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[ "Affaticamento muscolare per Juan. Secondo la stampa il difensore brasiliano ha uno stiramento al gem..." ]

[ "Inter, Milan e Roma settimana prossima saranno impegnate in Champions League e quindi la Lega Calcio...", "Scuole, strade e quattro stazioni della metro chiuseIl quartiere di Trastevere off limits per dodici ore Bush a Roma, la città in allerta tutte le misure di sicurezza Per l'Air Force One si ferma l'aeroporto di Fiumicino", "(AGI) - Roma, 19 nov. - Si e' conclusa la grande kermesse degli Mtv Europe music Awards, nell'ippodromo di Tor di Valle a Roma. Questi gli artisti che hanno ricevuto l'ambito riconoscimento: ben tre premi", "ROMA, 20 ago - A vent'anni di distanza dallo scandalo del calcio scommesse che portò il Milan in serie Be alcuni calciatori e presidenti nelle patrie galere, la storia si ripete. La procura federale, al termine", "L'Udinese non si ferma, punti d'oro per Genoa e Livorno", "ROMA - ''Coriolano'' (Tragedy of Coriolanus), uno dei drammi 'romani' di William Shakespeare, e' andato in scena in prima nazionale ieri sera a Roma al Teatro Argentina nell' interpretazione di Alessandro Gassman e la regia di Roberto Cavosi.", "Milan e Roma si affronteranno in semifinale nel caso dovessero superare i quarti di finale di Champi...", "(AGI) - Roma, 19 ott. - La riforma della Costituzione e' un'occasione per "completare e correggere" il federalismo, che e' stato oggetto di una "torsione" che ha creato problemi poiche' "si e' cambiato sensibilmente", "EUROPA/ITALIA - Incaricati diocesani e regionali dell’Infanzia Missionaria a Convegno; il 16 giugno l’Incontro nazionale dei Ragazzi Missionari Roma (Agenzia Fides) - “Gesù è risorto: inizia la missione” è il titolo dell’Incontro nazionale degli Incaricati regionali e diocesani della Pontificia Opera dell’Infanzia Missionaria in programma a Roma dal 2 al 4 marzo. Il convegno, che annualmente...", "L'uomo, 58 anni, si e' impiccato nel bagno della cella", "La 39° Settimana Biblica Nazionale, promossa dall’Associazione Biblica Italiana (ABI), dedicata al tema “La violenza nella Bibbia” Roma (Agenzia Fides) - Dall’11 al 15 settembre 2006 si svolgerà a Roma, presso il Pontificio Istituto Biblico (via della Pilotta, 25), la 39° Settimana Biblica Nazionale, promossa dall’Associazione Biblica Italiana (ABI). Quali sono le radici della v...", "Roma, 24 ottobre 2004 - Le cattive notizie, per le coppie in crisi, escono dagli studi degli avvocati. Matrimonilasti, ovviamente. Anche se si evitano quelli stranoti di Roma e Milano. Prima Simona Ventura", "Roma, 12 novembre 2004 - Oggi si ricorda il primo anniversario della strage di Nassiriya, in cui morirono 19 italiani: 12 carabinieri, 5 soldati e due civili. Tutto il Paese ricorda i caduti. Il ministro della", "Lombardia:se Formigoni candidato a Roma,si voterebbe il 3/09", "“Malattie rare e screening neonatale: il miraggio della prevenzione”. A Roma il convegno sulla diagnosi precoce delle malattie rare Roma (Agenzia Fides) - Il prossimo 26 giugno a Roma, in Campidoglio, Istituzioni, Associazioni di Pazienti e Mondo Accademico si confronteranno sul tema della diagnosi precoce delle malattie rare nel Convegno “Malattie rare e screening neonatale: il ...", "(AGI) - Roma, 19 nov. - "Il diritto alla salute e' una delle forme fondamentali in cui si esprime il diritto all'eguaglianza". Il Presidente della Repubblica Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, intervenendo al Quirinale" ]

[ "I really like all the Kind bar flavors but the Cranberry Almond are my favorite. They have the right combination of chew and crunch and like all the Kind bars, they are completely natural and very flavorful. I won't eat any other bar with my coffee! Great snack and healthy too." ]

[ "The cube averages out to $2.00 a bar. Not a steal or a deal. But you get to try most of the varieties available. Try the minis first, that way you can see which ones you like. I am partial to the Dark Chocolate Cherry Cashew + Antioxidants. which is not included here. They come in Kind Plus and Kind Fruit and Nut. It is a good winter time snack between lunch and dinner.<br /><br />3 - Kind Plus Almond Walnut Macadamia + Protein Bars<br />3 - Kind Plus Cranberry Almond + Antioxidants Bars<br />3 - Kind Fruit & Nut Almond & Coconut Bars<br />3 - Kind Fruit & Nut Fruit & Nut Delight Bars<br />2 - Kind Plus Mango Macadamia + Calcium Bars<br />2 - Kind Plus Almond Cashew with Flax + Omega-3 Bars<br />2 - Kind Fruit & Nut Almonds & Apricot Bars<br />2 - Kind Fruit & Nut Walnut & Date Bars", "I agree with Catriona about these bars tasting like a peanut bar and nothing like the advertised description. It seems like the company is trying to pull a fast one here by promoting these bars as almond, walnut and macadamia, especially when peanuts are listed as the first ingredient in tiny print in the ingredients list. Maybe they think that people can't tell the difference between peanuts and macadamia nuts?<br /><br />I would have given these bars two stars since they actually taste OK, but I have a hard time believing that the 4.5 star rating the product currently receives hasn't been created by company shills.<br /><br />It is a shame too, since the cranberry almond bars I also ordered were excellent and actually tasted like the description. If I had only ordered these I likely would never have purchased another product from KIND PLUS.", "I love this brand since discovering it 6-7 years ago, and I have hooked my father on this cranberries & almond bar, and raspberry bar. A little goes a long way, and the slightly tart-sweet cranberries and crunchy almonds bring out the rich dark chocolate flavor, and are a delicious complement. This brand is also amazingly among the lowest priced for \"natural\" chocolate. A warning: if you are not used to dark chocolate, then I suggest maybe starting with an Endangered Species milk chocolate flavor first, and working your way up (too bad they don't still make the Panda bar, a blend of dark and white chocolate!). It may even be better for some novices to begin with a different brand of dark chocolate with 55-60% cocoa content, like Godiva or Chocolove, and then gradually work their way up (since to my knowledge E. Species doesn't have any dark chocolate with less than 72% cocoa content).", "I have tried the Red White and Blueberry bar and really enjoyed it and when I saw that there was a Cranberry and Almond one I had to try that too and I am glad I did I find it very good the honey makes it with out being over sweet and the raisins not only adds to the sweet taste but chewy texture. I now want to try the Mocha Java and the Very Berry bars.", "I'm a HUGE fan of Kind bars in general and have tried several varieties. I chose the almond cashew with flax + Omega-3 this time because it was more price friendly than the others. I should have known that you get what you pay for. This was the most unsatisfying Kind bar I've ever had. It's dry and lacks taste. Now I'm stuck with a whole box.", "KIND makes a good variety of these raw food bars. The Almond, Walnut, and Macadamia are very good and can be addictive. Nice crunch, good protein. Great snack that's easy to enjoy!", "Our latest shipment of KIND Almond and Coconut bars in the new box SAYS that the bars are the same size as before, but they're 1/2 to 3/4\" SHORTER than all of the previous shipments. It seems that we're now getting less product for the money. Our new shipment of Almond & Apricot bars will arrive soon. We'll see if they've shrunk as well.", "We love these bars...they make a great snack for my preschool daughter who has multiple food allergies. No soy, hooray! I have been buying them for about a year and a half.<br />This box we got from NetRush, though, tastes \"off\" and \"old\"...perhaps they were not properly stored. I will not buy from this seller again, although Cranberry KIND bars will remain a staple in our pantry!", "These Pure Natural Bars are absolutely delicious and good for you, but not good for your waistline. Loaded with cranberries, blueberries, pomegranates, almonds and peanuts, they are simply a sticky and crunchy delight. All berries strengthen your artery walls and do wonders for your body, as do nuts, so these bars excel at giving you much more than fiber.<br /><br />Each bar has 190 calories, 100 calories from fat. The sodium is low at 95 mg and the cholesterol is zero. This is one of those treats that your body needs, but because of the fat calories- not that often. Two cupcakes also have 100 calories from fat, but of course don't give you this great artery protection and fiber. This is a great healthy bar to have once a week, but never daily, as it's difficult to burn off 100 fat calories.", "This product is very good. The quality is excellent. Wonderful midday snack for the mini's and they are great for curbing hunger till dinner. The larger bars are good to replace lunch. Cranberry mixture is my favorite.", "Have no clue how old that bar of chocolate was the person who gave this bar 1 star got or what kind of radical temperature changes it went through to make it grainy because Green and Black's milk chocolate bar with almonds is one the best, creamiest, smoothest, richest chocolate bars I have ever eaten. Not only is the flavor and texture of the bar outstanding but the amount of whole roasted almonds they pack into this bar make it a cut above the rest. It is a perfect balance of milk chocolate and nuts. I have in fact brought my mother over to the dark side. She would normally prefer popcorn or an apple over a candy bar until she tried this. Pricey but in this instance you get what you pay for and if you eat it slowly you will enjoy every bite.", "I love these trail mix bars. They are chewy, sweet and flavorful. They taste a bit like a very chewy, very sweet Rice Krispie / oat bar. The amount of almonds (nice that they are whole) was a bit sparse and the cranberries are sort of ground up - not so much like actual trail mix. The amount of goodies in the bar does not really match the picture on the box, which shows many more almonds, cranberries and raisins than I actually found to be in the product (based on my eating 3 bars out of the package so far). The bars are convenient to take \"on the go\".<br /><br />However, in my opinion, this product is masquerading as a \"healthy\" trail mix bar and should be considered more like a cookie or candy bar. It has 14 grams of sugars per bar, which is 40% by weight, as another reviewer pointed out, and it is SWEET. It also only has 1 gram of fiber per bar, so it is not so healthy in that respect. That said, I still rate the NV Chewy Trail Mix Bars as 5 stars for the good taste, but I personally would choose a healthier product (with less sugar and higher fiber) for everyday eating or if I were actually bringing this on a hiking trip.<br /><br />The product I received has a slightly different list of ingredients than listed on the Amazon site at this time and has likely been reformulated to avoid the use of high fructose corn syrup, which has been under scrutiny lately. This product contains high maltose corn syrup instead.<br /><br />List of ingredients from the box I received:<br />Whole Grain Oats, High Maltose Corn Syrup, Crisp Rice (Rice Flour, Sugar, Malt Extract, Salt), Sugar, Raisins, Almonds, Honey, Roasted Peanuts, Fructose, Sunflower Seed, Canola Oil. Contains 2% or less of: Cranberries, Rice, Maltodextrin, Soy Lecithin, Salt, Natural Flavor, Baking Soda. Mixed Tocopherols added to retain freshness.", "I have enjoyed the KIND bars, but these Almond Cashew ones are definitely not for me. Much more dense and gooey that the other varieties that I have had, they did have a good crunch. However, even the crunch felt slightly mushy at times. With no real flavor to make up for the texture, I would not buy these again.", "This is a most pleasing combination of healthful walnuts, almonds, and pecans with refreshing orange cranberries. As the package correctly states, they are a low sodium, no trans fat, natural food this is \"innocently addictive.\" These will probably be appreciated by your family and friends, and earn repeat orders.", "I ordered these as a gift for someone because they wanted the old fashioned Mars bars that they used to sell in the U.S. the kind with the nougat, almonds and caramel. We had heard the U.K. bars were the closest to that formula. This candy bar tastes good but it has no almonds and the nougat is more chocolately. If you're looking for a candy bar similar to a milky way, this might do the trick. Was so excited, thought I had found the good old fashioned Mars bars.", "The Orange Cranberry bars taste very similar to Fig Newtons; however, they are a tad bit chalky. I really liked the soft texture and the cocoa flavoring, but I couldn't taste any of the cranberry orange. I like the size and shape of the bar. It's not too big or small. In terms of nutritional value, I compared it to my preferred Luna bar. The Eat Think Smile bar is 51g and the Luna bar is 48g, so they are almost the same size. The calorie count is comparable (Luna 180 vs. Eat Think Smile 200) and fat content (Luna 5g vs. Eat Think Smile 6g), which is good. Where it falls short is in vitamins. My Luna bar has 20% vitamin A, 20% C, 30% iron, and 30% Vitamin E. The Eat Think Smart Bar has 0% vitamin A, 6% vitamin C , 6% iron, and no vitamin E. I am sticking with Luna.", "I love Kind bars, especially the almond/apricot variety. They're whole foods-mostly just dried fruit and nuts- & taste great. Perfect for grabbing out of my pocket for a quick nibble at work.", "Nature Valley bars are a natural source of energy to fuel healthy active lifestyles. One bar has 140 calories. That's not bad for a bar that satisfies our cravings for candy bars. We keep a box of Fruit & Nut bars on hand. When we get ready to leave on a road trip, we take some with us. That way we can travel further without having to stop along the way. Sometimes we grab a bar in the morning when we are in a hurry. They make a good breakfast.<br /><br />Fruit & Nut Bars contain almonds, raisins, peanuts, and cranberries.<br /><br />In 1975, Nature Valley created the granola bar category. Since then Nature Valley has continued to set the standard for granola bars.<br /><br />Now it is possible to buy Nature Valley granola bars in all sorts of flavors, such as Apple Crisp, Strawberry Yogurt, Vanilla Yogurt, Blueberry Yogurt, Mixed Berry, Banana Nut, Oats and Honey, Cinnamon, Maple Brown Sugar, Roasted Almond, and Peanut Butter. We started with Fruit & Nut bars, and so far we have not managed to buy anything else. I suppose we should try other kinds, but Fruit & Nut bars are too good.<br /><br />I hope you found this review helpful.", "First, I want to confirm that these are tasty, appealing, and you feel good consuming them.<br /><br />Having said, that, I will say that I've never eaten anything quite like these before. I've eaten plenty of bison (which just tastes like uber-awesome beef essentially); and of course I've had plenty of cranberries. It's that this rendition of such a combo comes across as unexpected in both flavor and texture.<br /><br />The product is a slender, small candybar like shape and size. Each is individually well packaged, so you can take one with you in your purse or etc. without leakage concerns. The individual package opens by peeling back a loose bit of the upper part of the wrapper at one end (essentially splitting the wrapper along the seams).<br /><br />The bar inside is dark and looks pretty much like one solid piece of meat, although it glistens from the fruit content. It doesn't look like a compressed bar of chunks, like a granola bar.<br /><br />When you bite into it, you discover that the bar consists of nicely sized chunky strips of bison which are compressed, heavily flavored with a juicy, saucy, fruity cranberry flavor. It's rather like the meat bars were dunked into cranberry puree and absorbed it. Here and there, in the little pockets that form between parts of the compressed meat chunks, you get tiny bursts of the fruit sauce and flavor. The fruit taste is sincere, but not particularly tart. The bar overall comes across as sweet rather than savory.<br /><br />If you have eaten meat with a fruit compote (turkey with cranberry sauce, for example or, as Katniss favors, lamb with prunes), then I think these bars will remind you of that more than anything else.<br /><br />So - not a savory, oily, tough, jerky or beef stick type of snack whatsoever. But a goodly snack-sized amount of what seems like clean, healthy bison meat with a cranberry compote effect.<br /><br />I will definitely continue to purchase this product. It's a great snack option to have on hand.", "I received a box of the Nature Valley Roasted Almond Crunch bars and a box of the Nature Valley Peanut Crunch bars to try and write a review on. They are both delicious but I admit the Nature Valley Peanut Crunch bars is my favorite! My husband preferred the Nature Valley Almond Crunch bars but he also likes almonds more than I do. These bars were not at all what I initially expected. They are almost like a brittle. They are sweet and crunchy. The Almond Crunch bars contain almonds, sunflower seeds and peanuts. The Peanut Crunch contain peanuts, sunflower seeds and almond flour.<br /><br />I have always liked granola and protein bars because they are easy to take with you and give you a quick pick me. Low and behold, I have found a replacement! I'm definitely hooked on the Peanut Crunch bars and I keep one in my purse at all times.<br /><br />You owe it to yourself to try these tasty bars at least once. You can't go wrong with either of these YUMMY crunch bars and you won't be disappointed!", "If you like almonds and cruchy granola bars these bars are for you. They are higher in fat than I would like them to be. But they are delicious. Great for a quick breakfast or snack. There are 2 bars in each packett and I usually eat one for breakfast and then one later for a snack.", "Nature Valley has a pretty wide variety of granola bars to offer, but I've never had a chewy bar of their's until I had this Trail Mix kind. Mixed (although mostly positive) results ensued...<br /><br />Fruit, good. Nuts, good. Chewy, not that great. The consistency is quite sticky, and frankly a bit tough on your teeth. You shouldn't have to channel the force of a shark's bite to enjoy a granola bar.<br /><br />Consistency aside, the flavor is great. It has raisin and cranberry fruitiness to pair with almond and peanut nuttiness. And of course there are oats and rice. The fruit flavors aren't overly sweet and it's not like you're eating a handful of nuts either. It's trail mix in bar form really, and Nature Valley has that right. And with 25 grams of carbohydrates and 14 grams of sugar per bar, these would be good for outdoor activities demanding energy.", "I picked up a bag of these on a whim the other day and I was instantly hooked. I like almonds, but plain almonds do get boring, salted almonds are usually too salty, and honey covered almonds are usually too sweet and too salty. And it's hard to find almonds that aren't roasted in some kind of cheap oil.<br /><br />Enter these Sahale snacks. A little salt, a little honey, and dry roasted almonds. Oh and cranberries. In my bag I didn't get many cranberries, I don't know if that was a fluke but I didn't care because I was mostly after the almonds. If you are looking for a big handful of almonds and cranberries this might disappoint. For me it's been a great snack to keep around the office (it helps me avoid the 3PM coke-and-potato chip craving).<br /><br />The price seems a little high at first, but a single bag last several days, which put's in line with the cost of bag of chips. Overall a great snack that's actually pretty good for you.", "Received a sample of a Rise Crunchy Cashew Almond bar & loved it! So I ordered a box of the Cashew Almond bars & a box of the Crunchy Macadamia Pineapple bars. Both are absolutely delicious! They are a good size - 1.4 oz (40 g). They are great to eat as a breakfast bar or as a healthy snack during the day.", "These are good bars, but I prefer the cranberry ginger combination more. The real problem with Nature's Path granola bars is that the quality is inconsistent. At the top of their game, these bars are healthy, nutritious snacks; lately, though, I have purchased several boxes in which the bars were stale and dry, not moist or chewy at all. This is the reason that, although I like these bars, I cannot in good faith recommend them.", "These bars are the best health bars I've ever eaten. They are are moist and sweet. My previous favorite was the KIND Almond and Apricot and I didn't think they could be outdone, but I was wrong. The Mango Macadamia are now the slight forerunner. I find myself craving these bars all of the time. The KIND company has outdone itself; bars that are yummy and good for you. What could be better?", "I love the Kind Almond coconut bars so I decided to try the peanut butter dark chocolate. It arrived in a box of 12 and all appear fresh. The bars are both gooey and crunchy. It is tastey but not as good as the almond coconut. Very peanutty with a little but of nice dark chocolate. I like that it is higher protein and that I get to feel like a I had a candy bar but without the crash of eating way too much sugar. This bar is good but not my favorite", "I tried these despite no reviews having been written yet. Glad that I did. They are wholesome and taste good. My kids like them also. Keep in mind they are 2.5 ounces each bar, so quite filling. We also like the Carob Almond bars.", "Years ago, there was the Mars Bar. The Mars Bar was a chocolate bar with nougat, caramel and almonds. Deee-licious--or so I remember it as being, because Mars discontinued the Mars Bar some years back. (This Mars Bar is not to be confused with the Mars Bar still made and sold in Britain and can be ordered online as well, which is much more like a version of the Milky Way Bar than the old defunct Mars Bar I'm speaking of.)<br /><br />But now there are Snickers-Almond Bars. The Snickers-Almond Bar is the closest thing extant to the old Mars Bar. It's slightly different and not quite as good, in my opinion, as the original Mars Bar (hence the four, not five, stars), but it's a passable substitute. If you were a Mars Bar kid, as I was back in the day, you'll like these Snickers-Almond Bars for the nostalgia factor alone. The fact that they're not quite the same thing is okay, too, because nostalgia is always a little different than the original reality had been anyway.<br /><br />P.S. I also loved the dark chocolate Mars Forever Yours Bars as a kid; and they too are now a thing of the past. But Mars now makes Milky Way Midnight Bars, which are a close proximity of Forever Yours. Like the Snickers-Almond Bar, the Milky Way Midnight isn't as good as its predecessor, but it'll do.", "Who says that people who are allergic to wheat and dairy have to go without desserts? Not when you have something as delicious as KIND Bar Almond & Apricot bars to eat, and not just for dessert.", "UPDATE: The five stars are for the almond-walnut-macadamia bars, peanuts and all. I gave the cashew-almond-omega3 bars a try later and was somewhat disappointed with them. Not as much flavor. Back to almond-walnut-macadamia bars.<br /><br />I've gone through a few boxes of the KIND bars named for their alleged content of almonds, walnuts, and macadamias. I haven't encountered any of the funny tastes, apparent staleness, or wrappers horribly stuck to the bars, that some reviewers have mentioned. As other reviewers point out, there are a lot of peanuts relative to the content of walnuts, macadamias, and walnuts. But it tastes good nonetheless, and for the price ($1.06 per bar if you buy on subscription) it strikes me as a good value. This is a relatively high-calorie snack bar (almost 200 cal), but it's also high protein (10g), has extremely little saturated fat, and a relatively low amount of sugar. It's substantial enough that you can easily resist eating a second bar. The bars also contain some worthy vitamins and minerals in amounts sufficient to matter. So far, knock wood, the deliveries on Amazon's subscription have been fast and the product has arrived in excellent condition. I don't expect to get a gourmet no-peanuts bar for this price--it's a good product and good value at this price.", "There are so many trail mix bars out in the market so how does KIND nuts & spices, Madagascar Vanilla Almond compete? Well, while the taste is different, the main thing is the health factor. Made from almonds, walnuts, crisp rice and held together with honey, this bar boasts only 4 grams of sugar. But, the fact that it has 210 calories, 140 from fat is a bit alarming. However, the fat is from the nuts. Nuts are high in fat, but these are good fats.<br /><br />Overall, I would say these are good alternative to those nugget, chocolate, full of wasted calories and fat bars. I recommend these as a quick snack for on the go." ]

[ "Oogenesis, ovogenesis, or ooegenesis /oögenesis.ˌoʊ/ əˈdʒɛnɨsɪs is the creation of an (ovum egg). Cell it is the female form of; gametogenesis the male equivalent is. Spermatogenesis it involves the development of the various stages of the immature. ovum" ]

[ "The main difference between spermatogenesis and oogenesis is that spermatogenesis is the production process of sperms from male germ cells and spermatogonia in males whereas oogenesis is the production of eggs from female germ cells oogonia in females. This article explains, 1. What is Spermatogenesis – Definition, Characteristics, Function", "The formation of an oocyte is called oocytogenesis, which is a part of oogenesis. Oogenesis results in the formation of both primary oocytes before birth, and of secondary oocytes after it as part of ovulation.he formation of an oocyte is called oocytogenesis, which is a part of oogenesis. Oogenesis results in the formation of both primary oocytes before birth, and of secondary oocytes after it as part of ovulation.", "In mammals, the first part of oogenesis starts in the germinal epithelium, which gives rise to the development of ovarian follicles, the functional unit of the ovary. Oogenesis consists of several sub-processes: oocytogenesis, ootidogenesis, and finally maturation to form an ovum (oogenesis proper).", "The production of female gametes that occurs in the ovary is called oogenesis. Oogenesis. The process by which female gametes develop is called oogenesis. The female stem cells that produce the gametes are called oogonia (sing. oogonium). During development of the embryo these stem cells migrate into the ovary.", "Oogenesis takes place in the _____. Ovaries: During Oogenesis each cell that ungergoes meiosis produces _____ functional egg cell. One: When does the process of Oogenesis begin? Puberty: When does the process of Oogenesis end? Menopause: Polar bodies are produced in the process of _____. Oogenesis", "Oogenesis differs from spermatogenesis in the oogenesis results in ______.", "Spermatogenesis and oogenesis are both forms of gametogenesis, in which a diploid gamete cell produces haploid sperm and egg cells, respectively. Distinguish between spermatogenesis and oogenesis. Gametogenesis, the production of sperm (spermatogenesis) and eggs (oogenesis), takes place through the process of meiosis.", "The Ovum. Oogenesis is the process by which the female gametes, or ova, are created. The female gamete is called an ovum. Sometimes people will refer to female gametes as eggs, but the term egg can include more than one stage of development, and the definition of an egg also changes depending on the type of organism.n this lesson, you'll learn how the human body produces an ovum through the process of oogenesis. You'll also learn how polar bodies help to ensure that female gametes are of high quality even though they are not produced in high quantities.", "At the onset of puberty, the ovaries begin oogenesis. During oogenesis, three polar bodies and one functional gamete are produced. Oogenesis is achieved through meiosis. However, the ovulated secondary oocyte arrests in metaphase II and does not complete meiosis II until it is fertilized.", "What's oogenesis and what are polar bodies? I need help with biology and i would like someone to explain oogenesis to me and how polar bodies relate to them. Source(s): oogenesis polar bodies: https://knowledge.im/?s=oogenesis+polar+bodies.", "After watching this lesson, you should be able to: 1 Define oogenesis, ovum, oogonia, polar body, follicle and ovulation. 2 Explain how meiosis is different in oogenesis than in a typical cell. 3 Understand how oogenesis is completed during fertilization.", "Female sex cells, or gametes, develop in the ovaries by a form of meiosis called oogenesis. The sequence of events in oogenesis is similar to the sequence in spermatogenesis, but the timing and final result are different. Early in fetal development, primitive germ cells in the ovaries differentiate into oogonia.", "In other words, it is an immature ovum, or egg cell. An oocyte is produced in the ovary during female gametogenesis. The female germ cells produce a primordial germ cell (PGC), which then undergoes mitosis, forming oogonia.During oogenesis, the oogonia become primary oocytes.he formation of an oocyte is called oocytogenesis, which is a part of oogenesis. Oogenesis results in the formation of both primary oocytes before birth, and of secondary oocytes after it as part of ovulation.", "Both spermatogenesis and oogenesis occur through three stages: multiplication phase, growth phase, and maturation phase. The main difference between spermatogenesis and oogenesis is their occurrence in different sexes of organisms.", "Although the polar bodies do not become anything they do serve a purpose in reproduction/oogenesis. The polar bodies are the byproducts of the primary and secondary oocyte a … t each point of meiotic division in oogenesis.", "The formation of an oocyte is called oocytogenesis, which is a part of oogenesis. Oogenesis results in the formation of both primary oocytes before birth, and of secondary oocytes after it as part of ovulation.uring the primary oocyte stage of oogenesis, the nucleus is called a germinal vesicle. The only normal human type of secondary oocyte has the 23rd (sex) chromosome as 23,X (female-determining), whereas sperm can have 23,X (female-determining) or 23,Y (male-determining).", "Spermatogenesis and Oogenesis. Meiosis, the process by which gametes are formed, can also be called gametogenesis, literally “creation of gametes.” The specific type of meiosis that forms sperm is called spermatogenesis, while the formation of egg cells, or ova, is called oogenesis.", "The basic difference between spermatogenesis and oogenesis is that ________. in oogenesis, one mature ovum is produced, and in spermatogenesis four mature sperm are produced from the parent cell. Occasionally three polar bodies are found clinging to the mature ovum.", "Let's look at a few of these functions. First, there is oogenesis, which is the process by which the female body produces eggs. This process occurs prior to birth, and each female child is born with all of the eggs that she will need for her lifetime. Oogenesis is a form of meiosis, or sex cell reproduction.", "Oogenesis. Just like spermatogenesis, oogenesis involves the formation of haploid cells from an original diploid cell, called a primary oocyte, through meiosis. The female ovaries contain the primary oocytes. There are two major differences between the male and female production of gametes.ust like spermatogenesis, oogenesis involves the formation of haploid cells from an original diploid cell, called a primary oocyte, through meiosis. The female ovaries contain the primary oocytes. There are two major differences between the male and female production of gametes.", "The menstrual cycle begins with the maturation of oocytes through the process of oogenesis, as well as concurrent follicle development that stimulates ovulation. Oogenesis starts with the process of developing oogonia via the transformation of primordial follicles into primary oocytes, a process called oocytogenesis.", "The spermatogenesis is the male counterpart of oogenesis in females. The spermatogenesis and oogenesis are the two forms of gametogenesis. Spermatogenesis consists of stages: (1) spermatocytogenesis, (2) spermatidogenesis, and (3) spermiogenesis. In humans, it starts at puberty and continues throughout lifetime. It occurs in the male testes and epididymis in a stepwise fashion. The entire process can take approximately 64 days.", "In females, the process of meiosis is called oogenesis, since it produces oocytes and ultimately yields mature ova(eggs). The male counterpart is spermatogenesis, the production of sperm.", "In the first division, there is an uneven cell division and the one with more cytoplasm continues to form a viable egg (the other cell, called a polar body, will degenerate) oogenesis step 3. IF the egg is fertilized, it will undergo the final stages of meiosis. oogenesis step 4.", "Gametes carry half the genetic information of an individual, one ploidy of each type, and are created through meiosis. Oogenesis is the process of female gamete formation in animals.", "After birth, mitosis is involved in the continued growth of the. child and repair of tissues at any time. 7) Compare spermatogenesis in males to oogenesis in females. Spermatogenesis in males happens within the testes and produces sperm while oogenesis in. females happens in the ovaries and produces eggs.", "Main Difference – Spermatogenesis vs Oogenesis. Spermatogenesis and oogenesis are two types of reproductive divisions found in the sexual reproduction of animals. Reproductive division, also called gametogenesis, occurs in the germ cells in gonads by meiosis. It is involved in the production of gametes. Diploid germ cell produces haploid gametes.", "Oocyte development occurs within follicles and so oogenesis and folliculogenesis occur in conjunction with each other, interacting via reciprocal induction. The follicular granulosa cells produce important growth factors and supporting substances to facilitate oocyte development and visa-versa. Stages of Oogenesis. Stage 1", "• Spermatogenesis results four functional spermatozoa from a primary spermatocyte. In contrast, oogenesis results a single ovum and three polar bodies from a primary oocyte. • In spermatogenesis, cytokinesis results in two equal sized cells while, in oogenesis, it results in two highly unequal cells.", "A.)Oogenesis takes place within the oviduct. B.)Beginning at puberty, a primary oocyte completes its first meiotic division to form a secondary oocyte and a polar body approximately every month. C.)The ooctye released from the ovary during ovulation is fully mature.", "Some algae and the oomycetes produce eggs in oogonia. In the brown alga Fucus, all four egg cells survive oogenesis, which is an exception to the rule that generally only one product of female meiosis survives to maturity. In plants, oogenesis occurs inside the female gametophyte via mitosis.", "In Oogenesis, what hormones are necessary for the production of a mature ovum? FSH and estrogen: In Oogenesis, FSH and estrogen are necessary for the producion of _____. A mature ovum: What hormone promotes the release of and ovum from a mature ovarian follicle? FH: FH is the hormone that promotes the release of and ovum from a _____. Mature ovarian follicle: What hormones does the corpus luteum of the ovary secrete?" ]

[ "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing \"Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing\" is a Christian hymn written by the 18th century pastor and hymnist Robert Robinson. Robert Robinson penned the words at age 22 in the year 1757.[1]" ]

[ "This Land Is Your Land \"This Land Is Your Land\" is one of the United States' most famous folk songs. Its lyrics were written by American folk singer Woody Guthrie in 1940, based on an existing melody, a Carter Family tune called \"When the World's on Fire\", in critical response to Irving Berlin's \"God Bless America.\" When Guthrie was tired of hearing Kate Smith sing \"God Bless America\" on the radio in the late 1930s, he sarcastically wrote \"God Blessed America for Me\" before renaming it \"This Land Is Your Land.\"[1]", "Hail Mary The prayer incorporates two passages from Saint Luke's Gospel: \"Hail, the Lord is with thee,\"[1] and \"Blessed art thou amongst women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.\" And \"full of grace\" from John 1:14\".[2] In mid-13th-century Western Europe the prayer consisted only of these words with the single addition of the name \"Mary\" after the word \"Hail,\" as is evident from the commentary of Saint Thomas Aquinas on the prayer.[3]", "Hail Mary The second passage is taken from Elizabeth's greeting to Mary in Luke 1:42, \"Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.\"[5] Taken together, these two passages are the two times Mary is greeted in Chapter 1 of Luke.", "Annie Hawks Annie Sherwood Hawks (May 28, 1836 - January 3, 1918) was an American poet and gospel hymnist who wrote a number of hymns with her pastor, Robert Lowry. She contributed to several popular Sunday School hymnbooks, and wrote the lyrics to a number of well-known hymns including: \"I Need Thee Every Hour\"; \"Thine, Most Gracious Lord\"; \"Why Weepest Thou? Who Seekest Thou?\"; \"Full and Free Salvation\" and \"My Soul Is Anchored\".[1]", "God Bless America Irving Berlin wrote the song in 1918 while serving in the U.S. Army at Camp Upton in Yaphank, New York, but decided that it did not fit in a revue called Yip Yip Yaphank, so he set it aside.[3] The lyrics at that time included the line \"Make her victorious on land and foam, God bless America...\"[2] as well as \"Stand beside her and guide her to the right with the light from above\".[4]", "Be Thou My Vision \"Be Thou My Vision\" (Old Irish: Rop tú mo baile or Rob tú mo bhoile) is a traditional hymn from Ireland. The most well known English version, with some minor variations, was translated by Eleanor Hull and published in 1912. In 1919, the lyrics were set to the tune of the Irish folk tune \"Slane\", to which the song is sung to this day, both in English and Irish. The song has often been attributed to the sixth-century Irish Christian poet Saint Dallan,[1] though some scholars cite an eighth-century date.[2]", "There shall be showers of blessing There shall be showers of blessings is a Christian hymn which was written in 1883 by Daniel Webster (1840-1901) under the pseudonym of D. W. Whittle.[1][2] It was given music by James McGranahan.[3][4]", "My Country, 'Tis of Thee Samuel Francis Smith wrote the lyrics to \"My Country 'Tis of Thee\" in 1831,[4] while he was a student at the Andover Theological Seminary in Andover, Massachusetts. His friend Lowell Mason had asked him to translate the lyrics in some German school songbooks or to write new lyrics. A melody in Muzio Clementi's Symphony No. 3 (also called 'The Great National' and contains the melody of 'God Save the Queen' as a tribute to Clementi's adopted country) caught his attention. Rather than translating the lyrics from German, Smith wrote his own American patriotic hymn to the melody, completing the lyrics in thirty minutes.", "Fight the Good Fight The hymn is based on the King James Bible's version of Paul's First Epistle to Timothy, Chapter 6, verse 12: \"Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.\"[4] The hymn lyrics urge the listener to \"Fight the good fight,\" \"lay hold on life,\" \"run the straight race,\" \"cast care aside\", and \"faint not nor fear.\"[1]", "Joy to the World The words of the hymn are by English writer Isaac Watts, based on Psalm 98, 96:11-12 and Genesis 3:17-18, in the Bible. The song was first published in 1719 in Watts' collection; The Psalms of David: Imitated in the language of the New Testament, and applied to the Christian state and worship. The paraphrase is Watts' Christological interpretation. Consequently, he does not emphasize with equal weight the various themes of Psalm 98. In stanzas 1 and 2 Watts writes of heaven and earth rejoicing at the coming of the King. An interlude that depends more on Watts' interpretation than the psalm text, stanza 3 speaks of Christ's blessings extending victoriously over the realm of sin. The cheerful repetition of the non-psalm phrase \"far as the curse is found\" has caused this stanza to be omitted from some hymnals. But the line makes joyful sense when understood from the New Testament eyes through which Watts interprets the psalm. Stanza 4 celebrates Christ's rule over the nations.\".[2] The nations are called to celebrate because God's faithfulness to the house of Israel has brought salvation to the world.[3]", "Awesome God \"Awesome God\" is a contemporary worship song written by Rich Mullins and first recorded on his 1988 album, Winds of Heaven, Stuff of Earth. It was the first single from the album and rose to the number one spot on Christian radio and subsequently became a popular congregational song.[1] Its title is inspired by a biblical expression (Nehemiah 1:5, Nehemiah 9:32, Psalm 47, Daniel 9:4, etc.), variously translated as \"Awesome God\", (JPS, in the old-fashioned meaning \"awe-inspiring\"), \"great\" (KJV), among other alternatives. Due to the popularity of the song it became Mullins' signature song.[2]", "Welcome to My World (Jim Reeves song) \"Welcome to My World\" is a popular music standard written by Ray Winkler and John Hathcock (1919-2000)[2] and recorded by many artists, most notably Jim Reeves. Though the song is credited to Winkler and Hathcock, the melody was likely written by Eddie McDuff rather than Winkler.[3] A traditional love song, the bridge includes lyrics taken from Matthew 7:7–8 (\"Knock and the door will open; seek and you will find; ask and you'll be given ... ,\" from the Sermon on the Mount).", "Lord of All Hopefulness \"Lord of all Hopefulness\" is a Christian hymn written by Jan Struther, which was published in the enlarged edition of Songs of Praise[1] (Oxford University Press) in 1931. The hymn is used in liturgy, at weddings and at the beginning of funeral services. It was the opening hymn at the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex on May 19, 2018.", "All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name The hymn is often called the \"National Anthem of Christendom\".[1] The lyrics, written by Edward Perronet while he served as a missionary in India, first appeared in the November, 1779 issue of the Gospel Magazine, which was edited by the author of \"Rock of Ages\", Augustus Toplady.", "Thank You (Led Zeppelin song) \"Thank You\" signalled a deeper involvement in songwriting by singer Robert Plant: it was the first Led Zeppelin song for which he wrote all the lyrics. According to various Led Zeppelin biographies, this is also the song that made Jimmy Page realise that Plant could now handle writing the majority of the lyrics for the band's songs. Plant wrote the song as a tribute to his then-wife Maureen.", "Rich Mullins Mullins' start in the industry occurred in the summer of 1981 when Amy Grant recorded his song \"Sing Your Praise to the Lord.\"[15] The decision was made to stop touring as \"Zion,\" and for Mullins to start his solo career. He moved to Bellsburg, Tennessee,[16] approximately 45 minutes from Nashville, to begin his professional recording career.[17] Mullins got engaged sometime between the late 70s and early 80s, and wrote the song \"Doubly Good to You\" (recorded by Amy Grant on her album Straight Ahead) for his upcoming wedding. However, his fiancée broke off the engagement in 1982.[18] In response to the breakup, Mullins wrote \"Damascus Road\".[19][20]", "What Hurts the Most Jeffrey Steele co-wrote the song with Steve Robson, with whom he also co-wrote Rascal Flatts' 2002 single \"These Days\". Robson presented Steele with an unfinished track, and Steele decided to come up with lyrics to finish the track. Originally, he had wanted to write a song about the loss of his father, but instead went with a more universal theme of lost love.[1] After singing the lyrics, he decided that he liked how sad the song sounded, when Robson suggested that it be recorded in a higher key to sound more emotional.[1]", "Do You Know the Way to San Jose \"Do You Know the Way to San Jose\" is a 1968 popular song written and composed for singer Dionne Warwick by Burt Bacharach, who composed the music, and Hal David, who wrote the lyrics. The song was Warwick's biggest international hit, selling over a million copies and winning Warwick her first Grammy Award. David's lyrics tell the story of a native of San Jose, California who, having failed to break into the entertainment field in Los Angeles, is set to return to her hometown.", "Shout to the Lord \"Shout to the Lord\" is a praise and worship song written by Christian worship leader Darlene Zschech in 1993.[1] It was published by Hillsong Music Australia.[2]", "Ernest Ball Ball accompanied singers, sang in vaudeville and wrote sentimental ballads, mostly with Irish themes.[4] He collaborated with Chauncey Olcott on many songs including \"When Irish Eyes are Smiling\", for which Olcott wrote the lyrics. Ball wrote other Irish favorites like \"Mother Machree\", and \"A Little Bit of Heaven\", as well as \"Dear Little Boy of Mine\", and \"Let the Rest of the World Go By.\" \"Mother Machree\" was made popular by the famous Irish tenor, John McCormick. [5]. He also worked with J. Keirn Brennan on songs like \"For Dixie and Uncle Sam\" and \"Good Bye, Good Luck, God Bless You\".[6]", "My Sweet Lord Harrison wrote \"My Sweet Lord\" in praise of the Hindu god Krishna,[2] while at the same time intending the lyrics to serve as a call to abandon religious sectarianism through his deliberate blending of the Hebrew word hallelujah with chants of \"Hare Krishna\" and Vedic prayer.[3] The recording features producer Phil Spector's Wall of Sound treatment and heralded the arrival of Harrison's much-admired slide guitar technique, which one biographer described as being \"musically as distinctive a signature as the mark of Zorro\".[4] Preston, Ringo Starr, Eric Clapton, and the group Badfinger are among the other musicians appearing on the recording.", "Every Breath You Take Sting wrote the song in 1982 in the aftermath of his separation from Frances Tomelty and the beginning of his relationship with Trudie Styler. Their split was controversial. As The Independent reported in 2006, \"The problem was, he was already married – to actress Frances Tomelty, who just happened to be Trudie's best friend (Sting and Frances lived next door to Trudie in Bayswater, west London, for several years before the two of them became lovers). The affair was widely condemned.\" In order to escape from the public eye, Sting retreated in the Caribbean where he started writing the song.[10] The lyrics are the words of a possessive lover who is watching \"every breath you take; every move you make\".", "National anthem of South Africa The current national anthem of South Africa was adopted in 1997 and is a hybrid song combining new English lyrics with extracts of the 19th century hymn \"Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika\" (English: \"God Bless Africa\", lit. \"Lord Bless Africa\") and the Afrikaans song \"Die Stem van Suid-Afrika\" (English: \"The Call of South Africa\"), which was formerly used as the South African national anthem from the late 1950s to the mid-1990s.", "Deck the Halls The English-language lyrics were written by the Scottish musician Thomas Oliphant. They first appeared in 1862, in volume 2 of Welsh Melodies, a set of four volumes authored by John Thomas, including Welsh words by John Jones (Talhaiarn) and English words by Oliphant.[2] The repeated \"fa la la\" goes back to the earlier Welsh and may originate from medieval ballads.[3] The lyrics run as follows:", "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God \"A Mighty Fortress Is Our God\" (German: \"Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott\") is one of the best known hymns by the reformer Martin Luther, a prolific hymnodist. Luther wrote the words and composed the melody sometime between 1527 and 1529.[1] It has been translated into English at least seventy times and also into many other languages.[1][2] The words are a paraphrase of Psalm 46.[3]", "Georgia on My Mind The song was written in 1930 by Hoagy Carmichael (music) and Stuart Gorrell (lyrics). Although it is frequently asserted that the lyrics were written not about the state of Georgia but rather for Carmichael's sister, Georgia Carmichael,[3] Carmichael contradicted this view in his second autobiography, Sometimes I Wonder. He wrote that the song was composed when bandleader Frankie Trumbauer suggested that he write about the state of Georgia. According to Carmichael, Trumbauer also suggested the opening lyrics should be \"Georgia, Georgia ...\", with the remaining lyrics coming from Gorrell. Carmichael made no mention of his sister.[4]", "Ballad of the Green Berets The song was written by then Staff Sgt. Barry Sadler, beginning when he was training to be a Special Forces medic. The author Robin Moore, who wrote the book, The Green Berets, helped Sadler write the lyrics and get a recording contract with RCA Records.", "Wake Me Up (Avicii song) In an interview with the Daily Star, Avicii, who had previously labelled \"Wake Me Up!\" as \"a fun experiment\" during an exclusive chat with MTV UK,[9] said: \"I had a demo with Mac Davis singing, the guy who wrote some songs that were covered by Elvis Presley, but I needed another singer to do the parts. At the same time I was tipped off about doing another track with Aloe Blacc, and I started working on that track. When I was with Mike Einziger from Incubus, we came up with the chord progression and the melody for 'Wake Me Up!' but [with] no real lyrics. None of us [could] sing and we really needed to get that demo down and the only person I knew that lived in LA was Aloe, so I called him and he was free. Lyrics come really easy to him so he wrote them in a couple of hours and we finished the track.\"[2][10]", "Nigeria, We Hail Thee \"Nigeria, We Hail Thee\" was adopted as Nigeria's first national anthem on October 1, 1960.[2] The anthem's lyrics were written by Lillian Jean Williams, a British expatriate who lived in Nigeria when it achieved independence.[2] Frances Berda composed the music for \"Nigeria, We Hail Thee.\"[2]", "His Eye Is on the Sparrow \"His Eye Is on the Sparrow\" is a Gospel hymn. The song was written in 1905 by lyricist Civilla D. Martin and composer Charles H. Gabriel. It is most associated with actress-singer Ethel Waters who used the title for her autobiography.[1] Mahalia Jackson's recording of the song was honored with the Grammy Hall of Fame Award in 2010.", "Come Together \"Come Together\" is a song by the Beatles written primarily by John Lennon[2] and credited to Lennon–McCartney. The song is the opening track on the album Abbey Road and was also released as a single coupled with \"Something\". The song reached the top of the charts in the United States[3] and peaked at No. 4 in the United Kingdom.[4]", "Killing Me Softly with His Song According to Lori Lieberman, who performed the original recording in 1971, the song was born of a poem she wrote after experiencing a strong reaction to the Don McLean song \"Empty Chairs\",[1][2] writing some poetic ideas on a napkin at the Troubadour Club after seeing him perform the song,[3] and then relating this information to Norman Gimbel, who took her feelings and converted them into song lyrics. Gimbel passed his lyrics to Charles Fox, who set them to music.[4]" ]

[ "We investigate photorefractive media for which quasi-stabilized ionic gratings can be used to prolong readout lifetime. We use coupled-transport-mode theory to describe the coevolution of photorefractive gratings that arise from free-electron transport and ionic transport. We evaluate in detail the differences between low-temperature and high-temperature recording for typical conditions required by multiplex holography. We provide general normalized examples for simple diffusion transport and specific examples for photovoltaic LiNbO3. We introduce a common formalism to compare widely varying results present in the literature and to guide the materials and system development processes." ]

[ "We consider some fundamental limits to the volume holographic storage in photorefractive media, including the storage capacity and the dynamic range. We also discuss the photorefractive noise gratings formed during a multiple exposure schedule. These fundamental issues in photorefractive storage are important in understanding the potentials and limitations of optical memory systems.", "We propose and physically discuss a kind of holographic Fourier synthesis in the profile of dynamic Moire-like patterns. The interference patterns are obtained by progressively controlling the superposition of more than two dynamic sinusoidal phase gratings. It represents a new holographic optical nondestructive testing routine in real time for metrological purposes. The sinusoidal phase gratings with slightly different pitches are dynamically generated by photorefraction in the Bi 12 TiO 20 (BTO) crystal sample. The photorefractive holographic medium is used in anisotropic self-diffraction configuration and in a diffusion-only recording mechanism.", "The properties of anisotropic diffraction of light by crossed-beam volume holographic grating in photorefractive crystals are discussed. The amplitude profiles and the diffraction efficiency of the transmitted and diffracted beams are calculated. The profile of the diffracted beam is influenced strongly by the deviation from the Bragg case. It is demonstrated that the anisotropic diffraction of crossed-beam volume grating in photorefractive crystals has excellent angular and wavelength sensitivity.", "A technique to record local non-volatile photorefractive holograms is developed by using the spatially selective UV sensitization in a photochromic Fe:Mn:LiNbO3 crystal. Correspondingly, the integrated modules of WDM Multiplexer/Demultiplexer, Add/Drop, Crossbar, and Cross-Connect are designed, and the proof-of-principle experiments are given.", "A general perturbative approach to solving photorefractive material equations for a two-wave mixing geometry is developed. The method allows the study of both stationary and transient states of the space-charge field. As an example, solutions were given for GaAs–AlGaAs photorefractive multiple quantum well structures working in the Franz–Keldysh geometry. Approximate explicit expressions describing the recording and erasure dynamics of photorefractive gratings have been derived. The results are compared with numerical solutions of a complete set of material equations.", "The diffraction characteristics of the volume holographic gratings made by multiexposures with angular multiplexing during its construction is investigated. Because of the reflection by the interface between the emulsion and the substrate or the air there is an extra unslanted periodic structure inside a slanted grating, it will affect properties of the slanted volume holographic gratings. When the angle between the surface of the substrate and the grating plane of the slanted grating is less than a certain value, an extra peak accompanying the main peak will appear in the diffraction spectrum. But, when the angle is larger than the certain value, one designed and expected main peak will disappeared while the extra peak is kept and observed. This phenomenon limits the capacity of the volume hologram for the application in wavelength-division multiplexing (WDM).", "Bismuth tellurite is a photorefractive material for holographic data storage offering unique fixing capabilities. Important material and electro-optic properties obtained by four-wave-mixing and data storage experiments are reviewed and recent results concerning the applicability of bismuth tellurite for holographic data storage, including dynamic range, multiplexing capabilities and bit-error evaluations, are presented. Furthermore, it is demonstrated how the latest progress in growing Bi2TeO5 made this crystal a candidate for durable holographic recording media.", "Volume-phase holograms are very promising for applications in telecommunication. An example are Bragg mirrors of high wavelength selectivity for wavelength division multiplexing in optical communication systems. Suitable recording materials with a large dynamic range, small absorption in the third optical window, and a high lifetime are required. Here we present a study whether poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) is a suitable recording material for this application. Bragg gratings are recorded in doped and partially polymerized PMMA with green light (wavelength 532 nm) in transmission geometry, and the gratings are read in reflection geometry with infrared light in the telecommunication wavelength range (1.5 µ). Diffraction efficiencies of more than 99 % with a wavelength bandwidth of 1 nm are obtained for single gratings with a typical length of 15 mm, and the absorption losses are quite small (absorption coefficient 25 m-1 at 1.5 µm). Finally, a four-channel multiplexer based on PMMA is realized.", "Application of the combined holographic media is considered, in which both static and dynamic holograms can be recorded for superdense information storage. Interaction of two light waves with a volume diffractional grating is investigated, when the volume grating is a sum of static and dynamic gratings. It is shown that the use of the multibeam reading scheme yields not only a considerable amplification of the restored wave, but also a substantial improvement of the selectivity of the hologram reading.", "Wavelength multiplexing of a volume hologram was combined with multimode fiber referencing. A photorefractive volume hologram was recorded and probed by reference light diffracted from a multimode optical fiber. A tunable laser diode was used as a light source that was launched into the multimode fiber. As the wavelength of the source laser shifted, the speckle patterns from the multimode fiber changed. The wavelength selectivity of the volume hologram was enhanced by the combined effect of wavelength change and speckle change.", "We observe dynamic ferroelectric domain gratings in strontium barium niobate (SBN) induced by photorefractive space charge fields. The optically induced modulation of the spontaneous polarization attains a maximum of 1%. Quasi‐phase matched second harmonic enhancements are observed above the ferroelectric‐paraelectric phase transition due to the glassy ferroelectric nature of SBN. We find that the second harmonic power is significantly enhanced by recording gratings in optically fatigued rather than electrically poled crystals.", "A simple optical method for determination of crystallographic orientations +/-x, +/-y, and +/-z in photorefractive crystals based on light amplification via backward two-wave mixing (TWM) is presented. We consider a photorefractive Fe-doped lithium niobate crystal (LiNbO(3):Fe) with a standard x-y-z cut as an example to illustrate the principle, manipulation, and experimental results of this method in detail. Also we see that the direction of the light amplification, namely, the direction of the nonreciprocal steady-state energy transfer, strongly depends on the direction of the grating vector with respect to the corresponding crystallographic axes mainly under the diffusion mechanism. Finally, a way of determining the sign of the charge carriers in photorefractive materials is proposed.", "An optically switchable diffraction grating has been made in a thin film containing a photochromic dye and amorphous polycarbonate. We show that a film containing the dye 5-chloro-1,3-dihydro-1,3,3-trimethylspiro[2H-indole-2,3′-(3H)naphth[2,1-b](1,4)oxazine] can be optically processed so that a diffraction grating can be completely switched on by ultraviolet light and turned off by thermal relaxation. The ability to switch or modulate the diffraction efficiency has a number of practical applications that include optical switches and add/drop multiplexers.", "Experimental results on self-diffraction of periodically phase-modulated laser beams from a relief grating formed on a free surface of a cubic photorefractive Bi12TiO20 crystal due to the piezoelectric effect are reported. Periodic intensity modulations of the reflected beams up to 10−2 due to energy exchange at this unshifted phase grating are measured. The modulation depends linearly on the fringe spacing and on the amplitude of an externally applied electric dc field. The observed self-diffraction process is independent of the light polarization.", "We present the multichannel fiber-optical system for detection and reconstruction of weak acoustic field. Developed system is based on 32-channel adaptive holographic interferometer that employs multiplexing of dynamic holograms in a single photorefractive crystal of CdTe. The multichannel fiber-optical sensory system was tested for registration and spatial reconstruction of acoustic field created in a solid plate.", "We describe an image division multiplexing digital holography approach, with which the noises are completely suppressed without loss of image bandwidth, even if the image and the noises are close to each other.", "A photorefractive crystal waveguide with periodically reversed c axis (PCW‐PX) is proposed for enhanced photorefractive two‐wave mixing. In PCW‐PXs, only the guided modes which have a particular propagation angle with respect to the waveguide axis are selectively coupled to the other guided modes. The mode‐descriminative photorefractive coupling in two‐wave mixing is experimentally verified in prepared BaTiO3 PCW‐PXs.", "Holographic gratings were recorded in spirooxazine doped PMMA films by blue-violet laser (405nm), Nd:YAG laser (532nm) and He-Ne laser (632.8nm), respectively. It was found that the photo-dynamics of the holographic grating was dependent on recording wavelength for the photochromic characteristics of spirooxazines. A theoretical description of orientation and isomerization gratings agrees well with the experimental results. It was also found that a pure isomerization grating is formed by two interferential 405nm beams while a mixed grating consisting of isomerization and orientation components is formed by the visible interferential beams (532nm or 632.8nm). Due to the long life of the isomerization gratings, the holographic interference fringes with different periods were clearly observed by Confocal Laser Scanning Microscope.", "We present for the first time, to our knowledge, a theoretical analysis of the nonlinear dynamic space-charge field buildup when a photorefractive medium is exposed simultaneously to two running gratings. It is shown that the two gratings are nonlinearly coupled, hence, for an appropriate choice of parameters, the two gratings interact, causing one grating to be amplified at the expense of the other. This process is referred to as degenerate parametric amplification. In principle an infinite amplification is possible because, even in cases for which no signal grating (i.e., the one to be amplified) is externally seeded into the crystal, a finite signal-grating amplitude is obtained after relaxation of the amplification process.", "The specific nature of the photochemical cycle of bacteriorhodopsin is taken into account in an analysis of self-consistent hologram writing in bacteriorhodopsin-based photoreversible media. Effective utilization of three (or more) forms of bacteriorhodopsin is shown to substantially enhance the diversity and controllability of the dynamics of self-consistent writing of gratings, as compared to the two-form cycle. The discussed time and frequency dependences of the output light intensity can be used to determine the parameters of a light-sensitive substance.", "Abstract Holographic scattering processes in photorefractive KTa1−xNbxO3 (KTN) crystals are investigated resulting from the simultaneous action of one or two pump beams. Different scattering patterns are observed on a screen behind the crystal. A comparison between the intensity distribution of the scattered light and the consequences of certain phase-matching conditions permits the identification of the processes involved.", "Polymer optical fibers are the best transmission media for a short-range data transmission systems. To overcome the limits of transmission capacity of a one polymer optical fiber, the wavelength-division-multiplexing technology is successfully used. The demultiplexer with a concave diffraction grating has simplest construction and allows simultaneous transmission of several independent signals over a one fiber thus increasing the full data capacity of a one polymer optical fiber.", "Based on polymers with the addition of azo dyes as chromophores and azopolymers with the same covalently linked chromophores, recording media for polarization holography are created and their properties are studied when recording holograms of a plane wave front with parallel and perpendicular polarization of recording rays. It is found that the diffraction efficiency and the storage time of holograms are much longer in recording media with films of azo polymers in comparison with polymeric solid solutions of azo dyes. In the latter case, the energy of light is spent only for the trans–cis isomerization of azo dye molecules during exposure of holograms and the polymer chains do not undergo deformation with the formation of a surface relief in the polymer film. Therefore, it is preferable to use recording media based on solid solutions of azo dyes in dynamic polarization holography.", "Far-field superlenses (FSLs) allow a new type of optical microscopy that can resolve features below the diffraction limit. Such remarkable resolution is achieved by encoding sub-wavelength features in Moire patterns, which are produced by diffraction gratings embedded in the FSLs. Typically these diffraction gratings are quasi-one-dimensional structures; this means that the shape and orientation of objects that can be successfully resolved is limited. We investigate two-dimensional grating designs and show that engineering an appropriate grating can lift restrictions on the orientation of the object relative to the diffraction grating. We also describe the impact that grating structure has on the range of spatial frequencies that can be resolved.", "We demonstrate a nanoscale optical reinforcement concept for reversible holographic recording. The bone-muscle-like mechanism enables enhancement of holographic grating formation due to the collective alignment of liquid crystal (LC) molecules nearby photo-reconfigurable polymer backbones. The LC fluidity facilitates the ease of polymer chain transformation during the holographic recording while the polymer network stabilizes the LC collective orientation and the consequential optical enhancement after the recording. As such, the holographic recording possesses both long-term persistence and real-time rewritability.", "Advances of Russian scientists in the field of the development of irreversible and reversible recording media for holography are discussed. Particular emphasis has been placed on the development of photomaterials for display holography, phototechnology of making holographic optical elements. The result of the study of light-sensitive system and their application in the field of optical memory and processing optical information are presented too.© (1998) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.", "In this paper, we first review the working principle of grating-base wavelength division (de)multiplexers(WD(D)M)for optical networks. Then key device parameters for WDM multiplexers, including insertion loss, isolation, channel passband, wavelength accuracy, polarization-dependent loss and temperature sensitivity are provided to evaluate the performance for the devices. After that, issues regarding optical design of grating-based WD(D)Ms for commercial uses are addressed. Next, several grating-based WD(D)M structures are analyzed with the procedures to optimize design of grating-based wavelength division (de)multiplexers. Based on these designs and analyses, we give the procedures of optimal design of devices with experimental data .", "Abstract Angular bandwidth of the image reconstructed from the volume phase hologram at a wavelength different from that of the recording beams has been analysed. An optimum holographic scheme on the basis of anisotropic diffraction uniting maximum bandwidth of the Gabor's scheme and advantages of the Leith-Upatnieks scheme has been proposed for non-destructive readout of the volume hologram in birefringent photorefractive crystals. The main results of the theoretical analysis leading to the optimum holographic arrangement for electrically controlled retrieval of information from the volume of the electrooptic crystal are presented. Demonstrating experiments has been performed with LiNbO 3 : Fe crystals.", "A short review of distributed and multiplexed sensor technology, based on fibre gratings, is given. This is followed by details of more specific work in this area at the University of Southampton, particularly grating fabrication, distributed and multiplexed addressing and important practical aspects such as temperature and strain discrimination. The paper concludes with a short discussion of the problems that must be avoided in order to construct viable systems for engineering requirements.", "Using a quasi-extra-cavity grating together with a multilayer mirror, control of the polarization emitted by a semiconductor pumped Nd:YAG microchip laser at 1064-nm wavelength was demonstrated.", "Fine pitch gratings (200 nm - 240 nm) are required for a variety of devices such as optical filters, semiconductor lasers ::: and sensors for bio-medical applications. Various lithographic techniques are commercially available for fabricating ::: gratings, with the choice depending on the type of grating required, cost and volume of manufacture. It is possible to use ::: state of the art high-resolution projection steppers, common to silicon device manufacturing, for half pitch gratings down ::: to 65 nm, but for much smaller volume manufacturing of photonic devices these tools have a prohibitive cost of ownership. ::: Thus, remaining techniques for sub 120 nm half pitch gratings are holography, electron beam lithography, and ::: nano-imprint lithography. In this paper we compare, characterize, and discuss the practical application of these three ::: methods. Examples of gratings fabricated at the Canadian Photonics Fabrication Centre (CPFC) are shown as well as ::: some application examples.", "Holographic gratings recorded in polymer-dispersed liquid crystals (H-PDLC) are very interesting as systems for electrically switchable diffractive devices. From the early 1990s, experiments, Bragg and Raman-Nath gratings are recorded in PDLC. A very thorough review of these investigations is published recently. In this paper we report our first experiments for H-PDLC gratings, recorded in two different optical arrangements using total internal reflection (TIR): 1) Stetson's scheme - when low and high spatial frequencies gratings are simultaneously recorded in the PDLC's volume, and 2) Nassenstein's scheme - when low or high spatial frequency grating is recorded with evanescent waves in very thin layer of the PDLC. A polarization grating recorded by the Stetson's scheme is also reported. The realtime diffraction efficiency dependence during the recording and the polarization characteristics are investigated." ]

[ "[deleted]" ]

[ "Dog fighting for the win.", "People would fight over who gets to help people", "That Clinton would win", "The person who cares the least wins", "No matter who wins, I fear there will be unrest.", "It doesn't matter who wins, America loses.", "Howard Johnson is a hotel chain", "Your life will go on as normal no matter who wins", "yes, every person who works on wall street lives the wolf of wall street lifestyle.", "I genuinely think he would win by a landslide", "Get Mike Trout off the damn Angels", "I shook hands with Boris Johnson", "Corona virus would win against voter fraud.", "You sold your soul so the Cubs would win the 2016 world series and you'd win your bet.", "They suck off the CEO of SC Johnson", "Have Boris Johnson as Prime Minister.", "It would be covid and the lack of people trying to help fight it...It would seem medieval.", "&gt;duel citizen\n\nWho did she fight to become a citizen?", "Win win" ]

[ "When a force of nature like John Belushi is lost, 25 years isn't time enough to ease the grief or erase the laughter." ]

[ "When a force of nature like John Belushi is lost, 25 years isn't time enough to ease the grief or erase the laughter. Actor-comedian Richard Belzer still dreams about him from time to time, the unselfish friend and \"impish genius\" who devoured life. John Landis, who directed Belushi in \"Animal House\" and \"The Blues Brothers,\" is still angry at him for dying foolishly and young.", "Jim Belushi is being sued by the 78-year-old father of his former driver, who accuses him of selling a used 2001 Land Rover that turned out to be a lemon.", "Actor Jim Belushi has filed a &#36;1 million lawsuit against his next-door neighbor, veteran actress Julie Newmar, accusing her of a \"campaign of harassment\" designed to drive Belushi from his home.", "A handful still make millions, but the age of the supermodel is long gone. Could it return?", "Actor Jim Belushi says his next-door neighbor, actress Julie Newmar, is spying on him, destroying his property and calling him names behind his back.", "After serving up 25 years of toilet gags to puerile British readers, Viz is still flying high as the world's most politically incorrect comic.", "Singer Rod Stewart has gone to the top of the US album chart for the first time in 25 years.", "AMD's the longest running roller coaster in tech history: 25 years and counting.", "The Giants remain Bill Belichick’s touchstone 17 years after he left, the great teams and legendary players of the 1980s, providing all the reference points he needs now.", "The city of Jaffna has been in the center of the bitter civil war in Sri Lanka that has gone on for nearly 25 years.", "Looking back at a 25-year old conversation with the late Padmini", "The Happy Meal turns 25, but it's still got a childish smile.", "The 25th anniversary edition of album, with its newfangled remixes, is still worth a moonwalk.", "Though he's approaching 50 years in show business, 70 years on the planet and decades of heart trouble, George Carlin says this is no time to slow down.", "The fairy tale revisited, 25 years after Grace Kelly’s death.", "Daytime favourite Bob Barker brings the curtain down on his 50-year career, which included 35 as host of The Price is Right.", "Gone are the days when global electronics giants could dump last year&#039;s wares on China, counting on a nation of gadget hillbillies to buy the world&#039;s leftovers.", "Stephen Colbert is gone, but Jon Stewart is still on. \"South Park\" is out, but \"Adult Swim\" is still in.", "If a movie wins a Golden Globe, but there's no ceremony, does the prize still count?", "In an industry where fame can be fleeting and stars cling jealously to the spotlight, late-night comedian Jay Leno has seemingly defied the laws of TV gravity by giving five years notice for his retirement.", "Mehmet Ali Danisman has lived for 31 years in this quaint town in the hills near Frankfurt, and still doesn't count any Germans as friends.", "Lead singer Bono confirmed Wednesday that a long-lost briefcase full of notes and lyrics gone missing after an Oregon concert nearly 25 years ago has been returned.", "After mulling the fate of \"According to Jim,\" ABC decided to bring the James Belushi sitcom back next year. The network said Wednesday it has ordered 18 episodes to air in midseason.", "Their era only ended five years ago, but one New York nightclub owner is ready to be first to cash in on the latest retro craze -- the 1990s.", "TOKYO - Rescuers in Japan are still searching for 15 people missing after what the government is calling the worst typhoon to hit the islands in 25 years.", "Bill Nicholson&#39;s death has been described as the end of an era but, in truth, the era Nicholson belonged to was over long ago.", "Seeing Judy Chicago’s “The Dinner Party” in its permanent home at the Brooklyn Museum qualifies as progress after 33 years. But Ms. Chicago is not triumphant.", "Death doesn&#39;t take many holidays. We were reminded of this persistence even as the recitals had begun of those sports figures we had lost in 2004: Ken Caminiti, Hal Epps, Elroy &quot;Crazy", "A former respiratory therapist pleaded guilty Tuesday to molesting young, brain-damaged patients at the hospital where he worked for 25 years. Wayne Albert Bleyle, 55, admitted to eight counts of forcible lewd acts upon a child and four counts of exhibiting a minor in pornography.", "Judging from the markets, you'd hardly know Alan Greenspan has been gone from the Federal Reserve for more than a year. When he talks, Wall Street still listens.", "Toots Shor’s name hasn’t lighted up a New York sign for more than 30 years, but thanks to Kristi Jacobson, his granddaughter, it will now grace movie marquees.", "More than 30 years after he died and a half a century since his last film, silent screen star Harold Lloyd, whose career rivaled Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton, is returning to U.S. movie theaters." ]

[ "A beautiful view from the dock overlooking the water." ]

[ "A beautiful view from the dock overlooking the ocean.", "A beautiful view of a harbor.", "There is a gorgeous view that overlooks the Brothers Water.", "The views on the island are beautiful.", "The view is great from here.", "The terraced gardens provide a great view of the lake.", "There is a boat dock.", "A young girl is overlooking a lake from a large bluff.", "The sun shines upon the lake.", "The lakes region has some quantity of natural beauty.", "Man overlooking scenic view.", "The views from the private palace apartments overlook mecca.", "The scenery around the giant lake is exquisite.", "People can see a lake", "a boat at a dock", "An adult watches the beautiful view.", "A girl fishes on the dock at the lake.", "Beautiful views of Segovia can be seen from the top of the tower.", "The lake is not out!", "The hotel has beautiful views.", "Someone is outside on the dock.", "Pools with the sky scrapers overlooking the view.", "The peple are outside near the lake.", "Alcazar has a beautiful view of the plateau.", "The view is beautiful over the Inland Sea.", "They are near a lake.", "Trees with the sky scrapers overlooking the view.", "The boat is on the dock.", "The view of the Kidron Valley is beautiful and colorful.", "Someone is admiring the view.", "The views northwest of Santana are equally beautiful.", "Two men are sitting on the dock of a lake." ]

[ "Data hiding is the process that ensures exclusive data access to class members and provides object integrity by preventing unintended or intended changes. Abstraction, on the other hand, is an OOP concept that hides the implementation details and shows only the functionality to the user." ]

[ "Difference between Abstraction vs Encapsulation. ... 2) Abstraction is about hiding unwanted details while giving out the most essential details, while Encapsulation means hiding the code and data into a single unit e.g. class or method to protect the inner working of an object from the outside world.", "Data Hiding means protecting the members of a class from an illegal or unauthorized access. The main difference between data hiding and encapsulation is that data hiding focus more on data security and encapsulation focuses more on hiding the complexity of the system.", "The main difference between abstraction and inheritance is that abstraction allows hiding the internal details and displaying only the functionality to the users, while inheritance allows using properties and methods of an already existing class.", "Encapsulation is hiding the code and data into a single unit toprotect the data from outer world. Abstraction is set focus on the object instead of how it does it. Encapsulation means hiding the internal details or mechanics of howan object does something.", "The main difference between abstraction and inheritance is that abstraction allows hiding the internal details and displaying only the functionality to the users, while inheritance allows using properties and methods of an already existing class. Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) is a major programming paradigm.", "3) Abstraction lets you focus on what the object does instead of how it does, while Encapsulation means hiding the internal details of how an object works. ... 5) In Java, Abstraction is supported using interface and abstract class while Encapsulation is supported using access modifiers e.g. public, private and protected.", "['Abstraction. Abstraction means show only what is necessary. ... ', \"Encapsulation. It is a process of hiding all the complex processing from the outside world and make's your objects simple.\", 'Inheritance. ... ', 'Polymorphism.']", "Data hiding ensures exclusive data access to class members and protects object integrity by preventing unintended or intended changes. Data hiding also reduces system complexity for increased robustness by limiting interdependencies between software components.", "In POP, on the other hand, data can move freely because each function contains different data. OOP is more secure than POP, thanks to the data hiding feature which limits the access of data to the member function of the same class, while there is no such way of data hiding in POP, thus making it less secure.", "Which among the following can be viewed as combination of abstraction of data and code. Explanation: Object can be viewed as abstraction of data and code. It uses data members and their functioning as data abstraction. Code abstraction as use of object of inbuilt class.", "Encapsulate hides variables or some implementation that may be changed so often in a class to prevent outsiders access it directly. They must access it via getter and setter methods. Abstraction is used to hiding something too but in a higher degree(class, interface).", "Abstract Data Types. Abstract Data type (ADT) is a type (or class) for objects whose behaviour is defined by a set of value and a set of operations. ... It is called “abstract” because it gives an implementation-independent view. The process of providing only the essentials and hiding the details is known as abstraction.", "The main difference between abstract class and final class in Java is that abstract class is a class with abstract and non-abstract methods and allows accomplishing abstraction, while final class is a class that restricts the other classes from accessing its data and methods.", "There are mainly three levels of data abstraction: Internal Level: Actual PHYSICAL storage structure and access paths. Conceptual or Logical Level: Structure and constraints for the entire database. External or View level: Describes various user views.", "['Self-describing nature of a database system.', 'Insulation between programs and data, and data abstraction.', 'Support of multiple views of the data.', 'Sharing of data and multiuser transaction processing.']", "What is repository and unity of work ? The repository and unity of work pattern are used to create an abstraction layer between the data access layer and the business logic layer of an application.", "The abstraction technique aims to separate the implementation details of a class from its behavior. Abstraction and encapsulation are complementary concepts. On the one hand, abstraction focuses on the behavior of an object. On the other hand, encapsulation focuses on the implementation of an object's behavior.", "What Is the Difference Between Hibernate and Spring Data JPA? Hibernate is a JPA implementation, while Spring Data JPA is a JPA Data Access Abstraction. ... Hibernate provides a reference implementation of the Java Persistence API that makes it a great choice as an ORM tool with benefits of loose coupling.", "As adjectives the difference between theoretical and abstract. is that theoretical is of or relating to theory; abstract; not empirical while abstract is (obsolete) derived; extracted .", "What is the key difference between a central idea and a motif? A central idea is abstract, while a motif is concrete.", "Freezing a field means we can freeze one or more columns on database so that they remain visible all the time on the screens whereas hiding a field means we can hide one or more columns on database so that they don't remain visible all the time on the screen.", "What is the difference between a concrete image and an abstract concept? A concrete image is of a physical object, while an abstract concept is of an idea or feeling. ... objects or scenes are perceived when looking at them.", "The main difference between and abstract and an introduction is that the abstract is a brief summary of your entire study—the aim or objective, methods, results, and conclusions—usually in that order. ... In contrast, the introduction includes only some elements of what is in an abstract.", "['What is your strong point in terms of technical knowledge? ... ', 'What is inheritance? ... ', 'What are any two the differences between C++ and Java?', 'How modularity is present in C++?', 'How abstraction and encapsulation complementary?', 'What is a linked list?', 'Differentiate between Arrays and Linked List.']", "Procedural programming does not have any proper way for hiding data so it is less secure. Object oriented programming provides data hiding so it is more secure. ... In procedural programming, function is more important than data. In object oriented programming, data is more important than function.", "The difference between steganography and watermarking is that while steganography is a technique which hides the information, visible watermarking actually allows the third person to see the message.", "In the OSI reference model, the communications between a computing system are split into seven different abstraction layers: Physical, Data Link, Network, Transport, Session, Presentation, and Application.", "An abstract is similar to a summary except that it is more concise and direct. The introduction section of your paper is more detailed. It states why you conducted your study, what you wanted to accomplish, and what is your hypothesis. Let us learn more about the difference between the abstract and introduction.", "visibility:hidden- It is not visible but gets up it's original space whereas, display:none- It is hidden and takes no space.", "Object oriented programming provides data hiding so it is more secure. In procedural programming, overloading is not possible. Overloading is possible in object oriented programming. In procedural programming, function is more important than data.", "The steganography and cryptography are the two sides of a coin where the steganography hides the traces of communication while cryptography uses encryption to make the message incomprehensible. ... On the other hand, the cryptography alters the standard secret message structure when transferred along the network.", "What is the difference between data and information? A) Data represents a fact. Information is data that has been organized." ]

[ "The unrest in neighboring Syria has the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli on edge. Thousands of refugees have poured over the border, the demand for weapons is skyrocketing, and the pro-Syrian Alawite minority is warning of chaos if Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime falls. Though Hezbollah is the best known of the pro-Syrian actors in Lebanon, residents in Tripoli are more worried about the Alawites, members of the same minority that has ruled Syria for more than 40 years. Their numbers may be small, but they are well-armed and fiercely loyal to Damascus. The Alawite community of Jabal Mohsen stands on the hill above Bab al-Tabbaneh, a poor Sunni neighborhood in Tripoli. Three years ago, it was the scene of intense armed clashes that left dozens dead and hundreds of families displaced. Nobody here wants to see that repeated. So far that kind of sectarian violence has not returned. But as a coffee seller's clinking cups echo through a deserted market, the economic damage is apparent. Residents say the only ones making money these days are the arms dealers. Religious Minorities In keeping with Lebanon's reputation as a haven for religious minorities — provided they're willing to fight for their own survival — the Alawites of Lebanon are at once a feared armed group and a threatened religious minority. Rifaat Eid, who heads the Alawite Arab Democratic Party, agrees with Syria's argument that chaos will erupt across the region if Assad's regime is threatened. \"If anything happens in Syria, all the Middle East will be divided,\" he says. \"The serious danger in this is that all the minorities will end in the Middle East, especially the Christians, OK? And I will tell you, as minorities the Jewish will — can't — afford to stay in the Middle East.\" Eid proudly recounts how former Syrian leader Hafez Assad rescued the Alawites during Lebanon's civil war. He says Syria trained, armed and funded the Lebanese Alawites, whose most recent battles have been against hard-line Sunni Salafists that he says are backed by Saudi Arabia. That's one reason the price of a Kalashnikov is so high these days, he says. \"We are seeing it now in Egypt. Who's gathering all the power? The Salafists!\" he says. \"The gun, the [Kalashnikov] gun, it's $300-$400. Now it's $2,000, and no one can get one.\" Sunni leaders see the situation differently. Lawmaker Khaled Daher says the catastrophic warnings from Syria and its supporters are simply a tired replay from the Arab dictator's playbook: Back me or face chaos. \"The Syrians are very good at putting fear into people,\" he says. \"I mean, their problem is with their people. They want rights, democracy; this is what they should be working on, their problems with their people. Instead, what are they doing? From the beginning, you know, the Syrians have tried to move the focus from their problem to others.\" Tangled Allegiances If Syria wants to destabilize Lebanon, analysts say, it won't take much in a country that always seems to be on the brink of collapse. While demonstrations have been staged in capitals around the world opposing the Syrian regime's crackdown against its citizens, in Beirut recently it was a pro-Assad demonstration that snarled traffic. Beirut political analyst Oussama Safa says it took decades to build the tangled allegiances that make up Lebanon's modern ties to Syria, and even those who loathe those connections are fearful about what might happen if they're suddenly severed. \"The political system, the electoral law, are all put together basically to keep a certain elite in power that is very close to the Syrians,\" he says. \"So all of this would probably all of a sudden be gone if the regime in Syria is no longer able to call the shots. And I think this might throw Lebanon into a lot of uncertainty.\" Many Lebanese are convinced Assad isn't going anywhere soon. Retired Lebanese army general and analyst Elias Hanna says since 1970, Assad's father, Hafez, cultivated a system of control in which Alawite loyalists occupy the key military, intelligence and political positions. But by the same token, says Hanna, if this popular protest can sustain itself, Assad's options will be limited. \"In Syria there is one dimension: the army, security, and the party, and the political level are one. Zero-sum game,\" he says. \"So that's why you have a dilemma today in Syria: If the president opens up too much he loses, and if he closes too much he loses.\" As the world watches how President Assad responds to the biggest threat yet to his regime, no one is watching more closely than Lebanon. RENEE MONTAGNE, host: And the unrest in Syria has its neighbor Lebanon on edge. The fear is that the turmoil in Syria will spill over the border and ignite sectarian violence that simmers just below the surface in Lebanon. NPR's Peter Kenyon visited the Lebanese city of Tripoli and filed this report. PETER KENYON: Of all the pro-Syrian actors in Lebanon, the Shiite militia and political party Hezbollah is " ]

[ "The coronavirus is spreading through government-held areas of Syria at an alarming rate and the authoritarian regime uses a campaign of intimidation to suppress information about the outbreak, a medical worker inside the country says. With hospitals overwhelmed, staff are treating patients in dirty rooms, without enough medication and with little equipment to protect themselves, one medical worker in the country told NPR. But talking about it can be dangerous. \"There are continuous warnings against doctors speaking on this issue,\" said the medical worker, who asked not to be identified for fear of being arrested. He said intelligence officers watch the hospitals and that medical staff feel so intimidated they're wary even of sharing information about the disease with each other: \"We are all scared, all the time.\" Syria's Health Ministry has reported just 757 cases and 43 deaths across the country. But experts say the reality is much worse. Dr. Akjemal Magtymova, the World Health Organization representative for Syria based in Damascus, told NPR she believes there is a \"steep rise\" in coronavirus transmission. In the capital, Damascus, there is evidence of the outbreak. NPR spoke with several Syrian citizens, all of whom said they had relatives who have contracted the virus. A noted Lebanese singer in the country for a performance died of the virus, as did the chief editor of a Syrian news channel. Medical staff have been particularly hard hit. A report last week by a United Nations humanitarian agency and the WHO said 44 health care workers in Syria had tested positive. Zaher Sahloul, the president of the U.S.-based charity MedGlobal, told NPR he knows of seven doctors who have died in Syria from the virus in just the last two weeks. \"It's terrible in Syria right now,\" he said. \"There is an acceleration of cases, doubling every couple of days, a high number of deaths and a high number of hospitalizations. And there is a huge panic and huge chaos.\" Sahloul and Magtymova, the WHO representative, both said the government lacks the testing kits it needs to fully see the scale of the outbreak. But Sahloul believes the government also \"does not want to show they have tens of thousands of infected people\" because it would imply the authorities mismanaged the public health crisis. He said that would \"anger\" a population already beaten down by almost a decade of conflict and an economic crisis. The Syrian health and information ministries failed to respond to repeated requests for comment. The medical worker in Syria said that the regime initially called on doctors it considers loyalists to discretely deal with COVID-19 patients. Now there are too many sick to hide. He said the government is encouraging people to treat themselves at home. Doctors have to buy their own masks. To try to slow the spread, the government has banned mass prayers and has asked Syrians to stay home over the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha this weekend.", "The skies above Lebanon have been filled with colorful balloons in recent days. They're not in celebration, but in protest, and bear the message \"Enough, we want dignity\" scrawled in Arabic in black marker. In recent weeks, thousands of Palestinian refugees have been holding demonstrations in 12 refugee camps across Lebanon to protest a government crackdown on businesses hiring foreign workers without permits. The demonstrators oppose a new Lebanese labor ministry rule requiring them to have special work permits. Under Lebanese law, everyone who is considered a foreigner must acquire certain paperwork from the Ministry of Labor in order to work. Palestinians — who were forced out or fled in the war during Israel's creation in 1948, and were not allowed back — now make up about 10% of Lebanon's population. Some 450,000 Palestinians are registered in Lebanon with the U.N. refugee agency that works with Palestinian refugees. Various Lebanese governments have classified Palestinians either as foreigners, refugees or stateless people, even though many were born in Lebanon. Palestinians are generally not granted Lebanese citizenship. \"The laws are so gray ... every time a new labor minister comes to office, we become afraid because they change what it means to be 'Palestinian' here,\" says Rana Makki, a 27-year-old Palestinian activist and researcher. Palestinian refugees \"are highly marginalized, with two-thirds considered poor or extremely poor,\" with a high rate of unemployment exacerbated by the arrival of more than 1 million Syrian refugees to Lebanon, according to a 2016 U.N. Refugee Agency report. Saber Halimeh, a 26-year-old Palestinian journalist who writes for a website covering refugee issues, grew up in the Burj al-Barajneh refugee camp on the outskirts of Beirut. In this loud, bustling camp, which has narrow alleyways lined with dangerous electrical wires, he explains that what spurred these protests — which began last week — was the government closure of two Palestinian-owned businesses amid a larger government crackdown on Syrian refugees. In June, the Labor Ministry, led by Camille Abousleiman, announced a one-month deadline for companies to acquire work permits for anyone considered a foreigner in Lebanon. Once the deadline expired last week, the ministry began to close or fine businesses that didn't have permits from the government, nearly 600 of them Syrian-run or employing Syrians, and two Palestinian. \"It's clear that they're clamping down on Syrians because they want to send them home. But where would we go? We were born here and have no land to return to,\" Makki says. In 2010, labor laws in Lebanon were amended to exempt Palestinian refugees from paying for work permits. However, Palestinian businesses still had to register with the government and pay a quarter of the standard registration fee. In a series of tweets, Abousleiman denied that the government is targeting Palestinians and has tried to ease tensions by vowing to facilitate the granting of work permits for Palestinian refugees. \"Lebanese law protects Palestinian workers and guarantees that they receive minimum wage,\" he tweeted. But the Palestinian protesters are demanding much more than an overturn of the new work permit rule. Palestinians in Lebanon are barred from working in more than 20 professions, and their prospects in the labor market are limited to jobs in construction, administrative roles and small crafts. In the protests, \"We're not just asking for the simple right to work anymore, but also to work [in] professions we are banned from, such as medicine, law [and] engineering,\" Halimeh says. The protest movement is also asking the Lebanese government to clarify Palestinians' status, he says. \"Foreigners come here voluntarily for work or tourism,\" he says. \"We are refugees without a choice or a place to return to.\" Halimeh says it is illegal to allow building materials in the camp where he lives, because the Lebanese government wants to discourage Palestinians from staying permanently. \"We cannot own houses outside the camps, ownership of land is difficult for Palestinians in Lebanon, and we also cannot build inside the camps. We are asking to be allowed to at least bring in building materials. Palestinians have been here for 70 years,\" he says. The Ain el-Helweh camp, located about an hour's drive south of Beirut, in the city of Saida, has become the symbolic center of the protests, activists tell NPR. \"Inside Ain el-Helweh, there's one of the largest vegetable markets in Saida, and since the protests began, they've put a stop to all Lebanese products entering or leaving the camps,\" Halimeh says. \"They're trying to prove a point that Palestinians aren't a burden on Lebanese society. We actually contribute to the economy in a positive way.\" Palestinians have set up a committee to to negotiate with the Lebanese government on ensuring working rights and defining their status as \"permanent residents.\" Until an agreement is r", "Fighting between Lebanon's army and Islamic militants at a Palestinian refugee camp has revived concerns that other armed factions operating in Lebanon, especially Syrian-controlled groups, could enter the fray. The standoff near Lebanon's northern city of Tripoli has entered its fourth week, with more than 130 people confirmed dead in the fighting. For three weeks, the Lebanese army has used the hills surrounding the camp to rain shells down on the primitive concrete structures in the center of the Nahr al-Bared camp below. The army said it will continue the artillery barrage and ground operations until the al-Qaida-inspired militants hiding inside are defeated, but the latest reports place Lebanese forces only about 55 yards inside the camp, as army casualties mount. Even so, the battle has been a boost for the army's reputation, with all Lebanese factions backing the army in its fight against Fatah Islam extremists. But Lebanese officials say other groups have joined Fatah Islam side of the fight, including the Palestinian militia known as the General Command. \"All the other groups that were allied with the Syrians, like the General Command and others, are also fighting with them,\" said Ghattas Khoury, a government supporter. \"I think what will happen is that when we finish with Nahr al-Bared, or soon, they might trigger other incidents.\" The General Command was once part of the left-wing Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. It maintains strongholds in the Bekaa Valley and elsewhere. Its leader, Ahmad Jibril, is a former Syrian army captain who directs the group from Damascus, Syria. Khoury said the army has already encircled one General Command outpost in Bekaa, near the Syrian border. He said there is also \"another problem\" at al-Naimi, south of Beirut, where there are \"tunnels and a camp ... full of General Command fighters.\" \"So we have two potential security threats in these two areas, and these are outside the Palestinian camps,\" Khoury said. Al-Naimi is a hilly area several miles south of the capital, where the General Command is believed to have a stockpile of weapons stored in a network of tunnels that burrow deep into the mountainside. After passing several checkpoints manned by young men with automatic weapons, a visiting reporter was escorted recently to meet a middle-aged man in green fatigues, who gave his nom de guerre as Abu El-Amin Khaled. He pointed out the ruins of buildings that have been hit over the years by Israeli airstrikes, most recently in last summer's war. The man said \"the Zionists are the enemy, not the Lebanese army.\" He rejected the claim that General Command is fighting alongside Fatah Islam in the north. \"We are totally against what's happening there,\" he said. \"We're here with an agreement from the Lebanese government from 1969. We protect the camp, and we take the brunt of the force of the Israelis. When they hit, they hit us.\" The 1969 Cairo Accord mentioned by Khaled was abolished by former President Amin Gemayel in 1986. The recent Lebanese national dialogue agreed that armed groups such as the General Command should be disarmed. So far, there has been no move to do that. Analyst Shafiq Masri said given the government's fragile state, it is not surprising that the army is moving at such a slow pace against the Islamist militants in the Nahr al-Bared camp. The army is being asked to win, but not quickly, he said. If that happened, \"the politicians would push them to the next step - depriving the Palestinians outside the camps of their weapons. And then, who knows? Perhaps the third step — depriving Hezbollah,\" he said.", "One line President Obama might have borrowed for his speech to the nation Tuesday night was a famous one from John F. Kennedy's inauguration address: \"Let us never negotiate out of fear, but let us never fear to negotiate.\" Always admired as a fine turn of phrase, what meaning does this have in our own time? Perhaps it might have helped Obama make the turn from indicting the Syrian regime's alleged use of chemical weapons to explaining why he backed off his own earlier threat of military retaliation against Syria. Back in 1961, Kennedy and his speechwriter, Ted Sorensen, were seeking a balance between resolute strength (Kennedy the war hero) and openness to the promise of a more peaceful future (Kennedy the visionary). They wanted the new president to be tough enough for the Cold War and imaginative enough to see beyond it. In fact, in his brief presidency, Kennedy led the nation into a series of confrontations with the Communist bloc: the Bay of Pigs, the Berlin Wall, war in the Congo, the Cuban missile crisis and the early escalation of commitment in Vietnam. In each case, Kennedy was reasonably sure he could count on support from Congress and the public, in part because very few people would know what was actually going on. Obama faces his current Syrian conundrum with no such assurance. If he can count on anything, it's congressional and popular resistance. The Senate might be persuaded to back a military option by the narrowest of margins, but the House has made its opposition as plain as could be done without a recorded vote. Moreover, Congress' attitude reflects that of the nation itself. Rarely has Congress been quite so attentive to its constituents, who in turn have rarely been so lopsided in opposing a war. Even many who believe Syrian President Bashar Assad is guilty as charged do not favor intervention. And the percentage of those supporting even limited air strikes has actually declined since the crisis began in late August. The specter of \"another Iraq\" looms over everything. The public generally sees no vital national interest at stake in Syria, and the public doubts that any \"limited strike\" would remain limited. Obviously, much has changed since Kennedy and Sorensen tried to touch the American psyche. But above all, we have had half a century of intermittent wars, some brief and some seemingly interminable. The achievements of these conflicts have been, in the end, highly debatable, and the costs are quite real. The damage to the national psyche has been incalculable. Many of us think of these episodes and recall serial presidential speeches about backing up our national \"ideals and principles\" with a temporary action on a limited scale. Where are we now in the Syria saga? Are we negotiating out of fear? Not out of fear of the Syrians, to be sure, or their Russian backers. The era of our fearing the \"Soviets\" or the \"Empire of Evil\" has passed. The fear now is of unintended consequences, including muddled engagements with casualties and confounding results. So it makes sense for the White House, despite all its protestations, to fear defeat in the Congress, or at least in the House. You might say the president has less to fear from Assad or Russia President Vladimir Putin than from Reps. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) and Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), outspoken women who anchor opposite ends of the political spectrum in the House — and who both oppose a military strike against Syria. It is that alliance of left and right, of peacenik and libertarian, that threatens to give this president a beat down heard 'round the world. And that is why this president had a conversion on the missile flight path to Damascus. So what is presidential wisdom and strength in the global politics of our new century? Is it the president who's weak when even those Americans who hold Assad a war criminal do not wish to make war on him? When only a handful of lawmakers on Capitol Hill are willing to face this tide of voter sentiment and explain that Syria is not Iraq or Afghanistan? Perhaps what a president needs now to be successful in foreign relations has less to do with traditional notions of strength and more to do with an array of skills such as inventiveness, imagination and adaptability. At least we know this much: Showing conventional might has become, as often as not, counterproductive. And being out of ideas and imagination is as much a state of weakness as being out of soldiers and ammunition.", "Lebanon's parliament failed Friday to elect a successor to pro-Syrian President Emile Lahoud hours before he is set to leave office. Speaker Nabih Berri postponed the session until Nov. 30 after the legislature failed to get the necessary two-thirds quorum to take a vote. Berri said in a statement that the postponement would give factions more time to reach a consensus. The failure to elect a new president could throw the country deeper into political chaos and violence. While both sides said efforts are under way to prevent further deterioration, each camp was waiting Friday for the other to make the first move. Constitutional Provision In the absence of a president, the anti-Syrian government of Prime Minister Fuad Saniora would take executive power under the constitution. But the pro-Syrian Lahoud has vowed not to hand his authorities over to Saniora's administration, considering it unconstitutional after all five ministers of the Shiite Muslim community quit a year ago. \"Any step taken by Fuad Saniora to take over the presidency's duties ... within hours the opposition will be on the streets to bring him down by force,\" warned opposition politician Wiam Wahhab on Hezbollah's al-Manar TV late Thursday. The most dangerous scenario is that Lahoud could create an alternative government and transfer his power to it. Saniora's Western-backed government would likely refuse to step aside, leaving Lebanon with two rival governments, much like during the last two years of the 1975-90 civil war. A compromise possibility is that Lahoud will entrust his security powers to the heads of the military, a move that the government would likely not oppose - effectively putting the situation on hold to allow further talks on a candidate. \"We are giving wide space to the continuation of dialogue and consultations,\" said Akram Chehayeb of a hard-line parliament faction backing Saniora. \"We want to preserve civil peace.\" The opposition-aligned Berri postponed the session 30 minutes after the legislature failed to muster the necessary two-thirds quorum to begin voting. It followed talks with leaders of the parliamentary majority. Scheduling another session in a week as talks between the two sides continue could defuse for now any potential street confrontations. Negotiations Continue Lawmakers in the majority, anti-Syrian faction said they would not take any drastic measures such as electing one of their own in a simple majority ignoring the opposition boycott. Walid Jumblatt, a prominent leader in the majority, said afterwards that he continues to hold out for consensus on a candidate, stressing that the priority was to prevent the political tensions from turning into violence. \"We will continue to work for consensus and national peace,\" he told reporters. Ahead of Friday's events, army commander Gen. Michel Suleiman has ordered soldiers \"not to be lenient or inactive\" in confronting possible troublemakers, calling on his troops to ignore the politics and \"listen to the call of duty.\" The military has been on alert for several days. On Friday morning, hundreds of troops in tanks, armored carriers and jeeps deployed along intersections leading to the Lebanese capital and around the downtown area where the parliament building is located. Lawmakers from the majority arrived at parliament for the 1 p.m. session Friday in bulletproof cars driven from a nearby hotel where dozens have been seeking refugee for weeks, fearing assassination. The majority faction, which holds 68 seats in the 128-member parliament, has been the subject of assassinations over the last two years that many have ascribed to Syrian attempts to whittle down their slim majority in the legislature. Three previous attempts by the parliament to elect a leader since September failed because of the inability to find a candidate acceptable to both sides. Rival Lebanese leaders have been unable to reach agreement on a consensus candidate despite intense mediation efforts by European envoys and the U.N. secretary general. On Thursday night, the foreign ministers of France, Italy and Spain, who together are fielding a majority of the U.N. peacekeepers in the south of the country, held talks with Lebanese leaders, but to no avail. From reports by NPR's Ivan Watson and The Associated Press", "A car bomb attack kills Brig. Gen. Francois Hajj, and at least two others. The target of the attack, Hajj, a top Maronite Catholic in the command, was considered a leading candidate to succeed the head of the military, Gen. Michel Suleiman, if Suleiman is elected president.A car bomb exploded in Beirut on Wednesday, killing a top Lebanese general who was a leading candidate to become head of the army. Two others were also killed in the attack on Brig. Gen. Francois Hajj, a top Maronite Catholic in the command, military officials and media reports said. Hajj, 55, was a leading candidate to succeed Gen. Michel Suleiman as army chief, if Suleiman is elected president. The blast is the first such attack against the Lebanese army, which has remained neutral in Lebanon's yearlong political crisis and is widely seen as the only force that can hold the country together amid bitter infighting between parliament's rival factions. The political divisions have paralyzed the government and prevented the election of a president, leaving the post empty since Nov. 23. Under Lebanon's sectarian division of political posts, the president must be a Maronite, like the army commander. The bomb exploded as Hajj drove through a busy street in the Baabda District. The timing amid the deadlock over the presidency raised immediate speculation over who was behind the attack. Anti-Syrian politicians blamed Damascus, as they have for a string of bombings over the past two years that killed eight prominent opponents of Syria. Damascus has denied any role in those killings. Telecommunications Minister Marwan Hamadeh, speaking to AP Television News, accused the \"Syrian-Iranian axis\" of hitting the military, \"the only body in Lebanon who can balance the power of Hezbollah and other militias in the country.\" But Hezbollah, which has good relations with the army, denounced the assassination. It called Hajj's death a \"great national loss\" and praised the military's \"great national role\" in preserving security. France, which ruled Lebanon for 20 years after World War I and has been mediating the political crisis, denounced the attack, as did the European Union. The main Christian opposition leader, Michel Aoun, an ally of Hezbollah, told reporters that he had supported Hajj to succeed Suleiman as army commander. Aoun, a former head of the military, praised Hajj and said it was \"shameful\" for political forces to take advantage of the crime, a reference to the anti-Syrian groups. Suspicion also fell on al-Qaida-inspired Sunni militants, whom the army crushed last summer at the Palestinian refugee camp of Nahr el-Bared in northern Lebanon. Hajj led the battle, which killed hundreds. Hikmat Deeb, a leading member of Aoun's opposition Free Patriotic Movement, said Hajj was \"a hero of Nahr el-Bared,\" suggesting the battle there was a factor in the assassination. The military refrained from laying blame, saying in a statement that \"the criminal hand\" killed Hajj, along with \"a number of soldiers, and wounded others.\" It said the military was investigating. The blast went off at 7:10 a.m. on a busy street near the Baabda Municipality building as residents were setting off for work. Hajj, who lives in the area, had left his home a few minutes earlier, probably for the nearby Defense Ministry, security officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity in accordance with military rules. A parked car packed with 77 pounds of TNT exploded, apparently triggered by remote control, as his SUV passed, blasting a crater two yards wide and a yard deep. Two bodies were thrown about 15 yards by the blast. Troops sealed off the area as firefighters tried to put out the flames. The road was blackened with soot as smoke covered the area. The security officials said three people were confirmed dead, including the general, his driver and bodyguard. Emergency workers were searching in nearby bushes for a possible fourth body. Saad Hariri, leader of the anti-Syrian parliamentary majority, said the attack came at a \"pivotal time at which Lebanon's enemies are seeking to consecrate the vacuum in the presidency.\" The failure to elect a president has embroiled Lebanon in its worst political crisis since the end of the 1975-90 civil war. The country has been without a president since Nov. 23, when Emile Lahoud left office and a deadlocked parliament failed to elect a successor. Parliament is sharply divided between anti-Syrian supporters of the government of Prime Minister Fuad Saniora and the opposition, led by Hezbollah, an ally of Syria and Iran. The two sides are locked in a dispute over electing the army commander, Suleiman, as a compromise candidate to fill the vacant presidency. His election requires a constitutional amendment because sitting army commanders are barred from the post. Lebanon has been rocked by a series of explosions since a massive truck bombing killed former Premier Rafik Hariri in central Beirut in 2005. The last major explosion o" ]

[ "my boyfriend loves gummi bears so I thought he might like this. He loved it. It is smaller than I expected though, but still awesome." ]

[ "These are not the Atomic Fireballs I remember. It had been several years since I had seen them. I purchased these as a gift after searching locally with no luck. The day before my order arrived I saw some in a corner store. These were smaller than the Fireballs I remember of the early 90's. The Fireballs I ordered were of this smaller variety. They may have been this size for ten years or more. Since the purchase was a gift I can't comment of flavoring. The old Fireballs were the size of a big jaw breaker, these \"new\" ones are a hair bigger than a nickel gumball.", "I never believed bread mix until I tried this one... I was amazed how easy and tasty this product turned out to be. I am glad to join to the \"subscribe & save\" program to save $$ and time to get this delicious and healthy bread mix. Almost no effort to bake it (both in the bread machine and in the oven)!!<br /><br />A good gift(s) to family members and friends too :)", "S. Crocker (Seattle) is absolutely correct. After I read her comment I called Keurig and reported my K-Cup holder was cracked and wanted to obtain a replacement. I had to give customer service my brewer's serial number and they said I would receive one absolutely free. It came in just three days totally free. As stated in S. Crocker's review, Keurig is a class act!", "FANTASTICALLY REDUCED MACULAR HOLE .2WEEKS AFTER TWICE PET DAY CENTER VISION BEGAN TO RETURN . NOW THREE TIMES PER DAY OUTLINES AND SOME DETAIL HAVE RETURNED. NOT 20/20 BUT IMAGE DETAIL HERETOFORE A BLUR. IT,S AMAZING ." ]

[ "1588" ]

[ "\"DEWEY DEFEATS TRUMAN\"", "the Disney Channel", "the Syfy channel", "Body english" ]

[ "Great price with print quality and quantity both fine. It is fairly noisy when printing compared to the OEM cartridge so one star off for that. I saw a review that said it did not work with wireless printing but it worked fine for me." ]

[ "Simple to setup. Not terribly noisy. Fairly fast printing. Great scanning quality.", "The GELID Silent 80mm fans are very quiet and are a great replacement for the noisy plain bearing fans in my hard disk enclosures. The price is pretty high on Amazon.", "This is very functional for a hiking or hot-weather skirt, but it's a bit noisy for casual wear. I wanted quick-dry, but just didn't think about the noisiness of nylon when I was ordering it.", "high quality, great design... good flow control... 9 inch reach is a bit much, but manageable, ...great price.", "Great sheets and very soft after a wash. They also are a bit thin and have a less than fine quality of stitching along the perimeter of the sheets but they are great for the price!", "Great price for this quality and quantity. The oil is a little bit fruity, not very acidic. Mild flavor overall, and not as heavy and greasy as some EVO's.", "Cooler is noisy. Not refrigerator sound noisy but It makes gushing and gurgling noises that are very distracting. The build quality appears good and the water is cooled relatively quickly. The noisy operation is really bothering me. My previous oasis cooler that lasted 15 years did not make this much noise. Not recommended for a kitchen environment. Maybe fine for an office. I may return this.", "Good air flow on higher settings, it will really help cool down a small room. A little bit too noisy for me.", "Quality was great. Fit was a bit small - I wear 8.5 regularly, so got 8.5. But it was a bit too tight - guess I should have listened to other reviewers and ordered the next size up.\n\nThe shoe is good quality and light. Great guy for the price.", "These are great items at a great price, and I'll definitely buy again. They do run a bit small at the waist, though. I'll just buy a size larger. The quality is wonderful.", "Great gore-tex coat for a fraction of the price of others. The zipper is bit tough at time but that is a minor complaint. Good fit and quality materials.", "Great quality for the price I would recommend ordering a size up. The material is a bit thick so it would be great to wear in the winter or fall.", "Good quality. Nice pack. Concealed carry pouch needs some work. The velcro is very noisy.", "These are amazing!! Installed them on our 11' Ford Explorer Limited and we are very impressed. With the advice of a friend, who is a mechnic, we had them installed in about 2 hours front and here. They are a bit noisy under heavy braking, but they are utterly amazing! You cannot beat the price and from what I have heard from other clients you should best 70k-100k on them.", "I should have realized the price was just a bit too great. I found the quality a bit disappointing. These are definitely not thick enough. I actually decided not to use them at all after a few months debate.", "great price, very high-quality material, feels GREAT, runs a bit large on a 6' tall 200+lb guy, but not too big to want to send it back", "I bought this to use with Sonar (Cakewalk) for audio editing. When in ASIO mode (in a 64-bit environment), it produces an extremely annoying high-pitched hum that has nothing to do with cables or electrical grounding or anything like that. It's the unit itself.\n\nVery noisy. Makes audio editing intolerable. Not worth any price, no matter how cheap, unless you enjoy being annoyed by a high-pitched hum all the time.", "I bought this wireless doorbell to make sure I knew when clients arrived for their personal training sessions. I have noisy fans and an air-conditioning unit going to keep the studio cool, so I didn't always hear the front doorbell ring. This solved the problem! Lots of ringtone variety, plenty loud, and the color matches my brand. Very satisfied with the quality, ease of use, and especially the price.", "Keeps me warm with aide of duvet cover. A bit noisy crinkly sounding. Hope that goes away as it softens with age. Glad I went back to down-like comforter.", "Product fits perfectly on my D3100, focus is quite fast, although a little noisy, but works wonders considering the price I paid for the lens. So far so good.", "Pretty neat little thing. Great for watching movies in bed or playing games. Very versatile. You can set it up in any configuration, just takes a bit of working with. Great price for the quality.", "This was the same price as some of the larger mats on amazon , but size was perfect for my counter space. Abzorbtion is good, and have had no problems with mildew. Overall, great quality, but a bit pricy for the size.", "Originally bought this for streaming audio in my older model truck and the possibility of integrated hands free calls was a bonus.\n\nThe streaming works well but I've had frequent comments about less than satisfying audio when calling. Perhaps the microphone is too sensitive or the mechanics of my truck are a bit noisy.\n\nEither way, if you're looking to leverage Bluetooth audio in a later model vehicle this is worth a shot. Good price and consistent connection.", "I love all these rings - in every color - great quality - stainless steel easy to care for.\nI would have given it a 5 but the shipping price is a bit high.", "This is a very good power washer. It is very powerful but not too noisy compared with the one I had before. It is such a good quality and come with all the accessories that you need.", "Awesome price! Great feel! Sizing is a bit big. I would have loved to keep these but the 9 was too big and I couldn't make it work. They didn't have the 8.5 I needed but that is understandable as they are a great quality and price. I ordered the black and as pictured it looks far grey but it is in fact black! I will definitely buy from this company again!", "I spent an evening setting this up as a Plex Media Server; there are many software options in the personalcloud website and it's a bit confusing at first. Luckily my Plex content does not need transcoding (see other reviews). The main issues I have are: 1) it's quite noisy, sounding like a vintage hard disk from 15-20 years ago, humming and clattering (none of my USB drives from Western Digital sound this noisy, not sure why this product needs to be so noisy); 2) in my setup it never seems to turn the hard disk off, even though power settings are set to 20 min shut down; 3) the unit is always a bit warm to touch, so it's not very energy efficient; 4) it's slow as a Plex media server compared with using a Mac Mini and a USB drive but I can live with that as the benefits of always-on outweigh the slow speed.", "Computer works great. Love the background light on the keyboard. The keys are easy to push and not noisy.", "As a add-on item this is great in price and quality for our pond. We use as regular treatment and for sick fish. Only issue on our second order was the top came loose with a little bit falling in the box, but no issues.", "That was what I was looking for dust protection.\n\nMy previous cover was a little bit thin and I have to admit that makes feel the iPhone 6s bigger and this is a little uncomfortable for the first days.\n\nBut the quality/price is great.\n\nRecommended", "Great quality decorticated seeds! Pungent, exotic, and very aromatic as cardamom should be. The only downside is they're a bit pricey. I usually get a pound of organic seeds at wholesale pricing for $19 but in a pinch these get me by.", "The color is dependent on water temperature. The blue and green lights are fairly bright, but you get much less luminance from the red hot water light. Because it is water powered, it is a bit noisy. Nicely adjustable and the settings it has are easy to switch between." ]

[ "more than £150,000" ]

[ "Pay at the pump", "Josh Pais", "Roopa Pai", "not paying the weregild", "Pai Chan", "Ajit Pai" ]

[ "Samsung has the tradition of unveiling its flagship Galaxy S-series at the annual Mobile World Conference (MWC) in Barcelona. The event will kick off on February 27 this year but the upcoming Galaxy S8 won't arrive on the day. However, the company has confirmed that it will shed more light on the next-generation device at the event.\nPresident of mobile communications at Samsung Koh Dong-jin has confirmed that the Galaxy S8 release date will be announced on February 27, according to a report by Hankyung. Interestingly, Samsung has scheduled a press event on February 26.\n[READ: Samsung Galaxy S8 - most powerful Android smartphone in the making?]\nThe South Korean technology giant is yet to announce the release details of its upcoming flagship but reports have claimed that it will be unveiled at a special event in New York on March 29 and release into the market on April 21.\nThe Samsung Galaxy S8 is expected to come in two variants — one with a 5.8-inch display and the other with a 6.2-inch screen, which is a significant upgrade from its predecessors Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge. The two models are expected to share other specifications like a Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor, come packed with a 6GB RAM and 64/128GB internal memory, and mount a 12MP S5K2L2 sensor and 13MP sensor main camera made by Sony and an 8MP front-snapper with the autofocus feature.\nIt is also reported that the Samsung Galaxy S8 will come with a price tag of €799 and the Galaxy S8 edge at €899.\n(Source: Hankyung via GSMArena)" ]

[ "Ahead of the Galaxy S8’s announcement late last month, there was a growing concern that the Galaxy Note 7 debacle would weigh heavy on consumers’ minds, and ultimately have a big negative impact on Samsung’s new launch. As we’re sure you will recall, Samsung’s best smartphone to date was recalled last year — twice — after some Note 7 batteries burst into flames, causing injuries and property damage in the process. Surveys that sought to gauge how the Note 7 might impact Samsung’s Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ release were mixed, but we had a feeling that people would quickly forget about the Note 7’s issues when they saw how impressive Samsung’s new flagship phones were.\nWell, it looks like we hit the nail on the head, because Samsung’s new Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ haven’t been released yet and they’re already a smash hit.\nAs we told you last week, preorders for Samsung’s new Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ have been explosive. Samsung made a few announcements highlighting just how impressive pre-sales have been in its home country of South Korea, and now a new report from a reputable site states that a major milestone has been surpassed.\nAccording to a report from The Investor, a market-focused offshoot of South Korean newspaper The Korea Herald, preorders of Samsung’s Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ in South Korea have surpassed 1 million units. The report cites data collected from local wireless carriers as of Tuesday, April 18th.\nThe Galaxy S8 and S8+ became available for preorder on April 7th, which means the phones took just 10 days to reach the milestone. Of note, no previous Samsung smartphone has ever reached 1 million preorders in South Korea.\nSamsung’s new Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ are scheduled to be released this Friday, April 21st, in South Korea and in a number of international markets including the United States. We wrote about how impressive Samsung’s new flagship phones are in our hands-on Galaxy S8 preview, and our full Galaxy S8 review is forthcoming.", "Before the Galaxy S9 and S9+ are launched on February 25 at a Samsung Unpacked event, we’ve got details about other improvements and features being prepped by the South Korean tech giant. The Oreo update for the Galaxy S8 and S8+ are almost ready. We’re expecting it will include Samsung Experience 9.0. Actually, it’s more like the Samsung Experience 9.0 will feature Android 8.0 Oreo because as you know, Samsung uses its own user interface based on the latest Android version.\nThere is no official announcement by Samsung yet but if you’ve been using the beta Oreo on your Galaxy S8 or S8+, then you’ve probably seen some related features. These are usually found in the Samsung Members app. The beta version has been out since November so we’re certain you already know some improvements including those on the Home Screen, Samsung Keyboard, Edge Screen, Quick Panel, Samsung Cloud, Find My Mobile, Samsung Dex, and Samsung Dual Messenger.\nThe official Android Oreo OS is expected to roll out in the next few days or weeks so watch out for an OTA alert or notification. SAMMOBILE has shared an infographic that presents what to expect from the Samsung Experience 9.0.\nClick HERE to see the full infographic. It’s quite long but we chopped the image into sections. Check the image gallery below:\nTo summarize, here are features of the Samsung Experience 9.0:\n• New high-contrast keyboards\n• Simplified keyboard settings\n• New emojis, GIFs, and stickers\n• Fast and smarter search results\n• Bixby briefing to start your day\n• Color Lens that may prevent eye strain\n• Shortcut to the cloud\n• Samsung Connect dashboard access\n• Dual Messenger: two accounts on one phone\n• Samsung DeX with wider apps screen\n• Due date options on email\nVIA: SAMMOBILE", "If you’re in India, starting 12PM on April 19, you will be able to pre-order the Galaxy S8 or its bigger sibling Galaxy S8 Plus exclusively from Flipkart. The official pricing has not been revealed yet, unfortunately.\nSee also: Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus hands-on: Welcome to a new era\nThe Galaxy S8 duo is slowly making its way around the world. Samsung’s latest flagships have already been released in South Korea, and most carriers in the US and Canada have started shipping all pre-ordered devices. Now it’s gearing up to make a splash in the second largest smartphone market in the world: India.\nSamsung already announced that it would be taking pre-orders for the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus starting April 19 in India, and it looks like Flipkart will be Samsung’s exclusive online launch partner. This isn’t hugely surprising given that Samsung has a history of selling devices like the Galaxy C9 Pro and the Galaxy A9 Pro exclusively through the online retailer.\nThe pre-orders will start at 12PM, but unfortunately, there is no official word on how much these devices will cost.\nThe pre-orders will start at 12PM, but unfortunately, there is no official word on how much these devices will cost. However, according to Hindustan Times, the regular Galaxy S8 will retail somewhere between Rs 46,000 to Rs 50,000 whereas the Galaxy S8 Plus will set you back Rs 55,000 to Rs 60,000. We will be sure to keep you updated once that information becomes available.\nJust to refresh your memory, both the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus come with Exynos 8995, 4GB of RAM, and 64GB of internal storage. They boast an impressive Dual Pixel 12-megapixel camera on the back and an 8-megapixel selfie-shooter with autofocus on the front. There are additional sensors on the front for iris-scanning. The regular S8 comes with a 5.8-inch QHD display with 3,000 mAh battery, and its bigger sibling has a 6.2-inch QHD display with 3,500 mAh battery.\nWill you be pre-ordering the Galaxy S8 or Galaxy S8 Plus? Let us know by leaving a comment below!", "There’s only a few days left until the official unveiling of the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 and with the large amount of leaks released over the past few weeks, we pretty much already have a good picture of what we can expect from the new device. Most recently though, the GeekBench results of the new device were seen online and revealed an interesting conclusion about Samsung’s latest high-end smartphone.\nAccording to the leaked GeekBench results, the Exynos 8995 variant of the Galaxy Note 8 got a score of 1984 in the single-core test and a score of 6116 in the multi-core test while the Snapdragon 835 version of the same device got single-core and multi-core scores of 1815 and 6066, respectively. The scores reveal that the Exynos variant is proving to perform better than its Snapdragon counterpart.\nThe same results were seen in the results of the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus, both of which also have Exynos and Snapdragon variants of their own, revealing that Samsung’s own Exynos chips may be starting to overtake Qualcomm’s Snapdragon processors. In practice though, the difference between the two chips shouldn’t be significantly noticeable.\nRELATED: Samsung Galaxy Note 8 U.S. Release to Happen on August 24?\nThe Samsung Galaxy Note 8 is expected to be revealed next week on August 23 with an expected release date of September 15.\n(via)\nAlways be the first to know. Follow us:", "With the Android 7.0 Nougat update now rolling out to the current-gen Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge smartphones, Samsung has revealed when 2015’s devices will start to receive Google’s latest OS.\nA tweet from Samsung Turkey’s Tansu Yegen revealed the Galaxy S6, Galaxy S6 Edge and the Galaxy Note 5 will see Nougat in the third week of February.\nRelated: Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge review\nThe later Galaxy S6 Edge+ will receive the update during the 4th week of the month.\nHere’s the tweet (via Neowin), for what it’s worth:\nWhile the tweet only relates to the rollout in Turkey, it’s highly likely this will apply to mainland Europe also.\nThe UK launch seems sure to be on or around that date too. We’ll be certain to let you know when it’s about to happen.\nSamsung may also choose to make it official at MWC 2016, which commences on February 26.\nIf the Nougat release comes on time, all of Samsung’s recent flagships will be up to speed well before the company unveils the Galaxy S8, believed to be in mid-April.\nWhether this might discourage legacy phone owners from jumping in on the Galaxy S7 remains to be seen.\nAre you saving your pennies for a Galaxy S8? Or is your S6 or S7 still going strong, Share your thoughts below.", "IT'S FAIR TO SAY that last year's Galaxy Note 7 was a disaster. Following reports that the handset had been setting on fire and burning arses, Samsung was forced to issue a recall, which later resulted in the handset being binned altogether.\nWhile some early rumours said that that marked the end of the line for Samsung's Galaxy Note range, the firm has itself confirmed that it will be returning in 2017 when it revealed that burned Note 7 users could bag themselves a half-price Galaxy Note 8.\nWe've rounded up everything we know about the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 so far and will update this article as soon as we hear more.\nRelease date\nSamsung's traditionally launches a new Note flagship each year at the IFA tech show in Berlin, which suggests that the Galaxy Note 8 will make its debut in early-September 2017.\nDuring its Q1 2017 earnings call, Samsung confirmed that it would launch a second flagship during the second half of the year, no doubt a nod to the Galaxy Note 8.\nPrice\nGiven that its launch is almost a year away, there's no word as to how much the Galaxy Note 8 will cost. However, with prices Galaxy S8 starting at £680, expect it to fetch more than £700.\nSpecs and news\n- 6.3in 3840x2160 Super AMOLED curved Infinity Display with 18.5:9 ratio\n- S Pen support\n- Improved iris scanner\n- Screen embedded fingerprint scanner\n- Built-in 'Bixby' AI assistant\n- Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chip, 6GB RAM\n- Vertical dual lens rear-facing camera\n- USB-C connectivity, 3.5mm headphone jack\n- Android 7.0 Nougat\n- IP68 certification\n- 64GB build-in storage, microSD expansion\n- Fast charging, wireless charging support\nLatest news\n14/6/7/: SamMobile is reporting, having heard from \"internal sources\", that the Galaxy Note 8 will likely be unveiled at this year's IFA tech show, which kicks off on 1 September. This would see the smartphone announced just days ahead of the iPhone 8.\n8/6/17: A bevvy of Galaxy Note 8 leaks have appeared overnight, the first Tekz24 which claims to have got its hands on a live image of a 'Coral Blue' version of the handset (above). Poyoco is back with a second leak and claims to have caught wind of the Note 8's hardware specs, which include a dual-lens camera, 6GB RAM, Android 7.1 and improved S-Pen support. There's no talk of an in-display fingerprint scanner, and News1 has reportedly heard from Samsung that this feature won't be coming due to \"technical limitations\".\n7/6/17: Based on new leaked renders, courtesy of Poyoco Tech, the Galaxy Note 8 looks set to arrive packing a Galaxy S8-style Infinity display, a vertically-aligned dual-lens camera (much like that expected to appear on the iPhone 8) and a screen-embedded fingerprint scanner.\n2/6/17: A report from Dutch website GalaxyClub.nl has some more info on the Galaxy Note 8. It claims that the handset will arrive running the latest version of Android, 7.1.1, and that it will feature the same 18.5:9 ratio and Infinity Display tech as the Galaxy S8 and S8+. The report, according to Google Translate, also says that \"a home button will not be the party\", whatever that might mean.\n25/5/17: An alleged Galaxy Note 8 front panel (below) has surfaced online, confirming that the smartphone will feature a Galaxy S8-style 'bezel-less' display likely with an 18.5:9 ratio. The leak also confirms, perhaps unsurprisingly, that the handset will be made available in black.\n22/5/17:A Galaxy Note 8 dummy model has leaked on video courtesy of TechNavi. It shows an early concept for the Galaxy Note 8 design, and with no fingerprint scanner on its front of rear, hints that it could be the first Samsung smartphone to offer an under-screen sensor. The clip, which has since been pulled, also shows dual-camera setup on back of the Galaxy Note 8, with what looks like a dual LED flash underneath.\n15/5/16: A leak via Weibo has 'confirmed' that the Galaxy Note 8 will pack a 6.3in screen, making it the biggest phone in Samsung's Note range so far. This screen will come with support for Samsung's S Pen stylus, and will adopt the same 18.5:9 aspect ratio as the Galaxy S8 and S8+\n27/4/16: Samsung has confirmed that it would launch a second flagship during the second half of the year, no doubt a nod to the Galaxy Note 8.\n4/1/16: A loose-lipped insider has revealed that the Galaxy Note 8 will be released \"later this year,\" with another letting slip that it will be the first Samsung smartphone to feature a 4K resolution display.\n24/10/16: Samsung has confirmed the existence of the Galaxy Note 8, promising that Note 7 users in Korea will have the chance to bag themselves a half-price Galaxy S8 or Note 8. This offer The deal applies to those who trade-in their Galaxy Note 7 for a Galaxy S7 or S7 Edge as part of Samsung's Galaxy Upgrade Program, which will also offer customers fast track service for after-sales and 50 percent off display repairs. µ", "Some reports indicate Samsung will hold an event in New York on March 29 to unveil its flagship Galaxy S8 smartphone. (Image source: Samsung Display Video) Some reports indicate Samsung will hold an event in New York on March 29 to unveil its flagship Galaxy S8 smartphone. (Image source: Samsung Display Video)\nSamsung will announce the launch date of its upcoming flagship smartphone Galaxy S8 at annual Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona on February 27. The Korean Economic Daily quoted Kim Dong-jin, chief executive of Samsung’s wireless business, who told the site that official schedule for the Galaxy S8 will be announced at MWC.\nSamsung has already confirmed it will not launch the S8 at MWC. Some reports indicate the company will hold an event in New York on March 29 to unveil its next generation smartphone. We’ll have to wait for an official confirmation on S8’s release date. Samsung is preparing to announce its Galaxy Tab S3 tablet at MWC, and the device is said to ship with company’s S Pen.\nWatch all our videos from Express Technology\nSamsung’s next generation flagship smartphone is a crucial device for the company and highly anticipated, especially after the Galaxy Note 7 fiasco cost a fortune to the company. The Korean smartphone giant wants to win back the trust of its users by offering them a premium flagship device. The company has confirmed it will not kill off its Note series, and we could hear more about its Note 8 smartphone as well in the coming days\nThe latest rumours around the Galaxy S8 suggest it will launch in two display variants – 5.8-inch and 6.2-inch – and the bigger version will be called Galaxy S8+. The logo of the S8’s large sized version, was earlier leaked by tipster Evan Blass on Twitter and it suggests both the variants will have curved displays. Samsung will also announce its new digital voice-assistant ‘Bixby’ which will understand up to 7-8 languages.\nRead: Samsung Galaxy S8 to launch in two version with 5.8-inch, 6.2-inch display\nIn terms of design, the S8 series will feature bezel-less display and no home button. The fingerprint scanner is said be placed at the back cover, with camera lens and flash. There could be a dedicated button to launch ‘Bixby’ on the Galaxy S8 as well. Samsung Galaxy S8 is rumoured to pack the same 12MP rear camera with Dual Pixel technology that we saw on company’s previous device.\nAccording to a report in The Investor, Galaxy S8 will have a 3,000 mAh battery, while the 6.2-inch version will be backed by a 3,500 mAh battery. The smartphone will be powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor (in some markets), while being powered by its own Exynos SoC in others. With the Galaxy S8 series, Samsung is expected to announce a 6GB RAM variant with 64GB or 128GB internal storage option.\n© The Indian Express Online Media Pvt Ltd", "We have been hearing a number of rumors centering the Galaxy Note 8 over the past few months. While some leaks give us an idea about its design, others reveal the features and specifications of the phablet.\nHowever, now we have come to know the codename for the device. According to a tweet posted by the renowned tipster Evan Blass, instead of \"Great\", the Galaxy Note 8 is codenamed as \"Samsung Gr3at\". Unfortunately, he hasn't given any explanations on why is it called as such. Well, in simple words, the device will be great due to its powerful features and specifications.\nGoing by the information we have obtained so far, the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 is tipped to feature a 6.3-inch edge-to-edge Infinity Display with the aspect ratio of 18.5:9 just like the Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus.\nApparently the codename for the Galaxy Note8 is not \"Great\" but...wait for it...\"Samsung Gr3at.\" — Evan Blass (@evleaks) June 15, 2017\nUnder the hood, it will most probably employ the Snapdragon 836, which is rumored to feature a 2.5 GHz octa-core processor with GPU working at 740 Mhz. Other than that, the phablet will arrive with rear dual cameras and Android 7.1.1 Nougat right out of the box.\nHowever, the fingerprint scanner placement still remains a confusing affair. Some leaks had suggested that the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 will feature a fingerprint sensor embedded into the display. Contradicting that, a Samsung official has reportedly said that the company is yet to figure out a way to do so. So, the Galaxy Note 8 will most probably come with a rear mounted biometric reader.\nConsidering the usual launch pattern of Samsung, the Galaxy Note lineup of devices get unveiled at the IFA in late August or early September. The IFA 2017 is slated to start on September 1, so it is likely that the Galaxy Note 8 will be unleashed a day or two before the expo.", "There's not second thought that Samsung Galaxy S8 is perhaps the most-awaited smartphone on this year. However, looks like the Samsung lovers have to wait a while, as Samsung confirms not to unveil the flagship at the MWC event 2017.\nThe South Korean techie, as rumor suggest will be announcing both the flagships - Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus on March 29. Further reports show that the flagship devices will be up for sale only by late April after the latest Snapdragon 835 processor is released.\nTalking about the sale of the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus, looks like Samsung surely has really high hopes after the Note 7 debacle.\nSEE ALSO: Samsung Galaxy S8 fresh renders highlights no physical home button and more\nFresh reports show that the South Korean giant may double the first shipment of the Galaxy S8 as compared to the previously announce Galaxy S7 series. Which means that the smartphone vendor has further claimed to increase 40 percent shipment.\nBy increasing the sale, other reports show that Samsung has a sales target of 60 million units for the Galaxy S8. To recall, for the Galaxy S7 and S6 the sales target was around 48 million and 45 million respectively.\nAbout the specs, there have been several rumors about the Samsung flagship surfacing the webosphere for quite some time now. However, the South Korean tech giant hasn't confirmed any of it for now.\nFor further updates on the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus, stay tuned to GizBot.\nSource", "Samsung fans are eagerly awaiting the release of the company's flagship smartphones - Galaxy S8 and S8+ in India tomorrow. With just a day left for the launch of these phones, Flipkart has put up a teaser for these phones confirming that the Galaxy S8 duo will be available on the site.\nThere is no mention if the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ will be exclusive to Flipkart. Eventually, the smartphones might be listed on the other e-commerce websites such as Amazon as well. Besides the online retailers, the Samsung offline stores across the country will also sell these flagship smartphones. The pricing and availability details of the Galaxy S8 and S8+ will be revealed tomorrow at the launch event.\nAlso Read: Samsung India now sends out Galaxy S8 and S8+ press invites\nSamsung is believed to release these smartphones in three color options such as Maple Gold, Coral Blue, and Midnight Black in the country. Both the smartphones have almost similar specifications except for the battery capacity and display size. As the Snapdragon 835 variant of the Samsung flagships is meant only for the U.S. market, these phones will be released in India with the Exynos 8895 SoC.\nAlso Read: Top 5 features you should know about the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus\nTo refresh on the specifications, the Galaxy S8 is given a 5.8-inch QHD 1440p Super AMOLED display whereas the Plus variant sports a 6.2-inch QHD 1440p Super AMOLED display. Both the displays have the Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection on top. The Exynos SoC is paired with 4GB RAM and 64GB default memory capacity that can be expanded up to 256GB via a microSD card. Notably, there will be hybrid dual SIM support in these smartphones.\nThe Galaxy S8 and S8+ will bestow a 12MP Dual Pixel main snapper with OIS and f/1.7 aperture. Up front, there is an 8MP front-facing camera on board these phones. The connectivity features include 4G LTE, Bluetooth 5.0, USB Type-C port, and NFC. There is also support for Samsung Pay, an iris scanner, facial recognition, and a fingerprint sensor as well. The battery capacity of the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ is 3000mAh and 3500mAh respectively.", "Samsung is rumoured to announce the successors to its Galaxy S7 and S7 edge smartphones in the next couple of months in the form of the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus. At least that's what the rumours suggest they will be called.\nThis feature rounds up all the leaks relating to the larger of the two flagship devices, the Galaxy S8 Plus. You can read our separate feature on the Galaxy S8 if you want to know what is expected for the smaller smartphone, but for everything we know so far about the S8 Plus, keep reading.\n29 March launch expected\nReportedly on sale from mid-April\nS8 Plus rumoured to cost around €900\nThe next Galaxy S flagship smartphones should launch at Mobile World Congress 2017 if previous launch patterns were to be followed. The show was suggested by Ricciolo on Twitter and Phone Arena but its now confirmed this won't be the case, with Barcelona expected to offer the platform for the Tab S3 tablet instead.\nInstead, Samsung is claimed to be heading for New York City for the launch of its next Galaxy S devices. Several dates have been thrown around, including two reports claiming 29 March, with a couple of others suggesting 15 April and 18 April. It has been claimed the official launch date will be revealed at MWC.\nVentureBeat has said the S8 Plus will cost €899 in Europe and go on sale on 21 April.\nCurved design rumoured\nNo home button and minimal bezels rumoured\nSimilar dimensions to S7 edge rumoured, despite screen increase\nRumours claim that instead of releasing two devices, one with a flat bezel, the other curved, Samsung will break from tradition and stick with just the latter this time around, hence the name S8 Plus rather than S8 edge. After all, with two curved devices, there would be no need to differentiate one as \"edge\". A leak of front panels suggested two curved handsets and SamMobile, the Guardian, The Bell and VentureBeat have all supported the idea too.\nLike the Galaxy S8, it has also been reported that a dedicated side-mounted button which will launch Viv, the personal assistant developed by Siri founder Dag Kittlaus, will make its way onto the S8 devices. VentureBeat has also suggested this button will appear and official cases have leaked with what looks like a cutout for this button.\nThe physical home button is also reported to be saying goodbye for the new S8 devices, suggesting an \"all-screen front\". A number of renders have been created by Veniamin Geskin and shared on Twitter, showing what the S8 might look like based on recent rumours and the device pictured in the renders has no physical home button. It is thought the Plus will share the same design, but in a larger format.\nThese renders were then followed by a leak on Weibo showing a physical device claimed to be a gold S8 and almost an exact match to the renders, as well as a number of case leaks which have been followed by further renders from SamMobile. The Guardian report claims the new S8 devices won't even have a logo on the front however, with all the space used for a nearly bezel-less infinity display, which is something the VentureBeat report and image leak supports, as well as another Weibo leak.\nBased on the Guardian and VentureBeat reports, the fingerprint sensor has been moved to the rear of the new S8 devices and the iris scanner from the Note 7 will also be on board. A report from CNET Korea also claims the fingerprint sensor will be situated on the rear, to the right of the camera lens, which is something the official case leak also appears to confirm. The CNET report also claimed a Samsung official said the screen will have \"soft keys\" within it for navigating.\nTwo videos posted on Samsung Display's Korean YouTube channel further supported the idea of an all-screen device with slim bezels, as do the front panels leaked more recently.\nDespite the increase in screen size reported, the S8 Plus is rumoured to have similar dimensions to the S7 edge, suggesting a good screen-to-body ratio. This has also been supported by the Guardian report and a tweet from David Ruddock, who said the aspect ratio of the new flagships mean the S8 and S8 Plus will be \"no wider at all than the S7 and S7 edge. Exact match\".\nThe CNET Korea report suggests the screen dimensions of the S8 Plus will be 143.05mm diagonally, 131.58mm tall and 64.94mm wide but it doesn't provide the dimensions of the device itself.\nSize increase rumoured\nScreen-to-body ratio expected to improve\nResolution could to remain the same but technology improve\nThe Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus has been rumoured to increase its display size compared to their predecessor. Most reports have claimed the S8 Plus will have a 6.2-inch screen, which is quite a bit larger than the 5.5-inch screen of the S7 edge it is set to replace.\nDue to the size increase but not footprint increase, the screen-to-body ratio is also expected to improve. A Samsung Display spokesperson was quoted saying the company would roll out a full screen display with a ratio of more than 90 per cent this year, though it is not clear if this will be on the S8 devices. The Guardian has said both devices will offer an infinity edge-to-edge display though so a high screen-to-body ratio is definitely on the cards.\nA Bloomberg report also supports this idea, with its claim of an all-screen front, as we briefly mentioned earlier. The report claims the display will be wraparound and there will be a virtual home button buried into the lower section of the glass, which is something the VentureBeat report also suggests.\nIt doesn't look like resolution will increase though, despite 5.5-inch 4K AMOLED and 5.2-inch 4096 x 2160 pixel resolution both rumoured originally for the smaller S8. The S8 Plus has not had any specific rumours detailed for its resolution but it is thought Samsung will stick with a Quad HD Super AMOLED display like the S7 edge. The S8 is reported to be coming with improvements for VR so no doubt the S8 Plus will also offer this.\nNew 1/2.3-inch sensor with f/1.4 aperture rumoured\n8MP front camera rumoured with iris scanner\n12MP rear sensor with visual search feature suggested\nThere has been a rumour to suggest the company is working on a new 1/2.3-inch sensor that will be combined with a f/1.4 aperture. This would deliver even better low-light capabilities than the current flagships but whether it will appear on the S8 or S8 Plus is unclear yet. The rumours also claim Samsung's goal is to deliver a 1/1.7-inch sensor eventually, suggesting it has no intention of stopping improvements in the camera department.\nThere have been several other rumours surrounding the Galaxy S8's camera and although none have been confirmed, it is likely the S8 Plus will have the same like the S7 and S7 edge did. A dual rear camera has been reported with two different sensors - one at 12-megapixels, one at 13-megapixels, while the same tipster also claimed the front camera will be 8-megapixels, which ET News has also suggested.\nContradicting these rumours however, is another leak from a different source claiming the Galaxy S8 will have a 30-megapixel rear camera with optical image stabilisation, coupled with a 9-megapixel front-facing snapper. There has also been a claim that the S8 will have the same Duo Pixel camera of the S7 and S7 edge, which is something that the VentureBeat report also suggests.\nAccording to VentureBeat, the rear camera will be 12-megapixels with an f/1.7 aperture and a new visual search feature, while the front camera will have an 8-megapixel sensor, also with an f/1.7 aperture. The site also claimed the front camera will have iris scanning capabilities. ET News has also reported that the front-facing snapper of the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus could have auto-focus rather than fixed.\nQualcomm SD835 chip rumoured with 4GB or 6GB RAM\nUSB Type-C and 3.5mm headphone jack\n3500mAh suggested\nThe Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus are not only likely to share the same design and features, but they are also likely to share the same hardware, except battery capacity. Ice Universe claims we will see 8GB of RAM, while another leak says can expect a 3.2GHz octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chip, supported by 6GB of RAM. A Phone Arena leak lists two processors - Exynos 8895 chip and the Snapdragon 835 - and 6GB and 8GB of RAM, suggesting there could be different versions for different regions again and it has also been claimed the new Samsung flagships will be the first device to receive the SD835 chip.\nVentureBeat supports the idea of two processors, but it claims the S8 and therefore presumably the S8 Plus will stick with 4GB of RAM with internal storage options starting from 64GB with microSD support. The site also says the S8 Plus will have a 3500mAh capacity which is the same as what a report from News1 Korea also claims.\nIn other reports, SamMobile has reported there will be a USB Type-C port on board for charging and audio and it's also been claimed the 3.5mm headphone jack will be ditched, like the iPhone 7, though the latter point has been contradicted by the Guardian and VentureBeat, as well as many of the more recent image leaks.\nThat said, SamMobile leaked some Samsung-made in-ear wireless earbuds like Apple's AirPods, supporting the removal of the headphone jack. A report from Fone Arena also adds fuel to this fire, claiming the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus will offer dual speakers and they may be Harman branded, though the VentureBeat image leak and the Weibo leak suggests dual-speakers won't be the case.\nSamsung acquired Harman in November 2016 so the claim of Harman branded speakers, even if not dual, is a reasonable one, especially as both LG, HTC and Apple have made moves in audio in their recent handsets so it's an obvious area for Samsung to focus on to keep in line with competition.\nViv personal assistant confirmed\nAndroid Nougat base software expected\nCould connect to monitor for desktop view of Android\nSamsung's Galaxy S7 and S7 edge both feature Android 6.0 Marshmallow, overlaid with the TouchWiz software. There are some handy features with TouchWiz, but we would still like to see some more refinement for the new Galaxy S smartphones.\nAs we mentioned earlier, we can expect to see Viv on the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus. Details are thin on the ground as to what Viv will be able to do, other than provide answers and actions, but it has been confirmed by Samsung that it will appear on the new flagships.\nSam Mobile has said the Bixby voice assistant, powered by Viv, will feature in all native apps on the S8 and S8 Plus. In other software news, the site also claimed the S8 and S8 Plus would have an always-visible status bar and it has also been claimed that the handsets will be able to connect to a monitor for a desktop view of Android.\nWe still have a couple of months of waiting before we know what the S8 Plus will officially feature, but based on the amount of image leaks and rumours, it looks like there will be a change up in design, more improvements in camera capabilities and software refinements. A more powerful processor and more RAM are also likely.\nWe will update this feature as new rumours appear, as well as when the official specs are announced so keep checking back.", "Thanks to the incendiary Note 7 battery issues, Samsung delayed the production schedule of the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus to ensure that the correct lessons were learned from the burning phablet. That has pushed the launch date further back into 2017 - but nobody seems to have told the leakers. The volume of information coming out threatens to overwhelm the Galaxy S8's media strategy with too much information arriving too early in its personal hype cycle.\nOf course the pace and content of these leaks would be just about fine if the Galaxy S8 portfolio was going to be revealed at this month's Mobile World Congress. While no manufacturer wants to have a device spoiled and leaked, the modern marketing schedule is built around the reality of the information industry. With twelve days to go until MWC the appearance of full renders and images of a smartphone, along with detailed specifications, should not be a surprise.\nUnfortunately Samsung has already announced that it will not be launching the Galaxy S8 or the Galaxy S8 Plus in Barcelona - a short teaser trailer at the end of the press conference is not enough. Instead the indications are that Samsung is looking at late March for the official reveal (with March 29th suggested by many).\nThat's five weeks after MWC. That's five more weeks where the hype cycle will continue to be fed. That's five more weeks of everyone seeing more secrets about the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus being spilled. That's five more weeks to try to keep secret any 'one more thing' moments from the presentation. That's five more weeks of teasing and preening and speculation while the competition will be storming out of MWC. That's five more weeks where the competition can get their handset on sale while the Galaxy S8 remains as 'speculative'.\nThere's a solid argument for going long with the announcement of the S8 and having it as close to the retail release as possible, but that only holds up if the announcement and first reveal is a genuine reveal. As it stands Samsung is allowing the internet to announce the Galaxy S8 and control the flow of information. Unless there has been a monumental distraction, everyone is gong to know everything about the Galaxy S8 and will have decided if they are going to buy it or not long before Samsung removes the covers from 2017's flagship.\nFollow me on Facebook. Find more of my work at ewanspence.co.uk, on Twitter, and Linked In. You should subscribe to my weekly newsletter of 'Trivial Posts'.", "Most users are asking why Samsung made Bixby for the Galaxy S8 even though Google Assistant is usable for the device.\n(Photo : Unbox Therapy/YouTube screenshot)\nThe Samsung Galaxy S8 is one of the hottest topics in the tech world today. This is because of its impressive specs, especially its iris scanning feature that tightens the device's security even more. Users are also impressed with its new \"Bixby\" smart assistant. Some users claim that Bixby is even better compared to Apple's Siri.\nThe Samsung Galaxy S8 is pretty expensive. The device is listed at the official Samsung Store for $750. For those people who cannot afford, Android Authority is giving a Samsung Galaxy S8 giveaway internationally. For those who want to avail it, all they need to do is to log-in through the official website and download the official Android application.\nAccording to Business Insider, the Samsung Galaxy S8 launch is a \"make-or-break moment\" for the Korean company. Samsung could not afford to screw things up after what happened to its previous Galaxy Note 7 issue. The Note 7 matter wiped about $17 billion of the company's value last year.\nReport claims that Samsung's Galaxy S8 will be available worldwide on April 21. Fans just hope that the flagship smartphone would not have any problems in the near future. But early impressions of Samsung Galaxy S8 have been amazing.\nA lot of tech enthusiasts are also impressed with Samsung Galaxy S8's curved screen that takes up almost the entire front display of the phone. Samsung calls its screen as the Infinity Display. The device is also made of glass and metal that comes with a slim body that feels really great in the hand or pocket.\nHowever, the company's decision to create Bixby for the Galaxy S8 is not making any sense, since the phone will also feature the Google Assistant. It is one of the commonly used voice assistants for Android. For now, Samsung's Galaxy S8 is the early favorite for the best phone of 2017. But enthusiasts just wait until other companies launch their flagship phones, especially Apple's iPhone 8.", "Get daily updates directly to your inbox + Subscribe Thank you for subscribing! Could not subscribe, try again later Invalid Email\nSamsung's Galaxy S8 smartphone seems all-but-confirmed and could launch in as little as three months early next year.\nAs is common with tech manufacturers now, when the S8 does arrive it will likely do so in two different sizes. Early indicators suggest that we'll see a 5.1-inch and a 5.5-inch model.\nWhat's not clear is whether or not Samsung will introduce an 'edge' version of the new phone with a curved screen. It has taken this approach with both the S7 and the S6 in the last two years.\n(Photo: Samsung)\nThe South Korean company is also only starting to recover from the disastrous global recall and cancellation of the Galaxy Note 7 smartphone. It's launching its first product, the Gear S3 smartwatch, in the UK later this month.\nAnd then there's the small matter of Apple's iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus that are currently proving a hit with fans, despite the controversial decision to remove the headphone jack.\nAlthough it's unlikely that we'll see the next Samsung Galaxy phone on our shelves before March 2017, there are already plenty of leaks about the gadget showing up online.\n(Photo: Samsung)\nWhilst Apple appears to refine and strip down its phones, Samsung appears to be going the other way. If the current crop of internet rumours are to be believed, the company will be throwing everything it has into its next blower.\nSo, what do we know so far? We've collected all the latest whisperings right here and will continue to update this piece as we learn more.\nLatest news\nAmid rumours that Samsung is planning to follow Apple's lead and remove the headphone jack on the Galaxy S8, some sources are now claiming that Samsung will launch a pair of lightweight bluetooth earbuds – similar in design and functionality to Apple's AirPods.\nSamsung already offers a pair of wireless earbuds, called the Gear IconX, which track your physical activity, have enough internal storage for around 1,000 music tracks and include a small touchpad to control music playback.\nHowever, SamMobile reports that the South Korean company will launch a new pair of wireless earbuds alongside the Galaxy S8 in 2017, citing sources with knowledge of Samsung's product roadmap.\nThe new earphones could integrate with Samsung's new voice assistant, Viv, allowing users to dictate messages, request songs, make phone calls and ask for directions - just like users of Apple's AirPods can with Siri.\nRelease date\nWe might not know anything concrete about the Galaxy S8 release date for months yet, but thankfully it's a relatively easy thing to predict.\n(Photo: PA)\nSamsung's Galaxy phones have (since the S2 in 2011) been announced at or around the time of the Mobile World Congress (MWC) event in Barcelona. It happens each year in late February or early March. This lets Samsung have its phones on the shelves by the end of March or, more likely, early April.\nIt appears the Samsung Galaxy S8 will be no different. According to Phone Arena, Samsung has released a teaser image of its annual \"Unpacked\" event.\nAlthough there's no specific mention of the new phone, Samsung has given a date: February 26, 2017.\nThe image was first revealed on Twitter by user Ricciolo - a reliable source of Samsung leaks.\nLast year's event saw a surprise appearance from Mark Zuckerberg as well as the unveiling of the Samsung Galaxy S7.\nPrice\nAs with Apple's iPhones, the Samsung Galaxy handsets have more or less plateaued when it comes to price. The current 32GB S7 comes in at £569 whilst the slightly larger S7 edge is £639. It's unlikely that Samsung's new phones will deviate too far from this kind of pricing. So you better start saving.\nWhat could change things is if Samsung decides to offer multiple storage options. At the moment you can only get the S7 with 32GB of storage. If Samsung opts to increase this to 64GB or even 128GB the price could increase also.\nHowever, the company could also keep the storage space as it is and instead include the capacity of the microSD card slot.\nDesign\nPerhaps in an effort to rescue something from the doomed Galaxy 7 Note, Samsung could be planning to put an edge-to-edge display in the new S8.\nThat's the message coming from tech site Droid-Life, which claims the new S8 will come in two sizes and won't feature any bezels. Samsung will release a 5.7-inch model and a whopping 6.2-inch model - which makes it practically a tablet in our eyes.\n(Photo: Getty)\nWhat's more, the site is claiming Samsung will ditch the home button - something that has always been a feature of Galaxy phones.\n\"With the removal of the home button, it should be expected that we might see on-screen buttons, instead of Samsung’s long-standing capacitive keys,\" claims the site.\nSamsung is also reportedly planning to put a pair of stereo speakers on the forthcoming Galaxy S8 flagship phone - something Apple did with the iPhone 7.\nThe news comes from gadget site Fone Arena, which alleges that the new blower might also sport branding from audio company HARMAN.\n\"According to our sources this dual speaker technology will have a branding, like the HTC’s Boomsound,\" wrote the site. \"It could also come with HARMAN branding, and powered by technology from HARMAN that it recently agreed to acquire for about $8.0 billion.\"\nSpecs\nAside from the aforementioned 4K screen, there are a few rumours circulating about what kind of power the S8 may have under the bonnet.\nSamsung's cameras have been exceptionally good recently, but the proliferation of dual-lens snappers from the likes of Apple, Huawei and LG may inspire it to follow suit. According to tech site Trusted Reviews , Samsung is indeed planning to include dual-lens cameras in its next phone.\n(Photo: MEN)\nA recent leak, reported on by the gadget site Pocket Lint , seems to have a clear picture of the S8's specs. It says the new phone will pack in 6GB of RAM and a 30-megapixel camera.\nThere will also be a 4,200mAh battery which - providing it doesn't explode - should easily see the phone through 24 hours of solid usage.\nA report on Samsung-watching site SamMobile hit on the fact that the S8 may include an Exynos 8895 processor coupled with a Mali-G71 GPU. According to the site, that means the new phone will be up to 1.8 times more powerful than the already-impressive Galaxy S7.\nWhat's more, SamMobile echoes other sites that suggest the S8 will have a 5.2-inch 4K-capable display. The reason? Samsung's pushing heavily into virtual reality and having a powerful screen resolution means you can use the phone in VR headsets like the Samsung Galaxy Gear and Google Daydream VR.\nNo headphone jack\nIt's being rumoured that Samsung will follow Apple's lead and ditch the 3.5mm headphone jack on the Samsung Galaxy S8.\nIf true, it would force users to adopt wireless headphones or, potentially, use a USB Type-C compatible pair, if that's what the new handset uses for charging.\nThe latter is what Samsung fan site SamMobile believes will be the case when the Galaxy S8 is unveiled at Mobile World Congress in 2017.\nGalaxy S8 leaks suggest Samsung is planning to copy one of the iPhone 7's best features\n(Photo: REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji)\nBy ditching the port, the company could make the phone sturdier and likely improve waterproofing while keeping the casing slim. But it's also likely to irk a huge number of people who rely on the old-fashioned analogue connection.\nApple wasn't the first major manufacturer to remove the headphone jack, but the decision caused the biggest stir when the iPhone 7 was unveiled. Third-party manufacturers have raced to offer wireless headphones and phone cases to resolve the issue.\nVideo Loading Video Unavailable Click to play Tap to play The video will start in 8 Cancel Play now Watch this video again Video will play in Share this video Watch Next", "The Samsung Galaxy S8 doesn't launch around the world until Friday, but some in South Korea are already finding issue with it.\nSome customers in the country who preordered the phone received their units early. Reports surfaced on social media soon after saying the display on some S8s had an odd, red tint.\nSamsung has reacted to the matter, with a spokesman telling South Korean media the tint isn't a quality issue and that it can be fixed in the phone's settings menu, reports ZDNet.\nThe S8 does have a blue-light filter, which could potentially be responsible for the extra colour.\nPictures of the S8 and S8+ phones with reddish displays have been posted to Instagram, as well as South Korean tech forums like Ruliweb and Ppomppu, where customers are claiming they can't fix the issue in settings.\nSamsung was contacted for comment.\nThe extent of the issue is not yet known, but it could be a bad look for Samsung with the company already under the microscope following last year's Galaxy Note 7 fiasco. After several Note 7's around the world started overheating and catching fire, the electronics giant was forced to recall millions of units.\nIt also comes as Samsung Electronics' de facto head, Jay Y. Park, stands trial in a political corruption scandal, where he's accused of bribing the suspended South Korean president, Park Geun-hye.\nThe phone will no doubt sell millions of units upon its release, with it being even more preordered than last year's S7 and S7 Edge.", "We’re just a week away from the official reveal, and possible start of sales, for the Galaxy Note 8. Ahead of the event, Samsung has been teasing the phone in pictures and videos, and today, we’re getting a new ad designed to hype up the phone’s arrival.\nThe best gifts for Android users\nIn this latest video, Samsung teases how the Note 8 is going to “do bigger things,” obviously a call out to the huge screen that have marked the Note lineup for years. Throughout the teaser, the Note’s S-Pen crosses out one word for another to beat it out, all leading up to the phone’s frame popping up on screen with the hashtag #DoWhatYouCant, something we’ve seen with the Galaxy S8 thanks to Samsung’s partnership with Casey Neistat.\nWhile the teaser doesn’t give us too much new information about the phone itself, it certainly gets the job done in keeping the excitement alive. Obviously, a central part of the ad is Samsung’s infamous S-Pen, set once again to be a big selling point of the Note 8. We don’t know if Samsung is teasing any upgrades for the S-Pen here, but the blue color could be hinting at the rumored “Deep Blue” color variant that was previously reported on.\nSamsung is set to debut the Galaxy Note 8 on August 23rd at an event in New York City. The phone is expected to bring the same “Infinity Display” from the Galaxy S8 and Snapdragon 835, but bring upgrades to the RAM and camera system.", "The Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus are already out in the market. Dozens to hundreds and probably thousands of pre-orders for this year’s premium flagship by the South Korean tech giant have already shipped. We can expect more stress tests and comprehensive reviews and analysis to be published in the coming weeks. We’re hopeful about the Galaxy S8 duo mainly because the company has improved its quality assurance and standard protocols to ensure battery safety. We’re crossing our fingers that there will be no more overheating or explosion complaints to be reported.\nSo far, so good. Many people are happy with the phone but of course, there are still those that can’t be pleased. Meanwhile, Samsung is remaining positive that they will hit one million pre-orders in South Korea. Some lucky S8 buyers who purchased directly from the brand have also received a free Amplifier Dock. In the coming days, expect Samsung Premium Care to bring in-person support.\nMuch has been said about this year’s flagship duo but we have yet to release our own review. Before it’s published, it will be interesting to look back at those times we were only speculating.\nRecently popped up on Weibo is this old Galaxy S8 prototype with dual camera and on-screen fingerprint feature. This somehow confirms the S8 prototype that appeared to have a dual camera setup. The image looks a lot like the earlier prototype we’ve seen so it’s believable.\nVIA: Weibo", "A couple of weeks ago, we gladly shared with you a list of all the Android 8.0 Oreo updates available we know so far. We know it’s not complete but it doesn’t matter now since more devices are being added to the list each day. The latest phones eligible for the cookie update include the Nokia 5 and 6, ASUS Zenfone 3, Nokia 2, Moto Z2 Play, and the ZTE Axon 7. For the Essential Phone and the Nokia 8, there’s the latest Android 8.1 beta.\nHuawei released a list of Honor phones to be upgraded to Android Oreo and now it’s Samsung’s turn to publish a list of the Galaxy phones that may receive Oreo. Actually, this isn’t an official announcement by the South Korean tech giant but a leaked Android Oreo beta firmware presents a framework-res file of the Note 8 Oreo beta. It’s still unreleased but there’s a list of XML files that contain internal code names of Samsung devices already out in the market. Nothing is final yet because there is a possibility Samsung is just doing an experiment.\nHere are the names of the Galaxy tablets that may receive Android Oreo in the near future:\n• Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 SM-T825 (gts3)\n• Samsung Galaxy Tab E 8.0 (gtesvelte)\n• Samsung Galaxy Tab A 8.0 SM-T355 (gt58lte), SM-T380/T385 2017 (gta2s)\n• Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1 SM-T580 (gtaxl)\n• Samsung Galaxy Tab Active 2 (gtactive2)\nList of Galaxy phones that may get the Oreo update:\n• Samsung Galaxy A3 2017 (a3y17)\n• Samsung Galaxy A5 2017 (a5y17)\n• Samsung Galaxy A7 2017 (a7y17)\n• Samsung Galaxy A8 2016 SM-A810 (a8xe), A8 2018 (a8lte), and A8+ 2018 (a8plte)\n• Samsung Galaxy A8+ 2018 (a8plte)\n• Samsung Galaxy J3 2017 (j3y17)\n• Samsung Galaxy J5 2017 (j5y17)\n• Samsung Galaxy J7 2017 (j7y17)\n• Samsung Galaxy J7+ (jadelte), J7 Duos 2017 (j7duo), J7 Max (j7max), J7 Neo (j7velte), and J7 Prime (j7popelte)\n• Samsung Galaxy Note FE (gracer), Galaxy Note 8 (great)\n• Samsung Galaxy S7 (hero) and S7 Edge (hero2)\n• Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge (hero2)\n• Samsung Galaxy S8 Active (cruiserlte), S8 (dream), and S8+ (dream2)\nOther Galaxy devices that may get Android 8.0 Oreo are the following: Samsung Galaxy C7 Pro, C9 Pro, J5 Pro, J7 Pro, and Galaxy S7 Active.\nVIA: XDA Developers", "Earlier this month, T-Mobile started working on Android Oreo for LG flagship phones. This time around, it’s the Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8+’s turn to receive the cookie update after months of anticipation. The new Android update is ready for S8 and S8+ owners on T-Mobile. We knew it’s happening soon so it’s here. If you own last year’s premium flagship phone, be glad to know you can now enjoy the Oreo dessert. Android 8.0 Oreo update is rolling out to most devices. The version comes with Samsung Experience 9.0 as expected.\nSamsung Experience 9.0 will bring changes to their emojis. Some other new features include the following: due date options on email, Samsung DeX with wider apps screen, Shortcut to the cloud, Bixby briefing, easier keyboard settings, Dual Messenger (two accounts on one phone), Color Lens, and faster and smarter search results.\nMake sure you have at least 1549MB free storage on either the S8 or S8+. You should see the version G950USQU2CRB9 OTA arriving anytime soon. It is highly recommended you connect to WiFi.\nSome of the important changes Oreo will bring include Edge screen enhancements, high contrast keyboard options, new clock styles for the Always On Display and lock screen, picture-in-picture, notification dots, and autofill. This one already adds the February 1 Android security patch level.\nCheck your phone settings and update manually: Settings > Software update > Download updates manually\nVIA: TmoNews", "Samsung has already revealed its first two flagships this 2017 with the launch of the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+. Despite this, however, mobile enthusiasts are still anticipating the release of the South Korean tech giant’s larger, more powerful flagship phablet, the Galaxy Note 8. If recently-leaked images are any indication, it appears that Samsung is already closing in on the final design of the upcoming premium-grade device.\nRecently, Russian tech blogger Eldar Murtazin posted a couple of images that appeared to show a Galaxy S8+ prototype, according to a report from The Verge. Unlike the Galaxy S8+ production model that was unveiled to the market, however, the S8+ images showed a completely redesigned back panel for the massive smartphone, complete with a vertical dual-camera lens placed right above a heart rate sensor and flash. According to Murtazin, the image depicted one of the early prototypes of the Galaxy S8+, which was ultimately scrapped after Samsung encountered some issues with the mass-production of the device.\nТаким был S8+, таким стал Note 8 pic.twitter.com/Q1Fk8tfMpt — Eldar Murtazin (@eldarmurtazin) April 16, 2017\nOne thing that was notably missing from the leaked images of the supposed Galaxy S8+ prototype was a fingerprint sensor. The final iteration of the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ featured a fingerprint reader that is placed right beside the flagship smartphone’s camera. This awkward placement has so far been criticized by the mobile industry in general, with many stating that the sensor’s placement is the powerful devices’ one big design flaw. After all, critics have said that reaching the fingerprint sensor at the back of the device is downright uncomfortable for users of the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+.\nConsidering that the fingerprint sensor is absent in the leaked Galaxy S8+ image, it appears that Samsung was really looking into the idea of embedding the smartphone’s biometric sensor directly into its display. Rumors of integrated fingerprint reader in the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ have been abounding in the months leading up to the device’s launch, but reported production issues with the embedded sensor are speculated to have forced Samsung to abandon the feature, at least for now.\nWith this, the Russian tech blogger has stated that the abandoned Galaxy S8+ design would most likely be featured in a future Samsung flagship smartphone, most likely the upcoming Galaxy Note 8, according to a BGR report. Most rumors about the Galaxy Note 8 do agree with this particular idea, as the device is speculated to include features that were shown in the leaked images, such as a dual-camera system and an embedded biometric sensor. If these innovations do make it to the upcoming flagship phablet, Samsung would be able to market the Note 8 as an entirely different device from its 2017 S-series smartphones.\nAmazing Samsung Galaxy Note 8 concept design shows what the phablet's return could look like -… https://t.co/yNNUpfIjU3 #GalaxyNote8 #Note8 pic.twitter.com/XrXCnqNsvx — Galaxy Note 8 News (@Note8News) April 13, 2017\nThe Galaxy Note 8 is arguably one of the most important smartphones that the South Korean tech giant would ever release. Fresh off the fallout of the ill-fated Galaxy Note 7, the esteemed phablet brand is in great need of a formidable device that would rebuild its damaged reputation. With this in mind, there is very little doubt that Samsung would be sparing no expense when it comes to the specs and features of the Galaxy Note 8.\nRumors about the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 are abounding, and while none have been confirmed by the South Korean tech giant, speculations are high that the upcoming flagship phablet would be equipped with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 SoC, 6GB of RAM, 128GB of storage, a dual-camera system, an embedded fingerprint sensor and last but definitely not least, a 6.4-inch 4K Super AMOLED display. Improvements in the S-Pen, the Note series’ iconic stylus, are also expected, including a unique speaker system and a number of added functionalities.\nThe release date for the Galaxy Note 8 has not been revealed by the tech giant as of date, though speculations are high that the upcoming flagship device would see a reveal sometime around August 2017. Pricing for the Note 8 remains unknown, though rumors are high that the enterprise-grade phablet would command a premium price.\n[Featured Image by Lee Jin-man/AP Images]", "A new report from South Korea claims that Samsung Galaxy S8 pre-orders have the hit 1-million unit milestone. The Investor reports that Samsung's Galaxy S8 exceeded the 1-million mark in the last 10 days, as pre-orders for the phone started from April 7 in South Korea.\nIt adds that 1 million pre-orders is the highest ever for a new smartphone in the country citing industry data collected from local telecom carriers. The phone is set to launch on April 21 in the country.\nThe report further says that the company has set a sales target of over 60 million units for the Samsung Galaxy S8 which is more than what was expected for the Galaxy S7 (52 million).\nThe 1 million pre-orders numbers aren't surprising as an earlier report claimed Galaxy S8 pre-orders surpassing 720,000 units in seven days in South Korea. Another report had claimed that the Galaxy S8 pre-orders reached over 550,000 units in just two days.\nApart from South Korea, Samsung's Galaxy S8 will be going on sale in the United States and Canada from April 21.\nThe better than expected pre-order numbers must be relieving for the South Korean giant after the Galaxy Note 7 fiasco adversely affected the brand image of the company. Samsung is all set to launch the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ in India on Wednesday.\nIn terms of specifications, the Samsung Galaxy S8 features a 5.8-inch QHD+ (1440x2960 pixels) Super AMOLED display while the Galaxy S8+ sports a 6.2-inch QHD+ (1440x2960 pixels) Super AMOLED display. Both the smartphones sport 12-megapixel 'Dual Pixel' rear camera with optical image stabilisation and an f/1.7 aperture, while there is an 8-megapixel front camera with autofocus on board as well, featuring an f/1.7 aperture. Both the Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ pack 4GB of RAM and come with 64GB inbuilt storage while also supporting expandable storage via microSD card (up to 256GB). Both the smartphones will support wireless charging as well as fast charging. The Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ pack 3000mAh and 3500mAh batteries respectively.", "Samsung's Galaxy S8 is one of the most coveted smartphones of 2017 , enjoying huge popularity and success with users. But for many S8 users, the Samsung experience might be turning sour, as an increasingly large number of S8 owners are reporting problems with receiving text messages on the phone.\nAccording to these reports, text messages may be significantly delayed, or not even arrive at all. The user might see a text appear in the notification bar, but then it's nowhere to be found on the phone. The specific carrier does not appear to be a factor. Galaxy S8 users on Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Sprint all seem to be equally affected, with the Galaxy S8 device being the only common denominator.\nThe issue also doesn’t seem to be exclusive to any particular messaging app. Users are experiencing the same problems whether they use the default Samsung SMS app, Textra, or even Android Messages.\nOpinion by Nicholas Montegriffo The Galaxy S8 is a really popular, but overrated phone What do you think? 50 50 9 participants\nSo far, there doesn't appear to appear a sure solution to this issue. It's been suggested to turn off Advanced Messaging in the default messaging app, which might stop text messages from being delayed, but there's no guarantee that this would work.\nThe Galaxy S8 is a great phone in many ways, but this text messaging problem is just one of a host of issues that we've found with it. Hopefully Samsung will be able to step in with a solution soon. We'll keep you posted if we hear anything.\nThe Galaxy S8 is hugely popular, but there are good alternatives. Which do you prefer? Choose HTC U11 or Samsung Galaxy S8. close You picked undefined!\nWhat would your friends choose?\nshare VS 636 Votes Oops! Seems like something went wrong. Reloading might help.\n162 Votes Oops! Seems like something went wrong. Reloading might help.\nGalaxy S8 users, have your text messages been delayed or gone missing? Do you have any suggestions to help with this? Let us know in the comments!", "New Delhi: In what could be the first big smartphone launch of the year, South Korean giant Samsung is likely to launch the Galaxy S8 as early as in February.\nWhile rumours have been doing the round, it is yet to be confirmed about the launch of the Samsung Galaxy S8. However, with major mobile companies unveiling or launching a new handset at the Mobile World Congress every year in February-March, it is expected that Samsung will launch a new device and it could be the Galaxy S8.\nMoreover, if the Samsung Galaxy S8 be launched, the company is likely to do away with the 3.5mm audio jack and instead come up with a wireless Airpod similar to that of Apple iPhone 7.\nLaunch Date:\nIf at all, the Samsung Galaxy S8 is likely to be unveiled/launched during the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2017 which will be held from February 27 to March 2, 2017 in Barcelona.\nBesides the event launch dates organised by companies such as the Apple Event in September(s), Mobile World Congress is the world’s largest gathering for the mobile industry, organised by the GSMA and held in the Mobile World Capital Barcelona.\nAirpods:\nRumour has it that Samsung will do away with the 3.5-mm audio jack in the new Galaxy S8.\nCurrently, Samsung has the Gear IconX, the wireless Bluetooth earbuds, which is basically a music box but also tracks ones physical fitness.\nAccording to reports inSamMobile, the South Korean company will launch a new pair of wireless earbuds alongside the Galaxy S8 which is believe to be the new Airpods, in line with that of Apple Airpods.\nSpecs:\nAccording to various reports, the Samsung Galaxy S8 will come with a 4K screen, dual-lens cameras, 6GB of RAM and even a 30-megapixel camera.\nReports also suggest that the new Samsung Galaxy phone will come with a 4,200 mAh battery that would give a 24 hours life even on solid usage.\nSamMobile reports that the S8 may include an Exynos 8895 processor coupled with a Mali-G71 GPU. This means the new phone will be up to 1.8 times more powerful than the already-impressive Galaxy S7.\nPrice:\nPrice has always played an important role while new devices are launch as they determine a major on the success of the phone. So, considering that, the Samsung Galaxy S8 is likely to be priced almost the same at the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge.\nCurrently, the 32GB S7 comes in at £569 whilst the slightly larger S7 edge is £639. So, it is very likely that the new Samsung Galaxy S8 will be priced far from this, if not for 64GB and 128GB variant.", "It’s far too soon to call Samsung’s new Galaxy S9 a flop. After all, the S9 and S9+ were released just over one month ago, and there’s no telling how things will play out. That said, every early indication suggests that sales of the company’s new flagship Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ phones have been disappointing at best. Several reports citing supply chain sources have made claims that S9 sales have come in well below expectations so far, and our own trusted sources suggest that first-month sales figures were well below Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ sales during the same period. On top of all that, Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ prices have already been slashed at nearly every major wireless carrier in the United States. This is obviously a terrible sign, and even more so when you consider that Samsung and its carrier partners already had preorder deals in place and special discounted launch bundles.\nIt’s difficult to pinpoint exactly why Galaxy S9 sales have been so disappointing. The phones themselves are fantastic, as we made clear in our in-depth Galaxy S9 review. Some industry watchers believe that Samsung’s design is the problem. The new Galaxy S9 and S9+ look almost exactly like last year’s Galaxy S8 and S8+, so it’s possible that consumers don’t view them as worthwhile upgrades, especially since they’re so expensive. Whatever the case, Samsung is fortunate in that it has a thriving component business to help pick up the slack. Even still, all eyes will be on the Galaxy S10 and Galaxy S10+ next year as Samsung seeks to reassert its dominance in the high-end smartphone market. We still have a long wait before the S10 is unveiled, but a new video imagines what Samsung might be cooking up behind closed doors.\nWell-sources rumors ahead of Samsung’s Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ launch suggested that the company was working on a dramatic redesign for its 2018 flagship phones. For whatever reason, the company apparently decided to cancel or postpone its Galaxy S redesign, and instead opted to release new flagship phones that look just like its old flagship phones. That decision may end up costing Samsung dearly, but this is obviously just a speed bump for Samsung and not a brick wall.\nSamsung’s Galaxy S10 and Galaxy S10+ will be two of the most hotly anticipated smartphones of the year in 2019. It’s entirely possible that Samsung chose to push the big redesign it was working on back a year, and we’ll end up seeing it debut on the company’s new Galaxy S10 phones. Well, if the real Galaxy S10 ends up looking anything like the phone pictured in a new video posted to YouTube by Concept Creator, it will have been worth the wait.\nImage Source: Concept Creator\nConcept Creator envisions a new Galaxy S10 design that takes elements from Samsung’s current S8 and S9 design, but modernizes them. As you can see in the still capture above, the biggest change is the display. Samsung’s current Infinity screen design features curved sides and reasonably small bezels above and below the screen. This Galaxy S10 concept takes things even further by almost completely removing the bezels above and below the Super AMOLED display.\nThe other big change can be seen on the back of the phone, where there is no longer a fingerprint scanner beneath the dual-lens camera. Samsung is rumored to be working on including an under-display ultrasonic fingerprint sensor for its flagship phones, and the Galaxy S10 may indeed be one of the first Samsung handsets to ship with the nifty new tech.\nCheck out Concept Creator’s full Galaxy S10 video, which is embedded below.", "Samsung is dealing with another smartphone snafu with the rollout of a key feature on its upcoming new Galaxy S8 phones.\nBixby, the artificially intelligent assistant Samsung touted as one of the star features of the new devices, won't completely make its debut when customers get their hands on the phones on April 21.\nCustomers in the U.S. won't be getting the voice feature, which as any Alexa, Siri, Cortana, or Google aficionado knows is a key part of maximizing your experience with a virtual assistant.\nThe Samsung Galaxy S8 at the launch of the Samsung Unpacked event in New York on March 29, 2017. Andrew Gombert / EPA, file\nRelated: Will Samsung's Brand New Galaxy S8 Phone Make Us Forget the Note 7 Debacle?\n\"I think that what this underlines is the fact that Samsung is a hardware company and obviously it is trying hard to make this transition to software and services,\" Geoff Blaber, an analyst at CCS Insight, told NBC News.\nHowever, at launch, customers will be able to access features such as vision, which lets Bixby tell you about that landmark or item you're looking at, and home, which will give you smart reminders and other relevant information.\nA Samsung representative told NBC News that voice support for the English language should be rolled out \"later this spring.\"\nThe delay doesn't come as a complete surprise. At a briefing in San Francisco last month, NBC News was shown choreographed demos of Bixby's capabilities, but wasn't allowed to try out the feature.\nPlay Facebook\nTwitter\nEmbed Galaxy S8 smartphone debuts, but will America trust Samsung again? 2:05 autoplay autoplay Copy this code to your website or blog", "SEOUL, April 13 Pre-orders for tech giant Samsung Electronics Co Ltd's flagship Galaxy S8 smartphones have been better than expected so far, the South Korean firm's mobile business chief Koh Dong-jin said on Thursday.\nKoh also told reporters during a media event in Seoul the S8, which some analysts believe will set a new first-year sales record for Samsung and help the firm recover from the costly collapse of the fire-prone Galaxy Note 7, will be the safest smartphone to date for Samsung.\n(Reporting by Se Young Lee; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)", "We’ve always been curious about the Samsung Galaxy S9. We started discussing the phone series as early as July last year. After a few pages of rumors, speculations, and leaks, we were shown off the new Galaxy S9 and S9+ at an Unpacked event during the Mobile World Congress 2018 in Barcelona, Spain. That was over two weeks ago and we’ve already got our hands on both smartphone variants. We have yet to publish our comprehensive mobile review but we know the reimagined camera system makes the pair a clear winner.\nThe Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus now holds the top rank at DxOMark. The S9 has received the first software update. DisplayMate already deemed Samsung Galaxy S9’s OLED display as best ever. We also know the phone has survived a durability test. But what about sales performance? Well, it’s still too early to tell but pre-orders are reportedly the same or slightly lower than the S8.\nIn South Korea, the consumers don’t appear to be as enthusiastic about the two phones. This is according to a Business Korea article that noted: “many consumers are thinking that the latest models are not that different from the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy A8, which were released a year ago and in January this year”. The phones have been released in key markets but the S9 seems to be overshadowed by the less inexpensive Galaxy A8. That one has almost similar premium specs. It’s even better if we are to consider the dual front cameras.\nThe market seems to be “opting for inexpensive older phones these days amid the lack of significant performance improvement” according to a retailer. We believe there is truth to it because the Galaxy A8 which is a new phone is close to the S9. Why pay more if the differences are not that far or obvious?\nThe low sales in South Korea may also have something to do with the South Korean government imposing a penalty on the top three carriers in the country–SK Telecom, KT, and LG U+. Subsidies on phone units have been lessened as a result so switching to a carrier or buying a new phone can be a challenge for many people. Consumers are usually attracted to great deals especially when premium flagship phones are part of the lineup.\nVIA: Business Korea", "Like any big cinematic event, Samsung’s second 2017 Unpacked announcement needs a fittingly splashy marketing campaign. So far, the world’s most popular smartphone vendor hasn’t had to do much to hype up the impending Galaxy Note 8, of course, with a steady stream of increasingly detailed leaks keeping mobile consumers constantly on their toes.\nBut now that we know virtually everything about the chaebol’s “next big thing”, the actual August 23 introduction event no longer feels momentous and exciting. It’s almost unnecessary at this point, unless Samsung can pull off the unthinkable and commercially release the S Pen-wielding beast the very next day.\nSpeaking of the no doubt improved stylus accessory accompanying the Note 8 to market, it should come as no surprise that’s the focal point of a new promo video uploaded to the company’s official Mobile YouTube channel and also posted on its Mobile Press website.\nThe 37-second clip unfortunately doesn’t provide a single glimpse of the real-world device coming soon to New York, culminating in another dark outline of the “Infinity Display” design.\nIn typical Hollywood teaser fashion, a series of words loosely associated with the hero phone are waved around to build up excitement, with an S Pen used to strike through humble terms Samsung wants replaced. The Galaxy Note 8 is a leap forward, not just a step in the right direction, it innovates rather than updating, leading instead of following, and making the impossible possible. All with a “bigger” usable screen area, “bigger tools to capture precious moments, and bigger innovations to help bring your ideas to life.”", "Samsung may be working on the Galaxy Note 9 and that mysterious foldable phone but the South Korean tech giant still has many other plans. Of course, it’s one OF the biggest OEMs in the world today only in the mobile business. It has many projects like updating most of its flagship models to the latest Android version or implementing the on-screen fingerprint sensor. Rumor has it the Galaxy S9 and S9+ will soon have 128GB and 256GB variants, at least, in the US.\nThere is no official announcement yet but such variants are currently listed on Verizon Wireless’s Open Development page. It lists LTE Cat-M1 certified phones that include the revolutionary Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+. All four variants are there–the Galaxy S9 128GB, Galaxy S9+ 128GB, Galaxy S9 256GB, and Galaxy S9+ 256GB.\nThe page details the network technology as LTE Multimode with GSM while LTE Category Support is Cat 18. There are other Galaxy phones adding the LTE Cat-M1 support such as the Galaxy S7, S7 Edge, S8, S8+, and Galaxy Note 8. These are new items on the list but we’re certain more will be added.\nImagine just how many photos, videos, and apps you can store on 128GB and 256GB–a lot. This isn’t the first time Samsung will be rolling out 128GB variants because there’s the also Galaxy Note 7, Galaxy S8, and Galaxy S8+ 128GB models released in the past.\nVIA: Reddit\nSOURCE: Verizon Wireless", "Update (Dec 11): Just about a month after releasing the October Android security update for Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ in India, Samsung has now rolled-out the November security update for both smartphones. The update is now available over-the-air and will reach all S8 and S8+ units over the coming days.\nAccording to SamMobile, the November security update carries the firmware version XXU1AQK7 and is 526MB in size. It includes various security patches as well as a fix for the Wi-Fi Krack vulnerability and Bluetooth stability improvements.\nEarlier (Nov 13): Samsung Galaxy S8, S8+ gets October security update in India\nSouth Korean smartphone giant Samsung has released a new software update for Galaxy S8 and S8+ smartphones in the Indian market. The release in India comes a week after the company released the same update in its home market of South Korea.\nThe update is 493MB in size and brings Android October security patches, improved DeX mode stability and improved stability of the Samsung launcher.\nTo manually look for this update, go to Settings > Software update.\nThis will probably be the last software update that Samsung rolls out before the Android 8.0 Oreo update for the Galaxy S8 and S8+ smartphone (Turns out, I was wrong the October security wasn’t the last update before the arrival of Oreo on S8/ S8+ in India). The Oreo update is currently in testing in US, UK and South Korea and if everything goes well, we should see the final release in the coming weeks.\nA timeline of previous Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8+ security updates in India\nOctober 09: September security update released with wireless charging and navigation bar stability improvements.\nAugust 15: August security update available with improved auto-brightness and PC connection stability\nJuly 16: July security update released with improved stability to the camera and wireless charging\nJune 14: June security update available with improved quality of panorama images, navigation bar improvements, increased range of available background colours and more.\nMay 16: May security update rolled-out with device stability improvement and general enhancements.\nApril 21: First security update for Galaxy S8 and S8+. Includes April security fixes as well as stabilization of DeX, Bixby and face recognition algorithm.", "Bezels are about to get smaller, and buttons are about to start going away.\nOne of the leading biometrics technology companies, Synaptics, has announced a big breakthrough in phone authentication: in-display fingerprint sensors. The new \"Clear ID FS9500\" (catchy name) fingerprint sensor is designed for smartphones with near-bezel-free displays, and provides fingerprint authentication on demand completely within the display panel itself.\nThe Clear ID FS9500 sensor offers the same type of one-touch authentication we know today, but does it underneath the display glass — and it can handle a variety of situations including wet, dry and cold fingers. As you'd expect, it integrates a complete security stack with AES encryption and a variety of authentication features that companies can choose from. Seeing as it otherwise works the same as a dedicated hardware sensor, one of the great features of this in-display solution is that it can be turned on and off at will, meaning that unlike traditional sensors it doesn't occupy any space on the body of the phone when not needed.\nWe've seen technical demonstrations of this type of technology, but Synaptics is making this announcement because it says that it is already in mass production in partnership with a \"top five\" smartphone company. That already narrows things down a bit, but Synaptics has a couple other hints that seem too good to be a coincidence. In its press release, the company specifically calls out the demand for \"bezel-free OLED infinity displays,\" which is interestingly the exact type of naming Samsung has applied to its curved displays in the flagship Galaxy S8, S8+ and Note 8.\nThis in-screen fingerprint sensor technology could certainly end up in all sorts of phones in 2018, but given the hints here we wouldn't be surprised if the Samsung Galaxy S9 was one of the first. Following the relative debacle of the Galaxy S8's rear-mounted fingerprint sensor and promises of upgraded iris scanning on the GS9, we could see the removal of the dedicated physical fingerprint sensor on the new phone.\nIn any case, we know a big-name manufacturer will have this Synaptics technology integrated into a phone soon. And that looks like it'll be a win for everyone.\nPress release:", "REUTERS/Brendan McDermid Samsung senior vice president of Product Strategy, Justin Denison, presents the Galaxy S8 and S8 smartphones during an exclusive event in New York City on March 29, 2017.\nNew leaks about the highly anticipated Samsung Galaxy S9 has revealed that the upcoming flagship is set to feature several upgrades in biometrics. Furthermore, a spokesperson from the tech giant has expressed their doubts on the probability of showcasing the Galaxy S9 by January.\nAccording to reports, sources familiar with the matter have said that the iris scanner of the Samsung Galaxy S9 is going to get an upgrade that may be a better resolution or faster response. Although the nature of the upgrades was not revealed, it is likely that the smartphone will bank on the iris scanner to prevent fans from being infuriated about the likely possibility that the fingerprint sensor will stay in its unfortunate position next to the camera.\nThe upgrade seems to be reflective of Samsung effort to increase the biometric's reliability and security, especially considering it is set to be one of the primary methods that the Samsung Galaxy S9 will use in sensitive processes, such as banking transactions. Furthermore, the iris scanner may not be exclusive to the Galaxy S9, as reports have also indicated that Samsung may be working on integrating it into the mid-tier phones.\nAside from the leaks on the upgrades that the scanner may see, further reports have also revealed that the unveiling of the Samsung Galaxy S9 may not happen until March. Considering that previous leaks suggested that it will make a debut this January, the news was met with much disappointment from the fans who have been eagerly waiting to see how Samsung will respond to Apple's recently released and critically acclaimed iPhone X.\nSamsung has yet to respond to comment on the claims regarding the highly anticipated flagship, but more information, including the release date and the specs, is expected to be revealed in the coming months." ]

[ "By far, Jon's best book. And I LOVED the others! I should note that this book isn't JUST for career \"do-overs\"! It's for any do-over! I think every single person could benefit from reading this book no matter where they are in their lives." ]

[ "This is such a marvelously crafted story with a great deal of tension....kept me right on the edge of my seat. Love it. Ms. EM Kaplan is simply one of the best authors I have enjoyed in some time. This book is the 1st of her Josie series and should be a must read on everyones' fun summer reading list.", "I enjoyed this book, a bit slow after the firs chapter, but after that I could not put it down.\n I rated this book a 5 star because it is the best mystery I have read in a long time. The twist of the past and present was great and I loved how it all came together in the end.\n When I finished and read about the author, I could not believe that it was her first book. This was the book of a seasoned writer and I look forward in reading more of her books.\n Keep up the great work and I will tell everyone that loves mysteries to read this book. James Patterson look out because, she has got you beat with this great read.", "From what I have seen and read about archaeological evidence for the bible, this is definitely one of the best resources. Charlie Campbell has made an attractive book that is accessible in format and reading level to almost anybody. He wisely has chosen only the evidence which has been well established. Recommended for everyone who is interested in reading about the historical reliability of the scriptures. Great resource for homeschoolers.", "CLANCY'S BEST BY FAR. THIS WAS GREAT. EXECUTIVE ORDERS PICKS UP WHERE DEBT OF HONOR LEAVES OFF. THE STROY LINE IS EXCELLENT, THE PLOTS DETAILED, MY ONLY CRITICISM WAS THAT THE BOOK SHOULD HAVE BEEN A LITTLE SHORTER. YOU GET THE FEELING THAT RYAN'S DECISIONS AND FRUSTRATIONS WITH GOVERNMENT ARE NOT JUST TOM CLANCY'S, BUT MINE, YOURS AND MOST EVERYONE'S. READ IT, BUT READ DEBT OF HONOR FIRST.", "BEST pasta cookbook EVER published. It should be required reading for everyone who has aspirations of making delicious and beautiful pasta dishes. This book should have never gone out of print.", "Best way to send a quick gift to the book lover in your family. All that is needed to make this great is a card or place to note for to/from . It arrived on time and made everyone happy-Baffle Raffle", "A box set containing five great books all featuring alphas and bad boys. You get firefighters, cowboys and billionaire's. A great bargain in that you get one exclusive along with four former Amazon best sellers. Included are: Book 1 - His Secret Baby, Book 2 - My Protector, Book 3 - Bossmans List, Book 4 - Rekindled and Book 5 - Cowboys Bride. Something for everyone and plenty to keep your kindle steaming. I read a reader copy and voluntarily chose to write a review.", "An EXCELLENT book for true gamers. The two Johns, the two legends, exposed for everyone to see. From their early life, like Carmack breaking in to a library to play games, or Romero's abusive step-father who would explode if he found Romero playing Video-Games. The best part is that for retro gamers, like me. Being only a teenager, it was a GREAT surprise to read all about them creating old-school games, like Commander Keen and Dangerous Dave, and especially Wolfenstein. If you're a true gamer, this book will be a must-read. This book recieves my highest recomendation.", "This is an easy to read, but deep and provocative text, explaining prayer based on biblical concepts and personal experience. I believe this is one of the best books ever written on prayer. Underscoring its concepts is a rock solid and very understandable presentation of the basics of Christianity, upon which it builds a theological and practical understanding of prayer. Everyone will be changed by reading this book! Thank you.", "The Friends We Keep is part of the Mischief Bay series but you can read it without reading the first book. (But that is a great book also). This book is about life and relationships. As you read it you get wrapped up in everyone's life, feel that you know the characters personally and you want the book to go on and on.", "I was familiar with the paleo diet, and had already incorporated it into my lifestyle, but am always researching/reading as much as I can. Robb's book is the best Ive read on the subject..very informative, but funny and entertaining, and makes you excited to lead a healthier, paleo lifestyle. I recommend it to everyone", "As a teacher, I love that the authors are so open and honest about this method- it is different for everyone, there are potholes along the way, and you have to work through it- but it is the absolute best way for me to meet the needs of ALL of my students! The book is a quick read- you could easily read through it in a few hours and then go back to study the nuts and bolts of how to do this later. Flipped learning is an amazing method for any teacher, and you don't have to do it the exact same way as anyone else, as the authors say, you have to ask yourself \"what is the best use of time in my classroom\" and then the answer (and some help from others who have done it already)will lead you forward. It is great to read a book about education and end up excited rather than more stressed than before I read the book!", "I have just finished reading Arisen 1-8. I have enjoyed all these books and love the characters. I read the first book in a compilation and had to get all the rest one after the other. The characters are so well written and you really care about them right away.\n\nAlpha Group is totally Awesome !! It's hard to say who I liked best. Juice, Handon, Ali, Homer, and Pred !!!\n\nYou become so involved with these characters that when something happens to one of them you feel for them. You learn a great deal about Special Ops, different weapons, the heart of our Country's and England's Best of the Best of the Best to help us survive the end of the world. They are well trained people who put it on the line in conditions most of us would just give up and die in.\n\nI can't wait for book number 9 to come out and will get the prequels while I'm waiting. I have found two new author's that I like and will search out other books by them, and look forward to reading them. I don't like to tell about the books I read because it spoils it for people who have yet to read them. I hope everyone gets these books. They are really good stories, really good characters except for a really bad guy living alone way far away - he will be back.....Oh No !!!!\n\nI hope everyone enjoys these books as much as I have they rock it in the book world !!!\nThese books have everything you look for in a good book. Kind people, bad people, in-charge people, scared people, hero's.....on and on must read these books.....", "The movie was great and the book was great Thanks to Marcus Luttrell for his service and the book and movie. Sorry for those who lost their lives on the mission. The movie and the book were great. The movie should be seen and the book should be read by everyone who cares about our country and our military men.", "It really lays out a framework to becoming the best leader you can possibly be. Everyone's read leadership books that are full of good ideas without a road map to improvement. This IS the roadmap. Take it and improve your leadership skills in your personal life, or share it with your coworkers for a real transformation in your business.", "This is a great book but it isn't for everyone. There are a number of books about Jerry that are easier to read for example Garcia An American Life is a great one. This one here starts easy but get a little heavy in it's subject matter in that it will take awhile to read, at least that was how it was for me. Don't get me wrong I really liked this book very thought provoking.", "A great book and must reading for everyone interested in the history of Panama preceding the handover of the Panama Canal, death of dictator Omar Torrijos and take over by madman Manuel Noriega.", "I absolutely LOVE this series of books, The Bregdan Chronicles. It takes place during the Civil War era, a very dark time in America's history. I have read the complete series in six weeks--that is how good these books are. I am really looking forward to the release of \"Always Forward.\" I highly recommend these books to anyone and everyone--they are easy to read, suspenseful, yet leave you believing the best in people.", "One of the best books by Jeanne Kalogridis. I love reading anything about the Medici family, especially Catherine. Having been born into the infamous Medici family was both a blessing and a curse for Catherine. She became little more than a political pawn toward her families advancement. This is an amazing historial fictional account of Catherine's life. Catherine is not a sympathetic figure,and the author doesn't attempt to elicit sympathy for Catherine. She was a schemer who would do anything for herself and her family. This book contains something that should appeal to everyone. I particularly enjoyed reading about Catherine's relationship with Nostrodamus.\n\nI enjoyed reading this book and feel it is one of the best books Kalogridis has written to date.", "I love SYPEN 3in1 pens. \"You have the best of three worlds\". The stylus is sturdy, the writing is great and the flashlight is one of the best features.(my opinion). Great for gift giving and a color for everyone!", "I gave this to my ex boyfriend's father as a Christmas present. The vivid illustrations and well written descriptions made this a great coffee-table book. It doesn't list ALL the whiskeys I consider \"best,\" but it does its job pretty well. It was fun drinking actual whiskey and flipping through the book with everyone.", "Steve Chandler and Rich Litvin are both brilliant writers and coaches. I've had the privilege of speaking to both of them and reading many of Steve's books - they have changed the course of my life. This book is terrific, very inspiring and their message is clear. A must read for everyone, whether you are a coach or in any career -- this is great book.", "This was officially the best science fiction short story collection I've ever read, even beating out my previous favorite, Tangents by Greg Bear. This book is precisely why I stopped giving 5 stars to every book I like: because that would make it impossible to express the level of admiration I feel for the truly special books, the ones that you know you'll read and re-read and recommend to everyone. If you only read one SF short story collection this year, make it this one.", "First I have to tell you, when I started reading this book, I had chills from the first word. I read the book in one day, because I had to know what was going to happen. Edwin Becker tells it like it is, and bases it on experiences he and his wife shared. This is a story about a real family who was 'touched' by something evil, and how they did and didn't deal with the haunting and the torment. Hollywood has many stories about the paranormal, but this book is nonfiction - and in my opinion, it tops them all. I recommend this book to anyone who has ever sensed evil when they entered a room and to everyone who hasn't. This is one of the best books I have read in a long time. The action begins in subtle ways and escalates - putting everyone who entered the rooms in peril. Edwin Becker is the author, and \"True Haunting\" is his book, and it's a story that you will never forget!", "Colors are great, everyone loved the color flames, leave a mess in a portable fire pit. Best to use in standard ground firepits.", "This book is the first and the best book out there that will help you make better videos that the audience will want to watch ! This is a great , great book ! Buy it ,read it , learn from it ,and become a star !", "This book is a celebration of children and their wonder. After reading it and placing my daughter in the correct category (she is a delicious) the colors recommended for her and not recommended made so much sense. The great thing about this book is that it tells you why they fit or don't fit. What child/adult/human doesn't want to look their best at all times. It gives you confidence and pride when someone compliments you and children need all the confidence we can give them to take on this world.\n\nAfter reading this book you will find yourself trying to categorize everyone in your house so you all can look fantastic!", "This book The Rhythm of life: Living Everyday with Passion and Purpose by: Matthew Kelly is an inspirational book. It inspires us to become the best we can be and the best we know we can be, by using the knowledge of self. It tells us to take an hour out of each day to pray and reflect on our lives. It makes us look a lot differently at life and the road we are taking. He gives great examples and personal stories to help explain his accusations on becoming the happiest we could ever be. By these needs; emotionally, spiritually, intellectually, and physically being fulfilled your can grow to become the best version of yourself. He gives you the secrets to the real meaning of success that people have been searing for, for years. I encourage everyone to read this wonderful book. I know it changed my life and I hope it does the same for many others. Like Matthew says the kind of books we read are the kind of people we will become. And if you like his books you should attend his talks their even better!", "Gerald's Journal is one of those books that you just don't want to put down. It is truly great for children and parents alike, as it explores the feelings that everyone feels, being different at one point or another. This makes a great book to read independently, with your child, and would be perfect for a book to read in the classroom. It creates a lot of thought and discussion about so many things. It also makes a great gift. I would love more books to be written with such honesty.", "While reading this book I realized that the chapters inside appealed to everyone. That is everyone that would be using Photoshop (Artists, Photographers, Graphic Designers, Web Designers). I've always been a bit intimidated by Photoshop's power and complexity, but Inside Photoshop 7 has made a lot of that preconception disappear. The concepts in the book are well thought out and the bottom line is it addressed almost every scenario I needed it to. I haven't read the Photoshop Bible, but this book is very well organized and I now consider myself an Intermediate to Advanced Photoshop user with a great reference tool to boot.", "What a great read!\nI have read dozens of books from this genre and this was one of the best\nGreat character development believable people and realities\nI look forward to the next book with much anticipation", "Ms. Fine accurately captures the spirit of Gary Paulsen, writer, adventurer, teacher and animal activist. This book is well written and an exciting read. Children of all ages will benefit from reading about a life well lived. Ms. Fine's beatifully written and carefully researched book on Mr. Paulsen will be a great addition to everyone's personal library. Read On!" ]

[ "People who run their entire lives through their smartphones now have the Riverside Police Department at their fingertips.\nThe department is the latest Southern California law enforcement agency to put in a person’s pocket the ability to file traffic-violation complaints and theft reports, access emergency alerts and crime maps, and connect with police on social media.\n“We’re going along with the city’s vision of being innovative,” said Officer Ryan Railsback, a police spokesman.\nThere’s also a department directory and an alert feature that Railsback himself used to caution motorists to avoid an Orangecrest neighborhood street one morning after a traffic collision.\nThe police departments in Long Beach, Santa Ana, Torrance and Redlands have apps, as does San Diego State’s. So do police departments in cities big and small such as Baltimore (population 620,961) and Milton, Wash. (7,970).\nIt’s about keeping up with how the public now obtains and shares information, said Santa Ana police Cmdr. Ken Gominsky, who led the development of the department’s app.\n“I wholeheartedly believe that if you want to connect with the public, you better find ways to have them connect with the government the same way they connect with everybody else,” he said.\nThe apps are available free in the Apple and Android app stores. Riverside rolled out its version in late November, hoping to be more transparent while helping users be more engaged and informed.\nIt’s a work in progress, Railsback said.\nSince the department switched its dispatch broadcasts to an encrypted frequency in 2016, residents wondering why three police cars were rushing down their street while a helicopter circled above have had to pose that question to Facebook friends whose answers tend toward speculation. Police plan to provide accurate answers, albeit not in real time, by updating the app’s map that shows locations and types of crimes within minutes of completing an investigation.\nUpdates will also include crime-safety tips in Spanish and educational messages through the Facebook and Twitter categories.\n“It’s only going to get better,” Railsback said.\nAlready, Riverside police are seeing more use of the crime tips feature.\nUsers must sign up with their name, but if they wish may send a tip anonymously; the user’s name isn’t attached to the tip.\nPolice do not track those who use the app, Railsback said.\n“If you want to be anonymous, you’re anonymous,” he said.\nRailsback and Sgt. Ronald Harris, a spokesman for the Torrance Police Department, emphasized that “in-progress” emergencies should be called in to 911. Police do not monitor tip features on the app, Facebook and Twitter 24 hours a day.\nTorrance residents find the A-to-Z department directory and Frequently Asked Questions – “How do I contest a parking citation?” for instance — particularly useful, Harris said.\nThe Torrance app, created in 2015, includes a button showing a howling animal inside a crescent moon for reporting coyote sightings. The tips are sent to the police traffic bureau.\n“Something unique to our department, we have a coyote management team to help address the problem,” Harris said. The team was formed two years ago.\nWith a few clicks, someone can report the location of the coyote sighting and include a photo. The feature complements a city program that urges residents to pick up their trash, not leave food out and keep their pets leashed.\nLong Beach police emphasized reporting crime tips when their app debuted in 2013 and made a video to promote its use.\n“If you ask anyone on the police force, they will tell you the best asset they have for solving crimes and for preventing crimes is public involvement,” Bob Foster, who was mayor at the time, said in the video.\nRedlands’ app focuses on collecting crime tips. The front page of the app features the familiar “See something – say something” plea to report suspicious activity. There’s also a link to the department’s Twitter and Facebook pages. Redlands recently began posting crime summaries to Facebook.\nSanta Ana’s app has a feature with which with one click, a user can see photos and summaries of the city’s most wanted criminals. Gominsky, the commander, said the app makes it easy for residents to make anonymous tips about criminal activity.\nAt community meetings, residents are saying they like the list of police bureau phone numbers and links to other city departments.\n“People are raving about having the city’s phone directory at their fingertips on their phones 24 hours a day,” Gominsky said." ]

[ "Leaders of opposition parties including BJP met with Governor E S L Narasimhan in Telangana. (File Photo) Leaders of opposition parties including BJP met with Governor E S L Narasimhan in Telangana. (File Photo)\nThe Congress, TDP, BJP and other opposition parties in Telangana today sought the intervention of Governor E S L Narasimhan in an incident of alleged police high-handedness against some persons belonging to Dalit and backward classes in Rajanna Sircilla district. A delegation of opposition leaders, which included TPCC president N Uttam Kumar Reddy, state BJP chief K Laxman and TDP’s Telangana unit head L Ramana, met the Governor and submitted a memorandum in this regard.\nThe incident relates to arrest of eight persons last month at Nerella in the district for allegedly torching a sand-laden truck, which was involved in a road accident, causing the death of a person. The arrested persons had also allegedly attacked policemen. The Congress, BJP and other parties and outfits had alleged the accused were “tortured” while in police custody and subjected to “third degree methods”. The top leaders of ruling TRS are related to the “sandmafia” (allegedly involved in irregularities in sand sales) in the district, the opposition parties claimed in the memorandum submitted to the Governor.\n“At the behest of sand mafia contractors… Dalits and BCs were subjected to the worst form of police brutality and third degree torture by Sircilla police,” they said. Alleging that the police “tortured” the accused, state BJP president Laxman said the suspension of a sub-inspector for the incident was not enough. TDP’s L Ramana alleged that sand is being transported illegally in the district. Congress’ Reddy said the opposition parties would meet President Ram Nath Kovind later this month. The opposition leaders urged the Governor to institute an independent inquiry into the incident and also take action against police officials who indulged in “torture”.\nFor all the latest India News, download Indian Express App", "Supreme Court of India. (File/Photo) Supreme Court of India. (File/Photo)\nThe Supreme Court on Monday refused to take cognisance of the recent deaths of children at a government hospital at Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh. The bench comprising Chief Justice J S Khehar and Justice D Y Chandrachud asked the lawyer, who mentioned the issue before it, to approach the Allahabad High Court with his grievances. The lawyer has also sought an SIT probe into the deaths of children at the Baba Raghav Das Medical College (BRD) hospital in Gorakhpur.\nThe court observed that the authorities were handling the situation and the grievances, if any, have to be raised before the high court concerned.\nOver 60 children have reportedly died at BRD Medical College Hospital since August 7, many for want of oxygen whose supply was disrupted after bills were not paid to the vendor.\nAt least 30 children were reported dead in the last two days alone. Many of the victims were infants who perished in the neo-natal intensive care unit.\nPolice had said no case has been registered so far in the absence of a formal complaint.\nThe state government had on August 12 ordered an official inquiry by the chief secretary and suspended the principal of the Medical College Hospital Rajiv Mishra.\nFor all the latest India News, download Indian Express App", "CM Trivendra Rawat had sought a CBI probe in March. (File) CM Trivendra Rawat had sought a CBI probe in March. (File)\nThe CBI has accepted the Uttarakhand government’s request to investigate an alleged multi-crore highway scam after months of tussle between the state and the Centre. A preliminary report submitted on the alleged scam by former Kumaon commissioner D. Senthil Pandiyan had spotted 18 instances when inflated compensation was supposedly paid for the acquisition of land for the widening of NH-74 in Udham Singh Nagar district.\nIn March, Chief Minister Trivendra Rawat had sought a CBI probe. However, in a letter dated April 5, Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari had warned the Chief Minister that a CBI investigation would have an adverse impact on the morale of the officials of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).\nOn May 26, NHAI chairman Y S Malik wrote to Uttarakhand Chief Secretary S Ramaswamy asking him to get the names of NHAI officials removed from an FIR filed in the Pantnagar police station in this case. Malik mentioned in the letter that the NHAI was a fund disbursing agency and had no role in the alleged scam. The state government did not respond to the latter, following which the NHAI approached the Nainital High Court seeking quashing of the FIR against the NHAI officials. The case is pending.\nPandiyan’s report noted that irregularities of upto Rs 240 crore had been committed in the 18 instances. Rawat later said the findings in Pandiyan’s report were only the tip of the iceberg and more remained to be unearthed. After the state’s inquiry, seven revenue officials were suspended and two arrests made so far. On Wednesday Rawat said: “We had been emphasising that we would get the alleged scam probed by the CBI, but the Opposition (Congress) doubted our intentions…. However, the CBI has now agreed to probe the alleged scam for irregularities.”\nHe added: “The CBI probe will begin very soon and massive corruption will be uncovered.”\nFor all the latest India News, download Indian Express App", "Former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister O Panneerselvam. (PTI/File) Former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister O Panneerselvam. (PTI/File)\nThe Madras High Court on Tuesday granted anticipatory bail to the son and brother of former Chief Minister O Panneerselvam in a rioting case related to the RK Nagar Assembly by-poll campaign. When the petition filed by O P Ravindranath Kumar, son of Panneerselvam, along with his uncle O Raja, came up, Justice S Baskaran granted anticipatory bail with a condition that they appear before the Investigating Officer as and when required.\nThe petitioners had moved the Court apprehending arrest in connection with the rioting and criminal intimidation case registered against them. They alleged that police had foisted the case on them “due to malaise and political vendetta.”\nAccording to police, the case was registered on a complaint lodged against the two that they, along with some other persons, had attacked a worker of rival AIADMK (Amma) faction in R K Nagar, on April 6.\nThe by-poll scheduled to be held on April 12 has been cancelled by the Election Commission over the use of money power to influence voters.\nFor all the latest India News, download Indian Express App now", "Timely investigation into serious offences like murder, rape and other cases pertaining to women or minors is the need of the hour, a division bench of Justices N H Patil and G S Kulkarni said\nEmphasising the need for prompt and timely completion of investigations, the Bombay High Court today suggested setting up of a special unit in the police to probe serious crimes like murder and offences related to women. Timely investigation into serious offences like murder, rape and other cases pertaining to women or minors is the need of the hour, a division bench of Justices N H Patil and G S Kulkarni said. The court was hearing a case of rape and kidnapping of a 13-year-old girl. The girl's father had filed a petition seeking permission to terminate her 26-week pregnancy.\nThe court had, earlier this month, permitted the girl to terminate her pregnancy but had sought to know from the police the status of the investigation in the case. Government counsel Abhinandan Vagyani today told the court that the FIR was registered in the case last July when the girl was kidnapped. In March, the girl and the accused person were traced to Uttar Pradesh and brought to Mumbai.\n\"While initially, only a charge of kidnapping was levelled against the accused, rape and other relevant charges under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) were added later,\" he said. The court expressed its dissatisfaction with the fact that the FIR was lodged last July and for eight months the police did nothing. \"The police should not take such cases casually. When the law and courts and judges take such cases seriously why is the police taking it lightly. Probe in such cases, which involves minors or women, should be done on a priority basis,\" the court said.\n\"It is time the police is divided into two units. One for law and order and one special unit only for probing serious crimes like murder, rape and other women related offences. Police, nowadays, have no time to probe cases as they are most of the times put on bandobast duty or on special duty during religious festivals,\" Justice Patil said. The court asked Vagyani to take up the issue with the state home department secretary for consideration. It also said the government should conduct special workshops for the police on how to handle such cases.\nThe bench added that senior police officers should keep a constant check on the status of each and every case in their jurisdiction. \"Zero pendency should be the aim in such cases. Senior officers above the rank of deputy commissioners of police should continuously monitor the status of cases till charge sheet is filed,\" the court said.\nCatch up on all the latest Mumbai news, crime news, current affairs, and also a complete guide on Mumbai from food to things to do and events across the city here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates\nThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever", "The report of the shooting at 24th and Market was received at 4 p.m. (Source: Daniel Paxton, WAVE 3 News)\nLOUISVILLE, KY (WAVE) - One person is being treated after a shooting has been wounded in a shooting.\nMetroSafe says Louisville Metro police were called to S. 24th and Market streets at 4 p.m. Arriving officers found one man wounded.\nDOWNLOAD OUR APPS\n+ News app: Apple | Android\n+ Weather app: Apple | Android\nThe victim was taken to UofL Hospital by Metro EMS. The extent of his injuries is not immediately known.\nThis story will be updated.\nCopyright 2018 WAVE 3 News. All rights reserved.", "Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal (Express Photo by Amit Mehra/Files) Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal (Express Photo by Amit Mehra/Files)\nA Delhi court Wednesday dismissed Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s application — seeking a video of his questioning and a written copy of his statement from police — stating that there is no specific provision under the law to do so. Kejriwal was questioned earlier this month in connection with the alleged assault on Delhi Chief Secretary Anshu Prakash. Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (ACMM) Samar Vishal said police are “not obliged” under the law to give a copy of the statement to the person whose statement has been recorded.\nKejriwal had approached the court for directions to police for supply of a copy of CD and statement recorded under Section 161 of the CrPC on May 18. According to Kejriwal’s application, the investigating officer, Additional DCP Harender Singh made a statement before the media that the CM did not give “satisfactory answers”, which was “factually incorrect”.\nPolice had replied to the application stating that it was not maintainable either in fact or in law. “The applicant (Kejriwal) has not mentioned under which provisions of law he is entitled to the copy of the CD and the recorded statement under CrPC Section 161, as claimed by him. As per the scheme of CrPC, any person examined under Section 161 CrPC is not entitled for the documents. The allegations/ averments made in the application are false, incorrect and twisted, hence vehemently denied,” it said.\nAppearing for the Delhi CM, B S Joon had argued that though there is no specific provision in the CrPC, rules of “natural justice and fair play” demand that a witness who has been examined by police shall be given a copy of his statement “then and there”. “Statements recorded under 161 CrPC are not signed by the witness and therefore witness has no assurance that the IO has recorded the same statement given by him or that his statement is not tampered later on.”\nTo this, Additional DCP Singh submitted that the applicant is a “witness”, and not an “accused” is his “self-assumed status”.\nACMM Vishal said the right of the accused to get a copy of the documents of prosecution “accrues” after the police report is filed and he is summoned as an accused. “The agency, however, is not obliged under the law to give a copy of his statement to the person whose statement it has recorded, more importantly, when the status of that person is not clear that he will be made an accused or a witness and further when the investigating agency is of the view that handling over of any such statement will be prejudicial to its investigation. Therefore, the present application cannot be allowed. Hence dismissed,” the court said.\nFor all the latest Delhi News, download Indian Express App", "Sukhpal Khaira Sukhpal Khaira\nLEADER OF Opposition and senior AAP leader Sukhpal Singh Khaira has demanded a CBI probe into the sand mine auction in which two former employees of Irrigation and Power Minister Rana Gurjit were successful bidders.\nAddressing a press conference here on Friday, Khaira said the Narang Commission of Inquiry has made a “cheap attempt” to give a clean chit to the minister. But, even in his one-sided report, Justice J S Narang had left behind some important clues that point to the culpability of Rana Gurjit.\nCalling the inquiry commission report as “bogus”, he said as there was no hope of getting justice from Punjab Police in the case, a CBI inquiry was needed to expose the involvement of the minister. “We will take this case to the logical conclusion. We will go to the Punjab and Haryana High Court if a CBI inquiry is not launched,” he said.\nFor all the latest News Archive News, download Indian Express App", "Kiran Bedi (File) Kiran Bedi (File)\nPuducherry Lt Governor Kiran Bedi Saturday suggested that forensic experts, police, lawyers and judicial bodies adopt a coordinated approach,instead of acting in isolation, in ensuring administration of criminal justice. She was speaking at a function here where she underlined the vital role that forensic science and forensic experts play in clinching several criminal cases and in procuring justice to the victims. “You can link with bodies like the National Judicial Academy, Police Academies, Police Training schools across the country and other institutions so that coordination could be ensured in criminal justice administration,” Bedi said.\nThe former IPS officer said she had already suggested to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to upgrade the Forensic Science University in Gujarat into a National University after visiting the institution. “The seed is now sown and you can take up the matter with the authorities as a follow up of my suggestion to the Prime Minister,” Bedi said.\nShe was distributing prizes to participants on the concluding day of the three day 39th national conference of Indian Academy of Forensic Medicine here, organised by the central government administered JIPMER (Jawaharlal Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education and Research). Director of JIPMER S C Parija and president of the Indian Academic of Forensic Medicine, Kalpesh Shah, were among those who spoke.\nFor all the latest India News, download Indian Express App", "The Supreme Court. (File Photo) The Supreme Court. (File Photo)\nThe Supreme Court on Tuesday granted two months to Kerala Water Authority (KWA) to clean up two water tanks at the historic Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple in Kerala. A bench, comprising Chief Justice J S Khehar and Justices D Y Chandrachud and S K Kaul, recorded the statement of a KWA official of the administrative committee of the famous temple, who said that the cleaning of the ponds would be completed within the stipulated time.\nThe bench considered the submission of senior advocate Gopal Subramaniam, who is assisting the court as an amicus curiae, that besides cleaning the water tanks, there was a need to take measures to stop sewage and construction debris from flowing into them.\nThe bench, which has fixed the matter for further hearing on May 3, has also asked the temple administration committee to file its fortnightly status report on or before May 2. Earlier, the court had asked the amicus curiae to keep tabs on the timely completion of the cleaning work. The government has fixed an estimate of Rs 28 lakh for the work.\nThe bench had said it wanted the cleaning work to conclude before the onset of monsoon. Subramanium had submitted that the temple tanks were filled with filth and the priests were finding it increasingly difficult to take a dip before performing the religious tasks.\nThe state government had told the court that it has sanctioned a project on March 18 to ensure that “drainage, sewerage and construction debris” do not enter the premises of the temple and the two tanks associated with it. The court had then asked the government not to outsource the task.\n“Given the importance of the issue, we hereby direct the Kerala Water Authority to undertake the project on its own, without outsourcing it. Accordingly, it will not be essential for the Kerala Water Authority to notify the tenders. “To ensure that the contemplated project is completed before the ensuing monsoon, we consider it just and appropriate to direct the Kerala Water Authority to commence the works forthwith,” it had said.\nFor all the latest India News, download Indian Express App now", "At Rainpada village where five people were lynched. (Photo: Prashant Nadkar) At Rainpada village where five people were lynched. (Photo: Prashant Nadkar)\nDhule Collector Rahul Rekhawar has described the lynching of five people by a mob in the district on Sunday as a “spontaneous act” in his report to the Maharashtra government, it is learnt.\nThe report, submitted on Tuesday, states that the exact sequence of events that led to the attack – over suspicion that they were child-lifters – is still being probed by police, officials said.\nRead | Dhule mob thumbed nose at police: They are dead, take them away\n“The murders were not planned but a spontaneous act in which the mob killed the five victim,” an official privy to details said, quoting the report.\n“While the report does mention social media messages and rumours reaching the hamlet. But (it states that) whether there is a connection between a WhatsApp post/posts and the incident…needs to be probe in detail by the police,” the official said.\nFour of the five victims of the Dhule lynching were from Mangalwedha. (Photo: Prashant Nadkar/File) Four of the five victims of the Dhule lynching were from Mangalwedha. (Photo: Prashant Nadkar/File)\nRekhawar confirmed sending a report but declined to provide details.\nALSO READ | Maharashtra: Five lynched over child lifting rumours on social media\nHe said the district administration has written to Maharashtra Police’s cyber cell to probe the origin of the fake social media posts. “Once we manage to trace the person who posted the fake posts, action will be taken against him,” Rekhawar said.\nThe lynching took place in Dhule’s Rainpada hamlet, around 350 km from Mumbai. All five victims belonged to Dawari Gosavi community, a nomadic tribe as per the state list.\nAn officer who is part of the investigation said some of the accused, who have been arrested, have justified their act claiming that they were teaching a lesson to the “gang” that, they alleged, had come to Rainpada to abduct their children and sell off their body parts. “Asked about documents the victims tried to show to ascertain that they came from a tribe of nomads who travel village to village, begging for a living, the accused said they found it bogus,” the officer said.\nThe widows of the victims who were lynched to death by a mob who suspected them of child lifters. (Express photo by Prashant Nadkar/File) The widows of the victims who were lynched to death by a mob who suspected them of child lifters. (Express photo by Prashant Nadkar/File)\n“During interrogation they told us that they received several videos of (alleged) child-lifters in way of WhatsApp forwards over the last couple of months, and that they (these rumours) were being discussed (in the area). We have found many such videos on their phones and are probing if the two (the video clips and the fatal assault) are connected,” a senior Dhule police officer told The Indian Express.\nDhule Superintendent of Police M Ramkumar said, “Our focus is to arrest those who assaulted the victims, and not the bystanders. We have found 40 mobile phone clips shots by witnesses and we are studying them to zero in on the accused.”\nFor all the latest India News, download Indian Express App", "Police and CRPF personnel stand guard during restrictions imposed by the government authorities and strike call given by Hurriyat Conference following the killing of a youth, in Batamaloo area of Srinagar on Sunday. (PTI Photo by S Irfan, File) Police and CRPF personnel stand guard during restrictions imposed by the government authorities and strike call given by Hurriyat Conference following the killing of a youth, in Batamaloo area of Srinagar on Sunday. (PTI Photo by S Irfan, File)\nVEHICULAR traffic on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway remains suspended and all shops and businesses establishments in Banihal town closed, following an incident of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel allegedly beating some students on Tuesday.\nFour students including a girl were injured as police resorted to lathicharge to disperse protesters raising ‘pro-Azadi’ and ‘anti-India’ slogans to clear the highway to restore vehicular traffic. Though police claimed the situation was under control, sources said there was a complete bandh in the town and traffic on the national highway remained suspended.\nAccording to SHO Banihal, Inspector Mohammad Afzal Wani, trouble erupted after a van, on the way from Cheril village nearly 5 kms from Banihal, on this side of the Jawahar tunnel side overtook a CRPF convoy hitting one of their trucks moving from the Valley towards Jammu. Students of Government Higher Secondary School and Degree College were travelling in the van at the time.\nSome CRPF personnel in the truck immediately got down and started beating the van driver. As students in the van came to his rescue, CRPF personnel beat them up also, Wani said. He added that after being joined by local people, some of them even tried to snatch a gun from a CRPF jawan, when the police intervened and saved the situation.\nAfter persuasion, while CRPF personnel were made to proceed towards Jammu, students lifted their blockade from the road and moved towards Banihal town.\nHowever, in the town, they were joined by other students and locals, who continued protesting against the CRPF and the local police. The protesters forced closure of educational institutions and business establishments in the town.\nAs some students started pelting stones, breaking glass doors, counters and signboards, besides windscreens and window panes of vehicles, police resorted to lathicharge to disperse them. Though the pelting has stopped, business establishments are shut and vehicular traffic will remain off the highway till Tuesday evening.\nThis has been second time since last Sunday that trouble has erupted between locals and security forces personnel in Banihal town, leading to a complete shutdown in the area. On Sunday, a motorcyclist was killed in an accident with an army vehicle. Though police have registered an FIR and apprehended the erring driver, local people held a demonstration and closed their establishments.\nFor all the latest India News, download Indian Express App now", "CLEVELAND - A Cleveland woman, who filed an official complaint with Cleveland's Office of Professional Standards against a Cleveland police officer for assault, still has no resolution to her case a year and a half later.\n\"I've basically given up,\" said Rachelle Smith. \"It's a slap in the face to feel disrespected.\"\nSmith said a Cleveland police officer struck her across both forearms two years ago during a Brelo verdict protest as she was attempting to get a picture of the officer's badge.\nShe said that officer appeared to be documenting the protest on his personal phone, and he hit her in an attempt to get her to drop her phone.\nPersonal phone use is a violation of Cleveland Police policy, unless one is given special permission, according to police officials.\nThe Office of Professional Standards, or OPS , is charged with investigating citizen complaints made against Cleveland police officers.\nFor years, News 5 has uncovered efficiency and transparency problems with the department.\n\"I don't know what they're doing, but it's clearly not working, whatever it is,\" said Smith. \"Until they figure out a way to make it work, they're just going to continue wasting our money.\"\nThe Cleveland Police Monitoring Team, which oversees the implementation of the city's consent decree with the federal government, has also has expressed frustration with OPS in its reports and again issued the same sentiment in its third semi-annual report released Tuesday.\n\"The monitoring team has run out of words to capture the depth and breath of the progress that needs to be made to cure the current inability of Cleveland residents to have complaints about city employees fairly and fully addressed in a timely manner - and pursuant to the city's own charter,\" the team wrote in the report.\nAs of April 13, 2017, the team said OPS reported 383 pending investigations, with many complaints originating more than two years ago.\nThe report also said OPS lacks communication with complainants about the progress of cases and repeatedly does not forward completed cases up the chain for a decision.\n\"The system has been broken for some time and has failed to adequately serve the citizens of Cleveland and the men and women of the Division of Police,\" the report stated.\nDamon Scott is the administrator of OPS. He has repeatedly ignored or refused News 5's interview requests. Scott's boss is Public Safety Director Mike McGrath. He did not respond to News 5's interview request Tuesday.\nIn response to previous criticism, the city authorized OPS to hire eight more investigators.", "The German national at Robertsganj Police Station. (Source: ANI/File) The German national at Robertsganj Police Station. (Source: ANI/File)\nA 45-year-old German national who was arrested on charges of cheating and fraud in November last year escaped from police custody after jumping from a train in Allahabad on Monday.\nHolger Erik Misch fled when he was being taken to Himachal Pradesh for his appearance in a court in another case. He was lodged at Sonbhadra district jail.\nSonbhadra’s Superintendent of Police (SP) R P Singh said four policemen — a sub-inspector and three constables — who were escorting Holger to Himachal Pradesh, have been suspended on charges of negligence.\nThe SP said that a report on Holger’s escape has been sent to the Union Home Ministry, External Affairs Ministry and also German Embassy in New Delhi.\nAn FIR has also been lodged against Holger under IPC sections 223 (escape from confinement or custody negligently suffered by public servant) and 224 (resistance or obstruction by a person to his lawful apprehension) at Dhoomanganj police station in Allahabad.\nFor all the latest Lucknow News, download Indian Express App", "Microsoft reportedly will offer Windows 10 S as a default “mode” that it will sell with virtually all Windows consumer versions, several of which are being added as a part of a roadmap update.\nWhat isn’t clear, however, is whether the new Windows 10 versions — Entry, Value, Core, Core+, and Advanced, according to a report by Thurrott.com—will contain their own discrete feature set as well as their own licensing fees. The report claims that these new versions will begin shipping in April.\nIf the report is correct, though, the additional revamps will mean a significant change for Windows: Windows 10 S, currently a separate operating system on products like the Microsoft Surface Laptop, will be the default OS for all Windows 10 Home and Windows 10 Pro products. Windows 10 S only allows UWP apps to be loaded from the Windows Store, locking out traditional Win32 .EXE files.\nConsumers would still be able to access Windows 10 Home and Windows 10 Pro, and the article suggests that consumers will still have a window of time in which to upgrade. Consumers who wished to upgrade from Windows 10 S Pro to Windows 10 Pro, however, would be charged $49, the site reported. Thurrott also noted that these versions of Windows 10 S will apparently support third-party antivirus software, which traditionally runs as legacy .EXE versions.\nThough the site cites Microsoft data that claims the majority of Windows 10 S users stick with Windows 10 S, the limitations caused us to recommend switching to Windows 10 S Pro in our review of the Surface Laptop. Windows 10 S and its UWP apps have prompted some, such as Epic CEO Tim Sweeney, to characterize the somewhat limited UWP apps as killing PC gaming.\nDan Masaoka/IDG Windows 10 S has been the default OS of the Microsoft Surface Laptop and several smaller, cheaper devices for education.\nWhat are these new Windows 10 versions?\nThurrott.com, which claimed to have received its information via internal company documents, didn’t reveal too many details of the new Windows versions. Though the site did dig up what the new versions will cost partners/customers (not end users), there wasn’t any indication whether the new versions will contain their own unique feature sets.\nMicrosoft does appear to be charging partners more for more advanced hardware; for example, the Core+ version of Windows applies to desktop machines with less than 8 GB RAM and less than or equal to a 2TB hard drive or SSD, and costs partners $86.66. The Advanced version (priced at $101 to partners) includes hardware like a Core i7 plus 16GB of memory.\nWhat this means to you: With the Redstone 4 update of Windows (possibly called the Spring Creators Update, according to Thurrott.com) being somewhat blah, news of these tweaks to Windows are certainly interesting. But what this will mean to the traditional PC market isn’t great—gamers (who, admittedly, should be running Windows 10 for security reasons) who are running Windows 7 will be even less likely to switch. If a fragmented Windows market is still unpalatable to Microsoft, however, that implies that features won’t be divvied out in various portions to these new Windows derivatives. If they are, that seems like it could open the door to chaos.", "Kathua Chief Judicial Magistrate A S Langeh turned down the bail application of the underage accused, the local lawyers said\nRepresentational Image\nA Kathua court on Tuesday rejected the bail plea of an alleged juvenile offender, who was arrested in the rape and murder case of an eight-year-old girl. Kathua Chief Judicial Magistrate A S Langeh turned down the bail application of the underage accused, the local lawyers said.\nThe counsel for the underage accused had moved the court for his bail soon after the Crime Branch had filed its charge sheet against him and seven other adults allegedly involved in the January rape and murder case. The alleged juvenile offender had sought the bail on the ground of his age.\nAccording to the Crime Branch charge sheet, the juvenile accused had played a key role in the abduction, rape and gruesome murder of the girl.\nThe other accused arrested in the case include local resident Sanji Ram, his son Vishal Sharma and two special police officers.\nA police sub-inspector and a head constable too have been apprehended on charges of destroying crucial evidence in the case to save the culprits after taking a bribe. The body of the girl was recovered from a forest on January 17, a week after she had gone missing while grazing horses in the forest area.\nThe Jammu and Kashmir government had handed over the case to the Crime Branch, which had formed a special investigation team to probe the rape-cum-murder. The crime branch subsequently filed two separate charge sheets in the case - one of the seven adult accused on April 9 and the second against the juvenile accused on April 10.\nThough the Crime Branch has filed a separate charge-sheet against the juvenile accused, it had claimed in its earlier charge-sheet for adult accused that a medical examination had found to be an adult of around 19 years of age. The court, however, had earlier rejected the claim.\nAccording to the charge sheet, the underage accused, a school dropout, had lured the girl to a desolate place on the false pretext of helping her in finding her missing horses, held her captive at 'devisthan' where she was drugged and allegedly raped by him, Vishal and SPO on different occasions before being brutally killed.\nAlso Read: Kathua Rape-Murder Case: Police, SPO Arrested By SIT Move Jammu Kashmir HC\nEdited by mid-day online desk, with inputs from PTI\nCatch up on all the latest Crime, National, International and Hatke news here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates", "The court said the inquiry by the ICC was not conducted in the matter “according to principles of natural justice”. (Express photo: Ravi Kanojia/File) The court said the inquiry by the ICC was not conducted in the matter “according to principles of natural justice”. (Express photo: Ravi Kanojia/File)\nThe Delhi High Court on Wednesday dismissed as invalid a report of an internal complaints committee (ICC) set up by Air France to look into sexual harassment charges against a former senior officer of the airline.\nA bench of Justices S Ravindra Bhat and A K Chawla directed the French national carrier to reconstitute its ICC within 30 days “in strict compliance with the requirements under law” and ordered the panel to conduct a fresh inquiry.\nThe court set aside the report exonerating the official, a French national, who was handling its cargo business in India, Nepal and Bhutan in 2013, of all charges, observing that the “Vishaka guidelines are to be taken seriously, and not followed in a ritualistic manner”.\nThe court said the inquiry by the ICC was not conducted in the matter “according to principles of natural justice”.\nThe bench also noted that the sudden termination of employment of the the complainant — an Indian woman staffer — “also raises concerns regarding there being bias in the proceedings of the ICC”.\nFor all the latest India News, download Indian Express App", "Tantrums of a woman aboard resulted in a Zurich-bound flight to make an unscheduled stopover in Germany. The passenger got angry after the flight crew refused to serve her any more champagne.\nThe 44-year-old Swiss woman was flying in Business class from Moscow and asked the crew members to serve her wine repeatedly. The staff obliged first few times but after a point, they refused. The refusal caused her to snap and she started pacing up and down the aircraft and tried to drag an air hostess by the wrist.\nWhen the crew felt that they will not be able to control the situation, the pilots decided to make an emergency landing at Stuttgart Airport. As soon as the plane landed, police escorted the woman off the plane and asked her to pay EUR 5,000 (Rs 3.79 lakh) in fine, reported Russia Today.\nThe flyers also may have to reimburse the cost incurred by the airline to land the plane which could well be in tune of tens of thousands of Euros.\nThe authorities said that there was no real danger for the 43 passengers on board the flight.\nA few days ago, a plane in the US had to make an emergency landing as the passengers needed a 'bathroom break' . Enroute, the toilets of Boeing 757’s toilets “ceased functioning, with passengers queuing up and indicating they needed to visit the toilet,” the incident report filed by the airlines said. “All toilets were full and passengers needed to ‘go really bad,” as per the report.", "Representational Image/ File Photo Representational Image/ File Photo\nThe Bombay High Court Wednesday did not allow a minor girl, an alleged rape victim, to abort her 26-week-old foetus, citing it could endanger the girl’s life. The court, hearing a petition filed by her father, said she was in an advanced stage of pregnancy and such termination would put the girl at risk. The petition filed by the girl’s father, a Pune resident, had said the girl was “mentally not in a position to have this child”. Pointing out that it was too late to consider such a prayer, the court said, “We are not inclined to grant permission in this case. Such action would put the girl in danger.” The father withdrew his petition, but the court of Justice Ranjit More and Justice S A Kotwal allowed him to file a fresh petition seeking compensation.\nThe father had sought compensation of Rs 10 lakh from the state for his daughter “to secure her health and future”. According to his petition, the girl was denied termination of pregnancy because she is more than 20 weeks pregnant. The Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act allows a woman to abort her foetus only up to 20 weeks of pregnancy.\nThe petition had said it was the girl’s decision to terminate the pregnancy which was a result of “sexual relations that is not permitted by law or by her”. “…forcing pregnancy on her is an infringement of her right to life and right to privacy,” it said. The petition states that the girl (17) went missing from her college in August 2016.\nWhen her father came home from work on August 22, 2016, his wife told him she had not returned from college. Her parents searched for her and then filed an FIR with the Dattawadi police the next day alleging their daughter had been kidnapped by unknown persons. In the supplementary chargesheet, the father later stated that since his daughter’s disappearance, a boy in the neighborhood had also gone missing, the petition claims.\nAn investigation was initiated by the police thereafter. She was finally traced on April 23, 2017, during a procession of Ambedkar Jayanti in Solapur. The statement of the girl was recorded and the accused was remanded in police custody.\n“In her statement, she disclosed that the accused, who she knew by face, came to her college gate and said that her father was waiting at the Swargate stand in Pune and had asked him to get her there urgently. Thereafter, she was abducted by him…He forcefully put a mangalsutra. She was finally taken to Solapur and kept there forcefully,” stated the petition, adding that she was forced into a sexual relation with the accused.\nFor all the latest India News, download Indian Express App", "Four people have been arrested in relation to the “Game of Thrones” episode leak earlier this month, Agence France-Presse reported Monday.\nThe leak came days before Season 7′s fourth episode, titled “The Spoils of War,” was scheduled to air on Aug. 6. A watermark on the video file pointed to an HBO distribution partner servicing Southeast Asia called Star India.\n“We take this breach very seriously and have immediately initiated forensic investigations at our and the technology partner’s end to swiftly determine the cause,” a Star India spokesperson said in a statement at the time. “This is a grave issue and we are taking appropriate legal remedial action.”\nAccording to AFP, the four people arrested are accused of “criminal breach of trust and computer-related offences,” and will be detained until Aug. 21 pending an investigation. The agency reported that the group “possessed official credentials” at a “Mumbai-based company responsible for storing and processing the TV episodes for an app,” although it did not state the name of the company.\nDespite the leak, “The Spoils of War” became the series’ most-watched episode after its scheduled airing, drawing 10.17 million viewers.\nHBO confirmed to HuffPost that the “Spoils of War” leak was unrelated to the larger hack against the premium cable provider that was widely reported in late July. However, those hackers have also leaked “Game of Thrones” content, including a script for Season 7′s Episode 5, titled “Eastwatch.” The full extent of the data breach has not yet been confirmed.", "Delhi High Court (Express photo: Ravi Kanojia/File) Delhi High Court (Express photo: Ravi Kanojia/File)\nThe Delhi High Court has pulled up the Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences(IHBAS) and Metropolitan Magistrates over detention of a 72-year-old man and acting in contravention to the Mental Health Act. A bench of Justices S Muralidhar and I S Mehta censured a trial court judge and others while setting aside the orders passed by the Metropolitan Magistrate (MM) and directed that the man be left to the care of his family, if he was found fit for discharge.\nThe court was hearing a plea by the man’s son, who has alleged illegal detention of his father. The man had been defending a claim petition before the Motor Accidents Claim Tribunal (MACT) at the Rohini courts for over 10 years as party-in-person. On November 3, the case was listed at the Rohini courts. Due to some altercation between him and the lawyers appearing for the other side, the Presiding Officer called in the police and decided to send the man for medical evaluation at the Babasaheb Ambedkar (BSA) Hospital.\nThe man was kept at the BSA Hospital till the evening and thereafter produced before the Duty MM, who passed an order sending him to IHBAS to be kept under observation for 24 hours. The man’s family members were not informed that he had been detained even though he had been carrying his case papers, which should have easily given the details of his address. He was also carrying his mobile phone. The MM had noted that his whereabouts and his family was not ascertainable for questioning him. Thereafter, in another order passed on November 5, the duty MM directed that the man be admitted for 15 days.\nHis plight did not end there. Another order passed on November 20 directed that he be examined by a Standing Medical Board at IHBAS. As a result of the harassment, the man’s existing heart condition worsened and he was admitted at the Rajiv Gandhi Super Speciality Hospital. Hearing his appeal, the high court observed, the “court is left in no doubt that there has been a total violation of the mandatory provisions of Mental Health Act at every stage in these proceedings.\n“In none of the proceedings did the Duty MM/MM ensure that the man was represented by counsel. No question was even put to him in that regard. The orders passed, on the reports of the IHBAS, have resulted in a violation of the fundamental right of the man to life and liberty under Article 21 of the Constitution.” It directed the IHBAS and all mental health professionals associated with the man’s treatment to explain how without a proper certificate being issued regarding his mental illness, his continued detention in IHBAS was justified.\nThe bench directed the committees of the high court on the administrative side supervising the MM who passed the detention orders to look into the matter and take appropriate action. The bench also directed the Director of the Delhi Judicial Academy to organise at least four orientation courses on the Mental Health Act in the coming year to sensitise judicial officers, mental health professionals and the Delhi Police on the topic of mental illness.\nFor all the latest Delhi News, download Indian Express App", "A 29-year-old civil engineer was killed in an accident after he was hit by a steel rod being carried on a tractor on Dhanori Lohegaon Road, early on Monday.\nPolice have arrested the driver of the tractor for rash driving and causing death due to negligence. Vishrantwadi police have identified the deceased as Shrikant Mukundrao Bhalerao, a resident of Dhanori.\nSub-Inspector AS Chaugule of Vishrantwadi police station said, “Bhalerao was on his way home around 12.30 am when a steel rod, which the tractor driver had recklessly placed horizontally, hit him. Bhalerao sustained severe injuries and succumbed to them later.” Police have arrested the driver of the tractor Ashram Ramesh Kale (30), a resident of Lohegaon. Chaugule said Bhalerao worked as a civil engineer. A First Information Report in the case has been filed by Bhalerao’s brother Ajay.\nFor all the latest India News, download Indian Express App now", "Coffee County officials need your help to find a missing man. (Source: Coffee County Sheriff's Office)\nCoffee County officials need your help to find a missing man.\nWayne Gaskin, 53, has been missing for 10 days from the Douglas area.\nAuthorities said he was last seen driving a blue late 80's Chevy C-10 Truck.\nGaskin is described as a tall man with straight, black hair.\nIf you've seen him or know where he may be, call Douglas Police at 912-384-2222 or the Coffee County Sheriff's Office at 912-384-7675.\nCopyright 2017 WALB. All rights reserved.\nKeep up with WALB on the go!\nFollow us on social and download our apps!", "A division bench of Justices A S Oka and Riyaz Chagla was hearing public interest litigations (PILs) filed by four activists. (Express photo by Pradeep Kocharekar) A division bench of Justices A S Oka and Riyaz Chagla was hearing public interest litigations (PILs) filed by four activists. (Express photo by Pradeep Kocharekar)\nThe Bombay High Court today asked the Maharashtra government to decide by September 6 whether the toll collection on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway should continue. A division bench of Justices A S Oka and Riyaz Chagla was hearing public interest litigations (PILs) filed by four activists, seeking that the right of the contractor Mhaiskar Infrastructure to collect toll on the expressway be revoked.\nThe contractor firm has recovered the cost of the expressway construction project as per its agreement with the government and yet continues to collect toll, making “wrongful gains”, the PILs said. The court today also asked the government to look into any violation of terms of agreement in the toll collection process.\n“The state government will have to apply its mind as it also has to keep the larger public interest in mind. The issue concerns public funds and hence it is the government’s obligation to ascertain if there were any breaches or violations (of agreement),” Justice Oka said.\nThe government shall take a decision by September 6 as to whether the toll collection should stop entirely, or whether only light motor vehicles should be exempted, and whether there was any violation of the agreement, the court said.\nThe government shall take the decision after the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) submits a report on these issues, and also take into consideration recommendations of a state-appointed committee, it said.\nThe bench also noted that the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), which had initiated an inquiry into the petitioners’ allegations in July last year, closed it as no case was made out. The next hearing will be on September 7.\nAccording to the PILs, the contractor has already recovered the Rs 2,869 crore it was entitled to and is now making “wrongful gains” by continuing to collect the toll. In March last year, the petitioners had complained to the ACB, seeking action against government officials for failing to revoke the contractor’s right to collect the toll even after the company had recovered the stipulated toll income.\nWhen the ACB did not take any action, they moved the high court.\nFor all the latest Mumbai News, download Indian Express App", "The new UX 6.0+ to make its debut in the upcoming V30 from LG Electronics (LG) is an advanced version of LG’s UX that has been optimized to work even better with the immersive 18:9 OLED FullVision display while offering more personalization options for a more intuitive user experience. Featuring the company’s first OLED FullVision display and an advanced dual lens camera, the LG V30 is a powerful multimedia tool and the new UX is designed so that users can leverage its advanced capabilities to the fullest.\nGraphy, which can be accessed in the camera’s Manual Mode, gives any shutterbug professional quality photography capabilities. With Graphy, users can choose from among a portfolio of professional shots, each with a different style and mood or they can download photos taken by professionals from the Graphy website or mobile app and apply those metadata presets – such as white balance, shutter speed, aperture and ISO – to photos taken with the V30. Different shooting modes such as auto, grid shot, snap shot and match shot are conveniently grouped under one menu for ease of selection. GIFs can be quickly created in the Gallery menu while the Create Movie option allows for the creation of movie using photos and/or video files which can then be edited in the included Quick Video Editor.\nThe Second Screen in the LG V20 has evolved to become Floating Bar on the V30. The semi-transparent Floating Bar allows for quick access to frequently used functions and can be dragged completely off the FullVision display when not needed. When powered off, the Always-on Display is even more customizable than before. The AOD now not only shows the clock, it can also be set to display Quick Tools, Music Player or a personal photograph as well.\nSecurity features in the LG V30 are also more advanced than in LG’s previous smartphone UX. Using Face Recognition, the V30 can be unlocked instantaneously using the front facing camera even when the phone’s display is off. And there is no need to press the power button first, unlike on other phones. Voice Recognition uses a combination of the user’s voice and self-generated keywords (ideally three to five syllables combined) to unlock the V30 without the need to press a button or swipe the screen. It is supported by Qualcomm Aqstic voice UI technology for always-on, always-listening capabilities that requires very little battery power.\nEven the feel of the UX can be tailored to users’ preference. Haptic feedback on the LG V30 can be customized with various included vibration combinations that can be matched to the phone’s ringtone.", "Environment Minister Harsh Vardhan (File) Environment Minister Harsh Vardhan (File)\nAll issues related to the Centre’s recent notification banning sale and purchase of cattle from animal markets for slaughter will be addressed “seriously and honestly”, Union Minister Harsh Vardhan said on Thursday.\nOn a day when the Supreme Court sought response from the Centre on pleas challenging the controversial notification, the environment minister said that the government will reach out to persons, who have a “heartburn” over this issue. “The Supreme Court has given us time till July 11, but we will file our response before it,” Vardhan said.\nThe ban on sale and purchase of cattle from animal markets for slaughter has hit the export and trade of meat and leather. “We have already said that whosoever has any concern related to this issue, we (Centre) will seriously and honestly address those,” the minister told reporters on the sidelines of a function at the Delhi zoo. “We will reach out to any person in India who have a heartburn on this issue,” he said.\nA vacation bench of the apex court comprising Justices R K Agrawal and S K Kaul issued notice to the Centre and asked it to file response within two weeks on two separate petitions challenging the notification. It has fixed the matter for hearing on July 11.\nAdditional Solicitor General P S Narasimha, appearing for the Centre, told the bench that the intention behind bringing the notification was to have a regulatory regime on cattle trade across the country.\nThe Centre had on May 26 banned the sale and purchase of cattle from animal markets for slaughter through an Environment Ministry notification — Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Regulation of Livestock Markets) Rules, 2017 — under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act.\nOne of the petitioners, Hyderabad-based Mohammed Abdul Faheem Qureshi, had in his plea, filed on June 7, contended that the notification was “against the freedom of religious practice to sacrifice animals” and imposing a ban on slaughter of animals for food violates the right to food, privacy and personal liberty guaranteed to a citizen under the Constitution.\nFor all the latest India News, download Indian Express App", "CHICAGO (CBS) — A top aide to Congressman Randy Hultgren is out of job over allegations involving an underage boy.\n56-year-old Nick Provenzano was fired over the weekend.\nAccording to a police report obtained by the website Politico, Provenzano was found shirtless in a car in McHenry County with a 17-year-old boy he met on a gay dating app.\nHis Facebook profile says Provenzano is married with children.\nNo charges were filed in the case.\nHultgren’s office would not comment further only saying that Provenzano is no longer with the office.", "As per media reports, Arkady Babchenko who is a war journalist emerged at a press conference called by police to update the media persons on his murder\nArkady Babchenko. PTI\nA Russian journalist, said to be a critic of Kremlin, appeared at a press conference on Wednesday merely hours after he was \"murdered\".\nAs per media reports, Arkady Babchenko who is a war journalist emerged at a press conference called by police to update the media persons on his murder.\nAt the press conference, it was claimed by the chief of Ukraine's security services that they faked the killing of Arkady Babchenko to foil an alleged, planned hit on the journalist.\nBabchenko was shot at his home and died on his way to the hospital, the CNN had reported earlier.\nHe left Russia in 2017 after he wrote in the United Kingdom-based daily, The Guardian, about his experience suffering political harassment in Putin's Russia. He had also written about the Russian bombing of Aleppo in Syria.\nThe Russian Foreign Ministry called it an armed assault and demanded an investigation by independent groups.\nThis comes amidst allegations against Russian President Vladimir Putin for attempting to silence the critics.\nIt has been reported that a large number of Russian journalists, political activists, and human rights advocates have been killed or died under mysterious circumstances in recent years.\nHead of Ukraine¿s security services, Vasyl Hrytsak, reportedly said Babchenko¿s act of murder had been a trap that enabled police to catch the suspect and the mastermind behind these attacks.\nAccording to media reports, officials said they spent two months preparing for the fake attack.\nCatch up on all the latest Crime, National, International and Hatke news here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates", "Saba’s mother Saadma at their home in Ravidas Camp. (Express photo: Abhishek Angad) Saba’s mother Saadma at their home in Ravidas Camp. (Express photo: Abhishek Angad)\nSeven-year-old Saba was playing outside her home in Ravidas Camp jhuggi area in east Delhi’s Mandawali when she slipped and fell into a water tank, left open due to public work. This was in March 2012. Almost six years later, a Delhi court refused to take cognizance of the case. Reason: The police had taken too long to file a chargesheet.\n“If such a delay is to be condoned, there must be a cogent reason; that too supported with proof. An application filed blames earlier investigating officer for the delay, but the application is casual and reason is vague and without support. The condonation application is, therefore, rejected. Consequently, the cognizance declined,” Metropolitan Magistrate Rakesh Kumar Singh said.\nCourt sources said that under IPC Section 304A (death due to negligence), the maximum punishment is two years. If the accused is not arrested, police can file a chargesheet by the end of three years. In this case, police only filed the chargesheet in June this year.\nIt’s been so long that even Saba’s mother Saadma barely remembers details of the case. All she remembers is the lawyer asking for more money, which is why they stopped pursuing the case. “Pata nahi kya hua… paise bhi nahi mile,” she said, referring to promises of compensation made by politicians who had visited her home after the child’s death.\nWhile Saadma’s husband, Khurshid, drives an auto, she fills her days looking after her three other children. She has no idea that the court has declined to take cognizance of the police chargesheet, and there will be no action against the accused official.\nThe court said police had showed “casual behaviour” towards a serious crime. “The erring police officials need to explain their lapses, but it is for the police department to take necessary steps in this regard,” the court said, asking for a copy of the order to be sent to the Delhi Police Commissioner.\nExplaining the delay in filing the chargesheet, a court source said “none of the authorities were willing to take responsibility”.\nSources said at the time, the PWD was widening the road and the fire brigade, too, used the water from the tank. “The IO sent letters to the authorities concerned and finally zeroed in on an official as the accused this year. But in the absence of any evidence, the case remained weak. Even if the court had taken cognizance, he could have been easily discharged,” the source said.\nThe court, however, recommended compensation through DSLSA for the family — another fact they are unaware of. At Ravidas Camp, meanwhile, the water tank has been cemented shut, like nothing ever happened.\nFor all the latest Delhi News, download Indian Express App", "Ravindra Singh Rathore is Bareilly BJP president; case relates to municipal board property Ravindra Singh Rathore is Bareilly BJP president; case relates to municipal board property\nOn February 14, 2015, when the Samajwadi Party government was in power in Uttar Pradesh, Nawabganj police station in Bareilly lodged 33 cases against BJP district president Ravindra Singh Rathore. Over the last two months, police have filed closure reports in all 33 cases in a local court, most of these in May, officials say.\nThe cases relate to forgery and cheating allegedly committed in Nawabganj Municipal Board, where Rathore used to be chairperson. The cases were lodged on complaints by Shahla Tahir, the current, SP-supported chairperson of the municipal board.\n“The present BJP government machinery helped Rathore by filing closure reports,” Tahir alleged. “I will challenge it in the court and seek direction for further investigation.”\n“Closure reports have been filed in all 33 cases for lack of evidence,” said Special SP, Bareilly, Jogendra Kumar.\nRathore had been named in the 33 FIRs, along with others, for reallotment of 33 shops belonging to the municipal board during his tenure as chairman in 2001. Pramod Kumar Sharma, station house officer of Nawabaganj PS, said that Tahir had alleged in her complaints that documents were forged to reallot the shops.\nSharma said Rathore and others were booked under IPC sections 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 467 (forgery of valuable security, will, etc), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating), 471 (using as genuine a forged document or electronic record) and 392 (robbery).\nAll the cases were investigated by the Bareilly police crime branch. “Investigation of the cases was assigned among officers and they all filed closure reports in the court during the last two months. The court is yet to accept the reports,” said inspector Subhash Chandra Tyagi of the crime branch, who supervised the investigations.\nWhen contacted, Rathore said the police filed closure reports because the allegations were false. Since all cases were filed in one day only, he added, it showed that the FIRs were politically motivated.\nRathore was elected chairperson in 2001. Before that, Tahir was chairperson in 1995-2000; she was elected again in 2012.\n“Most of the shops allotted by Shahla Tahir [during her earlier tenure as chairperson] were under construction. After being elected in 2001, I allotted the shops following all norms and due process,” Rathore said.\n“A few days after the FIRs were lodged, I submitted my reply to the SSP and the district magistrate. The reply contained evidence as well,” said Rathore, adding that the shops are in possession of the same persons who had been allotted these in 2001.\nTahir said that during her tenure of 1995-2000, the 33 shops were built and possession was handed over to various people after due process. However, she alleged, the documents were forged and the same shops were reallotted to other persons in 2001. She alleged that the new allottees took possession of the shops forcibly by throwing out belongings of the original allottees.\nFor all the latest India News, download Indian Express App", "Madurai MLA S Saravanan filed the case against her and Palanisamy at Kuvathur Police Station.\nChennai: In more trouble for V K Sasikala, AIADMK MLA from Madurai, S Saravanan on Wednesday filed a kidnapping case against her and Palanisamy in Kuvathur Police Station. He alleged that the MLAs were put up in the resort by her against their will.\nSS Saravanan, who represents Madurai South, landed up at acting Chief Minister O Panneerselvam's residence late night on Monday this week, and told reporters that he had escaped the Koovathur resort by scaling a wall.\nSaravanan also claimed that he had to disguise himself to escape from the resort. He alleged that party MLAs \"were being detained\" at the Koovathur resort and claimed he had given a slip by wearing a \"t-shirt and Bermuda (shorts)\".\n\"If a floor test is held today, Panneerselvam will win it. Both those who have come to his side and those who have not will vote for him,\" he had said.\nThe Supreme Court on Tuesday had dashed Sasikala’s hopes of becoming the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu by convicting her in the DA case and sentencing her to four years in jail. Sasikala is on her way to Bengaluru to surrender herself.\nThe 62-year-old leader, who was locked in a bitter tussle with AIADMK's O Panneerselvam for Tamil Nadu's chief ministership, took the inevitable journey to the Karnataka capital after the Supreme Court refused to give her further time to surrender.", "Police remain at the scene of the collision after crash in Fife on Tuesday night.\nCrash: Three-year-old was fatally injured (file pic). © STV\nA three-year-old boy has died after being hit by a tractor on a farm in Fife.\nThe incident took place in Crossgates at around 5.15pm on Tuesday.\nThe child died at the scene and police are investigating the circumstances.\nA police spokesman said: \"Police in Fife are investigating after a child was killed during a collision on a farm in Fife. The incident happened around 5.10pm on Tuesday at a property in Crossgates.\n\"A three-year-old boy sustained fatal injuries after he was involved in a collision with a farm vehicle and was pronounced dead at the scene.\n\"Inquiries into the full circumstances surrounding this matter are continuing.\"\nA spokesman for the ambulance service said: \"We got a call at 5.17pm yesterday evening to respond to an incident in Crossgates, Fife.\n\"We dispatched multiple resources. The first unit arrived at the scene at 5.21pm.\"\nThe Health and Safety Executive (HSE) confirmed it had received a report about the incident and was \"making inquiries\".\nWant to receive the latest headlines straight to your inbox? Subscribe to our 'Morning Briefing' newsletter. Subscribe This field is required. That doesn't look like a valid e-mail format, please check. That e-mail's already in our system. Please try again. Please tick the box below to confirm your subscription Thanks for subscribing to our 'Morning Briefing' newsletter. Subscribed Want to receive the latest headlines straight to your inbox? Subscribe to our 'Morning Briefing' newsletter. Thanks for subscribing to our 'Morning Briefing' newsletter. Subscribe\nDownload: The STV News app is Scotland's favourite and is available for iPhone from the App store and for Android from Google Play. Download it today and continue to enjoy STV News wherever you are." ]

[ "what is this i shall taste it" ]

[ "Well, I think it depends on the person. Everyone has a wish list. The trick is figuring out that list without being obvious. Try looking at interests, likes, hobbies... what does he or she talk about a lot, what does he or she do in their spare time?", "Try drinking milk before going to bed sometimes that helps me. Also, it might be Restless Leg Syndrome (RLS) you should mention it to your doctor. There might be something s/he can do to help.", "There are solutions to milk induced bellyaches.\\n\\nIf his bellyache is caused from lactose intolerance, all he needs to do is take a few lactase tablets when he eats a dairy product (milk, yogurt, butter, ice cream, cheese, etc). My husband and daughter are lactose intolerant sometimes because they have celiac. For them, if they do not eat anything that conatins gluten in it (wheat, barley, etc.), they do fine with the dairy products. This is because the body makes its own lactase to break down the lactose in milk products at the tips of the vili. Vili are tiny, fingerlike projections in your small intestine. There are a variety of problems that can damage the vili - like celiac. Since the tips of these vili are particularly vulnerable, lactase production is often stopped. This type of damage will often heal if the reason for the damage for the vili can be removed and healing occur. Until then, lactase tablets do work for people who do not produce enough on their own. There is even a lactase treated milk that you can buy. It tastes a bit sweeter than regular milk because the lactase has broken lactose down into simpler sugars that the tongue perceives as sweeter.\\n\\nLactose is a carbohydrate. But not all milk digestion problems are due to this carbohydrate. Milk is also made up of proteins. Some people do just fine with the lactose, but have a problem with one of the milk proteins. My son is like this. He can drink goat's milk just fine, but when he drinks cow's milk his stomache turns into a knot. We can buy goat's milk in the same section of our store as we can buy cow's milk. It tastes pretty similar - maybe a bit creamier. It makes awesome ice cream and the tastiest mashed potatoes! You can even get cheese made from goat's milk. It is called chevre which is French for the word goat. Some friends of ours raise goats and they are sooo cute. I have to admit to considering trying to raise a nanny goat for the milk. They can give as much as a gallon of milk a day for nine months out of the year. You let them rest from milking for 3 months after being bred. Then they have a kid goat and the milking starts all over again.\\n\\nWhy don't you ask your parents to try him on goat's milk and also try the lactase tablets. You may very well find a solution for him that will let him enjoy dairy products pain free.\\n\\nGood luck", "Call the agency that had the warrant(s) on the person to see if he/she is incarcerated. Ask to speak to someone in detention, then just ask if the person is there. If the person is in prison, you can search online. Many states have a Department of Corrections website that can be used to search for past and present offenders. They usually have a picture of the prisoner and a list of what he/she was convicted for, when he/she started the sentence and when he/she is up for parole, parole review, or release. Just search for \"state + department of corrections.\" Hope this helps.", "whoa, i think im the first man to answer this, well, i think that harry loves the four of them: hermione, cho, ginny, and luna, but hink twice.\\n\\nhermione: she has been with him since the first book, and went with him to face voldemort on most of the books.\\n\\ncho: harry told her about the D.A. meetings, and paid special attention to her, but I am not totally sure that he doesnt love her anymore, cuz it was she who broke up.\\n\\nginny: harry felt angry when he saw her with dean thomas, and he gave her the last gulps of the felix felicis, he broke up with her cuz he was scared that she could die because of the enemysty between harry and voldemort.\\n\\nluna: harry invited her to slughorn´s party as only friends, but he did it without thinking, he feels bad when at the end of the 5th book she saids that people takes her things, also, they share a lot of things in common: both can see the thestrals, both have lost family, etc.\\n\\n<i personally think that rowling´s mind is thinking of uniting luna and harry, but i think that it will end with ginny if harry doesnt die> \\n\\nim a man, so dont mizunderstan me, i give potter a 8", "I'd sit them down and tell them what you thought. ( Make sure you tell them that you mean no offense for whatever it is that you're going to say first.) Tell them that you don't like what this guy is doing to her. Try and figure out exactly why it is that she's acting like that, it could be that she's trying to change for him or she may feel that she's better then everyone else now that she's with him.If it's the first then tell her that she doesn't need to or should act like that for anyone. If it's the other then you should make it clear to her that being with this guy doesn't make her any better, she still is who she is and being with someone, no matter who it is, doesn't make a difference. If you have to you could also try talking to her boyfriend see what he thinks.", "First of all, dumbasses, I don't think nitai777 is from our wonderful country or he/she would not be saying \"Why are you\", or saying \"Mr. Bush\" as opposed to \"President Bush\" or spelling Iraq in a non-English manner. Did you know that in other languages they use other words? Idiots.\\n\\nHe or she asked a legitimate question that deserves an honest answer instead of getting on a soap box to bash liberals or conservatives.\\n\\nThe answer is they are trying to help. Right or wrong, whether we agree with them or not, they are trying to help, and no matter what political side we are on, or how we feel about the President (I personally think he's a greedy idiot) or war in general, the young men and women are just trying to help the people over there.", "Well, well. First of all, wearing the belt is not an assurance. Try to ask what makes her ask u to do this. and for her, u can actually wear it also. may be she s jus trying to find. how much you care!", "First of all, she can only control what he allows her to. I understand that he does not want to disrespect her but she has too obviously butted in before. Don't involve her in personal business and decisions. As a matter of fact, keep discussions with her on subjects about HER. Try putting distance between him and her. It's really sad to say, but if he doesn't put an end to this, it won't end.", "They both result in the same outcome - something being unsuccessfully accomplished, but the motives behind them are different. In quitting, it is a choice in the persons mindset. He or she has lost the “drive” to continue and decide not to anymore, whereas in giving up, it is a result of outside circumstances that force the person to stop. For example, take wrestling… in wrestling a person could just quit and stop, (because s/he has lost the desire to go on) - but if that same person has been pinned, s/he would be forced to give up, (although s/he didn’t want to) in order to be freed and let loose. See..", "You listen to her problems day in and day out? Are you unique in this aspect, or is she just a chronic complainer? If you are the only person (or, at least, the only guy) she brings her troubles to, I'd say she already has a thing for you, although she may not be concious of it yet. And if that's the case, it's probably up to you to make the first move. If you really can't bear to bring the subject up in person, try a note or an email. You'll probably be able to express what you want to say much more eloquently and clearly in that format, and I guarantee that she'll respect you for having the guts to say what you really think.", "You shouldn't ever guage how you determine the course of your life or career based on what you think someone else will think of you. You should take a position that will fulfill you more in your career and within yourself.\\n\\nIf your boss is a good person, and you're open, honest and straightforward in your pursuit of a different position, then your boss will encourage you to better yourself. If (s)he doesn't, then (s)he isn't really a good person to work for.", "I think the first thing you should do is to introduce yourself and start a conversation with her. Try to get a feel for who she is, what she likes, her type of personality. You'll never know any of the basics unless you even talk to the girl. Once you know the basics, then that will help you make a decision to ask her out.", "Actions speak louder than words, so if you're always there for the person you love no matter what, if you do whatever's in your power to make that person feel better when he/she is down, if you express your happiness when that person shares some good news, if you show that person that he/she comes first, then you are saying \"I love you\" each and every time.", "Ouch this a hurtfull situation. But first you need to confront him and find out whats going on and dont let him play you for stupid. You next person to confront is her! She needs to know what she is dealing and find out what she is doing. He may think its harmless but you guys have 2 kids together and it sounds like he is pretty seriously committed to you. He should have no reason to call her and break up a happy home. You seriously might want to rethink the whole relationship. Maybe even give him a scare and say you are leaving him because you found out he was talking to \"that girl\" if he loves you he will stop and wont ever do it again. And seriously think about it he has already cheated on your with this girl and she is obbviously still on his mind. You should have cut it off when he first cheated.", "The sanctity of the cow is perhaps the foremost sentiment of Hindus for whom this sacred animal has far deeper nuances in Indian culture and ethos than is generally understood. For instance, in Sanskrit, the vocabulary used to mention the cow is indeed staggering, revealing the extraordinary importance that was once attached to it.\\n\\nIndian scriptures tell us that the cow is a gift of the gods to the human race. It is a celestial being born of the churning of the cosmic ocean. \\n \\n \\n Guias the cow is called in Hindi, is symbolic of Earth itself (similar to Gaia,the Greek goddess of earth). It follows that the cow represents the Divine Mother that sustains all human beings and brings them up as her very own offspring. Much as a mother shows the highest mark of affection for her young, the passion of the cow for her calf is just as legendary and often referred to in Indian literature. The ancient texts describe how the gods run to the succour of a devotee like a cow hastening to feed her calf. In fact, the cow is even more than a mother in the sense that it fulfills all the needs of her children as well. It is in this conception that the cow is understood as Kakadhenu, the wish filling mythical cow, abode of the 330 million Indian gods and goddesses.\\n\\nBut in Indian mythology and legend, it is with the cult of Krishna that the cow is closely connected. Among other deeds, Krishna is said to have lifted mount Govardhan to protect his group of cows, cowboys and milkmaids. In popular imagination it is Lord Krishna who symbolized the relationship man should have for the cow. Hence to take care of this innocent and self-sacrificing animal is a matter of virtue for Hindus who identify the act ad dharma or moral duty.\\n\\nConsiderations of conscience aside, it was natural that in a predominantly agricultural and pastoral country like India, cows were and to some extent still are, considered to be the real wealth of the people. After all it is the cow that gives birth to the bulls, bulls that are harnessed to plough the fields and to provide transportation. And then of course, there is the mild--milk that is cultured to become yoghurt--yoghurt which is churned to produce butter--butter which is converted into ghee or clarified butter that in India is used as cooking medium. In addition to this, there is paneer or cottage cheese and buttermilk. Indians cannot forget khoyaand mana--the other milk derivatives used in preparation of sweets. No wonder the cow is considered the backbone of rural society. \\n\\nPaeans of praise is reserved for cow's milk and ghee which is considered to be an elixir. Dr. D. Bhandari, the former Director of Animal Husbandry in Rajasthan said, \"You see it is the wonderful bacterial flora of the cow's stomach that imparts this matchless quality to its milk ideally balanced for humans. Buffalo milk may be richer but it is the cow's milk that sharpens intellect, gives swiftness of body, stability of emotions and a serene nature to the one who drinks it.\" \\n\\nAlso taken, but in measured quantities, is cow urine or gau mutra which has a unique place in Ayurveda, the ancient Indian system of medicine. Commenting on the chemistry of gau mutra,Dr. C.H.S. Sastry, Director of the National Institute of Ayurveda said, \"Cow urine is used to produce a whole range of ayurvedic drugs, especially to treat skin diseases like eczema.\" Besides, gau mutra is a well known disinfectant. Anti-septic property is also the attribute of cow dung or gobar which is mixed with clay to form a plastering medium for mud huts. It is a proven fact that mud huts plastered with gobar keeps insects and reptiles away. This is the reason why people in the countryside still store grain in huge earthen pots plastered with gobar and gau mutra to keep it free from insect manifestations. \\n\\nGobarand gau mutrais also mixed with mud and straw to make dried cakes that fuel kitchen fires. Traditional wisdom says that in burning", "A good person does not mean he will never make mistakes in life. \\nA good person knows what he/she is doing , right or wrong, he/she will rectify and be responsbible.", "Hmmm...wot do guys like in a gal? It's a li'l tricky question, I must say. Yet, I'll try to answer the best I can manage.\\n\\nI think, whenever a guy looks at a gal, the first thing he's gonna notice are her body, her clothes and probably the way she carries herself. And then again, if those 1st impressions pique the guy's interests, he might go up and talk. In that case, what matters, what personally feel, is the substance in her words, the way she talks, her choice of words, how intellectual she is...and yeah, definitely how funny she is.\\n\\nNow, what a guy might like in a gal are obviously dependent on himself and that the criteria are definitely subjective. I think u shall just need to look out for the right signs and decipher them to realize what your guy likes about you and improvise on them!!", "I dont know that its a lack of moral education, for moral education is dependent on what your morality is. Bout the 20's our ideals and ideas of what is right and wrong for us. and it has evolved into what it is today. I personally dont see having sex on the first date a necessarily a bad thing. (not stating its done often just stating that it depends on the person) it also depends on where you meet the person. Environment plays a part as to what is intended. Bars and the like. I dont know that flirting and looking will come to saying hey i want sex, I think that will stay the same. But dating has changed and you need to either try to avoid the first date sex or embrace it. Its depends on what you and your partner (date) want.", "Okay, I was in a similar sitution. This girl at my school, who happened to be my boyfriend's (at the time) ex, tried to break us up. It worked, also for like a day, and we got back together. Then she was saying stuff like she wanted to kick my a s s and run me over with a truck and crap like that. I told my boyfriend about it and he said that if she did anything to me, he would make her face unidentifiable. Ha! She never did anything about it, I think she was just trying to sound tough about it. I'd tell your boyfriend and he can tell her off, and I'm sure he'll keep you safe.", "Interesting question. I'm not black, but I personally think he wasnt covicted in the first place because of him being a celebrity. I think if she was black or white, he still wouldnt have been convicted. I think that so many people out there dont want to see or believe a celebrity would do such a thing.", "WHERE IS SHE? IF SHES STILL LIVING TRY TALKING TO HER EVERYDAY AND VISITING 1'S EVERY TWO WEEKS IF POSSIBLE YOU CAN NEVER GET OVER YOUR SISTER NO MATTER WHAT", "If women ran the Pentagon, we would probably have international defense policy based on diplomacy and \"most likely\" scenarios, logical approaches to defenses based on game theory, a much lower budget, and a safer country.\\nIt's bad to generalize, but I think that MOST women with guns think first, then shoot. There are a fair number of women hunters in the US, but when did you last here about one of them shooting a cow because she thought it was a deer, or a lawyer because she thought he was a quail?\\n\\nThe missiles we would have would be much the same shape. But we'd only have enough to annihilate everything once or twice, instead of many times over.\\n\\nBut there you go.\\n\\nWe get what we deserve...", "Well I'm sorry to say this but she shouldn't have trusted him this much. I know she was so crazy for him because he was her firest bf even though she had never met him in person. You are her real friend and I think it's true that she never had any bf before, but what about him? He could have just lied to her about whatever he said. Maybe she wasn't this guy's first gf. Maybe he was playing around with her online after all just for fun. Then she started to get serious, which probably made him upset, so he just changed his phone # and everything to get rid of her. \\nI'm so sorry to say this but there's nothing you guys can do. He doesn't love her as she does. It's just gonna annoy him if you try hard to find his new phone # and contact him to tell how much she loves him and wants him back. \\nSorry...but I believe she learned something from this experience.", "Really why does it matter to her now. If she broke up with him for cheating then she got back with him knowing he was a cheater. Ok she got back with him after he cheated because she loves him, and now she thinks he is cheating again. Well she loves him so she should over look it again (which is what she did by taking him back in the first place). Or she can get smart and leave him, obviously he isn't going to change. What reason does he have to she accepted it by taking him back.", "i would tell you boyfriend how you feel about his ex wife. tell him that you really don't feel right her staying there. she is worried that you are taking what she had first but how i see it she was the one that let go of him and she thinks that he is going to wait around for her to come back around a crap. i would tell him everything that you don't like about her, what you think about her. just tell it how it is girl. because that is just going to hurt you guys in the long run because she might try to say something to him or something that will mess everything up. or try to start crap.", "First I would validate that s/he indeed is cheating.\\n\\nS/he might have other issues that you are not aware of.\\n\\nConfront the person if possible, in a non-hostile manner.", "No he isn't holier. But I know what you mean. I think that you need to see how close you are to him. Is he your friend? Does he even talk to you? With these type of men they seek realy spiritual women that will be a help in their ministry. Try to talk to him. Start trying to be friends first. Then see how it turns out. I agree with the person that wrote that you might just be infatuated with the role and not the person. It is realy easy to get that way. Just start by being friends that way you can see if it's the man or the role that your in love with.", "If you're really not sure of what you feel for him, then just try to entertain him about his feelings for you... Never tell a person you love him/her if you're not sure because it really hurts in their part when you don't show it to them... Try to think first before making any moves and be sure of everything if you're talking about true commitment... You can also try telling him about your feelings that at this moment, you're still not sure what you feel, if he's matured enough, he will understand you, and if he really loves you, he will wait for your decision without lessening his feelings for you... Also use the situation right now to test if what he feels for you is true...", "First let me say that I have it on both ends. I collect child support, and I help my husband with the child support he has to pay. Now in answer to your question, CHILD SUPPORT is just that. You are paying that money to support that child. The courts set an amount that is what should be paid. Anything you give over that amount is considered a gift. You are not obligated in any way to give more than that amount. I do not ask my childrens father for another dime outside of what he is court ordered to provide. The bottome line is this, if you continue to cater to the person receiving the child support and give them more than what is ordered, they will think they are owed that and will continue to ask for more than the obligated amount. My husband, as I stated, pays child support and his ex wife is always TRYING to be in his pockets. She says the kids need this, she cant afford that. Well he is paying his support and she is to use that money to provide for the kids needs, not hers. So if she is blowing the CHILD SUPPORT money on herself then she is at fault. Now if he wants to give the kids some extra money just because he wants to then that is fine. But I will be damned if he give her money just because she says the kids need because he has already fulfilled that matter.", "Well that depends on what country you are. I guess in general most countries don´t go investigating around who´s married twice. As this is mostly a civil matter, the person that has been affected should be the one to file against the person that married twice. Say I am married and my husband married another woman without divorcing me first I would be the one taking him to court. To prove that he is guilty you just have to show that there are two Marriage Certificates and then he would have to prove his innocence by presenting a valid Certificate of Divorce that demonstrates that he divorced the first wife on a date before his second marriage. This is the way it´s done in countries that go by the Napoleonic or French Law System. I guess it´s different in another countries where the English Common Law is practiced.", "I think the first apperance is what attractts a girl. If the guy is good looking she will have second look and then only will go for the physical part of the body. Of course the physical parts do attract the girls and they feel proud to be with a well built man rather than a skinny person. But then it all depends on the man how he carries himself either physically and mentally." ]

[ "I dati diffusi al seminario Siae sulle nuove tecnologiee il mercato della musica nella telefonia mobile Loghi e suonerie, boom inatteso un mercato da 1 mld nel 2005" ]

[ "Per il 2005 previsto un mercato stabile in Europa", "A 1,594 milioni e continua boom fisco: in 7 mesi +23 mld", "Nel 2005 e' prevedibile un aumento dei consumi", "Sceso a 36,4 mld dai 58,323 mld dello stesso periodo 2005", "Incremento di 24,2 mld, prosegue il boom registrato a giugno", "24,608 mld in meno rispetto allo stesso periodo 2005", "Produttore Usa nel 2006 ha perso 1,5 mld dlr", "Sorpresa di Natale. Sono i cellulari, a dispetto delle previsioni che parlano di un mercato ormai saturo, a farla da padroni sotto l&#39;albero. Suonerie polifoniche, sms, mms e videoconversazione continuano infatti", "Lanciato da societa' finlandese, mercato da 12 mld sterline", "''Segnalammo Maldonado per il mercato di gennaio 2005, insieme a Polenghi e Sartor''. Lo ha detto Ma...", "Camion bomba e' esploso in un mercato nel nord del Paese", "Nel 1/mo semestre: l'aumento e' del 23%, ricavi per 546 mld", "Gestione e appalti controllati da cosche nel 2003-2005", "Covered bond italiani hanno potenziale mercato da 200 mld", "L'accordo riguarda un mercato potenziale di 3 mld di euro", "Per la prima volta il fatturato superera' un mld di euro", "Si è passati dai 151,8 miliardi del 2005 ai 155,6 di quest'annoForte boom degli iscritti all'Istituto: +700.000 dal 2004 a oggi Inps, spesa +3,5% nel 2006 in aumento le pensioni di anzianitÃ", "Sul mercato avrebbero fruttato un milione e mezzo di euro", "Un secondo boom del digitale, sta scuotendo i mercati e il mondo del lavoro. Ecco come diventer&agrave; la Rete nei prossimi anni. E come diventaremo noi. Su Affari e Finanza", "Esce la prima beta di *Google Print* e tenta di imporsi nel mercato della vendita on-line di libri. Infatti entra in un mercato per il momento monopolizzato da Amazon e Barnes &amp; Noble. Lo stile di Google rimane", "Perde due milioni rispetto al 2005 e 10 punti di share", "1,7 mld in meno rispetto allo stesso periodo del 2006", "Sceso a 21,4 miliardi, a dicembre indebitamento di 3,1 mld", "Nel quarto trimestre, a 268 mln di dollari da 5,26 mld", "Flessione nell'intero anno dell'1,7% a 7,3 mld dollari", "Da banche 5,1 mld dollari, altri 775 mln da aumento capitale", "Pubblicita' on line: un business da 10 mld di dollari annui", "Pronti oltre 12 mld da Continental e TRW", "Ok a budget 2005, utile netto a 1,51 miliardi", "Nell'intero 2006 toccano i 25,4 mld dollari,stabili sul 2005", "Jerome Kerviel e' accusato di mega perdita da 4,9 mld", "Le immatricolazioni italiane segnano un +8%Il Lingotto si ritaglia una quota di mercato del 7,9% Europa, cresce il mercato del'auto L'Italia e la Fiat fanno da traino" ]

[ "It's time to find out what, if anything, our \"mysterious interloper\" has to say. That, at any rate, is the guiding idea for a team of astronomers, who announced Monday they plan to check out an interstellar object for signs of life. Beginning Wednesday, the group Breakthrough Listen will closely scan the asteroid 'Oumuamua, a recently spotted space rock that hails from outside our solar system. The skinny object is the first of its kind that scientists have observed. And since it has already whipped around our sun and embarked on its long return to parts unknown, researchers working with the international organization want to seize their limited opportunity to find out if it really is just a naturally occurring phenomenon — and not something more. \"Researchers working on long-distance space transportation have previously suggested that a cigar or needle shape is the most likely architecture for an interstellar spacecraft, since this would minimize friction and damage from interstellar gas and dust,\" the group said in its announcement. \"While a natural origin is more likely, there is currently no consensus on what that origin might have been, and Breakthrough Listen is well positioned to explore the possibility that 'Oumuamua could be an artifact.\" \"The possibility that this object is, in fact, an artificial object — that it is a spaceship, essentially — is a remote possibility,\" Andrew Siemion, a member of the initiative and director of Berkeley's Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence Research Center, told The Washington Post on Monday. \"We don't want to be sensational in any way, and we are very realistic about the chances this is artificial,\" Yuri Milner, the Russian billionaire financing the project, told the Scientific American, \"but because this is a unique situation we think mankind can afford 10 hours of observing time using the best equipment on the planet to check a low-probability hypothesis.\" And they'll be checking on that hypothesis by scanning the object for possible artificial transmitters through a radio telescope at West Virginia's Green Bank Observatory. Time will be of the essence, however. \"We might have, for moderately large telescopes, another handful of days, maybe a couple of weeks,\" Karen Meech, an astronomer at the University of Hawaii Institute for Astronomy, which discovered the object, told NPR's Nell Greenfieldboyce in October. \"So we don't have much time to study it.\" Meech acknowledged to the Post that 'Oumuamua's characteristics are \"entirely consistent with being a natural object\" — but, she added, \"this is the sort of opportunity that one would hate to miss, even if the chances are extremely low for success.\" 'Oumuamua, whose name means \"scout\" or \"messenger\" in Hawaiian, might yet have a revelatory message for us — and if so, Breakthrough Listen hopes to be there to hear it." ]

[ "Traces of rare forms of iron and plutonium have been found at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, after some kind of cataclysm in outer space created this radioactive stuff and sent it raining down on our planet. The extraterrestrial debris arrived on Earth within the last 10 million years, according to a report in the journal Science. Once it hit the Pacific Ocean and settled to the bottom, nearly a mile down, the material got incorporated into layers of a rock that was later hauled up by a Japanese oil exploration company and donated to researchers. \"Just knowing that there's plutonium there is amazing,\" says Brian Fields, an astronomer at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign who was not part of the research team. \"Now we only have tiny amounts of material — after all, we're talking about hundreds of atoms here. But we should be grateful for that, because they are freshly made from exploding stars.\" Freshly made specimens like these could help scientists understand how the universe forged elements heavier than iron, such as gold, platinum, uranium and plutonium. \"These are the elements where we are still in a mystery,\" says Anton Wallner, a physicist with the Australian National University in Canberra who led the international team that did the new work. \"We do not know exactly where they are produced and how much is produced in different sites.\" Figuring out the source of these elements is a big deal for astronomers, who already pretty much know where the rest of the periodic table comes from. Hydrogen and helium got born in the Big Bang, for example, and elements such as carbon and oxygen form in the cores of stars — that's why beloved astronomer Carl Sagan liked to say, \"We are made of star stuff.\" Astronomers believe the very heaviest elements must come from an environment more intense than an everyday star. One possibility is when a massive star goes through its death throes and explodes as a supernova. The powerful blast would send elements spewing out in all directions, and if a supernova is nearby, says Fields, \"all of these elements that are made in the supernova get delivered to us and literally rain upon our heads, literally rain down on the Earth.\" About 25 years ago, he and a couple of colleagues suggested a way to find some of that kind of debris. They pointed out that a supernova makes stable elements, but it also makes certain unstable, radioactive forms of elements that last for only millions of years before decaying. These particular atoms would live just long enough to find their way to Earth from an exploding star and be discovered by scientists — but wouldn't be mistaken for the stable elements that have been around since the Earth formed billions of years ago. Researchers went hunting for these treasures from outer space and soon started to find a telltale form of iron called iron-60 in deep-sea rocks, Antarctic snow and even samples from the moon. All of these results suggested that some kind of stellar explosion, probably a supernova, happened in Earth's cosmic neighborhood about 3 million years ago and littered the area with radioactive iron. This latest study of iron that got incorporated into the slowly growing layers of a deep-sea rock confirms that notion — but also suggests yet another dose of interstellar iron arrived around 6 million years ago. \"So there's not just one exploding star — there's two,\" says Fields. What's more, in this study the researchers were able to detect atoms of distinctive plutonium-244, which does not exist naturally on Earth. By looking at the quantities of plutonium and iron in the layers of rock, they could compare what they saw with what models predict about the production of these elements by cosmic events like supernovas. Their analysis suggests that something else must have contributed beyond supernovas, says Wallner. Astronomers have long suspected a smashup between two neutron stars might be another potential source of heavy elements. \"Our data actually suggests that it might be that both scenarios are necessary,\" says Wallner. \"It's both. It's supernovae explosions that produce a part of these heavy elements but also neutron star mergers or any other rare events.\" Hendrik Schatz, a physicist with Michigan State University who was not part of the research team, says these new results are amazing. While tantalizing hints of this form of plutonium have been found in the past, he says, \"we were always hoping that someone would finally get a large enough sample and find that in the deep-sea ocean sediments. We've kind of waited for that for a long time.\" In his view, the new findings add to other evidence that the heaviest elements, such as plutonium, can't be generated by just regular old supernovas. \"It must be some rare event, something else,\" says Schatz. \"There are a lot of pieces of evidence that point to multiple sources. Neutron star mergers are probably one of the more important sources, but at this point it doesn't look like they", "The largest radio telescope in the world officially opened on Sunday, according to China's official Xinhua News. The Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Telescope, or FAST, is named after its diameter, which, at 500 meters, is 195 meters wider than the second-largest telescope of its kind, the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico. Xinhua reports the telescope cost $180 million and 8,000 people were displaced from their homes to create the necessary 3-mile radius of radio silence around the facility. It will be used for \"observation of pulsars as well as exploration of interstellar molecules and interstellar communication signals.\" Pulsars are imploded cores of stars slightly larger than the sun, which emit radiation that can be detected from Earth, if your telescope is sensitive enough. A researcher with China's National Astronomical Observation, Qian Lei, told Xinhua the new telescope is so sensitive, in a test it detected radio waves from a pulsar 1,351 light-years away. Like radio telescopes in other parts of the world, FAST will study interstellar molecules related to how galaxies evolve. For example, this summer a team using data from the Very Large Array, a collection of radio antennas in the New Mexico desert, picked up what scientists describe as \"faint radio emission from atomic hydrogen ... in a galaxy nearly 5 billion light-years from Earth.\" In the paper describing their findings, the team writes that the \"next generation of radio telescopes,\" like FAST, will build on their findings about how gases behave in galaxies. As for FAST's final use, studying interstellar communication signals, it could be more simply referred to as searching for intelligent extraterrestrial life. \"In theory, if there is civilization in outer space, the radio signal it sends will be similar to the signal we can receive when a pulsar ... is approaching us,\" Qian told Chinese state media, according to the science news website Phys.org. Such communication could go both ways. In 1974, the Arecibo radio telescope sent a signal deep into space with a graphic containing, among other things, images of \"the Arecibo telescope, our solar system, DNA, a stick figure of a human, and some of the biochemicals of earthly life,\" according to the SETI institute, a scientific organization devoted to the search for extraterrestrial life. In an interview with the BBC, the deputy project manager for the new Chinese telescope, Peng Bo, said the project was exciting for Chinese scientists. \"For many years, we have had to go outside of China to make observations — and now we have the largest telescope,\" he told the BBC. China's investment in space exploration is not limited to earth-based telescopes. Although it is not one of the countries that helps run the International Space Station, China launches its own rockets carrying satellites. Earlier this month, China launched Tiangong-2, its second space lab, shortly before its first space lab fell back to earth.", "How does science make progress? How do scientists know what they claim to know? What does it mean when scientists say they have come to a consensus? These questions are far more than academic. We live in a world where issues of science and technology dominate headlines and policy. In that way, science and its claims effect the very real world choices we all face in domains as varied as climate change, genetically modified foods and the uses of Big Data. These questions are weighing heavily on my own mind this week as I attend the Protostars & Planets VI conference in Heidelberg, Germany. I am here with 850 other astronomers trying to summarize our understanding of solar system origins. This collective act of summarization means confronting the most important resource in all science: the literature. It's the literature that defines who we are as a community and what we think we think our community knows. This conference only happens once every six or seven years. All the talks are reviews, meaning they don't report new research but present an overview of an entire sub-field. Each review will then become a chapter in a book which serves as a kind of roadmap for the field. Along with 12 friends and colleagues, I am writing the chapter on Protostellar Outflows. These are beautiful jets of hypersonic plasma that blast away from newborn stars at 200 kilometers per second and tear across light years of space. Writing a review talk means reading lots and lots of papers — that's what is meant by the literature. Some papers are about data from observations made with the world's most advanced telescopes. Other papers are about theory derived from calculations and supercomputer simulations designed to lay bare the underlying physics of turning an interstellar cloud into a star system (hint: it's all about gravity). Each of these papers has been published in a peer-reviewed journal: The Monthly Notices of the Royal Astrophysical Society; Astronomy and Astrophysics; The Astrophysical Journal; The Astronomical Journal. Each paper represents a short story with a beginning (a question); a middle (the method used to approach the question) and an end (the conclusions of that method). Some of the papers contradict each other and some reach similar conclusions. The point of the review is to separate which questions seem to be yielding to consistent answers and which still live in the fog of uncertainty. If your track the Protostar and Planet series of books over the decades (the first conference was held in 1978) you can see the progression of questions answered. At first folks didn't understand the mechanisms by which a single small cloud would collapse under its own gravity to make a star. Now many of those mechanisms are understood. Current versions of star formation theory do a remarkable job explaining star formation observations. So we move on. These days much of the focus has turned to understanding how stars form together in families called clusters. Thus many of the questions from 20 years ago have been answered. While there is always the possibility of a surprise, the basic narrative of single-star formation seems pretty well established. A vast, slowly rotating, cloud collapses under its own weight. As it shrinks, it spins ever faster until a new sun with a surrounding disk of gas forms. Over time, a family of young planets takes shape within the disk. In that sense, a consensus has been reached by the thousands of scientists working across the globe and across the decades on the problem of star and planet formation. The record of that consensus — its development and its establishment — can be found in the literature for all to see. It's not about a single paper published in yesterday's journal. It's about thousands of papers produced through painstaking work over many years. The literature is the story of consensus (or the lack of it). And that is what makes the faux debate over something like climate change so painful for scientists to watch. All the years of hard work and sweat are right there in print — right there in the literature — and yet somehow the message gets distorted for reasons that have nothing to do with the effort to understand the world. It's like living in a world of funhouse mirrors. A recent analysis of papers in the climate science literature showed that 97 percent of all published studies reached conclusions affirming anthropocentric climate change. Ninety-seven is a whole lot of percent. It's as good as you are going to get in terms of a group of scientists \"knowing\" something. In spite of this fact, you still can't mention climate change in some places without being looked at like an alien. It's time to get real about this process called science. It shapes so much of our lives. It's time to look to the literature. The question is how to make this work. How do folks without scientific training (or time) penetrate the literature? I certainly can't follow the genetics literature (to name just o", "A team of astronomers led by an undergraduate student in Texas has discovered two planets orbiting stars more than 1,200 light-years from Earth. Astronomers already knew of about 4,000 exoplanets, so finding two more might not seem like huge news. But it's who found them and how that's getting attention. Anne Dattilo, a senior at the University of Texas, Austin, found the planets by using an artificial intelligence program to sift through a mountain of data collected by NASA's Kepler space telescope. By using AI, the 22-year-old is helping to usher in a new era in astronomical research. Dattilo got involved in the project about a year and a half ago, after astronomer Andrew Vanderburg gave a talk during one of her classes. Vanderburg uses data from Kepler to hunt for planets orbiting distant stars. \"And at the very end, he said, 'I'm taking undergrads if any of you want to do research on this subject finding planets,' \" Dattilo recalls. \"I decided that's what I wanted to do, so I emailed him.\" Kepler, which launched in 2009, was designed to point at a small patch of sky and measure the light from some 100,000 stars in its field of view. If there is a planet orbiting one of the stars, the light coming from that star will dim slightly when the planet passes in front of it. Toward the end of Kepler's life, mechanical failures meant it couldn't measure the light quite as accurately, so the data it collected were harder to interpret. Dattilo modified an artificial intelligence program called AstroNet-K2 to work on data from the latter part of the Kepler mission. Once the modified program found stars that appeared to have planets, Dattilo and her colleagues used ground-based telescopes to confirm the findings. The newly discovered planets, officially named K2-293b and K2-294b, orbit stars in the constellation Aquarius and are both slightly larger than Earth. \"If we want to know how many planets there are in total, we have to know how many planets we've found,\" Vanderburg said in a statement from the University of Texas McDonald Observatory. \"But we also have to know how many planets we missed. That's where this [AI] comes in.\" Vanderburg and Google engineer Chris Shallue \"first used AI to uncover a planet around a Kepler star\" in 2017, according to the statement. Jessie Christiansen, a research scientist with NASA's Exoplanet Science Institute at the California Institute of Technology, says she's impressed by what Dattilo's team accomplished. And in a way, she's not all that surprised. \"NASA makes all of the data publicly available,\" Christiansen says. \"You just have to think of a new idea of what to do with the data that no one has done before.\" Michelle Ntampaka of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics expects to see lots more astronomers using artificial intelligence techniques to analyze their data in the future. That's because newer telescopes don't so much collect images of stars and galaxies as digital data about these celestial objects. \"We're just going to see unprecedented data volumes, and we're going to have to come up with new ways to deal with that,\" Ntampaka says. So writing a machine learning program as an undergrad is good preparation for Dattilo as she heads off to get her graduate degree in astronomy. The discoveries have been accepted for publication in The Astronomical Journal.", "Director Christopher Nolan inverted time in his reverse chronology thriller Memento; he burrowed deep into layers of the subconscious in Inception; and he reinvented Batman with his \"Dark Knight\" trilogy. Now Nolan is venturing to galaxies far, far away. His new film, Interstellar, is set in a near future where planet Earth is close to running out of food and the human race is hurtling to extinction. So a team of explorers time-travels through space to try to find a new home. Nolan tells NPR's Melissa Block how Interstellar was influenced by earlier space blockbusters and about his preference for filming something real over using computer-generated images. Interview Highlights On how space blockbusters influenced him as a kid I think right from the moment that I saw George Lucas' first Star Wars it was cemented in my mind as being the sort of maximum potential of the Hollywood blockbuster, if you like. I mean, there's a golden age of blockbusters that I grew up in: You had Lucas, you also had [Steven] Spielberg, you know, Close Encounters [of the Third Kind], these films. They really spoke to me about the potential of what movies can do in terms of taking an audience on an adventure. ... I got to do a lot of things in this film that I've been wanting to do since I was a kid. It's a real, sort of, childhood dream of mine to do this film, and so I feel like I certainly got a lot of things out of my system. On whether Interstellar's smart robot — TARS, voiced by Bill Irwin — is meant to remind people of HAL, the malevolent robot from 2001: A Space Odyssey One of his early jokes, because he's a rather humorous fellow ... [is] about blowing somebody out the airlock, which, to me, it's intended as a pretty clear reference to HAL. But our robot's a lot more friendly. And really, actually, to say that Bill voiced it is slightly inaccurate because he actually performed in the robot: He built the thing and he puppeteered it. It's a marriage of computer graphics and on-set puppeteering. On his preference for filming something real over using computer-generated images It's not so much about what's lost [when you use computer-generated images] as what's gained by really photographing something. And I think what's gained is a tactile sense. It's a sense of knowing what something would feel like, seeing the way the light hits something. Computer graphics, the visual effects we can do in that way, are incredibly sophisticated — there are a lot of them in the film. But I think when they work best, it's when you're enhancing something that you photographed. On a scene shot in Iceland in which the explorers land on an icy, barren planet and how much of that scene is digitally enhanced A lot of it is real. ... Basically what people are walking on and what's in the midground is real. And then the extensions and other elements are also taken based on real photography, because we were looking at exploring incredibly hostile environments and Iceland represents a very extreme environment. ... It's a place where you do get a sense of man really perching there, just, you know, against the elements, and that was very important to us. On working with Kip Thorne, a theoretical physicist who consulted on the film It was mostly him saying, \"Here are the possibilities of real-world science.\" But there was one example of where he just wouldn't let me go there. I wanted a character to travel faster than the speed of light, and he spent about two weeks just beating me down and explaining to me it's absolutely not possible. And I finally had to sort of concede. ... We never really worried too much about, you know, the idea of Kip's peers sort of moaning about the film or whatever. ... I think the audience can feel whether there's a rule set behind what you're doing, and I think they can feel when you're becoming anarchic and just sort of abandoning and saying, \"Well, it's just a movie.\" On balancing Interstellar's intergalactic story with its more intimate, family story in which one of the explorers has to leave his children behind to try to save the human race I think for me it's as much about contrast as balance. I really wanted to look at this moment in time that may be coming one day, where mankind has to reckon with its place in the wider universe. I love the idea of just looking over the shoulder of relatable characters. Just experiencing these first steps out into the universe with people that you could understand and emotionally respond to. MELISSA BLOCK, HOST: Director Christopher Nolan inverted time in his reverse chronology thriller, \"Memento.\" He burrowed deep into layers of the subconscious with dream stealers in his movie \"Inception.\" He reinvented Batman with his Dark Knight Trilogy. And now Christopher Nolan is venturing to galaxies far away. His new movie \"Interstellar\" is set in the near future. Planet Earth is close to running out of food. The human race is hurtling to extinction. So a team of explorers time travels throug", "NASA's two Voyager spacecraft, launched in 1977, have made history in a dramatic fashion by exploring the outer planets: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. Now one of the vehicles, Voyager I, has made another pioneering leap. It is the first spacecraft to leave the vast bubble of hot gas that surrounds our solar system. At long last, Voyager 1 is now in interstellar space. There was no question that the Voyager spacecraft would someday become the first objects made by human beings to get there. Unknown, though, was whether the probes would still be able to send back the news when they did. \"Most of us felt that we could at least get to Neptune, but we had no idea how much farther it would be,\" says Edward Stone, who has been the Voyager chief scientist for more than 40 years, is also a physicist at the California Institute of Technology. He and the other scientists have been waiting patiently for the moment when they could say that Voyager has finally entered interstellar space. That's defined as the region outside a huge bubble of hot gas that flows from the sun — the solar wind. That wind dies when it eventually runs into the cooler gas that permeates the galaxy. That's where interstellar space begins. \"This is the real deal,\" Stone says. \"Voyager 1 has finally reached interstellar space; the first time a spacecraft has been in the space between the stars.\" Scientists have been anticipating the event for decades and now believe it occurred a year ago. The instrument on board Voyager 1 that could have notified the team immediately died in 1980. Happily, there is a second instrument on board that measures the environment around the spacecraft. Donald Gurnett, a physics and astronomy professor at the University of Iowa, helped build that instrument back in the 1970s, and he is in charge of it today. But his instrument can only measure the spacecraft's environment when the thin gas surrounding Voyager gets a jolt of energy — say, from the sun. \"When you have big explosions on the sun, it sends out a huge shock wave,\" Gurnett says, and that shock wave perturbs the gas. Last fall, there was a storm on the sun, and Gurnett's instrument picked up the signal. And in May of this year, another solar storm came crashing through. The difference between the two signals was dramatic evidence that Voyager I is now immersed in gases that are colder and denser, outside of the sun's influence. As he reports in the journal Science, Gurnett says that's strong evidence that the probe is in interstellar space. When the Voyagers launched in 1977, nobody knew exactly how far away from Earth this boundary would be. \"It's really incredible how far we are. We're three times as far as Pluto — more than that, actually,\" Gurnett says. Another way to look at the distance: It takes 17 hours for the radio signal to get back to the Earth, traveling at the speed of light. In comparison, it takes about 8 minutes for light to reach Earth from the sun. He says the original Voyager team didn't want to believe it was that far away. \"Maybe 30 years ago, people thought it was just beyond the orbit of Jupiter. And I don't think at the time anybody wanted to believe we'd have to go another 20 years before we got there. But that's in fact how it turned out,\" Gurnett says. Like Gurnett, Edward Stone at Caltech has been waiting for this, as yet another auspicious moment in Voyager's already spectacular career. \"It's not only having achieved a major exploration goal, sort of like the circumnavigation of the Earth for the first time, or landing footprints on the moon for the first time, this is the spacecraft to interstellar space,\" Stone says \"That means this is the beginning of a new journey of exploration for Voyager. So rather than ending, we're just starting the next new phase.\" Stone says there is still a lot to learn, and Voyager 1 probably has another decade of power from its nuclear generator to keep going. ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST: From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Robert Siegel. AUDIE CORNISH, HOST: And I'm Audie Cornish. In 1977, NASA captured our imaginations by launching two Voyager spacecrafts. They've made history by exploring the outer planets of our solar system, sending reams of data back to Earth. Now, Voyager 1 has made another pioneering discovery. It's the first spacecraft to leave the vast bubble of space that surrounds our sun. As NPR's Richard Harris reports, Voyager 1 is now in interstellar space. RICHARD HARRIS, BYLINE: There was no question that the Voyager spacecraft would someday become the first objects made by human beings to head out into interstellar space. The question, though, was whether the probes would still be alive to send back the news. ED STONE: Most of us felt that we could at least get to Neptune, but we had no idea how much further it would be. HARRIS: Ed Stone has been the Voyager chief scientist for more than 40 years. He and the other scientists have been waiting and waiting and waiting for", "Instruments of revolution can appear deceivingly simple. With a bit of wood, copper wire and paper, Galileo fashioned a telescope that opened the skies for discovery. The telescope had a magnifying power of 20. By today's standards, that's not very strong, but in 1609, Galileo's telescope surpassed all others. It was powerful enough for him to detect the moon's rough surface, Venus' phases, and Jupiter's moons. Galileo actually tracked and measured the movement of Jupiter's satellites. His observations gave further evidence of the Copernican theory that the sun was the center of the universe. For the first time ever, Galileo's research telescope has traveled across the Atlantic. It's at the center of the exhibit, Galileo: The Medici and the Age of Astronomy at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia. The museum's chief astronomer, Derrick Pitts, says the research telescope symbolizes Galileo's \"dogged determination\" to understand the universe. A clear case protects the telescope, but visitors can get close enough to brag that they have looked through Galileo's telescope. They won't see the night sky, however — the telescope points toward the museum's ceiling. REBECCA ROBERTS, host: Four centuries ago, there was another guy stirring up scientific trouble with the church. His name, Galileo. His tool of choice, a telescope. And what he saw changed the way we think about our universe. For the first time ever, kids in this country, like Ben(ph) and Matthew Bernstein(ph) can peer through one of Galileo's very own telescopes. Unidentified Man #1: (Unintelligible). Unidentified Man #2: I just see like black and a little dot. Unidentified Man #3: Oh, but you did see something? Unidentified Man #2: Yeah, like… Unidentified Man #3: Oh, good. Unidentified Man #2: Little white dots up there. ROBERTS: That little white dot is not a star. It's actually a light bulb shining from the ceiling of the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia. This is where Galileo's telescope, one of only two in existence, will live for the next few months. Chief Astronomer Derrick Pitts is in the museum. He's making sure Ben and Matthew and the other visitors see Galileo's own writing on the four century old telescope. And we got our own lesson. Mr. DERRICK PITTS (Chief Astronomer, Franklin Institute): When you look at this instrument, at first, it doesn't look like very much. It looks like a kid's high school project or junior high school project from the kitchen table or the garage. It's a wooden tube with two lenses mounted in it. There's the objective lens at the top of the scope, and the eyepiece lens at the bottom of the scope. When you think about it, it's very primitive by today's standards. But in 1610, this is a remarkable instrument. Its magnification power is enough to open the universe for astronomical research. ROBERTS: It also goes to show you how remarkable Galileo was, with this technology, he was able to do what he was able to do. Mr. PITTS: Without actually having had his hands on a telescope, he immediately improved the instrument by a factor of three and then took that to a factor of seven beyond that. ROBERTS: In addition to the technological leap, was there a philosophical leap to even want to look more closely at the heavens? Do you think looking closely at them and trying to figure out what they were made of and what's the difference between a planet and a star was revolutionary by itself? Mr. PITTS: I wouldn't think that would be the case for the general populous. However, for someone like Galileo, that would have been an impetus to make this kind of observation. Galileo's a very curious individual. He already is in disagreement with the prevailing theories of a number of astronomical things anyway. So he puts these things together with the capability of the instrument and starts to make these observations and realizes that seeing Jupiter as a world unto itself with its own moons and orbit is probably a fairly good representative model of the structure of the solar system as the heliocentric solar system. And so this is what gives him the courage to push on and say yes, I believe this is true. ROBERTS: Do you remember the first time you looked through a telescope? Mr. PITTS: It was a remarkable experience, realizing what is out in the universe beyond the world that we see and really beyond what we read about in books or see in pictures, to actually see it yourself; and for me, seeing it for myself told me that this is what I'm interested in for the rest of my life. I want to study the universe. ROBERTS: If people who are just hobbyists, or they've got some really good binoculars or maybe a dusty telescope somewhere just want to remind themselves of that feeling of how cool it is to look out there, what should they be looking at? Mr. PITTS: The simple things for people to observe are still some of the best objects to observe. A simple, bright star can be a really beautiful object. There's a bright", "A dispute over the names of two new moons of Pluto is highlighting a broader battle over who names what in our solar system and beyond. On one side is the International Astronomical Union (IAU), a venerable consortium of astronomers who have set the naming rules for the better part of a century. On the other side, a growing number of astronomers who feel the IAU has unfairly designated itself as the intergalactic naming police. The moons were discovered in 2011 and 2012 by the Hubble Space Telescope. When first spotted they were given lengthy numerical identifiers; but until yesterday, they didn't have names. In astronomy, naming rights go to the finders, and in the case of the two moons, that honor went to a team led by Mark Showalter, a researcher at the SETI Institute in Mountain View, Calif. Showalter decided to put the names to a public vote. \"We opened up a website that included a ballot page where people could just check the boxes of the names they liked best,\" he says. The team also took suggestions. On Twitter, William Shatner, who played Captain Kirk on the TV series Star Trek, offered up \"Vulcan,\" the name of Spock's home planet. Trekkies around the world got online and voted Vulcan way up — it was the runaway choice. \"I actually liked the name, and we did propose it to the International Astronomical Union,\" Showalter says. \"But yeah, I kind of knew all along this was going to be a hard sell.\" Vulcan was the name given to a hypothetical planet astronomers thought they had discovered between the sun and Mercury back in the 1800s. \"Vulcan had already been used in the scientific literature, so it's a name that had already been taken,\" says Thierry Montmerle, the IAU's general secretary. There were other problems. Under IAU moon rules, Pluto's moons should be named after mythical underworld figures. Vulcan, the Roman god of fire and volcanoes, didn't qualify. Also, Vulcan might have infringed on the copyright of the original Star Trek series. Montmerle says the team should have checked with the IAU before starting the competition. Pluto's moons were eventually named for the second and third choices in the online vote: Kerberos and Styx. But many astronomers think it's time to take another look at the whole naming process. \"We have an explosion these days of various places to name,\" says Mark Sykes the director of the Planetary Science Institute, a nonprofit dedicated to planetary exploration. Powerful telescopes are turning up new objects like the moons around Pluto. Spacecraft are mapping craters and mountains on Mars, and Saturn's moon Titan. And now astronomers are finding hundreds of planets orbiting other stars. These new planets are where the real fight is headed. Right now, they have numerical identifiers, but no popular names. Montmerle says the IAU is now drawing up rules to involve the public. The rules would keep the naming of planets orderly and be globally inclusive, he says. But astronomers have started giving the planets popular names themselves, says Jason Wright, an astronomer at Pennsylvania State University. \"These sorts of popular names come up in press releases or even acknowledgements of a paper,\" he says. Copyright isn't apparently an issue for many of them. \"There's been at least one planet that's been dubbed 'Tatooine' because it orbits a pair of stars like the stars in Star Wars.\" Others are trying to involve the public in ways similar to the Pluto vote. One startup company called Uwingu allows the public to nominate and vote for names of planets outside the solar system — in exchange for a small fee. \"We're using those funds to fuel grants in astronomy and space exploration,\" says Alan Stern, a planetary scientist and Uwingu's CEO. Stern think the IAU does have a role in regulating the official, scientific designations of planets. But he feels the organization is going too far. \"Even in the IAU's bylaws, it's pretty clear that the IAU is there to serve the astronomy community,\" he says. \"It's certainly not a police force for the public.\" Sykes, who holds a small stake in Uwingu, agrees: \"The IAU can try to claim the universe, but lots of star systems will be falling through its fingers,\" he says. Astronomer Jason Wright says he understands that the name battle will continue, but he hopes the public will keep it all in perspective. What matters most about the objects astronomers discover is what they can teach us about our place in the universe. \"In the grand scheme of things, what we call these things is not that important,\" he says.", "The artist Banksy does not approve of a current exhibition of his work — but that hasn't deterred his fans from flocking to it. The unauthorized show, running in conjunction with Art Basel Miami Beach — the city's annual high-profile art market — features 80 of Banksy's works and is one of the fair's hottest tickets this year. The company that represents Banksy says the show was organized by \"unscrupulous profiteers.\" More than 100,000 people saw the show when it was mounted earlier this year in Toronto. It includes silk-screen prints and spray-painted canvasses — smaller versions of the images the artist was painting on walls in Bristol and London a decade ago. Many of the works are familiar — there's the riot policeman with a smiley face, a Pulp Fiction sendup in which John Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson hold bananas in place of guns, and spoof 10 pound notes on which the image of Queen Elizabeth II is replaced with an image of Princess Diana. There's a man launching a bouquet of flowers, and a little girl reaching out as a heart-shaped red balloon floats away. That image of the girl with the balloon was in the news recently when a canvas version was partially and deliberately shredded after it was sold at auction for $1.4 million. Chris Ford, one of the show's curators, says the pieces are on loan from collectors, many of whom purchased them from the artist. There's something jarring about seeing work by an artist known for his guerrilla installations, displayed in a gallery. His stenciled paintings — often carrying a message that's both humorous and political — have popped up surreptitiously on walls from New York to the Gaza strip. One photo in the show captures a slogan Banksy stenciled in Trafalgar Square in 2003 labeling it a \"Designated Riot Area.\" This show was mounted without the participation or approval of the artist, a fact organizer Steve Lazarides says is made clear to all visitors. \"I wouldn't want anyone to ever think this is a Banksy show,\" Lazarides says. \"It's not. It's an exhibition of Banksy's works. And it's not anything that he has any involvement in.\" If Lazarides sounds defensive, that's because he and Banksy have a history. Lazarides worked with the artist for several years, eventually becoming his dealer until the two had a falling out. A decade after they parted ways, Lazarides is still profiting from his Banksy connection. \"I know he doesn't like the show,\" Lazarides says. \"But I think at the end of the day, is it better for hundreds of thousands of people to come and view those paintings or for them to be stuck on the wall of one collector?\" In a statement, Banksy's management company says legal proceedings are underway against the exhibition's organizers who, in their view, \"abuse Banksy's name for their own financial greed.\" At the show in Miami, ticket prices start near $40. Some visitors didn't seem to have a problem with the cost or that it was an unauthorized show. One even thought it fit particularly well with Banksy's iconoclastic image: \"All of his installations are always kind of like controversial,\" Karen Correa said. \"So it feels like it's kind of like an invitation to come.\" The fact that Banksy's work, much of it with an anti-capitalist message, generates millions of dollars for the artist — and the organizers of this show — is an irony lost on no one, especially Banksy fans. As one visitor left the show, he pulled out his phone to take a photo of a 2001 Banksy quote on the gallery wall: We can't do anything to change the world until capitalism crumbles. In the meantime we should all go shopping to console ourselves.", "More than 400 years after Galileo Galilei discovered the first of Jupiter's moons, astronomers have found a dozen more — including one they've dubbed \"oddball\" — orbiting the planet. That brings the total number of Jovian moons to 79. The team of astronomers originally wasn't even looking for the 12 new moons. Scott Sheppard of the Carnegie Institution for Science says he and his colleagues had been trying to track down a giant planet they think may be lurking at the outer reaches of our solar system. As part of that search, Sheppard was using the 4-meter Víctor Blanco Telescope in Chile in March of last year and realized that Jupiter was right near the part of the sky he wanted to search. \"So we could also search for Jupiter moons while looking for things that are well beyond Pluto,\" Sheppard says. One thing that helped was the especially large camera attached to the Blanco telescope. \"[That camera] allows us to search the whole area around Jupiter in a very few images,\" he says. They quickly hit the jackpot — 12 new moons appeared in the images. As they reported Tuesday in an online notice from International Astronomical Union, all 12 have now been confirmed by other telescopes. Nine of them are in previously discovered clusters of moons that are in what astronomers call a retrograde orbit. \"They're going around the planet in the opposite direction that Jupiter rotates,\" Sheppard says. Astronomers think retrograde moons have a different origin story from prograde moons, which travel in the same direction that their planet rotates. Sheppard says Jupiter's prograde moons probably formed from the same spinning disk of stuff that eventually coalesced to form the planet. By contrast, retrograde moons were probably objects that once were wandering around the solar system and got snared by Jupiter's gravity. \"They didn't form with Jupiter,\" he says. \"We think Jupiter captured them as these objects got too close to Jupiter in the past.\" Most of the prograde moons orbit much closer to the planet than the retrograde moons do. But the moon Sheppard and his colleagues call \"oddball\" is different — instead of orbiting with the other prograde moons, its orbit takes it out as far as the retrograde moons. The oddball is also the smallest of the moons that Sheppard and his colleagues found, just 1 kilometer across. Sheppard thinks it may be all that's left of a larger moon that crashed into one or more of the retrograde moons sometime in the past. Sheppard and his colleagues have proposed naming the oddball moon Valetudo, after a minor goddess and great-granddaughter of the Roman god Jupiter. Even though a dozen new moons is a pretty good haul, Sheppard expects that more searching will turn up even more moons. Maybe 100 or more of the really small ones. And that raises a question: Does an object less than a mile across deserve to be called a moon? Sheppard agrees it's problematic. \"Maybe there will have to be a new definition for the smaller moons. Maybe a dwarf moon for anything that's 1 kilometer in size or smaller,\" he says. Mini-moon, perhaps? ARI SHAPIRO, HOST: Here's a number in the news - 79. That's how many moons astronomers have now identified orbiting the planet Jupiter. The first four moons were discovered by Galileo in 1610. As NPR science correspondent Joe Palca reports, the 12 newest moons were announced today. JOE PALCA, BYLINE: Several times a year, Scott Sheppard heads to telescopes around the world to search for distant objects in our solar system. Sheppard is an astronomer with the Carnegie Institution for Science. In March last year, he was at the Blanco four-meter telescope in Chile. And he realized that Jupiter was right near the part of the sky he wanted to search. SCOTT SHEPPARD: So we could also search for Jupiter moons while looking for things that are well beyond Pluto. PALCA: One thing that helped was an especially large camera attached to the Blanco telescope. SHEPPARD: It allows us to search the whole area around Jupiter in a very few images. PALCA: And they found 12 new moons. As they report today in an online notice from the International Astronomical Union, all have now been confirmed by other telescopes. Nine of these moons are from a previously discovered cluster of moons that are in what astronomers call a retrograde orbit. SHEPPARD: They're going around the planet in the opposite direction that Jupiter rotates. PALCA: Many of Jupiter's moons form from the same spinning disk of stuff that eventually coalesce to form the planet. Sheppard says these retrograde moons were probably objects that were once wandering around the solar system. SHEPPARD: They didn't form with Jupiter. We think Jupiter captured them as these objects got too close to Jupiter in the past. PALCA: One of the strangest moons Sheppard and his colleagues discovered is only one kilometer across. They're proposing to call it Valetudo, named after the Roman God Jupiter's great-granddaughter. It's in an orbit that takes it ", "One thing you expect to see when you come to Mount Rushmore is the carving of the faces of four U.S. presidents. What you don't expect is a Native American village. But this year, that's exactly what you'll find. Gerard Baker, superintendent of Mount Rushmore National Memorial, is a Mandan-Hidatsa Native American. \"When I came in four years ago as the new superintendent here, one thing that I started understanding was the need to update more people about the history of the Black Hills,\" he says, standing next to the newly erected Native American village, just off one of the memorial's main walking paths. Baker says it's been a lifelong dream to establish a place where visitors could learn about the history of these Black Hills — before faces were carved into one of them and called Mount Rushmore. \"We get 2.8 million visitors a year here. And a lot of them from out of the state, a lot them from out of the country. And they're fascinated by the American Indians. They're fascinated by how they used to live,\" Baker says. Betty Street, a member of the Chippewa tribe, tells visitors how American Indians traditionally used parts of a buffalo that she has spread out on a table beside her — the hide, horn, tail and even a bladder. Street says reminding visitors about the area's original occupants is a part of the Mount Rushmore experience that has been missing. \"It is important because people forget that they owned this land, and that it was very important to them culturally,\" Street says. Sitting on buffalo robes beside a cold campfire inside one of the village teepees, Eugenio White Hawk explains the cultural significance of this portable animal-hide house. \"While we're sitting around them campfires in the wintertime — or any other time — this is where we get all our stories from the elders. The stories that are very important to our people — stories about how the earth was created, how the Lakota people, the man, came upon the Earth,\" he says. White Hawk is Oglala Lakota from South Dakota's Pine Ridge Reservation — about 100 miles away. While he's happy to share information about his culture with visitors, his primary concern is explaining just how sacred the Black Hills are to his tribe and others. \"We're a religious people here. So, I mean, if the white people could understand that, I think that our world would be a lot better,\" he says. Mount Rushmore's message, then, isn't conveyed just from the faces of famous U.S. presidents immortalized in stone. It's also about Native Americans and their relationship with the Earth. Ten-year-old Connor Leech is visiting from Maine, and he seems to be getting the message. \"It's kinda nice that they're doing that, because the Indians do have a right to be here,\" Leech says. \"I mean, this was their sacred mountains.\" MADELEINE BRAND, host: This is Day to Day. I'm Madeleine Brand. ALEX COHEN, host: Well, if you do go away this summer you might want to take in a national park. This week at NPR, we've been exploring many of our national parks. Today we'll visit South Dakota's Mt. Rushmore. Nearly three million visitors go there every year to gawk at the massive stone sculpture of the presidents and as Jim Kent reports, this year Mt. Rushmore National Park is trying to point tourists to something else. JIM KENT: I'm standing on a grassy ledge just below Mt. Rushmore. Now, one thing you expect to see when you come here is the carved faces of four of our presidents. One thing you don't expect to see is a Native American village, but this year that's exactly what you'll see. Mr. GERARD BAKER (Superintendent, Mt. Rushmore National Memorial): When I came in four years ago as the new superintendent here, one thing that I started understanding was the need to update more people as far as the history of the Black Hills. KENT: That's Gerard Baker, superintendent of Mt. Rushmore National Memorial. He's a Mandan-Hidatsa American Indian and is standing next to the newly erected Native American village, just off one of the memorial's main walking paths. Baker says establishing a place where visitors can learn about the history of these Black Hills before faces were carved into one of them and called Mt. Rushmore has been a long-time dream. Mr. BAKER: I think it's one of the most exciting things we can do, because, again the National Park does back this up. That we're educating and that's what we're trying to do here is we're trying to educate. You know, we've got 2.8 million visitors a year here and a lot of them from out of the state, a lot of them from out of the country, and they're fascinated by the American Indians. They're fascinated by how they used to live. Ms. BETTY STREET (Member, Chippewa Tribe): They used porcupine needles to decorate their clothes. KENT: Betty Street is a member of the Chippewa tribe, and she's telling visitors how American Indians traditionally used parts of a buffalo that she has spread out on a table beside her, the hide, horn, tail a", "There&#8217;s only one Earth, but scientists that scan the skies for alien planets have found plenty of &#8220;super-Earths.&#8221; In astronomer-speak, super-Earths are bigger than Earth but smaller than Neptune. New research published last week in the journal Science says the discovery of Gliese 486 b could help us better understand our own world. Trifon Trifonov, a postdoctoral research associate at the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, led the research team. His team uncovered a planet orbiting a red dwarf star about 26 light-years away, which is close by in the scale of the universe. The astronomers used a CARMENES spectrograph mounted on a 3.5-meter telescope at the Calar Alto Observatory in Spain to survey about 350 red dwarf planets, Trifonov says. The team discovered Gliese 486 b, a rocky planet similar to Earth except it’s 30% larger with about 2.8 times the mass. The planet is close to its star — which would cause most planets to lose their atmosphere due to intense stellar wind and radiation, he says. But the gravity from Gliese 486 b’s large mass could preserve some of the planet’s atmosphere. “We cannot promise that the planet has an atmosphere, but if it does, we should be able to measure it,” he says. “And this is important because this is how we can find out, what is the primordial composition of atmospheres of this kind of object?” This important question holds the key to understanding how our solar system formed and evolved, he says. Gliese 486 b is similar to Earth but it’s also very hot with rivers of lava likely covering the surface. Finding an atmosphere around Gliese 486 b would give astronomers hope that planets of the same size or a bit lighter can hold an atmosphere, Trifonov says. “There [is] some speculation that life might actually exist on the icy moons of Jupiter and Saturn,” he says. “But, of course, to detect a reasonable life that actually resembles something that we know here on Earth, we would need an atmosphere and probably liquid water.” If humans don’t destroy the Earth as we know it, our species could make long journeys like the 26-light-year trip to Gliese 486 b in the coming centuries, he says. But it won’t happen in our lifetimes. This generation of astronomers is mapping “our local neighborhood” around the sun, Trifonov says. As Earthlings look for the best planet to colonize someday, he says the search shouldn’t end with Mars. “We should keep going and keep trying and keep discovering more and more planets,” he says, “for the sake of understanding of the universe and how the Earth was formed and how we can reach the stars.” Cristina Kim produced and edited this interview for broadcast with Todd Mundt. Allison Hagan adapted it for the web.  This article was originally published on WBUR.org.", "President Trump will be at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Fla., for Easter — his seventh of 13 weekends there as commander in chief. Although he conducts business at the Trump Organization estate, it's not always clear with whom. Some government watchdog groups are asking a federal court to compel the Trump administration to release a list of visitors to Mar-a-Lago, as well as to Trump Tower and the White House. Referred to by Trump as the \"Winter White House,\" the private club has about 500 dues-paying members. Over the last few months, in addition to beach and tennis privileges, members have had a front-row seat to important presidential deliberations. Trump says he ordered last week's missile strike on Syria while having dinner with Chinese President Xi Jinping. The Palm Beach Daily News reports other guests were nearby, including Boston Celtics great John Havlicek, who was celebrating his birthday with friends. Two nights later, Trump was chatting with club members and guests, including billionaire and political activist David Koch, who was there with his brother Bill. The head of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), Noah Bookbinder, says although it's a private club, Americans have a right to know who's visiting Mar-a-Lago while the president is there. \"If anything,\" he says, \"it's more important to know who's there because you don't have the usual protections and procedures that you have with the White House.\" During the Obama administration, the White House posted online logs of the people who visited the White House. It's a practice that began after a series of lawsuits filed by CREW. So far, the Trump administration hasn't made any White House visitor logs available. CREW and other groups, including the National Security Archive, have filed Freedom of Information requests for the visitor logs since Trump took office. This week, they took their request to federal court in New York and extended it to include visitor logs for Mar-a-Lago and Trump's Manhattan residence, Trump Tower. But, former Secret Service official Jonathan Wackrow says, \"they're asking for something that does not exist.\" Wackrow, now with Risk Assistance Network and Exchange, says the visitor logs for the White House are part of a complex system that includes background checks and personal data. That kind of information, he says, isn't gathered at other places the president stays, like Mar-a-Lago. \"It's a private facility. It's not a government controlled facility at all. It's a temporary location where the president goes to,\" Wackrow says. \"So even the security posture there is set up on an ad hoc basis.\" The Secret Service screens for weapons and other direct threats to the president, Wackrow says, but otherwise is not involved in admitting guests at Mar-a-Lago. CREW's Bookbinder says given Trump's ongoing use of Mar-a-Lago and the important meetings taking place there, the administration needs to begin maintaining and releasing visitor logs. \"It needs to be essentially treated the same way the White House treats its records,\" he says. \"And so, if it's not already happening, they need to very quickly come up with a policy to make sure it does start happening.\" Wackrow says maintaining the visitor access system at the White House costs the Secret Service millions of dollars each year and is not easily replicated at Mar-a-Lago, Trump Tower or other places the president stays. ARI SHAPIRO, HOST: For the seventh time since taking office, President Trump will spend this weekend at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Fla. Government watchdog groups want a federal court to force the Trump administration to release a list of visitors to that resort as well as to the White House and Trump Tower. NPR's Greg Allen reports. GREG ALLEN, BYLINE: Trump likes to call it the Winter White House. Although of the Trump Organization owns it, Mar-a-Lago is a private club with about 500 dues-paying members. Over the last few months, in addition to beach and tennis privileges, members have had a front-row seat to important presidential deliberations. Trump says he ordered last week's missile strike on Syria while having dinner with Chinese President Xi Jinping at Mar-a-Lago. The Palm Beach Daily News reports other guests were nearby, including Boston Celtics great John Havlicek, who was celebrating his birthday with friends. Two nights later, Trump was chatting with club members and guests, including billionaire and political activist David Koch, who was there with his brother, Bill. The head of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, Noah Bookbinder, says although it's a private club, Americans have a right to know who's visiting Mar-a-Lago while the president is there. NOAH BOOKBINDER: If anything, it's more important to know who's there because you don't have the usual protections and procedures that you have with the White House. ALLEN: During the Obama administration, the White House posted online logs of the peop", "An international panel has unanimously recommended that Pluto retain its title as a planet, and it may be joined by other undersized objects that revolve around the sun. Some astronomers had lobbied for reclassifying Pluto because it is so tiny. And at least one major museum has excluded Pluto from its planetary display. But sources tell NPR that under a proposal to be presented at a big meeting of astronomers in Prague next week for a vote, Pluto would become part of a new class of small planets. Several more objects could be granted membership. When Pluto was first discovered in 1930, its planethood was not in question. Early estimates put it at perhaps five times the size of the Earth. Over the years, measurements have consistently shrunk. Does a Planet's Size Matter? Pluto is now thought to be smaller than Earth's moon. It has a cockeyed orbit. And most damningly, astronomers now know it is just one of hundreds of rocky things at the edge of the solar system called Kuiper Belt objects. Pluto is larger than most, but one recently discovered Kuiper Belt object -- UB313 -- seems to be larger than Pluto. So earlier this year, the International Astronomical Union, which has decided tricky nomenclature issues since it was formed in 1919, appointed a panel to try to define the word \"planet.\" Seven experts, including a science writer and a variety of astronomers, met in Paris this past June. Under the guidance of Owen Gingerich, a historian and astronomer emeritus at Harvard, they debated for two days. Gingerich would not discuss the conclusions, but says \"I think we have done something that will make the Plutocrats and the children of the United States happy.\" NPR interviewed five of the seven panel members. All but one said they thought of Pluto as a planet, or had made statements in the public record to that effect. Dava Sobel, the writer on the panel, was sympathetic to Pluto's cause. In her book The Planets, Pluto merits a chapter. \"People love Pluto, children identify with its smallness,\" she writes. \"Adults relate to its inadequacy, its marginal existence as a misfit.\" Sobel has several solar system models in her house. Asked if she had torn Pluto off any of them, she said \"No, Pluto is definitely there.\" New Category: Dwarf Planets Several panel members have favored dividing planets into categories: terrestrial planets (Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars), giant planets (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune) and a third class that would include Pluto. \"We'll call them dwarf planets or something,\" says Iwan Williams, an astronomer at the University of London who favors the idea and also served on the panel. Sources say the panel's new definition for planets would, in fact, create a third category embracing Pluto. It's unclear what astronomers will make of the new definition or how they will vote on it. Observers say the definition will have to be concise and unambiguous. What is too small to be a dwarf planet? Do moons count? What about round comets? Some panel members say they favor counting any object which is large enough that its gravity has made it round. If the object is spinning, a small bulge would be tolerated. \"We're talking about no more than four or five new planets,\" says Iwan Williams. Small potato-shaped asteroids wouldn't make the cut. But Ceres, a big round asteroid between Mars and Jupiter, might qualify. The panel's recommendation is being reviewed by the International Astronomical Union's executive committee. In an interview last week, executive committee member Bob Williams said the definition proposed by the panel had some potential problems, and he was not at all sure if the astronomers voting in Prague this month would approve it. \"At this point, I don't feel confident enough to bet in favor of it,\" he said. It may be that the objects of the solar system are too varied to be put into neat human categories. Williams is hopeful though. And he hopes the final definition will fit on two pages. RENEE MONTAGNE, host: An international advisory panel has reached a verdict on whether tiny Pluto should retain its grand title of planet. Astronomers have been debating what a planet is and whether Pluto counts. At least one museum has barred Pluto from its display of the planets. A formal resolution based on the panel's decision will be voted on later this month in Prague. It's been treated as top-secret. NPR's David Kestenbaum has this cosmic scoop. DAVID KESTENBAUM reporting: Pluto was discovered in 1930 by a young astronomer named Clyde Tombaugh working at an observatory in Arizona. At the time, there were very good reasons for calling it a planet. Iwan Williams is an astronomer at the University of London. Mr. IWAN WILLIAMS (Astronomer, University of London): Back in the '30s, it was thought to be much bigger than the Earth and figures like five times the size of the earth was bandied about. And then, as our knowledge of Pluto grew, we", "Where will the drama of the human future be played out? Will it be out among the stars, or will it be confined to the domains of the solar system? Might we not even get that far and be stuck for the next few thousand years scratching things out here on the Earth's surface? These were questions I asked last week in a New York Times op-ed piece. My main point was to focus on vast the distances between stars and get real about what they mean for our future. Rapid star-travel via concepts like a \"warp drive\" remain so deep in science fiction that looking in that direction for hope means wishing for a miracle. The scientific reality of manipulating space-time in any meaningful way would require a kind of technological advancement that would essentially make us demi-gods. For all our remarkable advancements we have never seen anything that gave us leaps in energy control on the scale required for hyperdrive, wormhole manipulation etc. On a more realistic level even our most ambitious technological dreams still demand \"generation ships\" that make the crossing to habitable systems in centuries. Thus I argued the future most of humanity will inhabit would involve inhabiting the solar system to the best of our abilities. My argument was really about the future of culture. But that doesn't mean we should give up on research interstellar travel. Read More One of my favorite blogs is Centauri Dreams, run by Paul Gilster and the Tau Zero Foundation. Centauri Dreams is all about the nuts and bolts possibility of interstellar travel. Real physics. Real astronomy. As you can imagine, Glister was not buying my argument. In a response to my NY Times piece he writes: \"An interstellar movement has been brewing for the past sixty or so years among physicists and engineers who have taken a serious look at what it would take to get to the stars. Their work is not based on wishes but on physics, and while they are aware of the intractable distances to reach even the nearest star (4.2 years at the speed of light itself), they have continued to study how to send spacecraft on such epic journeys. Organizations have emerged — DARPA's 100 Year Starship, Icarus Interstellar, the Tau Zero Foundation — whose members call to mind physicist Robert Forward's injunction: 'Travel to the stars is difficult but not impossible.'\" Gilster goes on to argue that future advances in propulsion technology and ultralight nanomaterials will allow us to get ever closer to the cosmic light-speed limit. In addition he brings up the necessity of providing humanity with more than one cosmic home: \"Even as our species nurtures the home world, we live in a dangerous environment whose history has been punctuated by mass extinctions, some of them caused by impacts from space debris. Getting representatives of humanity off this planet is an insurance policy that guarantees our survival.\" I agree. I also support the enthusiasm that Gilster and the other scientists and engineers bring to their study of the real-world problems of real interstellar flight. Sometimes reading the posts in Centauri Dreams I get so excited I need to jump out of my seat. It's work that should, without a doubt, go foward. But that doesn't change my point. Even if we could get a starship up to 10% of light speed (which would be an epoch-making achievement) then the round trip to the nearest known star with a planet would still take 300 years (it's Gliese 876d for all you exoplanet fans). It's hard to imagine a culture driving significant changes in a significant fraction of humanity based on three-century long shipping delays! As much as I support moving forward in interstellar research, I can't escape the conclusion that the theater of our future — for at least a few thousand years — will be here in the solar system. Not forever, perhaps, but millennia at least. And that is a long, long time. Should we be sending emissaries (and colonists) to the stars. Yes! Just remember that those who leave won't really be coming back. You can keep up with more of what Adam Frank is thinking on Facebook and on Twitter @AdamFrank4. His latest book is About Time: Cosmology and Culture at the Twilight of the Big Bang.", "The Smithsonian's National Museum of African Art in Washington will post a sign Wednesday telling visitors an exhibition that includes art owned by Bill Cosby and his wife, Camille, is \"fundamentally about the artworks and the artists who created them, not Mr. Cosby,\" representatives for the Smithsonian Institution say. The sign, which will be posted at 10 a.m., comes amid allegations of sexual misconduct directed against Cosby by more than two dozen women. Some of them say he drugged and raped them. Cosby has not been charged in any of the alleged assaults. Last week it emerged that the comedian testified in 2005 he obtained the sedative Quaalude with the intent of giving the drug to women with whom he wanted to have sex, and he acknowledged giving it to at least one woman. The Los Angeles Police Department says it is conducting at least one current criminal investigation into allegations of sexual assault against Cosby. At issue in Tuesday's decision by the Smithsonian is the National Museum of African Art's \"Conversations\" exhibition, which includes works of African art from the Smithsonian's permanent collection and African-American art from the collection of Camille and Bill Cosby. The artworks from the Cosbys' collection are being seen by the public for the first time. \"The exhibition brings the public's attention to African American artists whose works have long been omitted from the study and appreciation of American art,\" the Smithsonian said in a statement last week. But the exhibition drew immediate criticism. The Guardian said the Smithsonian \"should be ashamed\" of itself because the National Museum of African Art has received $716,000 from Cosby. On Tuesday, the Smithsonian said it would post a sign with the following message: \"A Message to Our Visitors about This Exhibition \"Allegations that publicly surfaced when we opened this exhibition in November 2014, now combined with recent revelations about Bill Cosby's behavior, cast a negative light on what should be a joyful exploration of African and African American art in this gallery. \"The National Museum of African Art in no way condones Mr. Cosby's behavior. We continue to present Conversations: African and African American Artworks in Dialogue because it is fundamentally about the artworks and the artists who created them, not Mr. Cosby. \"Most of the objects are from the permanent collection of the National Museum of African Art. About one-third are on loan from Camille and Bill Cosby. Though the exhibition does recognize their role in assembling those works, the purpose of the exhibition is to examine the interplay of artistic creativity in African and African American art — something that has been part of our museum's history since our founding more than 50 years ago. The exhibition brings public attention to artists whose art has not been seen, art that tells powerful and poignant stories about African American experiences. \"We invite you, our valued visitors, to provide your comments in the Visitor Book we have placed in the hallway at the exit to this exhibition. You can also send comments to our website at conversations.africa.si.edu.\"", "Ancient Babylonian astronomers tracked the motion of Jupiter using a technique that historians had thought was invented some 1,400 years later, in Europe. That's according to a study published Thursday in the journal Science by Mathieu Ossendrijver of Humboldt University in Berlin. He has a Ph.D. in astrophysics, but instead of studying the stars, Ossendrijver spends his days poring over crumbling clay tablets, covered with the tiny scrawls of long-dead Babylonian priests. The Babylonians lived before the birth of Christ in what is now Iraq. And they were obsessed with trying to predict the future by watching the stars and planets. In fact, they came up with the idea of astrology as we know it today \"with horoscopes, and with the zodiacal signs — the 12 signs,\" says Ossendrijver. \"That was invented in Babylonia.\" Ossendrijver has been doing a close study of a few hundred cuneiform tablets that deal with the hard-core mathematics of Babylonian astronomy. They date from 400 B.C. to 50 B.C., and they're filled with numbers and arithmetic — except for four mysterious tablets that are different. \"Nobody understood what they are about, including me,\" says Ossendrijver. \"I didn't know it until very recently.\" These tablets talk about a shape: a trapezoid, which is a rectangle with a slanted top. The tablets don't have an actual drawing of a trapezoid, they just talk about its sides and its area, and dividing the area into parts. What exactly were the ancient astronomers doing? Last year, Ossendrijver made a breakthrough. \"I found, so to speak, the key to understanding these weird texts that deal with trapezoids,\" he says. The key was another clay tablet that describes how the planet Jupiter moves across the sky. He noticed that the numbers on this tablet matched the numbers on those strange trapezoid tablets. \"So, that was like the 'aha!' moment,\" he says. Ossendrijver realized that the Babylonian astronomers were using the tools of geometry to deal with a very abstract concept — how the velocity of Jupiter changes over time. Now, historians knew that Babylonians used geometry to work with physical objects — a plot of land, say, or a building. But this is way more sophisticated and modern. In fact, historians had thought this method was invented in 14th century Europe. The discovery has wowed scholars like Alexander Jones at New York University's Institute for the Study of the Ancient World. \"It's a kind of a tour de force, teasing out the meaning from these sources,\" says Jones, \"and what he's found is really quite remarkable.\" The person reading the tablet to make astronomical calculations is supposed to imagine a figure in which one dimension is distance traveled per day and the other dimension is time, says Jones. \"I'm quite surprised,\" Jones says, but then added, \"I'm not surprised that this is coming out of Babylonia, because these astronomer-scribes of the last five centuries B.C. or so really were amazing.\" Noel Swerdlow, a researcher at Caltech who studies the history of astronomy, says the analysis of these tablets appears to be correct. But he also wasn't at all surprised to learn that the Babylonians could do this. \"They were very, very smart, and the more we learn of what they did, the more impressive, the more remarkable it becomes,\" Swerdlow told NPR by email. Of course these priests wanted to track Jupiter to understand the will of their god Marduk, to be able to do things like predict future grain harvests. Nonetheless, says Jones, they had the insight to see that the same math used for working with mundane stuff like land use could be applied to the motions of celestial objects. \"They're in a way like modern scientists and in a way they're very different,\" says Jones. \"But they're still coming up with things that we can recognize as being like what we value as mathematics and science.\"" ]

[ "While the Twenty-Second Amendment sets a limit on the number of times an individual can be elected to the presidency (two), there is no such limitation on the office of vice president, meaning an eligible person could hold the office as long as voters continued to vote for electors who in turn would reelect the person ..." ]

[ "Vice-presidential election If no candidate for vice president receives an absolute majority of electoral votes, then the Senate must go into session to elect a vice president. ... Additionally, the 12th Amendment states that a \"majority of the whole number\" of senators (currently 51 of 100) is necessary for election.", "A candidate must receive an absolute majority of electoral votes (currently 270) to win the presidency or the vice presidency. If no candidate receives a majority in the election for president or vice president, that election is determined via a contingency procedure established by the 12th Amendment.", "What happens if the vice president dies while in office? The president nominates a new vice president who then must be confirmed by a majority vote in both chambers of Congress. An impeached president can be convicted and removed from office __________. How many presidents have been impeached in American history?", "If the president dies, resigns or is removed from office, the vice president automatically becomes president. Likewise, were a president-elect to die during the transition period, or decline to serve, the vice president-elect would become president on Inauguration Day.", "How are the president and vice president elected? That candidate's vice-presidential running mate will then also receive a majority of electoral votes (for Vice-President), and that person is elected Vice-President. If There's No Electoral College Winner, the House of Representatives Chooses the President.", "Incumbent President George Washington was elected to a second term by a unanimous vote in the electoral college, while John Adams was re-elected as vice president. Washington was essentially unopposed, but Adams faced a competitive re-election against Governor George Clinton of New York.", "Ansari was the first person to be re-elected as Indian Vice President after Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan in 1957. Upon the inauguration of Ram Nath Kovind as President of India in 2017, Ansari became the first Indian Vice-President to serve during the terms of three presidents.", "The Council is led by one president and four vice-presidents that are elected by the five regional groups. The electoral period for both seats and presidents and vice-presidents is three years. The Council is an independent organ that meets three to four times a year for an overall time span of at least ten weeks.", "The president-elect may be given limited duties, similar to a Vice-President. ... The position of president-elect is different from someone who was elected president and is called \"president-elect\" between the time of election and the start of the term.", "['The president, vice president (or other officer next in the order of succession to the Office of President, should the vice presidency be vacant), president-elect and vice president-elect.', 'The immediate families of the above individuals.']", "The Vice President of Nigeria is the second-in-command to the President of Nigeria in the Government of Nigeria. Officially styled Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the Vice President is elected alongside the President in national elections. The office is currently held by Yemi Osinbajo.", "The President of the United States is elected to have that position for a period, or \"term\", that lasts for four years. The Constitution had no limit on how many times a person could be elected as president. The nation's first president, George Washington chose not to try to be elected for a third term.", "Incumbent president Rodrigo Duterte is ineligible for re-election, pursuant to the 1987 Philippine Constitution. The position of president and vice president are elected separately, thus the two winning candidates could come from different political parties.", "The 20th Amendment, Section 3, supersedes the above 12th Amendment provision, by declaring that if the president-elect dies before his term begins, the vice president-elect becomes president on Inauguration Day and serves for the full term to which the president-elect was elected, and also that, if on Inauguration Day, ...", "General elections were held in Nigeria on 23 February 2019 to elect the President, Vice President, House of Representatives and the Senate.", "The newly elected President and Vice President are then inaugurated on January 20th.", "The Twelfth Amendment stipulates that each elector must cast distinct votes for president and vice president, instead of two votes for president. ... The Twelfth Amendment requires a person to receive a majority of the electoral votes for vice president for that person to be elected vice president by the Electoral College.", "In practice, the number of times vice presidents have exercised this right has varied greatly. ... Only a few happy vice presidents—John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Martin Van Buren, and George H. W. Bush—had the pleasure of announcing their own election as president.", "If no presidential candidate reaches the 270-vote threshold, the election for the president would be decided by the House of Representatives in a run-off contingent election. Similarly, if no vice-presidential candidate reaches that threshold, the election for the vice president would be decided by the Senate.", "President and vice president are the only nationally elected offices. Elected through the electoral college, rather than a popular vote. Party convention held every four years to nominate the party's candidate for the presidency.", "Elected President The 1968 United States presidential election was the 46th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 5, 1968. The Republican nominee, former vice president Richard Nixon, defeated the Democratic nominee, incumbent vice president Hubert Humphrey.", "Elections. National Elections take place every even-numbered year. Every four years the president, vice president, one-third of the Senate, and the entire House are up for election (on-year elections).", "Some Vice Presidents took the oath from the Chief Justice. On some occasions, the outgoing Vice President administered the oath to the Vice President-elect. Since World War II, Vice Presidents have chosen friends and associates to administer the oath of office.", "the election of the United States president and the vice president is indirect election. Voters elect the Electoral College, which then elects the president. The Electoral College is a controversial issue in American politics, as the Electoral College vote may not agree with the popular vote.", "In the election of 1796, Federalist John Adams won the presidency, but his bitter rival, Democratic-Republican Thomas Jefferson came second and became vice president. Thus, the president and vice president were from opposing parties; and Jefferson used the vice presidency to frustrate the president's policies.", "Two vice presidents, George Clinton and John C. Calhoun, held the office under two different presidents. Of the 14 vice presidents who fulfilled their ambition by achieving the presidency, eight succeeded to the office on the death of a president, and four of these were later elected president.", "The amendment prohibits anyone who has been elected president twice from being elected again. Under the amendment, someone who fills an unexpired presidential term lasting more than two years is also prohibited from being elected president more than once.", "A constitutionally recognized officer of the Senate who presides over the chamber in the absence of the vice president. The president pro tempore (or, \"president for a time\") is elected by the Senate and is, by custom, the senator of the majority party with the longest record of continuous service.", "In this capacity, four vice presidents have been able to announce their own election to the presidency: John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Martin Van Buren, and George H. W. Bush.", "Unless the General Assembly decides otherwise, the General Assembly shall elect a President and twenty-one Vice-Presidents at 9 least three months before the opening of the session over which they are to preside.", "A contingent election for the president is decided by a vote of the United States House of Representatives, and the contingent election for the vice president is decided by a vote of the United States Senate.", "Of the 14 vice presidents who fulfilled their ambition by achieving the presidency, eight succeeded to the office on the death of a president, and four of these were later elected president." ]

[ "(CNN) -- A Chicago commuter train that was parked in a service yard somehow moved onto a rail line and smashed into an oncoming train early Monday, injuring dozens of people. How it happened is a mystery. \"I don't know the last time, if ever, that this has happened\" on the Chicago Transit Authority system, spokesman Brian Steele said. There are \"more questions than answers\" about the incident in Forest Park, Illinois, he said. At least 48 people were injured; 33 of them were transported to hospitals, Forest Park Mayor Anthony Calderone told CNN affiliate WLS. They are believed to have minor injuries. It was not immediately clear how many passengers were aboard the train. Investigators are not characterizing the incident as a runaway train at this point, Steele said. A central question: whether anyone had climbed on board the empty train and set it in motion. \"In order for a train to move, it has to be energized,\" said Ronald Ester, vice president of CTA Rail Operations. \"We call it unlocking the master controller,\" he said. The train would have needed to be placed in power position manually. Authorities are looking at video feeds from the platforms and from some rail cars. They're also interviewing workers who were nearby. It's unknown whether there were criminal activities, Steele said. Authorities did not immediately find windows broken, doors pried open or graffiti on the train. The train that caused the accident had four cars; the one with passengers aboard had eight. The incident took place about 8 a.m. Train service continued but did not stop at Harlem, near the site of the crash. Shuttle buses were made available. Steele emphasized that the CTA has \"a very strong safety record.\" More on the accident from CNN affiliate WGN ." ]

