kim kardashian ghost hunters honda generator honda generator

Saturday, December 3, 2011

Obama pushes payroll tax cut extension

President Barack Obama delivers remarks at the White House Tribal Nations Conference, Friday, Dec. 2, 2011, at the Interior Department in Washington. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)

President Barack Obama delivers remarks at the White House Tribal Nations Conference, Friday, Dec. 2, 2011, at the Interior Department in Washington. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)

President Barack Obama listens while touring a building under construction in Washington, Friday, Dec. 2, 2011, part of his Better Building Initiative to promote energy efficient buildings. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

(AP) ? President Barack Obama wants voters to get involved in the debate over extending the reduced payroll tax and he's asking them to tell members of Congress to keep the cut in place.

"Let your members of Congress know where you stand," Obama said Saturday in his weekly radio and Internet address. "Tell them not to vote to raise taxes on working Americans during the holidays. Tell them to put country before party. Put money back in the pockets of working Americans. Pass these tax cuts."

Obama's address directs listeners to the whitehouse.gov website, where an online calculator lets them determine how much money it's worth to them to continue the 2 percent reduction in the payroll tax that took effect this year. A family with income of $50,000 a year would pay $1,000 more in payroll taxes if Congress does not act by the end of this year to extend that reduction.

Democrats want to expand the reduction in addition to extending it. Republican leaders say they're committed to passing an extension, fearing political fallout if payroll taxes rise on Jan. 1 on 160 million wage-earners. The GOP rank-and-file appears divided, with many Republican senators voting against an extension supported by their leadership this week.

There's also disagreement about how or whether to pay for any extension. Democrats favor a new tax on millionaires; Republicans prefer to cut federal spending.

"We're going to keep pushing Congress to make this happen. They shouldn't go home for the holidays until they get this done," Obama said in his address. "And if you agree with me, I could use your help."

Obama also took note of a new monthly jobs report out Friday that showed the economy added 120,000 jobs in November, a positive number. "We need to keep this growth going and strengthen it," the president said.

Republicans devoted their weekly address to promoting a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution, which is headed for a vote in the Senate after failing in the House last month.

Democratic leaders worked aggressively to defeat the measure in the House, saying that such a requirement could force Congress to cut billions from social programs during times of economic downturn and that disputes over what to cut could result in Congress ceding its power of the purse to the courts. The result was that the amendment got majority support but fell short of the two-thirds needed to advance a constitutional amendment.

Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, said "the impending vote to amend the Constitution represents a choice between changing business as usual in Washington or embracing the status quo that we can no longer afford."

"The real reason many lawmakers don't want a balanced budget amendment is the exact reason why it's so essential," Snowe said. "They don't want their hands tied; they want to continue to spend without restraint."

Like Obama, she asked listeners to make their views known.

"Contact your senators and urge them to support our balanced budget amendment," Snowe said, "so that we finally seize the fiscal reins and reclaim our future for our children and our grandchildren."

___

Online:

Obama address: www.whitehouse.gov

GOP address: http://www.youtube.com/gopweeklyaddress

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2011-12-03-Obama/id-3b2a5be2387b48f88515e94eea927565

tibetan mastiff manny pacquiao pacquiao blanche blanche gloria allred black friday ads 2011

BBC brings global iPlayer iPad app to Canada, one step closer to the US

BBC Worldwide isn't quite ready to debut its "global" iPlayer app for the iPad here in the US yet, but now it's a bit closer after updating to v1.2.5 and becoming available in Canada. The app debuted back in July bringing iPlayer streaming access to tablets across Western Europe, before taking its programmes to Australia back in September. It will cost Canadians $8.99 per month for access BBC shows like Fawlty Towers, Whitechapel, and Hustle, but viewers in all 16 territories with access can snag one free episode per day through December 25th. The Hollywood Reporter indicates this is all part of a year long pilot phase with a next step of opening it up to US audiences, so those with patience don't need to put on their snowshoes and move to the Great White North just yet.

Continue reading BBC brings global iPlayer iPad app to Canada, one step closer to the US

BBC brings global iPlayer iPad app to Canada, one step closer to the US originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 01 Dec 2011 08:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink The Hollywood Reporter  |  sourceiTunes, @BBCiPlayerGLBL (Twitter), BBC  | Email this | Comments

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/12/01/bbc-brings-global-iplayer-ipad-app-to-canada-one-step-closer-to/

mitchel musso bad lip reading gilad shalit gilad shalit santonio holmes john edward psychic john edward psychic

Friday, December 2, 2011

Jackson legacy expected to thrive after trial (AP)

LOS ANGELES ? The private world of Michael Jackson, fiercely shielded by the superstar in life, was exposed in the trial of Dr. Conrad Murray. But rather than suffering harm from revelations of drug use, experts say Jackson's legacy and posthumous earning power will survive any damage done and could actually grow after he was portrayed as a victim of a money-hungry doctor.

Jackson died before he could launch a series of highly anticipated comeback concerts in London as he tried to regain the towering status he enjoyed when he released the "Thriller" album in 1983.

But his death did breathe new life into record sales and boosted other projects to generate hundreds of millions of dollars for his estate, even as his already tarnished personal life took another hit by revelations about his drug use.

Jackson zoomed to the top of the Forbes Magazine list of highest earning dead celebrities and his executors are moving quickly on more projects designed to burnish the performer's image and expand the inheritance of his three children.