[ "By . Associated Press . Authorities say an Amtrak train hit a vehicle that was apparently driving on train tracks late on Sunday in Massachusetts, killing three people. Amtrak train 132 from Washington, D.C. was bound for Boston late Sunday night when it slammed into an SUV around midnight, causing the train to derail. Three people in the SUV were killed, two males and one female. Their names and ages have not been released.It’s still not clear where the car entered the tracks. Killer collision: Three people died after an Amtrak train hit an SUV on the tracks overnight in Mansfield . Authorities said at a news conference late Monday morning that the scene is at least a mile long and difficult to access. 'What . we have is a very large crime scene, we have a very long extended . investigation ahead of us, and we really can’t get into it too much . beyond that point,' Mansfield police chief Ron Sellon told reporters. Authorities had previously said two died in the accident in Mansfield, which forced Amtrak to temporarily cancel some service to and from Boston and Providence, Rhode Island, on Monday morning. Gregg Miliote, a spokesman for the Bristol County district attorney, confirmed the new details Monday. Mystery: Authorities have said they are unclear how the SUV managed to get onto the railway tracks inthe first place. Three people in the SUV, two males and one female were killed (stock photo) Miliote says officials are still working to identify the victims, and that investigators are expected to be at the site most of the day probing the crash. None of the 180 passengers or crew on the Amtrak train, which was heading to Boston from Washington, were injured. Mansfield is about 25 miles southwest of Boston. Amtrak Acela Express and Northeast Regional service between Boston and Providence was suspended, but resumed just after 7 a.m. as trains used the adjacent tracks. There were also delays on the MBTA’s Providence and Stoughton line.", "(CNN) -- Five people remained in the hospital -- one in critical condition -- two days after a commuter train derailed and struck another train on one of the busiest tracks in the country, officials said Sunday. National Transportation Safety Board investigators looking at the accident, along the corridor from New York to New Haven, Connecticut, are focusing on a broken rail as a possible cause for Friday's rush-hour collision. \"All of our teams have been working around the clock to gather information and facts that will help us determine what caused this accident and what we can do to prevent it from happening again, Earl Weener of the NTSB told reporters Sunday. For now, a long stretch of track that more than 30,000 passengers use daily will be shut down. That includes Metro-North service for a 30-mile stretch between New Haven and South Norwalk, Connecticut, and Amtrak service between New York and New Haven. Amtrak released a statement Sunday night saying that service between Boston and New Haven also would be limited, and \"there is no estimate on service restoration.\" Because of that inconvenience, Amtrak said passengers who \"have paid but choose not to travel due to this service disruption can receive a refund or a voucher for future travel.\" Investigators have ruled out foul play in the crash, which injured more than 70 people. Cindy Nunes and John Cappiello, spokespeople for Bridgeport Hospital in Connecticut, said three patients were still there Sunday -- one person in critical condition and two listed as stable. Two patients remained at St. Vincent's Medical Center in Bridgeport, both in good condition, spokeswoman Lucinda Ames said. By Sunday afternoon, all the rail cars had been removed from the accident site, said Weener. Two segments of rail in the area of the fracture also had been removed and are being sent to a laboratory for analysis, he said. None of the cars flipped over when the two trains collided, but many cars were heavily damaged. Some had gaping holes where doors had been. Deep scrape marks were easily visible where one train sideswiped the other. Investigators will look at the trains' braking performances, wheel and track conditions, and speed and other information from data recorders, Weener said. In addition to the trains, investigators also are examining the actions of the crews. He said the track could have been broken by the accident or could have been fractured before the trains collided. This accident involved commuter rail cars built to new codes, he said Sunday. \"This gives us a chance to see how effective the new standards are,\" he told CNN. The two tracks will have to be repaired before they can be reopened. \"Our crews will essentially be rebuilding 2,000 feet of damaged track and overhead wires and signal system,\" Metro-North Railroad President Howard Permut said in a statement. Because of a bridge replacement project, those two tracks are the only way in and out of New York City by train from that part of Connecticut. Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy said the state would set up a system to take Metro-North patrons from Bridgeport to the closest operable station, in South Norwalk, during the shutdown. The city of Fairfield, which has three affected train stations, sent out a message telling commuters there will not be enough extra buses to handle normal passenger volume on Monday. It encouraged people to consider staying home. 'Everybody was doing what they could' Daniel Solomon, a trauma surgeon, was in the front car and barely felt the crash when it happened. He didn't understand the severity of the situation at first. \"But when I reached the back of the car, I realized that the damage was a lot more severe, and people were filing out of the middle car pretty badly bloodied,\" he told CNN on Sunday. His medical training kicked in as he helped an injured woman off the tracks and attended to others. Solomon said his fellow commuters remained calm and were eager to lend a hand. \"I think everybody's Good Samaritan instinct took effect, and everybody was doing what they could,\" he said. 'Absolutely staggering' damage . The damage to the tracks and several train cars is \"absolutely staggering,\" said Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, who visited the site with other officials Saturday. Wreckage littered an area of about 200 yards. \"Ribbons of the sides of cars are torn away like ribbons of cloth,\" the senator said. \"Tons of metal tossed around like toy things. The insides of cars are shattered.\" The two Metro-North passenger trains, heading in opposite directions, collided Friday evening in southwestern Connecticut. The train heading from New York City to New Haven derailed around 6:10 p.m. and struck the other train in Bridgeport, Connecticut, Weener said Saturday. Both trains were traveling at about 70 mph immediately before the crash. CNN's Chelsea J. Carter, Susan Candiotti, Chris Welch, Rob Frehse, Chris Welch, AnneClaire Stapleton, Jason Hanna, Jordana Ossad, and Mark Morgenstein contributed to this report.", "(CNN) -- Federal accident investigators issued two \"urgent\" recommendations to the Chicago Transit Authority on Friday urging action to prevent another crash similar to one this week in which an unoccupied CTA train collided with another at a station, injuring 33 people. The National Transportation Safety Board told the authority in a letter that it needed to take steps, including using wheel chocks, to prevent trains from moving unintentionally. CTA said in response it had taken those and other steps immediately after the crash on Monday. The accident occurred when a four-car train -- unoccupied but powered up -- departed the Forest Park Repair Terminal where it was awaiting repairs. It traveled almost a mile downhill through five devices designed to stop trains, eventually colliding with an occupied train stopped at the Harlem Station on CTA's Blue Line. Some 33 passengers were injured. Those who were hospitalized have been released, authorities said. The empty train movement remains under investigation, but the CTA said neither criminal conduct nor vandalism is suspected. The safety board said unoccupied CTA trains are \"routinely left powered up\" while stored at the repair yard. But CTA spokesman Brian Steele disputed that, saying trains are typically powered up prior to going into service. Steele said preliminary indications show the train was powered up at the time of the incident, but it was unclear when it was scheduled to depart the repair yard to go to another maintenance yard. \"That's one of the questions we are trying to answer,\" he said. The NTSB said the investigation continues, noting that one of the cars had heat-damaged wiring and water in electrical connection boxes. Steele said the CTA has inspected about half of the 600 to 700 cars in its fleet without finding similar damage. The inspections were to be completed this weekend, he said. The NTSB typically rolls out recommendations at the conclusion of investigations, but can issue guidance earlier if it identifies a safety problem. In this case, it issued the recommendations while most of the agency was on furlough because of the government shutdown. The furlough rules allow for ongoing investigations in cases that are necessary to \"prevent the imminent potential for loss of life and significant property damage.\" The NTSB also can launch investigations into \"major accidents involving significant casualties.\" The actions recommended by the board need \"to be addressed expeditiously to prevent a recurrence,\" NTSB chairwoman Deborah Hersman wrote in the letter to Forrest Claypool, president of the CTA. In addition to wheel chocks, the NTSB recommended turning off propulsion power and using an alternative brake setting, and a system to derail cars before they enter the main track. The NTSB also wrote to the Federal Transit Administration requesting it issue a safety advisory to all transit systems asking them to review operating and maintenance procedures for stored, unoccupied cars. All but 28 of the FTA's 529 employees have been furloughed. An FTA spokeswoman said that the administration complied and issued the safety advisory.", "The driver of a 130ft-tall cherry picker was killed today after he was thrown from the cab onto a motorway when the machine suddenly toppled over. The cherry picker was being used at a depot yard situated next to the M25 this morning when the machine tumbled onto the hard shoulder of the anti-clockwise carriageway, throwing its operator onto the road. The motorway was closed to allow . an air ambulance to land and paramedics to attend to the injured man, who worked at the Kimberley Access depot in Iver, Buckinghamshire, but he was pronounced dead at the . scene. Incident: A cherry picker being used in a depot situated next to the M25 collapsed on to the hard shoulder, throwing its driver on to the motorway at 9.20am this morning . Tragedy: The man, who is believed to have been thrown from the cab of the crane, died at the scene . Smash: The cherry picker is said to be 130ft tall and fully extended when it toppled over on to the motorway at around 9.20am this morning . Investigation: A Health and Safety Executive investigation has been launched into why the machine apparently malfunctioned . A  worker at a neighbouring business . said: 'We understand that it was a new machine so there must have been . something mechanically wrong with it. 'The cherry picker was 130ft tall and it was up in the air when it has appeared to have toppled over onto its side. 'It . has gone through part of their yard, part of our yard, across a service . road where a lorry was parked, over a fence and into the motorway. 'The area is cordoned off and the road is closed.' The scene in the yard where the cherry picker was based: A spokesman for Kimberley Access confirmed that an accident had taken place but declined to comment further . A  worker at a neighbouring business said: 'It has gone through part of their yard, part of our yard, across a service road where a lorry was parked, over a fence and into the motorway' The . hard shoulder and the inside lane of the motorway remained closed for . several hours following the incident shortly after rush hour at 9.20am . this morning. Long tailbacks of up to two hours were . being experienced by motorists in both directions of the M25 between . junctions 16 and 15, near Heathrow airport. On Twitter Stuart Dent said: 'Passed a . corpse on the M25 not long ago. Poor bloke was in a huge cherry picker . which had collapsed, chucking him onto the motorway.' A police and Health and Safety investigation was launched into why the machine suddenly malfunctioned. Tragedy: The motorway was closed to allow an air ambulance to land and paramedics to attend to the injured man, but he was pronounced dead at the scene . A policewoman looks at where the crane has ripped through the fence ringing the depot: Police were today in the process of contacting the as yet unnamed man's family . A spokesman for Kimberley Access confirmed that an accident had taken place but declined to comment further. The . company, which has depots across the country, has been trading since . 1994 and states that they 'specialise in nationwide access platform hire . as we believe that access platforms are the safest way to work at . height' on its website. Today a spokesman for Thames Valley . Police said the machine's driver was pronounced dead at the scene . adjacent to the yard in Palmer's Moor Lane, Iver, Buckinghamshire. He was not struck by any of the cars travelling on the motorway at the time of the incident. The . police spokesman said: 'We got called to reports of a cherry picker . which had been working at a depot next to the motorway had fallen onto . the hard shoulder. 'The man who was believed to have been on the cherry picker had gone over with it. 'A police investigation and a member of the Health and Safety Executive investigation are both under way.' An man photographs the damage caused by the accident to a fence: A police and Health and Safety investigation has been launched to find out why the machine suddenly malfunctioned . Pinned: The cherry picker fell across a lorry parked up at the side of the access road beside the depot . A spokesman for the Highways Agency add: 'The incident involved a crane - in a yard next to the M25 - which fell on to the hard shoulder of the motorway this morning. 'Once any necessary investigations at the site are complete, the crane will then need to be removed from the hard shoulder before the road can safely be re-opened to road users.' Police were in the process of contacting the unidentified man's family. His body was being taken to a hospital where a post mortem examination would be performed in the next few days. An inquest would then be opened and adjourned until a future date. Locator: There were long tailbacks on the M25 between junctions 15 and 16 near Heathrow Airport following the incident this morning .", "By . Sam Webb . PUBLISHED: . 12:23 EST, 10 April 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 01:44 EST, 11 April 2013 . Network Rail has been fined £450,000 for health and safety breaches over the 'entirely preventable' death of a woman who was killed at a level crossing in Herefordshire. A judge at Birmingham Crown Court also fined signalman Adrian Maund £1,750 for his part in the death of Jane Harding, of Leominster, Herefordshire, whose car was struck by a train in in 2010. Network Rail, which was found guilty of breaching the Health and Safety at Work Act by failing to install an automatic barrier locking system, was also ordered to pay £33,000 in prosecution costs. Train signalman Adrian Maund leaving Birmingham Crown Court. Both Maund and Network Rail were fined for the death of Jane Harding at a level crossing in Herefordshire . Mrs Harding, 52, died when the car she was a passenger in was hit by a train in the village of Moreton-on-Lugg in Herefordshire in January 2010. Her husband Mark, who was driving the car, suffered serious injuries in the collision, which happened seconds after Maund raised the crossing's barriers in the mistaken belief that the train had already passed. A two-week trial heard that Network Rail had opted not to fit a safety system at the crossing which would have prevented the barriers being lifted when a train was approaching. Maund, 43, was convicted in February of failing to take reasonable care for the safety of people using the crossing. Accident: Jane Harding's black VW after the crash. The train that hit it can be seen in the distance . Horror: The car was struck by the passenger train at 60mph and dragged 150 yards down the track . Passing sentence on both defendants, Judge Melbourne Inman QC said the death would not have happened if the 'approach locking' barriers had been installed. Weighing up the culpability of the defendants with the consequence of their actions, the judge said: . 'Obviously the harm caused is extremely high - a life has been needlessly lost. 'This tragedy could have been avoided if Network Rail had installed an approach locking system (at the crossing) which would have rendered it impossible for a signalman to raise the barrier.' Jane Harding was killed when Adrian Maund accidentally lifted the barriers because he thought the train passed . The signal box at the crossing which was manned at the time of the incident . The judge said: 'This tragedy could have been avoided if Network Rail had installed an approach locking system which would have rendered it impossible for a signalman to raise the barrier' Mrs Harding was a passenger in the car that was hit by a train in the village of Moreton-on-Lugg. Her husband was injured in the smash . Addressing Maund, described in court as a thorough employee who had been commended during 19 years of exemplary service, the judge added: 'Clearly something caused you to take the terrible decision to raise the barrier. 'I accept that you obviously did not intend what happened and admitted to having made a terrible error immediately after it had occurred, after you had contacted the emergency services and whilst you were awaiting them.' Maund, whose trial heard that he was distracted by a telephone call from a farmer using a nearby unmanned crossing, was also ordered to complete 275 hours of unpaid community work. Tragic: Emergency services and engineers at the scene .", "By . Alex Finnis for MailOnline . An audio recording has emerged of the moment the driver of the derailed train which caused the Lac-Megantic train disaster was told it was his vehicle at fault. The recorded phone conversations between train driver Tom Harding and a dispatcher referred to only as RJ show how the driver had no idea it was his train which has rolled off the tracks and exploded in the Quebec town. When the news is broken to him you can hear Harding shout: 'She was f***ing secure. F***!' before adding: 'Oh, Jesus Christ….How in the f*** did that thing f***ing roll down, RJ?' Scroll down for audio . Smoke rises from railway cars that were carrying crude oil after derailing in downtown Lac-Megantic, Quebec . The train, which was carrying 72 carloads of volatile oil from North Dakota, had been parked on a railway line for the night when it derailed, hurtled down an incline and slammed into downtown Lac-Megantic on July 6 last year. Several train cars exploded and 40 buildings were levelled. Parts of the town were evacuated in the early hours of the morning as fireballs shot high into the sky, flames spread to nearby homes and thick acrid smoke filled the air. The audio recording, obtained by CBC Radio-Canada, also shows how it was Harding who initially alerted railway company Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railways to the disaster, before he realised his involvement. He told the dispatcher: 'Everything is on fire - from the church all the way down to the Metro, from the river all the way to the railway tracks. From what I can see, RJ, the box cars have all burnt in the yard - the ties, everything. Whatever is in the yard, rolling stock, is now gone - completely.' Searchers dig through the rubble for victims of the inferno in the explosions, which killed 47 people last July . The accident resulted in 47 of the town's residents being burnt to death, and lawsuits have been brought against the now bankrupt company. The weak safety culture at Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railways and poor government oversight were among the many factors that led to the oil train explosion, Canada's Transportation Safety Board said in a new report released on Tuesday. TSB chair Wendy Tadros said 18 factors played a role, including a rail company that cut corners and a Canadian regulator that didn't do proper safety audits. 'We now know why the situation developed over time,' Tadros told a news conference in Lac-Megantic. 'A weak safety culture at MMA, poor training of employees, tank cars that didn't offer enough protection.' A worker walks near the railway track on the site of the train wreck on July 16 last year . Driver Tom Harding had no idea it was his train which had derailed when he called the dispatcher that night . The TSB, which is responsible for investigating rail, air and marine accidents, blamed another government agency, Transport Canada, for failing in its oversight duties. 'And then Transport Canada didn't audit railways often enough and thoroughly enough to know how those companies were really managing, or not managing, risk,' Tadros said. TSB chief operating officer Jean Laporte called Montreal, Maine & Atlantic's operations 'dubious' and said the railway chose to limit the speed on certain routes instead of improving its equipment. 'People only did the bare minimum to get the job done rather than always following the rules,' Laporte said. In May, the Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Canada Co. and three of its employees, including Harding, were charged by Quebec prosecutors with 47 counts of criminal negligence causing death. Class-action lawsuits are pending. The crash, the worst railway accident in Canada in nearly 150 years, prompted intense public pressure to make oil trains safer. Canada's transport minister said in April that the type of tankers involved in the disaster must be retired or retrofitted within three years because they are prone to rupturing. *1.47am: Tom Harding (TH) calls RJ* . TH: Everything is on fire - from the church all the way down to the Metro, from the river all the way to the railway tracks. From what I can see, RJ, the box cars have all burnt in the yard - the ties, everything. Whatever is in the yard, rolling stock, is now gone - completely. RJ: Uh, is it, is it the train that roll... run down? TH: No. I have all of the police here around me ‘cause they know I work for the railway. We got a loaded train up at Nantes, it’s OK. We got an empty fuel train up at Vachon, it’s OK. RJ: OK. TH: Flames, RJ, are 200 feet high. It’s incredible, you can’t believe it here. From the river right to the station… . RJ: What the f*** happened? TH: I don’t know. I don’t know, but everything, everything… I woke up 20 minutes ago. Evacuate, evacuate, right away. *3.29am: TH calls RJ* . RJ: It’s uh, it’s your train that rolled down. TH: No! RJ: Yes, sir. TH: No, RJ. RJ: Yes, sir. TH: Holy f**k. F**k! *** . TH: She was f***ing secure. F**k! RJ: That’s what, that’s what I got as a news. TH: And when did you get the news? Few minutes ago? RJ: At 2.25, to be correct. TH: Oh, Jesus Christ. RJ: Since then, the phone is, it just stopped ringing for a couple of minutes there. TH: Just now? RJ: Yeah. Since midnight it’s been ringing like hell. TH: Oh, f**k. So that means… holy f**k. RJ: Yeah. TH: How in the f**k did that thing f***ing roll down, RJ? RJ: I don’t know. How many brakes did you put on? TH: The units, the V.B., and the first car. Seven brakes.", "(CNN) -- Federal investigators ruled out foul play in a commuter train derailment in Bridgeport, Connecticut, that left more than 70 people injured and shut down service along the busy New York-to-New Haven corridor, officials said Saturday. National Transportation Safety Board investigators are now focusing on a broken rail as a possible cause behind Friday's rush-hour collision of two trains. \"It is of substantial interest to us, and we will be sending a portion of that track back to the laboratory in Washington, D.C., for analysis,\" Earl Weener of the NTSB told reporters Saturday. Weener said the fracture could have been caused by the accident itself, or it could have been broken before the trains collided. Investigators will also look at the trains' braking performance, wheel and track conditions, and speed and other information from data recorders, he said. In addition to the trains, investigators also are examining the behavior and actions of the crew. The wreckage won't be removed until investigators finish examining it on site -- possibly Sunday, Weener said -- and then two tracks will have to be repaired before they can be reopened. While that happens, a long stretch of rail that tens of thousands of passengers take daily will be shut down. That includes Metro-North service for a 30-mile stretch between New Haven and South Norwalk, Connecticut, and Amtrak service between New York and New Haven -- both closed indefinitely. \"I think this is going to be with us for a number of days,\" Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy told reporters Saturday morning. 'Absolutely staggering damage' The damage to the tracks and several train cars is \"absolutely staggering,\" said U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Connecticut, who visited the site with other officials Saturday. Wreckage littered an area of about 200 yards, officials said. \"Ribbons of the sides of cars are torn away like ribbons of cloth,\" Blumnethal said. \"Tons of metal tossed around like toy things. The insides of cars are shattered.\" The two Metro-North passenger trains, heading in opposite directions, collided Friday evening in southwestern Connecticut, damaging both trains and leaving some people critically injured. The accident occurred when a train heading from New York City to New Haven derailed around 6:10 p.m. That train struck the other train in Bridgeport, Connecticut, Weener said Saturday. Three people still were in critical condition Saturday morning, according to Andrew Doba, spokesman for Malloy. The governor had said Friday night that five people were seriously injured. Of the 70 people taken to hospitals Friday, nine remained in the facilities Saturday morning, hospital representatives told CNN. 'Doctors up front' A passenger in a middle car of the New York-bound train, Chris Martin, said his car went dark after the crash. He then heard someone yell over the intercom for \"all the doctors up front.\" Martin said his crowded train was evacuated. Everybody on his train was physically fine, he said, but many were shaken emotionally. He said he saw injured people outside the train. Brian Alvarez said he saw the wreckage. \"I saw this one car and it was completely destroyed, and they were pulling people out of the car,\" Alvarez said. \"... They were all bloody.\" Bridgeport Mayor Bill Finch said Friday that travel headaches could persist for weeks because the two tracks affected by the derailment -- which are both \"shot right now\" -- may take weeks to repair. Cranes will have to remove the wreckage from the tracks once the NTSB has finished its on-site probe. Because of a bridge replacement project, those two tracks are the only way in and out of New York City by train from that part of Connecticut. Malloy said the state would set up a system taking rail Metro-North patrons from Bridgeport to the closest operable station, in South Norwalk, during the shutdown. CNN's Susan Candiotti, Rob Frehse, Chris Welch, AnneClaire Stapleton and Jordana Ossad contributed to this report.", "WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Officials investigating last week's crash of two Metro subway trains said a system used to detect trains in the area of the accident had failed intermittently in the days immediately before the fatal crash. Investigators are shown at the crash scene in Washington. Nine people were killed in the June 22 accident. Officials earlier reported that the track circuit had been repaired June 17, five days before the crash. In an update Wednesday, the National Transportation Safety Board added that after the repair, the circuit \"periodically lost its ability to detect trains.\" The NTSB says the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority reported the problem during a post-accident review of track circuit data, but it was not immediately clear if operators were aware of the problem before the accident. A call to the transit authority was not immediately returned. In a prepared statement, Metro General Manager John Catoe said the track circuit data problem \"... is not an issue that would have been easily detectable to controllers in our operations center.\" He said Metro is working with the NTSB to find the \"root cause\" of the accident, and said he wanted to assure metro riders that the system \"is as safe as it can be.\" Nine people were killed in the June 22 accident. According to the NTSB, which is investigating the crash, maintenance records show that an \"impedance bond\" for the track circuit where the accident occurred was replaced June 17. The NTSB says it is now reviewing documentation on the performance of the track circuit both before and after the June 17 repair. Since the accident, the transit authority has stopped using a computer system designed to avoid collisions and is operating the trains manually, leading to delays. The NTSB, meanwhile, has been conducting nightly tests at the accident scene between the Fort Totten and Takoma stations. On the weekend of July 18, investigators intend to conduct tests to determine when the stopped train would have been visible from the train that struck it. The previously reported rail-streak marks consistent with heavy braking were approximately 125 feet long, and began approximately 425 feet before impact.", "(CNN) -- Commuters who rely on the train between New Haven, Connecticut, and New York will be able to resume their usual travel Wednesday morning, five days after a derailment on one of the busiest tracks in the country. Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy announced the resumption of the Metro-North line service in a new conference in which he also praised the timely work. \"This is very, very good news and something that we did not think could be accomplished, but full operations are expected to begin on Wednesday morning,\" said Malloy. Amtrak released a statement shortly after the announcement saying service between Boston and New York will also resume Wednesday morning. Because of the inconvenience, Amtrak said passengers who \"have paid but choose not to travel due to this service disruption can receive a refund or a voucher for future travel.\" Commuters were warned that Monday's commute could be rough and that they should expect \"substantial delays.\" But at 9 a.m., there were no lines and plenty of shuttle buses to take passengers around the 2,000 feet of bad track. Starting at 4:30 a.m., buses carrying 40 to 55 passengers each left Bridgeport, Connecticut, for Stamford. \"We scared the heck out of people, and it worked,\" a Connecticut Department of Transportation official at the site said. Officials say either people stayed home, took Monday off, or are waiting to see how things go. Even traffic flow was said to be normal for a Monday commute. More than 30,000 passengers travel the rail corridor daily. One Metro North employee with direct knowledge of the head count told CNN that the roughly 2,000 people who took the train from New Haven to Bridgeport Monday morning were \"far, far fewer than normal.\" Federal investigators are trying to determine what caused Friday's derailment of a northbound Metro-North train that struck Metro-North train that was headed south. Investigators have ruled out foul play in the crash, which injured more than 70 people. John Cappiello, a spokesman for Bridgeport Hospital in Connecticut, said three patients were still there Monday -- one person in critical condition and two listed as stable. Two patients remained at St. Vincent's Medical Center in Bridgeport, both in good condition, spokeswoman Lucinda Ames said. Several officials at the tracks Monday morning wondered whether the number of commuters would pick up Tuesday once passengers saw how things went. Rebuilding the tracks . All the rail cars had been removed from the accident site by Sunday afternoon, Earl Weener of the National Transportation Safety Board said. Two segments of rail in the area of the fracture also had been removed and are being sent to a laboratory for analysis, he said. None of the cars flipped over when the two trains collided, but many cars were heavily damaged. Some had gaping holes where doors had been. Deep scrape marks could be seen where one train sideswiped the other. Investigators will look at the trains' braking performances, speed, wheel and track conditions as well as information from data recorders, Weener said. In addition to the trains, investigators also are examining the actions of the crews. He said the track could have been broken by the accident or could have been fractured before the trains collided. This accident involved commuter rail cars built to new codes, he said Sunday. \"This gives us a chance to see how effective the new standards are,\" Weener said. The two tracks will have to be repaired before they can be reopened. \"Our crews will essentially be rebuilding 2,000 feet of damaged track and overhead wires and signal system,\" Metro-North Railroad President Howard Permut said in a statement. 'Absolutely staggering' damage . The damage to the tracks and several train cars is \"absolutely staggering,\" said Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, who visited the site with other officials over the weekend. Wreckage littered an area of about 200 yards. \"Ribbons of the sides of cars are torn away like ribbons of cloth,\" the senator said. \"Tons of metal tossed around like toy things. The insides of cars are shattered.\" The two Metro-North passenger trains collided Friday evening in southwestern Connecticut. The train headed from New York City to New Haven derailed around 6:10 p.m. and struck the other train in Bridgeport, Connecticut, Weener said. Both trains were traveling at about 70 mph immediately before the crash. CNN's Steve Almasy, Dana Ford, Chelsea J. Carter, Susan Candiotti, Chris Welch, Rob Frehse, Chris Welch, AnneClaire Stapleton, Jason Hanna, Jordana Ossad and Mark Morgenstein contributed to this report.", "(CNN) -- Two passenger rail cars jumped the tracks Wednesday near Ann Arbor, Michigan, but no life-threatening injuries were reported in the accident, officials said. The Amtrak train \"made contact\" with a vehicle at a public highway crossing, Amtrak said, causing the engine to turn on its side and the first two cars of the train to derail. The train involved in the incident was Amtrak Wolverine Service Train 351. There were 71 passengers and five crew members on board, Amtrak said. The train, made up of two locomotives and six rail cars, was heading westbound from Pontiac, Michigan, to Chicago. Amtrak suspended service in central Michigan for several hours and said it will offer refunds or re-bookings without fees for those affected.", "(CNN) -- The body of the driver of one of two commuter trains that collided head-on in western Switzerland has been found in his crushed cab, Swiss police said Tuesday. Twenty-five of the passengers needed hospital treatment after the crash Monday evening, police in the Vaud canton said in a news release, one fewer than had previously been stated. Nine others were treated on the spot for minor injuries and 11 others were unharmed, police said. The train driver who survived, age 54, was injured and is in hospital, Swiss Federal Railways spokesman Reto Schaerli told CNN. The collision happened just outside the village of Granges-pres-Marnand, about 8 kilometers (5 miles) south of Payerne. Authorities are trying to determine what caused the crash. The latest details were given in a news conference Tuesday by the Vaud police and senior Swiss railways officials. At this early stage, police believe that the train driver who survived was supposed to have waited at the train station in Granges-pres-Marnand until the other train had passed, but did not, Schaerli said. It is not yet clear whether there were any technical or safety failures, he said. Police said the surviving driver had stopped his train at the station to allow passengers to board and disembark. Moments after he set off again, the two trains slammed into each other. The driver had time to apply the emergency brake before the impact, police said. The trains were traveling between Payerne and Lausanne, a city on the shores of Lake Geneva, when they collided. No foreigners were on the trains, according to police. Firefighters used heavy machinery to separate the crumpled trains and access the cab where the 24-year-old driver's body was found early Tuesday, police said. The local government sent its condolences to the driver's family. A Swiss Federal Railways statement said \"this is a very sad day and we regret the loss of one of our colleagues as well as those who were injured.\" The line between Lausanne and Payerne will remain closed Tuesday, police said. CNN's Susannah Palk and Stefan Simons contributed to this report.", "Los Angeles firefighters say nearly two dozen people were injured when a commuter train struck a car near downtown Los Angeles and partially derailed. Fire Department spokesman Shawn Lenske says 21 people on the train were hurt in Saturday's crash. He says all but one of the injuries was minor. One person in the crushed car was critically injured and had to be cut out of the vehicle. Scroll down for video . Los Angeles firefighters say nearly two dozen people suffered injuries when the commuter train struck a car . Lenske says two of the train's three passenger cars derailed. Further details on the extent of the injuries or the cause of the crash were not immediately available. Officials with Metrolink, which operates the train, did not immediately return a call for comment. The crash happened just before 11 a.m. near the University of Southern California campus, south of downtown. Reports suggest the line will remain closed for the foreseeable future. One person in the crushed car was critically injured and had to be cut out of the vehicle . Three passenger cars derailed as a result of the impact, a fire department spokesman said . Firefighters gather around the car that was crushed by the commuter train near  the University of South California campus in Los Angeles . An aerial view of the scene shows the police corden set up around the vehicle .", "By . Dan Bloom . A rural section of train line was plunged into chaos after high winds derailed two huge freight trains - by blowing one into the other. The accident during a storm near Waynoka, Oklahoma, delayed around 60 trains on an intercontinental track and prompted a full-scale cleanup operation. But investigators had to be cautious - as one of the cars reportedly contained fireworks. Oklahoma! Where the wind comes sweeping up the trains: The intercontinental BNSF line was plunged into chaos after high winds derailed two huge freight trains by blowing one into the other . Scale: Workers had to remove the huge trains yesterday as the backlog reached a reported 60 services . The trains - each a mile long - crashed just after 11pm during a fierce storm on Sunday night. Residents had been warned winds could reach 70mph. According to FOX 25, one of the carriages contained fireworks which it was feared could have been made unstable after the two trains toppled. Storm chaser Shane Helton, 40, told MailOnline the BNSF Railway Company had issued orders for both trains to slow down just 12 minutes before the accident happened. 'BNSF issued a high wind warning to slow down,' he said. 'The trains were slowing down and the derailment happened at 11.14pm'. When the sun rose, the scene was one of containers toppled over, some of them ripped open with their contents spread across the railway. But despite the chaos, no one was injured. Cleanup: Diggers move the stricken compartments of the freight train derailed in Oklahoma yesterday . Disruption: As the cross-continental backlog increased, engineers worked furiously to remove the trains . As the cross-continental backlog increased, engineers worked furiously to remove the trains and, incredibly, managed to reopen the line in time for this morning. It is thought the crash may have been caused by straight-line winds, a phenomenon created when a thunderstorm creates a downburst of air, forcing out strong blasts in all directions. Mr Helton, who works on an oil field, added: 'I see a lot of things but it's been about 10 years since I saw a derailment like this. 'The trains are over a mile long so you're looking at probably at least 100 containers per train' - Storm chaser Shane Helton, 40 . 'We get between 60 and 80 trains a day and when you get a severe thunderstorm like we did on Sunday these things can happen. 'The trains are over a mile long so you're looking at probably at least 100 containers per train. 'They were unbelievably fast at cleaning it up. They laid track panels like you do on a model railway, several other firms were called to help and the trains were running past my house this morning.' The incident came just a day after another BNSF train carrying a hazardous liquid derailed at a yard in Tulsa, around 200 miles away. The railway yard was evacuated while the leak of xylene, which is highly flammable, was dealt with. The high winds on the Great Plains which sweep through Oklahoma are even immortalised in one of Rodgers and Hammerstein's most famous musicals. Great Plains: The location of the crash on Sunday night. Wind warnings had reached a reported 70mph . The title song of Oklahoma! declares it as the land 'where the wind comes sweeping down the plain', a badge worn proudly by some locals. But the area has also had more than its share of train wrecks. A train more than 40 containers long spilt its load of beer all over the railway in August last year - in the exact same spot as Sunday night's incident. And in 2008, a train carrying crude oil and ethanol sent fireballs into the sky when it derailed in Oklahoma City. No one was injured.", "A scenic fall tour turned into a nightmare ride for passengers in northwest Arkansas on Thursday after a freight train and a passenger train collision left dozens injured. The six crew members and 38 passengers aboard were all injured, according to the Arkansas Missouri Railroad Police. The passenger train is operated by the Arkansas and Missouri Railroad, said Ron Sparks, the railroad's police chief. The train departed from Springdale, Arkansas, and was headed to Van Buren to take passengers on a fall foliage excursion. The trains collided Thursday morning when the passenger train stalled on a small grade, apparently because of excess leaves on the track, according to police. \"We called for another locomotive to come help,\" said Sparks. \"Somehow there was miscommunication on the passenger train's position, and the locomotive rounded the curve and crashed into the passenger train,\" added Sparks. \"It's a pretty rural area, we had to park in woods, and wade through a river to get the passengers, using four-wheelers to pull them out.\" One of the train's conductors fractured his ankle and back and was evacuated to the hospital, said Sparks. Local fire and police emergency responders remain on the scene, according to local police. The National Transportation Safety Board was sending a team to the site of the crash Thursday evening to investigate.", "When an elderly woman fell down an escalator at a bustling train station, you might have expected rail staff to rush to her aid. But astonishingly, they refused to help her. And their reason? They had not been trained in ‘people-handling’. The extraordinary excuse was given by Northern Rail workers, who stood just yards away and let other passengers tend to the shocked woman instead. A witness, who confronted the staff at Leeds train station, described their attitude as ‘shameful’. Going up: Rail staff refused to help an elderly woman after she fell down an escalator at bustling Leeds station . Tom Lees, 25, said he was waiting for a train at around 10.30am when he spotted an ‘old lady fall backwards’ while travelling up an escalator. He said one passenger ‘grabbed her’ and another stopped the escalator by pressing an emergency button. ‘A third called the Northern Rail staff to help but they just stood there like lemons,’ he said. Mr Lees, a scientist working in the road industry, added: ‘I dashed up the escalator – she was in a very precarious position. Afterwards I asked [the staff] why they didn’t help and they said they weren’t allowed to because they weren’t “people-handling trained”. ‘I said it was shameful behaviour.’ Northern Rail runs passenger trains across the north of England and is the largest train operator in the UK. This week it introduced peak evening fares – meaning some weekday tickets will cost 117 per cent more. Scene: The extraordinary excuse given by the Northern Rail workers, who let other passengers tend to the shocked woman at Leeds train station (pictured), was that they had not been trained in ‘people-handling’ Mr Lees, from Halifax, West Yorkshire, said the two Northern Rail staff were standing at the ticket barrier, about 20 yards away, in full view of the escalator. ‘After speaking to them I thought they were just misinformed staff so I gave the customer service line a call and they repeated the same line to me – that they’re not allowed to help because they’re not people-handling trained. It seemed to be against common human compassion.’ He added: ‘I said to them “if your granny fell over would you not hope that someone would pick her up?” They didn’t answer.’ After the incident last week, Mr Lees and two female passengers helped the elderly woman to a bench before comforting her and getting her a drink. The woman, who was left shaken but is not believed to have been injured, has not been identified. Last night the train company put the incident down to policy concerning the use of staff trained in first aid. A Northern Rail spokesman said: ‘We’re sorry for any distress caused to the lady who fell or other customers who witnessed what happened. Our team report any accident directly to the station managers so a qualified first aider can be alerted immediately.’ But John Rowe, head of operations for the Health and Safety Executive in Yorkshire and the Humber, said it was a ‘ridiculous’ situation, adding: ‘There nothing in the Health and Safety at Work Act that prevents people offering assistance to others in distress. ‘I can only think that either the company’s own policies are being stretched and misinterpreted by their employees, or the individuals in question didn’t fancy getting involved and they just used health and safety as a convenient excuse.’", "By . Associated Press . and Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 15:40 EST, 1 December 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 15:41 EST, 1 December 2013 . Three train employees were killed yesterday when a train derailed and fell 40 feet into a ravine in New Mexico - and authorities still don't know what caused the accident. Police on Sunday identified the three as 38-year-old Donald White, 60-year-old Steven Corse and 50-year-old Ann Thompson. White lived in Silver City, New Mexico, and Corse and Thompson lived in the northern Arizona community of Paulden. No other people were on the train and no one else was hurt. Deadly derailment: Authorities are still investigating what caused the train derailment in New Mexico that killed three people yesterday . State Police spokesman Emmanuel Gutierrez said it's unknown what caused Saturday afternoon's derailment on Freeport-McMoRan Copper and Gold property near the community of Bayard, about 75 miles northwest of Las Cruces. It's unclear what preceded the derailment. The eight rail cars being pulled by the locomotive weren't forced into the ravine. Instead, they remained either on or near the tracks. At least half of the eight train cars had tilted on their sides, but none of the iron ore being carried by the train had spilled out. Off track: The train fell 40 feet into a ravine in an area about 75 miles northwest of Las Cruces, New Mexico. The three killed were the only people on board and no one else was injured . However, the derailment did cause a diesel fuel leak which the Silver City Fire Department work to contain late Saturday. Photos taken by investigators show the locomotive on its side in the ravine. The train was operated by Southwest Railroad Inc. and was on its way to Santa Rita. Brian Beaty, manager of operators for safety and compliance for the rail company, says the company expects a cause for the derailment to be issued at some point Sunday.", "By . Paul Bentley and Anna Edwards . PUBLISHED: . 06:06 EST, 6 March 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 07:41 EST, 6 March 2013 . A husband has recalled the moment he returned home on his first day of retirement, only to discover that his wife had been killed in a car crash. Terry Williams had arrived home, laden with champagne and gifts, to celebrate his retirement with his wife Wendy after a 40-year career. But their dreams of sharing a new stage of life together were not to be as 30 minutes later police arrived to tell him the heartbreaking news that his wife had died. This week Mr Williams described the . dreadful moment he found out his wife of 37 years was never coming home, . when the day that should have been one of their happiest together . turned into tragedy. Tragic news on retiring: Terry Williams was devastated to discover that on the day he retired, his wife Wendy was killed in a crash with an ambulance . Mrs Williams was killed when her car was hit by an ambulance racing to hospital at 75mph two days before Christmas in 2009. At the inquest into her death, Mr Williams, 63, a former consultant engineer, said: ‘I retired on the same day after 40 years working. ‘I came home with champagne and retirement gifts. Thirty minutes later there were two policemen on the doorstep telling me she’d been killed.’ He described his 60-year-old wife and mother of two as a ‘very active lady’, adding: ‘She always looked forward to Christmas and loved having the family around. I’m sure she was looking forward to the holiday break.’ Mrs Williams was driving her Ford Ka at a busy junction in Lichfield when she pulled out suddenly. Tragic accident: Mrs Williams died when she pulled out just yards in front of an ambulance car at the junction of Tamworth Road and Quarry Hill Lane, Lichfield (pictured) Her car was hit by an ambulance, . which had its sirens on as it raced at speeds of more than 75mph to help . a five-year-old boy who had swallowed a coin. Paramedic Kevin Webster, . who was driving the ambulance, was found not guilty of causing her death . by careless  driving at a trial in 2011. At . the inquest on Monday, South Staffordshire coroner Andrew Haigh . confirmed that Mrs Williams, who had lived with her husband in a . £300,000 four-bedroom detached house in Castle Bromwich, West Midlands, . died as a result of a tragic accident. Giving evidence, paramedic Mr Webster . said he had no chance to stop and did not expect Mrs  Williams to pull . out at the junction. ‘Initially when I saw the car it was in the . junction. As I travelled along the road the car appeared to pull out, . stop, then it made a second movement,’ he said. ‘That was the last movement. It pulled out from the junction. ‘I applied the brakes quite sharpish but unfortunately still impacted the car.’ Call for action: Since the accident in which paramedic Kevin Webster was driving (right), Mrs Williams' family have called on West Midlands Ambulance Service to impose speed limits on drivers and bring training in line with that of police emergency drivers . Mrs Williams’ family has called on . West Midlands Ambulance Service to impose speed limits on drivers and . bring training in line with that of police emergency drivers. The . inquest heard a new ambulance policy advises drivers not to exceed the . speed limit by more than 50 per cent, although this is a guide rather . than rule. Mr Williams has previously spoken of the family’s concerns about the ambulance involved in the crash that killed his wife. It was travelling at nearly twice the . speed limit despite the fact that the call-out had been listed as a . category C, the lowest emergency rating. ‘Wendy was a beautiful 60-year-old looking forward to retirement with her family,’ said Mr Williams. ‘We hope that something can be done in future to avoid this sort of accident.’", "A train has crashed into another in Melbourne's west, injuring passengers and staff. The rear-end collision occurred about 7pm with both trains on the same line, heading east towards central Melbourne. A passenger train carrying about 60 people had come to a stop near the Maidstone St level crossing, in Altona. Scroll down for video . Police and emergency services have begun an investigation after two trains collided on the same Melbourne line overnight . Nine people were injured from the two trains . Police say another train from Geelong, with only a driver and conductor on board, ran into the rear of the stationary train. Nine people - seven from the passenger train and the two from the Geelong train - had minor injuries, police say. Police and emergency workers have remained at the crash site well into the evening.", "At least six people died when a lorry rammed a busy train in Dhaka, Bangladesh on Monday. A further 11 people have been confirmed injured after the incident, which took place in the Bangladeshi capital just after 1pm. Local government representatives are blaming the driver of the lorry, accusing him of negligence. Collision: At least six people died after a lorry crashed into a moving train in Dhaka, Bangladesh . Accident: 11 people were injured when the lorry hit the train around lunchtime on Monday . One of the wounded being rescued from the accident site in Dhaka, Bangladesh . The train, which had been travelling from Narayongong, about 18 miles from to Dhaka, was forced on its side near Kamlapur Railway Station when the lorry collided with it. 'Either the driver lost control or there was negligence on his part,' Railway Minister Mazibul Hoque told BDNews24 when visiting the scene. Witnesses told the online newspaper that the lorry driver did not stop even as the train was entering the depot. Others say the lorry has attempted to cross the tracks in front of the train, but was too slow. The lorry became stuck in the side of the train, and was dragged some 50 yards along the tracks. Kamalapur Police said two people had died at the scene, while the other four succumbed to their injuries at hospital. Accusations: Local government representatives are blaming the driver of the lorry for the incident . Witnesses said the lorry driver did not stop even as the train was entering the depot in Dhaka . An injured man is taken from the scene to a nearby hospital after the collision . The lorry became stuck in the side of the train, and was dragged some 50 yards along the tracks .", "By . John Hutchinson . UPDATED: . 05:45 EST, 28 September 2012 . A man has died after the helicopter he was flying in crashed into a field. The two-man single-engined Robinson R22 pitched into a field behind Lancaster Way Business Park, Ely, Cambridgeshire just before lunchtime. Emergency teams were called at 11.27am to reports that an aircraft carrying one person had crash landed. Crash site: A man died when his helicopter crashed near Cambridge just before lunchtime . It is believed that the helicopter left Kent and headed for Spalding in Lincolnshire. The company provides . pilot training for private and commercial licences. A man was walking his dog when the helicopter crashed just 15 yards from where he stood. Pat Masterson, in his 40s, was today recovering from shock after attempting to pull the pilot from the wreckage. Clare Blair, 54, a mum-of-three and a member of Orchard Park Community Council from Cambridge said the man - her daughter's partner - was walking his four-month-old border collie when the aircraft crashed. She said: 'My daughter's partner was walking his puppy when the helicopter crashed just 15 yards from where they stood. 'There was one man in the helicopter and he tried to help him. He then ran to a cottage nearby and rang the emergency services. 'A farmer also came to help and the elderly woman who lives in the cottage. It was a very serious crash and traumatic for everyone involved. 'My daughter's partner is in shock and has gone to bed. I went to collect the puppy because it was distressed. 'It is very tragic, you feel for the family.' Debris: The aircraft is believed to be a Robinson R22 two seater, single engined helicopter and was being flown solo from Kent to Lincolnshire . Cambridgeshire Constabulary confirmed that a man from Kent died in the crash and his next of kin have been informed. Speaking from the field where the fatal helicopter crash took place, Chief Insp Dave Sargent said: 'The wreckage will be removed from the field sometime tomorrow afternoon. 'The debris from the crash is spread out over about half-a-mile and the blades have come off the helicopter. 'The helicopter appears to have flipped over and is lying on its topside. 'The fire service were called as a precaution because some aviation fluid had leaked from the aircraft. 'We will be using emergency lighting to illuminate the area over night.' Emergency response: Crews from fire, ambulance and police raced to the scene of the air accident near Cambridge this morning . Nothing they could do: Emergency services at the Cambridgeshire airfield - but they were unable to save the pilot . A police spokesman added: 'I can confirm that the only person on board, a man, has died in the crash. 'His next of kin in Kent have been informed and officers are providing them with support. 'I am not in a position to name the man as formal identification has not been completed. 'No one on the ground was injured. And no roads have been affected. 'The crash site has been secured pending an investigation by the Air Accidents Investigation Bureau (AAIB).' A cordon was placed around the crash site until the AAIB had completed its investigations. Other eye witnesses yesterday (Fri) claimed they heard a loud bang before the 'lifeless' helicopter plummeted to the ground. John Binns, 29, a factory worker said: 'I came out of the warehouse and saw the helicopter in the air. 'It then just started dropping to the ground. it looked so odd and lifeless. 'At first I thought it might be a model but then people started rushing towards the field and I knew it was a real helicopter.' Tragic: A dog-walker tried to save the pilot, but in the end it was too late . Anthony Clark, 37, who runs a burger van was one of the first to phone emergency services following the crash. He said: 'We just heard a loud bang and rushed out. 'Some one shouted that a helicopter had fallen out of the sky so I phoned 999 and directed them to the scene.' Jordan Lunn, 17, who works for a cycle distribution company said: 'We did not see it crash but we saw the aftermath. There were dozens of emergency vehicles. 'We took a picture of the crash and sadly you can see a body bag a few feet away from the helicopter. A spokesman for Marshall Airport near Cambridge confirmed that their aircraft was not involved in the incident.", "(CNN)(CNN) -- At least seven people died Tuesday when a packed Metro North commuter train plowed into a Jeep Cherokee on the tracks north of New York City. A dozen more were injured, a rail official said. Six of the people killed in the fiery crash were train passengers, and the seventh fatality was the female driver of the Jeep, the official said. The collision happened about 7 p.m. when the gates at the two-track Commerce Street crossing near Valhalla came down on top of a Jeep Cherokee stopped on the tracks. The driver got out to look at the rear of the vehicle, drove forward and was struck, a Metro Transit Authority official said. She was outside the vehicle when the train struck, the official said. The 5:44 p.m. northbound train from Grand Central Terminal shoved the SUV about 10 car lengths. The third rail pushed up from the track and rammed through the entire first car of the train. \"Everything is melted inside,\" said Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino. Photos of the scene and areal video from CNN affiliate WCBS showed flames and smoke pouring out windows of the commuter train. The commuter train was full when the accident happened. \"There were about 650 (people) total on the ride home,\" said Astorino said. A passenger, Justin Kaback, told CNN that people on his car didn't panic and exited in an orderly manner. Getting out of the car was difficult because it was so high and snow was on the ground, he said. MTA said the riders evacuated themselves. About 400 commuters were taken to a rock-climbing gym for shelter, the train company official said. Buses were en route there to get to them to Pleasantville. Twelve people were taken to Westchester Medical Center. Their condition was not immediately known. The National Transportation Safety Board tweeted that the agency was sending a \"go team\" to investigate the crash.", "A federal investigator said he's never seen a train climb an escalator like the one that jumped the tracks at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport early Monday. The crash of the Chicago Transit Authority Blue Line train injured 32 people, although none seriously, according to Chicago Fire officials. The eight-car train failed to stop at the end of the line when it arrived at the airport station at 2:52 a.m., a Chicago Fire official said. The lead car appeared to have climbed an escalator adjacent to the passenger platform. \"I've investigated many accidents and trains do different things,\" National Transportation Safety Board investigator Tim DePaepe told reporters. \"It's all about kinetic force. I have not seen an accident like this personally.\" NTSB experts will examine video from station cameras and one on the front of the train for clues to the cause of the crash, DePaepe said. A union official told reporters Monday that the train's driver may have fallen asleep, CNN affiliate WLS reported. \"There are indications that she dozed off, yes,\" Amalgamated Transit Union Local 308 President Robert Kelly said, according to WLS. Almost all of the 32 people taken to four hospitals had been released by the afternoon, he said. Investigators are still waiting for the train operator to be released from the hospital so that they can talk to her, he said. The wrecked train will not be moved at least until Tuesday so that investigators can examine it, DePaepe said. Shuttle buses are carrying airport passengers to and from a nearby Blue Line station until then, a CTA official said.", "What was once an above-ground freight train line has become a major tourist attraction in Manhattan's popular Meatpacking District. Open to the public since 2009, the High Line elevated park isn't quite complete. A groundbreaking ceremony to mark the start of construction on the third and final section of the park was held last week, hosted by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Friends of the High Line co-founders Joshua David and Robert Hammond. \"The park has become a local treasure and an international icon, as well as an important generator of economic growth for our city,\" said Bloomberg. The heart of Midtown Manhattan . The new section of the High Line will be built in three phrases. The first phase, expected to be completed in 2014, will cost an estimated $90 million, financed by a combination of public funds and private donations. It will extend from 30th Street to 34th Street to the west of 11th Avenue and will feature an interim walkway passing over Midtown's Western Rail Yards. The second phase will be built to the east of 10th Avenue, as well as an area where the High Line will pass through Coach's new headquarters building at 30th and 10th avenues. Finally, the third phase will upgrade the interim walkway and the western section of the first phase. Part of the West Side Improvement Project, the High Line opened in 1934 and allowed train traffic to run on tracks elevated 30 feet to put a halt to the years of accidents that had occurred at street level. \"An extraordinary\" accomplishment . Friends of the High Line, which advocates for preservation of the historic structures, was founded in 1999 by David and Hammond in response to a group of property owners who called for its demolition, according to the High Line website. \"In the decades to come, long after the final section is open to the public, the High Line will serve as a profound reminder of the extraordinary things we can achieve when the public and private sectors work together for the common good,\" said Bloomberg.", "By . Associated Press and Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 13:11 EST, 10 July 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 03:59 EST, 11 July 2013 . The president and CEO of the railway's parent company says an employee failed to properly set the brakes of the train that crashed into a town in Quebec, killing at least 15 people while another 45 remain missing. Edward Burkhardt made the comments during a visit Wednesday to the town that was devastated by the runaway oil train four days ago. 'It was questionable whether hand brakes were put I place at this time,' Burkhardt said. 'I don't think any employees removed brakes. They failed to set the brakes.' 'I think he did something wrong ...We think he applied some hand brakes but the question is did he apply enough of them. 'He said he applied 11 hand brakes we think that's not true. Initially we believed him but now we don't.' Scroll down for videos . Inferno: 15 people are now confirmed dead and 45 are still missing as the train company president said the accident was caused by an employee failing to lock the set the brakes . Razed: The number of people missing who may have been vaporized in the explosion is now up to 45 . What went wrong: Safety inspectors search the wreckage for clues on Wednesday as they try to determine the cause of the crash. The company president made the announcement about the brakes today as well . In memory: A makeshift memorial is set up, as much of the town is still struggling with the possibility that 60 people died in the crash. The lack of bodies hints that they may have vaporized in the heat . He said a train engineer has been suspended without pay. All told, 15 bodies have been found but they are so badly burned that they are unidentifiable. That . number does not include the 15 people whose bodies were burnt so badly . that they are unidentifiable, bringing the total number up to 60. Burkhardt said that he had stayed in Chicago to deal with the crisis in his office, where he was better able to communicate with insurers and officials in different places during what he described as 20-hour work days. At a press conference, shortly before Burkhardt was due to arrive in Lac-Megantic, Quebec Premier Pauline Marois faulted the company's response in the wake of the disaster. 'We have realized there are serious gaps from the railway company from not having been there and not communicating with the public,' Marois said. She also announced a $60million fund to help victims in Lac-Megantic and to rebuild the town. Burkhardt . visited the devastated town a day after police announced they were . pursuing a painstaking, wide-ranging criminal investigation of the . inferno ignited by the derailment of the oil train that demolished the . center of this lakeside town of 6,000. Flanked . by reporters at Montreal's Trudeau airport Tuesday evening, Burkhardt . suggested firefighters who extinguished an earlier fire on the same . train shared some of the blame. Long road ahead: Rescue workers comb the debris for evidence of survivors following the huge train crash on Saturday which devastated the small town of Lac-Megantic in Quebec . 'We . have responsibility for this incident. We don't have total . responsibility but we have partial responsibility,' Burkhardt said in . remarks broadcast on CTV. Quebec . police inspector Michel Forget announced Wednesday morning that the . number of missing had risen to 60, a number that included the 15 bodies . recovered so far that have been burnt beyond recognition. Police had . earlier put the number of missing at 50. Mr . Forget said the numbers remained in flux as reports of missing people . trickled in or people believed to be missing turned out to be alive. Mr . Forget had earlier ruled out terrorism as a cause, but said that an . array of other possibilities remain under investigation, including . criminal negligence. Other officials have raised the possibility that . the train was tampered with before the crash early Saturday. Debris: Terrorism has been ruled out as a possible cause but there is still a criminal investigation underway . Shells: Burnt cars are seen near the train wreckage which was traveling far too fast when it went off the rails, investigators told reporters on Tuesday . 'We're not at the stage of arrests.' The . heart of the town's central business district is being treated as a . crime scene and remained cordoned off by police tape - not only the 30 . buildings razed by the fire but also many adjacent blocks. On . downtown's main street - Rue de Laval - police positioned a truck near . the perimeter of the no-go zone, which prevented news crews from getting . direct photo and video views of the search operations being conducted . by some 200 officers. Police . officials left no doubt that the hunt for the missing people was taxing . - they said two officers were withdrawn from the sector because of . worries about their physical condition. 'This . is a very risky environment,' said Quebec Provincial Police Sgt. Benoit . Richard. 'We have to secure the safety of those working there. We have . some hotspots on the scene. There is some gas.' The . Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway train broke loose early Saturday . and hurtled downhill through the darkness nearly seven miles (11 . kilometers) before jumping the tracks at 63 mph (101 kph) in . Lac-Megantic, in eastern Quebec near the Maine border, investigators . said. All but one of the 73 cars were carrying oil. At least five . exploded. Still standing: The Sainte-Agnes Catholic Church stands unscathed next to the derailment and blast site . Vast devastation: A police officer walks amongst axle gear and the battered tankers which careered downhill . Desolate: Burnt down houses and cars are seen near the train wreckage where 40 people remain unaccounted for amid fears that their bodies may have vaporized in the extreme heat . Terror: Burnt cars are seen near the train wreckage in Lac Megantic on Saturday. The crude oil freight train derailed and blew up causing residents to run for their lives . Rail dispatchers . had no chance to warn anyone during the runaway train's 18-minute . journey because they didn't know it was happening themselves, . Transportation Safety Board officials said. Such warning systems are in place on busier lines but not on secondary lines, said TSB manager Ed Belkaloul. At . the center of the destruction is the Musi-Cafe, a popular bar that was . filled at the time of the explosion, which also forced about 2,000 of . the town's 6,000 residents from their homes. By . Tuesday, only about 800 were still barred from returning to their . houses, though residents were cautioned to boil tap water before . drinking it. Efforts . continued to stop waves of crude oil spilled in the disaster from . reaching the St. Lawrence River, the backbone of the province's water . supply. Investigators . searching for a cause of the accident are looking closely at the fire . that happened on the train less than an hour before it got loose while . parked in the nearby town of Nantes. Carnage: Emergency workers are seen at the site of the train wreckage in the small French-Canadian town close to Montreal . Smouldering: A single column of a building still stands as the rest of the structure has been reduced to rubble around it . The . train's engine was shut down - standard operating procedure dictated by . the train's owners, Nantes Fire Chief Patrick Lambert said. Burkhardt . suggested that shutting off the locomotive to put out the fire might . have disabled the brakes. 'The . train had the engine shut down by the firemen, they didn't do that for . malicious purposes by it's what happens,' Burkhardt told reporters at . the Montreal airport. 'The . firemen should have roused the locomotive engineer who was in his hotel . and taken him to the scene with them. But it's easy to say what should . have happened. We're dealing with what happened.' Lambert . defended the fire department, saying that the blaze was extinguished . within about 45 minutes and that's when firefighters' involvement ended. The . accident has thrown a spotlight on MMA's safety record: over the past . decade, the company has consistently recorded a much higher accident . rate than the national average in the U.S., according to data from the . Federal Railroad Administration. Last . year, for instance, the railroad had 36.1 accidents per million miles . traveled by its trains. The national average for 2012 was 14.6. Crushed: The tankers may have been tampered with, transport officials said on Tuesday . Fearing the worst: Exhausted firefighters take a much-needed break on a set of train wheels as they worked to recover the now 45 suspected missing residents . Before . the Lac-Megantic accident, the company had 34 derailments since 2003, . according to the federal agency. Over that period, the company was . involved in five accidents that had reportable damage of more than . $100,000. The severity of . those incidents, however, is difficult to determine from the federal . agency's 10-year data overviews on railroad safety. But . before the weekend accident, incidents involving the company's trains . had resulted in just one death. That 2006 accident involved a vehicle . that struck a moving train at a highway crossing. Burkhardt said the figures were misleading. 'This . is the only significant mainline derailment this company has had in the . last 10 years. We've had, like most railroads, a number of smallish . incidents, usually involving accidents in yard trackage and industry . trackage,' he told the CBC. Hard choices: Emergency personnel look over the debris from a runaway train as a crane removes some of the destruction . Melded: Piles of destroyed cars are heaped together showing the force of the explosion . Nonetheless, . Burkhardt predicted the accident would lead to changes in the way . railways operate, and indicated that MMA would no longer leave loaded . trains unattended, a practice he said was standard in the industry. The . tanker cars involved in the crash were the DOT-111 type - a staple of . the American freight rail fleet whose flaws have been noted as far back . as a 1991 safety study. Experts . say the DOT-111's steel shell is so thin that it is prone to puncture . in an accident, potentially spilling cargo that can catch fire, explode . or contaminate the environment.", "A woman was killed in a terrifying freak accident after her car hit a roundabout and then careered across the roof of a multi-storey car park before landing on the ground below. Shocked eye-witnesses said the vehicle struck the roundabout at high speed, hurtling it 30ft onto the top floor of the car park where it hit two cars before crashing over the back wall and landing on the ground 10ft below. Emergency services were called to the . scene of the horrific smash at 9.15am today, on the edge of the Port of . Dover in Kent, but were unable to save her. Sequence of events: The woman's car hit the roundabout and flew 30ft into the air hitting two cars on a multi-storey car park roof before crash landing on the ground below . Freak accident: The wreckage of the car that was launched into the air after a hitting a roundabout, sending it flying across a rooftop car park. The driver was thrown for the car and died at the scene . Damage: The car smashed into two other vehicles before plunging over the other side of the roof . The woman driver, who has not been identified, was seen being tended to by paramedics on the top floor of the car park after apparently being thrown clear of the car, but she didn't survive. The dramatic crash was witnessed by crowds of horrified port workers who were stood around 400m away. The roundabout is on a slight hill just yards from the concrete building, which sits below it. P&O Ferries press officer Brian Rees, who saw the crash from his office around 500 yards away, said: 'It was so extraordinary, and happened so quickly, that for a moment I didn't believe my own eyes.' Extensive damage: This blue Kia on the roof of the multi-storey car park was destroyed by the impact . The second vehicle damaged in the accident on the roof of the car park. Witnesses said the car was spinning so fast it looked like a propeller . He added: 'The car somehow got up enough speed to . hit the roundabout, hurtle off the top of the car park at the business . centre, soaring into the air somersaulting, debris flying off, end . over end, and thankfully I couldn't see where it came down to earth.' 'The only thing I can compare it to would be a James Bond movie - for a moment I doubted what I'd just seen. Emergency: A helicopter hovers above the scene of the accident. Nobody else was hurt in the horror crash . 'My immediate reaction was that it would be a miracle to survive such an accident and I'm hearing that it has ended in tragedy.' Colleague Chris Laming added: 'The car when coming through the air was spinning so fast, end over end, my colleagues thought it was a propeller it was rotating so quickly. 'Everyone here is absolutely aghast that a car could be going so quickly it could launch itself 30 feet in the air and travel for such a distance across the car park. It was unbelievable.' A Kent Police spokesman said: 'A car travelling coast-bound on the A20 collided with the Aycliffe roundabout just before 9.15 am this morning. 'The car appears to have been thrown from the roundabout and landed in a nearby car park. The driver, a woman, was declared dead at the scene. 'Police believe no other vehicles or people were involved. 'The A20 is currently closed coast-bound from the A260 (Courtwood roundabout) while emergency services deal with the incident.' Police are appealing for witnesses to try and establish how the crash happened. Anyone who witnessed the incident or saw the moments leading up to the collision, is asked to contact the Serious Collision Investigation Unit on 01622 798538.", "(CNN) -- Two commuter trains collided head-on Monday evening in western Switzerland, injuring dozens, officials said. One locomotive's driver was missing after the crash, police said, and search crews were trying to pry open the train's crushed cab. At least 40 people were injured, including five seriously, Swiss Federal Railways spokesman Reto Schaerli told CNN. The collision happened in the village of Granges-près-Marnand, about 8 km (5 miles) south of Payerne, around 6:45 p.m. Rescue teams at the scene included paramedics, firefighters, police and an air rescue helicopter, police said. Authorities are investigating what caused the crash. \"At the moment, we don't have any ... information how this collision happened,\" Schaerli said. The trains were on a route between Payerne and Lausanne, a city on the shores of Lake Geneva, Schaerli said. The crash will interrupt train service between Payerne and Moudon -- a city near the line's halfway point -- until at least midnight, Schaerli said. CNN's Stefan Simons contributed to this report.", "Three people died and 13 were injured when a German commuter train collided with a maintenance crane Friday morning, German police said. The collision occurred on the track near the city of Offenbach, outside Frankfurt, police said. The driver and two construction workers were killed. Several of the train's 35 passengers were seriously injured and are receiving hospital treatment. German authorities are investigating the cause of the accident, police said. The train, a regional service, was traveling from Frankfurt to Hanau.", "By . Nathan Klein . and Maria Lewis . and Taylor Auerbach . AFL star Lance 'Buddy' Franklin has denied speculation he was texting or speeding while driving his girlfriend's SUV into four parked cars last night. The Sydney Swans player told reporters at a press conference this morning the incident was just 'an accident' and he was grateful no one was hurt. 'I just didn't see the cars parked on the left,' he said. 'It was just an accident, accidents happen.' Scroll down for video . Sydney Swans AFL star Lance Buddy Franklin said he wasn't texting or speeding when he crashed his girlfriend's SUV into four parked cars last night . Sydney Swans AFL player Lance Franklin takes part in team a training session in Sydney today, a day after crashing his girlfriends Jeep . Busted: Sydney Swans AFL star Lance 'Buddy' Franklin was fined $405 after smashing into four parked cars last night . On Wednesday night, the Sydney Swans released a statement in relation to their $10 million star recruit's crash. 'Franklin was the only person involved in the accident. He was not carrying any passengers and there were no passengers in any of the other vehicles involved. No one was injured in the accident,' the statement read. The 27-year-old said after training at the SCG this morning he was upset about the crash. 'I'm devastated but so thankful that no one else was in the car,' he said. 'I was in shock at first. Anyone in a car accident has that reaction, so yeah a bit shocked and a bit shaky too. 'Obviously I'm frustrated, at myself...I don't want to see myself in the spotlight, I just want to move forward as quickly as possible and focus on our game this weekend.' He was also 'deeply sorry' about the inconvenience caused to the owners of the parked cars. 'I haven't had a chance to speak with them but...I am truly sorry,' he said. Car crash: The AFL player was driving the Jeep SUV he shares with girlfriend Jesinta Campbell when he collided with four parked cars in Rose Bay, Sydney, on Wednesday night . Serious damage: The impact of the crash caused airbags on the vehicle to deploy . The forward told Sunrise on Thursday morning he was 'a little bit upset' about what happened - but wasn't able to shed any light on why he collided with the parked vehicles. 'Obviously I'm a little bit upset about what happened last night...I'm just lucky no one was injured, and myself wasn't injured, so to come out of it unscathed, I'm happy with that,' he said. The boyfriend of Jesinta Campbell was allegedly driving along New South Head Road in Rose Bay, Sydney, when the incident occurred around 7.30pm. Franklin admitted that he was driving too close to the parked cars when the accident occurred. 'I got a little bit too close to the car parked in lane one and that was pretty much it,' he said. 'Then the airbags went off and that's all I can say about it.' Police have confirmed the footballer has since been issued a $405 traffic infringement notice for negligent driving and docked three demerit points. He will not be charged over the matter. The 27-year-old was driving a black Jeep SUV that belongs to his model and TV presenter partner, the same vehicle they were caught parking in a disabled spot in back in January. A New South Wales police spokesman said that people were alerted to the incident after 'residents reported hearing a car crash'. 'Inquires are continuing after a car hit a number of parked vehicles in Rose Bay tonight,' he told AFL.com.au. 'A Jeep that was travelling west on New South Head road hit four parked vehicles, all four vehicles were damaged as a result of the crash. 'The driver of the Jeep was a 27-year-old Bondi man and he was not injured in the crash. 'He underwent a roadside breath test that was negative. 'After speaking with police at the scene the 27-year-old man left the area.' Star couple: Jesinta Campbell and Buddy Franklin have been dating since November, 2013 (pictured in Nov) Friends: Buddy Franklin with good friend and teammate Dan Hannebery in Sydney, Australia, last month . Loud collision: Residents in the area were drawn outside after hearing the noise of the accident . Towed away: The car was unable to drive from the scene and Franklin gave a statement to police at the site . A male witness who first responded to the crash told MailOnline Franklin 'collected' four parked cars on New South Head road and 'totalled' the jeep he was driving in. 'It was half up on the gutter, half on the road and facing in toward the footpath,' he said. 'It's gone.' The collision caused the airbags of the jeep Franklin was driving in to deploy. They said Franklin was traveling alone and did not appear intoxicated. 'He wasn't drunk or anything, he was fine. He was giving police a statement and then he left eastbound.' Star couple: Jesinta Campbell and Buddy Franklin have been dating since November, 2013 . Sydney Swans players Dan Hannebery and Buddy Franklin. Franklin posted this picture of the two of them on his Instagram account . Mass accident: There was a total of five cars involved in the crash . 'Just totalled': Rose Bay resident Craig McDonald was on the scene and saw the wreckage first hand . Rose Bay resident Craig McDonald was on the scene and tweeted photos of accident, including images of the damaged Jeep and other vehicles involved. 'Buddy Franklin has just totalled three cars on New South Head road outside my place,' he posted on the social media site. Police attended the scene and were seen speaking to Franklin shortly before his vehicle was towed away. Franklin was last seen leaving the crash site in a black Audi sedan with two females inside, and is expected at a team training session in the morning. Karla Leach, director of corporate affairs for Fiat Chrysler Australia, told the MailOnline her company was in 'constant' discussions with Jesinta Campbell's management about arranging the TV star a new vehicle. 'At this stage we are obviously assessing the car and understanding the extent of the damage,' she said. 'We have been talking with Jesinta's management all day and a decision about a replacement vehicle will be made in the next week.' She said the company needed to determine if the car was a write-off before Jesinta can be given a new Jeep. 'We're just relieved nobody was seriously injured,' she said. Lance Franklin (C) talks to Daniel Hannebery (R) during a Sydney Swans AFL training session at Lakeside Oval in December . Not drivable: One of the cars hit in the accident is towed from the Rose Bay scene . Traffic investigation: A New South Wales police spokesman said the driver returned a negative breath test result . Double trouble: Campbell and Franklin were in the car when it was also seen parked in a disabled parking space in Sydney in January . The superstar footballer has been seen leaving Swans training in recent days in a black Audi sedan with mate Dan Hannebury behind the wheel. Sports commentator Jim Wilson told Sky News that the collision was the last thing the Sydney Swans AFL club needed. 'They've just got themselves back on track with their win against the Dockers, they don't need this,' he told James Bracey on SportsNight. 'They don't need to be dealing with this and the damage control tomorrow.' Happy pair: The couple regularly post pictures of themselves together on social media and share an apartment in Bondi .", "A gadget that alerts speeding drivers when emergency vehicles are nearby was last night facing calls by police and motoring organisations to be banned. The £999 Target Blu Eye is a dashboard-mounted device which, astonishingly, is perfectly legal, according to its makers. It can detect when police cars – even unmarked vehicles – are more than half a mile away by picking up encoded radio signals, and then sends a warning to the motorist. When a 999 vehicle is within 1,200 yards, it sets off a green light on the display. As it gets nearer, the lights go to amber and finally they go red when it is just yards away. The device can even detect the radio signals from police officers on the beat and force helicopters. Scroll down for video . Controversial: Naeem Khokhar (pictured), of CBS Automotive, demonstrates how the device works . UK distributor CBS Automotive claims it will prevent accidents by alerting drivers to emergency vehicles rushing to incidents. But last night Gwent Police Crime Commissioner Ian Johnston called for them to be banned. He said: ‘This device is a passport to villainy and there is no legitimate reason for a law-abiding person to have one. The sellers are being very naive if they believe that they will be used to reduce accidents. ‘A criminal will carry out a drug deal, see a light on their dashboard and then ditch their illegal stash, only to pick it up when the police aren’t around – or a motorist will be speeding on the motorway, an alert will pop up and they’ll slow down.’ Devices that detect the position of speed cameras are legal for use on UK roads. Several years ago, legislation was proposed to make detectors with radar and laser illegal, but the ban did not go ahead. The Mail on Sunday took a red Vauxhall Corsa fitted with the device for a test drive on Friday with Naeem Khokhar, the managing director of CBS Automotive. The device’s aerial was concealed behind the car’s rear-view mirror while its control box was hidden in the glovebox. The LED alert panel was mounted next to the car’s controls. As we pulled out of the firm’s Cambridge headquarters, the device automatically started registering two lights out of five. Mr Khokhar said it was likely that it had been set off by the British Transport Police officers, who are stationed close to his office. As we drove along the street, the panel’s lights flashed again – this time the cause was a traffic warden. The Target Blue Eye (pictured) uses different coloured lights to warn of police cars' proximity . Its UK distributor claims it will prevent accidents by altering motorists to emergency vehicles rushing to the scene of accidents . The Target Blu Eye emits a beep when a vehicle is within range and a double-beep if the radio is transmitting data – meaning that emergency service personnel are talking over the radio. We parked near to ambulances at Addenbrooke’s Hospital and all five lights lit up. Mr Khokhar said: ‘There have been times when I’ve stopped at traffic lights and the Blu Eye starts going off but I can’t see any other vehicles. I have then driven off and seen a police car behind a bush.’ Mr Khokhar denied there was potential for the devices to be used for criminal activity. He said: ‘If anything, these devices are a criminal prevention tool. If you are planning to carry out a crime where there are emergency vehicles and the device is going off then you wouldn’t dare go through with it.’ But Steve Evans, vice-chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales, said: ‘We have grave concerns about any product that may be used to compromise police officers’ or public safety.’ AA spokesman Luke Bosdet added: ‘The only person who will have one of these fitted to their cars is the type of person who is trying to dodge the law.’", "Blinded: Harvey Rowe was hit by debris after a railway detonator he and friends put on a fire exploded . A schoolboy has been blinded in one eye after an unmarked box of railway detonators he and some friends had put on a fire exploded. Harvey Rowe, 15, entered a railway depot through a broken fence with two older boys and took some rubbish from a skip to build the bonfire. When the unmarked box – filled with detonators used to warn maintenance crews a train is approaching in thick fog – started to explode as the fire started, he tried to kick it away from the flames. Debris flew into his face and he was taken to hospital where surgeons operated to remove the fragments. However, they later told his parents Claire, 45, and Mark, 49, that he had been blinded in his right eye. British Transport Police are planning to speak to Harvey when he has had time to recover. Officers have already arrested two 17-year-old boys on suspicion of theft and interviewed them before releasing them on bail. Mr and Mrs Rowe yesterday criticised Network Rail for leaving explosive devices where children could find them. Mother-of-four Mrs Rowe said: ‘Harvey is not the kind of boy who would go looking for trouble. ‘He’s predicted straight A-grades at school – we were just in  shock when we were told about  his injuries. ‘The doctors have told him he will never be able to see out of his  right eye again.’ Mr Rowe, a builder, added: ‘Network Rail has never had a problem with the kids grabbing crates  from there before. Scene: The remains on the fire could be seen at the skate park near Leigh-on-Sea, Essex . Theft: The teenager and two friends had thrown the box of explosives, . used as railway warning signals, onto a bonfire (file picture) ‘Now my boy’s been injured they’re accusing them of stealing explosives. Why were the detonators there in the first place?’ Harvey was out playing with the older boys near his home in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex, on Saturday night. He was discharged from Southend Hospital the following day. Speaking afterwards, with a  patch over his eye, he said: ‘We were building a small fire and just dumped a few bits from the skip  on there. One thing was an unmarked box but before we knew it, it started exploding. ‘We tried to spray the fire with water and I tried to kick the box off the heat but that was when I got hit in the face. Now I’m going to be paying the price for that mistake for the rest of my life.’ Railways detonators are used as a warning signal for train drivers. About the size of a large coin, the detonator is strapped to the top of the rail with metal straps. When . a train wheel passes over it, the device emits a loud bang to warn . drivers about a number of things including: dense fog, a train stopped . on the line ahead or ongoing engineering works. They are also used by signallers when they need to stop approaching trains in an emergency . The explosives can be dangerous if handled in the wrong way - throwing them onto bonfires for example. Large pools of blood could still be seen splattered across the concrete yesterday at the skate park where the teenagers built the fire. Skateboarders in the area described how the boys walked through a gap in a nearby fence which had been there for ‘months, probably years’. One said: ‘I don’t know why they didn’t fix the fence before. ‘What he did was stupid but why the hell were they dumping detonators yards from a skate park?’ The damaged fence was fixed within hours of the accident. Railway detonators are yellow disks of metal just over two inches in diameter and less than half an inch deep. Maintenance workers line up three on the track when visibility is poor. They are triggered when a train runs over them, making a loud but harmless bang to warn them of the approaching danger. Transport police said 31 had been recovered. It is not known how many were triggered by the fire. A spokesman said: ‘They are very difficult to set off.  It takes the weight and impact of a train to set them off – but putting them in a bonfire is a different matter. ‘They don’t fragment much. It is possible the boy’s injuries were caused by something such as  splinters that came out of the fire.’ Detective Constable Michael  Bute added: ‘This is a tragic accident which has had very serious  consequences for the youngster involved.’", "(CNN)Twenty-one people were injured Saturday when a commuter train collided with a car and derailed near the University of Southern California campus in Los Angeles, authorities said. The collision happened at about 10:45 a.m. near Exposition Boulevard and Watt Way when an eastbound Hyundai turned north onto the tracks as an eastbound light-rail Metro train approached, said Sgt. Michael Verlich of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. \"The vehicle got wedged in between a pole and the train, causing the train to dislodge,\" Verlich said. Of the 21 injured people, 10 were transported to hospitals for treatment, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department Twitter account. One was in critical condition and one in grave condition, the tweet said. The derailment was expected to cause traffic problems for the 6:30 p.m. Saturday soccer game between Mexico and Ecuador at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum across from the USC campus. Metro Los Angeles, the transit and transportation agency for Los Angeles County, said it has requested shuttle buses to accommodate the crowds.", "By . Daily Mail Reporter and Associated Press Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 12:19 EST, 30 September 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 13:43 EST, 30 September 2013 . As many as four dozen people were injured when two Chicago Transit Authority trains crashed at a station west of the city. CTA spokeswoman Lambrini Lukidis says the crash happened Monday morning during rush hour, just before 8 a.m., when an out-of-service eastbound train hit a westbound train that was stopped at the Harlem station in Forest Park, about 10 miles west of downtown Chicago. She says 33 people suffered non-life threatening injuries. Forest Park Mayor Anthony Calderone says he was told as many as four dozen people were injured, most reporting back and neck pain. He says they were taken to local hospitals. Scroll down for video . Authorities inspect the wreckage of two Chicago Transit Authority trains that crashed Monday, September 30, 2013, in Forest Park, Illinois . This image from a video provided by NBC Chicago shows the aftermath of a crash involving two Chicago Transit Authority trains . About four dozen people were injured in the accident. None of the injuries were serious . Lukidis says the eastbound train was empty but traveling on the same track when it hit the westbound train. A section of one train car was crushed. The CTA is investigating. Robert Kelly of Amalgamated Transit Union 308, said it's still unclear what happened and how the train got out of the station. 'Both the supervisor in the station at Forest Park and the motorman who was sitting in the station said there was nobody on the train as it went through and collided with the other train,' Kelly told NBC Chicago. 'This is baffling everybody,' he said. The crash happened when a westbound train stopped at the CTA Blue Line Harlem station, and was struck by an eastbound train on the same track . Several ambulances were sent to the scene of the crash, where as many as four dozen people were injured . Martinez Butler, a train engineer for another company, said he witnessed the collision. 'There was a train that was stopped at the station. Another train came through and looked like it blew the signal, because I heard beeping,' she told NBC Chicago. 'I'm a locomotive engineer,' she added. 'I know the systems, I know the sounds. When you hear those beepings it's warning you that there is an obstruction in front of you and you need to stop.'" ]

[ "BEIRUT: Russian-backed Syrian regime forces on Friday broke into the eastern town of Mayadeen, one of the Daesh group’s last bastions in the country, a monitor said.\n“With support from Russian aviation, regime forces entered Mayadeen and took control of several buildings in the west of the town” in the eastern province of Deir Ezzor, Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, told AFP.\nHours before that, Russian air strikes killed 14 people fleeing across the Euphrates river on rafts in Mahadeen, the monitor said.\n“They were crossing the river on makeshift rafts in a village south of Mayadeen,” Abdel Rahman said, adding that three children were among those killed overnight.\nRussia has in recent days intensified its air raids in support of Syrian regime forces battling jihadists across the country.\nAbdel Rahman said the civilians were fleeing the village of Mahkan, south of Mayadeen, which lies about 420 kilometers (260 miles) east of Damascus and is one of the Daesh group’s main remaining bastions.\nMayadeen has been under Daesh control since 2014, when the group swept across swathes of Iraq and Syria and proclaimed a “caliphate,” but regime forces have tightened the noose around the town.\nThe state news agency SANA said government forces advancing from desert areas northwest of Mayadeen had moved to within five kilometers (three miles) of the town.\nIn Deir Ezzor province, Daesh still controls Mayadeen, eastern neighborhoods of the city of Deir Ezzor further up the Euphrates Valley, the town of Albu Kamal downstream on the Iraqi border, and several other smaller towns.\nMoscow has been carrying out relentless air strikes in support of its ally Damascus targeting both IS in Deir Ezzor province and rival jihadists led by Al-Qaeda’s former Syria affiliate in Idlib province in the northwest.\nThe Daesh group, which once controlled a territory roughly the size of Britain, has seen its “caliphate” shrink steadily over the past two years and has lost all but a few of its main hubs in both Iraq and Syria.\nA Kurdish-led alliance is currently fighting Daesh in Raqqa, the group’s biggest bastion since the recapture by Iraqi forces of Mosul in July.\nThe city, further up the Euphrates, was the de facto Syrian capital of Daesh’s now collapsing “state.”\nOn Wednesday, a Russian air strike killed 38 civilians trying to flee the fighting in Deir Ezzor province, according to the Observatory.\nThe Observatory relies on a network of sources inside Syria, and says it determines whose planes carry out raids according to type, location, flight patterns and munitions used.\nThe group has reported hundreds of civilians killed in operations against Daesh in Deir Ezzor and neighboring Raqqa province. On Tuesday, it said a US-led coalition strike in Raqqa killed at least 18 civilians.\nRussia has not acknowledged any civilian deaths from its strikes since it intervened in Syria in 2015, and dismisses the Observatory’s reporting as biased.\nOn Thursday, the Red Cross said Syria was experiencing its worst levels of violence since the battle for second city Aleppo late last year.\n“For the past two weeks, we have seen an increasingly worrying spike in military operations that correlates with high levels of civilian casualties,” Marianne Gasser, the head of the International Committee of the Red Cross delegation in Syria, said.\nBEIRUT: Russian-backed Syrian regime forces on Friday broke into the eastern town of Mayadeen, one of the Daesh group’s last bastions in the country, a monitor said.\n“With support from Russian aviation, regime forces entered Mayadeen and took control of several buildings in the west of the town” in the eastern province of Deir Ezzor, Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, told AFP.\nHours before that, Russian air strikes killed 14 people fleeing across the Euphrates river on rafts in Mahadeen, the monitor said.\n“They were crossing the river on makeshift rafts in a village south of Mayadeen,” Abdel Rahman said, adding that three children were among those killed overnight.\nRussia has in recent days intensified its air raids in support of Syrian regime forces battling jihadists across the country.\nAbdel Rahman said the civilians were fleeing the village of Mahkan, south of Mayadeen, which lies about 420 kilometers (260 miles) east of Damascus and is one of the Daesh group’s main remaining bastions.\nMayadeen has been under Daesh control since 2014, when the group swept across swathes of Iraq and Syria and proclaimed a “caliphate,” but regime forces have tightened the noose around the town.\nThe state news agency SANA said government forces advancing from desert areas northwest of Mayadeen had moved to within five kilometers (three miles) of the town.\nIn Deir Ezzor province, Daesh still controls Mayadeen, eastern neighborhoods of the city of Deir Ezzor further up the Euphrates Valley, the town of Albu Kamal downstream on the Iraqi border, and several other smaller towns.\nMoscow has been carrying out relentless air strikes in support of its ally Damascus targeting both IS in Deir Ezzor province and rival jihadists led by Al-Qaeda’s former Syria affiliate in Idlib province in the northwest.\nThe Daesh group, which once controlled a territory roughly the size of Britain, has seen its “caliphate” shrink steadily over the past two years and has lost all but a few of its main hubs in both Iraq and Syria.\nA Kurdish-led alliance is currently fighting Daesh in Raqqa, the group’s biggest bastion since the recapture by Iraqi forces of Mosul in July.\nThe city, further up the Euphrates, was the de facto Syrian capital of Daesh’s now collapsing “state.”\nOn Wednesday, a Russian air strike killed 38 civilians trying to flee the fighting in Deir Ezzor province, according to the Observatory.\nThe Observatory relies on a network of sources inside Syria, and says it determines whose planes carry out raids according to type, location, flight patterns and munitions used.\nThe group has reported hundreds of civilians killed in operations against Daesh in Deir Ezzor and neighboring Raqqa province. On Tuesday, it said a US-led coalition strike in Raqqa killed at least 18 civilians.\nRussia has not acknowledged any civilian deaths from its strikes since it intervened in Syria in 2015, and dismisses the Observatory’s reporting as biased.\nOn Thursday, the Red Cross said Syria was experiencing its worst levels of violence since the battle for second city Aleppo late last year.\n“For the past two weeks, we have seen an increasingly worrying spike in military operations that correlates with high levels of civilian casualties,” Marianne Gasser, the head of the International Committee of the Red Cross delegation in Syria, said." ]

[ "Bashar al-Assad said the United States should learn the lesson of Iraq and withdraw from Syria, and promised to recover areas of the country held by U.S.-backed militias through negotiations or force.\n\"The only problem left in Syria is the SDF,\" Assad told Russia Today in an interview aired Thursday, referring to the Syrian Democratic Forces, a militia alliance dominated by PKK terrorist group's Syrian offshoot the People Protection Forces (YPG) which is backed by the U.S.\n\"We're going to deal with it by two options,\" he said.\n\"The first one: we started now opening doors for negotiations. Because the majority of them are Syrians, supposedly they like their country, they don't like to be puppets to any foreigners,\" Assad said.\n\"We have one option, to live with each other as Syrians. If not, we're going to resort... to liberating those areas by force,\" he said.\n\"We don't have any other options, with the Americans or without the Americans. It's our land, it's our right and it's our duty to liberate it, and the Americans should leave. Somehow they're going to leave,\" he said.\n\"They came to Iraq with no legal basis, and look what happened to them. They have to learn the lesson. Iraq is no exception, and Syria is no exception. People will not accept foreigners in this region anymore,\" he said.\nThe SDF controls some one-third of Syrian territory mostly east and north of the Euphrates River.\nBoth the SDF and Russian-backed regime troops are engaged in separate operations against Daesh terrorists in eastern Syria, creating a highly volatile situation where de-confliction mechanisms have already been tested several times.\nAssad also said that a confrontation between Russia and U.S. forces over Syria was narrowly avoided.\n\"We were close to have direct conflict between the Russian forces and the American forces,\" he said.\n\"Fortunately, it has been avoided, not by the wisdom of the American leadership, but by the wisdom of the Russian leadership.\"\nResponding to U.S. President Donald Trump's description of him as \"Animal Assad\", the Syrian leader said: \"What you say is what you are\". Trump called Assad an animal after a suspected poison gas attack on a rebel-held town near Damascus in April.\nAssad reiterated the regime's denial that it carried out the attack in the eastern Ghouta town of Douma, saying that the regime did not have chemical weapons and it would not have been in its interest to carry out such a strike.\nThe Douma attack triggered missile strikes on Syria by the United States, Britain and France which they said targeted Assad's chemical weapons program.\nAssad has recovered swathes of Syrian territory with military backing from Russia and Iran and is now militarily unassailable in the conflict that began in 2011.\nLarge areas however remain outside his control at the borders with Iraq, Turkey and Jordan. These include the SDF-held parts of the north and east, and chunks of territory held by opposition forces in the northwest and southwest.\nIsrael, which is deeply alarmed by Tehran's influence in Syria, earlier this month said it destroyed dozens of Iranian military sites in Syria, after Iranian forces fired rockets at Israeli-held territory for the first time.\nIran-backed militias including Lebanon's Hezbollah have played a big role in support of Assad during the conflict. Iran's Revolutionary Guards have also deployed in the country.\nAssad said Iran's presence in Syria was limited to officers who were assisting the Syrian army. Assad, apparently referring to the May 10 attack, by Israel said \"we had tens of Syrian martyrs and wounded soldiers, not a single Iranian\" casualty.\nAsked if there was anything Syria could do to stop Israeli air strikes, Assad said: \"The only option is to improve our air defense, this is the only thing we can do, and we are doing that\". He said that Syria's air defenses were now much stronger than before thanks to Russia.", "A Syrian man displaced from Raqqa carries food at Al Karamah camp, some 20 kilometres east of the Daesh terror group’s Syrian bastion, on Tuesday (AFP photo)\nGENEVA — United Nations war crimes investigators expressed alarm Wednesday at the \"staggering\" number of civilian deaths as US-backed forces battle to oust the Daesh terror group from its Syrian stronghold Raqqa.\nAt least 300 civilians have been killed, although the actual number is likely higher according to UN officials.\n\"Civilians are caught up in the city under the oppressive rule of [Daesh] while facing extreme danger... due to excessive air strikes,\" Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, head of the UN Commission of Inquiry, told reporters.\nThe COI said it had documented that hundreds of civilians had been killed in Raqqa province by air strikes carried out by a US-backed coalition supporting the Syrian Democratic Forces since March 1.\n\"We recorded the civilians deaths caused by the coalition air strike, altogether 300,\" commission member Karen Abuzayd told journalists.\nShe said 200 of those deaths happened on a single day, in the March 21 air strike on the town of Al Masura, about 30km west of Raqqa.\nThe investigators, who have never been granted access to Syria, stressed that the death toll provided was only what they had managed to document, and that the true number was likely higher.\nEarlier Wednesday, Pinheiro told the UN Human Rights Council that the situation for civilians in Raqqa was alarming.\n“In areas controlled by extremist factions, we are gravely concerned with the mounting number of civilians who perish during air strikes,” he said.\n“We note in particular that the intensification of air strikes, which have paved the ground for an SDF advance in Raqqa, has resulted not only in staggering loss of civilian life, but has also led to 160,000 civilians fleeing their homes,” he added.\nDaesh seized Raqqa in 2014, transforming it into the de facto Syrian capital of its self-declared “caliphate”.\nTens of thousands of civilians have fled the city and its surroundings since the push to retake the extremist stronghold began last November, and new waves of displacement are expected as the battle inside the city progresses.\n‘War crimes’\n“The imperative to fight terrorism must not, however, be undertaken at the expense of civilians who unwillingly find themselves living in areas where ISIL is present,” Pinheiro said, using another acronym for Daesh.\nThe UN’s Syria commission, set up in 2011 shortly after the civil war began, has repeatedly accused the various sides of war crimes and in some cases crimes against humanity.\nOn Wednesday, Pinheiro said deals that have led to evacuations of rebel-held districts and towns in Syria “also raise concerns and in some cases amount to war crimes”.\nA number of evacuation agreements have been struck for Aleppo and towns and villages around Damascus, as well as in Syria’s third city Homs.\nThe government says the deals are the best way to end the six-year war, but the opposition says this amounts to forced displacement.\nPinheiro, who in March warned that the evacuation from Aleppo amounted to a war crime, said Wednesday that “there is no voluntariness nor choice when those who stay often face the risk of being either arbitrarily arrested or forcibly conscripted”.\nThe head of the International Committee of the Red Cross’ (ICRC) Middle East division, Robert Mardini, meanwhile, told reporters Wednesday that the organisation’s decision to help facilitate the evacuation of civilians was a “tough” call.\n“Facilitating the evacuation was a dilemma,” he said, stressing though that the ICRC had “acted on behalf of the civilian population that lived in terrible conditions”.\nHe pointed to a fresh ICRC report detailing the horrors of urban warfare, showing that offensives inside cities kill five times more civilians than battles elsewhere.\nMore than 320,000 people have been killed since Syria’s conflict erupted in March 2011 with demonstrations against President Bashar Assad.", "Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit to Syria is a historic one, as it effectively marked the end of the supremacy of Daesh terrorist group, Chairman of Russian State Duma International Affairs Committee Leonid Slutsky said on Monday.\nMOSCOW (Sputnik) – Russian President Vladimir Putin has visited the Hmeymim base in Latakia for the first time since the launch of the anti-terrorist operation at the request of President Bashar Assad.\n\"As part of a settlement in the region, today's visit by Vladimir Putin to Syria draws a line under the tough time when the IS (Daesh) militants had run the show. Today, Islamic State (Daesh) is literally cut into pieces,\" Chairman of Russian State Duma International Affairs Committee Leonid Slutsky said.\nDuring an unannounced visit to the Hmeimim airbase, Putin ordered the withdrawal of Russian troops from Syria to their permanent bases after over 2 years of an anti-terrorist aerial campaign conducted in the Arab Republic and met with his Syrian counterpart, Bashar Assad. The Russian leader thanked the military personnel and claimed that the main victory was bringing the chance for peaceful settlement in Syria.\nRussian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said Monday that the Russian military contingent had already begun to pullout from Syria, but the timetable of the withdrawal would be determined by the situation on the ground.\n\"It will depend on the situation,\" Shoigu told reporters in response to a question on how long it would take for the withdrawal of Russian forces.\nPutin has emphasized that if the terrorists \"lift up their head\" in Syria, Russian forces will carry out strikes the likes of which \"they've never seen\", adding that the two bases, in Tartus and Hmeymim, as well as the center for Syrian reconciliation, would continue to operate.\n© AFP 2017/ DELIL SOULEIMAN US-Led Coalition Tells Sputnik it Will Continue to Support Partners in Syria Amid Russian Troops' Pullout\nRussia began a military campaign in Syria in late September 2015 at the request of Assad to fight Daesh. For the past two years, the Russian army has performed hundreds of airstrikes. During the Syrian campaign, Russian troops have cleared out more than 90 percent of Daesh-held territories, including the ancient city of Palmyra.\nAccording to the Russian Ministry of Defense, more than 54,000 terrorists were killed during joint operations in Syria. Russia still helps Syrian civilians by delivering tonnes of humanitarian aid and providing medical support on a daily basis.", "BEIRUT - Fighting in parts of Syria on Sunday threatened a shaky ceasefire brokered by Russia and Turkey, whose efforts to kickstart talks towards ending the conflict won backing from world powers.\nThe nationwide truce between the regime and non-jihadist rebels aims to smooth the way for peace talks in Kazakhstan later this month orchestrated by Damascus's allies Moscow and Tehran and rebel backer Ankara.\nThe UN Security Council on Saturday unanimously approved a resolution supporting the Russian and Turkish initiative aimed at ending the nearly six-year-old war that has killed more than 310,000 people and displaced millions.\nAir raids and clashes have continued to shake parts of the country since the ceasefire started at midnight on Thursday, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group. Four civilians, two of them children, and nine rebels have been killed since the truce took effect, said the Britain-based Observatory, which relies on a network of sources in Syria for its information.\nIn northern Syria, regime air strikes on Sunday targeted the rebel-held town of Atareb, the monitor said. Regime air strikes also hit the Wadi Barada region near Damascus, where the government says rebels last week deliberately targeted water infrastructure that supplies the capital.\nOn Saturday night, rebels shelled Fuaa and Kafraya, two besieged Shiite-majority villages in northwestern Syria.\nIn the rebel bastion of Eastern Ghouta east of Damascus, which the government has waged a months-long offensive to retake, opposition fighters exchanged fire with regime forces. The truce excludes the Islamic State group and former Al-Qaeda affiliate Fateh al-Sham Front.\nSaturday's UN resolution \"welcomes and supports the efforts by Russia and Turkey to end violence in Syria and jumpstart a political process\", and hails the planned talks in the Kazakh capital Astana as \"an important step\". The measure also calls for the \"rapid, safe and unhindered\" delivery of humanitarian aid in Syria.\nIn Eastern Ghouta's Hammuriyeh area, Syrian activists marked the New Year by decorating a tree with lights and pictures of war victims, an AFP photographer said.\nThe Observatory says a total of 60,000 people lost their lives in violence across Syria in 2016, more than 13,000 of them civilians.\nSyria's conflict began in 2011 with the brutal repression of anti-government protests and has since spiralled into a multi-front war involving various sides and international players. Russia and Turkey say the Astana talks in late January will supplement, not replace, UN-backed peace efforts, including negotiations set to resume on February 8 in Geneva.\nMoscow and Ankara have been working increasingly closely on Syria, including on a deal to allow the evacuation of civilians and rebels from the besieged northern city of Aleppo last month. The fighting in Syria has occasionally spilled over into neighbouring Turkey, with several attacks blamed on IS or Kurdish militants.\nIn the latest violence, 39 people, including many foreigners, were killed Sunday when a gunman went on a rampage at an exclusive nightclub in Istanbul where revellers were celebrating the New Year. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.\nTurkey has waged a four-month incursion in Syria that it says is to expel IS and Kurdish fighters from the border area. Washington has been noticeably absent from the new process to end Syria's conflict, but has called the truce \"positive\".\nMoscow -- which has been supporting Damascus with air strikes since 2015 -- has said it hopes to bring US President-elect Donald Trump's administration on board once he takes office later this month. On Saturday, in the coastal regime stronghold of Tartus, two suicide bombers blew themselves up at a security roadblock, killing two members of the regime forces.", "ISIS will be defeated in its two major strongholds of Mosul and Raqqa within six months, the top US commander in Iraq estimated on Wednesday. The extremist group is struggling as it faces multiple offensives on several fronts from Iraqi, Kurdish, coalition, Syrian regime, Syrian opposition, Russian, and Turkish forces.\n“Within the next six months, I think we’ll see both conclude,” said US Army Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend north of Baghdad on Wednesday, referring to the ongoing Mosul and Raqqa military campaigns.\nWhile ISIS is being hit hard in its two strongholds, it is also facing offensives throughout territory it holds. The enemy is “overwhelmed anywhere that they are,” said Col. John Dorrian, spokesperson for the Combined Joint Taskforce of the global anti-ISIS coalition, briefing reporters on Wednesday.\nThe coalition carried out 43 airstrikes “consisting of 92 engagements” against ISIS in Iraq and Syria on Tuesday alone.\nThe multiple offensives are putting a lot of pressure on the group, Dorrian detailed.\nIraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi declared eastern Mosul “liberated” on January 24. The offensive to retake western Mosul, which is surrounded by Iraqi and Kurdish forces, will start “in the next few days,” Townsend said on Wednesday.\nISIS militants who do not surrender in west Mosul “will be killed there,” Dorrian said.\nThe coalition has continued to hammer ISIS in west Mosul from the air while the Iraqi forces on the ground gear up for the operation, which is expected to be difficult. On Tuesday, they carried out nine airstrikes near Mosul that “engaged six ISIL tactical unit and two ISIL staging areas; destroyed 12 watercraft, eight cranes, seven engineering equipment pieces, five vehicles, four supply caches, two tunnels, two mortar systems, a front-end loader, a weapons cache, a fighting position, a tactical vehicle, a weapons facility, and a VBIED facility; and damaged nine supply routes,” their daily strike report detailed.\nIn Raqqa, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) continued to progress in the campaign to isolate the city. They cleared 63 square kilometres on Tuesday, backed by 20 coalition airstrikes during the day.\nThe SDF are now “11km away from the north side of al-Raqqa,” the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG), the dominant force within the SDF, stated in a news release on Wednesday. Their forces took control of two strategic hills after intense fighting Tuesday night.\nDorrian said they expect the city to be completely isolated within weeks, at which time a decision will be made with regard to the offensive to enter the city.\nIn al-Bab, northern Syria, ISIS is in “deep trouble,” Dorrian said, noting the battlespace around the town is complicated. Turkish forces and its allied Free Syrian Army (FSA), who control territory north of the town, gained ground on Wednesday, while simultaneous advances to the south by Syrian regime forces and its allies tightened the noose around al-Bab.\nThe coalition is providing air support as well, carrying out six air strikes in the al-Bab area on Tuesday.\nThe coalition is coordinating daily with the Turkish military as well as keeping up regular communication with Russia via their deconfliction line, said Dorrian.\nThe Syrian Army advanced against ISIS in Deir ez-Zur and Palmyra, state-run SANA reported on Wednesday. In Deir ez-Zur, the air force struck an ISIS gathering. Meanwhile, west of Palmyra the army killed a group of militants and air raids on Palmyra itself killed another 12.\nWhen asked if the Russian and Syrian regime offensives against ISIS was at an unprecedented level, Dorrian cautiously said it would be reasonable to characterize the situation in that way, noting that Russia and Syria had been focused on Aleppo previously.\nAs ISIS loses on the battleground, they are also losing some of their allure, leading to a drop in recruitment of foreign fighters, Dorrian noted. Not many people want to join the fight because the enemy is being annihilated, he said, detailing that between just 100 and 200 fighters were crossing borders into ISIS territory per month, down from 2,000 a year ago.\n“The enemy is in deep trouble because they can’t deal with all the areas they’re being attacked,” said Dorrian.\nWhile ISIS is losing on the battlefields in Iraq and Syria, the group is adapting, the UN’s Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman warned the UN Security Council on Tuesday.\n“ISIL is adapting in several ways to military pressure – resorting to increasingly covert communication and recruitment methods, including by using the ‘dark web,’ encryption and messengers,” he said, using an alternate acronym for ISIS. He also noted that the group still appears to “have sufficient funds to continue fighting.”\nFeltman made his comments while briefing the council on the Secretary General’s fourth report on the global threat of ISIS. The report notes that ISIS is losing territory in Iraq and Syria, and has been ousted from Sirte, Libya, but has continued to gain influence in other regions, including West Africa and Nigeria.\nWe need to do more, Feltman said. “Ultimately, it is the spread and consolidation of peace, security, development and human rights that will most effectively deprive terrorism of the oxygen it needs to survive.", "International reactions to the Operation Olive Branch launched by Turkey to clear PKK-affiliated People's Protection Units (PYG) from Syria's northwestern region of Afrin have generally been positive, Presidential Spokesperson Ibrahim Kalın said Saturday.\nSpeaking to foreign media reporters in Istanbul, Kalın said that the operation, which has entered its 15th day, is resuming as planned and so far, 20 small towns and villages, with 10 of them being significantly important, have been liberated.\nKalın stated that the operation has three main aims, which are clearing regions bordering Turkey from terrorist groups, clearing Syria from all terrorist groups in a larger prospect and maintaining the territorial integrity of Syria.\nNoting that clearing the Daesh terrorist group from the northern Syrian towns of Jarablous, al-Rai, Dabiq and al-Bab with Turkey's Operation Euphrates Shield has allowed 140,000 Syrian refugees to return to their homes, Kalın noted, and added that Turkey aims to do the same with Operation Olive Branch in Afrin by clearing PYD/PKK from the area.\nKalın said that U.S. support to the PKK/PYD/YPG has been a misguided policy, which can be observed from the overall positive international reactions and no questions about the legitimacy of Operation Olive Branch.\n\"Kurds have been under the oppression of YPG/PYD due to the American support,\" Kalın said, noting that hundreds of thousands of Kurds opposing the terrorist group have also been prevented to leave the areas controlled by the group.\n\"We have been telling our American allies to take action against the YPG threat for a long time. They didn't take measures, so we did. And it will continue as long as it is necessary,\" Kalın said.\nHe added that after the operation, locals in Afrin would be relocated to their towns and villages, just as it happened in areas liberated from Daesh with Operation Euphrates Shield.\nKalın said that Turkey carries out the operation with utmost care to avoid civilian casualties, but PKK's acting leader Murat Karayılan ordered from PKK headquarters in northern Iraq's Qandil Mountains that the terrorist group should step up propaganda of civilian casualties to tarnish Turkey's image globally.\n\"We are not expecting any refugee influx or mass movement from Afrin towards turkey. And this shows success of operation. In contrast, We are expecting a move toward Afrin actually,\" Kalın said.\n\"Turkish cities and towns are being targeted by PKK/YPG terrorists,\" he said, noting that while Turkish forces immediately respond to such cases, they can't respond to attacks from Afrin because the terrorists deliberately launch attacks from residential areas.\nRegarding the Syrian National Dialogue Congress organized by Russia, Iran and Turkey in Russia's Black Sea resort of Sochi aimed at bringing together conflicting parties in Syria, Kalın said that the parties are still working on a political transition process.\nHe added that Sochi was successful in bridging the gap between Astana meetings and U.N. backed Geneva meetings, and said the presence of U.N. Syria Envoy Staffan De Mistura in Sochi assures Turkey that the meeting will be integrated under the U.N. umbrella.\nKalın said that the group of 150 formed for a new constitution could later be attended by parties who did not attend the congress, particularly the Syrian opposition that boycotted the congress over regime symbols.\nHe also commented on Turkey's role in monitoring the ceasefire process in opposition held Syrian province of Idlib, which has witnessed heavy clashes between opposition groups and the regime over the last week. Kalın said that Turkey will establish seven more monitoring posts in the region, in addition to already completed five posts, bringing the total number to 12.\nAnswering a question whether Turkish forces cooperate with al-Qaida linked Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) in Idlib, Kalın said that Turkey has no cooperation or communication with Daesh and al-Qaida linked groups anywhere.\nHe noted that there is no direct or indirect communication between Turkey and the Assad regime at any level.", "Syrian opposition said Wednesday that talks with regime ally Russia on handing over their remaining territory in the southern province of Daraa had failed as they opposed giving up their heavy arms.\n\"Negotiations with the Russian enemy in Busra al-Sham have failed, after they insisted on the surrender of heavy weapons,\" the opposition's Central Operations Room in the South said in a tweet.\n\"This round of negotiations didn't produce any results... The session ended and no future meetings have been set,\" spokesman Ibrahim Jabbawi said.\nShortly after the announcement, Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Russian airstrikes had hit southwestern Syria for the first time in four days, hitting the opposition-held towns of Tafas and Saida.\nMoscow has been backing a two-week offensive by Syrian President Bashar Assad's forces against the opposition in the southern provinces of Daraa and Quneitra.\nBut it is simultaneously brokering talks with opposition-held towns for negotiated surrenders in a carrot-and-stick strategy that Russia and the regime have successfully used in the past.\nMore than 30 towns have already agreed to return to regime control and talks were focused on remaining opposition territory in Daraa's western countryside and the southern half of the city.\nThe opposition was set to meet with a Russian delegation on Wednesday afternoon to deliver their decision on Moscow's proposal for a regime takeover of the rest of the south, a spokesman for the opposition's southern operations said.\nA source close to the talks said the meeting would take place at 4 p.m. local time (1300 GMT).\nAbout 90 minutes after the meeting was set to begin, the joint rebel command for the south announced the talks had \"failed.\"\nWednesday's meeting followed a tense hourslong meeting on Tuesday.\nIn that session, opposition proposed a ceasefire, the army's withdrawal from towns it had already taken, and safe passage to opposition territory elsewhere for fighters or civilians refusing to live under regime control.\nBut Moscow roundly rejected the terms, the source said, and responded with a counter-proposal.\nIt told negotiators that population transfers were not on the table in the south, although it had agreed to them in other areas like eastern Ghouta and Aleppo.\nRussia insisted the army would return to its pre-2011 positions, and local police would take over towns in coordination with Russian military police.\nThe Russian delegation warned opposition factions that Wednesday \"would be their last day to negotiate, and that they'd have to submit their final answer in the afternoon meeting,\" the source said.\nMoscow has used tough deadlines in the past with opposition negotiators but has extended them at times.\nAccording to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based war monitor, air strikes had stopped for several days to allow for negotiations.\nThat blend of military pressure and negotiated surrenders has expanded the regime's control of Daraa province to around 60 percent -- double what it held when it began operations on June 19.\nThe violence has displaced between 270,000 and 330,000 people, according to the U.N., many south to the border with Jordan or west near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.\nBoth countries have kept their borders closed to those fleeing the violence, despite mounting calls by rights groups to let Syrians escape to safety.\nOn Wednesday, Human Rights Watch demanded both Jordan and Israel allow asylum-seekers in.\n\"The abject refusal by Jordanian authorities to allow asylum seekers to seek protection not only goes against their international legal obligations, but against basic human decency,\" said HRW's Lama Fakih.\nSome displaced families whose hometowns had fallen back under regime control have been returning, but even that journey is dangerous.\nEleven members of a single family were killed overnight in a landmine blast as they returned to their hometown of Al-Mseifra, which had \"reconciled\" with the government, the Observatory said Wednesday.\nThat brought the number of civilians killed since the offensive began to more than 140, including children.\nWorld powers have criticized the operation for violating a ceasefire announced last year by Washington, Amman and Moscow, but they have not managed to halt the blitz.\nThe United Nations Security Council will hold a closed-door emergency meeting on Thursday to discuss the offensive.\nJordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi was in Moscow on Wednesday for talks with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov.\nSafadi called for a ceasefire in the south, saying the developing situation was of \"great importance\" to Jordan.\nLavrov, meanwhile, said Moscow was hoping rebels would lay down their weapons.\n\"We are helping the Syrian army carry out its work with the armed groups, to convince them to sign a reconciliation agreement, drop their arms, and resume a peaceful life,\" he said.", "A Russian pilot was killed Saturday in fighting with Islamists after his warplane was downed over northwest Syria, Russia's defence ministry and a monitor said.\nHayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a powerful jihadist-dominated alliance said, on an affiliated media channel it had shot down the plane but made no mention of the pilot.\n\"We were able to bring down the Russian warplane with a shoulder-fired missile above Saraqib in Idlib this afternoon,\" said Mahmoud al-Turkmani who, according to the statement, heads HTS's \"air defence brigade.\"\nHe said the attack was in retaliation for a ferocious bombing campaign by Russian warplanes over Idlib.\nHTS, which is dominated by Al-Qaeda's former affiliate in Syria, controls Idlib and has sought to fight back a ferocious Russian-backed assault by Syrian government troops.\nAn AFP correspondent who arrived at the crash site on Saturday saw what appeared to be the charred remains of the plane, including a wing with a red star still visible.\nFirefighters arrived to put out flames that had been spewing dark smoke into the wintry Syrian sky.\nThe Russian defence ministry confirmed that the Su-25 aircraft was shot down over Idlib province and said the pilot was killed \"in fighting against terrorists.\"\n'Killed fighting'\n\"A Russian Su-25 aircraft crashed during a flight over the Idlib de-escalation zone. The pilot had enough time to announce he had ejected into the zone,\" the defence ministry said.\n\"The pilot was killed in fighting against terrorists,\" it said, quoted by Russian agencies.\nIt added that \"according to preliminary reports, the plane was shot down by a portable anti-aircraft missile system.\"\nThe Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the jet was downed near the town of Saraqib in Idlib and the pilot parachuted to the ground.\nHe was killed clashing with rebels as they tried to take him hostage, said the Britain-based Observatory.\n\"There have been dozens of Russian air strikes in the area over the past 24 hours. This plane was also carrying out raids there,\" said Abdel Rahman.\nThe Observatory said 20 people, including eight children, were killed on Saturday during a bombardment on Saraqib and surrounding villages.\nSyria's uprising broke out in 2011 with protests against Assad's rule but has since morphed into a complex war drawing in global powers.\nMoscow began conducting air strikes in Syria in September 2015, and its intervention has swung the nearly seven-year conflict firmly in the favour of its ally in Damascus.\nOpposition factions have shot down Syrian regime planes in the past, but the downing of Russian aircraft is much rarer.\nTurkey shot down a Russian warplane in November 2015, leading to the worst crisis in ties between the two countries since the end of the Cold War\nAnd in August 2016, a Russian military helicopter was shot down over Syria and all five people on board were killed.\nDeadly fire on Turkish tank\nRussia has been spearheading a more than year-long diplomatic push to try to freeze the fighting in coordination with fellow regime ally Iran and rebel backer Turkey.\nAnkara has supported an array of rebel groups to fight Syria's government, the Islamic State jihadist group, and Kurdish militia that it has blacklisted as \"terrorists.\"\nOn January 20, Turkey and allied rebel fighters began an offensive on the Syrian enclave of Afrin, held by the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG).\nSeven Turkish soldiers were killed on Saturday as part of the assault, including five who died in a single attack on a tank, the Turkish army said.\nThe losses mark the highest toll in a single day for the Turkish army in operation \"Olive Branch.\"\nThe Observatory has also counted 104 allied rebels and 102 YPG fighters killed since the offensive began, as well as 68 civilians.\nAnkara has denied targeting civilians as part of its Afrin offensive.\nMourners on Saturday gathered in Afrin to commemorate victims of the operation, including female fighter Barin Kobani whose badly mutilated body appeared in a shocking video earlier this week.\nThe footage sparked accusations by her family and Kurdish officials that she was \"defiled\" by Turkish-backed rebels.\nThe opposition's government-in-exile said Saturday it had opened an investigation into the matter.\nThousands of people protested on Saturday in France against Turkey's operation \"Olive Branch,\" gathering in Strasbourg and Paris to condemn the assault.\nThey held posters that read \"Defend Afrin\" and \"Erdogan assassin,\" in reference to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.", "Leefa (4th left) arrives at the Ain Issa camp, 50 kilometres north of Raqqa, with other Indonesians after fleeing the Daesh group's Syrian bastion on Tuesday (AFP photo)\nBEIRUT — The battle to oust the Daesh terror group from its stronghold of Raqqa is creating daunting challenges for aid groups responding to the latest humanitarian crisis in the Syrian conflict.\nTens of thousands of civilians have fled Raqqa and its surroundings since the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) began its operation to capture the extremist stronghold last year.\nBut new waves of displacement are expected as the battle inside the city progresses.\nA key problem is getting aid supplies to the relatively remote desert region in Syria's north, with just a trickle of assistance currently crossing from neighbouring Turkey and Iraq.\n\"There is supply but it's very, very limited and the needs of the population are very high,\" said Puk Leenders, emergency coordinator for northern Syria for the group Doctors Without Borders (MSF).\nTurkey considers the key Kurdish component of the SDF a \"terrorist\" group and its border with the area north of Raqqa is effectively closed.\nThe border crossing with Iraq, over 300 kilometres east of Raqqa city, is open to goods, but in practice sees little traffic, local officials say.\nThe UN's World Food Programme said on Wednesday it had delivered one month's supply of food for 80,000 people in Raqqa, Deir Ezzor and Hasakeh provinces in north and northeast Syria.\nThe United Nations, which operates inside Syria with government permission, has been able to airlift supplies to the city of Qamishli, northeast of Raqqa, from government-held Damascus.\nBut \"this offered limited capacity and was insufficient to meet all needs\", said David Swanson, regional spokesman for the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.\nThe UN is now hoping to start transporting aid from Aleppo to Qamishli, a distance of more than 400 kilometres, but the route must first be tested for security, said Swanson.\n'Volatile security\nAn estimated 300,000 civilians once lived under Daesh rule in Raqqa, including 80,000 displaced from other parts of Syria before the group seized the city.\nTens of thousands fled Raqqa and surrounding areas as the SDF closed in on the extremist bastion.\nThe UN estimates more than 169,000 people fled Raqqa city and its environs in April and May alone, and thousands of displaced civilians are now living in overcrowded and underresourced camps.\nIn Ain Issa, 50 kilometres north of Raqqa, new arrivals say they are sleeping on the ground, with neither mattresses under them nor tents overhead.\n\"There are now more than 25,000 people in the Ain Issa camp, which was built with a capacity of 10,000,\" camp director Jalal Ayyaf told AFP.\n\"International organisations are providing support, but it's not sufficient for the numbers who are arriving.\"\nMSF's Leenders said up to 800 people were arriving at Ain Issa each day, and many more people were simply sleeping on roadsides or under trees in the countryside north of the city.\nThe \"highly volatile security situation\" is another major concern for aid groups working in the region, said Paul Donohoe, senior media officer at the International Rescue Committee NGO.\n\"We know that there are many mines and IEDs [improvised explosive devices], there is also the risk of Daesh attacks and there have been reports of some fleeing civilians being killed by coalition air strikes.\"\n\"It is thought up to half the population of Raqqa could ultimately flee the city and they will still be very vulnerable to mines and IS [Daesh]snipers, as well as air strikes.\"\nThe head of the UN's commission of inquiry on Syria on Wednesday reported a \"staggering loss of civilian life\" in Raqqa and expressed concern about the mounting toll in airstrikes on the city.\n'Impossible choices'\nFleeing civilians are already presenting health problems ranging from dehydration to untreated chronic illness.\nAnd aid groups expect an uptick in wounded arrivals as the fighting intensifies.\nMSF is establishing stabilisation points near the frontline to provide emergency care to keep the seriously injured alive until they reach hospitals.\nBut there is a severe shortage of qualified medical staff in the region, Leenders said, and medical facilities have also been affected by the fighting.\n\"Hospitals are being mined and it's really difficult to start those back up because they need to be demined... It can be extremely challenging.\"\nThe most difficult problem of all may simply be reaching those in need.\n\"Many people fleeing... initially end up in locations too close to the frontline for aid agencies to safely respond,\" said Donohoe.\nAnd others cannot leave at all, with Daesh reportedly using threats, arrests and violence to prevent civilians fleeing.\nThose who do escape risk unexploded ordnance en route, and the threat of being mistaken for fleeing Daesh extremists by SDF forces or the US-led coalition.\nMSF warned last week that civilians in the city faced \"impossible choices\".\n\"Either they stay in Raqqa, subjecting their children to increased violence and air strikes, or they take them over the frontline, knowing they will need to cross minefields and may be caught in the crossfire.\"" ]

[ "The 24-year-old originally joined the Robins from non-league Marlow in July 2013.\nHe moved on to Championship side QPR in May 2015 but returned to the County Ground on loan in October.\nGladwin could feature for Swindon, who are four points above the relegation zone in League One, against Bolton Wanderers on Saturday.\nFind all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page or visit our Premier League tracker here." ]

[ "Midfielder Dack, 22, has scored 13 goals for the League One side this season, including 11 in the league.\nThe former Charlton youth player is under contract until 2018.\nCity were told their bids were short of Gillingham's valuation, but the Championship club have secured the signing of a midfielder - QPR's Ben Gladwin on a three-month loan deal.", "Republic of Ireland international Pearce, 27, joins the Robins until the end of the season after making just two appearances for Derby this season.\nGladwin, 23, has agreed a 93-day deal, having already spent time out on loan with former club Swindon in 2015-16.\nMeanwhile, Gillingham have rejected three bids from City for 22-year-old midfielder Bradley Dack.\nHowever, Gills chairman Paul Scally refused to confirm to BBC Radio Kent whether the Robins had offered as much as £1m.\nPearce and Gladwin are both cup tied so will be unavailable for Tuesday's FA Cup third-round match against West Bromwich Albion.\n\"Alex will offer us experience - he knows this division inside out,\" said interim manager John Pemberton.\n\"When I spoke to Alex, it's clear how desperate he is to get into the Ireland team for the Euros - if he does that then it means he will have played well for us.\"\nGladwin, who only joined QPR from Swindon in the summer, will officially begin his loan on Friday, meaning he will be eligible to play for Bristol City for the rest of the season.\n\"When we played Swindon last year he was always the one we picked out as a danger. He was always the one who caused us problems because he's a kid with exceptional ability.\"\nFind all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.", "The Australia international, 22, has agreed a three-year deal and is the Hoops' first signing since their relegation from the Premier League.\nQPR have also signed fellow midfielder Ben Gladwin, also 22, from Swindon.\nBoth played a crucial role in helping the Robins reach the recent League One play-off final, where they lost to Preston.\nFormer Tottenham trainee Luongo, who helped Australia win the Asian Cup earlier this year, made 34 appearances in 2014-15 for Swindon, scoring six goals and making eight assists.\nGladwin, who was playing for non-league Marlow two years ago, scored eight goals in Swindon's final seven games of the campaign.\n\"I'm confident Luongo will flourish at QPR,\" said boss Chris Ramsey, who previously worked with the Australian at Spurs.\n\"As with any young player there are areas of his game that need improving, but knowing him as I do, I know he will embrace the learning curve of playing for us in the Championship.\n\"Ben's a fine addition for us and someone myself and Les have been monitoring for some time.\n\"I'm happy we've persuaded him to come here because there was a lot of interest from other clubs, some in the Premier League.\"", "The Championship club have had three bids for the 22-year-old Gills midfielder rejected.\nAnd Edinburgh told BBC Radio Kent: \"I spoke to Bradley and he made it quite clear he didn't feel that Bristol was the right move for him at this present time, which I was delighted with.\n\"He just wants to have success here with Gillingham right now.\"\nCity were told their bids were short of Gillingham's valuation before the Robins did secure the signing of a midfielder - QPR's Ben Gladwin on a three-month loan deal.\nGillingham, currently third in League One, were reportedly offered £1m for Dack, who has scored 13 goals this season.\nBut Edinburgh is convinced the former Charlton youngster is worth substantially more than that figure.\n\"Our valuation is a long way off that,\" he said.\n\"With 13 goals and 12 assists, I don't think there's a more valuable player in the league.\"", "The former Manchester United trainee, 24, was Swindon's top scorer last term with 25 goals in all competitions.\nHead coach Luke Williams has previously said they must \"plan for life without\" Ajose and midfield star Yaser Kasim.\nBBC Wiltshire also understands that Swindon have agreed a deal worth about £400,000 to sign Lawrence Vigouroux.\nThe Chilean goalkeeper made 36 appearances while on loan at Swindon from Liverpool in 2015-16.\nVigouroux, 22, was a regular in the Wiltshire club's starting side before suffering an injury in March.\nCharlton were relegated from the Championship last term and will play in League One alongside Swindon in 2016-17.\nOn Thursday, the Addicks signed Northampton Town midfielder Ricky Holmes for an undisclosed fee.", "The 25-year-old Poland international will complete the move on Sunday, when the Polish transfer window re-opens.\nBorysiuk previously played for Lechia Gdansk, who are second in the Polish top flight, between 2014 and 2016.\nHe has made 12 appearances for QPR since joining the R's from Legia Warsaw on a three-year contract last summer.\nRangers boss Ian Holloway is keen to add to his squad before the transfer window closes on Tuesday, having sold midfielders Sandro and Tjaronn Chery and striker Sebastian Polter to overseas sides this month.\nWinger Kazenga LuaLua is the sole arrival at Loftus Road this month, on loan from Brighton.\nMeanwhile, defender Darnell Furlong has extended his deal with the Championship side until the summer of 2019.\nThe 21-year-old right-back, who had a spell on loan at Swindon earlier this season, has played seven senior games for the west London club.\nFind all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page or visit our Premier League tracker here.", "The 24-year-old former Poland Under-21 international joined Town from Polish side Korona Kielce on a two-year contract in the summer.\nBut he has been restricted to just six appearances and moves to a team currently ninth in League One.\nMeanwhile, Ipswich have extended midfielder Ben Pringle's loan from Fulham until the end of the season.\nThe 26-year-old has made seven appearances for Mick McCarthy's side since joining in February, scoring in 1-0 wins over Huddersfield and Nottingham Forest.\nFind all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.", "The 27-year-old, who came through City's academy, left for Reading in 2006 after making 15 appearances.\nGolbourne, who joined Wolves in August 2013 and played 92 times for Wanderers, would have been out of contract at Molineux at the end of the season.\n\"Scott is a Bristol lad and that's important to us,\" said interim manager John Pemberton.\n\"He has been here before, he's athletic and someone we need for this football club.\"\nThe left-back joins new loan signings Lee Tomlin, Alex Pearce and Ben Gladwin at Ashton Gate.\nColchester United manager Kevin Keen has also confirmed to BBC Essex that the League One club have rejected another offer for midfielder Alex Gilbey from City.\nLast week Keen said the U's received a \"joke bid\" for the 21-year-old.\nMeanwhile, right-back Luke Ayling is expected to be sidelined for up to six weeks after undergoing surgery on his cartilage.\nFind all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.", "Doughty, 23, began his career at Loftus Road and has had loan spells at Crawley, Aldershot, St Johnstone, Stevenage and Gillingham.\nHe has played 12 times in total for QPR, including eight this season.\nSwindon, who are 16th in League One, face Crewe on Saturday. Earlier in January they saw several key loanees return to their parent clubs.\nFind all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.", "The 24-year-old came through QPR's youth system but only featured 16 times for the Rs and spent most of his professional career out on loan.\nHe has spent the much of the past two seasons on loan at Swindon, making 34 appearances in total.\nDoughty will join his new team-mates on the League One club's pre-season training in Spain later on Thursday.\nHe told the club website: \"I have experience of playing in this league and it can be a gruelling league. However, teams have shown, like Fleetwood, that you don't need to be the biggest club in the division to have success.\n\"I like the way the team play and that suits my game, but the biggest thing for me is winning. I hate losing, you only have to ask my girlfriend that.\"\nFind all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.", "James Vaughan's 37th-minute penalty was enough to win a cagey contest and send the Shakers above Swindon, although Bury remain in the bottom four too.\nGiven their league position, each side adopted a defensive approach so clear-cut chances were at a premium, with Bury's Reece Brown firing an early free-kick wide before Swindon's Ben Gladwin headed over.\nGreg Leigh and Tom Pope then went close for the hosts before Raphael Rossi Branco was penalised for holding Pope from a corner and Vaughan smashed the spot-kick down the middle for his 18th goal of the season.\nSwindon replied with Gladwin's long-range strike clipping the crossbar before Fankaty Dabo and Jermaine Hylton went close either side of the break.\nVaughan then fired over from Jacob Mellis' throughball while substitute Andrew Tutte volleyed wide.\nSwindon threatened with sub Jonathan Obika and Gladwin firing straight at Joe Murphy from 20 yards.\nVaughan and Tutte were then off target again and they were almost made to pay as Charlie Colkett fired wide in stoppage time.\nReport supplied by the Press Association.\nMatch ends, Bury 1, Swindon Town 0.\nSecond Half ends, Bury 1, Swindon Town 0.\nAttempt missed. Dion Conroy (Swindon Town) right footed shot from outside the box is just a bit too high from a direct free kick.\nBen Gladwin (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nFoul by Antony Kay (Bury).\nGreg Leigh (Bury) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.\nFankaty Dabo (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nFoul by Greg Leigh (Bury).\nLeon Barnett (Bury) is shown the yellow card.\nAttempt missed. Charlie Colkett (Swindon Town) right footed shot from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the left.\nSubstitution, Bury. Hallam Hope replaces James Vaughan.\nCameron Burgess (Bury) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.\nCharlie Colkett (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nFoul by Cameron Burgess (Bury).\nAttempt missed. Andrew Tutte (Bury) right footed shot from outside the box is just a bit too high.\nDion Conroy (Swindon Town) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.\nFoul by Dion Conroy (Swindon Town).\nJames Vaughan (Bury) wins a free kick on the right wing.\n(Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nFoul by Antony Kay (Bury).\nFoul by Dion Conroy (Swindon Town).\nJames Vaughan (Bury) wins a free kick on the right wing.\nAttempt missed. Nathan Thompson (Swindon Town) right footed shot from the centre of the box misses to the left.\nReece Brown (Bury) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.\nFankaty Dabo (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nFoul by Reece Brown (Bury).\nAttempt missed. James Vaughan (Bury) right footed shot from outside the box misses to the right.\nAttempt saved. Ben Gladwin (Swindon Town) left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal.\nFankaty Dabo (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nFoul by Reece Brown (Bury).\nAttempt saved. Jonathan Obika (Swindon Town) left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal.\nAttempt missed. Andrew Tutte (Bury) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the left.\nDion Conroy (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nFoul by George Miller (Bury).\nNicky Ajose (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nFoul by Cameron Burgess (Bury).\nFoul by Ben Gladwin (Swindon Town).\nReece Brown (Bury) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nSubstitution, Bury. George Miller replaces Tom Pope.\nAttempt missed. Nicky Ajose (Swindon Town) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses the top right corner from a direct free kick.", "The 29-year-old spent time on loan with Swindon earlier this season, scoring twice in six appearances.\nThe former Cheltenham, Bournemouth and Rotherham man could make his debut for the Bantams in Saturday's League One game against Fleetwood.\nThe Valley Parade side are currently 11th in the third tier, five points outside the play-off places.\nFind all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.", "The result for the home side means it's now six games without a win as they remain in the relegation zone.\nIt took only three minutes for Oldham to have their first attempt at goal when Aaron Amadi-Holloway had his shot blocked by Nathan Thompson.\nSwindon responded immediately with a shot of their own but Nicky Ajose's close-range effort was saved by Ripley.\nThe home side continued to dominate and Ajose found himself in on goal again in the sixth minute, only to find the Oldham goalkeeper in his way again.\nSwindon started slowly in the second half but could have taken the lead in the 66th minute when Bradley Barry picked out Ajose in the area but the striker couldn't keep his shot down.\nBen Gladwin came within inches of firing the Robins to victory in the 90th minute when he calmly turned in Oldham's area but his shot went just off target.\nReport supplied by the Press Association.\nMatch ends, Swindon Town 0, Oldham Athletic 0.\nSecond Half ends, Swindon Town 0, Oldham Athletic 0.\nAttempt blocked. Luke Norris (Swindon Town) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.\nBradley Barry (Swindon Town) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.\nFoul by Bradley Barry (Swindon Town).\nAiden O'Neill (Oldham Athletic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nAttempt missed. Ben Gladwin (Swindon Town) right footed shot from the centre of the box is too high.\nCorner, Oldham Athletic. Conceded by Brandon Ormonde-Ottewill.\nCorner, Swindon Town. Conceded by Rob Hunt.\nAttempt blocked. Luke Norris (Swindon Town) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.\nFoul by John Goddard (Swindon Town).\nRob Hunt (Oldham Athletic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nSubstitution, Oldham Athletic. Michael Ngoo replaces Aaron Holloway.\nSubstitution, Oldham Athletic. Lee Croft replaces Ryan McLaughlin.\nAttempt missed. Luke Norris (Swindon Town) right footed shot from outside the box is too high.\nBrandon Ormonde-Ottewill (Swindon Town) wins a free kick on the right wing.\nFoul by Ryan McLaughlin (Oldham Athletic).\nRob Hunt (Oldham Athletic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nFoul by Nicky Ajose (Swindon Town).\nSubstitution, Swindon Town. Dion Conroy replaces Rohan Ince.\nSubstitution, Swindon Town. Luke Norris replaces Jonathan Obika.\nBen Gladwin (Swindon Town) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.\nFoul by Ben Gladwin (Swindon Town).\nOusmane Fane (Oldham Athletic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nHand ball by Aiden O'Neill (Oldham Athletic).\nAttempt missed. Ben Gladwin (Swindon Town) right footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the right.\nAttempt missed. Peter Clarke (Oldham Athletic) header from the centre of the box is just a bit too high.\nRohan Ince (Swindon Town) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.\nFoul by Rohan Ince (Swindon Town).\nRyan McLaughlin (Oldham Athletic) wins a free kick on the right wing.\nAttempt missed. Ben Gladwin (Swindon Town) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the left.\nSubstitution, Swindon Town. John Goddard replaces James Brophy.\nDelay in match Aaron Holloway (Oldham Athletic) because of an injury.\nAttempt missed. Ryan McLaughlin (Oldham Athletic) right footed shot from a difficult angle on the right is close, but misses to the right.\nAttempt missed. Nicky Ajose (Swindon Town) right footed shot from very close range is too high.\nCorner, Swindon Town. Conceded by Aiden O'Neill.\nAttempt blocked. Jonathan Obika (Swindon Town) right footed shot from the left side of the box is blocked.\nCorner, Oldham Athletic. Conceded by James Brophy.\nAttempt missed. Ben Gladwin (Swindon Town) right footed shot from outside the box misses to the right.\nJonathan Obika (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half.", "The 18-year-old has been on the fringes of Mick McCarthy's side at Portman Road, having twice been on the bench.\nBenyu, a London-born Zimbabwean, has been brought to Aldershot with the help of a new supporter-funded scheme to boost the playing budget.\n\"Kundai will add extra depth and quality to the squad,\" manager Gary Waddock told the club website.\nFind all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.", "The point to extend the Robins' unbeaten run to four games leaves them 22nd in the table, but moves them to within two points of safety after Bury were beaten by Rochdale on Thursday.\nWimbledon's Tom Soares could have seen red in the 24th minute after his high boot forced John Goddard off the pitch with blood pouring from his head.\nThe Dons should have taken the lead in the 30th minute when Tyrone Barnett was gifted a chance but he scuffed his effort into the hands of Lawrence Vigouroux.\nGoddard returned shortly afterwards and almost gave the home side the lead when his curling shot from outside the area forced Joe McDonnell into a fingertip save.\nSwindon's Bradley Barry tried his luck from long range in the 77th minute, but his stinging shot went just over the crossbar.\nJake Reeves almost won it in the final moments for the Dons when he broke free on goal but he fired his effort straight at Vigouroux.\nMatch report supplied by the Press Association.\nMatch ends, Swindon Town 0, AFC Wimbledon 0.\nSecond Half ends, Swindon Town 0, AFC Wimbledon 0.\nJonathan Obika (Swindon Town) wins a free kick on the left wing.\nFoul by Dannie Bulman (AFC Wimbledon).\nBradley Barry (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nFoul by Sean Kelly (AFC Wimbledon).\nAttempt missed. Darius Charles (AFC Wimbledon) header from the centre of the box is just a bit too high.\nCorner, AFC Wimbledon. Conceded by Lawrence Vigouroux.\nAttempt saved. Jake Reeves (AFC Wimbledon) right footed shot from the right side of the box is saved in the centre of the goal.\nSubstitution, AFC Wimbledon. Alfie Egan replaces George Francomb.\nCorner, AFC Wimbledon. Conceded by Bradley Barry.\nCorner, Swindon Town. Conceded by Paul Robinson.\nJonathan Obika (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nFoul by Darius Charles (AFC Wimbledon).\nSubstitution, AFC Wimbledon. Dean Parrett replaces Tom Soares.\nSubstitution, AFC Wimbledon. Andy Barcham replaces Tyrone Barnett.\nAttempt blocked. Ben Gladwin (Swindon Town) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.\nFankaty Dabo (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nFoul by Tyrone Barnett (AFC Wimbledon).\nAttempt missed. Bradley Barry (Swindon Town) right footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the right.\nRaphael Rossi Branco (Swindon Town) wins a free kick on the right wing.\nFoul by Sean Kelly (AFC Wimbledon).\nSubstitution, Swindon Town. Luke Norris replaces Charlie Colkett.\nFoul by Ben Gladwin (Swindon Town).\nDarius Charles (AFC Wimbledon) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nAttempt missed. Jake Reeves (AFC Wimbledon) left footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the right.\nHand ball by Ben Gladwin (Swindon Town).\nBradley Barry (Swindon Town) wins a free kick on the left wing.\nFoul by Lyle Taylor (AFC Wimbledon).\nFoul by Rohan Ince (Swindon Town).\nDarius Charles (AFC Wimbledon) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nCorner, AFC Wimbledon. Conceded by Ben Gladwin.\nCorner, AFC Wimbledon. Conceded by Dion Conroy.\nAttempt blocked. Tyrone Barnett (AFC Wimbledon) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.\nCorner, AFC Wimbledon. Conceded by Dion Conroy.\nDelay over. They are ready to continue.\nSubstitution, Swindon Town. Ben Gladwin replaces John Goddard.\nDelay in match Jake Reeves (AFC Wimbledon) because of an injury.\nFoul by Rohan Ince (Swindon Town).\nJake Reeves (AFC Wimbledon) wins a free kick in the defensive half.", "The 23-year-old joined QPR from Swindon in May but he has only made three appearances for the Championship club.\nMark Cooper's League One side have been hit by several injuries this season.\n\"An injury has meant he's subsequently struggled for game time,\" said QPR's director of football Les Ferdinand. \"He's only away for a month. He's still got a massive future at QPR.\"\nFind all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.", "The midfielder's left-footed shot from just outside the box went in via both posts, the ball rolling across the goal-line before spinning in.\nRovers were value for a bigger winning margin, but made hard work of beating a Swindon side, who barely managed a worthwhile effort on goal.\nMatt Taylor hit the crossbar with a 77th-minute shot from outside the box but the hosts almost paid for not making their dominance tell when late shots from Ben Gladwin and John Goddard were both deflected just wide.\nRovers created all the decent chances in the first half. An early Chris Lines free-kick was saved at the second attempt by Lawrence Vigouroux, who then produced a better save to keep out Bodin's close-range shot.\nCentre-back Ryan Sweeney almost marked an impressive Rovers debut with a goal on 16 minutes, but Gladwin cleared his header off the line.\nAfter Bodin's goal, Ellis Harrison's header was cleared off the line by Raphael Rossi-Branco and the interval was reached without Rovers keeper Joe Lumley making a save.\nReport supplied by the Press Association.\nMatch ends, Bristol Rovers 1, Swindon Town 0.\nSecond Half ends, Bristol Rovers 1, Swindon Town 0.\nAttempt missed. Raphael Rossi Branco (Swindon Town) header from the centre of the box is too high.\nCorner, Swindon Town. Conceded by Daniel Leadbitter.\nAttempt blocked. John Goddard (Swindon Town) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.\nLuke James (Bristol Rovers) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nFoul by Nathan Thompson (Swindon Town).\nSubstitution, Swindon Town. Dion Conroy replaces Lloyd Jones.\nAttempt saved. Stuart Sinclair (Bristol Rovers) header from the centre of the box is saved in the top centre of the goal.\nAttempt missed. John Goddard (Swindon Town) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the left.\nCorner, Swindon Town. Conceded by Tom Lockyer.\nAttempt blocked. Ben Gladwin (Swindon Town) right footed shot from more than 40 yards on the right wing is blocked.\nCorner, Bristol Rovers. Conceded by Lloyd Jones.\nSubstitution, Bristol Rovers. Luke James replaces Matty Taylor.\nMatty Taylor (Bristol Rovers) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nFoul by James Brophy (Swindon Town).\nFoul by Byron Moore (Bristol Rovers).\nCharlie Colkett (Swindon Town) wins a free kick on the right wing.\nMatty Taylor (Bristol Rovers) hits the bar with a right footed shot from outside the box.\nFoul by Jordan Stewart (Swindon Town).\nChris Lines (Bristol Rovers) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nAttempt saved. Ollie Clarke (Bristol Rovers) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the top centre of the goal.\nSubstitution, Swindon Town. Jordan Stewart replaces Islam Feruz.\nFoul by Rory Gaffney (Bristol Rovers).\nJames Brophy (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nHand ball by Islam Feruz (Swindon Town).\nSubstitution, Bristol Rovers. Byron Moore replaces Billy Bodin.\nSubstitution, Bristol Rovers. Rory Gaffney replaces Ellis Harrison.\nAttempt missed. Ben Gladwin (Swindon Town) header from the centre of the box is too high.\nFoul by Daniel Leadbitter (Bristol Rovers).\nJames Brophy (Swindon Town) wins a free kick on the left wing.\nDaniel Leadbitter (Bristol Rovers) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nFoul by Islam Feruz (Swindon Town).\nMatty Taylor (Bristol Rovers) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nFoul by Fankaty Dabo (Swindon Town).\nNathan Thompson (Swindon Town) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.\nOllie Clarke (Bristol Rovers) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nFoul by Nathan Thompson (Swindon Town).\nMatty Taylor (Bristol Rovers) wins a free kick on the right wing.\nFoul by Raphael Rossi Branco (Swindon Town).", "The 29-year-old spent the second half of last season on loan at Kenilworth Road and was Nathan Jones' first signing as Hatters boss in January.\nEx-Notts County and Swindon man Sheehan made 20 appearances for Jones' side as they finished 11th in League Two.\n\"I have really enjoyed my football since being at Luton Town,\" he said.\nFind all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.", "The home side looked strong for the first 20 minutes but failed to take their best chance when Kwame Thomas turned in the box and shot straight into the legs of keeper Lawrence Vigouroux.\nNicky Ajose shot a 30th-minute free-kick over the bar but made no mistake two minutes later when Ben Gladwin crossed from the left and the striker turned in from close range.\nSwindon extended their lead when another cross from the left-hand side, this time from Charlie Colkett, was headed in by Jonathan Obika.\nCoventry forced a couple of corners early in the second half and substitute Stuart Beavon could have pulled a goal back, but put his effort off target.\nBut that was nothing compared to Ajose's glaring miss in the 53rd minute when he rounded keeper Lee Burge but blazed over with an open goal in front of him.\nCoventry sent on Aiyegbeni Yakubu to try to nick something, but Ajose grabbed a second, sliding in to finish Brandon Ormonde-Ottewill's cross from the left.\nGeorge Thomas pulled one back for the home side in injury time but it was scant consolation.\nMatch report supplied by the Press Association.\nMatch ends, Coventry City 1, Swindon Town 3.\nSecond Half ends, Coventry City 1, Swindon Town 3.\nConor Thomas (Swindon Town) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.\nKyel Reid (Coventry City) wins a free kick on the right wing.\nFoul by Conor Thomas (Swindon Town).\nGoal! Coventry City 1, Swindon Town 3. George Thomas (Coventry City) left footed shot from the right side of the box to the bottom right corner. Assisted by Yakubu.\nFoul by Kyel Reid (Coventry City).\nCharlie Colkett (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nSubstitution, Coventry City. Kyel Reid replaces Kwame Thomas.\nAttempt missed. Kevin Foley (Coventry City) header from the centre of the box is high and wide to the right.\nSubstitution, Swindon Town. Conor Thomas replaces Bradley Barry.\nCorner, Coventry City. Conceded by Brandon Ormonde-Ottewill.\nKevin Foley (Coventry City) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.\nCharlie Colkett (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nFoul by Kevin Foley (Coventry City).\nCorner, Coventry City. Conceded by Ben Gladwin.\nAttempt blocked. Kwame Thomas (Coventry City) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.\nStuart Beavon (Coventry City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nFoul by Rohan Ince (Swindon Town).\nSubstitution, Swindon Town. John Goddard replaces James Brophy.\nBradley Barry (Swindon Town) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.\nKwame Thomas (Coventry City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nFoul by Bradley Barry (Swindon Town).\nKevin Foley (Coventry City) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nFoul by Ben Gladwin (Swindon Town).\nGeorge Thomas (Coventry City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nFoul by Rohan Ince (Swindon Town).\nSubstitution, Swindon Town. Dion Conroy replaces Lloyd Jones because of an injury.\nCorner, Coventry City. Conceded by Lloyd Jones.\nAttempt blocked. Ryan Haynes (Coventry City) right footed shot from the right side of the box is blocked.\nGoal! Coventry City 0, Swindon Town 3. Nicky Ajose (Swindon Town) right footed shot from very close range to the bottom right corner. Assisted by Brandon Ormonde-Ottewill.\nSubstitution, Coventry City. Yakubu replaces Marcus Tudgay.\nFoul by Kwame Thomas (Coventry City).\nBradley Barry (Swindon Town) wins a free kick on the left wing.\nAttempt blocked. Nicky Ajose (Swindon Town) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.\nCorner, Coventry City. Conceded by Brandon Ormonde-Ottewill.\nFoul by Brandon Ormonde-Ottewill (Swindon Town).\nGeorge Thomas (Coventry City) wins a free kick on the left wing.\nAttempt missed. Callum Reilly (Coventry City) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses the top left corner.\nDelay in match Lloyd Jones (Swindon Town) because of an injury.", "Hunt, 34, made 24 appearances for Pompey during his season with the club.\nMidfielder Amine Linganzi has also been released after one season and has joined Swindon after scoring once in 23 games for Portsmouth.\nFellow midfielder Stanley Aborah, who joined on a short-term deal in February from Notts County, has also been allowed to find a new club.", "Incredibly ex-Swindon Town and QPR midfielder Luongo has been named alongside four-time winner Messi and three-time winner Ronaldo on a 59-man longlist, apparently for the Ballon d'Or world footballer of the year award.\nRonaldo and Wales' Gareth Bale are two of seven Real Madrid players on the shortlist, according to Mundo Deportivo, while Barcelona also have seven nominees.\nBut Luongo, 23, is QPR's and the Championship's sole representative after signing for the Hoops following their relegation from the Premier League last season.\nAnd while Messi won the treble including the Champions League last season, Luongo was plying his trade in League One with Swindon.\nBut he did get his hands on some silverware, winning the Asian Cup with Australia and being named the tournament's most valuable player.\nPremier League new boys Bournemouth have on-loan Chelsea winger Christian Atsu on the list while Tottenham's Harry Kane gets a nod for his 21 Premier League goals last season, as does his new South Korean team-mate Son Heung-Min.\nOther notable names include Leicester's new Japan international Shinji Okazaki, Swansea's Andre Ayew and former Cardiff and Inter Milan midfielder Gary Medel.\nManchester City have the most players nominated from the Premier League with five while rivals Manchester United have three players on the list including Wayne Rooney.\nArsenal have David Ospina among their two nominees while Liverpool's Philippe Coutinho is the sole representative from Merseyside.\nThe long list was to be officially released on 7 October, which would then be cut down to 23 and trimmed once again to a three-man shortlist before the winners' ceremony in January.\nBBC Sport asked Fifa to confirm or deny the accuracy of the leaked list, but they refused to comment.", "The Slovakian scored six times in 42 games while on loan at The Banks's Stadium in 2013-14 before agreeing a move to Oakwell in January this year.\n\"I'm really pleased to have Milan back on board,\" Saddlers boss Dean Smith told the club website.\n\"There's a lot of potential in him and now that he's our player, we can commit to getting the best out of him.\"\nLalkovic, who did not force his way into the first team at Stamford Bridge, has had loan spells with Doncaster and in the top flights in the Netherlands and Portugal.\nHe played 17 times for the Tykes last term and has been allowed to end his contract early after initially signing an 18-month deal.\nLalkovic is the League One Saddlers' third new signing of the summer following the arrivals of goalkeeper Neil Etheridge and defender Jason Demetriou.\nFind all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.", "The away side had taken the lead two minutes before half-time with a penalty courtesy of Kieran Agard.\nThe Dons will feel hard done by after being the better team for much of the game, which saw them denied by post, bar and a fine display by Robins keeper Lawrence Vigouroux.\nThe home side almost took the lead in the second minute, with a ball chipped into the box by Conor Thomas but George Williams was able to clear for the visitors.\nIn the 29th minute the Robins had a penalty claim of their own, Nicky Ajose went to the floor following a challenge from Williams but the referee waved play on.\nTwo minutes before the break Ben Reeves was brought down in the area by Charlie Colkett, Agard put the ball to the right, and although Vigouroux dived the right way was unable to get a hand to it.\nObika rescued a draw with virtually the last kick of the game when he raced clear and slotted home.\nReport supplied by the Press Association.\nMatch ends, Swindon Town 1, MK Dons 1.\nSecond Half ends, Swindon Town 1, MK Dons 1.\nCorner, Swindon Town. Conceded by George Baldock.\nAttempt missed. Ed Upson (MK Dons) right footed shot from the centre of the box misses to the right.\nDean Lewington (MK Dons) is shown the yellow card.\nBradley Barry (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nFoul by Dean Lewington (MK Dons).\nCharlie Colkett (Swindon Town) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.\nFoul by Charlie Colkett (Swindon Town).\nGeorge Baldock (MK Dons) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nGoal! Swindon Town 1, MK Dons 1. Jonathan Obika (Swindon Town) right footed shot from the right side of the box to the bottom left corner.\nAttempt missed. Ed Upson (MK Dons) right footed shot from the right side of the box is close, but misses to the left.\nSubstitution, MK Dons. Callum Brittain replaces Harvey Barnes.\nFoul by Raphael Rossi Branco (Swindon Town).\nHarvey Barnes (MK Dons) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nCorner, Swindon Town. Conceded by Joe Walsh.\nAttempt saved. Conor Thomas (Swindon Town) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal.\nAttempt missed. Nicky Ajose (Swindon Town) right footed shot from outside the box misses to the right.\nConor Thomas (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nFoul by Harvey Barnes (MK Dons).\nNathan Thompson (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nFoul by Robbie Muirhead (MK Dons).\nAttempt missed. Jonathan Obika (Swindon Town) left footed shot from the left side of the box is close, but misses to the left.\nNathan Thompson (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nFoul by Darren Potter (MK Dons).\nAttempt missed. Jonathan Obika (Swindon Town) right footed shot from the centre of the box is too high.\nCorner, Swindon Town. Conceded by George B Williams.\nAttempt blocked. Ben Gladwin (Swindon Town) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.\nAttempt missed. Ben Gladwin (Swindon Town) right footed shot from outside the box is too high.\nSubstitution, Swindon Town. Bradley Barry replaces Dion Conroy because of an injury.\nRaphael Rossi Branco (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nFoul by Robbie Muirhead (MK Dons).\nEd Upson (MK Dons) hits the bar with a right footed shot from outside the box.\nSubstitution, Swindon Town. James Brophy replaces Fankaty Dabo.\nAttempt missed. Ed Upson (MK Dons) right footed shot from outside the box misses to the left.\nAttempt missed. Jonathan Obika (Swindon Town) right footed shot from outside the box misses to the right.\nSubstitution, MK Dons. Robbie Muirhead replaces Kieran Agard.\nSubstitution, Swindon Town. Ben Gladwin replaces John Goddard.\nHarvey Barnes (MK Dons) hits the left post with a right footed shot from the left side of the six yard box.\nSubstitution, MK Dons. Paul Downing replaces Ben Reeves.", "Morrison had told manager Nigel Adkins he wanted speak to Cardiff despite signing a contract extension in 2013.\nThe 23-year-old's signing comes after the Bluebirds sold Steven Caulker to QPR and after defender Ben Turner sustained an ankle injury in July.\nCardiff also completed the signing of winger Anthony Pilkington from Norwich City for £1m on Friday.\nCity manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is trying to buy another centre-back to increase his options, with defender Juan Cala sidelined through suspension.\nThe Norwegian manager also refused to rule out a deal for former Bluebirds defender Danny Gabbidon, who has 49 caps for Wales.\nMorrison joined the Royals from Swindon in 2011 and spent two spells on loan at Huddersfield Town before establishing himself in the Reading first-team.\nHe started in both of Reading's games this season, including scoring in a 2-2 draw with Wigan.\nSolskjaer hopes to have Morrison available for Cardiff's fixture against Huddersfield Town on Saturday, who are without a manager following their 4-0 defeat by AFC Bournemouth on the opening weekend.", "The 20-year-old spent time on loan at Oakwell earlier in the campaign, scoring once in six league appearances.\nHe could feature for the League One play-off hopefuls in Friday's home match against Scunthorpe.\nCaretaker Paul Heckingbottom told the club website: \"We're delighted to have someone of Ivan's calibre back for the remainder of the season.\"", "The striker scored his second goal in as many games for the club as they try to fight their way out of League One's relegation zone.\nGillingham took an early lead in the 10th minute after a lack of concentration in the Swindon defence allowed Cody McDonald to seize the ball before stroking it past Lawrence Vigouroux.\nThe home side could have equalised minutes later but for Stuart Nelson's heroics in goal as he produced a fine double save from Ben Gladwin.\nRohan Ince drew the Robins level in the 56th minute when he stabbed the ball in from close range after Gladwin's corner.\nSwindon then took the lead five minutes later through Obika as he surged forwards with the ball before unleashing a strike from 18 yards out which found the bottom corner.\nRaphael Rossi-Branco sealed the victory for the home side after he headed home past a helpless Nelson from Charlie Colkett's corner.\nReport supplied by the Press Association.\nMatch ends, Swindon Town 3, Gillingham 1.\nSecond Half ends, Swindon Town 3, Gillingham 1.\nScott Wagstaff (Gillingham) is shown the yellow card.\nCorner, Swindon Town. Conceded by Elliott List.\nLuke Norris (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nFoul by Oliver Muldoon (Gillingham).\nAttempt missed. Ben Gladwin (Swindon Town) left footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the left.\nFoul by Luke Norris (Swindon Town).\nMax Ehmer (Gillingham) wins a free kick on the left wing.\nJohn Goddard (Swindon Town) wins a free kick on the left wing.\nFoul by Scott Wagstaff (Gillingham).\nLuke Norris (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nFoul by Zesh Rehman (Gillingham).\nAttempt missed. Max Ehmer (Gillingham) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the right.\nCorner, Gillingham. Conceded by Rohan Ince.\nAttempt blocked. Max Ehmer (Gillingham) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.\nSubstitution, Swindon Town. Anton Rodgers replaces Charlie Colkett.\nBradley Barry (Swindon Town) wins a free kick on the left wing.\nFoul by Josh Parker (Gillingham).\nHand ball by Josh Parker (Gillingham).\nAttempt saved. Elliott List (Gillingham) header from the left side of the six yard box is saved in the top centre of the goal.\nFoul by Brandon Ormonde-Ottewill (Swindon Town).\nScott Wagstaff (Gillingham) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nAttempt missed. Cody McDonald (Gillingham) right footed shot from the left side of the six yard box is close, but misses to the left.\nNathan Thompson (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nFoul by Josh Wright (Gillingham).\nSubstitution, Swindon Town. Luke Norris replaces Jonathan Obika.\nGoal! Swindon Town 3, Gillingham 1. Raphael Rossi Branco (Swindon Town) header from the centre of the box to the bottom right corner. Assisted by Charlie Colkett with a cross following a corner.\nCorner, Swindon Town. Conceded by Stuart Nelson.\nAttempt saved. Raphael Rossi Branco (Swindon Town) header from the centre of the box is saved in the top right corner.\nCorner, Swindon Town. Conceded by Jake Hessenthaler.\nAttempt saved. John Goddard (Swindon Town) right footed shot from the left side of the six yard box is saved in the centre of the goal.\nAttempt missed. Josh Parker (Gillingham) right footed shot from long range on the left is close, but misses to the left.\nSubstitution, Gillingham. Jake Hessenthaler replaces Emmanuel Osadebe.\nFoul by Raphael Rossi Branco (Swindon Town).\nOliver Muldoon (Gillingham) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nFoul by Jonathan Obika (Swindon Town).\nRyan Jackson (Gillingham) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nFoul by Ben Gladwin (Swindon Town).\nScott Wagstaff (Gillingham) wins a free kick in the defensive half.", "Furlong has made five appearances for QPR, but has not featured for them in a league match since a 3-1 Premier League defeat by Crystal Palace in March 2015.\nThe 20-year-old spent time on loan at Cambridge and Northampton last season, playing a total of 31 League Two games.\nHe could make his debut for Swindon when the Robins travel to Chesterfield in League One on Saturday.\nFind all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.", "Ajose's 81st-minute effort sealed Town's second dramatic 1-0 victory, having beaten Millwall last time out with a goal from Conor Thomas deep into stoppage time.\nDespite that confidence booster, it was Fleetwood who made most of the early running in this match, with their best opportunity coming when David Ball picked out Kyle Dempsey, only for Ash Hunter to be unable to get a toe on the through-ball as Lawrence Vigouroux gathered\nSwindon might have grabbed the lead on the half hour, against the run of play as Thomas let fly with a snap-shot from the edge of the box which forced a superb diving save from Alex Cairns.\nFleetwood continued to be frustrated after half-time, and Uwe Rosler threw on two substitutes in a bid to shake up an average display.\nBut it was Swindon who found another gear, Thomas poking just wide having been left unmarket at the near post.\nAnd with nine minutes remaining Ajose scored what could prove a vital Robins goal.\nRunning onto a long through-ball from Charlie Colkett he got the wrong side of Ashley Eastham before slotting low under Cairns to claim the victory.\nMatch report supplied by the Press Association.\nMatch ends, Fleetwood Town 0, Swindon Town 1.\nSecond Half ends, Fleetwood Town 0, Swindon Town 1.\nAshley Eastham (Fleetwood Town) wins a free kick on the left wing.\nFoul by Luke Norris (Swindon Town).\nFoul by Cian Bolger (Fleetwood Town).\nDion Conroy (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nSubstitution, Swindon Town. Luke Norris replaces Nicky Ajose.\nFoul by Cian Bolger (Fleetwood Town).\nRohan Ince (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nAttempt missed. Cian Bolger (Fleetwood Town) header from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the right.\nCorner, Fleetwood Town. Conceded by Raphael Rossi Branco.\nAttempt blocked. Cameron Brannagan (Fleetwood Town) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.\nAttempt blocked. Jonathan Obika (Swindon Town) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked.\nCorner, Swindon Town. Conceded by Conor McLaughlin.\nGoal! Fleetwood Town 0, Swindon Town 1. Nicky Ajose (Swindon Town) left footed shot from the left side of the box to the bottom right corner. Assisted by Charlie Colkett.\nFoul by Cameron Brannagan (Fleetwood Town).\nNathan Thompson (Swindon Town) wins a free kick on the left wing.\nSubstitution, Fleetwood Town. Cameron Brannagan replaces David Ball.\nRohan Ince (Swindon Town) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.\nKyle Dempsey (Fleetwood Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nFoul by Rohan Ince (Swindon Town).\nFoul by Bobby Grant (Fleetwood Town).\nCharlie Colkett (Swindon Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nCorner, Swindon Town. Conceded by Ashley Eastham.\nAttempt blocked. Conor Thomas (Swindon Town) right footed shot from very close range is blocked.\nAttempt saved. Ben Gladwin (Swindon Town) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal.\nAttempt blocked. Ben Gladwin (Swindon Town) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.\nCorner, Swindon Town. Conceded by Ashley Eastham.\nAttempt blocked. Jonathan Obika (Swindon Town) right footed shot from the left side of the box is blocked.\nNathan Thompson (Swindon Town) is shown the yellow card.\nHand ball by Nathan Thompson (Swindon Town).\nAttempt blocked. Nathan Thompson (Swindon Town) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.\nCorner, Swindon Town. Conceded by Cian Bolger.\nSubstitution, Swindon Town. Ben Gladwin replaces John Goddard.\nSubstitution, Fleetwood Town. Wes Burns replaces Ashley Hunter.\nSubstitution, Fleetwood Town. Joe Maguire replaces Amari'i Bell.\nAttempt missed. Ashley Eastham (Fleetwood Town) header from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the right.\nCorner, Fleetwood Town. Conceded by Nathan Thompson.\nAttempt missed. Nicky Ajose (Swindon Town) right footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the right.\nAttempt saved. David Ball (Fleetwood Town) left footed shot from the left side of the box is saved in the centre of the goal.", "The 38-year-old, who played 297 games for Luton, joins on a three-month loan with a view to a permanent move.\nTyler, whose Luton deal expires in June, is unlikely to play this term due to back injury.\n\"I am delighted to be back and I can't wait to start working with the goalkeepers,\" Tyler said.\n\"I am 38, 39 next month, but I am still raring to go when it comes to playing and I can't wait to get started on the training ground.\"\nTyler's first spell with League One side Peterborough lasted 15 years, before he left for Luton in 2009.\nPosh manager Graham Westley said: \"Mark is legendary at the club in terms of his past, he is ambitious to build his career from playing into coaching and is anxious to have the opportunity to play as well.\n\"He brings a wealth of goalkeeping expertise and he has the ambition to go into coaching, so all of the boxes are ticked and we are delighted to have him here.\"\nFind all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.", "The Portugal international, 28, has started two Swansea league games since signing from Sporting Braga in June.\n\"I am very happy to be here. I also liked the first contact I had with the coach and the entire technical staff,\" Eder told the Ligue 1 club's website.\nMeanwhile, West Brom have rejected Swansea City's offer to sign Wales defender James Chester on loan.\nChester, 27, has made just one Premier League start this season after joining from Hull City for £8m in July 2015.\nSwansea are also thought to be interested in Swindon Town and Iraq midfielder Yaser Kasim.\nFollowing Jonjo Shelvey's move to Newcastle in January, the Swans are looking for midfield reinforcements.\nKasim is out of contract at the end of the season and Swindon chairman Lee Power says two Premier League clubs are interested in the 24-year-old.", "The 25-year-old can play in defence or midfield and made 15 appearances last season while on loan at Rodney Parade.\n\"It's good to be back,\" Bennett said. \"I really enjoyed my time here and I'm delighted to sign here permanently.\"\n\"The fans loved him during his time here and I'm sure Scot will be a great addition to the squad,\" County manager Warren Feeney said.\nBennett, who played 141 times for Exeter City, was signed on loan last season from Notts County by then Newport boss John Sheridan.\nSheridan has since been appointed Notts County manager, but Bennett was released by the Magpies this week.\nFollowing the signings of Jamie Turley and Mark Randall, Bennett becomes Newport's third signing of the summer.\nThey have also retained a player from last season, with Darren Jones signing a new one-year contract extension.\nThe club also allowed 13 players to depart after they finished one place outside the League Two relegation zone.", "Media playback is not supported on this device\nThe 30-year-old started his career at Portman Road and returned on a short-term deal in September.\nHe has made six appearances in his current spell, but made his first start on Saturday, scoring in the 1-1 FA Cup draw with Southampton.\nMeanwhile, full-back Frederic Veseli and striker Frank Nouble have had their contracts cancelled by mutual consent.\nNouble, 23, joined a year ago from Wolves and scored five goals in 58 games, but has been on loan at Coventry this season.\nFormer Manchester United and Manchester City prospect Veseli, 22, has played once for Town since arriving in 2013 and has spent most of this season on loan at Port Vale.\nAnd striker Jack Marriott has agreed to continue his loan spell at Woking until the end of the season.\nFormer Crystal Palace and Birmingham City man Ambrose had spoken this week of how his return to Ipswich had rekindled his enjoyment of the game.\n\"It's been a difficult few years, not playing. But I've got the love back now, playing with this team and this manager,\" he told BBC Radio Suffolk.\n\"It's changed my opinion of football once again and now I love it again.\"" ]

[ "They definitely have a chance! With the Sixer's inability to close out games growing, Chicago has as much a chance as anybody! Kudos for staying devoted, too! A lot of the fans jumped off the bandwagon after the \"glory days.\" It's refreshing to see a devoted fan in Chicago again." ]

[ "for sure, the Chicago bulls would end up at the bottom 4 of the eastern conference playoff line-up. \\n\\nSince the first round is a best of seven affair, the format would be 2-2-1-1-1\\n\\nthe Bulls would be away on Games 1, 2, 5 and 7 since the team they would be facing would have 4 games home court advantage compared to their 3. Bulls would host games 3, 4 and 6.\\n\\nMy prediction, Bulls vs. Pistons on 1st round.", "The Bulls probably will win it because the 76ers haven't found a consistant line-up like the Bulls have. The Bulls behind the guard play of Hinrich, Gordon, and Duhon, the strength of Nocioni, and the finese play of Deng, will overtake the spuddering 76ers in the playoff race.\\n\\nAlthough... you can never count out Iverson's toughness and determination...", "The Michael Jordan Era Chicago Bulls", "Pistons are a great team, but i dont think they're goin to win like how the Lakers did or dominate the game like the Chicago Bulls.\\n\\nPistons dont have the \"GOTO GUY\" that the Lakers did with SHAQ and KOBE or like JORDAN and PIPPEN of the Chicago Bulls.\\n\\nI mean of course the pistons have good all around players, but Chauncey Billups or Rasheed or even Tayshaun arent players you call dominating or even threatening. Dont get me wrong, they're phenominal players but they arent KOBE or JORDAN... that is what they lack to get back to back championships.", "NO they trade their pick to Chicago bull", "The 1995-96 Chicago Bulls went 72-10.", "Oh man, I love the Celtics. Have been a fan all my life (31). And as a fan i hope they do not make the playoffs, better draft pick. They have a solid team to make better runs at the playoffs in the next couple of years. not much good will come from having a losing record and being 8th in the playoffs again. Just need to play hard, get experience and look for the future. But i do think they will make it, but will be swept.", "I agree hands down. Its been intense, especially last nights LA win at the staples center. Another good one has been the Bulls- Heat. There has been some tempers, plus the Bulls are giving the Heat some problems and making the games close. This years playoffs could be one for the ages!", "I think if Tracy and yao could learn to play together better, and maybe get some more prominent players on the team. They dont need any All STARS, just some other players that could help them in times of need. 2 great players are not gonna do anything. just like the bulls when they had michael jordan, scottie pippen, dennis rodman, and such. and the lakers a couple years back and the pistons now. they have 5 or 6 good players. So no, rockets can not make it to the playoffs.", "In my opinion they have very slim chances of even going to the playoffs, considering their group. Mexico and Portugal are 2 of the most strongest soccer nations in the planet and considering only the first 2 of each group go to the playoff stage, Iran probably will be fighting for the 3rd position. They are the underdogs, but in this case, I don't think there is much to do.", "Well in response to the guy bringing up the Yankees....They are in the AL and have nothing to do with the Mets making the playoffs. Secondly, you have to remember that chemistry plays a big deal in winning baseball games. Just because you have Carlos Delgado, and Billy Wagner doesn't mean they'll stay healthy either. I think that Mets have a great chance to make it as at least a wildcard, but until they lose the division, you have to go with Atlanta. Best of luck to the Mets though.", "I think Herm Edwards is over rated.. I think he is good but until he takes a team deep in the playoffs on a regular basis he is not a great coach.. Chiefs do not make playoffs this year...", "Technically they do because they pretty much clinched a playoff spot but realistically they have no chance. They will not be able to take the physical play that takes place in the playoffs and even if they win the eastern championships a team from the west will win the cup.", "The Detroit Pistons have to be the best team in basketball this year. There are like the Chicago Bulls of the 1990's and I am confident that the Pistons are going to be crowned the 2006 NBA Champions.", "best team this year detoit pistons, favorite team, la lakers, best team ever chicago bulls", "1. Houston Rockets: Hakeem Olajuwon, C, Houston \\n2. Portland Trailblazers: Sam Bowie, C, Kentucky \\n3. Chicago Bulls: Michael Jordan, SG, North Carolina", "They say that Larry Hughes has a 25% chance of playing.\\n\\nThe Cavs can't do anything in the playoffs without him.", "the lakers will have a playoff chance if kobe will stop being such a fuckin ballhog.", "In ONE draw, a RED, FACE card is techinically unlikely. It's a 50-50 chance it's red, and riding on that 50-50, a 3-10 chance it's a face.\\nIt's a 30% chance on a 50% chance, making it 15% overall, I think. What does the area of it have to do with it?", "No, but if you think about it, Basketball should be in the winter games. It was invented as a sport for the winter, its season beings in November, peeks in Feb-March and ends before the summer. And the Hockey All-star game belongs where it is, it provides a needed break, and a chance to retool for a playoff push. The NFL wishes it could do its allstar game before the end of the season", "Good team list I would add\\n\\nBaseball: NY Mets, Boston Red Sox\\nBasketball: Boston Celtics, Chicago Bulls\\nSoccer: Manchester United", "All good answers!! Why would you want the two best teams playing each other right away?? \\n\\nDo you ever watch Football playoffs? Basketball Playoffs?\\nAny playoffs? Its always been like that!!!\\n\\nWhy would they give the worst team an easier chance to get to the final four. They don't deserve it.*", "Yes they have a chance to make the playoffs, I would look for the Cheifs to draft a defensive player in the first round, but this depends on who is available when its their turn to draft. I know they like Johnathon Joseph the cornerback, they are also high on Manny Lawson the linebacker.", "Yes. Add two more per conference, and shorten the regular season by four games (1 1/2 weeks) to allow the time for the extra playoff round, so the whole season doesn't end later than it does now. I think they should allow more teams in because now teams are over .500 and missing the playoffs. When I grew up, it was a 21-team league, and only the really bad teams missed. This year someone in the west will probably have 90 points and miss out. These are good teams who would make the playoffs interesting. Last season (2 years ago), I think Buffalo set a record for most wins (35) for a non-playoff team, and Edmonton was close. Also, it would generate more revenue in the added playoff cities, and would make the league more attractive to TV networks (What's better than playoff hockey?).", "The Chargers have proven that they can beat the best of the best at their home stadiums. The beat New England at Foxboro, who had won something like 21 consecutive home games before losing to the Chargers. And they Beat Indy at Indy where the Colts were not only playing for a perfect season, but they hadn't lost at home since early 2004. \\n\\nThe Chargers are a much better team than they're given credit for, but unfortunately, they play down to their competition. Earlier on, they had chances to bury teams and they didn't, which can be blamed on Marty Schottenheimer's coaching practices and the distinct possibility the Chargers were looking ahead in the schedule.\\n\\nAs Tony Dungy said this past weekend after the loss to the Chargers, the bolts are a formidible opponent that NO ONE is going to want to play in the playoffs. Should they get lucky and make the playoffs, I think they have the talent, especially offensively, to make it to the big dance and quite possibly win it. They've proven that they can win in hostile environments and therefore I think they can do well in the playoffs and reach the Super Bowl.", "Yes. The way baseball is now teams that can spend a lot of money, and do it wisely, stand a much better chance of being competitive. I expect that both teams will be in the playoffs this year and I'd give it a 1 in 4 chance that there will be one this year.", "How to make an Aussie................\\nStep 1 Get a bull.\\nStep 2 wait for that bull to poo.\\nStep 3 gather all the poo for the bull and stack it as high as you can , viola , you have an Aussie.", "High School: Emsley A. Laney in Wilmington, NC\\nCollege : North Carolina Tar Heals\\nPro Basketball: Chicago Bulls\\nPro Baseball: Chicago White Sox (Minor League Team)\\nPro Basketball: Washington Wizards\\n USA Basketball Team\\n Many Eastern Conference All Star Teams\\nRacing: MICHAEL JORDAN MOTORSPORTS Team", "Ok there's a picture. And the picture shows a bull in a field. Now a bomb falls in the field, and the bull swallows the bomb. How do you describe this picture?\\nAnswer: Abominable\\n\\nHow do you describe the bull?\\nAnswer: Noble", "Oh come on, that is a stupid question. They barley have any offense, they have no pitching whats so ever, and their manager sucks. Ever since their franchise was made, their GM has made poor pick-ups and trades and they have never gone to a playoff game. So it's pretty obvious that the Rockies chance of making the World Series is slim to none. In fact there is no way that they will make it.", "We're singing now Go Cubs go, go Cubs go\\nHey Chicago what do you say?\\nThe Cubs are gonna win today\\nGo Cubs go, go Cubs go\\nHey Chicago what do you say?\\nThe Cubs are gonna win today", "well right now kobe because 1)lebron is still yet to win a playoff series.2)lebron does'nt go for the buzzer beater winners yet and kobe does and he makes them much like MJ. and lastly right now kobe has a team that resembles the bulls of jordans era. kobe---jordan, odom...pippen and brown....rodman" ]

[ "They can choose it to go to a vote. If they are asking a question they don't know the answer so, if the answers are different how will they know who is right? Maybe they are trusting that people will vote for the best one and that's the advice they will take. Or maybe they just went out of town and missed the date and will check the answers when they get back. \\n\\nSince I know you will be choosing a best answer....why not choose me?" ]

[ "This is a community website. You ask womething, and then some helpful guy/girl answers that. Then either you choose the best answer or people vote to do that. \\n\\nSimple. Effective.", "You get 2 points deducted when you ask a question, then you can get the points back by choosing a \"best answer\".\\n\\nThey are trying to encourage people to come back, check the answers they have received, and choose a \"best answer\"; this will make the system more fair, especially in those cases where someone asks a question and someone else posts an answer that's so good, no one else bothers to answer. The \"answers\" will not be put to a vote, because there is only one answer, so the person who posted the great answer gets only 2 points, not the total of 12 points that he or she is entitled to.", "People receive points by someone choosing their answer as the best answer. Also, when it is put up as a vote, then people get points for that as well.", "No, you don't get points for questions because the main point of the site is to answer people's questions with what you know. So, asking a question does not gain you points but answering one does. You can, however, get points when you choose a best answer or call for a vote for best answer...", "DONT FORGET TO CHOOSE AND VOTE FOR BEST ANSWER!!!\\nWE ARE REAL PEOPLE ANSWERING REAL QUESTIONS WITH REAL ANSWERS SO TAKE THE TIME TO SHOW YOUR APPRECIATION BY CHOOSING THE BEST ANSWER.\\n\\nSwitch based are located on planet earth and the latter is up in the sky, way way way far up...\\n\\nDONT FORGET TO CHOOSE AND VOTE FOR BEST ANSWER!!!\\nWE ARE REAL PEOPLE ANSWERING REAL QUESTIONS WITH REAL ANSWERS SO TAKE THE TIME TO SHOW YOUR APPRECIATION BY CHOOSING THE BEST ANSWER.", "Stop asking unnecessary questions and instead answer questions and also vote for best answers. Every time you ask a question you lose 5 points.", "A good strategy:\\n> Place time into answering questions. You get 2 points for trying, but 10 more if it's chosen as the best.\\n> If a question goes into voting, choose your answer as the best. Odds are if no one else places votes and / or the topic isn't popular, you'll earn your keep in no time.\\n> Keep question asking to a minimum. Unless you are certain you can rise out of the defecit, then don't ask too many questions.\\n> NEVER ask factual questions. Keep it to something that can only be truly answered through experience. Factual questions are easily answered with search engines, so don't do that.\\n> Vote for answers, critique best answers. These only get one point shots, but you can do this more often than answering questions.\\n> Go for questions in semi-obscure topics. If you take a question like that, and give a good answer, you'll be somewhat assured that there isn't any competition, thereby increasing your odds of getting your answer selected as the best.\\n> Honor goes to the swift. Don't let the others swoop in on the question when you have a great answer. The higher up you are, the better your chances of being selected.\\n> Browse about. Go to one question, answer it, then click on someone else who answered, see the questions they answered, and repeat the process. Done for a long time, this can rack up the points.", "You can still gain points (Maybe even enough to move you to the next level to be able to ask more questions) by choosing best answers to your questions. (Yes I would love your ten points) and rating other peoples best answers as well as voting for questions where the asker never choose a best answer. Of course you have daily limits on these as well, but it's something", "yeah you'll lose 2 points when you ask a question but you'll gain it back when you choose a best answer or call a vote to choose the best answer. by answering a question, you gain two points. if your answer gets chosen as the best answer, you'll gain 10. if you rate someone else's best answer, you'll gain 1 and the person who gets rated gets 1 as well. that's bout all you need to know. cheers.", "Don't forget to choose the best answer.\\nWe are real people answering real questions with real answers so please show your appreciation by choosing the best answer! \\n\\nWhy not Nicotine instead?", "If its not your question, you just wait a week or so (depending if the asker extends it) until the question expires, and then you click on vote for best answer..\\n\\nIf it is your question, then just wait 24 hours from when you asked and then you wil lbe able to vote it as best answer.\\n\\nOnce the question is resolved you can vote to give the best answer a thumbs up or down..", "when you have recieved enough answers you can either choose a best answer or call a vote. To do this, go to \"MY Q & A\" and click on the question you are referring to and you will see the available options. Take note, that you have to wait at least 24 hours to close the question.", "Okay here's how it goes!\\n\\nIts been three months and your question is just sitting here for someone to come along and say pick the first answer or why havn't you picked it yet. \\n\\nI spent all morning voting for answers that were 3 months old and all of them had something like that. \\n\\nIf you pick the answer yourself you'll get 3 pts back instead of 2. But if you vote you only get 2 pts back and the best possible answer probably won't get credit because they've long forgotten about it.\\n\\nO yeah' Go Raiders!!! *RZ*\\n\\nP.s \"I don't agree with going around not seriously answering these questions but if I don't someone else will.\" \\n\\nO yeah if the above answers suck, delete your question or pick me! :) J/k I'd ask it again and don't let it get this old.~", "I just checked out your questions..... here is the thing: You have one in voting...which means we'll vote for the best answer. \\n\\nThe other questions are not 24hrs old yet. When they're 24hrs or older, just pick the one you think is the best by clicking on the blue button that says \"Choose as Best Answer.\"", "Many people who post a question are not seeking an answer. often they just seeking confirmation or trying to make a point. they are going to choose accordingly.\\n\\ni have voted for answers other than mine. when answers were really good. but many of my best answers are somewhat matching questioner's view. \\n\\none of questioners wrote a comment after choosing my answer as best yesterday . he stated that he was accused of being the same person as me. though it was ridiculous accusation. any one who paid any attention would have found out that he is not even indian like i am. he has a christian background and i am hindu. But it shows often the views of questioner and best answerer are quite similar. \\n\\nBut i can not generalise. i was chosen as best once or twice even when i totally opposed questioner. \\n\\nI think people when sincerly seeking answers choose what appeals to their logic. people when have an agenda choose views similar to their own.", "To get to level 2 from level 1, you would have to earn 150 points (see scoring system page). For two days, answer 20 questions (earn 40 points), rate 20 best answers (earn 20 points) and vote on 20 undecided questions (earn 20 points). If you do this, you'll earn 160 points and get to level two easily.\\n\\nOf course, you lose 5 points each time you ask a question. If you do ask a question, though, be sure to go back and pick the best answer before it automatically goes to a vote after a week because you'll get 3 points back for choosing the best answer.", "You can earn more points for asnwering questions, asking questions, rating answers and voting for the best answers. You get points for all of those activities and even get points when your answer is voted the best. When you get more than 250 points, you get to level 2 like me and you can answer more questions per day. Once I get more than 1000, you will go to level 3 and so on.", "Point wise previously it was neutral to ask question because 2 points lost will be got back when you choose a correct answer. In the new system you get back only 3 points when choosing correct answer, point wise you loose 2 points. Yahoo wants the questioner to involve in other activities like answering, rating, voting etc and not just asking questions.", "Well.. some might not know this.. but I've been here a while.. they take away two points when you ask.. but they can give you 4 points back when you call a vote...2 points for calling a vote and allowing the entire Yahoo Answers groupies to decide what the BEST answer really was....then when your question is solved, you get another 2 points for having a best answer awarded to your question...and you can even vote on the answer you liked best if they are all similar, for 1 point!\\n\\nSo ask away.. let your curiosity run wild.. I have ...about everything and anything.. it's a fun way to participate.. and get answers that matter to you! 104 question later I really appreciate having the answers of everyone in here!", "when u ask a question u loose 5 points\\nto get alot of points answer questions, rate best answers, vore for best answers, and u an comment best and choose best anseers to ur questions", "You have two choices.. Pick a best answer to your question by hitting the Choose as best button next to their name and answer (You'll receive 3 points).. \\n\\nor 'call a vote' so the Yahoo members can choose which one was the best answer..but hitting the button at the top of your question that says Put question to vote.. (you'll receive 2 points, but after the winner of the question is decided you'll receive another 2 points.. total of 4)\\n\\nBut you can only choose an answer after 24 hours", "Don't forget to choose the best answer.\\nWe are real people answering real questions with real answers so please show your appreciation by choosing the best answer!\\n\\nI asked my professor this question and his answer was the price of all compounds etc in a human being is worth approxametely $44.65 USD when broken down.", "Keep asking questions and just choose the person's answer as the best answer.", "Your question has been forgotten. Vote me as the best and get 3 points back. With those points you can ask this question again. And there are a lot of people will answer it. Vote me as the best. Thank you.", "Answer more questions then you ask, and get your answers voted as best answer. You get 2 points per anwered, and 10 for best answers.", "Your questions cannot be answered. They are nothing more than logical fallacies. To illustrate my point, try asking yourself, \"Why am I so dumb?, Why is it that I am so dense as to what is going on in the country today?, How can I give such blind hatred to a president who is clearly ... working in the best interest of the American people?, When did being me become more important than being and American?, Am I stupid or just too lazy to pay attention?\" As you can see, it is not possible to answer the questions.\\n\\nIf you would like meaningful answers to specific questions, try including references to things that demonstrate your question. For example, you could ask, \"Why was Dick Chaney so stupid as to shoot his friend?\" The answer of course, is that it was an accident. If you believe the president is not working in the best interest of the country, please explain why and you may get responses that address the issue.\\n\\nOn the other hand, the questions themselves really do demostrate why conservatives are smart and you are not.", "Bear in mind that these are nicknames and not email addresses. If you want to acknowledge answers to your question, a popular way to do that is to add additonal comments to your question. Another method would be when you choose a best answer (as opposed to putting your question to a vote), you can post a reply to that user and to everyone as well.", "The person who write this question, must be \"absent without leave\" cause haven't choose a better answer.\\n\\nSo let's go \"Back to basis\" and vote for me!", "It takes a day before you can choose an answer or let it go for a vote.", "Since a lot of people were asking stupid questions in order to have more points, Yahoo started decreasing points. But when you choose a best answer for your question, you receive those points back!", "\"Better a dumb question than a dumb mistake...\" But yeah, just go to the question, and click on the blue button that says \"choose as best answer.\" You have to wait at least 24 hours after asking the question. This should do it.", "Go to your original question and click on the answerer's picture. That will bring you to her profile. From there you can click on one of her questions and just thank her through that. I am assuming you have resolved your question and picked them as the best answer - you are able to write a comment about their answer when you choose a best answer. If you already chose a best answer but did not let them know I think the only thing you could do is go to your original question and click on the \"add comment\" icon and write something there hoping they will read it IF they even go back to the question. Helpful? Hope so." ]

[ "Boner Candidate #1: TURNS OUT ‘FEARLESS GIRL’ IS REALLY ‘UNDERPAID GIRL.’\nThe firm that commissioned the popular “Fearless Girl” statue in New York’s financial district has agreed to pay $5 million, mostly to settle claims that it discriminated against 305 top female employees by paying them less than men in the same positions. In the agreement, officials at the United States Department of Labor also allege that the firm, State Street Corporation, discriminated against 15 of its black vice presidents by paying them less than white employees in the same positions. State Street, a financial services firm, denies the allegations, according to the agreement. Still, the filing says that the firm has agreed to pay about $4.5 million in back pay and about $500,000 in interest into a settlement fund for the affected employees.\nRead More\nBoner Candidate #2: IT’S NOT FUNNY WHEN A FEMALE, OR A MALE, IS RACIST LIKE THAT.\nThe sports reporter Cam Newton patronized during a press conference Wednesday is now apologizing for racist tweets she made a few years back. Jourdan Rodrigue, who covers the Carolina Panthers for the Charlotte Observer, asked Newton: “I know you take a lot of pride in seeing your receivers play well. Devin Funchess has seemed to really embrace the physicality of his routes and getting those extra yards. Does that give you a little bit of enjoyment to see him truck-sticking people?” Newton seemed surprised a woman might actually know something about the game. “It’s funny to hear a female talk about routes like that,” he said. “It’s funny.” Various other sportswriters came to Rodrigue’s defense. So did Dannon yogurt, which dropped Newton as a spokesman on Thursday. Read More\nBoner Candidate #3: WELL, IT’S NOT BLACKFACE; IT’S JUST BROWNFACE.\nA student comedy troupe at Brigham Young University has cut a sketch — a parody of Disney’s “Moana” and the LDS camp classic “Johnny Lingo” — from an upcoming production after complaints from members of Utah’s Pacific Islander community that it was offensive. “They didn’t know the extent to which that would offend that population,” said George Nelson, a theater professor at BYU and faculty adviser to the student group, BYU’s Divine Comedy. BYU is owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The sketch, “Moana You Ugly,” combined music from last year’s Disney hit and ideas from the 1969 LDS Church-produced short “Johnny Lingo.” The short film, once a staple of LDS lessons but now regarded as comically out-of-date, tells of a Polynesian woman, Mahana, who is deemed ugly and unmarriageable by her elders — until a trader offers the exorbitant sum of eight cows for her hand, thus raising her self-worth. Read More Take Our Poll" ]

[ "The National Food Production Battle implemented under the guidance of President Maithripala Sirisena, will commence today (6th Oct.), With the aim of taking forward the national food production program, challenged by the climate changes, with a new strength continuously in a sustainable manner to revive the agricultural sector of the country.\nThe inauguration of this program will be marked by having the ‘National Wap Magul Ceremony’ under the patronage of President Maithripala Sirisena at 8.30 am near the Thibbotuwawa Tank, Kekirava, and it is expected to launch many program across the country while declaring 6th October to 12th October as the National Food Production week.\n6th October, the first day of Food Production Week campaign has been designated as the Farmers’ Day, and many programs, including the distribution of seed paddy to farmers, rehabilitation of 2,000 acres of coconut lands, launching of Mahaweli Agri Project plan for 2017 / 18, implementation of special programs for the development of home gardening, presentation of 2,500 title deeds to the Mahaweli farming community, tree planting programs, conducting seminars and training programs regarding new agri technology, distribution of equipment to promote the production of organic fertilizer, will be implemented throughout the country.\n7th October will be Students’ Day and the inauguration ceremony of this will be held at the Siyane National School, Gampaha under the patronage of Minister of Education. The Ministry of Education stated that under three categories: National food production, toxins free food production, prevention of food wastage, several programs will be implemented covering all the 10,353 schools of the country.\n8th October is the Livestock Day. The inauguration of this day will be held at the Genetic Resources Centre in Peradeniya. Many extensive national programs including dairy industry development projects will be implemented for the development of the livestock Field.\n9th October has been designated as the Entrepreneurs’ Day, and the inauguration ceremony of this Day will be held at the premises of the Talawila Church in the North Western Province and the Andaulpatha Village in Mahiyangana in Uva Province. A number of programs will be implemented across the country to encourage the primary industrialists and entrepreneurs.\n10th October is the Fisheries Day, and the Ministry of Fisheries stated that a special program will be implemented to release one million fish for breeding purposes.\nThe inauguration of this Day will be marked by opening of the Fish Breeding Center in Kallarawa, built at a cost of Rs 200 million. Especially implementation of programs to increase the fish consumption among the people in the Hill Country and the Estate sector, programs for the development of livelihood as well as for creation of employment opportunities will be accelerated.\n11th October is the Public Servants Day, and the inauguration ceremony in this regard will be held at the Auditorium of Sabaragamuwa Provincial Council and Ratnapura District Secretariat.\n12th October is named as Diyawara Day, and the main ceremonies in this regard will be held near the Muruthawela Tank and near Urusita veva in Embilipitiya.\nMeanwhile, the Ministry of Mahaweli Development has organized many programs to get the active participation of the Mahaweli community for this program.\nIn the Mahaweli zone, there are an estimated 150,000 irrigation lands and all those lands are expected to be used for this program in a proper manner.\n(Government News Portal)", "by Phillip Manning ~ October 6th, 2017\nAlaska Department of Fish and Game, Mat-Su Conservations Services, United States Fish and Wildlife Service, and Alaska Plant Materials Center have partnered together for the purpose of habitat restoration and protection along salmon streams and rivers in the Mat-Su Valley.\nEarlier this summer, a Bank Restoration Workshop was held in Talkeetna to teach and implement bank stabilization techniques that benefit not only landowners along rivers, but salmon as well.\nKTNA’s Katie Writer spoke with Franklin Dekker, Hydrologist for Fish and Wildlife Service about his inspection of the McCann property along the Susitna River.\nThe Mat-Su Valley Habitat Restoration and Protection Cost-Share Program is accepting applications year round, yet they advise applying as soon as possible for review.", "It’s been a spectacular summer for one of Ayrshire’s iconic historic sites as Historic Environment Scotland (HES) announced visitor figures for the 2017 summer season today (Friday 6th October).\nThe summer season saw Crossraguel Abbey – a ruined Cluniac monastery founded in the early 1200s and severely damaged during the Wars of Independence – record a 10% increase on footfall from the previous year, with 2,241 people visiting the site between April and September 2017.\nThe summer season has seen many visitor records broken across the country as a whole, with historic sites in the care of HES welcoming over 3.8m visitors in the period from April to September 2017, an impressive overall 20% increase in footfall on the same period last year, making it the busiest season on record.\nAugust 2017 saw over 870,000 visitors flocking to Scotland’s iconic historic sites, making it the busiest individual month ever recorded.", "Here's a listing of how you can watch every college football game involving Mississippi teams.\nWeek 6 - Thursday, October 5th\nSWAC\nAlcorn State 24, Alabama State 10\nWeek 6 - Friday, October 6th\nD2\n6:00pm: Mississippi College at West Florida\n- Online: GoArgos.com\nWeek 6 - Saturday, October 7th\nSEC\n- TV: SEC Network\n- Online: ESPN3.com\nMississippi State: BYE WEEK\n- Next Game: October 14th vs. BYU (11:00am on SEC Network)\nUSM\n6:00pm - Southern Miss at UTSA\n- Facebook: Stadium: Live College Football\nSWAC\n- YouTube: UAPB Television\nJackson State: BYE WEEK\n- Next Game: October 14th vs. Tuskegee (5th Quarter Classic)\nD2\n6:00pm: #9 Delta State vs. West Alabama\n- Online: GoStatesmen.com\nD3\n12:30pm: Belhaven at McMurry\n- Online: McMurrySports.com\nMillsaps: BYE WEEK\n- Next Game: October 14th at Austin\nCopyright 2017 MSNewsNow. All rights reserved.", "PURSUANT TO THE PROVISIONS OF THE PROVINCES ACT , CAP 60 THE NATIONAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE SUPERIOR LEGISLATION, HAS WITH IMMEDIATE EFFECT PASSED A RESOLUTION RECOGNISING THE EXISTENCE OF FIVE (5) REGIONS INSTEAD OF FOUR (4) REGIONS AS PROVIDED FOR IN OUR 5TH DECEMBER ,1995 PARTY CONSTITUTION (REF. 6.7.1 (i) AND 6.13.3 (i). HENCEFORTH WHERE EVER 4 REGIONS ARE MENTIONED IT IS DEEMED TO BE REFERRING TO THE 5 REGIONS IN THE PROVINCES ACT. THE NEW REGION CALLED NORTH WEST WITH PORT LOKO AS ITS REGIONAL HEADQUARTERS WILL HOST THE REGIONAL CONVENTION FOR THE THREE DISTRICTS NAMELY PORT LOKO , KAMBIA AND KARENE.\nTHE NORTHERN REGION NOW INCLUDES THE FOLLOWING DISTRICTS :- BOMBALI , TONKOLILI KOINADUGU AND FALABA. MAKENI IS THE REGIONAL HEADQUARTERS WHERE THE REGIONAL CONVENTION IS SLATED TO TAKE PLACE ON THE 6TH AND 7TH OCTOBER 2017.\nIN SIMILAR VEIN THE REGIONAL CONVENTIONS IN THE SOUTH TAKES PLACE IN BO ; THE EAST IN KENEMA AND THE WEST IN FREETOWN. THE NATIONAL WOMEN’S CONGRESS ,THE NATIONAL YOUTH LEAGUE AND THE VETERANS WILL NOW HOLD THEIR CONVENTIONS AT THE NATIONAL HEADQUARTERS ON SUNDAY 8TH OCTOBER 2017 INSTEAD OF 7TH OCTOBER 2017 AS PREVIOUSLY SCHEDULED.\nTHE NATIONAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE FURTHER INFORMS ITS MEMBERSHIP THAT IT HAS ALSO PASSED A RESOLUTION RECOGNISING THE EXISTENCE OF 16 INSTEAD OF 14 DISTRICTS AS PROVIDED FOR BY THE PROVINCES ACT CAP 60 AS AMENDED.\nHENCEFORTH THE APC WILL OPERATE ITS ACTIVITIES AT DISTRICT LEVEL COGNIZANT OF THE EXISTENCE OF TWO ADDITIONAL DISTRICTS OF KARENE AND FALABA AND ONE CITY COUNCIL OF PORT LOKO CITY.\nALL PARTY MEMBERS AND FUNCTIONARIES ARE REQUIRED TO ADHERE BY THESE STATUTORY CHANGES.\nSIGNED\nAMB. DR. ALHAJI OSMAN FODAY YANSANEH NSG APC.\nPhoto: Alhaji Osman Foday Yansaneh", "Mumbai, Tuesday 6th October 2017: The BBC 100 Women Challenge 2017 arrives in India next week as a team of female experts comes together to find ways to help women overcome illiteracy in a unique celebration of female talent.\n‘BBC 100 Women Challenge: Change is Coming’ draws on the experience of women across all spheres of modern life – from engineering to the creative industries, from sport to business – as teams based around the world tackle everyday problems currently blighting female lives.\nStarting on Monday (9th October) the Delhi based team will have a working week to invent, develop and deliver a prototype that tackles the issue of female illiteracy, whether a tech solution, product or campaign. The group, which will be based at Innov8, in Delhi’s Connaught Place, includes educationalists, activists, writers, tech experts and entrepreneurs plus women who have experienced the challenges poor literacy can bring.\nThey will then share their solution with an invited audience at the Katha Lab School, in Govindpuri, New Delhi and with the BBC’s global audience via BBC World Service Radio’s Outside Source programme on Friday 13th October from 2030IST. Outside Source will also be checking in on the team’s progress on Tuesday 10th October and coverage will run on BBC World News TV. Plus the team will be followed by a BBC World News TV documentary team as they work on their solution (to be broadcast in November).\nThe team will include: Dr. Urvashi Sahni social entrepreneur, women’s rights activist and educationist; Nitya Thummalachetty currently a business analyst at US firm CareCentra writer; yoga teacher and activist Ira Trivedi; Aditi Avasthi founder and CEO of edtech platform Embibe; and former journalist Tulika Kiran who now teaches young people in prison.\nThey will be joined by inspirational women and girls who will be sharing their experiences to help inspire the solution; including Mehroonisa Siddiqui mother of Indian actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui, who was not able to attend school and married at 14.\nThe team’s progress during the week will be shared on the BBC’s digital platforms including www.bbc.com/100women which will also play host to a wealth of video and written content exploring female literacy.\nAudience participation will be a cornerstone of the BBC 100 Women Challenge. The team will want to hear directly from the BBC’s audiences around the world, particularly women affected by the issues they are tackling and anyone who is already seeking solutions. People will be able to get involved in the challenge via social media with @BBC100Women and #100Women, online at www.bbc.com/100women and through the live shows.\nThe Delhi 100 Women Challenge follows the announcement of part one of the 100 Women List 2017. Ten Indian women including the Delhi team and others such as cricketer Mithali Raj, were named in the first 60 – see here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-41380265. The remaining 40 places will then be decided as the challenge progresses, drawn from those who have supported, inspired and helped the teams on the ground over the course of the four weeks.\nThe first BBC 100 Women Challenge launched in Silicon Valley, California this week (Oct 2 -6th) with a team looking at ways to smash the glass ceiling. After Delhi the focus will be on London and Nairobi as a group try to improve safety for female travellers using public transport (October 16th-21st); and finally for the fourth week women based in Rio de Janeiro will take on sexism in sport (October 23rd – 28th).\nENDS\nNotes to Editors\nBBC 100 Women was established in 2013 as an annual series focused on a list of 100 inspirational women. The list was supported by news, features, investigations and interviews highlighting the work of these women, targeting female audiences. In 2016 100 Women site generated 30 million hits over three weeks and was awarded an Alliance for Women in Media Gracie award. The project was also a finalist for the US Peabody Awards 2017 and scooped many other accolades.", "8th edition of the Adom Praiz concert will be held the Perez Dome Friday 6th October, 2017\nThe stage is set for the 8th edition of the Adom Praiz concert which is just hours away.\nRenowned gospel artistes Francis Adjei, Steve Crown and Preye Odede have arrived in the country and are promising a spirit-filled night.\nJoe Mettle, Denzel Prempeh, Celestine Donkor, Lady Ann, Joyce Blessing, The Multimedia Choir and a host of others are already for the mammoth concert at the Perez Dome.\nIbrahim Ben-Bako of the Entertainment News desk caught up with The Multimedia Choir at their rehearsal grounds at the Christ Temple.\nقالب وردپرس\nComments", "The public is being urged to ‘mussel up’ by seafood producers and seafood organisations who have come together to launch the first ever National Mussel Day on 7th October 2017. The day is being launched in partnership with Seafish’s annual promotional campaign Seafood Week which runs from 6th October to 13th October.\nThe announcement comes as new data shows an impressive increase in sales of mussels. Servings of mussels in the UK foodservice sector are up 22% (NPD Crest data 52 weeks to end of June 17) and up 9% in value, 7% in volume in the UK retail market (AC Nielson ScanTrack YE 12.08.17).\nNational Mussel Day has been organised to encourage the public to discover or re-discover mussels through social media promotions, recipes, and offers provided by national mussel producers and the industry’s leading organisations on seafood.\nThe campaign will utilise the dedicated hashtag #MusselUp for public and industry to use on social media. Mussel fans will be encouraged to share their favourite dishes and mussel producers will feature exclusive and unique mussel recipes to try, share engaging facts and information on how to purchase mussels year-round.\nSeafood Week, organised by Seafish, celebrates a different species each day and National Mussel Day will be taking place on Saturday – the day chosen for mussels to be the primary focus.\nHeather Middleton, Marketing Manager of Seafish said:\n“We are delighted that National Mussel Day will be taking place during Seafood Week. This industry-led initiative will shine a spotlight on mussels and highlight how delicious and nutritious they are.\n“Each year for Seafood Week we promote mussels by showing consumers how easy mussels are to cook and how delicious they are to eat. National Mussel Day will step up this work and enable the wider industry to support these efforts.\n“It is a great example of how industry can make Seafood Week their own and celebrate the rich diversity of fish and shellfish available in the UK.”\nMussel farming is a significant and growing aquaculture sector in Scotland and a highly environmentally sustainable, low-impact industry. The sector was estimated to be worth £10.1m (farmed production price) in 2016, with the highest ever production level recorded in Scotland alone at 7,732 tonnes, a 6% year on year increase and 60% increase since 2007 (Source Marine Scotland Science Scottish Shellfish Farm Production Survey 2016).", "Firing a school record low round, the Barton Community College women’s golf team earned the program’s eighth straight trip to the national championships as four Lady Cougars finished in the region’s top ten in the 36-hole Region VI Championship held at Hutchinson’s Carey Park Golf Course.\nThe Lady Cougars dug a nineteen stroke deficit after the opening round of the Championship on Sunday, cutting three strokes off the margin Monday as all four team members shot sub-80 for the school record 308. Shaving thirty-one strokes off the first round 339, Barton tallied a 647 for the two days in placing a runner-up sixteen strokes behind defending champion Dodge City Community College’s 631 (320-311) as five Conquistadors were within the top five of the leaderboard. Coffeyville also had a good closing day of action, improving their team score by twenty strokes to place third at 724 (372-352).\nMutita Booranakunamanee continued Barton’s string of four straight individual champions, as the 46th ranked freshman from Thailand charged from an 81 third place standing after Sunday’s round in firing a 1-under 71 to win the title by four strokes at 8-over 152.\nThe three other Lady Cougars matched final rounds of 79 to hold their day one position, with No. 77 ranked Lucia Rodriguez Zapico finishing tied with Dodge City’s Tanyaporn Chothirunpanit for 6th place overall with a 163. 45th ranked Vilma Efraimsson and 96th ranked Kendra Jellisonrounded out the Barton record breaking team score, posting identical 87 opening rounds for a 166 total in tying for 8th place. Miranda Kernplaced 11th overall to earn the alternate spot as the 100th ranked player carded 91 and 89 rounds to finish with a 180.\nThe well-balanced Conquistadors took the 2nd through the 6th place tie spots, with first round leader and 27th ranked Napaknaree Sirithorn the only player to card sub-80’s in both rounds with a 77 and 79 for a 156. Two strokes behind was No. 29 Suthasinee Sridet who catapulted up the ranks from an opening 84 sixth place standing to fire the final day’s second best round of 2-over 74 for a 158 total. Odette Booysen’s 82 and 78 rounds were good for a 4th place 160 score while 62nd ranked Kanyakorn Chothirunpanit placed fifth at 161 (81-80).\nCoffeyville’s Jordan Lee rounded out the top ten individuals with a 170 as the 117th ranked player carded 88 and 82 rounds.\nFinishing in the nation’s top-fourteen the past four seasons, Barton will shoot for another high placing on the national stage competing at the 2018 NJCAA Women’s Golf Championship held May 14-17 at Longbow Golf Club located in Mesa, Arizona.", "RELATED: Rose third at MNGWL State, MAHACA wrestling, Morris/C-A athletics\nNo Tiger won their weight class. Jared Rohloff at 138 and Gage Wevley at 220 were the top finishers with second place at their respective weights. Jed Feuchtenberger at 106 and Dalton Rose at 113 both took third place.\nRohloff, who is ranked eighth in Class AA at 138 pounds, went 2-1 on the day to finish in second place. He fell to champion Dylan Rudningen of KMS by 19-6 major decision. In the first round, Rohloff pinned Matt Hanson of Pelican Rapids in 0:50, then in the semifinals he took a 13-3 major decision over Dane Schoenborn of Fosston-Bagley to reach the title match.\nWith only four wrestlers at 220 pounds, Wevley’s tournament was a round robin format. He went 2-1 on the day, falling to champion Mason Nibbe of WCA/A/B-E. In the first round, Wevley defeated Gabe Diaz of Breckenridge by 12-3 major decision. In the second round, he pinned Levi Hanson of Fosston-Bagley in 2:42. Wevley fell to Nibbe in the third round by 8-4 decision.\nFeuchtenberger’s tournament started with a first round bye. In the semifinals, he was pinned by WCA/A/B-E’s Jordan Lohse in 5:40 to drop him to the third place match where he defeated Thomas Eustice of Ortonville by fall in 1:18.\nRose went 2-1 on the day. He defeated Ortonville’s Deaven Boots by fall in 3:54 in the first round, then fell to eventual champion Kaleb Getz of WCA/A/B-E by 7-4 decision. In the third place match, Rose defeated Zach Haire of Breckenridge by injury default.\nThe Tigers travel to Thief River Falls on Saturday, Feb. 18 for the Section 8AA team tournament. MAHACA was seeded No. 10 of 12-team tournament and will wrestle No. 7-seeded Pequot Lakes / Pine River-Backus at 11 a.m. The winner then takes on No. 2 Detroit Lakes at 12:30 p.m.\nThe Section 8AA individual tournament is next Friday and Saturday, Feb. 24 and 25 at Fergus Falls.\nIf you're interested in viewing additional photos from the third annual Doc Busian Invitational, please email Brooke Kern at photos@morrissuntribune.com.\nDoc Busian Invite\nTeam scoring – (1) West Central Area / Ashby / Brandon-Evansville 249.5 (2) Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg 197.5 (3) Morris Area / Hancock / Chokio-Alberta 133.5 (4) Fosston-Bagley 132.5 (5) Benson 120 (6) Breckenridge 83 (7) Ortonville 80.5 (8) Pelican Rapids 62\nHow MAHACA fared…\n106: Jed Feuchtenberger 1-1, 3rd… 113: Dalton Rose 2-1, 3rd… 120: Ben Travis 1-2, 4th… 126: Gerardo Villela 1-2, 6th… 132: Gideon Joos 1-2, 6th… 138: Jared Rohloff 2-1, 2nd… 145: Chase Metzger 2-1, 5th… 152: Brady Cardwell 1-2, 4th… 152: Christian Dodds 1-2, 6th… 160: Tristan Raths 1-2, 6th… 170: Matt McNeill 2-1, 5th… 182: Open… 195: Bain Laine 2-1, 5th… 220: Gage Wevley 2-1, 2nd… 285: Open", "Nigerian UK based gospel artiste, Sharon Oyakhilome, and first daughter of popular preacher, Chris Oyakhilome, is set to tie the knot with her Ghanaian heartthrob, Philip Frimpong.\nShe made this known on her Facebook- “We love CSO” page on Tuesday, following earlier reports that the clergy had also made the announcement to his church members earlier in the week\nShe wrote: “Save the date, Oct 6th.”\nSharon, 25, is the first of two daughters of Chris Oyakhilome, the senior pastor of Christ Embassy and his estranged wife, Anita Ebhodaghe.\nShe dropped her debut single titled, ‘I’m Excellent’ in 2014, featuring Ice Stanley, and has also performed along notable international artistes in concerts.\nIn October 2017, she announced her engagement to Philip Frimpon, co-founder of ONUA, a fast growing online advertising company that promotes West African artistry.\nSee photos below;", "Nigerian UK based gospel artiste, Sharon Oyakhilome, and first daughter of popular preacher, Chris Oyakhilome, is set to tie the knot with her Ghanaian heartthrob, Philip Frimpong.\n“Save the date, Oct 6th”, she wrote on her Facebook page on Tuesday.\nThe cleric made the announcement to his church members on Sunday.\nSharon, 25, is the first of two daughters of Chris Oyakhilome, the senior pastor of Christ Embassy and his estranged wife, Anita Ebhodaghe.\nIn October 2017, she announced her engagement to Frimpon, co-founder of ONUA.\nIn 2016, her mother, Anita filed for divorce at Central Family Court, High Holborn, London, UK, from Pastor Chris.\nShe cited her ex-husband’s “unreasonable behaviour” and inappropriate relationships with members of staff, an intonation of “adultery.”\nAnita had also reverted to her maiden name: Pastor or Ms. Anita Ebhodaghe.", "LONDON, England: Here’s a look at how the Bahamas’ 24-member team performed at the 16th IAAF World Championships:\nMen’s 100 metres\nWarren Fraser - 3rd in heat four in the preliminary round of the 100m in 10.30 for 8th overall. 7th in heat in first round in 10.42 for 38th overall.\nMen’s 200m\nTeray Smith - 5th in heat in 20.77 for 34th overall.\nMen’s 400m\nSteven Gardiner - 1st in heat in the first round in 44.75 for 2nd overall; 1st in his heat in the semifinal in a national record of 43.89 for 1st overall and 2nd in the final in 44.41 for the silver.\nMen’s high jump\nDonald Thomas - 14th in Group A of the qualifying round with leap of 2.22m for 22nd overall.\nMen’s 4 x 100m relay\nTeam of Warren Fraser, Shavez Hart, Sean Stuart and Teray Smith - disqualified in qualifying round.\nMen’s 4 x 400m relay\nTeam of Alonzo Russell, Michael Mathieu, Ojay Ferguson and Ramon Miller ran 3:03.04, a season;s best, for 6th in qualifying heat fr 11th overall.\nWomen’s 200m\nShaunae Miller-Uibo - 1st in first round heat in 22.69 for 2nd overall; 1st in heat in semifinal in 22.49 for 2nd overall; 3rd in final in 22.15 for the bronze.\nTyNia Gaither - 2nd in first round heat in 22.98 for 9th overall; 4th in semifinal heat in 22.85 for 8th overall; 8th in final in 23.07.\nAnthonique Strachan - 3rd in first round heat in 22.23 for 15th overall; 8th in heat in semifinal heat in 23.21 for 16th overall.\nWomen’s 400m\nShaunae Miller-Uibo - 3rd in heat in 50.97 for 3rd overall; 1st in her heat in the semifinals in 50.36 for 1st overall; fourth in final in 50.49.\nWomen’s 100m hurdles\nDevynne Charlton - 4th in first round heat in 13.02 for 19th overall; 6th in semifinal heat in 12.95 for 13th overall.\nWomen’s triple jump\nTamara Myers - 13th in Group B with 13.41m for 24th overall.\nWomen’s long jump\nBianca Stuart - 14th in Group B with 5.91m for 14th place in qualifying round for 28th overall.\nWomen’s 4 x 100m relay\nTeam of Devynne Charlton, Carmiesha Cox, Janae Ambrose and TyNia Gaither - did not finish qualifying round.\nWomen’s 4 x 400m relay\nTeam of Lanece Clarke, Christine Amertil, Anthonique Strachan and Shaquania Dorsett - did not finish.\nMedal placement - tied with Hungary for 30th place.\nFinal placement - tied for 22nd with Colombia, Croatia and the Ivory Coast.", "Milind Dhaimade’s directorial Tu Hai Mera Sunday that stars Barun Sobti, Shahana Goswami, Vishal Malhotra, Manvi Gagroo and Rasika Dugal is all set for its release on 6th October. The cast and makers kept several special screenings for their known friends from the industry. Wishes and congratulatory messages started pouring as soon they came of watching the movie. Many known directors and actors came to watch the film and have shown love towards this film through their social media.\nThe movie is based on five friends trying to find a place to play football on a Sunday and how their personal lives are connected to this entire incident. This is a complete Sunday movie package is what we can assume from its trailer, this fresh content seems like is going to bring a fresh breathing air amongst Bollywood. After Newton this is going to be the next film that will bring good content to Indian cinema, we all hope for the best and wait for this movie to release on big screens.\nAmol Gupte says,”Saw such a beautiful movie ‘Tu Hai Mera Sunday‘ was sick… thank god Nyla Masood convinced me to step out…”\nGauri Shinde tweets,” #TuHaiMeraSunday what a beautiful beautiful film! Had to share this. Too good to miss. Must Must watch.”\n#TuHaiMeraSunday what a beautiful beautiful film! Had to share this.Too good to miss. Must must watch. — Gauri Shinde (@gauris) October 2, 2017\nHoney Trehan tweets,” #TuHaiMeraSunday unbelievably good… hats off for the first time writer/director and to an amazing cast simply “Brilliant”.. a must watch\n#TuHaiMeraSunday unbelievably good…hats off for the first time writer/director and to an amazing cast.simply “BRILLIANT’ …a must watch 👍 — Honey Trehan (@HoneyTrehan) October 2, 2017\nSandhya Mridul tweets,” After Newton saw another beauty today #TuHaiMeraSunday 2 wonderful films in one week. Acche din for cinema. Heart is full. Pure Joy”\nAfter Newton saw another beauty today..#TuHaiMeraSunday!\n2 wonderful films in one week. Achche din for cinema. Heart is full. Pure joy 💕 — Sandhya Mridul (@sandymridul) October 2, 2017\nSaqib Saleem says,”#TuHaiMeraSunday is a small film with a massive heart. So well made and performed !! It deserves to be seen by everyone”\n#TuHaiMeraSunday is a small film with a massive heart. So well made and performed !! It deserves to be seen by everyone. pic.twitter.com/0sL1CrmDhT — Saqib Saleem (@Saqibsaleem) October 1, 2017\n“Hey guys, watched this really sweet film. Great casting, great performances. Check out the trailer.” AAMIR KHAN\nHey guys, watched this really sweet film. Great casting, great performances. Check out the trailer. https://t.co/opB52OkO5Y — Aamir Khan (@aamir_khan) October 1, 2017\nTrending:\n“IN all the noise comes a beautiful little film that makes you smile from ear to ear…”GAURI SHINDE\n“Milind has captured real human beings as they ‘should be’. Which is so rare & with so much reality in the scenario! Its such a beautiful experience!” BALKI\n“What a delightfully refreshing film with such a relevant content of space crunch entertaingly scripted with crisp current colloquialisms and choice of actors and theit perfomances ” DOLLY THAKORE\n“I can’t remember the last time I watched a film and smiles from start to end. What a breath of fresh air – sweet everyday characters, impeccable casting, pitch performances. Sai Paranjpe ki duniya yaad aa gayi” – RENUKA KUNZRU\n“The writing, performances, sound design, edit, frames, music – I’m betting everything was written down and so clear in Milind’s head, because this level of easy story telling comes with great precision. Like Javedsaab said “yeh film likhi hui lag hi nahi rahi hai!” – JYOTI KAPUR DAS\nFarah Khan tweets,” Wishing my old friends @janaktoprani @vishalmalhotra3 @shahanagoswami all d very best #TuHaiMeraSunday 2day… heard its “fantastick”\nNeha Dhupia tweets,” Hearing such amazing things about #TuHaiMeraSunday. On my watch list. Good luck to the team! Releases today.”", "Pioneer Floating Rate Trust (NYSE:PHD) announced a monthly dividend on Friday, October 6th, Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 18th will be given a dividend of 0.06 per share by the investment management company on Tuesday, October 31st. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.04%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 17th.\nPioneer Floating Rate Trust has decreased its dividend payment by an average of 7.2% annually over the last three years.\nGet Pioneer Floating Rate Trust alerts:\nShares of Pioneer Floating Rate Trust (NYSE:PHD) traded up 0.51% during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $11.93. The stock had a trading volume of 84,582 shares. Pioneer Floating Rate Trust has a 52 week low of $11.36 and a 52 week high of $12.45. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $11.82 and a 200-day moving average of $11.99.\nCOPYRIGHT VIOLATION NOTICE: This piece of content was originally posted by Chaffey Breeze and is the sole property of of Chaffey Breeze. If you are reading this piece of content on another website, it was copied illegally and reposted in violation of US and international trademark and copyright legislation. The original version of this piece of content can be read at https://www.chaffeybreeze.com/2017/10/06/pioneer-floating-rate-trust-phd-announces-0-06-monthly-dividend.html.\nAbout Pioneer Floating Rate Trust\nPioneer Floating Rate Trust (Trust) is a diversified, closed-end management investment company. The investment objective of the Trust is to provide a high level of current income and the Trust may seek preservation of capital to the extent consistent with its investment objective of high current income, as a secondary objective.\nReceive News & Ratings for Pioneer Floating Rate Trust Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Pioneer Floating Rate Trust and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.", "Tommy Fleetwood shot a Carnoustie course-record 63 to claim a share of the halfway lead with defending champion Tyrell Hatton at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.\nFleetwood, leader in the Race to Dubai standings, shot a blemish-free nine-under-par round at the venue for next year’s Open to join Hatton on 11 under.\nHatton, who was also playing his second round in the three-course event at Carnoustie, did not drop a shot either in a seven-under-par 65.\nAfter 36 holes:\n???????? -11 Hatton\n???????? -11 Fleetwood\n???????? -10 Colsaerts\n???????? -9 Siem\n???????? -9 Dunnehttps://t.co/3PGBclxxdl pic.twitter.com/R1agf4Ie7i — The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) October 6, 2017\nThe pair led by one shot from Belgium’s Nicolas Colsaerts, who shot 67 at St Andrews after recovering from a double bogey on his first hole.\nFirst-round co-leader Paul Dunne was in a tie for fourth at nine under with Germany’s Marcel Siem after carding 68 at Carnoustie.\nWorld number six Rory McIlroy, hoping to end a frustrating year with a win, was overshadowed by Fleetwood, who was one of his playing partners.\nCarnoustie course record? You bet.@TommyFleetwood1 is the first man to shoot 63. ???? pic.twitter.com/FcF9JC3zuF — The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) October 6, 2017\nAdvertising\nMcIlroy ended the day 11 shots off the lead on level par after a 71 which included a double bogey seven on the sixth hole. With the cut coming after 54 holes, the Northern Irishman is not yet out of the tournament but he must make up a lot of ground as he plays Kingsbarns on Saturday.\nFleetwood’s impressive round included a run of five successive birdies on the back nine. He almost extended that sequence to six when a birdie putt from off the green on the 16th narrowly missed the hole. He might even have had an eagle on 15th too when his second shot at the par four bounced onto the green and hit the flag.\nHe finished his round in style by picking up his ninth birdie at the 18th.\n68-65.@TyrrellHatton defending his title in some style. pic.twitter.com/kUTdUWCkYt — The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) October 6, 2017\nAdvertising\nFleetwood, who became a father for the first time last week, was asked after his round how it felt to break the course record.\nThe 26-year-old told Sky Sports: “It sounds good doesn’t it? You don’t really think too much about it when you are playing but then I holed that one on the last and they said it was a course record. So, all in all, it was a good day’s work!”\nDunne slipped back after a bogey on his second hole but responded with six birdies before dropping another shot at the 17th.", "Former Virginia baseball star Derek Fisher hit a home run for the first hit of his Major League Baseball career on Wednesday in Houston.\nThe former first-round draft pick was making his debut with the Astros.\nFisher led off the 6th inning with a home run to left, after flying out and walking in his first two appearances at the plate.\nHe also singled home a run and scored later in the inning, as Houston batted around while scoring nine times in the 6th.\nFisher went 2-for-3 with two walks in his first MLB game.\nHe is the first member of UVa's Draft Class of 2014 to appear in the Big Leagues.\nBrandon Guyer was the last Virginia player to hit a home run in his Major League debut.", "Richard Kerr had a 4th place finish on Easter Monday at the 2nd round of the British Super Bike Championship at Brands Hatch.\nHe led the race for 6 laps and was involved in a battle for the podium to the final corner and settled for 4th.\nIt’s a good result after crashing out of an earlier race, he was lying in 3rd position with 2 laps to go.\nRichard is now 6th in the overall Motostar class.", "Friday, October 6th, 2017, 05:39\nPosted by:Date:Category:\nEvery so often after a major operating system update, Apple releases a supplemental update to sort things out.\nThis is one of those times.\nOn Thursday, Apple released macOS High Sierra 10.13 Supplemental Update. The update, a 915 megabyte download through the App Store’s “Update” tab, fixes two important security flaws, one of which was just recently publicized. It also addresses three relatively minor bugs in macOS High Sierra.\nPer Apple’s patch notes, the macOS High Sierra 10.13 Supplemental Update offers the following fixes:\nImproves installer robustness\nFixes a cursor graphic bug when using Adobe InDesign\nResolves an issue where email messages couldn’t be deleted from Yahoo accounts in Mail\nSecurity patch notes for macOS High Sierra 10.13 Supplemental Update\nStorageKit\nApple has also released the following notes for the two security issues the Supplemental Update addresses:\nSecurity Available for: macOS High Sierra 10.13\nImpact: A local attacker may gain access to an encrypted APFS volume\nDescription: If a hint was set in Disk Utility when creating an APFS encrypted volume, the password was stored as the hint. This was addressed by clearing hint storage if the hint was the password, and by improving the logic for storing hints.\nCVE-2017-7149: Matheus Mariano of Leet Tech Security Available for: macOS High Sierra 10.13\nImpact: A malicious application can extract keychain passwords\nDescription: A method existed for applications to bypass the keychain access prompt with a synthetic click. This was addressed by requiring the user password when prompting for keychain access.\nCVE-2017-7150: Patrick Wardle of Synack\nNew downloads of macOS High Sierra 10.13 include the security content of the macOS High Sierra 10.13 Supplemental Update.\nIf you’ve tried the Supplemental Update and have any feedback to offer, please let us know about your experience in the comments.\nVia The Mac Observer\nRelated\nRecent Posts", "The Paul Fletcher international circuit’s round 3 club meeting was a good day for Mexborough’s Mark Baines Motorsport team, and almost one for local karter, Phil Rawson.\nMBM’s young karter Daniel Holdsworth was on pole-position for the Honda Cadet race, but had to fight off three challengers for the race win.\nDaniel Holdsworth had to fight off three challengers for the race win by a very slim 0.01 seconds margin. Photos: Track Records\nUnder constant pressure and never having the chance to relax, Holdsworth was fighting right up to the chequered flag eventually taking the win by a very slim 0.01 seconds margin.\nPhil Rawson from Worksop looked to be on the way to making it X30 Senior three race wins in a day, having won the two preceding heats. Starting from 3rd, Rawson spent his race in a superb battle over the lead with a podium at least on the cards. But with three laps to go Rawson’s clashed with a challenger and his race came to an early end.\nFreddie Spindlow put in a great performance for MBM in the IAME Cadet race from 6th place. Moving into 5th at the start, Spindlow battled over 4th-place for the entire race until the final lap.\nIn a decisive move on the last lap, Spindlow grabbed 2nd-place and in the process reinforced his championship lead.\nIn the X30 Junior race MBM’s Fraz Fenwick, from 3rd on the grid, took 2nd at the start, but fell back to 10th mid-race, then he managed to regain places to be 6th at the flag. Barnsley’s Matthew Hudson starting in 6th made a place at the start then into 4th by lap 2, unfortunately fell back through the field to be 14th at the flag. Skye Siddall from Chesterfield came home the 1st Rookie for MBM putting in a memorable climb through the field from 36th up to 20th-place.\nBarnsley karter Cole Kilner, started 15th doing a brilliant job fighting his way up to 5th with 3 laps to go, setting the race fastest lap in the process. Although he dropped back to 7th at the flag, but unfortunately post-race he suffered the bane of modern karting, being penalised for having a loose front bumper (designed to stop the tactic of barging the opposition out of the way, but they also work lose if a corner kerbing is clouted) this plummeted him down the results to 22nd-place.", "YEREVAN, OCTOBER 6, ARMENPRESS. President Serzh Sargsyan held a meeting October 6 with Russian minister of industry and trade Denis Manturov, who arrived in Armenia to participate in the 6th Armenian-Russian inter-regional forum and the 2nd Eurasian Partnership forum, the president’s office said.\nDuring the meeting the president attached importance to the forums aimed at expanding and developing the Armenian-Russian cooperation, which, according to the president, have become a platform for direct interaction and comprehensive dialogue between the local authorities, business and expert communities of the two countries’ regions.\nBoth sides attached importance to regularly holding similar events, which in their words enable to discuss agenda issues, discover the further potential for development of cooperation and make steps to fully use them.\nThe President expressed hope that the Russian minister’s visit will boost partnership between Russian and Armenian industries, implementation of joint initiatives.", "Aer Lingus Regional Cork-Cornwall Route Returns with Extended Summer Service\nAer Lingus Regional, operated by Stobart Air, has announced an extended summer service for its Cork-Cornwall Newquay route, which will operate twice weekly, on Wednesdays and Saturdays, from 9th May to 6th October, with an additional 20% capacity and fortnight of service compared to 2017.\nGraeme Buchanan, Managing Director, Stobart Air, said: “To meet strong demand, Stobart Air is thrilled to offer Cork passengers an extended summer service to the beautiful English county of Cornwall.\n“Cornwall is a unique UK destination. For those seeking a change to city breaks in Edinburgh or Manchester, a flight from Cork to Newquay offers a fantastic mix of bustling country towns, gorgeous coastal scenery, and attractions for foodies, thrill-seekers and culture buffs alike.”\nCornwall Airport Newquay, just on the outskirts of the town, is also close to Truro, Cornwall’s only city, and the famous Penzance and St Ives. The neighbouring county of Devon, which includes Plymouth and Exeter, is only a short distance away by car and train.\nCornwall is England’s southernmost county. Steeped in history, Cornwall has its own language and unique culture. Some legends have it that King Arthur was born in and later ruled Cornwall.\nHome to the spectacular botanical gardens of the Eden Project, the cliffs and beaches of Land’s End, and some of the UK’s greatest foods, drinks and restaurants, Cornwall truly has something for every visitor.", "Democratic candidate Jon Ossoff speaks during the League of Women Voters' candidate forum for Georgia's 6th Congressional District special election to replace Tom Price, who is now the secretary of Health and Human Services, in Marietta, Georgia, U.S. April 3, 2017. Picture taken April 3, 2017. REUTERS/Bita Honarvar\nDemocrat Jon Ossoff listens to other candidates speak during the League of Women Voters' candidate forum for Georgia's 6th Congressional District special election to replace Tom Price, who is now the secretary of Health and Human Services, in Marietta, Georgia, U.S. April 3, 2017. Picture taken April 3, 2017. REUTERS/Bita Honarvar\nDemocratic candidate Jon Ossoff speaks during the League of Women Voters' candidate forum for Georgia's 6th Congressional District special election to replace Tom Price, who is now the secretary of Health and Human Services, in Marietta, Georgia, U.S. April 3, 2017. Picture taken April 3, 2017. REUTERS/Bita Honarvar\nRepublican candidate Dan Moody speaks during the League of Women Voters' candidate forum for Georgia's 6th Congressional District special election to replace Tom Price, who is now the secretary of Health and Human Services, in Marietta, Georgia, U.S. April 3, 2017. Picture taken April 3, 2017. REUTERS/Bita Honarvar\nDemocrat Jon Ossoff listens to other candidates speak during the League of Women Voters' candidate forum for Georgia's 6th Congressional District special election to replace Tom Price, who is now the secretary of Health and Human Services, in Marietta, Georgia, U.S. April 3, 2017. Picture taken April 3, 2017. REUTERS/Bita Honarvar\nDemocratic candidate Jon Ossoff greets supporters after the League of Women Voters' candidate forum for Georgia's 6th Congressional District special election to replace Tom Price, who is now the secretary of Health and Human Services, in Marietta, Georgia, U.S. April 3, 2017. Picture taken April 3, 2017. REUTERS/Bita Honarvar\nRepublican candidate Kurt Wilson speaks during the League of Women Voters' candidate forum for Georgia's 6th Congressional District special election to replace Tom Price, who is now the secretary of Health and Human Services, in Marietta, Georgia, U.S. April 3, 2017. Picture taken April 3, 2017. REUTERS/Bita Honarvar\nResidents and a wide variety of supporters listen to candidates speak during the League of Women Voters' candidate forum for Georgia's 6th Congressional District special election to replace Tom Price, who is now the secretary of Health and Human Services, in Marietta, Georgia, U.S. April 3, 2017. Picture taken April 3, 2017. REUTERS/Bita Honarvar\nDemocratic candidate Jon Ossoff greets supporters after the League of Women Voters' candidate forum for Georgia's 6th Congressional District special election to replace Tom Price, who is now the secretary of Health and Human Services, in Marietta, Georgia, U.S. April 3, 2017. Picture taken April 3, 2017. REUTERS/Bita Honarvar\nDemocratic candidate Jon Ossoff greets supporters after during the League of Women Voters' candidate forum for Georgia's 6th Congressional District special election to replace Tom Price, who is now the secretary of Health and Human Services, in Marietta, Georgia, U.S. April 3, 2017. Picture taken April 3, 2017. REUTERS/Bita Honarvar\nSANDY SPRINGS, Ga. After the crushing electoral losses that swept Donald Trump into the White House and sealed Republican control of the U.S. Congress, the Democrats' road to recovery winds through the leafy, well-heeled suburbs of north Atlanta.\nHere, Democrats are threatening a stunning special election upset that could signal how well the party can turn Trump's low approval ratings into political gains. And they appear to have an ally in the April 18 vote: Trump himself.\nIn the first congressional election of the Trump era, a wave of grassroots anti-Trump fervour has positioned Democrat Jon Ossoff, a 30-year-old political newcomer, to possibly capture a House of Representatives seat held by Republicans for decades, one of 24 seats Democrats need nationwide to reclaim the House.\n\"The grassroots intensity here is electric, and it’s because folks are concerned that what is happening in Washington doesn’t represent our values,\" Ossoff said in an interview. \"This is a chance for this community to stand up and make a statement about what we believe.\"\nWith Democrats desperate for signs of hope after Hillary Clinton's loss to Trump, Ossoff's underdog \"Make Trump Furious\" campaign has endeared him to national anti-Trump activists and pushed him well ahead of 17 rivals in polls. The documentary filmmaker and former congressional aide raised a jaw-dropping $8.3 million (7 million pounds) in the first quarter, his campaign said.\n\"I've never seen the Democrats around here so engaged, and it's Donald Trump who got us so engaged,\" said Carolyn Hadaway, 77, a veteran party activist and retired software engineer from Marietta, a city of about 60,000 people in Georgia’s central Cobb County.\nGeorgia would seem an unlikely venue for a Democratic revival. Trump won it by about 5 percentage points in November. And its voters backed Republican nominees in eight of the last nine presidential contests, including the last six in a row.\nBut demographic changes are brewing. Growing minority communities and transplants from other regions have made Atlanta's suburbs increasingly competitive for Democrats. Georgia’s sixth congressional district, the location for April’s special election, exemplifies changes common in booming southern cities like Atlanta, Charlotte and Nashville.\nThe district is white collar, educated and doing well economically, with median household incomes of $80,000 versus $50,000 statewide, and nearly 60 percent of adults holding a college or professional degree, more than twice the statewide average. It is also increasingly diverse, and in recent years became a magnet for well-educated immigrants from India and other parts of Asia.\nThe district was about 80 percent white at the turn of the century. But since then, the black share of the population has grown from 10 percent to 13 percent, the Hispanic share has doubled to 12.5 percent and Asian representation doubled to more than 10 percent.\nAbout a fifth of the district is now foreign born – twice the statewide average, according to census data.\nThough newer immigrants may not be eligible to vote, census data indicate more than 40 percent are naturalized citizens, potentially bringing a different set of views on issues like immigration to the table than the voters in this district who sent Trump adviser and former speaker of the House Newt Gingrich to Congress for 10 straight terms.\nApril’s special election fills the seat vacated by Tom Price, the new secretary of health and human services. It gives both parties a chance to test their messages for election battles next year in suburban districts where Democrats need to make inroads and where Trump's populist economic message did not sell well in November.\nWhile Price sailed to re-election with 62 percent of the vote, Trump barely beat Clinton in Georgia's sixth district by one percentage point. In 2012, Republican Mitt Romney beat Democratic President Barack Obama in the district by 23 points.\n‘JUMP OVER A CLIFF’\nRepublican candidates nationwide will closely watch the result as they calculate whether to embrace the president.\nThe 11 Republicans in the race have split between those who portray themselves as Trump supporters and establishment candidates who keep a respectful and sometimes wary distance.\n\"I'm ready to support him,\" former state senator Dan Moody, who was endorsed by U.S. Senator David Perdue, said of Trump in an interview. But \"I'm not going to jump over a cliff with him.\"\nGrassroots Democratic groups flood the district's tidy suburban neighbourhoods on the weekends, busing in volunteers from as far away as Maryland to go door to door on Ossoff's behalf.\nThe Ossoff momentum worries Republicans, say party officials, and outside help has arrived. A super PAC aligned with House Republican leaders put more than $2 million into ads painting Ossoff as too young and inexperienced.\nOssoff played down the strategic value of a possible upset.\n\"The national implications here will be about how this affects the political calculus for folks in the Republican conference in the House, not about how Democrats are supposed to run in the midterms,\" he said.\n‘CONCERN, NOT PANIC’\nIn a low turnout special election, getting supporters to the polls is vital, and Democrats have voted early in greater numbers than Republicans so far.\n\"We aren't panicking, but there is concern,\" said Maggie Holliman, a member of the Republican state executive committee.\nOssoff's best chance is to win the April 18 vote, a \"jungle primary\" that features all 18 candidates from both parties on the same ballot. If no one reaches 50 percent, the top two vote getters square off on June 20.\nRepublicans are confident they can win a one-on-one race with Ossoff, as the party unites with organizational and financial help pouring into the Republican-majority district.\n\"There is a chance Ossoff can win without a runoff, but that's his only chance. He's benefiting from unified Democratic support and Republicans being highly divided,\" said Georgia-based Republican strategist Joel McElhannon.\nPolls show Ossoff hovering in the low 40s, not enough to avoid a runoff. The leading Republican, former Secretary of State Karen Handel, is well behind.\nHandel has been cautious in talking about Trump. She said in an interview she expected to work with him on issues such as tax reform and border security, but \"first and foremost\" she would be a conservative advocate for her district.\nBy contrast Republicans Bob Gray, a local business executive, and Bruce LeVell, head of Trump's national diversity coalition, pledge undivided loyalty to the White House. Gray said he was the Republican in the race who performed the behind-the-scenes political groundwork for Trump in the district.\nLeVell pulled out his cellphone and showed a reporter text messages from Trump aides Kellyanne Conway, Sarah Huckabee Sanders and even Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner to prove his insider status with the White House.\n\"If people are looking for someone to help Trump, I'm their guy,\" he said.\n(Additional reporting by Howard Schneider in Washington; Editing by Jason Szep and Mary Milliken)", "(STATS) – The two players in Saturday’s NCAA Division I FCS Championship Game who perhaps have helped themselves the most in the playoffs for a potential NFL career are Youngstown State defensive end Derek Rivers and James Madison running back Khalid Abdullah.\nScouts have seen both players perform in some of the most important games of their four-year careers.\nRivers is Youngstown State’s all-time leader in sacks (39) and ranks fourth all-time in the FCS. At 6-foot-4, 255 pounds, he has excellent size and length for an edge pass rusher, but he also has been noted for playing with a high aptitude throughout his career.\nDuring four wins in the playoffs, Rivers has three sacks for negative-23 yards and two other tackles for loss as well as four quarterback hurries and a fumble recovery.\nIn moving closer to draft boards, Abdullah is coming off one of the most impressive performances of his career – 180 rushing yards on 23 carries, a career-high 231 all-purpose yards and a touchdown reception – in James Madison’s win over five-time defending national champion North Dakota State in the semifinals. He also rushed for 141 yards and three touchdowns against Sam Houston State in the quarterfinals.\nThe 5-10, 220-pound Abdullah has excellent vision and a quick burst through the line of scrimmage, with good cutback moves at the second level. He’s reached 100-plus yards in 10 games and gained 1,708 yards overall, averaging 6.3 yards per carry with 23 total touchdowns.\nOther players whom scouts will key a close eye on in the championship game are James Madison cornerback Taylor Reynolds and Youngstown State defensive end Avery Moss, a second-year transfer from Nebraska.\nNFLDraftScout.com, a leading evaluator of the draft, began the new year with updated rankings, placing Rivers in the top 10 of FCS draft candidates:\n60. Cooper Kupp, Eastern Washington, WR, 6-2, 215, 2nd Round\n134. Dylan Cole, Missouri State, OLB, 6-0, 236, 4th\n148. Keionta Davis, Chattanooga, DE, 6-3, 270, 4th-5th\n154. Brendan Langley, Lamar, CB, 6-0, 193, 4th-5th\n176. Julie’n Davenort, Bucknell, OT, 6-6, 315, 5th\n177. Lorenzo Jerome, Saint Francis, FS, 5-11, 195, 5th-6th\n182. Tanoh Kpassagnon, Villanova, DE, 6-6, 285, 5th-6th\n200. De’Angelo Henderson, Coastal Carolina, RB, 5-8, 205, 6th\n207. Derek Rivers, Youngstown State, DE, 6-4, 255, 6th\n211. Eric Saubert, Drake, TE, 6-4, 242, 6th\n218. Jessamen Dunker, Tennessee State, OG, 6-4, 305, 6th\n231. Xavier Coleman, Portland State, CB, 5-11, 190, 6th-7th\n247. Alek Torgersen, Penn, QB, 6-2, 230, 7th\n250. Anthony Firkser, Harvard, FB, 6-2, 220, 7th\n258. David Jones, Richmond, FS, 6-2, 220, 7th-Free Agent\n262. Emmanuel Holder, Towson, FB, 5-11, 265, 7th-FA\n274. Samson Ebukam, Eastern Washington, 6-2, 240, 7th-FA\n285. Brady Gustafson, Montana, QB, 6-6, 235, 7th-FA\n331. Casey DeAndrade, New Hampshire, FS, 5-11-216, 7th-FA", "Microsoft is said to be working on a new version of its Surface Pro tablet that's set to arrive in the first quarter of 2017.\nThe new Surface Pro 5 2-in-1 will sport an UHD 4K display and magnetic charging stylus, with Pegatron Technology that will manufacture the device, DigiTimes reported on Friday citing a Chinese-language Economic Daily News report.\nMicrosoft launched the Surface Pro 4 (Review) back in October 2015. It sports 12.3-inch (2736x1824 pixel) PixelTouch display with a 3:2 aspect ratio. The display is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 4 - which as the company noted is only 0.4mm thick. It was launched with a new Surface Pen that came with an eraser and could detect 1,024 points of pressure.\nThe Surface Pro 4 ships with a choice of Intel's 6th-generation Core processors, from Core M3, to Core i5 and Core i7. These configurations are powered by Intel HD Graphics 515, Intel HD Graphics 520, and Intel Iris Graphics respectively.\nIt features a full-size USB 3.0 port, a microSD card reader, a 3.5-mm headset jack, a Mini DisplayPort, a Type Cover port, and SurfaceConnect port. Microsoft claims the Surface Pro 4 will offer up to 9 hours of battery life. It bears an 8-megapixel rear camera, and a 5-megapixel front-facing camera.\nThe company is also reportedly planning a new Surface Pen to support the Surface Pro 5 that would use magnetic charging - a first for the company's Surface Pro line.\nWritten with inputs from IANS", "The video will start in 8 Cancel\nGet daily updates directly to your inbox + Subscribe Thank you for subscribing! Could not subscribe, try again later Invalid Email\nThe Football Association has confirmed the round dates for the FA Cup in 2017/18.\nThe competition is set to get under way on August 5 with the extra preliminary round.\nWinners of that round will then go forward into the preliminary round on August 19.\nThe first qualifying round takes place on September 2.\nThe second qualifying round is a fortnight later, on September 16, with the third qualifying round two weeks later again - this time on September 30.\nNational League sides will enter the competition in the fourth qualifying round, on October 14, League Two and League One teams coming into the cup for the first round on November 4.\nThe second round will be held on December 2.\nThe famous third round, when Championship sides - like Aston Villa, Birmingham City and Wolverhampton Wanderers - and Premier League teams - like West Bromwich Albion - enter the competition, will be on January 6.\nThe fourth round will January 27, with the fifth round on February 17.\nQuarter-final day will be on March 17, with the semi-finals on April 21, and the final on May 19.\nThese are the dates in full:\nExtra Preliminary Round - August 5\nPreliminary Round - August 19\nFirst Qualifying Round - September 2\nSecond Qualifying Round - September 16\nThird Qualifying Round - September 30\nFourth Qualifying Round - October 14\nFA Cup First Round - November 4.\nFA Cup Second Round - December 2.\nFA Cup Third Round - January 6.\nFA Cup Fourth Round - January 27.\nFA Cup Fifth Round - February 17.\nFA Cup Quarter-Final - March 17.\nFA Cup Semi-Final - April 21.\nFA Cup Final - May 19.", "TEHRAN, Feb. 03 (MNA) – Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration (IRICA) in a directive notified executive managers of all customs offices of the country that import and supply of any foreign brand tea was exempted from Value-Added Tax (VAT) according to the 6th Five-Year Socioeconomic and Cultural Development Plan.\nUnder the 6th Development Plan, any import and distribution of foreign tea was exempted from VAT as reiterated by the Iranian National Tax Administration (INTA), the report added.\nThe enforcement duration of this law has been announced concurrently with the implementation of 6th five-Year Socioeconomic and Cultural Development Plan.\nIRICA has earlier announced that imported foreign tea with no additives has been exempted from taxation.\nThe letter announced by IRICA is read as follows, “any import and supply of dried tea without any additives including essence will be exempted from Value-Added Tax (Vat) as of enforcement date of 6th Development Plan on March 21, 2017 but this tax exemption will not be extended to the services including packaging, processing and distributing various types of tea.”\nMA/4217408", "Get Celtic updates directly to your inbox + Subscribe Thank you for subscribing! Could not subscribe, try again later Invalid Email\nCeltic must overcome another hurdle if they are to reach the Champions League group stage for the third consecutive season.\nScotland’s champions will this season have to negotiate four qualifiers as part of UEFA ’s revamp of world football’s premier club tournament.\nBrendan Rodgers steered his side into the £30million group stage for the past two campaigns. They failed to reach the knockout stages in both terms – but in season 2017/2018 they did get into the Europa League, before falling to Zenit St Petersburg.\nNow, with Celtic poised to be crowned Scottish Premiership champions for the seventh successive season, the club and fans are casting their eyes towards Europe again.\n(Image: SNS Group)\nBut when does the action start? The preliminary round draw and preliminary games are in June – but Celtic do not have to worry about those. Instead, they start in the first qualifying round which is in July.\nKEY DATES\nJune 19: First and second qualifying round draw - in Nyon\nJuly 10/11: First qualifying round, first leg\nJuly 17/18: First qualifying round, second leg\nJuly 23: Third qualifying round draw – in Nyon\nJuly 24/25: Second qualifying round, first leg\nJuly 31/August 1: Second qualifying round, second leg\nAugust 6: Playoff round draw – in Nyon\nAugust 7/8: Third qualifying round, first leg\nAugust 14: Third qualifying round, second leg\nAugust 21/22: Playoff round, first leg\nAugust 28/29: Playoff round, second leg\nAugust 30: Group stage draw – in Monaco\nSeptember 18/19: Group stage, matchday one\nOctober 2/3: Group stage, matchday two\nOctober 23/24: Group stage, matchday three\nNovember 6/7: Group stage, matchday four\nNovember 27/28: Group stage, matchday five\nDecember 11/12: Group stage, matchday six\nDecember 17: Round of 16 draw – in Nyon", "The Patriots acquired wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson from the Raiders on Sunday by simply swapping a fifth-round pick for a sixth-round pick.\nTerms: The #Patriots traded for WR Cordarrelle Patterson, while swapping a 5th round pick for a #Raiders 6th round pick. — Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 18, 2018\nPatterson was a 2013 first-round pick of the Vikings and spent his first four seasons in Minnesota, primarily as a kick returner, making the Pro Bowl and NFL All-Pro team in 2013 and 2016.\nHe signed a two-year, $8.5 million deal with the Raiders last offseason.\nIn his lone season with the Raiders, Patterson caught 31 passes for 309 yards while running 13 times for 121 yards and two touchdowns.\nHe had 19 kickoff returns, averaging 28.3 yards per return (his lowest mark since 2014) and no touchdowns.\nIn New England, he’ll be in a good place with offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels. Patterson isn’t the best route runner, but the Patriots are generally creative with things which should open things up for Patterson in the pass/run game to go with his skills as a returner.\nHe’s set to make $3.25 million in 2018.", "Phil Mickelson is a master of delivering a perfect shot from a tough position, and while he had a decent lie in a fairway bunker at TPC Scottsdale’s 6th hole Friday, he outdid himself by nearly holing out from 140 yards.\nWould you expect anything less from Phil?#QuickHits pic.twitter.com/S2dbs2oI0H — PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) February 2, 2018\nMickelson made the putt to go 2-under on his round through the opening six holes. After a 70 on Thursday, Mickelson seems likely to make the cut in Phoenix. Daniel Berger took the lead in the clubhouse at 9-under par, but Rickie Fowler is currently surging up the leaderboard in his second round.", "SPOKANE, Wash. - Garth Brooks has added a seventh show at the Spokane Arena!\nShows will happen:\nThursday, November 9 at 7:30pm.\nFriday, November 10 at 7:00pm.\nSaturday, November 11 at 3:00pm.\nSaturday, November 11 at 7:30pm.\nSunday, November 12 at 3:00pm\nSunday, November 12 at 7:30pm\nTuesday November 14 at 7:30pm\nTickets for all shows will be available at 10am Friday, October 6th on Tickets West and are expected to sell out quickly.\nYou can purchase your tickets here: http://tinyurl.com/yafula9g", "Tommy Fleetwood shot a Carnoustie course-record 63 to claim a share of the halfway lead with defending champion Tyrrell Hatton at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.\nFleetwood, leader in the Race to Dubai standings, shot a blemish-free nine-under-par round at the venue for next year’s Open to join Hatton on 11 under.\nCarnoustie course record? You bet.@TommyFleetwood1 is the first man to shoot 63. 👏 pic.twitter.com/FcF9JC3zuF — The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) October 6, 2017\nHatton, who was also playing his second round in the three-course event at Carnoustie, did not drop a shot either in a seven-under-par 65.\nThe pair led by one shot from Belgium’s Nicolas Colsaerts, who shot 67 at St Andrews after recovering from a double bogey on his first hole.\nFirst-round co-leader Paul Dunne was in a tie for fourth at nine under with Germany’s Marcel Siem after carding 68 at Carnoustie.\nAfter 36 holes:\n🇬🇧 -11 Hatton\n🇬🇧 -11 Fleetwood\n🇧🇪 -10 Colsaerts\n🇩🇪 -9 Siem\n🇮🇪 -9 Dunnehttps://t.co/3PGBclxxdl pic.twitter.com/R1agf4Ie7i — The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) October 6, 2017\nWorld number six Rory McIlroy, hoping to end a frustrating year with a win, was overshadowed by Fleetwood, who was one of his playing partners.\nMcIlroy ended the day 11 shots off the lead on level par after a 71 which included a double bogey seven on the sixth hole. With the cut coming after 54 holes, the Northern Irishman is not yet out of the tournament but he must make up a lot of ground as he plays Kingsbarns on Saturday.\nFleetwood’s impressive round included a run of five successive birdies on the back nine. He almost extended that sequence to six when a birdie putt from off the green on the 16th narrowly missed the hole. He might even have had an eagle on 15th too when his second shot at the par four bounced onto the green and hit the flag.\nTommy Fleetwood in action during day two of the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship\nHe finished his round in style by picking up his ninth birdie at the 18th.\nFleetwood, who became a father for the first time last week, was asked after his round how it felt to break the course record.\nThe most beautiful and proud moment of my life! Franklin Fleetwood born at 12.33 on 28/9/17 at 7pounds 6ounces. — Tommy Fleetwood (@TommyFleetwood1) September 28, 2017\nThe 26-year-old told Sky Sports: “It sounds good doesn’t it? You don’t really think too much about it when you are playing but then I holed that one on the last and they said it was a course record. So, all in all, it was a good day’s work!”\nDunne slipped back after a bogey on his second hole but responded with six birdies before dropping another shot at the 17th." ]

[ "Someone was kind enough to buy me these chocolates from my giftlist. I've had Godiva chocolates delivered from Godiva's own site but thought it would be easier to list them on Amazon. BIG MISTAKE! When ordered from Godiva the chocolates were shipped fresh and cold with an ice pack to make sure they didn't melt. The chocolates from Amazon where shipped in a regular box, most of the chocolates where melted into a solid block. They were also dry and crusty. I would think that Godiva would have to same standards no matter how people order their products. I'm a very unsatisfied customer." ]

[ "These sardines are meaty and filling, and there is no fishy taste. The additional of the olive oil and lemon makes a lot of difference. They are delicious with crusty bread, or in a salad. Sardines are listed in many reports as being extremely nutritious for the Omega 3s, plus they are an excellent protein source.", "This is the ultimate British pickled onion! A strong flavour - sharp, crisp and most definitely not sweet. Just perfect with a sharp cheese and crusty bread. A little bit of Britain, in one, perfect, mouthful.", "Best deal around if you know about your high quality olive oils from Italy. Flavor is long and smooth and goes amazing with a little crusty bread out of the oven. This is the best price I've seen and Amazon.com did a great job finding the deal. I have bought 3 bottles already this month!", "This product is evidently produced in Canada, probably in New Brunswick, from wild herring harvested in or about the Bay of Fundy or the Gulf of Maine.<br /><br />The herring are filleted and then lightly smoked before canning. The result is a delicious, healthy and wholesome<br />food item that mates well with warm, crusty French bread or multi-grain crackers. Highly recommended.", "Last time I checked, water based products such as Poop aren't really frozen at 62 degrees F.<br /><br />Personally I try to catch the poop in a zip-lock bag and take it straight to the deep freeze. This prevents freezer burn and that white crusty layer.", "Just to respond to the previous review, consumers should know that mussels in escabache means that they were cooked and then covered in a vinegared sauce to preserve them. The taste is indeed tangy and perhaps is acquired (I inhaled these when I was in Spain). Consider them tapas, and eat them on crusty bread with some wine or beer.", "Whether this product is woth the cost is a matter of opinion. As for the experience I eating it, I give high marks. Jamon has a very unique flavor that I will not forget any time soon. The nutty flavor and smooth texture went very well with olives, wine and crusty bread. Try some", "Ventresca Tuna is a very special experience. Hand cut filets from the belly of Mediteranean tuna, packed in olive oil, with a lovely texture, this tuna stands on its own - without mayonnaise. It makes a delicious Salade Nicoise or a lunch with crusty bread to sop up the olive oil and sliced tomato. Resist mayonnaise in favor of a few drops of lemon juice.", "This bread mix is by far my favorite. I have found that to get a true \"french bread\" experience, you have to use a baguette pan, which cooks it to the right consistency. Where it doesn't duplicate a crusty loaf tucked under your arm in paris, this is as good as it gets for us gluten-free folk, as far as I'm concerned.", "These are really tasty stuffed salmon. There are 2 in a box, which costs a little under $7.00. Takes about 5 minutes to heat in the micro. The cheese and spinach filling is very flavorful. I eat 2 a week for the Omega-3 benefits, but they are delicious as well. The one problem I have is when cooking in the microwave I've tried different timing but the bottom is crusty. Even so I love 'em!", "This is a lovely flavorful oil..has the fresh Meyer Lemon scent...great drizzled on fish, crusty breads, asparagus...salads..over hot pasta with chopped basil, parsley, and freshly ground sea salt and pepper is fantastic! Used it making pannini sandwiches...WOW! I am ordering more for holiday gifts. Large plastic bottles arrive bubble wrapped so not a lot of weight...am trying the basil flavored next....ENJOY!!!!!!", "This chili is great tasting and very filling. One can will easily feed 2 people. It is a medium spicy tasting chili but you can always up the heat if you want with a shot of hot sauce and more spices.<br />It is the best tasting vegetarian canned chili i have tried and i highly recommend.<br />Serve it with some nice crusty bread and you got yourself a whole meal.", "Add water and butter (or oil) - that's it. I prepped in bread machine and baked in oven. Makes a medium size loaf. The product is 1 lb per package. The bread bakes up crusty on the outside, fairly soft inside, chewy, slightly sweet, with a mild 9-grain flavor (although the overall taste is pretty hearty). Great toasted with eggs for breakfast. For the subscribe & save price, this is a real winner, IMO. You can purchase with confidence!", "I am a bit of a foodie and have become quite picky over the years. I have to say, hands down, this is my favorite olive oil. It's affordable and non-pretentious. Amazing flavor. I use a lot of olive oil in cooking and this is great for that and just by itself to drag a piece of crusty bread through or to drizzle over caprese. I definitely recommend this to anyone looking and unsure of what to buy.. because who knows? But this one is a keeper and a must try!", "This chowder is delicious! Made fresh in Maine,U.S.A. of local natural ingredients, the clams are tender, vegetables plentiful (carrots, celery, potatoes, tomatoes) and the broth is seasoned just right! This chowder has a fresh homemade flavor and consistency, and is more than satisfying with a piece of crusty french bread. The other reviews of this product may not have been written by true manhattan chowder lovers; manhattan chowder is my favorite and I would definately recommend Bar Harbor.", "Where has this soup mix been all my life? It is by far one of the best soups I have ever had that came from a package and plan on buying some more.<br /><br />I doctored up the soup by substituting leftover homemade chicken broth for the water, and added one bunch of kale that was carefully washed, de-stemmed and chopped medium fine. I added the kale to the broth while it was coming to a boil, and it was at perfect tenderness by the time the soup was ready. I only wish I had a crusty baguette to eat with it.", "I use this as the base for a fabulous oven baked delight. I never just use the soup alone...I toast up an english muffin or some nice crusty bread and put it on top of an oven safe cup of the soup, shred some cheese over the whole thing, bake for 10 min...and YUMMM!<br /><br />If you want an easy french onion soup, this is it. It's also organic and makes you feel a bit better about what went into it in the first place.", "Product says \"duck wraps rawhide treats\", sounds great, right? well this is the sorriest dog treat I have ever purchased, and I have purchased a lot of them. First, there is no duck, the item is coated with some brown crusty dyed-on stuff, looks like it is painted on. Then the so-called rawhide is more like a 3 by 4 inch piece of cardboard, folded into thirds. I know cardboard when I see it! My dog likes to lick the brown stuff off, but then nothing. And he even likes cardboard!! don't waste your money." ]

[ "The short answer is: $2^{128}$ operations, no known birthday-like attack.\n\nThe long answer: when HMAC was first published, it came with a security proof, tailored for iterated constructions like Merkle-Damgård. In a MD hash function (MD4, MD5 and the whole SHA family are MD hash functions), the data to hash is processed by blocks with a compression function: the compression function takes as input the block and the current state (the state is a 128-bit value for a function with a 128-bit output), and produces the new state (which will be used as input for the processing of the next block). The final state is the function output.\n\nThe original proof claimed that if the compression function is a PRF (i.e. the choice of a block value \"selects\" the compression function as if randomly among functions which take the state as input and produce the corresponding output) and the hash function is collision-resistant (in a \"weak\" way; it needs not be resistant to all kinds of collisions) then HMAC is secure. That proof worked up to $2^{n/2}$ invocations of the compression function (for a hash function with a $n$-bit output). Later on, Bellare published a new security proof which removes the condition on weak collision resistance, and enhances proven security up to $2^{n}$ .\n\nNow the fine print: the security proof works only as long as the PRF assumption holds. However, if the PRF assumption holds, then the hash function which uses that compression function in the MD construction is necessarily resistant to collisions up to $2^{n/2}$. Therefore, if a MD-like hash function is proven not to be collision resistant up to $2^{n/2}$, then this implies that its underlying compression function is not as PRF as it should. This is true, in particular, for MD4, MD5, SHA-0 and SHA-1. For these functions, the PRF assumption cannot be held, hence the HMAC security proof is not applicable to HMAC/MD4, HMAC/MD5, HMAC/SHA-0 and HMAC/SHA-1. This does not mean that we know a way to turn collision attacks into attacks on HMAC. Indeed there is no known attack faster than $2^{128}$ on HMAC/MD5. However, there is a known forgery attack on HMAC/MD4. Note that this attack has cost $2^{58}$, which is quite a lot (and explains why the attack was never actually demonstrated), whereas resistance of MD4 to collisions is, by itself, zero (generating the collision takes less time than simply hashing the two messages to verify that it works).\n\nAlso, all these proofs are for MD-like constructions and do not apply, directly, to non-MD functions. However, one can say that HMAC is defined as it is, with its two nested hash function invocations, precisely to overcome some shortcomings of the MD construction. So there is \"no reason\" why a non-MD hash function would not do fine in HMAC. Most SHA-3 candidates include statements and/or proofs of security of the hash function when used in HMAC." ]

[ "A Message Authentication Code (MAC) is a string of bits that is sent alongside a message. The MAC depends on the message itself and a secret key. No one should be able to compute a MAC without knowing the key. This allows two people who share a secret key to send messages to each without fear that someone else will tamper with the messages. (At least, if someone does tamper with a message, this can be detected by checking to see if the MAC is right.)\n\nThe term \"MAC\" can refer to the string of bits (also called a \"tag\") or to the algorithm used to generate the tag.\n\nHMAC is a recipe for turning hash functions (such as MD5 or SHA256) into MACs. So HMAC-MD5 and HMAC-SHA256 are specific MAC algorithms, just like QuickSort is a specific sorting algorithm.\n\nThere are other ways of constructing MAC algorithms; CMAC, for example, is a recipe for turning a blockcipher into a MAC (giving us CMAC-AES, CMAC-DES, CMAC-PRINCE, and the like).\n\nSome MAC algorithms use IVs. Others, such as HMAC, do not.\n\nMAC algorithms should have the security property of being unforgeable under chosen-message attacks. Let's say that Alice and Bob share a secret MAC key (which they use when sending messages to each other), and that Eve is spying on them and sees both their messages and the corresponding tags. \nEve should not be able to use what she learns to fake valid tags. This should even be true if Eve can convince Bob to send specific messages.\n\nFor example, pretend Eve tells Bob to send the message:\n\n\n Dear Alice,\n \n Eve said \"hi.\"\n \n Love, Bob\n\n\nand then Eve sees the corresponding tag.\nEve should still be unable to \"fake\" the tag for the message:\n\n\n Dear Alice,\n \n Please give Eve $100 for me. I'll pay you back.\n \n Love, Bob\n\n\nIn addition to being unforgeable under chosen-message attacks (UF-CMA), HMAC has the stronger property of being a pseudo-random function (PRF). This means that if Eve doesn't know the key, then all of Bob's HMAC tags look like completely random strings of bits, even if Eve knows or even chooses what messages Bob sends. This is a stronger property because every PRF is UF-CMA (you can't guess a big random number), but not every UF-CMA MAC algorithm is a PRF (it's possible that for some MAC algorithm, all the tags begin with 10 zeroes --- not very random-looking at all, but the other bits could still be hard to guess without knowing the key).", "There's actually an algorithm designed exactly for this purpose: generating a sequence of keys from one master key. It's called HKDF (HMAC-based Key Derivation Function, paper here).\n\nThe algorithm essentially boils down to two steps: Extract and Expand. The Extract step accepts any type of \"key material\" as input, and outputs a pseudorandom key that will be used in the next step. The purpose of this step is to eliminate any patterns, structure, or bias in the input key, and produce a uniformly pseudorandom output.\n\nIf the master key is already a string of uniformly pseudorandom bytes (i.e. it was generated using a crypto-secure RNG), it's safe to skip the Extract step (but be sure to read the notes in the RFC).\n\nThe second step, Expand, uses the pseudorandom key from the first step to produce an arbitrary length output. Typically, Expand is used to produce a long output, and that output is divided up into smaller keys (e.g. 1024 bits divided into four 256-bit keys). However, it is also possible to use Expand once for each key, while providing a different value each time for the \"info\" parameter. This is likely slower, but may be more elegant from an engineering perspective.\n\nHKDF is carefully designed to avoid the problem you identified. If any of the output keys are ever revealed to an attacker, the remaining keys are still safe. Of course, if the master key is discovered, game over.\n\nI suggest reviewing the RFC: it's reasonably straightforward, and includes many helpful suggestions on usage. Section 2 has a precise description of the algorithm.\n\n\n\nWith regard to performance, let's assume you skip the Extract step and use HKDF with a hash function whose output size matches the desired key size. The algorithm can now be simplified to $\\operatorname{HMAC}(\\mathit{key}, \\mathit{info} \\| 1)$ (where $1$ is the single byte 0x01). If performance is important, it's possible to precompute parts of the HMAC calculation given the master key. Assuming a short \"info\" parameter, only two invocations of the underlying compression function are needed per key (assuming the use of a Merkle-Damgard hash function like SHA-2, SHA-1, or MD5).\n\nContrast this with a scheme such as $h(\\mathit{key}, \\mathit{info})$ (a keyed hash function). With optimizations, only one invocation of the compression function is needed per key. However, this gives up (1) the security analysis and arguments provided by HKDF, (2) HMAC's additional security against breaks in the hash function, and (3) forces you to consider length extension attacks, among other things.", "Also, I should be able to verify that machine actually performed the\n KDF and didn't just throw back a random key.\n\n\nThis is actually kinda hard, but can be worked-around by carrying out the very first computation of the hash function yourself. Then store this hash for the later verification with delegation or use it to derive your key to encrypt data. You will then verify that the returned result being correct by being able to successfully decrypt the data or by verifying that the \"trusted\" and the untrusted hash match.\n\n\n I'm looking for a [Password-based] Key Derivation Function [...], but which can be computed by a machine you don't trust. Some\n way to give it a derivative of the source password, such that the key\n can be computed from the derivative but the derivative is opaque and\n otherwise useless to the untrusted machine.\n\n\nThis functionality is precisely why our ursine overlord's Makwa has received a special recognition at the end of the Password-Hashing Competition (PHC). However it's has a somewhat \"steep\" baseline price. Namely you must perform about 300 (normal) modular exponentiations in an modular ring (ie modulo an RSA-like modulus) at setup time, additionally to finding a composite number similar to an RSA modulus. I will sketch the idea of it here, but I strongly urge you to read either the provided C / Java code or the specification (PDF). There are also other methods described / implemented there that will offer information-theoretic security instead of \"mere\" computational security if your psychology needs that.\n\nTo setup the things at your client, delegating the hashing do the following once at system-steup:\n\n\nPick a work-factor $w$, values of the form $\\delta\\in\\mathbb N,\\gamma\\in\\{2,3\\}: w=\\gamma\\cdot2^\\delta$ are recommended, with usual values being around $\\delta=20$\nPick two primes $p,q$ such that it is infeasible to factor $n=pq$ (ie $p,q$ should be around 1024-bit long) and ensure that $p\\equiv q\\equiv 3\\pmod 4$, store $n$ and keep $p,q$ for now\nPick an integer $m$ such that $2^{m/2}$ operations are infeasible, for example $m=300$\nPick $m$ random integers $r_i&lt; n$, compute $\\alpha_i=r_i^2\\bmod n$ for each of them, compute $\\alpha_i'=\\alpha_i^{2^w}\\bmod n$, use your knowledge of $p,q$ to reduce $2^w\\bmod{\\varphi(n)}$ first, where $\\varphi(n)=(p-1)(q-1)$. Now compute $\\beta_i=\\alpha_i^{-1}\\bmod n$ and store all $m$ pairs of $(\\alpha_i,\\beta_i)$, you don't need to keep these values secret\nDiscard $p,q$\n\n\nTo verify / derive the password hash (skip steps 5 and 7 and increase $w$ by one for your initial, trusted run):\n\n\nOptionally pre-hash the password using HMAC-DRBG\nRun the salt and the password through HMAC-DRBG to get $s_b$\nConcatenate $s_b$, the password and the password-length to get $\\chi$\nPick $m$ random bits $b_i$ using a CSPRNG\nFor all $j$ for which $b_j$ happens to be $1$: Compute $z=\\chi^2\\cdot \\prod_j\\alpha_j$, ie multiply the square of $\\chi$ with all $\\alpha_i$ where $b_i=1$\nSend $n,w,z$ to the untrusted machine, let it compute $z'=z^{2^w}$, ie $w$-repeated-squarings and receive $z'$\nCompute $y=z\\cdot\\prod_j \\beta_j$ the same way as in step 5\nUse $y$ as your output, which you may want to hash using any ordinary hash function if you intend to use it as a cryptographic key (because some bits won't have probability $\\frac12$ of being $0$ or $1$) or if it is simply too large for you (with 256 bytes)", "I'll step by step and then overall crypto system, seems most logical to me.\n\n\n \n Generate a new AES 256bit/CBC/PKCS7 Master Key (Km)\n Generate a new 128bit IV (strong PRNG)\n \n\n\nCBC is fine here as there isn't any sort of oracle the attacker would have access to and bit-flipping attacks are ruled out by the tag. Random IV is correct, 256 bits is more than enough for key size.\n\n\n \n Generate the SHA-512 Hash of (Km) => (Hm)\n Splits (Hm) into Crypt Key => (Kc) and Auth Key => (Ka)\n \n\n\nThis should be fine. One comment, I'm actually not familiar with the master secret being expanded via a hash (so if this is considered best practice please correct me), is there any reason you don't just generate two 256 bit keys? I'd say unless you really need to conserve packet sizes on the network why not just generate two 256 bit keys, one for AES and one for the HMAC? It's only 256 bits more on the network.\n\n\n \n Encrypts her Message + Timestamp with (Kc) and IV => (M)e\n Signs (IV)+(M)e with (Ka) using HMAC SHA-256 => (IV+(M)e+Tag)\n \n\n\nThis is good, Encrypt-then-MAC is IND-CCA (i.e. the best generic construction). A nit-picky note: a HMAC is not a signature, but rather a tag. (a tag provides integrity and authenticity, a signature also provides nonrepudiation).\n\n\n \n Encrypts (IV+Km) with Bob's RSA Public Key padded with OAEP => (IV+Km+P)e\n Sends Bob RSA encrypted AES key (IV+Km+P)e and Signed AES Message (IV+(M)e+Tag)\n \n\n\nOAEP is a good choice for RSA padding, and is IND-CCA, I see no issues here.\n\nIt looks to me like both your symmetric and asymmetric schemes are not susceptible to a chosen ciphertext attack, which is very secure. As such I don't think having the same IV encrypted in both the RSA and AES ciphertexts is an issue. Especially since the IV does not even have to be secret in CBC mode (it just should not be predictable or reused!), and so could be sent in the clear (perhaps by appending the plaintext IV to the AES ciphertext and computing the MAC of that). Then it also would not have to be encrypted under the recipients public key. \n\nHope that helps, happy to clarify or expand on anything you have questions about!", "Even if this worked in principle, I don't see how this could possibly be practical to implement for any but the smallest sets, since it requires you to enumerate (and sort) the set you want to permute.\n\nAlso, it seems to me that, unless the codomain of the PRF is much larger than its domain, you're going to have an issue with ties, i.e. with inputs $x_1 \\ne x_2$ for which ${\\rm PRF}(x_1) = {\\rm PRF}(x_2)$. I don't see any obvious way to break such ties that could not be potentially used to distinguish the resulting PRP from a random permutation.\n\nAll that said, if you really just want to pseudorandomly shuffle a small set of values, feeding each of them to a PRF with a sufficiently large domain (like HMAC-SHA256) and sorting the values by the result should be a perfectly good and secure solution. Specifically, consider an adversary that tries to distinguish your pseudorandom shuffle from a truly random shuffle. For such an adversary to succeed (with probability greater than &frac12;), they must either:\n\n\nsomehow distinguish the PRF from a random function, or\nobserve a collision among the PRF outputs.\n\n\nThe probability of option 1 will depend on the PRF (and on the assumed capabilities of the attacker), but it must be negligibly small for all practical attackers for the PRF to be deemed secure. On the other hand, assuming that the PRF is not distinguishable from a random function, the second probability can be calculated:\n\nSpecifically, given $k$ inputs to a PRF with an $n$-element codomain (where e.g. $n = 2^{256}$ for HMAC-SHA256), the probability $p$ of observing at least one collision is less than the expected number of collisions, which itself equals $\\frac{k^2 - k}{2n} &lt; \\frac{k^2}{2n}$. Thus, for example, if $k \\le 2^{64}$ and $n = 2^{256}$, then $p &lt; \\frac{(2^{64})^2}{2\\cdot2^{256}} = 2^{-129}$.", "Wel'll consider a symmetric Feistel cipher with $n$-bit block using ideal independent random functions at each round.\n\nMaking it computationally indistinguishable from a random permutation requires some number of rounds depending on the attack model; and on if we are content with asymptotic security for $O(2^{n/2})$ work, or want asymptotic security with more work, or want security for a prescribed small $n$. \n\nClassical results for asymptotic security with $O(2^{n/2})$ work:\n\n\nunder random known plaintext, we need 2 rounds;\nunder chosen plaintext (that is, assuming an encryption oracle, the criteria for a so-called weak PRP), we need 3 rounds; see the famous work of Michael Luby and Charles Rackoff, How to Construct Pseudo-random Permutations from Pseudo-random Functions (in SIAM Journal on Computing Vol. 17, No. 2, 1988, initially presented at Crypto 1985);\nunder chosen plaintext and ciphertext (that is, additionally assuming a decryption oracle, the criteria for a so-called strong PRP), we need 4 rounds; for a proof that 3 rounds are not enough, see this answer. \n\n\nThese classical results are nice, and relatively easy to establish, but not directly applied in common practice. First, $O(2^{n/2})$ suggests that for 128-bit security (the current baseline), we'd need a 256-bit block cipher (which is uncommon: 128-bit is mainstream, 64-bit used to be). Also, ideal independent random functions at each round is assumed, but actual round functions are quite far from that.\n\nThings are more complex (and more rounds are needed) for asymptotic security with more work; see Jacques Patarin's Security of Random Feistel Schemes with 5 or More Rounds in proceedings of Crypto 2004, or his earlier Luby-Rackoff: 7 Rounds are Enough for $2^{n(1−\\epsilon)}$ Security, in proceedings of Crypto 2003.\n\nEven more rounds are needed for prescribed small $n$, and to my knowledge we only have heuristics.", "Windows has a pretty good story for the management of certificates and private keys with the certificate store and key store. Many (most? all?) cloud services have a pretty good story for the transportation of certificates so they can be used for SSL/TLS. I don't know of any particularly good management for HMAC keys (the closest thing being a general settings transportation system).\n\nCertificates have enough metadata that a system/service admin/(dev)op can see which one is being used to help diagnose why something isn't working, and it can be done on the non-sensitive portion of the data (the public key). An HMAC key, on the other hand, either has to be revealed in its entirety and compared byte by byte (or hex nybble by hex nybble, etc) or have some form of hashing applied to it to obfuscate the value but still allow the value to be compared across machines.\n\nThese reasons, mainly, are about \"ease of management\" on the part of the client. Being able to be used correctly is an important aspect for security, but it's a less obvious one. You still need to have an appropriate registration model for the certificates, either by using your own CA to control subject naming (which requires revocation as a cancellation mechanism) or by storing the certificate (or public key) the same way you would have stored their HMAC key (which can avoid the need for revocation)... you want to only let the appropriate certificates authenticate a particular user.\n\nWindows private key management allows for applications to use the key without being able to export it, meaning that system operators that only have access to running instances can't then act as the system at home. An HMAC key has the problem that \"use it\" and \"exfiltrate it\" are the same permission. This is an operational security problem. An overly loggy client application can easily get itself in trouble with logging the HMAC key; but for a cert it would require a) the private key permissions to allow exporting the key material and b) someone going out of their way to move the key object into a loggable form.\n\nOh, and client auth certificates can also have their private keys on an HSM, making exfiltration even harder, and depending on what your API allows some of your callers may feel that they need HSM security.\n\nSo: mostly ease of management, and a couple of op-sec reasons.", "if the attacker finds another message m' different from m such that h(m') = h(m) this doesn't guarantee that the prefix of m' is equal to the prefix of m, so with high probability H(k || m' || k) will be very different from H(k || m || k). \n \n\n\nCorrect: an adversary can't do a collision search offline because the adversary can't even evaluate the function $m \\mapsto H(k \\mathbin\\| m \\mathbin\\| k)$.\n\n\n \n if the attacker wants to append extra bits to H(k || m || k) and compute another step of Merkle and Damgard algorithm he/she can't because he/she doesn't know the last block (that is the key), he/she only knows message blocks sent during the communication.\n \n\n\nCorrect: although if given $h = H(k \\mathbin\\| m \\mathbin\\| k)$ the adversary could compute $H(k \\mathbin\\| m \\mathbin\\| k \\mathbin\\| m')$ for some suffixes $m'$, that is of no consequence unless by luck $m'$ happens to end with $k$, which is completely improbable.\n\n\n \n if the attacker finds with birthday attack a message m' such that h(m') = h(k || m || k), he/she cannot verify if that authentication tag is correct because he/she doesn't know the key k. So the attacker to find a message m' such that h(m') = h(k || m || k) generates all possible hashes (considering the rule of birthday bound) in order to find the same value of H(k || m || k). \n \n\n\nI don't really understand what you're getting at here, because $H(m')$ is not relevant to the authentication system.\n\n\n\nAll that said: The birthday paradox is nevertheless relevant even if the adversary can't perform an offline collision search!\n\nSuppose you're using a 128-bit hash like MD5, and you learn the authentication tag $H(k \\mathbin\\| m_i \\mathbin\\| k)$ for a whopping $2^{64}$ messages $m_1, m_2, \\dots, m_{2^{64}}$. Suppose for simplicity that $k$ and the $m_i$ are all at least one full block long—at least 512 bits, for MD5. With high probability, there will be a pair of messages $m_i \\ne m_j$ with $H(k \\mathbin\\| m_i) = H(k \\mathbin\\| m_j)$, which means not only that $H(k \\mathbin\\| m_i \\mathbin\\| k) = H(k \\mathbin\\| m_j \\mathbin\\| k)$ but also $$H(k \\mathbin\\| m_i \\mathbin\\| m' \\mathbin\\| k) = H(k \\mathbin\\| m_j \\mathbin\\| m' \\mathbin\\| k)$$ for any common suffix $m'$, enabling forgery of many additional messages! This is why for an iterated hash with an $n$-bit state, you should use it only for ${\\lll}2^{n/2}$ messages.\n\nTo my knowledge, this was first described by Preneel and van Oorschot in their 1995 MDx-MAC paper. It is a general attack on any hash of this sort with an $n$-bit state; the same idea applies to HMAC too even though HMAC had not yet been invented and Preneel and van Oorschot sensibly chose not to disrupt the natural flow of time by describing how it applies to HMAC.", "TL;DR: Yes, you can use PBKDF2 as a stream cipher. However, you should not use it for that and for its intended purpose (i.e. password-based key derivation) at the same time. Instead, if you need to do both, call it twice.\n\n\n\nPBKDF2 is a password-based key derivation function &mdash; or, rather, a scheme for constructing such a function out of a variable-key-length PRF, which in turn is is usually implemented by taking a cryptographic hash function and wrapping it in the HMAC construction.\n\nAs a general-purpose key derivation function, PBKDF2 is designed be able to generate an arbitrarily long* string of pseudorandom bits. To make it resistant to brute force password guessing, it is also designed to take an iteration count that deliberately slows it down.\n\nHowever, when used to generate more output than the underlying PRF / hash function produces, PBKDF2 has what is nowadays generally considered to be a design flaw: its runtime is roughly proportional to the product of the iteration count and the length of output requested (whereas, in many real-world scenarios, the time for an attacker to test one guessed password still only depends on the iteration count). Thus, you really don't want to call PBKDF2 with both a high iteration count and a high output length.\n\nInstead, my general recommendation** for applications that need to generate large amounts of key material using PBKDF2 is to first use PBKDF2 with a large iteration count to generate a \"master key\" whose size equals the output size of the underlying hash (which should preferable be chosen to make this as large as feasible, e.g. SHA-512 for a 512-bit output), and then feed this master key into a non-iterated KDF (such as HKDF-Expand from RFC 5896, or even PBKDF2 itself with the iteration count set to 1) to expand it into the full required length. \n\nWith this scheme, the output of PBKDF2 applied to the master key, with a unique per-message salt and an iteration count of 1, should even be safe to use directly as a keystream to XOR the message with. Internally, PBKDF2 simply uses (salted and optionally iterated) HMAC in counter mode, which yields a secure stream cipher as long as the underlying hash function satisfies the conditions of the HMAC security proof (which all secure modern hashes, and even some old not-so-secure ones like SHA-1 and even MD5, are believed to do).\n\nYou do need to ensure that the salt input to PBKDF2 is unique for each message; otherwise you end up reusing the same keystream for two messages, which breaks the security of any XOR-based stream cipher.\n\n\n\nAlso, note that, like any XOR stream cipher, this construction does not protect message integrity, and in fact is highly malleable. To protect against active attacker, you need to combine the encryption scheme with a message authentication code. Fortunately, you already have one available, namely HMAC. So just run the XORed ciphertext through HMAC again (preferably with a separate key derived from the master key), append the result to the message, and verify it before decryption, and you're all set.\n\nIndeed, if you really cannot access the underlying HMAC function, even PBKDF2 itself (being really just a thin wrapper around HMAC) could be used as a MAC, by passing the message to be authenticated as the salt parameter and requesting one hash block of output. While this won't quite produce the same output as raw HMAC (since, even with the iteration count set to 1, PBKDF2 still appends the block counter to the salt), the security proof carries over trivially.\n\nIf you wanted to get fancy, you could even use HMAC (or PBKDF2) in the SIV construction as both the MAC / nonce generator and as the encryption primitive. So, as perverse as it may seem, the following pseudocode should implement a secure misuse-resistant AEAD scheme using nothing but PBKDF2:\n\n// a variable-length PRF, implemented using PBKDF2 with an iteration count of 1\nfunction prf(key, data, len):\n return PBKDF2(key, data, 1, len)\n\n// SIV authenticator / IV length in bytes (32 bytes = 256 bits)\nconstant token_size = 32\n\n// internal MAC output length, may be larger than token_size\nconstant internal_mac_size = max(token_size, PBKDF2_hash_block_size)\n\nfunction SIV_PBKDF2_encrypt(key, plaintext, assoc_data, nonce):\n macP = prf(key, \"macP\" + plaintext, internal_mac_size)\n macA = prf(key, \"macA\" + assoc_data, internal_mac_size)\n token = prf(key, \"auth\" + macP + macA + nonce, token_size)\n ciphertext = plaintext XOR prf(key, \"encr\" + token, length(plaintext))\n return (token, ciphertext)\n\nfunction SIV_PBKDF2_decrypt(key, token, ciphertext, assoc_data, nonce):\n plaintext = ciphertext XOR prf(key, \"encr\" + token, length(ciphertext))\n macP = prf(key, \"macP\" + plaintext, internal_mac_size)\n macA = prf(key, \"macA\" + assoc_data, internal_mac_size)\n if token != prf(key, \"auth\" + macP + macA + nonce, token_size):\n return ERROR\n else:\n return plaintext\n\n\nIn the code above, all variables are assumed to be byte strings of arbitrary length, and may contain null bytes. The + operator always denotes string concatenation. Note that the length of the left argument to + above is always fixed, making the concatenated result unambiguous.\n\nThe ERROR constant stands for some unambiguous indication of decryption failure, possibly due to malicious input; instead of a special return value, one could also e.g. throw an exception in that case. The important things is that, however it is implemented, such a failure should not reveal anything about the invalid plaintext string to the caller, as the content of that string may be manipulated by an attacker.\n\nIf a distinct nonce is provided for every encrypted message, this code should implement (modulo any possible implementation bugs) an IND-CCA secure authenticated encryption scheme. Even if the nonce is repeated or omitted, it should still implement a \"deterministic authenticated encryption\" scheme, in the sense of Rogaway and Shrimpton, essentially meaning that the only information it leaks (besides message length, which all arbitrary-length encryption schemes reveal to some extent) is whether two encrypted messages are identical or not.\n\nThe length of the key input is arbitrary, but should be sufficient to resist brute-force guessing attacks (i.e. at least 128 bits, preferably more). It should not be a user-supplied password &mdash; you'll want to run those through PBKDF2 (or some other password-based KDF) with a high iteration count first.\n\nAs an optimization, the internal macA variable may be precomputed if the associated data is known in advance; other similar optimizations, as in Rogaway's original SIV scheme, are also possible.\n\n\n\n*) Technically, the output length of PBKDF2 is limited to $2^{32}-1$ times the output length of the underlying PRF / hash.\n\n**) Assuming that one cannot or will not switch to a more modern password-based KDF, such as scrypt, Argon2, Catena or Balloon hashing. Unlike PBKDF2, all of these KDFs are designed to also consume large amounts of memory, which makes them more resistant to massively parallel brute force attacks using GPUs, FPGAs or ASICs. As a side effect, they also intrinsically support efficient generation of large amounts of output key material.", "The attacker can modify certain bits of the plaintext (by modifying the ciphertext), but the attacker does not know what the entire plaintext originally was. Therefore, the attacker doesn't know what bits of the hash will change due to their alterations of the plaintext. To successfully modify the hash and the plaintext, the attacker would need to know the difference between the original hash and the hash of the modified plaintext. The attacker doesn't know this difference, which prevents the attacker from changing the hash to match the modified plaintext.\n\nNow, all of this is based on the idea that the recipient is supposed to decrypt the data, then verify its authenticity. While this can be done, it's also possible to protect the integrity of the ciphertext, allowing the recipient to verify that the message hasn't been tampered with before even attempting decryption. Obviously, just hashing the ciphertext and appending it to the end doesn't work, because the attacker could modify that hash. Instead, there are two ways of doing this, based on the kind of crypto in use. They are both hash-based but have extra security beyond simply hashing:\n\n\nIf using asymmetric cryptography, such as the usual way to use HTTPS or SSH, then you digitally sign the hash. Without getting into the mathematics of how digital signature schemes work, the basic idea is that you have two keys: a private key that only you know, and a public key that everybody can get a copy of. The private key is used to sign the hash, and the public key is used to verify the signature. Because the attacker doesn't have your private key, if they modify the message and re-compute the hash, they won't be able to re-create a signature that can be verified using your public key. Therefore, anybody will be able to use your public key to tell that the message they received is not the message that you signed.\nIf using symmetric cryptography only, like an encrypted .ZIP file or most other forms of password encryption, you create a keyed Hash-based Message Authentication Code (or HMAC). Again, without going into the details, the idea of an HMAC is that when you compute the hash of the message, you also stick in some additional data that is based on a key (which might be the key used to encrypt the message, or might be another one) that the intended recipient of the encrypted message also has. This additional data added to the hash function input modifies the output (the digest) in such a way that if an attacker modifies the message, the attacker won't be able to figure out what the new HMAC should be because the attacker doesn't know the key and therefore, when the recipient uses the key to compute the HMAC of the modified message, it won't match and the recipient will know the message was tampered with.", "How does reducing the upper limit for $k$ (to $2^n$) improve an attacker's chances to learn $k$\n\n\nSecurity becomes at most $n/2$-bit. Baby step - giant step finds $k$ given the public key $\\underline{[k]G}$ with computational cost $\\mathcal O(2^{n/2})$. Pollard's Rho can be adapted to the same asymptotic cost, with feasibly little memory and efficient parallelisation. In order to keep the security level $\\mathcal O(\\sqrt\\ell)$ of normal EC-Schnorr, we can't have $n$ sizably below $\\log_2\\ell$.\n\n\n How does reducing the upper limit for $k$ from $\\ell$ to $2^n$ interact with short Schnorr signatures?\n\n\nFor the reason above, it reduces security.\n\nAlso, I fail to see how it reduces signature size in the signature scheme of the question if we keep $r$ random in $[0,\\ell)$ with $\\ell$ unchanged, because then $S$ also is random in $[0,\\ell)$, thus we need to transmit $\\left\\lceil\\log_2\\ell\\right\\rceil$ bit for $S$.\n\n\n\nFor $n$-bit symmetric security (80-bit in the question), and as small a Schnorr signature as possible, we can\n\n\nUse an Elliptic Curve group of reduced size $\\ell\\approx 2^{2n}$. That's precisely why we have secp192r1 and secp192k1 in sec2-v2, which are expected to give 96-bit security. However these use a base field $\\Bbb F_q$ of roughly the same size as $\\ell$, and I do not know if, much less how, we could construct a secure Elliptic Curve group based on $\\Bbb F_q$ of much larger size (e.g. $\\log_2 q\\approx256$ as asked).\nReduce the hash width from the usual/modern $2n$ to the original $n$, for a $3n$-bit signature when combined with 1. The original Schnorr signature scheme works that way, with heuristic arguments of security that withstood at least the test of time.\nAs an alternative to 2., and when signing messages of bit size $m\\ge n$, use a variant of Schnorr's scheme giving signature scheme with message recovery (see list there), which can embed $n$ bits of message into a $4n$-bit signature, thus achieve an effective $3n$-bit overhead just like the original Schnorr signature scheme in applications where the message is sent along the signature and is at least $n$-bit. The main advantage is a slightly more positive argument of security. The drawbacks are that the signature is no longer separate from the message, that some of the best schemes are patent-encumbered, and that (therefore) this is seldom used.\n\n\nNote: if only signature size (but not public key size nor performance) is an issue, there is no reason to use an Elliptic Curve group. The original Schnorr signature scheme uses Schnoor groups over a subgroup of prime order $\\ell$ constructed as a subgroup of $\\Bbb Z_p^*$ for prime $p=2\\,r\\,\\ell+1$, and the signature size is not impacted by the large $p$ (which needs to be in the thousands bits for modern security).\n\n\n\nIf one is (like me) prudently cautious about the heuristic security arguments (and complex modern proofs in some limited models) of the original Schnoor signature scheme, one can venture into improvements:\n\n\nDe-randomize the choice of $r$ by making it a deterministic PRF, keyed by the $2n$-bit private key, of a (wide, secure) primary hash of the message: $r=\\operatorname{PRF}_k(H_\\text{wide}(M))$. It removes the requirement for an unpredictable RNG (which is notoriously hard to get), and could only harm thru a side channel. That's used by EdDSA.\nConstruct the $n$-bit (thus uncomfortably narrow) hash $c$ part of the signature using a purposely-slow hash (like Argon2) in order to increase it's second-preimage resistance, which is one of (and arguably, the main) limiting factor of security in Schnorr signature. It can not harm. Even with parametrization yielding negligible impact on overall performance, it can increase resistance to that particular attack by at least 8 bits, which is nice to have.\nMake the public key part of the input of said $n$-bit hash $c$. This is a belt-and-suspenders approach against multi-target attacks. It has negligible cost, and can not harm. Combined with the above, that makes the $c$ part of the signature $c=H_{n\\text{-bit, slow}}(\\underline{R}\\mathbin\\|H_\\text{wide}(M)\\mathbin\\|K_\\text{pub})$\n[my personal fad] Rather than directly using the $n$-bit $c$ part of the signature $(c,S)$ in the computation of $S=r+c\\,k\\bmod\\ell$, we can beef it back to the full $2n$-bit of $\\ell$ (as used in modern variants of Schnorr signature having the strongest security arguments) by using a public transformation, e.g. a hash. With maximum belts-and-suspenders, that's $S=r+c'\\,k\\bmod\\ell$ with $c'=H_{2n\\text{-bit, slow}}(c\\mathbin\\|H_\\text{wide}(M)\\mathbin\\|K_\\text{pub})$. Arguably, it can't harm, and adds hurdles to various conceivable attacks.\n\n\nThe above leaves the signature size at $3n$-bit, needs only trivial adaptations to signature verification, and marginally slows down signature generation or verification. For large messages, $H_\\text{wide}$ is the limiting speed factor, and we can use e.g. SHA-512 for that. Parametrization of the slow hash can be set for cost lower than one scalar multiplication, with perhaps 3/4 of that in the slow hash that builds $c$, and the rest for $c'$.", "Suppose $F \\colon \\lbrace 0,1 \\rbrace^n \\to \\lbrace 0,1 \\rbrace^{\\ell(n)}$ is a secure PRG. Create $G \\colon \\lbrace 0,1 \\rbrace^{n+1} \\to \\lbrace 0,1 \\rbrace^{\\ell(n)}$ as follows: \n\n$$G(b ||s) := F(s), \\quad b \\in \\lbrace 0,1 \\rbrace, s \\in \\lbrace 0,1 \\rbrace^n.$$\n\n$G$ is as secure as $F$, and clearly $G(0||s) = G(1 || s)$.\n\n\n\nTo prove the \"$G$ is as secure as $F$\" part, consider the following proposition$^*$:\n\nProposition. If there exists a distinguisher $\\mathcal{D}$ against $G$,\nthen we can create a distinguisher $\\mathcal{D}'$ against $F$, such that\n$$| \\Pr[\\mathcal{D}'(U_{\\ell(n)}, 1^n) = 1] - \\Pr[\\mathcal{D}'(F(U_n), 1^n) = 1]| &gt; \\frac{1}{poly(n)}.$$\n\nProof. Distinguisher $\\mathcal{D}'$ receives as input a string $z \\in \\lbrace 0,1 \\rbrace^{\\ell(n)}$. Then he simply forwards this string to $\\mathcal{D}$ and outputs whatever it outputs. Since $z$ is distributed exactly like in the distinguishing game $\\mathcal{D}$ expects, we have in particular $\\Pr[\\mathcal{D}'(F(U_n), 1^n) = 1] = \\Pr[\\mathcal{D}'(G(U_{n+1}), 1^n) = 1]$, and the proposition follows. $\\blacksquare$\n\nNote that the above proposition is intuitively correct when you realize that the bit $b$ is independent of the output of $G$. That is, one could think of $G$ as first running $F$ on some input $s \\in \\lbrace 0,1 \\rbrace^n$, and afterwards drawing the bit $b$. Clearly, this shouldn't reduce the strength of $F$ as a PRG.\nIt should probably also be emphasized that $G$ is as secure as $F$, not more secure. That is, if $F$ has a security level of $n$ bits, then $G$ also has a security level of $n$, not $n+1$ as the longer seed could maybe lead you to believe.\n\n$^*$Technically the proposition does not hold for $\\ell(n) = n + 1$, since then $G$ wouldn't actually be a PRG. But I have ignored this above, and simply assumed the more typical case of $\\ell(n) &gt;&gt; n$.", "The assumption seems to be that the adversary wants to confirm a guess of $\\mathtt{value}$ given $\\mathtt{hash}=\\operatorname{SHA-256}(\\mathtt{value}\\mathbin\\|\\mathtt{pepper})$, for unknown random secret $\\mathtt{pepper}$. This is an ad-hoc PRF of $\\mathtt{value}$ with symmetric key $\\mathtt{pepper}$.\n\nNo, the small size/entropy in $\\mathtt{value}$ is not an issue. Neither is having a million of millions of $\\mathtt{value}$ (or/and of leaked $\\mathtt{hash}$ ). Without a successful and complete guess of $\\mathtt{pepper}$, as far as we know, the adversary can't learn anything about $\\mathtt{value}$ from its $\\mathtt{hash}$ (beyond two $\\mathtt{value}$ being identical with practical certainty when their $\\mathtt{hash}$ is, something that additional random public salt would fix, see Maarten Bodewes's answer). Main theoretical weakness is the relatively small size of $\\mathtt{pepper}$ (here 80-bit), which should be 128-bit or more by modern standards. Of course, there's the issue of keeping $\\mathtt{pepper}$ secret, and other implementation issues (but the classic timing side channel of memcmp does not matter).\n\nThe best known generic attack is essentially brute force. For each guess of $\\mathtt{value}$, it enumerates $\\mathtt{pepper}$, computes $\\operatorname{SHA-256}(\\mathtt{value}\\mathbin\\|\\mathtt{pepper})$, and compares to the given $\\mathtt{hash}$ (or the full list of theses). If there are several guesses of $\\mathtt{value}$ with different likelihood, it pays to try the guesses from most to least likely. If $\\mathtt{value}$ was long (so that $\\mathtt{value}\\mathbin\\|\\mathtt{pepper}$ exceeds the 64-byte block size of the SHA-256 internals), it would pay to cache the intermediate values that do not vary with each $\\mathtt{pepper}$.\n\nNote: we'd have better academic security assurance if we used HMAC-SHA-256 rather than this ad-hoc PRF. See M. Bellare: New Proofs for NMAC and HMAC: Security without Collision-Resistance, in Journal or Cryptology, 2015, originally in proceedings of Crypto 2006.", "With fgrieu's idea:\n\nIf we consider the generator working on a security parameter of $n$ bits (meaning resistance to $\\mathcal O(2^n)$ computational effort), then each of the prime $p$ and $q$ must be at least (about) $n$-bit, otherwise trial division would factor the public modulus. Then, $N=p\\,q$ with $p$ and $q$ distinct primes at least $2^n$ implies $P[x \\notin \\mathbb{Z}_N^*]=1-\\frac{(p-1)(q-1)}{p\\,q}&lt;\\frac1p+\\frac1q&lt;\\frac2{2^n}$, that is $\\mathcal O(2^{-n})$ which is negligible.", "The comments already have covered the two main points, but let me try to put it in the form of an answer. There are not (that we know) weak keys in AES, in the sense that you cannot formulate a routine $isWeak(key)$. However, there are weak ways to generate an AES key (i.e. bad randomness). \n\nAn AES key is just a bit string of length $n$. That means that there are $2^n$ possible keys. If the key is generated by a properly seeded CSPRNG, AES is (computationally) secure. If you don't know about the origins of the key, or it is generated by a less secure RNG (such as Java's Math.random), the key shouldn't be used.", "The usual definition for the Blum-Blum-Shub (BBS) generator goes as follows:\nLet $N$ be a Blum-Integer of unknown factorization. Let $j$ be the &quot;extraction rate&quot;. Let $x_0$ be a uniformly random non-negative integer smaller than $N$. Define $x_{i+1}=x_{i}^2\\bmod N$. For a request of $M=jk$ random bits, compute all $x_i$ up until at least $x_k$ and concatenate the $j$ least significant bits of each of those values as the random output.\nThe classic, original BBS construction used an extraction rate of 1. Later analysis (PDF) suggested that $j$ can safely be of order $O(\\log\\log N)$. Follow-up concrete analysis (PDF) suggests the following bound (Theorem 3):\n\nThe BBS Generator is $(T_A,\\varepsilon)$-secure if $$T_A\\leq \\frac{L(n)}{35\\delta^{-2}n\\log_2 n}-2^{2j+9}n\\delta^{-4}$$ where $\\delta=(2^j-1)^{-1}M^{-1}\\varepsilon$, n being the bitlength of $N$, $L(n)$ being the effort to factor $N$, and $(T_A,\\varepsilon)$-secure meaning that an adversary can distinguish the output from random with effort $T_A$ and success probability $\\varepsilon$.\n\nNow let's pick $n=3072$ for fun for which the standard estimate is $L(n)\\approx 2^{128}$ work effort. Let's also pick $j=4$ and $k=32$ extracting 4 bit from each squaring and wanting 128 bit. Let's also suppose we want $\\varepsilon=2^{-1}$ success probability for the adversary. This gives us $\\delta=(2^{1}\\cdot 31\\cdot 128)^{-1}\\approx 2^{-13}$. This in turn gives us $2^{2\\cdot 4+9}\\cdot n\\cdot 2^{52}\\approx 2^{79}$ and $\\frac{2^{128}}{35\\cdot 2^{26}\\cdot n\\cdot \\log_2 n}\\approx 2^{81}$. Therefore an adversary in this scenario requires about $2^{81}$ work to break this BBS generator with success probability $1/2$.\nUsing the above, you can also try and estimate other parameter values, but I guess you already noticed that for BBS to be secure you either need rather large moduli or extract at a very slow rate and / or only extract a few bits from a seed. In general, you're better off using a generator like AES-CTR DRBG.", "The word \"secure hash function\" usually means (for a function $H$)\n\n\nPreimage resistance: Given a value $h$, it is hard to find a message $x$ so that $h = H(x)$.\nSecond preimage resistance: Given a message $x$, it is hard to find a message $x' \\neq x$ such that $H(x) = H(x')$.\nCollision resistance: It is hard to find two messages $x$, $x'$ such that $H(x) = H(x')$.\n\n\nFor a secure MAC function $M$, we want:\n\n\nUnforgability: Without knowing the key $k$, it is hard to find a message $x$ and authentication tag $m$ such that $m = M(k, x)$, even if given some other such valid message-tag pairs (which are not allowed as answers).\n\n\nUnfortunately, defining $M(k,x) = H(k \\mathbin\\Vert x)$ for a secure hash function does not guarantee that the MAC function is unforgeable.\n\nIn fact, with the hash constructions used in practice (i.e. the Merkle-Damgård construction without a finalizing round, used in MD5, SHA-1 and the SHA-2 family), it is quite easy, given a valid pair $(x,m)$, to create an $(x', m')$ which is still valid:\n\nTo create a hash with Merkle-Damgård, the message is padded to some block size, and then each block in sequence is feeded to a compression function, which updates an internal state. The final state is then output as the hash.\n\nSo, $H(k\\mathbin\\Vert x)$ is the state of the hash machine after inputting $k\\mathbin\\Vert x\\mathbin\\Vert\\mathit{pad}_x$. If we set our hash machine to this state, and then input arbitrary other data $y$, followed by another pad $\\mathit{pad}_y$, we reach the state $m' = H(k\\mathbin\\Vert x\\mathbin\\Vert\\mathit{pad}_x\\mathbin\\Vert y) = M(k, x\\mathbin\\Vert\\mathit{pad}_x\\mathbin\\Vert y)$.\nForgery is done, with $x' = x \\mathbin\\Vert \\mathit{pad}_x \\mathbin\\Vert y$.\n\nThis also works with the full-width variants of SHA-2, i.e. SHA-256 and SHA-512. For the truncated variants of SHA-2 (SHA-384, SHA-224, SHA-512/224 and SHA-512/256) this attack doesn't work, as the output is not the full hash state. (Though for a length extension attack only the truncated bits would have to be guessed, so the security is a bit less than expected from the output size.)\n\nThe HMAC construction is not suspectible to this attack, as the secret key $k$ is applied both before and after the main message, which makes the internal state non-reconstructible.\n\nHMAC does not guarantee unforgability for general secure hash functions, either, but it has a security proof for the Merkle-Damgård construction, if the internal compression function is collision-resistant.\n\nSHA-3 (Keccak) is based on a different model: we have a quite big state into which both key and message are mixed, and which is then further mixed to output the hash. The state itself is never output fully. Because of this, length extension needs state recovery, and the capacity (the hidden part of the state) should be big enough that this is not feasible (as well as guessing the key).\n\nThe paper On the security of the keyed sponge construction by the Keccak team analyzes the security of this construction.", "My crude understanding of blockchain (derived mainly from the Wikipedia article) is that it gets its security from two sources:\n\n\nIndividual communications are performed using a public key cryptography scheme\nInformation is stored in a decentralised manner across many different computers, meaning that there are many different copies of the same information.\n\n\nThe level of security provided by these two items differs, I suspect. Public key cryptography has an exponential form of security against classical attacks: it's based on a mathematical problem, and you add one bit to the problem size, and the difficulty (roughly) doubles. It's really easy to add a few bits, and put the problem completely out of anybody's reach. Meanwhile, for the decentralised part, I imagine that adding one extra computer to the network doesn't significantly increase the resources required to monitor all the communications; for a network of $N$ nodes, there are only $\\binom{N}{2}$ communication links to monitor (a polynomial in $N$, not exponential). So, while adding a few more computers to the network might make monitoring a daunting task for an individual, state-level interference is unlikely to be eliminated. Thus, the security is heavily dependent upon the security of the public key cryptosystem being used.\n\nThe point is that quantum computers will be good at breaking existing public key cryptography systems such as RSA. RSA, for example, is secured by the assumption that it is difficult to find the prime factors of a large number (the person who is allowed to decript a message proves that they can by giving the factors of a particular number). To the best of our knowledge, this is true for classical computers, but Shor's algorithm makes this an easy task for a quantum computer. This means that, in principle, individual communications can be read an manipulated by a quantum computer.\n\nResearchers are working on replacement public key cryptography systems that will be resiliant to attack by a quantum computer (called post-quantum cryptography) but these are not yet in place.", "Rather no. There is no standard construction going by the name Key Derivation Function aimed at generating public/private key pairs. Traditionally, especially for RSA, how to generate a key pair is left at the discretion of the implementation, rather than made per a specific deterministic process. The usual name is Key Generation. And it's usually stated as a randomized algorithm, rather than as a function.\nFor ECC per Sec1, it is straightforward to define such KDF. The private key is an integer $d$ in range $[1,n-1]$ where $n$ is the fixed, public order of a generator on a curve. Thus we could take the 2048-bit secret¹ $s$, and turn it to the private key by applying $d\\gets(s\\bmod(n-1))+1$; then compute the public key by applying $Q\\gets d\\,G$ using point multiplication. Since in practice $n\\le2^{800}$, the bias on $d$ is negligible if the 2048-bit $s$ is uniformly random.\nFor RSA, that's less easy. We need to specify a Cryptographically Secure Pseudo-Random Number Generator, seed it with the 2048-bit secret¹ $s$, and generate the RSA key per some precisely agreed-upon process. FIPS 186-4 appendix B.3.2 is next to being precise enough. Also, beware that it is hard to secure such computations from side-channel and fault attacks.\n\n¹ Or a derivative $s$ of that secret by a symmetric KDF.", "This question is based on opinion. At least kind-of. But the variants from which one can choose are quite a few.\n\nAs for general construction the sponge construction (like Keccak / SHA-3 uses) are very versatile and can be used for many purposes, for example hashing, authenticating (= \"MAC'ing\"), authenticated encryption (see “General Overview of the First-Round CAESAR Candidates for Authenticated Encryption”, Version of March 14, 2015 by Farzaneh Abed, Christian Forler, and Stefan Lucks). \n\nOf course one can also use such constructions or already exisiting construction to construct the rest, PRNGs may use hashes at some point, stream ciphers can be hashes in counter-mode, HMAC can use sponge-based hashes, KDFs can be based on sponge-based hash functions, using the arbitrary output size and tweaking the input for other parameters.\n\nNow if you're specially looking for one cipher / hash-function which can be used without much effort in a variety of modes, I think (and others as well as the comments suggest), that Threefish is the cipher to choose. Threefish was designed as a building block for a hash-function, meaning all known attack scenarios were considered, like standard attacks and related-key attacks. Threefish and it's associated hash-function Skein can also be used in a variety of modes:\n\n\nThreefish can of course be used as a standard block cipher. (Maybe set the tweak to $0$?)\nSkein, which is a lightweight construction around Threefish, can be used as a standard hash-function.\nSkein-MAC, a mode of operation for Skein, is a provably secure MAC (like HMAC).\nSkein-HMAC, Skein can of course also be operated in the standard HMAC construction.\nSkein-KDF, a mode of operation for Skein, is a highly customizable variant of Skein, using the fact that Skein can output arbitrary sized digests.\nThreefish stream cipher. Threfish can be used as a standard stream cipher in CTR-mode.\nSkein stream cipher. Skein has a mode of operation allowing it's output to be used as a stream cipher pad.\nSkein-PRNG is proposed in the original Skein paper. I'd recommend against using it but rather use Skein and Threefish within Fortuna instead of AES and SHA-256.\nSkein-PBKDF is a PBKDF2-like mode of operation for Skein. I'd recommend against using it but rather use scrypt, bcrypt or any of the PHC-winners (to be announced). Some of the finalists allow usage of arbitrary hash-functions, where Skein could be used.\nThreefish authenticated encryption is a bit more tricky, but there are a few schemes that use tweakable block ciphers (like Threefish) to construct fast AEAD ciphers.", "Information-theoretic security means that any algorithm (even unbounded) has a negligible probability of breaking the security property (in the security parameter). This is the same as unconditional security: it does not rely on any computational assumption, and is not limited to probabilistic polytime adversaries.\nA perfectly secure protocol is such that any (possibly unbounded) adversary has probability $0$ of breaking the security property. It is a special case of information-theoretic security: every perfectly secure protocol is information-theoretically secure, but the converse is not true.\nTo take a simple example, the distinction often appears when some secret value is masked with a random value, and we ask how hard it is to distinguish the masked value from a uniformly random value. Consider the following protocol: $x$ is an integer, say, between $0$ and $n - 1$. The game is as follows: we first sample a random bit $b$. If $b = 0$, we send a random value $r \\gets X$ to the (unbounded) adversary, sampled from some set $R$, while if $b=1$, we sample a random value $r \\gets R$ and send $x + r$ to the adversary. Fix a security parameter $k$. We say that the protocol has perfect security if the adversary has probability exactly $1/2$ of guessing the value of $b$ given the input, and that the protocol has information-theoretic security if the adversary has probability $1/2 + \\mu(k)$ of guessing the value of $b$, where $\\mu$ is a negligible function.\nSuppose we identify $[0, n-1]$ with $\\mathbb{Z}_n$ and define $R$ to be $\\mathbb{Z}_{n}$ as well. The computation of $x + r$ is done over $\\mathbb{Z}_n$. In this case, the protocol is clearly perfectly secure, as sampling $r$ from $\\mathbb{Z}_{n}$ and returning $x+r$ gives exactly the uniform distribution over $\\mathbb{Z}_{n}$, for any $x$.\nOn the other hand, suppose we set $R = [0, 2^{k} \\cdot n]$ and compute $x + r$ over the integers. Then, it is easy to show that any (possibly unbounded) adversary has probability at most $1/2^{k}$ of distinguishing a sample from $R$ from a sample from $x + R$ (the statistical distance between these sets is $1/2^{k}$). Since this is a negligible function in $k$, this variant satisfies information theoretic security, but not perfect security.", "Let's start with the preliminaries. The basic scheme has encryption defined as follows:\n\n$$\\mathcal{E}^{G, H}(x) = f(x \\oplus G(r) || r \\oplus H(x \\oplus G(r)))$$\n\nSome definitions:\n\n\n$f: \\{0,1\\}^k \\rightarrow\\{0, 1\\}^k$ is a trapdoor permutation where $k$ is the security parameter\n$x$ is the message to encrypt\n$n = |x|$ is the bit length of the message \n$k_0 = k - n$ (the value of interest in out case)\n$G: \\{0,1\\}^{k_0} \\rightarrow\\{0, 1\\}^n$ is a \"generator\" from $k_0$ bits to $n$ bits\n$H: \\{0,1\\}^n \\rightarrow\\{0, 1\\}^{k_0}$ is a \"hash function\" from $n$ bits to $k_0$ bits\n$r \\gets \\{0, 1\\}^{k_0}$ is a randomly selected $k_0$ bit string\n\n\n\n\nThe general idea behind setting $2^{k_0}$ to be much larger than the adversaries run time is to prevent the adversary from having a non-negligible chance of brute forcing the value of $r$. Recall that $r$ is a random $k_0$ bit string so there are $2^{k_0}$ possible values of $r$. \n\nSuppose that $k_0$ was selected to be only a couple bits, in this case $\\mathcal{E}^{G, H}$ is not secure under a chosen plaintext attack (IND-CPA). For an intuition of how to prove IND-CPA see this graphic. Briefly, if an adversary submits messages $m_0, m_1$ to be encrypted by $\\mathcal{E}^{G,H}$ and gets back $c$ it needs to determine if $c$ is the encryption of $m_0$ or $m_1$. Here's how it does that:\n\n$G$, $H$, and $f$ are all public , so the only unknown in the equation is $r$, which was randomly sampled. If $r$ is small enough (i.e. if $k_0$ is small) then an adversary can compute $\\mathcal{E}^{G, H}(m_0)$ and $\\mathcal{E}^{G, H}(m_1)$ for all possible values of $r$. Once it computes a value that matches $c$ the adversary knows that $c$ is the encryption of whichever message was input into $\\mathcal{E}^{G, H}$, which means it has a non-negligible advantage in the IND-CPA game (i.e. the scheme is not IND-CPA).\n\nSo naturally we want to pick a $k_0$ that is large enough such that an adversary is unable to brute force the value of $r$. This implies the definition that $k_0$ be chosen such that the adversary's running time is significantly smaller than $2^{k_0}$ steps.\n\n\n\nSo to conclude, for values $k_0$ that are very small the results are catastrophic as you lose semantic security. For values $k_0$ that are very large there's no security drawback, but your permutation $f$ needs to be bigger which generally translates to a slower scheme (think RSA2048 vs RSA4096 for example).", "One can encrypt an n-qubit state using a 2n-bit classical secret key. The idea is to use the key to select a random Pauli operator, and apply that operator to the secret as an encryption. (The inverse operator is applied to decrypt.)\n\nThe resulting scheme is perfectly secure -- if the key is selected uniformly at random, then even an attacker who know a state entangled with the plaintext cannot distinguish the true ciphertext from an independent random state. \n\nThis observation was first made in\nA Ambainis, M Mosca, A Tapp, R de Wolf. \"Private quantum channels\", FOCS 2000.\n\nThey also showed that 2n bits of key are necessary for encryption of entangled quantum states. \n\nIf you have a classical PRG secure against quantum distinguishers, then you can get away with a much shorter key (as short as seed length required by the generator to generate 2 n output bits).", "Yes, it is possible to deterministically generate public/private RSA key pairs from passphrases. For even passable security, the passphrase must be processed by a key-stretching function, such as Scrypt (or the better known but less recommendable PBKDF2), and salt (at least, user id) must enter the key-stretching function; the output can then be used as the seed material for the RSA key generation. This works for any public-key cryptosystem.\n\nSecurity is equivalent to what you have in e.g. PGP/GPG when assuming an adversary has access to the private key file protected by the (unknown, key-stretched) passphrase. However, there are drawbacks:\n\n\none is giving away the considerable degree of security obtained, in normal practice, by not making the private key file public; that first line of defense is lost, only the (stretched) passphrase remains;\nit is impossible to change the passphrase while keeping the same key and the advantage that only the passphrase is needed;\nthe key pair generation method should remain static; any change will end up with a different key pair; that precludes periodically increasing the passphrase-stretching parameters to take into account hardware progress (while keeping the same key and the advantage that only the passphrase is needed);\nas a consequence, there's a very difficult compromise between security for many years with the same public key, and acceptable usage speed now;\nas a minor aside, due to variability of RSA key generation time (at least by standard techniques), some passphrases/keys will require more time than others when deciphering or signing.\n\n\n\n\nNo, it is not currently possible that a public key of a traditional public-key cryptosystem (not based on communication with some server) can be (re-)generated from something that a typical human is willing to memorize (perhaps, 80 bit worth of entropy, about 24 digits, or 3 phone numbers), much less from a passphrase a typical human can choose and no other information.\n\nIn RSA with $n$-bit modulus, we can reduce the public key to about $n/2$ bits with a good argument that it does not reduce security, or to $n/3$ bits with no argument that it reduces security (see this question), but apparently not much further. Other public-key cryptosystem (like ECDSA) have a more compact public key for equivalent security, but it is still several times above that 80-bit limits, thus impractical to memorize, and even painful to key-in from paper. I have strong doubts that we can ever have a reasonably secure public-key cryptosystem with a public key less than 160 bits.", "What I did in one of my password generators is that given a secret key $K$, public data $\\text{Pub}$, I first generate a solid \"master key\" $K_m$ via key-stretching the secret key using PBKDF2 (any other key derivation function would work, I just happened to have that lying around):\n\n$$K_m = PBKDF2(K, \\text{salt, iterations, } \\cdots)$$\n\nAnd then derive individual secrets via $HMAC(K_m, \\text{Pub})$ (formatting the result as required).\n\n\n\nIt is pretty straightforward, and secure, but there are a few sticky points that you need to look out for:\n\n\nIf your public data $\\text{Pub}$ is aggregated from multiple sources (say, an identifier string + time + counter + version + other metadata), you must ensure you do not end up generating duplicate $\\text{Pub}$ data from different original inputs (or you'll get the same derived password back, of course). For instance, do not concatenate strings to create $\\text{Pub}$. Instead, hash them all, and concatenate the hashes. Formally, the \"input data $\\to \\text{Pub}$\" mapping must be collision-free. In practice this easily gotten wrong.\nMake sure all your security parameters are properly set up (number of PBKDF2 iterations, strong hash functions are being used, all that stuff)\n\n\n\n\nThe advantage of using HMAC like this instead of just using PBKDF2 and messing around with the salt is that:\n\n\nIt scales - multiple derived secrets can be efficiently computed via a single PBKDF2 invocation, whereas your method would involve invoking the key derivation function for each derived password (which may be very slow, if you use a lot of iterations)\nIt is actually using the underlying cryptographic primitives properly. A key derivation function is not meant to derive a lot of individual passwords from a given secret key by changing the salt. See this question for details. This is not the case for HMAC, which is, in fact, supposed to be used like this, as its main use is to generate fingerprints of arbitrary messages with a cryptographic key (and of course you don't need to change the key at each message) .Of course, you would probably be fine, but PBKDF2 is just not meant to be used that way.\nIt is less susceptible to misuse. Your method has no intermediate steps, only an input and an output. This makes it difficult to reason about security properties that each variable in your algorithm has, as well as any \"cryptographic barriers\" that your algorithm creates (e.g. \"one cannot derive the secret key from a given generated password\"). This is important because when you will need to add more features to your derivation process, you will need to redo the entire cryptographic analysis again to make sure you are not fundamentally breaking anything. In the approach I suggest, the intermediate \"master key\" has some known security properties (for instance, the secret key cannot be compromised by any manipulation done on the master key) which means I can easily tack on additional features without fear of introducing such and such security vulnerability. If you've ever heard the term \"structured programming\", this is pretty much an instance of it.\n\n\nSpeaking of adding more features, you will probably want a mechanism to verify that you typed in the secret key right (else you will get a garbage password out which won't match what you used before). It's not obvious how to do it using your method. However, with the improved algorithm, this is fairly straightforward - generate and store a random salt $S$ which you feed to PBKDF2 to generate $K_m$, and then store $Hash(K_m)$ somewhere, enabling you to verify if whoever is in charge of the secret key typed in correctly, without compromising it (or any derived password) if this stored information is somehow leaked (this is akin to storing the hash of the key inside the file when encrypting a file, to be able to tell the user if he typed the key in properly instead of complying and decrypting garbage).\n\n\n\nFinally, once you have your final bytes, it's fairly easy to convert them to some charset that you can use as a password. The simplest way is to convert it to Base64, which is fairly convenient and efficient. Of course since they are just bits, you can convert them to whatever you want (hexadecimal, raw ascii, a pin number, etc..)", "In this survey article they discuss Grover's algorithm. In my opinion, the most important part:\n\n\n Grover’s speed-up from $N$ to $\\sqrt{N}$ is not as devastating as Shor’s\n speed-up. Furthermore, each of Grover’s $\\sqrt{N}$ quantum evaluations must\n wait for the previous evaluation to finish. To quantify this issue,\n define T as the number of serial evaluations that can be carried out\n in the time available: for example, if the quantum computer can\n evaluate f in a nanosecond, and if the attacker is prepared to run a\n computation lasting for a year, then T≈$2^{55}$. If $\\sqrt{N}$ exceeds T, then\n Grover’s algorithm cannot use fewer than N/T evaluations spread across\n $N/T^2$ parallel quantum processors. This is a factor T better than\n pre-quantum techniques, but it is possible that this improvement will\n be wiped out by the overhead of qubit operations being more expensive\n than bit operations, making Grover’s algorithm useless—even if\n scalable quantum computers are built and run Shor’s algorithm\n successfully. \n\n\nThis is the main and oft-discussed issue, that Grover's algorithm parallelizes very badly (provably so: Zalka 1997). Bear in mind that our usual classical heuristics of security - $2^{80}$ operations, say - are based on extremely parallel architectures. \n\nHere's another paper discussing the same issue and suggesting a fixed time limit for post-quantum security definitions. NIST included maximum depths in their definitions of quantum security for the post-quantum cryptography standardization process (See Section 4A).\n\nSome other issues: Grassl et al. give circuits for AES, showing that reversibility also adds some noticeable overhead. \n\nAlso, Grover's algorithm has a very high depth compared to Shor's algorithm, meaning the qubits and circuit need to have very, very low errors. This will, in turn, create large (though poly-logarithmic) overheads for error correction.\n\nSo: \n\n\nAs far as I know, no one is trying to build any \"quantum-safe\" symmetric cryptography, because modern symmetric cryptography is already quantum-safe (Grover's algorithm is still exponential)\nBecause of the practical issues I mentioned, the key sizes may not even not to increase\nSill, it's not too hard to eliminate even what little risk there is; from the same survey article:\n\n\n\n On the other hand, if qubit operations are small enough\n and fast enough, then Grover’s algorithm will threaten many\n cryptographic systems that aim for $2^{128}$ security, such as 128-bit AES\n keys. We recommend simply switching to 256-bit AES keys: the extra\n costs are rarely noticeable. ‘Information-theoretic’ MACs such as GMAC\n and Poly1305 already protect against quantum computers without any\n modifications: their security analysis already assumes an attacker\n with unlimited computing power.", "I can see at least one big issue with your own scheme: the attacker could cycle through as many counters until one is found that produces the same bits in the hash at the location of the padding bits used for authentication. In that case the authentication would succeed with a different nonce / counter. This problem also disallows additional authenticated data to be added to the scheme. This would be fixed by using HMAC instead of a hash. When validating the padding bits I would use a constant time compare to be on the safe side (I don't see a direct issue, but better safe than sorry).\n\n\n\nYou need to pad to the end of the block anyway otherwise you cannot XOR with the hashed IV. So you should at least use as many zero bits as possible. For two bytes you have a chance of one in $2^{16}$ that a random message is accepted. That's too large for most cryptographic systems.\n\nSo for a fixed sized message you could use 4 bytes minimum, giving you a chance of one in $2^{32}$ - somewhat over 4 billion in the short scale - to accept a random message. Even then it would be a good idea to implement additional ciphertext messages. Your messages would 12 bytes of course, as the AES block size is 16 bytes in size. The larger the padding the better. \n\n\n\nTruncating a MAC (over the ciphertext) is common. It has the same problem as validating the padding in your scheme: if you check too few bits then the message may be accepted with a probability that is considered too high. It has the advantage of being secure for variable size messages, at the obvious cost of bits compared to your scheme.\n\nOlder triple DES schemes usually use 4 bytes / 32 bits. This could be OK if an authenticated session is broken if a bad packet is received, but remember that sending $2^{32}$ random messages is commonly not out of reach to an attacker.\n\nI'd say that having a 10 byte cipher text (for a 10 byte message, there is no need to use 16 bytes for a 10 byte message) for AES-CTR and a 4 byte MAC is more secure than your proprietary scheme. CCM and EAX are ready made AEAD schemes that could be useful in your situation. They rely just on AES and allow shorter tag sizes without losing too much security, and they allow additional authenticated data as well.\n\n\n\nThe addition (having the counter and time synced) does make it harder for an attacker to have an invalid message accepted. However, it still doesn't disallow attacks on additional authenticated data that gets hashed. It should be noted that keeping a nonce and the time synchronized can be a deceptively hard problem. An attacker is often capable of power cycling devices, slowing down clocks etc.", "Most of these algorithms (i.e. the block ciphers DES, Triple DES, AES, Blowfish) are normally only working on a fixed block size, and take approximately the same time independently of input, thus they are $O(1)$.\n\nIf you put them into a mode of operation to encrypt longer messages, you usually get an $O(m)$ complexity, where $m$ is the message size, as you have $O(m)$ blocks of data to encrypt.\n\n(One could design modes of operations with different complexity, but they have to touch at least each input bit once to be reversible, thus $O(m)$ is a minimum. Also, with $O(m)$ block cipher calls you can do enough to make it secure, so there is no point of making it slower.)\n\nTwo more notes to specific ciphers:\n\n\nYes, Triple-DES usually needs thrice the computing power as DES, but this then becomes $O(1)$ or $O(m)$, too.\nBlowfish is known for its quite slow key schedule (which takes as long as encrypting about 4 KB of data), but this is still $O(1)$.\n\n\nThus, $O$-notation is not really an interesting thing to look at in block ciphers.\n\nIt gets a bit more interesting when we look at algorithms with a varying input size. For the asymmetric algorithm RSA, we have the public (and private) key modulus $n$, and its size $k = [\\log_2 n]$ in bits can be considered a security parameter. (The private exponent $d$ is of similar size, while the public exponent $e$ is usually some small number like $3$ or $65537 = 2^{16}+1$.) The message size is then limited by $O(k)$, too.\n\nEncryption and decryption are both modular exponentiations of plaintext or ciphertext modulo $n$, with the respective exponents. With the square-and-multiply algorithm, encryption needs $O(1)$, decryption $O(k)$ multiplications and a similar number of modular reductions, each of $k$-bit or $2k$-bit numbers ... which means about $O(k^2)$ or $O(k^3)$ elementary operations (with a quite small factor, as you use the word size build into your processor).\n\nDecryption can be sped up by storing the factors of $n$, but this still gives only a constant factor, I think (i.e. it reduces the $k$ in the formulas).\n\nRSA also uses one of various padding schemes, but this should be in O(k) and thus not contribute to the complexity.", "If you have the bandwidth to do so, and good communication reliability between the nodes, you can perform a multi-party Diffie Hellman key exchange. The most efficient way to do so would be using X25519, resulting in a shared 256-bit secret between all parties. This can then be used to derive keys and other secret values.\n\nThis would also allow new nodes to be added to the network at any time, their public key would be added to the pool and all parties would calculate a new shared secret from the current secret. Parties would have to agree on the time it takes to distribute and calculate the secret, and use that to agree on a set time when that secret would go into effect. If it takes approx 5 mins to distribute all the public keys, they may start communicating to the network 7 mins in advance so there will not be a blackout period where some nodes do not have the secret calculated.\n\nBandwidth can be reduced substantially if a node trusts other nodes to forward a public key to other nodes on their behalf, and computation can be reduced if a node trusts other nodes to compute an intermediate shared secret from the rest of the network.\n\nA ring-bus design could also be used, where nodes transmit to a single peer, and they receive from a single peer, and transmit the pool they receive which grows by 1 with each transmission. At the end all nodes should have the same list, and they can verify a hash of the key pool with other nodes randomly. If a peer does not have the same hash, but does have all keys, they may have been given an intentionally incorrect key(s), and procedures can be put in place which allow groups of peers to determine where the incorrect key(s) originated (traitor tracing).\n\nThe most reliable option is to have a node send its public key to all peers in the network, and receive the keys from all other nodes as well, resulting in $n^2-n$ total key transmissions for $n$ peers, then validate the list with several other peers.\n\nAnother option is available if all nodes have a permanent shared secret, the network is open, and nodes can access the internet without restriction. A high entropy public value, such as the output of the NIST randomness beacon, can be processed with HMAC, using the permanent secret as the key. The resulting output would not be able to be generated in advance of the beacon, and will be cryptographically secure because of the generation method, as long as the secret remains isolated to the network.\n\nA combination method can also be used, in advance of the beacon publication, all nodes use Diffie Hellman to agree on a shared key for processing the next days beacon, this gives plenty of time to verify that each node has the same key. This would be the best option for nodes on an open network with a wide range of distribution (high latency), or a very large number of total nodes.", "In short\n\nIt can be secure, but it will be very inefficient.\n\nIn detail\n\nThose bit strings 0001, 0010, 0100, 1000, etc are just powers of two if you look them as integers (i.e., $2^0, 2^1, 2^2, 2^3$, etc) and applying logical bitwise or to some of them is equivalent to adding up some of the powers of two.\n\nTherefore, what you have proposed is a scenario where Alice publishes several encryptions of powers of two, $c_i := Enc(2^i)$ and Bob combines them in some random way, that is, Bob chooses $b_i \\in \\{0,1\\}$ and compute\n$$c_B := \\sum_{i=0}^{n-1} b_i\\cdot c_i = Enc\\left(\\sum_{i=0}^{n-1} b_i\\cdot 2^i\\right).$$\n\nIt is easy to see that if each $b_i$ is chosen uniformly, then the distribution of the value encrypted by $c_B$ is uniform on $\\{0, 1, ..., 2^n-1\\}$, which is a perfect scenario (the exchanged key is uniform, then, hard to guess).\n\nHowever, the problem with this approach is that an attacker could look at $c_B$ and all the $c_i$'s and try to figure out the values of $b_i$'s. Notice that if we manage to discover at least one $b_i$, then we know what is the $i$-th bit of the exchanged key. So, we must rule out that possibility.\n\nA standard way of doing it is to use the Leftover Hash Lemma to guarantee that the distribution of $c_B$ is statistically close to the uniform on the set of ciphertexts $\\mathcal C$, but it would require $n$ much bigger than the security parameters $\\lambda$. It means that Alice would need to publish much more than $\\lambda$ ciphertexts, each one having more than $\\lambda$ bits, which means publishing much more than $\\lambda^2$ bits (likely to be more than $\\lambda^3$). And we still have to take into account the time required to encrypt and combine all those values...\n\nMoreover, I don't think that there is another known way of making this key-exchange secure, since the problem of hiding these $b_i$'s is basically the same problem that the homomorphic encryption schemes face when they are turned into public-key schemes, and the solution I always see on the papers is the one I said (using Leftover Hash Lemma).", "@Bush - What you really mean to ask is whether there is a \"Cryptographically Secure\" PRG (CSPRG) that has the property you describe. The nature of PRG's and CSPRG's remain to me a bit deep and obscure - and to some extent I think this might be intrinsic, the whole field of crypto may be embedded in this one question on the nature of pseudo-randomness; but I'll give it a go.\n\nLet's start with the PRG. You can find a definition here.\n\nThis basically says that a PRG produces a \"scatter\" of points on the image set that approximates the uniform distribution. More precisely, if we consider a set $E$ in the image set of the PRG, then the measure of the set of points that the PRG maps into $E$ is very close to the measure of $E$. \n\n(Since we are essentially always dealing with finite sets and uniform distributions, then we are saying that the fraction of the domain that is mapped into $E$ is very close to the fraction of the image that is represented by $E$. In technicalese, \"the pushforward of the uniform measure on the domain via the PRG is uniform\".)\n\nSo, let's suppose we have a PRG $F: DF \\rightarrow I$. \n\nDefine a new function $G: DG \\rightarrow I$, st. $G(2n)=F(n)$ and $G(2n+1) = F(n)$. \n\nWe have:\n\n\n$ g(k) = F([|k/2|])$, where $[|x|]$ is the greatest integer $&lt;= x$.\n$|DG| = 2|DF|$, where $|S|$ is the number of points in the set $S$.\n\n\nFor a set $E$ on the image space, the number of points that map into it via $G$ is just $2x$ the number of points that map into it by $F$. On the other hand, the domain of $G$ is twice as big as the domain of $F$. So the measure of the preimages via $F$ and $G$ are the same. So, if $F$ approximates the uniform distribution on $I$, then so does $G$. Therefore, if $F$ is a PRG, then so is $G$.\n\nWhile I belive the above is correct for a PRG, a CSPRG is a more restricted notion that includes the \"next bit test\", along with the ability to withstand state compromise. See here.\n\nThe reason we would want the next bit test in our definition is clear. The whole point is that the CSPRG should give us a (one time) semantically secure stream cypher. If the first few bits could give us some information about the next bit that the PRG generates, then this would give us some information to distinguish the PRG output from uniformly random. So, given messages $m_1, m_2$ and a ciphertext $c$, we could distinguish which of $m_1 \\oplus c$ or $m_2 \\oplus c$ is more likely to be the output of the PRG. That would allow us to break semantic security.\n\nI think the restriction on state compromise, may be just an extension of this. If we generate a key by concatenating shorter keys: $F(n)||F(n+1)||F(n+2)|| \\ldots$, we don't want exposure of one part of the key, $F(k)$, to give us information about previous or later parts of the key, eg $F(k-1)$ or $F(k+1)$.\n\nAt first glance it appears to me that if $F$ satisfies the next bit test, then so will $G$. On the other hand, If some of $G$'s state is revealed (eg, $G(k) != G(k+1))$, then we can predict a part of it's past ($G(k-1) = G(k)$) and future ($G(k+1) = G(k+2)$).\n\nI hope that helps. I'll be watching eagerly if someone has something to add.", "If we want to compact an existing RSA private key expressed as $(N,e,d,p,q,d_p,d_q,q_\\text{inv})$, we can reduce it to $(e,p,q)$ and easily recompute the rest as:\n\n$\\begin{align}\nN&amp;=p\\cdot q\\\\\nd&amp;=e^{-1}\\bmod\\operatorname{lcm}(p-1,q-1)\\;\\text{ or }\\;d=e^{-1}\\bmod((p-1)\\cdot(q-1))\\\\\nd_p&amp;=d\\bmod(p-1)\\;\\text{ or equivalently }\\;d_p=e^{-1}\\bmod(p-1)\\\\\nd_q&amp;=d\\bmod(q-1)\\;\\text{ or equivalently }\\;d_q=e^{-1}\\bmod(q-1)\\\\\nq_\\text{inv}&amp;=q^{-1}\\bmod p\n\\end{align}$\n\nIt is possible to gain a few more bits; for example the low order bits of $p$, $q$ and $e$ are known to be set and need not be stored; further we know that $p\\bmod6$ is either $1$ or $5$, thus it is enough to store $\\lfloor p/6\\rfloor$ and an extra bit, etc.. All in all, any RSA private key with $k$-bit public modulus $N$ and common (small) $e$ can be stored in about $k$ bits.\n\n\n\nIf we want a compact representation of private keys that we are free to choose, we can fix $e$ (removing need to store it) and decide to generate keys using some well defined deterministic procedure employing some Cryptographically Secure Pseudo Random Number Generator, and store the seeds of that CSPRNG, rather than the private keys. Whenever we need a private key, we (re)generate it from its seed. That has a performance issue, with workaround, see kasperd's answer.\n\nIf we'll generate $k$ keys of a certain size, without salt, we want to use use a (truly random) seed of at least $n+\\log_2(k)$ bits, where $n$ is the security level corresponding to the public key size (perhaps $n\\approx 112$ for 2048-bit RSA): we need to guard against the adversary enumerating seeds, generating the corresponding public modulus, and testing if it matches one of the public keys, which is expected to succeed after enumerating about $1/k$ of the seeds.\n\nWe can also use a passphrase, salt (user identifier), and a password-based key generation function, see this answer." ]

[ "Arizona and New York will fund the attractions from their own budgets, and are unlikely to be reimbursed.\nOther states are now weighing up whether they can justify the outlay of cash to keep their parks open.\nThe tourist sites closed after Congress failed to agree a budget, forcing many government services to shut down.\nNew York Governor Andrew Cuomo described the Statue of Liberty as an \"international symbol of freedom\" and promised he would not allow \"dysfunction\" in Washington to keep it closed.\nNew York will have to pay out about $60,000 (£37,000) a day to keep the Statue of Liberty open.\nArizona Governor Jan Brewer said: \"I'm gratified the Obama administration agreed to reverse its policy and allow Arizona to reopen Grand Canyon, Arizona's most treasured landmark and a crucial driver of revenue to the state.\"\nArizona will pay almost $100,000 a day to keep the Grand Canyon open, initially for the next seven days.\nAnalysts estimate that the Canyon brings in roughly 18,000 visitors each day during the current peak season, and revenue of roughly $1m.\nElsewhere, South Dakota worked out a deal with corporate donors and the National Park Service to reopen Mount Rushmore on Monday.\nAnd Utah and Colorado have also reached deals to keep their parks open.\nInterior Secretary Sally Jewell said in a statement the states had found a \"practical and temporary solution\" that would \"lessen the pain for some businesses and communities\".\nThe partial government shutdown, which has sent home hundreds of thousands of government workers on unpaid leave, began on 1 October.\nRepublicans have refused to pass a new budget unless President Barack Obama agrees to delay or eliminate the funding of the healthcare reform law of 2010.\nThe White House has repeatedly said it would not undermine the law, known as Obamacare, nor negotiate over larger budget matters, until Republicans vote to end the threat of default.\nOfficials say about 15,000 workers in the private sector have already been laid off as a result of the shutdown.\nAs the well as the shutdown, the US is heading towards default if it does not raise its debt limit by 17 October.\nAfter the latest talks on the crisis in Washington, President Obama's spokesman said he was willing to sign a \"clean\" short-term increase to the US borrowing limit that is free from Republican budget and policy demands.\n\"If the Congress were to pass a clean debt ceiling of short duration to avoid default, the president would sign that,\" Mr Carney said, following rounds of talks among Mr Obama and Senate and House Republicans.\nBut Mr Carney reiterated the White House would not accept a debt ceiling rise with conditions attached, saying the right thing to do was to \"remove that gun from the table\"." ]

[ "Goldenbridge Cemetery in Dublin was the first non-denominational graveyard on the island of Ireland - and was used by people of all religions and none.\nO'Connell, an MP who led the campaign to end religious discrimination against Catholics, opened Goldenbridge in 1828.\nIt shut over a dispute with the British War Office but reopened at the weekend.\nUntil now, the gates of the two-acre site in the Dublin suburb of Inchicore had been locked and visits were permitted by appointment only.\nAbout 250 people attended a rededication ceremony at the graveyard on Sunday, which marked the opening of the site as a historical landmark and a working cemetery.\nThe attendees heard an extract from one of O'Connell's speeches, in which he said: \"We wish to live on terms of amity and affection with our brother Protestant fellow-countrymen.\n\"We earnestly desire to be united with them in our lives, and not to be separated from them in death\".\nThe Irish barrister and politician founded the graveyard at a time when Catholics were banned from having their own dedicated cemeteries.\nThey were also banned from taking seats in the House of Commons and many other public offices.\nThat began to change when O'Connell, a Catholic Irish nationalist from County Kerry, won a Commons seat to represent the County Clare constituency in 1828.\nHis election helped to pressurise the government into passing the 1829 Catholic Emancipation Act, which restored some of the civil liberties they had lost after the Reformation.\nGoldenbridge cemetery is now run by the Glasnevin Trust, and members of the public will now be able to buy new grave plots at the site.\nThe trust is the largest provider of funeral services in the Republic of Ireland and is governed by the Dublin Cemeteries Committee, which O'Connell established in 1828.\nThe chairman of trust, John Green, told BBC News NI that the British military authorities originally objected to Goldenbridge over fears that the burials would contaminate their water supply.\nHe said the cemetery was close to Dublin's Grand Canal, which at that time was used as a source of drinking water by British troops based at nearby Richmond Barracks.\nThe complaint went all the way to the Lord Chancellor's office, before a decision was taken to shut the graveyard.\nHowever, Mr Green added that an inspection of the site revealed it had good drainage, and said a more likely reason for the military objection was that troops frequently ended up in pubs with mourners after the many funerals held at the site.\nThe project to reopen the cemetery coincided with the refurbishment of Richmond Barracks as an exhibition centre.\nSunday's ceremony was held on the eve of the 170th anniversary of O'Connell's death and a wreath was laid in his memory.\nAmong the graves at Goldenbridge is that of first leader of the Irish Free State - William Thomas (WT) Cosgrave.\nHe served as the first President of the Executive Council - effectively the first Irish prime minister - from 1922 to 1932.\nCosgrave's legacy divides opinion and his grave has been vandalised in repeated attacks.\nLast year, it was one of 12 graves badly damaged days before the centenary of the 1916 Easter Rising.\nHowever, at the time Mr Green told the BBC he could not be sure the vandalism was politically motivated, as the site was regularly a target for serious anti-social behaviour, including drug dealing.\nIt is hoped the reopened graveyard will have potential as a tourist attraction.", "The Dalzell plate mill in Motherwell was mothballed by Tata Steel in 2015, along with the Clydebridge plant in Cambuslang. About 225 jobs were lost.\nLiberty House took over both facilities in April, under a deal brokered by the Scottish government's steel task force.\nDalzell is now back to rolling steel for industry. Liberty aims to re-open Clydebridge in the near future.\nMs Sturgeon was given a tour of the Dalzell mill and and met workers and apprentices during the official re-opening.\nThe first minister said: \"This is a fantastic day for Dalzell workers, for Motherwell and for Scotland's steel industry.\n\"Restarting steel production has only been possible thanks to the tremendous team effort of everyone involved in the steel taskforce to find a viable future for this site, meaning workers here in Lanarkshire can once again produce world-class products.\n\"Liberty House are seizing an exciting opportunity and the Scottish government and its agencies will continue to work with Sanjeev Gupta and his team to ensure a successful future in Scotland.\"\nLiberty Group has hired 120 staff to work at Dalzell - many of them former employees - and hopes to increase employment to 200 within 18 months.\nJon Bolton, chief executive of Liberty Steel UK, said the reopening of the plant was \"hugely important\" to the steel industry in Scotland.\nHe said: \"Without it restarting, there wouldn't be a steel industry in Scotland.\n\"It's not just about boosting the steel industry, it's about the economy. It's expected to bring in another £15m a year to the local economy.\n\"Today was the day we said we would start production and we are doing so with a vengeance. We intend to ramp up production to 150,000 tonnes a year.\"\nMr Bolton said he was \"confident\" Clydebridge would also reopen in the \"near future\", adding that other potential uses such as for manufacturing towers for wind turbines are under consideration for that plant.\nDalzell has traditionally provided steel plate for industries such as shipbuilding, construction, mining, oil production and heavy vehicle manufacture.\nLiberty said the plant had already secured \"a significant number\" of orders for plate, particularly in the construction and energy sectors.\nThe deputy leader of North Lanarkshire Council, Paul Kelly, said the local community was \"delighted\" it was reopening.\nHe said: \"It's been at the heart of our community for over 140 years, it's dominated the skyline and it's an integral part of what we're about as a local community.\n\"So the feeling really is one of optimism as we look to the future and how we can make sure this works out and creates employment opportunities.\"\nThe Scottish government set up a steel task force after Tata announced it was mothballing its plants in Motherwell and Cambuslang, with a total loss of 270 posts.\nThe government later bought the mills and immediately sold them to Liberty.\nLiberty House Group executive chairman Sanjeev Gupta paid tribute to the support of the Scottish government and Scottish Enterprise in helping the company rescue the plate works.\nHe said: \"There is an impressive spirit of partnership here and a determination to give the Scottish steel industry a real future.\n\"From our side we promised we would get this important plant open again by the autumn and today we are proud to be fulfilling that promise.\"\nHe said the firm saw \"great opportunities for investment in Scotland and regard this as a very fertile business environment\".\nScottish Labour's economy spokesman Richard Leonard said: \"Steel is written into the DNA of communities in Lanarkshire and reopening the plant is an important first step in keeping those traditions alive.\n\"The next steps here are to develop and implement an effective industrial strategy to ensure that Dalzell can have a long future and provide jobs for current and future steelworkers in Scotland.\"\n\"There are also vital lessons to be learned here for the long term future. Governments should not simply sit on their hands waiting for a crisis to happen before taking action in key industries and should work to ensure the security of high skill, high quality jobs.\"", "BBC Wales understands the expansion at Liberty Steel in Lliswerry would see scrap metal melted in an arc furnace before being turned into new products.\nThe news comes as the firm reopens a steel plant it took over in Tredegar after previous owners Caparo went into administration.\nAbout 70 jobs will be created there.\nSeventeen staff jobs were lost at the Tredegar plant when Caparo Tubes went into administration back in October 2015.\nLiberty is investing £3.7m at the site including £600,000 of \"business finance\" from the Welsh Government.\nDuncan Torrance, production manager, was one of the workers who lost his jobs in Tredegar but is now back under the new ownership.\n\"We know we've got a good product, the certification is top class - the quicker we can get the customers back, the sooner we can get people back [working] with us,\" he said.\n\"It's going to be over a period of time but if the sales warrant it, it's going to happen a lot sooner.\"\nLiberty's executive chairman Sanjeev Gupta said the reopening of Tredegar would make it \"important part of the jigsaw\" in south Wales, with steel coil coming from the Liberty plant in Newport.\nHe said the aim with the city plant was to collect scrap and turn it into liquid steel to go into making slabs, which are currently imported.\n\"Newport used to produce 2m tonnes of liquid steel so we're trying to reinstate a million tonnes of that - and the timeline to reinstate those hot furnaces, subject to everything going well, is two years,\" he said.\nMr Gupta said it was a \"crying shame\" that the UK was currently the largest per capita exporter of scrap.\n\"We have plenty of scrap already, we export 6m-7m tonnes of it, and our supply is only going to grow and grow and that is where the opportunity lies.\"\nFirst Minister Carwyn Jones, who attended the reopening on Thursday, said it was \"good news for our steel industry\".\n\"Liberty has a proven track record within the steel sector and is one of a few companies expanding in today's challenging climate,\" he said.\n\"This is another strong commitment from Liberty and I welcome their plans to modernise the site and employ former staff, retaining local skills.\"\nProduction restarted at Liberty's Newport plant in October 2015, two-and-a-half years after it was mothballed, and earlier this year Mr Gupta said expanding it to recycle scrap could eventually create 1,000 jobs.\nIn April, the company bought Tata Steel's mothballed steelworks in Scotland, and it had been bidding to buy Tata's Welsh operations, including Port Talbot, but the sales process has stalled.", "It is the first time researchers have had instruments in place to monitor so large a flow of sediment as it careered down-slope.\nThe event occurred in Monterey Canyon off the coast of California in January.\nThe mass of sand and rock kept moving for more than 50km, as it slipped from a point less than 300m below the sea surface to a depth of over 1,800m.\nSpeeds during the descent reached over 8m per second.\nAn international team running the Coordinated Canyon Experiment (CCE) is now sitting on a wealth of data.\n\"These flows, called turbidity currents, are some of the most powerful flows on Earth,\" said Dan Parsons, a professor of process sedimentology, at the University of Hull, UK.\n\"Rivers are the only other mechanism that transports comparable volumes of sediment across the globe. However, although we have hundreds of thousands of measurements from rivers, we only have a small handful of measurements from turbidity currents – often for short periods of time and at only one position within a system.\"\nSited on the California coastline where the canyon falls away into the Pacific is the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute.\nMBARI has been the launch pad for scientists these past few years to go out and place an array of sensors in the underwater gorge.\nSome of these instruments, which are lowered to the seafloor from boats, look like Mars landers.\nOne recent innovation is the Benthic Event Detector (BED). \"Think 'smart boulder',\" said MBARI’s Prof Charlie Paull, who gave details of the 15 January event here at the Fall Meeting of the American Geophysical Union.\n\"The BED is a 44cm sphere. It has an electronic package entombed within in it; it measures pressure and orientation, and will record how it moves down the canyon floor. And we use the BEDs to see the progression of the turbidity current as it rolls over one BED after another,\" he told BBC News.\nThe force of these colossal flows of sediment has been known to sever the underwater cables that carry telecommunications around the globe.\nIt was no surprise therefore to hear that the CCE’s instruments had an extremely rough ride on 15 January.\nSome sensors with anchors weighing more than a tonne were dragged 7km down the canyon. But what they recorded will be invaluable to the scientists as they seek to learn more about how turbidity currents are triggered, and how they actually work; how the material - what amounts to a kind of slurry - moves along the seafloor.\nResearchers are rapidly recognising the huge role they play in all manner of Earth processes.\nOn the grand scale, they are the end stage in a cycle that starts with tectonics and the pushing up of mountains, and which is then followed by erosion and the transport of sediments down rivers to the coasts.\nIt is turbidity currents that ultimately return a lot of this material to the deep ocean.\nMore than 400,000 cubic metres of sediment is thought to be travelling down Monterey Canyon each year on this final leg of the cycle.\n\"The flows are responsible for flushing sediments, nutrients and organic carbon into the deep ocean, which can sustain life on the abyssal plain,\" explained Prof Parsons.\n\"These novel measurements in the Monterey Canyon, utilising state-of-the art robotics and sensors, are allowing us to make a step change in our understanding of turbidity currents.\"\nAnd Prof Paull added: “The existence of these flows was something that was first described and inferred from rock deposits on land that had been pushed up. A lot of great work.\n\"They have been heavily modelled mathematically since, there have been a lot of flume studies, and remote-sensing surveys have looked at the deposits associated with them. But you notice what I left out from that list was actually making direct, physical measurements.\n\"There've been precious few made before this event and a good portion of those measurements were made in Monterey Canyon in anticipation for the CCE project.\"\nMBARI's Prof Paull leads the CCE project in collaboration with researchers from the United States Geological Survey, the Ocean University of China, the UK’s National Oceanography Centre in Southampton, the University of Durham, and the University of Hull.\nJonathan.Amos-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk and follow me on Twitter: @BBCAmos", "Tourism sites in the central Henan and Hunan provinces have been constructing vertigo-inducing skywalks in a bid to attract visitors.\nAnd it seems to have worked, attracting thrill-seeking tourists and locals, all wanting a chance to experience a bird's eye view of the Chinese countryside.\nOne of them is student Li Shu Zhen, 19, from Hangzhou city.\nShe shared with the BBC her experience of climbing the Brave Man's Bridge in Pingjiang county, Hunan province.\n\"You look down and feel a sense of fear, but you quickly recover from that and enjoy the scenery,\" she said.\n\"It was beautiful, almost as if one was walking on air.\"\nThe fully transparent bridge, which measures 300m long (984ft) and 180m high, first opened to the public in September.\nIt is one of the more popular bridges, with events - like mass yoga displays - often being staged on it.\nLocal officials say that glass panels were designed to withstand high winds and earthquakes, as well as the \"weight of 800 visitors\".\nGlass bridge fever has also spread to neighbouring Taiwan, where a 179m-high bridge opened in Nantou county.\nConstruction on the latest bridge, touted as the world's longest glass-bottomed walkway, is also nearing completion.\nStanding at 300m high and stretching 375m, the bridge will hang above the Zhangjiajie grand canyon, also in Hunan province.\nGearing up for the bridge's 2016 opening, officials have even enlisted the public's help in naming it.\nOne of its engineers, Yang Guohong, from state-owned China Railway Major Bridge Reconnaissance and Design Institute, said contractors had taken extra safety precautions.\n\"No matter how the tourists jump on the bridge, it will still be fine,\" he told the People's Daily newspaper.\n\"The steel structures beneath it are incredibly dense, so even if the glass breaks, visitors won't fall through.\"\nBut architects who spoke to the BBC said that such glass bridges were often \"primarily a novelty, built as visitor attractions rather than commuter bridges\".\nArchitect Keith Brownlie, who was involved in a glass bridge for The London Science Museum, said that the appeal was \"thrill\".\n\"It is the relationship between emotionally driven fear and the logical understanding of safety,\" he said. \"These structures tread the boundary between those two contrasting senses and people like to challenge their rational mind in relation to their irrational fear.\"\nOthers felt that the bridges symbolised extravagance, especially in China.\n\"In architecture, glass has always been associated with luxury and often as a display of wealth,\" said bridge designer Ezra Groskin.\n\"Glass floor panels, used in the creation of invisible architecture, are not a new phenomenon. However its use is often restricted due to cost and practicality.\"\nBut how safe are China's glass bridges?\nAn incident in October sent terrified visitors fleeing in fear after part of a glass skywalk in Henan province's Yuntai Mountain Geological Park cracked, despite only being open for two weeks.\nPark officials closed the walkway immediately, later saying there was \"no reason for worry\" and that the cracks had \"no impact on safety\".\nBut experts questioned the use of glass in an exposed mountain environment.\n\"While a glass structure designed by a competent engineer and manufactured by a specialist contractor has no greater risk in terms of structural integrity than any other building material, glass can be prone to localised shocks,\" noted architect Adam Holicska.\n\"The use of it in a mountain environment where there is a potential risk of rock impact can make it a questionable choice.\"\nArchitect Keith Brownlie added that the cleaning of glass panels and lack of slip resistance should also be considered in such an environment.\n\"One issue with glass decks is the problem of grip,\" he said. \"Glass is slippery and so anti-slip properties must be provided,\"\n\"Please, no more such bridges,\" commented a user on China's popular micro-blogging site Weibo. \"Judging from this incident, it is only a matter of time before more serious accidents and deaths occur.\"\nBut glass bridge enthusiasts remain undeterred.\n\"I still would not hesitate to visit other glass bridges soon,\" Ms Li admitted.\nOther netizens on the site also expressed similar opinions.\n\"I am confident that officials will step up additional measures after that happened,\" said one Weibo user.\n\"Thankfully deaths were avoided but one bad incident should not put one off from conquering such a spectacular bridge.\"\nAnother compared it to other bridges of the world: \"If Sydney's Harbour Bridge experienced a crack, I doubt government officials would close it down. So we should not let such an episode affect our opinions about our unique Chinese structures.\"", "New arrivals from Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia reached 3,356 in January but in March the number registered from those countries was 480, Germany's Federal Office for Migration (BAMF) said.\nGermany wants to declare those countries officially \"safe\", to make repatriation of non-refugees easier.\nNorth African migrants were blamed for many assaults on women at New Year.\nGermans were shocked by the scale of the sexual violence in Cologne, in which most suspects were men who had entered Germany illegally or sought asylum. There were similar attacks - to a lesser degree - in Duesseldorf and Hamburg.\nThe \"safe country of origin\" designation would enable officials to argue that returning migrants to those countries - jointly known as the Maghreb - would not violate their human rights.\nHowever, human rights activists point out that there is persecution of homosexuals in the Maghreb and cases of torture in Morocco.\nThe German parliament has not approved the \"safe country\" designation, so it is not yet law.\nLate last year the numbers of Maghreb migrants entering Germany surged, relative to those from other countries.\nBut the main countries of origin were Syria, Albania and Kosovo.\n1.1m\nRecord number of asylum seekers registered in 2015\n477,000 formal applications - 135% increase on 2014\n34% of asylum-seekers come from Syria\n181,405 asylum applications in Jan-Mar 2016\nThose who can prove they fled war or persecution usually get refugee status and a right to asylum. Nearly all Syrians qualify - but very few Balkan migrants do.\nOnly 2.1% of the Maghreb migrants registered got international protection status in Germany last year, and the figure for the first quarter of this year was 0.7%, said the BAMF report, quoted by Funke media group newspapers.\nThe total influx of migrants to Germany has slumped in recent weeks, since Balkan states began tightening their borders and an EU deal with Turkey took effect, aimed at curbing the migrant flow to Greece.\nSome 20,000 people applied for asylum in Germany in March; in December it was 120,000. More than a million migrants entered Germany last year - a record number.\nEU-Turkey migrant deal is 'working'\nEU asylum seekers 'doubled in 2015'\nEU migration: Crisis in seven charts\nA note on terminology: The BBC uses the term migrant to refer to all people on the move who have yet to complete the legal process of claiming asylum. This group includes people fleeing war-torn countries such as Syria, who are likely to be granted refugee status, as well as people who are seeking jobs and better lives, who governments are likely to rule are economic migrants.", "Two centuries have passed since the British admiral last laid his bicorn hat down here.\nBut Nelson's Dockyard in Antigua still conjures up evocative images of its 18th-Century position at the helm of imperialist Britain's crusade for wealth and power.\nBuilt by enslaved Africans during the Age of Sail, its function was to maintain Royal Navy warships protecting Britain's valuable sugar-producing islands.\nToday, it is home to several of the globe's most prestigious regattas and is a lynchpin of the Eastern Caribbean country's tourism product.\nAfter the sugar industry waned in the mid-19th Century, Britain turned its attention elsewhere and the dockyard was closed in 1889.\nBut its abandonment, save for a clutch of local boat builders, would become its boon, resulting in an architectural time capsule of maritime glory, complete with stately stone pillars and abundant artefacts, and flanked by original fortresses.\nUnited Nations cultural agency Unesco, which in July awarded it World Heritage Site status, concluded that there is nowhere else like it in the region.\nAntigua's Unesco representative, local historian Reg Murphy, described the accolade as a \"huge bonus\" for the nation of 90,000 people.\n\"I think it's the biggest thing that's ever happened to this island,\" he told the BBC.\n\"It means the dockyard is recognised worldwide as being of outstanding importance. Our small developing country can now stand head to head with the Taj Mahal, the Grand Canyon and the Pyramids of Giza.\n\"For tourism purposes, it's a marketing tool you can't pay for.\"\nMr Murphy said the rigorous application process included detailed definitions of every structure, along with comprehensive management and conservation plans for the sprawling area which also includes several adjacent archaeological sites.\nHe explained that construction at the dockyard began as early as the 1720s but its strategic importance increased after Britain lost the American War of Independence.\nSuddenly it had two new enemies in the United States and its ally, France.\n\"Sugar from the Caribbean was funding the Industrial Revolution and the development of Britain. With warships sailing around the region, Britain had to protect her assets and keep her ships safe too in a place where they could be properly serviced and cleaned,\" Mr Murphy said.\nThe deep narrow bays of Antigua's south coast, surrounded by highlands, create natural harbours offering shelter from hurricanes.\n\"No other island has that,\" Mr Murphy said.\n\"Britain had a huge military advantage as it was able to keep its fleet there during hurricane season while every other country had to send theirs back home.\"\nAntigua's geographical location, at the gateway to the Caribbean, also offered control over the major sailing routes to and from the rich island colonies.\nIt was a year after the War of Independence ended that the dockyard would receive its most illustrious resident.\nA reluctant Nelson was sent by Britain to enforce the Navigation Act which barred foreign ships from trading with British colonies and made him hugely unpopular with local merchants who depended on trade with the fledgling United States.\nNelson is said to have spent much of his three years there in the cramped quarters of his ship, the 125ft (38m) frigate Boreas, declaring Antigua to be an \"infernal hole\" and lamenting in letters back home of melancholy and mosquitoes.\nThese days, the dockyard is a vibrant vestige of the island's colonial legacy thanks to the major restoration programme.\nIt features original sail loft pillars and numerous buildings such as the 1789 Copper and Lumber Store, now a hotel by the same name, the former Naval Officer's house, now a museum, officers' quarters, guard station and even a small bakery dating back to 1772 which still contains three ovens that once supplied the compound with fresh bread.\nAlso included under the Unesco designation are various fortifications which were constructed to protect the area from invaders.\nAmong them is Shirley Heights Lookout, a favourite tourist haunt on account of its spectacular panoramic views.\nGalleon Beach, a former burial site for British sailors who fell victim to 18th-Century yellow fever outbreaks, also falls within the boundaries.\nThe latter was only discovered when a 2010 hurricane uncovered remarkably well-preserved human remains paving the way for an extensive excavation project.\nFor this unique district where past and present collide, the Unesco award enforces strict oversight and severely limits future development to ensure the preservation of a place which encapsulates a crucial point in history.", "How did Jackson Hole - more than 2,000 miles west of Washington DC - become a favoured retreat for central bankers and economists from around the world?\nOfficially, the answer is work.\nA regional branch of the US Federal Reserve hosts an annual conference each August at the Jackson Lake Lodge in the heart of Grand Teton National Park.\nBut as with the millions of other tourists who pass through the area every summer, nature was the original draw.\nThe Kansas City Federal Reserve, one of the US central bank's regional entities, started holding an annual conference in 1978. In the early years, the discussions focused on agriculture, but organisers had aspirations for a more high-profile event.\nThe hope was that the location - in the middle of a national park - might help woo then Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker, who was known to be \"fond of fly-fishing\", the bank's history of the event recounts.\n\"I said we need a place for our next symposium (where) people can fish for trout,\" recalled Tom Davis, a former senior vice-president and head of economic research at the Kansas City Federal Reserve.\nMr Volcker accepted, but did reportedly raise questions about the distance.\n\"He said, 'Roger, how in the hell did you ever get to Jackson, Wyoming?'\" former Federal Reserve president Roger Guffey said.\nIndeed. Jackson Hole has been a haunt for plutocrats for decades.\nJohn D. Rockefeller, heir to the Standard Oil fortune, vacationed there, famously buying up thousands of acres that eventually formed much of what is now Grand Teton National Park.\nThe valley counts actors Sandra Bullock and Harrison Ford among its homeowners. Celebrity sightings include Pippa Middleton, while singer James Blunt recorded the music video for his song Bonfire Heart in the area.\n\"It's one of the most beautiful spots in the United States and it is sometimes hard to tear oneself away from the views to go back inside and listen to more discussions about monetary policy,\" said economist Alan Auerbach of the University of California, Berkeley, who will be speaking at the conference this year.\nThe Federal Reserve knows the prime location is part of the conference's popularity, but officials are alert to any implication that the conference is just an excuse for a luxury escape.\n\"The symposium is not considered a vacation getaway,\" the bank insists in its materials. \"Jackson Hole is well known for its many resorts catering to outdoors enthusiasts from around the world, but the symposium is held each year at the Lodge, which, in line with its National Park setting, does not have some accommodations commonly found at other sites, such as a spa, exercise room or salon. In fact, televisions are not available in the Lodge's rooms.\"\n(The website of the hotel is a bit more enthusiastic, citing \"all the amenities and guest services you would expect from a full-service resort\".)\nA spokesman for the Federal Reserve declined to reveal how much the event costs, what participants are charged or how it is kept within the venue's capacity limits.\nThe company that runs the Jackson Lake Lodge for the National Park Service also declined to comment on the event or how quickly the 300-plus rooms at the lodge get booked. (Cabins and camp sites are also a possibility.)\nNothing appeared to be available this weekend, but some rooms were going for about £270 a night at the start of September if you can stand a 14-hour flight from London, according to hotel booking websites.\nTechnically, the lodge, as a National Park Service facility, remains open to the public throughout the event.\nIn 2014, a group of green-shirted protesters crashed the party. They were convinced to return to meet with officials in a more formal capacity two years later.\nThe tiny town of Jackson, a 45-minute drive south from the hotel, sees about four million people pass through every summer. Visitors are such a reliable crowd that the Jackson Hole Travel and Tourism Board focuses its promotion efforts on other seasons, says its boss, Kate Sollitt.\nSo while investors around the world may be alert to any hints given by Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen and European Central Bank president Mario Draghi on Friday, locals say it's practically a non-event.\n\"The majority of our community doesn't even know they're here,\" Ms Sollitt said.\nThis week especially bankers were eclipsed, as Jackson was one of the places in the US where the sun and the moon would fully overlap, said Gavin Fine, owner of Fine Dining Restaurant Group and Rendezvous Bistro, which he said has been patronised by former Federal Reserve chairs Alan Greenspan and Ben Bernanke among others.\n\"We were in the path of totality so we had an influx of hundreds of thousands of people,\" he said.\nStill, when it comes to name recognition, Mr Fine says playing host to the Federal Reserve every year \"doesn't hurt\".", "Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio was sued by a group of Hispanic drivers who said his deputies relied on race when choosing whom to stop.\nJudge Murray Snow ruled his deputies may not factor in Hispanic ancestry when making law-enforcement decisions.\nMr Arpaio denied the allegations.\nThe sheriff's office \"has never used race and will never use race in its law-enforcement decisions\", said his lawyer Tim Casey, who promised to appeal the decision.\n\"This is an important victory that will resound far beyond Maricopa County,\" said Cecillia Wang, director of the American Civil Liberties Union Immigrants' Rights Project.\n\"Singling people out for traffic stops and detentions simply because they're Latino is illegal and just plain un-American.\"\nThe ruling was handed down on Friday, eight months after a seven-day trial.\nAt the trial, Maricopa County officials testified that the sheriff's anti-illegal immigrant squad targeted locations where Hispanic day labourers gathered to await work.\nThe judge found the deputies did not routinely check the immigration status of every day labourer, merely those who were of Hispanic origin. Mr Arpaio himself testified he would not investigate the immigration status of white people because he assumed they were in the US legally.\n\"The evidence demonstrates that the [Maricopa County Sheriff's Office] specifically equated being a Hispanic or Mexican (as opposed to Caucasian or African-American) day labourer with being an unauthorized alien,\" Judge Snow wrote in a 142-page decision.\nJudge Snow also found the deputies relied on pretexts to pull over vehicles in which they suspected the passengers to be illegal immigrants.\nThe ruling bars Maricopa County deputies from using Hispanic ancestry or race in making law-enforcement decisions, including in decisions to stop a person and verify his or her authorisation to be in the US.\nIt also bars the deputies from detaining Hispanic vehicle passengers based on \"reasonable belief, without more\", that they are in the country illegally.\nThe case was brought by a Mexican tourist stopped outside a church where day labourers were known to congregate and subsequently detained for nine hours, the Arizona Republic reported.\nHe and others who sued Mr Arpaio alleged he ordered some immigration patrols based on citizens' complaints about brown-skinned people congregating or speaking Spanish.\nMr Arpaio's office has also been sued by the US justice department, which accused his office of multiple civil liberties violations, including punishing Hispanic jail inmates for speaking Spanish.\nMr Arpaio shot to prominence by forcing prisoners to wear pink underwear. In 2012, he suggested President Barack Obama's birth certificate was a forgery after an investigation by his \"cold case posse\".", "Liberty Steel reopened the mothballed rolling mill in Newport in October and is now employing 170 people.\nThe company's executive chairman Sanjeev Gupta said he now believed restarting the site's arc furnace would be \"100% viable\".\nExperts said the plans were interesting but challenging given energy costs.\nLiberty recently bought parts of the Caparo steel company - including a plant in Tredegar, Blaenau Gwent, after it went into administration, saving 900 jobs.\nThe company has also started negotiations to buy two of Tata Steel's mothballed plants in Scotland, where almost 300 jobs are at risk.\nIt comes as the steel industry has lost thousands of jobs, most recently with Tata announcing 1,050 redundancies in January - most at its Port Talbot site.\nOn Monday, 5,000 steelworkers, including more than 50 from Wales, marched in Brussels demanding action from the EU to put an end to cheap imports from China.\nMr Gupta told BBC Wales restarting the arc furnace would see the company take scrap metal and recycle it into products that could be used in growing industries including automotives, aerospace and defence.\nThe process requires a lot of energy - Celsa in Cardiff follows a similar process and it uses 40% of the city's electricity. But the UK government has introduced financial support to help companies with energy costs.\nThe Gupta family, who own the nearby Usk power station, has invested in tidal lagoon proposals in an effort to reduce these costs longer-term - a key part of Mr Gupta's plan for the future of steel production.\nHe also said Liberty was developing an \"integrated model\" for the industry.\n\"We don't want to just make steel, we want to make products that are made out of steel, add value to them and complete the change from end-to-end,\" he said.\nThere are also \"fundamental mindset issues,\" Mr Gupta said.\n\"We don't have any burdens, we don't have any debt. We operate as a small company. We make decisions quickly,\" he explained.\nCardiff Business School's Prof Peter Wells, an expert on sustainability and the automotive industry, said Liberty's plans were interesting but challenging given the world market.\n\"The longer term supply and demand position for steel is quite uncertain. It is likely that there will be continuing over-capacity in the sector which will depress global steel prices but it is not certain that supplies of sufficient quality can be guaranteed,\" he said\nSteel production may not be seen as the best use of renewable energy in the UK in future, he added.", "German Chancellor Angela Merkel said negotiations would be \"complicated\" but the direction was clear.\nThe proposed deal would see all migrants travelling to Greece from Turkey sent back.\nIn return the EU might offer Turkey incentives, including financial aid and visa-free access to Schengen countries.\nThe aim is to establish a joint position of all 28 EU member states before talks with the Turkish prime minister on Friday.\nBut Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite warned that the plan to return people to Turkey was \"on the edge of international law\" and difficult to implement. And Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel said he could not accept negotiations that looked like blackmail.\nSince January 2015, a million migrants and refugees have entered the EU by boat from Turkey to Greece. More than 132,000 have arrived this year alone.\nTens of thousands are now stuck in Greece as their route north has been blocked.\n\"Germany will negotiate intensively because we have to improve the humanitarian situation in Greece,\" Mrs Merkel said.\nDutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said if a deal could be reached the influx of migrants from Turkey to the Greek islands could be stopped \"in three to four weeks\".\nUnder initial proposals, for each Syrian migrant returned to Turkey, a different Syrian would be resettled in the EU directly from the country.\nIn return, the EU would double financial aid to Turkey promised last year, make a fresh push on talks over Turkey's eventual membership of the EU and offer visa-free travel to Europe's Schengen states.\nHowever, those proposals have since been watered down, lowering expectation on greater financial help and talks on EU membership and linking visa-free travel to 72 conditions to which Turkey must agree.\nEU member Cyprus has threatened to veto a deal. The Greek Cypriot government is not recognised by Turkey.\nThe Spanish foreign minister has said Spain will oppose the \"blanket return\" of refugees to Turkey.\nStressing what he called the UK's special status in the EU, Prime Minister David Cameron said he would not be offering visa-free access to Turkey. What mattered was \"busting the business model of the people smugglers\".\nA number of EU countries have raised concerns about what is on offer to Turkey amid a clampdown by the Ankara government on academics and journalists.\nGerman magazine Der Spiegel said on Thursday it had withdrawn its Istanbul correspondent, Hasnain Kazim, after the authorities refused to renew his press accreditation.\nEU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said the talks with Turkey would not just focus on migration.\n\"We have the internal situation in Turkey we are working on, being it the human rights and the rule of law issues, being it the necessary process with the Kurds to reopen spaces for peace,\" she said.\nA note on terminology: The BBC uses the term migrant to refer to all people on the move who have yet to complete the legal process of claiming asylum. This group includes people fleeing war-torn countries such as Syria, who are likely to be granted refugee status, as well as people who are seeking jobs and better lives, who governments are likely to rule are economic migrants.", "Owners the British Racing Drivers' Club says it cannot afford to host the race after 2019 unless a new deal is agreed.\nHorner says the decision to exercise its break clause risks the race being moved to a London street track.\n\"They signed a contract. They knew what they were entering and they've now realised they can't afford it, despite having a full house every year.\"\nHe added: \"They either shouldn't have signed it in the first place or they got their maths wrong.\"\nThe BRDC had a contract until 2027 but it contained a break clause to end the deal after 2019 which had to be activated before this year's race this weekend.\nSilverstone sought to reach a compromise agreement with F1's new owners Liberty Media but these talks failed.\nLiberty offered a series of options to try to help Silverstone but the track believed these were not satisfactory.\nMedia playback is not supported on this device\nF1 is hosting an event in London on Wednesday, with all the teams and many drivers taking part in a demonstration at Trafalgar Square.\nHorner is a member of the BRDC but said he did not involve himself in any club decisions.\nHe added: \"Liberty have made a commitment that there'll be a British Grand Prix but with this London event happening, if that was a success - which hopefully it should be - with the recent legislation changes there have been in the City of London, you can imagine a London grand prix being pretty attractive to the Liberty guys.\n\"So Silverstone need to be a little bit careful how they handle themselves and negotiate, that they don't find themselves losing out. I'm amazed they have triggered their break clause.\"\nJohn Grant, the BRDC chairman, dismissed the idea of a street race in London.\n\"Most informed observers would say a London event is just not feasible - politically, environmentally or commercially,\" he said.\nHorner added: \"From Liberty's perspective this is a historic problem rather than something recent. Silverstone get favourable rates anyway. It is hard to imagine they lose money putting 120,000 people in there, plus all the corporates and everything else during the course of the weekend.\n\"I'd question how it's been managed and the negotiation they had in the first place.\"\nGrant said Silverstone had \"sustained losses of £2.8m in 2015 and £4.8m in 2016, and we expect to lose a similar amount this year\".\nThe current contract was negotiated by a previous management team, which left the track under a cloud a few years ago.\nIt started at £12m in 2010, but costs £16.9m this year and would have been £27.5m in 2027 had Silverstone not exercised its get-out clause.\nThe contract was predicated on updates to the track, including a new pit and paddock complex, but Horner said these had been badly executed.\n\"They spent a fortune on the pits and put them in the wrong place,\" he said.\n\"They've created a paddock that has zero atmosphere at one of the most historic race tracks in the UK so there was some serious misjudgement and management, one would say.\n\"But it is the British Grand Prix and Britain should absolutely have a grand prix. But there have been some questionable calls made.\n\"It would be shocking to lose Silverstone from the calendar and even more shocking to lose a British Grand Prix when you consider 80% of the teams are based within the UK and how much the UK contributes to F1 from a historical point of view.\"", "More than 7,000 gallons (31,800 litres) of oil have been mopped from the spill - a fraction of the 20,000 gallons officials say spilled into the sea after a pipe burst on Tuesday.\nFederal officials are to excavate the pipe to find clues to how it ruptured.\nThe company responsible for the pipeline has publicly apologised.\nUp to 105,000 gallons spilled over a period of three hours on Tuesday - the majority of the oil remained on land.\nMore than 300 federal, state and local responders are now on the scene.\nCalifornia Governor Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency on Wednesday to help the state \"quickly mobilise all available resources\".\n\"We will do everything necessary to protect California's coastline,\" he added.\nState and local prosecutors are investigating the incident to see if criminal charges could be brought or if there are grounds for civil liability.\nIt is estimated about 21,000 gallons of oil have reached the ocean, forming a nine-mile (15km) slick. and it remains unclear how long the clean-up process will take or what it will cost.\n\"We deeply, deeply regret that this incident has occurred at all,\" Plains All American Pipeline LP Chairman and CEO Greg Armstrong said, apologising.\nMr Armstrong vowed that his company \"will remain here until everything has been restored to normal\".\nEmergency workers have been fanning out across Refugio State Beach to remove oil that is stuck to sand and rocks.\nOfficials are pleading with members of the public that wish to volunteer to go through official channels, because of the health risks that working around the oil can present.\nThe 24-inch pipe was built in 1991 and had been tested a few weeks ago, company officials said.\nEnvironmentalists are concerned that the oil may harm wildlife including birds and whales, with seals, sea lions and whales also migrating north through the area.\n\"It smells like what they use to pave the roads,\" tourist Fan Yang told the Associated Press news agency. \"I'm sad for the birds, if they lose their habitat.\"\nA wildlife official said that five oiled pelicans are now being treated at a wildlife facility, and that a number of dead marine animals have been recovered.\nThe spill happened on the same stretch of beach as a 1969 spill - one that is credited with starting the American environmental movement.\nIn that incident, several hundred thousand gallons spewed from a blowout on an oil platform, resulting in the death of thousands of seabirds and marine mammals.\nThe alarm was first raised on Tuesday when authorities received reports of a foul smell near Refugio State Beach around midday (04:00 GMT).\nEmergency responders found a half-mile slick in the ocean and traced the origin to a ruptured onshore pipeline spewing oil into a rainwater drain which ran to the ocean.\nThe pipeline was shut off about three hours later.", "Llandudno's Grand Theatre, Colwyn Bay's Pier Pavilion and Conwy Civic Hall are all on The Theatres Trust's Theatre Buildings at Risk Register 2015.\nThey are joined by Muni Arts Centre in Pontypridd and Swansea's Palace.\nThe trust said, if restored, the theatres could make \"significant contributions\" to communities.\nMhora Samuel, director of The Theatres Trust, said investment in other at-risk theatres had shown they could be brought back to life and help \"re-animate\" local cultural life.\n\"Whilst these buildings sit empty and underused all they represent is an untapped opportunity,\" she added.\nIn total, the 2015 register includes 31 buildings across England and Wales.\nThe Theatre's Trust's assessment of the at-risk theatres\nMuni Arts Centre, Pontypridd\nOriginally a Wesleyan Chapel, which was open between 1895 and 1961, it is a typical turn of the century ecclesiastical building. The venue was converted into a theatre in 1990 and its programme included theatre, stand-up comedy, live music, dances and wedding receptions. It is a truly multi-functional studio space. On 14 May 2014, Rhonda Cynon Taf Council approved closure of the Muni Arts Centre and it closed its doors that November. However, the Muni Working Group has recently reopened it.\nPalace, Swansea\nOpened in 1888 as the Pavilion Theatre of Varieties, The Palace has a dramatic exterior and is built on a triangular site in Swansea. It later became a nightclub before closing in 2006. Its exterior became increasingly neglected and plant growth caused some damage to the stonework, while the interior was in a dangerous state. In January 2015, Swansea council offered an emergency grant to the theatre's owners to make the building safe and watertight, and this work is nearly complete.\nCivic Hall, Cowny\nSituated in the centre of Conwy, the Civic Hall was designed in Tudor Gothic style but had to be rebuilt following a fire in 1966. A report for Conwy council in 2007 suggested the hall had reached the end of its working life. Campaigners proposed to take over the management of the venue but their plans, submitted in late 2013, were rejected by the council. The Civic Hall is now closed, with an unclear future.\nPier Pavilion, Colwyn Bay\nThe original pier pavilion, in the Moorish style and dating from 1900, was destroyed by fire in 1923. It was rebuilt in a less decorative style and again rebuilt after another fire in 1933. The Pavilion currently stands empty. On 12 December 2013, Conwy council voted in favour of de-listing and demolition the building, stating that a restoration would be too costly. An application for demolition was finally approved on 9 July 2015.\nGrand Theatre, Llandudno\nThe imposing building was used as a theatre between 1901 and 1985 then later as a nightclub. The theatre's under-stage equipment is a particularly rare survival, including original wooden traps in working order and old wind machine. Designed by the internationally renowned Edwardian theatre architect, Edwin O Sachs, this is potentially the best traditional theatre in north Wales not in theatre use. The nightclub closed in June 2013 but the building's new owner intends to reopen it as a nightclub after carrying out repair work.", "Despite a \"deep legacy of distrust\" Iran is \"too important a player\" to leave isolated, Philip Hammond said.\nThe two countries could also work together to tackle the Islamic State group, he told BBC Radio 4's Today.\nMr Hammond held talks with Iranian president Hassan Rouhani in Tehran. He said sanctions could be lifted next spring, Reuters reported.\n\"We could be talking as early as next spring to start to see sanctions lifting off,\" Mr Hammond said, according to the news agency.\nOn Sunday, the British embassy in Iran reopened, nearly four years after it was closed after it was stormed by protesters during a demonstration against sanctions.\nMr Hammond is the first UK foreign secretary to visit Iran since 2003.\nHe said Britain and Iran had a \"difficult history\", but relations had been steadily getting better and reopening diplomacy was a \"sensible way forward\".\n\"Yes, we should tread carefully. There is a deep legacy of distrust on both sides, and we have major areas where we have very substantial policy differences, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't be talking.\n\"We do see eye-to-eye on the need to interdict the opium traffic between Afghanistan and Europe, we do see eye-to-eye on the need to challenge Isil [also known as Islamic State],\" he said.\nHe was \"not blind\" to areas of contention, including Iran's human rights record, but the UK would not be able to influence such issues unless it opened a dialogue with the country's leaders, he said.\nFollowing his meeting with President Rouhani, Mr Hammond told the BBC: \"In all of the meetings we've been to we've heard a consistent message that Iran wants to do business with Britain, that it wants to see a new chapter in our relationship, that Iran will very much be open to British and other foreign businesses in this next phase.\"\nMr Hammond's visit and the reopening of the embassy comes weeks after Iran reached a deal with six world powers aimed at curbing its nuclear programme.\nInitially, the embassy will be headed by a charge d'affaires, Ajay Sharma, but Mr Hammond said an agreement on upgrading to full ambassador status is expected to be reached in the coming months.\nThe foreign secretary acknowledged there were no guarantees the Iranian regime would not pursue a nuclear weapons programme in the future, but \"you have to make a judgement\".\n\"My judgement is that whatever Iran has or hasn't been doing in the past, the regime, the Iranian people, have come to the conclusion that pursuing, or being believed to pursue, an illegal military nuclear programme just imposes too great a cost on Iran,\" he said.\nAn Iran that was no longer isolated was \"the best bet for the future\", he said.\nIn November 2011 Iran announced it was expelling the UK's ambassador in retaliation for British support for tougher sanctions on Tehran over its nuclear programme.\nHundreds of protesters stormed embassy compounds two days later, smashing windows, torching cars and burning union jacks.\nThe UK responded by closing the Iranian embassy in London later that month.\nBut following the election of Mr Rouhani and an agreement on how to deal with Iran's nuclear programme, the then Foreign Secretary William Hague proposed the reopening of the embassy in June last year.", "The former airbase buildings, now known as the Liberty Ballroom, are said to have hosted stars like Roy Orbison and Johnny Cash.\nThe Ceroc Black and White Ball was the final ever event held on Sunday.\nThe owner says no final decision has been made on the venue's future but it can no longer subsidise the operation.\nJulian May, spokesman for Greenham Common Trust, said: \"We understand that many residents, and particularly the dancing community in Newbury and surrounding areas, feel deeply attached to the building.\n\"A conservative estimate to repair the ballroom roof and building could be approaching £500,000 to £750,000, along with significant annual maintenance costs.\n\"It would be wrong of us to pour money into one amenity that needs a great deal of work and is sadly beyond its economic life, when that same amount could be used to help many other local charitable causes.\"\nHarry Cobb, director of Liberty Newbury, which leases the ballroom from the trust, said: \"On a monthly basis, when there are a lot of good events, we can get upwards of 2,000 people through the doors, if not 3,000.\n\"We have tried our best and we have invested significant amounts but, without the help and support of the trust, it's just not feasible for us as a limited company to invest those sums in the premises.\"\nSteph Guyatt, who met her husband Steve at the venue on 24 December five years ago, said: \"We are genuinely devastated, not just for ourselves... it's a place where you have an age range of 20s through to their 80s - you wouldn't get that in the pubs or the restaurant culture in Newbury.\n\"There are a lot of elderly people who come and dance with us who wouldn't go out normally. We feel if that's lost to them they'll end up back in their homes and isolated the same as so many other people and that's what we're trying to avoid as a society.\"\nThe complex of buildings, which first sprang up on the former airbase in the late 1950s and early 1960s, has evolved over the years and includes a sports hall and a competition-grade maple-sprung dancefloor.\nIt was reopened as the Liberty Ballroom in 1994, two years after the military left the site, and taken over by Liberty Newbury in 2013.\nTrevor Banning remembers the venue during the days of the military.\nHe said: \"I was a Greenham boy. I grew up at Greenham and my mum met her second husband at the Liberty Ballroom - or The Bar as it was at the time - in 1981. As a result, I spent a lot of my youth, particularly from the age of 13 to 15, in and around that building.\"\nBallroom regular Mo Stoner said: \"It was handed back from the US to the Ministry of Defence in 1993 and since then it's been once of those venues you always go to - it's got an amazing floor - it's just once of those venues you can't replace.\n\"It's just a shame because there are 700, maybe 900 members but you just get 100 people turning up on a regular basis.\n\"Until you've lost it, you don't know what you've lost.\"", "\"There are very, very many, but there are 80 million of us,\" she told residents of Nuremberg, Bavaria. \"We can and will manage this integration.\"\nShe urged Germans to get to know the newcomers \"as much as possible\".\nIn Freiberg, eastern Germany, several hundred demonstrators tried to block buses carrying migrants late on Sunday.\nPolice managed to clear the crowd away, but there were scuffles and firecrackers were thrown at the convoy, which was carrying about 700 migrants, Germany's ARD TV reported.\nMeanwhile, the authorities in Passau - a major Bavarian transit hub for asylum seekers - said they had been overwhelmed by a new influx of some 15,000 people who arrived from Austria at the weekend.\nSeveral hundred spent a night out in the cold on the Austrian side of the border before reaching Germany, as the Austrian authorities said they had run out of beds for them.\nPassau has now urged Berlin to send extra federal police and soldiers to help look after the migrants. Many of them are refugees from the conflicts in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan.\nGermany expects at least 800,000 asylum seekers this year - some estimates put it as high as 1.5 million. That is at least four times the number who arrived last year.\nSpeaking in Nuremberg, Ms Merkel said failed asylum seekers must be sent back more systematically, and \"on this we must be much stricter\".\nShe was referring especially to migrants from Western Balkan countries such as Kosovo and Albania, now considered safe by the German authorities.\nBut an official German report leaked on Sunday recommends that the federal authorities also send back many more Afghans than previously.\nOnly about half of the Afghans reaching Germany qualify for asylum, but few have been repatriated. The authorities are concerned because they are the biggest and fastest-growing group after Syrians.\nSlovenia's police said on Monday that nearly 10,000 migrants had arrived from Croatia in the past 24 hours. In total almost 75,000 have entered the tiny Alpine country in the past 12 days.\nThe United Nations has welcomed an agreement between European Union and Balkan leaders to control the flow of migrants heading for northern Europe.\nThe heads of 11 EU states and three non-EU countries agreed to provide another 100,000 spaces in refugee reception centres.\nBut the EU neighbours in Central Europe and the Balkans have exchanged angry accusations in the current crisis.\nThe UN High Commission for Refugees says 157,000 migrants have arrived in Greece so far this month - more than in any month this year. The European Commission is offering additional aid to Greece to deal with the crisis.\nA note on terminology: The BBC uses the term migrant to refer to all people on the move who have yet to complete the legal process of claiming asylum. This group includes people fleeing war-torn countries such as Syria, who are likely to be granted refugee status, as well as people who are seeking jobs and better lives, who governments are likely to rule are economic migrants.", "Students at California State University have been urged to contact university police immediately if they are approached by immigration officials.\nSeveral US universities are trying to resist potential student deportations - some using the term \"sanctuary campus\".\nMr Trump has announced tougher enforcement of immigration rules.\nFormer President Barack Obama focused on deporting only immigrants convicted of serious crimes, those considered threats to national security or those who had arrived recently.\nMr Trump's administration issued memos this week expanding the list of undocumented immigrants prioritised for \"expedited removal\".\nSupporters say enforcing the law discourages further illegal immigration, which they say is too high and threatens security.\nWhat is life like in sanctuary cities since Trump came to power?\nIs arrest of a 'dreamer' a sign of things to come?\nHas Trump started a new deportation drive?\nWednesday's memorandum from CSU Chancellor Timothy White said the university would \"continue to make every lawful effort to provide a safe and welcoming campus environment for all of our students\", which, it says, include some who lack immigration documentation.\nThere has been continued concern about 750,000 undocumented immigrants who were brought to the US illegally as children, known as Dreamers.\nTheir deportation proceedings were deferred under the Obama administration programme known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (Daca).\nMr Trump's presidential campaign website said he planned to \"immediately terminate\" the programme.\nBut since coming into office he has said he finds the subject \"very, very tough\" and intends to show \"great heart\" in dealing with what he described as, in many cases, \"incredible kids\".\nThe Department for Homeland Security made it clear on Tuesday that the new memos on enforcement do not affect Daca, but gave no detail on the programme's future.\nMr White's memo said some undocumented students at CSU do not even have Daca status.\nHe stressed the university would not help law enforcement agencies to enforce federal immigration laws.\n\"Our university police departments will not honour immigration hold requests, and our university police will not contact, detain, question, or arrest individuals solely on the basis of being - or suspected of being - a person who lacks documentation,\" he wrote.\nThe CSU memo comes as students at Florida State University voted to request their university declare itself a \"sanctuary campus\".\nDozens of universities have come under pressure from students to follow the model of \"sanctuary cities\" - jurisdictions which have enacted policies protecting undocumented immigrants within their boundaries.\nOfficials in these designated areas, including local law enforcement, are not allowed to inquire about an individual's immigration status in the course of their duties.\nWesleyan University in Connecticut declared itself a sanctuary campus in November, saying it would \"not voluntarily assist in any efforts by the federal government to deport our students, faculty or staff solely because of their citizenship status\".\nBut others have steered clear of the term, arguing it has no clear definition.\nAlso on Wednesday, the lower house of the state legislature in the state of Georgia approved a measure that would cut off funding to colleges failing to comply with President Trump's immigration policy.\n\"Not to put too fine a point on it, there is no sanctuary from the law,\" Republican Rep Earl Ehrhart, who introduced the measure, was quoted by local media as saying.", "The US government has partially closed after Congress failed to agree a budget and will run out of cash on 17 October unless its debt ceiling is raised.\nIn a TV interview on Wednesday, Mr Obama said he was \"exasperated\".\nHe later held talks with Congressional leaders that ended without agreement.\nThe US government closed non-essential operations on Tuesday after Congress failed to strike a deal on a new budget.\nRepublicans and Democrats are blaming each other for the impasse.\nThe shutdown has left more than 700,000 employees on unpaid leave and closed national parks, tourist sites, government websites, office buildings, and more.\nHowever, as one budget crisis raged in Washington DC, another one - potentially more dangerous - loomed in the coming weeks.\nOn 17 October, the US government will run out of cash to pay its bills unless the debt ceiling is raised.\nBy Mark MardellNorth America editor\nOn both issues, the Republicans who control the House of Representatives have demanded concessions from Mr Obama and his fellow Democrats in return for funding the government's continued operation and for raising the debt ceiling.\nChiefly, the Republicans demand the repeal, delay or defunding of a healthcare reform law - dubbed Obamacare - passed by the Democrats in 2010.\nMajor portions of that law, which was subsequently validated by the US Supreme Court and was a major issue in the 2012 presidential election, took effect on Tuesday.\nOn Wednesday, Mr Obama met the heads of some of Wall Street's biggest banks - including JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs and Bank of America - to discuss the debt ceiling and other economic issues.\nThe bankers are members of the Financial Services Forum, a lobby group which has, along with 250 other businesses, sent a letter to Congress urging it to raise the debt limit.\nFollowing the meeting, Mr Obama told CNBC \"it's important for them to recognise that this is going to have a profound impact on our economy and their bottom lines\".\nMr Obama also said he was unwilling to negotiate \"with the extremist wing of one party\" as the 17 October deadline neared.\n\"The message I have for the [Congressional] leaders is, as soon as we get a clean piece of legislation that reopens the government... until we get that done, until we make sure that Congress allows [the Department of the Treasury] to pay for things that Congress itself already authorised, we are not going to engage in a series of negotiations,\" he said.\nAs foreign markets anxiously monitored the US budget crisis, European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi warned that a protracted shutdown was \"a risk not only for the US, but also the world economy\".\nOn Wednesday evening Mr Obama met Republican House Speaker John Boehner, as well as Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell, Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi at the White House.\nMr Boehner later left the talks complaining that the Democrats would not negotiate.\n\"All we're asking for here is a discussion and fairness for the American people under Obamacare,'' he told reporters.\nNancy Pelosi, however, accused the Republicans of \"moving the goalposts\" on the budget deal.\nHarry Reid said Democrats were \"locked in tight on Obamacare'' and neither the president nor Democrats in Congress would accept changes to the law as the price for a deal on reopening the government.\nAnalysts say Mr Boehner could end the current government showdown by allowing the House to vote on a \"clean\" budget bill that does not alter the health law, because that could pass with a coalition of Democrats and moderate Republicans.\nBut doing so would risk his standing with the most conservative elements of his caucus.\nEarlier on Wednesday, senior US intelligence officials warned the shutdown of the government seriously damaged the ability of spy agencies to protect the US.\nDirector of National Intelligence James Clapper told a Senate panel that an estimated 70% of intelligence workers had been placed on unpaid leave.\nAlso on Wednesday, the White House announced Mr Obama would cut short a planned four-nation tour of Asia next week.\nHe will attend regional summits in Indonesia and Brunei, but skip Malaysia and the Philippines due to the government shutdown.\nThe US government ceased operations deemed non-essential at midnight on Tuesday, when the previous budget expired.\nNational parks and Washington's Smithsonian museums are closed, pension and veterans' benefit cheques will be delayed, and visa and passport applications will go unprocessed.\nHowever, members of the military will be paid.\nUS shutdown in 60 seconds\nWho will be affected\nQ&A: 2013 US budget brawl", "Vice-President Joe Biden briefed Senate Democrats behind closed doors after Republicans and the White House agreed a plan.\nThe Senate is expected to vote in the early hours of Tuesday morning, with the House to consider a bill later.\nTuesday is a public holiday in the US, so no immediate effects will be felt.\nAnalysts say if the effects of the fiscal cliff are allowed to take hold, they could spark a new US recession.\nBut if a bill passes both the Senate and the House over the new year holiday, the impact is likely to be minimal.\nBy Mark MardellNorth America editor\nThe bad news is that America is going to go over the fiscal cliff. The good news is that it probably won't hit the bottom - and no one will feel the impact.\nWe expect a deal to be done on Monday night and the Senate to vote on it. But the House has already gone home and will not say yea or nay to an agreement. That's why America will go over the cliff, at least technically.\nBut New Year's Day is a public holiday. Markets are closed around the world. The US government is also shut. Likewise, tax rises won't be felt until people get their January pay cheques.\nIf it is clear that the politicians are going to do a deal pretty soon, then no one will panic. At the moment, a deal seems to be close enough to touch. If it moves out of reach, then the ground will rush up to meet us soon enough.\nAfter a long day of negotiation on Capitol Hill, signs of a deal emerged hours after the House of Representatives was dismissed for the night.\nEarlier, President Barack Obama said a deal to avoid the steep tax rises and spending cuts was \"within sight\".\nTax cuts passed during the presidency of George W Bush formally expired at midnight (05:00 GMT).\nBut the proposed eventual deal appeared to extend tax cuts for Americans earning under $400,000 (£246,000) - up from the $250,000 level Democrats had originally sought.\nA huge spending cut known as the sequester - that would see $1.2tn cut from the federal budget over 10 years - would be deferred for two months, reports said, allowing Congress and the White House to reopen negotiations on a wider deal.\nEarlier, Mr Obama said he would had preferred to resolve the fiscal cliff through a \"grand bargain\" that dealt with both long-term spending and tax issues.\n\"But with this Congress, that was obviously a little too much to hope for at this time,\" he said at the White House.\nWhat if the US goes over the cliff?\nWill the fiscal cliff affect you?\nQ&A: The US fiscal cliff\nWhy is it called a 'fiscal cliff'?\nAmid some Republican disquiet over the president's barbed remarks, the party's Senate leader Mitch McConnell quickly calmed proceedings in the afternoon.\nHe backed the president's assessment and said a deal should be done quickly.\n\"Let's pass the tax relief portion now,\" said Mr McConnell, who spent Sunday evening and Monday negotiating with Vice-President Joe Biden.\n\"Let's take what's been agreed to and get moving. We'll continue to work on finding smarter ways to cut spending.\"\nAs well as the income tax rates and spending cuts, the deal under discussion includes:\n• Tax rates to rise on estate inheritances from 35% to 40% after the first $5m for an individual and $10m for a couple\n• Capital gains taxes - affecting certain income from investments - would rise from 15% to 20%, but less than the 39.6% it would rise under after 1 January.\n• Unemployment benefits would be extended for year, affecting an estimated two million people\n• Extending tax credits that help poorer and middle-class families for five years\nAny deal needs to pass the 100-member Senate, which is controlled by Democrats, before heading to the House of Representatives, where Republicans hold the majority.\nBut no votes have yet been scheduled in either chamber.\nAlso on Monday, the US Treasury said the federal government had hit its self-imposed borrowing limit, the debt ceiling\nTreasury Secretary Timothy Geithner sent a letter to lawmakers informing them that some pension and health benefits would be suspended in order to free up borrowing authority until the end of February.\nMr Obama had asked for an extension of debt ceiling as part of the fiscal cliff negotiations, and correspondents say the issue is the next hurdle between Congress and the president.", "Syrian warplanes and troops are targeting militant positions on the city's eastern edge, activists say.\nThe UN's top cultural official said the IS advance was \"very alarming\".\nIslamic State has ransacked and demolished several ancient sites in Iraq. Palmrya has already suffered damage during the Syrian civil war.\nThe Unesco World Heritage site is strategically located on the road between the capital, Damascus, and the contested eastern city of Deir al-Zour. It is also close to gas fields and home to a major airbase.\n\"Islamic State group jihadists are now 1km (less than a mile) from the archaeological site of Palmyra,\" the director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Rami Abdel Rahman, told the AFP news agency.\nUsing warplanes, he said, \"the army is bombing the surroundings of Tadmor from the air\", referring to the modern city adjacent to Palmyra.\nSyrian state media confirmed the development on Friday, with state-run Sana news agency reporting that troops were \"chasing\" IS fighters to the north and east of Palmyra.\nPalmyra: IS threat to 'Venice of the Sands'\nOn its own media outlet, Al-Bayan radio, IS claimed to have attacked a signals tower next to the citadel, setting fire to buildings there, as well targeting the military airport to the east of the town, an oil station and a gas company.\nBut Syrian officials said on Friday the militants had not yet managed to reach the ancient city, with the governor of Homs telling state media that the site was safe and protected by the Syrian army.\nThe country's antiquities chief has warned that if IS seizes Palmyra, it will destroy everything there, describing the current fighting as a \"battle between civilisation and barbarism\".\nHe has appealed for international intervention to avoid another cultural disaster following the recent destruction of Iraq's ancient sites by IS in Nimrod, Hatra and Mosul.\nOutside intervention is highly unlikely despite huge international concern, says the BBC's Jim Muir in Beirut.\nWith a large military base, vast weapons arsenal and major highway running through it, Palmyra is of high strategic value, which is why the Syrian government forces seem to be fighting so hard to defend it, he adds.\nMeanwhile, Unesco chief Irina Bokova said on Friday the heritage site \"should not be used for military purposes\" and has appealed to both sides to protect it.\nSince the IS offensive began on Tuesday, 73 soldiers and 65 militants have been killed, according to AFP. In addition to this, activists say at least 26 civilians were executed - 10 of them beheaded - after they were accused of collaborating President Bashar al-Assad's government.\nRising out of the desert and flanked by an oasis, Palmyra contains the monumental ruins of a great city that was one of the most important cultural centres of the ancient world, according to Unesco.\nThe site, most of which dates back to the 1st to the 2nd Century when the region was under Roman rule, is dominated by a grand, colonnaded street.", "Police are expected to compare the remains with DNA samples taken from more than 600 families searching for missing relatives in the state.\nLast year, the disappearance of 43 students in Guerrero drew attention to the thousands of people who have gone missing there in the past years.\nGuerrero is one of Mexico's most violent states.\nThe BBC's Katy Watson in Mexico City says officials were acting on an anonymous tip off and found the bodies after a long search.\nThey had been dumped at the bottom of a narrow canyon. Eight of the bodies had been burned.\nPolice are not ruling out the possibility of finding more remains at the site.\nGuerrero residents have found scores of mass graves since September 2014, when 43 students went missing from the town of Iguala.\nHowever, just one site, a rubbish dump outside the town of Cocula, contained the remains of one of the 43 students.\nThe identities of most of the other remains have yet to be established.\nThe relatives of the students are meanwhile clinging on to hope that their loved ones may still be found alive.\nThe 43 were all students at an all-male teacher training college in the town of Aytozinapa, in south-western Guerrero state. The college has a history of left-wing activism and the students regularly took part in protests.\nThey disappeared from the nearby town of Iguala on the evening of 26 September 2014 amid a confrontation between municipal police and the students during which six people were killed.\nIndependent forensic experts have matched charred bone fragments reportedly found at a rubbish dump near Iguala to Alexander Mora, one of the 43 missing students. They also say there is a high probability another set of remains could belong to Jhosivani Guerrero de la Cruz, another of the students. However, experts from the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights say the chain of evidence was broken and they could not be sure the bone fragments had been found at the dump.\nAccording to the official report, the students were seized by corrupt municipal police officers who handed them over to members of a local drugs gang. The drugs gang mistook the students for members of a rival gang, killed them and burned their bodies at the dump before throwing their ashes into a nearby stream.\nThey think officials have failed to investigate the role soldiers from a nearby barracks may have played in the students' disappearance. The government has refused to let the soldiers, who were in the area at the time of the disappearance, be questioned by anyone but government prosecutors. The families also point to the report by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights which said that there was no evidence the bodies of the 43 were burned at the dump.", "The 150 employees laid off on half pay in the summer of 2013 as new owners waited for market conditions to improve will now resume work.\nThe plant will produce about 50,000 tonnes of steel a month and hopes to double that output in future.\nA UK government summit was being held in South Yorkshire on Friday to discuss problems in the industry.\nMeanwhile, Tata is expected to announced 1,200 UK job cuts next week - chiefly at its Scunthorpe plant.\nBut the restart at the former Alphasteel plant, on the banks of the River Usk, is good news for an industry and area that recently saw hundreds of job losses at Tata in Llanwern.\nLiberty will roll steel into coils that will be used in roads, bridges and other construction projects.\nIn the future, it also wants to reopen another part of the plant which melts down scrap metal to make steel products.\nThe plant has been through different ownerships and mixed fortunes since it opened 41 years ago.\nInternational steel and metals group Liberty House bought it in 2013 and decided to keep workers on so they would be ready to restart when market conditions allowed.\nWorkers were not required to come to work and could be employed elsewhere during that time.\nLiberty group managing director Sanjeev Gupta said: \"We intend to buck the recent trend in the UK steel industry.\n\"The UK has the richest history in steel production in the world and production is viable here - what is needed is a lean, productive operation which is also agile and flexible and one that is able to adapt quickly to changes in the market.\"\nThe group also owns the Uskmouth power station - which will help it reduce energy costs - and the long-term plan is to turn the area into a renewable energy park.\nThe steel summit in Rotherham was called after a Commons debate last month and the loss of 2,200 jobs at Redcar on Teesside.\nEconomy Minister Edwina Hart, who attended the summit, said \"jobs are in jeopardy\" unless the UK government took \"urgent action\" to tackle high energy costs and cheap imports.\nTIMELINE\n1974: Swiss-Greek Alphasteel plant founded in Corporation Road, Newport, creating 200 jobs\n1986: State-owned British Steel Corporation (BSC) takes over Alphasteel coils division with a view to closing it as part of plans to restructure the industry. BSC is eventually privatised\n1998-2000: Strip mill set up on the site\n2003: Taken over by Swiss-based Satico, linked to an Iranian tycoon for £40m. A £57m expansion plan is announced\n2007: Alphasteel goes into administration in December, with 396 workers losing their jobs. It is followed by a legal battle over redundancy payments\n2008: New Russian owners Libala buy plant for £57m\n2010: Plant is renamed Mir Steel UK and production restarts with 80 workers in July with plans to take staff numbers to 140\n2013: Raw material supplies to the plant stop. Business sold to India-based Liberty Commodities in July", "Dreamland has 17 vintage fairground attractions from funfairs around the UK in its reincarnation as a heritage amusement park.\nThe site on Margate seafront has been closed for 10 years, with campaigners fighting to save it from development.\nBut it reopened without the Scenic Railway star attraction.\nRevellers were due to be let into the site at 10.00 BST but the ribbon across the entrance to the park was not cut until 11.00 BST.\nBBC South East reporter Simon Jones said: \"Dreamland has missed its 10am opening time. It was always going to be tight.\"\nThe organisers apologised to the crowds of people waiting outside, saying they were doing a \"bit of tidying up\".\nThe wooden Grade II*-listed rollercoaster, badly damaged in an arson attack in 2008, was not restored in time but Dreamland hopes it will be ready in the coming months.\nChris Wells, leader of Thanet District Council, said it was disappointing the Scenic Railway was not ready yet but such delays were \"unforeseeable\".\n\"It's fantastic to see the culmination of so many years of hard work by so many people finally come to fruition. Dreamland is iconic and means so much to not only Margate and Thanet but Kent and beyond.\n\"Dreamland is synonymous with Margate's heyday and signals the continuation of this vibrant regeneration, already well under way with the Turner Contemporary and the revival of the old town.\"\nSee more pictures of the refurbished Dreamland on our Facebook page.\nDreamland holds happy memories for Margate residents as well as the thousands of Londoners who flocked there in its heyday.\nPatricia Briscoe, now 85, met her husband, who was serving in the RAF at nearby Manston airport, in its ballroom in 1948.\n\"He was dancing but saw me and came and asked me to dance,\" she said.\n\"He was so lovely, and I went back to my friends and said, 'I like him'.\n\"We have been married 64 years, since 1951.\"\nThe funfair, with its weekly fireworks displays, added to the fun of Margate as a traditional seaside destination.\n\"When we were kids everybody was there - all the Londoners used to come down every weekend,\" said Jim Needham.\n\"They'd all be singing in the pubs and the kids would be on the beach.\n\"We used to to go into Dreamland for the whole day and get lost.\n\"It was a shame when it shut.\n\"I can't wait for it to open again - the grandchildren are buzzing.\"\n1920 Dreamland opens with Scenic Railway rollercoaster\n1939 Site requisitioned by the government and closed for the duration of World War Two\n2002 Scenic Railway rollercoaster gets Grade-II listed status\n2005 Site sold to Margate Town Centre Regeneration Company. Save Dreamland Campaign set up\n2008 Scenic Railway badly damaged in arson attack.\n2012 Thanet District Council approves compulsory purchase order. Wayne Hemingway becomes theme park designer\n2013 Council takes over ownership of the site\n2015 First phase of new Dreamland opens on 19 June\nDreamland's decline coincided with Margate's own.\nThe rot began to set in for many traditional seaside towns during the 1960s as holidaymakers were lured abroad by sunshine package holidays.\n\"The world moved on and we have now got to make this a site that moves with the world,\" said Wayne Hemingway, Dreamland's artistic director.\nThe restoration work, funded by contributions from the council, the government and the Heritage Lottery Fund, has been hit by setbacks including a fire in the roof of a two-storey building in May.\nBut Ms Kemsley insisted everything except the Scenic Railway would be ready on opening day.\nHundreds of workmen have been on site all week, and were still adding finishing touches on Thursday.\nThe park reopened at 11:00 BST on Friday, with acts including Chas and Dave - whose single Margate reached number 46 in 1982 - and Marina and the Diamonds playing to sold-out crowds in the evening.\n\"We will be ready to go - absolutely,\" chief executive Eddie Kemsley said before the park reopened.\n\"We're so excited. We're sold out and we can't wait to let people through the doors.\"", "They told the New York Times the agency would \"end its systematic collection of data about Americans' calling habits\".\nPhone records would instead remain with telecoms companies, only to be accessed by government when needed.\nIt follows widespread anger at home and abroad after leaks revealed the full extent of US surveillance operations.\nThe documents - leaked by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden - revealed that the US collects massive amounts of electronic data from communications of private individuals around the world, and has spied on foreign leaders.\nIn a speech in January, President Obama said it was necessary for the US to continue collecting large amounts of data, but that civil liberties must be respected.\nHe said the current system, in which the NSA collects the details of the times, numbers and durations of phone calls, known as metadata, would come to an end.\nAccording to the New York Times report, he told the US justice department and intelligence officials to come up with a plan by 28 March.\nUnder the new proposal, officials say surveillance \"would require phone companies to swiftly provide records in a technologically compatible data format, including making available, on a continuing basis, data about any new calls placed or received after the order is received\".\nThe phone companies would not be required to hold on to the data for longer than they normally would, the New York Times says.\nThe NSA currently holds information for five years, whereas telecoms companies are required by federal regulation to retain customer records for 18 months.\nHow the US spy scandal unravelled\nProfile: Edward Snowden\nUK 'complacent' over spying leaks\nThe new proposal \"would retain a judicial role in determining whether the standard of suspicion was met for a particular phone number before the NSA could obtain associated records\", the newspaper adds.\nThe Obama administration plans to renew the current NSA programme for at least another 90 days until Congress passes the new legislation.\nNew legislation has also been developed separately by leaders of the House intelligence committee that would allow the NSA to issue subpoenas for specific phone records without prior judicial approval, the New York Times reports.\nThe New York Times report does not provide information on possible changes to the NSA's surveillance of phone records from other countries.\nIn January, President Obama offered assurances to non-Americans, saying people around the world \"should know that the United States is not spying on ordinary people who don't threaten our national security\".\nIt was revealed last year that the US had spied on friendly foreign leaders, including on the personal mobile of German Chancellor Angela Merkel.\nBut President Obama has defended the use of data, saying it had protected against terrorist attacks at home and abroad, and insisted nothing he had seen indicated US intelligence operations had sought to break the law.\nEdward Snowden, who was behind the leaked the information, is wanted in the US for espionage and is now living in exile in Russia.\nCivil liberties groups see him as a hero for exposing what they see as official intrusions into private lives, but many Americans believe he has endangered American lives.", "Aides to Leishemba Sanajaoba say the decision was taken without his consent.\nThey say it is in violation of a 2006 agreement between the once powerful royal family and the state government.\nThe authorities say they want to take over the palace and surrounding land to develop it as a heritage site.\nKing Sanajaoba began his fast on Monday, two days after the Manipur cabinet decided to take over the Sana Konung palace in the state capital, Imphal.\n\"The king feels betrayed because the government is violating a 2006 memorandum between the two that clearly said no decision would be taken about the palace without his consent,\" said his adviser Puyam Tomcha.\nState officials say they want to renovate the palace and turn it into a tourist attraction.\n\"The government will arrange for alternative accommodation for King Sanajaoba,\" a spokesman said.\n\"We are taking over the palace to turn it around and preserve royal artefacts in it so that the future generations will know about the glorious past of Manipur.\"\nAnother big palace in Imphal - the Kangla palace - is being turned into a museum.\nThe government argues that much of the land around Sana Konung palace has lost its traditional character because it was sold by former King Okendra and used for the construction of high-rise buildings.\n\"This is why we have appealed to the residents to let the government take over the land around the palace so that we can relive the olden times,\" the official said.\nThe Manipur royal family occupied the Kangla palace after the 1891 Anglo-Manipur War and built the Sana Konung for the royals to live in.\nLater, it became a military headquarters, housing the paramilitary Assam Rifles after the state joined the Indian federation.\nHowever, the royals, who now have little real power or influence, continue to live in Sana Konung.\nIn the neighbouring state of Tripura, the royal family has been living in a part of the Ujjyanta palace in the state capital, Agartala, ever since the government acquired most of the building to house the state legislative assembly.\nBoth Tripura and Manipur became parts of India on 15 October 1949.\nBut while Tripura's royals have been influential in state politics and are financially much better off, their counterparts in Manipur have struggled to make ends meet.\nIn recent years they have often been forced to sell land to meet their expenses.\nWhile friends, family and attendants have joined King Sanajaoba's protest over the move, many others in Manipur say the government should have taken the royal family into its confidence before announcing the renovation project.\nManipur has been in the news for another highly publicised hunger strike. For 13 years, Irom Sharmila has refused to eat in protest at the special powers which she, like many Manipuris, feel have been grossly abused by Indian security forces during counter-insurgency operations in the state. She is force-fed through her nose.\nAlthough King Sanajaoba's fast may not continue for that long, it has created ripples in the state where many feel his forefathers were forced to join India.", "Media playback is not supported on this device\nSilverstone has been home to the race every year since 1987.\nHowever, the British Racing Drivers' Club (BRDC), which owns the circuit, says it cannot afford to host the race unless a new deal is agreed.\n\"We have reached the tipping point,\" said BRDC chairman John Grant.\n\"We can no longer let our passion for the sport rule our heads. We sustained losses of £2.8m in 2015 and £4.8m in 2016, and we expect to lose a similar amount this year.\"\n\"Our hope is that an agreement can still be reached, so that we can ensure a sustainable and financially viable future for the British Grand Prix at Silverstone for many years to come.\"\nSilverstone hosted the first ever Formula 1 race in 1950. It then shared hosting the British Grand Prix with Brands Hatch and Aintree before becoming its permanent home 30 years ago.\nUnlike many other tracks on the F1 calendar, Silverstone receives no government backing.\nFormula 1 owner Liberty Media said it regrets the BRDC's decision and its timing.\n\"The week leading up to the British Grand Prix should be a week of great celebration for F1 and Silverstone,\" a spokesman said.\n\"We deeply regret Silverstone has chosen instead to use this week to posture and position themselves and invoke a break clause that will take effect in three years' time.\n\"Our focus is still to preserve the British Grand Prix. We will carry on negotiating with the promoter in good faith and in private to reach a fair and equitable solution.\"\nThis content will not work on your device, please check Javascript and cookies are enabled or update your browser\nBBC Sport's chief F1 writer Andrew Benson:\nSilverstone's decision to end its contract to hold the British Grand Prix after 2019 does not necessarily mean there will not be a British Grand Prix at Silverstone in 2020 and beyond.\nIf that sounds confusing, bear with me.\nSilverstone signed a 17-year contract with former Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone back in 2009 that meant it had to pay £12m for the race in 2010. But the deal had a 5% annual escalator built into it, and a break clause after 2019.\nThe fee has now gone up sufficiently that Silverstone cannot continue to hold the race and break even, let alone make a profit. So it felt it had no choice but to exercise the get-out clause, which contractually needed to be done before this year's race.\nBut Silverstone still wants the British Grand Prix after that date, and Formula 1 still wants one, too. The rub, of course, is that the race does not necessarily have to be held at Silverstone.\nF1's new chairman Chase Carey told BBC Sport this week that it is his \"priority\" for the event to stay at Silverstone but that there was \"interest from other places, other UK options, that would have appeal\".\nIt's not clear what these are, plural. But one of them is a much-rumoured potential street race somewhere in the east of London. Whether that is realistic is a different question.\nFor Silverstone to continue as host, F1 and the BRDC now have two years or so to try to hammer out a mutually satisfactory deal.\nRealistically, this is the most likely option. But as Carey put it: \"We are not there today.\"\nFormer world champion Nigel Mansell, who claimed three of his four British GP wins at Silverstone, believes it would be \"a very sad day\" if the circuit no longer hosted grand prix racing.\n\"Silverstone has the history of F1,\" the Briton told BBC Sport.\n\"They deserve to have the recognition for the historical value the circuit has, which has contributed to some incredible races.\n\"Hopefully the new F1 owners will review their thoughts and think there is a better value to that than throw it away.\"", "They pressed for extra capacity at Tweedbank to cope with charter trains.\nThe Campaign for Borders Railway said that an original \"downbeat verdict\" could have seen \"an embarrassingly sub-optimal offer\" for tourists.\nThe Scottish government said it had included communities and campaigners in the process of reopening the line.\nThe route between Edinburgh and Tweedbank in the Borders is to reopen next month.\nCBR's UK Parliamentary Officer Nick Bethune said that a feasibility study in 2000 had not recognised the tourist potential of the route.\nHe said that, alongside the Waverley Route Trust, his organisation had argued \"long and hard\" for a bigger role for the railway.\nHe said research and lobbying, along with the efforts of MSP Claudia Beamish had prompted the \"eleventh-hour decision\" to authorise the extension of Tweedbank to accommodate 12-coach tourist charter trains.\nHe added that the scenic qualities of the route between Edinburgh and the Borders had since been \"enthusiastically endorsed\" by the transport minister at the time Keith Brown and former First Minister Alex Salmond.\n\"Our view is that the combination of a half-hourly ScotRail service plus charter trains from across Britain will be enormously attractive to the tourist market,\" he said.\nHe said it could bring \"substantial new spend\" to the Borders economy and Midlothian.\nMr Bethune also highlighted other tourism-related enhancements to the original rail specification which have been secured by CBR's campaigning.\nHe said those included saving the original Stow station building from demolition, better window and seat positioning and enhanced luggage and bike space.\n\"The reality is that if it hadn't been for rail campaigners' efforts this new railway would have provided an embarrassingly sub-optimal offer to the tourist market,\" he added.\nA Scottish government spokesman said that, with less than two weeks until reopening the line, the excitement was now \"palpable\" along the route.\nHe said that the feasibility study in 2000 had been delivered under a previous administration.\nHowever, he said that a \"groundswell of interest\" had allowed this government to \"broaden the scope of the original plans\" and \"maximise the potential\" of the line.\n\"The Borders Blueprint committee formed by former First Minister Alex Salmond is already working to exploit the full potential of the new railway once it's operational,\" he added.\n\"It has been important to the Scottish government to include the communities and campaigners throughout the process.\n\"We look forward to celebrating the opening with them just two weeks from now.\"", "China, the US's largest creditor, is \"naturally concerned about developments in the US fiscal cliff\", vice finance minister Zhu Guangyao said.\nWashington must agree a deal to raise its borrowing limit by 17 October, or risk being unable to pay its bills.\nHe asked that \"the US earnestly take steps to resolve\" the issue.\nUS Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew has said that unless Congress agrees an increase in the debt ceiling by 17 October, Washington will be left with about $30bn (£18.6bn) in cash to meet its obligations - about half the $60bn-a-day needed.\nBy Dick MeyerExecutive Producer, America, BBC News, Washington\nOn a very simple level, the closing of most of the American federal government can be pinned on the ambitions of one man, Speaker of the House John Boehner.\nThere is little doubt that Mr Boehner, a Republican, could whenever he wants gather enough votes from moderate Republicans and most all Democrats to reopen the government.\nWhy he is so attached to sticking with such a bruising job is another question. His caucus is balkanised and unruly. This Congress is held in the lowest public esteem since the invention of public opinion polls. And the Republicans are more disliked than the Democrats.\nThe man responsible for the shutdown\nFor many governments and investors the approaching deadlock over the debt ceiling is far more critical than the current impasse over the federal shutdown caused by Congress's failure to agree a new budget.\nOn Sunday Republican House Speaker John Boehner reiterated that Republican lawmakers would not agree to raise the debt ceiling unless it included measures to rein in public spending.\nMr Zhu said that China and the US are \"inseparable\". Beijing is a huge investor in US Treasury bonds.\n\"The executive branch of the US government has to take decisive and credible steps to avoid a default on its Treasury bonds,\" he said.\n\"It is important for the US economy as well as the global economy.\"\n\"We hope the United States fully understands the lessons of history,\" Mr Zhu said, referring to a similar deadlock in 2011 that led to a downgrade of the US \"AAA\" credit rating.\nThat deadlock ended with an eleventh-hour agreement.\nOn Monday, President Barack Obama said he would not negotiate with Republicans in the House of Representatives \"under the threat of economic catastrophe\".\nHe said that he and the Democrats in Congress had already agreed to fund the US government at levels that were favourable to Republicans but lower than preferred by the Democrats.\nThere is little doubt that Mr Boehner could whenever he wants gather enough votes from moderate Republicans and most all Democrats to reopen the government, says Dick Meyer, BBC executive producer, America.\nMr Obama called on Mr Boehner to allow his caucus to \"vote their conscience\" on a bill that would fund the government.\n\"If Republicans and Speaker Boehner are saying there are not enough votes, then they should prove it,\" he said, adding he had a \"strong suspicion\" there would be enough Republicans to join Democrats in the House of Representatives to pass the bill.\n\"Let the bill go to the floor and let's see what happens. Just vote.\"", "The messages involved are alleged to contain details of narcotics sales.\nIn 2014, a court ruled in favour of the government's claim that because it had jurisdiction over the US-based company, it could force it to hand over data it controlled, even if stored abroad.\nBut Microsoft suggests that would put it in breach of privacy laws.\nInstead, the company argues that the US \"must respect the sovereignty of other countries\" and has indicated that Washington should use legal assistance treaties if it wants access to information held in Ireland and other data centres outside the United States.\nIreland has already said that it would consider such a request \"expeditiously\".\nSo, the stand-off is being viewed as a test case that will determine the extent of the US government's powers over tech companies that offer cloud-based services.\nApple, Amazon, HP, eBay, AT&T, Verizon and Salesforce are among US companies that have voiced support for Microsoft's appeal.\n\"They think they have already lost quite a lot of business in Europe over monitoring and surveillance concerns, and they are afraid it will get worse if there is a perceived carte blanche for the US authorities to access emails stored abroad,\" said Carsten Casper, from tech consultancy Gartner.\n\"The EU has stronger privacy requirements, at least on paper, compared with other parts of the world, so tensions between the US and Europe are highest. But other countries are also concerned by US access to foreign records.\"\nMicrosoft says that it wants to ensure people can \"trust the technology on their desks and in their pockets\".\n\"If the US government is permitted to serve warrants on tech companies in the United States and obtain people's emails in any country, it will open the floodgate for other countries to serve warrants on tech companies for the private communications of American citizens that are stored in the United States in a data centre owned by a foreign company,\" the company's lawyer Brad Smith recently told the Council on Foreign Relations think tank.\n\"Imagine the immediate implications for journalists, advocacy organisations, or government officials here.\"\nHowever, federal prosecutors involved in the case note that it \"typically takes months\" to obtain information via treaty requests, while warrants issued directly to US companies can be handled much more quickly.\nThey add that Microsoft's system of storing data where customers say they are based is open to abuse.\n\"A criminal user can easily manipulate such a policy to evade the reach of US law enforcement by the simple expedient of giving false residence,\" they state in court papers.\nAnd they add that, anyway, US-based bodies have a legal obligation to comply with warrants issued under the Stored Communications Act, regardless of where the related electronic records are kept.\n\"With the benefits of corporate citizenship in the United States come corresponding responsibilities, including the responsibility to comply with a disclosure order issued by a US court,\" they wrote.\n\"Microsoft should not be heard to complain that doing so might harm its bottom line.\"\nMicrosoft's lawyer has said that if it loses the appeal, he will try to take the matter \"all the way to the Supreme Court\".\nIn a related development, Apple has said it could not comply with a court order to let US government investigators monitor texts sent via its iMessage system, according to a report in the New York Times.\nThe paper reports that officials wanted the iPhone-maker to hand over messages in \"real time\" as part of an investigation into drugs and guns.\nHowever, it says the firm said it could not do so because the messages were encrypted - meaning they are digitally scrambled - and only the handsets involved had the key.\nIt adds, however, that the firm did pass on some messages that had been saved to its iCloud storage service, which had been stored in an unencrypted form.\nApple has not commented on the report.\nHowever, the Electronic Freedom Foundation civil liberties group said it \"applauded\" the firm's behaviour.", "Circuit owner the British Racing Drivers' Club (BRDC) is considering giving notice to exercise a contract break clause at the end of 2019.\nA letter written by BRDC chairman John Grant - seen by ITV News - says a decision will be made by \"mid-year\".\nSilverstone does not want to lose the British Grand Prix any more than do the 140,000 fans who went there to watch it last year\nThe BRDC's contract with Formula 1 runs until 2026.\nSilverstone first hosted the British Grand Prix in 1950 and has been the event's permanent home since 1987.\nFormula 1 chief Bernie Ecclestone told ITV News: \"If they want to activate a break clause, there is nothing we can do.\n\"Two other tracks have contacted us and we are keen to keep a British Grand Prix, there is no doubt about it, we want to have one.\"\nThree-time world champion Sir Jackie Stewart added: \"I think it's a credible threat, not impossible for it to happen. I would be very sad if it did.\n\"There's no other race track that would be able to host the British Grand Prix.\"\nBBC Sport's chief F1 writer Andrew Benson\nFor anyone who has followed Formula 1 for the last decade or two, another story questioning the future of the British Grand Prix is about as surprising as cold weather in winter.\nThere is no doubt Silverstone's owners the British Racing Drivers' Club mean it when they say they are considering activating a break clause in their contract with F1 which would end the race after 2019.\nBut equally there is no doubt that it fundamentally amounts to posturing - Silverstone does not want to lose the British Grand Prix any more than do the 140,000 fans who went there to watch it last year.\nThe issue is the cost of the 17-year contract - £12m in 2010; a 5% annual escalator means the race will cost nearly £17m this year and more than £26m by 2027.\nThis is small by comparison with Russia, which pays $50m (£40.3m) a year. It's not that far out of line with the new deal signed by Italy for €68m (£58m) over 2017-19, which averages out at £19.3m a year. But Silverstone - almost alone among grands prix - receives no government funding of any kind.\nNo other circuit in Britain is even remotely close to being able to replace it - so ignore any suggestions from F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone to that end.\nThe solution lies in new F1 owner Liberty Media, which has made it abundantly clear it wants to retain and nurture the historic European races, home of the sport's core audience, as a bedrock of its new-look F1.\nLiberty will complete its takeover deal before the end of the first quarter of this year. So expect some time between then and this year's British Grand Prix on 16 July a compromise deal that revises the terms of the contract and secures the race's future.", "The UN has confirmed that the convoy was hit near the rebel-held town of Urum al-Kubra, without giving details.\nActivists say an air strike hit the trucks hours after the army declared a US-Russian brokered truce over.\nThe US says it will \"reassess the future prospects for co-operation\" with Russia - an ally of Syria's government.\n\"The destination of this convoy was known to the Syrian regime and the Russian Federation,\" state department spokesman John Kirby said.\n\"And yet these aid workers were killed in their attempt to provide relief to the Syrian people,\" he added.\nThe Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based monitoring group, said the attacks were carried out by either Syrian or Russian aircraft.\nIt added the dead included the Syrian Arab Red Crescent volunteers and drivers.\nThe UN aid chief Stephen O'Brien said if the \"callous attack\" was found to be deliberate it would amount to a war crime.\nAt least 18 of 31 lorries in the convoy were hit, according to a UN spokesperson. The convoy was intended to deliver aid for 78,000 people in rebel-held areas near Aleppo.\nA witness told Reuters news agency by phone that about five missile strikes had hit the lorries, which were parked at a centre belonging to the Syrian Red Crescent.\nThe attack appeared to signal the collapse of the latest effort by the US, which backs the rebels, and Russia to halt the violence in Syria, with the army there saying the deal was over.\n\"We don't know if it can be salvaged,\" a senior US official told journalists on condition of anonymity.\n\"At this point the Russians have to demonstrate very quickly their seriousness of purpose because otherwise there will be nothing to extend and nothing to salvage.\"\nAfter the army announcement, activists said Aleppo and the surrounding province were heavily targeted, and a correspondent with the Agence France-Presse inside Aleppo city said there was almost non-stop bombardment.\nThe Syrian military and rebels had already accused each other of violations.\nThe US and Russia are to hold further talks on the Syrian situation in New York on Tuesday, the state department added.\nAid deliveries to besieged areas were a key part of the cessation of hostilities deal brokered last week.\nSupplements were delivered to the besieged town of Talbiseh in Homs province on Monday, the Red Cross said.\nBut most aid shipments were still waiting to go in.\nThe UN said it had received government approval to reach all the besieged and hard-to-reach areas where it sought to bring aid.\nBut access to many areas was still constrained, it said, because of fighting, insecurity and administrative delays.\nThe truce was dealt a blow on Saturday when warplanes from the US-led coalition against so-called Islamic State (IS) bombed Syrian troops in the eastern city of Deir al-Zour, apparently unintentionally.\nOfficials said the strikes killed more than 60 soldiers. President Bashar al-Assad called them the \"latest example of flagrant American aggression against Syrian army positions in the interests of the terrorist organisation Daesh [IS]\"." ]

[ "A signal detection scheme is proposed for two-way relaying network (TWRN) using distributed differential space-time coding (DDSTC) under imperfect synchronization. Unlike most of existing work, which assumed perfect synchronization and channel state information (CSI) at all nodes, a more realistic scenario is investigated here by considering the signals transmitted from the two source nodes arriving at the relay not exactly at the same time due to the distributed nature of the nodes, and no CSI is available at any node. The proposed signal detection scheme is then demonstrated to remove the imperfect synchronization effect significantly through simulation results. Furthermore, pairwise error probability (PEP) of the asynchronous TWRN is analyzed and derived for both source nodes. Based on the simplified PEP expression, an optimum power allocation (OPA) scheme is then determined to further improve the whole system performance, when neither the source nor the relay has any knowledge of the CSI." ]

[ "Digital network coding improves the throughput of the two-way relay channel by allowing multiple sources to transmit simultaneously to the relay. This work considers the development of a relay receiver applying a specific modulation and channel coding technique - turbo-coded noncoherent orthogonal FSK in the two-way relay channel operated with digital network coding. The relay receiver supports any modulation order which is a power of two, and iterative channel decoding with information feedback from decoder to demodulator, using bit interleaved coded modulation with iterative decoding (BICM-ID). The performance of the receiver is investigated in fading channels through error-rate simulations and capacity analysis, and results show an energy efficiency improvement of 0.5-0.9 dB over similar systems which do not utilize BICM-ID.", "This paper presents a two-stage power allocation for the distributed GABBA space-time coded amplify-and-forward (AF) cooperative networks . The new power allocation scheme first determines the transmit power between the source node and the relay nodes by maximizing the instantaneous rate, and thereafter optimizes the power distribution among the relay nodes via the watering filling. Moreover, a maximum-likelihood (ML) detection, which makes use of the encoding structure of the GABBA code, is addressed to alleviate the computational overhead. Conducted simulations show that the GABBA coded AF cooperative networks incorporated with the proposed twostage power allocation can attain close performance as the opportunistic relaying reported in the literature but with substantially reduced computational complexity.", "A two-way relaying system using the physical-layer network coding (PNC) does not cause the spectral loss induced by the half-duplex signaling. Furthermore, when the total power, which is limited, is properly distributed to transmission nodes in such a system, the system capacity will be enhanced significantly. In this paper, we propose an optimal power allocation in the two- way relay channel employing the PNC protocol. The optimal power allocation is obtained by maximizing the achievable sum- rate of the PNC protocol under a sum-power constraint in a Rayleigh fading channel environment. Numerical experimental results confirm that the proposed power allocation scheme achieves much higher achievable sum-rate performance than the existing schemes.", "An overview of space-time code construction based on cyclic division algebras (CDA) is presented. Applications of such space-time codes to the construction of codes optimal under the diversity-multiplexing gain (D-MG) tradeoff, to the construction of the so-called perfect space-time codes, to the construction of optimal space-time codes for the ARQ channel as well as to the construction of codes optimal for the cooperative relay network channel are discussed. We also present a construction of optimal codes based on CDA for a class of Orthogonal Amplify and Forward (OAF) protocols for the cooperative relay network.", "Space frequency block code (SFBC) based on MIMO-OFDM can obtain spatial diversity gain. However, it is limited to mobile terminal. Therefore, alternative ways have been presented based on cyclic delay or cooperative relaying. In this paper, we proposed a new approach of 2×1 SFBC-OFDM based relay cyclic delay diversity for exploiting spatial and frequency diversity simultaneously with mobile terminal having a single antenna. The proposed scheme is based on amplify-forward relay network which operates cyclical delay. The simulation results show performance improvement of the proposed scheme.", "In this paper, we analyze the outage performance of an opportunistic decode-and-forward (DF) relaying coded cooperation network over independent, and identically distributed Nakagami-m fading channels. In this scheme, cooperative diversity gain is obtained by integrating opportunistic relaying (OR) selection with channel coding. We have derived an analytical expression for the outage probability (OP) of the considered coded cooperation networks for both error-free relays and errors at the relays. Furthermore, for comparison, we derive an expression for the OP of a conventional OR cooperative network. For both systems, it has been observed that the achievable diversity gain is the same. However, the coded cooperation scheme achieves higher coding gain than the conventional cooperative scheme. Finally, numerical results are provided showing a tight match between the Monte Carlo simulations and the analytical curves.", "The performance of quasiorthogonal space-time block code with relay-selection and phase-rotation techniques applied to cooperative communications for four communication nodes is investigated. Specifically, by applying relay-selection and phase-rotation techniques, a diversity gain of four can be achieved. In addition, a symbol error rate (SER) performance analysis with closed-form expression and power allocation are investigated and compared with simulation results. The results show that theoretical SER curves are close to the simulation results. In addition, a code rate of the proposed scheme is two times higher than ordinary cooperative communications. The computer simulation results also show a significant probability of error improvement of about 2.8 dB over the conventional decode-and-forward protocol.", "In Part II of this two-part paper, we design optimal relay transmit strategies for a nonregenerative two-way relaying network with multiple repeaters and smart relays with or without interference neutralization (IN). We develop a general framework to optimize different system utility functions, i.e., minimize the required transmit power at the relay subject to minimum SINR constraints, maximize the minimum SINR of the users subject to relay transmit power constraint(s), and maximize the weighed system sum rate subject to relay transmit power constraint(s). Simulation results show that the proposed algorithms outperform the state of art time-division multiplexing (TDM) based algorithm. Compared to the optimal design without applying IN, the IN approach has a reduced computational complexity although it suffers from a small performance loss.", "We present two space and time efficient asynchronous distributed self-stabilizing algorithms. The first sorts an oriented chain network and the second heapifies a rooted tree network. The time complexity of both solutions is linear - in terms of the nodes (for the chain) and height (for the tree). The chain sorting algorithm uses O(m) bits per process where m represents the number of bits required to store any value in the network. The heapify algorithm needs O(m ldr D) bits per process where D is the degree of the tree.", "Cooperative Network-Coded Hybrid ARQ (Coop-NC HARQ) has recently been proposed as a smart way to improve Decode & Forward (D&F) relaying. According to this idea, cooperators send HARQ redundancy on behalf of a source coded together with a data packet intended for the destination they are helping and taken from their own queue. This paper applies for the first time such a technique in ad hoc networks with Multi-User Detection (MUD) capabilities, allowing several terminals to simultaneously act as relays. In this context, we introduce a novel communication paradigm that leverages network-coded retransmissions to allow more efficient data exchanges among all terminals involved in a cooperative process, enabling inter-relay communications as well. Simulation results show that the proposed solution offers important gains over D&F as well as Coop-NC HARQ in both single- and multi-hop networks in terms of throughput and energy consumption.", "We describe coded cooperation strategies for half-duplex relay channels based on low density parity check (LDPC) codes. In addition to designing practical coding schemes and developing appropriate receiver structures, we also exploit the use of average mutual information to characterize and analyze the convergence behavior of the LDPC coded relay systems. Both the convergence analysis and simulation results show that the LDPC coded relay system can approach the theoretical information rates very closely (0.8 ~ 1.1 dB) over half-duplex relay channels, and their performance is superior to other alternatives, including, the use of turbo codes. Furthermore, we consider the optimization of the time-division parameters and the bit allocation strategies", "In this paper, a new strategy was proposed that combining network coding with hierarchical modulation to solve the problem of asymmetry in two-user two-relay wireless networks. Hierarchical modulation was used to improve the performance of the low-priority stream and network coding was aimed at strengthening the reliability of the high-priority stream. Bit error rate (BER) was obtained to prove the correctness of the simulations. Compared with the conventional network coding scheme, it was obvious that the new strategy performed much better under additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) channel. However under Rayleigh channel, its advantages played a dominant role in relatively lower signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) while its disadvantages leaded in higher SNR. In addition, simulations were performed to find a proper priority parameter of hierarchical modulation in accordance with the circumstances of the channels.", "Cooperative relaying has been shown to be an effective method to combat fading in wireless communications. Among relaying strategies, distributed ones are more attractive because of the simplicity, scalability, robustness and low overhead incurred. In this paper, two previously proposed distributed relaying strategies are investigated: Timer-based Best-Select relaying and M-group Dis-STBC All-Select relaying. The motivation is to figure out which one of these two strategies performs better in spectrum-limited systems, taking into account the overhead incurred in the selection process. Numerical results indicate that, in general cases, M-group Dis-STBC All-Select relaying outperforms Timer-based Best-Select relaying.", "This paper objects a design of constellations suitable for Physical-Layer Network Coding (PLNC) in a Multi-Way Relay Channel (M-WRC). We formulate the constellation design as a general constrained optimization problem maximizing minimal distance of network coding function decoding. The numerically obtained constellations are recognized to possess some regular structure. The optimal constellations for 2-WRC are power-balanced hexagonal constellations with particular type of indexing. As far as the optimization problem is numerically tractable, we declare optimality of power-scaled pre-rotated amplitude shift keying constellations for M-WRC with number of terminals >2. All optimums decode non-linear modulo-sum network coding function and offer considerable performance gains in comparison to canonical schemes. This work also demonstrates that PLNC strategy tailored to M-WRC overcome PLNC 2-WRC approach.", "The advent of the new active distribution networks with Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) connected to the customer side of the meter guarantees a solution to the ever-increasing power demand. But simultaneously imposes some major confrontation to the previously installed protection system. Two-way power flow, significant changes in magnitude and direction of fault current may lead to non-discriminative, non-selective operation, and failure of the protection system. With multiple power flow directions more directional overcurrent relay (DOCR) needs to be inducted into the existing systems. The paper proposes an effective implementation of a digital Inverse Definite Minimum Time (IDMT) Overcurrent (OC) Relay and its directional counterpart in MATLAB Simulink® environment and discusses a Genetic Algorithm (GA) based relay coordination scheme considering radial topology of the micro-grid in grid-connected mode.", "In this paper, we examine multi-source multi-relay systems that employ Analog Network Coding for which we provide a two-fold contribution: i) We derive a closed-form upper bound of the average symbol error rate (SER) per source of the system, which is shown to be tight in the high-Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) region, especially for an adequate number of relays, and ii) based on this bound, for a given total power budget to be distributed among the source and relay nodes we formulate the power allocation optimization problem with the aim of minimizing the SER per source. Results show that for a common target SER among the sources, an increase in their number results in an increase in the expected energy gains over the equal power allocation for all the nodes policy.", "In this paper, we deal with the linear precoding techniques for 2-hop multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) relaying, where limited feedback is available at source and relay nodes. Among the various linear precoding schemes, we utilize quantized precoding technique which is more implementable than precoding schemes with full feedback due to short feedback length. Based on quantized precoding technique, we propose the source and relay precoding matrix selection criterion in the given codebook to improve the bit error rate (BER) performance. As a results, the performance of the proposed algorithm exceeds than that of open-loop MIMO relaying using optimum maximum likelihood (ML) receiver and Alamouti’s scheme which is optimum open-loop orthogonal space-time block coding (OSTBC). Moreover, simulation results show that the proposed scheme has more diversity gain comparing with other open-loop schemes.", "Three power control schemes for the space-time coded amplify-and-forward (AF) relaying scheme targeting at wireless sensor network applications are examined and compared. The opportunistic scheme performs the best by considering the signal-to-noise-ratio (SNR) of the received signal. However, if the power for the relay is limited, the performance of the opportunistic scheme degrades due to the loss of active relay nodes that have better channel conditions. Since the battery lifetime of nodes for wireless sensor networks is limited and the loss of relay nodes is critical to system performance, we propose an SNR-constrained power reduction scheme to prolong the relay lifetime for the opportunistic scheme. It is demonstrated by computer simulation that the opportunistic scheme with SNR-constrained power reduction is power efficient and the relay lifetime of dense relay networks can be significantly prolonged.", "Khatri-Rao space-time (KRST) coding is an efficient scheme proposed in the last decade for multi-antenna communication systems. The decoding process results on a tensor decomposition with interesting blind decodability properties. In this paper, we consider its extension to cooperative networks where each node has a single antenna. For this purpose, we propose a distributed KRST coding and decoding technique. The proposed distributed decoding scheme is based on average consensus embedded in an alternating least squares (ALS) algorithm. Unlike standard consensus algorithms where consensus is reached asymptotically, we derive closed form solutions allowing to reach the consensus in a finite number of iterations upper-bounded by the number of collaborating nodes. The performance of the proposed method is evaluated by means of simulations.", "This paper proposes a novel cooperative approach for two-hop amplify-and-forward (A&F) relaying that exploits both the signal forwarded by the relay and the one directly transmitted by the source in impulse-radio ultra-wideband (IR-UWB) systems. Specifically, we focus on a non-coherent setup employing a double-differential encoding scheme at the source node and a single differential demodulation at the relay and destination. The log-likelihood ratio based decision rule is derived at the destination node. A semi-analytical power allocation strategy is presented by evaluating a closed-form expression for the effective signal to noise ratio (SNR) at the destination, which is maximized by exhaustive search. Numerical simulations show that the proposed system outperforms both the direct transmission with single differential encoding and the non-cooperative multi-hop approach in different scenarios.", "Based on the characteristic of supporting physical layer multiple rates in IEEE 802.11 standard, in this paper, we propose a Relay based Media Access Control (Relay-MAC) protocol. The key idea of Relay-MAC is using the high rate nodes to assist the low rate nodes in transmission by relay forwarding. According to Relay-MAC, each node in the network monitors the ongoing transmission of control frames, and obtains the channel quality between the source and the destination, then distributed decides whether to be a relay in the cooperative transmission. We make a detailed introduction of the frame format, the relay selection criterion, and the work process of the Relay-MAC. We also analyzed the spatial multiplexing problem presented in scenario with relay node. Finally, we compare the performance of the proposed Relay-MAC with the adaptive rate scheme, and demonstrate its efficiency in terms of network throughput and transmission delay.", "In this paper, we propose an incremental decode-and-forward (DF) relaying scheme; in our proposed scheme, we make use of the free spatial dimensions over which the relay node will forward the source node data. The relay node will help in providing an automatic repeat request (ARQ) service for the source node that is completely transparent to the source node. The proposed ARQ service will not require any additional complexity at the source node transmitter and will not incur any rate loss. We provide a complete analysis for the symbol error rate (SER) of our proposed scheme. In addition, we derive SER upper-bounds to calculate the diversity order achieved by our scheme. Numerical simulations are conducted that support our derived SER expressions as well as the calculated diversity orders. The results show the significant performance gains of our proposed scheme, in terms of the system SER and the diversity order, compared to the system where no relay is deployed.", "In a distributed system, the hosts execute concurrently, generating asynchronous logs that are challenging to comprehend. We present two tools: ShiVector to transparently add vector timestamps to distributed system logs, and ShiViz to help developers understand distributed system logs by visualizing them as space-time diagrams. ShiVector is the first tool to offer automated vector timestamp instrumentation without modifying source code. The vector-timestamped logs capture partial ordering information, useful for analysis and comprehension. ShiViz space-time diagrams are simple to understand and interactive — the user can explore the log through the visualization to understand complex system behavior. We applied ShiVector and ShiViz to two systems and found that they aid developers in understanding and debugging.", "In this paper, we investigate the one-way relaying assisted secondary user information exchange, i.e., cognitive one-way relaying scheme, and the two-way relaying assisted secondary user information exchange, i.e., cognitive two-way relaying scheme, in cognitive radio networks. The exact closed-form expressions of outage probability for the proposed schemes are derived with imperfect spectrum sensing over Rayleigh fading channels. Considering the effect of the interference from the primary user on secondary data transmissions performance, we further give the closed-form expressions of outage probability floor. Numerical results show that the cognitive two-way relaying scheme outperforms the cognitive one-way relaying scheme in terms of outage probability performance.", "In this paper, we investigate a dual-hop relaying system, composed of radio frequency (RF) and free-space optical (FSO) link. Decode-and-forward (DF) relay is employed to integrate the first RF link and the second line-of-sight FSO links. The RF channel is assumed to be subject to recently proposed Fisher-Snedecor fading model, which was shown to be convenient for modeling in realistic wireless communication scenarios. The FSO channel is affected by Gamma-Gamma distributed atmospheric turbulence. Expression for the outage probability is derived and utilized to present numerical results. Based on presented results, the effects of various RF and FSO channels parameters on the overall system performance are examined and discussed.", "In this paper we propose a novel network coded LDPC code design for a multiple-access relay channel (MARC). We first investigate the achievable rate region for the MARC. Then we propose a novel physical layer network coded (PNC) LDPC code structure, named PNC-LDPC code. Next, an iterative detection-and-decoding receiver is designed to deal with the multi-user interference at the destination. Based on the code structure and the iterative receiver, we optimize the degree distribution of the PNC-LDPC code to approach the system achievable rate by utilizing the extrinsic mutual information transfer (EXIT) chart. Simulations show that the performance of our PNC-LDPC code, with a code length of 10000, at the destination, is 1:5 dB away from the capacity.", "We consider a simple multiple access network (SMAN), where $k$ sources of unit rates transmit their data to a common sink via $n$ relays. Each relay is connected to the sink and to certain sources. A coding scheme (for the relays) is weakly secure if a passive adversary who eavesdrops on less than $k$ relay-sink links cannot reconstruct the data from each source. We show that there exists a weakly secure maximum distance separable (MDS) coding scheme for the relays if and only if every subset of $\\ell$ relays must be collectively connected to at least $\\ell+1$ sources, for all $0 < \\ell < k$. Moreover, we prove that this condition can be verified in polynomial time in $n$ and $k$. Finally, given a SMAN satisfying the aforementioned condition, we provide another polynomial time algorithm to trim the network until it has a sparsest set of source-relay links that still supports a weakly secure MDS coding scheme.", "This letter considers a multi-source multi-relay network in which relay nodes employ a coding scheme based on random linear network coding on source packets and generate coded packets. If a destination node collects enough coded packets, it can recover the packets of all source nodes. The links between source-to-relay nodes and relay-to-destination nodes are modeled as packet erasure channels. Improved bounds on the probability of decoding failure are presented, which are markedly close to simulation results and notably better than previous bounds. Examples demonstrate the tightness and usefulness of the new bounds over the old bounds.", "This paper studies the outage probability of device-to-device (D2D) communication aided by another D2D user using the two-way amplify-and-forward (AF) relaying protocol. We first discuss the outage behavior under strong and weak interference from the cellular network. Then the exact expressions for the outage probability under the two cases are derived. Based on these results, we give tight approximations in the high signal-to-noise (SNR) regime under the two cases. Numerical results show that the outage behavior for the relay aided D2D link can be greatly enhanced without extra power. Analytical results are validated via comparisons with the Monte-Carlo simulations.", "In this paper, we propose a network coding scheme that is one of the most promising techniques for overcoming transmission errors in underwater acoustic communications. It is assumed that the proposed scheme operates in a Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) network where multiple sensor nodes share the underwater acoustic channel in both the frequency and the time domains by means of orthogonal codes. The network topology deploys multi-hop transmission with relaying between multiple source nodes and one destination node via multiple relay nodes. The proposed scheme is evaluated in terms of the successful packet delivery ratio of end-to-end transactions under varying packet loss rates. A computer simulation shows that the successful delivery ratio is maintained at over 95% even when the packet loss rate reaches 50%.", "Cooperative communications enhance throughput, link reliability, power consumption, and coverage in wireless relay networks, where many relay nodes in the network work together in order to transmit information from a source to a destination [1], [2]. Many researches have been done to design and analyze the routing algorithms and protocols [3], [4]. However, frequent feedback is required for transmitter adjusting the phases of the transmit signal to optimize the receive signal [5]. Thus, the use of rateless codes has been introduced into cooperative relay networks [6], which are attractive because the realized data transmission rate is automatically a function of the instantaneous channel state, without the transmitting source or relays knowing it. Rateless codes generate a potentially infinite number of encoded symbols, which are transmitted until an acknowledgement is received from the recipient.", "In this paper, the cooperative coding using cyclic delay diversity (CDD) for multiuser OFDM systems is introduced. In proposed scheme, multiple terminals with a single antenna share their resources and exploit spatial diversity. Also, in order to increase frequency selectivity in the relay channel, different cyclic time delay is used at the relays. Analysis of frame error probability (FEP) for proposed cooperative coding using CDD is shown. Simulation results show the frame error rate (FER) for various consideration. The proposed scheme provides the diversity gain according to the number of relays and cyclic delay." ]

[ "The former 'First Bloke' of Australia Tim Mathieson has hit out at Margie Abbott, claiming she isn't doing enough charity work. Julia Gillard's partner claims that Tony Abbott's wife, who manages a child-care centre part time and regularly attends community events, isn't properly fulfilling her duties as a Prime Minister's spouse. 'What is she doing? Because I did 60 charity events. She has not contributed to any of them,' Mr Mathieson told the Sunday Herald Sun. Julia Gillard's partner Tim Mathieson claims Prime Minister Tony Abbot's wife Margie isn't doing enough for charity . While in the role of 'First Bloke' he travelled extensively with Ms Gillard to attend functions and charity events. 'The spouse of every prime minister since [Edmund] Barton has done charity work,' he claimed. A spokeswoman from the Prime Minister's office responded to the claims, saying Mrs Abbott has been involved in a whole host of charity, community, health and education events. 'This community involvement has been part of her life as she has worked part-time at a local Sydney childcare centre and, along with Tony, raised their three daughters,' the spokeswoman said. A spokesperson for Mrs Abbott, pictured here with Krystal Barter at the launch of her book, said she participates in many community events . She also said the Prime Minister's wife has been a long supporter of many causes including Girl Guides and Royal Blind Society, and that those close to Mrs Abbott know she doesn't make a fuss of the work she does. Mr Mathieson supports many organisations himself as a patron for the Australia Men's Sheds Association, an ambassador for Kidney Health Australia, while also being involved with mental health group beyondblue and an indigenous diabetes association. He also took on the role as one of the former government's Men's Health Ambassadors, though did get himself into hot water over a joke he made to the West Indies cricket team while talking about prostate cancer. Mr Mathieson said he was simply trying to do the best he could as a country boy and he had little time for garden parties. Tim Mathieson (right) is an ambassador for the Australian Men's Sheds Association among other things ." ]

[ "Arnold Abbott handed out four plates of food to homeless people in a South Florida park. Then police stopped the 90-year-old from serving up another bite. \"An officer said, 'Drop that plate right now -- like I had a weapon,'\" Abbott said. Abbott and two pastors in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, were charged for feeding the homeless in public on Sunday, the city's first crackdowns under a new ordinance banning public food sharing, CNN affiliate WPLG reported. Now they face possible jail time and a $500 fine, WPLG said. Despite some criticism from homeless advocates, city officials have vowed the new rules will be enforced. \"Just because of media attention we don't stop enforcing the law. We enforce the laws here in Fort Lauderdale,\" Mayor Jack Seiler told WPLG. He defended the law in an interview with the Sun-Sentinel newspaper. \"I'm not satisfied with having a cycle of homeless in the city of Fort Lauderdale,\" Seiler said. \"Providing them with a meal and keeping them in that cycle on the street is not productive.\" But Abbott, who has been helping feed homeless people in the area through his Love Thy Neighbor nonprofit since 1991, said authorities are targeting the city's most vulnerable residents. \"These are the poorest of the poor. They have nothing. They don't have a roof over their head,\" he said. \"Who can turn them away?\" Recently, the city has also passed an ordinance limiting the storage of personal property in public, WPLG said. Then came the restrictions for food sharing. \"The city passed an ordinance requiring us to have a Porta-Potty. It's ridiculous. The whole thing was designed to rid Fort Lauderdale of its homeless,\" Abbott said. \"Police told me anyone who touches a pan ... anyone who is involved, will be arrested.\" It's a battle Abbott has fought before. In 1999 he sued the city for banning him from feeding homeless people on the beach -- and won, according to WPLG. He said the threat of charges won't stop him from doing it again. \"I'm not afraid of jail. I'm not looking to go, but if I have to, I will,\" he said. On Wednesday, Abbott said he'll be at Fort Lauderdale Beach, ready to serve another meal.", "Prime Minister Tony Abbott is being haunted by his own, damning words, in a video that has resurfaced today. The embattled Liberal leader this afternoon tried to shrug off the fact nearly 40 per cent of his own colleagues voted for a leadership spill, insisting 'this matter is now behind us'. But he wasn't nearly so forgiving when 31 of former prime minister Julia Gillard's colleagues voted against her leadership in February 2012. The video from parliamentary Question Time shows Mr Abbott questioning how Ms Gillard could continue as leader, considering her lack of party support. Scroll down for video . In the video, Opposition Leader Tony Abbott asked how Ms Gillard could claim a mandate as Prime Minister . Ms Gillard responded by reminding Mr Abbott he won the leadership off Malcolm Turnbull by a single vote . 'My question is to the Prime Minister,' Mr Abbott said, rising to address the House of Representatives. 'Given that one third of her parliamentary colleagues, and a quarter of her cabinet colleagues have expressed their lack of confidence in her, how can she claim to have a mandate to continue as Prime Minister?' Ms Gillard had just defeated Mr Rudd in the second of four leadership spills during that era between the pair by a margin of 71 to 31. The then prime minister rebuked him - 'he comes into this Parliament having survived his leadership issues by one vote!' - but he wasn't done. Contrition: Mr Abbott said 'good government starts today' - some sixteen months into his prime ministership . Pained: More than half of his backbench colleagues voted to spill the leadership . Changed times: Mr Abbott (left, with wife Margie) today defeated a leadership spill motion by 61 votes to 39 . Mr Abbott (flanked by parliamentary colleagues) survived the motion but was politically wounded by the internal dissent of the past few weeks . Mr Abbott arrived at today's party meeting with Foreign Minister Julie Bishop - touted as a potential leadership contender herself - by his side . 'Mr Speaker, I have a supplementary question for the Prime Minister. 'How can the Prime Minister claim to be leading a united team when the former Prime Minister and former foreign minister said that the Prime Minister had 'lost the trust of the Australian people' and 31 of her caucus colleagues backed the former prime minister?' Years on, it is Mr Abbott himself who is damaged by a lack of support from his own colleagues, with 39 Liberals voting for his leadership to be re-considered. And history does repeat itself. Opposition Leader Bill Shorten today asked Mr Abbott: 'Now that one third of his parliamentary colleagues have today expressed their lack of confidence in him, how can (Mr Abbott) claim to have a mandate?' As Mr Abbott knows, that's a dangerous line of questioning.", "By . Australian Associated Press . Prime Minister Tony Abbott's family has copped a fair amount of criticism this week but Labor has angrily denied suggestions that Opposition Leader Bill Shorten had anything to do with orchestrating the attacks. On Wednesday, the PM's daughter Frances, 22, was slammed for accepting a scholarship for a university degree costing more than $60,000 from a long-time friend of the Prime Minister. On Friday, his eldest daughter, Louise, came under fire for working at Australia's embassy in Geneva as it was revealed the office is headed by former Coalition staffer Peter Woolcott. And on Saturday, the former 'First Bloke' of Australia Tim Mathieson hit out at the PM's wife Margie Abbott, claiming she isn't doing enough charity work. Attacked: Louise Abbott (left), Margie Abbott (second right) and Frances Abbott (right) were all criticised this week . The Prime Minister accused some media outlets for 'dirt digging', but one of his senior government ministers has now blamed federal Labor leader Bill Shorten for orchestrating the 'repugnant' attacks. Health Minister Peter Dutton accused Mr Shorten of withdrawing from the media at the same time his office 'quite deliberately' launched these attacks against the Abbott family. 'I believe very strongly that this is an orchestrated attack by Bill Shorten and it needs to stop,' Mr Dutton told Network Ten on Sunday. Mr Shorten's office has rejected the allegations, calling them 'wrong, hurtful and completely without foundation'. Hurt: Opposition leader Bill Shorten has denied he had anything to do with the attacks on the PM's family . First Lady Margie Abbott (left) and her daughter Frances (right) have both come under fire . 'Bill has made his position very clear that families should not be dragged into the political debate,' a spokesman for Mr Shorten told AAP in a statement. 'This shows the government will stoop to any low it can to distract from its budget failure.' AAP understands the prime minister's office was contacted by Mr Shorten on Wednesday when questions started being asked about a $60,000 scholarship awarded to Mr Abbott's youngest daughter Frances. It's understood Mr Shorten told the office Labor was not behind the story and believed families should be kept off limits. Julia Gillard's partner Tim Mathieson claims Prime Minister Tony Abbott's wife Margie isn't doing enough for charity . A subsequent story carried complaints about the appointment of Mr Abbott's eldest daughter Louise to a government job in Geneva. Yet another story published on Sunday aired criticisms from Julia Gillard's partner Tim Mathieson about Margie Abbott's commitment to charity. A spokeswoman for the Prime Minister declined to comment on Mr Dutton's allegations, saying the stories about the Abbott family were of a personal nature and a distraction from the budget. Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article.", "Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard appears to have shrugged off the row about the Liberal Party's insulting menu, as she is pictured at a breakfast meeting with action hero Arnold Schwarzenegger. Miss Gillard and the former Californian Governor have teamed up to write a joint opinion piece to urge global action on climate change. The British-born prime minster has week- this morning she was asked in a radio interview whether her partner Tim Mathieson was gay. Unlikely allies: Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard meets Hollywood star Arnold Schwarzenegger to discuss an article they both wrote urging global action on climate change . Miss Gillard appeared relaxed and undaunted sharing a light breakfast with Hollywood legend Schawarzenegger as the unlikely pair collaborated on their article. The joint piece, which has been published in News Limited newspapers, draws on the similarities between California and Australia. The article reads: 'California and Australia have a lot in common - climate change threatens our fragile environments and aggravates serious bushfires, droughts and floods, which put our important agricultural industries at risk. 'Because of these similar challenges, even though we are leaders from different sides of the political spectrum, we strongly agree on two fundamental ideas - that taking action on climate change can no longer be delayed and that such actions can succeed beyond partisan politics.' In a vulgar incident earlier this week it . emerged that a dinner menu drawn up by the opposition Liberal Party included a dish called 'Julia Gillard Kentucky Fried Quail', . described as 'small breasts, huge thighs and a big red box'. Today Miss Gillard, who has attacked the Liberal Party for what she said was their sexist attitude to women, was taken aback when she was asked in a radio interview whether her partner Tim Mathieson was gay. Questions: Miss Gillard Was taken aback when she was asked in a radio interview whether her partner Tim Mathieson was gay because he was a hairdresser . Appearing on a radio show in Perth, Western Australia, 51-year-old Miss Gillard was asked outright if Mr Mathieson, 56, was gay because he was a hairdresser. 'That's absurd,' Miss Gillard told interviewer Howard Sattler on radio 6PR when he said he wanted to ask her about Mr Mathieson's sexuality. But the interviewer was not going to drop the subject, after earlier asking the Labour leader about the sexist menu. 'But you hear it,' said Mr Sattler, quoting what people were saying: 'He must be gay, he's a hairdresser.' 'Deeply shocked': Australian Prime minister Julia Gillard was likened to a quail with 'small breasts, huge thighs and a big red box' on a menu drawn up by the opposition Liberal Party . Miss Gillard made it clear that she was not going to be drawn in to the rumours Mr Sattler said were being bandied about. 'I mean, Howard, I don't know if every silly thing that gets said is going to be repeated to me now,' she said. To all the hairdressers out there, including the men who are listening, I don't think in life one can actually look at a whole profession full of different human beings and say \"Gee, we know something about every one of those human beings.\"' Mr Sattler reminded the Prime Minister that he had been promised a candid interview with her, asking: 'You can confirm that he's not (gay)?' 'Oh Howard, don't be ridiculous, of course he not,' said the British-born Prime Minister. 'But you're in a heterosexual relationship?' he pressed. 'That's all I'm asking.' She replied: 'Howard, let me just bring you back to earth - you and I have just talked about me and Tim living at the lodge. We live there together as a couple, you know that.' The astonishing interview had begun with Mr Sattler telling Miss Gillard that she had been the butt of rumours and snide jokes many times, to which she she said that was probably right. When he asked if he could test a few out and she asked in what way, he said: 'Tim's gay.' After telling the radio host that the suggestion was ridiculous she said: 'Yes, on the internet, you know, there are lots of, you know, what I've referred to in the past as nutjobs and I'm happy to use the expression again - people who peddle and circulate vile and offensive things.' Bloggers later pointed out that the questions had put Miss Gillard off guard - she told Mr Sattler that the general election was on September 12 when it is actually being held on September 14. Mr Mathieson is divorced with four adult children, three born during his marriage and one who he fathered in his late teens. He began dating Miss Gillard in 2006 and has been her partner ever since. Bad taste: The Liberals have apologised for the reference to Miss Gillard on the fundraiser menu (above) Furious: Former Labour Prime Minister Kevin Rudd (right), who was also . targeted in the menu, described the stunt as a 'snide, dirty and sexist . trick' Political observers said the dinner . menu's contents had blunted the Liberal Party's attack on Miss Gillard's . campaign to warn about about the threat of male dominance in government . if the Liberals won the election, as the opinion polls are suggesting. The dinner menu made its unsubtle attack on British-born Miss Gillard under the title of Moroccan Quail. Liberal leader Tony Abbott was also quick to condemn the menu, calling it 'tawdry'. 'I think we should all be bigger and better than that,' he said. Today Miss Gillard to have put the incident behind her appearing relaxed and undaunted as she met with Hollywood legend Schawarzenegger to collaborated on an article. In 2006 as governor of California Schwarzenegger making it the first US state to impose limits on global warming gases. One of Gillard's key policies since taking office has been the introduction of a carbon pollution tax. The article emphasised the importance of carbon pricing in lowering emissions to less damaging levels and reducing climate change. It read: 'This means we need to put a meaningful, global price on carbon pollution now. 'What the Industrial Revolution and the Information Technology Revolution have shown is that the people in regions which lead these transformations prosper the most and the soonest. 'It is the same with the Clean Energy Revolution.'", "By . Kerry Mcdermott . PUBLISHED: . 06:24 EST, 31 May 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 06:25 EST, 31 May 2013 . 'Callous': Michelle Christie, pictured after having her head shaved for charity, stole more than £9,000 from her 95-year-old neighbour . A charity fund-raiser offered to help care for a 95-year-old neighbour then stole £9,000 from his life savings. 'Callous' Michelle Christie, 41, who was paid £15 per week to collect Peter MacKinnon's pension and help with odd jobs around his house in Elgin, Scotland, used the elderly man's Post Office card and PIN number to steal from him over a period of six months, a court heard. Christie, who once shaved her head for charity and was well-known in the area for her fundraising efforts, pleaded guilty to stealing from the pensioner at Elgin Sheriff Court yesterday. She admitted stealing a total of £9,100 from the war veteran over several occasions between November 2012 and April 2013. Mr McKinnon's niece, Rosemary Thompson, described the former car mechanic as a 'lovely, quiet, unassuming man' who has worked hard all his life. She said Christie offered to help care for her elderly uncle when he fell ill at the end of last year, but it later emerged that money was disappearing from Mr McKinnon's bank account. Neighbour Amanda Sim, 27, contacted police after she became suspicious of Christie. 'We were all shocked, first of all that she would do that to him, and more so shocked at the substantial amount she took,' Mrs Sim said. 'She was making out she was doing good for Peter, but all along she was stealing his money. 'Peter . still says \"I'm just lost for words\". He can't believe that someone . would do that, and for the trust to be shattered,' she added. 'Shocked': Christie, 41, seen ahead of the charity head shave, was well known in Elgin for her fund-raising efforts, the court heard . Ms Thompson, who lives in England but visits her uncle in Elgin every few months, said: 'I have never known such a callous human being who makes herself out to be a charitable person whilst at the same time robbing a poor pensioner.' Christie, of Elgin, is due to be sentenced on June 20.", "An ironic venue choice has been made by the Liberal National Party's for the International Women's Day event. The annual luncheon event is set to be held at the exclusive men's-only club - the Tattersall's Club in Brisbane on Friday. The oldest and most prestigious membership club in Brisbane boasts that those who wish to sign up will enjoy unlimited possibilities, luxury services and the opportunity to join 'an influential network of like-minded members'. But if you aren't a man, you need to be a relative or friend of a member to be privileged enough to walk through the door and relish in these perks. The exclusive men's-only club - the Tattersall's Club in Brisbane is the ironic venue of choice for the International Women's Day event hosted by the Liberal National Party on Friday . An LNP spokesman said the venue was chosen due to availability, price and flexibility and location. Opposition Leader Bill Shorten asked Prime Minister Tony Abbott, who is also the Federal Minister for Women, to comment on the topic during Question Time at Parliament House on Wednesday. Mr Abbott replied that the venue choice should be deemed as a positive move - saying the last sexism barrier had been broken down. 'Admit women! Isn't that fantastic? At last, this bastion of chauvinism has admitted women and they've done it on International Women's Day because of the Liberal National Party, Fairfax reported him as saying. Prime Minister and Minister for Women Tony Abbott looking very smug after saying the venue choice was a sign that his party is 'smashing the glass ceiling yet again' 'Good on the Liberal National Party, smashing the glass ceiling yet again.' 'I say congratulations and thank God that bastion of old-fashioned chauvinism has finally collapsed like the walls of Jericho at the trumpet cry of the Liberal National Party,' he said . Parliamentary Speaker Fiona Simpson, who is the keynote speaker at the luncheon, did not seem bothered by the event being held at a club where women aren't allowed to join. 'I'm less troubled by openly 'male only' clubs or openly 'women only' gyms than I am by areas of society that have a veneer of equality but which hide structural impediments or unconscious bias that block women from opportunities,' she said told the Brisbane Times. Parliamentary Speaker Fiona Simpson, who is the keynote speaker at the luncheon, is not fussed by the venue choice .", "Prime Minister Tony Abbott has defended himself against the suggestion in a live radio interview that he is guilty of bullying behaviour. ABC radio host Jon Faine probed Tony Abbott while the prime minister was on his way an anti-bullying conference in Melbourne on Friday morning. Mr Faine questioned Mr Abbott's credibility on speaking about the topic when he had been accused of being a bully himself. Prime Minister Tony Abbott 9left) has been grilled in a scathing radio interview with ABC radio host Jon Faine (right) Mr Abbott released a video this week addressing Australian youths and pledging his allegiance to victims of bullying. 'What credibility do you have on bullying - you've been accused of it so often yourself?' Mr Faine asked. 'You yourself admit you have an aggressive streak - isn't that the core of bullying?' Mr Abbott responded by saying the comment was 'without foundation.' 'Obviously when I feel strongly about things I argue strongly for them but of the things I've always tried to do is give credit where it's due,' Mr Abbott told Mr Faine. In another segment, the broadcaster asked the prime minister about a string of controversial comments. He mentioned Mr Abbott's recent comment about Aboriginal people living in remote communities as being 'lifestyle choices' and his comparing of Labor leader Bill Shorten to Nazi propagandist Joseph Goebells. 'Mr Abbott, for a Rhodes scholar, how come you say so many stupid things?' he asked. Mr Faine questioned the Prime Ministers credibility in adressing bullying, being an accused bully himself . In another segment, the Prime Minister was asked why he continues to make ill-advised comments despite his esteemed education . 'All of us from time to time in the heat of debate, and you know how heated the Parliament can get, sometimes can go too far,' Mr Abbott said. It comes after Mr Abbott sparked outcry on Thursday when he likened Labour Party leader Bill Shorten to the Germany WWII propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels. One month earlier, Abbott had referenced the Nazi's another time when he claimed job losses in the Defence industry under the former Labor government amounted to a 'Holocaust of jobs'. Last week, Mr Abbott prompted furore for indigenous communities when he backed a plan in to close more than 100 remote communities saying 'what we can't do is endlessly subsidise lifestyle choices'.", "By . Richard Shears . PUBLISHED: . 05:46 EST, 29 January 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 06:30 EST, 29 January 2013 . Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s partner - popularly known as the country’s ‘First Bloke’ - has landed himself in hot water over a jokey comment he made while giving a lecture about prostate cancer. Tim Mathieson told members of the West Indian cricket team at the Prime Minister’s home,  The Lodge,  in Canberra that when being tested for the disease the best way was to ‘look for a small female Asian doctor’. He was suggesting that because the physical test involved a finger check a smaller hand would be more comfortable. Tim Mathieson, partner of Prime Minister Julia Gillard, made a joke about prostrate exams that has landed him in hot water . ‘We can get a blood test for it but the digital examination is the only true way to get a correct reading on your prostate so make sure you go and do that and perhaps look for a small Asian female doctor is probably the best way,’ he said to chuckles among the team. But one person was definitely not amused - Miss Gillard,  who was present and who refused to join in the mirth. And today,  a few hours after the remark, Miss Gillard admitted that Mr Mathieson’s comments were in poor taste. After he had apologised, Miss Gillard said he had done the right thing to say he was sorry – but defended his commitment to men’s health causes. ‘He did his best to persuade notoriously reluctant men to get health checks,’ said Miss Gillard, who had simply stared at him from behind his back as he made what he thought was an amusing statement. ‘It’s important to get that message across’ she told ABC radio. ‘Obviously, there’s various ways of getting that message across but he’ s certainly acknowledged that the joke cracked last night was in poor taste.’ Miss Gillard told Australian radio: 'He's certainly acknowledged that the joke cracked last night was in poor taste' Mr Mathieson, 55, a real estate agent and former hairdresser who has been Miss Gillard’s partner since 2006, said today that his remarks were aimed at raising awareness about prostate cancer and the need for men to get regular checks. A supporter of the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia and a volunteer ambassador for the Australian Men’s Shed Association – a male support group - Mr Mathieson admitted today that he had got it wrong. ‘It was meant as a joke and on reflection I accept it was in poor taste,’ he said in a brief statement issued by the Prime Minister’s office. ‘I apologise for any offence caused’ Shadow attorney general George Brandis said Mr Mathieson was lucky he didn’t tell his joke after an anti-discrimination bill – currently before parliament - became law. ‘If he did, he’d probably have been carted away to the re-education camp by the thought police,’ Senator Brandis told Sky News, adding that the joke was in poor taste. Radio host Ray Hadley said it was ironic that Mr Mathieson should have made a comment that would be offensive to Asian women after Miss Gillard had last year accused the leader of the Liberal opposition, Tony Abbott, of being a misogynist. The couple, who have been together since 2006, met Prince William at the Royal Wedding in 2011 . Mr Mike Kelly, Labour’s parliamentary secretary, said that while Mr Mathieson had been a tireless promoter of men’s health issues, the joke would have been better left unsaid. ‘It’s a poor choice of words,’ he told Sky News. Social media commentators were divided over whether the comment was tasteless. Cheryl Critchley wrote on Twitter that ‘Tim Mathieson’s comment was dumb but at least it’s got everyone talking about prostate exams.’ Another commentator wrote: ‘I’m offended by Tim Mathieson’s allegedly sexist/racist joke. Time to take him to a Gillard-approved kangaroo court?’ A supporter of Mr Matthieson’s comment wrote that it was ‘not offensive at all, and if it makes just one bloke book a prostate exam, then the exercise has been worthwhile.’", "Fury: Kirstie Allsopp revealed on Twitter that her thrifty mother-in-law had been denied a mobile phone contract because she has no credit history . As a business owner who has never been in debt, Kirstie Allsopp’s mother-in-law should have found buying a new mobile phone to be a simple procedure. But 85-year-old Gretchen Andersen was turned down for a contract – because she does not have a credit rating. Mrs Andersen – who is mother to Miss Allsopp’s partner of ten years, Ben, 55 – employs three people in her antiques shop in Kensington, West London, and has had a bank account for 60 years. But because she has never borrowed money and appears to have chosen not to pay her utility bills by direct debit, she does not have a credit history and was told by Carphone Warehouse that she could not purchase a phone and contract with O2. Financial experts warned that her situation – which Miss Allsopp, 43, revealed on Twitter – reflects a wider problem that affects thousands of thrifty elderly people who handle their money in a similar way. Miss Allsopp said Mrs Andersen felt ‘personally insulted’ when she was turned down because it seemed she was being told she ‘wasn’t good enough to have a phone’. The television presenter added: ‘They came back and said she hadn’t got a good credit rating and my mother-in-law was like “How on earth can I have a not good credit rating? I’ve never had a debt in my life”. And that’s when they said yes, that’s why.’ James Daley, founder of Fairer Finance, said: ‘If this woman is being prudent and hasn’t built up a credit history then she shouldn’t be penalised for that. ‘There is still a significant part of the elderly community who like to go to the post office and pay their bills. They don’t like to have direct debits because they feel they have better control of their cashflow that way.’ A spokesman for Carphone Warehouse said: ‘There can be a number of reasons why customers fail their initial credit check … We are working with O2 to investigate this matter to try to resolve the issue for the customer.’", "On their first date, Tony Abbott wouldn't stop talking about the split between the ALP (Australian Labor Party) and the DLP (Democratic Labor Party) in the mid-1950s. Later on in their courtship, he would take her trekking down the Kokoda Trail - with a mate in tow - and would lavish her with bouquets of roses. Margie Abbott, Australia's so-called 'First Lady', has opened about how she was wooed by the future PM in an interview published in the latest issue of The Australian Women's Weekly. Margie Abbott (pictured at November's G20 summit, holding a koala bear) has begun taking up a more prominent role alongside her husband . Mrs Abbott (with husband Tony) told Women's Weekly how Mr Abbott wooed her in the late 1980s - with champagne, roses, and discussions about politics . Margie Abbott conducted an exclusive interview with the latest edition of The Australian Women's Weekly . The pair first met on a blind date at a Sydney tavern around 1987 - and six months later he would propose to her in an inner-Sydney restaurant, the pair celebrating with French champagne. 'I think we'd both pretty quickly made the decision that we'd met somebody we wanted to spend the rest of our lives with,' Mrs Abbott told the Weekly. The interview was a rare public moment of candour for Mrs Abbott, who has mostly managed to keep out of the limelight throughout her husband's federal political career of more than two decades. However, she has become noticeably more prominent in Mr Abbott's public appearances since he faced the humiliating prospect of a leadership spill motion in mid-February. In the Weekly interview, the Kiwi-born Mrs Abbott also faced questions about current political issues. She declined to answer questions about her thoughts on the Prime Minister dumping his much-touted paid parental leave scheme. Mrs Abbott, who works with a number of charities, has fulfilled her role as 'First Lady' at official functions. Here she is on Wednesday with her husband, greeting Vietnam's Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and Madame Tran Thanh Kiem . Perks of office: Mrs Abbott is pictured here with the family dog Maisie during a visit to the veterinary clinic earlier this year . Peta Credlin (pictured), Tony Abbott's chief of staff, has been the target of several Liberal party members because of her controversial management style . Mr Abbott has promised a 'better deal' for parents with child care in his next Budget (which he said this week would be 'much more boring' than last year's). Asked about Peta Credlin - the leader's chief of staff who was a central issue among several Liberal MPs in the recent Liberal Party turmoil - Mrs Abbott told the Weekly she juggled a difficult job. Ms Credlin has come under sustained public attack since late last year. The ABC's Four Corners program this week published a text message sent by Liberal Party treasurer Phil Higginson which described her as 'the horsewoman of the apocalypse' and sought her removal. 'At the end of the day, Peta works incredibly hard and it's a tough job,' Mrs Abbott said. This month's edition of The Australian Women's Weekly is on sale now.", "There were no drop bears in sight but plenty of koality cuddles. As the leaders of the world's biggest economies got down to business at the G20 meeting in Brisbane today, some of their better halves got up close and personal with Australia's favourite marsupials. Prime Minister Tony Abbott's wife Margie led a delegation of First ladies on a tour of Brisbane's Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary on Saturday. The G20 leaders' wives were treated to the ultimate Aussie outback experience, taking it in turns to cuddle the resident koalas and handfeed a pair of large kangaroos. They were also given a sheep shearing demonstration. The glamorous Mexican first lady, Angelica Rivera, was notably missing from the wildlife excursion. Chinese President Xi Jinping's wife Peng Liyuan and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper's wife Laureen laughed nervously as a couple of large kangaroos sidled up to help themselves to the offered food. Peng Liyuan, wife of China's President Xi Jinping, gets cosy with a koala in Brisbane today . Margie Abbott introduced G20 leaders' wives to some of Australia's cuddliest marsupials as the global summit got underway in Brisbane today . Agnese Landini, wife of Italy's Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, holds a koala bear while on a spouse visit to a koala sanctuary during the G20 Summit in Brisbane. Margie Abbott, right, wife of Australia's Prime Minister Tony Abbott, greets Iriana Joko Widodo, wife of Indonesian President Joko Widodo, during the spouse visit to a koala sanctuary while the G20 Summit takes place in Brisbane . Irana Joko Widodo of Indonesia poses with a koala at the Brisbane sanctuary today . Laureen Harper, wife of Canada's Prime Minister Stephen Harper, holds a koala and right, with Margie Abbott . Ho Ching, wife of Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong . Singapore's First lady Ho Ching looks on warily as a handler introduces one of Australia's more slippery natives at the Koala Sanctuary in Brisbane today . Margie Abbott greets Peng Liyuan, wife of China's President Xi Jinping, at the koala sanctuary and right, Peng Liyuan waves to one of the resident koalas from a safe distance . Tobeka Stacie Madiba-Zuma, wife of South African president Jacob Zuma, cuddles a koala at the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary . Sare Davutoglu of Turkey with a local friend . Margie Abbott, wife of Australia's Prime Minister Tony Abbott, greets Geertrui Van Rompuy-Windels, wife of European Council President Herman Van Rompuy at the sanctuary in Brisbane today . Canada's Laureen Harper gets to know on of Lone Pine Sanctuary's resident koalas in Brisbane today .", "The charity stunt has lured athletes, celebrities, politicians and rock stars and gone viral on the Internet, but don't look for U.S. diplomats to get in on the fun. Lawyers at the State Department have banned American ambassadors and other high-profile foreign service officers from participating in the ice-bucket challenge to raise money and awareness for Lou Gehrig's disease, also called amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS. In a cable sent this week to all U.S. diplomatic missions, the lawyers say it runs afoul of federal ethics rules barring officials from using public office for private gain 'no matter how worthy the cause.' Former President George W. Bush took part in the ice bucket challenge this week (pictured) The unclassified cable, sent on Tuesday, was obtained by The Associated Press Thursday. The cable said public health and disease prevention are some of the State Department's highest priorities, noting U.S. funding for global programs to fight HIV and AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis, smallpox and polio and recent efforts to combat the Ebola virus. And, it complimented the ALS Association on the success of its ice bucket challenge, which has raised more than $40 million and attracted a plethora of notable participants, including former President George W. Bush, television hosts Martha Stewart and Matt Lauer and pro golfer Greg Norman. But it also pointed out that choosing among worthy charities can be a difficult personal decision that is made 'even more difficult when high-ranking State Department personnel with high-profile positions are asked to participate in charitable fund-raising, and concerns about preference and favoritism always arise.' 'There are firmly established rules preventing the use of public office, such as our ambassadors, for private gain, no matter how worthy a cause,' the cable said. 'Thus, high-ranking State Department officials are unfortunately unable to participate in the ice bucket challenge. 'We since wish the ALS Association continued success in its ice bucket campaign, and in its fight against Lou Gehrig's disease.' By the time the cable was sent at least one high-ranking diplomat, Ambassador to Israel Daniel Shapiro, had already participated and had challenged U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power to douse herself with ice water for the cause. But by then, Power and the other ambassadors got the memo.", "Prime Minister Tony Abbott has reacted angrily to a UN report that stated the government's asylum-seeker policy breaches the UN torture convention by saying that 'Australians are sick of being lectured to by the United Nations'. Mr Abbott was furious that the UN did not acknowledge his government for stopping the boats, and questioned the international organisation's credibility. The report by UN special rapporteur on torture Juan Mendez focused on the offshore detention on Manus Island of asylum-seekers by Australian authorities. Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott was in a combative mood in Perth on Monday. He was annoyed by a UN report that stated the government's asylum-seeker policy breaches the UN torture convention . It found that the conditions breached Australia's obligations under the Convention against Torture. However, Mr Abbott said that the report failed to congratulate the government for avoiding asylum-seeker deaths at sea, and that the report missed the point. 'I really think Australians are sick of being lectured to by the United Nations,' he told reporters in Perth. Mr Abbott (centre) was on a visit to Houghton Wines' Swan Valley vineyard in Perth on Monday when he responded to the comments made in the UN report criticising his government's policy . On Sunday Mr Abbott visited Davidson Rural Fire Brigade in Sydney where he received his ten year RFS service medal. But he was in a much less jovial mood after the UN report was revealed . 'Particularly given that we have stopped the boats and by stopping the boats we have ended the deaths at sea.' He felt that the UN would be 'much better served' by recognising the government's successes. 'UN representatives would have a lot more credibility if they were to give some credit to the Australian government for what we have been able to achieve in this area,' he said. The Australian Prime Minister (centre) felt that the UN would be 'much better served' by focusing on his government's successes . Stopping the boats was the most humanitarian, decent and compassionate way to deal with the issue, he emphasised. Mr Abbott said conditions on Manus Island were reasonable with basic needs like food, clothing, shelter and safety being met. Mr Abbott said he was also 'sick of being lectured to by the United Nations'", "By . Simon Walters . UPDATED: . 18:52 EST, 28 January 2012 . Labour health spokesman Diane Abbott was caught up in a new row last night over claims that she fell asleep during a Westminster debate on abortion laws. The allegations surfaced after Ms Abbott’s shock resignation from a  parliamentary committee established to consider whether women should  be offered independent advice when deciding whether to terminate a  pregnancy. Yawning: Diane Abbott denies accusations she fell asleep during an important Westminster debate on abortion laws . Fellow committee member Tory MP Nadine Dorries claimed Ms Abbott’s walkout came after she played virtually no part in any of the committee’s three meetings. Ms Abbott vehemently denied nodding off. But Ms Dorries, who has campaigned for a tightening of abortion criteria, said she ‘slept through’ the first meeting, ‘didn’t turn up’ for the second and ‘arrived late’ for the third. Ms Dorries claimed that at one point, the chairman of the committee, Health Minister Anne Milton, spoke loudly to try to rouse slumbering Ms Abbott. Peterborough MP Stewart Jackson backed up Ms Dorries, saying: ‘I was virtually sitting opposite Diane Abbott at one meeting and she was definitely dropping off during part of it.’ Controversial: Labour health spokesman Ms Abbott has been the centre of a number of controversies, including allegations she posted a racist message on twitter . Rebuke: Diane Abbott was rebuked by Labour leader Ed Miliband for her 'whites divide and rule' comment on twitter . Ms Abbott and Ms Dorries clashed angrily in a showdown on BBC2’s Newsnight, during which host Kirsty Wark challenged Ms Abbott about the claims she had fallen asleep. The committee was set up last year after Ms Dorries’s call for women to be offered independent abortion advice failed to win the support of MPs. She claims charities such as the British Pregnancy Advisory Service cannot guarantee to offer impartial advice because they receive money for  carrying out abortions. Critics say that Ms Dorries’s proposal could threaten a woman’s right to have a termination. When her plan failed to win backing in the Commons, the Government pledged to set up a committee to seek public opinion. It is made up of MPs from both sides of the debate. Vocal: Diane Abbott is a prominent Labour MP and a regular on political programmes . Ms Dorries said: ‘Diane’s conduct on the committee was appalling. She barely contributed. She slept through the first one, so much so that when the Minister addressed her, she had to speak up because it appeared Diane hadn’t heard because she was asleep. ‘She didn’t turn up for the second one and was late for the third one. From what I recall, her longest contribution in any of the meetings was to explain why she was late.’ Ms Abbott denied ‘storming off’ the committee. She said she had resigned because she believed it was a ‘fix’ intended to favour Ms Dorries’s views on abortion. Ms Dorries said: ‘I suspect the real reason she resigned is because when she is asked what her input is, she won’t be able to say. She is not fit to be the Opposition health spokeswoman.’ Last night a spokesman for Ms Abbott said: ‘Diane attended two meetings and, unfortunately, had to miss one. Nadine is being a bit silly when she says Diane slept through a meeting. It’s an attempt to distract from the real issues.’ Earlier this month Ms Abbott came under fire over her ‘whites divide and rule’ comment after the trial of the racist killers of black teenager Stephen Lawrence. Labour leader Ed Miliband forced her to apologise.", "By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 12:46 EST, 17 July 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 14:01 EST, 17 July 2012 . A policy advisor to Republican gubernatorial candidate Rob McKenna has apologised for sending 'offensive' tweets. Kathlyn Ehl, a policy advisor to McKenna wrote on her Twitter page: 'shut up and speak english #asians,' on January 25. She also appeared to be mocking the elderly in November when she wrote: 'If . it takes you an entire green light to walk in front of my car GET A . WHEELCHAIR #toooldtowalk' Kathlyn Ehl, a policy advisor to gubernatorial Republican candidate Rob McKenna has apologised after writing on her Twitter page: 'shut up and speak english #asians,' on January 25 . But the tweets only came to attention recently after The Stranger published them . Yesterday Mr McKenna branded the tweets both 'insensitive and wrong.' They were posted online before Miss Ehl joined his campaign in April. They were quickly deleted, but remained accessible on archived Web pages. In an email message to The Seattle Times, Miss Ehl apologized. 'These insensitive comments were harmful, not just to those groups which I mentioned in the tweets, but also to my family, friends and my co-workers,\" she wrote. 'For causing that pain, I am sorry.' Issue: Rob McKenna, pictured, released a statement saying he was glad Ehl had apologised . She recently graduated from the University of Washington with a degree in political science, according to her LinkedIn profile. 'My actions were not just unfortunate, they were offensive,' she wrote in the email. 'It is a lesson to others that social media comments made in frustration not only can hurt others, but they exist long after the moment has passed.' Yesterday afternoon McKenna released a statement saying he was glad she had apologised. 'The fact that she made the comments before joining my campaign does not make them any less hurtful to Asian Americans and the elderly. 'They were insensitive and wrong regardless of their context. 'She has done the right thing by apologizing. I am hopeful that she has learned a humbling lesson that will give her greater perspective about having charity in her heart when considering the challenges faced by others.'", "New Charity Commission chairman William Shawcross yesterday signalled a break with his controversial predecessor, ‘quango queen’ Dame Suzi Leather, who was criticised for using the organisation for political purposes. Dame Suzi, who angered Conservatives by mounting attacks on the Government, repeatedly threatened independent schools with the loss of their charitable status, thereby pushing up fees and potentially forcing their closure. In contrast, Mr Shawcross, the biographer of the Queen Mother, said one of the roles of charities should be to help poor children to attend the ‘finest schools’. Bumpy handover: William Shawcross (right) has made his views on the 'politicisation of charities' clear. This is said to be a departure from former boss Dame Suzi Leather . He told the annual conference of the Women’s Institute in Cardiff: ‘I am sure that we here all agree that the nobility lies in the search to provide everyone with equality of opportunity.’ Mr Shawcross – who noted that the 160,000 British charities had an astonishing total income of £54 billion – added that his quango had a role to play in the fight against terrorism and the hijacking of charities by extremist outfits. He said: ‘We in the commission know that evil often tries to subvert the innate generosity of the charitable impulse for terrorist purposes. ‘The whole country has been appalled . by the acts of terror we have witnessed in recent years. We shall . redouble our efforts against terrorist subversion of charities.’ Mr Shawcross, 67, also promised to tackle ‘the politicisation of charities’. Disagreements: Dame Leather threatened independent schools with the loss of their charitable status, which Michael Gove campaigner for . He said: ‘Any charity is free to campaign to further its basic aims. But no charity can be exclusively campaigning. We have to draw a line.’ In his speech, Mr Shawcross lauded the Women’s Institute’s contribution to the UK and how it ‘always got things done’. The 4,000 members at the conference in Cardiff backed a resolution calling for action to  re-ignite Britain’s dwindling high streets. Spokeswoman Marylyn Haines-Evans said: ‘I believe high streets have a viable and very real future. ‘It’s not about turning back the tide, it’s about supporting those that are fit  for purpose in the 21st Century.’", "By . Lizzie Edmonds, Grant Hodgson, Mark Duell and Richard Shears . PUBLISHED: . 05:11 EST, 6 October 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 03:44 EST, 7 October 2013 . Prince Harry’s girlfriend has overcome her concerns about marrying into the Royal family, it was claimed today. Cressida Bonas, 24, has ‘got used to the idea’ of marriage and children with the 29-year-old Prince - and a wedding is expected to take place next year, according to friends of the couple. ‘Cressie is going to marry Harry,’ one of the dance student’s friends told The Sunday Telegraph. ‘Harry never stops talking about marriage and children, and she has now got used to the idea.’ Scroll down for video . Couple: Prince Harry and Cressida Bonas seen leaving The Prince of Wales Theatre in Central London on Tuesday after attending a performance of The Book of Mormon . In the air: Prince Harry was pictured walking through Perth Airport in Australia with his security detail today . On the move: Prince Harry is seen walking through the Perth International Airport in Western Australia . Smiles: Prince Harry is seen making his way through the Perth International Airport during his trip to Australia . Pleased to meet you: Prince Harry shakes the hand of a delighted young girl during his visit to Australia . Popular: Prince Harry was greeted by tens of thousands of people during his visit to Australia this weekend . Response: Screams greeted the Prince as he went on a walkabout among excited crowds in Australia . Meet and greet: Prince Harry is heading to Dubai on Monday for a gala dinner for his charity Sentebale . Back again a decade later: Prince Harry last visited Australia in 2003 during his gap year . Speaking: Prince Harry visits Special Air Service Regiment at its home base at Campbell Barracks in Perth . Listening: Prince Harry, who is on his second day of a two-day trip to Australia, toured the base where he met past and present members of the unit and honoured fallen members at the Garden of Reflection . Welcome: An Australian Government handout photo of Prince Harry during his visit to the Special Air Service Regiment at its home base at Campbell Barracks in Perth . Remembrance: The Prince met with the SASR Regimental family including past and present members of the unit and the families of SASR members killed on operations or in training . It comes as Harry was mobbed by tens . of thousands of adoring fans on Sydney’s famous harbour as he began his . first official visit of Australia yesterday - which he attended without . Miss Bonas. Prince Harry accidentally gatecrashed a man proposing marriage to his girlfriend on a hotel rooftop in Sydney, it was reported today. Accompanied by a woman, Harry and about 20 others who had joined him at his luxury Sydney hotel to watch a fireworks spectacular over the harbour, surprised the couple as the man, flowers in hand, was making his proposal. Ian Sjaichudin, the male whose proposal was interrupted, told Channel Seven news he was asking his girlfriend to marry him on the roof of the Shangri-La hotel when Harry and his party turned up as the fireworks were exploding. The incident occurred when Prince Harry and his party headed up to the roof, having been informed that it offered a superb view out over the harbour, where the fireworks were to be set off as part of the celebrations for the Royal Australian Navy's 100th birthday. Screams greeted . the Prince as he went on a walkabout among the excited crowds after . officially attending the International Fleet Review, which involved 40 . warships from 17 nations. Despite . being in Australia to represent the Queen, Harry’s party-loving . reputation preceded him, as one national newspaper warned the country’s . Prime Minister Tony Abbott to ‘lock up his daughters’. Harry . has been dating Miss Bonas since July 2012 and sparked rumours in . August when he whisked her off on an African safari, just like his . brother William did with Kate in 2010 when he proposed. Miss . Bonas, who recently graduated from the Trinity Laban Conservatoire in . London, avoids the public eye wherever possible and the couple are very . careful about being photographed together. Adulation: Tens of thousands of screaming fans turned out to catch a glimpse of Prince Harry . Joking about: Prince Harry is greeted by members of the public during the 2013 International Fleet Review . Warm welcome: Harry shakes hands with scores of adoring fans in the Campbell's Cove area of the city . Fans of all ages: Harry jokes with a toddler held by its mother at the front of the crowd . Australian trip: Prince Harry speaks to the media (left) and walks along the tarmac (right) at Sydney Airport before departing for Perth . Talks: Prince Harry (left) speaks with Australia's Prime Minister Tony Abbott (right) at Sydney Airport today . Visit: Prince Harry speaks to the media (left) and points towards his police escort (right) at Sydney Airport . They . went to see a James Blunt concert last Monday in Notting Hill, west . London, and then went to see West End musical The Book of Mormon the . follow day. And they were . seen arriving at London King’s Cross station together following the . society wedding of Thomas van Straubenzee to the Duke of . Northumberland's daughter Lady Melissa Percy in June. Yesterday, despite . a 20-hour flight from the UK, Harry showed no sign of jet lag as he . boarded the Australian Navy’s survey ship HMAS Leeuwin. The Prince was dressed in a white Army tropical uniform with the sky-blue beret of Army Air Corps. Harry . was joined on board the Leeuwin by Mr Abbott, and Governor-General . Quentin Bryce, the Queen’s representative in Australia. Shaking hands: Prince Harry (left) greets PM Tony Abbott at Sydney Airport before departing for Perth . Cheers: Prince Harry thanks the police officers who escorted him to Sydney Airport before departing for Perth . Greetings: Prince Harry meets with West Australian Premier Colin Barnett and his wife Lyn after arriving in Perth . Walking: Prince Harry arrives at Perth Airport with Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott and is greeted by West Australian Premier Colin Barnett . Driven off: Prince Harry gets into a car at Perth Airport in Australia, as a security officer opens the door for him . As Harry sailed past the Sydney Opera House, tens of thousands of spectators roared at him. Later, he changed into a navy blue suit for a walkabout among the  adoring crowds. Among them was student Lauren Burke, 22, who resembled Harry’s girlfriend Cressida Bonas, 24. She said: ‘I tried my best to flirt with him but it was quite formal and he was well behaved. I told him if he ever wanted to look around Sydney, I would be his guide. He smiled and laughed.’ Another onlooker, trainee medic Renee Simmons, 21, described Harry as ‘gorgeous’, adding: ‘I’m in love. He wears a uniform very well.’ 'Perfect gentleman': Lauren Burke, 22, left was weak at the knees when Harry picked up her mother Therese's hat while they stood in the crowd . For the cameras: Harry poses for a photograph with a member of the public holding a small koala cuddly toy . Snap happy: The public, holding cameras and smartphones, crowd around the Prince to take his photograph . Good to meet you! Prince Harry shakes hands with a small boy during his first official tour of the country . Crowded: A wave of people pack the foreshore to view the fleet of ships from 17 countries . Fans: Crowds gather to catch a glimpse of the Prince, who is representing the Queen during his visit . All aboard: The Prince boards a small boat to cross the harbour for a reception at Kirribilli House, on the north side of the bay with the country's Prime Minister Tony Abbott . The Prince then made his way across the harbour by boat to Kirribilli House, the official residence of the Australian prime minister. He posed for photographs with Mr Abbott, his wife Margie and their daughters, Frances, 22, and Bridget, 20 – who the politician had described as ‘not bad looking’ during the recent election campaign. Mr Abbott, a staunch monarchist, apologised to Harry for his nation’s strong republican movement, saying: ‘I regret to say that not every Australian is a monarchist, but today everyone feels like a monarchist.’ THE press had warned him to ‘lock up his daughters’ – but Mr Abbott was more than happy to introduce Prince Harry to Bridget, 20, Frances, 22, and his wife Margie at his official residence. In action: Prince Harry stands and salutes as he arrives at Garden Island in Sydney . All smiles: Harry grins for photographers onboard the HMAS Leeuwin during the celebrations . Visit: Harry and Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott view Sydney Harbour during the Fleet Review . Official: Prince Harry and Governor-General Quentin Bryce pose onboard the HMAS Leeuwin . The fleet review climaxed with a stunning fireworks display over Sydney Harbour Bridge seen by an estimated million spectators. He described his Sydney experience as ‘absolutely fantastic’ before boarding Mr Abbott's jet today to fly to the west coast city of Perth. ‘It's just ... really sad that we're leaving,’ the 29-year-old royal told reporters before boarding the jet. ‘Work - just can't get the time off work nowadays.’ ‘The next time I come back you're going to be struggling to get rid of me, I'm sure,’ he added. Meeting the family: Harry is introduced by Australia's Prime Minister Tony Abbott to his daughter Bridget, second left, as his wife Margie, centre, and daughter Francis, left, look on . Keep to get a glimpse: Crowds wait for the prince at Kirribilli House, where a reception was held for the prince . Meeting fans: The Prince shakes hands with the gathering crowds outside the Prime Minister's residence . Magical: The day came to a close with a light show and massive fireworks display over the harbour . Incredible: The show, which saw more than 7 metric tons (7.7 tons) of fireworks used, was expected to draw 1.4 million spectators . Magnificent: Fireworks explode as the Royal Australian Navy warship HMAS Sydney sits underneath the Sydney Harbour Bridge . Spectacular: The Prince watched the amazing display from the reception at Kirribilli House . Lit up: The Sydney Opera House looks magnificent during the display . Western Australia state Premier Colin . Barnett, who greeted Harry in Perth, said the fourth in line to the . throne explained that he had to be home in a few days. ‘He said it was a short visit because he had to be back to work on Thursday,’ Mr Barnett told reporters. He is then heading to Dubai on Monday for a gala dinner for his charity Sentebale. Prince Harry last visited Australia in 2003 during his gap year, when he worked on a ranch in the outback.", "A Geelong housing commission tenant is under investigation from the department of housing after she was found to be sub-letting her public housing property and pocketing the cash. The Salvation Army granted Tammy Kenyon and her partner Jamie Hutchinson a commission home in the southern suburb of Belmont last year. But Ms Kenyon has been caught after advertising the property online and keeping the money in a rental scam, reports A Current Affair. Tammy Kenyon, whois behind a rental scam in which she advertised her trust home online and pocketed the bond . The mother-of-three was exposed after advertising the property and rental prices on her Facebook page. \"Three bedrooms, large yard, carpet all the way through, kitchen, bathroom and laundry have lino, $280 a week, $600 bond,\" one of the posts reads. In another, she claimed to sympathise with the would-be tenant about knowing what it’s like to be without a home. Ms Kenyon requested the money to be transferred into her account, then pocketed the cash without ever planning to move out of the property. The Salvation Army granted Tammy Kenyon and her partner Jamie Hutchinson a commission home in the southern suburb of Belmont last year . But she was caught out after advertising the property for varying prices on Facebook . Single mother Leonie O'Connor fell victim to the scam after getting repeated burglaries at their family home. She paid a $400 bond, but became suspicious when she noticed the home was still being promoted on Facebook. \"She spent my bond money and I don't think I am ever going to get it back,\" Ms O'Connor said. Single mum Leonie O'Connor (left) paid Ms Kenyon a $400 bond, while Em Radford (right) also fell victim to the scam . When confronted, Ms Kenyon has admitted she knew what she was doing was illegal, and that she used the money to pay her own bills . Another victim, pregnant mother-of-four Lorna, lost $850 in bond money from the scam. When confronted, Ms Kenyon has admitted she knew what she was doing was illegal, and that she used the money to pay her own bills. She claims to be in the process of paying back the people she's scammed, but the department of housing claim none of her victims have yet to have been paid back.", "The controversial new chairman of the Government’s historic child abuse inquiry has promised to answer critics who say she is too close to a key figure at the centre of scandal. Fiona Woolf has for the past fortnight refused to comment on revelations by The Mail on Sunday that she has close links to former Tory grandee Leon Brittan, who is accused of failing to investigate alleged VIP paedophile rings when he was Home Secretary. A top commercial lawyer and the Lord Mayor of London, Mrs Woolf, 66, has finally bowed to pressure to answer the growing concerns, which have been raised in Parliament. Critics of Fiona Woolf, pictured, said she is too close to Leon Brittain who lives on the same street as her . She was challenged about her position at the Lloyd’s of London Abseil event on Friday, where she and other fundraisers descended the distinctive 289ft building in aid of charity. Before donning her helmet and equipment, Mrs Woolf was asked whether she had declared her friendship with the Brittans to the Home Office. She confirmed: ‘I shall be making a statement.’ Mrs Woolf sits on the same City conference board as Lord Brittan and has lived in the same upmarket street as him for a decade. She also worked as a magistrate alongside his wife Lady Brittan for three years and judges a business award with her. She has to date declined to reveal if she declared her potential conflict of interests to the Home Office. Lord Brittan is accused of failing to investigate an alleged paedophile ring while he was Home Secretary . Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article.", "Krystal Barter created the Pink Hope charity in 2009 as she was recovering from a double mastectomy . Krystal Barter is Australia's answer to Angelina Jolie. Not only did she carry the same faulty BRCA1 gene that prompted her to undergo a double mastectomy, but the 31-year-old has also proved she has the same star pulling power of the Hollywood A-lister. The mother-of-three and founder of the Pink Hope charity has signed on a number of high profile Australians including Victoria's Secret Model Jess Hart and sister Ashley, the Prime Minister's wife Margie Abbott and the daughter of the country's richest woman Bianca Rinehart for her charity campaign. The charity's latest project, Bright Pink Lipstick Day, is a social media campaign that encourages more people to discuss their hereditary health. 'We're very fortunate to have these women. It's a huge honour to have the Prime Minister's wife leading the charge. To have someone of her calibre mean we're fighting for something that's right,' Ms Barter told Daily Mail Australia. 'These women have become like my friends and it's pretty amazing.' Other celebrities who have jumped on-board include Jesinta Campbell, Lisa Wilkinson, Laura Csortan, Natalie Gruzlewski, Kyly Clarke and Nicole Trunfio. Scroll down for video . Krystal Barter, 31, (fourth from right) has signed on the Prime Minister's wife, Margie Abbott (second from left) for her charity even Bright Pink Lipstick Day . Victoria's Secret Model Jess Hart and sister Ashley are among the high profile Australians to support Pink Hope - the country's only hereditary health charity . Bianca Rinehart (left), daughter of Australia's richest woman, and her friend Steph Adams, former Vogue UK art director, have also backed the Pink Lipstick campaign . Pink Hope, Australia's only hereditary health charity, will use Bright Pink Lipstick Day on September 26 as an opportunity to encourage people to find about their hereditary health in a bid to prevent breast and ovarian cancers. 'There's three questions people need to ask: Has anyone had cancer, at what age were they diagnosed and what type of cancer was it?' Ms Barter said. 'I know there's hundreds or thousands of people at risk of hereditary cancer. Bright Pink Lipstick Day encourages people to make a promise to kiss and tell.' Ms Barter was 22 when she found out she carried the faulty BRCA1 gene. She was just 25 when she had a double mastectomy - four years before Angelina Jolie famously revealed she underwent the procedure. Krystal Barter (left), pictured with Pink Hope ambassador Heidi and their daughters, was just 25 when she had a double mastectomy . Pink Hope, Australia's only hereditary health charity, will use Bright Pink Lipstick Day on September 26 as an opportunity to encourage people to find about their hereditary health . 'Growing up, every woman in my family was sick, that was normal,' she said. 'When they found changes in my breast tissue I said 'I'm not becoming a pin cushion for biopsies'... I wanted (my breasts) gone.' Ms Barter, who started Pink Hope as she recovering from her mastectomy, said she felt alienated because it wasn't a common procedure. 'But that changed when Angelina Jolie did it. I've seen a big shift within the past 12 months. Three days after Angelina Jolie made her announcement, the number of people accessing our services jumped 701 per cent,' she said. Former Miss Universe Renae Ayris will wear the pink lipstick designed by model Jess Hart specifically for Pink Hope Charity . Erin Holland is Miss World Australia's title holder. She's backing the #brightpinklipstickday campaign . The lipstick, worn here by TheyAllHateUs bloggers, will be sold at Priceline stores or on the charity's website . Ms Barter said she'll be wearing her pink lipstick tomorrow in memory of her grandmother, who died just two months. 'I was in my hospital bed having surgery when my nan passed away,' she said. 'I went in about 8 weeks ago to have my fallopian tubes and an ovary removed. She wanted me to have my surgery so she didn't tell me she was sick. 'I've had a very sick mum for a long time and I've had all these women in my family who are now not here or not 100 percent (because of cancer)… I'm trying to use our family story to make a positive impact.' Model Jess Hart designed a lipstick through her cosmetic brand LUMA especially for Pink Hope. It will be sold exclusively through Priceline stores nationwide or online at www.pinkhope.org.au for RRP $19.95 with all proceeds going to the Pink Hope Charity. Bright Pink Lipstick Day will take place on Friday, September 26. www.pinkhope.org.au .", "Foreign Minister Julie Bishop will not mount a leadership challenge against Tony Abbott, quieting speculation she was counting numbers to unseat the Prime Minister. Ms Bishop made a definitive statement to Cabinet on Tuesday afternoon after reports surfaced that she had refused to give an assurance to Mr Abbott that she would not run against him in a spill for the Coalition leadership. 'I am not campaigning for the job of Prime Minister, I will not challenge the leader,' she told Cabinet, Sky News reports. 'I am not ringing the backbench asking for support, I'm not counting numbers.' Scroll down for video . No challenge: Tony Abbott met with Foreign Minister Julie Bishop on Sunday afternoon and asked her not to run against him for leadership of the Liberal party . Tony Abbott refused on Tuesday to confirm if he met with the Foreign Minister to ask her not to mount a challenge . Mr Abbott has been under heavy fire since announcing his decision on Australia Day to knight Prince Philip and reports that he met with Ms Bishop on Sunday seek a guarantee that he enjoyed her full support. Treasurer Joe Hockey told reporters after leaving the meeting to address the RBA interest rate cut: 'I have no doubt at all that Julie Bishop is absolutely 100 per cent supportive of the Prime Minister.' It comes after Mr Abbott was ambushed by TV host Leigh Sales after she stepped out of the studio to question him at a childcare centre. Tony Abbott was visiting the Little Pines Centre in Sydney with his wife Margie on Tuesday when he was ambushed by ABC 7.30 host Leigh Sales over leadership speculation . In the fiery exchange, veteran journalist Sales asked Mr Abbott if he would 'bring on a spill' to put an end to speculation about the Liberal leadership . The Prime Minister refused to answer when Sales asked him if he had sought assurance from Ms Bishop that she wouldn't challenge him. 'Look, Julie and I have lots of talks, as you’d expect. We're friends, we're colleagues, we’re part of the leadership team and we support each other,' he said. In the fiery exchange, Sales asked Mr Abbott if he would 'bring on a spill' to put an end to speculation about the Liberal leadership. 'You're the speculator, Leigh, not me,' Mr Abbott hit back. Sales pushed Mr Abbott saying 'I assure you that a lot of people on the backbench are speculating as well, Prime Minister.' 'Leigh, the thing is that we were elected because people were sick of chaos. That’s why we were elected – people were sick of chaos,' Mr Abbott said. 'And what I am determined to do is give Australia back the certainty and stability that people crave. People want a government which is focused on doing the right thing by them, not focused on itself.' Sales poked fun at his repeated attempts to dodge the tough questions when she tweeted a photo of Mr Abbott playing with children at the Little Pines Centre with his wife Margie. 'The PM @tonyabbottmhr taking a few tricky questions from the punters,' the caption read. The ABC told Daily Mail Australia that Sales liked to get out of the studio as much as possible and went to press conferences from time to time. Mr Abbott and his wife Margie visited the childcare with local member Craig Laundy to talk about the government's jobs and families package . Ms Bishop says she is not counting numbers and his not calling backbenchers . The press conference was streamed live on the ABC and some took to social media to comment on Leigh Sales' showing up to question Mr Abbott . The ABC said Sales liked to get out of the studio as much as possible and went to press conferences from time to time . Mr Abbott also refused to deny reports he met with Ms Bishop and asked her not to mount a challenge when he appeared on Channel Seven's Sunrise on Tuesday morning. 'I think people find all that insider Canberra stuff boring,' he told Channel Seven's Sunrise. 'I have meetings with Julie Bishop all the time.' When asked repeatedly if he asked Ms Bishop not to challenge, Mr Abbott said: 'I'm not going to play these Canberra insider games'. 'What (people) are looking for is politicians who are not endlessly navel gazing, not fighting amongst themselves, but are getting on with the government of this country,' he said. Ms Bishop reportedly refused the commitment because she was angered by news reports at the weekend that she had told Mr Abbott she wouldn't challenge. Julie Bishop, NSW Premier Mike Baird (left) and the United Kingdom's Secretary of State Philip Hammond (right) signed the Lindt cafe condolence book on Monday following the Sydney siege . Ms Bishop and United Kingdom's Secretary of State Philip Hammond signed the siege condolence book at Martin Place for the victim's of the Sydney siege . Treasurer Joe Hockey dismissed reports Ms Bishop declined to give a commitment. 'Unsourced gossip,' he said when asked about the Sky News report on Channel Nine's Today show. It comes as Mr Abbott made it clear during a major speech in Canberra on Monday that he would not give up the top job amid speculation of a leadership challenge. 'We were elected in 2013 because the Australian people rejected chaos,' he said. 'It's the people that hire and frankly it's the people that should fire.' The Prime Minister has been shaken by various blows in recent weeks, including the Liberal National Party loss at the Queensland state election at the weekend. Mr Abbott said of Ms Bishop: 'She's a friend of mine, Julie's my deputy, she's been a terrific deputy, been a terrific minister, I believe I have her full support.' Treasurer Joe Hockey dismissed reports Ms Bishop declined to give a commitment . Mr Abbott was also widely criticised for knighting Prince Philip on Australia Day. With leadership speculation rife in recent days, Mr Abbott warned on Monday that his government must not repeat the mistakes of the past as he dumped his Paid Parental Leave scheme. 'The Rudd-Gillard-Rudd years cannot become the new normal lest Australia join the weak government club and become a second rate country living off its luck,' he said. 'I never came into politics to be popular.' He also made mention of Ms Bishop saying: 'She's a friend of mine, Julie's my deputy, she's been a terrific deputy, been a terrific minister, I believe I have her full support.'", "The woman at the centre of the Francis Abbott scholarship scandal has landed an internship with the Australian Greens after beating out more than 160 applicants for the job. Freya Newman escaped a jail sentence in November after she pleaded guilty to accessing details of Ms Abbott's $60,000 scholarship at the Whitehouse Institute of Design. Newman then leaked these documents to journalists and led to the intense media scrutiny of how the prime minister's daughter landed the merit. Scroll down for video . Freya Newman (pictured) has landed a job with the Australian Greens in Senator Lee Rhiannon's office . Newman pleaded guilty in November to accessing the files about a $60,000 Whitehouse Design Institute scholarship given to Prime Minister Tony Abbott's daughter Frances (pictured) in 2011 . NSW Greens Senator Lee Rhiannon confirmed Newman would be starting her two-day-per-week, paid internship in April. And it seems Newman is extremely eager to start her new role as part of one of Australia's major political parties. 'I'm really excited to be working with Senator Rhiannon and the rest of her staff this year on issues like higher education, aid and animal welfare,' she told Buzzfeed Australia. But her part in the Frances Abbott scandal did not sway the senator's decision to hire Newman for the Sydney-based position. 'In November 2014, my office opened applications for a part-time, paid internship position,' Senator Rhiannon said via an email statement. 'Following an extensive application process involving over 160 applicants and two rounds of interviews we offered the position to Freya. 'Freya was an outstanding applicant and we are very much looking forward to having her on board.' The news caused controversy because the institute's chairman Les Taylor is a friend of Frances Abbott's father, Prime Minister Tony Abbott . Newman was handed a two-year good behaviour bond in Sydney after she leaked files to the media . The emergence of the leaked documents sparked widespread protests as it raised questions about how Ms Abbott landed her scholarship as the institute's chairman, Les Taylor, is a friend of Prime Minister Tony Abbott and donor to the Liberal Party. While handing down her sentence in November, Magistrate Teresa O'Sullivan said she did not think Newman was 'motivated by a sense of injustice, rather than notoriety... or greed'. Ms Newman faced a maximum custodial sentence of two years imprisonment. Ms O'Sullivan said Ms Newman's offence was at the 'lowest end' of the scale and told a courtroom cramped with media and supporters that the university communications student had 'good prospects of rehabilitation'. Supporters gathered outside Downing Centre Local Court in Sydney, calling for Newman to be 'freed', as she was sentenced inside . Frances Abbott, pictured left with Tony and Margie Abbott and her sisters, attended the Whitehouse Institute of Design (right) But while the magistrate added that Ms Newman's actions had done harm to the community and the victim, she told the court the university student had not accessed sensitive documents, just material that was not in the public domain. 'She made no attempt to conceal her actions and resigned from the institution the following day,' the magistrate said. Ms O'Sullivan said other Whitehouse staff members had briefed Ms Newman in how she could access documents that detailed Ms Abbott's scholarship by using another staff member's log-in. Isolated protesters held up placards of support for Newman and condemnation of the Abbott family prior to the hearing.", "Tony Abbott's wife Margie has revealed the unexpected chivalrous side of the Australian Prime Minister, speaking candidly about her husband's small acts of love- which include taking his shoes off. Mrs Abbott said that when she complained to her husband that her heels were hurting her feet at the end of the couple's annual Christmas party, he suggested that she take her shoes off. 'If it makes you feel any better I’ll take mine off,' he said. Tony Abbott's wife Margie said that the Prime Minister has a secret chivalrous side . Despite chastising him for slipping off his RM Williams because it wasn't dignified, Mrs Abbott maintains that the gesture reflected the Prime Minister hidden gentlemanly nature. 'Absolutely. It was like trailing your coat over a puddle,' she told The Daily Telegraph. She also added that her husband had 'a lot of grace', a quality which she said he needed during last Monday’s leadership spill vote. The couple's daughter Frances reflected on the backlash Mr Abbott had faced from the media and rebel backbenchers, defending him as 'still doing a great job, which is that of our father.' Speaking at the Myer Autumn/Winter show in Melbourne on Thursday, the fashion graduate said it was hard to see his name pulled through the mud on a regular basis. 'It always effects you when people you love are slammed in the media, it's not fun, but it's the nature of the beast... It's happened before and will happen again,' she told Daily Mail Australia. Mrs Abbott said that when she complained to her husband that her heels were hurting her feet at the end of the couple's annual Christmas party, he suggested that she take her shoes off . Margie Abbott said that that her husband had 'a lot of grace' Mr Abbott's daughter defended him as 'still doing a great job, which is that of our father.' 'For him, it's how he gets back up from that that will be a measure of his character. We will always support him.' Earlier this month the garrulous brunette spoke candidly about her relationship with her father, admitting that just like any daughter she constantly worries about him, despite living in another city they are always in touch. She moved from Sydney to Melbourne to focus on her career and, of course,  her father is based in Canberra. ‘My standard text message is: “You’re doing an amazing job.”’ And he’ll reply: “Thanks angel,”’ she explained to Daily Mail Australia. She also added: ‘I’m always thinking about him, especially with everything that’s happened recently with terrorism.' ‘My standard text message is: “You’re doing an amazing job.”’ And he’ll reply: “Thanks angel,”’ she explained to Daily Mail Australia. She also added: ‘I’m always thinking about him, especially with everything that’s happened recently with terrorism.’ Prime Minister Tony Abbott with his wife Margie Abbott (second left), and daughters Frances (left), Louise (second right) and Bridget (right) Frances said that just like any daughter she constantly worries about him, despite living in another city they are always in touch . The middle of Mr Abbott's three daughters, Frances, who works as an assistant buyer for the children's department in Myer, wen on to reveal the moment she got her 'A' tattoo, which she said he father wasn't originally supportive of. In 2013 she spoke to Who Magazine about the tattoo, explaining her father wasn't too happy about it at first. 'I gave [mum and dad] a warning. I said, \"I am getting one,\" and Dad said, \"You are mutilating your body.\" Then I went and got it done and they thought it was pretty.' 'I know my family name won't be carried on as my father didn't have any sons, so I thought I'm going to get it permanent on my back.' The brunette was not accompanied by her boyfriend Lindsay Smith, who also works for Myer, revealing he was having supper with his family. It seems there are more hidden adornments on the Prime Minister's daughter's body. She has also cheekily admitted to having more than just one inking on her body telling Daily Mail Australia: 'I might [have more tattoos] but you won't be seeing them.' Daring: Frances Abbott, pictured at the Myer Autumn/Winter show, says she has more than the A tattoo on her back as she praises Australian Prime Minister Tony for 'doing the best job... as our father' Showing off her back art: Frances flashes a glimpse of the tattooed A on her upper back at the Australian Open . Tattoo alert: She was nineteen when she got the inking, on a night out with girls . Pretty in pink: The middle of Mr Abbott's three daughters, wore an Asos top for the annual fashion parade when she gushed about her father . Flashing the ink: The bronzed Myer worker showed another glimpse of her tattoo as she snapped male models on the catwalk . Fashionista: Frances, sitting in the front row of the Autumn/winter show in a pink crop top, spoke candidly about her father at the annual parade . Last year Frances was embroiled in scandal when it was revealed that she received a scholarship for a university degree costing more than $60,000 from a long-time friend of the Prime Minister. She accepted a 'chairman's scholarship' for her Bachelor of Design course from the Whitehouse Institute of Design, where Liberal supporter Les Taylor sits as chairman on the board of governors. The fashion student studied at the Sydney institute from 2011 to December 2013 and received the award as a result of her 'application and art portfolio', a spokeswoman for the Prime Minister said. Mr Abbott had not declared the scholarship on his pecuniary interest register, despite previously declaring other matters relating to his children such as trips, accommodation and tickets to sporting events. Family support: Federal opposition leader Tony Abbott is pictured with his daughters Bridget (left) and Frances in the Birdcage on Victoria Derby Day at Flemington racecourse in  2012 .", "Julie Bishop may be behind her leader but one of Tony Abbott's team has become the first to openly call for the Prime Minister to resign. West Australian backbencher Dennis Jensen has called for the Liberal Party to move to oust Mr Abbott, adding 'the more quickly you do this, the better'. 'I believe that it is necessary that this is brought to a head and lanced,' Dr Jensen told the ABC on Tuesday. West Australian backbencher Dennis Jensen has called for the Liberal Party to  oust the Prime Minister, saying: 'He is not focused on policy. He is not focused on strategic direction. He is focused more on tactics and tactical policy' He said he had informed Mr Abbott of his lack of support on January 23 via text message after deciding the party was 'not governing as we should be…there is no strategic direction, the policy is not consistent and coherent'. 'He is not focused on policy. He is not focused on strategic direction. He is focused more on tactics and tactical policy,' Dr Jensen said of the Prime Minister, according to the ABC. The backbencher said that while he did not want to be seen as the person 'pulling the trigger', he knew of a number of MP's who 'feel similarly', adding: 'I thought it was time to strike to start things moving,' Fairfax reports. Dr Jensen was involved in calling the first of the Liberal spills in 2009 that ultimately saw Mr Abbott installed as the party's leader. Now, Mr Abbott is under pressure to improve his performance. Dr Jensen's (left) comments come just hours after Foreign Minister Julie Bishop made a definitive statement to Cabinet saying she will not mount a leadership challenge against Tony Abbott (right) Two Queensland MP's, including Warren Entsch and Mal Brough, plan to resolve the leadership problem when the party room meets in Canberra next Tuesday . 'I have issues and I'm hoping to work through with the prime minister,' Mr Brough said. 'The matter needs to be resolved and if Tuesday is the appropriate time for people to talk about it ... then it's for them to say so.' It comes just hours after Foreign Minister Julie Bishop made a definitive statement to Cabinet on Tuesday afternoon saying she will not mount a leadership challenge against Mr Abbott. Her announcement was made in order to quiet speculation she was counting numbers to unseat the Prime Minister after reports surfaced that she had refused to give an assurance to Mr Abbott that she would not run against him in a spill for the Coalition leadership. 'I am not campaigning for the job of Prime Minister, I will not challenge the leader,' she told Cabinet, Sky News reports. 'I am not ringing the backbench asking for support, I'm not counting numbers.' No challenge: Tony Abbott met with Foreign Minister Julie Bishop on Sunday afternoon and asked her not to run against him for leadership of the Liberal party . Mr Abbott has been under heavy fire since announcing his decision on Australia Day to knight Prince Philip and reports that he met with Ms Bishop on Sunday seek a guarantee that he enjoyed her full support. Treasurer Joe Hockey told reporters after leaving the meeting to address the RBA interest rate cut: 'I have no doubt at all that Julie Bishop is absolutely 100 per cent supportive of the Prime Minister.' It comes after Mr Abbott was ambushed by TV host Leigh Sales after she stepped out of the studio to question him at a childcare centre. Tony Abbott was visiting the Little Pines Centre in Sydney with his wife Margie on Tuesday when he was ambushed by ABC 7.30 host Leigh Sales over leadership speculation . In the fiery exchange, veteran journalist Sales asked Mr Abbott if he would 'bring on a spill' to put an end to speculation about the Liberal leadership . The Prime Minister refused to answer when Sales asked him if he had sought assurance from Ms Bishop that she wouldn't challenge him. 'Look, Julie and I have lots of talks, as you'd expect. We're friends, we're colleagues, we're part of the leadership team and we support each other,' he said. In the fiery exchange, Sales asked Mr Abbott if he would 'bring on a spill' to put an end to speculation about the Liberal leadership. 'You're the speculator, Leigh, not me,' Mr Abbott hit back. Sales pushed Mr Abbott saying 'I assure you that a lot of people on the backbench are speculating as well, Prime Minister.' 'Leigh, the thing is that we were elected because people were sick of chaos. That's why we were elected – people were sick of chaos,' Mr Abbott said. 'And what I am determined to do is give Australia back the certainty and stability that people crave. People want a government which is focused on doing the right thing by them, not focused on itself.' Sales poked fun at his repeated attempts to dodge the tough questions when she tweeted a photo of Mr Abbott playing with children at the Little Pines Centre with his wife Margie. 'The PM @tonyabbottmhr taking a few tricky questions from the punters,' the caption read. The ABC told Daily Mail Australia that Sales liked to get out of the studio as much as possible and went to press conferences from time to time. Mr Abbott and his wife Margie visited the childcare with local member Craig Laundy to talk about the government's jobs and families package . Ms Bishop says she is not counting numbers and his not calling backbenchers . The press conference was streamed live on the ABC and some took to social media to comment on Leigh Sales' showing up to question Mr Abbott . The ABC said Sales liked to get out of the studio as much as possible and went to press conferences from time to time . Mr Abbott also refused to deny reports he met with Ms Bishop and asked her not to mount a challenge when he appeared on Channel Seven's Sunrise on Tuesday morning. 'I think people find all that insider Canberra stuff boring,' he told Channel Seven's Sunrise. 'I have meetings with Julie Bishop all the time.' When asked repeatedly if he asked Ms Bishop not to challenge, Mr Abbott said: 'I'm not going to play these Canberra insider games'. 'What (people) are looking for is politicians who are not endlessly navel gazing, not fighting amongst themselves, but are getting on with the government of this country,' he said. Ms Bishop reportedly refused the commitment because she was angered by news reports at the weekend that she had told Mr Abbott she wouldn't challenge. Julie Bishop, NSW Premier Mike Baird (left) and the United Kingdom's Secretary of State Philip Hammond (right) signed the Lindt cafe condolence book on Monday following the Sydney siege . Ms Bishop and United Kingdom's Secretary of State Philip Hammond signed the siege condolence book at Martin Place for the victim's of the Sydney siege . Treasurer Joe Hockey dismissed reports Ms Bishop declined to give a commitment. 'Unsourced gossip,' he said when asked about the Sky News report on Channel Nine's Today show. It comes as Mr Abbott made it clear during a major speech in Canberra on Monday that he would not give up the top job amid speculation of a leadership challenge. 'We were elected in 2013 because the Australian people rejected chaos,' he said. 'It's the people that hire and frankly it's the people that should fire.' The Prime Minister has been shaken by various blows in recent weeks, including the Liberal National Party loss at the Queensland state election at the weekend. Mr Abbott said of Ms Bishop: 'She's a friend of mine, Julie's my deputy, she's been a terrific deputy, been a terrific minister, I believe I have her full support.' Treasurer Joe Hockey dismissed reports Ms Bishop declined to give a commitment . Mr Abbott was also widely criticised for knighting Prince Philip on Australia Day. With leadership speculation rife in recent days, Mr Abbott warned on Monday that his government must not repeat the mistakes of the past as he dumped his Paid Parental Leave scheme. 'The Rudd-Gillard-Rudd years cannot become the new normal lest Australia join the weak government club and become a second rate country living off its luck,' he said. 'I never came into politics to be popular.' He also made mention of Ms Bishop saying: 'She's a friend of mine, Julie's my deputy, she's been a terrific deputy, been a terrific minister, I believe I have her full support.'", "By . Lizzie Edmonds . PUBLISHED: . 03:32 EST, 5 October 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 11:33 EST, 5 October 2013 . Prince Harry was met with thousands of excited fans on the Sydney waterfront today as he started his first official tour of the country. The Prince was his usual fun self, laughing and joking with the public as he moved among the surging crowd. Scores of people shook hands and took photos of Harry - who is representing the Queen on his first official visit to the country. Joking about: Prince Harry is greeted by members of the public during the 2013 International Fleet Review . Warm welcome: Harry shakes hands with scores of adoring fans in the Campbell's Cove area of the city . Fans of all ages: Harry jokes with a toddler held by its mother at the front of the crowd . Harry was also met with screams and shouts of 'give us a wave . Harry' from many adoring female fans - indicating that  'Harrymania' has certainly arrived in in Sydney. The Prince seemed to be much more popular than another high-profile Harry - Mr Styles from boy band One Direction, who is also in the country on tour. Two Harry fans, Sinead Kirrane and Rebecca Thompson, had come to catch a glimpse of the Prince. 'Perfect gentleman': Lauren Burke, 22, left was weak at the knees when Harry picked up her mother Therese's hat while they stood in the crowd . For the cameras: Harry poses for a photograph with a member of the public holding a small koala cuddly toy . Miss Kirrane, 23, originally from Galloway, Ireland, said: 'He seems fun, I'm a big fan. 'We are excited to see him and maybe get a smile from him.' Asked which Harry she wanted to see more, Dubliner Miss Thompson, 24, said: '(Prince) Harry is a world icon. One Direction are big at the moment but they will come and go.' Snap happy: The public, holding cameras and smartphones, crowd around the Prince to take his photograph . Good to meet you! Prince Harry shakes hands with a small boy during his first official tour of the country . Crowded: A wave of people pack the foreshore to view the fleet of ships from 17 countries . Also among the crowd were naval . trainee medics Ayesha Sweeney, 19, and Renee Simmons, 21, who live six . hours' drive away at their base in Aubrey, New South Wales. Ms Simmons described Harry as 'gorgeous', adding: 'I'm in love. He wears a uniform very well.' Miss Sweeney added: 'It was good to get a royal visit today for the review, it adds that extra excitement to it.' Meagan . Roberton, 50, who went to the street outside the base with her family, . said: 'We didn't expect to see him today so it's an added bonus. Fans: Crowds gather to catch a glimpse of the Prince, who is representing the Queen during his visit . All aboard: The Prince boards a small boat to cross the harbour for a reception at Kirribilli House, on the north side of the bay with the country's Prime Minister Tony Abbott . 'He's gorgeous, we all love him in Australia. I remember when he was born.' The fourth in line to the throne had earlier coasted past the Sydney Opera House on board the Australian navy's survey ship HMAS Leeuwin - one of dozens of warships from 17 nations on the sun-dappled harbor this weekend for the International Fleet Review. The review, a parade of ships, commemorates the arrival of the original Royal Australian Navy fleet a century ago. In action: Prince Harry stands and salutes as he arrives at Garden Island in Sydney . All smiles: Harry grins for photographers onboard the HMAS Leeuwin during the celebrations . Visit: Harry and Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott view Sydney Harbour during the Fleet Review . Official: Prince Harry and Governor-General Quentin Bryce pose onboard the HMAS Leeuwin . Following a 100-gun salute, Governor-General Quentin Bryce joined Harry on board the Leeuwin to officially review the ships. The prince had changed from a crisp white army dress uniform to a gray suit and blue tie to meet the public. From . The Rocks, he took a civilian boat across the harbor to Kirribilli . House, Prime Minister Tony Abbott's official Sydney residence. Harry posed for photographs with Abbott, his wife Margie, and two of their three daughters, Frances and Bridget, on the grounds of the historic mansion before again shaking hands with the public at a front gate. Meeting the family: Harry is introduced by Australia's Prime Minister Tony Abbott to his daughter Bridget, second left, as his wife Margie, centre, and daughter Francis, left, look on . Keep to get a glimpse: Crowds wait for the prince at Kirribilli House, where a reception was held for the prince . Meeting fans: The Prince shakes hands with the gathering crowds outside the Prime Minister's residence . He watched a light show and . massive fireworks display over the harbor on Saturday night from . Kirribilli House while attending the reception. The show saw more than 7 metric tons (7.7 tons) of fireworks used and was expected to draw 1.4 million spectators. Harry is in Australia's largest city for just one day as part of a quick visit to the country. The prince flies to the Western Australia capital, Perth, on Sunday morning for a brief visit before departing. Magical: The day came to a close with a light show and massive fireworks display over the harbour . Incredible: The show, which saw more than 7 metric tons (7.7 tons) of fireworks used, was expected to draw 1.4 million spectators . Magnificent: Fireworks explode as the Royal Australian Navy warship HMAS Sydney sits underneath the Sydney Harbour Bridge . Spectacular: The Prince watched the amazing display from the reception at Kirribilli House . Lit up: The Sydney Opera House looks magnificent during the display . Harry will head to Dubai to attend a fundraising event for his Sentebale Aids charity. Australia's first navy fleet of seven cruisers and destroyers entered Sydney's harbor for the first time on Oct. 4, 1913. About 40 warships, 16 tall ships and 8,000 sailors are participating in this weekend's celebrations. The participating warships are from the U.S., China, Britain, Brunei, Micronesia, France, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, Singapore, Spain, Thailand and Tonga.", "(CNN) -- Former New York Giants receiver David Tyree's celebrated catch in the closing seconds of Super Bowl XLII was pivotal to his team's victory. Now out of football, he is trying to claim a last-minute win over another foe -- same-sex marriage. On the same day that the New York State Assembly approved a same-sex marriage bill, Tyree warned of dire consequences if the legislation becomes law. The bill's passage would \"be the beginning of our country sliding toward ... anarchy,\" he said . Tyree made the comments in a video released Wednesday by the National Organization for Marriage, which is spearheading opposition to the bill. The legislation must now clear the Republican-controlled State Senate where its fate is uncertain. His disapproval of gay marriage is based on religious as well as secular grounds, Tyree said. \"Marriage is the only relationship that actually mirrors the relationship with God,\" he said. He also argued that same-sex parents are ill-equipped to raise a child of the opposite sex. \"You can't teach something that you don't have,\" Tyree said in the video. \"So two men will never be able to teach a woman how to be a woman.\" It is not justifiable to alter a long-standing institution \"because a minority -- an influential minority -- has ... an agenda,\" he said. In an opinion column for Yahoo News, the group's chairman, Maggie Gallagher, said Tyree told her he decided to speak out after his former teammate Michael Strahan declared his support for gay marriage last week. The video appeared to take a page out of the playbook of the group's adversary, the Human Rights Campaign, which has released a steady stream of video testimonials from celebrity advocates of gay marriage in recent months. Uma Thurman, Whoopi Goldberg, Sean Avery of the New York Rangers and others have appeared in their videos. Tyree seemed to chide notables who oppose same-sex marriage, but keep their opposition to themselves. \"I am disappointed when ... not enough guys ... lift up something as honorable and near to God's heart as marriage,\" he said. \"We're doing God an injustice by not making his heart known to our country.\"", "(CNN) -- The Republican campaign battling Democrat Wendy Davis for the Texas governorship filed a complaint on Thursday accusing Davis of violating state election law. The Greg Abbott campaign's complaint comes just a day after Davis returned from a campaign-funded trip to New York, where she promoted her recently released book and attended a campaign fundraising event, the Houston Chronicle reported. Davis, a state senator, soared into the national spotlight in 2013 when she helped thwart the first effort to pass an anti-abortion bill after holding the Texas Senate floor during a 10-hour filibuster. Wayne Hamilton, Republican candidate Abbott's campaign manager, wrote that Davis \"converted political contributions to her personal use\" in the complaint filed with the Texas Ethics Commission. But Davis spokesman Zac Petkanas fired back, asserting that the campaign funded the trip so Davis could attend a \"campaign event\" in New York and did nothing illegal. \"Any other non-campaign activities were scheduled by and covered by the appropriate parties not affiliated with the campaign,\" Petkanas told the Houston Chronicle. Petkanas added: \"One way you can tell this is a politically motivated and frivolous complaint is that the Abbott campaign filed it today without waiting for the legal opinion they requested on Monday.\" Matt Hirsch, Abbott's spokesman, accused Davis of violating state law and called her actions \"outright unlawful.\" \"From her history of profiteering at the expense of Texas taxpayers while in the Legislature to using campaign funds to promote a book that enriches her personally, Sen. Davis has demonstrated blatant disregard for ethical standards Texans expect from their candidates,\" Hirsch said, according to the Chronicle. Davis appeared on CNN, MSNBC and ABC this week from New York. Davis is the underdog in the Texas fight as Abbott, the state's attorney general, holds on to a lead of at least 8 points in polls from this summer.", "(CNN) -- She was a call girl working the streets of Sin City. He's a guitarist in a heavy metal band. They found commonality in their Christian faith and Friday evening, the two were married in a Las Vegas, Nevada, ceremony broadcast live via the Web. Its Web site says Hookers for Jesus \"addresses the realities of human sex trafficking.\" Annie Lobért, who founded Hookers for Jesus, and musician Oz Fox of the Christian band Stryper said their \"I do's\" at the Church of South Las Vegas in front of an applauding crowd and an audience on the Internet. The wedding had been widely touted on several Christian Web sites. Lobért, 41, walked up to the stage in a white strapless gown, gloves and veil. Earlier this week, she wrote on her MySpace blog: \"I am getting married. It's about time.\" She had worked as a prostitute for 11 years, making as much as $500 an hour. She said she hit rock bottom when she overdosed on cocaine and everything went black, according to an ABC interview posted on her Web site. She asked Jesus to help her and became what many jokingly call a \"porn-again Christian.\" Lobért says her mission now is to save the souls of women who sell their bodies. She often spends time at night on Las Vegas streets handing out Bibles to prostitutes and seeking to convince them there is a better way to make a living. The Hookers for Jesus Web site describes the organization as \"an international, faith-based organization that addresses the realities of human sex trafficking, sexual violence and exploitation linked to pornography and the sex industry.\" Before he administered the vows, Pastor Benny Perez said Lobért was a shining example of Christ's love for everyone. Fox, 47, is a longtime member of Stryper, which stands for Salvation Through Redemption, Yielding Peace, Encouragement and Righteousness. The band's albums include \"Reborn: and \"In God We Trust.\"", "'Murderous rage': Julia Gillard has left politics since losing her incumbency in June . Former Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard made an extraordinary attack last night on the 'violent, ugly sexism' she said she experienced during her three years in charge of the nation. It reached the point when the British-born politician felt 'murderous rage' at seeing the sexist cartoons and comments that had been made online about her, she said. 'For my personal liberty, it's probably a good thing that I didn't focus on them,' she remarked in her first public appearance since she lost the Prime Minister's job to Kevin Rudd in June. Speaking at a public forum at the iconic Sydney Opera House, Miss Gillard - who has now resigned from politics - said she was surprised at the depth of abuse that had been levelled at her as the country's first female Prime Minister. 'I find it depressing and a surprise that really violent, ugly sexism still exists in Australia,' she told the enthusiastically supportive audience. 'It just amazes me that we can be having this infantile conversation about gender wars and you just feel like saying \"Well, if it was your daughter and she was putting up with sexist abuse at work, what would you advise her to do?' She added: 'Because, apparently, if she complains, she is playing the victim and playing gender wars - and if she doesn't complain, then she really is a victim.' Women and girls, said Miss Gillard, had a right to an environment 'that treats you with respect, treats you as an equal and raising your voice about that isn't starting a war, it isn't playing the victim, it's just asking for what simply is right.' During the interview with feminist author Anne Summers, Miss Gillard said she had believed that Australia was beyond the kind of thinking that woman were not being treated with respect - 'and it's kind of depressing that we (the country) are not. Scroll down for video. 'Women deserve respect': Women and girls, said Miss Gillard, had a right to an environment 'that treats you with respect, treats you as an equal and raising your voice about that isn't starting a war, it isn't playing the victim, it's just asking for what simply is right' 'But at least we know exactly where the balance of it is now and what more remains to be done for women to be truly equal.' The 52-year-old former lawyer who became Labour's leader, was Prime Minister from June 2010 to June this year, when Kevin Rudd challenged her for the top job - and won. She said that recent reporting that she and long-term partner Tim Mathieson - known as 'Australia's First Bloke' when she was in office - had split revealed another case point in the 'foibles' of the media. 'He didn't work for the party': The 52-year-old former lawyer who became Labour's leader, was Prime Minister from June 2010 to June this year, when Kevin Rudd (right) challenged her for the top job - and won . 'First Bloke': She said that recent reporting that she and long-term partner Tim Mathieson (right) - known as 'Australia's First Bloke' when she was in office - had split revealed another case point in the 'foibles' of the media. Referring to Mr Rudd, she said the difference between them was that she had always worked for the Labour Party. 'So I quickly concluded after the meeting (of Labour colleagues which voted Mr Rudd back into the top job for the second time) that the best thing I could do is accept that that was the judgement that had been made and to give a gift of silence to the Labour Party during the course of the (general election) campaign, to do absolutely nothing.' Miss Gillard is now working on a book and is due to soon take up an honorary professorship at Adelaide University.", "The university student who pleaded guilty to accessing details of a $60,000 scholarship awarded to the Prime Minister's daughter today escaped conviction and was sentenced to a two year good behaviour bond. Freya Newman, 21, was a casual library assistant at the Whitehouse Institute of Design when in May she used her position to seek information about Frances Abbott's enrolment. Newman then handed the information to journalists. Magistrate Teresa O'Sullivan cited Ms Newman's remorse and emotional immaturity in handing down the sentence at the Downing Centre Local Court in Sydney on Tuesday morning. 'I accept that she was motivated by a sense of injustice, rather than notoriety... or greed,' Ms O'Sullivan said, referring to arguments made by defence counsel at previous hearings. Scroll down for video . Freya Newman (pictured) was sentenced to a two-year good behaviour bond after pleading guilty to leaking details about Frances Abbott's scholarship earlier this year . Freya Newman wore dark sunglasses and bowed her head when asked questions by reporters on Tuesday morning . Ms Newman was 20 and working as a casual library assistant at the Whitehouse Institute of Design when she leaked the documents . Newman accessed the files about a $60,000 Whitehouse Design Institute scholarship given to Prime Minister Tony Abbott's daughter Frances in 2011 . Supporters gathered outside Downing Centre Local Court in Sydney on Tuesday morning, calling for Freya to be 'freed' and condemning the . Ms Newman could have faced a maximum custodial sentence of two years imprisonment. Shielded by family members and donning dark sunglasses, the 21-year-old refused to comment as she left court today. Ms O'Sullivan said Ms Newman's offence was at the 'lowest end' of the scale and told a courtroom cramped with media and supporters that the university communications student had 'good prospects of rehabilitation'. But while the magistrate added that Ms Newman's actions had done harm to the community and the victim, she told the court the university student had not accessed sensitive documents, just material that was not in the public domain. 'She made no attempt to conceal her actions and resigned from the institution the following day,' the magistrate said. Ms O'Sullivan said other Whitehouse staff members had briefed Ms Newman in how she could access documents that detailed Ms Abbott's scholarship by using another staff member's log-in. Newman was shielded by family members as she left Downing Centre Local Court today . Ms Newman was 20 and working as a casual library assistant at the Whitehouse Institute of Design when she leaked the documents . Newman, who studies communications at the University of Technology Sydney, pleaded guilty in September to accessing restricted data. She then handed the information to journalists . Frances Abbott, pictured left with Tony and Margie Abbott and her sisters, attended the Whitehouse Institute of Design (right) Isolated protesters held up placards of support for Ms Newman and condemnation of the Abbott family prior to the hearing. It was revealed earlier this month that Ms Newman had sent a letter of apology to Frances Abbott. Ms Abbott told The Australian it was 'not right to hack into anything' but that she was trying to move on from the saga. 'I guess in that situation, I'm trying to move forward with everything, but it's just one of those things,' Ms Abbott was quoted saying. 'I wish Freya all the best and, moving forward, we all make mistakes. Obviously, (Freya) acknowledged her mistake so moving forward, moving on'. Daily Mail Australia contacted Ms Abbott and the Prime Minister's office for comment on Tuesday morning. Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article.", "(CNN) -- A Texas bus driver has filed a lawsuit against his former employer, claiming he was fired for his religious beliefs after refusing to transport a client to a Planned Parenthood office, court documents showed Wednesday. Edwin A. Graning worked for the Capital Area Rural Transportation System (CARTS) near Austin, Texas, for less than a year before he was let go in January. At the time, he told his supervisor that, \"in good conscience, he could not take someone to have an abortion,\" according to the lawsuit. Graning is an ordained Christian minister. Planned Parenthood, a health care provider that offers a range of medical services to women, including those related to abortion, often draws the ire of anti-abortion groups in the United States, where the procedure is legal but fiercely controversial. Graning's last day of employment was the same day he refused service. He is seeking reinstatement, back pay, and compensatory damages for pain, suffering and emotional distress. \"It's only because he voiced his religions beliefs that he was canned,\" Edward White III, Graning's lawyer, told CNN. \"Employers have a legal responsibility to at least attempt to accommodate an employee's religious beliefs. ... CARTS clearly violated Mr. Graning's religious freedom.\" White, who works for a public interest law group founded by evangelical Christian leader Pat Robertson, said CARTS sent a second driver to collect the client and took her and a friend to the Planned Parenthood office. \"While others may wish to make more of it, to CARTS this is just about our expectation that employees perform the duties they are hired for,\" David Marsh, general manager of CARTS, said in an e-mail message to CNN. In addition to rides along fixed routes, CARTS offers some door-to-door service within its rural coverage area. The lawsuit, in the U.S. District Court for western Texas, Austin Division, was filed on July 14.", "(CNN) -- Texas Gov. Rick Perry's Twitter account sent a disparaging graphic of Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg Sunday night. Less than an hour later, he followed up with a tweet calling the graphic unauthorized. The disparaging picture of Lehmberg was a graphic created by a conservative group, but she is a central figure in Perry's legal challenges. The potential 2016 Republican presidential candidate has been charged with two felonies, accused of coercion of a public servant and abuse of his official capacity relating to a veto threat over funding for a the state's Public Integrity Unit run by Lehmberg, who had been charged with drunk driving and refused to resign. At the time of the veto, the Public Integrity Unit was investigating the Texas Cancer Prevention and Research Institute. Democrats say the attempt to slash the unit's funding was in response to the CPRIT investigation as questions arose about payouts from the organization to Perry's friends. Perry's attorneys have called the claim a \"red herring.\" Believe it or not, politicians do regret tweets, and there's an entire website, Politwoops, dedicated to preserving politicos' deleted tweets for your reading pleasure. Does Rick Perry's indictment hold water?" ]

[ "In Image process, segmentation has an important phase in OCR and numerous articles are revealed on completely different segmentation strategies like cutting, bar chart etc. for various scripts during the previous couple of years. Usually, there's not work done on Overlapped and touching scripts. Typically as a result of poor handwriting, the author left some gap between diacritics and character or between diacritics and header line as a result of that little text blocks gets created that ends up in improper text line segmentation and thus ends up in wrong results and overlapping. As a result accuracy of the algorithmic program degrades. In planned work reconciling SVM would be accustomed improve the accuracy of the system." ]

[ "In retrospect, the observation of the unusual electronic properties of CeAl3 at very low temperatures was a major step in a new direction, away from the conventional concepts for the understanding of the ground state of metals. The new perspectives took their time to be accepted, but the discovery of superconductivity involving conduction electrons with large effective masses, and the subsequent recognition of its unconventional character, served as eye-openers. This brief review is aiming at covering some of the major aspects of this development before the discovery of high-Tc superconductivity in cuprates.", "Polysaccharides such as cellulose and amylose are the most accessible optically active polymers. The polysaccharides themselves show rather low chiral recognition, but their derivatives show high chiral recognition and afford useful chiral stationary phases (CSPs) for HPLC. In this review, optical resolution by cellulose esters, especially benzoates, and by various phenylcarbamates of cellulose and amylose is discussed. Chiral recognition abilities of aralkylcarbamates of cellulose and amylose are also evaluated.", "The importance and the urgency of the study of Sansevieria Thunb. with the focus on Kenya is highlighted. A brief history, uses, literature review; world and African distribution are illustrated. Important vegetative and reproductive morphological characters are listed as they are used in construction of a cladogram indicating interrelationships between the species.", "This study is aimed to protray mimicry as the tools of the adaptation process for the Indian characters in The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri. Through this study, it can be described that mimicry done by the Indian characters helps their adaptation process with their new environment. Furthermore, the recognition that is gained by the Indian characters from their new environment is received because the Indian characters place themselves “in between” two cultures. In this study, the concept of post-colonialism by Homi K. Bhabha is applied to analyze mimicry in The Namesake novel. The result of this study shows the presence of mimicry through the choice of food, custom, and tradition by the Indian characters in The Namesake novel as the tools to gains recognition from the new environment. Moreover, in the end of this study it is found that recognition is the cause of mimicry to the Indian characters in The Namesake novel. ::: ::: Keywords: mimicry, adaptation, recognition, tradition, custom, culture.", "Traditional speech emotion recognition techniques recognize emotions using a general training model based on the voices of various people. These techniques can not consider personalized speech character exactly. Therefore, the recognized results are very different to each person. This paper proposes an adaptive speech emotion recognition framework made from user's' immediate feedback data using a prompted labeling technique for building a personal adaptive recognition model and applying it to each user in a mobile device environment. The proposed framework can recognize emotions from the building of a personalized recognition model. The proposed framework was evaluated to be better than the traditional research techniques from three comparative experiment. The proposed framework can be applied to healthcare, emotion monitoring and personalized service.", "A review of measurement techniques for the determination of the acoustic output of medical ultrasonic diagnostic. Doppler and therapeutic equipment is presented. In Part 1 a brief survey of a wide range of techniques is given followed by a discussion of acoustic output specification methods. In Part 2 of the review two techniques widely used for measurements, the radiation pressure balance and the hydrophone, are considered in detail together with guidelines for good measurement practice. The review concludes with a discussion of a rapid assessment system, BECA2, which has been developed for the characterisation of ultrasonic transducers Much of the emphasis is on techniques developed at the UK National Physical Laboratory.", "We present schemes for the generation and evaluation of continuous variable entanglement of bright optical beams and give a brief overview of a variety of optical techniques and quantum communication applications on this basis. A new entanglement-based quantum interferometry scheme with bright beams is suggested. The performance of the presented schemes is independent of the relative interference phase which is advantageous for quantum communication applications.", "Fillet feature recognition is one of the most important components of feature recognition. Fillet feature is composed of cylindrical faces, spherical faces, torus faces or B-Spline faces which are connected each other in linear or network structure. According to these characters of fillet features, this paper presents a recognition method —— connected graph of minimal and sameness radius for recognition of fillet feature. Firstly, all faces with characters of fillet feature are selected out. And then a face-edge graph is constructed based on connecting relationship of these faces,in which radiuses of edges and faces are recorded. Thereby, fillet feature recognition is changed to seeking the sameness radius connected sub-graph.", "Whisper plays an important role on special occasions. Due to differences between normal and whispered speech, this paper firstly compares them in Chinese acoustic characters and MFCC feature distance. Besides, the performance in recognition is compared based on an isolated word recognition system. The experiment result shows that the performance of whisper is worse than normal speech whether in the degree of distinction among isolated word features or the recognition rate by using the same feature parameter and recognition model.", "Subluxation of the peroneal tendons is a relatively uncommon problem, and is often complicated by a delay in diagnosis. The authors present a brief review of the anatomy contributing to this pathologic problem, as well as the classification and treatment options of peroneal tendon subluxation. The authors then present their favored operative technique for the treatment of this problem, involving a distal fibular rotational osteotomy to prevent recurrent peroneal tendon subluxation.", "Teachers often choose books for their classroom libraries on the basis of an award or special recognition a particular book has received. In this vein, the Caldecott Medal is one of the most highly esteemed recognitions bestowed on children's picture books each year in the United States. Relatively few studies have examined how race is represented among main characters in Caldecott books. Using a Critical Content Analysis (CCA), we examine how race is represented among main characters in 80 Caldecott books from 1938 to 2017. Findings indicate that an overwhelmingly disproportionate percentage of the characters are White. In addition, the non-White main characters are portrayed in very narrow roles. Implications for teachers to consider when using these books are discussed.", "There exists the deficiency of character education in current students' morality education and quality education.So we should recognize the relationship between character education and morality education,make full play of character education,improve morality recognition and education efficiency,form an atmosphere of emotion education.Finally,establishing morality cultivation system is the key to college students' ideological education.", "Two experiments explored how memory for new information is affected by awareness of parallels to pre-experimental knowledge. In one experiment, subjects studied brief biographies of fictional characters analogous to famous people. Best recognition resulted with the analogous famous person identified at Study and Test; identification at Study or Test alone interfered relative to no identification. A second experiment rejected accounts relying on simple matching between Study and Test contexts: A famous person's name was beneficial only when facts in the biography were true of that famous person. Our data suggest that the benefit of prior knowledge derives from the more elaborate encodings that analogy promotes. Implications for schema and depth-of-processing theories of memory are considered.", "Active millimeter wave (MMW) imaging is currently being considered as a technology that can essentially contribute to security applications in both outdoor and indoor scenarios. Proposed novel active quasi-optical imaging technique being based on multi-parametric encoded illumination of observed scenes adds principally new possibilities for imaging of the scenes. The technique allows to reveal multiple distinctive features of threat objects hidden beneath person clothes that essentially increases probability of object true recognition. The technique is potentially capable to be applied for terahertz imaging as well. In the present work, an experimental set up for MMW multi-parametric quasi-optical imaging in reflective mode was developed. Informative MMW images of different concealed objects including threat ones were obtained.", "A brief review of formative evaluation strategies highlights a number of problems. A model, incorporating an objective thematic and structural analysis technique, is proposed with the aim of removing some of the existing problems. The model is applied to an existing curriculum unit and produces a theoretically better unit. The original and revised units are then compared in a field-trial, and the theoretically better unit is shown to be also better in practice in terms of pupil achievement. Implications of the model and the thematic and structural analysis technique are then discussed.", "A brief review is presented on the discovery and developments in transuranium elements. (P.C.H.)", "The merchandising of the essential personality features of a real person and of a fictional character has rapidly evolved from a subordinate activity into an important independent source of earning. In China, the availability and extents of existing forms of legal protections have not yet reached public recognition. This thesis discusses the problems on character merchandising and on the rights attached to these characters and it also analyses the lacks and limitations of different forms of legal protections on the rights.", "Abstract We describe an approach to the study of neutrino masses that combines quantum optics techniques with radiation detectors to obtain unprecedented sensitivity. With it the search for Majorana neutrino masses down to ∼10 meV will become accessible. The experimental technique uses the possibility of individually detecting Ba + -ions in the final state of 136 Xe double-beta decay via resonant excitation with a set of lasers aimed at a specific location in a large Time Projection Chamber. The specificity of the atomic levels provides tagging and, together with more traditional event recognition parameters, greatly suppresses radioactive backgrounds.", "Abstract This paper presents a brief review of recent metallurgical studies with the field-ion microscope. While this review concentrates primarily on two-phase alloy investigations, recent studies of radiation damage, dislocations and grain boundaries are mentioned. In the area of two-phase studies it is shown that crystallographic data, size distributions, particle shape and homogeneity can all be derived from field-ion micrographs in a quantitative fashion. These data complement those which may be obtained by other techniques.", "A rare case of Amelanotic Melanoma of the nose is presented with a brief review of literature and discussion.", "The optical constants of substances composing atmospheric aerosols are required to evaluate properly the effects of aerosols on the earth's radiation balance. We briefly review techniques for determining optical constants and also discuss pitfalls in using measured optical constants to simulate the optical constants of the real particles found in the atmosphere. We then compile the optical constants of (NH4)2SO4, Al2O3, and NaCl. The optical constants Of Al2O3 and NaCl are derived from values quoted in the literature. The optical constants of (NH4)2SO4 are derived partly from values quoted in the literature and partly from our own measurements.", "Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) consists of nodes with limited power deployed in the area of interest. Nodes cooperate to collect, transmit and forward data to a base station. In WSN, clustering and scheduling techniques ensure collecting data in an energy efficient manner. In this work, we have reviewed many papers relating to clustering and scheduling of sensor network. After reviewing many papers and considering the latest one as the base paper we believe that the work done in it is the latest one, modifications in the work is suggested in report. This review give the basic description of wireless sensor network and their importance in energy efficiency and give a brief about most famous protocol is described leach and their improved version.", "This paper analyzes the characteristics of Lu Yin's Novels: self-narration of strong character;Emotional awareness to the tragedies;Fate of the women;Feelings and scenery intersection.Note Lu Yin' novels in the history of modern Chinese literature are worthy of recognition.", "To meet the emotional need in traditional intelligent tutoring system (ITS), an intelligent tutoring system model based on emotional recognition technique was proposed in the paper. This model was added the emotional recognition module on the model of traditional intelligent tutoring system. The model of tutoring system based on emotional recognition was constructed with facial expression recognition and text recognition techniques, which can get, recognize and analyze emotional information of students' learning performance, then implement emotional stimulation and emotional tutoring according to different students' learning emotion.", "The genus Calophyllum in Papuasia is reviewed. The variation of some of the characters used is discussed and a key given for identification of the species recognized. Fifteen new species and one new variety are described: C. acutiputamen, C. carrii var. carrii and var. longigemmatum, C. confusum, C. gaimanum, C. goniocarpum, C. heterophyllum, C. laticostatum, C. morobensis, C. obscurum C. piluliferum, C. pseudovitiense, C. robusturn, C. streimannii, C. suberosum and C. vexans. Seven previously recognized species are reduced to synonymy. Brief details of the anatomy of the lamina are given for all species; germination and the appearance of the seedling are described for eight species.", "Abstract Terahertz signals were until recently an almost unexplored area of research due to the difficulties in generation and detection of electromagnetic fields at these wavelengths. Neither optical nor microwave techniques are directly applicable in the terahertz range since optical wavelengths are too short and microwave wavelengths are too long compared to terahertz field wavelengths. The development of ultrafast optical techniques, the manufacturing of semi-insulating semiconductors with very short lifetimes and of band-engineered heterostructures, as well as the micromachining techniques and nanotechnology have boosted the terahertz fields as a new area of research in quantum electronics with many important applications. The paper reviews the most recent results in THz fields and is focused on the physical principles of terahertz generators and receivers, underlining the link between terahertz devices and modern technologies such as micromachining and nanotechnology.", "This article reviews in brief the importance of diamond thin films for semiconductor industry. Here we report the design and development of a very high vacuum compatible microwave plasma chemical vapour deposition (MWPCVD) system. The growth of very good quality diamond thin films has been reported from the CH4—H2 plasma. The nucleation of diamond phase has been controlled by using a variety of substrate pretreatment process. The role of various deposition parameters has been investigated in brief. Optical emission spectroscopy (OES) has been used to diagnose the plasma. OES data has been correlated with microstructrue of the films. These films have been characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Raman spectrocopy and spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE).", "This article highlights an interview with electronics engineers from Japan' s Big Four automakers. After a brief 10-year outlook, plans for the automotive electronics industry are highlighted, with focus on head-up displays, voice recognition technology, navigation and multimedia, and crash sensors.", "The status of the genusEncyclia is reviewed, and this genus is compared withEpidendrum. As currently used,Epidendrum is a very heterogeneous assortment of species, resulting largely from the over-emphasis on certain “key characters.” If a greater emphasis is given to the internal coherence of the species groups within theEpidendrum alliance, about thirty genera can be recognized, with Envyclia and Epide~drum in different sectors of the alliance. The limited data on inter-speelfic crossability suggests that the entire alliance is a comparinm in genecologica] terms. The only alternative to the recognition ofEpidendrum andEncyclia as distinct genera is the union of all thirty genera into one, which is considered to be impractical.", "Abstract • Brief description of lung cancer history, screening, and prognosis. • Discussion of curative intent treatment modalities including various types of systemic therapies, radiotherapy, and surgical resection. • Review of the complications associated with common treatment modalities. • Brief overview in defining treatment response to definitive therapy. • In depth review of the current clinical evidence and practices as well as upcoming modalities for surveillance imaging after curative intent lung cancer treatment.", "Several years ago, I presented a brief historical review of recommendations on antibiotic prophylaxis before dental procedures in patients with", "Abstract This article attempts to lay the foundation for a socioiinguistic profile of Madagascar. After giving a brief historical overview of the main language planning events in the country, the socioiinguistic research on Madagascar is reviewed. A brief overview of the linguistic variety of Madagascar is given and the issue of diversity versus unity is highlighted." ]

[ "The emergence of the U-Boat as a German weapon forced the Royal Navy to move its grand fleet from its northern home at Scapa Flow in Scotland.\nThey went to one of the most peaceful spots in the British Isles - Lough Swilly.\nAt that time, it was pre-partition Ireland.\nForty fighting ships including battleships, cruisers and destroyers sailed into the lough.\nThey were guarded on either side of its mouth by specially built forts with long-range guns, including Fort Dunree on the Inishowen peninsula.\nThe fleet commander, Admiral Jellicoe, saw the base as one that was safe from U-Boat attack.\nBut, in the years to come, the German attack would take its toll in the cold waters off Donegal, sinking HMS Audacious and the SS Laurentic.\nEventually, Jellicoe knew he would have to return to the North Sea to face the Kaiser's fleet - an appointment met on 31 May 1916 off Denmark, in what became known as the Battle of Jutland.\nAlthough it was far from Ireland's shores, 358 Irishmen serving as volunteer sailors died in that battle as the two fleets traded shells for dominance of the seas.\nLater on Tuesday, their sacrifice, the role of Ireland and the 10,000 Irishmen who served in the Royal Navy in WW1 will be marked as part of the Battle of Jutland commemorations.\nThe commemorations will take place in a special cross-border event in Belfast onboard a ship that took part in the battle.\nHMS Caroline, launched in 1914, is the venue for a gathering of sailors from the present day Royal Navy and the Republic of Ireland's Naval Service, relatives of Irishmen who served at sea in the war, as well as representatives of the UK and Irish governments.\nThe 200 invited guests will hear tribute speeches as well as readings from letters sent from the sailors to their families back in Ireland.\nAmong them will be Marie McCarthy, whose grandfather, Daniel Fitzgerald from Cork, was a stoker on HMS Tiger.\nHe recalled hearing horrific sounds and sights during the sinking of the Queen Mary at Jutland.\nIt sank with the entire crew of more than 1,100 on board, lost to the deep.\nAlso remembered will be those killed on HMS Hawke, which was primarily crewed by Irishman, and that was sunk by a U-Boat with the loss of 524 men.\nAmong them was leading stoker Joyce Power, who left young twins and a pregnant wife in Ballymena.\nHis daughter, Margaret Hawke Power, was named after the ship on which he was killed.\nOne of the few survivors recalled: \"The crew for the most part were Irishmen, the reason being that at the outbreak of war the Hawke, which was one of the oldest ships of the British Navy, was stationed at Queenstown.\n\"There were only around 24 active servicemen on board, the remainder being fleet reservists.\"\nAnother relative who'll be at the commemoration event to mark a family sacrifice is Mark Doherty from Belfast, whose great uncle died at Jutland.\nPatrick Joseph Doherty was from a rural area near Coleraine, County Londonderry.\nHe was the ninth of 11 children and volunteered for the navy in 1915, dying just 18 months later on HMS Lion.\nMark said his great uncle's role below decks was unbelievably tough.\n\"He was a stoker, it was an extremely dirty environment and removed from what was on deck and going on outside. It was a very gruelling experience.\n\"This ship carried 3,500 tons of coal and that all had to be shifted.\n\"On that day, the fleet he was part of approached the Germans at speed. His role was to shovel coal as fast as possible to help the speed and they then engaged in battle,\" said Mark.\n\"Patrick's ship was one of the first to encounter the Germans and the engagement was ferocious.\n\"HMS Queen Mary was directly in front of the Lion and it was hit , blew up and sank within view of Lion.\n\"Patrick's ship was targeted then and there is a picture of the Queen Mary going down whilst great plumes of water can be seen around HMS Lion caused by the German shells.\n\"It received a number of direct hits and was only saved from sinking when a young seaman deliberately flooded an area which was on fire killing himself and several others as a way of saving the ship.\n\"I can only speculate that during that exchange it was one of those shells that killed my great uncle,\" said Mark, who has spent time researching the battle since hearing of his family involvement.\nIn all, 99 men died on HMS Lion and 51 others were injured, but the vessel stayed afloat to fight again.\nLike the others, Patrick Joseph Doherty was buried at sea, but his name is marked on a number of memorials including the war memorial in Coleraine.\nAs the Navy marks its role in the Great War on land and at sea, the long empty major British naval installations at Lough Swilly in County Donegal and County Cork in the south-west of Ireland stand as silent reminders to those who left the island under the Royal Naval Ensign never to return, having lost their lives in that often forgotten battleground of the first world war - the sea.\nThere will be a live stream of the ceremony on the BBC News NI website from 12:20 BST on Tuesday." ]

[ "Five members of the family drowned when their car slipped off the pier in Buncrana, County Donegal, on Sunday.\nA baby girl was saved by a passer-by moments before the car sank.\nThe local authority responsible for the pier said it will review the situation when the facts are established.\nThe victims of Sunday's tragedy were Ruth Daniels, 57, her daughter Jodie Lee Daniels, 14, Sean McGrotty, 49, and his sons Mark, 12, and Evan, eight.\nGreg Hanna told the BBC that last August he was launching a boat into Lough Swilly from the same pier when his car slipped on the algae.\nThe man who towed Mr Hanna's vehicle from the water revealed that he too lost his car at the same spot three weeks previously.\nMr Hanna explained what happened.\n\"When we got to Lough Swilly, we put on our dry suits and began to reverse the boat on the trailer down the slipway,\" he said.\nThe car, which belonged to Mr Hanna, was being driven by his friend, as he shouted directions from outside it.\n\"I asked him to stop when the wheels of the trailer touched the water, which is normal.\n\"He stopped, but the car started to slip. It was out of control and just by chance it stopped with the back wheels in the water.\n\"It was nearly up to the boot.\"\nFortunately the boat had broken free from the trailer, which reduced the weight of the pull and gave the men time to put their diving weight belts under the wheels.\n\"That helped to slow it down but we still slipped 10 or 11 metres,\" said Mr Hanna.\n\"The trailer was almost submerged. We thought we would lose the car.\"\nMr Hanna said the slipway was akin to a skating rink.\n\"The slime up there is a seaweed algae on the top, but there's about an inch of sand underneath it, so when the car wheels start spinning on it, it creates a slush that's lethally slippery as we found out,\" he said.\nMr Hanna, an experienced diver of 19 years and the former regional coach of the British Sub-Aqua club in Ireland, explained that the Buncrana pier slipway is unlike conventional harbour slipways that gently slope down to the seabed.\n\"At the water's edge there's a ledge, which is probably designed to prevent the car ferry's hull hitting the bottom of the slipway.\"\nThe steep drop is not visible from land.\nOn seeing Mr Hanna's difficulties unfold, a local man came to his aid and towed his car from the water using a 4x4 vehicle.\nFollowing the rescue, the man told Mr Hanna that he had lost his own car in the same way three weeks previously.\nThe diver said that there were no signs warning of the danger and the barrier that does exist is locked in the upright position against a wall.\nHe said hard questions will be asked of Donegal County Council.\n\"It's a wake-up call about the dangers of harbours and piers.\n\"Normally they're good facilities if they're maintained. If you put soap powder from a washing machine on it, it'll kill the algae and be washed off.\"\nHe suggested that the pier should be cordoned off if it is not properly maintained and that policies need to be put in place to prevent future tragedies.\nIn a statement, Donegal County Council offered condolences to the family and said that when \"the facts surrounding this unfortunate tragedy are established, the council will review them and determine if any specific measures need to be taken.\"\nThe funerals of those who died will take place in Londonderry on Thursday.", "A service at St Magnus Cathedral in Orkney paid tribute to the 8,648 sailors who died during the Battle of Jutland.\nA service of remembrance is also taking place on board HMS Duncan at Jutland Bank, the site of the battle.\nThe battle was fought near the coast of Denmark on 31 May and 1 June 1916 and involved about 250 ships.\nIt saw the Royal Navy's Grand Fleet, based at Scapa Flow in Orkney, clash with the German High Seas Fleet.\nPrime Minister David Cameron and German President Joachim Gauck attended the Kirkwall service, along with the Princess Royal and her husband Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, representing the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.\nEvents continued with a service at Lyness Cemetery on the island of Hoy - the final resting place for more than 450 service personnel who died in the war, including sailors killed at Jutland.\nThe Duke of Edinburgh had also been due to go to Orkney, but pulled out following medical advice.\nOn the street outside the UK's most northerly cathedral, islanders young and old crowded the pavements as the Royal Marines band led a naval contingent, bayonets gleaming to the morning commemoration.\nIt was a powerful reminder of Orkney's naval history; Britain's Grand Fleet sailed to Jutland from the deep anchorage at Scapa Flow. Nearly 6,000 men never returned.\nThe services at Kirkwall and Lyness mark the loss of 25 ships, British and German, in a clash which resulted in no clear victory.\nA century ago an islander called Margaret Tait captured the mood after the battle.\n\"What a gloom was cast over the town, and how depressed we were to think of our noble ships, brave sailors and officers.\"\nLater, family members and representatives of today's navies will re-tell the stories of Jutland, and remember those who still lie beneath the dark waters of the North Sea.\nRepresentatives of all the other nations connected to the battle - Australia, Canada, Ireland, Japan, Malta, New Zealand and South Africa - were at the cathedral.\nThe commemoration was led by the minister of the cathedral, Fraser MacNaughton.\nHe was joined by the Royal Navy's chaplain of the fleet, the Venerable Ian Wheatley, and a German naval chaplain.\nIn the North Sea, The German ship FGS Schleswig-Holstein will join HMS Duncan at Jutland Bank.\nMany relatives of those who took part in the battle were in Orkney for the commemorations.\nAlexander Nicol's grandfather, John, drowned when HMS Invincible exploded and went down with the loss of more than 1,000 men.\nHe left a wife and eight children.\nMr Nicol said: \"I'm fortunate enough to be a grandfather in my own right... My grandfather didn't live to see any of his children get married, let alone to see any of his grandchildren. So to me it's a privilege that he missed out on.\"\nIt was long ago, it was dreadful but it had to be done and was done\nMichael Mulford's father Mark survived the battle as a teenager aboard the HMS Malaya, which was hit eight times with the loss of more than 60 men.\nMr Mulford said his father, then 19, had watched as the bodies were sewn into hammocks and released over the side.\nHe told the BBC: \"I can't really imagine it because what he ever said about it was absolutely nothing - which speaks volumes for the horror of raw naval warfare.\n\"This was duty, this was service, but whatever else, it was nothing you could talk about at the dinner table. It was not something to regale the grandchildren with. It was long ago, it was dreadful but it had to be done and was done.\"\nMr Mulford added: \"Today is a day for peace and reconciliation.\"\n6,097\nlives lost\n14 ships lost\n177 sailors captured\n674 sailors wounded\nThe Battle of Jutland was the only major sea battle of World War One. It was a battle that Britain, with its long naval tradition, was widely expected to win.\nGermany's fleet, under the command of Vice-Admiral Reinhard Scheer, was aware of the Royal Navy Grand Fleet's superiority in terms of numbers, and wanted to lure Britain's battle cruisers into a trap.\nThe German admiral's strategy was to draw portions of the British fleet into battle with a strike at Allied shipping off the Norwegian coast.\nHowever, British admiralty intelligence intercepted a German radio message saying the High Seas Fleet was preparing to leave port and the commander of the British fleet, Admiral Sir John Jellicoe, sailed from Scapa Flow in Orkney to intercept it.\nThere were a series of clashes throughout 31 May, including the loss of HMS Indefatigable which was hit by German shellfire and exploded in a ball of flame.\nFrom a crew of 1,019 men, only two survived.\nHMS Queen Mary was also sunk, with the loss of 1,266 crew.\n2,551\nlives lost\n11 ships lost\n0 sailors captured\n507 sailors wounded\nThe main battle began at about 18:30 on 31 May when Vice-Admiral Scheer realised he was up against the entire British Grand Fleet.\nAt the end of the engagement, the British had lost more in terms of ships and men, but it later emerged the Germans had concealed the scuttling of two of their ships, and it soon became seen as a strategic victory for the Royal Navy.\nIn a message on the St Magnus order of service, the Duke of Edinburgh said that, whatever the judgement on the outcome, the commemorations were focused on the \"endurance and gallantry\" of all those who took part.\nIt was a bleak, windy afternoon but you could still see the Royal Navy's HMS Kent and the German Navy's Schleswig-Holstein in the water through the fog.\nThe Princess Royal and David Cameron were among the six dignitaries who laid wreaths at the Cross of Sacrifice to represent the British and German lives lost.\nThe granite cross was built 10 years after Jutland to pay tribute to the Royal Navy's work. Inscribed on it are the words \"Their name liveth for evermore\".\nThe graves of those buried at Lyness overlook the waters where many of the sailors served.\nMany of the bodies recovered from the battle were never identified and their graves bear the inscription \"Known Unto God\".\nThere are graves here from both British and German sailors - \"former enemies now united and at peace\", said Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.", "The Kymin, towering 800ft (245m) on a hill above Monmouth, is home to the Naval Temple, Britain's oldest monument to the Royal Navy.\nIt seems as though the location was Georgian society's idea of a joke.\nAnd if you are struggling to get it, you are not alone.\nAs Phil Park, National Trust's Mid and South East Wales Property Manager, explains, Admiral Lord Nelson was among the early visitors who expressed their surprise at finding a monument to Britannia land-locked on the Welsh borders.\nHe said: \"In 1802 Nelson himself accompanied by Lady Hamilton visited, and expressed surprise that he should: 'Be known on such a little gut of a river as the Wye'.\"\nThe Kymin had long been a gathering spot for picnics and social events, but in 1794 a group of local landowners decided they needed additional luxury and protection against the unpredictable weather that high up.\nSo, headed by the Duke of Beaufort, the Kymin Club commissioned the site's most famous and imposing landmark, the Round House.\nIt boasted banqueting facilities, and there was also a bowling green shielded from the elements by an enormous wall, extensive hillside walks and woodland for hunting.\nThe Round House was topped off with telescopes in an observatory which was reputed to have views of nine Welsh and English counties.\nThe Naval Temple followed six years later in 1800, as both a tongue-in-cheek reference to the elevated inland location, and a patriotic tribute to Britain's growing supremacy over the seas.\nAdmiral Lord Nelson's 1802 visit came three years before the Battle of Trafalgar, which would define both his life and death. He arrived by barge down the Wye, and was greeted by a cannon salute, brass bands and cheering crowds.\nHe breakfasted at the Round House, admired the views, and drank a toast to the Naval Temple, which he described as: \"The only monument of its kind erected to the Royal Navy in the Kingdom!\"\nFollowing the defeat of the French and Spanish fleet and Nelson's death at the Battle of Trafalgar, The Naval Temple became a focus for the commemoration of Trafalgar Day.\nCelebrated each year on 21 October, the anniversary of Nelson's most famous victory remained an important date in the calendar throughout the Georgian, Victorian and Edwardian eras, right up until the outbreak of World War One.\n\"Its public celebration declined in 1918, following the end of World War One,\" said Mr Park.\n\"The massive casualties and upheaval had changed the general public perception of war as a source of glorious victories to a more sombre view of it as a tragedy, for which the newly instituted Armistice Day on 11 November was created.\"\nBut after a decline of almost 100 years, Mr Park thinks the time is right to revive the tradition on The Kymin.\n\"Trafalgar Day is a great opportunity to introduce a new generation to Kymin, the Round House, and the Naval Temple, which is badly in need of renovation.\n\"The town of Monmouth has a long and proud association with the Royal Navy, through not only the Naval Temple, but also the Nelson Museum commemorating his 1802 visit, and the Royal Navy vessel, HMS Monmouth, named in honour of the town.\n\"The Kymin also plays a wider part in the history of the area; for hundreds of years it was the place to meet and socialise.\n\"It was the views which first attracted Georgian society figures from Monmouth to make the tortuous journey to the summit of the Kymin.\n\"Think Jane Austin, picnics, games and groups of the great and good whiling away sunny afternoons and you have the Kymin at its zenith.\"", "More than 200 guests attended the celebration of HMS Warspite at Plymouth's Devonport Dockyard.\nThe ship, launched in 1913, holds more honours than any other in British naval history and served in both World Wars.\nAlan Jones from HMS Warspite Association said she was \"a mighty warship of historical significance\" to both Plymouth and the nation.\nThe \"iconic\" super dreadnought was launched on 26 November 1913 in the presence of the First Lord of the Admiralty, Winston Churchill, and 30,000 others.\nDuring the Battle of Jutland in 1916, Warspite held off the German High Seas Fleet, surviving two dozen heavy shell hits, while in World War Two, she saw action in the Arctic, the Mediterranean, the Indian Ocean and the English Channel.\nShe was taken apart after running aground in a storm off Prussia Cove in Cornwall in 1947.\nThe ship was the seventh Royal Navy vessel to bear the name Warspite.\nThe original was launched in 1596 and became Sir Walter Raleigh's flagship for an attack on the Spanish port of Cadiz.\nIain Ballantyne, associate member of the HMS Warspite Association and Plymouth naval historian and author, said the 1913 ship's \"amazing\" life was also the story of a navy and a nation.\n\"She was created and launched when Britain was at the zenith of its imperial power and last saw action when the empire was in decline,\" he said.\n\"Warspite used oil-fired boilers for her propulsion at a time when most naval vessels relied on coal, plus she carried the biggest guns ever mounted in a vessel of her kind.\"\nMr Ballantyne, who has documented the ship's history in his book, Warspite: From Jutland Hero to Cold War Warrior, said despite fears while she was being built, \"Warspite turned out to be a tremendous success [and] a remarkable vessel\".\n\"Churchill famously had nightmares that, with time running out in the race with Germany, Warspite would turn out to be slow and her untested guns might not work at all.\n\"[However] she and four sister vessels - Queen Elizabeth, Valiant, Barham and Malaya - were the deadliest battleships fielded by any side in World War One and greatly feared by German Navy.\"\nMr Jones, a chief stoker on board the eighth Warspite - a nuclear-powered submarine - said the service was \"a celebration of the Navy today and in the past, the ship-building skills of Plymouth and the ship, her four sister ships, and the Cold War submarine that bore the same name\".\n\"This is a mark of our appreciation of the ship builders' skills and the sailors who served in battleship HMS Warspite during three decades of distinguished service in war and peace.''\nGuests at the service included former Plymouth Devonport MP Lord David Owen, the mayors of Plymouth, Torpoint and Saltash, veteran sailors and former admirals.\nThe Devonport Naval Base commander Commodore Graeme Little said the ship was \"the iconic battleship of the last century and extremely important as a reference point to the Royal Navy, the city of Plymouth and Devonport\".", "The front page of the Mirror reads: \"Five missing in Irish Sea,\" as a search continues for a helicopter which vanished when travelling from Milton Keynes to Dublin yesterday.\nContact with the pilot was lost yesterday and it has been reported in the Mirror that five businessmen were on board.\nA Mayday Relay broadcast was issued to all vessels passing through the Irish Sea route to contact the Coastguard if they saw anything.\nThe same story is covered in the Belfast Telegraph, which reports that \"no mayday or distress calls\" were received from the chopper.\nIt also reports that the missing aircraft is the same type as those used by the Garda (Irish police) Air Support team.\nElsewhere, the Derry City Football Club community has been \"shattered\" by tragedies in recent months, according to its manager.\nKenny Shiels told the Belfast Telegraph he was still trying to come to terms with the death of 27-year-old team captain, Ryan McBride.\nLast year popular ex-striker, Mark Farren, lost his battle with cancer.\nAnd Josh Daniels, a young member of the club, lost five members of his family in the Buncrana Pier tragedy.\nMr Shiels, who read a poem at Mr McBride's funeral, said it had been \"a tough time for everybody\".\n\"I have seen how as a football club Derry City has provided strength in tough times.\n\"I've been around football a lot but I believe Derry City is different.\"\nMr Shiels said what happened to the team's young captain had brought back painful memories for the club.\n\"It was desperately hard last year with what happened to Josh's family - you go into a wee room and there are five coffins sitting there,\" he said.\n\"Josh is good - on the outside, but it is obviously very hard for him.\"\nElsewhere in the paper, Donna Deeney shares the view from the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, following the triggering of Article 50 yesterday.\nShe writes: \"The connections between Londonderry and Donegal are as long and deep as the lough they share,\" and predicts \"if there are customs points and big queues, people just won't bother coming here.\"\nShe said people in border towns like Muff, County Donegal, were worried about the future of their relationship with Derry now that it is set to become home to the UK's only land border with the EU.\nBut the News Letter asserts \"both sides say NI to be key part of Brexit negotiation\".\nPrime Minister Theresa May has pledged that \"we want to avoid a return to a hard [Irish] border\" and MEPs have said they are \"especially concerned\" about the consequences for Northern Ireland.\nInside, Secretary of State James Brokenshire has said \"what we want is the optimum deal for Northern Ireland inside the UK but outside the EU.\n\"That is our focus, that is what we will be working with our European partners to achieve and I think we can do that.\"\nThe Irish News also mentions Brexit on its front page and says it \"prompts warnings over north's stability\".\nThe paper's political correspondent, John Manley, writes: \"While unionists welcomed the triggering of Article 50, nationalists lamented the prime minister's letter to the European Council.\nInside, Sinn Féin's northern leader, Michelle O'Neill, writes: \"We have developed a case for designated special status for the north within the EU, which would allow the will of the people of the north to be respected, retain access to the single market, protect jobs and workers' rights and the right of all our people to decide on their own future including Irish unity, as set out in the Good Friday Agreement.\"\nOnly one thing's fro sure, this debate is going to go on for months, if not years, to come.", "Heavy rainfall has left some roads impassable and fields saturated.\nWater levels at Lough Neagh are at a 30-year-high after recent heavy rain, causing damage to businesses on its shores.\nMichelle O'Neill took part in an urgent meeting with the environment and regional development ministers to discuss the response to the flooding.\nA total of £1.3m is available to Northern Ireland, the spin-off from a Westminster flood fund.\nBut first the executive must agree that it will be spent on flood relief and then departments must then make a pitch for the cash. So far neither has happened.\n\"We had some discussions around priorities in going forward, how can we use the £1.3m to actually make a difference to people's lives,\" Mrs O'Neill said.\n\"We all have different ideas as ministers, we'll have that further discussion next week at an executive meeting where we can actually take decisions on we can make the most effect out of the £1.3m.\"\nShe added: \"As rivers minister, I intend to seek resources to use to improve our flood protections where necessary.\n\"Also, next week I will announce details of a new grant scheme to help people protect their homes from flooding.\"\nFlood-hit businesses on the shores of Lough Neagh have been questioning if enough was done to prevent rising waters brought on by winter storms.\nCouncil chiefs and representatives of NI Water, Transport NI and the Rivers Agency also attended Thursday's meeting in Cookstown, County Tyrone.\nRegional Development Minister Michelle McIlveen said the meeting was positive and useful.\n\"My key priority is to identify any immediate remedial works that need to be carried out on roads which have been flooded to ensure they are opened as quickly as possible,\" she said.\n\"As well as carrying out emergency repairs, I will be seeking to identify longer-term measures to address any issues with the roads infrastructure.\"\nEnvironment Minister Mark H Durkan said: \"Working with and through councils, I have already ensured that practical and financial help is delivered to those most in need as early as possible.\n\"We have a £1,000 grant available to assist homeowners in ensuring their homes are habitable as quickly as possible.\n\"Today's meeting though provided the platform to share ideas and plan for the longer term.\"\nAt Oxford Island on Lough Neagh's southern tip in County Armagh, several business properties have been badly damaged by floods.\nThe lough's level is controlled by floodgates at Toomebridge in County Antrim, which the Rivers Agency has said have been fully opened since early November.\nBut \"repeated winter storms\" have put pressure on the lough and its outlets, the Rivers Agency has said.\nThe Northern Ireland Independent Retail Trade Association has called for the Department of Finance should provide immediate rates relief to businesses affected by floods.\nIn the Republic of Ireland, a compensation scheme is opening for farmers who have suffered fodder losses due to flooding in many parts of the country.\nFlooding problems in Northern Ireland can be reported by contacting the Floodline on 0300 2000 100.", "Sean Kelleher monitored the 310-mile (499km) stretch along the border from Carlingford Lough in the east to Lough Foyle in the west.\nHe said Revenue would be required to increase staffing to deal with \"challenging\" post-Brexit issues.\nThe UK is due to leave the EU by the end of March 2019.\nThe former customs manager, who served between 2007 and 2015, said commercial traffic would be subjected to certain customs controls but private vehicles should not face too much disruption.\n\"The reality is we will be obliged to maintain EU regulations and that will determine how those checks are carried out and to what level,\" Mr Kelleher told BBC news NI.\n\"For commercial cargo moving north to south, I would expect that all importers and exporters will register with Revenue for online declarations.\"\nMr Kelleher said \"trade facilitation stations\" should be \"judicially placed somewhere near the border\" to carry out checks on commercial traffic.\n\"You won't need too many if you are only doing a percentage check,\" he said. \"For example, if you have traffic going west from Derry to Donegal, you may require a facilitation station, one at least in Donegal.\n\"For the midlands, you would need one certainly around the Monaghan border or somewhere close. For the east coast, one perhaps around the Dundalk area.\n\"It's all subject to what Revenue decides. They may not necessarily be in those areas but they would be the locations I would believe are where the trade facilitation stations should be located,\" he added.\nThe border separating Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic will become an EU-UK frontier after Brexit.\nMr Kelleher said he could not see a return of fixed customs posts that existed from 1923 until the creation of the EU Single Market in 1993.\n\"Logistically it wouldn't prove possible and politically it's unpopular,\" he said.\nThe former customs manager said \"all crossings points would have to be monitored\" as they would be ideal for people \"with a mind to do a bit of smuggling\".\nHe also said that random checks could be carried out by mobile patrols on crossing points and roadways along the border.\n\"There's going to be some disruption. It may not be major but if vehicles are called to trade facilitation stations, that's a disruption.\n\"It means that vehicles are going to be delayed until goods are examined and documents processed. If there are problems, the goods may be detained.\"\nIn a statement, Revenue said its focus was on facilitating trade by maximising the free flow of goods.\nA spokeswoman said it was in the early stages of developing its main customs processes to cater for the phased introduction of the Union Customs Code which it said \"envisages paperless customs systems, managed by electronic processing\".\n\"The operation of customs post-Brexit and the resulting impact on business will be defined to a great extent by the terms of the agreement between the EU and the UK,\" she said.\n\"The full impacts will not be clear until negotiations have been finalised.\"\nA series of papers is being published, including one this week covering what will happen to the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic after the UK has left the EU.\nMr Kelleher said a generation had grown up in the border region facing no checks, and would find changes difficult to accept.\n\"The reality is there is no border. People can drive across the land frontier and not realise they're in Northern Ireland.,\" he said.\n\"How you control that will be a major challenge for Revenue.\"", "Events from the outbreak of war in 1914 to the departure of troops from Flanders and France were recorded in official diaries of each military unit.\nAbout 1.5 million diary pages are held by the National Archives and a fifth have been digitised so far.\nThe project is part of the government's World War One centenary programme.\nEach unit in World War One was required to keep a diary of its day-to-day activities.\nThe first batch of 1,944 digitised diaries detail the experiences of three cavalry and seven infantry divisions in the initial wave of British army troops deployed in 1914.\nDiaries from soldiers in the First Battalion South Wales Borderers portray the anxiety and terror of the opening days of the war in the battles of Marne and the Aisne.\nThey also reveal accounts of tug of war, rugby matches and farewell dinners to mark the end of the fighting.\nA private war diary kept by one of the First Battalion's soldiers, Captain James Paterson, has also been digitised.\nCaptain Paterson died on 1 November, some six weeks after an entry said the scenes he witnessed were \"beyond description\".\n\"Trenches, bits of equipment, clothing (probably blood-stained), ammunition, tools, caps, etc, etc, everywhere. Poor fellows shot dead are lying in all directions. Some of ours,\" he said.\n\"Everywhere the same hard, grim, pitiless sign of battle and war. I have had a belly full of it.\"\nOther entries record the experiences of the 4th Dragoon Guards who fought in the Battle of Mons, the first major action of the war for the British Expeditionary Force in August 1914.\nThere are also diaries from soldiers of the 5th (Royal Irish) Lancers who saw action continuously between 1914 and 1918 and who included the last British soldier to die in the conflict, Private George Edwin Ellison, who was shot dead on 11 November 1918.\nSome 25 volunteers scanned hundreds of boxes of diaries - which had been available for the public to view at the National Archives in Kew since the late 1960s - between January and December last year.\nSource: BBC History\nThe World War One Centenary\nWilliam Spencer, author and military records specialist at the National Archives, said it \"creates opportunities for the public, history enthusiasts, family historians and researchers worldwide to explore the official records which may lead to some new discoveries and perspectives on this important period of history\".\nThe National Archives, the Imperial War Museum and online research website Zooniverse are also launching Operation War Diary, a project aiming to encourage volunteers to uncover details from within the diaries.\nLuke Smith, from the Imperial War Museum, said information that may not have previously been communicated through letters home or covered in traditional history books may be contained in the diaries.\nThe volunteers to the project will be given a segment of a unit war diary and asked to tag key details such as names, places and events.\nThe data will be used in the National Archives' catalogue descriptions for the diaries, making it easier for people to trace their army ancestors.\nCulture Secretary Maria Miller said: \"The National Archives' digitised First World War unit diaries will allow us to hear the voices of those that sacrificed their lives and is even more poignant now there are no living veterans who can speak directly about the events of the war.\"\nHarry Patch, the last British survivor of the World War One trenches, died in 2009 aged 111.\nThe world's last known combat veteran of World War One, Claude Choules, died in Australia aged 110 in 2011.", "The news was confirmed by European Tour Chief Executive George O'Grady on Thursday, with the Stormont Executive providing significant funding.\nRoyal County Down will host the event for the first time in 75 years, with the dates confirmed as 28-31 May, 2015.\nThe Lough Erne course will be staging the Irish Open for the first time.\nThursday's news will increase the optimism that the Open Championship could return to Northern Ireland for the first time since the only staging of the event in the province at Royal Portrush in 1951.\nNorthern Ireland's First Minister Peter Robinson attended Thursday's announcement at Royal County Down and he said talks are continuing with Open organisers, the Royal & Ancient, over the major championship.\n\"We are talking to them and we have been talking to them for some time,\" the First Minister told BBC Sport.\n\"We will continue to make every effort we can in order to bring the Open to Northern Ireland.\"\nMedia playback is not supported on this device\nThe Irish Open returned to Northern Ireland after a 59-year absence in a hugely-successful staging of the event at Royal Portrush in 2012.\nDespite the feel-good factor after the 2012 Portrush event, within weeks R&A chief executive Peter Dawson appeared to ruled out an imminent Open Championship return to Northern Ireland.\n\"There would be much work to do for an Open ever to go to Portrush [again],\" said Dawson in his July 2012 comments.\n\"We have been there before. It's always, to an extent, been on our radar and our championship committee, I'm sure, will continue to evaluate it.\"\nRoyal Portrush became the first Northern Ireland venue to host the Irish Open for 59 years in 2012.\nThe tournament was the first-ever sold-out event on the European Tour as huge crowds turned out to watch a field which included homegrown major winners Rory McIlroy, Graeme McDowell and Darren Clarke.\nThe Northern Ireland Executive provided funding in the region of £1.5m for the 2012 event and a similar investment will be required this time round although Tourism Minister Arlene Foster would be drawn on the sums involved.\nRoyal County Down is one of the most renowned links in the world and, with extra grandstands likely to be erected, crowds in excess of 20,000 are expected to flock to the Newcastle course each day.\nThe club staged the Senior British Open from 2000 to 2002 and the Walker Cup was also held there in 2007.\n\"There is one less week between the US Open and the Open Championship next year, so the dates we have selected at the end of May give us the best chance of getting the strongest possible field,\" said O'Grady.\n\"Rory McIlroy put the idea in my head at a European Tour event in Shanghai and it progressed from there.\n\"We will be showcasing one of the world's absolute great golf courses and there are some lovely vantage points. We want to bring as many people here as possible.\nThe European Tour chief also added that the Northern Ireland Executive had agreed to provide \"help\" with the running of this year's event at Fota Island in county Cork and further stagings of the tournament in the Republic of Ireland in the coming years.\nEnglishman Paul Casey was the winner at Carton House last year, while this year's tournament will be played at Fota Island.\nO'Grady said at Thursday's press conference at Royal County Down that Fota Island is currently the favourite to host the 2016 Irish Open.\nHowever, the European Tour chief did reveal that he had also held talks with new Doonbeg owner Donald Trump about the possibility of the event being held at the county Clare venue in the coming years.", "They were all treated for mild hypothermia after two canoes capsized due to weather conditions.\nIt happened on the river between Magheramason in County Tyrone and Carrigans in County Donegal.\nFoyle Search and Rescue said it was the biggest operation they were ever involved in.\nTwo canoes were taking part in a \"married versus singles\" race when one of them capsized at about 14:00 BST on Saturday during a fundraising event for the YMCA.\nWilliam Lamrock from the YMCA said all 26 people ended up in the water, some for about 20 minutes. All were wearing life jackets.\nBill Minky, from north America, told BBC Radio Foyle: \"We were on a canoe from Strabane to Culmore and we were in the lead canoe and all of a sudden we didn't see the rear canoe.\n\"We decided to go back and they had taken on some water. The canoe then sunk.\n\"Some of them got into our canoe then ours tipped.\n\"The emergency services then came and plucked everyone out.\n\"The youngest was probably in his 20s and the eldest was 62.\n\"We were having a good time and then the swell came over.\n\"We had life jackets on, so we were prepared for something like this happening.\n\"I take my hat off to the emergency services. They did a terrific job.\n\"I'm here on holiday and it's not one I was expecting.\"\nThe Northern Ireland Ambulance Service, the PSNI and the Irish coastguard were all involved in the rescue.\nSix people were airlifted to Londonderry's Altnagelvin Hospital and were treated for mild hypothermia.\nAnother 12 were taken by ambulance and the rest were treated at the scene.\nIan Faulkner, who lives in Magheramason, watched events as they unfolded with his telescope.\n\"I came home from work and noticed that the weather was awful. At the corner of my eye I could see people in the very centre of the water.\n\"Some of them were on their own in the water. My wife then called the police.\"\nStephen Twells, from Foyle Search and Rescue, said: \"Without Mr Faulkner's quick reaction we could've had a tragedy.\n\"The water would've been extremely cold.\n\"The weather was pretty unpredictable on Saturday but the group was being led by experienced leaders.\n\"It was a difficult for us due to the weather and also due to the number of people involved.\"", "Rory Gallagher's side did the damage in a 10-minute spell after half-time, outscoring Derry by 1-3 to 0-1.\nThe sides were level at 0-5 apiece at the break but Marty O'Reilly's 45th minute goal was the crucial score.\nDonegal now face Monaghan in the Ulster final on 19 July, the third straight year the two counties will contest the provincial decider.\nDerry picked up two black cards late on and finished the closing minutes with 14 men having already used all six subs, but they can take heart from their spirited display.\nIt looked ominous for Derry early on when Donegal eased into a 0-4 to 0-1 lead after 11 minutes.\nEnda Lynn had a goal chance for the Oak Leafers in the first minute, which Paul Durcan kicked clear, but the favourites were quickly into their stride with Odhran MacNiallais, Paddy McBrearty and Christy Toye all scoring from play.\nMedia playback is not supported on this device\nMcBrearty also tagged on a free and he looked the most dangerous of Donegal's forwards, with Michael Murphy again sitting deep in a free role with Neil Gallagher taking spells at full-forward.\nDonegal kicked seven first-half wides and with each miss, Derry grew in confidence and they hit three points in a row to draw level at 0-4 each after 22 minutes.\nEoin Bradley's tap-over free was followed by a superb score from Caolan O'Boyle and Mark Lynch popped up with the equaliser in a suffocating game with precious few clear cut openings.\nColm McFadden, back in the Donegal team after missing the win over Armagh with a virus, slotted over from a tight angle to put Donegal in front again.\nHowever, Chrissy McKaigue came forward for the first time in the game and scored from distance to again bring Derry level at 0-5 apiece.\nThomas Mallon ensured the scores stayed that way at half-time after pulling off a smart save from Michael Murphy.\nDonegal turned the screw after the restart - an outrageous long-range point from Michael Murphy was the highlight with Martin McElhinney and McFadden also raising white flags before Martin O'Reilly pounced for his second goal in as many games.\nNeil Gallagher's strong run punched a big hole through the middle and he laid it off to O'Reilly, whose low shot across goal fizzed into the far corner to put Derry 1-8 to 0-6 ahead after 45 minutes.\nThat could have been curtains for the underdogs but they battled on with a Lynch free and Caolan O'Boyle's point.\nSub Benny Heron reduced the gap to two points with Derry still fighting and playing like they believed they could cause an upset.\nHowever, Murphy picked up the loose ball and broke their hearts with a 35m score with six minutes to go.\nCiaran McFaul curled one over from the wing for Derry to again leave two points in it but the last few minutes were marred by bad-tempered flare-ups as the play became messy and broken up.\nBrendan Rogers, playing only his second ever game for Derry, was black-carded for a foul on MacNiallais that sparked a melee in the 66th minute.\nAfter things calmed down, Ciaran McFaul's challenge on Ryan McHugh sparked another row and saw the player picked up Derry's second black card in the 69th minute.\nDonegal: P Durcan; P McGrath, N McGee, E McGee; R McHugh, K Lacey, F McGlynn; N Gallagher, M McElhinney (0-1); C Toye (0-1), O MacNiallais (0-1), M O'Reilly (1-0); P McBrearty (0-2, 1f), M Murphy (0-2), C McFadden (0-2)\nSubs: M McHugh for McFadden (57), A Thompson for Toye (61), H McFadden for McElhinney (69), D Walsh for McBrearty (70)\nDerry: T Mallon; O Duffy, B Rodgers, D McBride; K Johnston, C McKaigue (0-1), C McFaul (0-1); N Holly (0-1), F Doherty; SL McGoldrick, M Lynch (0-2, 1f), E Lynn; D Heavron, E Bradley (0-2, 2f), C O'Boyle (0-2)\nSubs: B Heron (0-1) for McGoldrick (47), L McGoldrick for Duffy (48), T O'Brien for Lynn (51), N Loughlin for Bradley (62), E Lynn for O'Boyle (65), C McAtamney for Rogers (BC, 66)\nReferee: Noel Hickey (Clare)\nSaturday 27 June\nAll-Ireland Senior Football Championship Qualifying Round 1B\nArmagh 2-17 2-07 Wicklow\nLouth 1-16 0-11 Leitrim\nWexford 2-16 2-11 Down\nUlster Senior Football Championship semi-final\nDerry 0-10 1-09 Donegal\nSunday 28 June\nAll-Ireland Senior Football Championship Qualifying Round 1B\nTyrone 1-14 0-8 Limerick\nLeinster Senior Football Championship semi-finals\nMeath 2-18 3-19 Westmeath\nDublin 5-18 0-14 Kildare\nUlster Senior Hurling Championship semi-final\nDerry 1-17 3-16 Down", "Friel passed away at his home in Greencastle, County Donegal after a long illness.\nThe County Tyrone born writer won three Tony Awards for Dancing at Lughnasa in 1992. The play was later made into a film starring Meryl Streep.\n\"We've lost a tender dramatist, an insightful humanist and a lovely man,\" she said.\nObituary: Brian Friel\nReflections on a 'literary giant'\n\"Friel introduced the people of Donegal to us as if we were all members of his family and community,\" the three-time Oscar winner told BBC News NI.\n\"We couldn't help but recognise the people we loved in our own towns and lives, the people who make us laugh and make us furious.\"\nActor Liam Neeson, who performed in five of Friel's plays during his early career, told BBC News NI \"it was a joy to say his words and to feel secure in the hands of a master craftsman\".\n\"Brian was Ireland's Chekhov,\" he said.\n\"All his plays touched on the parochial and the universal.\n\"Their themes described the complexities of the Irish character with enormous wit, grace and love.\n\"I hope he and Heaney are having a 'wee one' together now and sharing a giggle.\"\nActor John Hurt tweeted: \"Ireland has lost a great playwright, acerbic and brilliant wit and a great humanitarian. Vive Brian Friel! With my love.\"\nIrish President Michael D Higgins said Friel was \"one of the giants of Irish literature, and a great Irishman\".\n\"To have had the privilege of knowing Brian Friel as a friend was an immense gift,\" he said.\n\"He was a man of powerful intellect, great courage and generosity. These were talents that he delivered with great humour, grit and compassion.\n\"His legacy to the Irish people is immense.\"\nNobel Peace Prize winner John Hume described Friel as a \"genius who lived, breathed and walked amongst us\".\n\"His loss will be felt terribly by his family and his fans. However, we can count ourselves lucky that the treasure of his work will be with us forever.\n\"He had a unique ability to transform the local to the global and bring the past to the present which enthralled people the world over.\"\nFriel was born on either 9 or 10 January 1929, with the precise date never being confirmed.\nHe began writing while working as a teacher in Derry. In 1954, A Sort of Freedom - his first play - was broadcast by the BBC.\nIn the same year, he married Anne Morrison and the couple had five children: Mary, Paddy, Judy, Sally and David.\nHis major breakthrough came 10 years later when Philadelphia, Here I Come was performed on Broadway.\nIn 1980, he co-founded the Field Day Theatre Company with actor Stephen Rea.\nTheir work became known as an artistic response to the violence and politics that divided Northern Ireland at that time.\nPreviously, Rea had described the writer as being \"completely in tune with Irish audiences\".\n\"There is something innate in the plays where he speaks very directly to an Irish audience and we found the audience for him.\"\nApart from his original writing, Friel was also known for his adaptations of Russian playwright Anton Chekhov.\nHis other achievements include serving as a senator in the upper house of the Irish parliament between 1987 and 1989 and being elected to Aosdana, the Irish association to honour those who have made an outstanding contribution to the arts, in 1982.\nThe playwright is due to be laid to rest in Glenties, County Donegal, on Sunday.", "With roots stretching back to the 10th century, Luxembourg's history is closely intertwined with that of its more powerful neighbours, especially Germany.\nMany of its inhabitants are trilingual in French, German and Luxembourgish - a dialect of German.\nDespite declaring its neutrality, Luxembourg was occupied by Germany during both World Wars.\nAfter renewed occupation in the Second World War, Luxembourg abandoned its neutrality and became a front-rank enthusiast for international co-operation.\nLuxembourg's prosperity was formerly based on steel manufacturing. With the decline of that industry, Luxembourg diversified and is now best known for its status as Europe's most powerful investment management centre.\nPopulation 523,000\nArea 2,586 sq km (999 sq miles)\nMajor languages French, German, Luxembourgish\nMajor religion Christianity\nLife expectancy 78 years (men), 83 years (women)\nCurrency euro\nHead of state: Grand Duke Henri\nThe ruling Grand Duke of Luxembourg succeeded to the title in 2000, on the abdication of his father Jean. He had already exercised the constitutional powers of the monarch since 1998.\nBorn in 1955, the future Grand Duke Henri studied politics in Geneva, where he met his Cuban wife Maria Teresa. He later underwent officer training at Britain's Sandhurst Academy.\nThe head of state's constitutional role is largely ceremonial, and in 2008 parliament further restricted it by rescinding the monarch's right to veto legislation.\nPrime Minister: Xavier Bettel\nXavier Bettel formed a government in December 2013 after snap elections in October at which his Democratic Party, the Socialists and Greens emerged with a small majority over the largest overall group, the conservative Christian Social Party.\nThe vote was called after Jean-Claude Juncker of the Christian Social Party, who had been prime minister since 1995, lost his majority in parliament when the Socialists quit his coalition in July 2013 over a phone-tapping scandal.\nThe Christian Social Party had been in government since 1979.\nMr Bettel, the mayor of Luxembourg City between 2011 and 2013, is the country's first openly gay prime minister.\nLuxembourg exerts immense media clout and has a long tradition of operating radio and TV services for pan-European audiences, including those in France, Germany and the UK.\nGenerations of British listeners grew up with Radio Luxembourg, which beamed pop music programmes into the UK. \"The Great 208\" is no more, but media group RTL is still a key player in media markets across Europe.\nLuxembourg's media empire extends to the skies. It is home to Europe's largest satellite operator, Societe Europeenne des Satellites (SES), which operates the Astra fleet.\nSome key dates in the history of Luxembourg:\n1914 - First World War. Luxembourg is occupied by Germany until 1918.\n1920 - Luxembourg joins the League of Nations.\n1921 - Luxembourg enters economic union with Belgium.\n1940-44 - Luxembourg is again occupied by Germany during Second World War.\n1957 - Luxembourg becomes founder member of the European Economic Community, a fore-runner of the European Union.\n2000 - Crown Prince Henri becomes Grand Duke of Luxembourg on the abdication of his father, Jean.\n2009 - G20 adds Luxembourg to \"grey list\" of countries with questionable banking arrangements. Shortly afterwards the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) commends Luxembourg for improving financial transparency with agreements with a dozen countries.", "Cultural and sporting events, including a concert by the Vienna Philharmonic, marked the occasion in the city.\nGavrilo Princip, who shot the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, continues to be a divisive figure in Bosnia.\nThe shots fired by the Bosnian Serb on 28 June 1914 sucked Europe's great powers into four years of warfare.\nBosnia's Serbs, Croats and Muslim Bosniaks are still divided over the role Princip played in bringing tensions to a head in Europe in 1914, with counter-commemorations organised by Bosnian Serbs.\nIn Austria, Franz Ferdinand's great-granddaughter and family held events at the family castle at Artstetten, near Vienna, where he is buried.\nCountdown to WW1\nThe World War One Centenary\nLeaders of Serbia and some Bosnian Serbs boycotted the official events, which they said were designed to incriminate Serbs.\nOn Friday, Serbs in eastern Sarajevo unveiled a statue of Princip, seen by them as a national hero who ended years of occupation of the Balkans by the Austro-Hungarian empire.\nIn the eastern town of Visegrad, actors re-enacted the murder of Archduke Ferdinand and his wife, Sophie, and the Belgrade Philharmonic played music by Vivaldi.\nThe commemorations in central Sarajevo took on a completely different tone to those in the east of the city, says the BBC's Guy De Launey.\nThe Vienna Philharmonic played a selection harking back to Hapsburg days, including Haydn's Emperor Quartet, he added.\nThe concert was held at the newly-restored national library, which was destroyed during the 1992 siege of the city by Bosnian Serb forces in the Bosnian War.\nAustrian President Heinz Fischer attended the concert, which was the centrepiece of official events marking the anniversary.\nCommemorations closed with an open-air musical memorial event in Sarajevo.\nTwenty-eight European Union leaders gathered on Thursday to mark 100 years since the beginning of World War One at Ypres in Belgium.\nGavrilo Princip's living legacy\nTen interpretations of who started WW1\nGavrilo Princip: Remembering an assassin\nMeanwhile, the UN cultural organisation Unesco asked all vessels at sea to fly their flags at half-mast on Saturday to mark the assassination anniversary.\nThe organisation is trying to highlight its convention on underwater cultural heritage, designed to increase safeguards for thousands of sunken ships vulnerable to deliberate destruction and looting.\nThe agreement only applies to century-old wrecks so over the next four years, thousands of British, German and other ships lost in World War One will be added to the list." ]

[ "First, because the issue is already resolved. Second, because the idea of allowing same-sex couples to have \"civil unions\" was largely panned in the past 20 years Third, because doing what you say would be am implicit admissions that a) the government was issuing \"sister\" licenses to the religious institution b) the government views some sets of religious beliefs above some other set of beliefs and c) that the majority is just mad they have to share so they throw the cookie in the trash." ]

[ "Religious rites have been replaced by civil registration in a register office known as the ZAGS. After the fall of the Soviet Union the institution remained and currently continues to register marriages in parallel with the church, currently people can choose whether they want to have a religious marriage or only a civil one.", "While they are intertwined, marriage as a religious ceremony and marriage as a legal contract are separable. You can perform a marriage ceremony for anyone you want, people even do it for their pets and to inanimate objects. But gay marriage bans only apply to the civil contract.", "because not all marriages are a spiritual union. My first marriage, when i was more of an atheist, was to another more or less atheist done at city hall with no mention of god. and it was still a marriage. The problem i have with the \"spiritual union\" claim about marriage is that that is just what SOME people, not all people, think about it. Millions of people in the US are in such marriages. By your definition, if it is a religious spiritual union, they are not married. but yet they are. so clearly that definition is lacking.", "Adam Goodheart argues in *1861: A Social History Of The Civil War* that we should remember how fresh and unproven the American experiment in self-government was. If the Southern states were allowed to leave the Union, what would stop New York or Massachusetts from leaving a few years hence over some perceived slight or economic imbalance? The idea of Union was not as remote and abstract an idea to fight for in the 1860s as it seems to us today, after a century of thinking of the US as a single nation tightly bound together economically. We know how the experiment turned out—with a strong continental nation—but at the time there was no such certainty.", "**Same-Sex Marriage** would mean that gays could get married and have their unions recognized under the same classification as opposite sex couples. **Civil Unions** is a stand-in many states have used to grant marriage-like rights to same sex couples without actually classifying them as married for whatever reason. One of the biggest problems is that the [Defense of Marriage Act](_URL_0_) is still on the books. So the federal government will still deny them rights even if their state recognizes them as married. There are a bunch of rights that [DOMA denies to same-sex couples](_URL_1_) whether they are married or not.", "LY5: Life is not always fair. LYNot: A supreme court issue. Same sex marriage is never recognized at a federal level. Six states have legalized it while some others have the (separate but equal) civil unions. In most cases the legal definition of marriage is a man and a women. Legislation is needed to change it. Religion may have inspired these laws but they are not written religiously, just defended as so.", "1.) It's not our job to get involved in every civil war in the world. If we did we'd never be able to stop fighting, ever. 2.) We have *some* involvement. We warned the president over there that if he started wholesale slaughtering protesters there would be \"consequences.\" 3.) If we get involved on one side and Russia gets involved on the other that's an excellent way to start WWIII.", "Also, can anyone tell me why the Soviet Union wouldn't recognize the Republic, considering they contributed to the Spanish Civil War against the Nationalists?", "This is likely better suited for /r/AskAnthropology than here. Marriage as an institution almost certainly pre-dates civilization, writing, etc. All the early legal codes (like Hammurabi's) have extensive sections on marriage. Marriage tends to show up it the earliest literature of most cultures. For example the Greek side of the Iliad begins with a wedding, while the plot of the Odyssey hinges on marriage customs. So it's an impossible question to ask a historian when marriage became an institution. It became an institution in pre-history.", "**The Union point of view:** Secession is illegal, yes. Thus, by pursuing illegal secession, they have rebelled against and rejected the United States government. Their senators and representatives willingly walked out of the halls of Congress at the start of the war. They have since formed their own government in opposition to the United States government. Why would such traitors be given the ability to vote? **From the Confederate point of view:** Through secession we have lawfully rejected the United States government and formed our own Confederate government in its place. The entire point of the war is to reject Union authority over the South. Why would we legitimize the United States government by claiming a say in its affairs, thus acknowledging its claim to sovereignty over the South we're fighting to free?", "The union is there to collectively bargain for its members. A strike is one tool unions have to exert leverage in those bargains, but just because the ATC union doesn't have that tool, doesn't mean they still don't benefit from having a union to fight for them.", "Just to clarify, are you asking about any states admitted into the Union after the Civil War, or the former Confederate states (and territories) re-admitted into the Union after the Civil War?", "Pay-per-view at about $100 each. Every million purchases is $100 million. Business like bars have to pay much, much more. That's why you usually have to buy a ticket just to watch it at a bar. That's the bulk of it but there are also all of the sponsorships for the fight and then the actual tickets for the arena where the fight is. T-Mobile arena in Vegas seats 18,000 for boxing. I don't know the exact average face value price but let's say it's $1,000 average (it's probably higher). That's $18 million just from arena tickets.", "The USSR believed in giving the people living in the areas autonomy and right for some degree of self-governing. Doing otherwise would have stirred tension a lot. \"Just making it Russia\" wouldn't have solved anything. Russification doesn't happen over the night. The collapse of the USSR in a scenario were all of the Soviet-Union is \"Russia\" could easily become a balkanized civil war with ethnic hatred.", "There doesn't need to be a ceremony. Marriage is a civil contract, and you get a marriage license from a courthouse. Sometimes that's all people want. In fact, a marriage conducted in a church, but with no marriage licence procured from the state, will not be official in the eyes of the state (though this might vary locally, IANAL)", "Here is /u/Georgy_K_Zhukov on [\"Around the beginning of the US Civil War, why was it seen so important to preserve the Union?\"](_URL_1_) And here is /u/freedmenspatrol on [\"Prior to the US Civil War did the southern states have the right to secede from the union?'](_URL_0_) Edit: Oh, and the downvotes are probably because at first glance your question seems more like a \"question\" veiling some type of Confederate apologia.", "If you pay attention to Genesis in particular you find that the polygamy practiced by the patriarchs was never encouraged or condoned by God. From the polygamy of Abraham and Isaac we have the roots of the Arab-Israeli conflict today. Misery, strife, bloodshed, and corruption of the message intended by God to be modeled by the Jews through history was the result. Counter to that, we have explicit encouragement of monogamous heterosexual marriage in Genesis 2. The polygamy was taken from the pagan culture Abram was taken out of. Now God did work THROUGH (and continues to work through today) imperfect people. He forgives, and calls us to get over it and move on. None righteous and whatnot. While that's the reality it should not be seen as a green light for the perversion of the picture of marriage (which is actually a foreshadowing of the union of Christ and the Church, hence why God hates divorce) given in the Garden.", "Legal marriage is not a religious process. No one is stopping gay couples from having a wedding ceremony in a church. That is, and has always been, legal. They just cannot obtain a marriage license from the government, and having same-sex marriage as a religious doctrine will not change whether or not the state will issue them a license, because a marriage license is a legal contract, and is not directly related to the ceremony.", "We dont have a queen, we're mammals who fight each other. If humans behaved like roaches we'd all work together to reduce emissions and stop fighting each other.", "Union made just means it was made by unionized workers - during the civil war, beer would have been sold in glass bottles (or just served out of kegs) not aluminum cans. Edit: Also note that one of the cans says that the brand has been \"consistently superior in quality for more than 200 years\" and \"Since 1775.\" So I'd say these date from the late 70s at the earliest.", "Well, physorg has proven over and over again that they don't know what they are talking about. The Big Bang was not an explosion and there was no \"tiny invisible point\". The Big Bang model does not actually work at t=0, all we can say is that density and thus temperature diverge as t approaches zero.", "It's only that simple when acceleration is constant. Under that assumption, your question really boils down to \"why is the integral of x^n proportional to x^(n+1)?\" (I'm going to assume that, as an engineering major, you at least know basic calculus.) If your position (or displacement) is a function of time, x(t), then its derivative is the velocity, x'(t) = v(t). That's just a definition. Another definition is that the derivative of velocity, or the second derivative of position, is acceleration, x''(t) = v'(t) = a(t). So if the acceleration is constant over time, then integrating up we just get v(t) = ∫adt = at + u where u is a constant of integration, and then x(t) = ∫v(t)dt = (1/2)at^2 + ut + x0. This should make intuitive sense. If you have a constant acceleration, then the velocity is just going to be the acceleration times time (up to a constant). You really only need calculus (and even then only a teensy amount) to get to that (1/2)at^2 term.", "The term \"lobbying\" originated in the early days of the Republic, when Congressmen usually lived in hotels. A \"lobbyist\" was someone who would wait in the lobby for them to come down so they could speak to them about something. Most lobbying that happens today is just that: a way for people to let Representatives know how they feel about different issues. It's not just corporations who have lobbyists: teachers, doctors, environmentalists, unions, gay-marriage advocates, civil-rights organizations and just about every interest group that you can think of has them. You might ask why these companies and groups don't just send someone from the company instead of hiring a lobbyist, and that's because lobbyists are much more familiar with how our government works (many of them are former Senators and Congressmen). They have personal relationships with sitting representatives, they know who to talk to if something needs to get done, and generally know the best way to advance their client's interests.", "The PATCO (Air Traffic Controllers) union defeat by President Reagan changed organized labor in the United States thereafter. Laborers stopped trying to form unions and managers started employing more aggressive union-busting techniques (such as hiring \"scabs\") that had been previously frowned upon by the National Labor Relations Board. Unions were in trouble for years before that. Basically labor could organize against management, but when the Civil Rights movement came about, they were deeply divided. Some wanted to protest in the streets with the Civil Rights leaders while others insisted that organized labor was a white man's world. This division undermined their political power, eventually resulting in Southern union workers supporting anti-union Republican candidates. This change formed 1970s politics which made Reagan's 1980 campaign possible.", "Technically, no. T-51b were essential in combating Chinese Chimera Tanks, which had the range, durability and stopping power to hold back pretty anything but the T-51b, while Winterized T-51b users did suffer significant casualties from Crimson Dragoon ambushes, as the low visibility of the T-51b's visor combined with the poor visibility from Alaskan weather and the highly advanced Chinese Stealth Armor, the T-51b could demolish nearly anything thrown at it in a straight fight. That said, the Liberty Prime project most likely could have broken through nearly all of the Chinese's defense single handedly, and most certainly would have been pursued more extensively by American researchers if the T-51b project was scrapped.", "The American Civil War is often seen by historians as having a Western front as well - against Native Americans. I work in Colorado, and the Sand Creek Massacre can be viewed within this context. It took place in 1864, and all the language leading up to it was couched in terms of loyalty to the Union. Gov. Evans referred to \"hostile Indians\" as enemies of the state. He authorized volunteer militias to raise up and fight these people. The history of that event in particular is long and contentious, so I won't delve into it here. You can see some useful original documents relating to the SCM [here.](_URL_0_) That's just one example, I'm sure others can speak to Native groups in their own regions. I think there's some interesting history around the Cherokee in North Carolina during the Civil War, but I'm no expert in that area.", "As explained earlier, just a bit different. The European Union is a group of (now) 28 countries which have agreed to enhanced economic, fiscal and political cooperation and integration. The European Community is the older name for it. The European Commission is the civil service of the European Union, and their job is to propose new laws, and monitor the general performance and adherence to EU law by EU member states. Source: I'm a civil servant in an EU member state that has attended meetings in Brussels.", "[Here's](_URL_0_) a good video from TED-Ed The TL;DR is that HIV \"hides\" in the body's T-cells and can lie dormant (the drugs HIV-positive people take stops HIV from spreading from T-cell to T-cell), and the big difficulty is finding and killing all the T-cells with infected DNA and not all of them (killing all the T-cells would wreck havoc on your immune system, you've basically given yourself AIDS at that point)", "In order to make a vaccine in the first place, it has to be something your body can fight if exposed to a weakened, dead, or chemically similar substance. The reason a flu vaccine works is because we can naturally fight the flu, and giving it a \"practice run\" with a vaccine \"teaches\" your body how to fight the flu virus so you can defend against the real thing. Our bodies simply don't have the systems in place to combat a weakened version of HIV, that's why, if you contract HIV, you're put on, basically, massive doses of antivirals (like antibiotics, but for viruses) and if you ever stop taking them, the HIV fires right back up. They have found some people with a natural immunity to HIV, although exactly *why* they're immune (Is there immune system different? Is the places where the virus attacks the cell different? Are the inner workings of their cells different so the virus can't take over?) is still somewhat of a head-scratcher.", "We only have one data point: our civilization has been able to communicate with radio for just over a century. It's hard to say anything with such sparse data.", "HIV is a bug that causes AIDS. AIDS is a sickness where the bits of your blood that hunt down other sicknesses stop working. Those bits are your T cells. HIV can sneak into T-cells and take them over, so instead of hunting down sickness, they make more HIV. When there is enough HIV, then many sicknesses can attack you all at once, and that is what kills you.", "There is no minimum external force, or better yet external *torque*, needed to cause the Earth to slow in its rotation. If you want to stop the Earth, you just need that the integrated external torque over the time period in which you wish to bring the Earth to a stop is equal and opposite to the angular momentum of the Earth. If the Earth initially has angular momentum **L**, you need to apply a torque **τ** such that: `[; \\int_{t_0}^{t} \\vec{\\tau}(t') dt' = - \\vec{L} ;]`. That just means that you can push as hard or as soft as you want, you'll just have to push for a longer time if you push softer. If you apply a constant torque, then the integral simplifies to: `[; \\tau \\Delta t = L ;]` in magnitude. So if you want to bring the Earth from angular momentum L to zero by applying a constant external torque τ, you need to apply it for a time Δt = L/τ. The harder you push, the less time it takes to stop the Earth." ]

[ "India and Pakistan hail a World Bank ruling on a controversial hydro-electric dam Indian-administered Kashmir." ]

[ "Pakistan is to seek World Bank arbitration in a row with India over the construction of a dam in disputed Kashmir, casting a shadow over the nuclear rivals' sluggish peace process.", "Pakistan said on Tuesday it would ask the World Bank to intervene to resolve a row over India's plans to build a dam in the disputed Kashmir region after the nuclear-armed rivals failed to resolve the issue bilaterally.", "The World Bank says it is ready to offer economic assistance to Kashmir to help promote the peace process in the region.", "India and Pakistan began another round of talks on resolving a water-sharing row triggered by New Delhi's decision to build a hydroelectric dam in divided Kashmir, a ministry spokesman said.", "India and Pakistan began talks on Tuesday to resolve a long-running dispute over a dam in Kashmir which threatens to cause another setback to an already fragile peace process.", "Pakistan will hold talks with India next month to resolve a row over the Baglihar dam in Jammu and Kashmir, an official statement said today.", "The World Bank is ready to fund development projects in Kashmir if that helps bring peace to the insurgency-wracked region, President James D. Wolfensohn said Thursday as he pledged US$9 billion in aid to India over the next three years.", "Environmental campaigners say plans for a dam in Montenegro will threaten a Unesco world heritage site.", "SEATTLE, Jan. 30 -- In a decision that could trigger the largest dam-removal project in world history, the federal government said today that four hydroelectric dams on the troubled Klamath River must undergo costly modifications to allow passage for salmon.", "Talks between India and Pakistan to resolve a dispute over a dam in Kashmir have ended without agreement, officials said on Friday, in another blow to the hostile neighbours' delicate peace process.", "MUZAFFARABAD, Nov 17: A multi-party alliance fighting Indian rule in Kashmir rejected on Wednesday the economic package offered by Indian Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh during", "The first turbine generator on the right bank of China's massive Three Gorges Dam, the world's biggest hydropower project, has started operations, state media reported Monday.", "ISLAMABAD - Pakistan Wednesday decided to move its case before the World Bank in mid January 2005 if India does not agree to redesign its Baglihar Hydropower Project under Indus Water Treaty 1960, sources told The Nation here.", "A court in India admits a petition by environmentalists challenging large dams in the country's north-east.", "The World Bank Board of Executive Directors has approved a Global Environment Facility (GEF) Trust Fund grant of US$ 6.15 million to support the Jordanian government's efforts in ecosystem management.", "Israel's High Court orders the government to respond to a World Court ruling on the West Bank barrier.", "The World Bank said on Wednesday it had approved a $600 million loan for India to help it revamp thousands of ailing rural cooperative banks and fight village poverty through cheap loans.", "World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz on Friday called Singapore's restrictions on the entry of activists for the World Bank/IMF meetings \"authoritarian.\"", "The World Bank agrees a $12bn loan fund for India and promises to take a more open-handed approach.", "Police in Indian-ruled Kashmir say a leading Islamic militant behind a string of attacks has been killed.", "The Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson is to remake classic World War II film The Dam Busters.", "The World Bank and the I.M.F. protested a decision by Singapore to bar several activist groups at their meeting with the leaders of poor countries next week.", "Regulators granted preliminary approval Monday to a massive Amazon dam project praised by business leaders as a way to prevent possible energy shortages but criticized by environmentalists as a potential environmental disaster.", "The World Bank unveiled plans to lend up to 12 billion dollars to India under a fresh four-year program beginning in 2005 to alleviate poverty in the world's second most populous nation.", "India's Jammu and Kashmir state plans to fight a global ban on the trade in super-fine shahtoosh wool, which environmentalists say is produced by killing a rare Tibetan antelope.", "Pakistan protested a plan by India to let tourists visit the Kashmir glacier that is the site of the world's highest battlefield, warning Monday that it could harm peace talks between the South Asian neighbors.", "Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf has called for radical new thinking on the dispute with India on Kashmir, suggesting joint rule as one option.", "The White House defended embattled World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz on Tuesday, saying findings that he broke bank rules did not amount to \"a firing offense.\"", "JERUSALEM Israel&#39;s Supreme Court has ordered the government to report within 30 days on the implications of a world court ruling that a West Bank barrier is illegal, Israeli media reported today.", "Indian Kashmir's hardline Muslim separatist leader Syed Ali Geelani ruled out autonomy for the disputed Himalayan region.", "Residents in Indian Kashmir will face up to three years in jail for hosting extravagant weddings under new government regulations, officials said.", "The Bush administration on Tuesday ruled out the possibility of removing federal dams on the Columbia and Snake Rivers to protect 11 endangered species of salmon and steelhead, even as a last resort." ]

[ "From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. An exergonic reaction (such as cellular respiration) is a reaction that loses energy during the process of the reaction. Activation energy (1) catalyzes the reaction to occur in a spontaneous manner.The progress of the reaction is shown by the line.n exergonic reaction (such as cellular respiration) is a reaction that loses energy during the process of the reaction.", "Cellular respiration is both spontaneous and exergonic. Remember, spontaneity in this sense means that it is energetically favorable in moving toward equilibrium. When a glucose molecule is broken down to lesser energy states of H2O and CO2.lucose just gets picked apart little by little during respiration. The cell keeps the electrons and hydrogen ions to use in the electron transport chain and the cell gets rid of the carbon dioxide that is picked off." ]

[ "What are the raw material of cellular respiration in the product of cellular respiration? carbon dioxide and water (CO2 and H2O) The sugar used in cellular respiration is glucose.hat are the raw material of cellular respiration in the product of cellular respiration? carbon dioxide and water (CO2 and H2O) The sugar used in cellular respiration is glucose.", "1 Cellular respiration, the process in which nutrients are converted into useful energy in a cell. 2 Anaerobic respiration, cellular respiration without oxygen. 3 Maintenance respiration, the amount of cellular respiration required for an organism to maintain itself in a constant state. Cellular respiration, the process in which nutrients are converted into useful energy in a cell. 2 Anaerobic respiration, cellular respiration without oxygen. 3 Maintenance respiration, the amount of cellular respiration required for an organism to maintain itself in a constant state.", "What organisms carry out cellular respiration? Cellular respiration is similar in most organisms, from simple one-celled... What type of organisms carry out cellular respiration? Eukaryotica cells carry out cellular respiration. what type of organisms carry on cellular respiration? Aerobic organisms carry on cellular respiration. Which of the Five Kingdoms of Life contain organisms that carry out cellular respiration?", "Cellular waste products are formed as a by-product of cellular respiration, a series of processes and reactions that generate energy for the cell, in the form of ATP. Two examples of cellular respiration creating cellular waste products are aerobic respiration and anaerobic respiration.ellular waste products are formed as a by-product of cellular respiration, a series of processes and reactions that generate energy for the cell, in the form of ATP. Two examples of cellular respiration creating cellular waste products are aerobic respiration and anaerobic respiration.", "What Is the Chemical Equation for Cellular Respiration? 4:00 What Is the Primary Fuel for Cellular Respiration? What Is the Purpose of Cellular Respiration? 3:42 What Pathway Does Cellular Respiration Begin With? Next Lesson. Where Does Energy Used in Cellular Respiration Originate From? Where Is Cellular Respiration Located? 4:35", "-Only glucose and oxygen are needed for cellular respiration. -Carbon dioxide and water are by-products of cellular respiration. -Only glucose and oxygen are needed for cellular respiration. -Carbon dioxide and water are by-products of cellular respiration.", "Define cellular respiration. cellular respiration synonyms, cellular respiration pronunciation, cellular respiration translation, English dictionary definition of cellular respiration. n. The series of metabolic processes by which living cells produce energy through the oxidation of organic substances. The process of metabolism in which...", "In what type of organisms or cells does cellular respiration occur in? Besides aerobic cellular respiration, what other type of cellular respiration occurs as you run fast? Does cellular respiration occur in all types of cells? More questions", "how photosynthesis and cellular respiration depend on each other. the products of photosynthesis are the reactants of cellular respiration, and the reactants of photosynthesis are the products of cellular respiration.", "~ Fermentation and cellular respiration differ in that fermentation does not require oxygen while cellular respiration does. Fermentation and cellular respiration are also different because water molecules are not produced during fermentation but are produced during cellular respiration. All fermentation reactions occur in the cell's cytoplasm but during cellular respiration, only glycolysis occurs in the cytoplasm.", "Glycolysis is the first of the three metabolic processes that make up cellular respiration. Cellular respiration produces the adenosine... Glycolysis occurs in the cytosol (cytoplasm) of the cell. Glycolysis is the first of the three metabolic processes that make up cellular respiration. Cellular respiration produces the adenosine...", "Photosynthesis and cellular respiration are complementary reactions. Cellular respiration is the process by which most cells make energy. The products of photosynthesis, oxygen and glucose, are the reactants of the cellular respiration reaction.In turn, the products of cellular respiration, carbon dioxide and water, are the reactants in photosynthesis.ellular respiration is the process by which most cells make energy. The products of photosynthesis, oxygen and glucose, are the reactants of the cellular respiration reaction.", "Video: Role of Oxygen in Cellular Respiration This lesson focuses on oxygen in cellular respiration. In this lesson, we'll define cellular respiration and discuss why it's important for our bodies. We'll also look at the essential role of oxygen in the cellular respiration process.", "There are many variables that can change the rate of aerobic cellular respiration. We explored the effect that temperature has on the rate of cellular respiration. Aerobic cellular respiration means that oxygen was used in the process, as opposed to anaerobic cellular respiration where oxygen is not used.", "Which of the following statements comparing photosynthesis and cellular respiration is true? Answer. a. Both photosynthesis and cellular respiration involve electron transport chains. b. Photosynthesis is a catabolic reaction whereas cellular respiration is an anabolic reaction. c. Water is formed during photosynthesis, but broken apart during cellular respiration. d. Both photosynthesis and cellular respiration produce CO2.", "Which of the following statements regarding photosynthesis and cellular respiration is true? A) Photosynthesis occurs in chloroplasts, and cellular respiration occurs in mitochondria. B) Photosynthesis occurs in mitochondria, and cellular respiration occurs in chloroplasts. C) Photosynthesis occurs in mitochondria and in chloroplasts. D) Cellular respiration occurs in mitochondria and in chloroplasts. E) Neither cellular respiration nor photosynthesis occurs in either mitochondria or chloroplasts.", "Model the products (substances made) in cellular respiration by rearranging the beads in the box on the left side of the Photosynthesis and Cellular Respiration sheet. 7. Complete Column 2 in the Cellular Respiration table on the previous page by indicating the number of beads needed to make models of the products of cellular respiration. 8. “The energy released by cellular respiration is captured by ATP molecules.” To model this,", "The starting reactants in cellular respiration are glucose and oxygen. The equation for cellular respiration is C6H12O6 + O2 = CO2 + H2O + usable energy.Edit.he starting reactants in cellular respiration are glucose and oxygen. The equation for cellular respiration is C6H12O6 + O2 = CO2 + H2O + usable energy. Edit.", "how photosynthesis and cellular respiration depend on each other the products of photosynthesis are the reactants of cellular respiration, and the reactants of photosynthesis are the products of cellular respiration anaerobic does not require the presence of oxygen", "Model the reactants (substances used) in cellular respiration by arranging beads in the box on the right side of the Photosynthesis and Cellular Respiration sheet. 3. Complete Column 1 in the Cellular Respiration table below by indicating the number of beads needed to make models of the reactants in the cellular respiration process.", "Glycolysis. Cells use oxygen to assist in cellular respiration. This type of respiration, called aerobic cellular respiration, converts stored energy into a usable form. The first stage of aerobic cellular respiration, glycolysis, can be performed without oxygen.", "The method of harvesting energy from the food by the cells is cellular respiration. Cellular respiration occurs in two ways. One way is aerobic respiration and anaerobic respiration. Aerobic cellular respiration is a process in which the chemical energy stored in glucose produces ATP or adenosine tri phosphate.ATP molecule is used by the cell as source of energy for metabolic processes.There is transfer of energy from glucose to ATP in cellular respiration.he method of harvesting energy from the food by the cells is cellular respiration. Cellular respiration occurs in two ways. One way is aerobic respiration and anaerobic respiration. Aerobic cellular respiration is a process in which the chemical energy stored in glucose produces ATP or adenosine tri phosphate.", "Organisms capable of photosynthesis produce food molecules like carbohydrates. There are many forms of cellular respiration. Some organisms require oxygen to carry out respiration known as aerobic cellular respiration and the respiration that does not require presence of oxygen is called anaerobic cellular respiration.", "Cellular respiration occurs in the cytoplasm and... In chronological order, the four steps of cellular respiration are glycolysis, a transition reaction, the Krebs Cycle and an electron transport chain. Cellular respiration occurs in the cytoplasm and...", "Cellular Respiration Cellular Respiration Text, Diagrams, Assessments, and Link to Standards Focus Questions 1) What is cellular respiration? 2) How is cellular respiration connected to breathing? 3) If you are an athlete that exercises extensively, what organelles might you expect to see more of in your cells?", "Photosynthesis takes in CO2 and releases oxygen. Cellular respiration takes in oxygen and releases CO2. The CO2 that cellular respiration produces will be used for photosynthesis; the oxygen the photosynthesis produces will be used for cellular respiration. Cellular Respiration occurs in Plants and Animals while Photosynthesis occurs only in Plants.", "What are the products (substances made) during cellular respiration? 6. Model the products (substances made) in cellular respiration by rearranging the beads in the box on the left side of the Photosynthesis and Cellular Respiration sheet. 7. Complete Column 2 in the Cellular Respiration table on the previous page by indicating the", "Part II: Main Site of Cellular Respiration Respiration organelle 8. What is the main site of cellular respiration in the cell? 9. Make a sketch of the respiration organelle and label the parts. 10. What energy molecules are produced in this respiration organelle? Part III: Aerobic and Anaerobic are Two Types of Cellular Respiration", "Wikipedia gives a reasonable explanation in Cellular Respiration. For a visual impression of what's happening, see the (partly) animated PowerPoint presentation Cellular Respiration .ppsx. Try also searching Quora for cellular respiration ...", "CELLULAR RESPIRATION WEBQUEST OBJECTIVE: I will be able to describe the function of, state the site and chemical equation for cellular respiration, and distinguish between two types of cellular respiration by completing a WebQuest. DIRECTIONS: As you work through the WebQuest, click on the links to find answers to the questions. Part I: Function and Equation for Respiration 1. Click on the following links and write a definition for cellular respiration in your own words. Miller and Levine Biology Book Biology Coach PH 2. What living things carry on the process of cellular respiration? 3. Write the chemical equation for cellular respiration identifying the", "Unit 4: Cellular Respiration notes. Cellular respiration is the process by which food is broken down by the. body's cells to produce energy in the form of ATP molecules. A. Cellular Respiration Overview: 1. Cellular respiration is carried out by every cell in both plants and. animals and is essential for daily living.", "the box on the left side of the Photosynthesis and Cellular Respiration sheet. 7. Complete Column 2 in the Cellular Respiration table on the previous page by indicating the number of beads needed to make models of the products of cellular respiration. 8. “The energy released by cellular respiration is captured by ATP molecules.” To model this," ]

[ "Mancia said the goal is for the book to feel like a \"kitchen companion\" with an empowering voice, one focused more on solid technique than a product sales pitch. Castle achieves this by providing engaging history and insights on dozens of dishes. She also offers informative breakouts that spotlight techniques or ingredients some home cooks may not be familiar with. You might need a restorative nip of cognac after reading her sensual take on the luxurious delights of 82 per cent butterfat French butter.\nIf you're looking for something special to make, Castle considers the boeuf bourguignon a true standout, though it's equally appropriate for formal or casual dining.\n\"It's one of those dishes people think of when they think about great French food,\" she says. \"When it's made well, it's just astonishing.\"\nWhile she wasn't responsible for testing any of the recipes, this was among the first recipes in the book Castle made for pleasure in her own kitchen.\n\"It's nice and homey, as it should be,\" she says. \"And it's best made ahead, which makes it great for entertaining. There's nothing worse that a host who misses their own party because they're stuck in the kitchen.\"\nA great dinner deserves a great dessert, and this book offers several tempting options. If you're not confident about trying a chocolate soufflé, Castle says the chocolate pots de creme are well within reach of most home cooks.\n\"They are intensely chocolatey but not overly sweet,\" says Castle. \"Your own pot de creme can't be beat. People are charmed and touched by having their own individual serving.\"\n—_—\nBOEUF BOURGUIGNON\nIf you want to capture the heart and soul of simple French cooking in a single pot, then make boeuf bourguignon. The recipe is rooted in Burgundy, home to world-class red wines and also to the Charolais cattle that were once the preferred source of beef for this recipe. Leave it to the French to care about a signature dish so deeply that they have a favourite kind of cow to use in it.\nFor making boeuf bourguignon stateside, opt for high-quality and well-marbled chuck steak, an economical cut perfectly suited for a long, slow simmer in red wine that turns it tender and delicious, transforming this peasant dish into something elegant, filling, and sure to become a family favourite.\nFor the stew:\n2 cups beef broth\n10 ounces slab or thick-cut bacon, cut into lardons\n3 to 3 1/2 pounds lean chuck steak, cut into 2-inch chunks\n3 cups full-bodied, dry red Burgundy or pinot noir\n3 garlic cloves, finely chopped\n2 tablespoons tomato paste\n2 medium carrots, cut into thin rounds\n1 tablespoon kosher salt\n1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper\n1 bouquet garni\n6 tablespoons unsalted butter\n5 large shallots, thinly sliced\n14 ounces gourmet mushroom blend, cut or torn into bite-sized pieces\nFor the Beurre Manie:\n3 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature\n3 tablespoons all-purpose flour\nBalsamic vinegar and chopped flat-leaf parsley (for garnish)\nTo make the stew: In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, simmer the beef stock until reduced to 1 cup, about 15 minutes. Set aside.\nPlace the bacon in an unheated Dutch oven, then cook over medium heat, stirring often, until rendered and crisp, about 20 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a paper towel-lined plate. Reserve the fat in the pot.\nIncrease the heat to medium-high. Working in batches, add the beef to the pot and cook until deeply seared and browned on all sides, turning with tongs, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a bowl and set aside. Deglaze the pot with 1 cup of the wine, stirring to loosen the fond from the bottom of the pot. Return the bacon and seared meat to the pot. Stir in the remaining wine, 1 cup at a time, letting it reduce slightly and stirring well after each addition.\nStir in the reserved beef broth, garlic, tomato paste, carrots, salt, pepper, and bouquet garni. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low. Cover and simmer gently until the meat is spoon tender, about 2 hours. Discard the bouquet garni.\nIn a medium skillet over medium heat, melt 3 tablespoons of the butter. Stir in the shallots and cook, stirring occasionally, until they are deeply caramelized, 15 to 20 minutes. Scrape into a bowl. Melt the remaining 3 tablespoons of butter in the same skillet and stir in the mushrooms. Cook, stirring often, until browned and tender, about 10 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat.\nTo make the beurre manie: In a small bowl, stir together the butter and flour to form thick paste. Roll into balls the size of marbles. Bring the stew to a low boil and whisk in the beurre manie balls one at a time. Continue to cook until the stew thickens slightly, about 2 minutes. Stir in the reserved shallots and mushrooms. Season with salt and pepper. Garnish each serving with a few drops of balsamic vinegar and a sprinkle of parsley.\nYield: Makes 8 to 10 servings.\nRecipes reprinted by permission of Le Creuset from \"Le Creuset: A Collection of Recipes from Our French Table.\"\nGARLIC AND HERB GOUGERES\nThe airy cheese puffs known as gougeres make fantastic hors d'oeuvres. Served warm or at room temperature, they are often the first morsel delivered to the table in the restaurants and cafés of Burgundy. They start with pte a choux, the same dough used for cream puffs, eclairs, and profiteroles, but the dough for gougeres is infused with freshly grated Gruyere, rather than filled with pastry cream. They are a reliable make-ahead item to keep in your freezer. Freeze the uncooked gougeres right on the baking sheet after piping. When solid, transfer them into a freezer bag. There's no need to thaw them before baking. Just pop them back onto a pan and bake as directed, adding 1 to 2 additional minutes in the oven.\n1/2 cup water\n1/2 cup whole milk\n10 tablespoons unsalted butter\n1 cup all-purpose flour\n4 large eggs\n1 cup freshly grated Gruyere cheese\n1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme\n1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary\n1 garlic clove, finely chopped\n1/2 teaspoon kosher salt\n1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper\nPinch of freshly grated nutmeg\nPreheat the oven to 400 degrees.\nIn a medium saucepan, bring the water, milk and butter to a boil, stirring occasionally to melt the butter. Add the flour and stir vigorously until the mixture is smooth and thick. Continue cooking, stirring constantly, until the dough pulls away from the sides of the pan, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl and let stand until the dough no longer steams and is warm to the touch, 3 to 5 minutes.\nAdd the eggs, one at a time, stirring vigorously until well blended after each addition. Stir in the cheese, thyme, rosemary, garlic, salt, pepper and nutmeg.\nPlace the dough in a pastry bag fitted with a 1-inch tip. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat and pipe mounds the size of walnuts onto the prepared sheet, spacing them 2 inches apart. (Alternatively, pipe the dough from a sturdy freezer bag with one corner snipped away or portion it with a 1/2-ounce ice cream scoop or two spoons. Use a dampened fingertip to pat down any dimples on top of the mounds.)\nBake until puffed and golden brown, about 20 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.\nYield: Makes 2 dozen.\nRecipes reprinted by permission of Le Creuset from \"Le Creuset: A Collection of Recipes from Our French Table.\"\nCHOCOLATE POTS DE CREME\nThere is nothing plain about simple desserts made perfectly, such as these cups of silky dark chocolate custard. The French regard chocolate with reverence and respect, so be sure to use high-quality chocolate. For this version, pinches of salt and fiery cayenne pepper in the toasted almond topping add a contemporary touch to a classic dessert.\nFor the custard:\n1 1/2 cups heavy cream\n1 cup whole milk\n5 ounces bittersweet chocolate (70 per cent cacao), chopped\n1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract\nPinch of kosher salt\n6 large egg yolks\n1/3 cup sugar\nFor the spiced almonds:\n1/2 cup raw slivered almonds\n1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted\nPinch of kosher salt\nPinch of cayenne pepper\nLightly sweetened whipped cream (for garnish)\nFresh chopped mint (for garnish)\nTo make the custards: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. The custards will bake in a hot water bath, so arrange six 6-ounce ramekins in a roasting pan or large baking dish that is at least 2 inches deep.\nIn a medium saucepan over medium heat, bring the cream and milk to a simmer. Remove the pan from the heat, add the chocolate, and let stand until the chocolate begins to soften. Whisk until melted and smooth, then whisk in the vanilla and salt.\nIn a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar. Whisking constantly, add the warm cream mixture in a slow, steady stream. Strain the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl. Let stand 10 minutes, then skim any foam from the surface.\nEvenly divide the custard among the ramekins. Pour enough hot tap water into the roasting pan to reach halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake until the custards are set, but the centers still jiggle slightly when shaken gently, about 40 minutes. Remove the ramekins from the water bath and refrigerate until chilled, about 3 hours.\nFor the almonds: In a dry, heavy skillet over medium heat, toast the almonds, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate, drizzle with the butter, sprinkle with the salt and cayenne, and toss to coat. Let cool, and then chop coarsely.\nJust before serving, garnish the custards with whipped cream, spiced almonds and mint.\nYield: 6 servings\nThe News & Observer (Raleigh, N.C.)" ]

[ "What’s in season: One of the oldest beans to come out of the New World, lima beans have a buttery, almost meaty texture with a plump, kidney-like shape. The beans, named after Lima, Peru, range from large, pale green Fordhook to vivid burgundy-and-white Christmas, and are generally in season through the fall months, until the first frosts hit. Most beans are sold in their pods, and while the results are well worth the work, some farmers thankfully sell the beans already shucked.\nSuccotash and more: 12 great recipes for lima beans >>\nWhat to cook: Blanch the beans before tossing with salads, or think about adding them to cold-weather staples such as minestrone or other stews. Lima beans make a great side, sautéed and tossed with fresh herbs, gently simmered with heavy cream and cheese, or slowly baked with bacon and tomatoes. And the beans are one of the classic components in succotash, a Southern favorite that can combine limas and corn with sweet bell peppers and okra.\nWhat’s on the horizon: There are a number of varieties of persimmons, but the vibrant orange fruit can neatly be divided into two families: tomato-shaped Fuyus and acorn-shaped Hachiyas. The fruit, available from fall through the winter months, are showing up now.\nALSO\nRecipes ready in 30 minutes or less\nCulinary SOS: Recipes from your favorite restaurants\nBrowse our Recipe Database for thousands of our best recipes\nCAPTION Chef Margarita Manzke shows how she makes the Filipino ice cream dessert halo halo at République. Chef Margarita Manzke shows how she makes the Filipino ice cream dessert halo halo at République. CAPTION Chef Margarita Manzke shows how she makes the Filipino ice cream dessert halo halo at République. Chef Margarita Manzke shows how she makes the Filipino ice cream dessert halo halo at République. CAPTION If you have an early football game, here is a recipe for breakfast tailgating: The Bacon Bloody Mary. If you have an early football game, here is a recipe for breakfast tailgating: The Bacon Bloody Mary. CAPTION Recipe for French toast muffin bites for an early tailgate party. Recipe for French toast muffin bites for an early tailgate party. CAPTION Los Angeles Times' The Taste, featuring renowned chefs and bartenders from across Southern California, kicks off at Paramount Pictures Studio. Los Angeles Times' The Taste, featuring renowned chefs and bartenders from across Southern California, kicks off at Paramount Pictures Studio. CAPTION Chef Daniele Uditi explains his \"neo-Neapolitan\" pizza style at Pizzana. Chef Daniele Uditi explains his \"neo-Neapolitan\" pizza style at Pizzana.\nnoelle.carter@latimes.com\n@noellecarter", "Handmade in the Heartland\nSuper Bowl Sunday is almost here, which means the parties are almost here as well. Whether you are hosting a game day get-together or you are someone’s guest, you want to put together some entertaining refreshments. From drinks to appetizers, to other game day foods, check out some of our top picks, starting with the above Mini Football BLTs by Handmade in the Heartland. For instructions on how to execute this cute and easy idea, click here. Now, read on below for more yummy game day options.\nRaspberry Balsamic Meatballs\nThe Food Charlatan\nSteak, Onion & Cheese Baked Wonton Cups\nMeatballs are always a hit as appetizers at a party, so why not try this recipe that has a little twist on the classic dish. Click here to check out the full recipe by The Food Charlatan. This recipe can easily be made in a slow cooker.\nSavvy Saving Couple\nThe Upbeat\nThis recipe is by Savvy Saving Couple . The ingredients that are included are 48 wontons wrappers, 1 1/2 lbs fresh shaved steak, pepper, garlic powder to taste steak, 1 tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil, 1 medium sweet onion cut into thin rings, 1/2 cup Heluva Good! French Onion Dip (or any French Onion Dip) and 1 cup shredded cheddar. Click here for the full instructions on how to make this recipe.\nPhoto Credit: Patrick Galizio (CURICH WEISS)\nFootball Sandwich Cookies\nThe ingredients are .75 parts Drambuie, .75 parts Hendrick’s Gin, 2 parts Darjeeling tea (cooled), .5 part Rose Simple Syrup, 2 dashes Peach Bitters and 1 part Sparkling Water. Combine Drambuie, Gin, and Simple Syrup in a mixing glass filled 3/4 with ice. Stir for 30 seconds to combine. Pour into an Old Fashioned glasses with one large ice cube. Add 2 dashes of the bitters into each glass. Further sweeten with rose simple syrup to taste. Stir again. Finish with Sparkling water in each glass. Garnish with an orange slice. This recipe was created by Vance Henderson, Drambuie Ambassador.\nHandmade in the Heartland\nBuffalo Chicken Dip Ring With Blue Cheese Dip\nWith some devils food cake mix and a few other ingredients, you can make these adorable treats for your game day get-together. And, if you want to use food coloring, you can make the frosting match your team colors. Click here to check out the recipe via Handmade in the Heartland.\nCarlsbad Cravings\nNutella and Banana Stuffed Crescent Rolls\nHow amazing is this option?! Full of calories? Yes. But, full of flavor? Definitely. It’s two dips in one. Click here to get the recipe for this game day option, compliments of Carlsbad Cravings.\nThe Food Charlatan\nTwisted Tea Cheese Dip\nThis Nutella and Banana Stuffed Crescent Rolls recipe is easy and amazing. It’s a great dessert option for game day … or any day really. And, it only involves five ingredients. Check out the recipe by clicking here\nTwisted Tea\nFor the Twisted Cheese Dip, the ingredients are 1 cup of Twisted Tea Hard Iced Tea, 1 tablespoon of cornstarch, ½ lb. of shredded cheddar cheese, and hot sauce is optional. To make the recipe, pour Twisted Tea into a saucepan on the edge of the grill. Dissolve cornstarch in a small bowl with some Twisted Tea. When tea comes to a boil, pour in cornstarch and swirl pan to mix. Slowly add shredded cheese, mixing the whole time until combined. Keep over medium heat, adding some hot sauce if you want a little kick.", "Off the Menu with Dara can be heard every Saturday from 11 a.m. to noon on News Radio 830 WCCO! See all of Mpls. St.Paul Magazine’s Dara Moskowitz Grumdahl’s Top 5 lists here! It’s absolutely the height of muskmelon season. They are piled up at every farmer’s market! But what to do besides eating them out of hand? You can get fancy. And try my top five canteloupe and muskmelon recipes!\nMelon Carpaccio\nRecipe Melon carpaccios were on every menu for a little while in the 1990’s, but I haven’t seen them around in a while. They should come back! Mainly they’re very, very thin slices of melon dressed with olive oil, lime and salt. Here’s a recipe that throws tarragon on the melon for a little edge—if you don’t have tarragon you could substitute thyme, basil, or even lavender. Serve it with a chill glass of sauvignon blanc. Fresh and fancy!\nUnderbelly’s Grilled Canteloupe with Agrodolce\nRecipe It’s not something most people do, but it’s so easy to grill canteloupe. Once you have the grill going, and once you try it with this sweet-and-sour vinegar sauce you will wonder why we haven’t been grilling canteloupe your whole entire life. This is a great one to bring to a potluck—people will be amazed at you! So clever, grilling canteloupe.\nCanteloupe Cocktails\nRecipe 2 There are so many fun cocktails to make with melon—you can take your melon baller, make some melon balls, freeze them, and use them as ice-cubes in sangria. You can puree your melon and make a sort of melon mojito, with mint and lime. These are fun. Have a melon cocktail party, why don’t you?\nSalted and Spiced Melon\nRecipe You are going to think I’m crazy, but this recipe for putting fancy salt and pepper on melon—it’s straight-up brilliant. The sweet melon with the pepper spice and the depth of salt—you will think it is so much more cooked than it is. Also, you can make mountains of this for parties, and it also works on watermelon, honeydew, or a mix of those all together.", "When it comes to busted traffic signals, what you probably always thought was the law is now the law.\nConfusion has dominated how to handle a non-functioning traffic light in Michigan for decades, typically only getting sporadic attention or media coverage during storms and power outages.\nMost drivers were quite certain: It’s a four-way stop.\nBut it wasn’t.\nIt was a four-way yield, meaning if you were the first one at the intersection or there was no other traffic, you could slow and go without stopping.\nAdvertisement\nNow you have to stop.\nLt. Gov. Brian Calley on Tuesday signed legislation to clarify nonfunctional four-way stops that had been introduced by Sen. Rick Jones, R-Grand Ledge.\nBEFORE: It’s a yield\n“This is about improving safety on our roads when the power is out and a traffic light isn’t working,” said Jones. “It can be dangerous if two drivers have different expectations when approaching an intersection where the traffic light is out. If one driver thinks everyone is stopping and another driver thinks he has the right of way, that’s a recipe for disaster.”\nSenate Bill 521, now Public Act 109 of 2018, requires drivers to treat intersections where a traffic signal is malfunctioning as a four-way stop. The new law will not apply to traffic lights that are only active during certain periods, such as signals outside of a school or a fire department.\n“Most drivers already believe that treating an intersection with a nonworking traffic signal as a four-way stop is the law, and with this reform, it now will be,” Jones said. “This will end the confusion in Michigan’s law and ensure that all drivers in our state are on the same page when approaching an intersection with a nonworking traffic light.\n“It might slow traffic a bit on major roads, but it’s worth it if it can help save lives.”", "Rory Best is hoping the title-clinching spirit of 2014 can help Ireland stay in the fight and swoop for an opening day Six Nations win in Paris on Saturday.\nJoe Schmidt's side dramatically sealed the Championship four years ago by beating France away from home for only the third time since 1952.\nAnd they are now seeking another rare victory in the French capital with 11 of those same title winners in Schmidt's latest matchday 23.\nRory Best speaks to the media in Paris ahead of Ireland's Six Nations opener against France\n'The big thing is France are going to have moments in the game — and they did four years ago — where it feels like wave after wave, like almost all 80,000 people are on top of you.\n'The big thing four years ago is when those moments came, we got bigger and bigger and bigger and we fought them off, lived in the game… our set-piece went really well, we started the game well and took as many opportunities as we could.\n'That is the big thing for us, we have got to live in every moment of the game and we can't give away easy moments, easy momentum. That is the big thing because there will be times when it is going to feel suffocating, but we have got to make sure we fight our way out of it.'\nBest's record against the French is the 35-year-old's worst against the 15 nations he has faced in his long Test career, just five wins celebrated in 14 fixtures. However, while he admitted to nerves since arriving in Paris, he is hoping the nervous energy can be turned into a positive as the start of his third championship as skipper.\n'I would like to think I'm a bit more composed and a bit more relaxed about the day, but you still get nervous,' he said as Ireland seek to enjoy a better start than last year's loss to Scotland and 2016's draw with Wales.'\nBest leads the Ireland squad in training this week, ahead of the big match in the French capital\nBest added he is envious of the maturity of the two 21-year-olds — James Ryan and Jacob Stockdale — featuring in the championship on Saturday evening for the first time. 'The bit thing from the younger guys is they want to get better. Look as James, look at Josh, these guys are students of the game but ultimately the big thing is their physical presence is beyond anything when I was coming in at that age.'\nThe Ireland skipper replied 'no comment' when twice asked if he had permission from the Ireland management to attend the ongoing Paddy Jackson/Stuart Olding court case in Belfast on Wednesday.\nHowever, he was more forthcoming about the same day's sacking of Les Kiss as Ulster coach.\n'It's disappointing. I have known Les a very long time. He's a very good coach and whatever happened at Ulster, it didn't click.'", "LEEDS, Alabama Double Formula One world champion Fernando Alonso sees next month's Indianapolis 500 as a bigger challenge than the Le Mans 24 Hours sportscar race as he seeks to win motorsport's famed 'Triple Crown'.\n\"The biggest task is definitely the Indy 500 for a Formula One driver,\" the Spaniard told reporters on a visit to Barber Motorsport Park on Sunday.\n\"I think it's quite different. It's challenging ... the level of downforce, the feeling with the car, running with a car that is not symmetric on the straights, on braking. Traffic I think is a big thing...\"\nAlonso has set his sights on becoming only the second driver after the late Briton Graham Hill to win the Formula One championship, Indy and Le Mans.\nThe McLaren driver, who will miss the showcase Monaco Grand Prix to race at the famed Brickyard on May 28 for the first time, has no experience of Le Mans either but indicated that would have to wait until after Formula One.\nThe 35-year-old felt that French race, won by current Renault F1 driver Nico Hulkenberg with Porsche in 2015, would be an easier leap because the cars were more similar.\n\"Some of the F1 drivers that jump into the Le Mans car, they have no difficulties in terms of adapting,\" said Alonso, whose current McLaren contract expires at the end of the year.\n\"The 24 Hours is a little different, it’s a more relaxed race, you can do it at an older age,\" added the Spaniard, a friend of Australian former F1 driver and now-retired Le Mans racer Mark Webber.\nAlonso was in Alabama with McLaren boss Zak Brown, who said he would like to see a McLaren-Honda competing at Indianapolis every year, to meet the Andretti Autosport Team who will run his Indy car.\n\"I'm with the best team possible for this type of lessons that I need to learn. I'm also with coach (and 2003 Indy winner) Gil de Ferran, which I'm sure will be very, very useful for all these new things that I need to learn,\" he said.\nMcLaren won Le Mans in 1995 but Brown told Reuters it was \"very early days\" to contemplate a return.\n\"Our automotive group will make the decision. Mike Flewitt, the CEO of McLaren Automotive Limited, would make the ultimate decision ... but nothing has been discussed. I think Le Mans is a massive race like the Indy 500,\" he said.\n(Editing by Alan Baldwin and Andrew Both)", "Armed with her accordion and an angelic, jovial voice, Los Angeles–based chanteuse Jessica Fichot will appear at the Live Oak Festival with her quartet band and an eclectic set list that takes inspiration from her wide-spanning cultural roots. This is not her first time in Santa Barbara; previous years saw her play at both the French Festival and the I Madonnari Festival. Fichot and company will add an international flair to the already sonically diverse lineup that is set to perform throughout the three-day event.\nFichot’s music — French chanson infused with hints of gypsy jazz and international folk — has won the hearts of live audiences across the globe. Critics aren’t immune to her enchanting sounds, either, with praise for her discography coming from L.A. Weekly, San Francisco Chronicle, and KCRW. Her two full-length releases — Le Chemin in 2007 and Le Secret in 2012 — maintained the whimsical, spontaneously delightful tone that characterizes Fichot’s brand of chanson while allowing for occasional detours into other genres.\nHowever, she took the musical equivalent of an extended vacation on the 2014 EP Dear Shanghai, capturing the popular sounds of early-20th-century Shanghai. Of the seven tracks, the majority are covers of her favorite tunes from that era; the rest, Fichot said, are originals written “as if they were written in the ’40s in Shanghai.” That style of music is called shidaiqu, described as a mix of European-style jazz and Chinese singing. Her adoration for shidaiqu goes beyond aesthetic enjoyment. “It was not just about me singing Chinese songs,” Fichot explained. Due to Shanghai’s international, specifically French, influence in its history, “there were a lot of similarities between the music that influenced my French chanson and this music from Shanghai,” she said. Even Fichot’s preferred accordion shows up in both genres. So despite the familiarity her audience has with her talents as a chanteuse, she ultimately concluded, “It felt right to do this album.”\nParsing through Fichot’s bio, what’s most immediately striking is where her roots lie. The daughter of a French father and Chinese mother, she is nevertheless accustomed to occasional false assumptions about her race. “I do feel weird when people can’t recognize that I’m part Asian; they just think I’m white. I don’t think I like it,” Fichot laughed. “I guess it’s always hard to place your identity when you’re mixed, but I think being of mixed heritage is kind of an identity of its own.”\nWhile others sometimes fail to identify her biracial heritage, Fichot herself underwent perceptual changes over the course of her musical journey. Growing up in the Parisian suburbs, “I only wanted to play and write American music,” she said. Only after graduating from Berklee College of Music and moving to Los Angeles did Fichot fully embrace the language and music of her childhood. The addition of shidaiqu in her musical identity reflects not only the duality of her heritage, but also the underlying relations between seemingly contrasting cultures.\nChanson, which directly translates to “song,” is used to describe a broad range of music similar to our use of the term singer/songwriter. According to Fichot, chanson is “a style of music that’s very vocal-driven and in French.” But vague working definition aside, chanson also has a rich history filled with star power: Charles Aznavour and Édith Piaf, to name a few. Given the massive — and often specific-to-tradition — expectations we usually demand from practitioners of established genres, does French chanson’s history give Fichot more to worry about? “Uh, no,” she replied with amusement. “I try not to overthink it …. It’s easy to put pressure on yourself when you write, but I just write what I feel like writing, what I like, things I want to express, and hopefully people like it.”\nIn fact, Fichot contends, the tradition of chanson allows for greater leniency in experimentation and modernization. While the classics are still revered, audiences leave enough head space for modern takes on French chanson to blossom. In particular, Belgian dance and hip-hop artist Stromae has received comparisons to compatriot Jacques Brel, a mid-20th-century master chanteur. The essence of chanson is maintained and expanded upon due to, not in spite of, modern production techniques and uncommon stylistic marriages. Fichot’s take on French chanson is embedded with a similar air of creative association. Percussion is not just drums but includes everyday household items, as well. Her tracks are mixed in accordance to contemporary guidelines: less reverb on the vocals, more compression on the instrumentation.\nWhat’s next for the international, multicultural singer and bandleader? The next album, in continuation of Fichot’s consistent failure to remain comfortably stagnant, will include tracks sung in French, Chinese, and Spanish. Her side project — composing music and sound effect for adventure-based video games — will receive its due attention. In terms of more immediate goals: “I want to finish the game I’m working on now,” she said. “It’s pretty extensive. And I want to write at least five more songs that I can play with my band. Including one that’s not in French.”\n411\nCatch Jessica Fichot and her band’s 11:20 a.m. performance on Saturday, June 17, at the Live Oak Festival, which runs June 16-18, at Live Oak Camp (4600 California 154). For more information, see liveoakfest.org.", "NEW YORK Investors are unprepared for the market volatility analysts say could be unleashed should French far-right leader Marine Le Pen do the unexpected and win the country's upcoming presidential election, U.S. stock options data showed.\nTraders have shown little interest in betting on a spike in gyrations in U.S. stocks following the election. Near-dated options contracts on the S&P 500 Index .SPX paint a picture of calm even though a Le Pen win would be akin to the populism that brought Brexit to Britain and roiled global markets.\nComplacency brought on by a long period of stock market calm and limited success in benefiting from hedges due to increasingly fleeting volatility spikes in the recent past may explain this lack of fear in the face of a major potential catalyst, options experts said.\n\"There is some sort of move priced in but it's not very large and in general, volatility is very muted,\" said Drew Forman, co-head of trading at Macro Risk Advisors in New York.\nOpinion polls forecast Le Pen will do well in the first election round but lose the May 7 run-off to centrist candidate Emmanuel Macron, but a high number of undecided voters means the outcome remains unpredictable.\nIf Le Pen wins, policy agenda items including a French exit from the euro zone, reestablishing a national currency and slapping taxes on imports would likely fuel global market volatility, analysts said.\nThe U.S. stock market likely would not be immune. Depending on whether the shock of a Le Pen victory is localized or has a global spillover, the S&P 500 could decline anywhere from 0.9 percent to 10.9 percent, UBS said in a recent strategy note.\nIn Europe, election nerves are on display. Europe's VSTOXX volatility index .V2TX hit a four-month high on Thursday.\nStill, barring some pick-up in demand for options expiring on April 24 and May 12, contracts that encompass both rounds of the election, U.S. equity options traders are expressing little fear.\nS&P 500 30-day and 90-day implied volatility, gauges of how much stocks are expected to swing over the near term, are both near two-year lows and well below where they were three weeks before Britain's vote to exit the European Union in June.\nDifficulties in monetizing even correct predictions have hurt hedging appetite, said Aashish Vyas, director of portfolio strategy at Durango, Colorado-based Swan Global Investments.\n\"Volatility is very cheap. All the metrics relative to where we were this time before Brexit are pricing in a non-event. We think that's a bit complacent,\" he said.\n(Reporting by Saqib Iqbal Ahmed; Editing by Daniel Bases and Meredith Mazzilli)", "* Le Pen says France not responsible for wartime mass arrest\n* Comments deal setback to her attempts to clean up party's image\n* Rival politicians, Jewish group condemn her statement\nBy Adrian Croft\nPARIS, April 10 Far-right presidential candidate Marine Le Pen has touched a raw nerve in France by denying the French state's responsibility for a mass arrest of Jews in Paris during World War Two.\nLe Pen, a frontrunner in the election being held this month and next, triggered an outcry with her comments on one of the darkest episodes of French history when the country was occupied by the Nazis during the war.\n\"I think France isn't responsible for the Vel d'Hiv,\" Le Pen said in a French media interview on Sunday, referring to the July 16, 1942 German-ordered roundup by French police of 13,000 Jews in Paris.\nMost of the Jews were crammed in appalling conditions into the Velodrome d'Hiver or Winter Velodrome cycling stadium, colloquially known as the Vel d'Hiv, before being deported to the Auschwitz extermination camp.\n\"I think that, in general, if there are people responsible, it is those who were in power at the time. It is not France,\" Le Pen said in comments that were condemned by other presidential candidates, a Jewish group and Israel's Foreign Ministry.\n\"We have taught our children that they had every reason to criticise France, to see only the darkest historical aspects perhaps. I want them to be proud of being French once more,\" she said in the interview with media organisations Le Figaro, RTL and LCI.\nFrance has long struggled to come to terms with its role under the collaborationist Vichy regime during World War Two.\nAltogether 76,000 Jews deported from France were killed.\nIn 1995, then President Jacques Chirac recognised that the French state shared responsibility for deporting Jews to Nazi death camps during the war, the first time a post-war French head of state had fully acknowledged France's role.\nSocialist President Francois Hollande in 2012 described the 1942 mass arrest as \"a crime committed in France, by France.\"\nSETBACK\nHer comments, just as campaigning officially opened in the election, could set back her attempts to clean up the image of her anti-immigration National Front and distance it from the anti-Semitic views of her father, Jean-Marie Le Pen, the party's founder.\nLe Pen is running neck-and-neck with centrist Emmanuel Macron in the April 23 first round, according to opinion polls. The polls say Macron would easily beat Le Pen in the May 7 runoff.\nLe Pen issued a statement late on Sunday saying she considered that the French state was in exile in London during the occupation and that her stance \"in no way exonerates the effective and personal responsibility of the French people who took part in the horrible Vel d'Hiv roundup and in all the atrocities committed during this period.\"\nThe Israeli foreign ministry condemned Le Pen's comments.\n\"This contradicts the historical truth as expressed in statements by French presidents who recognised the country’s responsibility for the fate of the French Jews who perished in the Holocaust,\" a spokesman said, adding that the ministry regretted that anti-Semitism \"is raising its head again today.\"\nRival election candidates also criticised Le Pen.\n\"Some people had forgotten that Marine Le Pen is the daughter of Jean-Marie Le Pen. They haven't changed and we must have no indulgence or minimise what the National Front is today in our country,\" Macron told BFM television.\nSocialist candidate Benoit Hamon said there was no longer any doubt that Le Pen was from the extreme right.\nSacha Ghozlan, president of the French Jewish Students' Union, accused Le Pen of \"revisionism\".\nIn a statement, Ghozlan called on French citizens to mobilise in the election to block Le Pen \"and prevent her from sullying once again the honour of France and the memory of the victims of the Vichy regime.\"\n(Reporting by Cyril Camu, Marine Pennetier, Sophie Louet, Adrian Croft, Jeffrey Heller; Editing by Richard Balmforth)", "(Repeats to reach more customers. No changes to text)\nBy Brian Love\nPARIS, March 31 If French voters do not want to leave the euro, Marine Le Pen's National Front party will not force them to should she become president in May, the party's secretary general said on Friday.\n\"It's not the be-all and end-all of our programme,\" Nicolas Bay said in a radio interview. \"We will put it to a referendum. We will not impose anything on the people. If the French want to keep the euro they will keep it,\" he told RTL.\nLe Pen, tipped by opinion polls to face staunchly pro-common currency candidate Emmanuel Macron in the presidential runoff vote on May 7, has said she would resign from the presidency if voters subsequently rejected proposals she puts to them via a referendum.\n\"What do you expect me to do? I'd leave,\" she told guests of the business federation Ethic at a March 7 gathering in Paris.\n\"I can't deliver on an entire programme if we do not have the means and the leverage to do so.\"\nA majority of National Front supporters opposes the euro but 72 percent of the overall French electorate do not want to revert to the franc, an Ipsos poll published this month said.\nThe euro replaced national currencies in everyday usage in 2002 across the euro zone, which spans 19 of the 28 countries in the European Union.\nAll opinion polls to date predict a heavy Le Pen defeat in the final two-way playoff, despite being more or less neck and neck with favourite Macron in the opening vote on April 23, where all but two of the 11 contenders will be eliminated.\nLe Pen told Le Parisien newspaper in an interview published on March 26 that there would be no big-bang exit from the euro if she won power.\nShe said that she would hold a referendum on Europe after six months of negotiations with the rest of the European Union on a range of issues including leaving the border-free Schengen agreement and transforming the EU into a looser cooperative of nations.\nTalks on the euro currency would come at the end of those negotiations, she said.\n\"Within the negotiation calendar I want to pursue ... the euro would be the last step because I want to wait for the outcome of elections in Germany in the fall (autumn) before renegotiating it,\" she told the newspaper.\nIf France were to revert to using its own currency, the cost would be huge, in large part because of French banks' debts abroad, French economics think-tank CEPII said in a study on Thursday.\nIt calculated that French banks would see their debts to German creditors alone surge by 21.5 billion euros ($22.95 billion) in such a scenario. ($1 = 0.9367 euros) (Additional reporting by Leigh Thomas; Editing by Andrew Callus)", "Marion has been long considered a rising star of the Front National party with support of Southern traditional conservative voters who shy away from the views of her aunt. Now the 27-year-old has implied she could lead a parliamentary group of Front National MPs if they are voted to serve as the opposition following the French presidential election. Asked what she saw for her future following the election, Ms Le Pen said: “Why not be in charge of a parliamentary group?”.\nGETTY It comes after she faced conflict from both Marine Le Pen and party Vice President Florian Philipott\nMarion Le Pen in pictures Wed, July 27, 2016 The niece of French far-right leader Marine Le Pen has joined the military reserve and has urged \"young patriots\" to follow in her footsteps, take a look through her career to date, Play slideshow AFP/Getty Images 1 of 12 French far right Front National (National Front - FN) party's Parliament member and candidate for the regional elections in the Provence-Alpes-Cote d'Azur (PACA)\nThe “rock star” of the French right-wing went on to say she would run for re-election in the southern Vaucluse region, which she currently represents as one of Front National’s two MPs. It comes after Ms Le Pen faced conflict from both Marine Le Pen and party Vice President Florian Philipott as her socially conservative views conflict with their nationalist stances. The two Le Pens have also clashed in the press during the election, with the party leader telling French media her niece would not get a place in her cabinet. Last month Marine Le Pen said: “My niece is an MP. I don’t owe her anything.\nGETTY The two Le Pens have clashed in the press during the election\nThings you didn't know about Marine Le Pen Wed, April 5, 2017 Marine Le Pen is a French politician who is the president of the National Front, a national-conservative political party in France and one of its main political forces. Play slideshow AFP/Getty Images 1 of 10 Described as more democratic and republican than her nationalist father, she has led a movement of \"de-demonization of the Front National\" to detoxify it and soften its image\n“I don’t owe anyone anything. I have no favours to return.” But the senior Le Pen went on to criticise Marion’s demeanour, claiming she was “rather stiff”. Speaking about the incident, Ms Le Pen said: “I guess I am stiff and cold then. “What am I supposed to be — warm and flexible?”\nGETTY Marion defended her aunt after she claimed her neice would not have a place in her cabinet\nGETTY Marine's party leadership has seen the group soar in popularity", "Marine Le Pen, French National Front (FN) candidate for 2017 presidential election, attends a campaign rally in Villepinte, near Paris, France, May 1, 2017. REUTERS/Charles Platiau\nEmmanuel Macron , head of the political movement En Marche !, or Onwards !, and candidate for the 2017 presidential election, attends a campaign rally in Paris, France, May 1, 2017. REUTERS/Philippe Wojazer\nMarine Le Pen, French National Front (FN) candidate for 2017 presidential election delivers a speech during a campaign rally in Villepinte, near Paris, France, May 1, 2017. REUTERS/Charles Platiau\nPARIS French far-right presidential candidate Marine Le Pen came under fire on social media on Tuesday for lifting sections of a speech from a conservative rival, in what Le Pen aides said was a \"nod-and-a-wink\" to his voters.\nAlthough the speech caused an online sensation over plagiarism, it appeared to be an attempt by Le Pen to reach out to supporters of Francois Fillon, who was knocked out in the April 23 first round of voting after coming third with 20 percent of the vote.\nPolls show Le Pen lagging centrist frontrunner Emmanuel Macron by around 20 points before next Sunday's runoff and she needs to broaden her base to stand a chance of winning. Fillon has urged voters to back Macron.\nIn one part of her May 1 speech, lasting about 50 seconds, Le Pen talked about people learning French in Argentina and Poland, and on waiting lists to study at the Alliance Francaise official French schools abroad, in a word-per-word lifting of a mid-April speech by Fillon.\nLe Pen added to Fillon's comment that this showed France is more than a military and industrial power, that France \"must and can\" become a big power again.\nIt was the second most trending topic on Twitter in France, with the hashtag #plagiat -- plagiarism in French.\nOne Twitter user, @RidiculeTV, posted both excerpts together on Twitter: here\nThe incident had echoes of an incident during last year U.S. election when a writer for then-candidate Donald Trump's campaign apologised for a speech by Trump's wife Melania that drew accusations of plagiarism.\nUNREPENTANT\nThe National Front (FN) candidate's team was unrepentant, however. Florian Philippot, an FN deputy leader, said the party \"completely owned up\" to the fact that the speech resembled one by Fillon.\nLe Pen also described France's borders and ties with \"Italy, our sister\" - again a phrase used in Fillon's April 15 speech, and used the same quote from early 20th century French Prime Minister Georges Clemenceau.\nIn another excerpt about prospects of cooperation with France's neighbours, where the words were again the same as in Fillon's speech, Le Pen added that this would require France not being \"a vassal\" of Germany.\nFrench newspapers and social media highlighted the similarities, but Le Pen aides brushed off the criticism.\nPhilippot told Radio Classique that Le Pen's speech was a \"nod-and-a-wink\" to Fillon's speech in order to \"launch a real debate\" about French identity.\nLe Pen's campaign manager David Rachline also played down plagiarism accusations, painting her speech as a form of tribute to Fillon. The reference \"was appreciated, including by all of Mr. Fillon's supporters,\" Rachline told France 2 television.\nThere was no immediate comment from Fillon.\nSeparately, several French business leaders, writing in French business daily Les Echos, warned against what Veolia chief Antoine Frerot called the \"catastrophe for French businesses and people\" of Le Pen's favoured scrapping of the euro currency and other parts of the FN manifesto.\nThe latest Ipsos Sopra Steria poll on Tuesday showed Macron winning 60 percent of second-round votes to Le Pen's 40 percent.\n(Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta and Ingrid Melander; Editing by Andrew Callus and Adrian Croft)", "A painting by Emily Carr that signalled her early greatness as an artist is going to the Audain Art Museum in Whistler.\nCalled Le Paysage, the painting was bought for just under $1 million by the family foundation of philanthropist Michael Audain. The rarely seen painting will be among 26 other works by Carr on permanent display at the museum.\nAudain said in an interview that he believes the recognition Le Paysage received in France in 1911 would have been an immense boost to Carr, who was struggling at the time to find her unique visual form as an artist and painter.\nLe Paysage, along with another painting by Carr of the French countryside, was shown in the Salon d’Autumne at the Grand Palais. It would have hung in the exhibition alongside works by Pierre Bonnard, Henri Matisse, Fernand Leger, Marcel Duchamp, and Francis Picabia who all went on to become major 20th century artists. The exhibition was also cited as introducing cubism as an art movement to the public attention for the first time.\n“The reason that I immediately felt we needed it was because it must have given Emily Carr immense self confidence to be exhibited along with all the greats,” Audain said.\n“For me what this says is that even back in 1911 she had the possibility if she’d stayed in France and never came back to the coast of being a recognized artist. It shows something about her commitment to creating art.”\nRelated\nCarr would have also been one of the few women artists with works in the 1911 Salon.\nDarrin Martens, chief curator at the Audain Art Museum, said it was ironic that after Carr arrived home in 1912, her new found Post-Impressionist style was ridiculed in certain quarters in Victoria.\n“The acceptance of this picture by the salon is a testament that Carr had the potential of becoming an important artist even if she had never returned home,” he said.\n“I firmly believe that this period of great exploration really put her on a path to some of the paintings that we now consider quintessential examples of Emily Carr.”\nIn 1911 Paris was the centre of the art world. Carr went there to find out what the ‘new art’ was all about.\n“I heard (the new art) ridiculed, praised, liked, hated,” Carr wrote in her autobiography Growing Pains.\n“Something in it stirred me, but I could not at first make head or tail of what it was all about. I saw at once that it made recent conservative painting look flavourless, little, unconvincing.”\nCarr studied under Harry Phelan Gibb, a modern English artist living in Paris who encouraged her to send her work to the salon, a juried exhibition. But she didn’t like Paris or any big city for that matter and soon moved to the countryside around Brittany, which was Le Paysage first title.\nCarr’s other painting in the salon, Autumn in France, has been in the collection of the National Gallery in Ottawa since 1948.\nMartens said Le Paysage represented a radical break for Carr. Until then, her paintings tended to be documentary works and she strove to use colours that reflected what she saw in Indigenous villages and forested landscapes. In France, she learned how to use colour and gesture in their own terms in her work.\nLe Paysage depicts an outside scene in a way that both honours the three dimensional space of the French countryside that she saw and the flat, two-dimensional space of the painting. By painting the sky in the upper right with a series of short blue strokes rather than covering the surface with solid blue, she boldly draws attention to both the gesture of applying paint and the board’s flatness.\n“Going to France and Brittany allowed her to embrace colour in new and different ways,” said Martens, the Gail and Stephen A. Jarislowsky chief curator at the AAM.\nRelated\nAfter the 1911 Salon, Le Paysage returned to Carr’s studio in Victoria where it likely stayed until it was sent to Max Stern at the Dominion Gallery in Montreal. It became part of the Thomson Collection amassed by businessman Kenneth Thomson, but was not among the collection’s 2,000 works donated to the Art Gallery of Ontario in 2002.\nAudain said it was acquired by a private collector.\n“The collector picked us, our museum, to offer it to because he felt we had the greatest commitment to Emily Carr in terms of what we have on permanent exhibition,” Audain said in the offices of Polygon Homes in Vancouver.\nIn 2019 the AAM will mount the exhibition Emily Carr in France. Curated by Martens, the exhibition will look at the “prejudices, inequities and biases between male and female artists through exhibition, sales and collecting practices and approaching to painting,” according to a description of the exhibition.\n“Exploring this system will provide a framework in which to consider the evolution of Carr as a visual artist and author.”\nkevingriffin@postmedia.com\nRelated\nCLICK HERE to report a typo.\nIs there more to this story? We’d like to hear from you about this or any other stories you think we should know about. Email vantips@postmedia.com", "Mirbeau looks to redefine the mall experience with new day resort concept\nAlbany, NY (PRUnderground) December 11th, 2017\nAs leaders in the development and management of the award-winning Mirbeau resort properties, Mirbeau Inn & Spa in Skaneateles, N.Y. and Plymouth, Mass., the Mirbeau Companies reinvents how we relax, redefining the mall experience with the introduction of an innovative and convenient Day Resort concept opening today called Spa Mirbeau. This new day resort will greatly contribute to Crossgates Mall becoming the top retail-lifestyle location in Albany and further contribute to the growing vitality of the area, by offering guests the ultimate haven just minutes away from home.\nIn the same signature style as the Mirbeau resort properties, Spa Mirbeau will offer a sanctuary where clients can unplug, escape, rejuvenate and renew—inside and out. With world-class spa amenities, fitness and yoga programs, as well as French-inspired dining at Le Bistro and top-rated retail products at La Boutique, the 17,000-square-foot facility provides all of the renowned spa services of a full Mirbeau resort.\n“We are excited to finally introduce this concept to our customers in the Capital Region, so they can enjoy the resort experience closer to home,” said Linda Dower, principal, Mirbeau Hospitality Services. “We have selected the very best team to provide the utmost quality service and hospitality to our guests, and look forward to welcoming area residents and offering a place where people can truly ‘get away’ for a day without having to spend the night.”\n“We are thrilled to welcome Spa Mirbeau to the Capital Region, and specifically to Crossgates.” said Michael Gately, general manager, Crossgates Mall. “We know it will be a worthwhile destination for visitors from near and far, as this unique day spa offers guests a truly one-of-a-kind luxury experience. Mirbeau’s new presence at Crossgates aligns perfectly with our broader mission to offer the Capital Region the best in retail, restaurants and entertainment.”\nThe Spa\nAt the forefront of Spa Mirbeau is a state-of-the-art spa including 14 treatment rooms, all equipped with their own fireplace, offering the perfect backdrop to enjoy the day resort’s expansive menu of treatments. Services include massages and facials, as well as an extensive offering of body, hand and foot therapies, provided by therapists with the highest industry level training. Honed by years of award-winning performance, Spa Mirbeau assures an experience unlike anything else in the Capital Region. You will experience the difference from the moment you enter one of the Spa’s luxurious locker rooms, designed to help you retreat from your day-to-day grind. Start or end your visit relaxing in one of the Spa’s eucalyptus-infused steam rooms or saunas.\nOne of the more distinctive features of the spa is The Resting Area, providing guests with a quiet, protected environment for relaxing before or after a treatment. This area offers lounge chairs, a warm fireplace and a heated meditation pool.\nGuests are also encouraged to enjoy The Aqua Terrace, a lively location providing clients with the perfect place to socialize and unwind. It features an oversized hot plunge pool, comfortable private seating, a fireplace and the Aqua Terrace Bar where guests can enjoy a light bite or cocktail, all under the ever-changing light of an oversized skylight.\nWith balance in mind, Spa Mirbeau offers guests access to its fitness studios featuring a spinning room, yoga studio and state-of-the-art weight training room. Spa Mirbeau created Club Mirbeau to allow locals the ability to enjoy the extensive fitness and wellness programs and facilities offered at this spa, as well as other Mirbeau properties, all designed to improve your physical, spiritual and emotional well-being.\nLe Bistro\nLe Bistro offers global cuisine inspired by French-speaking populations around the world. Executive Chef Michael Morelli uses classic methods featuring locally-sourced organic produce, dairy and meats. His menu at Le Bistro, which is also available in the Aqua Terrace, focuses on clean cuisine with healthful interpretations of classic French dishes. Open for lunch and dinner, Le Bistro offers a full bar with a world-class wine list, accessible to both the general public and guests throughout the Spa. Morelli’s opening menu features dishes such as Grilled Oysters with Pancetta, Fennel Pollen, Tomato Panko and Chive Fondue; Warm Mushroom Salad with Oyster Mushrooms, Crispy Egg, Artichokes and Goat Cheese; Potato-Crusted Salmon with Sautéed Greens and Lemon Beurre Blanc and Fall Cider Beignets with Apple Chips and Cinnamon Whipped Cream.\nLa Boutique\nLa Boutique showcases hand-selected beauty products and apparel, chosen to help you feel and look your best. With expert staff trained to help guests find personalized products to fit their lifestyles, La Boutique offers a distinct shopping experience sure to top any Spa Mirbeau visit.\nThe Design\nMirbeau, loosely translated as “reflected beauty,” serves as the underlying concept for the brand, which embraces characteristics of French Impressionist art and simple elegance throughout its facilities, including soft light and warm colors. Spa Mirbeau was designed to evoke a private French countryside estate situated within a quaint town square, and provides customers the feeling of “getting away” even if only a few miles from home. In the same fashion as the brand’s Mirbeau Inn & Spa locations, Spa Mirbeau’s decor blends old-world elegance with high-end comforts. Hand-painted murals by artists Chuck and Pat Gridley grace the walls throughout the Spa and include a backlit overhead dome in The Resting Area adding to the restful ambiance of the space. The property is an unparalleled showcase of craftsmanship featuring furniture designer Jacques Wayser whose company produces only the finest quality furniture with structural integrity and comfort, known for its exceptional design worldwide.\nThe architect behind the Spa Mirbeau concept is TPG Architecture, headquartered in New York City. TPG handled the planning and overall architectural design of the project’s interior in collaboration with the brand’s principals. Founded in 1979, TPG is a full-service architecture and interior design firm, a recognized leader in the retail, hospitality, restaurant and spa markets.\nSpa Mirbeau’s spa facilities are open daily from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., spa treatments are available daily from 10:00 a.m. until 8:00 p.m., Le Bistro is open daily from 11:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. and La Boutique is open daily from 9:00 a.m. until 9:00 p.m. To make a spa or dining reservation, please call 844-MIRBEAU (844-647-2328), email reservations@mirbeau.com or book online.\nAbout Spa Mirbeau\nSpa Mirbeau is a day resort conveniently located at One Crossgates Mall Road in Albany, N.Y. where guests can escape any day of the week to unplug, relax, rejuvenate and renew from the inside, out. Family-owned and operated, Spa Mirbeau is the most recent installment in the nationally-renowned French-inspired Mirbeau Inn & Spa brand, which has locations in Skaneateles, N.Y. and Plymouth, Mass. The Day Resort concept offers all of the amenities of an elegant overnight resort, close to home, with an extensive menu of spa treatments, a resting area with heated foot pool, aqua terrace, eucalyptus-infused sauna and steam room, spinning room and yoga studio, retail boutique, as well as Le Bistro, a French-inspired bistro serving light fare and exceptional wine. For more information, visit SpaMirbeau.com.", "Get daily updates directly to your inbox + Subscribe Thank you for subscribing! Could not subscribe, try again later Invalid Email\nFrance has been a family favourite for British holidaymakers for decades. In fact, around 17 million of us go there each year - and its popularity shows no signs of slowing down.\nBut where can you head if you want to make the most of your trip?\nMirror Travel has teamed up with holiday specialist ­Eurocamp – which has been helping British travellers enjoy French ­getaways for more than 40 years – to share its exclusive insider travel tips in eight key regions.\nFind out the best things to see and do, the best cheap eats and shopping, not to mention the Eurocamp parks in the region you won't want to miss...\nYou can also find some great Eurocamp deals in our handy guide here .\nWhich regions are in the guide?\nRiviera/Provence\nPicardy/Normandy\nLoire Valley\nBrittany\nLanguedoc-Roussillon\nDordogne\nGironde/Gastony/Pyrénées\n(Image: Getty)\n1. Riviera/Provence\nThe Riviera is a procession of chic towns, blissful beaches and dazzling light. Inland Provence is renowned for its atmospheric hill towns and verdant valleys.\nSEE & DO : Catch a ferry from Hyères to the beautiful traffic-free islands of Iles de Porquerolles. Verdon Gorge is the French Grand Canyon, where giant Griffon vultures have been reintroduced.\nDRINK : Rosé wine is a speciality of the region – enjoy a glass at trendy W-Brasserie in Sainte Maxime (great icecreams too) or head to Toulon for a cocktail with Med views at Cote Jardin.\nEAT : La Brasserie Tradition and Gourmandise in St Raphael is the perfect place for Med dishes with a contemporary twist, eaten on a flower-decked terrace. Or try Auberge du Teillon in La Garde – a cosy bistro offering plentiful French cooking at good rates.\nSHOP: The markets in Fréjus are fun and colourful, with ceramics, art, leatherwear and fashions on the seafront, while the town centre market sells great wines and local produce. For seriously good wine visit Cave Des Cariatides, on Rue Sieyes.\nTOP 3 EUROCAMP PARKS NEARBY:\n1. La Baume : Boasting two Californian-style pool complexes, there are also plenty of sports from football to volleyball on offer.\n2. Domaine des Naiades : Just 900m from the beach, this park boasts an Olympic-sized swimming pool.\n3. Les Lacs du Verdon : With a water park and brand new playground on offer, your little ones won't be stuck for things to do in this park!\n2. Picardy/Normandy\nFamous for its historic beaches and rustic cuisine, there’s more here than you think.\nSEE & DO: Explore the genteel seaside town of Deauville. Grand but not stuffy, there are hotels offering afternoon teas, as well as a racecourse and big-hitting film festival.\nTry kite-surfing at Kite Paradise in Houlgate and visit the Christian Dior Museum in Granville for some fashion history.\nDRINK: Head to Houlgate to try Le Royalty or Les Marigot.\nEAT: Try fresh oysters, scallops and lobster. Stock up at Les Halles covered market in Le Havre or enjoy a leisurely lunch at Aux Delices (the steak frites, moules marinière, and Normandy fish stew are recommended).\nLa Flambée is a stylish townhouse serving fine French cuisine, including agneau de pré-salé (naturally salty lamb).\nSHOP: In Picardy’s St Valéry Sunday market you’ll love browsing the vibrant glasswear, clothes, gifts, sunglasses and bric-a-brac.\nTOP 3 EUROCAMP PARKS NEARBY:\n1. La Vallee : With the new 'Plus' Kids' Club operating six days a week, there's even more entertainment on offer for kids at this fun-filled park which also boasts a children's pool and water slides.\n2. La Cote de Nacre : It's just a 20-minute transfer from Caen Ferry Port, this park boasts a covered pool, games room and a play area for the kids.\n3. La Bien-Assise : This pet-friendly park is just a short trip from the ferry at Calais so you can be enjoying your holiday in no time - and dining on the iconic French cuisine at the park's authentic French restaurant.\n(Image: Getty)\n3. Loire Valley\nKnown as the Garden of France, this a great place to explore and unwind in lush, leafy surroundings.\nSEE & DO: Get a bird’s eye view with a hot air balloon ride, leaving from the towns of Chenonceau, Amboise, Chaumont and Loches.\nVisit Château d’Ussé – the inspiration for the original Sleeping Beauty.\nEmbrace the dark side at the Museum of Sorcery in Concressault. Discover more about witchcraft, tackle a ‘haunted’ maze then chill with a picnic.\nDRINK: Catch the footy with local beers at Le Liverpool in Saumur or pop into Le Dolmen in Bagneux, a bar next a prehistoric burial chamber.\nEAT: Head to pretty Saumur for duck, steak and fish in at L’Alchimiste or visit the historic Auberge Saint Pierre, serving rabbit and coq au vin in a quirky 15th century building.\nSHOP: The city of Tours is shopping heaven. From luxury items to art via more indie options, you’ll find everything you need. For local food specialities – both sweet and savoury – there is a comprehensive selection at Les Douceurs Tourangelles and La Livre Tournois.\nTOP 3 EUROCAMP PARKS NEARBY:\n1. Le Chateau des Marais : From the picturesque old manor house location to the lazy river, it's ultimate relaxation here.\n2. L'Etang de la Breche : Ideal for those who don't like to spend all their time by the pool, this park has a 9-hole mini golf course, not to mention it's a short drive to Saumur and Chateau.\n3. Les Alicourts Resort : Budding footballers will no doubt enjoy the two on-site pitches, while culture vultures can explore the stunning castles nearby.\n4. Brittany\nA popular choice with the British, it offers rugged headlands, seafood, crepes, cider and fishing villages.\nSEE & DO: The Carnac stones are a vast set of 3,000 prehistoric standing stones, some arranged more than 6,000 years ago. Start at the Maison des Mégalithes and book a guided tour in English.\nVisit Perros-Guirec with its 40km of marked walking trails. Here you can yomp along the 2km Sentier des Douaniers – from Ploumanac’h Moors to Perros-Guirec – marvelling at 66ft-high pink granite boulders along the way.\nDRINK: Sip delicious local Muscadet wine in the Cave Saint Michel in Quimperlé or overlooking the River Laita at La Cale D’Anaurot.\nEAT: Enjoy a modern twist on traditional Breton crêpes, with a nod to Japanese cuisine, at Michelin-starred Le Comptoir Breizh Café, St Malo. For fresh seafood and shellfish head to Le Faouët, or sample fabulous moules marinière and crème brûlée at the L’Argoat restaurant.\nSHOP: Fancy some sea snails? The farmers at France Haliotis specialise in organic ones, perfectly cooked in salted butter. For the sweet-toothed, the old town of St Malo has a dazzling selection of chocolate shops.\nTOP 3 EUROCAMP PARKS NEARBY:\n1. Domaine des Ormes : Ideal for the active, this park boasts a high wire adventure park, horse riding and an 18-hole golf course.\n2. La Pointe St-Gilles : Unwind with a relaxing treatment at the health spa or take a short coastal walk to the resort of Benodet in this laidback park.\n3. Des Menhirs : This park is surrounded by breathtaking views from the Quiberon peninsula to a picturesque port town.\n(Image: Getty)\n5. Languedoc-Roussillon\nA diverse area with warm sandy beaches on the Med. It is the world’s single biggest wine-producing region.\nSEE & DO: Carcassonne is a wonderful walled city where you can stroll through the fortifications and enjoy a meal in the walls.\nAqualand in Cap D’Agde has waterslides galore, while Narbonne’s Natural Park is home to a varied fauna and flora, including many species of birds.\nDRINK: Red wines using Carignan, Cinsault and Grenache grapes area a speciality here.\nAt Canet-en-Roussillon, Le Caraibe and Le Coco Loco are popular spots with locals and tourists alike thanks to their great sea views.\nEAT: Can Marcel in Canet-en-Roussillon offers top-class cuisine in smart, minimalist terrace surroundings, while Vigatane Cafe is great for Catalan-themed meals.\nThe fishing village of Marseillan Plage is perfect for an evening alfresco meal with many seafood restaurants.\nSHOP: Canet-en-Roussillon is a fashionista’s playground with chic boutiques – and prices to match! Head to Boulevard Cassanyes for French fashion brands, jewellery, accessories and more.\nTOP 3 EUROCAMP PARKS NEARBY:\n1. La Chapelle : Pick up trinkets in the quirky night market, or rent a bike and take a cycling tour of the beautiful area.\n2. Le Soleil : The only park with beach access in Argeles-Sur-Mer, it's also a stone's throw away from plenty of bustling bars and restaurants.\n3. La Beach Garden : Tucked away on the edge of a nature reserve, there's everything from a lagoon pool to the nearby Marseillan beach.\n6. Vendée\nMiles of beach come as standard, but there’s more to explore if you can tear yourself away from the coast.\nSEE & DO: Le Puy du Fou is a spectacular medieval experience set in the heart of an ancient forest. Stay for the evening show – an open-air performance of Vikings at war involving 850 people.\nSet your heart a-flutter at L’île aux Papillons, where thousands of butterflies fly in the tropical halls.\nHit La Route de Sel (the Salt Road) and paddle through Sallertaine’s ancient salt marshes by canoe. The evening trip ends with a candlelit dinner.\nDRINK: Troussepinette is a powerful spirit made from blackthorn shoots and served as an aperitif. Sip with caution! Enjoy a cocktail or local wine as the sun fades over the Atlantic at Le Comptoir in\nSaint-Jean-de-Monts.\nEAT: Locals claim the best oysters in the whole of France are served at the Mord’Eau bar in Port du Bec, near Beauvoir-sur-Mer.\nTry tournedos rossini, duck, salmon and mushroom pâtes at La Ferme de Melusine eatery in Saint-Hilaire-de-Riez.\nSHOP: For food, flowers and bric–a-brac head to the French markets in St Gilles Croix-de-Vie, St Jean-de-Monts and Bretignolles-sur-Mer.\nTOP 3 EUROCAMP PARKS NEARBY:\n1. Le Clarys Plage : Looking for a day out to keep the kids entertained? Le Clarys Plage is just a 90-minute drive to the fun-filled Puy de Fou theme park.\n2. Les Ecureuils : Tennis, gym and a game of boules are just some of the activities on offer for the more active at this park.\n3. La Garangeoire : There's a pretty diverse range of activities from archery to scuba diving on offer at this park!\n(Image: Getty)\n7. Dordogne\nSteeped in history and famous for its wide-ranging cuisine, the Dordogne region offers France in all its glory.\nSEE & DO: Explore the network of stunning cave systems featuring some of the world’s oldest prehistoric paintings, such as the Grotte de Bara-Bahau in Le Bugue and nearby Gouffre de Proumeyssac’s Cathedral of Crystal, home to stunning stalactites and stalagmites.\nRoque Saint-Christophe near Peyzac-le-Moustier is the largest troglodyte cliff in Europe and was once home to Neanderthal man.\nDRINK: The area around Bergerac produces prestigious wines – sample Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec in abundance. The vineyard tour at Chateau Monbazillac is particularly good.\nEAT: The region is a foodie paradise, famous for forest truffles, confits of duck and goose and the legendary Rocamadour goat’s cheese.\nMedieval Sarlat is home to a host of authentic cafes and restaurants; Le Presidial is a French fine dining experience.\nSHOP: There are many evening farmers’ markets where you can go for some gourmet shopping. The pick is Aubas, which runs throughout July and August.\nTOP 3 EUROCAMP PARKS NEARBY:\n1. St Avit Loisirs : There's a medieval town just a short drive away, as well as a nearby water park.\n2. La Palombiere : Enjoy a spot of wine-tasting or go for a leisurely stroll along some of the picturesque trails nearby.\n3. Le Moulin de Paulhiac : There are plenty of attractions nearby by from castles to an aquarium.\n8. Gironde/Gastony/Pyr énées\nHead for the hills in the Pyrénées, find sun and sea in Gironde and a slower pace of life in Gascony.\nSEE & DO: Try your hand at windsurfing or hire a dinghy on Etang de Soustons (Soustons Lake), visit the mountain-top observatory at Pic du Midi to see one of France’s most powerful telescopes and amazing views.\nDRINK: Enjoy the wine in Saint Emilion – one of the most attractive of the Bordeaux wine villages with countless wine cellars, or share cocktails by the sea at Le Surf in Hourtin.\nLocal delicacy Floc is a wine liqueur that is fortified with armagnac brandy – perfect before dinner.\nEAT: Visit Tantina de la Playa in Bidart for dinner and views. Thon à la basquaise (tuna fillet in a tomato and pepper sauce) is a speciality. Or try Restaurant La Foret in Meschers-sur-Gironde for seafood and patisserie galore.\nSHOP: La Cigale in Nerac was the inspiration for the film Chocolat – so take home some luxurious hand-made treats.\nTOP 3 EUROCAMP PARKS NEARBY:\n1. Sequoia Parc : Explore the beautiful Cognac vineyards or enjoy a fun-filled family day at the on-site water park.\n2. Le Vieux Port : Get away from the hustle and bustle of every day life at the relaxing spa, or a cycle through the lusciously green woodland nearby.\n3. Airotel Pyrenees : Not only is it right by a National Park, but this Eurocamp is just 800m from the historic town of Luz St Sauveur.", "Marine Le Pen, French National Front (FN) candidate for 2017 presidential election, poses before an interview with Reuters in Paris, France, May 2, 2017. REUTERS/Charles Platiau\nMarine Le Pen, French National Front (FN) candidate for 2017 presidential election, speaks during an interview with Reuters in Paris, France, May 2, 2017. REUTERS/Charles Platiau\nMarine Le Pen, French National Front (FN) candidate for 2017 presidential election, speaks during an interview with Reuters in Paris, France, May 2, 2017. REUTERS/Charles Platiau\nMarine Le Pen, French National Front (FN) candidate for 2017 presidential election, speaks during an interview with Reuters in Paris, France, May 2, 2017. REUTERS/Charles Platiau\nMarine Le Pen, French National Front (FN) candidate for 2017 presidential election, speaks during an interview with Reuters in Paris, France, May 2, 2017. REUTERS/Charles Platiau\nMarine Le Pen, French National Front (FN) candidate for 2017 presidential election, speaks during an interview with Reuters in Paris, France, May 2, 2017. REUTERS/Charles Platiau\nMarine Le Pen, French National Front (FN) candidate for 2017 presidential election, speaks during an interview with Reuters in Paris, France, May 2, 2017. REUTERS/Charles Platiau\nPARIS Far-right candidate Marine Le Pen said capital controls were an option if she won Sunday's presidential election and there was a run on banks as she negotiated France's exit from the European Union, but stressed they were unlikely to be needed.\nAfter days of mixed messages about ditching the euro, a move unpopular with a majority of voters, Le Pen made clear in an interview on Tuesday that she wanted to take France out of the single currency EUR=.\n\"The euro has protected no one, quite the contrary. The euro has been a deadweight for prices, a deadweight for jobs, a deadweight for the competitiveness of our businesses and it would be much simpler to kick-start the economy without this common currency,\" Le Pen said.\nShe accused the political establishment of wanting to \"frighten\" voters into thinking otherwise.\nLe Pen said she wanted to replace the EU single currency with another, looser type of cooperation in the form of the ECU basket of currencies that preceded the euro.\nThat would exist alongside a national currency, which she said she hoped the French people would have in their pockets within two years if she won power.\nWhile a strong majority of National Front supporters back a return to the Franc, opinion polls show three quarters of French voters want to keep the euro, a major obstacle in Le Pen's run for the Elysee.\nLast week Le Pen said abandoning the single currency was not her top economic priority and the measure has not featured on her campaign fliers ahead of the second round.\nBoth were widely viewed as moves to soothe the worries of mainstream right-wing voters whose backing she needs if she is to defy opinion polls and triumph. But she told Reuters it was because \"99.999 percent of French know very well what my stance is.\"\nEU REFERENDUM\nFrance was a founding member of today's European Union and many investors believe its exit from the euro would precipitate the single currency's demise.\nAsked if eventual French negotiations to quit the EU could trigger a run on French banks, Le Pen said: \"I am convinced there won't be any banking crisis.\"\nWhen pressed on whether she would impose capital controls if savers nevertheless did rush to take their money out of banks, she said: \"If there's a run on banks, we could very well imagine such a solution for a few days, but I'm telling you it won't happen.\"\nLe Pen said she would launch negotiations with the EU immediately after winning to regain national sovereignty. The talks would include dumping the euro as well as regaining control of France's borders and being able to decide French legislation alone, she said.\nThose negotiations could last six to eight months, she said, after which France would hold a referendum on its EU membership. She advocated replacing the EU with a \"Europe of projects\", a loose cooperative of nations that collaborates on ventures spanning business, security and energy on a case-by-case basis.\nIf she were happy with the outcome of the negotiations, she would recommend staying inside the bloc, she said.\nIf she was dissatisfied, which would be most likely, she would urge voters to support France's exit, following Britain's example after its referendum last summer.\nLe Pen said her first trip abroad would be to Brussels, headquarters of the EU, where she would inform leaders of EU member states of France's intentions.\nThe European Commission, the bloc's executive arm, would not be welcome at that meeting, she added.\nAsked what she would say to German Chancellor Angela Merkel at their first meeting, Le Pen said: \"France will now stand up for the interests of France.\"\n(Writing by Ingrid Melander; Editing by Richard Lough)", "Do you hear the people sing? Join in our crusade! Nick Cartell, Josh Davis and Melissa Mitchell will lead the national tour of Les Miserables, as Jean Valjean, Javert and Fantine, respectively. The touring production of the blockbuster musical, directed by Laurence Connor, will kick off at the Providence Performing Arts Center in Providence, RI, on September 21, before bringing the revolution to cities across North America.\nIn addition to Cartell, Davis and Mitchell, the cast of the Les Miserables tour will feature J. Anthony Crane as Thénardier, Allison Guinn as Madame Thénardier, Matt Shingledecker as Enjolras, Phoenix Best as Éponine, Joshua Grosso as Marius and Jillian Butler as Cosette. Zoe Glick and Sophie Knapp alternate in the role of Little Cosette/Young Éponine, and Jordan Cole and Julian Emile Lerner alternate in the role of Gavroche.\nThe ensemble includes John Ambrosino, Robert Ariza, Daniel Berryman, Felipe Barbosa Bombonato, Gabriel Sidney Brown, Brittany Campbell, Julie Cardia, Sarah Cetrulo, Amelia Cormack, Steve Czarnecki, Julia Rose Di Piazza, Nicholas Edwards, Caitlin Finnie, Michelle Beth Herman, Monté J. Howell, Andrew Love, Maggie Elizabeth May, Matt Moisey, Mary Kate Moore, Talia Simone Robinson, Mike Schwitter, Liz Shivener, Brett Stoelker, Kyle Timson and Christopher Viljoen.\nAdapted from Victor Hugo's classic novel, Les Miserables is set against the backdrop of 19th-century France, and tells an enthralling story of broken dreams and unrequited love, passion, sacrifice and redemption—a timeless testament to the survival of the human spirit. The score includes the famous songs “I Dreamed a Dream,” “On My Own,” “Stars,” “Bring Him Home,” “Do You Hear the People Sing?,” “One Day More,” “Empty Chairs at Empty Tables,” “Master Of The House” and many more. The groundbreaking musical is written by Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schonberg, with lyrics by Herbert Kretzmer, original French text by Boublil and Jean-Marc Natel, original adaption by Trevor Nunn and John Caird and additional material by James Fenton.\nThe musical premiered on Broadway in 1987 and was revived in 2006 and 2014. The new production was conceived in 2009 to celebrate the 25th anniversary, with record-breaking productions in the U.K., Australia, Korea, Japan, Spain, France, Manila, Singapore and Dubai. The acclaimed film adaptation, starring Hugh Jackman and Anne Hathaway, received eight Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, and won three Academy Awards.\nTo find out when Les Miserables is headed to your city, click here and here.", "Emmanuel Macron, head of the political movement En Marche !, or Onwards !, and candidate for the 2017 presidential election, is seen during a campaign visit of the ruins in the village of Oradour-sur-Glane, France, April 28, 2017. REUTERS/Pascal Lachenaud/Pool\nBrigitte Trogneux, wife of French presidential election candidate for the En Marche ! movement Emmanuel Macron (R rear) visits the ruins in the village of Oradour-sur-Glane, France, April 28, 2017. REUTERS/Pascal Lachenaud/Pool\nEmmanuel Macron (R), head of the political movement En Marche !, or Onwards !, and candidate for the 2017 presidential election listens to Robert Hebras (L), one of the survivors of the Oradour-sur-Glane massacre, during a campaign visit of the ruins in the village of Oradour-sur-Glane, France, April 28, 2017. REUTERS/Pascal Lachenaud/Pool\nFILE PHOTO: France's far right National Front political party leader Marine Le Pen (L) and National Front Vice-Presidents Jean-Francois Jalkh (C) and Florian Philippot leave the Elysee Palace in Paris following a meeting with French President Francois Hollande, May 16, 2014. REUTERS/Philippe Wojazer\nA woman walks past new official posters of candidates for the 2017 French presidential election Emmanuel Macron, head of the political movement En Marche !, or Onwards !, (L) and Marine Le Pen, French National Front (FN) political party leader (R), in Paris, France, April 28, 2017. REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes\nEmmanuel Macron, head of the political movement En Marche !, or Onwards !, and candidate for the 2017 presidential election, signs the guest book as the Mayor of Oradour-sur-Glane Philippe Lacroix (R Rear), stands near during a visit of the ruins in the village of Oradour-sur-Glane, France, April 28, 2017. REUTERS/Pascal Lachenaud/Pool\nMarine Le Pen, French National Front (FN) political party leader and candidate for French 2017 presidential election, arrives at her campaign headquarters in Paris, France, April 28, 2017. REUTERS/Charles Platiau\nMarine Le Pen, French National Front (FN) political party leader and candidate for French 2017 presidential election, arrives at her campaign headquarters in Paris, France, April 28, 2017. REUTERS/Charles Platiau\nMarine Le Pen, French National Front (FN) political party leader and candidate for French 2017 presidential election, arrives at her campaign headquarters in Paris, France, April 28, 2017. REUTERS/Charles Platiau\nMarine Le Pen (C), French National Front (FN) political party leader and candidate for French 2017 presidential election, arrives at her campaign headquarters in Paris, France, April 28, 2017. REUTERS/Charles Platiau\nPARIS/CHATELLERAULT, France Marine Le Pen's bid to defy the odds and win the French presidency risked a setback on Friday when her designated stand-in as National Front party leader stood down to defend himself against charges he shares the views of Holocaust deniers.\nAfter an intense day of campaigning ahead of a May 7 run-off vote in which both the far-right's Le Pen and her centrist opponent Emmanuel Macron were carried back to the events of World War Two, surveys continued to show the independent Macron well ahead.\nBut in a couple of potential blows to the centrist favorite, defeated far-left leader Jean-Luc Melenchon stopped short of endorsing him, despite telling his faithful not to vote for Le Pen.\nElection graphic: http: //tmsnrt.rs/2p6zUPE\nFirst round election graphic: tmsnrt.rs/2lPduBG\nAnd another loser from the first round, Nicolas Dupont-Aignan, endorsed Le Pen, as expected.\nThe abrupt departure of Jean-Francois Jalkh from the National Front (FN) party leadership before he had even taken on the job raised ghosts of the FN's past and revived a furor sparked by Le Pen's father when he called the Nazi gas chambers a \"detail\" of history.\nThe renewed controversy threatens moves by Le Pen, who expelled her father, Jean-Marie Le Pen, from the party two years ago, to cleanse the FN's image of xenophobic and anti-semitic associations and make it more palatable to a broader electorate.\n\"There comes a time when the women and men of France must open their eyes to where the National Front comes from,\" Macron's campaign director Richard Ferrand said.\nThe presidential contest has blown apart traditional party loyalties, presenting voters with a stark choice between a resurgent far right, once a pariah in French politics, and a man whose political movement is less than a year old and who has never held elected office.\nIt sets Macron's enthusiasm for the European Union and call for pro-business reforms to boost growth against Le Pen's desire for France to close its borders to immigrants, unwind EU institutions and restrict imports to protect jobs.\nMost opinion polls show him winning next Sunday, with 60 percent or more of the vote, a slightly smaller margin than a week ago.\nJalkh, a long-time ally of Le Pen senior who founded the National Front, was one of 35 FN members elected to parliament in the mid-1980s. He had been due to take over as interim party chief, a post Marine Le Pen has vacated to focus on the presidential race.\nFN officials said Jalkh denies the allegations linking him to Holocaust deniers, and Le Pen herself later told BFM TV \"there is no one in the leadership of the National Front who defends this sort of thesis\".\nAt issue are comments attributed to Jalkh in a conversation with a researcher in 2005 about the work of a professor convicted more than once for questioning the scale of Jewish extermination in Nazi gas chambers during World War Two. Also unearthed was a 1991 report that said Jalkh attended a rally held by supporters of Marshal Philippe Petain, French wartime leader and Nazi collaborator, in July of that year.\nLe Pen's father has been convicted of inciting racial hatred for his remarks on the Holocaust, and referred to them himself as recently as 2015.\nGAY MARRIAGE JIBE\nA thorn in her side, the 88 year-old has refused to be silent as his daughter bids for power.\nHe courted controversy again on Friday, saying a remembrance ceremony for a policeman killed last week by an attacker in Paris \"exalted\" the concept of gay marriage by giving the policeman's male partner the stage to speak in his memory.\nMarine Le Pen attended the state ceremony with other political figures including Macron, and distanced herself from her father's comment on Friday.\n\"I felt it was a very dignified ceremony and I was very moved by the speech of his partner,\" she said.\nAs Le Pen and her party grappled with the latest turn of events, Macron had troubles too.\nMelenchon, who came fourth in the election with about one on five votes of which about 40 percent are expected to back Macron, stopped short of endorsing him in a video released on YouTube.\nFringe right-wing candidate Dupont-Aignan, meanwhile, gave his backing to Le Pen as expected. He gathered 4.7 percent of the first round vote.\nMacron on Friday campaigned at a village preserved as a monument to inhabitants killed by German SS soldiers in 1944.\n\"Deciding not to remember is to take the risk of repeating history,\" the 39-year-old said in Oradour-sur-Glane, near Limoges in central France, a thinly veiled attack on Le Pen for the anti-immigrant policies he says are fuelling divisions in French society.\nMacron later gave a speech in Chatellerault, western France, taking his election battle to rural areas where disgruntled farmers have increasingly shied away from politicians or turned to the far-right following years of crisis.\n(Additional reporting by Cyril Camu; Writing by Brian Love; Editing by Andrew Callus and Andrew Heavens)", "One of the two guitar players who gave the classic rock band Boston their unique sound was Barry Goudreau. After his departure, he went on to start numerous groups, including his newest band Barry Goudreau’s Engine Room. I caught up with Barry at his studio in Massachusetts where he talked about being influenced by the blues, his love for Gibson SG’s, and the inspiration behind his new music.\nJL: What inspired you to become a musician?\nBG: Way back when I was a little kid, I remember driving in my mother’s 59 Plymouth standing in the backseat listening to rock n’ roll radio and that’s when I heard Elvis. Then I saw Elvis on T.V., and he had the guitar swung down low and all the girls were screaming, and I decided, I wanna do that! I didn’t want to be the singer, I just liked the guitar part. I was about nine at the time and I kept telling my parents, I wanna play the guitar. Their response was, maybe later. By the time I got to be eleven, they finally gave in and borrowed my babysitters acoustic guitar and hitched me up with some lessons, and like the saying goes, I played until my fingers bled. I really loved it and they realized that I was serious about it and they bought me a used 1962 white Fender Stratocaster. That was one of the greatest things that ever happened to me. By the time I was 13, I was in my first band playing covers of bands like The Rolling Stones and The Kinks, and I have been at it ever since.\nJL: Some of the earliest songs that you did with the band Boston have gone on to become “rock anthems”. What is your point of view about what makes a song a rock anthem?\nBG: Oh my god……I suppose if we knew the answer to that, every song we wrote would be a rock anthem. When we were working on the material, we all thought it was great and it should do really well. The songs that turned out to be the most popular, I wouldn’t have necessarily picked out to be the hits.\nJL: When you think about music and getting played on the radio, every song on that the first Boston album got airplay–– which is a rare feat for many bands. Do you think that is even possible for bands today to achieve?\nBG: No I don’t. Part of the problem is the way radio is formatted. There is a lot of radio for the Pop kind of music, and if you do that, then I suppose you have a pretty good chance. But for a straight-ahead rock band, there’s not a whole lot of outlets for it. Now-a-days, streaming and social media is really the way things happen. For what I play, which is blues-rock, there is no format on radio that’s playing that. Stuff I played in classic rock, is played on classic rock stations, but classic rock radio doesn’t play anything new.\nJL: Do you think it’s because more people are buying individual songs rather than full albums?\nBG: Yes, I think that is a lot of it. Back in the day, going out and buying that vinyl record––it was big, and you could sit there and look at it and there was liner notes and pictures––it was a whole different experience. When it went to CD’s, it was kind of close to the record but the CD was little and all the writing was tiny. That whole experience is practically gone. A lot of people are now turning back to vinyl which I think is great, but I don’t think it will ever get back to what it was.\nJL: Since Boston, you’ve been in or started a number of bands including: RTZ, Orion The Hunter, Ernie and The Mechanics, American Vinyl All-Star Band and now your newest project is Barry Goudreau’s Engine Room. The new CD titled Full Steam Ahead is very guitar centric. What was the inspiration behind this new band and music?\nLeslii Stevens | Studio 23 Barry Goudreau playing with Jonny Lang during the 2016 Experience Hendrix tour.\nBG: Well, in 2016, I had the opportunity to sit in with the Experience Hendrix tour down at the Hard Rock Hotel in Florida. I had met Jonny Lang a couple of times before. He had played with us once in the All-Star band. I was invited to go up and play with him on this tour and it was great––we got a standing ovation. After the set, I was walking through the hall backstage and people were giving me high-fives, and I thought to myself, this is what I should be doing. When I started playing guitar, I played along to blues records, one being the Paul Butterfield Blues Band. And when the English bands came over, like Jeff Beck, Humble Pie, and Cream, they were taking this American blues and kicking it up with big drum sounds and big guitars and Marshall Amplifiers. That’s what I was in to before Boston took off. So, I just had this epiphany, this is what I should be doing. I called up my old buds Tim Archibald and Brian Maes from the RTZ band to see if they’d be interested, and they both signed on immediately and said let’s get together next week. After I hung up the phone, I realized that I didn’t have a note of music written––Nothing! I sat down over that week and came up with a whole bunch of musical ideas and chord changes and the other guys had some great ideas as well. The very first time we got together, most of the record came into focus.\nJL: Much of the music feels rooted in the blues. What blues musicians really captivated you and made you interested in that genre of music?\nBG: The Paul Butterfield Blues Band in the mid-60’s was really big for me. When I first started playing guitar, I was a rhythm guitar player. When I started playing along to those blues records is when I started to find my musical voice. I remember going to see Cream here in Boston who took some of the blues classics and supercharged them. I remember the curtains opened up and there was this giant drum set and Marshall amps and Eric Clapton was playing a Gibson SG guitar. Right there on the spot I said, I have to have one of those guitars and one of those amplifiers. After the show, I went out and bought a ‘68 SG which I still play to this day.\nLeslii Stevens | Studio 23\nJL: I’ve seen a lot of pictures of you playing those Gibson SG’s. What do you get out of that guitar that you don’t in other guitars?\nBG: One thing about them––they’re very light unlike Les Paul guitars which are very heavy––and I’m a small guy so, playing the Les Paul’s for a long period of time on stage is a lot of work. The other thing that I liked about the SG’s is that they have a long, thin neck.\nJL: What’s the most important song on Barry Goudreau’s Engine Room?\nBG: That’s a tough one. I’m proud of all of them. The first song on the album, Need, is a rocking song, which is one of my favorites, as well as Time, which Brian Maes started writing years ago and we finished up for this record. It’s the first song that we used women singing the background parts.\nJL: As a songwriter, did you ever go through a bout of writer’s block in any of the bands/projects you were a part of? If so, how does an artist overcome that?\nBG: Absolutely. I did the RTZ record in the early 90’s. We did one record for Warner Brothers. We had a whole lot of material to do a second record, but Brad (Delp) ended up leaving to rejoin Boston for a tour. After RTZ ended, I felt that I needed to be around for my kids. So, I was home for most of the 90’s and I decided I wanted to do another record, and I sat down and I couldn’t come up with anything. I spoke to a friend of mine who was a recording engineer at the time and he said, you know what you need to do is, turn on a recorder and just play. And then later on, listen back and pick out what you think works or doesn’t work. I tried it, and sure enough, it worked. I then brought Brad in to help me with lyrics and that ended up being the Delp Goudreau CD that I did in 2003.\nJL: Do you embrace the digital technology that is used now-a-days to record & produce music?\nBG: I use to have a 16-track analog recorder and absolutely loved the sound of it. The problem was, it came to a point where buying the tape and maintaining the machine was difficult. So I ended up buying a digital recorder and it’s so much easier to work with.\nJL: Do you find that there are advantages or disadvantages vs. recording analog?\nBG: In the analog days, when you recorded a song, you wanted to get everything right. The performance was much more important than it is now. With digital, you can just go in and fix a note if you wanted or move a section around.\nJL: What are some of the most important things that you know now about the dynamics of being in a band and working in the industry that you wish you had learned earlier in your career?\nBG: Being in a band is like being married. You learn over the course of it how to do it. I really enjoy the camaraderie of working in a band. Looking back with my history with Boston, I could have handled things a little bit differently, and things could have turned out differently, but you learn as you go along. Every situation is different––every band is different.\nJL: What is your greatest musical achievement to date?", "Paris – Christie’s France will celebrate the second edition of its dedicated 20th century sale season during the week of FIAC, the international contemporary art fair that animates the city, from October 19th to October 21st. During this exceptional week, Christie’s will offer over 300 lots by leading international artists with a global estimate of €65-90 million. Last year, Christie’s realised €42M selling 84% by lot and 91% by value. During this busy week, six artists records were established including for the French artist Daniel Buren.\nFrançois de Ricqlès, President of Christie’s France: “During this week in October, Paris is the center of the art world. Our three sales organised during this international event will span the 20thcentury and will include rare works with prestigious provenances carefully selected by our specialists. The auctions will offer masterworks from the early 20th century, alongside many different collecting categories including Books, Photographs, Design, Modern Art and Contemporary Art. The departments have worked closely together to build this strong sale season which is sure to attract connoisseurs from around the world”.\nPARIS AVANT-GARDE – THURSDAY 19TH OCTOBER 2017 AT 7PM\nDuring FIAC, Christie’s Paris will organise the second edition of its Paris Avant-Garde auction which saw strong results last year realising €20,5M with 33 lots. This curated evening sale reinforces Christie’s strategy of pioneering innovative and successful auctions evolving the arena of 20th Century collecting.\nThroughout the 20th Century, Paris occupied a capital role for the Avant-Garde movement, attracting artists from around the globe to contribute in the development of new artistic ideas. Within this context grew many of the fundamental artistic movements of the 20th Century, from Fauvism, Cubism and Surrealism through to the beginnings of Lyrical Abstraction and New Realism. Our sale will present carefully-selected works from the leading names of these movements, many of which will appear on the market for the first time.\nThe sale’s cover lot is a monumental sculpture by Alberto Giacometti (2, 76 m). This Grande Femme II is one of only 3 casts (from a total of 10) remaining in private hands. The sculpture was conceived by Giacometti in 1961 when he was asked to realise a project for the Chase Manhattan Bank’s public plaza in New York. After more than a year of work, the artist renounced the project due to difficulties in realising the scale required. Nevertheless, Grande Femme II was chosen by the artist to be exhibited subsequently in several prestigious locations such as the Venice Biennale in 1962 and the Fondation Maeght in 1964.\nPierre Martin-Vivier, Director 20th century art: “Grande Femme II is a true masterpiece first realised by Alberto Giacometti in 1961. This sculpture remains an icon of the 20th century occidental sculpture along with the Thinker by Auguste Rodin or La muse endormie by Constantin Brancusi recently sold at Christie’s New York for $57,3M. The sale of this monumental sculpture promises to be one of the most important art market events of 2017”.\nAmongst the other works offered in the Avant-Garde sale, collectors will discover a unique sculpture by Max Ernst. Titled Un microbe vu à travers un tempérament, the present sculpture, estimated €600,000-800,000 is the original and unique assemblage that Ernst created in 1964. The central element of the composition is the wooden apparatus used to harness a horse or ox to a cart, the slightly bent shafts reaching upward to a height of over 2 meters. An iron wheel bearing is mounted to the upper end of the central plank, and a pair of chains, joined together by a ring, hangs between the towering wagon-shafts. The forms combine to create the image of a stela-like creature, grand and austere, which transfixes the viewer with its round eyes and gaping mouth. The wagon-shafts read either as gigantic horns or excessively long extremities that the creature throws into the air, as if caught unaware. The title that Ernst gave to the sculpture - Microbe vu à travers un tempérament - has a powerful resonance in the history of modern art. The poet Tristan Tzara, one of the founders of Dada, memorably referred to the movement as a “virgin microbe”, likening its impact on the public to that of an infection, virulent and self-promoting (quoted in R. Motherwell, ed., The Dada Painters and Poets: An Anthology, Massachusetts, 1981, p. 251). The title of the sculpture is also inspired by Emile Zola : Une œuvre d’art est un coin de la création vu à travers un tempérament. In the present sculpture, the paradoxically massive scale underscores the importance of the microbe in Ernst’s artistic taxonomy.\nThe silhouette of a man with a raised arm is realised on a concrete wall in Berlin. This human imprint, like a signature, has become the symbol of a new approach to architecture. Le Corbusier had long been fascinated by the impact of space on human psychology. Echoing an interest which stretched back to Antiquity, the architect sought out the proportions and measurements which would determine harmonious form. Yet in contrast to the monumental constructions of ancient times, he proposed a new architecture whose rationalism was founded on a human scale. In the early 1940s, Le Corbusier’s research coalesced into a coherent entity, which he later named Modulor. An instrument which was both poetic and mathematical, it was based on a single universal reference: the human body, albeit one whose size was arbitrarily fixed at 2.26 metres in height, including its raised arm. It was in 1947 that his research reached a climax, and that he invited Constantin Andréou to sculpt the figures of his Modulor men which would later be embedded in the still-fresh concrete walls of his Cité Radieuse. Andréou’s work pleased Le Corbusier, to the point that in 1957 the latter again commissioned the Greek sculptor to execute additional Modulors for his residential block in Berlin. As in all of his work, Le Corbusier supervised every aspect of production of these Modulors. As records show, it was Le Corbusier who carefully chose the finest quality timber, and who oversaw production down even to accepting or adjusting Andréou’s slightest initiatives. The figure presented here, estimated €200,000-€300,000, was affixed to the east and west facades of the stairwell in the Berlin residential block. Notably, it was incorporated into a Modulor matrix, thus providing the full measure of Le Corbusier’s revolutionary system.\nA true masterpiece of Surrealism, Facile is a vibrant testimony of an artistic symbiosis between Paul Eluard, Man Ray and Paul Bonet, all three of them inspired by Maria Benz, better known as Nusch, Paul Eluard’s wife. Edited in 1935, the present edition of Facile, estimated at €500,000-700,000, is a combination of Eluard’s poems which also includes a post card from Nusch to Eluard, an autograph letter by May Ray as well as the wedding announcement of Eluard and Maria Benz. The binding realised in 1943 by Paul Bonet, comprises Nusch’s leather gloves on both the front and back cover with the names of Eluard and Nusch repeatedly written in golden capital letters. The choice of motifs and imagery symbolises in a touching and subtle way, the love between the couple: an “Hymne à l’amour” of a poet to his muse embodied in an exquisite surrealist work.\nDeeply innovative, the work of Sergio Camargo: Sans titre (Relief No. 353), estimated at €450,000-650,000, is built on the close relationship the artist introduced between the volumes he created and the changing perception the viewer can have when looking at the piece. Indeed, depending on the perspective angle, a diagonal line appears, crossing the composition with a clean and sharp division. The line seems to be the only way out of the labyrinth covering the entire surface. Following Lucio Fontana’s research that echoes with both the Spatialism movement and the Zero Group, Camargo creates an animated work that escapes from the traditional picture plane of a canvas. His compositions are an invitation to explore pictorial space differently, by letting the eye discovers the changing reality of forms.\nMODERN ART – 20TH OCTOBER 2017 AT 3PM\nThe Impressionist and Modern Art department will present a sale dedicated to Modern Art, with more than 90 works offered including an important group of five works by James Ensor from a private Belgian collection. Amongst these, Christie’s will offer Nature morte au Magot-Chinoiseries, étoffes (estimated at €700,000-1,000,000), an important still-life oil-on-canvas by Ensor painted circa 1891. With this work, Ensor is at the zenith of his art and brings the viewer to the depths of a subtle and marvelous world filled with objects and masks that surrounded him in his home town of Ostend. In Nature morte au Magot-Chinoiseries, étoffes, a series of objects and fabrics seems to create a slightly confused scene with items nonchalantly stacked or even sometimes piled up, unveiling their different facets to viewers. Vases, pots and dolls mixed with colored fabrics are placed next to a velvet handbag and dominated in the middle by a standing china figurine holding in both hands a Chinese vase decorated with a phoenix.\nTwo masks - Ensor’s very favorite objects - rising from a pile of yellow cloth, make the scene even more enigmatic. The piece highlights the ability of Ensor to create art through light and color, with a very subtle colour palette the objects almost come to life.\nThibault Stockmann, Specialist in charge of the Modern Art sale: “We are proud to present our Modern Art sale, in the context of a very exciting sale week at Christie’s Paris. Led by the Ensor and a forceful Tête d’homme painted in 1964 by Pablo Picasso, the sale will present a large variety of artists and estimates which we expect to appeal the international crowd gathered in Paris at this very special time of the art market calendar.”\nTHE MARIE-ALINE AND JEAN-FRANÇOIS PRAT COLLECTION – 20TH & 21TH October 2017\nChristie’s will host the sale of the collection of Jean-François (who died in 2011) and Marie-Aline Prat on Friday 20 and Saturday 21 October 2017, during the week-long Paris international contemporary art fair, FIAC. Comprising more than 200 works, this exceptional collection is a testimony to their shared passion for modern, post-war and contemporary art., which lasted for half a century. The collection includes works by some of the most important international figures of the 20th century, such as Jean-Michel Basquiat, Sigmar Polke, Lucio Fontana and Robert Ryman, and highlights the Prats’ taste for French artists; Jean Dubuffet, Yves Klein, Simon Hantaï and Martin Barré. Estimated in the region of €29,000,000 to 40,000,000, this auction will be divided into two sessions (evening and day sales) with a preview exhibition from 14 to 21 October at the Hôtel Salomon de Rothschild (11, rue Berryer 75008, Paris).\nEdouard Boccon-Gibod, Managing Director of Christie’s France: “Christie’s is endeavoring to think of this sale less as a tribute than as the photograph of one adventure that leads to another, like an invitation to continue to write the history of these works that Jean-François and Marie-Aline Prat loved, as a way of passing on and sharing this lifelong passion again and again.”\nPaul Nyzam, Head of Sale: “French collections of this quality can be counted on the figures of one hand. Intelligence, sensitivity and independence were the main principles in the creation of this superb collection. Presented in the splendid setting of the reception rooms of the Hôtel Salomon de Rothschild, the exhibition will offer international collectors the chance to observe the links the couple created between French artists and their European and American peers. On show, for example, is Basquiat conversing with Dubuffet, Klein with Stella, Ryman with Lavier, Fontana with Hantaï and even Barré with Halley. These original and fertile associations make this auction one of the highlights of the 2017 art market year”.\nSALES DATES :\nParis Avant-Garde :\nThursday 19th October at 7 pm\nViewings: From Friday 14th October to Thursday 20th from 10 am to 6 pm: From Friday 14th October to Thursday 20th from 10 am to 6 pm\nModern Art:\nFriday 20th October at 3pm\nViewings: From Friday 14th October to Thursday 20th from 10 am to 6 pm: From Friday 14th October to Thursday 20th from 10 am to 6 pm\nThe Marie-Aline and Jean-François Prat collection :\nFriday 20th October at 7pm and Saturday 21th October at 2:30pm\nViewings:\nFrom 14 to 21 October at the Hôtel Salomon de Rothschild, 11 Rue Berryer, 75008 Paris\nChristie’s:\n9, avenue Matignon, 75008 Paris\nChristie’s, the world’s leading art business, had global auction, private and digital sales in first half of 2017 that totalled £2.35 billion / $3 billion. Christie’s is a name and place that speaks of extraordinary art, unparalleled service and expertise, as well as international glamour. Christie’s offers around 350 auctions annually in over 80 categories, including all areas of fine and decorative arts, jewellery, photographs, collectibles, wine, and more. Prices range from $200 to over $100 million. Christie’s also has a long and successful history conducting private sales for its clients in all categories, with emphasis on Post-War & Contemporary, Impressionist & Modern, Old Masters and Jewellery.\nAlongside regular sales online, Christie’s has a global presence in 46 countries, with 10 salerooms around the world including in London, New York, Paris, Geneva, Milan, Amsterdam, Dubai, Zürich, Hong Kong, and Shanghai.\n*Please note when quoting estimates above that other fees will apply in addition to the hammer price - see Section D of the Conditions of Sale at the back of the sale catalogue.\n*Estimates do not include buyer’s premium. Sales totals are hammer price plus buyer’s premium and are reported net of applicable fees.", "If You Go ... When: March 23, 2018, 7-8:30pm What: 50’s and 60’s Rock n Roll Show “Graffiti Gold” When: March 24th, 2018 7-10pm What: Motown with Diversity Where: Sound Bites Grill Show Room 101 N Hwy 89a Sedona AZ, 86336 at Hyatt Pinon Pointe Shops Uptown Sedona. Cross Street Hwy 179 More Info: 928-282-2713 • www.soundbitesgri...\nHead over to Sound Bites Grill for the best rock ‘n roll show in Sedona—“Graffiti Gold” this Friday night\nTom Tayback is back in town with his band, the Daddy-O’s, playing all your favorite hits from the 1950’s and 60’s, the classic era of rock ‘n roll. This year Tom is introducing some new songs and material to the show for some great surprises. The band is warming up and will be ready to “Rock around the Clock” from 7-9p.m. March 23rd.\nTom Tayback and the Daddy-O’s musical arrangements will rekindle your memories of classic rock ‘n roll. Whether the Daddy O’s are playing primo surf music (like “Wipeout”) or squeezing every classic guitar riff into “Johnnie B. Good,” they are one great band!\nTickets for the show start at $20 and the entire dinner menu is available to order. Seating is social so you will meet other people.\nOn Saturday March 24th another local band will be performing that brings back memories of Motown. “Diversity” as they call themselves is led by a husband and wife team from Detroit, Tim & Renee Claybon. They are joined by the band members, Les Paul Roque on piano, Jamal Baker on drums, and a bass player. The band will perform from7-10pm in the Sound Bites Grill Show Room.\nThe five pieces have created a vibe of hip, pop, Motown, R and B, Blues, Country, Rock & dance like no other group of musicians and singers. Tim and Renee hit the ground running they both sing lead and backing vocals so you get a rich sound that enhances their diverse style and song selection.\nThis will be a night for dancing. So make your dinner reservation so you can secure the table for the evening. . Renee and Tim have relocated to Sedona from the Detroit area and have developed a huge following so the room fills up quickly. There is a $10 Ticket charge per person to sit in the Show room on Sat March 24th for Diversity.\nSound Bites Grill is located at the Hyatt Pinon Pointe Shops in uptown Sedona. For more information, reservations and tickets call 928-282-2713 or visit SoundBitesGrill.com." ]

[ "AP 9:51 AM Thursday, September 8, 2011 NBC News' Andrea Mitchell says she has breast cancer but says it hasn't spread and calls her prognosis ``terrific.''" ]

[ "Tennis great Martina Navratilova has been diagnosed with breast cancer, but it was caught early and her prognosis is good.", "NBC's Andrea Mitchell raised the ire of former Reagan speechwriter Peggy Noonan on Meet the Press when she said that Republicans were ``trying to appropriate Ronald Reagan for their own political purposes now.''", "``Recently I was diagnosed with stage 4 prostate cancer. Although I was shocked and stunned by the news, I feel fortunate that it was detected early and, according to my extraordinary team of doctors, the prognosis is positive for a full recovery.''", "NCAA president Myles Brand said Saturday he has pancreatic cancer and that the long-term prognosis is ``not good.''", "Doctors treating Illinois Rep. Deborah Mell say she's doing well following breast cancer surgery last month.", "NCAA President Myles is being treated for pancreatic cancer and, in a statement Saturday, he said ``the long-term prognosis is not good.''", "Peter Tork, a former member of the 1960s pop group the Monkees, says he has a rare form of head and neck cancer, but the prognosis is good.", "Martina, 53, was diagnosed in February with an early form of breast cancer called ductal carcinoma in situ.", "The wife of Michael C. Hall says the ``Dexter'' star is ``fully recovered'' from cancer and has returned to work.", "Tennis great Martina Navratilova, 53, has been diagnosed with breast cancer, reports, FOXNews.com.", "Author and television personality Suze Orman recently survived an emergency appendectomy performed in Chicago, reports The Chicago Sun Times.", "Bonnie Franklin, the petite red-headed from ``One Day At A Time'' was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, according to a recent statement released by her reps.", "Sharon, who is a host on the show, sat beside her daughter as she revealed, ``I'm absolutely convinced that I'm going to get cancer. ``I go to the doctor at least once a week for a B12 shot, because B12 is really good at building your immune system and keeping you healthy.'' She then talked about how hard it was to deal with her mother's illness, which at the time they feared was terminal, and how she gave up work and practically moved into the hospital with her for nearly two-years. Kelly then burst into tears and said she now rushes to the doctor whenever she feels the slightest lump or bump.", "Movie, television, and Broadway actress Christina Applegate has been diagnosed with breast cancer, according to her publicist Anne Van Iden.", "Cancer-stricken celebrity Jade Goody underwent emergency surgery as her terminal cancer spread to her brain, it has emerged.", "Former Valparaiso men's basketball coach Homer Drew and wife Janet have both recently been diagnosed with cancer.", "Diabetes sufferers and the obese have a worse colon cancer prognosis than someone without the disease, according to a new study published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.", "After stating on Aug. 2 that she has been diagnosed with ``an early form'' of breast cancer, Christina Applegate dropped a bombshell Tuesday, revealing that she'd undergone a double mastectomy.", "Outgoing Democratic Alliance parliamentary leader Sandra Botha is recovering in Johannesburg's Millpark Hospital after successful heart surgery.", "Lesbian financial guru/motivational speaker Suze Orman is recovering in a Chicago hotel after having an emergency appendectomy last weekend, according to a ChicagoBreakingNews.com item.", "With all her great qualities and all the terrific work she has done for Surrey, she would be a perfect premier.", "What has happened to the gifted director Atom Egoyan, who gave us such terrific films in the 1990s as ``Exotica'' and ``The Sweet Hereafter?''", "Olympian figure skater Johnny Weir has turned heads not only after his terrific performance in the men's skating short program, but for his persona off the ice as well.", "APPLE Inc Chief Executive Steve Jobs has an excellent prognosis following a liver transplant, the Memphis, Tennessee, hospital that performed the surgery said on Tuesday.", "Leanne Mitchell has won The Voice UK live final and bagged a recording contract with Universal.", "Doctors treating British reality television star Jade Goody for cancer have told her she has only months to live, her publicist Max Clifford said on Saturday.", "Actress Christina Applegate, famed for playing ditzy daughter Kelly Bundy on TV comedy ``Married With Children,'' is fighting breast cancer, but expected to make a full recovery, her spokeswoman said on Saturday.", "Apple CEO Steve Jobs recently underwent a liver transplant and ``has an excellent prognosis,'' a Memphis, Tenn., hospital has confirmed.", "Toronto has exercised its fourth year team option on Andrea Bargnani.", "Cancer stricken Jade Goody is ready to say 'bye-bye to her hair' after returning from a three-week pause to painful radio and chemotherapy treatments.", "Under the headline, ``Ex-Eagles receiver fraud: Freddie Mitchell pleads guilty, faces 10 years in prison'', sources report that Freddie Mitchell has indeed been found guilty of frauid this week.", "Unemployment registered in Bulgaria by the end of March is expected to be below 7%, is the prognosis of Bulgarian Social Minster Emilia Maslarova." ]

[ "Koko" ]

[ "Lambeau Field", "Magnetic field", "The Killing Fields", "Boxing Day (December 26)", "Marshall Field", "Field of Dreams", "Elysian Fields", "field offices", "\"Lilies of the Field\"", "Cyrus Field", "Field Museum", "Ebbets Field", "center field", "track & field", "Flanders Field", "Bosworth Field", "field hockey", "force field", "Strawberry Fields", "Turner Field", "\"In Flanders Fields\"", "Forbes Field", "gravitational field", "W.C. Fields", "Play the field" ]

[ "The term Throat generally refers to the Pharynx. It is located behind the Mouth and Nasal cavity and above the Esophagus. It is part of both the Respiratory and Digestive Systems, acting as a passage for both air and food during normal daily behavior. The Pharynx is made up of three parts:t is located behind the Mouth and Nasal cavity and above the Esophagus. It is part of both the Respiratory and Digestive Systems, acting as a passage for both air and food during normal daily behavior. The Pharynx is made up of three parts:" ]

[ "What is Pharynx cancer? Pharynx cancer is one type of cancer of the internal oral region; for more information see also oral cancer. Pharynx cancer: A condition that is characterised by a malignant lesion located in the pharynx.", "What is Pharynx Cancer (Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Pharynx) Pharynx cancer or squamous cell carcinoma of the pharynx is a cancer of the head and neck. In oncology squamous cell cancers of the head and neck are often considered together because they share many similarities – in incidence, cancer type, predisposing factors, pathological features, treatment and prognosis.", "Medical Definition of PHARYNGEAL POUCH. : any of a series of evaginations of ectoderm on either side of the pharynx that meet the corresponding external furrows and give rise to the branchial clefts of the vertebrate embryo.What made you want to look up pharyngeal pouch?edical Definition of PHARYNGEAL POUCH. : any of a series of evaginations of ectoderm on either side of the pharynx that meet the corresponding external furrows and give rise to the branchial clefts of the vertebrate embryo. What made you want to look up pharyngeal pouch?", "What is Pharyngitis? Pharyngitis is defined as the inflammation of the pharynx that often results in the condition known as a sore throat. The condition involves the pharynx which can be found immediately at the back of the mouth and the nasal cavity and just above the esophagus and the larynx.", "what type of fibers does the vagus nerve X have. general sensory from pharynx, larynx, thoracic and abdominal organs; special sensation to taste; somatic motor to muscles of pharynx and larynx; parasympathetic motor to thoracic and abdominal viscera, stimulating the rest and digest response. what does the vagus nerve X innerverate.", "What forces food back into the pharynx? The tongue is the muscle that forces food into the pharynx. When you chew and then swallow, it is the back of your tongue that forces the food back and down your throat. 2 people found this useful. Edit. Share to:", "Nose, Pharynx, Larynx, Trachea, Bronchi, Bronchioles (Conduction Zone) Organs. The nose, pharynx, larynx, trachea, and bronchi, bronchioles. Function. The nose is the only part of the respiratory system that you can see. It is where air enters but it is also where air is warmed, made moist, filtered and cleaned, and smelled.", "Pathway of the air to the lungs: Pharynx--> Larynx--> Trachea--> Bronchus--> Bronchiole--> Aveolus--> Lung . The respiratory system is made up of the organs involved in the interchanges of gases, and consists of the: Nose. Mouth (oral cavity) Pharynx (throat) Larynx (voice box) Trachea (windpipe) Bronchi. Lungs. The upper respiratory tract includes the: Nose", "An oblique cut with a handsaw is then made through the bridge of the nose and zygoma to the pharynx. There is also a facial scoliosis due to ipsilateral involvement of the nasal bone, zygoma and maxilla.", "a: Midline sagittal view. b: Posterior view of the oral cavity and pharynx. In this view, the spinal column has been removed, so that the view is into the pharynx. The esophagus and pharynx have been opened to show the connections of the nasal cavity, oral cavity, larynx, and esophagus into the pharynx.: Midline sagittal view. b: Posterior view of the oral cavity and pharynx. In this view, the spinal column has been removed, so that the view is into the pharynx. The esophagus and pharynx have been opened to show the connections of the nasal cavity, oral cavity, larynx, and esophagus into the pharynx.", "Where do the inferior alveolar artery and the middle meningeal artery come from? maxillary What is the region inside the mouth b/t the teeth & pharynx is called?", "Barium swallow. Little or no preparations are required for the study of the larynx, pharynx, and esophagus when studied alone. A thick barium mixture is swallowed in supine position and fluoroscopic images of the swallowing process are made.", "The digestive system is a group of organs working together to convert food into energy and basic nutrients to feed the entire body. Food passes through a long tube inside the body known as the alimentary canal or the gastrointestinal tract (GI tract).The alimentary canal is made up of the oral cavity, pharynx, esophagus, stomach, small intestines, and large intestines.ood passes through a long tube inside the body known as the alimentary canal or the gastrointestinal tract (GI tract). The alimentary canal is made up of the oral cavity, pharynx, esophagus, stomach, small intestines, and large intestines.", "nasal cavity the proximal portion of the passages of the respiratory system, extending from the nares to the pharynx; it is divided into left and right halves by the nasal septum and is separated from the oral cavity by the hard palate.he rostral end of the cavity just inside the nostril is the nasal vestibule, and the caudal part opening into the pharynx is the nasopharyngeal meatus. oral cavity. the cavity of the mouth, made up of a vestibule and oral cavity proper.", "functions at peak level during childhood only; produces thymosin to program lymphocytes What is the role of the tonsils? trap and remove debris and foreign substances at pharynx", "It is attached to the temporal region of the skull by a synchondrosis joint. It is palpable through the pharynx and is visible when the pharynx is viewed through the mouth.tructure and Function. It is attached to the temporal region of the skull by a synchondrosis joint. It is palpable through the pharynx and is visible when the pharynx is viewed through the mouth. The basihyoid is palpable within the intermandibular space.", "Here is what I do know. When swallowing a liquid, it takes approximately one second to transit the mouth and pharynx and approximately one second in the esophagus (1). After that a small amount of water is absorbed in the stomach, and the majority is absorbed in the small intestine.ere is what I do know. When swallowing a liquid, it takes approximately one second to transit the mouth and pharynx and approximately one second in the esophagus (1). After that a small amount of water is absorbed in the stomach, and the majority is absorbed in the small intestine.", "The digestive system is a group of organs working together to convert food into energy and basic nutrients to feed the entire body. Food passes through a long tube inside the body known as the alimentary canal or the gastrointestinal tract (GI tract).The alimentary canal is made up of the oral cavity, pharynx, esophagus, stomach, small intestines, and large intestines.he digestive system uses 3 main processes to move and mix food: 1 Swallowing. 2 Swallowing is the process of using smooth and skeletal muscles in the mouth, tongue, and pharynx to push food out of the mouth, through the pharynx, and into the esophagus.", "What Are the Causes of Excessive Belching? Photo Credit: voloshin311/iStock/GettyImages Belching is the escape of air from the esophagus or stomach into the pharynx -- the upper windpipe -- and through the mouth.", "There is one located on each side of the oral pharynx, in the back of the throat. The function of palatine tonsils has yet to be discovered, however they are part of the immune system and are thought to assist in defending the body from respiratory infections. The palatine tonsils (what the term tonsils generally refer to) are two lymphatic tissue masses. There is one located on each side of the oral pharynx, in the back of the throat." ]

[ "The daily lowdown on books, publishing, and the occasional author behaving badly. N.B. — Book News is going on vacation next week. Your faithful correspondent will be in California sans laptop and praying that Jonathan Franzen doesn't choose that week to reignite any feuds with daytime talk show hosts. In the meantime, as always, leave your hot tips, scurrilous attacks and existential questions in the comments section or direct them to @annalisa_quinn on Twitter. The U.K. prisoners' rights group Reprieve claimed this week that authorities blocked a copy of Alexander Solzhenitsyn's Soviet-era classic The Gulag Archipelago, about the nightmarish Soviet labor camps, from reaching a prisoner in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Although books with violent or extremist themes are kept out of the prison as a policy, critics say many books at the U.S. military prison are banned without reason. Earlier this summer, John Grisham wrote a condemnatory op-ed for The New York Times after discovering that two of his books had been banned at the prison. The Pentagon later told The Wall Street Journal it was \"a misunderstanding.\" On a more cheerful note, NPR's Bill Chappell wrote Thursday that reports of Fifty Shades-mania among prisoners at Guantanamo Bay may have been greatly exaggerated. The journalist Giancarlo DiTrapano caused a stir in literary circles by writing in a profile of author Junot Diaz that a distinguished New York Times book critic was \"notorious for going completely relentless bitch on many a good book.\" (The profile was in Playboy, but still.) Comedian and Parks & Recreation star Aziz Ansari has a book deal with Penguin Press. Ansari wrote in the press release, \"You know when you text someone you're romantically interested in and you don't hear anything back and then you see them post a photo of a pizza on Instagram? That's exactly what I want this book to deal with.\" Publisher's Weekly tweeted that the advance was rumored to be $3.5 million. Joan Didion told the Los Angeles Times' Carolyn Kellogg that she became friends with Harrison Ford because he built her beach house. She says: \"He was a carpenter. I was happy with his work — and even happier with his presence in the house because he was a great moral force.\"" ]

[ "A trove of more than 700 leaked military documents has provided detailed information about the detainees who have served at the Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba. NPR's Dina Temple-Raston and The <em>New York Times</em>' Scott Shane share what they have learned from the materials.", "Good morning. Our early headlines: -- Obama: Time Frame For Possible Action On Syria Has Shortened. -- After Wild Start, Silence From Bo Xilai Corruption Trial. -- Book News: Guantanamo Reading Material Spurs More Controversy. Other news: -- Jury Continues Deliberation At Fort Hood Shooting Trial. (Killeen Daily Herald) -- \"Israel Bombs Pro-Assad Lebanon Militants After Rocket Attack.\" (Reuters) -- At Trial Of Army Sgt. Who Killed 16 Afghan Civilians, An Apology And Some Context. (Morning Edition) -- City Of San Diego Likely To Pay For Mayor Filner's Exit. (U-T San Diego) -- \"March On Washington Events Have Broader Goals This Time.\" (USA Today) -- \"Bomb On An Airplane\" Is Still What Keeps Outgoing FBI Director Up At Night. (Morning Edition) -- \"Young Indian Journalist Gang Raped In Mumbai.\" (The Associated Press)", "Last weekend's suicides at the Guantanamo Bay military prison may accomplish what an international outcry has so far failed to do: Cause a policy change at Guantanamo, or spur the closing of the facility.", "Today's decision by a federal appeals court to overturn the conviction of a former driver for Osama bin Laden is unlikely to affect the high-profile cases against the accused architect of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks or other suspected terrorists who face multiple charges, NPR's Dina Temple-Raston said earlier on All Things Considered. Salim Ahmed Hamdan was bin Laden's driver from 1996 to 2001. He was captured in Afghanistan in late 2001 and convicted in 2008 by a U.S. military commission of providing \"material support for terrorism,\" as The Associated Press writes. Hamdan was \"sentenced to 5 1/2 years, given credit for time served and is back home in Yemen, reportedly working as a taxi driver,\" the AP adds. But the court said today that because providing material support wasn't a recognized crime under the military commissions act until 2006 and was not a crime under international law at the time he was bin Laden's driver, Hamdan should not have been found guilty. The Hamdan case, NPR's Nina Totenberg adds in a report for our Newscast Desk, \"became a symbol of the Bush administration's troubled legal policies\" regarding the suspected terrorists being held at the Guantanamo Bay detention center. Today's 3-0 ruling, she notes, came from \"conservative, Republican appointees.\" It isn't known, Dina said on All Things Considered, just how many of the 16 to 60 detainees at Guantanamo who are awaiting trial might only have been charged with providing material support for terrorism. After today's court ruling, she said, \"prosecutors will have to charge them with something else or just hold them indefinitely.\" The accused architect of the 2001 attacks, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, though, and others suspected of being top al-Qaida figures, \"are being charged with more than just providing material support,\" Dina noted. MELISSA BLOCK, HOST: This is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED from NPR News. I'm Melissa Block. ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST: And I'm Robert Siegel. Today, a federal appeals court overturned the conviction of Osama bin Laden's former driver. His name is Salim Hamdan and this is not the first case with his name in the title. In 2006, in Hamdan versus Rumsfeld, the Supreme Court ruled that the Bush administration's military commission system at Guantanamo was unconstitutional. Hamdan was released from Guantanamo several years ago, but today's ruling could affect detainees who are still there. NPR's Dina Temple-Raston is here to explain this. And, Dina, first of all, tell us more about what the court ruled today. DINA TEMPLE-RASTON, BYLINE: Well, at the most basic level a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals in D.C., said Hamdan was wrongly convicted. He was found guilty of providing material support to a terrorist organization by the military commissions at Guantanamo. Material support is a charge that just means you helped a terrorist organization in some way. Hamdan was Osama bin Laden's driver from about 1996 to 2001. And prosecutors said, and a military jury agreed, that amounted to supporting a terrorist organization. What the court decided today was that Hamdan couldn't be charged with material support because he was bin Laden's driver. When he was bin Laden's driver, material support wasn't a recognized crime under the Military Commissions Act; that didn't happen until 2006. SIEGEL: And what changed in 2006? TEMPLE-RASTON: Well, the rules governing military commissions changed. And that was because of Hamdan, too. Remember the military commissions are those special courts for suspected terrorists held at Guantanamo. And Hamdan, as you had said, had appealed his detention at Guantanamo all the way to the Supreme Court. And the Supreme Court ruled that the commissions, as they were set up at that time, are unconstitutional. So that's why Congress in 2006 had to rewrite these laws governing the commissions. And one of the things they did is add this material support as a crime. Today, the appeals court basically said if a detainee committed material support before Congress rewrote that law, they can't be charged with it in a military commission. SIEGEL: Well, let's say now this would affect people who are in Guantanamo. Would it reverse convictions for others who had already been tried and convicted at Guantanamo? TEMPLE-RASTON: Well, Hamdan is one of the few cases in which the only convicted charged material support. And, as you said, he was sent back to Yemen several years ago, so that doesn't really affect him much. Where it could have a really big impact is on cases that are in the pipeline. It could affect detainees at Guantanamo accused of being part of Al-Qaida before 2006, but of not plotting any specific terrorist act. The prosecutors might have tried to charge them with material support and now they can't. SIEGEL: Now they can't. How many people would this affect, do we know? Well, that's the thing. It's unclear. There are 166 detainees still at Guantanamo and the number of those who are awaiting a tria", "Leigh Sales, Australian Broadcasting Corporation's national security correspondent and author of the book <em>The Worst of the Worst: The Case of David Hicks</em>. Sales talks about how a kangaroo-skinner found himself at Guantanamo Bay, on trial for providing material support for terrorism.", "A federal appeals court on Tuesday overturned the conviction of Osama bin Laden's former driver and bodyguard, Salim Ahmed Hamdan. If the name sounds familiar, it should. Hamdan was at the center of a Supreme Court case that ruled that the Bush administration's military commission system at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, was unconstitutional. The ruling from a three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit found that Hamdan's conviction by a military commission for providing material support for terrorism had to be overturned because under the international law of war of the time, his actions — driving bin Laden around — were not defined as a war crime. Hamdan was bin Laden's driver from 1996-2001. Material support didn't become a war crime until 2006, when Congress passed the Military Commission Act. \"When Hamdan committed the conduct in question,\" Judge Brett Kavanaugh wrote, \"the international law of war did not proscribe material support for terrorism as a war crime. Therefore the relevant statute at the time of Hamdan's conduct ... did not proscribe material support for terrorism as a war crime.\" Hamdan was captured in Afghanistan in 2001. His lawyers challenged his detention and eventually won the landmark Supreme Court case Hamdan v. Rumsfeld. The high court ruled that not only was the military commission system unconstitutional, but it was also in violation of American military law and the Geneva Conventions. Congress, as a result, rewrote the Military Commissions Act and, among other things, included material support as one of the charges that the commissions could level against detainees. Hamdan was one of the few convictions at Guantanamo that came solely as a result of a material support charge. A military commissions jury acquitted him of conspiracy. He was eventually sent back to Yemen and released in 2009. So, in a real sense, the ruling doesn't affect him much. Officials say where it may have a big impact is on cases at Guantanamo that have yet to be litigated. In particular, it could affect detainees who stand accused of being part of al-Qaida before 2006 but perhaps did not plot any specific terrorist act. Prosecutors might have been preparing to charge them with material support to get them through the system and empty the prison at the naval base. Now this ruling will make that process more difficult. It is unclear how many detainees could be affected. There are still 166 men behind bars at Guantanamo and a fraction of them — anywhere between 16 and 60 — could be in the pipeline for a trial. Because the evidence against them hasn't been made public, it is hard to tell how many of them would now find themselves in limbo. There is a sense that a good number of the men held in the various camps on the island were just foot soldiers for al-Qaida. Unless the Justice Department asks the full bench of the appeals court to look at the ruling again, that could mean Guantanamo prosecutors will have to find something else with which to charge lower-level detainees or, alternatively, hold them indefinitely. The Justice Department said in a statement that it is still studying the ruling. The ruling is unlikely to have much of an effect on the marquee trials now under way, however. The trial of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four other men accused of plotting the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks is still in pretrial motions, which have been going on this week. Clearly, the five are being charged with more than just material support. The U.S. appeals court ruling could have a dramatic impact on lower-level detainees in another way. It could make a great argument for moving their trials into U.S. federal court where material support is a perfectly legal charge. Congress has made moving detainees to the U.S. for trial difficult if not impossible, so the unanswered question is whether that will be affected by Tuesday's ruling. MELISSA BLOCK, HOST: This is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED from NPR News. I'm Melissa Block. ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST: And I'm Robert Siegel. Today, a federal appeals court overturned the conviction of Osama bin Laden's former driver. His name is Salim Hamdan and this is not the first case with his name in the title. In 2006, in Hamdan versus Rumsfeld, the Supreme Court ruled that the Bush administration's military commission system at Guantanamo was unconstitutional. Hamdan was released from Guantanamo several years ago, but today's ruling could affect detainees who are still there. NPR's Dina Temple-Raston is here to explain this. And, Dina, first of all, tell us more about what the court ruled today. DINA TEMPLE-RASTON, BYLINE: Well, at the most basic level a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals in D.C., said Hamdan was wrongly convicted. He was found guilty of providing material support to a terrorist organization by the military commissions at Guantanamo. Material support is a charge that just means you helped a terrorist organization in some way. Hamdan ", "The White House found itself facing new questions about two longstanding controversies — the prison at Guantanamo Bay and the penchant for secrecy in the office of Vice President Dick Cheney. On Guantanamo, the White House is looking for ways to close the facility but canceled a meeting about it after word leaked to the media. Congressional Democrats are blasting Vice President Cheney after a report Thursday that he tried to abolish an office of the National Archives that oversees classified documents. MELISSA BLOCK, host: From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Melissa Block. MICHELE NORRIS, host: And I'm Michele Norris. Two new reports have renewed long-standing controversies within the White House Today, and Vice President Dick Cheney plays a key role in both. One report is from the Associated Press. It says that top national security advisers were close to recommending that Guantanamo Bay be closed as a prison for terror suspects. The other, from the Washington Post, says Cheney's office was under investigation for refusing to comply with executive orders governing classified information. NPR's Don Gonyea has the latest on both. DON GONYEA: Last night, the Associated Press reported there would be a meeting at the White House today where top cabinet and National Security officials would discuss closing the Guantanamo Bay facility where the U.S. has held prisoners designated enemy combatants for the past six years. The report said a decision to close the prison was near, with the remaining inmates being dispersed to other federal facilities. The White House immediately denied the report and said there was not even a meeting planned on that subject for today. The White House denial greatly reduced coverage of the AP story overnight and in Friday morning newspapers. But today, the White House admitted there had been a meeting scheduled on Guantanamo today, and that it was only scrubbed late last night after the AP story first hit the wires. Deputy Press Secretary Dana Perino tried to say the originally scheduled sit-down on the fate of Guantanamo was no big deal. Ms. DANA PERINO (Deputy Press Secretary): There's meetings scheduled regularly to talk about Guantanamo. They happen frequently. They happen often, because people are charged with the responsibilities that the president has given them to try to close down that facility. Yes, there was going to be a meeting today, but there was a determination that it wasn't needed. GONYEA: Perino was immediately asked if the meeting was cancelled because of the AP story. Ms. PERINO: I think that the decision to make - to not have the meeting happened late in the day after that story came out. But what I can tell you is that meeting was not a decisional meeting. GONYEA: The AP had reported that Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice were both favoring a closure of Guantanamo but that Vice President Cheney continued to resist it. The Guantanamo flare-up came on the same morning the Washington Post reported that a little known agency of the executive branch charged with securing classified materials has been locked in a four-year struggle with the vice president's office over Executive Order 12958 issued in 1995. In his first two years in office, the vice president did comply with the order's requirement that the White House turn over classified documents to the Information Security Oversight Office of the National Archives. But since 2003, the vice president's office has not replied to annual requests by that agency for documents. There has been no explanation why he stopped. Cheney's office simply issued a statement saying it is in compliance with the executive order. But Perino said today the Cheney position is complicated by the vice president's dual role as president of the Senate, which would mean he is not a regular part of the executive branch. Democratic congressman and frequent Cheney critic Henry Waxman called that argument quote, \"absurd.\" Documents released by a congressional committee showed that earlier this year, the vice president's office went so far as to try to abolish the Oversight Office at the National Archives. That prompted this on the Senate floor today from the number two Democratic leader, Richard Durbin. Senator RICHARD DURBIN (Democrat, Illinois): To attempt to abolish the agency that was putting pressure on him to follow the law shows that he has gone entirely too far. Vice President Cheney is not above the law. He is required to follow the law as every American citizen should. GONYEA: The Cheney story dominated today's White House briefing by the deputy press secretary. She promised to try to shed more light on an issue the vice president's office has said very little about. But Perino also seemed intent on keeping her answers short, as she did when asked if the vice president is indeed part of the executive branch. Ms. PERINO: I think that that is an interesting constitut", "Osama bin Laden's son-in-law and former al-Qaida spokesman Sulaiman Abu Ghaith is expected to appear in a New York courtroom Monday afternoon. Abu Ghaith was captured by U.S. officials in February, and his arrest is considered important not just because he was so close to bin Laden, but also because the Obama administration has decided to try him in a federal court instead of using a military commission at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. On the surface, Abu Ghaith, 47, would appear to be a perfect candidate for a trial at Guantanamo. He is affiliated with al-Qaida, and he is a foreigner. He may be best known for his frequent appearances in al-Qaida propaganda videos, sitting alongside his father-in-law, calling for more violence against the West generally and the United States specifically. But instead of sending Abu Ghaith to a military prison, the Obama administration decided to try him in a federal court. And that, analysts say, is significant. \"The Abu Ghaith case is important for a lot of reasons,\" says Karen Greenberg, the director of the Center on National Security at Fordham Law School. \"And one of the things that is interesting is that this case turns away from Guantanamo. \"If we were going to bring foreign terror suspects who are involved with al-Qaida at allegedly high levels to military trial, he'd be an obvious person to expand the Guantanamo population.\" But, as Greenberg sees it, the Obama administration decided against that because it wanted to send a message. \"They have clearly decided that foreign terrorists the U.S. captures will go where officials think they have the best case, and that's not necessarily at Guantanamo,\" she says. Matthew Waxman, a professor at Columbia Law School, used to be a Pentagon adviser on detainee issues during the Bush administration. He says he thinks Congress' efforts to force the Obama administration's hand on detainees have backfired. Congress passed legislation in 2011 that limited the president's ability to bring detainees to the U.S. for trial. Waxman says the move has almost guaranteed that the president would do anything to avoid sending new suspects to the military base. \"I think any president will be very, very reluctant to send detainees to Guantanamo because their flexibility is then substantially diminished,\" Waxman says. That's why, he says, the population at Guantanamo is likely to stay exactly where it is. (There are 166 detainees behind bars there now.) That lack of flexibility is at least part of the reason why bin Laden's son-in-law has ended up in New York. While there has been a lot of focus on his case, over the past six months, with little fanfare, the Justice Department has introduced more than a dozen other foreign terrorism cases into the federal court system in New York. There has been a definite pattern to the charges the administration has filed against those defendants. \"Nearly all of these cases include either material support statutes or conspiracy charges,\" Greenberg says, \"both of which are now not permitted at Guantanamo.\" Material support and conspiracy are common terrorism charges in U.S. courts. But they have been problematic at Guantanamo because there is some question as to whether they are war crimes. The military commissions at Guantanamo are supposed to try defendants who have broken the laws of war. Bin Laden's son-in-law is now balding and has slimmed down from his pudgy days in early al-Qaida videos. He is being charged with conspiring to kill Americans, and he has pleaded not guilty. DAVID GREENE, HOST: Osama bin Laden's son-in-law is expected to appear in a New York courtroom today. His case is considered important, and not just because he was so close to bin Laden. It's also significant because the Obama administration chose to try him in federal court, and not in a military commission at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Here's NPR's Dina Temple-Raston. DINA TEMPLE-RASTON, BYLINE: On the surface, Sulaiman Abu Ghaith, bin Laden's son-in-law, would appear to be the perfect candidate for a trial at Guantanamo Bay. (SOUNDBITE OF VIDEO) SULAIMAN ABU GHAITH: (Foreign language spoken) TEMPLE-RASTON: That's him in a video that al-Qaida produced more than a decade ago. Over the years, he often co-starred with his father-in-law in al-Qaida's propaganda videos. His affiliation with the group, and connection with bin Laden, would have been enough to qualify him for a trial before a military commission. But it didn't turn out that way. Instead, the U.S. brought him to a federal courtroom in New York. KAREN GREENBERG: The Abu Ghaith case is important for a lot of reasons. TEMPLE-RASTON: Karen Greenberg is the director of the Center on National Security, at Fordham Law School. GREENBERG: What's interesting about this case is the turn away from Guantanamo. Abu Ghaith is a person who would have gone to Guantanamo in any iteration of - if we were going to bring foreign terrorist suspects who are involved with al-Qaida at allegedly high levels; but wh", "Weeks after detainees at Guantanamo Bay were said to be voracious readers of Fifty Shades of Grey, one lawyer says that, at least in his client's case, that idea is bogus. Attorney James Connell says his client, Ammar al-Baluchi, turned over a copy of the bestselling erotic novel and had never heard of it before guards gave him a copy on Monday. Baluchi \"was more amused than offended,\" the attorney tells the BBC, which notes that Connell and his client view the gift of the \"fairly worn\" paperback as either a practical joke or part of a disinformation campaign. They met on Wednesday for a pretrial hearing for Baluchi, who is accused of aiding the Sept. 11, 2001, attackers. \"Mr Connell said his client has not read the book,\" the BBC reports. \"He is an avid reader of The Economist and Wired magazine — and the novel did not interest him, said the lawyer.\" The racy novel and other books in the trilogy by E.L. James were said to be popular among the detainees, after Rep. Jim Moran, D-Va., visited the Guantanamo prison's Camp Seven in July. From The Huffington Post: \"Rather than the Quran, the book that is requested most by the [high-value detainees] is Fifty Shades of Grey. They've read the entire series in English, but we were willing to translate it,\" Moran, who advocates for closing the facility, told HuffPost. \"I guess there's not much going on, these guys are going nowhere, so what the hell.\" Connell, who says the book doesn't bear any markings that would identify it as the property of the detainee library, plans to turn it over to senior officials at the base. During a visit to the Guantanamo facility's library earlier this summer, Reuters reported seeing \"an eclectic mix of books in numerous languages, from religious tomes to Star Trek novelizations, Agatha Christie mysteries, stress reduction workbooks and the Greek classic The Odyssey.\" A librarian at the prison also told Reuters that they also offer prisoners the book and film versions of The Hunger Games. The library's offerings were in the news earlier this week, when it refused to accept a donated copy of Stephen King's 1986 novel It. The Miami Herald reports that the library called the refusal an oversight, noting that it already has a copy of It among the facility's 19,000 titles. The book was one of about 70 that were donated by a man whose father died in the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center. As NPR reported last year, Fifty Shades of Grey \"emerged from the steamy land of fan fiction, an online community of readers who write unauthorized extensions of their favorite stories,\" to become a No. 1 hit. But while popular, the novel isn't for everyone. After Random House said that it sold 35 million copies of the book in nine months, NPR's Lynn Neary, who admits to being \"a bit of a prude,\" wondered whether it was snobbery or prudery that kept some people from reading it.", "President-elect Barack Obama says closing the detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, is one of his top priorities, but it is still unclear what will happen to the terrorism suspects held at the facility. One suggestion: Try them in U.S. courts. Sarah Mendelson of the Center for Strategic and International Studies advocates doing just that in her recent report, Closing Guantanamo: From Bumper Sticker to Blueprint. She passed her recommendations on to the Obama transition team and says the case of each Guantanamo detainee needs to be carefully examined. \"We're hoping that a panel will review all the files and they will sort the files of those detained into two categories: one to be released, which involves a lot of diplomacy, and another to be brought to prosecution to the U.S. criminal justice system,\" Mendelson tells NPR's Michele Norris. Seeking New Evidence She cautions, however, that some of the evidence against the detainees cannot be used in the U.S. criminal justice system because it has been derived through methods she calls torture. \"In some cases, you're probably going to need to have teams of prosecutors and FBI agents gathering new evidence in order to be able to put together an indictment and bring people to justice,\" she says. The Bush administration put together the system of military commissions to try suspects captured in the war on terrorism and held at Guantanamo. Mendelson says that since 2001, this system has yielded three convictions, but spurred several legal challenges. By contrast, she says, the U.S. criminal justice system has obtained 145 convictions in international terrorism cases since 2001. Military Commissions Vs. U.S. Courts \"Overall, our sense is that the U.S. criminal justice system, with all its flaws, is a better, more reliable and more valued way in which to deal with this situation,\" she says. Mendelson says that while awaiting trial, the Guantanamo detainees can be held in pretrial detention facilities associated with whatever court they are going through. She says the 145 suspects who were convicted in U.S. courts were also held in such facilities. \"The American population is not terribly aware that there have been all these other cases that have gone before U.S. courts and that people have been put away,\" she says. \"And if you contrast that with the kind of attention ... that Guantanamo has received ... the way it has delegitimized American authority, I think you can see putting them through the U.S. criminal justice system has a way of washing away the armor and the martyrdom and making them into criminals.\"", "NPR's Justice correspondent Ari Shapiro has learned of a heated meeting Tuesday involving Obama Administration officials and congressional types over President Barack Obama's controversial plan to close Guantanamo and continue the Bush Administration tack on military tribunals, with some tweaks, for detainees. Congressional Democrats continue to feel like the administration has left them holding the bag by announcing its plan to close Guantanamo without actually having a plan about what to do with the detainees, obviously a key detail. Shapiro reports, by e-mail, that: A Democratic staffer just told me about an apparently contentious meeting that took place yesterday between Hill folks and the Administration on the issue of closing Guantanamo and military commissions. From Congress there were Judiciary, Armed Services, and leadership folks. From the Administration there was Lisa Monaco (Deputy Assistant Attorney General at Justice), Jay Johnson (DOD General Counsel's office), and Trevor Morrison (White House Counsel's office). Read More >> The meeting was to discuss military commissions, and the Hill folks were apparently frustrated that all the Administration folks wanted to do was listen. The staffer told me, \"There are a lot of people out here who feel like they've been hung out to dry on this issue (of closing Guantanamo). They asked for that money in the appropriations process without a plan and forced us to take that vote. \"Now we've got FY 2010 just around the corner, and we're going to face a similar vote which we will lose unless they get their act together and get engaged very soon. So we appreciate the outreach and the engagement. Certainly it's a departure from the previous administration, but at the same time if they don't get up here and start helping us to defend their proposal to close Guantanamo, it's going to be too late.\" This person went on: \"Most Democrats want to support their effort to close Guantanamo. They've (the Administration) made it much harder for us because they have not exercised leadership, and at the same time there's ambivalence about military commissions and indefinite detention, and they have not helped alleviate that ambivalence either. So we want to be supportive but we're having a hard time figuring out how to do that.\" A second Democratic Senate staffer corroborated the account but characterized the friction \"in a more tempered way.\" This staffer said, \"There are question marks above people's heads saying 'What is the proposal, how exactly are you going to close Guantanamo bay, what is this new proposal for military commissions going to look like?' \" The staffer added, \"You need to see a proposal to feel like there's advancement toward accomplishing these goals. There are a lot of questions for which there aren't any answers right now.\" Congress recently blocked money requested by the Obama Administration to close Guantanamo pending a detailed plan from the administration on what it intends to do with the detainees.", "The daily lowdown on books, publishing and the occasional author behaving badly. When picking up a book before bed, sleepy readers ought to give some thought not just to what they read but also how they read. It doesn't matter how boring the material may be; if you're plodding through it on an e-reader, a new study shows it'll likely be tougher to fall asleep — and to get a good rest while you're at it. A team of researchers corralled a dozen healthy young adults into a private room at Boston's Brigham and Women's Hospital for two weeks, asking half to read from print books for five straight evenings before bed and asking the other half to read e-books on an iPad. Then, the groups swapped places. The results, published Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, offered a clear distinction: Participants noted they were less sleepy at night after staring at e-readers, taking about 10 more minutes to fall asleep than the print set. And though both groups got eight hours of sleep, the e-reading group also spent less of it in REM. \"Furthermore,\" the report adds, \"not only did they awaken feeling sleepier, it took them hours longer to fully 'wake up' and attain the same level of alertness than in the printed book condition.\" The researchers attributed this change to the short-wavelength light emitted by many e-readers, which can confuse and delay the daily rhythms of our bodies. This type of light is common not just in iPads, but also in phones, the Nook Color and the Kindle Fire. Unlighted e-readers like the original Kindle, however, share more characteristics with print books than their electronic cousins. \"Many people read things to help them fall asleep,\" Charles Czeisler, one of the study's authors, told The Wall Street Journal. \"They probably don't realize that this technology is actually making them less likely to feel sleepy.\" The Sickness That Saved Middle-Earth? Readers may owe The Lord of the Rings to a nasty bout of trench fever, reporter Allison Flood suggests. According to documents recently made public by the U.K.'s Forces War Records organization, a 25-year-old JRR Tolkien narrowly survived his World War I combat experience, likely because of a timely separation from his battalion to recover from the illness. Flood reports: \"Forces War Records said that while he was convalescing, the 11th Battalion Lancashire Fusiliers with which he was serving was hit by German mortar fire, wounding many, with a 'massive bombardment' of its frontline following.\" A Song Of Ice And Attire: Explorer and author Patrick Woodhead just unveiled his novel Beneath the Ice in Antarctica. Now, I feel a bit less guilty pairing the news with a pun (or two) — Woodhead nails the cold open! What a way to break the ice! — because Woodhead didn't refrain from using one of his own. Noting the thousands of penguins surrounding him, Woodhead told the Belfast Telegraph: \"It's the only book launch I've done where everyone turned up in black tie.\" Freud Aloud: In what promises to be a bleak affair indeed, Sigmund Freud will soon be getting a marathon reading. Spurred by what The New York Times calls \"a response to the beheadings, school shootings and other violence\" that have permeated the year, a long list of participants — including Pulitzer Prize winner Michael Cunningham and philosopher Simon Critchley, according to the the Times — will take turns reading aloud from Freud's seminal meditation on aggression and violence, Civilization and Its Discontents. The reading is to take place Jan. 3 in New York.", "Salim Hamdan, Osama bin Laden's former driver, was convicted of providing material support for terrorism but found not guilty of conspiracy by a panel of six military officers at Guantanamo Bay. Hamdan, a Yemeni who faces up to a life sentence, held his head in his hands and wept when the verdict was read. A sentencing hearing was scheduled for Wednesday afternoon. Hamdan is the first person to face a U.S. war crimes tribunal since World War II. His 10-day trial is the first demonstration of a special U.S. system for prosecuting alleged terrorists at the Guantanamo Bay detention facility. The Pentagon-selected jury deliberated for about eight hours over three days before reaching its verdict. White House spokesman Tony Fratto said in a statement that the Bush administration was pleased Hamdan received a fair trial, although critics have questioned the military commission process. Hamdan, who was captured in November 2001 at a roadblock in Afghanistan with two surface-to-air missiles in his car, was never alleged to be more than a minor figure in al-Qaida, a chauffeur to bin Laden.", "As many as 100 terror suspects now being held by the U.S. at the Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, detention center will be transferred to the Thomson Correctional Center in northwestern Illinois, NPR's Don Gonyea has confirmed with an Obama administration official. The White House is expected to officially announce the news -- which has been rumored for weeks -- later today, the Chicago Sun-Times' Lynn Sweet adds. Don reports that \"the move would be a step toward fulfilling President Barack Obama's pledge, made shortly after taking office, to shut down the Guantanamo Bay detention center.\" Slightly more than 200 detainees are now being held at Guantanamo. As the Chicago Tribune writes: The decision is part of a complicated plan for shutting down the controversial Guantanamo detention center, a lightning rod for anti-American sentiment around the world as a result of what critics say were detainee abuses there during the Bush administration. The local Rockford, Ill., Register Star says that \"Thomson residents and state officials, have lobbied for the Obama administration to bring the detainees to Thomson as well as the 2,000 to 3,000 jobs that would be created if the prison is made fully operational.\" The prison, which has space for 1,600 inmates, has been \"mostly vacant for eight years,\"according to the Register Star.", "White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs announced at his press briefing Tuesday afternoon that the Obama Administration is suspending for now the controversial transfer of Yemeni detainees at Guantanamo back to Yemen. \"While we remain committed to closing the (Guantanamo) facility, a determination has been made right now -- any additional transfers to Yemen is not a good idea,\" Gibbs said. The single largest group of nationals now at Gitmo are from Yemen. There are reportedly 198 detainees left at the terrorist detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Of that number, 89 are Yemenis. Six Yemenis were returned to Yemen, the failing state located on the southern tip of the Saudi peninsula, in December. But the weakness of Yemen's government and the as well information strongly indicating that the Christmas Day airliner bombing plot was launched from Yemen, has led to bipartisan calls for the transfers to end. As recently as Sunday, John Brennan, assistant to Obama for homeland security and counterterrorism, said on NBC's Meet the Press indicated that the administration had not determined when any future transfers to Yemen would take place. Now it sounds like it has decided none will occur for some time to come. Read More >> He said: Of the recent batch that we sent back, about six, many of them are in custody within the Yemeni system right now. We are looking at it every day. We're not going to make any decisions that are going to put people at risk. We will decide and determine when, when we should send additional people back. But we're going to do it in the right way, because Guantanamo should be closed. It was used as a propaganda tool by al-Qaeda, and the president is still committed to it.", "The aggressive vibrato of the bandoneon hung in the air. While the tango singer spoke of romantic spats, hopeless drunkards and lonely whores, an elderly Argentine couple clasped hands. The haunting music would have made for a steamy evening if not for the setting. The celebration of Argentine tango took place not in some hip Latin club on the Lower East Side or in a dark corner of a Buenos Aires cafe, but in a drab basement room with plastic chairs and gray walls in the Jackson Heights branch of the Queens Library. New York's Queens borough is among the most ethnically diverse counties in the nation, its immigrant-filled neighborhoods teeming with taco joints, Dominican beauty salons and women in headscarves. It's no surprise, then, that the borough's library system has also strived for unparalleled diversity. The library system's 62 locations boast more than 800,000 foreign language books, thousands of foreign language DVDs and CDs, and six language specialists tasked with finding the most popular materials in Urdu, Polish, Arabic, Portuguese, Bengali, Russian, French and Spanish, among other languages. It also regularly hosts cultural events, such as the tango performance in Jackson Heights, to draw in immigrants unaware of how libraries or library cards work — or at least how they work in Queens. Chinese romance novels are always popular, as is the Korean version of Twilight. The library system also caters to Albanians, Croatians and Serbians in Ridgewood, Tagalog speakers in Elmhurst, Woodside and Broadway, Farsi in Kew Garden Hills, and Pashto and Dari in Flushing. \"We are the most diverse borough, and we want to celebrate that,\" said Bridget Quinn-Carey, the library's COO. Nearly half of all Queens' residents were foreign-born in 2010, according to U.S. census data, with most hailing from Latin American and Asian nations. Among New York City's five boroughs, Queens has the highest number of residents who consider themselves as speaking English less than \"very well,\" at 28 percent. Of those, 42 percent speak Spanish and 31 percent speak an Asian or Pacific Island language. The library launched its New Americans Program in 1977 to provide services to the area's many immigrants. The staff's most significant challenge, apart from budget limitations and figuring out how to catalog book titles that don't use the Roman alphabet, is keeping up with the breakneck pace of New York real estate trends and demographic shifts. Employees rely on neighborhood clues including ethnic newspapers and produce sold at corner bodegas to keep library shelves stocked with the most useful material. A decade ago, the library's Corona location demanded materials catering to Dominicans and Italians. Now, the neighborhood is primarily Mexican and Ecuadorean, said Vilma Daza, the Corona library manager. A dedicated following arrives at the library each day to read foreign-language newspapers, including the popular Thikana, a Bangla newspaper circulated in New York. The library also offers citizenship and basic skills classes designed to help people assimilate more easily. \"It's very important because all those kids are growing up over here, so we need to have better communities, we need to enrich their lives, we need to make changes so this community will be successful tomorrow,\" Daza said. Once an immigrant group reaches a mere 2,000 people, the library will attempt to offer services pertinent to that culture. International crises often spur the need for new library material. For example, the system's collection of Haitian Creole books grew to more than 5,000 titles after Haiti's devastating 2010 earthquake. Of all the languages the system offers, one is particularly in demand among foreign-born library patrons. On a recent registration day, more than 100 people lined up starting at 5 a.m. to nab one of 30 classroom slots available in Corona. Thousands of other immigrants flocked to similar classes across the Queens Library system in 2013. The language they were all so eager to learn? English.", "In this week's episode, a defense lawyer for the military commissions at Guantanamo explains his resignation, Greil Marcus talks about his new book, Ty Segall rocks out acoustic-style, and more.", "The daily lowdown on books, publishing, and the occasional author behaving badly. A new Norwegian language translation of the Bible was the secular country's best-selling book of 2012. (By comparison, the Bible didn't even break the top 100 in the U.S. last year). The Associated Press credits a marketing campaign by Norway's Bible Society for at least part of the Bible's popularity there: The society \"promoted the new translation like a pop fiction novel, stirring anticipation by giving out teasers of biblical stories before its release,\" and \"targeted teenagers with pink leather or denim covers, and adults with bridal or sophisticated literary covers.\" A popular six-hour play called Bibelen (\"Bible\" in Norwegian) just closed in Oslo after a successful three-month run. Jean Rabe, editor of the Science Fiction Writers of America Bulletin, has stepped down after recent controversies surrounding the magazine's treatment of women. A cover featuring a scantily clad woman received a good deal of press, and after complaints from readers, two of the magazine's writers wrote a controversial column claiming that they were being censored by \"liberal fascists.\" Another article said Barbie was a \"role-model\" because she maintained \"quiet dignity the way a woman should.\" SFWA President John Scalzi has apologized: \"The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America is an organization that acts to support, inform, defend, promote and advocate for our members — all of them, not just some of them. When members believe that they or other members are belittled or minimized by our official publications, that's a problem.\" The disgraced ex-New Yorker writer Jonah Lehrer has a book deal with Simon and Schuster, according to The New York Times. Lehrer was caught fabricating quotes, recycling material and plagiarizing, and resigned his position at The New Yorker last year. The Times, which obtained his book proposal, writes that in the new work, he \"uses his journalistic misconduct as a case study of the mysterious and redeeming power of love.\" The Hurriyet Daily News, an English-language newspaper in Turkey, reports that a makeshift library has sprung up among the protesters in Istanbul's Gezi Park. Hurriyet reports that Sel Publishing House and more than a dozen others have been donating books to support the demonstrators. For the London Review of Books, the poet Charles Hartman writes about the experience of being plagiarized: \"The insult was partly that the plagiarist assumed my poem was too obscure for anyone to discover his theft.\" Kevin Barry's City of Bohane won the 2013 International Impac Dublin Literary Award, worth 100,000 euros, or a little more than $132,000. In a press release, Graywolf Publisher Fiona McCrae wrote, \"Reading him is pure joy, and Graywolf is honored to publish his work.\" You can read his 2010 short story \"The Fjord of Killary\" in The New Yorker.", "When teachers and activists demanded schools in Texas, where more than half of the public school students are Hispanic, teach more Mexican-American studies, the State Board of Education responded by calling for more textbooks on the subject. So far, though, the only book submitted for approval has drawn fierce criticism. This week, activists voiced that criticism in front of the Texas Board of Education in a public hearing in Austin. Dozens attended, with some driving hours to the capital from Dallas, Houston and other parts of the state. Some scholars on the subject say that the textbook, \"Mexican American Heritage,\" is riddled with factual errors, is missing content and promotes racism and culturally offensive stereotypes, such as Mexicans being lazy, not valuing hard work and bringing crime and drugs into the United States. \"There's no way this textbook can be corrected. The errors are so extensive,\" says Trinidad Gonzales, a history professor at South Texas College. \"The reason it can't be corrected is it really is not a textbook. It is a polemic.\" Gonzales led an independent review of the material for Texas Board Member Ruben Cortez, a Democrat from Brownsville, and points to one stereotype he finds particularly offensive: \"The lazy Mexican sleeping under the tree, and the mañana idea that Mexicans will put off everything off till tomorrow that they should do today.\" The publisher, Momentum Instruction, stands behind the book. Its CEO, Cynthia Dunbar, a former Republican member of the Texas Board, said in an interview that some passages have been taken out of context, such as the one about Mexicans being viewed as lazy by industrialists in the 1800s. The proposed text read: \"Industrialists were very driven, competitive men who were always on the clock and continually concerned about efficiency. They were used to their workers putting in a full day's work, quiet­ly and obediently, and respecting rules, authority, and property. In contrast, Mexican laborers were not reared to put in a full day's work so vigorously. There was a cultural attitude of \"mañana,\" or \"tomorrow,\" when it came to high-gear production. It was also traditional to skip work on Mondays, and drinking on the job could be a problem.\" Dunbar said that her editors have since pulled the passage to try and rewrite it \"in a better light.\" \"The reality is there is nothing racist in the book,\" she says. The state's review only found one mistake in the material, that it suggested English is the official, national language. The United States does not have an official language. The controversy is the latest fight over school books in Texas, which has one of the largest markets for learning materials with five million students. In the last few years, experts have criticized Texas books for calling Moses a Founding Father and downplaying slavery as a cause of the Civil War. Last year, a mom in Houston called out McGraw Hill after her son pointed out his geography book referred to slaves as \"workers.\" The mega publisher apologized and revised the book. Tony Diaz, a writer and activist known as El Librotraficante, says there's a silver lining to this latest controversy. \"We actually caught this terrible, racist book before it snaked its way into classrooms. This is part of the growing pains,\" Diaz says. He explains that it's become easier to review proposed materials online before they reach the board for approval. And activism has grown. Diaz organized a bus caravan for 100 people to protest in Austin this week. Diaz says that ethnic studies are important because demographics are changing in Texas. Proponents say that culturally relevant courses both engage students and also help them graduate in higher numbers. The Texas Board of Education won't make a final decision on approving the Mexican American Heritage book until later this fall, after the November elections.", "Mohamedou Ould Slahi, who was imprisoned by the United States in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, for more than 14 years, was released on Monday, according to the Pentagon. Slahi returned to his home country of Mauritania. A YouTube video showed him at a family home in Nouakchott, Mauritania, reports the Miami Herald, \"thanking God, his government and the Mauritanian people.\" In 2005, Slahi wrote a 446-page handwritten account of his imprisonment, titled Guantanamo Diary. When it was published in January 2015, heavily redacted by government censors, the book made Slahi one of the best-known prisoners at Guantanamo. The memoir went on to be a best-seller in the U.S. In an interview with NPR in January, Hina Shamsi, a lawyer with the American Civil Liberties Union, explained how Slahi came to be imprisoned in 2002. \"He wasn't captured on a battlefield,\" she said. \"He voluntarily turned himself over to authorities in his native country of Mauritania for questioning.\" Then, Shamsi said, Slahi was \"subjected to one of the most brutal torture regimes at Guantanamo.\" NPR's David Welna has reported that what Americans did to Slahi during his time in custody was \"extraordinary\" compared to interrogations of other Guantanamo detainees. David reported in January: \"In 2003, then Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld personally approved what was called a special interrogation plan for him. It used so-called enhanced methods. According to a Justice Department investigation, he was beaten, sexually throttled, put in extreme isolation, shackled to the floor, stripped naked and put under strobe lights while being blasted with heavy metal music.\" The decision to release Slahi comes four months after the Pentagon's Periodic Review Board held a hearing about his fate. Just getting the so-called status review by the board was a long-sought victory for Slahi's defense, as David Welna reported at the time. A profile of Slahi read at the beginning of the June hearing called Slahi by his prisoner identification number, MR-760, and noted that \"Throughout his detention, MR-760 has maintained his support for jihad, but clarifies that his notion of jihad neither condones the killing of innocent people nor supports Bin Ladin's 'version of justice.'\" If repatriated to Mauritania, the profile added, Slahi \"probably would reunite with his family, take care of his sisters, and start a business,\" and, if permitted, \"travel internationally to promote his book.\" In July, the board recommended Slahi for release, according to the Pentagon press release. With Slahi gone, 60 detainees remain at the Guantanamo Bay prison.", "The Texas State Board of Education has voted to approve the use of 89 history and social studies books across the state. The 10-5 vote in the Republican-controlled panel was along party lines. The Texas Tribune has more: \"In total, they approved 89 products for eight different social studies courses that will be used in Texas public schools for the next decade. School districts do not have to buy products from the list vetted by the state education board, but many do because it offers a ready guarantee that materials cover state curriculum standards.\" Critics on both the left right have opposed the books. Among the controversial portions are sections on climate change, Islam and the role of religion in the U.S. The books will go out to schools in the fall of 2015. Worldview Software was the only publisher to have its books rejected. Members on the panel cited concerns over errors. The Board of Education also reviewed products in math and fine arts. NPR Ed, NPR's education blog, is also covering this story, and has more details on the controversy surrounding the books.", "Joseph Margulies is a clinical professor of law at Northwestern University School of Law and associate director of the Roderick MacArthur Justice Center. He is the author of Guantanamo and the Abuse of Presidential Power. WikiLeaks recently released a trove of secret risk assessments regarding nearly every prisoner who has ever been held at Guantanamo Bay. I have been continually involved in Guantanamo litigation longer than any lawyer in the world, having been counsel of record in Rasul v. Bush, the first case that went to the Supreme Court from Guantanamo. Over the years, I have defended a number of prisoners at the base. Yet, in the Kafkaesque way that these things work, I cannot comment on the WikiLeaks material because they remain classified. But, even if I could, I would write about something else, because, when it comes to Guantanamo, oddities like this are no longer what matters. Indeed, they've been replaced by base's symbolism in the national consciousness. It is sometimes said that the 1960s have become a cultural litmus test. A person's mental image of that turbulent decade predicts a great deal about his or her position on many of the hot-button issues we face today. Those for whom the 1960s meant the Civil Rights Act, the Voting Rights Act, the end of Jim Crow, the narrowing of the chasm between rich and poor, and the wistful end of New Deal liberalism have a very different vision of the country than those for whom it meant urban riots, campus chaos, the assassination of two Kennedys and a King, dramatically rising crime rates, and the first welcome stirrings of modern conservatism. In this way, the decade was not simply ten years in the long march of a nation's history, but a rare moment when competing visions of national identity collided in the public square. We are quickly reaching a similar point regarding the meaning of, and proper response to, the attacks of September 11. Increasingly stable narratives are taking shape. These narratives vie to claim both the \"true\" understanding of the past and the proper direction of the future. And, as these narratives compete, the iconic images of the post-September 11 world — Guantanamo, waterboarding, military commissions, rendition, and countless others — are converted from policies that are either good or bad (and choices that were either wise or foolish) to symbols that represent particular visions of national identity. It is this symbolic potency that Karl Rove had in mind when he told a BBC journalist in March 2010 that he was \"proud\" of waterboarding and the other \"enhanced\" interrogation techniques. He meant that he was proud the United States had set itself on this course, and that staying the course by adhering to these methods symbolized America's commitment to a particular vision of both the past and future. So it was with the reaction to the WikiLeaks material. Readers discovered in the cache what they set out to find and haled the discovery as confirmation of their prior views. The New York Times, for instance, editorialized that the documents — which it says were received from a third party that obtained them from WikiLeaks — were \"a chilling reminder of the legal and moral disaster that President George W. Bush created [at Guantanamo]. They describe the chaos, lawlessness and incompetence in his administration's system for deciding detainees' guilt or innocence and assessing whether they would be a threat if released.\" But, reviewing the same material, the National Review Online shrugged that \"Wikileaks seems to be supporting Bush's war on terror more than it's causing any problems for the former administration.\" This shift from counter-terror policies to symbols of national identity is momentous and under-appreciated. As with our understanding of the 1960s, the competing visions of September 11 have produced hardening social narratives. These narratives explain the meaning and complexity of contemporary events, at least to the satisfaction of those who share the vision. But, to do so, the narratives must jealously insist upon an idiosyncratic approach to facts. Those that support the narrative are welcomed and assimilated, making the narrative stronger, and those that do not are ignored or dismissed. In time, as this creative use of evidence repeats itself, the narrative matures into myth, which misleads not so much by the falsehood it contains as by the truth it leaves out. In the end, for example, we are left with the myth of the 1960s as the golden years of the Great Society versus the myth of the decade as the moment when conservatism rescued the country from ruin. Or, in the post-September 11 context, the myth of a strong America attacked because of her values versus the myth of an American empire out of control. I see several dangers in this trend. First, it makes it almost impossible for new facts to influence the debate in a rational way. The narratives pounce on each new development like a fishing party on a whale, carvin", "Last week, a conversation on NPR's Weekend Edition Sunday, about reading books with difficult material surrounding race and gender to your children, sparked a lot of criticism. NPR's Rachel Martin spoke with editor Jeremy Adam Smith about the controversy over A Birthday Cake For George Washington, a children's book that portrays a slave chef and his daughter preparing the desert for the president. He's the author of a piece called \"How To Really Read Racist Books To Your Kids.\" The conversation prompted many people to respond to the article in multiple places online, so we're revisiting the piece and incorporating some of your comments. This week, we speak with Andrew Grant Thomas, a father of two who's the founder of EmbraceRace, an online discussion community for parenting. Here's What Some Of You Said Commenter Kathleen Jimenez wrote: \"Rachel, With all due respect to your good work, your white privilege was showing this morning. No parent of color has the privilege of flipping past the pages about racism when reading to their children. Yes, even to a three year old. You passed up an opportunity to give your little one a lesson in compassion and empathy. Racism is not grown up material; it's life material. Your son chose the book, as a parent you can walk through it with him. From all your reporting at NPR it is evident you are a brave reporter. Hope you'll be an even braver mom...\" The website \"Teaching For Change\" wrote, in part (you can read their entire critique at the link): \"The statement that racist children's books allows families the opportunity to dialogue about racism assumes that the audience is white. After all, what parent of color or Native American parent has the luxury of choice to wait for a children's book to talk about race and racism with their children?\" \"Teaching For Change\" also noted a piece by NPR's Eyder Peralta on the same topic, but called it \"an excellent segment.\" Commenter Jhonna Amelia Turner wrote: Huh. This discussion is clearly a representation of white privilege and the realities of many in-the-kitchen, liberal dinner party discussions about race, without a single person of color in the room. It's just that this time it was broadcasted. Reading about race, discussing it among friends, and feeling \"ambushed by...racial imagery\" does not equate to empathy. To understand the damage and seriousness of introducing books of racial misrepresentation, you have to know that the effect could be horrific and extremely tragic — especially at such a young age. For instance, my six-year old niece (who's black) for years wanted all her dolls to white. But not white just, blond hair with blue eyes ... white. The reason being was that my six-year old niece didn't understand that she was beautiful and amazing. She rejected any dolls that looked like her. In attempt to remedy this problem, I went straight to many bookstores to only find...nothing. Nothing that had to do with positive images of little girls of color (and color, I mean any other color besides white). Tragic, right. This conversation is from two people who would probably consider themselves to be racially in tuned, but from reading/hearing, there are clear gaps of racial empathy. My question or thought is, how do you encourage others (clearly they're talking about white people, right?) to have this conversation with their children about race in books, if they are not equipped to do so? It's like having a loaded gun with an awful aim. The damage could be worse.", "New numbers are out on what U.S. officials consider \"terrorist or insurgent activities\" by former Guantanamo captives after their release. At first glance, there appears to be a slight increase in confirmed cases compared to six months ago. But closer examination of the Director of National Intelligence's semi-annual report reveals that the 17.3% to 17.9% uptick was caused entirely by detainees released from Guantanamo during the George W. Bush administration. And even that increase appears to be based almost entirely on shifting previously suspected recidivists into the category of confirmed recidivists. The grand total in the DNI's latest report of suspected and confirmed cases of freed detainees is 185, one more than the 184 reported last September. In contrast, the recidivism rates of detainees released from Guantanamo during the six years of the Obama administration have actually declined over the past six months. Twenty-seven more detainees were released during that half year and no new cases of recidivism have been reported. It's not clear whether the more rigorous review process for transferring detainees out of Guantanamo begun during the Obama administration is the sole reason, but the numbers are striking: only 6 of the 115 detainees released during that time — 5.2% — are confirmed as having turned to insurgent activity, compared to 110 of of the 532 detainees — 20.7% — released before Obama took office. But in its latest assessment of those numbers, the DNI seems to conflate the two administrations, despite their very different track records on released detainees engaging with insurgents (or \"reengaging\", as the DNI puts it, despite no court of law having found any of them guilty of illegal activities). \"Based on trends identified during the past eleven years,\" the DNI writes, \"we assess that some detainees currently at GTMO will seek to reengage in terrorist or insurgent activities after they are transferred.\" The DNI does acknowledge that those transferred under conditions that \"may deter reengagement\" (which applies to most of the detainees released under Obama) are less likely to become involved in such activities. Why do these numbers and assessments matter? They're likely to be fodder for debates coming up soon in Congress on what should be done about the 122 detainees still at Guantanamo. Fifty five of them have been approved for release. The problem has been finding countries that will take them, especially under the more restrictive conditions the U.S. now insists on. Read one way, the DNI's latest report could bolster those who say current transfer policies are far less likely to add more enemies to the battlefield than during the Bush administration. Read another way, it's more official evidence that releasing those detainees is just too risky.", "Salim Hamdan, Osama bin Laden's former driver, was sentenced on Thursday to 5 1/2 years in prison for providing material support for terrorism. But he will serve only a few months. Hamdan, a Yemeni with a fourth-grade education, will get credit for the 61 months he has already spent in custody while awaiting trial, according to the military judge, Navy Capt. Keith Allred. The sentence was recommended by the same six military jurors at Guantanamo Bay who convicted Hamdan on Wednesday of material support for terrorism but acquitted him of the more serious charge of conspiracy. The sentence now goes for mandatory review to a Pentagon official, who can shorten the sentence — but not extend it. It's unclear what will happen to Hamdan after he serves the time ordered Thursday. The U.S. government has, however, argued it can detain Hamdan and other \"enemy combatants\" indefinitely as long as the war on terrorism continues. The trial was the first test of a war crimes tribunal authorized by the Bush administration to try non-U.S. captives on terrorism charges outside the regular civilian and military courts. During the punishment phase of the trial earlier Thursday, prosecutors had asked the jury to sentence Hamdan to at least 30 years. They urged jurors to consider life in prison and to make an example of the man. \"The government asks you to deliver a sentence that will absolutely keep our society safe from him,\" said prosecutor John Murphy. Hamdan, however, pleaded for the jury to spare him a harsh sentence, saying he never joined al-Qaida or knew in advance of its plots but joined bin Laden's motor pool in Afghanistan for the $200 monthly salary. \"I couldn't beg,\" Hamdan said, reading in Arabic from a prepared statement. \"I had to work.\" He said he was sorry for the deaths of innocent people on Sept. 11, 2001, according to a Pentagon transcript. His apology was not heard by reporters because the sound was turned off to protect classified information. Allred, who has described Hamdan as a \"small player,\" previously ruled the defendant should receive five years of credit for time served at Guantanamo Bay. From NPR reports and The Associated Press.", "George Moses Horton published a book of poetry in 1829, when he was still a slave in North Carolina. He went on to write several volumes, which never earned enough money to buy his freedom — though he became a frequent presence on campus at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he wrote love poetry on commission for students. Horton was finally set free by the Union Army in 1865, moved to Philadelphia and continued to write until he died. Jonathan Senchyne, a professor of history at the Information School of the University of Wisconsin, recently discovered an essay by Horton that shows another side of his intelligence — his political insights. \"I was in the reading room at the New York Public Library at 42nd and 5th,\" Senchyne says, looking into the papers of 19th century bibliographer Henry Harrisse, \"and as I was looking through his papers, getting used to reading his handwriting, I saw completely different handwriting ... I did not expect that they knew each other, or that Horton's work would have been known to Harrisse, but there it was.\" Senchyne had found a two-page essay, titled \"Individual Influence,\" with Horton's bold signature at the bottom. Interview Highlights On the essay's resonance today The essay is contained in a scrapbook, and the rest of the material in the scrapbook has to do with the political controversy on the campus of Chapel Hill in 1856. There was a professor, Benjamin Sherwood Hedrick, who supported an anti-slavery candidate for president, John C. Fremont. Months after this essay was written, [Hedrick] was fired from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill for holding his anti-slavery views, and one of the things that interests me is that the material that \"Individual Influence\" is preserved with focuses on the literal question of influence — did Hedrick have too much, or proper forms of influence over his students in matters of politics? Could a public university professor hold views that were unpopular in the state and even problematic for the economy of the state? And right now there are a number of debates about speech and influence on campuses around the United States, especially public university campuses. On Horton's connection to the controversy While Horton certainly wouldn't have thought in terms of academic or intellectual freedom, that is something that I think was present to his mind — the nature of his own freedom as a person, to move about, to have security in his body, but also to think and to speak. And it really intrigues me that he may have been in the circle of people involved ... and their own ideas about slavery and influence and intellectual and personal freedom may have derived from their relationship with Horton. This story was edited for radio by Barrie Hardymon and Sophia Boyd, and adapted for the web by Petra Mayer. SCOTT SIMON, HOST: George Moses Horton published a book of poetry in 1829, when he was still a slave in North Carolina. He went on to write several volumes, which never earned enough money for him to buy his freedom. He was finally set free by the Union Army in 1865, moved to Philadelphia and continued to write until he died, the date of which is not known. Jonathan Senchyne, a professor of history and information at the University of Wisconsin, recently discovered an essay by George Moses Horton that shows another side of his intelligence, his political insights. Dr. Senchyne joins us from New York. Thanks so much for being with us. JONATHAN SENCHYNE: Thanks for having me on. SIMON: Where'd you find the essay? SENCHYNE: I was in the reading room at the New York Public Library on 42nd and 5th. I was looking into the papers of Henry Harrisse, who went on to become a bibliographer in the 19th century. It turned out that he had been in Chapel Hill in the 1850s. And as I was looking through his papers, getting used to reading his handwriting, I saw a completely different handwriting. And though I had known George Moses Horton was also in Chapel Hill at that time, I did not expect that they knew each other or that Horton's work would have been known to Harrisse. But there it was, two-page essay entitled \"Individual Influence,\" and with his very bold signature at the bottom, George Moses Horton, of color, 60 years old, belonging to Hall Horton. SIMON: How does this essay resonate today? SENCHYNE: Well, one thing that we didn't talk about yet is the essay is contained in a scrapbook. And the rest of the material in the scrapbook has to do with a political controversy on the campus of Chapel Hill in 1856. And there was a professor, a Benjamin Sherwood Hedrick, who supported an antislavery candidate for president, John C. Fremont. Months after I think this essay was written, Hedrick was fired from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill for holding his antislavery views. And one of the things that interests me is that the material that \"Individual Influence\" is preserved with focuses on the literal question of influence", "The hugely successful fantasy trilogy His Dark Materials will be getting a \"companion\" trilogy, author Philip Pullman announced this evening. The first book of the new series, which will collectively be called The Book of Dust, is set for publication on October 19. The original His Dark Materials trilogy consists of three volumes (The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife, and The Amber Spyglass) published between 1995 and 2000. The series has sold over 17.5 million copies and been translated into 40 languages. The events of the first trilogy took place across several parallel worlds — including our own — and touched on disparate ideas related to theology, particle physics, and the loss of childhood innocence. Characters included a headstrong and fiercely intelligent young girl named Lyra Belacqua, and an armored, talking polar bear. The Book of Dust will return to the world(s) and characters of His Dark Materials, Pullman said, and Lyra will be integral to the new story — but not in the way she was before. The first volume will take place a decade before the events of His Dark Materials, when Lyra is an infant. The second and third volumes will be set ten years after the original trilogy's conclusion, and will follow Lyra as a young woman. But that doesn't mean what you might expect, Pullman told NPR editor Glen Weldon. He wants readers to consider the new work not as a simple extension of the original trilogy, but as a \"companion\" to it. \"The [new] story begins before His Dark Materials and continues after it,\" he said, \"... you don't have to read it before you read [the original trilogy] ... this is another story that comes after it, so it's not a sequel, and it's not a prequel, it's an equal.\" The title, The Book of Dust, refers to an invisible substance that figures largely in the earlier books — a fictional elementary particle that harbors a mysterious affinity with human consciousness. \"That's what I really wanted to explore in this new work,\" he said. \"More about the nature of Dust, and consciousness, and what it means to be a human being.\" Pullman has already followed up the original trilogy with two novellas and an audiobook. He said he was motivated to revisit the world of Lyra and her companions with a full trilogy because \"I sensed a big story. I sensed the presence, in the way that you do, of another story that hadn't been told, and I went closer and ... thought about it and lived with it for a while and discovered that yes, it was a big story, and it did deserve to be told, it deserves its own books.\" Interview Highlights On where The Book of Dust will fall in the saga Well, the first book is set roughly ten years before the action of His Dark Materials. And the second book and subsequent books ... are set ten years after it. So in the first one, Lyra is only a baby of about six months. So she's not able to do very much, but she's certainly the focus of intense activity on the part of the main protagonists. In the second book she will be twenty years old, she'll be an adult.... It's a sort of companion book, if you like. It doesn't stand before [His Dark Materials], it doesn't stand after it, it stands beside it. On why he's calling it The Book of Dust Dust is something which terrifies the religious authorities in His Dark Materials. It seems to have something to do with human consciousness, it seems to have something to do with experience, or as they call it, \"sin.\" But they don't know what it is, or why it's important, and they're terrified of it. Now, in the course of the story, Lyra and her companions discover something about Dust, something important: that it's not a bad thing, it's a good thing. On whether the overwhelming worldwide reaction to the original trilogy colors his writing of the new one When I wrote the first series, starting in 1993, I didn't expect more than a readership of about two or three thousand. That's sort of based on previous experience and thinking what sort of book it was, I didn't think it would have very wide audience but maybe a few people would enjoy it. The fact that it was received with such interest all over the world in 40 different languages really did amaze me. It didn't change what I was doing, though, because I was already in my late 40s when I was starting that, I wasn't a very young writer bowled over by all the response and attention and so on. I was pretty clear and determined about what I was doing and how I was doing it. The only difference it made was that I had a lot more letters to write back. To answer. Nowadays I communicate by Twitter, but back in those days there were a lot of letters to write back, which I duly did. On his impatient readership Well, I have a standard answer. When people say \"How's The Book of Dust getting along? When's it going to be finished?\" I say, with perfect truth, \"It is three pages longer today than it was yesterday.\" On the criticism his books have received I've been greatly criticized for the attention to religion", "Nearly five years after it hit best-seller lists, a book that purported to be a 6-year-old boy's story of visiting angels and heaven after being injured in a bad car crash is being pulled from shelves. The young man at the center of The Boy Who Came Back from Heaven, Alex Malarkey, said this week that the story was all made up. The book's publisher, Tyndale House, had promoted it as \"a supernatural encounter that will give you new insights on Heaven, angels, and hearing the voice of God.\" But Thursday, Tyndale House confirmed to NPR that it is taking \"the book and all ancillary products out of print.\" The decision to pull the book comes after Alex Malarkey wrote an open letter to retailer LifeWay and others who sell Christian books and religious materials. It was published this week on the Pulpit and Pen website. \"I did not die. I did not go to Heaven,\" Alex wrote. He continued, \"I said I went to heaven because I thought it would get me attention. When I made the claims that I did, I had never read the Bible. People have profited from lies, and continue to. They should read the Bible, which is enough. The Bible is the only source of truth. Anything written by man cannot be infallible.\" He concluded, \"Those who market these materials must be called to repent and hold the Bible as enough.\" Here are a few key background details of the story: Alex Malarkey was paralyzed at the age of 6 when he was in a car wreck. He then spent two months in a coma. He's now a teenager. The book lists him as a co-author along with his father, Kevin Malarkey. Calling the book a \"spiritual memoir,\" The Washington Post notes that it \"became part of a popular genre of 'heavenly tourism,' which has been controversial among orthodox Christians.\" Alex's parents are now divorced; he and his siblings live with his mother, Beth Malarkey, who has previously spoken out against the book featuring her son. She has also said that profits from the book haven't been going to Alex. Another book about a boy who said he had gone to heaven, Heaven Is For Real, has been turned into a movie. Last spring, Beth Malarkey wrote a blog post stating, \"Alex's name and identity are being used against his wishes (I have spoken before and posted about it that Alex has tried to publicly speak out against the book), on something that he is opposed to and knows to be in error according to the Bible.\" She added, \"I am fully aware of what it feels like to be pulled in. There are many who are scamming and using the Word of God to do it. They are good, especially if you are not digging into your Bible and truly studying it. They study their audience and even read 'success' books to try to build better and bigger ... 'ministries/businesses.' \" Thanks to NPR editor Susan Vavrick for flagging this story.", "Mahvish Khan is the American daughter of Afghan immigrants. As a law student at the University of Miami, she wanted to do something to help both her country, and her parents' country, after 9/11. She decided to put her Pashto-speaking skills and knowledge of Afghan culture to good use as an interpreter for defense attorneys representing men held at Guantanamo's detention center. After many visits to the camp, Mahvish began to see the detainees as more than mere numbers -- they became her friends, and surrogate brothers and fathers -- prisoner No. 1154 became Ali Shah Mousovi, detainee No. 1009 became Haji Nusrat. She chronicles their stories, and gives a detailed account of what Gitmo looks, tastes and smells like, in her new book, My Guantanamo Diary: The Detainees and the Stories They Told Me. If you have questions about what life is like for detainees and lawyers at Guantanamo Bay, leave them here.", "Today, Saturday 9/26, is the start of Banned Books Week -- sponsored by the American Library Association, American Booksellers Association, and others. Since 1982 this annual event has celebrated the freedom to read, even unorthodox or unpopular material. Among the giants of American literature that have been banned in the past are Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby; To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, and (can you believe it?) Charlotte's Web. More recently, the Harry Potter books and Philip Pullman's trilogy, His Dark Materials, have been challenged. Stick up for your freedom! Read a banned book this week.", "During his campaign for the White House, President-elect Barack Obama was unequivocal about closing the remote U.S. prison camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Just days after he won the presidential election, a transition team made up of analysts, lawyers and military officials began tackling the Guantanamo issue. They started sifting through the files of the roughly 250 men still held there, looking at the intelligence on — and the evidence against — the prisoners, trying to come up with new ideas to solve the Guantanamo conundrum. This was very much what John Bellinger has faced as legal adviser to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice over the past four years. \"We're seeing the new team coming in, grappling with some of these same issues. These issues are very hard,\" he says. Bellinger is now helping the transition team. \"I have no doubt that the next team will move to close Guantanamo rapidly,\" he says, \"but they will be bedeviled with the same issues that we have.\" Those issues center on what to do with the terror suspects if the Guantanamo prison camp is shuttered. Bellinger's office was instrumental in bringing about the release or repatriation of about 500 of the Guantanamo prisoners. About another 60 are cleared to go, but there are problems finding countries willing to take them. Bobby Chesney, a Wake Forest University law professor specializing in national security and legal issues, says the new Obama administration should capitalize on its vast reservoir of international good will. \"There's some talk that, with a new administration on the way, that other states, perhaps some European states, may be willing to take in some detainees,\" Chesney says. \"But a lot of the smoke signals in that area suggest that the United States has to be willing to do some of the same. And there's not a lot of reason to believe there's a lot of interest in doing that.\" Still, it's widely believed that if and when the Guantanamo camp is closed, the prisoners will be brought to the U.S. mainland. Sandy Hodgkinson, deputy assistant secretary of defense for detainee issues, says the new administration will have to decide where to keep the men. She says it's easier nowadays to decide what to do with the prisoners. \"As you continue to get the population down to a number of individuals who pose the highest threat of the original population, I think the options become a little bit cleaner and clearer,\" she says. \"Partly because the original population of nearly 800 people would have overwhelmed any one of our military detention facilities for certain, and would have overwhelmed likewise federal prisons that we have, such as Supermax or elsewhere, where we've held high-threat people before.\" Hodgkinson says federal law requires that the prisoners be segregated from the regular prison population. \"You would require some modifications to any existing facilities to ensure the security situation was adequately mitigated by the Department of Defense,\" she says. The prisons would also need to have the same types of facilities as there are at Guantanamo Bay, she says, \"so you would need, obviously, additional medical facilities, you would need additional transportation options.\" Obama may have to spend some of his domestic political capital finding a location for the Guantanamo prisoners. The Pentagon has faced outright anger from community and political leaders in virtually every location — civilian or military — it's checked out. Things get even trickier when it comes to prosecuting the suspects. The Obama team will have to decide under which system to try the men. Bellinger says some of the key terror and counterterrorism statutes were not on the books when many of the Guantanamo detainees were picked up. \"So, for an average Yemeni or Saudi who had traveled to Afghanistan to simply train but had not yet formed a terrorist plot, [it's] not altogether clear that someone could be tried in federal court for that,\" Bellinger says. One option would be to create national security courts, which would have greater latitude for classified material and hearsay. That would require legislation, and many analysts say national security courts would be too much like the troubled military commissions now in place at Guantanamo. Bradford Berenson, a Washington lawyer who helped draw up the policies for the military commissions, says the new administration has a much tougher problem to solve than just figuring out how to prosecute the terror suspects. \"What are you going to do with the detainees who cannot be tried in a normal court proceeding, but who are also too dangerous to release back out into the world?\" Berenson asks. There are currently about 80 Guantanamo prisoners who fall into that category — there's not enough evidence to prosecute them, but U.S. intelligence agencies believe the men would pose a serious risk if released. \"I think the policies that have led to preventive detention for suspected terrorists at Guantanamo will pr", "A military judge and lawyers meet at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to work out the sentencing of David Hicks, an Australian citizen who has pleaded guilty to providing material support for terrorism. Hicks, 31, faces the possibility of life in prison. That sentence could be served in Australia. Today's meeting, which is similar to plea-bargaining in the civilian legal world, is part of the process of determining a sentence for Hicks — and where his prison time may be served. Hicks has pleaded guilty to one count of intentionally providing support to a terror organization. But he pleaded not guilty to the charge that he helped prepare or carry out an act of terrorism. Hicks' sentence will be determined by military officers sitting on a tribunal panel or jury. Those officers' decision could come as early as this weekend. MELISSA BLOCK, host: Today at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, a military judge and lawyers met to work out the specifics of the fate of David Hicks. He's the Australian citizen who pleaded guilty to providing material support for terrorism last night. The meeting today was part of the process to determine a sentence for the 31-year-old Hicks, and to decide where that time maybe served out. NPR's Jackie Northam reports from Guantanamo Bay. JACKIE NORTHAM: The daylong meeting here at the Guantanamo Military Base is similar to plea-bargaining in the civilian legal world. The prosecution, defense and judge are dissecting the two counts within the overall charge against David Hicks to come up with the best deal for both sides. Hicks has pleaded guilty to one count of intentionally providing support to a terror organization. He pleaded not guilty to the charge that he helped prepare or carry out an act of terrorism. Hicks' decision to plead guilty to the overall charge came as a surprise to his father, Terry Hicks. In an interview with ABC Australia, the senior Hicks said he supported his son's decision. Mr. TERRY HICKS (Father of David Hicks): As far as I'm concerned, this was a way out for David, regardless whether he's guilty or innocent. We'll never ever know now. NORTHAM: Terry Hicks says he's satisfied that his son has opted for the lesser charge, although it can still mean a long prison sentence. That's likely to be served back home in Australia. His sentence will be determined by military officers sitting on a tribunal panel or jury. Those officers have begun to arrive at Guantanamo, and their decision could come as early as this weekend. Jackie Northam, NPR News, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba." ]