A Cirque du Soleil extravaganza, "Michael Jackson: The Immortal World Tour" opens in Las Vegas this weekend, a precursor to a permanent installation at the Mandalay Bay Hotel, and fans are expected to flock there for a "Fan Fest" exhibit of Jackson memorabilia.

After the trial, a judge made it clear that the defense effort to cast Jackson as the villain in the case had been a miserable failure. Murray was convicted of involuntary manslaughter, called a reckless opportunist and sentenced to the maximum four years in prison.

Judge Michael Pastor also blasted Murray for experimenting on the pop star with the operating-room anesthetic propofol to help him battle debilitating insomnia, even though the drug was never meant to be used in a private home.

Some experts say the revelations made the King of Pop look more like a regular person coping with a difficult challenge.

"In the final analysis, not a lot of damage was done," Jackson biographer J. Randy Taraborelli said. "I think the trial humanized Michael Jackson. It presented him as a human being with problems."

As evidence unfolded, "It definitely made our hearts go out to Michael Jackson. He was a person suffering a great deal and not getting the help he needed," the author said.

Taraborelli said the entertainer's family, fans and estate executors were concerned before the trial that testimony would paint Jackson as responsible for his own death while resurrecting past accusations of child molestation and bizarre behavior by the King of Pop.

But the judge limited testimony and evidence to Jackson's final months and specifically ruled out any mention of the 2005 molestation trial.

Thomas Mesereau Jr., the attorney who won Jackson's acquittal in that case, believes the Murray trial did damage Jackson's reputation but said the impact would likely be short term.

"It certainly didn't help to have all this testimony about drug use," Mesereau said. "But as time passes, people will focus more on his music and the negatives will fade."

While Murray was ultimately shown to be negligent, the portrait of his patient that emerged during the trial was one of an aging superstar desperate to cement his place in entertainment history while providing a stable home life for adored children, Paris, Prince and Blanket.

The image of Jackson as a caring father had never been illustrated quite so vividly. A probation officer who interviewed Jackson's mother, Katherine, said she told him: "Michael Jackson was his children's world, and their world collapsed when he left."

A leading expert on the licensing and branding of dead celebrities believes the trial engendered so much sympathy for Jackson that in the long run it will eclipse negative fallout from his past.

"I don't think any tawdry revelations that may have come out of the trial will have any impact on his lasting legacy," said Martin Cribbs, who is based in New York. "We as a society tend to give everyone a second chance. Michael's legacy will be like Elvis and the Beatles. It will be his music, his genius. and his charitable works "

Cribbs has represented the estates of such deceased luminaries as Mahatma Gandhi, Albert Einstein, Steve McQueen and Mae West.

He is not involved in the Jackson estate but praised its executors' efforts. Beginning with the rapid release of the concert movie, "This Is It," he said, "They have done a brilliant job of reminding us of Michael's genius."

Taraborelli also cited the film based on rehearsals for Jackson's ill-fated concerts as a spectacular move setting the stage for a posthumous comeback of the Jackson entertainment empire.

"It made you want to embrace him," said the author of "Michael Jackson: The Magic and the Madness."

Jackson's eccentricities and bizarre behavior often made headlines. Whether it was traveling with a chimp named Bubbles, sleeping in a hyperbaric chamber or dangling his baby Blanket off a balcony, he managed to alienate many people. The molestation trial pushed him further from the mainstream.

"That all ended on the day the news was announced that Michael was dead," said Lance Grode, a former music executive and onetime attorney for Jackson who now teaches legal issues in music at University of Southern California.

"The public decided they prefer to remember Michael as this great superstar and music prodigy and to forgive and forget any negative things they had heard over the last 10 or 15 years," Grode said. "Nothing came out at the trial that was nearly as bad as things they had heard in the past."

Grode said evidence of public acceptance is seen in the Jackson estate's ability to generate a half-billion dollars in the wake of his death.

The Cirque show, which launched in Canada, is slated for 150 dates across North America through July and expected to run through 2014 internationally. The permanent Las Vegas show is due in 2013.

The year he died, Jackson sold 8.3 million albums in the U.S. ? nearly twice as many as second-place Taylor Swift ? and "This Is It" became the highest-grossing concert film and documentary of all time.

Joe Vogel, author of a new book on Jackson's music, and others said the most shocking part of the Murray trial was the playing of a recording of a drugged Jackson slurring his words while dreaming aloud about his future concert and his plans to build a fantastic state of the art children's hospital.

Vogel said the recording, found on Murray's cell phone, reveals the dark side of Jackson's world.

"Michael had a difficult life. He said once that you have to have tragedy to pull from to create something beautiful and inspiring. And that's what he did. His music has staying power," Vogel said.

Rich Hanley, a pop culture specialist who teaches journalism at Connecticut's Quinnipiac University, said Jackson had "complexities on top of complexities."

"There may be collateral damage to his reputation from the trial. His inner sanctum was penetrated for the first time," he said.

However, "his music is eternal. It brings universal joy to people and will continue as much as Elvis' work continues to attract new fans even though he's been gone for generations," Hanley said.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/celebrity/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111202/ap_en_mu/us_michael_jackson_legacy

gloria cain gloria cain kandi burruss occupy portland occupy portland the hunger games neil degrasse tyson