[ "Bane" ]

[ "that which burns", "that which purifies", "Seventh Son of a Seventh Son", "that which is heard" ]

[ "(CNN) -- Miriam Brown has always wanted to visit Cape Cod, but when she recently began to plan a trip and found out she would have to pay $200 or more a night for lodging, her dream vacation seemed out of reach. Miriam Brown and her husband bartered their services for room and board on Cape Cod. Brown, who lives in New Orleans, Louisiana, is an accountant. Her husband is a home renovations contractor. Like many people dealing with a soft real estate market and high food and gas prices, they just don't have that kind of extra cash for a trip. \"I have traveled a lot in prior years, but after [Hurricane] Katrina, there's just no money for traveling,\" Brown said. So she still plans to go, but she won't spend any cash at all on lodging. Brown has joined the growing ranks of Americans who are bartering -- trading goods and services without exchanging money -- as a way to cope with tough economic times. Brown posted an ad in the barter section of the online community Craigslist last month, offering to trade her accounting skills and her husband's knack for home repairs in exchange for room and board on Cape Cod, Massachusetts. She has lots of company. There were some 142,000 listings in the barter section of Craigslist in July, or almost double the number posted during the same month last year, according to Craigslist spokeswoman Susan MacTavish Best. \"When the economy turns unfriendly, Craigslist users become far more creative to get their everyday tasks done,\" Best said. Swapping 'to get by' Other Web sites that put Americans in touch with like-minded people who are willing to trade everything under the sun have also seen a boost in traffic. SwapThing, which lists almost 3.5 million \"things\" available for trade, reports its customers are bartering for different reasons than before. \"I think a few years ago it was more for fun,\" said Jessica Hardwick, SwapThing founder and CEO. \"But we've seen a real shift in the last year, and especially an increase in the last few months, where I think people are really doing it to get by.\" Some of the most popular items to trade for late this summer were school uniforms, which some parents found they could not afford to buy for their children, Hardwick said. Experts aren't surprised Americans are becoming more financially creative during an economic downturn. \"Historically, when times get tough, you see a 50 percent-plus increase in bartering as a way for people to be able to buy things or get things and do it economically,\" said C. Britt Beemer, chairman of America's Research Group. The company talks with thousands of consumers every week to gauge their spending habits and attitudes. A couple of years ago, many Americans had $500 to spend at the end of the month, but that money has evaporated because of rising prices, Beemer said. \"We've never had a time, at least in my lifetime, where you have food and fuel going up at the same time. So it isn't a question of buying things, it's a question of buying nothing,\" Beemer said. Breast implants and a horse . Businesses have long recognized the benefits of bartering, and there are hundreds of barter networks set up across the country to fill their needs. They use barter credits as currency, so a plumber in need of a filling doesn't need to search for a dentist's office with plumbing problems to make a deal. He can fix a leaky pipe for one member of a network and use the credits he earned for that job at any other. Since all kinds of companies are members, the trades can be all over the map, said Michael Krane, president of Green Apple Barter Services in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. His company has brokered everything from breast implants to college tuition to a horse. \"Really, there are no limits to it. We trade for just about anything you can think of,\" Krane said. Bartering on this scale is also robust in tough economic times. Krane said his exchange has seen a 20 percent rise in barter transaction volume in the first six months of this year. A longtime client is Thomas Forrest, an orthodontist in suburban Pittsburgh who barters his services for everything from office improvements to stationery. His practice hasn't been affected by the economic downturn, Forrest said, but some of his patients seem glad to be able to visit him under the barter arrangement. \"I think if you have a business owner who has children in need of braces, I sense a gratitude that that's available,\" Forrest said. Barter exchanges must carefully document all trades, since the Internal Revenue Service considers income from bartering as taxable. However, a barter exchange \"does not include arrangements that provide solely for the informal exchange of similar services on a noncommercial basis,\" according to the IRS. In New Orleans, Brown and her husband are getting ready to go to Cape Cod after finding a taker for her bartering offer on Craigslist. The couple will work five hours a day in exchange for staying in \"a beautiful three-bedroom house right in the center of it all,\" Brown said. \"We can do a lot more if we don't have to pay for room and board,\" she added." ]

[ "(CNN) -- British photographers and self-described \"urban explorers\" Daniel Marbaix and Daniel Barter see beauty amid the desolation of abandoned buildings. Their shoots have brought them to defunct factories, mines and houses of worship around the world, from their native England to Japan. For their first book, they captured the forgotten structures of the eastern United States: ruins of churches and theaters in New York City, derelict train stations, asylums and factories in the Rust Belt. Images from \"States of Decay,\" published in July, evoke different reactions, especially the book's cover. Shot by Barter, it shows an American flag hanging over a defaced frieze of the Last Supper. Barter said the image reflects the separation of church and state in a reference to American politics. Citing an \"explorers' code,\" the photographers chose not to provide specific information about the locations of their shoots. Indeed, the decaying structure may or may not reflect a general decline in the surrounding area, regardless of the state of the structure. A shared fascination with old buildings brought the photographers together. Barter's love of old buildings started as a child. Growing up in North London, he and a few friends would climb a fence after school and play inside a derelict airplane. \"The combination of leather and shiny metal switches was a formative experience for me,\" said Barter, 29. \"If I close my eyes, I can almost still smell it.\" When he grew older, Barter studied restoration art in college, and that knowledge transformed his interest into a job as a professional photographer. Meanwhile, Marbaix studied zoology at Royal Holloway, University of London, and somehow fell in love with photography. \"My courses seemed to just spill over into exploring the urban environment and that led to photography,\" said Marbaix, 33. \"I have not looked back since.\" When the two first met through friends in a pub in London of 2011, they were competing photographers. But after they learned of their mutual interest in taking photos of \"older building and artifacts,\" a friendship developed that has led to many adventures, for work and pleasure -- often both. Poking around abandoned buildings has led to a few close calls with authorities, the \"Dan duo\" said. The mixture of luck and adrenaline has concocted a slew of comical memories for the pair as well as some great shots. Although many of their shoots might appear to be planned and organized, most of the time they're produced during holidays and trips with friends and family. \"There is not a method to the madness. We just do whatever we feel like,\" Marbaix said. While they continue to work on projects centered on the unseen and unfamiliar in Britain, they're looking forward to more adventures. \"We are told that we are too old to be doing this sort of thing,\" said Marbaix. \"But honestly I could care less. My mother loves it and that's all that matters.\"", "(CNN) -- After Tip O'Neill's \"All politics is local,\" Bill Clinton's quip \"It's the economy, stupid,\" is perhaps the most oft-quoted truism of modern American politics. But as times change, we should update our aphorisms accordingly. Just four years ago during America's presidential election, outsourcing to India and China's currency manipulation were the bogeymen, the former blamed for the loss of jobs and the latter for the weakness of exports. But increasingly the culprit is the robot. Automation now removes as many manufacturing jobs from the economy as outsourcing. Witness the U.S. Postal Service, which will have to cut 35,000 jobs by 2015, and how digitization has forced bookstore chains such as Borders into bankruptcy. China, once the beneficiary of offshored manufacturing, also now faces cheaper competitors in Asia and technology upgrades: Foxconn -- a subsidiary of Taiwan-based electronics supplier Hon Hai Precision Industry Co -- plans to implement more than one million robots on its assembly lines in China by 2015. We may compete against each other economically, but we are all competing with, and against, technology. An updated vocabulary for these circumstances might include the shift from homo economicus to homo technologicus. Even economists ought to agree. Marx and Engels wrote in the Communist Manifesto that it was constant changes in the \"instruments of production\" that caused \"all fixed, fast-frozen relations\" to be \"swept away.\" For Schumpeter, technological change was a key driver of \"creative destruction.\" Technology increases drive problems that we view as political or economic in nature such as income inequality. America's wealthiest people earn from their innovation and control of technologies, ranging from social media to high-frequency trading. If technology drives economics -- rather than the reverse -- then we should elevate the notion of geo-technology above that of geopolitics and geo-economics as well. It was around the time of then-candidate Bill Clinton's 1992 quip about the economy that scholars of international relations began to use the now vogue term \"geo-economics.\" Edward Luttwak wrote that the logic of conflict would unfold in the \"grammar of commerce.\" Samuel Huntington chided his fellow political scientists for not recognizing that \"economics is the most important source of power and well-being.\" Today that same statement is true of technology. Think about it: China is not a superpower today because it has about twice as many nuclear warheads as it did two decades ago. Not many people know or care how many nukes China has; it has had them since the 1960s, yet we didn't consider China a superpower then. China's superpower rise is directly attributable to its technological strategy of dominating low-cost manufacturing, accumulating massive surpluses and reserves, and reinvesting that cash into more advanced technologies as well as military hardware. The causal flow begins with technology. By this logic, China's recent twelfth Five-Year Plan should be viewed as a more cogent national security strategy than anything offered by the Pentagon in two decades: it pledges $1.5 trillion in government support for seven \"strategic emerging industries\" including alternative energy, biotechnology, next-gen IT, high-end manufacturing equipment and advanced materials. China invented none of these fields, but is putting incomparable effort into deploying them at scale. China already controls over half the world's market in solar cells. Does the balance of power matter more, or the balance of innovation? Even though technology has become a scapegoat in American politics, it is also widely recognized as part of the solution. The internet creates 2.6 jobs domestically for each one that is lost to automation. The new great hope for a grassroots economic revival is the advent of 3D printing, which some call the \"next industrial revolution,\" for its potential to revive a nationwide DIY manufacturing movement. Small-scale prototypes can be produced in much smaller quantities, and bought and traded on increasingly popular websites like Etsy.com, which has over 15 million users and growing. Technology also enables the increasingly wide and liquid market for task bartering and skill exchanges: Amazon's Mechanical Turk is already the world's largest part-time workforce. The next wave of job creation could come from green construction, meaning retrofitting for low-emissions buildings and installing smart grid equipment such as solar cells and constructing wind farms. Our political discourse today obsesses over economic headlines at the expense of technological foresight. In America it passes as penetrating wisdom that Obama will be re-elected if unemployment drops below 8%. But America's structural unemployment won't be unwound by statistical sleights of hand. What every citizen and worker in the world today needs is not higher IQ or EQ but higher TQ: technology quotient. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Ayesha and Parag Khanna.", "By . Ruth Styles . Women aged between 25 and 34 are more stressed than anyone else in Britain, a new study has found. At that age, women are typically climbing the career ladder at work, caring for demanding young children at home and paying a mortgage. All these pressures mount up as they struggle to overcome the strains of busy work, family and social lives, experts say. Anguish: Women between the ages of 25 and 34 are the most stressed people in Britain . Nationally, two in three of us, 67 per cent, suffer from stress every week, the study by herbal stress remedy brand Kalms found. And over a year the average Brit gets stressed 208 times. Managing bills and finances in tough economic times, and struggling to fit everything into a day are the biggest causes. Women typically suffer more bouts of anxiety than men - feeling anxious more than five times each week - and also find it harder to cope with. Men feel the strain four times each week, with the pressure passing more swiftly than women. But women - who often shoulder the greater burden of raising children - feel anxious five times a week. Tough: Actresses Miley Cyrus (left) and Christina Ricci (right) have both admitted to suffering from stress . A quarter of women say they are over-burdened eight or more times each week - meaning they struggle to cope every single day. The causes of stress are often similar for both sexes, the study of 2,000 adults found. Four in ten Brits (39 per cent) worry they will not be able to pay their bills and 30 per cent worry about squeezing all their chores into a busy schedule. One in five (22 per cent) are anxious about maintaining a healthy work/life balance, and 12 per cent making key decisions about their kids' future. But notably, women are much more likely to stress about household chores and relationships. Men fret more about working long hours, getting stuck in traffic, and being a passenger in a car while their partner is driving. During times of intense stress, 43 per cent of women lose sleep, a needy 41 per cent 'comfort eat' and 21 per cent drink more alcohol. Stress leaves many women feeling 'irritable', 'tense' and 'tired', the study found. Others report suffering from headaches or increased heartrate. Loss of sleep . Indulgence in comfort food and treats . Arguments with loved ones . Over-eating . Taking up smoking or smoking to excess . Get a good night's sleep . Eat healthy foods . Read some escapist fiction . Go shopping . Chat to a friend . Men who are feeling the strain are more likely than women to start smoking or to smoke more. And a quarter, 25 per cent, turn to their favourite tipple to help get them through times of trouble. Others argue with loved ones, forget to eat or take time off work to help them recover. Personal assistant Jane Hughes, 32, said the pressures of modern life leave her feeling stressed every single day. The mum of two, from Birmingham, said: 'Balancing the demands of my work and family lives is really tough and there's little room for a social life. 'I have to sacrifice sleep in order to get everything done, which leaves me feeling incredibly irritable each morning. 'A day does not pass without me feeling stressed. Unfortunately I do comfort eat to try to make me feel better but I then get more stressed about putting on weight.' Neil Shah, Director of the Stress Management Society, said: 'Women between the ages of 25 and 34 appear to be the most stressed. 'At this age they are struggling to keep up with an 'ideal lifestyle' and struggling to fit more and more into their lives. Solution: Spending time with friends can help to alleviate stress . 'Juggling a career, personal finances, relationships, family and home life not only contributes to stress but can make it difficult to find time to deal with the causes.' He added: 'Men and women stress about different things. Women worry more about bills and finances, and juggling their time, but men are more concerned about working long hours and debt. 'It is also important to bear in mind men and women have very different strategies to cope with stress. 'The fact they are worrying about different things could become a source of tension within relationships. 'People should find ways to relax and regain control. Exercise and a healthy diet can help to manage these periods of elevated stress and anxiety. You should try to avoid stimulants such as technology or alcohol, particularly close to bedtime. A good night's sleep can really help reduce symptoms of stress, so ensure you have a good wind down routine in the evenings.'", "These eerie pictures of abandoned asylums, prisons and schools give a glimpse into what life was like in these places in 20th Century America. The images were captured by British photographer, Daniel Barter, 30, and show how these institutions had bowling alleys, theatres, and even hairdressing salons. Mr Barter, from London, was travelling through America’s north eastern states when he had the chance to explore the derelict public buildings left untouched since they were closed down. He also found churches filled with junk and hotels where no-one had disturbed the dust for decades. But his adventures weren't without an element of danger. 'Urban exploration' involves trespass which in the United States is a criminal offence and his 5,000 mile road trip with fellow photographer Dan Marbaix often left him in areas considered unsafe. Mr Barter said: 'We visited five states and several major cities, from New York City to Pittsburgh. It got pretty wild at times, so much so that in the more destitute areas, our guide carried a Glock.' Al Capone's cell in a Pennsylvania penitentiary gives a sense of what life was like in 20th Century American institutions . Plastic balls lay scattered across the floor at the asylum in New York. The pictures were taken by British photographer Daniel Barter . Dental equipment is left stood out to rot at this abandoned 20th Century asylum in New Jersey . The bleak hallways of one of the cell blocks at a penitentiary in Pennsylvania. Most of the buildings were left untouched since the day they closed their doors . An altar at a disused church in Pennsylvania found by Mr Barter is left to rack and ruin . This testing cell in New Jersey would have once tested jet engines but now it is derelict . Some asylums, like this sanatorium in New York, even came equipped with a hairdressing salon . There is no chance of getting a strike at this abandoned asylum in New York, as the pins are strewn across the floor . Bowling shoes still in the rack at an asylum in New York. Mr Barter was surprised to see that an asylum would have a bowling alley . Photographer Daniel Barter travelled around the U.S. taking pictures of creepy abandoned buildings. This image shows a platform entrance to a central terminal in New York . Television sets are stacked on top of each other at a disused hotel in New York . Despite not hosting any more shows, this theatre in Connecticut still retains some features that show it was a once grand building . The lobby of this hotel no longer welcomes guests but instead has been abandoned . School assemblies would have once taken place in this hall at an elementary school in Pennsylvania but now the seats are starting to rot . Discarded furniture is strewn across the floor of this old church in Pennsylvania . This crumbling bedroom was once a guest room at a Masonic Lodge in New York, untouched since the building closed its doors . Photographer Daniel Barter, who captured these images, giving a sense of what life was like in institutions in 20th Century America .", "(CNN) -- As you celebrate the holiday season, make time to see Alexander Payne's brilliant new film, \"Nebraska.\" The movie is a riveting story, filmed in black and white, about an elderly man named Woody Grant (played by Bruce Dern) who takes a road trip with his youngest son, David (played by Will Forte). The two of them drive from Billings, Montana, to Lincoln, Nebraska. Woody, an alcoholic who has lived a hard life, is convinced that he has won a million dollars based on a letter from a company that sells magazine subscriptions. David tries to explain to his gruff father that the letter is simply a ploy to convince him to purchase subscriptions. The father is determined, and desperate, to claim the prize. With a kind heart, David ends up taking his dad on the trip to play out his dream. Throughout the film, viewers see a landscape that is visually beautiful and economically devastating. The two travel through towns that are aging and fading, where almost every character is struggling to make ends meet. Indeed, the fact that Woody is depending on this kind of letter to find fortune is in itself a devastating statement about what has become of the American dream. David, a struggling salesman in the audio and electronics business, at one point asks what his father would actually do with a million dollars. It turns out that all Woody really wants is a new truck and an air compressor. That's the limit of his aspirations. He can't even dream of anything more or of a better way to obtain it. The movie is a powerful statement about the economic challenges that face so many Americans who live in, or on the verge of, poverty. One of the greatest tragedies of the current political era is that neither party has been doing much to make things better. Like Woody, many Americans cling on for their economic lives, daring to dream based on the flimsiest of opportunities. While the American dream once revolved around making your way up through a union job, selling products to consumers or starting a small business, today for many Americans that dream has come down to hoping to win sweepstakes, contests that are doomed to disappoint almost everyone. In this context, it's remarkable that in recent years, many Republicans have actually threatened to make things more difficult in these communities. Besides the fact that the national GOP has not supported any kind of substantive policies to invest in certain regions to kick start economic growth, congressional Republicans have launched an all-out assault on the social safety net. The House GOP, for example, has pushed for a reduction in food stamps, one of the most important benefits upon which millions of Americans have depended since the 1960s. Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin has called for a conservative War on Poverty that relies on private markets, voluntarism and vouchers to help the poor while he simultaneously promotes stringent budget cuts in nondefense spending that would weaken government support systems such as food stamps or the Earned Income Tax Credit. Republicans have pushed for major reductions in programs such as Social Security and Medicare. Many Republican governors are continuing to reject the expanded Medicaid funding in the Affordable Care Act, which would be hugely beneficial to the poor and working poor. There are many more Democrats who are clearly interested in using government to tackle some of the conditions with which the characters in \"Nebraska\" have to cope, though the actual programs they seek to put into place remain unclear (outside of the ACA, which is hugely significant). President Barack Obama delivered a speech last week on economic inequality, calling on politicians to do more to address the issue, which he characterized as the \"defining challenge of our time.\" The president called on Congress to pass legislation strengthening unions, raising the minimum wage, reducing the gender pay gap and making college more affordable. But until now, there has been little movement during by the Obama White House to deal with these kinds of structural economic problems. Obama has also faced fierce opposition whenever he raises these issues. Many Democrats assume that tackling poverty is politically impossible today, so they invest more energy in programs that will win them votes in prosperous suburban communities. The nation can't afford to continue along this path. Fifty years ago next year, President Lyndon Johnson and the 88th Congress launched a War on Poverty that committed government funding and created an agency to help impoverished Americans become self-sufficient and restore their communities. For over a decade, the program had many beneficial effects and played a role in diminishing the number of people living under the worst economic conditions. A recent paper from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities showed how government supports created since the New Deal lift millions of Americans out of poverty. In 2011, the paper found, the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Child Tax Credit rescued 9.4 million people from the grasp of poverty. To be sure, the War on Poverty suffered from many shortcomings. The funding for the programs was always meager compared with the inflated promises that came from elected officials. Some of the programs created huge friction among Democrats as local politicians didn't like what community activists did with federal money that was out of their control. Conservatives have also railed against the unintended consequences of the programs, claiming they made recipients dependent on government. Regardless of the criticism, this was a period when the federal government tried to do something. Importantly, it was not just liberals who were behind these programs, but also conservatives such as Southern Democrat Phil Landrum of Georgia, who sponsored the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 in the House. The time has come to focus our attention on the issue of systematic poverty once again, to make sure that we move the nation on a path toward a better Christmas in Nebraska. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Julian Zelizer.", "By . Sadie Whitelocks . UPDATED: . 07:50 EST, 29 February 2012 . A man who was left with a huge dent in his head after hitting a brick wall has had it rebuilt using fat from his stomach. Tim Barter, 32, shattered his skull, eye socket and cheekbone and was left in coma after plummeting 25 feet from a drainpipe. But thanks to a groundbreaking procedure which used body fat to fill scars, the visual effects supervisor, who worked on the BBC TV series Dr Who, is now fully recovered and his injuries are barely visible. Transformation: Tim Barter after his head injury in 2009 (left) and after the groundbreaking procedure which used fat from his stomach to fill scars . It is the first procedure of its kind in Britain, specially designed to improve the outcome of facial injuries. Surgeons at King’s College Hospital used computer technology to design titanium plates to repair Mr Barter’s smashed skull while fat from his stomach was injected into his temple. Mr Barter, of Brixton, south London, who has now taken up rock climbing, kayaking, fencing and sky-diving, said: 'Life stopped for a number . of months. I couldn’t work and I had double vision. 'I was frightened . that my eyesight would never go back to normal and that I would have to . give up my job for good. 'I’m making the most of everything . now where I didn’t before.' Big injury: An X-ray of Mr Barter's damaged skull . Mr Barter spent weeks at King’s following the fall which took place in June 2009 after he lost his house keys and tried to . get into his house via a drainpipe. But the pipe collapsed under his weight and he fell 25ft hitting a brick wall on his way down. Neighbours found him unconscious and called an ambulance. He was taken to the major trauma . centre at King’s College Hospital where he spent 10 days in a coma. Doctors discovered his leg was broken and his eye socket were shattered . along with his cheekbone. They had to remove part of his skull on the right hand side of his head to relieve the swelling and bleed on his brain. Titanium plates were used for his skull and also used to reshape his shattered eye socket and keep the bone together. These were inserted via the inside of Mr Barter’s cheek to cause minimal scarring. After his discharge, Mr Barter was given a white hard hat similar to a builder’s which he wore to protect his head outdoors. Robert Bentley the cranio-oral and maxillofacial surgeon who developed the technique and performed the operation.said: 'Patients having . sustained such injuries as Tim’s highlight the fully integrated approach . that we have as a major trauma centre. 'This ensures that our patients . receive the best treatment in the most appropriate settings and by the . most appropriate individuals.'", "These remarkable photos show a moustache growing competition so revered its participants spend years growing facial hair long enough to be swung through the air like rope. Contestants for the Pushkar Fair's annual competition - an event hugely popular with locals and tourists - took center stage today to show off their incredible moustaches. Many contestants arrived with hair curled into buns on the sides of their faces but once released, were revealed to be meters long and touching the ground. A contestant swings his moustache through the air like a lasso during the annual competition . A participant shows off his short but styled moustache at the annual Pushkar Camel Fair, Rajasthan . Tourists can be seen taking photos as a man displays a moustache as long as his arms are wide. The event is particularly popular with travellers . As well as the moustache competition (pictured) the fair also hosts a camel racing tournament. Pictured is a contestant displaying his facial hair while others sit and wait their turn . Left, contestants walk in single file showing off their facial hair, while right, a man's moustache remains curled up as he awaits his turn to show it to the crowds . Hundreds of herders descend upon Pushkar in the state of Rajasthan for the five-day annual camel and livestock fair. The Pushkar Fair, also known as the Pushkar ka Mela, is held on the banks of Pushkar Lake every November at the time of the Kartik Purnima full moon. The epic spectacle attracts 300,000 people and up to 20,000 camels, cattle and horses. The event, which sees tough bartering over livestock, has also become a major tourist attraction in recent years with a fair football match held between the locals and visitors. A camel race starts off the festival followed by music performances and tough competitions such as the longest moustache competition and a 'bridal competition'. While the herders deal livestock, many shoppers attend to visit the stalls of clothes and textiles. Contestants dressed in their finest clothes parade their moustaches before the crowds . Although the moustache competition (pictured) is one of the most popular events at the fair, it was originally organized to enable the trading of livestock and is attended by 300,000 people .", "By . Leon Watson . From buildings built by the Nazis to ornate theatres, burnt out hotels and eerie sanatoriums, these are the abandoned buildings that still litter the powerhouse of Europe. Photographer Daniel Barter, 30, from London travelled to the German capital Berlin and the surrounding countryside to capture buildings in need of work on film. Far from being resplendent in vintage glory, the deserted music venues and crumbling hospitals are a shadow of their former selves. An abandoned former Hitler Youth Training School pictured by British photographer Daniel Barter, 30, from London . The Eagle and Iron Cross mural at Krampnitz Kaserne, a military complex, in Fahrland, Potsdam, created by the Germans during the rearmament period . Warped parquet flooring at Krampnitz Kaserne. The site was also used as a driving training centre until the Russians took control of the area, taking over a day after the Germans abandoned it April 26, 1945 . A gym/basketball court at Krampnitz Kaserne. The 35th Guards Motor Rifle Division was then stationed there until its abandonment in 1992, after the Soviet Union dissolved . Decaying: A lecture hall at the former Hitler Youth training school pictured by Daniel Barter, 30 . A view of the former Hitler Youth training school's lecture hall from the stage . The inside of the former Hitler Youth Training School in Germany. The windows are open, but this room is still in good condition . German eagle motifs flake off ceilings and concert halls designed for hundreds have not seen a show for years. Mr Barter said: 'I stumbled into photography via my degree, which was in restoration. My interest in abandonments started really young. 'When I was five my junior school had a derelict aeroplane in an adjoining field. Two of my friends and I climbed over the 10ft green wire mesh fence and entered the plane. 'If I close my eyes I can still picture the switches, dials and smell the leather. 'I find abandoned buildings to photograph by word of mouth or a little bit of research. 'To gain access to some of the locations is quite another story and can involve a lot of climbing, sneaking and hiding. 'The best and most interesting thing about photographing abandoned buildings in Germany has to be the clash between different opposing ideologies that dominated this region in the mid to late 20th century. 'There is almost nothing else similar to it around the globe. 'The way it effected the material fabric of these lost places and the way it continues to effect the region as a whole, is I believe unique.' There are more than 60 buildings at the sanatorium which are looking for a new lease of life . An undamaged guest room in the burnt out hotel looks almost lived in, but very dated . Seen better days: The main dining table in the abandoned and burnt out hotel . Left to rot: A barber's chair in a manor house that once acted as a sanatorium . The grand staircase at the Lung Sanatorium that has been daubed with graffiti. The site is south of Berlin. Building work started in 1898 . Pictured here is an abandoned theatre that has not seen a show for years . Mr Barter's photographs show even the powerhouse of Europe has its fair share of abandoned properties . A restaurant in the site of a burnt out hotel where food hasn't been on the menu for years . A corridor at the sanatorium. In its time it was also used as a hospital by the Russian Army until German reunification . The arches around a courtyard inside the old sanatorium daubed with graffiti .", "(CNN)It must have seemed like the apocalypse. In less than 60 seconds, a 7.0-magnitude earthquake shifted Haiti's landscape and changed millions of lives forever. The government estimated about 220,000 deaths from the disaster, which occurred five years ago Monday. It also left about 1.5 million Haitians homeless. Then things got worse. A massive cholera outbreak followed, killing nearly 8,600. \"Speaking with the people, listening to their stories, I think that they experienced something that was really inhuman, something that it is impossible to understand, or to narrate,\" said award-winning Italian photographer Marco Gualazzini, who visited Haiti last month. He said there's still a lot of work to do. Nearly 80,000 live day to day without a \"proper roof over their heads,\" according to the International Organization for Migration. Many of these homeless live in displacement camps. Related: Impact Your World . During his visit, Gualazzini found hopeful signs of recovery. But he also noticed disappointing evidence that the nation might be heading toward a dark future economically and politically. Social media . Follow @CNNPhotos on Twitter to join the conversation about photography. His photograph of a street market in the capital, Port-au Prince, ranks among his favorite images from this trip because of its soft and peaceful light and the mist rising from the pier. The people at the market represent so much about the state of Haiti today, he said. The scene depicts \"just an ordinary market, a lively market which has been bartering, buying and selling all day long under the baking heat of the sun,\" Gualazzini pointed out. \"But for a city that only five years ago suffered an earthquake -- creating so many orphans, widows and cripples, making so many poor people even poorer -- I think it is an extraordinary sign of recovery.\" Gualazzini's visit wasn't all as peaceful. Three days a week, anti-government anger and frustration prompted thousands of Haitians to stage protests in slum areas such as Cite Soleil and Waf Jeremie. Protest slogans during these demonstrations often were followed by police firing tear gas and then the sound of gunshots, he said. Related: Prime minister quits after widespread protests . \"People are tired of this ever-increasing divide which is being created between the rich and the poor,\" Gualazzini said. Haiti, like many other developing countries, Gualazzini said, \"needs to bridge this gap between the opulence of the rich and the inhuman poverty of the ever-more-impoverished poor.\" From the moment he arrived, Gualazzini knew where he could capture photos to illustrate that idea. Tiny, brightly painted homes in a slum area known as Jalousie form a backdrop to Petion-Ville, one of the richest and wealthiest districts of Port-au Prince. \"These small buildings clinging to the hills look like houses in a nativity scene,\" Gualazzini said, \"and the inattentive visitor would never imagine that this is actually an extremely poor slum area in which violence is still congenital and the inhabitants do not have access even to the most basic facilities.\" But Gualazzini had trouble capturing Jalousie in the right light. Nearly every day for three weeks, he fought his way through Port-au Prince's gridlocked traffic to return to the slum and try for a good picture. Finally, at 6 in the morning on the last day of his visit, he found himself looking at Jalousie again. All packed up and ready to leave the island, while waiting for a taxi, he decided to try one more time. He pointed his camera and focused. And that's when it happened. \"The light came up from behind the hills and entered the camera,\" he recalled. With a push of his shutter button, Gualazzini had captured his elusive shot. (The second photo in the gallery above.) \"The quake left an indelible mark on Haiti,\" Gualazzini said. \"Yet the people still managed to get back on their feet. They cleared away the rubble and started to build again where there was only pain and death.\" If they can successfully confront such devastation, can Haiti's people next figure out a way to work and prosper together? As Gualazzini put it, \"They're at a crossroads.\"", "Melissa Harris-Lacewell is associate professor of politics and African-American studies at Princeton University. She is the author of the award-winning book \"Barbershops, Bibles, and BET: Everyday Talk and Black Political Thought\" and writes a daily blog titled The Kitchen Table. Melissa Harris-Lacewell says African-Americans remain skeptical about racial progress in the U.S. PRINCETON, New Jersey (CNN) -- America was proud of itself for electing Barack Obama. The pride was not just partisan and ideological; it was also specifically and clearly racial. The morning after Obama's win, The New York Times declared \"Racial Barrier Falls in Decisive Victory.\" The Los Angeles Times asserted that \"for the first time in human history, a largely white nation has elected a black man to be its paramount leader.\" Some black commentators openly wept on election night, thrilled with witnessing the election of our first black president. Even Sen. John McCain, conceding defeat, pointed to the greatness of the American promise fulfilled in the election of his opponent. Obama's victory offered the possibility that the scars of America's racial legacy were healed or, at least, that they were less raw. For many African-American citizens, the election of the first black U.S. president was cause for celebration and open-mouthed wonder about an outcome that seemed so unlikely just two years earlier, when Obama announced his bid. Despite this joy, many black citizens were dubious that his victory represented the destruction of any particular racial barrier. African-Americans were both proud of and excited about Obama, but in the 45 years since the passage of the Civil Rights Act, black Americans had seen doors to power, influence and wealth open just enough to admit just a few without fundamentally altering opportunities for the majority. Indeed, responses to a recent CNN/Essence Magazine/Opinion Research Corp. survey indicate that black enthusiasm about Obama exists side-by-by side with deep skepticism about America's racial progress. This atmosphere of both enthusiasm and doubt has sparked discussion about whether we have entered a post-racial era in American politics. It is a difficult debate, because the term \"post-racial\" is not clearly defined. Race itself is a slippery idea. Typically, we treat race like a fixed, unchanging, biological category. But race is none of these things. Race is a social construct. Though it is based in physical traits, race is a category developed through social practice, law and history. As a nation, we made blackness through our politics, developing a category of people who could be enslaved and later segregated. So when we talk of a post-racial America, we are not pointing to the massive demographic shifts that are unalterably changing the racial, ethnic and linguistic landscape of America. Instead, \"post-racial\" is an expression of social and political longing. For most, this means an America free of racism and discrimination, but others seem to hint at a society entirely free of racial identity or recognition. The idea of a post-racial America has been upheld as an achievable ideal where people would receive equal treatment and fair outcomes regardless of their race. It has been critiqued as an impossible dream unlikely to exist in a nation with a history of slavery and legal discrimination. It has been denounced as an unworthy goal that would require black Americans to reject their cultural specificity and unique social and political concerns. Undoubtedly, the 2008 election broke formerly entrenched racial trends. Obama was elected just as the depth and breadth of the American economic crisis was becoming clear. Some suggested that his victory could be explained by the nation's fiscal difficulties because he was the candidate of the out-party, which often wins when times are hard. But this analysis forgets the cross-cutting history of race. When the economic pie shrinks, Americans rarely form multiracial political coalitions led by minority candidates. Obama's victory countered the trend toward racial balkanization more typical in tough economic times. The changing dynamics of racial politics were further evidenced when Obama won both Virginia and North Carolina. In these Southern states and in many blue states throughout the country, Obama shattered the \"Bradley Effect,\" often getting a higher percentage of the white vote than polls predicted. There was little evidence that white voters rejected Obama based on his race, and few white Democrats crossed party lines to vote for McCain. For these reasons, Obama's win offers evidence of a post-racial American electoral politics. And if not post-racial, these data at least point to a much less racist American voting public than what existed 40 years ago. Still, the election of a black president has not changed the material realities of racial inequality. African-Americans are significantly more distressed than their white counterparts on every meaningful economic indicator: income, unemployment, wealth, education, home ownership and home foreclosures. African-American social realities are equally grim. Blacks are far more likely to be arrested and more harshly sentenced than whites. African-Americans are less likely to marry, more likely to divorce and more likely to live in single- parent households. Compared with whites, blacks are more likely to suffer infant mortality, cancer, diabetes and premature death. Substantial evidence shows that the economic, social and even political gains made by African-Americans in the 1960s and 1970s have leveled off or reversed in the past decade in areas such as urban education, the number of black elected officials and the racial wealth gap. The murder of a security guard at the national Holocaust museum by a racist anti-Semite reminded the nation that old-fashioned, violent bigotry still has life in America. These sobering realities indicate that race still vastly over-determines the life chances of Americans. These differences cannot be explained away by class alone, because most of these inequalities persist even when controlling for income. To be born black in America is still a tremendous disadvantage compared with being born white in this country. Herein lies the challenge facing Americans in this new racial era. For much of the 20th century, the battle for civil rights rested on a belief that political equality would translate into social and economic justice. There can be little doubt that many of the substantive battles for political power and representation have been won. In that sense, Obama's election is the fulfillment of a post-racial political promise. It is equally clear that this political arrival has not ushered in the other substantive racial changes that the civil rights movement hoped to achieve. In many ways, political equality is just the beginning of the process. The work of politics is to collectively craft the nation we want to have. The election of Obama does not indicate the realization of post-racial America, but it does allow us the opportunity to engage in renewed, collective questioning of what a racially just nation is like. Having achieved so much politically, there is still real debate about how to end overt racism, structural discrimination and persistent inequality. Some want a country where the black kids don't sit together in the cafeteria, while others hope black kids being together will provoke neither comment nor anxiety. Some want a nation where no one notices race, while others hope that their racial identity can be both recognized and appreciated. Some worry that eliminating racial barriers will only solidify economic differences, while others suspect that economic justice cannot be achieved without grappling with race. Some want the end of all inequality, while others simply hope disparities will be based on \"merit\" rather than race. As citizens in a democracy, we can choose the future of our racial politics. Not all at once and not without struggle, but we can make new choices . And this time, African-Americans participate in the process of remaking America's racial story from a very different position than we have occupied in the past. Rather than being solely on the margins of national power, black Americans, through the person of Obama, have achieved a new kind of citizenship more empowered to recreate American race. This does not mean black people have equal political or economic power, but it does mean that the election of Obama encourages black Americans to even more loudly and clearly articulate our varied aspirations for our country. In November, we did a marvelous thing. Now, the work begins. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Melissa Harris-Lacewell.", "Krystal Barter created the Pink Hope charity in 2009 as she was recovering from a double mastectomy . Krystal Barter is Australia's answer to Angelina Jolie. Not only did she carry the same faulty BRCA1 gene that prompted her to undergo a double mastectomy, but the 31-year-old has also proved she has the same star pulling power of the Hollywood A-lister. The mother-of-three and founder of the Pink Hope charity has signed on a number of high profile Australians including Victoria's Secret Model Jess Hart and sister Ashley, the Prime Minister's wife Margie Abbott and the daughter of the country's richest woman Bianca Rinehart for her charity campaign. The charity's latest project, Bright Pink Lipstick Day, is a social media campaign that encourages more people to discuss their hereditary health. 'We're very fortunate to have these women. It's a huge honour to have the Prime Minister's wife leading the charge. To have someone of her calibre mean we're fighting for something that's right,' Ms Barter told Daily Mail Australia. 'These women have become like my friends and it's pretty amazing.' Other celebrities who have jumped on-board include Jesinta Campbell, Lisa Wilkinson, Laura Csortan, Natalie Gruzlewski, Kyly Clarke and Nicole Trunfio. Scroll down for video . Krystal Barter, 31, (fourth from right) has signed on the Prime Minister's wife, Margie Abbott (second from left) for her charity even Bright Pink Lipstick Day . Victoria's Secret Model Jess Hart and sister Ashley are among the high profile Australians to support Pink Hope - the country's only hereditary health charity . Bianca Rinehart (left), daughter of Australia's richest woman, and her friend Steph Adams, former Vogue UK art director, have also backed the Pink Lipstick campaign . Pink Hope, Australia's only hereditary health charity, will use Bright Pink Lipstick Day on September 26 as an opportunity to encourage people to find about their hereditary health in a bid to prevent breast and ovarian cancers. 'There's three questions people need to ask: Has anyone had cancer, at what age were they diagnosed and what type of cancer was it?' Ms Barter said. 'I know there's hundreds or thousands of people at risk of hereditary cancer. Bright Pink Lipstick Day encourages people to make a promise to kiss and tell.' Ms Barter was 22 when she found out she carried the faulty BRCA1 gene. She was just 25 when she had a double mastectomy - four years before Angelina Jolie famously revealed she underwent the procedure. Krystal Barter (left), pictured with Pink Hope ambassador Heidi and their daughters, was just 25 when she had a double mastectomy . Pink Hope, Australia's only hereditary health charity, will use Bright Pink Lipstick Day on September 26 as an opportunity to encourage people to find about their hereditary health . 'Growing up, every woman in my family was sick, that was normal,' she said. 'When they found changes in my breast tissue I said 'I'm not becoming a pin cushion for biopsies'... I wanted (my breasts) gone.' Ms Barter, who started Pink Hope as she recovering from her mastectomy, said she felt alienated because it wasn't a common procedure. 'But that changed when Angelina Jolie did it. I've seen a big shift within the past 12 months. Three days after Angelina Jolie made her announcement, the number of people accessing our services jumped 701 per cent,' she said. Former Miss Universe Renae Ayris will wear the pink lipstick designed by model Jess Hart specifically for Pink Hope Charity . Erin Holland is Miss World Australia's title holder. She's backing the #brightpinklipstickday campaign . The lipstick, worn here by TheyAllHateUs bloggers, will be sold at Priceline stores or on the charity's website . Ms Barter said she'll be wearing her pink lipstick tomorrow in memory of her grandmother, who died just two months. 'I was in my hospital bed having surgery when my nan passed away,' she said. 'I went in about 8 weeks ago to have my fallopian tubes and an ovary removed. She wanted me to have my surgery so she didn't tell me she was sick. 'I've had a very sick mum for a long time and I've had all these women in my family who are now not here or not 100 percent (because of cancer)… I'm trying to use our family story to make a positive impact.' Model Jess Hart designed a lipstick through her cosmetic brand LUMA especially for Pink Hope. It will be sold exclusively through Priceline stores nationwide or online at www.pinkhope.org.au for RRP $19.95 with all proceeds going to the Pink Hope Charity. Bright Pink Lipstick Day will take place on Friday, September 26. www.pinkhope.org.au .", "By . Suzannah Hills and Mark Duell . PUBLISHED: . 13:59 EST, 22 November 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 08:15 EST, 23 November 2012 . These atmospheric shots of herders and their camels trekking across the desert appear to hark back to a time before technology and industrialisation - but the images are actually of the world's largest camel fair still held every year in the middle of the Indian desert. Hundreds of herders descend upon Pushkar in the state of Rajasthan for the five-day annual camel and livestock fair. The Pushkar Fair, also known as the Pushkar ka Mela, is held on the banks of Pushkar Lake every November at the time of the Kartik Purnima full moon. The epic spectacle attracts 300,000 people and up to 20,000 camels, cattle and horses. The event, which sees tough bartering over livestock, has also become a major tourist attraction in recent years with a fair football match between the locals and visitors. A camel race starts off the festival followed by music performances and tough competitions such as the 'matka phod' meaning 'longest moustache' and a 'bridal competition'. While the herders deal livestock, many shoppers attend to visit the stalls of clothes and textiles. Scroll down for video . Big crowd: An Indian camel herder stands amongst his herd at the annual Pushkar Fair in Pushkar, Rajasthan, India . Night fire: Indian herders and their camels gather at the annual Pushkar Fair in Pushkar, Rajasthan, India . Orders: A herder (left) tries to put his camel in the sitting position at the fair, while herders (Right) try to put a rope around a camel in the desert Indian state of Rajasthan . Smokey: Camel herders sit around a bonfire to warm themselves as they wait for customers at Pushkar Fair in the desert Indian state of Rajasthan . Surrounded: A camel herder looks on while waiting for customers at Pushkar Fair in the desert Indian state of Rajasthan . Scenes of life: A camel herder smokes while waiting for customers (left), while a female Indian trader (right) sits at the Pushkar Fair ground in Rajasthan . Meal time: A boy feeds camels while waiting for customers at Pushkar Fair in the desert Indian state of Rajasthan . Man amongst camels: A herder looks on while waiting for customers at Pushkar Fair in the desert Indian state of Rajasthan . Between the legs: A camel herder walks past camels for sale at Pushkar Fair in the desert Indian state of Rajasthan . Breaking dawn: Herders and their camels settle after traveling hundreds of miles to the annual cattle fair in Pushkar, Rajasthan, India . Ongoing tradition: An Indian herder leading his camels across the desert to the livestock fair which attracts thousands of visitors . Getting ready for the day: A woman prepares breakfast as the sun just begins to rise over the horizon . On route: A young boy and an older relative lead the way for their pack of camels to the five-day event . Rising sun: A man inspects camels, silhouetted against the rising sun, which are for sale at the livestock fair on the outskirts of Pushkar . Heads held high: Camels kick up sand as they rush down a sandy embankment to the camel fair grounds . Sitting pretty: The reigns on a camel for sale has been decorated with a red paper rose over its nose . A world away: A tourist takes a picture of a herder watching his flock of camels come down a dusty embankment as he heads to the camel fair . Dressing up for the occasion: Indian women dressed in traditional Rajasthani clothing gather for the start of a traditional dance presentation at the camel fair, left, while a camel, pictured right, is covered with some colourful beads around his neck to help attract potential buyers . A difficult job: A woman carries vases filled with camel dung she collected at the camel fair grounds . Running wild: Camels run together as they arrive with their herders at the Pushkar Fair . Sharing a bite: A boy feeds camels while waiting for customers at Pushkar Fair in the desert Indian state of Rajasthan . Drawing the crowds: Many international and domestic tourists descend on Pushkar to witness one of the most colourful and popular fairs in India . Smoking pit stop: A camel trader takes a break from the day's work to smokes a pipe at the camel fair . One of the world's biggest camel fairs: A herder leads his single camel to the epic event . Open wide: An Indian camel herder shows off one of his camels to a potential customer at the annual Pushkar Fair . Up in the air: Tourists ride in hot air balloons to get fantastic views over the fair . Lighting up the night: Indian camel herders chat as hot air balloons take off in the background at the annual Pushkar Fair in Pushkar, Rajasthan, India . End of a long day: A camel trader sits in a field at sunset after a day of haggling at the fair .", "(CNN)Organized labor is up in arms about President Barack Obama's effort to obtain fast-track authority to finalize a free trade agreement in the Asia Pacific that involves 11 nations. The agreement, union leaders argue, threatens to take even more jobs away from Americans. AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka sent a clear message to members of Congress, warning, \"There is such a dramatic impact on the standard of living and lowering of wages and a loss of jobs -- this will have a major impact, and then we will not forget this vote for a long time.\" The AFL-CIO announced that it would withhold donations to political action committees until this controversy cleared up. The tension between organized labor and Obama is not new. The struggles have been going on since 2009 when the President allowed the Employee Free Choice Act to wither in Congress. The act would require that a union be deemed as legitimate when it had the support of a majority of employees and imposed tough penalties on employers who tried to punish workers from forming unions. The President avoided making any strong appeals for the bill, though it was greatly desired by labor organizations as a way to increase membership. When Democrats chose Charlotte, North Carolina, for their 2012 political convention -- a city not friendly to labor -- unions were livid. \"There is broad frustration with the party and all elected officials,\" one labor leader said, \"broad frustration with the lack of a union agenda.\" Even though unions were crucial to administration victories such as the Affordable Care Act, President Obama has often been extremely tepid when it comes to the rights of unions. Organized labor has not been that surprised. The truth is that unions have been on the defense against Democratic presidents for decades. In the 1970s, President Jimmy Carter treated unions like one more special interest in Washington that needed to be brought down while President Bill Clinton demonstrated lukewarm support to these organizations as he aggressively pursued global free trade policies that labor opposed. \"It will cost jobs,\" warned Michigan Democrat David Bonior said of the North American Free Trade Agreement that Clinton endorsed. \"It will drive down our standard of living. If we don't stand up for the working people in this country, who is going to?\" In the past few decades, many Democratic politicians no longer believed that organized labor was a major player within their party, as they had been during the creation of the New Deal and Great Society. As organized labor became a smaller part of the American workforce, Democratic politicians were not as determined to court their vote. A larger number of Democrats since the 1970s have been elected by upper middle class suburban constituencies in which unions are not a big presence. These voters have been more concerned in a style of liberalism that revolves around quality of life issues, such as environmental regulation, than they are with middle class jobs. Many Democrats leaders embraced a vision of economic policy that centered on deregulation and free markets. New voices that came into the Democratic Party after the 1960s wanted to challenge Republicans by offering a more centrist vision of economic policy. The opportunities for Democrats to embrace a more pro-union agenda have only intensified with the fierce assault taking place among conservatives. The Koch brothers have unleashed fierce financial assault against unions. Scott Walker, the governor of Wisconsin and potential Republican presidential candidate, has stripped away the power of public unions and signed a right to work law that barred unions from collecting dues from employees who weren't in unions. Unions are under assault, and the movement is looking for help. Democrats, and some Republicans, often talk about needing to deal with the problem of economic inequality. Much of the talk is often vague and offers little in the way to real solutions. Shoring up the strength of unions is one area where the government can help protect jobs for middle class Americans. Without strong unions, the battle against economic inequality and insecurity will never really get started. As George Gresham, the president of United Health Care Workers East wrote in The New York Times, \"By defunding unions and weakening union members via 'right to work' laws, corporations and those that do their bidding remove workers' primary means of raising wages, securing pensions and improving workers conditions. Workers' main vehicle for advancing themselves and their communities is jeopardized.\" Democrats need to listen to what the AFL-CIO is saying. They need to push back against President Obama, even if this creates political opportunities for Republicans, so that the party does not abandon what has been at the heart and soul of their agenda. As Democrats continually watch Republicans outdo them in terms of organization and pursuit, they need to look to labor more as an ally than an enemy in the battle for the White House and Congress in the coming years.", "Princeton, New Jersey (CNN) -- The release of a secretly recorded tape of Mitt Romney speaking to campaign donors highlights a risk facing the Republican Party -- of becoming perceived as the party of mean. After a vicious assault from Democrats that portrayed Romney as a vulture capitalist who cared little about saving middle-class jobs, his remarks to a group of campaign donors about the 47% of Americans who don't pay taxes being dependent on government handouts only intensified the perception that he represents a party that is uninterested in protecting average Americans. A New York Times editorial characterized Romney as a \"class warrior\" seeking to \"protect the rich by turning the working poor and middle class into the enemy.\" Romney's problem is one that Republicans have been struggling with more broadly for years. Many in the party have forgotten an essential element of Ronald Reagan's legacy: his insistence that conservatism had to be packaged as a positive force, as an argument about how to expand the global rights of individuals and make all American families more secure. He was determined to appeal to middle- and working-class Americans who were not satisfied with the Democrats. Opinion: The true difference between Obama, Romney . Reagan was acutely aware of the need to present this kind of argument for conservatism, because he had vivid memories of the 1964 presidential campaign, when Republican Sen. Barry Goldwater was devastated by Lyndon Johnson's attacks on him as a radical extremist. On the campaign trail and in the White House, Ronald Reagan was always conscious of articulating a vision of conservatism that offered more than just an agenda of gutting social programs or only protecting the \"national interest\" through brute force. On foreign policy, Reagan spoke of a tough anti-communism that would protect the rights of those who lived under Soviet totalitarianism. He embraced the rhetoric of neoconservatism by championing a strong stand against the Soviet Union as a way to protect democracy around the world. He drew on the language that conservatives had used since the 1940s, focusing on the need to free oppressed people in places like Eastern Europe. Reagan also talked about the quest for abolishing nuclear arms, a cause that he had supported for much of his adult life. He emphasized \"peace through strength\" as a reason to resist what he considered reckless arms negotiations and building up America's defense arsenal so the United States could win the concessions that would be needed from the Soviets to draw down nuclear weapons. As Reagan said in his stirring, impromptu 1976 speech at the Republican convention, telling the delegates what people would be thinking a hundred years from then if they read a letter he put into a time capsule, \"Will they look back with appreciation and say, 'Thank God for those people in 1976 who headed off that loss of freedom, and kept us now 100 years later free, who kept our world from nuclear destruction?\" Reagan employed the same kind of rhetoric on domestic policy. His principal economic policy, supply-side economics, focused on cutting taxes on the wealthy with the promise that it would stimulate economic growth for everyone and bring more revenue into the federal government without raising taxes. \"This administration's objective,\" Reagan said in his inaugural address, \"will be a healthy, vigorous, growing economy that provides equal opportunity for all Americans, with no barriers born of bigotry or discrimination. Putting America back to work means putting all Americans back to work.\" Reagan had his hard edges for sure. He railed against \"welfare queens,\" a vision of poor women cheating the system of government benefits. He supported steep cuts in many domestic programs such as food stamps that aided the neediest Americans. Moreover, many of his arguments about supply-side economics were discredited and his foreign policy was much less consistent than he stated when it came to protecting democracy. Opinion: Obama clueless on Mideast turmoil . But at least politically, Reagan understood that Republicans had to appeal to broad segments of the population, or they would lose. Early in his presidency, George W. Bush tried to bring back some of Reagan's spirit with his ideas about \"compassionate conservatism\" as well as his use of human rights as a guide for foreign policy. Yet many of his economic policies, including the tax cuts for the wealthy and effort to privatize Social Security, as well as the immense problems of the war in Iraq, undercut his ability to revive this vision of conservatism. Without a positive message, conservatism faces the risk of seeming primarily like a harsh creed, an ideology for those who are intent on disciplining people who have supposedly become dependent on government. Unfortunately for conservatives, that includes a huge array of Americans, from the elderly to defense contractors to young children in schools. If this rhetoric continues, the GOP is at risk of becoming the party that takes away government services, takes away immigration rights, takes away social rights, but doesn't offer anything back. The 47% speech played right into this theme. And the polls are all moving in the wrong direction for the GOP. There are fewer and fewer voices such as former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, who recently, according to Politico, has been working hard to find bipartisan agreement on health care issues and who is publicly willing to acknowledge how the government is sometimes needed to alleviate problems. \"As a doctor,\" he wrote in The Week, \"I strongly believe that people without health insurance die sooner. ... State exchanges are the solution.\" If the GOP ignores the kind of backlash it has encountered, it risks falling right back to 1964 or even 1932, when Democrats were able to paint Republicans as a ruthless party only intent on protecting the prosperous. \"Our Republican leaders tell us economic laws—sacred, inviolable, unchangeable—cause panics which one could prevent,\" President Franklin D. Roosevelt said in his inaugural address in 1932, \"But while they prate of economic laws, men and women are starving. We must lay hold of the fact that economic laws are not made by nature. They are made by human beings.\" If Republicans are not careful, Democrats will find it easy enough to revitalize FDR's rhetorical assault and to make it extraordinarily difficult for Republicans to regain control of Washington. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Julian Zelizer.", "(CNN) -- As Sen. John McCain prepares to promote free trade during a high-profile trip to Colombia and Mexico, a poll out Tuesday suggests the issue may be a political hurdle as the general election campaign heats up. Sen. John McCain's free trade stance could pose a problem in November, according to a new poll. According to the CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll, 51 percent of Americans view foreign trade as a threat to the economy -- the first time in a CNN poll that a majority of Americans report holding negative views on free trade. That compares with only 35 percent of Americans who felt free trade posed a threat to the economy in 2000, and 48 percent who felt it was a threat in 2006. Now, only four in 10 Americans say free trade presents an opportunity for economic growth, a sentiment that clearly makes the issue a challenge for McCain, especially in the crucial Rust Belt states most affected by the loss of manufacturing jobs over the last decade. \"It's possible that John McCain's decision to highlight his free trade position may wind up losing him some votes among Americans who feel threatened economically by competition from other countries,\" CNN polling director Keating Holland said. \"Recent polls in states like Pennsylvania and Michigan have shown McCain well behind Barack Obama. Calling attention to his stand on an issue like trade may be a part of the problems he apparently faces in those Midwestern states.\" The poll also shows that some of the key voting blocs McCain is courting are most against free trade. Women, older Americans and lower-income voters report feeling the biggest threat from unfettered trade. Many of these voters were particularly receptive to Sen. Hillary Clinton in key states during the Democratic primary as she increasingly developed an anti-trade stance. The survey results come as McCain, who is a strong supporter of the North American Free Trade Agreement, heads to Colombia and Mexico to promote the advantages off a free trade policy and economic cooperation. He made a similar trip to Canada earlier this month. Campaigning Monday through Pennsylvania -- one of the crucial political battleground states most affected by the loss of manufacturing jobs -- the presumptive Republican presidential nominee acknowledged many voters disagree with him on the issue. \"I understand it's very tough. But for me to give up my advocacy of free trade would be a betrayal of trust,\" he told reporters Tuesday. \"And the most precious commodity I have with the American people is that they trust me.\" In another challenge for McCain, the new CNN survey indicates Americans continue to rank the economy as the most important issue in deciding their vote for president. Nearly six in 10 voters say the country's poor economic conditions will be extremely important -- ranking the economy as the No. 1 issue in this campaign out of 15 issues tested in the poll. That finding represents a clear change from the beginning of this year, when the war in Iraq and the economy were tied as the top campaign issues. Now, the economy is eight points ahead of Iraq -- a fact that could pose a threat to McCain, who has admitted he is more comfortable discussing foreign policy issues than economic ones. Rising gas prices are also among voters' concerns, with nearly 50 percent saying the issue will play an important role in their vote for president. That number is just behind those that say the economy and Iraq are important, a clear sign that higher prices for gasoline are the primary reason for voters' economic worries, though not the only one. \"It also means that a significant number of voters are concerned about other economic woes, like the stock market or unemployment, rather than gas prices,\" Holland said. \"Unless there is a noticeable upturn in the country's economy between now and November, this election is likely to be dominated by economic concerns.\" The poll, conducted June 26-29, surveyed 906 registered voters and carries a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.", "By . Katie Amey for MailOnline . Sunseekers could pay for an extra two days of their holiday simply by haggling when they buy goods abroad. Tourists who are happy to barter can save up to £118.80 on meals, souvenirs, and day-trips during a week-long getaway, according to new research, which is enough to pay for a full two more days. The best holiday hagglers are located in Northern Ireland, the North-West and Wales, with Belfast, Cardiff and Liverpool crowned the Bartering Brit capitals of the UK. Smart shopper: Britons are advised that they can save £118 by haggling on their holidays . The most resistant are holidaymakers in the South East. Southampton and Brighton shoppers are least likely to haggle. Holiday hagglers admit to bartering most often when they feel overcharged by inflated tourist prices, according to a new study. And one in three Brit travelers reckon they can save up to 28 per cent off the asking price. 1. Spain . 2. Turkey . 3. Greece . 4. Egypt . 5. Portugal . 1. Jewellery . 2. Souvenirs . 3. Clothes . 4. Handbags . 5. Ornaments . Spain is listed as the top country for bartering, with Britons more likely to get a discount on their goods. The Iberian peninsula surprisingly beat Turkey for its acceptance of haggling, which took second place, followed by Greece. Northern Irish travellers are the best hagglers, but those from Brighton don't fare so well . Egypt and Portugal also made it into the top five destinations for negotiating a bargain. Psychologist Dr Sandi Mann of the University of Central Lancashire explains: 'Many 'wannabe hagglers' are still put off by the traditionally British attitude that talking about money is rude.' 'Negotiating money off in any situation begins with a state of mine - and if you've had success on holiday, it gives you the confidence to bring those skills back with you.' 'Negotiating is a game and if you learn the rules abroad, it will become second nature in everyday life.' The Negotiation Academy was launched by webuyanycar.com at the start of 2014 with the aim of empowering the British public to buy better and save more. Dr Mann also listed her top tips for a successful haggling experience abroad. 1. First impressions: Never show that you love an item, always create the impression you quite like it, but you would need to be persuaded to part with cash. Always wait to be approached before starting your negotiation. In fact, it's a good idea to look as if you are about to walk away when they approach you. 2. Embrace 'tourist traps': On a packed street of restaurants or souvenir shops, you hold all the aces. Choose a quieter time when they are more desperate for customers, be bold and negotiate up front on what you are prepared to pay. 3. Brush up your acting skills: This is a game, so be prepared to play. Wait for an opening price, look shocked and start walking away. The stallholder might ask how much you are willing to pay - always answer with half the amount they first priced it at. 4. Choose your friends: Always smile and be pleasant, make friends - but don't get too friendly or you will start to feel sorry for the stallholder when he tells you his sob story about how little money he is making. 5. Mix up your tactics: If you're with a partner or friend, play good cop, bad cop where one enthuses over the item while the other points out its flaws. If you're with a small child, explain they are spending their pocket money and only have a small amount (if this is true - don't encourage deceitful behaviour in your kids!) 6. Language barrier: Turn any language barrier to your advantage by pretending you don't understand when they tell you exactly why the item is worth so much more than you want to pay. Just repeat your offer and look blankly at any attempts they might make at justifying their price.", "Istanbul (CNN) -- Over the last six months, Iran has evaded U.S. sanctions by importing Turkish gold to pay for billions of dollars worth of energy sales to Turkey. Turkey's deputy prime minister has described what amounts to a gold-for-oil barter system. Read more: Turkey: Facing a soft landing or serious turbulence? \"Why did, all of the sudden, Turkey's gold exports, especially gold bullion, go up?\" Ali Babacan asked while speaking before a parliamentary budget commission this month. The official transcript of his statements was published by a Turkish government website Wednesday. \"An important part of that is Iran,\" he said. \"When Turkey buys Iranian oil, we pay for it in Turkish lira. ... However, it is not possible for Iran to take that money as dollars into its own country due to international restrictions, the U.S.A.'s sanctions. Therefore, when Iran cannot take this money back as currency, they withdraw Turkish lira and buy gold from our market. They take the gold back to their own country.\" Read more: Turkey boom dampened by Europe's troubles . According to Turkish government statistics, Iran has imported billions of dollars worth of gold from Turkey since it was ejected from the SWIFT international electronic banking system in March. Babacan's rhetorical question and answer resolved suspicions that Turkish economists have had for months, after they noticed an enormous spike in Turkey's gold exports to Iran in April. CNN Blog: Turkey's changing world . \"Our gold has always been there, the Iranians never paid any attention to it up until the last year when they were kicked out of the SWIFT banking system,\" said Atilla Yesilada, an economic analyst with Global Source Turkey. The Turkish government reported that Iran leapt to first place among Turkey's export markets in April. That month, Turkey exported $1.2 billion in gold to Iran, a 438.2% jump from the previous year. \"Turkey is the big hole, the big gap in the wall of sanctions,\" Yesilada said. He was pointing to the U.S.-led campaign to impose an economic blockade on Iran. Many economists say Washington has effectively declared economic war on Iran because of disagreements over its controversial nuclear program. The U.S. accuses Iran of secretly trying to develop nuclear weapons, charges that Tehran has long denied. Read more: Press freedoms watchdog slams Turkish government . Since the sanctions have been unilaterally imposed by Washington, Turkey is not breaking any international law by trading oil for gold with Iran. But in doing so, the Turks risk incurring the wrath of the U.S. government, an important military and political ally. \"At the end of July, the President issued an order that authorizes Treasury to impose sanctions on anyone who helps the Government of Iran acquire U.S. dollars or precious metals, including gold,\" a U.S. Treasury Department spokesman wrote to CNN this week, on condition he not be named. \"We can't comment on any investigations that may be ongoing.\" Economists say the gold-for-oil trade shows the sanctions are hurting Iran. \"This is very, very 19th century, taking gold around to manage your international sanctions,\" said Djavad Salehi-Isfahani, a professor of economics at the Virginia Polytechnic Institute. \"Iran lost its ability to sell oil, get electronic credit and use that to buy other stuff.\" There has been a great deal of speculation about how the gold is physically being transferred from Turkey to Iran. Those questions extend also to the United Arab Emirates. In August, Turkish government statistics show that the UAE suddenly replaced Iran as Turkey's chief export market. However, the main Turkish export to the UAE was gold -- $1.9 billion worth in August alone. Dubai has traditionally been the world's most important economic gateway to Iran. In his appearance before the parliamentary commission, Deputy Prime Minister Babacan declined to comment on the logistics of the gold shipments. Instead, unconfirmed stories have swirled in the Turkish media of gold bullion being hand-carried out of the country in suitcases. \"We need to be more transparent about what Iran is doing with those gold bars, which apparently are being transported by physical couriers using 50-kilo (110-pound) bags, which is the limit of how much gold you can take out of Turkey,\" said Yesilada, the Turkish economist. \"There are really several James Bondian-like aspects to this, which no government would engage in, in an official or commercial transaction.\" \"The picture looks like a James Bond movie. You have individuals with black suitcases carrying gold,\" said Behzad Yaghmaian, an Iranian-American political economist at Ramapo College. \"This could not have happened in any form without the knowledge of the Turkish state. This amount could not have left the country to go to Iran without the state knowing about it.\" The Turkish government has not responded to a written request from CNN to comment on the gold trade. Some concerned observers worry the economic intrigue threatens to draw attention from the growing impact the U.S.-led sanctions are having on ordinary Iranians. \"Sanctions are a form of collective punishment on the Iranian people,\" said Yaghmaian, the author of \"Social Change in Iran: An Eyewitness Account of Dissent, Defiance and New Movements for Rights.\" \"Iranians who oppose the Islamic Republic (of Iran), who have been under pressure by the Islamic Republic, who have been subjected to different forms of violence by the Islamic Republic, are once again facing a new form of violence that is economic violence.\" Iranians have watched their buying power collapse over the last year, as the value of the Iranian rial plunged. There have also been reports of shortages of foreign pharmaceuticals and medical supplies, since Iranian companies have found it next to impossible to pay foreign suppliers because of restrictions on international banking.", "New York (CNN) -- India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh came away from talks at the White House reassured about U.S. policy in Asia, according to foreign affairs analyst Fareed Zakaria. Singh and President Obama capped their talks with an elaborate state dinner in a tent at the White House Tuesday night, the first such occasion in Obama's presidency. Zakaria, who attended the formal event, told CNN the dinner was a success: \"My sense is there was a very warm feeling. The Indian prime minister was gushing and he's not a man who gushes.\" U.S. and Indian officials spoke about the war in Afghanistan, just as Obama is expected to announce -- on Tuesday -- increased U.S. troop levels in the region. \"The forces of terrorism in our region pose a grave threat to the entire civilized world and have to be defeated,\" Singh said. \"President Obama and I have decided to strengthen our cooperation in the area of counterterrorism.\" Zakaria, author and host of CNN's \"Fareed Zakaria: GPS\" spoke to CNN Wednesday about U.S.-India relations. CNN: What was India hoping to achieve in the talks? Fareed Zakaria: I think there are probably three things going on from India's point of view. One was to generally get a sense of whether Obama shares Bush's reorientation of American strategy in Asia to place a much greater importance on India and to place India at the center of the U.S. view of Asia. My feeling is that what they heard out of the Obama administration was very positive. And they had two specific goals in mind as well. They wanted to get the implementation of the U.S.-India nuclear deal started, so there could be a transfer of civilian nuclear technology to India. They heard some good things. But my sense is that the Obama administration is doing a broader review of the whole policy of technology transfer and is not going to do a special deal for India. CNN: Why is that so important for the Indian government? Zakaria: The Indians look at their [economic] growth rate and the single biggest problem for them ... is energy. They're a huge importer of oil. They're in a race to find cheap energy through nuclear power, and for that they need access to western technology. And finally there is the whole set of \"Afpak\" [Afghanistan and Pakistan] issues and they just wanted to get a sense from Obama that he's not going to withdraw from Afghanistan and that the Obama administration does not take on a Pakistani view of Afghanistan. On all fronts, my feeling is they were basically reassured. CNN: What's their fear about Afghanistan? Zakaria: Their fear is that the United States is desperate to get Pakistan to cooperate and in doing that is almost adopting Pakistan's concerns as their own concerns, accepting the Pakistani view that it's very difficult for Pakistan to go after the Afghan Taliban or LET [Lashkar-e-Taiba] which started the Mumbai attack. India's view is that it's not a question of capacity, it's a question of will. Secondly there's the Kashmir issue, which they want to maintain as a bilateral issue without intervention by any outside party. They have a legitimate concern about the Pakistanis not being willing to go after these forces. The Indians are concerned that the Americans not easily fall into trap that if only Kashmir were solved, then Pakistan will turn on all these militias that it created and has sustained for three decades. CNN: Why doesn't India want a third party involved in the Kashmir dispute? Zakaria: Basically there is no third party who the Indians trust enough. They feel China has always been pro-Pakistan. For the last 70 years, the U.S. has been mostly pro-Pakistan and sided against India in the last war. It sent the Seventh Fleet into the Bay of of Bengal. The Indians feel they are the dominant power on the ground, so why should they accept international mediation? They feel they are likely to get a better deal if they stick to their guns. India sees itself very strongly as a secular nation which accepts all religions, including Islam. It has the second largest Muslim population in the world after Indonesia. For them to accept that because Kashmir has a majority of Muslims, it cannot be a part of India ... is antithetical to the national identity of the country. There's a lot of opposition in the government to letting Kashmir be bartered away. CNN: What were the goals on the American side? Zakaria: What the U.S. has been trying to do since the Clinton administration is to strategically reorient itself in Asia so it has much stronger relations with India and that it become India's closest ally among the major powers. The rise of China is altering the strategic balance in Asia, and by allying with India, the United States can in a very subtle way place some sort of check on the potential for Chinese expansion. There is also a powerful idealistic interest here, in seeing that the world's leading democracy and the world's largest democracy pair up. ... Clinton began this process, Bush powerfully accelerated it by taking off the table sanctions that were in place because India had nuclear weapons. So Obama is the third president continuing a strategic partnership with India. ... It's a perfect example of a kind of hedge strategy: Engage China but in case the engagement process doesn't work, also have a strong and growing relationship with India. Then there's the whole economic component to it . The Indian economy and the American economy are getting more closely intertwined. If you travel to India, you're struck that every every university, every company, every NGO [non-governmental organization] has some kind of contact with its counterparts in the United States. At a people-to-people level, the relationship is very strong and that's the most durable kind of alliance. CNN: There were reports that India was concerned about the joint statement Obama made with the Chinese president. [Obama said, \"President Hu and I also discussed our mutual interest in security and stability of Afghanistan and Pakistan. And neither country can or should be used as a base for terrorism, and we agreed to cooperate more on meeting this goal, including bringing about more stable, peaceful relations in all of South Asia.\"] . Zakaria: It's a sign of the fact that there was unease in India about Obama and a new administration. The statement was fairly innocuous, though the U.S. was ill-advised to have it in there. It was a mistake ... but a minor one. CNN: Was Prime Minister Singh encouraged by the administration's apparent intention to send more troops to Afghanistan? Zakaria: In his interview with me for last Sunday's show, Singh strongly supported the American presence in Afghanistan, he strongly supported the mission and said the removal of the Taliban government in Afghanistan was a blessing for the whole world.", "This curious cub was not going to let something as basic as a mound of snow stand in the way of his exploring, and dived through - nose first. The polar bear, born earlier this year, was spotted playing peek-a-boo with another cub at the edge of a snow bank on Bernard Spit, a barrier island off the northeast coast of Alaska. The fluffy discoverer and other members of its family in the Alaskan Arctic have had their lives over the past few months documented on camera. Scroll down for video . Peek-a-boo: A polar bear cub plays in a snow drift at the edge of a snow bank on Bernard Spit, a barrier island off the northeast coast of Alaska . Photographer Steven Kazlowski, 45, from the Pacific Northwest,  spends four to six months a year photographing in Alaska, capturing the real life of the region's polar bears. This collection of images heavily features mothers and their young cubs, and was taken along the coast in the eastern Alaskan arctic, from early September through October 2014. Steven, said: 'I work with my Inupiaq friend Melvin Jack Kayotuk of Akook Arctic Adventures to photograph and take people out to see and experience polar bears. In November 2014, scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey and Environment Canada found a key polar bear population fell by nearly half in the past decade. Just the two of us: A female polar bear and cub seen walking at Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in 2014, in North Slope, Alaska . Snugglebears: A mama polar bear takes a nap on the ice with her two young cubs off the northeast coast of Alaska . Photographer Steven Kazlowski spends four to six months a year photographing in Alaska, capturing the real life of the region's polar bears . Watcha lookin at? A mama polar bear and her two cubs huddle together at sunset in Alaska . Scientists are seeing a dramatic increase in young cubs starving and dying, with researchers blaming shrinking sea ice from global warming for the rise in deaths. While the bears Steven spotted appeared happy and healthy - this news means up-close polar bear-sighting may become an increasingly rare occurrence. Some of the images were taken just off the village of Kaktovik, Barter Island, some along Bernard Spit, a barrier island, and some in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska. 'These bears are part of the southern Beaufort Sea population of bears,' Steven added. 'In terms of weather conditions, it was windy on and off, and winds could be up to 40-50 mph with temperatures in the low 20Fs (-7C). 'Globally it is rare to get images of polar bears but in the area I work in, at a certain time of the year, it is quite common.' This collection of images was taken along the coast in the eastern Alaskan arctic, from early September through October 2014 . Just having a laugh: A mother polar bear and her cub communicating in the summer sunlight on a barrier island in North Slope, Alaska . Travelling places: Some of the images were taken just off the village of Kaktovik, Barter Island, some along Bernard Spit, a barrier island, and some in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska . Bad numbers: A key polar bear population in the U.S. and Canada fell by nearly half in the past decade, scientists have found . Up-close polar bear-sighting may become an increasingly rare occurrence as the polar bear population dwindle as a result of global warming . Battle of the bears: Polar bear cubs play over newly formed pack ice along the coast off the 1002 area of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge . Time for a nap: A polar bear rests on newly formed pack ice outside the Arctic village of Kaktovik at Barter Island .", "By . Tara Brady . Police have launched a new bid to charge serial child killer Robert Black with the murder of 13-year-old schoolgirl Genette Tate who disappeared 36 years ago. Devon and Cornwall Police have long suspected Black of murdering Genette, who was last seen in a rural lane in Aylesbeare, Devon, in 1978. Her body has never been found. However, there now hope for a prosecution in the case after Black last year lost an appeal against his latest conviction for the murder of nine-year-old Jennifer Cardy. Police have long suspected Robert Black (left) of murdering Genette Tate (right) who vanished in 1978 . He had argued that his trial was prejudiced because details about three other child murders he had already been jailed for were revealed to the jury. Police told the BBC they are now liaising with the Complex Case Unit of the Crown Prosecution Service to see if the appeal court ruling has 'any bearing on the Genette Tate case'. They added: 'This liaison is still at a very early stage and will take some time to complete.' Black was found guilty in 1994 of three child murders in the 1980s - those of 11-year-old Susan Maxwell, from the Scottish Borders, five-year-old Caroline Hogg, from Edinburgh, and Sarah Harper, 10, from Morley, near Leeds. Mystery: Genette Tate's abandoned bicycle was found lying in a Devon lane in August 1978 . His reign . of terror finally ended in 1990 when he was caught red-handed with a . six-year-girl hooded, bound, gagged and stuffed in a sleeping bag in the . back of his van in the Scottish village of Stow. He had sexually assaulted her moments earlier. In . 2012 he was prosecuted for a fourth murder, that of Jennifer, who was . snatched as she cycled to a friend’s house in Ballinderry, County . Antrim, Northern Ireland, in 1981. The paedophile is serving a total of 12 life sentences for murder and kidnap. Genette’s . father, John Tate, told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme that he hoped . police had not overlooked any other suspect by spending time focusing on . Black. Black was found guilty of murdering Susan Maxwell, 11 (left) and Sarah Harper, 10 (right) Asked . how he had coped in the decades since Genette went missing, Mr Tate . said it had been difficult as the incident was never far from his mind. 'You look at everything that it could possibly be to do with her. You just cope very poorly sometimes.'Mr Tate said he believed the police had coped very well with the case. The . mystery remains Britain’s longest running missing person inquiry but . police have admitted that she was kidnapped and murdered. Genette was 13 when she vanished while delivering newspapers in her home village of Aylesbeare in East Devon in August 1978. Black last year lost an appeal against his latest conviction for the murder of nine-year-old Jennifer Cardy . The . police have asked the Crown Prosecution Service’s Complex Casework Unit . to examine whether Black can be brought to trial for Genette’s murder. Yesterday Genette’s father John said: 'I want them to go ahead and put Black before a court. 'Let a jury decide whether he did it. I want to know what he did with her.' Speaking from his home in Manchester, Mr Tate, 72, who is battling cancer, diabetic and is in a wheelchair: 'I am not 100 per cent Black is responsible. I have a little bit of doubt. 'I think about her every day. It is a nightmare that never goes away. Despite what other people say, we will never get closure. 'It is so difficult because we will never know the answers to our questions. We don’t know if she was buried in some isolated spot or whether she was left wandering around somewhere. 'I would love to be able to find out where he is an finally be able to lay her to rest after nearly 40 years of this living hell.' A senior police source said that if the attempt to use bad character evidence was unsuccessful, detectives may once again interview Black in prison. But the officer said, it was 'a long shot' as Black has previously refused to co-operate when officers had been to Wakefield jail to see him. One former detective said previously: 'Black played a game. He wanted to barter. He wanted a move to a Scottish jail and would not talk until he got his way.' He also refused to meet Genette’s father John who wrote to him and asked him for a face to face meeting. Robert Black refused to meet Genette's father who wrote to him and asked if they could meet . Police from different forces spent months trying to track Black’s movements in relation to various child murder cases. They were able to say the former delivery driver had been spotted by Exeter airport - a short distance from Genette’s home village of Aylesbeare - and used petrol receipts to see where he had been travelling - but it is was never enough evidence to pursue a murder charge. Tim Swarbrick, a retired Devon and Cornwall Police Superintendent, said: 'Cases like this are never closed. It would mean a great deal to the police and the community to see the mystery of Genette’s disappearance finally solved.' Black was arrested by Devon and Cornwall Police in 2005 in connection with Genette’s disappearance but there was insufficient evidence to prosecute him. Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article.", "(CNN) -- Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama on Friday called for an economic plan for working families, saying, \"We cannot only have a plan for Wall Street. Sen. Barak Obama speaks at a campaign rally in Coral Gables, Florida, Friday. \"We must also help Main Street,\" he said. While \"tough new regulations on financial institutions\" are needed, the Illinois senator called for an emergency economic plan for working families. Obama spoke after meeting with his economic advisers in Coral Gables, Florida. Watch Obama call for help for Main Street » . Obama on Friday also backed administration and congressional leaders' efforts to develop a \"a more stable and permanent solution\" to the U.S. financial crisis. Watch Obama talk about how working Americans need help in this economy . Obama's statement came after Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Christopher Cox met with congressional leaders to discuss a plan that would allow banks to get rid of bad mortgage-related assets that have been a drag on their balance sheets. \"What we're looking at right now is to provide the Treasury and the Federal Reserve with as broad authority as necessary to stabilize markets and maintain credit,\" Obama said. \"We need a more institutional response to create a system that can manage some of the underlying problems with bad mortgages, help homeowners stay in their homes, protect the retirement and savings of working Americans.\" After meeting with his economic advisors, Obama said his team would not present a detailed economic plan at this time, \"given the gravity of this situation, and based on conversations I have had with both Secretary Paulson and Chairman Bernanke.\" Obama said he would not present his plan until the Treasury and Federal Reserve have presented theirs. \"It is critical at this point that the markets and the public have confidence that their work will be unimpeded by partisan wrangling, and that leaders in both parties work in concert to solve the problem at hand,\" Obama said. Later, Obama held a rally, at the University of Miami, which was disrupted by protesters who held up signs saying \"Blacks against Obama\" and \"Obama endorsed by the KKK.\" Obama said the protesters could stay and hold up their signs if they stopped shouting, but they were later escorted out after they continued to disrupt the rally. Obama spoke after Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain said Friday morning that he would establish a new agency to deal with the U.S. financial crisis that many experts say is the worst since the Great Depression. Watch McCain blast Washington corruption » . That agency, a Mortgage and Financial Institutions trust, would work with the private sector and regulators to identify institutions that are weak and fix them before they go broke. \"The underlying principle of the MFI or any approach considered by Congress should be to keep people in their homes and safeguard the life savings of all Americans by protecting our financial system and capital markets,\" McCain told the Green Bay Chamber of Commerce in Wisconsin. McCain said the agency would be an early intervention program to help financial institutions avoid bankruptcy, expensive bailouts and damage to their customers. Obama, at the rally in Florida, lashed out at McCain's plan. \"This morning Sen. McCain gave a speech in which his big solution to this worldwide economic crisis was to blame me for it. \"This is a guy who spent nearly three decades in Washington and after spending the entire campaign saying I haven't been in Washington long enough ... he apparently now is willing to assign me responsibility for all of Washington's failure,\" he said. Wall Street witnessed the federal government take unprecedented steps this week to stabilize the economy, including the takeover of the insurance giant American International Group Inc. in exchange for an $85 billion loan from the Federal Reserve. In his speech, McCain blamed the crisis on \"the corruption and manipulation of our home mortgage system\" and blasted Congress and the administration for not addressing the problems at the two mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which he said \"led our housing system down a path where quick profit was placed before sound finance.\" McCain also blasted his Democratic rival, Sen. Barack Obama, for not working to clean up the \"corruption\" at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Fact Check: Did Obama 'profit' from Fannie and Freddie? \"We've heard a lot of words from Sen. Obama over the course of this campaign. But maybe just this once he could spare us the lectures and admit to his own poor judgment in contributing to these problems. The crisis on Wall Street started in the Washington culture of lobbying and influence peddling, and he was square in the middle of it.\" Although action must be taken to avoid future panics, the Arizona Republican said that ultimately, the economy would have to grow to get through \"this tough time for America.\" McCain touted his economic plan, which includes tax cuts, and again said Obama would increase taxes on Americans who make as little as $42,000. McCain's charge that his opponent would raise taxes on those making $42,000 is misleading, however. The McCain campaign cites Obama's vote for a nonbinding 2008 budget resolution that outlines budget priorities through 2013 and assumed that President Bush's tax cuts would expire in 2011. Fact Check: Does Obama want to raise taxes? The Obama campaign says its economic plan would raise taxes only on those making over $250,000. The economic crisis has given Obama and his running mate, Sen. Joe Biden, the opportunity to go on the offensive. Most Americans see Obama as more capable than McCain when it comes to the economy, polls indicate. The two campaigns have traded shots all week, most recently over the government takeover of AIG. As the economy has dominated the headlines, Obama has widened his lead over McCain, according to CNN's latest \"poll of polls.\" Obama gains in national polls .", "Washington (CNN) -- To Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, Russian President Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine because the United States failed to avenge the 2012 terrorist attack that killed four Americans in Benghazi, Libya. \"It started with Benghazi,\" Graham posted Tuesday on Twitter. \"When you kill Americans and nobody pays a price, you invite this type of aggression.\" Nonsense, said Democratic strategist and CNN political contributor Paul Begala. \"The whole notion that this is all about the United States or all about President Obama, it's frankly silly,\" Begala said Wednesday on CNN's \"New Day.\" Such is the state of political discourse these days in the United States, where every issue -- particularly one that dominates media headlines -- becomes fair game for partisan attack. Election year rhetoric . The dynamic is especially acute in an election year, when candidates and parties seek to score points with voters, and magnified even more when it involves foreign policy, noted Darrell West, the vice president for governance studies at the Brookings Institution. \"It doesn't matter what happens -- Republicans attack and Democrats sound defensive,\" West told CNN on Wednesday. \"It's easy to do in foreign policy because there are so many unexpected things that take place. Every month there's going to be a crisis. We just don't know where.\" House committee resolution urges sanctions against Russia . Regardless of what started the events that led to Russia's incursion into Ukraine's Crimea Peninsula last week, both sides have adopted postures now familiar to Americans already disgusted with the political dysfunction permeating Washington. \"Can you think of any place in the world, any place where we are better off now than we were when he came to office?\" Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell said Wednesday of President Barack Obama. \"He has acted in such a way almost amounting to passivity in many instances.\" Concerned about being labeled a war-monger, McConnell quickly made clear that \"we are not suggesting here that the use of force is appropriate in very many occasions.\" \"Only occasionally,\" he said. \"But there is a widespread kind of lack of respect for U.S. opinion.\" Partisan divide . To former Vermont Gov. and Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean, Obama \"is doing exactly the right thing\" with a measured approach to the Ukraine crisis. \"He's ratcheting up the heat, and he's doing it slowly enough so that Putin has a chance to back off,\" Dean said Tuesday on CNN's \"Crossfire.\" \"One problem with Vladimir Putin is not only has he broken the law, but he now has to back down and save face at the same time. He needs the opportunity to do that. So the President needs to tighten the vise, keep squeezing gently, carefully, and not making it so public. And I think he's doing exactly that,\" Dean said. Does Putin want a new Cold War? Most striking about the back-and-forth is that deep down, the two sides generally agree on what should happen. No one wants a military confrontation involving U.S. forces, instead preferring steps to isolate Russia diplomatically and economically. Ideas include a threatened boycott of the upcoming G8 summit in Sochi, with hints of kicking Russia out of the group of industrial powers that includes the United States, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and Canada. Also under consideration are strong economic sanctions, perhaps targeting Russia's state-owned banks or wealthy oligarchs who keep and spend much of their money abroad. The United States has halted some military cooperation as well. Tough races mean tough attacks . The venom of political dialogue generally depends on the toughness of the electoral challenge facing a particular candidate. Graham and McConnell both have conservative primary rivals in traditionally red states of South Carolina and Kentucky, and therefore want to sound belligerent against anything involving Obama and Democrats. Compare their rhetoric to Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, the GOP vice-presidential nominee in 2012 who remains open to a presidential run in 2016. With his re-election presumably as safe as can be, Ryan touched on the main points of responses from both sides to the Ukraine crisis. Ryan: White House invited aggression but taking right steps . \"When you have the world superpower having a foreign policy that, in my opinion, is weak and a defense policy now that shows weakness, I think it invites aggression. I think that it creates a vacuum that is filled by these types of actions,\" Ryan told CNN on Wednesday. \"But, let's be really clear. Who is to blame for this? Vladimir Putin is to blame for this. And, I think the administration is making the proper responses.\" Republican group ties Clinton to Obama handling on Ukraine . To West, Republicans \"always love to make Obama look weak on foreign policy.\" \"It's easy to say that the President was caught off guard,\" West said in a telephone interview. \"He was caught off guard, but so was every expert in the country. I don't think anybody anticipated that first there would be the overturning of the government in the Ukraine, and then the Russian response after that.\" He called the knee-jerk criticism \"a way for people to take advantage of the international uncertainty to score political points,\" adding that \"political responses are heightened because we're facing a midterm election.\" Hawks oppose defense cuts . Graham clearly had the 2016 presidential vote in mind when he linked Benghazi to Ukraine. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is the overwhelming Democratic favorite if she runs, and Graham and other Republicans want to keep the terror attack in Libya on her watch fresh in the minds of voters. West, did you really expect Russia to ignore Ukraine chaos? He also is among a group of hawkish Senate veterans trying to minimize or even reverse cuts to defense spending in recent years, hastened in part by GOP insistence on reduced government spending. \"A lot of the current discussion is taking place against the backdrop of a conflict over defense spending,\" West noted. \"Obama's budget wants to scale back defense spending, and Republicans are upset with that. It's easy for them to use Ukraine as an example for not cutting the military.\" U.S. strategy for Ukraine crisis: Money talks . Clinton compares Putin's Ukraine moves to Hitler, later recalibrates . Putin vs. Obama: Facing off over facts in Ukraine . CNN's Lindsay Perna contributed to this report.", "An expanding digital marketplace, financial stability and strong economic growth; Estonia is setting the pace for other European nations, according to the Baltic nation's leader. Speaking with CNN's Isa Soares, Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves said that the country developed a reputation for its digital economy \"from a level playing field\" with other nations after it gained independence in 1993. \"We did, in the 1990s, look around us and see a lot of things that we needed to do in the world,\" he said. \"We were behind in many areas. When it came to IT... we were starting more or less at the same base as everyone else. We started with a tabula rasa, a clean slate.\" Read more: General Electric exec to Europe: Open your borders, create jobs . Having emerged from the wreckage of the Soviet Union and decades under communist rule, Estonia's economy now generates 1% of its GDP [Gross Domestic Product] from IT solutions, according to Ilves. He added: \"Our e-governance solution, banking, private sector... are more secure and quicker.\" With the lowest government debt in Europe, Estonia's economy is also a beacon for financial prudence at a time when many European nations are struggling to cope with high government debt and low growth. Read more: Spain's booming Rioja economy . Asked why Estonia is the poster child for economic stability, Ilves joked: \"Well, for one, we followed the rules.\" He added: \"It is quite clear that if the eurozone is to be viable, that the kinds of behavior that we have seen, either fiscal irresponsibility, or in some cases even lying about deficits, well that is completely unacceptable.\" A fully-fledged member of the European Union since 2004 and the latest country to officially adopt the euro currency in 2011, Estonia's dark days 19% high unemployment and grave recession appear to be at an end. Read more: How saffron could save Greek farmers . Allan Sikk, an expert in Eastern Europe at the University College of London, said that Estonia's meteoric rise and assimilation into the West is partly due to the country emerging from the Soviet Union with a stronger economy than most of its counterparts. \"It was also close to some very rich countries like Finland and Sweden that provided export markets and investments.\" Today, the Baltic nation is joining its affluent Nordic partners in financing the struggling countries of southern Europe. A state of affairs that according to Ilves, is politically \"tough\" to justify when a \"relatively poor country\" like Estonia is bailing out richer nations that \"have not been following the rules.\" Read more: Driverless cars: From Hollywood to real world . Estonia's economy is projected to grow by 1.8% this year and 3% in 2014, outshining European heavyweights Germany and France. While Estonia's prospects look rosy, the 17-nation eurozone remains under the yoke of a prolonged debt crisis with a contraction of 0.4 % forecast for 2013. But Ilves is hopeful that Europe's single currency area has emerged from the \"worst phase.\" \"It will be a slow recovery, we won't be back to the go-go years of booming economies yet,\" he added, \"but if you look at our country and other countries that started the reforms early, they're doing better [and] growth is faster... so that's the proof.\"", "PUBLISHED: . 10:19 EST, 5 October 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 10:49 EST, 5 October 2012 . Deadliest Catch captain, Sig Hansen, is not the most obvious fashion icon. But the TV star's rugged sense of style is reportedly going mainstream - and producing a surge in sales of so-called trawlerman chic on the high street. Demand for fishing favourites such as duffle coats, cream cable . knit jumpers, chunky woollen socks, stripy T-shirts and rugged boots . has soared over the last month, according to Debenhams, with further increases expected as the . cold weather continues. Along with Captain Sig, stars driving the trend include David Beckham and Robbie Williams - both of whom have been spotted sporting cosy cable knit cardigans recently. Inspiration: Deadliest Catch star, Captain Sig Hansen with his fishing boat, the Northwestern . Sartorial seamen: David Beckham (left) and Robbie Williams (right) both like a good cable knit cardi . One Direction's Liam Payne is also a fan, recently having been snapped heading into the ITV Daybreak studio clad in his trusty grey cable knit. Sales figures released by Debenhams show that British men are particularly partial to a pair of chunky boots, which are up 81 per cent, duffle coats, striped t-shirts, thermal underwear and heavy knits. According to the retailer, Deadliest Catch and other fishing-focused TV shows such as Extreme Fishing with Robson Green, are the driving force behind the trend.'No longer just the hobby of a solitary riverbank dweller, these TV shows have made ‘fisherman fashion’ mainstream,' says Lizzie Singleton, spokesman for Debenhams. With designers such as . Acne's Jonny Johansson, Burberry's Christopher Bailey and Paul Smith all showing angling-inspired pieces too, the trend looks set to stay. 'The humble duffle coat, waterproof trousers and obligatory chunky socks [are] the must have look for autumn/winter 2012,' says Singleton, who adds that the coolest way to wear . fisherman . fashion is to work in bold colours toned down with neutral . boots and a classic navy beanie. Stylish: One Direction's Liam Payne (second right) shows off his fisher-fashion savvy in a chunky cable knit . Sigalicious: Captain Sig style on the catwalk at Acne (left) and Burberry Prorsum (right) 'Even television Trawlermen, documenting the tough times of the Peterhead and Fraserburgh fishing fleets and arguably the most unlikely fashion icons, has shown the average British landlubber the masculine appeal of a hardy seaman,' notes Singleton.Debenhams has also seen the look creeping into womenswear with bright duffle coats, cable knit jumpers and chunky cardigans worn by the likes of Alexa Chung leading the way.'The tough, capable image of seafaring clothing seems to have chimed with the mood of the nation during the financial difficulties,' comments Singleton.'Knowing that you are well equipped to cope with everything life can throw at you – no matter how hard the going becomes – is now seen as essential to weather the economic storm.'Warm, hardwearing and now stylish, these items herald the return of practical fashion that will see you through the season and beyond.' Corgi Fair Isle wool socks, £25, mrporter.com . Scotch and Soda jumper, £138, scotch-soda.com . Norse Projects beanie hat, £40, triads.co.uk . Nautica lightweight duffle coat, £135, debenhams.com . Shore Leave navy striped t-shirt, £22, urbanoutfitters.co.uk .", "\"Very busy lately, huh?\" Lao Liu greets me one morning on my way to work. \"What's going on with this Chen Guangcheng guy?\" My friend, who works for a multinational company, had heard chatter about Chen and wanted to find out more. I was in a rush so I told him quickly about Chen, the blind activist from a rural town in Shandong who has been mistreated for years by local officials, and how he had slipped into the U.S. embassy in Beijing creating a diplomatic spat with China. Lao Liu is not alone. Many ordinary Chinese have been in the dark about Chen's dramatic escape. China: Chen can apply to study in U.S. On May 2, six days after Chen had slipped into the U.S. embassy, the state-run Xinhua news agency declared China was demanding an apology from the U.S. for giving refuge to a Chinese citizen \"via abnormal means.\" During a regular press briefing, foreign ministry spokesman Liu Weimin said the Chinese side was \"strongly dissatisfied with the move.\" U.S. officials 'exploring all options' He added: \"What the U.S. side has done has interfered in the domestic affairs of China and the Chinese side will never accept it.\" But many Chinese were baffled by Liu's protests because they knew very little about Chen and his story. For days Chinese censors have blocked online posts that mention Chen's name, or words related to the lawyer like \"blind.\" They have also ordered the Chinese media to stay away from Chen's story and have selectively blacked out international reports about Chen from networks such as CNN. Lawyer, friend: Chen wants his rights . \"Who is this person?\" asked netizen Leo Liu Ying on Weibo, one of China's Twitter-like social networking sites. \"We want the real story!\" Netizens demanded to know what Chen did, why he wanted to go to the U.S. embassy and how he got there. Postings on Weibo are eventually scrubbed, but the few we read show a range of opinions. Some supported the official line. \"China's internal affairs should be solved by Chinese ourselves, no need to have Americans worry about these,\" said Yutou0001. Others were more circumspect. \"One should not engage in activities incompatible with one's job,\" wrote Fuguideshi. \"But basic humanitarianism and universal human rights have no borders.\" U.S. 'mission impossible' diplomacy . But a post from \"GhostInTheHell\" was scathingly sarcastic. \"May I ask the spokesman of the nation of rule of law: what is the legal basis of deleting posts of Mr. Chen? \"What is the legal basis of putting him on house arrest for years, for beating him up, for harassing his family, for preventing him to get medical treatment, for allowing his daughter to go to school?\" A few netizens were dismissive of Chen's move. \"Chinese who have grievances towards the government may now go into the embassy and throw themselves into the arms of the Yankees,\" wrote Hacken. But for many people, Chen had single-handedly hijacked the U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue (SED), a two-day meeting that ended Friday. The SED brings together top officials from both countries, including U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and her Chinese counterpart, Dai Bingguo. They discuss a range of complex bilateral issues, including trade and investment, cross-border crime, military and strategic concerns, as well as global issues like North Korea, Syria, and Iran. This year's SED is particularly important, just months away from a presidential election in the U.S. and a once-in-a-decade change of leadership in China, when \"stability and smooth transition are the watchwords,\" according to Robert Lawrence Kuhn, a corporate strategist and author of \"How China's Leaders Think\". \"Although the SED dealt with the most sensitive military and security matters, it was largely ignored by the world's media because of the solitary acts of a blind human rights activist,\" Kuhn said. The Chen story has shone a bright light on China's repressive practices. Yet Beijing is asking for an apology from Washington. \"They are likely asking for an apology because it diverts attention from their obvious embarrassment and shows strength in the face of severe American criticism over human rights,\" said Kuhn. \"Yet the fact that Chen is now contradicting U.S. officials -- such that, red-faced, they are having to justify their actions in releasing him -- works to reduce China's embarrassment.\" This strange turn of events has raised all sorts of unpleasant questions about the way U.S. officials have handled the affair. The Obama administration risks accusations that it is kowtowing to a repressive Chinese government at a time when democratic reform and regime change has taken place across much of the world in the last year. Washington is also vulnerable to criticism that it is furthering strategic and economic interests in China to the detriment of America's broader goal of supporting democracy and freedom overseas. China watchers expect a brief diplomatic standoff. U.S. officials, they say, will continue to criticize \"Chinese human rights\" as judged by American values, and their Chinese counterparts will continue to condemn \"American interference in China's internal affairs,\" as judged by China's sense of sovereignty. \"Yet both sides will continue to reach beyond the rhetoric and deal with international stability and economic growth,\" said Kuhn. Beijing and Washington, after all, have resolved serious diplomatic crises in the past two decades. These include the NATO bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade in 1999, and the spy plane collision in 2001. During these crises, American and Chinese diplomats worked out carefully worded agreements that would allow leeway for each side to \"explain\" the resolution in terms that would be acceptable to their own people. Clinton's forceful statements about protecting human rights and China's unequivocal assertions about protecting Chinese sovereignty illustrate this point. Observers regard such tough talk as a prerequisite toward a compromise solution, which could see Chen seeking further medical treatment in the U.S. -- a \"face-saving\" way to allow the blind activist and family to leave China, as he now says he wishes.", "(CNN) -- Jeneba Jalloh Ghatt is the first to admit that she likes nice things. Stylist Philip Pelusi has offered his clients bargains and hosted two designers' shows to help them save money. But these days when she passes the new upscale shopping area en route to her Chevy Chase, Maryland, office, she refuses to even glance at the lavish goodies. \"There's a Ralph Lauren store, a Louis Vuitton store, Tiffany's,\" said the attorney and principal of The Ghatt Law Group. \"I drive by and I don't even look in that direction.\" With the economy in shambles and so many people losing their jobs and homes, it is no longer considered cool to brag about possessions and purchases. For many during a deepening recession, conspicuous consumption is out and frugality is the new black. \"People have long used the way they shop and what they buy as a way to communicate with other people about their values, their tastes and their interests,\" said Kit Yarrow, a consumer psychologist and professor at Golden Gate University in San Francisco, California. \"A year ago, what was considered the ultimate status symbol would have been the chicest bag or the most luxurious outfit,\" Yarrow added. \"Now what's chic is being the most knowledgeable and efficient at saving money.\" Yarrow said that despite the tough economic times, there are many Americans who still have disposable income. Those people are choosing not to spend, she said, or making more thoughtful purchases. \"What I am saying is that we have moved from an era of conspicuous consumption to an era of considered consumption,\" Yarrow said. \"People at one time wanted to showcase all of the things they are buying and now they are stopping and really thinking about it.\" Brett Wright, co-founder and chief creative officer of Uptown Magazine, is also seeing evidence of that attitude shift. iReport.com: What adjustments are you making to your budget? His publication is targeted at what he terms the \"triple A's\" -- affluent African-Americans and those who want to be. Wright said he is seeing consumption of big ticket items being put on hold or done more discreetly. \"Buying the new red Ferrari is certainly not in favor,\" Wright said. \"Everybody is trying to do things sort of under the radar screen. No one is looking to be as ostentatious as they may have been in the past.\" Consumers are looking for value for their spending, Wright said, and focusing on \"How do you live like a king without having to spend a king's ransom?\" To that end, Wright and his staff are brainstorming ways to address the change in spending habits in their publication. \"We don't believe that luxury lifestyle has gone away,\" Wright said. \"We're looking at maybe not having the $250,000 watch, but a great watch you can get for perhaps $7,500.\" Renowned hairstylist and salon owner Philip Pelusi said he, too, has seen the focus shift to more bang for the buck during the economic downturn. Pelusi said clients are opting for money-saving tactics like extending time between visits, partial highlights or getting services on \"training nights\" for the salon, which can trim their bill up to 60 percent. \"We are doing everything we can to accommodate the clients,\" said Pelusi, whose Tela Design Studio in Manhattan has only seen a slight decrease in business. Pelusi is also reaching out to others in the industry who are looking to economize. Two designers, Susan Cianciolo and \"Project Runway\" finalist Jillian Lewis, opted to forgo staging more expensive shows and used Pelusi's design studio during Fashion Week for their presentations. Marilani Huling is a Washington-based jewelry designer who said she has reduced prices on her creations to cater to her clientele. Huling said that during the recent \"Crystal Couture\" event in Virginia, one of the most popular presenters during the two-week fashion festival was Goodwill Industries. \"Goodwill had stylists put together things off their racks and put them on the runway models,\" Huling said. \"I was surprised, because everything really looked good.\" HLN consumer advocate Clark Howard said a new term is \"in-sourcing\" instead of \"out-sourcing.\" \"People had their collection of 'Mys,' \" Howard said. \"My massage therapist, my yard person, my hairdresser. Now people are really stepping back from that and saying 'If I cut my own lawn, I'm going to have that $60 in my pocket.' \" Howard said he has noticed from listeners to his popular call-in radio show that even those who really don't need to cut back are still choosing to do so. That didn't happen, he said, during the last deep recession from 1979 to 1982. Howard said he attributes the rush to downsize in part to the 24-hour news cycle, which continues to pepper the public with bad news. \"People didn't have access to the constant drumbeat of news that they have now,\" he said. With so much personal spending being tied to emotion, Howard said consumers are being much more cautious while they ride out the economic turmoil and are taking comfort in being able to score good deals. Ghatt posted unabashedly on Twitter when she spotted a pair of Cole Hahn shoes originally priced at $180 going for $20 at Marshalls. When a friend expressed his surprise that she would go public with shopping at a discount store, she had a quick comeback. \"I tweeted and said 'Don't you know that bargain divas are in style now?' \" Ghatt said, laughing.", "Washington (CNN) -- When presumptive Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney appears before Latino small-business owners in Washington on Wednesday, he'll address a group whose explosive birth rates foreshadow a seismic political shift in GOP strongholds in the Deep South and Southwest. \"The Republicans' problem is their voters are white, aging and dying off,\" said David Bositis, a senior research associate at the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, who studies minority political engagement. \"There will come a time when they suffer catastrophic losses with the realization of the population changes.\" Over the next several generations, the wave of minority voters -- who, according to U.S. Census figures released this week, now represent more than half of the nation's population born in the past year -- will become more of a power base in places like Alabama, Mississippi and Georgia. That hold will extend across the Southwest all the way to California, experts say. Opinion: Sorry Rush Limbaugh, minorities not looking for 'payback' The coming political revolution could result in a massive changing of the guard on nearly every level of government, potential cultural clashes, and the type of political alliances that are now considered rare. Offspring of immigrant farm workers . In Georgia, those rumblings are already being felt. It is a state that depends heavily on immigrant labor to pick peaches and peanuts and work in poultry plants. So when Georgia -- like its Southern sister states of Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee and South Carolina -- passed a tough anti-immigration bill that also penalizes businesses, Hispanic groups and farmers alike pushed back. \"This election cycle Latinos in Georgia are upset about (the law),\" said Jerry Gonzalez, executive director of GALEO, a nonprofit and nonpartisan group geared toward Georgia's growing Latino population. \"That's going to spur more galvanization than we've ever seen before.\" According to the Pew Hispanic Center, Southeastern states such as Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee boast some of the greatest percentage increases in Latino population growth. They are also states where the percentage of Hispanics roughly doubled. And, according to Pew, the Latino population boom helped Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Nevada, South Carolina, Texas, Utah and Washington net additional congressional seats. Though Georgia's Latino population has mushroomed over the past ten years, according to Pew, roughly 23% of that group is eligible to vote, compared to roughly 76.2% of whites and just over 69% of African-Americans. Still, activists like Gonzalez are hopeful that lawmakers will see the trends and recognize \"Latinos merit a seat at the table as well.\" So far, Republican efforts to offer Latinos a place at the table have fallen short. The nation's Hispanics tend to vote Democratic, and overwhelmingly supported Barack Obama and Joe Biden in 2008. Romney in particular has stumbled with this critical voting bloc, after his comments suggesting that making the economic landscape tough for illegal immigrants will force them to \"self deport.\" Trying to convince a growing population . Even Republican Hispanic lawmakers, such as Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Florida, have urged the GOP to soften its language when discussing immigration and such proposals as the House-passed version of the Violence Against Women Act, which killed expanded coverage for illegal immigrants and Native Americans who are victims of domestic abuse, and the failed DREAM Act, which would have given U.S. residency to immigrant kids with high school diplomas. The GOP is trying to clean up its image with Hispanic voters, with an eye toward the demographic's looming political clout. Romney is slated to speak at the Latino Coalition's Annual Economic Summit in Washington on Wednesday. Last week, his campaign released \"Dia Uno,\" a Spanish-language version of an ad underscoring Romney's mission for the first day he assumes the presidency. If Republicans continue to struggle to appeal to Latino voters, Spanish-language ads may not stave off a change that experts like Bositis see coming in the not too distant future, when states such as Georgia go purple and eventually blue. \"There'll be a tipping point where you've got the Republicans in charge, but you'll get to the point when the population becomes minority,\" Bositis said. \"When that happens the statewide offices will fall. Republican governors will fall. Things will change.\" This announcement on birth rates \"should be a wake-up call to everyone running for political office from this day forward,\" said Lionel Sosa, a veteran Latino GOP strategist who has helped advise candidates since 1980. \"Latinos should no longer be considered minorities. In many crucial electoral states, this 'former minority' is fast becoming the deciding vote. The candidate who reaches out most effectively will win their support.\" \"Token efforts, such as tamale parties, will no longer work. Winning will require more than outreach. It will require inclusion,\" Sosa said. \"Latinos, African-Americans and people of other races must be represented in the important decision-making strategies of any given campaign, whether it be for a Democrat or Republican.\"", "Beijing (CNN) -- You can see them each night on street corners or public squares of Beijing, hundreds of Chinese couples ballroom dancing to music blaring from makeshift speakers. Some have this down to a fine art, twirling and sweeping across the pavement. This is entertainment for the armies of migrant workers who have flocked to China's cities over the past 20 years on the promise of a better life. For so many of them the dream has come true. China's breakneck economic growth -- inspired by former leader Deng Xiaoping's call \"to get rich is glorious\" -- has turned one time peasant farmers into factory hands, construction workers, sales people and shop assistants. Some have indeed become rich starting companies or riding the property boom. For the Communist Party, the country's unelected supreme leaders, this is the source of their legitimacy and authority: keep the engines of growth turning, and the people busy and prosperous. It has worked, so far. But strains are appearing. The gap between rich and poor is widening and the economy itself is weakening. The growth figures for the latest quarter are at 7.4 %, the slowest in three years. China's GDP growth slides to 7.4% . As the party prepares for its leadership change in November, it is also faced with reforming an economy that can longer rely on cheap labor, high exports and big investment. It needs to switch to domestic consumption - no easy task, according to some analysts. \"It will take generation to get to remodel that growth formula. It is easier said than done, to make sure that people feel that they are safe to spend,\" says Victor Chu, chairman of First Eastern Investment Group. Chu has faith in China's leaders -- they have more tools in their box than the rest of the world, he says. Other big thinkers in the world of business agree. Faced with the potential of a \"hard landing\" of plummeting growth, many foresee a \"soft landing\" -- a controlled slowdown leading to more quality growth. \"The last 10 years developed a very good track record of economic management,\" says John Quelch, dean of the China Europe International Business School. \"Obviously there are global challenges affecting the China growth path. China needs to rebalance towards domestic consumption, but I'm pretty confident that the quality of the management in Beijing, financially speaking, is very very good.\" As the world's second biggest economy -- and many economists predict that one day, not far away, China is destined to overtake the United States at number one -- what happens here is now felt around the world. It's become a hot button issue during the U.S election campaign. Candidates Mitt Romney and Barack Obama have used the presidential debates to try to \"out-tough\" each other on China. China is accused of not playing fair, keeping its currency low to gain an export advantage and taking American jobs. If elected, Governor Romney says he would declare China a \"currency manipulator\" on the first day of his presidency. President Obama says he's lodged successful cases against China at the World Trade Organization. U.S. debate: Tough talk on China . China's Foreign Ministry has hit back, saying that U.S politicians need to treat China fairly and that trade should be a win-win. Sir Martin Sorrell, CEO of advertising giant WPP, does a lot of business in China. He says the rest of the world can't blame Beijing for its ills. \"We have mismanaged our economy, not the Chinese,\" Sorrell says. \"Look back in the history, we've been here before, early 19th Century, China and India were 40-50% of worldwide GNP. They are going be again ... the only question is when.\" But economists point out China's leaders should be under no illusions about the task ahead. The gap between rich and poor is widening, and poor Chinese complain that the opportunities are drying up. Then there are questions about social cohesion, the rule of law and human rights. In many ways China's incoming rulers are in a race against time. Reform the economy before the people turn against the Party. \"The whole legitimacy of this one party rule depends on the ability to deliver. And in the last 30 years, hundreds of million have been brought above the poverty line. So going forward is going to be challenging, but the only way they can survive is to deliver,\" warns Victor Chu. Tonight the ball room dancers will be back on the streets, but the question remains what will become of them if the music stops.", "If Sheffield United are hoping a raucous crowd will help them barge their way to Wembley on Wednesday night, then they might need to work on other plans. Contrary to the conventional wisdom that surrounds matches between the big and small of football, noise from the stands will do nothing to upset Mauricio Pochettino – it's more likely to raise a smile. Tottenham's manager loves an 'aggressive environment', a subject that dominated his thoughts ahead of the Capital One Cup semi-final second leg tie against Sheffield United. Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino says the aggressive environment at Sheffield United won't faze him . The Bramall Lane faithful will be hoping to create a cauldron for Spurs on Wednesday night . Sheffield United host the Premier League side in the Capital One Cup semi-final second leg . With only a 1-0 lead to show for Tottenham's first-leg efforts, and considering United's brilliant cup record under Nigel Clough, this fixture is far from over. But of all the factors that require serious thought – including the deployment of Michel Vorm in goal after his FA Cup howler at the weekend – Pochettino is not in slightest worried about the atmosphere of his first semi-final as a manager. 'I had a lot of semi-finals as a player,' the Argentine said. 'I remember the semi final in the Copa Libertadores against America de Cali in Colombia (while playing for Newell’s Old Boys in 1992). We won the final after 24 penalties, it was tough. 'I scored after seven minutes, but afterwards missed a penalty. It was crazy. It’s difficult to play in Colombia. I remember going up the tunnel to the pitch and they started to throw batteries. I remember before the game one of my team mates (Eduardo Berizzo, now manager of Celta Vigo) got hit and cut on the head. He had to get stitches from the doctor, it was very tough. 'In Colombia, Argentina, Brazil, Peru or Ecuador, people are very aggressive. It’s nothing like that here. I remember every time we drove from the airport, all the glass on the bus was smashed and we fell to the floor. He says South American games are more hostile (pictured - fans cheer in a Copa Libertadores tie in 2009) Fans and the police fight during a match between Libertad and River Plate in Asuncion in 2006 . 'If I can cope with that, we can cope with anything. When I came over to France, England or Spain, people told me it was difficult to play in. But when we arrived, it was nothing. They shout when something goes wrong but nothing else. This is easy.' He added: 'My family was very worried about it, but now is happy. The people here are fantastic. Maybe it’s normal that the supporters shout at you, but in Argentina it’s impossible to have the supporters (close) in behind you because of spitting and they throw things, radios, mobiles, it’s dangerous. But in England the respect is massive.' Pochettino described this fixture as 'most important game of the season' for Tottenham, who have not won a trophy for seven years. Despite his game-costing error against Leicester on Saturday, Vorm is set to retain his place in goal. Michel Vorm is set to retain his place in goal despite his mistake against Leicester on Saturday .", "(CNN) -- After weeks of vague pronouncements on world events, President Obama finally spoke forcefully Wednesday. He delivered a strong statement about the horrendous beheadings of journalists Steven Sotloff and James Foley and spoke about what the U.S. planned to do with ISIS, the terror group which calls itself the Islamic State. \"It's not only that we're going to be bringing to justice those who perpetrated this terrible crime against these two fine young men, but more broadly the United States will continue to lead a regional and international effort against the barbaric and ultimately empty vision that (ISIS) represents,\" he said. \"And that's going to take some time, but we're going to get it done.\" In a speech later in the day, the president warned that NATO would respond to Russian aggression. The President needs to to be doing more of this kind of explaining, for both foreign and domestic policy. For too much of the time in recent weeks, he has been too focused on criticizing those who have questioned his policies. Obama has attacked Republicans for being obstructionists. He has taken on the news media for focusing on negative stories and repeating stories that are based on speculation, falsehood, and innuendo. He has even been attacking some Democrats for not being enthusiastic enough about what he has done. Not everything that he says is unfair or inaccurate. Indeed, congressional Republicans have been extremely obstructionist, making it impossible to accomplish virtually anything on Capitol Hill. \"Stop just hating all the time,\" he mockingly said during a speech in Kansas City about domestic policy. The media have their virtues and they have their flaws, but reporters often do inflate crisis stories in an attempt to win over viewers and readers. Often small stories are exaggerated and false stories gain a full hearing on the airwaves. Regardless, these kinds of complaints only go so far. The truth is that every president faces immense challenges: every president faces unfair media, and congressional opponents are usually tough. None of this is really new. To be effective, great presidents still work over these problems to shape public debate and to provide guidance to voters on major issues of the day. At their best, they can be the explainers in chief. In doing so, presidents do not have to be dogmatic, idealistic or simplistic. They can help Americans understand the story even if they don't have all the answers. This is a vital function that we expect of our leaders. Great presidents have done this in the past. During the Civil War, as Southerners and Northerners engaged in a brutal conflict over the institution of slavery, President Abraham Lincoln -- in a very different media age -- offered a series of cogent speeches that reminded Northerners of what they were fighting for while pointing to the need to restore the Union to its whole. \"It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us -- that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion -- that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain, that this nation under God shall have a new birth of freedom, and that government of the people, by the people, for the people shall not perish from the earth,\" Lincoln said. As the nation descended into a horrible depression in the 1930s, President Franklin D. Roosevelt made bold speeches and took to the airwaves through fireside chats on the radio to restore a sense of confidence about how the nation would rebound from hard times. \"The only thing we have to fear is fear itself,\" he said in one of the most memorable lines in American political history. His vision of the New Deal offered a powerful road map for how the federal government could flex its regulatory muscle to revitalize the foundation of the economy. President Lyndon Johnson used his flurry of domestic legislation in 1964 and 1965 -- which he called the Great Society -- to help Americans see how they could collectively work their way out of the social conflict and despair that afflicted huge pockets of the nation even in the best of economic times. LBJ, during the part of his presidency where he was popular, relied on legislation to show how the nation could help ameliorate the racial and economic disparities that were causing immense tensions throughout the nation. As Southerners engaged in brutal conflicts over civil rights for African-Americans, LBJ offered a powerful response, including a famous speech about voting rights in 1965 that highlighted how the government would step in to protect the rights of all Americans. \"Many of the issues of civil rights are very complex and most difficult,\" he told Congress in the wake of the march on Selma, Alabama. \"But about this there can and should be no argument. Every American citizen must have an equal right to vote. There is no reason which can excuse the denial of that right. There is no duty which weighs more heavily on us than the duty we have to ensure that right.\" President Ronald Reagan helped inspire his supporters to feel that the economic stagflation of the 1970s would not be permanent. As he took office in 1981, many Americans felt little hope that there would ever be another period of vibrant economic growth or that the U.S. would ever regain its standing overseas. Through his fierce championing of tax cuts, deregulation and anti-communism, the President helped large portions of the public see how the future might be better. Supporters love the ideas of great presidents, opponents hate them. But most importantly, the effective leaders put a set of ideas on the table to help make sense of the inevitable and chronic chaos of world affairs. Obama needs to do more of what we heard Wednesday. With the emergence of ISIS in the Middle East, Russian aggression in Ukraine, and major domestic challenges such as poverty, inequality and race, Obama must step in. He should use the final years of his presidency to help create a foundation for the public to face these challenges and start thinking about a viable and rational path forward in coming years. The costs of remaining silent, of being too cool, are too high.", "Havana, Cuba (CNN) -- In the '90s a certain joke became very popular in the streets and homes of Cuba. It began with Pepito -- the mischievous boy of our national humor -- and told how his teacher, brandishing a photo of the U.S. president, launches into a harsh diatribe against him. \"The man you see here is the cause of all our problems, he has plunged this island into shortages and destroyed our productivity, he is responsible for the lack of food and the collapse of public transport,\" the teacher says. After these fierce accusations the teacher points to the face in the photo and asks her most wayward student, \"Do you know who this is?\" Smiling, Pepito replies, \"Oh yes, ... I know him, it's just that without his beard I didn't recognize him.\" Photos: Cuba -- a sense of home in a timeless place . The joke reflects, to a large measure, the polarization of national opinion with regard to our economic difficulties and the restrictions on citizens' rights that characterize the current Cuban system. While the official discourse points to the United States as the source of our greatest problems, many others see the Plaza of the Revolution itself as the root of all the failures of the last 53 years. True or not, the reality is that each one of the 11 administrations that have passed through the White House since 1959 has influenced the course of this island, sometimes directly, other times as a pillar of support for the ideological propaganda of Fidel Castro's government (and now that of his younger brother Raúl). Hence the growing expectations that circulate through the largest of the Antilles every time elections come around to decide who will sit in the Oval Office. Cuban politics depends so greatly on what happens in the ballot boxes on the other side of the Florida Straits -- and some share the view that we have never been so dependent on our neighbor to the north. Postcard: Why India longs for U.S. election . Cuban diplomacy seems more comfortable contradicting America than seeking to solve the problems between the nations, which is why many analysts agree it would be easier for Raúl Castro to cope with an aggressive policy from Uncle Sam than with the more pragmatic approach of Barack Obama. Obama's easing of the rules on family remittances, reestablishing academic travel, and increasing cultural exchanges add up to an unwieldy formula difficult for the Castro regime's rhetoric to manage. But the regime has also tried to wring economic and political advantages from these gestures from Washington. The real question in this dispute is which approach would more greatly affect democratization in Cuba -- to display a fist? Or to offer a hand? To recognize the legitimacy of the government on the island? Or to continue to treat it as a kidnapper holding power over 11 million hostages? Postcard: Can Tokyo learn from election \"matsuri?\" When the Democratic party, led by Barack Obama, came to the White House in January 2009, our official press was faced with a dilemma. On the one hand the newly elected president's youth and his African descent made him immediately popular with Cubans, and it was not uncommon to find people walking the streets wearing a shirt or hat displaying the face of the former senator from Illinois. It was the first time in decades that some compatriots dared to publicly wear a picture of the \"enemy\" (the U.S. president) himself. For a population that saw the top leaders of our own government approaching or passing 80, the image of a cheerful, limber, smiling Obama was more consistent with the myth of the Revolutionary than were the old men in olive green standing behind the national microphones. Obama's magnetism also captivated many here as well, and disappointed, of course, those who hoped for a heavier hand toward the gerontocracy in Havana. Farewell socialism ... hello to pragmatism . Beyond the political issues, the measures undertaken by the Obama administration were felt quickly in many Cuban families, particularly in their economy and relations with their exiled relatives in America. With the increased cash from remittances, the small businesses that emerged from Raul Castro's reforms were able to use the money coming from the north for start-up capital and to position themselves. Meanwhile, thousands of Cuban-Americans arrived at José Martí airport every week loaded with packages, medicine and clothes to support their relatives on the island. Those who see the Cuban situation as a pressure cooker that needs just a little more heat to explode feel defrauded by these \"concessions\" to Havana from the Democratic government. They are the same people who suggest that a hard line -- belligerence on the diplomatic scene and economic suffocation -- would deliver better results. Sadly, however, the guinea pigs required to test the efficacy of such an experiment would be Cubans on the island, physically and socially wasting away until some point at which our civic consciousness would supposedly \"wake up.\" As if there are not enough historical examples to show that totalitarian regimes become stronger as their economic crises deepen and international opinion turns against them. No wonder Mitt Romney is a much talked about figure in the official Cuban press. His strong confrontational positions feed the anti-imperialism discourse like fuel to a fire. The Republican candidate has been the focus of numerous articles in the official organ of the Communist Party, the newspaper Granma. His photos and caricatures appear in this same daily that was stymied when trying to physically mock Obama. Given the high rate of mixed marriages among Cubans, it's quite sensitive to enlarge the ears and fatten the lips of the U.S. president without it reading as racist ridicule. Postcard: Parisians marvel at Obama's \"coolitude\" If, in the eighties, the media's political humor was honed in the wrinkled face of Ronald Reagan, and later the media had a field day with the physique of George W. Bush, for four years it has been cautious with the current resident of the White House. All this graphic moderation will go by the wayside if Mitt Romney is elected as the next president of the United States. There are those who are already laughing over the possible jokes to come. But whoever scores the electoral victory will find Cuba in a state of change. The reforms carried out by Raúl Castro lack the speed and depth most people desire, but are heading in the irreversible direction of economic opening. Havana is full of private cafés and restaurants, we can now buy and sell homes, and Cubans are even managing to sell the cars given to them during the era of Soviet subsidies in exchange for political loyalty. The timid changes driven by the General President are threatening to damage the fundamental pillars of Fidel Castro's command. Volunteerism at any cost, coarse egalitarianism, active adventures abroad, and a country kept in a state of constant tension by the latest economic or political campaign appear to be gradually fading into things of the past. On the other hand, citizens themselves have begun to experience the most definitive of transformations, that which occurs within. Public criticism is on the rise, although it has not yet found ways to be heard in all its diversity, but every day the fear of police reprisals diminishes. More: Cuba disputes reports of jailed American's health . The official media have unquestionably lost a monopoly on the flow of information and thanks to illegal satellite dishes Florida television now comes to Cuba. Alternative news networks circulate documentaries, films, and articles from independent journalists and bloggers. It's as if the enormous ocean liner of Revolutionary censorship was taking on water through every porthole. Young people are finally pushing to have Internet access, while the retired complain about their miserable pensions and almost everyone disagrees with the travel restrictions that prevent our leaving and returning to our own country. In short, the illusion of unanimity has fallen to pieces in Raúl Castro's hands. More: Raul Castro's daughter endorses Obama . To this internal scenario, the result of the American elections could be a catalyst or obstacle for changes, but it is no longer the most important factor to consider. Although the billboards lining the streets continue to paint the United States as Goliath wanting to crush little David who represents our island, for an increasing number of people the metaphor doesn't play out that way. They know that in our case the abusive giant is a government that tries to control the smallest aspects of our national life, while his opponent is a people who, bit by bit, is becoming more conscious of its real stature.", "New York's first immigrant Juan Rodriguez who arrived in the city in 1613 has had a three-mile stretch of Broadway named after him . New York's very first immigrant has been honoured with a three mile stretch of Broadway named after him, 400 years after arriving in the Big Apple. Juan Rodriguez, a sailor and trader from the Dominican Republic, is widely believed to be the first non-native American to have ever set foot in the city. While the street in its entirety, will continue to be known as Broadway, from 159th Street in Washington Heights to 218th Street in Inwood, it will now go by the additional name of Juan Rodriguez Way. Yesterday a renaming ceremony was held in Mitchel Square Park and May 15 was celebrated uptown as Juan Rodriguez Day. Ramona Hernandez, director of the City University of New York’s Dominican Studies Institute told The New York Daily News: 'We are happy, we are dancing! 'It’s a carnival, a festival, and a celebration of a man who came here many, many years ago, and gave the Dominicans a claim on this great city at the very beginning of its history.' Quite how Rodriguez cam to end up in New York is a matter of some debate. It is generally accepted that he arrived on the vessel Jonge Tobias from Santo Domingo under the Dutch sea captain Thijs Mossel. When Mossel set sail to return to the Netherlands, Rodriguez was left behind - either having decided to stay for himself or having been marooned. Mossel himself insisted that Rodriguez had abandoned ship and remained on the island voluntarily . In sworn affidavits crew members testified that the 'mulatto' or 'Spaniard' had 'run away from the ship and gone ashore against their intent'. They even suggested that they ought to have killed him when he refused to board ship and sail back to Europe. Rodriguez is believed to have mastered the local Indian language and set up a small trading post and may have eventually settled down marrying an Indian woman. Sign of respect: The stretch of Broadway from 159th Street in Washington Heights to 218th Street in Inwood, it will now go by the additional name of Juan Rodriguez Way . Yesterday a renaming ceremony was held in Mitchel Square Park and May 15 was celebrated uptown as Juan Rodriguez Day . During the winter he moved to a Dutch . fur trading post which had been set up on what is now Lower Manhattan by . Christiaan Hendricksen earlier that year. A . report by the Dominican Studies Institute read: 'Juan Rodriguez happens . to be the first historically recorded individual of non-Native American . ancestry to have ever resided in what is today metropolitan New York, . before the Dutch named their settlement New Amsterdam.' Ramona . Hernandez, of the City University of New York described Rodriguez as . 'the first immigrant, the first black person, the first merchant, the . first Latino and, to us, the first Dominican to have ever lived in New . York City.' Trader: Rodriguez negotiates with Native Americans at his small trading post in New York . Juan Rodriguez . Records of Juan Rodriguez are few and far between and what little is known about him comes chiefly from the records and ships' logs of Dutch traders. He was raised in the Spanish settlement of Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic. A skilled linguist, he was was hired by the Dutch sea captain Thijs Volckenz Mossel in 1613 to serve as the translator on a trading expedition to the Native American island of Mannahatta. When Mossel's set sail to return to the Netherlands, Rodriguez, who had already learnt the Algonquinian language of the native Lenape people, remained ashore setting up a trading post. Mossel had left him eighty hatchets, some knives, a musket and a sword which he used to barter with the indians. Rodriguez later married an Indian woman. During the winter he moved to a Dutch fur trading post which had been set up on what is now Lower Manhattan by Christiaan Hendricksen earlier that year. The small outpost formed part of the network of Dutch settlements that would become New Amsterdam and eventually New York City. Much of what is known about Rodriguez comes from records concerning the Dutch fur trader Adriaen Block. Block was furious when captain Mossel arrived and accused him of trying to 'spoil the trade' by offering indians three times more for a beaver pelts than he did. In a report submitted to the Amsterdam Notary upon his return to Holland, Block claims crewman Rodriguez had become a permanent fixture in Manhattan, trading and living alone among the natives. Rodriguez had taken it upon himself to gain friendship with the natives, set up a trading post, and live comfortably on Manhattan Island. Later Hendrick Christiaensen captain of the Dutch ship the Fortuyn describes in his log how Rodrigues came aboard the Nachtegaal, presented himself as a freeman, and offered to work for Christiaensen trading furs." ]

[ "Congress" ]

[ "passing", "Who", "The Passing", "the Who", "pass", "Who Made Who", "Pass It On", "Who?", "An iron railing", "improving efficiency", "to improve posture", "to improve literacy", "performance improvements", "to improve performance", "Breed to Improve", "Health's Improvement", "Tehachapi Pass", "A balustrade or railing", "Home Improvement", "Homestake Pass", "Monty's Pass", "improvisation or improv", "mountain pass", "to improve communication", "Perdido Pass", "NHS Improvement", "A Passing Policeman", "to improve adhesion", "improved survival", "pass transistor", "to improve their skills", "The Stelvio Pass" ]

[ "Bloating It can be! A boost in progesterone and estrogen is one of the common early pregnancy signs, causing many women to swell up early on, and with it often comes pregnancy gas. Abdominal pain or tightening, bloating, belching and passing gas all accompany pregnancy, sometimes for the entire nine months." ]

[ "Hiccups can absolutely be a sign of early pregnancy, this is because many of the causes of hiccups are related to other pregnancy symptoms. This is because many of the causes of hiccups are related to other pregnancy symptoms.", "Some women consider diarrhea an early sign of pregnancy. It's true that hormone changes around the time of conception can cause stomach issues and even lead to diarrhea. However, breast tenderness, fatigue, and nausea are much more common symptoms of early pregnancy.", "Dizziness or fainting: Perhaps related to hormonal changes affecting glucose levels or blood pressure, dizziness, lightheadedness, and feeling faint can occur in early pregnancy. Constipation: Hormone levels can also cause some women to have constipation in early pregnancy.", "In early pregnancy, hormones can cause increased insulin secretion and decreased glucose produced by the liver, which can lead to hypoglycemia (low blood glucose levels).", "Gas-X and other anti-gas meds (Phazyme, Flatulex, Mylicon, Mylanta Gas) relieve abdominal pain caused by excessive gas in the digestive tract. Their active ingredient is simethicone, which is safe during pregnancy.", "Hormonal changes during pregnancy can cause digestive issues, such as diarrhea, constipation, and gas. However, diarrhea during pregnancy can also result from a bowel infection or underlying bowel disorder. Doctors consider diarrhea to be three or more loose, watery bowel movements in a day.", "During pregnancy women have an increase in a pregnancy hormone called hCG. This increase can cause your urine to have a strong odor. This is especially true in early pregnancy. However, women also have a heightened sense of smell during pregnancy which could contribute to any strong urine odor they report.", "What Causes Spotting During Pregnancy? Implantation bleeding is a common cause of spotting early on in pregnancy. Implantation bleeding happens when the fertilized egg attaches to the uterine lining. This can trigger a few days of light bleeding or spotting.", "It is clear that overt hypothyroidism (increased TSH levels and low thyroid hormone levels) in the mother, especially early in pregnancy, can affect the baby's brain development or cause other problems with the pregnancy.", "One of the less recognized causes of vaginal bleeding during early pregnancy is implantation bleeding, which can seem like a light period.", "The hCG shot helps follicles release mature eggs. It may cause a false-positive reading on an at-home pregnancy test, particularly if the test is taken too early. Other medications can also cause false-positive pregnancy tests.", "It's recommended to have a Pap smear during pregnancy. It's usually done early in the pregnancy so that if any abnormality is found, the best treatment can be determined. Hormonal changes associated with pregnancy may affect the test and cause abnormal results.", "Pregnancy Spotting at the time of your period, which is around 10 to 14 days after ovulation, may be caused by implantation in early pregnancy. When implantation occurs, the fertilized egg burrows deeper into the uterine lining, causing the spotting. Other early pregnancy symptoms: swollen, tender breasts.", "Vaginal discharge in early pregnancy An increase in white or clear vaginal discharge is normal in early pregnancy. But if the discharge becomes coloured, smelly, or causes itching, soreness or becomes bloody, you should tell your midwife or GP.", "Another cause of diarrhea during pregnancy is hormonal changes. Sometimes hormones can cause your digestive process to slow down, and at times that can lead to diarrhea. Every pregnant woman has these hormonal changes, but some will experience diarrhea early in their pregnancy from those changes.", "Gastrointestinal Distress (Burping & Gas) Is burping a sign of pregnancy? The hormones of pregnancy have sent your gastrointestinal tract in a spin. The unladylike affliction of belching, burping, and gas are fairly common. Try to avoid offending foods and remember to just let it all hang out.", "Nausea – with or without vomiting – can occur any time of day starting as early as three weeks after conception and it's one of the most common early signs of pregnancy. These bouts can be caused by rapidly rising hormone levels, which cause the stomach to empty more slowly.", "Dizziness. Low blood pressure and dilating blood vessels early in pregnancy, along with low blood sugar, can cause you to feel lightheaded.", "Causes. According to an older study from 2010, severe acid reflux or gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) affects about 80% of pregnancies. Heartburn can develop at any stage of the pregnancy, but it is most common during the second and third trimesters.", "Symptoms of early pregnancy include missed periods, nausea and vomiting, breast changes, fatigue and frequent urination. Many of these symptoms can also be caused by other factors such as stress or illness.", "Possible Causes of a Sharp Pain During Pregnancy While this can be uncomfortable, in many cases it can be explained by normal changes that occur during pregnancy. Some common causes include: Cramping – You may experience sharp pain due to the cramping that occurs from the uterus expanding. Gas and Bloating.", "Hormonal changes. In the very early stages of pregnancy, increased levels of the hormone human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) circulate in the blood, which can cause urine to smell different or more strongly. Gestational diabetes.", "Although it may not get as much attention, diarrhea is another gastrointestinal issue that pregnant women can face. Some women consider diarrhea an early sign of pregnancy. It's true that hormone changes around the time of conception can cause stomach issues and even lead to diarrhea.", "['Bloating. Bloating is a common early pregnancy sign. ... ', 'Spotting. Spotting during early pregnancy may occur as soon as 6 days after conception, as a result of implantation bleeding. ... ', 'Missed period. ... ', 'Fatigue. ... ', 'Increased urination. ... ', 'Breast changes. ... ', 'Nausea. ... ', 'Mood swings.']", "Slower moving intestine muscles mean that your digestion slows down. This allows gas to build up, which in turn leads to bloating, burping, and flatulence. Once you get further along in your pregnancy, the increased pressure from your growing uterus on your abdominal cavity can slow down digestion, leading to more gas.", "The pregnancy hormone increases rapidly in early pregnancy and Clearblue Digital Pregnancy Test can be used as early as 5 days before the missed period (4 days before the expected period).", "The hormones of pregnancy have sent your gastrointestinal tract in a spin. The unladylike affliction of belching, burping, and gas are fairly common. Try to avoid offending foods and remember to just let it all hang out.", "Bloating is a common symptom of pregnancy, usually showing up in the first trimester, around week 10 or 11. Like so many other bodily changes during pregnancy, hormones are to blame – namely, progesterone. Progesterone is the hormone that is responsible for maintaining a healthy pregnancy (“pro-gestation”).", "STIs can cause complications for you and your fetus. All pregnant women are tested for syphilis and chlamydia early in pregnancy. Tests for these infections may be repeated later in pregnancy if you have certain risk factors.", "In the early-onset subtype, it has been hypothesized that placental hypoperfusion is caused by shallow invasion of fetal trophoblast in early pregnancy, leading to fetal growth restriction in early-onset preeclampsia.", "Dizziness and fainting in early pregnancy Amazingly enough, this physical sign was probably not far from being accurate. Fainting during early and middle pregnancy can be caused by athe woman's blood vessels naturally relaxing and dilating under the influence of the hormone progesterone, lowering her blood pressure.", "If you experience brown discharge and cramps after your period, it could be caused by PCOS or early pregnancy. Early miscarriage could also cause these symptoms. Sometimes the bleeding and cramps caused by miscarriage are mistaken for a period." ]

[ "gay = not straight = 不直 = 弯\n\nI first heard this word a few years ago. It is often used by younger people. It is a slang and should not be used in any formal situation. Like any slang, it can be rude or not depending on the context.\n\nI do not believe it has any sexual reference though." ]

[ "I would say firstly that this question relies on what you mean by the term 'accurate', as when we normally describe a translation as 'accurate' we mean that the meaning conveyed when translated is as close to the original as possible. However, in a literary work this is far more difficult to verify because, in the view of the majority of contemporary literary critics, meaning does not rest in the hands of the author. (I'd recommend reading Barthes' Death of the Author for the justification of this approach)\n\nA translation by the author may highlight certain aspects of a text that the author intended to highlight in its original, for example the author may alter their translation to further the importance of certain themes that they deem important, but that readers or translators may not favor. So, translation by the author may maintain authorial intent more than a translation done by a professional translator, but if this is accurate depends on how much you value that intent. \n\nFurthermore, some authors who do 'translate' their works do not even do so directly. Although not comprehensive, Haruki Murakami describes in What I Talk About When I Talk About Running how in 'translation' he writes his works twice; firstly in Japanese, and then again in English, with no attempt to directly convert the Japanese into English, as he feels that he must choose new, limited vocabulary which he finds to be creatively useful. In contrast, Seamus Heaney describes in the preface to Aeneid VI how whenever he translates either from his own work or from others, he treats it as 'schoolwork' and does attempt to do a translation as closely to the original as possible. Therefore the comparativeness of translation will depend on the author, as there is no perfect method, it seems. \n\nIt is questionable to what extent an 'accurate' translation of literary texts is even possible. Emily S. Apter in Against World Literature: On the Politics of Untranslatability highlights the fact that many languages have untranslatable words, or words of significance that do not carry over to other languages. Because of this it may be questioned to what extent it is possible to 'accurately' translate any literary text, although translators with a rather keen understanding of language may be at an advantage over authors in this respect, I would recommend reading the rationale usually described in the preface to most translated texts for an insight into how this problem can be approached. \n\nIn summary: it may be said that translation done by authors although rare may preserve authorial intent, but this only adds to accuracy if you favor authorial intent as a source of meaning, which would be regarded as a rather unusual view in contemporary literary criticism. If you don't favor authorial intent, this becomes mostly subjective as meanings one reader might pick up on may be preserved in one translation while other meanings some notice may be lost. Translation is not an objective process, and it never will be, so accuracy is dependent entirely on your personal reading of the original text. I know this may not feel entirely satisfying, but as with many problems in literature, there is not one perfect answer.", "There are different aspects of your suggestion built into various apps, but if examined in isolation, what would you want something like this to look like?\n\nI don't mean \"the button should be cornflower blue\", I mean how would you envision the data being displayed/organized.\n\nIf you can describe it, it can be done. If you can't describe it, well......", "In order to get certified as an organization, you need to say what falls into the scope of the ISO 9001 certification. If the scope in the certificate says \"design\", then that means that the software development is required to be in compliance with ISO 9001. Typically your overall Quality Manual would call out compliance to ISO 9001, and then the policies for Design and Development would also follow suit.\n\nIn order to understand the details of how the standard 9001 applies to software, ISO 90003 is a Guideline that can be used. Just to be clear, this does not mean that you need to trace to ISO 90003 at all, it's just a guideline. Its enough to claim that your design is in compliance with ISO 9001, and therefore your auditors will have a reasonable expectation that the items described in 90003 are there.", "We have been talking about adding this and agree that it would be useful. That said, we haven't yet decided how we'll do this and at what time frame, so for now I'm marking this as status deferred. In the mean time, what you describe is the best way of doing this. In your case this is not ideal as you have your profile under the same account. I would recommend opening a new account for your employer activity, which you can then share, and keep your current account to yourself.", "A descriptive analysis involves simply stating the facts as they are. A descriptive analysis should not at any point provide any conclusions or generalizations. At most a descriptive analysis may involved providing summaries, descriptive statistics such as means, standard deviations, and graphs and visualizations to better understand the data. In your cultural example such an analysis will describe the characteristics of the culture and the historical and geographic context in which it arose. You are looking for the \"what\".\n\nAn explanatory analysis will try not only to describe the information but also to provide causal relationships between the various data presented. Again in your cultural example, such an analysis will provide reasons for why that specific cultural arose from that specific context, why a historical event or climactic feature led to a specific behavioral trait. When we're dealing with quantitative and statistical data, a descriptive analysis will simply provide means, standard deviations, and graphs while an explanatory analysis also provides some mathematical models tying the variables together which explain the influence they have on each other. You no longer just describe the facts, you also describe the cause and effect relationship between the facts. You are looking for the \"why\".\n\nThe predictive analysis is just going one step further than the explanatory analysis and applying the relationships of mathematical models that were discovered to previously unknown data and future cases. In Your cultural example, you have to be able to explain how the geographic and historical context influenced the behavior of individuals from that culture well enough that based on that, you can predict how such an individual would react to a completely new situation. You are looking for the \"what if\".\n\n\n\nIt should be noted that in the field of Pattern Recognition, some methods, such as Neural Networks, are able to predict variables based on inputs without providing any explanatory model for their predictions.", "In the case you are describing there won't be a big difference to French press, assuming that you are able to strain the coffee as well as you could with a french press. As long as you manage to strain it properly so that most of the coffee particles are gone the result would ceteris paribus be similar (which means same times, same pre infusion, same water and same temperatures, same grind size, etc.).\n\nThat is because the methods would be identical, they are both full immersion brewing techniques. In both cases you pour the water on the grounds, let it brew and strain in the end. There are many tips on how to improve your brews with these kind of methods on the coffee stackexchange.", "The book of Acts is a historical description of the formation of the church (called out assembly (ἐκκλησία)), who were mostly Gentiles, but were also Jews who were convicted and believed, like those in the day of Pentecost. The book of Acts describes how the church demonstrated their coping with the persecution and perseverance in the newly found faith.\n The words in English \"to all\" are actually one in the Greek (πᾶσιν), which is the dative masculine plural, which technically means that it was given to all men. Contextually, there is no indication that anyone referred to in the paragraph was an unbeliever, but rather believers who were in the close fellowship described in verse 46.\n\n\nSide note:\nWhile Christians ought to bless those outside of the church, we are called to do so especially unto those of the faith (Galatians 6:10). \n\n\nIn those days, the church was being established and therefore, the practice would have been for those who were added unto the church by the Lord. Contextually, it will be describing how the 3000 souls were added and how they (v.42)\"continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. (V.43) And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles.\" \n\n\nConclusion:\nSo, since there is no further mention of how that act would have affected the unbelievers who received anything from these believers, we can safely conclude that the comments are to describe the methodology the church members used to deal with the needs of that time; and therefore believers are those who received/shared goods among themselves, as any of the believers representing their families had need.", "You have a separate /boot partition and it's 100% full:\n\n~ # df\nFilesystem 1K-blocks Used Available Use% Mounted on\n...\n/dev/sda1 93207 87960 435 100% /boot\n\n\nRemove some older kernels and try again. \n\nUpdate: By \"remove kernels\" I mean \"use apt-get or synaptic or the method described in the article found by @Whippy\", not \"remove kernel files and directories manually\" - the latter would not be a good idea.\n\nSee also:\n\n\nHow to remove old kernel versions automatically?", "If you are asking how is morality defined, or \"who decides what is moral and immoral?\" then Christians believe that God decides that, and that He makes His will known to us through various means, like the Bible, tradition, revelation, prophets, etc. Various Christian religions dissent on the exact details here.\n\nIf you are asking how people become moral, then a big, big part of morality comes from education, from family, society, etc. Morality is certainly taught and Christ is described as a teacher very clearly in the Gospels.\n\nIts also quite evident if you look at different Faiths. Muslims truly consider immoral to eat pigs, whereas Christians wouldn't flinch. If morals were innate we would all share the same morality, which we clearly don't.", "I can't find any official documentation on how to deal with these sort of user stories.\n\n\nIf by 'official' you mean as described in the Scrum Guide, then there is none. Scrum generally doesn't go into details on the how-tos, leaving it up to the Team to determine those for itself.\n\n\n are there some functionalities in the tool Jira for that?\n\n\nSure. What my team does is just add (Rejected) to the start of the summary for the Issue and put it to Done. Since that's simple and good enough for what we need.\n\nA more complex approach would be to add a workflow transition to Done that sets the resolution value to a certain value (e.g. \"Won't Do\").\n\nThere are various ways; you should find one that fits your Team.", "\"Propitiation\" is the preferred choice of the two since it addresses both the context and the theology of the act. The meaning of propitiation is actually more forceful than how it is normally translated, as \"appeasing.\" Instead, it's more in line with specifically being the object of the direct wrath of the deity in question (in the Greek mind) for transgressions. In this case, Jesus was that - he was the object of God's wrath. The result of how he assumed this wrath was the expiation of sins.\n\nἱλαστήριον appears in the LXX as the word for the mercy seat which also influenced Tyndale's understanding of the term. Given the thick sacrificial imagery, it's not hard to see why drew such a conclusion, which was actually a German transliteration of the word. However, contemporary Greek understanding of ἱλαστήριον does not necessarily allow for such an understanding. It is specifically related to the cycle of wrath and appeasement between the deities and humans.\n\nEdit:\n\nI guess I am of the opinion that though propitiation and expiation are not antithetical, they are different sides of the coin. \n\nSpecific Context: \n\nI understand expiation to be the result and not the means of what Romans 3:25 is describing. I believe that context supports this since Paul is describing the means by which what is understood as \"expiation\" has been accomplished. The detailed description of the shedding of blood as the means also lends itself to an understanding of \"propitiation.\" This would have been the most natural reading to both the Jewish and Gentile (who would have had little understanding of the \"mercy seat\"). Additionally, the physical object of the \"mercy seat\" was not an object of sacrifice, but of meeting. It was the location where YHWH revealed himself to the high priest. The detailed blood imagery would not make sense if Paul (who would have tremendous understanding of Levitical Law) is building toward this as the intended meaning.\n\nBroad Context:\n\nRomans is dedicated to harmonizing the relationships in the Roman church - specifically validating both the Jewish and Gentile believers as part of the same, larger body. Much of the validation of the Gentile (to the Jew) is systematically accomplished through demonstrating the inadequacy of works of the Law of Moses for eternal salvation. However, the work accomplished on the cross by Jesus was sufficient for this outcome. \n\nI do not find \"mercy seat\" to be a satisfactory, natural reading of this verb given the decidedly mixed audience, and the context of shedding of blood. \"Propitiation\" as being the object of divine wrath would be a concept that was more accessible to both groups and also satisfied the imagery of blood. \n\nἱλαστήριον does not literally mean \"mercy seat.\" The LXX translators adopted this word from the Greek (since that was the goal of the LXX) as a means to describe the mercy seat. While this should carry some weight, it is not the deciding factor, given the above information. ἱλαστήριον literally means \"propitiation\" which was a concept already available within the Greek mind.", "This question raises a lot more questions. It seems like a solution looking for a problem, instead of the other way round.\n\nHow do you measure the fitness of a feature?\nWhat would one of the &quot;evolved datasets&quot; mean? What does it represent?\nWhat would your overal purpose be? If you just wish to generate simulated datasets, there are easier ways to do this, with more control over the various aspects of the resulting datasets.\n\nIf you want to compute a new set of features to &quot;better&quot; describe a given dataset, there are many approaches to this, such as PCA, ISOMAP, self-organizing maps, ... If this is the kind of thing you're thinking about, I would recommend starting there.", "Modes are governed by eigenfunctions, I agree. In quantum optics, we need more than just eigenfunctions to describe a state of light: we need to know how many photons have properties corresponding to each eigenfunction. This is somewhat beyond what an eigenfunction describes, so we need a new term.\nFor example, we can have a two-photon state of light where each photon is in a different spatial mode. That means that the light does not correspond to a single eigenfunction, nor does it correspond to a superposition of two eigenfunctions. We need a new way to describe it; hence, modes.\nWe could also have a two-photon state of light where both photons are in the same spatial mode. How could this be expressed if all we have are eigenfunctions? Specifically, how would we distinguish between this state and a single-photon state of light corresponding to the same eigenfunction? If you say we could describe states of light by their eigenfunction and by the average energy, that would not be sufficient, because there are multiple states with a single eigenfunction that all have the same average energy.\nIn all, we could simply say that light is described by a bunch of orthogonal eigenfunctions and extend the definition of eigenfunctions to include a description of the Fock space associated with these eigenfunctions. Since eigenfunctions are very well defined in the rest of mathematics, it is eventually easier to define a new term, modes, that can incorporate both the properties of eigenfunctions and the properties of the Fock space describing the photon-number superpositions for all of the eigenfunctions.\nIn math: label two eigenfunctions by $a$ and $b$, a single photon with a single eigenfunction might be written as $|1\\rangle_a\\otimes |0\\rangle_b$ or $|0\\rangle_a\\otimes |1\\rangle_b$. The eigenfunction language can't really distinguish between, say, $|1\\rangle_a\\otimes |0\\rangle_b$ and $|2\\rangle_a\\otimes |0\\rangle_b$. Moreover, it does not do well at describing $|1\\rangle_a\\otimes |1\\rangle_b$. So we either add to the definition of eigenfunctions, or we define a new term that lets us write\n$$|\\psi\\rangle=\\sum_{i,j}\\psi_{i,j}|i\\rangle_a\\otimes |j\\rangle_b.$$", "The behaviour you describe appears to be gentle push-back, that is she wants to reduce how often she talks with you but without making a confrontation about it.\n\nThis could mean she is not that interested in you, or it could mean that she felt a little overwhelmed or controlled by the level of contact. Either way, it's not the sign of someone totally into you, as usually they would be very eager to be texting as much as possible.\n\nSo take that for what it is: some guy's opinion on the internet, but it might be wise to try and take your mind off it a bit by treating yourself to things you enjoy doing alone for a while.\n\nIf you confront her about it she may tell you a truth that you may not like. Or you may not get a straight answer, leaving you no wiser. It's probably unnecessary but I can understand why you may want to.", "As Mark mentioned Sitecore uses log4net so you can use the filtermethods that log4net provides. You can find the options here: https://logging.apache.org/log4net/log4net-1.2.11/release/sdk/log4net.Filter.html\n\nAs you can see, there is a StringMatchFilter that you could use to filter out all messages with a specified text (answering your question 2). Haven't tried that one myself yet - found a blog on it's usage here: https://www.kruegerwebdesign.com/blog/how-to-use-the-log4net-stringmatchfilter\n\nTo answer your question 1, you can also raise the loglevel, so it doesn't log the info logs anymore. But that would mean that the other info level logs aren't logged anymore either.\n\nYou can also move the debug/info logs to another log file as described here: How can I split logs by log level/priority", "Another way you may see this relationship described is \"half first cousin\", meaning the cousins only share one grandparent.\n\nThe Shared cM Project is my go-to source for such information. According to their most recent data the expected range is between 236 and 704 cM, with an average of 554 cM. Note that this range is based on a small sample size of 23. It would therefore not be surprising if a small number of half first cousins fell outside this range. You nevertheless can use this range as an estimate of how much DNA half first cousins will typically share.", "The DCI Infraction Procedure Guide, describes very specifically how the judge should rule various infractions, and section 2.1 covers missed triggers. It describes both when a trigger is considered to be missed and what the penalty should be. In your case, Legion Loyalist's Battalion ability changes the game state in non-visible ways by giving abilities to creatures. Therefore, according to that document, its controller has to mention it the first time it would affect visible state or it is forgotten. In this particular case, that means that the trigger is considered forgotten if the player doesn't mention it by the time Legion Loyalist would deal first strike damage.\n\nWhen this happens, the judge is instructed to issue a warning only if the triggered ability's effect would be detrimental to its controller. Otherwise, they are not supposed to intervene unless they think the player is intentionally missing the triggers. This is one of those non-intervention casees.\n\nIf a judge does intervene, the Additional Remedy subsection at the end of the missed triggers section describes how the game state may be corrected. In this case, the ability does not \"specify a default action associated with a choice made by the controller\" and is not \"a delayed triggered ability that changes the zone of an object\". The triggered ability creates an effect (granting abilities) so if that effect's \"duration has already expired\" (at the end of that player's turn), then play continues and the ability is ignored. Otherwise, the judge follows the final paragraph of that subsection and\n\n\n the opponent chooses whether the triggered ability is added to the stack. If it is, it’s inserted at the appropriate place on the stack if possible or on the bottom of the stack.\n\n\nThe overall effect of this is that if a judge is called over in regards to this missed trigger, then if it is still the same turn, then the ability's controller's opponent (you) chooses whether the ability goes on the stack. Otherwise, you ignore it and move on.", "\"Analogous\" could mean different things, depending on which analogy you choose to make. To me, the key thing about learning multiplication tables is that you are memorising the answers to some simple questions which will appear as subproblems to many other things you have to do; so that you don't have to derive the answers again each time those subproblems occur. @Buffy's answer describes some of the fundamental abstract concepts which programmers certainly need a solid understanding of, but I would not count things like \"sequence\" and \"alternation\" as problems for which we apply solutions from memory; so I infer that @Buffy sees a different analogy to the one I do.\n\nFor the analogy as I see it, there are some commonly-occurring subproblems in imperative programming which we do use memorised solutions to. I would think of @Buffy's fundamental ideas as analogous to the ability to do multiplication, and the understanding of when/why to multiply; they should be learned before it makes sense to memorise the answers to multiplication questions. Likewise, understanding what sequential, conditional and iterative statements are and when/why to use them in a program should precede memorising how to apply them to solve particular problems.\n\nTo give some idea of the kind of subproblems and memorised-solutions I mean, the below list is not at all complete, but should help to illustrate by example:\n\n\nQ: How to iterate over just some elements of a collection? A: Write a loop over the collection, and an if statement inside the loop to \"filter\" for just the elements you want to iterate over. The code for processing each element should go inside the if statement.\nQ: How to find the sum of a collection of numbers? A: Initialise a variable sum = 0, and use a loop to do sum += x for each x from the collection.\nQ: How to count the number of occurrences of something in a collection? A: Initialise a variable count = 0, and write count += 1 each time that thing is detected to have occurred.\nQ: How to find the \"best\" (maximum, minimum, etc.) thing in a collection? A: Initialise a variable best to be the first thing from the collection, and write a loop over the remaining elements. Each time a new element x is observed, check if x is \"better\" than the current best, and if it is, update best = x.\n\n\nThese memorised solutions to commonly-occurring subproblems are closely related to the ideas of \"roles of variables\" as described by Sajaniemi and \"plans\" as described by Soloway &amp; Ehrlich; I use the word \"plans\" to describe them. I'm not aware of any comprehensive list of them; I was able to think of some, which I've written about in Python and used for teaching undergraduate students (with limited success - perhaps we didn't spend long enough for the students to memorise the plans by repeated practice). I have written a similar document for Java which I don't have to hand immediately, but I can post it later if there is interest.", "There are two concepts that will help here:\n\nFirst, as they say, \"The applicant can be their own lexicographer.\" This means that you can define your material however you want. You are literally able to describe a material with certain properties and give it a name in the specification and then use that name in the claims of the patent. Plain meaning will obviously have bearing on the courts' and patent office's interpretation of any term you use, but you are also able to define terms to describe your invention.\n\nSecond, a major requirement of a patent is that it must be enabling. This means that a \"person having skill in the art\" could, without undue experimentation, use the patent to actually make and use the invention. If a material that does not exist is required to make the invention, then the patent would not be enabling. With that said, a patent on something that is impossible to make would not be of much value in the first place because it would also be impossible to infringe. However, if the material is still experimental but does exist, then the patent would be enabling.", "I must confess I'm not an educator, but I like this question and at the very least I can answer with the intuitive picture I use in my own head.\n\nThe $n$-th central moment $\\mu_n$ of a random variable $X$ is defined by: \n\n$$\\mu_n \\equiv E[(X-E[X])^n]$$\n\nFor what follows we will take the measure space of $X$ to be the real numbers, since that's the easiest to visualize and the most common thing to deal with in statistics. Now, with this knowledge we can rewrite the moment as\n\n$$\\mu_n = \\int_{-\\infty}^{\\infty} (x-E[X])^nf_X(x)dx$$\n\nwhere $f_X$ is the pdf of $X$. To help complete the mental image, it is important to keep in mind that $E[X]$ is a constant and $f_X$ is a normalized function that is non-negative. So, our integrand looks like some single term polynomial centered at the mean of $X$, multiplying the non-negative pdf of $X$. This is a lot clearer once you see what I'm talking about, so I will show some photos and explain.\n\nSecond Moment (and even moments in general):\n\nHere is a picture illustrating the integral I was talking about for the second moment using some pdf I made up. The dotted line is the pdf, the dashed line is the polynomial term, and the solid line is the total integrand:\n\n \n\nKeep in mind that the moment is defined as the integral of the solid curve. There's a couple of things worth noting here:\n\n\nThe moment weights parts of the pdf that are further from the mean heavier. For instance, the right bump in the integrand has more area underneath it than the left one, even though the left bump of the pdf is more likely.\nIt's not pictured, but hopefully it's clear that higher moments will weight things further from the mean even more heavily.\nFor even moments, the polynomial term is non-negative, so the integrand cannot be negative anywhere. This means that there is no \"cancellation\", as we'll see there is for odd moments.\n\n\nSummarizing these points, we see that even moments give us a measure of how far from the mean we can expect our random variable to fall. As we go to higher and higher moments, these will give more and more weight to parts of our distribution that lie farther from the mean. So, if for whatever reason there's a bump in our pdf super far from the mean, or a tail that doesn't decay as quickly, it will lead to large higher order moments.\n\nThird Moment (and odd moments in general):\n\nHere is an analogous picture for the third moment of the same pdf:\n\n\n\nWe can see that odd moments work just like even moments for bullets one and two in the previous section. However, now there's an added complication-- our polynomial is negative for some values, so the integral from the left side of the mean will cancel the integral from the right side to some extent. Thus, odd moments no longer just measure how far things are distributed from the mean. They also provide a measure of the asymmetry of the pdf-- a pdf perfectly symmetric about the mean will have null odd moments. This gives them more information than even moments in some sense, but the drawback is that they're harder to interpret taken alone-- a third moment close to zero could mean that you have a perfectly symmetric, widely distributed pdf, or a narrowly distributed, highly asymmetric pdf. As before, higher order moments will accentuate features that lie far from the mean, so a tail that decays faster on one side than on the other will make a large impact in higher order even moments.\n\nWhy standardized moments?\n\nMost of the previous discussion took place using raw moments, but a lot of times the standardized moment is of more interest, ie\n\n$$\\tilde{\\mu_n} = \\mu_n/\\sigma^n$$\n\nwhere \n\n$$\\sigma = \\sqrt{E[(X-E[X])^2]}$$\n\nis the standard deviation. \n\nThere are two main reasons for this: \n\n\nIt combines the knowledge of two different moments into one. This is especially useful for odd moments, as it can help distinguish between the two degenerate examples given in the previous section: the asymmetric, narrow distribution would have a high skewness while the nearly symmetric, wide distribution would have a small one, even though they both have a small third moment.\nIt is scale invariant. It is straightforward to show that $\\sigma_{\\lambda X} = \\lambda \\sigma_X$ and $\\mu_n(\\lambda X)=\\lambda^n \\mu_n(X)$ If $\\lambda$ is a real number scaling $X$. Together, this means $\\tilde{\\mu}_n(\\lambda X)=\\tilde{\\mu}_n(X)$. This is an important property because in real life, we often are taking statistics of objects with units, and transformations between units are described by scaling them. You can describe the heights of people in a sample using feet or centimeters, but either way they're describing the same thing and so we would like our statistical measures to not change.\n\n\nTL;DR:\n\nUltimately, it's impossible to give a completely general yet useful interpretation for what any one moment means. There will always be vastly different distributions that have the same moment, because fundamentally you're trying to describe something with an infinite number of degrees of freedom (the pdf) with a single number. However, there are three rough guidelines that help give a bit of intuition:\n\n\nEven moments tell you something about how far things are distributed from the mean.\nOdd moments tell you something about how asymmetric the distribution is about the mean (skewed left = negative, right = positive, and zero = symmetric).\nHigher order moments put more of an emphasis on how the distribution behaves further from the mean, so tails and anomalous pdf bumps far away matter more than the bulk of the distribution that sits close to the mean.", "The \"correlation of fixed effects\" output doesn't have the intuitive meaning that most would ascribe to it. Specifically, is not about the correlation of the variables (as OP notes). It is in fact about the expected correlation of the regression coefficients. Although this may speak to multicollinearity it does not necessarily. In this case it is telling you that if you did the experiment again and it so happened that the coefficient for cropforage got smaller, it is likely that so too will would the coeffienct of sbare.\n\nIn part his book \"Analyzing Linguistic Data: A Practical Introduction to Statistics using R \" dealing with lme4 Baayen suppresses that part of the output and declares it useful only in special cases. Here is a listserv message where Bates himself describes how to interpret that part of the output:\n\n\n It is an approximate correlation of the estimator of the fixed\n effects. (I include the word \"approximate\" because I should but in\n this case the approximation is very good.) I'm not sure how to\n explain it better than that. Suppose that you took an MCMC sample\n from the parameters in the model, then you would expect the sample of\n the fixed-effects parameters to display a correlation structure like\n this matrix.", "I think the idea was that Beth felt uncomfortable because for the first time she was no longer the young prodigy. Here was someone else younger than her competing at the same level. How would she respond?\nThis scene was, I understand, to some extent improvised. It seemed to show also Girev’s relative mental balance compared to Beth, at that point in her psychological trajectory. Her arrogance here foreshadows her later fall, after which she did some growing up.\nEven today there are mean players, for example the one described in this chess.com post. This kind of thing is clearly against the Laws of Chess but there will be those who continue to behave like this if they find they can get away with it, particularly when facing young and relatively inexperienced opponents. Personally, the individual described seems to be horrid, and I would hate to be taught by them.\nThe role of the arbiter is essential in policing behaviour, particularly where young players are concerned.", "&quot;Ку́чка&quot; means &quot;a small pile&quot;, not a knot (pun unintended):\n\nЗаду́мчиво глота́ю после́дний оре́х и сгреба́ю в ку́чку скорлу́пки. - Thoughtfully I swallow the last nut and swipe the shells into a pile.\n\n&quot;В ку́чку&quot; means &quot;together&quot;, &quot;into one place / pile&quot; (the pile can be figurative):\n\nПингви́ны сби́лись в ку́чку. - The penguins huddled together.\nОн су́дорожно пыта́лся собра́ть себя́ в ку́чку. - He frantically tried to pull himself together.\n\n&quot;Собра́ть/сде́лать глаза́ в ку́чку&quot; means &quot;to cross one's eyes&quot;. The ку́чка is completely figurative in this case, meaning more like &quot;to pull one's eyes together / into one place&quot;.\nNow you could pull your arms / legs / etc together (собра́ть но́ги / ру́ки в ку́чку) but that wouldn't mean crossing them.\nCrossing one's eyes, arms and legs are very different gestures and the fact that English uses the same verb to describe them is idiomatic to English. Here is how you say the same things in Russian:\n\ncross one's eyes - собра́ть глаза́ в ку́чку\ncross one's legs - положи́ть но́гу на́ ногу / заложи́ть но́гу за́ ногу / сиде́ть нога́ на́ ногу / сиде́ть нога́ за́ ногу (note the stress in на́ ногу, за́ ногу).\ncross one's arms - сложи́ть/скрести́ть ру́ки на\nгруди́.\n\nOne other gesture where you cross your arms is the gesture meaning &quot;stop&quot; and to describe that you would say:\n\nСкрести́ть ру́ки пе́ред собо́й or\nСкрести́ть ру́ки над голово́й.", "Have a private talk with the relevant tutor and describe what you're facing problems with and use this to talk about your options moving forward.\n\nThe fact that you were accepted for the role means that you are suited for the job at least in most aspects.\n\nSo, talk about your difficulties and see whether your tutor can find ways of helping you succeed rather than immediately admitting defeat over difficulties with only one aspect of the training.\n\nAssume that difficulties might be presented to you as a way of assessing how you deal with difficult situations. Acknowledging your weaknesses and how you seek to address them might be part of your ongoing training. Describing your problems and asking for help is a lot better than simply walking away.", "You wait until a player asks to investigate further and then ask them to make the check.\nThat's how it works in D&amp;D. You describe the environment, players describe their actions, you request rolls (when necessary).\nIn your case, if they find the trail, you describe that players see some footsteps, some marks on the mud. If they ask to follow the trail or try and interpret the footsteps, you request the Survival check. When they succeed, the players\n\n recognize that about a dozen goblins have come and gone along the trail, as well as signs of two human-sized bodies being hauled away from the ambush site.\n\nConsider that, if the characters didn't care about the trail, why would they know how many goblins would have walked there (or not)? It takes time to interpret such things, and it is the characters that need to decide to do it. If they're in a hurry, or are just reckless, they don't have access to that information.", "The page you're linking to does describe how to do that:\n\n\n When you use a dash before a word or site, it excludes sites with that\n info from your results. This is useful for words with multiple\n meanings, like Jaguar the car brand and jaguar the animal. Examples:\n jaguar speed -car or pandas -site:wikipedia.org\n\n\nDo a video search for javascript -site:youtube.com to exclude results from youtube.com.\n\nNote the dash: If you searched for javascript site:youtube.com you would restrict results to only videos from youtube.com. From the same documentation page:\n\n\n site: Get results from certain sites or domains. Example:\n olympics site:nbc.com\n To get results from multiple sites or domains,\n combine with OR. Example: Olympics site:nbc.com OR site:.gov", "I found there is a new metamask app on apple store, is this app open source...\n\nYes, it's open-source, but you will want to read the licence. (You may also want to read the changes that will be happening to the licence: Evolving our License for the Next Wave of MetaMask Users.)\n\n...and reliable?\n\nDepends what you mean by &quot;reliable&quot;.\nIf you're asking how to check that you're running a legitimate version of the extension, then you'll need to compare the namespace of the extension you're running against the one published by the Metamask team.\nThis is described in detail in this article: How to Ensure You’re Running the Legitimate Version of MetaMask\nIf you're asking whether Metamask is a reliable app, then you'll need to qualify what you mean by the term &quot;reliable&quot;. Reliability can mean different things to different people.", "Too much non-chronological writing makes it seem like you're insecure about your build-up. It makes it look like you don't trust your reader to build up any kind of investment in a character, so you just fast-forward to unearned conflict then sloppily fill in the details later.\n\nAction and intense scenes mean nothing if the stakes aren't adequately established. Really, the context and the action should be inextricably linked. An example would be this:\n\n\n The bald man shot the fat man.\n\n\nAll right, this is serious, likely an injury or a death has come from this, but who cares? You need to have the context and the stakes prepared. Now onto the title question:\n\nHow to not get lost in details? Simple: While you the author know every little detail about a location, the reader should never know as much as you. This is known as the Iceberg Theory, and states that for ice to 'glide gracefully like an iceberg', there needs to be more context beneath the surface made clear only by how the visible part of the 'iceberg' acts.\n\nHence, you simply need to ask yourself: Is a scene necessary? What details need to be shown to build the context/character/theme that I want to evoke here? It's all about necessity; if a gun is described as on a wall in act one, it had best become relevant by act three, or there was no point describing it.", "Talking about your proposed language alteration with your students would make more of a difference than just using it. You could help them see that math is partly about defining relationships carefully, and that language, with all its richness, isn't so good at that.\n\nIn calculus, when I ask where the derivative is greater, and we're looking at negative rates of change, I know there will be a problem in translation from words to math, so I point it out. (With positive slopes, greater means steeper, with negative slopes, greater ends up meaning less steep. It takes some getting used to.)\n\nAsking students how they would describe things is more important than changing the vocabulary ourselves. Take a student's term, and make it a class term.\n\n(Of course, if you use non-standard terms it's important to remind students of the official term that goes with your non-standard term, so they don't go out thinking the rutabaga of 9 is 3. See The Number Devil for more fun non-standard terms!)", "Would it be sufficient here to write Ne4+ (meaning Nce4) only (i.e.\n without the \"c\" but with \"+\"), as Nfe4 would not be check?\n\n\nIt depends on exactly what you mean by \"sufficient\". By \"normal\" definitions of \"sufficient\" the answer is obviously \"yes\". \"Ne4+\" disambiguates and leaves the human reader in no doubt which knight was moved.\n\nHowever it doesn't work in FEN diagrams. You need to specify Nce4 to get it to work. So, then the answer would be \"No\".\n\nThe FIDE Laws of Chess describe how you should annotate your games in Appendix C and that does not allow for using check as a way of disambiguating between two different pieces of the same type moving to the same square. However there is no penalty specified for mistakes. It is up to the arbiter to decide and that will only happen if it is noticed.\n\nIn real life the most that might happen is that if the games are transcribed for sending to FIDE or for publishing the player might get a scolding from the arbiter tasked with this chore, but this is extremely unlikely in this case and would happen long after the game is completed. \n\nMistakes far worse than this happen all the time and the only comeback from the arbiters is when the scoresheet is completely illegible or grossly incomplete. Vigilant arbiters will notice these misdemeanors during the game and warn the player concerned to mend their ways.", "Based on your post it is really hard to answer your question succinctly. This is mainly because what you are describing is big, broad, and vague enough to be somewhat flexible. None the less, let me try to give my answers and then proceed with some clarifying questions of my own.\n\nFirst and foremost, you ask whether or not your idea violates physics, and to that I'll have to answer No, but also maybe Yes. \nWhat you are describing, a 3d time-space (for lack of a better word, not to be confused with space time), is not violating any known physics in so far as it is vague enough that I can't apply my understanding of physics to debunk it. There is enough though that I see some areas that can be clarified and fleshed out better, so that we can arrive at the point where we can apply some physics to it. So let's get to that.\n\nYou call this a 3 dimensional time, analogous to 3d space. There are two points I want to hit on here.\nFirst, your three dimensions per your descriptions don't seem to span the same \"space\". Each of your axis in this timespace seem to describe different effects and they are not interchangeable. Compare this to classical 3 dimensional space where we can't truly discern directions as all three dimensions are the same in function. In this way the dimensions as you describe them are to each much more like what the time dimension is to the three space dimensions in 4d spacetime. Both space and time are part of the same spacetime, but the time dimension is discernible from the space dimensions. We can not truly discern left and right from up and down, but forward and backward in time is different in some ways from left and right. Because of this we also call our spacetime a 3+1 dimensional spacetime, and in this way your idea to me describes like a 3+1+1+1 space-causality-synchronicity-probability, more than a 3+3 space-time. (This kinda starts leading down the rabbit hole of parity and time symmetry, which is interesting if unrelated to relativity)\n\nOn the note of spacetime, I will put forward my second point. You liken 3d time to 3d space, but do not really touch upon the more modern understanding of our 4d spacetime universe. We know that space and time are just facets of the same spacetime and that transformations in one invariably leads to transformations in the other. So, how does your idea conform to 4d spacetime? How does your time react to gravity and acceleration of massive bodies? As you describe it, your causality dimension seems to be the most analogous to modern time and could easily be shoehorned in as the time dimension in spacetime, but what of your two other dimensions? How would they react? If your setting uses 4d spacetime as a basis (and i don't know if you want to do that, but if you do) then I think you should ponder how all your time dimensions and the classical space dimensions mesh together in a cohesive whole.\n\nIt is from the above two points that the \"maybe yes\" stems as how your setting works within these would determine whether or not they are in violation of physics, as you put. Do note that time is a stupid beast we aren't done wrangling, and that it is one the main reasons why we a still stuck without a joint operation between general relativity modern particle physics. If you truly find something that pleases both then publish that bizz with all haste. And if not, then don't pull out your hair over it.\n\nAs for paradoxes I can't really help you yet. It seems like you at least avoid the grandfather paradox with your Synchronicity dimension if I understand it correctly, but honestly it is hard to find paradoxes at the state of your description. I would love to look for them though if you feel like expanding on your idea.\n\nFinally I am curious what you your concepts \"time object\" and \"quantum time state\" means in regard to your setting. I would also like to hear more about what you mean about time blurring together and why that is a problem.\n\nThis has been a bit of a ramble, I'm sorry about that, but I hope some of it was useful. It is hard to rally talk about the physics of time when that is very rarely the focus of physics. I would love to hear more about your setting though and hope that you will divulge more of your ideas behind your 3d time setting - I love a good time travel story :)", "Query cache off -- good\n\nLarge history list -- Innodb stumbling over itself.\n\nLatency suddenly shot up -- ditto\n\nThread count suddenly shot up -- ditto.\n\nPossible causes:\n\n\nA long-running UPDATE or ALTER blocking lots of other threads. Or even a SELECT that was poorly written. If the slowlog was on, you may be able to discover what it was. long_query_time = 0.5 implies that (if the slowlog was turned on) it will have caught the naughty query. And there would be a lot of normally-fast queries in the log, too.\nToo many threads. What is \"too many\"? When this happens. How to control it? Decrease the limit on number of connections, either in the clients, or with max_connections. I know that sounds like a bad remedy, but when MySQL gets into the state you described, it may take a restart to uncork it. Sharing resources among 300-400 threads means that no one will 'ever' get finished. How many clients? Web server(s)? What is the limit on each? Example: Apache's MaxClients.\nSwapping. Do you have any monitoring that would say that there was swapping? 90G/128G sounds fine, but perhaps something else was eating into RAM. Swapping is terrible for MySQL." ]

[ "it is the first anime installment in the digimon media franchise based on the virtual pet of the same name the series aired in japan from march 7 1999 to march 26 2000 it follows a group of children and their partners attempting to save both worlds from evil after arriving in the digital world for the first time an english language version produced by saban entertainment aired in north america between august 1999 and june 2000 a u s film adaptation titled was released on october 6 2000 a video game adaptation of the series by prope was released for playstation portable on january 17 2013 the series was followed by digimon adventure 02 which takes place a few years after the events of adventure for the series 15th anniversary a six part series of films taking place a few years after the events of adventure 02 titled digimon adventure tri was released from 2015 to 2018 a new film titled taking place 11 years after the events of the original series is to be released in february 21 2020 on august 1 1999 seven children are transported into the digital world by digivices that appeared before them at", "it began broadcasting in japan on fuji television on march 7 1999 and ended on march 26 2000 the series was directed by hiroyuki kakud and produced by keisuke okuda featuring music composition by takanori arisawa and character designs by katsuyoshi nakatsuru the story revolves around a group of elementary school students known as the digidestined who are transported to a parallel digital world and find themselves in a quest to save it from evil forces with the help of their partner creatures the series was followed in 2000 with a sequel titled digimon adventure 02 digimon adventure was broadcast with english dubbing in the united states on fox kids and in canada on ytv the series premiered on august 14 1999 in the united states overall licensing of english language material of the series was managed by saban entertainment which was eventually acquired by the walt disney company digimon adventure has been compiled into dvd box sets by bandai visual and happinet in japan and by cinedigm in north america on august 1 2013 the show became available for streaming in both its english and japanese versions on netflix in north america two pieces of theme music were used", "it was created by toei animation and aired in japan on fuji tv between april 2 2000 and march 25 2001 the series was directed by hiroyuki kakud and produced by keisuke okuda music for digimon adventure 02 was composed by takanori arisawa and characters were designed by katsuyoshi nakatsuru the story set in an alternate timeline of the real world opens four years after the events of digimon adventure with the next generation of digidestined children in their quest to maintain peace in the digital world the kids battle both new and returning foes in a 2001 survey published by japanese anime and entertainment magazine animage of its readers digimon adventure 02 placed 17th on the list of anime that should be most remembered in the 21st century it tied with the 1988 film my neighbor totoro the series has aired in many countries in asia europe and the americas in a combination of dubbed and subtitled versions for example mexican public and cable television channels aired both versions of the anime in the united states the english dub of digimon adventure 02 began airing on fox kids on august 19 2000 following the discontinuation of the programming block", "each child is partnered with a digimon and use a digivice to help them digivolve into stronger forms the main digidestined cast was designed by katsuyoshi nakatsuru producer satoru nishizono and the staff used a name analysis software to decide on the characters names using kanji combinations that related to luck for digimon adventure tri director keitaro motonaga found that some parts of developing the characters were difficult to control due to the characters strong personalities but the staff had rebuilt the characters by taking account of their personal growth while retaining their original personalities a new group of digidestined in addition to t k and kari were made into the new main cast for digimon adventure 02 consisting of davis yolei cody and later ken the dark masters are a group consisting of four mega level digimon in digimon adventure tri the dark masters are revealed to have made a previous attempt to kill the first digidestined but are defeated after tapirmon sacrificed himself so his fellow digimon can digivolve into the digimon sovereigns in 1999 the dark masters take advantage of the digidestined s absence by sealing away the sovereigns and converting the digital world into spiral mountain", "the game was first released in south korea and an english version was scheduled to be released in december 2010 by wemade entertainment the company responsible for the english version of digimon battle but was delayed to 2011 it was announced in july 2011 that joymax a subsidiary of wemade entertainment would publish the english version of the game on august 30 2011 joymax held a pre cbt for players which ended on september 6 2011 after the conclusion of the pre cbt joymax announced on september 22 2011 that the obt will held on september 27 the obt for digimon masters concluded on october 11 2011 with the game going into commercial service globally on october 20 2011 except for some countries in the digimon franchise the digital world is the virtual space built from earth s communication networks where digimon inhabit lands and islands were created as projects intended to make digimon become closer to living things as a result the digital world was formed this digital world exists inside the host computer called yggdrasil and is under control of artificial intelligence digimon are a like a life organism with independent intelligence they grow in a way similar", "the song was released as wada s debut single on april 23 1999 butter fly was performed as the ending theme song to the 1999 film digimon adventure and later became the opening theme song to the television series of the same name it was the first time wada had sang a rock song as he originally performed butter fly as a ballad originally released on april 23 1999 the single was re released on august 1 2004 with new cd artwork to commemorate digimon adventure s 5th anniversary the success of the song gave wada the title immortal butterfly anime song singer butter fly strong version was released on april 22 2009 to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the digimon franchise as well as the 10th anniversary of his debut with the song it was his first single in three years after hirari and charted on oricon weekly singles for one week butter fly tri version was released on november 25 2015 as the theme song for the anime film series digimon adventure tri and the single was his last release before his death on april 3 2016 a second version of butter fly tri version was released as", "first appearing in the 1999 film digimon adventure matt is one of the digidestined a group of children chosen to save the digital world matt has consistently ranked as top favorite digidestined character by japanese voters and critics cite his relationships with t k takaishi and tai kamiya as one of the strongest and most memorable parts of the series outside of the series several cd singles have been released under matt s bands teen age wolves and knife of day matt was designed by katsuyoshi nakatsuru after picking out tai s name with an analysis software satoru nishizono and the other staff members did the same for matt and the rest of the characters choosing kanji that related to luck while digimon adventure 02 was in development the show s staff discussed the idea of matt breaking from the digidestined and joining the enemy side for digimon adventure tri matt s appearance was designed by atsuya uki keitaro motonaga stated that the staff focused on matt s rivalry with tai to show how much their views have changed as they matured in japan matt was voiced by y to kazama who had originally auditioned for joe kido and gabumon" ]

[ "much like its spiritual predecessors it features digimon from across the series several iterations it was released in november 2014 in north america europe and australia the game is set in the digital world at a time of peace the digimon propose to hold a digimon evolution tournament in order to gain experience and digivolve as well as determine the strongest one however there is an ulterior motive behind the tournament and players will discover what this is as they play through the game s story mode digimon all star rumble features 12 base playable digimon 6 of them from digimon adventure 2 from digimon adventure 02 2 from digimon tamers and 2 from digimon fusion and a total of 32 forms six of the base forms and their digivolutions were revealed in the game s announcement each digimon can digivolve into a higher form during battle when their meter is filled when story mode is completed with a character their super form will be unlocked to play as this form when selecting the character the player is given the option to switch the character s alternate form from their regular digivolved form to the unlocked super form a certain", "it does not follow the plot of any of its three predecessors digimon adventure and digimon adventure 02 or digimon tamers instead the story features five children who are prompted by unusual phone messages to go to a subway station and take a train to the digital world after two secondary characters bokomon and neemon reveal that the digital world is in danger the children gain the power to transform into digimon in order to stop the forces seeking to destroy the digital world the series was directed by yukio kaikawa and written by sukehiro tomita and akatsuki yamatoya featuring music by takanori arisawa the season aired 50 episodes on fuji tv in japan from april 7 2002 to march 30 2003 unlike the previous three series digimon frontier aired on upn in the united states beginning on september 9 2002 to july 14 2003 and later re aired on abc family channel in canada the series aired on ytv the series was also scheduled to air in the united kingdom on fox kids uk though the scheduling plans were eventually cancelled and never aired on the programming block being instead taken over by transformers armada on 27 february 2007", "the series takes place in a setting separated from the preceding series digimon adventure and digimon adventure 02 where the characters utilize cards from the collectible card games tamers aired in japan from april 1 2001 to march 31 2002 the english language version by saban entertainment aired in north america from september 1 2001 to june 8 2002 a manga adaptation by yuen wong yu ran from april to october 2004 takato matsuki a fan of the digimon card game finds a blue card which transforms his card reader into a d power his original digimon creation guilmon materializes into real life when his d power scans his drawings takato meets henry wong and rika nonaka two other children who are partnered with terriermon and renamon as well as calumon and impmon as wild digimon began roaming shinjuku the tamers defeat them and defend the city using their d powers the tamers can digi modify through scanning cards or help them digivolve after each digimon is defeated their digimon obtains their data hypnos leader mitsuo yamaki attempts to send digimon back to the digital world the tamers began working together with hypnos when the devas invade the real world", "digimon championship is a life simulation video game for the nintendo ds developed by epics and published by bandai namco games as part of the digimon franchise it was released in japan in february 2008 and north america in august 2008 despite its localized name it is not official part of the digimon world sub series of role playing games but instead revolves around the player raising feeding and caring for their digimon as they take part in various activities and learn to battle it varies from other digimon ds games in that the player does not give commands in a fight but the digimon choose their attacks themselves it also requires that the player feeds and looks after their digimon also having to heal cure and clean up after them much like the older digimon games this is also the first digimon game to include the dracomon line of digimon featuring petitmon babydmon dracomon coredramon air coredramon ground wingdramon groundramon slayerdramon and breakdramon the starting digimon is botamon ign staff writer lucas m thomas listed the game as one of the tears on his cheers tears list of ds fighting games he bemoaned the confusing nature of the digivolution", "he first appeared in the digimon adventure v tamer 01 manga where he is sent to the digital world to meet his digimon companion zeromaru in order to save it from multiple enemies an alternate version of tai appears in toei company s 1999 series as the main protagonist of digimon adventure a supporting character in the sequel and once again as the protagonist of the films digimon adventure tri in this timeline tai is the leader of the first season digidestined he is adventurous and a born leader and is usually the first to spring into action he is partnered with the dinosaur like agumon in the digimon adventure anime series tai was created by manga author tenya yabuno from v tamer 01 multiple voice actors have voiced him across the franchise critical reception to tai has been positive by writers from manga and anime websites while his role and personality in the first digimon series has been positive writers expressed mixed thoughts about tai s characterization in tri due to lacking his hotblooded personality tai s original character was designed by tenya yabuno one of the authors of manga v tamer 01 he was based on kentarou kamon", "the franchise focuses on digimon creatures which are monsters living in a digital world a parallel universe that originated from earth s various communication networks the franchise was created in 1997 as a series of virtual pets akin to and influenced in style by the contemporary tamagotchi or nano giga pet toys the creatures were first designed to look cute and iconic even on the devices small screens later developments had them created with a harder edged style influenced by american comics the franchise gained momentum with its first anime incarnation digimon adventure and an early video game digimon world both released in 1999 several seasons of the anime and films based on them have aired and the video game series has expanded into genres such as role playing racing fighting and mmorpgs other media forms have also been released in 1996 the tamagotchi was released created by akihiro yokoi aki maita and takeichi hongo the tamagotchi was one of the inspirations for the first release of the digimon franchise a device marketed in june 1997 with the name digimon a short for digital monster aiming at the male audience and created by akiyoshi hongo a pseudonym that refers to", "the film used footage from the short films digimon adventure 1999 digimon adventure children s war game 2000 and digimon adventure 02 digimon hurricane landing transcendent evolution the golden digimentals 2000 digimon the movie had cut more than 40 minutes of scenes from the individual japanese films to save time and introduced several changes in tone dialogue and plot owing to the number of changes made it is considered an original work by the press upon release the film received generally negative reviews from critics despite this the film was a box office success grossing over 16 million worldwide against a production budget of 5 million angela anaconda and her friends line up to watch digimon the movie but nannette and her friends cut in line and invite mrs brinks to block her view angela imagines herself digivolving into angelamon to defeat mrs brinks and nannette however the audience realizes they are in the wrong theater and leave a digi egg appears from tai and kari s computer which hatches and digivolves into agumon tai chases agumon and kari out into the night where a second digi egg appears in the sky to reveal a parrotmon as the neighborhood watches", "in hong kong china on february 17 2005 it is based on the adventures of l ng zh gu ng f ng sh ngji n lu hu and a young girl named m i it introduces the concept of x digimon but their origin is different from that in the japanese digimon chronicle ten thousand years ago a great and powerful digimon was defeated and sealed away by the royal knights as the digi core years later a virus infected the digital world leaving only those that possessed the x antibody remaining the only members of the royal knights remaining are omega of power omnimon x duke of courage medievalgallantmon gallantmon x and magna of miracles magnamon x at the start of the series the god of death metalphantomon draws l ng m i f ng and lu into the digital world originally l ng is left alone with his digimon which starts out as a dorumon and has to battle his friends lu and f ng who are under metalphantomon s control at one point metalphantomon steals the dragon spirit of l ng s partner who is now a dorumon while metalphantomon uses it to revive the digi core", "a digimon partner will fade away with age and return to an egg eventually so the player has to raise it again to raise a digimon partner the player must train it feed it let it rest and take it to a bathroom the other main part of gameplay is battle the player s partner digimon fight the digimon that have become aggressive due to a crisis on file island partner digimon begin the game with a few basic skills but acquire more as they progress in levels through the game the more digimon who you gain in your city will make training and various other aspects of the game much easier many will open shops and even sell items some which will open mini games you can play to gain rewards and items the game revolves around a young boy the player can name the protagonist in the beginning of the game the protagonist who is drawn into the digital world through his v pet device jijimon greets and asks him a few questions the answers to which determine whether he begins with an agumon or gabumon his goal is to travel around file island locating all of the", "digimon the lifeforms the series revolves around are monsters of various forms living in a digital world a parallel universe that originated from earth s various communication networks to date a total of twelve original japanese films ten theatrical two ova and five american compilation films including have been released in the digimon franchise one of which digital monster x evolution was first broadcast on television animated completely in cgi and was not related to any other season of the television series the nine other original films are short and primarily hand drawn the two short films ovas animated completely in cgi have never been screened outside japan the thirteenth original film overall determination will be released on march 12 2016 it will be followed by confession later in 2016 there have been no new digimon movies shown in america since 2005 at an event celebrating the series 15th anniversary on august 1 2014 a new digimon adventure series was announced scheduled to air in spring 2015 depicting the main characters as they enter high school it was later announced that the series would be a six part theatrical anime", "the game was first released in south korea but an english version was released on april 14 2010 by wemade entertainment titled digimon battle which ran for 3 years the south korean version still runs to this day players control an avatar of one of the four main characters of digimon tamers takato matsuki rika nonaka henry wong and jeri katou the players are not intended to be representing the actual characters and thus are allowed to choose their own name and modify their appearance to some extent players then choose a starter digimon the starter digimon selected is one of the three used by takato rika and henry in tamers gigimon gummymon or viximon in addition different starter digimon are sometimes offered during special events so far events have offered demiveemon hopmon yaamon dorimon and a digimon savers themed koromon regardless the player chooses a starter digimon which they use in battle to obtain stronger digimon and accomplish npc given missions over the course of the game starter and captured digimon will digivolve into stronger forms with more powerful attacks most digimon begin at in training and generally are able to digivolve to either ultimate or mega level only", "it was later ported to nintendo s game boy advance for international releases in north america and europe two years later the game features characters and digimon that were included in the first three seasons of the animated series of the same name in a somewhat simplistic fighting scenario and also has slightly arranged samples of the show s soundtrack the digital world a computer generated subspace that exists between all forms of digital devices and home of the creatures known as digimon is under attack by a malevolent and powerful force known as millenniummon who seeks to corrupt all the data present in the world and modify it to his own designs in response several digimon and their human companions have set out to stop millenniummon and his minions before any irreparable harm can be done this is accomplished in a very round about and a typical way to the fighting video game genre by finding and defeating as many opponents as possible on the way while structured very similarly to a conventional fighting game digimon battle spirit is much more like a barebones representation of the genre mostly due to the limitations of the handhelds it was released", "the game was initially announced at electronic entertainment expo e3 2003 and later exhibited at e3 2004 it was released on april 1 2004 in japan april 30 in europe and september 13 in north america it received mixed reviews from critics upon release with criticism directed at its resemblance to other kart racers of the time and praise at some aesthetic and gameplay aspects digimon racing is a racing video game that utilizes characters and elements from digimon as well as those of traditional racing games the game follows a group of digimon competing in a racing tournament within the digital world home to all digimon the purpose of the grand prix is to determine who is the best racer thus they use specially designed karts that equate all contestants in terms of ability digimon racing s gameplay largely resembles that of traditional racing games it focuses on competing against seven cpu controlled characters in cup races consisting of three laps the usage of items to attack opponents and improve one s own condition is an integral part of the gameplay and adds an element of kart racing games a new feature in the game is kart hopping using", "a mysterious anomaly is causing distortions in the real world and digimon are being plagued by a virus that turns them hostile these circumstances lead to the digidestined being reunited with their partner digimon joined by another digidestined named meiko mochizuki and her partner meicoomon they must solve the mystery of the infected digimon and deal with the responsibility of growing up the films were streamed outside japan in their original language with subtitles on the same day they were released domestically divided into four or five episodes each for the japanese version the opening theme is butter fly tri version by k ji wada while for the english version the opening theme is digimon are back again by john majkut the first film was released in japan on november 21 2015 indonesia on august 3 2016 north america on september 15 2016 and germany and austria on may 21 2017 it was released on region free dvd and blu ray in japan on december 18 2015 the u s on may 16 2017 the uk on may 22 2017 australia on july 19 2017 and germany on august 7 2017 the second film was released in japan on march", "the player explores vast labyrinths dubbed domains inside a tank called a digi beetle these dungeons are filled with enemy digimon who once encountered trigger a battle with the player s own team of digimon in a battle system similar to other traditional turn based jrpg s the domains also contain various obstacles and traps such as land mines energy fields called electro spores giant stones acid floors treasure chests most traps can be disposed of by items that can be purchased at stores found across the game and enemy digimon can be befriended with gift items however the digi beetle has a limited inventory requiring careful management of items typically at the end of each domain there is a boss whether it be a lone digimon or another tamer with a team of them after defeating the boss the player may exit the domain by means of an exit portal found near the boss location as the player s digimon grow in levels they are able to digivolve into newer and more powerful forms the game contains four levels of digivolution rookie champion ultimate and mega the player can also make use of dna digivolution to fuse two digimon", "most of the games have been developed by namco bandai games with other companies such as griptonite games and dimps also developing some titles the games have been released for a variety of home and handheld game consoles such as the playstation the nintendo ds and bandai s own wonderswan the series started in 1999 in the west with the game digimon world for the playstation but released in 1998 there was a japan exclusive which started the digimon video game line as a whole the most recently released games are 2016 s and 2017 s which are both for the playstation vita in the east and playstation 4 in the west the series revolves around the eponymous digimon creatures and their human tamers who both serve as player and non player characters depending on the game gameplay focuses on battles between digimon with tamers present or otherwise the creatures can digivolve back and forth between several evolutionary forms due to similar features and mechanics digimon has experienced a rivalry with the pok mon series however it has maintained a dedicated fanbase despite being localized as digimon world games digimon world ds and digimon world dawn and dusk are not", "studio and published by bandai namco entertainment for playstation vita and playstation 4 the playstation vita version was released in japan on march 17 2016 while the playstation 4 version was released internationally in january 2017 in japan the playstation 4 version is known as digimon world next order international edition and was released on february 26 2017 digimon world next order is a role playing game set in an open world environment and played from a third person perspective where players take control of a human character who is accompanied by two partner digimon the player chooses from ten possible starting companions at the beginning of the game who grow and evolve throughout the course of the story by taking part in battles and interacting with their owner players can increase the bond between their digimon and themselves by praising scolding feeding or offering items together they travel through various environments completing objectives and advancing the story by interacting with non player characters and battling enemy digimon they encounter in the field battles themselves take place in real time when an enemy creature is touched which causes a circular shaped battle area to appear which each partner is free", "this pet was a masculine counterpart to the tamagotchi which was deemed more appropriate for girls it spawned the digimon franchise it was similar to earlier virtual pets with the distinctions of being a fighting pet that could connect with others like it the original digital monster model that was released in 1997 sold units worldwide including in japan and overseas up until march 2004 by 2005 more than digital monster units were sold in 2017 a 20th anniversary edition was released in japan which allows the owner to choose from any of the eggs from the first 5 versions of the original toy as well as several new ones unlocked through various methods it was released worldwide in 2019 which is the anniversary of the franchise outside of its home country the digimon game consist of the following functions the original digimon device has three buttons and one reset button the buttons are located to the right of the screen the top a button scrolls through the icons and options on the screens the middle b button activates the selected function the bottom c button cancels out whatever is on the screen pressing a and c simultaneously toggles the", "unlike the first three series the main characters the digidestined merge with ancient spirits known as legendary warriors to become digimon themselves instead of training partner digimon like digimon tamers the climax features any human fusing each partner as a mega form the series aired in japan from april 7 2002 to march 30 2003 with an english language version produced by sensation animation airing in north america from september 9 2002 to july 14 2003 in the events prior to the series a group of ten digimon creatures from the digital world a parallel universe originated from earth s various communication networks sacrificed themselves to seal lucemon these digimon collectively known as legendary warriors created artifacts from their data the twenty spirits ten human spirits and beast spirits for each elements before leaving the digital world in the care of three celestial digimon ophanimon cherubimon and seraphimon when cherubimon betrays them ophanimon summons five children the five digidestined find their respective human spirits and merge with them to spirit evolve into digimon themselves while finding each of their beast spirits they meet five other legendary warriors who serve cherubimon after defeating them the rest of them destroy one and", "it was developed by bec and published by bandai and was first made available in japan in december 2000 with english releases in north america and europe arriving in june 2001 and july 2002 respectively the game is very different from the other digimon releases since it is a totally card based game players have a deck of 30 cards consisting of digimon support and special digivolution cards the digivolution concept is similar to the other games in that players start off with a rookie and finish with an ultimate missing out fresh in training and mega although mega digimon appear as ultimate players sacrifice digimon in their hand in order to build up digivolution points or dp when one has enough for their desired digimon digivolution becomes possible this brings a new tactical element to the game deciding which cards to sacrifice as the game starts off players are able to choose one of three digimon to be their first partner card veemon hawkmon and armadillomon as the game progresses these partners will gain experience become stronger and gain the ability to armor digivolve as this ability is used the partner loses the ability to digivolve into champion c", "it is the eighth official installment of the digimon franchise but also considered as its own separate franchise from the original an anime adaptation of the franchise was animated by toei animation produced by dentsu directed by g koga and written by y ichi kat mushibugyo yo kai watch with character designs by kenichi nuki gundam build fighters it began airing on all txn stations in japan on october 1 2016 replacing time travel girl in its original time slot is the male protagonist a 13 year old boy who likes reading and always saw himself as a secondary character until he finds the applidrive and joins gatchmon in his fight to stop leviathan from taking over the world his applidrive s color is red later replaced by a red and gold applidrive duo is haru s standard grade partner appmon derived from a search app he likes to look cool and his search function allows him to learn many things including other people s secrets and the weak point of his enemies 14 year old is a member of the idol group appliyama 470 cheerful and lively on the outside she is actually very lonely her applidrive s color", "despite its name this is not part of the digimon world series as suggested by its localized title but the game does bear a resemblance to digimon world 3 in the game the player controls a digimon tamer and embarks on a journey to discover tame raise train and command more than 230 unique digimon the player can build digi farms to raise evolve and communicate with the digimon using wi fi and local ds wireless connection players can interact by exchanging digimon engaging in battles and pooling resources to create rare types of digimon to date the game has spawned five sequels in digimon world dawn and dusk digimon story lost evolution digimon story super xros wars red and blue and digimon world ds marks the first appearance of several digimon some that later appear in digimon savers like gawappamon the evolution of kamemon chronomon destroyer mode chronomon holy mode the game s final boss also makes his first appearance the game introduces two special digimon dotagumon and dotfalcomon both of which have the appearance of sprites which look like their v pet counterparts these digimon seem to have no special qualities except for useful traits and being able", "after witnessing a luminous object falling into the mountains during a fireworks ceremony they are transported to the digital world where they meet their digimon partners they are joined by classmates a curious troublemaker and a caring older sister type along with hiroyuki s second grade younger sister and her friend a first grader named together they must aid their digimon companions while thwarting a group of villains named uno dos and tres in november 2009 bandai namco games launched a teaser website with a countdown to the reveal of a new title referred to only as rpg lost and the rpg that will return on november 20 the timer reached zero and officially revealed digimon story lost evolution along with a release date set for the following year the game received a final release date the following april along with an official website that revealed additional content as visitors completed minigames digimon story lost evolution received a 30 out of 40 total score in japanese weekly famitsu magazine based on individual reviews of 8 8 7 and 7 the game debuted as the 5th highest selling title of its debut week selling 42 153 copies", "it follows the adventures of mikey kudo who utilizes the power of fusing any digimon partners the series was broadcast on tv asahi and asahi broadcasting corporation between july 6 2010 and march 21 2012 it is divided into three arcs with the latter two given the subtitles of and respectively the series was licensed outside of asia by saban brands for an english dub produced by studiopolis the first arc was dubbed as the first season of digimon fusion the second arc premiered on march 8 2015 the series was adapted into a manga series and for multiple video games the use of deeper themes and striking fight scenes have earned a positive response from critics despite the series intended for young viewers mikey kudo receives the fusion loader creates his own team fusion fighters and recruits some digimon partners in the digital world there he learns that lord bagramon is attempting to conquer the world by collecting 108 code crown fragments and wields the darkness loader mikey collects some fragments from each zones but bagramon steals them and recruits axeknightmon mikey angie hinomoto and jeremy tsurugi are sent back to the human world but mikey returns to the", "in this game the player will be able to control the four main savers characters marcus damon thomas h norstein yoshino yoshi fujieda along with their respective digimon partners the graphics for this game are cel shaded and the battle system is similar to the battle terminal a japanese only arcade game the game is classified as a special genre called a dramatic innovative rpg which means that the digimon partners are affected by how you the player treat them the way your digimon evolves will be similar to digimon world the digimon will be affected by how you take care of it and depending on that will digivolve into different types of digimon in digimon world data squad a new type of digivolution method is used called the galactica evolution system this will determine what digimon your partner will evolve into there will also be new original characters for this game meaning that these characters are exclusive to digimon world data squad and will not appear in any other digimon data squad media exclusive characters include yuma kagura who has a renamon as her partner kosaburo katsura a cocky private investigator who has an extremely clumsy female biyomon as", "they were released in japan on march 29 2007 and north america on september 18 2007 together they serve as the second game in the digimon story series though they were marketed as games within the digimon world series in north america a strange virus causes an earthquake in the sunshine and darkmoon districts damaging the access points to the digital world and causing many digimon to mysteriously degenerate into digi eggs in dawn rumors have spread that the night crow from darkmoon city were responsible for the incident in dusk many assume the light fang from sunshine city are to blame the player takes the role of a night crow tamer in dusk or a light fang tamer in dawn to uncover the mystery behind the tremors note that although the games share a main story the plot differs between dawn and dusk to some degree players also explore different areas depending on the version of the game they play players may choose to play as a boy or girl though the boy and girl look slightly different depending on the version played the two games feature parallel storylines with a main team in each that opposes the other", "and published by bandai it is the third installment in the digimon world series and it was first released in june 2002 in north america and then on july 2002 in japan and november 2002 in europe the game tells the story of junior who begins playing an mmorpg called digimon online with his friends but when terrorists attack junior and the other players are trapped within the game and must find a way out using his digimon partners digimon world 3 differs from its predecessors as the system has been changed to be more like japanese role playing games of the time such as final fantasy vii or legend of dragoon the game has 2 primary modes in which it is played an overworld map and the battle screens the player character navigates through a 3d world map using sprites that represent the playable character and the monsters that make up his party in battle players control the parties with up to 3 monsters in turn based style battles where the player s party fights one on one against the opposing party with the option to switch or perform certain actions with the party members junior and his friends", "multiple playthroughs can result in different paths and different digivolutions the game will feature multiple endings and should wrong choices be made characters will be killed takuma momozuka minoru hyuuga aoi shibuya saki and shuuji are on a historical studies extracurricular activities camp during spring break on the second day takuma minoru and aoi visit a famous local temple to investigate the legend of the beast gods kemonogami where a festival to celebrate them will take place as they explore they come across koromon then hear screaming koromon and the group run to the source and find their classmates being attacked by other digimon koromon digivolves to agumon and scares the digimon away it is at this point that takuma and the others discover they are in another world digimon survive was first announced in a july 2018 issue of the japanese magazine v jump for release in playstation 4 and nintendo switch the western version was announced by bandai on youtube through a trailer with xbox one and steam being included in the platforms on july 6 2019 the game was delayed to 2020", "in the universe of digimon people raise creatures collectively referred to as digimon similar in concept to tamagotchi players raise the digimon through stages of growth that determine his personality the five stages being baby child adult perfect and ultimate digimon evolve over time by gaining stats and other factors digimon can get hungry sick injured or die and need care to recover the game has over 10 000 accessories to collect and equip on their digimon which alter the character s in game appearance such as goggles or an afro taiga is the main protagonist of the game his digimon partner is agumon nicolai petrov is taiga s best friend his father works in gigo company his digimon partner is gaomon akiho rindo is a mysterious girl that follows taiga around her digimon partner is biyomon mikagura mirei is the girl who sends an email to the digital world her digimon partners are angewomon and ladydevimon yuya kuga is the heir of gigo company his digimon partner is blackwargreymon x rina shinomiya is a new tamer who only appears in the decode 3ds version of the game her digimon partner is veemon the game also contains a number of", "it was originally released in japan for the wonderswan color handheld in december 2002 under the title the game was later ported to the game boy advance for western audiences released in north america in september 2003 and europe in august 2004 the game is a versus battle game where one of the human spirit digimon fights the other unlike most fighting games the winner is not determined by having the most health but the most blue or red d spirits which are released whenever the player strikes his her opponent when you ve damaged your opponent enough to fill the gauge at the top the character s beast spirit is activated whenever he she attacks allowing them to temporarily digivolve to a higher level and attack with greater force also yellow diamonds are released during beast spirit attacks and filling the diamond gauge enables the player to momentarily warp digivolve to ancient level and fire a powerful attack before returning to normal this depletes the diamond gauge to zero once all of the human spirit digimon are defeated the player must then defeat cherubimon cherubimon s name is kerpymon in this game there is also a mini game where", "unlike previous games in the digimon world series it features action based hack and slash gameplay and supports up to four players the game is loosely based on the 2005 digital monster x evolution film even using footage from the movie itself the gamecube version was not released in the pal region the game s protagonists are members of the d s g digital security guard based on digital monster x evolution it is immediately revealed that a computer virus known as the x virus is spreading quickly and is infecting many digimon the yamato server has disappeared and a new server known as the doom server has taken its place they are sent to the first area of the game named death valley to search for chief leomon when it is completed the player finds out that the doom server may in fact be the yamato server the player is then sent to destroy the doom dome this is where the first real boss appears apocalymon the player is then sent to dry land to stop the x virus spreading and must defeat malomyotismon they are then sent to the venom jungle to stop the dread note from launching", "the series aired in japan on fuji tv from april 2 2006 to march 25 2007 an english language version was produced by studiopolis in conjunction with toei animation usa and disney enterprises inc and aired in north america on jetix and subsequently disney xd from october 1 2007 to november 1 2008 it aired in the united kingdom on kix a film based on the series was released on december 9 2006 the digital accident tactics squad dats is a government organization established to maintain the peace between the real world and the digital world transporting any digimon back to the digital world marcus a junior high school student becomes one of the members for the organization he learns that the digimon merukimon is opposing mankind however the past is revealed that scientist akihiro kurata was responsible for invading the digital world he gained the support of the government to oppose all digimon species claiming they were a threat to mankind when kurata uses belphemon marcus defeats them before dying kurata uses a bomb to make the digital world merging with the human world while the digimon bancholeomon prevents the collision marcus meets king drasil yggdrasil the supreme ruler" ]

[ "At seven weeks, your baby is the size of a blueberry and your embryo measures about 0.51 inches, double of the last week." ]

[ "So, when you are 7 week's pregnant, your baby is the size of a corn kernel or a raspberry, a grape, a small bean or even a blueberry. Even your uterus is the size of medium sized orange.", "Baby Size at Week 17 Your baby is now the size of an pear. He has hiccupped before, but this is the first time you might feel it. Baby's Length: 5.12 in.", "How Big Is Your Baby at 12 Weeks? Your baby is now about the size of a passion fruit, measuring close to 2.5 inches, crown to rump, and weighing approximately 0.5 ounce.", "How big is your baby now? The beginning of week 6 of pregnancy is the fourth week of your baby's development. Your baby is about 2mm in length (or about the size of a metal pinhead). It will double in size and grow to about 4mm (roughly the width of a USB plug) by the end of this week.", "Week 14 Pregnancy: Baby Fruit Size. At 14 weeks, your baby is about the size of a lemon! By week fourteen pregnancy, twelve weeks from conception, your baby is roughly the size of a lemon. He or she is about 3 1/2 inches long, crown to rump, and weighs around 1 ounce.", "14 weeks. Your baby, now roughly the size of a lemon, weighs about 43g. (Length: 8.7cm, head to bottom.) Find out more about your baby's development this week.", "Is it safe to wear Spanx during pregnancy? Yes. Wearing a piece of Lycra \"shapewear\" over your bottom, belly, or thighs won't hurt your baby, regardless of how far along you are. Your baby is well cushioned by the amniotic fluid, and the mild compression of your belly from one of these garments won't cause any harm.", "All pregnant women in England are offered an ultrasound scan at around 8 to 14 weeks of pregnancy. This is called the dating scan. It's used to see how far along in your pregnancy you are and check your baby's development. Your midwife or doctor will book you a dating scan appointment.", "Measuring your fundal height: Your doctor will measure your fundal height (the height of your growing uterus). If your belly is measuring larger than expected for how far along you are supposed to be, then you may be carrying a large baby.", "You are far better off returning the newborn baby clothes and purchasing the next size up 0-3 months. Depending on how fast your baby grows, you could get eight to 10 weeks out of this size. Better yet, buy several outfits in the next size after that, 3-6 months.", "How Big Is Your Baby at 32 Weeks? Now that you are 32 weeks pregnant, your baby weighs about 3 and 3/4 pounds and measures around 11 inches, crown to rump. This makes your baby about the size of a napa cabbage!", "How Big is Your Baby at 26 Weeks? Your baby is 14 inches long this week and weighs 1.7 pounds. That's about the size of a VHS tape case.", "How far along are you when you miss your period? Most mums-to-be are about five weeks pregnant at the time of their first missed period.", "An ultrasound is actually the most accurate way to date a pregnancy because all fetuses grow at a consistent rate during the first trimester and early second. In other words, if your baby measures 9 weeks 2 days when you have your ultrasound, that's how far along you are, no matter when your last period was.", "How Big Is Your Baby at 14 Weeks? This week, your baby is roughly the size of a nectarine. At 14 weeks, the average fetus weighs about 1.5 ounces and can measure up to 3.5 inches long, crown to rump.", "Baby Size at Week 22 Your baby is the size of a papaya. Her lungs are developing rapidly, and they will begin making a protein called surfactant, which will help her breathe independently once she's born. Baby's Length: 10.94 in. Baby's Weight: 15.17 oz.", "Continuing our long-held tradition of comparing babies with fruits as a reference to their size, the 22nd week would put them at par with a nice coconut. Most babies tend to be around 9-11 inches in length by this week and their weight hits the 400-gram mark quite easily.", "25 weeks: Your baby is about the size of a rutabaga Your baby now rivals the average rutabaga in weight – about 1 1/2 pounds – and is roughly 13 1/2 inches long from head to heel.", "During week 10 of pregnancy, baby is as big as a strawberry, measuring about 1.2 inches long and weighing about . 14 ounces. Your 10-week baby's body length will almost double in the next three weeks.", "Your Baby's Development at 9 Weeks At 9 weeks, a baby is approximately 1 inch long (2.5–3 centimeters). 1 That's about the size of an average cherry.", "Quick growth At 18 weeks, your baby is about the length of a cucumber and your uterus is around the size of a sweet potato — see how you're working your way through the produce department? It can be felt about 1½ inches below your belly button — so have a feel.", "A fetus will go into head-down position between 20 and 39 weeks. Luckily, babies go into a head-down position on their own in roughly 97% of pregnancies. However, exactly when they are likely to go into that position depends on how far along you are in your pregnancy.", "Unlike cultivated (highbush) blueberries, Wild (lowbush) Blueberries are not planted. ... Size – Wild Blueberries are naturally smaller and more compact (less water content) than cultivated, which means you get more Wild Blueberries per pound.", "How Big Is Your Baby at 26 Weeks? Your baby is about the size of a zucchini at 26 weeks pregnant. He could measure about 9 inches, from crown to rump, and may weigh nearly 2 pounds.", "How Big Is Your Baby at 22 Weeks? The size of your baby when you are 22 weeks pregnant? He could be about 1 pound and almost 7 1/2 inches long, crown to rump.", "Gestation is the period of time between conception and birth. During this time, the baby grows and develops inside the mother's womb. Gestational age is the common term used during pregnancy to describe how far along the pregnancy is.", "When to Expect Your Period Generally, depending on how far along you were in your pregnancy when you miscarried, you should get your first period after a miscarriage within six weeks.", "Most mums-to-be are about five weeks pregnant at the time of their first missed period. When will I have my dating scan? Your midwife or doctor will schedule your dating scan around 8 to 14 weeks of pregnancy. During this scan your doctor will check how far along you are, and check on your baby's development.", "When you're 18 weeks pregnant, your baby is around the size of a sweet potato, measuring about 5 and a half inches long from crown to rump, and weighing around 7 ounces.", "Your baby, or foetus, is around 25.6cm long, which is the size of a banana. Measurements are now taken from head to heel. In earlier weeks, babies are measured from the head to the bottom because the legs are curled up and hard to see. Your baby weighs around 300g.", "At 6 weeks pregnant, baby is the size of a sweet pea. The average embryo at week six is about . 25 inches and will double in size again next week.", "At 14 weeks pregnant, baby is as big as a peach, measuring 3.4 inches and weighing in at 1.5 ounces. Baby has almost doubled in weight in the last week or so, and keeps on growing at super-speed at week 14." ]

[ "The article attempts to retrieve the history of the ‘mission wives’ of the Basel Mission in India with special emphasis on Pauline Moegling who exhibited unusual abilities and talents as a linguist, a teacher and a social reformer. Despite her remarkable contributions to Kannada literature and language especially by means of translations, and her achievements as a teacher and vicar, the Basel mission reports hardly give credit to these. The article delves into the nuances of Pauline’s life and work and brings to light her exceptional talents and contributions." ]

[ "Pauline Rowson was on BBC Radio Solent Julian Clegg Breakfast Show talking about her new action-packed Art Marvik crime novel Silent Running", ": This article examines the offertory prayers in ELW, comparing them to the two prayers found in LBW. The author argues that the prayers in ELW have lost the spirituality of stewardship suggested by the prayers in LBW, and no longer maintain the important connection to Pauline theology, whereby the Christian understands his/her whole life, including time, talents, and money, to be offered back to God as a living sacrifice.", "Angelita Martini, Sara Javanparast, Paul R Ward, Stephen Cole, Paul Aylward, Genevieve Baratiny, Tiffany Gill, George Tsourtos, Gary Misan, Carlene Wilson, Graeme Young", "A WOMAN with undiagnosable anemia was cured when a localized breast cancer, necrotic and surrounded by an inflammatory reaction was removed by radical mastectomy. Report of a Case A 47-year-old woman was referred for diagnosis of fatigue and anemia of approximately one year's duration. She had been treated with cyanocobalamin injections and oral iron therapy, without hematological response. Except for cholecystectomy and surgery for anal fistula, her health had been good. There was no history of drug ingestion, except for the hematinics, or toxic exposure. Family history was negative for hematolotic disease, and there was no history or evidence of gastrointestinal bleeding or menorrhagia. Results of physical examination were normal except for the findings of pallor and a firm 4-cm mass in the upper outer quadrant of the right breast. Results of laboratory studies included a red blood cell (RBC) count of 4.22 million/cu mm, a hemoglobin level of 8.7", "Crime author Pauline Rowson takes a look back over the years of attending the London Book Fair, and how it's changed for authors and publishers.", "ABSTRACTIn this interview, Ambassador Bonnie Jenkins talks about her work on arms control and nuclear security and discusses differences between the Obama and Trump administrations on issues including nuclear weapons modernization and the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty. She highlights the scarcity of women and people of color in national security, explains why that matters, and describes how the organization she founded last year – Women of Color Advancing Peace, Security and Conflict Transformation – is working to diversify the field.", "Crime authors Pauline Rowson and Graham Hurley will be debating crime fiction and crime fact with crime experts from Dorset and Hampshire Police at CSI Winchester 28 March 2020", "Abstract Phenomenology has proved to be a popular methodology for nursing research. I argue, however, that phenomenological nursing research could be strengthened by greater attention to its philosophical underpinnings. Many research reports devote more page space to procedure than to the philosophy that purportedly guided it. The philosophy of Maurice Merleau-Ponty is an excellent fit for nursing, although his work has received less attention than that of Husserl and Heidegger. In this paper, I examine the life and thought of Merleau-Ponty, with emphasis on concepts, such as perception, intentionality and embodiment, which have particular relevance to the discipline of nursing.", "Interpretive impasses are part and parcel of Pauline studies. This essay examines scholarly stalemates resulting from learned readings of Paul’s instructions to the Thessalonians regarding sexual purity, work and grief in 1 Thess. 4.4, 11 and 13 respectively. Furthermore, this article observes the exegetical moves that interpreters make in treating these texts. The fact that specialists of 1 Thessalonians draw decidedly different conclusions as to the meaning of Paul’s instructions to his converts regarding marrying, laboring and mourning highlights the importance of the following issues in Pauline interpretation: (1) authorial intent; (2) cultural and contextual influences upon both the author and the audience; and (3) textual parallels. I conclude this paper by playing my own interpretive hand on the verses under discussion.", "INTEGRITY, PERSEVERANCE , self-control, indomitable spirit, and courtesy are the characteristics of a great leader. They are, in essence, what make Madeleine M. Joullie, Class of 1970 Professor of Chemistry at the University of Pennsylvania, a champion for women in chemistry. These heartfelt sentiments were shared by Joullie protege Cynthia A. Maryanoff, a chemist with Cordis Corp., were frequently echoed at a Women Chemists Committee symposium at last month's American Chemical Society national meeting in Chicago. The symposium was held to commemorate Joullie's 80th birthday. It focused on involvement with ACS as a launching pad to leadership for women in chemistry. A leader in many spheres, Joullie serves as a member of the society's board of directors. The symposium also offered women chemists an opportunity to reflect on Joullie's contributions as a leader in organic chemistry and in mentoring. For her more than 50 years as a professor, she has been a champion ...", "Caroline Wellwood is representative of a group of early Canadian nurses whose missionary ideals led them to innovative careers in other countries. Wellwood's visionary leadership laid the groundwork for the development of a modern system of nursing and nursing education in southwestern China.", "Pauline Rowson will be at Farnborough Library, Hampshire on Saturday 28 November talking about the secrets of successful crime writing and how she plots research and writes her crime novel.s", "Rosie Unite shares her profound belief in the miracles in every moment of every day & offers to inspire those are skeptical to open their minds and hearts...", "Abstract:A comprehensive understanding of Paul’s christological monotheism must account for what Paul says about God’s Spirit in Jesus’ earthly life. Based on an analysis of relevant Pauline passages, I argue that Paul knows and affirms the tradition of Jesus’ Spirit-anointing as God’s Son and also understands Christ as having been raised through the Spirit. But Paul does not draw particular attention to these things. He draws attention to the risen Lord, who, together with God the Father, is the source of the Spirit to believers (Rom 8:9; Gal 4:6). Although Paul does not have a Spirit christology, he does see Jesus’ Spirit-anointing as integral to Jesus’ sonship and messianic mission, and he sees Jesus in some respects as a pattern for God’s people in their experience of the Spirit. Finally, I propose how the humanity and divinity of Christ can be seen in relation to the Spirit within Paul’s christology.", "Phoebe Palmer’s influence on women in ministry and the significant role she played in the Holiness movement helped prepare the way for Carrie Judd Montgomery. The impact of Palmer’s theology of sanctification on Montgomery’s theology of healing is one way of illustrating how Montgomery drew upon her theology and advanced it into the American Divine Healing and Pentecostal movements. This article demonstrates how Montgomery stands out as one of the most significant female healing evangelists to take Holiness themes into Pentecostalism.", "Abstract : The potential danger to operational readiness of the search for nontraditional roles and missions for the U.S. armed forces is examined. The paper explores the incentives for adding new missions to the armed forces in light of the post-Cold War draw-down and looks at Military Support to Law Enforcement (MSLE) as an example of the types of missions being considered for the military. It reviews the history of and recent changes to the Posse Comitatus Act, the traditional deterrent to military involvement in civilian law enforcement operations Possible detrimental effects on operational readiness are discussed, as peacetime missions are equated to training for the wartime mission. Possible methods to evaluate potential missions are presented. The recommendation is made to keep the focus on the wartime mission and the needs of the operational commander when considering ancillary missions for the armed forces.", "A 24-year-old woman was referred to our Cardiology Department because of cardiomegaly at a routine chest X-ray. She was asymptomatic except for some fatigability. Physical examination was unremarkable. Electrocardiogram showed only low QRS voltages. Echocardiography revealed large pericardial effusion with right atrial and ventricular collapse. Pericardiocentesis was performed and 1100 mL of milky fluid were removed, suggesting chylopericardium. The …", "TPS Schal director Joan Murray, who heads Carillion's construction compliance, surveying and project management division, talks about the vital need for initiatives that focus on recruitment and retention of women in civil engineering.", "Several studies have shown that HIV is an important distal factor that affects a woman's fertility. This study investigates the effect of HIV on fertility among Malawian women using data from the 2004 and 2010 demographic and health surveys. Specifically, the study assesses fertility differentials between HIV-positive and HIV-negative women and the changes in the relationship between HIV and fertility during the study period. Age-specific fertility rates and logistic regressions are used to investigate these objectives. The results show lower age-specific fertility rates (except for the 15–19-year-old age group) and probabilities of giving birth for HIV-positive relative to HIV-negative women before and after controlling for confounding factors respectively. The odds of giving birth for an HIV-positive woman were 34% lower in the period 12 months before the 2004 survey compared to an HIV-negative woman and 25% lower before the 2010 survey (p < 0.01). We think that the scaling up of antiretroviral treatmen...", "This essay argues the value of placing curriculum development in the context of a specific departmental mission statement, reflecting the shared sociological goals of faculty and students. A case analysis of one department's experience is offered, including the process by which consensus was reached on the sociological mission of the department, the resulting mission statement, and the mission statement's curricular and program implications.", "The story of the sinful woman who annoints Jesus with her perfume and tears at Simon the Pharisee's table (Luke 7:36–50) is used as a model for pastoral work in a long-term care setting. Intervention in the depersonalization of institutionalization is seen as an important aspect in such ministries. The focus of intervention is allowing residents to move out of the receiving role into the giving role. A case example of a patient-led Bible class is presented. The difficulties that professional givers encounter in shifting to become recipients are noted.", "Abstract Isolated trigeminal neuropathy after cranial trauma is exceptional. A 40-year-old woman was found to have unilateral trigeminal motor paralysis with muscle atrophy, unaccompanied by sensory involvement and without affecting other cranial nerves. She developed this deficit immediately after head trauma.", "In Abernethy, C. L.; Heim, F. (Eds.), Irrigators' organisations: Government actions towards effective irrigators' organisations with special reference to Lao PDR and Vietnam. Feldafing, Germany: German Foundation for International Development", "AbstractThis article revisits Bernd Moeller's concept of ‘productive misunderstanding’ as a way of explaining the early appeal and success of the Reformation among some of Luther's most important supporters. It does so through a case study of a consolation pamphlet by the secretary of Nuremberg City Council, Lazarus Spengler, whom Luther credited with planting the evangelical faith in this prominent imperial city. Spengler was one of the Wittenberg reformer's most important lay supporters: he authored the earliest pro-Luther lay pamphlet and his name was subsequently appended to the papal bull Exsurge Domine. However, in his consolation pamphlet Spengler espoused a view of suffering that Luther had firmly rejected because it contradicted his evangelical soteriology. This important difference suggests that while Spengler did a great deal to promote Luther's cause, and at great personal risk, he acted on the basis of an incorrect understanding of the Wittenberg reformer's theology, at least in the late 1510...", "Ameloblastoma with bone formation is rare. We report a case of a 55-year-old woman with ameloblastoma accompanied by prominent osteoplasia. Histopathological examination exhibited an abundant stromal component between tumor nests. Therefore, she was diagnosed as the desmoplastic variant, except for the numerous bone trabeculae. The distinction between new bone formation and invasion of the bone marrow poses a problem. A thin rim of fibrous bone that can be accentuated by Masson-trichrome staining suggests the former.", "Missionary Positions challenges common Christian assumptions about sex workers. Using feminist, postcolonial perspectives, interviews with pastoral practitioners and personal narrative, Lauren McGrow carves out a space for the dynamic theological agency and life complexity of sex workers to be acknowledged.", "Post-Soviet Russia has seen the collapse of many of the social services and support structures which provided a safety net for many of its poorest citizens. For millions of needy people in the Russian Federation it has meant great hardship. But the quality of life of hundreds of Moscow citizens has been transformed through the work of Vera Lebedova, Director of Nursing at the Moscow branch of the Red Cross and recent recipient of a Queen’s Nursing Institute Fellowship.", "Lecture given Tuesday, September 19, 2006, 2:00 PM at Abilene Christian University: \"It's one thing to \"buy in\" to Missional theology; it is another to learn to behave Missionally. Many of the pioneers in Missional patterns are church planters. In this Missional church workshop, three church planters talk Missional nuts and bolts. What does Missional theology look like in church planting? In worship? In community building? Let's learn together with these Missional pioneers.\"", "Functioning endocrine pancreatic tumors in multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 (MEN1) are rare. We present a case of a symptomatic neuroendocrine tumor in a 27-year old woman. The identification of the nature of the neuroendocrine tumors was difficult despite the use of a wide range of diagnostic procedures. This case is interesting in many ways: this is an exceptional illustration of MEN 1 with vipoma associated with calcitonin secretion and it is also a good example of the benefits and limitations of each diagnostic procedure in the heterogeneous group of neuroendocrine tumors.", "Angela Constance, Cabinet Secretary for Communities, Social Security and Equalities headed a Scottish delegation in Christchurch, New Zealand on 29th September 2017 at the closing ceremony for the 2017 Social Enterprise World Forum during which she accept", "In The Ahmadiyya Quest for Religious Progress. Missionizing Europe 1900 – 1965 Gerdien Jonker offers an account of the mission the Muslim reform movement of the Ahmadiyya undertook in interwar Europe.", "A significant body of robust research exists to inform perineal care but it is almost all about process and outcome variables reflecting practitioner's interests. It is scandalous that women's concerns and priorities have been largely sidelined apart from a few notable exceptions discussed in this article. This reflects the largely patriarchal culture that exists within hospital-based maternity services. We can learn much from feminist research principles that can assist us in redefining the research agenda so that what we study and how we study it is more woman-centred." ]

[ "Symptoms include red blotches and services Foedus? Yeah, we wondered the same thing.…" ]

[ "While trying to catch first-place Detroit, the Minnesota Twins are catching everything hit their way, too.", "A Sierra Leonean naval patrol catches Guinean military personnel robbing fishing boats of their catch.", "(InfoWorld) - VMware is making a free benchmarking tool available to IT professionals Monday to evaluate the performance of virtualization technology in their datacenters. Meanwhile, it seeks to assure competitors that the benchmarking standards will be fair to all of them. VMmark is available for a free download and can be used to determine how well virtualization software works with any of six typical datacenter workloads: file server, e-mail server, Web server, a standby server, an online transaction processing (OLTP) database, and a Java order entry system. VMmark runs on either Linux or Windows. VMware shared a prototype of VMmark in October 2006 with members of the Standard Performance Evaluation Corp. (SPEC), an industry group that establishes performance benchmarks so customers can evaluate products. At that time, SPEC had just formed a working group to develop benchmarks for virtualization software. It is still working on those benchmarks. Though helpful for comparing various products, benchmarks are controversial because of concerns that the results can be manipulated to make one vendor look better than another. SPEC and other industry benchmarking groups are organized to create fair benchmarks that will yield impartial results. VMware acknowledges the skepticism about its benchmarking tool being a fair way to compare VMware with other brands, so it strove to be impartial, said Andrea Eubanks, senior director of enterprise and technical marketing for VMware. VMware is represented on the 13-member SPEC work group that is developing the virtualization benchmark along with competitors such as SWsoft and Trigence. Major technology companies including Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, and Intel are also represented. \"We have created VMmark to be an open standard,\" said Eubanks. \"In order to prevent misconceptions of what our intentions are. ... we presented our technology preview to SPEC so they could use it as the basis of the open-standards benchmark. We want to improve our product, we don't want to cook our benchmarks.\" VMware is introducing VMmark while the SPEC panel is still developing its standards. \"The process to becoming a standard is a quite long one,\" said Eubanks. But VMware has not always been as impartial as it claims to be, said John Bara, vice president of marketing for XenSource, a VMware competitor. Bara says VMware released a white paper earlier this year comparing VMware's ESX Server hypervisor to XenSource's Open Source Xen hypervisor on a Windows operating system and the results showed VMware performed better. Bara says the comparison was not fair because Open Source Xen is optimized to run best on Linux, not Windows. XenSource's Xen Enterprise product is optimized to run Windows and would be a more balanced comparison to VMware's ESX. \"We cooperate with VMware in a lot of areas, but we went back to them and said 'foul,'\" said Bara. To VMware's credit, he said, it redid the test and accepted the revised benchmark that showed VMware ESX and Xen Enterprise with nearly comparable performance. Also Monday, XenSource entered into an OEM agreement with Symantec Corp. to embed Symantec's Veritas Storage Foundation virtualized storage management software into Xen Source's XenEnterprise virtualization hypervisor.", "(InfoWorld) - Three years after being bought by EMC, VMware is going public. EMC announced plans Wednesday to offer 10 percent of its virtualization software subsidiary in an initial public offering (IPO). The offering will \"unlock more of VMware's value for EMC shareholders,\" and help the company \"retain and attract the software industry's top talent,\" EMC Chairman, President, and CEO Joe Tucci said in a statement. \"We think now is the point where the planets are aligned and this makes sense,\" Tucci said on a conference call with financial analysts. When EMC acquired VMware in 2004, it had 300 employees; today it has 3,000, he said. \"The growth rate of this company has been phenomenal.\" EMC plans to file a registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in late March or early April for the planned IPO, and the shares could be available for sale some time in the second quarter, said David Goulden, executive vice president and chief financial officer of EMC. The shares to be put on the market will be new shares, not ones already owned by EMC, Goulden said. The proceeds will \"provide VMware with the financial resources it needs to achieve its full growth potential and provide EMC with the potential to return a portion of the original investment in VMware to EMC shareholders, while enabling them to continue to enjoy the vast majority ownership in this strategic and fast-growing business,\" Goulden said. Virtualization, which allows a server to better run multiple applications simultaneously, has helped businesses reduce the number of servers they need, reduce their energy consumption and assist in data center disaster recovery efforts, said Diane Greene, who founded VMware in 1998. She is president of VMware and executive vice president of EMC. \"The IPO is a powerful way for us to accelerate our vision of a pervasive, industry standard virtual infrastructure. We see an incredible opportunity ahead of us,\" Greene said. More than 10 percent of new x86 server workloads are running on VMware virtualization software, and VMware is used by more than 20,000 customers, Greene said. Analysts have recently speculated on whether EMC would spin off VMware, said Gordon Haff, principal IT advisor with research firm Illuminata Inc. \"EMC wants to get some of the money while VMware is clearly a hot property,\" he said. \"On the other hand, they clearly want to retain a very large chunk of VMware.\" EMC's stock (EMC) has been stuck in the $10 to $15 range for the last three years. The IPO was announced after the New York Stock Exchange closed for the day. In after-hours trading, EMC shares rose $0.91 to $14.55. Tucci's comments about unlocking VMware's value \"might be less politely phrased as 'hopefully getting the shareholders off my butt,'\" Haff said. VMware is an early leader in one of the IT industry's hottest market segments. The company's revenue was up 83 percent in 2006, totalling $709 million, EMC said. The IPO should generate capital for VMware to invest in innovation, said Allan Krans, an analyst with Technology Business Research. Although VMware is the industry leader in server virtualization software, Microsoft is expected to introduce an update of its Microsoft Virtual Server in the fourth quarter of 2007, which could increase competitive pressure on VMware.", "It was the kind of simple catch Dante Hall has made many times, camped under a punt, his arm waving for a fair catch.", "Packers fans in Wisconsin have had to decide between frozen tundras, catching fish or catch the Packers’ playoff game on television.", "Where does David Tyree’s fourth-quarter catch rank among all-time great postseason catches?", "It was a simple game of catch. It was an affirmation of life, and healing.", "(InfoWorld) - A set of newly discovered flaws in components of VMware's virtual machine software has called attention to some of the security risks associated with the practice of running virtual computers on a single system. VMware has updated its products to fix the security bugs, disclosed Wednesday, but users who have not updated their software could face serious security risks thanks to a trio of flaws in the DHCP server that ships with VMware. The DHCP software is used to assign IP addresses to the different virtual machines running within VMware, but IBM researchers discovered that it can be exploited to gain control of the computer. That could be very bad news for someone running a lot of applications on the same VMware box, said Tom Cross, a researcher with IBM's Internet Security Systems group. \"By exploiting this vulnerability, you get complete control of any of the machines that are running on that virtual environment,\" he said. IBM's researchers have developed exploit code for three separate flaws in the DHCP software, all of which are now patched, Cross said. In order to attack a system, however, an attacker would first need to gain access to software running within the virtual machine. Typically VMware's DHCP server is not configured to be accessible to systems on other machines. Virtualization software is one of the hottest areas in enterprise IT these days. Enterprises are increasingly looking at this type of product as a way to cut down on datacenter costs. VMware lets a single computer act as if it is a kind of mini datacenter, running a number of separate virtual machines on the same box. These virtual machines act as if they are truly separate from one another. They can run different operating systems, and if one virtual machine crashes, it does not affect the others on the server. VMware is also extremely popular with security researchers, who set up virtual machines on their PCs to test potentially malicious code without putting their computers at risk. Unfortunately, this architecture also gives attackers a single point of failure: the VMware software itself. \"This is important because servers often run a vulnerable machine in one VM and have supersecret information in another VM, isolated by VMWare,\" said Dave Aitel, CTO with security vendor Immunity, in an e-mail interview. \"VMWare ESX has been getting massively popular among hosting environments, so this sort of bug becomes a force multiplier if you can find a remote vulnerability in a [virtual machine].\" The DCHP flaws affect VMware's ACE, Player, Server, and Workstation products running on Linux and the Windows operating system, IBM said. VMware, a division of EMC, has also patched a fourth serious flaw in its software, discovered by McAfee. This one could also be used to run unauthorized code on a VMware machine, but it would be difficult for an attacker to exploit, said David Marcus, security research and communications manager with McAfee's Avert Labs. \"The attacker has to pass a whole bunch of parameters to the vulnerable service,\" he said. \"You have to be engaging in some behavior inside that VMware machine to get the [exploit code] to work. So it's certainly not easy to exploit.\" Still, Marcus agreed with Cross that virtual machines will get more attention from security researchers in the near future. \"If you have the ability to attack that virtual machine and get outside that virtual machine shell to the host OS, then you can gain control of every virtual machine that's on the box.\"", "Barking, repressive, unworkable ideas are clearly catching", "The New Orleans Saints managed to catch two long touchdown passes, even though their best receiver wasn't on the field. The Atlanta Falcons couldn't catch anything.", "Muggles are going to have to crane their necks to catch this Phoenix.", "(InfoWorld) - Intel said Monday it plans to buy a $218.5 million stake in the software firm VMware, bolstering the companies' existing agreement to run VMware's virtualization software on Intel's processors. Intel has been selling chips since November 2005 with specialized technology that allows enterprise IT managers to use a VMware application that treats each hardware platform as multiple \"virtual\" platforms. The companies also cooperate on their marketing and product development strategies. The chip giant will make the purchase through its investment arm, Intel Capital, subject to approval by U.S. antitrust regulators. The purchase will be part of an IPO, in which VMware plans to sell 10 percent of the company. VMware has not set a date for that sale, but it is expected to happen in the second half of 2007. In addition to purchasing stock, Intel will also gain the power to appoint one of its executives to the VMware board of directors. However, Intel will still hold a minority stake in the company with just 2.5 percent of VMware stock, according to an IPO registration form filed Monday by VMware with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The majority of VMware stock -- 89 percent -- will be held by EMC, the enterprise data storage company that acquired VMware in January 2004. That investment has paid off well as VMware has grown quickly. VMware revenue rose 82 percent last year, from $387.1 million in 2005 to $703.9 million in 2006. VMware says that growth rate will continue as currently just a small fraction of existing servers and business desktop and notebook PCs use virtualization software. At the same time, many companies use only a portion of their computing power because the latest multicore processors have allowed their processing power to grow faster than workloads. To solve that problem, businesses can use virtualization software to separate the operating system and application software from the underlying hardware. That allows them to combine multiple servers, storage, and networking units into pools of capacity they can allocate to wherever it is needed most, VMware said in the SEC form. Coming so close to VMware's stock offering, Intel's investment is likely to generate greater demand for the new stock, and for the virtualization industry in general, one analyst said. \"Intel likes to know it has a more personal stake instead of waiting for market forces to advance the application of virtualization software,\" said Richard Doherty, research director at The Envisioneering Group. \"It's not like that money was gathering dust on their shelf, but Intel's venture arm tends to trigger others to invest in an industry sector too.\" The purchase also underlines a growing problem for software firms that have historically charged their licensing fees per processor, Doherty said. In this age of quad-core chips and virtualized server networks, that model could spell trouble for enterprise software providers, who could see their customers doing more work with fewer seats of software. By taking a stake in VMware, Intel is indicating that it sees virtualization firms claiming some of that revenue. Also on Monday, VMware launched Lab Manager 2.5, a new version of its lab automation software. IT organizations use the application to efficiently manage their software development and testing labs, save money on IT management and deliver new software applications to market sooner, the company said. In a separate announcement, Borland Software said it would integrate Lab Manager 2.5 with its Lifecycle Quality Management application, SilkCentral Test Manager 2007. Together, those applications will allow software developers to test their applications across multiple configurations using virtual platforms, instead of having to own many separate, physical test labs, Borland said.", "Catch up with last month's SRI developments.", "Technology company Pegasus Wireless announced an unusual plan for investors to receive what the company described as a stock warrant for every 10 shares of stock. But there was a catch. But there was a catch.", "Chip tariff catches up with recent launches", "Catch up with last month's developments in socially responsible investing.", "The FTC is taking a closer look at Google's latest catch.", "Madhur Bhandarkar catches up with rediff readers.", "99 Cents Only catches up on its financial reports.", "This small biotech provides screens that can help catch cancer.", "Catch up with the latest news from the world of video gaming.", "Battery maker insists that the risk of devices' catching fire is low." ]

[ "A male walking three dalmatians along a palm-tree lined street." ]

[ "A cat walking three dalmatians along a palm-tree lined street.", "A man and some dogs are walking along a street with trees.", "A blonde girl walks down a sidewalk lined with palm trees.", "The man is by the palm tree.", "A man is walking with animals.", "A man walks along a street.", "Man walking with dogs.", "A man is walking with mammals.", "A man walks three dogs.", "A man is walking dogs outdoors.", "The man is walking his two dogs outside.", "A man is walking with his three dogs.", "A man trimming a palm tree.", "A guy and three dogs are walking.", "Lining the road are rows of royal palm trees.", "There are palm trees", "Three men are walking along the fence line.", "A woman drives her car along a tree-lined street.", "There's a man climbing a palm tree", "A guy is walking with dogs.", "The man is outdoors with his dogs.", "A woman walks down a street lined with cherry trees.", "A man is walking two dogs.", "A man and his dogs are outside.", "A man is walking along deserted streets.", "A man and his dogs walk.", "Soldiers, with guns, lined up near the palm trees.", "a man walks dogs", "Animals and a man are outside.", "A group walks along the street.", "The palm trees are on an island.", "three young overweight women in warm clothes are walking on a sidewalk lined with palm trees followed by two men" ]

[ "This story is part of an NPR nationwide analysis of states' revenue and budgets during the pandemic. In Michigan, the epidemic has caused revenue from sales and personal income taxes — the state's main sources of revenue — to plummet. After weeks of hand-wringing, state lawmakers passed a bipartisan plan to plug this year's dizzying $2.2 billion budget hole. The Democratic governor and her Republican counterparts in the state legislature announced they would use a patchwork of funds to stay afloat, including the majority of the $3 billion in coronavirus relief funding from the CARES Act and $350 million from the state's $1.2 billion rainy day fund. The lion's share of the state's cuts is coming from widespread hiring freezes and temporary layoffs in the state's workforce that have been ongoing since April, affecting an array of workers, from those in the state's groundwater and discharge permit program to those in food safety and quality assurance. But those cuts won't solve the more than $3 billion projected shortfall for the next fiscal year, beginning Oct. 1. \"Department budgets are already skinny, and there's simply no way to cut our way out of this just by looking at state budgets,\" said the state's budget director, Chris Kolb, in May. Michigan's leaders, like those in many other states, are looking to Congress for further relief. Abigail Censky is the politics and government reporter for WKAR in Lansing, Mich." ]

[ "Gilead Sciences, the drugmaker behind the experimental COVID-19 treatment remdesivir, spent more on lobbying Congress and the administration in the first quarter of 2020 than it ever has before, according to federal filings. The pharmaceutical company spent $2.45 million on lobbying in the first three months of the year, a 32% increase over the $1.86 million it spent in the first quarter of 2019. The first quarter is also when Congress drafted and passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act, which contained numerous provisions affecting the pharmaceutical industry, including funding for the development of vaccines and treatments in response to the pandemic. Early drafts of the legislation included a provision stipulating that COVID-19 vaccines, drugs and tests be affordable if they were developed with taxpayer funds. But the final bill included additional language that undercut that requirement. The lobbying spike also coincided with Gilead's ramping up clinical testing of remdesivir, an antiviral drug that has become the most closely watched COVID-19 treatment under development. On Friday, the Food and Drug Administration authorized the emergency use of remdesivir for patients hospitalized with severe cases of COVID-19. The move would make it easier for patients to receive the intravenous medicine. But the remdesivir supply is limited and Gilead said the U.S. government will coordinate its distribution to hospitals in cities most affected by COVID-19. The agency's decision came two days after results from two significant remdesivir trials became public. \"The data shows that remdisivir has a clear-cut, significant, positive effect in diminishing the time to recovery'' from COVID-19, said Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases, about a study his institute sponsored. He said the drug would become \"the standard of care.\" The same day, however, a study by Chinese researchers published in The Lancet found remdesivir didn't do better than a placebo when treating seriously ill COVID-19 patients on such measures as survival and time to clinical improvement. Gilead says its lobbying expenditures increased sharply last quarter because in 2019, the company joined the trade group PhRMA, or the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America. A portion of annual membership dues expected to go toward lobbying is typically added to first quarter lobbying disclosures, and this is the first year Gilead is paying dues for the full year, said company spokesman Chris Ridley. He said \"nearly all\" of the additional $590,000 over its first quarter 2019 lobbying went toward PhRMA dues. PhRMA declined to comment on this statement. PhRMA is considered one of the most influential trade groups on Capitol Hill, sending 183 lobbyists to advocates on the industry's behalf last year as Congress debated drug price bills that eventually stalled, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, a nonprofit that tracks campaign finance and lobbying. And the trade group's members spent even more. \"They see dollar signs ahead and they don't want the federal government to get in their way,\" says Ben Wakana, executive director of Patients for Affordable Drugs, an advocacy group. He said that he suspects Gilead is laying the groundwork to push back against congressional attempts to control the prices of COVID-19 drugs. Rep. Jan Schakowsky, D-Ill., says Gilead's track record makes her worry that remdesivir could be priced out of reach if the Food and Drug Administration clears the way for it to be used for COVID-19. \"We have seen one after another of these drugs come on the market, which are fantastic, and except that they end up being out of reach for most consumers,\" she said in an interview with NPR. \"We cannot tolerate as human beings, as Americans, for this to be an opportunity now for price gouging.\" Gilead's pricing of past drugs has drawn criticism. When it launched its hepatitis C cure in 2013, the cost was $1,000 a pill. And the company is in a legal battle with the federal government over patents for Truvada, an HIV medicine the FDA also approved for use in protecting people at high risk of infection. Truvada has a list price of more than $22,000 a year, according to GoodRx, a website that helps patients get discounts on drugs. The price has kept many patients from getting access to the drug, patient advocates say. The issue prompted a congressional hearing last year. Gilead is donating the first 1.5 million doses of remdesivir, but the company has declined to say what remdesivir's price might be after that. During a conference call with investors on Thursday about first quarter earnings, analysts asked Gilead CEO Daniel O'Day whether they could expect similar returns on remdesivir as they've seen with the company's other products. \"There is no rulebook out there, other than that we need to be very thoughtful about how we can make sure we provide access of our medi", "Two decades after effective antiretroviral drugs became widely available for HIV, African Americans still make up 43 percent of new HIV diagnoses. They've also died from COVID-19 at one and a half times the rate of white people. Longtime activist Phill Wilson has spent four decades fighting HIV/AIDS in Black communities. Unless we learn from our successes and failures with HIV/AIDS, he said, COVID-19 will be with communities of color for a long time. In 1981, Wilson was a young Black man living in Chicago when his then-partner, Chris Brownlie, went for a physical and learned he had swollen lymph nodes. \"And his doctor mentioned something about this strange disease that gay men in New York and Los Angeles were getting,\" Wilson said. \"And that was basically all he knew. And I mentioned that I, too, had swollen lymph nodes--that I had had them for a while.\" Shortly after, a softball teammate of theirs unexpectedly died of the same disease. The disease would come to be known as AIDS. After moving to Los Angeles in 1982, Wilson and Brownlie got involved with the AIDS hotline. The American public thought of HIV/AIDS as primarily affecting white gay men. Wilson said that was never an accurate picture of who was dying. \"Now, from the earliest days, you know, Black people represented 25% of the new cases in the U.S.,\" Wilson said. \"Even as early as then, Black women represented over 50% of women diagnosed with HIV and AIDS. So Black people were always disproportionately impacted, over-represented in disease, underrepresented in advocacy, underrepresented in resources dedicated to fighting the disease.\" Wilson founded the Black AIDS Institute in 1999. When it was founded, effective antiretroviral treatments were getting to the markets. Black America, however, was being left behind. The institute began mobilizing Black community leaders, media organizations and other groups to be the messengers for science, and effective disease prevention and treatment. Wilson was a critical early voice arguing that infectious diseases needed social solutions, not just biomedical ones, said Robert Fullilove, a professor of public health at Columbia University. Wilson did it as a member of a stigmatized group: Black, gay, HIV positive. Wilson, he said, \"found a way to break through all of that.\" \"You want to look at least as hard at the context that the patient is in before you start making judgments about what should be done and how it should be done,\" Fullilove said, describing what Wilson did. Wilson said that the institute's HIV/AIDS awareness campaigns met with success and with setbacks. He learned that breaking through the stigmas of homophobia and HIV positivity required meeting people where they were. Wilson realized that \"there is a fundamental understanding that we are a community...we survived the Middle Passage together. We survived three hundred years of slavery together. When we turn towards each other, we survive, and when we allow folks to tear us apart, we actually suffer tremendously.\" In short order, however, Wilson said, \"We were able to literally turn every Black media organization in America into an HIV/AIDS information delivery platform.\" One of the country's most serious failures in responding to HIV/AIDS was its failure to empower Black leaders to communicate knowledge to their communities, Wilson said. Inequitable health care access and existing medical mistrust also contributed. Those same factors are driving disproportionate rates of COVID-19 infection and death in Black communities, he said. Raniyah Copeland took over running the institute when Wilson retired three years ago. In addition to addressing HIV/AIDS, the institute is now partnering with the National Institute of Health to educate Black communities about coronavirus vaccines. Copeland says that learning from HIV is critical in ensuring that the Covid-19 vaccines are widely adopted. \"And so really putting the power back in individuals hands, particularly for Black communities, is really, really important,\" Copeland said. \"Mass COVID vaccination is not going to be successful unless we put the work into acknowledging medical mistrust and building up Black leaders across the country who can...help disseminate information directly to Black communities.\" The other key measure that public health officials need to understand, Copeland said, is to empower people of color to make their own medical decisions about the vaccine. That involves validating their existing mistrust of medical systems. \"And so, for us, it's about giving people information so they can make decisions for themselves,\" she said. \"So you don't trust the vaccine. Let's actually take a step back. First, we have to affirm, right? This is, you should feel this way, it is completely reasonable to not trust these systems. But then...let's figure out what information you need to make an informed decision.\" The HIV community's argument for eradicating both diseases is that the so", "Updated at 3:16 p.m. ET The U.S. budget deficit soared to a record $3.1 trillion, following a massive surge in government spending aimed at containing the economic damage from the coronavirus pandemic. The deficit for the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30 was more than triple that of fiscal 2019 and easily eclipsed the previous record of $1.4 trillion recorded in 2009. The Treasury Department said the surge was partly due to a drop in corporate and personal tax revenue, which fell by 1%. But the overwhelming factor driving the deficit higher was a huge increase in federal spending to prop up businesses and keep people employed after the economy nearly ground to a halt in March. \"The increase in the deficit from FY 2019 reflects the effect of COVID-19 on the economy and legislation that created or enhanced programs to protect public health and support hard-hit industries, small businesses, and American individuals and families,\" the Treasury statement said. The higher deficit comes just as Congress and the White House are negotiating a new coronavirus relief package. While lawmakers and the administration agree on the need for a bill, they remain far apart on the size. While Democrats have pushed for more than $2 trillion in aid, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has called that \"outlandish.\" The federal debt — the total owed by the government — has grown to more than $21 trillion, larger than the size of the U.S. economy. \"This astronomical level of debt is only going to get bigger,\" says Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. \"Borrowing to combat the pandemic and economic crisis makes sense. But that's no excuse for the massive tax cuts and spending increases enacted before the pandemic, nor the failure to control the rising costs of our health and retirement programs once normalcy returns,\" she added.", "Government officials are trying to figure out how to make better use of drugs that can keep people with COVID-19 out of the hospital. That's an urgent but daunting challenge in Michigan, where hospitals are struggling to keep up with a surge in new cases. Monoclonal antibodies can hold the coronavirus in check by mimicking the body's natural immune defenses. The drugs, produced by Regeneron and Eli Lilly, can keep people with mild to moderate COVID-19 out of the hospital and have emergency authorization for people over 65, as well as others with certain underlying health conditions. On Wednesday, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer urged people in her state who qualify for these drugs to seek them out, recalling that President Trump took the treatment after he fell ill with COVID-19. \"Regeneron's treatment very likely helped save the former president's life,\" the Democratic governor said at a news conference. \"It could help save yours, too.\" She said she's hoping to expand access to these drugs. \"We know, that as awareness increases, more people will take it, and we want to be sure we have the capacity to keep up with demand.\" That will be a tall order. About 30% of the roughly 8,000 people in Michigan who are being diagnosed daily with COVID-19 are potentially eligible. That's more than 2,000 people a day. Yet, the University of Michigan can provide this treatment for about 16 people a day, said Lindsay Petty, an infectious disease doctor who runs the program, which she added has administered more than any other facility in the state. Overall, she said her program has treated more than 700 people, out of a statewide total of 6,600 treatments since the drugs were authorized in November. The challenge is these drugs must be given by intravenous infusion. That takes 21 minutes or an hour, depending on the manufacturer, and people need to be observed for at least an hour afterward. Petty said many nurses who perform these infusions are already working nights and weekends. \"We can only expand to a certain amount before it definitely starts to impact our non-COVID patient care,\" she said. \"So, we are limited within the capacity of what we can do, and other sites are definitely limited in the same way.\" The treatment could potentially be given in emergency rooms, she said, but the current surge makes that unrealistic. \"All of our emergency departments in the state are overwhelmed.\" The best option would be to set up whole new sites to infuse these drugs, she said. At least there's plenty of the drugs to go around. That's because many hospitals and clinics around the country have not been aggressive in using monoclonal antibodies. And many people freshly diagnosed with COVID-19 haven't sought them out. Treatment got off to a slow start in part because the early studies weren't convincing. The National Institutes of Health's COVID-19 treatment guidelines initially said there was not enough information to know whether to recommend them or not. The guidelines have gradually been strengthened to the point that the guidelines now recommend their use. The challenge now is logistics. Dr. Peter Newcomer, chief clinical officer for University of Wisconsin Health, said the treatment never really took off at his facility. And now, with a low load of cases to begin with, his hospital is only treating a patient or two a day. Wisconsin hasn't seen the same surge as Michigan. \"It's just complicated,\" he said. \"If you show up to a clinic in a county, first we need you to be aware there's a treatment.\" Your health care provider also needs to know about it, and \"we need that provider to call. We need that call to go to the pharmacist who then reviews it. That pharmacist calls the patient back, convinces them to come in for an infusion. They've got to do that at the end of the day.\" A few institutions have found a way to launch robust programs. The Mayo Clinic reports that it has treated more than 5,100 patients since November. MedStar Health in Washington, D.C., said it has treated more than 1,500. The University of Michigan doesn't simply wait for people in need to ask for the treatment. Dr. Petty said the clinic identifies clients with positive COVID-19 tests and looks at their medical records to identify those who qualify. That includes people over 65, and those with underlying health conditions such as obesity, kidney disease and immune disorders. Treatment is most effective shortly after symptoms appear. But Petty said that process has bogged down during the surge, starting with a testing system that's overwhelmed and running behind. And with a flood of positive test results, it's more work to identify people who would qualify for the treatment, and a challenge to reach out to them quickly. Doctors need to treat 10 to 20 patients to keep one out of the hospital. In Michigan, for instance, Petty said 3.5% of people who get treated with the antibodies end up in the hospital, while she would expect about 7% of untreated people in ", "Health care workers are expected to be first in line to be offered a COVID-19 vaccine when one is available. It makes sense: Getting a safe, effective vaccine would help keep them and their patients healthy. Seeing doctors, nurses and medical aides getting COVID-19 vaccines would also set an example for the community. But the speed of COVID-19 vaccine development, along with concerns about political interference with the process, has left some health care workers on the fence about COVID-19 vaccines. So many health care workers are expressing concerns and anxiety about getting COVID-19 vaccines that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says addressing hesitancy in this group is a top priority. A CDC survey, shared at a public meeting of its vaccine advisory committee on Nov. 23, found that 63% of health care workers polled in recent months said they would get a COVID-19 vaccine. \"I'm really hesitant about it,\" says Kida Thompson, a family physician in El Paso, Texas. Her city is in the middle of a huge COVID-19 surge, and she believes that the broad adoption of a safe, effective COVID-19 vaccine will be key to ending the pandemic. But she's not 100% ready to get one herself. \"For the ones of us who are asking questions, there's just a lot of questions,\" she says. Thompson is a big fan of vaccines in general. \"The flu vaccine has been around for a while, its efficacy has been proven, the side effects have been proven, and they are usually minimal,\" she says. But the COVID-19 vaccine is entirely new. Previous vaccines have taken years to develop; this one came together in months. And the government's messaging around the vaccine — that it's the instant solution to the plague of 2020, and that it will be free for everyone — just sounds a little too good to be true, Thompson says. \"Fast and free just doesn't equate,\" she says. \"This whole thing has been politicized from Day 1, and there's a salesmanship going into it\" that makes her skeptical. It's not a population that public health experts initially thought would need much convincing, says Anuj Mehta, a pulmonologist at National Jewish Health in Denver and chair of Colorado's COVID-19 vaccine allocation committee. But reports of the Trump administration exerting political pressure on science agencies, along with claims that a COVID-19 vaccine could be available before the Nov. 3 election (it didn't happen), contributed to concerns that harmful shortcuts might have been taken with COVID-19 vaccines. Mehta says the fast vaccine development timeline is not, on its own, cause for concern. \"The speed is not because people were cutting corners, but because of the urgency and the number of people working together on it,\" he says. Vaccine development processes such as running clinical trials, evaluating data and building manufacturing plants, which typically happen one after another, were instead overlapped. And now that the election has passed, concerns over political interference in the vaccine will likely subside, Mehta says. Giving COVID-19 vaccines to health care workers is intended to keep them healthy. \"We want to be sure our health care workers are safe so they can protect their patients from disease, and that they can be protected and do their work,\" says Yvonne Maldonado, a pediatrician at Stanford's Lucile Packard Children's Hospital and a vaccine hesitancy researcher. However, policies pushed earlier in the pandemic seeded doubts among health care workers about whether their health and safety were consistently prioritized. \"This is the same population that was told earlier this year that they should just go battle COVID-19 wearing a bandanna or a scarf,\" says Michelle Mahon, a registered nurse who represents National Nurses United, a union with more than 150,000 members across the country. Some health care workers have voiced concerns about safety and potential side effects from COVID-19 vaccines. They want to see clear data on safety and efficacy before they sign on to get a new vaccine, Mahon says. \"It's a minority of people that are saying absolutely no way [to getting a COVID-19 vaccine],\" says Dr. Marci Drees, hospital epidemiologist for ChristianaCare and a liaison to the CDC's federal vaccine advisory committee. \"I think the majority of people really just want to know more.\" Thompson reads medical journals and follows vaccine news closely, and she says a lot of facts just aren't available yet. \"I would legitimately still need convincing,\" she says. But she says she can be swayed. There have been calls by health care experts for the drug companies to release vaccine trial data publicly, and if they do, Thompson says then she'll be able to judge for herself whether a vaccine is safe. If her friends who are doctors choose to get the vaccine, that could convince her, too. And, even though Thompson has grown wary of government officials, she does believe in the integrity of at least one top infectious disease expert: Dr. Anthony F", "It may seem counterintuitive, but health officials say that even after you get vaccinated against COVID-19, you still need to practice the usual pandemic precautions, at least for a while. That means steering clear of crowds, continuing to wear a good mask in public, maintaining 6 feet or more of distance from people outside your household and frequently washing your hands. We talked to infectious disease specialists to get a better understanding of why. Why do I have to continue with precautions after I've been vaccinated? In the short run, it will take some time for the vaccine's effectiveness to build up. (Effectiveness is defined as not getting sick with COVID-19. If 100 vaccinated people are exposed to a virus and 50 of them subsequently develop symptoms, that vaccine is 50% effective.) With the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, a study published in The New England Journal of Medicine in December found that protection doesn't start until 12 days after the first shot and that it reaches 52% effectiveness a few weeks later. A week after the second vaccination, the effectiveness rate hits 95%. In its application for authorization, Moderna reported a protection rate of 51% two weeks after the first immunization and 94% two weeks after the second dose. \"That's not 100%,\" notes Dr. Paul Offit, an infectious disease specialist and director of the Vaccine Education Center at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, as well as a member of the Food and Drug Administration's vaccine advisory board. \"That means one out of every 20 people who get this vaccine could still get moderate to severe infection.\" So, reason No. 1 to continue with precautions is to protect yourself. Can I spread the virus to others even if I'm fully vaccinated? This is an important question, but scientists studying the shots' effectiveness don't have an answer yet. And for public health experts, that lack of knowledge means you should act like the answer is yes. Here's why: Before approving the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines, the FDA asked the vaccine manufacturers only whether their products protect people from COVID-19 symptoms. They didn't ask if the vaccines stop people who've been vaccinated from nevertheless spreading the virus to others. The emergency authorizations by the FDA that have allowed distribution of the two new vaccines cite only their ability to keep you — the person vaccinated — from becoming severely sick with COVID-19. In the words of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, \"Experts need to understand more about the protection that COVID-19 vaccines provide before deciding to change recommendations on steps everyone should take to slow the spread of the virus that causes COVID-19.\" The data to answer the question of whether vaccinated people can still spread the virus are just now being collected. How can you spread a virus if you've been vaccinated? All the COVID-19 vaccines and vaccine candidates under consideration for use in the U.S. rely on bits of genetic material or virus protein — not anything that could grow into an active SARS-CoV-2 virus, the virus that causes the disease COVID-19. The concern instead with the COVID-19 vaccine is about whether you might still have an asymptomatic infection despite immunization — without symptoms, but able to shed virus. Here's how that might work: Let's say you've been vaccinated and you encounter SARS-CoV-2. You're much less likely to develop symptoms — that's clear. But your immune system may not fight off the virus completely — it might allow some viruses to survive and reproduce and get expelled from your nose or mouth in a breath, cough or sneeze. Remember: No one can be sure yet if this actually happens or if it happens often enough that you'd be emitting enough active virus to sicken someone else. Why didn't the FDA demand information on infectivity before authorizing the first two vaccines? In a word, time. Dr. Larry Corey is a virologist at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle and helps lead the COVID-19 Prevention Network, a federally funded consortium of vaccine experts who've been testing vaccines. \"We wanted to get an answer quickly,\" Corey says, and to do so required as simple an experimental protocol as possible. \"You can't hang a lot of bells and whistles on a trial,\" he says. Even though the pre-authorization studies of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines were as streamlined as possible, they still required quite a lot of work. Each of the 75,000 volunteers had to come into a clinic; get a test for the coronavirus; get either a vaccine or a placebo shot (without knowing which they'd received); return for a second shot; and come back to the clinic for testing anytime in the interim if they showed any symptoms of having caught the virus. Adding in even more coronavirus tests along the way to see if the vaccinated volunteers had picked up or were transmitting the virus would have delayed the initial results considerably, Corey says. And in the midst of the", "Anton Basenko is worried. He fears all the hard-won progress made in fighting the AIDS epidemic is on a collision course with the urgent needs of the coronavirus pandemic. \"For people with HIV, it's double, triple the crisis since the start of the lockdown,\" says the Ukrainian AIDS advocate. \"I have a bad feeling that organizations and governments are so concentrated on COVID that they are completely forgetting about HIV. For marginalized people, it's a question of life and death.\" Basenko is no stranger to health crises. After years of injection drug use, he contracted HIV (which he now lives with) and hepatitis C (which he's now cured). He started opioid substitution therapy in 2004. Today, he works for the Alliance for Public Health in Ukraine as a coordinator for harm reduction programs that help IV drug users get clean needles or safer alternative drugs like methadone. On July 10, he led a session at the 23rd (virtual) International AIDS Conference on the impact of COVID-19 on AIDS. Suddenly, he and other AIDS advocates, researchers, doctors and patients have a 40-year-old epidemic and a brand new pandemic to worry about. \"The concern is that AIDS is already being set back by COVID-19,\" says Dr. Monica Gandhi, director of the University of California San Francisco Center for AIDS Research. At just about the time in January that Gandhi and other scientists, doctors and patient advocates were submitting abstracts for the AIDS conference, ominous reports were coming out of Wuhan, China, that a cluster of pneumonia cases were caused by a novel coronavirus. The disease triggered by the virus became known as COVID-19. Within weeks, it began spreading around the world and just as quickly dominated the world's attention. AIDS experts have a litany of fears about how the pandemic could affect continuing progress in the fight against AIDS. Perhaps the biggest worry is that patients won't be able to get the AIDS drugs they need because closed borders can interfere with drug shipments; or because quarantines have slowed down work in industries including drug manufacturing; or because economic losses will threaten funding for AIDS prevention programs from some governments. The drug shortage concern is overriding because, while AIDS pharmaceutical treatment is highly effective, it comes with a catch, says Dr. Roger Shapiro, associate professor of immunology and infectious disease at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Patients on antiretroviral therapy, or ART, must stick to their drug regimen every single day. \"Forever,\" Shapiro says. But on July 6, WHO reported results of a survey showing that 73 countries are at risk of running out of antiretroviral therapy drugs and that 24 countries report critically low supplies. In the best of circumstances, patients on ART can see the amount of the AIDS virus in their blood go down to levels no longer detectable by tests. Of the world's nearly 38 million people living with HIV, more than 25 million are on ART, according to the World Health Organization. They can live fairly normal lives and are no longer at risk of spreading the disease, Shapiro says. But if they stop treatment, the virus will likely mutate in ways that can lead to changes in certain enzymes. The mutated HIV can block AIDS drugs from working against the HIV enzymes they were designed to target. This can happen in a matter of days or weeks. And then, if patients try to restart the same ART regimen, it may no longer be effective. Not only that, but if they spread the mutated virus to another person, that person will be infected with the drug-resistant strain of HIV. \"This is the biggest problem with HIV,\" Shapiro says. \"You need a constant supply of drug. If countries cannot get ART, then that's when the really dire scenario becomes possible.\" It would be like going back to the old days of AIDS, he says, before successful treatment was widely available. A modeling group set up by WHO and UNAIDS have estimated that if COVID-19-related interruptions in antiretroviral therapy for AIDS patients last for six months, it will result in 500,000 additional deaths in sub-Saharan Africa alone. It's not just drugs for treatment that are at risk. The same drugs are used to help prevent infection in people at high risk. Researchers at Fenway Health, a Boston community health center, examined electronic records of its patients in March and April of 2020 and found a drop in the number of people refilling prescriptions for preventive drugs, called PrEP, or pre-exposure prophylaxis. And 72% fewer than expected new patients started PrEP during those two months, probably because people are afraid to go to health care centers, says Gandhi. That's bad news, because fewer people at risk of contracting HIV will be taking preventive drugs, says Shapiro. Though there might be a silver lining to lockdown orders and social distancing, he says. \"When people are social distancing, there may be less HIV transmission,\"", "Key Priorities: COVID-19 Joe Biden Testing: Improve testing capacity and accessibility, PPE: Expand access to personal protective equipment, or PPE. Vaccine: Establish a plan for effectively producing and safely distributing a vaccine. Race: Address disproportionate effects of COVID-19 on communities of color. Read details of Biden's plans below. Donald Trump Vaccine: Begin distribution of a COVID-19 vaccine by the end of the year and have 300 million doses by January 2021. Read details of Trump's plans below. Biden's Plans For COVID-19 Biden's COVID-19 response plan advocates for increased use of federal funds to expand testing capability and access to PPE and to an eventual treatment and vaccine. Unlike Trump, Biden wants to use the full authority of the Defense Production Act to create additional personal protective equipment, which includes masks and face shields. Biden's plan would also increase drive-by testing twofold and calls for the creation of at-home tests and instant tests. He would additionally allocate increased federal aid to state and local governments, schools and local businesses affected by the disease. As for vaccine production, Biden would put $25 billion toward the manufacturing and distribution of an eventual vaccine. He does not explicitly call for a vaccine by a certain date. Biden would also create a COVID-19 Racial and Ethnic Disparities Task Force, meant to address the communities disproportionately affected by the coronavirus, an initiative started by his running mate California Sen. Kamala Harris in the Senate. After the pandemic ends, the task force would morph into an Infectious Disease Racial Disparities Task Force. The plan also advocates for a return to Obama-era pandemic response procedures and calls for a repaired relationship with the World Health Organization, from which Trump withdrew in July. Biden pledges to rejoin on Day 1 as president. Trump's Plans For COVID-19 Trump's campaign has not released a full COVID-19 action plan for his second term, even after the president himself contracted the coronavirus. His agenda for battling the virus centers on having a vaccine widely available by the end of the year. Health experts, including those in the federal government, say that timeline is highly unlikely. Trump has promised that during a second term, he will hold China \"fully accountable\" for the spread of the virus. The White House has pledged to create 300 million doses of a vaccine by January 2021. The plan, published by the Department of Health and Human Services, outlines that \"steps will proceed simultaneously\" as government-funded companies continue with their research and trials of possible vaccines. As a part of this effort to accelerate the process, the government is supporting the development of possible vaccine candidates before they've demonstrated effectiveness — so that once something is proven to work, distribution could happen more quickly. Trump has also touted his own treatment and has vowed to make the drugs he had widely available, though it is unclear whether or when that could happen. The makers of his therapies have applied for emergency use authorization. Trump has used some of his authority under the Defense Production Act, but critics argue that the federal government should have used the powers of that law more broadly to direct the production of needed medical supplies. The White House has also tasked an interagency committee, led by Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson, with looking for ways the administration can address the pandemic's disproportionate impact on communities of color. See more of the major presidential candidates' key policy agendas here. NPR White House reporter Ayesha Rascoe and political correspondent Asma Khalid contributed to this report.", "This episode was recorded and published as part of this podcast's former 'Coronavirus Daily' format.A new coronavirus vaccine candidate shows encouraging results. It's early, but preliminary data shows it appears to be eliciting the kind of immune response capable of preventing disease. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell has been signaling that more government spending might be necessary to prevent long-term economic damage. As the pandemic becomes more political, researchers are concerned debates over masks, social distancing and reopening the economy are inflaming an already divided nation. Incidents of violence are rare, but concerning to experts.Plus, a 102-year-old woman who survived the influenza of 1918, the Great Depression, World War II and now, COVID-19.Find and support your local public radio stationSign up for 'The New Normal' newsletter", "Updated at 2:42 p.m. ET President-elect Joe Biden will take office in January with a lot of promises to keep. He has pledged to enact new policies swiftly that veer the U.S. off President Trump's current path. Biden ran a heavily policy-focused campaign, releasing dozens of lengthy and ambitious plans ranging from large-scale economic and environmental initiatives to broad actions on racial justice, education and health care. A significant amount of Biden's agenda also centers on reversing or updating positions taken by the Trump administration, especially on immigration and foreign policy. Biden heads into office with strategies to address the COVID-19 crisis and the search for a vaccine as well. The sheer volume of Biden's plans could make it a challenge to execute them all. On immigration alone, he has proposed more than a dozen initiatives to complete within 100 days of taking office, a feat that could prove difficult to execute. As the president-elect sorts through which priorities to push first, he'll need to consider that he is likely to face a divided Congress. Control of the Senate is still up in the air, with two Georgia runoff elections set for January, but Republicans are poised to maintain control. Democrats also have a slimmer majority in the House of Representatives, where the GOP made gains contrary to most party leaders' and analysts' predictions. The political dynamic on Capitol Hill means Biden may have to pull back from some policy proposals that many on the left of his party have been pushing on health care and the environment. He will likely need to focus more immediately on issues that could attract bipartisan support, such as providing COVID-19 relief and improving U.S. infrastructure. NPR has taken a look through some of Biden's promises and short-term goals for his presidency, some of which are laid out on a new transition website. Here's what might be coming: What Biden says he'll do on Day 1 or beforehand COVID-19: Assemble a coronavirus task force during his presidential transition Days after becoming president-elect, Biden announced a team of advisers that will spearhead his pandemic response once he takes office. The task force will be led by Dr. David Kessler, a former Food and Drug Administration commissioner; former Surgeon General Vivek Murthy; and Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith, an associate professor of medicine and epidemiology at Yale School of Medicine. \"The advisory board will help shape my approach to managing the surge in reported infections; ensuring vaccines are safe, effective, and distributed efficiently, equitably, and free; and protecting at-risk populations,\" Biden said in a statement Monday morning. COVID-19: Push for immediate coronavirus legislation As part of this initiative, the president-elect has also promised to begin working on a new coronavirus aid package before officially taking office, vowing to coordinate with state governors, mayors and other local politicians. \"I'll ask the new Congress to put a bill on my desk by the end of January with all the resources to see how both our public health and economic response can be seen through the end,\" he said at an event in late October. Biden's proposed COVID-19 response plan calls for expanding coronavirus testing resources as well as for increasing the country's capacity to make personal protective equipment by leveraging the Defense Production Act. He has also backed legislation that would create a separate COVID-19 Racial and Ethnic Disparities Task Force, which Vice President-elect Kamala Harris proposed in the Senate in the spring. As part of a COVID-19 relief package, Biden has in the past called for at least $10,000 in student loan debt to be canceled for all Americans. COVID-19: Release a vaccine distribution plan Biden has said he'll start working to install \"an effective distribution plan\" for a potential COVID-19 vaccine on the first day of his presidency. His plan would spend $25 billion on vaccine production and disbursement, and calls for an eventual vaccine to be free for all Americans. Biden has expressed skepticism over the Trump administration's promises to provide a vaccine quickly. Trump has said he will have a vaccine ready for distribution by the end of 2020. COVID-19: Listen to science by rejoining WHO and keeping Fauci as a close adviser As president, Biden says he will mend the U.S. relationship with the World Health Organization, rejoining the body on his first day in office. Trump pulled out of WHO over the summer. Biden also said that he plans \"immediately\" to ask Dr. Anthony Fauci, the government's top infectious disease expert, to stay in his post as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, a job he's had since 1984. Trump had hinted that if he won the election, he might fire Fauci. Economy: Reverse Trump's corporate tax cut Biden has pledged that on his first day as president he will raise corporate income taxes to 28% — compared with ", "Updated Wednesday 1:20 p.m. ET Seriously ill COVID-19 patients are starting to fill up hospital beds in record numbers, and health care workers are bracing for even more patients to come in the wake of skyrocketing coronavirus infections. But the burden on hospitals is not evenly spread. Some communities, particularly in the West and Midwest are particularly hard-hit. As of Wednesday, nearly 62,000 COVID-19 patients were hospitalized around the country, surpassing the highs of the midsummer and spring surges. This is double the numbers hospitalized as of late September. \"We have legitimate reason to be very, very concerned about our health system at a national level,\" says Lauren Sauer, an assistant professor of emergency medicine at Johns Hopkins University who studies hospital surge capacity. The spring and summer waves of COVID-19 hospitalizations were concentrated largely in a handful of cities in the Northeast and parts of the South. With the virus now surging across the country, experts warn that the impact of this next wave of hospitalizations will be even more devastating and protracted. \"I fear that we're going to have multiple epicenters,\" says Dr. Mahshid Abir, an emergency physician at the University of Michigan and researcher at the Rand Corp. who has developed a model that helps hospitals manage surge capacity. If that happens, Abir warns that there won't be flexibility to shuffle around resources to the places in need because everywhere will be overwhelmed. The impact varies state by state with certain areas showing much more rapid increases in hospitalizations. As of Monday, hospitalizations are rising in 47 states, according to data collected by The COVID Tracking Project, and 22 states are seeing their highest numbers of COVID-19 hospitalizations since the pandemic began. Where are hospitals at risk of maxing out? With the numbers growing nearly everywhere, the key question for hospital leaders and policymakers is, when is a community on the brink of having more patients than it can handle? In parts of the Midwest and the West, hospitals are already brushing up against their capacity to deliver care. Some are struggling to find room for patients, even in large urban hospitals that have more beds. But the surge in hospitalizations is not evenly spread — and hospitals' capacity for weathering case surges varies greatly. One way to gauge the growing stress on a health care system is by tracking the share of hospital beds occupied by COVID-19 patients. The federal department of Health and Human Services tracks and publishes this data at the state (but not the local) level. Several experts NPR spoke to say that, though imperfect, this is one of the best metrics communities have to work with. Though there's not a fixed threshold that applies to all hospitals, generally speaking, once COVID-19 hospitalizations exceed 10% of all available beds, that signals an increasing risk that the health care system could soon be overwhelmed, explains Sauer. \"We start to pay attention above 5%,\" says Sauer. \"Above that, 10% is where we think, 'Perhaps we have to start enacting surge strategies and crisis standards of care in some places.'\" Crisis standards of care is a broad term for how to prioritize medical treatment when resources are scarce. In the most extreme cases, that can lead to rationing of care based on a patient's chance of survival. The latest data from HHS shows that in 18 states — mostly in the Midwest — COVID-19 hospitalizations have already climbed above 10%. Seven states are over 15%, including North Dakota and South Dakota, which are now over 20%. Hospital capacity is flexible ... until it's not The percentage of hospital beds taken up by COVID-19 patients does not tell a complete story about hospital capacity, says Sauer, but it's a starting point. Hospital capacity is not so much a static number, but an ever-shifting balance of resources. \"It's space, staff and stuff, and you need all three, and if you don't have one, it doesn't matter if you have the other two,\" says Abir. The level of COVID-19 hospitalizations that would be a crisis in one place might not be in another. Still, a growing share of beds occupied by COVID-19 patients can be a strong signal that the health care system is headed for trouble. COVID-19 patients can be more labor intensive because health care workers have to follow intricate protocols around personal protective equipment and infection control. And some of the patients take up ICU space. \"When the numbers go up like that, particularly for critical care, that strains the system pretty significantly,\" says Abir. \"This is a scarce resource. Critical care nurses are scarce. Ventilators are scarce. Respiratory therapists are scarce.\" In Utah, where the share of hospitalized COVID-19 patients is about 8%, state health officials have already warned that hospitals may soon be forced to ration care because of limited ICU space. There is no \"magic number\" to indicate when ", "When Pooja Sharma, 35, lost her husband, Manmohan, to COVID-19 during India's deadly second wave, she was devastated. \"After a few days of battling COVID-19, my husband realized he wasn't going to make it,\" Sharma says. \"He asked me to take care of our daughters, then he left me all alone in the world.\" Manmohan, who died April 17, was the main provider of their family. He had a job ushering people into clothing shops on commission. Without him, Sharma, who lives in Delhi, wasn't sure how she and their two daughters, 12 and 14, were going to live. She didn't have a job and couldn't read. And she was an orphan so she didn't have parents who could help her. The Indian media are calling women such as Sharma \"COVID widows.\" These are women who have lost a spouse — often the sole breadwinner of the family — during the pandemic. These widows find themselves saddled with additional financial burdens such as hospital bills, while they grieve the loss of their partner. The government and nonprofit groups are now trying to support these women, especially those from low-income backgrounds, but researchers say it's not enough. India has had more than 30 million COVID-19 cases and 411,000 deaths. More than 200,000 of those deaths took place during the second wave alone, which began in April and peaked in May. It's hard to measure how many women have been widowed during this second wave, says Rupsa Mallik, director of programs and innovations at CREA, or Creating Resources for Empowerment in Action, one of the largest women's rights organizations in India. She works with women's nonprofits across South Asia and has been following India's COVID-19 widow situation. \"There is no data on the number of COVID widows in this country,\" she says. The national government does not provide gender-specific data on COVID-19 deaths. But some parts of India, including Bangalore and Pune, have data that shows the mortality rate during India's second wave in their regions has had a greater toll on men – who could be husbands, fathers and breadwinners — than women. Knowing how many COVID-19 widows there are in India is crucial for the groups that want to help them, Mallik says. \"How does one target a policy toward a section of society if you don't have data?\" Cash aid to the rescue? Despite the lack of information, national and local governments are setting up programs to help these women. On May 30, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that his administration would implement measures to protect families who had lost their primary earning member, regardless of gender, to COVID-19. That includes a pension equivalent to 90% of the deceased person's average daily wages as well as insurance benefits. Eligible citizens can apply now for payments. Several state governments in India are also pitching in. The municipal organization of the city of Navi Mumbai, the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corp., announced in June that COVID-19 widows would receive a one-time compensation of about $2,020, plus about $1,346 for any equipment that can be used for self-employment, such as a sewing machine to start a tailoring business. And the state of Assam announced in June that it would give one-time financial assistance of about $3,357 to COVID-19 widows. These are modest sums — in India, a family living below the poverty line usually has an annual income of about $2,416. Mallik says the cash can be helpful for very poor families who have lost their breadwinner — but there are several concerns. \"For a really disadvantaged family with low literacy levels, it is highly likely that male members of the family might try to take control of the money. In patriarchal households, there will definitely be some appropriation of money.\" To qualify for government support, widows must show a marriage certificate and a death certificate stating that the cause of death was COVID-19. These requirements create another roadblock, Mallik says. \"Even when deaths are registered, they might not be registered as COVID deaths\" due to factors such as poor record-keeping. \"So disadvantaged families are not able to access the financial assistance.\" Job training to survive The widows – especially from the poorest backgrounds — need more than just cash, says Parmod Kumar, director of the Institute for Social and Economic Change, a think tank based in Hyderabad that helps women in rural areas through agricultural development. Nonprofit organizations are now providing a variety of resources for the COVID-19 widows, Mallik says. \"They are filling in the gaps in areas where the government is lacking.\" These include grief counseling and mental health services. But there's also a pressing need for practical support, which charities are also providing. \"The COVID widows need to be independent,\" Kumar says. \"They need to start employment if they want to support their families. Skilling these widows [through job training] will help them in the long run.\" Sharma now works with a nonprofit group ", "Editor's note: This is an excerpt of Planet Money's newsletter. You can sign up here. COVID-19 has been a massive disaster. But it has also been like a massive natural experiment. During the last nine months, we've learned a lot about the coronavirus, its economic effects and effective interventions to help manage the pain of another wave. So we decided to sum up some of the economic research. Poverty ... fell? In April, the unemployment rate hit 14.7% — the most disastrous figure since the Great Depression. Over 20 million Americans had lost their jobs or been furloughed. And yet something crazy happened — the national poverty rate actually declined. That's one of the findings of a study by economists Jeehoon Han, Bruce D. Meyer and James X. Sullivan, who crunched data from the Census Bureau about income and poverty during the coronavirus pandemic. They found that the poverty rate fell from 10.9% in January and February to 9.4% in April, May and June. They credit the decline to government action, especially with the CARES Act, which massively increased unemployment benefits and sent large checks to middle- and low-income Americans. Had the government not done this, they found, poverty would have risen over 2.5 percentage points. Since the expiration of some of the federal government's assistance this summer, the poverty rate has been ticking back up, erasing the decline during the first phase of the pandemic. The mighty are getting mightier A few months ago, we published a newsletter that explained why the crisis was making powerful corporations even more powerful. As consumers sheltered in place, they cut spending at small businesses and shifted more spending online — benefiting megacorporations like Amazon. On top of that, the government seemed to be buttressing big corporations while leaving many small and midsize businesses scrambling. But another factor has been playing in the big guys' favor: recruiting opportunities. Economists Shai Bernstein, Richard R. Townsend and Ting Xu analyzed data from AngelList Talent, a job search site for tech and startup jobs, to see how the pandemic has affected job searches. They found that \"job seekers shifted their searches toward larger firms and away from early-stage ventures\" and were more open to lower salaries and a broader range of positions. When it comes to recruiting talent, they found, this shift has benefited large, more established companies while hurting smaller upstarts. They conclude that this \"flight to safety\" of qualified job seekers during the downturn has hurt entrepreneurship and competition. Office comeback? According to Gallup, back in April, a jaw-dropping 51% of workers reported they were \"always\" working remotely. A cool study by Steve Cicala shows how this could be seen in electricity use, with commercial and industrial buildings — where we have traditionally worked — using between 12% and 14% less electricity than they would have during normal times and residential buildings using an average of 10% more. But the remote-work wave is already receding. Gallup's most recent survey, from mid-September, found the share of people who report \"always\" working remotely has shrunk to 33%. Expect power bills at office parks and skyscrapers to start climbing. COVID-19 is changing minds Economists Alex Rees-Jones, John D'Attoma, Amedeo Piolatto and Luca Salvadori conducted a survey of over 2,500 Americans to see how COVID-19 has affected their opinions of government programs. They found \"real and perceived exposure to the consequences of COVID-19 strongly predict support for long-term expansions to unemployment insurance and government-provided healthcare.\" This is true, they found, even when controlling for people's political beliefs and demographic characteristics. Rees-Jones says, \"Compared to the average survey respondent, a respondent facing a very large number of county deaths (more than 95% of other respondents) is 6.3 percentage points more likely to support long-term expansions to unemployment insurance and 5.8 percentage points more likely to support long-term expansions to government-provided healthcare.\" In short, it seems that COVID-19 has increased political support for bigger government. PPP didn't work — or did it? The Paycheck Protection Program was the federal government's big effort to save small businesses. It provided grants and loans to help them survive the pandemic. Economists are still debating whether PPP was effective. Some studies, including one by Raj Chetty, John N. Friedman, Nathaniel Hendren and Michael Stepner and another by Christopher Neilson, John Eric Humphries and Gabriel Ulyssea, found little or no evidence that the program helped save jobs at small businesses. Others, including one by Robert P. Bartlett III and Adair Morse and another by Alexander W. Bartik, Zoe B. Cullen, Edward L. Glaeser, Michael Luca, Christopher T. Stanton and Adi Sunderam, found that the program helped increase the probability that small bu", "Updated at 1 p.m. ET, Tuesday, Dec. 15 As several COVID-19 vaccines head toward authorization in the U.S., questions about vaccine access are coming up, too: Who is slated to get the vaccine first? Why? And when can I get one? At the national level, vaccine distribution is organized by Operation Warp Speed, the government's initiative to support the development of COVID-19 vaccines and treatments. The federal government has invested in and pre-purchased hundreds of millions of vaccine doses from several of the drug companies working on vaccines against COVID-19. Two vaccines — one developed jointly by the drug companies Pfizer and BioNTech and the other by Moderna — are already either authorized, in the case of Pfizer's, or under review this week by the Food and Drug Administration in the case of Moderna's. If FDA scientists and advisers determine that both vaccines are safe and effective, they could authorize them both for emergency use in the U.S. very soon. Assuming that happens, government officials say, they'll be ready to distribute 20 million doses this month — that's enough to fully vaccinate 10 million people, as each vaccine requires two doses for maximum protection. The federal government has pledged to eventually provide COVID-19 immunization free of charge to any of the 330 million people in the U.S. who want to participate. In the first few weeks and months after authorization, however, the supply of any vaccine is expected to be limited. So the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, via an independent advisory committee, has provided guidance to state and local officials on how those initial doses should be allocated. Their goals are to use COVID-19 vaccines to reduce severe illness and death from the disease and to minimize disruptions to society and the economy — by keeping the U.S. food, health care, transport and other essential systems up and running. The CDC recommends prioritizing health care facility workers who could get exposed to COVID-19 on the job — including doctors, nurses, nursing home aides, cafeteria workers and janitorial staff. The staff and residents of long-term care facilities (such as nursing homes and assisted living facilities) should also be prioritized in the first phase of vaccination, the CDC says, because that population accounts for only 6% of cases but 40% of COVID-19 deaths. Other groups that the CDC says it is considering prioritizing include other essential workers, people 65 years old or above and people who have underlying medical conditions (such as cancer, obesity or kidney disease) that put them at higher risk of getting seriously ill from COVID-19. A federal advisory committee to the CDC will vote on recommendations about the order in which these groups should be offered vaccines, as more information about the safety and efficacy of the various COVID-19 vaccines in different groups becomes available. As for when a vaccine will be available to you, that depends on many factors, such as whether you fit into specific priority groups and how many different vaccines (and doses) become available and when. It also depends on where you live — each state will make the ultimate decision on how to distribute the vaccine doses that come its way. Already, state officials have been working to enroll hospitals, doctors' offices and pharmacies as COVID-19 vaccine providers and have submitted preliminary distribution plans to the CDC. In a best-case scenario, the federal government says, it may be possible for vaccines to be widely available by spring of 2021.", "New coronavirus vaccines will help the world's economy bounce back in 2021, but the gains will depend on how the vaccines are distributed, among other factors, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development says. In its new projection, the group says global GDP should rise by 4.2% next year, after falling 4.2% in 2020. \"The recovery would be stronger if vaccines are rolled out fast, boosting confidence and lowering uncertainty,\" the organization says in its newly released OECD Economic Outlook, December 2020. But the pandemic's fallout could bring lasting changes to the world economy, according to the forecast. For instance, Asia will see the strongest growth, while Western nations that are still struggling to control the coronavirus will fare worse. \"China, which started recovering earlier, is projected to grow strongly, accounting for over one-third of world economic growth in 2021,\" OECD Chief Economist Laurence Boone said in the report. \"The contribution of Europe and North America to global growth will remain smaller than their weight in the global economy,\" Boone adds, describing an uneven recovery. The forecast also predicts continued struggles for industries such as hospitality and transportation, posing a particular challenge for countries that rely on tourism. Boone's editorial introducing the report is titled \"Turning hope into reality\" — reflecting both the optimism brought by promising new vaccines, and the uncertainty of how quickly conditions will improve. COVID-19 has killed nearly 1.5 million people worldwide, and more than 63 million cases have been reported, according to Johns Hopkins University. \"For the first time since the pandemic began, there is now hope for a brighter future,\" Boone said, citing advances in vaccines and treatments. The economic forecast from the Paris-based organization of 37 highly developed, mostly Western nations, warns that the recovery could be limited if vaccines are delayed, if governments can't control new outbreaks or if they fail to \"learn lessons from the first wave\" of COVID-19 that ravaged economies worldwide. In its section on the U.S., the OECD predicts the unemployment rate will gradually fall but will remain higher than before the pandemic struck. \"A general rollout of an effective vaccine in the latter half of 2021 will allow an easing of containment measures and strengthen confidence\" in the U.S., the report states. But it adds that the U.S. economy urgently needs more help from the federal government. \"Massive monetary and fiscal responses have protected households and businesses,\" the report says. \"However, in the absence of a new substantial fiscal stimulus program, a severe fiscal cliff would result in a rapid withdrawal of support to households, massive layoffs and a wave of bankruptcies (this is assumed to be avoided in the projection).\" A full economic recovery will require more than a massive vaccine effort, the OECD says, citing the need for strategic health policies and government financial support for people and businesses laid low by months of shutdowns and safety restrictions. \"Small businesses, which have been badly hit by the crisis, need grants, not more debt, in order to survive,\" the OECD says. \"Grants can help them adapt, by exploiting digital technology for instance, and investing for the future.\" Delays in vaccination deployment, problems controlling new virus outbreaks and governments that fail to learn lessons from the first wave would weaken the recovery outlook, the OECD says. The group's report says governments should remain focused on four main policy areas to help minimize the pandemic's financial impact: supporting children who have been forced out of their schools, undermining their future prospects; helping small businesses; strengthening public health policies; and supporting people who have lost their jobs and face reduced opportunities.", "It's a situation nobody wants to imagine: a major earthquake, flood, fire or other natural disaster strikes while the U.S. is grappling with the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. \"Severe weather season, flooding — those things don't stop because we're responding to COVID-19,\" says Joyce Flinn, director of the Iowa Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management. Just over a week ago more than 20 tornadoes spun across rural Iowa, damaging apartment buildings and displacing residents. And Flinn's state, like many in the U.S. heartland, is still repairing levees and recovering from unprecedented flooding last year. While a repeat of that event is unlikely, federal forecasters warn that 23 states from the Upper Plains to the Gulf Coast could see major to moderate flooding this spring. Abnormally warm waters in the Gulf of Mexico are fueling concerns about the potential for extreme weather events and a vicious hurricane season. Snowpacks are lower than normal in a number of Western mountain ranges, raising the prospect of a longer fire season. In all of those places, emergency responders are already strapped dealing with the pandemic. What's more, much of the usual disaster strategies — evacuation shelters, food assistance, an influx of aid workers — may be dangerous or impractical. Many are hoping and praying a major disaster doesn't happen while the coronavirus outbreak still has the country in lockdown. But as Craig Fugate, the former head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, puts it: \"Hope isn't a strategy.\" So communities and federal agencies are planning new strategies. Here's what disaster response during the pandemic might look like: Government agencies The local, state and federal government agencies that typically handle natural disaster response are currently trying to contain and control the pandemic, raising questions about availability and staffing. That includes FEMA, which President Trump has directed to head the country's COVID-19 response. The agency has more than 2,300 of its roughly 20,000 employees working directly on the pandemic, an agency spokesperson says. \"Even as FEMA is focused on responding to COVID-19, we are also preparing and maintaining readiness for other disasters to include spring flooding, severe weather and the upcoming hurricane season,\" the spokesperson says. In the event of a massive disaster, more personnel could be added by activating a Department of Homeland Security program that allows other federal employees to augment the disaster response. At a state and local level, officials are banding together and planning to support each other, while acknowledging the virus may complicate some of those efforts. In most disasters, states lend each other personnel through a national mutual aid compact. \"But in this event, no one is going to want to send their personnel to other states because of fear of spreading the disease and putting them in harm's way, potentially,\" Flinn says. That's why some groups are helping each other on the front end. The Mississippi River Cities and Towns Initiative, a coalition of mayors and leaders along the flood-prone Mississippi River, is working to procure personal protective equipment that could be distributed to a place in need. Sharon Weston Broome, the mayor-president of Baton Rouge, La., and a member of the coalition, says \"the strategy will have to be a little different in order to maximize our effectiveness as neighbors.\" Volunteers and staffing When a major natural disaster occurs, the area typically sees an influx of thousands of aid workers from government agencies, nonprofits and utility companies. Given the risk of people traveling and spreading the virus, aid organizations and government agencies are planning to move more of their support services online. \"Volunteers can use FaceTime and other video apps to have a face-to-face conversation with clients,\" says Trevor Riggen, senior vice president of Disaster Services at the American Red Cross. He says the group has already been doing that for smaller incidents over the past couple of months. Of course, in a major natural disaster there will still be a need for boots on the ground. Fugate, the former head of FEMA, says it would be wise for federal agencies and aid organizations to try and source those people locally, using one of the negative outcomes of the coronavirus to their advantage. \"We already have sizable workforces idle in these communities,\" he says. \"Unlike in 2017, when the three hurricanes hit and we were at the top of the economy ... so getting emergency workers was damn near impossible, today's a target-rich environment.\" The American Red Cross is actively recruiting volunteers and offering online training for people who are interested in helping out. Emergency shelters and evacuations This is the area that emergency officials are most concerned about. Where should people go in the event of a major hurricane, wildfire or earthquake? And how do you make sure", "A member of Congress, who has led efforts to investigate alleged coronavirus scams, is calling for the federal government to crack down on an unproven treatment for COVID-19. Widespread sales of that purported treatment - a drug known as thymosin alpha-1 - were first identified by an NPR investigation earlier this month. More than 30 doctors in more than a dozen states around the country have marketed the drug as a treatment for the coronavirus, despite the fact that it has never been approved by the Food and Drug Administration for any condition and such claims are, in the words of the FDA, \"not supported by competent and reliable scientific evidence.\" The congressman, Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.), leads the House Subcommittee on Economic and Consumer Policy. He is now calling for the FDA and the Federal Trade Commission to take action against one prominent doctor who has marketed the drug: Dr. Dominique Fradin-Read of Los Angeles. Fradin-Read is known for her work with the actor Gwyneth Paltrow's wellness brand Goop. Fradin-Read helped formulate a dietary supplement called \"Madame Ovary\" for the brand. She also runs the practice VitaLifeMD, and had falsely marketed thymosin alpha-1 as an \"FDA approved\" drug, which she claimed was \"one of the best ways to prevent and fight COVID-19.\" \"Such false claims appear to be illegal and ought to be subject to strict enforcement by FDA and FTC,\" Krishnamoorthi wrote in his letter to the leaders of those agencies. \"I ask you to open an investigation into VitaLifeMD, and to take all appropriate action against VitaLifeMD and its principals.\" Fradin-Read did not respond to messages from NPR for this story. But she has previously defended prescriptions of the drug, saying she had prescribed it to members of her staff, her mother, and had even taken it herself without any negative effects. The FTC and FDA are responsible for enforcing laws against false and misleading advertising. A spokesperson for the FTC declined to comment, and the FDA did not respond to a message NPR. Earlier on in the pandemic, Krishnamoorthi called on the Trump Administration to take action against conspiracy theorist Alex Jones of InfoWars for marketing colloidal silver-infused toothpastes as a supposed COVID-19 prevention measure. (The National Institutes of Health say colloidal silver is not safe or effective for treating any condition, and can even permanently turn a person's skin blue at high doses.) The FDA then warned Jones that such claims were misleading and could violate federal law. Krishnamoorthi's current letter faults the Trump Administration for failing to effectively deter scams that prey on people's fears, calling the government's enforcement thus far \"piecemeal.\" \"Amid an unprecedented public health and economic crisis,\" Krishnamoorthi wrote, \"we cannot allow unscrupulous manufacturers and providers to deceive consumers into purchasing expensive, ineffective, and potentially dangerous 'miracle cures.'\"", "Health officials in Michigan issued a stay-in-place order for undergraduate students at the University of Michigan, effective immediately, as new confirmed coronavirus cases spike. One big exception: Football. The public health directive does not apply to varsity student athletes, who are exempt and allowed to take part in practices and competitions. Washtenaw County, which includes University of Michigan's campus in Ann Arbor, announced the order Tuesday. It is effective through 7 a.m. on Nov. 3. \"The situation locally has become critical, and this order is necessary to reverse the current increase in cases,\" Jimena Loveluck, a county health officer, said in a statement. \"We must continue to do what we can to minimize the impact on the broader community and to ensure we have the public health capacity to fully investigate cases and prevent additional spread of illness,\" she added. The Washtenaw County Health Department said University of Michigan students account for more than 60% of local cases. Students are allowed to leave their residences to attend in-person classes and instructional labs, to do approved work, and to tend to basic needs like picking up food, medication and outdoor exercise in groups no larger than two, according the full order. Health officials are also urging students to wear face coverings and remain at least 6 feet apart. It does not apply to varsity sports, which would include the university's perennial powerhouse football team. It's still scheduled to kick off its season opener in Minneapolis on Saturday against the University of Minnesota. \"Students who are associated with intercollegiate varsity sports may attend practices and competitions provided that athletic medical staff is present during the entire process,\" the order states. It also said the athletic medical staff oversees the team's COVID-19 mitigation activities and has the power to shut down practice if warranted. The Big 10 Conference, which includes Ohio State, Michigan State, University of Maryland and Purdue University, announced last month it will return to the gridiron this weekend, after initially sidelining football and other fall sports because of the coronavirus. During the summer, Michigan's Head Football Coach Jim Harbaugh pushed for playing games, saying, \"This virus can be controlled.\" He said at the time he was pushing for a return to play not just out of his \"passion\" for the sport, but also because of COVID-19 testing statistics his team collected on players during summer practices. On Monday, Harbaugh acknowledged that there have been an unspecified number of cases in the program since Sept. 10, according to the Detroit Free Press. As of Wednesday morning, Washtenaw County had 4,301 confirmed coronavirus cases, according to state statistics. On Tuesday, county officials said more than 600 confirmed and probable cases had been reported \"and 61% of these are connected to University of Michigan students living on or off campus.\"", "In a year defined by the pandemic, protests and politics, we look back on 2020 with journalists from around the country.   Guests Rose Scott, host of “Closer Look with Rose Scott” on WABE, Atlanta&#8217;s NPR station. (@waberosescott) Stephen Henderson, host of &#8220;Detroit Today&#8221; on WDET since 2015. Executive editor of Bridge Detroit. (@SHDetroit) Jackie Fortiér, health reporter at KPCC. (@JackieFortier) Shane Dixon Kavanaugh, reporter for the Oregonian. (@shanedkavanaugh) From The Reading List NPR: &#8220;&#8216;It&#8217;s So Much Worse Than Before.&#8217; Dread And Despair Haunt Nurses Inside LA&#8217;s ICUs&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;The massive surge in coronavirus cases has left hospitals in Los Angeles County scrambling to handle the increasing numbers of patients showing up at their doors. Nowhere is that more evident than in hospitals&#8217; intensive care units, which are rapidly filling up with the worst COVID-19 cases.&#8221; WABE: &#8220;Looking Back At This Year In Coronavirus News&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;First, Sam Whitehead, WABE’s health reporter and host of the podcast Did You Wash Your Hands shared his reflections on how the coronavirus has shaped this year and what news to watch in 2021.&#8221; NBC News: &#8220;From Covid-19 to racial justice, how 2020&#8217;s biggest issues influenced the Black vote&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;National pollster Henry Fernandez has spent the election cycle immersed in the minds of Black voters.&#8221; New York Times: &#8220;Trump Gives Clemency to More Allies, Including Manafort, Stone and Charles Kushner&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;President Trump doled out clemency to a new group of loyalists on Wednesday, wiping away convictions and sentences as he aggressively employed his power to override courts, juries and prosecutors to apply his own standard of justice for his allies.&#8221; KPCC: &#8220;Eviction Threats, Lockdown And Loneliness In Nursing Homes Amid COVID-19&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;Under near constant video surveillance, she&#8217;ll only talk on her cell phone when she&#8217;s sure no one can overhear. She eats her meals alone and spends most of her time in her room. She feels like she&#8217;s in prison, not a nursing home.&#8221; The Oregonian: &#8220;Portland leaders, acknowledging racist anti-Black policies, seek to right historic wrongs&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;Portland officials are considering pumping millions of dollars into affordable housing and economic redevelopment that could benefit families displaced from Portland’s historic Black neighborhoods.&#8221; The Oregonian: &#8220;Portland, Multnomah County race to spend millions in federal coronavirus aid to avoid paying back ‘one dime’&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;Portland and Multnomah County officials say they’re on track to spend all of the millions in federal coronavirus aid they’ve received as the end-of-year deadline looms.&#8221; NBC News: &#8220;Thousands of voters registered for the Georgia Senate races. Who benefits?&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;With early voting underway in the Georgia Senate runoffs, almost 70,000 voters have newly registered in the state, according to TargetSmart voter data analyzed by NBC News.&#8221; Atlanta Journal-Constitution: &#8220;Two Georgia runoff races you know about; then there’s the third one&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;Two of three races in Georgia’s runoff election have snagged national attention and hundreds of millions of dollars in campaign spending.&#8221; Politico: &#8220;Biden to tap former Michigan Gov. Granholm to lead Energy Department&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;Granholm, who served two terms as Michigan&#8217;s governor, is experienced in dealing with the auto industry.&#8221; This article was originally published on WBUR.org.", "Jerome Antone says he is one of the lucky ones. After becoming ill with COVID-19, Antone was hospitalized only 65 miles away from his small Alabama town. He is the mayor of Georgiana — population 1,700. \"It hit our rural community so rabid,\" Antone says. The town's hospital closed last year. If hospitals in nearby communities don't have beds available, \"you may have to go four or five hours away.\" As COVID-19 continues to spread, an increasing number of rural communities in the U.S. find themselves without their hospital or on the brink of losing already cash-strapped facilities. Eighteen rural hospitals closed last year and the first three months of 2020 were \"really big months,\" says Mark Holmes, director of the Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. Many of the losses are in Southern states, including Florida and Texas, he says, and more than 170 rural hospitals have closed nationwide since 2005, according to data collected by the Sheps Center. It's a dangerous scenario. \"We know that a closure leads to higher mortality pretty quickly\" among the populations served, says Holmes, who is also a professor at UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health. \"That's pretty clear.\" One 2019 study found that death rates in the surrounding communities increase nearly 6% after a rural hospital closes — and that's when there's not a pandemic. Add to that what is known about the coronavirus: People who are obese, live with diabetes, hypertension, asthma and other underlying health issues are more susceptible to COVID-19. Rural areas tend to have higher rates of these conditions. And rural residents are more likely to be older, sicker and poorer than those in urban areas. All this leaves rural communities particularly vulnerable to the coronavirus. Congress approved billions in federal relief funds for health care providers. Initially, federal officials based what a hospital would get on its Medicare payments, but by late April they heeded criticism and carved out funds for rural hospitals and COVID-19 hot spots. Rural hospitals leapt at the chance to shore up already-negative budgets and prepare for the pandemic. The funds \"helped rural hospitals with the immediate storm,\" says Dr. Don Williamson, president of the Alabama Hospital Association. Nearly 80% of Alabama's rural hospitals began the year with negative balance sheets and about eight days' worth of cash on hand. Before the pandemic hit this year, hundreds of rural hospitals \"were just trying to keep their doors open,\" says Maggie Elehwany, vice president of government affairs with the National Rural Health Association. Then, an estimated 70% of their income stopped as patients avoided the emergency room, doctor's appointments and elective surgeries. \"It was devastating,\" Elehwany says. Paul Taylor, chief executive of a 25-bed critical access hospital and outpatient clinics in northwestern Arkansas, accepted millions in grants and loan money Congress approved this spring, largely through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act. \"For us, this was survival money and we spent it already,\" Taylor says. With those funds, Ozarks Community Hospital increased surge capacity, expanding from 25 beds to 50 beds, adding negative pressure rooms and buying six ventilators. Taylor also ramped up COVID-19 testing at his hospital and clinics, located near some meat-processing plants. Throughout June and July, Ozarks tested 1,000 patients a day and reported a 20% positive rate. The rate dropped to 16.9% in late July. But patients are still avoiding routine care. Taylor says revenue is still constrained and he does not know how he will pay back $8 million that he borrowed from Medicare. The program allowed hospitals to borrow against future payments from the federal government, but stipulated that repayment would begin within 120 days. For Taylor, this seems impossible. Medicare makes up 40% of Ozarks' income. And he has to pay the loan back before he gets any more payments from Medicare. He's hoping to refinance the hospital's mortgage. \"If I get no relief and they take the money ... we won't still be open,\" Taylor says. Ozarks provides 625 jobs and serves an area with a population of about 75,000. There are 1,300 small critical access hospitals like Ozarks in rural America and, of those, 859 took advantage of the Medicare loans, sending about $3.1 billion into the local communities. But many rural communities have not yet experienced a surge in coronavirus cases — national leaders fear it will come as part of a new phase. \"There are pockets of rural America who say 'We haven't seen a single COVID patient yet and we do not believe it's real,'\" Taylor says. \"They will get hit sooner or later.\" Across the country, the loss of patients and increased spending required to fight and prepare for the coronavirus was \"like a knife cutting into a hospital's blood supply,\" says Ge Bai, associate professor of health po", "The Chinook Indian Nation has about 3,000 members who mostly live near the mouth of the Columbia River in southwest Washington. But they're not on the list of federally recognized tribes — so they get nothing from the Indian Health Service. \"We have all the problems of Indian Country, but no means of dealing with it,\" Chinook chair Tony Johnson says. Without recognition, they get no reservation, no housing allowance, no clinics. And, during the pandemic, no federal recognition has meant no testing supplies or vaccine allocations. \"So we rely on our neighboring tribes,\" Johnson says, \"which means that people are traveling an hour or two or three to be able to access vaccinations, testing and other resources.\" The nearby Shoalwater Bay Tribe, for example, gave Johnson his COVID-19 vaccine. The Indian Health Service has been lauded for the success of its vaccination campaign. But not every Native American got to be part of that. Tribes that aren't recognized by the U.S. government have received none of the resources directed to Indian Country to help them survive the pandemic. More than 200 tribes do not have federal recognition, affecting tens of thousands of tribal members. The U.S. government officially recognizes 574 tribes. Over the past year, unemployment spiked in southwest Washington, and, with it, addiction problems, Johnson says. But the Chinook receive no federal funds for drug and alcohol programs. And, without their own clinic, many Chinook members forego medical care rather than travel hours to see a doctor, Johnson says. As a result, he says, though no local tribal members died of COVID-19, several died because of COVID-19 — some of addiction, and others of untreated chronic conditions like diabetes and heart disease. \"We have lost folks in the community over the last year that would not have been lost were Chinook to have been a federally recognized community,\" he says. \"And that is unbearable.\" Recognized v. unrecognized Many tribes are federally recognized because, at some point, they signed a treaty agreeing to give up their land. For complicated reasons, the Chinook Nation isn't recognized even though they did, at one point, sign a treaty. \"It was an accident of history that left some off the list and included others,\" says John Norwood, of the National Congress of American Indians. He works on federal recognition issues. He says gaining federal recognition now can be nearly impossible, regardless of a tribe's history. On paper, it's one thing. \"The regulations as they stood appeared to be just fine,\" he says. But how they're used is a different story. \"The problem was their interpretation and application became more stringent, less transparent, very inconsistent, oftentimes punitive,\" he explains. Another Western Washington tribe the U.S. government refuses to recognize is the Snohomish. They're the namesake of the county north of Seattle. \"We will continue to be here as long as the mountains still exist and the rivers run through the forest out into the sea,\" says the Snohomish Tribe's chair, Mike Evans. He says, today, the tribe has about 1,500 enrolled members, but — \"we don't have a clinic, we don't have the vaccines to distribute, and there's no money to deal with that.\" And, without federal recognition, there won't be any money in the future either. The most recent COVID-19 relief package included more than $31 billion for the tribes on the federal government's list. It's the largest financial aid to Indian Country ever. And that's in addition to funds earmarked for tribes in the prior two relief bills. Tony Johnson, chair of the Chinook Nation, says officially recognized tribes used those funds for unemployment relief, food programs, and infrastructure projects. \"The once-in-a-lifetime, once-in-a-generation infusions of funds will be having impact on those communities generations to come,\" Johnson says. \"It's heartbreaking that my own Chinook Indian Nation doesn't have access to some portion of those resources.\"", "NPR's Rachel Martin talks to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer about federal aid to address the coronavirus' economic impact. The Senate is working on another measure that could total $1 trillion.", "The drugmaker behind the experimental COVID-19 treatment remdesivir has announced how much it will charge for the drug, after months of speculation as the company tried to figure out how to balance profit and public health needs in the middle of a pandemic. In the United States, Gilead Sciences will charge $520 per vial for patients with private insurance, with some government programs getting a lower price. With a double-dose the first day, that comes out to $3,120 for the five-day treatment course. For governments in developed countries outside the U.S., it will cost $390 per vial, or $2,340 for the five-day course. How much uninsured patients would pay is still unclear. \"At the level we have priced remdesivir and with government programs in place, along with additional Gilead assistance as needed, we believe all patients will have access,\" Gilead CEO Daniel O'Day said in an open letter posted Monday morning. Since then, reaction to the price has been mixed. Some advocacy organizations and members of Congress say Gilead is taking advantage of Americans during a pandemic. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas, called the price \"outrageous.\" \"Without a taxpayer investment of $99 million, this drug would have been abandoned. It would be on the scrap heap of failures,\" he tells NPR. \"So it's the taxpayer who's really taking the risk here and ought to get the reward of the angel investors that taxpayers are.\" Public Citizen, a nonprofit consumer advocacy group, echoed his remarks with a similar sentiment. \"In an offensive display of hubris and disregard for the public, Gilead has priced at several thousand dollars a drug that should be in the public domain,\" Peter Maybarduk, director of Public Citizen's Access to Medicines Program said in a written statement. (In a quarterly financial filing, Gilead said its investment in remdesivir for 2020 alone \"could be up to $1 billion or more,\" much of that money used to scale up manufacturing capacity.) Still, analysts expected Gilead to set a higher price than the company did. Geoffrey Porges, an analyst at the investment bank SVB Leerink, said the announced price for the drug offers a \"spectacularly good value.\" \"It's unprecedented to price the drug below the medical costs that it's saving,\" Porges said, adding that remdesivir could save up to $40,000 per patient, if it prevents a COVID-19 patient from needing the ICU. And there's even more value that's not built into Gilead's price, he says. \"That ignores the enormous societal value that everybody else gets from making a patient less infectious, for getting a patient back into the community, for getting them back to work sooner,\" Porges said. \"All of those societal benefits aren't even considered in this price.\" The Institute for Clinical and Economic Review, or ICER, an influential nonprofit that analyzes drug pricing, said Gilead showed \"restraint\" and set a \"responsible\" price. That said, ICER President Steven Pearson noted that this reasoning assumes remdesivir will eventually be shown to improve COVID-19 survival — something research hasn't yet proven. A federally funded study by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases published at the end of April indicated that remdesivir can shorten COVID-19 patients' hospital stays by about four days. But it's unclear whether the drug also improves survival. \"If further data do not show a clear mortality benefit for remdesivir, then the price of the drug should be dramatically reduced,\" Pearson said in his written statement. The drug price will send a message to companies working on other treatments, vaccines and cures for COVID-19. They have been watching remdesivir closely to find out what kind of reward they might expect for their investments, should their own treatments pan out. At the announced price, Gilead is still expected to profit from remdesivir sales. That should be encouraging for companies currently investing and developing additional COVID-19 treatments and vaccines. \"Gilead will make a good amount of money selling this product,\" Craig Garthwaite, who directs the health care program at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management, told NPR. \"And that's really the return other people have been looking at. In the end, really, the other firms aren't necessarily looking at the price Gilead charges. What they're really looking at is, what is the payoff that they get on their investment? \" Until now, Gilead had been donating doses of remdesivir for use in clinical trials and under the Food and Drug Administration's emergency use authorization announced in May. The last of the donated supply was distributed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on Monday. HHS announced that it has \"secured\" an additional 500,000 treatment courses for the United States — the majority of remdesivir that Gilead plans to manufacture in July, August and September. Although hospitals and insurers will now be charged for the drug, the federal government will ", "Janet Yellen, President-elect Joe Biden's nominee to lead the Treasury Department, made the case for aggressive economic relief, urging lawmakers to \"act big\" to fight the financial fallout from the coronavirus pandemic. At her confirmation hearing Tuesday before the Senate Finance Committee, Yellen pressed lawmakers to pass the $1.9 trillion spending package that the incoming administration has proposed to keep families and businesses afloat as well as to accelerate vaccinations against COVID-19. \"Without further action, we risk a longer, more painful recession now and longer-term scarring of the economy later,\" Yellen said. \"In the long run, I believe the benefits will far outweigh the costs.\" Yellen, a labor economist who chaired the Federal Reserve from 2014 to 2018, would be the first woman to lead the Treasury Department. Her nomination has the backing of all the living former Treasury secretaries, both Democrats and Republicans. Democrats argue that the government was too quick to withdraw support for the economy during the global financial crisis, saying it contributed to a slow recovery. But committee Republicans expressed doubts about some parts of the Biden proposal, which includes a $15 minimum wage and substantial aid to state and local governments. \"Now is not the time to enact a laundry list of liberal, structural economic reforms,\" said Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, the committee's chairman. GOP critics also expressed concern about adding to the federal debt. Yellen agreed that fiscal responsibility is an important, long-term goal. But she argued that with interest rates at historic lows, it would be a mistake for the federal government to pinch pennies at a time when COVID-19 is killing thousands of Americans every day. \"The most important thing, in my view, that we can do today to put us on the path to fiscal sustainability is to defeat the pandemic,\" Yellen said. She argued that government spending is necessary not only to provide immediate help to struggling families and small businesses but also to fund investments in infrastructure, research and worker training in an effort to promote more equitable growth over the long term. \"Well before COVID-19 infected a single American, we were living in a K-shaped economy — where wealth built upon wealth while working families fell farther and farther behind,\" Yellen said. \"This was especially true for people of color.\"", "This election season – like many before it – has been dominated by domestic issues. But whether Americans elect Donald Trump or Joe Biden president will also have significant consequences for the rest of the world, especially those countries that count on U.S. foreign aid. And when it comes to aid and other global issues, Trump and Biden's policies are starkly different. While former Vice President Biden has outlined some of his plans and priorities for the future, President Trump's campaign has focused more on what he's done in his first term. Still, Trump's past words and actions should be a good indicator of how he intends to move forward if re-elected. Below is a summary of what Trump and Biden have said (or done) on these matters. On the U.S. foreign aid strategy Donald Trump: Trump's \"America First\" mantra extends to his foreign aid philosophy. In 2018, he told world leaders at the United Nations (U.N.) General Assembly, \"Moving forward, we are only going to give foreign aid to those who respect us and, frankly, are our friends.\" For example, last year, he froze $450 million in aid to Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador for what he described as their failure to stem migration. He later resumed aid, sending $143 million to the region. Under his administration, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) also underwent some reforms that have been largely praised by the development sector, like moving away from a traditional donor-recipient model of aid to more partnerships. However, former USAID Administrator Mark Green who oversaw the changes says the president was \"not really\" involved in the work. Joe Biden: \"We'd bring aid back to the center of our foreign policy,\" Antony Blinken, a foreign policy adviser for the Biden campaign, said in a May online event. Biden's campaign website makes it clear that he views development aid as a \"vital investment\" in the success of other countries but also U.S. security and prosperity. The Central American migration crisis is a key example of this: Biden intends to expand a $750 million aid program that he spearheaded as vice president into a four-year, $4 billion regional strategy to tackle the root causes of emigration from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, namely poverty, violence and corruption. On the World Health Organization Donald Trump: In April, as the COVID-19 crisis unfolded, Trump threatened to freeze U.S. funding to the World Health Organization (WHO) unless it underwent \"major, substantive improvements\" and became less \"China-centric\" within 30 days. Then, in July, he formally began the process of withdrawing the U.S. from the institution, saying that China has \"total control\" over WHO and had pressured the agency to \"mislead the world\" regarding COVID-19. Because the U.S. is the top WHO donor, the withdrawal, which could take at least a year, could threaten health programs around the world, according to global health experts. Joe Biden: Biden vowed on Twitter to rejoin WHO on his first day as president if elected, reversing Trump's decision to withdraw the U.S. He's also said he would restore funding to the institution. Biden and his campaign have described WHO and other global institutions as \"not perfect\" but say that the U.S. must resume its leadership role in order to influence reform. That doesn't \"necessarily\" mean the U.S. must remain the WHO's top donor, according to the Biden campaign's foreign policy adviser. On helping other countries respond to COVID-19 Donald Trump: The Trump administration has donated ventilators and equipment to other countries to help with COVID-19, while USAID and the State Department have provided about $508 million to the U.N. and other aid organizations to help fight the pandemic in more than 100 countries. However, Trump refused to join the COVAX initiative, an international effort to develop an affordable COVID-19 vaccine, because of its affiliation with WHO. According to WHO, the COVAX effort would be especially helpful for sharing safe and effective vaccines across the world, including lower-income countries. Trump's priority is \"Operation Warp Speed\" — his administration's partnership with private companies to accelerate the development of COVID-19 drugs, vaccines and tests. Joe Biden: In a March speech, Biden said that the U.S. will \"never fully solve [COVID-19] if we're unwilling to look beyond our own borders and engage fully with the rest of the world.\" His COVID-19 plan includes a global response with USAID at the helm to assist \"vulnerable nations.\" He also plans to \"re-launch and strengthen\" USAID's pathogen-tracking program, PREDICT, which the Trump administration cut three months before the first cases of COVID-19 were reported in China. Regarding vaccines, Biden hasn't specifically said whether he would join the COVAX initiative. On climate change Donald Trump: Trump rejects established peer-reviewed science showing that human activity, such as burning fossil fuels and industrial agric", "Michigan's Supreme Court ruled Friday that Gov. Gretchen Whitmer lacks the authority to extend or declare states of emergency in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Democratic governor issued an executive order declaring a state of emergency in March and expanded it via another executive order in April. The Republican-controlled legislature passed a resolution to extend the state of emergency, but only until April 30. Whitmer has since issued many more orders related to the pandemic. Whitmer cited two state laws — the Emergency Management Act of 1976 and the Emergency Powers of the Governor Act from 1945 — as granting her the authority to continue the emergency orders past April 30. In a 4-3 majority opinion, the state's high court said she did not have that authority. \"We conclude that the Governor lacked the authority to declare a 'state of emergency' or a 'state of disaster' under the EMA after April 30, 2020, on the basis of the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, we conclude that the EPGA is in violation of the Constitution of our state because it purports to delegate to the executive branch the legislative powers of state government-- including its plenary police powers-- and to allow the exercise of such powers indefinitely,\" wrote Justice Stephen J. Markman on behalf of the majority. Whitmer responded to the decision calling it \"deeply deeply disappointing, and I vehemently disagree with the court's interpretation of the Michigan Constitution.\" \"Right now, every state and the federal government have some form of declared emergency,\" Whitmer said in a statement. The ruling also came the same day that Whitmer rolled back the reopening phase of the state's Upper Peninsula region, citing an upsurge in cases there. \"With this decision, Michigan will become the sole outlier at a time when the Upper Peninsula is experiencing rates of COVID infection not seen in our state since April,\" Whitmer went on to say. Whitmer's measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus have been a point of contention between her and Republican lawmakers. In May, as the cases in the state surged, legislators sued the Democratic governor arguing she had overstepped her legal authority in her declarations. The orders and coronavirus measures also occasioned protests, with hundreds of people — some of them armed — swarming the state's Capitol. The day of the Supreme Court ruling a group called Unlock Michigan reportedly submitted some 539,000 signatures calling for the repeal of the 1945 law cited by Whitmer. In her Friday statement, Whitmer that the court's decision would not go into effect for 21 days and that her declarations and orders retained \"the force of law.\" Whitmer added that many of the state's coronavirus measures \"will continue under alternative sources of authority that were not at issue in today's ruling.\"", "The Trump administration says the U.S. will not participate in a global push to develop a COVID-19 vaccine, in part because the effort is led by the World Health Organization, which the White House describes as \"corrupt\" and has accused of initially aiding China in covering up the scope of the pandemic. By refusing to take part, the U.S. is effectively cutting itself off from the more than 170 countries in discussions to join the COVID-19 Vaccine Global Access Facility, or COVAX. The initiative is \"aimed at working with vaccine manufacturers to provide countries worldwide equitable access to safe and effective vaccines\" and is co-led by the WHO, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations and the vaccine alliance GAVI. At best, it'll likely be months before a U.S. vaccine for the SARS-CoV-2 virus will be authorized for widespread distribution. The coronavirus has infected well over 6 million Americans and killed nearly 185,000. Nearly 858,000 people worldwide have died from COVID-19. \"The United States will continue to engage our international partners to ensure we defeat this virus, but we will not be constrained by multilateral organizations influenced by the corrupt World Health Organization and China,\" White House spokesman Judd Deere said in a statement. \"This President will spare no expense to ensure that any new vaccine maintains our own FDA's gold standard for safety and efficacy, is thoroughly tested, and saves lives,\" he said. Trump initially praised the WHO for its response to the pandemic, but as COVID-19 spread in the U.S., he became increasingly critical, ramping up his ire for the United Nations body and suggesting it was in league with Beijing to obscure the extent of the crisis. In July, the White House sent a letter to the U.N. saying Washington would begin the formal process of withdrawing from the WHO. WHO Secretary-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has warned against what he describes as \"vaccine nationalism,\" in which countries shun international cooperation and instead decide to go it alone when it comes to developing prophylactic drugs for COVID-19. Speaking last month, Tedros said that such nationalism had \"exacerbated the pandemic and contributed to the total failure of the global supply chain\" because of hoarding by some countries that led to shortages of protective gear in the early days of the pandemic. \"A vaccine developed in one country may need to be filled in vials with stoppers that are produced in another, using materials for the high-grade glass that is only available from yet another country,\" Tedros said.", "Detroit auto executives make their pitch for emergency financial aid at a Senate hearing. GM, Ford and Chrysler say they need about $25 billion in loans. For the moment, they may not have the votes to make that happen.", "A top U.S. Army general who is co-leading the federal COVID-19 vaccine initiative anticipates that the first of millions of Americans could start receiving COVID-19 vaccines as soon as next month. \"I think a safe and effective vaccine will be available initially in December,\" Gen. Gustave Perna told NPR's Mary Louise Kelly in an interview Monday. If the Food and Drug Administration authorizes a vaccine by then, \"10 to 30 million doses of vaccine will be available that we can start distributing.\" Perna is chief operating officer for Operation Warp Speed, the government's initiative to fast-track the development, manufacture and distribution of COVID-19 drugs and treatments. In May, he was appointed to co-lead the project, along with the initiative's chief science adviser, Moncef Slaoui. Perna's remarks followed an announcement earlier Monday of promising developments about a COVID-19 vaccine developed by the drug company Pfizer. Early results suggest that the vaccine is more than 90% effective in preventing COVID-19. \"Great [news] to wake up to today,\" he said. \"When we talk 'vaccine effectiveness,' what we're talking about is, 'How effective was the vaccine at preventing actual disease?' \" scientist L.J. Tan, chief strategist of the nonprofit Immunization Action Coalition, explained to NPR's Allison Aubrey in September. In other words, by that definition, if you vaccinated 100 people, at least 90 people would not get the disease, if these early results from Pfizer hold up. The tens of millions of vaccine doses that Perna says could be available in December is the combined number of vaccine doses that Pfizer and Moderna, manufacturers of the two candidates furthest along in clinical trials, could have ready to ship by then. Being prepared to have large quantities of the COVID-19 candidate vaccines ready for distribution as soon as one is authorized as safe and effective by the FDA has been a major feat of planning and coordination that runs counter to the typical drug and vaccine development process. \"Generally, you don't start manufacturing a vaccine until you have an [approval],\" Perna explains. But waiting for an OK from the FDA before ramping up production would have greatly prolonged the timeline for getting a COVID-19 vaccine out to the public. So early on, the Operation Warp Speed team invested in manufacturing capacity. \"We needed brick and mortar,\" Perna says. \"We needed trained employees. We needed to have all the materials, and we needed very technical machinery to produce the vaccine.\" \"We started executing manufacturing requirements in parallel with the development and the trials of the vaccines,\" he says. Simultaneously pursuing processes that typically happen one after another is a resource-intensive, high-risk strategy. It's possible that some pre-manufactured vaccine candidates will not be found to be safe or effective and that those vials would need to be thrown out. But the strategy makes it possible for some vaccine doses to be available as soon as a vaccine is authorized — and for vaccine production to scale up quickly after that. If a vaccine is in hand in December, availability \"will expand rapidly in January, February, March, April,\" Perna told NPR, describing a \"steady cadence\" of vaccine rollout that could result in most Americans getting access to a shot by mid-2021. A four-star general, Perna previously served as the commanding general for the U.S. Army Materiel Command, which manages the Army's global supply chain. \"I'm a professional logistician. That's what I've been doing for 39 years,\" he says. The military is coordinating the vaccine distribution but will not play a direct role in moving or injecting vaccines on the ground, according to Perna. \"We're partnering with commercial industry to do the actual distribution, because they know how to do it,\" he says, \"They do it every year, with influenza and other medications and vaccines.\" Pfizer has an assembly center in Kalamazoo, Mich., and plans to use private carriers such as UPS and FedEx to deliver vaccines to hospitals and vaccination sites. Vaccines from Moderna and other Operation Warp Speed candidate vaccines would likely be moved by the medical supply company McKesson, which has a contract with the government to distribute COVID-19 vaccines. The government will be allocating initial vaccine supplies to states and jurisdictions, which will then be responsible for getting shots into people's arms and determining which groups get priority for those first doses. \"Some of the jurisdictions have thought about mass [vaccination] campaigns. Some are going right to brick-and-mortar and working with CVS and Walgreens. Some are going to utilize their hospitals,\" and the places people can go to get vaccines may shift as more doses become available, Perna says. Perna says he hasn't heard from President-elect Joe Biden's transition team yet but played down suggestions that a change in administration could complicate the work. \"I belie", "So far, countries on the African continent have largely managed to dodge the brunt of the coronavirus. Even as the global pandemic has besieged medical centers in the U.S. and Western Europe, with a total death toll north of 100,000 in those regions, all of Africa's confirmed cases number in the thousands — most of which remain concentrated in just a handful of North African nations. But global health authorities fear this won't continue forever. \"Anywhere between 300,000 and 3.3 million African people could lose their lives as a direct result of COVID-19, depending on the intervention measures taken to stop the spread,\" the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa said in a report released Friday. The problem, explained the U.N. agency, rests partly with the layout and infrastructure of some of the biggest cities on the continent, where the majority of the urban population lives in overcrowded neighborhoods without reliable access to hand-washing facilities. Couple that with relatively low supplies of hospital beds and the fact that 71% of the continent's workforce is \"informally employed,\" according to the UNECA, without alternatives to work from home in the case of an outbreak, and it becomes clear that \"the continent is vulnerable.\" To calculate the impact of the virus, the commission referred to a computer model composed by researchers at Imperial College London, whose grim outlooks on the possible effects in other parts of the world have already proven widely influential. In a worst-case scenario, in which governments do not intervene with preventative measures such as large-scale social distancing, Africa may see more than 22 million people require hospitalization and some 3.3 million die of COVID-19. But even the best-case scenario — in which early and decisive measures save the lives of roughly 3 million people, according to the model — presents risks of its own. That's because the commission estimates that such sweeping rules would necessarily halt large sectors of the economy and push as many as 29 million people into extreme poverty — in other words, earning less than $1.90 a day to live on. Vera Songwe, the UNECA executive secretary, says $100 billion is needed to \"urgently and immediately provide fiscal space to all countries to help address the immediate safety net needs of the populations.\" Already, Songwe said in a statement Thursday that countries in Africa have been suffering under the virus' fiscal effects, even if the physical ones have not yet made their full impact felt. \"The economic costs of the Pandemic have been harsher than the direct impact of the COVID-19,\" Songwe said. \"Across the continent, all economies are suffering from the sudden shock to the economies. The physical distancing needed to manage the pandemic is suffocating and drowning economic activity.\" Much of this economic devastation will be an \"unavoidable\" part of supporting the continent's medical response and preserving as many lives as possible — but at least some of it may be mitigated, the agency said, by \"fighting the urge to impose export bans,\" temporarily halting debt collection and freeing up access to emergency funding and intellectual property on lifesaving supplies.", "For every city, there was a specific moment in 2020 when things became real. Serious. In Austin, it's an easy time to pinpoint. Late afternoon on March 6, after days of statements to the contrary, Mayor Steve Adler canceled South by Southwest. In retrospect, this seemed like a no-brainer. Obvious, even. But at the time, it was controversial, almost unthinkable. Could something this big even be stopped? South by Southwest has steadily grown to be globally recognized as one of the largest annual gatherings of industry professionals. Yet, in Austin, SXSW looms larger than anything on the city's calendar. Its reach extends into virtually every aspect of the city's lifeblood. The SXSW staff had spent a full year planning the event. Speakers were booked, thousands of flights were scheduled, tours were routed, parties were set, and hundreds of venues, spaces and retail establishments were waiting in anticipation. They not only expected this economic windfall. They depended on it. It's hard to put yourself in the before times, when there were only ominous signs of COVID-19, when there was still hope it all might be reined in. The SXSW cancellation was chilling, and not only in its actual local impact. A decision of this magnitude could only mean one thing: Everything was about to change. A week later, with the city still reeling in the aftermath, COVID-19 reached Austin, and everything — schools, businesses and, of course, music venues — began completely shutting down. And we all begin to grapple with the situation. Big shows and tours optimistically rescheduled a month or two later. How long would this last? What did it mean to be the self-proclaimed \"Live Music Capital of the World\" without any live music? How would artists and venues survive? And who would help us get through this? It became apparent pretty quickly it would not be the Trump administration; they left decisions on how to deal with COVID-19 up to the individual states. Without federal guidelines, there were wildly uneven results. Feelings of panic and helplessness rose along with COVID-19 infections and deaths. On May 4, KUTX published this column, \"A Deafening Silence,\" that began with this: \"Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.\" Mike Tyson gets credit for this saying, universally adopted over the years. Not that long ago, SXSW was about to happen, spring travel was being planned, oil prices and the stock market were booming, new 2020 tours and album releases were getting underway, the NCAA tournament and baseball's opening day were just around the corner. Things seemed to be going just fine. They weren't. The pandemic has exposed the dirt swept under the rug, the cans kicked down the road. Income inequality, inadequate medical coverage, leadership and preparedness deficits, gaps in social safety nets, indifference for our artists... In terrifying terms, we're now seeing the damage. Is this really the best we can hope for? While some of the facts of that piece have changed — the 400,000 dead worldwide is a total now surpassed in the USA alone — the premise has not. Since the advent of streaming, the economics of the industry had shifted musicians to being much more reliant on live music income, which makes their current situation even more perilous. Leadership and institutions set up to trumpet the success of the music industry were unprepared to help in a crisis of this magnitude, while the ones already aiding the music community, like the Health Alliance for Austin Musicians, the Sims Foundation and others, did what they could to adapt. But the need was overwhelming. And the initial CARES relief package did little to help struggling venues and artists. (In response, the Save Our Stages act was only just passed by Congress in December's relief package). At the end of May, George Floyd was killed by a policeman in Minneapolis, sparking worldwide outrage, coinciding with an unexpected summer spike in COVID-19 rates. In the midst of this hot and brutal summer, KUTX and our sister station KUT, began plans to create a new podcast, Pause/Play, all about the shutdown and how musicians were coping with the pandemic. The first episode, which debuted on September 22, titled \"The Pause,\" began back where it all started, with voices across the city relaying the shock that was only beginning to sink in.", "Employees at many online retailers, grocery store chains and package-delivery services are planning labor actions Friday to protest what they describe as unsafe working conditions amid the COVID-19 pandemic, while others, put out of work by the disease, are using May Day to demand an end to stay-at-home orders they say are ruining livelihoods and irreparably harming the economy. Meanwhile, nurses at scores of hospitals across the country plan to take to the streets to protest a lack of personal protective equipment; and independent truckers, fed up with low freight rates, plan a congestion-inducing \"slow roll\" in their rigs through parts of Los Angeles, Chicago, Washington and other major cities. The May Day protests come as the country is on edge, with more than 1 million confirmed infections and some 63,000 deaths attributed to COVID-19 and after weeks of stay-at-home orders that have put a fifth of the nation's workforce out of a job, while employees deemed essential risk exposure to the novel coronavirus just by showing up to work. Many of those essential workers are in low-wage jobs, working in grocery stores and warehouses without paid sick leave or health benefits. Employees at Amazon, its subsidiary Whole Foods, Target, FedEx and other companies have been forced to work in unsafe conditions at the front lines of the pandemic. Many will either stage mass sickouts or simply walk off the job Friday in various cities to demand time off, hazard pay, sick leave, protective gear and cleaning supplies, The Associated Press reports. Workers at Whole Foods, for example, say the company's flawed policies have caused some workers to contract COVID-19. \"For these reasons, we are engaging in a mass sickout and exercising our right to refuse unsafe work conditions,\" according to a statement by Whole Foods workers. Amazon says it has spent more than $800 million on COVID-19 safety measures including masks, hand sanitizer, gloves and hand-washing stations at warehouses — some of which have become hot spots for the spread of the virus. Meanwhile, Walmart says it is conducting daily temperature checks and providing masks and gloves to its store employees and warehouse workers. Nurses in 13 states are demanding masks, gloves and other protective equipment they say they need to do their jobs of caring for patients sickened by COVID-19. Many say they are disciplined if they speak out against the problem. More than 60 nurses across the country have died of COVID-19, according to organizers. \"Nurses signed up to care for their patient. They did not sign up to sacrifice their lives on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic,\" Bonnie Castillo with National Nurses United was quoted by the AP as saying. Many of the same groups who are planning labor actions on Friday have staged smaller protests in recent weeks. Among the most visible have been protesters in Michigan and California, some armed, who have staged angry protests demanding an end to the lockdowns. In Michigan on Thursday, hundreds of protesters swarmed the state capitol to denounce a stay-home order, some calling COVID-19 a \"hoax.\" They held signs that said, \"The Doctors Lied\" and \"Freedom Over Fear.\" Mardelle Messenger, a protester from Perry, Mich., told Michigan Radio that even though she's high-risk for COVID-19, she hasn't been following the stay-at-home order. \"People are willing to just lay over and play dead and let their rights be trampled on,\" she said. \"I don't agree with that.\" Similar protests last month in Sacramento were aimed at Gov. Gavin Newsom's stay-at-home orders. More such protests were planned on Friday in Los Angeles and other Southern California cities. Organizers have planned \"MAGA May Day\" car rallies in 50 U.S. cities to show support for President Trump, whose campaign slogan was Make America Great Again, and to call for an end to the lockdowns. Similar protests are also planned for Chicago, and in Long Island, N.Y. \"This will be a 'drive-in' rally for freedom. Get in your car, on your motorcycle, RV or whatever mode of transportation you desire and join the Drive for Freedom,\" the group said on its website, according to the Miami Herald. \"All you need is your car, tank full of gas, an American Flag, signs, window chalk/shoe polish for the windows and a good music play list,\" the event listings say, adding, \"Be sure to wear your MAGA gear.\" Amazon, Target, Walmart and Whole Foods Market are among NPR's financial supporters." ]

[ "By . Simon Jones . Manchester City hope to finalise the protracted £32million signing of Eliaquim Mangala from Porto over the next 48 hours. The 23-year-old was due to return to training with the Portuguese club on Tuesday after being on World Cup duty with France. City, meanwhile, are considering loan requests from Valencia and Deportivo La Coruna for 23-year-old midfielder Bruno Zuculini who joined last month from Racing in a £3m deal. VIDEO Scroll down for Man City target Eliaquim Mangala scoring for Porto . Close: Manchester City hope to finalise the £32million signing of Eliaquim Mangala over the next 48 hours. Deal: The 23-year-old was due to return to training on Tuesday after being on World Cup duty with France . Mangala joined Porto in 2011 from Belgium club Standard Liege and has made 92 appearances in total. He made his international debut last month in France's 1-0 friendly defeat to Uruguay and was part of Didier Deschamps' squad for the World Cup in Brazil although he did not feature. VIDEO Mangala seen in Manchester City ." ]

[ "Manchester City have confirmed that they have finally landed Eliaquim Mangala from Porto, with the player adamant he's ready to win trophies immediately. City's pursuit of Mangala has been the most protracted transfer of the summer and they are believed to have paid £32million to land their man, who has penned a five-year contract. The central defender will wear the number 20 shirt at the Etihad Stadium, and also revealed that the arrival of Porto team-mate Fernando at City has helped. VIDEO Scroll down to watch Eliaquim Mangala score with a brilliant back heel volley . Done: Eliaquim Mangala has signed for Manchester City from Porto in £32million deal . Signed, sealed, delivered: Mangala has penned a five-year deal with the Premier League champions . All for one: Mangala joined fans on a tour of the Etihad Stadium after signing for Manchester City . Pose: The French defender had his picture taken alongside his new shirt at the Etihad Stadium . VIDEO Mangala seen in Manchester City . The heart of the Premier League champions' back four has remained an ongoing concern for Manuel Pellegrini who felt he needed a more consistent partner for Vincent Kompany. Their problems in the centre of defence were laid bare during the 3-0 Community Shield defeat against Arsenal on Sunday, with Mangala a shrewd capture. 'City is a top club in Europe,' Mangala said. 'For me, it was an important step to leave Porto and join Manchester City in order to continue my progress. I want to win titles and I believe I can do this. I am ambitious and this is why I am here. 'I'm very happy to come to England because for me, the Premier League is the best league in the world. It is a very intense and very aggressive competition. There are plenty of goals, so it is also really nice to watch and I can't wait to get started. 'The fact that Fernando is here is better because I played with him at Porto but there is also other players that I know like Sagna, Clichy and Nasri.' Landed his man: Manuel Pellegrini identified the centre of defence as a problem area for the champions . Pellegrini said: 'I'm delighted to have added a player of Eliaquim's quality in the squad ahead of the new season. 'He is already a fine player but in my opinion, he has all of the mental, physical, technical and tactical attributes to become one of Europe's very best defenders. 'Eliaquim is a player I believe will make an immediate impact in the Premier League, thanks to his physicality, his reading of the game and quality on the ball. 'I think he will prove to be a great signing for us.'", "By . Chris Wheeler . Follow @@ChrisWheelerDM . Manchester City chief Ferran Soriano has revealed that the £32million deal to sign FC Porto defender Eliaquim Mangala will signal the end of their summer spending. Mangala’s arrival has been held up due to issues over third-party ownership but City hope to conclude protracted negotiations before next weekend’s Community Shield against Arsenal at Wembley. The 23-year-old Frenchman has already passed a medical and agreed personal terms, and his signing will take the club’s outlay on new players this summer to a relatively modest £50million following the purchase of his former Porto teammate Fernando, Arsenal defender Bacary Sagna and Malaga goalkeeper Willy Caballero. VIDEO Scroll down to watch MAnchester City target Eliaquim Mangala score for Porto . Competition: Willy Caballero will go head-to-head with Joe Hart for the No 1 shirt at Man City this season . He shoots, he scores! Manuel Pellegrini has added Fernando to the club's midfielder ranks from Porto . With the Premier League champions restricted to a £49m net spend for breaching UEFA’s Financial Fair Play regulations, Soriano confirmed yesterday that there would be no more new additions to Manuel Pellegrini’s squad. ‘We don’t plan season by season, we plan in cycles,’ he said. ‘We knew one year ago the positions we wanted to reinforce in the team and we did it. ‘We have a new right-back, a new holding midfielder and we will have a new central defender and that’s it. We don’t need to sign new players for the sake of it. ‘We need to sign the players that the team needs because the team has a balance. To win you need to keep the balance. Our squad is very strong and it’s the second year they play coached by Manuel Pellegrini so they’ll do much better.’ Pellegrini won the title in his first season in England after spending nearly £100m on Fernandinho, Alvaro Negredo, Stevan Jovetic and Jesus Navas last summer. The focus now will be on which players to offload as City look to trim their squad and comply with UEFA’s punishment. They are set to sell either Negredo or Javi Garcia to reduce the number of foreigners, while Micah Richards, Scott Sinclair and Jack Rodwell are all expected to go. Not done yet: Manuel Pellegrini confirmed that Manchester City's £32m move for Porto defender Eliaquim Mangala was not '100 per cent' completed . VIDEO Mangala seen in City video . On his way: Mangala has already undergone his medical at City and toured the club's facilities . City are also prepared to listen to offers for Matija Nastasic who will be pushed further down the pecking order once they have signed Mangala. With the France defender due to start pre-season training on Monday following his involvement at the World Cup, City want to tie up his transfer as soon as possible. Their remaining World Cup contingent – captain Vincent Kompany, Fernandinho, Sergio Aguero, Pablo Zabaleta and Martin Demichelis – will report back to Carrington at the start of the week, although it is still unclear if Pellegrini and his squad will be back in England by then. Even if City beat Olympiacos in their last group game of the International Champions Cup in Minnesota today (sat), they face a three-and-a-half-hour wait to see if Liverpool can clinch top spot and a place in Monday’s final by overcoming AC Milan in Charlotte. The peculiar situation means the players will not know if they are flying to Manchester or Miami until later in the day. The Big Apple: Frank Lampard has become one of New York FC's first signings after leaving Chelsea . City are likely to be regular visitors to the US in future after launching their new franchise, New York City. Frank Lampard and David Villa have already been signed for the club’s debut season in Major League Soccer next year, and Soriano believes that City’s involvement was critical in persuading the two men to move to America. ‘One of reasons David Villa and Frank Lampard decided to come to New York is because they know who manages and who owns the club,’ he said. ‘We have some very bright star players, young players in Europe we might ask them to come to New York to play before they play at Manchester City. There are all sorts of advantages. ‘I think this will raise the bar for the whole league. I think we will push the bar and others will follow.’", "Southampton fear they will miss out on a permanent move for on loan defender Toby Alderweireld with parent club Atletico Madrid intent on sparking a bidding war for the player. The Belgium international has impressed for the Saints this season prior to sustaining a hamstring injury at Manchester United in January. His performances have been central to Southampton's attempt to finish in the Premier League's top four, and manager Ronald Koeman wants to make the loan move permanent ahead of the next campaign. However, Alderweireld's form has not gone unnoticed elsewhere. Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino is understood to be an admirer of the 26-year-old, while Manchester City remain in the hunt for defensive reinforcements with Manuel Pellegrini yet to find the perfect partner for captain Vincent Kompany. Southampton will face a challenge if they want to sign on loan defender Toby Alderweireld (left) permanently . Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino (centre) is understood to be an admirer of the defender . Manchester City boss Manuel Pellegrini (centre) is keen to add defensive reinforcements to his squad . Pellegrini feels that Alderweireld could act as the perfect partner to captain Vincent Kompany . Both Martin Demichelis and Eliaquim Mangala have been given opportunities but have so far not done enough to convince anybody at the Etihad Stadium that they can help take City to the next level, particularly in Europe. Southampton have a £6.8million option on Alderweireld as part of their loan deal but it's thought Atletico may well use a clause in the deal that stipulates they can essentially pay £1.5m to cancel that and then sell the player to the highest bidder. Alderweireld gets across to tackle Chelsea's Branislav Ivanovic (left) during the Premier League game . Alderweireld suffered a hamstring injury during Southampton's 1-0 victory over Manchester United . That would leave Koeman sweating on his attempts to take the former Ajax defender on a full-time basis. Southampton work to a tight budget and know they'd be facing an uphill struggle in striking a deal with Atletico this summer if bigger clubs enter the race. Alderweireld signed for Atletico from Ajax for a fee of £6.2 million in 2013, and the Spanish club are keen to recoup as much of that fee as possible. Alderweireld has 43 caps for Belgium since making his international debut back in 2009 . The 26-year-old slides in with a challenge on Newcastle United's striker Emanuel Riviere (left)", "Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini insists that Frank Lampard should not be labelled a 'traitor' for making the move to the Etihad Stadium after over a decade at Chelsea. Lampard, who signed for New York City this summer and is now at Manchester City after signing a short-term deal, has come under fire in some quarters for moving to a rival club. However, speaking at a press conference ahead of Sunday's Community Shield against Arsenal, Pellegrini defended his new signing: 'I don't understand the reaction of Chelsea fans that say he is a traitor. VIDEO Scroll down for Manuel Pellegrini: We haven't breached financial fair play rules . Blue moon: Frank Lampard joined Manchester City on a short-term deal . Running man: Lampard trains with his new Manchester City team-mates . 'The problem was not that Frank Lampard did not want to sign another contract at Chelsea. Chelsea didn't want him anymore and he wants to continue playing. He is a competitive player and very important for our team.' Pellegrini, who, admitted he was 'surprised' by Arsene Wenger continued barbs at Manchester City, also maintained that the club had done nothing wrong in making the loan move for Lampard. When Wenger's comments were put to the Chilean, Pellegrini said: 'I think that as a manager we have enough problems worrying about ourselves without talking about other teams. What I will say is that we have important restrictions over FFP. Frank Lampard was a free player so we didn't spend anything to bring him here from New York City.' Wembley showdown: Manuel Pellegrini is looking forward to facing Arsenal in the Community Shield . New boy: Bacary Sagna joins in with training with his new City team-mates . All smiles: Sergio Aguero looks happy to be back at Manchester City after the World Cup . Wembley bound:Micah Richards (right) and Scott Sinclair share a joke during the warm up at Carrington . England midfielder Lampard is not expected to be involved at Wembley on Sunday, as a host of players that have only this week returned to training set to miss out. 'Lampard is not ready to play. It is not only Lampard but all the players that arrived this week. The players that arrived this Monday are Martin Demichelis, Vincent Kompany, Pablo Zabaleta, Bacary Sagna, Fernandinho, Frank Lampard and Sergio Aguero. They have a special pre-season this week and next week.' Pellegrini also refused to comment on the club's portracted pursuit of Eliaquim Mangala, with a £32m move still to be completed. 'I always say the same,' the Chilean said, 'When things are finished, we can talk about that. For the moment, he is not a player in our squad.'", "Manchester City have already met Jurgen Klopp to assess him for the manager’s job – but it was back in 2013 when they were seeking a replacement for Roberto Mancini. Txiki Begiristain, City’s director of football met the Borussia Dortmund manager and concluded that he was not the right fit for City – and the club went on to appoint Manuel Pellegrini. Begiristain’s meeting and rejection of Klopp back in 2013 adds weight to the growing evidence that Klopp will not get the Manchester City job even though the Borussia Dortmund manager quit this week, fuelling a wave of speculation about which Premier League clubs might want to appoint him this summer. Manchester City have already met Jurgen Klopp to assess him for the manager’s job – but it was back in 2013 . The Dortmund boss will leave the club at the end of this season, with suggestions he could take over at City . Pellegrini’s position is clearly vulnerable given City’s failures this year on all fronts – in the Champions League, which was the principal target, the Premier League and the domestic cups. However, there is an insistence at the club that it should be not be automatically assumed that Pellegrini will be dismissed as, unlike when Mancini went, the club is running smoothly off the pitch without the internal tensions and disagreements which characterised Mancini’s last days. There will be the usual end-of-season review of the manager’s performance but this would take place every season, whatever success or not had been achieved. Pellegrini will clearly have to answer difficult questions about the team’s under performance, especially as they have sunk to fourth place and run the risk of being overhauled by Liverpool for the Champions League. However, Begiristain would also expect to answer questions about the recruitment of players last summer such as Eliaquim Mangala for £35million and Fernando for £13m, neither of whom has made an impact. On the plus side for Pellegrini, his style of play is seen as compatible with the type of club Begiristain and his colleague, chief executive Ferran Soriano, are attempting to create. City opted for Manuel Pellegrini after holding talks with both the Chilean and Klopp two years ago . Roberto Mancini left the Etihad Stadium in 2013 after failing to defend his Premier League crown . Director of football Txiki Begiristain will have questions to answer after signing Eliaquim Mangala (left) Both are former executives at Barcelona, where possession football and a strong academy were integral to the Catalan club and are now central to their vision City. Klopp’s counter attacking football does not fit their philosophy and there was also a sense that his exuberant personality would not be the type of manager for which City were looking in 2013. However, despite the club’s reassurances about Pellegrini, it is clear that his position will be under threat if not this summer then certainly next year, when Pep Guardiola’s three-year deal with Bayern runs out. If City do decide to make the change this summer, Rafa Benitez will be avaible when he leaves Napoli, where is challenging for a Champions League place, the Europa League and the Coppa Italia, and would be a strong candidate. But Guardiola clearly remains the favourite to take over when he has finished at Bayern. Begiristain was central in Guardiola’s appointment to Barcelona in 2008, a move which was considered a huge risk at the time but which paid extraordinary dividends as Barca won two Champions League trophies, three La Liga titles and the Copa del Rey twice under Guardiola. Begiristain’s faith in Guardiola when his only previous experience was with the Barcelona B team is why Patrick Vieira, City’s academy manager, has become a contender to take over should Pellegrini leave.", "Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini has admitted his club will have to buy young talent because the Academy's youngsters are not ready for first-team action. Liverpool star Raheem Sterling has already had his name linked with the defending Premier League champions after his contract stalemate at Anfield. Part of the pressure on City to land fresh young talent comes from FA chairman Greg Dyke's proposal to increase the quota of homegrown players to 12 in Premier League squads. Manuel Pellegrini doesn't believe his current crop of Academy players are up to joining Yaya Toure and Co . Manchester City keeper Joe Hart makes a save during training on Wednesday . Wilfried Bony is more likely to be joined by a young star such as Raheem Sterling than an Academy player . And, with the Blues having failed to produce any regular homegrown first team squad members since Micah Richards and Dedryck Boyata, Pellegrini admits the short-term answer to the need for the new talent does not lie within the squad. Pellegrini said: 'I think about the Academy, we must be patient. This club build all these things because young players are important. 'Maybe it's not so easy for young players, especially at big clubs, to play in the first team, with the professional squad. 'I'm sure in the future we will have very important players coming from the Academy, they will be part of the squad. 'But it's important to be patient, important to have years of working the same way. But you never know. Maybe some talented young players can do it before.' Pellegrini says he is sure the Academy will produce players worthy of his side but urges patience for now . Sterling (here with Brendan Rodgers) would fit the bill for City if his impasse with Liverpool isn't resolved . Sterling would obviously fit the bill and qualify as one of Dyke's homegrown quota if his impasse at Liverpool proves unsolvable. Pellegrini refused to comment directly about the Liverpool and England forward. But he said: 'I think it's important for big clubs to bring in the best players, that's the most important thing. 'If they're all good players, of course I agree with the quota. All the big leagues - especially the Premier League - need the best players to play.' City's need to add 'homegrown' or 'English' players to their squad has seen them linked with a host of top stars, including Arsenal's Jack Wilshere and Ross Barkley of Everton. Arsenal's Jack Wilshere, who's coming back from injury through the reserves, has attracted City's interest . Everton and England midfielder Ross Barkley is another 'homegrown' player to have caught their eye . The City manager is not in action until Monday when he takes his team to Crystal Palace and with Chelsea in an apparently commanding lead at the top, Pellegrini admits his side faces eight cup finals. He said: 'I hope we can do it. We have to play eight finals from now until the end. We will see the way we play. I hope the way we finish against West Brom is the way we must continue. 'It is not easy to make a clear analysis because they play with one player less. I hope in these eight games we continue playing that way.'", "By . Dan Ripley . Follow @@Ripley_77 . Will Man City beat West Ham to win the title? Manuel Pellegrini has claimed he was always certain that Manchester City would go on to beat Aston Villa, despite a nervous first hour against the Villans. Two goals from Edin Dzeko as well as late strikes from Stevan Jovetic and Yaya Toure helped City record a 4-0 win at the Etihad Stadium. But City toiled in attack for long periods, and only scored the opening goal in the 64th minute following a stubborn defensive showing from Paul Lambert's outfit. VIDEO Scroll down for Pellegrini: Man City always believed we could win title . Team effort: Manchester City boss Manuel Pellegrini congratulates Edin Dzeko after substituting the striker . Keep going: Pellegrini encouraged his Manchester City side to keep playing the same way after half-time, resulting in Edin Dzeko scoring the first of his two goals in the 64th minute . Pellegrini's team only had one shot on target in the first half, but the City boss claimed he was always confident his side would make the breakthrough by sticking to their guns. 'It was a big test because it was not an easy game, Pellegrini told Sky Sports. 'We now have to win at home if we want to continue what we can do in the future. 'The team played very well for 90 minutes and we were very patient in the first half. We were patient and prepared, it's not easy to play against 10 defenders but I spoke to the players at half-time and I told them to continue what we were doing. 'We were playing well. I was absolutely sure we would find space to score the goal.' The result means Manchester City only need to beat West Ham on the final day of the season to win their second title in three years. Stubborn: Aston Villa's defence caused City serious problems for over an hour as Yaya Toure goes to ground trying to fend off Villans defender Ron Vlaar . Fans' backing: City fans unveiled a banner in support of manager Pellegrini at the Etihad Stadium . Not again, surely? Sergio Aguero's injury time strike against QPR famously won Manchester City the 2012 title . The scenario will bring back memories of the 2012 title race when Roberto Mancini's City team needed to beat QPR on the final day, eventually stumbling to the title thanks to two dramatic late goals against the Hoops. However, Pellegrini denies having ever watched the game in an attempt to learn from past mistakes, and has no intention of viewing the match claiming the game contained a totally different City team. 'We are just thinking about the title, we must beat West Ham and win the title. I've not seen the game [QPR 2012], it was another team playing another way. QPR against Man City or Liverpool vs Palace, it doesnt matter. Any team can beat another team. It's all different.'", "In fairness to Manuel Pellegrini, there was only so much he could say. Here he was, after all, in the bowels of the Etihad Stadium, reflecting on the potentially negative impact of a flight on an Etihad jet owned by his club’s main sponsor. But Manchester City’s manager was struggling to defend the position he had initially adopted when asked if a tired display against Middlesbrough was the product of a seven-hour journey the previous evening. In his post-match press conference he had politely but firmly rejected such accusations. In a side room later, however, he argued with less conviction, even admitting that his own view of the situation might have been flawed. ‘I am not saying what I am saying is the correct thing,’ he said. ‘I give an opinion.’ Manuel Pellegrini looks disheartened during Manchester City's defeat at the Etihad Stadium . Middlesbrough striker Patrick Bamford celebrates after scoring for his side against Manchester City . Middlesbrough's Kike celebrates after scoring in stoppage time to seal his side's passage to the next round . Perhaps more telling was when Pellegrini was asked if such a visit to the Abu Dhabi home of his super-rich employers would have been arranged had they been playing Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, the game which comes next for a City side now reflecting on back-to-back defeats after their loss to Arsenal. ‘It was not a game with Chelsea,’ he replied. ‘I don’t want to say because you are telling me something that is not relative.’ So he was asked again. Would they have spent 14 hours on a plane, not to mention five days in a different time zone, had it been the week they were meeting their main rivals for the Premier League title? ‘Chelsea stayed here. They did not go to Abu Dhabi,’ he said. ‘Tottenham stayed here. They did not go to Abu Dhabi. I respect your opinion but you respect also mine.’ With the greatest respect his point was not a terribly valid one when Cup defeats for Chelsea and Tottenham do not hide the fact that landing back so late from Abu Dhabi — around 8pm — amounted to far from ideal preparation. Manager Manuel Pellegrini and his players arrived back in Manchester at about 8pm on Friday night . David Silva and Vincent Kompany headed straight to the club's training base to prepare for Saturday's game . As Pellegrini acknowledged, it was not a game against Chelsea. No, it was an FA Cup game against Championship opposition and the City hierarchy obviously thought it the perfect week to put in an appearance for their sponsors. It somewhat undermined Pellegrini’s claim in his own programme notes that City were taking this competition every bit as seriously as the Premier League and Champions League. That, having been eliminated by Championship opposition in Wigan the previous season, they were going to give this a real shot. ‘We want to be at Wembley later in the season and we don’t prioritise the trophies we are involved in,’ he wrote. Only they do, even if we probably have to be fair to Pellegrini and recognise how unlikely it is that the trip would have been his idea. In this modern era of the game managers often have to bow to the demands of the money men. Presumably, they will do nothing to disrupt what now follows this weekend; that encounter with the current league leaders. The only flight City should consider boarding this week should be one to London. Manchester City players James Milner ), Dedryck Boyata and Fernando look dejected after their side concede . Manchester City played a friendly match against Bundesliga side Hamburg during a trip to Abu Dhabi . Whether this trip would have taken place if City had been playing Chelsea remains doubtful .", "By . Chris Wheeler . Follow @@ChrisWheelerDM . Manuel Pellegrini has warned his players that Manchester City must not dwell on last season's success as the Premier League champions attempt to defend their title and conquer Europe. City won a league and Capital One Cup double in Pellegrini's first season at the club, and the Chilean also guided them to the knockout stage of the Champions League for the first time before losing to Barcelona. As he prepared for City's second pre-season tour game against AC Milan in Pittsburgh on Sunday, Pellegrini vowed that he will not rest on his laurels. VIDEO Scroll down to watch City signing Bacary Sagna relaxing in the sea with wife Ludivine . Top prize: Manuel Pellegrini wants to get his hands on the Premier League trophy once again . Room for improvement: Pellegrini is doing his best to take his players to the next level . 'We won the title last season but this year is another year,' he said. 'We have new targets, we will try to make important achievements in the Champions League and to once again win the Premier League. 'So I think that what happened last year is in the past. For our team now it is important to think of the future - and the future is to continue winning titles. 'Every year in the Premier League you have five or six teams who are very strong. Maybe this year Chelsea at the moment, and Arsenal and Manchester United are bringing new players in. 'But I think that we will continue to be a very strong squad. We have also been bringing in three or four important players to improve our squad. And we will see during the year which is the better team. 'But I continue thinking we have a very strong squad and we will try to win the title again.' City have signed goalkeeper Willy Caballero, defender Bacary Sagna and midfielder Fernando, and hope to buy FC Porto centre-back Eliaquim Mangala for £32million. It means that some players will be leaving but Pellegrini insists that Stevan Jovetic will not be one of them. He added: 'Stevan is working well with us. He is a very important player for our team. Maybe there are a lot of rumours about his future but Stevan will stay with us here.' Summer acquisitions: Fernando (left) and Bacary Sagna (right) have both sealed moves to Manchester City . Staying put: Stevan Jovetic will not be allowed to leave the Etihad Stadium .", "By . Chris Wheeler . PUBLISHED: . 16:57 EST, 30 January 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 01:08 EST, 31 January 2014 . Manchester City are in talks over a £35million deal to sign Porto centre back Eliaquim Mangala and his team-mate Fernando. They may struggle to pull off the double transfer before Friday’s 11pm deadline  but City are determined to seal the deals no later than this summer. They have been encouraged by a significant shift in Porto’s position over the last 48 hours after the cash-strapped  Portuguese club indicated they are willing to reduce the asking price if it means having the money in the bank now. Top targets: Fernando (left) and Eliaquim Mangala (right) could join City before the transfer deadline . Hitting the heights: Frenchman Mangala has been tracked by City for some time . City have been tracking Mangala, 22, for some time knowing the buyout clause in the Frenchman’s contract is £37.8m. Porto value Fernando, 26, at £7m even though the defensive midfielder from Brazil will be a free agent in the summer. However, it is understood that a joint figure of £35m could be agreed if City are prepared to do business before Friday's deadline. That would be another remarkable statement of intent by Manuel Pellegrini’s side, who have taken the Barclays  Premier League by storm after spending more than £100m on new signings last summer. Mangala has interested a number of top clubs including Manchester United, Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain, but Pellegrini identified the former Standard Liege defender as his top target some time ago. The City manager has been in the hunt for a new centre back since last summer, when he failed to sign Pepe from Real Madrid and then compromised by bringing in Martin Demichelis from neighbours Atletico. The uncertainty over the Mangala deal is believed to be the reason why Joleon Lescott’s future at City has been left in the balance. A deal is in place for Lescott to join West Ham, with the England defender desperate for regular first-team football to safeguard his World Cup hopes. Equally, the bid for Fernando will cast further doubt over the City futures of Jack Rodwell and Javi Garcia, neither of whom has impressed since arriving in 2012. Wanted: Mangala has shown his talents this season with the Portuguese giants . In tow? Fernando (right) could be on his way to the Etihad for £7million . Strengthening: Manuel Pellegrini (left) is hoping to bolster his defensive options at City . Future partner? Vincent Kompany may be lining up alongside Mangala in the City back line . Meanwhile, Pellegrini is set to be without top scorer Sergio Aguero for Monday’s match with Chelsea at the Etihad after the Argentina striker limped out of Wednesday’s 5-1 win at Tottenham with a hamstring injury. Aguero could face a race to be fit for the Champions League showdown with Barcelona next month. Uncertainty: Joleon Lescott (right) could be on his way out if the pair join from Porto . The competition: Martin Demichelis (left) and Matija Nastasic (right) have been rotated this season . At £28million, Eliaquim Mangala seems rather pricey for an unknown centre half currently playing in Portugal? Maybe, but believe it or not, City are getting him on the cheap. The 22-year-old’s buy-out clause at Porto is £37.8m, and only the attraction of up-front cash from Manchester is persuading them to let him go for less. He began his career with Standard Liege in Belgium  — is Vincent Kompany set to welcome a fellow countryman to the Etihad? No, Mangala is actually French. Born in the Parisian suburb of Colombes, his family moved to Belgium when he was five to live in the French-speaking town of Namur. Mangala qualified for a Belgian passport, but elected to answer a call-up from France’s Under 21 squad after making his name at Liege, and won his first full cap in a friendly against Uruguay last June, two years after his £6.5m move to Porto. He’s used to moving around then? Yes, off and on the pitch. He began life as a striker growing up in Belgium, but switched to left back when he joined Liege. He then shone as a deep-lying midfielder, but eventually ended up as a stylish central defender. Does he have any previous experience of English football? He certainly does. At the age of just 18, Mangala scored Standard Liege’s first ever Champions League goal, in September 2009, against Arsenal. He’s been on the radar of the Premier  League’s big boys ever since. DAN FRANCIS .", "By . Chris Wheeler . Follow @@ChrisWheelerDM . Manchester City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak has shrugged off the limitations of a £49million transfer cap by revealing that the new Premier League champions are well on the way to landing their summer transfer targets. City want to sign defender Bacary Sagna on a free transfer from Arsenal and retain a strong interest in £35m-rated FC Porto defender Eliaquim Mangala and his teammate Fernando despite an UEFA punishment for breaching Financial Fair Play regulations. As well as having their net spending capped, City's wage bill has also been frozen although £200,000-a-week will be freed up after Khaldoon confirmed that Gareth Barry and Joleon Lescott are not being offered new contracts. Quick mover: Manchester City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak tells fans they'll move quickly with transfers . Future starts now: Al Mubarak (left) says the club knows who they want and who they don't . On the move? City is targeting Arsenal's FA Cup-winning defender Bacary Sagna for a move across London . In demand: Porto's Eliaquim Mangala is rated at £35m but still a primary focus for the Premier League Champions . Under pressure: City financial constraints haven't dampened their interest in Fernando, also from Porto . After stealing a march on their rivals . by spending nearly £100m on Fernandinho, Jesus Navas, Alvaro Negredo . and Stevan Jovetic last summer, the City chief promised that they will . not waste any time again now. He said: 'Expect the same - but even earlier. 'Today . I can tell you we know exactly what needs to be done, we know exactly . the players that need to go and the players that need to come to the . areas that need to be strengthened. 'So . I can tell our fans: expect an efficient and swift execution plan and . we will have, after the World Cup, a good pre-season and will go into . the season very ready as we did last year ready to compete in four all . four competitions.' City's actions last summer, including the . sacking of Roberto Mancini as manager, put the club back on an upward . trajectory after a relatively disappointing end to the 2012-13 season. Al Mubarak reported that owner Sheikh Mansour of Abu Dhabi has been delighted with progress in the past 12 months. Moving on: Al Mubarak (right), with Sheikh Mansour (left) and Vincent Kompany, says FFP restrictions of £49m will have 'no material impact' on their plans . Paint it blue: Manchester's Albert Square is covered in confetti as fans celebrate the Premier League glory . He said: 'Sheikh Mansour feels this club . is doing exactly what he intended it to do in terms of performance . across the board - on the field, off field, trophies, championships and . wins, but also commercial success, and the fans' support has been . unwavering. 'Genuinely, Sheikh Mansour is absolutely delighted with the way this club, this company, this business is performing.' City did attract criticism after parting company with Mancini, as the Italian had led the club to their first title in 44 years in 2012. But Manuel Pellegrini has proved a popular, reliable and successful replacement and the club feel their decision has been vindicated. Al Mubarak said: 'The decision to hire Pellegrini was a very important decision for us as we look at the next couple of years. 'I am absolutely delighted for him, for the fans, for the club, for everyone involved at Manchester City. 'It is a perfectly justified decision. I think the results speak for themselves.' Leadership: Manager Manuel Pellegrini and Vincent Kompany pose after a job well done . Justified: The results of the season validate City's choice to replace Roberto Mancini with Pellegrini . One of the next targets for City will be to carry their domestic pre-eminence onto the European stage. Some progress on this front has been made under Pellegrini, with the club reaching the Champions League knockout stage for the first time. Al Mubarak said: 'This year we have made some progress. We have played much better football, been a lot more competitive and I think the experience coming through the two games against Barcelona will be invaluable for us. 'Let's be clear - Europe has always been an integral part of our strategy, an integral part of the success we want to achieve for this club. We will continue to progress.' Al Mubarak also paid tribute to two City players who are now out of contract in Joleon Lescott and Gareth Barry and are set to leave this summer. Defender Lescott, signed from Everton in an acrimonious £22million deal in 2009, played a key role in the 2012 title win. Moved on: Former Everton defender Joleon Lescott (right) hasn't been retained by City . Tribute: As with Lescott, Al Mubarak thanked Gareth Barry for his services to City after a year's loan at Everton . Al Mubarak said: 'He is a wonderful man. He has served this club loyally and he has had some of his best performances in his career here at Manchester City. 'I look back at the challenge when we first brought Joleon in and the reaction he had at Everton. It was a tough time for him but I am really happy for him. He came here and had a wonderful career. 'We will miss him and I really want to thank him for all his efforts.' Barry, who also joined the club in 2009, enjoyed four good seasons in the City midfield before joining Everton on loan last summer. Al Mubarak said: 'Gareth is another one of those wonderful players that made a big career decision when he decided to join City. 'He was a loyal player in our squad, fully committed to our cause, had some phenomenal performances. 'He really was a great player for Manchester City. I really want to wish him all the best going forward.'", "By . Adam Crafton for the Daily Mail . For all Manchester City’s attacking flair last season, there were times when the cavalier approach bordered on the naive and a certain fragility was apparent. We need only think back to the last time Manuel Pellegrini side’s faced Monday night's opponents on that emotional afternoon in April. Liverpool won 3-2 because City were too open and were torn to pieces in a scorching first half. Ultimately, it did not matter. As Liverpool stumbled in the title race, City pulled away. It was, however, an instructive afternoon for Pellegrini, who will also be concerned that City last season lost home and away to Chelsea and failed to win at Arsenal. VIDEO Scroll down to watch Manchester City's Fernandinho in the Ice Bucket Challenge . Strength in depth: Fernando will add assuredness to Manchester City's midfield this season . Hard tackler: The former Porto man impressed on his debut against Newcastle last Sunday . They also lost 3-1 at home by Bayern Munich. It is those results that perhaps persuaded City to push through a £12million deal for Porto’s Fernando, after almost sealing a move in January. Pellegrini favours adventurous football but the acquisition of Fernando suggests we may see a cuter City this season. City will now have muscularity to complement the elegance. City already boast Fernandinho and Yaya Toure in central positions but there was a suspicion that at times they neglected their defensive duties. Now, City could field a three-man midfield with Fernando, providing greater protection in front of the defence. Fernandinho sees his new team-mate as a positive addition. ‘Fernando is a big signing for us,’ he said. ‘The club is not just thinking about defending the title but also the Champions League. ‘Our target is to reach the Champions League final and I’m sure he can help us do it. Whether it is me, Yaya or Fernando who plays, we have the quality to win the Champions League.’ Attacking force: He will be hoping to complement the creative talents of Yaya Toure in City's midfield . Competition: And he will likely be challenging fellow Brazilian Fernandinho for the second central rol . Pellegrini may opt to experiment for the first time with all three in the same midfield tonight. Fernandinho, though available, is also still working towards full fitness after returning late from the World Cup, so if Pellegrini plays with only two in there, he may a face a battle with compatriot Fernando for a starting place. ‘That doesn’t matter,’ said Fernandinho. ‘If he plays one game, I can play another, and sometimes we can play together.’ The Brazilians did not know each other before Fernando’s arrival but have hit it off. Fernandinho added: ‘We have worked and lived together and done things socially. I told him to find a house near me. He is like me, calm and quiet.’", "Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini is to investigate the spate of muscle injuries that threatens to undermine his side's return to form. City could have to play through the Christmas programme without a recognised senior striker and their captain after a costly 1-0 victory over Barclays Premier League bottom side Leicester on Saturday. The club's only fit striker, Edin Dzeko, suffered a calf muscle injury in the warm-up before skipper Vincent Kompany pulled up with a recurrence of a hamstring problem late in the second half. Vincent Kompany (centre) was substituted late in Manchester City's game against Leicester on Saturday . Edin Dzeko (top right) sustained a calf injury in the warm-up before City's game against Leicester . Both are unlikely to be fit before new year and join forwards Sergio Aguero and Stevan Jovetic on the casualty list. Their absences will leave sizeable gaps at both ends of the field and Pellegrini wants to find out if there is an underlying cause, although the Chilean will not make excuses. 'Maybe we must find a reason why,' said Pellegrini, whose side have won seven in succession. 'It is very unlucky to have the three strikers out with injuries but we must try to solve the problem and play another way, or keep a clean sheet. 'It is difficult because we have to play a lot of games during the last days of December, but I never complain about the players who cannot play.' Kompany had been making his comeback after a three-game absence with a hamstring injury and the influential Belgian also missed a game at QPR in November with a calf problem. Dzeko had only recently returned from a four-game lay-off with a calf strain while Jovetic has had niggly hamstring issues in recent weeks and aggravated them in Wednesday's Champions League win at Roma. Sergio Aguero (centre) has been in superb form for City this season but is out injured for around six weeks . Fellow striker Stevan Jovetic (right) has aggravated a hamstring problem and also faces time out injured . City manager Manuel Pellegrini (centre) has vowed to look into the number of muscle injuries his side have had . Full-back Aleksandar Kolarov missed all City's November fixtures with a calf injury. Top scorer Aguero has knee ligament damage and could be out for up to eight weeks. Teenage striker Jose Angel Pozo was drafted into the side at the King Power Stadium at the last moment and the lack of current alternatives could force City into the transfer market in January. Pellegrini said: 'In January we will see, it is an option. I think our squad must always be strong.' Another looming problem is the loss of midfielder Yaya Toure to the African Nations Cup next month. That is likely to mean Pellegrini will press harder to extend the loan of Frank Lampard in the coming days. Former England and Chelsea midfielder Lampard again proved City's chief inspiration and was their match-winner at Leicester, netting the only goal - his sixth for the club - five minutes before half-time. Pellegrini wants Frank Lampard (centre) to stay at the club for longer than his current loan spell states . The 36-year-old's loan from sister club New York City expires at the end of the month and Pellegrini has made clear he wants him to stay longer. He also said after the game that Lampard himself also wanted to stay on. A decision has not yet been made but Pellegrini had already come to a firm opinion on his value before the injuries to strikers that left the veteran as one of the team's few obvious goalscorers. 'That is why he is now on the team but he would not stay with us because we have injured strikers,' said Pellegrini. 'He would stay with us because he is a very important player.' City were laboured but at least kept claimed the three points needed to prevent Chelsea extending their three-point advantage at the top of the table. Leicester made the early running and rallied late on but City's defence held firm and recorded a valuable third clean sheet in the space of a week. 'As a defender it is always nice to have a clean sheet but I want to say all the team defended well,' said right-back Bacary Sagna. 'We faced a very athletic team. They tried to create problems but we stayed compact as a team and finally we got the three points. We have to look forward and keep working.' Bacary Sagna (middle) was happy with how his team defended against Leicester during their 1-0 win . Nigel Pearson (left) watches on as his side slipped to another defeat, this time at home to Manchester City . Leicester boss Nigel Pearson feels his side are letting themselves down at both ends of the field. The result left the promoted Foxes bottom of the table and without a win in 11 games, since they stunned Manchester United on September 21. He said: 'This remains the frustrating aspect about our season so far - that we are not converting key chances and an inability to keep that clean sheet. 'We find ourselves adrift at the bottom at the moment and that is something we are going to have to rectify. 'From a tactical perspective we didn't really allow them to have a great deal of dominance. 'But the bottom line is, it is about being dominant in both boxes and we have not delivered that again.'", "Manchester City's hopes of retaining the Premier League title were dealt another blow as Manuel Pellegrini's men limped to a 2-1 defeat at Crystal Palace. Glenn Murray fired the Eagles ahead on 34 minutes with a close-range effort before Jason Puncheon scored a stunning free-kick to secure a 2-0 lead. Yaya Toure grabbed one back for the visitors, but it wasn't enough to stop City from losing further ground on league leaders Chelsea. Here, SportsMail's Sami Mokbel takes us through the key moments of the match. Thought Manchester City players didn't crowd referees, Manuel? Aggrieved at Michael Oliver's decision to let Glenn Murray's opener stand, City players were quick to surround the referee — delaying the restart. How will Pellegrini explain that one? Manuel pellegrini will struggle to defend his City players after they crowded referee Michael Oliver . Kompany gets up in the referee's face as the City captain shows his clear frustration at Selhurst Park . Palace fans weren't incredibly optimistic ahead of last night's clash. Here's why: City had recorded seven victories in a row against Palace. Alan Pardew's side had also failed to score in their last three league games against them. And to top it off, as Newcastle boss Pardew had lost his last eight league matches against City by an aggregate score of 23-3. Jason Puncheon's stunning free-kick helped Cyrstal Palace to a memorable win against Manchester City . Punchon celebrates his goal and is congratulated by Palace team-mate James McArthur (right) Wonder what FA chairman Greg Dyke made of Manchester City's starting XI yesterday. With James Milner and Frank Lampard on the bench, Manuel Pellegrini named a team without a single English outfield player for the 16th Premier League game this season. Former England midfielder Frank Lampard (pictured) and James Milner were left on the bench for City . But for goalkeeper Joe Hart, all of City's starting line-up against Crystal Palace were foreign players . Joel Ward made his 100th appearance for Palace on Monday night. Alan Pardew fears there may not be many more as the impasse over a new contract continues. Crystal Palace defender Joel Ward (left) tussles for the ball with City midfielder David Silva (right) Crystal Palace manager Alan Pardew gives instructions to his players from the touchline at Selhurst Park .", "Manuel Pellegrini believes Manchester City have the firepower to propel themselves to the top of the Premier League – despite having no fit strikers available. The champions can move into pole position on Saturday if they beat Crystal Palace by a four-goal margin. But they must do so without Sergio Aguero and Edin Dzeko, who are out until the new year, and Stevan Jovetic, who will not be fit until Boxing Day at the earliest. Martin Demichelis (centre) and Samir Nasri (right) train as Manchester City prepare for Saturday's match with Crystal Palace . Nasri (second right) could start as a false nine for City as they seek a win that could see them move to the top of the Premier League . Davis Silva provides another attacking alternative for City, who will take on Palace without a fit striker . Frank Lampard (centre) has also provided a goal threat in recent weeks and will look to keep scoring over Christmas for City . It leaves Pellegrini desperately short of options up front. James Milner could be used as a false No 9, while Samir Nasri, David Silva and 18-year-old Jose Angel Pozo are also contenders for the role. Pellegrini says he has faith in his squad to cope. ‘None of them are fit so we have to arrange without Jovetic, without Dzeko, without Kun (Aguero),’ the Chilean said. ‘We will try to play in another way. I hope that midfielders will arrive from the second line and we will score in another way. ‘We will have to change our way to play, a different system because when you don’t have strikers you must arrive at the goal in a different way. ‘I hope we will do it. I know that we play against a team that defend very well so we will see what is the best solution to play without them.’ Pellegrini says contract negotiations with Joe Hart and Milner are progressing, despite no announcement being made. The 18-year-old Jose Angel Pozo is also an option for City to consider -he has made his first appearances for the club this season . City manager Manuel Pellegrini is confident goalkeeper Joe Hart (centre) will sign a new contract with the Premier League champions . The City squad goes through its paces as the finishing touches are made before the Palace match on Saturday . Hart is poised to sign a five-year deal but reports have suggested talks over Milner’s proposed four-year contract have stalled. ‘We are talking with James,’ Pellegrini said. ‘It is not easy for all the players to sign a new contract. ‘There are a lot of things to talk, to decide, discuss. I hope finally James will sign his contract. I repeat, the same as with Joe Hart, he wants to stay and the club wants to keep him.’", "Most sportsmen will try to put a positive spin on things, no matter how bad they get. Sometimes the truth is unpalatable. For manager Manuel Pellegrini and his Manchester City players, however, the lessons of Tuesday night’s home defeat by Barcelona were clear. Once again they had come up short and they head to Spain for a second leg on March 18 knowing something much, much better is required. So when City’s French defender Gael Clichy was asked the key question, there was no great point trying to sugar-coat anything. Gael Clichy attempt to stop Lionel Messi in his tracks as the Barcelona forward goes on the attack . The Manchester City defender was sent off in the second half as the home side pressed for an equaliser . Luis Suarez had given Barcelona the lead from a tight angle after the ball fell kindly to him in the City box . Have City, Clichy was asked, improved at all since last year’s 2-0 defeat at home by Barca at this stage of the Champions League? ‘It’s hard to say that,’ said Clichy. ‘If you look at this game they had more possession, created chances and we ran after the ball a lot. I don’t know if we have improved since last year. ‘We are privileged to be in a club that wants to improve year after year. And to improve is to go further in the Champions League. Twice in a row we have played Barcelona. They are a big team and know how to play those kind of games. Eventually we will get there. ‘Those clubs have been built for several years — 20, 30, 40 years — and this is only the sixth season for us but that’s no excuse. The owner wants to improve quickly, so we have to improve quickly. Suarez celebrates the crucial first away goal after finishing emphatically past Joe Hart . Suarez slides in ahead of Martin Demichelis to flick Jordi Alba's cross past Hart to double the lead . ‘If we play as we did in the second half, everything is possible. It’s not going to be easy, but we are going to try really hard.’ Given that Clichy had been sent off only an hour earlier, the former Arsenal player’s honesty was welcome. City did improve after half-time but by then they were 2-0 down and all but out of the competition once again. Goalkeeper Joe Hart, whose last-minute penalty save from Lionel Messi prevented another Barcelona goal, admitted City had panicked when their plan to suffocate Barca high up the field failed. City’s owners — and Pellegrini — face a conundrum in that while few really thought they would beat Barcelona, improvement is expected. And currently it is hard for Pellegrini to suggest there has been any. Sergio Aguero fires past Marc Andre ter Stegen to put Manchester City back in the game . Aguero celebrates with James Milner after scoring what could turn out to be a vital goal in the context of the tie with 20 minutes to go . City bought three players last summer. Bacary Sagna has not managed to displace Pablo Zabaleta at full back, Fernando would perhaps not have played on Tuesday had Yaya Toure not been suspended, and £30million-plus French defender Eliaquim Mangala has been the biggest disappointment of all. Football director Txiki Begiristain heads City’s recruitment team and must accept some responsibility. Pellegrini, however, will ultimately feel the greatest pressure. There is no question mark over his future right now but this is a club with a very clear idea of where it wants to get to and when. Some may question Pellegrini’s decision to play 4-4-2 on Tuesday. City looked short in central midfield where Fernando and James Milner had a dreadful evening. More startling was the way City seemed to have learned so little from last year. As Barcelona picked them apart in the first half, it was with the same tactics we witnessed a year ago. Pellegrini will thank no-one for saying it, but it’s hard to imagine a team coached by Jose Mourinho being dismantled like this. Manchester City were beaten 2-0 at the Etihad by Barcelona in last season's last-16 . Manuel Pellegrini's side were reduced to 10 men in that game too after Marin Demichelis . ‘I have played Barcelona many times and even if you played five in the middle you always feel a player short because they know how to move, how to keep the ball,’ added Clichy. ‘The choice of the manager to go from the first minute with two strikers showed we wanted to play offensively and score goals. We didn’t, and we didn’t start well. ‘We have to carry on like this because that is the way we want to play and that is the way we are going to win things.’ City must now forget Barcelona. The return leg is three weeks away and on Sunday they travel to Merseyside for a Barclays Premier League meeting with Liverpool. Last season Liverpool won this fixture 3-2 but they are in Europe tonight and City’s two days of extra rest may give them the edge. The Premier League is safe and familiar territory for City. They understand it. Sooner or later, however, Pellegrini must find a way to expand his team’s horizons. Manchester City’s match statistics were similar in some respects to those from last season’s performance against Barcelona. They had one more shot on target on Tuesday (4) than in last season’s match at the Etihad and the same number of shots off target (4). Their possession was up on last season, though still low — 37.9 per cent compared to 31.6 per cent in 2014. However, they did get 20 crosses into the penalty area as opposed to 11 last season and had eight corners on Tuesday night against one in 2014. PS Barcelona’s passing success rate was down on the same fixture last year — 88.9 per cent of 686 passes compared to 92.4 per cent in 2014. This was largely down to Luis Suarez, who scored two goals but found a team-mate with only 72.7 per cent of his passes. Without his erratic input, Barcelona’s average was 90.3 per cent.", "Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini has no interest in records as he bids to maintain the champions’ winning momentum. City equalled a long-standing club best as they chalked up a ninth successive win in all competitions by beating West Brom 3-1 on Boxing Day. Their feat matches one first recorded by the club in 1910 and last achieved during their hot streak of autumn 2011, which memorably included a 6-1 thrashing of Manchester United. Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini watches on during their 3-1 win over West Brom on Boxing Day . Fernando opened the scoring as he pounced on a Ben Foster error and Yaya Toure doubled the lead with a penalty after David Silva was fouled by former team-mate Joleon Lescott. Silva made it 3-0 with a well-taken third 11 minutes before half-time after Lescott gave away possession. City played a more conservative game in the second half as the rain and sleet developed into a heavy blizzard. That gave West Brom some encouragement and they claimed a deserved consolation three minutes from time as Joe Hart missed a corner and the ball ricocheted in off Brown Ideye. The victory kept City within three points of Chelsea at the top of the table but there is little time to reflect before Sunday’s game. Manchester City midfielder Fernando netted an acrobatic opener after eight minutes at The Hawthornes . Yaya Toure then converted a penalty to make it 2-0 just five minutes later . David Silva slotted in a third from inside the area just after half an hour . They now have a good chance to go one better as they host relegation battlers Burnley in the Barclays Premier League on Sunday, but Pellegrini is taking no notice of statistics. The Chilean said: 'Really I am not aware of the records. We just want to continue adding points because it will be a very close fight for the title this year and we want to keep our title.' City have played some superb football in recent weeks, making light of the absence of all their recognised strikers through injury. Stevan Jovetic did make the bench at The Hawthorns after recovering from a hamstring injury but was not required as City raced into a 2-0 lead within 13 minutes. James Milner has been playing as a makeshift striker as Manchester City have suffered injury problems . Stevan Jovetic could play against Burnley after recovering from injury . Captain Vincent Kompany could be set to return from injury to play on Sunday . Pellegrini said: 'This is very rare for me. Before 72 hours it is not good to play (again) but we know how it is here, in the Premier League. It is difficult for all the teams. 'The important thing is not to have an advantage for any one team.' Jovetic could come back into contention for City, who have operated in their last two games with midfielder James Milner as a makeshift centre-forward. Captain Vincent Kompany, the team’s talismanic central defender, could also return after hamstring and calf problems but the other two injured strikers, Sergio Aguero and Edin Dzeko, are still out. Pellegrini is taking nothing for granted against a Burnley side which have shown plenty of fighting spirit of late. He said: 'I have watched some games that they have played and I think they are playing well. I watched their game against Tottenham away. 'They are an offensive team, they play with two strikers and I think they have good players. If you think it is an easy game, you can have great problems. 'So we hope we will play against Burnley the same way we play against any other team.'", "By . Jack Gaughan . Follow @@Jack_Gaughan . It's not often this is said, but Manchester City could really have done with an extra dimension on Saturday. Beaten by the odd goal - a stunning Mame Biram Diouf solo effort, in fact - against Stoke City, Manuel Pellegrini's side lacked ideas. They were uncharacteristically without the means necessary to break down what was a masterclass in defensive organisation and ultimately fluid counter attacking football. VIDEO Scroll down to watch Pellegrini be very cagey about Radamel Falcao rumours . Ruthless: Manchester City could do with someone of Radamel Falcao's talent, despite their attacking prowess . Thumbs up: But the Colombian hitman is on his way to Real Madrid, not the Premier League champions . Click here to read Chris Wheeler's match report from the Potters' shock win at the Etihad over Manuel Pellegrini's champions . The brilliance of Diouf's storming run and finish from deep in his own half masked what was an unusually insipid display by City. Stevan Jovetic and Sergio Aguero showed signs that their partnership could prove fruitful, with Edin Dzeko normally an important impact player, but the Premier League champions were nowhere near their best. 'A bad day,' was Pellegrini's assessment. And all the while there was a certain Colombian who appeared to be saying his goodbyes at Monaco. Battling: But even a player of Sergio Aguero's talents couldn't make the difference against Stoke . Looking grim: Samir Nasri looks on in disbelief after Mame Biram Diouf scores his stunning solo effort . Unbelievable: Diouf celebrates his goal that silenced the Eithad Stadium in front of stunned supporters . Radamel Falcao looks all set to leave Ligue 1 on loan for the remainder of the season - talk intensified by his mysterious omission from Monaco's game on Saturday afternoon. He was pictured sat with agent Jorge Mendes in the stands and is attracting interest throughout Europe. But while City were originally in the hunt for Falcao's services, Real Madrid are now on the brink of securing the hitman to add to their attacking delights. There aren't many strikers of Falcao's quality and ruthlessness about and the swell of feeling that City could be ready to swoop was only heightened when Pellegrini refused to rule out a move. 'We have 48 hours (until the transfer window shuts,' he said. 'We will see.' What the Chilean definitely witnessed was a side struggling with plan B against Stoke. The away central defenders Ryan Shawcross and Marc Wilson dealt with the movement in front comfortably, and when City did knock the ball long the words meat and drink sprang to mind. Despondent: Pellegrini may live to rue not being able to pick up Falcao on a season-long loan . Can't believe it: But only Edin Dzeko offers a chance of tact for Manchester City's striking options . Dzeko is the striker to offer a real change in tact - meaning they can go back to front a bit more directly - but, for all his undoubted quality, isn't powerful enough in the air. Falcao on the other hand has it all. Quick, athletic and a man who enjoys aerial battles, he is someone who would present a different challenge to defenders both domestically and in Europe. With a superb goalscoring record, Falcao's move to Real Madrid may be a moment City live to rue. When more teams sit deep and frustrate at the Etihad Stadium, they will be crying out for someone of the Colombian's ruthless goalscoring prowess.", "Yaya Toure will not receive a new contract from Manchester City but manager Manuel Pellegrini insists that the midfielder is content with life at the Etihad Stadium. The club’s summer was pockmarked by some rather peculiar behaviour by Toure and his agent Dimitri Seluk, in which the pair bizarrely claimed that City did not treat the player with sufficient respect on his birthday. ‘Really, I spoke with Yaya and he’s very happy,’ Pellegrini said, ‘I don’t know what happened in the summer. I hope Yaya can repeat the season he had last season.’ VIDEO Scroll down to watch Man City stars get suited and booted ahead of new season . No new deal: Sportsmail understands that Yaya Toure will not receive a new contract from Manchester City . Hopeful: Man City boss Manuel Pellegrini is keen for Toure to repeat last season's feat during this campaign . A host of City stars have this summer signed long-term deals with the club, with Vincent Kompany, David Silva and Sergio Aguero this week joining Samir Nasri in agreeing new contracts. When asked if further announcements could be expected soon - with Toure’s name in particular mentioned - Pellegrini smiled: ‘We will see in the next days.’ Sportsmail understands that Toure is not one of those in line for a renewed deal but Edin Dzeko is set to put pen to paper soon. City are also keen to retain Joe Hart and James Milner. Hart’s existing deal has two years to run while Milner - who has been monitored by Arsenal and Liverpool - will see his deal run out at the end of this season. The England midfielder will wait to see how many opportunities he is given in the first-team before agreeing an extension. Toure, however, is only 14 months into a four-year deal that is believed to be worth in excess of £200,000 a week and City see no reason to enter into dialogue with the 31-year-old over a new contract. In action: Toure, picture during last week's Community Shield, is 14 months into a four-year deal at Man City . Close: Bosnian striker Edin Dzeko is set to sign a new deal with the current Premier League champions soon . Meanwhile, Manchester City will begin their title defence at Newcastle on Sunday afternoon and they are likely to be without £32 million signing Eliaquim Mangala. The French central defender completed his move to City on Monday but Pellegrini feels that he requires further work on the training ground before he can be considered for selection. Joe Hart is expected return ahead of new recruit Willy Caballero in goal but Pellegrini is yet to make a decision on Sergio Aguero, who has suffered a number of muscle injuries in the last 12 months and City are keen to ease him in after his World Cup exertions this summer. ‘I think that always this team needs Sergio Aguero,’ Pellegrini added,’It is also important for him to make a good pre-season. He has had so many months without playing normally. We will see on Sunday.’ Touch and go: Pellegrini is yet to make a decision on whether to start Sergio Aguero against Newcastle .", "Cold mist and firework smoke gave the Etihad Stadium a peculiar type of gloom that perfectly symbolised Manchester City's current malaise as they limped to a latest damaging Champions League defeat. It wasn't just the result that set the alarm bells ringing for England's richest club – it was the attitude of their players, most particularly Yaya Toure, and supporters which will have Sheikh Mansour demanding answers. Manager Manuel Pellegrini was dignified afterwards, refusing to blame referee Tasos Sidiropoulos, who sent off two City players, failed to dismiss an already-booked CSKA player for shoving Sergio Aguero, and then denied Aguero an injury-time penalty. Imagine if it had been Neil Warnock addressing the media afterwards? VIDEO Scroll down to watch Stevan Jovetic: Manchester City deserved to lose to CSKA Moscow . Yaya Toure is sent off by Greek referee Tasos Sidiropoulos against CSKA Moscow on Wednesday night . Chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak (left) and chief executive Ferran Soriano watch on on Wednesday night . But Pellegrini has been in the game too long to know that City's failings go well beyond one hapless official, whatever the fans may think. When City were struggling in the third tier of English football, their supporters were known as the best in the country. But now they are among Europe's elite – or at least trying to join them – there is a strange lethargy about big nights at the Etihad compared to Old Trafford or Anfield. After seeing 10,000 seats go unused for their previous home game against Roma, City allowed fans to buy two-for-one against CSKA. It swelled the attendance but not the passion or atmosphere. Even the protest against UEFA by booing the Champions League anthem was a bit half-hearted. The first half was observed in near silence until the team were jeered off at the interval with the team 2-1 down. A Manchester City fan holds up a banner in protest against UEFA after CSKA Moscow fans defied their ban . At the end, the City fans were roused to shout 'cheat' at the referee – it was all very bitter and negative rather than getting behind the team from the off. Then again, can you blame the fans when some of the players appeared surprisingly disinterested and distracted? Some of Gael Clichy's defending was extreme to the maximum. He conceded a free-kick that allowed Seydou Doumbia to head the opening goal for CSKA. Even worse, after Toure had equalised with a trademark free-kick, Clichy hacked a simple pass across his own half straight to an opponent. Three touches later, Doumbia had beaten Joe Hart to restore Moscow's lead. Gael Clichy - who made mistakes for both goals - looks dejected as Seydou Doumbia celebrates . And then there's Toure. For so long the idol of City's fans who didn't begrudge his status as the Premier League's best player, he has developed into a caricature of a sulky, spoilt footballer this season. Already booked, his pointless shove on Roman Emerenko in the second half saw him follow Fernandinho down the tunnel and killed any City prospects of salvaging a draw. At least the Ivorian had the self-awareness to apologise later on social media. Yaya Toure is upended by CSKA's Swedish international midfielder Pontus Wernbloom . Toure lands awkwardly as a foul is given by the Greek referee for the foul by Wernbloom . Toure put in a performance at the Etihad Stadium despite his sublime early free-kick to equalise . There are mitigating factors to Toure's current mood. His younger brother died of cancer during the World Cup and the racial abuse he has received on Twitter is without doubt disturbing and unpleasant. Yet in this kind of form he is a liability to his team-mates. His lack of positional discipline and desire to track back and defend makes the job for his central midfield partners almost impossible. Fernando was totally over-run in the first half on Wednesday night. Pellegrini may be privately relieved Toure is now suspended for the next European game at home to Bayern Munich. We never really got to the bottom of 'Birthday Cakegate', when Toure was allegedly seething that City's Abu Dhabi owners hadn't marked his birthday by baking him a cake. The suspicion was he was trying to engineer a move back to Barcelona, when Barca failed to show much interest, he pledged his loyalty to City rather unconvincingly. Certainly, his influence on matches this season has been far less than in previous years. Pellegrini has to accept some blame as well. Given that Toure is a bit of a loose cannon in midfield, it seems strange that an experienced coach like himself will regularly leave his team outnumbered in the key central area. He let Gareth Barry and Javi Garcia, both natural sitting players, leave and won't start with Fernandinho, who was terrific last season. Fernandinho, who again did not start for City, jogs off the pitch after being red-carded on Wednesday night . The plans against CSKA were a mess. Fernando was expected to stop Moscow's counter-attacks almost single-handed while Stevan Jovetic, Jesus Navas and Toure ineffectually stood by. By the time he sent on Fernandinho to rectify it at half-time, the Brazilian was so pumped up, he got a quick yellow card. The manager then gambled by taking Fernando off for Edin Dzeko with City behind, leaving Fernandinho as the only natural holder – and then he got sent off. A tragedy of errors. Incidentally, the Brazilian also apologised for his red. If Pellegrini is at fault tactically, the owners can't avoid some degree of responsibility. Their historic breaking of the Financial Fair Play regulations means the manager has been forced to pick a reduced squad for the Champions League this season. Strikers Alvaro Negredo and John Guidetti have been loaned out because there is no room for them, leaving Pellegrini having to chase four trophies with just three strikers. Alvaro Negredo left City to join Valencia on loan for the season in August but was not replaced . John Guidetti was allowed to join Celtic on loan and has been prolific north of the border . Manuel Pellegrini has plenty of questions to answer after City remained winless in Europe this season . VIDEO Pellegrini defends City's discipline . He has said that Angel di Maria and Falcao were never options because City couldn't afford their transfer fees or wages under the FFP restrictions. On the bright side, City have been here before – in both title-winning seasons under Roberto Mancini and Pellegrini, they were written off at stages in the season but dug in when nobody else believed, and came out on top. Bayern's dominance of their Champions League group means the second spot is still up for grabs. A victory against the German champions, who have already qualified, will set up a likely winner-takes-all meeting away to Roma. Difficult, but not impossible for a team who have Aguero and David Silva on their books. The continuing presence of Sergio Aguero at the Etihad is a major positive for City and their fans . The truth is that the fault for City's current problems have to be shared between manager, star players, owners and fans. Only by rallying together can they turn this around. If they each act with the petulance of Toure's childish shove, they are in big trouble.", "Manuel Pellegrini is confident James Milner his Manchester City team-mate Joe Hart and commit his future to the Premier League champions. Hart recently put pen to paper on a new long-term deal, keeping him at the club until the end of the 2018-19 season. And now the former Malaga boss wants Milner to do the same. James Milner is in the final year of his contract with Premier League champions Manchester City . Manuel Pellegrini is hopeful that the England midfielder will follow Joe Hart's example and sign a new deal . Asked if he expected Milner to stay, Pellegrini said: 'I think so. There are some differences that can be arranged. 'We are talking with James. It is not easy for all the players to sign a new contract. There are a lot of things to talk, to decide, discuss. I hope finally James will sign his contract. 'The same as with Joe Hart - he wants to stay and the club wants to keep him.' Milner, 28, is in the final season of his current deal and would be free to talk to other clubs from next month. His future became the subject of speculation due to his limited action last season but his prominent role this term - featuring in all but two matches - has changed the picture. The other major contract speculation at the Etihad Stadium at present concerns Frank Lampard's loan from sister club New York City, which is due to expire at the end of the month. Hart has committed his long-term future to Manchester City by signing a new deal with the club . City's director of football Txiki Begiristain shaking hands with Hart after he signed the deal . Pellegrini hopes to keep the influential 36-year-old until the end of the season and also claimed last week that Lampard wanted to stay longer. It might be that Pellegrini has to settle for a shorter arrangement - for an extra month or two - but no decisions have yet been made. Pellegrini said: 'It is not just our decision. If you ask me if I want Frank to stay, of course. He is a very important player for our squad and he is playing very well, as the top player he is. 'Maybe in the next days we will be sure but I cannot be 100 per cent at this moment.' Pellegrini's most immediate concern is overcoming the absence of his captain Vincent Kompany and all three of his frontline strikers for the visit of Crystal Palace in the Barclays Premier League on Saturday. The Chilean manager also expressed a desire to keep Frank Lampard at City until the end of the season . Lampard is due to join up with New York City FC after Christmas but his loan deal could be extended . Kompany suffered a recurrence of a hamstring injury in his comeback match at Leicester last week while forward Edin Dzeko hurt his calf in the warm-up. Frontmen Sergio Aguero and Stevan Jovetic were already sidelined. The lack of forward options could mean another opportunity for 18-year-old Jose Angel Pozo or a change of system to utilise a midfielder such as Milner, David Silva or Samir Nasri in an advanced position. Pellegrini said: 'The strikers, the three of them are out for tomorrow. We will try to play in another way. 'I know that we play against a team that defend very well also so we will see what is the best solution to play without them.' Victory for City by four goals or more would take them to the top of the table ahead of current leaders Chelsea's trip to Stoke on Monday.", "Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini felt he needed to 'refresh the team' and leave out captain Vincent Kompany for his side's much-needed win against Leicester. Kompany was dropped to the bench along with Pablo Zabaleta and Edin Dzeko, while Samir Nasri and Fernandinho missed out on the squad completely as City beat the Foxes 2-0 at the Etihad Stadium. Central defender Kompany had come in for particularly heavy criticism after City's damaging losses to Barcelona and Liverpool in the past week and Pellegrini decided to act with the season threatening to unravel. Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany was dropped to the bench for the match against Leicester City . Kompany has come in for criticism this season following a number of high-profile errors for the champions . Asked to explain his selections, Pellegrini said: 'For the same reason Pablo Zabaleta, Vincent Kompany, Fernandinho, Samir Nasri, Edin Dzeko - that were playing normally - I think it was important to refresh the team mentally and physically after two difficult games. 'We have the squad we want so it was a good moment to refresh the team.' Pellegrini added that Kompany, normally an inspirational presence in the side but in poor form of late, took the decision 'very well, without any problems'. City, trailing Chelsea by five points in the Barclays Premier League having played a game more, were not at their fluent best against the Foxes. But they got back to winning ways with goals late in each half from David Silva and substitute James Milner. Manuel Pellegrini revealed that he dropped his captain as he needed to 'refresh the team' David Silva shoots the ball past Leicester goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer to give Manchester City the lead . After a difficult few days, in which Pellegrini's future has been the subject of speculation, the result was a relief. Pellegrini said: 'I think always when you don't have the result you need the next game is very difficult. That is why the most important thing was to win the three points. 'We dominated the game and had a good possession of the ball. 'Maybe Leicester is at the bottom but if you see their results - they drew 2-2 against Liverpool and against Everton and were very unlucky not to draw against Arsenal.' City created a number of chances but were denied on several occasions by veteran goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer. Yet they still lacked their usual spark and Leicester were aggrieved to have been denied penalties on three occasions while Riyad Mahrez hit the post. Substitute James Milner gets the better of Morgan and Danny Simpson to doubled City's lead . Mark Schwarzer dives but is beaten as Milner runs to celebrate after coming off the bench . Asked if his side should have had penalties, Foxes boss Nigel Pearson said: 'Yes. Simple answer. Three throughout the game - (Andrej) Kramaric in both halves, the second one you could probably say was a bit more marginal but there was contact. The third one on the line is in the box.' Pearson would not get drawn into criticising referee Robert Madley, who also frustrated Leicester with some of his decisions in an FA Cup tie in January. He said: 'I am not talking about them (referees), sorry. Not tonight. You can talk about them and ask the relevant authorities. I don't think there is any point me talking about the referee. Same one we had against Tottenham.' The result left Leicester bottom of the table but Pearson has no doubts about the spirit in his squad. He said: 'They are a resilient group so we will have to get on with it. We can't do anything about it. It is up to the authorities. Our players give everything they have got and they have done again tonight. 'There are lots of positive and we have to take them into the remaining games. There is no point dwelling on negative aspects of situations that we have no control of.'", "Manuel Pellegrini insists that he is not feeling the heat asManchester City attempt to keep their Champions League hopes alive against Bayern Munich on Tuesday night. Pellegrini was hired to take City forward in Europe but after leading the club to the last 16 in his first season in England the Chilean faces an embarrassing exit at the group stage after picking up two points from his first four games. Defeat at the hands of group winners Bayern at the Etihad would effectively end City’s interest in this season’s competition and cast further doubts over Pellegrini’s future, but the manager said: ‘I don’t feel under extra pressure. VIDEO Scroll down to see Pellegrini's pre-match comments ahead of City's must-win tie . Vincent Kompany (centre) strides alongside Frank Lampard (left) and James Milner on Monday morning . Manuel Pellegrini shrugs during Manchester City training ahead of their Champions League game on Tuesday . The Premier League champions trained at their new City Football Academy base in front of the cameras . Samir Nasri (right) was all smiles as he jogged alongside Ivorian central midfielder Yaya Toure . Central defender Matija Nastasic (front) alongside Aleksandar Kolarov and Edin Dzeko as training got going . ‘I think it is important for this club to continue in Europe because it is one of our targets to improve every year. Tomorrow we will see the team fighting until the end to continue in the Champions League and I hope we can do it. ‘I don’t know who are those people who don’t believe what we can do. This team and me especially have a lot of trust we can do it and I am sure we can continue having a chance to the last game. ‘Nobody in the whole team is happy the way we have played in this group. We have tomorrow, our last chance to win this year against Bayern Munich.’ The Premier League champions will have a clearer indication of where they stand before kick-off because CSKA entertain Roma earlier in the day. But the task facing City is even tougher without Yaya Toure and Fernandinho, who are both suspended after being sent off in the defeat to CSKA, while David Silva, Edin Dzeko and Aleksandar Kolarov are injured. Neither Sergio Aguero or Stevan Jovetic trained on Monday morning but Pellegrini said that both players would be in the squad. City were beaten 3-1 at home by Bayern last season but won 3-2 in the Allianz Arena after the Germans had already qualified which bodes well for Tuesday’s encounter, especially if Pep Guardiola puts out a weakened side. Argentine pair Martin Demichelis and Pablo Zabaleta ahead of the smiling Gael Clichy and Scott Sinclair . Top scorer Sergio Aguero covered up in the cold but did not take part in training . Aguero and Stevan Jovetic (pictured with City's injured contingent) are fit to play against Bayern . Bosnian striker Dzeko whispers in the ear of Zabaleta as City looked relaxed on Monday . City stopper Joe Hart was all smiles with veteran goalkeeper Richard Wright (right) and Lampard . A wrapped-up Toure bumps the fist of Demichelis as City prepare to take on Pep Guardiola's Bayern . Toure and Fernandinho (second left) are suspended for the crunch Group E fixture at the Etihad Stadium . Kompany, training ahead of the must-win clash against the Bundesliga leaders, performs a hamstring stretch . Winger Jesus Navas rides the challenge of City's forgotten star Sinclair as coach Brian Kidd watches on . Fernandinho tries to keep control of the ball under the watchful eye of Dedrcyk Boyata (left) and Jose Pozo . However, Pellegrini disagreed that it would benefit his team. ‘I don’t think so because they have injuries but we also have important players out – Fernandinho, Yaya, Dzeko, Silva, Kolarov,’ he added. ‘I think big teams have a squad and I don’t think Bayern will play in a worse way than they are doing so far. ‘I think it is very difficult to compare one season with another one. Last season they played here very well and won 3-1. After that we went to Munich and won. The three games we have played against Bayern have been very close. We will see tomorrow which team plays better. ‘We were very unlucky to lose against Bayern in the last minute on a set-piece (in September). After that we conceded a late goal in Moscow against CSKA. Maybe with those points our situation would be different but tomorrow we must play well and try to score.’", "Yaya Toure's future at Manchester City has been plunged into doubt after his agent made a bizarre rant . against the Premier League champions over a perceived birthday snub. The . Ivory Coast midfielder, who is a year into a four-year deal worth . £220,000 a week, is said to have been incensed that no one wished him . happy returns last week at a title celebration party that  coincided . with his 31st birthday. Toure's agent Dimitri Seluk said: 'There . is a big possibility Yaya will leave this summer. He is very upset. What . happened at his birthday means the club don't care about him. It was . proof. VIDEO Scroll down for Yaya Toure: My career's great; going to City was the right move . Glory: Yaya Toure holds the title trophy with Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini . Comments: Toure's agent Dimitri Seluk has been in the public eye over the last week . 'They can say whatever they want, \"Oh we like him but we forgot\". Forgot? About Yaya? The player who helped you to be two-time Premier League champions? The guy who helped you win the FA Cup and League Cup? 'In a normal team, his team-mates and club would at least give him good wishes. But when you win the title and two days later you have a big party to celebrate the title and nobody comes to Yaya to say happy birthday, what more do you want? 'If a player like Yaya went to . Liverpool and they won the league for the first time in 24 years, Yaya . would be a god in Liverpool,' Seluk told The Sun. VIDEO: City players and officials sing happy birthday to Toure on the plane to Abu Dhabi . Happy Birthday: A stewardess brings a cake with the Manchester City crest on it . Playing it cool: Samir Nasri points out that it is Yaya Toure's birthday . Celebration time: Nasri and other members of the squad and staff sing Happy Birthday to Yaya Toure . Upset: Yaya Toure says that no one wished him happy returns at a title celebration party . 'But at City, Yaya is . no hero. He's nobody. That's how the club make him feel. He's very upset . and he started thinking about leaving the club. And he will leave if . things carry on like this. 'We're not doing this for more money. We . probably can go for less money to another club. If they think they can . buy everything, they are wrong. I think these people don't care. Only . stupid people would want Yaya to leave.' Seluk later added how Russian club Anzhi Makhachkala marked Brazil legend Roberto Carlos' birthday, he said: 'For Roberto Carlos's birthday, the president of Anzhi gave him a Bugatti.' Meanwhile, City chairman . Khaldoon Al Mubarak has shrugged off the limitations of a £49million . transfer cap by revealing that the club are well on the way to landing . their summer targets. High earner: Yaya Toure is one year into a four-year deal worth £220,000 a week . Manuel Pellegrini's side want defender Bacary . Sagna on a free transfer from Arsenal and retain a strong interest in . £35m-rated Porto defender Eliaquim Mangala and team-mate Fernando, . despite UEFA's punishment for breaching Financial Fair Play rules. As . well as having their net spending capped, City's wage bill has been . frozen, though £200,000-a-week will be freed up after Khaldoon confirmed . that the club will not retain Gareth Barry and Joleon Lescott. City . spent nearly £100m on Fernandinho, Jesus Navas, Alvaro Negredo and . Stevan Jovetic last summer and Khaldoon said: 'Expect the same - but . even  earlier. We know exactly what needs to be done.' Happy birthday to you! City posted this on their Twitter on May 13 . Sound investment: Manchester City signed Yaya Toure from Barcelona for £24m in 2010 .", "Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini has admitted for the first time he could be sacked if he finishes outside the Champions League places this season. Pellegrini’s side face West Ham United at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday with their top four prospects hanging in the balance. The Premier League champions have lost four of their last five games and Pellegrini said: ‘You are wrong if you think that, at this club, you are out if you don’t win the title. Manchester City midfielders Frank Lampard and  David Silva take part in a training drill on Saturday . City will hope striker Sergio Aguero can add to his tally of 25 goals this season against West Ham . ‘(But) If we miss out (on the Champions League) then maybe it will be different because that would not be the same thing. ‘If that happens, the analysis of the season will be different. Not to play in the Champions League is a disaster.’ The Mail on Sunday can reveal that City have already talked to Borussia Dortmund manager Jurgen Klopp two years ago, when they were seeking to replace Roberto Mancini. In the end they rejected his flambouyant approach in favour of Pellegrini. With six matches left and the top-four positions still up for grabs, City are keeping their options open. The club are not guaranteeing the manager will survive but it does not appear they have already made up their mind to sack him as they did two seasons ago with Mancini. Their strategy was always to allow Pellegrini to continue until the end of his three-year contract in 2016 and then try and lure Pep Guardiola from Bayern Munich, whose own deal will be coming to an end in Germany. Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini wants a reaction from his players after the derby mauling . Veteran goalkeeper Richard Wright shows off his handling skills to current City No 1 Joe Hart . Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini has come under fire following their title race capitulation . However, dismal defeats at Burnley and Crystal Palace have placed serious question marks about Pellegrini's ability to motivate his top players. Yaya Toure and Vincent Kompany have endured poor seasons, new signings Eliaquim Mangala and Fernando have been disasters until now and even Sergio Aguero's form has deteriorated after being the stand-out player of the season until Christmas. Pellegrini is adamant he will not quit regardless of the pressure he has been under. 'I have walked away from a club once before, many years ago, but I would not quit here because it is a different case,' he said. Dejected Manchester City players look on as they are dealt yet another blow in their hunt for the league title . The reigning champions have slipped from serious title challengers to fears over not finishing in the top four . Kompany could have been sent off for a challenge on Daley Blind before being substituted last weekend . 'You don't quit just because it's a bad moment. I think we play the football I want, attractive football. At this moment we are not getting the results that we need, but we are going the right way. 'You cannot guess the future. You must say what you think about what happened and the solution. All the other things are a matter of trust.' Pellegrini also did his best to lend his support for Toure who has fallen short of his own standards this season and is being courted by Mancini at Inter Milan. Defending his player, the City boss said: 'I feel sorry for Yaya. When he went to the Africa Cup of Nations and we lost to Arsenal and Middlesbrough in the FA Cup, he was seen as guilty because he was not here. 'He returned here and now he is a disaster, people say he doesn't have spirit, he isn't fit. He is a very important player for our team and we need him to give his best performance and the best way to recover Yaya is to trust in him. Toure's brother died last summer while he was at the World Cup with Ivory Coast. 'Yaya has had a difficult year and we must support him,' said Pellegrini.", "Joe Hart is fighting to keep his place in Manchester City's starting line-up as the Premier League champions embark on a critical week in their season. The England goalkeeper conceded a soft winner against Stoke in City's last game and manager Manuel Pellegrini is considering giving No 2 Willy Caballero a chance against Arsenal, Bayern Munich or Chelsea over the course of the next eight days. Caballero, a £6million summer signing from Pellegrini's old club Malaga, has not played since letting in three goals against Saturday's opponents Arsenal in the Community Shield last month. VIDEO Scroll down for Manuel Pellegrini on Joe Hart's number one threat Willy Caballero . Manchester City goalkeeper Joe Hart (left) could be dropped to the bench over the next eight days . Joe Hart pulls off a save during Manchester City's 3-1 win against Liverpool earlier this season . Summer signing Willy Caballero (right) could replace Joe Hart (left) against Arsenal on Saturday lunchtime . Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini is considering a change of goalkeeper . Asked if he has been told that he will play at the Emirates, the Argentine keeper said: 'Maybe, but only the coach knows this. 'I'm waiting for my chance. I am training very well and maybe it could be the next game or maybe it could be another game – but I am ready. 'Competition between goalkeepers is always good. When I spoke to the coach about coming to City, he told me it would be a good opportunity for me. But he said I would have to work so hard to play because everyone knows that Joe Hart is a brilliant goalkeeper and a fantastic person too. Joe has helped me so much since I came here.' Pellegrini axed Hart for seven Premier League games towards the end of last year and played Costel Pantilimon instead. But the City boss kept his cards close to his chest on Friday, saying: 'We'll see game by game. One hour and 15 minutes before kick-off you will know which goalkeeper starts. Willy Caballero was speaking at City Streets which is an interactive gang awareness project . Manchester City's Dedryck Boyata gets involved with local children at the club event . Defender Dedryck Boyata shows he's not afraid to help educating schoolchildren in the Manchester area . 'Willy Caballero can be in any team, he's a very good goalkeeper. In this moment I'm playing Joe Hart, but he will have his opportunity soon. 'Willy has a good career behind him. If you want to be a top goalkeeper you must have all the attributes – good distribution, to know when to go for the ball, to be good one-on-one, to not concede early goals. 'It's important to have competition in every position in the team, not just with Joe Hart and Willy Caballero.' Hart was criticised for allowing Mame Biram Diouf's low shot to go under his body when Stoke won 1-0 at the Etihad, but Pellegrini insisted that Caballero's prospects do not hinge on his rival's errors. 'I am not waiting for Joe Hart to make a first mistake to change him for Willy Caballero,' said Pellegrini. 'Maybe in the last year Joe didn't start very well but he finished very well. 'I analyse the goals and individual mistakes with the players, the whole team. I think a lot of players were involved in [conceding] that goal.' Willy Caballero was speaking at 'City Streets', an interactive gang awareness project organised by the club's foundation to educate local schoolchildren about the negative effects of gang and crime culture.", "Manchester United go to the Etihad hunting for three points as they take on Manuel Pellegrini's dishevelled Premier League champions. Here, Sportsmail's Jamie Redknapp gives his take on where the game could be won and lost. ANGEL DI MARIA v PABLO ZABALETA . I’ll be covering the game for Sky and this is the battle I am most looking forward to watching. It’s an all-Argentine affair and whoever comes out on top will probably end up on the winning side. Di Maria has had two quiet games – Branislav Ivanovic and Andre Wisdom were very physical and frustrated him. Zabaleta will offer that but will want to take him the other way - he’s one of the best raiding right backs we’ve seen in the Premier League. This will be a brilliant contest and absolutely key in deciding the game. Pablo Zabaleta (left) and Angel di Maria (right - Marcos Rojo centre) will do battle on Sunday afternoon . Argentina Di Maria has lit up the Premier League since moving to Manchester United from Real Madrid . Fellow countryman Zabaleta (left) is one of the division's toughest customers at full back . ROBIN VAN PERSIE v MARTIN DEMICHELIS/ELIAQUIM MANGALA . That goal against Chelsea will give Van Persie confidence and he got good opportunities against one of the meanest defences in the league. He still has a lot to offer but if he gets involved in a physical battle with Vincent Kompany, there will be only one winner. Van Persie needs to target Demichelis/Mangala instead because that’s where he’ll get his success. Robin van Persie's last-gasp equaliser against Chelsea will give him the confidence to kick on . Eliaquim Mangala has endured a tricky start to life in England after the defender's summer move from Porto . Manuel Pellegrini may opt for Martin Demichelis (right) instead of the struggling Mangala at the back . SERGIO AGUERO v CHRIS SMALLING . Manuel Pellegrini may go with one up front to get more numbers in midfield, but if that one is Sergio Aguero, United are in for a tough afternoon. Aguero played alone at Barcelona last season and as the lone striker against Tottenham two weeks ago he was sensational. United need to get numbers around him because he preys on weak links. Smalling had one of his best ever games for United against Chelsea last week. He’ll need another one on Sunday. Sergio Aguero celebrates scoring for Manchester City as they thumped United at the Etihad last season . Chris Smalling (pictured being fouled by Oscar) could be in for a real examining by Aguero at the Etihad .", "Joe Hart admits he ‘does not see the positives’ about being out of the Manchester City team after being rested for the last two games. The England No 1 will return for Tuesday night’s Champions League clash with Roma after seeing No 2 Willy Caballero play in the Capital One Cup tie against Sheffield Wednesday and Saturday’s Premier League win at Hull City. Sat alongside Manuel Pellegrini at Monday’s pre-match press conference at the Etihad, Hart admitted that he is not happy on the sidelines even for a short period. Manuel Pellegrini had his Manchester City players' attention on Monday morning before they face Roma . Joe Hart was given a rest for the win against Hull on Saturday but is expected to come straight back in . Hart admits that he cannot see the positives of not playing every single game he can . Hart gets down to his right to save a shot from goalkeeping coach Richard Wright . Frank Lampard could be in line for another start after a strong week in front of goal . Lampard was all smiles as he continues to settle in at Manchester City after a summer move . Pablo Zabaleta (from left), Yaya Toure, Sergio Aguero and James Milner go through drills at the Etihad . Striker Stevan Jovetic (centre, with Matija Nastasic right) is back in the City squad . ‘Of course I want to play every game, that’s my nature, my professionalism,' said the England goalkeeper. 'I always want to play but I’m not the manager, I’m just a player. I live by the decisions of our manager. I think he knows that I’d love to play but he has to make decisions. ‘When I retire from football I will see the positives but at the moment I don’t. ‘We’ve always had good keepers here since I’ve been here. I’ve always had a fight for me to keep my place and that will continue. ‘We’ve always had good goalkeepers since I’ve been here – David James, Weaver, Isaakson, Kasper (Schmeichel), Shay Given, Pantilimon, Stuart Taylor. ‘There are always going to be good goalkeepers here and it’s always been a fight for me to keep my place and that will continue but I’ve got high standards that I like to keep to whether I’m the only goalkeeper or one of 20. ‘The challenge excites me. I love playing and that will never change. I’ll continue fighting.’ Hart will come up against his old England team-mate Ashley Cole who left Chelsea to join Roma in the summer. City defender Micah Richards also moved to Serie A with Fiorentina but Hart he has no plans to follow them abroad. The squad - including Hull hero Edin Dzeko (second from left) - performed shuttles on Monday morning . Aguero and Aleksandar Kolarov spin away after finishing their fitness routine . Pellegrini shows close control as he juggles possession as his assistants watch training . ‘I have got a lot of respect for the boys who have done, Micah being closest to home for me,’ said Hart. ‘He seems to be loving it out there but right now I’m happy with what is going on at this club. We are fighting on all fronts. While I am welcome here, I am more than happy to stay here and see where that takes me. ‘It will be great to see Ash. He was brave to make the move to Rome after a great career at Arsenal and Chelsea but it will be good to catch up.’ Although a number of City stars have signed new contracts in recent months, Hart is still waiting on a new deal. However, the champions have indicated that the 27-year-old will be offered new terms in due course. Hart let Pellegrini answer the question but the City boss insisted that it should not distract from Tuesday’s game. 'Me and Joe know what’s happening with that issue,' said Pellegrini. 'I think it’s important we know how to manage it but it’s not the most important thing at this moment. We are thinking about Roma and how to continue winning and getting points in the Premier League.' Jesus Navas (left) leads the way as the City side undergo a light jog on the perimeter of the pitch . Manchester City need big performances from central midfielder Toure in continental competition . City cannot afford to lose again, having gone down to a 90th-minute goal in Munich earlier this month while Roma beat CSKA Moscow 5-1. Hart added: ‘It’s obviously a big game after a disappointing start in Munich. We are aware it is the Champions League and not the knockout phase straight away. We have to build on it especially at home and we are going in trying to win the game. ‘Roma have been doing very well. We have focused a lot more on them since they were drawn in our group, and they got a great result in matchday one. Every game is tough in the Champions League but we are up for it and more than capable of winning. ‘Against Bayern we fought hard against one of the stronger teams in Europe. We could have come away with a point or a win but it was not to be. There was a deflected shot in the last minute, but that is football. We need to capitalise now at home. ‘Late goals have cost us in some big games but also shown that we are definitely up there and can play with the big boys and we just need to finish the game off.’ Rome left back Ashley Cole arrives at Manchester airport before his first game back in England .", "Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany has demanded his team-mates show ‘personality’ to prevent their Champions League disaster against CSKA Moscow turning into a full-blown crisis. Kompany watched in near disbelief as City had Fernandinho and Yaya Toure sent off in an embarrassing 2-1 defeat at an eerily quiet Etihad Stadium on Wednesday night. Once again, they gave a performance in Europe that was a far cry from their domestic form. City are bottom of Group E and need maximum points from their remaining fixtures against Bayern Munich and Roma to stand any realistic chance of qualifying for the knockout stages. VIDEOS Scroll down to watch . Vincent Kompany looks dejected after Manchester City's shock defeat to CSKA Moscow . Kompany has demanded his team-mates show 'personality' to avoid a Champions League disaster . ‘Everyone will jump on the bandwagon, but I am going to go the other way and say I still believe in my team, and still back everyone at this club 100 per cent to turn it around,’ said Kompany. ‘But personality will have to show in the next games, otherwise we will have to wait another year.’ Unfortunately for City, a number of factors suggests just such a wait lies in store. Manuel in a muddle . Manager Manuel Pellegrini was dignified post-match, refusing to blame referee Tasos Sidiropoulos for his team’s poor result. The Chilean knows City’s failings went beyond one hapless official and tactically he must accept blame. Allowing his team to be overrun in midfield was naive given that one key central player, Toure, is already a loose cannon when it comes to holding position and tracking back. Manuel Pellegrini must shoulder blame after City were stunned by their Russian opponents . The plans against CSKA were a mess. Fernando was expected to stop Moscow’s counter-attacks almost single-handedly while Stevan Jovetic, Jesus Navas and Toure ineffectually stood by. He sent on Fernandinho at half-time to rectify the problem but then gambled by taking Fernando off for Edin Dzeko — again leaving only one natural holder. Fernandinho’s red card compounded the error. Toure in turmoil . For so long an idol, Toure has developed into a caricature of a sulky footballer this season. Already booked, his pointless shove on Roman Eremenko in the second half saw him get a straight red card and follow Fernandinho down the tunnel. It killed any City prospects of salvaging a draw. At least the Ivorian had the self-awareness to apologise. There are mitigating factors. His younger brother died of cancer during the World Cup and the racial abuse he has received on Twitter is disturbing and unpleasant. Yaya Toure saw red for a shove on CSKA's Roman Eremenko to end hope of a fightback . Yet in this kind of form he is a liability. His lack of positional discipline and desire to track back made the job for central midfield partner Fernando impossible. We never really got to the bottom of the birthday cake debacle, when Toure was allegedly seething that City’s Abu Dhabi owners hadn’t marked his birthday with due respect. The suspicion is that he was trying to engineer a move back to Barcelona. When Barca failed to show much interest, he pledged his loyalty to City rather unconvincingly. Fans turning off . When City were struggling in the third tier of English football, their supporters were known as the best in the country. But now they are among Europe’s elite, there is a strange lethargy about big nights at the Etihad compared to Old Trafford or Anfield. After seeing 10,000 seats go unused for their previous home game against Roma, City allowed fans to buy two-for-one against CSKA. It swelled the attendance but not the passion or atmosphere.The first half was observed in near silence until the team were jeered off at the interval when they were 2-1 down. Gael Clichy endured a nightmare against Moscow as City's Champions League hopes were left in tatters . Clichy conundrum . Gael Clichy joined City from Arsenal, presumably for much higher wages. But some of his defending against CSKA was distracted to the point of being ridiculous. He conceded the free-kick that allowed Seydou Doumbia to head the opener for CSKA. Even worse, after Toure had equalised, Clichy hacked a simple pass across his own half straight to an opponent. Three touches later, Doumbia had restored Moscow’s lead. Executive stress . They can’t avoid some degree of responsibility, from Sheik Mansour down. Their historic breaking of Financial Fair Play regulations means Pellegrini has been forced to pick a reduced squad for the Champions League. Alvaro Negredo and John Guidetti have been loaned out because there is no room for them, leaving Pellegrini having to chase four trophies with just three strikers. Pellegrini has been left short in attack after Alvaro Negredo was loaned out to Valencia . He has said Angel di Maria and Falcao were never options because City couldn’t afford the transfer fees or wages under the FFP restrictions. The UEFA effect . Europe’s governing body might deny it but their rules have made it far more difficult for Manchester City to compete. For City to be seeded lower than Arsenal, and therefore given a harder Champions League group, is ridiculous given that they won the Premier League and Arsenal finished fourth. Their fans were banned from the away game in Moscow while CSKA supporters seemed to sneak in. ... on the bright side . City have been here before in both title-winning seasons. They were written off at stages in the season but dug in when nobody else believed and came out on top.With Bayern through, second spot is still up for grabs. Victory against the Germans would set up a likely winner-takes-all meeting away to Roma. VIDEO Pellegrini admits players are nervous in Europe .", "Manchester City's desire to land Radamel Falcao was handed a timely boost after Alvaro Negredo agreed to join Valencia on Sunday night. The Premier League champions have been offered the Monaco forward and want to add him to their midst before the transfer window shuts on Monday, with Arsenal also keen but unlikely to win the race. A meeting at Manchester City is underway, expected to ratify the transfer which is £25million plus add-ons of £2m - and City believe that is good business. VIDEO Scroll down to watch City target Falcao score an acrobatic bicycle kick in training . And he's off: Alvaro Negredo has agreed a return to Spain with Valencia on loan with a view to a permanent . Incoming? The developments mean Manchester City have the means to land Radamel Falcao . Thumbs up: Falcao has also been offered to Arsenal and Manchester United as the deadline approaches . It is unlikely they will buy a striker to replace him as they believe they have enough cover. City's pursuit was always dependent on whether they were able to recoup money for Negredo, who is set to join the La Liga side on loan with a view to a £20million move back to Spain. The clubs are yet to finalise a deal, but Negredo has agreed to the move after Valencia president, Amadeo Salvo, director of football Francisco Rufete and Peter Lim's right-hand man at the club, Kim Koh, travelled to Madrid to meet face-to-face with the player's agents. Their aim was to offer personal terms to the Spanish international and figure out how to get a deal done with Manchester City, with Negredo taking a pay cut to push through a transfer. Manuel Pellegrini watched his City side uncharacteristically struggle going forward in the defeat against Stoke over the weekend and he would not rule out a move for Falcao afterwards. Complications: Manuel Pellegrini spoke of the difficulties City have been enduring in the transfer market . Splurge: Manchester United aren't thought to be keen on Falcao after spending £60million on Angel di Maria . The manager spoke about having time to do business and added 'we will see what happens' after laying bare the problems they were finding in financing any potential deals. 'We have a restriction about the amount of money we can spend and the amount of players we can use,' Pellegrini said. Financial Fair Play provides a huge stumbling block for City - who were fined £49million by UEFA in June for breaking monetary rules - and they always had to get the injured Negredo off the wage bill in order to finance a move; they also need to free up space in the squad for another foreign import. That looked a tall order on Sunday morning, made worse by Falcao seemingly confirming he was leaving for Real Madrid on Twitter. But Carlo Ancelotti instead moved to sign Manchester United's Javier Hernandez on loan on a fast-paced day before the deadline in which Falcao appeared to be offered to a plethora of clubs across Europe. Negredo will remain at the Etihad Stadium should they fail to sort a deal out for the Colombian. Heading for the exit: Javier Hernandez is close to sealing a loan move to Real Madrid .", "Manchester City defender Matija Nastasic claims he has no issues with manager Manuel Pellegrini as he prepares to join Schalke on loan. The German club have announced the signing of the Serbia centre-back - subject to a medical - on a temporary deal that could lead to a permanent move. Nastasic, 21, has fallen out of favour at City under Pellegrini and has not featured since the Community Shield clash against Arsenal on August 10. Matija Nastasic's (right) last appearance for Manchester City came in the Community Shield in August . He was a regular under Roberto Mancini two years ago, but has not been in Manuel Pellegrini's sights this term . That represents a considerable slump in fortunes for Nastasic, having been one of City's players of the season under Roberto Mancini two years ago, but he insists his relationship with Pellegrini was fine. 'No, everything was all right,' said Nastasic, when asked on Sky Sports News HQ about whether there were problems with Pellegrini. 'I think that is the best option for me and I hope everything will be all right. 'It was hard for me. In six months I didn't play one game. I wanted to go because for my career it is best at the moment to play a lot of games.' Nastasic joined City from Fiorentina in 2012 and became a regular in his first season at the Etihad Stadium. Manuel Pellegrini (left) has let Nastasic join Schalke on loan, with a view to a permanent deal . Nastasic (right, pictured battling with Chelsea's Eden Hazard) has struggled with injuries at times at City . Calf and knee injuries robbed him of game time last season and he then fell behind Martin Demichelis in the pecking order. The summer signing of Eliaquim Mangala then limited his opportunities further and Pellegrini has since appeared to view Dedryck Boyata as a better prospect. He is now set to join Schalke until the end of the season with the Bundesliga club - who, like City, are still in this season's Champions League - revealing they also have a 'purchase option' on the player. In 2012, Nastasic lined up against Real Madrid for City... he is pictured (right) alongside Cristiano Ronaldo . Before joining City, now 21-year-old Nastasic played in Serie A for Fiorentina in Italy between 2011 and 2012 . Nastasic said: 'I had a couple of options but, with my agent also, I decided with the club, and Man City, that it was the best option, Schalke. 'At the moment it is a loan and at the end of the season we will see what will happen.' The move will see Nastasic link up with Schalke's former Chelsea manager Roberto di Matteo. Nastasic said: 'I already spoke with him and he told me about the club, about the team and I hope we have a good relationship there.'", "Joe Hart has declared that he totally respects the authority of Manuel Pellegrini, as the Manchester City boss comes under increased pressure at the Etihad Stadium following defeat to Barcelona. The goalkeeper was outstanding as City were beaten 3-1 on aggregate in the Champions League last-16, with only his string of saves over the two legs preventing Pellegrini's side from an even more embarrassing result. Hart was dropped by the Chilean following a poor run of form last season, but returned soon afterwards as Manchester City went on to win the Premier League title and the Capital One Cup. Joe Hart chats to David James for a special BT Sport interview set to air at 6.30pm on Friday night . The England goalkeeper was speaking to James during ‘David James meets Joe Hart’ Hart said that Manchester City boss Manuel Pellegrini has his full backing despite a disappointing season . This season has been less straightforward so far, but Hart, speaking to David James during David James meets Joe Hart in a special programme which airs on BT Sport 1 at 6.30pm on Friday, is adamant the under-fire manager retains his total respect. 'It was bad because I never wanted to come out the team, but I had to - the manager made his decision,' said Hart. 'I thought he was fantastic with me how he was. 'As a manager, I totally respect his authority. He had a decision to make, he didn’t just flip a board and suddenly you’re not playing. 'I just wanted to use the time for the best, and when I did come in, I wanted it to feel natural. I just wanted to slot in. I didn’t want to come in and make a million saves. I didn’t want to come in and change a game. I just wanted to slot back in, that’s the way it should be, and carry on.' Hart (left), Robert Green (centre) and James training with England during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa . Pellegrini gestures in frustration on the touchline during Manchester City's 1-0 defeat at Barcelona . His side were eventually beaten 3-1 on aggregate in the last-16 of the Champions League . For the second time, Manchester City have struggled in the Premier League following a title-winning campaign, and Hart admits his side haven't been good enough this year. 'We’ve definitely got the capabilities and we’ve got the team,' he continued. 'But that’s only half the battle in this league. It doesn’t matter how good you are, or how good you think you are. It’s what you do on the day and you can lose against anyone. 'I’ve only had two (titles) to defend. I can only speak from that experience and the first one we did find hard because we’d built on everything to get it. 'I think we would openly admit that the season afterwards we expected that we would do it, that we had cracked it and that we were going to be that team. 'But we weren’t. We had to fight tooth and nail. We had to change managers. We had to change players. We had to come against all odds to win the league again last season. So I think we are all well aware of how hard it is to win the league in the first place, let alone back to back. 'But like I say, with the team and set up that we’ve got, we’ve got everything in the right places. That said, to do it is another thing and at the moment it is proving difficult. But we are going to keep trying.' Hart has won the League Cup, FA Cup and Premier League with City, but still has designs on winning the Champions League, completing a medal haul never managed by an English goalkeeper in history. He added: '(My dream is) to keep winning those three (domestic titles) as many times as possible and to try and add the European Cup to it.' Ivan Rakitic (second left) scored the only goal of the game past Hart as Barcelona won 1-0 on Wednesday . But Hart was otherwise superb during the result, with the Spanish press calling him a 'phenomenon' Hart rates Germany and Bayern Munich goalkeeper Manuel Neuer as the best in the world in his position . The 27-year-old stopper received praise from all corners of Europe following his display at Barcelona, with some Spanish press even referring to him as a 'phenomenon'. But Hart still rates Germany and Bayern Munich goalkeeper Manuel Neuer as the best in the world in his position. 'His style is something that I don’t think technically you can coach,' said Hart. 'People have got wrapped up in the whole flying out and tackling people and that side of it is not for me, to be honest. 'But Manuel in terms of dominating a game, being hard to beat, winning World Cups. I remember him right back from when we played him (I didn’t play – I’d got booked in the semi-final) in the under 21 tournaments, just seeing this colossal guy in goal. 'He has kept going and from a few times of meeting him, I like everything about him. I’ve heard some very important people in football say what an animal, and what an amazing talent he is.' Joe Hart is an ambassador for BT Sport. Watch Manchester City v West Bromwich Albion exclusively live on BT Sport 1 from midday on Saturday 21st March. VIDEO Pellegrini insists City are improving ." ]

[ "Britain's National Health Service is said to be at breaking point, with twice as many COVID-19 patients in hospitals than there were during the worst weeks of the pandemic last April." ]

[ "India's health system is collapsing under a record surge of coronavirus cases. Hospitals are overloaded and experiencing widespread dearth of life-saving equipment and medicines.", "Hospitals will be hit hard as they cope with a surge in coronavirus patients. A large public hospital and a large private hospital in Los Angeles are both preparing in earnest. NPR&#8217;s Patti Neighmond (@pneighmond) reports. This article was originally published on WBUR.org.", "Staff members at a Seattle hospital that faced the country's initial surge of coronavirus cases offer advice to people working in hospitals that are facing the latest surge in COVID-19 patients.", "British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced new coronavirus restrictions Monday as the United Kingdom deals with a surge in infections. Health officials reported more than 12,000 new cases on Sunday. Under the new measures, areas of England will be classed as medium, high or very high risk and placed under restrictions of varying severity. Here & Now&#8216;s Tonya Mosley speaks with NPR&#8217;s Frank Langfitt. This article was originally published on WBUR.org.", "In North Carolina and California, field hospitals have opened to help with patient overflow as a surge of COVID-19 cases continues to stress hospitals.", "NPR's Michel Martin speaks with Dr. Randy Tobler, CEO of Scotland County Hospital in Memphis, Mo., about the impact the coronavirus surge is having on his facility and staff.", "Despite previous warnings from health officials, cases of coronavirus are surging across the country.  Daily new coronavirus cases have topped 160,000, according to data by Johns Hopkins University. Now, states are amping up restrictions and reversing plans to reopen even further. Some hospitals, and the people that work in them, are running on fumes. Some nurses and doctors on the frontline say they’re once again overwhelmed and short on personal protective equipment. From The Atlantic’s Ed Yong: Hospitals have put their pandemic plans into action, adding more beds and creating makeshift COVID-19 wards. But in the hardest-hit areas, there are simply not enough doctors, nurses, and other specialists to staff those beds. Some health-care workers told me that COVID-19 patients are the sickest people they’ve ever cared for: They require twice as much attention as a typical intensive-care-unit patient, for three times the normal length of stay. “It was doable over the summer, but now it’s just too much,” says Whitney Neville, a nurse based in Iowa. “Last Monday we had 25 patients waiting in the emergency department. They had been admitted but there was no one to take care of them.” I asked her how much slack the system has left. “There is none,” she said. Find all our coverage of the COVID-19 crisis here. What do frontline workers need to help keep us safe and healthy? What are they seeing where they are?", "The House will, for the second time in two years, vote to impeach President Trump. Why Joe Biden's inauguration will look different than previous ones. Coronavirus surge overwhelms British hospitals.", "Hospitals lost millions of dollars preparing for a surge of COVID-19 patients. Some were swamped, but others only saw a handful of coronavirus cases. Now many are struggling to survive.", "Stress on the frontlines of the coronavirus pandemic just keeps growing. Now that includes the fear of losing your job. As cases surge, some health care workers are paradoxically facing layoffs, benefit cuts and less pay. WBUR&#8217;s Martha Bebinger (@mbebinger) reports. This article was originally published on WBUR.org.", "Almost 800 nurses at St. Mary Medical Center in Langhorne, Pennsylvania, northeast of Philadelphia, went on strike this week to protest what they say are unsafe staffing levels at the hospital. The two-day strike comes in the midst of a surge in the coronavirus pandemic that is stressing hospitals across the country. Here & Now&#8216;s Peter O&#8217;Dowd talks with one of the nurses who walked out, Jim Gentile, who has worked at St. Mary Medical Center for 38 years. This article was originally published on WBUR.org.", "New unemployment claims jumped sharply last week, as a surge in coronavirus cases put new stress on the U.S. economy. The rise in unemployment comes as various relief programs are about to expire.", "With new daily coronavirus cases rising in at least two dozen states, an explosion of new infections in Arizona is stretching some hospitals and alarming public health experts who link the surge in cases to the state's lifting of a stay-at-home order close to a month ago. Arizona has emerged as one of the country's newest coronavirus hot spots, with the weekly average of daily cases nearly tripling from two weeks ago. The number of people hospitalized is climbing, too. Over the past week, Arizona has seen an average of more than 1,300 new COVID-19 cases each day. After the state's largest hospital system warned about a shortage of intensive care unit beds, Gov. Doug Ducey, a Republican, pushed back on assertions that the health care system could soon be overwhelmed. \"The entire time we've been focused on a possible worst-case scenario with surge capacity for hospital beds, ICU beds and ventilators,\" Ducey told reporters Thursday. \"Those are not needed or necessary right now.\" While he acknowledged a spike in positive cases, Ducey said a second stay-at-home order was \"not under discussion.\" \"We put the stay-at-home order there so we could prepare for what we are going through,\" he said. Some states have reopened more slowly with a set of specific benchmarks for different regions, but Arizona took a more aggressive approach. The state began easing restrictions on businesses in early May and lifted its statewide lockdown order after May 15. Under Arizona's reopening plan, businesses are advised to follow federal guidance on social distancing. There is also no requirement for everyone to wear masks in public. Public health experts agree: The timing of this spike reflects the state's reopening. \"Perhaps Arizona will be a warning sign to other areas,\" said Katherine Ellingson, an epidemiologist at the University of Arizona. \"We never had that consistent downward trend that would signal it's time to reopen and we have everything in place to do it safely.\" Before Arizona lifted its stay-at-home order, about 5% of tests for the coronavirus registered as positive. Two weeks later, that number was around 12%. A slower reopening gives public health agencies time to identify whether or not cases are rising and then respond with contact tracing and isolating those who are infected. \"With a fast, rapid reopening, we don't have the time to mobilize those resources,\" Ellingson said. Maricopa County, home to about 60% of the state's population, has ramped up contact tracing in recent weeks, but it may not have enough capacity if the surge in cases continues. Dr. Peter Hotez said the spike in Arizona, as well as parts of Texas such as Houston, Dallas and Austin, is the consequence of removing restrictions too quickly and without a public health system that can keep pace. \"It was just open it up and then more or less business as usual, with a little bit of window dressing,\" said Hotez, dean for the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine. \"This is not an abstract number of cases. We're seeing people pile into intensive care units.\" Arizona's governor has also faced criticism from the mayors of the state's two biggest cities for not putting in place more stringent requirements. \"There is a pandemic, and it's spreading uncontrollably,\" said Tucson Mayor Regina Romero, a Democrat. Ducey, she said, \"is just putting up his hands and saying, 'The spread is happening, and we just have to go about our business.' \" Adding to Romero's frustration, the governor's executive order forbids local governments from implementing their own extra measures. \"What he did was pretty much tie the hands of mayors and public health officials,\" Romero said. Arizona's hospital industry has tried to tamp down fears that it's on the verge of a crisis. Hospitals are still performing elective surgeries. \"It's very unfortunate because hospitals right now in Arizona are quite busy with elective procedures,\" said Saskia Popescu, a Phoenix-based epidemiologist with George Mason University. \"You throw in increasing cases of COVID, and that's going to very much stress your hospital systems.\" Phoenix's triple-digit summer temperatures may help fuel the spread of the virus as well. People forgo outdoor activities and retreat to air-conditioned indoor spaces, where the risk of transmitting the virus goes up significantly. \"My concern is we're going to see a lot more people in close quarters for prolonged periods of time,\" she said. Since the stay-at-home order was lifted, Popescu and others said they've seen people returning to a pre-pandemic mindset, neglecting to wear masks or maintain social distance. Videos of crowded bars have only propelled these fears. On Thursday, however, Arizona's top doctor stressed there were also dangers to keeping the state on lockdown, including the mental health effects of loneliness and isolation. \"We know that it's in the community. We are not going to be able to stop the spread. And ", "NPR's Steve Inskeep talks with Scott Steiner, CEO of Phoebe Putney Health System in Albany, Ga., about how the hospital is handling a surge in coronavirus patients.", "With coronavirus cases and hospitalizations at record highs, doctors and nurses in California are fatigued by months of care and are bracing for the worst in the winter.", "Some doctors and hospitals in Britain are canceling routine treatment on Friday after what appears to have been a major cyber attack. It might be linked to similar attacks reported elsewhere in Europe.", "Months into the pandemic, coronavirus cases continue to spike across America. We check in around the country to see how different states are responding to this COVID-19 surge. Guests Luis Carrasco, editorial writer and member of the Houston Chronicle’s editorial board. (@lfcarrasco) Dr. Celine Gounder, infectious disease specialist and epidemiologist. Clinical assistant professor at NYU’s Grossman School of Medicine. Co-host and producer of the podcasts &#8220;American Diagnosis&#8221; and &#8220;Epidemic.&#8221; (@celinegounder) Dr. Saskia Popescu, infectious disease epidemiologist and infection preventionist. (@SaskiaPopescu) Monica Alba, political reporter for NBC News, covering the White House and 2020 campaign. (@albamonica) From The Reading List The Atlantic: &#8220;The Pandemic Experts Are Not Okay&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;Saskia popescu’s phone buzzes throughout the night, waking her up. It had already buzzed 99 times before I interviewed her at 9:15 a.m. ET last Monday.&#8221; NBC News: &#8220;U.S. to offer &#8216;surge&#8217; coronavirus testing to help with shortages, ease delays in results&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;Federal health officials are creating temporary &#8216;surge testing&#8217; spots to help control the spread of the coronavirus and ease hospitalizations in Florida, Louisiana and Texas.&#8221; The Hill: &#8220;Coronavirus surge puts renewed strain on testing capacity&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;The surge in coronavirus cases across the country has put a strain on U.S. testing capacity — again.&#8221; The Guardian: &#8220;Fauci: US is ‘still knee-deep in first wave’ of pandemic as it nears 130,000 deaths&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;The United States is &#8216;still knee-deep in the first wave&#8217; of the coronavirus pandemic, one of the country’s top public health experts has warned, as the country approaches 130,000 Covid-19 deaths and new polling indicates Donald Trump’s approval rating over his handling of the crisis has remained low.&#8221; Washington Post: &#8220;Live updates: Coronavirus hospitalizations soar in Arizona and rest of Sun Belt&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;Hospitals across the Sun Belt continue to be inundated with coronavirus patients, with Arizona on Tuesday reporting a new high of more than 3,300.&#8221; Houston Chronicle: &#8220;How coronavirus put Texas on brink of &#8216;nightmarish catastrophe&#8217;&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;A state once lauded as a model for COVID-19 containment came to &#8216;the verge of a nightmarish catastrophe&#8217; on the Fourth of July. Here’s how it happened.&#8221; Texas Tribune: &#8220;Coronavirus in Texas&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;Number of Texans hospitalized with coronavirus more than doubles in two weeks to nearly 8,700 people.&#8221; New York Times: &#8220;In West Texas, Lingering Distrust in Public Health Measures as Virus Spreads&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;For a while, it seemed that the coronavirus had spared West Texas. Cases were low. Few had died. Concern through the spring was focused on getting businesses running again.&#8221; Houston Chronicle: &#8220;Gov. Abbott warns of ‘greater fatalities’ from COVID-19 in Texas&#8217; coming weeks&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;Gov. Greg Abbott is warning of even “greater fatalities” from COVID-19 as the number of people in hospitals with lab-confirmed cases hit a record 8,698 on Monday.&#8221; NBC News: &#8220;&#8216;We need to live with it&#8217;: White House readies new message for the nation on coronavirus&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;After several months of mixed messages on the coronavirus pandemic, the White House is settling on a new one: Learn to live with it.&#8221; NPR: &#8220;Phoenix Mayor Says The City Is In A &#8216;Crisis Situation,&#8217; Needs Help&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;Arizona is one of just five states that has seen new coronavirus cases climb by the thousands each day in the past couple of weeks.&#8221; This article was originally published on WBUR.org.", "NPR's Michel Martin speaks with Nancy Foster, of the American Hospital Association, about the strain the coronavirus pandemic is putting on U.S. hospitals — and why so many struggle with capacity.", "As coronavirus cases soar in London, Mayor Sadiq Khan has declared a \"major incident\" and says hospitals are at risk of being overwhelmed. \"The threat this virus poses to our city is at crisis point,\" Khan said in a statement on Friday. \"The number of cases in London has increased rapidly with more than a third more patients being treated in our hospitals now compared to the peak of the pandemic last April,\" he added. \"The stark reality is that we will run out of beds for patients in the next couple of weeks unless the spread of the virus slows down drastically.\" A variant of the virus recently identified in the U.K. is believed to be more transmissible, contributing to the dramatic rise in cases. \"In England, the variant went from rare to dominating the outbreak in about three months,\" as NPR's Michaeleen Doucleff reported. \"One in 30 Londoners now has COVID-19,\" Khan said. The London Ambulance Service is taking 8,000 calls per day, which the city said is about 2,500 more than a \"typical busy day.\" And nearly 500 people have died in London hospitals because of COVID-19 complications in the past three days. The city declares a major incident when an event is \"beyond the scope of business-as-usual operations, and is likely to involve serious harm, damage, disruption or risk to human life or welfare, essential services, the environment or national security,\" according to the mayor's statement. The mayor is taking steps to ramp up coordination for the medical response, and is seeking more financial assistance for city residents who cannot work because of the pandemic. Londoners are asked to \"please stay at home except for absolutely essential shopping and exercise,\" Georgia Gould, chair of London Councils, said in a statement. England went into its third national lockdown earlier this week, including a strict stay-at-home order. The U.K. launched a massive vaccination campaign last month, starting with the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and later including the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine. On Friday, its medicines regulator authorized use of the Moderna vaccine, giving U.K. health care workers a new weapon in their arsenal to try to stop the virus.", "With tests scarce, epidemiologists are looking at hospitalizations as an indicator of how the novel coronavirus is spreading. But in some of the areas of the country worst-hit by COVID-19, states and counties aren't releasing that data. The result is an incomplete picture of where the pandemic is surging, even in hotspots such as Washington and California. \"So as long as people aren't being turned away, we must focus on hospitalizations and ICU cases,\" says Steven Goodman, an epidemiologist and Stanford University's associate dean of Clinical and Translational Research. \"The more reliable numbers, aside from the number of deaths, are how many people get sick enough to be in the hospital and in the ICU. That's what we need to know.\" Many public health departments, such as New York City's, are publishing daily updates on the number, age and location of hospitalized patients. Louisiana is reporting the number of patients on ventilators. Still, other hotspots aren't releasing numbers at all, either because public health officials are overwhelmed by the crisis and are still compiling the numbers or for reasons they declined to explain, even though they are compiling the numbers internally. The San Francisco Bay Area, in particular, is releasing incomplete data despite being an early epicenter of the U.S. outbreak, according to an investigation by NPR and member station KQED. \"We don't have the capacity to extract information and provide to the media or the public,\" Preston Merchant, public information officer with San Mateo County, an area in the heart of Silicon Valley that has reported more than 300 cases of COVID-19. Several other Bay Area counties say that as they brace for a surge in cases, they are still aggregating the data or simply that they are monitoring the numbers internally, but not sharing them publicly. Officials are hopeful the increase in patient numbers will arrive slowly due to shelter-at-home orders put in place two weeks ago. During a Tuesday news conference, California Gov. Gavin Newsom reported that statewide, hospitals were currently treating 1,617 people for COVID-19, a figure double that from just four days ago. Weeks after it has become routine to release such data publicly in many places, state health officials in California did not clarify where the cases are located. An email from California's Department of Public said the agency is \"continuing to aggregate hospitalization data by county and we are working hard to provide it to you as soon as possible.\" In Washington, the State Department of Health website says hospitalization information is currently \"under development and will be available soon.\" King County, the state's outbreak epicenter with 150 coronavirus deaths, is not releasing information yet either. \"We're working to collect it, but it requires our team to review hospital records and we just don't have this compiled yet,\" King County spokesperson Kate Cole said by email. Due to a lack of coronavirus tests, many states have restricted them to patients with pre-existing conditions or to those known to have been in contact with someone who has tested positive for coronavirus. Testing has also taken four to six days in some places. California is still waiting on results for a backlog of over 50,000 coronavirus tests — more than 65% of all tests given. As a result, reported coronavirus cases are an unreliable indicator of the pandemic's spread in the U.S., or as epidemiologist Steven Goodman says, \"a number to be almost completely ignored.\" That leaves only a few reliable benchmarks: hospitalizations, ICU admissions and deaths. With a clear hospitalization rate, epidemiologists can predict how many people may eventually die from coronavirus and estimate how many beds a hospital system will need as the virus spreads. Hospitals and medical groups are scrutinizing that information in real-time, but many refuse to share it publicly. \"Out of respect for patient and employee privacy we are not able to disclose the number of positive COVID-19 patients in our facilities or under our care,\" Angie Sheets, director of media relations for Sutter Health, one of the largest medical groups in Northern California. Kaiser Permanente in Northern California, which has a network of more than 20 hospitals, also declined to report their patient numbers publicly. Still, according to information obtained by NPR, as of Monday evening, 184 COVID-19 patients were hospitalized by Kaiser, putting the doubling rate at more than seven days. During the peak of New York City's surge, the doubling rate of hospitalizations was every three days. Across Kaiser's hospitals, 63 of those patients are in the ICU and an additional 197 patients are under investigation. Some hospitals across the country are choosing to share information. Bob Wachter, chair of UCSF's department of medicine, is tweeting out the number of patients in that hospital system each day. \"The organization has chosen to be remarkably", "The latest coronavirus surge is ratcheting up fears about the toll, and intensifying pressure to get more people vaccinated, wearing masks and perhaps start offering booster shots.", "Dr. Patrick Cawley is C.E.O of the Medical University of South Carolina Health, a large network of teaching hospitals. In April, The Indicator spoke to him when he was dealing with a very specific problem. In preparing for a surge of coronavirus cases, Dr. Cawley's hospitals were trying to get their hands on as much personal protective equipment as possible. His issues didn't stop there. In addition to capacity constraints, the virus put hospital systems around the country under considerable financial pressure. Eventually, Dr. Cawley had to lay off 1,000 people. We check back in with him to get an update. ....to other NPR stories/ additional sources/ further reading and listening: Music by Drop Electric. Find us: Twitter / Facebook / Newsletter. Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts, PocketCasts and NPR One.", "With delta surging, many hospitals around the country are again under strain. The federal government regularly releases detailed hospital-level data which show how many inpatient and ICU beds are in use on a weekly basis — and what portion of them are occupied by COVID-19 patients. Using an analysis from the University of Minnesota's COVID-19 Hospitalization Tracking Project, NPR has created a tool that allows you to see how your local hospital and your county overall are faring. Look up the hospitals where you live to find out how many beds are filled with COVID-19 patients, and the average for hospitals in your county. The ratio of COVID-19 hospitalizations to total beds gives a picture of how much strain a hospital is under. That ratio is concerning when it rises above 10%, hospital capacity experts told NPR. Anything above 20% represents \"extreme stress\" for the hospital, according to a framework developed by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington. ICU capacity is another important indicator of hospital strain. Those thresholds are higher: When 30% or more of ICU beds are filled by COVID-19 patients, it suggests a hospital is operating under \"high stress.\" When 60% or more are full, it's considered at \"extreme stress,\" according to IHME. This federal hospitalization data, which is available going back to August 2020, also provides a historical perspective on the stress level over time in each state. See how your state is faring now: All of these indicators vary depending on the size of a given hospital and its resources. The number of hospitals reporting their data also varies each week, though more have started reporting since the federal government started collecting this data. Methodology Data used for this story come from the Department of Health and Human Services and University of Minnesota COVID-19 Hospitalization Tracking Project. Hospital stress levels reflect the percent of inpatient beds occupied by COVID-19 patients at reporting hospitals. Stress levels are based on a framework developed by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington. Averages calculated by summing the seven-day average for each individual hospital, then dividing by the number of hospitals reporting data in a county. \"No data\" may indicate a sample size of fewer than four patients or hospitals that did not report statistics to the Department of Health and Human Services.", "India has crossed 200,000 deaths from COVID-19 amid a devastating second surge in the virus. Daily coronavirus infections have crossed 360,000, as the hospital systems and funeral services are overwhelmed. But experts fear that the true extent of the surge is dramatically under-reported. Host Robin Young speaks with Ramanan Laxminarayan, the director and founder of the Center of Disease Dynamics, Economics and Policy, about his view of the surge from New Delhi. This article was originally published on WBUR.org.", "Health officials in a number of European countries are reporting sharp increases in coronavirus infections and are warning of more hospitalizations and deaths in the months ahead.", "In Alabama, coronavirus hospitalizations are breaking state records, but health experts say the worst is yet to come. Hospitals are now bracing for a new wave of cases stemming from Thanksgiving weekend travel. Host Tonya Mosley speaks with WBHM&#8217;s Andrew Yeager about the surge. This article was originally published on WBUR.org.", "The coronavirus outbreak has thrown hospital systems throughout the U.S. into crisis — both medical and financial. The cost of treating coronavirus patients, combined with the loss of revenue from canceling elective procedures, has left many hospitals in desperate financial straits. Some estimates suggest hospitals are losing $50 billion a month, says Rick Pollack, president and CEO of the American Hospital Association. Earlier this month, as part of the coronavirus relief package known as the CARES Act, the federal government began disbursing $30 billion in aid to hospitals across the country. On Friday, another $20 billion is expected to be released. While that may sound like a large sum, Pollack told NPR on Thursday that hospitals have \"a tremendous need.\" \"I think it's fair to say that hospitals are facing perhaps the greatest challenge that they have ever faced in their history,\" said Pollack, whose organization represents the interests of nearly 5,000 hospitals. Here are excerpts from the interview. Can you paint us a picture of the financial situation for hospitals right now? We're being faced with what I would call a triple whammy. We have the increased expenses that have been incurred in terms of preparing for the surge and caring for the COVID patients. And then we have the decreased revenues associated with having shut down regular operations in terms of scheduled procedures. You combine that with the increased number of uninsured as a result of the economic situation, and you've got a triple whammy there. Some of the federal bailout money will also go to hospitals to reimburse them for treating uninsured patients. Are you getting enough money for that? The CARES legislation was really designed to provide emergency relief for uninsured and insured people. We don't take a backseat to anyone in advocating for coverage of the uninsured. But there are other mechanisms to cover those that don't have insurance. We think that these funds from the CARES Act really should be focused on maintaining the viability of hospital operations. Listen to the full interview at the audio link above.", "A spike in coronavirus cases and a shortage of medical resources has led to panic and unrest in Iraq. Some hospitals are filling, and family members have seized oxygen tanks for loved ones.", "Florida has hit a grim milestone — passing 100,000 cases of the coronavirus. The latest report from the state's Department of Health adds 2,926 new infections to the total number of COVID-19 cases, which now stands at 100,217 with 3,173 deaths. Along with Florida, six other states have registered more than 100,000 cases: New York, California, New Jersey, Illinois, Texas and Massachusetts. Like some other states, Florida has seen a surge of COVID-19 infections in recent weeks. A new record high of 4,049 new cases was set Saturday. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has linked the rising number of cases to increased testing. In March and April, testing was limited mostly to older people who had symptoms of the coronavirus. Since then, testing has expanded and has been opened to people of all ages, whether they have coronavirus symptoms or not. DeSantis said many of those testing positive for the coronavirus now don't have any symptoms and many of them are young. \"What we've seen now has been a really significant increase in positive test results for people in the 20s and 30s,\" he said. The median age of those testing positive in Florida has declined rapidly, going from 65 in April to under 30 now in some counties. \"Our cases are shifting in a radical direction younger,\" DeSantis said. The governor said he's concerned about another trend — the rising percentage of people who are testing positive for the virus. \"That's evidence that there's transmission within those communities, particularly (among people) in the 20s and 30s,\" he said. A number of bars across the state closed temporarily last week after staff members and customers contracted COVID-19. Over the weekend, Florida's Department of Health reissued guidelines stressing the importance of social distancing and encouraging people to wear face coverings when social distancing isn't possible. Despite the surge in new cases, DeSantis said there are no plans to roll back guidelines allowing businesses to reopen. He said the number of people going to the hospital for COVID-19 remains far below what they were in March and April. And deaths from the coronavirus in Florida have trended steadily downward for seven weeks. The governor said the coronavirus cases among people in their 20s and 30s are typically less acute than among those in older people. \"If you had a thousand cases under the age of 30,\" he said, \"that would have (less) clinical significance than if you had 15 cases among residents of a long-term care facility.\" For months, DeSantis noted that there had been no deaths in Florida of anyone under age 18. With the death of a 17-year-old in Pasco County over the weekend, that's no longer the case.", "The governors of North Dakota, Ohio and Utah all delivered the same message this week: hospital resources normally used for patients with heart attacks, strokes or emergency trauma will soon be overrun by patients with COVID-19. KCUR's Alex Smith reports on rural hospitals that are already at capacity, forcing them to transfer patients to city hospitals. Lydia Mobley, a traveling nurse working in central Michigan, says she sees multiple patients every shift who say they regret not taking the coronavirus more seriously. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.", "Rural hospitals tend to operate on extremely thin margins. Right now, like most hospitals in the U.S., they've redirected their resources to coping with the coronavirus pandemic. They've essentially stopped doing elective surgeries — like knee and hip replacements — and procedures, like colonoscopies. As a result, income has fallen, expenses have risen, even though many rural hospitals have seen no coronavirus cases at all. Those hospitals are just empty...and waiting. That's put rural hospitals under even more pressure than they're usually under. And it's put their administrators in a quandary, because while they need to prepare for a coronavirus wave, they can't compete with larger hospitals for the resources they need. And what if the wave never arrives? That might mean many of those hospitals won't qualify for government aid, and could go under. Adam Willmann is the President and CEO of Goodall-Witcher Healthcare in Clifton, TX. He talks to us about the extraordinary pressure rural clinics and hospitals are under right now. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: Twitter / Facebook / Newsletter. Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts, PocketCasts and NPR One.", "In Iraq, where COVID-19 is surging, the death toll from a fire in the coronavirus ward of a hospital continues to climb. Officials say more than 90 people have died and dozens more have been injured." ]

[ "To honor the tree, ask, and be guided by higher forces. What you really want is a solution that will be kind to both of you. You should also want to review the nobility behind your Intent. I hardly think the good oak wandered into your area by chance. Or maybe could it be that destiny conveniently put you within its vicinity? There is a possibility that there is a lesson here for one of you if not both. Deal with the contract with love. Obviously for you to ask this question indicates great compassion already active within you. Your higher Self will guide precisely. Think and feel for mutuality. Ask guidance from the Highest. May you succeed with your noble intentions." ]

[ "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them. (Matthew 7:15-20)", "The squirrels in my yard eat anything they can find. Of course, the bird seed that I put out, but I have also seen them eat the bark off of small trees too. The leaf buds from trees, as well as digging for flower bulbs and bugs. They also find a few acorns that they had buried previously. Again, anything they can find, they are omnivorous.", "I think you are refering to Sexual Dimorphism,\\n\\nSexual dimorphism is a phenomenon seen in almost all animal species, and some plants.\\nSexual dimorphism (SD for short) is a system that promotes a larger genetic pool. Example...\\n\\nAn Oak tree is not SD, so both sexes (male and female flower parts) are found on the same tree. So essentially, the oak's pollen can pollenate its flowers. This oak is said to be Monecious (meaning \"one house\" in greek). This means that the oak can produce acorns with 100% genetic material from its parent.\\n\\nA holly tree is Diecious (\"two houses\"). It only has male plants (with male flowers that produce pollen) or female plants (with female flowers that have the ovaries). This ensures genetic diversity in that 50% of the genetic code will come from each parent, thus ensuring diversity.\\nThis Holly is an example of a Sexual Dimorphic (diecious) plant.", "An evergreen tree stays green all year round (hence the name). Pine trees are considered evergreen trees. \\nA deciduous tree is a tree that turns colors in the fall and loses all of its leaves like most trees do. Most trees are deciduous trees, like oak and maple.", "A Forest of Oak Trees", "1\"Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.\\nMatthew 7 1-2 \\nAlso \\n15\"Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 16By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them. Mat 7-15", "Squirrels eat acorns when they can't get picnic food, and make their homes in trees. They are somewhat territorial, so the more trees there are, the more squirrel families the park can support.\\n\\nNot that you want more squirrels. Rats with bushy tails.", "A canopy could also mean more trees. The more trees there are, the more they hold roots and soil in place, thus preventing erosion.", "The answer depends on the type of oranges. They usually yield hundreds of oranges per tree per year. Some large trees may bear 3,000 to 5,000 oranges each year.", "Spanning tree protocol allows the use of redundant connections between two or more network switches. It automatically disables the redundant ports in order to prevent loops. Without spanning tree, switches with redundant connections would flood the network with management traffic.", "If the tree doesn't fall on the hunter he just might smell the bears dump. If the tree falls on the hunter the bear might smell the hunters dump.", "I'd like to do Cindy Brady while she is reading Hemingway in a treehouse in an old oak tree while watching Darkwing Duck", "The state bird of Georgia is the Brown Thrasher, and the state tree is the Live Oak. For more state symbols of Georgia, see the link below.", "It's simply a kind of wood, from the cork oak.\\n\\n\"Portugal accounts for more than 50% of the world's total cork production. It is the climate and soil types of this region that keep the trees growing. Although cork trees are also grown in some Asian countries, only cork harvested from the Mediterranean region is considered commercial quality.\"\\nSource: http://www.thewineman.com/cork101.htm", "In the 7th century a monk from Crediton, Devonshire, went to Germany to teach the Word of God. He did many good works there, and spent much time in Thuringia, an area which was to become the cradle of the Christmas Decoration Industry.\\n\\nLegend has it that he used the triangular shape of the Fir Tree to describe the Holy Trinity of God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The converted people began to revere the Fir tree as God's Tree, as they had previously revered the Oak. By the 12th century it was being hung, upside-down, from ceilings at Christmastime in Central Europe, as a symbol of Christianity.\\n\\nThe first decorated tree was at Riga in Latvia, in 1510. In the early 16th century, Martin Luther is said to have decorated a small Christmas Tree with candles, to show his children how the stars twinkled through the dark night.", "There are many effects on the environment depending mostly on where the road is built. The first effect would be to the wildlife of the area. When trees and land are cleared for road construction, it results in the loss of habitat for many organisms. For example, a single oak tree can support thousands of insects and hundreds of birds. By removing that one tree, you have possible destroyed these organism's habitat. Also, cutting down trees and clearing land add carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. Tree and other plants use carbon dioxide in photosynthesis. They store some in their bodies. This is released into the atmosphere which can add to the global warming problem. That along with all the construction equipment letting out carbon monoxide and dioxide during the construction phase. And that is just the surface of what is caused.", "My favorite guote is The apple dosen't fall to far from the tree and love hurts.", "All spring and summer there is a lot of water to keep the trees well watered. They use their leaves to convert sunlight into energy, but this uses up a lot of their water, so they have to keep drinking a lot from their roots. In the winter it is too cold outside for the trees to drink because the ground is frozen and so is all of the water. Therefore the trees go into a kind of hibernation, just like bears do. The shed their leaves because they don't have the resources to hold onto them all winter. \\n\\nThe trees also move all of the energy that they have gathered all summer from the sun and the extra water they gathered into their roots. They take all of the nutrients from their leaves, so they change color, and they move them to their roots. This way the tree's food is safe all winter. Then because the trees no longer have any use for their leaves (which used to gather energy from the sun), they let them go. That leaves all of us with leaves to make into piles and play in!", "People use the oxygen from the air and produce carbon dioxide. Trees use carbon dioxide and product oxygen. Trees also prevent erosion, provide many food products, provide shade and create an aestetically pleasing environment.", "Squirrels mate in the Winter, and you can often see males chasing females up, down, and around trees. Once mated, both the male and female build the nest.\\n\\nEastern Gray Squirrels usually live in forests, but they are also seen in yards, gardens, and city parks. Basically, they live anywhere there are large, deciduous trees (trees whose leaves die in the Fall).\\n\\nThese squirrels live in trees year-round, either in cavities or nests they build out of leaves. Cavities are often old woodpecker holes. Nests are usually high up in tree crotches. Nests are hard to see in the Summer, because they are made with green leaves, and are hidden by foliage (leaves on the trees). They are easy to see in the Winter, when the nest leaves have turned brown and tree leaves fall to the ground.\\n\\nThe trees most commonly used by Eastern Gray Squirrels to live in are White Oak, American Beech, American Elm, Red Maple, and Sweetgum, though they will use others also.", "The North American moth, or forest tent caterpillar makes its home in usually deciduous trees such as oak, gum, aspen, and sugar maple trees which they strip of leaves. So it does not need to travel very far to lay its eggs, just as far as the next tree.\\n\\nHundreds of kilometers it says at the very bottom of this link I've included. A hundred kilometers is about 60 miles.", "The link below has a picture of the destruction of a rainforest habitat. This is a typical destruction of a habitat. Natives cut down the trees for money. Without trees the rain erodes the land away, and the natives finally burn the remaining plant life so they can get to more trees.", "Yes. All deciduous trees are flowering plants (Division- Spermatophyta; i.e. Seed bearing and flowering plants). So the division is the same but their families are different.There are about 450 families of the flowering plants.Deciduous trees, as the name implies, shed all their leaves once in a year.As against evergreen trees that are covered with leaves all the year round,and never leafless unless dead.", "Good luck. Brazil and other nations around the rain forests are economically desperate. How can you tell a man who is just trying to feed his family to do it elsewhere or argue logic about econmic damage? \\n\\nInstead, why not cultivate the rain forest elsewhere? \\n\\nInstead of prohibiting logging in the rain forrest and other sensitive areas plant a tree in YOUR area. Plant lots of them and not just any tree. Do a little research as to which ones do not spew pollution. Yes certain kinds of trees are worse for our air than cars. \\n\\nRestrictive anything is not the solution for any problem. So called environmentalists have to get out of the banning mind set if they wish to do the environment any good. Positive solutions work. Negitive solutions only hurt people and rarely help your cause.", "1. Bamboo...pandas\\n2. Grass...cows\\n3. Eucalyptus...koalas\\n4. Seaweed...marine turtles\\n5. Bananas...apes\\n6. Leaves...elephants\\n7. Fruit...fruit bats\\n8. Acorns...squirrels\\n9. Trees...beavers\\n10. Corn...crows", "Tree-line or timberline is the edge of the habitat at which trees are capable of growing. Beyond the tree-line, they are unable to grow due to inappropriate environmental conditions. There are several types:\\n\\nArctic tree-line The furthest north in the Northern Hemisphere that trees can grow; further north, it is too cold to sustain trees. \\n\\nAntarctic tree-line The furthest south in the Southern Hemisphere that trees can grow; further south, it is too cold to sustain trees. \\n\\nAlpine tree-line The highest elevation that trees can grow on mountains; higher up, it is too cold to sustain trees. \\n\\nExposure tree-line On coasts, and on isolated mountains, the tree-line is often much lower than in corresponding altitudes inland and in larger, more complex mountain systems, because high wind speeds adversely affect tree growth. \\n\\nDesert tree-line The driest places that trees can grow; drier desert areas having insufficient rainfall to sustain trees. \\n\\nWetland tree-line The wettest ground on the margins of muskegs and bogs that trees can grow in, below which the ground is too saturated with water, excluding oxygen from the soil that tree roots need to grow. \\n\\nHowever no such line exists for swamps, where trees, such as Bald cypress and the many mangrove species, are adapted to growing in permanently water-logged soil.", "Hey, iloveicecream103, why don't YOU read a book about science, then talk to us about Genesis, if you still can.\\n\\nFossil layers show change over time. The lowest layers have species the least like modern species. As you progress up the fossil record, each layer is consistently more and more like modern organisms. Creationists have no explanation for this. They haven't even bothered trying.\\n\\nComing up the fossil record, you see forms changing over time. Clams are preceded by animals like clams, but with their shells united. Before mammals, mammal-like reptiles. Before reptiles, reptile-like amphibians. Before amphibians, amphibian-like fish. Creationists have no explanation for this either, but they have made a few wasted efforts.\\n\\nThe transitions evolution expects occur. Creationists can pretend they aren't *really* transitions, they just *look* like transitions, but that's just like a child yelling \"DOES NOT\" to win an argument.\\n\\nCreationists especially need to pretend that no transitions between humans and other apes appear. They claim that all fossils are obviously human or obviously ape. However, if you examine the claims of multiple creationists, you'll find they disagree on which are \"obviously\" which. If it was so freaking obvious, shouldn't they be able to agree? At least a little? Here's a chart:\\n\\nhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/compare.html\\n\\nThe only thing obvious about it is that the skulls obviously cannot be considered one or the other and must be seen as transitions by any open-minded person.\\n\\nThe transitions that evolution doesn't want do not occur. At no point in the fossil record do we find mammal/birds. At no point do we find any direct transitions between amphibians and mammals. We don't find any cat/humans either. Any of these things, if discovered, would scrap evolutionary theory overnight. Creationists have yet to explain why God made only species that look like they could have evolved.\\n\\nEven without any notion of progress or change over time in the fossil record, it's sorting would be an embarrassment to creationists.\\n\\nScientists respect the fossil record and accept it on its own terms. If oak trees appear on top of tree ferns, oak trees came after tree ferns. Creationists need to impose explanations to account for their claims that everything existed together at once, but these do not flow naturally from the evidence. For instance, they have no explanation for why oak trees are found above tree ferns.\\n\\nCreationists have three explanations for fossil sorting, none of them works at all.\\n\\n1. They like to claim that fossils are sorted by which species could outrun the rising floodwaters (they blame Noah’s' flood for everything they can't explain). This would mean that moles and sloths can run faster than velociraptors, Oak trees and mangroves can run faster than velociraptors as well. Velociraptors run at the same speed as tree ferns. It is also useless for explaining why ichthyosaurs and dolphins are never found together.\\n\\n2. They claim that different species occur in different ecological zones, thus would form in different layers. This fails again. Mangroves are found in the lowest ecological zone of any flowering plants, but the highest levels of the fossil record. Oak trees are found high with mangroves, instead of low in the plains. Tree ferns should be found with oaks. Moles should be beneath velociraptors again, and ichthyosaurs should, again, be found with dolphins.\\n\\n3. They claim that the mechanical action of the flood should sort things. Well, it should. Too bad such sorting doesn't look at all like what is seen. Mangroves sink, for example. So do waterlogged oaks. Moles are bullet shaped and would sink faster than light-boned velociraptors. Dolphins and ichthyosaurs should, again, be found together.\\n\\nCreationists have lots of explanations for fossil so", "If you don't want to spend money, you can use mathmatics.\\n\\nAll you need is a tape measure and a protractor.\\n\\nDepending on how tall the tree is (just guess) measure about the same distance from the tree.\\n\\nyou. . . . Tree (20 ft.) \\n\\nNow if you can imagine that you are a vertex of a right triangle, and the tree represents the other two vertices. Bottom of the tree is one, and the top is the other.\\n\\nSit down in your spot and hold the protractor level wiith the ground. From the center of the protractor, view the top of the tree and then wrrite down the angle you are viewing through to see the top of the tree.\\n\\nNow using trigonomerty you should be able to closely estimate the height of the tree.\\n\\n\\nHeight = distance (you to the tree) multiplied by the SIN(angle from protractor).\\n\\n\\nHere is a trig table you can refer to...\\nhttp://wikisource.org/wiki/Trigonometric_functions_of_angles_0%C2%B0_to_90%C2%B0_by_degree", "it good to always do steches when you pull anything in your body. Its also good to do streches everyday even though they might hurt a little because it can prevent you from braking a bone in the future", "If you are an artist give some of your artwork.\\nIf you are not, look for something very super-simple gift like a teddy bear or two teddy bears hugging or something like that. It doesn't have to be expensive. Look for simplicity and they will appreciate.\\nYou may try also to give a tree to plant, if they have a garden, the tree will grow with their love creating a strong bond.", "Yes she is quite right. They do core samples. For example, look at the tree ring laboratory at the University of Arizona (link below in references). This field is called dendochronology, and dating by counting tree rings is an important dating technique. \\n\\nIf one does not want to cut the tree down, then the age of the tree could be roughly estimated by its height and/or diameter, although obviously this depends strongly on the conditions in which the tree is growing and has been growing. If there are limbs that have fallen off the tree, these will also have rings on them, so one can see the growth of the limb since the limb formed, which will give some lower bound on the age. In some cases, runoff patterns around the tree and downhill from the tree can give some sort of estimate as to how long it has existed there, securing the ground from erosion. I would expect some of these methods to have fairly large error bars, however.", "YES YES YES!\\n\\nThe only way to reduce our dependence on foreign sources of oil in the near future is to drill for more oil HERE!\\n\\nIf the tree huggers don't like it tell them to stop driving cars, using electricity and heating their homes so there is more oil for the rest of us.\\n\\n****\\n\\nHey Gonzo, If by conservation you mean saving every bug, animal and tree on the face of the earth so you can have a pretty view as you drive your SUV through the country yeah I've heard of that. If left up to you folks we’d all be living out in the woods singing kumbuya hugging the trees, eating mushrooms, berries and getting eaten by wolves and bears. \\n\\nThis nation needs energy. Currently our best source of energy comes from oil, coal and natural gas. Now, if you can come up with a better way to get those things out of the ground with out harming all of your bugs and trees I'd love to hear about it. After we're done pulling all the resources out, so you can be nice safe and warm in your home. I'm all in favor of planting trees there, they do grow back you know... As for me when I have to choose between heating my home and saving a tree or the squirrel that lives in that tree. The tree and the squirrel are going to loose every time." ]

[ "One of my big bands has just found the charts for this - and it's a great number! Birdland." ]

[ "The reasons you suggest do happen. And other causes are possible too. \n\nPerhaps the recording session itself wasn't on-pitch (maybe the band was playing for many hours and didn't re-tune in the middle). There's the famous case of The Beatles' Strawberry Fields Forever where there were 2 takes that they liked: the beginning of 1 take and the ending of the other. Problem was: the 2 takes were out-of-tune with each other! So they mastered by starting one, slowing adjusting the speed until they matched, then cross-fading to the other take, and on to the end.\n\nIt can also happen that the pitch was adjusted in order the change the playing time of the song. Maybe it clocked at 3:15, but the producers want the song to be an even 3 minutes.", "I cannot recommend Google Play enough. The ability to sync up to 20,000 tunes on to the service for free and access them as long as you have an internet connection. \n\nThe interface is nice and I even throw them the $10.00/mo so that I can continuously add new music for just that insanely low price (now I can buy more band t-shirts). I went from 3k songs to almost 16k songs in just the 3 short years I've had this service. The library is easy to search and looks pretty nice.", "There is absolutely no \"rule of thumb\" for any specific tuning which would correspond best to any specific song. There is no tuning which is preferable for fingerstyle guitar. The most we can say is that a tuning may be useful to play a specific song, a specific arrangement of a song, or in a specific key. You may find it helpful to look to the following criteria for guidance:\n\nLook at the key. If you find out what key the song is in, i.e., which 7-note scale is drawn upon to play the notes and chords of the song, then you can use that as a guide for what notes you want to have open strings tuned to. It is often the purpose of alternate tunings to make sure that the open strings are tuned to notes that are frequently used in the song.\n\nGenerally, the root and fifth of the key should be highly accessible. If the key of the song is \"D Major\", then the notes \"D\" and \"A\" will usually be easy to play using open strings. In most cases, the root and fifth note of a key can anchor the song to a particular key, so they can be used quite freely throughout the song. The standard tuning of a guitar is EADGbe, so if a song is in D, the lower E is often tuned down one whole-step to D, resulting in DADGbe. This is probably the most common alternate tuning, and is naturally suited to playing in the key of D.\n\nLook at repeated bass lines or melodic motifs. If there is some repeated theme, bass-line, or other melodic fragment, the strings of the guitar can be retuned to make playing this motif more convenient, thus freeing you to do something more exciting and interesting with the remaining strings. In the example of DADGbe above, let's say the motif is a low \"D\" note followed by the \"A\" one fifth above. You can play this motif simply by playing the low 6th string and the low 5th string. That doesn't require the use of your left hand at all, and now your left hand is free to explore other ideas. \n\nIf this is not helping, then you probably should just start by learning some songs. It's definitely a good idea to experiment with different alternate tunings, but until you can play a few songs in different tunings, the use of alternate tunings may not seem clear to you. In fact, worrying too much about \"what's the best tuning for me to use\", or \"how can I learn to use all of these tunings\" is highly likely to distract you from the most important work which is just getting your feet wet and enjoying yourself. There's a website called Songsterr which has some of Sungha's arrangements.", "Heyyy\nMany years we looked for this similar song with my big brother. And this night, we find this : \r\n \r\n \nThis is exactly the song and clip so many watched on MTV2.\nSong: Monster\nArtist: The Automatic\nAlbum: Not Accepted Anywhere\nReleased: 2006\nMatches:\n\nHunt in a forest\nMonster (Bigfoot)\nMale vocalist\nWhite, alternative band\nMTV\n2006", "Congratulations to you and your band for taking the first steps to fame and fortune in the music world. You've written some songs and started to play together as a band. That's great! But now you want to take it to the next level.\n\nAt this point it sounds like you are at the very beginning stages and there are several more levels you must reach before you are even ready for the studio, much less ready to pitch your music to a \"label\". \n\nThe number one thing that you must have in order to be successful as a band - is a large fan base. By successful - I mean actually getting paid to perform. Another level of success would be actually being able to pay some of your bills by getting paid to play music. And of course the pinnacle of success would be to get signed by a major label who would promote your music on the radio, promote the sale of your music on CD's and digital formats, and book you on tours where you would stay on the road going from city to city and playing to large crowds of your fans. \n\nBut it all starts with fans. Without fans you go nowhere. With a large enough fan base, you get the attention of the record labels. So how do you begin building a huge fan base?\n\nI would encourage you and your bandmates to start practicing regularly until you have rehearsed enough material for a full live show. Then try to get \"booked\" to do a show for an audience. Venues that feature live music might hire you if they like your music. But venues such as restaurants, pubs, bars, etc. are looking for the same thing that record labels are looking for - fans! If you can convince a venue that you can draw enough new patrons (your fans) to their venue, you can get booked. \n\nBefore you get enough fans to fill up a small venue, you might need to play some free shows. Perhaps a backyard concert at one of the band members house or the house of one of your fans. Invite all your friends and bandmates friends and everyone brings a dish to share. \n\nThe reason you want to play for an audience is that there is no better way to get feedback on your music, and to share it with your potential fan base. It also will encourage you to practice with more intention - because you have a goal and a deadline. If your live performances go well, you will be inspired to put more energy into playing together and your new fans will start promoting you through word of mouth. \n\nAs you start to gel as a band, and start to build a fan base, you will start writing more material and growing your repertoire. But you also must be pro-active at growing your fan base. \n\nAfter you start playing live shows regularly, your music will become more polished and you will hone the rough edges and fine tune your songs. Now it's time to start recording some music so you can share it outside of live shows. \n\nSo the next step is to set up a YouTube channel for your band. It's the next step because it's FREE! On your channel, you will be able to upload videos of your band performing. You will also be able to post a bio of the band and other helpful information. But the main thing is to create a platform where you can direct potential new fans so they can hear your music. Here is a YouTube Video on how to set up a free YouTube Channel for your band and optimize it for promoting and sharing your music. YouTube - set up a band channel\n\nFor the videos - you can start by getting a fan or friend of the band to record some of your live shows. Even a smart phone can make an amazing recording. One tip for recording your live shows is to use multiple camera's (two friends) and record your audio from the sweet spot (find a place in the audience area that the music sounds best). Using free video production software, you can create a professional looking and sounding video by mixing in several angles and using a separate optimized audio track for the audio. \n\nAnd if you mess up, you can use the good parts of a performance as part of a \"demo reel\". Put several sections together on one five minute video that consists of the best parts of some of the songs you have on video. Then use a transition tool (fade out, flip, curtains, etc.) to link them together into one video. \n\nOnce you have some music on YouTube, you can set up a Facebook Band Page and start posting links to your YouTube videos. Each band member should have a personal FaceBook page where you encourage all of your friends to \"like\" your band page and encourage them to encourage their friends to \"like\" your band page. This is how things go \"viral\". They find you on YouTube through Facebook (or vice versa).\n\nYou can also print business cards and print the URL for your YouTube channel and/or a QR code so folks can instantly watch your band on YouTube, even if you run into them at Starbucks and hand them your business card. \n\nSo far, your band has played together enough to fine tune your performance, booked some live paid or free gigs to begin building a fan base, set up a YouTube Channel for the Band, set up a Facebook page for the band, and printed some business cards for the band. All of the foregoing can be done for free by the way - including the business cards (Google \"free business cards\"). So let's look at some other ways to start promoting your music. \n\nIn today's world, Social Media has become an excellent way to reach thousands of people in an instant. So once you have a platform (such as YouTube) where your music can be shared, and begin to grow your fan base, you will want to set up a presence on all the major social media platforms. You will want a twitter account, an instagram account, and a Google Plus account to go with your Facebook Band page. All your media platforms need to link to one another to the extent you can. \n\nAfter you start playing regular live shows - you might want to consider a band website. A good website will allow your potential fans who visit the site to see and hear your music (post YouTube vids), read about your band (a good bio) read about each member of the band, and discover where they can hear you live and support your music (a calendar of upcoming gigs). \n\nReverbnation may be a great place to help you get started with your website. It's free to set up an account on Reverbnation for your band. They can provide templates for band websites as well as help you promote your music in many ways. Learn more here Reverbnation website\n\nBy now you have fine tuned your performance and received feedback from your fans on which of your songs are popular among your fans. So it's time to get in the studio and produce your first \"EP\". \n\nThrough word of mouth among other successful local musicians in your area or through the internet, you should be able to locate a professional recording studio that can produce some of your songs fairly inexpensively. You want a polished production that sounds like it could be on the radio. You don't have to start with an entire album. You probably should start with a three song \"EP\". Pick your most popular 3 songs and get them professionally recorded and produced. \n\nNow that you have some professionally recorded music - there are several more things you can do that you could not do until now. \n\nFirst, you can burn some CD's and start handing them out to your fans. Or even better, have some CD's professionally produced on some level. Perhaps you only print a few hundred to start with. Then you can put your music in the hands of your fans at your live shows. \n\nBut more importantly, you can now start sharing and selling your music on line. \n\nCheck out CD Baby for what they can do to produce CD's and Sleeves, and also what they can do to host other digital platforms for sharing your music. They can help you promote your music on i-Tunes, Amazon, Spotify, Apple Music, Google Play, and Shazam among other distribution platforms. They can also help with music licensing. Here is a link to information about their digital distribution options Digital Music Distribution through CD Baby\n\nAnother platform now available for promoting your music online - is BandCamp. BandCamp Artist Page \n\nAlso, Reverbnation (see link above) can help you sell or distribute your digital music. \n\nAnother free platform that will allow you to share your music with others once you have a digital audio file (such as an mp3) is SoundCloud. Some artists and bands use soundcloud for free 30 second samples of their music which can be purchased through i-tunes or spotify etc. But your job is to build and grow a fan base so you want to share all of your music with as many folks as possible. Here is an example of a Soundcloud artist's site Sound Cloud Andrew Applepie\n\nDepending on what country you live in, you might want to copyright your music at some point and register your band with a performance rights organization to help you collect royalties once other folks start playing your music (either covering it live or streaming the audio). In the USA, the main PRO's are BMI, ASCAP and SESAC. \n\nThere are other ways to continue to promote your band (play charity events, get a newspaper to do a feature on the band, conduct an interview on a college radio station, put posters or business cards in your local music store). But the primary goal in promoting the band through all the platforms mentioned above, is to build and grow a large fan base. \n\nEventually, if you have enough fans (many thousands) you can get the attention of a \"label\". After all, the record labels are in business for one thing and one thing only - profit. They see fans as dollar signs. Get enough fans where they see enough money and you are on your way. \n\nGood luck!", "The Triple Band Stack will simply remember (store) the last frequency entered or tuned for that band and stack position. Try this:\n\n\npick a band - 40 meters - by pressing [7.0]\nTune to a frequency\nPress [7.0] again and tune to a different freq on 40 meters\nPress [7.0] again and tune to yet a different freq on 40 meters\n\n\nNow, press {7.0} repeatedly and you will cycle through the last 3 tuned (or entered) frequencies on that band. This is the triple band stack — there is no formal store command or button for the triple stack. The [STO] feature is for storing frequencies in Memory/Channel Groups.\n\nThe Triple Band Stack will not only store the frequency - it will store mode such as LSB or CW. Both VFO A and B have independent Triple Band Stacks!\n\nI believe this is explained in the manual under “Convenience Features”.", "It's a bit wishy-washy and the terms can be used interchangeably. However, I would say that in general:\n\n\nA cover usually refers to a reinterpretation. This might take the form of creating an acoustic version, a different arrangement, or even just taking the lyrics and coming up with an entirely new melody.\nA remake is an attempt at reproduction, playing the song the same way it was originally played. The remakers might put their own twist on it or they might get very technical and try to be exacting, but ultimately it's the same style as the original.\n\n\nI think though that most of the time they are not distinguished. Wikipedia says that a cover is simply one band/artist's songs being performed by another. It also gives some interesting insight into its origin:\n\n\n The term \"cover\" goes back decades when cover version originally described a rival version of a tune recorded to compete with the recently released (original) version. The Chicago Tribune described the term in 1952: \"trade jargon meaning to record a tune that looks like a potential hit on someone else's label.\"", "The actual meaning of this song comes from the fact that the band are massive Manchester United fans. They came up with the song for when the club reached 20 League titles and surpassed the previous record of 19 which was held by Liverpool.\n\nIt was used as their title winning song when they secured their 20th title.\n\nHope this helped.", "It's a nice party trick, but not that helpful when it comes to playing piano, or music stuff in general. What are you going to do with it if you ever achieve that status? It can be satisfying being able to recognise a key for a piece - but then when you want to play it properly, you'll probably have to refer to the dots anyway.\n\nMy method was/is to sing what I think is a particular note, every time I walk towards an instrument - piano, guitar, etc. Then play that note. For me, it's C, but I consider it as the M3 of Ab. After several years , I'm spot on or 'in the crack' about 90% of the time - it gets done several times most days. The rest is either a B or a C#, so it's not too bad. But, what can I do with it even if it's perfect? \n\nPlaying certain (pop-type) tunes in several different keys with different bands hasn't helped cement one key with one song, fairly obviously. \n\nWorking on relative pitch is far more important, so I'd go, as Kevin H says, with that approach.", "Out of universe, this is probably T Bone Burnett talking. From IMDb:\n\nT Bone Burnett acted as music consultant for the movie, and helped Joel Coen and Ethan Coen establish the Dude's taste in music. Burnett selected many of the existing songs in the movie, and also suggested the Dude's hatred towards The Eagles (Burnett himself is not a fan either). One of the band's member, Glenn Frey, was reportedly so dismayed about this that he once even angrily confronted Jeff Bridges when they met at a party.\n\nSays Burnett:\n\n&quot;[The Eagles] sort of single-handedly destroyed that whole scene that was brewing back then.&quot;\n\nOn a side note, the Dude's aversion to the Eagles also helped the team to secure a desired song, saving them as much as $150,000. From Wiki:\n\n[Burnett] had a tough time securing the rights to Townes Van Zandt's cover of the Rolling Stones' &quot;Dead Flowers&quot;, which plays over the film's closing credits. Former Stones manager Allen Klein owned the rights to the song and wanted $150,000 for it. Burnett convinced Klein to watch an early cut of the film and remembers, &quot;It got to the part where the Dude says, 'I hate the f@$&amp;in' Eagles, man!' Klein stands up and says, 'That's it, you can have the song!' That was beautiful.&quot;\n\nIt's possible a hardcore, counter-culture 60s hippie like the Dude would consider the Eagles sellouts. From The Big Lebowski: An Illustrated, Annotated History of the Greatest Cult Film of All Time:\n\nEven the choice of Creedence represents the more rebellious side of classic rock. [...] Creedence symbolizes the polar opposite of the band the Dude openly hates, the Eagles. In the mid-1990s, the Eagles became the first mainstream rock band to sell tickets for more than $100. If Creedence had a dash of antiwar insurgency, the Eagles were all Baby Boomer contentment, a feeling encapsulated in the song &quot;Peaceful Easy Feeling&quot;. [...]\nEagles fans should forgive the Dude for reacting so harshly to [that song]. It was, after all, the Dude's perceived lackadaisical hippie way of life that Jeffrey Lebowski attempted to exploit, and the lazy-day vibe of the Eagles' &quot;Peaceful Easy Feeling&quot; [...] is hippiedom as filtered by Boomer nostalgia. By this time in the film, it's been made clear that there's far more to the Dude than any peace-and-love cliche.", "The song you are referring to is Have You Ever Seen the Rain? (Wikipedia) by the band Creedence Clearwater Revival, written by the singer and guitarist John Fogerty.\n\nAccording to Wikipedia, the meaning of the song is the breakdown of the band:\n\n\n However, Fogerty himself has said in interviews and prior to playing the song in concert that the song is about rising tension within CCR and the imminent departure of his brother Tom from the band.[4] In an interview, Fogerty stated that the song was written about the fact that they were on the top of the charts, and had surpassed all of their wildest expectations of fame and fortune. They were rich and famous, but somehow all members of the band at the time were depressed and unhappy. Thus the line \"Have you ever seen the rain, coming down on a sunny day\".", "Using WhoSampled.com, you can find some of the songs that Aphex Twin has sampled. It turns out that he has sampled over 75 songs, including (among many other songs of varying popularity):\n\n\n\"Apache\" by the Incredible Bongo Band\n\"When the Levee Breaks\" by Led Zeppelin\n\"Soul Pride\" by James Brown\n\"Uranium\" by Kraftwerk\n\"Big Yellow Taxi\" by Joni Mitchell\n\"The Great Gig in the Sky\" by Pink Floyd\n\"Funky Drummer\" by James Brown (who hasn't?)\n\"Run's House\" by Run-DMC\n\n\nIt seems like he has been sampling since the beginning of his career; according to WhoSampled, the oldest song he uses sample on is from 1992, and the most recent is from 2015.", "It seems like http://echoprint.me/ is the service you want:\n\n\n Echoprint is a music fingerprint or music identification service. It\n listens to music signals and tells you what song is playing. It’s\n backed by a huge database of music that grows with the community and\n further partnerships. On launch we’ve partnered with Musicbrainz. \n \n ...\n \n Does it work “over the air”, identifying songs over a microphone?\n \n Yes - Echoprint has been designed from the ground up for OTA, and our\n informal tests have demonstrated many successful and promising results\n for this scenario. The system still needs a little more tuning,\n however, and is under continued development to further improve\n accuracy and performance.\n\n\nData license (at http://echoprint.me/data):\n\n\n Echoprint data (for ingestion into your own server) is available under the “Echoprint Database License.” The intent of the license is simple: Use our data for whatever you want (commercial or non, research, personal use); If you download our data and then add to it, you are required to contribute data back to us. ; There is a good reason for this. We want Echoprint to be able to resolve every song in the universe. If you add to the database of resolvable tracks, the Echoprint community needs to know about it.", "In the Mishpacha magazine, issue 455, 7 Iyar 5773, (April 17, 2013), Mrs. Blima Silverman of Toronto, Ontario, writes (in a letter to the editor), \"In your February 20 edition the song, 'Big Gedalia Goomber' was attributed to yet another person who did not write it.\" She writes further, \"The song (both music and lyrics) was composed by my husband, Rabbi Yosaif Silverman z\"l, in the early '60s, as anyone attending Telshe Yeshiva at that time can attest. The record was produced in 1969, along with other tunes he had written, and is still under copyright.\"", "You're asking the wrong question.\nYou'd like to be able to play The Trooper? You are able to play at least parts of it? Ok great! So keep practicing. You'll be able to do it better and better. Regardless of that, definitely practice also other tunes.\nLearning a musical instrument is not some sort of quest through different songs / techniques that are to be vanquished. Rather, it's an ongoing process where you get ever better at everything. At some point you may have “mastered” individual songs, but that shouldn't really be what you have in mind while practicing.\nIn particular with a song like The Trooper, you'll probably never be able to play it quite like Steve Harris – but that's fine, hardly anybody can do that. You may however already be able to play it in a way that's good enough for giving the band a satisfying sonic fundament to achieve a fine overall interpretation. Start from there, keep improving.\nWhen actually playing in a band, the really important thing is to not focus on trying to make any individual aspect perfect, but instead keeping the whole thing balanced and round. In particular for this song, it's crucial that you keep the pace and power throughout the performance (in fact, I think Maiden speed it up quite a bit), but not that you actually execute every single note as in the original. That's where it comes in handy to have practiced not only a single technique: there's a lot of ways you can “cheat” in this song, and still get a good result, whereas cramping on to a tab will probably result in everything getting quite poor and feeble towards the end. Even Harris himself doesn't actually gallop all the time – he occasionally leaves out some of the in-between sixteenths. But the notes he does play, he absolutely hammers home.\nYou can get a lot more creative than just omitting notes. One very effective energy-saver on bass is raking technique: instead of using two individual finger strokes, use the same finger twice on different strings. In a key like E, this can readily be implemented by using octaves.\nRelated, specifically in a riff like the intro, make use of pull-offs. I'm actually not sure if Harris plucks all the notes, but I would not. Pull-offs essentially distribute the plucking work over both hands. But even if you simplify it to a simple fourths-motif\nX:1\nL:1/8\nM:C\nK:em\n%%score B\nV:B clef=bass\n% 1\n[V:B] E,E, E,B,, D,D, D,A,, | C,C, C,G,, D,D,\n\nthat'll work if the guitar doubles with the full thing.\nThe only thing that you really can't afford, as a heavy bass player, is to drop out or drag.\n— That's of course not to say it should be your ambition to cheat yourself through everything. Your ambition should be to play the song as best as possible, but the way to get there is neither to make it your big goal to play that one song note-for-note, nor to shy away from the challenge completely. The way to get there is to not fixate on one “way”, but instead work in a broad manner to improve yourself. I'd suggest approaching it from three directions simultaneously:\n\nSlow and meticulous: don't hurry with this, but do try to play each part of the song in a note-perfect manner – at super-slow-motion tempo! This is where you can really take apart the technique, observe what your fingers are doing (avoid double-use of a finger), and of course you can scale up the tempo more and more and approach the real deal in this sense.\nFast and bold: as I said, note-perfection isn't really what matters for the song. It's no good if you can manage to play the song perfectly, but only 80% tempo and it falls apart completely at anything faster. That's where “cheating” comes in: it allows you to not only push your limit (which can become very tedious and demotivating) but also leap over your limit. It'll fail a couple of times, don't worry about this.\nPlaying entirely different songs. Remember, it's no use to entrench yourself in kind of a battle against a single song. Mixing it up with other material will not only broaden your capabilities, it will also help get to that song easier! Even if your only goal as a bassist were to play the song The Trooper in an Iron Maided cover band, practicing only that song would not be the way to perfect it.", "Any band that takes members from multiple previously established bands should always be considered a new band. If Cornell wanted these songs to be Soundgarden songs, he'd have done them with Soundgarden. But, at the same time, when you have a certain writing style which permeated your previous band, you're always going to sound a little like that band.\n\nSo, in summary, Audioslave wasn't a continuation of any band, it was its own entity that combined elements of various bands to create their sound.", "The simplest answer is that the modulating signal, while it could be electromagnetic, will not have the desired propagation characteristics to carry out effective communications. By mixing the modulating signal with the carrier, the resulting signal has a much higher frequency that results in the desired propagation effects.\n\nHams often find that they cannot make their desired contacts on a given band (short frequency range) so they switch bands in the hope of making a contact. The modulating signal stays the same but the carrier frequency is dramatically changed as they switch bands.\n\nHaving the ability to change the carrier frequency also helps to avoid interfering signals or talk with another ham by tuning to their transmitting frequency.", "The song clearly is not just about being literally hungry --not with ample sociopolitical imagery such as \"farming babies, while the slaves are all working.\" But while it may present as an abstract statement about wealth and poverty, a little research reveals a more personal meaning:\n\n\n \"Hunger Strike\" came about because of an existential crisis that Soundgarden faced at that moment. We were sort of the first band [from Seattle] that had attention from labels in a meaningful way. There was a bidding war, which was unusual for any band from Seattle. We were living our dream, but there was also this mistrust over what that meant. Does this make us a commercial rock band? Does it change our motivation when we're writing a song and making a record? \"Hunger Strike\" is a statement that I'm staying true to what I'm doing regardless of what comes of it, but I will never change what I'm doing for the purposes of success or money.\n https://www.rollingstone.com/music/features/temple-of-the-dog-an-oral-history-w442502\n\n\nIn other words, does the band take a big contract from a commercial label (\"bread from the mouths of decadence\") and does that imply selling out, maybe even becoming party to exploitation (\"I can't feed on the powerless when my cup's already overfilled\")? It's all a bit overdramatic, but it comes out of a time and place in music where authenticity was prized above all else, and where the prospect of mainstream success raised powerfully ambivalent feelings among formerly \"indie\" groups that weren't sure they wanted it. The title of the song announces his intentions to turn down his shot at wealth and fame. Perhaps he would have been happier if he had stuck with that original commitment.", "This is a remix of \"Follow the Sun\" by The Lighthouse and the Whaler.\n\nThe band's website describes them as the artists behind the song, but the version in the trailer is actually\n\n\n The Hit House’s orchestral remix, by composer William August Hunt\n http://www.thehithouse.com/what-to-do-with-winnie-the-pooh/\n\n\nI can't find the actual song on Spotify or the website. Hopefully the movie soundtrack will have it!\n\n\n\nUpdate: Zync Music claims that they helped with the licensing of this placement in the trailer.", "SlashFilm suggested the following connection:\n\nThe title [of the episode] is a direct reference to the song “A Horse\nwith No Name,” by the band America, and Walt is shown singing the\nlyrics at the ep’s beginning and end. On both occasions he’s blindly\nvisited by two threats in the clashing forms of law and chaos. It’s a\ngreat use of music because, for one, the song’s lyrics famously don’t\nmake a lot of sense and yet the track creates a manly sense of\nimportance and dignity in being lost and alone. The song is also\nthought to be about escapism via drugs (specifically heroin), and Walt\nis still high, albeit from the power of capitalizing on other\npeople’s.\n\nUnfortunately, Cracked did an article investigating this idea of the song being about drug escapism and stated:\n\nLet's save time here by going straight to Dewey Bunnell, the man who\nactually wrote the song:\n&quot;I wanted to capture the imagery of the desert, because I was sitting\nin this room in England, and it was rainy.&quot;\nSo, back when he was a kid, Dewey was playing around in the desert,\nfound it interesting and years later wrote a song about it with a\nmessage about the environment. No heroin-induced hallucinations or\nallegorical desert, but real, actual desert.\n\nDespite their disappoint reveal, I think the Slash Film reviewer's thoughts are probably the best explanation of any deeper connection that exists.\nMy own feeling is simply that the song is just a random choice, as it is quite light hearted in tune and provides an interesting contrast to the extreme peril that Walt is actually in, at both the start and end of the episode.", "I've a feeling this might get closed as a \"list request\" so I'm only starting up half an answer here, I'll put more effort in if it stays open ;-)\n\nOnes I can think of immediately are :- \n\n\nMountain - Nantucket Sleighride\nEasy feel start, to heavy instrumental motif, long extemporising solo section [different in studio &amp; live versions - personally, the live version from \"The Road Goes Ever On\" is the best, though at nearly 18 minutes, you need to be enjoying it] a drop to a sea shanty;) last verse back down again, then the big motif to the end.\nPretty much anything from U2 at their best -\nWith or Without You would be a fine example, constant build from beginning to end.\nSupertramp - Crime of the Century [the title track itself]\nQuiet start, build then big drop to the end motif, which then builds again - though I'm not sure it fully qualifies as it runs to a fade.\nDavid Bowie - Five Years and Rock n' Roll Suicide\nOpening &amp; closing tracks from the same album, The Rise &amp; Fall of Ziggy Stardust &amp; the Spiders from Mars.\nI think we can just say \"iconic\".\nProcol Harum - Conquistador\n[Must be the live orchestral version, which was the hit single, not the studio band-only version which was only an album track]\nFrom the quiet orchestral start to the manic thrashing of the drummer towards the close, a superb example of dynamic at its best.\nSnow Patrol - Chasing Cars\nFine example of lift &amp; drop dynamic, helped by cleverly making each chorus longer than the last.\nRun, from the earlier Final Straw album would probably qualify too [though you'd have to make your own mind up as to whether the Leona Lewis cover qualifies]\nCockney Rebel - Sebastian\nA band probably better-known in the UK than US, but not hugely famous even there - this is an exercise in dynamic, from barely audible to pounding orchestra &amp; furious vocals, then drop &amp; repeat, over a 7-minute masterpiece of early 70s pomp. Death Trip from the same album, The Human Menagerie, has a similar construction, but overall doesn't carry quite as well.\nIcehouse - Icehouse\nAn odd little tune from the Aussie 80s band. Probably wasn't a hit because people find it difficult to feel where the beat is for the first half of the song, but a nice dynamic from top to bottom.", "Yes but it's enhanced.\n\nFrom Reality Blurred \n\n\n Craig Plestis said,\n \n \n “The great thing about the show: everyone had to sing live, and they only had one take each. So it really was a monumental feat for everyone to do this and with the masks. It was really difficult designing the masks and getting that great audio level. So it really was all about singing live on the stage. And what you hear, a lot of it is what they got. If there was a big mistake that happened, you’re going to hear it on the stage, you know, in the TV show itself.”\n \n \n Executive producer Izzie Pick Ibarra said that putting mics in the masks was a challenge: “Some of the masks were very echoey, so we would have to put foam inside so the sound didn’t sound so echoey. We had a lot of audio testing that we did with the masks beforehand. But, as Craig was saying, they all sung live and they had one shot at it.”\n \n That’s when Nick Cannon stepped in and basically said, yes, the performances are enhanced:\n \n \n “You gave a good example about the song ‘I Gotta Feeling.’ If you listen to the original version, the way it was produced, it has a lot of auto tune and a lot of effects in it.\n \n So the choices that a lot of the acts get to make with their songs kind of lend themselves to it. I mean, there’s certain songs, especially nowadays, every song has auto tune it.\n \n So if you want to be accurate and sound good and sound like the song, you’re going to have the vocal effects.\n \n So we had a great team of producers and mixers that kind of made them sound exactly or as close to the record as possible.”", "The logo is an intrical part of the band. Some bands, in the beginning, spend almost as much time designing their logo as they do creating the music. It's got to be right. It's got to define who they are, or project an image of who they want to be.\n\n\n\nYou see this, and you know exactly who that band is, right? That is how important a logo is, particularly for branding.\n\n\n\nOther bands want to create a certain \"atmosphere\" with their logo. This is the logo for Thou Art Lord, a Black Metal band.\n\nAs you can see, logos are definitely important for branding purposes, as well as instant identification by fans and even with fans.", "A band rarely owns their own copyright.\nIt is most likely held by a dedicated publishing company, even if that publishing company was set up as sole rights owner by the band members themselves - famous one, Deep Purple - Purple Management &amp; Purple Records.\n\nWithout going into any particular legal ramifications [which are well outside the scope of this site], very simply… \n\nOnce a song has been published, it may be covered by anyone, so long as the regular terms of performance &amp; broadcast are followed.\nThis includes bands in pubs &amp; the former members of the original band that wrote the song.\n\nFrom Comments - it is quite possible that an album may have the band name shown as composer/author, but 'behind the scenes' at Performing Rights organisations who are responsible for protecting the song as an entity, the full real names of the actual composers/authors will be listed \n\nThe examples used, of U2 &amp; Duran Duran - though the records may credit 'the band' as composer/author in each case, the actual writing credits are listed as all the members of each band. This information can be easily found on any sheet music, cover version or karaoke track &amp; is not confidential.\n\n... or occasionally a registered alias can be used.\n\nBest examples I can find for aliases…\nSearching the PRS database [not public] for 'Vestan Pance' correctly finds songs written by Clint Mansell [Pop Will Eat Itself].\nSearching for 'Dr Winston O'Boogie' finds John Lennon.\n[the information linking those particular aliases is already in the public domain, so no confidential information is being leaked by this 'revelation']\n\nAs far as I'm aware [I have nothing except a lack of proof of a negative to back me up &amp; I'm not a lawyer] a company or band etc cannot be the legal composer of a song.", "As commonly known, The Beatles stopped touring and became a studio band in the later stages of their existence. The last tour they did was in 1966, and While my Guitar Gently Weeps was recorded in 1968.\n\nIn 1968 and 1969, they only performed twice, none of the concerts featured the song. So, the song was never performed live at a concert by the band.", "There is an entire sub-genre of Sanskrit inspired metal called \"Vedic Metal\". Only a few bands are active in that category. Maybe its one of their songs. Check out Rudra, a famous vedic metal band from south-east Asia. Also, a lot of bands in India have used various 'mantras' as lyrics of their songs. Check out \"The Down Troddence\" from Kerala, India. But then again, its not heavy metal, its more of a trash-inspired composing style.", "Your saw may be poorly adjusted.\n\nA properly tuned band-saw has the wheel axles exactly parallel and the wheels in the same plane. The axles can be adjusted using the tilt screw on the upper wheel. \n\nIf that doesn't help than it may be the crown of the wheels is too flat. Put a ruler on the wheel and see if there is enough of a crown left. If not then you will need to replace the tire or wheel.\n\n\nimage source", "The song is by Irish pop-rock band The Script, The songs name is Nothing", "I've been in lots of bands and it is indeed always different. The band I'm currently in consists of 3 Classically trained musicians and a relatively self taught singer/songwriter. While we have the capability to write everything down, we primarily don't. The one song that does have some parts written out was when our guitar player wrote the song instead of the singer/songwriter and that was basically because it was very riff heavy and made it much easier to learn outside of our practice time. So we rely on memory for all of our songs. I think this is good in a lot of ways, particularly not having to rely on a piece of paper with notes on it to know what to do. I also think that it allows the song to sink into your subconscious a little better and allows you to focus more on playing expressively. However, this does become a more difficult task when you expand your band's catalog. We've been playing for years and have a lot of songs that we don't play much anymore and when we decide to pull them out of the closet, it is sometimes incredibly difficult to remember how the song goes, let alone what exactly I used to play. But that's where extensive practice comes into play. We used to practice those songs and perform them very, very regularly, so half the time I can't think of what it is I'm supposed to do and then I'm suddenly doing it.\n\nOther rock bands seem to conform to this approach, though there are surely exceptions. I tend to see more things written out when it's a Jazz band or if there is a horn section or string section. A lot of the rock tradition comes from people without a formal education, so they typically either don't know how to read music notation, or prefer not to. Every other band I've played in consisted mostly of players that couldn't read music, so we wouldn't have been able to thoroughly notate everything if we wanted to (unless I did all the work and played everyone's parts back to them when they needed a refresher).\n\nSo I think the answer is not only going to be specific to individual bands but also the individuals within those bands and often times the genre of the band. The important thing to do when you start playing with others is to come up with a way to make sure everyone is on the same page with their varied experiences. Recording a simple reference track is probably the easiest way to document things but if everyone can read, it's usually easier to have things written down (maybe not note for note but key sections or specific ideas) than to pull up a recording of a song and find the section you're looking for, especially if the songs evolve over time and you would need to record new reference versions repeatedly.", "Wikipedia is rather vague:\n\n\n Guns N' Roses' lead guitarist, Slash, states that the song was written\n in the back of a rental van as they were on their way back from\n playing a gig in San Francisco with the band Rock N Riders. He says\n that the band was in the back of the van, drinking and playing\n acoustic guitars, when he came up with the intro. Duff McKagan and\n Izzy Stradlin started playing along. Slash started humming a melody\n when Axl Rose sang, \"Take me down to the Paradise City.\" Slash chimed\n in with \"Where the grass is green and the girls are pretty.\" Axl sang\n the first line again, where Slash shouted out \"Where the girls are fat\n and they've got big titties.\" Axl finished with \"Take ... me ...\n home!\" Slash preferred his second line but the rest of the band felt\n differently. He was outvoted and they used the first line. The band\n then expanded upon the rest of the lyrics in rounds. \n \n During a 1988 interview, Rose told \"Hit Parader\" magazine that \"the\n verses are more about being in the jungle; the chorus is like being\n back in the Midwest or somewhere.\"\n\n\nSongfacts however offers a reasonable theory:\n\n\n Much like \"Welcome To The Jungle,\" this was inspired by Los Angeles,\n where the band was living. The verses deal with the rough life on the\n streets, but the chorus was based on Axl Rose's memories of the\n Midwest, with images of green grass, innocence and possibility.\n\n\nA contributor added more details:\n\n\n On 93.1 WIBC FM, a radio station in Indianapolis, Indiana, Jake Query,\n who is a friend of Axl Rose, explained that the part of the song where\n they sing, \"Where the grass is green, and the girls are pretty\" is\n about when Axl Rose and his family would go down to Bloomington,\n Indiana.\n\n\nHowever, note that Slash claims in his autobiography that he came up with that line (which is the source for the Wikipedia entry quoted above).", "The most obvious answer is the shift in time signature. The entire song up to that point is in 4/4, then they change to playing in 7/4. Less conventional time signatures are very common in progressive rock and metal, the latter of which I’d say this more closely resembles. I don’t really listen to prog metal, so unfortunately I can’t give you much deeper insight as to what particular bands they’re emulating.\n\nThe other major change in their playing style is the switch to a groove-based musical idea. This isn’t at all specific to prog, but it helps to set the end apart from the rest of the song as well.", "Yes, all wind instruments can be played out of tune. Very out of tune. \n\nSource: I work with junior concert bands.\n\nTo elaborate, the frequency produced by a given wind instrument is a function of the fingering, but also the embouchure (mouth position), airspeed, and any number of other factors. \n\nLearning to play in tune is a major part of starting to learn a wind instrument. This is not the case with something like piano (no tuning at all), or guitar (where a beginner will play adequately in tune)." ]

[ "Smaller videos up to 10 mins take about 2 minutes. Bigger Videos for example (I uploaded Videos up to 8 hours on youtube) may take up to an hour, sometimes even more. If you are lucky your video will get processed even faster (maybe 30 mins) when the server that is processing your video is not under heavy load." ]

[ "If your upload seems stuck, or is taking a long time, it may be due to: File type and size: Your video's file type and video format determine its size. ... At some peak hours, your Internet Service Provider registers spikes of upload traffic and might take longer to upload your video to YouTube.", "It can take 4 times longer for 4K resolution to be available after an upload finishes. A 4K video with a frame rate of 30 fps that is 60 minutes long can take up to 4 hours to finish high-resolution processing.", "The maximum upload file size is 128GB or 12 hours. YouTube also does not limit the amount of videos you can upload. For those using Vimeo for free, the maximum is 500MB per week and 10 files per day, however, Vimeo's paid subscriptions offer better upload and storage limits.", "While Vimeo allows videos up to a size of 500 MB to be uploaded, YouTube lets you upload videos as big as 20GB. ... Furthermore, YouTube allows for a better quality of videos, namely HD, HDR, 4K and 8K. Compared to that, Vimeo allows the upload of videos up to 720p only.", "Slow or unstable internet connection is one of the main causes of slow uploads. Heavy uploads traffic: You might be uploading during a busy time. At some peak hours, your Internet Service Provider registers spikes of upload traffic and might take longer to upload your video to YouTube.", "What does it mean when someone subscribes to your YouTube channel? ... When you subscribe to a YouTube channel, you are basically telling YouTube to show you all the upcoming uploaded videos as soon as it is uploaded. So if the YouTuber uploads a video now, it will appear in your Subscription box now.", "The minimum requirement for the best internet speeds for YouTubers is 2 Mbps upload. However, if you can go up to 25 Mbps, you will be able to upload even faster — especially if you have longer videos. If your videos are over an hour long, 25 Mbps will be ideal.", "According to Grapevine, 70 percent of creators with at least 100,000 subscribers spend at least six hours working on each video they upload to YouTube, and one-third of those YouTube stars spend at least eight hours on each video.", "YouTube videos are copyrighted to the person who created and then uploaded them onto YouTube. You can link to another person's YouTube video, but you should never re-upload it or claim it is your own. ... Using a flipped YouTube video in TedEd is totally safe because it links to the original video.", "Videos often appear blurry on Google Drive or YouTube immediately after they are uploaded. This is because both Drive and YouTube display a low-resolution version of your video while they're still processing the HD version in the background. ... But your video will ultimately appear in HD once it's ready.", "What is the Average Time to 1,000 YouTube Subscribers? It takes an average of 22 months for a channel to reach 1,000 subscribers on YouTube according to data from TubeFilter. That's if the channel is uploading videos consistently and using some best practices.", "At the center of this discussion is YouTube's controversial 45/55 revenue split. In other words, when a creator uploads a video to YouTube and enables ads on it, YouTube takes 45 percent of the revenue from that ad sale, and the creator takes the rest; 45 percent is a hefty fee, no matter how you try to justify it.", "YouTube videos are copyrighted to the person who created and then uploaded them onto YouTube. You can link to another person's YouTube video, but you should never re-upload it or claim it is your own.", "To cite a YouTube video in APA Style, you include the video title (italicized), the channel that uploaded it, the upload date, and a link to the video. Uploader. (Year, Month day). ... Note that the same format works for other video sites like Vimeo.", "You can add an intro, heavy editing and effects, then an ending clip and spend days editing the video. It really depends on what you want on your YouTube channel. I typically spend about 3 hours per video on my channel, but some videos take only an hour and some will take a few days.", "MPEGPS, CineForm, DNxHR, WebM. So, these are some compatible formats with which you can ideally go for uploading videos on YouTube. Now, if you notice, the MXF format is not in the above list, and hence you are unable to upload the MXF video on YouTube.", "How to use ClipConverter.cc to download YouTube video? Step 1: Open the URL http://www.clipconverter.cc/ and paste the link of video to be downloaded from the YouTube in the input field placed at the very top of the screen. If you have the video saved in your device then you can simply upload it.", "If you planning for a education channel then it's take time to create space. But if you are going to create so technology videos then it's take 2–3 months.", "Video thumbnails let viewers see a quick snapshot of your video as they're browsing YouTube. After your video has finished uploading, you can choose a thumbnail from the three options that YouTube automatically generates, or upload your own.", "I'm not sure if it depends on the file size or what, it says it will take a few minutes for the change to appear on your channel, but it shouldn't take a few hours to an entire day.", "How long does it take to process a visa if I submit my application at the Visa Centre in person?-FAQ(visa) How long does it take to process a visa if I submit my application at the Visa Centre in person? A visa typically takes four working days to process if all the accompanying documents meet the requirements.", "In our own surveys and research, the answer varied quite a bit. The reported range for the time taken to make a YouTube video was from 2 to 300 hours! The average time reported was around 7 hours for 1–5 minutes of video!", "How long does it take to get naturalized? The application process takes about six (6) months.", "But if you are going to create so technology videos then it's take 2–3 months.", "2) How long does the Canada visa processing time in Kenya take? It generally takes 7-14 days.", "A YouTube staff member will review the video and the user's channel within 24 hours of your submission. If the complaint is valid, YouTube will remove the video and potentially penalize the user.", "['Users can search for and watch videos.', 'Create a personal YouTube channel.', 'Upload videos to your channel.', 'Like/Comment/share other YouTube videos.', 'Users can subscribe/follow other YouTube channels and users.', 'Create playlists to organize videos and group videos together.']", "It might take up to 12 hours to upload. If you don't see them by then, try turning the iPad and iphone off and on once the upload is complete. The upload is very, very slow. People with large photo collections have posted it took 2 weeks or more for the upload to complete.", "It looks like Jake Paul's career as a YouTuber may take a backseat. As highlighted by Dexerto, he uploaded a video to his channel on Wednesday, November 27th 2019 titled 'here's why I'm quitting youtube. ' which explains his reasons. ... In the video, he admitted being a YouTuber doesn't interest him anymore.", "The maximum file size you can upload is 128GB or 12 hours, whichever is less. We've changed the limits on uploads in the past, so you may see older videos that are longer than 12 hours.", "No formal education is required. That being said, if you can shoot video and upload that video to YouTube then you can be a YouTuber. Of course as you progress and learn some of the skills needed to edit and produce a more professional video.", "Videos must be at least one minute long. The maximum length your video can be is: 15 minutes when uploading from a mobile device. 60 minutes when uploading from the web." ]

[ "Poirot believed that Monsieur Lawrence's intelligence had been underestimated." ]

[ "I contradicted Poirot when he praised Monsieur Lawrence's intelligence.", "Monsieur Lawrence is not a commoner.", "He is more intelligent than most of his kind.", "Monsieur Lawrence had fingerprints.", "Lawrence did not understand what he meant.", "It means, Poirot replied, that Monsieur Lawrence dislikes her even more than she thought he did.", "My intelligence was extraordinary.", "I had seen Lawrence differently.", "Lawrence appeared confident.", "I noticed that Monsieur Lawrence could have gone to the poison cupboard.", "My opinion of his intelligence was greatly raised.", "Monsieur Lawrence is a typical worker.", "Intelligent people often underestimate his abilities.", "You are very intelligent.", "Monsieur Lawrence had no fingers.", "Poirot hurt my feelings when he seemed to cast doubt on my abilities.", "I noted that intelligence was needed then.", "Do you think he knows who Lawrence is?", "People needed to think he could outsmart me, but I didn't want him that smart.", "I don't think it's intelligent humor.", "As I said I conveyed your message to Lawrence.", "He spoke like he was smart.", "I didn't think much of Poirot's calmness.", "Lawrence encouraged him.", "I felt quite intelligent.", "Monsieur Lawrence had understood my words from the very beginning, he was only pretending not to.", "She appears to be an intelligent woman.", "They are slow and not very intelligent.", "I never did peak, not in the 70's or 80's.", "He isn't very smart, but not easily deceived.", "Poirot seemed to have no grasp of my thoughts.", "Lawrence didn't look sure of himself." ]

[ "Conan makes fun of Kumail’s voiceover work in the latest “Middle-earth” game and becomes obsessed with an Orc named Krûk the Drunk.\nFollow on Facebook + Twitter and Subscribe by Email\nRelated Laughing Squid Posts\nIn addition to this blog, Laughing Squid is also an independently owned web hosting company with a focus on hosting WordPress blogs. The revenue from our hosting services helps support this blog.\nOur hosting plans start out at $4 per month. If you are interested in hosting with us, you can sign-up here. If you know of anyone who needs WordPress hosting, please send them our way. Thanks!" ]

[ "Photo: Mat Hayward/Getty Images\nKumail Nanjiani started doing stand-up comedy because of a scene in Four Weddings and a Funeral. He’s returned to the Hugh Grant rom-com about falling in love with Andie MacDowell (and running into her at the most inopportune times) over and over again, according to a Twitter thread he posted Wednesday afternoon. The Richard Curtis-penned movie was an inspiration for the movie he made about his own love story — The Big Sick, due out June 23 — and he and wife/co-writer Emily V. Gordon watched Four Weddings and a Funeral the day of their own wedding.\nBetween a WGA event and a concert, Nanjiani has occasionally run into Curtis, and told him about his love for the film. The day of The Big Sick’s opening, he got a package in the mail from the screenwriter: Four frames from Curtis’s personal reel of the movie. “Of course I recognize the scene instantly,” Nanjiani tweeted. “It’s Hugh Grant having 2nd thoughts before the final wedding. I get to hold it in my hands. I have no words.” Read Nanjiani’s thread for yourself:\nThread. (WARNING: Sappy content.) Anuone who knows me knows how much I adore Four Weddings & a Funeral. I saw it first in high school. — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) June 14, 2017\nHad a crush on a girl who wanted nothing to do with me & in my head I was Hugh Grant & she was off with another guy but she'd come around. — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) June 14, 2017\nI've seen it probably about 50 times since. It makes me laugh every time. It makes me cry every time. — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) June 14, 2017\nI started stand-up cuz of Hugh Grant's best man speech in the beginning. My first few comedy years is me doing my best Hugh Grant. — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) June 14, 2017\nThe day that @emilyvgordon & I walked into City Hall to get married, we watched Four Weddings & a Funeral. I laughed & cried. — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) June 14, 2017\nWhen we got the chance to make our movie, The Big Sick, Four Weddings was a constant reference point. “Is she a Duckface?” — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) June 14, 2017\nWe also explicitly reference Four Weddings in the movie when I show Emily my high school Hugh Grant inspired hair. — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) June 14, 2017\nMy constant thought was “If 1 person loves our movie as much as I love Four Weddings, this will be a raging success.” It's unlikely. — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) June 14, 2017\n2 months ago, I'm presenting at the WGA Awards. Richard Curtis is there. I blab for too long, unscripted, about how much his work means. — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) June 14, 2017\nI utterly & completely embarrass myself. After, his partner @emmafreud, reaches out to me & says it meant a lot to him. I don't believe her. — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) June 14, 2017\nThey run a charity, Red Nose Day, & ask me to do a live video. I eat a spoonful of insane hot sauce & read my favorite Four Wedings quotes. — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) June 14, 2017\nI end up jumping in a pool with my clothes on to cool off. I'm just trying to impress Richard Curtis. A week later, I see him at a concert. — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) June 14, 2017\nI just run up to him. He is incredibly kind & hilarious in person. He tells me a Hugh Grant story that just makes me love him even more. — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) June 14, 2017\nThe premiere for our movie, The Big Sick, was 2 days ago. Just as we're about to leave, I get a package. It's from Richard Curtis. — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) June 14, 2017\nThis is what he sent me. He cut it 4 frames from his personal reel of Four Weddings. Of course I recognize the scene instantly. pic.twitter.com/yyBjGCkkFq — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) June 14, 2017\nIt's Hugh Grant having 2nd thoughts before the final wedding. I get to hold it in my hands. I have no words. — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) June 14, 2017\nSo I guess I'm saying: be nice to someone who loves what you do. It'll mean more to them than you can ever understand. — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) June 14, 2017\nAnyway, I'm gonna go watch Four Weddings & a Funeral now. I'm sure I'll laugh, but I bet I'll cry more this time. /END — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) June 14, 2017\nTo be fair, Nanjiani started the thread with a spoiler that it’d be sappy, but we’re still wiping away a tear.", "The son of strict Muslim parents from Pakistan's teeming business capital on the Arabian Sea, comedian Kumail Nanjiani moved to the United States to study at Grinnell, a liberal arts college in Iowa in 1997\nGrowing up in Pakistan's chaotic megacity of Karachi, Kumail Nanjiani never imagined he would one day star in a Hollywood rom-com, let alone be a leading man in Donald Trump's America.\n\"The Big Sick,\" opening in selected cinemas on June 23, brings to the big screen the real-life story of how the 39-year-old comedian met and fell in love with his American wife, Emily Gordon.\nIt narrates their courtship, Nanjiani's strict Muslim parents trying to set him up with an arranged marriage and Emily falling gravely ill, forcing him to take charge and build a relationship with her parents.\nNanjiani and Gordon co-wrote the script and filmed the movie long before Trump's election, but the president's attempts to ban visa-holders from certain Muslim countries, has given the film renewed potency.\nIts challenge of stereotypes in US popular culture, portraying Muslims as regular people rather than terror suspects or fighters, has taken on even greater significance than initially intended.\n\"Obviously it would be great if our movie came out and people didn't see it as a political statement because it really isn't. It is just a love story and a comedy,\" Nanjiani was quoted as saying by Variety at the Los Angeles premiere.\nThe movie premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, ironically on the day of Trump's inauguration, and Amazon acquired the distribution rights for a reported $12 million, allegedly one of the biggest deals in Sundance history.\nNanjiani, who plays a tweaked version of himself, stars opposite Zoe Kazan as Emily, and Ray Romano and Holly Hunter as her parents.\nThe son of strict Muslim parents from Pakistan's teeming business capital on the Arabian Sea, Nanjiani moved to the United States to study at Grinnell, a liberal arts college in Iowa in 1997.\nHe got into comedy at university, and after graduation moved to Chicago, where he worked in computer science by day and performed stand-up gigs at night.\nHe likes to say that he was inspired to get into comedy by British actor Hugh Grant's best-man speech in 1994 film \"Four Weddings and a Funeral.\"\n- 'Great for morale' -\nBut if Grant personifies a certain type of stuttering Englishman, Nanjiani has joined a stable of US comedians treading ground more commonly associated with public intellectuals than gags for laughs.\nAt a stand-up performance in New York to promote the movie, he joked about the difficulty of getting US citizenship, getting racist abuse on Twitter and being able to vote in last year's election -- \"It really made a huge difference!\"\n\"People are like 'go back to India!'. I've never been to India,\" he deadpanned, claiming he fantasized about being able to rescue a racist from danger to \"see the awkward look on their face.\"\nThe venue, just off Times Square, was nearly full. Pre-release publicity has sent Nanjiani's profile soaring from his previously most prominent role as Dinesh, an information technology geek on HBO series Silicon Valley.\nWhen he returned to Grinnell to deliver the commencement address last month, he spoke of being heckled with racist abuse at gigs and rejected at auditions for not being \"American\" or \"good looking\" enough.\n\"Have sex with an immigrant, we're going through a tough time right now and it would just be really great for morale,\" he joked.\nNanjiani takes his politics to Twitter, urging his 1.4 million followers to defend Obamacare, condemning the White House for rolling back federal protections for transgender students and slamming the attempted travel ban.\nNeither is he only US comedian of a Muslim South Asian background with a soaring profile. Hasan Minhaj, a first-generation Indian-American has a stand-up special tackling immigration on Netflix and hosted the 2017 White House Correspondent's Dinner that Trump chose to snub.\nAziz Ansari, the most famous of the three, similarly tackles casual racism, immigration and cross-cultural relationships in his own Netflix project \"Master of None,\" a series about a 30-something actor in New York.\nBut however polarized the United States may feel, America may be the only place where Nanjiani could have achieved such comedic success.\nHusain Haqqani, a former Pakistani ambassador to Washington and now fellow at the Hudson Institute think tank, sees Nanjiani's success as \"proof that individuals of all communities and countries can do well when they have the opportunity.\"\n\"Pakistan spends more on weapons than on education, has one of the highest out of school population of school-going age children in the world and allows jihadis to flourish rather than encouraging talented people like Kumail,\" he told AFP.", "Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon’s film reaffirms that details matter\nAfter years of #OscarsSoWhite and in the throes of the #MeToo movement, it wasn’t surprising when the Academy of Motion Pictures nominated a diverse group of actors, producers and directors in 2017. A persistent and vocal public has begun to shape the course of film, and movies must tell a variety of stories, to which people all over the country can relate. There’s still a lot of progress to be made, but this year’s lineup was far better than those of years past.\nWhile Asian Americans have been nominated for the coveted Oscar trophy, few have won in a major category. Until recently, Asian Americans played mostly technical roles in film. Admittedly, as a South Asian, there’s still a small thrill when movies about other brown people come to the Hollywood big screen — even if they fall flat most of the time. But “The Big Sick” looked different. Produced by Judd Apatow and starring Ray Romano and Holly Hunter, the movie had a strong comedic backbone. If anything, viewers would be guaranteed a laugh.\nThe plotline of the semi-autobiographical movie follows the tropes of most romantic comedies. Kumail Nanjiani (played by Kumail Nanjiani), an aspiring comedian, is heckled by graduate student Emily Gardner (played by Zoe Kazan) at one of his shows. Soon, they fall in love. Behind the scenes, Nanjiani’s parents, Sharmeen and Azbat (played by veteran Bollywood actor Anupam Kher), are trying to arrange his marriage to a Pakistani woman. Nanjiani can’t tell his parents about Emily, and Emily soon finds out about the arranged marriage, causing their acrimonious break-up. Soon thereafter, Emily is hospitalized and put into a medically-induced coma. Kumail comes face-to-face with the Gardners at the hospital, who know all about his evasiveness and lies and aren’t happy. Nanjiani is persistent, wins over the Gardners and finally wins over Emily, too.\nThe plotline isn’t anything revolutionary, save for the aspect of an interracial couple. And “The Big Sick” didn’t make a lot of money for that reason — it could easily be something for Netflix or Amazon Prime. But for those who decided to spend money on a ticket, the contributing factor was the film’s promotional tours. The claim was that the movie was going to show Muslims as “normal people.” It’s important to remember “The Big Sick” was released during the travel ban — and such a message was more than welcome. Cinema can really influence people’s opinions, and in a political environment that is so contentious, it’s wonderful to see actors and producers try to chip away at prejudice. Showing Muslims as “normal people” was a theme present throughout all of Nanjiani’s day-time talk show appearances and various other outlets. If the movie was going to do that, then it was only fair to spend money and support it.\nBut despite the hype, “The Big Sick” failed in several ways. It was more the underlying tone than explicit comedy that diluted its power. The main point of contention with this film is that brown women in cinema are not props at which to be laughed. All the women who came to visit the Nanjiani family were portrayed as weird and awkward and given the personality of a shoe. In contrast to this, every single white female had a character arc, even the minor ones. Not only were they portrayed as cool and funny, but they were also promoted as “desirable” in some way. Was the audience supposed to laugh when brown woman after brown woman was rejected because Kumail couldn’t be honest with his parents? Were they supposed to laugh when those women were so unbearably awkward? You do not need to embarrass brown women to raise a white woman, who is doing just fine in terms of audience likeability.\nEmily held privilege over all the women who visited Kumail — at least she was given a chance. This juxtaposition illustrates why it’s so difficult to make a film that shows color: The audience suddenly becomes innately aware of their race. Kumail had so much disdain for the Pakistani women — one must wonder if it’d make other brown women feel that they need to be white to be desirable. Colorism and shade-ism are trends that need to go, and this film certainly didn’t help their exit.\nThe issue Emily’s film parents had with Kumail had nothing to do with him being a Pakistani Muslim — it was because he wasn’t straightforward. His parents’ expectations, on the other hand, were so racially inclined that it made them look backward; Emily was white, and therefore she was off limits. His mother saying the one thing she wanted was for him “to be a good Muslim and marry a Pakistani girl” could have been something he experienced in real life, but put next to the white family who were “progressive,” it didn’t come off well. It’s upsetting that Nanjiani and Gordon decided to make race a recurring point of conflict, but not from the family the audience expected.\nAs wonderful as it is that stories about interracial marriage and blending families are being produced, these films are only launched if there is a white protagonist involved. Usually the person of color must battle the world to be with them because they are just so worth it. And “The Big Sick” played into that cliché exactly: Emily didn’t even try to understand Kumail’s culture. Mainly, arranged marriages aren’t what they used to be, especially for immigrant families in the United States. In fact, many South Asians would view the Nanjiani family as broad-minded for giving him choices and chances and second chances. Unfortunately, the film used American culture as a benchmark to assess progressiveness, and that’s not fair.\nWhen a film about people of color is released for a primarily white audience, it should portray people of color in the best possible light. As a society, we haven’t reached the point where minorities can discuss their issues — it shades the majority perspective. For many Americans — as crazy as this sounds — “The Big Sick” was the first time they had ever seen a Pakistani family or an interracial couple. South Asians would prefer to see themselves on screen reflective of the way they are in real life. Of course, “The Big Sick” did not use banal stereotyping, but are subtle stereotypes any better?\nMoreover, the movie promised to further political dialogue with Nanjiani’s claim that it showed Muslims as “normal people.” But “The Big Sick” didn’t do that. There was one normal Muslim in the entire film, and that was him. His family surely wasn’t normal. Whatever the audience saw of them was confrontational and difficult. Moreover, viewers were able to see the Gardners accept Kumail, but the same could not be said of his Muslim family (when in real life they were welcoming). We know that many “traditional” American families have large hearts and broad minds — but the same cannot be said of Muslims and South Asians in films. If showing Muslims as “normal people” is as easy as not portraying them as terrorists, that’s an awfully low standard.\nI suspect that part of the hesitancy to point these things out is an emerging fear to criticize people of color. That fear stops dialogue — it screeches it to a halt. No one should feel obligated to like or agree with someone because of their race, gender or sexual orientation. To do so would distill the power of all parties involved. More importantly, when a film is made to provide social commentary, even if it wasn’t the main purpose, the rest of the world can, and must, weigh in. Dialogue and dissent shouldn’t shut down just because the party at the other end is a minority; it’s almost as bad as silencing them for their opinions.\nWriting this, it’s clear that the alternative to movies like “The Big Sick” are those that show South Asians as caricatures. And while there’s a lot of progress to be made with showing minorities on the big screen, what has been achieved through this film is momentum. Now, South Asian actors have bankability, and movies about them aren’t just for South Asian audiences anymore. However, viewers must not settle. Now that the ball is rolling, it is imperative that films about minorities become more nuanced. It’s not just exposure to different cultures that matters — it’s about getting the details right. To get them wrong is arguably as bad as failing to discuss them at all.\nWritten by: Samvardhini Sridharan — smsridharan@ucdavis.edu\nDisclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by individual columnists belong to the columnists alone and do not necessarily indicate the views and opinions held by The California Aggie.", "Chris Evans took to his Twitter account to denounce this weekend's violence. Photo by Getty Images\nChris Evans was one of several critics who bashed President Donald Trump for his response to the deadly attack in Charlottesville over the weekend.\nThe Marvel movie star once again took to his Twitter account to slam the commander-in-chief, this time for saying that there has been violence on \"many sides,\" but failing to condemn white supremacy or Nazism by name. Evans went so far as to say that words aren't strong enough to show just how much he dislikes Trump.\nMANY SIDES?!? Ive typed and deleted at least 8 tweets. Words simply arent strong enough to accurately describe how I feel about Donald Trump — Chris Evans (@ChrisEvans) August 12, 2017\nThe actor, however, did praise Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe for his reaction to Saturday's events and for denouncing all the hate.\nThe 36-year-old Massachusetts native went on a serious tweetstorm over the weekend, retweeting several messages that condemned the hateful gathering as well as the president's response to what happened. Evans seemed to agree with what stars like LeBron James, Patton Oswalt and Kumail Nanjiani had to say about the situation.\nIt's sad what's going on in Charlottesville. Is this the direction our country is heading? Make America Great Again huh?! He said that🤦🏾‍♂️ — LeBron James (@KingJames) August 12, 2017\nSay \"Nazis\" Donny. Say \"white supremacy.\" Say and condemn those things. https://t.co/J6e6mLOY4V — Patton Oswalt (@pattonoswalt) August 12, 2017\n\"We have swastikas.\"\n\"They're not Nazis.\"\n\"Our country should be white.\"\n\"They're not Nazis.\"\n\"We're actual Nazis.\"\n\"They're not Nazis.\" — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) August 12, 2017\nEvans also retweeted his \"Avengers\" co-star Mark Ruffalo, who wasn't happy about the Republicans' lack of action.\nRepublicans privately wincing but not coming out publicly against these Nazi Thugs are moral cowards. https://t.co/MdWuLDIAtC — Mark Ruffalo (@MarkRuffalo) August 12, 2017\nLeave it to Captain America and his pals to continue the fight against Nazis.", "So a famous director is doubling down on the veracity of Kumail Nanjiani’s instant-classic Golden Globes snub reaction tweet. Deadline is convinced the tweets do indeed come from a famous director.\nThe to-and-fro began earlier today with the Golden Globes’ snubbing of Nanjiani’s terrific The Big Sick, prompting this tweet from Nanjiani’s page: “Hey gang. This is Steven Spielberg tweeting from Kumail’s phone. My fave movie this yr was The Big Sick. It’s avail on Amazon Prime & iTunes & all that. Great movie to watch w the fam. I watched it w my family (the Spielbergs) & we all loved it. Handing phone back to Kumail now.”\nWhen Deadline wrote about the tweet from (ahem) Spielberg under the headline, Kumail Nanjiani Tells Tall Tale After ‘The Big Sick’ Snub, Nanjiani’s page tweeted, “Hey @DEADLINE, Steven Spielberg tweeted that! I’ll give the phone back to him. This is Steven (Spielberg.) I tweeted that. I directed Jaws, ET, BFG. See? I can name 3 of my films. It has to be me. Lincoln. That’s 4. That’s enough proof for you to retract.”\nComedian Mike Birbiglia wasn’t convinced either. “This tweet feels fishy,” he tweeted, drawing a response challenging him to a “Duel,” which certainly sounds like someone who knows Spielberg’s early work.\nSo it must be him. Or him.\nCheck out the tweets here in what’s shaping up to be the biggest Fake News story since Raftergate:\nHey gang. This is Steven Spielberg tweeting from Kumail’s phone. My fave movie this yr was The Big Sick. It’s avail on Amazon Prime & iTunes & all that. Great movie to watch w the fam. I watched it w my family (the Spielbergs) & we all loved it. Handing phone back to Kumail now. — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) December 11, 2017\nHey @DEADLINE, Steven Spielberg tweeted that! I’ll give the phone back to him.\nThis is Steven (Spielberg.) I tweeted that. I directed Jaws, ET, BFG. See? I can name 3 of my films. It has to be me. Lincoln. That’s 4. That’s enough proof for you to retract.https://t.co/Ck2BQMgu9j — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) December 11, 2017\nThis tweet feels fishy. https://t.co/W09DdO82yE — Mike Birbiglia (@birbigs) December 11, 2017", "Film-wise, this was the best summer in recent memory (no thanks to “The Emoji Movie”). Here are the top five films worth watching if you didn’t manage to catch them in the last few months, plus the ones you should steer clear of.\nThe Best:\n“The Big Sick”: On a surface level, “The Big Sick” seems to contend with too many rom-com cliches (debilitating illness, cultural crosshairs and disapproving parents, to name a few). But the film, which tells the real-life love story of writer/star Kumail Nanjiani and his now-wife, Emily Gordon, never lags or feels derivative. Everything topical, from Uber to 9/11-generated stereotypes, is handled with the right dose of dark humor and heart from Nanjiani (and co-writer Gordon).\n“Dunkirk”: Telling the story of the 1940 military disaster through the eyes of British soldiers and the passengers of a heroic civilian boat, “Dunkirk” is a wholly immersive experience. It’s a sleek, high-pressure and fairly accurate account of what transpired at the titular beaches during World War II, and the cast provides a formidable foundation for Christopher Nolan’s awards season bait. Even Harry Styles delivers a convincing performance as a young, conflicted British soldier (but don’t see “Dunkirk” for him — the star is newcomer Fionn Whitehead).\n“Baby Driver”: Colorful, fun, narrated by killer music and still maintaining a tearjerker backstory, “Baby Driver” is the epitome of what a summer movie should be. Written and directed by Edgar Wright, this punchy crimefest is a high-speed, nonstop delight. I haven’t downloaded a movie soundtrack so quickly post-screening since “La La Land.”\n“Wonder Woman”: “Wonder Woman” is, admittedly, impaired by a cheesy screenplay and questionable special effects (at least, in comparison to other superhero films of its caliber). But whatever it’s lacking, the film compensates for with sheer, unadulterated feminine power. The film sets a high standard not just for future comic-book-inspired features but for all films in general; there should no longer be any doubt that females can kick ass at the box office, whether they’re on screen (Gal Gadot) or behind it (Patty Jenkins).", "Kumail Nanjiani has a lot of love (actually) for director Richard Curtis. And it’s not because of that movie.\nThe Silicon Valley actor revealed Wednesday on Twitter that the Four Weddings and a Funeral filmmaker gifted him with four frames from his personal reel of the 1994 rom-com after Nanjiani gushed to Curtis recently about his deep affection for the movie.\nIn a series of posts, Nanjiani admitted he’s been a big fan of the Hugh Grant film since high school, elaborating on his connection to the story and the opportunity he got at February’s Writers’ Guild of America Awards to tell Curtis how much it means to him. Fearing he had “utterly & completely” embarrassed himself, he was pleased to later hear from Curtis’ partner Emma Freud how much the kind words meant to the director. But Nanjiani didn’t believe her … until Monday, the same day Nanjiani premiered his new movie The Big Sick, a film he co-wrote and stars in based on his own relationship and his wife’s illness, when he received the gift from Curtis.\nNanjiani recounted the entire story — itself worthy of a rom-com — on social media. “Thread. (WARNING: Sappy content.) [Anyone] who knows me knows how much I adore Four Weddings & a Funeral. I saw it first in high school,” he wrote. “Had a crush on a girl who wanted nothing to do with me & in my head I was Hugh Grant & she was off with another guy but she’d come around.”\nThread. (WARNING: Sappy content.) Anuone who knows me knows how much I adore Four Weddings & a Funeral. I saw it first in high school. — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) June 14, 2017\nHe revealed that the film inspired him to go into stand-up comedy and that it had a major impact on The Big Sick and his own relationship with his wife and co-writer Emily V. Gordon. “I’ve seen it probably about 50 times since. It makes me laugh every time. It makes me cry every time,” he wrote. “I started stand-up cuz of Hugh Grant’s best man speech in the beginning. My first few comedy years is me doing my best Hugh Grant. The day that @emilyvgordon & I walked into City Hall to get married, we watched Four Weddings & a Funeral. I laughed & cried. When we got the chance to make our movie, The Big Sick, Four Weddings was a constant reference point. ‘Is she a Duckface?’ We also explicitly reference Four Weddings in the movie when I show Emily my high school Hugh Grant inspired hair. My constant thought was “If 1 person loves our movie as much as I love Four Weddings, this will be a raging success.’ It’s unlikely.”\nRecounting his first encounter with Curtis at the WGA Awards, Nanjiani explained, “2 months ago, I’m presenting at the WGA Awards. Richard Curtis is there. I blab for too long, unscripted, about how much his work means. I utterly & completely embarrass myself. After, his partner @emmafreud, reaches out to me & says it meant a lot to him. I don’t believe her.”\nThe chance meeting led to a partnership on Red Nose Day, a charity Curtis and Freud help run and for which they produced and directed a Love Actually sequel. “They run a charity, Red Nose Day, & ask me to do a live video. I eat a spoonful of insane hot sauce & read my favorite Four [Weddings] quotes,” Nanjiani continued. “I end up jumping in a pool with my clothes on to cool off. I’m just trying to impress Richard Curtis. A week later, I see him at a concert. I just run up to him. He is incredibly kind & hilarious in person. He tells me a Hugh Grant story that just makes me love him even more.”\nAnd apparently the feelings are mutual, evident by the writer-director’s gift. “The premiere for our movie, The Big Sick, was 2 days ago. Just as we’re about to leave, I get a package. It’s from Richard Curtis,” he wrote, sharing an image of the gift. “This is what he sent me. He cut it 4 frames from his personal reel of Four Weddings. Of course I recognize the scene instantly. It’s Hugh Grant having 2nd thoughts before the final wedding. I get to hold it in my hands. I have no words.”\nThis is what he sent me. He cut it 4 frames from his personal reel of Four Weddings. Of course I recognize the scene instantly. pic.twitter.com/yyBjGCkkFq — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) June 14, 2017\nNanjiani ended with a heartfelt message about passing along the love and kindness he received from Curtis, writing, “So I guess I’m saying: be nice to someone who loves what you do. It’ll mean more to them than you can ever understand. Anyway, I’m gonna go watch Four Weddings & a Funeral now. I’m sure I’ll laugh, but I bet I’ll cry more this time. /END”", "What’s an awards nominations morning without snubs? Here are the top five from the 2018 Golden Globes announcement.\n- “The Big Sick,” the comedy co-written by real-life couple Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon, was entirely ignored by the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn. on Monday. Award season pundits had predicted that the film, based on the pair’s actual experience overcoming a medical emergency, would at least score a Golden Globe nomination for best comedy. It didn’t, and its cast — including lead Nanjiani and supporting actress Holly Hunter — also received no nominations.\n- Meanwhile, “Get Out’s” Jordan Peele was snubbed too. The filmmaker did not earn recognition for directing or writing the horror satire, though the film wasn’t completely overlooked — its star, Daniel Kaluuya, was nominated for best actor, and the film got a nom for best comedy.\n- Also blanked in the directing category? Greta Gerwig, for her movie “Lady Bird.” Gerwig was widely expected to earn a nomination, but in fact no women were recognized as among the best director nominees. “Lady Bird” got a lot of love, otherwise: The movie was nominated for best comedy and screenplay, and its mother/daughter duo — Saoirse Ronan and Laurie Metcalf — received nods.\n- Jake Gyllenhaal, who has earned high praise for his turn as Boston marathon bombing survivor Jeff Bauman in the drama “Stronger,” was also snubbed by the HFPA.\n- And it wasn’t a wonderful morning for “Wonder Woman,” which soared at the box office this summer but wasn’t a Globes favorite: Neither director Patty Jenkins nor star Gal Gadot received nominations.", "The 2017 Sundance Film Festival came and went last month, and some of the /Film crew was up in the mountains to see the latest offerings in independent cinema. Our favorite movie from the festival ended up being The Big Sick, the remarkably true and touching story of how comedian Kumail Nanjiani and producer Emily V. Gordon met and fell in love. The film was picked up by Amazon for distribution in a major $12 million deal, and now The Big Sick release date has finally been set for this summer.\nThe Hollywood Reporter reveals that Amazon will be teaming with Lionsgate for the distribution of The Big Sick, and they’ll start by giving it a limited release on June 23, opening the same weekend as Transformers: The Last Knight and Sofia Coppola’s The Beguiled. After that the film will expand into a wide release on July 14, the same weekend that War for the Planet of the Apes and the Bad Moms spin-off Bad Dads will hit theaters.\nSummer can be a difficult time for indies to get attention, but since this has the charm and comedic style of a Judd Apatow-directed comedy (he actually produced this one), it shouldn’t have a hard time finding a decent audience, especially with all the buzz from Sundance helping it along the way.\nIn my review from Sundance, I called The Big Sick one of the “most unique and authentic romantic comedies I’ve seen in years.” In addition, I remarked that “I don’t remember the last time a movie was able to have this much hilarity one moment and pure emotion from me, back and forth throughout the entire film.” You can find much more praise in my full write-up over here.\nKumail Nanjiani plays himself in The Big Sick, proving that he’s got potential as a funny and affable leading man, while Zoe Kazan charmingly and affectively plays Emily, sparking some great chemistry with her co-star. The rest of the cast includes Holly Hunter and Ray Romano as Emily’s parents, not to mention comedians Kurt Braunohler, Bo Burnham and Aidy Bryant as Kumail’s fellow stand-up acts.\nMichael Showalter adds another fantastic film to his growing directorial resumé, following his work behind the camera for The Baxter and Hello, My Name Is Doris, as well as his writing credits on Wet Hot American Summer and They Came Together. In The Big Sick, he’s crafted a wonderful romantic comedy that will please crowds across the board as long as they give it a chance.", "Tech journalist Dan Lyons, who also wrote for the HBO comedy in 2015 and 2016, claimed to have apologized to women he insulted, though at least one hasn't received his message.\nAs Hollywood got caught up in the maelstrom surrounding Harvey Weinstein on Thursday, another major media story also broke courtesy of Buzzfeed, revealing how Breitbart News and Milo Yiannopoulos influenced the mainstream media with Nazi and white nationalist ideas over the past few years.\nThe detailed story was partly based on a number of emails sent and received by Yiannopoulos. Those exchanges included a number of reporters, who would email Yiannopoulos encouraging him to attack certain women, offer up tips, or simply ask crude questions. Among those emailing Yiannopoulos was journalist Dan Lyons, who in 2015 seemed awfully interested in the gender of various GamerGate targets who were in Yiannopoulos’s bullseye.\nThese emails, per Buzzfeed’s quotes and screenshots, include Lyons asking Yiannopoulos if game designer Zoë Quinn is “a biological female or trans?”, to which Yiannopoulos replied “She is a girl… A hideous girl but a girl.”\nLyons has been a well-established voice in tech journalism for decades at publications like Forbes and Newsweek; he also created the satirical blog Fake Steve Jobs, which began skewering the Apple CEO in 2006. He wrote for the Emmy-nominated “Silicon Valley” in 2015 and 2016, although the only episode for which he is the sole credited writer is Season 2’s “White Hat/Black Hat.” Lyons did not write for “Silicon Valley” Season 4, and is now back working as a journalist.\nFollowing the publication of Buzzfeed’s story on Thursday, Lyons responded on Twitter, first to a tweet from “Silicon Valley” star Kumail Nanjiani about the story (Nanjiani has since deleted his original tweet, but did later tweet a link to the Buzzfeed story in full). Lyons’ responses:\nKumail I feel sick too. I am to the left of Bernie Sanders. Ppl who know me know this. But I am getting smeared as alt-right. — Dan Lyons (@realdanlyons) October 6, 2017\nNothing could be further from truth. — Dan Lyons (@realdanlyons) October 6, 2017\nIn additional tweets replying to Nanjiani, Lyons defended himself and his record as an “outspoken critic of bro culture, SV culture, diversity problems,” who has “never met Milo. Don’t like his politics or antics. Traded a few emails with him in 2015, for this BFeed says I’m part of some cabal feeding Nazi ideology into mainstream via Milo & Breitbart. It’s ridiculous.”\nFollowing his Tweets to Nanjiani, Lyons then made some statements regarding the women he emailed Yiannopoulos about.\nI apologized earlier today directly to Amber Discko and Zoe Quinn, for those emails. I feel awful about them. I wish I could take them back. — Dan Lyons (@realdanlyons) October 6, 2017\nI apologized to Amber and Zoe, at length, before the Buzzfeed story came out. I didn't remember those emails. I felt sick when I saw them. — Dan Lyons (@realdanlyons) October 6, 2017\nThe emails were each one line long. I feel awful. I made a mistake. That's what I told Amber and Zoe when I apologized to them. — Dan Lyons (@realdanlyons) October 6, 2017\nI don't know Amber or Zoe. I didn't remember those emails until BFeed contacted me. When they did, I reached out to & apologized. — Dan Lyons (@realdanlyons) October 6, 2017\nUnfortunately, those apologies seemed not to have gone through initially — at least according to Quinn, whose Tweets from Thursday evening reveal that she hadn’t gotten the message.\nYeah imagine how I felt. And then imagine how I feel being used for your sadboy redemption arc before ever hearing from you. https://t.co/DB7w2oIvAu — 💀zombië queen💀 (@UnburntWitch) October 6, 2017\nYou're not sorry you said it. You're sorry you got caught. https://t.co/poCyRaHBO9 — 💀zombië queen💀 (@UnburntWitch) October 6, 2017\nLyons, per a screenshot from Quinn, then blocked her on Twitter.\nI guess he didn't like the fact that I called him out on lying about apologizing to me. pic.twitter.com/6rRH19JYO1 — 💀zombië queen💀 (@UnburntWitch) October 6, 2017\nBut then, approximately 12 hours later, he chose to reach out to Quinn again on Twitter with a potential explanation for why she might not have received his apology:\nHey: I used the contact form on your book website and wrote a long letter to you. Did you really not get it? I'm sorry about this. Truly. — Dan Lyons (@realdanlyons) October 6, 2017\nFollowed by another attempt at making contact.\nFor what it's worth I just tried writing to you again via the contact form. I hope you get this one. — Dan Lyons (@realdanlyons) October 6, 2017\nWhether or not Quinn chooses to respond and/or accept Lyons’ apology is pending. Here is what matters: based on how this played out on Twitter, it definitely seems that this situation could have been handled better.\nOf course, the best possible scenario would have been this: For Lyons to have never felt like it was a good idea to send Yiannopoulos those emails in the first place.", "The Big Sick: Despite becoming one of the highest grossing indie films of the year, Kumail Nanjiani's romantic comedy didn't get any love from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.\nJake Gyllenhaal: The actor's portrayal of a Boston Marathon bombing victim who lost his legs in Stronger stood out to critics, but failed to garner him—or the film—any nods.\nTiffany Haddish: The comedian has been hailed ever since her breakout performance in Girls Trip, but the actress did not make the cut for a nomination.\nThe Florida Project: Despite its high acclaim, Sean Baker's comedy-drama was honored solely with a Best Supporting Actor nod for Willem Dafoe.\nBeauty And The Beast: Despite it being the highest-grossing film of the year, Disney's live-action rendition of the animated classic was not recognized in any categories, including the musical ones.", "“Silicon Valley’s” season five won’t only be the “most different season we’ve had so far,” teased star Kumail Nanjiani, but will also address one of Hollywood’s biggest headlines — gender equality and the treatment of women.\nWhile Nanjiani said the show wouldn’t directly address the #MeToo movement, he told Variety at the Paley Center for Media’s PaleyFest panel in Los Angeles, Calif. on Sunday, “there is a plot that goes over a couple of episodes later in the season that does talk about that movement, not directly, but what that movement is about is definitely tackled.”\nCo-star Zach Woods added, “It’s hopefully not too on the nose, but that informs some of the plots in the middle of the season.”\nThe show, which centers around four guys creating a startup in the tech industry, has long been criticized for it’s lack of female characters and roles for women, which star Thomas Middleditch said was intended to mirror the gender breakdown of the real Silicon Valley. “The creators, their response has always been that their objective is to accurately portray it and that’s kind of what it is,” he said. “Hopefully that’s something that will change, but not something for the show to do.”\nDuring the panel, the cast of the show, along with executive producers Mike Judge and Alec Berg, also discussed what may be season five’s biggest change, the absence of T.J. Miller’s Erlich Bachman, who was written off the show at the end of season four. Berg compared it to the difficulty of redirecting the show when Christopher Evan Welch, who played Peter Gregory, died following season one of the show.\n“We had this central character that we were not going to have on the show anymore, so we had kind of been through it before, so we knew going in ‘Okay, this is a surmountable challenge. It’s not going to be fun and it’s going to be difficult,'” Berg said during the panel. “Also, the Erlich character was getting harder and harder to write him into the show because he wasn’t someone who worked at the company, he was their past investor and their landlord and we started doing stories about how he was feeling marginalized and he wasn’t really one of the gang and what he was doing about that.”\nThe producer added that this issue was becoming even more pressing in season five, when the startup was moving out of Erlich’s house and into an office space. “It was at a point where it was going to be really hard to find an organic way to get the Erlich character into the show anyway, so from that standpoint it was kind of time. And then T.J., for a number of reasons, just decided that his time had come and gone and he wanted to move on, so we had the narrative challenge to keep him in the show and then it became ‘OK well, maybe it’s just time to not have him on the show,'” Berg said.\nDuring the panel for the new season, which will follow the Pied Piper gang as they get their first taste of tech success, the cast also discussed Amanda Crew‘s role as one of the only women on the show, yet the decision for her not to have a romantic relationship with any of the male leads. Crew joked that before looking at new scripts she thinks ,”If there is a f—ing love scene I’m out.”\nWhile there have been rumors that season five will be “Silicon Valley’s” last, Judge hinted there could be more. “Looking at these episodes, it kind of takes on a new life, kind of a second wind,” he stated. “I think it could go on for a while, you never know.”\n“Silicon Valley” season 5 premieres March 25 on HBO.", "Nominees for the 2018 Golden Globe Awards were revealed this morning. The shortlist includes many deserving names, but we’d be remiss not to mention the biggest snubs.\nMovies:\nBlade Runner 2049\nThe Florida Project\nThe Big Sick\nMudbound\nGood Time\nTV Shows:\nTwin Peaks\nVeep\nThe Deuce\nThe Leftovers\nHalt and Catch Fire\nTransparent\nDirectors:\nJordan Peele (Get Out)\nGreta Gerwig (Lady Bird)\nLucas Guadagnino and James Ivory (Call Me By Your Name)\nPatty Jenkins (Wonder Woman)\nDee Rees (Mudbound)\nActors (Film):\nDoug Jones (The Shape of Water)\nTiffany Haddish (Girls Trip)\nJennifer Lawrence (mother!)\nVicky Krieps (Phantom Thread)\nKumail Nanjiani (The Big Sick)\nActors (Television):\nAubrey Plaza (Legion)\nRobin Wright (House of Cards)\nJulia Louis-Dreyfus (Veep)\nRachel Bloom (Crazy Ex-Girlfriend)\nMillie Bobby Brown (Stranger Things)\nNoah Schnapp (Stranger Things)\nJoe Keery (Stranger Things)\nTracee Ellis Ross (for Best Actress, Black-ish)\nMusic:\nSufjan Stevens (Call Me By Your Name)\nOneohtrix Point Never (Good Time)\nHans Zimmer (Blade Runner 2049)\nKyle Dixon and Michael Stein (Stranger Things 2)\nJohnny Jewel (Twin Peaks)", "I felt super old when Clueless celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2015, and now I feel even older because that was already three years ago. But the fact that the movie was released when I was five years old means it will always bring back those feelings of nostalgia. Because of that, I always take every opportunity to quote the movie in casual conversation, watch it on girls nights, and recreate Cher Horowitz's outfits at Halloween parties. Now there's a product that can bring her style beyond your costume-party wardrobe. So, listen up my Bettys, here's where to buy Peachy Queen's Clueless palette.\nThe brand Peachy Queen posted a sneak peek at the palette on their Instagram. \"Get the look of Cher & Dionne with this Clueless inspired palette. 💅🏻 Whether you are doing a makeover, going shopping at the mall or rollin’ with the homies 🍃💨 this palette is totally versatile & you’ll look like a full-on Monet 👩🏼‍🎤.\" They also add that the shadow colors will \"make you feel like a spoiled 90’s Beverly Hills teen. 🧖‍♀️ The palette comes with a large mirror to make sure you look like a total Betty. The perfect palette to go with your Calvin Klein dress, platforms & faux fur.\"\npeachyqueenblog on Instagram\nIf you haven't seen the throwback-inspired eye shadow palette by Peachy Queen yet, prepare to meet the messiah of Clueless merch. It's a 30-shade eye-shadow collection that comes packaged in a hot pink palette with the Clueless movie logo printed on the top. The inside of the palette is a yellow plaid print that matches Cher's signature outfit (you know, the one she picks out on her computer).\npeachyqueenblog on Instagram\nBut perhaps the best part of the entire palette is the theme shade names. Here are some of my personal faves:\n\"As If\" — matte bright yellow hue\n\"Whatever\" — shimmery frosty lavender\n\"Rollin' With The Homies\" — matte deep purple\n\"Oops, My Bad\" — blue and purple glitter\nOther shade names include \"Existential,\" \"Makeover,\" \"Way Harsh, \"Full On Monet,\" and \"Total Betty.\" Is it just me, or are those names enough of a reason to get your hands on the palette?\nPeachy Queen's other makeup offerings on their site include trendy eye shadows, like a mermaid-inspired palette that houses shadows in shapes of scales that looks similar to the Tarte Be A Mermaid & Make Waves Eyeshadow Palette ($42; sephora.com) and novelty makeup brushes, including a set that resembles the Storybook Cosmetics What's in a Name Rose Brushes ($48; storybookcosmetics.com) that Beauty and The Beast fans were going gaga over.\nHowever, it's currently unclear whether Peachy Queen actually got permission from Paramount to make and sell Clueless-branded merchandise, but I'm thinking probably not. I would just guess that if Paramount was going to collab with a brand, it would be a more established name that is carried in multiple retailers. If Peachy Queen didn't take the proper steps to market a Clueless-themed makeup palette, the production company could probably put a stop to the manufacturing and sale of it ASAP, but what do I know? I'm not a litigator — I don't get paid $500 per hour to fight with people.\nThe indie makeup brand has just made the colorful Clueless-inspired collection available for pre-order for $40 on their website, but as someone older, can I please give you some advice? Sign up right away because I can just imagine how many Cher Horowitz fans are already jumping at the chance to get their hands on this palette. Besides, if Peachy Queen in fact doesn't have rights to the Clueless name, you might need to be among the first to get it before purchases get cancelled. All I'm saying is get it now, while it's still way existential.", "Appearing alongside President and Madame Macron at the White House, Melania Trump gifted us with another installment of her docu-series, \"The First Lady Refuses to Hold Her Husband's Tiny Hand.\"\nTrump trying to hold Melania’s hand reminds me of Pepé le Pew chasing a bewildered Le Cat. pic.twitter.com/ZlhbtAJDuH — laney (@misslaneym) April 24, 2018\nWatch. Standing side by side, Trump leads with his pinky trying to sneak his way into interlocking fingers, and it takes a whopping thirteen seconds before Melania indulges him with the basic skin-to-skin contact.\nBEST. VIDEO. YOU'LL. SEE TODAY. 😂😂\nMelania did NOT want to Trump's hand.pic.twitter.com/epJ6EFOMgD — The Hummingbird 🐦 (@SaysHummingbird) April 24, 2018\nIt's even more excruciating as a close up.\nTrump's attempt to hold Melania's hand at President Emmanuel Macron's State arrival at the White House: pic.twitter.com/99buAwsGHU — Braxton (@braxtonryn) April 24, 2018\nThe internet is just captivated by Melania's public display of disaffection.\nWatch this twice. Once just her hands. Once just her face. You don’t have to look at his face. https://t.co/7h9AumXMYv — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) April 24, 2018", "In a mere 24 hours, Roseanne Barr lost her ABC television show, had her reruns pulled from cable and has felt the wrath of a judgement from the public and celebrities alike due to one racist tweet. Here are some of the most viewed responses to Roseanne's social media meltdown.\nABC\nStatement by Channing Dungey, president, ABC Entertainment:\n[Issued on May 29, 2018>\nRoseanne's Twitter statement is abhorrent, repugnant and inconsistent with our values, and we have decided to cancel her show. — ABC Publicity (@ABC_Publicity) May 29, 2018\nRoseanne\nI apologize to Valerie Jarrett and to all Americans. I am truly sorry for making a bad joke about her politics and her looks. I should have known better. Forgive me-my joke was in bad taste. — Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) May 29, 2018\nCharlie Sheen\nadios\nRoseanne!\ngood\nriddance.\nhashtag\nNOT Winning.\nthe\nrunway is\nnow clear\nfor\nOUR reboot.\n©#CharlieHarperReturns pic.twitter.com/HcqMvIoxCM — Charlie Sheen (@charliesheen) May 29, 2018\nSara Gilbert (\"Darlene\" on \"Roseanne\")\nRoseanne’s recent comments about Valerie Jarrett, and so much more, are abhorrent and do not reflect the beliefs of our cast and crew or anyone associated with our show. I am disappointed in her actions to say the least. — sara gilbert (@THEsaragilbert) May 29, 2018\nRob Reiner\nABC has done the right thing. They’ve stood up against racism. It is our country’s original sin. But this is 2018 and it has no place in the hearts of decent people. Unfortunately our president has stoked these evil fires. If he doesn’t applaud ABC, he will continue to stoke evil — Rob Reiner (@robreiner) May 29, 2018\nDon Cheadle\nyou can take @RoseanneOnABC out of racism but you can’t take the racism out of @therealroseanne ... https://t.co/sJs7Hn5zrn — Don Cheadle (@DonCheadle) May 29, 2018\nKumail Nanjiani\nI'm glad Roseanne is canceled.\nThe backlash to its cancellation is going to be a deafening nightmare.\nNothing good has come of this entire thing. — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) May 29, 2018\nBill O'Reilly\nRoseanne Barr’s vicious personal attack on former Obama senior adviser Valerie Jarrett came out of nowhere and cost Ms. Barr and the entire staff of her program their jobs. @ABC/@Disney could not continue with the show without insulting millions of Americans. — Bill O'Reilly (@BillOReilly) May 29, 2018\nMark Hamill\nI bet FOX will pick it up & pair it with Tim Allen's show. https://t.co/5MyZf9UT3X via @thr — Mark Hamill (@HamillHimself) May 29, 2018\nRicky Gervais\nThis wasn't censorship. This was business. She hasn't been prosecuted. She hasn't been silenced. She can carry on saying what she wants. It's just that her employers have decided they don't want to employ her any more. This is freedom. https://t.co/O1VIz6bzSp — Ricky Gervais (@rickygervais) May 29, 2018\nJosh Gad\nI truly hope that one day, the values that we hold our actors, producers, news casters, CEO’s, religious leaders, athletes, law enforcement, Military personnel, every day working class people, and sitcom stars to will be the same standard we hold our President to. — Josh Gad (@joshgad) May 29, 2018\nPresident Donald J. Trump\nBob Iger of ABC called Valerie Jarrett to let her know that “ABC does not tolerate comments like those” made by Roseanne Barr. Gee, he never called President Donald J. Trump to apologize for the HORRIBLE statements made and said about me on ABC. Maybe I just didn’t get the call? — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 30, 2018\n...and from the makers of Ambien", "With nominations in both Best TV Drama (two of ’em) and Best TV Comedy, Netflix enjoyed their best Golden Globe nominations morning in their brief existence. With nine TV nominations in total, Netflix once again leads all streaming platforms, though for the second year in a row, HBO leads all networks, this time with 12 nominations in total.\nBut Netflix rebounded after a somewhat quiet haul in 2016. Their nine nominations were spread out across six series: The Crown and Stranger Things (which got two nominations apiece, both showing up in Best TV Drama), Master of None (also nominated twice, including Best TV Comedy), GLOW (Best Comedy Actress nominee Alison Brie), Ozark (Best Drama Actor Jason Bateman), and 13 Reasons Why (Best Drama Actress nominee Katherine Langford).\nNetflix also got three nominations in the film categories, including two for Mudbound — Best Supporting Actress for Mary J. Blige and Best Original Song for Blige’s “Mighty River” — and a Best Foreign Language Film for Angelina Jolie’s First They Killed My Father.\nMeanwhile, Netflix’s streaming competitors may not have had the nomination haul that Netflix did, but both Hulu and Amazon are primed to win the big TV awards of the night come January 7th. Hulu’s three nominations were all for The Handmaid’s Tale: Best TV Drama, plus acting nods for Elisabeth Moss and Ann Dowd. All three proved to be big winners at the Emmys back in September, and while the Globes tend to jump at anything that’s new rather than photocopy the Emmys, both Moss and the show itself have to be considered frontrunners to win again.\nAmazon, meanwhile, is riding their shiny new success story, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, which was recognized in Best TV Comedy and for star Rachel Brosnahan’s lead performance. Both the show and Brosnahan have to be considered the odds-on favorites to win in their categories. Should both Mrs. Maisel and either The Handmaid’s Tale, The Crown, or Stranger Things win their respective Best TV Series categories, it would be the first time that streaming swept both top TV Awards at the Globes.\nIn slightly more surprising news for Amazon, Kevin Bacon nabbed a nomination for his lead performance in I Love Dick (though the fact that co-star Kathryn Hahn couldn’t also get a nomination speaks to how much more competitive the TV actress categories are).\nAmazon didn’t have as good of a morning on the movie side of things, coming up empty across all categories. None of their major award contenders — Todd Haynes’s Wonderstruck, Richard Linklater’s Last Flag Flying, and Woody Allen’s Wonder Wheel — have seemed to strike a chord with awards voters as of yet. Some figured the Globes would toss a nod to Kate Winslet’s performance in Wonder Wheel (they did nominate her for Labor Day a few years ago, after all) or Carter Burwell’s gorgeous Wonderstruck original score, but no dice.\nThe most shocking and disappointing of the Amazon movie snubs was the fact that The Big Sick came up completely empty-handed. The Globes divide their categories between Drama and Comedy, which had many figuring that the indie success story from married writers Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon could pick up Best Picture and Best Actor (Nanjiani) nominations, with perhaps even an outside shot at a screenplay nod. In the end, even the highly acclaimed supporting performance by seven-time Globe nominee (and former winner) Holly Hunter was given the cold shoulder.", "Depending on their choices, Globe voters could clarify standings in the Oscar race. That contest — the first in nearly 30 years without Harvey Weinstein pulling strings — has so far been a free-for-all, with the World War II epic “Dunkirk,” the gay romance “Call Me By Your Name,” the satirical horror film “Get Out,” the coming-of-age movie “Lady Bird” and others jockeying for position.\nBelow are five things to consider before the Globes nominations are unveiled starting at 8:15 a.m. Eastern.\nWill ‘The Post’ Make Headlines?\nPhoto\nThis Watergate-era drama about the famed publisher of The Washington Post, Katharine Graham, has been trying to hang back: It won’t arrive in wide release until Jan. 12. But early buzz has been strong — the National Board of Review named it the best film of the year — and Globe voters could turn “The Post” white hot. Nominations are expected in the big four categories: best drama, director (Steven Spielberg), actress (Meryl Streep) and actor (Tom Hanks). No other movie is expected to pull that off.\nPlenty of Contenders for Best Director\nPhoto\nBecause the press association gives a prize for best drama and best comedy, Hollywood often looks to directing nominees for clues about what film truly rose to the top at the Globes. Joining Mr. Spielberg will likely be Christopher Nolan, the force behind “Dunkirk.” Two other safe bets include Luca Guadagnino (“Call Me by Your Name”) and Guillermo Del Toro, who directed “The Shape of Water,” a fantasy focused on a mute janitor and her romance with a mysterious merman.\nThat leaves one slot. The strongest contenders for it are thought to be Jordan Peele (“Get Out”), Greta Gerwig (“Lady Bird”) and Joe Wright, whose “Darkest Hour” examines Winston Churchill’s early days in World War II.\nWho will be left out?\nDiversity Remains an Issue\nPhoto\nIf you trust the handicappers at Gold Derby, an entertainment honors site, this year’s Academy Award nominations could be #OscarsSoWhite all over again. Currently, the prognosticators indicate there’s a the possibility that only the supporting actress category would feature an actor of color: Mary J. Blige, for her sagacious matriarch in “Mudbound,” a Netflix drama about racial tension in rural Mississippi in the 1940s.\nThe Globes could prod other worthy candidates forward, including Tiffany Haddish, the breakout star of “Girls Trip”; “The Big Sick” lead actor Kumail Nanjiani; Daniel Kaluuya, who helped propel “Get Out” to box office heights; and Hong Chau, a scene stealer in “Downsizing.” Octavia Spencer, a former Oscar winner who is featured in “The Shape of Water,” could also be in the mix.\nAdvertisement Continue reading the main story\nA Repeat of the Emmys?\nPhoto\nGlobe voters like to make agenda-setting choices with their television awards. They paid early attention to “Transparent,” “Mr. Robot” and “The Crown,” helping to catapult those series into the cultural firmament. But Emmys voters may have beaten them to the punch this year.\nAt the most recent Emmy Awards, multiple trophies went to rookie shows like “The Handmaid’s Tale” and “Big Little Lies,” both of which are also likely to receive numerous Globe nominations. The newest series that Globe voters could rally behind on Monday are actually reboots of old ones: NBC’s “Will & Grace” or perhaps Showtime’s little-watched “Twin Peaks.”\nThe meandering HBO drama “The Deuce” and Netflix’s period serial killer series “Mindhunter” could also receive nominations.", "Cher Horowitz might have said, \"Anything you can do to draw attention to your mouth is good,\" but I'm pretty sure she'd have no objection to playing up your eyes instead, especially if you're doing it with one of the shades in a new Clueless -inspired eye shadow palette by Peachy Queen. The indie makeup brand has just made the colorful collection available for pre-order , and fans of the iconic 1995 teen movie will be totally butt-crazy in love with it.\nPinterest Peachy Queen\n\"Get the look of Cher and Dionne with this Clueless -inspired palette,\" Peachy Queen writes. \"Whether you are doing a makeover, going shopping at the mall, or rollin’ with the homies, this palette is totally versatile.\" And they're not kidding — underneath the hot-pink lid, you'll find 30 matte, shimmery, and pressed-glitter shades with names that don't disappoint. Some of my personal favorites: a matte pale pink called Total Betty, a shimmering turquoise called Way Harsh, and a multi-tonal glitter called Oops, My Bad! There's an amber shade appropriately named Amber, as well as a yellow shade named As If that's not unlike the color of the outfit Alicia Silverstone wore when she uttered that famous phrase. There's even a dusty mauve called Full On Monet, but I have no doubt it would look just as good close-up as it does from far away.\nPinterest Peachy Queen\nIt's unclear if Peachy Queen has the legal green light from Paramount to make Clueless merch, but for now, you can head over to peachyqueen.com to place your pre-order.\nThink that's the only Clueless content we have? As if!\nCheck out 100 years of movie makeup:\nFollow Marci on Instagram and Twitter , or subscribe to Allure's newsletter for daily beauty stories delivered right to your inbox.", "The Golden Globes just released this year’s nominations, and the list is raising more than a few eyebrows. The award show, which will kick off 2018 and air on Jan. 7, recognizes the best in film and television—and it’s always one of the most entertaining award shows of the season to watch because stars get seriously sloshed.\nWhile it is definitely heartening to see films like I, Tonya, Call Me by Your Name, Lady Bird and Mudbound on the list, we couldn’t help but notice some serious oversights. So, without further ado, here are our nominations for biggest Golden Globe snubs:\nGet Out’s Jordan Peele didn’t get nominated for “Best Director” OR “Best Screenplay”\nWhile we are absolutely stoked to see Get Out getting recognized for Best Picture in the comedy or musical segment (though that category choice gets a big WTF) and lead actor Daniel Kaluuya getting a nod for Best Actor, it is a freaking travesty that the mastermind behind this piece of art got completely shut out. Jordan Peele’s debut as a writer and director had audiences immediately drawn in with its powerful use of subtly and cleverly timed comedy and its constant tension-building that legit had you on the edge of your seat until the credits. “For me, there are only three kinds of films — good, bad and occasionally great,” Oscar-award winning director William Friedkin told Variety, putting Get Out in the same ranks as Rosemary’s Baby and Alien. “Get Out is made with the finely honed precision of a master.” AND YET, not a single nod to that mastery from the Golden Globes? PLEASE.\nGet Out didn’t get a Golden Globe nom for best screenplay pic.twitter.com/hiVtjlLWDF — Ira Madison III (@ira) December 11, 2017\nA big golden goose egg for Wonder Woman\nThe film that smashed box office records (making a casual $821 million USD) and any remaining notion that female superheroes weren’t worth putting on screen received zero Golden Globe nominations. Superhero films like Wonder Woman aren’t exactly award season regulars, but what seems particularly odd is the lack of recognition for the film’s badass director Patty Jenkins. As one Tumblr user put it, “Watching a superhero movie directed by a woman is like putting glasses on for the first time. I didn’t realize how much I had to squint through the ‘male gaze’ ’till suddenly, miraculously, I didn’t have to.” Jenkins received major praise from critics and media, but the fact that she was shut out of the entirely male “Best Director” category makes it clear that while Wonder Woman may have won some battles this year, we still have a ways to go.\nZero nominations for The Big Sick\nSleeper hit of the romcom season The Big Sick, which literally had us both laughing and crying, is now just making us rage due to its complete lack of recognition from the Golden Globes. This movie dealt with love, loss and overcoming cultural differences, bringing to life the incredible true story of comedian Kumail Nanjiani and his wife Emily V. Gordon. The duo teamed up to turn their unconventional meet cute into a must-see film and yet, received no Golden Globe nominations. I’m just going to go ahead and “BOOOOOOOO” to that.\nThe omission of #TheBigSick from the #GoldenGlobes nominations is hard to fathom. The snub of Holly Hunter makes it hard to imagine anyone involved w/the nominations watched the terrific film written by @kumailn and @emilyvgordon. pic.twitter.com/K7Y1dyUmw8 — Todd Harmonson (@tharmonson) December 11, 2017\nHey gang. This is Steven Spielberg tweeting from Kumail’s phone. My fave movie this yr was The Big Sick. It’s avail on Amazon Prime & iTunes & all that. Great movie to watch w the fam. I watched it w my family (the Spielbergs) & we all loved it. Handing phone back to Kumail now. — Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) December 11, 2017\nAlexis Bledel didn’t get a nom for The Handmaid’s Tale\nListen, I was never on the Alexis Bledel fan wagon, but this is an utter travesty. Yes, in the past, Bledel’s acting has been a snoozefest, but this chic seriously cranked it up for the much applauded TV series of The Handmaid’s Tale. In her role as Ofglen, Bledel had the unique challenge of acting many of her scenes with either her mouth covered or as someone who is unable to speak. “It looked like the top half of your face had been waiting your whole life for that,” joked Seth Meyers. It’s true. Bledel acted her dang face off in this series, and in September was recognized for this achievement with the Emmy award for outstanding guest actress in a drama. But looks like there’ll be no Globe for you, Alexis. On the bright side, her brilliant co-star Ann Dowd, who took home the Emmy for best supporting actress in a drama series, did get a Golden Globe nod.\nAbsolute queen Greta Gerwig got nada for directing Lady Bird\nHere we go again with yet another absolute queen getting shut out of the all-male Best Directors category for the Golden Globes. Gerwig is the force behind the beautifully realistic coming-of-age story starring Saoirse Ronan and a whole lot of extremely relatable teen angst. While the film is nominated for best picture in the comedy or musical category and best screenplay—and both Ronan and Laurie Metcalf, who plays her mother, got nods—Gerwig did not. “To watch Greta Gerwig’s brilliant Lady Bird is to feel bathed in the warmth and easy comfort of the coming-of-age movies of the ’80s, the Crowe/Hughes gems that made high school seem a subject worthy of a Hollywood genre,” Tony-award winning director Sam Gold told Variety. “But what Gerwig is doing throughout the film, without announcing herself or forcing the issue, is quietly reinventing the genre—or actually, she’s stealing it for all the young women who, because they didn’t fit neatly into the category of fragile ingénue or quirky rebel, didn’t get to see themselves in those films.” Sooooo, like, maybe the Golden Globes haven’t quite caught up with Gerwig’s genius yet? Cool, let’s go with that.\nNo Greta Gerwig and Jordan Peele for Best Director at the Golden Globes? No thank you, you learned nothing. Goodbye. — Clarisse Loughrey (@clarisselou) December 11, 2017\nRelated:\nWhy Is Get Out Competing as a Comedy at the Golden Globes?\nBattle of the Sexes Review: Clown Gets Served by Competent Woman & It’s Glorious\nWhy Chrissy Metz’s Character on This Is Us Is TV’s Greatest Gift\nWhy Everyone Is Obsessed With The Handmaid’s Tale Right Now\nWhy Saoirse Ronan’s Visible Acne in Lady Bird Is Beautiful & Revolutionary", "Nvidia hosted their fifth version of Gamer Connect 2017 in Hyderabad at Gachibowli Indoor Stadium which witnessed more than 2400 gaming enthusiasts on the first day of the event.\nA platform for the Indian gaming community to bond, interact and explore new avenues in gaming, Gamer Connect also gives audiences an opportunity to experience the latest in PC gaming technology. In 2017, Nvidia conducted 4 events in Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Kochi, and Lucknow. This year's latest event was inaugurated by the honorable Telangana IT minister, K. T. Rama Rao in the presence of senior executives from Nvidia and partners such as Dell, LG, Zotac, and HyperX.\nThe last league of Gamer Connect 2017 saw gaming enthusiasts coming from across Telangana to be a part of the biggest gaming event in the recent time. The event witnessed over 100 demo stations showcasing the latest games including as Call of Duty WW II, Destiny 2, Middle Earth: Shadow of War, NFS Payback, and Assassin's Creed Origins. Also on display was LG's premium range of gaming monitors including the popular 21:9 Curved UltraWide with 4K-UHD Display. Prior to this, Nvidia hosted their event in Lucknow in August, which proved to be another instance substantiating the country's growing excitement for gaming.\nInaugurating the two-day gaming event, honorable IT Minster, K. T. Rama Rao said, \"Government has identified animation, visual effects, and gaming as a key growth engine for tech exports and employment generation. Hyderabad is already employing close to 30,000 people which include 100 animation and gaming companies, 2D and 3D studios. The Telangana government recently laid the foundation for a world-class facility for the gaming sector, known as the IMAGE Tower (Innovation in Multimedia, Animation, Gaming & Entertainment). It is very satisfying to see leaders from the gaming industries like Nvidia, Dell, LG, Zotac and HyperX coming together to give gaming enthusiasts an experience through technologies like 4K, Virtual Reality, and superior hardware. This will only help boost our economy and further develop the gaming industry,\" he added.\n\"Gamer Connect is Nvidia's platform for the Indian gaming community to bond, interact and explore new avenues in gaming and simultaneously experience the latest technologies introduced to PC gaming. Over the past years, we have conducted more than 150 events across 20 cities which have helped us connect with more than 10,000 gamers. There are 15M PC gamers in India out of which 1M are in Telangana and the number has a potential to go up to 2.5M, thanks to the recently launched world-class facility, IMAGE Tower. We hope to have more of such collaboration in future to develop the gaming community in India,\" said Vishal Dhupar, Managing Director, South Asia, Nvidia during the event.\nOut of the 35 million people who are actively talking about PC and console gaming on social media platforms, we have 15 million gamers who are currently playing on it. While Telangana market has a potential of more than 200 gaming cafes, there are only 20-30 decent gaming cafes.\nAt the event, Nvidia showcased GeForce GTX graphic cards featuring the latest Pascal architecture. The participants experienced cutting-edge technologies like Virtual Reality and 4K that are driving increasingly immersive gaming experiences.\nLG showcased its Gaming Monitor line-up including the top of line 21:9 Curved Ultrawide monitors with G-Sync technology and the 2018 line-up in an exclusive preview. Technology showcase included models with G-Sync, 240Hz refresh rate and 4K Displays with HDR 10. Also on exhibition were Dell's latest laptops packed with the GeForce GTX 10-series. Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080, 1070, 1060 and 1050 GPUs have accelerated the growth of PC gaming by delivering the best in both efficiency and performance. The new GTX 10-Series GPUs for notebooks deliver up to 75 percent more performance over previous generation architectures.\nAfter the success of this event, Nvidia is looking to build a series of initiatives focused on fueling the growth of India's gaming community. Gamer Connect is Nvidia's flagship community event in partnership with Dell, LG, Zotac and HyperX that is conducted every year in multiple cities to bring gamers together to experience the latest developments in gaming technologies. Gamer Connect started in 2015 as a small format event has evolved into mega format connecting to tens of thousands of gamers across the country.", "The nominations for the 75th annual Golden Globes were announced on Monday, December 11, and while many talented names were read, many were left out.\nOne of the most discussed categories this year is Best Director, in which all five nominees are men: Guillermo del Toro for The Shape of Water, Martin McDonagh for Three Billboards, Christopher Nolan for Dunkirk, Ridley Scott for All the Money In the World and Steven Spielberg for The Post.\nWonder Woman’s Patty Jenkins, Mudbound‘s Dees Rees and Lady Bird‘s Greta Gerwig were all left out. Additionally, while Get Out did earn two nods for Best Motion Picture and Best Actor, director and writer Jordan Peele was left out.\nHere’s a list of more notable surprises and snubs:\n— Veep: Not only did the series get shut out, star Julia Louis Dreyfus also did not get any recognition. Dreyfus has taken home six consecutive Emmys but still has not won a Golden Globe.\n— Evan Peters: Year after year, Peters wows in American Horror Story, but Cult was an entirely new ball game and it’s shocking to see he’s once again not included after his performance playing multiple roles.\n— The Big Sick: The critically acclaimed, pull-at-your-heart-strings true story was completely shut out. If anything, most were expecting star and writer Kumail Nanjiani to get some recognition.\n— Tracee Ellis Ross: While black-ish and Ross’ costar Anthony Anderson were recognized, she was left off the noms list.\n— Noah Schnapp: Both Stranger Things and supporting star David Harbour earned nominations but Schnapp, who portrayed an eery Will this season, was snubbed.\n— Milo Ventimiglia: The This is Us patriarch was left off the nominations list this year after earning an Emmy nom last year. His costars Sterling K. Brown and Chrissy Metz were both recognized.\n— The Leftovers: Following its Emmys snub, Carrie Coon and Justin Theroux, as well as the show itself, were left out of the Globes.\nThe Golden Globe Awards air on NBC Sunday, January 7, at 8 p.m. ET.\nSign up now for the Us Weekly newsletter to get breaking celebrity news, hot pics and more delivered straight to your inbox!\nWant stories like these delivered straight to your phone? Download the Us Weekly iPhone app now!", "Despite the buzz, the box-office boost, and the glorious press circuit that pushed her toward becoming household name, Tiffany Haddish has not been nominated for a Golden Globe. The nominations for the awards show were announced Monday at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, and though early prognosticators guessed that the rising comedian was a shoo-in, her name was curiously missing from the best-supporting actress category—which, to be fair, encompasses both comedy and drama performances, unlike the awards show’s leading actor categories. The nods instead went to Mary J. Blige (Mudbound), Hong Chau (Downsizing), Allison Janney (I, Tonya), Laurie Metcalf (Lady Bird), and Octavia Spencer (The Shape of Water). In addition, Girls Trip, the comedy that propelled Haddish to mainstream stardom, was not nominated in the best-motion picture, comedy/musical category, shut out in favor of The Disaster Artist, Get Out, The Greatest Showman, I, Tonya, and Lady Bird.\nWhile this year’s list of Golden Globes nominees isn’t as lily-white as, say, the Oscars typically are, the slate is still lacking inclusivity; out of 30 acting nominees in the film categories, just five are not white. But Haddish’s snub stands out, considering her meteoric rise, her awards-season buzz, and the healthy box-office take of Girls Trip—an achievement that voting bodies like the H.F.P.A. typically take into consideration. The fact that both Haddish and Girls Trip at large were shut out continues a troubling awards-season tendency—that of ignoring black art that doesn’t center on suffering.\nGirls Trip wasn’t the only comedy to feel the burn on Globes nomination morning. The Big Sick, an excellent romantic comedy co-written by and starring Kumail Nanjiani, was completely shut out of the awards show—another surprising snub. While the film’s hype simmered down after its summer release, it was still in the conversation and was expected to pick up a few Globe noms, including best comedy, best actor, and best-supporting actress for Holly Hunter (who has won one Globe and been nominated six other times). The complete shutout was not only a surprise, but a dashed opportunity for Golden Globes history: Nanjiani could have been the first Pakistani star to win an acting statuette at the awards ceremony. Last year, Riz Ahmed, who is British and Pakistani, was the first such actor to ever be nominated for best actor in a limited series, a sign of how far the Globes still have to go when it comes to inclusivity.\nNanjiani, at least, quickly decided to have some fun with the snub.\nCertain behind-the-scenes nods were also shockingly homogenous, particularly in the directing category. This year, nods went to Guillermo del Toro (The Shape of Water) Martin McDonagh (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri), Christopher Nolan (Dunkirk), Ridley Scott (All the Money in the World), and Steven Spielberg (The Post)—all men (and all white, save for del Toro). While arguments can be made for each of those nominations, there were three names that were surprisingly absent: Greta Gerwig (Lady Bird), Jordan Peele (Get Out), and Dee Rees (Mudbound). Further still, potential nominees like Sofia Coppola (The Beguiled) and Patty Jenkins (Wonder Woman) were also left out. Gerwig and Peele’s snubs were particularly surprising, considering all the awards these two V.F. cover stars have already lapped up in New York and Los Angeles, and the ways in which their respective films have wholly captured the zeitgeist. Rees has also earned considerable buzz for Mudbound, a critically adored drama that Netflix has pushed with a fair amount of success on the circuit.\nThe directing snubs uphold a broader Globes trend: this show, like others, tends to reward white men, save for outliers like Alfonso Cuarón, Alejandro G. Iñárritu, and Ang Lee. In the history of the Golden Globes, only one woman has won a directing trophy: Barbra Streisand, for Yentl in 1984. No black filmmaker has ever won a directing Globe; only a handful have ever even been nominated. Back in 2014, Ava DuVernay became the first black woman to ever even be nominated in the category. Dee Rees would have been the second.\nIn the broader awards journey, it’s likely still safe to assume that Peele, Gerwig, and Rees have strong chances of landing Oscar nominations. But the H.F.P.A.’s decision to shut them out speaks to the ways in which voting bodies still have to reckon with their history of exclusivity. And just as importantly: do we really want to live in a world where Tiffany Haddish isn’t worth her weight in awards-season statuettes?\nGet Vanity Fair’s HWD Newsletter Sign up for essential industry and award news from Hollywood. E-mail Address Subscribe", "(CNN) This year's Golden Globe film nominations were short on blockbusters and big on indies.\nBest picture drama nominees include the coming-of-age story \"Call Me by Your Name,\" the war epic \"Dunkirk,\" journalism-themed \"The Post,\" the love story \"The Shape of Water\" and the murder mystery \"Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.\"\n\"The Shape of Water,\" which is about a mute custodian who forms an unusual relationship, leads with seven nominations, including best movie screenplay, best original score, best supporting actor and actress, best movie actress and best director. \"The Post\" and \"Three Billboards\" follow with six nomin ations each.\nRelated: Golden Globe nominations 2018 - The list\nThe best motion picture comedy or musical is sure to stir controversy as it includes the social thriller \"Get Out,\" which tackled race.\n\"The Disaster Artist,\" \"The Greatest Showman,\" \"I, Tonya\" and \"Lady Bird\" were also nominated.\nBest actor in a motion picture drama nominees were Timothée Chalamet for \"Call Me by Your Name, Daniel Day-Lewis for \"Phantom Thread,\" Tom Hanks for \"The Post,\" Gary Oldman for \"Darkest Hour\" and Denzel Washington for \"Roman J. Israel, Esq.\"\nBest actress in a movie drama went to Jessica Chastain for \"Molly's Game,\" Sally Hawkins for \"The Shape of Water,\" Frances McDormand for \"Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri,\" Meryl Streep for \"The Post\" and Michelle Williams for \"All the Money in the World\"\nGuillermo del Toro, Martin McDonagh, Christopher Nolan, Ridley Scott, and Steven Spielberg were nominated for best director.\nNo female directors were nominated, despite the critical and popular success of \"Wonder Woman\" from Patty Jenkins and Greta Gerwig's directorial debut, \"Lady Bird.\"\nAlso surprising, Jordan Peele was overlooked in the best director and best screenplay categories for \"Get Out.\" Peele is the first African-American writer/director to have a debut movie surpass $100 million at the box office in its first month.\nThe film's star, Daniel Kaluuya, was nominated for best actor in a motion picture, musical or comedy alongside Steve Carell (\"Battle of the Sexes\"), Ansel Elgort (\"Baby Driver\"), James Franco (\"The Disaster Artist\") and Hugh Jackman (\"The Greatest Showman\").\nAnother noticeably absent project was \"The Big Sick,\" whose star Kumail Nanjiani co-wrote the semi-autobiographical romantic comedy with his wife Emily V. Gordon.\nThere sure to be buzz surrounding the three nominations for the drama \"All the Money in the World.\"\nThe film, based on the abduction of tycoon J. Paul Getty's grandson in the 1970s, earned nominations for Michelle Williams for best actress in a motion picture drama, best supporting actor for Christopher Plummer and best director for Ridley Scott.\n\"All the Money in the World\" made headlines recently when Plummer was brought in to replace Kevin Spacey in the wake of the latter being embroiled in a sexual misconduct scandal. Plummer re-shot all of Spacey's scenes.\nIn the television categories, it was a good morning for HBO's \"Big Little Lies.\"\nIt was nominated for best TV movie or limited series, along with \"Fargo,\" \"Feud: Bette and Joan,\" \"The Sinner\" and \"Top of the Lake: China Girl.\"\n\"Big Little Lies\" earned six nominations overall. Stars Nicole Kidman and Reese Witherspoon were nominated for best actress in a limited series, Jessica Lange and Susan Sarandon were nominated for \"Feud\" and Jessica Biel scored a nod for her work on \"The Sinner.\"\nA returned-to-TV favorite got a welcome back gift.\n\"Will & Grace\" received a nomination for best TV musical or comedy, along with \"Black-ish,\" \"Master of None,\" \"The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel\" and \"SMILF.\"\n\"Will & Grace\" star Eric McCormack was nominated for best actor in a TV comedy, as was Anthony Anderson of \"Black-ish,\" Aziz Ansari\" of \"Master of None,\" Kevin Bacon from \"I Love Dick\" and William H. Macy from \"Shameless.\"\nIn the best actress in a TV drama category Caitriona Balfe of \"Outlander,\" Claire Foy of \"The Crown,\" Maggie Gyllenhaal of \"The Deuce,\" Katherine Langford of \"13 Reasons Why\" and Elisabeth Moss of \"The Handmaid's Tale\" all scored nods.\nAwards season comes in the wake of Hollywood being rocked by multiple sexual misconduct scandals.\n\"Late Night\" host Seth Meyers will preside over the awards ceremony -- set to air January 7th on NBC.", "In a now-deleted tweet, Roseanne Barr on Tuesday called former Barack Obama adviser Valerie Jarrett \"an ape and compared her to an Islamic organisation\nRoseanne Barr\nIn a stunning move, ABC cancelled its Roseanne revival following star Roseanne Barr's racist tweet. In a now-deleted tweet, Barr on Tuesday called former Barack Obama adviser Valerie Jarrett \"an ape and compared her to an Islamic organisation.\" Barr, however, later tendered an apology for her remark. In the wake of the show's cancellation, many Hollywood celebrities took to Twitter to praise ABC for shelving Barr. Roseanne actor Emma Kenney, who played Roseanne's granddaughter on the comedy said, \"As I called my manager to quit working on Roseanne, I was told it was cancelled. I feel so empowered by Channing Dungey and anyone at ABC standing up for morals and abuse of power. Bullies will never win.\"\nBarr's ex-husband Tom Arnold wrote on social media, \"Ton of respect for Bob Iger. Tough decision with financial consequences for his company but right for America... umm... now don't bug Bob but maybe someone else find out if I'm still banned from all of @ABCNetwork for calling Roseanne Barr out first on her racist conspiracy tweets? (sic)\"\nSpeechless star Minnie Driver also wrote, \"So proud of @ABCNetwork for having the ethical compunction to cancel Roseanne despite the show's huge numbers. We too make a show about a middle class family, come and watch us instead.\" Stand-up comic Kumail Nanjiani tweeted, \"I'm glad Roseanne is cancelled. The backlash to it is going to be a deafening nightmare.\"\nCatch up on all the latest entertainment news and gossip here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates\nThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever", "Shara Tibken/CNET\nTrying to get a straight answer from the cast of HBO's \"Silicon Valley\" is as tough as figuring out what the heck middle-out compression actually is.\n(For the record, it's the tech created by Pied Piper, the startup at the center of the popular comedy show.)\nWhether they're joking about the apps they'd like to make -- like an \"Uber for dads\" -- or the relationships between their characters in the new season, the stars can't stop cracking each other up.\nHBO threw its fourth-season premiere party last week at Lucasfilm headquarters in San Francisco's Presidio neighborhood, where (real) Silicon Valley elite like Yelp CEO Jeremy Stoppelman and Slack CEO Stewart Butterfield mingled amid the backdrop of Darth Vader suits and Yoda fountains.\nCNET sat down with Amanda Crew (who plays Monica), Thomas Middleditch (Richard Hendricks), Kumail Nanjiani (Dinesh), Martin Starr (Gilfoyle) and Zach Woods (Jared Dunn) to talk about season 4, President Donald Trump and the real tech world. (Check out our videos from those interviews.)\nHere's what else we learned:\nOn season 4\nSeason 4, which debuts April 23, starts with the newly independent company figuring out how to recover from its past scandal of buying fake users -- and how its employees can refrain from killing each other.\n3:29 Close Drag Autoplay: ON Autoplay: OFF\n\"Up until now, it feels like the conflict is coming from the outside in,\" Middleditch said. \"The premise of this season is the conflict is sort of coming from within.\"\nMore women -- finally\nOne of the biggest criticisms of \"Silicon Valley\" is similar to a complaint about the real Silicon Valley: There aren't many women. Creator and director Mike Judge said that's changing this season. He didn't say which women will join the cast but said there will be three female coders, including one big role that lasts throughout the season.\n\"She has like three lines,\" Nanjiani joked.\n\"And then at the end of the scene, she takes her top off,\" Middleditch added. (Hardy har har.)\nCrew, the only regular female cast member, said she's felt pressure to represent all women in the real Silicon Valley.\n\"I remember when we did the first screening [when the series began] at SXSW,\" Crew said. \"That was the very first question, something about representing women in tech. It was like the worst day of my life. ... It was all this pressure and all this focus.\"\nBut Crew said she's now been able to meet female entrepreneurs and has even invested in two female-run companies.\n(Read CNET's full interview with Crew here.)\nAnd there's sex\n\"There's sex, and it's not with horses this time,\" Judge said. That's a reference to the second episode of season 3, when Jack Barker (played by Stephen Tobolowsky) supervises the breeding of his thoroughbred horse.\n\"We really had to talk Mike into having sex with not horses,\" Nanjiani said. \"We were like, 'We should have sex in the show.' And Mike was like, 'But the horses are so expensive.' We said, We could have people sex,' and Mike was like, 'Nobody wants to see that.'\"\nJudge said there's also \"a little bit of violence\" in the season.\nRobots won't be replacing the 'Silicon' cast\n\"I just got one of those robot vacuum cleaners,\" Middleditch said. \"You can download an app and then you can sort of set a schedule and you can name your robot vacuum cleaner. I named it Chris Harrison, the host of 'The Bachelor.' It moves around there, and it gets about halfway through and gets clogged up on something. And I have to go empty him. He's a trooper. ... It will be awhile before robots replace us.\"\n1:53 Close Drag Autoplay: ON Autoplay: OFF\n\"Don't do that,\" Woods pleaded. \"Please. Don't replace actors. At least not for 65 years.\"\nAt one point, an AI-generated script was put together for \"Silicon Valley,\" Judge said. \"It was just nothing. It was incomprehensible.\"\n\"They've been saying that about animation for 30 years, that you won't need [people],\" he added. \"When I was doing 'Beavis and Butthead,' they said you would draw Butthead once and never have to draw him again. It was a trainwreck. They had a Cray supercomputer back then. I think it's at least 60 years away.\"\nThey have no clue what Snapchat Spectacles are\nMiddleditch uses Snapchat filters and then posts the resulting images on his Instagram. He didn't want to start over building a new following on Snapchat. And he doesn't see himself using Snapchat Spectacles (now that he's seen what they are).\n\"Some people have made substantial careers broadcasting their lives,\" he said. \"Maybe I'm just being like, 'Oh god, now I'm the old guy. I don't get it.' Plenty of young kids get it. They love it. ... Maybe it's just me not getting it.\"\n\"Until this moment, I didn't know an object could be a creep,\" Woods quipped.\nBatteries Not Included: The CNET team reminds us why tech is cool.\nCNET Magazine: Check out a sample of the stories in CNET's newsstand edition.", "'All of the Money in the World' and 'The Greatest Showman' got plenty of love, but where were the nominations for 'The Big Sick' and 'Get Out'?\nThe Golden Globe nominations are as Golden Globe-y as ever. It is largely impossible to predict who the Hollywood Foreign Press Association will deem worthy of being invited to their annual shindig, and this year proved no exception. While there were enough sure things in the mix (the HFPA loves Meryl Streep) and some omissions we knew were longshots all along (sorry, Wonder Woman), there are a number of surprises and snubs worth discussing.\nSurprises\nChristopher Plummer for All the Money in the World. And here we said it as a joke. We didn't know anyone had even seen All the Money in the World yet -- since Plummer filmed his parts last month -- but he somehow managed a nomination. In fact, all the love for All the Money in the World, which also included nominations for Best Actress for Michelle Williams and Best Director (more on that in a second), came as a surprise.\nThe Boss Baby. The comedy in which Alec Baldwin plays a boss that is a baby was hardly beloved when it hit theaters, yet the HFPA apparently loved it enough to nominate it for Best Animated Film, amongst less surprisingly contenders like Coco and Ferdinand as well as lesser known entries like The Breadwinner and Loving Vincent. We predicted the nomination would have gone to The Lego Batman Movie. (Heck, even The Lego Ninjango Movie!)\nHugh Jackman for The Greatest Showman. There were more surprising nominations in Best Actor, Musical or Comedy -- like, y'know, Ansel Elgort for Baby Driver -- but it's a shame that Jackman made the Globes cut with Circus Musical instead of his fine, final work in this year's Logan. (Fair, the drama category would've been tough to crack with an X-Men movie, seeing that's essentially cemented with Gary and Tom and Daniel and Timothée.) A more surprising fact: The Greatest Showman got more Golden Globe nominations than Get Out. (See: snubs.)\nHelen Mirren for The Leisure Seeker. We love us some Helen Mirren, we just hadn't expected her to break into this category -- or, uh, any awards show, no disrespect -- for this not-exactly-buzzed-about flick. Especially not over Emma Watson in the Disney juggernaut, Beauty and the Beast. But there she is, right alongside Dame Judi and Margot and Saoirse and Emma. And we're not mad at it.\nSnubs\nGet Out for Best Screenplay. Despite having a gajillion categories, the Golden Globes doesn't split their screenplay category into Best Original Screenplay and Best Adapted Screenplay. It's just all lumped together into Best Screenplay, which Jordan Peele seemed to be a frontrunner to win. Yet, his wildly inventive and effective script for Get Out was nowhere to be found come nominations, passed over (along with James Ivory's Call Me By Your Name), in lieu of Molly's Game and The Post.\nGreta Gerwig and Jordan Peele for Best Director. How disappointing. Despite Best Picture (Musical or Comedy) nominations for both Lady Bird and Get Out, Gerwig and Peele's exceptional work behind the camera went unacknowledged in favor of Ridley Scott's All the Money in the World, which got a big awards season push from the HFPA. We expected to see Nolan and Spielberg up there and are thrilled for del Torro, but at least one of these two directors deserved to be in the mix.\nThe Big Sick. Nothing? Not only were Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon absent from Best Screenplay, but Nanjiani didn't manage to crack Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy either. (See above.) Even more egregious, Holly Hunter, who was all but guaranteed Best Supporting Actress, didn't get it in the end and the film wasn't nominated in the Best Picture, Musical or Comedy category. Depending on who you ask, that slot was stolen by The Disaster Artist or The Greatest Showman.\nSufjan Stevens for Best Original Song. Stevens' gorgeous track, \"Mystery of Love,\" for Call Me By Your Name was snubbed, and I hope this mistake is corrected come Oscars. But it's not the biggest surprise, not when the HFPA could lure Mariah Carey (for The Star) and Nick Jonas (for Home) with the promise of gold trophies. Beauty and the Beast -- which boasted an original in \"Evermore\" -- was more surprisingly absent here.\nRELATED CONTENT:\nGolden Globe Nominations 2018: Full List of Nominees\nSeth Meyers Set to Host 2018 Golden Globes for the First Time\nRelated Articles", "CLOSE From activist Rose McGowan to comedian Jimmy Kimmel, here's our list of the most influential entertainers of the year. USA TODAY\nRose McGowan raises her fist as she speaks during during the Women's Convention in Detroit on Oct. 27, 2017. (Photo: Junfu Han/ Detroit Free Press-USA TODAY NET)\nIn a year of head-snapping shocks and a whip-fast pace of news developments, who has distracted us, soothed us or explained it all for us in a way we could process? The USA TODAY Life staff has chosen 10 people who have helped to rescue us from the appalling headlines of 2017.\nWhich turned out to be important because what has turned out to be the story of the year in entertainment has been anything but entertaining, as the parade of shamed men from movies, TV, stage, fashion, ballet and even grand opera began slouching across the nation's screens beginning in October.\nAnd there appears to be no end in sight. The torrent of allegations continues almost daily, summoned from hundreds of women, and some men, who have accused some of the great and powerful of the entertainment industry of sexual harassment, abuse and assault in episodes as recent as last year or as far back as four decades.\nBut there have been highlights, particularly among those who have taken up the mantle of fighting back against injustice, whether on screen, like Wonder Woman, or off (we're looking at you, Jimmy Kimmel).\nAnd while we may not all agree on the political infighting, we can at least agree that in 2017, goodness, good humor and a grinning royal engagement occasionally saved the day.\nRose McGowan, commandant of #RoseArmy\nShe was best known as an indie darling, a star of the Scream films, who played a witch on Charmed in the early aughts. Now she'll be known as one of the women whose tweeted accusations of rape by movie mogul Harvey Weinstein helped bring the powerhouse producer down. She also helped to kick-start the #MeToo movement that led to the fall of others, and new attention to the no-longer-hidden problem of sexual harassment in the workplace.\nFor decades McGowan, 44, kept publicly silent about what she says Weinstein did to her in a hotel room in 1997. But once the New York Times and later The New Yorker revealed she was one of several women who accused Weinstein, McGowan, 44, went public in a big way. She has since become a leading face of feminist fury about sexual harassment.\n“We are all Me Toos. I have been silenced for 20 years,\" she shouted, fist raised, in a fiery speech greeted by cheers at the Women’s Convention in Detroit on Oct 27. \"I have been slut-shamed. I’ve been harassed. I’ve been maligned … We are one massive collective voice, that is what #RoseArmy is all about … No more will we be shunted to the side. No more will we be hurt. It’s time to rise. It’s time to be brave...\n\"Name it. Shame it. Call it out … It’s time to clean house!”\nGal Gadot won over fans worldwide after 'Wonder Woman' debuted. (Photo: Jon Kopaloff, FilmMagic)\nGal Gadot: The superhero who didn't let us down\nOn screen, Gal Gadot was everything we needed from Wonder Woman: a tough warrior who samples ice cream and coos at babies, a worthy match for her opponents and an agent of change uninhibited in a misogynistic world. Off screen, the raven-haired Israeli was a freaking delight. Gadot ditched heels in favor of flats for her big Hollywood premiere, never deviated from Wonder Woman’s message of kindness and inner strength and gave brutally honest interviews.\n“Power and strength are qualities that are very familiar with men,” Gadot told USA TODAY in May. “And once women have this quality, then automatically they’re (written as) colder. ... But in real life, it’s not true. Most women who are strong, they’re very loving and warm and inclusive.” Fans now feel such ownership over her character's feminism that they cried foul at the subtle sexism she endures in Justice League. Put it this way: if this past Halloween is any indication, Gadot's inspired a whole new generation of little Wonder Women.\nRonan Farrow (Photo: Gilbert Carrasquillo, Getty Images)\nRonan Farrow: Harvey Weinstein's worst nightmare\nWho said print is dead? NBC's loss became The New Yorker's gain after network execs turned down the Harvey Weinstein exposé the former MSNBC host been researching for 10 months.\nFarrow, who has accused his own father, Woody Allen, of molesting his sister, wouldn’t let the Weinstein story go, telling CBS, \"In terms of the gravity of the evidence, it would've been impossible for me to live with myself or answer to any of the many women I had already interviewed if I had stopped.\"\nAfter initially getting scooped by The New York Times, Farrow, 29, made up for lost time by reporting how Weinstein used ex-Israeli spies to track accusers like McGowan and journalists like himself and the Times’ Jodi Kantor and kept his behavior secret with silent payoffs and nondisclosure agreements.\nThough it may be too soon to tell whether Farrow’s words will “line the halls of justice,” as McGowan foretold, we’ll make a prediction of our own: A Pulitzer Prize.\nComedian Jordan Peele makes his directorial debut with the social thriller 'Get Out. (Photo: Dan MacMedan, USA TODAY)\nJordan Peele, the funny Hitchcock\nAs much as racism was a foe in real life, comedian-turned-filmmaker Jordan Peele’s imagination made it this year’s top horror-movie villain, too. Whether you want to call it a satire or a comedy or a thriller or (as he’ll joke) a “documentary,” Get Out took pop culture to the “Sunken Place” with a biting look at being black in America, embraced the social commentary of horror flicks past like Night of the Living Dead, and created a phenomenon that resonated with every race.\nWhat could have been just another scare-fest will now be taught as part of college film courses and looks like it could follow up its box-office success with awards-season kudos. Yet with all the film’s popularity and hilarity, one can’t forget how personal a project it was to Peele.\n“Art, genre and comedy are important pieces of the conversation and can often incite cathartic moments for all of us,” he told USA TODAY in February. And in 2017, in between the laughs and frights, Peele also made the country think about where it is and where it should be.\nKumail Nanjiani stars as a stand-up comedian in 'The Big Sick,' based in large part on his life. (Photo: Nicole Rivelli)\nKumail Nanjiani, comedy’s next big thing\nWhether swatting Trolls on Twitter or warming our heart by sharing his own love story with the world, Kumail Nanjiani became a Hollywood star this year simply by being himself.\nHe hosted Saturday Night Live, nerded out with the Silicon Valley guys but made his biggest impact with The Big Sick, a romantic comedy based on the courtship of Nanjiani and his real-life wife Emily V. Gordon. The story of a Pakistani standup comedian and how he first falls for his white girlfriend — and then for her parents when she’s hospitalized with a potentially fatal illness — also put the spotlight on interracial coupling and its effect on family dynamics in different cultures. (He also unleashes perhaps the only great 9/11 joke ever.)\nNanjiani kept it real with his romance but also with his Twitter feed, ripping the Muslim ban and sounding off on controversial senatorial candidates with insightful wit and more than a little sass. He’s a little bit Eddie Murphy, a little bit Mark Twain, but luckily for us, a true original.\nPrince Harry and Meghan Markle on day their engagement was announced, at The Sunken Gardens at Kensington Palace on Nov. 27, 2017 in London. (Photo: Chris Jackson)\nMeghan Markle, American royal\nThere's nothing like a royal wedding to cheer up Britain in dreary times; now the principle applies to the USA, too: The long-awaited announcement, on Nov. 27, of American divorcée Meghan Markle's engagement to bachelor Prince Harry was greeted by millions of Americans with delight and relief after months of bad news.\nWhen Markle, 36, marries Harry, 33, at St. George's Chapel at Windsor Castle in May, she'll become the first American actress — and the first biracial royal bride — to be welcomed into the British royal family in its history.\nHarry and Meghan will be the flesh-and-blood embodiment of the much-touted \"special relationship\" between America and Britain, bringing a scion of an ancient line (with ginger genes) together with a contemporary woman blessed with a natural beauty and the nobility of the American middle-class.\nMarkle is giving up her career as an actress (she was a star of the legal drama Suits), but not her American citizenship. And she's getting something in return: the HRH and the title of royal duchess. or her.\nJimmy Kimmel, comedic conqueror\nJimmy Kimmel put power and purpose behind his late-night punchlines. After the talk show host’s son, Billy, arrived in April with heart defects, Kimmel, 50, began using his Jimmy Kimmel Live stage to advocate for affordable health care, especially for those with pre-existing conditions. And he slammed inventor of the “Jimmy Kimmel Test” Sen. Bill Cassidy when Kimmel felt the Louisiana legislator reneged on his word.\nKimmel also added Roy Moore to his list of foes, likely ahead of Matt Damon. During social media smack-talking in November, Kimmel accepted the hostile invitation of the Republican Senate nominee accused of sexual misconduct with teenage girls to Alabama, with a caveat. “OK Roy, but I'm leaving my daughters at home!” Kimmel tweeted.\nMore: Jimmy Kimmel's baby son completes second surgery; Kimmel will take a week off\nMore: List: All of the Hollywood power players accused of sexual assault or harassment\nAlec Baldwin as President Donald Trump, Kate McKinnon as Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Alex Moffat as Paul Manafort, Beck Bennett as Mike Pence during 'Manafort's House Cold Open'. (Photo: Will Heath, NBC)\nAlec Baldwin: The resident Trump troll never waivered\nWhat made politics bearable in 2017? A continual dose of Alec Baldwin, for one. Saturday Night Live’s resident fake president trolled Trump throughout the calendar year, whether it was making out with former press secretary Sean Spicer (by way of Melissa McCarthy) in May or getting in the shower with Paul Manafort (Alex Moffat) following the former campaign chair's indictment last month. \"I brought you in the shower to make sure you weren’t wearing a wire, Paul,\" said Baldwin, standing shirtless in shower cap. \"God, you're screwed.\"\nThe actor, who hosted SNL for a record 17th time in February, chased headlines week-to-week. In October's fall premiere Baldwin knocked Trump for his bungled response to Puerto Rico following Hurricane Maria, fake-lecturing San Juan mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz (Melissa Villaseñor) via phone. “You should have paid your bills,\" he intoned. \"FEMA takes a few days – unless you get FEMA Prime.”\nBut a line in the same sketch conveyed the mood of the nation best. Playing to the news cycle, Baldwin revealed the president's strategy. \"Trust me, it might seem like what's coming out of my mouth is B-A-N-A-N-A-S, but it's all part of the plan, said Baldwin, clad in golf clothes and a MAGA hat. \"The more chaos I cause, the less people can focus. They're all getting so tired.\"\nThat about sums up 2017.\nKendrick Lamar, 30, scored the highest-charting hit of his career with 'Humble,' the first single off his fourth album 'Damn.' (Photo: Amy Harris, Amy Harris/Invision/AP)\nKendrick Lamar, rap revolutionary\nDeclaring oneself the \"greatest rapper alive\" is one of the oldest tricks in the hip-hop playbook.\nBut if any contemporary MC deserves to wear that crown, it's Lamar, 30, who teased his return to music with that lofty proclamation on sneering Trump diss The Heart Part 4 in late March. He swiftly followed it with swaggering lead single Humble, a pummeling braggadocio whose jaw-dropping music video is packed with symbolic imagery, and then with soul-baring fourth album Damn., which busted sales records for the Compton rapper while plumbing further into the depths of his psyche.\nLamar is up for seven Grammy Awards at next month’s ceremony, where he’s heavily favored to win (a long-overdue) album of the year, after two previous nods in the category for To Pimp a Butterfly and Good Kid, M.A.A.D. City. But the socially conscious artist remains — for lack of a better term — humble, telling fans at October’s Forbes Under 30 summit that despite the acclaim of any given moment, he always wants to “be a person that stands for something. Whether the plan works or not, I want to be remembered as that.”\nElisabeth Moss and Margaret Atwood pose for photos ahead of the release of 'The Handmaid's Tale' in April. (Photo: Jack Gruber/USA TODAY)\nMargaret Atwood, author of a movement\nMargaret Atwood is probably the best person to explain how the adaptation of her feminist novel The Handmaid’s Tale, first published in 1985, became one of the most celebrated and important TV series of 2017.\n“I put nothing into (the book) that has not been done in history at some time, in some place,” the 77-year-old author told USA TODAY in April. “I didn’t intend it to be prescient, I intended it to be a (warning).”\nWhether or not we were warned, we were certainly captivated by Hulu’s Emmy-winning adaptation of the dystopian parable, which takes place in a totalitarian theocracy where women are stripped of all rights and enslaved. The visual of the handmaids in their red robes and white bonnets, brought to life most memorably by Elisabeth Moss as Offred, became instantly iconic, and showed up in political protests, Halloween costumes and more.\nBut one acclaimed, successful TV adaptation was not enough for Atwood. Her 1996 novelAlias Grace arrived as a six-part mini-series on Netflix this fall, and its captivating, mystic examination of gendered violence was as powerful as Handmaid’s – if it arrived with less fanfare.\nAtwood’s work has been on our bookshelves for years, patiently waiting for its moment. 2017 was that moment, and it was gratifying to see the author gleefully take to the stage along with the cast and crew of Handmaid’s at the Emmy Awards in September when it became the first streaming series to nab the top prize. We’re guessing she’s not done yet.\nContributing: Brian Truitt, Erin Jensen, Patrick Ryan, Kelly Lawler and Jayme Deerwester\nRead or Share this story: https://usat.ly/2jw0Zf6", "Yoga improves strength, suppleness and fortitude of mind.\nAnd Heather Graham looked like she was having all three tested en route to class on Thursday morning.\nThe 47-year-old looked a bit stressed as she was spotted feeding the meter in Los Angeles as she showed off her incredibly toned body.\nHow much?! Hands-full Heather Graham looked stressed as she fed the meter en route to yoga class on Thursday morning\nShielding the early morning sun with one hand, she managed to jungle her handbag, water bottle, keys, towel and not-very-neatly-rolled yoga mat with the other.\nThe actress showed of her super-fit frame in her work-out gear, rocking half-length yoga pants with a fitted tank top over a sports bra, and flip flops.\nHer unmistakable red locks were tied back in a messy knot, revealing a fresh make-up free face and circular shades.\nParking sentry sated, she looked a little more at ease as she confidently strode into class.\nFit: The actress showed of her super-fit frame in her work-out gear, rocking half-length yoga pants with a fitted tank top over a sports bra, and flip flops\nImpressively, the Law & Order True Crime even had a late one the night before, as she attended San Diego Film Festival gala, a two hour drive away.\nShe looked amazing in a sexy black semi sheer frock that showed off her fabulous figure.\nHeather's dress had a crossover halter top and the bodice fitted snugly over her bosom. The skirt fell to her ankles and she added a pair of black heels.\nEnergy: Later that night the Law & Order True Crime star was seen at the San Diego Film Festival gala, a two hour drive away\nThe Boogie Nights star wore her dark blonde locks with a center parting and styled in loose waves.\nShe was made-up with black mascara on her lashes and bright red lip color.\nShe walked the red carpet with the likes of Patrick Stewart and his wife Sunny Ozell, Silicon Valley star Kumail Nanjiani and his writer/producer wife Emily V. Gordon, and Actress Jess Jacobs", "A recent episode of HBO’s “Silicon Valley” highlighted a strange aspect of life in the tech industry ― suggesting that Silicon Valley is one of those rare spaces in American society where it’s easier to be gay than Christian.\nThe show’s writers explore this dynamic in “Tech Evangelist,” an episode of the critically acclaimed tech culture satire series that aired April 15. Main character Richard (Thomas Middleditch) gathers eight CEOs willing to collaborate on his grand project of building a decentralized internet. One of those leaders is DeeDee, a gay man who runs an LGBTQ dating app and tells Richard that he goes to church every Sunday with his partner.\nDuring a meeting, Richard accidentally “outs” DeeDee as a Christian, a revelation that immediately arouses suspicion and distrust among the gathered developers. One potential collaborator even threatens to back out of the partnership with Richard.\n“It freaks people out in the Valley,” one of Richard’s colleagues says about Christianity during the episode.\nEven DeeDee admits that his religious identity has caused him trouble in the past.\n“Dad says my lifestyle makes him sick,” he said in the episode. “He just wants his gay son back.”\nBut in the end, DeeDee is relieved that he’s now able to be open about his faith.\n“I’m out. My nightmare’s over,” he said, adopting the language LGBTQ people use to talk about disclosing sexual orientation or gender identity. “I don’t ever have to go back to the closet again.”\nFilmMagic via Getty Images Actors Kumail Nanjiani, Zach Woods, Amanda Crew and Thomas Middleditch attend HBO's \"Silicon Valley\" Panel during Comic-Con International 2016 on July 21, 2016 in San Diego, California.\nCrystal Cheatham, a queer Christian activist, told HuffPost she “absolutely” identified with DeeDee’s storyline. Cheatham is the creator of Our Bible, a Bible app for progressive Christians. The app provides users with devotionals highlighting interfaith inclusivity and LGBTQ acceptance, and hopes to help progressive Christians create healthy prayer and meditation habits.\nCheatham said she’s found it hard to communicate to others in the tech industry about why her progressive Christian app is so innovative.\n“More than anything there is a language barrier that inhibits potential investors from ‘getting it,’ the way they do with some of my other techy counterparts,” Cheatham wrote in an email.\n“I think we as a culture would rather hear someone say they are ‘spiritual’ rather than Christian,” she added. “The word Christian is heavy with a lot of baggage that has been tacked on over the years, and especially today in the Trump era.”\nHowever, Cheatham said she doesn’t think this means Christians ― particularly conservative Christians ― are being persecuted for their beliefs.\nOn the other hand, queer Americans are still fighting for basic rights ― for protection from discrimination in employment, education, housing, healthcare, adoption and public accommodations.\nBy showcasing the awkward and at times hostile reception DeeDee receives in the bubble of “Silicon Valley,” the writers demonstrate the struggles Christians can face in these progressive spaces ― and illustrate the trials LGBTQ Americans face elsewhere.", "Christina is a reporter based in Boise, Idaho. She's a veteran vegetarian, a political junkie and a huge grammar snob. On the weekends, she can usually be found binging on Netflix, playing the piano or petting her cats, Daisy and Dandelion.\nImage: Colleen Hayes/HBO, Hilary Bronwyn Gale/HBO, Robert Viglasky/Netflix, Courtesy of Netflix\nPrint\nThis year's Golden Globe nominations are here, and there are a lot of movie and TV fans shaking their heads right now. In some ways, it was a banner year for woman-led projects, with nods for Angelina Jolie's First They Killed My Father, Nicole Kidman and Reese Witherspoon's Big Little Lies and Hulu's unendingly feminist The Handmaid's Tale. On the other hand, Wonder Woman was snubbed completely.\nMore: Male Actors Should Stop Thanking Their Wives at Award Shows\nThe nominations list is no more diverse than it's ever been despite Get Out star Daniel Kaluuya's much-deserved Best Actor nod, while Jordan Peele's acclaimed direction and screenplay were both passed over by the HFPA.\nThere were some other deserving newcomers, like Netflix's Stranger Things, which got a nomination for Best Drama Series, as well as nods for Kidman, Witherspoon and Shailene Woodley for their acting work in Big Little Lies.\nMore: Piers Morgan Slams Meryl Streep's Golden Globes Speech as 'Elitist Snobbery'\nAnd there were other developments that weren't exactly unexpected, like Transparent being completely missing from the list in the wake of sexual assault allegations against Jeffrey Tambor and his subsequent sudden exit from the previously award-winning show.\nBut like every year, there were plenty of deserving actors, films and shows that were snubbed. Kumail Nanjiani's dramedy The Big Sick was loved by festival audiences and seemed sure to snag some nominations. It got none. Jake Gyllenhaal was passed over for his performance as Jeff Bauman in Stronger, lauded by critics as one of the best performances of his career.\nMore: Tom Hiddleston Apologizes for Being Human\nBut none of this year's snubs seem to sting as much as the absence of Veep, which has won three consecutive Best Comedy Series Emmys, but never a Golden Globe. With star Julia Louis Dreyfuss fighting breast cancer, leaving the show's future a little bit uncertain, this is the year that Veep deserved a nod more than ever.\nWere you surprised by this year's nominations? Check out the full list here, and let us know in the comments.", "Jordan Peele's \"Get Out\" won best film and best director on Saturday at the 33rd Independent Film Spirit Awards, a day before the horror sensation will vie for top honors at the Academy Awards.\nThe wins for Peele's directorial debut gave the Spirits, a celebration of indie filmmaking, something unusual: a box-office behemoth. Made for just $4.5 million, \"Get Out\" grossed $255 million worldwide.\n\"We are in the beginning of a renaissance right now, where stories from the outsider, stories from the people in this room, the same stories that independent filmmakers have been telling for years are being honored and recognized and celebrated,\" Peele said.\n(L-R) Daniel Kaluuya, Jordan Peele and Allison Williams pose with the Best Feature Award for \"Get Out\" at the 2018 Film Independent Spirit Awards held in Santa Monica, California on March 3, 2018. JEAN-BAPTISTE LACROIX/AFP/Getty Images\nPeele was presented the award for best director by Spike Lee, whom Peele said paved his way. \"Let's make no mistake,\" he said. \"I wouldn't be standing here if wasn't for this man.\"\n\"Get Out\" is only the second horror film to win best picture at the Spirits. The other was 2010's \"Black Swan.\"\n\"This project didn't start as a statement,\" said Peele. \"It began as me wanting to make a film in my favorite genre. I sat down and would smoke a little weed and try to write a mind-bending horror film, my favorite genre and at some point I followed the truth and I realized there are people locked up for smoking less weed than I smoked writing the movie.\"\nHeld in a beachside tent on a floor soaked through from rain earlier in the day, the Spirit Awards are the dressed-down, boozy prelude to Sunday's Academy Awards.\nBut as the Oscars have gravitated toward honoring indie films, the two have come closer to mirroring each other. The last four Spirit winners for best film (\"Moonlight,\" ''Spotlight,\" ''Birdman,\" ''12 Years a Slave\") have won best picture at the Oscars.\n\"It's Saturday,\" Peele said backstage of his Oscar expectations. \"Tomorrow's tomorrow. That's what's up.\"\nThe Spirits are also a party to mark the (almost) end of a long and sometimes repetitive awards season.\n\"I continue to be amazed that you let me get to the microphone. What are you crazy?\" said Frances McDormand, who again won best actress for her performance in \"Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.\" ''Do you know how hard it's been not to swear over the last couple of months? Because this awards convention goes on for (expletive) forever.\"\nFilm editor Tatiana S. Riegel and actor Allison Janney pose with their awards for \"I, Tonya,\" at the 2018 Film Independent Spirit Awards held in Santa Monica, California on March 3, 2018. JEAN-BAPTISTE LACROIX/AFP/Getty Images\nAllison Janney likewise continued her sweep of the best supporting actress awards for \"I, Tonya.\" The supporting actor Oscar favorite Sam Rockwell (\"Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri\") added to his string of awards.\nTimothee Chalamet, the \"Call Me By Your Name\" breakthrough star, took best actor, a category that at the Spirits didn't include the Oscar favorite Gary Oldman. The 22-year-old said he was trying to savor the moment.\n\"I don't know if this kind of thing is ever going to happen again,\" said Chalamet.\nReturning hosts John Mulaney and Nick Kroll opened with a lively monologue that managed to touch on everything from Donald Trump, Harvey Weinstein and Brett Ratner to the pronunciation of Saoirse Ronan's name (\"Sour Shoes Ronan,\" Mulaney said) and Mulaney's wife's infatuation with \"Call Me By Your Name's\" Timothee Chalamet.\nGreta Gerwig poses with her Best Screenplay Award for \"Lady Bird\" during the 2018 Film Independent Spirit Awards, held in Santa Monica, California on March 3, 2018. JEAN-BAPTISTE LACROIX/AFP/Getty Images\nMulaney said he once had a meeting with Weinstein where the fallen mogul proclaimed that his legacy, and what would be written on his tombstone, wouldn't be for the films he's done, that it'd be for \"Project Runway.\"\n\"Your tombstone isn't going to say 'Project Runway.' It's going to say double XL unmarked grave,\" Mulaney said.\nKroll and Mulaney joked about separating the artist from the art for some of the men accused of misconduct.\n\"Like with Kevin Spacey: Can we still love 'K-PAX?\" Kroll pondered.\nAdded Mulaney: \"Or Woody Allen and his last 21 unwatchable films? Can we still not watch them?\"\n\"Lady Bird\" writer-director Greta Gerwig won best screenplay for her partly autobiographical family drama.\n\"Thank you to my parents for watching the plays that I put on in the living room and thank you to my brother and sister for acting in them,\" said Gerwig.\nDirector Dee Rees, winner of the Robert Altman Award for 'Mudbound', poses in the press room during the 2018 Film Independent Spirit Awards, held in Santa Monica, California on March 3, 2018. JEAN-BAPTISTE LACROIX/AFP/Getty Images\nDee Rees' \"Mudbound\" received the Robert Altman Award, an ensemble honor given to one film's director, casting director and cast. In an impassioned speech, Rees celebrated each element of the film, a Netflix release, and concluded by pronouncing: \"'Mudbound' is cinema.\"\nKumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon won best first screenplay for \"The Big Sick,\" which they based on the real-life drama of the beginning of their own relationship. They are also up for the original screenplay award at the Oscars. They both thanked their parents, who provided some of the inspiration for the parents in the film, with some artistic license.\n\"My dad never cheated on my mom,\" said Gordon. \"That was something we made up for the movie.\"\n\"That we know of,\" quipped Nanjiani.\nEmily V. Gordon and Kumail Nanjiani pose with their Best First Screenplay award for \"The Big Sick\" during the 2018 Film Independent Spirit Awards, held in Santa Monica, California on March 3, 2018. JEAN-BAPTISTE LACROIX/AFP/Getty Images\nThe social-media satire \"Ingrid Goes West,\" starring Aubrey Plaza and Elizabeth Olsen, won best first feature. Sebastián Lelio's \"A Fantastic Woman,\" from Chile, won best international film. The film, about a transgender woman whose partner has died, is up for best foreign picture at the Academy Awards.\n\"I thought the film was going to encounter, to say the least division, and that hasn't been the case,\" Lelio said backstage. \"What surprises me most is that the film has been understood.\"\nActors Aubrey Plaza and Elizabeth Olsen pose with the Best First Feature award for \"Ingrid Goes West\" at the 2018 Film Independent Spirit Awards, held in Santa Monica, California on March 3, 2018. JEAN-BAPTISTE LACROIX/AFP/Getty Images\n\"The Rider\" director Chloe Zhao was given the inaugural Bonnie Award, for a mid-career female director, which includes a $50,000 grant. Agnes Varda, the 89-year-old French filmmaking legend, won best documentary with her co-director JR for their \"Faces Places,\" also a nominee at Sunday's Oscars.\n(L-R) Agnes Varda, JR and Rosalie Varda pose with their awards for Best Documentary for \"Faces Places\" at the 2018 Film Independent Spirit Awards, in Santa Monica, California, on March 03, 2018. JEAN-BAPTISTE LACROIX/AFP/Getty Images\nWinners are chosen by Film Independent, which includes critics, filmmakers, actors, festival programmers, past winners and nominees, and members of its board. The Spirit Awards cap nominees at a budget of $20 million or less, which eliminates some bigger-budget awards contenders like \"Dunkirk.\"\nBut the film many consider the Oscar front-runner — Guillermo del Toro's modestly budgeted \"The Shape of Water,\" up for a leading 13 nominations Sunday — was completely overlooked by the Spirits." ]

[ "FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- San Diego Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers returned to the practice field Friday and remained \"optimistic\" his sprained right knee would heal enough for him to play in the AFC championship game against the New England Patriots." ]

[ "Injured defensive tackle Joe Salave'a returns to practice Wednesday and is optimistic that he will be able to play Sunday against the Jaguars.", "A car plowed into a crowd Sunday at a speedboat race on the Ohio River, sending as many as a dozen people to a hospital, according to reports.", "Beijing - A sudden flood surge on a river swept an overcrowded bus full of young students and farmers into a river, killing three people and leaving 41 missing, state media said on Sunday.", "Two ships are seen from in the Delaware River from a view in Wilmington, Del., just south Philadelphia and of the Commodore Barry Bridge as they wait for the river to be re-opened Sunday, Nov. 28, 2004.", "Economic growth could reach 2.5 percent this year, a German minister said in remarks published Sunday, among the most optimistic forecasts yet for Europe's largest economy.", "Justin Langer remains optimistic that he will be able to take his place in the Australian side for the second Test against Pakistan on Sunday, but there is little doubt that he is still facing an uphill battle to prove his fitness.", "A great &quot;flush&quot; of the Colorado River began Sunday morning when four bypass tubes at the base of Glen Canyon Dam were slowly opened, shooting huge jets of water about 150 feet out into the river.", "Plus, an optimistic outlook at Lowe's, and Yahoo! doesn't get it.", "The bodies of three women were found Monday evening at a bed and breakfast near Maine’s popular Sunday River ski resort.", "A tug boat sank on the Ohio River early Sunday, killing three people and leaving another missing, authorities said.", "Wildlife officials in China released a rare paddlefish into Yangtze River Sunday after nursing it back to health from injuries inflicted by fishermen.", "Turkey&#39;s Justice Minister Cemil Cicek sounded extremely optimistic on Sunday: &quot;Now the European Union&#39;s going to give us a date for negotiations,&quot; he told parliament after", "Joan Rivers will be missing from the red carpet scene at the Emmy Awards on Sunday night, but she'll still be cracking wise about it &#151; on the Web.", "Being an optimist may help reduce your risk of dying from heart disease and other causes. A Dutch study found that people who described themselves as being highly optimistic", "Britain is mulling a second flood barrier for the River Thames in London, amid fears that current defences are inadequate, the environment minister said in a newspaper interview to be published Sunday.", "Orders are down, but Embraer investors should remain optimistic.", "BAGHDAD, July 1 -- A dump truck laden with explosives detonated on a bridge over the Euphrates River on Sunday, the latest in a series of attacks targeting Iraq's bridge network.", "Four jets of water shot out of Glen Canyon Dam on Sunday, starting an artificial flood for science on the Colorado River. Federal resource managers planned", "Silverstone's owners are cautiously optimistic of retaining the British GP in 2005.", "Constellation is defiantly optimistic regarding near-term challenges.", "The body of one of three climbers missing for more than a week on Mount Hood in Oregon was found on Sunday, a spokesman for the Hood River County Sheriff's Department said.", "Travis Hill-Williams has always considered himself an optimist.", "Chandler, AZ (Sports Network) - Chris Nallen closed with a one-under 71 on Sunday, but it was more than enough to win the Gila River Golf Classic.", "San Diego Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers will undergo knee surgery after playing with a serious injury in Sunday's conference championship loss to the New England Patriots.", "Director Sanjay Gadhvi is optimistic about his new film.", "Aishwarya Rai starrer Bride & Prejudice has opened optimistically.", "Top leaders from the 21 Asian Pacific Economic Forum, concluded on Sunday their two-days Summit in Santiago signing a joint declaration, in which expressed their optimistic views on free trade and good governance, as committed themselves in the fight", "The Dartmouth ski team took the first step toward defending its NCAA championship with a win in the Bates Winter Carnival at Sunday River, Maine last weekend.", "Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, has optimistically advanced its release", "Sixteen people were killed and eight were injured when a truck plunged into a river in southwest China's Guangxi region Sunday, the official Xinhua news agency reported.", "Management is optimistic, but this is a tough environment in which to gain a good foothold.", "The tsunami that surged across the Indian Ocean on Sunday split into two mighty rivers when it reached the formidable 17th century Dutch fortress that is the defining landmark of this southern Sri Lankan port. The rivers enveloped the 40-foot high walls of the fortress and then met again on the other side -- at Galle's bus station." ]

[ "Brett Bundale, THE CANADIAN PRESS\nHalifax's economic development agency is touting the city's off-the-charts population growth in 2016, thanks mostly to a surge of international immigrants.\nThe mini population boom saw more than 8,000 new residents in the city, with the total population climbing to 426,000, from July 2015 to July 2016.\nThe population increase is the highlight of this year's Halifax Index, an annual overview of the state of Nova Scotia's capital city presented Wednesday by the Halifax Partnership.\nIan Munro, chief economist with the organization, called the population growth -- which beat out the national average -- \"spectacular.\"\n\"I don't know yet if that's a trend or a blip,\" he said in an interview. \"We have to wait to see what next year holds. But it's certainly positive.\"\nHalifax's per capita population growth in 2016 outpaced Montreal, Vancouver, Ottawa and, just barely, Toronto, according to recent Statistics Canada figures.\nMost of the population growth came from international immigrants, who made up three-quarters of the city's new residents.\nEven without the one-time wave of Syrian refugees, it was still a record year for Halifax.\n\"The population numbers from last year are really out of the park,\" Munro said. \"I'd like to think it's a sign that the efforts the city is putting into attracting immigrants are paying off. The question is can we do it again next year.\"\nMeanwhile, GDP growth was also strong in 2016, ticking up 2.2 per cent. But GDP is expected to taper off as some large projects wind down.\nThe uptick in growth was propelled chiefly by the manufacturing sector, which grew by five per cent largely due to a ramping up of shipbuilding work at the Halifax Shipyard.\nUnder the index's quality-of-life indicator, the overall crime rate dropped 3 per cent in Halifax in 2015, the most recent year available, but violent crime increased five per cent.\nMeanwhile, Halifax's per capita income was $44,244 last year, falling short of the national average and among the lowest compared to six benchmark cities of comparable size.\nThe average monthly rent for a two-bedroom apartment was among the highest of the cities examined, increasing 1.4 per cent to $1,063.\nA City Matters survey presented alongside the Halifax Index found nearly half of the city's residents found the cost of food and groceries not very or not at all affordable, with 20 per cent saying they sometimes need to choose between food and other necessities.\nAs for Halifax's labour force, the number of Baby Boomers entering retirement continues to grow, reducing labour force participation rates, according to the Halifax Index.\nBut the number of workers aged 65 or older has tripled to 9,000 over the past 10 years.\nEmployment in the arts and culture sector dwindled for the second year in a row, with 300 jobs lost, the Halifax Index found. Wages also decreased by $3 an hour, compared to a 70 cent wage bump across all other sectors." ]

[ "It’s a new year and if the thought of going back to work has you down, consider this a much-needed uplift.\nHalifax is home to some great events in 2017 – and that’s just the ones already announced. From UFC and Riverdance to CIS hoops and another tall ships festival, there are plenty of big events to look forward to in the coming months.\nHere’s a sample.\nFEBRAURY\n• 15th - Arkells at Scotiabank Centre. Tickets from $44.25 to $142.\n• 19th - UFC Fight Night Dos Santos vs. Strueve 2 at Scotiabank Centre: Tickets from $48 to $183.\n• 24th - Measha Brueggergosman at Rebecca Cohn Auditorium. Tickets from $36.50 to $41.50.\n• 25th – Blue Rodeo at Scotiabank Centre: Tickets $72 and $59.\nMARCH\n• 3rd to 5th – Atlantic University Sport men’s and women’s basketball championships at Scotiabank Centre: Tickets from $16 to $122.\n• 6th – Billy Talent at Scotiabank Centre: Tickets from $49.25 to $248.75.\n• 9th to 12th – Canadian Interuniversity Sport men’s basketball championship at Scotiabank Centre. Passes from $50 to $150.\nAPRIL\n• 2nd – Bubble Guppies at Rebecca Cohn Auditorium. Tickets from $30 to $35.\n• 7th – Jeff Foxworthy and Larry The Cable Guy at Scotiabank Centre. Tickets $79.25.\n• 26th to 29th – Halifax ComedyFest.\n• 28th – Stars on Ice at Scotiabank Centre. Tickets from $12.50 to $130.\n• 29th – Harlem Globetrotters at Scotiabank Centre: Tickets from $26.50 to $312.50.\nMAY\n• 16th to 17th - John Prine, with special guest Amanda Shires at Rebecca Cohn Auditorium. Tickets from $81 to $101.\n• 18th - Charley Pride at Rebecca Cohn Auditorium. Tickets $101.\n• 26th to 28th - Riverdance at Scotiabank Centre: Tickets from $64.75 to $84.75.\nJUNE\n• 29th and 30th – Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo at Scotiabank Centre: Tickets from $28.50 to $99.50.\nJULY\n• 1st to 6th - Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo at Scotiabank Centre: Tickets from $28.50 to $99.50.\n• 1st – Canada Day in Halifax as part of Canada 150 celebration. Details to be announced.\n• 11th to 16th - TD Halifax Jazz Festival.\n• 13th to 23rd – Halifax Pride.\n• 29th and 30th – Tall Ships in Halifax.\nAUGUST\n• 1st – Tall Ships in Halifax.\n• 2nd to 7th – Halifax International Buskers Festival.\nDECEMBER", "Halifax’s special events advisory committee has passed a motion to ask council to consider committing $300,000 to bid for the 2020 IIHF Women’s World Championship.\nThe committee met Wednesday and discussed bringing the hockey tournament to the municipality, based on an application for funding submitted by Hockey Nova Scotia.\n“Halifax last hosted this event in 2004. It was an incredible showcase for the female game and it really helped to raise the profile of the sport in our province. Should this event come back to Nova Scotia, we are confident that we would see similar results,” said Darren Cossar, the executive director of Hockey Nova Scotia.\nHockey Canada has secured the rights to host the 2020 games and is operating the bid process. According to a staff report, Hockey Nova Scotia met with staff from the municipality and the province in March and submitted a letter of intent to Hockey Canada in April.\nREAD: ‘History-making’: Two Nova Scotians named to Canadian Women’s Olympic Hockey Team\nThe report says Halifax is currently shortlisted for the final bid process “however, there is no information as to what other cities are being considered due to the confidential nature of the bid process.”\nThe deadline to submit the final bid is July 6, and Hockey Canada is expected to select the host city by the end of September.\nThe seven-day championship is tentatively scheduled for late March to April 2020.\n“What I find is most exciting is that this is going to be something that the young women in not only Halifax but the province, have something to look forward to. They have new role models at an international level,” said Coun. Steve Adams, who is on the advisory committee.\n“It’s going to increase the exposure for women’s hockey. It’s going to increase their interest and it’ll help not only perhaps the women’s leagues but to get more girls involved in hockey.”\nHalifax’s bid would be in partnership with the Town of Truro and the Municipality of Colchester. The plan is to have games played at Scotiabank Centre in Halifax and the Rath Eastlink Community Centre in Truro.\nWATCH: Hockey Canada unveils women’s world hockey championship roster\nThe motion approved by the advisory committee is contingent on the province contributing $250,000 and Colchester County contributing $100,000 towards the bid.\nAccording to the staff report, the event estimates a minimum of 82,000 people attending games. The event also has an estimated budget of $3.5 million, with the largest expenses in meals, followed by accommodations.\nFollow @RebeccaLau", "Three large booms are being installed to help protect the shore from rising water in Okanagan Lake\nStarting Thursday, crews will install log booms on Okanagan Lake in the Central Okanagan to protect public infrastructure and beachfront areas from possible high winds and wave action.\nThe Central Okanagan Emergency Operations Centre says three sets of log booms will be installed just offshore near Swim Bay in Peachland, off Hot Sands Beach in Kelowna’s City Park, and off the Maude-Roxby Bird Sanctuary in Kelowna. More log booms may be deployed in other areas over the next week if needed.\nWood products company Tolko, which operates a mill in Kelowna’s North End, is supplying the logs for the 1.7-kilometres of log boom to be used.\nThe booms will be anchored with chains attached to concrete blocks placed on the bottom of the lake. The blocks will be marked with buoys on the surface and boaters are asked to keep away from the log booms to avoid damage.\n“We’re also reminding people to stay off the log booms as they are unstable, and hands and feet could become trapped between the logs leading to serious injury,” said the EOC in a news release issued Wednesday.\nResidents and visitors are also asked to stay away from other flood protection equipment as well. Jumping or walking on gabions or water dams is a public safety concern and could damage or undermine the device causing ruptures and significant water flows.\nAs of this Wednesday morning, Okanagan Lake was at 342.69 metres, 57 centimetres below the high water mark of 2017. However, a severe wind or rain storm could push water levels much higher, warns the EOC. And that could lead to flooding and erosion.\nBoth Okanagan and Kalamalka lakes are above full pool and flood protection measures continue to be deployed as needed.\nPeople living along the waterfront are urged to take precautions to protect their property. That includes installing measures to prevent erosion, securing docks and making sure boat anchor lines are long enough so they don’t snap if the water continues to rise. Sand and sandbag locations are available at cordemergency.ca/map\nThe province says Okanagan Lake is within a week of peaking, but ultimately weather will determine both the lake level and the timing.\nConcern about area creeks has been reduced and crews are redeploying bladder dams and sandbags in preparation for use along the lakeshore if necessary.\nMeanwhile, debris washed up on beaches should be left where it is for the time being. The logs and other wood will help limit erosion caused by wave action, says the EOC.\nWhen the flood risk has passed, officials will provide information about how the beach debris will be removed, as well as how to remove and dispose of sandbags installed on private property.\nAs it did last year following the flooding that hit the Okanagan, the EOC says under no circumstances should sandbags be emptied into any creeks, lakes, wetlands, beaches or other watercourses as outlined in the Water Sustainability Act.\nThe impact of contaminated sand could destroy fish habitat and affect drinking water supplies, as well as infrastructure, flood control, navigation and recreational activities.\nTo report a typo, email:newstips@kelownacapnews.com.\n@KelownaCapNewsnewstips@kelownacapnews.comLike us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.", "Oh, say can you see…amazing pyrotechnics from the comfort of your living room. July 4th, Macy’s lights up the sky over New York City’s East River for another spectacular fireworks display to celebrate the nation’s 242nd birthday.\nKelly Clarkson performs and American Ninja Warrior cohosts Matt Iseman and Akbar Gbajabiamila are on deck to emcee the event. To mark the occasion, we broke down some facts about the big show. No earplugs necessary here!\n100\nThe minimum number of crew members needed to run the live two-hour telecast.\n25\nHow many different colors are used in the fireworks. It’s more than just red, white and blue exploding in the air!\n1,000\nThe height, in feet, that the screaming sparklers reach above the spectators’ heads.\n75,000\nThe total number of fireworks that whiz heavenward during the show, more than at any other event in the nation. Every single roman candle or chrysanthemum or peony that bursts in the sky is launched by a computer that controls the display. After two decades of hand-lit fireworks, organizers went digital in the 1990s.\n365\nThe number of days it takes to plan the event. Between wrangling talent to perform and host, securing the fireworks and working out logistics, organizers toil all year to make sure the night goes off without a hitch.\n0\nHow many full test-runs of the show are performed before Independence Day. However, the crew will bring a few new shells out to the Mojave Desert four to five times per year to make sure they go boom and not bust.\nMacy’s 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular, Wednesday, July 4, 8/7c, NBC", "HALIFAX—A municipal committee is recommending Halifax regional council commit to $300,000 in funding as part of a bid to bring the 2020 International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) World Women’s tournament to the municipality. Hockey Canada has secured the tournament, which is tentatively scheduled for seven days in late March or early April 2020, and it will decide in September exactly where in the country the event will happen.\nTeam Canada forward Caroline Goyette celebrates her first period goal past Team China goalie Hong Guo at the 2004 IIHF World Women's Hockey Championships in Halifax, Nova Scotia, March 30, 2004. Halifax is hoping to host the tournament again in 2020. ( ANDREW WALLACE / REUTERS )\nHockey Nova Scotia is submitting a bid on Friday to host the tournament between Halifax, the Town of Truro and the Municipality of Colchester. Halifax has already been shortlisted, but the municipality doesn’t know which other cities have thrown their helmets in the ring due to the confidentiality of the process. Halifax has hosted the tournament before, back in 2004, and it provided $100,000 in funding and saw 94,000 people attend. For this bid, staff had recommended $250,000 in funding to council’s Special Events Advisory Committee, which met Wednesday morning. That funding would have matched what the province has committed to, along with $100,000 combined from Truro and Colchester to make up $600,000 in total government funding.\nArticle Continued Below\nCommittee member Jeff Ransome of the Hotel Association of Nova Scotia put forward an amendment, which passed, to up the funding to $300,000 after municipal civic events coordinator Paul Forrest told the committee that increasing the request would “show very favourably on Halifax wanting the bid.” According to an economic impact analysis, the tournament is expected to bring more than $2.4 million to Halifax in total net economic activity, which staff said justifies funding in the range of $195,000 to $270,000. With a total budget of $3.5 million and ticket prices in the $25-range, staff said the tournament would bring in 82,000 people and it guarantees 500 room nights in Halifax hotels. But more important than the economic impact to many on the committee is the impact on girl’s hockey in the province. “I want to stress that this is seen as a very important event to have for women’s hockey,” municipal manager of culture and events Elizabeth Taylor told the committee.\nAny profit made from the tournament also goes back to girl’s hockey. If it were held in Halifax, that money would go to a legacy fund for Hockey Nova Scotia. Councillor Tony Mancini told reporters after the meeting that he chaired the sponsorship committees for the world junior tournament in 2003, the last women’s tournament in 2004 and the men’s tournament in 2008.\nArticle Continued Below\n“World women’s was a huge success when we had it here,” he said. “It was great to see young hockey players, young girls coming in, and the players at the time were great with the kids, involved with the community.” Mancini said the event would do well in Halifax again, and he thinks his fellow councillors will support the funding request. “I really want to support, and I think my colleagues support, that women’s sport, and those young athletes seeing this level of hockey,” he said. The request for funding will go to regional council, likely later this month, for final approval. The money will only flow if Halifax secures the bid.\nRead more about:", "HALIFAX — Jean Chretien has ignored a letter from Nova Scotia’s lobbyist registrar asking if he lobbied the premier about a port proposal during a recent closed-door session that drew a citizen complaint.\nThe registrar of lobbyists, Hayley Clarke, asked the former prime minister about a March 21 meeting in Halifax with Premier Stephen McNeil and Transport Minister Geoff MacLellan.\nChretien is an international adviser to Sydney Harbour Investment Partners, which has been seeking investor support for the Cape Breton container port project. Chretien is not a registered lobbyist in Nova Scotia, and both McNeil and MacLellan denied he lobbied them or discussed the port project.\nFollowing a complaint from a retired union activist, Clarke sent Chretien a letter providing information about the province’s lobbying act, and asked for a response by the end of April.\n“We ask they (Chretien) review their activities to ensure compliance and provide a response advising as to the results of their review within 30 days,” says a March 29 letter to the complainant, John McCracken.\nNo response came, Clarke’s spokesperson told The Canadian Press.\n“There has been no response to the Nova Scotia’s Registrar of Lobbyists inquiry of the Hon. Jean Chretien following a complaint received from a member of the public,” Marla MacInnis said.\nThe Canadian Press sent written requests to Chretien and to an associate who often arranges media interviews but received no response.\nDuff Conacher, the co-founder of Democracy Watch, said Chretien needs to clear up the issue before he resumes conversations with politicians in the province.\n“He should be showing and documenting that he has not crossed the line that the law establishes that requires registration. If he’s not going to show the registrar, then the police should give him a call,” said Conacher.\nMcCracken said Chretien’s lack of response demonstrates that Nova Scotia’s lobbying law is “toothless.”\nHe said his only option now would be to take his complaint about Chretien to the police, a move that he’s contemplating.\n“It confirms everything I predicted at the time when I got my response from the registrar, which was that they (the registrar) were going to contact him and he (Chretien) was going to laugh in their face,” he said in an interview.\nThe day before the meeting, Chretien had attended a conference in Sydney and told reporters about his role as an international adviser to Sydney Harbour Investment Partners.\nWhen a Cape Breton Post reporter asked Chretien how he’d market the Sydney container port to the premier, the former prime minister said he felt the premier would be in favour of a provincewide approach to container ports.\n“He (McNeil) said, ‘He’s for the development and he wants development in Nova Scotia,’ and he’s the premier of all Nova Scotia. And there always competition between one city and another. But all the cities in Nova Scotia are in Nova Scotia, but he is the premier of Nova Scotia.”\nThe provincial Liberal government has been cautious about the Sydney proposal, as a 2016 study prepared for the province and the federal Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency recommended against public money for a terminal that would compete against the Halifax port.\nAs the interview continued, Chretien was asked if the province should invest money in the container port proposal, and he replied: “I hope so.”\nWhen asked about another project along the Strait of Canso trying to develop a port, Chretien replied, “So what? I’m working for Sydney. I’m not working for them.”\nClarke has previously made clear there was little she could do to probe what had occurred.\n“The role of the Registrar of Lobbyists is to administer the Registry of Lobbyists. The Registrar is not an enforcement agent,” MacInnis confirmed in an email to The Canadian Press.\nA number of other provincial jurisdictions, including Ontario, and the federal commissioner of lobbying can probe citizen complaints and recommend police investigations.\nConacher said in an interview that he’d encourage McCracken to bring the media reports regarding Chretien’s actions to the attention of police.\n“He can say ‘There’s this story, and there’s this law, can you please check into what the (former) prime minister’s been doing,”‘ he said.\nConacher said in most jurisdictions, commissioners do an investigation and bring the matter to police if it’s considered a crime was potentially committed. He said Nova Scotia should set up a similar system.\n“They often do the front-line investigation that police don’t have time to do,” he said.\nNova Scotia legislation provides for a fine of not more than $25,000 for anyone who lobbies without registering first.\nMcCracken said he would have been content had Chretien registered as a lobbyist after his complaint, and agreed to follow the rules of lobbyists going forward.\nThese include requirements such as documenting if he has lobbied provincial politicians or government agencies on behalf of his client.\nNova Scotia’s lobbyist registration law says lobbying includes communicating with a public servant “in an attempt to influence” the awarding of a contribution on behalf of government.\nOne of the definitions of a lobbyist under the Nova Scotia law is “an individual paid to lobby on behalf of a client.”\nA person who does this is required to disclose their name, address and the name of the company they’re lobbying on behalf of, and the “subject matter” of their lobbying and who they’ve contacted.", "Swimruns are now a firm fixture in the adventure race calendar: over the coming months there’s Breca Buttermere in the Lake District, LoveSwimRun in Snowdonia, Ötillö’s Isles of Scilly race, and many more.\nBut you don’t have to head to the hills or remote coastlines to experience this fusion of trail running and open-water swimming. Swimruns are now popping up in more accessible urban areas, with shorter (and cheaper) courses, appealing to both newcomers and the experienced alike. On a chilly and drizzly evening last week, I took part in a one such swimrun around south-west London’s Tooting Common and in Tooting Bec lido.\nMaking a splash: cold water swimming Read more\nThe event was organised by South London Swimming Club, along with events promoter Total Motion. The club’s Mandy Worsley explained: “We wanted to create an exciting new event so that swimmers and runners – and especially younger people – in the city could experience this fast growing endurance sport.”\nThe sprint course consisted of 1km of swimming and just under 9km running. This was split into four swims and four runs of differing lengths, with competitors alternating between the two disciplines.\nAs with all swimruns, the same outfit was worn throughout the race – you remained in your wetsuit during the runs and kept trainers on for the swim. Pull buoys, hand paddles and even flippers were allowed, but the one rule was that you had to finish the race with every piece of equipment you started with.\nEvents in more extreme areas insist on teams of two – both for safety reasons and an ethos of encouraging each other. Smaller events such as Tooting allow solo entrants, although around half of the 50 competitors were in teams.\nThe mass start swim was a bit of scrum, with the added danger of being kicked with a trainer or smacked on the head by someone’s paddle. But the 90-metre pool soon spread out the field, with the more experienced powering ahead with their paddles.\nFacebook Twitter Pinterest Goggles up for the run.\nIt was then a quick climb out and, with no complicated transition other than twisting your pull buoy from between the legs, straight into the running. To begin with I felt ridiculous running through the park in a tight wetsuit, swimming hat and goggles still on my head. Not surprisingly there were plenty of bemused looks from dog walkers and people out for their evening stroll, but soon enough I was just concentrating on the race.\nApproaching the pool for the second swim, the pace was broken by stepping through a shoe dip, ensuring only clean trainers entered the pool.\nNot surprisingly there were plenty of bemused looks from dog walkers and people out for their evening stroll\nAnd so the race continued. I managed to do some overtaking on the swim sections, but was then passed on the running, going past them again in the pool. I noticed some competitors were wearing swimrun-specific wetsuits with different thicknesses of neoprene, zips at the front and even a whistle. But there was also a motley collection of tri-suits and battered old wetsuits with the legs cut down. For newcomers to the sport, the cheapish summer models sold by the likes of Decathlon are perfect, as these are thin enough to allow enough flexibility and movement to run in.\nLikewise, there are special swimrun shoes which drain quickly and have grippy soles – but for an urban run, regular trainers with a trail sole are fine. A wise investment, though, is a good pair of socks so as to prevent blisters when running with wet feet.\nMost competitors finished the course in under an hour and a quarter (the winner took 58 minutes), and there was an excited buzz after the race.\nPatricia Richardson, a swimrun veteran and finalist in the prestigious Ötillö, found it “fabulous” and a good training exercise. Chatting to members of south London’s Windrush triathlon club, all of whom were new to the sport, the biggest surprise had been in the transition.\nClub member Laura Addis said: “Compared with triathlons, there was no stress of a transition where you have to get changed as fast as you can. However, there was also no let up, cardiovascularly, which made it really tough. As soon as you were out of the water you had to run hard.”\nThis short swimrun had done its job in preparing the group for planned future events, with a number realising they needed trail shoes with better grips, plus more practice running in a wetsuit.\nA list of swimrun events be found on the Outdoor Swimmer website.", "Have a go at Draycote Water\nArrow Valley Country Park, near Redditch, was the venue for the final of the national inter club competition – the Yvette Baker Trophy. The team of young and enthusiastic 26 juniors in ages ranging from 7 to 17 years competed on some challenging orienteering courses around the park and wooded areas and for many it was their first-time racing for the club at this level.\nSouth Yorkshire were the winners with 889 points, West Cumbria 2nd 868 points, Bristol 856 and Octavian Droobers 850. The nine scorers from the club were: Felix Lunn 93 and Sam Leadley 92 points on the Green Men’s course, only 5 seconds separating them on their run, Florence Lunn 97 and Tabitha Lunn 93 on the Light Green course Women’s course, Nathan Chapple 96 and Luke Cherry 93 on the Light Green Men’s course, Josie Smart 97 on the Orange Women’s course, David Knott 93 on the Orange Men’s course and Henry Jeffries 96 points on the Yellow Men’s course.\nSutton Park Gates Run and Orienteering Course Results\nFelix Lunn M16 was the fastest club member on the 8 miles challenge run around Sutton Park, visiting al the Park Gates in a time of 63.55mins. On the orienteering courses, arranged by City of Birmingham Orienteering Club, around the park, club members won all three courses: Max Straube-Roth was the winner of the Short Yellow 1.9km course in 34mins. Anup Das M35 won the Orange 2.9km course in 29.41mins and Nathan Lawson M21 was first on the Long, Light Green 4.2km course in 25.12mins.\nHalifax Urban Race\nChris McCartney was 2nd on the 3.3km course around Halifax in 23.56mins, Peter Carey was 3rd on the 1.7km course in 16.41mins and Sheila Carey 2nd in 17.50mins on the 1.7km course.\nNext Events\nThe next cross-country trail navigating events take place at Burton Dassett Country Park on Sunday 8th July with starts from 10am until 12.30pm and at Draycote Water, Dunchurch on Wednesday, 11th July, with starts from 6 until 7.30pm. No need to pre-book, just turn up. Courses will use the park and woodlands areas and range from 2km for beginners and up to 8km for experienced orienteers. Competitors will be looking for control points, using a specially drawn map and electronic timer, a bit like a treasure hunt on the run. All ages, 5 – 85 years, especially families will be welcome to try this fun outdoor active sport. Help is given to all newcomers, bring a compass if you have one. Full details are on www.octavian-droobers.org website or contact each event organiser.", "Michael Tutton, THE CANADIAN PRESS\nHALIFAX -- Jean Chretien has ignored a letter from Nova Scotia's lobbyist registrar asking if he lobbied the premier about a port proposal during a recent closed-door session that drew a citizen complaint.\nThe registrar of lobbyists, Hayley Clarke, asked the former prime minister about a March 21 meeting in Halifax with Premier Stephen McNeil and Transport Minister Geoff MacLellan.\nChretien is an international adviser to Sydney Harbour Investment Partners, which has been seeking investor support for the Cape Breton container port project. Chretien is not a registered lobbyist in Nova Scotia, and both McNeil and MacLellan denied he lobbied them or discussed the port project.\nFollowing a complaint from a retired union activist, Clarke sent Chretien a letter providing information about the province's lobbying act, and asked for a response by the end of April.\n\"We ask they (Chretien) review their activities to ensure compliance and provide a response advising as to the results of their review within 30 days,\" says a March 29 letter to the complainant, John McCracken.\nNo response came, Clarke's spokesperson told The Canadian Press.\n\"There has been no response to the Nova Scotia's Registrar of Lobbyists inquiry of the Hon. Jean Chretien following a complaint received from a member of the public,\" Marla MacInnis said.\nThe Canadian Press sent written requests to Chretien and to an associate who often arranges media interviews but received no response.\nDuff Conacher, the co-founder of Democracy Watch, said Chretien needs to clear up the issue before he resumes conversations with politicians in the province.\n\"He should be showing and documenting that he has not crossed the line that the law establishes that requires registration. If he's not going to show the registrar, then the police should give him a call,\" said Conacher.\nMcCracken said Chretien's lack of response demonstrates that Nova Scotia's lobbying law is \"toothless.\"\nHe said his only option now would be to take his complaint about Chretien to the police, a move that he's contemplating.\n\"It confirms everything I predicted at the time when I got my response from the registrar, which was that they (the registrar) were going to contact him and he (Chretien) was going to laugh in their face,\" he said in an interview.\nThe day before the meeting, Chretien had attended a conference in Sydney and told reporters about his role as an international adviser to Sydney Harbour Investment Partners.\nWhen a Cape Breton Post reporter asked Chretien how he'd market the Sydney container port to the premier, the former prime minister said he felt the premier would be in favour of a provincewide approach to container ports.\n\"He (McNeil) said, 'He's for the development and he wants development in Nova Scotia,' and he's the premier of all Nova Scotia. And there always competition between one city and another. But all the cities in Nova Scotia are in Nova Scotia, but he is the premier of Nova Scotia.\"\nThe provincial Liberal government has been cautious about the Sydney proposal, as a 2016 study prepared for the province and the federal Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency recommended against public money for a terminal that would compete against the Halifax port.\nAs the interview continued, Chretien was asked if the province should invest money in the container port proposal, and he replied: \"I hope so.\"\nWhen asked about another project along the Strait of Canso trying to develop a port, Chretien replied, \"So what? I'm working for Sydney. I'm not working for them.\"\nClarke has previously made clear there was little she could do to probe what had occurred.\n\"The role of the Registrar of Lobbyists is to administer the Registry of Lobbyists. The Registrar is not an enforcement agent,\" MacInnis confirmed in an email to The Canadian Press.\nA number of other provincial jurisdictions, including Ontario, and the federal commissioner of lobbying can probe citizen complaints and recommend police investigations.\nConacher said in an interview that he'd encourage McCracken to bring the media reports regarding Chretien's actions to the attention of police.\n\"He can say 'There's this story, and there's this law, can you please check into what the (former) prime minister's been doing,\"' he said.\nConacher said in most jurisdictions, commissioners do an investigation and bring the matter to police if it's considered a crime was potentially committed. He said Nova Scotia should set up a similar system.\n\"They often do the front-line investigation that police don't have time to do,\" he said.\nNova Scotia legislation provides for a fine of not more than $25,000 for anyone who lobbies without registering first.\nMcCracken said he would have been content had Chretien registered as a lobbyist after his complaint, and agreed to follow the rules of lobbyists going forward.\nThese include requirements such as documenting if he has lobbied provincial politicians or government agencies on behalf of his client.\nNova Scotia's lobbyist registration law says lobbying includes communicating with a public servant \"in an attempt to influence\" the awarding of a contribution on behalf of government.\nOne of the definitions of a lobbyist under the Nova Scotia law is \"an individual paid to lobby on behalf of a client.\"\nA person who does this is required to disclose their name, address and the name of the company they're lobbying on behalf of, and the \"subject matter\" of their lobbying and who they've contacted.", "The market for cryptocurrency is booming in a way the world has never seen before. Bitcoin and ether tokens have turned early buyers into millionaires. Now hedge funds are getting in on the blockchain game. Forbes reported there are now well over 15 hedge funds managing digital assets and cryptocurrency investments, including Polychain Capital, which manages assets worth $200 million and was founded by former Coinbase employee Olaf Carlson-Wee.\nSource: Shutterstock\nThat’s great for uber rich people who were already making tons of money. But will it have any impact for the rest of us? Yes, actually. It is a big deal, especially for young people trying to figure out how to make their future financially secure. This trend could push up bitcoin prices and other tokens of its ilk in the short term, making it harder for average Joes to get involved with blockchain tender.\nHowever, in the long run, this shift could push cryptocurrency to be more reliable and accessible for everybody, boosting the digital newcomer to become a real alternative to banks and paper money.\nBrian Kelly, of Brian Kelly Capital Management in New York, told International Business Times he’s seen a surge in investor demand for cryptocurrency options. His fund now offers options to buy a variety of tokens, like Zcash, XRP and Litecoin, plus initial coin offering opportunities, aka fundraising campaigns by tech companies. According to Nick Tomaino’s The Control, ICOs have already raised more than $1.2 billion worth of capital since May 1.\n“Over the next year or two, there’s going to be a wall of investor money coming into the space,” Kelly said. “That will absolutely have an impact on [currencies’] price.” In his opinion, this move represents a “stamp of approval” from established financial power players.\nThis could make it easier to imagine a broader cultural shift to mainstream cryptocurrency adoption. Instead of a savings account in a bank, maybe within the next few decades millennials will rely on bitcoin retirement funds or college savings for their kids.\n“The demand for that [tokenized assets] is coming from the millennial generation,” Kelly said. “Everybody talks about emerging markets being the unbanked, the African continent, a lot of people are doing work on the unbanked there. But you have a whole group of millennials, even here in the US, that are becoming voluntarily unbanked. They don’t want traditional banking services. They want this new type of financial system.”\nThe world of blockchain currency, from bitcoin the Ethereum, is fueled by an ideology that fits well with millennial values: Decentralized control instead of corporate power and digital identities with extra privacy plus mobile access. Kelly likened the crypto boom to the rise of internet companies in the 1990s. He said the next global tech leader, like Google or Facebook, will soon emerge from the cryptocurrency ecosystem.\nThis industry push isn’t limited to American and European investors. Roberto Ponce Romay, the former Bain senior manager who recently founded Crypto Assets Fund in Latin America, told IBT that investors in countries like Colombia, Peru and Mexico are also taking note of cryptocurrency opportunities.\n“I will say it’s growing, but especially in Argentina, because they had a problem in the past when it was hard to take out US dollars,” Romay said. “They are looking at cryptocurrency more because they want to make an investment, to protect their wealth. It’s booming.”\nSo Crypto Assets Fund is starting out with a simple strategy, helping investors make a diverse portfolio with bitcoin, ether, Zcash, Litecoin, XRP and a few others. “The idea is to buy and hold,” he said. Later on this year, the hedge fund will expand to include more ICO and trading opportunities too.\nNext Page", "JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) – The U.S. Coast Guard in Alaska says it’s searching for a fishing boat with six people that’s been missing in the Bering Sea for more than a day.\nAn agency news release on Sunday afternoon says ships and aircraft have looked through the night for the 98-foot-long F/V Destination. The boat had six people on it and is owned by a company based in Seattle, Petty Officer 3rd Class Lauren Steenson said.\nThe vessel’s electronic locating device was recovered Saturday morning in a debris field containing buoys, a life ring and an oil sheen.\nSteenson said the Coast Guard doesn’t yet know the cause of the boat’s disappearance or whether anyone survived.\nPeople on the small island of St. George are looking along the shore for any signs of the crew. The Coast Guard didn’t say how many members were aboard or immediately respond to a call seeking more information.\nThe agency says the water temperature is 38 degrees.", "* STOXX down 0.1 pct, but set for best week since December\n* UBS rallies as wealth management turnaround pleases\n* But Barclays hit after missing out on trading boom\n* Gemalto profit warning hammers shares\n* BAML ups STOXX target, sees 2017 earning up 15 pct (Adds details, updates prices)\nBy Danilo Masoni\nMILAN, April 28 European shares eased on Friday as investors took profits at the end of a strong week with earnings in focus as political worries subsided, while UBS soared after a profit beat.\nThe STOXX 600 index was down 0.1 percent by 0816 GMT, adding to the previous session's losses, while Britain's FTSE was down 0.3 percent and France's CAC was flat.\nUBS rallied 2.6 percent to a three-month high as a long-awaited turnaround in its core wealth management business helped Switzerland's biggest bank deliver its second-best start to a year since the financial crisis.\n\"The key highlight is a great recovery in the most important wealth management,\" Baader Helvea analyst Tomasz Grzelak said. \"This well needed development will significantly lower investor concerns about the key UBS’s growth engine.\"\nBut British rival Barclays fell 4.2 percent after its investment bank missed out on a bond trading boom that saw earnings surge at its Wall Street rivals, even though its first quarter profit more than doubled.\nFrench drugmaker Sanofi rose 2.1 percent after it reported higher-than-expected first-quarter profits, buoyed by its speciality care division Genzyme, vaccines and consumer products acquired from Germany's Boehringer Ingelheim.\nGemalto fell by as much as 23 percent, making it the biggest faller on the STOXX after the Dutch digital security firm cut its 2017 profit forecast due to slow adoption of chip-enabled payment cards in the United States.\nEarning also drove price action for other top STOXX movers.\nFrench tele-services provider Teleperformance surged more than 7 percent to an all-time high following better than expected results, while aluminium producer Norsk Hydro fell 6.3 percent after posting first-quarter results below forecast across all divisions.\nDespite Friday's weakness, the pan-European index is set to end the week up 2.4 percent - its strongest week since December - and close to a 20-month high hit on Wednesday as fresh money poured into the region's equities on the back of the market friendly outcome of the first round of France's presidential election.\nStrategist at Bank of America Merrill Lynch raised their target for the STOXX to 420 points and said they expected European earnings growing 15 percent this year, adding to growing broker optimism about prospects for the region's stocks. (Reporting by Danilo Masoni; Editing by Angus MacSwan)", "CTV Atlantic\nThe latest storm to slam into the Maritimes has created huge delays and backlogs across the region, especially with travel and medical care. The process of getting caught up began today, and is expected to carry on for days, in some cases, weeks to come.\nAt Halifax Stanfield International Airport, arrival and departure screens are lit up in orange and red, with many fatigued and frustrated passengers walking the halls.\nBrenda Armstrong has spent three days and lots of money trying to get to Yarmouth from Edmonton; her son-in-law has been stranded in a Halifax hotel since Sunday.\n“He came to Halifax on Sunday, trying to get ahead of the storm so that he could bring us home, but he’s had to stay in a hotel here for two nights, because he couldn’t get back,” says Armstrong.\nThe blizzard piled up snow where aircraft pull up to the terminal, and they’re still clearing it away, trying to open up more gates.\nAirport managers were not available to speak on-camera Tuesday, but they are calling it a “recovery day,” meaning things won’t return to normal until Wednesday.\nAt Halifax’s IWK Hospital, many staff members have stayed in the building over the last couple of days.\n“We got about 60 - 70% of our surgeries done in both children’s and women’s on Monday and today,” says Dr. Krista Jangaard, VP of Medicine at the IWK.\nAmbulatory clinics were cancelled yesterday and today.\n“We usually have 950 – 1,000 ambulatory visits, we don’t know exactly how many will have to be re-booked, but we’ll be looking at that the next couple days, and on a priority basis,” says Dr. Jangaard.\nDr. Jangaard said many parents were planning ahead before the storm.\n“Before the storm hit, that 24-hour period on Sunday was our busiest ever time in our pediatric emergency, biggest number of visits,” says Dr. Jangaard.\nNo elective surgeries were performed at other area hospitals over the last two days. Some outpatient clinics were in operation this afternoon, and the surgical schedule is expected to be back to normal tomorrow.\nOver the next few days, staff at hospitals around the province will be reviewing appointment and surgery schedules in an effort to get caught up, but at this point, they say they have no idea how long that will take.\nWith files from CTV Atlantic’s Ron Shaw.", "IN THE FIRST of the day’s two semi-finals Langwith managed to survive a late Derwent rally to qualify for Varsity and gain the right to play Halifax in Sunday’s final to decide who will be the first seed.\nThe beginning of the game was very non-descript with either side creating little in terms of chances. Derwent were missing a number of first-team midfielders, and this showed as the middle of the park had a seemingly infinite amount of space for the Langwith players to operate this. Despite this, the high line of Derwent, particularly first-year David McLaughlan, held firm and allowed Langwith very little chance to create.\nAfter a while though, the defence began to give way and get pinned back into their half with any opportunity for a counter-attack nullified by the Derwent attack wandering too far forward while the rest of the team were digging out.\nInevitably, the defence made a mistake, and after a Derwent defender took a swing at a clearance and mishit it, Langwith’s forwards did not need a second chance: seizing upon this opportunity to hit home to make it 1-0 with 15 minutes on the clock.\nOskar Fossberg tried to reply with a hit from 25-yards out which just didn’t stay on target despite being well-hit. This chance preceded a sustained period of Langwith possession resulting in a spectacular double-save from Derwent goalkeeper Josh Todd which, unfortunately, would be his last contribution of the game as he injured himself in the process.\nAfter a lengthy delay waiting for the backup ‘keeper to return from a trip to the facilities, the game got underway again as the clock edged towards the half but not before Matt Nevis narrowly missed a snapshot which would’ve brought the teams level and Langwith scored a great goal from far out to double their advantage at the advent of the first half.\nThe first exchanges of the second half followed the example of the first with a non-existent Derwent midfield allowing a newly potent Langwith attack to probe the ball for large periods of time. But it wasn’t a scintillating display of football that lead to the third Langwith goal, a communication error between David McLaughlan and the Derwent reserve keeper resulted in the former kicking the ball from the hands of the latter which again allowed the Langwith attack to poke the ball home from no range.\nThe third Langwith goal was a sucker-punch for a rapidly improving Derwent but this did not stop them in their pursuit of goals, and this search turned successful as Oskar Fossberg scored a peach of a free-kick from outside the box to get Derwent on the scoresheet.\nThis brilliant goal seemingly gave Derwent impetus and helped the push for a second which was duly delivered by Carlton who slotted home low into the net with five minutes remaining. But that was all that was left for Derwent with not enough time remaining to grab an equaliser before the referee brought proceedings to a close.\nThis late rally, however, impressed Derwent AFC president, Will Leafe: “It was a valiant effort. It was a great improvement in the second half, and it’s a shame we didn’t equalise.”\nLangwith now go on to this month’s Varsity tournament but will sooner look to tomorrow’s final with Halifax before the competition gets underway on the 25th February.", "Speaking to a cheering crowd about the Clean Power Plan in Alabama last month, Trump suggested the legislation was as good as dead. “Did you see what I did to that? Boom, gone,” he said. (Aaron Bernstein/Reuters)\nPresident Donald Trump’s administration is taking a significant step to scrap the Clean Power Plan that aims to reduce power plant emissions, following through on the president’s repeated vows to repeal the Obama-era anti-pollution policy.\nThe Environmental Protection Agency soon will issue a “proposal to repeal” the Clean Power Plan, The New York Times and Reuters reported Wednesday, citing an internal EPA document. The EPA intends to develop a replacement rule “similarly intended to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from existing fossil-fueled electric utility generating units,” according to the agency document. The EPA will seek recommendations from the public about possible replacements, the document adds.\nTrump has repeatedly condemned the Clean Power Plan, calling it “stupid” and a “crushing attack on American industry.” In March, he signed an executive order demanding that the EPA review the policy.\nAs Vox explained, the Clean Power Plan can only be repealed if a new rule-making process is undertaken. That process, however, could take “years,” Janet McCabe, who was head of the EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation during former President Barack Obama’s tenure, told Reuters.\nThat timeline contradicts Trump’s declaration last month t hat the policy was already as good as dead. “Did you see what I did to that? Boom, gone,” he told a cheering crowd in Alabama, referring to the Clean Power Plan.\nThe EPA has taken an initial step toward overturning an Obama-era climate change initiative, the Clean Power Plan https://t.co/iexXzk1Mvepic.twitter.com/B7OAqRRPTE — NYT Politics (@nytpolitics) October 4, 2017\nThe Clean Power Plan was hailed as the strongest action ever taken by a U.S. president to combat climate change when it was unveiled in 2015. Despite the support of scientists and environmentalists, the policy has had no shortage of opponents.\nMore than two dozen states challenged the Clean Power Plan in court, prompting the Supreme Court to temporarily block it. The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals had set a deadline for Friday to hear from the EPA on how it plans to move forward with the policy.\nThe Clean Power Plan, which aims to cut greenhouse gas emissions from power plants by 32 percent by 2030, was widely seen as the most important tool in the federal government’s arsenal to helping the U.S. meet its Paris Climate Agreement goals and a centerpiece of Obama’s anti-pollution policies.\nTrump announced in May that the U.S. would withdraw from the global climate deal. The U.S. is only one of three countries not in the accord.", "Standing on the rear deck of the Canadian warship HMCS St. John’s, Howard Shillingford shook his head as he recalled the sound hurricane Maria made when the Category 5 storm descended on his retirement home on the tiny island of Dominica.\n“The hurricane was like the devil himself,” Shillingford, a longtime resident of Newmarket, Ont., said Thursday after he and his wife Rosemary boarded the frigate in Halifax harbour to thank the crew for rescuing them last week from the devastated Caribbean island.\nREAD MORE: Halifax-based HMCS St. John’s coming home from hurricane relief efforts\nShillingford, who was born in Dominica and is now a dual citizen, said he’ll never forget the eerie howling of Maria as she tore the roof off the couple’s house in the mountains near Giraudel.\n“It talks to you. It teases you. Comes and goes. And the noise. When the roof was leaving it was like a machine gun,” he said, describing the sound the rafters made as nails were pulled from the wood. “Dat! Dat! Dat! Dat! Dat!”\n“It was so powerful that the leaves from the trees were stuck on the wall. And when you pulled them off, it took the paint off.”\nAs the front door was blown open and the rain poured in through a gaping hole in the ceiling, the couple retreated to their bathroom with their cat.\n“It was relentless,” Rosemary Shillingford said. “The noise never stopped for nine hours.”\nBack in Canada, their daughter, Marlene, had reached out to federal government to determine if they could be airlifted to safety.\nAlmost a week later, on Sept. 24, a Sea King helicopter from the Halifax-based warship touched down in a nearby ball field and carried the couple to Dominica’s airport, where a Royal Canadian Air Force C-130 Hercules aircraft carried them to a waiting airliner in Barbados.\n“When the helicopter came, that was the best day ever,” Howard Shillingford said.\nREAD MORE: Halifax-based HMCS St. John’s loaded with Irma relief supplies, headed to Caribbean\nThe couple, who have been visiting Dominica for the past 25 years, eventually made their way to Halifax, where their daughter works as a chief warrant officer at nearby Canadian Forces Base Shearwater.\n“We want to say thank you to the Canadian Armed Forces,” Marlene Shillingford said. “Without them, they’d still be stuck on the island.”\nThe three were among dozens of family and friends who greeted the ship when it pulled into port under bright sunshine after a month-long humanitarian and disaster-relief mission.\nIn early September, the ship sailed to South Caicos, where the 230-member crew helped clear debris, completed electrical repairs and delivered fresh water. The island was heavily damaged on Sept. 7 by hurricane Irma, a Category 5 storm that churned out winds clocked at 281 kilometres per hour.\nHowever, the ship had to leave the island after almost a week when hurricane Maria arrived. The ship’s captain, Cmdr. Gord Noseworthy, had planned to return to South Caicos but the vessel was diverted to Dominica because the need for immediate help was critical.\nWATCH: Halifax-based drone company to lend helping hand following Hurricane Irma\nThe ship’s crew again helped clear debris, deliver water and repair generators. And its Sea King crews rescued a number of other Canadians and locals stranded in more remote parts of the island.\n“It was obvious that we were in a life-saving situation,” Noseworthy said. “The entire island is pretty much decimated … It will be quite a while before they recover from this traumatic event.”\nAs of Thursday, the island of 71,000 people remains largely paralyzed by a lack of water, electricity and communications. According to published reports, the hurricane left 27 people dead and damaged or destroyed 90 per cent of its buildings.\nNoseworthy said the decision to leave the region was based on the fact that power had been restored to the island’s airport and the capital, Roseau.\n“It wasn’t a decision that was taken lightly,” he said, adding that Roseau was in a “self-sufficient state” now that various agencies and non-government organizations were on the ground providing key supplies.\n“I’m confident that the locals are well looked after with the NGOs and the various other organizations in that area.”\nAs for the Shillingford’s, Howard said he plans to return after Christmas to sell the house.\n“I don’t want to live there anymore,” he said. “No way.”", "WWE Live tours through South Africa this April\nJOHANNESBURG, South Africa and STAMFORD, Conn. — WWE Live comes to South Africa this April with Live Events in Cape Town, Johannesburg and, for the first time, Pretoria. Tickets are available starting Wednesday, 13 December, at 9 a.m. local time, from www.bigconcerts.co.za and www.computicket.com.\nThe WWE Live South Africa Tour begins at the Grand Arena, GrandWest, Cape Town on Wednesday, 18 April, before debuting at the Sun Arena, Time Square, Pretoria, on Friday, 20 April. The tour concludes at the Ticketpro Dome in Johannesburg on Saturday, 21 April.\nWWE’s family-friendly Live Events will feature Raw Superstars Braun Strowman, Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose, Roman Reigns, Alexa Bliss, Sasha Banks, Asuka, Raw Tag Team Champions Cesaro & Sheamus, and many more.*\n“Following the overwhelming demand from our fans in South Africa, we are excited to return to Cape Town and Johannesburg, and bring WWE Live to Pretoria for the first time,” said Stefan Kastenmüller, Senior Vice President & General Manager, WWE Africa, Europe & Emerging Markets. “WWE fans in South Africa can look forward to spectacular, non-stop, family-friendly entertainment featuring their favorite WWE Superstars.”\nWWE Live South Africa is promoted by Big Concerts and presented in partnership with SuperSport, Africa’s premier sports broadcaster, that airs WWE programming in more than 50 countries and territories throughout sub-Saharan Africa. SuperSport channels S3, S4, S9 and SS10 televise Raw on Tuesdays and SmackDown Live on Wednesdays, offering both live telecasts and same-day re-airs, and broadcasts all WWE specials live, including WrestleMania, SummerSlam, Survivor Series and Royal Rumble.\nDon’t miss your chance to see your favorite WWE Superstars this April. Get your tickets starting Wednesday, 13 December.\n*Talent referenced and depicted are subject to change.\nHonored and grateful for #GoldenGlobes nomination of @FerdinandMovie...The story of a BIG Bull with a BIG message of being yourself and being PROUD of who you are. — John Cena (@JohnCena) December 11, 2017\nBig News on a Crazy Brock Lesnar Feud, \"Broken\" Hardy Plans for WWE RAW Revealed, Vince McMahon Upset with WWE Newcomer, New GIFs & Galleries, More\n- As noted, tonight's new episode of WWE Ride Along on the WWE Network will feature Lana & Rusev in one car and Tyler Breeze & Fandango in the other. Below is a preview with Breezango:- WWE announced the following on the next South American tour to take place in April 2018:- New animated movie \"Ferdinand\" with John Cena has been nominated for two Golden Globes awards - Best Animated Feature Film and Best Original Song. The movie hits theaters this coming Friday and Cena has been on an international promotional tour for the past week or so. Cena tweeted the following on the nominations:Follow Marc on Twitter at @this_is_marc . Send any news, tips or corrections to us by clicking here", "Thursday, 15 June, 2017 - 12:22\nFinance Minister Steven Joyce has welcomed the OECD’s latest review of the New Zealand economy as outlined in a report released today.\n\"The 2017 OECD Survey of New Zealand notes New Zealand’s strong economic growth off the back of a booming tourism market, strong net inward migration, solid construction activity and supportive monetary policy,\" Mr Joyce says.\nThe report is also positive about New Zealand’s sound fiscal position with low public debt and a balanced budget.\n\"The report highlights that New Zealand outperforms most OECD economies in regards to our standard of living, health status, the quality of our education system and our overall environmental quality.\nIt shows that New Zealand’s labour market is performing strongly with high levels of employment and relatively strong real wage growth since the Global Financial Crisis. New Zealand also has one of the lowest gender pay gaps in the whole of the OECD.\"\nThe OECD makes recommendations under three key themes, making growth more sustainable and greener, improving productivity, and adapting to the changing labour market.\n\"The report is consistent with the government’s economic policy direction, with our strong focus through the Business Growth Agenda on increasing our international connections, encouraging more international investment, improving environmental outcomes, lifting the level of business research and development, and training young people in the skills needed for the modern world, especially in fields like engineering and ICT.\"\n\"One of the OECD’s recommendations is adding debt-to-income limits to the Reserve Bank’s macro-prudential toolkit with attention to satisfying a cost benefit analysis,\" Mr Joyce says. \"Last week the Reserve Bank released its consultation document on that proposal, and I am looking forward seeing the responses to it.\"\nThe OECD also recommend bringing forward the age of eligibility for Superannuation increase, lengthening the transition period, and indexing the pension age to life expectancy.\n\"The Government is confident its existing plans for adjusting superannuation policy strike the right balance between ensuring sustainability of the scheme and providing time for current generations of working New Zealanders to respond to any change.\"\nMr Joyce said the OECD report will be helpful in assisting New Zealand policymakers to respond to current and emerging economic issues.\n\"It is always good to have our thinking tested by international agencies like the OECD. While we don’t always agree with the OECD’s proposed policy response, it is encouraging to see that government agencies and the OECD broadly aligned on the future opportunities and challenges facing the New Zealand economy.\"", "A man looks at his mobile phone at a shopping district in Taipei, Taiwan May 27, 2016. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu/File Photo\nFILE PHOTO: People work on the assembly line at the Giant bicycle factory in Taichung April 16, 2008. REUTERS/Pichi Chuang/File Photo\nTAIPEI Taiwan reported solid first-quarter economic growth on Friday as strong global demand for components for the new iPhone and other electronic gadgets keep Asia's hi-tech factories humming.\nThe trade-reliant economy expanded for the fourth quarter in a row as export orders surged, and could pick up more momentum in coming quarters as vendors gear up for Apple Inc's (AAPL.O) launch of the iPhone 8 later in the year.\nThe island's gross domestic product (GDP) rose 2.56 percent in January-March from a year earlier, easing from 2.88 percent in the previous three months but still expanding a bit faster than expected.\nAnalysts polled by Reuters had seen growth of 2.45 percent.\n\"The data has exceeded our forecast...The government has room to raise its 2017 full-year target from 1.92 percent currently,\" said Hsu Kuo-an, an analyst of Capital Securities in Taipei.\n\"The question is, will it be raised higher than 2 percent, as many institutions are expecting?\"\nCapital Economics said after the data that full-year growth could accelerate to 3 percent this year.\nTaiwan posted strong exports in the first quarter \"based on a global economic recovery, price rebounds for global commodities and continued strong semiconductor demand,\" the statistics agency said in a statement.\nOn a seasonally adjusted quarterly revised (SAQR) basis, the economy grew 0.72 percent in the March quarter from 0.45 percent in the December quarter, the agency said.\nA number of new tech product launches this year bode well for companies and economies in the global electronics supply chain.\nChina, Japan, South Korea and Singapore have also reported a rebound in exports in recent months, often led by electronics from cutting-edge memory chips to hard drives and flat screens.\nBut analysts cautioned Taiwan's economy remains highly reliant on external demand, and it remains to be seen whether the benefits of the export boom will trickle through to domestic consumption.\nTaiwan companies created new jobs at a strong pace in March, a private manufacturing survey showed recently.\nU.S. PROTECTIONIST FEARS STILL A WORRY\nHowever, concerns about a potential rise in U.S. trade protectionism continue to hang over Asia's exporters, though the new Trump administration has taken a somewhat softer line than expected on regional powerhouse China so far.\nTrump stunned South Korea on Friday when he said in an interview with Reuters that would \"renegotiate or terminate\" a free trade pact between the two countries.\nTaiwan's exports surged the most in six years in the first quarter, buoyed by strong demand from China and the United States, its top markets.\nThe government in February raised its 2017 full-year economic growth forecast to 1.92 percent due to more robust global demand.\nIn a bid to boost domestic consumption and make the economy somewhat less lopsided, Taiwan announced a T$882.4 billion (£22.47 billion) stimulus package in March, though the infrastructure spending will be spread over eight years, diluting its impact.\nWith the economic recovery on track, the central bank has left its policy rate steady for three meetings in a row, while keeping an eye on U.S. policy and any impact on exports from a more than 7 percent rise in the local currency so far this year.\nStill, Taiwan is expected to raise interest rates at some point, economists said, especially with the U.S. Federal Reserve embarking on a slow but steady tightening cycle.\nEconomists at ANZ maintained their view that Taiwan's economic conditions are ready for a central bank move as soon as June, predicting it will raise its policy rate by 12.5 basis points to 1.5 percent.\n(Editing by Kim Coghill)", "A new chair has been appointed to lead the Piece Hall Trust as the multi-million pound transformation of the historic building nears completion,\nRoger Marsh OBE will take the reins ahead of its grand reopening on Yorkshire Day - August 1 - this year.\nSince 2013, Mr Marsh has been chair of the Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership (LEP), the public/private sector partnership promoting the Leeds City Region’s interests on a national and international scale.\nHe brings more than 30 years of business recovery, turnaround and insolvency experience to the role and in 2015, was awarded an OBE in the Queen’s birthday honours list for Services to Business and the Economy.\nMr Marsh will replace acting chair, Roger Harvey OBE, who will now take on the role of vice-chair, to head up the executive team which includes the newly-appointed chief executive, Nicky Chance Thompson.\nHe said: “The transformation of The Piece Hall is already attracting significant investment into Halifax and it has the potential to boost the economy across the whole of Calderdale and the wider region.\n“I am incredibly excited at the prospect of working with the trustees and the executive team in shaping a dynamic and sustainable new era for a building that once was at the centre of the world’s woollen trade.\n“The Piece Hall is a complete one-off and, like everyone that has ever walked through its gates, I have fallen in love with its dramatic grandeur and rustic beauty.\n“We are incredibly lucky in Yorkshire to have retained such a significant legacy from our industrial heritage and I’m keen to see The Piece Hall once again play a major role in the economic growth and transformation of the whole region.”\nNicky Chance Thompson, The Piece Hall trustee and chief executive, said Mr Marsh’s calibre was a “terrific boost” for the team.\n“Roger’s knowledge, experience and strong relationships will be invaluable in helping us to achieve our ambition to create a truly exceptional destination that benefits all who live locally and attracts visitors from far and wide,” she said.\n“In the past few months, as we have been searching for the right person to take the role of chair, Roger Harvey, a trustee who has been with the project from the start, has been an energetic and warm acting chair.\n“I am extremely grateful to Roger for taking on the additional responsibilities and supporting us as we prepare to run a fully operational Piece Hall.”\nFunding from the National Lottery and Calderdale Council has made the transformation of the Piece Hall - which will include a state-of-the-art learning and interpretation centre, a new extension and a redesigned piazza, possible.\nThe first chance for the public to explore the building will be Yorkshire Day. On August 1 at 10am the bell will once again ring, echoing the first ever day of business in 1779 and heralding a new chapter for the magnificent Georgian structure.\nTo mark the reopening, a programme of free weekend events called ‘Welcome’, will kick off with Andy Sheppard’s Saxophone Massive on August 18 and close with French aerial spectacular The Enchanted Chandelier from Transe Express on September 2.", "Dutchman forced onto the sidelines until August 2\nLottoNL-Jumbo rider Lars Boom will face a month out of racing after he was suspended by the UCI over an incident at the Tour of Norway in May.\nBoom was disqualified from stage two of the race after video footage showed him lashing out at Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise rider Preben Van Hecke at the head of the peloton.\nVideo of the incident did not give much clue as to the cause of the clash, with Boom riding behind Van Hecke before the Dutchman’s right shoe came out of his pedal.\nBoom then rode up alongside Van Hecke and the two appeared to exchange a few words. After this exchange Boom lashed out at the Belgian rider before riding off.\nBoom apologised for his actions at the time, while his team condemned his behaviour as “unacceptable” and promised that he would face internal disciplinary procedures\nLottoNL-Jumbo announced that their rider would be suspended for a month (July 2 to August 2), meaning that he will miss the GP Cerami and Prudential RideLondon. Boom had also been the team’s reserve rider for the Tour de France, but will now cannot be called upon if one of the team’s initial selections is unable to start.\nThe team has not yet announced when Boom will return to action, although the BinckBank Tour, Tour de Pologne, or Vuelta a España could all yet feature in the 32-year-old’s race calendar for the rest of the year.\nThis isn’t the first time that Boom has found himself at the centre of controversy for his action in a race. In 2017, Boom celebrated winning a stage of the BinckBank Tour with an obscene gesture as he crossed the line in a message to his team management for not selection him for the Vuelta a España.", "Hurricane Irma left behind a trail of devastation in Florida, but it also delivered something mysterious to its shores – a massive Soviet buoy. Some have suggested the Cold War-era relic came from Cuba.\nThe buoy washed onto shore at Dr. Von D. Mizell-Eula Johnson State Park in Dania Beach in the days following Irma, the Orlando Sentinel reported on Thursday.\nAdorned in brownish-orange stripes, the buoy bears the writing saying “Hydrometeorological Service of the USSR” in Russian. It refers to a branch of meteorology involving the study of water in the atmosphere.\nMysterious Soviet buoy surfaces in South Florida https://t.co/uVZEz7N9gzpic.twitter.com/nhiPzBVhOf — Orlando Sentinel (@orlandosentinel) October 5, 2017\nNational Weather Service meteorologist Robert Molleda said that such buoys are often used to measure wave height, as well as weather variables like temperature, humidity, wind speed, wind direction, and atmospheric pressure. Others only report water temperature or water levels to monitor for tsunamis.\nRead more\nThe buoy also bears the inscription saying it has a lifting capacity of 3,000kg (6,600lb).\nAlthough it remains unclear from where the buoy traveled, workers at the state park believe it floated 350 miles (563km) from Cuba, which had close ties with the Soviet Union.\nThat theory has been supported by the US Navy, with a spokeswoman for a division of Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) in Washington, DC, confirming that two of her engineers visited the state park to check it out, because they also thought it may have floated ashore from Cuba.\n“Our guys were just curious,” Roxie Merritt said. “They have a theory that it may have been attached to Cuba; it’s purely speculation.”\nMolleda also said it was likely the buoy came from Cuba, citing weather patterns observed during Irma.\n“In Irma, the storm came from the south-southeast. And in a storm like that, something could get dislodged,” he said. “It could go adrift and easily wind up in Florida.”\nMeanwhile, Harold M. Leich, the Russian Area Specialist of the European Division of the Library of Congress, says his “best guess” is that the buoy wasn't used for weather measuring at all.\nRead more\n“My best guess is the buoy, and probably many others just like it or similar to it, were placed by the Soviets as an aid to navigation for Soviet vessels bringing materials to Cuba or returning back to the USSR,” he said. “In the chaos of the collapse of the USSR in 1991, the infrastructure placed by the Soviets simply remained in Cuba, including this buoy.”\nPark employees noticed the buoy at the same time at Coast Guard officials, as the military branch has an administrative office next to the park's headquarters.\nBill Moore, the park’s maintenance mechanic, said the Coast Guard initially “tried to confiscate” the buoy.\nHowever, Moore managed to retrieve it first, tying a rope around it with a skid-steer loader and dragging it up an embankment to the state park office's parking lot.\nPark officials have since said they are willing to hand over the buoy to the Coast Guard, if it wants it.\n“The thing is still here,” park manager Steven Dale told the Orlando Sentinel.", "Orlando’s home sales dropped off more and home prices rose faster in March from a year earlier than in the state as a whole, raising questions of whether the chill in sales is temporary or long term.\nIn March, home sales for Orange, Seminole, Lake and Osceola counties were down 4.2 percent to 3,056. In metro areas across the state, sales declined in March from a year earlier but slightly less than the drop in Metro Orlando.\nFlorida Realtors Chief Economist Brad O’Connor said a sales dropoff throughout most of the state might reflect how fast-paced the market was a year ago.\n“Single-family home sales were down 3.5 percent year-over-year in March, the largest such drop in over a year – excluding, of course, last September when Irma briefly shut down the housing market,” O’Connor said. “We shouldn’t ignore, however, that March of 2017 was an unusually strong month for closed sales, so from the start, the odds were already stacked against any substantial year-over-year sales growth taking place this March.\nIn Central Florida and throughout the state, the story of the residential real estate market in early spring has been one of shortages with sales down from a year ago.\nO’Connor said next month’s report should be more telling in whether the downturn in sales is “just a blip, or perhaps whether it was the beginning of a very gradual slowdown in sales growth that appears to become more inevitable the longer our statewide housing shortage continues.”\nThe midpoint sales price for regular houses in Orange, Seminole, Lake and Osceola counties in March was $259,900, which was up 9.2 percent from a year earlier. The region’s price gains surpassed the state’s 8.2 percent increase in sales prices from March 2016, according to Florida Realtors.\nmshanklin@orlandosentinel.com or 407-420-5538\nCAPTION The Crossroads of Lake Buena Vista shopping center is set for demolition as part of an I-4 improvement project, meaning dozens of restaurants will have to relocate and the end of destination dining location. The Crossroads of Lake Buena Vista shopping center is set for demolition as part of an I-4 improvement project, meaning dozens of restaurants will have to relocate and the end of destination dining location. CAPTION The Crossroads of Lake Buena Vista shopping center is set for demolition as part of an I-4 improvement project, meaning dozens of restaurants will have to relocate and the end of destination dining location. The Crossroads of Lake Buena Vista shopping center is set for demolition as part of an I-4 improvement project, meaning dozens of restaurants will have to relocate and the end of destination dining location. CAPTION TSA and GOAA K-9 handlers patrol with their explosive-detection dogs at Orlando International Airport, Tuesday, April 10, 2018. Between the two agencies, Orlando International has 20 dogs assigned to the airport, making it one of the busiest airport security dog forces in the U.S. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel) TSA and GOAA K-9 handlers patrol with their explosive-detection dogs at Orlando International Airport, Tuesday, April 10, 2018. Between the two agencies, Orlando International has 20 dogs assigned to the airport, making it one of the busiest airport security dog forces in the U.S. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel) CAPTION Universal has acquired additional acres in Orlando for possible theme park expansion, along with the deed restrictions that once were intended to block construction of rival theme parks there. Universal has acquired additional acres in Orlando for possible theme park expansion, along with the deed restrictions that once were intended to block construction of rival theme parks there. CAPTION The new boom in space-related jobs in Florida is leading companies like Blue Origin, OneWeb and Rocket Crafters to embrace new ways of training employees, especially German-style apprencticeship programs for local students. The new boom in space-related jobs in Florida is leading companies like Blue Origin, OneWeb and Rocket Crafters to embrace new ways of training employees, especially German-style apprencticeship programs for local students. CAPTION Orion Span's commercial space hotel, Aurora Station. Orion Span's commercial space hotel, Aurora Station.", "Our friends at the sister organizations The Miskatonic Institute of Horror Studies and Spectacular Optical have two special events planned for horror fans in Montreal and Toronto this Summer.\nFirst, on July 20th, in Montreal at the Fantasia International Film Festival, The Miskatonic Institute of Horror Studies will host a very special event for Canadian and International horror fans. Michael Ironside. Actor. Cult icon. Legend. Canadian. Will speak with our friend Heather Buckley (producer The Ranger) for an hour about his career. They will speak about his lengthy career and his work with some of the best at what they do directors; David Cronenberg, Tony Scott, Walter Hill and Paul Verhoeven to name a few. It should be an awesome night.\nSpectacular Optical is also at the festival presenting their first ever Barry Convex Award for Best Canadian Feature of Co-Production. Our own Shelagh Rowan-Legg is a member of the Jury for that award this year.\nThen in August, here in Toronto, there will be the first ever Horror Express. The brain child of Spectacular Optical`s artistic director Kier-La Janisse this first ever tour of Toronto`s horror film landmarks will be hosted by another horror afficianado, writer and director Chris Alexander. The tour will conclude at one of our wonderful rep cinemas here in the city, The Royal, with a screening of Toronto-shot Class of 1984. Lisa Langlois (Patsy) will be in attendance at the screening!\nLinks for all the events can be found below in the full press release!\nIn partnership with the Fantasia International Film Festival and the Frontières International Co-Production Market, The Miskatonic Institute of Horror Studies will be presenting a career talk with iconic Canadian cult actor Michael Ironside at the festival on July 20th, moderated by film writer and producer Heather Buckley. To celebrate Fantasia’s screening of Knuckleball, a Frontières project, the Miskatonic Institute is proud to present this career talk with one of the most iconic character actors of our time, and a true legend of the genre film world. Over an hour-long illustrated discussion of the key films, directors and collaborators in his life, Ironside will discuss his many film roles – which includes work with David Cronenberg, Claude Jutra, Jean-Claude Lord, Tony Scott, Walter Hill, James Glickenhaus, Paul Verhoeven, RKSS and more – as well as his origins and approach to acting, how he captures his characters, and his command of voice and physicality.\nMichael Ironside in Conversation Date: Friday July 20 Time: 5:15pm - 6:15pm (plus Q+A) Venue: York Ampitheatre, EV Building, Concordia University Address: 1515 Sainte-Catherine St. W. Montreal, Canada Price: FREE\nSpectacular Optical will also be at Fantasia, offering its fourth annual Barry Convex Award for Best Canadian Feature of Co-Production making its Canadian, International or World Premiere at the festival. Winners receive $1000 cash from the Paul A. Ray Memorial Fund and a (fittingly convex-shaped) trophy designed by renowned Canadian genre artist “Ghoulish” Gary Pullin. The jury for this year’s Barry Convex Award are House of Psychotic Women author (and founder of the award) Kier-La Janisse, producer Michael Kronish, Arrow Video’s Nora Mehenni and Fright Fest programmer/Sight & Sound critic Shelagh Rowan-Legg. Read their full bios HERE", "The unfortunate financial troubles of LeEco doesn’t seem to affect the Coolpad brand despite Jia Yueting’s Lele holding having the majority shares and thus control over the brand. The company was already in collaboration with LeEco before the financial troubles emerged. Coolpad seems to be coasting on with the recent launch of the Coolpad Cool Play 6 a couple of months back and the launch of the Note 5 Lite C just about a week back. A new Coolpad model seems to be in the works as it was recently spotted on China’s telecom regulatory agency TENAA.\nThe device appeared on TENAA as Coolpad THD-MO and it adopts a design which looks similar to the Xiaomi Redmi 4A except that its own rear camera is located at the centre with the LED flash located under it. Also, the volume rocker is on the left side of the display while the power button is on the right side. The device weighs just 125g and has a dimension of 142.5 x 70.5 x 7.8mm.\nRead More: Coolpad Note 5 Lite C Launched: Metal Body, Budget Specs & Cheap Price Tag\nOn the specifications, the Coolpad THD-MO isn’t in anyway spectacular as it features a 5-inch IPS display with a resolution of 1280 x 720. It is powered by an unknown quad-core processor clocked at 1.1GHz which is backed by 2GB of RAM, while there is 16GB of internal storage. The internal storage is expandable up to 64GB via microSD card. The device is also listed to have an 8 MP rear camera and a 5 MP front camera. Keeping the lights on will be a 2,500mAh battery and for the software, it runs on Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow. Clearly, the Coolpad model is a budget device and should come with a cheap price tag. It will also be available in three colors – Gold, Silver, and White.\n(source)\nAlways be the first to know. Follow us:", "They thought the Kaiju War was over. It wasn’t!\nThe first trailer for Pacific Rim: Upising dropped at New York Comic-Con 2017 today.\nPacific Rim: Uprising will be in theaters March 23.\nThe globe-spanning conflict between otherworldly monsters of mass destruction and the human-piloted super-machines built to vanquish them was only a prelude to the all-out assault on humanity in Pacific Rim Uprising.\nJohn Boyega (Star Wars: The Force Awakens) stars as the rebellious Jake Pentecost, a once-promising Jaeger pilot whose legendary father gave his life to secure humanity’s victory against the monstrous “Kaiju.” Jake has since abandoned his training only to become caught up in a criminal underworld. But when an even more unstoppable threat is unleashed to tear through our cities and bring the world to its knees, he is given one last chance to live up to his father’s legacy by his estranged sister, Mako Mori (Rinko Kikuchi)—who is leading a brave new generation of pilots that have grown up in the shadow of war. As they seek justice for the fallen, their only hope is to unite together in a global uprising against the forces of extinction.\nJake is joined by gifted rival pilot Lambert (The Fate of the Furious’ Scott Eastwood) and 15-year-old Jaeger hacker Amara (newcomer Cailee Spaeny), as the heroes of the PPDC become the only family he has left. Rising up to become the most powerful defense force to ever walk the earth, they will set course for a spectacular all-new adventure on a towering scale.\nPacific Rim Uprising is directed by Steven S. DeKnight (Netflix’s Daredevil, STARZ’s Spartacus) and also stars Jing Tian, Burn Gorman, Adria Arjona and Charlie Day. #JoinTheUprising\nPacific Rim Uprising – In Theaters March 23\nLike this: Like Loading...", "Michael MacDonald and Aly Thomson, THE CANADIAN PRESS\nHALIFAX -- As a blizzard lashed Newfoundland with wind-driven snow Tuesday, Maritimers were still digging out from under a heavy snowfall that lasted more than 24 hours, only to be warned that another storm was on its way.\nBy late Tuesday afternoon, blizzard and blowing snow warnings remained in effect for Cape Breton and the east and south coasts of Newfoundland as the enormous, slow-moving storm continued its blustery trek east. Environment Canada then issued a series of new alerts, including winter storm warnings for southern New Brunswick, and winter storm watches for much of western Nova Scotia.\n\"(Newfoundland) will have less of a break than the Maritimes before the next storm,\" said meteorologist Linda Libby.\nAbout 15 centimetres of blowing snow is in forecast for southern New Brunswick, an area that saw up to 80 centimetres of snowfall Monday.\nIn eastern Newfoundland, schools were closed, public transit was shut down and virtually all flights were cancelled at St. John's International Airport as the storm arrived in the morning and lingered throughout the day. The city of St. John's was expected to get up to 60 centimetres of snow by Wednesday afternoon.\n\"All you see is white outside,\" said Christina Hope, manager of the Tim Hortons on Torbay Road in St, John's. She said the fast-food outlet would be closing early despite a steady flow of snow-covered coffee seekers. \"You can sort of see across the street, but not very well.\"\nThe winds over eastern Newfoundland were expected to peak at 80 and 100 kilometres per hour overnight and into Wednesday -- a virtual repeat of what happened in southern New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and P.E.I. on Monday and Tuesday.\nIn Prince Edward Island, Canada Post said it wasn't safe to deliver mail Tuesday. Mail service was also cancelled in eastern Newfoundland.\nMarine Atlantic, the ferry service that links Nova Scotia with Newfoundland, cancelled crossings scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday.\nMeanwhile, schools and government offices and many businesses were closed for a second day throughout Nova Scotia, P.E.I. and New Brunswick. Dozens of arrivals and departures at Halifax Stanfield International Airport were either cancelled or delayed -- again.\nLibby said Monday's snowfall broke some decades-old daily records in the Maritimes. She said the Halifax area officially received 50 centimetres in total, breaking the previous record for Feb. 13 of about 37 centimetres from 1953.\nHalifax resident Jody Clarke was among several neighbours on his street either wielding a shovel or pushing a snowblower.\n\"We're used to storms that hit with four or five hours of intense snow,\" said Clarke, his hood pulled over his red tuque with a Canadian flag on the front.\n\"(But) this was 24 hours straight of blizzard-like conditions. You couldn't move. The city was in lockdown. That's the way it should have been. And we're just digging out now,\" he said. \"We got about 60 centimetres, but when you're shovelling, it feels like 100 centimetres.\"\nIn Cape Breton, police were asking motorists to stay off the roads until the blizzard moved out to sea.\nVast areas of the Maritimes were snowed under Monday. The blizzard -- dubbed the \"Beast of the East\" by one forecaster -- dumped almost 80 cm of snow at Canadian Forces Base Gagetown in central New Brunswick. Powerful gusts that reached 120 kilometres per hour along the coast near Halifax created huge drifts throughout the port city.\nIn the Halifax region, customers of Heritage Gas were being told to make sure their natural gas meters are kept free of snow and ice buildup, and to clear any natural gas appliance vents to prevent \"hazardous situations.\"\nBy late Tuesday afternoon, Nova Scotia Power was reporting outages affecting about 2,700 customers, having reconnected more than 48,000 customers by Tuesday morning.\nPlow drivers say conditions are still bad and visibility poor. pic.twitter.com/R6MsaLsERh — Kyle Moore (@KyleMooreCTV) February 14, 2017\nHRM asking residents for patience: can't meet usual targets b/c of the amount of snow. Details @CTVAtlantic 6:00. pic.twitter.com/gm7xRQ2u3t — Bruce Frisko (@BruceFriskoCTV) February 14, 2017\nMissing shingles and siding in Eastern Passage. Residents say they could hear banging in the wind. pic.twitter.com/Ck7Th6QhXn — Kayla Hounsell (@KHounsellCTV) February 14, 2017\nSeaport sign on the Halifax waterfront before and after it blew to its end. Yesterday vs. today. pic.twitter.com/CUdfkZko0W — Kayla Hounsell (@KHounsellCTV) February 14, 2017\nWind is still blowing pretty good out here!! pic.twitter.com/jjcKdxF6d7 — Kayla Hounsell (@KHounsellCTV) February 14, 2017\nCar off the road on the cirq. Be safe out there everyone. Roads are still snow covered and icy. @CTVAtlantic pic.twitter.com/SMplbedix4 — Suzette Belliveau (@SBelliveauCTV) February 14, 2017\nWhen the snow banks are as big as the snow plows.@CTVAtlantic pic.twitter.com/EmZyVFYGSb — Laura Brown (@LauraBrownCTV) February 14, 2017\nIt's not quite over in the East! After a little break,I see more snow coming in tomorrow night. Details @CTVAtlantic pic.twitter.com/X15bAnHnqj — Cindy Day (@CindyDayCTV) February 14, 2017\nOversized plows at work at the HFX Stanfield. @CTVAtlantic pic.twitter.com/UYCm7scFww — Ron Shaw (@RonShawCTV) February 14, 2017\nHere are the latest #snowfall totals. Blizzard Warning still up for CB!\nAnother system is approaching...Details @ Noon/ CTV Two @ctvatlantic pic.twitter.com/jxQsDEcO5d — Alyse Hand (@AlyseHandCTV) February 14, 2017\nMy eventful trip into work this morning, but I finally arrived. pic.twitter.com/j5HIrwZMGb — Kyle Moore (@KyleMooreCTV) February 14, 2017\nI've worked at CTV in Sydney for five years, and today is the most snow I've seen here during that time. pic.twitter.com/bvPp3ZE3Vi — Ryan MacDonald (@RyanMacD_CTV) February 14, 2017\nIf there's a will, there's a way. This guy getting where he's going via snowshoe. pic.twitter.com/MsRdeoUdET — Ryan MacDonald (@RyanMacD_CTV) February 14, 2017\nWouldn't want to have to dig this out this AM! Common St in Sydney. pic.twitter.com/X2VDnKkGS8 — Ryan MacDonald (@RyanMacD_CTV) February 14, 2017\nHere's a sense of how much snow is on some side streets this AM. pic.twitter.com/YUe1Yks9I7 — Ryan MacDonald (@RyanMacD_CTV) February 14, 2017\nGood morning, Cape Breton! Union St in Sydney is among many side streets that were impassable this AM. pic.twitter.com/ySjRq3P77l — Ryan MacDonald (@RyanMacD_CTV) February 14, 2017\nWatch out for ice falling off buildings onto sidewalks in downtown Halifax...#NSStorm #blizzard2017 pic.twitter.com/DqxrKBC7Pv — Keith (@keithjohnsCTV) February 14, 2017\nTeam effort at the radio station this morning. Wouldn't know what I'd without these guys helping dig me out! @105TheFox @1069Capital pic.twitter.com/XjQTpwviYb — Laura Brown (@LauraBrownCTV) February 14, 2017\nWow snowbanks as tall as me! (I realize that's not saying much, but still!) ❄️ pic.twitter.com/i4nmBbT0v4 — Kayla Hounsell (@KHounsellCTV) February 14, 2017\nAccident on Bedford Highway. Roads are still icy, snow packed. If you have to go out, take your time.@CTVMorningAtl @ctvatlantic #NSStorm pic.twitter.com/9xZy9Zef8d — Suzette Belliveau (@SBelliveauCTV) February 14, 2017\nThese houses look like they been sprayed with fake snow...#blizzard2017..halifax pic.twitter.com/bd3eLcsAp2 — Keith (@keithjohnsCTV) February 14, 2017\nSnowfall totals are impressive..& so are the wind gusts! Here are some peak wind gusts from the storm! #ATLStorm @ctvmorningatl @ctvatlantic pic.twitter.com/DfmukrLAue — Alyse Hand (@AlyseHandCTV) February 14, 2017\nSidewalk in front of Halifax Infirmary still drifted in. @CTVAtlantic pic.twitter.com/Odg3GGUUBl — Ron Shaw (@RonShawCTV) February 14, 2017\nIWK parking garage full. They're asking people not to park on street narrowed by snow banks. @CTVAtlantic pic.twitter.com/XNoUbwPDjJ — Ron Shaw (@RonShawCTV) February 14, 2017", "Zinedine Zidane has pinpointed star duo Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale as the players who will be key in turning Real Madrid's disappointing season around in the final months of the campaign.\nThe highs of last season remain a distant memory for Madrid as they currently languish 19 points behind rivals and league leaders Barcelona, while an embarrassing exit from the Copa del Rey at the hands of Leganes has left Madrid's trophy hopes resting solely on the Champions League.\nLos Blancos have stemmed the tide following back-to-back La Liga victories, a resurgence in form including the pummelling of Deportivo La Coruna and a comfortable win over Valencia, both of which Ronaldo starred in.\nThe 32-year-old has struggled to reach the heights of previous seasons this term but his unquestionable ability has left his manager optimistic that Ronaldo can spearhead a dominant end to the season.\nZidane said, via Goal: \"It's the same as always, he's always there. We are always going to ask more from Cristiano because he is the reference point for this team.\n\"When you finish a game, people can always say Cristiano could have done more. I'm happy with him and the others the same.\"\n\"When there are difficult moments that's part of a season. We have to be positive and, in the end, I don't look at the past. I look at the last game that we did in Valencia. That's positive and at Levante we have another game to show that we want more.\"\nDavid Ramos/GettyImages\nMadrid have not only been buoyed by Ronaldo's form as Bale's spectacular return from a calf injury has injected a renewed belief within the club, a star player who Zidane claims is capable of making a difference unlike any other member of his squad.\n\"The important thing to start with is that he has consistency, he's in the team and he can train with his team-mates every day,\" he added.\n\"Most importantly, he needs the rhythm of the match. If he plays well and recovers well, with everything he can bring to the team he is a different player.\n\"When he is at his best, he is the player who makes the difference, quite simply. He's scored goals recently and we know when he gets the ball something is going to happen.\"", "Here are the latest planning applications to appear before Calderdale Council.\nVALIDATED\nTwo storey side extension and dormer to front and rear: 16 Hill View Gardens, Northowram.\nPrune three trees (Tree Preservation Order): 193A Huddersfield Road, Halifax.\nTwo storey side extension and single storey porch to front elevation: 38 Long Lover Lane, Halifax.\nMaintenance to overhead power line Littletown to Mount Tabor 11k rebuild: Land Adjacent To Craven Hall Farm, Boothsteads, Warley.\nPrune trees and remove young trees (Tree Preservation Order): Savile Bowling Club, Savile Road, Hebden Bridge.\nPrune two trees (Tree Preservation Order): 4 The Sycamores, Wakefield Road, Lightcliffe.\nTwo storey and single storey extension to rear: 26 School Green, Brighouse.\nRemoval of conditions 3, 10 and 11 and vary condition 5 on planning application 15/00353/FUL: Stables West Of Blackshaw Royd Farm, Marsh Lane, Blackshaw Head.\nRepairs and refurbishment of existing Food Take Away: Fish Shop, Maitland Street, Walsden.\nDemolition of existing conservatory and build new single storey extension: 53 Sun Way, Southowram\nRemoval of sun lounge to facilitate single storey extension: 69 Hollins Mill Lane, Sowerby Bridge.\nResidential development of two pairs of semi detached dwellings and one detached dwelling (Outline): Land South East Of 15 Mount Pleasant Drive, Mount Pleasant Drive, Mytholmroyd.\nNew dormer windows to front/rear elevations: 51 Savile Park Street, Halifax.\nExternal refurbishment works to all existing building facades including new canopy over existing entrance, new roof covering and external works to existing parking areas to include new bin and cycle store: Dental Laboratory, 2 Bank Street, Brighouse.\nTwo storey extension to front and rear, replace greenhouse with double garage, refurbishment and extension to existing garage, replacement porch and alterations to driveway: Arches Green Lane, Halifax.\nConservatory extension to front of clubhouse: Greenroyd Bowling Club, St Albans Road, Halifax.\nPrune three trees and fell two trees (Tree Preservation Order): Land Adjacent Henshaw Road, Henshaw Road, Walsden.\nFirst floor extension to side (Listed Building Consent): Lower Carr Barn, Station Road, Norwood Green.\nFirst floor extension to side: Lower Carr Barn, Station Road, Norwood Green.\nDetached dwelling: 47 Copley Drive Copley, Halifax\nDECIDED\nTwo new coldrooms in service yard: Asda, Hanson Lane, Halifax.\nTwo storey rear extension, conversion of garage and formation of new parking space to front: Tradewinds, 26 Springwood Drive, Copley.\nConversion of garage to living accommodation, porch to front and new garage to side: 15 Bramley Lane, Hipperholme.\nIlluminated fascia sign, non-illuminated projecting sign and window vinyls: 3 Corn Market, Halifax.\nReplace existing annex with single storey building forming accessible living accomodation connected to main dwelling. Minor alterations to main building including raised balcony and rooflights: Bethel Chapel House, Spark House Lane, Sowerby Bridge.\nReplacement garage: 46 The Gardens, Halifax.\nChange of use from residential property (C3) to Day Nursery (D1)(retrospective): 116 Burnsall Road, Rastrick.\nPrune 2 trees (Tree Preservation Order): Savile Grange Apartments, Free School Lane, Halifax\nNon Material amendment to application 14/01464 to amend model of turbine to be installed: Land South Of Green Holes Farm, Coal Gate Road, Ripponden.\nConversion and extension of existing barn and demolition of associated outbuildings to create dwelling house (revised proposal): 3 Stormer Hill Lane, Sowerby Bridge.\nReplacement windows (Listed Building Consent): 25, 26 & 32 Crossley Almshouses Arden Road, Halifax.\nAgricultural livestock building: Scarr Hill Farm, Beestonley Lane, Stainland.\nSubmission of information to Discharge Conditions on application 16/01617- condition 7: Land Adjacent To 1 Birdcage, Halifax.\nSubmission of details to comply with conditions to permission 16/00926 nos. 2, 3 and 4: Todmorden Specialist Visual Arts College, Ewood Lane, Todmorden", "Castleford Tigers prop forward Brandon Douglas has joined Halifax RLFC on a season long loan.\nDouglas will follow Will Maher in joining Halifax for the 2018 season as the two clubs continue to develop their dual registration partnership.\nCastleford have a recall option in the loan agreement.\nThe 20-year-old made his Super League debut for the Tigers during the 2016 season against St Helens and was rewarded for his performance with a new two-year contract.\nDouglas found opportunities with the Tigers hard to come by during 2017 leading him to spend time on loan firstly at Dewsbury Rams before ending the season with Halifax where he made 11 appearances.\nHe said: “It will be good to go back to Halifax, I really enjoyed my time there last season. Getting regular game time is what I’m hoping for and getting the opportunity to develop my game under two fantastic coaches in Daryl and Richard will certainly improve me as a player.\n“I’ll still be very much involved here at the Tigers and a combination of training here at Cas and at Halifax will be great for my development.”\nTigers head coach Daryl Powell said: “Brandon played with Halifax last season and really enjoyed the experience, while learning a lot from Richard Marshall while playing in the Championship.\n“I’m confident he will continue to grow as a player during the coming season and I look forward to him playing well enough to push for a place in our Super League team. I know Brandon will add a lot to Halifax and their push to be in the top four in the Championship.”\nTigers chief executive Steve Gill said: “Brandon will join Halifax RLFC again on loan for the 2018 season. After the initial 28 days loan period we will have a 24-hour call back on him.\nLast year at Halifax we saw Brandon develop mentally and physically as a player and at 20 years of age to be playing in a tough Championship league is a good testament to where Brandon is at this stage of his career.”\nHalifax head coach Richard Marshall is looking forward to welcoming Douglas back into his squad: “Brandon enjoyed his short stint with us last year and performed well for us with a couple of injuries at an important time of our season.\n“I spoke to Daryl (Powell) about Brandon’s development and a further opportunity to join us again for 2018.\n“With others interested, we felt it was best to get Brandon over to The Shay again – especially after the unfortunate knee injury sustained by Harry Kidd.\n“Like everybody else in the squad, Brandon will have to work hard and play extremely well to keep his place in our team next season and we look forward to working with him again in 2018.\n“Thanks go to Steve Gill and Daryl Powell for again committing to a long term loan deal.”", "Trump helps make cross-border M&A great again\nCross-border M&A had its strongest start since 2007, driving first-quarter global volumes up 7 percent, as optimism over President Donald Trump's economic agenda buoyed the stock market and the dollar, making foreign acquisitions cheaper than some U.S. targets. Many U.S. CEOs are feeling richer and more confident thanks to a rally in their companies' stock, yet U.S. acquisition targets often feel they are worth a lot too, while uncertainty over Trump's tax policies makes planning a deal more difficult. Reuters' Lauren Hirsch and Greg Roumeliotis report.\nhere\nEinhorn's GM share double clutch poses challenge for some drivers\nHedge fund manager David Einhorn's unusual plan to divide General Motors shares into two classes poses a corporate governance minefield for GM board members. The plan would create one class of stock for investors keen to capture GM's juicy dividend, and a second for those eager to bet on its growth potential. Reuters' Michael Flaherty reports on why this is a challenge.\nhere\nTrans-Paris Express\nA 90-minute train ride from the Gare de Lyon station in Paris traces a political gulf between big-city voters and the rest, a divide that has shaken up Britain and the United States and has an outside chance of doing the same in France's upcoming presidential election. Ride this train with Reuters reporters Ingrid Melander and Johnny Cotton.\nhere\nRussians develop taste for alcohol-free beer\nRussians are among the biggest drinkers of alcohol in the world, yet are developing a new taste for alcohol-free beer, which could help save a brewing industry that has stalled under government initiatives to discourage drinking. The trend, say people in the industry, is being driven by a move toward healthier lifestyles among Russian consumers, nudged by government measures that include restrictions on alcohol sales and tougher penalties for drunk-driving. Reuters' Maria Kiselyova reports.\nhere\nTerror threats transform China's Uighur heartland into security state\nReuters' Philip Wen visits the old Silk Road city of Kashgar in far-western China, part of a region where Beijing says it faces a thread from Islamist extremists in this primarily Muslim Uighur region of the country. Wen observes a series of safety drills designed to help shopkeepers fight insurgent attacks, but critics say the drills are part of an oppressive security operation.\nhere\nCuba needs more green to run on green\nCuba, battling a chronic energy deficit, has all the sunshine, wind and sugar to fuel what should be a booming renewables sector - if only it could find the money. This has become a state priority Venezuela slashed subsidized oil shipments to the island. The financing puzzle is a crucial one to solve if Cuba is to hit its target of renewables filling 24 percent of its energy needs by 2030, up from 4 percent today, a strategy that would require billions of dollars in investment. Reuters' Sarah Marsh reports from Ciro Redondo.\nhere\nReuters photo of the day\nRocket Man meets Sky Pilot\nhere\nA recycled SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket soars toward space above a Virgin Airlines passenger jet, which had just departed Orlando International Airport. REUTERS/Gregg Newton", "Valencia College on Tuesday detailed plans for a new building expected to offer relatively fast-paced training at its Osceola campus.\nThe Center for Accelerated Training and Careers is slated to open in January with registration starting in the fall. The short-term, job-training programs planned for the center include: construction, transportation logistics, warehouse packaging, clinical medical assistance and private security. Instruction is also aimed at language skills with classes for English as a second language, conversational Spanish and Portuguese.\nThe educational options comes as workers are in high demand throughout the region.\nWe have plenty of great high-paying jobs just waiting ... This initiative by Valencia and others like it is something desperately needed and welcomed ...\" — Lee Steinhauer, director of government affairs, Greater Orlando Builders Association\n\"The homebuilding industry is facing a massive labor shortage. We have plenty of great high-paying jobs just waiting to be filled,” said Lee Steinhauer, director of government affairs for Greater Orlando Builders Association. “This initiative by Valencia and others like it is something desperately needed and welcomed by the industry.\"\nAs planned, most programs would take six weeks to six months. The training is geared to career advancement or entry-level positions paying about $13 an hour, according to the school.\nAbout 87 percent of graduates of similar programs get jobs related to their training, said Carol Traynor, director of public relations for Valencia. The model is similar to one planned as part of Valencia's downtown campus, which is set to open in conjunction with the University of Central Florida's downtown operations next year.\nDLR Group designed the one-story center with 14,700 square feet at 1800 Denn John Lane, Kissimmee. Wharton Smith is the general contractor for the $4.5 million project.\nThe school is also seeking state financial support for a related Osceola-campus project that would be called the Careers in Industry and Technology Building. If the Legislature funds the $13 million project, Valencia plans to offer associate of science degrees in residential property management, engineering technology, hospitality, criminal justice technology. Conceived for 36,000 square feet in two stories, the building could open as soon as 2020.\nEarlier this year, Valencia College was awarded $2.3 million in state funds for construction of its Advanced Manufacturing and Distribution Logistics project in downtown Orlando. Instruction will be geared to strategic training in electric board assembly, mechatronics (tech that combines mechanical engineering electronics) and transportation logistics targeted for residents of Orlando’s Parramore community.\nmshanklin@orlandosentinel.com or 407-420-5538\nCAPTION The Crossroads of Lake Buena Vista shopping center is set for demolition as part of an I-4 improvement project, meaning dozens of restaurants will have to relocate and the end of destination dining location. The Crossroads of Lake Buena Vista shopping center is set for demolition as part of an I-4 improvement project, meaning dozens of restaurants will have to relocate and the end of destination dining location. CAPTION The Crossroads of Lake Buena Vista shopping center is set for demolition as part of an I-4 improvement project, meaning dozens of restaurants will have to relocate and the end of destination dining location. The Crossroads of Lake Buena Vista shopping center is set for demolition as part of an I-4 improvement project, meaning dozens of restaurants will have to relocate and the end of destination dining location. CAPTION TSA and GOAA K-9 handlers patrol with their explosive-detection dogs at Orlando International Airport, Tuesday, April 10, 2018. Between the two agencies, Orlando International has 20 dogs assigned to the airport, making it one of the busiest airport security dog forces in the U.S. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel) TSA and GOAA K-9 handlers patrol with their explosive-detection dogs at Orlando International Airport, Tuesday, April 10, 2018. Between the two agencies, Orlando International has 20 dogs assigned to the airport, making it one of the busiest airport security dog forces in the U.S. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel) CAPTION Universal has acquired additional acres in Orlando for possible theme park expansion, along with the deed restrictions that once were intended to block construction of rival theme parks there. Universal has acquired additional acres in Orlando for possible theme park expansion, along with the deed restrictions that once were intended to block construction of rival theme parks there. CAPTION The new boom in space-related jobs in Florida is leading companies like Blue Origin, OneWeb and Rocket Crafters to embrace new ways of training employees, especially German-style apprencticeship programs for local students. The new boom in space-related jobs in Florida is leading companies like Blue Origin, OneWeb and Rocket Crafters to embrace new ways of training employees, especially German-style apprencticeship programs for local students. CAPTION Orion Span's commercial space hotel, Aurora Station. Orion Span's commercial space hotel, Aurora Station." ]

[ "The manufacture of high-quality artificial flowers made of silk, rayon, or cotton involves die-cutting each petal size from the chosen fabric, hand dyeing the petals, and then molding the petals to create a life-like effect. Wires are inserted by hand after the petals are pressed." ]

[ "Artificial Flowers. 1 share. 2 Related: 3 silk orchid flowers, 4 Flowers & Plants, 5 artificial potted flowers, 6 more. 7 white silk roses. 8 white artificial flowers. 9 purple flowers. 10 orchid silk flowers. 11 artificial purple flowers. 12 birthday flowers. 13 artificial outdoor plants.", "made by human skill; produced by humans (opposed to natural): artificial flowers. 2. imitation; simulated; sham: artificial vanilla flavoring. 3. lacking naturalness or spontaneity; forced; contrived; feigned: an artificial smile.", "Our Artificial Plants category offers a great selection of Artificial Flowers and more. Free Shipping on Prime eligible orders. Discover Artificial Flowers on Amazon.com at a great price. Our Artificial Plants category offers a great selection of Artificial Flowers and more. Free Shipping on Prime eligible orders.", "NA/Photos.com/Getty Images. Artificial nectar for hummingbirds is made from sugar and water. The ratio to sugar and water is important because the birds require a 21 to 23 percent sucrose content to equal the amount found in flower nectar.", "Leis are traditional Hawaiian garlands of fresh flowers, given to guests arriving on the islands and at special events. Fresh leis are often made with orchids, jasmine, plumeria flowers and ferns. In this article you'll learn how to make a lei out of artificial flowers. Silk flowers provide the most realistic look for a lei. Buy silk flowers that look the most like traditional Hawaiian flowers, such as plumeria, hibiscus, gardenia, orchids, jasmine, bougainvillea, and orange flowers.", "I suggest you to mix colors in the hot water if you want to get perfect results. Soak the artificial flowers in water in a bucket or container. This will completely remove the dust to make the flowers spotless. Now you can paint the artificial flower with desired color. Do not sink the whole flower at one go. You should start by submerging one petal and then softly put the rest inside till point the stem starts.", "Then artificial flowers are a great solution. Add a rainbow of colors to a room, porch or yard. Mix artificial orchids, peonies & hydrangeas with living plants to boost the look of a space.", "Here are seven reasons why you should consider artificial flowers: 1. Cost-effective. Flowers are one expensive commodity once they are cut, prepared and then arranged into bouquets. While silk flowers tend to vary in price, they cost about half as much as flowering plants.", "Flower, or floral, foam allows an inexperienced person to create a flower arrangement like a professional. Flower foam is used with fresh-cut flowers, artificial flowers and dried flowers to hold the stems in place. Foam is available in many shapes and sizes to accommodate the project, from vase arrangements to wreaths.", "Artificial indoor plants found here include numerous types of indoor fake plants encompassing a range of flowers, vines, hedges, topiaries, bushes, trees, cactus, succulents, and more. Whether you want green artificial plants and trees or colorful, flowering options, expect to find it in this Indoor Artificial Plants category.", "Two Garden Flowers with Solar Powered Lights Add these artificial garden flowers with solar lights to your garden, pathway or any outdoor area to create a beautiful setting.dd these artificial garden flowers with solar lights to your garden, pathway or any outdoor area to create a beautiful setting.", "Bespoke bouquets for your bridesmaids and maids of honour. Artificial flowers for your wedding, designed specifically for your bridesmaids. We can colour match your flowers to your bridesmaids dresses and the colours in your wedding party, perfectly.", "definitions for artificialˌɑr təˈfɪʃ əl artificial unreal adj contrived by art rather than nature artificial flowers artificial flavoring an artificial diamond artificial fibers artificial sweeteners artificial contrived hokey stilted adj", "Shop for designer-quality, handcrafted silk flower arrangements, centerpieces, and artificial plants and trees at Petals! Vast selection, expertly packaged and shipped, 100% satisfaction guarantee. designer quality silk flowers, plants and trees", "Fold the ribbon so that it forms a circle. The tails of the ribbon should hang down from your hand as you hold the flower. http://pad1.whstatic.com/images/thumb/0/03/Make-Artificial-Flowers-Step-16-preview-Version-3.jpg/550px-Make-Artificial-Flowers-Step-16-preview-Version-3.jpg.", "1 Silk flower boutonnieres typically range from $6 to $15. 2 Made of artificial materials, silk boutonnieres do not wilt; however, they may not look as realistic as fresh flowers in person or on film.3 See How Much Do Silk Flowers Cost. Silk flower boutonnieres typically range from $6 to $15. 2 Made of artificial materials, silk boutonnieres do not wilt; however, they may not look as realistic as fresh flowers in person or on film.", "An Auto flowering cannabis is a special type of seed wherein it is made so as it would not be dependent in the growing process, especially in their lighting schedules. Auto flowering strains is an artificial way to induce the growth of marijuana plants even if it is grown indoors.", "10 Branch Silk Roses Wedding Party Decoration Home Decoration Artificial Flowers. $18.56. USD $9.74 (756)", "//d5kh2btv85w9n.cloudfront.net/2/2e/Make Artificial Flowers Step 13 Version 4.360p.mp4. 1 Thread the needle. 2 Push the needle, from front to back, into the ribbon, along the edge.", "What is the difference between natural and artificial boundaries? Artificial boundaries are man-made, like a windbreak planted by a property owner or property lines between you and a neighbor.", "Artificial plants to brighten up your home For some vivid color, our artificial orchids come in varying shades of pink and purple, and our poinsettia artificial plants are also particularly vibrant. If you’d rather have something a little greener, we’ve got a variety of grasses, shrubs and other foliage.", "You can use the clothespin to clutch the artificial flower to side of the container or bucket. The clothespin makes sure the safety of flower and your hand. Various types of paints and colors include harmful chemicals.", "In the United States, lavish arrangements and apparel made use of permanent botanicals. The Parisian Flower Company, which had offices in both New York and Paris, supplied silk flowers and other artificial florals to milliners, makers of bridal and ball gowns, and other dressmakers, as well as for room decoration. They sold separate stems and arrangements that were either pre-made or commissioned.", "12 Pcs Artificial Flower Silk Wisteria Ivy Hanging Plant Vine Green Leaf Garland Natural-looking flowers:Wisteria Garland with full and soft petals,vivid realistic and lifelike,looked more natural and...", "Oil made from hemp seeds should be called Hemp Seed Oil and oil made from hemp flowers should be called CBD Hemp Oil. Jim Freire Leave it to the industry most trying to create an artificial distinction between “marijuana” and “hemp”.", "One reason that so many people are confused by this, is that the flowers are not actually fake, but real. Technically it is an inflorescence, but for practical reasons, I refer to them as flowers in this article. They can come from one of several species of plant commonly known as Strawflowers or Everlastings.", "What are airheads made out of? Sugar, corn syrup, maltodextrin, dextrose, modified food starch (corn), partially hydrogenated soybean oil, water, citric acid, artificial flavor, and artificial colors.", "Esperanto definition, meaning, what is Esperanto: an artificial language, made by combining features of several European languages…. Learn more.", "Artificial grass is made of durable plastic polymers polyethylene and polypropylene. Our grasses are made of either or a combination of these materials depending on the type of lawn you are interested in as each plastic has its own specific properties which make it right for a certain look.", "Chocolate Roses are gorgeous, delicious lifelike flowers made out of a modeling material called chocolate plastic. Use this chocolate plastic recipe to create the chocolate plastic for the roses.", "Being an imitation or a substitute, usually an inferior one; artificial: ersatz coffee made mostly of chicory. See Synonyms at artificial. adj. Made in imitation; artificial, especially of an inferior quality. n. : Something made in imitation; an effigy or substitute. adj. artificial and inferior.", "ARTIFICIAL WEDDING BOUQUETS FOR YOUR BRIDESMAIDS AND MAID OF HONOUR CREATED TO MATCH YOUR OWN BOUQUET. WE HAVE A MASSIVE SELECTION OF HAND TIED POSIES, ALL DESIGNED TO COORDINATE PERFECTLY WITH YOUR WEDDING THEME. WE CAN COLOUR MATCH YOUR FLOWERS." ]

[ "The simple answer is: the average salary of a YouTuber with 1 million subscribers is $57,200 per year." ]

[ "How much money does a YouTuber make from 1,000,000 views? Anywhere between $500 – $10,000, but the average is $2,000. This is according Shelby Church, who has 1.3M subscribers. This particular video has over 4 million views.", "How many YouTubers have 1 million subscribers. As of December 2019, there are around 16,000 YouTube channels out there having over 1 million subscribers.", "How much money does a YouTuber with 10 million subscribers earn in a year? It totally depends on number of views rather than number of subscribers . Answering to your question ,Youtube pays $7.65 per 1000 ad views . If all the 10 million subscribers watch the video , the math would be $76500.", "So if an Indian Youtuber with 1 million subscribers is getting $1800 per month then an American Youtuber with same numbers will get $7200 per month. So, a channel with 2 million subscribers in America will get $14400 per month.", "According to The Economist, influencers with at least 100,000 subscribers on YouTube can get an average of $12,500 for a sponsored post, with payments going up rapidly if you have one million subscribers or more.", "This ranges, but with over 1 million subscribers, Sponsors will often pay $4000 - $20,000+ or higher depending on the deal. So, as you can see…the amount a YouTuber can make really starts to add up, especially if every one of their videos is sponsored.", "Content creators can join the YouTube Partner program after accumulating 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 hours of watch time. This gives creators access to monetization features such as advertising, fan funding and merchandise sales. Top YouTube stars make close to $20 million a year.", "How much do kid Youtubers make? Kid Youtubers on average make $1.50 per thousand views from the Youtube Partner Program. With brand deals, they can earn $10,000 for every 100,000 views a video will get in the first 30 days. From there, you can calculate how much they are earning.", "Anywhere between $3 and $10, although that can be higher or lower in some cases. How much do YouTubers make per video? That depends on viewership and the ads displayed by Google, but it could be loads. For example, if a video has 1 million views, a YouTuber could be cashing anything between $3,000 and $10,000!", "1 million views — between $2,000 and $40,000 (4 creators) Business Insider spoke with four YouTube influencers with very different channels — Marina Mogilko, Kevin David, Austen Alexander, and Shelby Church — on how much they earned from videos with over 1 million views (and below 1.5 million views).", "For Shelby Church, a YouTuber who has 1.2 million subscribers, videos with about 1 million views have earned her between $2,000 and $30,000, depending on the video subject, she told Business Insider in January.", "1. PewDiePie - 102 Million Subscribers. Of course, at the top of our list is Swedish YouTuber, PewDiePie. Reaching the 100 million subscriber mark in August this year, PewDiePie reigns as the most subscribed individual creator on YouTube.", "How much do YouTubers make? Anywhere between $0.01 to $0.03 per view, which translates to $3-$5 per 1000 views, and up to $5,000 for 1,000,000 views.", "Carry Minati is the most popular YouTuber in India with 21.3 million subscribers followed by Amit Bhadana who has 20.5 million subscribers and Ashish Chanchlani who has 18.6 million subscribers.", "['Markiplier, $17.5 million (24.5 million subscribers)', 'VanossGaming, $17 million (24.9 million subscribers)', 'Jacksepticeye, $16 million (23 million subscribers.', 'PewDiePie, $15.5 million (102 million subscribers)', 'Logan Paul, $14.5 million (19.9 million subscribers)']", "Felix “PewDiePie” Kjellberg has surpassed 100 million subscribers on YouTube, becoming the first individual creator to do so.", "What is the most subscribed YouTube channel? Indian music network T-Series had the most YouTube subscribers in the world in March 2020, with almost 140 million users following the channel. Swedish video game commentator PewDiePie ranked second with over 103 million subscribers.", "If you look at their YouTube subscribers (2 million+) and take the NetFlix 8$ per month rate, TVF can make 192 million$ a year on revenue.", "$137,000-$1.38 million estimated yearly income after YouTube's 45% cut. 2.32 million total subscribers. 756 million total views.", "So big corporates looking to buy youth attention often turn to YouTube influencers. They tend to pay £8-£40 per 1,000 views. If the video hits one million views, the YouTuber earns £7,500-£40,000. However, this is usually reserved for the cream of the stream.", "Lets assume the average CPM for a YouTuber with 1 million subscribers is around $4 dollars. YouTube takes a 45% cut and sometimes the YouTuber also has Multi Channel Network representing who also takes around 45%. So the You Tuber, who gets on average 600k+ views a week, will end up with around $1-3k a week from CPMs.", "How Much Money Does Coop772 Earn On YouTube? The channel has over 1.4 million subscribers as of 2020 and has accumulated over 700 million views so far. In a day, it gets an average of 300,000 views. This should result in an estimated revenue of around $1,500 per day ($550,000 a year) from ads.", "How much money do YouTubers make every 1,000 views? With the average YouTube pay rate hovering between $0.01 and $0.03 for an ad view, a YouTuber can make around $18 per 1,000 ad views, which comes out to $3 to $5 per 1,000 video views.", "Swedish Let's Player and web comedian PewDiePie is the most-subscribed individual user on YouTube, with 106 million subscribers as of July 2020.", "How Much Money Does TBJZL Earn On YouTube? The channel has over 4 million subscribers as of 2020 and has accumulated over 450 million views so far. The videos in the channel average around 200,000 views per day. This should result an estimated revenue of around $1,000 per day ($365,000 a year) from YouTube ads.", "Let's back up a little bit and make a distinction: YouTube TV has not dropped the national FS1 and FS2 sports channels, which are owned by Fox Corporation. ... With more than two million subscribers, YouTube TV is one of the only pay TV bundles whose subscriber numbers are increasing every quarter.", "1 million views — between $2,000 and $40,000 (4 creators) Screenshot of Austen Alexander/YouTube. A video with 1 million YouTube views doesn't always make the same amount of money and can vary considerably depending on the creator.", "But for the majority of YouTubers, the earnings are a lot more modest. As a benchmark, you can expect to make around $1.50 per 1,000 views (about £1.10 per 1,000 views, at the time of writing). This means that one million views equals $1500... or around £1,100 to us British folk.", "Many hope to one day make a living playing games on YouTube; a few already do. PewDiePie's estimated monthly revenue from YouTube ads fluctuates between $140,000 and $1.4 million depending on viewership, according to Social Blade, a company that monitors YouTube channels. Other players bank much smaller paychecks.", "['Stranger Things. SUBSCRIBE TO YouTube. ... ', 'Sex Education. SUBSCRIBE TO YouTube. ... ', 'Money Heist. SUBSCRIBE TO YouTube. ... ', 'Chernobyl. SUBSCRIBE TO YouTube. ... ', 'Brooklyn Nine-Nine. SUBSCRIBE TO YouTube. ... ', 'Sacred Games. SUBSCRIBE TO YouTube. ... ', 'Kota Factory. SUBSCRIBE TO YouTube. ... ', 'Dark.']", "Having secured a reputation as one of the greatest snipers in CoD history, Pamaj now makes his home with FaZe Clan, where he creates online content for over 3 million subscribers on YouTube.", "1 million views — between $2,000 and $40,000 (4 creators)" ]

[ "The Oscar-winning actress talks about portraying QVC Miracle Mop inventor Joy Mangano in David O. Russell's new film, 'Joy.' Also, Justin Chang reviews 'The Hateful Eight' and filmmakers Charlie Kaufman and Duke Johnson talk about their new stop-motion animated film 'Anomalisa.'" ]

[ "At a ritzy Sunday night ceremony, The Martian emerged with the Golden Globe for best comedy motion picture. The Revenant followed, taking home the award for best picture in the drama category. Meanwhile, on the TV side of the ceremony, Mozart in the Jungle and Mr. Robot snagged the top prizes. But that's not all: More than two dozen Golden Globes were distributed Sunday night. Below is the full list of winners (in bold), coupled with the fellow nominees they beat out for the prize. Film Best Motion Picture, Drama CarolMad Max: Fury RoadThe RevenantRoomSpotlight Best Motion Picture, Comedy The Big ShortJoyThe MartianSpyTrainwreck Best Director, Motion Picture Todd Haynes, CarolAlejandro Gonzalez Iñárritu, The RevenantTom McCarthy, SpotlightGeorge Miller, Mad Max: Fury RoadRidley Scott, The Martian Best Actress in a Motion Picture, Drama Cate Blanchett, CarolBrie Larson, RoomRooney Mara, CarolSaoirse Ronan, BrooklynAlicia Vikander, The Danish Girl Best Actress in a Motion Picture, Comedy Jennifer Lawrence, JoyMelissa McCarthy, Spy
Amy Schumer, Trainwreck

Maggie Smith, Lady in the Van
Lily Tomlin, Grandma Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture Jane Fonda, YouthJennifer Jason Leigh, The Hateful EightHelen Mirren, TrumboAlicia Vikander, Ex MachinaKate Winslet, Steve Jobs Best Actor in a Motion Picture, Drama Bryan Cranston, Trumbo
Leonardo DiCaprio, The Revenant
Michael Fassbender, Steve Jobs
Eddie Redmayne, The Danish Girl
Will Smith, Concussion Best Actor in a Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy Christian Bale, The Big ShortSteve Carell, The Big ShortMatt Damon, The MartianAl Pacino, Danny CollinsMark Ruffalo, Infinitely Polar Bear Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture Paul Dano, Love & MercyIdris Elba, Beasts of No NationMark Rylance, Bridge of SpiesMichael Shannon, 99 HomesSylvester Stallone, Creed Best Screenplay — Motion Picture Emma Donoghue, RoomTom McCarthy, Josh Singer, SpotlightCharles Randolph, Adam McKay, The Big ShortAaron Sorkin, Steve JobsQuentin Tarantino, The Hateful Eight Best Animated Feature Film Anomalisa
The Good Dinosaur
Inside Out
The Peanuts MovieShaun the Sheep Movie Best Original Song \"Love Me Like You Do,\" 50 Shades of Grey\"One Kind of Love,\" Love & Mercy\"See You Again,\" Furious 7\"Simple Song No. 3,″ Youth\"Writing's on the Wall,\" Spectre Best Original Score Carter Burwell, CarolAlexandre Desplat, The Danish GirlEnnio Morricone, The Hateful EightDaniel Pemberton, Steve JobsRyuichi Sakamoto, Alva Noto, The Revenant Best Motion Picture, Foreign Language The Brand New TestamentThe ClubThe FencerMustangSon of Saul Television Best TV Series, Drama
 EmpireGame of ThronesMr. RobotNarcosOutlander Best TV Series, Comedy CasualMozart in the JungleOrange Is the New BlackSilicon ValleyTransparentVeep Best TV Movie or Limited Series American CrimeAmerican Horror Story: HotelFargoFlesh and BoneWolf Hall Best Actor in a TV Series, Drama Jon Hamm, Mad MenRami Malek, Mr. RobotWagner Moura, NarcosBob Odenkirk, Better Call SaulLiev Schreiber, Ray Donovan Best Actress in a TV Series, Drama Caitriona Balfe, OutlanderViola Davis, How to Get Away With MurderEva Green, Penny DreadfulTaraji P. Henson, EmpireRobin Wright, House of Cards Best Actor in a TV Series, Comedy Aziz Ansari, Master of NoneGael Garcia Bernal, Mozart in the JungleRob Lowe, The GrinderPatrick Stewart, Blunt TalkJeffrey Tambor, Transparent Best Actress in a TV Series, Comedy Rachel Bloom, Crazy Ex-GirlfriendJamie Lee Curtis, Scream QueensJulia Louis Dreyfus, VeepGina Rodriguez, Jane the VirginLily Tomlin, Grace & Frankie Best Supporting Actress in a Series, Limited-Series, or TV Movie Uzo Aduba, Orange is the New BlackJoanne Froggatt, Downton AbbeyRegina King, American CrimeJudith Light, TransparentMaura Tierney, The Affair Best Supporting Actor in a Series, Limited Series or TV Movie Alan Cumming, The Good WifeDamian Lewis, Wolf HallBen Mendelsohn, BloodlineTobias Menzies, OutlanderChristian Slater, Mr. Robot Best Actor in a Limited Series or TV Movie Idris Elba, LutherOscar Isaac, Show Me a HeroDavid Oyelowo, NightingaleMark Rylance, Wolf HallPatrick Wilson, Fargo Best Actress in a Limited Series or TV Movie Kirsten Dunst, FargoLady Gaga, American Horror Story: HotelSarah Hay, Flesh & BoneFelicity Huffman, American CrimeQueen Latifah, Bessie", "The comics channel the indignities of puberty in their animated Netflix comedy series 'Big Mouth.' Looking back on his own adolescence, Mulaney says: \"I was always mystified.\" The duo are hosting the Independent Spirit Awards this Saturday. Also, film critic David Edelstein reviews 'Red Sparrow' starring Jennifer Lawrence.", "A guy who thinks everyone's the same meets a gal who's different. That could be the TV listing for Charlie Kaufman's extraordinary new film and latest weirdness, Anomalisa. But that thumbnail description doesn't get at the weird, and the weird in this film is prodigious. Start with the fact that in a world that looks otherwise real and natural, the leading man — motivational speaker Michael Stone — and all the folks around him are puppets, which are animated in stop-motion. And except for Michael, they not only look the same — think crash-test dummies with different clothes and hairstyles — but they sound the same, too. His seatmate on the plane, the cabbie who picks him up at the airport, Michael's wife on the phone, his 5-year-old son, every staffer at his hotel, the characters in a movie on TV, an ex-girlfriend he gets in touch with — everyone. Kaufman's Being John Malkovich spent an hour or so building up to a scene full of Malkoviches, all with that actor's face and cadences. This film, co-directed by Kaufman and Duke Johnson, starts there, and builds from a cacophony of voices (that are all Tom Noonan's voice) to a series of vignettes featuring Noonan-voiced characters so that by the time Michael is ensconced at the Fregoli Hotel, you're pretty fully in his world. Calling the hotel the Fregoli, by the way, is an obscure, but very cool joke. The Fregoli delusion is the name of a psychiatric condition in which sufferers believe all the people around them are really incarnations of just one person, who is tormenting them. Michael doesn't actually believe that, but he does see people as interchangeably unremarkable, and the film lets you see them that way too, even as it's making the unremarkable things they're doing, visually arresting — because, after all, they are puppets. Michael for instance, engages in puppet showering, puppet profanity, puppet nudity and puppet hallucinations (where his jaw starts clacking and his face comes off in pieces as he looks in the mirror). It's in the middle of that hallucination that he hears something in the hallway that takes him utterly by surprise: a woman's voice, but more than that, a different voice. Lisa, voiced by Jennifer Jason Leigh. In a world of same, she's an anomaly — Anomalisa. Michael excitedly runs down the hallway, knocking on doors to no avail until, behind one, he hears her voice again, and invites her (and her roommate as an afterthought) to join him for a drink. Michael is smitten, and Lisa is too. And that will lead to puppet sex, and puppet smoking after sex, and all manner of other things that would make Anomalisa intriguing to watch even if novelty were all it had going for it. But what's fascinating is how the things that make the film different are the very things that make it emotionally engaging. David Thewlis' lonely stammer as Michael, Jennifer Jason Leigh's heartbreaking insecurity as Lisa, have a kind of universality when wedded to expressions on plastic figures you quite forget are plastic. And that lets filmmaker Kaufman tap into an existential loneliness most films can only hint at. In Anomalisa, he's doing precisely what his characters are — reaching out, searching for a connection. And for 90 minutes in the theater, he finds it. AUDIE CORNISH, HOST: Charlie Kaufman's movies tend to send characters on seriously strange journeys - inner journeys - call them head trips. The title character in \"Being John Malkovich,\" for instance, discovers that other people can access his brain. \"Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind\" is about a man whose memories are in the process of being erased. NPR critic Bob Mondello says Kaufman's first animated film, \"Anomalisa,\" is no exception. BOB MONDELLO, BYLINE: A guy who thinks everyone's the same meets a gal who's different. That could be the TV listing for Charlie Kaufman's new weirdness, but it doesn't get at the weird, and the weird in this film is prodigious. Start with the fact that in an on-screen world that looks otherwise real and natural, the leading man, motivational speaker Michael Stone, and all the folks around him are puppets animated in stop motion. And except for Michael, they not only look the same - like crash test dummies with different clothes and hairstyles - but they sound the same, too. The cabbie who picks him up at the airport... (SOUNDBITE OF FILM, \"ANOMALISA\") TOM NOONAN: (As cabbie) First time? DAVID THEWLIS: (As Michael Stone) Yeah, checking out. MONDELLO: Michael's wife on the phone... NOONAN: (As Michael's wife) How was the flight? MONDELLO: ...His five-year-old son... NOONAN: (As Micheal's son) Hi, Daddy. I'm a pirate. MONDELLO: ...And every staffer at his hotel... NOONAN: (As hotel staffer) Dennis here will show you to your room. (As Dennis) Right this way, sir. My name is Dennis. MONDELLO: ...And an ex-girlfriend he gets in touch with. NOONAN: (As Michael's ex-girlfriend) It's good to hear your voice. THEWLIS: (As Michael Stone) Yours, too. NOONAN: (As Michael's ex-gi", "Jennifer Lawrence's best actress win at the Oscars on Sunday may be remembered longer than her performance at the awards show. On the red carpet, she was bleeped after uttering a four-letter word; and while walking to the stage to accept her award, she tripped on the stairs.", "The premise of Friends with Kids is the stuff of high-concept romantic comedies: Writer-director Jennifer Westfeldt plays Julie, who's at the age when her odds of childbearing lessen each year, and there's no mate in sight. So her best friend, Jason, played by Adam Scott, volunteers to impregnate her. The two are pals, confidants — and not, he reminds her, attracted to each other. They could share custody of the child and avoid the chaos, hostility and cessation of sex that's descended upon their married friends with kids. \"Get to it, pop one out quickly, and start looking for your guy!\" Jason says. If he's right, and it's a stress-free solution, then there's no movie, so you know he'll be wrong — and that maybe there's more between him and Julie than he thinks. Maybe. It's not a given. Friends with Kids doesn't play like a rom-com or one of those \"dramedies\" — I hate that word — that give you laughs, a little cry and the occasional shiver of recognition. It has a nervous rhythm and terrific tension, as if the characters' backs are against the wall and the clock is ticking down. Westfeldt, who's 42, belongs to a generation and class of people for whom nothing about having kids is easy. Not having them creates anxiety. Having them means opening yourself up to more psychodrama. Friends with Kids is funny — but the laughs are tinged with sadness and even cruelty. It's a terrific depiction of How We Breed Now. It's also an ensemble film in which two other couples loom large, and the four actors who play them are fresh from the smash comedy Bridesmaids, which makes their edginess surprising. Kristen Wiig and Jon Hamm are Ben and Missy, who have a son and barely speak to each other. Maya Rudolph and Chris O'Dowd are Leslie and Alex, who have a boy and girl, and live in Brooklyn in slobby disarray. There's an extra element of tension when actors who can be wonderful clowns don't cut loose. O'Dowd's \"what me worry\" vibe sets off Rudolph's bossiness; Hamm's Ben looks bleary and for much of the film stays silent — until he opens his mouth and poisoned toads leap out. Wiig's Missy seethes and avoids his eyes. The camera catches every conspiratorial or hostile glance, every flash of devastation or rage being quietly suppressed. Two other characters raise the stakes. After Julie's baby is born, Jason takes up with Mary Jane, an actress and dancer played by no less than Megan Fox. Julie meets a soft-eyed, tender hunk played by Edward Burns. So both our attractive but relatively ordinary-looking protagonists have trophy mates — and on vacation in a cabin, with all eight major characters plus kids, the conversation between Jason and Julie over where their toddler sleeps gets weird. Each claims their lovemaking is just too loud. Megan Fox, for the record, can act. Her Mary Jane is unaffected, secure in her beauty, uninterested in kids or being tied down or anything other than her eight performances a week. Westfeldt isn't upstaged; her performance is beautifully modulated, Julie's natural buoyancy weighed down by her fear of showing her true feelings. But the revelation of Friends with Kids is Adam Scott, who often plays obnoxious squirts. Here, he eases back on caricature but takes nothing off his fastball, recalling the young Alan Alda, who also came on glib and finished vulnerable. Just like this marvelous movie. DAVID BIANCULLI, HOST: The new comedy movie \"Friends with Kids\" was written and directed by its star, Jennifer Westfeldt. She's best known for writing and starring in the 2001 indie hit \"Kissing Jessica Stein.\" In her new film, she stars alongside Adam Scott, Jon Hamm, Kristen Wiig, and Maya Rudolph. Film critic David Edelstein has this review. DAVID EDELSTEIN: The premise of \"Friends with Kids\" is the stuff of high-concept romantic comedies. Writer-director Jennifer Westfeldt plays Julie, who's at the age when her odds of childbearing lessen each year, and there's no mate in sight. So her best friend, Jason, played by Adam Scott, volunteers to impregnate her. The two are pals, confidants - and not, he reminds her, attracted to each other. They could share custody of the child and avoid the chaos and hostility and cessation of sex of their married friends with kids, get to it, pop one out quickly, and start looking for your guy, Jason says. If he's right, and it's a stress-free solution, then there's no movie, so you know he'll be wrong - and that maybe there's more between him and Julie than he thinks. Maybe. It's not a given. \"Friends with Kids\" doesn't play like a rom-com or one of those dramedies - I hate that word - that give you laughs, a little cry and the occasional shiver of recognition. It has a nervous rhythm and terrific tension, as if the characters' backs are against the wall and the clock is ticking down. Westfeldt, who's 42, belongs to a generation and class of people for whom nothing about having kids is easy. Not having them creates anxiety. Having them means opening yourself up to more psych", "Spotlight won the coveted Oscar for best picture when the 88th Academy Awards were handed out Sunday night in Hollywood, upsetting The Revenant and Mad Max: Fury Road, which entered the night with 12 and 10 nominations, respectively. Mad Max: Fury Road just about swept the early categories, winning six Oscars, but The Revenant also took two of the top awards. Alejandro González Iñárritu won the prize for best director, giving him his second consecutive Oscar, and Leonardo DiCaprio won the Oscar for best actor in a leading role, his first. Brie Larson won her first Oscar, taking the award for best leading actress, for her role in Room. Best supporting actress went to Alicia Vikander for The Danish Girl, and best supporting actor was won by Mark Rylance for his role in Bridge of Spies. Our Pop Culture Happy Hour team of Linda Holmes, Glen Weldon, Stephen Thompson and Bob Mondello live-tweeted all the proceedings — from the red carpet to host Chris Rock's opening monologue, until the last winner was called. Our crew tweeted using the hashtag #NPROscars and also retweeted some of your contributions. You can review via the widget below, or right here on Twitter. This year's event is not without some controversy. When the nominations were announced on Jan. 14, several media outlets reported a lack of diversity among the nominees. Some celebrities even called for viewers to boycott Sunday's airing of the Academy Awards, and the overall outrage over the exclusion of people of color got the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite trending on Twitter. These reactions ultimately led the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to make modifications to its voting process and declare, \"The Board's goal is to commit to doubling the number of women and diverse members of the Academy by 2020.\" Host Chris Rock didn't shy away from commenting on the issue in his opening monologue. He joked that the Oscars are otherwise known as \"the white people's choice awards\" and said that if hosts were nominated, he wouldn't have gotten the job — that it would have instead gone to Neil Patrick Harris. In the list below, we've marked the winners in each category, in bold. Categories Picture The Big ShortBridge of SpiesBrooklynMad Max: Fury RoadThe MartianThe RevenantRoomSpotlight Actor in a Leading Role Bryan Cranston, TrumboMatt Damon, The MartianLeonardo DiCaprio, The RevenantMichael Fassbender, Steve JobsEddie Redmayne, The Danish Girl Actress in a Leading Role Cate Blanchett, CarolBrie Larson, RoomJennifer Lawrence, JoyCharlotte Rampling, 45 YearsSaoirse Ronan, Brooklyn Director Adam McKay, The Big ShortGeorge Miller, Mad Max: Fury RoadAlejandro González Iñárritu, The RevenantLenny Abrahamson, RoomTom McCarthy, Spotlight Actor in a Supporting Role Christian Bale, The Big ShortTom Hardy, The RevenantMark Ruffalo, SpotlightMark Rylance, Bridge of SpiesSylvester Stallone, Creed Actress in a Supporting Role Jennifer Jason Leigh, The Hateful EightRooney Mara, CarolRachel McAdams, SpotlightAlicia Vikander, The Danish GirlKate Winslet, Steve Jobs Animated Feature Film AnomalisaBoy and the WorldInside OutShaun the Sheep MovieWhen Marnie Was There Cinematography CarolThe Hateful EightMad Max: Fury RoadThe RevenantSicario Costume Design CarolCinderellaThe Danish GirlMad Max: Fury RoadThe Revenant Documentary (Feature) AmyCartel LandThe Look of SilenceWhat Happened, Miss Simone?Winter on Fire: Ukraine's Fight for Freedom Documentary (Short Subject) Body Team 12Chau, beyond the LinesClaude Lanzmann: Spectres of the ShoahA Girl in the River: The Price of ForgivenessLast Day of Freedom Film Editing The Big ShortMad Max: Fury RoadThe RevenantSpotlightStar Wars: The Force Awakens Foreign Language Film Embrace of the SerpentMustangSon of SaulTheebA War Makeup and Hairstyling Mad Max: Fury RoadThe 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed outthe Window and DisappearedThe Revenant Original Score Bridge of SpiesCarolThe Hateful EightSicarioStar Wars: The Force Awakens Original Song \"Earned It,\" Fifty Shades of Grey\"Manta Ray,\" Racing Extinction\"Simple Song #3,\" Youth\"Til It Happens to You,\" The Hunting Ground\"Writing's on the Wall,\" Spectre Production Design Bridge of SpiesThe Danish GirlMad Max: Fury RoadThe MartianThe Revenant Short Film (Animated) Bear StoryPrologueSanjay's Super TeamWe Can't Live without CosmosWorld of Tomorrow Short Film (Live-Action) Ave MariaDay OneEverything Will Be Okay (Alles Wird Gut)ShokStutterer Sound Editing Mad Max: Fury RoadThe MartianThe RevenantSicarioStar Wars: The Force Awakens Sound Mixing Bridge of SpiesMad Max: Fury RoadThe MartianThe RevenantStar Wars: The Force Awakens Visual Effects Ex MachinaMad Max: Fury RoadThe MartianThe RevenantStar Wars: The Force Awakens Writing (Adapted Screenplay) The Big ShortBrooklynCarolThe MartianRoom Writing (Original Screenplay) Bridge of SpiesEx MachinaInside OutSpotlightStraight Outta Compton", "The competitors in the 2016 Oscars race were announced Thursday, in an event that was live-streamed from California. The winners will be announced on Feb. 28. The most nominations went to The Revenant, with 12, followed by Mad Max: Fury Road, with 10. The Martian was cited seven times, and Carol, Bridge of Spies and Spotlight were each nominated six times. The runaway hit of the season, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, was nominated for five Academy Awards, for its original score and in technical categories. We have a a brief rundown of some of the top categories below. You can also see the full list of nominees at the Academy Awards website. For the second straight year, the Oscars nominations lack any people of color in the 20 acting slots. And as happened last year, critics are using the hashtags #OscarNoms and #OscarsSoWhite to channel their disappointment. We do see that Mexican director Alejandro Iñárritu, who won an Oscar last year for Birdman, is up for the prize again this year, for The Revenant. But for the second year in a row, no black actor or actress was nominated for an Oscar. And unlike last year, when Selma competed for best picture, no black faces are featured in what the academy is calling the top films of 2015. This year, only Straight Outta Compton, which was nominated for best original screenplay, ranks as a film with prominent black roles that's also up for a major award. And while Sylvester Stallone was nominated for his supporting role in Creed, the film's star, Michael B. Jordan, and director, Ryan Coogler, both of whom are black, were shut out. That situation has led some to note that in honoring two films that center on black characters — two of the year's most popular movies — the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences chose to recognize only white contributors. (Compton screenwriters Jonathan Herman and Andrea Berloff are white). On social media, many are saying that the academy overlooked actors Idris Elba (Beasts of No Nation) and Will Smith (Concussion), who were nominated for, respectively, a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Golden Globe. Neither was included on the 2016 Oscars list. Highlights from the Nominations: Best Picture The Big Short Bridge of Spies Brooklyn Mad Max: Fury Road The Martian The Revenant Room Spotlight Best Actress Cate Blanchett - CarolBrie Larson - RoomJennifer Lawrence - JoyCharlotte Rampling - 45 YearsSaorise Ronan - Brooklyn Best Actor Bryan Cranston - TrumboMatt Damon - The MartianLeonardo DiCaprio - The RevenantMichael Fassbender - Steve JobsEddie Redmayne - The Danish Girl Directing Adam McKay - The Big ShortGeorge Miller - Mad Max: Fury RoadAlejandro G. Inarritu - The RevenantLenny Abrahamson - Room Tom McCarthy - Spotlight Best Supporting Actress Jennifer Jason Leigh - The Hateful EightRooney Mara - Carol Rachel McAdams - Spotlight Alicia Vikander - The Danish Girl Kate Winslet - Steve Jobs Best Supporting Actor Christian Bale - The Big Short Tom Hardy - The Revenant Mark Ruffalo - Spotlight Mark Rylance - Bridge of Spies Sylvester Stallone - Creed Animated Feature Film AnomalisaBoy and the WorldInside OutShaun the Sheep MovieWhen Marnie Was There Original Screenplay Bridge of SpiesEx MachinaInside OutSpotlightStraight Outta Compton Cinematography CarolThe Hateful EightMad Max: Fury RoadThe RevenantSicario Original Song \"Earned It\" - Fifty Shades of Grey\"Manta Ray\" - Racing Extinction\"Simple Song #3\" - Youth\"Til It Happens To You\" - The Hunting Ground\"Writing's On The Wall\" - Spectre Foreign Language Film Embrace of the Serpent - Colombia Mustang - France Son of Saul - Hungary Theeh - Jordan A War - Denmark Documentary Feature Amy Cartel LandThe Look of Silence What Happened, Miss Simone?Winter on Fire: Ukraine's Fight for Freedom", "Last year's Academy Award nominations were contentious in some quarters — making room for 10 Best Picture nominees led to claims that some didn't belong there, while others argued that worthy pictures (everything from Star Trek to A Single Man) had been unfairly overlooked. There will be less of a flap about this year's nominations, which went largely as expected this morning. Those 10 Best Picture slots went to 127 Hours, The Kids Are All Right, The King's Speech, Black Swan, The Social Network, Inception, The Fighter, Winter's Bone, Toy Story 3, and True Grit. Still, for a set of nominations that delivered so few surprises, they managed to do a reasonably good job of recognizing very fine films and actors. (Here's a list of the major nominees.) The King's Speech led with 12 nominations, including major-category nods for its screenplay; actors Colin Firth, Helena Bonham Carter, and Geoffrey Rush; and its director, Tom Hooper. Behind it were True Grit with 10 nominations, and Inception and The Social Network, both with eight. Also making a strong showing was the Boston boxing film The Fighter, which had seven nominations, all in prominent categories — three for its acting (Christian Bale, Melissa Leo, and Amy Adams, all in supporting categories — nothing for lead Mark Wahlberg), one for its screenplay, one for its director, and one for its editing, in addition to Best Picture. In particularly good news, the marvelous, disquietingly still Ozarks-based drama Winter's Bone, a film that seemed at risk of being nudged out of a bunch of different categories and forgotten, wound up earning four nominations. And they're all big ones: Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Actress (for near-rookie Jennifer Lawrence), and Best Supporting Actor candidate John Hawkes — an intriguing actor you may well know from a large backlog of character work on television (including a late run on Lost), whether you recognize his name or not. Who was bumped out by the Coens, after the jump. One minor surprise was that Joel and Ethan Coen were nominated for Best Director for True Grit, alongside David O. Russell (The Fighter), Darren Aronofsky (Black Swan), David Fincher (The Social Network), and Hooper. That nudged out expected nominee Christopher Nolan, who directed the infernally complex Inception. Also showing up a little less than some expected was Ben Affleck's film The Town, which pulled in only a Supporting Actor nomination for Jeremy Renner after being talked up for a possible Best Picture spot. The much-discussed \"fifth spot\" for Best Actor — after Firth, James Franco (127 Hours), Jeff Bridges (True Grit) and Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network) — went to Javier Bardem for Biutiful, which was also nominated for Best Foreign Language Film. That left out possible contenders like Robert Duvall (Get Low) and Ryan Gosling (Blue Valentine). Nominees for Best Actress, meanwhile, are Annette Bening (The Kids Are All Right), Natalie Portman (Black Swan), Michelle Williams (Blue Valentine), Nicole Kidman (Rabbit Hole), and Jennifer Lawrence (Winter's Bone). The least familiar acting nominee to the audience watching on Oscar night may be Jacki Weaver, nominated as Best Supporting Actress for Animal Kingdom, an Australian crime film. She'll face Helena Bonham Carter, Adams and Leo from The Fighter, and Hailee Steinfeld from True Grit — but back to that in a bit. Perhaps the biggest shocker was over in Best Documentary, where one of the most-discussed docs of the year, Waiting For Superman, didn't make it, although two other buzzed-about films, Exit Through The Gift Shop and Restrepo, did. As for snubs, there are a couple of things I found disappointing, but none of them are at all unexpected: I'd have liked to see more recognition for Blue Valentine, but the nomination for Williams is something. I also hoped Tangled might grab a Best Animated Feature nomination, but since I can't argue with Toy Story 3 and didn't see the other two (How To Train Your Dragon and The Illusionist), I'm in no position to complain. Furthermore, for the second year in a row, the expanded field allowed the big Pixar animated film of the summer to be nominated for Best Picture — last year, it was Up, this year, it was Toy Story 3. I'd certainly have put Andrew Garfield up for Best Supporting Actor in The Social Network, but that's smaller and less aggressive acting, which, especially from a new-ish actor, can easily and not particularly objectionably be outshone by bigger performances (like Bale in The Fighter) or ones from actors who have been around longer (like Rush in The King's Speech). Matt Damon did some very nice work in True Grit, but if I could only have that nomination or the one for Hawkes in Winter's Bone, I'd take the nominations we got. It does seem a little odd that Nolan was snubbed for Inception, but other than my sneaking sense that The Fighter is not quite the film it's made out to be aside from a couple of very big performances, I'm not", "The debate about whether romantic comedies are — or ever were — dead is an old one by now. In fact, I wrote about it five years ago. It's a sad but true fact that genres that fall between giant big-budget tentpoles and itty-bitty indies have receded in the last 20 years or so: the adult drama, the sports movie, the live-action family movie, and yes, the romantic comedy. It's not a complete vanishing: Rom-coms continue to be made, and they continue to be recognized. 2017's The Big Sick is an example that managed both a sizable audience and an Oscar nomination (for best original screenplay). But we certainly don't have the abundance of sunny rom-coms that we did from, say, the late '80s through the early aughts: When Harry Met Sally and Sleepless in Seattle, yes, but also While You Were Sleeping and Clueless and Bridget Jones' Diary. Maybe it's changes to the business, maybe it's the declining quality of scripts (does the genre have a new Nora Ephron? — of course not, nor could it ever), or maybe it's that we don't have the durable stars we did then who want to work in such a likability-driven form. Come to think of it, maybe we've even made it nearly impossible to have those stars. To quote that piece from five years ago that's even truer now: ... We're not going to enter another \"golden age\" until we address the epidemic of weirdly aggressive actress-hating that seems to befall anyone who trades on straight likability. Right now, you can get away with being a sort of cool-girl likable, like Emma Stone and Mila Kunis are, and like Jennifer Lawrence is. (This is no knock on any of them; they're all immensely likable, at least to me.) But the classic romantic comedy trades on audiences not having already decided that they&nbsp;hate&nbsp;the actress, so if we're going to devote full-time journalism beats to hating Anne Hathaway (and Jennifer Aniston and Lena Dunham and Katherine Heigl and Sandra Bullock and Gwyneth Paltrow and Julia Roberts and Kate Hudson), we're going to have trouble asking audiences to embrace the kind of low-cynicism energy that good romantic comedy requires. I mean, Katharine Hepburn had haters as it was, and&nbsp;that was the 1930s. If she — or even Audrey Hepburn — had existed in the age of the internet, do you really think they could have remained so loved? Or, in Katharine Hepburn's case, come back from the early sense that people didn't like her? Take note: Jennifer Lawrence is no longer neatly on the right side of this equation. Neither is Emma Stone. In fact, Lawrence recently interviewed Stone for Elle and — guess what! — it wasn't universally received as adorable. Still, we find ourselves in the middle of what many of us hope is a rom-com resurgence. The current box-office hit Crazy Rich Asians is partly a romantic comedy, though it's not the classic meet-cute kind. It's the meet-the-parents kind. What it does have is swoon-worthy beauty, wacky friends and a makeover, all of which are classic rom-com elements. Much of the action at the moment, though, is on Netflix, where they're cranking out what a lot of us loved in the '90s — straight-up, unapologetic, sparkly-eyed rom-coms. Note well: this isn't to say they're all good. The runaway winner for quality is To All The Boys I've Loved Before, adapted from Jenny Han's YA romance, starring Lana Condor and Noah Centineo. It's impeccably cast (which is half the battle), it's well written and directed, and it has brought out in viewers what Alanna Bennett at BuzzFeed has cleverly — and accurately — termed \"radical softness.\" Set It Up, which was released in mid-June, was also chatted up favorably on social media, although it's not nearly as deeply felt or as well executed as To All The Boys. Its story of a couple of assistants trying to force a romance between their bosses was appealing mostly because it was such pure romantic comedy, such pure artifice that you rarely see anymore in service of the real center of any rom-com, which is Cute People Flirting. The Kissing Booth, starring Joey King as a girl stuck between a possessive best friend and his possessive older brother, has its partisans. Given that its story romanticizes both violent tempers and boys fighting for control of a girl's sexuality, I am not one of those partisans. (By which I mean to say: It's very bad.) But! The good and the bad often appear together. If Netflix is going to crank out original movies along these lines — thus dropping what once seemed to be its plan to make its reputation for original films on the back of Adam Sandler — then they won't all be successes. Theatrically released romantic comedies weren't either, which you know if you ever saw The Ugly Truth. (I hope you didn't.) What matters is staying in the game. What's more, Netflix's first best rom-com meant a lot to another underserved audience: The one that doesn't want romantic comedies to be dominated by white casts and writers, as they were in previous \"golden ages\" (which is not to di", "The best thing about David O. Russell is that he cultivates his disequilibrium. In Silver Linings Playbook, his hero is disturbed and his heroine possibly more so, and his other characters have a grip on reality that is only marginally more secure. Russell might have made them seem the dreaded \"q\" word — quirky — and OK, he does, a bit, at the end, which broadly conforms to the rom-com template. But until then, Bradley Cooper's Pat Solatano is someone you'd be less likely to dream about than get a restraining order against. In fact, that's what his wife has done at the start, which finds Pat, diagnosed with bipolar disorder, in a mental hospital — a place where the phrase \"silver lining\" as in \"every cloud has a ... \" is a mantra. In the novel by Matthew Quick, he's been there for four years after violently assaulting someone. Here, it's a mere eight months — and he acts like he could have used the extra three-plus years. After his mother, played by Jacki Weaver, drives him home to the Philly suburbs, he throws A Farewell to Arms through his bedroom window because of the tragic ending, and he smashes furniture outside his psychiatrist's office when \"Ma Cherie Amour\" — his wedding song — plays in the waiting room. While Pat pines for the reunion with his wife that he's certain will come, he lives with his mother and obsessive-compulsive father, Robert De Niro's Pat Sr., who has started gambling heavily on the Philadelphia Eagles. He spends his days working out and running, until his friend Ronnie, played by John Ortiz, invites him to dinner — where Ronnie's wife (Julia Stiles) fixes him up with her widowed sister, Jennifer Lawrence's Tiffany. We think, \"Who would fix her sister up with him?\" — until we meet Tiffany, and wonder which of the two has more to fear. To director Russell, Pat and Tiffany are a hell-match made in heaven. Russell is, by all reports, a tempestuous fellow given to screaming matches and fistfights with actors — and I mention that not for gossip's sake, but because his films are similarly unruly: Think of Flirting with Disaster, Three Kings, I Heart Huckabees and The Fighter, in which the title character is the least pugnacious. Russell relishes the escalating momentum of people rubbing each other wrong. Although Tiffany likes Pat, Pat doesn't want to date her; he wants his wife back. But despite — or maybe because of — the friction, they bond indelibly. Actors covet roles like these, and, indeed, Cooper co-executive-produced Silver Linings Playbook to get it made. To convey Pat's state of mind, he speaks loudly, with little variation in pitch. His eyes are unblinking. It's not an imaginative performance, but it's scary pure. It's Lawrence who stunned me. I loved her in Winter's Bone and The Hunger Games, but she's very young — I didn't think she had this kind of deep-toned, layered weirdness in her. Chris Tucker plays a fellow patient of Pat's whose few scenes are dazzling in their topsy-turvy rhythms, and the rest of the cast is fine, although De Niro's funny turn struck me as Method throat-clearing with no launch — but that's the role. Silver Linings Playbook has a conventional climax. There's a dance competition featuring nondancers Pat and Tiffany with a lot riding on it. It's exhilarating but unsurprising. I like the movie best when it's discombobulated. Here's my favorite line, Tiffany's, when she intervenes to keep Pat from being arrested after a fight. The officer recognizes her as the wife of a late cop, saying, \"You're Tommy's widow,\" and she says, \"Yes, I'm Tommy's crazy whore widow minus the whore thing, sometimes.\" The zigs and zags in that one line — the exhibitionism, self-hatred and defensiveness — could make you crazy trying to diagram. Which is just how David O. Russell likes it. Me too. DAVID BIANCULLI, HOST: The sixth feature film by writer/director David O. Russell is \"Silver Linings Playbook\" based on a book by Matthew Quick. It's a dark comedy set in the suburbs of Philadelphia where a bipolar man, played by Bradley Cooper, obsesses over his estranged wife while being pursued by an unstable widow. The widow is played by Jennifer Lawrence. The movie also stars Robert De Niro. Film critic David Edelstein has a review. DAVID EDELSTEIN, BYLINE: The best thing about David O. Russell is that he cultivates his disequilibrium. In \"Silver Linings Playbook,\" his hero is disturbed and his heroine possibly more so, and his other characters have a grip on reality only marginally more secure. Russell might have made them seem the dreaded \"q\" word - quirky - and OK, he does, a bit, at the end, which broadly conforms to the rom-com template. But until then, Bradley Cooper's Pat Solatano is someone you'd be less likely to dream about than get a restraining order against. In fact, that's what his wife has done at the start, which finds Pat, diagnosed with bipolar disorder, in a mental hospital - a place where the phrase \"silver lining\" as in \"every cloud has a ...\" is a mantra. In", "After several days of heavy rain in Los Angeles, the sun came out just as the 86th annual Academy Awards got underway at the Dolby Theater. The big award of the night, for Best Picture, went to 12 Years a Slave. The film tells the harrowing tale of Solomon Northup, a free black man in New York who was sold into slavery. (See the full list of winners below.) The big acting awards went to Matthew McConaughey and Cate Blanchett. McConaughey won Best Actor for his role as a Texas man suffering from AIDS in Dallas Buyers Club, and Best Actress went to Cate Blanchett for her turn in Woody Allen's Blue Jasmine. Gravity took home the most trophies: seven Academy Awards, including for director Alfonso Cuaron and for cinematography, visual effects and original music score. The first award of the night went to Jared Leto, who, as many expected, won Best Supporting Actor for his performance in Dallas Buyers Club. He dedicated his award to his mother, his date for the night. \"Thank you for teaching me to dream,\" he said. Best Supporting Actress went to newcomer Lupita Nyong'o for her portrayal of a slave under the thumb of a sadistic master in 12 Years a Slave. \"It doesn't escape me for one moment that so much joy in my life is thanks to so much pain in someone else's, and so I want to salute the spirit of Patsey, for her guidance,\" she said in her acceptance speech. Another widely predicted winner was Frozen, which took home the Oscar for Best Animated Feature. The Disney film has made more than $1 billion worldwide. Ellen DeGeneres took over hosting duties this year, bringing a less controversial vibe than the salty humor of last year's host, Seth MacFarlane. DeGeneres opened by poking fun at many actors in the crowd, including mocking Jennifer Lawrence for falling on her way onto the red carpet, just as she did when she accepted an Oscar last year for Silver Linings Playbook. \"If you win tonight, I think we should bring you the Oscar,\" said DeGeneres to Lawrence, nominated for her performance in American Hustle. DeGeneres also spent parts of the show mingling with the crowd, taking selfies to post on Twitter (including one record-breaking star-stuffed tweet) and even delivering pizza to several actors. Here's how NPR's Linda Holmes, Bob Mondello and others live-tweeted the night at #NPROscars: List Of Winners: Best picture: 12 Years a Slave Actor in a leading role: Matthew McConaughey (Dallas Buyers Club) Actress in a leading role: Cate Blanchett (Blue Jasmine) Actor in a supporting role: Jared Leto (Dallas Buyers Club) Actress in a supporting role: Lupita Nyong'o (12 Years a Slave) Directing: Alfonso Cuarón (Gravity) Best original screenplay: Spike Jonze (Her) Best adapted screenplay: John Ridley (12 Years a Slave) Visual effects: Tim Webber, Chris Lawrence, David Shirk and Neil Corbould (Gravity) Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki (Gravity) Music — original score: Steven Price (Gravity) Music — original song: Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez (\"Let It Go\" from Frozen) Costume design: Catherine Martin (The Great Gatsby) Production design: Catherine Martin — Production Design; Beverley Dunn — Set Decoration (The Great Gatsby) Makeup and hairstyling: Adruitha Lee, Robin Mathews (Dallas Buyers Club) Short film: Anders Walter and Kim Magnusson (Helium) Animated feature film: Chris Buck, Jennifer Lee and Peter Del Vecho (Frozen) Animated short film: Laurent Witz and Alexandre Espigares (Mr. Hublot) Documentary feature film: Morgan Neville, Gil Friesen and Caitrin Rogers (20 Feet from Stardom) Documentary short subject: Malcolm Clarke and Nicholas Reed (The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life) Foreign language film: The Great Beauty Film editing: Alfonso Cuarón and Mark Sanger (Gravity) Sound mixing: Skip Lievsay, Niv Adiri, Christopher Benstead and Chris Munro (Gravity) Sound editing: Glenn Freemantle (Gravity)", "The nominations for the 79th Academy Awards were announced today. The musical Dreamgirlsgarnered eight nominations — but they didn't include the best picture or best director categories. The film Babel netted seven nominations, followed by Pan's Labyrinth and The Queen, with six nominations each. Even the most experienced Oscar pundits were shocked when Dreamgirls got eight nominations but was overlooked for best picture. And they were equally surprised when Eastwood's Letters from Iowa Jima was named in the category. The little-seen World War II film in Japanese was completely overlooked in earlier awards nominations from Hollywood's influential guilds. The nomination reflects the Academy's great regard for Eastwood, as well as respect for his achievement in making this film and Flags of Our Fathers in the same year. Other nominees in the best-picture category were Little Miss Sunshine, The Queen, The Departed, and Babel. This has also turned out to be a strong year for African American actors, who picked up five of twenty nominations. The best-actor category includes Forest Whitaker and Will Smith; best supporting actor pits Eddie Murphy against Djimon Hounson. And Jennifer Hudson is considered a favorite in the best supporting actress category for Dreamgirls. Another front-runner is Helen Mirren for The Queen. MICHELE NORRIS, host: This is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED from NPR News. I'm Michele Norris. MELISSA BLOCK, host: And I'm Melissa Block. Oscar nominations were announced this morning, and Clint Eastwood's \"Letters from Iwo Jima\" is the surprise contender for Best Picture. \"Dreamgirls\" had another less pleasant surprise. NPR's Kim Masters reports. KIM MASTERS: Even the most experienced Oscar pundits were shocked when \"Dreamgirls\" got eight nominations but was overlooked for Best Picture. The pundits were equally surprised when Eastwood's film, completely overlooked in earlier award nominations from Hollywood's influential guilds, was named. \"Letters from Iwo Jima\" is a little seen World War II film in Japanese. (Soundbite of movie, \"Letters from Iwo Jima\") Unidentified Man: (Speaking foreign language) MASTERS: The nomination reflects the Academy's great regard for Eastwood, as well as respect for his achievement in making this film and \"Flags of our Fathers\" in the same year. Other nominees in the Best Picture category were \"Little Miss Sunshine,\" \"The Queen,\" \"The Departed\" and \"Babel.\" Another film made on a global canvas, \"Babel,\" picked up seven nominations, including Best Director for Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu. He said his film is about the inability to express and receive love. Mr. ALEJANDRO GONZALEZ INARRITU (Director, \"Babel\"): Which is a big tragic situation that we are unable, even with all the technologies given us so many tools to communicate. We are unable to do that in the most intimate ways. You know, with our husband and wife and kids, and even the countries and cultures are struggling with that same thing. MASTERS: Inarritu is one of a trio of celebrated Mexican directors and all three were nominated in various categories. Inarritu had multiple nods for \"Babel.\" Guillermo del Torro is recognized for Best Foreign Language nominee \"Pan's Labyrinth.\" And Alfonso Cuaron was named for writing and editing \"Children of Men.\" Inarritu was pleased that all three were named. Mr. INARRITU: The Academy is acknowledging the fact that the world is becoming a cultural orgy that the community of world filmmakers are trying to take advantage of the universal power of cinema, and putting stories about humanity and transcending our limitations, our borders and our provincial way of thinking. MASTERS: For best directors, the Academy named Inarritu, Eastwood and Stephen Frears for \"The Queen.\" Paul Greengrass got a surprise nomination for \"United 93.\" Mr. PAUKL GREENGRASS (Director, \"United 93\"): I was very surprised. Actually, I didn't even hear it was today, to be honest. MASTERS: Greengrass acknowledged that many doubted Academy members would be willing to watch the film, given its difficult subject matter. Mr. GREENGRASS: I personally do believe passionately that cinema has to engage with the world. It has to deal with the way the world is. MASTERS: This has also turn out to be a strong year for African American actors. The Best Actor category includes Forest Whitaker and Will Smith. Best Supporting Actor pits Eddie Murphy against Djimo Hounsou. And Jennifer Hudson is considered a favorite in the Best Supporting Actress category for \"Dreamgirls.\" A frontrunner in the Best Actress category is Helen Mirren for \"The Queen.\" Mirren said she had concluded she wasn't likely to receive this type of recognition. Yes, she's been nominated before, but - Ms. HELEN MIRREN (Actress, \"\"The Queen\"): Very often, and yes that I've been nominated, they sort of say it was very difficult to find any good performances this year. Indicating that they're scrapping the bottom of the barrel in nominat", "There's a movie freshly out this weekend — perhaps you've heard of it. The Hunger Games? On Friday's Morning Edition, director Gary Ross and star Jennifer Lawrence talk to NPR's David Greene about the film. If you devoured the books, both Ross and Lawrence are right there with you: \"I read all three of them in four days,\" Lawrence says of Suzanne Collins' trilogy (which also includes Catching Fire and Mockingjay). Asked what drew her specifically to Katniss, Lawrence says, \"She's not a hero, she's not a James Bond or Lara Croft who's done this a million times with all the tools and knows how to do it, and we're just going to watch her win.\" While Lawrence has kind words for the story's message about both personal strength and standing up to authority on a larger level, the conversation quickly turns to the grueling shoot. If you're wondering whether Lawrence's training would impress you, here's how she describes it: \"I had running, free running — like parkour agility training, combat, climbing, archery and yoga.\" That's right: parkour agility training. Maybe that's why when she's asked whether they're on board for the future films, she suggests Hilary Swank could take her place, or maybe Snooki. Fortunately, she's kidding. She is not kidding, however, about having accidentally kicked co-star Josh Hutcherson, who plays Peeta, in the head, resulting in a concussion. This, as you might imagine, caused some guilt. \"The best part was him holding an icepack up to his head and rubbing my back, telling me it was all going to be OK while I cried. Then when Gary came in and said he couldn't work because he had a concussion, I started bawling in the makeup trailer.\" When not battling her human co-stars (Accidentally! It was an accident!), Lawrence was worried about some of the ones with a few more legs. Ross busts her on one of her fears: \"Kickass heroine\" or not, she does not like bugs. \"I'm terrified of spiders,\" she acknowledges. \"I'm really scared of spiders.\" Fortunately, those on the set were sympathetic, or at least willing to pretend they were: \"They used to lie to me and tell me they de-spidered the tree before I climbed it.\" The next film, Ross says, is scheduled to begin shooting in September, and Lawrence knows the physical challenges will continue. \"Can [Katniss] walk at all in the second one?\" she asks. \"She never walks, this person.\"", "Fresh Air Weekend highlights some of the best interviews and reviews from past weeks, and new program elements specially paced for weekends. Our weekend show emphasizes interviews with writers, filmmakers, actors and musicians, and often includes excerpts from live in-studio concerts. This week: A Former Neo-Nazi Explains Why Hate Drew Him In — And How He Got Out: Christian Picciolini spent eight years as a member of a violent, white power skinhead group. He eventually withdrew and co-founded a nonprofit to help extremists disengage. Girls Auto Clinic Owner: 'I Couldn't Find A Female Mechanic, So I Had To Learn': There was a time when Patrice Banks avoided taking her car in for routine maintenance. Now, she's a trained mechanic, and the owner of a garage that caters to women. You can listen to the original interviews here: A Former Neo-Nazi Explains Why Hate Drew Him In — And How He Got Out Girls Auto Clinic Owner: 'I Couldn't Find A Female Mechanic, So I Had To Learn'", "You may perhaps not have noticed, but the 85th annual Academy Awards are coming up this weekend. In Oscar's honor, we dug into the archives for some of the best books about the movies — and the books that became movies. And Cary Grant, because we love him even though Oscar didn't. Three Books About Our Affair With MoviesOscar season, of course, means you almost can't avoid thinking about movies. But for all the ways movies consume us, it's rare to find good, serious writing that analyzes our relationship to them. These three books selected by Anthony Giardina (the proud possessor of the nation's most eclectic Netflix queue) do just that. Among his picks is Pictures at a Revolution: Five Movies and the Birth of the New Hollywood, a longtime favorite of our very own Linda Holmes. (Three Books, June 11, 2008) When 'Unfilmable' Books Make Memorable MoviesSome books are considered unfilmable — Ulysses, for example. But that never stops filmmakers; Ulysses in particular has been filmed not once, but twice. Cloud Atlas and the Best Picture-nominated Life of Pi are two complicated, ambitious novels recently adapted for the big screen. NPR's Elizabeth Blair explores what makes some singular narratives workable on film — and what makes some fail. (Morning Edition, Nov. 20, 2012) Coen Brothers' 'No Country' Nabs Eight Oscar NodsFor more than 20 years, Ethan and Joel Coen have written, directed and produced films together — many of them bloody, absurd and revolving around some kind of criminal enterprise gone awry. Their film No Country for Old Men was nominated for eight Academy Awards in 2008, eventually winning Best Picture and Best Director for the Coens, who became the first siblings to share a directing award. (Weekend Edition Saturday, Feb. 9, 2008) Critic Alan Cheuse reviewed the original novel by Cormac McCarthy here. 'Good Stuff': Cary Grant's Daughter On Growing Up For most of the world, Cary Grant was a Hollywood icon, but to Jennifer Grant he was simply Dad. Grant chronicles her close relationship with her father in her new book, Good Stuff. Despite starring in classics like Bringing Up Baby, The Philadelphia Story and North by Northwest, Grant was legendarily snubbed by the Academy throughout his career, finally getting an honorary Oscar in 1970. (Weekend Edition Sunday, June 18, 2011)", "This interview aired originally on June 16, 2010. Winter's Bone recently received seven nominations for the Independent Spirit Awards, including the award for Best Picture. It also recently received the best-film award at the Gotham Awards in New York. When filmmaker Debra Granik received a copy of Winter's Bone, Daniel Woodrell's 2006 novel about a broken family in the Ozarks, she knew immediately that she wanted to adapt it for the big screen. Granik and writer-producer Anne Rosellini had been looking for a strong female protagonist for a long time; they wanted someone \"that we could just enjoy, and who we could recognize very readily as someone who would shine out on screen,\" Granik tells Fresh Air's Terry Gross. \"This was a very irresistible book to us, and the story was one that would adapt very well the way that Daniel had constructed it.\" Both Granik and Woodrell sat down to discuss the meth-fueled family drama, which won the 2010 Sundance Grand Jury Prize and which Fresh Air critic David Edelstein called \"miraculous.\" DAVID BIANCULLI, host: Our next guests collaborated on \"Winter's Bone,\" a film that won the grand jury prize for drama at the Sundance Film Festival. It's winding up on a lot of end of year top 10 lists and it tops the best of 2010 list of our own film critic, David Edelstein. Our guests are Debra Granik, the director of \"Winter's Bone,\" and Daniel Woodrell, the author of the book on which the movie is based. Terry spoke with them earlier this year. \"Winter's Bone\" is set in the Ozarks, in a poor community where people have turned to cooking meth to make a living. The main character, Ree Dolly, played by Jennifer Lawrence, is a 17-year-old girl. She's taking care of her two young siblings because her mother is mentally ill and her father, who cooks meth, has gone missing. After being arrested and putting up the family home for his bail bond, he disappears. Unless Ree finds him, she will lose the family's home and have nowhere to go. To find out where her father might be, she goes to the homes of relatives and other people her fathers(ph) knows, most of whom are also in the meth business. They're not interested in talking. In this scene, Ree is looking for Thump Milton, the leader of this meth underworld. As she approaches Thump's house, she's met by his wife, played by Dale Dickey. (Soundbite of movie, \"Winter's Bone\") (Soundbite of dogs barking) Ms. DALE DICKEY (Actor): (as Merab) You got the wrong place, I expect. Who might you be? Ms. JENNIFER LAWRENCE (Actor): (as Ree Dolly) I'm Ree. My dad's Jessup Dolly. (Soundbite of dogs barking) Ms. DICKEY: (as Merab) You ain't here for trouble, are you? Ms. LAWRENCE: (as Ree Dolly) No, ma'am. Ms. DICKEY: (as Merab) 'Cause one of my nephews is Buster Leroy, and didn't he shoot your daddy one time? Ms. LAWRENCE: (as Ree Dolly) Yes. But that ain't got nothing to do with me. They settled that their selves, I think. Ms. DICKEY: (as Merab) Shooting him likely settled it. What is it you want? Ms. LAWRENCE: (as Ree Dolly) I got a real bad need to talk with Thump. Ms. DICKEY: (as Merab) And he ain't got no need to talk to you. (Soundbite of footsteps) Ms. LAWRENCE: (as Ree Dolly) But I need to. I really, really got to, ma'am. Please. Some of our blood, at least, is the same. Ain't that supposed to mean something? Isn't that what is always said? Ms. DICKEY: (as Merab) Ain't you got no men could do this? Ms. LAWRENCE: (as Ree Dolly) No, ma'am. I don't. (Soundbite of dogs barking) Ms. DICKEY: (as Merab) You go wait in the yard somewhere by that coop, and I'll tell Thump you're here. Ms. LAWRENCE: (as Ree Dolly) Thanks. TERRY GROSS, host: That's a scene from \"Winter's Bone,\" the movie adaptation by Debra Granik, of Daniel Woodrell's novel. Debra Granik, Daniel Woodrell, welcome to FRESH AIR. Now, the man that Ree, the character in that scene, is trying to see, Thump, Daniel Woodrell, in your novel, \"Winter's Bone,\" you describe him as having a face that's a monument of Ozark stone, with juts and angles and cold-shaded parts the sun never touched. His voice held raised hammers and long shadows. (Soundbite of laughter) GROSS: That's a man I don't want to meet. (Soundbite of laughter) GROSS: Now that we heard a scene from the film, Daniel Woodrell, let me ask you to do a short reading from the book that the movie is adapted from. And this is another scene in which Ree is trying to find out what happened to her father now that he's skipped bail. And in this scene, she goes to see her father's brother. Would you read that scene for us? Mr. DANIEL WOODRELL (Author, \"Winter's Bone\"): Sure. What's this all about, anyhow? I got to find Dad and make sure he shows in court. That's a man's personal choice, little girl. That's not something you ought to be butting your smarty nose into. Show or don't show, that choice is up to the one's that going to jail to make, not you. Uncle Teardrop was Jessup's elder and had been a cran", "This summer, U.S. archer Khatuna Lorig hopes to return to the Olympic Games. But she's already helped put archery into The Hunger Games this spring — by training the film's star, Jennifer Lawrence, to shoot. In the kill-or-be-killed competition in the film drawn from Suzanne Collins' book, Lawrence's character, Katniss Everdeen, relies on her ability with a bow. And Lorig worked with the actress to ensure she had proper form. \"[Lawrence is] the best ambassador we have, a sort of Kevin Costner,\" Lorig tells reporter Alex Schmidt, for a story airing on Tuesday's Morning Edition. \"I think she's the one who's gonna make archery more visible. That's what's happening — and I'm very happy,\" she says. It seems Lorig will have reasons to stay happy this summer. In addition to The Hunger Games, archery is featured in the upcoming Marvel film The Avengers (May 4) and the animated Brave (June 22), by Disney Pixar. Lorig reportedly worked with Lawrence for about 10 hours. And she gives the actress high marks. On the Easton Foundations sports website, Lorig says that \"after a few lessons, Jennifer was shooting about 100 arrows a day with an Olympic-style recurve. Her technique was great.\" As for perhaps the most impressive shot in the film — in which Lawrence's character shoots an apple out of a roasted pig's mouth at a banquet — Lorig says the shot is one she and other highly trained archers could make. \"Yes, we can shoot the apple,\" Lorig told Wendy Bounds on the WSJ Digital Network. \"We can shoot very small objects, no problem — from probably 80 yards, or even more.\" Asked whether Lawrence is good enough to make that kind of shot without the aid of special effects, Lorig says, \"She would need more practice, of course. Yes, why not? She could be.\" These days, Lorig is focused on her own goal: earning a trip to London for the Summer Games. She competed in her first Olympics nearly 20 years ago, in Barcelona. Back then, she was on the Unified Soviet Team. She went on to represent her native Georgia and then the United States, where she moved in 1996 — first to New Jersey, and then to California. Now Lorig wants another chance to represent the U.S. — she's the top-ranked American female archer. But she might not learn if she has qualified for a spot on the team until June, Schmidt reports. Lorig also wants more people to give archery a try. She's been a fan of the sport for 26 years. \"Once you start shooting, you're gonna like it,\" Lorig tells Schmidt. \"Come on, how can you not like archery? You have to be physically strong, and you have to be mentally strong. So what else do you need in your life?\" You can watch Lorig shoot online, during a practice session at the 2008 Beijing Games. RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST: The top-ranked female archer in the United States is a woman by the name of Khatuna Lorig. These days, she's training almost full-time for the Olympics in London, and she's done some coaching as well. Among the athletes she worked with, the star of \"The Hunger Games,\" Jennifer Lawrence, for the movies archery scenes. Alex Schmidt went to watch Lorig's Olympic preparations in the Southern California city of Chula Vista. ALEX SCHMIDT, BYLINE: When she shoots, Khatuna Lorig is a fierce mixture of relaxation and tension. She stands straight up in sunglasses and a hat pulled low over her eyes. Then, she lifts a huge bow, pulling back the string to a tension of 44 pounds. She's alone up here – can't count on any teammates for help - and she likes it that way. KHATUNA LORIG: It's an individual sport. You shot, you ten, you gold and nobody can change. No judge can change that. (SOUNDBITE OF BOW STRING PLUCKED) SCHMIDT: She shoots her quiver at a target so far away I can hardly see the arrows. (SOUNDBITE OF BOW STRING PLUCKED) SCHMIDT: Amazingly though, she calls the shots: four gold in the center of the target at one o'clock; one red, the next layer out, at five o'clock. We walk over to the target. She was exactly right. How did you know when we were standing back there? LORIG: I kind of feel how I released. Shooting 26 years, I'm very much kind of knows - I know my 10 fingers. SCHMIDT: It's been a long road to get to where she is now. Thirty-six-year-old Lorig was born in the Republic of Georgia and discovered archery at school, in the 6th grade. Times were tough when the USSR split up. Lorig would practice shooting in a basement by candlelight. In '96, she moved to the U.S. but missed the 2004 games because she still wasn't a citizen. LORIG: Mentally I was very, very stressed at that time. I knew I could make the Olympics and because no paperwork to try for the U.S., kind of killed my dream for another four years. SCHMIDT: Archery has struggled, too, with a lack of glittery star power. But things are picking up. Exhibit A: \"The Hunger Games,\" with a female archer as the hero. (SOUNDBITE OF MOVIE, \"THE HUNGER GAMES\") SCHMIDT: Lorig herself trained actress Jennifer Lawrence for her role in the film. LORIG: She's the best amb", "In his essay \"Mind's Eye Trouble,\" humorist Robert Benchley confessed that he had a serious shortcoming when it came to reading: his visual imagination amounted to what he described as \"a squint.\" The effect of this, Benchley wrote, was that every scene in every major novel he ever read took place, in his mind's eye, in the town of Worcester, Mass., where he grew up. As Benchley would have us believe, he set most of the crucial events in the rise and fall of the Roman Empire in the vicinity of a white house on the corner of May and Woodland Streets. Nothing, Benchley maintained, not even extensive world travels, could shake him of this literary limitation. Not all of us are so afflicted. Many readers conjure up very specific images of the places and characters that inhabit their favorite novels. Even those who can't quite get a clear focus on exactly what a character might look like have a pretty good idea of that person's qualities. And readers can get very attached to their own ideas about a character. That might explain why people sometimes react furiously when they think a favorite character has been badly miscast in the movie version of a novel. Recently a bit of firestorm erupted when it was announced that the film adaptation of The Hunger Games would star Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss, the feisty young heroine of the story. Lawrence was unknown before her star turn as the feisty young heroine of the grim indie film Winter's Bone. Lawrence's portrayal won her an Oscar nomination for Best Actress, and many fans of the Hunger Games trilogy probably saw her for the first time when she took a glamorous turn on the red carpet. They might not have seen her decidedly unglamorous, gritty performance as a young girl desperate to protect her young siblings. If you've read The Hunger Games, you know that is exactly what Katniss sets out to do. But a lot of Katniss fans don't see the blonde-haired, blue-eyed Lawrence as the brunette, olive-skinned Katniss. Some have suggested that an actress of color would have been more appropriate for the part. Personally, I can live with Lawrence as Katniss because I saw what the actress can do in Winter's Bone. But recently, I got an email with the heading: \"In the nothing sacred department.\" It contained the news that Disney has acquired the rights to the famous Agatha Christie creation, Miss Marple (though later reports suggest the deal may not be quite done). And who's on tap to play the elderly British detective? Well Jennifer Garner of course. The pretty, thirtysomething actress is a very appealing young woman. I love to see pictures of her strolling around with her two daughters. I've wondered if her marriage to Ben Affleck is a good one and hope it will last. I've seen her in a few films and thought she nailed the aching longing of the adoptive mom in Juno. In short ... I really like Jennifer Garner. But Miss Marple? Really? Why, she doesn't look a thing like Margaret Rutherford. Then again, why should I be surprised? If Robert Downey, Jr. can take on Sherlock Holmes (and yes, I saw the movie — I'll watch Robert Downey, Jr. in just about anything), then why not give Jennifer Garner a shot at an Agatha Christie mystery? And anyway, if I somehow came to terms with Keira Knightley as Elizabeth Bennet in Pride And Prejudice, a film adaptation I swore I would never go to see but did, and I liked it, then maybe my own mind's eye is not so much shortsighted as just plain fickle.", "Filmmaker Barry Jenkins and playwright Tarell McCraney drew on their own childhood experiences in making 'Moonlight,' a film about a boy growing up in a Miami housing project. 'Moonlight' is nominated for eight Academy Awards including best picture and direction. '20th Century Women' is nominated for an Oscar for best original screenplay. Writer and director Mike Mills was inspired by his desire to understand his mother. Set in Santa Barbara in 1979, it stars Annette Bening as a woman figuring out how to raise her teenage son on her own. David Edelstein reviews 'Get Out,' the new horror/comedy film by Jordan Peele.", "Don't read this. I'm serious. Reviews are, generally speaking, the best way to get a sense of whether a given movie is likely to be a rewarding experience for you. You gamble (at most) a couple of minutes before you gamble (at least) a couple of hours and a not-inconsequential sum of your hard-earned cash. Often, for your trouble, you get a pithy reminder of what the artists involved have done before. Best of all — if the critic is any good —you get a temporary parole from the prison of the self. Because if you do decide to see the film in question, you're only going to be able to see it as yourself, filtered through your own taste and mood and life experience. But a critic — again, if they've got any skills — can show you what one other person saw. What a gift! As I say: Generally speaking. Except alllllllll that noise takes a backseat to the thrill of confusion and discovery of going into writer/producer/director Darren Aronofsky's confounding mother! (sic) stone-cold, like I did. Not absolute-zero, halt-of-all-molecular-motion cold. I've seen his other films. (Well, not Noah.) I was surprised, when I thought about it, to realize I had seen five of his prior movies once each, going back to his black-and-white no-budget debut Pi almost 20 years ago. Even images I would prefer not to have in my brain (like much of his sophomore feature, the unrated generational drug-addiction nightmare Requiem for a Dream) have lodged there so stubbornly I figured I must have revisited that one, or the three-part metaphysical romance The Fountain, or the broken-down sports drama The Wrestler, or the psychological ballet drama Black Swan at some point after they had left cinemas. Nope. I saw them, I appreciated them, I thought of them frequently, I never had trouble recalling what Darren Aronofsky had done whenever I saw his name. There was a brief, weird moment about 15 years ago when he was going to make a Batman movie with once-beloved comic book creator-turned-divisive-crank Frank Miller. Really. Bat-maaaaaaan! NanaNANAnanaNANAbat— Oh, you're still here! Why? You must've noticed me vamping my fool fingers off, supplying you every chance to get bored or frustrated and click elsewhere. I'll tell you again: mother! (sic) is best consumed knowing as little as possible about it! (emphasis mine). Well, okay. You were warned. You were given an explanation. Which is the last thing you want, with a movie like this: the product of a genuinely distinct and idiosyncratic vision, which can be illuminated but not solved the way more market-minded movies can. Of course it's pretentious! That's permissible, even desirable, when the movie's determination not to abide by the rhythms and strictures of more conventional releases has the effect of making it more unpredictable and absorbing and — what's the word — fun. On its most superficial, accessible level, mother! is squirm-inducing fun. For a while, before its more allegorical readings start to gnaw at you (and eventually pummel you), it's just a creepy haunted house movie/frail marriage movie. Jennifer Lawrence and Javier Bardem play a couple (no names) who live in an absurdly large and remote house (no county, state, nation or planet). She spends her days putting the finishing touches on the rehabilitation project to which she has devoted months; it seems there was a fire in the old place, back before her time. \"I want to make it paradise,\" she says. (Huh.) He spends his doing whatever writers do when they're supposed to be writing, including going for long walks. Of course he is blocked. Of course his spouse shall suffer for his art. Aronofsky has seen The Shining, and he knows you've seen The Shining, too. The little things unsettle you: Why is virtually all the photography hand-held? Why is the camera so close to Lawrence's face (and occasionally mounted on her person)? Why is the most advanced piece of technology in this house a landline telephone? What is that coppery substance Lawrence dissolves in water and chugs when she gets a migraine? The guy in Pi suffered from migraines too, didn't he? Why is there a festering wound in the floor? Bardem's character is so starved for inspiration that he is delighted when uninvited guests arrive. First, Ed Harris, as a wheezing, obsequious surgeon. He is much more deferential to Bardem than to Lawrence: \"I thought she was your daughter,\" he says, more admiringly than apologetically. He seems like a pest until his spouse, Michelle Pfeiffer, turns up. Is there such a thing as a femme genocidale? Because that's her, oozing resentment, prying immediately: What about kids don't you want kids why don't you have kids? So now it's a God of Carnage situation, with two couples in a house that isn't big enough for the both of them, even though this one is really quite large. I don't think I should tell you anything else! Except that Lawrence makes a superb audience surrogate. She is just like you and me, only calmer and more relaxed in her skin and", "There's a moment of chilling violence in Catching Fire, the second of four planned movies adapting Suzanne Collins' dystopian Hunger Games novels, a moment in which the difference a director makes becomes immediately clear — and one that should give hope to readers who might have felt some disappointment with the first movie. It's the first significant bloodshed in the film, a scene in which the young heroine Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) is made to fully realize the capability for cruelty inherent in the government of Panem. That's the post-apocalyptic future America in which a wealthy, technologically advanced Capitol squeezes labor and resources out of 12 subjugated districts through force and fear. Director Francis Lawrence holds the victim unflinchingly at the center of the frame, and we're spared seeing the full impact of an execution-style bullet to the head only by a closing door. Contrast that to the jittery, unparseable hand-held close-ups that director Gary Ross employed as a means of obscuring violence in last year's first installment. Ross' stylistic choice was all ostentatious distraction, distancing the viewer from the horrors onscreen until they lost their power. Lawrence's calm control over the images we see never allows us that distance. The focus turns in Catching Fire, though, from the disturbing notion of kids killing kids in a gladiatorial competition to the direct violence of totalitarian governments. While the new movie does feature another iteration of Panem's annual bloodsport, most of the competitors are adults this time, with entrants culled from past victors instead of children from each district. It's a twist devised by the scheming President Snow (Donald Sutherland) and the head of the games (Philip Seymour Hoffman) to allow them to kill off both Katniss and her revolutionary image; it was her defiance of the rules, remember, that determined the outcome of her first Hunger Games. Since then, her win has managed to spark unrest and rebellion within the districts. Everything that felt clumsy in The Hunger Games has been improved upon here. That's most apparent in the clarity of the action, but it also extends to how efficiently the film establishes so many new ensemble members. The middle section, in which the fighters train and form alliances before the games, doesn't feel as haphazard as before, as the director and co-writers (Simon Beaufoy and Michael Arndt) focus on just the right moments to quickly define the cast of supporting characters — brash, ego-driven Finnick (Sam Claflin), angrily rebellious Johanna (Jena Malone), introverted tech genius Beetee (Jeffrey Wright). The character of the Capitol city itself is more efficiently defined, largely through a set design that draws direct lines to the Third Reich, with banners and Teutonic architecture looking like Technicolored outtakes from Triumph of the Will. Even the barely functional alcoholism of Katniss' mentor (Woody Harrelson) seems more like an actual part of his character than the quickly forgotten quirk it registered as in the first film. Only Katniss' romantic confusion remains unconvincing, and that's largely owing to the lack of screen time for Gale (Liam Hemsworth), the hunky object of her affections back home. Establishing why she shares such a connection with Gale — as opposed to with Peeta (Josh Hutcherson), who won the games with her last time — is difficult when they're not together much. Plus, Hemsworth's stoic swagger and square-jawed good looks make pulling for him feel a little like rooting for the personality-deficient quarterback to get the girl. Lawrence takes full advantage of Catching Fire's status as the middle chapter to make things as dark as possible. Like The Empire Strikes Back or The Dark Knight before it, the film is freed from having to provide satisfying resolutions or neatly resolved plots. Even if characters make it out of Chapter 2 alive, they're often much worse off than they were at the start. Katniss in particular is punished relentlessly and isolated throughout, even being forced to accept almost certain defeat and death. (For an example of how thoroughly Jennifer Lawrence elevates her performance above that of a run-of-the-mill action hero, watch for how she wordlessly conveys the complex emotions of that acceptance in only a split second.) This is the Hunger Games movie that the first one failed to be, as dire and punishing as Collins' books often are. While it wouldn't be accurate to call it uncompromising — the necessity of its PG-13 makes that impossible — Lawrence works around the necessary compromises without letting them undermine the film. The series may never get better than this, but it's clearly in the right hands now.", "Thanksgiving is the traditional start of the holiday movie season, and Boston Globe film critic Ty Burr tells Here & Now&#8217;s Robin Young that there are some good films to finish out what&#8217;s been a strong year at the movies. &#8220;I think we&#8217;re gonna end up looking at what we&#8217;ve seen this year and be quite amazed at the depth and power and creativity of some of the films that have come out,&#8221; says Burr. He shares some of his favorites. Five Of Ty Burr&#8217;s Film Picks\n\nThe Hunger Games: Catching Fire\nDallas Buyer&#8217;s Club\nNebraska\nPhilomena\nInside Llewyn Davis\n\n\nRelated: Will Forte Gets Serious In ‘Nebraska’\n\nGuest\n\nTy Burr, film critic for the Boston Globe. He tweets @tyburr.\n ROBIN YOUNG, HOST: It's HERE AND NOW. On your mark, get set, go to the movies. Yes, right up there with food, family, shopping and hopefully gratitude. This time of year marks the kickoff to the holiday movie season. Starting things off, \"Catching Fire,\" the second installment of \"The Hunger Games\" series, which earned $158 million last week and the best November opening ever. Jennifer Lawrence returns as Katniss Everdeen, whose victory at the Hunger Games has made her a threat to the ruling elite at the Capitol and a symbol of hope to potential rebels. In this scene, Katniss tries to persuade her childhood friend, Gale, played by Liam Hemsworth, to join her in running away. JENNIFER LAWRENCE: (As Katniss Everdeen) We have to go, Gale, before they kill us. They will kill us. LIAM HEMSWORTH: (As Gale Hawthorne) What about the other families, huh? The ones who stay, what happens to them? People are looking to you, Katniss. LAWRENCE: (As Katniss Everdeen) I don't want anyone looking to me. I can't help them. YOUNG: I can't wait to see it. And as Boston Globe film critic Ty Burr points out, \"Catching Fire\" is but one of a cornucopia of good films coming out this holiday season. He joins us to talk about them. And just start with \"Catching Fire.\" Did you like it? TY BURR: Unexpectedly, I really did. We were just talking before we sat down about how sometimes second films in a series can end up being the best of the bunch, you know, the classic \"Empire Strikes Back\" rule. I thought the first \"Hunger Games\" was an adequate adaptation of a very good young adult novel series. But the second one is actually - is - it's - has a new director, whose name is Frank Lawrence, no relation to Jennifer Lawrence, the star. And it's a very powerful, surprisingly bleak future dystopian tale of living under this dictatorship. I know people who were leery of the first film, who didn't see it, that tended to be parents, because they thought it glorified kids killing kids. YOUNG: Well, there was that. BURR: But which actually was not what the film or story is about. It's... YOUNG: But it did happen. Yeah. BURR: It does happen, but they're forced to. It's not - it's something that's not glorified or celebrated in the story, and even less so here. This is a very powerful, bleak, dark tale of a future dictatorship that reflects, in a surprisingly sharp way, on some of the amusements by which we divert ourselves today - reality TV and the like. Stanley Tucci plays this sort of Ryan Seacrest character times 10 in a way that's both hilarious and rather scary. YOUNG: Well, so happy Thanksgiving to you. BURR: Yeah. (LAUGHTER) YOUNG: But that's just one of the movies. It's, just overall, a good holiday season? BURR: A surprisingly good holiday season, capping off a surprisingly good year at the movies. I think we're going to end up looking at what we've seen this year and be quite amazed at the depth and power and creativity of some of the films that have come out. One of the surprises, in fact, has been the ongoing rehabilitation of Matthew McCnoughey's career. If you've been paying attention to him over the last couple of years, you know he's been moving away from chick flicks as capably as he can. And he's seemed to have been building towards something big, and \"Dallas Buyers Club\" is probably it. He play Ron Woodroof, a real-life HIV patient in the late '80s who set up a buyer's club for FDA unapproved medicines that were hard to come by in this country. And in this clip from the movie, he's being interrogated by officials about his patient list. (SOUNDBITE OF MOVIE, \"DALLAS BUYERS CLUB\") CARL PALMER: (As FDA Customs Agent) These your patients? MATTHEW MCCONAUGHEY: (As Ron Woodroof) Yes, sir. PALMER: (As FDA Customs Agent) They're also the names of players in the Dallas Cowboys. MCCONAUGHEY: (As Ron Woodroof) That's a hell of a coincidence, isn't it? PALMER: (As FDA Customs Agent) It is a little ridiculous. MCCONAUGHEY: (As Ron Woodroof) Well, you said it. PALMER: (As FDA Customs Agent) Can you prove these are you patients? MCCONAUGHEY: (As Ron Woodroof) Can you prove they're not? YOUNG: And you say? (LAUGHTER) BURR: I say, well, hell, Matthew. It's about time you showed us what you could do. I mean, on one level, this is, you know", "David O. Russell hovers at the top of my list of favorite directors. He captures the messy collision of self-interests that for him defines America. In American Hustle, he whips up a black comedy based on Abscam, the late-'70s FBI sting that centered on a bogus sheik and led to the bribery convictions of sundry U.S. politicians. But he doesn't tell the real Abscam story; he adapts it to fit his theme, which is that most of us are busy reinventing ourselves and conning one another. Christian Bale plays Irving Rosenfeld, a master flimflam artist who steals from people desperate for bank loans. He and his lover and fellow swindler Sydney, played by Amy Adams, eventually get snared, but the FBI agent in charge, Richie DiMaso (Bradley Cooper), offers a way out of the net: Help him catch a bunch of bigger fish and they'll go free. It sounds like a routine plot, but you've never seen it in clothes and hairstyles this garish. Bale's Irving has the most outlandish comb-over in history: thin strands and wayward puffs glued down and topped with a small, ugly rug. A burgundy three-piece suit and aviator shades complete the hideous effect. Cooper's Richie is a thin-skinned hothead with tight little curls. He and Irving spend much of the movie spraying testosterone at each other and competing for Sydney, who affects a bad English accent to fool Richie — whom she likes but doesn't trust. American Hustle is loud and big. Russell out-Scorseses Scorsese with hyperbolic technique: whip-pans, whooshes, slo-mo, and tacky but great '70s chart-toppers. He winds his actors up and lets them loose. Bale is outrageously skeevy; Adams uses her blue eyes like stilettos. They put everything they have into scene after scene. The movie is like a slot machine that never stops spitting quarters. Jennifer Lawrence is the wild card as Irving's wife, who's understandably jealous of his lover and doesn't care who knows. Under a high, bleached beehive, her baby face framed with ringlets, Lawrence's Rosalyn shoves a metal tray into the couple's new microwave — this after she was warned. But don't think that means she'll say sorry when it blows. Who could have dreamed, when Lawrence showed up as a grimly determined Ozarks teenager in Winter's Bone, that she had comic chops this spectacular? An opening title claims that some of American Hustle \"is actually true,\" though it turns out not much, if you read up. The sting was built around a bogus sheik, but the real mayor of Camden, N.J., Angelo Errichetti, was corrupt to his toes. His on-screen counterpart, Jeremy Renner's Carmine Polito, is a Boy Scout in an Elvis pompadour who talks of using the sheik's cash to put people back to work. So Irving, the man who sets him up, becomes a sort of Judas figure — and suffers for it. It makes for a fine Hollywood climax, but once you come down from the high, you might wonder what Russell's saying. That graft isn't bad if it helps cities get back on their feet? Maybe that is what he's saying. Russell's affections are with small-time con men, like Irving and the Army heroes in his Three Kings, who are in the middle of a heist when they decide to risk their lives for Kurdish civilians abandoned by the U.S. In Russell's world, it's the small-time crooks who see what's really going on — as opposed to government suits or FBI agents who don't care about the little guy. You don't have to buy Russell's moral relativism completely to think it makes for good political satire. American Hustle is a bit of a hustle itself, but if I'm being taken for a ride, let it be as rollicking as this one. (Recommended) DAVE DAVIES, HOST: This is FRESH AIR. In the late '70s, the FBI joined forces with a convicted swindler on a scheme to catch politicians on the take. Because they used a fake sheik, it became known as Abscam. Director David O. Russell uses Abscam as a springboard for his new comedy, \"American Hustle\" which reunites him with actors from his last two films: Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence, from \"Silver Linings Playbook\"; and Christian Bale and Amy Adams, from \"The Fighter.\" Film critic David Edelstein has this review. DAVID EDELSTEIN, BYLINE: David O. Russell hovers at the top of my list of favorite directors. He captures the messy collision of self-interests that for him, defines America. In \"American Hustle,\" he whips up a black comedy based on Abscam, the late-'70s FBI sting that centered on a bogus sheik and led to the bribery convictions of sundry U.S. politicians. He doesn't tell the real Abscam story. He adapts it to fit his theme, which is that most of us are busy reinventing ourselves and conning one another. Christian Bale plays Irving Rosenfeld, a master flim-flam artist who steals from people desperate for bank loans. He and his fellow swindler and lover Sydney, played by Amy Adams, eventually get snared; but the FBI agent in charge - Richie DiMaso, played by Bradley Cooper - offers a way out of the net. Help him catch a bunch of bigger fish, and they'll ", "Fresh Air Weekend highlights some of the best interviews and reviews from past weeks, and new program elements specially paced for weekends. Our weekend show emphasizes interviews with writers, filmmakers, actors and musicians, and often includes excerpts from live in-studio concerts. This week: Mike Mills Grapples With His Mother's 'Tricky Ghost' In '20th Century Women': The director's latest film is inspired by his desire to understand his mother. Set in Santa Barbara in 1979, it stars Annette Bening as a woman struggling to raise her teenage son on her own. Billy Eichner Makes A Career Out Of Love/Hating Celebrity Culture: In his Billy on the Street series, Eichner roams the sidewalks of Manhattan, asking strangers open-ended questions about the entertainment industry. If he likes their answers, he gives them a dollar. You can listen to the original interviews here: Mike Mills Grapples With His Mother's 'Tricky Ghost' In '20th Century Women' Billy Eichner Makes A Career Out Of Love/Hating Celebrity Culture", "Like millions of Americans, Anthony Breznican will be watching the Oscars this Sunday night. But unlike the rest of us, Breznican, a senior writer for Entertainment Weekly, will be watching from backstage. As EW's chief Oscars correspondent, he escapes the confines of the press rooms for a more intimate look at the ceremony — the kind of view most journalists can only dream of. \"I get a badge where I get to kind of roam, free-roam around behind the wings of the stage,\" Breznican says. \"My job is to be a fly on the wall, talk to people a little bit, but mainly kind of observe moments.\" Breznican's Oscars coverage starts long before those backstage moments. Ever since the nominations were announced, Breznican has been talking to the voting members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to determine which nominees are current favorites. He joins NPR's Jacki Lyden to talk about what he learned in those conversations, name his predictions for key categories and share some of his favorite moments from his years behind the scenes. Interview Highlights On the best picture and best director categories \"It's been a very interesting year, as most people are aware, with some prominent figures being snubbed in the nominations. Ben Affleck, in particular: Losing a directing nomination kind of propelled Argo to best-picture front-runner, even though you would think that might hold it back. So I've been talking to voters about where their heads are and what they're voting for. Argo, I think, is a lock to win best picture. The question is, who wins [best] director? \"If everyone's feeling bad about Ben Affleck not being nominated, you can't cast a ballot for him in that race, so it's kind of between Steven Spielberg and Ang Lee, and David O. Russell for Silver Linings Playbook. \"Steven Spielberg is such a successful figure in Hollywood — he's probably the most successful filmmaker who's alive today — and it's very difficult for people in the academy, even if they admire him, to vote for him. There's sort of this attitude of, 'How do you give employee of the year to the guy who owns the store?' So there's a bit of envy there, and even though I think everyone agrees Lincoln was a pretty remarkable film, a lot of folks are leaning toward Ang Lee for Life of Pi, because that, above all, was a directorial achievement. \"It pulled together a lot of complicated elements: working with not a child actor but certainly a young newcomer, [plus] CG elements, the creation of the tiger, a real tiger on occasion, and water. So he worked with all the things that you usually don't want to work with, including 3-D, and pulled it off magnificently.\" On why he thinks Jennifer Lawrence will win best actress \"So many voters said they were voting for her. And that film, Silver Linings Playbook, is kind of a rarity in the Oscar race — it's the first film in close to 30 years to have nominations in each one of the acting categories, as well as for best picture and best director and best screenplay. ... So the fact that so many actors — the nominations are determined by people within that branch, so actors nominate actors, and the whole academy votes for them — so the fact that so many actors seem to love and appreciate this movie, and they're the biggest voting block within the academy, so that [means] a lot of support for her. But I also heard directors, writers, editors, sound people saying they loved that character, they loved what she did with it. ... \"I think Jennifer Lawrence is my prediction, because we have to make predictions, but I think she is facing very serious competition from Emmanuelle Riva, the French actress who will turn 86 on Oscar night. She of course starred in Amour, the tragic end-of-life love story; lots of voters like her as well, and you could see her claiming the trophy on Sunday.\" On whether anyone could mathematically predict the Oscar winners \"There are certainly attempts to do it. [But ] I think it's hard to measure passion in such a small group. ... I think there are over 6,000 voters in the academy. I tried to sample as many of them as I can, but still, it's an anecdotal sample. And you find, week after week, you go back and ask the same voter that you polled two weeks ago and said, 'Well, how do you feel about best actress,' and they give you a different answer. You know, people change their minds. That's why you get surprises. And in the end, you never find out what the actual tally was — all you know is who won, so you don't know how close the race was. So there's no way to look at past results and try and determine the future.\" On what he sees behind the curtain, thanks to that backstage pass \"You see a lot of emotion back there, as you can imagine, and it's kind of interesting to see people who are so used to putting on a face at a moment when maybe they can't contain what's inside them. \"Last year I remember how poised Meryl Streep was when she accepted the best actress award, and she walked offstag", "Suzanne Collins' novel The Hunger Games and its two sequels are smashingly well written and morally problematic. They're set in the future, in which a country — presumably the former United States — is divided into 12 fenced-off districts many miles apart. Each year, to remind people of its limitless power, a totalitarian government holds a lottery, selecting two children per district to participate in a killing ritual — the Hunger Games of the title — that will be televised to the masses, complete with opening ceremonies and beauty-pageant-style interviews. Out of 24 participants, only one child will live. And we hope it will be Katniss Everdeen, from the impoverished mining District 12 — a teen who, when her little sister is picked in the lottery, volunteers to take her place. Why is it problematic? Kids killing kids is the most wrenching thing we can imagine, and rooting for the deaths of Katniss' opponents can't help but implicate us. But the novel is written by a humanist: When a child dies, we breathe a sigh of relief that Katniss has one less adversary, but we never go, \"Yes!\" — we feel only revulsion for this evil ritual. If the film's director, Gary Ross, has any qualms about kids killing kids, he keeps them to himself. The murders on screen are fast and largely pain-free — you can hardly see who's killing who. So despite the high body count, the rating is PG-13. Think about it: You make killing vivid and upsetting and get an R. You take the sting out of it, and kids are allowed into the theater. The ratings board has it backward. The packed preview audience clearly loved The Hunger Games, but I saw one missed opportunity after another. Director Ross has a penchant for showbiz satire, pleasant in Pleasantville but ruinous in Seabiscuit — a great book about the torturous underbelly of horse racing turned into a lame, movie-ish period piece. He approaches The Hunger Games like a hack. The film is all shaky close-ups, so you rarely have a chance to take in the space, and the editing is so fast you can't focus. As Katniss' dissolute mentor Haymitch, a former Hunger Games champ, Woody Harrelson has no chance to establish a comic rhythm — or disgust at what he's doing. The book's most fascinating and mercurial character, the costume designer Cinna, is now a blandly nice guy played by the agreeable but dull non-actor Lenny Kravitz. A highlight of the book is how Cinna uses his showbiz savvy to make the reluctant Katniss a star, the center of the pre-Hunger Games pageant. But in the movie, her entrance in a costume that's literally in flames is so poorly framed that you can't revel in her triumph. Ross throws away what could be a startling image of child warriors rising out of tubes to face one another in a semicircle, knowing they might die in seconds. Where is the horror? The film gets some things right, like the shots of Katniss running through the woods, the canopy of trees above her streaking by. And it has an astoundingly good Katniss in Jennifer Lawrence. She's not a chiseled Hollywood ingénue or a trained action star — she looks real. And without words, she makes it clear that Katniss' task is not merely to stay alive but somehow to hold onto her humanity. A few other actors register in spite of the speed-freak editing. Josh Hutcherson has a strong, sorrowful countenance as Katniss' fellow District 12 contestant, Peeta. Stanley Tucci in a blue bouffant as a talk-show host, Wes Bentley in a manicured black-fungus beard as the games' high-tech coordinator, and Donald Sutherland in a white mane as the demonic lion of a president are all you could hope for. There's a terrific score by James Newton Howard that captures moods — wistful, mysterious — that the director fails to evoke. The Hunger Games leaves you content — but not, as with the novel, devastated by the senseless carnage. It is, I'm sorry to say, the work of moral cowards. TERRY GROSS, HOST: \"The Hunger Games\" has become a phenomenon. The young adult dystopian novel, published in 2008, became a best-seller in print and Amazon's most downloaded ebook. Now the film adaptation is set to break records as well. It opens at midnight tonight and first screenings were sold out months in advance. It stars Jennifer Lawrence of \"Winter's Bone\" as the young warrior-heroine Katniss. Film critic David Edelstein has a review. DAVID EDELSTEIN: Suzanne Collins' novel \"The Hunger Games\" and its two sequels are smashingly well written and morally problematic. They're set in the future, in which a country - presumably the former United States - is divided into 12 fenced-off districts many miles apart. Each year, to remind people of its limitless power, a totalitarian government holds a lottery to select two children per district to participate in a killing ritual televised to the masses, complete with opening ceremonies and beauty-pageant-style interviews. Out of 24 participants, only one child will live. And we hope it will be Katniss Everdeen, from the impove", "[If you can't get enough red carpet fashions — or to see some of the gowns not pictured here — check out our red-carpet slideshow or the blog at Wait Wait ... Don't Tell Me!, where they covered the fashions last night as well. And now, over to NPR Digital News editor Tanya Ballard Brown, who helpfully offered to talk about Sunday night's fashions.] Now that the awards have all been handed out, I wanted to share a few final thoughts about the red carpet looks for this year's Academy Awards. Jennifer Lawrence from Winter's Bone wore a red Calvin Klein dress that made her look like a Baywatch babe. She went minimal with the jewelry, but she really could have used \"the Hoff\" dangling from her arm to finish the look. Thank you, Mila Kunis, for the flowy, romantic, lilac-colored Elie Saab — LOVED IT! This Black Swan star is no ugly duckling. The Fighter's Melissa Leo is a good-looking woman. Unfortunately, her Marc Bouwer dress distracted from her beauty with all the lace. It looked like a doily, which is okay for my Grandpa's armchair, but really not okay for an Academy Awards dress. Hailee Steinfeld in Marchesa? THAT is what a young lady should look like. She washed that True Grit off and cleaned up real nice. Michelle Williams in Chanel. Classy. Elegant. Okay, I didn't see Blue Valentine, so I got nothing. Well, there is this: she, like me, seemed puzzled by the questions Ryan Seacrest asked her on the red carpet. L'Wren Scott designed Amy Adams's sparkly blue gown, but I don't understand the necklace she chose to wear with it. Nevertheless, Adams was \"more present\" than she has ever been before. At least that's what she told Seacrest. I don't know what that means. [Shrug.] Jennifer Hudson! Versace in tangerine orange with purple shoes? DO THAT! Sigh. Cate Blanchett. Her Givenchy dress looked like a kindergarten art project with painted popcorn stuck to it. Sandra Bullock in Vera Wang would have looked great, except for the butt bow. Why was there a butt bow, Miss Congeniality? Legally Blonde was sooooo last decade, and it's unclear to me why Reese Witherspoon decided to take inspiration from Elle Woods for her red carpet look. I feel pretty certain Nicole Kidman thought she was headed to the Country Music Awards, so I will give her a pass. Finally, Gwyneth Paltrow gets best dressed for the night. Any dress that could make you look away from the orange hue of her self-tanner must be congratulated. That said, I probably am could be wrong! Tell us what looks you loved and hated down in the comments.", "I'm not sure why this happened, but as I assembled this year's best-of list, I kept seeing matched sets: Two terrific desert movies, two swoon-inducing romances, two single-minded crusades by men who think they're already dead, and even a pair of riveting mortgage crisis flicks (and what are the chances of that?). The doubleness is a good organizing principle, since my 10-best list nearly always turns into a 20-best — so here goes: Two Desert Films: 'Mad Max: Fury Road' And 'The Martian' Mad Max: Fury Road is a gorgeous, scrap-metal demolition derby — a popcorn picture with a surprising feminist twist: Tom Hardy's Max is more or less a sidekick to Charlize Theron's Furiosa. Ridley Scott, meanwhile, makes conquering a desert on another planet downright cerebral. The Martian is about an astronaut accidentally left for dead by a crew that won't be able to get back to Mars for four years. Two Beautifully Realized Love Stories: 'Carol' And 'Anomalisa' Anomalisa is about a motivational speaker who is convinced that everyone is the same, until he meets Lisa, who's an anomaly. This extraordinary film is the latest weirdness from Charlie Kaufman, who gave us Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. This time, his leads are puppets — figures in miniature with emotions writ grand. Carol is another love story uncommonly told. Director Todd Haynes has adapted a Patricia Highsmith novel about a love that dared not speak its name in the 1950s — a love between two women. Lush and sumptuous, Carol is forever having its camera peer at these women through glass, mirrors and windshields, reflecting the way '50s society saw homosexuals while keeping them at a slight remove. Two Cinematic Head Trips: 'Inside Out' And '45 Years' Pixar's Inside Out takes audiences literally inside the head of an 11-year-old girl by giving personalities to her emotions. And while Inside Out expresses everything its heroine is thinking, the tragedy 45 Years gives us Charlotte Rampling as a wife who keeps her feelings bottled up. So much so, that when a revelation shakes her marriage, the film could almost be called \"outside in.\" Two Brutal Historical Epics: 'Son Of Saul' And 'The Revenant' Both of these films feature men who risk everything because they figure they're already dead: Son of Saul's Saul because he's in Auschwitz, and The Revenant's 1820s fur trapper because he was left for dead by a man who also killed his son. Both of these films left me wrung-out. Two Mortgage Crisis Films: '99 Homes' And 'The Big Short' Both of these films left me angry. I'd suggest you watch 99 Homes first. It'll have you seething about predatory real estate brokers. Then, once you've become acquainted with the ordinary folks who were the housing bubble's big losers, check out the guys who saw the crash coming and figured out how to profit from it in The Big Short. It plays like a comic heist flick, but this heist had real-world consequences. Two Eye-Openers From The Muslim World: 'Timbuktu' And 'Taxi' Timbuktu chronicles the confusion in Mali when jihadists issue conflicting edicts about worship and culture. They ban music, for instance, which leads to this line in the subtitles: \"They are singing in praise of God and the prophet. Should I arrest them?\" The Iranian film Taxi finds gentle comedy in a different set of contradictions: Internationally celebrated director Jafar Panahi is banned by his government from operating a camera, writing a script or directing a film. So what does he do? He drives a taxi with a camera on its dashboard, and lets Tehran's dramas come to him. Two Films That Exalt Journalists: 'Spotlight' And 'The Salt Of The Earth' Spotlight is a sharply made newspaper procedural about a Pulitzer Prize-winning Boston Globe investigation that documented not just sexual abuse by priests, but a cover-up by the Catholic Church. The documentary The Salt of the Earth also turns a spotlight on horrors — this one through the exquisite black-and-white images created by photojournalist Sebastiao Salgado. Salgado makes the world face up to landscapes of famine, drought and war by finding humanity in scenes of despair. Two Feminine Perspectives On Sex And Maturity: 'Diary Of A Teenage Girl' And 'Trainwreck' Women have been having an extraordinary year in front of the camera, so it's fitting that in two of the year's best films they also excelled behind the camera. Both Phoebe Gloeckner, who penned the autobiographical graphic novel on which The Diary of a Teenage Girl is based, and director Marielle Heller contributed to giving that film a distinctly feminine teen outlook. And Amy Schumer's script for her riotous comedy, Trainwreck, about a woman who realizes she's been undervaluing both her feelings and herself, gave her hilarious performance authority as well as laughs. And now that I'm tallying, let me mention some remarkable films that stood alone: Tangerine, a brash story about trans prostitutes shot on iPhone 5s; The Tribe, a wordless portrait of deaf juve", "Time now for some home-viewing advice from our movie critic, Bob Mondello. This week, a 50th-anniversary Blu-ray release of the ultimate sand-and-sandals picture: Lawrence of Arabia. Sand dunes for days, armies astride camels, and 29-year-old newcomer Peter O'Toole as British Army Lt. T.E. Lawrence, leading Bedouin warriors on a charge that would shake the Ottoman empire and shake up moviemaking for decades. Movies don't get bigger than Lawrence of Arabia. Today a director would do the most expansive shots with digital effects, but they didn't exist in 1962, so David Lean used hundreds of real camels — and thousands of real men — in a landscape so vast it beggars description. And this film is not just about spectacle. It's a literate epic, witty and spare from the moment young T.E. Lawrence is pulled from his regiment for a diplomatic assignment. \"I'm the man for the job,\" he insists brightly. \"What is the job, by the way?\" A stunningly gorgeous lesson in Middle East politics, the film also has plenty of modern-day parallels. British commanders' reluctance to give the Arab rebels heavy artillery, for instance, mirrors the reluctance of contemporary commanders to give Syrian rebels sophisticated weaponry. And back in 1918, the same city was the prize: Damascus. The more things change, no? Lawrence of Arabia was gorgeously restored for a 50th-anniversary theatrical run using a process that produced more than four times the sharpness of high-def TV. (Eight times really, since the 65 mm image — roughly twice as big as a normal 35 mm film frame — had to be dealt with in two pieces). So the new Blu-ray version looks pretty stunning, with all the familiar images — shimmering mirages, men staggering across an uncrossable desert, the attack on Aqaba — and then, more than two hours in, at about the point you think you've seen everything you remember, the word \"Intermission\" filling the screen. The four-disc anniversary package also includes a never-before-released sequence, restoration documentaries, a soundtrack album, an original frame from a 65 mm print, even a coffee-table book. It's a big package — entirely befitting Lawrence of Arabia, a movie big enough that Hollywood couldn't even consider making it today. MELISSA BLOCK, HOST: And it's time now for some home viewing advice from our movie critic Bob Mondello. This week, a 50th anniversary Blu-ray release of the ultimate sand-and-sandals picture, \"Lawrence of Arabia.\" (SOUNDBITE OF THEME MUSIC, \"LAWRENCE OF ARABIA\") BOB MONDELLO, BYLINE: Twenty-nine-year-old Peter O'Toole astride a camel, leading Bedouin warriors on a charge that would shake the Ottoman Empire and shake up moviemaking for decades. Movies don't get bigger than \"Lawrence of Arabia.\" Today, a director would do the most expansive shots with digital effects. But they didn't exist in 1962, so David Lean used hundreds of real camels, thousands of real men in a landscape so vast it beggars description. And this film's not just about spectacle. It's a literate epic, witty and spare from the moment young T.E. Lawrence is pulled from his regiment for a diplomatic assignment. (SOUNDBITE OF MOVIE, \"LAWRENCE OF ARABIA\") PETER O'TOOLE: (as T.E. Lawrence) I'm the man for the job. CLAUDE RAINS: (as Mr. Dryden) I just wonder about that. O'TOOLE: (as T.E. Lawrence) Of course, I'm the man for the job. What is the job, by the way? MONDELLO: There are some startling modern-day parallels too. Once Lawrence is leading the Arab uprising, the British commanders worry about giving him sophisticated weapons. (SOUNDBITE OF MOVIE, \"LAWRENCE OF ARABIA\") JACK HAWKINS: (as General Allenby) I'll give you a lot of money. O'TOOLE: (as T.E. Lawrence) Artillery? HAWKINS: (as General Allenby) I can't. MONDELLO: Much as world powers now worry about giving Syrian rebels sophisticated weapons. And back in 1918, the same city was the prize. (SOUNDBITE OF MOVIE, \"LAWRENCE OF ARABIA\") O'TOOLE: (as T.E. Lawrence) They won't be coming for money - not the best of them. They'll be coming for Damascus, which I'm going to give them. HAWKINS: (as General Allenby) That's all I want. O'TOOLE: (as T.E. Lawrence) All you want is someone holding down the Turkish right, but I'm going to give them Damascus. And when we've got it, we'll keep it. MONDELLO: The more things change, no? Gorgeously restored using a process with more than four times the sharpness of high-def TV, the new Blu-ray version has all the familiar images - shimmering mirages, men staggering across an un-crossable desert, the attack on Aqaba. And then, more than two hours in, at about the point you think you've seen everything you remember, the word intermission fills the screen. (SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) MONDELLO: The four-disc package also includes a never-before-released sequence, restoration documentaries, a soundtrack album, an original frame from a 65-millimeter print, even a coffee table book. It's a big package, entirely befitting \"Lawrence of Arabia,\" a movie big enough that Holl", "Danica Patrick takes fourth place at the Indianapolis 500 race -- the best finish ever by a woman in the event. She lost the race in the closing laps. Host Jennifer Ludden reviews the race with Greg Rakestraw, of the ESPN radio affiliate in Indianapolis.", "Eight centuries ago, the residents of an island just off the Normandy coast of France pledged their allegiance to the British Crown. But for the people of Guernsey, \"allegiance\" certainly didn't mean giving up a colorful and vivid cultural identity. To this day, islanders remain proud and fiercely independent, and they have kept alive a unique local language, Guernesiais. A new CD of ancient songs from the Isle of Guernsey has been released by the Harp Consort: Les Travailleurs de la Mer. Director Andrew Lawrence-King, a native of Guernsey, talks about the project, subtitled \"Ancient Songs from a Small Island.\" (Soundbite of music) SHEILAH KAST, host: Eight centuries ago, the residents of an island just off the Normandy coast of France pledged their allegiance to the British crown, but for the people of Guernsey, allegiance certainly did not mean giving up a colorful and vivid cultural identity. To this day, islanders remain proud and fiercely independent and they have kept alive a unique local language, Guernesiais or Guernsey French. A new CD features ancient songs from the Isle of Guernsey performed by the Harp Consort led by Guernsey native Andrew Lawrence-King. (Soundbite of music) Mr. PAUL HILLIER (Baritone): (Singing in Guernesiais) KAST: We spoke recently with Andrew Lawrence-King, who joined us from the newsroom of BBC Radio Guernsey. He says he borrowed the title of his CD collection, \"Les Travailleurs de la Mer,\" or \"The Toilers of the Sea,\" from the novel by Victor Hugo. Hugo lived in Guernsey for some 15 years, and Andrew Lawrence-King says Hugo played a decisive role in the culture of the island. Mr. ANDREW LAWRENCE-KING: By writing about the daily life of Guernsey people in a novel that became famous all around the world, Hugo made Guernsey people realize that their lives had artistic meaning and that the beautiful place names, the island traditions, the rich folk culture and their own island language and its traditional poetry had literary value. And so people began to write down things that previously had only been passed down in the oral tradition. KAST: Was Hugo interested in the music? Mr. LAWRENCE-KING: Hugo actually detested music, but he was interested in the local folk customs and the local poetry. And so he not only inspired it but also helped it. KAST: It's amazing these songs survive to this day. How did you go about collecting and researching them? Mr. LAWRENCE-KING: The words are quite easy to find because there's a great revival of interest in Hugo's time. We're talking about the late 19th century, and so the books were published and they're available in the original editions in the island's libraries. And so my first step was simply to read through all these Guernsey poems and choose some of the best of them. For the music, it's much harder. The music was only written down much later, in the 20th century, and only a very small amount of the island's traditional music actually survived so long. Some was handed down in the oral tradition, as singing games, as dances or as songs, but a lot was lost, and that's had to be reconstructed by looking at some of the music from Normandy, from Britain, even from the south of England. (Soundbite of music) KAST: The very first cut on this CD has such an amazing beat. It really swings. What is it that gives this ancient music such a modern feel? Mr. LAWRENCE-KING: I think the secret of the rhythmic swing of some of this music lies in the particular poetic meters that the poets used and these are dictated by the Guernsey language and the subtle ways in which it's different from continental French and especially from modern French. Guernesiais, Norman French, Guernsey French, is essentially the medieval language of northwestern French, unchanged since the days of William the Conqueror, and those medieval rhythms sort of issue like more jazzy, more clipped and much more irregular than the rhythms of modern or romantic French verse. (Soundbite of music) Ms. CLARA SANABRAS (Soprano): (Singing in Guernesiais) Mr. LAWRENCE-KING: That was one of the big problems for me in trying to find suitable melodies for those poems where no island melody survived because the Guernsey rhythms are distinctly different from the rhythms of mainland France. What I did have to do was to look and look very hard through hundreds and hundreds of plausible melodies from the time, from the surrounding areas of Normandy and Brittany, in order to find just the one or two that would fit these very strong Guernsey rhythms. (Soundbite of music) Ms. SANABRAS: (Singing in Guernesiais) KAST: These songs", "Blond, blue-eyed and wearing blazing white robes in Lawrence Of Arabia, Peter O'Toole was handsome enough — many said beautiful enough — to carry off the scene in which director David Lean simultaneously made stars of both his title character and his leading man. The scene: a wrecked train, blown up by Lawrence and surrounded by his Bedouin followers, one of whom has just smashed a news photographer's camera. O'Toole's Lawrence explains that the man thinks the camera will steal his soul. The photographer asks if he can take Lawrence's picture and tells him to \"just walk.\" So he walks, as the men around him chant his name — and then, responding to their cheers, he leaps atop the train wreck, striding down its length as the wind whips his robes. Silhouetted in the sun, he might as well be a god. Peter O'Toole died Saturday. He was 81. The part of T.E. Lawrence — which at one point could have been Marlon Brando's for the asking — earned O'Toole his first Oscar nomination for Best Actor. Within a few years he had two more nominations — both, oddly enough, for playing King Henry II, who battled Katharine Hepburn in Lion in Winter, and who thought he could outsmart Richard Burton in Becket. O'Toole was always larger than life, whether playing dreamers and mad romantics on stage, where his classical training made him a matinee idol; or in public, where his drinking and carousing were legendary; or on screen, where he earned another Oscar nomination playing a hard-drinking matinee idol in My Favorite Year — one who liked to make an entrance, even if it meant swinging into a window from a building's roof, as he remembers doing in one of his films. When his handler cautions that that was a movie and this is real life, he pauses for a moment, then asks: \"What is the difference?\" That may have seemed a reasonable question to O'Toole, whose off-screen drinking buddies included many of the great actors of his generation: Burton, Trevor Howard and Richard Harris. He outlasted them, despite a medical history that had people counting him out in his 40s. He once told an interviewer that his only exercise was \"walking behind the coffins of my friends who took exercise.\" But he persevered. In the movie Venus, at age 75, he was charismatic as ever, playing a lusty old actor who realizes there are loose ends in his life he should tie up. Saying goodbye to his ex-wife (played by Vanessa Redgrave), he notes with a laugh, \"We won't live forever.\" And after more or less clinching another Oscar nomination with that line, he did what he could to disprove it by making every remaining moment count. Twelve roles in the last seven years of his life — from animated food critic in Ratatouille, to Pope in The Tudors — exuberant every one. LINDA WERTHEIMER, HOST: Peter O'Toole has died at the age of 81. O'Toole became a sudden star in the title role of the 1962 epic \"Lawrence of Arabia.\" That earned him the first of his eight Oscar nominations. Critic Bob Mondello says he'll be remembered for being flamboyant, both on screen and off. BOB MONDELLO, BYLINE: Blond, blue-eyed, and wearing blazing white robes in \"Lawrence of Arabia,\" Peter O'Toole was handsome enough - many said beautiful enough - to carry off the scene in which director David Lean simultaneously made stars of both his title character and his leading man. The scene: a wrecked train, blown up by Lawrence and surrounded by his Bedouin followers, one of whom has just smashed a news photographer's camera. O'Toole's Lawrence explains why. (SOUNDBITE OF FILM, \"LAWRENCE OF ARABIA\") PETER O'TOOLE: (as Lawrence) He's a bit old-fashioned. He thinks these things will steal his virtue. He thinks you're a kind of thief. UNIDENTIFIED MAN: (as photographer) Is it all right if I take your picture? O'TOOLE: (as Lawrence) All right. UNIDENTIFIED MAN: (as photographer) OK. Just walk. MONDELLO: So he walks, as the men around him chant his name. And then, responding to their cheers, he leaps atop the train wreck, striding down its length as the wind whips his robes. Silhouetted in the sun, he might as well be a god. (SOUNDBITE OF FILM, \"LAWRENCE OF ARABIA\") UNIDENTIFIED CROWD: (chanting) Lawrence! Lawrence! Lawrence! MONDELLO: The part of T.E. Lawrence, which at one point could have been Marlon Brando's for the asking, earned O'Toole his first Oscar nomination for Best Actor. Within a few years he had two more nominations - both, oddly enough, for playing King Henry the second - who battled Katherine Hepburn in \"Lion in Winter\", and who thought he could outsmart Richard Burton in \"Beckett.\" (SOUNDBITE OF FILM, \"BECKETT\") O'TOOLE: (as Richard II) An extraordinary idea is creeping into my mind. A master stroke. I'm suddenly very intelligent. It probably comes from making love to that French girl last night. I'm subtle. I'm even profound. Oh, I'm so profound it's making my head spin. MONDELLO: O'Toole was always larger-than-life whether playing dreamers and mad romantics on stage, where his classical tr" ]

[ "WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The State Department on Monday continued to publicly downplay the threat North Korea presents to the United States with spokesman P.J. Crowley telling reporters North Korea \"represents an infinitesimal threat to the United States directly.\" A North Korean soldier looks at the South Korean side of the demilitarized zone earlier this month. The spokesman's statement followed comments from Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in an interview with ABC, broadcast Monday, in which she said the reason for the United States' low-key reaction to North Korea's recent missile test was that the United States wasn't \"going to give the North Koreans the satisfaction they were looking for, which was to elevate them to center stage.\" In that interview, Clinton said North Korea has a \"constant demand for attention,\" and she added, \"maybe it's the mother in me, the experience I've had with small children and teenagers and people who are demanding attention: Don't give it to them.\" After calling the direct threat to the U.S. \"infinitesimal,\" Crowley went on to say that \"North Korea, and its provocative actions, does represent a significant threat to the region and its actions recently have been unhelpful and potentially destabilizing.\" A senior U.S. official, who did not want to be identified, said there is a \"theoretical\" question of whether a North Korean missile could hit the United States. \"There's nothing in their recent development,\" he said, \"which would suggest that their technology is becoming more accurate.\" The United States says its primary concerns about North Korea's actions are its impact on security in the region and the risk of nuclear proliferation. Last week the United Nations imposed sanctions on a number of individuals, companies and goods connected with North Korea's nuclear and missile programs. Taking aim at several key North Korean officials, it subjected them to a freeze on their assets and an international travel ban." ]

[ "(CNN) -- Venezuela's president said Monday that he is expelling three U.S. diplomats for their alleged involvement in acts of sabotage to destabilize the South American country. \"They have 48 hours to leave the country,\" President Nicolas Maduro said in remarks broadcast on state-run VTV. \"Get out of Venezuela,\" he said, listing several names. \"Yankee go home. Enough abuses already.\" The list includes Kelly Keiderling, who is the top U.S. diplomat in Venezuela as the charge d'affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Caracas, according to the embassy's website. \"We have seen Maduro's televised announcement but we have not received any official notification of expulsions,\" said a U.S. State Department spokesperson. \"We completely reject the Venezuelan government's allegations of U.S. government involvement in any type of conspiracy to destabilize the Venezuela government.\" Maduro accused the group of diplomats of meeting with right-wing political opponents of his government, financing their activities and encouraging them to sabotage the country's electrical system and its economy. Earlier this month an electrical blackout left more than half of Venezuela without power. At the time, Maduro blamed the opposition for the massive power outage. The country has also been battling inflation and goods shortages. Hours before he announced former President Hugo Chavez's death from cancer in March, Maduro said he was expelling two U.S. Embassy officials and accused them of plotting to destabilize the country. At the time, State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell denied the accusations. \"This fallacious assertion of inappropriate U.S. action leads us to conclude that, unfortunately, the current Venezuelan government is not interested an improved relationship,\" he said. Several days later, the United States expelled two Venezuelan diplomats in response. Maduro's remarks Monday are the latest in a series of accusations alleging plots to destabilize his government or assassinate him. He has made at least 11 such accusations since the beginning of his presidency, CNN en Español reported last week. Maduro canceled his plans to travel to New York and attend the U.N. General Assembly last week because of what he said were plots to physically harm him there. Venezuela: Recording of 'kidnapped' Chavez is fake, president says . CNN's Jill Dougherty and Rafael Romo and journalist Osmary Hernandez contributed to this report.", "(CNN) -- The Colombian government said it would appeal to international bodies over what it called a threat made over the weekend by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. On his weekly Sunday television show, Chavez ordered the Venezuelan military to begin preparations for a war with the neighboring country, warning of a conspiracy between Colombia and the United States to attack Venezuela. \"The two governments have joined together to fool the world or to try to fool the world,\" Chavez said. Addressing his military commanders, he added, \"Let's not waste a single day in the preparation of our main mission: to prepare ourselves for war and to help the people prepare for war. It's everyone's responsibility.\" On Sunday Colombia's government responded, saying it has not undertaken any hostile actions toward Venezuela. Colombia said it would ask for intervention from the United Nations Security Council and the Organization of American States. A Colombian government spokesman, Cesar Mauricio Velasquez, called Chavez's remarks \"war threats.\" On Monday Venezuela retorted by calling Colombia's response \"hypocritical\" and \"immoral.\" Chavez's accusations of threats from Colombia and the United States come from an agreement between the two countries that allows U.S. military personnel to be stationed at seven Colombian military bases. The Venezuelan leader is the leading critic of the agreement and has said that the agreement is part of a plot to destabilize his leftist government. \"Don't be mistaken, Mr. Obama, and order an overt aggression against Venezuela using Colombia,\" Chavez said Sunday, in a reference to U.S. President Barack Obama. \"Don't make that mistake, because we are willing to do whatever it takes. Venezuela will never again be a colony.\" On Monday the U.S. State Department said it supported talks to defuse the conflict. \"We support Colombia's call for dialogue between Venezuela and Colombia to overcome recent tensions in the relationship,\" a State Department spokesman told CNN en Español. \"As a member of the hemispheric community, we are prepared to work collaboratively to promote peaceful solutions to disputes in the region.\" Relations between Colombia and Venezuela have been rocky since the summer. In August, Colombia accused Venezuela of supplying guerillas with shoulder-fired anti-tank weapons. Such weapons seized from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, had been traced to Venezuela, Colombia said. The FARC has been fighting the Colombian government for more than 45 years. Chavez, at the time, said the accusation amounted to blackmail. Last month Venezuelan authorities said they captured two Colombian spies. Colombia denied the claim. Also in October, near the border between the two countries, Venezuelan authorities found the murdered bodies of 10 men that Colombia described as an amateur soccer team that had been kidnapped near the border. Venezuela said the men were paramilitaries. Tensions were last stoked a week ago when two Venezuelan national guardsmen at an international bridge between the two countries were killed by gunmen on motorcycles. Venezuela blamed Colombian paramilitaries for the attacks, and accused the Colombian government of complacency toward such groups.", "Beirut, Lebanon (CNN) -- Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad arrived in Beirut for his first state visit to Lebanon Wednesday. Ahmadinejad was greeted at the airport by members of parliament, government officials and Hezbollah political leaders. The streets near the airport were packed with people in a festive mood carrying Iranian and Lebanese flags. The Iranian leader met Lebanese President Michel Suleiman at the Presidential Palace here and was scheduled to meet other leaders as well as leaders of Hezbollah's resistance movement. The United States considers Hezbollah, which has close ties to Iran and Syria, to be a terrorist organization. The Shiite group is a political party and a major provider of social services in Lebanon, but it also operates a militant wing. Hezbollah has boasted of numerous attacks against American, Israeli and other Western targets. Some Muslims see it as a heroic organization, successful in its stated objective of driving Israeli forces from Lebanon. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has expressed concern to Suleiman about Ahmadinejad's Lebanon visit, according to a State Department spokesman. But in southern Lebanon many were happy that Ahmadinejad was coming. That could be seen in places like the village of Bint Jbeil that had been reduced to rubble by Israeli bombings during the 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel. The village is being rebuilt now largely do to money from Iran and Qatar. \"What he's done for this country is amazing, the bridges, the roads, the financial aid. My house burnt down, they paid me an amount for my furniture, they made up for my loss,\" said Mohamad Baydoun, a Bint Jbeil resident. Iran was quick to infuse Hezbollahs coffers with cash, then handed out to residents who had lost their homes and otherwise been effected by the war. It is also Iran that paved roads and built bridges. The mayor of Bint Jbeil emphasized just how crucial Iranian aid to his country has been. \"If it weren't for that money people may have not returned to their homes until now,\" Afif Bazzi explained. \"The aid that Iran provided is considered one of the largest in helping rebuild after the July war, this money helped people a lot and that is why we saw people immediately returning.\" Some experts say Ahmadinejad's visit is Iran's way of sending a clear message about its influence in the region, especially to the United States and Israel. \"Of course that usually is portrayed to mean that the Iranians are going to warn how much trouble they can cause, but the flip side of the message has always been, especially in recent years, look how much good we can do, look how much influence we have to help restrain things,\" Middle East analyst Marc Sirois said. Iran is undeniably part of Lebanese politics, a reality that has raised concerns among those who are fearful that an increased Iranian role could destabilize Lebanon and the region and embolden Hezbollah. Analysts also point to the fact that Lebanon is the first front against Israel. \"It (the visit) plays out the idea that the Iranians are a player. That in the last active front line against Israel, the Iranians are the power behind the most active and powerful political actor in Lebanon which is Hezbollah,\" Sirois said. The Israeli government has not formally responded to Ahmadinejad's visit but some say they view it as provocation. Yigal Palmor, a spokesman for the Israeli Foreign Ministry told CNN that Ahmadinejad's trip \"is taking the form of a land lord coming to inspect his domain.\" \"Ahmadinejad makes no mystery of his view of Lebanon as Iran's border with Israel. It is quite clear that he comes to the region with malice toward all, with intention to destabilize an already volatile region at the service of the aggressive and extremist ideology of the ayatollahs,\" Palmor added. The Iranian president's planned visit to areas in Lebanon bordering northern Israel has led some in Israel to call for military action. \"It is our responsibility to stop anyone who publicly calls for our destruction,\" said Israeli Knesset member Arieh Eldad from the far-right National Union party. \"That responsibility means us doing something and not waiting for the world to do something. If a situation arises in which Ahmadinejad is in the crosshairs of the IDF (Israel Defence Forces), he should be killed.\" CNN's Jomana Karadsheh and Kevin Flower contributed to this .", "Strong condemnations and accusations were traded Sunday night as the U.N. Security Council held an urgent, previously unscheduled meeting to discuss the worsening crisis in Ukraine. Speaking first, Oscar Fernandez-Taranco, U.N. assistant secretary-general for political affairs, set the tone for discussions, saying that Ukraine \"teeters on the brink. \"However, it is not just Ukraine that will suffer from a scenario where the likelihood of further bloodshed and violent clashes grows by the hour. \"Russia, which shares a large border with Ukraine, as well as the broader European region faces spillover effect of potentially severe consequences. Such scenarios will also have repercussions for the entire international community,\" he said. Ukraine and its allies blamed Russia for the unrest, while both sides agreed the situation is dangerous and should not be allowed to get any worse. \"Further escalation of this must be swiftly stopped,\" said Vitaly Churkin, the Russian ambassador to the United Nations. \"It is the West that will determine the opportunity to avoid civil war in Ukraine,\" he added, calling for national dialogue. Samantha Power, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, accused Russia of spreading disinformation and inciting instability. \"The human stakes of what is happening in Ukraine are extremely high. The lives of innocent civilians are at risk yet we are being bombarded by Russian disinformation and propaganda, while the Ukrainians are being confronted by incitement and violence,\" she said. Power added: \"This instability was written and choreographed in and by Russia.\" Ukraine's U.N. Ambassador Yuriy Sergeyev vowed not \"to let the Crimea scenario repeat in eastern Ukraine,\" stressing that the government is readying a counterinsurgency plan to strike the \"armed terrorists.\" \"We demand to leave us in peace,\" Sergeyev said. \"It's really the final warning cry.\" The meeting came the same day that Ukraine acting President Oleksandr Turchynov issued a promise of amnesty for pro-Russia separatists in eastern Ukraine but warned that anyone who continues to support the takeover of government buildings would be held responsible for their actions. The acting President added a warning to \"terrorists\" who did not comply, saying they would be subject to an army anti-terrorism operation if they did not comply by 2 a.m. ET Monday. Similar deadlines have been set and allowed to pass with no consequence. \"We'll not allow any repetition of the Crimean scenario in the east of Ukraine. I have signed a decree that would allow those who did not shoot at our officers to lay down their arms and leave the occupied buildings by Monday morning without fear of being prosecuted,\" he told a national television audience, according to a CNN translation. Turchynov added that anyone who supports violence will be punished. \"We are ready to consider a significant expansion of regional powers of all regions and the wider reform of local self-government. However, all those supporting aggressors and occupiers in an armed struggle against our country will not escape punishment and will be prosecuted,\" he said. Ukraine puts blame on Russia . Turchynov said Russia was responsible for bloodshed; at least one Ukrainian soldier was killed in clashes between pro-Ukrainian crowds and pro-Russian separatists, a high-level source in Ukraine's Security Services told CNN. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov tweeted Sunday that Ukrainian authorities must \"stop war against their people\" and asked the U.N. Security Council and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe to give \"urgent attention\" to the crisis in eastern Ukraine. Earlier, Ukrainian officials placed blame for unrest in the eastern section of their country squarely on their neighbors in Russia in a written statement Sunday from Kiev. The new Ukrainian government said the security operations were launched against terrorists who are attempting to \"destroy our country.\" \"In the eastern regions of Ukraine, the Russian special service and saboteurs embarked on the large-scale separatist operations to seize power, destabilize the situation threatening the lives of citizens of Ukraine, as well as the separation of the regions of our country,\" the Foreign Ministry said. Map: See how language, culture divide Ukraine . Giving no further details, it also said it had \"concrete evidence of Russian special service involvement\" in the pro-Russian protests and storming of buildings in the east in recent days and would present it at an international meeting on the Ukraine crisis on Thursday. Ukrainian security forces launched an operation Sunday to clear pro-Russian separatists from a police headquarters in the eastern city of Slaviansk, officials said. However, a CNN crew in the city saw no sign of a large presence of Ukrainian security forces -- with the exception of a single police car and a helicopter flying above -- nor any confrontation with the occupiers. Gunmen dressed in camouflage had stormed and seized the police building a day earlier in Slaviansk, a town about 100 miles from the Russian border, and set up barricades around it. 'Sanctions can bite' Power, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, said the attacks in Slaviansk were \"professional\" and \"coordinated\" -- similar to Russia's incursion into the Crimean Peninsula last month. \"There's nothing grass-roots seeming about it,\" Power said on ABC's \"This Week,\" noting the latest action \"gives credence\" to the notion that Russian President Vladimir Putin wants control over eastern Ukraine. The United States is prepared to step up sanctions against Russia if the recent actions in Ukraine continue, she said Sunday. Power said told \"This Week\" the latest events in Ukraine bore \"the telltale signs of Moscow's involvement.\" \"I think we've seen that the sanctions can bite. And if actions like the kind that we've seen over the last few days continue, you're going to see a ramping up of those sanctions,\" she said. The unrest is the latest show of spiraling anger in eastern Ukraine, which has a large Russian-speaking population. The region was the support base for pro-Moscow former President Viktor Yanukovych, who was ousted in February after months of protests in Kiev. Speaking Sunday to reporters in Russia, Yanukovych said the Ukraine is in a new situation now that blood was shed. \"Ukraine made the first step toward civil war. The Kiev gang decided and ordered to use force and dispatched the military forces against the population of southeast Ukraine,\" he said, state-run Russia-24 TV reported. Yanukovych accused the United States of dictating to the government in Kiev what to do, claiming that CIA Director John Brennan \"effectively sanctioned the use of arms and bloodshed and therefore the United States should be held responsible for starting a civil war in Ukraine.\" CIA spokesman Dean Boyd declined to comment on Brennan's travel itinerary. \"But the claim that Director Brennan encouraged Ukrainian authorities to conduct tactical operations inside Ukraine is completely false. Like other senior U.S. officials, Director Brennan strongly believes that a diplomatic solution is the only way to resolve the crisis between Russia and Ukraine,\" the spokesman said. Troops massed on eastern border . Kiev's fragile new government and the West accuse Russia of destabilizing the region as a pretext to potentially send in troops to protect the local Russian-speaking population. NATO says Russian armed forces are massing on Ukraine's eastern border, while Moscow says they are merely carrying out military exercises. In Kharkiv, Ukraine's second most populous city, police outside City Hall offered no resistance when protesters took over the building Sunday afternoon, according to a witness. It is not clear why the police stepped aside for protesters. Russian and local Ukrainian media reported that pro-Russian demonstrators had seized the city hall in Mariupol, in the southeast, with no violence. Some showed pictures of Russian flags in the city. The reports could not immediately be independently confirmed. Distrust among the population in the region grew as political power in the national government shifted rapidly in a pro-Western direction. A short time later, pro-Russian elements occupied the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea, which Russia quickly annexed. Since then, pro-Russian protesters have taken to the streets in eastern Ukrainian regions and in some cases stormed and occupied buildings. EU foreign minister to meet . The United States has accused Russia of fomenting the separatist unrest in its neighbor as a pretext for military intervention. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry spoke by phone with Lavrov, his Russian counterpart, on Saturday, expressing \"strong concern that attacks today by armed militants in eastern Ukraine were orchestrated and synchronized, similar to previous attacks in eastern Ukraine and Crimea,\" a senior State Department official said. The official said Kerry warned Lavrov there would be \"additional consequences\" if Russia did not take steps to de-escalate the situation in eastern Ukraine and move its troops back from its border. The official also noted that militants involved in Saturday's unrest in eastern Ukraine \"were equipped with specialized Russian weapons and the same uniforms as those worn by the Russian forces that invaded Crimea.\" NATO described the appearance in eastern Ukraine of men with specialized Russian weapons and identical uniforms without insignia -- as previously seen in Crimea -- as a \"grave development.\" European Union Foreign Policy Chief Catherine Ashton is to meet this week with foreign ministers from the United States, Russia and Ukraine in Switzerland to discuss efforts to de-escalate the situation. In a written statement, she urged Moscow \"to call back its troops from the Ukrainian border and to cease any further actions aimed at destabilising Ukraine.\" EU foreign ministers will meet in Luxembourg on Monday to discuss the crisis. Get the Fast Facts on Ukraine . Opinion: The West must not blame itself for Putin's revanchism .", "(CNN) -- A series of U.S. diplomatic cables from early this year directly accused Syria of supplying advanced weaponry, including SCUD ballistic missiles, to the Shiite militia Hezbollah in Lebanon. U.S. protests to Damascus met with persistent denials, according to the cables, which were published by the WikiLeaks website. At a meeting in February, according to one cable, a senior U.S. diplomat stressed Washington's concerns directly with Syrian President Bashar Asad, \"who bluntly stated that he knew of no new weapons systems going to Hezbollah.\" But just a week later, an urgent note from U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to the U.S. Embassy in Damascus said the United States had learned of Syrian plans to supply Hezbollah with SCUD-D ballistic missiles, which would magnify its threat to Israel. Clinton wrote: \"I must stress that this activity is of deep concern to my government, and we strongly caution you (Syria) against such a serious escalation.\" To reinforce the point, the cable continues: \"Your interest in avoiding war should require you to exert maximum restraint, including restraining Hezbollah and preventing the group's acquisition of such lethal, long-range weapons.\" Within 24 hours, the senior U.S. diplomat in Damascus met with the vice foreign minister, Faisal al-Miqdad, to convey Clinton's message. The cables described him as \"clearly surprised\" by the allegations. \"Flatly denying any Syrian role in the supply of weapons to Hezbollah, Miqdad contended Damascus supported Lebanese independence,\" a cable says, quoting Miqdad as saying: \"You may hear about weapons going to Hezbollah, but they are absolutely not coming through Syria.\" Miqdad then went on the offensive, according to the cable, asking: \"The most sophisticated weapons are coming to Israel, to be used against whom?\" But the U.S. diplomat in Damascus commented: \"Even a seasoned diplomat like Miqdad could not restrain a raised eyebrow at our mention of the transfer of ballistic missiles to Hezbollah.\" The following day another cable from the secretary of state's office asked U.S. diplomats to rally support from allies for Washington's position. It said: \"We want France, Britain, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Qatar to make a renewed push to echo our concerns with Syria.\" Allies should be told that Washington believed \"Syria has provided or will provide guided short-range ballistic missiles to Hezbollah that could target two-thirds of Israel, including Tel Aviv, from launch sites north of the Litani.\" The Litani is a river in southern Lebanon. \"Our information also indicates that Syria has made advanced surface-to-air missile systems available to Hezbollah and has probably provided training on these systems to Hezbollah personnel,\" the cable continued. In April this year, Israeli officials alleged that the transfer of SCUD-D missiles had gone ahead. At the time, State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said: \"If such an action has been taken, and we continue to analyze this issue, clearly it potentially puts Lebanon at significant risk.\" So why would Syria provide Hezbollah with weapons that could destabilize an already volatile region? Another cable tries to answer that question. \"Syrian leaders appear convinced that arming Hezbollah will increase Syria's leverage in bringing Israel to the negotiating table,\" it says. But the top U.S. diplomat in Damascus suggests in a cable that is misguided. \"Syria's actions have created a situation in which miscalculation or provocative behavior by Hizballah could prove disastrous for Syria and the broader region,\" he writes. The U.S. assessment is that Hezbollah is far better-armed than it was in 2006, when it fought a one-month cross-border war against Israel. Referring to its missile and rocket armories, a cable from November 2009 says: \"This capability, if fully used, would represent a quantum leap over the damage and psychological terror Hezbollah rockets caused in northern Israel during the 2006 war.\" Regional analysts believe that Hezbollah has some 40,000 rockets as well as up to a dozen SCUD-Ds from Syria.", "Washington (CNN) -- Diplomatic tensions between the United States and Venezuela showed no signs of slowing Monday as the State Department announced that two Venezuelan diplomats had been expelled. Orlando Jose Montanez Olivares and Victor Camacaro Mata were declared personae non gratae and ordered to leave the country in response to the South American nation's decision to kick out two U.S. officials last week, State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told reporters. \"Around the world, when our people are thrown out unjustly, we're going to take reciprocal action,\" she said. \"We need to do that to protect our own people.\" The expulsion of the Venezuelan diplomats comes after Venezuelan officials -- just hours before announcing President Hugo Chavez's death last week -- said they were expelling two U.S. Embassy officials and accused them of plotting to destabilize the country. \"In the day or days that followed there was some pretty heated rhetoric coming in our direction,\" Nuland said Monday. \"I think I called it at one point a page from the old 'Chavista' playbook that we were hoping was going to change. ... There is work that we would like to do together, particularly in the areas of counter-terrorism, counternarcotics, economics and energy relations, but it's going to take a change of tone from Caracas.\" The expelled Venezuelan diplomats have left the United States, Nuland said. Camacaro worked in the Venezuelan Consulate in New York, and Montanez worked at the Venezuelan Embassy in Washington, she said. The expelled U.S. officials, both air attaches at the U.S. Embassy in Caracas, were accused of having meetings with members of the Venezuelan military and encouraging them to pursue \"destabilizing projects,\" Venezuelan Foreign Minister Elias Jaua said. \"We will not allow any foreign interference in our country,\" Jaua said last week. Nicolas Maduro, then vice president and now Venezuela's interim leader, also suggested as he criticized the U.S. Embassy officials last week that someone had deliberately infected Chavez with cancer. State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell denied the accusations. \"This fallacious assertion of inappropriate U.S. action leads us to conclude that, unfortunately, the current Venezuelan government is not interested an improved relationship,\" he said. It isn't the first time that diplomatic tensions have surged between the two countries. Last year the State Department declared Venezuela's consul general in Miami persona non grata -- Latin for unwelcome or unacceptable person -- and expelled her from the United States. In 2008, Venezuela expelled the U.S. ambassador to the South American country. A day later, the United States said it was expelling the Venezuelan ambassador. Maduro enters Venezuelan presidency race . CNN en Español's Juan Carlos Lopez reported from Washington CNN's Catherine E. Shoichet reported from Atlanta. CNN's Jill Dougherty contributed to this report.", "Timothy Tracy went to Venezuela to make a documentary about the political division gripping the country. Now he's in the spotlight after being arrested on allegations of funding opponents of newly elected President Nicolas Maduro, successor to the late Hugo Chavez. In a televised address on Thursday, Maduro said he ordered the arrest of Tracy, who he accused of \"financing violent groups.\" Tracy, 35, of Los Angeles, was arrested Wednesday at the Caracas airport as he was preparing to leave the country, Reporters Without Borders said. \"Tracy was just acting as an observer when he was filming,\" the journalism rights group said. \"Shooting video is not evidence of participation in what the government calls an 'act of destabilization.' It is for the police and judicial authorities to investigate and establish from the facts, not for the government to designate Tracy as guilty from the outset.\" The U.S. State Department said Friday it was aware an American was arrested in the Venezuelan capital, but declined to comment on the specifics of the case because of privacy considerations. But Patrick Ventrell, a State Department spokesman, said the accusations are the latest in a series of allegations in recent weeks made by the Venezuelan government that \"foreign actors\" are attempting to influence political developments in the country. \"These allegations have not been substantiated,\" Ventrell said. \"The U.S. continues to categorically reject any allegations of U.S. government efforts to destabilize the Venezuelan government or to harm anyone in Venezuela.\"", "Beijing (CNN) -- Following a day of talks, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Chinese leaders said their two nations would work together to press North Korea to tone down its provocations, amid soaring regional tensions. Speaking to reporters in Beijing, Kerry said both the United States and China are calling on North Korea to refrain from any provocative steps -- including any missile launches. But, he said, both nations want to focus on a peaceful solution, not \"threat for threat or confrontational language. There's been enough of that.\" No option was left off the table in his talks with Chinese leaders, he said. Among those he met with Saturday were Chinese President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Keqiang and State Councilor Yang. Kerry said there was no question that China was very serious about upholding international standards. As he met with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Kerry said, \"Mr. president, this is obviously a critical time with some very challenging issues -- issues on the Korean peninsula, the challenge of Iran and nuclear weapons, Syria and the Middle East, and economies around the world that are in need of a boost.\" Kerry in Japan amid heightened Korean tensions . In a joint statement before dinner, Kerry and Yang reaffirmed their intention to work together toward the peaceful denuclearization of North Korea. \"We agreed that this is critically important for the stability of the region and indeed for the world and for all our nonproliferation efforts,\" said Kerry. \"We are committed to taking actions in order to make good on that goal and we are committed to make that goal a reality.\" China's position is \"consistent and clear cut,\" Yang said. \"China is firmly committed to upholding peace and stability and advancing the denuclearization process on the peninsula.\" Beijing will work with its international partners to help restart the stalled six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear program and hold it accountable to its international agreements, he said. Opinion: Why I fled North Korea . 'Mutual respect' Meeting earlier with China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Kerry said there were \"enormously challenging issues\" in front of the two nations. \"I look forward to having that conversation with you today ... (to) define for both of us what the model relationship should be and how two great powers, China and the United States, can work effectively to solve problems,\" he said. Wang said he hoped the two nations could work together to handle sensitive issues with \"mutual respect.\" Kerry landed in Beijing after leaving Seoul, South Korea, where he pledged unbending U.S. military support against any attack from the North. Washington wants Beijing to \"stop the money trail into North Korea\" and give Pyongyang a strong message that China wants the Korean Peninsula free of nuclear weapons, two U.S. administration officials said. U.S. officials said China has recently expressed frustrations over Pyongyang's actions. \"We hear a growing tone of frustration ... in official statements from the Chinese,\" an administration official said. \"China is increasingly concerned about the downstream effects of North Korea's reckless pursuit of a nuclear missile capability and complications for China's foreign strategic environment.\" Kerry will seek to define the areas of common interest with China. \"We have a common interest in putting an end to North Korean proliferation,\" a senior administration official said. \"In stopping the highly destabilizing behavior and the provocative actions of the North Koreans.\" Kerry is also expected to address computer hacking coming from state-sponsored sources inside China. Should the U.S. shoot down a missile? Support for Seoul . During his visit to Seoul on Friday, Kerry said the United States would talk to North Korea, but only if the country gets serious about negotiating the end of its nuclear weapons program. \"North Korea will not be accepted as a nuclear power,\" Kerry said in Seoul. His trip to South Korea came a day after a Pentagon intelligence assessment surfaced suggesting North Korea may have developed the ability to fire a nuclear-tipped missile at its foes. Disclosed first by a congressman at a hearing Thursday, and then confirmed to CNN by the Defense Department, the Defense Intelligence Agency assessment is the clearest acknowledgment yet by the United States about potential advances in North Korea's nuclear program. U.S. officials think North Korea could test-launch a mobile ballistic missile at any time in what would be seen by the international community as a highly provocative move. But a senior administration official said there's no indication that any such missiles are armed with nuclear material. Pentagon spokesman George Little said that \"it would be inaccurate to suggest that the North Korean regime has fully tested, developed or demonstrated the kinds of nuclear capabilities referenced\" in the DIA study. The DIA has been wrong in the past, producing an assessment in 2002 that formed the basis for arguments that Iraq had nuclear weapons -- a view later found to be incorrect. Nevertheless, Kerry said any launch by North Korea would be a \"huge mistake.\" North Korea's propaganda machine grips defector 11 years on . Bellicose North . Despite weeks of bellicose rhetoric from Pyongyang threatening nuclear attacks on the United States, South Korea and their allies, U.S. officials have characterized the North's saber rattling as largely bluster. South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se, speaking with Kerry on Friday, urged North Korea to open talks. \"We urge North Korea to cease its reckless behavior and to stop issuing threats,\" he said. A joint statement issued by South Korea and the United States before Kerry's departure emphasized Washington's commitment to defending Seoul \"in the wake of recent unacceptable provocations\" by the North. Before departing for Beijing, Kerry attended a meet and greet, where he called the children of diplomats to join him on stage. He told the group that their work was about making the world a safer place for the children. \"This is one of the most important places on earth,\" he said, referring to the divided Korean Peninsula. It shows what life is like when people are presented with no choices.\" North Korea issued a scathing warning to Japan on Friday, saying via its state news agency, KCNA , that Tokyo should \"stop recklessly working for staging a comeback on Korea, depending on its American master.\" Japanese foreign minister spokesman Masaru Sato said such remarks only hurt North Korea. \"Japan would not be pushed around by rhetoric of North Korea,\" he said. Japan's Transport Ministry has issued a notice requiring its airplanes to report to the U.S. military if they fly near the U.S. military's Kadena base in Okinawa prefecture, the Kyodo News Agency said. The notice, made at the request of the U.S. military in Japan, is believed to be part of precautions taken against possible North Korean missile launches. Five things we still don't know about North Korea's nukes . CNN's Jill Dougherty reported from Beijing, Jethro Mullen reported from Hong Kong and Laura Smith-Spark wrote in London. CNN's Barbara Starr, K.J. Kwon, Tim Schwarz, Kyung Lah, Judy Kwon, Chris Lawrence, Elise Labott, Adam Levine and Michael Pearson contributed to this report.", "(CNN) -- The U.S. Navy had secret orders this week to be \"prepared to act\" to stop a cargo ship carrying Iranian arms destined for Gaza, CNN has learned. Navy vessels in the Middle East received orders to move \"into the proximity of the ship and act if ordered,\" according to a senior U.S. military official familiar with the operation. The scenario included the possibility of boarding the ship, which was eventually stopped in the Red Sea by Israeli naval forces, who authorities said seized a cargo of Iranian rockets and missiles. A second American official confirmed that U.S. intelligence and the Israelis became aware of the effort by Iran to smuggle the weapons several days ago. The United States secretly tracked the shipment as it left Iran by air and then landed in Syria. The weapons were then shipped into Iraq and loaded at a port in southern Iraq. U.S. and Israeli intelligence grew concerned when the cargo ship in the Persian Gulf suddenly diverted from its expected heading to Sudan and suddenly turned north toward Iraq to load up. The United States does not believe the Iraqi government sanctioned the smuggling. American navy ships in the region secretly tracked the cargo down the Persian Gulf to the Arabian Sea and then to the Red Sea until the Israeli navy boarded the vessel before it reached Sudan, a typical point for unloading smuggled weapons. The Israeli military later showed video of the weapons with markings indicating they were made in Iran. The White House hinted at the scope of the operation, but only after it concluded. \"The White House directed the Department of Defense to monitor the vessel and to develop concepts of operation for a range of options to be prepared to take unilateral steps if necessary,\" White House spokesman Jay Carney said. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel spoke Thursday with Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon to receive what the Pentagon called a \"briefing\" from the Israelis on the operation. The Pentagon said in a statement both nations \"have been in consistent touch on Israel's interdiction operation, coordinating extensively through military and intelligence channels.\" The seizure showed the United States was continuing to hold Iran \"accountable for its destabilizing activities in the region, even as we continue efforts to resolve our concerns over Iran's nuclear program through diplomacy,\" the statement said.", "Caracas, Venezuela (CNN) -- A day after officials announced the cancer diagnosis of Argentina's president, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez wondered Wednesday if the United States could be infecting the region's leaders with the illness. Five current or former Latin American presidents have battled cancer in the past few years, including Chavez himself, who claims to have beaten an unspecified cancer. Chavez prefaced his remarks at a military event in Caracas by saying, \"I don't want to make any reckless accusations,\" but the Venezuelan president said he was concerned by something he finds \"very, very, very strange.\" \"Would it be strange if (the United States) had developed a technology to induce cancer, and for no one to know it?\" he asked. Chavez cited the revelation this year that the United States, between 1946 and 1948, had carried out human experiments in Guatemala where subjects were exposed to sexually transmitted diseases. That was 50 years ago, Chavez said, and he posited: Will it be discovered 50 years from now that the United States was infecting presidents with cancer? \"I don't know. I'm just putting the thought out there,\" Chavez said. Victoria Nuland, a U.S. State Department spokeswoman, told reporters Thursday that Chavez's assertion was \"horrific and reprehensible.\" The Venezuelan president, who has a firm anti-U.S. stance, frequently hurls accusations at his political enemies, domestic and foreign. He has repeatedly said the United States is trying to destabilize his government. Documentary: Alleged cyberplot points to Venezuela and Iran . A spokesman for Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner said Tuesday that doctors had diagnosed her with thyroid cancer. She is scheduled to undergo surgery next week. Paraguayan President Fernando Lugo was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in 2010. Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff overcame cancer while she was a candidate for the office, and former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is undergoing treatment for throat cancer. Chavez said his ally Fidel Castro had repeatedly warned him to beware of what he eats, as foods are potential vehicles for an illness. Chavez gets tests in Cuba . The Venezuelan leader questioned the timing of the diagnoses -- Rousseff during her campaign, and Chavez himself right before an election year. \"I repeat: I am not accusing anyone. I am just using my freedom to reflect and give commentary on very strange occurrences that are hard to explain,\" he said.", "(CNN) -- U.S. President Barack Obama and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, held what each man described Friday as a \"constructive\" talk about Syria, though there's no indication it produced any breakthrough consensus. What began as small talk after Putin approached Obama led to the two pulling up chairs in the corner of the room and talking almost entirely about Syria for 20 to 30 minutes, as other leaders watched, a senior Obama administration official said. Afterward, Obama described the exchange on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit in Russia as \"candid\" -- but acknowledged that Putin was unlikely to support his call for military action against Syria. Putin gave reporters a similar account, adding, \"He doesn't agree with me, I don't agree with him, but we listened to each other.\" Both leaders said they could work together to seek a political solution to the Syrian crisis. The two men hold opposing views over whether military action should be taken against the Syrian government over its alleged use of chemical weapons against its own people. Obama is seeking to rally domestic and international support for a military strike, while Putin -- an ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad -- has challenged the assertion that regime forces were behind the alleged chemical weapons attacks. Putin repeated the Syrian government's accusation that \"militants\" used chemical weapons in a bid to get aid and support from \"those countries who support them.\" He told reporters that Moscow will continue to provide Syria with arms and humanitarian aid. He and Obama also talked about ways to solve the Syrian crisis peacefully, he said. A statement issued Friday by a bare majority of the G20 -- 11 of its 20 members -- said that \"the evidence clearly points to the Syrian government being responsible for the attack, which is part of a pattern of chemical weapons use by the regime.\" \"Those who perpetrated these crimes must be held accountable,\" it said. Obama said he believed most of the leaders at the G20 meeting were \"comfortable with (the) conclusion that the Assad government was responsible\" for using chemical weapons in an attack last month on a Damascus suburb. But he said divisions arose over whether military action against Syria must be authorized by the U.N. Security Council, where Russia has blocked action. Citing Security Council \"paralysis\" on the issue, Obama said countries should be willing to act without the council's authorization. Obama: 'World cannot stand idly by' \"If we are serious about upholding a ban on chemical weapons use, then an international response is required, and that will not come through Security Council action.\" But he said he was encouraged by the discussions in St. Petersburg. \"There's a growing recognition that the world cannot stand idly by,\" Obama said. The U.S. president showed emotion as he talked of the gassing on August 21 of what his country estimates was more than 1,400 people in Syria, 400 of them children. \"This is not something we fabricated, this is not something we are using as an excuse for military action. ... I was elected to end wars, not start them,\" he said. \"But we have to make hard choices when we stand up for things we care about.\" Putin said the leaders in St. Petersburg were split nearly \"50-50\" over whether to intervene militarily. He said that action against Syria without U.N. Security Council approval would be illegal. Russia and China, which has also opposed military intervention in Syria, have veto power. But that need not rule out action, U.S. State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf told reporters Friday. \"We cannot allow Syria to act with impunity because one or two countries refuse to hold them accountable in the Security Council,\" she said. The Syrian government has said that opposition fighters launched the attack on the outskirts of Damascus. The United Nations has said more than 100,000 people -- including many civilians -- have been killed since a popular uprising spiraled into a civil war in 2011. That toll rose Friday, with the opposition Local Coordination Committees of Syria reporting at least 64 people killed nationwide. Tensions affect some U.S. staff in Lebanon, Turkey . As tensions ratchet up over Syria, the U.S. State Department on Friday ordered the withdrawal of nonessential personnel from the U.S. Embassy in Beirut, Lebanon, and authorized nonemergency staff to leave a consulate in Adana in southern Turkey. \"Given the current tensions in the region, as well as potential threats to U.S. government facilities and personnel, we are taking these steps out of an abundance of caution to protect our employees and their families, and local employees and visitors to our facilities,\" a statement said. Many observers fear that the civil war in Syria, which has become increasingly sectarian in nature, could spill into neighboring countries. The State Department also issued revised travel warnings Friday for Lebanon and Turkey, both of which share a border with Syria. It urges U.S. citizens to \"avoid all travel to Lebanon because of current safety and security concerns\" and to be \"alert to the potential for violence\" if traveling to or living in Turkey. Many in Lebanon worry that the involvement of the Lebanese Shiite militant group Hezbollah in Syria's civil war could destabilize their own nation. Lebanon has been shaken by a series of deadly bombings in recent weeks, including a blast in a Hezbollah stronghold in Beirut. Al-Assad warned this week that a regional war could break out if Syria is attacked. \"The Middle East is a powder keg, and the fire is approaching today,\" he told French newspaper Le Figaro in an interview Monday. Obama pushes for congressional action . Obama is seeking congressional approval for possible U.S. military strikes against Syria, although no vote is expected until after lawmakers reconvene from recess on Monday. The president said Friday that he had expected skepticism from the public and from lawmakers. He knew it was going to be \"a heavy lift\" when he announced Saturday that he was putting the proposal before Congress, he said, with some lawmakers foreseeing a \"slippery slope\" toward a prolonged U.S. involvement in Syria. \"For the American people who have been through over a decade of war now, with enormous sacrifice of blood and treasure, any hints of further military entanglement in the Middle East are going to be viewed with suspicion,\" Obama said. \"That suspicion will probably be even stronger in my party than in the Republican Party.\" The Syrian parliament has urged the U.S. House not to support the proposed U.S. military action, the country's state news agency, SANA, said Friday. In a letter addressed to U.S. House Speaker John Boehner, his Syrian counterpart, Jihad al-Laham, called upon the House to communicate through civilized dialogue, not blood and fire, the news agency said. He said Islamic extremists have seized and possess chemical weapons, SANA reported. Boehner and House Majority Leader Eric Cantor have both backed Obama, but Boehner has said it is up to the White House to get the 217 votes needed to secure his resolution there. According to CNN's count, 109 House members plan to vote \"no,\" while 23 -- including a number of high-profile Republicans -- plan to back it. More than 280 representatives remain undecided. Syria offers rewards . Meanwhile, Syrian authorities are offering rewards, amounting to nearly $4,400, for handing over non-Syrian \"terrorists,\" Syrian state TV said Friday. The Syrian government often refers to rebels as terrorists. Officials offered nearly $1,800 for reports on the whereabouts of these individuals or help leading to their arrest, the state broadcaster said. The identity of those providing information would remain confidential, and they would be provided with protection, state TV said. CNN's Barbara Starr, Jason Hanna, Hamdi Alkhshali and Richard Allen Greene contributed to this report.", "(CNN) -- The United States is expelling three Venezuelan diplomats, including the South American country's top envoy in Washington, the State Department said Tuesday night. Calixto Ortega, Venezuela's charge d'affaires in Washington, and two other diplomats have been declared personae non gratae in response to Venezuela's decision Monday to expel three U.S. diplomats, a State Department spokesperson said in a written statement provided to CNN. They have 48 hours to leave the United States. On Monday, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro announced he was expelling three U.S. diplomats and accused them of conspiring to destabilize his government. The Venezuelan leader accused the group of diplomats of meeting with right-wing political opponents of his government, financing their activities and encouraging them to sabotage the country's electrical system and its economy -- accusations that the State Department has repeatedly denied. \"It is regrettable that the Venezuelan government has again decided to expel U.S. diplomatic officials based on groundless allegations, which require reciprocal action. It is counterproductive to the interests of both our countries and not a serious way for a country to conduct its foreign policy,\" the State Department spokesperson said Tuesday. \"We completely reject the accounts of the Venezuelan government about any participation of the U.S. government in any type of conspiracy to destabilize the Venezuelan government.\" In addition to Ortega, Monica Alejandra Sanchez Morales, second secretary at the Venezuelan Embassy in Washington, and Marisol Gutierrez de Almeida, Venezuelan consul in Houston, were also expelled. The U.S. announcement came hours after Maduro repeated his accusations in a nationally televised broadcast, showing what he said was security camera footage that showed the U.S. diplomats meeting with members of the opposition. As she prepared to leave Caracas on Tuesday, the top U.S. envoy told reporters the meeting was part of the U.S. Embassy's typical approach of talking with officials and members of civil society throughout the country. \"If we are not talking with these people, then we are not doing our jobs,\" said Kelly Keiderling, the U.S. charge d'affaires in Venezuela. \"If the accusation is that we met with Venezuelans, then we are guilty.\" In March: U.S. expels 2 Venezuelan diplomats .", "(CNN) -- The most difficult decision a member of Congress will ever have to make is to commit our nation's armed forces to military action against an enemy. Having served with and cared for those brave men and women as a physician in the Army Reserve with three deployments including Iraq, this is not a decision I would arrive at lightly or without careful consideration of all the available facts. There is no question that the horrific atrocities perpetrated by Bashar al-Assad's regime in Syria are nothing short of appalling and deserve international condemnation. But there is a glaring lack of international resolve on what the response to such abominable acts should be. A careful examination of the current situation and an understanding of our history in the region advise that the United States must proceed with caution before entering another Middle Eastern conflict. First, I have concerns that a strike in Syria will only further muddle the administration's disjointed foreign policy approach to the region. It is no secret that the president has already used a patchwork strategy in dealing with the turmoil in the Middle East. The United States has implemented three entirely different approaches in Egypt, Libya and Syria. The debate over a military strike in Syria cannot be a knee jerk reaction to the president's failed \"new beginning\" with the Arab world—including failures of diplomacy in Libya and Egypt. Rather, a strike on Syria must consider the greater strategic implications of military action and should be about one thing: the best strategic interests of the United States. Second, the unintended consequences of even a \"limited\" military strike may outweigh any potential positive results. Some suggest that not acting could destabilize the region and further embolden bad actors such as North Korea or Iran; this ignores the fact that any military strike on Syria could spark a much wider regional conflict that would escalate our own involvement. There could be an additional attack against Syrian civilians, there could be retaliation against Israel, and Syrian refugees flooding into neighboring countries could tip the balance of the fragile political stability there. Right now, no matter how abhorrent the atrocities committed, the conflict is confined within the borders of Syria. Nobody knows for certain what will result from action or inaction. Next, the administration has yet to clearly articulate the goals, objectives and potential costs of a military action in Syria. We know that the president wants to punish al-Assad, but I have never believed our military force should be used to deliver a shot across the bow unless we are willing to then sink the ship if the warning shot is unheeded. I don't believe that our military, or the American people, are ready to sink the ship. All that has been made clear is what we are not going to achieve -- regime change -- and what we could possibly achieve: a shifting of the momentum in the ground war against al-Assad's military. We must be careful and quite clear with the types of actions we take as we use our military force in this fiscally strained environment, and at a time when we are drawing down the end-strength of our forces. Thus far, the specifics of a strike in Syria have not met this standard. Finally, I do not believe the case has been made that there is a clear and imminent threat to our national security interests. Some say that projecting strength and showing a willingness to act against leaders who commit abuses are important enough reasons to strike Syria. A similar argument was used against Saddam Hussein, leading to the Gulf and Iraq Wars; a similar argument was used against the Taliban and al Qaeda forces in Afghanistan; a similar argument was used yet again against Moammar Gadhafi in Libya. While the circumstances that led to these interventions were all very different, the continued unrest that grips the countries involved shows that our ability to influence outcomes is finite and any power vacuum we may leave behind is likely to result in further violence and abuses. I believe it would be unwise to take on a situation that very likely could produce this same result. Throughout history, no matter what action the United States has taken, we have seen that evil people will do evil things. As the situation evolves, we may see evidence that the Syrian armed forces are planning to attack our longstanding allies in the region or that there could be a major threat to global commerce. Such a situation would likely warrant a U.S. military strike. But that is not the situation we find ourselves in today. In the end, if we are going to engage our military, there must be a clear threat to our national security interests at home and a clear strategy of what we are going to achieve. Anything less would disregard the lessons of recent history and further complicate the situation in Syria and the region while risking precious American blood and treasure. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Joe Heck.", "(CNN) -- International pressure built Tuesday for leaders of the military group that seized power last month from Mali's democratically elected president to restore the nation to civilian rule. The African Union said Tuesday it will impose more sanctions on the country, one day after the Economic Community of West African States slapped the ruling military junta with travel and economic restrictions after last month's coup. The AU supports the sanctions imposed by the ECOWAS in Mali and \"further decided to impose their own sanctions, with asset freezes and travel bans against leaders of the military junta and all those involved in contributing to the 'destabilization' of Mali,\" said Ramtane Lamamra, commissioner for peace and security. The AU also condemned recent attacks in the north by Tuarag rebel groups and declared \"null and void\" any of their statements or demands, adding them and all those involved in attacks in the region to the sanctions imposed. On Monday, ECOWAS imposed a travel ban on the coup leaders and imposed a diplomatic and financial embargo that regional leaders discussed last week, ECOWAS Chairman Alassane Ouattara said. \"All diplomatic, economic, financial measures and others are applicable from today and will not be lifted until the re-establishment of constitutional order,\" said Ouattara, Ivory Coast's president. He said ECOWAS leaders will meet again this week in Ivory Coast's main city of Abidjan to discuss the possible activation of troops from member states. ECOWAS had given the officers until Monday to hand over power or face sanctions. Under the sanctions, the five neighboring ECOWAS members will close their borders to landlocked Mali except for humanitarian purposes. Its member states are to deny Mali access to their ports, freeze Mali's accounts in regional banks and suspend Mali's participation in cultural and sporting events. Hours after ECOWAS' announcement, the U.S. Department of State announced that it was imposing sanctions on travel to the United States on those people \"who block Mali's return to civilian rule and a democratically elected government\" and on their immediate relatives. Included are \"those who actively promote Captain Amadou Sanogo and the National Committee for the Restoration of Democracy, who seized power from democratically elected President Amadou Toumani Toure on March 21,\" it said in a statement. The United States released a statement earlier Tuesday in support of the West African states, saying it is \"deeply concerned about the ongoing political crisis in Mali.\" \"We also urge all armed rebels to engage in dialogue with civilian leaders in (the capital city of) Bamako to find a nonviolent path forward for national elections and a peaceful coexistence,\" said Victoria Nuland, spokeswoman for the State Department. The department warned U.S. citizens against all travel to the country and authorized the departure of non-emergency personnel and all eligible relatives. Senou International Airport in Bamako remained open but \"the availability of flights in the future is unpredictable and depends on the overall security situation,\" the department said in a statement. Before Tuareg and Islamic rebels took control of northern Mali, it had been hailed as a shining example of African democracy, having experienced more than 20 years of democratic government. The impoverished country now has no access to the sea and is heavily dependent on foreign aid. The coup leaders pledged Sunday to hold talks toward the establishment of a transitional government, which they said would organize \"peaceful, free open and democratic elections in which we will not participate.\" But the statement did not specify when the talks or the elections would be held. \"The measures taken by the junta are in the right direction, but are not sufficient,\" Ouattara said Monday. Amnesty International has raised concerns about the safety of civilians in the area, citing reports of violence and looting. The warning came as international pressure increased on the military junta that grabbed power last month in Bamako. The Tuareg, who seek a separate homeland in northern Mali, announced over the weekend that they had seized control of the northern regional capitals of Timbuktu and Gao, a major blow to the military government. Both towns are hundreds of miles north of Bamako. \"The armed groups who seized these towns in the last three days must ensure human rights abuses do not occur and where they do, they must take action and remove anyone implicated from their ranks,\" Gaetan Mootoo, Amnesty's West Africa researcher, said in a statement on the organization's website. The Islamist group Ansar Dine seized control of Timbuktu after the military stepped down on Monday, said Yehye Tandina, a broadcaster in the city. The streets of Timbuktu were quiet Tuesday, though the city was cut off from the rest of the world; shops and banks had been looted. \"We are surviving on hope,\" Tandina said. \"In reality, there is nothing in Timbuktu.\" Military officers led by Sanogo seized power on March 22, overthrowing President Amadou Toumani Toure. The junta said Toure had failed to properly equip soldiers battling the growing Tuareg insurgency. Moussa Ag Assarid, a spokesman for the main Tuareg rebel group, the National Movement for the Liberation of the Azawad, has said the group now \"controls all of northern Mali.\" \"We are proud and ready to declare our homeland free from the south,\" he said. \"Now the MLNA wants a nation.\" Amnesty said it had received reports from witnesses in Gao of armed men looting homes and a hospital. \"The looting must be halted to ensure that the civilian population can safely go about their lives,\" said Amnesty's Mootoo. In another northern city, Kidal, residents were fleeing their homes, Amnesty reported. According to the organization, more than 200,000 people had fled the north of Mali since the Tuareg uprising began in January. Timbuktu was a thriving commercial hub and a center of Islamic scholarship in the 14th and 15th centuries, and it's home to three clay mosques that date back more than 700 years. The U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization urged the combatants to avoid damage to the sites, which were added to the agency's World Heritage List in 1988. \"UNESCO stands ready to share its expertise and experience to help Mali ensure the safeguarding of Timbuktu,\" Director-General Irina Bokova said in a statement Monday. CNN's Joseph Netto and Journalists Nick Loomis and Tom Walsh contributed to this report .", "(CNN)As the U.S. and several Eastern European NATO countries conduct a series of military exercises near Russia's border, Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered his Northern Fleet \"to full alert in a snap combat readiness exercise\" in the Arctic, state-run media reported Monday. At least one Russian leader described the drill as routine and unrelated to the \"international situation.\" The fleet got its orders at 8 a.m. Monday, according to Sputnik, launching a land, sea and air drill that will involve 38,000 troops, 41 ships, 15 submarines and 110 aircraft. \"The main task of the (combat readiness drill) is to assess the armed forces from the Northern Fleet's capabilities in fulfilling tasks in providing military security of the Russian Federation in the Arctic region,\" Russian Defense Minister Gen. Sergey Shoigu told the media outlet. \"New challenges and threats of military security demand the further heightening of military capabilities of the armed forces and special attention will be paid to the state of the newly formed strategic merging (of forces) in the North.\" The drills will run through Friday, Sputnik reported. A flotilla of minesweepers will support the Northern Fleet's nuclear submarines in the Barents Sea as part of the drill, the Tass news agency reported, citing a Defense Ministry statement. \"Mine-sweeping groups of the Kola Flotilla have moved to the designated areas of the Barents within the framework of a snap check of combat readiness of the Northern Fleet forces for supporting the deployment of the main forces of the fleet, including the deployment of nuclear and diesel submarines of the Northern Fleet,\" the statement says. The ships will conduct magnetic, acoustic and contact demining sweeps during the drill, Tass reported. Despite a number of countries participating in various military drills in Eastern Europe, a Kremlin spokesman described the Northern Fleet inspection as routine practice aimed at improving military capabilities. \"The practice of snap checks will become regular, as it is beneficial for improving the mechanisms of control and operation of the armed forces. This is an absolutely regular process of the armed forces' operation, of preparation and development of Russia's armed forces,\" Dmitry Peskov told Tass on Monday. Conversely, a diplomat told Tass that Russia was \"deeply concerned\" about NATO drills near its border. \"It is especially surprising that this is happening in Northeastern Europe, which is the most stable region not only on our continent, but also maybe in the whole world,\" Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexey Meshkov said. \"Such NATO actions lead to destabilization of the situation and increasing tensions in Northeastern Europe.\" Among the recent drills in Eastern Europe: . • In its largest military operation in decades, Norway sent 5,000 troops to conduct military exercises between Alta and Lakselv in Finnmark county, which borders Russia, according to the Barents Observer. • About 100 U.S. soldiers are expected to conduct an exercise this month using a Patriot missile battery and a Polish air defense brigade \"at a location on Polish territory,\" Pentagon spokesman Col. Steve Warren said. The exercise is part of Operation Atlantic Resolve, which began in response to Russia's involvement in Ukraine and its annexation of Crimea last year, the U.S. Defense Department said. • Also as part of Operation Atlantic Resolve, the U.S. Army will soon send armored Stryker vehicles on a 1,100-mile convoy through six European countries to show solidarity with its allies. The \"highly visible\" convoy will travel through Estonia, Lithuania, Poland, Latvia and the Czech Republic en route to Vilseck, Germany, a U.S. Army Europe spokesman told the military newspaper, Stars and Stripes. • In a \"regularly scheduled\" exercise aimed at demonstrating NATO's commitment to \"collective defense\" in the Black Sea, the Standing NATO Maritime Group Two -- a collection of warships -- will train with the Bulgarian, Romanian and Turkish navies and visit Varna, Bulgaria, to meet with local authorities and navy officials, NATO said. • The U.S. Air Force moved a dozen A-10 Thunderbolt \"tankbuster\" attack jets to an air base in Germany and the U.S. military placed hundreds of tanks and military vehicles in Latvia, where they'll be matched up with 3,000 troops from Fort Stewart, Georgia. CNN's Brad Lendon contributed to this report.", "(CNN) -- Turkish troops backed by air support attacked Kurdish rebels Friday in northern Iraq, the Turkish military said. Turkish tanks on the move near the border town of Silopi in Sirnak province, southeastern Turkey. At least 24 suspected Kurd militants were killed, the Turkish military reported, adding it suffered 5 casualties. The incursion against the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in Iraq began around 7 p.m. Thursday. In a statement, the Turkish military said it would act with \"utmost sensitivity in order to avoid negative impact on local elements\" -- a reference to keeping civilians out of the conflict. \"The Turkish Armed Forces, which values Iraq's territorial integrity and its stability, will return as soon as planned goals are achieved,\" the military said. \"The executed operation will prevent the region from being a permanent and safe base for the terrorists and will contribute to Iraq's stability and internal peace.\" Turkey has been taking cross-border military action, including airstrikes and artillery shelling, against the PKK in retaliation to attacks by the group on targets in Turkey from bases in the Kurdish region of northern Iraq. The PKK has spent two decades fighting for autonomy for Kurds in southeastern Turkey. Turkey has also been carrying out small ground operations into Iraq, forays characterized as \"hot pursuit\" incursions with a few hundred commandos responding to a particular threat. Citing Turkish media reports estimating that as many as 10,000 Turkish troops had been involved, Fadi Hakura, an analyst with UK military thinktank Chatham House, said the operation was the first major incursion by Turkey into Iraq since Hussein was toppled in 2003. Hakura said the Turkish military wanted to conduct a surprise attack against the PKK prior to the springtime, when violent attacks tend to escalate, and when the snow in the mountainous border region leaves the fighters' footprints. \"Normally during the 1980s and the 1990s, the incursions involved 35,000 50,000 troops and they tended to be somewhat open-ended over weeks. This one is expected to be limited to a matter of days and targeted attacks against the PKK,\" he said. U.S. officials were downplaying the scope of the operation Friday. Tom Casey, deputy State Department spokesman, said Iraqi Foreign Ministry Hoshyar Zebari called the incursion \"limited in nature\" and not \"major.\" \"The PKK is a common enemy of the U.S., Turkey and Iraq. We need to work together to resolve it,\" Casey said. \"We are pleased that Turks have stressed that they will do everything possible to avoid acts that would harm civilians.\" Rear Adm. Gregory Smith, a spokesman for the U.S. military in Iraq, told CNN the military is \"aware\" of a Turkish \"operation of limited duration to specifically target PKK terrorists in that region.\" \"Turkey has given its assurances it will do everything possible to avoid collateral damage to innocent civilians or Kurdish infrastructure,\" Smith said. The ground troops' deployment followed cross-border shelling early Thursday by Turkish soldiers into abandoned villages north of Irbil -- the capital of Iraq's Kurdish Regional Government. The shelling, which struck abandoned villages in the Khwar-Kork area north of Irbil, lasted two hours and was followed by heavy gunfire, a KRG official told CNN. There were no reports of casualties. Border tensions have been a source of diplomatic disagreement between the U,S. and its Iraqi and Turkish allies. U.S. and Iraqi authorities have been concerned that any large-scale operation by Turkey into Iraq to chase down Kurdish rebels could destabilize the region. At the same time, the U.S. backs Turkey's efforts to battle the PKK, which both countries regard as a terrorist group and has been providing intelligence to the Turks. \"The United States continues to support Turkey's right to defend itself from the terrorist activities of the PKK and has encouraged Turkey to use all available means, to include diplomacy and close coordination with the Government of Iraq to ultimately resolve this issue,\" Smith said. E-mail to a friend . CNN's Paula Hancocks, Zain Verjee and Erin McLaughlin contributed to this report.", "WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The United States temporarily closed its government facilities in South Africa on Tuesday after a \"possible threat\" to its embassy, the U.S. State Department said. The U.S. Consulate in Johannesburg, South Africa, is among the American facilities closed Tuesday. The U.S. Embassy in Pretoria and other government offices in South Africa will remain closed Wednesday as the security threat is being monitored, embassy spokeswoman Sharon Hudson-Dean said. State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said the action was a precaution. \"We are ... notifying the American community in South Africa to remain vigilant,\" Kelly said. \"We are also maintaining close contact with South African authorities on this issue.\" He had no further details on the \"possible threat\" to the embassy in Pretoria. A note on the embassy's Web site said all U.S. government facilities in South Africa were temporarily closed following \"information recently received\" by regional security officials. Kelly said the embassy's Emergency Action Committee met and is formulating an appropriate course of action. CNN's Nkepile Mabuse and Elise Labott contributed to this report.", "The mayor of the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv underwent emergency surgery after being shot in the back, city officials and police said Monday, amid continuing unrest in the region. The attack on Mayor Gennady Kernes happened around noon local time, the Kharkiv city office official website said. It was not immediately clear who was responsible for the shooting. After a two-hour operation, Kernes was out of surgery but in critical condition, the city office said. \"The surgery was successful. His life-threatening condition is expected to go on for several days,\" a statement said. \"He was unconscious when brought to the hospital.\" The online statement also said a bullet casing was found at the scene. Police said an investigation unit was trying to determine the circumstances of the shooting. In a major challenge to Kiev's new leaders, armed rebels have captured towns and government buildings across eastern Ukraine and are holding a team of European monitors hostage. Western nations accuse Moscow of supporting the separatist gunmen who are occupying official buildings in cities across the region. Sanctions . The United States on Monday imposed sanctions against seven Russian government officials and 17 companies linked to Russian President Vladimir Putin in its latest action to punish Moscow for its actions in Ukraine. The White House said the seven Russians, including two from Putin's inner circle, are now subject to a freeze on any assets they hold in the United States and a ban on U.S. travel. In addition, the United States will deny export license applications for any high-technology items that could contribute to Russian military capabilities. The Commerce and State departments will revoke any existing export licenses that meet these conditions, the White House said in a statement. \"The sanctions build on the ones that were already in place. We're moving forward with an expanded list of individuals,\" U.S. President Barack Obama earlier told reporters in Manila, Philippines. The move, Obama said, was to spur Putin to \"walk the walk, not just talk the talk\" in resolving the crisis in Ukraine. If the latest round of sanctions does not work, the next phase could target economic sectors like banking, Obama said. The European Union also announced Monday that it was imposing sanctions on 15 people who are \"responsible for actions which undermine or threaten the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine.\" A list of the people targeted by the latest sanctions will be published Tuesday and will go into effect at the same time, the Council of the European Union said. The sanctions will include asset freezes and travel bans. U.S. and Russian defense secretaries speak . U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel spoke on the phone with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu on Monday. According to a Pentagon description of their conversation, Shoigu \"reiterated his assurance that Russian forces would not invade Ukraine.\" Hagel, the Pengaton said, called for an end to what he described as \"Russia's destabilizing influence inside Ukraine\" and \"warned that continued aggression would further isolate Russia and result in more diplomatic and economic pressure.\" The Russian government's description of the call said Shoigu \"definitively denied the groundless allegations of the presence of Russian sabotage and military intelligence groups on Ukrainian territory\" and criticized what he called \"anti-Russian hysteria recently unleashed in the Western press.\" He also criticized what he said was an \"unprecedented\" increase in activity of U.S. and NATO troops in Eastern Europe near the Russian border, according to the Russian government's description of the call. Ukrainian soldier killed . A homemade bomb exploded near Ukrainian soldiers who were in the eastern Donetsk region Monday, killing one and injuring another, Ukraine's Defense Ministry said. The death came days after Ukrainian forces said they killed five pro-Russian militants in an operation to clear roadblocks near the city of Slavyansk last week. Police are investigating Monday's blast, the Defense Ministry said. A CNN team covering a pro-Ukraine rally in Donetsk watched violence unfold Monday as pro-Russian separatists wielding batons beat demonstrators who said they wanted to see a united Ukraine. Observer freed . Pro-Russian separatists holding a European military observer team in eastern Ukraine released one of the observers for medical reasons Sunday, shortly after parading them before cameras. At least seven of the inspectors from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe appeared at a news conference staged by Vyacheslav Ponomarev, the self-declared mayor of Slavyansk, who referred to them as \"prisoners of war.\" The freed observer was from Sweden and had been suffering from diabetes, Ponomarev spokeswoman Stella Khorosheva told CNN. Michael Bociurkiw, an OSCE spokesman in Kiev, called it \"a welcome development.\" The monitors were seized Friday outside Slavyansk, one of the flashpoints in the standoff between Ukraine's interim government and pro-Russian factions challenging its authority in the east. They said that although they have diplomatic status, they went along with Sunday's news conference because the mayor asked them to. Germany strongly criticized the group's appearance before the media. The \"parading of OSCE observers and Ukrainian security forces as prisoners is abhorrent and a flagrant violation of their human dignity,\" Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said in a statement. He added that Russia had a duty to \"influence\" the separatists so that the other members of the mission could be freed as soon as possible. Putin has repeatedly criticized what he says is Kiev's use of force against Ukrainian civilians.", "Nigeria and four neighboring countries will share intelligence and border surveillance in the hunt for more than 200 Nigerian girls still held by Boko Haram, and Western nations will provide technical expertise and training to the new regional African effort against the extreme Islamists. The plan was announced Saturday at the conclusion of a security summit in Paris hosted by French President François Hollande. Hollande described Boko Haram as now a bigger terror threat than first portrayed -- beyond Nigeria and even Africa. \"Boko Haram is an organization that is linked to terrorism in Africa and whose will is to destabilize the north of Nigeria, certainly, and all the neighboring countries of Nigeria and beyond that region,\" he said. Cameroon President Paul Biya was more forceful in describing how partnering countries will \"take stronger measures to eradicate\" the extremist Islamist group. \"We're here to declare war on Boko Haram,\" Biya said. As the summit took place Saturday, reports emerged about the latest apparent Boko Haram attack, this one in Cameroon. Hollande said one Cameroonian soldier was killed in the Friday night attack against Chinese nationals in northern Cameroon, which is known as a stronghold for the Islamic extremists. Ten Chinese nationals are missing after the attack, a Chinese official said Saturday. One injured person was being treated by a Chinese medical team in the Chadian capital of N'Djamena, said Lu Quinjiang, first counselor of the Chinese Embassy in Yaounde, Cameroon's capital. Nigerian military . France \"will not intervene\" militarily in Nigeria because Nigeria \"has military forces that are available and efficient,\" Hollande said during an interview with France 24 that aired late Saturday. The Nigerian military suffered an embarrassing setback in April when it retracted a report that nearly all the kidnapped girls were released. In fact, the girls, taken from a boarding school in Chibok, were still missing. Nigeria now has 20,000 troops, plus aircraft and intelligence sources, in parts of its nation where Boko Haram is active, said President Goodluck Jonathan. \"Boko Haram is no longer a local terror group,\" Jonathan said. \"It is clearly operating as an al Qaeda operation\" in central Africa, he said. \"The major challenge that we have faced in our search and rescue operation so far has been the deluge of misinformation about the whereabouts of the girls and the circumstances of their disappearance,\" the President added. Boko Haram's guerrilla campaign has claimed 12,000 lives, with 8,000 people injured or maimed since 2009, Jonathan said. Nigeria will coordinate patrols, pool intelligence and exchange weapons and human trafficking information with Benin, Cameroon, Chad and Niger, according to the agreement reached at the summit. France, the United States, the United Kingdom and the European Union \"will coordinate their support for this regional cooperation\" through technical expertise, training programs and support for border-area management programs, a summit statement said. The participants agreed that the United Kingdom will host a follow-up meeting next month to review the action plan. In the meantime, participants committed to accelerating international sanctions against Boko Haram and its leaders through the United Nations. Boko Haram translates as \"Western education is a sin\" in the Hausa language. The militant group says its aim is to impose a stricter enforcement of Sharia law across Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation, which is split between a majority Muslim north and a mostly Christian south. Boko Haram's attacks have intensified in recent years. The summit . The Nigerian President joined Saturday's summit of African presidents and U.S., UK and EU representatives on the growing threat from Boko Haram as American officials expressed concerns about his military's ability to rescue hundreds of schoolgirls abducted last month. The terror group abducted an estimated 276 girls on April 14 from a boarding school in Chibok in northeastern Nigeria. Dozens escaped, but more than 200 girls are still missing. Nigerians have accused their government of not acting swiftly or efficiently enough to protect the girls seized in the dead of night. And the criticism shows no signs of abating, even from allies who've pledged to help in the rescue mission. The United States, China and Britain are among a handful of nations providing advice. The United States is using drones and manned surveillance aircraft in the search, but has said Nigeria is reluctant to use the information provided. \"The division in the north that mainly is engaging with Boko Haram, the 7th Division, has recently shown signs of real fear,\" said Alice Friend, African Affairs director for the Department of Defense. \"They do not have the capabilities, the training or the equipment that Boko Haram does, and Boko Haram is exceptionally brutal and indiscriminate in their attacks.\" \"I would say an even greater concern is the incapacity of the Nigerian military and the Nigerian government's failure to provide leadership to the military,\" Friend said Thursday at a hearing of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. For now, the United States is not sharing raw intelligence from its surveillance aircraft with Nigeria's armed forces because the countries have not established the intelligence-sharing protocols and safeguards needed for such an agreement, Pentagon spokesman Col. Steve Warren said Wednesday. There's also concern about how the information will be used by a military that's been accused of human rights violations itself. \"We have sought assurances from them... that they will use any information that we pass to them from this (intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance) support in a manner consistent with international humanitarian and human rights law,\" Friend explained. Nigeria has been accused of not doing enough to protect the girls abducted from a militant hotbed that was already under a state of emergency. But a spokesman for the military defended the nation's response. \"Borno State is under a state of emergency, over 90,000 square kilometers,\" said Maj. Gen. Chris Olukolade. \"Are you saying we should deploy ... soldiers in over 90,000 kilometers -- one soldier per kilometer? You can imagine that expense for one of the states under a state of emergency.\"", "(CNN) -- President Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday held their first face-to-face meeting since each took power, confronting a range of potentially divisive issues. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Obama visit at the White House on Monday. At a pivotal moment in the Middle East peace process, the two leaders met at the White House to discuss, among other things, the endorsement of a two-state Palestinian solution and relations with Iran. The issue of Iran's nuclear ambitions became an increasingly urgent one in recent months. Netanyahu wants a time limit for negotiations relating to such ambitions, with the threat of military action if no resolution is reached. Obama is seen as unlikely to provide a timetable. Both Israel and the United States believe Iran is seeking nuclear weapons under the guise of a civilian nuclear energy program; Tehran denies the accusation. Israeli leaders have pointed to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's calls for the end of Israel as a Jewish state and argue that quick action is needed. At an Oval Office news conference, Obama again refused to commit to an \"artificial deadline\" for Iranian negotiations. But he also warned that he would not allow such talks to be used as an excuse for delay while Iran develops a nuclear arsenal. Obama said he expects to accelerate such talks after the June Iranian elections. \"I firmly believe it is in Iran's interest not to develop nuclear weapons, because it would trigger a nuclear arms race in the Middle East and be profoundly destabilizing in all sorts of ways,\" Obama said. It \"is important ... to be mindful of the fact that we're not going to have talks forever. We're not going to create a situation in which the talks become an excuse for inaction while Iran proceeds with developing ... and deploying a nuclear weapon.\" He said the United States is not \"foreclosing a range of steps, including much stronger international sanctions, in assuring that Iran understands that we are serious.\" Netanyahu emphasized that although \"the common goal is peace ... the common threat we face are terrorist threats and organizations that seek to undermine [that] peace and threaten both our peoples.\" The prime minister called Iran the biggest threat to peace in the region. \"If Iran were to acquire nuclear weapons, it could give a nuclear umbrella to terrorists, or worse, could actually give [them] nuclear weapons. And that would put us all in great peril,\" he said. The divide between the two leaders -- Obama is considered to have a more conciliatory approach to the Arab world than Netanyahu -- was dramatically illustrated shortly before their meeting by Israel's decision to begin construction at the West Bank outpost of Maskiyot. A number of families evacuated from Gaza are now being resettled in Maskiyot; several are living in temporary housing. A government spokesman said the construction's start date and the timing of Netanyahu's trip are a coincidence. Obama wants such outposts dismantled, along with an immediate freeze on settlement expansion. Netanyahu wants to allow natural growth in Jewish settlements in the West Bank -- for example, allowing children who grow up in a settlement to build a home alongside that of their parents. Obama also supports the idea of a Palestinian state alongside a secure Israel. Netanyahu has not endorsed the idea, arguing that Israel needs security guarantees and a clear Palestinian partner for peace talks. \"I want to make it clear that we don't want to govern the Palestinians. ... [If] Israel's security conditions are met and there's recognition of Israel's legitimacy -- its permanent legitimacy -- then I think we can envision an arrangement where Palestinians and Israelis live side by side in dignity, security and in peace,\" Netanyahu said. Pressed on the question of a two-state solution, the prime minister said he thinks \"the terminology will take care of itself if we have the substantive understanding.\" Netanyahu and his Cabinet were sworn in March 31. A day later, Israel's new hard-line foreign minister, Avigdor Lieberman, distanced himself from the Annapolis process, the 2007 relaunch of peace talks adopted by his predecessor, Tzipi Livni. The PLO issued a statement after the meeting criticizing Netanyahu for failing to more explicitly endorse a two-state solution. Netanyahu \"missed yet another opportunity to show himself to be a genuine partner for peace,\" chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat said. \"Calling for negotiations without a clearly defined end-goal offers only the promise of more process, not progress.\" Erakat praised Obama for supporting a freeze on Israeli settlement activity. Despite their differences, Obama and Netanyahu agree on numerous key issues, such as U.S. military and financial support for Israel. Obama highlighted his stance during his presidential campaign. Obama also supports funding for Palestinian entities not controlled by Hamas, which controls Gaza and which the United States labels a terrorist organization. Before making his trip to Washington, Netanyahu met with leaders of Jordan and Egypt, viewed as potential partners in the effort to bring peace to the region. Obama will host Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak on May 26 and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on May 28. He is also scheduled to deliver a long-awaited speech on relations between the United States and the Muslim world in Cairo, Egypt, on June 4. Some Palestinian leaders have expressed hope that Netanyahu, under pressure from the new U.S. administration, may soon choose to accept the principle of a two-state solution. \"If, in fact, Mr. Netanyahu were to make an unequivocal statement about acceptance of this as a solution concept, then he should immediately be asked to begin, immediately, to implement Israel's other obligations under the road map,\" said Salam Fayyad, the Palestinian prime minister. The road map, put together by the Mideast Quartet -- composed of the European Union, Russia, the United Nations and the United States -- calls on Israel to stop settlement building and Palestinians to stop terrorism. The plan was introduced in 2003 but immediately stalled. Monday's meeting between Obama and Netanyahu was largely expected to be a chance for the two sides to discuss their positions rather than iron out differences. Aides on both sides stressed that each leader views the other as a friend in peace efforts. CNN's Paula Hancocks contributed to this report.", "(CNN) -- America was rightly shocked by the brutal, videotaped murder of American journalist James Foley. But we should not have been surprised. The Islamic State, as the jihadist group calls itself, has murdered, raped and savaged its way across borders in the Mideast and into the headlines as the latest terrorist foe from the region. Foley's murder not only gives terrorist stature to ISIS but also, if it draws U.S. ground troops into the fight, will have given ISIS a recruiting bonanza. So the U.S. response requires, not just a set of airstrikes in revenge, but serious strategic calculation. The U.S. must build a coordinated regional response -- diplomatic, economic and military -- with ground troops from our regional allies and friends, and with possible U.S. support with intelligence, logistics and airstrikes. But we cannot fight this war for our Islamic friends in the region. Despite its pretensions, ISIS is not yet a state. It was initially a group of fighters funded, armed and assisted by groups or governments opposing Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. But its call for a caliphate governed by extremist interpretations of Sharia law precisely echoes Saudi Wahhabi teaching, and is magnetic to disaffected, vulnerable young people. Thus far ISIS has perhaps 20,000 to 40,000 fighters or more, some heavy equipment, cash, oil, and a stunned, subdued population numbering perhaps a few million now suffering under extreme Sharia law. It is not, at this point, an existential military threat to an alerted Baghdad, backed by Iran (and the U.S.), or the Kurds, supported by U.S. airpower. While it has challenged al-Assad's forces in Syria, it is more focused on carving out its territory in northern Syria, destabilizing Lebanon, and probably preparing for bolder moves against other states in the region, such as Jordan. Who is the ISIS? ISIS fighters, including perhaps a few thousand alienated young people from Europe, the Caucasus, or North America, do pose a terrorist threat far beyond the territory occupied by ISIS. Governments are anxiously screening travelers and seeking to block, intern, or otherwise isolate these potential terrorists when they depart Syria. This is difficult, but our homeland security is far stronger than it was a decade ago. The U.S., at least, should be able to handle this very serious threat . But if ISIS is allowed to consolidate its gains, build its forces, spread its tentacles of terror and subversion, then it will pose a serious threat to Lebanon, Jordan and the principal Sunni states in the region, particularly Saudi Arabia. Map: Where is ISIS? Saudi Arabia must recognize that it will eventually become the primary target of ISIS. It controls the most holy sites of Islam, and by its adherence to, promotion and export of extremist interpretations of Islam, Saudi Arabia is uniquely vulnerable to the ISIS's moral suasion. Massive purchases of Western arms will help only if the Saudi armed forces and populace remain loyal to the Saudi government. For Saudi Arabia, this time, there's no safety in underwriting the services of others from outside the region. Ultimately, it will have to be the Saudi people themselves, their ruling family and their clergy who rally to defeat the threat of ISIS. Make no mistake: The latent threat is that ISIS could seize control in Saudi Arabia, with all its oil, revenues, and modern weaponry. Therefore, coordinated action against ISIS is urgent. But because ISIS's motive force is primarily religious, and because the U.S. armed forces are neither linguistically nor culturally best adapted for a sustained fight in the region, we should be wary of committing major land forces. Opinion: How U.S. can help Syria drive out ISIS . The U.S. has learned the hard way that Western armies inflame extremists and serve as recruiting magnets for terrorists. Instead, other nations, and particularly Saudi Arabia and other Sunni states, must put their soldiers forward, and bear the brunt of the fighting. The U.S. can use diplomacy and economic assistance, and it can strike using airpower, or special forces, to reinforce the efforts of our allies, but we cannot fight a religious war as proxies for our Islamic friends in the region. 5 key questions in the fight against ISIS . The Mideast is approaching its moment of truth, particularly for Saudi Arabia. Having exported and promoted extremist Sunni religious ideology, Saudi Arabia must face up to the threat posed by its own, even more extremist progeny. It must summon the courage to take a firm stand now, before ISIS becomes even stronger. For the U.S. there is nothing to be gained by delay. We must work urgently, behind the scenes, to shape an effective regional response, in coordination with our friends and allies, now.", "The escalating conflict in Ukraine \"essentially puts the nation on the brink of civil war,\" Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday. His assessment came during a telephone conversation with his German counterpart, according to the Kremlin, the same day Ukraine's military launched its first, formal military action against pro-Russian militants with troops retaking an airport in the eastern Donetsk region after a reported clash with gunmen. The military action came a day after a Ukrainian ultimatum expired for protesters to lay down their arms, a move that appeared to signal an escalation in the crisis that has sparked a diplomatic row between Ukraine, its Western allies and Russia. With pro-Russian militants seizing government and police buildings in as many as 10 towns and cities in eastern Ukraine, acting President Oleksandr Turchynov told Parliament \"an anti-terrorist operation\" was under way in the region. The aim of the military operation is to \"stop attempts to tear Ukraine to pieces,\" he told lawmakers. Witnesses reported hearing gunfire and aircraft that appeared to be coming from the airfield in Kramatorsk, which Turchynov's office said was under the control of Ukrainain special forces late Tuesday. There were conflicting reports about casualties, with Russian state-run media citing varying casualty claims supplied by militants. According to the reports, there were either two injured or four killed, claims that CNN cannot independently verify. Brink of civil war? Putin's comments followed similar ones hours earlier from Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev warned Ukraine was on a violent path. \"Ukraine is on the brink of civil war. It is scary. And I hope that everyone who is responsible for making decisions at the moment -- I mean both, the current Ukrainian authorities, who we can't consider legitimate, but these are the authorities who came to power as result of a coup -- has brains to avoid driving the country to such shocks,\" he said at a news conference Tuesday in Moscow. The pro-Russian uprising follows Russia's annexation last month of Ukraine's Crimea region, a move that emboldened other pro-Russian Ukrainians in the country's east to rise up. Russia has said it reserves the right to intervene to protect the rights of ethnic Russians in eastern Ukraine. During the conversation with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Putin also raised concerns about what he called an \"anti-constitutional course\" taken by Ukrainian authorities in Kiev to suppress protests. Despite what Merkel's office described as \"different assessments of the events on the ground in Ukraine,\" the focus of the conversation was on preparations for a meeting in Geneva among the foreign ministers of Russia, Ukraine, the United States and the European Union to find a way to reduce tensions in the region. In a sign of the divisions roiling the country, YouTube footage posted online appeared to show two openly pro-Russian presidential candidates who have demonstrated support for separatists being antagonized by crowds in separate incidents in Kiev on Monday night. In one video, Mikhail Dobkin, a presidential candidate for the Party of Regions, the party of ousted President Viktor Yanukovych, had flour and green liquid thrown at him as he addressed crowds. Another clip showed Oleg Tsarov, an independent candidate who was expelled from the Party of Regions, speaking to people without a shirt as he apparently sought to show the bruising he'd received from an aggressive crowd. In the third video, Tsarov tries to leave a TV station, where crowds shout \"Shame! Shame! Shame!\" His supporters and protesters end up in a brief scuffle. CNN has not been able independently to verify the amateur video clips. NATO, EU are 'deeply concerned' The escalating tensions in the region -- along with reports of violence -- have raised concerns among European Union defense ministers and NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, who met Tuesday in Luxembourg. As he arrived for the talks, Rasmussen told reporters he was \"deeply concerned\" by the latest developments in Ukraine. \"I call on Russia to de-escalate the crisis, to pull back its troops from Ukraine's borders, to stop destabilizing the situation in Ukraine and make clear that it doesn't support the violent actions of pro-Russian separatists,\" he said. \"Russia should stop being part of the problem and start being part of the solution.\" He said NATO and the EU are not discussing military options and that they support a diplomatic and political solution to the crisis. \"However, we are focused militarily on strengthening defense of our allies. That's our core task,\" he said. Ukraine deployed a National Guard battalion of 350 troops to the Donetsk region from Kiev on Tuesday morning, said Evgen Rojenyuk, a spokesman for Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council. The National Guard troops -- many of them former street protesters who signed up after the interim government took power in February -- have had only a few weeks of training. Military column . A CNN team in eastern Ukraine encountered a large Ukrainian military column traveling on roads leading from the city of Donetsk toward other towns in the region. The column included more than 20 armored personnel carriers, along with support vehicles, and a helicopter circled overhead. The troops, who were carrying the Ukrainian flag, appeared to be headed north and east, although their precise destination was unclear. The pro-Russian mayor of Slaviansk claimed Tuesday that a Ukrainian military convoy including troops and armored vehicles had now surrounded the town, Russian state news agency ITAR-Tass reported. \"If they try to move in, we will have to stop them,\" it quoted him as saying. Pro-Russian protesters seized a police building over the weekend in Slaviansk, some 100 miles from the border with Russia. From a hill overlooking the town, a CNN team saw no obvious signs of a large-scale operation, such as military helicopters or planes. Amid the unfolding crisis, Ukraine's most senior security and defense officials are to meet for a closed session with all members of Parliament on Wednesday morning, Turchynov said. Pretext for intervention? The unrest is the latest in a series of events ratcheting up tensions between Ukraine and Russia, which Kiev accuses of fomenting trouble in Russian-speaking eastern Ukraine. After then-Ukrainian leader Yanukovych backed out of a deal with the European Union in November in favor of closer ties with Russia, he was forced from office in February, the result of months of protests in Kiev. Distrust among the population in eastern Ukraine, the base of Yanukovych's power, grew as the new national government shifted rapidly in a pro-Western direction. A short time later, pro-Russian elements occupied the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea, which Russia annexed in March. Since then, pro-Russian protesters have taken to the streets in eastern Ukraine and in some cases stormed and occupied buildings. Kiev's fragile new government and the West accuse Russia of destabilizing the region as a pretext to potentially send in troops to protect the local Russian-speaking population. NATO says Russian armed forces are massing on Ukraine's eastern border, while Moscow says they are merely carrying out military exercises. A United Nations human rights report released Tuesday on the situation in Ukraine cited an urgent need to counter \"misinformation, propaganda and incitement to hatred\" in the country to avoid the further escalation of tensions. \"Facts on the ground need to be established to help reduce the risk of radically different narratives being exploited for political ends,\" said U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay. Russia sanctions: Why the U.S. and Europe are not quite in step .", "NAIROBI, Kenya (CNN) -- An Al Qaeda-linked militant group waging war against Somalia's fragile government is becoming an increasing threat to Western ally Kenya and could potentially destabilize the region with dire consequences for global security, officials and analysts warn. Al-Shabab fighters count their bullets in neighborhood of Mogadishu. Al-Shabaab, one of the strongest Islamic militias battling for control of Mogadishu, has gained ground in recent weeks, according to officials, and has started to flex its muscles beyond Somalia's border with terror strikes, kidnappings and recruitment drives. They warn that unless the world takes action the group, which wants to impose an extreme type of Islamic sharia law, could extend its grip across parts of East Africa to gain control of a region that flanks busy shipping routes already plagued by Somali pirates . Appeals by Somalia's government for international help to unpick its long-running civil conflict have escalated Al-Shabaad's threats with the group behind warnings of an attack on the Kenyan capital, Nairobi. And, say experts, the group is being backed by foreign fighters -- some said to have links to Osama bin Laden's Al Qaeda network -- a situation that draws direct comparisons with the group's influence in pre-9/11 Afghanistan. \"Al-Shabaab is a threat to the whole world,\" Somali Information Minister Farhan Ali Mohamoud told CNN. \"First to Somalia, to the neighborhood, and to everywhere they have disagreed with.\" Watch more on Somalian threat » . Mohamoud, whose transitional government has largely failed in its long-term goal of reconciling Somalia's militias, concedes Al-Shabaab is making major gains on his administration and says the global community must act to prevent their threat escalating. \"Somalia's problems are not for Somalia alone to solve. Not only for the African Union to solve. It is a global and regional issue. We are very appreciative that the international community understands that, but they need to act now, rather than later.\" \"The issue is not Somalis taking over from other Somalis. But the issue is foreign jihadists imposing their ideas into the region. So Somalia can be a launching pad for a greater and wider jihadist issue.\" Kenyan government spokesman Alfred Mutua told CNN his country did not yet fear direct attacks from Al-Shabaab but said it was becoming increasingly alarmed about its activities and its links to foreign networks. Despite the concerns, Mutua said the problem was nothing new and while his country struggled to exert control over its porous border with Somalia, it was taking steps to limit the danger. But he warned the threat was not limited to Kenya and could have global reach. \"We do believe that Al-Shabaab poses a threat, not only to Kenya, but to all neighboring countries such as Ethiopia and Eritrea,\" he said. \"It is not just a problem that we foresee in Kenya, just because we are neighbors to them, it is a problem that we foresee that may occur to a lot of countries and also poses a threat to outside even this region,\" he added. \"Our concern is not limited to Al-Shabaab. We know that Al-Shabaab are not able to do it without foreign intervention in terms of money and weapons that they are getting from other countries.\" Ernst Jan Hogendoorn, an analyst with the International Crisis Group, told CNN that while Al-Shabaab had whipped up concerns with headline grabbing acts such as the recent kidnap of two French citizens in Mogadishu and three aid workers on the Kenyan side of the border, countries such as Kenya should pay heed. \"I think that Kenya could do a much better job. There is always the possibility that someone could sneak across the border and launch an attack against a soft target. Obviously Kenya has been the target of attacks in the past that are very, very challenging to prevent.\" But, says Hogendoorn, with an African Union peacekeeping mission in Somalia proving largely ineffective, and Ethiopian military presence withdrawn in January ahead of an Al-Shabaab push, Kenyan military involvement was unlikely to offer any quick fix. \"The problem is once [Kenyan troops] are on the ground they open themselves up to guerrilla style attacks and suicide attacks that could lead to significant loss in life.\"", "(CNN) -- Amid rising tensions and fresh violence, Ukrainian authorities on Friday accused Russia of sending dozens of its military vehicles into its territory -- though the Kremlin have knocked down such reports as unfounded and \"provocative.\" At a briefing Friday, Ukrainian defense spokesman Andriy Lysenko said that 32 tanks, 16 D-30 howitzers and 30 KamAZ heavy trucks crossed past a border checkpoint and headed toward the volatile Luhansk region on Thursday. Another Ukrainian official, Dmytro Tymchuk, alleged the \"armored column\" consisted of \"a battalion tactical group of the Russian Armed Forces,\" also according to Ukrinform state news agency. A NATO military officer said Friday that the alliance -- which doesn't include Ukraine but does include several of its neighbors -- is looking into these reports and knows of an increase in Russian troops and equipment on its eastern border. \"If this crossing into Ukraine is confirmed, it would be further evidence of Russia's aggression and direct involvement in destabilizing Ukraine,\" the officer said. Earlier this week, Canadian Foreign Minister John Baird said that he was \"deeply concerned by reports of Russian troops moving closer to the border of Ukraine,\" calling such movement \"provocative\" and \"further proof that the Kremlin only seeks to hamper the peace process in Ukraine.\" On Friday, a Russian defense ministry official quoted by the country's state-run TASS news agency criticized what he called \"all such provocative reports aimed at further fueling of tension(s).\" The official claimed that a single source had made up the Russian troop movement sightings, reports that have also showed up as \"rumors in social networks.\" Wherever the truth lies, southeastern Ukraine itself remains very unsettled -- with separatists claiming control over some of the region, despite the efforts of Ukraine's central government in Kiev. Those leaders in Kiev have accused Moscow of fomenting the rebellion, in part by aiding the separatists' militarily and even sending its own troops into Ukraine to take part in the fight. Kremlin officials have consistently denied such claims and accused Kiev authorities of stirring up further unrest. The violence in the region has ebbed and flowed over the past few months, though it's never gone away. In fact, Lysenko told reporters Friday that five Ukrainian soldiers had been killed and 16 more wounded in Donbas over a recent 24-hour stretch. And Tymchuk said that rebels have been shelling security forces beyond that as well, including 15 recent attacks around Debaltseve, 12 around Donetsk, 10 around Pervomaisky and seven around Luhansk. High turnout in separatist Ukraine vote .", "(CNN) -- On a visit to Japan on Tuesday, Vice President Joe Biden assured his hosts that the United States will express concerns to China over Beijing's recent claim of a large swath of airspace in the region. The Chinese declaration less than two weeks ago has prompted a war of words between governments and flights through the contested air zone by military planes from the United States, China, Japan and South Korea. \"We, the United States, are deeply concerned by the attempt to unilaterally change the status quo in the East China Sea,\" Biden said at a news conference alongside Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Asia trip gives Biden chance to show off diplomatic cred . \"I will be raising these concerns with great specificity directly when I meet with the Chinese leadership\" on a later leg of his trip, Biden said. The uneasy situation in the sky over the East China Sea has raised fears that a midair incident could cause circumstances to spiral out of control. It has also fueled concern about how far China is willing to go to pursue its interests in the Asia-Pacific region and push back against U.S. influence. \"The United States has an interest in the lowering of tensions in this vital region, as I believe all the countries in northeast Asia share that same interest with us,\" Biden said. China is asking aircraft entering its air defense zone to identify themselves and submit flight plans. U.S. State Department spokeswoman Jennifer Psaki reiterated Monday that Washington recognizes neither the air defense zone nor China's demand to be notified of plans by jets from other nations to fly into the area. Japan has told its airlines not to comply with the new Chinese demands, but the U.S. government has urged American carriers to follow Beijing's instructions. The Chinese action, Biden said, raises the possibility of \"accidents and miscalculation.\" Biden promises to press China on airspace dispute . He praised the alliance between the United States and Japan, sayings the U.S. commitment to Japan is critical. He called Japan the cornerstone of stability in the region. Tokyo and Beijing's bitter dispute over a set of small, uninhabited islands in the East China Sea has already led to frequent tense encounters between the two sides' ships and planes over the past year. Now, China's new air defense zone overlaps significantly with that of Japan and encompasses the disputed islands and the natural resources around them. \"We meet in a moment, Prime Minister, when a new Asia Pacific is emerging, with limitless potential, but also new dynamics, rising tensions and the risk of miscalculation,\" Biden said. Geng Yansheng, spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of National Defense, defended China's actions in a written statement. China's airspace claim, he said, \"is a zone of safety, not risks, a zone of cooperation, not competition.\" China's air defense zone: What you need to know . China's actions are justified by what it sees as aggressive moves by the Japanese to lay claim to the disputed territory. \"Japan's actions have seriously harmed China's legitimate rights and security interests, and undermined the peace and stability in East Asia,\" Geng said. Without naming the United States, Geng warned third countries about becoming involved in the dispute. \"Other parties concerned should also mind their words and actions, and should not do things to undermine regional stability and bilateral relations,\" he said. \"Other parties should not be incited, or send wrong signals to make a very few countries go further on the wrong track, which will follow the same old disastrous road and undermine regional and world peace.\" In addition to the China airspace claim, Biden and Abe discussed ways to fortify U.S.-Japan relations economically and militarily.", "TEHRAN, Iran (CNN) -- Iran's president said Tuesday his country welcomes talks with the United States \"in a fair atmosphere with mutual respect.\" Women in Tehran celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Islamic revolution Tuesday. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad made the remarks a day after President Barack Obama said the United States is looking for opportunities for \"face to face\" dialogue with Iran, even though he has \"deep concerns\" about Tehran's actions. \"Right now, the world is entering the era of dialogue,\" Ahmadinejad told hundreds of thousands of people in a celebration of the 30th anniversary of the Islamic revolution. \"The new U.S. administration announced that it's willing to bring about a number of changes and is now taking the course for dialogue. It's quite clear that real change should be fundamental, not just a tactical change, and it is quite clear that the Iranian nation will greet real changes. \"The Iranian nation is ready to hold up talks, but talks in a fair atmosphere with mutual respect,\" Ahmadinejad said. In Washington, Obama was asked about U.S. relations with Iran during his first prime-time news conference on Monday night. Watch news conference in full » . \"There's been a lot of mistrust built up over the years, so it's not going to happen overnight,\" Obama said. He said his administration is reviewing existing U.S. policy toward Iran, which supports groups Washington has branded terrorist organizations, such as Hezbollah and Hamas, and has defied U.N. demands to halt its uranium enrichment program. Despite those concerns, Obama said his administration wants to use \"all the resources at the United States' disposal\" to resolve those concerns. \"My expectation is, in the coming months, we will be looking for openings that can be created where we can start sitting across the table, face-to-face diplomatic overtures, that will allow us to move our policy in a new direction,\" Obama said. \"So there are going to be a set of objectives that we have in these conversations, but I think that there's the possibility at least of a relationship of mutual respect and progress.\" The United States and Iran have not had diplomatic relations since 1979. During that year, the Shah of Iran was forced to flee the country and the Ayatollah Khomeini took power. Later that year, Iranian students took over and seized hostages at the U.S. Embassy. Relations have been cut since then. U.S. President George W. Bush labeled Iran as a member of the \"axis of evil\" after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. Iran celebrated the 30th anniversary of the revolution Tuesday with crowds chanting \"Death to America.\" Watch the parade in Iran » . Tensions have rippled over issues such as Iran's nuclear program, Israel, and Iraq, and have been aggravated since the outspoken Ahmadinejad came to power in 2005. Western nations believe Iran is intent on building a nuclear weapon. Ahmadinejad has been criticized for his vehemence against and provocative remarks toward Israel and for Iran's support of Hamas militants in Gaza and the Hezbollah movement in Lebanon -- militants groups that Israel has battled. Also, the United States has accused Iran of backing Iraqi insurgents. In recent years, the Iraq conflict has provided an opportunity for Iran and the United States to cooperate since both countries support the Shiite-dominated Iraqi government and Iraqis have urged both countries to put aside their differences in helping Iraq. In 2007, U.S. and Iraqi envoys met several times in Baghdad. Ahmadinejad addressed the conflict in Iraq, saying that 1 million people have been killed and others have been displaced because of the \"Bush administration war on Iraq.\" \"To deal with the root cause of insecurity I think that we should go and find the main culprits, including Bush himself and his administration. They must be put on trial,\" said Ahmadinejad. \"The world does not want to see the dark age of Bush being repeated.\" Addressing the issue of terrorism, Ahmadinejad said Iran has been fighting terror for 30 years and that Iran itself been victimized by terror. \"If you want to fight terrorism in practice come and work with the Iranian nation,\" he said. \"If you want to eradicate the root causes of massacres and aggression, let's sit together and see what has been behind the reasons why we have had wars in the Persian Gulf and the Middle East.\" As usual, he had harsh words for Israel, a state he loathes and a topic that whips up passions among his supporters. \"If you want to eradicate crime, let's work together with the Iranian nation and other nations of the world and let's put on trial the Zionist leaders of the Zionist regime,\" the Iranian leader said. As for nuclear power, Iran has said it wants to harness it for energy and Ahmadinejad indicated Iran is against deploying nuclear weaponry. \"If you want to fight proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, then you should join us and help us so that we will show you the right way. Yes we're opposed to nuclear weapons of mass destruction. They're real threats and they must be destroyed. Iran has been a victim of the use of chemical weapons of mass destruction but the only way would be justice and the use of appropriate mechanisms,\" he said. \"If they really want to have real security, then they should be able to work with us and then we will be able to revisit the structure of the Security Council -- and remember the Security Council itself is the root cause of discrimination -- we should change this structure and then have justice.\" The United States also is concerned about Iran's technological pursuits. Iran successfully launched its first satellite into orbit last week, a step hailed by Iran's president as a \"source of pride\" for the Islamic republic, according to state-run news outlets. The launch of the satellite Omid -- which means \"Hope\" in Farsi -- was timed to coincide with the 30th anniversary celebrations of the Islamic revolution in Iran, according to Iranian media reports. U.S. Department of Defense officials confirmed the launch, and the State Department expressed \"grave concern.\" In August, Iran performed a test of a rocket capable of launching a satellite into orbit. Iranian officials declared that mission a success, but U.S. officials disputed that. Senior U.S. officials had expressed concerned about the test of the rocket, saying Iran could use the rocket to deliver warheads. On Monday, Obama said Iran must \"send some signals that it wants to act differently, as well, and recognize that, even as it has some rights as a member of the international community, with those rights come responsibilities.\" \"It's important that, even as we engage in this direct diplomacy, we are very clear about certain deep concerns that we have as a country, that Iran understands that we find the funding of terrorist organizations unacceptable, that we're clear about the fact that a nuclear Iran could set off a nuclear arms race in the region that would be profoundly destabilizing.\" Praising Iran's people history and traditions as \"extraordinary, Obama says the nation's actions over many years now have been unhelpful when it comes to promoting peace and prosperity both in the region and around the world.\" \"Their financing of terrorist organizations like Hezbollah and Hamas, the bellicose language that they've used towards Israel, their development of a nuclear weapon or their pursuit of a nuclear weapon, that all those things create the possibility of destabilizing the region and are not only contrary to our interests, but I think are contrary to the interests of international peace.\"", "(CNN) -- China blasted the United States on Saturday for its recent public criticism and urging of diplomacy to address territorial disputes in the South China Sea, saying the U.S. statement shows \"total disregard for the facts\" and sends \"a seriously wrong message.\" The blistering statement, from Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang, follows one issued the previous day by a counterpart at the U.S. State Department. The debate revolves around who controls islands and waters in the South China Sea. Countries such as Vietnam and the Philippines lay claim to some areas. Qin stated unequivocally Saturday that \"China has indisputable sovereignty over the South China Sea and adjacent waters.\" Acting U.S. State Department deputy spokesman Patrick Ventrell began his statement Friday insisting the United States does \"not take a position on competing territorial claims ... and (has) no territorial ambitions in the South China Sea.\" Yet he added that Washington believes countries \"should work collaboratively and diplomatically to resolve disputes without coercion, without intimidation, without threats and without the use of force.\" Ventrell suggested that not all nations in the region are taking this latter approach, expressing U.S. concern about the \"increase in tensions in the South China Sea\" in the form of \"confrontational rhetoric,\" \"coercive economic actions and the incidents around the Scarborough Reef, including the use of barriers to deny access.\" \"In particular, China's upgrading of the administrative level of Sansha City and establishment of a new military garrison there covering disputed areas of the South China Sea run counter to collaborative diplomatic efforts to resolve differences and risk further escalating tensions in the region,\" Ventrell said, before urging the nations involved to agree on ways to peacefully address disputes. Qin, the Chinese foreign ministry spokesman, started his statement -- which was posted on his ministry's website -- by accusing the United States of confounding \"right and wrong\" and undermining regional efforts to \"uphold peace and stability in the South China Sea and the Asia-Pacific region at large.\" China's action in Sansha City, specifically, is a \"necessary adjustment\" that falls \"well within China's sovereign rights,\" the spokesman said. Qin accused other nations of not abiding by a 2002 agreement involving Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, members. The Chinese spokesman then singled out Washington for what he suggested was hypocrisy and \"unfounded accusations ... against China's normal and reasonable acts.\" \"People cannot but question the true intention of the U.S. side,\" Qin wrote. He challenged the United States for overlooking other nations \"marking out a large number of oil and gas blocks in the South China Sea\" and claiming \"as its own China's islands, reefs and waters.\" Washington, too, has ignored it when other nation's navies have threatened Chinese fishermen, Qin claimed. If the United States truly wasn't taking positions on territorial disputes, then why did it speak up now and \"stir up trouble at a time when countries concerned in the region are stepping up dialogue?\" he asked rhetorically. \"The United States needs to follow the trend of the times and respect the shared aspirations and consensus of countries in the region for peace, stability and development,\" Qin said. \"It should respect China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and act in a way that contributes to stability and prosperity of the Asia-Pacific and not otherwise.\"", "(CNN) Russia plans to send long-range bombers to the Gulf of Mexico in what appears to be Moscow's latest provocative maneuver in its increasingly frosty relations with the West. Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said Wednesday that \"we have to maintain (Russia's) military presence in the western Atlantic and eastern Pacific, as well as the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico\" -- including sending bombers \"as part of the drills.\" It's an argument U.S. officials don't seem to be buying. \"We do not see the security environment as warranting such provocative and potentially destabilizing activity,\" a senior Obama administration official said Thursday. U.S. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki offered a similar response. \"We don't think there is a current situation in the western Atlantic and eastern Pacific or the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico that warrants additional flights in out-of-area territory,\" she told reporters. That's not all. Shoigu said that Russia will also boost its security in Crimea, the region it annexed from Ukraine earlier this year. \"In many respects, this is connected with the situation in Ukraine, with fomentation of anti-Russian moods on the part of NATO and reinforcement of foreign military presence next to our border,\" he said. The ceasefire in volatile eastern Ukraine is crumbling, with U.S. and allied officials accusing Moscow of sending fresh troops, tanks and other military equipment across the border in recent days -- something that Russian officials have strongly denied. But what does that have to do with the Gulf of Mexico, some 6,000 miles away? The Russians are clearly trying to make a point with their plan to send bombers toward the Gulf of Mexico, said Jeffrey Mankoff, a fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. The message, he said, is \"connected to the tensions over Ukraine that have also affected the broader relationship.\" \"It's kind of a reciprocity,\" Mankoff told CNN. \"They see us trying to muscle in on what they see as their sphere of influence. (Russia is likely thinking), 'If they can do it to us, we can do it them.'\" Shoigu also said Russia will expand its presence in the Arctic region, which could affect Alaska and northern Canada. This includes full radar coverage of that region by year's end, leaving Russia ready \"to meet unwanted guests\" both from the north and east by 2015, Shoigu said, according to a state-run TASS news agency report. That means Russia's new drills will fly near most of America's coastline, said Barry Pavel, an international security expert at the Washington-based Atlantic Council think tank. \"We're talking about ringing the United States, with the exception of the Canadian border, where the Russian bombers don't need to go,\" Pavel said. It's not as though the United States doesn't have its own warplanes in places like Japan and Turkey, not to mention NATO air operations assisting Albania, Slovenia and Baltic nations. And Mankoff, who previously served as a U.S. State Department adviser on U.S.-Russia relations, notes that the U.S. military also sometimes flies not far from Russia -- also to send a message, as well as to test things like response times. \"It's not necessarily anything to be overly alarmed about as long as the patrols stay in international airspace,\" he said. And, as recently as June, U.S. fighter jets have intercepted Russian long-range bombers off Alaska and California. Those four Russian planes flew within an area 200 miles from the North American coast. Two peeled off and headed west, while the other two flew south and were intercepted by U.S. F-15s within 50 miles of the California coast. Capt. Jeff Davis, a spokesman for the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), said at the time that this was the first time U.S. jets intercepted Russian military aircraft off California in about two years. But such incidents generally are not uncommon, with Davis estimating that Russian flights fly into the so-called air defense zone -- the area 200 miles from the U.S. coast but not within the 13.8 miles that international law would define as U.S. territory -- 10 times a year. Yet there are signs that Russia has stepped up its military provocations as of late, some of which the European Leadership Network documented earlier this week. Russian provocations on the rise: Is it a new Cold War? Last month, the Swedish military searched for a mystery underwater vessel after intercepting an emergency radio call in Russian and getting reports about a foreign vessel being spotted in the waters near Stockholm. Though no vessel was found, it was the largest submarine hunt in Swedish waters since the end of the Cold War. In September, the United States intercepted six Russian planes, including fighter jets and tankers, in airspace near Alaska, officials said. The same month, an Estonian official was abducted from a border post, taken to Moscow and accused of espionage, sparking dueling claims between the two nations. The uptick in incidents have raised concerns about safety -- and about military and geopolitical issues, Pavel said. \"Russia (is) flexing its military muscle, identifying the United States and NATO as the enemy. That feeling is not reciprocated, but we have a Russia that is starting to throw its military weight around, and in some ways, looking for provocations,\" he said. \"I think this could be very dangerous, and create a crisis, where one didn't need to exist.\" And not only have the encounters escalated, so have the risks. In March, a covert Russian military plane nearly collided with a Swedish passenger aircraft carrying 132 people. The \"real danger\" of new Russian flights near the American coast is that an accident actually happens or things \"get a little bit out of hand.\" Russian bombers fly near California . \"If there's a collision or if somebody overreacted,\" Mankoff said, that could inflame U.S.-Russia tensions even further. He recalled a 2001 incident, in which a U.S. spy plane collided with a Chinese fighter jet before making an emergency landing inside China. That episode shook up relations between Beijing and Washington. During the Cold War, Soviet warplanes were more frequent in areas around the United States. But Mankoff noted that changed with the fall of the Soviet Union, in part because of cost. Things slowly changed as Russia took shape, long before Ukraine became an issue. And there's also interest in Moscow in having close ties with its allies in the Americas, such as Venezuela. \"When I was in government four or five years ago, when there was definitely concern that this was becoming more frequent even then,\" Mankoff said of about Russian military provocations. \"This isn't happening out of the blue.\" Still, there's no doubt that the Ukraine crisis is the driving wedge in U.S.-Russia relations at this point. A ceasefire deal reached in September has seemingly crumbled, with intensified fighting of late between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian rebels. Those rebels have been joined by Russian troops, tanks, artillery and air defense systems that have recently crossed the border, according to U.S. Gen. Phillip Breedlove, NATO's commander for Europe. 'Unusual' Russian flights concern NATO . On Thursday, Ukrainian defense spokesman Andriy Lysenko said there's been \"constant movement of Russian military equipment with (separatist) marks to the dividing line.\" Yet Russia, as it's done time and again, is knocking down any claims that it has troops inside Ukrainian territory. \"I am telling you very frankly and officially as well: There are no military forces or any military movement across the border, and moreover there is no presence of our troops in the territory of (southeast) Ukraine,\" foreign ministry spokesman Alexander Lukhashevich said. CNN's Richard Allen Greene, Jennifer Rizzo, Kevin Liptak, Brian Todd, Dugald McConnell and Catherine E. Shoichet contributed to this report.", "(CNN) -- The presidents of Sudan and Chad signed a non-aggression agreement late Thursday, aiming to halt cross-border hostilities between the two African nations. Chad President Idriss Deby, right, and Sudan's President Omar al-Beshir, left, shake hands after signing the pact. The signing came after nearly two full days of talks in Dakar, Senegal, between Sudan President Omar al-Beshir and Idriss Deby, the president of Chad. Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade facilitated the talks, and United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon met with officials from both nations and witnessed the signing of the agreement at about 10 p.m. \"The idea is to get the governments of Sudan and Chad to normalize their relations with each other and to halt any action that would allow for the cross-border movement of rebel factions or armed factions of either side that could hurt the other country,\" said United Nations spokesman Farhan Haq. Each country accuses the other of supporting armed rebel groups that cross the border to attempt to destabilize the government. The rival nations' armies have skirmished several times. The United Nations says refugees and armed groups have been regularly crossing the border between the troubled Darfur region of Sudan and Chad. They allegedly include many of the rebels that attacked N'Djamena, the capital of Chad, in early February. As recently as Thursday, just hours before the agreement was signed, Chad issued a communique saying rebels from Sudan had crossed the border. Chad is still recovering from a failed attempt last month by rebels to overthrow Deby's regime. The United Nations says the swelling number of Darfur refugees and other displaced people living in eastern Chad is causing serious strain on the region. Kingsley Amaning, the U.N.'s humanitarian coordinator for Chad, said more than 10,000 people from Darfur, in Sudan, have fled into 12 official refugee camps in eastern Chad. They join some 240,000 Darfurians who have lived in Chad since 2004 because of fighting in their homeland and an estimated 180,000 displaced Chadians also living there. The number of displaced Chadians is growing because of the recent fighting there, Kingsley said. Haq said the United Nations, which has peacekeeping troops in the Darfur region, will work to assure Sudan and Chad carry out the terms of Thursday's deal. The countries have signed several peace agreements in the past, only to see renewed violence flare up. E-mail to a friend .", "(CNN) -- Pro-military hawks must be pleased with President Obama's speech on Wednesday night about attacking ISIS. We're sure to hear many of them -- the same voices that have been hounding the President to take military action in the first place -- call for more extensive strikes and even American troops on the ground. What we won't hear enough of are the voices of the opposition -- those who argue that military action will not get rid of ISIS but make the situation worse in Iraq and Syria. There are strong reasons why many analysts think fighting ISIS is the wrong course of action, and that there are more effective alternatives. For one thing, the United States can pursue diplomatic and political solutions instead. Military action against ISIS is a bad idea because: . 1. U.S. intervention is what destabilized Iraq in the first place -- and more bombing will likely make Iraq less stable. Our invasion of Iraq and the installation of Nuri al-Malaki as prime minister reignited deep sectarian tensions and created a power vacuum into which ISIS stepped. You can't save a country by destroying it. A bombing campaign that is perceived as taking the side of Shia Muslims while undoubtedly decimating communities and killing civilians will only worsen Iraq's instability. 2. Airstrikes won't destroy radical ideology, they'll make it worse. Most would-be terrorists don't wake up one morning and suddenly decide to hate America. Often, there's a reason. In 2006, the classified National Intelligence Estimate found that the 2003 U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq helped create a new generation of terrorists and increased the overall terrorism threat against America. More American military action in the Middle East will just inflame more anti-American terrorists -- which perversely only strengthens the ideology that fuels ISIS and other terrorist groups. 3. There is no direct threat to the United States. When we see Yazidi refugees being slaughtered and American journalists being beheaded, of course our humanity calls for action. But those beating the drums of war have made assertions that ISIS poses a direct threat to American soil. This is simply not true. Even while playing up potential future threats to the homeland to justify military actions -- thus essentially embracing President George W. Bush's pre-emption doctrine -- the Obama administration reports ISIS currently poses no threat to the United States. If bombing isn't the solution, what is? The solution to destroying ISIS -- and mitigating Iraq's problems in general -- isn't military but political. Here are some key steps, according to analysts like Phyllis Bennis and advocates like Win Without War: . 1. Cut access to guns and money. It should be noted that ISIS has access to weapons because U.S. and Saudi weapons have been flooding the region for over a decade. The United States can take steps to shut down the weapons supply routes that ISIS is relying on. This is the opposite of what Obama has outlined as a strategy in Syria and Iraq. The U.S. also needs to re-evaluate its broader arms policy. In addition, part of ISIS' strength is due to its robust financial resources, a significant part of which relies on black market sales of oil now under ISIS control. The U.S. and allies can take clear steps, some of which Obama has proposed, to block the processing and sale of this oil. 2. Fix Iraq's political rifts. While ISIS allegedly has 20,000 fighters, there are 25 million Sunnis across the Middle East, and as long as they remain disillusioned with Iraqi and Syrian political leaders, they're a potential recruiting ground for ISIS to expand. This political crisis needs a political solution. Encouraging al-Maliki to step down and supporting a new, more inclusive Iraqi government is an important first step. The United States, along with allies, must help heal the sectarian rifts. And yes, that means serious engagement with Iran -- a traditional U.S. enemy which nonetheless shares our goal in stabilizing Iraq and has far more diplomatic influence in the region than we do. 3. Provide humanitarian assistance. While airstrikes won't help the Syrian and Iraqi people, humanitarian assistance will. Millions have been displaced and have become refugees. It would be nice if American politicians cheering on expensive and deadly bombing campaigns would be at least as enthusiastic, if not more so, about spending money on food and water and shelter for those in desperate need. The Obama administration recently announced an additional $48 million in such aid -- but that number is nothing compared with how much will be wasted in airstrikes. 4. Lead a truly international response. We don't need a coalition of the willing or a coalition of the killing. We need a coalition of nations that will help put Iraq on firm political and cultural footing and restart real negotiations in Syria involving all parties in the crisis there. The United States should work through the United Nations and seek diplomatic solutions through a broad coalition of nations. Obama's critics want him to act tough in the face of ISIS. But if acting tough by bombing ISIS doesn't solve the problem -- and makes the threat worse -- then acting tough is stupid. Diplomacy may not have the same sexy veneer as aggressive military action, but if diplomacy could actually help the Syrian and Iraqi people and make the world safer, isn't that what counts?", "(CNN)Nigerians are scheduled to head to the polls this Saturday in what will be the most closely watched elections in Africa this year. The poll will test the strength of an electoral process that has been marred by violence and flawed results throughout the country's short democratic history. The stakes are high, and there is a very real danger of prolonged violence across the country if the electorate questions the legitimacy of the outcome. The conduct of the elections will have long lasting repercussions on both Nigerians and the U.S.-Nigeria relationship. Against the backdrop of these elections is the ongoing threat and destabilization caused by Boko Haram, a group that has killed more than 10,000 people in northeastern Nigeria during its five-year campaign of terror, and kidnapped hundreds more, including young girls. These actions have shocked and horrified Americans. What many Americans may not recognize is how important the relationship with Nigeria is for the United States. We have economic and security interests that are at stake in this election, especially as Nigeria has been one of our strongest allies in the region since military rule there ended. In the last decade, the U.S. has trained and equipped thousands of Nigerian soldiers who have participated in peacekeeping missions in Mali, Cote d'Ivoire and Liberia, helping bring a measure of peace and stability to nations in the West Africa region. But now we need Nigeria to be a front-line ally against terrorism, particularly as Boko Haram pledges fidelity to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. Meanwhile, Nigeria also has the largest economy in Africa and has the continent's largest population. Indeed, it has been identified as one in the next set of prominent emerging economies, making it a tantalizing target for U.S. private investment. It is also Africa's No. 1 oil producer, although an increasingly diversified economy -- for example in the agriculture sector -- provides a myriad of opportunities for more robust trade with the United States. Ultimately, a stable Nigeria will mean real economic opportunities for Americans -- a win-win proposition. Yet despite this potential, the uncertain electoral environment and other serious challenges stand in the way of a deeper bond. The reality is that endemic corruption remains an obstacle to more cooperation, especially when you consider the Nigerian military's poor performance fighting Boko Haram, despite security spending reportedly being around $6 billion last year -- clearly, much of the money meant for the military is not being spent on salaries, equipment or materiel. Similarly, weak governance remains an impediment to Nigeria's progress and enhanced ties with the United States. Nearly 70% of those in areas in the north live in absolute poverty, according to recent data, as compared to about 50% in southern areas of the country. Such failure on the part of the government to address poverty and inequality facilitates Boko Haram's recruitment effort and foments internal instability. The Nigerian people clearly believe that these issues must be addressed. According to an Afrobarometer survey released in January, 74% of Nigerian citizens said that their country is going \"in the wrong direction.\" Half of Nigerians surveyed expressed significant concern about political intimidation or violence in the current election environment. If the Nigerian leadership rises to the challenge of tackling these difficult issues, there is nothing standing in the way of even closer ties between our two countries. But it is not just about the leadership -- this election offers the chance for all Nigerians to choose their future, and decide which policies will shape the next four years. Their example, for better or worse, will be watched -- and perhaps even replicated by other African states. The decisions made in the coming days and weeks will shape U.S.-Nigeria relations for years to come. But more importantly, they will determine the future for Nigeria's people. The world is watching Nigeria's historic choice with great expectation and even greater hope.", "Washington (CNN) -- The United States is open to a \"more constructive relationship with the Venezuelan government\" following the death of Hugo Chavez on Tuesday and the expulsion of two military attaches. However, the action against the United States is \"not a sign of strength,\" according to a senior Obama administration official, describing the move as an internal political ploy to stir nationalistic fervor. The official said Venezuela's vice president, Nicolas Maduro, \"is not charismatic\" and is trying to sustain the Chavez legacy and win an election by advancing \"conspiracy theories.\" Chavez died of cancer, Maduro said. President Barack Obama said in a statement that the United States \"reaffirms its support for the Venezuelan people and its interest in developing a constructive relationship\" with Venezuela's government. \"As Venezuela begins a new chapter in its history, the United States remains committed to policies that promote democratic principles, the rule of law, and respect for human rights,\" the statement said. Maduro assumes the interim presidency and elections will be held in 30 days, Venezuela's foreign minister, Elias Jaua, said during an interview aired on state-run broadcaster VTV. The Obama administration wants the election to be \"free and fair and credible,\" according to the administration official. Hugo Chavez's death draws sympathy, anger . Maduro made no mention of running for election in his public comments on Tuesday. But he is widely expected to be the United Socialist Party of Venezuela's candidate and is considered the frontrunner by Latin American experts. The United States will stay out of the election. And the administration official said it remains open to restoring diplomatic relations with an ambassador regardless of the winner. However, given what occurred on Tuesday regarding charges by Venezuela against two U.S. Embassy attaches, the official said \"we need to see more than we saw today.\" The Americans were accused of plotting to destabilize the country, which the State Department dismissed. The administration official believes, however, it is \"counterproductive to be at odds\" with the Venezuelan government. Another administration official said expulsion of the U.S. military aides was a sign the Venezuelan leadership is feeling \"uncertain, unsure and weak,\" and that a more constructive relationship with the United States was \"really up to the Venezuelans if they want that.\" But senior American officials don't expect the relationship to change dramatically in the short term primarily because Chavez's system still exists. Opinion: Chavez used force of personality to win votes, influence leaders . The United States, these officials say, will want to see a break with that and movement toward a democratic process. The officials believe that Chavez adherents led by Maduro will want to maintain the same approach, but could be more pragmatic and less confrontational. However, there are strong anti-Venezuelan views on Capitol Hill and it would be difficult to confirm an ambassador. That could change if there is cooperation on issues like counter-narcotics or counter-terrorism, the officials said. The Obama administration is expected to try and get Venezuela to impose sanctions on Iran, which the country has repeatedly violated, they added. Latin American experts believe Chavez's death could change the dynamic in the region, not only between the United States and Venezuela, but also among Latin American countries. Robert Menendez, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said that Chavez ruled \"with an iron hand\" and his death has left a \"political void that we hope will be filled peacefully.\" \"With free and fair elections, Venezuela can begin to restore its once robust democracy and ensure respect for the human, political and civil rights of its people,\" the New Jersey Democrat said. Mike Rogers, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, called Chavez a \"destabilizing force in Latin America\" and an obstacle to progress. \"I hope his death provides an opportunity for a new chapter in U.S.-Venezuelan relations,\" the Michigan Republican said. iReport: Share your reactions . CNN's Jim Acosta and Elise Labott contributed to this report." ]

[ "The 21-year-old children's football coach went missing after a night out in the city on 19 December.\nHe was last seen on a footpath near the River Tawe at about 22:30 GMT.\nSouth Wales Police was called to the marina on Friday morning following the discovery of a body in the water, and said on Sunday it had now been identified as Mr Miers.\nFollowing his disappearance, police divers, dogs and a helicopter searched the area from Park Tawe retail park, where he had been seen, to his home in Bonymaen.\nFamily and friends also conducted their own searches." ]

[ "Officers had been looking for Marcin Porczyk, 18, who was last seen on Wind Street at about 03:00 GMT on Sunday.\nSouth Wales police confirmed they had found a man's body in the marina area.\nThe body has not been identified, police said. Mr Porczyk's family has been informed.", "Jordan Miers, who is from the city, was reported missing on Sunday afternoon and police said they are becoming concerned for his safety.\nA stretch of the River Tawe has been searched.\nChildren's football coach Mr Miers is described as 6ft 2ins, of very slim build and with short brown hair.\nHe was last seen wearing light blue jeans, a blue shirt under a burgundy jumper and tan leather shoes.\nA South Wales Police spokeswoman said the force wanted to hear from anyone who might have seen him from 22:30 GMT onwards on Saturday.\n\"He was reported missing this afternoon but we have received unconfirmed reports he was last seen in the car park of Toys R Us, close to Wind Street, on Saturday night,\" she said.\n\"It is thought that Jordan may have walked home, which would have taken him from Parc Tawe car park, along the River Tawe past the Ship Inn towards the Liberty Stadium.\"\nFriends of Mr Miers, who coaches Talycopa FC's under-10s side, have also launched a campaign via social media urging him to make contact.\nDarren James tweeted: \"My boy's footy coach is missing after being out last night.\n\"There's police boats going up and down the river. I hope he's ok.\"\nChloe Bradford added: \"If anyone has seen Jordan Miers please message me or ring the police.\"", "Lee Turner, 45, disappeared on 7 November after being seen falling into the water.\nHis body was recovered from the marina ten days later.\nThe competition is being held at the Swansea Bay seafront near County Hall, with all proceeds being donated to the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.", "The body of Josh Clayton, 23, from Taunton, was found on rocks near Tresco in the Scilly Isles following an eight-day search.\nParty-goer Leroy Thomas said he saw Mr Clayton \"ranting and raving\" and saying he was going to kill himself.\nMr Clayton's family broke down in tears at the inquest in Plymouth.\nMore from the inquest, and other news\nThe search started for Mr Clayton after he went missing on 13 September 2015.\nHis body was discovered 10 days later by a French yachtsman.\nMr Thomas told the inquest at Plymouth Coroner's Court that he saw the argument between the Polish workers and Mr Clayton outside The Shed party venue.\nMore than 40 seasonal staff on the privately-owned island were at the party.\nHe said he heard Mr Clayton say he had \"had enough\" and his bike was thrown into a hedge by the workers.\nMr Thomas said he went back to the scene later to look for Mr Clayton but could not find him.\nFriends and colleagues at the party said \"incredibly popular\" Mr Clayton was \"intoxicated\" and \"stumbling around\" at the party.\nThe inquest continues.", "A body found by North Wales Police on Saturday has now been identified as that of Ms Kearns, 43, who had been missing since 7 May.\nAnthony James Bird, 48, will appear before Llandudno Magistrates Court on Monday.\nDet Ch Insp Neil Harrison said: \"Our thoughts are with Tracy's family and friends at this difficult time.\"\n\"I am conscious of the impact the incident has had locally, and I would like to thank the community of Kinmel Bay for all their patience and support over the past five days,\" he added.", "The discovery was made in the Ilston Valley area at about 10:30 GMT on Thursday.\nWhile the body has not yet been formally identified, the family of Robert Brandon from Townhill, Swansea, have been informed.\nMr Brandon has been missing since 31 January.", "South Wales Police have cordoned off an area for the body to be removed from the water.\nAn investigation is under way to establish the man's identity and the circumstances surrounding his death.\nOfficers were alerted to the scene at Pontcanna Fields at about 17:30 BST on Friday.", "Three men - Ken Cresswell, 57, and John Shaw, 61, from Rotherham, and Chris Huxtable, 34, from Swansea - have been missing since 23 February.\nThe body found on Wednesday has not been identified, but contractors have paused work so specialists can enter the site to recover the remains.\nThames Valley Police said the families of the three men have been informed.\nThe body of Michael Collings, 53, from Brotton, Teesside, was previously recovered from the site.\nThe building was due for demolition when it partially collapsed. The remaining section was brought down using explosives last month.\nSearches were halted in May when contractors reached a 50m (164ft) exclusion zone, beyond which it was considered too dangerous to continue.\nThe families of the three missing men had opposed plans to use explosives for the demolition.", "Mr Lloyd was a third-year environmental management student at Bangor University.\nEmergency services were called at 14:50 BST on Tuesday to a river at Aberglaslyn, near Beddgelert.\nHis body was recovered following a \"complex operation\" involving mountain rescue and underwater search teams.\n\"Staff and students at Bangor University are saddened to hear of the death of Tom Lloyd,\" said a spokesman for the college.\n\"An experienced outdoor pursuits enthusiast, he had just spent the summer in Norway working as a kayak instructor, as well as carrying out field research as part of his studies.\n\"He will be sadly missed by all his friends at Bangor, and our thoughts are with them and his family.\"\nNorth Wales Police said investigations into Mr Lloyd's death are continuing, and his family are being supported by liaison officers.", "Detectives were called to Thomas Street, Briton Ferry, at 09:45 GMT on Wednesday after the body was found in a lane behind the street.\nSouth Wales Police said a 44-year-old man had been arrested and remained in custody.\nDet Supt Paul Hurley said: \"The body has yet to be identified and a post mortem examination has been arranged.\"\nThe area has been cordoned off and forensic examinations of the scene are continuing.", "Police said the families of Ken Cresswell, 57, and John Shaw, 61, both from Rotherham, had been informed.\nA guard of honour was formed as the body was taken away from the site.\nThe body of a third man Christopher Huxtable, 34, from Swansea was found in August.\nRepresentatives of the missing men's families joined police and fire and rescue crews, and staff from site owners RWE and contractors Coleman and Company as the man's body was taken away at about 06:15 BST.\nPolice said contractors paused the removal of debris so specialists from the emergency services could enter the site.\nThames Valley Police confirmed the body had been safely recovered but has not yet been formally identified, which will be a matter for the coroner.\nA police spokesman said: \"Our thoughts remain with the families of Ken Cresswell and John Shaw and we would ask that their privacy is respected during this incredibly difficult time.\"\nA fourth man, Michael Collings, 53, from Brotton, Teesside, died from multiple injuries following the partial collapse of the structure in February when it was due for demolition.\nThe remaining section was brought down using explosives in July.", "The body of Mr Neil, 23, was discovered in the boot of a car at Windsor Road, off the Lisburn Road, on Sunday.\nThe man is due to appear at Newtownards Magistrates Court on Tuesday.\nA 25-year-old woman is still being questioned by police.\nDetectives say Mr Neil, a father of a three-year-old daughter, was at a party in Comber in County Down on Saturday night.\nThey believe he was murdered after the party at Church Gate apartments on Mill Street in the town.\nHis body was then placed in the boot of a blue Ford Fiesta before being driven to Island Hill car park on the shore of Strangford Lough and then on to Windsor Road.\nMr Neil's body was found at around 07.30 BST on Sunday morning after a member of the public contacted police.", "The body was discovered on Tuesday evening after officers were called to Russell Terrace in the Carmarthenshire town.\nA spokeswoman for Dyfed-Powys Police said: \"The death is currently being treated as unexplained and the next of kin have been informed.\"\nThe coroner has been informed.", "The CCTV pictures show Ricardo Hunter a few days before his body was found at a mansion in Headley, near Epsom, on 25 July.\nSurrey Police said it wanted more party-goers to come forward with information about the death of Mr Hunter, who was also known as 40.\nThree people arrested over his death have been released on bail.\nA woman was also shot in the leg and a man suffered minor shoulder injuries at the party in Church Lane.\nThe majority of party-goers were from the London area, a spokesman for Surrey Police said.\nDet Insp Jo Sidaway said: \"Today marks a month since the murder of 34-year-old Ricardo Hunter.\n\"We have already spoken to a number of people who attended that evening and are urging anybody who we have not yet spoken to, or anyone with information to contact us.\"\nA 27-year-old man from London arrested on suspicion of murder, attempted murder and possession of an offensive weapon was released on bail until 15 September.\nA 28-year-old man arrested on suspicion of murder and attempted murder, and a 30-year-old woman held on suspicion of assisting an offender, have also been bailed until September.", "The midfielder side-footed in a Kyle Naughton cross to give Swansea a first win in six games.\nAndre's brother Jordan had given Villa the lead with a stooping header before Gylfi Sigurdsson curled in a 25-yard free-kick to level.\nVilla's sixth straight defeat sees them remain second bottom of the Premier League, four points from safety.\nHome defender Joleon Lescott had a chance to equalise late on when he found space at a corner but hooked a shot over.\nReaction to this game and the rest of Saturday's top flight fixtures\nRelive Swansea's win over Aston Villa\nSherwood, whose team have won only once all season, had likened this game to a cup final in the build-up.\nMedia playback is not supported on this device\nThe club's hierarchy were also reportedly looking at the games against Chelsea and Swansea to judge the side - Villa have lost both.\nThey survived a Swansea chance when Federico Fernandez skied a shot from close range as both sides struggled to stamp any kind of authority on the game.\nFernandez was involved in a clash with Villa centre-back Micah Richards before the latter was also involved in a heated exchange with Swansea skipper Ashley Williams when he attempted to intervene.\nJordan Ayew gave Villa hope with his first goal for the club but the hosts led for only six minutes.\nThere was a family affair with Jordan and Andre Ayew on opposing sides and both midfielders played a key part for their sides.\nThe pair played against each other in the French league last season and Jordan's team won on that occasion, but this time their fortunes were reversed.\nAndre should have put the visitors in front when he was played through on goal by Bafetimbi Gomis only for his shot to be saved by on-rushing keeper Brad Guzan\nMedia playback is not supported on this device\nVilla counter-attacked from the resulting corner, with Jordan nodding in Gabriel Agbonlahor's cross.\nHowever, Swansea responded impressively and Andre atoned for his earlier miss as he scored the winner from six yards after a dangerous low cross by Naughton.\n\"We are unlucky and we have a lot of new players,\" said Jordan. \"Every week we are getting better and we have to continue to do that.\n\"We are always behind the manager. He is behind us and we are all together and there is no problem.\"\nOn Andre, he added: \"We are family, there is no problem.\"\nAston Villa manager Tim Sherwood: \"I'm disappointed with result. I didn't think we deserved to lose. We can't carry anyone because we're getting done.\n\"I said to the boys every one has to play to their maximum to get anything from a game. At the moment we are short.\n\"The boys gave everything. There's no shortage in desire but the quality is not quite there.\"\nSwansea boss Garry Monk: \"The period that we have been in and the way we have been playing, it was good to get the three points in the way we did.\n\"All of it has been a bit of a circus this week. It was about getting through this period. Hopefully, we can get some momentum now.\"\n\"Concerning speculation about his role, Monk added: \"I don't concentrate on it. I don't focus on it. I focus myself and group on football.\"\nAston Villa are at Southampton on Wednesday for a League Cup fourth-round tie before a trip to Sherwood's former club Tottenham in the league. Swansea host Arsenal in the Premier League next Saturday.\nMatch ends, Aston Villa 1, Swansea City 2.\nSecond Half ends, Aston Villa 1, Swansea City 2.\nCorner, Swansea City. Conceded by Kieran Richardson.\nCorner, Swansea City. Conceded by Alan Hutton.\nSubstitution, Swansea City. Eder replaces Bafétimbi Gomis.\nAttempt missed. Joleon Lescott (Aston Villa) right footed shot from the centre of the box is too high. Assisted by Leandro Bacuna with a cross following a corner.\nCorner, Aston Villa. Conceded by André Ayew.\nGoal! Aston Villa 1, Swansea City 2. André Ayew (Swansea City) left footed shot from very close range to the bottom right corner. Assisted by Kyle Naughton with a cross.\nFoul by Modou Barrow (Swansea City).\nKieran Richardson (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nSubstitution, Swansea City. Jack Cork replaces Jonjo Shelvey.\nSubstitution, Aston Villa. Adama Traoré replaces Gabriel Agbonlahor.\nAttempt missed. Jonjo Shelvey (Swansea City) left footed shot from outside the box is too high. Assisted by Modou Barrow.\nAttempt saved. André Ayew (Swansea City) header from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Modou Barrow with a cross.\nAttempt saved. Jordan Ayew (Aston Villa) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Idrissa Gueye.\nNeil Taylor (Swansea City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nFoul by Leandro Bacuna (Aston Villa).\nFoul by André Ayew (Swansea City).\nJordan Ayew (Aston Villa) wins a free kick on the right wing.\nAttempt missed. Modou Barrow (Swansea City) left footed shot from outside the box misses to the left following a set piece situation.\nKieran Richardson (Aston Villa) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.\nModou Barrow (Swansea City) wins a free kick on the right wing.\nFoul by Kieran Richardson (Aston Villa).\nSubstitution, Swansea City. Modou Barrow replaces Jefferson Montero.\nAttempt blocked. Jordan Ayew (Aston Villa) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Alan Hutton.\nSubstitution, Aston Villa. Carles Gil replaces Jack Grealish.\nGylfi Sigurdsson (Swansea City) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.\nFoul by Gylfi Sigurdsson (Swansea City).\nIdrissa Gueye (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the defensive half.\nGoal! Aston Villa 1, Swansea City 1. Gylfi Sigurdsson (Swansea City) from a free kick with a right footed shot to the bottom left corner.\nGylfi Sigurdsson (Swansea City) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nFoul by Micah Richards (Aston Villa).\nOffside, Swansea City. Jonjo Shelvey tries a through ball, but Bafétimbi Gomis is caught offside.\nBafétimbi Gomis (Swansea City) wins a free kick in the attacking half.\nFoul by Idrissa Gueye (Aston Villa).\nGoal! Aston Villa 1, Swansea City 0. Jordan Ayew (Aston Villa) header from the right side of the six yard box to the bottom left corner. Assisted by Gabriel Agbonlahor with a cross.\nCorner, Swansea City. Conceded by Brad Guzan.\nAttempt saved. André Ayew (Swansea City) left footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Bafétimbi Gomis.\nOffside, Swansea City. Gylfi Sigurdsson tries a through ball, but André Ayew is caught offside.\nAttempt blocked. Gylfi Sigurdsson (Swansea City) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Bafétimbi Gomis.", "They say they have little information and are relying on the public to help with their investigation.\nThe man, who was in his 50s, was 5ft 8 ins tall, clean-shaven, with brown hair that was greying at the sides.\nPolice said he died alone, but not in suspicious circumstances.\nSupt Melanie Jones said that police wanted to \"reunite him with his friends, with his family, so he can be put to rest in dignity\".\n\"We have had a team of detectives working on this since the body was found on Friday, but unfortunately we have no further leads on who this man is,\" she added.\nThe man was wearing blue jeans (with a black belt and silver buckle), a black t-shirt and black and silver training shoes.\nHe also had an appendix scar on his body and two compression bandages on his left, upper arm\nThe only personal item in his possession when he was found was a house door key.\nPolice said that early indications were that the man had been in the water between 24 and 48 hours.", "Breana Talbott was arrested after telling police the alleged crime, which she had said was committed by \"three black males\", was in fact a hoax.\nDenison Police Chief Jay Burch called her actions \"insulting to our community and especially offensive to the African-American community\".\nShe is charged with false reporting.\nPolice say they will also seek restitution for the cost of the search and investigation, and are closing the case, calling the reported crime \"unfounded\".\nInvestigators say the plot began on 8 March, when a man identifying himself as Talbott's fiance called police to say that she was missing.\nThe man told officers that her vehicle had been found in the car park of an apartment complex with a door left open and her phone, keys and a shoe nearby.\nThey began to search the area, and later that night Talbott walked into a nearby church wearing just a shirt, bra, and underwear, and with scratches and cuts on her body.\nThe woman told church-goers, and later police officers, that she had been sexually assaulted in the woods behind the church by \"three black males\" wearing ski masks and driving a black SUV.\n\"Almost immediately, Talbott's story and allegations began to unravel,\" Chief Burch wrote in a press release.\nOfficers now believe that she staged the crime, and that she probably acted alone.\nShe has admitted that the injuries to her body were self-inflicted, police say.\nOfficials are puzzled as to why she would have made everything up.\nThe initial reports of the crime were widely reported online by self-avowed white nationalists, as evidence of crimes committed by black people.\n\"Even though we know the story to be a hoax, there is still potential damage to the reputation of the City of Denison... as many may remember the reported crime but not the outcome,\" the Chief Burch said.\n\"That is unfortunate,\" he added.", "The 22-year-old was found by police on patrol on the A451 in Kidderminster just after 05:00 GMT on Sunday.\nHe was lying between the bus depot island and Comberton Hill island and was taken to hospital, where he died.\nDet Sgt Laura Wright from West Mercia Police said the man may have been involved in a disturbance at a nightclub.\nShe said: \"We are keeping an open mind in relation to this investigation.\n\"Initial indications are that the man was in a collision with a vehicle but we are also considering that he was involved in an altercation.\n\"We are currently linking this incident to a disturbance outside the Tribe nightclub on Green Street, Kidderminster, which occurred at around 4.50am and we're keen to speak to anyone who witnessed this\".\nThe man's family has been told and formal identification will take place later.", "Three men - Ken Cresswell, 57, and John Shaw, 61, from Rotherham, and Chris Huxtable, 34, from Swansea - have been missing since the collapse in February.\nEmergency services and workers who have searched for the bodies formed the guard of honour as the body was driven from the site at 02:30 BST.\nThe body has not been identified but all three families were in attendance.\nThames Valley Police said formal identification of the body found on Wednesday had not yet taken place.\nOxfordshire Live: Didcot body recovered\nThe body of Michael Collings, 53, from Brotton, Teesside, was previously recovered from the site.\nThe building was due for demolition when it partially collapsed in February. The remaining section was brought down using explosives in July.\nSarah Champion, the MP for Rotherham, where two of the families are based, said: \"It's a great relief that someone has been found, but the families have been waiting now for just over six months.\n\"If you start thinking about the implications of that, it means they can't have a funeral for their loved ones, they can't grieve, they can't go away, and every time the phone rings they've been wondering if it's the call that their husband has been found.\"\nEd Vaizey, MP for Didcot and Wantage, called it a \"terrible saga\".\n\"The news that one body has been found is very sad but at the same time there is a sense of relief because the families can't get closure... and the wait must have been absolutely agonising for them.\"\nOxfordshire's coal-fired Didcot A Power Station was turned off in 2013, after 43 years in service.\nThe site was able to generate 2,000 MW of electricity - enough to meet the needs of two million households - owners RWE Npower said.\nThe station included six cooling towers, measuring 375ft (114m) in height, which dominated the skyline of the town.\nHundreds of people gathered to watch when three of the towers were demolished in the early hours of 27 July 2014.\nRWE Npower expected complete deconstruction of the site by the end of this year before the boiler house collapse in February took place.\nA gas-burning power station - known as Didcot B - opened in 1997 on the site and continues to operate.", "The man, who is believed to be in his fifties, was recovered from Southport Marine Lake following a call to police from a member of the public just before 09:00 BST.\nEmergency services attended but the man, who has not been named, was pronounced dead at the scene.\nPolice said inquiries are under way to identify the man and to establish the circumstances of his death.", "Passers-by spotted the body part floating in the lower Niagara River, police said.\nPolice have said the gruesome find is not related to a similar case where a woman's limbs were found scattered throughout Toronto earlier this month.\nIt is the third, unrelated Canadian case of dismembered body parts in 2012.\nPreliminary results from a post-mortem examination revealed the latest victim to be a middle-aged caucasian woman.\nPolice say her body could have been in the water for between four and 10 days. They are asking for help in identifying the victim.\nAuthorities in the US state of New York and the Canadian province of Ontario - on either side of the Niagara River - are expected to review their missing-person files.\nNiagara Police spokesman Constable Derek Watson told Canadian broadcaster CBC that citizens had seen a torso floating in the river between the Maid of the Mist and the Rainbow Bridge, two tourist attractions at the falls.\nHe said the police would ask the public and officials from Ontario and New York to help identify the victim.\n\"Over the next few days, as we're able to determine more things, we'll present it to the public to hopefully assist in identifying her.\"\nConstable Watson also told the Toronto Star that investigators were looking at the possibility of a link with a missing persons case, although no such link has been made so far.\nEarlier this month, police recovered limbs and a head belonging to 41-year-old Guang Hua Liu. Her estranged boyfriend, a construction worker from China, has been charged with murder.\nIn May, Canadian porn actor Luka Rocco Magnotta was arrested on suspicion of killing a Chinese student with an ice pick, carving up his body and sending his remains to schools in Vancouver, as well as political party offices in Ottawa.", "Police were called to reports of a body in the water near Govan Pier, opposite the Riverside Museum and Tall Ship, at about 12:35.\nA spokeswoman for the force said divers had since removed the man's body.\nPolice remain at the scene and inquiries are under way to establish the man's identity. A post mortem examination will be held in due course to establish how he died.", "The body of the man, who was in his 20s, was recovered by police divers near Welsh Back on Saturday.\nPolice said a member of the public reported seeing the man in the water at 12.30 GMT and went into the river to try to rescue him.\nThey have asked anyone who saw the man go into the river to contact them. The body has not been formally identified.\nInsp Shaun Finn said: \"The water at this time of year can be icy cold and can be very dangerous to even the young and fit.\n\"The cold water can really shock the body in a matter of seconds making it extremely difficult to swim or stay afloat.\n\"While trips and falls might happen, we'd strongly advise anyone against deliberately going in the water as what might seem like a harmless dip can go horribly wrong very quickly.\"", "Nyah James, 14, was found dead at her home in Blaenymaes, Swansea, on 6 February.\nJordan Clements, 20, told one girl she would be \"strung up with the dead cows in the butchers\".\nHe admitted two counts of harassment and two of sending communications of an indecent or offensive nature.\nSwansea Magistrates' Court heard how Clements told police he sent the messages when angry and upset and wanted to make the girls feel the way his sister had felt.\nHis victims - who cannot be identified - felt frightened and anxious by the messages, the court heard.\nThe case was adjourned for reports.", "The body with \"multiple serious injuries\" was discovered close to Ten Acres Lane, Newton Heath at about 17:00 BST on Tuesday, police said.\nThe cause of the man's death is currently unknown and detectives are trying to establish his identity.\nHe is described as white, of medium build, with scruffy facial hair, aged in his 40s or 50s with black clothing.\nDet Ch Insp Lewis Hughes said: \"His body was found at one of the busiest times of the day where a lot of people may have seen something that they don't realise could be key to this investigation.\n\"Every piece of information is vital in helping us build a full picture of how he died.\n\"We are appealing for anyone who may know anything about this man's death, to come and speak to police as soon as possible.\"", "The officer told French media how he and a colleague came face-to-face with one of three gunmen launching an attack, and shot him dead.\nNinety concert-goers were killed at the Bataclan concert hall, where Eagles of Death Metal were playing.\nDozens more people died in co-ordinated attacks across Paris on 13 November.\nThe policeman, a department head at the Paris anti-crime brigade (BAC), told FranceInfo radio (in French) that he and his colleague had been responding to reports of an explosion at the Stade de France when they were redirected.\nThey were ordered to go to the 10th and 11th arrondissements of Paris following news of shootings. On the way, they found panicked concert-goers fleeing the Bataclan and quickly decided to go inside.\n\"What surprised us immediately was the extremely bright light that blinded us,\" said the officer, whose identity has been protected for security reasons.\n\"The bewildering silence... and then hundreds of bodies one on top of the other.\"\nWhat happened at the Bataclan?\nWho were the victims?\nSoon after entering the music venue, the police duo saw a gunman walk on stage and point a Kalashnikov at an audience member.\n\"He was very calm,\" the officer said.\n\"Given the carnage, there was no doubt about what we had to do. We opened fire straight away. We kept shooting until he fell to the floor.\"\nThe gunman was later identified as Foued Mohamed-Aggad, a 23-year-old French national from Strasbourg.\nThe two officers, who reportedly only had service weapons and light bulletproof vests, then heard an explosion from elsewhere in the building and realised there were likely to be more attackers. Faced with extreme danger, the men phoned their loved-ones.\n\"We decided we could not leave the scene - we could not leave these people,\" the officer said.\n\"I was ready to die with my team that night. I phoned my girlfriend to say goodbye.\"\nElite police units soon arrived at the scene. Two other attackers who took people hostage in the concert hall eventually died in a final police assault hours later.\nThey were later identified as Frenchmen Omar Ismail Mostefai, 29, and Samy Amimour, 28.\nParis attacks: Who were the attackers?", "The ambitious plans for the revamp includes demolishing many of the existing buildings on The Kingsway.\nThey also include a large raised public square bridging Oystermouth Road, linking the city centre to the marina.\nThe plans will go before Swansea council for approval on 20 January.\nIf the council gives the proposals the go-ahead, developers would need to be found with the aim of of work starting in 2016.\nPart of the plans also include selling off the civic centre on the seafront to help fund the plans.\nCouncil leader Rob Stewart told the South Wales Evening Post the plan was to build something with a \"Swansea flavour\" rather than just copying developments in other cities.\nHe said: \"The regeneration of the city centre is a key priority not just for the council but for the people of Swansea as a whole.\n\"A new, vibrant Swansea city centre is of benefit not just to the residents and businesses of Swansea, but to people across the Swansea Bay City Region.\n\"We want to develop a thriving, vibrant and viable city centre. We don't want to copy from elsewhere but we do want to learn from successful development elsewhere.\n\"Our new city centre needs to be unique and retain a special Swansea identity and character that is not found anywhere else.\"", "15 February 2016 Last updated at 22:13 GMT\nLisa Dorrian, a 25-year-old from Bangor, has been missing since 2005 and police believe she was killed after attending a party in Ballyhalbert.\nOn Monday, detectives returned to farmland near Comber to resume the search for her body, saying they had received \"new information\".\nBBC Newsline's Mervyn Jess reports.", "The body was found in the River Loughor, between Garnswllt and Pontarddulais, at about 13:10 GMT on Thursday.\nDyfed-Powys Police said the family of Gary Dunn, 38, has been informed along with the coroner.\nMr Dunn, who was last seen in Ammanford, Carmarthenshire, has been missing since 12 December 2016.", "Josh Clayton's body was found on rocks in the Isles of Scilly after he went missing from a party in September 2015.\nAn inquest into the 23-year-old's death was halted earlier this month after new evidence emerged of a row at the party.\nThe Devon and Cornwall Police investigation will be reviewed by Dorset officers.\nMr Clayton's mother, Tracey Clayton, said she is pleased concerns are \"being taken seriously\".\nFor more on the Josh Clayton story, and other news\nDevon and Cornwall Police will also launch a new investigation into the death.\nMs Clayton said: \"None of what they were saying ever made any sense to me.\n\"As a mother you know instinctively that something is not right, and to be patronised with people saying that every mother feels like that, it's disgusting really.\n\"I haven't got much faith or trust, but that will hopefully be restored. Hopefully we can finally get some answers.\"\nThe body of Mr Clayton, from Taunton, was found on rocks near Tresco on 23 September 2015, 10 days after he went missing from the party on the privately-owned island.\nDevon and Cornwall Police said evidence had come to light at the inquest which \"had not been made available\" to the police inquiry.\nA statement said: \"A new investigation will now take place looking at any information which may be relevant to the investigation into Josh's death.\n\"Alongside this will be a review from Dorset Police looking at the previous investigation and identifying any learning which could be gained as a result.\"\nThe force said the Clayton family had met a senior detective and will continue to be kept fully informed of any developments.", "Miguel Angel Jimenez Blanco's body was found near his home in a town in the south-western state of Guerrero.\nHe had led search parties after the disappearance of 43 students in the nearby town of Iguala last year threw light on hundreds of other missing people.\nGuerrero is a region plagued by gang and drug violence.\nAt least 15 people were killed there over the weekend.\nMr Jimenez Blanco's body was found in the taxi he owned in the small town of Xaltianguis.\nHe had been part of an organisation which had supported the search for the students in the hills around Iguala. He had also helped dig up a number of graves of murdered people that were found during the search for the students.\nHe had helped organise a group called The Other Disappeared, mostly women who meet every Sunday to search the hills for the remains of their loved ones.\nThe search parties started in November last year, a few months after the 43 students were abducted and presumably killed in Iguala on 26 September.\nSince the group began work, it has found 129 bodies, which were handed over to the authorities for identification.\nIn a BBC interview, Mr Jimenez Blanco said that after Iguala, 300 families had come forward saying they had missing relatives too.\n\"We have been saying from the start that this area is a cemetery,\" he said at the time.\nDavid Cienfuegos, government secretary of the state of Guerrero, told the BBC many families had stayed silent for decades for fear of retribution.\n\"Many crimes linked to the disappearance of people need a statement to the police so the case can be taken up.\n\"In the last decade in Guerrero there have been few statements taken because the families are afraid. They fear the police themselves are involved in the disappearances.\"\nIn an interview with the Los Angeles Times, one of Miguel Jimenez Blanco's friends, Mario Vergara, whose brother went missing last year, said that he motivated hundreds of families.\n\"He taught us how to search and how to push and every day he would give us the energy to carry on.\"\nThe case of the missing 43 students promoted a national and international outcry. The parents of the students and many other Mexicans still reject the government's version of events.\nThe administration of President Enrique Pena Nieto has insisted the students were killed by gang members on the orders of corrupt local police.\nThe bodies were then burnt, and the remains dumped in a river, but so far only one student has been identified.\nThe case highlighted hundreds of other people missing in Guerrero - Mexico's most violent state.\nGuerrero is a major opium-producing state and a battleground for a number of different criminal gangs.\nMore than 20,000 people are missing across the whole country.", "Christopher Huxtable, 34, from Swansea, had been missing since the collapse in February.\nHis body was found on Wednesday and workers who carried out the search formed a guard of honour as it was driven from the site in the early hours of the morning.\nKen Cresswell, 57, and John Shaw, 61, both from Rotherham, remain missing.\nThe body of a fourth man, Michael Collings, 53, from Brotton, Teesside, was previously recovered from the site.\nSwansea East MP Carolyn Harris, who has been involved with the family since the incident, said they still did not know all the facts about the collapse.\nShe said: \"I feel very sad. My heart and my prayers go out to the family who have waited desperately for Christopher's body to be found. They can finally have closure, and say goodbye to him and grieve his loss.\n\"But let's not forget that there's two other families who are still waiting for their loved ones to be returned.\"\nThe building was due for demolition when it partially collapsed in February." ]

[ "Lead change is one of the goals to be achieved." ]

[ "The only goal that needs to be addressed is creating a shared need.", "Was the project successful?", "Taken one by one, each principle would be enough to achieve success.", "Models and initiatives that have been successful are included.", "A national initiative was suggested by the team.", "Taken alone, each principle is not sufficient to achieve success.", "Success was not achieved.", "The process not followed by leading companies, illustrated in figure 2.", "Figure 2 shows leading companies and their processes followed.", "Barnes needs to follow the lead of the lawyers in Georgia.", "The upswing is not of $1, but of $2.", "They are changing their projections.", "The 2 hockey teams are playing against each other.", "The intervention led to changes in 2 areas, but also did not lead to changes in 2 different areas.", "There area 1 or 2 potential leaders found for each one.", "Two infants, ages 1 and 2, are leading the New York Marathon.", "One 1 each.", "To achieve success, tax systems management and technical weaknesses need to be overcome.", "Kids follow the lead.", "The are following the lead of the person in front.", "The average is 1 percent of the share.", "This project was created in 1874.", "You need 2 tablespoons of water and an 1/8 of teaspoon of salt.", "Television Evangelist Robert Schuller is financially capable of spearheading large projects.", "Staff on the project needed to have defined goals and expectations.", "The results of their efforts are in.", "2 friends sharing a laugh.", "A woman leads and a duck follows.", "The project lead is part of the company's environmental team and his name is Tom Jones.", "Effectiveness is what the goal is with these.", "Teamwork is required to make the same key.", "2 teams face off" ]

[ "Limited partnerships are accorded great flexibility with respect to the allocation of cash, profits or losses, and gains to each partner. Using iterative linear programming techniques a model is designed to redistribute the various investment flows from a real estate type of investment between partners so as to simultaneously maximize each and all of the partners returns over the investment horizon. Copyright American Real Estate and Urban Economics Association." ]

[ "A discrete-time model of portfolio optimization is studied under the effects of proportional transaction costs. A general class of underlying probability distributions is assumed for the returns of the asset prices. An investor with an exponential utility function seeks to maximize the utility of terminal wealth by determining the optimal investment strategy at the start of each time step. Dynamic programming is used to derive an algorithm for computing the optimal value function and optimal boundaries of the no-transaction region at each time step. In the limit of small transaction costs, perturbation analysis is applied to obtain the optimal value function and optimal boundaries at any time step in the rebalancing of the portfolio.", "This paper deals with a portfolio selection problem ::: based on the possibility theory under the assumption that the returns ::: of assets are LR-type fuzzy numbers. A possibilistic portfolio model ::: with transaction costs is proposed, in which the possibilistic mean ::: value of the return is termed measure of investment return, and the ::: possibilistic variance of the return is termed measure of investment ::: risk. Due to considering transaction costs, the existing traditional ::: optimization algorithms usually fail to find the optimal solution ::: efficiently and heuristic algorithms can be the best method. Therefore, ::: a particle swarm optimization is designed to solve the corresponding ::: optimization problem. At last, a numerical example is given to ::: illustrate our proposed effective means and approaches.", "Distribution networks are limited with spare capacities to integrate increased volumes of distributed generation (DG). Network constraints and congestion, dynamic thermal limits, intermittent outputs, and the need for reduction in greenhouse gas emission increase the complexity of capturing optimal DG mixture that can safely permit the optimal operation. This paper investigates this problem in detail and proposes a two-stage approach for the quantification of optimal DG capacity mixture in an active distribution network. The approach is aimed at operational planning and takes into account dynamic thermal limits, network internal benefit, and network external benefit and then optimizes samples of DG mixtures through sequential simulation. A case study is performed incorporating wind and photovoltaic generation as intermittent DG and diesel units as standing reserve units. Results suggest that specific operating conditions in an active distribution network can dominate the optimal DG mixture. Wind and diese...", "We investigate the significance of differences of the return distribution (distribution uncertainty) in the cross-sectional pricing of stocks. Our parsimonious proxies for distribution uncertainty measure the difference of distributions between an individual stock return and the market return. We find that stocks with higher distribution uncertainty exhibit higher returns, and the difference between the returns on the portfolios with the highest and lowest distribution uncertainty is significantly positive. We investigate the robustness of our empirical results and find that the impact of distribution uncertainty persists after accounting for firm characteristics.", "One of the most important decisions regarding reverse logistics (RL) is whether to outsource such functions or not, due to the fact that RL does not represent a production or distribution firm's core activity. To explore the hypothesis that outsourcing RL functions is more suitable when returns are more variable, we formulate and analyse a Markov decision model of the outsourcing decision. The reward function includes capacity and operating costs of either performing RL functions internally or outsourcing them and the transitions among states reflect both the sequence of decisions taken and a simple characterization of the random pattern of returns over time. We identify sufficient conditions on the cost parameters and the return fraction that guarantee the existence of an optimal threshold policy for outsourcing. Under mild assumptions, this threshold is more likely to be crossed, the higher the uncertainty in returns. A numerical example illustrates the existence of an optimal threshold policy even when...", "We examine a sample of 185 Joint Ventures parented by publicly-traded Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts 1994–2001. These transactions are found to be motivated by a wide variety of corporate strategies. Shareholder returns for REIT parents are significantly positive, which is consistent with wealth effects previously reported for joint ventures formed by non-REIT real estate firms. In a subsample of joint ventures formed to structure partial dispositions of property, however, abnormal returns are significantly negative, which is consistent with the free cash flow theory of Jensen. REIT joint venture experience in Asia has been neutral for value, but may improve in the future if early ventures have created options for more efficient partnerships later.", "Reverse logistics—that is, the distribution activities involved in product returns—is receiving growing attention. Because of the difference and interaction between the forward and reverse distributions, how to integrate the forward and reverse channels has become an emerging issue. Few studies have attempted to integrate the forward and reverse distributions. Furthermore, the increasing opportunities for cost savings and customer satisfaction in such integrated distribution have prompted third-party logistics providers (3PLs) to get involved in forward and reverse logistics operations. This paper first develops a multiobjective model considering activities of the 3PLs for forward and reverse distributions simultaneously. Two objectives are included in the proposed model: (a) maximization of the returned products shipped from customers back to the collection facilities and (b) minimization of the total costs associated with the forward and reverse logistics operations. A fuzzy goal programming approach is...", "We describe an approach that allows us to deduce the limiting return times distribution for arbitrary sets to be compound Poisson distributed. We establish a relation between the limiting return times distribution and the probability of the cluster sizes, where clusters consist of the portion of points that have finite return times in the limit where random return times go to infinity. In the special case of periodic points we recover the known Polya-Aeppli distribution which is associated with geometrically distributed cluster sizes. We apply this method to several examples the most important of which is synchronisation of coupled map lattices. For the invariant absolutely continuous measure we establish that the returns to the diagonal is compound Poisson distributed where the coefficients are given by certain integrals along the diagonal.", "This paper concerns with the problem of determining an optimal control on the dividend and investment policy of a firm. We allow the company to make an investment by increasing its outstanding indebtedness, which would impact its capital structure and risk profile, thus resulting in higher interest rate debts. We formulate this problem as a mixed singular and switching control problem and use a viscosity solution approach combined with the smooth-fit property to get qualitative descriptions of the solution. We further enrich our studies with a complete resolution of the problem in the two-regime case.", "The primary purpose of this study is to analyze calculation of income tax and carry out possible recommendations in order to optimize income tax of ZELENKA Czech Republic s. r. o. company. In theoretical part of this Bachelor thesis legal entity's tax income is discussed in detail, including the process of calculation as well as tools used for tax liability optimizing. Theoretical part also examines tax issues findings, Czech tax system and its characteristics. ZELENKA Czech Republic s. r. o. is initially introduced in practical part of this thesis, followed by its tax liability calculation and 2015 tax return formulation, based on costs analysis. Furthermore, practical part also carries out new tax liability calculation and possible savings of financial assets that ZELENKA Czech Republic s. r. o. could reach by applying these recommendations in order to optimize tax liability.", "We study partnership dissolution when valuations are interdependent and only one party is informed. In contrast with the case of private values (Cramton, Gibbons, and Klemperer, 1987), in which efficient trade is feasible whenever initial shares are about equal, there exists a wide class of situations in which full efficiency cannot be reached. In these cases, (i) the subsidy required to restore the first best is minimal when the entire ownership is allocated initially to one of the parties, and (ii) ruling out external subsidies, the second-best welfare is maximized when one of the parties initially has full ownership.", "Recently, a new approach for optimization of Conditional Value-at-Risk (CVaR) was suggested and tested with several applications. For continuous distributions, CVaR is defined as the expected loss exceeding Value-at Risk (VaR). However, generally, CVaR is the weighted average of VaR and losses exceeding VaR. Central to the approach is an optimization technique for calculating VaR and optimizing CVaR simultaneously. This paper extends this approach to the optimization problems with CVaR constraints. In particular, the approach can be used for maximizing expected returns under CVaR constraints. Multiple CVaR constraints with various confidence levels can be used to shape the profit/loss distribution. A case study for the portfolio of S&P 100 stocks is performed to demonstrate how the new optimization techniques can be implemented.", "Classification conflicts arise if a partnership is treated by one state as fiscally transparent whereas the other state treats it as a taxable unit. Examination of the issues involved with regard to Netherlands limited partnerships.", "This analysis provides theoretical support for the use of residual income. Economic theory states that capital investment should maximize the present value of incremental cash flow. When a firm is decentralized, coordinating the necessary information to determine optimal investment in the short run may be impossible. But the residual income maximizing choice can be coordinated using a simple transfer-pricing system. Under appropriate capitalization and depreciation policies, the residual-income maximization policy leads the firm to make suboptimal short-run investment decisions, yet these decisions still lead the firm to its long-run, presentvalue-maximizing capacity level.", "The number of limited partnerships in the UK has grown rapidly since the 1980s, largely due to the use of the limited partnership vehicle by private equity. The political and economic influence of private equity has enabled it to exert considerable influence on the UK government amounting to legislative capture, and this in turn has driven reforms to limited partnership law, predominantly deregulation, for the sole benefit of private equity. This distortion of the partnership legislation disadvantages other users or potential users of the limited partnership vehicle, since the private equity-inspired reforms do not apply them, and other reforms which would be of benefit to them have been ignored. Furthermore, reduced regulation is in some respects harmful to private equity itself, and the overall result is harm to the wider economy.", "Inventory optimization is critical in supply chain management. The complexity of real-world multi-echelon inventory systems under uncertainties results in a challenging optimization problem. We propose a novel simulation-based optimization framework for optimizing distribution inventory systems where each facility is operated with the (r, Q) inventory policy. The objective is to minimize the inventory cost while maintaining acceptable service levels quantified by the fill rates. The inventory system is modeled and simulated, which returns the performance functions. The expectations of these functions are then estimated by the Monte-Carlo method. Then the optimization problem is solved by a cutting plane algorithm. As the black-box functions returned by the Monte-Carlo method contain noises, statistical hypothesis tests are conducted in the iteration.", "In virtue of the notion of likelihood ratio,the limit properties of the sequence of continuous random variables were studied,and a class of strong deviation theorems represented by inequalities with return rate and their estimated expectation were obtained when there are deviations between the estimated and the real distributions of the return rate.", "We construct unconditionally efficient asset allocation strategies that ex- ploit return predictability of international size and momentum portfolios. The strategies achieve comparable returns to these investment assets while exhibit- ing much lower volatility. They largely avoid major losses by successfully tim- ing these assets. The strategies utilizing the MSCI world index and the term spread as predictive variables achieve better performance than those without exploiting return predictability. The optimal strategies perform better than conditionally efficient strategies due the conservative response of the optimal portfolio weight to extreme realizations of the predictive variables, thus leading to lower volatility.", "Learn more about the critical elements that lead to positive graduation outcomes. Early foundations for learning are essential. Strong partnerships and integration of early learning with K-12 provide some of the largest returns on investment.", "Based on the rule of maximum of product, this article presents a new interactive method for portfolio selection.We transform this nodifferentiable and biobjective optimization problem into a differentiable and singleobjective optimization problem.The method can meet investor's subjective desire sufficiently.Under the hypothesis of transaction cost,it gets a balance between profit and risk while satisfying the lower bound value of investor's requirements.", "In this note we discuss limit distribution of normalized return times for shrinking targets and draw a necessary and sufficient condition using sweep-out sequence in order for the limit distribution to be exponential with parameter $1$. The normalizing coefficients are the same as sizes of the targets. Moreover we study escape rate, namely the exponential decay rate of sweep-out sequence and prove that in $\\psi$-mixing systems for a certain class of sets the escape rate is in limit proportional to the size of the set.", "We consider that the reserve of an insurance company follows a Cramer-Lundberg process. The management has the possibility of controlling the risk by means of reinsurance. Our aim is to find a dynamic choice of both the reinsurance policy and the dividend distribution strategy that maximizes the cumulative expected discounted dividend payouts. We study the usual cases of excess-of-loss and proportional reinsurance as well as the family of all possible reinsurance contracts. We characterize the optimal value function as the smallest viscosity solution of the associated Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman equation and we prove that there exists an optimal band strategy. We also describe the optimal value function for small initial reserves.", "The objective of portfolio is to optimize the asset allocation and maximize the expected return by balancing the profit and risk. A study on the asset portfolio optimization was proposed based on Monte Carlo simulation and VaR (Value at Risk) model. The Monte Carlo simulation approach was used to make the stock price prediction and calculate the portfolio risk from the standard deviation and correlation coefficient. The VaR constraint was introduced into the model to optimize asset allocation and have the portfolio return maximized under certain risk level. Through the case study of stock price trend and statistic test of the distribution assumption, it was found that the model was satisfactory to the investment decision.", "Abstract Abstract A yield-based capital budgeting methodology is presented that provides capital project evaluations consistent with shareholder wealth maximization under the assumptions of perlect capital markets and cash flows known with certainty. The methodology is derived by adjusting a modified rate of return technique proposed originally by Lin and more recently in another form by Beaves. Hence, the Lin/Beaves method is examined and an interpretation is suggested for both its investment base and its return measure. Being based upon the Lin/Beaves method, the adjusted methodology shares the economic interpretations associated with both the investment base and the return measure of the Lin/Beaves method. As a result, the adjusted methodology both appropriately evaluates capital projects and provides a return measure with a clear interpretation.", "In this paper we develop a framework for optimal investment decisions for insurance companies in the presence of (partially) unhedgeable risk. The perspective that we choose is from an insurance company that maximises the stream of dividends paid to its shareholders. The policy instruments that the company has are the dividend policy and the investment policy. Using stochastic control theory, we derive simultaneously the optimal investment policy and the optimal dividend policy, taking the insurance risks to be given. We study the trade off between investing in the optimal hedge portfolio and the fully diversified portfolio. We show next how the pricing of unhedgeable risk can also be embedded in our framework. Finally, we derive the distribution of the time of bankruptcy and demonstrate its usefulness in calibrating the model.", "Within recent years there has been a rather surprising number of decisions on fairly basic, but still controversial, points of partnership law. Some of these decisions are cases of first impression; others merely reflect new light on old problems ; nearly all the decisions illustrate the continuing conflict between the \"entity\" concept of the partnership which originated under the civil law, and the \"aggregate\" concept which has been followed by the common law, and in general by the Uniform Partnership Act. Two recent decisions under the Uniform Limited Partnership Act have contributed to the rather sparse decisional law under this act.", "Since the time of Ashley at least, it has not been possible to charge the Catholic church of the Middle Ages with having intended to throttle business enterprise by its doctrine of usury. Very few medieval writers, certainly after the early thirteenth century, wished to outlaw profit when it was a legitimate return on investment. To authoritative theologians and jurists there was a world of difference between usury , that is profit openly demanded or secretly hoped for in a contract of loan (mutuutn) , and justifiable returns derived from partnerships, where there was a sharing of the risk and venture of the capital. The doctors operated with distinctions of Roman law by which the mutuum , explicitly referred to in the Vulgate at Luke 6:35, was clearly marked off from other transactions, such as the consensual contracts of partnership ( societas ), letting and hiring ( locatio conductio ), and purchase and sale ( emptio venditio ).", "The usual method of solving for an optimal nonlinear tax schedule is that of the primal approach – i¬ rst solving for the optimal allocation, and subsequently determining which tax system decentralizes this allocation. While this method is mathematically rigorous, it lacks intuitive appeal. I propose a different method based on the dual approach – directly solving for the optimal tax system – which is equally rigorous, while being much closer in spirit to actual tax policy. I show that this approach can easily incorporate preference heterogeneity, as well as individual behavior that is not fully consistent with utility maximization. Over and above solving for the optimum, the dual approach allows one to obtain new insights into the welfare ei¬€ects of small nonlinear tax reforms outside the optimum.", "This study develops an equity distribution model to analyze dividend and share repurchase pay- ments to shareholders. Transaction costs increase and agency costs decrease as equity cash dis- tributions increase, suggesting that an optimal equity distribution exists that minimizes the sum of these two costs. A Tobit model relates the equity distribution yield (dividend and share repurchase distributions as a percent of market capitalization) to proxies of perceived undervaluation, finan- cial leverage, asset productivity, investment cash outflows, and agency costs. The results suggest that firms appearing undervalued, using little financial leverage, employing more productive as- sets, having fewer investment opportunities, or having greater dispersion of ownership distribute relatively more cash to shareholders through dividends and/or share repurchases. These findings support the existence of an optimal equity cash distribution policy that is unique to each firm.", "A large literature has considered predictability of the mean or volatility of stock returns but little is known about whether the distribution of stock returns more generally is predictable. We explore this issue in a quantile regression framework and consider whether a range of economic state variables are helpful in predicting different quantiles of stock returns representing left tails, right tails or shoulders of the return distribution. Many variables are found to have an asymmetric effect on the return distribution, affecting lower, central and upper quantiles very differently. Out-of-sample forecasts suggest that upper quantiles of the return distribution can be predicted by means of economic state variables although the center of the return distribution is more difficult to predict. Economic gains from utilizing information in time-varying quantile forecasts are demonstrated through portfolio selection and option trading experiments.", "This study draws on a body of existing literature to take stock of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership (EMP), which focuses on establishing a Mediterranean Free Trade Area. Despite considerable scope for reducing barriers on Mediterranean trade, current agreements are limited to a quasi-unilateral reduction of trade barriers for manufactured products by the Mediterranean Partner Countries. Next to the limited scope of the current liberalisation achieved by the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership, structural features of the MPCs limit the impact of the trade liberalisation on their economic growth. To promote stability and economic growth at the Southern borders of the EU, coherence of EU trade and foreign policy is called for.", "Abstract Empirical estimates of production frontiers and average production functions, performed here for selected public elementary school districts in California for 1976–1977 and 1977–1978 show the existence of increasing returns to scale, although the frontier estimates specify lower values of the overall scale economy. This lends support to the hypothesis of an optimal school size model, where schools operate in the region of increasing returns to scale subject to the limit of availability of the student population. Some policy implications of the results are also briefly analyzed." ]

[ "what are the children's ages" ]

[ "how tall are the children?", "They are how old?", "I remember how old they are.", "It'd depend on how old the kid is.", "How old? Oh yeah.", "I think it depends on how tall kids are.", "How old?", "I do not care how old your kids are.", "Yeah I know but that's just how it is.", "I know how old she is.", "I don't know how this will go on for.", "Well, how do you mean?", "Yeah I know how it usually goes.", "I couldn't tell how deep the well was.", "I see. How did he mean that?", "I cannot understand how a five-year-old can understand that.", "How many kids do you have?", "I was not interested in how it was located at all.", "How was I going to shovel the snow?", "Do you know their age.", "If they were my kids I would do it.", "Five children are outside.", "How well you remember it all is all it is.", "I want the kids to go outside.", "Yeah, that's basic, I mean, hello.", "There are 5 children", "I could see how deep the well was.", "and exactly how old are your children?", "four kids", "Yeah, that is pretty much how our weather is as well.", "I want to spend time with kids.", "How should I be?" ]

[ "Finding the Diameter or Radius The circumference of a circle is equal to pi times the diameter. The diameter is two times the radius, so the equation for the circumference of a circle using the radius is two times pi times the radius." ]

[ "Radius, diameter and circumference The mean radius of Uranus is 15,792 miles (25,362 kilometers), giving a diameter four times that of Earth.", "Pi (Ratio of the Circumference of a Circle to Its Diameter) Circles are all similar, and \"the circumference divided by the diameter\" produces the same value regardless of their radius. This value is the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter and is called π (Pi).", "The area will always go up by the square of how much the radius goes up. By contrast, the circumference will only double -- from 12.56 to 25.12 because you do not square the radius (or diameter) -- you just multiply it by pi. So the circumference will go up by the same percent that the radius does.", "And π is the ration of circle's circumference to diameter. ... Since the radius is half the diameter, and pi is the ratio of the circumference to the diameter, there will be pi times two radians to the angle of a full circle. Thus, pi radians make a half circle.", "Factoid: The area of a circle is pi (approximately 3.14) times the radius of the circle squared. The circumference is pi times the diameter.", "The usual definition of pi is the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter, so that the circumference of a circle is pi times the diameter, or 2 pi times the radius. ... This give a geometric justification that the area of a circle really is \"pi r squared\".", "Radius, diameter & circumference The mean radius of the sun is 432,450 miles (696,000 kilometers), which makes its diameter about 864,938 miles (1.392 million km). You could line up 109 Earths across the face of the sun. The sun's circumference is about 2,713,406 miles (4,366,813 km).", "Radius, diameter and circumference Mercury's diameter is 3,030 miles (4,878 km), comparable to the size of the continental United States. This makes it about two-fifths the size of Earth.", "All circles of the same size are congruent to one another. \"Size\" can refer to radius, diameter, circumference, area, etc.", "The area of a circle is equal to the square of its radius times pi. The circumference of a circle is equal to the diameter times pi. ... So when you double the radius, the area goes up by 4 times because 2 squared is 4. The area will always go up by the square of how much the radius goes up.", "The diameter, like in a normal circle, is just twice the radius. If given the perimeter: The perimeter of a semicircle will be one half the circumference of its original circle, πd , plus its diameter d .", "Actually since a sphere's only important measurement is its radius (since diameter, circumference, and pretty much everything else depends on the radius anyway), all spheres are similar to each other.", "The distance from the center to a point on the circle is called a radius. Every circle has an infinite number of possible diameters. The formula for finding the diameter of a circle is two times the radius (2 * radius).", "2 and r come from the formula of diameter. You have to find circumference of a circle. Pi comes here because of its ratio. 2 and r comes because it equals the diameter. So pi times 2 times r is basically circumference over diameter times diameter which gives circumference.", "Area of a circle. The area of a circle is pi times the radius squared (A = π r²). Learn how to use this formula to find the area of a circle when given the diameter.", "Relation between Diameter and Radius: Diameter of a circle is twice of its radius.", "Circumference is 2πr. 20% increase in circumference means 20% increase in radius as 2π is a constant.", "The formula to find the volume of a hemisphere is 2TTr3 / 3, where pi is 3.14, and the radius is half of the diameter.", "By definition, pi is the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter. In other words, pi equals the circumference divided by the diameter (π = c/d). Conversely, the circumference of a circle is equal to pi times the diameter (c = πd).", "The radius is half the diameter, or . The diameter of this circle is 36 feet, so the radius is feet.", "Since the volume of a cone is pi times the radius squared times the height divided by 3, if you know the diameter, you simply divide by two to find the radius, which you then plug into the formula.", "If the diameter is doubled (say the original length was 2, now the length is 4), the circumference will also double (the original circumference is 2π , now the circumference is 4π ).", "No. The diameter of a circle is the longest distance away from each other 2 points on a circle can be. ... (Note: When the radius is 2, the diameter will be equal to the radius squared, because the radius squared will be equivalent to the radius times 2, which is the diameter.", "A quarter circle is one fourth of a circle. To find the area of a quarter circle, find the area of the whole circle by using the formula A = pi * r^2 and then divide by 4. To find the perimeter of the quarter circle, find the circumference of the whole circle, divide by 4, and then add the radius twice.", "If the radius of a circle is doubled, the area of the circle will be quadrupled and the circumference will also be doubled.", "Area of a circle. In geometry, the area enclosed by a circle of radius r is π r2. Here the Greek letter π represents a constant, approximately equal to 3.14159, which is equal to the ratio of the circumference of any circle to its diameter.", "One of the unique qualities of a circle is that its diameter and circumference have a proportional relationship. This means that no matter what size the circle is, the proportional relationship, or ratio, between its circumference and diameter is always the same.", "The distance around a rectangle or a square is as you might remember called the perimeter. The distance around a circle on the other hand is called the circumference (c). Half of the diameter, or the distance from the midpoint to the circle border, is called the radius of the circle (r).", "In the diagram AB is the diameter of a circle, centre O and radius 2 cm. The point C is on the circumference such that ∠ COB = π radians. (a) State the value, in radians, of ∠ COA. The shaded region enclosed by the chord AC, arc CB and AB is the template for a brooch.", "The circumference of a cylinder is the same as the circumference of a circle; both are the derivative of the area of a circle, which is pi*r^2 (the radius squared).", "PQRS is a diameter of a circle of radius 6cm. The lengths PQ, QR and RS are equal. Semi circles are drawn on PQ and QS as diameters. Find the perimeter and area of the region so obtained.", "The circumference of a circle is approximately three times its diameter." ]

[ "They are the table." ]

[ "They are waiting to blast off into space.", "A girl makes a silly face.", "A photographer making a silly face.", "A boy is at the dinner table.", "Four people are sitting at a blue table.", "There are people sitting at the dinner table, praying.", "Four people are making soup.", "Two people make dinner in the kitchen.", "A girl in the market makes a silly face", "Silly young boys make faces.", "Four people are sleeping at a conference table.", "Four people play table tennis.", "a woman making dinner", "The baby is making a cute or silly face.", "a girl makes silly faces at the camera", "A man is making a dinner.", "The worker is making dinner.", "The children are sitting at the dinner table.", "Someone is making dinner.", "The woman sits at the dinner table", "Four people are watching or making music.", "Man making dinner.", "A woman is having dinner at the table.", "The boys are sitting at the dinner table.", "The child sits at the dinner table.", "The surfer is making dinner.", "four women posing on the beach", "Four construction workers are posing.", "Four women posing for a picture.", "Man is sitting at the dinner table.", "Four people are sitting at the card table playing bridge.", "A young girl makes a silly face for the camera." ]

[ "yes, read yahoo community guidelines." ]

[ "GMail is the better E-mail. It lets you use it as a POP acount and has a biger acount then yahoo. Though Gmail is still in beta stage so you would need to be invited to start an acount there. That's the only bad part about that.", "Click on your name, then yr Q&A page will be openned...click on Edit My info, then u can choose yr picture form edit yr Yahoo 360 or Yahoo avator. Hope it will help.", "Java chat has been closed by yahoo , u still can use chat 2.0 or download Yahoo Messenger to chat", "Many people have. This question has been asked a couple of times already. They violated predatory lending laws, and charged excessive fees that in most cases resulted in the acount having less money in it when it was closed then when it was opened even.", "In using your debit card you engage in transactions that are the same as writing a check.....If you overcharge your acount you will usually be denied the transaction on the basis of insufficient funds. If, however, you do manage to overdraw your account you will end up with a negative balanc, and you will recieve a return check fee just as you would if you wrote a bad check. The next time you deposit money into your acount the negative balance will be deducted from that money. No collections unless you close the acount and dont pay the money you owe.", "Not really coz it did hurt. I even swooned lol but then after 3 or 4 times it gets better as u learn to relax and understand the way yr body works and what makes u excited. U can tell yr partner what u like and basically it depends on how lubricated ur. There are various lubricating gels available in stores these days and they are quite helpful. Being emotionally close with yr partner makes the sexual experience with him even better !", "Well u went a yr,,, some people can't even go that long without wondering if they should call the ex, \\n\\nBut if u want to call just 2 say hi it's cool, if ur calling because ur hoping may be u can get back together with him be prepared, it's been more then a yr he could have a girlfriend by now. And if u find that out it could hurt all 3 of u, hurt u because u were hoping u could get back with him, u her because his ex is calling after more then a yr and she'll know why your calling, hurt him because he will having some explaining to do.\\n\\nSo think about it first.", "Hi there, i am John and have diabetes over 13 yrs and if u can contact via yahoo messenger or email at santodomingo@yahoo.com. and we can chat over diabetes, i have it and it can be pain at times, hit me up!", "if ya can afford it in regards to yr budget u surely should'nt miss such a golden chance...the days at school are really precious and u shud enjoy and take use of every oppurtunity u hv in yr teens...u wud really cherish them after u get into yr twenties", "i am sorry i dont have a clue for this queastion sorry once again.", "May be your Yahoo Messenger is currpt..Uninstall your messenger from Add/Remove program and install it again from www.messener.yahoo.com online. Make sure u remove Yahoo! folder from the program files before installing new version of yahoo. Hope it should solve yr problem", "You have to change your gender in Yahoo setting. Sign in to your email acount, click \"Option\" on the right top of the screen, then click \"Acount Information\" In the left window, after that you have to re-enter your password, in the next window click the \"Edit\" button in \"Member information\", there you can change your gender.\\nalthough it is much harder in real world ;)", "yr question doesnt sound clear enuf. Can u reframe it ?", "Go to yr Q&A page by click yr name and then click Edit profile or information... and there u can choose yr picture.", "U should talk to him, if u don't u may spend the next 20 yrs asking yourself why didn't I? or was he the one?\\n\\ntalk to him before he leaves", "go to the following site and signup for ur free acount\\nhttp://www.stormpay.com/?2334705\\n there u will have free auction listing, u can list ur computer on auction lists for free of any charge. plus this online bank lets u earnn money bypaid to clcik area.", "Simply beacuse thats what makes the REAL life and the Virtual life...You like this concept of putting limits on questions because its not possible in real life but in virtual life that is yahoo answers.And similarly u like yahoo answers because its differnt from our real world that is u can put the limits.\\nYou see its a simple relative concept.Something is good coz some other thing is either bad or not possible!!!", "go out meet people have fun enjoy yr life don't rush into thing because life sucks if u aren't with someone u really care about", "Once u have a close friend, care about u,, tell him that u did something bad,, and wait to see his answer,, if he is interested,, he will tell u that u must be punished,, and u can move from here", "hmmmm...tough life!\\ni understand its never easy to go in for change at this stage in life when one especially feels like sitting back and looking at the life one has lived and smiling about it.\\ni guess one shot at trying to salvage a 20 yr old marriage would be justified, so none of you two can blame oneself or the other one for not having done anything to preserve the marriage. and maybe it went this far just because u both have been waiting for the other one to speak up or adjust to you....and the distance kept on increasing gradually till it reached where it is today.\\nit is never too late to start afresh, and neither to restart the same old life either.\\nstart with talking to each other about the problems u both had(no fighting though)\\ntry marriage counselling once(for yr kids if not yrself)\\nand meanwhile try to make yr life lil more interesting, start working part time or something.\\nand if nothing works...then u think about the rest\\nface reality...u hav worked on yr life for 20 yrs and u hav 2 kids...u just cant let it go purely because someone thinks she can take yr place, but like i said earlier...no screaming and creating a mess, try and keep yr exteriors calm(very difficult, but thats the only way regretfully, even if u feel like shooting people)", "just tex or fone the girl & ask her who it is, say its yr boyfriend who's foning her & u want 2 know y? she will b glad u did it as well if he's mucking u both about", "i think ma colleague that ur a recent graduate one , cause what u ask needs a 20 yrs experience engineer to do it complete as asked. best regards", "u can get answer at www.howstuffworks.com\\nok, if u get yr answer, then let me know,if don't get it then also let me know.", "what u mean by psp PLATFORM ?\\nhave u intealled yahoo messenger ?\\ntry to find it out on messenger help on this link ( for windows )\\nhttp://help.yahoo.com/help/us/messenger/win/\\nor u can ask ur question about messenger on yahooo product catagory / yahoo messenger .\\ngood luck .", "If i can find girls like u each yr, then yeah, it ll be great fun.", "well, As a user u cannt have the statistics about user's traffic.\\nOnly Webmasters in Yahoo can know that. they have things like Counters.\\n\\ntry to ask that to the hamster, u might get an naswer :)", "You should have no problems setting it up if you already have yahoo acount, which you must have to be here.\\n\\nHope this helps follow the link.\\n\\nGood LUck.", "i think the statute of limmitations runs out after 7 yrs for a civil infraction, call the sherriff dept, in ur home town and ask if their is a warrant for you but do not tell them where u are, u have nothing to lose, good luck", "WOW you ask alot of questions, the best p2p is definately Limewire but i wouldn't recommend any p2p because obviously it has warez written all over it and the government is currently trying to shut it down. The fastest lap-is from alienware and all u do is select the biggest memory and processor. Lastly yahoo is the best web-site because u can do anything on it, searches, e-mail, movie times, share photos, anything!", "I would kindly suggest that u wait for another 4-5 yrs or until ur married, b/c right now i think u should just enjoy ur teenage yrs, once u move out of ur parents house its all about payments, work, and a lot of responsibility of cooking, cleaning, and ironing clothes!! plus, ur teenage yrs are the best please enjoy them to the fullest heck i wish i could b 17 again, once u throw it away u can never get it back!!", "it's up to u u can file either way since u where married for atleast 1/2 the yr!!see what way u get more $$ or owe less!", "u can search on yahoo or something for a doctor who would know if this can help or not.\\njust search and u will find websites of doctors, go to their contact page and find their email and ask them.\\n\\nGood Luck :)" ]

[ "Conn. man thought linked to heist gets 2½ years A reputed Connecticut mobster was sentenced Thursday to 2½ years in prison in a weapons and prescription drugs case that revealed federal authorities' belief that he knows something about the largest art heist in US history." ]

[ "A man who says he was part of a gang of bank robbers terrorizing Central New Jersey pleaded guilty this afternoon to two heists, including one on Route 22 in Hunterdon County in which an FBI agent died amid friendly fire.", "A guilty plea is expected in connection with an armored car depot heist in Connecticut.", "Conn. man thought linked to heist to be sentenced Robert Gentile is either a dangerous mobster who should remain locked up for illegally possessing weapons and selling prescription drugs or an ailing old man with no proven mob ties who poses no danger to society and should be released from detention, according to federal court documents.", "A man from Chelmsford has been jailed for two years for staging an armed robbery at his place of work.", "The fatal shooting of a 29-year-old man is thought to be gang related, sources said.", "GWYNETH Paltrow says her role in new movie Iron Man 2 helped her get into shape for her summer holiday this year.", "A Connecticut man was sentenced to federal prison for his role in a multimillion dollar embezzlement scheme, prosecutors said Wednesday.", "An Akron man was sentenced to 211⁄2 years in prison Monday for his role in a Willowick home invasion.", "A Bristol man pleaded guilty Tuesday in federal court in New Haven to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and could face up to five years in prison.", "AP-SDFatal Hit-And-Run,0131 Neb. man gets 51 months for 2 Pine Ridge deaths Eds:", "A former Greenwich man has been sentenced to three years in prison for an investment scam.", "Tower Heist, a film that was initially titled Trump Heist and has been in various stages of development for years, has finally been greenlit by Universal Pictures, according to Deadline New York.", "A 26-year-old Norwich man with an extensive criminal record was sentenced Thursday in Hartford to 10 years in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release.", "A 50-year-old Bristol man was sentenced in federal court in Bridgeport Tuesday to 15 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for escaping from a halfway house in Waterbury last year.", "Conn. man, already accused of having river otter, is cited for illegally owning endangered ape", "A Connecticut funeral home director has been sentenced to eight months in prison for stealing money and other valuables from dead people's homes.", "The death of a man found in Belfast city centre is not thought to be suspicious.", "Andrew High School's varsity baseball field is getting an upgrade in the outfield with a new wooden fence to replace a chain link structure that was falling over after 25 years of use.", "Coherent, Santa Clara, Calif., has been assigned a patent developed by Vernon A. Seguin, Windsor, Conn., and Peter P. Chenausky, Avon, Conn., for an ``acousto-optically Q-switched CO.sub.2 laser.''", "Computer hacker that helped steal money from several southern New Englanders pleads guilty and awaits sentencing.", "A disgraced former Bridgeton police officer has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges he robbed an eastern Pennsylvania bank, but court documents reveal little about how the FBI linked him to the heist.", "A serial thief who stole to support his drug habit was sentenced to an additional four months behind bars Thursday on top of time he's already served awaiting the conclusion of his case.", "AP-NDKidnap Sentence,0065 Man gets nearly 29 years in kidnap incident Eds:", "An El Dorado Hills man was sentenced last week to two years in federal prison and three years probation after selling stolen trade secrets to foreign governments.", "In an attempt to improve the speed at which justice gets done, petty criminals will be sentenced by video link to magistrates.", "With Barcelona beating Manchester United 2-0 in the Champions League Final I thought I'd post up this YouTube clip of the Gallagher brothers summing up my thoughts perfectly.", "Dutch police say they have arrested a 19-year-old Romanian woman in connection with a major art heist from the Kunsthal gallery in Rotterdam, Netherlands.", "An Apple Valley man was sentenced today to 90 days in jail and 10 years probation for fatally shooting a friend with a gun he thought was unloaded.", "A GIRL of 14 who has gone missing is thought to be with a man she met on the internet.", "A former Homewood secretary accused by state police of taking $44,000 from the borough was sentenced this week to two years probation.", "A Maine developer in the Lewiston-Auburn area has been sentenced to more than two years in prison for theft of public money and making false claims to the government.", "Ortronics, New London, Conn., has been assigned a patent developed by Mark E. Martich, Greensboro, NC, William H. Dietz, Branford, Conn., and Gregg J. Lafontaine, Lebanon, Conn., for a ``connector assembly and related methods of use.''" ]

[ "If you're enjoying a late-summer fruit pie this Labor Day, consider what went into growing and harvesting that fruit. Chances are, it took a lot of human hands to ensure its skin would be perfect and smooth when you bought it. While machines have replaced human hands for a lot of farm jobs — the harvesting of tomatoes for processing, the cutting of lettuce and spinach, the shaking of almond trees to make the nuts fall to the ground — many fruit, vegetable and nut farmers still rely heavily on people to plant, maintain and harvest their crops. Machines don't yet exist for these crops because there have been ample people to do the work, and because it's hard to design machines that can cut or pick the fruit or vegetables without squishing or damaging them too much. But as immigration policy and enforcement have gotten stricter and migration from Mexico and Central America to the U.S. has slowed since 2008, the farm labor supply has gotten tight. Though wages have risen and some farmers have expanded their acreage, some have been forced to leave thousands of dollars worth of fruit or vegetables rotting in their fields because they can't find anyone to pick it. The work is often back-breaking and risky — workers who have to climb ladders to reach cherries, for example, may fall and injure themselves. And so some workers have found better opportunities elsewhere. All that's created a new push for research and development into mechanization to replace the kinds of jobs that farmers have an increasingly hard time filling. \"There's an urgent need to develop engineering solutions for a lot of fresh-market fruit and vegetable crops,\" Matthew Whiting, an associate professor and extension specialist at Washington State University who works with the sweet cherry industry, tells The Salt. \"The shortage of skilled harvest labor is on every grower's mind.\" For Labor Day, we thought we'd round up some of the crops that can't yet be harvested by a machine, but that may be in the future. To be clear, the issue of farm labor is complicated. And machines that could harvest these crops might not necessarily be good for everyone. Sweet Cherries These are the soft, sweet cherries we get in bags with the stem attached. And why do they always look so beautiful and plump? Because a human hand carefully picked them. But there are fewer and fewer willing hands to do that work. And the government has noticed. Of all the producers that dream of mechanical harvesters to ease their labor woes, the sweet cherry growers might be the closest to getting one thanks to research funding. Whiting at WSU says he and others at the university are close to finding a commercial partner for a prototype harvester they've developed that can pick 50 times as many cherries as a human being would in the same time. Still, there's additional work to be done before this new model is viable: New varieties of cherries suited to the mechanical harvester will have to be bred. Whiting says research is heading in that direction and that in 10 to 12 years, scientists should be able to offer growers a \"suite\" of new varieties. Asparagus As the Huffington Post has reported, asparagus is uniquely labor intensive because the quick-growing plant must be harvested every day of its three-month growing season. Each plant sprouts multiple spears (the part of the plant we eat) a day, which have to be hand-cut every day. So that means workers are cutting 14 hours a day, seven days a week from roughly February to May. But various mechanical asparagus harvesters are in development, and the government is evaluating them. According to a 2009 U.S. Department of Agriculture report, \"If the U.S. asparagus industry is to insure a competitive position, it must substitute technology for labor to lower per unit costs and shift the workforce to value-added employment. Instituting new technologies is imperative for the advancement of the industry now.\" Apples Commercial apple picking today requires brawn — workers have to fill buckets all day long with heavy apples and then dump them into bins. And according to a fruit industry trade publication, \"The era of fully automated robotic harvesters navigating [apple] orchard rows is still years away.\" Whiting says that's because the apple industry and the government have dedicated little funding to research. That's changing, though. The Washington State Tree Fruit Research Commission is now pursuing more research on mechanical harvesting. And this year, some commercial apple farmers may be using a vacuum harvester for the first time. Its designers say it saves time, reduces picker fatigue and boost the harvest yield. Peppers California grows about 50 percent of the peppers in the U.S., and lately the California Pepper Commission has been talking more developing mechanical harvesting and varieties bred to be picked by machines. According to a 2015 report from the commission, \"With increasing cost and decreasing availability of labor needed to pick " ]

[ "It's officially spring, and people are hitting the farmers markets, looking for fresh, local greens. That can be a challenge in many parts of the country. But some farmers have mastered the unusual art of growing greens straight through the winter. At the Dupont Circle FreshFarm Market in Washington, D.C., people line up in the rain on a Sunday morning, standing in a line 10 deep, just to buy mustard greens, arugula and kale. \"We've come out of the winter doldrums,\" says one customer, Guilia Adelfio of Chevy Chase, Md. \"We're into salad mode.\" Farmer Zachariah Lester, who is selling at the market, has salad greens. But he also has a profusion of kale: Scottish curly kale, red Russian kale and dark-leaved toscano. There's spicy Piso mustard; a mellow Italian chard called Barese; and a bitter chicory mix with radicchio, endive, escarole and Rossa di Verona. These greens are not only beautiful; they're among the most healthful foods out there. \"They have such a fabulous nutritional profile,\" says Joan Salge Blake, a clinical associate professor of nutrition at Boston University. Fresher Is Better Aside from the obvious vitamins, Blake says, \"leafy greens are full of nutrients Americans are falling short of, like calcium, potassium and fiber.\" Locally grown greens are likely to be more nutritious, she says, because vitamins deteriorate the longer vegetables are shipped and stored. And fresher greens are tastier, making it a pleasure for people to eat their veggies. But most people live in places where nothing grows in winter. Lester and his wife, Georgia O'Neal, have a solution. They grow their greens at Tree and Leaf Farm in Unionville, Va., just 80 miles south of Washington. It's freezing cold there in winter. But they use winter farming methods rarely seen in the United States to produce fresh leafy greens all winter. In the late 19th century, market farms just outside cities in Europe perfected year-round food production. Lester cites as influences the 19th-century French maraicheres who farmed on the outskirts of Paris, as well as contemporary winter growers Anna Edey of Vineyard Haven, Mass., and Eliot Coleman of Harborside, Maine. Now some plants can handle being outside all winter. The Scottish and Russian kales, for instance, bounce back in spring and are ready for a fresh harvest by late March. Being out in the cold actually improves their taste. \"I want things like kale and mustards and collards to get frosted a little bit,\" Lester says. \"The flavor is going to be that much more enhanced — sweet, hot.\" But not all greens are so hardy. That requires these year-round farmers to provide shelter. They do so with a variety of low-tech shelters. Long batts of polyester are laid right on top of crops to protect them from wind and cold. Knee-high wire hoops topped with row cover or plastic offer a little more protection. High tunnels covered with plastic sheeting act as greenhouses for tender crops like salad greens. \"I have arugula here,\" Lester says, pointing to 4-foot-wide rows inside a high tunnel. It was sown right after Christmas. \"We've had two harvests off these beds.\" There's no artificial heat or light to fuel the plants' growth. But O'Neal says that even in the depths of winter, the passive solar heating can make it feel like May inside the high tunnel. It \"could be February and 30 degrees outside, and if the sun's out, you're sweating inside here. This is so pleasant to come into.\" A Labor Of Love Winter food production is labor-intensive, requiring that planting, transplanting and harvesting be done by hand. \"Farming in the wintertime is definitely a labor of love,\" says O'Neal. It's also hard work. \"I cleared snow with Zach this winter,\" O'Neal says. \"It was a wet snow, and it was night, and it was hard to see. You take brooms and you push 'em up over your head to push the snow off your high tunnel. It is one of the hardest things I've ever done in my life.\" Lester grew up in Waterford, Va., and has always loved working with plants and soil. O'Neal grew up in New York City, but realized she'd rather be outside with nature than inside a cubicle all day. They met when he noticed a spectacularly beautiful salad, crowned with one edible calendula flower, at a party he attended when they both lived in New York. \"I was like, who made that salad?\" Lester recalls. \"Can I have that edible flower?\" He wooed O'Neal with armfuls of vegetables, and they realized they shared a passion for sustainable farming. They bought their farm near Orange, Va., in 2009, and run the business together. Their son Eoin, 4, helps with the harvest. Their produce is more expensive than the supermarket variety — $9 a pound, compared to about $6 a pound for organic salad mix at a chain supermarket — but the customers are happy to pay that price. One regular customer is Nora Pouillon, owner of Restaurant Nora in Washington, D.C. Hers was the first certified organic restaurant in the United States, way back in 1999. She ", "Madagascar-grown orchids produce most of the world's vanilla beans, but vanilla extract isn't manufactured in country. Former Peace Corps volunteers-turned-entrepreneurs Tim McCollum and Brett Beach, co-founders of the Brooklyn-based Madécasse brand, aim to change that. They want to produce the world's first \"bean to bottle\" extract, made entirely in Madagascar by local people using all-local materials — right down to the packaging. Although Madécasse is best known for its high-end, bean-to-bar chocolate from Madagascar, McCollum says the inspiration for his business came from vanilla. You first went to Madagascar as a Peace Corps volunteer teaching English. What was your experience like there? I entered the Peace Corps as a 22-year-old wanting to contribute to something bigger. I wanted to do something good. It was 1999, and I didn't know the first thing about the place. I was sent to a post in a remote northeast coast town. I spent two years there. I lived in a vanilla-growing region of the country. The landscape was beautiful. Every farmer had a vanilla farm. I knew it was the vanilla capital of the world. The children of the farmers were my students. Everything there was subsistence, but vanilla was one of the few cash crops. They would just bundle it for export. Everyone knows the price, who has the good beans, who's a diligent farmer. I remember the chatter, hearing the word for vanilla, la vanille. They'd be speaking the Malagasy dialect and then I'd hear \"la vanille.\" I only knew that everyone was talking about vanilla. By the next season, I knew what they were talking about — whether it was a good or bad season, what they planned to do with the money they earned. I could tell it was very important to the community. You decided to go into business when you returned to the U.S. How did your experience in the Peace Corps lead to that? It was very weird to return. I wanted to give back. The Peace Corps forever changes the way you perceive things. I realized I really wanted to understand business. What we're trying to do in international development is raise the standard of living for some of the poorest people on the planet. The private sector has a big role to play in all this. I became a financial adviser at American Express for two years and then spent 4 1/2 years in global brand management. Over those six years, I learned the fundamentals of business. So American Express was my training ground in business, but there was not a day that I was not thinking about Madagascar and what could I do one day that would be more meaningful than volunteering. Brett [Beach] and I reconnected and started talking about starting a business in Madagascar that would be a little different. We started with vanilla. What's been your goal? [Poverty] is not going to change until Africa starts making stuff. Madagascar produces 65 percent of the world's vanilla crop but less than 1 percent of its vanilla extract. That's what we want to change — that ratio. Next year we will attempt to bottle every unit in Madagascar. We bottle it now in Buffalo. We've had to work our way backward carefully in the supply chain, and we're about halfway there. Madagascar exports the vanilla bean. What we really want to do is bean-to-bottle. It should happen within a few hundred miles of where the raw material is being sourced. We built up the factories with suppliers that pre-existed us. It is a partnership. They process the vanilla according to our specifications. There are very few large plantations; these are small farmers producing small amounts of vanilla. We go directly to the farmers, cut out the collectors, the layers in between. It's an easy sell to get farmers. Prices depend on the year — they are quite volatile. Farmers make the market price. We pay a 10 percent premium on top of it. We are working with a company there that helps us navigate and be more efficient. What makes Madagascar vanilla stand out? Madagascar vanilla is simultaneously smooth with a deep taste of vanilla. Usually you don't find both together. It tastes better because it's both richer and smooth at the same time. How is it produced? One of my best memories is from the vanilla harvest. It's a once-a-year crop, and when they harvest it, they need to sun-dry it out in the open. They all dry on the same table. Imagine 800 pounds of vanilla beans out in the open air with a gentle breeze. You could smell the vanilla scent from 3 or 4 miles away. With both vanilla and cocoa farmers, they were never trained in food science. Some of them don't have beyond a second-grade education. Vanilla heritage is several generations deep. It's almost like a religion. It's passed down from generation to generation. Kids follow their parents as they tend to the crop. It's a specialized process that's hard to pick up and start doing. It's not like farming corn. It's the second most labor-intensive crop behind saffron. The vanilla orchid flowers once a year. You need an acute sense of whe", "When Sieglinde Snapp arrived in the small African country of Malawi in the early 1990s, she thought it looked surprisingly familiar. \"It's a little bit like going to Iowa, in that you see corn everywhere, up the hillsides and down the hillsides,\" she says. Corn, known here as maize, is the main source of food in Malawi and across much of eastern and southern Africa. According to Snapp, an agricultural researcher who currently is on the faculty at Michigan State University, Malawi has a saying: Maize is life. Malawi has been celebrated in recent years as the scene of a modest Green Revolution. Corn harvests are up and hunger is down, thanks to a government program that passes out cut-rate sacks of seed and fertilizer to farmers. But those subsidy programs are expensive. Corn is a demanding crop; it needs lots of fertilizer and water. And corn by itself is not an ideal diet -- it may provide the calories to keep you alive, but it lacks other essential nutrients. \"Even with gains in maize, it is just a starch. Children, to grow healthy, need a bit of oil and protein,\" says Snapp. About a third of the people in Malawi have experienced malnutrition severe enough to stunt their growth. Moving Beyond Corn Many believe that farmers in Malawi and all over Africa need to look beyond corn. More than a decade ago, Snapp started looking for ways that farmers could add alternative crops to their fields and their meals. She focused on a class of plants called legumes, which includes peas, beans and peanuts. Legumes don't deliver as much grain as corn, but they contain precious protein. What's more, they take nitrogen from the air and convert it into fertilizer, replenishing the soil for the next corn crop. For the past 10 years, Snapp and some colleagues in Malawi have been working with farmers all over the country who were willing to use some of their land to plant legumes. They tried many different types, including pigeon peas, peanuts and another legume that continues growing year after year, depositing lots of nitrogen fertilizer in the soil. The researchers wanted to know if those crops were practical for farmers to grow. \"We had to see which ones were profitable -- which ones took less labor.  Farm families in Africa are really labor-strapped,\" says Snapp. Last week, the researchers published their results in a scientific journal, the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. A More Nutritious Crop Snapp says the experiment confirmed her hopes. When farmers planted legumes, it meant that they had less land available for corn in that year, but Snapp says the next year, farmers were able to harvest more corn from that land, because the legumes made the land more fertile. So over the long term, farmers grew just as much corn, plus they had a bonus crop of nutritious legumes. Pigeon peas proved most popular among farmers. Women, in particular, were happy to grow a more nutritious crop. \"Now it's starting to snowball,\" Snapp says. \"Fifty-some villages, 8,000 farmers are now doing this, many with minimal connections to the project. In other words, we're not providing seeds anymore.\" So: problem solved?  Maybe not, for most farmers, says David Rohrbach, an agricultural economist in the World Bank's office in Malawi. African farmers already grow legumes or vegetables when they can, he says. But in places like Malawi, many have so little land that they're afraid to. Survival comes first. \"They're almost forced to put most of their land into their primary staple food, such as corn,\" he says. Rohrbach places greater hope in a different approach: Find ways to grow more corn on each acre. If farmers are confident they can grow more than enough corn, he says, they'll be willing to spare some land for crops that provide a more healthful diet.", "After one of the driest summers on record, recent rains have helped in some parts of the country. But overall, the drought has still intensified. The latest tracking classifies more than a fifth of the contiguous United States in \"extreme or exceptional\" drought, the worst ratings. In some parts of the Lower Midwest, water-starved crops have collapsed, but the farmers have not. Farmers across the country are surviving, and many are even thriving. This year, despite the dismal season, farmers stand to make exceptionally good money, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. \"Here in 2012, USDA expects net farm incomes to reach their second-highest level on record,\" says Jason Henderson of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. There are a few reasons for these incredible gains after the brutal drought. For one, with fewer crops being produced, the prices of those crops skyrocketed. \"Crop prices, grain prices, oilseed prices, wheat prices — prices are very, very high,\" says Dave Swenson, who teaches economics at Iowa State University. Swenson says that farmers relatively unscathed by the drought, through irrigation or good luck, are having a banner year. The Good And Bad Of High Grain Prices Roy Berghaus, who farms the hills near Farmington, Mo., figures he'll make ends meet, harvesting only a third of his normal corn crop. \"Price is the only salvation,\" he says. \"Hopefully it will keep the operation going.\" While those high crop prices meant deliverance for some, farmers with animals got the worst of the drought this year as feed grew scarce and extremely expensive. \"I honestly probably wanted to quit several times, just hang it up,\" dairy farmer Julie Neill of Freeman, Mo., says of the trying summer months. \"But there was a lot to that decision. It was giving up a lifetime of everything that we have made.\" These days, Neill and Sons Dairy looks pretty lush after a rain, with happy cows crowding together for a drink of fresh water. But all summer, Neill watched the pastures wither and the business unwind. The Neills had to borrow heavily, about $50,000, just to keep their cows alive. Neighbors lent encouragement, and heavy equipment. The farm was in intensive care. \"Honestly, I think it was more on death row,\" Neill says. \"It just didn't feel like it was ever going to end.\" For the Neills, relief came as the remnants of Hurricane Isaac — the storm that slammed Louisiana last month — quenched large parts of Arkansas and Missouri. \"We had 5 1/4 inches of rain here,\" says Neill's husband, Eric. \"We had no runoff. Within four days, we had grass growing, and the cows started grazing again.\" Today, Neill's cows stand in a field of bright green, knee-high grass, gobbling their fill and making milk. New Hybrids And Good Old Insurance But 45 miles west of Neill and Sons, near Baldwin City, Kan., Isaac petered out, bringing too little rain too late in the season to help Luke Ulrich's corn crop. As Ulrich pilots his big, green combine, harvesting the last eight rows of this year's ragged crop, it amounts to far less than half the normal yield — typical of what farmers are pulling in across the Lower Midwest where drought destroyed billions of bushels of corn. Ulrich and his brother Jordan are looking to government-subsidized crop insurance to help make up for some of the havoc the drought wreaked on their farm. The insurance, which most Corn Belt farmers carry, is another major boost for farm income: It will likely pay out upward of $15 billion this year. \"Definitely the crop insurance helps, but everybody's situation's different,\" Jordan Ulrich says. The crop insurance will only help the Ulrich brothers so much, because they have especially high overhead: They rent farm land and carry a lot of debt. Crop insurance won't pay the mortgage, though the USDA is offering very low interest emergency loans for farmers in their situation. But Luke Ulrich says there's another way they're staying afloat: newer hybrid soybeans that hung on and are expected to produce a fairly decent and very lucrative crop. \"The only bright spot, and I use that term loosely, [is] we can't figure out how these soybeans stayed alive,\" he says. While the drought is far from over, U.S. agriculture seems to be coping better than expected. Farmers aren't being forced off the land in huge numbers, and many will go into next year with the tools they need to keep producing enormous amounts of food, weather permitting. MELISSA BLOCK, HOST: From NPR News, this is NPR's ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Melissa Block. ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST: And I'm Robert Siegel. Summer is over, but in parts of the U.S. the drought is not. Recent rains have helped. Still, the federal government classifies more than a fifth of the country as being in extreme or exceptional drought. In parts of the lower Midwest, water-starved crops have collapsed, the cost of feed has jumped. But as Frank Morris of member station KCUR explains, famers aren't faring as badly as you might expe", "Hemp farming exploded after the 2018 Farm Bill passed last December. The bill decriminalized the plant at the federal level, opening the door for many U.S. farmers to grow and sell hemp. Over the past year, licensed hemp acreage increased more than 445%, according to the advocacy and research group Vote Hemp. More than 510,000 acres of hemp were licensed in 2019, versus about 112,000 acres in 2018. At the same time, products made with cannabidiol — a chemical compound found in hemp — are being sold everywhere from gas stations to CVS. CBD is promoted as a cure-all for anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, even though the science isn't there yet. Farmers see an opportunity to get in on the \"green rush.\" But now, some are worried that their first harvest could leave them empty-handed. The \"green rush\" In Sperryville, Va., \"there's more cows than people,\" Elizabeth Melson says. In the distance shadows lift off the Blue Ridge Mountains. Golden, crimson and scarlet ash and birch trees hiss in the wind, lining the Thornton River. Melson surveys a quarter-acre plot of hemp — the dense, Christmas-tree-looking plants shimmer in the morning light. Melson started farming seven years ago. Now, she manages a small farm for Sperryville eatery Off The Grid. But this is the first time Melson has grown hemp. \"We're all in the green rush, we wanna grow for CBD,\" Melson says. \"It's the most amazing, you know, hyped-up, nutraceutical on the market right now, and [I] didn't realize how labor-intensive it was.\" Growing hemp for CBD is particularly grueling. Melson and her farmhand do everything by hand: cutting, picking and curing. They finished their harvest of 220 plants last week. To cure the hemp, the team hangs the plants from strips of neon-orange plastic safety fence on ceiling rafters and walls in a converted garage. Still, Melson doesn't have the space or the equipment to process the plant into CBD oil. There are companies that can process Melson's hemp, but they're maxed out. One company was supposed to come to the farm and pick up her harvest, cure it and broker it. \"And then they call back and they said, 'We're booked; we're completely booked,' \" Melson says. Growing pains Melson's not alone. Hemp farmers across the U.S. are grappling with harvest challenges: erratic weather, a spike in hemp production and a dearth of processors and buyers. \"We really haven't seen any type of production since the '40s and '50s in the U.S., so this crop is almost like starting brand new,\" says Tyler Mark, a production economics professor at the University of Kentucky who researches hemp. The young industry is going through growing pains. And it's expanding quickly, Mark says. Mark estimates about 250,000 acres of hemp was planted this year — an increase of around 220% from last year. Up to 90% of this year's harvest will be processed into CBD products, he says. That much hemp makes for a competitive market. \"So since we don't have enough people to process it all,\" Mark says, \"you've got a glut, you've got an oversupply of [hemp] biomass in the market right now.\" Since May, the average price of harvested CBD flowers and leaves has gone down by around 50%, according to a report by Hemp Benchmarks, an industry publication. But at places such as CVS and gas stations, \"we haven't seen those CBD prices fall in those stores as much as we've seen the biomass price fall at the farm level,\" Mark says. Don't see the graphic above? Click here Jane Kolodinsky, an applied economics professor at the University of Vermont, puts it more bluntly: \"[Hemp farmers'] markets have bottomed out, and they don't have buyers for their products.\" Many farmers who jumped into the industry after the farm bill passed are inexperienced, she says. \"It's the farmers who just came in and decided, 'Oh, there's a CBD market — I'll plant hemp,' who really didn't have a business plan,\" Kolodinsky says. \"They're probably going to be hurt the most.\" What are the rules? Even farmers who did have business plans are still learning the ropes of growing a new crop. In lieu of federal hemp regulations, states have enacted their own rules. States such as Virginia and Wisconsin require farmers to produce hemp with no more than 0.3% total THC, the psychoactive compound that gets people high. If interim rules the USDA released last month are written into law, all 50 states will have to comply with the 0.3% total THC limit. For farmers trying to grow high-quality CBD flowers, getting a crop within the 0.3% THC window can be challenging. The two cannabinoids \"move together,'' Mark says, so when CBD concentration goes up, so does THC. Unlike soybeans and canola, it's possible that hemp can go \"from one day being a legal crop to the next day being an illegal crop, in terms of THC content,\" Mark says. How old the hemp is can also impact THC concentration, as can weather changes. Wisconsin hemp farmer Phillip Scott struggled to find a balance with his crop t", "Joel Hafvenstein spent a year in Afghanistan trying to lure opium-poppy farmers to give up what he calls \"the perfect crop.\" His book, \"Opium Season: A Year on the Afghan Frontier,\" documents the tragic turn that his U.S.-funded project took. Hafvenstein discusses his book and experience with NPR's Jacki Lyden. ANDREA SEABROOK, host: This is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED from NPR News. I'm Andrea Seabrook. Afghan, British and U.S. forces closed in today on a town held by the Taliban in southern Afghanistan's Helmand province, the world's largest region for opium poppy. Since the U.S. invaded Afghanistan, American officials have looked for ways to cut poppy production. Instead, production has soared, and the United Nations says Afghanistan now accounts for 93 percent of the world's opium supply. Joel Hafvenstein worked in Afghanistan on a U.S.-funded project to lure Afghans away from the poppy crop. In that sense, he was one of the foot soldiers in America's war on drugs. He survived, but his project took a tragic turn. It's the subject of his new book, \"Opium Season,\" which he discussed with my colleague Jacki Lyden. JACKI LYDEN: Joel Hafvenstein, welcome to the show. Mr. JOEL HAFVENSTEIN (Author, \"Opium Season: A Year on the Afghan Frontier\"): Thanks so much. LYDEN: The project that you write about in this book is in the fall of 2004, you're going down to Helmand province. Mr. HAFVENSTEIN: Yes. LYDEN: What was the intention of the project? Mr. HAFVENSTEIN: That project was supposed to be a short-term cushion to create as many cash-paying jobs as we could because that year was one of the first years where there was a big spike in poppy production. And the political pressure in the states and in Afghanistan for there to be a big eradication program was intense. Now, USAID and the other aide agencies knew that if there was widespread poppy eradication, most farmers and laborers had nothing to fall back on. So USAID's response was to send two of its contractors into two of the biggest poppy-producing provinces with a mission to create as many cash-paying jobs as possible, short-term stuff, pick-and-shovel work in the canals and on the roads of Helmand province. LYDEN: And before we get to all the things that went wrong, I'd like to talk to you a little bit about opium. I mean, it is a beautiful flower. Mr. HAFVENSTEIN: And it's a crop that's very well-suited to the province of Afghanistan right now. It's a crop that doesn't require refrigeration. The opium gum when you've harvested it will keep for quite a while. You can take it out over bumpy roads without it being ruined. And there's a really well-established structure of traffickers providing loans to farmers, landlords being willing to provide lands to poor sharecroppers if they'll grow poppy on it. Poppy means so much more than just cash to these Afghan farmers. LYDEN: So did your colleagues - your American colleagues - believe they were making a difference over the winter - the early winter of 2004? Did you think we really are going to reduce this year's poppy crop, we really are pulling in these outlining areas, we really have substituted cash for work? Mr. HAFVENSTEIN: Well, I don't think that we thought that we would be the substitute for poppy. I mean, we were really - we saw ourselves as a safety net for this eradication program that was planned. And while our project was going on, the long-term alternatives project was starting up. That was going to be providing rural electrification, alternative crops, alternative business opportunities even off the farm for Afghans so that there would be something that would last after the donor money stopped. And because that's what a real alternative to poppy is that we're talking about. The cash-for-work jobs that we were creating, they were politically important and they were an important transitional safety net. But themselves, we weren't at any other illusion that that was going to push out poppy. LYDEN: So Joel Hafvenstein, it's going along more or less well a year about to turn over your own duties to someone else when May 2005 comes around, and it's beginning to unravel and a tragedy occurs. Mr. HAFVENSTEIN: By the end of the opium harvest, of the poppy harvest, we had several of our monitoring staff who went to measure some of the drains that we were planning to work on in Babaji and they were ambushed. They were killed. And one of my friends who was killed, his parents arranged to have his body brought up to Kabul for burial. And on the way up there, the funeral convoy of some of his relatives and some volunteers from our staff, they were ambushed and killed. LYDEN: You lose 11 different people in those several days. What were you thinking? Mr. HAFVENSTEIN: I was just completely shattered. You know, we had been working really hard to get this project off the ground. There were a lot of people who were extremely welcoming of us. And I could see as these attacks happened that all of that wa", "During peach season, Georgia's roads are dotted with farm stands selling fresh peaches. Year-round, tourist traps sell mugs, hats, shirts and even snow globes with peaches on them. At the beginning of the Georgia peach boom, one of Atlanta's major roads was renamed Peachtree Street. But despite its associations with perfectly pink-orange peaches, \"The Peach State\" of Georgia is neither the biggest peach producing state (that honor goes to California) nor are peaches its biggest crop. So why is it that Georgia peaches are so iconic? The answer, like so much of Southern history, has a lot to do with slavery — specifically, its end and a need for the South to rebrand itself. Yet, as historian William Thomas Okie writes in his book The Georgia Peach, the fruit may be sweet but the industry in the South was formed on the same culture of white supremacy as cotton and other slave-tended crops. Peaches, which are native to Asia, have been growing haphazardly in the United States since they were brought over by Europeans in the 17th century. But it wasn't until the latter half of the 1800s that aspiring horticulturists began to try and grow the peach as an orchard crop. In 1856, a Belgian father-and-son pair, Louis and Prosper Berckmans, purchased a plot of orchard land in Augusta, Ga., that would come to be known as Fruitland. Their intention was to demonstrate that fruit and ornamental plants could become just as important an industry in the South as cotton, which was ruining the soil with its intensive planting. Horticulture slowly became accepted as a gentleman's pursuit. But it wasn't until the end of the Civil War and the abolishment of slavery that the sudden availability of labor gave peaches the perfect opening. After the war, \"fruit growing, which to the cotton planter was a secondary matter, [became] one of great solicitude to the farmer,\" Prosper Berckmans wrote in 1876. By the 1880s, Fruitland had grown so large and essential that it mailed 25,000 catalogs every year to horticulturists in the United States and abroad. Freedmen now needed year-round employment, and the labor requirements of the peach season — tree trimming and harvest — fit perfectly with the time of year when cotton was slow. Though the story of the post-bellum South is often one of industrialization and urbanization, it was also a time of redefining what agriculture would mean without the enslaved labor plantation owners had relied on. \"Cotton had all these associations with poverty and slavery,\" says Okie, an assistant professor of history at Kennesaw State University in Georgia. The peach had none of that baggage. While King Cotton was still an important part of the Southern economy, town councils began sponsoring peach festivals and spreading marketing materials that sung the praises of Georgia-bred peaches like the famous Elberta Peaches. \"Tellingly,\" Okie writes, \"the only role mentioned for Black southerners in the great Georgia Peach Carnival was as members of the opening procession's 'Watermelon Brigade' \" — about 100 African-Americans who marched with the racially laden fruit balanced on their heads. Gentleman farmers saw fruit cultivation as something particularly refined and European, and a craze for all things \"oriental\" gave peaches an even greater allure. This cultured crop fit in with the narrative white Southerners were eager to tell about themselves after the Civil War. \"Growing peaches for market required expertise that seemed unnecessary with corn and cotton, which any dirt farmer could grow,\" Okie writes. To succeed, peach farmers had to be able to access horticultural literature and the latest scientific findings. Both required literacy, as well as a certain level of education that was still out of reach for many newly freed men and women. Before peaches became an important crop, they hung low on branches throughout the South and landowners who saw them as without value were happy to give them freely to slaves. But once peaches were part of the agricultural economy, they became off limits to all but those who could afford them. By the end of the 1800s, Okie writes, a landowner who caught three black children pilfering little more than a handful of peaches charged the father of one $21 for three peaches, threatening the children with a chain gang if he caught them in his orchard again. A laborer working in a city at that time made less than $1.50 per day on average, making it likely that, for a black family in the South, those three peaches amounted to roughly a full month's wages. What was once freely available to African-American became \"a white fruit,\" Okie says. In addition to the cost of the trees and horticultural education, it took three or four years of expenses without income before trees would reliably produce fruit. Peaches required so much capital to grow that few African-Americans could afford to start their own orchard. When women were referred to admiringly as \"Georgia peaches,\" it was a reflection of", "A unanimous Supreme Court ruled Monday that an Indiana farmer infringed on Monsanto's patent when he planted soybeans that had been genetically modified by Monsanto without buying them from the agribusiness giant. In the decision, written by Justice Elena Kagan, the nine justices ruled that \"patent exhaustion does not permit a farmer to reproduce patented seeds through planting and harvesting without the patent holder's permission.\" Monsanto's \"Roundup Ready\" soybeans can survive sprayings of the nation's most popular weedkiller. As NPR's Dan Charles explained in Feburary on The Salt blog: Farmer Vernon Hugh Bowman had been using — and paying Monsanto for — the company's Roundup Ready when he planted his main crop in the spring. He also signed \"standard agreement not to save any of his harvest and replant it the next year. Monsanto demands exclusive rights to supply that seed.\" The farmer got into trouble when he planted a second crop of soybeans later in the same year, when the yield would likely be much lower. As Dan wrote, \"Bowman decided that for this crop, he didn't want to pay top dollar for Monsanto's seed. 'What I wanted was a cheap source of seed,' he says. Starting in 1999, he bought some ordinary soybeans from a small grain elevator where local farmers drop off their harvest. ... He knew that these beans probably had Monsanto's Roundup Ready gene in them, because that's mainly what farmers plant these days. But Bowman didn't think Monsanto controlled these soybeans anymore, and in any case, he was getting a motley collection of different varieties, hardly a threat to Monsanto's seed business. 'I couldn't imagine that they'd give a rat's behind,' \" he said. Monsanto did care. It took Bowman to court. The farmer, as Dan reported, was ordered to pay Monsanto $84,000 for infringing on the company's patent. Monday, the Supreme Court upheld that decision. Kagan wrote: \"In the case at hand, Bowman planted Monsanto's patented soybeans solely to make and market replicas of them, thus depriving the company of the reward patent law provides for the sale of each article. Patent exhaustion provides no haven for that conduct. We accordingly affirm the judgment of the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.\"", "It's been raining for days and the crop you're a week away from harvesting is about to mold. If you don't dry it quickly, you will lose the crop. What do you do? If you're Bruce Cakebread, you call in a helicopter to be a giant grape dryer. When rain soaked Napa Valley two weeks ago, Cakebread — the president of Cakebread Cellars in Rutherford, Calif. — used a technique occasionally employed by orange and cherry farmers. It's just the latest example of farmers forced to take drastic measures to salvage crops in the face of extreme weather. If mold forms on grape clusters, they can't be picked for harvest. Fortunately for the valley's winemakers who got drenched this month, most of the white and red varietals had already been picked, Cakebread tells The Salt. But the Cabernet Sauvignon — a tougher, more resilient varietal — still hung on the vines during the wet weather. Cakebread's hired helicopter snaked up and down 100 acres of vineyard about 20 feet above the valley floor, using the wind from the chopper's blades to push water off the plants. (You can watch the video here.) So did the helicopter technique work? Continue Reading It's too soon to tell, Cakebread says. Shortly after the chopper left, fog rolled into the valley from the sea and may have counteracted some of the helicopter's work. He says he won't know the extent of the crop damage until the harvest finishes later this week. For now, workers are busy picking the healthy grapes for crushing. In the end, there just may not be as many bottles as in years past to sell. \"We've been through short crops before,\" he says. \"Every year Mother Nature gives us a bigger crop in one variety and less in another.\" It's a pricey endeavor to hire a helicopter — he says it's about $400 per hour — but it far outweighs the cost of losing a big chunk of his Cabernet Sauvignon. Cakebread, who tried the same technique in 2002, says he just couldn't sit around and do nothing. \"It's not an absolute method that works, but it makes you feel better,\" says Cakebread. Farmers from Arkansas to Louisiana who have been pummeled by floods, tornadoes and droughts this year can probably relate. Thousands of acres of soybean, rice, corn and other crops have been destroyed despite farmers' best efforts to protect them, amounting to as much as $1 billion in losses. Farmers expect some degree of extreme weather, but the string of devastating events in recent years means farming is becoming more risky. \"We've seen this weather back in '79 and '89,\" Cakebread says. \"You see this come through once every 10 years, but with all the recent weather changes, you never know.\"", "It's harvest season and Kent Picht, a long-time farmer in Iowa Falls, Iowa, has just spent the day cutting and hauling in corn from his 800-acre farm. He's tired, but he's psyched. Last year he earned more than ever, and this season's harvest isn't far behind. The weather's been great, yields are up, production costs are reasonable, and grain prices are high. \"Things are pretty rosy,\" he says. Defying today's economic odds, the U.S. agriculture sector is thriving. A few months back Joe Glauber, the USDA's chief economist, said farm incomes have increased over the past eight years to the highest rate since the 1970s, even adjusting for inflation. Family farms in the commercial category (with annual sales of more than $250,000) are doing particularly well. Among those operations, median incomes were up by double digits in 2010 to $78,000 from about $70,000 the previous year. So why isn't everybody rushing to Iowa to set up a farm and get in on the boom? \"Well, it's not that simple,\" says Jeremy Weber at the USDA Economic Research Service. Read More: Millions in start-up costs. And a lot to learn. To succeed in farming, you have to go in big. No half measures here. Small ag operators are losing money — as they typically do, even during economic expansions. The halcyon days are reserved for large farmers in the commercial category, like Picht. To go big, you'll need ample cropland to produce enough volume to cover your fixed costs. At current land prices, to get 800 acres you'll need $6.4 million. Then there are the up-front costs of a tractor (about $100,000), a combine harvester (about $150,000) and other equipment, and of course the annual costs for seed ($60,000), fertilizer ($120,000), herbicides ($24,000), as well as crop insurance, maintenance, fuel, and property taxes. For a farm the size of Picht's and using current prices, yearly production costs--excluding land, equipment, and the farmer's labor time--total about $320,000. But beyond all the spending, an aspiring farmer needs know-how, which isn't easily acquired. Picht has been tending his fields for almost thirty years and comes from a long line of farmers. He has a thousand skills that are learned only over time, only on the farm. He knows what the weather means, how much to plant, how fast to harvest, and how to eradicate pesticide-resistant root worms. He has the skills and concentration to fix his combine when it dies in the field and he has to get the load in before the rain clouds start dumping. \"It's not straightforward how to be profitable,\" Weber says. \"People don't realize how much human capital goes into farming.\" Even if the out-of-work city-slicker-cum-farmer secures a massive credit line, the knowledge gap is probably just too great. We aren't likely to see a back-to-the-land movement from the urban unemployed any time soon. Ultimately, nothing is recession proof. Kent Picht has seen bumper crops these past few years, but if the weather turns or commodity prices sink, the bounty would stop. Massive flooding in western Iowa this year destroyed crops, leaving those farmers hamstrung. By contrast, producers with a healthy corn haul like Picht will earn about $5.50 per bushel. But, Picht says, \"If everything took a crap and corn went back to $3 a bushel, then I'd be in big trouble.\" Heather Rogers is an intern at Planet Money", "Lawmakers battling over the food assistance program SNAP failed to pass a new farm bill this year, and the current one expired on Monday. The farm bill traditionally touches on trade, rural development, loan credit, subsidies for farmers, a safety net for farmers and food for poor women and children. With this season&#8217;s harvest underway, farmers are worried about getting crop insurance for the next cycle of planting. Glenn Brunkow, a farmer in Westmoreland, Kansas, says the government shutdown is causing ripple effects for farming. &#8220;I don&#8217;t know where we&#8217;re at from here,&#8221; Brunkow told Here & Now. &#8220;On top of not having a farm bill and not having crop insurance, our Farm Service Agency, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, our local offices are shutdown. We&#8217;re kind of in limbo right now.&#8221; Guest\n\nGlenn Brunkow, is a farmer in Westmoreland, Kansas. He tweets @Brunkow.\n ROBIN YOUNG, HOST: It's HERE AND NOW. And while all of Washington is focused on the shutdown, other bills are dying on the vine. Take the farm bill. Lawmakers battling over the nutritional program SNAP for poor women and children failed to pass a new bill this year, and the current one expired on Monday. The farm bill traditionally touches on trade, rural development, credit, subsidies for farmers, food for the poor and the safety net for farmer, incentives that put crop insurance within their reach, protecting them from bad weather and a drop in food prices. And with this season's harvest underway, that aspect of the bill is what farmers are worried about the most Let's bring in, from Kansas, Glenn Brunkow. He raises cattle, sheep, soybeans, corn, wheat and grain, sorghum in Westmoreland. And, Glenn, I know you've got the time to speak about it to us because you had a little rain out there. GLENN BRUNKOW: Yes, yes. We're very grateful for any rain we get after the last couple of years. YOUNG: Although that means you can't go out and work, so you can talk to us. And for non-farmers, explain how insurance - farm insurance works. BRUNKOW: We pay a premium, and we choose the level of coverage. There are several different types of insurance we can get. Also, it's kind of up to us as to our risks aversion and maybe also up to our lenders also what kind of coverage we carry. It is heavily subsidized by the government. This is in place of the old disaster programs that used to be kind of ad hoc emergency programs that often were very expensive and cumbersome. And this is far more efficient and far more cost-effective than the old programs were. YOUNG: Well - and - when you say government subsidies, these are sort of incentives to get farmers to cover themselves against - to avoid trying to help a farmer recover after disaster. So those subsidies, do they help you pay your premiums? BRUNKOW: Yes, yes. Without the subsidies, crop insurance is out of reach for most of us. Despite the very nature of farming, you know, there's disaster somewhere every year. And so without the government subsidy, most of us, especially young farmers like myself, couldn't afford crop insurance. YOUNG: Well, Iowa's Tom Harkin told the website agriculture.com that all reimbursements to local crop insurance agencies, in Iowa at least, are on hold. I'm assuming it's the same way across the country. Again, this is the money that's coming from the federal government to help farmers buy this insurance. BRUNKOW: Yes. YOUNG: What does that do to you? BRUNKOW: It really puts us in a bind. We are in a middle of harvest right now. So, right now, we're OK. But once we get the harvest in, we usually - most of us go to our lenders and start negotiating our operating notes for the coming year. And because some of the new regulations placed in the banks, they need more security when it comes to our operating notes. So they require us to actually have crop insurance, so that kind of put us in a bind in November and December and January, when we start talking to them about our operating notes. YOUNG: Yeah. Most small farmers - we're not talking about big agriculture here. We're talking about people like you who borrow the money to put in the crop and then pay it back after you harvest it. You are in a cycle. BRUNKOW: Yes, yes. YOUNG: Yeah. BRUNKOW: Farming is such a capital on Kansas' operation. We rely very heavily on our operating note, and that's across the board. I've talked to just neighbors of very large farmers. We're a small to medium small farm, and we all rely on that, and we all rely on the crop insurance. YOUNG: Well, Senator John McCain is an opponent of farm subsidies. This year, when the Senate was considering the bill, he said, crop insurance's reputation as a safety net for farmers is dubious. What do you say? BRUNKOW: I have to disagree with him. My colleagues in southwest Kansas have been through several years of drought. And at least they have a crop insurance to ensure that their fixed costs are covered and they remain i", "Back in 2010, there were high hopes in Colorado that locally grown hops, the plant that gives beer a bitter or citrusy flavor, would help feed the then-booming craft beer market. In just six years, the industry had sprouted from almost nothing to 200 acres, according to the trade association Hop Growers of America. Inside the chilled storage room at the 22nd largest craft brewery in the country — Odell Brewing Company in Fort Collins, Colo. — brewer and agronomist Scott Dorsch pulls down a large box with the words \"whole leaf hops\" printed on the front. He rips open the silver packaging to reveal a mound of flattened, dried green hops, crisp and airy like dried leaves. Of the estimated $25,000 worth of hops in the room, none are from Colorado. That's because a large company like Odell requires a more reliable source. Farmers in Washington have been growing hops for decades, sometimes over several generations. Dorsch knows the hops he buys from them have the consistent flavor he needs to produce Odell's signature beers, and supply isn't a concern. When Odell has bought local hops in the past, it's only to make a seasonal, limited-distribution beer. \"We would buy more hops than what Colorado could produce,\" he says. Hops may not have panned out to be the major crop that some Colorado farmers had bet on. And Dorsch says the green rush all began with one well-known company. \"If it hadn't been for Coors, I don't think there would have been 200 acres of hops growing in Colorado,\" he says. \"I think that people would have given up a long time ago.\" Going big With the largest single brewery facility in the world, the Coors Brewing Company operates out of Golden, Colo. A company they own, called AC Golden, wanted to jump-start the local hop industry for its beer, \"Colorado Native,\" which uses only local ingredients. AC Golden officials says that starting in 2010, they paid farmers a premium price for their crop in an effort to help get them established. Farmers reported being paid up to $15 a pound, far above the going market price at the time of around $4. There's a high start-up cost to growing hops. The vines require trellises, which can cost anywhere from $10,000 to $20,000 per acre to install. Ron Yovich was one of about a dozen farmers growing hops for Coors. Like most, he was a small first-time farmer, and that premium price allowed him to purchase expensive harvesting equipment from Europe. \"At that point, [Coors] had a significant role in basically keeping us afloat for the first few years,\" he says. The premium price allowed Yovich, as well as other farmers interviewed for this story, to make a return on the investments. But it wouldn't last. The slowdown Between 2010 and 2015, the demand for craft beer was booming (see graphic below). In 2016, it started slowing down as wine and spirits grabbed a larger share of the market, according to Bart Watson, an economist with the Brewers Association, a national trade association. He says that while the craft beer market is still growing, it's just less so because consumers have far more options. Last year, 165 craft brewers closed down. \"There's a lot of competitiveness out there,\" he says. This, he says, is partly why the hop industry in Colorado still hasn't reached the scale that Coors and some farmers had bet on. \"We may see the hop industry scale back in places like Colorado simply because they were building for a future that was bigger than what we've actually seen,\" he says. The Pacific Northwest is the nation's major supplier of hops, especially Washington's Yakima Valley, which produces more than 39,000 aces, or 71 percent of the nation's hops. Idaho and Oregon are the next largest, and together three these states have pushed the U.S. to its biggest-ever hop harvest, breaking the 100 million-pound mark for the first time in history. Colorado's crop acreage is 7th in the country, and hasn't grown since 2016. And small hop industries in Indiana, Illinois, Nebraska and Iowa have seen little to no growth in the past few years. Only Michigan and New York have remained competitive at a time when experts say the specialty hops market is saturated. Finding a new market ... or crop Demand for local hops may lie with microbreweries, which are still doing well despite the outlook for the rest of the craft beer market. That's where Yovich has placed his bets. He no longer grows for Coors, nor does he have to worry about finding a reliable buyer. Instead, he and his wife opened Mountain Cowboy Brewing Company in Frederick, Colo., and most of his crop is used to make his beer. \"You know the old adage, 'don't put all your eggs in one basket'? That's the way it is,\" he says. Other hop farmers have left the industry altogether. Mark Riley owns several acres and grew for Coors starting in 2012, but says this year the company lowered its price to about $5.50 a pound. He said he could have kept things going, but the drop in price — along with the cost of labor and arrival o", "When you think of saffron, dark red strands from Spain or Iran may come to mind. But the delicate spice, one of the most expensive and labor-intensive in the world, grows well in another country long plagued by conflict: Afghanistan. Rumi Spice, a small, enterprising company in Brighton, Mass., is trying to build an Afghan saffron connection for lovers of the spice in the U.S., and cultivate peace through trade. Behind Rumi Spice is a group of veterans who served in Afghanistan who are now business school students, a lawyer, an Afghan water specialist and farmers the vets met while serving there. The idea for the fledgling company came about in March 2013, when Army veteran Kimberly Jung was chatting with a fellow vet named Keith Alaniz. Alaniz told her about how when serving in Afghanistan, he met a local saffron farmer who had a warehouse full of the valuable spice, with no buyers lined up overseas. \"I was very surprised to find out it grows the best in the climates of Afghanistan with hot winds and dry climate,\" Jung tells The Salt. \"So, I immediately thought, hey, this could be an awesome business opportunity.\" Jung and Alaniz teamed up with four others, and the six realized that if they could create a viable market for saffron in the U.S., they could also transform saffron into a cash crop that might one day replace poppy, the crop used to make opium that helps fund the Taliban. \"Without investment in agriculture, Afghan farmers have little prospects with shrinking land allotments - making them susceptible to the Taliban,\" the group's website reads. \"Rumi Spice strives to change this dynamic.\" Saffron ranges wildly in price, but on average goes for about $15 a gram, or $1,500 a pound. Despite that high price, the typical Afghan saffron grower earns just $400 to $600 annually. Rumi Spice says it expects it can help small-scale farmers triple their income through fair-trade tactics of cutting out the middle men. The company says it will also reinvest at least 10 percent of profits back into infrastructure, like processing facilities and machines, which Jung says represents a continuation of the civil affairs and infrastructural development work she began as a soldier. \"This was a very natural extension of what I thought we needed to be doing in Afghanistan,\" says Jung. In July 2013, Jung hand-carried their first shipment of saffron directly from the farmers in Herat and Wardak Provinces all the way back to the U.S. During the early stages of Rumi Spice, Jung drove around in her car peddling saffron to local farmers markets and gourmet shops in the Boston area. \"For me that's my target market, my target channel – boutique and gourmet grocers, for people who care where and who picks their food and how these people are treated,\" says Jung. Rumi Spice now sells to three towns in Massachusetts: Brookline, Lexington and Cambridge. Abbdul Shakoor Ehrarri is a water specialist based in Herat, Afghanistan who facilitates growing and agricultural operations for Rumi Spice. He says he sees this is an opportunity to help local farmers in his country and ensure they receive fair value for their hard work. \"Since I heard that [Rumi Spice] was planning to work with the farmers I was really excited because nowadays the farmers are poor,\" says Ehrarri. Growing saffron requires a lot of land, and a lot of labor for hand-harvesting. Each saffron flower has three stigmas, and it takes around 200,000 stigmas to get one pound of saffron. The high value and limited supply have also helped create varying levels of quality, as well as a market for counterfeit saffron. \"You have no idea where it comes from, and they give you all kinds of certifications that I don't trust, and that's the story of most of the saffron in the world,\" said Philippe De Vienne, a professional spice hunter and CEO of Epices De Cru, a Montreal-based spice company. \"Meeting Rumi, it was like 'Wow, somebody opened a window and let some fresh air into the house!' \" Rumi Spice's saffron has a feel-good story, but it's also a consistently high-quality product, says De Vienne. \"The color is beautiful, the flavor is exceptional,\" he says. \"You can see the craftsmanship in every stem of saffron ... it's 100 percent the right kind of stigma and it's top quality.\" However, more than having the right shape, look and color what really counts is the smell and taste, says De Vienne. Rumi Spice has begun selling their saffron online, following the late-November harvest. James Clark is a visuals intern at NPR and a former Marine.", "Throughout April and May, U.S. farmers faced floods, tornadoes, downpours and droughts — all of which made planting difficult. Now in June, intense heat has been sweeping over much of the country. The harsh weather likely will reduce the fall's harvest, according to a new report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. That, in turn, could further drive up grocery prices for consumers. \"Farmers had everything thrown at them\" by Mother Nature this spring, USDA economist Gerald Bange said. \"Excessive rains led to planting delays, and then some of what was already planted actually got flooded.\" The violent storms and persistent rains were especially challenging for Midwestern farmers who needed to get their corn crops planted by mid-May to maximize the harvest, Bange said. The USDA has reduced its June estimate of planted corn acres by 1.5 million acres, down from its March \"planting intentions\" survey to 90.7 million acres. That means U.S. farmers are on track to produce 13.2 billion bushels this year, down 305 million bushels from the May estimate. Bange said the harvest should be a record, but still will be too small to meet the record demand. \"We are seeing very, very strong demand for corn for bio-energy, livestock feed input and export,\" he said. Prices have been shooting up along with the surging demand. The cash price of a bushel is now at $7.75, up from $3.20 at this time last year. Some analysts expect the price to keep climbing to $9. All of that could have a big — and bad — impact on consumers. Economists are predicting meat prices will rise 7 percent this year. And that would hurt consumers, who already have seen the average price per pound of beef rise 8 percent over the past year, according to data compiled by the National Cattlemen's Beef Association. The problem of rising prices is not confined to corn-fed beef. In fact, most food prices are trending up. This past week, the American Farm Bureau Federation released its spring Market Basket survey of 16 common food items purchased at supermarkets. It found that on average, prices were 8 percent higher than one year ago. A number of food companies, including Kraft, Kellogg, Sara Lee and Smucker, have raised prices to keep up with the surge in the cost of ingredients like corn, oats, coffee and so on. Many restaurants, including McDonald's, also have raised prices. But Bange noted that food price increases reflect much more than just the Midwestern flooding and the Southwestern drought. The trend toward higher prices has been in place for months — and is a global phenomenon. A United Nations report issued last week showed that global food prices have been unusually high this year. The U.N.'s global price index for meat hit a record high in May. The U.N. blamed bad weather, high oil prices, the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, and export policies that restrict the flow of food. But the single biggest factor is soaring demand for food as the world gets more crowded. Inventories of food stocks of all sorts are quite low all over the world, according to Ben Grossman-Cohen, a spokesman for Oxfam America, an international relief and development organization. The tight inventories keep prices high, making it hard for poor people to eat. \"About a billion people go hungry every day because they can't afford to grow or buy enough food,\" he said. On June 22-23, the agriculture ministers of the so-called G-20 — a group of the world's biggest countries — will meet in Paris to discuss food issues. They are planning to launch an initiative called the \"Agriculture Market Information System.\" This system would push countries to more honestly report on agriculture. For example, China has always been secretive about its stocks of food. So if China signs on, it would start to release more data about its food inventories and consumption. The agriculture ministers say transparency is important. If countries had a clearer idea of what crops were being planted and how they were coming along, then officials could respond more quickly in a coordinated way whenever they see food shortages developing. More crop information also would cut down on price speculation. JACKI LYDEN: Throughout the spring, U.S. farmers faced floods, tornados, downpours and droughts - everything but locusts. All of that bad weather made planting difficult. Now in June, intense heat has been sweeping over much of the country. The wild weather has been helping drive up food prices. This past week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said the delay in spring planting could reduce the size of the fall corn harvest. Here to talk about the anxiety growing from farm to table is NPR's senior business editor Marilyn Geewax. Welcome, Marilyn. MARILYN GEEWAX: Hi, Jackie. LYDEN: So what is the USDA saying about this year's corn crop? GEEWAX: Agriculture officials started the year being pretty optimistic about how much corn American farmers would be able to produce this year. But then so much of the country got ", "In most coffee shops, you can choose a cup of joe brewed with beans from countries like Ethiopia, Colombia, Costa Rica and Yemen. Now, a new crop of coffee growers is working to get coffee brewed from California-grown beans included on those menus. When Mark Gaskell moved to California after working in coffee-growing regions in Central America, he noticed coffee plants growing in gardens and wondered if large-scale production was an option. In 2001, Gaskell, farm advisor for the University of California Cooperative Extension, established transplants and discovered that the sub-tropical plants could thrive in the Golden State. He recruited Jay Ruskey of Good Land Organics to help with trials, hoping coffee could be a valuable niche crop to help sustain small farms. Ruskey started growing coffee in 2002 on his Santa Barbara, Calif., farm and quickly became a passionate coffee farmer. \"We learned that we had the ability to grow very good coffee with a very unique flavor,\" Ruskey explains. \"There is a misconception that you can't grow coffee outside the Tropic of Cancer.\" Local farmers embraced the idea of California coffee and started planting their own crops. The burgeoning state industry now boasts 30 farms growing more than 30,000 coffee trees, according to the University of California's Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources. At least two dozen more farms are expected to begin growing coffee in 2018. Although coffee farms are scattered throughout California, the biggest concentrations are in Santa Barbara and San Diego counties. Most of the farms are fewer than five years old and their beans are just starting to mature. As that happens, Gaskell expects production to double year over year. \"The California coffee industry is growing very quickly,\" he says. Ruskey founded Frinj Coffee to supply plant materials, provide post-harvest processing and manage sales of California coffee. Last year, the 24-member coffee cooperative harvested 250 pounds of beans. Blue Bottle Coffee purchased the entire crop. Blue Bottle coffee buyer Charlie Habegger paid a premium for the beans — $60 per pound compared with $20 per pound for Hawaiian-grown beans and $5 per pound (or less) for coffee beans imported from Ethiopia — and introduced it in cafes in California, New York, Boston, Miami and Washington, D.C. A single cup sold for $18. The coffee sold out within two weeks. Ruskey visited four different Blue Bottle cafes before finding a location where California coffee was still available. \"Curiosity was the number one factor that made people want to try it,\" Habegger says. \"Having coffee produced in [mainland] America is almost too good to believe.\" The price might seem steep — especially given that a tall Pike Place Roast at Starbucks retails for $1.50 — but it's not the most expensive coffee on the market. Hacienda La Esmeralda made headlines last year when it sold for $601 per pound at auction, the highest price ever paid for green coffee. Klatch Coffee in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., sold the record-breaking coffee for $55 per cup. Even Starbucks has introduced premium-priced coffees. Some brews from Starbucks Reserve, a collection of rare, small-batch coffees served in its special reserve stores in Seattle, New York, Chicago, Milan, Tokyo and Shanghai, reportedly retail for $10 per cup. Thanks to higher costs for land and labor in California, Habegger notes that the profit margins on a pound of coffee are the same in California as conventional coffee-growing regions like Ethiopia and Mexico, where production costs are much lower. The rationale doesn't prevent sticker shock. \"To people that are used to drinking cheap coffee, it might seem like an abomination,\" he says. \"But, relative to all of the other things we're willing to spend $18 on — like a glass of wine or small-batch bourbon — investing in the memorable flavor experience of a great cup of coffee is worth it.\" The California farmers growing coffee think it's worth it, too. Avocado growers like Andy Mullins of Mullins Family Farm in Temecula are among the most enthusiastic coffee farmers. Mullins planted 1,000 coffee trees under the canopies of the avocado trees on his 4-acre farm. The fertilizer and irrigation needs of both crops are the same, but coffee produces a superior profit. Farmers earn about 37 cents per pound of avocados, according to the California Avocado Commission. \"Specialty coffee sells for $60 to $600 per pound; there is not another specialty crop that produces that kind of result,\" he explains. \"The market has embraced a retail price that has allowed coffee production in California.\" Even though the number of California coffee growers is expanding rapidly, Gaskell is confident that the drink's continued status as a specialty crop will keep prices stable for farmers. \"The market is so huge compared to the volume we have,\" he says. \"It's going to be a very long time before we can even begin to meet the demand.\" Jodi Helmer is a North Carolina jo", "It's still too early to predict whether the 2012 corn harvest will set a record, but many corn farmers say the prognosis for a bumper crop is looking pretty good right now. U.S. farmers are planting more acres of corn this year than they have in any year since the Great Depression. And with a mild spring across much of the nation's Corn Belt, many are hoping this autumn's yield will be one for the record books. A Crop That 'Will Knock Your Socks Off' Bill Couser, who grows crops and raises cattle near the central Iowa town of Nevada, is optimistic. \"This corn crop will knock your socks off, if all the stars line up and the good Lord gives us that blessing,\" he says. Dressed in black overalls, Couser trudges through a field dotted with remnants of last year's corn stalks, inspecting the tiny leaves that are beginning to poke through the dark soil. \"You can just start seeing everything kinda poppin' up through,\" he says. Thanks to a mild spring, Couser's planting has moved along quickly — as it has for many corn growers in the region. But after decades of farming, Couser, 57, says he knows better than to get too excited just yet. All manner of factors could still affect his crop, from droughts and floods to pests and disease. But starting early can help give farmers an edge. Paul Bertels, an economist at the National Corn Growers Association, says early planting gives the crops more time to grow before they must contend with the Midwest's midsummer scorchers. \"The sooner you get the crop in — provided you don't have a cold snap — you'll actually get that plant through pollination before the real heat of the summer,\" Bertels says. Planting Earlier, Planting More Corn growers nationwide are planting at about twice the rate of a typical year. More than half of this year's crop is already in the ground. But earlier planting is only one reason for corn's sunny outlook. There's far more planting going on as well. The U.S. Department of Agriculture says farmers intend to plant nearly 96 million acres of corn in 2012 — 3.9 million more than last year, and almost 10 million more than in 2009, the year that yielded the nation's biggest harvest yet. If growers follow through on their current plans, the nation would have the most acres planted with corn since 1937. And better seeds and improved farming methods mean yields are much higher today than in the 1930s. All of this means that growers are likely looking at what could be a bumper crop. While Iowa farmer Couser is optimistic, he also worries about the potential downside. A banner crop could suppress prices, while the cost of farming holds steady. \"Farmers are their [own] worst enemies, because ... we always do what we do best, and that's overproduce,\" Couser says. \"If we have more corn than we can use in ethanol, what will we do with that corn?\" Worldwide Demand High But Chad Hart, an economist and grain marketing specialist with Iowa State University Extension, is not overly concerned about prices. He predicts a banner crop would likely push prices down a dollar or so below the current price of more than $6 a bushel. But even so, he says, that would still be better for farmers than the $2 to $3 that corn was fetching as recently as the mid-2000s. Nor does Hart expect a shortage of buyers, thanks to growing global demand. \"We've seen ethanol demand really take off over the past five years,\" Hart says. \"We're also starting to see export demand, specifically to the Pacific Rim. So as long as that demand for the crop continues to build as quickly as our yield increases grow, that can help maintain prices at a fairly healthy level.\" Healthy prices and a healthy crop could mean the stars Couser mentioned may indeed align for corn farmers this year. But as any farmer will tell you, never count your bushels before they're harvested. ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST: Across America's corn belt, farmers are hoping this fall's harvest will be one for the record books. Iowa Public Radio's Sarah McCammon reports that planting season is off to a strong start and farmers say they're putting in more acres of corn than they have since the Great Depression. SARAH MCCAMMON, BYLINE: It's too early to predict whether this year's harvest will set a record, but it's looking pretty good right now. BILL COUSER: This corn crop will knock your socks off if all the stars line up and the good Lord gives us that blessing. MCCAMMON: That's Bill Couser. He grows crops and raises cattle near Nevada in central Iowa. Dressed in black overalls, he trudges through a field dotted with remnants of last year's cornstalks and inspects the tiny leaves that are beginning to poke through the dark soil. COUSER: But, anyway, you see this one is just - you can just start seeing everything kind of popping up through, so you know, by fall... MCCAMMON: Like lots of corn growers here, Couser's planting has moved along quickly, thanks to a mild spring, but at 57 and after decades of farming, Couser knows better than to get too", "In southern Bangladesh, bright green rice paddies stretch into the distance. But in the village of Gholgholia, rice in one paddy grows unevenly. The leaves are dry and brown. And there are bald patches between clumps, like the agricultural equivalent of a slightly mangy dog. This is the result of salty soil. Sometimes it's so hard to coax rice into growing in the soil that farmers leave fields fallow. Climate change is one reason farmland in Bangladesh is becoming increasingly saline. This is especially the case in the coastal south, which was traditionally the country's rice basket. Across the country, hundreds of thousands of acres of land lay fallow. Production of rice and other salt-sensitive crops, such as potato and mustard, has decreased. \"A lot of land is fallow because of salinity,\" said Timothy Russell, head of the Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia, or CSISA, in Bangladesh. Russell says there's a potential fix for the problem: Plant a variety of rice that's naturally resistant to salty soil. \"If you can bring in salt-tolerant rice or other salt-tolerant crops, like sunflower, you can utilize the land,\" Russell says. \"That's the dream.\" And it's slowly becoming a reality. Since 2011, about 180,000 farmers have received saline-tolerant rice seeds and training on how to grow them. It's part of a program sponsored by three nonprofits: the International Rice Research Institute, the World Fish Center and the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center. Bangladesh is the world's sixth-largest rice producer. Rice accounts for 70 percent of calories consumed by its population of 160 million. Agriculture that can withstand climatic threats is especially important in Bangladesh. The country is a low-lying river delta and thus is vulnerable to floods and violent storms. It is also one of the world's most densely populated countries: Imagine more than half the U.S. population crammed into an area the size of Iowa. Scientists at the Bangladesh Rice Research Institute created the new varieties by crossbreeding rice varieties that were already naturally resistant to salty soil. So they're not genetically modified plants. The seeds are free for farmers, but many are reluctant to try new plants. So, agricultural scientists from the CSISA grow the rice on test plots to show farmers techniques for growing the varieties — and how well they fare even in poor soil. \"The first adopters of new varieties and crops will be the wealthier farmers who can afford to take risks,\" Russell says. \"Less wealthy farmers will watch and wait. If the experiment works out well, they will follow.\" The education process is important. Salinity can vary in adjacent fields or even within fields due to elevation, rainfall and exposure to salt water from nearby rivers. Different varieties of salt-resistant rice can grow in varying degrees of salinity. Although climate change has likely contributed to the rise in salty soil in Bangladesh, shrimp farming is also to blame. Shrimp farmers use salty river-fed canals to fill ponds separated by dirt embankments. The business is lucrative and has become popular in Bangladesh over the past decades. But it's risky for farmers to rely just on shrimp farming, says Mohammed Harunur Rashid, a scientist with the Bangladesh Rice Research Institute. Disease can wipe out a whole farm. So the salt-resistant rice allows some farmers to alternate between cultivating shrimp and growing rice. A few miles down the road from Gholgholia, barefoot farmers paused from harvesting golden fields of salt-resistant rice in the village of Patrakhola. Din Mohammed, a 42-year-old farmer, estimated his rice yield dropped by a third because of increased salinity after Cyclone Aila in 2009. The storm broke near river embankments and flooded the village's precious farmland with salty water. But the new variety yields more rice, he says. Mohammed has also started planting sunflowers in the same field after he harvests rice. Sunflowers naturally tolerate salty conditions, and the crop is new and experimental in Bangladesh. Through a pilot program, about 800 farmers are growing sunflowers that can be turned into cooking oil. In a harvested section of a field in Patrakhola, the ground was covered with flattened husks after farmers harvested rice. Before, this land would have lain fallow for months until the next rice planting. But sunflower seedlings now poked up between matted husks and sprouted a few green leaves. Within months, sunflowers would stand 4 feet tall and create a new landscape of vibrant yellow instead of fallow brown soil. This story was supported by a grant from the Solutions Journalism Network, an organization dedicated to reporting about responses to social problems.", "Nutmeg, cinnamon and cloves are probably ramping up in importance in your spice cabinet right about now — the classic flavors of the winter season. But while you might be shopping for local ingredients for your favorite recipes for eggnog or maple-glazed ham, the odds are that the spices you're using were imported from the other side of the world. Lior Lev Sercarz thinks spices should be local, too. As owner of La Boite, a spice store in Manhattan that creates blends for chefs and home cooks, Lev Sercarz travels far and wide in search of the best spices. \"Spices tell the story of the world,\" he says. \"There's a reason why good spices are good — they are the flavors of the regions that they come from and they also support that economy.\" Nowhere is the demand for spices more evident than in the United States, which leads the world in both consumption and imports. A U.S. Department of Agriculture report showed that Americans have dramatically embraced spices over the past 50 years: Per capita spice consumption in 1966 was 1.2 pounds annually, while that figure more than tripled by 2015 to 3.7 pounds. Clearly, Americans think spice is nice, but how robust are our taste buds? Vanilla beans, pepper — black, white and chili — sesame seed, cinnamon, mustard and oregano are the most common spice imports in the U.S., and there has been an uptick in cumin, paprika and turmeric in recent years. Lev Sercarz sees a public that is gaining appreciation for an expanded menu of global foods, from Indian to Korean to Ethiopian, but it comes at a cost. \"We don't really grow spices in the United States,\" says Lev Sercarz. \"Not because we can't, but because big agriculture is more focused on things like corn and soybeans. So we import from other countries and we pay a price for that.\" One example is sesame seeds: Despite the fact that we do actually grow some sesame seeds in the U.S., they are primarily grown for export, so we remain one of the world's top importers of sesame seeds. Think about that the next time you breakfast on a sesame seed bagel. Cheryl Deem, executive director of the American Spice Trade Association, has some doubts about the possibility of growing more kinds of spices in the U.S. \"Most spices are grown outside of the U.S. because they require tropical or subtropical climates in which to grow, which for the most part cannot be found in the U.S. It's really a practical matter.\" She points out that dried chili peppers are grown in the Southwest and dehydrated onion and garlic are grown in California and Oregon, although recent California droughts have affected garlic production, giving Chinese garlic growers an edge. Lev Sercarz disagrees somewhat, noting that coriander, mustard, ginger, galangal and paprika are all crops that should be able to grow and thrive in the U.S. And a group of researchers in Vermont certainly thinks that there's at least one spice crop that American farmers might want to consider growing: saffron. Margaret Skinner, an entomologist and research professor at the North American Center for Saffron Research and Development at the University of Vermont, believes that crop diversification is essential to the survival of small family farms. So she and her colleagues have been active in developing ways for farmers to grow saffron. \"This is a very high-value crop that is harvested in the late fall, when much of the field work is done for many farmers, especially those growing vegetables,\" Skinner says. \"Spice production is a natural extension from traditional vegetable production and is likely the most logical way it will be increased.\" After attending a University of Vermont Extension meeting last winter, Patti Padua, who owns Cobble Creek Nursery in Monkton, Vt., with her husband, John, was enthusiastic about giving saffron growing a try. \"We purchased 2,500 corms [bulbs] from Holland and planted them in beds in late August of this year. Our first harvest was this October,\" she says. That harvest was a bit of a disappointment, with a yield of about 150 stigma (the part of a plant where pollen germinates), but Padua is undaunted. \"There was a learning curve on drying, and I think we finally got it right by using a food dehydrator, where we can dry at a low temperature. Harvesting went well and the processing is a pleasant and doable task.\" She thinks the income potential is worth the trial and error, especially because there isn't a big investment up front and the dried saffron is easy to store. While Padua says that she has quite a few retired women friends who are interested in helping to process the next saffron crop, which could be in the range of 2,500 flowers whose stigmas have to be hand-plucked, ASTA's Deem stresses that labor costs are probably a major factor in why spice farming has never taken off in the U.S. \"It is assumed that Vermont-grown saffron would be more expensive, perhaps significantly so, because of labor costs. The issue for the industry then is whether the quality an", "In south Texas, this was going to be one of the best years farmers had seen in a while. The cotton crop was projected to bring in record prices and even clear out many families' debts. But the massive rainfall, winds and a slow drying-out process from Harvey have left many farmers overwhelmed and worried. That includes people like Dave Murrell, whom I meet at AL-T's Seafood and Steakhouse, a Cajun restaurant in Winnie, Texas, a rural town about an hour east of Houston. The place is packed, even though lunchtime has long come and gone. No one is in a hurry to get back to their fields — they can't. They're flooded. Murrell says nearly 400 acres of his rice are totally submerged. \"There is not much we can do,\" says Murrell. \"We are still waiting for the water to go down so [that] by road we can get into these fields. Our roads cross a gulley out at the farm and the water is still too deep for us to get through it.\" Luckily, Murrell had just harvested some of his rice before Harvey dumped nearly 50 inches here. But fourth-generation cattle and rice farmer Gerald Bauer decided to bring his cows in first, then cut his rice crop. Unfortunately, he says, he miscalculated by one week. In \"a normal year, we're fine,\" he says. \"But Mother Nature decided we were late this year.\" Adam Leger, who runs an aerial fumigation service with his brother, says they won't know for weeks if any of their equipment is salvageable. Four of his crop dusters are under water at the local airport. \"I've never seen it — nothing like this,\" Leger says. \"I don't think anybody in here has seen it.\" It will take months, maybe even a full year, to get final figures on Texas' agricultural losses to Harvey. But Gene Hall of the Texas Farm Bureau says he's done some back-of-the-envelope calculations. Roughly, Hall says just looking at cotton, Texas's No. 2 product, farmers lost at least a fifth of the crop. \"We think that it could be as much as $135 million\" in cotton losses, he says. And Hall says for rice farmers, 20 percent of their crops are still stuck in the ground. Rice farmer John Gaulding pulls on tall rubber boats up to his knees to get through the water – about 8 inches tall — still filling his fields in Hamshire, Texas, about 9 miles outside of Winnie. At its worst, he says, the water was as high as 30-36 inches. Gaulding, who's 71 and took over the rice business from his father, faces a frustrating situation. Rice stalks sit atop his plants, ready for harvest. With each passing day, though, the kernels get drier and drier, while the bottom of the plant remains flooded — too wet to bring in any machinery. \"The sad thing is that out of all the fields we've harvested, this is a new variety to us and it had the potential to be our highest-yielding,\" Gaulding says. And unlike other rice producers who will plant a second crop later in the year, Gaulding farms crawfish on this field. The small crustaceans burrowed into the ground to hibernate. He won't know whether they survived and will reemerge until next spring, possibly adding to his losses. Farmers in Texas say they feel like the rural families and businesses have been forgotten in the rush to help the cities, especially Houston. They're even more worried they'll be left behind as attention turns to south Florida and Hurricane Irma's likely arrival in a few days. Right now everyone here is just trying to be patient, like Marcia Bauer, who owns Texas Salt Grass, the local feed store in Winnie. She says half of her monthly income is from credit she gives out. \"And it's not just me that is being affected. Because we are such a small rural community, a lot of the businesses carry the farmers,\" Bauer says. She sent out her statements the day before the town flooded. Hopefully, she says, the farmers finally got her bill — now that mail service is back up and running.", "Hummus is having a heyday with American consumers, and that could be as good for the soil as it is for our health. Formerly relegated to the snack aisle in U.S. grocery stores, the chickpea-based dip has long starred as the smooth centerpiece of Middle Eastern meals and, increasingly, plant-based diets. Occasionally, it even doubles as dessert. Last year, Americans spent four times as much money on grocery store hummus as they did a decade before, according to the latest consumer surveys, and a growing number of snacks and fast-casual concepts also feature the fiber- and protein-rich chickpea as their pièce de résistance. Part of a subcategory of legumes called pulses, chickpeas — along with lentils, dry peas and several varieties of beans — have been a critical crop and foodstuff for centuries in Middle Eastern and Asian countries. The crops are so promising that the United Nations deemed 2016 the Year of Pulses to expand interest in these ancient foods and their potential to help solve dueling modern-day conundrums: hunger and soil depreciation. Some American farmers were already well on their way to embracing pulses, seeing the role they could play in improving soil health and setting the stage for better harvests of cash crops like wheat. Last year, U.S. farmers planted more chickpeas than ever to satisfy growing demand for plant-based protein alternatives — which, in turn, could help restore soils depleted by decades of intensive farming. Unlike corn or wheat, these pulses fix their own nitrogen from the atmosphere, leaving extra stores of the nutrient in the soil for future crops to consume. For this reason, pulses can play a vital role in crop rotations, especially those that don't rely on chemical fertilizers. What's more, if managed well, these crops can be part of a farming system that sequesters carbon from the atmosphere and helps mitigate climate change. \"I see this diversification and these legumes as a way to get away from the use of synthetic nitrogen,\" says Casey Bailey, a farmer in Fort Benton, Mont., who grows organic chickpeas as the linchpin of a rotational planting program. \"They're a tricky crop to grow, but I'm a huge proponent of trying to figure out how to do it.\" He sells about 2,000 pounds of chickpeas each month to Little Sesame, a fast-casual concept serving hummus bowls topped with seasonal vegetables at a pair of locations in the District of Columbia. Chef-owners Nick Wiseman and Israeli-born Ronen Tenne soak the dried chickpeas for hours before cooking and blending them (with tahini, garlic, olive oil and lemon juice) into daily batches to satiate the city's lunch and after-work crowds — often without adding meat. \"We don't say it much, but 80% of the menu is always vegan,\" Wiseman says. \"It's awesome to see people who would probably eat meat every day come in here and be satisfied without it.\" For Wiseman, the cherry on top of opening a second location this year is getting to buy more kabuli chickpeas from Bailey, whom he'll visit this summer during a road trip in Little Sesame's 1978 Volkswagen van. Creating markets for such legumes — particularly those grown without chemicals such as desiccants used to dry chickpeas in the fields — is a growing interest for Wiseman. \"These (chickpeas) are helping restore the grasslands of the West, which are this huge carbon sink,\" Wiseman says over a bowl of hummus topped with snap peas and Aleppo chili oil at his Chinatown location. \"They're a very powerful plant.\" Bailey planted his first few hundred acres of chickpeas a dozen years ago, after a retailer looking to sell more of the healthful legumes reached out to him on LinkedIn, making him a pioneer in Montana's grain-heavy Golden Triangle region. But word was spreading that the chickpea could pull in more money per pound than other legumes, while reducing the need for chemical inputs compared with crops like wheat. When Tim McGreevy started working in 1994 as the CEO of the USA Dry Pea & Lentil Council and the American Pulse Association — a trade group that trumpets the power of chickpeas, lentils, dry peas and beans — the country was harvesting about 30,000 acres of chickpeas annually, primarily in the hilly Palouse agricultural region of Washington, Idaho and Oregon. By last year, that number had swelled to 859,000 acres. \"That's a pretty big difference in 25 years,\" says McGreevy, who also grows chickpeas on a small farm in Eastern Washington. Last year in particular, Bailey says, \"it seemed like the entire state of Montana was chickpeas.\" While about half of the country's chickpea harvest is still shipped overseas, a growing number of chickpeas are going to domestic markets as demand increases. Trade disputes also are making international markets less reliable. In 2019, U.S. farmers reduced for the first time in years the number of acres they planned to plant in chickpeas, down to 519,000 acres. Volatile trade riffs with countries such as India in 2018 left much of that year's h", "Last summer, the Colorado Legislature passed some of the toughest anti-illegal immigration laws in the country. The result? The farm workers who usually migrate into the state to tend the fields didn't come back. Now farmers, desperate for help, are turning to the Colorado Department of Corrections. Near Pueblo, Colo., there are entire fields of dried out pumpkins that were left on the ground to rot last fall because there was no one to pick them. And it wasn't just pumpkins; chilis were left, too. State Rep. Dorothy Butcher, a Democrat elected from the Pueblo area, said, \"We have the best green chili in the United States — maybe in the Western hemisphere.\" Butcher has heard plenty of complaints from farmers. She said she thought of using prisoners for harvest work while driving past the state prison complex, where one can see huge fields tended by prisoners \"As I was coming through Canon City one night — coming back from Salida – I thought to myself, 'Here's the answer. These guys know how to do farm work. So, we should get them to help the farmers,'\" she said. If black-and-white striped shirts and leg irons come to mind, it's really nothing like that. Colorado's Department of Corrections has all sorts of businesses: There's a dairy and a metal shop, and prisoners even arrange flowers for weddings. Inmates volunteer for the jobs, and they can make a couple hundred dollars a month. Typically, there are more applicants than jobs available. In Pueblo County, the winter is over, and tractors are preparing the fields for new crops. Phil Prutch, who farms in Avondale, Colo., said about half his workers are missing. \"For this year, I know I'm going to cut back on a lot of my produce for the simple reason — I don't know what labor's going to be available out there. And there's no sense in putting all the money in a crop [if I] can't harvest it,\" he said. The consequences could be bigger than a one-year loss in revenue. Prutch said he could lose some longtime customers. \"If they can find another supplier, and he does a good job for them, they'll just stick with him, and you lose them forever,\" he said. Prutch said he'll try employing inmates, but he has reservations. His regular workers know what they're doing, he said. The prisoners will require training. And he's not sure the inmates will work as efficiently, so it may end up costing more to harvest the produce than it's worth. But he doesn't have other options. \"It's not a fix to the problem,\" he said. \"The federal government needs to, you know, get off their heinies and get something done, get this guest-work program flying.\" President Bush and some members of Congress have pushed for a program that would import workers, then send them home at the end of the harvest season. But there's been no progress on that. Arturo Rodriguez heads United Farm Workers. He says the worker shortage in Colorado is unique, and he's convinced the state's crackdown on illegal immigration is to blame. \"There's still enough workers available here in California,\" Rodriguez said. \"And then you have the state of Arizona—same thing—there are sufficient number of workers there to pick those crops.\" Rodriguez predicts Colorado's experiment with prison labor won't succeed because inmates aren't used to this kind of hard work. On top of that, he says, assuming that prisoners can replace farm workers is offensive. \"You wouldn't have inmates go work on Wall Street or work on the computers,\" he said. \"Those people have skills they've developed, and they know how to do their work — same thing with farm workers.\" But there've been only a few vocal critics of the plan. The Colorado Department of Corrections expects to have its first crew out in fields at the beginning of May. ROBERT SIEGEL, host: Colorado's crackdown on illegal immigration has led to a dire shortage of farm workers. Last summer, the Colorado legislature passed some of the toughest anti-illegal immigration laws in the country, so many farm workers who usually migrate to the state to tend the fields just didn't come back. NPR's Jeff Brady reports that Colorado farmers are turning to the Colorado Department of Corrections for help. JEFF BRADY: Farmers began noticing something different last fall, when migrant workers who had been coming year after year said they wouldn't be back for the harvest season. Near Pueblo, Colorado, there are entire fields of dried out pumpkins that were left on the ground to rot because there was no one to pick them. And it wasn't just pumpkins - chilies were left too. State Representative DOROTHY BUTCHER (Democrat, Colorado): And we have the best green chili in the United States, maybe in the Western hemisphere, I don't know. BRADY: That's Dorothy Butcher. She's the representative from this area in the Colorado legislature, and she's heard plenty of complaints from farmers. She says the solution came to her while driving past the state prison complex, where you can see huge fields tended by ", "Lashkar Gah is the capital of the volatile province that alone grows half of Afghanistan's opium poppy. Cultivation here grew by 34 percent over last year. On Fridays, hundreds of men gather at the bazaar along the Helmand River, the lifeblood of this arid province. Vendors sell everything from livestock to boxes of artisanal medicine. There's no sign of poppy here. In fact, the farmers we talk to like 26-year-old Khairullah, who goes by one name, say they are actually too poor to grow it. \"It requires a lot of effort to grow, and you have to wait a long time to harvest,\" he says. Khariullah says he barely gets by growing legal crops and he can't afford the extra labor and risk to cultivate poppy. Others here agree, adding that poppy is the main source of insecurity. But, it's not hard to find farmers who do grow it. We drive across the city and down a quiet residential street of tan brick compounds. We stop and 27-year-old Abdullah hops in the car. It's not safe to visit his village, so he came to the city to meet us. Abdullah says his family has been farming opium poppies for more than 20 years. He says they can't make a living any other way. \"The major source of income for people in Helmand is opium,\" he says. Abdullah says his family grows about 150 pounds and make about $9,000 a year, which is four times what they can make from any other crop. \"We understand that opium is bad,\" he says. \"All drugs are bad. But, it's difficult for us seeing a neighbor with a new car when we are riding bicycles. So, we have to do this to have a better life.\" Abdullah admits it's a gamble. One year, he had a crop that was chest-high and ready for harvesting. He went to town one morning, and when he came home, the field had been leveled by the government workers eradicating opium poppies. Abdullah, who is attending law school and hopes to someday get out of the poppy business, says this year's harvest was excellent. A United Nations report released Wednesday confirms Abdullah's assessment. The report said opium poppy cultivation hit a record level this year despite the ongoing efforts by Western countries and the Afghan government to reduce production and find alternatives for farmers. Few Options For Farmers About six miles outside of Lashkar Gah, past brown fields and mud houses, is the government compound of Nad Ali district. Fifteen Afghan farmers with creased, leathery faces sit in the meeting hall. Sharifullah, who also gives only one name, says that in addition to corn, cotton, and potatoes, they also grow opium, which the farmers don't hesitate to admit in front of government officials. \"That is because for the rest of our product we have no market,\" he says. \"We can't export [our crops] and get a good price for them. We can't even sustain our families.\" Sharifullah says they don't grow opium in the district, but rather on the outskirts in the desert. \"This is a very wide area for the government to eradicate it completely,\" he says. Sharifullah says that they all grow small amounts – about 10 to 50 pounds — and small teams of middlemen come to their farms to collect their crops. The Taliban, who make hundreds of millions on the poppy trade, levy taxes on Afghan farmers. \"In the past two years we haven't grown any opium because the government gave us [the alternative of] cotton at a high price,\" he says. But, he says the government didn't show up to buy their cotton at the subsidized price, so they have returned to growing opium. Limited Government Resources Nad Ali District Governor Mohammed Ibrahim doesn't deny that. He says the government can't provide subsidies to all the small farmers in the district. Plus, a multi-million dollar program funded by the international community to provide seeds and fertilizer to farmers in Helmand has ended. So, Ibrahim says they now focus on promoting awareness. \"We have been holding campaigns, gathering people into mosques and centers and telling them if they grow poppy, they will lose,\" he says. Ibrahim says he's also been focused on getting construction projects in the district to create new jobs. But, many of the farmers here believe the government isn't really serious about counter-narcotics. \"The farmer's not able to say, 'OK, please help me out here,' because the governance structures continue to be weak,\" says Ken Yamashita, director for assistance and field operations at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul. He says there isn't a simple solution to the poppy problem because it's tied to the larger illicit economy in Afghanistan. He and other officials say this is a long-term challenge that requires reforms within a number of government agencies that will easily take 10 to 15 years. NATO Prepares To Leave Jean Luc Lemahieu, head of the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime in Afghanistan, agrees. On a sunny fall morning in Kabul, Lemahieu and a host of Afghan and western officials gather for the ceremonial burning of some 20 tons of drugs and alcohol seized by Afghan law enforcement. It's ", "Lately, the news from Yemen has been dominated by an escalating rebellion along the border with Saudi Arabia. But for water experts, Yemen has been making news for decades because of its severe overuse of a rapidly disappearing water supply. In 1998, Abdul Rahman al-Eryani was a young local aid worker explaining the desperate water situation in Ta'iz, south of the capital, San'a. Water was so scarce that some households only had it once every six weeks. Eleven years later, Eryani is now the Yemeni government minister of water and environment, Ta'iz residents are still waiting six weeks for water to flow from the tap, and in San'a, the situation has gone from bad to looming disaster. \"We are in crisis. And this is expected. ... We are using almost 100 percent more than the annual renewable water that's available in San'a,\" Eryani says. The alluvial aquifers closer to the surface have been exhausted, and drill bits must now chew through more than 3,000 feet of earth before reaching the ancient sandstone aquifer that holds what Eryani believes is the last of San'a's reachable underground supply. No one knows precisely when the water supply will run out, but there's no doubt that it will, and probably sooner rather than later. Yemenis are responding by drilling illegal wells and pumping more water than ever. Nature And Policy Blunders To Blame On a recent day, well water gushes into Hassan al-Jibouri's tanker truck at a roadside pump along one of San'a's main streets. Jibouri and his fellow drivers spend their days selling water to hotels, restaurants and private homes. He says a typical water delivery costs 1,000 rials, or about $5. If he has to drive a long distance, it might cost a bit more. Yemen's water crisis is, in part, the inevitable result of a rapidly growing population, limited rainfall and finite water resources. But experts and ordinary Yemenis agree that policy blunders have accelerated the crisis and made it harder to fix. First, there is the massive problem of agriculture. Despite the severe shortages of drinking water, at least 85 percent of Yemen's available water goes to agriculture, where huge amounts are wasted. For centuries, Yemeni farmers captured rainwater for their crops. But in the 1970s, well-intentioned international groups such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund showed up with a raft of incentives to get farmers to drill wells and use underground aquifers instead. Anwer Sahooly is a water expert with the German Development Corp., a major player in Yemen's water reform efforts. He says more than 1 million acres of farmland that used to be rain-fed are now irrigated with underground water, using inefficient methods that lose vast amounts of water to evaporation and leakage. \"We have to reverse the process now, and make people get used to rainwater harvesting. We have to encourage harvesting from floods, from spit irrigation, from every drop that we get, and stop drilling any more wells,\" he says. Cash Crop Depletes Water Supply Despite a new law outlawing most private wells, the drilling goes on. The sound of water pumps can be heard on farm plots all around the capital. The most popular crop of all is khat, a plant that produces a mildly narcotic leaf that Yemenis love to chew. Small farmer Abdullah al-Jidri, sporting a softball-sized wad of khat leaves in his left cheek, says many farmers would be happy to grow fruits, vegetables and grains, but they can't live without the cash brought in by khat. \"With food crops, we have to wait for a year or longer to get a harvest, and if there's a problem, you won't get a crop. But with khat, you just put some water on it and you have leaves in a month's time that you can sell immediately. It's a cash crop,\" he says. When asked whether he's heard that the government wants farmers to stop growing khat to save water, Jidri and his brother laugh. \"Don't believe the officials. They ask us to grow more khat for them to chew,\" he says. Other than cash for farmers, Yemenis agree that khat produces no benefit, and in fact impairs the productivity of much of the labor force most afternoons. But efforts to curtail khat production and consumption are so far largely ineffectual. Water A Hard Sell Amid Other Problems Some long-term reforms are under way, notably the decentralization of water management to the local level. Officials are also replacing open-channel water lines and flood irrigation methods with more efficient pipes and drip hoses. But Sahooly, the water expert, says it is hard to bring water to the top of the agenda in a country with so many problems. \"It's very important in my opinion that there should be a champion, at the level of the president, vice president, always talking about water issues. All civilization has grown around water. Water is life, and we have known that for a long time,\" he says. At the moment, however, a violent rebellion, secessionist movements and a growing al-Qaida presence are drow", "Hot summers can devastate canola farmers. Prolonged heat waves can leave behind fields of fallen, shattered oilseed pods and destroy vast amounts of the crop. Why canola (oilseed rape) seedpods disintegrate rapidly in prolonged heat blasts has been something of a mystery, but a new study suggests rising temperatures trigger a genetic cascade in the plant that leads to premature fruit development. That discovery offers a potential path to protecting canola, which is important in making vegetable oil, and other crops from heat waves. \"If people are trying to breed crops for not shattering in heat waves then they have a target gene to work with,\" says Johanna Schmitt, a plant biologist at the University of California, Davis, who did not work on the study. As canola seedpods mature, their walls weaken to allow the release of seeds. It's a natural step in its reproductive cycle. It's possible that wild plants accelerate the process during extreme heat so they can disperse seeds before the heat wave kills them. \"It's in the [wild] plant's best interest to deposit seeds in the soil before the conditions get too hostile,\" says Vinod Kumar, an author on the study and a plant biologist at the research institution the John Innes Centre. But if the domesticated seed crop falls on the ground, it becomes unusable. Often, if the seedpods do not break on their own, prolonged heat waves leave them weak enough that heavy precipitation or winds can finish them off. This happened to Canadian growers in 2012, when a midsummer heat wave and disease, followed by a storm, dashed hopes of a windfall and cut oilseed yields nearly 10 percent from the previous year in western Canada. \"Farmers of canola worldwide lose about 15 to 20 percent on average of their yield because of this shatter phenomenon,\" says Lars Østergaard, a biologist at the research institute the John Innes Centre in the U.K. and an author of the study. \"I spoke with a farmer in Kent who lost more than 70 percent of his crop one year because he harvested on a day after a strong storm had come in.\" To see how this happens, the researchers simulated different temperatures in isolated growing chambers. \"If you can, imagine a fridge with a lighting and a heating system and racks for plants to grow in,\" Kumar says. They grew four species from the mustard family — canola, Arabidopsis, pink shepherd's purse and field pepperwort — in these chambers at 17, 22 and 27 degrees Celsius. (That's 63, 72, and 81 degrees Fahrenheit, respectively.) As the temperatures increased, Østergaard and Kumar began checking for signs of a gene called the Indehiscence or IND gene — code that they knew programmed for seedpod opening in plants. \"[The gene] was turned on much earlier and [more intensely than] you would have expected,\" Østergaard says. As the gene began working, each species' seed pods began developing more quickly and prematurely, reaching a stage where they broke easily. Most of the time, DNA folds compactly around proteins called histones inside the cell's nucleus. \"If the gene is tightly wrapped up, it will be hard to turn it on,\" Kumar says. The IND gene wraps around a histone, too. When Østergaard and Kumar looked more closely, they saw that the IND gene floated freely when temperatures went up — like the drawer of a filing cabinet popping open — making it easier for the cell to read the gene's instructions and carry them out. This made the pods open earlier. They reported their findings on Monday in the journal Molecular Plant. With enough study, Østergaard and Kumar think it might be possible to stop heat from doing that for the IND gene. \"If we can unlink temperature from that dynamic, then IND would not be turned on,\" Kumar says. That might slow the seedpod development process enough for farmers to harvest them even through unusually hot seasons or prolonged heat waves, though figuring out how to do that will take a lot more research, Kumar says. But as climate change increases the risk of heat waves and sweltering summers, this is research that may be sorely needed in the future to protect many crops — not just canola. It's possible that other important food plants respond similarly to the ones Østergaard and Kumar tested, UC Davis' Schmitt says, particularly closely related vegetables like Brussel sprouts, cabbage, turnips and kale.", "The Senate voted Monday to approve its version of the farm bill, a massive spending measure that covers everything from food stamps to crop insurance and sets the nation's farm policy for the next five years. The centerpiece of that policy is an expanded crop insurance program, designed to protect farmers from losses, that some say amounts to a highly subsidized gift to agribusiness. That debate is set to continue as the House plans to take up its version of the bill this month. For farmer Scott Neufeld, crop insurance is an integral part of his family's business. When the wind whips through his farm in northwestern Oklahoma, the wheat sways and looks like a roiling ocean — those famous amber waves of grain. \"It's normal,\" says Neufeld, looking toward a tree blowing in the wind. \"They're predicting storms today, so that wind you hear is pumping up the moisture for the storms.\" It's a reminder of just what a precarious business farming can be. Although his crop looks good now, a violent hailstorm could wipe him out just before harvest. Every year there's the risk of a drought or even just a badly timed dry spell. \"You're relying upon what falls from the sky,\" Neufeld says. \"You have no spigot to go turn on when it gets hot or when the rains quit.\" Neufeld is a third-generation farmer with about 3,500 acres of wheat, canola, alfalfa hay and some cattle. He's able to manage the risk inherent in his business in part because of crop insurance, which is highly subsidized by the federal government. Neufeld says the last time he had to make a claim was in 2010. \"It was very, very dry — a very dry spring,\" he remembers. Neufeld harvested far less wheat than expected, and his crop insurance made up part of the difference. \"It by no means made up the complete income on the cash-flow projection that I had made,\" Neufeld says. \"But it was, you know, maybe 70 percent to be able to afford to keep going, pay the bills and and tighten our belts and go again for the next year.\" Neufeld buys a revenue protection policy. Most farmers do. It insures not just against yield loss from storms or drought but also from revenue loss, if commodity prices drop. \"It's what I call the Cadillac of insurance products,\" says Bruce Babcock, a professor of economics at Iowa State University, who helped invent revenue coverage in the mid-1990s. Now, although Babcock supports the idea of crop insurance, he's a critic of how much taxpayer money goes into it. For every dollar of insurance premium, on average, farmers pay 38 cents. Taxpayers kick in 62 cents. The Senate farm bill expands that insurance program and is projected to cost $89 billion over the next decade. \"Crop insurance is not an insurance program. It's a social program,\" Babcock says. \"It's a regular farm commodity support subsidy program.\" And, he says, because of how American agriculture works, it's a social program that helps the biggest agribusinesses the most. The legislation does away with direct payments — a program that pays farmers whether they plant a crop or not — making insurance subsidies the central way the government will support the nation's farmers in the future. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., who heads the Senate Agriculture Committee, says crop insurance \"is insurance — and the farmer gets a bill, not a check.\" That bill that farmers get covers about a third of the actual cost, but Stabenow says the government subsidy is necessary. \"It's got to be a bill that they can afford to be able to provide the coverage,\" she said recently on the Senate floor. \"And then there is no payout unless you have a loss.\" The legislation passed Monday by the Senate also ties those insurance subsidies to conservation requirements, to protect farmland and streams. Still, many, including Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., say the crop insurance program is too generous. He offered a bipartisan amendment that would reduce subsidies for the wealthiest farmers. \"The No. 1 farmer in the country gets $1.9 million worth of subsidies a year,\" Coburn said during the floor debate. \"All we're going to do is cut his subsidy to $1.6 million.\" That amendment passed. For his part, Neufeld, the Oklahoma farmer, would be happy to pay his premiums year after year and never use his crop insurance. \"[But if] we get into a year where there's a major drought, our commodity prices fall out of bed for nothing under our control, then I think we need to have that safety net afforded to us by our government to keep us in business,\" Neufeld says. The House version of the farm bill also replaces direct payments with expanded crop insurance. The House is scheduled to take up the measure for what is promising to be vigorous debate later this month. RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST: The Senate passed its version of the farm bill last night - which in the Senate, enjoyed bipartisan support. The five-year spending plan covers everything from food stamps to soil conservation, to crop insurance. And the heavily subsidized crop insurance is g", "Coffee lovers, here's something to be grateful about. Unlike paper towels, disinfectant or yeast, coffee has never been hard to find during the pandemic. It has remained widely available on supermarket shelves even though COVID-19 has been particularly bad in some of the world's largest coffee growing nations. Brazil, which has recorded more cases than any nation other than the United States, is the world's top producer of coffee. India, Mexico and Colombia all rank in the top ten globally for both COVID cases and coffee production. Other major coffee exporters including Peru and Uganda have found themselves cut off by border closures and lockdowns. \"It's natural to think that the harvesting of the coffee crops may be disrupted or perhaps badly disrupted,\" says Steven Hurst, a coffee trader based in London. \"But quite honestly and quite frankly, we've seen relatively little, if any, evidence of that.\" Hurst's company Mercanta, The Coffee Hunters, buys coffee from all over the world. He says the origin of the beans is a central part of the product he's selling. It's not just Arabica beans, it's shade-grown Arabica from Peru. Or it's coffee from a small farmer collective in Uganda. \"Built in to every coffee is a story behind it,\" he says. \"Where the coffees come from isn't simply a GPS coordinate on a map. Where the coffees come from is absolutely integral to the to the coffee itself.\" And during this pandemic, much of the world's beans are coming from either coronavirus hotspots, such as Brazil and India, or nations facing near total lockdowns such as Rwanda. Gilbert Gatali runs a small coffee exporting business out of Rwanda called Roots Origin focusing on high-quality, specialty beans. \"The lockdown in the whole country meant cars weren't moving. Very few people were moving. It was very different,\" Gatali says. The government order for people to stay home came in March in the middle of Rwanda's coffee bean harvest. Agricultural activities were allowed to continue but Gatali had to get special permission to drive from the capital out to the coffee growing districts. In Rwanda the first step in processing raw coffee beans occurs at what are called \"washing stations\". The washing stations, often in the center of a village, are a series of long wooden tables set up outside for sorting and drying the beans. At the height of the harvest, Gatali says these hubs are bustling with activity. There are \"farmers coming in with sacks of coffee on their head,\" Gatali says. \"Others are coming in with small bags, others on a bike.\" Initially Gatali was very worried that the quality of the harvest could suffer due to the lockdown. Farmers might rush to harvest their crops. There'd be less oversight at the washing stations. \"At my washing stations we are probably hiring a little over 70 people,\" Gatali says. \"Ninety nine percent of them are women who are standing next to each other hand sorting coffees.\" But just like at meat packing plants and auto factories in the U.S., social distancing now means Rwandans sorting coffee beans have to be farther apart. Instead of 20 women at each table, Gatali now has only six or seven. This slows down processing. There have been other delays, too. Warehouses in Kigali have fewer workers. Trucks hauling sacks of beans to ports on the Indian Ocean had to swap drivers at the border because Rwanda wasn't allowing truckers from Tanzania to enter. In the midst of all this, roasting companies in North America and Europe were canceling orders as espresso machines sat cold and coffee bars remained shut. Colleen Anunu who runs Gimme! Coffee out of Ithaca, New York says the pandemic has tip over her coffee roasting and retail business. \"We used to have pretty good a pretty good forecasting mechanism,\" she says for ordering beans from producers including Gatali in Rwanda. But not now. \"We have no idea how the type of volumes that we're going to need. So that's a big challenge for our suppliers.\" Pre-pandemic Gimme! Coffee had 7 coffee shops. They ended up closing down six of them and laying off dozens of employees, mostly baristas. \"Overall, since the end of March, our total sales have been down 80 percent in retail,\" Anunu says. The collapse of latte sales at independent coffee shops has been a blow to producers like Gatali at Roots Origin in Rwanda. Gatali and many other small companies had built their businesses around supplying high-quality, specialty beans to roasters at fair-trade prices. \"So it's really hard to plan,\" Gatali says of the sudden upheaval in coffee consumption habits as cafes shutdown. \"It's really hard to plan for next year. It's really hard to plan for next month.\" Yet despite the uncertainty and turmoil, Gatali got his beans harvested, sorted and packed for export. Despite on of the worst COVID outbreaks in the world Brazil hasn't had much difficulty with labor shortages because much of the coffee harvest is done by machines. \"Because of the mechanical harvesting, picking ", "It's been a challenging year for American farmers. Farmers in the U.S. witnessed a trade war with China unfold, farm debt continues to pile on and delays in planting due to extreme weather linked to climate change. And as farmers get older — their average age is 58 years old — what does the next generation of farmers look like? Will they face the same barriers? Gracie Weinzierl recently began farming on Weinzierl-Stephens Farms in Stanford, Illinois. The 27-year-old comes from a family of farmers who grows cash grains such as corn and soybeans. She says she's celebrating the end of a rough year. \"The year started with rain and the year ended out with rain,\" she says. Because of wet weather, her farm was about three weeks behind their regular schedule, she says. Fortunately, her crops grew like normal, however harvest was delayed, something she says was \"very stressful.\" Davon Goodwin, an Army veteran, is the first in his family to pursue farming. He grows speciality crops — grapes and blackberries — at the OTL Farms in Laurinburg, North Carolina. Like Weinzierl, he is no stranger to the onslaught of rain. \"We were supposed to plant earlier in the year, but our property was flooded so we couldn&#8217;t plant,\" he says. The 31-year-old says he and his wife paid off debt and saved the rest in order to purchase a 42-acre farm to call their own. Both young farmers have \"off-farm jobs\" to pay the bills. Goodwin says most of his farming friends financially sustain themselves that way. This is not out of the ordinary — 64% of small, independent farmers work an additional job, according to Modern Farmer. \"I would definitely say having off-the-farm income is, I won&#8217;t say the only way you can do it, but it gives you a lot of security,\" he says. \"Knowing that if I have crop failure, I&#8217;m still going to get a paycheck, that&#8217;s a big deal.\" Interview Highlights On harvesting crops later than initially expected Gracie Weinzierl: \"You have to wonder, it&#8217;s like, am I going to get a crop in the ground? When you&#8217;re growing corn, you have to worry about the next steps that fall into succession after you plant your crops. You have to think about whether I can get additional fertilizer on that goes out throughout the season, whether I&#8217;m going to have issues with weed control or disease and insects that a lot of times are influenced by wet weather and whether or not you&#8217;re going to have enough growing time for the crop itself before the first frost.\" On whether she made less money than she thought she would in 2019 GW: \"I would say that I&#8217;m not sure that all of the crop has been sold for our farm yet, but it also is very dependent on the prices. I would say in terms of yield, our yields were a little bit down. Our soybeans weren&#8217;t too far off average, which we&#8217;re very thankful for. Corn was a little bit lower because it was more impacted by that rain and the cool growing season getting started.\" On Goodwin's grape and blackberry business Davon Goodwin: \"We just started planting. &#8230; We&#8217;re definitely behind. Then when you have a perennial crop, it&#8217;s going to take you three years for your first commercial harvest, that means I missed a whole growing season. But at the same time, we were thankful that we&#8217;re able to start planting now and start getting ready for 2020.\" On buying land for farming DG: \"It was challenging. I was a farm manager for the last five years, and I lived in a camper for the last five years. And my wife lived in a whole different part of state for the last five years. We saved up a lot of money and tried to pay off as much debt as we possibly could. And the economic kind of outlook looked a little better. And then I had a real job off the farm. I wasn&#8217;t making enough just farming. So I had to have a traditional eight to five off the farm to kind of make it work throughout the course of our last year.\" GW: \"It seems that all of the cards were in my favor this year. Like Davon, I have worked off the farm since graduating from college, working also in the agriculture industry full time. But my family has farmed land from one of the landlords that we have right now for almost 100 years now. So it&#8217;s been passed down from generation to generation, both on the farming side and land ownership side. And so that&#8217;s really cool for us to have had such a long relationship. One branch of the landlord&#8217;s family decided that they wanted to sell some land this year and they were willing to sell it to us. We made them an offer and they were willing to accept it. And then I had the opportunity to buy a portion of that field knowing that I couldn&#8217;t buy the full 60 acres and still be able to make the payments with my off-farm income. So another family member was able to pick up the other part of the field. That was really an awesome opportunity for me because traditionally, you might go to a land auction and be expected to co", "Nourished PlanetSustainability in the Global Food System By Danielle Nierenberg, Laurie Fisher, Brian Frederick, Michael Pe&#241;uelas ISLAND PRESSCopyright &copy; 2018 Barilla Center for Food & NutritionAll rights reserved.ISBN: 978-1-61091-894-7 Contents Foreword: Valuing the True Cost of Food by Pavan Sukhdev and Alexander M&#252;ller, Preface by Guido Barilla, Preface by Danielle Nierenberg, Acknowledgments, Chapter 1. Food for All, A Recipe for Sustainable Food Systems, Ingredients for Sustainability, Soil Degradation around the Globe, Food for All, Barriers to Food Access and Affordability, Precarious Prices for Food, Conclusion and Action Plan, Voices from the New Food Movement, Hilal Elver, Hans R. Herren, Sieglinde Snapp, Vandana Shiva, Chapter 2. Food for Sustainable Growth, The Food Pyramid Reimagined, How Our Diets Affect the Environment, Our Environmental Foodprints, The Water Economy: How Much Do We Have?, Managing Our Supply: The \"Virtual Water\" Trade and Water Privatization, Soil Loss and Degradation, Food Loss and Food Waste, Agricultural Systems: Sustainability Is More Important Than Ever, Revolutionizing the Practices of the Past, Farming for the Future, Conclusion and Action Plan, Voices from the New Food Movement, Dario Piselli, Steve Brescia, Shaneica Lester and Anne-Teresa Birthwright, Chapter 3. Food for Health, Building the Foundation for Health, A Lifetime of Health, and Preventing the Paradox, Corporate Influence on Dietary Choices, The Food Business Can Do Better, Conclusion and Action Plan, Voices from the New Food Movement, Alexander M&#252;ller, Bruce Friedrich, Tristram Stuart, Chapter 4. Food for Culture, Going Forward by Going Back, Selected Endangered Foods Worldwide and Efforts to Save Them, Controlling Food: Food and Power Roles, The Great Culinary Tradition of the Mediterranean Diet and the Reality of Food Today, Conclusion and Action Plan, Voices from the New Food Movement, Natasha Bowens, Lindsey Shute, Stephen Ritz, Ruth Oniang'o, Notes, Index, CHAPTER 1 Food for All A Recipe for Sustainable Food Systems IN CHIPATA, ZAMBIA, A REVOLUTION IS TAKING PLACE. The organization Zasaka is getting farmers in that southern African country access to corn grinders, nut shellers, solar lights, and water pumps. Although these technologies might not seem revolutionary, they are producing game-changing results, helping Zambian farmers increase their incomes, prevent food loss and waste, and reduce their load of backbreaking manual labor. But Zasaka is doing more than helping farmers become more prosperous; it is showing the country's young people how farming can be an opportunity, something they want to do, not something they feel forced to do simply because they have no other options. This project in Zambia is but one ingredient in a recipe for something truly revolutionary: a radically different worldwide food and agriculture system, one built on practical, innovative, and, most important, sustainable solutions to the problems plaguing our current agri-food system. Farmers, eaters, businesses, funders, policymakers, and scientists are continually learning better ways to increase food's nutritional value and nutrient density, protect natural resources, improve social equality, and create better markets &#8212; in short, to develop a recipe for sustainable agriculture for both today and tomorrow. This recipe is being developed in fields and kitchens, in boardrooms and laboratories, by farmers, researchers, government leaders, nongovernment organizations (NGOs), journalists, and other stakeholders in sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Experts from a variety of socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds are finding ways, firsthand, to overcome hunger and poverty and other problems &#8212; while also protecting the environment &#8212; in their countries. Ironically, their recommendations are not that different from those that could be reasonably offered to farmers in North America. Despite all the differences between the developed and developing worlds, there is a growing realization that the Global North's way of feeding people &#8212; relying heavily on the mechanized, chemical-intensive, mass production of food &#8212; isn't working, and that policymakers and donors might be wise to start following the lead of farmers in the Global South rather than insisting that they follow ours. In Ethiopia, for example, farmers who are part of a network created by Prolinnova, an international NGO that promotes local innovation in ecologically oriented agriculture and natural resource management, are using low-cost rainwater harvesting and erosion control projects to battle drought and poverty, increasing both crop yields and incomes. In India, women entrepreneurs working with the Self-Employed Women's Association are providing low-cost, high-quality food to the urban poor. In Gambia, fisher folk are finding ways to simultaneously protect marine resources and maintain fish harvests. And har", "Georgia is putting in place a new law aimed at cracking down on illegal immigrants, and many across the state are nervous. Businesses fear an economic boycott, the Latino community fears police officers will abuse their new powers, and farmers in South Georgia fear the law will hurt them dramatically. Georgia is known for its peaches and Vidalia onions, the state vegetable. The specialty crop is produced in just a few counties in the rural southeast part of the state, where the soil is just right. Aries Haygood with M&T Farms watches a crew of about 50 migrant workers as they hand pick the golden onions in groups of three or four. \"Right now they're just coming in through the field,\" he says. \"They're grabbing the onions out and just clipping the tops and roots getting them prepared to bring to the packing house.\" It's a labor-intensive process that machines just can't do because they'd bruise the delicate crop — a $140 million-a-year industry. This farm has 500 acres of onions with some 80,000 plants per acre, so Haygood relies heavily on migrant workers for help. \"Our biggest fear is that because of the way the bill could be structured we won't be able to find enough workers to do the work that we need done in a short amount of time,\" he says. 'Livelihood On The Line' Just a few miles east, R.T. Stanley Jr. has been growing Vidalia onions since the 1970s. He's also troubled by the immigration law, which he says is already affecting his workers. \"If they're scared they'll go to other states instead of Georgia because we have this new law,\" he says. \"And I'm worried about that.\" Stanley says experienced workers can earn as much as $200 a day. He says he's tried to hire locals to do the job — working in the fields eight hours or more clipping, bending and lifting in the oppressive Georgia heat. \"They just don't want to do this hard work. And they'll tell you right quick,\" he says. \"I have 'em to come out and work for two hours and they said, 'I'm not doing this. It's too hard.' \" For Stanley, finding workers is already tough enough and he says the new restrictions are likely to make it worse. \"I got my livelihood on the line,\" he says. \"If I don't harvest these onions, I'll lose my farm.\" Some farmers do use the federal government's temporary worker program known as H-2A, but they say the system has problems — including red tape and processing delays. The new Georgia law, patterned after the Arizona law currently being challenged in court, requires that all businesses with more than 10 employees use the federal E-Verify system to confirm workers' eligibility. Onion growers say they know there's pressure on politicians to do something about illegal immigration, but they're not sure this is the answer. Joel Salgado, a crew foreman from Mexico, is here legally and has been harvesting onions for about 15 years. \"The people have to go back to Mexico, you know. They don't want to risk any more over here,\" he says. \"They no gonna find work. ... I know a lot of families that went back already.\" Law Faces Challenges Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal knows there's opposition to the new law, including legal challenges and the threat of an economic boycott. But he says the new law is the right thing to do. \"Let me reiterate something important that sometimes gets lost,\" he said, as he signed the bill May 13. \"Illegal immigration is already illegal in the state of Georgia.\" Deal says nearly half a million illegal immigrants are estimated to live in Georgia — and they cost taxpayers billions of dollars each year. State Rep. Matt Ramsey is the bill's sponsor. \"It's not just an immigration issue,\" Ramsey says. \"It's a school issue. It's a transportation issue. It's a health care issue. \" As the law is phased in over the next couple of years, farmers in South Georgia suggest agriculture workers could be treated differently from others — but Ramsey says that won't work. \"I don't think we need to start picking winners and losers in the statute and treating industries different,\" he says. \"Particularly in this time of 10 percent unemployment.\" But back in Vidalia, Haygood says if farmers can't get enough workers, they may have to stop producing crops like onions and peaches. \"We've invested our time and our effort into growing our companies and then all of a sudden something like this could put this industry out of business, overnight.\" It's unclear exactly what will happen as Georgia begins implementing its new law. Farmers will have to comply — and higher labor and processing costs could mean higher prices for consumers. MICHELE NORRIS, Host: And as NPR's Kathy Lohr reports, farmers in South Georgia fear the potential cost of the new law. KATHY LOHR: Aries Haygood with M and T Farms watches a crew of about 50 migrant workers, as they handpick the golden onions in groups of three or four. NORRIS: Right now, they're just coming in through the field. They're grabbing the onions out and just clipping the tops and the roots, getting them ", "California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has declared a state of emergency in ten counties, where prolonged cold has decimated the state's citrus crop. Schwarzenegger is urging the federal government to assist farmers. Farm losses are likely to reach $1 billion, making this the state's costliest freeze in more than two decades. The freeze could be expensive for shoppers as well; higher prices are expected for oranges, lemons and avocados. Once a week, the fruits of California's fertile San Joaquin Valley are trucked 200 miles to Los Angeles for the Culver City Farmers Market. Sean Rosendahl was there Tuesday with a load of fresh fruit from Arnett Farms in Fresno — lemons, grapefruits, tangerines and various types of oranges. By this time next week, Rosendahl's farm stand won't be nearly as full. Sub-freezing temperatures over the weekend destroyed as much as three-quarters of the citrus crop in California. The farmers saw it coming and tried to save as much as they could. \"We had been picking from sunup to sundown,\" Rosendahl said. \"And even into the evening sometime. As long as our guys could [stand] picking out there. And we tried to pick as fast as we can to get stuff stored away.\" Still, Rosendahl says, harvesters managed to save only a fraction of the fruit. And even though they tried raising the temperature in the orchards with fans and irrigation water, it was no match for the bone-chilling cold. Ordinarily, California supplies 95 percent of the oranges and lemons sold fresh in supermarkets. Authorities say some of that fruit will still be available. But as Oliver Garner warned shoppers at the Farmers' Market, it's going to cost them. \"Looks like prices are going to be going up here next week,\" Garner said. \"We've been trying to warn a lot of our customers. The main reason we haven't brought our price up is because it kind of scares people when they spent $6 for ten pounds and now they're paying $10 for ten pounds.\" The bitter-cold temperatures stretched all the way into Southern California, where the cold nipped strawberries, cut flowers and some avocados. Al Stehly manages about 500 acres of avocado groves in San Diego County. He was able to run water around some of the trees, raising the temperature by a few degrees. \"It helped a lot,\" he said. \"We don't have enough water capacity to water all the trees at once. So we kind of pick our battles and the areas where we're going to irrigate — 200 feet away where we didn't irrigate, we've got damage. And where we irrigated, we've got less damage. So it did help.\" Forecasters predict a gradual warming trend in the next few days, but the farmers' troubles are not over. Stehly says some avocados that survived the freeze may still be hanging by frozen stems. \"The clock is ticking on the avocados,\" Stehly said. \"That fruit will drop in about ten days if we don't harvest it right away.\" The freeze may have destroyed as much as 20 percent of the avocado crop, but the state's Avocado Commission says there will still be plenty of fruit to fill the nation's guacamole bowls on Super Bowl Sunday. One Central Valley farmer adds that cold weather is actually beneficial for some varieties of peaches, plums and nectarines. And that could be good news for the summer harvest. STEVE INSKEEP, host: California's governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, has declared a state of emergency in 10 counties. Prolonged cold has destroyed much of the state's citrus crop. Governor Schwarzenegger is urging the federal government to assist farmers. Farm losses are likely to reach $1 billion, making this the state's costliest freeze in more than two decades. And the freeze could be expensive for shoppers, with higher prices expected for oranges, lemons and avocados. NPR's Scott Horsley reports. Unidentified Man: Five out of 10. Five's your change. Thank you very much. Have a good day. SCOTT HORSLEY: Once a week, the fruits of California's fertile San Joaquin Valley are trucked 200 miles to Los Angeles to the Culver City Farmer's Market. Sean Rosendahl was there yesterday with a load of fresh fruit from Arnett Farms in Fresno. Ms. SEAN ROSENDAHL (Farm Owner): We grow lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, tangerines, mandarins. We have blood oranges, naval oranges, Tarocco oranges. And that's about the extent of our citrus. HORSLEY: By this time next week, Rosendahl's farm stand may not be nearly as full. Subfreezing temperatures over the weekend destroyed as much as three quarters of the citrus crop in California. The farmers saw it coming and tried to save as much as they could. Ms. ROSENDAHL: We had been picking, you know, from as soon as sunup to sundown, and even into the evening sometime as long as our guys could, you know, hack picking out there. And we just tried to pick as fast as we can to get stuff stored away. HORSLEY: Still, Rosendahl says, harvesters managed to save only a fraction of the fruit. And even though they tried raising the temperature in the orchards with fans and ", "In the heart of the Moroccan oasis and palm grove of Skoura, west of Marrakesh, yellow and reddish dates dangled heavily from branches high above us. It's going to be a good year, a man harvesting dates said, offering me a handful of fresh, still-yellow fruit cut from the tree just moments before. The man, holding a tamskart, a hooked knife anchored to a short wooden handle used for trimming these heavily laden branches, had just shimmied down from one of a dozen palm trees. He was paid 20 dirham, or just over $2, per tree by the family that owns them. It's a dangerous and labor-intensive job. Whole sprays of yellow dates, as well as mounds of riper, sticky brown ones that had shaken loose from the trees were splayed across blue tarps. They were Bouskri, a favorite variety here that is dried and best when the brittle skin shatters as you bite into it. Eaten fresh, they tend to be a touch woody in taste and texture. I had gone to Skoura in early October to catch the beginning of the date harvest. Wandering around the palm grove, everyone told me the same thing: This harvest would be better than average and much better than the previous year. It took two months to bring in Skoura's dates. Now that the harvest is over, how did it turn out? Those I met in Skoura were right. According to a United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization report, the country's recent date harvest was expected to be 10 percent above the average of the past five years. That's good news for the family farmers in Skoura, who keep the dates they'll use throughout the year and sell the excess from the harvest in the town's Monday souk. Dates hold pride of place on the Moroccan table. Hosts traditionally offer the fruits to guests with a glass of milk, especially during the year's important holidays. The fruits are eaten out of hand, used in desserts and for topping sweet couscous, but also find their way into the country's famed lamb and poultry tagine stews. The average Moroccan eats about 6 1/2 pounds of dates each year, though in date-producing areas, that figure reaches some 33 pounds. They are also the first item eaten with the breaking of the fast during the month of Ramadan, and controversies have erupted over where dates were imported from to meet holiday demands. About half of all dates in Morocco are eaten during this holiday. This year, Morocco's date haul weighed in at 110,180 metric tons, according to Morocco's agriculture ministry. In Ouarzazate, near Skoura, the yield leaped from a five-year average of 56,000 tons to 65,000 tons. Nearly 90 percent of the country's dates are grown in this region and Errachidia, which lies farther east at the edge of the Sahara. So why the dramatic increase? Morocco's agricultural ministry sees the good harvest as a confirmation of the momentum of the country's ambitious, wide-ranging \"Plan Maroc Vert\" (Green Morocco Plan), outlined in 2008 to stimulate, expand and modernize various agricultural sectors. For dates, the goal has been to significantly increase production, reaching 160,000 tons in 2020. After decades of decline from disease and drought, the amount of land used to grow dates now has effectively shrunk by half since the mid-1940s. And so the project focuses on fighting bayoud disease — a fungus widespread in Morocco that quickly kills the tree — and increasing plantings. In each of the past three years, more than 400,000 palms were planted. That alone, though, probably can't account for the significant jump in this year's crop, especially as many of those plantings have yet to bear fruit. Was it the weather? Monika Tothova, an economist with the FAO, tells The Salt by email that the rainfall in the oases that help irrigate the dates was \"beneficial,\" which is actually more striking than it might sound. In the FAO report, the organization contrasted the date harvest boom with the steep agricultural declines in other sectors. Grains were down 38 percent compared with last year, and citrus was 25 percent below the five-year average, because of heat waves, droughts and cold spells. But for many involved in the date harvest I met in Skoura, even favorable weather was not the full reason for the year's bountiful crop. \"It is the will of Allah,\" the man cutting trees with a tamskart told me. With that, he looked up at the heavy clusters of dates awaiting his knife and began to nimbly scale the trunk of another palm tree. Jeff Koehler is the author of Morocco: A Culinary Journey with Recipes. His next cookbook, on Spain, will be published in 2013. Visit www.jeff-koehler.com or follow @koehlercooks.", "Tukaram Jadhav was barely surviving off of his tiny cotton farm when he killed himself last September. His widow, a petite mother of two, pulls her purple sari tightly around her, and says she discovered her husband as he lay dying. \"I was the one who found him. I was sleeping and woke up to the powerful smell of pesticides that we use to farm,\" Bhagyashree Jadhav says. She says she thought there had been a spill. \"I asked my husband if he smelled it, then I realized he couldn't speak. He'd swallowed the pesticide.\" Tukaram languished in the hospital for two days before dying. Bhagyashree is one of the new widows of Beed on farms in the western state of Maharashtra. They face life with no water and usually no inheritance of their husband's land in this deeply conservative culture. In India, two consecutive years of weak monsoons have left some 330 million people — a quarter of the country — in the grip of drought. Deepening the crisis, farmers are taking their lives. Bhagyashree's brother-in-law, Dnyaneshwar Jadhav, says his brother Tukaram was distraught over loans he'd taken out to stay afloat in the face of his withered crops. Private money-lenders charged his brother usurious interest rates and pulled him under, Dnyaneshwar says. \"He paid as much as 50 percent interest on his loans and he couldn't get out of the cycle or talk about it.\" Dnyaneshwar suspects his brother kept silent because he was too ashamed he'd fallen into distress a second time. The first time Dnyaneshwar had helped rescue him. Dnyaneshwar says the timing of his brother's suicide was \"irony.\" Tukaram, just 35, poisoned himself on the same day Hindus honor Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth. \"We'll never be able to celebrate it again,\" he says. Tukaram was one of 3,228 farmers who killed themselves in the state of Maharashtra last year. The state has been one of the hardest hit by the on-going drought in India. While the pace of suicides has slowed this year, farmers who feel anguished over debt and failed harvests continue to take their lives. Dnyaneshwar stands at the foot of his small acreage beside the family's well — it's 60 feet deep and dry. \"When I look into the well, I feel like dying. Life is such a struggle,\" he says. \"We used to earn over $300 for our cotton, we now get less than $100 because the yield is so small.\" Before cotton, the Jadhavs grew sugar cane — a water-intensive crop that was lucrative for farmers and enriched powerful sugar mill owners. But the secretary of India's water resources ministry, Shashi Shekhar, says it was a wholly inappropriate crop in a region prone to drought. \"That's a mistake. We have to learn from our mistake and change.\" Shekhar says horticulture crops like fruit, vegetables and nuts are even more profitable than sugar cane. Moving to such crops as guava or pomegranate raises the income of farmers \"seven to 20 times vis-a-vis sugar cane. So you have to incentivize them,\" he says. The challenge is educating farmers, like the Jadhavs, to conserve water and grow crops better suited to the climate. Back at their farm, we sit with the family beneath a moonlit sky in their untilled cotton fields. The patriarch of the family, Ramkishan Jadhav, makes a painful admission that dramatizes the need for help. \"I see the changes, I know they're there, there's no water,\" he says. \"But I'm numb. I'm dumbstruck. I don't have a clue what to do.\" In the dark, he rises to fetch a torch. His daughter-in-law Bhagyashree, widow of his youngest son, is fortunate to have in-laws who embrace her. The Naam Foundation, a local NGO established to assist women widowed during this drought, is also funding the education of her son and daughter. But she's still fragile. When her father-in-law is safely out of earshot, she breaks down with a confession of her own. \"My husband killed a part of me when he killed himself. It's as if we didn't exist,\" she says, tears flowing. \"I will never turn my back on life,\" she says. \"I choose life for my children.\" With the start of the monsoons just weeks away, the widows and farmers here in Maharashtra scour the skies with hope, and wait for the rains." ]

[ "This paper consists of an extensive survey of various generalized approaches to the lower and upper approximations of a set, the two approximations being first defined by Pawlak while introducing rough set theory. Particularly, relational, covering based and operator based approaches are considered. Categorization of various approaches in terms of implication lattices is shown. Significance of this categorization in rough logics is briefly mentioned." ]

[ "There is an intimate correlation between rough set theory and formal concept analysis theory, so rough set approximations can be realized by means of formal concept analysis. For any given multiple valued information system, the realization of rough set approximation operation has two major steps, firstly convert the information system from multiple valued one to single valued formal context, secondly realize rough set approximation operations aided by concept lattice, which is equivalent to a query operation under some necessary conditions.", "A Concept lattice is a special kind of lattice, the explicit representation of which can be viewed as a semantic network with special properties. Concept lattices have been applied to Machine Learning as well as to the uncovering of the underlying structure in discrete-valued data. They also embody the cladistic approach to classification. This paper describes how the use of a concept lattice as representation model is related to the rough set approach to data analysis and how operations of rough set theory can be implemented using a concept lattice.", "Based on the classical rough set,graded rough sets and graded boundary operator are defined.The properties of graded rough sets model to study is different from the classical rough set model.In graded rough sets,the graded boundary operator is used to revise the inclusion relations as equal relations and the conclusion is strictly proved,which conplements and inproves the rough set theory.", "Rough set theory and fuzzy set theory are two complementary mathematical tools for dealing with imprecision and uncertainty.Rough-fuzzy sets model is established by them.In this paper,the roughness of rough-fuzzy sets is studied and the roughness of knowledge is defined in probabilistic approximation space.A new measure of roughness of rough-fuzzy sets by integrating a measurement base on roughness of knowledge and roughness of fuzzy set is given.Some properties of the measurement are proved.", "Using the concept of fuzzy elementary transfers,a static fuzzy set was generalized to a dynamic fuzzy set,then a two-direction S-fuzzy set was obtained.Based on this,a two-direction S-rough fuzzy set was proposed,and its general structure was given.The relationships between a two-direction S-rough fuzzy set and Z.Pawlak rough sets,between a two-direction S-rough fuzzy set and a Dubois rough fuzzy set,between a two-direction S-rough fuzzy set and a two-direction Srough set were analyzed.The application of the two-direction S-rough fuzzy set was given.A two-direction S-rough fuzzy set is a dynamic rough fuzzy set.", "In this tutorial, I will discuss the concepts behind generalizing ordering to measuring and apply these ideas to the derivation of probability theory. The fundamental concept is that anything that can be ordered can be measured. Since we are in the business of making statements about the world around us, we focus on ordering logical statements according to implication. This results in a Boolean lattice, which is related to the fact that the corresponding logical operations form a Boolean algebra. The concept of logical implication can be generalized to degrees of implication by generalizing the zeta function of the lattice. The rules of probability theory arise naturally as a set of constraint equations. Through this construction we are able to neatly connect the concepts of order, structure, algebra, and calculus. The meaning of probability is inherited from the meaning of the ordering relation, implication, rather than being imposed in an ad hoc manner at the start.", "This paper presented concepts of improper singular rough sets based on the theory of singular rough sets,and put forward the general mathematics structures of two direction improper singular rough sets and variable precision two direction improper singular rough sets.The nature of different precision upper,lower approximate operator was discussed", "Resolution based automatic reasoning is one of most important research directions in AI.α-resolution method on lattice-valued logic based on lattice implication algebra provides alternative tool to handle the automatic reasoning problem with incomparability and fuzziness of information.It can refutably prove the α-unsatisfiability of clause set in lattice-valued logic system.We need to judge whether or not two generalized literals can form α-resolution pairs when we use α-resolution principle to refutably prove the α-unsatisfiability of a clausal set in Ln×2P(X).This paper discusses the resolvent of 1-IESF and other generalized literals and gets some determinations for α-resolution of two generalized literals.", "In this paper, the dominance-based variable precision rough fuzzy set is proposed in the fuzzy information system. It is proved that the proposed rough fuzzy approach is a generalization of the dominance-based rough fuzzy approach. Important properties of the dominance-based variable precision rough fuzzy set are investigated. Further on the problem of inducing \"at least\" and \"at most\" decision rules from the fuzzy information system is also addressed. Some numerical examples are employed to substantiate the conceptual arguments.", "Extent-intent and intent-extent operators are introduced between two complete lattices in this paper and a mathematical model for concept granular computing system is established. We proved that the set of all concepts in this system is a lattice with the greatest element and the least element. This framework includes formal concept lattices from formal contexts, L fuzzy concept lattices from L fuzzy formal contexts and three kinds of variable threshold concept lattices, i.e. the extension and the intension of a concept are a crisp set and a crisp set, a crisp set and a fuzzy set, a fuzzy set and a crisp set, respectively. Finally, some iterative algorithms for constructing concepts are proposed and they are proved to be optimal concepts under some conditions in this system.", "Rough set theory is a new mathematical approach to uncertain and vague data analysis. It is, no doubt, one of the most challenging areas, besides fuzzy set theory, of modern computer applications nowadays and a new, very important and rapidly growing area of research and applications. The application of rough set theory for knowledge discovery, data reduction, decision support, classification, pattern recognition, control and others have proved to be a very effective new mathematical approach. In this paper, it presents the basic concepts of rough set theory briefly. And then, it gives the method of data reduction based on the rough set theory. At last, it particularizes a useful example in which it shows us how to use the theory of rough set to reduce the data from the student's all-around diathesis data base, and gets the new decision rules, and to give the grades of behavior of a student.", "This paper contains a generalized approach to incidence geometry on partially ordered sets. A difference to the usual geometrical concepts is that points may have different size. Our main result states that a large class of spaces allows lattice theoretic characterizations. Especially, a generalized version of the Veblen-Young axiom of projective geometry has a lattice theoretic equivalent, called then-generation property (which is a generalization of the ‘Verbindungssatz’). Modularity and distributivity of a lattice of subspaces are reflected in the underlying space. Finally we give specializations and examples.", "Dominance-based rough set approach is an useful extension of the classical rough set approach and it has been successfully applied into multi-criteria decision analysis problems. This paper present an explorative research focusing on knowledge reduction of fuzzy rough set model in fuzzy decision system. The investigated fuzzy rough set model is different from the classical fuzzy rough set model because it is based on the dominance principle of memberships of objects on the attributes. We introduce the concept of reducts of fuzzy lower and upper approximations. They are minimal subsets of attributes which preserve the fuzzy lower and upper approximate memberships for each object belongs to the universe. The judgment theorems and discernibility matrixes associated with these two reducts are also obtained. An numerical examples is employed to substantiate the conceptual arguments.", "The original rough set model is concerned primarily with the approximation of sets described by single binary relation on universe. In the view of granular computing, classical rough set theory is researched by single granulation (static granulation). The article extends the Pawlak rough set model to rough set model based on multi-granulations MGRS, where the set approximations are defined by using multi-equivalences on the universe. Mathematical properties of MGRS are investigated. It is shown that some properties of Pawlak rough set are special instances of MGRS, approximation measure of set described by using multi-granulations is always better than by using single granulation, which is suitable for describing more accurately the concept and solving problem according to user requirement.", "This paper presents an investigation of many valued lattices from the point of view of enriched category theory. For a bounded partially ordered set P, the conditions for P to become a lattice can be postulated as existence of certain adjunctions. Reformulating these adjunctions, by aid of enriched category theory, in many valued setting, two kinds of many valued lattices, weak @W-lattices and @W-lattices, are introduced. It is shown that the notion of @W-lattices coincides with that of lattice fuzzy orders of Belohlavek; and the notion of weak @W-lattices coincides with that of vague lattices of Demirci.", "Rough set theory is an efficient mathematical tool applying on domains of knowledge reduction and classification etc.Basis on the Boolean decision table in fraud detection,the concept of attribute power is proposed so as to compute partition quickly and reduce the algorithm time.With the related theories of rough sets and using the ordering idea,this paper puts forward a new method of attribute reduction.The algorithm is proved feasible and efficient through a real example and the experiment on a credit data set.", "The concept lattice is a novel powerful tool in knowledge processing and data analyzing,and expected to be able to solve the puzzles such as knowledge acquisition and discovery which are thought to be hard for conventional methods.The essence of constructing concept lattice form data set is a sort of concept clustering process,hence it is widely applied in many fields. Whereas,on the basis of knowledge base of transformer fault diagnosis,the paper establishes concept lattice structure of fault diagnosis knowledge of transformer,and pruning in lattice so as to coordinate target information base.By making use of concepts in lattice for transformer fault diagnosis,lattice node object sets are selected under incomplete information,probability of each fault emergence is confirmed according to rough subjection degree.The study shows the method owns intelligence and fault tolerance and is an effective knowledge processing means for transformer fault diagnosis.", "By employing an important concept,interior,in topology and intercrossing the theories of topology and rough sets,the attribute reduction in consistent information systems and lower approximation reduction in inconsistent information systems are recognized.Then,based on the theory of topology,the definition of interior reduction in a family of general relations is introduced,and a discernibility matrix is defined to present a judgement theorem for calculating interior consistent sets.Furthermore,a kind of reduction in covering generalized rough set theory is the same as the interior reduction and a model of its application is given.", "It is hard to directly deal with incomplete information systems in rough set theory.The measurement of the uncertainty of incomplete information systems is a difficult problem.The general similar relation of incomplete information systems was presented,as well as the measurement method for the uncertainty of it based on the general similar relation.What's more,the cases which illustrated the validity of the method were put forward.", "Two software systems based on the rough sets theory are described in this chapter. The first one, called ‘RoughDAS’, performs main steps of the analysis of data in an information system. The other one, called ‘RoughClass’, is intended to support classification of new objects. Some problems of sensitivity analysis referring to the handling of quantitative attributes in the rough sets analysis are also discussed.", "Generalized one-sided concept lattices represent a generalization of the classical concept lattices convenient ::: for analysis of object-attribute models with different types of attributes. Formally, to each objectattribute ::: model (represented by the notion of formal context) there is assigned a pair of concept-forming ::: operators. Fixed points of these operators form a hierarchical structure consisting of extent-intent pairs. ::: From the algebraic point of view this structure forms a complete lattice, called the generalized one-sided ::: concept lattice. In this paper we deal with the inverse problem for generalized one-sided concept lattices. ::: For a given generalized one-sided concept lattice we describe an algorithm for finding the corresponding ::: formal context.", "In real-life applications, partial order may exist in the domain of attributes and different data types often coexist in an decision system. Dominance-based rough set approach has been used widely in multi-attribute and multi-criteria decision by using the dominating relation. Neighborhood rough set aims to deal with hybrid data types. But the preference relation in the context of neighborhood rough set has not been taken into consideration. In this paper, a novel rough set model, Dominance-based Neighborhood Rough Sets (DNRS), is proposed which aims to process a decision system with hybrid data types where the partial order between objects is taken into consideration. The properties of DNRS are studied. Attribute reduction under DNRS is investigated.", "The example semantics of Inductive Logic Programming (ILP) systems is said to be in a rough setting when the consistency and completeness criteria cannot both be fulfilled together, because the evidence, background knowledge and declarative bias are such that any induced hypothesis cannot distinguish between some of the positive and negative examples. The gRS-ILP model (generic Rough Set Inductive Logic Programming model) provides a theoretical foundation in this rough setting for an ILP system to induce hypotheses that are used to say that an example is definitely positive, or definitely negative. An illustrative example using Progol is presented. Results are presented of GOLEM experiments using the data set for drug design for Alzheimer's disease and other experiments using Progol on mutagenesis data and transmembrane domain data.", "The article reviews the basics of the variable precision rough set and the Bayesian approaches to data dependencies detection and analysis. The variable precision rough set and the Bayesian rough set theories are extensions of the rough set theory. They are focused on the recognition and modelling of set overlap-based, also referred to as probabilistic, relationships between sets. The set-overlap relationships are used to construct approximations of undefinable sets. The primary application of the approach is to analysis of weak data co-occurrence-based dependencies in probabilistic decision tables learned from data. The probabilistic decision tables are derived from data to represent the inter-data item connections, typically for the purposes of their analysis or data value prediction. The theory is illustrated with a comprehensive application example illustrating utilization of probabilistic decision tables to face image classification.", "In this paper, we show the characterization theorem of lattice implication algebras. The algebras were presented by Xu (J. Southwest Jiaotong Univ., p.20-27) in 1993. Our theorem means that the class of all lattice implication algebras coincides with the class of all bounded commutative BCK-algebras. Hence lattice implication algebras are categorically equivalent to MV-algebras and to Wajsberg algebras.", "In incomplete ordered decision system,the tolerance dominance relation is too loose while the similarity dominance relation is too strict for classification analysis.By these explanations,this paper proposed the rough set models based on limited tolerance dominance relation.Moreover,we introduced the set pair analysis into incomplete ordered decision system,the rough set models based on connection degree were also presented.An illustrative example was used to show the validity of proposed dominance relation.", "In this paper, we focus on the properties of filters in lattice implication algebra. We study the relationship of associative filter and implicative filter, n-fold associative filter and n-fold implicative filter in detail. And a sufficient condition of involution filter in lattice implication algebra is proved. Then the relationship of some filters is given in Figure 4, and the transformation conditions among these filters are analyzed and obtained in Figure 5. Last, some properties of filter lattice are discussed.", "Rough set models with equivalence relations which may change along time are defined and discussed by introducing an information system with time. Interactive logical properties and time-independent approximations are defined and are shown to generate a logical classification of a universe comprising of five categories of a universe.", "Rough sets are often exploited for data reduction and classification. While they are conceptually appealing, the techniques used with rough sets can be computationally demanding. To address this obstacle, the objective of this study is to investigate the use of DNA molecules and associated techniques as an optimization vehicle to support algorithms of rough sets. In particular, we develop a DNA-based algorithm to derive decision rules of minimal length. This new approach can be of value when dealing with a large number of objects and their attributes, in which case the complexity of rough-sets-based methods is NP-hard. The proposed algorithm shows how the essential components involved in the minimization of decision rules in data processing can be realized.", "Rough sets have been applied to many areas where multi-attribute data is needed to be analyzed to acquire knowledge for decision making. Web-based Support Systems (WSS) are a new research area that aims to support human activities and extend human physical limitations of information processing with Web technologies. The applications of rough set analysis for WSS is looked at in this article. In particular, our focus will be on Web-Based Medical Support Systems (WMSS). A WMSS is a support system that integrates medicine practices (diagnosis and surveillance) with computer science and Web technologies. We will explore some of the challenges of using rough sets in a WMSS and detail some of the applications of rough sets in analyzing medical data.", "Credit risk evaluation is one of the most important problems in the finance field.Fuzzy cluster and variable precision rough set theory are introduced to evaluate credit risk.Fuzzy cluster is applied to discriminate sample data.Then,decision rules are extracted by variable precision rough set theory.The result indicates that sample data can be classified correctly by the decision rules which have the character of anti-interference.", "In this paper the determination of the optimal word-length of the variables implicated in a noise adaptive canceller based on a gradient lattice-ladder algorithm is presented. Upper and lower bounds from the variables are determined from a set of spoken words." ]

[ "cowboy bebop no contest" ]

[ "Nier Automata. One of the best games I've ever played. One of the best soundtracks I've ever listened to.", "The Lord of the Rings Trilogy has a really good soundtrack. I think the movie that benefits the most from it's soundtrack is Blade Runner.", "Vice City had the best soundtrack in my opinion!", "Zelda: Breath of The Wild soundtrack", "Family guy is the best anime.", "The moana soundtrack", "Minecraft Soundtrack", "Tron Legacy has a pretty dope soundtrack.", "Mega Man 2\n\nBut listen to the soundtrack. It is seriously one of the best, especially for its time.", "Kebabs.\n\nBest animal", "Frozen soundtrack", "Currently I really love the TENET soundtrack, but I would say nearly every Nolan movie with a Zimmer score has a really good soundtrack.", "Fast and furious soundtrack", "Doom 2016 soundtrack", "The gunslinger. He has six shots. Ninjas weren't what you see in movies, anime and manga.", "The soundtrack is awesome !", "Love the Skyrim soundtrack.", "Into the Spider Verse has epic animation", "Ninjago has the best theme", "RDR2’s soundtrack at the end of chapter six is real sad after what happens to Arthur", "Die Hard Soundtrack", "*plague inc soundtrack plays*", "best at what", "I know, but what animal?", "Everyone already has the ability to talk to animals... but the ability to converse with animals may be pretty interesting.", "Literally any Kdrama soundtrack", "none\n\ni buy what i need from whoever has the best product at the best price\n\ni dont care about their politics", "Interstellar, I love his soundtrack!!!", "Shrek 2 soundtrack is the GOAT", "Yea, but what about *horny* animals?", "Shrek 2\n\nI'm not even joking or saying it for the meme that soundtrack is brilliant", "Well, that depends. What kind of animal was it?" ]

[ "The Briton, 24, who has finished his degree since winning his light-heavyweight medal at the Games, has signed with promoters Matchroom Boxing.\n\"We have an outstanding talent in Joshua Buatsi,\" said promoter Eddie Hearn. \"He'll be on all our major shows and we will push him to the top.\"\nBuatsi will face an unnamed opponent at London's O2 Arena on his pro debut.\nBuatsi follows fellow Rio Olympians Joe Cordina, Lawrence Okolie, Anthony Fowler and Josh Kelly in turning professional.\nHis bout will feature on the undercard of Frank Buglioni's British light-heavyweight title defence against Ricky Summers.\n\"It's the right move for me,\" said Buatsi. \"My parents drummed into me about finishing my education. After Brazil I had a year left.\n\"Everything for me now is boxing. There's competition out there. We're all hungry. It's a brutal sport but I'm ready.\"\nHalf of the 10 men and both of the two women who competed for Team GB at the Rio Games have now turned professional, with super-heavyweight silver medallist Joseph Joyce expected to follow.\nBuatsi impressed at the Olympics by stopping opponents in his first two matches before winning comfortably in the quarter-finals and eventually losing on points to Kazakhstan's Adilbek Niyazymbetov in the semi-finals." ]

[ "The 26-year-old, who won Commonwealth gold at middleweight in 2014, will train alongside Tony Bellew under Dave Coldwell.\nHe will debut on the undercard of Kell Brook's IBF welterweight title defence against Errol Spence at Bramall Lane.\n\"I think being British champion in 18 months is a good target for me,\" Fowler said.\nThe six-time ABA champion and cousin of former Liverpool striker Robbie added: \"I waited for Rio because I wanted to go to the Olympics but I was also gaining experience fighting the best of the best.\n\"As a pro I think that's going to show as there's very few people in England that can live with me and it's only the very elite in the world that beat me in the amateurs. So I think I am going to shine as a pro and my style is great for it.\"\nMedia playback is not supported on this device\nFowler, who aided Carl Froch as a sparring partner prior to his final bout against George Groves, follows Rio Olympians Joe Cordina and Josh Kelly in signing with Matchroom Sport.\nSilver medallist Joe Joyce and bronze medal-winner Joshua Buatsi are also expected to turn professional.", "All three competed at the Rio Games in 2016 before turning to the paid ranks.\nOkolie has already made his professional bow, while Cordina and Kelly will each make their debuts before the Wembley date.\nThe headline bout will be for Joshua's IBF title and the vacant WBA Super and IBO heavyweight belts.", "\"I want to qualify at the Europeans next week,\" Adams told BBC Sport. \"To think that I could be European, world and Olympic champion in the same year is absolutely epic.\n\"It's that little piece of history that is my motivation.\"\nThe tournament begins on Saturday, with Great Britain sending 13 athletes.\nThere are 36 qualification places for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro available - 30 for men and six for women.\nFemale boxers who miss out have a second chance to qualify at the World Championships in Astana, Kazakhstan in May.\n\"I want to do it first time round, I don't want to mess about,\" Adams added.\nFull Great Britain squad for European Olympic qualifier:\nMen: Galal Yafai, Muhammad Ali, Qais Ashfaq, Joe Cordina, Pat McCormack, Cyrus Pattinson, Antony Fowler, Joshua Buatsi, Lawrence Okolie, Joe Joyce.\nWomen: Nicola Adams, Chantelle Cameron, Savannah Marshall.", "The 24-year-old heavyweight was beaten in his second fight in Rio by bronze medallist Erislandy Savon of Cuba.\nOkolie, from London, has now been signed by Matchroom Sport and is expected to start his professional career in the cruiserweight division.\nHe quit his job at McDonald's to take up boxing after seeing Anthony Joshua win super-heavyweight gold in 2012.\n\"I want to be the best cruiserweight that Britain has seen,\" said Okolie.\n\"David Haye has done great things, so has Johnny Nelson and many others, but I want to cement my legacy, have my name go down in history and maybe follow Haye by winning the heavyweight crown too.\"", "Cordina dominated from the opening bell of his super-featherweight contest halt the Russian inside a round.\nIt followed a fourth-round stoppage against Jose Aguilar on his professional debut on 22 April.\nCordina fought for Team GB at the Rio Olympics and was a bronze medallist at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games.\nGet all the latest boxing news leading up to the Joshua-Klitschko fight, sent straight to your device with notifications in the BBC Sport app. Find out more here.\nFind out how to get into boxing with our special guide.", "Media playback is not supported on this device\nLondon 2012 bronze-medallist Daley and Dan Goodfellow won bronze on Monday at Rio 2016 with the event's last dive.\n\"It's perfectly set up for Tom's individual,\" Brooke Graddon said.\n\"The pressure that would have built up if he hadn't have got that medal this time would have been even bigger for the individual,\" she told BBC Sport.\nGraddon, who won a bronze medal at the European Championships in 2009, trained alongside Daley as he was starting his career in Plymouth and is still close to the star.\nDaley, 22, is competing at his third Olympic Games, having made his debut as a 14-year-old in Beijing in 2008, and Graddon said his experience would help him deal with the scrutiny he will be under.\n\"It's a huge amount of pressure, but this is his third Olympics so he's dealing with that pressure,\" she added.\n\"He's older, he's wiser, he knows what he's doing, he's more confident in his skin now and I feel that really shows when he's stood on the end of the diving board.\"\nSubscribe to the BBC Sport newsletter to get our pick of news, features and video sent to your inbox.", "Media playback is not supported on this device\nBuatsi is guaranteed at least bronze after winning by unanimous decision.\nThe 23-year-old will fight Kazakhstan's Adilbek Niyazymbetov on Tuesday for a place in Thursday's final.\nSavannah Marshall remains in contention for a medal after winning her women's middleweight first-round bout.\nMedia playback is not supported on this device\nThe 25-year-old, who won Britain's first-ever women's boxing world title in 2012, defeated Sweden's Anna Laurell on points.\nHowever, Pat McCormack lost his light-heavyweight fight by split decision to Cuba's number two seed Yasnier Toledo.\nIn Rio to watch the next generation of boxers is retired former five-division world champion Floyd Mayweather Jr.\nHe has spoken to Buatsi, who says the 39-year-old told him he has what it takes to go to the top.\n\"He said to me he had heard about me before I got here and that I was a great fighter, a future world champion,\" said Buatsi.\n\"It was good to hear that from someone like Mayweather, who I think is the greatest boxer of our generation.\n\"I want to dominate in every way I can, and I want more than bronze. I will give it everything that I've got to make sure I get a gold.\"", "Media playback is not supported on this device\nThe 23-year-old Londoner lost on points in the semi-finals to Kazakhstan's Adilbek Niyazymbetov, who picked him off from range in a classy performance.\nDefeated semi-finalists do not fight again and both receive bronze medals.\n\"I'm disappointed but a bronze medal surpasses all expectations,\" Buatsi said.\n\"Once I got here and I was winning, I was aiming for gold and nothing else, but coming out no-one expected a medal. I did the hard work and I gave it my best shot.\"\nBuatsi secured stoppages in his first two fights, and gave Algeria's Abdelhafid Benchabla two standing counts in the quarter-finals.\nAfter that quarter-final victory, he revealed former five-division world champion Floyd Mayweather Jr had told him he could win a world title in the professional ranks.\n\"I know I am a very good fighter and this experience is only going to add more to what I have already got,\" Buatsi added.\nCompatriots Nicola Adams and Joe Joyce are both guaranteed medals after reaching their respective semi-finals.", "London 2012 flyweight champion Nicola Adams, 33, is one of two women included, while British men qualified in all 10 weight divisions.\nBritain topped the boxing medal table in London with three golds, one silver and a bronze.\nGB Boxing performance director Rob McCracken described the qualification success as a \"historic achievement\".\nFind out how to get into boxing with our special guide.\nHe said: \"It was a very gruelling qualification campaign and to get to the end of it with 12 boxers going to the Olympics is a great reward for the hard work and efforts of everyone connected.\"\nAdams is aiming to become Britain's first two-time Olympic boxing champion.\nHer fellow gold medallists in London, Anthony Joshua and Luke Campbell, have since turned professional.\nJoshua is the IBF heavyweight world champion - he defended his title for the first time on 25 June - while Campbell is the lightweight Commonwealth belt holder.\nProfessionals will be eligible to compete in the Olympics for the first time in Rio, a decision that has been widely criticised.\nHowever, as Team GB secured 10 amateur male qualifiers, they were unable to take any professionals.\nThe Olympics run from 5 to 21 August.\nGreat Britain team\nMen: Galal Yafai (light-flyweight), Muhammad Ali (flyweight), Qais Ashfaq (bantamweight), Joe Cordina (lightweight), Pat McCormack (light-welterweight), Josh Kelly (welterweight), Antony Fowler (middleweight), Joshua Buatsi (light-heavyweight), Lawrence Okolie (heavyweight), Joe Joyce (super-heavyweight).\nWomen: Nicola Adams (flyweight), Savannah Marshall (middleweight).", "Media playback is not supported on this device\nJoyce, 30, lost on a split decision 30-27, 29-28, 28-29 as he had to settle for a silver medal.\nIt means Britain end with a total of 27 gold medals, 23 silvers and 17 bronze medals from the 2016 Rio Games.\nThe overall total of 67 medals is two more than Team GB achieved at their home Olympics four years ago.\nJoyce also missed out on becoming the third British Olympic super-heavyweight gold medallist in the past five Games, after Audley Harrison in 2000 and Anthony Joshua in 2012.\n\"It was the last medal at the Olympic Games and I thought the gold was mine so I will just have to watch it back and see where it went wrong,\" Joyce told BBC One.\n\"My coach let me know I was down but I was landing shots all of the last round.\n\"All throughout I was throwing punches, going through his guard and it was just the odd shot he nicked.\n\"I gave it my all, got the training right. I am just disappointed. Silver isn't that bad. I expected the gold but it wasn't to be.\"\nAlso on the final day of the Games, Shakhobidin Zoirov won the men's flyweight title and Fazliddin Gaibnazarov triumphed in the light-welterweight to give Uzbekistan their third and fourth golds of the Games.\nMeanwhile, American Claressa Shields retained her Olympic title as she beat Nouchka Fontijn of the Netherlands in the women's middleweight final.\nAnthony Joshua, 2012 super-heavyweight gold medallist and current IBF heavyweight world champion:\n\"I have never seen a heavyweight throw so many punches. Joe was aggressive, making the fight and for me he is Olympic champion. In spirit he is champion.\n\"I'm so proud of what he has achieved. He is a credit to the sport in and out of the ring. With the power he possesses, he is a phenomenal fighter.\n\"It is like you have to knock them out in the heavyweight division and I was praying he caught Yoka with one shot.\"\nMedia playback is not supported on this device\nSubscribe to the BBC Sport newsletter to get our pick of news, features and video sent to your inbox.", "Glory and grounding. Fight for medals, learn your craft. The stage marries pressure of the here and now with a gateway to a professional future.\nBritish fighters know the pathway only too well - consider 2008 Olympians James DeGale and Billy Joe Saunders, both now professional world champions.\nThe latest off that conveyor belt, IBF heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua, thinks Britain has a \"unique\" fighter waiting to make the transition to the pro ranks.\nHere, with the help of Joshua, former Olympic bronze medallist and WBC super-middleweight champion Richie Woodhall, and BBC Radio 5 live pundit Steve Bunce, we take a look at the decisions facing Great Britain's 2016 Olympians.\nSuper-heavyweight Joe Joyce will leave the comforts of the state-of-the-art British Boxing training base in Sheffield as an Olympic silver medallist, braced for life as a pro, dreaming of emulating the success of previous gold medal winners in his weight class Wladimir Klitschko, Lennox Lewis and Joshua himself.\n\"Joe Joyce is unique,\" says Joshua of the fighter who holds a degree in fine arts.\n\"He's very intelligent, he's experienced different things, you can see he is a really solid athlete. He has got people eating out of his hand. He has so much energy.\"\nJoyce, 30, is quietly spoken to the cameras but ultra-confident in the ring. A competitive swagger perhaps supported by 2014 Commonwealth Games gold and European Games gold in 2015.\nHe didn't start boxing until he was 22, following a chance introduction to the sport while at university. He is also a part-time model and unsuccessfully auditioned for a role in the James Bond film, Spectre.\n\"He is most suited to turn pro out of the 12 in the GB squad at this time,\" says Woodhall, who turned pro after the Commonwealth Games in 1990. \"At his age, his engine is more developed. I say that from my own experience as I recall how I felt at say 22 compared to when I was Joe's age. My fitness was more developed for the 12 rounds.\"\n'Adams could set the pro game alight and get it to the same level as the men's' - 5 Live In Short\nJoyce is the oldest male fighter in the British squad. Time is of the essence if he is to attain the Las Vegas dreams those in the fight game seem to universally harbour.\nThe pro move fascinates, we seem to obsess over it. At virtually every news conference in Rio came the question \"will you now turn pro?\"\nIn June, the contentious decision was made to allow professionals to compete. However, it is not as simple as it may seem with the IBF stating in advance of the Rio Games that any boxer competing in Brazil would be stripped of their title.\nThe IBF claimed it was a safety risk for professionals to face amateurs.\n\"If I'm to be perfectly honest, I don't think there's anyone apart from Joyce that's ready for the pro game because they are all very young,\" added Woodhall, who works with GB's amateurs twice a week.\n\"The more international experience you have in amateur or Olympic boxing, the better you are prepared for the pro game because you are experiencing so many styles of fighter. Too many of our amateurs turn pro far too soon.\"\nSix of the seven male British fighters from London 2012 have now had a pro bout. Britain's Rio 2016 elite were a fresh crop, delivering three medals as a squad, while Cuba led the way in the ring with six.\n\"The Cubans, the Kazakhs, the Russians, the Ukrainians, they all keep their guys from four years ago,\" said Bunce. \"It's quite absurd. If only we could keep ours, persuade them not to go chasing the money, the money will be there [in the future].\"\nPromoters may promise big fights, big cheques, progression to domestic and world titles, yada, yada. The amateur game can sometimes be painted as a poor relation, not the sacred test many would argue it is.\nA Team GB fighter can earn up to £28,000 a year in basic funding. They can have food, physio and costs of living four days a week in camp covered, while training at a centre often visited by rival nations on research missions, such is its standing.\n\"When you turn pro you're funding yourself, you become your own boss,\" added Joshua, gold medallist at London 2012.\n\"You have to find a nutritionist, a physio, training grounds and it all comes at a cost. You have to look at the whole idea of being left to your own devices and finding good people to work with.\n\"You have to look at the system that made you successful and try to use it as a professional.\"\nLife on the other side offers an allure often too strong to resist, but there can be struggles. Audley Harrison - Olympic super heavyweight champion in 2000 - found pro life tough, Luke Campbell has tasted defeat in the paid ranks. Gold medals do not stop punches.\nBut Joshua's 30-month march from pro debut to heavyweight champion provides hope of glorious transition. He remains the only class of 2012 fighter to even contest a world title. Will the bright lights among which he now lives come calling for the 2016 team?\n\"He's made for the pro game,\" says Bunce of Joshua Buatsi, a bronze medallist at light heavyweight in Rio.\nBuatsi - still only 23 - displayed knockout power in Brazil. The St Mary's University student showed desire for a finish rather that the point-snatching style which historically shines in Olympic boxing.\n\"He fights like a pro,\" Bunce added. \"These Olympics have been more pro minded than any Olympics since 1980. These guys are having rows. The new scoring system means a return to old style blood, guts and thunder Olympic boxing which anyone above the age of 35 will remember falling in love with when they were younger.\"\nBuatsi could fall in love with offers from promoters post-Rio, although Joyce is still the only GB fighter to state he will certainly go over.\nWoodhall hopes for an amateur stay for the Ghana-born fighter, who claims Floyd Mayweather said he was \"a future world champion\" during a chance meeting in Rio.\n\"To win bronze here with the international experience he has had which is very little, then another four years into Joshua Buatsi and you'd probably see him winning gold,\" added Woodhall.\nSo have we seen our Anthony Joshua moment at Rio 2016? Have we seen a star born?\nThe desire is there but how greedy are we? Great Britain is home to 14 world champions. British Boxing did not choose 12 fighters to go to Rio, they delivered 12 for a maximum of 13 spaces in tough qualifying. These are heady times.\nNicola Adams did what Nicola Adams does to take gold and eight of the 10 male fighters in Brazil were under the age of 25.\n\"We hit our medal target and should retain our funding,\" added Woodhall. \"There's more to come from this team. I'm pretty sure we will win more than three medals in Tokyo.\"\nJoshua added: \"I think the guys that didn't manage to medal gained valuable experience and if they stay on until Tokyo we will see these guys shine.\"\nIt may hurt British Boxing bosses a little to see only Adams, Buatsi, Joyce and Savannah Marshall progress past the last-16 stage, but young fighters will \"develop power and learn from mistakes\" as their journey progresses, according to Joshua.\nSo switch now, or soak up more knowledge?\nBunce added: \"All 10 of the men will win British titles. As many as six or seven will end up winning a version of the world title.\"\nThat's expectation and with it comes pressure. We wait to see if anyone can reach greatness from boxing's Olympic springboard.", "Joshua, 26, broke the news in a video on his Twitter page, saying: \"I wanted the closest date possible because I'm feeling good.\"\nNo opponent has yet been announced.\nJoshua, the 2012 Olympic super-heavyweight gold medallist, won the IBF title with a second-round stoppage of American Charles Martin.\nThat victory earlier this month came in only his 16th professional fight, all of which he has won by knockout.\nJoshua's promoter Eddie Hearn had said Joshua's next fight was due to take place on 9 July at Wembley, but the plan was changed when Tyson Fury - the WBA, IBO and WBO heavyweight champion - announced his rematch with Wladimir Klitschko would take place on the same date in Manchester.", "Media playback is not supported on this device\nHe initially experienced racial abuse, but explains to BBC Sport's Nick Hope how he overcame that and after briefly considering representing France, is now targeting a medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics.\nIf you'd like to find out about how to get into martial arts, read our special guide.", "A Commonwealth Games gold medallist for Wales in 2014 and bronze medallist at the 2016 European Championships, Powell finished seventh at the 2016 Rio Games.\nShe returned to competition with fifth place at the 2017 Dusseldorf Grand Prix and seventh at the Paris Grand Slam.\nFind out how to get into judo with our special guide.\nThe 26-year old is ranked sixth in the world and will go to Poland from 20-23 April as one of the top seeds.\nThe 11-strong British selection will see a mix of experienced judoka, including 2016 Olympians and debutants take to the mat for the first major championship of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic cycle.\nIn 2016 British Judo had its best return from the European Championships in 10 years with Colin Oates and Powell winning silver and bronze respectively.\nGB Judo squad: Chelsie Giles, Kelly Edwards, Nekoda Davis, Bekky Livesey, Alice Schlesinger, Amy Livesey, Natalie Powell, Ashley McKenzie, Neil MacDonald, Max Stewart, Ben Fletcher", "Media playback is not supported on this device\nIn partnership with the English Institute of Sport (EIS), the initiative aims to identify and fast-track males and females between the ages of 15 and 24 into high performance sports.\nBoxing heavyweight world champion Anthony Joshua, Olympic rowing icon Sir Steve Redgrave and Olympic skeleton champion Lizzy Yarnold are among those urging you to #DiscoverYour Gold.\nIt's hoped that some of those chosen to be fast-tracked could compete in the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.\n\"I have seen the impact of similar schemes but #DiscoverYour Gold is the biggest and best yet,\" said Redgrave. \"It's very exciting to help launch the new campaign.\n\"The next great British sporting talent is out there and they've just been given a wonderful opportunity to take the first step on the road to the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics.\"\nPrevious campaigns by the joint partnership have helped talents such as taekwondo Olympic bronze medallist Lutalo Muhammad, Sochi 2014 skeleton gold medallist Yarnold and London 2012 para-cycling silver medallist Karen Darke.\nOver 20 sports are involved in #DiscoverYour Gold and you can sign up here.", "Media playback is not supported on this device\nBuatsi, 23, won by knockout against Uzbek Elshod Rasulov - his second consecutive stoppage in Rio. He faces Abdelhafid Benchabla of Algeria next.\n\"I wasn't expecting to knock him out.\" Buatsi said.\nFellow Briton Pat McCormack progressed in the light-welterweight category, but Josh Kelly was eliminated from the welterweight category.\nMedia playback is not supported on this device\nBirtley boxer McCormack won his preliminary bout in the men's light-welterweight by split decision against Kazakhstan's Ablaikhan Zhussupov at Riocentro Pavilion 6.\nMcCormack was awarded both of the opening two rounds, eventually winning two rounds to one in the eyes of the judges.\n\"When they said split, my heart dropped a bit,\" McCormack said. \"I was thinking they can't have given it to him.\n\"I thought I won very well but it is what it is - as long as I got the win. That's all that I've come for.\"\nHe faces the tournament number two seed - Yasniel Toledo of Cuba - in the last 16.\nHowever Josh Kelly's Olympic Games are over after he was soundly beaten by unanimous decision by top-ranked Daniyar Yeleussinov, of Kazakhstan, in the welterweight division last 16 by unanimous decision.\nMedia playback is not supported on this device\nThere are no British fighters in action in Rio on Friday, but Joe Joyce begins his Olympic super-heavyweight campaign against Cape Verde's Davilson dos Santos Morais at 23:00 BST on Saturday.\nSubscribe to the BBC Sport newsletter to get our pick of news, features and video sent to your inbox.", "The British team have never finished outside the top five in the medal table.\nAt London 2012, they won 120 medals, including 34 golds, to finish third behind China and Russia - and hopes are high they can surpass that in Brazil.\nHere you will find the names of every athlete selected by the British Paralympic Association.\nLondon medals: Two (one gold, one silver)\nCompetition dates: 10-17 September\nVenue: Sambodromo\nPrevious gold medallists John Cavanagh and John Stubbs head the GB archery squad for Rio.\nCavanagh, who will be appearing in his fifth Games, won gold in Athens while Stubbs triumphed on his Games debut in Beijing four years later.\nAmong the debutants are London 2012 Games Maker Jo Frith, who has won European and world medals since switching from swimming to archery, 16-year-old Jess Stretton and Invictus Games veteran Mikey Hall.\nLondon medals: 29 (11 gold, 7 silver, 11 bronze)\nCompetition dates: 8-18 September\nVenue: Olympic Stadium\nLondon 2012 gold medallists David Weir, Richard Whitehead, Aled Davies and Hannah Cockroft are among the 13 track and field athletes named in the first round of selections for the Rio Paralympics.\nAll of those selected won gold or silver medals at last year's IPC Athletics World Championships in Doha and showed form in 2016.\nThe squad also includes Libby Clegg, who broke the 200m world record at the Anniversary Games in her new T11 class, and Jonnie Peacock, who will be looking to defend his T44 100m title, plus many debutants.\nLondon medals: Two (one silver, one bronze)\nCompetitions dates: 10-16 September\nVenue: Carioca Arena 2\nDavid Smith, Stephen McGuire and Nigel Murray have all been named in the 10-strong GB boccia squad.\nMcGuire is world individual champion in the BC4 classification, while Smith won team gold alongside double Paralympic gold medallist Murray at Beijing 2008.\nLondon medals: None (sport making its debut)\nCompetition dates: 14-15 September\nVenue: Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas\nCanoeing will make its Paralympic debut in Rio and Great Britain will be one of only two nations, along with Australia, to have a full quota of six boats in action.\nAll of the squad have experience at World and European Championships, with Anne Dickins and Emma Wiggs current world champions in their respective categories.\nWiggs represented Great Britain in sitting volleyball at London 2012 and Nick Beighton competed in rowing, while Jeanette Chippington will be appearing at her sixth Games after a successful swimming career.\nLondon medals: 22 (Eight gold, nine silver, five bronze)\nCompetition dates: 8-11 September (track) 14-17 September (road)\nVenues: Rio Olympic Velodrome (track), Pontal (road)\nThe British Para-cycling team have enjoyed huge success on the track and the road in recent times, topping the medal table four years ago.\nDame Sarah Storey, who won four golds at London 2012, has been selected for her seventh Games, having made her debut as a swimmer in Barcelona 1992.\nLondon 2012 medal winners Neil Fachie, Karen Darke, Jody Cundy, Helen Scott and Jon-Allan Butterworth also feature in the team along with Kadeena Cox, who will be competing in both cycling and athletics in Rio.\nLondon medals: 11 (five gold, five silver, one bronze)\nCompetition dates: 11-16 September\nVenue: Olympic Equestrian Centre\nThe five riders selected for the Paralympic equestrian team in Rio have 13 Games' worth of experience between them and a shared haul of 30 Paralympic medals.\nLee Pearson will be aiming to add to his 10-gold-medal haul while Sophie Christiansen will be defending the three titles (two individual and one team) she won at London 2012.\nSophie Wells, who won team gold with Pearson and Christiansen four years ago, returns along with double individual gold medallist Natasha Baker.\nThe team is completed by 67-year-old five-time gold medallist Anne Dunham, who will be competing in her fifth Games.\nLondon medals: None\nCompetition dates: 8-16 September\nVenue: Deodoro Stadium\nAll but two of the football squad will be making their Paralympic debut with former Everton FC Academy player Michael Barker and Scottish veteran Jonathan Paterson competing in their third Games.\nThe team, which will be captained by former Birmingham City player Jack Rutter, has representatives from England. Scotland and Northern Ireland - many of whom competed internationally for their home nations at recent World and European Championships.\nLondon medals: Two (one silver, one bronze)\nCompetition dates: 8-10 September\nVenue: Carioca Arena 3\nThe judo squad became the first full GB squad to be named for the Rio Paralympics.\nLondon 2012 silver medallist Sam Ingram will be competing in his third consecutive Games and he is joined by a trio of newcomers in Jonathan Drane, Chris Skelley and Jack Hodgson.\nLondon medals: One (bronze)\nCompetition dates: 8-14 September\nVenue: Riocentro Pavilion 2\nWorld and European champion Ali Jawad heads the GB powerlifting team, eager to make up for the disappointment of missing out on a medal at London 2012.\nNatalie Blake will be competing at her fifth Games, Zoe Newson won bronze four years ago and there is a debut for Micky Yule, a former staff sergeant in the Royal Engineers, who lost both of his legs in an explosion while serving in Afghanistan in 2010.\nLondon medals: one (gold)\nCompetition dates: 9-11 September\nVenue: Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas\nGold medallists Tom Aggar and Pam Relph head the GB rowing team for Rio.\nAggar won men's single sculls gold when the sport made its debut in 2008 while Relph was part of the victorious mixed coxed four in London but has four new crewmates this time around in Dan Brown, Grace Clough, James Fox and cox Oliver James.\nFormer gold medal-winning handcyclist Rachel Morris will be making her rowing debut while Laurence Whiteley and Lauren Rowles will be making their first appearances at a Games.\nLondon medals: Two (one gold, one bronze)\nCompetition dates: 12-17 September\nVenue: Marina da Gloria, Guanabara Bay\nDefending Paralympic champion Helena Lucas was the first athlete to be named for either Rio Games when she was selected in April 2015.\nLucas will compete in the 2.4mR category and will be joined by London bronze medallists Alexandra Rickham and Niki Birrell and the Sonar crew of John Robertson, Hannah Stodel and Stephen Thomas, who will be competing in their fourth Games.\nLondon medals: three (one silver, two bronze)\nCompetition dates: 8-14 September\nVenue: Olympic Shooting Centre\nThree-time Paralympic medallist Matt Skelhon has been named as part of the GB shooting squad, aiming to add to his medal haul.\nSkelhon won gold in Beijing in 2008 and followed that up with silver and bronze in London.\nHe is one of six athletes with previous Games experience while Issy Bailey, Owen Burke, Lorraine Lambert and Stewart Nangle will be making their debuts in Rio.\nLondon medals: 39 (Seven gold, 16 silver, 16 bronze)\nCompetition dates: 8-17 September\nVenue: Olympic Aquatics Centre\nA 30-strong team will represent GB in swimming at the Rio Paralympics.\nSix swimmers - Ellie Simmonds, Ollie Hynd, Josef Craig, Jessica-Jane Applegate, Jon Fox and Bethany Firth - won gold at London 2012 and 20 of the squad bring previous Games experience.\nAbby Kane, who turns 13 in August, will make her debut while veteran Sascha Kindred, 38, will be appearing in his sixth Games.\nLondon medals: Four (one silver, three bronze)\nCompetition dates: 8-17 September\nVenue: Riocentro Pavilion 3\nWorld number ones Will Bayley and Rob Davies head the 12-strong GB table tennis team for the Rio Paralympics.\nThe team have a wealth of experience, with Sue Gilroy competing in her fifth Games. Liverpool's Jack Hunter-Spivey is the only member who has yet to compete at a Paralympics.\nLondon medals: None (sport is making its debut)\nCompetition dates: 10-11 September\nVenue: Fort Copacabana\nGreat Britain will take 11 athletes and two guides to the inaugural Paralympic triathlon event at Rio - the most of any country.\nReigning world champion Lauren Steadman is included, as are Andy Lewis and Alison Patrick, who won European gold in Lisbon in May.\nLondon medals: None\nCompetition dates: 8-16 September (women), 8-17 September (men)\nVenues: Rio Olympic Arena and Carioca Arena 1\nBoth the GB men's and women's teams will be represented in Rio.\nThe men's team go in as three-time European championships after completing the hat-trick in Worcester last September and will be hoping to improve on their fourth-placed finish four years ago.\nAll but one player was part of the European-winning squad with 19-year-old Gregg Warburton the only newcomer for Rio, while Simon Munn will be competing in his seventh Paralympics and Terry Bywater in his fifth Games.\nWomen's coach Myles Thompson has selected a youthful squad with an average age of 22.5, all of whom represented GB at last year's Europeans where they won a fifth consecutive bronze medal.\nClare Griffiths (nee Strange) will be appearing in her fifth Games while there are seven debutants, including teenagers Katie Morrow (16), Charlotte Moore (17), Joy Haizelden (17) and Leah Evans (19).\nGreat Britain have named Dimitri Coutya and Piers Gilliver as their fencing team for this summer's Paralympic Games in Rio.\nThe pair, who won silver medals at the 2015 World Championships, will be making their Paralympic debuts.\nLondon medals: None\nCompetition dates: 12-16 September\nVenue: Youth Arena\nLondon medals: None\nCompetition dates: 14-17 September\nVenue: Carioca Arena 1\nAlan Ash, who will be competing at his fifth Games, and Coral Batey, the sole female, have both been included in the 12-strong Great Britain wheelchair rugby squad for Rio as they bid to win a first medal in the sport.\nAsh first competed for GB at the 1996 Games in Atlanta but failed to make the team for London 2012.\nJonathan Coggan, Bulbul Hussain, Mike Kerr and Mandip Sehmi all have previous Games experience.\nLondon medals: two (one silver, one bronze)\nCompetition dates: 9-16 September\nVenue: Olympic Tennis Centre\nLondon 2012 medallists Jordanne Whiley, Lucy Shuker and Andy Lapthorne have all been named on the 10-strong Great Britain wheelchair tennis team for the Rio Paralympics.\nWhiley and Shuker won women's doubles bronze four years ago while Lapthorne claimed quad doubles silver with the now-retired Peter Norfolk. Jamie Burdekin won bronze with Norfolk in Beijing.\nTeenager Alfie Hewett and quad player Antony Cotterill will be making their debuts.", "Light-flyweight Yafai, 23, scored a clear points victory over Cameroon's Simplice Fotsala in the round of 32.\nWelsh lightweight Cordina used classy footwork and counterpunching to beat bustling Filipino Charly Suarez.\nOkolie, a heavyweight in just his 26th bout, used his jab well to overcome Polish fighter Igor Jakubowski.\nThe 23-year-old Londoner only quit his job at McDonalds after watching Anthony Joshua win super-heavyweight gold at London 2012, and battled obesity as a youth.\n\"To become a legend, you have to do legendary stuff. This is just part of the journey to be a legend,\" he said.\n\"If I manage to win, then I deserve it. It's not about scraping a medal or getting lucky. It's about wanting to beat everyone. If I can beat everyone in front of me, I get gold. If I don't, I don't deserve it.\"\nLight-heavyweight Joshua Buatsi is the only Briton in action on Sunday, taking on Uganda's Kennedy Katende at 17:00 BST.", "Ireland's London 2012 gold medallist will fight at super-featherweight against 27-year-old Kopinska.\nTaylor recently agreed promotional terms with Matchroom Boxing after concluding an amateur career that made her Ireland's most decorated fighter.\nThe 30-year-old is a five-time world champion, while Kopinska has lost 14 of her 24 fights, winning just seven.\nThe Pole also has the experience of having gone the distance against WBC super-featherweight champion Eva Wahlstrom of Finland.\nTaylor, from Bray, decided to make the move into the professional ranks with Eddie Hearn's outfit after missing out on a medal at the Rio Olympic Games in August.\nAfter her professional debut, she will fight on the undercard of Anthony Joshua's second defence of his IBF world heavyweight title at Manchester Arena on 10 December.", "Media playback is not supported on this device\nAdams, 33, beat China's Ren Cancan - who she beat to win gold at London 2012 - in Thursday's semi-final.\nThe Leeds woman lost the first of four two-minute rounds, before coming back to win the final three.\nShe will face France's 10-time national champion Sarah Ourahmoune in Saturday's gold-medal match (18:00 BST).\n\"Another gold-medal fight - I can't wait. This is what I've been training for for the last four years. I'm excited,\" she told BBC Sport.\nIt is guaranteed to be GB's first gold or silver boxing medal at Rio 2016, although super-heavyweight Joe Joyce could also reach his final.\nThe 30-year-old Londoner meets Kazakhstan's Ivan Dychko in Friday's semi-final ahead of Sunday's gold-medal bout.\nDefeated semi-finalists do not fight again and both receive bronze medals.\nJoshua Buatsi won Team GB's first boxing medal in Brazil by securing bronze at light-heavyweight.\nAdams has achieved virtually everything there is to achieve in boxing, having already won Olympic, European and Commonwealth golds.\nBut she showed her determination to add another Olympic title - becoming the first Briton to defend her crown after middleweight Harry Mallin in 1924 - by coming from behind against Ren.\nRen, a three-time world champion, took the opening round on all three judges' scorecards, but Adams came out aggressively in the next to pin back her 30-year-old opponent with her powerful left jab.\nShe knocked Ren off balance as she restored parity at the halfway stage, also going on to win the final two rounds 10-9 across the board.\n\"Four years is a lot of time to for a boxer to change and strengthen their weaknesses so I just had to go and stick to the tactics,\" Adams said.\n\"The jab won me the fight, it just paid off. I am always nervous and you need that nervous energy to give you the adrenaline.\"\nAnthony Joshua, 2012 Olympic super-heavyweight champion on BBC TV:\n\"I am sure Nicola will be familiar with Sarah Ourahmoune - the French and British spar a lot together.\n\"I think Nicola will control her with jabs and keep busy to not give her an opportunity to attack.\"", "British Lionhearts super-heavyweight Joe Joyce won with a stoppage of Brandon Lynch and flyweight Muhammad Ali beat Gaurav Bidhuri on points.\nJoseph Cordina was an emphatic winner over lightweight Bruce Carrington.\nWelterweight Cyrus Pattinson lost to Andreal Holmes for the USA's only point but light-heavyweight Joshua Buatsi beat Souliman Abdourachidov.\nThe World Series of Boxing serves as a route to Rio 2016, with British fighters who represent the Lionhearts eligible for selection for an Olympic qualifying event in May.", "Twice Olympic bronze medallist Barnes, 29, has won his opening two professional contests since joining the paid ranks after the Rio Olympics.\n\"We're looking at a European title fight. Definitely in Belfast,\" Barnes told BBC Sport Northern Ireland.\nConlan, meanwhile, is likely to fight in Chicago or Boston next.\nLondon Olympics bronze medallist Conlan made a winning professional debut in New York's Madison Square Garden on St Patrick's Day when he produced a third-round stoppage of American Tim Ibarra as he topped the bill.\nConlan's father John, Ulster Amateur Boxing's high performance coach, says the Belfast fighter may again headline the card in his next contest.\n\"At the moment, [his promoters] Top Rank are looking at maybe Chicago or Boston after what happened in Madison Square Garden,\" added the boxer's father.\n\"They are talking about him headlining a show again.\n\"There is also talk of Michael being on the Manny Pacquiao card in Australia in July.\"\nTop Rank boss Bob Arum said a couple of weeks ago that Pacquiao was in line to fight against Australian prospect Jeff Horn in Brisbane.", "Media playback is unsupported on your device\n21 February 2015 Last updated at 13:18 GMT\nMo Farah was a big star of the London 2012 Olympic Games.\nHe started athletics aged 12 and went on to win two gold medals at London 2012.\nNow he has his sights set on the next Olympic Games, Rio 2016.\nHe shared his tips for young athletes with Newsround.\nMo said: \"Focus on yourself. You don't become a better athlete if you have one bad race.\"\n\"Keep working, listen to coach and believe in yourself,\" he added.", "The six-time Olympic champion returns to the track where he won triple gold at the 2012 London Olympics to take part in the event from 22-23 July.\nLondon, which is part of the IAAF Diamond League Series, will host Bolt's final race before Rio 2016.\nThe 29-year-old retained his 100m, 200m and 4x100m titles at the Beijing World Championships in 2015.", "Media playback is not supported on this device\nAdams outpointed Norway's Marielle Hansen in Turkey to secure a women's flyweight (48-51kg) spot in Rio.\nCompatriots Galal Yafai, Qais Ashfaq, Muhammad Ali, Joe Cordina, Josh Buatsi, Lawrence Okolie and Joe Joyce also secured places with semi-final wins.\nAnthony Fowler could make it nine qualifiers on Saturday.\nIreland's Olympic champion Katie Taylor missed out on a chance to guarantee her Rio berth as she lost her lightweight (60kg) semi-final against Yana Alekseevna.\nBirmingham's Yafai (men's light-flyweight 46-49kg) beat Spain's Samuel Carmona Heredia, Ashfaq from Leeds (men's bantamweight 56kg) saw off Ukraine's Mykola Butsenko, Keighley's Ali (men's flyweight 52kg) overcame Bulgarian Daniel Asenov, and Cardiff's Cordina (men's lightweight 60kg) beat Ireland's David Joyce.\nLondoners Buatsi, Okolie and Joyce made it through in the heavier categories.\nMen's light heavyweight (81kg) Buatsi beat Ukraine's Oleksandr Khyzhniak, heavyweight (91kg) Okolie beat Azerbaijan's Abdulkadir Abdullayev, and super heavyweight (91kg+) Joyce beat Hungary's Istvan Bernath.\nLiverpool middleweight (75kg) Fowler lost his semi-final but could qualify if he wins the bronze medal bout, with the top three men and top two women in each division winning places in Rio.\nAfter the event in Samsun, male boxers have two more chances to qualify - at the World Series of Boxing event in Bulgaria in May and the final Olympic qualifying event in Azerbaijan in June.\nThe women have one more chance - at the World Championships in Kazakhstan in May.\nAdams became the first women's Olympic boxing champion when she won gold at London 2012, and she is now targeting another landmark.\nVictory in Rio would make the 33-year-old from Leeds only the second British boxer to retain their Olympic title after middleweight Harry Mallin in 1924.\n\"It feels really good to know that I will be defending my title in Rio. It is no longer the Road to Rio - I am going to Rio,\" said Adams.\n\"I've qualified and I am ready to defend my title and hopefully become a double Olympic champion.\"", "Media playback is not supported on this device\nThe heavyweight, 25, beat USA's Jackie Galloway 14-4 in the +73kg category to seal victory in South Korea on Wednesday, which follows her maiden world gold in Russia in 2015.\nMahama Cho progressed to the men's heavyweight semi-finals to secure at least a bronze for Great Britain.\nGB's Lutalo Muhammad suffered a second-round exit in the -87kg division.\nLiverpool's Walkden made Wednesday's final after an impressive 9-3 defeat of home favourite Saebom An in the semi-final earlier in the day.\nAnd she successfully defended her world title with a comprehensive victory over USA's Olympic bronze medallist Galloway.\nWalkden was a bronze medallist at the 2016 Rio Olympics, beating Morocco's Wiam Dislam to win her +67kg bout.\nBut she was unlucky to miss out on the gold-medal match having lost 4-1 to China's Zheng Shuyin in a golden-point round.\n\"To be honest it hasn't sunk in, I'm just so happy,\" she told BBC Sport following her second world title.\n\"I played it down more than I thought I would and came out into the final and was thinking 'this is just the gym, I'll just try and kick everyone' like I do in practice.\n\"I was devastated after the Rio Olympics and it still burns me now and that has to be my goal for the future - to keep winning worlds, but to get that gold in Tokyo.\"\nRio Olympian Cho beat Iran's Sajjad Mardani 14-1 in the quarter-finals and has now secured the first major medal of his career - with the colour yet to be decided.\nThe 27-year-old, who lost the +80kg bronze medal match at Rio 2016, saw off 2013 World silver medallist Mardani to progress to the semi-finals.\n\"I had one job to do today and that's what I've done,\" he said.\n\"I'm really happy with the performance but I'm not done yet and I want that gold tomorrow.\n\"That major medal has been a long time waiting so it's just nice to be in this position. I'm going to come back with the same mind frame and play the game right.\"\nFind out how to get into taekwondo in our special guide.\nOlympic silver medallist Muhammad, 26, was beaten 6-21 by Kazakh Asian Championships silver medallist Smaiyl Duisebay in the -87kg division.\nMuhammad was competing in his first event since his last-minute defeat in the -80kg final at Rio 2016 having taken a post-Games break for knee surgery.\nAs with previous major events outside the Olympics, Muhammad was competing in the heavier non-Olympic -87kg division.\nHe had looked strong in a convincing 36-1 defeat of Grenada fighter Fronzie Charles in the opening round, but was unable to avenge last year's agonising defeat in Rio.\nElsewhere Briton Jade Slavin was beaten in the last 16 by Mexico's Maria Espinoza on golden point in the -73kg category.", "The pair, who won silver medals at the 2015 World Championships, will be making their Paralympic debuts.\nCoutya, 18, and Gilliver, 21, will compete in the men's category A event, which starts on 12 September.\nBritain had just one wheelchair fencer at the 2008 Paralympics, but that rose to seven for London 2012.\nCoutya and Gilliver take the total number of British Paralympians selected for the Rio Games to 182 from 16 sports.", "27 June 2017 Last updated at 08:56 BST\nThe competition kicks off in London on the 14th July.\nShe dropped by to speak to Leah about how she's been preparing for the competition.\nHannah will be hoping for big success at the Champs, after winning three golds at the Rio Paralympics in 2016.\nCheck it out.", "London 2012 champions Jade Jones and Geraint Thomas lead the 23-strong Welsh contingent spread across 11 sports.\n\"They include current and former World, European and British champions,\" said Sport Wales chief Sarah Powell.\nA record 30 Welsh athletes competed in London while the previous record for an overseas Games was 17 at Athens 2004.\nThe most successful Olympics for Welsh athletes was the 1920 Antwerp Games where Christopher Jones and Paulo Radmilovic won water polo gold while John Ainsworth-Davies and Cecil Griffiths were in the title-winning 4x400m relay team.\nLondon 2012 was the largest overall Welsh medal haul of seven, when taekwondo star Jade Jones, cyclist Geraint Thomas and rower Tom James won gold, boxer Fred Evans, rower Chris Bartley and sailor Hannah Mills claimed silver, while Sarah Thomas won bronze in the hockey.\nSport Wales - the body responsible for developing and promoting sport and physical activity in Wales and distributing Lottery funds - has a rolling medal target of six to 10 medals across two Olympic Games cycles.\nTaekwondo's 57kg class world number one Jade Jones is the only Welsh athlete defending their title.\nDouble team pursuit track champion cyclist Thomas will compete in the road race at the 2016 Games and he is set to be the first Welsh athlete in action in Rio on Saturday, 6 August - the day after the opening ceremony.\nHere are the Welsh athletes who have qualified for the 31st Olympic Games in Brazil:\nNAME: Seren Bundy-Davies\nDISCIPLINE: 400m & 4x400m relay\nDATE OF BIRTH: 30 December, 1994\nFROM: Manchester\nHONOURS: 4x400 gold at 2016 European Championships 2016, 4x400 bronze at 2015 World Championships\nBundy-Davies is Wales' only track and field athlete at Rio, the first time that has happened since the 1952 Helsinki Games in Helsinki. Ranked number 31 in the world, she is expected to win a relay medal, which would be Wales' first track and field medal since Jamie Baulch and Iwan Thomas won 4x400m silver at Atlanta 1996. The 21-year-old is studying at the University of Manchester for a biomedical science degree.\nNAME: Joe Cordina\nDISCIPLINE: Men's lightweight (60kg)\nDATE OF BIRTH: 1 December, 1991\nFROM: Cardiff\nHONOURS: 2015 European Amateur champion, 2014 Commonwealth Games champion\nThe 24-year-old world number eight shares his St Joseph's stable in Newport with current featherweight world champion Lee Selby, 2012 Olympic welterweight silver medallist Fred Evans, 2010 Commonwealth bantamweight champion Sean McGoldrick and British flyweight champion Andrew Selby.\nNAME: Elinor Barker\nDISCIPLINE: Women's team pursuit\nDATE OF BIRTH: 7 September, 1994\nFROM: Cardiff\nHONOURS: 2013 World & European team pursuit champion, 2014 World, European & World Cup team pursuit champion, 2015 World team pursuit runner-up, 2014 Commonwealth Games points race runner-up & scratch race bronze medallist\nThe 21-year-old joins the world record-breaking team pursuit squad alongside Laura Trott and Joanna Rowsell-Shand that will be hoping to defend their Olympic crown in Rio but the United States are favourite. The British team pursuit trio won gold in London in world record time. Barker is the youngest member of the British cycling team and started riding aged 10 to get out of swimming lessons.\nNAME: Owain Doull\nDISCIPLINE: Men's team pursuit\nDATE OF BIRTH: 2 May, 1993\nFROM: Cardiff\nHONOURS: 2013 European team pursuit champion, 2014 European team pursuit champion, 2015 World team pursuit runner-up & European team pursuit champion, 2016 World team pursuit runner-up.\nThe 23-year-old, like Elinor Barker, is in a British team pursuit squad that is defending an Olympic crown after winning gold in a world record time in London in 2012 - and Great Britain are favourites to retain their title. Welsh-speaking Doull, whose childhood ambition was to be a fireman, gave up a promising rugby career to join the British Cycling Junior Academy aged 14.\nNAME: Ciara Horne\nDISCIPLINE: Women's team pursuit\nDATE OF BIRTH: 17 September, 1989\nFROM: Warwickshire (father from Penarth)\nHONOURS: 2014 European & World Cup team pursuit champion, 2015 European team pursuit champion, 2016 World team pursuit bronze medallist\nThe former national junior swimmer and triathlete joined a cycling team in 2009 and joined the Welsh Cycling Performance Programme in 2012, representing Wales at the 2014 Commonwealth Games. Horne, born to an Irish mother and Welsh father, has a physiotherapy degree from the University of Birmingham.\nNAME: Becky James\nDISCIPLINE: Women's sprint and keirin\nDATE OF BIRTH: 29 November, 1991\nFROM: Abergavenny\nHONOURS: 2013 World keirin and sprint champion and team sprint and time trial bronze medallist, 2010 Commonwealth Games sprint silver and time trial bronze medallist, 2014 World team sprint and keirin bronze medallist, 2016 World keirin bronze medallist\nJames became the first Briton to win four medals at one World Track Cycling Championship at Minsk 2013 and the 24-year-old competes in the sprint event that her hero Victoria Pendleton won 2008 gold and 2012 silver at Olympic Games. James, a former junior show jumper who loves baking, is fifth favourite on her Olympic debut, with Kristina Vogel the bookies' choice.\nNAME: Geraint Thomas\nDISCIPLINE: Men's road race\nDATE OF BIRTH: 25 May, 1986\nFROM: Cardiff\nHONOURS: TRACK: 2008 & 2012 Olympic team pursuit champion, 2007, 2008 & 2012 World team pursuit champion, 2014 Commonwealth Games road race champion ROAD: 2016 Paris-Nice champion, 2015 & 2016 Tour of Algarve champion, 2015 E3 Harelbeke champion\nThomas is bidding to become Wales' most successful Olympic athlete for 96 years as the 30-year-old is aiming for his third successive Olympic gold at Rio. But he is expected to play the supporting role for Chris Froome as he did at the Tour de France. The 2014 BBC Cymru Wales Sports Personality of the Year, who lives in both Cardiff and Monaco, has a dog called Blanche and has just bought a Grade II listed mansion in south Wales to hire as a wedding venue.\nNAME: Natalie Powell\nDISCIPLINE: Women's -78 kg\nDATE OF BIRTH: 16 October, 1990\nFROM: Builth Wells\nHONOURS: 2014 Commonwealth & Astana Grand Prix champion, 2013 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix runner-up, 2014 Samsun Grand Prix runner-up\nThe 25-year-old will become the first Welsh woman to compete in judo at the Olympics after beating 2012 silver medallist Gemma Gibbons to the -78kg Team GB place. The world number eight, whose hero is former England football captain David Beckham, started judo when introduced to the sport by friends at school.\nNAME: Victoria Thornley\nDISCIPLINE: Double sculls\nDATE OF BIRTH: 30 November, 1987\nFROM: St Asaph\nHONOURS: 2011 World bronze medallist (eight), 2015 European bronze medallist (double sculls)\nThe former equestrian rider and model was the first graduate of rowing's 'Sporting Giants' talent identification scheme to win a medal when she won the 2009 World Under-23 Championships. Thornley was fifth in the eight boat at London 2012 and now races alongside Katherine Grainger as the five-time Olympian defends the double sculls title in Rio.\nNAME: Chris Bartley\nDISCIPLINE: Men's lightweight four\nDATE OF BIRTH: 2 February, 1984\nFROM: Wrexham\nHONOURS: 2010 World champion, 2012 Olympic silver medallist, 2007, 2011, 2013 & 2014 World runner-up, 2014 European runner-up\nThe 32-year-old, an ever-present in the four since 2009, was part of the lightweight men's four that missed out on gold by less than a second at London 2012. Bartley, who studied biology at the University of Nottingham, is one of Team GB's most experienced rowers.\nNAME: James Davies\nPOSITION: Forward\nDATE OF BIRTH: 25 October 1990\nFROM: Carmarthen\nHONOURS: 2012 Dubai Sevens Plate winner\nThe 25-year-old Scarlets flanker is the younger brother of Wales and British and Irish Lions centre Jonathan Davies. He is nicknamed 'Cubby' because his brother is known as Jon 'Fox' Davies because their parents ran the Fox & Hounds pub in the Carmarthenshire village of Bancyfelin. The former Wales Sevens captain impressed in the Pro12 in the 15-man game last season and was a contender for Wales' tour to New Zealand.\nNAME: Sam Cross\nPOSITION: Forward\nDATE OF BIRTH: 26 August, 1992\nFROM: Abergavenny\nThe 23-year-old former Gwent county footballer who also represented Team GB at the World Student Championships in rugby league, is a centrally contracted Welsh Sevens international and has won 100 caps. Cross played for Cardiff Met University when studying a sport and exercise science scholarship.\nNAME: Jasmine Joyce\nAGE: 9 October, 1995\nFROM: St David's\nJoyce will be the only non-English representative in the Team GB female rugby squad. The 20-year-old, who was called up by Wales after impressing for the Pontyclun Falcons and the Scarlets, has taken a sabbatical from her university studies to concentrate on her rugby career.\nTRAVELLING RESERVE: Luke Treharne (Wales)\nNAME: Hannah Mills\nDISCIPLINE: 470 class\nDATE OF BIRTH: 29 February, 1988\nFROM: Cardiff\nHONOURS: 2012 Olympic 470 class runner-up, 2006 World 420 champion, 2012 World 470 champion, 2011 & 2015 World Championships 470 runner-up, 2014 European 470 runner-up\nMills and her crew Saskia Clark's gold hopes at the 2012 Games were blown off course by a wind shift in Weymouth and finished the medal race next to last, leaving them with silver. Mills, who started sailing aged just eight, is currently fourth in the world rankings but favourite to win in Rio.\nNAME: Chris Grube\nDISCIPLINE: 470 class\nDATE OF BIRTH: 22 January, 1985\nFROM: Chester\nHONOURS: 2014 World Cup Miami round bronze\nGrube failed to qualify London 2012 after he was beaten to Team GB selection by Luke Patience and Stuart Bithell, who went on to win Olympic silver. He was dropped from the Royal Yachting Association elite Olympic Podium squad in 2014 because of poor results. But the 30-year-old was paired with Patience in January 2016 after Patience's initial partner Elliot Willis was forced to withdraw after being diagnosed with bowel cancer. They are now ranked third in the world.\nNAME: Elena Allen\nDISCIPLINE: Women's Skeet\nDATE OF BIRTH: 12 July, 1972\nFROM: Blackwood\nHONOURS: 2014 World team skeet champion and skeet runner-up, 2013 World team skeet runner-up and skeet bronze medallist, 2014 Welsh Commonwealth Games skeet silver medallist, 2006 English Commonwealth Games skeet pairs bronze medallist.\nThe 44-year-old, who will hope for an improvement at her third Olympics, was born in Moscow and her mother Tatiana Bogdanova was a World and European Championship shooting competitor for the Soviet Union. Allen moved to the UK aged 20 and married fellow shooter Malcolm Allen, who is now her coach. The world number 39 has a modern languages degree from the University of Bradford.\nNAME: Jazz Carlin\nDISCIPLINE: 400m and 800m freestyle\nDATE OF BIRTH: 17 September, 1990\nFROM: Swindon (both parents Welsh)\nHONOURS: 2014 Commonwealth & European 800m freestyle champion, 2014 European 400m freestyle runner-up, 2015 World 800m freestyle bronze medallist, 2010 Commonwealth 200m freestyle runner-up, 2009 World 4x200m freestyle relay bronze medallist\nThe Welsh record holder in 200m, 400m and 800m freestyle made her international swimming debut aged just 15 and became the first Welsh female swimmer to win a Commonwealth title since Pat Beavan in 1974. The Manchester United fan and qualified personal trainer is fourth in the world in her favoured 800m freestyle and is fourth favourite to win on her Olympic debut with defending champion and world record holder Katie Ledecky a huge odds-on favourite.\nNAME: Georgia Davies\nDISCIPLINE: 100m backstroke\nDATE OF BIRTH: 11 October, 1990\nFROM: Swansea\nHONOURS: 2014 Commonwealth 50m backstroke champion and 100m backstroke runner-up, 2014 European 50m backstroke runner-up, 2010 Commonwealth 50m backstroke bronze medallist, 2016 European 50m backstroke bronze medallist & 4x100m medley & mixed medley relay champion, 2014 European 100m backstroke & 4x100m medley relay bronze medallist\nDavies is a 250-1 rank outsider for 100m backstroke gold as her favoured 50m backstroke event is not included in the Olympic schedule. The 25-year-old was an Olympic semi-finalist at London 2012 and the world number 11 will be aiming for the final in Rio and hoping for relay success.\nNAME: Ieuan Lloyd\nDISCIPLINE: 200m freestyle and individual medley\nDATE OF BIRTH: July 9, 1993\nFROM: Penarth\nThe City of Cardiff swimmer made his Olympic debut as a teenager at London 2012, finishing 19th in the 200m freestyle, but hasn't lived up to his early promise. The 23-year-old returned to form this year and is expected to feature in the 4x200m freestyle relay as well as 200m individual medley, where he is ranked 27th in the world..\nNAME: Chloe Tutton\nDISCIPLINE: 200m breaststroke\nDATE OF BIRTH: 17 July, 1996\nFROM: Rhondda\nHONOURS: 2016 European 100m breaststroke bronze medallist and 4x100m relay medley champion\nFollowing an international debut at the 2014 Commonwealth Games, the 20-year-old has burst on to the scene within the last 12 months and won the British 200m breaststroke title ahead of European silver medallist Molly Renshaw - and in a British record time. Tutton narrowly missed the Olympic qualification time but her performance convinced selectors she should go to Rio and the world number five is an outside bet for a medal.\nNAME: Jade Jones\nDISCIPLINE: 57kg\nDATE OF BIRTH: 21 March, 1993\nFROM: Flint\nHONOURS: 2012 Olympic champion, 2015 European Games champion\nHONOURS: 2012 Olympic 57kg champion, 2011 World 57kg runner-up, 2015 European Games 57kg champion, 2016 European 57kg champion, 2014 European Championships 57kg runner-up, 2010 European Championships 53kg bronze medallist, 2012 European Championships 57kg bronze medallist\nWales' only current world number one is favourite to retain the Olympic crown she won in such style as a teenager in London, the first taekwondo gold Great Britain have ever won. The 2012 BBC Cymru Wales Sports Personality of the Year, nicknamed 'The Headhunter' because of her style, was encouraged to take up the sport as a child by her grandfather because Jones was \"quite naughty\".\nNAME: Non Stanford\nDATE OF BIRTH: 8 January, 1989\nFROM: Swansea\nHONOURS: 2013 ITU World triathlon champion, 2012 World under-23 triathlon champion\nThe 27-year-old was handpicked by double Olympic champion Kelly Holmes as a possible star of the future in her teenage years when Stanford was a promising distance runner. But Stanford, second favourite for Olympic gold in Rio behind reigning back-to-back world champion Gwen Jorgensen, converted after joining the University of Birmingham triathlon club during her sport and exercises sciences degree. Stanford is the first woman to win an Under-23 and senior world title.\nNAME:Helen Jenkins\nDATE OF BIRTH: 8 March, 1984\nFROM: Bridgend\nHONOURS: 2008 & 2011 ITU triathlon world champion, 2011 ITU triathlon team world champion\nJenkins is among Britain's most consistent female athletes, achieving more World Triathlon Series podium finishes than any other British woman and winning the world title twice. Jenkins, who married British team-mate and coach Marc at Disney World in Florida in 2008, is preparing for her third Olympics and is third favourite as the 32-year-old hopes to improve on her 21st-placed finish at Beijing in 2008 and fifth at London 2012.", "Scot Burns, 30, battled courageously in the fifth defence of his crown, but lost 116-112 117-111 116-112 to his 26-year-old American opponent in Glasgow.\n\"The better man won,\" said Burns, who lost for the third time in 40 fights.\n\"There are some big fights out there for me but my first choice would be a rematch.\"\nFormer Olympic gold medallist Crawford was the bookmakers' favourite to beat Burns, who broke his right jaw in his drawn bout against Raymundo Beltran in September.\nBurns began his latest defence briskly, his jab finding its target several times in the opening round and, even though Crawford switched to southpaw, the Scot was largely untroubled after six minutes of fighting.\nBut Crawford - now unbeaten in 23 fights, including 16 knockouts - gradually took control of the fight and there was little to dispute in the judges' decision.\nBurns told BBC Scotland: \"We knew it was going to be difficult. I knew how good he was.\n\"I'd like to keep fighting at world level. I think I proved tonight that I definitely do belong there.\n\"I'm definitely going to stay at lightweight. I made the weight comfortably.\"\nBurns's last five contests have been in Glasgow. Asked how he would view fighting elsewhere, he replied: \"Fighting in Scotland, especially with the fans I've got, it's always a great night.\n\"Those fans are unbelievable.\n\"It would be hard to fight anywhere else but a boxing ring is a boxing ring.\"\nOn the undercard, Olympic gold medallist Anthony Joshua dismissed the unconvincing challenge of 38-year-old Argentine Hector Avila to record his fifth win in as many professional fights.\nLondoner Joshua, sporting tartan, was warmly received by the Glasgow fans and rewarded them with a facile first-round knockout.\nAnthony Ogogo also maintained his unbeaten record with victory against Greg O'Neil, the Olympic bronze medallist winning every round of their six-round middleweight encounter.\nJohn Murray stopped former British and Commonwealth champion John Simpson in the second round of their lightweight fight while in the same division Paul Appleby lost to Scott Cardle, who took his record to 14 consecutive wins by stopping his opponent in the eighth round.\nGlasgow super-featherweight Michael Roberts stretched his unbeaten record to 14 after he withstood some crunching shots from Frenchman Romain Peker to emerge a 59-55 winner.\nOn his professional debut, Glaswegian Ryan Smith outpointed Ibrar Riyaz from Reading in a four-rounder at lightweight.", "19 July 2016 Last updated at 14:45 BST", "Conlan and Donnelly have since turned professional and are not impacted by sanctions including an obligation to follow integrity education programmes.\nThe three boxers did not attempt to manipulate an event at the Rio Games.\nThe Olympic Council of Ireland and British Olympic Association were also sanctioned with a reprimand.\nParticipants are are not permitted to bet on Olympic events and the trio violated the Rio 2016 Rules on the Prevention of the Manipulation of Competitions.\nLondon 2012 bronze medallist Conlan, who suffered a controversial bantamweight quarter-final defeat in Rio, placed bets on boxing contests on 8 and 9 August.\nBoth bets, in his weight division but not on his two bouts, were lost.\nDonnelly betted on himself to lose his welterweight fight against Tuvshinbat Byamba on 11 August - the Ballymena man won on points.\nHis explanation to the IOC was that he had \"bet without intending to cheat by losing his match to win his bets, rather, winning the bets would be some compensation in the event he lost his match\".\nDonnelly lost at the quarter-final stage while middleweight Fowler, who also bet on boxing events, was beaten in his opening bout.\nThe IOC said the trio must successfully follow the IOC education programme to be eligible for Toyko.\nThe are also required to support, through active participation, education programmes organised by the either the AIBA, IOC or their Olympic association.\nThe Olympic Council of Ireland and British Olympic Association were \"sanctioned with a reprimand for not having properly informed its athletes about the content of the different rules applicable to them on the occasion of the Olympic Games in Rio, as well as about the content of the contract signed with them\".\nThey are both \"requested to make sure that the team preparation for the Olympic Games (winter and summer) includes complete education on the prevention of the manipulation of competitions and betting on the Olympic Games.\nMeanwhile. it is recommended that the AIBA put in place \"education programmes on the prevention of the manipulation of competitions and betting on the Olympic Games\"." ]

[ "Our Liquid Hand Washes do not contain any animal derivative ingredients. Is Dettol safe to use around animals? If our products are used according to usage instructions, Dettol is safe around animals." ]

[ "Abstract. 1. After ingestion, Dettol liquid (4.8% chloroxylenol, pine oil, isopropyl, alcohol), a common household disinfectant, can cause central nervous system depression and corrosion of the oral mucosa, larynx and the gastrointestinal tract.", "If our products are used according to usage instructions, Dettol is safe around animals.", "Is it safe for your dog to lick the area once this is applied? This spray is a non-toxic solution that contains no colors, odors, steroids, or antibiotics and will not harm your pet if they lick the application spot.", "Generally, it's safe for a dog to be in an area that's been treated with wasp spray, just as most dogs are fine using anti-parasite medications with pyrethrins. PetEducation.com notes that, though it's rare, pyrethrin and pyrethroid toxicity can occur if your dog is sensitive to this naturally occurring substance.", "SPRAY & PLAY! Safe for cats, dogs and people of all ages, with no wait time for drying or reentry into sprayed areas and environments. Just attach directly to a garden hose, spray your backyard, and enjoy.", "Topping the list of hazardous cleaning products are bleach, laundry detergent pods and phenol-based disinfectants such as Lysol and Pine-Sol. ... Phenol-based disinfectants effectively kill bacteria and viruses, but are toxic to both dogs and cats.", "The difference between flea control products for dogs and cats is a chemical called permethrin. According to the Pet Poison Helpline, this chemical is very safe for dogs and is common in flea sprays and drops.", "Product Description. Dettol original bar soap provides trusted dettol protection for a wide range of unseen germs. It cleanses and protects your skin for a healthy, clean and refreshing feeling everyday. It contains skin moisturising agents and dermatologically tested.", "can you use this for a cat. This spray is safe for dogs, cats, and ferrets. The Grannick's Bitter Apple Original Taste Deterrent Dabber is better for cats who may not enjoy being sprayed.", "YSK: Lysol disinfectant is NOT an air freshener and shouldn't be sprayed sporadically in the air. It's a surface disinfectant - that's why it doesn't smell good when it's sprayed at random. It's also not nearly as effective and doesn't do anything to disinfect the air.", "Description. MICONAZOLE SPRAY contains the anti-fungal agent Miconazole Nitrate for the management of fungal infections such as ringworm, and superficial skin infections caused by yeast. Safe for use on dogs, cats and horses.", "General disinfectant sprays that you might have around the house or find at the store are billed as sprays to clean and kill germs on all surfaces. You can use these on fabrics, says Hanson. One of the most common general disinfectants is Lysol, and it works to kill germs no matter where you spray it.", "“Lysol spray is a disinfectant — it's designed for use on surfaces,” said Joe Rubino, director of research and development for microbiology at Reckitt Benckiser, Lysol's parent company. “It is not meant to be used on the body, whether it be humans or pets. By no means should you do that.”", "['70 percent isopropyl rubbing alcohol.', 'Homemade spray mixture of 4 teaspoons of bleach and 1 quart of water. * Let this solution sit on the surface for 60 seconds, then wipe with a dry cloth. ... ', 'Lysol® Disinfectant Spray.', 'Professional Lysol® Disinfectant Spray.']", "The primary rule of dog first aid is to first do no harm, Wimpole said. ... For example, he says you should never put anything on your dog's wound. Antiseptics such as Savlon, Dettol and similar products should never be used! They are far too harsh, he said.", "Lysol Disinfectant Spray contains Ethanol and Carbon Dioxide, two very toxic chemicals that should not come in contact with children's mouths or skin. Ethanol is the primary ingredient in Lysol spray and is highly flammable, especially under pressure.", "['Bleach. Bleach is an excellent disinfectant, and one that can be used in different areas of your kitchen – like the floor, countertops, or the kitchen sink. ... ', 'Disinfectant Sprays. Liquid sprays are very convenient when it comes to cleaning the kitchen. ... ', 'Surface Wipes. ... ', 'Floor Cleaners.']", "Microban 24 Hour Disinfectant Sanitizing Spray, Citrus, 15 fl oz - Walmart.com - Walmart.com.", "Cleaners with powerful odors that promise results should alert pet owners, particularly cat owners, to danger, experts say. The ingredients that make disinfectants effective make them toxic for companion animals: alcohol, bleach, hydrogen peroxide, chemical compounds that contain the word “phenol,” etc.", "Oxivir Spray is a ready-to-use liquid detergent disinfectant for the cleaning and disinfection of washable hard surfaces and washable fabrics. Effective against a wide range of ◆Effective against Bacteria, micro-organisms Viruses, Fungi and Spores.", "Forensics Firm Says Disinfectant Foggers Can Damage Electronics. ... Ewing said studies by the Environmental Protection Agency show that the chemicals most commonly used to spray disinfectants are corrosive and can damage sensitive electronic equipment.", "Do not spray Lysol on yourself or on other people. Lysol is not meant to be used as a disinfectant for skin, and is dangerous if inhaled or ingested, or if it comes into contact with eyes and skin.", "It's a topical painkiller that helps to slightly numb the wound site and prevent itchiness and irritation. Pramoxine is considered safe for dogs as well, and is often included in anti-itch sprays made for animals.", "Ingredients: Denatured Alcohol- 69.4% w/w, Water PEG/PPG-17/6 copolymer, Propylene glycol, Acrylate /C10-30 alkyl acrylate, cross polymer, Tetrahydroxpropyl ethylenediamine, Perfume. What the product claims: Dettol Hand sanitizer kills 99.9% of germs instantly without water.", "The ingredients that make disinfectants effective make them toxic for companion animals: alcohol, bleach, hydrogen peroxide, chemical compounds that contain the word “phenol,” etc.", "This mold and mildew remover spray is safe to use on glazed and unglazed ceramic tile, grout, vinyl, fiberglass, and plastic. Use this no scrubbing bleach cleaner to clean and disinfect tubs, shower doors, vinyl shower curtains, counter tops, no wax floors and sinks.", "If the couch has colorfast non-porous materials, you could try spraying with Lysol room spray (the disinfecting alcohol spray). But you have to leave the spray on long enough to be effective and then allow the couch to dry. Using a clean damp cloth followed by a clean dry cloth might be just as effective.", "Tilex® Mold and Mildew Remover Spray kills common household mold, mildew and bacteria on a variety of surfaces. Powered by Clorox Bleach, this mold and mildew disinfectant spray kills common bacteria found in homes.", "DEET and other human insect repellents should not be applied to dogs or cats. This chemical is toxic when ingested at high doses, and dogs may lick it off and ingest it, potentially resulting in toxicity.", "is that atomizer is an instrument for reducing a liquid to spray or vapor for disinfecting, cooling, medical use or perfume spraying while nebulizer is a device used to convert liquid into a fine spray of aerosols, by means of oxygen, compressed air, or ultrasonic vibration; sometimes also referred to as an atomizer.", "This product is generally safe to humans and pets alike but can be lethal to aquatic animals and other environmentally beneficial organisms. Drione insecticide dust contains pyrethrin's, piperonyl butoxide and amorphous silica gel.", "IMPORTANT: DO NOT USE Antiseptic preparations such as Savlon cream or spray, TCP, Hydrogen Peroxide, Lavender oil, Tea tree oil, Dettol, Surgical Spirit etc – DO NOT USE THESE to clean your piercing! These are very harsh and will cause irritation and delay healing." ]

[ "A little more than a year after President Bush appointed him America's Ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton says that he will step down when his tenure expires in a few weeks. The White House made the announcement today. Bolton was a temporary appointment made by the President in August 2005, but his nomination has languished in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, unable to win confirmation. Caroline Daniel, White House Correspondent, the Financial Times NEAL CONAN, host: A little bit more than a year after President Bush named him America's ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton will step down when his appointment expires, which could be as soon as the end of this week. The White House made the announcement earlier today. Bolton was a recess appointment made by the President in August 2005, but his nomination for a permanent position has languished in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Bolton was unable to win confirmation in this Congress and was given even less chance in the next Congress, when Democrats will control the United States Senate. Caroline Daniel is White House correspondent for the Financial Times and joins us now from her office here in Washington. Thanks for taking the time to be with us today. Ms. CAROLINE DANIEL (Financial Times): Thanks, Neal. CONAN: And Bolton's political trouble comes as no surprise. His resignation, though, I understand, caught the White House as somewhat by surprise. Ms. DANIEL: Well, they were certainly still trying to lobby behind the scenes on his behalf to try and twist Lincoln Chafee's arm. He's the moderate on the committee who had previously said he might support John Bolton. But clearly something happened last week that basically - John Bolton, who's spent most of his career in public service, was faced with the prospect of a recess appointment if he couldn't get appointed, which basically meant he would be paid no money to do this job. And he's not a wealthy man, and maybe he just though life's too short; it's time to move on. CONAN: Lincoln Chafee - let's just backtrack - a liberal Republican and also a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, who lost his seat in November but still has that vote today. And it would have been today or sometime later this week he would have been asked to cast it in Mr. Bolton's favor if he would make that decision. Ms. DANIEL: Yeah. The White House certainly went all out to try and help defend his Senate seat. So they feel probably pretty annoyed with him that they haven't - the quid pro quo hasn't come through, that Lincoln hasn't delivered in terms of his vote, which is sort of ironic at a time when actually some Democrats were starting to say Bolton had done a pretty effective job at the U.N. Despite some of their concerns originally, he's been very effective with North Korea and on the Iran resolutions. So in some ways you were starting to see some Democrats come around to his position. CONAN: Bolton, when his nomination first came up, was - the charges against him were that he was a bit of a bully to those beneath him and preferred an almost unilateral foreign policy of his own. Ms. DANIEL: Well, I think a lot of people would say he's a bully not just to those beneath him, but to those above him. I mean, certainly Kofi Annan at the U.N. probably is going to be relieved to see the back of John Bolton. They had a bit of spat even this week over Iraq policy when John Bolton basically accused Kofi Annan of - saying, yeah, that's another unhelpful comment from the Secretary General when Kofi Annan made some comment about Iraq. So I must say there will be a lot of happy faces at the U.N. today who'll be relieved to see Mr. Bolton and his aggressive bullying tactics and negotiations away from the U.N. and somewhere else, perhaps at a law firm somewhere. CONAN: In the announcement of Mr. Bolton's pending departure, the president, or at least the White House in his name, took a couple of shots at Democrats. Ms. DANIEL: Well, it's sort of ironic in some ways that they're blaming Democrats. Certainly this morning you had Tony Snow briefing that the appointment's process is broken and saying that for reasons of partisanship, you know, a handful of senators have blocked him as U.N. Ambassador. But on the other hand, the fact is it's Lincoln Chafee, you know, Republican moderate, who's been as much to blame for this obstruction as any of the Democrats. CONAN: And as this goes through, John Bolton's principle reason there - I mean you talked about resolutions on North Korea and Iran that he's been working very hard on - but his primary issue was reform of the United Nations. Ms. DANIEL: Well, he famously went to the U.N. saying that one of his missions was to lop the top 10 floors off the U.N. So he was very much sort of keen to cut it down to size, literally, and reform it. He was concerned about corruption, which is an issue that many Republicans feel about the U.N., that it's jus" ]

[ "With Meghna Chakrabarti John Bolton is out as national security adviser. Now what for U.S. foreign policy? Guests James Dobbins, served in several State Department and White House posts, including U.S. ambassador to the European Union, assistant secretary of state for European affairs and special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, over the course of three presidential administrations &#8212; Obama, Bush and Clinton. Senior fellow and distinguished chair in Diplomacy and Security at the RAND Corporation. (@Jim_Dobbins) David Rothkopf, author of &#8220;Running the World: The Inside Story of the National Security Council and the Architects of American Power,&#8221; &#8220;National Insecurity: American Leadership in an Age of Fear&#8221; and the forthcoming &#8220;Traitor: The Case Against Donald J. Trump.&#8221; Former CEO and editor-in-chief of the Foreign Policy media organization. Host of &#8220;Deep State Radio,&#8221; a podcast on national security and foreign policy. (@djrothkopf) From The Reading List The Daily Beast: &#8220;Opinion: Why the Trump-Bolton Marriage Was Doomed From the Start&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;The news that John Bolton was out at the White House was not actually news at all. In fact it was more akin to when Chevy Chase used to announce on Saturday Night Live that &#8216;Generalissimo Francisco Franco is still dead.&#8217; Bolton effectively left the job months ago, and even when he had it, as with Franco in his last years, the post was largely ceremonial. After all, being the chief adviser to a man who regularly boasts that he does not need or take advice is not much of a job, is it? &#8220;For that reason and many others, this was a marriage that was doomed from the start. While Trump and Bolton are both bullies who don’t have much use for the international system, the similarities end there. Trump likes to talk tough but seldom follows through. He is first, last and always a Trumpist, seeking to do what he feels will bring him the most benefit personally. &#8220;Bolton is an ideologue. His views are extreme, but unlike Trump’s they are part of a coherent, albeit dangerous, worldview. He believes tough talk must be backed up by tough action and that obstinate opponents often must be defeated by force. That is where he and Trump parted ways. &#8220;Both were perfectly happy to talk trash about North Korea, Iran, or the Taliban. But when Trump concluded he might get more political credit for deals with each of these, he was not just eager to negotiate, he was ready to take any deal he could get. Such capitulation was anathema to Bolton, and it resulted in the estrangement of the two men. &#8220;Signs were everywhere long ago that Bolton was national security adviser in name only. For example, earlier this summer, when Trump headed off to his most recent schmoozefest with Kim Jong Un, Bolton was dispatched to, of all places, Mongolia, a location often used as a punch line in old jokes about being in the middle of nowhere.&#8221; NBC News: &#8220;Trump fires John Bolton as national security adviser&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;President Donald Trump said Tuesday he had fired National Security Adviser John Bolton after a string of disagreements between the two over how the U.S. should handle North Korea, Afghanistan and Iran. &#8220;Trump announced on Twitter that he had asked for Bolton&#8217;s resignation, which he received this morning, after the president had &#8216;disagreed with many of his suggestions.&#8217; &#8220;&#8216;I informed John Bolton last night that his services are no longer needed at the White House. I disagreed strongly with many of his suggestions, as did others in the Administration, and therefore I asked John for his resignation, which was given to me this morning,&#8217; Trump said on Twitter.&#8221; USA Today: &#8220;&#8216;Let&#8217;s be clear, I resigned.&#8217; John Bolton contradicts Donald Trump on whether he was fired&#8221; &#8212; &#8220;John Bolton contradicted Donald Trump minutes after the president announced he fired Bolton as national security adviser. &#8220;&#8216;I offered to resign last night and President Trump said, &#8220;Let&#8217;s talk about it tomorrow,&#8221; &#8216; Bolton wrote in a tweet. &#8220;Less than 15 minutes before Bolton&#8217;s tweet, Trump wrote in his own series of tweets that he had requested Bolton&#8217;s resignation on Monday night. &#8220;Trump claimed that Bolton&#8217;s resignation was given Tuesday morning. &#8220;&#8216;I informed John Bolton last night that his services are no longer needed at the White House,&#8217; Trump wrote. &#8216;I disagreed strongly with many of his suggestions, as did others in the Administration.&#8217; &#8220;Bolton also texted several reporters that he did not been fired, as the president has said.&#8221; Grace Tatter produced this show for broadcast. This article was originally published on WBUR.org.", "If ever one man symbolized President Bush's willingness to wield power in a Republican-dominated Washington, it's John Bolton. But now, Bolton has announced he won't stay in his job as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations once his temporary appointment expires in early January. So Bolton has come to symbolize something else: the new political reality facing President Bush. When the president chose Bolton in 2005, he was making a statement no one could miss. Bolton was known for his strong advocacy of U.S. aims in the world, his harsh criticism of the U.N. itself and his determination to reform that institution. Democrats in Congress knew Bolton as an outspoken partisan who had, among other things, organized some of the Republican resistance to recounting the Florida vote in the contested presidential election of 2000. By choosing Bolton, Bush was throwing down the gauntlet both in the Senate and on the world stage. And when the Senate balked at confirmation, the president upped the ante by installing Bolton as a \"recess\" appointment in August 2005. Recess appointees serve until the next Congress is sworn in. Bolton is a hawk, closely allied with Vice President Dick Cheney and outgoing Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. Democrats long complained of Bolton's brash style and said he was miscast as the nation's top diplomat at the U.N. But Bush said he was the right man to force tough reforms at the international body. The president could not get Bolton confirmed in the Senate. After the defection of Republican George Voinovich of Ohio, the Foreign Relations Committee could not muster the votes to report the nomination favorably. Bolton's name was sent to the floor without recommendation, at which point Democrats mounted a filibuster. Efforts to cut off debate came up short. Rather than back off, President Bush sent Bolton to New York as this country's first unconfirmed ambassador to the United Nations. A year later, the president tried again to win confirmation for Bolton. Voinovich announced he had changed his mind, which seemed to indicate the nomination could reach the floor under more favorable circumstances and possibly win approval before the fall elections. But it was not to be. Another Republican on the Foreign Relations Committee, Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island, said he would not go along with the Bolton nomination. Chafee's decision was widely viewed as reflecting his tough re-election prospects, although Chafee stuck by it even after losing in November. Chafee’s nay vote kept Bolton's nomination from being confirmed this fall or in the lame-duck session after the election. That meant the nomination could not be considered before the Senate majority changes hands in January. And in 2007, chances of confirmation will be nil. In January, Democrat Joe Biden of Delaware will become the new chair of Foreign Relations. A leading opponent of the Bolton nomination, Biden says there's no need to reconsider it. The White House briefly contemplated possible loopholes to let Bolton stay on the job. But a second recess appointment could not carry a salary, so Bolton would be obliged to serve without being a paid official of the government. Another potential option was to send him back to the U.N. with a lesser job and title that did not require Senate confirmation. But ultimately, the White House seemed to recognize that such gambits would draw more than just protests from Democrats, who are now ascending to committee chairmanships. The power equation has shifted. So both employee and employer went through the necessary motions. Bolton wrote Bush a letter saying it's been an honor to serve and that the president's leadership \"has been critical in safeguarding America's values and interests in a time of peril and challenge.\" The president then released a statement praising Bolton. Bush said Bolton successfully won U.N. support for tough action against North Korea. He said he's \"deeply disappointed\" Bolton is not staying on. And the president lashed out at a \"handful\" of senators for engaging in \"stubborn obstructionism.\" But the real message from the president was that this was one political battle he knew he could not win. John Bolton, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, has announced he will resign within weeks. Bolton's permanent confirmation to the job had been blocked by Senate Democrats and several Republicans. James Traub, author of The Best Intentions: Kofi Annan and the UN in the Era of American World Power, talks with Mike Pesca about Bolton's announcement.", "Unable to muster a majority vote for a positive recommendation on John Bolton as ambassador to the United Nations, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee sends the nomination to the Senate floor. The committee has been examining Bolton for months. Democrats said the fight over Bolton's nomination will continue on the Senate floor; they have not said whether they'll resort to a filibuster to stop that nomination. MICHELE NORRIS, host: From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Michele Norris. ROBERT SIEGEL, host: And I'm Robert Siegel. A highly unusual step today by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. It involves the nomination of John Bolton to be UN ambassador. The committee voted along party lines to send his nomination to the Senate floor, but without the usual favorable recommendation. That happened after a maverick Republican on the committee declared that Bolton was unsuited for the job. NPR's David Welna reports. DAVID WELNA reporting: This was the Foreign Relations panel's second attempt to vote on the Bolton nomination. Objections raised by Ohio Republican George Voinovich three weeks ago had postponed the vote. Since then, more than 30 people have been interviewed about allegations that Bolton bullied subordinates and sought to exaggerate intelligence reports. The panel's Republican chairman, Richard Lugar, declared at the outset of today's five-hour session that he did not think the evidence from the probe disqualified Bolton's nomination. But while Lugar endorsed confirming him as UN ambassador, he pointedly noted that Bolton's actions were not, in his words, `always exemplary.' Senator RICHARD LUGAR (Republican, Indiana; Chairman, Foreign Relations Committee): On several occasions, he made incorrect assumptions about the behavior and motivations of subordinates. At other times, he failed to use proper managerial channels or unnecessarily personalized internalist views. The picture is one of an aggressive policy-maker who pressed his missions at every opportunity and argued vociferously for his point of view. In the process, his blunt style alienated some colleagues, but there is no evidence that he has broken laws or engaged in serious ethical misconduct. WELNA: And then Ohio Republican Voinovich broke ranks again with his fellow Republicans on the Bolton nomination. Senator GEORGE VOINOVICH (Republican, Ohio): I believe that John Bolton would have been fired, fired, if he'd worked for a major corporation. This is not the behavior of a true leader who upholds the kind of democracy that President Bush is seeking to promote globally. This is not the behavior that should be endorsed as the face of the United States to the world community in the United Nations. Rather, Mr. Chairman, it is my opinion that John Bolton is the poster child of what someone in the diplomatic corps should not be. WELNA: Still, Voinovich said he'd support sending the nomination to the Senate floor without recommendation. He did so after noting that he'd met with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice who'd assured him Bolton would be under her supervision. Voinovich said he regretted not asking her why she'd want an ambassador who needed supervision. The panel's top Democrat, Joe Biden, recounted a conversation he'd had with Rice about Bolton in which he said she'd been informed Bolton's nomination was necessary. Senator JOSEPH BIDEN (Democrat, Delaware): And I asked the rhetorical question: `If you couldn't say no now to that nomination, how you gonna say no if, in fact, he breaches the control that you indicate to me that will be imposed upon him?' WELNA: Other Republicans rallied around the embattled nominee. Virginia's George Allen repeated White House arguments that Bolton's nomination is really about reforming the United Nations. Senator GEORGE ALLEN (Republican, Virginia): We are not electing Mr. Congeniality. We do not need Mr. Milquetoast in the United Nations. We're not electing Mr. Peepers to go there and just be really happy and drinking tea with their pinkies up and just saying all these meaningless things when we do need a straight talker and someone who's going to go there and shake it up, and it needs shaking up. WELNA: But Nebraska Republican Chuck Hagel said assertions that the nomination is about UN reform are patently ridiculous. He reminded Allen that the president's father was once one of those UN ambassadors whom Allen had characterized as drinking tea with their pinkies up. Besides Hagel and Voinovich, two other Republicans--Alaska's Lisa Murkowski and Rhode Island's Lincoln Chafee--also expressed concerns about Bolton. ", "John Bolton, the undersecretary of state for arms control, is President Bush's nominee for ambassador to the United Nations. In the latest setback to his confirmation, Democrats on May 26 forced a delay in a Senate vote on Bolton's nomination after nearly two days of floor debate. Supporters of the nomination failed to garner the 60 votes necessary to stop debate. Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain urged the Senate to proceed with a vote on Bolton's nomination. \"Let's go ahead and let him get to work rather than wait a week or 10 days or more,\" McCain said. \"We've been at this for weeks. Let's move on to other things.\" But Democrats say they won't act until the Bush administration provides additional documents on Bolton's background. They include the secret transcripts of 10 intelligence intercepts Bolton had requested from the National Security Agency, and documents that would show whether Bolton sought to exaggerate intelligence on Syria's weapons programs. Action on Bolton now is note expected before June 7, when the Senate returns from a Memorial Day recess. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee sent Bolton's nomination to the full Senate on May 12, but, in an unusual move, refused to endorse him for the job. The panel looked into allegations concerning Bolton's past anti-U.N. statements, his alleged intimidation of subordinates at the State Department and his attempts to ignore or suppress intelligence information with which he disagreed. The Senate began a heated debate Wednesday in which Republican Sen. George Voinovich of Ohio reiterated his reservations about Bolton. \"I believe we can do better,\" Voinovich said. \"The overwhelming opinion of the colleagues I talked to about John Bolton is that he is not an ideal nominee, that they're less enthusiastic about him, and many were surprised at the decision. Many of my colleagues have said that the only reason they're going to vote for him is because he's the president's nominee.\" Defending Bolton was Republican Richard Lugar, who chairs the Foreign Relations Committee. Lugar acknowledged that some sharp accusations have been leveled against Bolton. But he said they've all been thoroughly investigated by his committee. \"The end result is that many of the accusations have proven to be groundless or at worst overstated…,\" Lugar said. \"There's no doubt that Secretary Bolton has been blunt and combative in defense of his perspectives. Indeed, this is one of the qualities that President Bush and Secretary Rice have cited as a reason for their selection of this nominee.\" Bolton has in the past stated that there is no such thing as the U.N. He also declared that the United States, in accordance with its national interest, is the one that decided how the U.N. works. One of the main allegations the committee investigated is whether Bolton tried to get two intelligence analysts fired because they disagreed with him about the possibility that Cuba had the potential to develop chemical and biological weapons. Witnesses before the committee testified that such was the case with Christian Westermann, an intelligence analyst with the State Department. Westermann had an argument with Bolton in 2002, when Bolton was preparing for a speech in which he alleged Cuba had a biological weapons program. Witnesses said Bolton jeopardized the six-party talks on North Korea by giving an inflammatory speech, in which he denounced North Korea's Kim Jong Il. In his testimony, Bolton said that the speech was cleared and that the U.S. ambassador to South Korea thanked him for it. But that former ambassador, Thomas Hubbard, has denied this before the senators. The committee also received a letter from Melody Townsel, who claims she had a clash with Bolton while working in private enterprise on a development project in Kyrgyzstan. She wrote the committee that he chased her down the hall of a Russian hotel, throwing things at her. The committee also looked into why Bolton asked the National Security Agency to identify Americans whose telephone conversations had been intercepted, when his field is arms control policy. The committee, which has 10 Republicans and eight Democrats, was supposed to vote on April 19, but the Democrats resisted a vote, saying they had not received enough information. Voinovich also asked for an extension, and the vote was delayed until May 12. Statements in Support of Bolton's Nomination: President Bush: \"John Bolton's a blunt guy. Sometimes people say I'm a little too blunt. John Bolton can get the job done at the United Nations.\" \"John's distinguished career and service to our nation demonstrates that he is the right man at the right time for this important assignment. I urge the Senate to put aside politics and confirm John Bolton to the United Nations.\" Vice President Dick Cheney: \"I'm an enthusiastic backer of John. I've known him for many years, both personally and in a professional capacity. I think he's done a superb job throughout a distinguished ca", "The Senate Foreign Relations Committee votes next week on John Bolton's nomination to be United Nations ambassador, even as staffers continue to explore charges of Bolton's abusive behavior and misuse of intelligence. The committee staff is ending weeks of private interviews with some of Bolton's associates and co-workers. Bolton's supporters in the White House and elsewhere are working to win over key senators and the public. RENEE MONTAGNE, host: Tony Blair was accused of misusing intelligence information. That is also one of the concerns raised in this country by the opponents of John Bolton. He's President Bush's choice as ambassador to the UN. Today Senate staff members conclude private interviews with Bolton's associates and co-workers, as NPR's David Greene reports. DAVID GREENE reporting: The White House yesterday renewed its call for confirmation of John Bolton. White House officials have described the battle over Bolton as a referendum not on the man but on the reforms President Bush wants at the United Nations. They also know rejection of Bolton by the Republican-led Senate would be a blow to the president's second-term momentum. And Bolton has close ties to the vice president, Dick Cheney, who defended him at the National Press Club last month. Vice President DICK CHENEY: I'm an enthusiastic backer of John. I've known him for many years both personally and in a professional capacity. I think he's done a superb job throughout a distinguished career in public service, and I think he'd make a great ambassador to the UN. GREENE: So far, though, Bolton has met a solid wall of resistance from the eight Democrats on the Foreign Relations Committee. They object to his past anti-UN statements and his alleged intimidation of subordinates at the State Department where he's the top arms control official. They've also raised questions about his attempts to ignore or suppress intelligence information with which he disagreed. At the committee's last meeting, those objections were enough to convince one Republican senator, George Voinovich of Ohio, that he wasn't ready to back the nominee. Senator GEORGE VOINOVICH (Republican, Ohio): I've heard enough today that I don't feel comfortable about voting for Mr. Bolton. GREENE: The White House was caught off guard that afternoon, but it has since bounced back, working to win over Voinovich and two other Republicans who once were on the fence--Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island and Chuck Hagel of Nebraska. Chafee has said he thinks the president should have his choice, unless Bolton did something egregious or lied before the committee. Hagel has said he'll make up his mind next week. Senator CHUCK HAGEL (Republican, Nebraska): The committee will meet. I think we have five hours set to meet before the vote to listen to both sides, to probe, ask questions, and then we will vote. My vote will be based on what I hear in that committee. GREENE: But in the meantime, Cheney himself has spoken to various senators in person and on the phone. White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card has also been part of the lobbying, and lower-level staff in the White House Office of Congressional Liaisons have been in close contact with the senator's staff. Meanwhile, there's an intense lobbying campaign going on out in the country. The conservative interest group Move America Forward ran this radio ad for several weeks in Ohio, Voinovich's home state. (Soundbite from a Move America Forward ad) Unidentified Woman #1: Did you hear how disloyal Senator Voinovich was to Republicans and President Bush? Voinovich stood with the Democrats and refused to vote for John Bolton. He's the guy President Bush has chosen to fight for the United States at the UN. GREENE: This week, the same group began buying time on local and cable stations for another new ad, accusing Bolton critics of a smear campaign. One state where they bought the time was Wisconsin, home of Russ Feingold, a Democratic member of the Foreign Relations Committee. Another conservative group, Citizens United, has also gotten in the mix, buying time for this ad on Fox News. (Soundbite from a Fox News ad) Unidentified Woman #2: Fraudulent deals with Saddam Hussein and repeated anti-American attacks, that's the UN President Bush is trying to reform. GREENE: Jack Pitney, a political science professor at Claremont McKenna College in California, called the nomination fight a test case of White House strength. Professor JACK PITNEY (Claremont McKenna College): It's a combination of policy and personal loyalty. John Bolton is somebody who's advocated conservative views on foreign p", "Then-national security adviser John Bolton was distressed about Rudy Giuliani. Trump's personal lawyer had bypassed established procedure for representing the White House with a foreign leader and had launched a secret back channel of communication with Ukraine. The shadowy moves were so potentially combustible that Bolton in private meetings earlier this year called Giuliani \"a hand grenade who is going to blow everybody up.\" That's according to people familiar with the closed-door testimony delivered on Monday to House members by Fiona Hill, a former White House adviser who was subpoenaed for questioning as part of the unfolding impeachment inquiry into Trump's dealings with Ukraine. Over more than 10 hours of questioning, Hill, a former White House aide on Russia and Europe, described at length another \"tense exchange,\" on July 10 between Bolton and U.S. Ambassador Gordon Sondland, who was allegedly working with Giuliani to help pressure Ukraine into opening an investigation into Joe and Hunter Biden to help Trump's political prospects in 2020. At the urging of Bolton, Hill raised concerns up the National Security Council's chain of command, flagging the communications with Ukraine as an alarming departure from long-standing policies and procedures. Trump fired Bolton last month. Hill resigned this summer. According to a source close to Hill, she also described to the three committees leading the investigation how troubled she was over the ouster of former ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch after she came under attack by Giuliani and conservative media. Yovanovitch, a career foreign service officer, testified Friday that Trump pushed the State Department to remove her from the post. Hill resigned from the National Security Council just days before Trump's July 25 call with Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the president of Ukraine, which touched off the Democrats' impeachment inquiry. According to a whistleblower complaint about the call, Trump pressured Zelenskiy to open a probe into the Bidens. While Trump has denied any wrongdoing, Trump's critics say the exchange with Zelenskiy, represented in a White House memo, shows that Trump was attempting to enlist a foreign country to damage a political rival and help his own reelection bid. Discussions have gone quiet about whether Congress will hear from the individual behind the whistleblower complaint, according to a person close to the whistleblower, whose identity is not publicly known. Rep. Adam Schiff, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, has indicated that testimony from the whistleblower who initiated the impeachment inquiry may not be necessary to the investigation. Schiff and other House Democrats are acutely focused on shielding the whistleblower from having his or her identity revealed. But a slate of other witnesses connected to the impeachment inquiry are filling up the schedules of House investigators. On Tuesday, George Kent, the No. 2 official in the U.S. Embassy in Ukraine, arrived to answer questions from lawmakers in a closed session. Kent's appearance, like Yovanovitch's, came over objections from the White House. In emails sent in March and later leaked, Kent is shown defending Yovanovitch in the face of what he called a smear campaign being used to discredit her in conservative media. In another message, Kent slams the Ukrainian prosecutor who left office in a corruption scandal and who pushed damaging allegations against Yovanovitch. Kent was expected to be questioned over whether Giuliani had a role in removing Yovanovitch and about the alleged pressure campaign mounted by Giuliani and other Trump associates to urge Ukraine to open an investigation into the Bidens. On Wednesday, another career diplomat, Michael McKinley, is scheduled to appear. Then on Thursday, House investigators are set to hear from Sondland, the U.S. ambassador to the European Union. Text messages between Sondland and other top State Department officials released earlier this month by House Democrats showed a plan to tie military aid to Ukraine with benefits to to that country, including a visit to the White House by Zelenskiy. In one of the exchanges, Sondland tries to assure another envoy that Trump has been \"crystal clear\" that the dealings with Ukraine show \"no quid pro quo of any kind.\" The White House, meanwhile, is strenuously refusing to cooperate with the impeachment inquiry, making the House committees compel witnesses to appear by issuing subpoenas. Giuliani also says he will not comply with the investigation. On Tuesday, a lawyer for Giuliani called the impeachment inquiry \"unconstitutional and baseless.\" Other Republicans have denounced House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, asking the whole House to vote on whether to hold an impeachment inquiry, but Pelosi has said that a floor vote is not required. Once the witness interviews and other evidence-gathering is complete, House leaders will decide whether to vote on articles of impeachment against", "President Bush calls for a decisive United Nations response to North Korea's claims of a nuclear test. Madeleine Brand speaks with Michele Keleman about the reaction to reports of the test and the next steps at the United Nations. Bush said he spoke with the leaders of China, South Korea, Russia and Japan, fellow members on the U.N. Security Council, about the need to reaffirm the commitment to a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula. Bush also warned North Korea against proliferation of nuclear technology. \"The transfer of nuclear weapons or material by North Korea to states or non-state entities would be considered a grave threat to the United States, and we would hold North Korea fully accountable of the consequences of such action,\" Bush said. China's ambassador to the United Nations said the test posed a serious threat to peace and security, language that could hint at tough sanctions against North Korea. Also on Monday, the United Nations nominated South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon to succeed Kofi Annan as U.N. secretary-general. U.S. Ambassador John Bolton called the decision an \"appropriate juxtaposition,\" coming on the same day as the North Korean nuclear crisis. MADELEINE BRAND, host: From NPR West, this is DAY TO DAY. I'm Madeleine Brand. President Bush today denounced a reported North Korean nuclear test as unacceptable. President GEORGE W. BUSH: United States condemns this provocative act. Once again North Korea has defied the will of the international community. And the international community will respond. BRAND: In New York today, members of the United Nations Security Council are discussing what that response will be. Joining us now is NPR's diplomatic correspondent Michele Kelemen. Hi, Michele. What more did President Bush have to say about what the U.S. will actually do? MICHELE KELEMEN: Well, I mean the main thing was to work through the Security Council. He said that he's had conversations with the leaders of China, South Korea, Russia and Japan. They all talked about the need to reaffirm the commitment to a nuclear-free Korean peninsula. And interestingly enough, he also talked about the concern he has with nuclear proliferation, or proliferation of missile technology. In this case he said the transfer of nuclear weapons or material by North Korea to state or non-state entities would be considered a grave threat to the United States, and we would hold North Korea fully accountable for that. So it looks like if this is confirmed, this claim that they have done this test, that the U.S. is going to sort of shift its focus to containing this threat to working with other nations to make sure there's no proliferation of technology from North Korea. BRAND: So he wants to work with the U.N. and the U.N. Security Council. What can the Security Council do? KELEMEN: The Security Council met this morning already. Ambassador John Bolton came out of that meeting - he's the U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. - saying that there was really a general sense of condemnation. And he laid out some elements he'd like to see in a sanctions resolution. The U.N. Security Council did pass a resolution over the summer condemning North Korean missile tests. And at that point they talked about the need to make sure there's no transfer of dual use technology to North Korea or sales of this equipment to other countries. Ambassador Bolton said this next one is going to go beyond that. But whether or not the other council members are really ready for a much broader sanctions resolution is still a bit up in the air, though there was a lot of angry and concerned rhetoric at the U.N. today. BRAND: Well, two of them, China and Russia, usually oppose sanctions against North Korea. Where are they today? KELEMEN: That's right. Well, it was interesting to hear the Russian ambassador as he went in. He said the North Koreans will face a serious attitude on the Security Council. The Chinese ambassador, he talked about how we warned North Korea on Friday. The Security Council did pass a statement on Friday warning them against the test. It's - the ambassador said this has been neglected and ignored and this matter poses a serious threat to peace and security. Now, that's the sort of language that you hear in a so-called chapter seven resolution, which is the most serious resolution the Security Council can pass. BRAND: And talk about the other big news today at the U.N., and this is the vote by the Security Council for a new secretary general, Ban Ki Moon. KELEMEN: That's right. And he's the South Korean foreign minister. Ambassador Bolton said - called this an appropriate juxtaposition, that on this day you're dealing with a North Korean reported nuclear test and then you have the South Korean foreign minister being recommended to the General Assembly to become the next secretary general. Ambassador Bolton called this an appropriate juxtaposition. He said he can't think of a better way to show the progress in th", "Iran's chief negotiator says Tehran is ready for what he calls \"serious\" talks about its nuclear program. It's unclear whether the government is willing to suspend uranium enrichment, a key demand from Western governments. Iran could face U.N. sanctions if it doesn't suspend its nuclear program by the end of this month. In Tehran, Ali Larijani, Iran's chief nuclear negotiator, hand-delivered Iran's proposals to the ambassadors of Britain, France, Russia, China, Germany, and Switzerland, which represents American interests in Iran. There are no formal diplomatic relations between Tehran and Washington. State-run television quoted Larijani telling the diplomats that Iran is prepared to enter into negotiations as early as Wednesday. The U.S. response has been cautious. At the United Nations, Ambassador John Bolton suggested the Bush administration will give the Iranian proposals serious thought. The Iranian government did not divulge the details of its proposal, but a semi-official Iranian news agency reports that Tehran had rejected suspension of its nuclear activities. The Security Council resolution called for a suspension of Iran's uranium enrichment activities -- but not all of its nuclear activities. Late Tuesday, a U.S. official said the Iranian response was typical, offering no surprises. The United States will move forward on a U.N. sanctions resolution, he added. ROBERT SIEGEL, host: From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Robert Siegel. MELISSA BLOCK, host: And I'm Melissa Block. Iran says it is willing to enter into serious negotiations about its nuclear program. That pledge was part of Tehran's formal response to a U.N. Security Council resolution adopted last month. That resolution requires Iran to suspend its enrichment of uranium or face economic sanctions. It does not appear that Iran has agreed to suspend uranium enrichment but leaders in Tehran said today they have put forward a new formula for resolving the dispute. NPR's Mike Shuster reports. MIKE SHUSTER reporting: Iran's leaders worked hard today to convince the world they are truly committed to dialogue and negotiation over their nuclear program. In Tehran, Ali Larijani, Iran's chief nuclear negotiator, hand-delivered Iran's proposals to the ambassadors of Britain, France, Russia, China, Germany and Switzerland, which represents American interests in Iran, there being no formal diplomatic relations between Tehran and Washington. State-run television quoted Larijani telling the diplomats that Iran is prepared to enter into negotiations as early as tomorrow. The U.S. response has been cautious. At the U.N., Ambassador John Bolton suggested the Bush administration will give the Iranian proposal serious thought. Mr. JOHN BOLTON (U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations): We will obviously study the Iranian response carefully. But we are also prepared if it does not meet the terms set by the perm five foreign ministers to proceed here in the Security Council as the ministers have agreed with economic sanctions. SHUSTER: Yesterday when President Bush was asked about the Iranian nuclear program, he too cautioned the need to consider the Iranian response carefully. President GEORGE W. BUSH: We will see what their response is. We're beginning to get some indication but wait until they have a formal response. The U.N. resolution calls for us to come back together on the 31st of August. Dates, you know, dates are fine. What really matters is will. And one of the things I will continue to remind our friends and allies is the danger of a nuclear-armed Iraq. SHUSTER: The Iranian government did not divulge the details of its proposal, but a semi-official Iranian news agency reported today that Tehran had rejected suspension of its nuclear activities. In fact, the Security Council resolution called for a suspension of Iran's uranium enrichment activities, not all of its nuclear activities. Yesterday Iran's supreme religious leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, made remarks that sounded intransigent. Ayatollah ALI KHAMENEI (Religious Leader, Iran): (Speaking foreign language) SHUSTER: We have gone down this path and tasted its fruits, Khamenei said, referring to Iran's nuclear program. God willing we will continue this line with full force, he added. Iranian leaders have called the Security Council resolution illegal, and yesterday the government prevented inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency from visiting an underground facility at Natanz that is part of Iran's uranium enrichment program. These developments have reinforced skepticism inside the Bush administration that Iran is serious about compromise. Again, Ambassador John Bolton. Mr. BOLTON: Certainly the rhetoric, particularly in the past few days, has indicated they're not prepared to suspend their uranium enrichment activities. But we have consistently said for two and a half months that we would not rise to the rhetoric. We would wait for the definitive resp", "President Bush swiftly condemned North Korea's reported nuclear weapons test, saying the United States would hold North Korea \"fully accountable for the consequences of such action.\" The U.N. Security Council began drafting a resolution that could lead to further sanctions against North Korea. The United States wants to crack down on North Korea's sales and purchases of weapons related material, and curb illicit financial activities. ROBERT SIEGEL, host: Diplomats at the United Nations started work on possible sanctions against North Korea. The U.S. wants to crack down on North Korea's sales and purchases of weapons related material and to curb illicit financial activities. NPR's Michele Kelemen reports. MICHELE KELEMEN: North Korea poses another foreign policy challenge for President Bush during this election season. In a short statement from the White House, he said he's been on the phone with his counterparts from China, South Korea, Japan and Russia. President GEORGE W. BUSH: We reaffirmed our commitment to a nuclear free Korean peninsula and all of us agree that the proclaimed actions taken by North Korea are unacceptable and deserve an immediate response by the United Nations Security Council. KELEMEN: At the United Nations, U.S. Ambassador John Bolton said diplomats are off to a good start. He said he was impressed by the unanimity of the Council, which only Friday had warned North Korea not to conduct a nuclear test. Japan's ambassador and current Council president, Kenzo Oshima, said Council members condemned North Korea and began work on a draft resolution. Mr. KENZO OSHIMA (United Nations Security Council): Council members emphasized that that response of the Council should be strong, swift and very, very clear. KELEMEN: China, which is widely believed to have the most leverage over North Korea, will be key to this debate. Its ambassador, Wang Guangya, used different adjectives to describe how he thinks the Security Council should respond. Mr. WAHG GUANGYA (United Nations Security Council): China is ready to discuss with other Council members to see how the Security Council could react firmly, constructively and prudently with regard to this challenge. KELEMEN: He said the door remains open for diplomacy, though he said he would discuss the sanctions the U.S. is proposing. The U.S. wants to see the Council agree to international inspections of cargo going in and out of North Korea. President Bush described North Korea as one of the world's leading proliferators of missile technology when he spoke at the White House this morning. President BUSH: The transfer of nuclear weapons or material by North Korea to states or non-state entities would be considered a grave threat to the United States and we would hold North Korea fully accountable for the consequences of such action. KELEMEN: The U.S. also wants to see countries, particularly China and South Korea, crack down on bank accounts linked to North Korea's weapons programs. U.S. Ambassador John Bolton said he would push for a sanctions resolution that goes beyond one passed by the Security Council in July, after North Korea conducted a series of missile tests. Also today, Bolton pointed out what he called an appropriate juxtaposition that on the same day the Security Council considered action against North Korea, it formally nominated South Korea's foreign minister to become the next Secretary General of the United Nations. Mr. JOHN BOLTON (United States Ambassador to the United Nations): I can't think of a better way to show the difference in the progress of those two countries - great progress in the South and great tragedy in the North. KELEMEN: If approved by the General Assembly as expected, South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon would replace Kofi Annan as Secretary General on January 1st of next year. North Korea's nuclear program is likely to be high on an increasingly crowded agenda for the career South Korean diplomat. Michele Kelemen, NPR News, Washington.", "Seven days before the scheduled June 23 release of a tell-all account of John Bolton's tenure as President Trump's national security adviser, the Justice Department late Tuesday mounted a last-ditch effort to block its publication. A 27-page civil lawsuit filed by the Justice Department against Bolton with the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia alleges that publication of his 592-page book, The Room Where It Happened, would be a violation of nondisclosure agreements he signed and compromise national security. \"[The National Security Council] has determined that the manuscript in its present form contains certain passages — some up to several paragraphs in length — that contain classified national security information,\" the filing states. \"In fact, the NSC has determined that information in the manuscript is classified at the Confidential, Secret, and Top Secret levels.\" \"Accordingly,\" it continues, \"the publication and release of The Room Where it Happened would cause irreparable harm, because the disclosure of instances of classified information in the manuscript reasonably could be expected to cause serious damage, or exceptionally grave damage, to the national security of the United States.\" The lawsuit argues that Bolton, who lasted 16 months as Trump's third national security adviser before being fired in September 2019, had signed a document three days after leaving his White House post acknowledging \"that he continued to be 'prohibited from disclosing any classified or confidential information,' and that he 'may not use or disclose nonpublic information' — defined as 'information gained by reason of [his] federal employment' and that 'has not been made available to the general public.' \" Bolton is accused in the lawsuit with three counts of breach of contract and fiduciary duty — for allegedly violating prepublication review requirements, for violating his duty not to disseminate classified information, and for unjust enrichment from what the Justice Department says is a book deal \"allegedly worth about $2 million.\" The court is asked to order Bolton to request that the book's publisher, Simon & Schuster, further delay a publication date that originally was to have been in April so that the NSC can complete its prepublication review. No time frame is given for how soon that review might be finished. According to a director with Bolton's Foundation for American Security and Freedom super PAC, the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations on Tuesday evening had no comment to make about the lawsuit. In an email, his attorney, Charles Cooper, said, \"We are reviewing the Government's complaint, and will respond in due course.\" A statement sent to NPR Monday night by the book's publisher slammed the Trump administration's civil complaint against its author. \"The lawsuit filed by the Department of Justice to block John Bolton from publishing his book, THE ROOM WHERE IT HAPPENED, is nothing more than the latest in a long running series of efforts by the Administration to quash publication of a book it deems unflattering to the President,\" wrote Adam Rothberg, a Simon & Schuster spokesman. \"Ambassador Bolton has worked in full cooperation with the NSC in its pre-publication review to address its concerns and Simon & Schuster fully supports his First Amendment right to tell the story of his time in the White House to the American public.\" It appears, though, that Bolton's book has already been printed and is being distributed. \"In the months leading up to the publication of The Room Where It Happened, Bolton worked in cooperation with the National Security Council to incorporate changes to the text that addressed NSC concerns,\" Simon & Schuster said in a June 10 press release. \"The final, published version of this book reflects those changes, and Simon & Schuster is fully supportive of Ambassador Bolton's First Amendment right to tell the story of his time in the Trump White House.\" A description by the publisher of what the mustachioed, hard-driving former top aide to Trump has written leaves little doubt why the president, with Attorney General Bill Barr at his side, said on Tuesday of Bolton \"maybe he's not telling the truth. He's been known not to tell the truth a lot.\" In that prepublication blurb, Simon & Schuster quotes a damning indictment of Trump directly from Bolton's book. \"'I am hard-pressed to identify any significant Trump decision during my tenure that wasn't driven by reelection calculations,' he writes,\" according to the publisher. \"In fact,\" Simon & Schuster says of Bolton, \"he argues that the House committed impeachment malpractice by keeping their prosecution focused narrowly on Ukraine when Trump's Ukraine-like transgressions existed across the full range of his foreign policy — and Bolton documents exactly what those were, and attempts by him and others in the Administration to raise alarms about them.\" The book, the imprint adds, \"shows a President addicted to chaos,", "After a meeting with President Bush Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist says he is planning to push for a floor vote on John Bolton as U.N. ambassador. The statement came after Frist commented earlier in the day that negotiations with Democrats had come to a standstill. Bolton's confirmation has been stalled since May, in part because of a stalemate over classified documents involving Bolton. Democrats demanding the documents say that, as the State Department's arms control chief, Bolton retaliated against subordinates and intelligence analysts who disagreed with him. The White House remains steadfast in its refusal to release the documents, which the administration maintains are simply an excuse for Democrats to filibuster a nominee they don't like. President Bush may choose to bypass the Senate by appointing Bolton during Congress' upcoming July 4 holiday recess. That would give Bolton the U.N. ambassador's job until the end of the current session of Congress in January 2007. But sending Bolton to the United Nations without the backing of the Senate would make him a temporary fill-in ambassador, raise questions about his authority and possibly diminish his standing. Over the weekend, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said that the Bush administration is still focused on getting a straight vote on Bolton. She refused to address the possibility of a recess appointment. NPR White House Correspondent David Greene explains the dispute: Q: What are these documents that the Democrats are requesting? There are two types. The first are internal State Department e-mails, memos and other communications dealing with Syria. The Democrats want to see whether Bolton was involved in preparing the department's congressional testimony on Syria. They're looking for evidence that Bolton shaped the State Department's intelligence assessments to exaggerate claims that Syria was trying to acquire unconventional weapons. The second are classified intelligence intercepts from the National Security Agency (NSA). Bolton reportedly asked to have the classified names of some companies and U.S. citizens revealed to him. Democrats want to know why. Q: How unusual is it for Bolton to have requested this kind of NSA surveillance information? It's not clear how common it is. A lot of it is the everyday communication of people at the State Department. Certainly, classified intercepts are not uncommon. There's no doubt that in his job, Bolton would have had some level of access to the classified intercepts. Q: Is there a question that this activity might have been illegal? Was it improper? There's no indication that Bolton did anything illegal at this point. The leading Republican and Democrat on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence have been briefed on the National Security Agency intelligence reports. Both of them -- Republican Pat Roberts of Kansas and Democrat Jay Rockefeller of West Virginia -- agree that they don't think Bolton did anything illegal. But Rockefeller has raised some questions about Bolton's handling and sharing of the names once they were given to him. Q: Why is it so important to Democrats that the documents be handed over? Democrats see this as a chance to drive home a lot of the points they've been making about Bolton and what they believe is his hands-on approach at State. They see a real chance to portray him as someone who manipulates intelligence, who would dig into everyday work at the department to forward his own agenda. On a broader level, the Bolton nomination has really become a proxy fight in a war in which Senate Democrats view the White House and administration as arrogant and secretive. Q: Do we know what Bolton's agenda was? President Bush has described Bolton as hard-nosed and tough, and there's no doubt that in foreign policy he's a hard-line conservative. He was very much in favor of the war in Iraq. He believes that unconventional weapons are spreading around the world and are very dangerous. But the crux of the debate centers on whether Bolton did anything inappropriate to push those views, and whether he intimidated people beneath him at the State Department who might have disagreed. The president has said it's his very toughness and no-nonsense style that makes Bolton right for the job in New York. Q: Is there a chance that President Bush might release these documents? It's highly unlikely. Q: Why is it so important to the president not to make the documents public? Interestingly, this goes all the way back to Vice President Dick Cheney's days in the Ford White House. Cheney was chief of staff at a time after Watergate, when the executive branch had lost much of its power and clout in Washington. And Cheney -- like his boss, President Bush -- has made it his mission to, as he puts it, ensure that executive branch powers are not eroded. He took his first stand shortly after coming to the White House, when Democrats asked for documents showing whom he met with as he was ", "Former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. John Bolton talks about the National Intelligence Estimate on Iran, which was released this week. The report's primary conclusion — that Iran halted a secret nuclear weapons program four years ago — appears to raise barriers to the use of military force against Iran and raise questions about whether economic sanctions are even justified. President Bush said he is sticking with his approach of sanctions and international pressure. Bolton, who was also a former undersecretary of state for Arms Control and International Security, takes issue with the NIE's conclusions and says it reflects political bias. Bolton is now a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, a not-for-profit institution dedicated to research and education on issues of government, politics, economics, and social welfare. ANDREA SEABROOK, host: This weekend, the Bush administration is also dealing with the fallout from the new National Intelligence Estimate on Iran. The NIE concluded that Tehran halted its nuclear weapons program in the fall of 2003. Just weeks ago, President Bush warned of dire consequences if Iran continued its nuclear weapons program. Well, today, in Bahrain, Defense Secretary Robert Gates acknowledged this new intelligence assessment has come at an awkward time. Secretary ROBERT GATES (U.S. Department of Defense): It has annoyed a number of our good friends; it has confused a lot of people around the world in terms of what we're trying to accomplish. SEABROOK: Still, as he addressed Arab defense ministers, Secretary Gates urged the world community to keep up that pressure. Sec. GATES: To suspend enrichment and to agree to verifiable arrangements that can prevent that country from resuming its nuclear weapons program at a moment's notice, at the whim of its most militant leaders. SEABROOK: I spoke earlier today with John Bolton. You may remember his embattled tenure as the Bush administration's ambassador to the U.N. Before that, he was Undersecretary of State for Arms Control and International Security. He wrote an op-ed in the Washington Post this week, asserting that the headline of the National Intelligence Estimate that is that Iran abandoned its nuclear weapons program is misleading. Mr. JOHN BOLTON (Former Undersecretary of State for Arms Control and International Security): Because as, I think, anyone will tell you, looking at a nation's capability to achieve nuclear weapons status, the most important thing it has to do is master the very complex science and technology of uranium enrichment. And the NIE itself reconfirms what we've been saying for quite some time that Iran is continuing and indeed expanding its uranium enrichment activities. So the idea that some small sliver of activity was suspended in 2003 and that the NIE itself says they don't really know whether that suspension is continued leaves the impression, nonetheless, that the whole thing has been shut down and that there's no problem. And I think you can see the implications and the reaction both domestically in the U.S. and in many countries abroad. SEABROOK: Your argument seems to stem from a distinction that the NIE makes between a weapons program and a civilian nuclear program. And that distinction seems to hang on how enriched the uranium is. Do you mean to say that uranium that is enriched for civilian purposes is just as bad as uranium enriched for weapons purposes or that they're not that far apart? Mr. BOLTON: The fact is the difference between a low-enriched uranium or reactor-grade uranium and high-enriched uranium or weapons-grade uranium is not that great. In fact, two-thirds of the work is consumed by getting to low-enriched uranium, so even if they're simply enriching to reactor grade levels, they're two-thirds of the way to what they need to have weapons-grade uranium. SEABROOK: In your op-ed, you also take issue with the NIE's assessment that Iran suspended its nuclear weapons program in response to diplomatic pressure. You say that the only event that really could have caused them to stop their nuclear weapons program in 2003 was the U.S. invasion of Iraq. But at the same time, the European Union's diplomatic push that… Mr. BOLTON: The Europeans weren't pushing. The Europeans were offering them carrots; that's not diplomatic pressure; that was an effort to entice the Iranians out of giving up their program. And absolutely critical to what the Europeans were doing was to say none of the benefits they were promising would be forthcoming until Iran stop its uranium enrichment program. So the notion that the European effort somehow led Iran to shut down its weapons - the weapons aspect - and I want to it call the weaponization aspect of its nuclear program - but continued uranium enrichment is a non sequitur. SEABROOK: Ambassador Bolton, you say about this National Intelligence Estimate - I'll quote you here, \"rarely has an administration been so unpr", "Updated at 3:09 p.m. ET The release of former national security adviser John Bolton's new book, The Room Where It Happened, remains on track after a federal judge on Saturday rejected the Trump administration's request to block its release. Judge Royce Lamberth of the D.C. District Court said that Bolton may still be facing legal trouble and that because of a rush to print, it was likely his book contains classified information. But with hundreds of thousands of copies of the book already out for sale, according to its publisher, the judge ruled that the administration's efforts had come too late. \"The damage is done,\" he wrote in a 10-page opinion. \"Defendant Bolton has gambled with the national security of the United States. He has exposed his country to harm and himself to civil (and potentially criminal) liability,\" Lamberth concluded. \"But these facts do not control the motion before the Court. The government has failed to establish that an injunction will prevent irreparable harm.\" The Justice Department had sought a temporary restraining order against Bolton and his publisher, Simon & Schuster, citing what it called the presence of classified information in Bolton's manuscript. But the book already has been widely reported on, and it is scheduled to be released Tuesday. \"We are grateful that the Court has vindicated the strong First Amendment protections against censorship and prior restraint of publication,\" the publisher said in a statement shared Saturday with NPR. \"We are very pleased that the public will now have the opportunity to read Ambassador Bolton's account of his time as National Security Advisor.\" Simon & Schuster previously said the injunction \"would accomplish nothing.\" Indeed, a number of the book's most damaging allegations against President Trump are free to find in a variety of media outlets, with the book already widely reviewed — including by NPR. Bolton, who served in the administration for nearly a year and a half, alleges a wide array of indiscretions and outright violations of law, including promising favors to foreign leaders for help with Trump's reelection and conducting \"obstruction of justice as a way of life\" at the White House. \"In fact,\" Bolton writes in the book, \"I am hard-pressed to identify any significant Trump decision during my tenure that wasn't driven by reelection calculations.\" The president and other deputies have denied the allegations made in the book and dismissed them as \"lies and fake stories.\" Despite the judge's ruling, the president sought to frame the decision on Saturday as a \"BIG COURT WIN\". Trump tweeted that although it was too late for the judge to stop the book's release, Lamberth's rebukes of Bolton offered vindication for the administration. \"Bolton broke the law and has been called out and rebuked for so doing, with a really big price to pay,\" the president said. \"He likes dropping bombs on people, and killing them. Now he will have bombs dropped on him!\" In preparation for publishing, Bolton undertook a months-long review of his manuscript with an official on the National Security Council. According to the government's complaint against Bolton, in late April, that official, Ellen Knight, concluded \"that the manuscript draft did not contain classified information.\" The government says Bolton abandoned the process after the launch of \"an additional review\" by another member of the NSC, Michael Ellis. Bolton's attorneys deny that claim, saying he \"has fully discharged all duties that the Federal Government may lawfully require of him.\" The judge made his distaste for Bolton's conduct clear in order. He noted that, in opting out of the government's review process, the former national security adviser was likely to run afoul of his nondisclosure agreements with the government. And that promises peril for Bolton, who still faces the possibility of prosecution and the government's attempts to claw back his profits from the book. \"Unilateral fast-tracking carried the benefit of publicity and sales, and the cost of substantial risk exposure,\" Lamberth said. \"This was Bolton's bet: If he is right and the book does not contain classified information, he keeps the upside mentioned above; but if he is wrong, he stands to lose his profits from the book deal, exposes himself to criminal liability, and imperils national security,\" the judge added. \"Bolton was wrong.\" Bolton's legal team said Saturday that it welcomed the decision — but took issue with the judge's preliminary finding that Bolton didn't comply with the government's prepublication review. \"The full story of these events has yet to be told,\" attorney Charles J. Cooper said in a statement, \"but it will be.\" Trump hired the George W. Bush administration veteran as his third national security adviser in 2018. But the two men clashed repeatedly over foreign policy and split in a flurry of acrimony last fall. Trump says he fired Bolton; Bolton says he offered to resign first.", "Diplomats at the United Nations say they are making progress on a resolution to punish North Korea for going ahead with an apparent nuclear weapons test. The Bush administration has proposed a list of sanctions to target North Korea's small elite and the secretive nation's weapons programs. China's U.N. ambassador says North Korea must face \"some punitive actions\" for testing a nuclear device, suggesting that Beijing may be willing to impose a form of sanctions against Pyongyang. The U.N. Security Council continues to seek a Chapter 7 resolution stiffening sanctions against North Korea. The United States wants international inspections of North Korean cargo vessels. U.S. Ambassador John Bolton told reporters Tuesday that North Korea has engaged in a variety of covert methods to proliferate and acquire missile technology. ROBERT SIEGEL, host: From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Robert Siegel. Diplomats at the United Nations say they're making progress on a resolution to punish North Korea for its apparent nuclear weapons test. The Bush administration has proposed a list of sanctions to target North Korea's small elite and the secretive nation's weapons programs. NPR's Michele Kelemen reports. MICHELE KELEMEN: Kenzo Oshima, Japan's ambassador to the United Nations and the current Security Council president said diplomats understand they need to get their act together and fast to send a clear message to Pyongyang. China's ambassador, Wang Guangya, signaled his country is ready to consider sanctions proposed by the U.S. Mr. WANG GUANGYA (Chinese Ambassador to the United Nations): There has to be some punitive actions. But also, I think that these actions have to be appropriate. KELEMEN: Knowing China's reluctance to agree to broad economic sanctions, the State Department says the U.S. is trying to focus on ways to make sure the North Korean government does not make further progress in its weapons programs and does not profit from them. The U.S. wants international inspections of North Korean cargo vessels. U.S. Ambassador John Bolton told reporters today that North Korea has engaged in a variety of covert methods to proliferate and acquire missile technology. Mr. JOHN BOLTON (U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations): I just remember the classic case a few years ago of the shipment of their missiles to Yemen. Shipped out of North Korea on a vessel with the missile crates hidden under, I think it was 15 or 20 layers of bags of cement and with false papers about what the ship carried. That's the sort of thing that led us, of course, to develop the Proliferation Security Initiative. KELEMEN: The PSI is Bolton's brainchild, a sort of coalition of the willing, countries that have been training together to intercept shipments of weapons of mass destruction and related materials. As for that shipment to Yemen, the U.S. had to let it go because it didn't have the authority to confiscate the North Korean missiles. Gary Samore of the Council on Foreign Relations says that is one reason the U.S. is seeking a U.N. resolution - to give it more authority. Mr. GARY SAMORE (Council on Foreign Relations): If the Security Council authorizes that kind of activity, then it would basically allow the U.S. and its allies to stop any vessel which was suspected of carrying prohibited goods and search it and seize the goods if they're on there. KELEMEN: Samore says it will be an uphill battle to persuade Russia and China to agree to this. Mr. SAMORE: Because the concern will be that it could lead very quickly to naval clashes. For example, if the North Korean Navy is protecting a vessel which we believe may be carrying prohibited goods, that could quickly lead to an incident at sea and obviously that could escalate into broader tensions. KELEMEN: Another non-proliferation expert, former senator Sam Nunn, says efforts to block North Korean's illicit trade are important but not sufficient. He thinks the Bush administration needs to think more broadly. Mr. SAM NUNN (Nuclear Threat Initiative): It is a priority but I believe that not letting the weapon material get produced to begin with is the most important priority and that deals with a new approach which I think we've got to have, which is to have international monitoring of all production of fissile material that could be used in weapons and also all plutonium that could be used in weapons. And to get rid of the stockpiles of the stuff that's all over the globe. That ought to be our number one priority. KELEMEN: The former Democratic senator from Georgia now runs the Nuclear Threat Initiative and describes North Korea's claimed nuclear test as a wake up call for the Bush administration. Michele Kelemen, NPR News, Washington." ]

[ "The newly appointed Pennsylvania deputy secretary of agriculture and consumer protection, Mathew Meals, will visit the Somerset County Farmers' Market from 9 am to 1 pm Saturday at Georgian Place in Somerset." ]

[ "A mobile farmers market called Mobile Farm Fresh is starting to serve food 'deserts' of Rowan County beginning on July 1.", "British Deputy High Commissioner to Karnataka, Richard Hyde, will visit Karwar on March 7, according to a press release from the British Deputy High Commission, Bangalore.", "Somerset County Council has implemented a new advanced highways management system from software specialist Pitney Bowes Business Insight.", "A weekly farmers market with European ambience will open this fall in the Village at Colleyville.", "Vendors are needed for a new farmers market, set to open July 19 in New Castle.", "Bulgaria will appoint an agriculture attache to Paris, whose task will be to launch Bulgarian farmers' products on the European market.", "Somerset County Council has brought back traffic wardens to combat illegal on-street parking across the county.", "US Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg will visit Azerbaijan on February 24, US embassy in Azerbaijan told APA.", "Deputy Secretary of State Thomas R. Nides and Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Neal S. Wolin will travel to Israel, the West Bank and Tunisia on January 23-25 to underscore the commitment of the United States to economic engagement and assistance as part of its diplomatic efforts in the region.", "US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Matthew Bryza has said while visiting Brussels that the USA supports the Nabucco pipeline project.", "The Neighborhood Market, a community CSA providing local, organically grown produce from Windham County farms, is about to begin its second season of operation.", "The first in Belarus commodity exchange on vegetables sales will be created in Minsk, informed Vladimir Semashko, the First Deputy Minister of Belarus, to the correspondents of BELTA, visiting Gomelskaya oblast, where he became acquainted with course of grain harvesting campaign in the region.", "Several key aspirants for county and parliamentary seats from Bungoma and Trans Nzoia are set to join UDF as soon as Deputy Prime Minister Musalia Mudavadi returns home from his trip to the US and Britain.", "A Plainfield man today was sentenced to 90 days in the Somerset County jail for punching his supervisor in the head during a dispute at a Watchung department store.", "The Avenue Shopping Centre in Newton Mearns launches its first ever farmers' market with a feast of fun activities for all the family to enjoy from 11am -- 4pm on Sunday 27 March.", "The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Iraq, Mr. Hoshyar Zebari visited the NATO Headquarters on 11 May 2012 and met with NATO Deputy Secretary General Ambassador Alexander Vershbow.", "A man was flown to a hospital after a crash Saturday morning in Somerset County.", "An 86-year-old Somerset County man died late Tuesday after a crash on Route 711 in Fayette County.", "Roderick Bremby, secretary of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, will speak March 12 at Cloud County Community College as part of the Cook Lecture Series.", "US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State in the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, Eric Rubin, who is visiting Georgia met on April 9 PM Bidzina Ivanishvili and Foreign Minister Maia Panjikidze.", "The Guatemalan Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Food, Efrain Medina, made a first time visit to Banasa's operations in the southwest of the country, with the aim of strengthening the links between the government and the country's agricultural sector to understand the needs of the communities in the area and support development projects.", "A Somerset County man is facing murder charges after police said he killed a Westmoreland County man on Thursday.", "Farmers in Gaston and Cleveland counties are praying for rain this weekend.", "Shanghai, Jan. 21 Taiwan's southern county of Yunlin will open a specialty shop in Shanghai Saturday to sell more than 100 of its agricultural products, the county chief said Friday during a visit to the financial center of China.", "The Medina County Fall Foliage Tour Committee is accepting applications until March 31 from farms and other agribusinesses to be considered as stops or points of interest on this year's tour.", "Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon is visiting to Nepal for a two-day visit from today.", "Senator Maria Cantwell visits Aberdeen today, along with, Shelton and Olympia as part of the Washington Democrats' 26-stop ``Jobs for Washington`` tour.", "The farmers' market sponsored by Cottage Grove United Church of Christ will open for the season Thursday, June 16.", "The Ottawa Farmers' Market opens for its fifth season at Lansdowne Park Sunday.", "The French State Secretary for Foreign Affairs and Human Rights, Rama Yade, will begin a two-day working visit to Ethiopia on Friday, the deputy spokesman for the French Foreign ministry, Frederic Desagneaux, announced here Thursday.", "The Irish Farmers' Association says that Irish pig farmers are not benefitting despite the rise in pig market prices and strength in exports.", "South Philly produce wholesalers meet this week to review a move from the crowded Food Distribution Center to a proposed $200 million Philadelphia Regional Produce Market, on a site developer Brian O'Neill controls at 6700 Essington Ave. near Philadelphia International Airport." ]

[ "The man wears glasses." ]

[ "The man is young.", "Man not talking on the phone", "A man talks on the phone in an office.", "The man is inside a phone booth talking on the phone.", "A young man is talking on the cell phone while the older man carries a basket.", "The older man is holding a glass of beer.", "Older man with glasses reading a book", "An older man sits at a table with a glass.", "An older man is talking to a woman.", "The man is talking to the woman on the phone.", "An older man in glasses is getting food ready.", "A man talks in a phone booth.", "An older man in glasses is walking three dogs.", "A young man is talking on his phone.", "The man in the coat talks on his phone.", "A man talks in his home on a phone.", "A man smokes and talks on the phone.", "Strippers are talking to an older man in clothing.", "A man is talking on the phone with his son.", "bearded man talking On the phone", "A man is talking on the phone while walking.", "The man in the red hat is talking on the phone.", "A man is talking on the phone outdoors.", "a man watches a woman talk on the phone", "An older man with a large mustache not talking", "An older man is talking to a younger women.", "The man is running while talking on the phone.", "A man in a black beret is talking on the phone.", "An older man with a large mustache talking", "Adults are talking on their phones.", "The man was talking on his phone in the bathroom.", "She was talking on the phone." ]

[ "Abstract [ d -Leu 1 ]Microcystin-LR was identified as the most abundant microcystin from a laboratory strain of the cyanobacterium Microcystis sp. isolated from a hepatotoxic Microcystis bloom from brackish waters in the Patos Lagoon estuary, southern Brazil. Toxicity of [ d -Leu 1 ]microcystin-LR, according to bioassay and protein phosphatase inhibition assay, was similar to that of the commonly-occurring microcystin-LR, which was not detectable in the Patos Lagoon laboratory isolate. This is the first report of a microcystin containing [ d -Leu 1 ] in the cyclic heptapeptide structure of these potent cyanobacterial toxins." ]

[ "Aim:To isolate the microcystis in the main source water in Zhengzhou city and identify the toxicity. Methods:The algae cell was isolated by the 96-microbiological assay and the phycocyanin intergenic spacer region (PC-IGS) and the microcystin synthetase gene B(McyB) of the isolated algae cell were detected by the whole-cell PCR,and the toxicity was identified by ELISA.Results: Single cell clones were acquired successfully, and the whole-cell PCR results were positive of PC-IGS and McyB,which suggested that the 3 microcystis were cyanobacteria and toxic. The toxin contents of the three microcystis powder were 1.07 mg/g,4.70 mg/g, and 4.71 mg/g.Conclusion:The 96-microbiological assay is a simple and fast method which can isolate the algae cells from the water successfully. The microcystis isolated from the main source water in Zhengzhou city are blue-green algae and they can produce microcystin.", "In order to understand initial conditions that promote the first occurrence of a Microcystis aeruginosa bloom and to evaluate its toxic potential, we studied spatio-temporal dynamics of phytoplankton, including Microcystis, microcystins concentrations, the relative proportion of potentially microcystin producing cells and physicochemical parameters in the recently setup Moroccan reservoir “Yaacoub Al Mansour.” High summer temperatures, thermal stability, hydrological stability of the water column and the decrease of nutrient contributions seem to be the major environmental factors responsible of this first bloom occurrence. Despite the low cellular abundance, high microcystins concentrations, associated with low percentage of toxic strains, were measured. Thus, microcystins analysis and associated management of the reservoir are necessary from the beginning of the setup and can help managers to find the better environmental strategy against early cyanobacteria proliferations.", "The presence of cyanobacterial toxins (microcystins) in waters and food increases the risk of toxicity to animal and human health. These toxins can degrade in the human gastrointestinal tract before they are absorbed. To evaluate this possible degradation, water samples spiked with known concentrations of microcystins MC-LR, MC-RR, and MC-YR, which are the toxins most commonly produced by such toxic cyanobacteria as Microcystis aeruginosa, Oscillatoria spp., and Nostoc spp., were submitted to a dissolution test that used gastric and intestinal fluids according to U.S. Pharmacopeia conditions. HPLC with UV detection was used to determine the toxins before and after treatments. This study revealed enzymatic alterations in gastric conditions for all the toxins assayed. MC-RR was the toxin most affected: its range of inactivation was 49-64%. The percentage of degradation for MC-YR and MC-LR was around 30%. However, none was degraded by intestinal digestion.", "Global warming and increased nutrient fluxes cause cyanobacterial blooms in freshwater ecosystems. These phenomena have increased the concern for human health and ecosystem services. The mass occurrences of toxic cyanobacteria strongly affect freshwater zooplankton communities, especially the unselective filter feeder Daphnia. However, the molecular mechanisms of cyanobacterial toxicity remain poorly understood. This study is the first to combine the established body growth rate (BGR), which is an indicator of life-history fitness, with differential peptide labeling (iTRAQ)-based proteomics in Daphnia magna influenced by microcystin-producing (MP) and microcystin-free (MF) Microcystis aeruginosa. A significant decrease in BGR was detected when D. magna was exposed to MP or MF M. aeruginosa. Conducting iTRAQ proteomic analyses, we successfully identified and quantified 211 proteins with significant changes in expression. A cluster of orthologous groups revealed that M. aeruginosa-affected differential prot...", "A sensitive and selective method was developed for the determination of microcystin-LR (MC-LR) based on proteasomal trypsin-like activity inhibition. Under the optimized conditions, the detection limit for MC-LR was 0.18μg/L, The linearity range was 0.2-2 μg/L，and the average recovery for MC-LR in tap water was 128%. Microcystin-YR (MC-YR) and Microcystin-RR (MC-RR) have no inhibiting effect on the proteasomal trypsin-like activity in the concentration ranged between 0.1-100 nmol/L. This method could be applied for the selective, high-throughput, and rapid determination of MC-LR in waters.", "Spiroidesin (1), a novel D-amino acid-containing linear lipopeptide, was isolated from waterblooms of the cyanobacterium Anabaena spiroides. The structure was identified by 2D NMR and chemical degradation analyses. Spiroidesin inhibited cell growth of the toxic cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa (IC(50), 1.6 x 10(-6) M).", "Monthly investigation is executed during April 2006 to May 2007, focusing on the abundance and composition of phytoplankton in a large (300 km 2 ) shallow (mean depth 4.4 m) eutrophic lake (Lake Dianchi). The presence of phytoplankton in northern bay was the highest, while that in the southern part the lowest, and center part and northern part conditions represented an intermediate state between these two. Phytoplankton communities dominated by cyanobacteria, and Microcystis bloom occurred in the whole year. Annual average phytoplankton cell number was 8.7 times 10 7 cells L -1 , of which 93.6% was Microcystis, 4.5% were Chlorophyta and 0.3% was Aphanizomenon. Comparative studies of our investigation against conditions in the past indicate that phytoplankton abundance and diversity decreased and cell miniaturization occurs in 2006 - 2007.", "Cyanobacteria are among the most ancient forms of life, yet they are known to synthesize highly sophisticated defense molecules, such as the highly hepatotoxic cyclic peptides microcystins and nodularins produced by the genera Microcystis, Anabaena and Nodularia. These metabolites are released by cyanobacteria to water environments causing episodes of fatalities among animals and humans. To better understand the releasing of these metabolites, imaging mass spectrometry (IMS) using matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight (MALDI-TOF) was herein applied to determine the spatial distribution of such toxins directly on agar-based cultures. Other key metabolites such as aeruginosin 602 and the siderophore anachelin were also mapped in mixed cyanobacterial cultures, showing the great potential of IMS to spatially monitor the biochemical details of cyanobacterial defense and interactions.", "The removal of [Dha(7)] microcystin-LR through bioaccumulation in six aquatic plants was investigated. The aquatic plant water lettuce (Pistia stratiotes L.) exhibited the highest removal, with 13 % of the toxin remaining after a 7-day exposure period. Removal by P. stratiotes (with 0.5 and 1.0 mg/L of the toxin) was faster and greater in static systems than in continuous flow systems. In the static experiment, P. stratiotes roots accumulated [Dha(7)] microcystin-LR up to a concentration of 0.0088 ng/mg wet wt. plant material, whereas in the continuous flow system, the plant root tissue accumulated the toxin up to a concentration of 0.0041 ng/mg wet wt. plant material. Exposure to the toxin at concentrations of 0.5 and 1.0 mg/L induced changes in the development of P. stratiotes, including short, thin and rotted roots with decreased leaf counts after 3 days of exposure.", "ABSTRACTDetecting low amounts of cyanobacterial toxins (cyanotoxins) in water and clinical materials is useful to protect human health and to understand cyanotoxin intoxication events. Commonly-occurring cyanobacterial compounds and extracts of cyanotoxin-producing cyanobacteria were tested by a cylindrospermopsin ELISA, in comparison with HPLC-PDA. Other than the cylindrospermopsin variants, none of the purified cyanobacterial peptides tested showed cross-reactivity in the cylindrospermopsin ELISA up to 100 µg/L, with the exception of nodularin-R. The cylindrospermopsin concentration in cylindrospermopsin-producing cyanobacteria showed good agreement between ELISA and HPLC-PDA. However, extracts of Microcystis, Planktothrix, Nodularia, and Chlorella showed ELISA positives with such non-cylindrospermopsin-producing organisms reporting concentrations greater than 1 µg/L. When cylindrospermopsins were present, the cylindrospermopsin ELISA yielded good quantification, but false positive results from non-cyli...", "SUMMARY The design and use of a 601 all-glass culture system for the mass production of Microcystis (or other unicellular algae) under sterile conditions, are described. Bleaching and lysis of the cells could be prevented by controlling the pH and CO2 concentration of the cell suspension. The cell yield obtained within a week was 8,5 g l−1 fresh mass (total yield: 507,9 g) and 1,02 g l−1 dry mass (total yield: 60,9 g). Fe-free medium was sterilized by filtration before addition of autoclaved FeSO4.", "SUMMARY The mean assimilation efficiency of aquarium acclimatized Oreochromis mossambiaue fed on a diet of Microcystis aeruginosa collected from Hartbeespoort Dam was determined as 50,8% for total organic matter, 63,7% for protein and 75,5% for phosphorus. Transmission electron microscopic examination of faeces of fish fed on M. aeruginosa, revealed that most Microcystis cell walls had become permeable allowing cell contents to leach out. Further digestion resulted in the break down of the cell wall structure. Up to 25% of the cells, however, appeared intact after passing through the fish. Fish fed on a diet of M. aeruginosa lost mass initially, but after 21 days showed a slight gain in mass. The high protein content of M. aeruginosa nay have inhibited efficient metabolism and would have led to reduced growth in fish.", "Jar-tests were used to study the removal effect of microcystins from the Huangpu River water by chlorine disinfection and the significance for operation of waterworks. The results show that free chlorine can remove microcystins MC-LR and MC-RR to some extent,and their degradation process follows second-order kinetics. The degradation rate of microcystins can be improved by increasing the reaction time and the free chlorine concentration. When pH is 7.25,the CT value needs to be 107.99 mg·min/L in order to decrease MC-LR from 10 μg/L in the Huangpu River water to 1 μg/L specified in the national standard. This value is difficult to be achieved under normal disinfection. Chlorination can reduce the acute toxicity of microcystins and can be as a temporary measure for removing microcystins from water.", "Diazotrophic cyanobacteria are capable of fixing atmospheric N2 to satisfy their physiological nitrogen requirements. This process can result in the transfer of substantial amounts of “new” diazotrophic nitrogen (ND) to aquatic ecosystems during blooms of these taxa. Using in situ measurements of plankton natural abundance stable isotope composition and a combination of underway and fixed site survey data, the total ND flux into the Gippsland Lakes estuary (Australia) was estimated during a summer bloom of the diazotrophic cyanobacterium Nodularia spumigena. Over the course of the bloom, ND increased in the upper water column of the estuary from 33% ± 17% (mean ± SD) to 73% ± 13% of the standing pool of total particulate N. A conservative estimate of total ND flux (146 Mg) equates to an estimated 177% of the summer total N load and 22% of the annual total N load to the estuary. Combining natural abundance stable isotope measurements with relatively simple fixed and underway survey designs can provide a co...", "We cloned, sequenced and characterized the psbA2 gene of the cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa K-81 strain. The deduced amino acid sequence of PsbA2 exhibited extensive similarity to the D1 protein, which is known to be a core protein in the reaction center of the photosynthetic Photosystem II in cyanobacteria. The N-terminal amino acid sequence of PsbA2 also showed that this protein is a Form II type of D1 protein, as defined for Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7942. The psbA2 gene was transcribed as a 1.2kb monocistron, and the potential promoter had an Escherichia coli consensus sequence. The light-responsive psbA2 message exhibited rhythmicity under conditions of constant darkness after prior entrainment to light and dark cycles.", "Abstract Benthic cyanobacteria recognized as producers of natural products, including cyanotoxins, have been neglected for systematic toxicological studies. Thus, we have performed a broad study investigating cyanotoxin potential of 311 non-planktic nostocacean representatives combining molecular and chemical analyses. Out of these, a single strain Nostoc sp. Treb K1/5, was identified as a new microcystin producer. Microcystins [Asp3]MC-YR, [Asp3]MC-FR, [Asp3]MC-HtyR and Ala-Leu/Ile-Asp-Arg-Adda-Glu-Mdha are reported for the first time from the genus Nostoc. All the studied strains were also analyzed for the occurrence of nodularins, cylindrospermopsin and (homo)anatoxin-a, yet no novel producer has been discovered. Our findings indicate rare occurrence of the common cyanotoxins in non-planktic nostocaceae which is in contrast with frequent reports of cyanotoxin producers among phylogenetically closely related planktic cyanobacteria.", "A taxonomic study of diatoms was carried out in a tropical coastal lagoon. Material for this study consists of water samples obtained from February-March 1992 to November-December 2000. Qualitative and quantitative analyses showed the presence of 373 taxa of which the families Bacillariaceae (67 species) and Chaetocerotaceae (37 species) were the most abundant groups. The species Skeletonema costatum, Chaetoceros curvisetus, Coscinodiscus radiatus var. radiatus, Ditylum brightwellii, Thalassiosira eccentrica and Entomoneis alata were found associated with moderate water quality and forming blooms. In addition, a regional comparison between Mexico and South America of the identified species is given. For practical handling, indicative values obtained from their ecological composition are incorporated as well as a code of the floristic list. A checklist of the species and their occurrence are given.", "Cyanobacteria are an inexpensive and sustainable source of photobiological H2 production due to their simple nutritional conditions. Combination of toxic contaminant degradation with H2 production is a promising approach in wastewater treatment. This study demonstrated that Lyngbya sp., a filamentous cyanobacterium, can generate H2 in the presence of benzoate which is a central intermediate during the anaerobic degradation of many aromatic compounds. The highest H2 production rate of 17.05 μmol H2/g Chla/h was obtained in the second cycle and 600 mg/L benzoate was depleted within 64 h in H2 production test. The strain has shown a higher H2-producing capacity, which was comparable to those of certain noted strains such as N2-fixing filamentous Anabaena variabilis PK84 and non-N2-fixing filamentous Microcystis PCC 7806. The co-metabolism of benzoate for H2 production by Lyngbya sp. makes it an interesting model strain for clean energy production and hazardous pollutant removal.", "The present evaluation of chlorinated pesticides is the result of the detection of tumors, hepatic and renal necrosis and skeletal anomalies in species of fish cultivated in artificial lagoons in the Lake Maracaibo Basin, specifically, in the Municipality of Paez, State of Zulia. Water, sediment and fish samples were taken from randomly selected lagoons. Using gas-liquid chromatography (GLC), concentrations of twelve organochlorine compounds were detected in the lagoon water and sediments in July 1987-1988 and eleven in fish between January 1991 and July 1992: a.BHC, g-BHC (Lindane), Heptachlor, β-BHC, Aldrin, Endosulfan, DDE, Dieldrin, TDE, Endrin, DDT and Metoxychlor. These toxic compounds may be an important factor in causing the above pathological problems.", "The cladoceran Moina dumonti Kotov, Elias-Gutierrez & Granado-Ramirez, 2005 (Anomopoda: Moinidae) was found in a hypereutrophic lagoon, Lagoinha, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It represents the first record of this species in Brazil and in the Southern Hemisphere; it also represents the first record of this species in a perennial lagoon. The reasons for the success of the species in Lagoinha are discussed.", "The present study evaluated the combined effects of four typical predatory zooplankton and allelopathic aquatic macrophytes on algal control in a microcosm system. It would determine the effects of diverse species and biological restoration on the growth of harmful water-bloom microalgae in great lakes polluted by excess nutrients. It was found that the mixtures of each zooplankton and the floating plant Nymphoides peltatum had stronger inhibitory effects on harmful water-bloom microalgae than the individual species in clean or eutrophic water bodies. In addition, a community of four zooplankton types had a synergistic effect on algal inhibition. Algal suppression by the zooplankton community was enhanced significantly when the macrophyte was co-cultured in the microcosm. Furthermore, Chlorella pyrenoidosa was more susceptible than Microcystis aeruginosa when exposed to grazing by zooplankton and the allelopathic potential of the macrophyte. Algal inhibition was also weaker in eutrophic conditions compare...", "A gram negative rod was isolated from the Dianchi Lake, which could grow well either in an anaerobic light or an aerobic dark condition, it had absorption peaks at 870 and 800nm, complex lamellar endomembranes could be seen through electron microscope, it belonged to Rhodopseudomonas. Orange crystals were obtained from the strain and were identified to be coenzyme Q10 by means of Craven test, TLC , UV ,IR, HPLC, 1HNMR, and MS.", "Abstract Monthly phytoplankton samples were collected from January 2013 to December 2015 at a fixed sampling site in Bahia de La Paz, Gulf of California. During this study 26 samplings were Amphidinium cf. carterae positive. The highest densities of A. cf. carterae (754.2 × 103 to 1022.4 × 103 cells L−1) were recorded during a bloom detected in January 2015 when water temperatures were 20–22 °C. This dinoflagellate showed a well-marked seasonal variation, being found mainly from November to April. Blooms of the species were linked to the upwelled water due to the northwesterly wind. Cysts surrounded by a mucilaginous membrane of A. cf. carterae were found. We also observed these hyaline cysts inside zooplankton fecal pellets. Other benthic/tychoplanktonic dinoflagellates and diatoms, including some potentially toxic species were also found. The occurrence of blooms of A. cf. carterae in Bahia de La Paz could represent a risk for aquaculture activities and human health.", "The algae-lysis bacteria Y01 and Y04 were isolated from seawater, during a red tide survey of the Zhuhai Estuary in southern China. The algae-lysis bacteria Y01 and Y04 were Gram-positive bacteria which can remove P. globosa in 6 days. The lysing process was observed by microscope and SEM, both of them could directly lyse P. globosa. The strains were identified by the sequence analysis of 16S rDNA. The length of the two bacteria's sequences were 1 468 bp and 1 548 bp (strain Y01: DQ531607; strain Y04: DQ531608). The DNA sequence similarity searches showed that share more than 99.7% sequence homology with some strain of Bacillus. The algae-lysing bacteria would provide a possibility to control P. globosa red-tide by microbial agents.", "The paper researches the caused sniff microorganisms in the water of a southern canal,such as mainly Oscillatoria,less Spirulina、Anabaena、Microcystis.Under the experimental condition of pH=5.5,there is conductive to the growth of the Microcystis.Under pH =7 and pH=8.5,Oscillatoria,and Spirulina growed more fastly.Obviously,weak alkali conditions help to the growth of Oscillatoria and cause more odorant,while weak acid conditions promote the growth of Microcystis so as to cause less odorant.The training of sniff microorganism can achieve to summit over almost ten days,in first seven days increasing exponentially,and then slowly reach a balance.", "In this study, four species of microorganisms: Streptomyces longwoodensis (Gram's positive bacteria), Rhodopseudomonas acidophila (Gram's negative bacteria), Saccharomyces cerevisiae (yeast) and Microcystis sp. (blue-green algae) were chosen to investigate their relative adsorption capacities for copper ion. The results showed that the adsorption efficiency is dependent on the species of microorganisms and their surface characteritics, pH value of the solution, and the copper ion concentration or the ratio of initial copper ion concentration to microorganism cell concentration", "Using phytoplankton indication method,this paper evaluated and analyzed the status of eutrophication in Shanzi reservoir in the four seasons of 2005.The results showed that the trophic state of the water was mesotropher to light eutropher in winter and spring seasons.A\"water bloom\"of Microcystis flos-aquae could be identified in summer season and the trophic state was eutropher in summer and mesotropher in autumn.Since the growth of phytoplankton is effected by a variety of factors,in order to give an integrated judgment about the trophic status of the whole water body,the further combination and integration of multiple evaluation methods are needed.", "This article inquires into variations of the chemical factors before and after Prorocentrum micans water-bloom in seawater experimental enclosures. From this, the folio wing conclusions can be drawn: the waterbloom often breaks out when the weather is fine for a number of days, and crashes when the weather is cloudy or rainy; and it breaks out generally when the concentration of NO_3--N and the ratios of N/P are high. If the dominant species comprise both Chlorophyla and Prorocent- rum micans, we can use the concentration of total Chll. and Chl. c /Chl. b to detect the outbreak or collapsing of this water-bloom.", "ABSTRACT Here, we report the draft genome of cyanobacterium Leptolyngbya sp. KIOST-1 isolated from a microalgal culture pond in South Korea. The genome consists of 13 contigs containing 6,320,172 bp, and a total of 5,327 coding sequences were predicted. This genomic information will allow further exploitation of its biotechnological potential for alimentary purposes.", "The biosynthesis of the potent cyanobacterial hepatotoxin microcystin involves isopeptide bond formation through the carboxylic acid side chains of d-glutamate and β-methyl d-aspartate. Analysis of the in vitro activation profiles of the two corresponding adenylation domains, McyE-A and McyB-A2 , either in a didomain or a tridomain context with the cognate thiolation domain and the upstream condensation domain revealed that substrate activation of both domains strictly depended on the presence of the condensation domains. We further identified two key amino acids in the binding pockets of both adenylation domains that could serve as a bioinformatic signature of isopeptide bond-forming modules incorporating d-glutamate or d-aspartate. Our findings further contribute to the understanding of the multifaceted role of condensation domains in nonribosomal peptide synthetase assembly lines.", "The A- and B-ring system of hemibrevetoxin-B, which has been isolated from the red tide organism, Gymnodinium breve, has been synthesized in an optically pure form starting from δ-valerolactone.", "Phytoplankton, nutrients, and hydrodynamic conditions were regularly sampled in the estuary of the Eastmain River (Quebec) and offshore in James Bay, before and after the diversion of the river for hydroelectric development on 19 July 1980. In the estuary, mean flow decreased by over 90% and the semidiurnal tidal amplitude increased significantly over a 5-d period. The most dramatic event was a major phytoplankton bloom in the river mouth, during a 10-d period of higher water column stability in late August; the cells then remained and bloomed in the thin photic layer. This stresses the role of hydrodynamics (as determined here by the freshwater runoff) in the timing of phytoplankton blooms." ]

[ "A man who sparked an emergency evacuation after falling seriously ill has been air lifted from Davis Station to the ice breaker vessel the Aurora Australis. The ship, with 114 people on board, left the base on March 17 for its two-week journey to Hobart but got an emergency call to return two days later to pick the ailing man. The tradesman was flown by helicopter on Sunday and taken aboard, while a temporary pipeline was used to refuel the ship, which had to remain offshore due to a build-up of ice in the harbour. The ship will negotiate about 100 nautical miles of ice before reaching open water to embark on the voyage of about two weeks back to Hobart. An expeditioner was being transferred from Davis Station in the Australian Antarctic Territory to the Aurora Australis via a helicopter on Sunday . 'People have been working around the clock to refuel the ship and they've been working in quite difficult conditions,' Australian Antarctic Division operations manager Robb Clifton said. 'Often below minus 10 degrees (Celsius) and with a fairly constant snowfall.' Mr Clifton wouldn't elaborate on the man's illness other than to say it was not the result of an accident or incident. He is in a serious but stable condition in the ship's medical bay and is being supported via tele-medicine by medical specialists in Hobart. There were initial reports the man was a scientist but the AAD confirmed he was a tradesman. The man was airlifted from Davis Station in the Australian Antarctic Territory to the Aurora Australis . The man remains in a serious but stable condition in the ship's medical bay and is being supported via tele-medicine by medical specialists in Hobart . The emergency efforts to evacuate the man follows after the vessel was hampered by poor weather conditions and increasing amounts of ice. The Australian Antarctic Division's Operations Manager Robb Clifton said he had hoped the ship could begin its journey back to Hobart on Monday. The Australian Antarctic Division said the man's condition had stabilised and is not contagious, but that he needed to go to Hobart for further treatment. The man arrived in Antarctica in November and had been due to spend the winter at the base. The patient and his family have asked for privacy, Division boss Tony Fleming said. The Aurora Australis icebreaker was diverted to undertake the medical evacuation from Antarctica . The helicopter pulling fuel lines ashore from the Australian icebreaker Aurora Australis during refueling operations at Australias Davis station in Antarctica . An Antarctic expeditionary team were working round the clock on March 22 to refuel the Australian icebreaker forced to turn back to its frozen base to pick up a seriously ill worker . The Aurora Australis, with 114 people on board, left the Davis station on March 17 for its two-week journey to Hobart in Australia but got an emergency call to return two days later with the worker gravely ill . The man will be taken aboard while the ship will top up on fuel at Davis station over the next 48 hours ." ]

[ "By . Daily Mail Reporter . and Reuters Reporter . The United States is sending a heavy icebreaker to help free a Russian ship and a Chinese icebreaker gripped by Antarctic ice, the Coast Guard said on Saturday. The Polar Star is responding to a request for assistance from Australian authorities as well as from the Russian and Chinese governments, the Coast Guard statement said. ‘The U.S. Coast Guard stands ready to respond to Australia's request,’ Coast Guard Pacific Area Commander Vice Admiral Paul Zukunft said. ‘Our highest priority is safety of life at sea, which is why we are assisting in breaking a navigational path for both of these vessels.’ Scroll down for video... To the rescue! The US is sending heavy icebreaker, Polar Star, to help free a Russian ship and a Chinese icebreaker gripped by Antarctic ice, the Coast Guard said on Saturday . Priority: US Coast Guard Pacific Area Commander Vice Admiral Paul Zukunft said their highest priority is safety of life at sea and has sent the Polar Star to help the crews free their vessels in the Antarctic . Coast Guard Chief Warrant Officer Allyson Conroy said the Polar Star was expected to arrive on the scene on January 12 and take two to three days to complete its mission. ‘You're looking at the Antarctic, which is a challenge in itself. You have weather and you have ice,’ Conroy said in a phone interview. ‘But our crews are very well trained and we expect to be successful in this mission.’ A Chinese icebreaker that helped rescue 52 passengers from a Russian ship stranded in Antarctic ice found itself stuck in heavy ice on Friday. A helicopter from the Snow Dragon ferried the passengers from the stranded Russian ship to an Australian icebreaker late on Thursday. The end is in sight: The first of the 52 passengers on a research ship trapped in Antarctic ice for more than a week were finally rescued by helicopter after several aborted attempts to evacuate them . The helicopter carried the passengers a dozen at a time over approximately five hours . Sea ice was preventing the barge from reaching the Chinese icebreaker, the Snow Dragon, so the passengers are instead being taken to an nice floe next to an Australian vessel which will eventually take them to Tasmania . A helicopter from a nearby Chinese icebreaker flies over the first group of passengers as it comes in to land . Mission is a go! Rescuers leave a helicopter from a Chinese icebreaker after landing next to the ship . 'A huge thanks to all': Expedition leader Chris Turney points to a makeshift helipad which the crew created in the ice as he awaits the helicopter's arrival . The Chinese vessel now had concerns . about its own ability to move through heavy ice, the Australian Maritime . Safety Authority said. The . Russian-owned research ship, Akademik Shokalskiy, left New Zealand on . November 28 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of an Antarctic journey . led by Australian explorer Douglas Mawson. It . became trapped on December 24, 100 nautical miles east of French . Antarctic station Dumont d'Urville and about 1,500 nautical miles south . of Tasmania. During . their time on the ice, passengers amused themselves with movies, classes . in knot tying, languages, yoga and photography, and rang in the New . Year with dinner, drinks and a song their adventure. Stuck: Passengers from the Russian ship MV Akademik Shokalskiy link arms and stamp out a helicopter landing site on the ice near the trapped ship 1,500 nautical miles south of Hobart, Australia . The . Coast Guard's Polar Star is 399 feet long with a maximum speed of 18 . knots. It can continuously break 6 feet of ice at three knots, and can . break 21 feet of ice backing and ramming, the Coast Guard said. The Polar Star was on a separate mission before being asked to help the two stuck vessels. It . had left its homeport of Seattle in early December on ‘Operation Deep . Freeze’, to break a channel through the sea ice of McMurdo Sound in . Antarctica to resupply and refuel the US Antarctic Program's McMurdo . Station on Ross Island. American ship: The Polar Star in Hawaii en route to conduct missions in the Antarctic on December 13. The Coast Guard has accepted an Australian request to rescue the marooned Russian and Chinese ships . Ship: The rescue operation for the 74 passengers, comprising scientists, tourists and crew on the Russian ship MV Akademik Shokalskiy, has been plagued by one delay after another since the vessel became stuck . Still smiling: Stranded passengers shelter in a tent lashed to the ship's top deck as they sing a song they wrote, streaming live online to welcome in the new year . The . long-awaited rescue of the 52 passengers came after days of failed attempts to get the . passengers off the Russian ship MV Akademik Shokalskiy, which got stuck . on Christmas Eve. Blinding snow, strong winds, fog and thick sea ice forced rescuers to turn back time and again. Three . icebreakers were initially dispatched to try and crack their way . through the thick ice surrounding the ship, but all failed. Complex operation: The Xue Long (Snow Dragon) Chinese icebreaker, as seen from Australia's Antarctic supply ship the Aurora Australis, sits in an ice pack unable to make its way back to open water . Path to freedom: An undated image of the Australian icebreaker Aurora Australis, which will eventually carry the passengers to the Australian island state of Tasmania, arriving by mid-January . Trapped for more than a week: Ben Maddison and Ben Fisk from MV Akademik Shokalskiy work to place a wind indicator atop an ice feature near the trapped ship . Keeping themselves busy: Passengers from MV Akademik Shokalskiy walk around the ice in the Antarctic . The . Aurora came within 20 kilometers (12 miles) of the ship Monday, but . fierce winds and snow forced it to retreat to open water. The . Akademik Shokalskiy, which left New Zealand on Nov. 28, got stuck . Christmas Eve after a blizzard pushed the sea ice around the ship, . freezing it in place about 2,700 kilometers (1,700 miles) south of . Hobart, Tasmania. The ship isn't in danger of sinking and has weeks' worth of supplies on board, but it cannot move. The . scientific team on board had been recreating Australian explorer . Douglas Mawson's 1911 to 1913 voyage to Antarctica. Turney had hoped to . continue the trip if an icebreaker managed to free the ship.", "A long-awaited rescue of passengers on board a research ship trapped in Antarctic ice for more than a week was today successfully completed. A helicopter airlifted passengers to a nearby vessel after landing on a makeshift helipad next to the stranded ship. The helicopter was originally going to fly the passengers to a Chinese icebreaker, the Snow Dragon, with a barge then ferrying them to a nearby Australian vessel. But sea ice was preventing the barge from reaching the Snow Dragon, and the Australian Maritime Safety Authority's Rescue Coordination Centre, which is overseeing the rescue, said the operation would consequently be delayed. Scroll down for videos . The end is in sight: The first of the 52 passengers on a research ship trapped in Antarctic ice for more than a week were finally rescued by helicopter after several aborted attempts to evacuate them . The helicopter carried the passengers a dozen at a time over approximately five hours . Sea ice was preventing the barge from reaching the Chinese icebreaker, the Snow Dragon, so the passengers are instead being taken to an nice floe next to an Australian vessel which will eventually take them to Tasmania . A last-minute change in plans allowed the rescue to go ahead. The . 52 scientists and tourists on board were instead flown to an ice . floe next to the Australian icebreaker the Aurora Australis, and then . taken by a small boat to the Australian ship, expedition leader Chris . Turney said. The first group safely lifted off Thursday evening, he said. 'I . think everyone is relieved and excited to be going on to the Australian . icebreaker and then home,' Mr Turney told The Associated Press by . satellite phone from the Russian ship MV Akademik Shokalski, which has . been stuck in the ice since Christmas Eve. A helicopter from a nearby Chinese icebreaker flies over the first group of passengers as it comes in to land . Mission is a go! Rescuers leave a helicopter from a Chinese icebreaker after landing next to the ship . 'A huge thanks to all': Expedition leader Chris Turney points to a makeshift helipad which the crew created in the ice as he awaits the helicopter's arrival . Mr Turney had earlier posted video of the helicopter's arrival on his . Twitter account, writing: 'The Chinese helicopter has arrived (at) the . Shokalskiy. It's 100% we're off! A huge thanks to all.' He then uploaded a video showing the first of the passengers making their . way on board the helicopter, saying: 'The first of the helicopters to . take us home. Thanks everyone!' The helicopter carried the passengers a dozen at a time. All 22 crew members stayed with their icebound vessel, which is not in danger. Stuck: Passengers from the Russian ship MV Akademik Shokalskiy link arms and stamp out a helicopter landing site on the ice near the trapped ship 1,500 nautical miles south of Hobart, Australia . Ship: The rescue operation for the 74 passengers, comprising scientists, tourists and crew on the Russian ship MV Akademik Shokalskiy, has been plagued by one delay after another since the vessel became stuck . Still smiling: Stranded passengers shelter in a tent lashed to the ship's top deck as they sing a song they wrote, streaming live online to welcome in the new year . The Aurora will carry the passengers to the Australian island state of Tasmania, arriving by mid-January. The . long-awaited rescue came after days of failed attempts to get the . passengers off the Russian ship MV Akademik Shokalskiy, which got stuck . on Christmas Eve. Blinding snow, strong winds, fog and thick sea ice forced rescuers to turn back time and again. Three . icebreakers were initially dispatched to try and crack their way . through the thick ice surrounding the ship, but all failed. Complex operation: The Xue Long (Snow Dragon) Chinese icebreaker, as seen from Australia's Antarctic supply ship the Aurora Australis, sits in an ice pack unable to make its way back to open water . Path to freedom: An undated image of the Australian icebreaker Aurora Australis, which will eventually carry the passengers to the Australian island state of Tasmania, arriving by mid-January . Trapped for more than a week: Ben Maddison and Ben Fisk from MV Akademik Shokalskiy work to place a wind indicator atop an ice feature near the trapped ship . Keeping themselves busy: Passengers from MV Akademik Shokalskiy walk around the ice in the Antarctic . The . Aurora came within 20 kilometers (12 miles) of the ship Monday, but . fierce winds and snow forced it to retreat to open water. The . Akademik Shokalskiy, which left New Zealand on Nov. 28, got stuck . Christmas Eve after a blizzard pushed the sea ice around the ship, . freezing it in place about 2,700 kilometers (1,700 miles) south of . Hobart, Tasmania. The ship isn't in danger of sinking and has weeks' worth of supplies on board, but it cannot move. The . scientific team on board had been recreating Australian explorer . Douglas Mawson's 1911 to 1913 voyage to Antarctica. Turney had hoped to . continue the trip if an icebreaker managed to free the ship.", "By . Marielle Simon for Daily Mail Australia . Researchers have called for volunteers to help count penguins in the Antarctic from the comfort of their own home using thousands of photographs to identify adults, chicks and eggs. The call has been placed by the Australian Antarctic Division (ADD), based in Hobart, to assist researchers at Oxford University in the UK to understand behaviour patterns, breeding and the effect predators have on penguins. Volunteer counters will be studying images captured by 40 cameras spread across three regions of East Antarctica - from Mawson's station to Commonwealth Bay. Researchers ultimately hope this process will help develop an algorithm to teach computers how to automatically count penguins, the ABC reports. Scroll down for video . Thousands of online photographs have been scanned by researchers for volunteer counters to assist in identifying adults, chickens and eggs . The 200,000 photographs, many taken by AAD, will be used to explain how human activity and environmental changes impact penguins, so early warning signs can be identified and researchers can help prevent problems from arising. Colin Southwell from AAD hopes the research will also explain the impact of fisheries on a mass scale. 'What it's about is trying to use the interest of a large number of people out there through online communications to contribute to scientific research,' Dr Southwell said. Images have been captured by researchers using 40 cameras spread across three regions of East Antarctica - from Mawson's station to Commonwealth bay . He said researchers are looking for non-scientists who are interested in science and penguins to contribute to the study. 'Most people are interested in Antarctica. Most people are interested in penguins, and it's fun.' Volunteer Jenni Klaus told the ABC she came across the study on Twitter. She said although she never studied science she has always been interested. 'There are adorable chicks in some of the photos and you can never get too tired of looking at penguins,' she said. If the study proves successful researchers hope to count other seabirds in the Antarctic and Arctic. The 200,000 photographs, many taken by the Australian Antarctic Division, will hopefully help explain how human activity and environmental changes impact penguins . Behaviour patterns, breeding and the effect predators will also be looked at so identify early warning signs that could lead to a problem . The study is after non-scientists who are interested in science and penguins to count penguins in the Antarctic from the comfort of their home . Researchers hope to eventually develop an algorithm to teach computers how to automatically count penguins in an image rather than using humans . If the study proves successful researchers hope to count other seabirds in the Antarctic and Arctic .", "Two soldiers who were wounded in Afghanistan are retracing Ernest Shackleton's Antarctic rescue mission after almost 100 years. They are part of a four-man team who are flying out to Argentina today to begin what promises to be a gruelling five-week trek across one of the most inhospitable wildernesses in the world. The mission was inspired by Shackleton, who famously saved the crew of his ship Endurance more than a year after it became trapped in pack ice and sank. Big shoes to fill: From left, David Hempleman-Adams, Ollie Bainbridge, Keith Harbridge and Justin Packshaw fly out today to re-enact Ernest Shackleton's Antarctic rescue mission - 98 years after the famous explorer . Following in his footsteps: The Endurance mission (left) led by Ernest Shackleton (right) ended in a long rescue . The men, who are fundraising for a £300million military rehabilitation centre, will retrace the famous mission Shackleton made from Elephant Island to South Georgia in a 22ft boat and back again in a rescue ship. Led by David Hempleman-Adams, one of the world's most experienced explorers, and former Captain in the Royal Dragoon Guards Justin Packshaw, the team will spend five weeks on the mission. Enduring freezing temperatures, they will first retrace Shackleton's journey from Elephant Island to South Georgia, before trekking across mountains to the former Grytviken whaling station where he found help - a journey of almost 1,000 miles in total. Thankfully they will have many more modern conveniences than Shackleton and his men - including crampons and the latest in exploring technology - but the trip is not without its dangers. One of the explorers is 26-year-old Corporal Ollie Bainbridge, who was awarded the Military Cross for 'a display of personal courage, selfless commitment and inspired leadership' in Afghanistan. The soldier was driving an armoured Jackal vehicle on his second tour of duty to the country when it hit a roadside bomb, leading to a fierce firefight. He stayed cool under pressure, dragging a colleague to safety and making sure the injured were evacuated. Ready to go: The team make the final preparations at London's Hyde Park Barracks with their equipment . Trapped: The Endurance was stuck in pack ice for months before it sank, leaving its crew to fight for survival . But the next month, he was fighting insurgents when he was blown up by a grenade, shattering his elbow and hitting his leg with shrapnel. Joining the serving soldier is Lance Corporal Keith Harbridge, whose ear was injured in a grenade attack in Afghanistan in 2010. Despite having long-term problems he has returned to the Royal Dragoon Guards and is still playing an active part in the Army - managing to go skydiving and caving in his spare time. He told the Sunday Telegraph: 'I get vertigo when I’m climbing now and I can’t run as fast as I used to. 'I’m sure those things will slow me down. My main worry is that I will become a burden.' Just as the First World War was breaking out in August 1914, the Endurance's crew set out from London with the lofty ambition of becoming the first to cross the Antarctic continent. In January 1915 the ship became trapped in pack ice and began drifting, its crew unable to do anything except hope it would become unstuck. Once the ship (left) went down, Shackleton travelled almost 1,000 miles to the Grytviken whaling station (right) Hard graft: The men pulled their remaining 22ft boat - fortunately the new expedition will have better equipment . They remained by the ship for most of the year until finally, in November 1915, it sank beneath the ice. That left the exposed crew to march across the inhospitable Antarctic ice, setting up camps in freezing conditions in their bid to be rescued. By March 1916, the crew had shot the last of their original team of 69 dogs and eaten the youngest ones. The next month, when the crew were camped on Elephant Island, Shackleton announced he was doing what most would have thought impossible - vowing to sail a boat just 22ft long more than 800 miles to South Georgia. Once he arrived he and two others trekked over glacier-covered mountains to fetch help from the whaling station, which sparked the eventual rescue mission. All the crew survived. The re-enactment is in aid of the Duke of Westminster's Defence and National Rehabilitation Centre (DNRC) at Stanford Hall, near Loughborough, which is due to open in 2018 and cost £300million. Poignant: The images of the Endurance stuck in Antarctic ice have become a symbol of perseverence . It will replace the current national centre in Headley Court in Surrey, which the Ministry of Defence says is out of date. It is backed by Prince William, who said: 'It is very inspiring that 100 years on wounded soldiers are following in the footsteps of Sir Ernest Shackleton's daring rescue from Elephant Island to South Georgia. 'In doing so they will be displaying the same perseverance in adversity that characterised Shackleton's 1914 Endurance expedition and which we see today in those members of the armed forces who are fighting their way back from serious injury.' To donate to the expedition visit the team's JustGiving page.", "Seventy-four passengers trapped aboard an expedition vessel in the Antarctic for nearly a week will have to wait even longer as a rescue ship slowly makes its way through thick ice and snow. The Australian icebreaker ship Aurora Australis was 11 nautical miles away from the Russian-flagged Akademik Shokalskiy early Monday, according to the Australian Maritime Safety Authority. \"It's hard to tell if it makes it through,\" said Lisa Martin, a spokeswoman for AMSA. \"There are snow showers in the area that are causing bad visibility; conditions are deteriorating.\" Visibility was only about 200 meters (656 feet), not enough to assess whether the ice breaker can cut through. \"It's a wait-and-see operation. It's a very complex situation,\" Martin said. This attempt by the Aurora Australis follows one by the Chinese icebreaker Xue Long, or Snow Dragon, which was just six nautical miles away from the trapped vessel when it couldn't get any closer due to unusually thick ice. The Snow Dragon went back to open water but remains in the area to provide support, said Andrea Hayward-Maher, another spokeswoman for the AMSA. The Chinese ship has a helicopter on board that could assist in evacuation. \"We are waiting on the Aurora Australis to tell us if it can make its way through the ice. If it can't, then we will be shifting towards the helicopter, and obviously that is weather dependent,\" Martin said. A French icebreaker was also en route to assist, but AMSA called off that vessel's mission Saturday after it became clear that ship wouldn't get farther than the Chinese boat. Also, the French and Chinese ships can break ice only about 1 meter (3.3 feet) thick, whereas the Australian ship can pierce through floe about 1.35 meters (4.4 feet) thick. \"Some reports say that the ice is at least 2 meters (6.6 feet) deep. It's a possibility that the Aurora Australis might not be able to break through that type of ice,\" Hayward-Maher said. Chipper updates continue . Throughout the week trapped passengers have been giving mostly positive updates via YouTube, greeting family members and telling everyone that they're having a great time. \"It's my birthday today -- it couldn't be a better day to have a birthday with my 80-something new friends,\" one female passenger declared cheerfully while standing on the ice in front of the stranded vessel. \"This afternoon we're gonna have some singing on the ice, which should be fantastic as well,\" another female passenger adds. \"It's absolutely spectacular here; it's like this magical winter wonderland,\" she declares with a smile as she waves her arms to point out the vast expanse of snow and a foggy sky. The group continues to do research and finds activities to stay occupied, but there is growing concern that blizzard conditions could worsen over the coming days, according to expedition leader Chris Turney, an Australian professor of climate change. Extreme conditions . The rescue icebreakers were battling the planet's coldest environment while trying to reach the Akademik Shokalskiy ship, whose 74 researchers, crew and tourists remained in good condition despite being at a frozen standstill since last Monday. \"The vessel is fine, it's safe and everyone on board is very well,\" Turney said. \"Morale is really high.\" The ship got stuck in the ice 15 days after setting out on the second leg of its research trip. According to Turney, a professor at the University of New South Wales, the ship was surrounded by ice up to nearly 10 feet (3 meters) thick. It was about 100 nautical miles east of the French base Dumont D'Urville, about 1,500 nautical miles south of Hobart, Tasmania. On Christmas morning, the ship sent a satellite distress signal after conditions failed to clear. The crew had a \"great Christmas\" despite their situation, Turney told CNN. He said crew members have used the delay to get more work done. \"We've just kept the team busy,\" he said. The expedition is trying to update scientific measurements taken by an Australian expedition led by Douglas Mawson that set out in 1911. The expedition to gauge the effects of climate change on the region began November 27. The second and current leg of the trip started December 8 and was scheduled to conclude with a return to New Zealand on January 4. Turney said the ship should still be back in New Zealand on time. Century-old photo negatives found in Antarctic explorer's hut .", "An enormous impact crater thought to have been created by a meteorite the size of a house smashing into Earth has been discovered in the Antarctic ice sheet. Scientists conducting a routine aerial research flight above East Antarctica noticed a strange ring-like structure in the normally flat and featureless ice. It appeared to be a series of broken 'icebergs' surrounded by a 2km (1.24 miles) wide circular scar, surrounded by a few other smaller circular scars in the ice. Scroll down for video . The 2km (1.24 miles) wide ring above is thought to have been caused by a meteorite that smashed into the ice . The researchers later found two separate studies reporting that a meteorite fell in the area in 2004. The solar system is teaming with debris of ice and rocks in orbit around our sun. Occassionally these come close enough to the Earth to interact with the planets atmosphere, causing a streak of light in the sky. The debris that makes it to the surface are known as meteroites. They can vary in size from tiny grains to large boulders and form impact craters when they strike the surface at between 26,800mph 44,700mph. One of the largest meteorite found on Earth is the Hoba meteorite from southwest Africa, which weighs roughly 54,000 kg (119,000 pounds). Scientists predict that a meteorite around 30-50m (98 to 164 feet) across is capable of forming a 1km (0.6 miles) crater, will occur around every 1,000 years. However, the last impact of this size that we know of took place 55,000 years ago. Small but potentially devastating events such as the 1908 Tunguska impact in Russia are likely to occur every few hundred years. In February 2013, a meteor thought to be part of a family of asteroids orbiting around 93 million miles from our sun, streaked across the sky above Chelyabinsk, Russia. It exploded with the force of 500 kilotons at a height of around 18 miles in the atmopshere, creating a bright flash and a cloud of dust. It is thought that some fragments made it to Earth, however, and small fragments have been recovered from impact craters made in the ice. An impact crater created by the meteor that exploded over Chelyabinksk in February 2013 . One reported a series of infrasound - low frequency sound capable of traveling huge distances below the limit of human hearing - detected on 2 September 2004. Six detectors around the world detected this infrasound thrown out by the exploding meteorite, allowing scientists to pinpoint it somewhere over East Antarctica. In a separate study, scientists at Davis Station, Australia's permanent base off the coast of East Antarctica, reported seeing a dust trail high up in the atmosphere around that time. They estimated that the falling object would have landed on the ice shelf. The findings suggests that a house-sized meteorite broke up in the atmosphere over Antarctica before the remains smashed into the ice sheet. Dr Christian Müller, a geophysicist from surveying company Fielax, was the scientist who first spotted the impact crater. He said: 'We were on a routine measuring flight near to the coast and we were flying above a small ice bluff. 'I looked out of the window and saw some unusual structures in the surface of the ice that were some broken ice looking like icebergs that is very unusual on a very flat ice shelf surrounded by a large wing shaped circular structure. 'I've never seen something like that before. My first thoughts were that it might be an impact structure from something from space like a meteorite.' The researchers, who are part of the Alfred Wegener Institute in Germany, had been flying on a Basler BT-67 aircraft called Polar 6 over an area that is known as the Princess Ragnhild Coast of Queen Maud Land in Antarctica as part of a survey to study the rock beneath the ice. The aircraft, which was flying from the Princess Elisabeth Antarctica Research Station, is equipped with ice penetrating radar that can map the geology beneath the ice sheet. They were also using magnetometers to measure small disturbances in the magnetic properties of the bedrock to help determine more about the terrain. As they flew over the Antarctic coast on 24 December 2014, Dr Müller spotted the large circular scar on the King Baudoin Ice Shelf, which forms over the ocean. The team then later returned to the site on 26 December, taking photographs and video of the site as well as using a laser to create a topographical map. They also used radar to help build up an image of the interior of the ice shelf beneath the circular structure in the hope of seeing what lies beneath it. The remains of the impact site was found on an ice shelf off the Princess Ragnhild Coast of East Antarctica. The researchers had flown from Princess Elisabeth Research Station while scientists at the Australian Davis Research Station had spotted debris from a suspected meteorite heading towards the area in 2004 . Six infrasound stations (marked by black triangles, detected the noise waves created by the meteor as travelled around the world, allowed scientists to pinpoint the source above East Antarctica as can be seen where the lines cross in the diagram above from a research paper in the Journal Earth Moon Planet . The scientists were flying in a Basler BT-67 aircraft called Polar 6 (above) from the Princess Elisabeth Station . They are still processing detail but Dr Graeme Eagles, a geophysicist and leader of the Alfred Wegener Institute's geophysical survey team at Princess Elisabeth Station, said that it appeared the ice and snow on the top part of the ice shelf had been disturbed. He said that this data should help to confirm that it was a meteorite that had caused the crater. He said: 'We can't say that with any confidence at this point. We can say we've found something very unusual. 'However, there are two very promising prior results - the infrasound data and the observed dust trail in 2004 - which support the hypothesis that this structure could have been created by a meteorite impact and certainly support the decision to collect more data for further analysis and investigation. 'The Australian study estimates that the body that left the debris they measured would have likely been about the size of a house and that it may have broken up on its way though the atmosphere. 'Interestingly enough, when we flew out to the circular structure in the ice on December 26th, we also spotted a number of smaller circular and sub-circular structures in the ice as well, which is consistent with the conclusion of the Australian study.' An image from NASA’s Aqua satellite of the meteor’s dust trail one hour after it is thought to have exploded above Antarctica in September 2004. The dust was spotted by Australian researchers in Antarctica at the time . Geophysicist Dr Christian Müller, above, spotted the impact crater from the window of the Polar 6 aircraft . Dr Müller and his colleague Tobais Binder (above) were conducting a survey on board the Polar 6 aircraft . Research by the Australian scientists after they saw the meteorite debris above Antarctica inn 2004 suggested that it was around seven to ten metres (23 to 33 feet) wide and weighted between 600 and 1,900 tonnes. They estimated that it exploded in the sky above Antarctica with the force of 12,000 tonnes of TNT and was travelling at a speed of 29,080 mph. The debris created by the explosion would then have crashed to Earth, smashing into the ice. Dr Eagles said that the team were now considering drilling down into the ice beneath the crater to see if they can find out more about what caused it. Dr Eagles added: 'if this object did break up before hitting the ice shelf, that perhaps some of the pieces were not travelling with enough energy to penetrate the ice shelf, and may have settled on or within it. 'We may find evidence of a dust layer in the ice surrounding the crater beneath 10 years of snow accumulation. I think that would be worth having a look at.' The scientists used radar carried in the nose of  Polar 6, seen above, to peer through the ice in the crater . Meteorites hit the Earth frequently, but few are big enough to cause any damage and occur in remote areas .", "The self-styled Iranian sheikh who has taken staff and customers hostage in a Sydney chocolate shop demanded police officers bring him an ISIS flag in a chilling phone call to a local radio station. Man Haron Monis is understood to have forced one of his hostages to call 2GB radio host Ray Hadley and demand the terror group's black banner be brought to the Martin Place cafe, as well as requesting a personal phone call with Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott. Mr Hadley initially refused to speak to him publicly urging him to talk to police instead. A short time later, however, the radio host went off air, apparently to talk to one of the hostages being used as a spokesperson by the gunman. Monis' request for the flag came shortly after one of the hostages inside the cafe was seen with her hands placed on one of the windows and running her thumb across her throat. The hostages may have been directed to make the gesture by Monis. Scroll down for video . Gunman: Self-styled Iranian sheikh Man Haron Monis demanded police officers bring him an ISIS flag in a chilling phone call to a local radio station. Born Manteghi Bourjerdi, the extremist left Iran for Australia in 1996 and adopted various names before settling on Sheik Haron . Already well-known to police, Haron is currently on bail for more than 40 sexual offences relating to his work as a so-called spiritual healer . Man Haron Monis is understood to have forced one of his hostages to call 2GB radio host Ray Hadley and demand the terror group's black banner (pictured) be brought to the Martin Place cafe . Not long after taking the café under siege at about 9.45am, Haron forced crying women to hold a black Islamic flag up to the window with the words 'there is no God but Allah' and 'Mohammed is the messenger of God' written in white writing. That flag is a perfectly innocent and generic Islamic slogan, although it has been incorporated into the banner used by Al Qaeda's Syrian affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra. One of the hostage-takers has made contact with officers saying that he has 'devices all over the city' and 'wants to speak with the prime minister live on radio', according to Ray Hadley, from 2GB. One of dozens of hostages in side the Lindt Cafe appeared to run thumb across their throat . Two women were forced to face the window and hold up an Islamic flag at the start of the siege . Extremist flag: the Shahada flag displayed in the window of the Lindt cafe (pictured) is used by Jabhat al-Nusra, a Syrian based extremist group but its words in Arabic mean that 'there is not true God but Allah' Office workers are evacuated from their buildings as a siege is underway at a Lindt cafe in Martin Place . Armed police have sealed off streets around the cafe and Martin Place station is shut. Planes have been diverted away from the city centre. Lindt Australia CEO Steve Loane estimates there are up to 50 people being held. Officials have also evacuated the Opera House after reports of a suspicious device. Prime Minister Tony Abbott described the incident as 'deeply concerning'. 'This is obviously a deeply concerning incident but all Australians should be reassured that our law enforcement and security agencies are well trained and equipped and are responding in a thorough and professional manner,' he said in a statement. At least three people could be seen holding their hands up inside the establishment, and an extremist flag was hanging in the window . Prime Minister Tony Abbott described the incident as 'deeply concerning'", "While much of the East Coast is coated in snow, spare a thought for the crew of the French–Italian Halley research station in Antarctica. They are about to be 'locked in' - and will have to survive six months of complete isolation. To make things worse, four months will be in darkness because the Sun never rises above the horizon. Scroll down for video . Called Halley VI, the lab is made up of four-legged modules linked by enclosed walkways. Called Halley VI, it is made up of four-legged modules linked by enclosed walkways. The centre is designed to house between 16 and 52 members of staff, depending on the time of year. A central social hub gives residents the chance to relax and contains a dining room, bar and a gym. Called Halley VI, it is made up of four-legged modules linked by enclosed walkways. The centre is designed to house between 16 and 52 members of staff, depending on the time of year. A central social hub gives residents the chance to relax and contains a dining room, bar and a gym. A vacuum drainage system keeps water . consumption down, and the ski-clad stilts keep the units about 4 metres . (13 feet) above the level of the ice. The inside of the centre has been . been specially designed to support crew numbers ranging from 52 in the . summer to 16 during the three months of total darkness in winter, when . temperatures at the base drop as low as -56C. It has triple-glazed windows and a . quiet room at the north end of the station is included for residents to . contemplate the Antarctic environment in peace. This year, ESA-sponsored medical doctor Beth Healey will monitor five experiments that are helping to prepare for long-duration missions to explore our Solar System. 'Living in Concordia is similar in many ways to living in space, where crew are cut off from the world without normal sunlight and live in reduced pressure – Concordia station lies 3200 m above sea level,' says the European Space Agency. 'From searching for life that could survive in these extreme conditions to monitoring how the crew of 13 interact and cope with living in close quarters, Beth will have her hands full as the crew maintain the station and perform Antarctic science for the French and Italian polar institutes.' ESA signed an agreement this month with the British Antarctic Survey to perform two of the five Concordia experiments at their Halley VI station. If this pilot season runs well, ESA will extend the cooperation. Concordia offers ESA scientists a place to investigate how humans adapt to living in isolation and at high altitudes. The crew at Halley experience the same isolation and lack of daylight but live at sea level. Performing the same investigations at Halley will allow researchers to cross one factor off the list that might influence data: air pressure. Over the next six months, volunteers at Halley and Concordia will record themselves in a video diary and have their social interactions monitored. This is working towards objective computer software that will give clues to an astronaut’s state of mind. The Halley VI centre, a dismantlable research station created for the . British Antarctic Survey by British architects Hugh Broughton, was . nominated for the World Architecture Festival Awards 2013 . Ask anybody how they feel and most will reply ‘fine’ but, for mission controllers planning a complex spacewalk or spacecraft docking, having an objective second-opinion could be a lifesaver. The system works by analysing small changes in intonation and grammar, as well as charting how often people talk to each other, to develop an idea of how people feel. The second experiment being run at both sites will test how our eyes adapt to four months of outside darkness and artificial lighting. Concordia sunset . David Vaughan, British Antarctic Survey’s director of science, concludes: “We are committed to supporting excellent science in Antarctica in all disciplines. We are hugely excited to be hosting these new experiments that may help prepare for, perhaps, the biggest adventure in history, a manned flight to Mars.” Click here for a full list of ESA’s research at Concordia this year and follow the Concordia blog for updates from the station. Beth Healey . ESA-sponsored medical doctor Beth Healey at the Concordia station in Antarctica. During winter the Sun stays below the horizon for around four months. A skeleton crew of up to 15 to keep the base running and fend for themselves for nine months. It was built solely for purpose, to enable scientists to live comfortably as they carry out vital research work in the freezing cold Antarctic. But thanks to its strikingly futuristic appearance, the Halley VI centre has been causing quite a stir in architectural circles, and it has now been nominated for a prestigious global award. In a textbook example of form following function, British architect firm Hugh Broughton . created the series of four-legged pods, seven of them blue and one red, . which stand on moving ice and can be raised to keep them above the snow . which builds up. The Halley VI centre consists of series of four-legged pods which stand on moving ice and can be raised to keep them above the snow which builds up . The dismantlable research station, . which few fans of design will ever get to see unless they venture to the . Antarctic wilderness, is among the nominees for the World Architecture . Festival Awards 2013. Halley VI is the sixth facility to occupy the site on the Brunt Ice Shelf - a floating sheet of ice about 10 miles (16 kilometres) from the edge of the South Atlantic. Most of the previous stations were crushed under the weight of the polar snow, while Halley V had to be abandoned due to fears that the station would be lost if the ice sheet split apart, said survey spokesman Paul Seagrove. Solitude: Antarctica is the most isolated place on Earth - but its . remote location means the scientists have been able to see the stunning . aurora australis . Home from home: The modules include house labs, a dining room, a bar and a gym . Linked: The scientists do not need to go outside to move between modules as they will be joined together by walkways .", "By . Sarah Dean . A Kenyan government official has criticised Australia for installing 'fear and panic' in tourists wishing to travel to the African country as hundreds of Western tourists were being evacuated following a terror attack. Kenya's Foreign Affairs and International Trade Ministry Principal Secretary Karanja Kibicho's outburst came the day before two bomb attacks in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi, on Friday. At least 13 people are feared to have died in the blast at Gikomba market. The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade issued a stern warning on Monday to tourists visiting Kenya. Terror: People scatter in panic as the twin blasts tear through the Gikomba open-air market for second-hand clothes in Kenya's capital Nairobi on Friday . Angry: Kenya's Foreign Affairs and International Trade Ministry Principal Secretary Karanja Kibicho expressed disappointment at Australia and Britain's stern warnings about travelling to Kenya . The advice on the government's Smart Traveller website said: 'We continue to advise Australians to reconsider their need to travel to Nairobi and the Mombasa region, including Diani Beach, due to the high threat of terrorist attack and high level of crime.' And it ruled out travel to border regions with Somalia, Ethiopia and South Sudan, because of the 'extremely dangerous security situation'. It added: 'Elsewhere in Kenya we advise Australians to exercise a high degree of caution.' Mr Kibicho responded to the warning on Thursday, expressing his disappointment with the governments of Britain, Australia, France and the United States who have all issued messages to tourists. Danger: A policeman inspects a damaged van at the scene of the twin explosion at Gikomba market in Kenya's capital Nairobi on Friday . Explosion: Three people were killed and 16 were injured in a bomb attack at a Mombasa bus station earlier this month. Officials have blamed al-Shabab for the incident . 'The challenges arising from acts of terrorism require concerted efforts to fight it and not behaving in a manner that accelerates it by causing fear and panic,' Kibicho said in a statement issued in Nairobi. 'Issuance of such travel advisories only plays to the whims of bad elements in society whose aims is to spread fear and panic among otherwise peace loving people.' However, unlike the British government - who is evacuating its citizens from Kenya - the Australian government is yet to put such strong measures in place. A spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade told MailOnline on Friday: 'The level of the Australian travel advice for the Mombasa region and Nairobi is \"reconsider your need to travel\" (level 3 of 4 levels) and remains under close review.' Fears: British tourists queue at Mombasa Airport in Kenya after a change in Foreign and Commonwealth Office travel advice prompted travel companies to bring them home . Protection: Armed guards waited as holidaymakers prepared to board a charter flight following recent terror attacks . Meanwhile, a number of UK travel companies suspended holidays to the nation as tourists were watched in airports under armed guard before returning home. British tour operators Thomson and First Choice are now bringing holidaymakers home after a change in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) travel advice. The two companies have cancelled all flights to the East African country until the end of October, while long-haul travel company Kuoni is, for the time being, not offering holidays to the Kenyan coast. Earlier this month, a bomb attack at a bus station in the coastal city of Mombasa killed three people and injured around 16. Another explosion also damaged a hotel in the city during rising tensions and a a recent spate of al-Shabab-linked incidents. Around 100,000 Britons travel to Kenya every year, and many have been devastated by the change in circumstances. Andy Coughlan was on 'a dream holiday' after with his wife Irene, 53, who was told she had gone into remission after suffering breast cancer. 'We’re absolutely devastated,' Mr Coughlan, 53, told The Daily Telegraph. 'Ren had been seriously ill for a long time and this was the first time after all the chemo that she was ready to travel. Tour operators Thomson and First Choice have cancelled all flights to Kenya until the end of October as a result of the concerns . 'She said she wanted to wait for her hair to grow back. As soon as it did, we were on our way here.' The couple from Swansea were staying at the luxury Diani beach and had only arrived in Kenya on Tuesday. The FCO advice reads: 'There is a high threat from terrorism, including kidnapping. The main threat comes from extremists linked to Al Shabaab, a militant group that has carried out attacks in Kenya in response to Kenya's military intervention in Somalia. 'There has been a spate of small-scale grenade, bomb and armed attacks in Nairobi (especially the area of Eastleigh), Mombasa, and North Eastern Province. 'You should take care in public places where people gather, and exercise a heightened level of vigilance.' A spokeswoman for the FCO said: 'We estimate there are 5,000 British nationals resident along the coast and approximately 500 in Mombasa and surrounding area.' Luxury: The coastal city of Mombasa is popular with British tourists, but many have had their dream holidays cut short .", "A U.S. Coast Guard ship has rescued an Australian fishing boat that became stuck in heavy ice in Antarctica for three days with 26 people aboard. The American vessel rescued the ship on Saturday and begun towing the 63-meter (207 foot) longliner to open water after freeing it from Antarctic pack ice. According to reports, the Chieftain became trapped in ice some 900 nautical miles (1,650 kilometres) north-east of McMurdo Sound after damaging its propeller a week ago. Rescue: This US Coast Guard handout photo shows the Antarctic Chieftain as the US Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star begins breaking up the ice around the stranded fishing vessel . Sighting: Members of the Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star stand watch at the bow as the stranded fishing vessel Antarctic Chieftain comes into view . Contact: US Coast Guard handout photo shows members of the deck force aboard Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star, uses a bolo to send a messenger line to the crew of the disabled fishing vessel Antarctic Chieftain left. Tow: The disabled fishing vessel Antarctic Chieftain is shown being towed astern of the Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star through sea ice near Antarctica . All 26 crew members on the longliner are not at risk and there has been no oil leak in the environmentally sensitive area. The US coast guard cutter Polar Star was ordered to cross through 720 km of iceberg-strewn waters to the ship's aid. According to the New Zealand Rescue Coordination Center, which oversees the Southern Ocean search and rescue zone the US ship reached the trawler early on Saturday. The New Zealand-flagged trawler Janas is also travelling to the area to provide assistance if required but is not expected to reach the vessels until late Monday. The rescue boat, which had a reinforced icebreaker hull had to break the ice around the stricken ship, according to ABC.net.au . Rescue mission coordinator Conrad Reynecke said in a statement: 'The crew on the Polar Star then rigged up tow lines and began to tow the Antarctic Chieftain to open water.' 'They are making slow but steady progress and are currently approximately 60 nautical miles from clear water.' Open water: The US ship was towing the Australian fishing trawler to open water after freeing it from Antarctic pack ice, rescue authorities said. The 63-metre (207-foot) 'Antarctic Chieftain' became trapped in ice some 900 nautical miles (1,650 kilometres) northeast of McMurdo Sound on February 10, damaging its propeller . Icebreaker: The United States' only operational heavy icebreaker sails through an ice field in the Southern Ocean . Crew: A female crew member of the Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star watches out of a window aboard the cutter as the Antarctic Chieftain came into view . The Americans had earlier deployed a remote-controlled mini-submarine to assess the damage to the Antarctic Chieftain's propeller and gauge if it could travel under its own steam. 'The [propeller] blades were assessed as too badly damaged for the vessel to be able to use them for propulsion from the ice field,' Reynecke added. At present the weather conditions are favourable but Polar Star commanding officer Captain Matthew Walker said earlier the ice conditions were 'much more formidable than expected'. Australian Longline, the ship's owners, said that the vessel spent six months at a time in Antarctic waters fishing the prized species, which was also known as 'white gold' for the profits it could yield. The Antarctic Chieftain, built in 2002, is licensed to trawl for Patagonian toothfish, a slow-growing species that has a type of anti-freeze in its blood to deal with the punishing southern conditions.", "The largest glacier in East Antarctica is melting due to warm ocean water, according to Australian scientists. Until recently, the 74-mile-long (120km) Totten Glacier was thought to be surrounded by cold waters and therefore very stable and unlikely to shrink. But now experts say that waters around the glacier are warmer than expected and are probably melting the ice from below. Scroll down for video . Australian scientists say that waters around Totten Glacier (pictured) which contains ice equivalent to a 20ft (six metre) rise in global sea levels, are warmer than expected and are probably melting the ice form below . Scientists believe the glacier contains enough water to cause a 20ft (six-metre) rise in global sea levels if it melted entirely. 'We knew that the glacier was thinning from the satellite data, and we didn't know why,’ Steve Rintoul, the voyage's chief scientist told AFP. The expedition found that waters around the glacier, which is 18 miles (30km) wide, were 1.5 °C warmer than other areas visited on the same trip during the southern hemisphere summer. ‘We made it to the front of the glacier and we measured temperatures that were warm enough to drive significant melt,’ Dr Rintoul said. ‘And so the fact that warm water can reach this glacier is a sign that East Antarctica is potentially more vulnerable to changes in the ocean driven by climate change than we used to think.’ The glacier, located in East Antarctica (marked on the map) was known to be thinning thanks to satellite images, but it is only now that scientists think they know why . Until recently, the 74 mile long (120km) glacier was thought to be surrounded by cold waters and therefore very stable and unlikely to change. A stock image of a penguin strolling past the King Sejong Korean station in Antarctica is shown . Previous expeditions had been unable to get close to the glacier due to heavy ice, but Dr Rintoul said the weather had held for the Aurora Australis icebreaker and a team of scientists and technicians from the Australian Antarctic Division and other bodies to investigate. Dr Rintoul stressed that the glacier is not about to melt entirely overnight and cause a 20 ft rise in sea levels, but that research will help scientists predict how changes in ocean temperatures will impact on ice sheets. ‘This study is a step towards better understanding of exactly which parts of the ice sheets are vulnerable to ocean warming and that is the sort of information that we can then use to improve our predictions of future sea level rises,’ he said. ‘East Antarctica is not as protected from change as we use to think,’ he said. The melt rate of glaciers in the fastest-melting part of Antarctica has tripled over the past decade, analysis of the past 21 years showed in a report published last month. The Amundsen Sea has long been thought to be the weakest ice sheet in the West Antarctic. Last month a US study suggested the barren region is haemorrhaging ice at a rate triple that of a decade ago. Researchers believe that the melting of glaciers in West Antarctica may be irreversible. The Amundsen Sea (pictured) has long been thought to be the weakest ice sheet in the West Antarctic. Now, a new US study suggests the barren region is haemorrhaging ice at a rate triple that of a decade ago . The findings of the 21-year study by Nasa and the University of California, Irvine claim to provide the most accurate estimates yet of just how fast glaciers are melting in the Amundsen Sea Embayment. Scientists found the rate by taking radar, laser and satellite measurements of the glaciers' mass between 1992 and 2013. They found they lost an average 83 gigatons per year (91.5 billion U.S. tons), or the equivalent of losing the water weight of Mount Everest every two years. 'The mass loss of these glaciers is increasing at an amazing rate,' said scientist Isabella Velicogna, jointly of the University of California, Irvine and Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. 'Previous studies had suggested that this region is starting to change very dramatically since the 1990s, and we wanted to see how all the different techniques compared,' added lead author Tyler Utterley of UCI.", "A Chinese ship trying to reach a trapped expedition vessel in Antarctica has turned back. The icebreaker Xue Long, or Snow Dragon, was just six nautical miles away from the Russian-flagged vessel when the captain decided the ship could not get any closer, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority said Saturday. The Snow Dragon went back to open water and remains in the vicinity of the stuck ship, the Akademik Shokalskiy, to provide support, said Andrea Hayward-Maher, spokeswoman for the AMSA. The Chinese vessel has a helicopter on board that could assist in evacuation. A French icebreaker was en route to assist, but AMSA called off that vessel's mission at midday Saturday. The rescue icebreakers were battling the planet's coldest environment in trying to reach the stranded Russian-flagged ship, whose 74 researchers, crew and tourists remained in good condition despite being at a frozen standstill since Monday. AMSA said another icebreaker, the Aurora Australis, was en route and was expected to arrive late Sunday. \"Really, it's just a matter of the Aurora Australis getting down there and assessing the situation to see if it has any capability of breaking through the ice further than the Chinese vessel could and, if not, the aerial transfer of passengers on board may be a possibility,\" Hayward-Maher said. Hayward-Maher said the Australian ship has icebreaking equipment the Chinese and French vessels don't have. \"The Chinese vessel and the French vessel are rated to a depth of one meter, which means they are capable of breaking through ice somewhere in the vicinity of a meter,\" she said. \"The Aurora Australis has an ice rating of 1.35 meters. \"Some reports say that the ice is at least 2 meters deep. It's a possibility that the Aurora Australis might not be able to break through that type of ice, anyways.\" The expedition ship is carrying scientists and passengers led by an Australian climate change professor. Spirits were high Saturday aboard the Akademik Shokalskiy. \"The vessel is fine, it's safe and everyone on board is very well,\" expedition leader Chris Turney, a professor of climate change at University of New South Wales in Australia told CNN. \"Morale is really high.\" The ship got stuck in the ice on Monday night -- 15 days after setting out on the second leg of its research trip. According to Turney, the ship was surrounded by ice up to nearly 10 feet (3 meters) thick. It was about 100 nautical miles east of the French base Dumont D'Urville, about 1,500 nautical miles south of Hobart, Tasmania. On Christmas morning, the ship sent a satellite distress signal after conditions failed to clear. The crew had a \"great Christmas\" despite their situation, Turney told CNN. He said crew members have used the delay to get more work done. \"We've just kept the team busy,\" he said. The expedition is trying to update scientific measurements taken by an Australian expedition led by Douglas Mawson that set out in 1911. The expedition to gauge the effects of climate change on the region began November 27. The second, and current leg of the trip, started December 8 and was scheduled to conclude with a return to New Zealand on January 4. Turney said the ship should still be back in New Zealand on time. Century-old photo negatives found in Antarctic explorer's hut .", "Jailed: Simon Rouen tried to arrange to abuse a woman while working at an Antarctic research base . A British scientist working in Antarctica tried to arrange to abuse an eight-year-old girl when he returned from the South Pole. Simon Rouen, 36, was based at a polar research station when he spelt out his desire in emails to two undercover detectives in a police sting. He thought his messages were going to another paedophile. The eight-year-old girl did not exist. Police tracked him down and arrested him when he landed at Heathrow last year as he returned from working with the British Antarctic Survey. A search of his computer found scores of indecent images of children. Detective Constable Jo Gordon, of Kent Police, said: ‘Throughout the course of the emails he sent, Simon Rouen demonstrated a very real desire to sexually abuse the child when he returned to England. ‘Fortunately, we were able to identify the risk he posed to children and intercept him before any child could be abused.’ Rouen was found guilty of arranging the facilitation of a child sex offence and ten counts of possessing indecent images of children. He was jailed for three years at Southwark Crown Court. The laboratory manager, of Redruth, Cornwall, was stationed at the Rothera Research Station, on Adelaide Island, which also serves as the capital of the British Antarctic Territory. The station has a maximum population of 130 in the summer falling to 22 in the winter. During his six months at the station he exchanged emails with officers from Kent Police’s paedophile online investigation team. Work: Rouen was based at the Rothera Research Station, where he was a highly skilled lab manager . Base: Rothera is the capital of the British Antarctic Territory and is a major centre of scientific research . His last message was sent from Chile as he flew back from Antarctica last March. His police mugshot shows him with the scraggly beard that he grew while he was working in Antarctica. Rouen will be subject to a sexual offences prevention order and will be placed on the sex offenders register. DC Gordon said: ‘We will use all the techniques available to us to apprehend people who prey upon children online, and who use the internet as a tool to find children to sexually abuse or to view indecent images of children.’ A spokesman for the British Antarctic Survey confirmed that Rouen previously worked for the company. She said: ‘The matter has been dealt with by the courts and we do not wish to comment any further.’ The BAS has been responsible for the majority of Britain’s scientific research on the Antarctic continent for the past 60 years.", "Dramatic scenes ended a tense hostage situation early Tuesday in Sydney, with sounds of an explosion and gunfire as Australian police stormed a cafe where a gunman had hours earlier taken more than 10 people hostage. \"The whole moment seemed to begin by the escape by our count of six or seven hostages; they ran out from the right-hand side of the cafe and flew down the steps and into the arms of the waiting police,\" Channel 7 reporter Chris Reason told CNN. \"At that point there were a couple of minutes of silence, a police unit moved in; we could see them in dark uniforms, night-vision goggles on, looking toward the door. There was a shot fired -- we think that at that point that it was the gunman firing a shot. We heard from one police officer saying that a hostage was down and at that point the police moved in,\" Reason said. \"We saw a lot of explosive material -- flash bangs as they're called, stun grenades to try to disrupt and startle the gunman as police units moved in from both sides of the cafe to try to get him before he could do any further damage.\" Live footage from the scene later showed heavily armed police running toward the Lindt Chocolate Cafe before at least four people were carried away on stretchers. Channel 7 reporter Sean Berry said the scene had been quiet for several hours before police swarmed the area. \"All of a sudden, gunfire, heavily armed police officers -- police en masse -- and those hostages (were) beginning to be brought out,\" he said. On any ordinary workday, the scene in Sydney would have been packed with people crisscrossing Martin Place on their way to work, home and shops. But this week before Christmas, the inner-city streets fell silent. \"It is eerily quiet for the center of the city, which is normally humming with traffic and pedestrians. ... People would be normally walking the streets. They've roped off several blocks around Martin Place,\" said CNN's Anna Coren, who was about a block from the scene. Martin Place is a paved traffic-free zone, a pedestrian-friendly promenade a few blocks from the ferry terminal at Sydney Harbor. It's where people go to meet, have coffee and catch a train. Heavily armed police . Outside the Lindt shop, heavily armed police, some in camouflage gear and armed with sniper rifles, had taken positions as negotiators attempted to talk to the man inside, since identified as Man Haron Monis, also known as Sheikh Haron, a self-styled Muslim cleric. Passers-by were herded back behind police barriers, while surrounding buildings were evacuated. Opposite the Lindt shop is the entrance to the Martin Place underground train station, where trains stopped running during the siege. Beyond the train station are the studios of Australian network Channel 7, whose huge glass windows act as the backdrop for early-morning programming, and where crowds are encouraged to gather. In the early hours of the standoff, the network, a CNN affiliate, turned its cameras around to film across the street. It captured the images that Channel 7 producer Patrick Byrne described as \"shocking and chilling.\" \"People were putting their hands up against the panes of glass at the cafe. This was just extraordinary,\" Byrne told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. Moments later a black flag bearing white Islamic writing was pressed against the window, drawing gasps from the newsroom, he said. \"We've shut off the monitors that face onto Martin Place for fear that people inside the cafe might be able to see the pictures broadcast,\" Byrne said at the time. Picture emerging of alleged hostage-taker . 'Surreal' scene . Few live images of the cafe were broadcast amid police warnings not to disclose operational matters. Macquarie Radio Network reporter Glenn Wheeler described the scene as \"very surreal.\" \"There are literally hundreds or thousands of people wandering around with this expression of bewilderment,\" he told 2GB radio station. \"We can't believe this is happening.\" He said hundreds, if not thousands, of people had assembled in nearby Hyde Park after being told to leave the area around Martin Place. Wheeler recounted a conversation he had with two German tourists who said, \"We thought Sydney was safe.\" It was a sentiment that was apparent in the street and on social media. While Australia's operating under a \"high\" terror alert, a high-profile attack in Sydney's central business district was unexpected and unprecedented. Authorities are not explicitly referring to the incident as a \"terror attack,\" but New South Wales Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione said police are on \"a footing that would be consistent with a terrorist alert.\" Sydney residents expressed their shock and dismay. \"It's probably the first time in Australian history that something this major in regards to a terrorist threat has happened,\" Joshua Martin told Reuters. 'High' terror alert . The hostage situation follows dozens of police terror raids in the city that have strained relations with the local Muslim community. Amid reports that as many as 100 Australians had left the country to support ISIS' quest to create a so-called Islamic State, authorities introduced tough new terror laws. The new regulations give authorities the power to imprison people for \"advocating terrorism.\" They also criminalize travel to areas deemed by Australia's foreign minister as \"no-go\" zones, and impose stiff penalties for Australian citizens who leave the country to engage in foreign wars. In September, Prime Minister Tony Abbott raised the country's terror threat level to \"high\" but said there had been \"no specific intelligence of particular plots.\" \"What we do have is intelligence that there are people with the intent and capability to mount attacks,\" Abbott said. A week later, he announced a terror plot to decapitate members of the public had been foiled.", "Passengers on board a research ship that has been trapped in Antarctic ice since Christmas Eve are expected to be rescued by helicopter tomorrow after three icebreakers failed to reach the paralysed vessel - but it could still be weeks before they reach dry land. A helicopter on board a Chinese icebreaker, the Snow Dragon, aims to collect the 52 passengers trapped on the Russian ship MV Akademik Shokalskiy when there is a break in the weather. Ironically, the Akademik had gone in search of evidence of the . world’s melting ice caps but instead the team of climate scientists had to abandon their mission because the ice is . thicker than usual at this time of year. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) said the rescue would be a complex operation. Scroll down for videos . Passengers on board Russian ship MV Akademik Shokalskiy that has been trapped in Antarctic ice since Christmas Eve are expected to be rescued by helicopter tomorrow. Above, crew build an icy helipad today . A helicopter on board a Chinese icebreaker, the Snow Dragon, aims to collect the 52 passengers. The 22 members of crew will remain on the stricken vessel . This image, taken by passenger Andrew Peacock, shows the ship still stuck in the ice off East Antarctica, as it waits to be rescued . The research team had hoped the Australian icebreaker Aurora Australis (seen here yesterday) would be able to crack through the thick ice and allow them to continue on their way . The Australian Maritime Safety Authority said the rescue would be a complex operation - and it could be several weeks before the passengers reach dry land. Above, Akademik expedition leader Greg Mortimer gives a briefing about the ice conditions yesterday . 'The helicopter is unable to fly in the current weather conditions and will hold off on the rescue until conditions improve,' AMSA said in a statement. 'Weather conditions are unlikely to start improving until tomorrow and decisions related to carrying out the rescue may be made at short notice.' The 22 members of the crew - who have built an icy helipad - will stay behind with the ship and wait for the ice to break up naturally, expedition spokesman Alvin Stone said. They had hoped the Australian icebreaker Aurora Australis would be able to crack through the thick ice and allow them to continue on their way. The ship isn't in danger of sinking, and there are weeks' worth of supplies on board, but the vessel cannot move. Above, the research team drill into the ice . A thin fresh coat of snow on the trapped ship . Professor Chris Turney, leader of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition, is pictured talking to international media from the top deck of the stranded ship . Australian Green Party Senator-elect Janet Rice up early doing some stretching on the top deck of the MV Akademik Shokalskiy . The Aurora came within 20km (12 miles) of the ship on Monday, but fierce winds and snow forced it to retreat to open water. Today, the weather remained bleak, and the crew on the Aurora said their vessel would also be at risk of getting stuck if it made another rescue attempt. The Snow Dragon, which is waiting with the Aurora at the edge of the ice pack, was also unable to crack through the ice, as was France's L'Astrolabe. The passengers will be flown back to the Snow Dragon in groups of 12, and then transferred by barge to the Aurora. John . Young, AMSA emergency response division general manager, said the . Aurora Australis will then take several days to make its way to the . Casey Base in Antarctica to refuel before returning to Hobart in . Tasmania. 'It will be a couple of weeks before they are landed,' he told Ninemsn. The Chinese icebreaker Xuelong - meaning Snow Dragon - was deployed to rescue the Russian science ship . However just before midnight on Friday Captain Wang Jianzhong's ship (pictured) also became trapped . Scientists on board the Xuelong, including Liu Shunlin (left), are now studying the condition of the Russian ship while they wait to be freed themselves . A photograph sent in by the captain of the Russian ship suggests that the two vessels can actually see each other, albeit as a tiny speck on the horizon . Smile: The crew of passengers and researchers pose for a holiday photograph in the depths of Antarctica . Barbara Tucker, a passenger on Russia's Academic Shokalskiy, is pictured watching an adelie penguin . It is believed a simple shift in the wind could free the Akademik. Winds from the east have been pounding the ship and pushing the ice around the vessel. A westerly wind would help break up the ice, Stone said. The trouble is, no one knows when the wind will change. The ship isn't in danger of sinking, and there are weeks' worth of supplies on board, but the vessel cannot move. The . expedition, which set off from New Zealand on November 28, is being led . by Chris Turney, a climate scientist, who was hoping to reach the base . camp of Douglas Mawson, one of the most famous Antarctic explorers, and . repeat observations done by him in 1912 to see what impact climate . change had made. Trapped: 74 people, including scientists, tourists and a Guardian reporter, are stuck in thick ice sheets . Crew members routinely check the hull of the ship, which gathers fresh layers of snow every night . The looming helicopter rescue means the expedition will have to be cut short, Stone said. Still, those on board appeared to be taking it all in stride. 'Surprisingly, all the passengers seem to be considering it the adventure of a lifetime,' Stone said. Turney has also posted a photograph on Twitter apparently showing the Chinese vessel, a speck on the horizon beyond an expanse of ice. 'Everyone well,' Turney added. He said trying to break through ice that was too thick would be 'like driving your car into a brick wall'. Passengers waved as a helicopter sent from China's retreated Snow Dragon flew by to check the snow levels yesterday . The researchers on board have managed to get messages out saying they are well-stocked and continuing their research despite being trapped in five metres of ice sheets 1,500 miles south of Tasmanian capital Hobart . Failed: This picture, tweeted by passenger Chris Turney, shows the top-of-the-range icebreaker, China's 'Snow Dragon' which also got stuck and was forced to retreat on Friday . Russia's Academic Shokalskiy is recreating Mawson's 100-year-old Australasia expedition using new tools . Blizzards could hamper the rescue mission, but the ship is well-stocked and the scientists are continuing their research on the snow around them . And he tweeted: 'Heavy ice. Beautiful; light wind. Only -1degC. All well. Merry Xmas everyone from AAE.' Academic . Shokalskiy, an ice-strengthened ship built in 1982, was originally used . for oceanographic research before being refurbished to be used as a . passenger vessel in the Arctic and Antarctica. Marooned . 1,500 nautical miles south of Hobart - the capital of the Australian . state of Tasmania - the thick ice sheets built up during a bout of . severe wind. The Russian . embassy in Australia has been in constant contact with the captain and . said everyone on board was in good health and there was 'no threat to . their lives or safety'. The ship had been on a multi-day tour from New Zealand to visit several sites along the edge of Antarctica before getting trapped in sea ice . On . board are scientists from the University of New South Wales, a . journalist from The Guardian and dozens of tourists who have paid to be . part of the recreation of Mawson’s expedition. The research team has made contact with local stations from the Commonwealth Bay to say they are well-stocked with food. They are also continuing their research while stranded by testing the temperature of the surrounding ice sheets. A . spokesman for AMSA said: 'It is quite a remote part of the world, but . we have everyone safe. The vessel isn't in any immediate danger.' France's L'Astrobe, also deployed to save the ship, has now turned back . Bleak: The ship has been stranded in the barren, frozen landscape since Christmas .", "LONDON, England (CNN) -- Scientists think they have uncovered conclusive proof that human activity is responsible for rising temperatures in both polar regions. Changes in polar temperatures are not consistent with natural climate changes say scientists. Research carried out at the Climatic Research Unit at the UK's University of East Anglia (UEA) demonstrates for the first time that anthropogenic climate change is responsible for warming at the Arctic and Antarctic. Previous studies have observed rises in temperature at both poles, but none, until now, have formally attributed the cause to human activity. Using up-to-date gridded data sets, scientists led by the UEA observed mean land surface temperatures in the Arctic over a 100 year period. For the Antarctic the observation period was shorter -- 50 years -- as there is no station data available before 1945. They then applied an average simulated response using two models. The first examined natural forcings -- events like solar cycles and volcanic activity which can affect temperatures. The second model simulated natural combined with anthropogenic forcings -- which included greenhouse gases, stratospheric ozone depletion and sulphate aerosol. Scientists discovered that the observed changes in Arctic and Antarctic temperatures are not consistent with internal climate variability or natural climate drivers alone. One of the report authors, Dr Alexey Karpechko told CNN: \"In both cases the accelerations are not consistent with natural forcing, which means that natural forcing alone cannot produce such a warming. So in a sense, we can say conclusively that this [warming trend at the poles] is due to human influence.\" The paper \"Attribution of polar warming to human influence\" is published in the science journal Nature Geoscience. The Antarctic data is of particular interest given that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's Fourth Assessment Report in 2007 notes that anthropogenic climate change had been detected in every continent except Antarctica. This new data appears to demonstrate that man-made warming is indeed happening on the continent as well. The report may go some way towards silencing climate skeptics who point to evidence that most of Antarctica has been cooling for some time. \"There is strong warming in the Antarctic peninsula,\" Karpechko said. \"But for several decades there has been a slight cooling of the rest of the continent. This slight cooling is due to circulation changes which are partly caused by ozone depletion. \"This is why there has been a bit of confusion as to what is happening in Antarctica. But we expect a recovery of the ozone layer in the future. We may also expect that the Antarctic warming trends will emerge more clearly.\" Commenting on the study conducted by the UEA, Professor David Vaughan, a Glaciologist at the British Antarctic Survey told CNN: \"This is exactly the sort of study we need. The poles are extremely important in the climate change debate and the rapid warming in the Arctic is one of the icons.\" Professor Vaughan, who is studying the patches of warming happening in Antarctica, concedes that the cooling that's occurred in the past 30 to 50 years is \"a little perplexing\". But he agrees with Dr Karpechko over the effects of the ozone hole. \"The likelihood is that over the next century the ozone hole will be substantially reduced,\" Professor Vaughan said, \"And it may mean that the Antarctic warming becomes much more apparent in that period.\" Climate modeling might not convince everyone that warming is taking place, but as Professor Vaughan points out: \"Simulations are built around physical principles and an understanding of the physical world\". Climate modeling is a relatively new area of expertise but Professor Vaughan said that the UEA is widely recognized as one of the world leaders in this field. As previous IPCC reports have pointed out, the effects of warming at the poles are already being felt by indigenous polar species and communities. This new report is confirmation of the culpability of humans in contributing to these rising temperatures. \"I'm afraid that there will always be people that don't believe that we are making all these changes,\" Dr Karpechko said. \"Some people are waiting for the science to say that a particular heat wave is caused by humans. But attributing specific effects to human activities is much more difficult than attributing global changes. I don't know if we should wait for that because it will be too late. \"I see from the data that there is warming. This is really frightening.\"", "By . Emma Glanfield . A derelict seven-storey building collapsed suddenly onto a busy street in West London leaving a Tube station without power and forcing the evacuation of a bus station. Witnesses have told how it sounded ‘like a bomb going off’ when part of the 125ft high office block in Hounslow High Street fell to the ground – showering a busy road in rubble – yesterday afternoon. Hounslow West Tube Station was left without power during rush hour following the incident and a nearby bus station had to be evacuated by police over concerns for safety. Witnesses said it sounded 'like a bomb going off' when part of the 125ft high office block in Hounslow High Street fell to the ground - showering a road in rubble and cutting off the power supply to Hounslow West Tube . Part of the seven-storey office block's front was left hanging off at an awkward angle and debris was left strewn across the main road following the incident which is believed to have been a sudden accident . Despite Hounslow House being scheduled for demolition, it is thought the huge collapse was an accident which may have been caused by a crane plunging into the front of it. Part of the office block’s front was left hanging off at an awkward angle and debris was left strewn across the main road following the incident. Sam Gibbs, who was just yards from the building as it collapsed, described it as ‘terrifying’. ‘My whole office shook,’ he said. A nearby resident, who wished to remain anonymous, said: ‘I know they’ve been working on that site for a while now, because my car is constantly covered in dust. ‘But that can’t have been a controlled demolition - the bang was so loud it sounded like a bomb going off. ‘There was rubble all over the road - it’s a wonder nobody was killed. ‘I heard the building was hit by a . crane. I’m not sure whether it was an accident or not, but if it wasn’t . an accident, nobody should be allowed to demolish a building that way. ‘It was so dangerous.’ Despite the office block, which is called Hounslow House, being scheduled for demolition to make way for a new development, it is thought the collapse was an accident which may have been caused by a crane hitting it . Hounslow West Tube Station was left without power during rush hour following the incident yesterday afternoon and a nearby bus station (above) had to be evacuated and cordoned off over concerns for safety . Hounslow House was in the process of being knocked down to make way for a possible housing development when the unexpected collapse occurred. Police confirmed no one was injured when the front of the block fell . Others took to Twitter to share news of the incident including Colin Tutty who wrote: 'A crane has hit a building in Hounslow.' Hounslow House is in the process of being knocked down to make way for a possible housing development - dubbed Tesco Tower after the supermarket’s interest in the site. Police, firefighters, paramedics and a specialist hazardous team were all called to the scene but officers confirmed there were no reported injuries. A spokesman for London Fire Brigade said: ‘We were called to the scene at 4:40pm to a building site, where a disused office block had partially collapsed. ‘There were no reported injuries.’ A spokesman for the London Ambulance Service confirmed an ambulance crew, duty officer and the hazardous area response team were also sent but said 'nobody required any treatment.'. It is understood GBM Demolition, a Lincolnshire-based company, was carrying out the demolition process at the site. However, while no cause has yet been given for the incident, it is thought to have been an unexpected collapse. GMB Demolition said a statement would be given shortly when contacted by MailOnline.", "British scientists are stranded after their Antarctic base lost power in the depths of winter as temperatures plummeted to a record low of minus 55C. There is no way of rescuing the 13 researchers from the Halley VI Research Station - which has been hit by a 19-hour blackout - for months until the hostile winter subsides. The British Antarctic Survey admitted it was a 'serious incident' and has suspended all experiments as the workers heat up emergency accommodation which has not been used for months. Scroll down for video . Trapped: Temperatures plummeted on the British Halley VI Research Station in Antarctica in the depths of winter after 13 researchers experienced a 19-hour power cut. There is no way they can be rescued (file photo) Warming up: Workers maintain a generator at the site, around which temperatures dropped to minus 55C . Remote: The research station was completed in 2012 and consists of 'modules' on hydraulic movable legs . Some of the fallout from the power cut, which happened a week ago but was only revealed today, is still ongoing as the workers face sleeping on the floor of a garage. But despite the perilous conditions the scientists, 10 English, one Scottish, one Romanian and one Polish, have remained upbeat - and even Tweeted about their ordeal. Renewable energy engineer Anthony Lister wrote: 'Whilst all the fun was happening at #halley6 (not that it's over) we had the lowest ever recorded temps down here at -55.4. Which was nice. 'Got internet, lots of @YorkshireTea tea and a big kettle. Really, what more do you actually need?' He added on his blog: 'I would just like to reiterate that we are all healthy, in good spirits and are busy setting about getting, and keeping the station in as good an order as possible. Stiff upper lip: Renewable energy engineer Anthony Lister, one of the 13 scientists trapped inside the base with failing power, has kept the world updated with his tongue-in-cheek Twitter reports about the weather . Beautifully isolated: There is no way the researchers at the station, pictured, can be rescued until winter ends . Nice view: At least the trapped scientists have a good vantage point to watch the patterns of the Aurora . 'No one here on station is responsible for the technical issues we are having and we are all working extremely hard. 'Another fairly cool, but problematic at the time, event occurred around the time of us losing power – the coldest temperature ever recorded at Halley Bay. 'Throwing a cup of boiling water into the air resulted in small explosion as the water instantly turned into a cloud of ice crystals. 'This obviously didn’t help us on station at the time but it was nice to see a record set! A British Antarctic Survey spokesman told MailOnline the temperature inside the building had dropped almost to freezing. He added: 'We can't get anyone in to help them because it's the winter.' But he insisted there was no threat to their safety, saying: 'They have a building which is usually used as overspill accommodation for the summer months. 'It's been shut down since the summer, so we're bringing that back into service and slowly warming it up. 'There's also a garage which is heated that they can sleep in. It's not ideal, but it's safe. 'Some people have been saying they're going to freeze to death. That's not going to happen.' Isolated: The location of the research station in Halley Bay, which has been used by scientists since the 1950s . The state-of-the-art research station opened two years ago on a 150m-thick Brunt Ice Shelf in Halley Bay, Antarctica, where researchers have been based since the 1950s. Run by the Cambridge-based Survey, it consists of eight 'modules' on hydraulic legs which can lift above huge layers of snow and ice which accumulate in the winter. The design was an attempt to prevent the fate of previous research bases which were buried under ice and snow during serious weather. Although the station is completely inaccessible to the outside world, there is an on-site doctor. A BAS statement said: 'British Antarctic Survey (BAS) is dealing with a serious operational incident at its Halley Research Station. 'Our urgent priority is to ensure the continued safety and wellbeing of the wintering team. Inhospitable: The base opened in 2012 after four years' work and is on the 150m-thick Brunt Ice Shelf . State of the art: The research station in calmer weather. It currently has just 13 scientists living in it . 'Power and some heating are back online, and some other essential services have been restored, but the staff are having to live and work in extremely difficult conditions. 'It is now clear that because of the nature of the incident, and the prolonged loss of power, the station cannot now return to normal operation in the short or medium term. 'Everyone at Halley and Cambridge is doing everything that can be done to ensure that the incident remains under control. 'All science, apart from meteorological observations essential for weather forecasting, has been stopped.'", "By . Jo Whiley . A young researcher has re-opened the world's most southerly post office in Antarctica today, 50 years after it was abandoned. Anna Malaos, 30, is operating as polar postmistress from a hut on Detaille Island on the Antarctic Peninsula, which has no telephone, Internet access, electricity or running water. She is operating the post office, which will provide an international mail service, from a historic British base on a tiny outcrop of rock, surrounded by icebergs, glaciers and minke whales. Postmistress: Anna Malaos, 30, will work from the wooden hut on Detaille Island on the Antarctic Peninsula, which has no telephone, Internet access, electricity or running water . The world's most southerly post office has re opened in Antarctica today 50 years after it was abandoned . Anna, an expert in Antarctica and on secondment from her job as operations manager at the Antarctic Heritage Trust, is working in temperatures of minus 10C, which she says makes 'sticking stamps very tricky.' 'It's . an honour to be a Polar Postmistress' said Anna, from Cambridge. 'Detaille . Island was a British base built in the 1950s and, like every other . British base built during that time, it had its own Post Office. 'It's a privilege to be able to re-open it after all this time and reconnect the building with the world.' The isolated post office was closed in 1959 when solid sea ice prevented the base from being restocked for the season . The huts at Detaille Island were built in 1956 to provide a base from which to survey the Antarctic Peninsula. The science undertaken at this station contributed geological and meteorological findings to the work of the International Geophysical Year of Cooperation in 1957. But it was closed in 1959 when solid sea ice prevented the base from being restocked for the season. The men abandoned the base, taking with them only personal possessions and everything else was left behind. Today, the base provides an important reminder of the science and living conditions that existed when the Antarctic Treaty was signed 50 years ago. 'We are re-opening the Post Office to breathe new life into the building at Detaille Island,' said Rachel Morgan, director of the UK Antarctic Heritage Trust, a British charity which acts as custodian of several important historic buildings in the Antarctic. 'The base at Detaille Island, which was once a functioning science research station with its own Post Office, has a fascinating and important story to tell.' Penguin post: Detaille is a small island just south of the Antarctic Circle and 11 miles east of Liard Island. It is home to a colony of 1,000 pairs of Adelie penguins . Around 25 ships are expected to call at the post office over the next four weeks and more than 300 letters will be hand-franked and dispatched to the rest of the world. The letters will each receive a highly-prized Antarctic stamp and post mark and then travel by sea to the Falkland Islands where they will enter into the international mail system. All the money raised from stamp sales will go towards saving the historic building and protecting it against the harsh Antarctic winter weather. Anna will be assisted by Michael Powell, 49, from Crickhowell in South Wales who has over 25 years of Antarctic experience and Tudor Morgan, 41, from Monmouthshire. The post office will have to close for the season at the end of the month, when the island sees 24-hour darkness. Detaille is a small island just south of the Antarctic Circle and 11 miles east of Liard Island. It is home to a colony of 1,000 pairs of Adelie penguins.", "(CNN) -- Two anti-whaling activists who were seized by a Japanese whaling vessel two days ago have been handed over to Australian government officials on a ship in the Antarctic, Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced Thursday. Australian citizen Benjamin Potts and British citizen Giles Lane, both members of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, jumped on board the Yushin Maru No. 2 Tuesday to deliver a letter saying the vessel was violating international law and Australian law by killing whales. The anti-whaling group accused the crew of the Japanese vessel of kidnapping the men based on a video that showed Potts and Lane tied to the ship's railing. In the video, Japanese fishermen pace back and forth in front of them. Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith Wednesday did not answer questions about whether the men would be charged for their actions, stressing instead that the immediate priority was to retrieve them. \"I'm not going to give a running commentary on who's done what to whom and the various allegations and counter allegation,\" he said. Smith said the Japanese government -- which formally approached Australia to assist in the transfer -- did not lay out any conditions for the transfer, in which the men were brought on board the Australian ship, the Oceanic Viking. Watch the anti-whaling activists board the Japanese vessel » . Capt. Paul Watson, founder of Sea Shepherd, had said earlier that the men were seized by the Japanese crew and assaulted. Watch Watson describe the incident » . Sea Shepherd claims Japan's Institute for Cetacean Research, which is backing the operations, had said it would release the two activists if Sea Shepherd agrees to stop interfering in its whaling operations. The group says it will not agree to that demand. The Japanese Fisheries Agency said Thursday it would readily hand over the two men. But the agency charged that the Sea Shepherd members were the terrorists. At a news conference earlier, the agency released pictures of broken bottles they claim group members threw at the ship. They also released a photo of the two activists relaxing and drinking tea aboard the Yushin Maru. \"For some time, for 10, 15 minutes, I understand, they were tied to a GPS mast,\" Tomohiko Taniguchi of Japan's Foreign Ministry told CNN. \"The Japanese crew members feared that two crew members from Sea Shepherd might do something violent.\" He said Potts and Lane boarded the vessel without permission. Watson said the two boarded only after attempts to contact the ship by radio were unsuccessful. Japan has been hunting whales in the Antarctic and apparently plans to kill as many as 1,000 this winter. The killings are allowed under international law because their main purpose is scientific. \"We regard them as poachers,\" Watson said. E-mail to a friend . CNN Correspondent Kyung Lah contributed to this report.", "(CNN) -- Robert Swan's life reads like a boy's own adventure tale with a modern eco-twist. Robert Swan was the first man to walk to both the North and South Poles. Inspired by the daring age of Antarctic exploration, Swan followed in the footsteps of his heroes; the men who risked, and lost, their lives to reach the South Pole. At the age of 29 he embarked on an expedition to the South Pole that was unsupported -- a trek that required him to pull his own sleigh and that lacked medical support crews. By the time he was 33 he had become the first man to walk to both the North and South poles unsupported. But for Swan, the epic journeys to the Poles, and the sailing and overland adventures that have followed, unearthed more than just a spirit for adventure. He experienced firsthand the impact of humanity on the environment when under the hole in the ozone layer at the South Pole, the harsh ultraviolet rays from the sun burned his skin and permanently changed the color of his eyes. It firmed a desire to preserve the fragile natural world and to educate and inspire others, particularly the next generation of decision-makers to do the same. \"As the last unspoiled wilderness on Earth, Antarctica is currently protected by the treaty prohibiting drilling and mining until 2041. Decisions made by today's youth will impact our entire planet's ecosystem and the future of life on earth,\" he says on 2041.com. His polar icewalks gained international attention and in 1992 he was asked to speak at the UN Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, later gaining an OBE and being appointed Special Envoy to the Director General of UNESCO in recognition of his work. At the Earth Summit in Rio he committed to a \"global mission\" to remove 1,500 tons of waste from Antarctica. Swan and a team of young people from across the world were successful in cleaning up the Russian Antarctic base of Bellinghausen by 2000, making it inhabitable for wildlife again. Foresight, planning and determination then are not alien to a man who spent five years sourcing the funding for his first Antarctic expedition, and Swan's latest project is taking an even longer-term view. Swan founded his organization \"2041\" in 2003 in order to further his mission of action and education. Named after the year in which Antarctica's protection against mineral exploitation ends, Swan regularly takes business people, teachers and students on expeditions to Antarctica to impress on those with the capacity to enact change that preservation of the environment is essential and achievable. Continuing the green mission on the continent by minimizing the human footprint in the region, his international teams have helped design and build the world's first education station in Antarctica that is run solely on renewable energy. Add to the expeditions, ocean voyages on a boat with sails made from recycled plastic bottles, and it's clear that the veteran polar explorer is a man who is doing all he can to protect and preserve the Antarctic.", "The levels of Antarctic sea-ice last week hit an all-time high – confounding climate change computer models which say it should be in decline. America’s National Snow And Ice Data Center, which is funded by Nasa, revealed that ice around the southern continent covers about 16million sq km, more than 2.1 million more than is usual for the time of year. It is by far the highest level since satellite observations on which the figures depend began in 1979.In statistical terms, the extent of the ice cover is hugely significant. Scroll down for video . The Gerlache Strait separating the Palmer Archipelago from the Antarctic Peninsular off Anvers Island . It represents the latest stage in a trend that started ten years ago, and means that an area the size of Greenland, which would normally be open water, is now frozen. The Antarctic surge is so big that overall, although Arctic ice has decreased, the frozen area around both poles is one million square kilometres more than the long-term average. In its authoritative Fifth Assessment Report released last year, the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change admitted that the computer models on which scientists base their projections say Antarctic ice should be in decline, not increasing. The report said: ‘There is low confidence in the scientific understanding of the observed increase in Antarctic sea ice extent since 1979, due to… incomplete and competing scientific explanations for the causes of change.’ An adult chinstrap penguin jumps out of the sea at Port Lockroy, Antarctica . A Crabeater seal on an iceberg in Paradise Bay, Antarctica. Crabeater seals are the most common large mammal on the planet after humans, with an estimated population of 15 million . Some . scientists have suggested the Antarctic ice increase may itself be . caused by global warming. But Professor Judith Curry, head of climate . science at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, said the . arguments were not convincing. She added: ‘We do not have a quantitative, predictive understanding of the rise in Antarctic sea ice extent.’ She . said it was becoming increasingly apparent that long-term cycles in . ocean temperatures were responsible for a significant proportion of the . ice decline in the Arctic – a process that may be starting to reverse. Prof . Curry also revealed that because of the ‘pause’, in which world average . temperatures have not risen for more than 16 years, the Arctic ice . decline has been ‘touted’ by many as the most important evidence for . continued global warming. But in her view, climate scientists have to consider evidence from  both Poles. She . added: ‘Convincing arguments regarding the causes of sea-ice . variations require understanding and ability to model both the Arctic . and Antarctic.’ The Gerlache Strait separating the Palmer Archipelago from the Antarctic Peninsular off Anvers Island . For years, computer simulations have predicted that sea ice should be disappearing from the Poles. Now, with the news that Antarctic sea-ice levels have hit new highs, comes yet another mishap to tarnish the credibility of climate science. Climatologists base their doom-laden predictions of the Earth’s climate on computer simulations. But these have long been the subject of ridicule because of their stunning failure to predict the pause in warming – nearly 18 years long on some measures – since the turn of the last century. It’s the same with sea ice. We hear a great deal about the decline in Arctic sea ice, in line with or even ahead of predictions. But why are environmentalists and scientists so much less keen to discuss the long-term increase in the southern hemisphere? In fact, across the globe, there are about one million square kilometres more sea ice than  35 years ago, which is when satellite measurements began. It’s fair to say that this has been something of an embarrassment for climate modellers. But it doesn’t stop there. In recent days a new scandal over the integrity of temperature data has emerged, this time in America, where it has been revealed as much as 40 per cent  of temperature data there are not real thermometer readings. Many temperature stations have closed, but rather than stop recording data from these posts, the authorities have taken the remarkable step of ‘estimating’ temperatures based on the records of surrounding stations. So vast swathes of the data are actually from ‘zombie’ stations that have long since disappeared. This is bad enough, but it has also been discovered that the  US’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is using estimates even when perfectly good raw data is available to it – and that it has adjusted historical records. Why should it do this? Many have noted that the effect of all these changes is to produce a warmer present and a colder past, with the net result being  the impression of much faster warming. They draw their conclusions accordingly. Naturally, if the US temperature records are indeed found to have been manipulated, this is unlikely to greatly affect our overall picture of rising temperatures at the end of the last century and  a standstill thereafter. The US is, after all, only a  small proportion of the globe. Similarly, climatologists’ difficulties with the sea ice may be of little scientific significance in the greater scheme of things. We have only a few decades of data, and in climate terms this is probably too short to demonstrate that either the Antarctic increase or the Arctic decrease is anything other than natural variability. But the relentless focus by activist scientists on the Arctic decline does suggest a political imperative rather than a scientific one – and when put together with the story of the US temperature records, it’s hard to avoid the impression that what the public is being told is less than the unvarnished truth. As their credulity is stretched more and more, the public will – quite rightly – treat demands for action with increasing caution… . Andrew Montford .", "The start of Sydney's whale-watching season has kicked off in spectacular fashion, with up to 10 humpback whales spotted off Bondi Beach and near Botany Bay. A treat for those making the most the unusually warm autumn weather, two humpbacks were seen playing with a pod of dolphins off Bondi Beach on Saturday morning. This was followed by another five seen around the same area in the afternoon. Jonas Liebschner from Whale Watching Sydney said the large number of animals sighted was extraordinary, The Sydney Morning Herald reported. Welcome: The start of the whale-watching season kicked off with a stellar number of humpback whales spotted of the Bondi Beach coast, pictured, and Botany Bay in Sydney's south east . Frolicking: The pods of whales were seen playing together off the coast, to the admiration of onlookers who were keen to catch a glimpse of the majestic animals . '(It) is a phenomenal number for this early in the season,' he said. Mr Liebschner confirmed that four humpbacks were also spotted near Botany Bay, in Sydney's south east. But those who missed out should not fret, with more expected throughout the season. Mr Liebschner said whale numbers had steadily increased by about 10 per cent in the last five to six years. As part of their migration, about 20,000 whales will travel north past Sydney as they make their way to sub-tropical breeding grounds off the Queensland coast. On their way back, this number is expect to be about 22,000 whales, with the addition of 2,000 newborn calves, Mr Liebschner said. Making a splash: Adult humpback whales can grown up to 16 metres long as adults and weigh more than 36,000 kilograms . More than 20,000 humpbacks are expected to pass Sydney as they head north to warmer waters off the Queensland coast . As part of their migration from Antarctic waters, the whales make 5,000km trip along Australia's east coast . For those hoping to catch a glimpse of a humpback or many of the other species of whale, the mammals will complete the 5,000km trip along Australia's east coast from Antarctic waters - one of the longest in the animal kingdom - in the coming months. The whales' northern migration can run into August and they often travel in pods and along the Great Barrier Reef before arriving in the Whitsundays area, according to Discover Hervey Bay. Once in warmer waters the animals give birth and mate before making their way to Antarctic waters by the end of spring. On their southern migration, most humpbacks will leave the Queensland coast by the start of November. Humpbacks, which can grow up to about 16 metres as adults and weigh more than 36,000 kilograms, spend the summer feeding on prawn-like krill in Antarctic waters. Large whales are most likely to be seen in Australian waters between June and October, according to ABC. About 40 species of whales and dolphins have been recorded in Australian waters. To best see the whales, watchers should pick a clear and calm day on a prominent headland.", "Hong Kong (CNN) -- For most of this week, the 74 people aboard the Russian expedition vessel MV Akademik Shokalskiy have been at a standstill -- trapped in the frozen seas off Antarctica. But the crew, researchers and tourists are taking their icy week in stride. The Russian vessel became locked in sea ice since Christmas Eve. Despite the cutting wind and freezing temperatures, Chris Turney, expedition leader and professor of climate change at University of New South Wales in Australia said morale has been high throughout and they had a \"great Christmas,\" though everyone was frustrated about not being able to venture out into the open ocean. \"We had a fantastic Christmas dinner, including secret Santa presents. It was important to keep the morale up,\" he said. \"There was ham and turkey, the chefs cooked a great meal for us. It was a welcome respite from the conditions outside,\" he added. Others on board also seemed to be having an enjoyable time despite the icy weather conditions. Alok Jha, a science correspondent at the Guardian who was also en route to Antarctica with the Australasian Antarctic Expedition said there was no shortage of the Christmas spirit. That was before a blizzard hit Thursday afternoon, which Turney described as the hardest part. \"We were experiencing a blizzard with winds up to 70 kilometers per hour. Snow was building up on the edge of the vessel and it was quite disconcerting. But, overall, people have been brilliant and as positive as can be, given the circumstances,\" he said. Currently, the ship awaits rescue from the Chinese ice breaker called the Snow Dragon, or Xue Long, that is expected to arrive later on Friday according to Turney, who spoke with the captain of the Chinese vessel. \"I just took a call from the Chinese vessel, Snow Dragon. They've made tremendous progress, and we're extremely appreciative,\" he said. Help is also coming via a French vessel called Astrolabe and an Australian ship, the Aurora Australis. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority who are coordinating a rescue said both ships are on their way to the stranded passengers. After two and a half days of waiting, Turney said the team spirit has kept them going. \"At the moment we've got very good visibility, winds have dropped,\" Turney said. \"We've got a large team coming to help us, it's incredible. Morale is good and we just want to reassure family and friends that we're well,\" he added. Meanwhile, Turney and the crew are kept company with cute, unexpected visitors in the Antarctic as they continue with their scientific research. \"It's great. Where you are in the most remote location in the world, they turn up, having a look to see what's going and then drift off after a while. They're wonderful company to have about,\" he said. The expedition is retracing the footsteps of scientific explorer Douglas Mawson's 100-year-old trek to study the Antarctic region. Turney said everyone aboard the expedition vessel is scheduled to return to southern New Zealand by January 4.", "After 10 days stranded far from home, all 52 passengers from a ship stuck in Antarctic ice have now been transferred by helicopter to an Australian icebreaker. \"It's 100% we're off! A huge thanks to all,\" tweeted Chris Turney, an Australian professor among the group of scientists, journalists and tourists marooned on the ship. A helicopter from a nearby Chinese icebreaker ferried passengers Thursday to the Australian icebreaker, the Aurora Australis. The rescue is the latest chapter in a saga that began Christmas Eve after the Russian-flagged MV Akademik Shokalskiy got stuck in unusually thick ice. Officials abandoned a succession of other rescue attempts in recent days because of the treacherous conditions in the region. Earlier Thursday, Australian authorities had said a plan involving the helicopter and a barge was put on hold because of shifting ice conditions. But the new approach, which skipped the use of the barge, got under way later in the day. Turney posted videos showing the helicopter arriving on a makeshift helipad on the ice near the trapped ship and taking off into the crisp blue sky. Robert Darvill, chief mate on the Aurora Australis, told CNN that the 52 new passengers on board were very happy to be there and kept thanking the icebreaker's crew for their efforts. \"They are on their second dinner of the night right now,\" he said. Long journey ahead . It will still be weeks before the research team makes it to the Australian port of Hobart, said John Young of the Australian Maritime Safety Authority. \"Mid-January is our best guess,\" Young told reporters on a conference call. The Aurora Australis is still expected to complete a resupply mission to Casey Station, an Australian base in Antarctica, before making its way to Hobart. Darvill said that now all the passengers are on the Aurora Australis, the vessel will try to move out of the heavy pack ice and into more open water. But, he said, they will not set off toward Casey Station until the Rescue Coordination Center of Australia gives them the green light. Darvill also thanked the captain of the Chinese icebreaker whose help made the rescue possible. \"Thank you very much for your cooperation. Your crew has done the lion's share of the work and made Australia and much of the world proud,\" he said. Meanwhile, the master of the Akademik Shokalskiy has decided to keep the 22 Russian crew members on board the stranded ship until the pack ice eventually breaks up and allows it to move again, Young said. The vessel has enough supplies to keep the crew going for \"a very long time,\" he said. The helicopter rescue followed a failed attempt by the Chinese icebreaker, the Xue Long, which made it 6 nautical miles from the trapped vessel before being stopped by especially thick ice. That was followed by an effort by the Australian icebreaker, which was forced Monday to suspend efforts to reach the expedition because of bad weather. The Aurora Australis got within 10 nautical miles of the ship before it turned back. Over the weekend, the maritime agency called off an effort by the French icebreaker Astrolabe. Viral sensations . The exploits of the research crew have gone viral, thanks in large part to Twitter and YouTube posts by those aboard the stranded vessel. Turney, the leader of a research expedition on the Akademik Shokalskiy, has tweeted photos of the stranded ship, the crew and penguins, which have stopped by to check out their new neighbors. The group even managed to ring in 2014 with good cheer. \"We're the A, A, E who have traveled far, having fun doing science in Antarctica!\" a dozen or so of them sang in a video posted on YouTube. \"Lots of snow and lots of ice, lots of penguins, which are very, very nice! \"Really good food and company, but a bloody great shame we are still stuck here! Ice core, cha cha cha! Ice core, cha cha cha!\" The expedition . Turney's expedition to gauge the effects of climate change on the region began on November 27. The second and current leg of the trip started on December 8 and was scheduled to conclude with a return to New Zealand on Saturday. The vessel got stuck in the ice 15 days after setting out on the second leg. Turney, a climate change professor at the University of New South Wales, has said the ship was surrounded by ice up to nearly 10 feet (3 meters) thick.", "Sea levels have risen by about 20cm . (8in) over the past century . By . Damien Gayle . West Antarctica is warming almost twice as fast as previously believed, a new study shows, heightening fears of a catastrophic thaw that raise water levels from San Francisco to Shanghai. Annual average temperatures at the Byrd research station there have risen 2.4C (4.3F) since the Fifties, it said, one of the fastest gains on the planet and three times the global average. West Antarctica holds enough ice to raise world sea levels by at least 3.3m (11ft) if it ever all melted. Melting: A new study raises the alarm over rising sea levels due to climate change in the Antarctic . Heating up: On this map, the colour intensity indicates areas around Antarctica that are likely experiencing comparable warming to Byrd Station, which is marked by the star . That process would take centuries, but even a much more modest thaw could threaten low-lying areas and coastal cities across the planet. 'Continued summer warming in West Antarctica could upset the surface mass balance of the ice sheet, so that the region could make an even bigger contribution to sea level rise than it already does,' said David Bromwich, professor of geography at Ohio State University and senior research scientist at the Byrd station. 'Even without generating significant mass loss directly, surface melting on the WAIS could contribute to sea level indirectly, by weakening the West Antarctic ice shelves that restrain the region's natural ice flow into the ocean.' Low-lying nations from Bangladesh to . Tuvalu are especially vulnerable to sea level rise, as are coastal . cities from London to Buenos Aires. Sea levels have risen by about 20cm . (8in) over the past century. The . United Nations panel of climate experts projects that sea levels will . rise by between 18 and 59cm (7-24in) this century, and by more if a thaw . of Greenland and Antarctica accelerates. Byrd Polar Research Center, pictured in 1960: Due to its location some 700 miles from the South Pole and near the center of the WAIS, Byrd Station is an important indicator of climate change throughout the region . Andrew Monaghan, study co-author and scientist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, said that the new findings place West Antarctica among the fastest-warming regions on Earth. The rise in temperatures in the remote region was comparable to that on the Antarctic Peninsula to the north, which snakes up towards South America, according to the U.S.-based experts writing in the journal Nature Geoscience. Parts of the northern hemisphere have also warmed at similarly fast rates. Several ice shelves - thick ice floating on the ocean and linked to land - have collapsed around the Antarctic Peninsula in recent years. Once ice shelves break up, glaciers pent up behind them can slide faster into the sea, raising water levels. Patchy data: Since its establishment in 1957, . Byrd Station hasn't always been occupied and even after it was automated . it has been subject to frequent power cuts, so . scientists were forced to reconstruct readings . 'We've already seen enhanced surface . melting contribute to the breakup of the Antarctic's Larsen B Ice Shelf, . where glaciers at the edge discharged massive sections of ice into the . ocean that contributed to sea level rise,' Dr Monaghan said. 'The stakes would be much higher if a similar event occurred to an ice shelf restraining one of the enormous WAIS glaciers.' We could refreeze the Arctic, and it wouldn't even cost that much, a scientist claims. Two recently published studies explore the possibility that a technological solution could be found to the problem of global warming melting the ice caps on the North Pole. The scientist who is lead author on both claims that 'any significant nation' could find the resources to carry out the operation. The only significant question, he says, is whether we should. The amount of ice in the Arctic Ocean shrank to an all time low in September (see graphic above), with the total area covered now half what it was in the Eighties. David Keith, professor of applied physics at Harvard University, is lead author on papers published in Nature Climate Change and Environmental Research Letters which speculate as to how we could restore the polar ice. He used climate models to suggest  injecting reflective particles into the atmosphere could reduce the amount of sunlight reaching the Earth, engineering a regional effect that could bring ice back to the Arctic. His paper claims that by reducing the penetration of sunlight by just 0.5 per cent is could be possible to restore the sea-ice around the North Pole back to pre-industrial era levels. His second paper suggests the whole operation could be accomplished with just a few modified Gulfstream jets, costing somewhere in the region of $8billion a year. However, while he believes action must be taken to tackle the amount of pollution spewed into the Earth's atmosphere, he doesn't yet advocate the kind of action his papers suggest. Researchers consider the West . Antarctic ice sheet especially sensitive to climate change, explained . Ohio State University doctoral student Julien Nicolas. Since the base of the ice sheet rests below sea level, it is vulnerable to direct contact with warm ocean water. Its . melting currently contributes 0.3mm to sea level rise each year — second to Greenland, whose contribution to sea level rise has been . estimated as high as 0.7mm per year. Due to its location some 700 miles . from the South Pole and near the center of the WAIS, Byrd Station is an . important indicator of climate change throughout the region. In the past, researchers haven't been able to make much use of the Byrd Station measurements. Data was often incomplete because nearly one third of the temperature observations were missing for the time period of the study. Since its establishment in 1957, the station hasn't always been occupied. A year-round automated station was installed in 1980, but it has experienced frequent power cuts, especially during the long polar night, when its solar panels can't recharge. Professor Bromwich and two of his graduate students, along with colleagues from NCAR and the University of Wisconsin-Madison, corrected the past Byrd temperature measurements and used corrected data from a computer atmospheric model and a numerical analysis method to fill in the missing observations. Aside from offering a more complete picture of warming in West Antarctica, the study suggests that if this warming trend continues, melting will become more extensive in the region in the future, Professor Bromwich said. While the researchers work to fully understand the cause of the summer warming at Byrd Station, the next step is clear, he added. 'West Antarctica is one of the most rapidly changing regions on Earth, but it is also one of the least known,' he said. 'Our study underscores the need for a reliable network of meteorological observations throughout West Antarctica, so that we can know what is happening—and why—with more certainty.'", "Adoption activist, actress and arts advocate Deborra-Lee Furness has been named the New South Wales Australian of the Year for her fight for children's rights around the world. In 2008, Ms Furness, the mother of two adopted children with husband Hugh Jackman, launched National Adoption Awareness Week in an attempt to pursue her vision for 'children all over the world to be given every chance to live a fulfilled life and achieve their full potential'. As an ambassador for World Vision, Ms Furness campaigns for orphans in Asia and Africa and insisted for Prime Minister Tony Abbott to make it easier for Australians to adopt locally and overseas. Adoption activist, actress and arts advocate Deborra-Lee Furness has been named the New South Wales Australian of the Year for her fight for children's rights around the world . In 2008, Ms Furness, the mother of two adopted children with husband Hugh Jackman, launched National Adoption Awareness Week in an attempt to pursue her vision for 'children all over the world to be given every chance to live a fulfilled life and achieve their full potential' Ms Furness spends her time lobbying for children's rights and in 2013 she publicly slammed Australia's 'anti-adoption culture', insisting that extreme adoption measures deter couples who are interested. 'Hugh and I did attempt to do it here and I went to the first meeting and realised that this was just not going to happen,' Ms Furness told the ABC. Ms Furness spends her time lobbying for children's rights and in 2013 she publicly slammed Australia's 'anti-adoption culture', insisting that extreme adoption measures deter couples who are interested . 'It was not supportive, it was not informative, it was not pro-active.' The lack of support that came from Australia's adoption process prompted Ms Furness and her husband to begin looking at options overseas. 'We need to look at creating relationships with inter-country adoption with sending countries like Cambodia,' Ms Furness said. 'Post-adoption support [is needed] to educate parents what it is to parent a child that may have come from a war zone or from abuse. 'You have to have the tools to know how to parent a fragile child and you need to have a support system for the children that are going through this.' Australia has on of the lowest rates of adoption in the world, with around a 77 per cent decline in the number of adoptions over the past 25 years, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. It has also been reported that in the 2013-14 financial year only 339 children were adopted in Australia; 129 from overseas and 210 locally. Ms Furness and her husband also set up the Jackman Furness Foundation for the Performing Arts, in an attempt to support art students. Other NSW Australian of the Year finalists were Antarctic station leader Narelle Campbell, humanitarian aid worker Andrew Harper and medical researcher Professor Brendan Smith. Jeremy Lasek, chief executive of National Australia Day, said 'the NSW finalists are Australians who are we are truly proud of, and thankful to, for their tireless work they do to make the lives of others better', Sydney Morning Herald reported. On January 25, the NSW award winners will go to Canberra for the national awards. In 2013 Ms Furness publicly slammed Australia's 'anti-adoption culture', insisting that extreme adoption measures deter couples who are interested . Ms Furness and her husband Hugh Jackman also set up the Jackman Furness Foundation for the Performing Arts, in an attempt to support art students .", "By . Daniel Miller . PUBLISHED: . 18:27 EST, 2 July 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 01:48 EST, 3 July 2013 . It was built solely for purpose, to enable scientists to live comfortably as they carry out vital research work in the freezing cold Antarctic. But thanks to its strikingly futuristic appearance, the Halley VI centre has been causing quite a stir in architectural circles, and it has now been nominated for a prestigious global award. In a textbook example of form following function, British architect firm Hugh Broughton . created the series of four-legged pods, seven of them blue and one red, . which stand on moving ice and can be raised to keep them above the snow . which builds up. Form follows function: The Halley VI centre, a dismantlable research station created for the . British Antarctic Survey by British architects Hugh Broughton, has been . nominated for the World Architecture Festival Awards 2013 . The Halley VI centre consists of series of four-legged pods which stand on moving ice and can be raised to keep them above the snow which builds up . The dismantlable research station, . which few fans of design will ever get to see unless they venture to the . Antarctic wilderness, is among the nominees for the World Architecture . Festival Awards 2013. Halley VI is the sixth facility to occupy the site on the Brunt Ice Shelf - a floating sheet of ice about 10 miles (16 kilometres) from the edge of the South Atlantic. Most of the previous stations were crushed under the weight of the polar snow, while Halley V had to be abandoned due to fears that the station would be lost if the ice sheet split apart, said survey spokesman Paul Seagrove. Halley VI is made up of four-legged modules linked by enclosed walkways. The centre is designed to house between 16 and 52 members of staff, depending on the time of year. A central social hub gives residents the chance to relax and contains a dining room, bar and a gym. Solitude: Antarctica is the most isolated place on Earth - but its . remote location means the scientists have been able to see the stunning . aurora australis . Futuristic: Scientists are housed in triple-glazed modules that sit on skis high above the snowy surface . Home from home: The modules include house labs, a dining room, a bar and a gym . Linked: The scientists do not need to go outside to move between modules as they will be joined together by walkways . A vacuum drainage system keeps water . consumption down, and the ski-clad stilts keep the units about 4 metres . (13 feet) above the level of the ice. The inside of the centre has been . been specially designed to support crew numbers ranging from 52 in the . summer to 16 during the three months of total darkness in winter, when . temperatures at the base drop as low as -56C. It has triple-glazed windows and a . quiet room at the north end of the station is included for residents to . contemplate the Antarctic environment in peace. The centre, which could easily pass . for the set of a 1970s science fiction TV series, is up for the 'higher . education/research' section of the awards, one of 29 categories for . which buildings compete in Singapore in October. The Emporia shopping centre designed by Wingardh Arkitktkontor AB in Malmo, Sweden, is among the nominees for the World Architecture Festival Awards 2013 . Eyecatching: The Kontum Indochine Cafe designed by Vo Trong Nghia Architects in Kontum City, Vietnam, is built from mainly natural materials . L'Avenue Shanghai designed by Leigh & Orange in Shanghai, China (left), and the Al Bahar Towers designed by Aedas Ltd in the Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (right) Other nominees include British-based . Zaha Hadid, whose Heydar Aliyev Centre in Baku, Azerbaijan - clad in . curved folds - competes in the 'culture' category. The WAF Awards, now in their sixth . year, have drawn entries from nearly 50 countries and include the . National Arboretum in Australia, a media centre in Kazakhstan and an . opera house in South Korea. Paul . Finch, WAF programme director, said: 'From the subtle to the . spectacular, from a four-room house to an 80-storey tower, the sheer . quality and diversity reflected in the array of projects shortlisted . today demonstrates the increasingly global nature of the event.' Swooping curves: The Heydar Aliyev Centre in Baku, Azerbaijan, designed by British-based Zaha Hadid Architects . The Blue Planet designed by 3XN in Copenhagen, Denmark, is among the nominees for this year's World Architecture Festival Awards .", "It would make Britain's recent cold weather seem like a heatwave. Scientists have discovered the coldest place on Earth - where the air temperature plummets to below -91C. The newly-found spot - situated along an Antarctic mountain ridge - could freeze a human's eyes, nose and lungs within minutes. Record-breaking: Scientists have discovered the coldest place on Earth along an Antarctic mountain ridge - where the temperature plummets to below a deadly -91C (file picture) This is because its temperature is almost 13 degrees below the point at which CO2 transforms from a gas into dry ice (-78.5C). The record-breaking discovery was made by researchers from America's National Snow and Ice Data Centre, according to The Sunday Times. They used satellites and other techniques to measure temperatures in Antarctica. The -91.2C spot - one of numerous cold places recorded on the mountain ridge - is believed to have been found at heights of more than 12,400ft on a mountain called Dome Fuji. Astonishingly, it is even chillier than Russia's Vostok research station, where the world's previous coldest air temperature (-89.2C) was recorded during the Antarctic winter of 1983. Previous record holder: The spot is even chillier than Russia's Vostok research station, pictured, where the world's previous coldest air temperature (-89.2C) was recorded in 1983 . And researchers say there are probably . even colder spots - with the satellite only averaging the temperature . over a square kilometre. 'It . is likely that record cold sites identified by the data have small . areas within them that are significantly colder than the grid cell . mean,' said a data centre researcher in a . published summary of the findings. He added that the coldest temperatures had been recorded during clear, dry periods - as opposed to on windy or snowy days. Full details of the scientists' discovery will be revealed at the American Geophycial Union's annual meeting this week. Earlier this year, the Russian village of Oymyakon was revealed to be the coldest permanently inhabited settlement in the world - with the average temperature for January standing at -50C. Chilly: A woman walks in Oymyakon, Russia, which is the world's coldest permanently inhabited settlement . Known as the 'Pole of Cold', the coldest ever temperature recorded in Oymyakon was -71.2C. The village, which is home to around 500 people, was, in the 1920s and 1930s, a stopover for reindeer herders who would water their flocks from the thermal spring. A single shop provides the town's bare necessities - with he locals working as reindeer-breeders, hunters and ice-fisherman. In comparison, the coldest temperature Britain has ever seen is -27.2C, which was recorded in 1995 at Altnaharra in the Scottish Highlands.", "Police in New York are monitoring a terrorist attack in Syndey, Australia, in which as many as 20 people have been taken hostage. An armed siege is developing after either one of two gunmen marched into a Lindt cafe in the center of the city and forced sobbing hostages against the window. Australian police have sealed off the surrounding streets amid fears the attacker or attackers have a shotgun and explosives. In light of the attack, the NYPD said they are 'aware of what's happening in Australia', and later added: 'We are monitoring the situation in Sydney.' The U.S. government has also evacuated its consulate in Sydney, which is very close to the scene of the confrontation. Scroll down for video . Terrorists were today holding hostages in an armed siege in a cafe in Sydney where an extremist flag was held up in the window . Terrified customers and employees were among those standing with their hands against the window at the Lindt cafe in Sydney . A spokesman confirmed the evacuation. The consulate also issued an emergency warning to U.S. citizens in Sydney, urging them to 'maintain a high level of vigilance and take appropriate steps to enhance your personal security'. President Obama has also been briefed on the situation by a homeland security and counter-terrorism adviser. ISIS, the terror organization to which the hostage-takers are believed to be linked, routinely encourage their supporters to make small-scale 'lone wolf' attacks to be made against the West, particularly in the United States. The FBI recently warned military personnel to disguise their presence on social media and suppress identifying information in case they become targets in a surprise attack. The Sydney incident began just hours after a 25-year-old suspect was arrested in a terror raid in Sydney. Officials have also evacuated the Sydney Opera House after reports of a suspicious device. Martin Place has been shut down and scores of police are surrounding the building after the alarm was raised about 9.45am. Hostages: People could be seen with their hands pressed against the window of the Lindt cafe in Sydney . Martin Place has been shut down and scores of police are surrounding the building after the alarm was raised about 9.45am . Journalist Chris Kenny, who was in the shop about 20 minutes before the siege began, said he understood the automatic glass sliding doors had been disabled. 'I did speak to a couple of people who saw a bit more of this unfold than I did,' he said. 'One woman said she tried to go into the shop just after I came out with my takeaway coffee but the doors wouldn't open. 'So obviously whoever is doing this has disabled the automatic glass sliding doors to stop anyone else going in and she said immediately she could see there was a weapon. 'The woman was quite frantic but very clear what she was telling (the police). 'I know the faces of the people who are sitting there enjoying a morning coffee.' It is unclear how many people are involved in the siege in a Lindt cafe in Martin Place but people could be seen with their hands pressed against the windows . 'Aware': New York police said they are monitoring the hostage situation to see whether any action needs to be taken in the city . Patrols: ISIS extremists often urge their supporters in the West to make 'lone wolf' attacks . The Seven Network newsroom, which is in a building opposite the cafe, has been evacuated. Other buildings in Martin Place, including the nearby Westpac building, have been cleared. 'We're just recommending no one go near Martin Place at the moment,' a New South Wales Police spokeswoman said. Martin Place train station has been closed and public buses are being turned away. A staff member at the Reserve Bank told Daily Mail Australia they were unable to be evacuated because Martin Place had been closed. Staff have been told to move away from the windows. Another woman who works in the government building opposite the cafe tried to call her her office to say she couldn't get past cordons and all the phone lines were down. It was alleged that Omarjan Azari, the 22-year-old Sydney man arrested on terrorism charges in September, was planning a public beheading in Martin Place. NSW Police are telling people to stay away from the area as the train station in Martin place has been closed . Armed NSW police officers surrounded the busy cafe following reports of armed gunmen inside . The alleged terror plot, mentioned in a conversation between Australian terrorism recruiter in Syria, Mohammad Ali Barylei and Azari, involved selecting a member of the public at random, beheading them and then covering their body in a flag. The whole incident was going to be filmed, and then used as propaganda for the ISIS cause. Federal prosecutors said the alleged terror plot was 'clearly designed to shock, horror and terrify the community' Police Prosecutor Michael Allnutt said that Azari had made a threat which involved a 'random selection of persons to execute' during a telephone conversation with Baryalei. Azari was arrested on September 18 and charged with preparing for an act of terrorism. He is due in court this week for a bail application. The flag being held up in the window of the cafe is believed to be a Shahada flag, which is used by the group Jabhat al Nusra. At least two gunmen are involved in the siege but dozens of armed police have sealed off the streets surrounding the site . Jabhat al Nusra was formed in January 2012, in the Syrian civil war to fight the Syrian government forces. Jabhat al Nusra, or JN, aims to overthrow the Assad regime and replace it with a Sunni Islamic state. Although the group is affiliated with al-Qaeda, Jabhat al-Nusra does not emphasize Western targets or global jihad, focusing instead on the 'near enemy' of the Syrian state. Martin Place is one of Sydney's busiest streets and is at the center of the CBD. The Lindt cafe where the hostages are being held specializes in chocolate and has a number of branches across the city. The flag being held up in the window of the cafe is believed to be a Shahada flag, which is used by the group, Jabhat al Nusra . The Lindt cafe where the hostages are being held specialises in chocolate and has a number of branches across the city .", "It is the world's most southerly post office and the most popular tourist destination in Antarctica. Each year, around 70,000 cards are posted at the remote hub, destined for more than 100 different countries. But the staff at Port Lockroy, who spend the Antarctic summer manning their remote outpost, are joined each year by 3,000 gentoo penguins. Located on Goudier Island, 700 miles south of the Chile and Argentina coastlines, the unusual post office sends out cards and letter which will take between two and six weeks to reach their destinations. Run by the United Kingdom Antarctic Heritage Trust on behalf of the Government, the remote base receives an income from the Post Office and a small gift shop which goes towards the renovation of historic sites in Antarctica. The unusual spot has become a favourite stop-off with tourists arriving on cruise ships from around the world to explore the stark continent and learn about its wildlife. Port Lockroy is home to 3,000 gentoo penguins who return each year to find a mate and raise their young . Tourists visiting the remote outpost can see the baby penguins as they hatch . Port Lockroy was first discovered in 1873 by German Edward Dorman and became known as a safe place to anchor and shelter form storms, as well as an area where whalers processed their catch. In the early 20th century, as nations battled to lay claim to parts of Antarctica, Britain sent men and two huts, known as Base A and Base B, to construct a permanent presence at Port Lockroy. It is those bases that still exist today, and the post office is a throwback to the small one constructed by the men to send letters back to loved ones. The site is preserved as a historic attraction, showing the spot where Britain laid claim to a part of Antarctica with a permanent base in the early 20th century . The post office also has a small guft shop and museum, explaining the history of Britain's presence . After being closed in 1962, the huts fell into disrepair, but were restored in the 1990s with the idea of protecting the area as a historic monument. Now a small museum shows how the men lived in the 1950s at the remote outpost. Each year, in time for the Antarctic summer, a small staff crosses the notorious Drake Passage from South America to staff the post office for five months. Each year the post office processes around 70,000 cards sent to 100 different countries . The base shows how workers lived in the 1950s while protecting British interests in the area . The base was restored to esactly how it was to show how difficult conditions could be . There is no running water, no electricty and even in summer, the temperatures are freezing. As staff man the post office, around 3,000 gentoo penguins flock to the area to find a mate and raise their young. Since the historic outpost was renovated in 1996, the penguins have also been monitored, to better understand how they live and help protect them. And the famous post office has also become the subject of numerous documentaries, such as a partnership between the BBC and American channel PBS.", "Tokyo (CNN) -- Three Australian activists are being held aboard a Japanese ship Monday after illegally boarding the vessel to protest Japan's annual whale hunt in Antarctic waters. The three men are not yet under arrest, but are being questioned by Japan's Coast Guard, a spokesman for Japan's Fisheries Agency said Monday, declining to be identified as is customary in Japan. The Australian attorney-general, Nicola Roxon, said that her government was working to secure the release of the men, but that she believed they could face criminal charges in Japan. Video footage released by the anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd shows the three men, from the environmental group Forest Rescue Australia, approaching the Japanese vessel on a small boat on Sunday. The video shows their boat pull up next to Japan's Shonan Maru #2, a patrol vessel supporting Japan's whaling mission in the Antarctic waters. A voice from the small boat calls out, \"Go, go, go!\" as the men slip onto the Japanese ship. In the background, voices in Japanese scream in alarm, saying \"They're boarding!\" Sea Shepherd described the three activists -- Geoffrey Owen Tuxworth, 47, Simon Peterffy, 44, and Glen Pendlebury, 27 -- as \"prisoners.\" The organization said the men boarded the vessel to force Japan's fleet to stop hunting whales. Japan annually hunts whales despite a worldwide moratorium, utilizing a loophole in the law that allows for killing the mammals for scientific research. Each year, environmental groups like Sea Shepherd face off with Japan's hunters in a high seas drama that has led to collisions of ships, the detaining of activists and smoke bombs fired back and forth between the groups. Two days before he boarded the Japanese vessel, Peterffy said in a video released by Sea Shepherd that stopping Japan's hunts was a personal responsibility. \"We've got a big responsibility for all those people in future generations,\" he said. Australia's Roxon said the countries were engaged in diplomatic discussions to ensure the well-being and safety of the three men, but called it a \"difficult situation.\" Roxon said that while Australia steadfastly opposes Japan's whale hunt, the incident did not happen in Australian territorial waters. \"That doesn't give us rights for Australian law to automatically apply,\" she said. \"In fact, our advice is that Japanese law will apply because a Japanese boat is the one that's been boarded.\" This is the third time activists have boarded ships involved in the Japanese whaling fleet. In 2008, two Sea Shepherd activists sneaked aboard a Japanese vessel. They were released back to the anti-whaling group. In 2010, Pete Bethune, a New Zealander, also boarded the Shonan Maru #2. Bethune was arrested, taken back to Japan, and tried in a Tokyo court. He spent five months in prison and was released on a two-year suspended sentence." ]

[ "the Olmec(s)" ]

[ "400", "Probability", "probable cause", "The 400 Blows", "the America First Committee", "\"Living In America\"", "Theory of Probability", "civil", "400 (CD)", "Living from hand to mouth", "B-A-L-D-A-C-C-I", "Eastern Time", "Live From the House of Blues", "Eastern (Airlines)", "the Eastern Sea", "B-A-C-C-H-U-S", "Live", "lively", "to live", "Eastern Orthodox", "the first", "Living", "\"America\"", "the living", "the America", "French & Indian, U.S. Civil, Spanish-American", "America", "About a Boy", "Civil disobedience", "C", "civil liberties", "about face" ]

[ "It's going to be a great experience and most likely eye-opening for your co-workers! The following setup worked very well for me (with one exception):\n\n\nPC with build in webcam and Morae software installed\nMorae captures the screen activity and videos the users face, is capable to stream it so another PC and also records it \nPC in the observation room receiving the stream, connected to a projector\neverybody in the room can see the users' face, can hear the user talking and can observe the screen activity\nlots of sticky notes and pens in the observation room for observers to immediately write down their findings\n\n\nThe exception/downside in this setup is Morae: It's expensive, requires a PC on both ends and is not a very usable software itself. Silverback for Mac is a great alternative but, as far as I know, it can't do live streaming.\n\nIt's a simple but very effective setup. Would be great if somebody could add software alternatives, if there are any." ]

[ "Efficiency of the heater\n\nLike most space heaters, an oil-filled radiator uses resistive heating, which is greater than 99% efficient at converting electric energy to heat. But there are a few other considerations to determine the best setting for your space.\n\nHow long will the space need heat?\n\nThe principal benefit of an oil-filled radiator compared to other space heater types is in the capacity of the oil to retain and continue radiating heat for an hour or two after it has stopped consuming power. This means that it may not be the best application for a space that only requires heat for an hour or two -- it takes time to heat up the oil, but once the oil is hot the heating element only needs to switch on periodically to keep it at temperature so that it can heat the space. You may find that the heater doesn't warm the space during the time you're there, and keeps warming it long after you leave -- an inefficient use of energy!\n\nHow much heat does the space need?\n\nAnother aspect to consider is the heating load. This is the amount of heat energy that needs to be added to a space in order to maintain a specific temperature. Heat load is a function of:\n\n\nAir infiltration (cold outside air leaking in through gaps around windows and doors)\nInsulation value\nDifference between desired temperature and outdoor air temperature\nSize of the room (how much air needs to be heated)\nSolar gains (sunlight heating the room through windows)\nInternal gains (things like people and appliances that passively heat the room)\n\n\nImagine the room like a leaky tank of water with a faucet keeping it full. The heat load is the net loss of water through the holes, and the flow from the faucet must match this load to keep it full.\n\nFor your room, the heat load can be measured in watts, and your space heater setting must exceed this value in order to be able to bring the room up to temperature, and then maintain it.\n\nThe easiest way to determine the heat load is to test it with the heater. Start at the lowest setting (900 W) -- if this warms the room and keeps it warm, then the heat load is around 900 W. There's no need to use a higher setting, unless you want to more rapidly heat the room. This will also depend on how cold it is outside, of course.\n\nConclusion\n\n\nIf the heat load of the space is higher than the heater setting, it's like pouring water into a tank with an outlet that's bigger than the inlet.\nIf you only need the space warm for an hour or two, a simpler space heater would be faster and more effective.\nOtherwise, choose the lowest setting that brings the room up to the desired temperature.", "TL;DR: There is no time upon entering a party to assess all the people there, unless you're among the first 3 or 4 people to arrive. Use the occasional glance around the room to remain aware of your surroundings, but focus the deeper reading on the people that you're interacting with.\n\n\nThis upset them as I wasn't paying them enough attention during the conversation, and I believe their reaction was justified. I was also resorting to looking at one person after another, which in a large group will take a long time - much longer than most people take to 'read a room'.\n\nJust like you, I've had social skills training, and just like yours, mine taught me to read the other person, but never reading an entire room. Here's what I've come to realise over the years though, based on that training:\nWhen in a group, you lack the amount of time you have in a one-on-one conversation to keep judging the mood, reactions and engagement of a single person. Even in a one-on-one conversation this time is limited, in a group setting even more so. The bigger the group, the less attention you can give each individual, and the more you'll have to go on a sample of the reactions around you. Spending time looking at each individual closely will mean that you're distracted from the conversation at hand.\nWhen entering a new room, full of people, there also isn't time to stand in the doorframe closely observing over a dozen people.\nThis website, written by someone that claims to have over 10 years of experience in training other people's social skills, states:\n\nlook at the setting, take some time to observe and make mental notes. Resist the temptation to jump into a conversation right away (or conversely run from the room in terror). On the other hand you don’t want to appear as a wallflower disinterested in connecting. Some questions to ask yourself include:\n\nWhat is going on around you non-verbally?\nWhat are people doing?\nWhat’s the mood?\nAre you entering a conversation that’s already been going on?\nWhat’s the topic of discussion?\nWho are the players?\n\n\nAnd remember, you've only got a few moments to do that upon entering a room. Now, the best way to go by this information, as I've come to realise, is:\n1.) A quick glance around the room to pick up the 'high level' non-verbal clues and a sense of what people are doing.\nUsually, when entering a room, look around that room, take just a glance at everybody. Don't worry about it yet, just register where people are sitting and where the free seats are, how many people there are and what they're generally doing. Are they sitting and listening to someone, or telling a story to which multiple others are listening? Is everyone looking at you, standing in the entrnace? What sounds are coming from the room? Angry shouting is probably bad, laughter and smiling faces sounds good.\nUsually, in The Netherlands, the first move you make at a birthday party is a meet and greet with the host. Take some time to shake their hand, congratulate them, present them with their gift and exchange some pleasantries. Try and read their mood, are they happy because the party is going well? Cast a glance around the room, and focus on your host again (maybe when they're unwrapping their present?). Repeat as needed (and as time allows) for a few times.\nThis site gives some nice pointers on what you could look for when entering a room, and what those non-verbal clues might mean, as well as some guidance on the best ways to engage the group. There's different ways for different readings of rooms, I'm going to continue with a happy, fun birthday party, such as described by the last point on that website.\nTry to pick up what's going on around you non-verbally, in the most global sense.\n2.) Focus on the conversation/discussion that is going on already, take a seat and take some time to understand what is being talked about, and how.\nFocus on the people talking first, identify the players. Read their mood, their reactions and engagement in the conversation. The great thing about groups is that they probably won't be talking all at once. Sit down, listen, and observe the closest person to you that's talking, and then the ones that are responding. Observe on a person by person base, just like in a one-on-one conversation.\nFrom what I've experienced at birthday parties, if there's more than a dozen people there's likely to be several subgroups having several conversations, try to just focus on one for the moment. If it helps, it may be easiest to pick the one subgroup that has that person you already know. This will free up some 'processing power', as you don't have to worry about reading everyone, but only a few people at a time. If two or three people are having a pleasant conversation, you know enough and it should help you feel comfortable enough to chime in.\nIdentify who's talking, what they're talking about and how they're talking about that, just like you would in a one-on-one conversation with a person\n3.) Reading while participating in the group.\nAfter having a gotten a quick impression of the room, it's time to participate. Otherwise, you'll end up as in your experiment: On the sidelines of the conversation, with people thinking you're not interested.\nIf there's not a lot of conversation going on, and you notice people seeing you when you walk in, a round of introductions to at least these people does work nicely. If people are so busy having their conversations that they don't really notice, pick up a chair, listen, and at an appropriate time cut in with a remark of your own (make sure that it is relevant to the conversation!). If you feel like playing it easy, pick the subgroup that holds your friends to start.\nGroup dynamics at a party are likely to shift. People will get drawn to your conversational topic, or drop out. Take a few pointers from that first website on what to pay attention for when reading while participating:\n\n\nRead others reception, are they interested in what you have to say?\nGauge the length of your talking, conversation needs to be give-and-take.\n\n\nEven once you're a part of the conversation, keep the deeper observations to a sample. It's not necessary to keep track of over a dozen people at a birthday party, focus on your seating neighbours/your side of the table. If they start acting and looking bored, concerned, agitated or worse, it may be time to either sit back and let the conversation continue like it did before you chimed in for a while, or let it move on/actively change it to another subject.\nOn the other hand, take an occasional glance around the room. It might attend you to stuff as 'speaking too loudly' if people all start to drop their conversations and start staring at you.\nTake an occasional glance around to remain aware of your surroundings, but focus most of your reading on the people you're directly interacting with.", "Would my presence alter how they are timed?\n\n\nYes, it would. It's known as the Hawthorne Effect, where subjects change their behavior simply because they are being observed. Measuring Usability has another writeup biases that also mentioned this effect: 9 Biases In Usability Testing.\n\nIt's not a matter of you necessarily being in the room. The fact that they know they're part of a usability test will alter the results.\n\n\n Is there a way to avoid conversation with the user as to not alter the metrics without making the user anxious or pressured?\n\n\nYeah... don't talk to them. You don't have to be in the same room to observer them, assuming you have the right room configuration and/or video equipment.\n\nIf you are in the same room, your only conversation with them can be to provide instructions and tell them when to start. If you're not needing to prompt the user for any additional information (e.g., \"please remember to think out load\", or \"what are you getting hung up right now?\") then there is no reason to speak again.\n\nIf they ask you a question (they probably will) you can simply tell them you are unable to help them complete their task, and to please continue.\n\nAs long as they know they're being watched their behavior will change to some degree. Any action you take will cause a shift in their behavior. Simple note taking, for example, can become more self-conscious when they notice notes being taken during the test.\n\n\n Should I to a 'mock' timing session for a few hours and follow them around until I feel they have passed a threshold where they are performing normally?\n\n\nAt what point does one stop caring they're being observed? I'm not aware of a study that gives suggestions on this, and it is highly likely to be very subjective.\n\nIn that you plan to \"follow them around\" - the environment certainly plays a large role in this too. If after (say...) 2 hours you start collecting \"real\" data but the user is suddenly in a high stress situation, was it your presence or the situation that caused a shift in their performance? Maybe they stepped into an area was a not as well lit as before, which could effect their interaction with the device.\n\nHow do you solve it?\n\nYou accept that your presence will effect the outcome. There is no way around it.\n\nIf you're performing time trials keep every other variable the same, as best you can. Ask them to perform the task with the old system and the new system in a sterile environment with you standing 5 feet away in both situations.\n\nIn the case where the activity can't be reproduced in a closed environment, attempt to control the environment as best you can during the activity. Don't just follow them around until they reach that activity - set it up so you control as many of the performance impacts as possible.\n\nIf you want to perform a field test of your application, don't expect the environmental variables to remain constant. They will change constantly.", "There are many aspects that should be considered, but a few very important ones are:\n\n\nNew or secondhand? With your budget, buying a new telescope will only get you so far. But if you try to look into secondhand products, you might be able to find something more advanced—well-kept telescopes last years. Of course, you must be careful with whom you are buying it from, and make sure to try it before buying as well as asking about the last time the mirror was cleaned, what eyepieces are included, etc.\nDobson or not? There are many upsides to having a Dobson-type telescope: you get a much larger mirror for the same price, it's easy to set up and maintain... However, it does take more room than other telescopes, and you will have to do more maneuvers to aim and track things with it.\nOn the same vein, does size matter? If you are looking for the most compact and lightweight telescope possible? If yes, that will have an impact on the kind of telescope you should buy: maybe you will want a Maksutov instead of a Newton, maybe you will want a tripod mount because it can fold and takes the least room.\nWhat do you want to see? As StephenG said earlier, it is important to know your expectations as for what you want to observe with your telescope. If you live in an urban environment and/or are unable to go to spots free of light pollution, that severely limits your possibilities to (mainly) planets and the Moon. To that effect, you might be more interested in a telescope with a bit more focal length. If you are indeed able to go to spots free of light pollution, then you probably want to maximize the diameter of your mirror, because if you get a mirror that is 20% larger, you will get 44% more light.\n\n\nSome other questions that may influence your choice are: is this a long-term investment or are you looking into making an upgrade in the next few years? Do you want to try astrophotography? How much time are you willing to take to set up your telescope before observations? Do you enjoy using a sky atlas to find the exact object you are looking for? Etc.\n\nTo give you an example, I was a similar situation a few years ago. I had a budget of $400, and I wanted a telescope for visual observation only. Because I had access to good observation spots and size was not an issue, buying a Dobson was an easy choice. I joined an astronomy club and a member was going to upgrade his own Dobson (https://www.astroshop.eu/gso-dobson-telescope-n-250-1250-dob/p,6680) to a bigger one, so I was able to test it and buy it secondhand knowing exactly what I was getting.\n\nYou should also have in mind the fact that a telescope will often require a few accessories (eyepieces, filters,...) that you might need from day one, so do look at what is included with the telescope you buy, as good eyepieces are things you can keep with your next telescopes, and bad accessories can affect the quality of your observations.\n\nAstronomicably,", "Welcome to AI.SE Hadrien!\n\nA possible approach is:\n\n\nGather many example images of rooms for which you know the square footage. Record the square footage of each room together with each image.\nPick a machine learning model that is well suited to learning relationships between images and numerical outputs, like a Convolutional Neural Network.\nTrain a machine learning model using an optimisation algorithm, like gradient decent. In the case of training a CNN, this algorithm starts by setting up the network with randomly chosen connection strengths between different 'simulated' neurons. It then exposes the network to an input image, and observes the number the network outputs in response. The algorithm then makes small adjustments to the strengths of the connections in the network, so that if the network were exposed to the image a second time, it would output a number that was less wrong (i.e. closer to the correct square footage). By repeating this process many thousands of times, and with many images, the network eventually becomes quite good at guessing the square footage of new images that it hasn't seen before.\n\n\nIn practice, the network is quite likely to pick up on any patterns in the images that correlate with square footage, not necessarily the ones you want. For example, it might pick up on, say, the fact that humans in the picture are usually a good object to guess at the scale of the rest of the room.", "In order:\n\n\nYes, each room has to be assigned separately and specifically to the noble that will own it.\nNo, they do not have to be separate rooms. You can combine the dining room and the throne room/office by using the same table and chair for each. HOWEVER, overlapping rooms mean they both only have half the \"value\" of the entire room, so you'll have to do some serious smoothing, engraving and general prettying up.\nNo. Setting a door as \"internal\" only means that it doesn't count as a wall to determine how a room expands/contracts. This is almost certainly not the behavior you want here.\nThe general rule is that the prettier (IE, the more valuable) a room is, the better the happy thoughts that are emitted. In the case of an office, this will also apply to any dorf lucky enough to talk to the noble in that office. Also note that a room with a lower quality than the noble requires generates unhappy thoughts, and the idea of a lesser ranking noble -- or gasp a commoner! -- owning a better room than they do is a seriously unhappy thought...\n\n\nReferences (All from DFwiki): \n\n\nRooms, designation, and quality\nDoors\nThoughts, happy and otherwise", "Well, the simplest way I can think of starts with making sure all rooms are connected by at least 1 corridor:\n\n\nStart with the last, or first, room.\nGrab a random room within 1 distance, which is not already connected to some room (all rooms start disconnected, so you'll be keeping track of this as you go).\nIf there is no such room, go to distance +1. If it's ok to tunnel over/under another room this is easier, assuming you don't want connecting corridors.\nWork your way through pseudo-randomly until all rooms are connected.\n\n\nNow we know you can get to all rooms, but now if you want more than this strictly linear maze you can just step through your rooms and randomly make a new path to connect rooms, up to a limit per room of 2-3, or until a certain percentage of rooms hits the max connections - etc. \n\nAs a final step you can add rules that would alter your results to suite various situations. For instance, you might observe that any room with only 1 corridor is, by definition, a dead-end; You could make more dead ends, or you could eliminate them all by making sure everything has at least 2 connections. You could make dead-ends have a secret passage. You could make sure a boss-room is a dead-end. You can make sure your start room is a dead-end, but then make sure the second room has a minimum of X connections. Ad infinitum.\n\nEach assumption and rule can radically shift how your levels look, but that's part of the fun! This should at least get you hive/cave-like rooms to start.", "When Thomas Was still observing the Maze from the WCKD headquarters observation room, he had found that the other Gladers had gotten over their fear of their new environment, also for the fact that they lost their memory.\n\nWhen they had declared one of their rules is that:\n\n\n No one is to set foot out of the Glade unless you are a runner.\n\n\nBut Gally later on in another day wanted to know what it was like to set foot out of the maze...just a little bit.\n\nSo he stepped into the maze when no one was looking just outside the glade. But when he did, he wasn't expecting it and he was attacked by a Griever that cam out of nowhere, it rolled all over him.\n\nGally managed to escape though and get back into the glade where he was found in a delirious state by the other Gladers. Later he went into the three-day coma of what they called the changing. He broke a prime rule in the Glade so then he can experience somehting that he was not allowed to.\n\nThis is how he was stung and when he was stung.", "This is really a question of personal preference, but as others have mentioned, you are less likely to get into trouble with lookahead bias if the timestamp is set to that of the closing moment. If it is set to the opening moment, it is easier to accidentally observe the closing price at the opening 'time', which is a time at which the closing price could not have been known. \n\nIf you are writing your own candlestick generation code, and have room, you will find it helpful to record all of the open/high/low/close times.", "If you're curious how your department dealt with your report, here are some things you can do:\n\n\nAsk this elderly professor what was done. Ask him how many proctors he now brings with him to exams.\nObserve exams given by this elderly professor at the end of this semester, to see if anything has changed.\nAsk your department what they do to prevent cheating. But first, familiarize yourself with your university's academic integrity policy.\n\n\nNote that it is not too late to report your observation directly to your department. Ask them to use a larger room, spread the students out, and bring proctors to the exam, to prevent problems.", "Maybe it's time to invest in a good humidifier (buy/rent)?\n\n\n\nMaybe a bit smaller, but you've got the idea:)\n\nIf you want to pass that one, maybe it's time to wash your clothes and set up a drying rack in your room and lay out damp clothing to dry overnight. You'll save energy by not running the dryer, but adding more moisture to the air, all while adding the fresh scent of laundry to your room. Or you may decorate your room with bowls of water (place a few around your house and the water will evaporate into the dry air). Also don't forget to drink a lot of water.\n\nSee:\n\n\nHow To Add Moisture to the Air Without a Humidifier\nMakeshift DIY Humidifier", "A quick search turned up this GameFAQs post: \n\n\n \"the Jesus room\" is the name commonly used for the room under the satellite, on the rooftop finale of the No Mercy campaign. Once inside this room there is a glitch that makes it so no zombies can come in whether common, special, or tank. Eventually if you wait long enough both hordes of zombies will completely die, along with the two tanks prior to the helicopter's arrival. Note that once the helicopter shows up their is an infinite number of zombies and tanks, so it would be unwise to linger. Also one or two zombies have been known to find their way in \"the Jesus room\" and i personally can recall a tank coming in after me. To get in \"the Jesus room\" stand above the doorway into it and the zombies will break open the door while attempting to climb over it. \n\n\nIt seems as though the room is a specific location in the game, and referring to a \"Jesus Spot\" would be a broader description of a location where this behavior/glitch can be observed.\n\nGiven the context, I would expect that this concept can be applied to other games, however, I doubt that the name is really common other than in L4D (which I have never played and have not heard this term until now).", "This simple answer is, you can't know. When you implement a change and observe a result, it can be due to the change, be a false change like due to the Hawthorne Effect, your bias meaning you see a change but there is none, or be a random result. The only way to know, to arrive at a deduced conclusion that stands up to scrutiny, is to conduct many observations in a controlled environment and with some statistical analysis to rule out randomness and experimenters' bias. And when I say many, I mean many. Not like two or three sprints. Remember, you can flip a fair coin ten times and get eight heads. That does not change the 50/50 likelihood to 80/20. Observations can be trusted after hundreds of them, not just a few.\n\nThe take-a-way of knowing about Hawthorne, bias, and stochastic observations is about knowing how to apply a healthy skeptism of what you are observing. In other words, stick to the null hypothesis until proven otherwise. If you make a change and you observe some favorable results, the finding you walk away with is, 'this seemed to cause that,' not 'this caused that.' \n\nAnother thing to remember about the Hawthorne Effect is it was found in an operations setting where work was ongoing. They found an increase in performance caused by a benign variable, that decreased over time. With projects and sprints, you have a start - stop function. Therefore, you will not observe a steady decrease back to baseline. In this type of scenario, what you will likely observe is performance variability of up and down trends that may or may not be due to anything you implemented. You will simply need many observations over quite a period of time to rule out random effects, Hawthorne, or bias.", "I would call them decision-relevant data, because most optimization problems in practice help people do decisions better, which they already do in a heuristic fashion. This puts the focus on the decision and what is needed to effectively make this decision.\nAlternatives would be system-describing data/system-boundary data, because the data defines the boundaries of the feasible states of the system/the boundaries of feasible decision.\nOn the other hand the data in machine learning i would call historical observational data, because you often have observable states of the system from the past.\nI find it difficult to draw a line, that this data is for optimization and that data is for machine learning, because often data can be used for both.\nIn your example with the timetable for the university courses you could for example not have the capacity of each room, but instead the average number of students per room for each day in the last year. This data would at a first glance be rather machine learning data, but you could use it to derive an estimate for the capacity to feed it to your optimization model.\nI agree that pure observable data is often useless for optimization problems, because you only observe feasible states, but have no data on how much you can deviate from these and what are the effects on the deviation and optimizing is basically putting the system in an unseen state than before.", "That is normal.\n\nThe camera doesn't know how many images there is left, as images take up different amount of space depending on how much detail they contain. So the camera displays a guesstimate based on the free space on the card and an average size for images taken with your current settings.\n\nIf you take images with large areas of sky or other smooth areas (e.g. out of focus), you will see that the count decreases less than the number of images taken. If you take images full of details where everything is in focus, you might not even have room for the number of images that the camera initially estimated.", "I'm not sure this is considered a spoiler as I realized it through observation fairly early on.\n\nEvery time you notice one of the casino staff (the \"butlers\") vanish, it's in a room that has no keyhole. All of these rooms also contain a mirror.\n\n\n Late in the game, you find out that there's an area accessed through the mirrors. The casino staff go there after they commit the murders they're responsible for.", "Having experienced many minor earthquakes (Mag 3 to 5 in the East African Rift Valley, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Philippines and Indonesia), and one major life-threatening earthquake (Magnitude 8, Nepal), I can make a few personal observations about physiological reactions.\nFirst, You are quite correct about the body picking up any swaying feeling, and interpreting this as dizziness. I was in an 11th floor hotel room in Bangkok when an aftershock of the Aceh earthquake occurred. My first thought was \"Did I drink too much beer this evening\"? I wasn't alone. When I opened the door into the corridor, the occupants of nearly every room were looking out and wondering much the same thing.\n\nSecond, after experiencing a big one the body becomes hypersensitive - conditioned to pick up vibrations that could be the onset of a major quake. Now, at the onset of any vibration, my brain goes straight to \"how big is it - should I run to the nearest exit\"? This response is now much faster than the sensation of dizziness. Also I now pick up many vibrations that nobody else around me seems to notice. \n\nThirdly, I am not sure I agree with you about vertical motion being the trigger. It seems to me that lateral motion - moving one's feet sideways relative to the head, creates a slight imbalance, which the ears interpret as 'dizziness'.", "Alexa supports adding functionality via Skills, which are not unlike mobile apps, but add voice functionality for your Echo device.\n\nThe Philips Hue FAQ for Amazon Alexa contains a rather brief description on how to find the commands:\n\n\n Where can I find example sentences?\n \n In the Skill description you can find some example sentences.\n\n\nAdmittedly, this isn't particularly useful, so I did a bit more research and found the (unofficial) Alexa Skills Store site which helpfully contains the full description for the Hue skill:\n\n\n \n You can turn devices on/off, for example: \"Alexa, turn on my Bedroom lights\" or \"Alexa, turn off the Kitchen lights\"\n You can change the brightness, for example: \"Alexa, brighten Dining Room to 60 percent\", or \"Alexa, dim the Living Room lights\"\n \n\n\nYou can also set up scenes, which are preset 'environments' with specific colours and ambience. For example, Philips suggest \"Alexa, turn on party in the living room\" as a possible command that you could use. The Alexa Skills Store page describes how to use scenes:\n\n\n Default scenes will automatically be created for each room, e.g. Relax, Concentrate, Energize, Arctic Aurora, Dimmed and more. To control scenes, simply tell Alexa to turn on a in the . For example, \"Alexa, turn on Relax in the Bedroom\"\n \n \n Scene names can be found in the Philips Hue app 'Room' tab after you select a specific room. Feel free to create new scenes that work just for you!\n After creating or renaming a scene, simply say, \"Alexa, discover devices\"\n \n\n\nMore generally, to view the possibilities that each Skill provides, you can open the Alexa app, and go to Skills > Your Skills, which will list your selected skills and relevant details.", "You need Ushahidi, website here. This was designed for this kind of work and has been used e.g in Haiti.\n\nQuoting from the Wikipedia article:\n\n\n \"The organisation uses the concept of crowdsourcing for social activism and public accountability, serving as an initial model for what has been coined as \"activist mapping\"—the combination of social activism, citizen journalism and geospatial information. Ushahidi offers products that enable local observers to submit reports using their mobile phones or the internet, while simultaneously creating a temporal and geospatial archive of events.\"\n\n\nHere is the Wiki\n\nThere are toolkits to get you started - this looks like the fastest way to get up and running.\n\nFor more ideas Google Ushahidi implementation to see how it is implemented, how to get it set up.\n\n\n\nAnyone having more specific knowledge/experience of setting this up efficienty, feel free to edit/add to my answer - Jan", "The references you and @farrenthrope cited (or a good introductory mineralogy text) should have answers. \n\nIn brief:\n\nThe crystallographic class is significant to mineralogy because it is direct result of the mineral's crystalline lattice (its most fundamental property.) Each mineral can belong to only one crystallographic class. \n\nHow can I determine the [crystallographic] class an [unidentified] mineral [specimen] falls under?\n\nYou'll need to inspect your specimen and try to recognize the symmetry operations (like rotations and reflections) present in some physical properties of your specimen, commonly the symmetry of euhedral crystal habit, the symmetry of optical properties, or the symmetry of an x-ray diffraction pattern etc. Each crystallographic class is defined by a unique set of symmetry operations. \n\nHow were the 32 classes determined?\n\nA combination of observation and mathematics. The law of rational indices was deduced by Haüy (1784, 1801) from the observation of the stacking laws required to build the natural faces of crystals by piling up elementary blocks, for instance cubes to construct the faces of the rhomb-dodecahedron observed in garnets or the pentagon-dodecahedron observed in pyrite, or rhombohedrons to construct a scalenohedron of calcite. Hessel (1830) proved that, as a consequence of the law of rational intercepts, morphological forms can combine to give exactly 32 kinds of crystal symmetry in Euclidean space, since only two-, three-, four-, and six-fold rotation axes can occur.", "You will need a rough opening of 61&quot; wide for a wood jamb. This will allow room for 3/4&quot; material and shim space for critical shimming to get it dead straight and plumb. Will need more info for the R.O. height....\nWhen you set your steel track to the floor, cut it so the ends meet the rough opening dimensions. Set the steel studs back 1 1/2&quot; from the ends at the rough opening. A double 2X6 header with a plywood filler should work for practically any door of any weight you choose to use.\nScrew the wood jack studs to the steel studs using coarse thread screws Same with the bottom of the jack studs where it sets in the bottom track. Set your header on top of the jacks and screw them in place. Ideally to the jack studs too, but you may need pilot holes to minimize splitting.\nBe certain you use the proper set back for the finishes whether you are using wood jambs and casing or going with a simple drywall wrap.\n\nI don't know how much room your particular bypass hardware takes up, but if you have your doors already and they are 6'8&quot; and your track and roller use another 2&quot; to 2 1/2&quot;, you have room for a plate under the joist. Secure it well to the joist that is over it, shimming it flat and level if needed and set the track directly to that. Use 9/16&quot; thick wood trim to cover the track so it flushes up with the drywall once that is installed, then the trim/casing will cover the joint between the head covering and drywall.\nThe metal studs will be 1/8&quot; wider than the wood plate. Using 9/16&quot; material at the top should allow the 1/2&quot; drywall and wood trim filler to lay flush with one another.", "There are two main categories to consider here.\n\nThe first is to improve the efficiency of how your home is kept warm - either by increasing the efficiency of the heating system, or by reducing the rate at which warmth is lost to the outside. If your home is quite \"leaky\" then major gains can be made this way quite cheaply. Other answers to this and other questions have given some guidance on this.\n\nThe second is to think about ways to reduce the need for heating your home. Things that you could consider (some of which are probably obvious):\n\n\nWear warmer clothing at home.\nIf you use heating in your bedroom during the night, turn it off. If you find yourself waking up due to the cold, invest in warmer blankets or duvet, or warm pyjamas. Except in the coldest and leakiest houses, in harsh climates, bedroom heating is often not strictly necessary - although using some \"comfort\" heating in the mornings certainly makes it easier to get out of bed! A hot water bottle can help to alleviate the discomfort of a cold bed until your body heat warms it up.\nIf you do want to heat your bedroom, then use an electric blanket to heat the bed, and your body, rather than warming the whole room. NB ensure that this is in good condition and observe safety instructions. Note, however, that some sources do not recommend living at below 16C - although it is not clear whether this applies to sleeping as well as waking conditions.\nDon't heat rooms that you don't use (depending on climate, you may want to keep a background level of heating to prevent mould or freezing). If you live in many rooms, consider whether you can live in fewer.\nDon't heat corridors or hallways - instead, close the door of the room that you're in.\n\n\nBear in mind that being cold at home can be detrimental to your physical and mental health. None of the above should be construed as \"live with being uncomfortably cold\" - instead, think of it as suggestions on how to remain comfortable while using less energy.", "It seems, as discovered by Mark Kirby, that Mateo created the room (on June 26th 2012), with the purpose of coordinating voting.\nWhy would one want to coordinate voting? Well, questions with no answers and a negative score are automatically deleted if they have been around for a while. It's evident from the conversation leading up to the creation of the room in Ask Ubuntu General Room (from which is seems that the idea of setting up the room was actually jokerdino's) and the second day of the room's transcript that causing unanswered, low quality questions to be deleted by downvoting them was one of the room's purposes. The chat in AUGR also gives the original name, which was Crusaders of the Lost Downboat.\nMateo was the only owner of the room at the time of creation, but promptly made jrg an owner so that he could add a feed. But jrg was a moderator at the time so he did not need to be a room owner to do that and Mateo removed him as an owner. jrg made jokerdino a room owner on July 10th 2012. jokerdino was not a moderator at the time; he was elected in 2013. Eliah Kagan was made a room owner on July 12th 2012 by Mateo, who also added ish to the list of owners on August 5th 2012.\nThe room was frozen for inactivity on October 2nd 2012 (just a few months after being created).\nThe room was unfrozen on October 5th 2016 by jokerdino, so that he, Anwar and I, and anyone else interested, could use it for a project for which we had previously been using the Ubuntu Regulators room, which had been used for moderation purposes (it was created on 10th October 2010). Some users wanted to use that room for another purpose than our project, so we vacated it. At that time, I expressed concern about the word 'crusaders' and jokerdino changed that word to 'raiders'. That's how the room got its current name. jokerdino added Anwar and myself (neither of us were moderators at the time) as room owners when it was unfrozen in 2016.\nThe room was used for the query project and, increasingly, for general moderation* purposes, as today. Here is a non-exhaustive list of the current uses of the room in no particular order:\n\nDiscussing how to improve posts or their situation. What should we do with this post?\nDiscussing all other matters of moderation policy (anything that would be on topic on meta).\nAsking or explaining how site features work and do not work (anything that would be on topic on meta).\nPointing out good, underappreciated posts that deserve upvotes.\nAsking for duplicate targets for questions (because you know it must be a dupe but you can't find a good one).\nIdentifying questions that can be answered based on the comments, and encouraging commenters to answer or posting community wiki answers based on those comments and upvoting them.\nSharing posts that should not be closed so others can vote to leave them open.\nSharing posts that should be closed so others can vote to close them.\nSharing posts that should be reopened so others can vote to reopen them.\nSharing posts that should be deleted so others can downvote or vote to delete them.\nIdentifying and salvaging and/or undeleting wrongly deleted posts (by voting to undelete or flagging for moderator attention).\nSharing posts that should be flagged so others can flag them (Smoke Detector is most active in this particular field).\nInteracting with Bhargav Rao's bot Natty, which finds possible not-an-answer posts.\nModerating review queues (checking that they are being used properly).\n\nOn 25th June 2020, jokerdino added Kulfy, who had long been a highly active participant in the room, to the list of the room's owners.\nThe list of room owners is public. Nobody except jrg has ever been removed as an owner so the owners are Mateo, jokerdino, Eliah Kagan, izx (ish), Anwar, Zanna and Kulfy.\n\n* &quot;Moderation&quot; is meant in the broad sense of community moderation, which includes voting, editing, flagging, commenting, closing, reopening, deleting, undeleting, determining policy etc, not specifically the activity of diamond mods. Raiders of the Lost Downboat has no access restrictions. All users are welcome to participate, to visit and ask for help on moderation issues there.", "Art of Problem Solving has a game called &quot;For the Win.&quot; I don't have any experience with it myself, but from what I've heard of it, it is essentially what you described. A player can host a room with a set of rules (how many questions and how much time per question). It also keeps a rating system, although I don't know if there's a way to separate different levels (I think an 800 ELO player could join a room with a 2400 ELO player for example). The game draws on a large pool of AMC or AIME style problems and the students have to type in their answers (no multiple choice).\nThe major draw back (again, only from what I've heard) is that students end up playing it so much, that they memorize the answers. The points you get per question are based on how quickly you answered, so memorizing answers and getting a question right in 1 second maximizes your points. The site says they have 15,000+ problems curated, so perhaps the &quot;memorizing answers based on the first sentence&quot; problem will go away as they add more and more questions to their database.", "The open star is a pin.\n\nA moderator or room owner can pin messages as important and they'll stay there at the top of the list. These pinned messages stick around for up to 14 days (or until the pin is removed).\n\nYellow stars are your stars.\n\nThese are messages that you have starred yourself.\n\nBlack stars are those made by others\n\nYou haven't starred this message but someone else has.\n\nThere's actually a fourth star.\n\nThe outlined gold star\n\n\n\nIf you also star a pinned message, you'll see a gold filled pin star. It looks the same whether you've pinned it or just starred it after someone else pinned it. As \"proof\" of this, the outlined gold star above is one that I've pinned and the one in the image below is one that I've just starred myself.\n\nSo, using the same chat room you're in:\n\n\n\nAs far as I know, there's not really a clear explanation of the differences but there is the Chat FAQ, which gives some guidance (go to the main FAQ page and search for \"star\").\n\nIt explains that both stars and pins are possible but not how they look. It does mention that pins last for 14 days.\n\n\n Starred messages appear in the room sidebar, ordered by number of stars and last time of starring. (Room owners can also pin messages, which permanently affixes them to the top of the room sidebar for up to 14 days.) The room sidebar is intended to be a collaboratively created mini-timeline of interesting room events for people who don't have time to read the entire chat transcript for that particular room.\n\n\n\n\nUsers may star up to 20 messages per day and Room Owners may additionally pin up to 20 messages per day - per room. Moderators have no limits on the number of stars or pins they may use (on the servers they're moderators on).", "I'm not sure how the electronics will react to the cold. Usually the owners manual will have an operating temperature range that will at least tell you what the manufacturer recommends. That being said, I've left my keyboard and laptop in the car in freezing temperatures several times with no adverse effects.\n\nOne thing you will need to pay attention to is moisture. Just think what it is like for someone wearing glasses to go from outside on a cold day into a warm house. The glasses fog up immediately. You don't want your electronics or instruments to have this happen since they could easily be damaged by excess moisture. This shouldn't be too much of a problem with the things left in the attic because they will be warmed and cooled fairly gradually, but you will want to make sure to warm up the place before bringing in the instruments.\n\nKeep in mind that all instruments will be affected by temperature and all wooden instruments will be affected by humidity (moisture causes the wood to swell). If the temperature/humidity changes during a set, the entire sound may change not to mention the instruments will require frequent tuning.\n\nOne thing that may help keep the room from getting too cold is to add some insulation in the ceiling and walls. This will change the sound of the room quite a bit, but should keep in some of the heat leaking through from the lower floors.\n\nDon't forget, you may run into some trouble in the summer also due to excess heat, but it's probably safe to put an air conditioner in the window to keep the room to a reasonable temperature when the room is not in use and just turn it off while recording.", "Removing humidity from the air is an energy intensive process. Further, while your clothes will dry faster in a lower humidity environment, they will still dry in a humid environment.\n\nIncreasing the airflow, even on humid days, will significantly speed up drying. The clothes are still more damp than the air, so moving more air past them will remove water from them more quickly.\n\nFans are much less expensive to operate than dehumidifiers and heaters. Put the clothes in an area where you can move air into and back out of the room. If you have two windows in the drying room, that would be best - have one fan pulling air into the room via one window, and the other fan blowing air out of the room via the other window.\n\nIf you only have one window, pull air from the door into the room, and then blow it out the window.\n\nIf your room doesn't have two openings to increase the airflow, set up an oscillating fan near the one opening that alternately blows air out of the room and pulls air into the room. \n\nAlternately, if you have forced air heating/cooling, you can turn the fan of that system on and it will circulate the air through the room into the rest of the house, where you can ventilate the more humid air outside.", "のに introduces some disappointment.\nThe room's owner would probably say the first sentence.\n\nThe second sentence is just an observation.\n\nThe のに includes a soft 'Why isn't it clean as always ?'", "It is first come, first serve yes. Custom games can be anything, from normal melee to complex missions - so there is no real way to rank a player joining one. \n\nAnd you can only observe public games that are set up with an observer slot built into the map.", "You do not need a wall switch to operate a fan. A fan can be installed to operate by the pull chain at the fan.\n\nThe bad news is that code requires a switch by the door to operate a light or an outlet that a lamp/light can be plugged into. This is so you don't have to enter a room in the dark. Are there any switch locations in the room? What about cover plates that might be covering up a switch location? How are the lights in your room controlled?", "\\maxchunks internally allocates box registers and the problem is that there's only a limited number of those registers (256). You can set \\maxchunks up to 56 without problems, but using\n\n\\maxchunks{57}\n\n\nwill trigger the\n\n! No room for a new \\count .\n\\ch@ck ...\\else \\errmessage {No room for a new #3}\n \\fi \n\n\nerror. Loading the etex package, you have now 32768 available box registers; you can increase the \\maxchunks value up to 16346:\n\n\\usepackage{etex}\n\\maxchunks{16346}\n\n\nbut \\maxchunks{16347} will trigger the error once again.", "If below limits/inhibits access to others or any such issue, let me know and I'll fix it up.\n\nHard: \n\n\n Please note, I don't know how to do some notation. Hopefully my meaning is clear. I apologize in advance for incorrect notation.\n 1. Due to the taxes affecting the potential growth through each room, you must pass through all the doubling doors first. To do so requires a determinant path, and thus requires at least 1 question per room until all the doubling rooms are done. Note: As we are trying to find the smallest c, we must content with the smallest possible q.\n 2. As such, q will be equal to the number of y rooms, in this case 10.\n 3. The total penalty by the time you finish the just the y rooms will be:\n yEn .10*2^n (summation)\n Let's call this p.\n 4. With that, the max potential earnings by the time the y rooms are completed is:\n 1*2^n - p\n 5. We still need to factor in the losses incurred by completing all the x rooms, changing the formula to:\n 1*2^n - p - x*.10\n or t\n 6. Fred only needs to charge you enough to set you back to your starting amount, in this case 1, as a gain of 0 is not a gain. This looks like:\n 1 = t - c^y - x*.10\n or\n c^y = t - x*.10 - 1\n or\n c = (t - 1 - x*.10)^(1/y)\n 8. As y and x are specified, we can now solve for c, giving us the minimum c necessary:\n c = (818.4 - 1 - 1)^(.1) ~= 1.9551959979\n\n\nP.S. Apologies for so many edits. Struggling with math today apparently.\n\nMedium: \n\n\n As far as I can tell, as there is no penalty for taking a liar's door, and because of the loss of an individual of the same type, you'll end up traversing through 10 liar's doors and 10 truth teller doors no matter what. And again, because of the lack of penalty, the order doesn't matter. Therefore, no questions are needed and my answer is:\n 0 questions\n\n\nEasy: \n\n\n Depending on the setup of the doors, I think it's either:\n 20! (Factorial) = 2,432,902,008,176,640,000\n or\n 20? or 20E0 = 210 \n\n\nVery Easy: \n\n\n As each initial path ends with 1 door, only those paths matter. Adding in the hatch leaves us with:\n 21 doors.\n\n\nExtremely Easy: \n\n\n I mean, he lives in the room that all paths lead to, thus the one room (other than the starting room) that every visitor will encounter. I think I'm just missing something here." ]

[ "The Peace Corps will return to war-ravaged Liberia on Sunday for the first time since fighting erupted there nearly two decades ago." ]

[ "The annual United States Peace Corps Ghana conference dubbed ``Peace Corps National Stars Conference'' comes off in Kumasi from June 05 to 09.", "A US official said the Peace Corps will return to Sierra Leone after 16 years' absence.Peace Corps Acting Regional Director for Africa Lynn Foden said Monday that 50 volunteers will arrive next June to work on secondary education projects.", "Nigeria has offered to retain its troops in Liberia despite the plan by the United Nations to withdraw its peace keepers by 2011, according to Channels TV news on Monday.", "Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, arrives in Liberia today for talks with President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf on her second term agenda and a new partnership to strengthen governance in Liberia.", "Development Partners have confirmed between 250 million dollars to 300 million dollars support to Liberia at the 2008 Liberia Poverty Reduction Forum that ended in Berlin on Friday.", "The United States Peace Corps is phasing out of St Kitts and Nevis and Antigua and Barbuda due to the two countries' reaching a ``high level of development.''", "In the wake of the TRC recommendations, President Sirleaf has clarified that she is not deterred in her quest to rebuild Liberia.", "Liberia recognized Kosovo as an independent and sovereign state, reported today Liberia's Daily Observer.", "Liberia is gradually becoming a better place to do business as the country's public private dialogue has once again announced the attainment of additional reforms.", "Clinton has arrived in Liberia in a show of support for Africa's only female leader who has faced calls to quit after a probe into the country's civil war.", "The Peace Corps fully suspended its program in Kenya after weeks of election-related violence.", "US President George Bush left Accra on Thursday for Liberia after a three-day visit to Ghana as part of an African tour that has also taken him to Benin, Tanzania and Rwanda.", "An international court in The Hague has found Charles Taylor, the former president of Liberia, guilty of war crimes in the 11-year-long Sierre Leone civil war.", "A non-profit humanitarian organization working in Liberia, Sightsavers recently donated several materials to assist persons with disabilities to meet their challenges for quality education as part of its contribution to support the Liberian government's policy on special education program.", "Former Truth and Reconciliation Commission Chairman Jerome Verdier says he maintains his grounds that there can be no reconciliation in Liberia without justice.", "Minister of state for external affairs Dr Shahi Tharoor has announced that the government of India will provide 96,000 tonnes of rice to Liberia.", "Former Sen. George Mitchell is preparing to return to the Middle East next week to try to break the impasse in peace talks.", "USA, Liberia and Australia have agreed to establish diplomatic relations at ambassadorial level.", "The United Nations says it will open eight new peacekeeping bases in western Ivory Coast to restore law and order ahead of upcoming legislative elections.", "On Thursday, Charles Taylor, the former president of Liberia, became the first head of state convicted of war crimes by an international court since German naval commander Karl Dönitz faced judgment at the Nuremberg trials.", "Three Liberian journalists are expected to leave the country today for Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to cover the Sixth African development Forum, which is jointly organized by the Economic Commission for Africa and the African Union Commission in collaboration with the Development Bank.", "Sargent Shriver, the first director of the US Peace Corps, has died at age 95, The Washington Post reported Tuesday.", "Sargent Shriver, a member of the Kennedy family and a former US vice presidential nominee who served as the first Peace Corps director, died on Tuesday.", "Five international oil companies have returned to Libya and are working on getting operations running again, according to a report quoting the head of the ruling interim council's stabilisation team, Aref Ali Nayed.", "Situation fast returning to normalcy in Swat after peace deal between NWFP government and Tehreek-e-Nafaz-e-Shariat-e-Mohammadi.", "AP Writer A diplomat says Somali pirates have freed a Liberian-flagged chemical tanker with 28 crew onboard.", "Liberia has seized a ``worrisome'' amount of arms and ammunition in the south of the country near the border with Ivory Coast, an official told a press conference Wednesday.", "Mark Tronson at the USS Arizona Memorial in Pearl Harbour, that although Japan was defeated and peace returned, it was never the same.", "Venezuela said Sunday that it is reopening its embassy in Colombia and will allow back Colombian diplomats expelled last week by President Hugo Chavez in a crisis sparked by a cross-border Colombian attack on rebels in Ecuador.", "The 2011 Nobel Peace Prize was awarded today to Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Liberian peace activist Leymah Gbowee and Tawakkul Karman of Yemen for their work on women's rights.", "Internal Affairs Minister, Ambullai Johnson, has sounded a wake-up call to all participants and citizens of a weeklong Training of Trainers workshop that was held in Buchanan, Grand Bassa County, that good governance is a pillar of national development as it relates to the present-day reality in Liberia.", "A Neenah family is back in Northeast Wisconsin, returning from a three-month mission trip to Haiti." ]

[ "['Step 1: Insert your Ultimate Evil Edition disc or launch the digital version of the game.', 'Step 2: Log in to your Sony Entertainment Network or Xbox Live account.', 'Step 3: Proceed to the main menu. ... ', 'Step 4: Confirm this selection and proceed through any prompts that appear.']" ]

[ "['Beyond: Two Souls. Beyond: Two Souls (PS3) $19.99on Gamestop. (PS4)', 'Rayman Legends (PS4)', 'Risen 3: Titan Lords (PS3)', 'Eat Them! ( PS3)', 'King Oddball (PS Vita, Cross-Buy with PS3 and PS4)', 'Furmins (PS Vita)']", "['Lara Croft and the Temple of Osiris (PS4)', 'Limbo (PS4)', 'God of War: Ascension (PS3)', 'Stealth Inc 2: A Game of Clones (PS4, PS3, Vita)', 'Sound Shapes (PS4, PS3, Vita)', 'CastleStorm: Definitive Edition (PS3, Vita)']", "No, unfortunately, PS3 controllers are incompatible with the PS4. Sony addresses this on their official PS4 FAQ: Can I use the DUALSHOCK 3 controller on PS4? No, PS4 does not support the DUALSHOCK 3 controller.", "Unfortunately, they're right. PS3 controller is not compatible with PS4. When PS4 was launced in 2013, the president of Sony Worldwide Studios, Shuhei Yoshida, had stated that PS4 doesn't support the DualShock 3. ... Another reason is that the PS4 doesn't compatible with many PS3 games.", "['Destiny 2 (PS4)', 'God of War 3: Remastered (PS4)', 'Knowledge is Power (PS Plus Bonus: PlayLink)', 'Here They Lie (PS Plus Bonus: PS VR required)', 'Another World — 20th Anniversary Edition (PS3, PS4, Vita)', \"QUBE: Director's Cut (PS3, PS4)\", 'Foul Play (PS4, Vita)']", "Originally Answered: Can you use a PS3 controller on a PS4? Unfortunately, NO! The PS3 dual shock controllers are not compatible with the PS4 console. Only the PS3 Move controllers are compatible with the PS4 console.", "['Another World – 20th Anniversary Edition, PS3 (Cross Buy with PS4 & Vita)', \"QUBE Director's Cut, PS3 (Cross Buy with PS4)\", 'Sparkle 2, PS Vita (Cross Buy with PS3 & PS4)', 'Foul Play, PS Vita (Cross Buy with PS4)']", "['Master Reboot, PS3.', 'The Bridge, PS3 (Cross Buy with PS4 and PS Vita)', 'Rocketbirds 2: Evolution, PS Vita (Cross Buy with PS4)', '2064 Read Only Memories, PS Vita (Cross Buy with PS4)']", "['Mafia III. Mafia III - Xbox One. $12.00on Walmart. (PS4)', 'Dead by Daylight (PS4)', 'Bound by Flame (PS3)', 'Serious Sam 3: BFE (PS3)', 'Draw Slasher (PS Vita)', 'Space Hulk (PS Vita)', 'Here They Lie - August 7 - October 2 (PS VR)', 'Knowledge is Power - August 7 - November 6 (PS4)']", "['For Honor (PS4)', 'Hitman: The Complete First Season (PS4)', 'Divekick (PS3, PS Vita)', 'Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (PS3)', 'Gunhouse (PS4, PS Vita)', 'Rogue Aces (PS4, PS Vita)']", "Jackbox Party Pack 2, PS3. Arkedo Series, PS3. Burly Men At Sea, PS Vita (Cross Buy with PS4) Roundabout, PS Vita (Cross Buy with PS4)", "Sony says that the PS4 is roughly 10 times as powerful as the PS3. ... That clock speed might sound rather high, but the PS4 processor is easily the better and more powerful of the two. Because the PS4 uses a totally different architecture to the PS3, it does mean that you can't play PS3 games on the new console.", "Gold. Gold is the currency used in Diablo 3. ... Gold does not need to be clicked on to pick it up in Diablo III; it's automatically picked up when a character moves near a stack on the ground. Gold will be less plentiful and more valuable in Diablo III than it was in earlier installments of the game.", "No, PS3 controllers are incompatible with a PS4. The PS4 controllers are better controllers, both ergonomically and functionally, and have a lot of extra functions you won't find on a PS3 controller.", "['Divekick, PS3 (Cross-Buy with PS Vita)', 'Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, PS3.', 'Gunhouse, PS Vita (Cross-Buy with PS4)', 'Rogue Aces, PS Vita (Cross-Buy with PS4)']", "['Jackbox Party Pack 2, PS3.', 'Arkedo Series, PS3.', 'Burly Men At Sea, PS Vita (Cross Buy with PS4)', 'Roundabout, PS Vita (Cross Buy with PS4)']", "Diablo 2 has a lot more character customization. It has greater depth of skills, sockets, synergies between skills, unique craft-able items. But the game is graphically very dated. Diablo 3 has a lower bar to entry and is just more accessible overall.", "['Darksiders II: Deathinitive Edition (PS4)', 'Kung Fu Panda: Showdown of the Legendary Legends (PS4)', 'Until Dawn: Rush of Blood (PSVR)', \"That's You! ( PS4)\", 'Xblaze Lost: Memories (PS3)', 'Syberia Collection (PS3)', 'Forma 8 (PS4/Vita)', 'Wanted Corp (Vita)']", "Despite what Sony claims on the PlayStation website, official PS3 controllers do work with the PS4, provided you have the right hardware. That said, the PS3 controller was not designed to work with PS4 games, so some game features might not function properly.", "['Hyper Light Drifter.', 'Hob. ... ', 'Enter the Gungeon. ... ', 'Beyond Good and Evil HD. ... ', 'Darksiders 2. Platforms: PC, Xbox One, Xbox 360, PS4, PS3. ... ', 'Psychonauts. Platforms: PC, Xbox One, PS4. ... ', '3D Dot Game Heroes. Platforms: PS3. ... ', 'Anodyne. Platforms: PC, Xbox One, PS4, iOS, Android. ... ']", "No, a PS3 bluetooth remote will not work on the PS4. However, in October 2015, a PS4 remote was produced and the functionality is similar to the PS3 remote. You can find them on Amazon or a number of other shops that carry Sony products.", "Hotline Miami on PS4, PS3, PS Vita | Official PlayStation™Store US.", "Uhmm.. cracked would not be a right word for Diablo 3. The way Diablo 3 was designed requires an online connection even to play single player. ... The end result of the above is Diablo 3 cannot be cracked but will need to be emulated.", "The console of the Play Station 4 is designed for playing PS4 games only. This is the reason why you not able to play PS4 games on PS3 and PS3 games on PS4. ... Although it is not like the one with a backwards compatibility, it permits the players to stream a number of games.", "When it comes to backwards compatibility with PS3, there's no difference between any of the PS4 models known in 2019 (original, PS4 Slim, and PS4 Pro). They all run the same games, although the Pro offers better graphics and performance for many titles. This also means none of them can run PS3 discs.", "['Zone of the Enders HD Collection, PS3.', 'Amplitude, PS3.', 'Super Mutant Alien Assault, PS Vita.', 'Fallen Legion: Flames of Rebellion, PS Vita (Cross Buy with PS4)']", "Thankfully, you're not completely out of luck if you're looking to play PS3 games on your PS4. Sony, along with many other video game publishers, is using the demand for backwards compatibility as an opportunity to remake and remaster select PS3 games for the PS4.", "Can I transfer PS4 saves to a Nintendo Switch? ... There is no sort of integration or interaction between PS4 and Nintendo Switch regarding saves except for maybe Fortnite character progression being handled via your Epic Games login from a third party.", "FIFA 19 will be available from Friday 28 September on PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and PC (Origin). Players who pre-order the Champions Edition or Ultimate Edition of the game will able to get 3 days early access.", "In a manner of speaking, yes. PS4 Pro plays all PS4 games, but that isn't the same as being 'backwards compatible'. Even though PS4 Pro is a new and more powerful system, it isn't a different platform the way PS4 is different from PS3. PS4 Pro is not a new console, rather just a mid-generation revision of hardware.", "['Okami HD (PS3, PS2, Wii) ... ', 'Hyper Light Drifter (PS4, Xbox One, PC) ... ', 'Dark Souls (PS3, Xbox 360, PC) ... ', 'Beyond Good and Evil HD (Xbox, Xbox 360, PS3, PC) ... ', '3D Dot Game Heroes (PS3)']", "AirPods will never connect to the PS3 because they're not even compatible with the PS4. It is possible to connect to a PS4 with voice chat. You will need a dongle." ]

[ "The 25-year-old, from North Ormesby, was shaping metal when a part from the press fell on his foot on 17 March.\nTeesside Magistrates' Court heard that SM Thompson Limited, of Middlesbrough, had allowed dangerous lifting practices to go unchecked over 10 years.\nThe firm admitted a Health and Safety Executive (HSE) breach and was fined £7,500. It must also pay £1,120 costs.\nThe hearing heard how the worker had to have the big toe on his left foot amputated and two other toes removed.\nHe was in hospital for seven days but has since returned to work, the hearing heard.\nHSE inspector Paul Wilson said: \"This worker's injuries need not have happened.\n\"The failure of SM Thompson to look properly at the risks involved and then organise the lifting operation properly put staff at needless risk.\n\"This sadly led to the painful and life-changing injuries suffered by this young man.\"" ]

[ "The staff member became entangled with the hydraulically operated machine at the firm's shop in Middlesbrough's Captain Cook Square in December 2013.\nThe company must also pay £4,800 in costs.\nIt was sentenced at Teesside Crown Court having pleaded guilty to a health and safety offence at a previous hearing.\nEasi Recycling Solutions Limited, which supplied and installed the machine, was fined £10,000 and ordered to pay £6,800 costs having also previously admitted its guilt.\nJudith Hedgley, Middlesbrough Council's environmental health and trading standards manager, said the woman's \"serious crushing injuries\" would have been avoided \"if better safety procedures, supervision and training had been implemented for the users of the machine\".", "Patrick Duke, then aged 53, from Rushden, Northamptonshire, became trapped in the machine in March 2012.\nHe had not been trained in using the equipment, St Albans Crown Court heard.\nAmey LG was fined £150,000, Lafarge Aggregates, £175,000 and Ashmac Construction, £30,000. They all admitted health and safety breaches.\nMr Duke was trying to unblock a chip spreading machine on South Way in Hatfield, Hertfordshire, when he slipped.\nHe was trapped in the equipment for more than two hours and his arm was mangled, the court heard.\nAfter 13 hours of surgery Mr Duke's arm had to be amputated.\nJudge Andrew Bright QC was told Mr Duke had never seen a chip spreading machine manual and had not been given proper training on how to deal with the machine.\nAshmac continued to pay Mr Duke's salary after the accident and was handed a lesser fine as it provided labour but had no control of the operation on the site.\nThe three companies were also ordered to pay £18,000 costs each.", "Renè Tkáčik, 44, died as nearly a tonne of wet concrete was poured on to him.\nThe two other incidents saw a worker injured when a tipper truck crushed his leg, while another man was injured when a high pressure mixture struck him.\nAt Southwark Crown Court the companies admitted the health and safety breaches.\nBFK - joint venture contractors comprising of BAM Nuttall, Ferrovial Agroman (UK) and Kier Infrastructure and Overseas - were fined £300,000 in relation to Mr Tkáčik; £600,000 for the serious leg injuries to Terrence Hughes and £165,000 for the injuries Alex Vizitiu who hurt his head and suffered hip injuries.\nThey were taken to court by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).\nHSE head of operations Annette Hall said: \"Had simple measures... been taken, all three incidents could have been prevented, and Renè Tkáčik may not have died.\n\"All three workers were taking part in one of the most important and challenging infrastructure projects of the decade. It was this joint venture's duty to protect its dedicated and highly-skilled workforce.\n\"On these three occasions, BFK failed in its duty, with tragic consequences for Renè Tkáčik and his family.\"\nDuring sentencing, Judge Beddoe said: \"The fines I impose do not and cannot attempt to place value on human life.\n\"The deceased was a very talented and industrious man who devoted his life to his family, in particular his daughter, his wife and his mother.\"\nAt Mr Tkáčik's inquest, the court heard that he was a \"hugely experienced\" worker when he died in 2014.\nHe had been working in the UK to earn money to send home to his family in Slovakia so he could pay for his daughter Esther to go to university, a statement from his wife Renata said.", "Danish worker Per Terp died and Frank Kroeger had to be resuscitated twice after the incident at Harwich in 2010.\nChelmsford Crown Court heard a missing bolt caused the accident but the HSE said it would have been avoided had \"the right questions been asked\".\nDenmark-based Siemens Windpower A/S and London firm Fluor Ltd were both fined.\nMr Terp, 42, was crushed on 21 May 2010 at Harwich International Port.\nHis colleague Mr Kroeger was airlifted to Addenbrooke's hospital in Cambridge with serious, life-changing injuries.\nA heavy blade root was being lifted in an H-type lifting frame by the jack-up vessel Sea Jack, but the frame gave way and dropped the load, the court heard.\nSiemens pleaded guilty to two charges under the Health and Safety Act and Fluor was found guilty of one offence.\nJudge David Turner QC said there needed to be \"greater clarity\" between the companies.\nSpeaking after the hearing, Health and Safety Executive inspector Julie Rayner said: \"This incident could easily have been avoided had suitable systems and procedures been in place to ensure that all loads were properly connected whilst being lifted.\n\"Had the right questions been asked when the lift was being planned and had the bolt and two brackets holding the blade and frame together been checked before they were lifted, the death and serious injury of two workers could have been prevented.\"\nSiemens Windpower was fined £375,000 and told to pay costs of £105,355, while Fluor was fined £275,000 with costs of £271,048.", "Wellington District Court heard the unnamed woman suffered \"mutilating\" injuries after her overalls became caught as she was cleaning the oven.\nShe was only freed from the oven, operating at between 85C and 180C, when the machinery was dismantled.\nWork safety officials said an ambulance was not called for 20 minutes.\nThe ambulance crew also got lost on their way to the factory, meaning the woman had no pain relief for 40 minutes, WorkSafe New Zealand added.\nShe suffered severe burns, skin loss and muscle loss, and has had surgery three times for skin grafts and to remove dead tissue, and is expecting to have further muscle transplants.\nThe court found there were no proper procedures in place for cleaning the oven and that safety guards had been left open.\n\"Had the guard been in place, then the victim's hand would not have been caught and ultimately burnt,\" said WorkSafe's chief inspector Keith Stewart.\nThe Meycov Food Limited, trading as Rutherford & Meyer, was also fined NZ$12,500.", "The firm admitted releasing a quantity of benzole, exposing five workers to risk of death from flammable vapours coming off it, in June 2011.\nA Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation showed it failed to take appropriate safety measures.\nTata Steel was fined £930,000 and ordered to pay costs of £70,000, at a hearing at Hull Crown Court.\nAt a previous hearing, the company pleaded guilty to breaching the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.\nMore stories from around East Yorkshire and northern Lincolnshire\nThe HSE said two of the workers involved in the incident were exposed to the chemical and suffered coughing and breathing difficulties. They were sent to hospital and discharged the next day.\nIt said the release of benzole could have caused serious injury or death had it been ignited.\nHSE inspector Stephen Hargreaves said: \"It was extremely fortunate no one was seriously affected by this incident. Had the flammable vapour cloud ignited this could have resulted in multiple fatalities.\n\"This incident highlights the need for all duty holders to implement and address all concerns and potential risks which have been identified.\n\"Tata's failure to do so in this case put a number of workers at risk of serious harm.\"", "UK Steel says rising competition and falling prices are damaging firms.\nThe call for action comes days after Thai steel firm SSI halted production at its Teesside plant due to falling demand, putting 2,000 jobs at risk.\nAmong other measures, UK Steel wants the government to lower business rates and relax emissions targets.\nIn a statement it said: \"The UK steel sector is vital to the success of manufacturing, employing 30,000 well-paid and highly skilled people, often in areas with higher-than-average unemployment.\n\"In 2013 it made a £9.5bn contribution to the UK economy and had a £4.9bn export value.\"\nJohn Park from the Community trade union told the BBC that it was having trouble getting through to the company's management in Thailand.\n\"A lot of the things that are happening at SSI are decisions that are being taken thousands of miles away,\" he said.\n\"I'm not sure they know themselves exactly what the solution looks like. We would hope that we can find a positive solution to this situation that secures steelmaking on Teesside and supports the community.\"\nDuring its conference in London on Thursday, UK Steel is expected to outline a number of steps which the government can take in the short-term to \"demonstrate its commitment to the UK steel industry\".\nUK Steel, which is part of the manufacturing trade body EEF, is urging the government to encourage the use of British-produced steel in major infrastructure projects.\nIt also asked the government to consider relaxing rules on emissions targets for manufacturers - which UK Steel said would cost the steel industry £500m by 2019.\nA spokesperson for UK Steel told the BBC that the government's business rates are much higher than competitors' in France and Germany - sometimes up to 10 times higher.\nUK Steel also said that bills for industries heavily reliant on energy usage were too high and that a review of these rates - announced in the Budget - should be brought forward.\nThe call comes days after business minister Anna Soubry said that, because of strict EU rules, the government is \"limited\" in what it can do to help the ailing Teesside steel plant owned by SSI .\nAbout 2,000 jobs are under threat and unions say they have not been told what the current pause in production means.\nContractors who supply workers and equipment to the site have been seen withdrawing their property.\nOn Wednesday, Stockton South MP James Wharton told the BBC: \"At this stage things are still ongoing. Things are very very difficult, I don't want to give false hope about the challenges that are before us for this company. \"", "Construction firm Morgan Sindall said the forklift collided with fencing within the site boundary last Monday.\nA spokesman said: \"The worker operating the forklift did so without proper certification. Disciplinary proceedings have been initiated.\"\nIt earlier emerged a worker was injured after another site accident.\nMorgan Sindall added in statement: \"We operate a zero tolerance approach to unauthorised use of machinery across all of our sites.\n\"Safety is our number one priority and while incidents like this are extremely rare, they are completely unacceptable.\"\nThe earlier incident, on 3 February, left a worker with a fractured leg and ribs.\nIt is being investigated.\nThe £107m office, leisure and hotel development is due for completion in the summer.\nLast week, BBC Scotland revealed that only 10% of office space had been taken up for lease.", "The Scunthorpe-based company said it would be dividing a million shares between all of its employees, except contractors and agency workers, because it had delivered consistent profits.\nFurther shares will be given out on an annual basis in June.\nStaff also returned to full pay after sacrificing 3% of their salary for Tata's sale of the venture to Greybull.\nMore on this and other stories from East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire\nThe business has reported a £47m profit a year after its launch and said it had \"significantly improved\" profitability despite a 44% increase in the cost of raw materials.\nAbout 500 workers have been recruited during its \"remarkable\" transformation, it said.\nManaging director Paul Martin said: \"Every one of our employees has contributed to the turnaround of this business - they are the foundation of our recent achievements and, just as importantly, they are critical to our future.\n\"It is therefore important that we not only reward them for their efforts during the last 12 months but, as we move forward and grow the business further, they continue to share in any ongoing success.\"\nThose on fixed-term contracts and apprentices would be exempt from receiving any shares and staff who leave the company are required to relinquish their stake.\nIt was \"totally separate from the bonus scheme and does not replace it\", the company said.\nPaul McBean, multi-union chairman at British Steel's Scunthorpe headquarters, said he \"warmly\" welcomed the move.\n\"They have helped transform the company and it is fantastic to see they will share in the success we are starting to see,\" he said.\nBritish Steel said it had invested £39m in the business in the last financial year.\nInvestment firm Greybull bought the business - which had suffered losses of £79m in the previous financial year - a year ago and renamed it British Steel.\nIt has supplied 57km (35 miles) of rail track for the £16bn Crossrail project in London.\nTata announced the sale of its plant in April 2016, with the move safeguarding nearly 5,000 jobs.\nFor the deal to be sealed, workers accepted a pay cut and less generous pension arrangements.\nBritish Steel also has sites in Cumbria, North Yorkshire, Teesside and France.", "More than 1,100 members of the Community union claimed there had been a lack of consultation when SSI's Redcar plant closed.\nThe payout could have been more than £14m but SSI's liquidation means workers will only get the government's contribution.\nUnion general secretary Roy Rickhuss said it was a \"deserved victory\".\n\"However, as we have said before, this small victory will not compensate for the devastation from the end of steel making,\" he said.\nWorkers will receive a share of the award from the government's redundancy payments office up to a maximum of 8 weeks' pay, subject to statutory limits and deductions.\nOther workers were waiting for the outcome of a case being made by the Unite union, Community said.\nSSI blamed a global slump in the value of steel for its original decision to pause production at the Redcar works.\nThe Teesside furnaces and coke ovens were closed with a loss of 2,200 jobs in October.", "Christopher Michael Williams, 51, of Acrefair, died after being struck by a half-tonne power press on 3 December 2012 at Vauxhall Industrial Estate.\nMold Crown Court heard the lifting operation was unsafe and Mr Williams was not properly trained in lifting non-standard loads.\nMorgan Technical Ceramics Ltd had admitted failing to ensure his safety.\nThe court heard a maintenance supervisor was moving the power press on a pallet truck when it toppled over, striking Mr Williams.\nHe died from his injuries at the scene.\nAs well as the fine, the firm must also pay £23,000 in costs.", "Anthony Seward, 23, got his hand trapped at Heathcoat Fabrics in Tiverton, Devon, in August 2016.\nExeter magistrates heard that a broken barrier guard had not been replaced.\nHeathcoat admitted a health and safety offence and was fined £300,000. The firm told the court the accident was \"a complete tragedy\".\nWarning: This story contains graphic images that some readers may find upsetting.\nIt also said Mr Seward's injury was \"deeply regretted by the company\".\nMore on this story and other Devon news\nBarrister Christian DuCann, representing Heathcote, said it was a \"complete tragedy\" for a young man early in his career.\n\"This was an avoidable accident,\" he added.\nSurgeon James Henderson said Mr Seward's hand was sewn inside the skin of his abdomen for three weeks.\nThe procedure at Southmead Hospital and Spire Bristol, called a Pedicled Abdominal Flap, allowed the skin to heal and get a blood supply from the hand.\nIt was then separated from the abdomen and the skin was folded over to cover the entire hand.\nMr Seward has now had two operations to separate his fingers and is able to move them independently.\n\"It's now quite rare as we don't see that many injuries that require this treatment,\" said Mr Henderson.\nThe \"very old-fashioned procedure\" which was first described by surgeons in 1900, was used a lot during World War Two to treat injured servicemen.\nIt has also been used on soldiers coming back from Afghanistan.\nMr Henderson said Mr Seward's fingers could be improved with transplants from his toes \"to give him a good fingertip for gripping fine objects\".\n\"Normally there are more sophisticated ways of transplanting tissue but Anthony's injury was so severe it was decided to do it this way,\" he added.\nMr Seward lost his job as a retained fire fighter as a result of the accident.\nSpeaking after the case, Mr Seward said: \"It's been a long, painful and difficult 12 months.\n\"I'd like to say thank you to the doctors and nurses paramedics that treated me at Bristol.\n\"They did a phenomenal job and I don't think they could have done any better.\"\nMr Seward said he is making a compensation claim against the firm.", "Greybull Capital has signed a letter of intent to try to reach a deal to buy the business, including mills in Teesside and Northern France.\nTata Steel said it was \"too early to give any certainty about the potential outcome of these discussions\".\nBut unions welcomed the announcement following steel industry job losses.\nRoy Rickhuss, general secretary of the Community steelworkers' union, said: \"We welcome the interest from Greybull in giving Long Products a future outside Tata Steel.\n\"Of course, the devil will be in the detail of the deal and we will be seeking further discussions with both Tata Steel and Greybull to fully understand their intentions and the implications for steelworkers.\n\"We welcome any credible investor who has a vision for a sustainable business and is prepared to invest for the future.\"\nThere have been waves of job losses in the steel industry in the UK, which the sector has blamed on cheap Chinese imports and a collapse in prices.\nIn October, Tata Steel announced nearly 1,200 roles to be axed in Scunthorpe and Lanarkshire.\nThe negotiations will centre on Tata Steel UK's Scunthorpe steelworks, mills in Teesside and Northern France, Scottish mills in Dalzell and Clydebridge, an engineering workshop in Workington, a design consultancy in York, and \"associated distribution facilities\".\nThe firm has about 4,700 employees in Long Products Europe, while Tata Steel Europe has some 30,000 employees, including about 17,000 in the UK.\nGreybull Capital, which says it makes long-term investments in firms, bought a majority stake in low-cost airline Monarch in October 2014.\nStaff agreed to 700 redundancies and pay cuts of up to 30% as part of a deal to save the Luton-based firm. Greybull Capital pumped ??125m into Monarch as part of the deal.\nThe BBC understands that the firm would probably not go ahead with a Tata Steel deal that did not have the backing of unions and the UK government.\nNegotiations, which will begin in earnest after the Christmas period, are expected to take about three months.", "Technip UK was fined £160,000 at Aberdeen Sheriff Court.\nThe case followed the death of David Stephenson on the vessel Wellservicer in April 2009.\nHe was injured in an accident close to Aberdeen harbour. Although he was flown to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, he was later pronounced dead.\nMaritime and Coastguard Agency head of enforcement Jeremy Smart said: \"This was a tragic incident which should never have happened and our sympathies go out to the family of Mr Stephenson.\n\"This incident clearly demonstrates that proper risk assessments need to be conducted before any operation is undertaken and the appropriate safety measures put in place.\n\"Safety failings like this are not acceptable in any industry.\"", "Unions had won backing for strike action after the firm proposed closing the final salary scheme, which Tata claimed was facing a £2bn deficit.\nWorkers have now agreed to amendments to the pension scheme in return for it remaining open.\nA proposed national strike scheduled for 22 June was suspended following talks at the arbitration service Acas.\nNeither the unions nor Tata have given any details of the changes.\nIn a statement Tata Steel said the new proposal was \"a fair and balanced solution\".\nThe firm added; \"The new arrangements, including the modifications to scheme benefits, will address a significant proportion of the pension scheme's projected deficit. \"Other actions to be agreed with the pension Trustee will address the balance.\"\nRoy Rickhuss, general secretary of Community, one of the four unions involved in the dispute, said the UK steel industry was still facing \"challenges\".\n\"It was apparent during this dispute that the company was not listening to the concerns of its workforce, which led to a serious breakdown in trust and confidence,\" he said.\n\"All unions have already begun a dialogue with the company to address these issues.\"\nTata Steel employs more than 17,000 people in its UK operation.\nIt has sites in Corby, Hartlepool, Rotherham, Scunthorpe, Teesside and York as well as plants in Port Talbot, Newport, Flintshire and Carmarthenshire.", "Liverpool Crown Court heard 43-year-old Philip Grace was asked to repair part of a moving conveyor belt at Recresco Ltd in Ellesmere Port in January 2014.\nWhen his arm became snagged, his right hand was severed by a roller.\nThe firm, which admitted health and safety breaches, issued an apology and said systems had improved.\nIt is the second time the company has been sentenced for a serious accident in the workplace in the past 12 months.\nIn a separate incident, Rescresco Ltd was fined £180,000 in December after a forklift truck driver was crushed to death when his vehicle overturned in 2010.\nLawyers for Mr Grace, from Liverpool, who was employed at the time as a welder, said he was told the plant was not prepared to stop production whilst he carried out the repairs.\nIt was against normal company procedure for the conveyor belt to remain moving, the solicitor added.\nMr Grace was taken to Whiston Hospital where efforts were made to try to reattach his severed hand without success.\nThe company accepted the incident was the result of human and systemic failings and said lessons had been learned.\nA statement issued on behalf of the firm said: \"Recresco Limited extends its sympathies and apologies to Mr Grace and his family. The areas which were identified as of concern were rectified very rapidly.\"\nMr Grace said he pleased the prosecution was over.\n\"I hope that Recresco will continue to improve its safety standards so that none of my former colleagues will go through what I have,\" he said.\nThe injury had affected his ability to play sports with his young son, Mr Grace, a keen golfer, said.\nRichard Edwards, of Potter Rees Dolan solicitors, said the company must \"take a long and hard look at itself\".\nHe said: \"The death of one employee in 2010, and now this horrendous injury to Phil, stands as a record that some might say belongs to a Dickensian workhouse rather than a 21st century recycling plant.\"", "The company \"paused\" production on 18 September citing poor trading conditions and a drop in world steel prices.\nSSI UK business director Cornelius Louwrens said the plant could be mothballed for up to five years.\nRedcar MP Anna Turley described it as \"devastating news\".\nSSI said it had carried out an assessment of its business situation and concluded there was \"no other option\" but to mothball its iron and steel making operations on Teesside.\nMr Louwrens said: \"This is an extremely sad day for all of us at SSI UK, and in particular our employees and their families.\"\nHe said he did not know how long the site would be mothballed and the price of steel would need to recover before there was any prospect of the site reopening.\nSee reaction to the news on the BBC North East Local Live page.\nThe company revealed about 450 people would be kept on but 1,700 workers would go.\nThe Redcar coke ovens and the power station will continue to operate.\nLabour MP Ms Turley accused SSI of playing \"fast and loose\" with the plant's future, and claimed the government could have done more to prevent the closure.\nShe said: \"It's absolutely heartbreaking, it's devastating.\n\"It's a huge number of jobs, it's a huge number of livelihoods, but it is more than that to our community.\n\"Redcar was built on steelmaking, Teesside was built on steelmaking. It's about generations of people that have worked in that blast furnace and fought so hard, not just in the last few days but in the last few weeks, months, years, to keep steelmaking alive. It's just been allowed to fizzle out.\"\nShe called on the government to take control of the site and its assets to ensure a future for steelmaking on Teesside and in the UK.\nBut Conservative MP James Wharton, who is the Minister for Local Growth and the Northern Powerhouse, rejected a call for the plant to be renationalised.\nHe said: \"An industry which has made a loss over each of the last three years would pass that responsibility to the tax payer.\n\"It would present huge issues for the rest of the steel market in this country in terms of how they would then be able to compete with, what will be, a nationalised company.\n\"It's just not something that is going to happen.\"\nBusiness Minister Anna Soubry said: \"Despite everyone's recent efforts to help SSI this is very sad news and a big blow for the workforce and their families.\"\nShe said a taskforce had been set up to support workers.\n\"I hope that SSI's announcement that they are mothballing the furnace gives some hope that steelmaking could be restarted on Teesside in the future\", she said.\n\"The steel industry across the UK is facing very challenging economic conditions. The price of steel has almost halved over the past year, with over-production in the world market.\n\"While government cannot alter these conditions, I have called a steel summit to see what more can be done to help our steel industry.\"\nLinda Robinson's family has been involved in steel manufacture for generations.\nShe said: \"Every family on Teesside knows somebody in the steel industry. And we've got near 170 years of steel making.\n\"We're the original northern powerhouse, forget this new title. We demand that they save the steel works, forget mothballing. We deserve this.\"\nThe GMB union said it would be calling on the government to take action.\nIts national officer, Dave Hulse, said: \"The government has got to take some responsibility for this.\n\"They can still intervene to save Redcar and the thousands of jobs that rely on the plant.\"\nThe Community union said it would be calling an urgent meeting with SSI.\nGeneral secretary Roy Rickhuss said: \"Steelmaking on Teesside must have a future and our fight to save our steel will continue.\n\"These vital industrial skills have been passed down through the generations and must not be lost.\n\"That blast furnace must not become a monument to 170 years of history and it must be mothballed properly to preserve its integrity and give it the chance of a future.\"\nIron ore was first discovered on Teesside in the 1850s and the steel works, which are being mothballed, was founded in Redcar in 1917\nThe plant was mothballed by previous owner Tata Steel in 2010. SSI then spent millions of pounds making the furnace ready again before it was relit in 2012.", "The 57-year-old man was dragged into inadequately guarded machinery in the paint shop at the Lode Lane, Solihull, site in June 2013, it said.\nHe punctured both lungs, broke 10 ribs and was in an induced coma in intensive care for 12 days, HSE said.\nIt added JLR was fined for safety breaches after pleading guilty.\nThe maintenance electrician, from Northfield, Birmingham, also broke his breastbone, two bones in his spine and two in his right hand and had blood clots on his heart and kidneys, HSE said.\nSpeaking after the hearing, it said the incident was \"entirely preventable\".\nJaguar Land Rover Ltd, of Abbey Road, Whitley, Coventry, was fined £40,000 with £13,474 costs after pleading guilty to breaching Regulation 11(1) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations, HSE said.\nIn a statement, a JLR spokesman said: \"The safety and wellbeing of our workforce is an integral strategic imperative across our entire business.\n\"We continue to work tirelessly to ensure the protection of our employees remains our highest priority.\"", "The Thai parent company was earlier granted an application to wind up the UK arm of its business at the High Court in Manchester.\nOn Monday, it was announced the plant on Teesside was to be mothballed with the loss of 1,700 jobs.\nIn response the government made an aid package of \"up to £80m\" available for those affected but has ruled out state intervention at the plant.\nIn an email to staff, the director of SSI UK Cornelius Louwrens said he would try to determine how operations would be affected but there would be a focus on keeping the coke ovens - essential for any future steel making on the site - burning.\nRoy Rickhuss, general secretary of the Community union, said it was \"devastating news\".\nHe said: \"Government must ensure that the industrial assets are protected and skills are retained to give steel making a chance of a future.\n\"We believe there are parties who could ensure that the industrial assets are mothballed safely, with reduced environmental impact, and we would encourage the liquidators to look favourably on this option as offering the best opportunity to secure a return to creditors.\n\"A community on Teesside is looking to the government to take further action.\"\nHe said SSI had shown a \"lack of respect\" to the workforce and the company \"should do the right thing and get out of the way so others can give steel a chance of a future on Teesside.\"\nThe GMB union said it was seeking to establish what liquidation would mean for workers.\nGareth Stace, director of trade group UK Steel, said: \"It may be too late for SSI but the situation in Redcar brings the problems facing the UK steel sector into sharp relief.\n\"The government must now spearhead efforts to support the steel industry and the supply chains it feeds.\n\"The steel site in Redcar remains a viable and efficient plant and the government-led steel summit taking place in two weeks will be a make-or-break event for the entire industry.\"\nEarlier, the government revealed its aid package but it was swiftly followed by Business Secretary Sajid Javid warning of \"more bad news to come\" .\nHe said the package would include retraining and help for those setting up small businesses but ruled out government intervention to save the steelworks.\n\"With the global price in steel collapsing by more than a half because of huge over-capacity in just a year alone, and this plant making steel at a cost which is above the world price, I don't think anyone realistically has looked at this and thought that there's a way to keep this going as a viable business,\" Mr Javid said.\n\"Notwithstanding the EU state aid rules that would make it illegal. So that's why our focus has rightly been around making sure that the workers get the support that they need - and that's what this package is about.\"\nIn an interview with BBC Look North political correspondent Mark Denten, David Cameron said the government had done \"everything we can to help\".\nHe said: \"We have supported this industry but this business has never turned a profit, has always been in loss.\n\"Steel prices have collapsed the world over and the judgement we make is that it is best now to put this £80m into helping people to get the skills, to get the work, to get new jobs and we will do everything we can to help the area.\"\nAsked if the Northern Powerhouse had failed at its first big test, the prime minister said he did not accept that.\nHe said: \"The concept of a Northern Powerhouse is not that you step in and subsidise an industry when I'm afraid it hasn't been able to do anything but make losses.\"\nBusiness Minister Anna Soubry said: \"I'm extremely hacked off, truthfully. Because if we'd had all these meetings we had yesterday nine months ago, who knows where we'd be today?\n\"It wasn't us (the government), our problem, and this is a long, sorry story. (We) have not been kept in the full picture as to what's been happening at SSI.\n\"It's not lost on anybody the importance of keeping the coke ovens going, we know that if you don't have the coking ovens working they will collapse.\n\"All the people that need to be aware of the importance of keeping the coke ovens alight know that, they know the need to act quickly.\n\"Forget the Thai parent company, forget them completely. They've got their own problems of debt so bad they have gone into this rehabilitation order. The three people in charge are the three Thai banks.\n\"The most important thing is what happens now with the £80m support package.\n\"Some of it will go on redundancies but the majority is to get people into the training and the skills they need for alternative work.\"\nBut Redcar Labour MP Anna Turley said: \"The government has today thrown in the towel and turned its back on steelmaking in Teesside.\n\"We do not accept their view that a hard closure is the only option and I am deeply disappointed they have rejected all of the options presented to them so far.\n\"We will continue to fight to ensure there is a future for steelmaking at the site but realise now we will get no help from government. Our attentions now turn to working with the official receiver to establish how debts, salaries and pensions will be paid and, crucially, how the site will be secured for the future.\"\nShe said she welcomed the £80m government support package but said her fear was that it would not go far enough and said she wanted answers on how the money would be spent.", "8 December 2014 Last updated at 22:14 GMT\nThe water company was fined after employee Raymond Holmes died when he was crushed by a reversing vehicle in 2010.\nSouthwark Crown Court heard how the company had breached health and safety rules at the Coppermill Lane water treatment works where Mr Holmes died.\nHe had been due to retire after 30 years employment at the company.\nMartin Baggs, chief executive officer of Thames Water, said: \"His tragic death is something that will never be forgotten, either by myself or anyone else within the company. It is a constant reminder to all of us that safety must be the highest priority for everyone work for us.\"\nBBC London's Sarah Harris reports from court and also speaks to Mr Holmes' daughter Laura Wyer and Tim Galloway of the Health and Safety Executive.", "Gary Ward, 43, died at Divet Hill Quarry on 19 February, 2009, after being trapped by a large stone crushing machine.\nQuarry owners CEMEX UK and Mr Ward's employer, Ward Bros Plant Hire, admitted breaching the Health and Safety Act at Newcastle Crown Court.\nMr Ward was the nephew of Ward Bros' chairman.\nThe Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted both firms after investigating Mr Ward's death.\nThe mechanical fitter, from Crook in County Durham, had gone underneath a conveyor belt on the large crusher to fix a fault when the machine moved and trapped him, the court heard.\nHe died from asphyxiation.\nThe HSE said a fault caused the machine to move and proper procedure was not followed before Mr Ward started the work.\nWard Bros, based in Langley Moor, County Durham, was fined £85,000 and ordered to pay £55,000 costs, while Surrey-based CEMEX UK was fined £60,000 with £37,500 costs to pay.\nSpeaking after the hearing, CEMEX UK said: \"Our thoughts continue to be with the family and friends of Gary Ward.\n\"We have worked closely with the authorities and all learning points have been identified and addressed.\"\nWard Bros declined to comment after being contacted by the BBC.", "Thai-based SSI took over the former Tata Steel complex in Redcar after it was mothballed in 2010.\nThe company said preparations were under way to cut production during the day and cited ongoing issues with the supply of raw materials and services.\nA spokesman said the announcement was made with \"great regret\" but a union leader described it as \"devastating\".\nOperation of the South Bank Coke Ovens, which employs 150 people, will cease first before production stops.\nLabour MP for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland, Tom Blenkinsop, said: \"I know unions will be working closely with those workers to offer all the support they can but my heart goes out to those workers and their families.\"\nThe Redcar Coke Ovens and the Power Station will continue to operate but at a reduced level.\nChief operating officer Cornelius Louwrens, said: \"We are deeply aware of the concern it will give to our employees and their families.\n\"Our parent company and other stakeholders have given great support to the business, and the decision to pause our iron and steel production has been taken reluctantly and in a scenario where no other practical options are available at present.\n\"Discussions will be held as soon as possible with our trade unions and employee representatives to clarify the effect the production pause will have on our employees.\"\nRoy Rickhuss, general secretary of steelworkers' union Community said: \"This is devastating news. Our first thoughts are with the workers who will be affected by today's announcement.\n\"We will be seeking urgent talks with SSI management to find out the full extent of the impact this will have on both SSI employees and contractors.\n\"In the coming days we will do all we can to support our members.\"\nMP for Stockton South and Northern Powerhouse Minister, James Wharton, said: \"It's not necessarily the end of the story for steel on Teesside...but it's clearly a difficult time.\"\nHe added: \"There's no denying it's significant and it's not good news. We have to make sure the impact is minimised and we do everything we can to try to mitigate what the knock-on effect could be on the economy on Teesside and in the UK.\"\nLast month the company warned the plant's future was at risk, citing a slump in demand for steel in China and Russia for its problems.\nMr Louwrens said the price paid for slab steel had plummeted from $500 (£318) a tonne to below $300 (£191) over the past year.\nBusiness Minister Anna Soubry, said: \"This is disappointing news. The government stands ready to assist workers where needed.\n\"The steel industry is going through a tough time. The price of steel has plummeted as worldwide production rises and sales fail to pick up.\n\"Government can't fix the price of steel but we are doing what we can to help.\"\nGareth Stace, director of UK Steel, said the time for \"warm words\" from the government had passed and its promise to \"hold a crisis summit\" about the industry \"cannot happen soon enough\".\nHe said the government needed to act decisively otherwise \"the damage to one of the most important industries underpinning our entire manufacturing industry will be irreversible\".\nAt full capacity the Redcar plant produces up to 400 slabs of steel a day, each weighing up to 33 tonnes.\nAbout £1bn has been invested in reopening the blast furnace.", "The injured suffered broken ankles and legs and one woman is still undergoing operations as a result of the accident.\nSix others were treated for shock.\nTemple Lifts, the operating company, admitted to two counts of breaching health and safety law on the north and south lifts.\nTen people were in the lift when it fell three metres into its service pit because a vital mechanism failed.\nThe lift, which usually carries around 40 people, fell as it was elevating from the ground floor and had tourists from Spain among the people in it.\nSouthwark Crown Court heard the company could have done more to stop the accident from happening and that the lift's design, maintenance and refurbishment were wanting.\nThe Health and Safety Executive (HSE) bought the case to court.\nHSE Inspector Michael La Rose said it was a \"truly disturbing\" incident that could have resulted in greater injuries.\n\"There were warning signs here that were seemingly overlooked, and missed opportunities to properly rectify recurring faults,\" he said.\nMr La Rose said there were \"clear failings\" in how the company did its job.\nThe company was fined £50,000 and ordered to pay £50,000 in costs. It did not respond to requests to comment.", "The future of the Teesside steel plant, which paused production on 18 September due to a global drop in the price of steel, remains unclear.\nThe plant employs about 2,000 people and unions and MPs had called on the company to make sure they were paid.\nSSI said this month's pay roll is being processed.\nThe payment was made possible through a tax relief given to SSI by the government.\nBusiness Minister Anna Soubry said: \"I am very pleased that action we have taken has allowed the company to ensure workers got paid today.\n\"I made it clear that workers getting paid was a priority and government officials have worked very hard to help the company so they could achieve this.\n\"It will be some relief for workers and their families at this difficult and uncertain time.\"\nA task force has been set up to support the workforce and liaise with SSI.\nAmanda Skelton, chief executive of Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council and chairman of the task force said: \"The aim of the group is to ensure that following any announcements about the future of SSI, the impact on the workers, local businesses and the wider community is reduced as far as possible by delivering a programme of tailored support.\"", "Llanelli MP Nia Griffith said the Indian-owned giant must meet a guarantee on no compulsory job losses and new investment.\nWelsh Economy Secretary Ken Skates also called on the UK government to prioritise the steel industry and plough more money into research.\nWorkers voted on Wednesday in favour of a new reduced pension deal.\n\"It's been a terrible choice for the workers to make, between taking a lower pension payment or seeing the jobs go,\" said Ms Griffith.\n\"Having made that decision now, we really need Tata to stick to its promises, to step up to the mark, and get investment in there so we get the state-of-the-art plant, which means we can compete on the world market.\"\nThe MP, who is also Labour's shadow defence secretary, said, following a year of uncertainty for workers, it was \"really incumbent on the company to build up that trust again\".\nMembers of three unions at steel sites in Wales, Scotland, South Yorkshire and Teesside all supported the new pension proposals.\nUnder the proposed changes, the British Steel Pension Scheme will close to future accrual, replaced with a defined contribution scheme with maximum contributions of 10% from Tata and 6% from workers.\nA one-off pension contribution of up to £10,000 could be made to Tata workers in their 50s who plan to retire early.\nTata's offer also included a £1bn investment commitment at Port Talbot and no compulsory job losses.\nDiscussions on the next steps for the steelmaker are continuing.\nBut economy secretary Mr Skates said he wanted to see pledges honoured.\n\"It's for Tata now to keep its side of the deal - to make sure that the £1bn of investment of the next 10 years begins as soon as possible,\" he told BBC Wales' Good Morning Wales programme.\nBoth he and Ms Griffiths also called on the UK government to get behind the steel sector, by examining issues like the costs of carbon and energy taxes on the industry.\nMr Skates also called on UK ministers to use a \"sizable proportion' of a proposed £2bn research and development fund to aid UK steel makers.\n\"I've pressed for the notion of a 'steel deal', which is included in the UK industrial strategy, to be considered at speed,\" said Mr Skates.\nOn Wednesday, Koushik Chatterjee, group executive director Tata Steel and executive director for its European business, said there was \"much more work to be done to make Tata Steel UK more financially sustainable\".\n\"We look to other stakeholders such as the UK government to play their part in addressing the UK's manufacturing competitiveness position especially with relation to energy prices.\"\nThe UK government has described the decision by steelworkers to back the pension deal as \"an important step forward\".\nA spokesperson added: \"The government will play its role in supporting the steel industry to help deliver a sustainable future.\"", "On Monday, SSI said it was mothballing iron and steelmaking at the site for up to five years, citing poor trading conditions and low world steel prices.\nIt said prices would need to recover before the plant could reopen.\nThe focus of the talks is on the mothballing process, which will involve 450 people continuing to work at the Teesside plant.\nPart of the process involves keeping the coke ovens and the power station in operation in order for steel production to resume if it is deemed possible.\nThe Thai-owned company initially \"paused\" production of iron and steelmaking at the site, one of the largest steel plants in the UK, on 18 September.\nIt said it had carried out an assessment of its business and concluded there was \"no other option\".\nFrances O'Grady, general secretary of the TUC, said pressure should be put on the government to devise a rescue plan.\nShe said: \"Energy costs in Britain are on average 80% higher than those in the rest of Europe and do we really think that Angela Merkel would sit by and let the German steel industry go down the pan? Certainly not.\n\"She would be calling in the unions and the company and looking at how we secure the long-term future of what is a strategic industry for the whole economy.\"\nMiddlesbrough MP Andy McDonald, who is also Parliamentary Private Secretary to the shadow chancellor, said that the true number of job losses, once contractors and the supply chain were taken into account, could be about 9,000.\n\"The government should be playing a proper role, not just picking up the pieces,\" he said.\n\"We should be looking at the sustainability of the steel industry, with the government going in as administrators, keeping it active, stockpiling steel if necessary.\"\nBut James Wharton, Conservative MP for Stockton South and Minister for Local Growth and the Northern Powerhouse ruled out re-nationalisation.\n\"An industry which has made a loss over each of the last three years would pass that responsibility to the tax payer,\" he said.\n\"It would present huge issues for the rest of the steel market in this country in terms of how they would then be able to compete with, what will be, a nationalised company.\n\"It's just not something that is going to happen.\"\nJonathan Aylen, an expert on the steel industry from the University of Manchester, said it was hard to see what the government could do.\n\"Of course this leaves a very sour taste because seven years ago the banks, who'd acted completely irresponsibly, were bailed out,\" he said.\n\"And this firm instead invests and innovates for export and then, when the time comes, its fate is ignored.\"\nDuring his maiden speech to the Labour conference in Brighton, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn urged David Cameron to come to the aid of steel workers facing job losses on Teesside \"as the Italian government has done\" with its industry.\nA Downing Street spokesman said ministers were \"working to help those who will lose their jobs at the Redcar steel plant\" and the government was \"doing all we can to help workers effected\".\nThe spokesman said it was \"not clear\" what Jeremy Corbyn was suggesting the government do to help workers in Redcar.\n\"Unemployment black spot\"\nDamian Griffiths, who works at the plant, said: \"It's going to devastate the community, devastate families and I don't think they realise the effect it's going to have on the communities.\n\"It's going to massively affect [me]. I'm married, got a 12 year old daughter, for 13 years, all I've done is work in the steel industry.\n\"They're saying there's jobs, opportunities coming but as far as we can see, in the North East, it's one of the unemployment black spots in the UK.\"\nLinda Robinson's father and grandfather worked at the plant and now her brother and son-in-law both are employed there.\nShe said: \"People are devastated, I mean this is a big employer here, we have high unemployment and I don't know where they'll get jobs. There's no jobs around really, the oil and gas sector's flat so I don't know where they'll look for more work.\"\nUnions are concerned that the future of the plant remains viable.\nRoy Rickhuss, general secretary of the Community union, said: \"We must make sure it's mothballed in a way it can come on again.\n\"We also have to retain skills, keep them in the community, so if it's possible to restart the plant we've got people with the skills to do that.\"", "Teesside steel firm SSI has suspended production at its Redcar blast furnace, blaming rising costs and a slump in demand.\nUnite union branch secretary Kevin Cook said there was only enough coal to keep the coke ovens burning until Friday.\nSSI has declined requests for comment and unions said they had not been told what a \"pause\" in production meant.\nCommunity union chairman Paul Warren said it was \"torture\" for the almost 2,000 workers.\n\"We're getting no answers and no information,\" he said.\n\"We really, really need SSI Thailand to come forward to let us know what's going on.\"\nHe said that although the unions' relationship with the firm's UK board was good, from Thailand the \"silence is just deafening\".\nContractors have been seen withdrawing what they own from the site.\nRedcar Labour MP Anna Turley said there was \"serious risk that the site is in jeopardy\".\n\"We've been desperately looking for an injection of cash, some support from government but, more than that, just the commitment from SSI in Thailand to say that they believe in the future of this site,\" she said.\nWorkers were looking to the government and its support for a Northern Powerhouse to see \"if they put their money where their mouth is\", she said.\nNorthern Powerhouse minister James Wharton said the situation was \"incredibly serious\" and the government had an \"open dialogue\" with SSI in the UK and Thailand.\n\"I don't want to sugar coat what is a very difficult period and difficult decisions that could still be to come,\" he said.\nThe Redcar plant can produce up to 400 slabs of steel a day, each weighing up to 33 tonnes.\nAbout £1bn was invested in reopening the blast furnace.", "Jamie Mines was injured at Swindon's Kendrick Industrial Estate in December.\nThe Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is prosecuting Boundary Scaffolding Ltd and director Jonathon Lee Griffith-Clack for allegedly breaching health and safety law.\nThe case is due at Swindon Magistrates' Court on 20 September.\nFollowing the accident last year, Mr Mines was placed in an induced coma and missed the first Christmas with his five-month-old twins Isabella and Savannah.\nIn June, the 33-year-old returned home but had to be readmitted to hospital to have his left foot amputated after it became severely infected.\nThe HSE said in a statement it was prosecuting the company and Mr Lee Griffith-Clack under the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.\n\"This follows an investigation into an electric shock suffered by a worker at the Kendrick Industrial Estate, Swindon, on 19 December 2016,\" it said.\nA fund to help the semi-professional football player, who is from Frome but now lives in Swindon, has raised £144,000.", "Greybull Capital has become the new owner of Tata Steel's Long products business safeguarding 4,000 jobs at the huge plant in the town.\nWorkers have had to take pay cuts and reductions in their pensions.\nCommunity union said the name showed there was \"the chance of a brighter future for steelmaking in the UK\".\nA ceremony took place at the site at 11:30 BST to unveil the new British Steel logo.\nGreybull, the UK-based investment firm, bought the business last month for a nominal £1 fee and is to plough up to £400m into the plant.\nPeter Hogg, the commercial director of British Steel, said some customers were \"really, really excited\" by the resurrection of the British Steel brand.\nHe said the pay cut was one in a series of measures that allowed the company to return to profit over the last two months.\nBimlendra Jha, chief executive of Tata Steel UK, said he hoped the business would continue to improve and paid tribute to a \"dedicated and hard working\" workforce.\nMartin Foster, Unite's convenor in Scunthorpe, said: \"British Steel's first day of trading marks the beginning of a new chapter not only for Scunthorpe, but UK steelmaking.\n\"It should not be forgotten, though, that today would not have been possible if it had not been for the sacrifices the workforce has made as part of the firm's transformation plan. For many it has involved tough choices about pay and their jobs.\"\nRoy Rickhuss, Community union's general secretary, added: \"British Steel is built on firm foundations with a skilled, experienced and dedicated workforce determined to make a success of the business.\"\nThe Long Products business employs 4,800 people - 4,400 in the UK and 400 in France.\nIt includes the Scunthorpe plant, which makes steel for the rail and construction sectors, two mills in Teesside, an engineering workshop in Workington, a design consultancy in York, and associated distribution facilities, as well as a rail mill in northern France.\nBusiness Secretary Sajid Javid said he believed \"there really is a viable, sustainable future for world-class steelmaking in this country\".\nGreybull describes itself as \"a family office which makes long-term investments in private companies\".\nThe London-based firm is run by financiers Marc and Nathaniel Meyohas and Richard Perlhagen.\nTata Steel is assessing bids for the rest of its UK business including its Welsh site at Port Talbot.", "It said all the bidders were interested in the whole of the loss-making business, and it was not considering offers for parts of it.\nTata said it was also clarifying outstanding points with a \"number of other interested parties\".\nThe sale includes Port Talbot, the UK's largest steelworks, as well as sites at Newport and Rotherham.\nAbout 4,000 people work at Port Talbot, some 1,300 at Newport, and about 1,200 at Rotherham. Tata also has operations at Corby, Shotton and Teesside.\nTata's Scunthorpe operation, which employs more than 3,000 people, has already been sold to investment firm Greybull Capital for a nominal £1.\nThe company said all the bidders had progressed to the next stage of the sale process, where they would now receive further information about the business.\nGroup executive director of Tata Steel, Koushik Chatterjee, said: \"We believe that the bids being taken forward offer future prospects of sustainability for the UK business as a whole.\"\nThe UK government had been involved in helping to decide which bids would progress, he said.\nThe government has promised to support any buyer of Tata Steel UK by taking up to a 25% stake in a new business and lending hundreds of millions of pounds.\nIndia's Tata Steel put the loss-making business up for sale earlier this year and is hoping for a quick sale process.\nThe company has not publicly set a deadline for any deal, but has made it clear it cannot sustain its £1m-a-day losses indefinitely and wants certainty for workers and customers.\n\"The sales process will continue as announced earlier in an expedited and robust manner,\" Mr Chatterjee said.", "Robert Faulds was severely injured when his right arm was pulled into machinery at the bottle-top factory in Bridge of Allan in September 2013.\nThe 58-year-old said United Closures and Plastics blamed him for the accident and demoted him.\nThe firm was also fined £12,000 after admitting health and safety breaches at Stirling Sheriff Court.\nMr Faulds, from Falkirk, was working on a printing machine when the accident happened.\nHis arm was dragged into the offset machine and crushed.\nThe Health and Safety Executive took United Closures and Plastics to court over the incident, where the firm admitted failing to do a sufficient risk assessment of the machine and failing to ensure proper access.\nThe firm was issued the £12,000 fine at Stirling Sheriff Court last week.\nMr Faulds, who was off work for more than 14 months after the accident, said he was sacked from his role as production engineer for gross misconduct but was offered another job as an operator.\nThe father-of-four said: \"The thing that upsets me is that all the way through this, they have put the blame on me. They said I did an unsafe act and had a flippant attitude to safety.\n\"My arm was smashed to pieces and I am now 30% disabled in it.\n\"The money will change my life because I will be able to buy a flat and look to the future.\n\"But I am now doing a menial job packing boxes when I was working as a skilled engineer before. But who is going to employ me when it's on my record that I was sacked for gross misconduct?\n\"I have never had an apology but I would just like them to clear my record.\"\nMr Faulds' lawyer, Tracey McKenzie from Thompsons Solicitors, said: \"Robert is a very hard-working man who was following instructions from his employer when he was seriously injured.\n\"He was used as a scapegoat and sacked before being reinstated in a lower role.\n\"His employers were then prosecuted and pled guilty to breaches of health and safety law which totally vindicates Robert's version of events.\n\"He has now been left with a life-changing injury and his future employment prospects have been greatly affected - it is only right that he has been paid this substantial level of compensation.\"\nNo-one from United Closures and Plastics was available for comment.", "The plant's owners Phillips 66 said the incident happened at 09:30 GMT.\nIn a statement, the company said the pair had been taken to Pinderfields Hospital in Wakefield by air ambulance.\nThe company has given no more information on the employees' injuries and said it was offering support and assistance to their families." ]

[ "DOROTHY SAYER VOL II. PREMIUM LORD WIMSEY COLLECTION 4 NOVELS + 18 SHORT STORIES + 11 MONTAGUE EGG SHORT STORIES. Murder Must Advertise, The Nine Tailors, ... Honeymoon (Timeless Wisdom Collection) - Kindle edition by DOROTHY SAYERS. Mystery, Thriller & Suspense Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com. DOROTHY SAYER VOL II. PREMIUM LORD WIMSEY COLLECTION 4 NOVELS + 18 SHORT STORIES + 11 MONTAGUE EGG SHORT STORIES. Murder Must Advertise, The Nine Tailors, ... Honeymoon (Timeless Wisdom Collection) Assets: Attractive plots, enjoyable use of English according to the interwar period, social status of charachters, location,... Witty dialogues, and a bit more than a dash of irony about the culture of landed aristocracy of the times. Although somewhat improbable, Lord Peter Wimsey remains an appealing charachter to me. Finely crafted entertainment, written with skill and wit by an educated author who displays a fine command of her style." ]

[ "Lord Peter Wimsey - The Unpleasantness at Bellona Club - YouTube 3,614 views Last updated on Sep 3, 2013 Lord Peter Death[1] Bredon Wimsey is a fictional character in a series of detective novels and short stories by Dorothy L. Sayers, in which he solves mysteries; usually, but not always, murders. A bon vivant who solves mysteries for his own amusement, Wimsey is an archetype for the British gentleman detective. Born in 1890 and ageing in real time, Wimsey is described as being of average height, with straw-coloured hair, a beaked nose, and a vaguely foolish face. Reputedly his looks were patterned after those of academic Roy Ridley.[2] He also possessed considerable intelligence and athletic ability, evidenced by his playing cricket for Oxford University while earning a First. He created a spectacularly successful publicity campaign for Whifflet cigarettes while working for Pym's Publicity Ltd, and at age 40 was able to turn three cartwheels in the office corridor, stopping just short of the boss's open office door (Murder Must Advertise). Among Lord Peter's hobbies, apart from criminology, is collecting incunabula. He is an expert on matters of food (especially wine) and male fashion, and on classical music. He excels at the piano, including Bach's works for keyboard instruments. One of Lord Peter's cars is a 12-cylinder (\"double-six\") 1927 Daimler four-seater, which (like all his cars) he calls \"Mrs. Merdle\" after a character in Little Dorrit (by Charles Dickens) who \"hated fuss\".", "A Study in Scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle · OverDrive: eBooks, audiobooks and videos for libraries Fiction Literature \"A Study in Scarlet\" is a detective mystery novel written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, introducing his new characters, \"consulting detective\" Sherlock Holmes and his friend and chronicler, Dr. John Watson, who later became two of the most famous characters in literature. Conan Doyle wrote the story in 1886, and it was published the following year. The book's title derives from a speech given by Holmes to Doctor Watson on the nature of his work, in which he describes the story's murder investigation as his \"study in scarlet\": \"There's the scarlet thread of murder running through the colourless skein of life, and our duty is to unravel it, and isolate it, and expose every inch of it.\" (A \"study\" is a preliminary drawing, sketch or painting done in preparation for a finished piece.) The story, and its main characters, attracted little public interest when it first appeared. Only 11 complete copies of Beeton's Christmas Annual 1887 are known to exist now and they have considerable value. Although Conan Doyle wrote 56 short stories featuring Holmes, \"A Study in Scarlet\" is one of only four full-length novels in the original canon. The novel was followed by \"The Sign of the Four\", published in 1890. \"A Study in Scarlet\" was the first work of detective fiction to incorporate the magnifying glass as an investigative tool.", "Character profile for George Smiley from Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (page 1) [close] George Smiley George Smiley is a fictional character created by John le Carré. Smiley is an intelligence officer working for MI6 (often referred to as \"the Circus\" in the novels and films), the British overseas intelligence agency. He is a central character in the novels Call for the Dead; A Murder of Quality; Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy; The Honourable Schoolboy; and Smiley's People, and a minor character in a number of others, including The Spy Who Came in From the Cold, The Looking Glass War and The Secret Pilgrim. [close] George Smiley is a fictional character created by John le Carré. Smiley is an intelligence officer working for MI6 (often referred to as \"the Circus\" in the novels and films), the British overseas intelligence agency. He is a central character in the novels Call for the Dead; A Murder of Quality; Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy; The Honourable Schoolboy; and Smiley's People, and a minor character in a number of others, including The Spy Who Came in From the Cold, The Looking Glass War and The Secret Pilgrim. edit descriptions of this character", "LibriVox Librivox Acoustical liberation of books in the public domain Menu Sir Arthur Conan DOYLE (1859 - 1930) The Hound of the Baskervilles is the third of the four crime novels written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle featuring the detective Sherlock Holmes. Originally serialised in The Strand Magazine from August 1901 to April 1902, it is set largely on Dartmoor in Devon in England's West Country and tells the story of an attempted murder inspired by the legend of a fearsome, diabolical hound of supernatural origin. Sherlock Holmes and his companion Dr. Watson investigate the case. This was the first appearance of Holmes since his intended death in \"The Final Problem\", and the success of The Hound of the Baskervilles led to the character's eventual revival. - Summary by Wikipedia Genre(s): Literary Fiction, Detective Fiction Language: English", "SparkNotes: Hound of the Baskervilles: Context Hound of the Baskervilles Table of Contents Plot Overview Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle was born in Edinburgh on May 22, 1859, the third of ten children. Early on, he evinced a talent for storytelling, wowing teachers and friends in Jesuit school with his yarns. His first publication came in 1879 with \"The Mystery of Sasassa Valley\" in the Chambers's Journal. At the same time, Doyle pursued a career in medicine at Edinburgh University, going on to become a surgeon of some renown at Southsea, Portsmouth. While a medical student, he worked with Dr. Bell, who was exceptionally observant. Doyle thought he would write stories, said Doyle, \"in which the hero would treat crime as Dr Bell treated disease and where science would take the place of chance.\" In a series of stories—starting with A Study in Scarlet and The Sign of the Four—Doyle produced the memorable character, Sherlock Holmes, a detective who relied on facts and evidence rather than chance. In 1891, six \"Adventures of Sherlock Holmes\" showed up in Strand magazine, with six more appearing the next year. By 1893, The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, as the collected stories were now called, was a huge hit. The public mourned Holmes' death in \"The Final Problem.\" Doyle changed his decision to pursue more serious literary endeavors in 1901, when finances and public pressure yielded The Hound of the Baskervilles. The same year that The Hound of the Baskervilles was published, Doyle produced a piece of propaganda on the Boer War, and the author was knighted for his efforts. Doyle continued putting out Sherlock Holmes stories, including the collected Return of Sherlock Holmes. Later in life, when his son was killed in the first World War, Doyle devoted himself to his chosen faith, spiritualism. The notion of life after death and the idea of psychic abilities inform the character of Doyle's famous detective. Sherlock Holmes is a man who can see beyond appearances and link ostensibly unrelated facts into a coherent whole. The Sherlock Holmes stories also owe a debt to Edgar Allan Poe, who is often credited with having created the modern detective tale. The Gold Bug (1843), The Murders in the Rue Morgue (1841), The Mystery of Marie Rogêt (1842–1843), and The Purloined Letter (1844) are all, in a sense, precursors to Conan Doyle's detective stories. More Help", "Lord Peter Wimsey | fictional character | Britannica.com fictional character Nancy Drew Lord Peter Wimsey, fictional character, a monocled aristocratic dilettante turned professional detective, created by English writer Dorothy L. Sayers in Whose Body? (1923). After his graduation from the University of Oxford , Wimsey, who is the second son of the duke of Denver, finds that he has a gift for crime detection. His social role is as a dapper young bachelor of wit and charm, a gentleman-scholar, and a lover of rare books. Supported by his private income and by the companionship and service of his loyal manservant Bunter , Wimsey often works closely with Inspector Parker of Scotland Yard (who marries Wimsey’s sister). He eventually marries Harriet Vane, a writer of mystery books, whom he meets in Strong Poison (1930) and clears of a murder charge. The Wimsey novels and short-story collections include Clouds of Witness (1926), Unnatural Death (1927), Lord Peter Views the Body (1928), The Five Red Herrings (1931), Have His Carcase (1932), Murder Must Advertise (1933), The Nine Tailors (1934), Gaudy Night (1935), and Busman’s Honeymoon (1937). The Wimsey mysteries were adapted for both motion picture and television. Learn More in these related articles: Dorothy L. Sayers June 13, 1893 Oxford, Oxfordshire, Eng. Dec. 17, 1957 Witham, Essex English scholar and writer whose numerous mystery stories featuring the witty and charming Lord Peter Wimsey combined the attractions of scholarly erudition and cultural small talk with the puzzle of detection. Bunter (fictional character) fictional character, the perfect valet in the Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries of Dorothy L. Sayers. Bunter served bravely as a sergeant under (then Captain) Wimsey during World War I, and he remained in Wimsey’s service after the war. A knowledgeable bibliophile, an expert photographer, and a... Corrections? Updates? Help us improve this article! Contact our editors with your feedback. MEDIA FOR: You have successfully emailed this. Error when sending the email. Try again later. Edit Mode Submit Tips For Editing We welcome suggested improvements to any of our articles. You can make it easier for us to review and, hopefully, publish your contribution by keeping a few points in mind. Encyclopædia Britannica articles are written in a neutral objective tone for a general audience. You may find it helpful to search within the site to see how similar or related subjects are covered. Any text you add should be original, not copied from other sources. At the bottom of the article, feel free to list any sources that support your changes, so that we can fully understand their context. 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Close Article Title: Lord Peter Wimsey Website Name: Encyclopædia Britannica Date Published: April 21, 2015 URL: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Lord-Peter-Wimsey Access Date: January 20, 2017 Share", "The Nine Tailors - Dorothy Leigh Sayers - Google Books Dorothy Leigh Sayers 3 Reviews https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Nine_Tailors.html?id=CMJvCV9WZ8MC The Nine Tailors is Dorothy L. Sayers's finest mystery, featuring Lord Peter Whimsey, and a classic of the genre. � The nine tellerstrokes from the belfry of an ancient country church toll out the death of an unknown man and call the famous Lord Peter Whimsey to investigate the good and evil that lurks in every person. Steeped in the atmosphere of a quiet parish in the strange, flat fen-country of East Anglia, this is a tale of suspense, character, and mood by an author critics and readers rate as one of the great masters of the mystery novel. What people are saying - Write a review As Always.... User Review - milesjay213 - Overstock.com The product arrived from Overstock on time. It was well packaged for shipping and arrived in the same condition it would have been in had I slid it off a shelf in a bookstore. Im always impressed with my interactions with this site! Read full review This is one of the best mysteries I have ever read. Selected pages A Full Peal of Grandsire Triples 67 lord peter is called into 97 lord peter is taken from lead 128 tailor paul is called before 183 lord peter is called wrong 281 A Short Touch of Stedmans Triples 299 the waters are called out 367 the waters are called home 377 the bells are rung down 393 View all » Common terms and phrases All Book Search results &raquo; About the author (1934) Dorothy Sayers's impressive reputation as a contemporary master of the classic detective story is eclipsed only by Agatha Christie's. Sayers was born in Oxford and attended Somerville College, where she received a B.A. in 1915 and an M.A. in 1920. During that period, Sayers worked as an instructor of modern languages at Hull High School for Girls in Yorkshire and as a reader for a publisher in Oxford. Her early literary work was in poetry; she published several volumes and served as an editor for the journal Oxford Poetry from 1917 to 1919. Sayers also worked as a copywriter for a major advertising firm in London. She was president of the Modern Language Association from 1939 to 1945 and of the Detection Club in the 1950s. Around 1920 Sayers developed the idea for her detective hero Lord Peter Wimsey, and she soon published her first mystery, Whose Body? (1923), in which Lord Peter is introduced. For the next dozen or so years, Sayers wrote prolifically about Wimsey, creating in the process what many critics of the genre consider to be the finest detective novels in the English language. Perhaps her most famous Wimsey mystery was The Nine Tailors (1934). Although Sayers essentially followed the classic form in her detective fiction---a formula in which the plot assumes a greater importance than do the characters---Sayers maintained that a detective hero's greatness depended on how effectively the character was portrayed. All but one of Sayers's mysteries feature Lord Peter Wimsey. By the late 1930s, Sayers had apparently tired of writing detective fiction. She stated in 1947 that she would write no more mysteries, that she wrote detective fiction only when she was young and in need of money. Thus saying, Sayers turned her attention to her early loves, medieval and religious literature, spending her remaining years lecturing on and translating Dante (see Vol. 2).", "Collecting The Mysterious Affair At Styles by Christie, Agatha - First edition identification guide Reviews (0) Written in 1916, during World War I, The Mysterious Affair at Styles is Agatha Christie’s first published novel. The story introduces the author’s world-famous Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot, as well as Lieutenant (later Captain) Hastings and Inspector (later Chief Inspector) Japp. The mystery begins with Poirot settling in England near the home of Emily Inglethorp. When Emily is killed, Poirot must apply his detective skills to solve the mystery based on a few seemingly random clues. The book includes maps of the house, the murder scene, and a drawing of a fragment of a will. First edition identification and notes After having been rejected by six publishers, John Lane (US) produced the story in novel form for the first time in October 1920. (The Mysterious Affair at Styles had previously been serialized in the UK’s The Times in February of that year.) The first edition of the novel has a hardcover with 296 pages. Beneath the dustjacket illustrated by Alfred James Dewey, the book is covered in pale brown cloth with dark green lettering on the upper cover and spine. Other collectible or notable editions The Bodley Head, John Lane’s UK company, published the first British edition of The Mysterious Affair at Styles in January of 1921. However, the first Canadian edition, published by Ryerson Press in 1920, actually precedes the first British edition. In 1976, following Christie’s death, Dodd, Mead and Company published a commemorative edition of the novel. Review this book (Want a chance to win $50 ? Log-in or create an account first!) (You'll be automatically entered for a chance to win $50!)", "Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie - Agatha Christie Synopsis Murder on the Orient Express Just after midnight, a snowdrift stops the Orient Express in its tracks. The luxurious train is surprisingly full for the time of the year, but by the morning it is one passenger fewer. An American tycoon lies dead in his compartment, stabbed a dozen times, his door locked from the inside. Isolated and with a killer in their midst, detective Hercule Poirot must identify the murderer – in case he or she decides to strike again. The impossible could not have happened, therefore the impossible must be possible in spite of appearances. Agatha Christie, Murder on the Orient Express More about this story A group of passengers trapped on the Orient Express in a snow storm with a murdered body and a Belgian detective to keep them company: Murder on the Orient Express is one of Agatha Christie’s most famous stories. It's an intricate mystery revolving around a group of characters cut off from the world and Poirot exhibits not only the power of his little grey cells but his concern and compassion for humanity. The underlying plot of the story was one Agatha Christie pulled from the headlines at the time, the abduction of Charles Lindbergh’s son, a traumatic real-life mystery involving murder and extortion that had yet to be solved when Murder on the Orient Express was published. As for the setting, Christie had long professed a love of the Orient Express, finally achieving her dream of travelling on it in 1928 with her first solo trip abroad. In writing the story, she painstakingly noted the details of the carriages; clues such as the position of door handles would prove vital to Poirot’s investigation. Several fans, in fact, have followed in Christie’s footsteps, double-checking her descriptions. Need it be said – the little grey cells solve once more the seemingly insoluble. Mrs Christie makes an improbable tale very real, and keeps her readers enthralled and guessing to the end. Times Literary Supplement In 2017 a 20th Century Fox feature film adaptation of Murder on the Orient Express is set for release, directed by Kenneth Branagh, who will also take on the role of Hercule Poirot. Joining him are Penelope Cruz, Johnny Depp as Ratchett, Willem Dafoe as Hardman, Michelle Pfeiffer as Mrs. Hubbard, Judi Dench portraying Princess Dragomiroff, Daisy Ridley as Mary Debenham, Tom Bateman as Bouc, Derek Jacobi portraying Masterman, and Leslie Odom Jr. playing Doctor Arbuthnot. Dutch actor Marwan Kenzari will play Michel, Josh Gad will play Hector MacQueen, and Lucy Boynton will portray Countess Andrenyi. The first adaptation of Murder on the Orient Express was the award-winning 1974 film featuring an all-star cast and Albert Finney as Poirot. Other stars included Sean Connery, Lauren Bacall, and Ingrid Bergman, who won an Oscar for her role as Greta Ohlsson. The film won nine awards in total and had an additional sixteen nominations in 1975. It was remade for TV in 2001, with Alfred Molina as Poirot. The story was adapted in 2004 by BBC Radio 4, with John Moffatt in the role of Poirot and 2006 saw the story become a PC game. Playing as a new character, Antoinette Marceau, gamers work alongside Poirot to solve the mystery of Ratchett’s death. In 2007 the story became a graphic novel, adapted by François Rivière, but it wasn’t until 2010 that David Suchet appeared on the famous train. David Suchet also did the Poirot voice-over in the PC game. Although generally faithful to the original novel, this TV film emphasised the religious and moral themes of the story as Poirot grappled with the nature of justice, clearly struggling with his final decision. Did you know? Murder on the Orient Express first appeared as a serialisation in the Saturday Evening Post under the title Murder on the Calais Coach. Murder on the Orient Express was ranked second in 2015's World Favourite Christie vote. A new Fox feature film adaptation of Murder on the Orient Express is due for release in 2017. Kenneth Branagh is directing the film and will play the rol", "1000+ images about A murder mystery, an Agatha Christie... on Pinterest | Hercule poirot, Book and Short stories Ariadne Oliver is a successful detective novelist that appears in two short stories (with Parker Pyne in Parker Pyne Investigates) and seven novels (six of them with Hercule Poirot). See More", "The Nine Tailors (Lord Peter Wimsey Mysteries): Amazon.co.uk: Dorothy L Sayers: 9780450001000: Books The Nine Tailors (Lord Peter Wimsey Mysteries) Add all three to Basket Some of these items are dispatched sooner than the others. Show details Buy the selected items together This item:The Nine Tailors (Lord Peter Wimsey Mysteries) by Dorothy L Sayers Paperback £8.99 Sent from and sold by Amazon. FREE Delivery on orders over £10. Details Only 13 left in stock (more on the way). Sent from and sold by Amazon. FREE Delivery on orders over £10. Details Only 3 left in stock (more on the way). Sent from and sold by Amazon. FREE Delivery on orders over £10. Details Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought Page 1 of 1 Start over Page 1 of 1 This shopping feature will continue to load items. In order to navigate out of this carousel please use your heading shortcut key to navigate to the next or previous heading. Enter your mobile number or email address below and we'll send you a link to download the free Kindle App. Then you can start reading Kindle books on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required. Apple To get the free app, enter your mobile phone number. or Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here , or download a FREE Kindle Reading App . Product details Publisher: Hodder Paperbacks; New Impression edition (1 Sept. 1959) Language: English Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 2.4 x 17.7 cm Average Customer Review: Review She brought to the detective novel originality, intelligence, energy and wit. (P.D. James) Dorothy L Sayers is one of the best detective story writers. (E. C. Bentley Daily Telegraph) I admire her novels ... she has great fertility of invention, ingenuity and a wonderful eye for detail. (Ruth Rendell) A truly great storyteller. (Minette Walters) Book Description By B. Bennetts on 15 Mar. 2011 Format: Paperback Verified Purchase This, the ninth of Sayers's eleven full length Wimsey novels, is the one that lifts her above the category of twentieth-century female detective novelist, and places her among the literary greats. It is a thoroughly satisfying mystery - sophisticated, complex, intellectually challenging. Everything in the plot is there for a reason; and the final explanation is ingenious and unexpected. It is Sayers, so there is more than just a plot. The characters have a depth and realism far beyond the caricatures of Agatha Christie. They have individuality and weaknesses and baggage and unexpected strength in the face of adversity. They are, in short, people. Wimsey himself appears more relaxed in this than in most of the other books. A far cry from the self-conscious man-about-town of 'Whose Body?' or the nervy war veteran of 'The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club', this is the Wimsey hinted at in 'Five Red Herrings': the born and bred countryman, at ease with himself, almost classless at times, an incomer who at once instinctively understands and is accepted by this tiny community. The community itself is minutely and deftly drawn too - partly through its supporting characters, partly through Sayers's own narrative voice, stronger and more distinctive in this book than in the others, and often taking on the cadence and the overtones of a local character to remarkable effect. And then there are the most powerful and enduring characters of all: the bells of Fenchurch St Paul and the place itself. `The Nine Tailors' is to the Fens what `The Return of the Native' is to the heathlands of Dorset. Read more › 57 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Sending feedback... Thank you for your feedback. Sorry, we failed to record your vote. Please try again By Playwright on 17 July 2010 Format: Paperback No word of a lie; this really is one of my all time favourite novels. I think that Dorothy Sayers was head and shoulders above all the other Queens of the Golden Age of Crime and even now only P D James and Ruth Rendell come close. This is one of her best novels; not just a detective story but a touching portrait of rural England between the wars and a", "What does a tailor do with his plonker Press suits 15 Churches - MBA - 217 View Full Document What does a tailor do with his plonker Press suits 15 Churches in Malta have two what Clocks right and wrong confuse devil 16 Marnie Nixon what Deborah Kerr Natilie Wood Audrey Hepburn Dubbed in their singing voices 17 Which Italian tractor maker tried making cars in 1960s Ferruchio Lamborghini 18 What first appeared on Page 1 of the Times 3 May 1966 News stories 19 Caruso put what in Nellie Melbas hand singing tiny hand frozen Hot Sausage 20 What would you do with an Edzell blue Eat it - it’s a potato 21 In what month did the Russian October revolution take place November 22 Nobody's perfect is the last line in which classic comedy film Some Like it Hot 23 How did Buffalo Bill stick to one glass whisky a day Quart glass 24 In 1760 what means of personal transport was invented Roller Skates 25 What three counties were Eliza Dolittle taught to pronounce Hertford Hereford Hampshire 26 In Hitchcock's film The Trouble with Harry - what was the trouble He was dead 27 What was the first gramophone record made from Tinfoil 28 What did George Washington soak his wooden teeth in for taste Port 29 George V1 Mozart Al Jolson Casanova - which organisation Freemasons 30 Who said \"Its so long since sex I forget who gets tied up\" Joan Rivers 31 St Appolonia Patron Saint of what Toothache 32 What is measured on the Gay-Lussac scale This is the end of the preview. Sign up to access the rest of the document. TERM 10000 general knowledge questions and answers www.cartiaz.ro No Questions Quiz 8 Answ 10000_questions 16", "A Study in Scarlet | Baker Street Wiki | Fandom powered by Wikia A Study in Scarlet Share Ad blocker interference detected! Wikia is a free-to-use site that makes money from advertising. We have a modified experience for viewers using ad blockers Wikia is not accessible if you’ve made further modifications. Remove the custom ad blocker rule(s) and the page will load as expected. A Study in Scarlet Jefferson Hope A Study in Scarlet is the first Sherlock Holmes book written by author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle . The story was first published in Beeton's Christmas Annual in 1887, though it was at the time not very popular, and later reissued in novel format. Contents Edit A Study in Scarlet is a detective mystery novel written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle , which was first published in 1887. It is the first story to feature the character of Sherlock Holmes , who would later become one of the most famous and iconic literary detective characters, with long-lasting interest and appeal. The book's title derives from a speech given by Holmes to his companion Doctor Watson on the nature of his work, in which he describes the story's murder investigation as his 'study in scarlet': \"There’s the scarlet thread of murder running through the colourless skein of life, and our duty is to unravel it, and isolate it, and expose every inch of it.\" Conan Doyle wrote the novel at the age of 27. A general practice doctor in Southsea, England, he had already published short stories in several magazines of the day, such as the periodical London Society. The story was originally titled A Tangled Skein, and was eventually published by Ward Lock & Co. in Beeton's Christmas Annual 1887, after many rejections. The author received £25 in return for the full rights (although Conan Doyle had pressed for a royalty instead). The novel was first published as a book on July 1888 by Ward, Lock & Co., and featured drawings by the author's father, Charles Doyle. A second edition appeared the following year and was illustrated by George Hutchinson; a year later in 1890, J. B. Lippincott Co. released the first American version. Numerous further editions, translations and dramatisations have appeared since. The story, and its main character, attracted little public interest when it first appeared. Only ten copies of Beeton's Christmas Annual 1887 are known to exist now and they have considerable value. Although Doyle wrote fifty-six short stories featuring Holmes, A Study in Scarlet is one of only four full-length novels in the original canon. The novel was followed by The Sign of the Four , published in 1890. Synopsis Edit Dr John H. Watson meets the great detective Sherlock Holmes and together they solve a case of murder, in which Watson is amazed at Holmes' \"science of deduction\". The novel is split into two quite separate halves. The first is titled \"Being a Reprint from the Reminiscences of John Watson , M.D., Late of the Army Medical Department\". This part is told in first person by Sherlock Holmes ' friend Dr Watson, and describes his introduction in 1881 to Holmes through a mutual friend and the first mystery in which he followed Holmes' investigations. The mystery revolves around a corpse found at a derelict house in Brixton, London with the word \"RACHE\" scrawled in blood on the wall beside the body. A Study in Scarlet Edit Holmes firmly resolves to solve the case despite the fact that he will not be given any credit of it. For this purpose, he makes up a plan using a wedding ring that had been lost at the crime scene. After placing an ad in the newspaper, asking for the ring owner, Holmes is visited by an old woman who claims the ring. Holmes follows \"her,\" who may or may not be a man in disguise, but the person manages to escape. Minutes later, Holmes is visited by one of the police detectives assigned to the case, who claims that the case has been solved and the murderer is now jailed. After the detective finishes explaining how he solved the case, a second police detective ( Lestrade ) arrives to announce that there has been a second murder - it is clear t", "The Nine Tailors by Dorothy L. Sayers | LibraryThing kaitanya64 | Jan 3, 2017 | The Nine Tailors by Dorothy L. Sayers My introduction to Lord Peter Wimsey was via the 1970s TV series staring the excellent Ian Carmichael as the aristocratic sleuth. I recall my mother and I being amused to see Ian Carmichael in this role when we thought of him primarily as Bertie Wooster in the original 1960s TV adaptation of Jeeves with Dennis Price playing the unflappable valet. In my mind the Lord Peter Wimsey tales were simply cosy crime stories. That is how I perceived them in the TV show and that is how I thought of the novels until reading The Nine Tailors. I have to confess that this is the first Dorothy L Sayers novel I have read. It did not disappoint but until my curiosity was aroused by a few un-sleuth-story-like allusions I did not think the tale was anything other than a cosy crime novel. My reaction to the book on the cosy crime story level is that it very much fits the bill of the golden age of crime novels and is enjoyable in that context alone. I must admit the book brought out the aristocracy element more than I had recalled from the shows and I was finding myself a bit annoyed at the deference shown to someone with a title on the basis of nothing other than their privileged position. Lord Peter did, of course, have his reputation as rather a good sleuth. The first thing that raised my suspicion that Sayers was doing something more than writing a detective story was the mention of Abbot Thomas. The name “Abbot Thomas” rang bells (how apropos) at the back of my mind. “Of course,” thought I, M. R. James. He has a story called [The Treasure of Abbot Thomas]. There’s a coincidence. I wonder if Abbot Thomas was a real person and his tomb is in the fens.” Next I found intricate descriptions of carvings on the pews in the parish church. This reminded me of M.R. James’s story [The Stalls of Barchester Cathedral]. I was subsequently amused to see a chapter starting with a quote from [Wylder’s Hand] by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu, the nineteenth century writer of horror stories whose tale, [Carmilla], is considered to have influenced Bram Stoker in his writing of [Dracula]. Le Fanu’s work is not as well known generally as it deserves to be so I was intrigued at Sayers quoting one of these pieces. My curiosity roused I turned to the omnipresent Google. I entered, “The Nine Tailors Abbot Thomas Le Fanu”, and clicked the search icon. The first result of my search was: The link took me to a paper in the academic journal, “The Irish Journal of Gothic and Horror Stories”. This paper is entitled: “Providence and Intertextuality: LeFanu, M. R. James, and Dorothy Sayers' The Nine Tailors” It was not just my imagination. I was not the first one to notice the links. It appears Sayers was a great fan of the Gothic tale and very fond of works of Le Fanu and M R James. Being a fan of these tales too I found another level of pleasure in reading The Nine Tailors. Finding out something about an author’s interests can open up an entirely new dimension of enjoyment when reading their work. You can read the academic paper for yourself. I will not repeat the way it explains how The Nine Tailors is structured as a Gothic novel and how it contains many of the tropes that define the genre. I had been wondering about the inclusion of the final part of The Nine Tailors as it was not necessary to resolve or explain the crime. The academic paper demonstrates that this section serves the purpose of finishing the story in the style of a Gothic novel. I had been thinking that while I enjoyed reading this novel I probably would not deliberately chase down more stories by Dorothy L Sayers. Now that I know she has hidden Gothic allusions and structures in her works I am more enthusiastic about reading more of her books. As it happens, my wife is a great fan of Sayers’ novels so we have a few of them around the house. I wonder if my wife knew she was reading Gothic stories. ( ) 2 pgmcc | Mar 11, 2016 | My least favorite of her books, actually. I went into it thinking i", "Five Red Herrings (TV Mini-Series 1975) - IMDb Five Red Herrings Solve the mystery with Lord Peter Whimsey, based on the book by Dorothy L Sayers. Stars: a list of 917 titles created 30 Jun 2011 a list of 1931 titles created 11 Nov 2012 a list of 115 titles created 05 Oct 2013 a list of 57 titles created 25 Oct 2013 a list of 289 titles created 18 Nov 2014 Title: Five Red Herrings (1975– ) 8.3/10 Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. Murder Must Advertise (TV Mini-Series 1973) Mystery When one of the copy writers of Pym's Advertising Agency meets his death by falling down a spiral staircase, a new \"writer\" joins the staff to investigate the matter. Stars: Ian Carmichael, Mark Eden, Rachel Herbert Clouds of Witness (TV Mini-Series 1972) Drama Lord Peter's brother, the Duke of Denver is accused of murdering their sister Mary's fiancé. It's up to Lord Peter and his faithful man Bunter to untangle all the clues and the ... See full summary » Stars: Ian Carmichael, Glyn Houston, Mark Eden When one of the members of the Bellona Club passes away, Lord Wimsey is brought in to determine the time of death for testamentary purposes. Stars: Ian Carmichael, Terence Alexander, Anna Cropper The Nine Tailors (TV Mini-Series 1974) Mystery The title refers to the nine strokes of a church bell to announce the death of a man. In this adaptation of Dorothy L. Sayers's intricate, nostalgic, and atmospheric novel of the same name,... See full summary » Stars: Ian Carmichael, Glyn Houston, Elizabeth Proud A gentleman sleuth solves mysteries and falls in love with a detective novelist. Stars: Harriet Walter, Edward Petherbridge, Richard Morant Bertram Wooster, a well-intentioned, wealthy layabout, has a habit of getting himself into trouble and it's up to his brilliant valet, Jeeves, to get him out. Stars: Stephen Fry, Hugh Laurie, Robert Daws Drawing on her love of theatre and art, New Zealand novelist Ngaio Marsh created elegant crime-puzzlers full of quirky characters with hidden agendas, all brought meticulously to life in this BBC series. Stars: William Simons, Patrick Malahide, Belinda Lang Amateur detective Miss Jane Marple investigates the murder of a young woman whose body is found in the library at Gossington Hall, home of Colonel and Mrs. Arthur Bantry. Stars: Joan Hickson, Debbie Arnold, John Bardon Inspector Robert Lewis and Sergeant James Hathaway solve the tough cases that the learned inhabitants of Oxford throw at them. Stars: Kevin Whately, Laurence Fox, Clare Holman At a reception for a fading film star making a screen comeback, a gushing, pushy fan is poisoned by a drink apparently meant for the actress. Director: Norman Stone 19 December 1976 (USA) See more » Also Known As: Lord Peter Wimsey: Five Red Herrings See more » Filming Locations: Did You Know? Trivia None of the stations shown are the real locations as the railway line closed in 1965. See more » Connections http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0072502/ reviewed by Jay Rothermel By the early 1940s many creative artists were pushed toward defeatism, capitulation to the bourgeoisie, and sometimes outright reaction. The rise and triumph of fascism in Germany, the class collaborationist policies of the Stalin leadership in the USSR, and the fall of republican Spain were all prelude to September 1, 1939. In Dorothy L. Sayers this is seen in her complete abandonment of novel writing after Busman's Honeymoon (1937) and embrace of religious obscurantism. Her play cycle The Man Born to be King (1941) and the later Dante translations are today a mere pendant, ignored completely by those who know her true faith in craft and social life was best expressed in the Wimsey stores, filled with life and exalted aestheticism. The contempt and dismissiveness leveled at Dorothy l. Sayers' novels about Lord Peter Wimsey runs like an unbroken thread through most criticism of the genre. Damned by damns and faint praise, Sayers is depicted as a woman who made a fool of herself over the dete", "PD James' The Adam Dalgliesh Chronicles [DVD]: Amazon.co.uk: Roy Marsden, Penny Downie, Ian Bannen, Mairead Carty, Simon Chandler, Susannah York, Pauline Collins, John Vine, Ricci Harnett, Cathryn Harrison, Sean Scanlan, Kenneth Colley, Gemma Jones, Wendy Hiller, Martin Jarvis, Mel Martin, Joss Ackland, Barry Foster, Bill Nighy, Geoffrey Palmer, Ross Devenish, Andrew Grieve, Gareth Davies, John Davies, Ronald Wilson, John Gorrie, Herbert Wise: DVD & Blu-ray Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images ? Product Description All ten cases of PD James' Adam Dalgliesh Chronicles starring Roy Marsden in the title role collected and uncut. Dalgliesh, who holds the high position of Commander in the Metropolitan Police Service at New Scotland Yard in London, is an intensely cerebral and private person. He writes poetry, a fact which his colleagues are fond of reminding him. Several volumes of his poetry have been published. Dalgliesh lives in a flat above the Thames at Queenhithe in the City of London and drives a Jaguar. He's singular and even perhaps quirky in his methodology but seldom does he fail to get his man - a modern day Sherlock Holmes, one might say. The first ten of PD James' thirteen novels about the atypical detective were adapted for TV miniseries' by Anglia TV with Marsden as Dalgliesh; 'Cover Her Face' (1985), 'A Mind To Murder'(1995), 'Unnatural Causes' (1993), 'Shroud For A Nightingale' (1984), 'The Black Tower' (1985), 'A Certain Justice' (1998), 'Death of an Expert Witness' (1983), 'A Taste For Death' (1988), 'Devices and Desires' (1991), and 'Original Sin' (1997) Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought Page 1 of 1 Start over Page 1 of 1 This shopping feature will continue to load items. In order to navigate out of this carousel please use your heading shortcut key to navigate to the next or previous heading.", "Baker Street Irregulars | Baker Street Wiki | Fandom powered by Wikia Edit The Special Operations Executive (SOE), tasked by Winston Churchill to \"Set Europe ablaze\" during World War II had their headquarters at 64 Baker Street and were often called the Baker Street Irregulars after Sherlock Holmes 's fictional group of boys employed \"to go everywhere, see everything, and overhear everyone,\" as they spied about London. The Baker Street Irregulars is a society of Sherlock Holmes enthusiasts that was founded in 1934. The Irregulars appear as the main characters in Sherlock Holmes and the Baker Street Irregulars: The Fall of the Amazing Zalindas, a 2006 novel by Tracy Mack and Michael Citrin. Wiggins is again the leader of a gang of street urchins. Other major characters include Ozzie, a scrivener's apprentice; Rohan, an Indian boy; Elliot, from an Irish tailor's family; Pilar, a Gypsy girl; and little Alfie. The Irregulars help solve the mysterious deaths of three tightrope walkers at a circus. Hazel Meade's troop of children serve as couriers and lookouts in the \"Baker Street Irregulars\" during the lunar revolution of Robert A. Heinlein's The Moon is a Harsh Mistress (1966). Two BBC television series have been made starring the Irregulars: The Baker Street Boys (1983) and Sherlock Holmes and the Baker Street Irregulars (2007). Comics involving the Irregulars include The Irregulars from Dark Horse Comics, [1] and Les Quatre de Baker Street [2] In June 2010 it was announced that Franklin Watts books, a part of Hachette Children's Books planned to release a series of four children's graphic novels in spring 2011 called Sherlock Holmes: The Baker Street Irregulars set during the three years that Sherlock Holmes was believed dead, between The Adventure of the Final Problem and The Adventure of the Empty House by writer Tony Lee and artist Dan Boultwood. In the BBC modern adaptation Sherlock , Holmes uses a wide network of homeless people as an information network. In the CBS modern adaptation Elementary , Holmes uses Teddy and his crew of street venders as informants to help him track down M . Holmes also refers to Harlan Emple, a maths experts whose talents he occasionally employs, as \"one of my Irregulars\" when Emple is a suspect in a murder.", "Agatha Christie | All The Tropes Wiki | Fandom powered by Wikia All The Tropes Wiki Share Ad blocker interference detected! Wikia is a free-to-use site that makes money from advertising. We have a modified experience for viewers using ad blockers Wikia is not accessible if you’ve made further modifications. Remove the custom ad blocker rule(s) and the page will load as expected. File:Agatha christie 8194.jpg Donna: Agatha, people love your books, they really do, they’re gonna be reading them for years to come. — Doctor Who , \"The Unicorn and the Wasp\" The Queen of the classic mystery, ranked with Arthur Conan Doyle as the greatest mystery writer of all time. Her stories are elaborately plotted puzzle pieces, full of false identities and faked deaths. She enjoyed a very long career; her first novel, The Mysterious Affair at Styles, was published in 1920, while her final novel, Sleeping Murder, was published posthumously in 1976. Among the best-selling authors of all time [1] . Her principal detectives were: Hercule Poirot , a retired Belgian police detective turned P.I. Fastidiously neat, he pretended to be a Funny Foreigner in order to put his clients and suspects off their guard. Agatha Christie herself eventually tired of the character, but since fans enjoyed him, she continued to write Poirot stories. He appeared in 33 novels and 51 short stories. Miss Jane Marple . Seemingly a fluffy old spinster, her mind was as sharp as her knitting needles; having lived in small towns her whole life, nothing about human nature ever surprised her. She appeared in 12 novels and 20 short stories. Tommy and Tuppence Beresford, a husband and wife team. Their adventures were more like spy novels than straight mysteries, though they did contain elements of classic detective novels. They appeared in five books: four novels and a short story collection, Partners in Crime. Christie also wrote 16 novels which did not feature any of her series detectives. These ranged from traditional mysteries with one-shot detectives to Thrillers which placed more emphasis on action than detection. The latter were almost universally the most poorly received of Christie's works. While most of the stories are nominally set in the year of publication, in practice they all take place in the time of the Genteel Interbellum Setting . Of Christie's series detectives, only the Beresfords age in real time. Poirot and Marple both begin as elderly characters and over the course of Christie's 56-year career, age roughly 20 years at most. (This matches a line from the final Poirot novel Curtain, in which it is stated that it has been \"over twenty years\" since the first adventure, The Mysterious Affair at Styles, which came out in 1920 and presumably was set in the present day.) Christie possessed an uncanny ability to subvert the reader's expectations. Being well aware of the mystery conventions of the time, she was frequently able to subvert them for a Twist Ending . For example, Christie knew that there were certain characters, who by virtue of their role in the story, the reader would not suspect. To drive home the point that the reader should suspect everybody , she would frequently make one of these characters the murderer, writing books where (all examples might not be listed): The way too obvious suspect (who therefore of course won't turn out to be the real killer, now will they?) really was the killer after all, ( The Mysterious Affair at Styles), (The Hollow), (Towards Zero), (arguably Cards on the Table), (Death on the Nile), (Hickory Dickory Dock) one of the murder victims was guilty, ( And Then There Were None ), (Curtain) the supposed intended target was guilty, (Peril at End House), (The Mirror Crack'd), ( A Murder Is Announced ), (Crooked House) a child was guilty, (Crooked House) the murders looked like the work of an Ax Crazy killer, but the murderer was neurotypical,( The ABC Murders ) She invented most of the above twist endings. For a list of her works see: Agatha Christie Bibliography Most of the books in the main series have been televised, and ma", "The Last Detective : Leslie Thomas : 9781934609675 The Last Detective US$14.30 US$14.95 You save US$0.65 Free delivery worldwide Add to basket Add to wishlist Description Dangerous Davies earned his nickname the same way that fat men nicknamed Tiny earn theirs. He is known as the last detective not because there are no others like him, but because he is, in nearly every instance, the last boy picked for the team. With little actual work to occupy him, Dange has plenty of time to pick through the cases that everybody else has forgotten. When he stumbles across a piece of ancient history, it looks like the perfect way to keep him out of the real coppers' way. show more Product details 139.7 x 200.66 x 15.24mm | 458.13g Publication date New York, NY, United States Language", "Lord Peter Wimsey marries Harriet Vane - Oct 08, 1937 - HISTORY.com Lord Peter Wimsey marries Harriet Vane Share this: Lord Peter Wimsey marries Harriet Vane Author Lord Peter Wimsey marries Harriet Vane URL Publisher A+E Networks Fictional detective Lord Peter Wimsey finally marries Harriet Vane, a prickly mystery writer he has pursued through several novels, on this day in 1937 in the novel Busman’s Honeymoon. The novel, by Dorothy Sayers, was one of the last featuring the two English sleuths. Sayers, whose father was an Oxford teacher and minister, became one of the first women to receive a degree from Oxford. Although the family moved to the country when Sayers was 4, she received an excellent education in Latin, French, history, and mathematics from her father and won a scholarship to Oxford. She received highest honors on her final exams in 1915. Although women at the time were not granted degrees, the rules changed retroactively in 1920. After Oxford, Sayers worked as a poetry editor in Oxford and a teacher in France. She returned to London to work as a freelance editor and advertising copywriter for England’s largest ad agency. She later turned her experiences at the agency to comic fodder in Murder Must Advertise (1933). She began writing detective fiction in the early 1920s, and her first novel, Whose Body?, was published in 1923. It introduced the educated and fanciful Lord Peter Wimsey, who over the course of some dozen novels and many short stories emerged as a complex, intriguing character, comic and lighthearted at times but plagued with nightmares and nervous disorders from his service in World War I. In Strong Poison (1930), Wimsey solves a mysterious poisoning and wins freedom for the wrongly accused mystery novelist Harriet Vane, with whom he falls in love. In Gaudy Night (1935), set at an Oxford reunion, Vane finally accepts Wimsey. The pair are married and set off on a comical honeymoon, accompanied by Wimsey’s faithful butler, Bunter, in Busman’s Honeymoon (1937). Sayers herself had an unhappy romance in the early 1920s and had a child in 1924. Two years later, she married Scottish journalist Oswald Atherton Fleming, who became an invalid soon afterward. She spent the next 25 years caring for him, until his death in 1950. With G.K. Chesterton, Sayers founded the Detection Club, a group of mystery writers. She edited an important anthology called Great Short Stories of Detection, Mystery and Horrors from 1928 to 1934. After the late 1930s, she wearied of detective fiction, and having won enough financial independence to write what she liked, she returned to her academic roots and wrote scholarly treatises on aesthetics and theology, as well as translations of Dante and others. Related Videos", "The Detectives - Show News, Reviews, Recaps and Photos - TV.com EDIT 'The Detectives' was a British sitcom that ran for 5 series between 1993 and 1997. It starred Jasper Carrott, Robert Powell and George Sewell. Jasper and his long time friend Robert Powell (As Jasper said 'He was once Jesus Christ and now I've got him down to my level), play Bob Louis and Dave Briggs, two detective constables so hapless, it is inconceivable that they ever graduated from Hendon police school. Their boss, Chief Superintendent Cottam (Sewell), although weary of their ineptitude, somehow managed to cope enough not to fire them on the spot. The show was a spin off of a regular sketch on Jasper Carrott's 'Canned Carrott' series. There are subtle differences from the sketches to the TV series apart from the extended duration and introduction of other characters. For instance, in the sketches, Dave Briggs was married, yet both Bob and Dave are single in the series, and it is made clear that they both lack romantic experience.moreless", "Francis Durbridge (Author of The Tyler Mystery) edit data Francis Henry Durbridge was an English playwright and author born in Hull. In 1938, he created the character Paul Temple for the BBC radio serial Send for Paul Temple. A crime novelist and detective, the gentlemanly Temple solved numerous crimes with the help of Steve Trent, a Fleet Street journalist who later became his wife. The character proved enormously popular and appeared in 16 radio serials and later spawned a 64-part big-budget television series (1969-71) and radio productions, as well as a number of comic strips, four feature films and various foreign radio productions. Francis Durbridge also had a successful career as a writer for the stage and screen. His most successful play, Suddenly at Home, ran in London’s West End for over Francis Henry Durbridge was an English playwright and author born in Hull. In 1938, he created the character Paul Temple for the BBC radio serial Send for Paul Temple. A crime novelist and detective, the gentlemanly Temple solved numerous crimes with the help of Steve Trent, a Fleet Street journalist who later became his wife. The character proved enormously popular and appeared in 16 radio serials and later spawned a 64-part big-budget television series (1969-71) and radio productions, as well as a number of comic strips, four feature films and various foreign radio productions. Francis Durbridge also had a successful career as a writer for the stage and screen. His most successful play, Suddenly at Home, ran in London’s West End for over a year. ...more", "Inspector Alleyn Mysteries - Show News, Reviews, Recaps and Photos - TV.com Inspector Alleyn Mysteries EDIT Welcome to The Inspector Alleyn Mysteries guide at TV.com. This detective drama was based on the novels by Ngaio Marsh, a contemporary of Agatha Christie's. Her detective, Chief Inspector Roderick Alleyn, was an Old Etonian at Scotland Yard from the 1930s onwards. In the pilot, Simon Williams played Alleyn, but he wasn't available in 1993, so Patrick Malahide took over the role. After the first series the BBC ordered three more episodes, all broadcast as specials during 1994. Fresh Off the Boat Clean Slate NEW Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Decline and Fall NEW More Info About This Show Categories Themes real police work, period piece, mysterious forces, high stake situations, British TV Important: You must only upload images which you have created yourself or that you are expressly authorised or licensed to upload. By clicking \"Publish\", you are confirming that the image fully complies with TV.com’s Terms of Use and that you own all rights to the image or have authorization to upload it. Please read the following before uploading Do not upload anything which you do not own or are fully licensed to upload. The images should not contain any sexually explicit content, race hatred material or other offensive symbols or images. Remember: Abuse of the TV.com image system may result in you being banned from uploading images or from the entire site – so, play nice and respect the rules! Choose background:", "The Mystery of the Clerical Detective The Mystery of the Clerical Detective It�s no mystery why priests and religious are natural choices to be the protagonists of mystery fiction. What is a mystery, after all, but the story of a confrontation between good and evil, an attempt to restore justice to creation, and to shed light into the darkness? This is what ministry is about, as well, so calling the ordained or vowed forces of good to the scene of a crime makes perfect literary sense. When we consider the question of clerics and mysteries, the first figure most of us think of is G.K. Chesterton�s Father Brown. The first Father Brown story was published in 1910 in the Saturday Evening Post, years before Chesterton had even converted to Roman Catholicism. Forty-eight Father Brown stories were published before Chesterton�s death, and for many, the unassuming Catholic priest, who solved mysteries through close observation and intuition, remains the model clerical detective, unmatched by any subsequent efforts by other authors. Not that these authors haven�t tried. Their success depends on the same factors by which we judge any piece of fiction in general and mystery fiction in particular: is the writing evocative or flat and cliched? Are the characters three-dimensional, or are they just types who do little but lie flat on the page? Do the situations in the narrative arise organically and naturally, or are they obvious constructs? And what does the religious identity of the detective add to the story? Is it relevant to the tale, or is it merely a gimmick in a narrative that could it have just as well have been told with a gas station attendant searching for clues instead? Let�s see how this works: Kate Gallison has penned a series featuring an female Episcopal priest named Mother Lavinia Grey. In Grave Misgivings , Mother Grey must figure out why the grave of a young woman�s grandfather isn�t where it�s supposed to be, and then who could have murdered an old enemy of the same grandfather. The plot isn�t much to begin with, and it�s not helped by simplistic writing or enhanced by the fact that the sleuth at hand is a priest. There�s nothing distinctively spiritual about her perspective, her job doesn�t impact the case at all, nor does she bring any particular moral weight to the resolution. Just a little better, which means still not very good, is the series featuring Sister Mary Helen, written by a real religious sister, Carol Ann O'Marie. I read Death of an Angel , in which the intrepid older Sister Mary Helen solves the mystery of a local murder-rapist, and tries to help a sad young woman with problems of her own. Granted, here the protagonist acts out of her vocation - she's compassionate, and one of the victims of the murderer was an acquaintance of hers. But the mystery itself is amazingly clumsy, and the characters are flatter than my floor. Not exactly a good read. Jesuit priest and novelist Fr. Brad Reynolds is worlds beyond either Gallison�s or O'Marie's attempts in at least one of the volumes of his series featuring Father Mark Townsend, solving mysteries up in Washington state. Cruel Sanctuary is a surprisingly gripping book, rich with detail, psychological truth , a plot in which events are consistent and reasonable, rather than randomly picked from the Red Herring Basket, and a protagonist whose spiritual life actually impacts his actions as he gets involved in trying to figure out why street kids are getting murdered in Seattle. He's concerned about the street kids, but what gets him engaged in the mystery is that a note from him to one of the kids that he'd attached to some money is found on the dead body of the boy, implicating the priest, if not in his murder, at least in some people's minds, an inappropriate relationship with the boy. He's got to find out who's really responsible, not only out of compassion for the boy and his family, but to clear his own name as well. It makes sense. His attempts to knit the clues together ring true. A lot of people like the mysteries of Notre Dame Th", "Rear Window Rear Window (1954) Directed by Alfred Hitchcock. James Stewart, Grace Kelly, Wendell Corey, Thelma Ritter. (112 min.) Alfred Hitchcock was the only director of his day most filmgoers knew by name. His face and form familiarized by his popular tv program, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, contemporary critics often denigrated him as too commercial, a mere entertainer. The New Yorker called Rear Window \"claptrap\" and the single set \"foolishness.\" Bosley Crowther in the New York Times wrote plainly \"Mr. Hitchcock's film is not significant.\" When Francois Truffaut published his admiring book-length interview with Hitchcock in the early 1960s, a young American film professor advised him, \"This book will do more harm to your reputation than your worst film.\" Rear Window was adapted from a story in Dime Detective Magazine called \"It Had To Be Murder\" by Cornell Woolrich, writing as William English. On the surface, the film is a pure expression of 1950s movie magic, with attractive movie stars photographed in lush Technicolor. But, it is clearly intended as an allegory of movie going. James Stewart's LB Jeffries sits in the dark and watches his neighbors' apartments as we watch the screen, his observations revealing his fears and fantasies. And, for a Catholic such as Hitchcock, the sins of omission and comission (thinking about doing something bad and actually doing it) are equally wicked. In Woolrich's story, the hero had no profession. In Rear Window, he is a photojournalist. Donald Spoto, one of Hitchcock's biographers (the one with his mind in the gutter) speculated that he was inspired by Ingrid Bergman's love for photojournalist Robert Capa, a romance observed by Hitchcock while shooting Notorious with Bergman. Spoto suggests Hitchcock was fascinated by Capa's indifference to a beautiful woman about whom he could only fantasize. Other writers have suggested a closer autobiographical tie is the villain Torvald's resemblance to producer David O. Selznick, with whom Hitchcock had often tussled for creative control. Grace Kelly's character was modelled intentionally on Anita Colby, a cover girl who became an advertising executive at Harper's Bazaar, then continued her career in Hollywood as a combination fashion and beauty stylist and personal assistant to the aforementioned Selznick. Edith Head did Kelly's chic wardrobe for Rear Window and it is one of her best. The color of the celadon green suit was specified by Hitchcock, much as he had demanded Kim Novak's grey one in Vertigo, over Novak's protests. Head wrote in The Dress Doctor she loved working with Kelly: \"She came up the stairs briskly that first day, looking like a girl just out of Bryn Mawr--the whitest of white gloves, the whitest of blouses, the grey tailored suit, the tailored hat, the most immaculate scrubbed look! We're used to a certain amount of careless dressing in Hollywood; nothing about Grace was careless. Even better than the clothes was the quiet, shy, interested manner; she becomes articulate and gay as she gets to know you, and hers is a childlike ability to be pleased. In the pale frothy negligee of Rear Window, she positively giggled at her image in the mirrors. \"Why, I look like a peach parfait!\" she said. The heart of the film is the biggest, most complex set ever built on a Paramount sound stage, consuming 25% of the film's total budget. The 31 apartments were lighted individually from a huge console that could simulate both day and night. Rear Window was shot roughly in chronological order. Hitchcock used a short wave radio and the apartment dwellers wore flesh colored headsets, so they could be directed from afar. Their movements were limited, because", "The Ruth Rendell Mysteries - Show News, Reviews, Recaps and Photos - TV.com The Ruth Rendell Mysteries EDIT Welcome to The Ruth Rendell Mysteries guide at TV.com. The guide takes in over thirty hours of crime drama productions, based on the novels and short stories of Ruth Rendell. In most of these, veteran actor George Baker plays Chief Inspector Reg Wexford of Kingsmarkham (a fictional town in the real English county of Hampshire), with Christopher Ravenscroft as his partner-in-detection, Inspector Mike Burden. Wexford's wife Dora is played by Louie Ramsay. She had known George Baker for many years, but they became close while working on the series and married in real life. The Inspector Wexford stories were filmed on location in and around Romsey, Hampshire, and most were broadcast under The Ruth Rendell Mysteries banner. In 1992, having exhausted the supply of Wexford stories, Meridian started adapting other Rendell mysteries, thus belatedly justifying the use of the confusing umbrella title for the show. The final episode was broadcast under the Inspector Wexford banner, and this is the title used for DVD releases and repeat broadcasts of the Wexford stories on the ITV network.moreless", "Between the Lines - Show News, Reviews, Recaps and Photos - TV.com Between the Lines EDIT Welcome to the guide to Between the Lines at TV.com. This high quality police drama from the BBC concerned on the activities of the Complaints Investigation Bureau (CIB), investigating allegations of corruption at all levels of the police force, challenging the public's perception of the police force as the bastions of law, order and justice. Detective Superintendent Tony Clark Neil Pearson, a morally ambiguous career-minded high-flyer, headed a CIB team comprising Detective Inspector Harry Naylor Tom Georgeson and Detective Sergeant Maureen Connell Siobhan Redmond. As the officers discovered, the higher the seniority, the harder to prove the corruption existed, and a key cast member successfully evaded discovery for two seasons. The premise of the show, created by The Bill stalwart J.C. Wilsher, afforded the writers the freedom to explore all aspects of police corruption, while exploiting the entrenched hostility of other officers to the activities of the CIB. The nature of the work, as team members found themselves morally conflicted by their duty to uphold the law, and a separate focus on Clark's compromised personal life, provided an essential dramatic dynamic and earned the series the epithet \"Between the Sheets\". With its pioneering, hard edged realism combined with soap style storylines, the series set new standards for police dramas that would be followed over the coming decade. Each season ended on a cliffhanger, and its third and final season ended on an unresolved storyline.moreless", "Book Review: A Study in Scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle | Blogcritics Home / Books / Book Reviews / Book Review: A Study in Scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle Book Review: A Study in Scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle Posted by: manoflabook November 19, 2012 in Book Reviews , Books 1 Comment Please Share... 0 0 A Study in Scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle is the very first novel featuring English detective Sherlock Holmes and his friend Dr. Watson. The story was written in 1886 and published in 1887 and marks the first appearance of the famous sleuth. Dr. Watson, coming back from military service in India and Afghanistan, needs a place to live. A friend introduces him to Sherlock Holmes and they ende up rooming together in an apartment in Baker Street, London. Holmes, a “consulting detective” and an opium addict, is soon on his first case, a murder, and taking his new friend with him. Watson is constantly amazed by Holmes’ brilliance, arrogance, immense knowledge in some areas, and yet very little in others. Holmes explains that he only needs to know certain subjects for his occupation and not let the rest clutter up his mind. A Study in Scarlet is a strange book with a strange structure which is actually two stories thinly connected. The first part is the more interesting, with the legendary meeting between the detective and the doctor, and an introduction to the characters as well as to the murder mystery. The second part shifts from London to Utah where we get a somewhat sympathetic back-story to the murder and his deed. This, I feel, is one of those books in which it is better to know not so much the plot, but what will happen in the future in the context of the Sherlock Holmes universe and stories. The story gives Holmes his ability to show off his analytical powers as well as his attitude, which makes him a great detective but a lousy human being. The book is awkward in its construction and I kept re-reading some parts thinking I totally missed something. This is the first Holmes story I’ve read since I was 12 or so; I remembered them all being short and thought that maybe A Study in Scarlet is constructed of two short stories, one a detective novel and the other not. However, that wasn’t so and everything was resolved for me at the end. One can certainly tell the immense talent the author has as the mystery unfolds. The dialogue is witty, filled with dry humor, and entertaining. The characters are engaging and interesting and it’s a nice touch that the protagonist’s roommate tells the story. While A Study in Scarlet makes for a weird reading experience, I did enjoy the book and the introduction to the great detective. I must admit, however, that if I wasn’t already familiar with Holmes I probably would not have read the other books in the series (but I did). 106 pages 3 days ago Kieren The book is a truly engaging story and one of it’s best features is it’s suspense. Since it is written by Watson, he can only know so much. To add to that Sherlock doesn’t like sharing his method working therefore making it harder for the reader to understand how Sherlock found the things he did. In the late former half and early latter half of the book Doyle very cleverly added suspense for nearly half the book about how Sherlock caught the murderer. Through this suspense you don’t want to put down the book and you just keep reading. The book is great, filled with murder and suspense. I would give it 4.5/5 stars Kieren 8En5", "C. Auguste Dupin - Private Investigator / Detective C. Auguste Dupin C. Auguste Dupin Edgar Allan Poe created a famous fictional detective named C. Auguste Dupin which was first introduced to the people through a story named “The Murders in the Rue Morgue”. This fictional story was created by Edgar Allan Poe in the year 1841 and then the character C. Auguste Dupin was again featured in the story “The Purloined Letter”. Although, C. Auguste Dupin is not a detective by profession, but while solving the mysteries, he always tries to put himself in the criminal’s mind so that he can hit on every clue that links to the mystery and helps in solving the case. Introduction When Edgar Allan Poe created this fictional character of C. Auguste Dupin, the term “DETECTIVE” was not coined. This is the reason that all the stories written by Edgar clearly mention that C. Auguste Dupin is not a professional detective. The character of C. Auguste Dupin gave rise to many other characters which were professional detectives and this made the fictional detective stories very interesting. C. Auguste Dupin belongs to a quite wealthy family, but with the troublesome twist and turns in life, the family faces very unpleasant situations which leave them in a situation to fulfill basic necessities only. The narrator of the story is unidentified, but C. Auguste Dupin stays with the narrator in Paris. Dupin is very fond of enigmas and the first series of this fictional detective start with an investigational case in Paris where a mother and a daughter were murdered. The second story where C. Auguste Dupin was featured was “The Mystery of Marie Roget” and this story was based on a factual account. A lady named Mary Roger was a saleswoman in Manhattan’s cigar shop and was murdered for some reasons. Her body was found floating in the river Hudson and on this true event, Edgar wrote this story, “The Mystery of Marie Roget”. The third story “The Purloined Letter” was about a stolen letter that was filched from the French Queen. Investigating Technique C. Auguste Dupin is a very intelligent character who solves the cases cleverly. One technique that Dupin always reflects upon is keeping himself in the mind of the criminal and then thinking as per his perspective. This technique helps the character Dupin to solve all the cases and get to the root of evidences. His creative imagination to find the evidences have made him very popular among the readers and this effective technique makes him capable of solving all the cases. Most of the clues that he finds as links to the cases are actually found from the newspapers and other reports, which emphasizes reading and writing aspects. In addition to this, the method of finding the evidences differs in all the stories, but the basic of keeping himself in the criminal’s mind remains the same. In one of the stories, C. Auguste Dupin solves the case purposefully, so as to prove innocence of a man who was charged for what he had not done and so Dupin does not accepts the financial reward. This is what makes the fictional detective so admired by the people.", "Sherlock Holmes series by Arthur Conan Doyle Sherlock Holmes series 201 works, 13 primary works Sherlock Holmes is a fictional consulting detective in London ~1880-1914 created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Holmes, master of disguise, reasoned logically to deduce clients' background from their first appearance. He used fingerprints, chemical analysis, and forensic science. The majority of the stories were first published in The Strand Magazine accumulated to four novels and fifty-six short stories set 1880-1914. All but four stories are narrated by Holmes's friend Sherlock Holmes is a fictional consulting detective in London ~1880-1914 created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Holmes, master of disguise, reasoned logically to deduce clients' background from their first appearance. He used fingerprints, chemical analysis, and forensic science. The majority of the stories were first published in The Strand Magazine accumulated to four novels and fifty-six short stories set 1880-1914. All but four stories are narrated by Holmes's friend and biographer, Dr John H. Watson; two are narrated by Holmes himself (The Blanched Soldier and The Lion's Mane) and two others are written in the third person (The Mazarin Stone and His Last Bow). In two stories (The Musgrave Ritual and The Gloria Scott), Holmes tells Watson the main story from his memories, while Watson becomes the narrator of the frame story. The first and fourth novels, A Study in Scarlet and The Valley of Fear, each include long omniscient narration of events unknown to Holmes or Watson. ...more", "Ten Rules for Mystery Genre Writing In mystery writing, plot is everything. Gabe Palmer/Stone/Getty Images Because readers are playing a kind of game when they read a detective novel, plot has to come first, above everything else. Make sure each plot point is plausible, and keep the action moving. Don't get bogged down in back story or go off on tangents. 2 Introduce both the detective and the culprit early on. As the main character , your detective must obviously appear early in the book. As for the culprit, your reader will feel cheated if the antagonist , or villain, enters too late in the book to be a viable suspect in their minds. 3 Introduce the crime within the first three chapters of your mystery novel. The crime and the ensuing questions are what hook your reader. As with any fiction, you want to do that as soon as possible. 4 The crime should be sufficiently violent -- preferably a murder. For many readers, only murder really justifies the effort of reading a 300-page book while suitably testing your detective's powers. However, also note that some types of violence are still taboo including rape, child molestation, and cruelty to animals. 5 The crime should be believable. While the details of the murder -- how, where, and why it's done, as well as how the crime is discovered -- are your main opportunities to introduce variety, make sure the crime is plausible. Your reader will feel cheated if the crime is not something that could really happen. 6 The detective should solve the case using only rational and scientific methods. Consider this part of the oath written by G.K. Chesterton for the British Detection Club : \"Do you promise that your detectives shall well and truly detect the crimes presented to them using those wits which it may please you to bestow on them and not placing reliance on nor making use of Divine Revelation, Feminine Intuition, Mumbo Jumbo, Jiggery-Pokery, Coincidence, or Act of God?\" 7 The culprit must be capable of committing the crime. Your reader must believe your villain's motivation and the villain must be capable of the crime, both physically and emotionally. 8 In mystery writing, don't try to fool your reader. Again, it takes the fun out. Don't use improbable disguises, twins, accidental solutions, or supernatural solutions. The detective should not commit the crime. All clues should be revealed to the reader as the detective finds them. 9 Do your research. \"Readers have to feel you know what you're talking about,\" says author Margaret Murphy . She has a good relationship with the police in her area, and has spent time with the police forensic team. Get all essential details right. Mystery readers will have read a lot of books like yours; regard them as a pretty savvy bunch. 10 Wait as long as possible to reveal the culprit. They're reading to find out, or figure out, whodunit . If you answer this too early in the book, the reader will have no reason to continue reading. Continue Reading", "Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. A Biographical Introduction Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. A Biographical Introduction [ Victorian Web Home —> Visual Arts —> Authors —> Arthur Conan Doyle —> Next ] Introduction Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is known all over the world as the creator of one of the most famous fictional characters in English literature, the master detective Sherlock Holmes, but he was much more than the originator of modern detective literature. He was a man of many talents and pursuits: a medical doctor, multi-talented sportsman, prolific and excellent storyteller, keen patriot and a staunch imperialist, as well as a campaigner against miscarriages of justice. He tried his hand in many genres of fiction and poetry. He wrote detective stories, historical and social romances, political essays and an innumerable number of letters to the press, public figures, acquaintances and friends, to his adored mother and other family members. Last but not least, he was a formidable public speaker and a dedicated Spiritualist, who investigated and popularised supernatural phenomena. A Victorian to the bone, he cherished the ideals of duty, chivalry, honour and respectability. The origin of the surname Doyle had an ancient Irish surname, ranking twelfth in the list of the most common surnames in Ireland. It can be derived from the Gaelic Dub-Ghaill ('dark foreigner'), the name which the Celts gave to the Vikings, who began settling in Ireland more than 1,000 years ago, or from the Anglo-Norman surname of d'Oillys, who arrived in England with William the Conqueror and then settled in Ireland. There is a controversy about the full name of the author of the Sherlock Holmes stories. He always signed himself: A. Conan Doyle. Whether Conan is a middle name or the first part of the compound surname is a matter of dispute among Doylists. The entry in the register of baptisms of St. Mary's Cathedral in Edinburgh gives 'Arthur Ignatius Conan' as his Christian names, and 'Doyle' as his surname. Ancestors The Doyle family originated in Ireland and were dedicated Roman Catholics. Arthur Conan Doyle's grandfather, John Doyle (c. 1797-1868), a tailor, was born in Dublin into a devoutly Catholic family. All John's siblings entered Catholic religious orders, but John, who exhibited artistic talents, decided to become a painter. In 1820, he married Marianne Conan, a daughter of a Dublin's tailor. In c. 1822, John and Mary Doyle moved to London with their baby daughter and rented a house in Soho, which was inhabited by artists and writers. John wanted to become a portrait painter, but soon he gained fame as a political cartoonist under the pseudonym of HB. In 1833, he moved with his wife and children to a large house near Hyde Park at 17 Cambridge Terrace, where he subsequently entertained notable people including Sir Walter Scott, Charles Dickens, Benjamin Disraeli, William Makepeace Thackeray, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, John Millais, and Edwin Lanseer. In 1832, Charles Altamont Doyle, Sir Arthur's father, was born. He grew up with one sister and three brothers. All his brothers made splendid careers: James William Edmund (1822-1892) was a historian and history illustrator; Richard (1824-1883) became a Punch cartoonist like his father; and Henry Edmund (1827-1892) became an art critic and a painter. In 1869, he was appointed Director of the National Gallery of Ireland. Charles (1832-1893), Arthur's father, was not as successful as his elder brothers. Although he exhibited an original artistic talent, he was not able to earn a living from his paintings. At the age of 17, he moved to Edinburgh, Scotland, and got the job of a clerk in the Office of Works as an architectural draftsman. He rented lodgings in the New Town, a central area of Edinburgh, in a house owned by a Roman Catholic widow Catherine Foley. In 1855, he married his landlady's daughter, Mary Josephine (1837-1921), aged seventeen, with whom he had nine children, seven of whom survived infancy. Childhood Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle was born on May 22, 1859, at 11 Picardy Place, Edinburgh. He was baptis" ]

[ "This is due to the sebaceous gland that produce sebum to lubricate the hair and skin. As the hands (palms) and the feet (sole) have no hair, it is less likely to have the type of acne caused by a clogged sebaceous gland." ]

[ "Our skin is oily to help prevent the skin from drying out and to waterproof our hair and skin. The sebaceous glands produces sebum (the oil), and our face has a high density of these glands since it is more sensitive. Acne (and others) is usually produced when the sebum clogs the sebaceous glands in our skin, leading to an infection. So, because our face produces more oils and is more sensitive than other parts of the body, it is more likely to develop acne, etc.", "I think it’s because the acne is caused by bacteria- and the cut isn’t. So, it’s an infection whereas the cut isn’t infected and should just heal from being cut.(unless it gets infected). The acne lesions on our face also are in contact with sweat, dirt, oil and bacteria on our fingers, where on other parts of our body, not nearly as much. One time I kept pouring hydrogen peroxide on one on my face, thinking it would heal faster- but hydrogen peroxide should only be used once, because it will eat away at your skin if used repeatedly. I can’t remember what the term is for it...Best thing to do is wash 2-3 times a day, exfoliate gently, and try not to mess with them.", "Ok so I see this from 2 presepctives One is from the point of view of pimples, I image thats what you mean by breaking out: Different parts of our body are more in contact with different things. Our face, for instance, is constantly being touched by our hands. This is why people who tend not to touch their face have better acne (less pimples). Its also the case of sweat and galnds. We sweat a lot more on our face, chest, and back, due to this our body also produces oils in that area and hence why we break out & #x200B; The second is in terms of literal nerves: There are more nerves in the area. For instance in your elbow, which you use all the time, there is no point in having high amount of nerves since it would hurt to put it down. On the other hand (no pun intended) our hands, which we constantly need for feeling, need more nerves as we use it more often.", "No one is completely sure exactly what causes acne, but we know some things that put you at higher risk. Acne is a disease of the glands that secrete sebum onto hair follicles, sebum is a waxy/oily substance that protects the skin. These glands are most dense on the face. Then hormones, especially \"male hormones\" (androgens) cause these glands to secrete even more, providing a nice oily, anaerobic (no oxygen) little bubble for the bacteria that causes acne to grow in. The glands that are most sensitive to these hormones are found in face/neck/chest/back, which is another reason why those are the sites of acne flares.", "Acne is caused when pores on your face are blocked up and become inflamed. This could have genetic roots, because, if your genes make you produce more oils in your skin, the extra oil could clog up your pores more easily than someone who does not have that trait. Thus, you would have a lot more acne than that other person, purely due to genetics.", "The skin structure of scalp is basically the same as other parts of the body. However, since it has more lipid glands and sweat glands compared with other parts of the body, it becomes dirty very easily from sweat and sebum. Scalp has a lower barrier function and therefore it has a lower ability to maintain and replenish moisture compared to skin on other parts of the body. Therefore, it is more likely for skin problems to occur on the scalp than on other areas of skin.", "Med student here. Your question is actually a very brilliant one, it would make sense that if bacteria go to sweaty places, and all of our body sweats, then the door should be all over us, right? Well, yes and no. You do have the same bacteria in those areas too, just not as many to be noticeable. Why? Well, your armpits are almost always warm, and your groin is always covered (it's warm), and I'm guessing you wear socks and shoes (warm). The common factor here is actually temperature, and not necessarily sweat. Bacteria LOVE warm places, it's where they proliferate the most. For parts of the body that are more exposed (like the back, the face, the legs or arms) it's harder for bacteria to proliferate (even if you sweat) because the environmental conditions don't allow it. So, places in your body that have a more constant temperature are where you'll find them the most, such as the armpits, groin and feet.", "The cause of foot odor is bacteria. The reason why foot odor is so bad and not common with other parts of your body, is that the bacteria growing in your shoes or on your feet are doing so in moist and air tight environments. Your feet get moist from sweat, so bacteria are able to thrive in that environment. Wearing nylon or cotton socks makes it worse since it increases the moisture captured and also make your feet warmer. A cheap fix is to use baking soda. Also, rubbing your feet twice a day with rubbing alcohol will help alleviate the odor. You can also try to buy shoes that are more \"breathable\" which allows moisture to escape your shoes. Wearing wool socks may help too (wool doesn't absorb water easily and is more breathable).", "> Does oily skin or the presence of oily/greasy hair over skin cause acne? Or is this simply a common correlation? Or not even that? Yes, oils can contribute to acne. One of the bacteria that causes acne is called [S. aureus](_URL_0_) and has an enzyme called lipase. Lipase degrades biological lipids, like the ones on your skin. So the oil on your skin can act as a food source for the bacteria, boosting infections. The second part of your question I don't feel as if I could answer properly, so I hope more commenters come to play", "Armpits are not the only part that noticeably smells. The entire body noticeably smells though the armpits, crotch, and feet smell more strongly. The reason that these smell more strongly is that they are more moist due to how we dress or the fact that they are skin on skin contact and therefore they are better at growing the colonies of bacteria that produce the body odors that humans have.", "Hands, feet, the face, the mouth and the external genitals have a very large number of nerve endings that give a high level of the sense of touch in those parts. Other parts of the body are a lot less sensitive. Some internal organs sense no physical pain at all. It's pretty easy to see why the body has evolved this way: a good sense of touch in the hands and feet is required for climbing trees, peeling fruit, working with tools etc., and being able to accurately feel and taste what you're chewing on can also be the difference between life and death. That the pain caused by a splinter is disproportionate to the problem may be just an evolutionary side-effect.", "Face skin is very soft and supple because much of your social interaction relies on being expressive with our faces - not to mention stuff like eating and talking. Furthermore, because we have a lot of important organs in our face, the skin is highly sensitive and has to deform easily so we can feel if anything is going to go wrong. This means that we produce more sebum on our faces than anywhere else: that's what clogs pores and allows them to get infected with bacteria.", "Because a sore throat is just a symptom. Strep throat is caused by the bacteria *Streptococcus pyogenes.* It's easily treated with antibiotics, and complications are unusual in healthy adults, but if it's untreated and the bacteria *does* spread to other parts of the body, it can cause infections in other locations, or systemic infections like rheumatic fever which can cause lasting damage to heart valves.", "Antibiotics are routinely prescribed for acne, both topical stuff applied to the face and oral antibiotics. They help, but are reserved for more severe cases to prevent the spread of antibiotic resistance, which is already a problem with acne. Other stuff like benzoyl peroxide is used for more mild cases.", "Pimples aren't just pores with oils. They are caused by bacteria. Pores with oils are great growing places for them. Antibiotics attack/kill the bacteria so the pimples will vanish. The puss that comes out if pimples are dead white blood cells, they died because they attacked the bacteria. The bacteria responsible for acne is Propionibacterium acnes.", "1) most people don't need aftershave 2) most people also don't use products like facial cleaners on their legs. Face skin is different, and nobody really cares about miniscule acne on most other parts of the body.", "Heat can be transferred either via processes known as *conduction* or *convection*, which require contact with surrounding matter, or via a process known as *radiative heat transfer* (a.k.a. *radiation*), in which the heat energy is transported by photons (e.g., infrared light). Photons can easily travel through vacuum, and therefore do not require contact with matter in order to heat or cool an object. - Radiation is the reason why, when you are near a fire, the part of your body that faces the fire feels hotter than the parts of your body that face away from the fire. A small amount of heat is transported via contact with the air (convective heat transfer), and this is what you would feel on body parts that don't face the fire. A much larger amount of heat is transported by radiation; because the photons that carry the heat will only be absorbed by the part of your body that faces the fire, this part will feel much warmer.", "The 99.99 percent of the bacteria killed by the hand soap are not likely to be dangerous in the first place. That is probably the most important part of the topic. Further, regular soap washes away bacteria pretty darn well. Even further, some bacteria is really good for us - our understanding of this is incomplete, but the statement \"some are good\" is 100% true. Beyond that, there is mixed research on whether the bacteria that survive are just lucky (e.g. somehow avoided contact with the anti-bacterial agent) or are more resilient. The later raises fears of breeding super-bacteria by only allowing the survival in the wild of the resistant bacteria.", "Hand sanitizes are basically pure alcohol, sometimes with some fragrance added. One of the properties of alcohol is that it dissolves lipids (fats), which is also found in bacteria. Basically, hand sanitizes dissolves parts of bacteria and kills them. It has no way to distinguish between \"good\" and \"bad\" germs. To the second part about how often you should use it: your skin also has lipids on it, which it needs to be healthy. They're usually called sebum. If you have too little, your skin becomes \"dry\" and itchy. Hand sanitizes also remove part of the skin's sebum. This is why you should not use it often.", "The sebaceous glands are tiny skin glands that secrete sebum, a waxy or oily substance that lubricates the skin and hair. Sebaceous glands are found inside the pores of our skin, all over the body, except the palms of the hands and soles of the feet. There are more sebaceous glands on the face and scalp than elsewhere. As the glands produce sebum inside the pores, new skin cells are constantly growing, and the outer layers of skin are being shed. Sometimes, dead skin cells are not shed. They remain in the pores and get stuck together by the sticky sebum, causing a blockage in the pore. Pore blockage is more likely to occur during puberty, as the sebaceous glands produce more sebum at this time. Oils build up inside the pore as it slowly swells in size, and in the case of acne where bacteria feeds upon the oils within the pore, white blood cells also accumulate, causing an even more violent and accelerated development of sores under the skin.", "Direct wind contact results in the coldest feeling because of evaporating moisture and because the air around you that is being continuously warmed by your body is quickly taken away and replaced by colder air, so that's why the side facing the wind is colder. A couple things are usually a bit different about the front of our bodies than the back. This helps explain why exposing our back feels different from the front. First and foremost, our faces are the most sensitive part of our external body, so it naturally feels nice to protect our face from the cold. Also, depending on things like clothing and if you're wearing a backpack, our fronts tend to be more exposed (think of neckline, for example). Lastly, when walking backwards, it's easier to block our hands from the wind as well (it's easier to walk with your hands somewhat in front of your body than somewhat behind your body).", "You have the largest concentration of sebaceous (oil producing) glands in your face, back and chest. The sebaceous glands enlarge at puberty due to an influx of a testosterone hormone called DHEA. That over-stimulates the production of oil in these glands. Acne is an inflamed pore filled with oil, bacteria, and dead skin cells. The oil, dead skin, and bacteria get \"stuck\" in your pore and when your immune system tries to get rid of it, it causes the pus and inflammation we call acne.", "Oil produced by skin, among other things provides protection from bacteria. Oil is important, too much is just as bad as too little though. The skin on our face tends to be thinner than other areas of the body. The amount of sebaceous glands, hair follicles, etc. is therefore \"designed\" with this in mind. (\"Designed\" in quotes because it's a poor word for describing evolution) It also won't necessarily produce more oil, some people(me) have an overproduction of sebum on more than just the face. The fun side effect being acne.", "Acne is more than just superficial. Plus there are many types of acne. Cystic acne being one of the worst (and most painful from what I've heard). Your skin has about 5 layers and acne (typically) comes from clogged pores. Hormones play a huge part in acne production as well as genetics. My brothers have horrible chronic acne while I skated through my teens with no acne.", "I dont know about you, but i had acne on my head. On my chin, nose, cheeks, scalp... everywhere. Had heaps of it a few years ago.", "Dermatology is very poorly understood and there are just as many theories involving skin conditions as there are skin conditions. Acne has many causes, some more insidious than others. Hormones, diet, genetic predisposition, stress, infection and factors we don't yet know about all have an effect on how much or how little acne a person will have. I know of no correlation between the amount of back acne and facial acne. AFAIK we just don't know.", "All parts of your skin (except the palms of your hands and soles of your feet) produce an oil that helps keep your skin from drying out. The inside of your ears do this do. The oil mixes with sweat and dead skin cells to form ear wax. Sounds gross, but it serves a purpose. Like the oil on the rest of your skin, ear wax helps lubricate and insulate your skin. Most importantly though, your ear is warm and moist inside, which makes it a great place for bacteria to grow. Coating your ear canal with a kind of wax prevents bacteria from growing there since most can't eat the ear wax.", "Microbiology student here. The main thing about bacteria on the skin is that most of them are harmless under normal conditions. The biggest difference about those germs versus others in and around the body is they can tolerate (relatively) high concentrations of salt (We don't usually think of skin as salty, but when you're as small as a germ everything is out to get you. It's like living in Australia :)). As long as those bacteria are present to deal with bugs that try to get past the skin there's no problem.", "It is unclear if it does at all. That is part of what the experiment will test. In some previous tests it did, in some it did not. Bacteria react to the lack of (perceived) gravity. Some bacteria can grow and reproduce faster in space. Faster reproduction means more chances to have mutations. This is not \"ultra fast\", it is a factor 2-3 faster. [^NOT ^ELI5 ^source](_URL_0_)", "The alcohol used either breaks down the protein structures of the bacteria, destroying the functional parts and killing the bacteria. Or it uses evaporation to effectively evaporate the water content of the cells, killing the bacteria in the process. This is why 70% IPA is used, as it has a n optimal contact time for the most damage through evaporation. Either way leaves bacteria corpses. _URL_0_", "Everyone seems to be suggesting Keratosis Pilaris but the reality is that acne – regular acne vulgaris – can frequently occur everywhere above the mid chest including upper arms, shoulders, neck, face. Basically: it affects the areas with the highest densities of sebaceous follicles. _URL_0_ I personally get the occasional acne vulgaris pimple on my legs and buttocks (they're really uncomfortable to sit on). Acne can happen anywhere, it's just far less common below the mid-chest.", "When parts of your body touch other parts (which they do all the time) the brain lowers the sensation it provides. This is because else we would tickle ourselves all the time just by moving our body. So if someone else does it you can actually feel it more than if you do it yourself. There's also the emotional difference (contact with another human, often with someone you like) and the fact that you can lay back and relax while someone else does the work." ]

[ "(Releads, updates with closing prices)\nBy Jan Harvey\nLONDON, April 6 Copper closed lower on Thursday with investors largely cautious ahead of the first meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.\nThe United States is targeting a reduction in China's $347 billion goods trade surplus through tougher enforcement of trade laws and anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties.\n\"You've got Trump and Xi Jinping meeting, and that is uppermost in most people's minds in terms of trade tensions, given that China is a big consumer (of copper),\" Societe Generale analyst Robin Bhar said.\n\"There's bound to be a bit of caution,\" he added.\nThe metal had posted its biggest daily rise in nearly two months on Wednesday, climbing 2 percent as Chinese buyers returned to the market after a break.\nHowever, indications that the Federal Reserve might start paring back its vast asset holdings this year also curbed appetite for cyclical assets during Thursday.\n* LME COPPER: Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange closed down 0.6 percent at $5,858 a tonne.\n* MARKETS: Stocks staged a cautious fight back on Thursday before a potentially tense meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.\n* FED NEWS: Most Federal Reserve policymakers think the central bank should take steps to trim its $4.5 trillion balance sheet later this year as long as economic data holds up, minutes from their last meeting showed.\n* JAPAN COPPER: Japan's Pan Pacific Copper (PPC) plans to cut its April-September output of refined copper by 19.9 percent from the same period last year due to long maintenance at one of its plants.\n* TECHNICALS: LME copper may retest resistance at $5,928 a tonne, a break above which could spark a rally to $5,969, the 86.4 percent Fibonacci projection level of an upward wave (c), Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao said.\n* ALUMINIUM STOCKS: On-warrant aluminium stocks MALSTX-TOTAL held in London Metal Exchange warehouses, representing metal available for delivery, fell below 1 million tonnes for the first time since May 2008 on Tuesday, to 988,100 tonnes.\n* LEAD, ZINC: Australian miner South32 Ltd cut output forecasts on Thursday after a fire at its Cannington silver and lead mine. LME lead closed down 0.7 percent at $2,295 a tonne, while zinc ended the day 1.9 percent lower at $2,726 a tonne.\n* OTHER METALS: LME aluminium closed down 0.4 percent at $1,953 a tonne, while nickel ended 2.1 percent lower at $10,080 a tonne. Tin finished up 1 percent at $20,310." ]

[ "MELBOURNE, April 13 London copper rose from three-month lows on Thursday as the dollar sagged after U.S. President Donald Trump said the country's currency was too strong, and as traders closed positions ahead of the long Easter-weekend. FUNDAMENTALS * LME COPPER: London Metal Exchange copper rose 0.9 percent to $5,679 a tonne by 0213 GMT, paring losses from the previous session when prices plumbed their lowest since Jan. 10 at $5,615 a tonne. Copper was set for a near 3 percent weekly drop, the biggest in more than a month. * HOLIDAYS: The LME will be closed on Friday and Monday for the Easter break. * SHFE COPPER: Shanghai Futures Exchange copper cut early losses to trade down 1.4 percent at 45,990 yuan ($6,688) a tonne. * TRUMP: President Trump said on Wednesday that his administration will not label China a currency manipulator, backing away from a campaign promise, even as he said the dollar was \"getting too strong\" and would eventually hurt the economy. * CHINA ECONOMY: China's economy likely grew by a solid 6.8 percent in the first quarter, the same pace as the previous quarter, due to sustained government infrastructure spending and a gravity-defying housing market, according to a Reuters poll of 60 economists. * China's central bank has been quietly boosting its policy independence and regulatory reach as it seeks to contain risks to the financial system, policy insiders said, to help ensure stability ahead of a five-yearly leadership team transition this year. * Losses amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars appear to be pushing the Indonesian government and mining giant Freeport McMoRan to resolve a row that has crippled operations at Grasberg, the world's richest copper mine, for three months. * Chile, the world's biggest copper producer, faced a fresh threat of labor action in the sector on Wednesday when a union at the large Chuquicamata mine said it had blocked access as a \"warning\" over planned changes to job opportunities. * The global zinc market moved into a surplus of 19,800 tonnes in February from a deficit of 22,300 tonnes in January, data from the International Lead and Zinc Study Group (ILZSG) showed on Wednesday. DATA/EVENTS 1230 U.S. Initial Jobless Claims weekly 1230 U.S. PPI Final Demand Mar 1400 U.S. U Mich Sentiment Prelim Apr 1430 U.S. ECRI Weekly index PRICES BASE METALS PRICES Three month LME copper 5673 Most active ShFE copper 45990 Three month LME aluminium 1908.5 Most active ShFE aluminium 23 Three month LME zinc 2622.5 Most active ShFE zinc 21595 Three month LME lead 2255 Most active ShFE lead 4 Three month LME nickel 9785 Most active ShFE nickel 1 Three month LME tin 19725 Most active ShFE tin 1 BASE METALS ARBITRAGE LME/SHFE COPPER LMESHFCUc3 494.42 LME/SHFE ALUMINIUM LMESHFALc3 -1301.57 LME/SHFE ZINC LMESHFZNc3 210.04 LME/SHFE LEAD LMESHFPBc3 -2061.73 LME/SHFE NICKEL LMESHFNIc3 1780 ($1 = 6.8768 Chinese yuan) (Reporting by Melanie Burton; Editing by Amrutha Gayathri)", "(Updates to close)\nMay 3 Australian shares ended lower on Wednesday as financial and basic material stocks extended losses, brought down by softer metals prices and as caution about bank earnings and monetary policy weighed on sentiment.\nInvestors will also be looking out for the outcome of the U.S. Federal Reserve's policy meeting later in the day at which it is expected to stand pat on interest rates.\nThe S&P/ASX 200 index was 0.98 percent lower, or 58.065 points, at 5,892.3.\nLosses were led by financial stocks as the \"Big Four\" banks lost between 1.7 percent and 2.8 percent after ANZ's half-year results miss in the previous session kept investors cautious ahead of National Australia Bank's half-year results due on Thursday.\nThe Reserve Bank of Australia held rates steady on Tuesday as it sought to balance the risk of rising household debt against subdued inflation and wages growth.\n\"As far as inflation's concerned, it's back in the band, so there are very little chances of a rate cut coming. It's more likely that next year there is going to be a rate rise,\" said Mathan Somasundaram, market portfolio strategist at Blue Ocean Equities.\nIn the context of such an outlook, Somasundaram says banks may find it hard to grow as households may exercise some frugality.\nBasic material stocks also lost on weaker copper and iron ore prices and on disappointing factory output data from the United States and China.\nBHP Billiton fell percent to its lowest in nearly six months, down 2.3 percent while Rio Tinto and Fortescue Metals shed nearly 1 percent.\nTelecom stock Vocus Group was the worst-performing index constituent, ending 27.2 percent lower after slashing its forecast for the 2017 financial year.\nConsumer company Woolworths fell 2.7 percent, having had risen up to 2.5 percent in the previous session after recording strong quarterly sales figures but warned of a loss for its department store chain, Big W, in the second half.\nNew Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index ended 0.22 percent lower, or 16.65 points, to finish the session at 7,405.84, snapping straight days of gains.\nA 3.5 percent loss in the New Zealand shares of ANZ Bank weighed on the rest of the sector, while Sky Network was the biggest loser on the benchmark, down 3.7 percent. (Reporting by Susan Mathew in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Rushil Dutta; Editing by Sam Holmes)", "MELBOURNE, April 5 London copper rallied on Wednesday as China returned from a two-day break to buy up metals following brighter global manufacturing reports, while zinc and nickel tracked a rally in steel. FUNDAMENTALS * LME COPPER: Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange climbed 0.9 percent to $5,832 a tonne by 0158 GMT, after ending the previous session with modest gains. Prices punched through resistance at the 100-day moving average at $5,790, which traders said improved its technical picture. * SHFE COPPER: Shanghai Futures Exchange copper cut early losses to trade at 47,220 yuan ($6,856) a tonne, down 1.3 percent. * NICKEL, ZINC: In other metals, LME nickel and zinc both rallied 1.8 percent, dragged up by gains in the steel sector after a cyclone in Australia damaged transport routes for coking coal, fuelling a jump in prices. * US ECONOMY: The U.S. trade deficit fell from a near two year high in February as slowing domestic demand weighed on imports and stronger global growth boosted exports of American goods. * CHINA-US MEET: Although worried about the prospect of a trade war, American businesses operating in China nonetheless want President Donald Trump to wring some concessions on market access from China's leader Xi Jingping when the two meet this week. * CESCO: Southern Copper, should share more of its profits with workers in Peru to avoid an indefinite strike at its Toquepala and Cuajone mines starting on April 10, a union leader said on Tuesday. * CESCO: After a tumultuous period of falling copper prices and heavy cuts to its investment plans, Chile's Codelco has stabilized and its levels of debt and spending will likely stay steady in coming years, its chairman told Reuters on Tuesday. * GLOBAL MANUFACTURING: Factories across Europe and much of Asia posted another month of solid growth in March, rounding off a strong quarter for manufacturers, even though exporters fear a rise in U.S. protectionism could snuff out a global trade recovery. * For the top stories in metals and other news, click or MARKETS NEWS * Asian stocks are set for a cautious start on Wednesday as investors move to the sidelines before a potentially tense meeting between Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping later this week. DATA AHEAD (GMT) 0750 France Markit services PMI Mar 0755 Germany Markit services PMI Mar 0800 Euro zone Markit services PMI final Mar 1215 U.S. ADP national employment Mar 1400 U.S. ISM non-manufacturing PMI Mar 1800 Minutes of Federal Reserve meeting on March 14-15 PRICES BASE METALS PRICES 0143 GMT Three month LME copper 5823.5 Most active ShFE copper 47230 Three month LME aluminium 1955 Most active ShFE aluminium 51 Three month LME zinc 2779.5 Most active ShFE zinc 23025 Three month LME lead 2328 Most active ShFE lead 4 Three month LME nickel 10120 Most active ShFE nickel 3 Three month LME tin 19980 Most active ShFE tin 3 BASE METALS ARBITRAGE LME/SHFE COPPER LMESHFCUc3 632.28 LME/SHFE ALUMINIUM LMESHFALc3 -1554.33 LME/SHFE ZINC LMESHFZNc3 307.18 LME/SHFE LEAD LMESHFPBc3 -1751.03 LME/SHFE NICKEL LMESHFNIc3 1571 ($1 = 6.8870 Chinese yuan renminbi) (Reporting by Melanie Burton; Editing by Richard Pullin)", "(Updates with closing prices) By Jan Harvey LONDON, March 31 Copper fell more than 1 percent on Friday as the end of a strike at Peru's biggest copper mine dampened fears of reduced supply that had driven the metal higher this quarter, though upbeat economic data from China lent support. Workers at Freeport-McMoRan Inc's Cerro Verde facility will resume work on Friday after voting to end a near three-week strike that had halved output, the union said late on Thursday. The re-start of the mine coincides with the Escondida mine in Chile resuming operations, ING said in a note, while there were signs that restrictions on supply from Freeport-McMoRan's Grasberg facility in Indonesia were also set to ease. \"Supply issues are evaporating,\" Commerzbank analyst Daniel Briesemann said. \"Overnight the latest news out of Peru is that the strike at the Cerro Verde mine has come to the end. Two days ago we had news that there might be a solution at Grasberg, and before that, Escondida resumed production. So I think the major (supply) issues are almost done.\" LME COPPER: London Metal Exchange copper closed down 2 percent at $5,837.50 a tonne, though prices still rose 5.6 percent in the first quarter, following a near 14 percent rise in the previous three months. CHINA MANUFACTURING: Activity in China's manufacturing sector unexpectedly grew at its fastest pace in nearly five years in March, adding to evidence that the world's second-largest economy has gained momentum early this year, an official report showed on Friday. FREEPORT INDONESIA: Freeport-McMoRan Inc's Indonesian unit is close to reaching a deal that would allow the world's biggest publicly listed copper producer to temporarily resume concentrate exports, Indonesia's mining minister said on Thursday. CODELCO: Chile's state copper company Codelco produced 1.83 million tonnes of copper in 2016, of which 1.71 million tonnes came from its wholly-owned mines, down 1.4 percent from a year ago, the company said. TECHNICALS: LME copper may fall to the next support at $5,774 after breaking the $5,855 a tonne level, Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao said, as its bounce from the March 9 low of $5,652 has completed. ALUMINIUM: LME aluminium closed down 0.5 percent at $1,962.50 a tonne, but still posted its biggest quarterly gain in 6-1/2 years, up nearly 16 percent. The metal hit its highest since December 2014 on Thursday ahead of the Chinese manufacturing data. FUNDS: Copper and zinc are the two standouts among a brightening outlook for base metals, with supply constraints and China-driven demand set to lift prices in coming months, U.S. commodity hedge fund Blenheim Capital Management said. STOCKS: Copper stocks held in LME warehouses MCU-STOCKS, which have been declining for almost two straight weeks, fell another 6,375 tonnes on Thursday to 291,175 tonnes, exchange data showed. However, they remain well above their March 2 low of 196,425 tonnes. DOLLAR: The dollar surrendered early gains to trade little changed on Friday as a Federal Reserve official's seemingly dovish remarks and uninspiring data on the U.S. economy doused the sanguine mood from earlier this week. OTHER METALS: LME nickel ended the day down 1 percent at $10,030, while tin closed 0.1 percent higher at $20,175 a tonne. Zinc finished the day down 3.1 percent at $2,770 and lead ended 0.5 percent lower at $2,340. BASE METALS PRICES 1610 GMT Three month LME copper Most active ShFE copper Three month LME aluminium Most active ShFE aluminium Three month LME zinc Most active ShFE zinc Three month LME lead Most active ShFE lead Three month LME nickel Most active ShFE nickel Three month LME tin Most active ShFE tin BASE METALS ARBITRAGE LME/SHFE COPPER LMESHFCUc3 595.85 LME/SHFE ALUMINIUM LMESHFALc3 -1886.28 LME/SHFE ZINC LMESHFZNc3 869.97 LME/SHFE LEAD LMESHFPBc3 -1732.81 LME/SHFE NICKEL LMESHFNIc3 2372 (Additional reporting by Melanie Burton; editing by David Evans and David Clarke)", "Gold prices inched lower Friday after closing at their lowest level since July on Thursday, with interest rates still in focus for many investors following the latest U.S. jobs report.\nGold for February delivery declined 0.4% to $1,248.40 a troy ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange to wrap up its worst week since May. Prices have fallen in six of the past eight sessions and have been weighed down recently by concerns about higher interest rates and a stronger dollar. They are roughly 7.5% off their year-to-date highs from early September.\nContinue Reading Below\nBecause gold struggles to compete with yield-bearing assets like Treasurys as borrowing costs rise, many analysts have said they expect prices to fall ahead of next week's Federal Reserve meeting before bouncing back slightly.\nWith a third interest-rate increase of 2017 widely expected next week, investors and analysts said Friday's jobs report would likely have little impact on the Fed's meeting, though it could affect the central bank's outlook for 2018.\nAlthough the report showed U.S. employers hired workers at a strong rate in November and the unemployment rate held at a 17-year low, Chris Gaffney, president of EverBank World Markets, said another month of tepid wage growth could raise doubts about the Fed speeding up its pace of rate increases moving forward.\n\"I think there's some fuel to the pause camp right now in this report,\" Mr. Gaffney said. \"That should be positive for gold.\"\nStill, some traders were likely still focused on the short-term outlook ahead of next week's Fed meeting, he added.\nAdvertisement\nThe dollar was little changed Friday, though its recent gains have also been a headwind for gold by making the dollar-denominated commodity more expensive for overseas buyers. The WSJ Dollar Index, which tracks the dollar against a basket of 16 other currencies, rose 0.2% Friday.\nSome analysts said the U.K. and the European Union reaching an agreement on Brexit divorce terms after six months of tense talks also was limiting demand for gold and other haven assets by removing a possible source of short-term investor anxiety from the market.\nAmong base metals, copper for March delivery rose 0.5% to $2.9785 a pound. The industrial metal has fallen back below $3 following its worst day in almost three years earlier this week, with some investors worried that an economic slowdown in China will weigh on prices. China is the world's largest base metals consumer and had outperformed expectations earlier in the year to push copper prices to a three-year high.\nPrices are now more than 7% off those levels, though data Friday showed Chinese copper imports hit their highest level of the year in November, Commerzbank analysts said in a note.\nWrite to Amrith Ramkumar at amrith.ramkumar@wsj.com and David Hodari at David.Hodari@dowjones.com\n(END) Dow Jones Newswires\nDecember 08, 2017 14:59 ET (19:59 GMT)", "April 5 Australian shares ticked up modestly on Wednesday, supported by gains in material and energy stocks amid a backdrop of cautious trade before a potentially tense meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping later this week.\nThe S&P/ASX 200 index rose 0.07 percent, or 3.95 points, to 5,860.50 by 0230 GMT.\n\"Markets are really on hold at the moment,\" said Ric Spooner, Chief market strategist at CMC markets, adding that investors are looking to catalysts from the Trump-Xi meeting as well as the U.S. earnings season.\nGlobal markets have been on edge ahead of the first face-to-face meeting between the U.S. and Chinese leaders since Trump took office on Jan. 20. Trade and security issues are set to figure prominently, with concern also squarely on North Korea, which fired a ballistic missile from its east coast into the sea on Wednesday.\nThe material index rose 2.2 percent, with heavyweights BHP Billiton Ltd and Rio Tinto Ltd rising over 2 percent.\nCopper prices rallied as China returned from a two-day break to buy up metals following brighter global manufacturing reports.\nOil prices also jumped overnight to near one-month highs. Woodside Petroleum Ltd rose 1.3 percent.\n\"Commodity and oil markets have had some support from a strong round of manufacturing PMI data, particularly from Europe, USA, and China, Spooner said.\nGold prices held near one-month highs hit the day before, while China's coking coal futures jumped as much as 7 percent, as impact of Cyclone Debbie hit supplies at key Australian mines.\nGold miner St Barbara Ltd rose 3.2 percent, while coal miner Whitehaven Coal Ltd extended its gains, rising 1.2 percent.\nInsurance Australia Group fell 1.9 percent, after it said that claims from cyclone Debbie will incur a net natural peril claims cost of about A$140 million ($105.95 million), increasing its expectation for full year 2017 net natural peril claim costs to A$850 million.\nFinancial stocks remained under pressure, down 0.4 percent, with Westpac Banking Corp weighing on the index. Consumer stocks were also in the red, the second biggest drag on the benchmark, with retailer Wesfarmers Ltd declining 1.6 percent.\nNew Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index slipped 0.2 percent, or 16.55 points, to 7,227.99.\nMaterial and utilities stocks shed the most on the index, with Fletcher Building Ltd losing 2.5 percent, while Meridian Energy Ltd fell 1.4 percent.\nHealthcare stock, Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Corp Ltd was among the biggest losers, falling more than 1 percent.\nFor more individual stocks activity click on ($1 = 1.3214 Australian dollars) (Reporting by Krishna V Kurup in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Susan Mathew; Editing by Shri Navaratnam)", "SYDNEY, Aug 15 (Reuters) - Shanghai base metals futures fell on Tuesday, echoing weaker London prices overnight on a weaker dollar and mixed Chinese industrial data.\nChina's industrial output, investment, retail sales and trade all grew less than expected last month.\nIn particular, weak data from China's housing sector played to concerns of weaker demand ahead for industrial metals, according to ANZ Bank.\nFundamentals\n* NICKEL LEADS LOSERS: Steel-related Shanghai nickel dropped more than 2 percent at the open, with ShFE zinc off nearly 1 percent. Shanghai rebar was down 3 percent.\n* LME COPPER: Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange traded mostly flat at $6,408 a tonne by 0100 GMT. Prices hit their highest in more than 2-1/2 years on Aug. 9 at $6,515 and are up almost 8 percent this quarter.\n* SHFE COPPER: The most-traded copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange slipped 0.1 percent to 50,210 yuan ($7,528.30) a tonne.\n* COOL CHINA DATA: China's strong economic growth showed visible signs of fading in July as lending costs rose and the gravity-defying property market cooled. Factory output rose 6.4 percent in July from a year earlier, the slowest pace since January, according to official data.\n* COPPER SHUT DOWN: Glencore's Zambian copper mining unit said on Monday it had suspended all operations at its two mines there due to restricted power supply.\n* DUMPING CHALLENGE: Chinese metals industry association confirmed on Monday that the nation's aluminium sector would mount a legal challenge to the U.S. Department of Commerce's preliminary decision to impose antidumping tariffs on imports of Chinese aluminium foil.\n* SUPPLY RISKS: Repricing aluminium's supply risks is a chaotic work in progress.\n* ALUMINIUM: ShFE aluminium opened 1.4 percent lower, also succumbing to the dulling Chinese industrial outlook. SHFE aluminium stocks AL-STX-SGH, which have been climbing all year, hit their highest level since May 2013 at 473,000 tonnes.\n* For the top stories in metals and other news, click or\nMarkets News\n* Asian shares rallied and the dollar firmed on Tuesday after North Korea's leader signalled that he would delay plans to fire a missile near Guam, further easing tensions and prompting investors to move back into riskier assets.\nDATA AHEAD (GMT) 0600 Germany GDP Flash Q2 0830 Britain Consumer prices Jul 0830 Britain Producer prices Jul 1230 U.S. New York Fed manufacturing Jul 1230 U.S. Import prices Jul 1230 U.S. Export prices Jul 1230 U.S. Retail sales Jul 1400 U.S. Business inventories Jun 1400 U.S. NAHB housing market index Aug\nPrices\nThree month LME copper\nMost active ShFE copper\nThree month LME aluminium\nMost active ShFE aluminium\nThree month LME zinc\nMost active ShFE zinc\nThree month LME lead\nMost active ShFE lead\nThree month LME nickel\nMost active ShFE nickel\nThree month LME tin\nMost active ShFE tin\nARBS ($1 = 6.6695 Chinese yuan renminbi)", "MELBOURNE, April 10 London copper eased on Monday as rising geopolitical tensions blunted appetite for risk and lifted the dollar, eroding the purchasing power of commodity buyers.\nFUNDAMENTALS\n* LME COPPER: London Metal Exchange copper had slipped 0.4 percent to $5,809 a tonne by 0124 GMT, adding to small losses from the previous session, before finding support at its 100-day moving average at $5,800 a tonne.\n* SHFE: Shanghai Futures Exchange copper dropped 0.9 percent to 47,200 yuan ($6,843) a tonne. ShFE zinc fell 2.4 percent, dragged down by weakness in steel and also after news that two mines hit by floods in Peru were ready to restart.\n* U.S. ECONOMY: U.S. job growth slowed sharply in March amid continued layoffs in the embattled retail sector, but a drop in the unemployment rate to a near 10-year low of 4.5 percent suggested labour market strength remained intact.\n* NORTH KOREA: A U.S. Navy strike group will be moving toward the western Pacific Ocean near the Korean peninsula as a show of force, a U.S. official told Reuters on Saturday, as concerns grow about North Korea's advancing weapons programme.\n* ZINC MINE: Peruvian miner Milpo, controlled by Brazilian group Votorantim Metais, said on Friday it could restart operations at two mines over the weekend if there were no new restrictions to roads affected by flooding.\n* PHILIPPINES: A suspended Philippine nickel miner has asked President Rodrigo Duterte to allow it to ship ore stockpiles after some cargoes were seized as tensions escalated over a required fee it claimed was illegal.\n* PERU: Peru, fresh off a sharp rise in copper output, is upstaging top producer Chile as a prime place to hunt for new supplies as the historic rivals race to usher in new mines.\n* COPPER SPECULATORS: Hedge funds and money managers cut their net long position in copper futures and options by 6,600 contracts to 54,173, U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission data showed on Friday. That was the first cut in three weeks.\n* COPPER ARSENIC: Ecometales, a unit of Chile's state-run Codelco is in talks with smelters in Europe and China to share its technology for stabilising arsenic while processing lower-quality copper ore, an executive said on Friday.\n* For the top stories in metals and other news, click or\n* MARKETS: Asian stocks are set for a cautious start on Monday as increased geopolitical risks combined with expensive valuations prompt investors to shun risky assets in favour of safe-haven bets such as government debt.\nDATA AHEAD (GMT)\n0830 Euro zone Sentix index Apr\n1400 U.S. Employment trends Mar\nPRICES\nThree month LME copper\nMost active ShFE copper\nThree month LME aluminium\nMost active ShFE aluminium\nThree month LME zinc\nMost active ShFE zinc\nThree month LME lead\nMost active ShFE lead\nThree month LME nickel\nMost active ShFE nickel\nThree month LME tin\nMost active ShFE tin\nARBS ($1 = 6.8978 Chinese yuan renminbi)\n(Reporting by Melanie Burton; Editing by Joseph Radford)", "* Copper builds on solid gains\n* Escondida, Freeport supply woes dominate\n* Currency-based buying ahead of Yellen speech supports (Updates prices)\nBy James Regan\nSYDNEY, Feb 14 Copper built on hefty overnight gains on Tuesday amid supply concerns from two of the world's biggest sources of the metal.\nInvestors also shifted into copper ahead of testimony from U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen later in the day, with the market looking for hints on the Fed's rate strategy.\nShould Yellen talk up the chances of a rate increase in March, the U.S. dollar is likely to push higher after tracking lower in Asia in response to U.S. national security adviser Michael Flynn quitting.\n\"LME copper could get a little more expensive after Yellen,\" a commodities trader in Perth said.\nThree-month copper on the London Metal Exchange rose 1 percent to $6,168 a tonne by 0700 GMT. The contract hit its highest since May 2015 on Monday at $6,204.\nThe most-traded copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose 1.1 percent to 50,110 yuan ($7,292) a tonne.\nBut the main driver in copper remained the strike at the giant Escondida copper in Chile and the suspension of exports of copper concentrate from Indonesia's Grasberg mine.\nAt Escondida, workers went on strike last Thursday after the collapse of wage talks with owner BHP Billiton .\nA day later, Freeport-McMoRan Inc said an export ban remained in place at the Grasberg mine over a permit dispute..\nFreeport has also confirmed that copper concentrate production came to a halt on Friday.\n\"The copper market saw further pressure on supply, after Freeport halted copper concentrate output after it failed to secure a new mining permit for its Grasberg operation in Indonesia,\" Australia and New Zealand Bank said in a note.\nSupport was also coming from signs of strong demand for industrial commodities in China, the world's top market for copper.\nChina's producer price inflation picked up more than expected in January to near six-year highs, adding to views that global manufacturing activity is building momentum.\nElsewhere in metals, LME lead and zinc were slightly firmer at $2,434 and $2,941.50 a tonne respectively. Nickel turned positive after earlier losses, gaining 0.8 percent to 10,820.\nIn Shanghai, zinc and lead each slipped by less than a half-percent, while aluminium gained 2.9 percent.\nPRICES\nThree month LME copper\nMost active ShFE copper\nThree month LME aluminium\nMost active ShFE aluminium\nThree month LME zinc\nMost active ShFE zinc\nThree month LME lead\nMost active ShFE lead\nThree month LME nickel\nMost active ShFE nickel\nThree month LME tin\nMost active ShFE tin ($1 = 6.8723 Chinese yuan renminbi) (Reporting by James Regan; Editing by Richard Pullin)", "(Updates prices)\nBy James Regan\nSYDNEY May 2 Copper rose sharply on Tuesday as investors returned from a three-day weekend in most of Asia with a renewed appetite for industrial commodities.\nThe gains in both London Metal Exchange and Shanghai Futures Exchange copper were aided by advances in Asian stocks on easing concerns over North Korea, commodities traders said.\nCOPPER: Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange gained 1 percent to $5,769 a tonne by 0700 GMT, building on gains from the last session on Friday.\nSHANGHAI: The most-traded copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose 1.2 percent to 46,790 yuan ($6,785) a tonne. Both exchanges were closed on Monday for Labour Day.\nGRASBERG PROTEST: Thousands of workers from the Indonesian unit of Freeport McMoRan Inc staged a rally near its Papua mine on Monday, a union leader said, protesting against layoffs by the miner due to a contract dispute with the government.\nHARD STEEL: Chinese steel futures climbed to their highest in almost a month on Tuesday, supported by restocking demand following a long holiday weekend that also lifted raw material iron ore.\nNEW ORE SOURCE: A mineral-rich region of Papua New Guinea has lifted a 40-year-old ban on new mining and exploration, opening the way for iron ore and copper operations.\nLEAD: LME lead recoiled after initially building on strong gains last week to trade slightly lower at $2,246 a tonne. The downside is seen cushioned by falling warehouse inventories.\nStocks in LME-registered warehouses MPBSTX-TOTAL have fallen 13 percent to 165,275 tonnes over the last 27 days, their lowest in more than a year. ShFE lead maintained day-long gains to end 1.3 percent higher at 16,485 yuan a tonne.\nEASING TENSIONS: Worries about tensions over the Korean peninsula eased slightly after U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday opened the door to meeting North Korea's Kim Jon Un, saying he would be honoured to meet the young leader under the right circumstances.\nMARKETS NEWS: Asian shares rose to near two-year highs on growing optimism over tech industry earnings and easing concerns over North Korea.\n* For the top stories in metals and other news, click or\nDATA/EVENTS 0145 China Caixin manufacturing PMI final Apr 0750 France Markit manufacturing PMI Apr 0755 Germany Markit/BME manufacturing PMI Apr 0800 Euro zone Markit manufacturing PMI final Apr 0900 Euro zone Unemployment rate Mar 1345 U.S. ISM-New York index Apr Federal Open Market Committee starts two-day policy meeting\nPRICES\nThree month LME copper\nMost active ShFE copper\nThree month LME aluminium\nMost active ShFE aluminium\nThree month LME zinc\nMost active ShFE zinc\nThree month LME lead\nMost active ShFE lead\nThree month LME nickel\nMost active ShFE nickel\nThree month LME tin\nMost active ShFE tin\nARBS ($1 = 6.8966 Chinese yuan)\n(Reporting by James Regan; Editing by Richard Pullin and Biju Dwarakanath)", "New Delhi: Continuing its downtrend for the fifth straight session, stock markets fell amid weak global cues ahead of the US Federal Reserve's policy decision later in the week.\nThe 30-share barometer fell 112.26 points, or 0.34 percent, to 32,810.86 in opening session.\nThe gauge, however, turned positive to trade 42.34 points, or 0.13 percent, higher at 32,965.46. It had lost 994.82 in the previous five sessions.\nThe NSE Nifty also opened 45.15 points, or 0.44 percent, lower at 10,049.10.\nSectoral indices led by metal, healthcare, realty, consumer durable and banking stocks were trading in the negative terrain, falling by up to 1.38 percent.\nThe laggards were Bharti Airtel, NTPC, Kotak Bank, M&M, IndusInd Bank, Axis Bank, Sun Pharma and ITC, falling up to 1.42 percent.\nTata Steel, Adani Ports, Tata Motors and Infosys were among the top gainers, rising up to 3 percent.\nInvestors are keeping a close watch on the Federal Reserve`s policy meeting this week looking for clues about its timetable for tightening monetary policy. Opinion is split on the number of rate hikes it will likely announce this year, with some forecasting three and others saying four.\nOn broader markets Japan`s Nikkei went into the break more than one percent lower, while Hong Kong shed 0.6 percent and Sydney was off 0.5 percent.\nShanghai dropped 0.3 percent, Singapore gave up 0.2 percent and Seoul retreated 0.4 percent, with Wellington, Manila, Taipei and Jakarta all sharply down.\nU.S. stocks joined a broad decline in global equity markets on Monday as traders turned cautious ahead of the Federal Reserve`s policy meeting this week and amid continuing concerns about the threat of a global trade war.\nThe Dow Jones Industrial Average fell as much as 425 during the session and ended won 335.60 points, or 1.35 percent, at 24,610.91. The S&P 500 index lost 39.09 points, or 1.42 percent, to 2,712.92 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite index dropped 155.07 points, or 1.8 percent, to 7,334.24.\nMSCI`s main 47-country world stock index fell 1.1 percent in afternoon trading after European stocks dipped and benchmark U.S. indexes declined. Global equities are on their worst run since November.\nWith Agency Inputs", "LONDON, April 12 Seasonally stronger copper demand in top consumer China and dwindling stocks of scrap are expected to narrow the discount between metal for nearby delivery against the three-month contract, which hit a four-year high this week.\nThe discount or contango for the cash copper contract against the three-month forward on the London Metal Exchange jumped to $35.25 a tonne MCU0-3 this month, matching the high hit in June 2013. It closed at $27.25 on Tuesday compared with a $3 premium in January.\n\"As second-quarter physical buying gets underway the contango will decline,\" Societe Generale analyst Robin Bhar said. \"Copper rallied because people were worried about supply disruptions, it saw scrap dealers around the world sell inventory, the bulk of which has probably already come through.\"\nChina is the world's largest consumer, accounting for nearly half of global demand estimated at more than 23 million tonnes this year. Chinese demand typically rises in the second quarter ahead of the summer months when construction and industrial activity picks up.\nThe trigger for scrap dealers to release stocks was higher benchmark copper prices, which climbed above $6,200 in February, the highest since March 2015 and a gain of nearly 30 percent since November last year.\nCiti analyst David Wilson expects scrap supplies to increase by one million tonnes this year relative to 2016, overwhelming losses of around 385,000 tonnes from disruptions at mines.\n\"We expect the rate of scrap flow to slow into the second half of the year, as scrap inventories at merchants are drawn,\" Wilson said, adding that disruptions could cut mine supply by around 7 percent this year.\nThat is above the 5 percent analysts typically assume.\nDisruptions include strikes in Chile at BHP Billiton's Escondida, the world's largest copper mine, and in Peru at Cerro Verde.\nIn Indonesia, production at Freeport-McMoRan's giant Grasberg mine in Papua fell after the government banned copper concentrate exports on Jan. 12, part of an effort to boost the local smelter industry.\nThese problems gave the impression of bottlenecks and supply shortages, but there was no shortage of concentrate for smelters, Aurubis, Europe's largest copper producer, said in a newsletter.\n\"There were large amounts of cathode that suddenly appeared on the official warehousing system,\" it said.\nStocks of copper in LME-approved warehouses rose more than 70 percent to above 340,000 tonnes in the first half of March but have since fallen more than 30 percent to below 260,000 tonnes. They are expected to fall further as demand strengthens over the next three months.\n(Editing by Susan Thomas)", "April 28 Australian markets were dragged lower by miners on Friday, after dips in overnight commodity prices pared previous sessions' gains while New Zealand stocks surged to a seven-month high, led by industrial and utility shares.\nThe S&P/ASX 200 index fell 24.841 points or 0.41 percent to 5,897 by 0254 GMT. The metals index fell to its lowest in four months, pressured by falls among giants such as BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Newcrest Mining .\nFinancials rose marginally, propped up mostly by insurance companies. Three of the \"Big Four\" banking stocks fell ahead of earnings next week.\n\"For banks, I think dividends will be a big focus next week. Cash earnings next week are likely to be constrained, and dividends are expected to be steady,\" said Ben Le Brun, market analyst at Optionsxpress.\nHe expects the net interest margins to come under pressure since the Reserve Bank of Australia interest rates are quite low. He said he is also watching bad and doubtful debts cycle closely, although cash earnings will also be an important focal point.\nAustralia and New Zealand Banking Corp and National Australia Bank report results next week.\nAmong commodities stocks, the gold index fell 3.34 percent, with Northern Star Resources, Alacer Gold Corp , Evolution Mining losing the most.\nOil majors Woodside Petroleum, Beach Energy Ltd and Oil Search fell after prices took off towards a second straight weekly loss.\nQantas Airways fell nearly 1 percent after it said Thursday it would axe its Melbourne-Dubai-London flights operated in partnership with Emirates. Rival Virgin Australia Holdings was flat.\nIn overnight commodities trade, copper and zinc fell on Thursday after concerns about demand from China and tax cuts in the U.S. rattled nerves.\nSome bleeding was contained by higher China iron prices - the most traded iron-ore on the Dalian Commodity Exchange rose on Friday, in line with China steel prices which rose for a third straight session overnight.\nNew Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index rose 0.235 percent or 17.3 points to 7,371.91, breaching the six-month high it had recorded over the last two sessions, to hit its highest since September 12.\nGains were led by transport and industrial stocks - Auckland International Airport recorded its biggest percentage gain in six weeks, while supply chain logistics company Mainfreight Ltd rose 1.2 percent.\nFor more individual stocks activity click on (Reporting by Aparajita Saxena, Additional reporting by Ambar Warrick in Bengaluru; Editing by Sam Holmes)", "Higher commodity prices and deal speculation in the property sector pushed the ASX to gains on Tuesday, with the benchmark closing firmly over the 6000 level.\nThe S&P/ASX 200 index notched up its fourth straight session of gains, climbing 14 points, or 0.2 per cent, to 6013, while the broader All Ordinaries added 11 points, or 0.2 per cent, to 6093.\nSHARE\nShare on Facebook SHARE\nShare on Twitter TWEET\nLink The S&P/ASX 200 index notched up its fourth straight session of gains, climbing 14 points, or 0.2 per cent, to 6013. Photo: Christopher Pearce\nThe Australian dollar reached US75.34c in late trading. The Aussie has come perilously close to breaking though the US75c level recently and softer housing data on Tuesday worked to hold the currency close to that level.\nThe housing market has begun to gently cool following recent macroprudential moves, noted Fidelity Australian Opportunities Fund portfolio manager Kate Howitt.\nStill, financial conditions remain supportive for business, Ms Howitt said, and that divergence \"provides the RBA with an even greater ability to finesse monetary policy.\"\n\"If we see wage growth, expect modest rate increases; if we see rising unemployment, expect modest rate cuts - meaning that the consumer and housing sectors have a reasonable chance of continuing to trundle along. So against the historical odds, we could see the current Australian economic expansion continue.\"\nAdvertisement\nThe property sector took centre stage on Tuesday, after mall giant Westfield halted trading in its shares and told investors that it was in talks over a possible deal.\nElsewhere in the listed property sector, Scentre climbed 4.1 per cent, Dexus jumped 3.1 per cent, Mirvac rose 2.9 per cent, Vicinity Centres rose 2.5 per cent, GPT climbed 2.4 per cent.\nMiners and energy companies were among the strongest performers on Tuesday, with BHP Billiton up 1.7 per cent, Rio Tinto up 1.1 per cent, Woodside up 1.7 per cent and Origin Energy up 1.9 per cent.\nThe gains came after copper prices got a boost after vehicle and loans data from China pointed to improved consumer confidence while oil surged back to 2015 levels after a pipeline shutdown in the North Sea.\nANZ shares rose 1.1 per cent with the banking group announcing that it will sell its life insurance business to the Australian arm of Switzerland's Zurich for $2.85 billion.\nMedibank shares declined 1.2 per cent. Online retailer Kogan.com said that it will start selling budget health insurance policies under a new brand dubbed Kogan Health, after signing a deal with the private health insurer. Kogan.com gained 1.5 per cent.\nAsaleo Care, owner of the Sorbent toilet paper brand, lost 5 per cent after flagging a lower full year net profit of between $57 million and $58 million, compared to $59 million a year ago, with the firm blaming aggressive pricing tactics from competitors for the expected result.\nStock Watch: DigitalX\nBitcoin fever spilled over to the ASX, with shares in DigitalX rocketing 4.4 per cent higher to 24 cents. Investors are overjoyed at the blockchain technology company's decision to return to the cryptocurrency market place as a market maker on approved cryptocurrency exchanges. According to an announcement this morning, its board has approved the use of up to $1 million to provide liquidity to both sides of the cryptocurrency market while maintaining a small new open position in the asset being traded. As such, DigitalX will maintain bid and ask limit orders below and above the spot price. Management expects this to produce its best results for DigitalX when price volatility is high. CEO Leigh Travers said: \"We wound down our trading desk last year due to a lack of funding, however, our strong financial position, together with the appreciation in the value of Bitcoin, has allowed us to reignite this service.\" At present DigitalX holds $18 million in liquid assets, this includes $5 million in cash, over $10 million in Bitcoin, and approximately $2 million in Ether.\nBusiness conditions\nBusiness conditions more than gave back sharp gains from last month, with the business conditions index falling 9 points to 12 index points – albeit still well above the long-run average (+5). Meanwhile, business confidence is currently in line with long-run average levels, at +6 index points (down from +9 last month), although there has been a notable downward trend in the series since around the middle of the year. NAB's chief economist Alan Oster said: \"we expected to see last month's spike in business conditions unwound fairly quickly as it both came as a bit of a surprise, and was also out of sorts with what we were seeing in some of the other leading indicators from the survey, such as forward orders. But even after this decline, business conditions are still very much above the long-run average.\"\nOil\nBrent crude oil prices jumped above $US65 per barrel for the first time since 2015 after the shutdown of the Forties North Sea pipeline knocked out significant supplies from a market that was already tightening due to OPEC-led production cuts. Brent crude futures, the international benchmark for oil prices, were at $US65.07 a barrel at market close on Tuesday, up 37 cents, or 0.6 per cent from their last close. It was the first time Brent rose above $US65 since June 2015. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $US58.21 a barrel, up 22 cents, or 0.4 per cent from their last settlement.\nAsian stocks\nAsian equities were pulling back after three sessions of gains. lower as traders awaited US and European central bank meetings this week for further clues on the 2018 policy outlook. Benchmarks in Tokyo sat on recent gains, while Korean shares slipped. US stock indexes hit fresh highs on Monday night with most major American gauges advancing, led by more than 1 per cent increases in media, telephone and technology-hardware shares. Investors shrugged off a non-fatal explosion in New York in what was called a terrorist attack. Volumes remained lacklustre ahead of the year's final Federal Reserve and European Central Bank meetings.\nMetals\nThere was a broad-based upswing in metals on Tuesday with copper prices gaining 1.5 per cent, lifting for the fourth straight session. Zinc bumped 1.4 per cent higher. Metal investors were buoyed by a weaker US dollar and data from top consumer China that indicated higher demand. Aluminium closed 0.5 per cent higher, nickel was up 2.7 per cent and lead was up 1.6 per cent. A lower US currency makes dollar-denominated metals cheaper for non-US firms. The dollar slipped against a trade-weighted basket of currencies on lacklustre US wage data.", "* U.S. weekly jobless claims drop to two-year low\n* Traders await summit, U.S. non-farm payrolls data\n* Crude rises despite bearish inventory data (Adds U.S. market open, byline, dateline; previous LONDON)\nBy Herbert Lash\nNEW YORK, April 6 Global equity markets and the dollar edged higher on Thursday, helped by fresh data showing a tighter U.S. labor market, as investors stayed cautious before the first meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.\nKey stock indexes in Europe and on Wall Street climbed but a gauge of global equities was little changed, with gains offset by a decline in emerging markets.\nThe dollar index extended gains after data showed new applications last week for U.S. unemployment benefits recorded their biggest drop in nearly two years.\nLast week's jobless claims data, however, has little bearing on the March employment report due out on Friday. Claims rose during the survey week for nonfarm payrolls last month, suggesting some moderation in the pace of job growth.\n\"The market will be very remiss to do anything too sharp at this point, given that we have payrolls coming up,\" said Gennadiy Goldberg, an interest rate strategist at TD Securities in New York.\nThe dollar index rose 0.1 percent, with the euro down 0.11 percent at $1.065. The Japanese yen eased 0.27 percent versus the greenback at 111.03 per dollar.\nTrump faces pressure to deliver trade concessions with China for some of his most fervent supporters and to prevent a crisis with North Korea from spiraling out of control. However, White House officials have set expectations low for the meeting.\nThe market's main concern is that Trump and Xi may not see eye-to-eye on most things and that traders will infer this from their body language, said Thierry Albert Wizman, global interest rates and currencies strategist, at Macquarie Group in New York.\n\"Rather than a lack of agreement, however, the greater risk is a lack of deep engagement,\" he said.\nOn Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 54.07 points, or 0.26 percent, to 20,702.22. The S&P 500 gained 7.27 points, or 0.31 percent, to 2,360.22 and the Nasdaq Composite added 19.07 points, or 0.33 percent, to 5,883.55.\nThe pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index closed up 0.20 percent to a provisional 1,500.65, while MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe fell 0.01 percent.\nOil prices rose nearly 1 percent, on track for a fourth straight day of gains, but analysts warned record high U.S. inventories could derail the rally.\nU.S. crude rose 42 cents to $51.57 a barrel and Brent was last at $54.71, up 35 cents on the day.\nU.S. Energy Department data shows crude inventories at record levels, saying speculative buying is starting to reach dangerous levels from a technical perspective.\n\"It's hard to justify the move on the on back of fundamentals,\" said Robert Yawger, director in energy futures at Mizuho.\nU.S. Treasury yields rose slightly ahead of the U.S. jobs report on Friday.\nBenchmark 10-year Treasury notes were last down 3/32 in price to yield 2.3677 percent.\nGold edged lower, pressured by a firmer dollar, while copper also fell.\nU.S. gold futures gained 0.36 percent to $1,253.00 an ounce. Copper lost 0.65 percent to $5,856.50 a tonne.\n(Editing by Bernadette Baum)", "(Adds data, updates prices) BEIJING, Feb 2 (Reuters) - Shanghai nickel rose on Friday to end a rollercoaster week on a high, as investors took up new long positions in the metal, which is used to make stainless steel, and as inventories fell. Deliverable nickel inventories on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (ShFE) fell by 548 tonnes from a week ago to 56,194 tonnes on Friday, according to ShFE data. Long positions among brokerages on Shanghai's most traded May nickel contract meanwhile increased by 6,853 lots after falling by 4,177 lots on Thursday. \"Given the move lower was driven by long liquidation, it would certainly appear that some of this length has been re-established,\" brokerage Marex Spectron said in a note. FUNDAMENTALS * NICKEL: The May contract on the ShFE closed up 2.1 percent at 104,530 yuan ($16,655.51 )a tonne for a weekly climb of 0.4 percent. In London, however, nickel lost part of its Thursday gains, dipping 0.6 percent to $13,922 a tonne. * COPPER: Shanghai's most-traded March copper contract ended up 0.7 percent at 53,520 yuan a tonne, while three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was up 0.8 percent at $7,177.50 a tonne at 0734 GMT. * LEAD: LME lead touched a fresh 6-1/2-year high of $2,685 a tonne on concerns over tight inventories, a harsh North American winter and an environmental crackdown in China, * DRC: Glencore on Thursday said copper output in 2018 should rise to nearly 1.5 million tonnes as its Katanga mine in Democratic Republic of Congo ramps up to add roughly 150,000 tonnes, as well as 11,600 tonnes of cobalt. * BAUXITE: Guinean bauxite mining company La Guineenne des Mines shipped the first ore from its project in the western Boke region on Thursday and will target exports of 2 to 4 million tonnes this year, its chief executive said. For the top stories in metals and other news, click or MARKETS NEWS * The euro neared multi-year peaks on Friday as talk of policy tightening in Europe and expectations that inflation is set to gear up boosted borrowing costs globally, a move that sparked a sell-off in Asian equities. PRICES BASE METALS PRICES 0745 GMT Three month LME copper 7179.5 Most active ShFE copper 53510 Three month LME aluminium 2233.5 Most active ShFE aluminium 14390 Three month LME zinc 3553.5 Most active ShFE zinc 26850 Three month LME lead 2684 Most active ShFE lead 19655 Three month LME nickel 13885 Most active ShFE nickel 104520 Three month LME tin 21545 Most active ShFE tin 148690 BASE METALS ARBITRAGE LME/SHFE COPPER LMESHFCUc3 1116.15 LME/SHFE ALUMINIUM LMESHFALc3 -1818.49 LME/SHFE ZINC LMESHFZNc3 395.57 LME/SHFE LEAD LMESHFPBc3 -625.1 LME/SHFE NICKEL LMESHFNIc3 1536.64 ($1 = 6.2760 Chinese yuan) (Reporting by Tom Daly; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu and Amrutha Gayathri)", "By Jan Harvey\nLONDON, April 18 (Reuters) - Copper fell on Tuesday as risk aversion in the wider markets linked primarily to North Korea bled through into the base metals complex, though aluminium swung higher on the prospect of supply cuts in China.\n\"There is still some uncertainty in the market about geopolitical issues, and there is some risk aversion at this stage,\" ABN Amro analyst Casper Burgering said. \"A small deficit (in copper) is expected this year, and demand is very good... but that hasn't benefited the metal.\"\nAluminium climbed in London as traders returned to the market after the four-day Easter break, after Shanghai aluminium futures hit a near four-year high on Monday, boosted by signs of robust Chinese demand and production cuts.\n\"There is still a lot of oversupply in aluminium, and a lot of stocks, and that oversupply has depressed prices for quite some time,\" Burgering said. \"Now you see there are initiatives to cut capacity in China, and prices are moving (up).\"\n* PRICES: London Metal Exchange copper was down 0.6 percent at $5,657 a tonne at 0950 GMT, as the LME resumed trading after the Easter weekend.\n* FINANCIAL MARKETS: European shares fell as tensions over North Korea and the coming weekend's French election kept investors on edge.\n* NORTH KOREA: U.S. Vice President Mike Pence reassured Japan of American commitment to reining in North Korea's nuclear and missile ambitions on Tuesday, after warning that U.S. strikes in Syria and Afghanistan showed the strength of its resolve.\n* CHINA INDUSTRY: A recovery in China's industrial sector, which accounts for about one-third of the economy, drove better-than-expected first quarter economic growth in the number one metals consumer, data on Tuesday showed.\n* ALUMINIUM CAPACITY: Three new aluminium projects with a capacity of 2 million tonnes have been halted in Xinjiang in western China for violating rules aimed at curbing capacity, state-owned China Securities Times reported on Sunday.\n* ALUMINIUM: LME aluminium was up 0.8 percent at $1,924.50 a tonne.\n* TECHNICALS: LME aluminium may drop into a range of $1,914-$1,930 a tonne to fill a common gap forming on Tuesday, Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao said. LME copper may test support at $5,689 per tonne, a break below which could spark a retreat to the next support at $5,629.\n* SPEC POSITIONING: Hedge funds and other money managers increased their net long positions in COMEX copper, U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission data showed Friday.\n* OTHER METALS: LME zinc was down 1.5 percent at $2,586 a tonne, while lead was 1.9 percent lower at $2,196 a tonne. Nickel was down 1.9 percent at $9,565 a tonne, while tin was up 0.5 percent at $19,700 a tonne.\n(Additional reporting by James Regan in Sydney; Editing by Mark Potter)", "* Financial stocks pare earlier losses as investors move past inquiry\n* Energy and real estate lead index gains\n* NZ closes at record high helped by healthcare, consumer staples stocks (Updates to close)\nBy Devika Syamnath\nMarch 19 (Reuters) - Australian shares recovered from early losses to end slightly higher on Monday, though trading was cautious ahead of an expected U.S. interest rate hike later in the week.\nWhile it is widely expected that Federal Reserve will raise rates for the first time this year at its March 20-21 meeting, the key focus remains on whether policymakers forecast four rate hikes this year, instead of the three projected earlier.\nThe S&P/ASX 200 index inched up 0.2 percent, or 10 points, to 5,959.4. The benchmark ended 0.5 percent up on Friday.\nFinancial stocks pared earlier losses to end slightly lower as investors seemed to move past an ongoing inquiry into the embattled sector.\n“The initial shock value is starting to wear off so its not surprising to see that the banks are holding up a bit better,” said Christopher Conway at the Australian Stock Report.\nWestpac Banking Corp ended flat after four sessions of losses while other ‘Big Four’ banks ended 0.1 to 0.6 percent lower.\nThe year-long Royal Commission heard on Monday Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd lent to customers without due diligence.\n“In 3 months no one will care about the Royal Commission because all the shocking revelations will have come out,” added Conway.\nMeanwhile, energy stocks ended 1.7 percent higher, buoyed by higher oil prices on Friday. However, renewed concerns of a U.S. supply glut pushed oil lower on Monday.\nOrigin Energy Ltd and Woodside Petroleum Ltd gained 2.6 percent and 1.5 percent, respectively.\nReal estate stocks also rose, with retail property manager Scentre Group ending 1.8 percent higher.\nMaterials gained in Australia despite a slide in iron ore and base metal prices.\nMaterials stocks closed up 0.3 percent, marking their fourth straight session of gains, with index heavyweight BHP Billiton finishing 0.2 percent higher.\nNew Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index reversed earlier losses to post another record close, helped by consumer staples and healthcare stocks. The index ended up 0.2 percent or 15.04 points at 8,492.12.\na2 Milk was the top support to the index and closed 1.3 percent higher while Ryman Healthcare finished up 0.9 percent. (Reporting by Devika Syamnath in Bengaluru; Editing by Kim Coghill)", "BEIJING, April 25 (Reuters) - London aluminium fell by as much as 1.4 percent on Wednesday, retreating for a fifth straight session, as the softening of the U.S. sanctions on Russian producer United Company Rusal continued to weigh on prices. The metal has now slipped by around 13 percent from a high of $2,534.50 on April 23, the day the United States gave American customers of Rusal more time to comply with sanctions. FUNDAMENTALS * LME ALUMINIUM: Three-month aluminium on the London Metal Exchange was down by 1.4 percent to $2,196.50 a tonne by 0227 GMT, having closed down 3 percent on Tuesday. * SHFE ALUMINIUM: The most-traded June aluminium contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange was up 0.1 percent at 14,435 yuan ($2,290.43) a tonne. * RUSSIA: Russia's En+ Group, owned by recently sanctioned businessman Oleg Deripaska, said its chief executive officer (CEO) and its chief financial officer (CFO) resigned on Tuesday, with replacements appointed to both posts. * FREEPORT: Shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc fell more than 14 percent on Tuesday after the miner revealed onerous environmental demands from Indonesia's government that could delay a new contract for its massive Grasberg copper mine. * CUBA: Cuba forecasts nickel plus cobalt sulfide production will exceed 50,000 tonnes this year even as prices rise, the head of the country´s state monopoly Cubaniquel was quoted by local media as stating on Tuesday. For the top stories in metals and other news, click or MARKETS NEWS * Asian shares were under pressure on Wednesday, with a rise in U.S. bond yields above the 3 percent threshold and warnings from bellwether U.S. companies of higher costs driving fears that corporate earnings growth may peak soon. {MKTS/GLOB] DATA AHEAD (GMT) 0645 France Consumer confidence Apr PRICES BASE METALS PRICES 0244 GMT Three month LME copper 6979 Most active ShFE copper 51660 Three month LME aluminium 2204 Most active ShFE aluminium 14430 Three month LME zinc 3224 Most active ShFE zinc 24445 Three month LME lead 2324.5 Most active ShFE lead 18290 Three month LME nickel 14140 Most active ShFE nickel 103560 Three month LME tin 21075 Most active ShFE tin 146470 BASE METALS ARBITRAGE LME/SHFE COPPER LMESHFCUc3 408.5 LME/SHFE ALUMINIUM LMESHFALc3 -1703.56 LME/SHFE ZINC LMESHFZNc3 251.85 LME/SHFE LEAD LMESHFPBc3 455.05 LME/SHFE NICKEL LMESHFNIc3 -1599.24 ($1 = 6.3023 Chinese yuan) (Reporting by Tom Daly; Editing by Gopakumar Warrier)", "For the smelters, fees represent actual income and the underlying copper price is not as relevant, while miners profit from the copper price net of the fees. Photo: Bloomberg\nCopper smelters and miners are in a standoff over the annual benchmark rates for copper treatment and refining charges (TC/RCs). India’s custom copper smelters, run by Hindalco Industries Ltd and Vedanta Ltd, will be keenly awaiting the final outcome. Investors should too. These charges are one determinant of their copper division’s profits in the forthcoming fiscal year.\nIn the September quarter, Hindalco’s copper segment profits had risen sharply, despite lower volume, which the company attributed to higher by-product realizations and favourable macros which led to some gains on the currency and commodity fronts. These may or may not continue. Vedanta’s profits too rose due to higher volume and lower costs.\nThe real determinant will ultimately be TC/RCs and volume. The expectation was that the 2018 benchmark will be at the same value as 2017 but the standoff puts a question mark on that.\nThe past few years have seen a declining trend in the annual benchmark. Fees are negotiated between the miners who supply copper concentrate, and the smelters who convert it to copper cathodes and further value-added products. For the smelters, fees represent actual income and the underlying copper price is not as relevant, while miners profit from the copper price net of the fees.\nAt this point, Chinese smelters who are negotiating their annual contracts believe that the concentrate market will be in a surplus state. Also that they need higher fees to compensate for the pollution-mitigating measures they have to take due to China’s anti-pollution drive, according to news reports. In fact, the floor price for the fourth quarter TC/RCs was set by Chinese copper smelters higher by 10% over its previous level, as supply was good and demand was seen to be relatively low.\nLast week, Bloomberg reported that China’s second-largest copper smelter will idle 20-30% of its smelting capacity, as part of winter curbs in China to cut pollution. This was a week after the annual talks were suspended as smelters and miners disagreed on the fees. Lowering available capacity signals lower demand for concentrate.\nMiners have a different view. The International Copper Study Group’s 2017 data shows that till August, the market saw a deficit of 52,000 tonnes although this is lower than the 139,000 tonne deficit in the same period last year. There are also risks of cuts in supply due to strikes in important copper mining countries. That makes miners seek lower fees.\nThe talks are now likely to be finalized in the first quarter of 2018. The past few years have seen a bearish trend in TC/RCs in annual contracts. If smelters can hold 2017’s level, that will be a positive point for domestic producers. A cut can put pressure on domestic copper smelters but they do benefit if they can increase volume or prices of by-products increase. Still, lower fees make them more vulnerable.\nOne way out is to sell more of value-added products. Another is to expand smelting capacity. Vedanta has plans to double its smelting capacity to 800,000 tonnes while Hindalco Industries plans to double its continuous cast copper rod capacity to grow share of value-added products.\nIn the near-to-medium term, the annual price benchmark will partly determine how their copper divisions perform in fiscal year 2019. In the longer run, the expansions to their capacity should yield benefits of volume or higher value addition, as the case may be.", "(Adds detail, updates prices) MELBOURNE, March 30 London copper slipped on Thursday in low-volume trade as the dollar held gains on brighter economic signals from the United States and traders waited for further U.S. and China economic cues for direction. With the U.S. economy having now \"largely attained\" a full recovery from recession, the Federal Reserve can raise interest rates three or more times this year, a centrist Fed policymaker said on Wednesday, helping support the dollar. \"So far in today's Asian session, traders seem to have returned to selling but in very thin volumes, which could be no more than profit-taking. So, once again people will look to the European day for direction,\" said Malcolm Freeman of UK-based broker Kingdom Futures in a report. Cues for direction may come as soon as the final U.S. fourth-quarter growth numbers are announced later in the session, or when China's manufacturing figures are out on Friday, he said. * LME COPPER: London Metal Exchange copper had slipped 0.5 percent to $5,879.50 a tonne by 0742 GMT. That pared a 0.6-percent gain from the previous session, when prices hit their highest since March 20 at $5,927.50. * SHANGHAI COPPER: Shanghai Futures Exchange copper rose 0.4 percent to 47,460 yuan ($6,881) a tonne. * CHINA: China's economy, the world's second largest, will likely expand 6.8 percent in the first quarter of 2017, the official Xinhua agency quoted a government think-tank as saying. * CHINA PROPERTY: Moody's Investors Service warned that the financial risks facing China from a potential property downturn have grown as record lending has made banks more risk-prone while the government is less able to combat those risks. * ESCONDIDA: Chile's Escondida named a new president to run the BHP Billiton-operated mine on Thursday, days after the company failed to clinch a wage deal with workers after an historically long strike. * ZINC FEES: Korea Zinc Inc, the world's third-largest zinc smelter, has agreed to take a 15 percent drop in annual processing fees for 2017 as smelters grapple with a dearth of mine supply, Metal Bulletin reported. * LME ALUMINIUM: Metals traders have positioned for further rise in aluminium price, Kingdom Futures said, citing large scale options buying around the $2,000 strike. LME aluminium traded flat at $1960, having hit $1,963.50 earlier, its highest since May 2015. * MARKETS: Asian shares turned lower on Thursday after touching near two-year highs, while the dollar benefited from waning expectations that the European Central Bank was poised to end its easy policy. * COMING UP: 1230 U.S. GDP Final Q4 BASE METALS PRICES 0739 GMT Three month LME copper Most active ShFE copper Three month LME aluminium Most active ShFE aluminium Three month LME zinc Most active ShFE zinc Three month LME lead Most active ShFE lead Three month LME nickel Most active ShFE nickel Three month LME tin Most active ShFE tin BASE METALS ARBITRAGE LME/SHFE COPPER LME/SHFE ALUMINIUM LME/SHFE ZINC LME/SHFE LEAD LME/SHFE NICKEL (Reporting by Melanie Burton; Editing by Joseph Radford and Sherry Jacob-Phillips)", "* March imports up 11 pct to 95.56 mln tonnes -China customs\n* Imports to stay at high level or even grow - Fortescue CEO (Recasts with March figures, industry comment, copper imports)\nBEIJING, April 13 China's March iron ore imports rose 11 percent from the same month a year earlier to the second-highest monthly amount on record as the world's second-biggest economy ramped up a drive for cheap overseas supply as the cost of domestic output grew.\nImports last month were 95.56 million tonnes, according to data from the General Administration of Customs on Thursday - a fraction below the monthly record of 96.27 million tonnes imported in December 2015.\nFor the first quarter of the year, imports grew 12 percent to 271 million tonnes, customs said. That is a quarterly record.\n\"We have seen the follow-through on new supply coming on to the market in seaborne iron ore, and there is still more supply to come, which will replace higher cost (Chinese) production,\" said Nev Power, chief executive of Australia's Fortescue Metals Group, the world's fourth-largest exporter of iron ore.\n\"Imported iron ore to China will continue at the levels we are seeing now, or perhaps even grow as we go forward,\" said Power, when asked about the data during a media call on Fortescue's quarterly production.\nImports of industrial metals also surged in March as Chinese businesses stocked up on supply ahead of a seasonally strong period for manufacturing.\nChina imported 430,000 tonnes of copper and semi-manufactured copper products in March, the highest since March 2016, and up 27 percent from a month ago, the data showed. Strong imports are expected to continue through April as manufacturing business keep machinery humming at a brisk pace.\nFor the first quarter as a whole, though, copper imports were down 20 percent from a year ago at 1.15 million tonnes.\n\"We have been seeing exchange inventories going down, so we are not surprised about the March import recovery,\" said Helen Lau, an analyst at Argonaut Securities.\n\"For fabricators, perhaps they are looking at the short supply of copper concentrate, and choosing to import more metal now. For sure, this trend will extend into April but for May we will need to wait and see.\"\nMeanwhile China's aluminium products exports surged to 410,000 tonnes from 260,000 tonnes in February.\nFor more details, click on (Reporting by Chen Yawen and Beijing monitoring team; Additional reporting by Jim Regan in SYDNEY and Melanie Burton in MELBOURNE; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell and Christian Schmollinger)", "(Adds details on sectors and stocks throughout and updates prices)\n* TSX falls 37.67 points, or 0.24 percent, to 15,619.96\n* Seven of the TSX's 10 main groups fall\nTORONTO, March 30 Canada's main stock index pulled back from a one-month high on Thursday as deal-related news pressured shares of Cenovus Energy Inc and Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce.\nCenovus shares tumbled 11.8 percent to C$15.39 after the Canadian company agreed to buy oil sands and natural gas assets from ConocoPhillips for C$17.7 billion.\nThe overall energy group was down 1.2 percent even as oil prices rose. U.S. crude was up 1.8 percent at $50.41 a barrel.\nShares of CIBC fell 2.1 percent to C$114.79 after it raised its offer for PrivateBancorp Inc ahead of a June deadline. CIBC said it offered about $4.9 billion in cash and stock, up from the earlier $3.8 billion offer.\nToronto-Dominion Bank's chief executive officer told shareholders at the bank's annual meeting that it does not have a \"widespread problem\" with its sales practices, responding to a report staffers were pressured to meet targets.\nIts shares rose 0.4 percent to C$66.37, while the overall financials group was little changed.\nThe steady profile for financials came as data showed that the U.S. economy grew at a faster pace in the fourth quarter than previously estimated. Some of Canada's major banks have operations in the United States.\nAt 11:37 a.m. ET (1537 GMT), the Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index was off 37.67 points, or 0.24 percent, to 15,619.96.\nOn Wednesday, the index posted its highest close in more than a month at 15,657.63.\nDollarama Inc's quarterly profit beat analysts' estimates as the average amount customers spent at its stores increased, sending the Canadian discount retailer's shares to a record high, up 7.6 percent at C$107.35.\nSeven of the index's 10 main groups were lower.\nThe materials group, which includes precious and base metals miners and fertilizer companies, lost 0.4 percent.\nGold futures fell 0.4 percent to $1,249.1 an ounce, while copper prices advanced 1.1 percent to $5,971 a tonne. (Reporting by Fergal Smith; Editing by James Dalgleish)", "April 13 China's imports of oil, copper, iron ore, coal and soybeans in March surge on a month earlier, customs data showed on Thursday.\nKEY POINTS:\nCopper: China imported 430,000 tonnes, versus 340,000 tonnes in February\nCrude oil: China imported 38.95 million tonnes, versus 31.78 million tonnes in February\nIron ore: China imported 95.56 million tonnes, versus 83.49 million tonnes in February\nSoybeans: China imported 6.33 million tonnes, versus 5.54 million tonnes in February\nCoal: China imported 22.09 million tonnes, versus 17.68 million tonnes in February\nPreliminary table of commodity trade data\nCommentary on copper:\nHELEN LAU, ARGONAUT SECURITIES, HONG KONG\n“We have been seeing exchange inventories going down, so we are not surprised about the March import recovery. For fabricators, perhaps they are looking at the short supply of copper concentrate, and choosing to import more metal now. For sure, this trend will extend into April but for May we will need to wait and see.”\nCommentary on crude oil:\nHARRY LIU, ANALYST, IHS MARKIT\n\"The 9.2 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude imports is definitely a shocking number. That means China built close to 1.7 million bpd of crude inventory in March, way off the chart from any perspectives! Particularly at a time when storage capacity addition is light. This level of imports are considered unsustainable in the coming months. We're expecting a significant slowdown to close to 8 million bpd as refinery maintenance picks up, as well as the tightening room for stock building.\"\nCommentary on Soybeans:\nMONICA TU, ANALYST, JC INTELLIGENCE CO\n\"The figures are basically in line with the market expectation. Buyers bought a lot of soybeans from Brazil maybe out of concern about Sino-U.S. trade relations. And logistics were quite smooth and shipping was fast. On the domestic demand side, soybean crushers signed many presale contracts around spring festival time in January and February, when there was mismatch of supply and demand. We expect soy imports for the coming months to be even higher, reaching over 8 million tonnes in April, May and June. Pressure on supplies will start kicking in around April.\"\nCommentary on coal:\nZHANG XIAOJIN, COAL ANALYST, EVERBRIGHT FUTURES\n\"The year on year increase in monthly coal imports is quite high and a bit unexpectedly. Robust imports reflected both strong demand from the power plants in the first three months and deep discount of imported coal to domestic coal. Demand for imported coal remain strong in April, but due to disruption to transportation in Australian, shipment could be lower compared with March.\"\nLINKS:\nFor details, see the official Customs website (www.customs.gov.cn)\nBACKGROUND:\nChina is the world's biggest net crude oil consumer and top buyer of copper, coal, iron ore and soy. (Reporting by Asia Commodities and Energy team; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)", "By Jan Harvey\nLONDON, June 15 (Reuters) - Copper fell on Thursday for a fourth day after the Federal Reserve lifted U.S. interest rates and sounded a more hawkish than expected note on future policy, boosting the dollar and weighing on assets priced in the U.S. currency.\nThe dollar strengthened as expectations of another U.S. rate increase this year were kept alive by a policy statement that indicated huge emergency funds pumped into the economy since 2009 could be trimmed.\n\"The recovery in copper prices from the early May lows to the recent highs was helped by the weakening dollar,\" Julius Baer analyst Carsten Menke said. \"We see the dollar strengthening in the second half of this year. That should cause some headwinds for the metals markets.\"\nBelow-forecast U.S. inflation and retail sales data on Wednesday, coming hot on the heels of reports showing Chinese growth may lose momentum, had already reinforced concerns about the outlook for raw materials demand.\nOverall, the outlook for Chinese growth will be the leading driver for copper prices, Menke said.\n\"The data we've seen this week in terms of fixed asset investment, infrastructure and also property reflects the market's belief that we're about to see a slowdown from that side,\" he said. \"That is something the copper market is (reflecting) currently.\"\n* LME COPPER: London Metal Exchange copper was down 0.5 percent at $5,673.50 a tonne by 0945 GMT.\n* FEDERAL RESERVE: The Fed raised interest rates for the second time in three months and said it would start cutting its holdings of bonds and other securities this year.\n* COPPER STOCKS: Copper inventories in London Metal Exchange warehouses fell another 4,125 tonnes, exchange data showed, taking them to their lowest in more than six weeks.\n* ZINC AND NICKEL: Steel material zinc rose after capacity cuts in China drove up steel prices by 3 percent on Thursday. LME zinc was up 1 percent at $2,518.50 a tonne.\n* ZINC DEFICIT: The global zinc market deepened its deficit to 92,400 tonnes in April from a revised deficit of 72,700 tonnes in March, data from the International Lead and Zinc Study Group (ILZSG) showed.\n* RUSAL: Russian aluminium giant Rusal said it plans to boost its production by 19 percent from 2016 levels to 4.4 million tonnes by 2021 amid rising global demand. Aluminium was down 0.1 percent at $1,880.50 a tonne.\n* OTHER METALS: LME lead was up 0.8 percent at $2,094.50 a tonne, while tin was 0.3 percent lower at $19,170 a tonne. Nickel was 0.5 percent lower at $8,900 a tonne.\n(Additional reporting by Melanie Burton in Melbourne; editing by David Clarke)", "* Talk of US policy stimulus whets appetite for risk\n* Some caution ahead of Fed's Yellen testimony on policy\n* Asia shares trying to rally for fifth session\n* China inflation picks up, lessens global deflation danger\n* Copper and iron ore in demand, oil steadies after slip\nBy Wayne Cole\nSYDNEY, Feb 14 Asian shares inched to 19-month highs on Tuesday as the potential for economic stimulus in the United States underpinned the dollar, bond yields and Wall Street stocks.\nYet caution bled into markets ahead of testimony by the head of the Federal Reserve, which could highlight the likelihood of two or more U.S. interest rate hikes this year.\nJapanese shares also ran into trouble after Toshiba Corp delayed an anxiously-awaited earnings release, including details of a multibillion dollar charge related to cost overruns at its U.S. nuclear arm.\nThe Nikkei slipped 0.7 percent as Toshiba shed more than 8 percent under the weight of sell orders.\nMSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan edged up 0.2 percent, trying for its fifth straight session of gains.\nHelping sentiment was data showing consumer and producer prices were rising in China, thus reducing the danger of deflation across the globe.\nStocks in Shanghai were barely changed on the day, as were E-mini futures for the S&P 500.\nWall Street indexes had hit historic peaks on Monday, with the benchmark S&P 500's market value topping $20 trillion as investors bet tax cuts promised by President Donald Trump would boost the economy.\nThe Dow rose 0.7 percent, while the S&P 500 gained 0.52 percent and the Nasdaq 0.52 percent. Apple , a component of all three indexes, rose 0.9 percent to close at a record high for the first time since 2015.\nThe dollar index dipped against a basket of currencies to 101.830, but was still near its strongest since Jan. 20, while the euro was a shade firmer after three sessions of losses to stand at $1.0609.\nThe dollar scored a two-week top on the yen following reports that Trump did not discuss the currency or its strength during weekend talks with visiting Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. The dollar was last at 113.45 yen.\nPARSING FED POLICY\nAll eyes are now on Fed Chair Janet Yellen's semi-annual testimony on policy due on Tuesday and Wednesday.\nTom Porcelli, chief U.S. economist at RBC Capital Markets, believes Yellen will outline the case for at least three rate rises this year, rather than the two that market pricing is implying.\nOne thing investors will be watching is how forceful Yellen is in keeping alive the risk of a hike in March, something the market has priced as a distant chance <0#FF:>.\nDallas Fed President Robert Kaplan on Monday argued it should move soon to avoid falling behind the curve, especially as fiscal policy could drive faster growth and inflation.\n\"Given the uncertainty of timing on the fiscal agenda and the relatively modest uptick in inflation thus far this year, we think it will be difficult for the committee to get enough members onboard for a hike in March,\" said Porcelli at RBC.\n\"But Yellen could certainly move the 'perception' needle on this.\"\nIn commodity markets, metals were on a tear thanks to supply disruptions and strong Chinese demand.\nCopper hit its highest since May 2015 after shipments from the world's two biggest copper mines were disrupted.\nIron ore climbed to its since August 2014 amid reports China plans to cut steel capacity by at least half in 28 cities across five regions during the winter heating season.\nOil recouped some ground on OPEC-led efforts to cut output, though rising production elsewhere kept prices to a narrow range that has contained them so far this year.\nU.S. West Texas crude added 12 cents to $53.05 a barrel, having shed 1.7 percent overnight. Brent futures rose 15 cents to $55.74 a barrel. (Editing by Sam Holmes and Kim Coghill)", "April 28 Canada's main stock index futures were trading higher on Friday as oil prices rebounded after dropping to a one-month low the previous day.\nJune futures on the S&P TSX index were up 0.13 percent at 7:15 a.m. ET.\nCanada's gross domestic growth data, due at 8:30 a.m. ET, is likely to show economic growth was flat in February. While that will mark a step down from January's strong 0.6 percent pace, analysts still expect the economy is on track for a solid first quarter.\nMonthly and annualized producer price data is also due at 8:30 a.m. ET.\nCanada's benchmark stock index closed nearly 1 percent lower on Thursday, pulled lower by heavyweight banking stocks after an alternative lender's funding troubles raised concerns about the health of the housing market.\nDow Jones Industrial Average e-mini futures were up 0.08 percent at 7:15 a.m. ET, while S&P 500 e-mini futures were up 0.09 percent and Nasdaq 100 e-mini futures were up 0.08 percent.\n(Morning News Call newsletter here ; The Day Ahead newsletter here)\nTOP STORIES\nThomson Reuters Corp reported higher first-quarter revenue and reaffirmed its full-year sales outlook.\nCanadian alternative lender Home Capital Group Inc said on Thursday the Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan (HOOPP) agreed to provide a $2 billion credit line to its unit Home Trust.\nANALYST RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS\nJean Coutu Group PJC: National Bank of Canada raises target to C$25 from C$22\nMaple Leaf Foods Inc: CIBC raises target price to C$36 from C$35\nTFI International Inc: CIBC cuts target price to C$35 from C$38\nCOMMODITIES AT 7:15 a.m. ET\nGold futures: $1265.9; +0.17 percent\nUS crude: $49.39; +0.86 percent\nBrent crude: $51.71; +0.52 percent\nLME 3-month copper: $5715; +0.4 percent\nU.S. ECONOMIC DATA DUE ON FRIDAY\n08:30 GDP advance for Q1: Expected 1.2 pct; Prior 2.1 pct\n08:30 GDP sales advance for Q1: Expected 1.3 pct; Prior 1.1 pct\n08:30 GDP consumer spending advance for Q1: Prior 3.5 pct\n08:30 GDP deflator advance for Q1: Expected 2.0 pct; Prior 2.1 pct\n08:30 Core PCE prices advance for Q1: Expected 2.0 pct; Prior 1.3 pct\n08:30 PCE prices advance for Q1: Expected 2.3 pct; Prior 2.0 pct\n08:30 Employment wages QQ for Q1: Prior 0.5 pct\n08:30 Employment benefits QQ for Q1: Prior 0.5 pct\n08:30 Employment costs for Q1: Expected 0.6 pct; Prior 0.5 pct\n09:45 Chicago PMI for Apr: Expected 56.4; Prior 57.7\n10:00 U Mich Sentiment Final for Apr: Expected 98.0; Prior 98.0\n10:00 U Mich Conditions Final for Apr: Expected 115.0; Prior 115.2\n10:00 U Mich Expectations Fina for Apr: Expected 87.0; Prior 86.9\n10:00 U Mich 1 year inflation final for Apr: Prior 2.5 pct\n10:00 U Mich 5 year inflation final for Apr: Prior 2.4 pct\n10:30 ECRI Weekly Index: Prior 145.2\n10:30 ECRI weekly annualized: Prior 7.1 pct\nFOR CANADIAN MARKETS NEWS, CLICK ON CODES:\nTSX market report\nCanadian dollar and bonds report\nReuters global stocks poll for Canada\nCanadian markets directory ($1= C$1.36) (Reporting by Nikhil Kumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)", "May 3 Australian shares extended their fall from the previous session as telecom, financial and basic material stocks declined, while investors also remained watchful of the U.S. Federal Reserve's policy meeting outcome.\nThe S&P/ASX 200 index was down 59.865 points, or 1.01 percent, to 5,890.5 at 0320 GMT. The benchmark had fallen 0.1 percent on Tuesday.\nThe Federal Reserve is expected to hold interest rates steady at its two-day policy meeting.\nThe losses on the benchmark were led by the telecom sector which saw Vocus Group fall as much as nearly 30 percent, its biggest intraday slide since March 2001, after it cut its forecast for the 2017 financial year.\nIn the financial sector, the 'Big Four' banks were down between 1.2 percent and 2.4 percent.\nAustralia's central bank held rates steady for a ninth straight month on Tuesday, as it balanced the risk of rising household debt against subdued inflation and wages growth.\n\"As far as inflation is concerned, it's back in the band, so there is very little chance of a rate cut coming. It's more likely that next year there's going to be a rate rise,\" said Mathan Somasundaram, market portfolio strategist at Blue Ocean Equities.\nIn the context of such an outlook, banks may find it hard to grow as households may exercise some frugality, he adds.\nFinancial stocks were also lower as sentiment, soured by ANZ's half-year results miss in the previous session, kept investors sceptical ahead of National Australia Bank's half-year results due in the next session.\nThe basic material sector was pulled lower as BHP Billiton , Rio Tinto and Fortescue Metals fell between 0.7 percent and 2.4 percent.\n\"Commodities have been falling for a bit now and will be continuing (to do so). We have seen weaker numbers out of the U.S. and out of China, compared with expectations which is probably playing into it.\"\nFactory activity in the United States and China eased in April, with the latter slowing to its weakest in seven months.\nShares of Woolworth were down as much as 2.6 percent, the biggest intraday fall in more-than a month, after two gaining days. The stock rose as much as 2.5 percent in the previous session after posting strong quarterly sales numbers.\nNew Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index snapped seven session of gains, falling 0.15 percent, or 11.17 points to 7,411.32.\nFinancial sector lost as Australian and New Zealand Banking Group's continued fall at 2.9 percent, pulled others in the sector lower.\nFor more individual stocks activity click on\n(Reporting by Susan Mathew in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Rushil Dutta; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)", "March 19 (Reuters) - Stock Markets Net Chng Stock Markets Net Chng S&P/ASX 200** 5,949.40 28.60 NZX 50 8,498.20 21.12 DJIA** 24,946.51 72.85 NIKKEI** 21,676.51 -127.44 Nasdaq** 7,481.741 0.247 FTSE** 7,164.14 24.38 S&P 500** 2,752.01 4.68 Hang Seng** 31,501.97 -39.13 SPI 200 Fut 5,974 27.00 STI** 3,512.14 -5.59 SSEC** 3,270.3896 -20.72 KOSPI** 2,493.97 1.59 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- Bonds Net Chng Bonds Net Chng JP 10 YR Bond 0.035 -0.003 KR 10 YR Bond 2.715 0.003 AU 10 YR Bond 2.72 0.028 US 10 YR Bond 2.8445 0 NZ 10 YR Bond 2.855 -0.05 US 30 YR Bond 3.077 0 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- Currencies Net Chng Net Chng SGD US$ 1.3185 0.0009 KRW US$ 1,069.8 0.27 AUD US$ 0.7717 0.0004 NZD US$ 0.722 0.0005 EUR US$ 1.2287 0 Yen US$ 105.92 -0.08 THB US$ 31.22 -0.01 PHP US$ 51.9 -0.24 IDR US$ 13,745 0 INR US$ 64.98 0 MYR US$ 3.907 -0.011 TWD US$ 29.231 0.031 CNY US$ 6.329 0.0098 HKD US$ 7.8433 0.0003 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- Commodities Net Chng Net Chng Spot Gold 1,313 -2.86 Silver (Lon) 16.3 -0.07 U.S. Gold Fut 1,312.3 0 Brent Crude 66.21 0 Iron Ore CNY472 -12 TRJCRB Index - - TOCOM Rubber JPY191.1 -0.7 LME Copper 6,889.5 -30.5 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- ** indicates closing price All prices as of 21:05 GMT EQUITIES GLOBAL - Oil prices finished the week at a gain after a big Friday rally, and U.S. stock indices ended flat-to-higher, to close a bumpy week on a high note. Crude prices had been on track for a weekly loss, but spiked on Friday as energy investors looked to cover short bets ahead of a televised interview Sunday by the U.S. news program \"60 Minutes\" with Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. For a full report, click on - - - - NEW YORK - The S&P 500 and the Dow Industrials rose on Friday, boosted by strong industrial output numbers, though all three of Wall Street's major indexes posted losses for the week. Energy led the major sectors of the S&P 500 with a 1.0 percent gain, as oil prices CLc1 rose 1.7 percent. For a full report, click on - - - - LONDON - European shares rose on Friday, led by NEX Group as it jumped after a takeover offer, but stocks ended the week with a slight loss as worries about a trade war and geopolitical tensions kept investors on edge. The pan-European STOXX 600 index closed up 0.24 percent at 377.79 points and lost 0.1 percent on the week. For a full report, click on - - - - TOKYO - Japan's Nikkei share average slipped on Friday in choppy trade as concerns about U.S. political uncertainty sapped investors' risk appetite, although the index managed to post weekly gains. The Nikkei ended 0.6 percent lower at 21,676.51 after it briefly flirted in positive territory in early trade. For the week, the benchmark index gained 1.0 percent. For a full report, click on - - - - SHANGHAI - China stocks fell on Friday and ended the week lower, dragged by consumer and material firms, as reports of more chaos in the Trump administration added to concerns about rising U.S. protectionism. At the close, the Shanghai Composite index was down 0.6 percent at 3,269.88, while the blue-chip CSI300 index fell 0.96 percent to 4,056.42. For a full report, click on - - - - AUSTRALIA - Australian shares are expected to open higher, with financials leading the gains, helped by U.S. stocks that ended higher last week and a jump in oil prices. The local share price index futures rose 0.5 percent, or 27 points, to 5.974, a 24.6-point premium to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index close. The benchmark ended 0.5 percent up on Friday. For a full report, click on - - - - SEOUL - South Korea's KOSPI stock index rose on Friday as foreign buying helped recoup early losses. At 06:32 GMT, the KOSPI was up 1.59 points or 0.06 percent at 2,493.97. The index ended the week with a 1.4 percent gain. For a full report, click on - - - - FOREIGN EXCHANGE NEW YORK - The dollar rose against most currencies on Friday, bolstered by solid U.S. economic data that further supported consensus expectations that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates at next week's monetary policy meeting. U.S. industrial production surged in February, boosted by strong increases in output at factories and mines, while a consumer sentiment survey by the University of Michigan showed a rise in the overall index for March. For a full report, click on - - - - CHINA - China's yuan eased against the U.S. dollar on Friday, after a weaker official midpoint fixing that reflected gains by the greenback, but the Chinese currency remained on course for a winning week. Prior to the market opening, the People's Bank of China (PBOC) set the midpoint rate at 6.3340 per dollar, 199 pips or 0.3 percent weaker than the previous fix of 6.3141. For a full report, click on - - - - AUSTRALIA - The Australian and New Zealand dollars were under pressure on Friday as a fresh bout of risk aversion gripped market, in part due to concerns about a global trade war and rapid-fire changes in top White House staff. The Aussie dollar slipped further to $0.7784, after shedding 1 percent overnight, a major turnaround from a $0.7916 peak earlier in the week. For a full report, click on - - - - SEOUL - The Korean won was marginally weaker against the dollar on Friday while bond yields rose. The won was quoted at 1,066.2 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform , 0.08 percent weaker than its previous close at 1,065.4. The currency has edged up 0.3 percent on a weekly basis. For a full report, click on - - - - TREASURIES NEW YORK - Yields rose on Friday after data showed U.S. industrial production surged in February and in anticipation of next week's Federal Open Market Committee meeting, at which the U.S. central bank is expected to raise interest rates for the first time this year. Industrial production jumped 1.1 percent last month, the largest increase in four months. The University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index also rose in March to the highest level since 2004. For a full report, click on - - - - LONDON - Southern Europe led a fall in euro zone bond yields on Friday after another European Central Bank policymaker warned that inflation in the bloc remained sluggish, a potential hurdle to the withdrawal of monetary stimulus. Portugal's 10-year bond yield fell to a seven-week low, while Italian yields were at their lowest in around five weeks. For a full report, click on - - - - TOKYO - Japanese government bond prices edged up on Friday, supported by the Bank of Japan's regular debt-buying operation and struggling equities. The benchmark 10-year JGB yield fell half a basis point to 0.035 percent and the 40-year yield also declined half a basis point, to 0.890 percent. For a full report, click on COMMODITIES GOLD Gold prices dipped on Friday and were set for their biggest weekly fall in three weeks on pressure from a stronger U.S. dollar and expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve will raise interest rates next week for the first time this year. Losses were limited by political tumult in the United States which fueled safe-haven demand for bullion. For a full report, click on - - - - IRON ORE Shanghai steel futures dropped on Friday as Chinese producers ramp up output with the lifting of winter curbs aimed at fighting smog. China shut down up to half of its steel production during winter in 28 cities in the country's manufacturing heartland in the north as part of an anti-pollution campaign. For a full report, click on - - - - BASE METALS Copper hit a one-week low on Friday as the dollar recovered and concerns lingered that U.S. tariffs could provoke a trade war, though hopes for strong growth in China kept losses in check. The dollar recovered its losses versus a currency basket while Wall Street ticked higher after data showed strong U.S. factory output and improving consumer sentiment, though concerns lingered over turmoil in the U.S. government. For a full report, click on - - - - OIL Oil prices jumped on Friday, with Brent crude futures hitting their highest in more than two weeks as U.S. stock prices rose and investors covered short bets ahead of a weekend in which the U.S. news program \"60 Minutes\" will air an interview with Saudi Arabia's crown prince. Brent futures rose $1.09 to settle at $66.21 a barrel, a 1.7 percent gain. During the session, Brent hit $66.42, its highest since Feb. 28. For a full report, click on - - - - PALM OIL Malaysian palm oil futures fell 1 percent on Friday, ending four straight days of gains on forecasts for rising production in March. The benchmark palm oil contract for June delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange was down 1 percent at 2,416 ringgit ($618.38) a tonne at the end of the trading day. For a full report, click on - - - - RUBBER Benchmark Tokyo rubber futures ended down 1.7 percent on Friday, coming under pressure from a stronger yen and weak Shanghai futures amid concerns over rising stockpiles. Tokyo Commodity Exchange (TOCOM) futures, which set the tone for rubber prices in Southeast Asia, have been getting little support from the ongoing curbs in exports by a group of three of the world's top natural rubber producers, as stockpiles in Japan climbed to a more than three-year high. For a full report, click on - - - - (Bengaluru Bureau; +91 80 6749 1130)", "* Investors cautious ahead of Trump-Xi meeting\n* Financial sector up after four-day losing streak\n* Energy stocks gain with oil prices\n* Indexes up: Dow 0.23 pct, S&P 0.25 pct, Nasdaq 0.25 pct (Updates to early afternoon)\nBy Yashaswini Swamynathan\nApril 6 U.S. stocks rose on Thursday, led by energy companies and a rebound in financials, but gains were kept in check by cautious trading ahead of the Trump-Xi meeting and on uncertainty about quick U.S. fiscal stimulus.\nPresident Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, start their two-day meeting later in the day, and top of the agenda is the possibility of Trump using U.S.-China trade ties to pressure Beijing to do more to rein in North Korea's arms program.\nThe meeting comes amid rising doubts about Trump's ability to deliver on his pro-growth promises, such as tax cuts. U.S. House of Representatives speaker Paul Ryan said Wednesday that the tax reform bill could take longer than the stalled healthcare bill.\n\"The market can still go higher, but they need to make sure that everything the market has gone up on so far is coming to pass,\" said Neil Massa, senior equity trader at Manulife Asset Management in Boston.\n\"And that means making sure Republicans are able to do the pro-business agenda that they put out there.\"\nAt 12:35 p.m. ET (1635 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 47.17 points, or 0.23 percent, at 20,695.32, the S&P 500 was up 5.86 points, or 0.25 percent, at 2,358.81 and the Nasdaq Composite was up 14.58 points, or 0.25 percent, at 5,879.06.\nNine of the 11 major S&P sectors were higher, led by the energy index's 0.8 percent rise following higher oil prices.\nBut the biggest boost was from financials. The index was up 0.57 percent after a four-day losing streak.\n\"The markets still look strong but they are massively overbought and we do have bank earnings beginning to come in next week. That will tell the real tale for the sector,\" said Phil Davis, chief executive of PSW Investments.\nAs corporate earnings reports start trickling in, investors are also cautious given the lofty valuations. The S&P 500 index is trading at about 18 times forward earnings estimates, above its long-term average of 15.\nL Brands jumped 10.4 percent after reporting a smaller-than-expected drop in March sales.\nAmong the laggards was Amazon, which fell about 1 percent, set for its first drop after eight sessions, in six of which it hit record highs.\nAMD sank nearly 8 percent after Goldman Sachs started overage with a \"sell\" rating.\nAdvancing issues outnumbered decliners on the NYSE by 2,045 to 767. On the Nasdaq, 1,727 issues rose and 1,004 fell.\nThe S&P 500 index showed five 52-week highs and four lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 22 new highs and 55 new lows. (Reporting by Yashaswini Swamynathan in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza)", "By Zandi Shabalala\nLONDON, July 4 (Reuters) - Copper fell to a fresh nine-month low on Wednesday ahead of the implementation of trade tariffs on goods from China and the United States which could dampen demand for the industrial metal.\nBenchmark copper on the London Metal Exchange slipped 0.5 percent to $6,456 per tonne by 1051 GMT, its weakest since September 2017.\n\"(U.S. President Donald) Trump is not fostering global trade,\" said Julius Baer analyst Carsten Menke.\n\"There is scrutiny about the export side of the market in terms of copper-containing household goods or electronics being shipped out of China and we believe that will stay with us at least until U.S. mid-term elections in November.\"\nWashington has said it would implement tariffs on $34 billion of Chinese imports on July 6, and Beijing has vowed to retaliate in kind on the same day.\nTRADE: China's threatened tariffs on $34 billion of U.S. goods will take effect from the beginning of the day on July 6, a person with knowledge of the plan told Reuters, amid worsening trade tensions between the world's two largest economies.\nEUROPEAN UNION: China is putting pressure on the European Union to issue a strong joint statement against President Donald Trump's trade policies at a summit later this month but is facing resistance, European officials said.\nFREEPORT: Indonesia has extended a temporary operating permit for Freeport McMoRan Inc's Grasberg project, the world's second-biggest copper mine, until the end of the month while discussions continue over long-term rights.\nCODELCO: Workers at Codelco's Chuquicamata copper mine in Chile, the state miner's second largest by output, threatened last week to strike over plans to transform the century-old open pit into an underground mine.\nCHINA DATA: Growth in China's services sector accelerated in June to a four-month high, buoyed by a pickup in new businesses and a sustained increase in employment, a private survey showed.\nZINC, NICKEL: Zinc dropped 1.6 percent to $2,744 a tonne, having touched its lowest since July 2017, and nickel hit a seven-week low of $14,160.\nWARRANTS: Traders are also watching a large holding, between 40 and 59 percent, of zinc warrants on the LME. It has fuelled worries about a shortage on the LME market and led to a premium for the cash contract over the three-month.\nGLENCORE: U.S. authorities have demanded Glencore hand over documents about its business in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Venezuela and Nigeria as part of a corruption probe, sending the mining company's shares down more than 8 percent.\n(Aditional reporting by Manolo Serapio Jr.; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)", "* China's aluminium production: tmsnrt.rs/2eTgJGm\n* LME/ShFE arb: tmsnrt.rs/2oQ5nm2 (Updates throughout, changes dateline from MELBOURNE)\nBy Zandi Shabalala\nJOHANNESBURG, Aug 14 (Reuters) - Aluminium eased on Monday as traders booked profits after prices soared to a 2-1/2 year high on Friday and factory data from top producer China fell short of market expectations.\nBenchmark aluminium on the London Metal Exchange fell 0.4 percent to $2,034 a tonne by 1000 GMT, having climbed on Friday to its highest since November 2014 at $2,048.\n\"Today's move in aluminium is more on profit-taking or low volatility in trade than a fundamental shift in sentiment,\" said Hamza Khan, head of commodities strategy at ING Bank.\nRecent weaker than expected economic data from China would not mean a reversal of a positive trend for aluminium, Khan added.\n\"We still expect capacity cuts from China to remain the main driving factor,\" he said.\nFACTORY DATA: China's July factory output grew 6.4 percent from a year earlier, while fixed-asset investment expanded by 8.3 percent in the first seven months, both below economists' forecasts.\nOUTPUT: China Hongqiao, the world's biggest aluminium producer, on Monday confirmed it had closed 2.68 million tonnes of smelting capacity after being ordered to do so by the government of its home province of Shandong.\nChina's aluminium output fell 8.2 percent in July from a record high a month earlier, data showed on Monday, as capacity cuts that have sent prices to multi-year highs start to take their toll on the country's output.\nLME STOCKS: Inventories of aluminium in LME-registered warehouses are near nine-year lows, having shed more than 40 percent in 2017 to 1.3 million tonnes.\nSHFE STOCKS: Shfe aluminium stocks AL-STX-SGH which have been climbing all year, hit their highest level since May 2013 at 473,000 tonnes.\nDOLLAR: Industrial metals overall were pressured by a stronger U.S. currency, which makes dollar-denominated commodities more expensive for non-U.S. buyers.\nSPREADS: Aluminium cash to three-month spreads CMAL0-3 have narrowed sharply, suggesting shorts are likely to deliver against their positions where possible as the prime traded contract expires this week.\nCOPPER: Benchmark copper eased by 0.3 percent to $6,392.50 a tonne. Prices hit the highest level in more than 2-1/2 years on Aug. 9 at $6,515 and are up almost 8 percent this quarter.\nSPECULATORS: Hedge funds and money managers lifted their net long position in copper futures and options to a record level, U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission data showed on Friday.\nFor the top stories in metals and other news, click or" ]

[ "Lin-Manuel Miranda once summed up for an interviewer what was so powerful and influential about Rent: \"The show exists, and people go, 'That's for me,'\" he said. \"'I can do that show.'\" For Miranda and so many other fans, Rent changed the idea of what a musical could be and paved the way for Hamilton nearly two decades later. The Tony- and Pulitzer Prize-winning musical by Jonathan Larson told the story of a group of starving artists struggling to live and love through the AIDS crisis in New York City's 1980s. Now a new generation will have a chance to discover it, when a live version airs on FOX this Sunday, January 27, helmed by the same director behind the original 1996 Broadway production: Michael Greif. Greif and Rent: Live star Brandon Victor Dixon (a Hamilton alum who famously addressed Vice President Mike Pence from the show's stage) spoke to Sam about the challenges of doing a musical on television, why the genre gets a bad rap, and what made the original Rent so transformative." ]

[ "The curtain comes down on <em>Rent</em> for the last time Sunday night, after 12 years on Broadway. Although critics call the musical dated, it will live on in a touring production and countless high school drama classes.", "More than 50 student groups across the country are performing Jonathan Larson's edgy rock opera <em>Rent</em> this school year. Like the Broadway show, <em>Rent School Edition</em> is centered on a group of friends in the 1990s dealing with AIDS, gender identity, homosexuality, drug addiction and poverty.", "The housing crisis may not be over, but the curtain has gone down on one story about trying to keep a roof overhead. The Broadway musical <em>Rent</em> ended its 12-year run Sunday, after 5,124 performances. <em>Rent</em> is a modern day version of <em>La Boheme</em>, Puccini's opera about starving artists in Paris.", "Jeffrey Seller produced the Broadway hits \"Avenue 'Q',\" \"Rent,\" \"In The Heights\" and \"Hamilton.\" How did he do it? He credits his success partly to frustration with shows that never spoke to him. In this <em>1A</em> bonus podcast, Seller weighs in on what makes a hit, the future of American musicals and the role of live theater in the digital age.", "Actor WILLEM DAFOE. He's a star in films, and says he is attracted to roles that are morally ambiguous. His villianous turns include: \"To Live in Die in L.A.,\" \"Platoon,\" \"Wild at Heart,\" and \"The English Patient.\" When he's not starring in films he's performing on stage with productions by the Wooster Group, an ensemble that presents experimental theatre in New York. The group's director is Elizabeth LeCompte, DAFOE's longtime companion, and mother of their 14 year old son. He is currently starring in the group's off-broadway production of Eugene O'Neill's \"The Hairy Ape.\" This summer DAFOE stars in the film sequel, \"Speed 2.\" (THIS INTERVIEW CONTINUES IN THE SECOND HALF OF THE SHOW).12:28:30 FORWARD PROMO (:29)12:29:00 I.D. BREAK (:59)12:", "A film version of the Broadway musical Rent is now singing and dancing at your local cineplex -- soon to be joined by The Producers. Both are following in the footsteps of Chicago, another successful Broadway show that made its way to the silver screen. Meanwhile, a stage musical based on the movie The Color Purple has just arrived on Broadway, soon to be joined by Tarzan. Cross-pollination between stage and screen isn't new. But critic Bob Mondello says it's becoming more common -- and more profitable. ROBERT SIEGEL, host: A film version of the Broadway musical \"Rent\" is now singing and dancing at your local cineplex, soon to be joined there by \"The Producers.\" Meanwhile, a stage musical based on the movie \"Tarzan\" is opening on Broadway soon, and it will be joined next year by \"Mary Poppins.\" Cross-pollination between stage and screen isn't new, but our Bob Mondello says it's becoming more common and more profitable. BOB MONDELLO reporting: Broadway has long been a place where singing and dancing reigned supreme, but at the multiplex, not so much. (Soundbite of song from \"Rent\") Unidentified Man #1: (Singing) How do you write a song when the chords sound wrong though they once sounded right and rare? MONDELLO: In just nine days at movie theaters, \"Rent\" has taken in almost $20 million, about what the stage version takes in in a year. But that's not much in movie terms, which is why movie musicals have gone in and out of fashion since Fred Astaire taught Hollywood to dance. They were in in the 1970s when \"Cabaret\" and \"The Rocky Horror Picture Show\" made them look hip... (Soundbite of \"Time Warp\" from \"The Rocky Horror Picture Show\") Group of People: (Singing) Let's do the Time Warp again. MONDELLO: ...and they were out in the '80s and '90s when a new thing called MTV made them look old-fashioned and stagey. (Soundbite of \"Tomorrow\" from \"Annie\") Unidentified Girl: (Singing) The sun will come out tomorrow. Bet your bottom dollar that tomorrow... MONDELLO: Then the sun came out on the 21st century, and a pair of Hollywood musicals brought the form back again. \"Moulin Rouge!\" earned a snappy $175 million in 2001, and a year later, a one-time Broadway flop got radically reconceived for the screen and took in more than $300 million. (Soundbite of \"All That Jazz\" from \"Chicago\") Ms. CATHERINE ZETA-JONES: (As Velma Kelly) (Singing) ...and all that jazz. Start the car. I know a whoopee spot where the gin is cold but the piano's hot. It's just a noisy hall where there's a nightly brawl and all... MONDELLO: \"Chicago\" made it official; the movie musical could still be profitable. But \"Chicago\" wasn't much of a model for other projects. It got around the `Why are all those people bursting into song?' question by having its leading lady fantasize the musical numbers from her jail cell. You can't do that often. Last year's \"Phantom of the Opera\" tried another tact, creating an operatic,all-singing world on screen with only modest box office results. \"Rent's\" solution, since it has characters who look like refugees from music videos, is to let them croon like they're in music videos. So now, for 8.50, you can get this \"Rent\" at your local multiplex. (Soundbite of song from \"Rent\") Unidentified Man #2: (Singing) You're shivering. Unidentified Woman #1: (Singing) It's nothing that turns on my heat, and I'm just a little weak on my feet. Would you light... MONDELLO: And for $85, you can get this \"Rent\" at New York's Nederlander Theatre. (Soundbite of song from \"Rent\") Unidentified Woman #2: (Singing) And I'm just a little weak on my feet. Would you light my candle? What are you staring at? Unidentified Man #3: (Singing) Nothing. MONDELLO: For decades, producers worried that no one would go to a stage show once a movie of it was available and waited until hits were on their last legs. But musicals started running for so long--\"Phantom\" will soon celebrate its 18th anniversary on Broadway--that producers loosened up a bit and discovered that movie buzz could help a stage show rather than hurt it. \"Chicago\" and \"Phantom\" were fading on Broadway when their movies came out, but the extra publicity pumped their attendance way back up. Broadway's \"Rent\" was hovering around 65 percent of capacity a few weeks ago. Then the movie's ads started airing, and now the theater is almost full. Broadway's fears may finally fade if something similar happens with \"The Producers.\" (Soundbite of song from \"The Producers\") Mr. MATTHEW BRODERICK: (As Leo Bloom) (Singing) There's nothing like a Broadway show. Mr. NATHAN LANE: (As Max Bialysto", "Alex Winter is probably best known for his role as time-traveling teenager, Bill S. Preston Esq. in the iconic Bill & Ted movies from the late 80s and early 90s. These films — co-starring a young actor you may have heard of, Keanu Reeves — are cult classics. Among other excellent adventures, in these films the two teenage slackers from San Dimas travel back in time, meet historical figures, and travel to Hell to battle the Grim Reaper. The films are silly and lighthearted fun, and even spawned a short-lived cartoon series. But after the success of those films, Alex largely disappeared from the limelight. He took twenty-five years off from working in front of the camera to focus on his family and build a new career behind the camera. These days Alex is an accomplished director. He's directed documentaries about the Deep Web, about the music industry, he also did a biography of Frank Zappa. His most recent film is Showbiz Kids. The movie features interviews with some of Hollywood's most recognizable former child stars. It's a complex and nuanced piece of work that looks at the human costs of child actors, featuring interviews with former child stars like Mara Wilson, Wil Wheaton, and Evan Rachel Wood. It is a project that was especially personal for Alex, as a former child actor who started working professionally on Broadway at the age of nine. Alex joins guest host Carrie Poppy to talk about his new movie Bill & Ted Face the Music, his documentary about former child stars, Showbiz Kids, and why he left acting for 25 years. Plus, he'll reveal what the \"S\" in Bill S. Preston Esq. stands for. Excellent! All that and more on the next Bullseye! Bill & Ted Face the Music is available to rent or buy now.", "Host Robert Siegel talks with director Mel Brooks about his hit Broadway musical, <em>The Producers.</em> Brooks would really REALLY like to win a Tony Award.", "NPR's Scott Simon speaks with Will Cantler, co-artistic director of the MCC Theater in New York City, about the theater's series of livestreamed readings of plays.", "Little House On The Prairie-The Musical has a lot going for it. Given its early success, there has been a lot of talk of the musical on Broadway. The stars are aligned and there are some deep Broadway pockets behind the show. Euan Kerr reports for Minnesota Public Radio. ROBERT SIEGEL, host: Here's a blast from the past, which may have a theatrical future. \"Little House on the Prairie,\" the musical, officially opens tonight in Minneapolis. Ticket sales for previews have been so strong that the Minneapolis run has already been extended by two weeks. And that has led to speculation about \"Little House\" going to Broadway, as Minnesota Public Radio's Euen Carr reports. EUEN CARR: \"Little House on the Prairie,\" the musical, has a lot going for it. It's based on the series of books by Laura Ingalls Wilder, which has sold 50 to 60 million copies worldwide since the first book was published in 1932. The musical also follows the popular TV series, which ran on NBC for nine years and is still in syndication. And the musical has got Ma and Pa Ingalls, along with their daughters Mary, Laura and Carrie getting ready to head west on a great adventure. Unidentified Woman #1: Then we got to leave while we still have good weather. (Soundbite of cheering) (Soundbite of musical, \"Little House on the Prairie\") Unidentified Woman #2: (Singing) (Unintelligible) Unidentified Group: (Singing) Bring our favorite butter churn. (Unintelligible). Ms. FRANCESCA ZAMBELLO (Director, \"Little House on the Prairie\" the musical): We have the story, we have the tune, we have dance, we have humor, we have love, we have all those things that I think are the ingredients that you want in a musical. CARR: \"Little House on the Prairie\" director Francesca Zambello should know a hot property. She's a celebrated opera director who has won awards all over the world. She's also responsible for the production of Disney's \"The Little Mermaid,\" which has been a popular, if not critical, success since it opened on Broadway in January. In Minneapolis, a record number of people bought tickets to \"Little House\" the day they went on sale. And according to a Guthrie Theater survey, more than half said they had never been to a Guthrie show before. Ms. ZAMBELLO: The advantage is, of course, many people know the characters, and the disadvantage is the same thing - the people who know the characters think maybe they know them better than anybody else. CARR: Sensitive to the intense loyalty of \"Little House\" fans, Zambello assembled an all-star creative team to tell the Ingalls' family story. There's Oscar-winning composer Rachel Portman. Tony Award-winner Rachel Sheinkin wrote the book. And Donna DiNovelli did the lyrics. Some of the songs there are what you might expect. Others are funny, such as when Laura meets the fearsomely snooty Nellie Oleson on the first day of school. (Soundbite of musical, \"Little House on the Prairie\") Unidentified Woman (as Nellie Oleson): (Singing) I smell some pain. I feel (unintelligible). At the start of the year and we're shiny and new, I will overlook your look since it's your debut. CARR: Given its early success, there's been a lot of talk of \"Little House\" on Broadway. New York producer Ben Sprecher has invested almost $2 million in the show. But Francesca Zambello says she and her crew are just trying to get through the Minneapolis run. Ms. ZAMBELLO: I honestly think it's too early to tell. We're only in previews. It's still an enigma what will happen to this afterwards. CARR: Still, Variety theater reporter Gordon Cox says Broadway producers will be looking to see if the musical can establish an emotional connection with audiences similar to that created by the books and the TV series. Mr. GORDON COX (Theater Reporter, Variety): Matter of fact, it's even more important than what the critics think of it, the word of mouth afterwards. Do you go and get what is largely considered to be this sort of heartwarming \"Little House\" experience from this version of the story? CARR: Cox says it was a canny decision to cast Melissa Gilbert in the role of Ma. For millions of \"Little House\" TV viewers around the world, Melissa Gilbert is Laura Ingalls, or Halfpint. Cox says brand recognition can have a significant impact on sales, and casting Gilbert provides a tangible link to the TV show. That's a point not lost on Kevin McCollum. He is best known as the producer who brought \"Rent,\" \"Avenue Q,\" \"In the Heights,\" and most recently \"[title of show]\" to the stage. Even though those were all hits, he says there is something to be said for working with stories people already know. Mr. KEVIN McCOLLUM (Broadway Producer): Because there's every reason not to see a show. It's very expensive. A Broadway show only happens in New York City. And you have to really plan them to go see a Broadway show. And therefore, you know, the most important thing is that it captures the public imagination. CARR: McCollum says Minneapolis is ", "The play <em>The Vertical Hour</em>, written by David Hare, opens Thursday on Broadway. Sam Mendes, the Oscar-winning director of <em>American Beauty</em>, directs. Julianne Moore stars. Hare discusses the play with Renee Montagne.", "The director of Boogie Nights and There Will Be Blood talks to Fresh Air's Terry Gross about The Master, a tense drama with indelible performances from Philip Seymour Hoffman, Joaquin Phoenix and Amy Adams.", "In our live show from the historic Howard stage, Fred Armisen of Portlandia and former SNL cast member competes in a Halloween trivia quiz and shares with our audience the techno joys that make him happy.", "When most people hear the words \"regional theater,\" they think of stages all across the country, in places like Seattle, Washington, D.C., and Chicago. But one of the most successful nonprofit regional theaters is in New York on Broadway. The Roundabout Theatre has five stages and 30,000 subscribers and is celebrating its 50th anniversary this season. In 1965, a high school drama teacher named Gene Feist decided to open a theater in the basement of a supermarket in Manhattan. His idea was to stage revivals of works that weren't being performed elsewhere: Shaw, Chekhov, Ibsen. And for a while it worked. But when Todd Haimes, a 26-year-old MBA with a passion for theater, was hired as executive director in 1983 ... \"They had 14,000 loyal subscribers, but they had been in Chapter 11 since 1977,\" Haimes recalls. \"There was tax fraud — significant tax fraud — they had a deficit of $2.5 million on a budget of $2 million, which is almost physically impossible, so they couldn't meet the payroll.\" But somehow, Haimes and his board of directors turned things around — in a big way. He eventually became artistic director and now oversees an annual budget of $60 million. \"I think the Roundabout has survived and the reason it has flourished is two words: Todd Haimes,\" says Frank Langella, a Broadway and film star who has been in five Roundabout productions (starting when the company was still bankrupt). \"He believes in hiring gifted people to do what they want to do and he believes in being an ear, more than a voice,\" Langella says. Haimes heard something in the work of a young playwright named Stephen Karam and opened a tiny off-Broadway theater called the Underground specifically to premiere Karam's play, Speech & Debate, nine years ago. The Roundabout also premiered Karam's Pulitzer Prize nominated follow-up and just opened his latest, a play called The Humans. \"I don't come from a family of artists,\" Karam says, \"so it actually gave me a kind of inner confidence and a feeling of, that maybe I really could do this, as a career — not just as a passion or a hobby.\" It helps that the Roundabout really commits to artists. \"What we do with these new young playwrights — even though they're only 25 years old and they've never had a play produced in New York — is, when we produce their play at the Underground, we commit and commission their second play, before we produce their first play. So, they feel like they have a home and it's not just a one-off,\" Haimes explains. Still, it's revivals that pay Roundabout's bills. Its successful production of Cabaret, more than a decade ago, helped the Roundabout buy the theater they were renting. This month, it's presenting Harold Pinter's Old Times, starring Clive Owen, and an adaptation of Émile Zola's Thérèse Raquin, with film star Keira Knightley in the lead. The Roundabout opened a total of four shows last month. \"It is a factory, but for theater, for art,\" says New York Times drama critic Ben Brantley. And sure, the Roundabout has also had more than its share of clunkers over the years, Brantley says, but that doesn't change the fact that it's essential to New York's theater scene. \"It operates on so many levels and, brings a lot of performers to New York — especially from London that you might not see on stages here, otherwise,\" he says. \"It's an admirable and an honorable institution.\" TV star Jane Krakowski won a Tony for her role in the Roundabout's revival of the musical Nine. She says that, even though the company can only afford to pay a fraction of what commercial Broadway theaters offer, whenever the Roundabout calls, she's there. \"Todd makes backstage visits throughout the entire run of your show and checks in with each performer,\" says Krakowski. \"He's very nurturing to all of the artists in every way possible and he really looks out for everyone, a part of the process. And I think that makes up for the lack of salary! But also, you get to do more creative projects here than possibly you would for more money someplace else.\" The fact that everyone involved — from artists to ushers — believes in that mission is what keeps the Roundabout Theater going. \"I think we create a warm and supportive environment ...\" Haimes says, and \"we have 30,000 subscribers, so the whole show is not riding on their back. It's not like we're going to open, get bad reviews and close the next week. And probably, most importantly, we do adventurous work. I mean, if we didn't do Old Times or Thérèse Raquin nobody would do those plays commercially on Broadway, even with Keira Knightley in them!\" Haimes' biggest concern is leaving the company financially stable so his successor won't have the same worries he did when he started 32 years ago. SCOTT SIMON, HOST: When most people hear the words regional theater, they think of stages in towns all across the country. But one of the most successful nonprofit regional theaters is on Broadway in New York. The Roundabout Theater has five stages and 30,000 su", "Editors' note: It's Invisibilia bonus time! Sometimes we've got more wonderful stories than we can fit into the Invisibilia show and podcast. But we can't let them go. This story is being heard exclusively on NPR's Morning Edition. These days you can find William Kitt in a small, bright solarium on the corner of 150th Street and Edgecombe Avenue in Manhattan, where he lives. Most hours on any day he sits here, sketching over a desk cluttered with colored pencils and pastels. What you could not know from looking at Kitt, a slender, laughing man who wears a beret and surrounds himself with drawings, is that he spent decades living on the streets. Kitt says he spent 34 years of his life being homeless and maddened by drug-induced hallucinations. Now he lives in an apartment owned by a housing nonprofit called Broadway Housing Communities, which was founded in 1983 and owns seven buildings housing over 600 tenants. Like most supportive housing projects, Broadway Housing Communities provides apartments and medical, psychiatric or other services to people who, like William Kitt, have physical or mental health problems or are low income. Kitt, now 65, has leased a room from this Broadway Housing property on Edgecombe Avenue for the past 13 years. He's alive today in part because of this Harlem building. \"He was so not well when he first arrived that had he not been in Broadway Housing, he would not have had long to live,\" says Russell Baptist, a social work manager who has worked with Kitt. \"Maybe just of his own neglect.\" Kitt says he became homeless right after he turned 18. He was living in New York City with his mother. \"Yeah, I came home one day and the house was dark and everything was gone. The rent was paid for the end of that month. I didn't know how to pay no bills or nothing like that,\" he says. His mother had just left without a word. \"She ain't sit down and talk to me. She didn't want to give me the option of saying, hey I'll go with y'all.\" He moved into a New York City homeless shelter and made money from scheming. He stole cans out of recycling bins and forged identities to make cash. He says he made a lot of money this way. \"But I was a drug addict. Heroin. Cocaine. Crack,\" he says. \"All the money went into the habit.\" That's when Kitt says he started having strange thoughts, sometimes even hallucinations. \"You could walk by the park and spirits would come out and the devils start playing with your mind,\" he says. It was like this until he was in his 50s, when he met a social worker who told him that she could help him find a place to live. She told him it would be subsidized and permanent, so he agreed to work with her. From others, he had heard that the city was giving preference to people with a mental illness. So he says he decided to do what had kept him alive for the last three decades — come up with a scheme that would ensure a place in one of the city's new supportive housing projects. \"I had to act crazy,\" he says. An unnecessary move, according to Ellen Baxter, the executive director and founder of Broadway Housing Communities. She says people don't have to have a mental disorder to live in the units, and many of the tenants have no mental health diagnoses. Baptist says that Kitt really was very mentally unstable at the time, and Kitt himself admits that he wasn't the same person he is today. \"Coming in off the street for 34 years, you a wild — a wild dude, you know what I mean? It took me about five years before I started letting [other people] in,\" he says. After three decades of homelessness, Kitt was extremely socially withdrawn. \"He would just stay in his apartment and not come out,\" Baptist says. \"He was just so disorganized. That's how I'll put it. He was so disorganized he couldn't come upstairs to the social services. He needed a worker to take him, to transport him everywhere.\" But Baptist says that after five years of effort by him and other social workers, Kitt started to change. \"Just little by little, he started coming out,\" Baptist says. \"And then he asked for paper. He said I want to draw. And we brought him some papers and charcoal and pencils, and he threw himself into that artwork. He became alive. He began to talk, to trust. It was amazing.\" Services for most residents at Broadway Housing are paid for by the state and city of New York and private foundations. Housing is subsidized from the same sources, and many residents, like Kitt, pay their rent from some combination of welfare, Social Security or work income. Supportive housing projects like Broadway that provide permanent housing and social support to people who were homeless, many of whom have neglected physical or mental health needs, are often more cost-effective than emergency shelter or medical services. Broadway Housing officials say that supportive housing for one person costs taxpayers $12,500 a year, compared with $25,000 for an emergency shelter cot; $60,000 for a prison cell; or $125,000 for a psychia", "Submissions Only is an online comedy about young actors hoping to make it on Broadway. Star Kate Wetherhead and NPR's Scott Simon talk about the often brutal and funny world of actors, agents and casting directors.", "OK, I sort of made it to Broadway. It's WNYC's Greene Space in SoHo, the New York City neighborhood. Friday is date night. But even if you are flying solo, come join us in person, or on Twitter. We have a terrific lineup of some of the most exciting playwrights working today to talk about Broadway. We are asking why, despite all the diverse and creative work being produced in other media, Broadway still seems to be \"The Great White Way.\" It has yet to reflect the dynamic stories in the nation, the arts, or the vibrant city it calls home. We'll ask why that matters, and what might change it. I will be discussing whether there's A Broader Way in the future of the theater with award-winning playwrights David Henry Hwang, Lydia Diamond, Bruce Norris and Kristoffer Diaz. They have all tackled topics like race and class, and they have done it in a way that makes audiences sit up and listen. We want to talk about the big issues they have taken on, how they make it work and why they feel inspired to do it. The conversation will be live-streamed on Friday at 7 p.m. ET from The Greene Space. At the same time, please follow and join on Twitter and Facebook, using #NPRMichel to share your thoughts. Joining us on Twitter are: Dennis Allen II (@Dallensequel). He's an actor and playwright, recipient of the 2012 and 2013 Himan Brown Creative Writing Award, and a member of Liberation Theatre Company's 2011 and 2012 Black Playwrights' Group. Carla Ching (@carlaching). She's a playwright and TV writer, a member of New Dramatists and The Kilroys, and the former artistic director of Asian-American theater company 2g. Mona Mansour (@MonaMansourNY). She's a member of New Dramatists, recipient of the 2014 Middle East America Distinguished Playwright Award and the 2012 Whiting Award winner. Arts reporter Jeff Lunden (@jefflunden) will be tweeting from The Greene Space. NPR's Davar Ardalan and Frederica Boswell will tweet from the live event, using @NPRMichel.", "For most of its two-year run on NBC, the series Smash was pretty much a hot mess. Ostensibly about the creation of Broadway musicals, it only tangentially resembled the real thing. And its plots and characters got soapier and soapier as the show went on. Still, I recorded every episode on my DVR, if only because the program offered a weekly glimpse of some of the finest musical-theater actors on the Broadway stage — among them Megan Hilty, Christian Borle, Jeremy Jordan, Krysta Rodriguez, plus occasional guest stars like Bernadette Peters — singing and dancing. It also featured location shots from right in the heart of the theater district. NBC pulled the plug last season, though, and that, I thought, was that. But a few weeks ago came the announcement of a concert version of Hit List, the Rent-like musical from the show's second season, with some of the actors from Smash starring in it. It turns out I wasn't the only one curious to see it; the three performances sold out in half an hour. Last week, I attended a press preview at 54 Below, the swanky cabaret where the show was to be presented, and got to meet some of the performers as well as Joshua Safran, the showrunner for Smash's second season. The first season was centered on a fictional Broadway show called Bombshell and the two actresses vying for the lead role of Marilyn Monroe. But Safran, who replaced Smash creator Theresa Rebeck, wanted to shake things up. \"So much of the process of Bombshell had been seen,\" he says, \"from the initial idea to the workshop to an opening out of town. And, obviously Bombshell's journey wasn't done, but you also couldn't repeat those moments with Bombshell, because it had moved past it.\" Safran found inspiration in the documentary Show Business, which looked at four musicals of the 2004 season — not just the big hit, Wicked, but the little engine that could, Avenue Q (which eventually bested Wicked in the Tony Awards), as well as the Boy George flop Taboo and Tony Kushner and Jeanine Tesori's Caroline, or Change. \"So that was where the idea of having a second or competing musical came about,\" Safran says. \"And we wanted to make the sound of the second musical and the tone of the second musical completely different.\" Where all of the retro-by-design songs for Bombshell came from the Tony Award-winning team of Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman (Hairspray), Safran recruited a bunch of up-and-coming musical theater writers, among them Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (A Christmas Story) and Joe Iconis, to write tunes for the competing show, Hit List. \"I knew I wanted the other musical to sound like a rock musical, like Rent, like Next to Normal,\" explains Safran. He listened to Iconis' tunes \"Broadway, Here I Come\" and \"The Goodbye Song,\" and knew it was the tone he was looking for. \"So, in a very strange way, those songs actually created Hit List,\" Safran says. In fact he had a few weeks in the schedule before he had to even come up with a plot for the fictional musical. Tony-nominated actor Jeremy Jordan (Newsies) was brought in to play Jimmy, the angst-ridden songwriter with many secrets, for Smash's second season. His character was also Hit List's composer and star and had a tortured love affair with actress Karen Cartwright (Katherine McPhee). Jordan says that somewhere around the middle of the season, he and the other actors began to have an inkling of what the fictional Hit List was about. \"But for the purposes of Smash,\" he says, \"I think it was more geared towards forwarding the story for the characters in Smash.\" And, apparently, as the second season of Smash continued, that plot became kind of flexible, says Krysta Rodriguez. She played Karen's roommate, then Hit List cast mate, then bitter rival. \"It was more important to know how the songs related to the [TV] plot that everybody was watching, rather than the plot of Hit List,\" Rodriguez says. In the concert version, though, \"we get to bring out what we originally intended, and that means that songs that were sung by [certain] characters are now being sung by different characters, because that's how they would fit in Hit List and not how they worked on Smash.\" The idea for the concert version came from Jennifer Ashley Tepper, program director at 54 Below and a self-professed theater geek who was a big fan of Smash. She contacted Safran, \"and we started having a conversation about doing it live. We just wanted to show the songs in order, and what the show would be, if it was something you went to see at the Winter Fringe.\" She got enthusiastic responses from many of the Smash cast members, including Andy Mientus, who played Hit List's doomed book writer, Kyle. \"It's been so sweet,\" he says. \"I feel like it's our 10-year reunion, but it's only been six months. But in television that's 10 years! It's a really sweet, joyous experience.\" So a couple of days later, I joined an enthusiastic audience of Broadway babies and Smash fans to find out just what the fictional musical", "Fresh Air Weekend highlights some of the best interviews and reviews from past weeks, and new program elements specially paced for weekends. Our weekend show emphasizes interviews with writers, filmmakers, actors and musicians, and often includes excerpts from live in-studio concerts. This week: Don't Worry, Even Fashion Guru Tim Gunn Is Living In His Comfy Clothes: \"Why should we be self-isolating in clothes that constrain us and constrict us?\" Gunn asks. His new fashion competition series, Making the Cut, is now streaming on Amazon Prime Video. Stephen Sondheim's Star-Studded 90th Birthday Salute Made For Perfect TV: Lin-Manuel Miranda, Neil Patrick Harris, Josh Groban and Meryl Streep are just a few of the artists featured in Take Me to the World, a tribute to the iconic Broadway composer and lyricist. Table For None: Tom Colicchio Explains What Restaurants Need To Survive: The Top Chef judge is focused on keeping his industry afloat during the pandemic. \"We're really looking at saving every restaurant, because we think that every restaurant needs to be there,\" he says. You can listen to the original interviews and review here: Don't Worry, Even Fashion Guru Tim Gunn Is Living In His Comfy Clothes Stephen Sondheim's Star-Studded 90th Birthday Salute Made For Perfect TV Table For None: Tom Colicchio Explains What Restaurants Need To Survive", "Fresh Air Weekend highlights some of the best interviews and reviews from past weeks, and new program elements specially paced for weekends. Our weekend show emphasizes interviews with writers, filmmakers, actors and musicians, and often includes excerpts from live in-studio concerts. This week: 2 Broadway Stars Grapple With COVID And ALS: 'We're Adapting To A New Reality': Married Broadway stars Danny Burstein and Rebecca Luker both contracted COVID in the spring. Burstein was hospitalized. Luker's case was less severe, but it came soon after she was diagnosed with ALS. David Byrne And Spike Lee Conjure Up A Joyous Vision Of 'American Utopia': Lee's new film for HBO captures a live performance of Byrne's acclaimed Broadway show. David Byrne's American Utopia is a rousing blend of song, dance and revival meeting. Podcast Examines How 'Nice White Parents' Become Obstacles In Integrated Schools: Serial reporter Chana Joffe-Walt says progressive white parents may say they want their kids to go to diverse schools — but the reality tells a different story. Her new podcast is Nice White Parents. You can listen to the original interviews and review here: 2 Broadway Stars Grapple With COVID And ALS: 'We're Adapting To A New Reality' David Byrne And Spike Lee Conjure Up A Joyous Vision Of 'American Utopia' Podcast Examines How 'Nice White Parents' Become Obstacles In Integrated Schools", "The stand-up comedian and star of In Living Color played Sporting Life in the opera Porgy and Bess. The show, which won Tony Awards, closes on Broadway next month.", "Actor, director, producer and comedian Mel Brooks talks with Scott Simon about his new Broadway musical Young Frankenstein, the movie and potential stage production of Blazing Saddles, and his long and successful career.", "Longtime fashion expert and mentor Tim Gunn returns to 'Fresh Air' to talk about how the pandemic has changed his mind about comfy clothes and his new competition series, 'Making the Cut.' <br/><br/>David Bianculli recommends the 90th birthday salute to Broadway icon Stephen Sondheim, available online.<br/><br/>'Top Chef' judge Tom Colicchio spoke with Terry Gross about broken food supply chains, food waste, and what the future of the restaurant industry might look like due to COVID-19. Colicchio helped form the Independent Restaurant Coalition to lobby Congress for relief for the industry.", "Actor and singer Cheyenne Jackson is equally at home on Broadway and in front of the camera. He made his Broadway debut as the understudy for both male leads in Thoroughly Modern Millie, and his cabaret debut, a one-man show titled Back to the Start, was a sold-out hit. His love of music comes from digging through vinyl at yard sales around his family farm in Idaho, and his love of Broadway comes from the time he saw a touring production of Les Miserables in Spokane, Wash., with his French teacher. \"It just blew my mind,\" Jackson says. \"These people were so amazing. And that's initially where I think I thought, 'I think I want to do that for a job. I don't know how. I don't know when.' But it was always in my DNA, I think.\" Jackson has appeared on 30 Rock and Glee, and has recorded an album of duets with Song Travels host Michael Feinstein, titled The Power of Two. The pair is reunited here to discuss Jackson's journey from Idaho to the national stage, and to perform songs from Tom Waits, Elton John and Katy Perry. Subscribe to the Song Travels Express podcast.", "A new off-Broadway play explores the career of legendary jazz pianist and composer Thelonious Monk. Award-winning actor and director Rome Neal stars in the one-man production.", "2: Actor and director ALAN ARKIN. He's currently co-starring, with Andy Garcia, in the new film, \"Steal Big, Steal Little,\" Arkin began his career with Chicago's Second City improv group. He went on to win a Tony on Broadway, in Carl Reiner's play \"Enter Laughing,\" and to star in movies such as \"The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming,\" \"The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter,\" \"Wait Until Dark,\" \"Catch-22,\" and \"The In-Laws.\" Arkin's directing credits include \"The Sunshine Boys\" and \"Little Murders\" on Broadway, and several movies and T-V shows, including an episode of the P-B-S comedy series, \"Trying Times.\" (REBROADCAST from 11", "Two veteran directors adapted the Broadway shows to film. And while many such translations are too stage-bound, critic David Edelstein says Clint Eastwood and Roman Polanski got the balance right.", "A director the Washington Post calls a \"wonder boy\" moves from his own small theatre in Arlington, Virginia, to direct \"Sunday in the Park With George\" at the Capitol's Arena Stage. We profile Eric Schaeffer. Composer Stephen Sondheim is a fan. Playwright-director James Lapine is too. And Kander and Ebb, the men who wrote the musical \"Cabaret.\" NPR's Susan Stamberg visits the young man who could be the next \"toast of Broadway.\" (8:00) ((ST", "F. Murray Abraham stars in a new off-Broadway production of Bertolt Brecht's classic \"Galileo.\" Brian Kulick, artistic director of the Classic Stage Company and the director of the play, discusses Galileo, (the scientist and the play) and tells why he thinks the themes in the work are still relevant today.", "2: PAUL RUDNICK is a essayist, novelist, and playwright. His latest play off-Broadway is a comedy about AIDS, \"Jeffrey,\" about a man who swears off love and sex. RUDNICK also wrote the Broadway play, \"I Hate Hamlet,\" about John Barrymore's ghost. And he writes a column in Premiere, \"If You Ask Me,\" in which he writes in the voice of a quintessential Jewish mother who critiques movie stars' personal lives more than their acting (Rebroadcast from 4/8/93). RUDNICK also wrote the screenplay for the movie \"Addams Family Values,\" starring Angelica Houston and Raul Julia.", "P-T commentator Rob Kapilow comes to studio 4-B to talk to Martin about What Makes \"The Sound of Music\" so Great. The musical is being revived on Broadway.", "“War and Peace” on Broadway. “Natasha, Pierre and The Great Comet of 1812” is up for a dozen Tony Awards.  We talk to the creators and star Josh Groban. And the most Tony nominations on Broadway this year go to a musical straight out of Tolstoy’s “War and Peace.” Set in Moscow long ago, with an electro-pop sound and wild staging that is literally right in your lap. “Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812” puts superstar Josh Groban on Broadway for the first time in the midst of another era’s .001 percent. Russian aristocrats drinking while the world falls in. This hour On Point, Josh Groban’s with us, and more, from &#8220;The Great Comet of 1812.&#8221; &#8212; Tom Ashbrook Guests David Malloy, creator of the Tony-nominated musical, “Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812.” He’s up for three awards in the 2017 Tony Awards. (@dave_malloy) Rachel Chavkin, director of the Tony-nominated musical, “Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812.” Her direction is up for a Tony Award. (@rachelchavkin) Josh Groban, singer and actor. His performance as Pierre in “Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812” is up for the Best Actor in a Musical Tony Award. Multi-platinum recording artist. (joshgroban) Denée Benton, singer and Broadway actor. Her role as Natasha in “Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812” is up for the Best Actress in a Musical Tony Award. (@deneebenton) From Tom’s Reading List New York Times: ‘Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812,’ on the Heels of ‘Hamilton’ &#8212; &#8220;While it’s true that the swirling romantic intrigues can be dizzying, Mr. Malloy has done such a fine job of distilling the essence of the story into song — there is virtually no dialogue, with the characters even singing descriptive narration (Natasha: &#8216;I blush happily&#8217;) — that you are not likely to spend much time peering at the program.&#8221; New Yorker: Immersion Theatre, on Broadway &#8212; &#8220;In an era of binge-watching, live-tweeting, and the Oculus Rift, how can theatre compete as all-consuming entertainment? Perhaps it’s our desire to be more than spectators—to be sucked headlong into alternative worlds—that has fuelled the recent boom in immersive theatre, which trades the fourth wall for winding hallways and dance floors, in the hope of giving audiences not a show but an “experience.” The Cut: Meet Broadway’s Newest ‘It’ Girl, Denée Benton &#8212; &#8220;Benton plays a Russian aristocrat on Broadway, a character who, for all intents and purposes, was written for a white woman. She wasn’t sure casting would even consider her, not because of her talent but because period dramas have the bad habit of going for more traditional casting selections. Fortunately, the director Rachel Chavkin and writer of the book and music Dave Molly are &#8216;progressive [and] cared more about the essence of the character,&#8217; Benton describes, which brought her back to the stage in October.&#8221;" ]

[ "It is sufficient. As long as you have server powerful enough. Especially storage." ]

[ "Here are the updated step-by-step instructions on how to build a Tezos node(fresh Ubuntu install)\n\nbecome superuser\n\nsudo su \n\nupdate system\n\nsudo su\nsudo apt update &amp;&amp; sudo apt upgrade -y\n\ninstall curl\n\nsudo apt-get install curl\n\nsay yes to all prompts\n\ninstall docker\n\nsudo apt install docker.io\nsudo systemctl start docker\nsudo systemctl enable docker\n\ninstall docker compose\n\nsudo curl -L \"https://github.com/docker/compose/releases/download/1.24.1/docker-compose-$(uname -s)-$(uname -m)\" -o /usr/local/bin/docker-compose\nsudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/docker-compose\nsudo ln -s /usr/local/bin/docker-compose /usr/bin/docker-compose\nsudo apt-get docker-compose\n\nreply yes to all prompts\n\ndownload the alphanet script\n\nwget -O mainnet.sh https://gitlab.com/tezos/tezos/raw/master/scripts/alphanet.sh\nchmod +x mainnet.sh\n\nstart mainnet\n\n./mainnnet.sh start\n\n(to update node later type:)\n./mainnet.sh restart\n\nupdate mainnet\n\n./mainnet.sh update_script\n\nbuild from sources\n\nall one line\n\nsudo apt install -y rsync git m4 build-essential patch unzip bubblewrap wget pkg-config libgmp-dev libev-dev libhidapi-dev which wget https://github.com/ocaml/opam/releases/download/2.0.3/opam-2.0.3-x86_64-linux\n\nsudo cp opam-2.0.3-x86_64-linux /usr/local/bin/opam\nsudo chmod a+x /usr/local/bin/opam\ngit clone https://gitlab.com/tezos/tezos.git\ncd tezos\ngit checkout mainnet\n\ntype \"yes\" for opam init command\n\nopam init --bare\nmake build-deps ## note: process 7 takes a long time\neval $(opam env)\nmake\nexport PATH=~/tezos:$PATH\nsource ./src/bin_client/bash-completion.sh\nexport TEZOS_CLIENT_UNSAFE_DISABLE_DISCLAIMER=Y\n\ninstall jp\n\nsudo apt install -y jq\n\ninstall opam\n\nmake build-deps\nmake build-dev-deps ##takes a while\neval $(opam env)\nmake\n\ngenerate tezos node ID ## if the tezos wasn't installed in /home/~, do a search for tezos\n\ncd /home/'username'/tezos/\n\ndownload node snapshot(saves you hours)\n\ncurl -s https://api.github.com/repos/Phlogi/tezos-snapshots/releases/latest | jq -r \".assets[] | select(.name) | .browser_download_url\" | grep full | xargs wget -q --show-progress\n\nfind out the name of the file\n\nls /\n\nunzip the file(only works with this command, otherwise file will be corrupted)\n\nunxz \"name of file\"\n\nrename the file, taking note of the block number, you will use it below(do this via Gui is fine)\n\ncreate the tezos node identity, for the --block variable, use the block number located on the\n\n./tezos-node identity generate\n\nimport the snapshot\n\n./tezos-node snapshot import mainnet.full --block \"exampleblockBMetLX2em7Q2tbAxcuPbUQNEY4NhRDEZtJCQeoFvWnYwDzb5qGU\"\n\nkill original app using the ports\n\nsudo kill -9 $(sudo lsof -t -i:8732)\n\nstart the node\n\n./tezos-node run --rpc-addr 127.0.0.1\n\nnote use lsof command if file is locked and then killall to stop the process, or unlock the file by rm the lock file in the path\n\nwait for node to sync(watch progress with this command\n\n./tezos-client bootstrapped\n\nYour finished!!!", "Where you say:\n\n\n Building the docker container from another docker container is also\n said to be bad practice and I also understand the reasoning for that,\n so that's a no-go, too.\n\n\nPerhaps there are bad ways of doing that but it can be a solid pattern. By way of example if you use openshift Kubernetes it runs s2i as builder images on your cluster. s2i checks out your code from git, compiles it, and pushes it to a new layer in your docker repo. It has an incremental flag where it will tar up your library deps folders at the end of a build and store as a docker layer. Then the next time you build it does a clean checkout then untars the libraries from the last build. That speeds up the next build a lot as it has the local maven cache from the last build. It also means the s2i build container can be launched on a different host in the cluster at each execution and it just connects to git and the central container registry and does a fast repeatable build. \n\ns2i is a stand alone tool that can use your local docker demon. So it acts as a single commandline ”compile my stuff into an updated docker image”. There are community supported s2i images for php7, node.js, Java etc. I recall that the java s2i will run a maven build with the “openshift” profile and expects your to copy the built WAR to “./deployment”. When you run the image that s2i writes out to your container registry it launches wildfly that is in the base layers and it deploys whatever finds in the deployment folder (but double check its been a while since I looked at it). \n\nIn your case If you are using Jenkins I suggest you take advantage that it supports building docker images. Append a docker pipeline step to create your image and push it to your chosen container registry. Enterprises that use Jenkins to build and Nexus for storing JARs and WARs are now using Nexus as their container registry. They can stick with Jenkins and Nexus and simply reconfiguration things to move into the world of containers. \n\nI should also point out that you can be more “microservice-like” by skipping installing tomcat. You can use maven jetty plugin or maven tomcat plugin to just run the code with “mvn jetty:run” or “mvn tomcat7:run”. You can set a full blown config file for the servlet container via the plugins. Maven let's your set whatever jvm options you want. (note: after Tomcat 7 there doesn't seem to be support for this modern approach see the next paragraph where the mainstream now uses Jetty for this). \n\nIf you like spring you can use spring boot to build an excutable JAR that runs your webapp. The JAR will be large as it has everything to run the webapp including the servlet container packed into a single JAR. You can run it as “java -jar” and it runs your webapp in an embedded servlet container. Better yet configure it's maven plugin to make an executable jar you can simply run as “./my-app-1.0.0.jar” and it will lunch. That makes building a docker image trivial. You don’t have to install tomcat you only need a container with Java on it and copy in your spring boot executable JAR and run it as the CMD. Spring Boot is very mainstream for Java microservices and it runs Jetty under the bonnet.", "Yes, you can.\nFirst of all, a &quot;remote node&quot; simply means a full node which is not running on the same machine as your wallet software. Any remote node is a full node. Maybe you control it, maybe you don't. If you connect to some node on node.moneroworld.com then those will belong to other people who're running a full node and have opened them to remote wallets.\n\nIn the diagram above, we can say the following:\n\nNetwork 2 is probably the most common set-up. One machine, one node, one wallet. Node N5 is a localhost node to wallet W4 because they're on the same computer as the node. The node N5 is not accepting wallet connections from outside, so it can not be used as a remote node. This is the default set-up for people running a full node. Of course, the user can add more wallets easily, they will all connect to N5 automatically.\n\nNode N1 is a localhost node to wallets W1 and W2 because they're on the same machine as the node.\nThe node is also accepting wallet connections from local network and because of that N1 is a remote node to wallet W3 since N1 and W3 are running on different machines. Since N1 is not accepting wallet connections from the internet but just from local network, we could say it's a private remote node.\n\nMachine PC4 runs only the wallet W5 and no node. It must connect to some remote node to be able to refresh the wallet and send transactions. It's connected to a public remote node N2. If owner of machine PC4 wants to sync another wallet, he must connect it to a remote node as well. Since every new wallet refresh requires sending some data between the wallet and the node, it's not efficient to use remote nodes for many wallets. Would be better to download the whole blockchain by running a node and then you're much faster to sync each wallet.\n\n\n\nSetting up a remote node requires access to a full node that has the entire blockchain downloaded right?\n\n&quot;Setting up a remote node&quot; just means that you run your node with a few extra parameters, and that you allow your firewall to accept incoming connections, as explained on the same site you linked. So, a remote node is a full node and it also has the full blockchain downloaded - just like any node.\n\nHow To Include Your Node On Moneroworld\nIf you would like to offer your node up for inclusion in the Moneroworld Network of Open Nodes, you can simply add the code bellow to the launch of your daemon (and open your firewall), and the MoneroWorld script will sniff you out and add your node to the random list.\n\n--rpc-bind-ip YOUR.EXTERNAL_IP.GOES.HERE --rpc-bind-port 18089 --restricted-rpc --confirm-external-bind\n\nSo does this mean my remote node can do everything as if it had the full blockchain downloaded?\n\n&quot;as if it had the full blockchain downloaded&quot; doesn't make sense. Any node has the full blockchain downloaded by definition. If you mean whether your wallet connected to a remote node can do everything then yes, it mostly can. You can refresh and send, but can't mine or control the node in other ways.\n\nWhat are some cons about this setup?\n\n\nIt's slower and wasteful if you need to sync multiple wallets\nIt's putting extra load on people who volunteer to run their remote nodes\nIt doesn't help the network\nIt allows your TX-es and IP to be linked by the node\nMaybe some other privacy loss (because the node provides you with the decoy outputs as well but I'm not sure if the wallet or the node decides the block heights)\n\n\nCan I make a send transaction using a remote node setup? Currently the remote node is setup to node.moneroworld.com port 18089\n\nYes.", "docker-compose.override.yml, docker-compose.prod.yml and extend\n\nAn outline answer would be to have a docker-compose.yml file for your common base configuration, a docker-compose.prod.yml for production-specific sets of containers and for other specific environments, docker-compose.override.yml. It is possible to use the docker-compose extend keyword/command/statement in a docker compose yml file to inherit from another docker compose yml file.\n\nThe above approach is on the basis that one would first consider only the things common across all environments as the pure, base setup and then dev and prod environments would be based off of this (inherited). \n\nYour dev-specific packer setup could be configured in the docker-compose.override.yml file, which inherits from the base docker-compose.yml. Configuration that is common across all environments would reside in docker-compose.yml. Your production setup could be in docker-compose.prod.yml, which again can inherit from the base docker-compose.yml.\n\nReferences\n\nThis seems to be the best practice approach, based on the following references:\n\n\nThe inheritance/nesting approach is explored here: Inheritance or\nnesting with docker compose\nThe official documentation here - Share Compose configurations\nbetween files and projects - describes the docker compose\nextend keyword.\n\n\nSome things you may or may not need to consider for your specific case\n\n\nThere may or may not be some bespoke config code required in\naddition i.e. in your deployment itself, e.g. bash scripts etc., should the above approach provide most of what you need but not quite everything. These scripts can be run from docker compose.\nResearch what can be overridden when writing docker-compose.override.yml\nwhen \"inheriting\" from docker-compose.yml. Your particular project may require a configuration in each of the dev and prod environments that override the same thing in the base environment, thus the need to override what is in the \"parent\"/base docker-compose.yml environment. Consider this issue: https://github.com/docker/compose/issues/3729 - which suggests there are limitations as to what can be overridden, particularly if you want to move a configuration item that was present in the parent docker-compose.yml. A better way could be to only have items common across all environments in docker-compose.yml and have the specifics in files for specific enviroments, such as docker-compose.prod.yml", "It would be helpful to see your node setup, to know which rendering engine you're using (Eevee, Cycles, or Blender Render if you're using 2.79 or earlier) and which version of Blender you are using.\n\nHowever, I attempted to reproduce your issue using an approximately similar shape and this is what I found:\n\nA rough approximation of your flat rendered shape.\n\nA jury-rigged version of your shading here.\n\nNode setup for this shading.\n\n\nIf this is what your node setup looks like, this is incorrect. You should add a Shader node first, connect it to the Surface input of the Material Output node, and add your to that Shader node, as shown below.\n\n\nResult of above node setup.\n\n\nI hope that this helps, but more details will help illuminate the problem!", "My understanding of the SSPL, based on the license text and the MongoDB FAQ, is:\n\nIf you use MongoDB, or a modified version of it, in a website/web-application that does not off data-storage services to its users, then the SSPL license works the same as the GPL license. You can use the community edition without problems.\n\nIf you do offer data-storage services using the MongoDB Community Edition in your backend, then the SSPL requires that you offer all the source code for all the software needed to build a duplicate service and that source code must be offered under the SSPL license.\nIf any of the code you must offer this way is under an SSPL-incompatible license, which includes the (L|A)GPL licenses and most proprietary licenses, then it is not possible to fulfill this requirement.\nIn any case, it means that the differentiating factor for your service can only lie in the hardware you have to run it on, because every potential competitor is entitled to a copy of your full-featured software to jump-start their business with.\n\n\n\nif I expose MongoDB server to customers directly, I would need to publish source code of whole setup.\n\nIf you expose MongoDB directly to customers, either you are offering a competing service to the cloud offerings from MongoDB itself, or you have essentially created a front-end only web-app.\nIn the first case, you must definitely publish the source code for the whole setup under the SSPL license (which might not be allowed by the licenses of the tools you used).\nIn the second case, you are probably giving your business secrets away to the your users, but if you use that MongoDB database just to store the inventory of your webshop for example, then that does not trigger the provisions in s13 of the SSPL.\n\nif I use MongoDB in custom made docker image (with my homebrew backup/dump solution), in FE-&gt;BE-MongoDB setup, in the cloud &amp; production environment and my customers are consuming FE, that doesn't oblige me to publish whole source.\n\nIt depends on what you are offering your users through that FE. If you are, for example, offering a backup service for their files, then I can see that such a service might trigger clause s13 of the SSPL and require you to publish the source code for the whole setup, including your home-brew backup/dump solution and possibly even docker.", "Non-mining full nodes cannot prevent a 51% attack, but they are essential in preventing other attacks.\n\nIn particular, full nodes verify that the chain produced by miners is valid. This means that no coins are transferred without proper authorization from their owner, that no new coins are being created out of thin air (except for those permitted by the inflation schedule), and a few other things.\n\nFull nodes are what keeps miners honest. To anyone who verifies incoming transactions themselves using a full node (\"economically relevant full node\"), it guarantees that the chain is valid. Miners have no way to cheat those (apart from a 51% attack, see further), and as a result, they have no incentive to produce blocks that violate the rules, as such blocks will be dropped on the floor and ignored by full nodes. To anyone not running a node themselves, the knowledge that a sufficient number of other independent parties are running full nodes helps, because hopefully those parties are important enough that miners wouldn't want to waste their money creating an invalid block they would detect.\n\nBitcoin's security is based on auditability, not trust. You know the chain, in its entirety, is valid, because you're able to independently verify that it is.\n\nUnfortunately, there is no way to verify which of two conflicting (but otherwise valid) transactions is the \"real\" one without a central clearinghouse that blesses one of the two. This is called the double spending problem, and it is the reason why we need miners: a decentralized clearinghouse that anyone with the right hardware, even anonymously, can join. Producing blocks costs money for them, and they're only paid if the network of full nodes accept their blocks. This is why they're incentivized (but not forced) to produce blocks that satisfy the rules, and build on top of each other's blocks.\n\nBut it is important to see that the 51% attack is the exception here. For almost every rule in Bitcoin, full nodes verify everything, and there is no way they can be fooled. The only thing that cannot be verified independently is double spends, which leads to a 51% attack if exploited (but the theory is that this would be expensive for miners so not economical; furthermore, if miners aren't doing their job well, others are incentivized to become a miner themselves).", "Here is a step by step updated guide on how to build a Tezos node from the sources on Ubuntu, also see my youtube video:\n\nhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SAHoF-oO71U\n\nDOWNLOADS AND LINKS\n\nUbuntu download:\nhttps://ubuntu.com/download/desktop\n\nTezos node snapshot links:\nAvailable snapshots for main net?\nhttps://github.com/Phlogi/tezos-snapshots\ncurl -s https://api.github.com/repos/Phlogi/tezos-snapshots/releases/latest | jq -r \".assets[] | select(.name) | .browser_download_url\" | grep full | xargs wget -q --show-progress\n\nHow To:\nhttps://linuxconfig.org/how-to-extract-xz-compressed-archive-on-linux\nhttp://tezos.gitlab.io/user/snapshots.html\n\nTezos node:\nhttps://phoenixnap.com/kb/how-to-install-docker-on-ubuntu-18-04\n\nGetting Started\n\nbecome superuser\n\nsudo su \n\nupdate system\n\nsudo su\nsudo apt update &amp;&amp; sudo apt upgrade -y\n\ninstall curl\n\nsudo apt-get install curl\n\nsay yes to all prompts\n\ninstall unizip tools\n\napt-get install xz-utils\n\n######build Tezos node from sources\n\nall one line\n\nsudo apt install -y rsync git m4 build-essential patch unzip bubblewrap wget pkg-config libgmp-dev libev-dev libhidapi-dev\nwget https://github.com/ocaml/opam/releases/download/2.0.3/opam-2.0.3-x86_64-linux\nsudo cp opam-2.0.3-x86_64-linux /usr/local/bin/opam\nsudo chmod a+x /usr/local/bin/opam\ngit clone https://gitlab.com/tezos/tezos.git\ncd tezos\ngit checkout mainnet\n\ntype \"yes\" for opam init command\n\nopam init --bare\nmake build-deps ## note: process 7 takes a long time\neval $(opam env)\nmake\nexport PATH=~/tezos:$PATH\nsource ./src/bin_client/bash-completion.sh\nexport TEZOS_CLIENT_UNSAFE_DISABLE_DISCLAIMER=Y\n\ninstall jp\n\nsudo apt install -y jq\n\ninstall opam\n\nmake build-deps\nmake build-dev-deps ##takes a while\neval $(opam env)\nmake\n\ngenerate tezos node ID ## if the tezos wasn't installed in /home/~, do a search for tezos\n\ncd /home/'username'/tezos/\n\ndownload node snapshot(saves you hours)\n\ncurl -s https://api.github.com/repos/Phlogi/tezos-snapshots/releases/latest | jq -r \".assets[] | select(.name) | .browser_download_url\" | grep full | xargs wget -q --show-progress\n\nfind out th name of the file\n\nls /\n\nunzip the file\n\nunxz \"name of file\"\n\nrename the file, taking note of the block number, rename to mainnet.full(without semicolons)\n\nmv 'original file name.chain' 'mainnet.full'\n\ncreate the tezos node identity, for the --block variable, use the block number located on the\n\n./tezos-node identity generate\n\nimport the snapshot\n\n./tezos-node snapshot import mainnet.full --block BMetLX2em7Q2tbAxcuPbUQNEY4NhRDEZtJCQeoFvWnYwDzb5qGU\n\nkill original app using the ports(look for port 9732)\n\nsudo lsof -i -P -n\nkill -9 'PROCESS NUMBER USING PORT 9732/8732'\nsudo kill -9 sudo lsof -t -i:8732\n\nstart the node\n\n./tezos-node run --rpc-addr 127.0.0.1\n\nnote use lsof command if file is locked and then killall to stop the process, or unlock the file by rm the lock file in the path\n\nwait for node to sync(watch progress with this command\n\n./tezos-client bootstrapped\n\nYour finished!!!\n\nSetup nano ledger for baking\n\nConnect ledger and list ledger devices\n\n./tezos-client list connected ledgers\n\nif using tezbox, copy the line that uses the path \"ed25519\"\n\nimport ledger key using path found above, create an 'ALIAS' which is any word/number so you don't need to type in the path every time\n\n./tezos-client import secret key 'ALIAS' \"ledger://path-determined-in-previous-step\"\n\nget chain ID\n\n./tezos-client rpc get /chains/main/chain_id\n\ncopy output into chain ID below --> example:,NOTE: take out the &lt;>, just use whats inside the brackets\n\n./tezos-client setup ledger to bake for mack --main-chain-id \"NetXdQprcVkpaWU\" \n\nstart baker\n\n./tezos-baker-005-PsBabyM1 run with local node /root/.tezos-node 'ALIAS'\n\nstart endorser\n\n./tezos-endorser-005-PsBabyM1 run 'ALIAS'\n\nstart accuser\n\n./tezos-accuser-005-PsBabyM1 run" ]

[ "1 Extrinsic discoloration occurs in the outer layer of the tooth, called the enamel; enamel stains can range from white streaks to yellow tints or brown spots and pits. Intrinsic discoloration occurs in the inner structure of the tooth, called the dentin, when the dentin darkens or displays a yellow (or gray) tint." ]

[ "The list of signs and symptoms mentioned in various sources for Fluorosis includes the 5 symptoms listed below: 1 Chalky white teeth patches. 2 Yellow stained teeth. Brown stained teeth.", "Of course, white spots and soft spots are not the only problems linked to fluoride. The most common symptoms of fluorosis are cosmetic: Chalky white teeth patches; Yellow stained teeth; Brown stained teeth; Discolored teeth; Soft Spots (or weak teeth)", "Rust stains on marble tend to be yellow or light brown in color, and the stains on my mantlepiece had a definite yellow/brown cast. Old rust stains can be particularly difficult to remove, so if you attempt to remove them a few times and nothing seems to be happening, you might have to call in a professional.", "The substances in tobacco smoke actually change the structure of your skin. Smoking causes skin discoloration, wrinkles, and premature aging. Your fingernails and the skin on your fingers may have yellow staining from holding cigarettes. Smokers usually develop yellow or brown stains on their teeth.", "Teeth whitening at the dentist’s surgery. Teeth whitening is a cosmetic dentistry procedure which some people consider to give them a brighter smile, especially if they have stained or darker coloured teeth. Most of the colour of our teeth comes from DNA. Whitening cannot bring about a complete colour change, but it can lighten the existing shade.", "If your shower floor is made of marble, brown stains might be caused by rust. Some marble may contain iron deposits. If water leaches into the tile, it can cause the iron to rust. If you suspect this, check the grout for cracks and have them filled before trying to remove the stain.", "The right veneers are a quick way to a beautiful smile, and this treatment is perfect for people with teeth that are stained, chipped or have gaps. But veneers are an irreversible treatment, so having them placed is a big decision.", "To clean the Secure Smile Teeth you can use a toothbrush and regular non abrasive toothpaste. Avoid using mouthwash as it will stain the shell. While cleaning the teeth use caution as the shell is fragile.f you take care of the Secure Smile Teeth they will last for you. We have some customers who wear their same teeth for years and others buy two or three a year. How long the teeth will last you depends on how long you wear them, what you do when you wear them and how you store them.", "Cigarette smoke leaves nasty-looking stains and odors on walls. The nicotine in tobacco that stains skin and teeth also leaves the same stains on walls. Houses inhabited by smokers may have brown or yellow stains or streaks on the walls from years of cigarette smoke.ip a sponge into the homemade cleaning solution, wring it out and then wash the walls from the bottom up. Dry each section with a microfiber or chamois cloth immediately after washing to prevent the wall from absorbing too much water.", "Colour of the wombat’s coarse coat varies from glossy black, dark grey, silver-grey, chocolate brown, grey-brown, sandy and cream. In southern Victoria, there is a small colony of ash-white wombats and albino animals have been reported, as well. Often the coat can also be coloured by the soil (e.g. clay can stain the fur red), and/or have patches that are lighter in colour. Wombats differ from other marsupials by having only two incisor teeth in the upper jaw.", "Bad breath. Bad taste in mouth. Smelly hair and clothes. Yellow and brown stains on teeth. Lost athletic ability. Damage to the respiratory system. Addiction to nicotine. Risk of other drug use.", "Teeth Whitening works by exfoliating stains from inside your teeth to bring them back to their natural color. Zoom teeth whitening is a process that uses a 25% hydrogen peroxide gel, the gel is activated via a special UV light.", "Your second teeth are called permanent teeth (also called adult teeth) . 1 You have 32 permanent teeth. 2 They are called permanent teeth because if you look after them you can have them for all of your life.", "The Dentist's Guide to a Basic Teeth Cleaning. Professional teeth cleaning by a certified dental hygienist aims to remove plaque, tarter and stains that have accumulated on the teeth. Even with routine brushing and flossing of your teeth and gums, tarter can develop. The professional cleaning of teeth is a crucial part of good oral hygiene and is needed periodically to maintain the health of your teeth and gums.", "Rub some baking soda. Baking soda is known to be a tough stain remover. You can use baking soda for stain on clothes and other fabrics, stain on furniture and walls and even stain on your teeth. You can just create a paste out of water and baking soda.ub some baking soda. Baking soda is known to be a tough stain remover. You can use baking soda for stain on clothes and other fabrics, stain on furniture and walls and even stain on your teeth. You can just create a paste out of water and baking soda.", "In my experience, it depends a lot on what you are drinking. Wine and beer have a lot of sediment and live things in them and you can smell either one on someone's breath instantly. Red wine stains your teeth too, so that is another way to indicate that you have been drinking. Spirits are a little different.", "Whitney Houston Teeth. Whitney Houston's drug abuse cost her teeth according to Tina Brown, Bobby Brown's sister, who stated that Whitney wore false teeth. She loses them in the house and when she’s out on drug binges, Tina was quoted as saying in 2006. After Whitney Houston's death, it was proved that Tina Brown was right about that...", "Both hookah and cigarette smokers are exposed to: 1 Nicotine: The addictive chemical in tobacco products. 2 Tar: The brown, sticky material that leads to cancer, emphysema, and other health problems in smokers, as well as causes stains on teeth and fingers. 3 Carbon monoxide: A colorless, odorless gas that is toxic to humans. Research suggests that hookah smoke delivers equal or greater amounts of nicotine compared to cigarettes, meaning hookah smoking has the potential to be addictive. 2 Tar: The brown, sticky material that leads to cancer, emphysema, and other health problems in smokers, as well as causes stains on teeth and fingers." ]

[ "\"Many injured - some head injuries, burns, cuts and bruises,\" tweeted BBC science reporter Rebecca Morelle.\nLava flow mixed with steam had caused a huge explosion, which pelted the group with boiling rocks and steam, she said.\nAbout eight people had been injured, with some evacuated from the mountain by rescue teams, she added.\n\"Bbc team all ok - some cuts/ bruises and burns. Very shaken though - it was extremely scary,\" she relayed in one of a series of tweets as she ran down the mountain.\nThe BBC reporter said a volcanologist at the scene told her it was the most dangerous incident he had experienced in his 30-year-career.\nShe said a guide had suffered a dislocated shoulder, while a 78-year-old woman had been very close to the blast, but managed to get away safely.\nMembers of the group ran away from the blast, trying to reach the safety of a snow mobile, she added.\nLava ran into snow - Jonathan Amos, BBC science correspondent\nEtna is one of the most active volcanoes in the world. That makes it a big draw not only for the scientists who want to understand better how these mountains work, but also for tourists who want to be amazed by a spectacular show of fire.\nBut you do not just wander up the mountain. If you're a reporter, you go with an experienced science team; if you're a tourist, you go with guides who are familiar with the sights and sounds that spell danger.\nBut even so, a volcano can often do something that catches everyone by surprise.\nIn this case a flow of lava ran into snow, producing superheated steam that sent fragments of rock flying in all directions. Everyone counts themselves lucky to have escaped with just cuts and bruises.\nRebecca Morelle's team was on site filming for a report about advances in volcano monitoring. What happened illustrates just how much we still need to learn about these mountains.\nEveryone had been taken from the mountain by a team of rescue workers who were \"brilliant\", Ms Morelle said.\nThe Catania operation centre of Italy's volcanology institute confirmed that three of its volcanologists had been on the mountain when the explosion took place, and said some had suffered injuries, but gave no detail.\nMount Etna, which is Europe's tallest active volcano, spewed lava up into the sky in the early hours of Thursday morning, for the third time in three weeks." ]

[ "Hot lava and ash spewed from the top into a valley nearby on the Italian island of Sicily.\nThe eruption happened on Sunday morning at 4am local time for more than an hour and a half.\nAlthough the area around the volcano was covered by ash, it didn't affect planes travelling near it.\nAir traffic can be seriously affected when ash from volcanic eruptions is in the air.\nIn 2010, the Eyjafjallajokull volcano in Iceland erupted and flights in Europe and across the Atlantic were cancelled because the ash particles in the air made it unsafe to fly.\nCheck out the video above to see Mount Etna's latest eruption in all its glory.", "3 December 2015 Last updated at 18:46 GMT\nThe volcano sent up a huge jet of fire and ash around three kilometres into the air.\nThe ash cloud collided with a nearby thunderstorm which caused the smoke to light up in a dramatic and spectacular way.\nThis occurs when tiny pieces of rock, ash and ice rub together to produce static electricity.\nAlthough nearby towns were covered with ash, there is no warning to evacuate.\nTake a look at Mount Etna in all its explosive glory!", "18 March 2017 Last updated at 10:00 GMT\nDespite getting pelted with boiling rocks and steam thankfully everyone got off the mountain safely with no serious injuries.\nRachel Price who was filming at the time for the BBC managed to capture the moment the volcano erupted on camera.\nShe said it was scary but she is ok, despite a hot rock burning a hole in her jacket.\nShe's sent us this video telling us about her experience.", "Mount Barujari on Lombok island erupted on Tuesday, shooting ash 2,000m (6,500 ft) into the air.\nOfficials are still searching for several hundred tourists who remain missing, according to the country's disaster agency.\nThere have been no reports of injuries caused by the eruption.\nNearly 400 foreign and local tourists have been registered since Sunday to climb the mountain, according to the Disaster Mitigation Agency's spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho.\nThe mountaineers were recorded to have left from Sembalun monitoring post, about 11km (7 miles) from the volcano's crater.\nFlights were also interrupted for several hours at the nearby Lombok International Airport and the Ngurah Rai International Airport in Bali.\nThe 3,726-metre (12,224ft) high volcano sits within the Mount Rinjani caldera.\nRinjani is among 130 active volcanoes in Indonesia - an archipelago prone to volcanic eruptions and earthquakes as it sits on the Pacific \"Ring of Fire\".", "The businessman said he was \"extremely fortunate\" only to have suffered a cracked cheek and torn ligaments.\nSir Richard said he was cycling down a hill when he hit a speed bump, and \"the next thing I knew, I was being hurled over the handlebars and my life was literally flashing before my eyes.\"\nHis bicycle \"went flying off the cliff and disappeared\", he said.\nIn a post on the Virgin website, the 66-year-old said: \"I was heading down a hill towards Leverick Bay when it suddenly got really dark and I managed to hit a sleeping policeman hump in the road head on.\n\"I really thought I was going to die. I went flying head-first towards the concrete road, but fortunately my shoulder and cheek took the brunt of the impact, and I was wearing a helmet that saved my life.\n\"We've since recovered the crumpled bicycle, completely destroyed. My cheek has been badly damaged and my knee, chin, shoulder and body severely cut.\"\nSir Richard said his assistant, Helen Clarke, was first on the scene as he was \"lying prostrate on the road\" and then another member of his team, George, \"sprinted from the bottom of the hill\" to assist.\nHe travelled to Miami for X-rays and scans, and later posted photographs online showing his bloodied face.\nThe accident happened on the fifth anniversary of a fire which destroyed his luxury home on Necker Island.\nSir Richard was cycling with his children Holly and Sam as part of his training for the Virgin Strive Challenge endurance event from the base of the Matterhorn in the Alps to the summit of Mount Etna in Sicily.\nHe still hopes to take part in the event.\n\"My attitude has always been, if you fall flat on your face, at least you're moving forward,\" he said.\n\"All you have to do is get back up and try again. At least I'm practising what I preach - though a little too literally!\"\nSir Richard made headlines earlier this week when his Twitter account posted CCTV images appearing to show Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn walking past empty unreserved train seats before he was filmed sitting on the floor complaining about \"ram-packed\" carriages on a Virgin Trains service.", "Two satellites will routinely map the planet's surface, looking for signs that might hint at a future eruption.\nThey will watch for changes in the shape of the ground below them, enabling scientists to issue an early alert if a volcano appears restless.\nSome 1,500 volcanoes worldwide are thought to be potentially active, but only a few dozen are heavily monitored.\nOne of these is Mount Etna where, last month, a BBC crew was caught up in a volcanic blast while filming a report on the new satellite project.\nHow do we currently keep track of volcanoes?\nWhen we visited Etna's slopes last month, volcanologist Boris Behncke from Italy's National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV) showed us one of its monitoring stations. \"We have about 40 GPS stations, more than 60 seismic stations, and we have magnetometers, gravity meters, cameras, thermal cameras, radar instruments, gas metres. Whatever can be measured, we are measuring.\"\nThe data feeds back into the INGV's hi-tech control room in nearby Catania. It is staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Dr Giuseppe Puglisi explained: \"Collecting this data enables us to detect any changes in the volcano's physical or chemical status. For example: changes in topography, changes in the temperature of the rocks, or on the stress of the crust, or changes in the composition of its minerals or gases, etc. These are all important to identify whether an eruption looks possible.\"\nHowever, very few volcanoes around the world receive this level of scientific attention. Instruments are expensive and it takes many scientists to keep track of all of the data that pours back. Dr Behncke said: \"Etna is certainly one of the most intensely monitored volcanoes on Earth - maybe the most monitored volcano on Earth. But obviously there are many other volcanoes, and many dangerous volcanoes, especially in poorer countries, where monitoring is much more rudimentary or completely absent.\"\nThe satellite project could make a big difference to these places, but it will also be useful for Mount Etna too. \"The advantage lies in the ability to monitor wide areas of the volcano at once,\" said Dr Puglisi.\nBefore a volcano erupts, magma rises from deep beneath the Earth, causing the ground above to swell. It usually starts as a small movement on the flank of a volcano or in its caldera (crater). It may be barely noticeable to the eye, but it can be seen from space.\nRegular satellite data recording this change will be processed automatically and an alert issued for scientists to follow up. A \"red flag\" would not mean an eruption is a given, but it ought to ensure those communities that live in the shadow of a volcano are not caught unawares if the situation deteriorates.\n\"It's the volcanoes that are least monitored where this will have most impact. If people can be alerted ahead of time, it could save many lives,\" said Prof Andy Hooper.\nThe Leeds University geophysicist is part of the Centre for Observation and Modelling of Earthquakes, Volcanoes and Tectonics.\nCOMET has conducted trials of the new satellite-monitoring system in Iceland and is now running it in prototype form across Europe and parts of Asia.\nThe plan next is to extend the automated detection of ground deformation to Africa and Central and South America. These regions have some very big explosive volcanoes that are covered only by limited ground surveys.\n\"In Ecuador, for example, there are roughly 80 volcanoes, four of which are erupting at any one time, and a very small staff to keep an eye on it all. So, they will be grateful of the assistance,\" said COMET team-member Dr Juliet Biggs from Bristol University.\nCould satellites have forecast the Etna blast?\nThere is a certain irony in making a report about forecasting eruptions and then getting caught up in a volcanic blast. When we filmed in Sicily, the volcano was in one of its fits of activity, and we had gone to see a lava flow that had appeared overnight. But a few minutes after arriving, the lava started to explode. Blisteringly hot rocks were shot high into the air, which then began to rain down on us and dozens of tourists.\nWe ran for our lives, and somehow escaped only with minor injuries. The event we witnessed is known as a phreatic explosion. Its cause was hot lava mixing with icy meltwater which had pooled underneath the flow, causing pressure to build rapidly. In 2013, scientists studying the Tolbachik volcano in Russia saw a similar explosion as lava advanced over very thick snow. Luckily, they too were not hurt. But it is unlikely that these incidents can be easily forecast - either from the ground using instruments or from space.\nDr Puglisi said: \"It's not very easy to predict phreatic explosions. The mechanism occurs very fast. The explosion is caused by the almost instantaneous evaporation of vapour, usually in small areas. These phenomena are usually relatively shallow and, in some cases, practically at the surface. So this doesn't produce significant changes detected by monitoring systems. And in space, the resolution is not suitable to detect such phenomena.\"\nThere is relatively little video footage of phreatic explosions and so the BBC film, captured by camerawoman Rachel Price, will be of interest to scientists as they try to learn more about these incidents.\nKey to the space monitoring project is the capability offered by the European Unions's new Sentinel-1 radar satellites.\nThis pair of platforms repeatedly and frequently image the entire land surface of the globe, throwing their data to Earth using a high-speed laser link.\nBy comparing a sequence of Sentinel pictures, in a technique known as interferometry, COMET's computing facility can track really quite small changes in the behaviour of a volcano, on the order of just millimetres (the movements that might be most concerning would in all probability be much larger and even easier to sense).\n\"Satellite radar interferometry as a technique has been around for over 20 years now. But it's really only been used in the past retroactively, to try to understand what happened at a volcano after it erupted,\" explained Prof Hooper.\n\"The point here is to try to see things in advance, to move to more of a forecasting mode; and to have all the data available in near-real-time.\"\nWhat do radar satellites see when they look at volcanoes?\nThe 1,500 figure is the number of land volcanoes that are known to have erupted at some point in the last 12,000 years (more volcanoes exist under the sea but cannot be seen from space). Many will appear long dormant, but every two years or so there is an event on a volcano that has no previous mention in the written records of having erupted. And in some parts of Africa, these records can start as recently as the 19th Century.\nOne of the big research questions for scientists is working out if and when a change in the shape of a volcano will lead to an eruption.\nIt can be a long time between the two, perhaps years. But the statistics suggest it is four times more likely that a volcano that deforms will erupt than one that has not changed its shape.\n\"It's not a case that if you see deformation you should evacuate people tomorrow,\" said Dr Biggs. \"But what we desperately need is more examples, and that is where the Sentinel system is really important because we will be able to track all these volcanoes in a routine and systematic fashion.\"\nThe aim is to have the satellite data on all 1,500 volcanoes being gathered and processed by the end of 2017.\nNow read about COMET's related project to monitor locations at risk from earthquakes.\nJonathan and Rebecca are on Twitter: @BBCAmos and @BBCMorelle", "Reporter Rebecca Morelle and colleagues were filming on the mountain when lava came into contact with snow, throwing fragments of rock in all directions.\n\"Some head injuries, burns, cuts and bruises,\" our correspondent tweeted.\n\"Volcanologist said [it was the] most dangerous incident experienced in his 30-year career.\"", "23 May 2016 Last updated at 06:42 BST\nIt's on the southern Italian island of Sicily, where it's been firing lava and volcanic ash in to the sky.\nThe eruption was filmed by a local journalist, Turi Caggegi.", "The volcano, which had been dormant for four decades, erupted on Wednesday, sending a plume of smoke and ash 10km (6 miles) into the sky.\nAuthorities evacuated people living within a 21km (13 mile) radius.\nRoad workers used lorries to plough through the ash, which lay up to a metre (3ft) deep in some places.\nAs the massive ash cloud drifted south, emergency workers handed out protective masks in a wide area including parts of Chile and Argentina.\n\"The ash might damage crops, animal feed, bridges, roads, people's work routines, tourism and especially their health,\" Michelle Bachelet, President of Chile's National Geology and Mines Service, said.\nThe first eruption on Wednesday evening lasted about 90 minutes and send a huge mushroom cloud of ash into the sky.\nSeven hours later the volcano erupted again, this time shooting lava into the air and generating volcanic lightning.\nThere have been no reports of deaths or injuries.", "One person was reported to have suffered minor facial burns from falling debris as Mount Shindake erupted on Friday morning.\nMost of the 137 residents of Kuchinoerabu island were evacuated by boat.\nOne spoke of how the sky turned dark as the volcano erupted.\nFlows of rock and super-heated gas travelled down the mountain and into the sea, turning the main harbour grey and the sea-water murky.\nShindake erupted last year for the first time since 1980, when a 14-year period of activity ended. Several people died in a 1933 eruption.\n\"There was a really loud 'dong' sound of an explosion, and then black smoke rose, darkening the sky,\" Nobuaki Hayashi, a community leader, told national broadcaster NHK. \"It smelled of sulphur.\"\nThe fire and disaster management agency has raised the alert level for the island to five, its highest level. But officials say there is no threat to human life.\nNevertheless, the eruption was big news, and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe appeared on television to pledge that he had mobilised \"all functions of government\" to ensure the islanders' safety.\nVolcano experts have warned that more eruptions on a similar scale could follow.\nJapan sits at the junction of several tectonic plates and is one of the world's most seismically active countries.\nSome have linked an surge in recent volcanic activity to the devastating earthquake that struck on 11 March 2011, triggering a massive tsunami.\nIn September last year, Mount Ontake in central Japan erupted unexpectedly, killing dozens of hikers.", "I was part of a BBC team who had come to film a report on volcano monitoring.\nGetting to witness an awakened Etna was about as exciting as it gets for a science correspondent. I just didn’t intend to have quite such a close encounter.\nThe conditions were perfect - blue skies and barely any wind. And as we travelled towards the snow-covered summit, the thunderous booms as Etna spewed magma from its south-east crater reverberated all around.\nWe had come to see a lava flow that had appeared overnight. A giant stream of rock, glowing red, was oozing down the slopes - and we had been taken there by a scientist from Italy’s National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology, who was monitoring its progress.\nDozens of tourists had also been brought by Etna’s guides to see the spectacle.\nThe lava was so slow moving it’s not usually considered dangerous, and the fierce heat as the rocks fizzled and crackled preventing anyone from getting too close.\nBut about 20 minutes after arriving, a burst of white steam emerged from the lava – it didn’t make much of a noise or look especially threatening – but the guides started asking people to move.\nThen, moments later, there was an explosion. The lava had mixed with snow and ice, and boiling rocks and boulders were flung up high into the air. They started to rain down in every direction.\nEveryone started to run, pelted with the deadly, hot debris. But it was impossible to see – steam from the explosion had caused a whiteout.\nI fell as I was trying to get away, trying to cover my head. All I could hear was the thud of rocks hitting all around.\nI truly thought that we were going to die. Somehow, our camerawoman Rachel Price kept on filming – her footage is astonishing.\nEven when a boiling rock fell into her coat, quickly burning through her clothes and reaching her skin, she kept the camera rolling.\nProducer Alison Francis, too, was hit by falling debris – her coat was peppered with burns where rocks had struck, and her hat saved her from a more serious strike to the head.\nAmidst the chaos, the sound of an engine rose, and the driver of the snowcat vehicle that had taken us up the slopes started to beep its horn to help us locate it.\nDodging more flying rocks, we got on. A guide screamed in agony from a dislocated shoulder, others were bloody, burned and bruised – but we had all managed to escape.\nBadly shaken, I spoke to the volcanologist whose work we had been filming. Bleeding from a hit to the head, he told me it was the most dangerous incident he’d ever experienced at Etna, which he’d spent 30 years studying.\nAs we took stock and spoke to the medics who had quickly appeared on the scene, it was astonishing to realise that there were no serious injuries or even deaths.\nWatching Rachel’s footage back, we can see that we all had an extremely narrow escape. It reminded us just how dangerous these forces of nature can be.\nFollow @BBC Morelle on Twitter", "The victims were farming in an area that was declared unsafe because of its close proximity to Mount Sinabung.\nThe volcano was still spewing ash on Sunday, hampering rescue operations.\nMore than a dozen people were killed when it erupted in 2014. It also erupted in 2010, after having been dormant for 400 years.\nRescue teams are still scouring the area, looking for more victims who may have been killed or badly burned by the hot gas and ash clouds released in the eruption.\nRescue teams were searching homes and farms in the village of Gamber, which was also evacuated in 2014.\nWhat causes volcanoes?\nThe 2,460-metre (8,070 foot) tall volcano is among the country's most active.\nIndonesia, located on the Pacific Ring of Fire, has more than 120 active volcanoes.", "The Galloway Mountain Rescue team received the emergency call at about 22:00 on Wednesday.\nThe group from the Doncaster area, who got into difficulties while descending the summit of the popular Buchan Hill, was airlifted to safety at midnight.\nOne of the group, a 56-year-old man, suffered an asthma attack.", "Patagonia: Earth's Secret Paradise, which was broadcast in September 2015, showed what appeared to be a volcano erupting.\nBut it emerged later that the clip included footage from a storm surrounding a different volcano eruption in 2011.\nThe BBC Trust described the sequence as \"potentially misleading\".\n\"The Committee bore in mind the very high regard in which output from the BBC's Natural History Unit is held. They considered this was a serious breach of the editorial guidelines for accuracy,\" a summary of their findings read.\nAfter the BBC Two programme was aired, the show's producer Tuppence Stone said in a blog post that volcanic eruptions could be difficult to capture on film and so \"it requires special techniques to reveal and portray their true extraordinary nature\".\n\"The lightning shots were taken by an award-winning Chilean photographer, of a nearby Patagonian volcano, Cordon Caulle four years earlier during its eruption, using long exposure techniques,\" she wrote.\n\"The Cordon Caulle volcano eruption was a very similar event to the Calbuco volcano this year.\"\nIt was only when the blog was circulated that the executive producer of the programme and the BBC's head of knowledge commissioning became aware that footage used in the programme was comprised of different events.\nThe Trust noted in its findings that Ms Stone had not undertaken a training course which was compulsory for all staff working in the BBC Natural History Unit.\nBBC management have since made a commitment that senior staff working on future projects will have to complete the training before being allowed to join the corporation's production teams.\nA second programme, Human Planet: Deserts - Life In The Furnace, which was also produced by Ms Stone, was also examined in the report.\nThe episode - originally broadcast in 2011 - included the story of how an infant camel had been killed by wolves.\nBut producers, having been unable to film a wild wolf for the programme, used a semi-domesticated wolf which had been let off a lead just before filming.\nHerdsmen were seen apparently firing at it in the footage.\nThe BBC Trust noted that it was a historic episode of the programme - which had been made and broadcast before more stringent editorial processes had been introduced.\nBut they agreed that the output breached the editorial guidelines and that, had it been a current production, it would have raised \"significant concerns\" about accuracy and misleading audiences.\nThe programme, despite being aired five years ago, had come to the attention of the BBC Trust after newspaper coverage in October, printed as a result of the controversy surrounding the Patagonia programme.", "Media playback is unsupported on your device\n29 May 2015 Last updated at 16:47 BST\nThe eruption sent clouds of ash and rock over five miles into the sky.\nLocal officials say there haven't been any casualties and some flights have been diverted.\nWatch Martin's report to see the amazing eruption.", "5 July 2017 Last updated at 09:11 BST\nBut it's not in space, but on the side of a volcano - Mount Etna, in Italy.\nThat's because it's one of the most moon-like places you can go to whilst still being on planet earth.\nScientists are currently testing the robots, and are hoping that when they do send them into space they'll be able to find out what other planets are made of.\nAnd for now they it can get some pretty useful info for scientists about volcanoes.", "And if you're a Playboy model, with nearly 300,000 followers, why not quickly drop your kit and step right into that shot - butt naked.\nThat is what happened when Jaylene Cook climbed New Zealand's Mount Taranaki.\nHowever local Maori say the move was culturally utterly insensitive.\nThe top of the volcano is sacred for Maori.\n\"It's like someone went into St Peter's Basilica in the Vatican and took a nude photo,\" Dennis Ngawhare, a spokesperson for the local Maori tribe, told the BBC.\n\"It's a sacred place and something like this is just very inappropriate.\"\nThe picture of Ms Cook, herself from New Zealand, was taken when she climbed the mountain a few days ago with her partner.\nPosted on her popular Instagram account, the picture of her gazing into the distance from the 2,518m peak has clocked up nearly 10,000 likes.\n\"People might say it's just rocks and earth so how can you disrespect it?\" says Mr Ngawhare.\nBut for the local Maori, the volcano is considered the burial ground of the tribe's ancestor and is itself seen as an ancestor.\nTraditionally, even just climbing to the top of the peak is inappropriate and only very rarely done for ceremonial purpose.\nSince the country was colonised by the British, the local tribe often had very little say regarding the mountain - which was named Mount Egmont by Captain Cook - and today accept that tourists want to climb the beautiful volcano.\n\"It's only recently that we can have some input on what goes on at the mountain,\" the local Maori spokesman explains.\n\"We simply ask people to please be respectful. This latest case is just another really annoying example where someone obviously didn't know how to behave here.\"\nMayor of the local Stratford district, Neil Volzke, agrees the move was culturally insensitive.\n\"I don't think the picture itself is offensive or obscene - it is just inappropriate to take on top of Mount Taranaki because it is a place with great deal of importance for the Maori community,\" he told the BBC.\nWhen Ms Cook's nude photo began to draw criticism, she defended herself - saying she did research before and thought taking the picture was not offensive.\nBut local Maori were left somewhat puzzled.\n\"It's a clash between Western assumptions and indigenous values and beliefs,\" Mr Ngaware says.\nPrevious incidents on Taranaki have also outraged the local Maori community, including a group of hikers taking a barbecue to the peak for a summit grilling session, and people leaving graffiti on the mountain.\n\"It's a place that should be treated with the utmost respect at all times,\" insists Mr Volzke.\nThis is not the first time that a nude picture on a mountain has drawn condemnation from local communities.\nIn June 2015, a group of Western tourists climbing Mount Kinabalu in Malaysia caused massive outrage and a subsequent deadly earthquake was blamed on their disrespect towards the sacred mountain.\nIt was only after court proceedings, a few days in prison and a financial penalty, that the tourists were allowed to leave Malaysia.", "How a winemaker is taking on Sicily's rural Mafia\nIt's a warm July evening and the surrounding hills glow golden in the setting sun amid the chirruping of swallows and the song of cicadas.\nIt should be an image of rural peace and contentment, but on closer inspection, all is not quite as it seems.\nSecurity cameras on high stilts dot the perimeter of his land. The metal gates leading into his winery remain securely shut throughout our interview, and inside the winery's main building, images from across his vineyard flicker on a bank of screens.\nThis, he says, is what it takes to run a modern business in Sicily in 2017.\nCesare has been threatened, his land has been repeatedly trespassed on, his buildings have been damaged and trees cut down or set alight. He's even been physically attacked.\n\"The rural Mafia was trying to drive us off our land and destroy our business,\" he says between careful sips of wine.\nSo who are the rural Mafia? Well, they're shepherds in the main - but some officials believe they're acting in cahoots with local lawyers, accountants and possibly even local politicians.\nCesare believes the battle against them pits modern Italy against forces that want Sicily to remain rooted in the ways of the past.\nDriving out of his winery, he points out wooden stakes in the ground. \"See that?\" he says. \"They're the signs of the rural Mafia\"\nThe stakes are dotted across the land around his vineyard. They're about a metre-long, distinctive for the strip of white cardboard wrapped round them.\nAnd they're a common sight in rural Sicily.\nThere are more about 100km (60 miles) away from Cesare's winery, in the foothills of Mount Etna, where Sebastiano Blanco is rebuilding a house on his plot of land.\n\"What those stakes say is 'this land belongs to us',\" Sebastiano says. \"They, the rural Mafia, see all this land as their own, regardless of who has legal title to it.\"\nLike Cesare, he says there are local clans who believe that they, and not the Italian state, set the laws.\nLast year, Sebastiano's house was burnt down. The police and fire brigade said the fire was probably started by a homeless person who'd come inside to warm up.\nBut Sebastiano thinks it's no coincidence that the fire happened soon after stakes appeared on his land. He believes the rural Mafia took revenge when he wouldn't hand over his land.\nHe cuts a forlorn figure, kicking at the blackened rubble strewn across the charred ground of what were once his bedroom, with the early evening's purple sky visible through the exposed beams of his shattered roof.\nSo, what exactly is it that the Mafia wants?\nGiuseppe Antoci, president of Sicily's largest national park, Nebrodi, and co-ordinator of Federparchi Sicilia, the Federation of Sicilian National Parks, has been investigating the matter for the past few years.\nWhat he's uncovered is widespread fraud involving European Union farm and rural development funds.\nIn an investigation conducted together with the deputy police commissioner Daniele Manganaro of the district of Messina, Mr Antoci found that local crime networks were falsely claiming land as their own - or presenting forged documents saying they had leased it - in order to make applications for EU subsidies.\n\"We've seen an evolution of Mafia here,\" he says.\n\"This is not the Mafia of the illegal drugs trade or the trafficking of arms. It takes a lot of work and research to commit this sort of fraud. We're not talking about the Mafia that existed 30 years ago, where the shepherd demanded a ransom or protection payment from a tradesman.\n\"What we have here is a Mafia whose business is to commit fraud with EU funds. And to carry out this sort of fraud, you need more than just a shepherd.\n\"What it requires is a network of people, people with schooling and education, people who know how the system works, because the first step in perpetrating this sort of fraud is to set up a company,\" says the police commissioner.\nMr Antoci has tried to put a stop to it.\nHe's set in motion a new law that states that anyone claiming EU subsidies on land must now show anti-Mafia certification. In Italy, this means complying with regulations that require that a company's shareholders and directors have no restrictions, limitations and bans according to anti-mafia regulations.\nSceptics say this is hardly enough to stop the fraud from being repeated, pointing out that many will simply make use of proxies to make claims on their behalf.\nThe European Union's anti-fraud office, Olaf, says it is reviewing 35,000 applications for agricultural subsidies in Italy covering some 500m euros in disbursements going back all the way to 2006.\nIt has also started nine criminal proceedings, all of which involve a network of organised crime. But this 500m euros (£447m) that the EU is looking into is far less than the 3.5bn euros that Mr Antoci and the local police force say may have been fraudulently claimed.\n\"I can tell you that there is a very strong commitment at the level of the EU as well as the level of national authorities to fight this kind of phenomenon,\" says Francesco Albore, the head of the Olaf unit investigating the matter.\nAnother 2.2bn euros have been earmarked in EU and Italian government funds for rural and agricultural development in the six years to 2020. So what guarantees are there that all those funds will be properly distributed?\nMr Albore says it's difficult to guarantee but points out the EU also demands guarantees that payments go to the correct recipients. Where this is not the case, he says, \"payments can be stopped.\"\nMeanwhile, back in Sicily, Mr Antoci's efforts to fight this fraud have come at a high personal price.\nHe's suffered death threats and now lives under permanent armed guard.\nLast year, as he was being driven home through the Nebrodi national park following a late night dinner, his car came under a volley of gunfire.\nIf he's alive today, he says, it's only thanks to his armed guard and the fact that his car was being followed by that of the deputy police commissioner Daniele Manganaro who managed to scupper the attack by firing back.\nIn the aftermath, there were attempts to discredit his investigation. Some Italian media reports questioned the authenticity of the attack, suggesting Mr Antoci and the local police force had made it up. But it's only made him more determined.\n\"You know, afterwards, they found petrol bombs hidden in nearby bushes,\" Mr Antoci says. \"They wanted me dead. But my first thought as I was being saved that night was for my family and for all the police officers who guard me - the sacrifices they have to make for this battle I've chosen to wage.\"\nStill, one businessman I speak to, who's been subjected to similar threats for not handing over land, complains that he's had little support from local Sicilian political authorities in his fight to protect his land.\nWhich is why, back in the foothills of Mount Etna, Sebastiano Blanco wears a T-shirt emblazoned with the words: \"Rural mafia - a protected species\".\n\"It's 2017,\" he says. \"How can this be happening in our day and age?\"\nHe gestures at the smoking volcano, looming large in the distance over his land.\n\"This is a Unesco world heritage site,\" he says. \"But as long as we're intimidated this way, how can we possibly build on the economic value of our land and property?\"\nIn collaboration with Diego Gandolfo and Alessandro di Nunzio\nListen to more from BBC World Service's Business Daily programme here", "Media playback is unsupported on your device\n19 June 2015 Last updated at 13:10 BST\nThousands of people left their homes earlier in the week for safety but many have decided to stay within what authorities consider to be the volcano's danger zone.\nFarmers in villages close to the volcano have had to harvest their crops . They were worried that the vegetables and crops left in the fields would be destroyed by any eruption.\nUntil 2010 the volcano had been dormant for more than 400 years.", "The authorities in both countries issued a red alert - the highest possible - saying the Chilean volcano could erupt imminently.\nThe 2,965m (nearly 10,000ft) volcano - which sits in the Andes cordillera - has so far only spewed gas.\nThousands of minor earth tremors have been registered in the area.\nThe volcano, located between Chile's Bio Bio region and Argentina's Neuquen province, has seen increasing seismic activity in recent weeks but has not erupted.\n\"This red alert has been issued after monitoring the activity of the volcano and seeing that it has increased seismic activity,\" Chilean Interior Minister Andres Chadwick said in a news conference on Monday.\n\"There is a risk that it can start erupting.\"\nAccording to Chile's Emergency Office, the mandatory evacuation affects some 2,240 people living within a 25km (15 miles) radius of Copahue.\nHowever some people refused to leave their homes, preferring to stay with their farm animals and personal belongings.\n\"No. I do not want to leave because we have chickens and it isn't easy to leave them and go to a shelter,\" resident Florinda Lipiman told the news agency Reuters.\nIn Argentina, the authorities had first declared a \"yellow alert,\" but later revised it to the highest level.\nThey have now ordered the evacuation of at least 600 people from the town of Caviahue to the neighbouring city of Loncopue.\n\"We are going to go to the homes and we are going to remove the women, the elderly and children,\" police officer Javier Urrutia Vergara told Reuters.\nLast December, Chile also issued a red alert after Copahue - one of the most active volcanoes in the region - began spewing ash and gas, with smoke raising nearly 1.5km in the sky.\nNearby residents were temporarily evacuated, and planes flying over the southern Andes warned to avoid the area.\nHundreds of flights were cancelled last year due to the eruption of another volcano in southern Chile.\nThe Puyehue eruption caused huge economic damage not only to property in the area but also to tourism in Bariloche and other resorts.", "Reports say several people were injured - some seriously - at the Bruscella factory in the town of Modugno.\nThe first blast reportedly triggered a series of explosions and a fire, which is threatening a nearby forest.\nFirefighters and ambulance crews are now at the scene. The cause of the blast is being investigated.\nThe factory was said to have been busy preparing fireworks as many Italian towns celebrate festivals at this time of the year.", "The cauldrons, depressions in the volcano's surface, each between 10-15m (49 ft) deep and 1km (0.6 miles) wide, were seen during a flight on Wednesday.\nIceland's Met Office said they were formed \"as a result of melting, possibly a sub-glacial eruption.\"\nBardarbunga volcano has been hit by several recent tremors.\nThe area experienced a magnitude 5.7 earthquake on Tuesday. Experts say these earthquakes are caused as magma flows beneath the ground, cracking the rocks as it moves.\nThe Met Office has kept its aviation warning level - indicating the potential threat of volcanic activity to air travel - at orange, its second-highest.\nScientists discovered the new cauldrons south of the Bardarbunga volcano during a surveillance flight over the Vatnajokull ice cap - Europe's largest - on Wednesday night, the Met Office and Civil Protection Department said.\nIt is not clear when they were formed, and the data is still being examined, they said.\nThey added that they had not observed increased tremors in the area so far.\nMeanwhile, the University of Iceland tweeted: \"New fractures and sinkholes seen on #Bardarbunga during surveillance flight tonight. Data currently being evaluated by our geologists & IMO [Icelandic Met Office]\".\nHowever it cautioned that the sighting was limited by poor visibility, and said more information would be available after a second surveillance flight on Thursday morning.\nBardarbunga is part of a large volcano system hidden beneath the 500m-thick (1,600ft) Vatnajokull ice cap in central Iceland.\nThe authorities said on Saturday that a small eruption had taken place under the Dyngjujokull glacier, but that there were no signs that gases or ash had broken through the ice.\nThe region, located more than 300km (190 miles) from the capital Reykjavik, has no permanent residents but sits within a national park popular with tourists.\nOfficials have previously warned that any eruption could result in flooding north of the glacier.\nIceland's Eyjafjallajokull volcano erupted in 2010, producing ash that disrupted air travel across Europe.", "A number of fire engines have been deployed to West Nile Street to deal with the incident in a basement next to Vroni's wine bar.\nPart of the road has been cordoned off and some businesses in the area have been evacuated.\nThe injured person had suffered an electric shock, according to the emergency services.\nThe Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said they were still dealing with a small fire, and that the large number of fire engines present was so that crews could be easily rotated in the small space where the blaze broke out.", "An Italian man was winched to safety from rocks by a Royal Navy search and rescue helicopter which was assigned from Prestwick in Scotland.\nHis French friend was rescued by the coastguard.\nNeither man required medical treatment following the incident on Tuesday night.", "Media playback is unsupported on your device\n4 March 2015 Last updated at 07:22 GMT\nMore than 150 firefighters have been battling the flames, which have destroyed some people's homes and turned huge areas of plants to ash.\nAuthorities are planning to bring in another 250 extra firefighters from other parts of the country.\nNo-one has been killed but some people had to have treatment after breathing in smoke and for minor burns.\nA firefighter was also hurt by an explosion and taken to hospital.\nThe fire began on Sunday, and strong winds have fanned the flames, spreading the destruction.\nWildfires are common in the area at this time of year but this fire is one of the worst in recent years.", "The victims, four women and two men, are yet to be identified. Another person remains missing, local authorities said.\nThree people were injured in Thursday's collapse in Los Cristianos.\nIt is not known yet what caused it but residents said they heard a large explosion shortly before the incident.\nAmong the dead are two Spaniards, two Italians, one Moroccan and one Finnish national, according to the EFE news agency,\nTenerife is the largest of Spain's Canary Islands and is a big draw for British holidaymakers.", "The scientists said they were delighted to witness the eruption of Australia's second-tallest mountain on Heard Island, 4,100km south-west of Perth.\nBig Ben is known to have erupted at least three times since 2000, but such eruptions are rarely witnessed.\nHeard island is dominated by the Big Ben massif and its summit, Mawson Peak.\nThe scientists on board the research vessel Investigator, who are researching whether active undersea volcanoes support life in the Southern Ocean, said they were thrilled to witness the eruption.\nProfessor Mike Coffin, a geophysicist from the University of Tasmania's Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS), called the experience \"an amazing coda to this week's submarine research\".\n\"We saw vapour being emitted from the top of the volcano and we saw lava flows coming down the flank of Big Ben,\" Prof Coffin, the voyage's chief scientist, said.\n\"This was a very exciting observation. There are very few ships that come to this part of the world and in fact the last geological expedition that landed on Heard Island was in 1987.\nProf Coffin said the lava flowed over the top of the glacial ice at the top of the mountain before descending beneath the ice further down the volcano's slope.\n\"So there's a strong interaction between glacial ice and molten lava on the side of Big Ben,\" he said.\nThe scientists aboard the Investigator are seeking to prove that iron from underwater volcanoes influences the phytoplankton blooms that fertilise the Southern Ocean.\nThe 2,745m-tall Mawson Peak is Australia's second-highest mountain, surpassed only by the Mount McClintock range in Australian Antarctic Territory at 3,490m.\nMount Kosciuszko, the tallest mountain on Australia's mainland, is 2,228m tall.", "The aircraft came down in thick fog near the Campo Felice ski station after picking up an injured skier.\nThe rescue was not related to last week's avalanche that engulfed a hotel nearby, killing at least 15 people.\nRescue teams reached the wreckage \"and they found the bodies of the six deceased in the snow\", a police spokesman told the AFP news agency.\nThe helicopter was taking the injured skier to hospital in L'Aquila, the capital of Abruzzo province.\nSome witnesses reported hearing a loud explosion before it crashed.\nGianluca Marrocchi, mayor of the nearby town of Lucoli, said he saw the helicopter flying very low. \"After that it disappeared in the fog,\" he told RAI state TV.\nCampo Felice is a small skiing resort popular with day-trippers from Rome, which is 120km (75 miles) to the west.\nIt is on the other side of Italy's 3,000m Gran Sasso mountain range from the four-star Hotel Rigopiano, which was engulfed by an avalanche on 18 January triggered by a series of earthquakes. Fourteen people remain unaccounted for there.", "The transport ministry said Denpasar airport would remain closed until at least 16:00 (08:00 GMT).\nMount Raung in East Java has been spewing ash into the air for nearly a week, raising concerns it could interfere with aircraft safety.\nBali is a top destination for tourists and many have been stranded.\nThe airport had been reopened on Saturday as the ash lifted but the wind has now brought it back.\n\"We will continue to monitor developments and decide if the closure will be extended later,\" transport ministry spokesman JA Barata told Agence France-Presse.\nMount Raung is about 120km (75 miles) from Denpasar airport.\nEast Java's Blimbingsari and Notohadinegoro airports were also earlier affected.\nLombok's international airport, and a smaller one on the island, were reopened earlier on Friday.\nHundreds of flights have been postponed indefinitely or cancelled by airlines.\nAnalysis: Chris Davies, Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre in Darwin, Australia\nThis volcano has been erupting for about a week and it's been streaming ash constantly.\nIt's not an explosive eruption, just a constant stream and because the summit is so high it doesn't take much ash to interfere with flights.\nThe most dangerous aspect for aviation is that modern jet engines pull in so much air and the ash concentrates in engines and turns into a kind of molten glass.\nThe ash melts, coats inside of the engine and affects fuel flow, so in the worst case scenario it can cause engines to shut off, like we say with the BA 009.\nTravellers left stranded in Bali\nAsh cloud delays: What are your rights?\nThe BBC's Alice Budisatrijo in Jakarta says the airport closures could not have come at a worse time, as the islands are popular with foreign and domestic tourists in the middle of the school holiday season.\nIndonesians are also starting to travel home for the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, so the disruption of flights to the smaller airports are being felt by many families, says our correspondent.", "Media playback is unsupported on your device\n30 September 2014 Last updated at 18:55 BST\nThree police officers, who were travelling in the other vehicle, suffered minor injuries.\nSister Frances Forde and Sister Marie Duddy were well-known figures in north Belfast where they worked.\nBBC News NI's southeast reporter Gordon Adair reports from the scene.", "It first erupted back in May 2006, and - at its peak - was spewing 180,000 cubic metres of mud a day, equivalent to 50 Olympic-sized swimming pools.\nThe volcano, in East Java, Indonesia, has buried homes, schools and farmlands over seven square kilometres.\nThe findings have been published in the Journal of the Geological Society.\nThis is the first reliable estimate on how long Lusi (derived from the Indonesian word for mud, lumpur, and the place where the eruption occurred, Sidoarjo) would continue erupting.\nCo-author Richard Davies, a geologist from Durham University's Department of Earth Sciences, said there were a number of factors that meant it was not possible to produce an estimate until now.\n\"We did a provisional estimate in 2008, but we have significantly improved the methodology,\" he told BBC News. \"Also, for two or three years there was a lot of debate about what caused it.\n\"I think there were a lot of people involved in working what happened - so now we have seen the natural progression from wanting to know what caused it to wanting to know how long it will last.\"\nUnder pressure\nThe cause of the eruption was a subject of a prolonged scientific debate, with opinions divided on whether it was the result of a drilling well in the area, or a magnitude 6.3 earthquake that shook the area a few days earlier.\nIn 2008, during a conference in South Africa, supporters of both hypotheses presented their arguments before a panel of independent experts.\nThe debate was chaired by Edinburgh University's Professor John Underhill, who was also a top level football referee. The majority of experts, 42 out of 74, favoured the drilling explanation.\nProfessor Davies supported the drilling hypothesis: \"There is a lot of evidence now that shows it was caused by drilling - there was a blowout that was not controlled.\"\nIn 2008, the company that was drilling in the area and blamed for triggering the volcano agreed to pay compensation to the 50,000 displaced people. However, it did not say the drilling activities were the sole cause of the volcano.\nProfessor Davies added that the team now had confidence to publish an estimate because they also had four year's worth of data on how much material was coming out of Lusi, allowing them to calibrate the computational model developed by co-author and fellow Durham University researcher Simon Mathias.\nHe explained that the volcano was driven by carbonated water in an aquifer, estimated to be about 2.5-3.5km beneath the surface, that travelled up through the drilled borehole and passed through a layer of muddy material (known as the Upper Kalibeng) before erupting on the surface via a 50-metre central vent.\nThe inputs for the model of what was happening underground came from two wells; one located on the site of the central vent, and another located about 6km away, where there was a natural, smaller mud volcano.\n\"This gave us the pressure in the actual aquifer,\" explained Professor Davies.\n\"Then we considered factors such as the permeability and porosity of the rock to estimate how long would it take for fluid pressure to decline until no more fluid would come out of the vent.\n\"It is a fairly standard methodology, but it has never really been applied to mud volcanoes before.\"\nHe added that the team used a lot of different probabilities and combined them, creating a huge number of outputs (called realisations).\n\"Out of the 10,000 realisations, we actually rejected a large number because we wanted to fit the actual rate which the mud had come out of the volcano to fit those data points,\" he said.\nThey ended up with 381 realisations, which allowed them to reach the estimate of 26 years.\nBut Professor Davies added: \"Within the modelling, there is a 10% chance that it will last for more than 100 years, and there is a 90% chance that it will last longer than 10 years.\"\nThe team worked on the assumption that the aquifer was not being recharged from another source, so there was no way for pressure to return once it had been discharged.\n\"If there is recharge taking place then the 26-year estimate will be too short,\" he conceded. \"Basically, does Lusi have any surprises left for us.\"", "They were part of a group of four men who were descending Slieve Bearnagh at about 16:30 BST.\nOne of the men had fallen near granite slabs on the mountain and suffered head and back injuries, and a second man was hurt while he tried to help.\nA Coastguard helicopter took the men to Belfast for hospital treatment.\nThe Mourne Mountain Rescue Team (MMRT) had responded to the group's call for help, and 18 volunteers assisted with the rescue.\nThe HM Coastguard helicopter from Holyhead in Wales was called for the first faller \"due to the severity the casualties injuries\", the MMRT said.\nAn Irish Coast Guard helicopter then flew to the Mournes from Dublin for the second man when his condition deteriorated as he was being taken from the mountain.\nNeville Watson, who co-ordinated the rescue for the MMRT, said the first man had become disorientated and had then \"fallen some distance\".\n\"The young guy who took the initial fall had stumbled - on that kind of steep ground once a fall starts it's very difficult to control it,\" he said.\n\"The second guy had taken a tumble when he went down to see if his friend was OK.\n\"He was suffering from pain in his hip area and leg area and we were concerned that there may have been additional internal injuries along with that.\"\nMr Watson said the part of the mountain where the men, believed to be in their 20s, fell was a \"fairly steep, rocky area\", which is popular with rock-climbers.\n\"Unfortunately they found themselves on difficult ground and they really weren't up for that kind of terrain.\n\"There's also an element of bad luck.\"" ]

[ "Paris" ]

[ "Where's Your Love", "Where the Sidewalk Ends", "aviation call signs" ]

[ "The theories presented so far have been pretty much debunked. The following link gives an elaborate explanation of this illusion. But even it fails to explain why we don't see this illusion every time the moon rises. It does not always appear larger at moonrise than when it is higher in the sky. Also, the moon may appear to be different sizes on different nights even in the same location. I'm still looking for a plausable explanation. \\n\\nhttp://facstaff.uww.edu/mccreadd/" ]

[ "No. The angle between the sun and the moon as viewed from the earth is 180 degrees for the full moon pahse. This means that the full moon and the sun are always on opposite sides of the earth.\\n\\nSince the moon is not always \"in plane\" with the sun, and your horizon is not perfect, it may be possible on occasion, depending on the geography of the horizon, and one's latitute to see the full moon rising as the sun is setting, or to see the full moon setting as the sun is rising.", "http://www.grand-illusions.com/moon.htm\\n\\nThe Moon Illusion\\n\\nThe moon illusion is one of the most famous of all illusions. Stated simply, the full moon, when just above the horizon, appears much larger than when it is overhead. Yet the moon, a quarter of a million miles away from the earth, always subtends the same angle wherever it is in the sky, roughly 0.5 degrees.\\n\\nThe first problem is for photographers. A wonderful picture presents itself, with the full moon just rising above a spectacular horizon. Click, the picture is taken. Yet the result is disappointing. The moon seems much smaller in the photograph than it did when viewed with the naked eye. Even professional photographers fall for this one. Yet on a normal lens, 50mm on a 35mm camera, the field of view is around 50 degrees, and the width of the moon, subtending an angle of 0.5 degrees, will be 100th of the width of the photo! Many photographs that you see in magazines, containing both a moon and a landscape, will be composites. The landscape will be taken with a normal lens, the moon taken with a telephoto lens, to get a bigger image.\\n\\nHow does this illusion come about? Since the moon always subtends an angle of 0.5 degrees, the image on the retina must always be the same. Clearly the problem is one of interpretation. One simple experiment shows this to be so. A full moon just above the horizon will not appear so large to the human eye if a piece of paper is held up to that eye with a hole in it, so that only the moon can be seen through the hole and not the horizon. If the other eye is open at the same time, viewing both the moon and the horizon, the two eyes will each see different sized moons!\\n\\nThe explanation is believed to be as follows. We 'know' that a cloud that is overhead will be larger than when it moves towards the horizon. And an airplane that is a mere speck on the horizon becomes large when it is overhead. And we are all familiar with standing under a tree which seems enormous, yet at a couple of hundred paces seems insignificant. It would seem that so much of our world is interpreted this way that we are ill-equipped to cope with an object like the moon, that subtends the same angle at the eye, whatever position it occupies in the sky. And so our brain 'interprets' the image that it 'sees', and tells us that the moon is larger than it really is.\\n\\nHendrik Ball\\n\\n\\n\\nFrom: http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a2_110.html\\n\\n\\nDear Cecil:\\n\\nI have noticed that the moon (and the sun, for that matter) appears very large just as it rises and sets. When it is overhead, it seems tiny by comparison. The color is also vastly different, but this can be easily explained by the fact that we view the moon through varying ''thicknesses'' of atmosphere as it makes its way across the sky. But this explanation seems insufficient to account for the change in size. So what's the straight dope? --Frank M., Los Angeles\\n\\nCecil replies:\\n\\nBelieve it or not, Frank, they've been arguing about this for two thousand years, and it's about time I got things straightened out. First of all, let me make it clear that the effect is an optical illusion. If you measure the moon with a ruler held at arm's length (a paper clip bent into the shape of a calipers will also work), you'll find it's always the same size no matter where it happens to be in the sky. If anything, the moon is slightly smaller at the horizon than it is at the zenith, mainly because it's 4,000 miles (the radius of the earth) farther away. (If you don't understand why this is so, draw yourself a picture.) Nonetheless, most people are convinced that, area-wise, the moon's at least twice as big when it's near the horizon as when it's overhead.\\n\\nNumerous theories have been advanced to explain the \"\"moon illusion.'' At one point people thought it had something to do with the angle at which you hold you", "Go to Yahoo and look for the charts on the DJIA, S&P, and Nasdaq indexes. Click on the S&P, and when you have it's individual chart on the page by itself, look toward the bottom and click on \"Historical Data\". \\n\\nYou can download data back to the 1950's into Excel format.", "From the web page below:\\n\\n\"Mars is 20 degrees above the western horizon at sunset and sets near 11:30 p.m. Look for Mars near the new moon on May 2 and again on May 31. Take care to avoid looking at the Sun as both the Moon and Mars are low on the horizon after sunset. On May 30, Mars is at the left end of a long celestial line consisting of Mars, Moon, Pollux, and Castor, the two brightest stars in the constellation Gemini.\"", "housing starts\\nthe reason\\nbuilder will not build as much or be as ambitious if people are not willing to take that HUGE risk of a big mortgage, that's why housing starts are always looked on as a barometer of the economy, as when the slow down, so does the economy in general", "Spring tides happen when the moon is both new and full, so no the moon is not always full when a tide is spring. In fact larger spring tides usually happen when the moon is new.", "When one looks at the beautiful face of the Moon, one can see the glory of the reflected sunlight without the pain of looking directly at it. Given the moon's phases, it is obvious for both these reasons that the moon is considered a goddess. That does not go against the worship of the Sun God, but rather enhances it. The moon could be seen to be worshiping the Sun God herself, when she shines out with his light for all to see, like a priestess reflecting the grandeur of the priest.", "It looks from this bio that he was an announcer and never played professionally... Looks like he announced in the 1950's to 1963, not sure when for the Angels...", "The website listed below contains a full listing and is updated frequently. The third quarter occurs halfway between the full moon (after this) and the new moon (when the moon is obscured by earths shadow). The next 3rd quarter is on March 22nd.\\n\\nEDIT: March 22nd, the navy site lists the dates going back to 2000 and I looked up the wrong year :-( I'm a very sad pagan.", "waxing...here's why:\\n\\nif the moon is in it's first quarter, that means the first quarter of the cycle which begins on the new moon. waxing means getting bigger, waning means getting smaller. in the first quarter, it is moving toward full moon, therefore it is waxing.", "INTRESTING FACT IF YOU ARE AT LEVEL GROUND SUCH AS FLA,KEYS THE FULL MOON WILL ALWAYS RISE AT THE EXACT TIME THE SUN THE SUN IS SETTING. THE MOON WILL RISE PERCISLEY YOU CAN CHECK THE EXACT TIME LIKE AROUND 56 MIN LATTER EVERY NITE UNTILL THE CYCLE IS COMPLETE THEN ONCE AGAIN THE FULL MOON WILL RISE EXACTLY AT SUNSET FOR EVER AND EVER WATCH THE MOON RISE NIGHTLY AND IT WILL PROVE ME RIGHT. DONT KNOW IF THAT ANSWERED QUESTION BUT THATS HISTORY", "lunar eclipses take place only during full moon, and if the moon passes through a part of the earth's shadow.\\n\\nsince we have a full moon at least once every 29.5 days, one does wonder why we don't have a lunar eclipse every month. \\n\\nfact is, the moon orbits arond the earth at five degrees to the earth's orbit around the sun. this means that the moon is either above or below the plane of the earth's orbit. this plane (of earth's orbit around the sun) is important because this is where earth's shadows lie. during full moon, the moon passes above or below earth's shadows, therefore we don't get a lunar eclipse. in a year, though, the moon gets to pass twice up to 4 times through part of the earth's shadows -- which causes a partial or total lunar eclipse.", "Because when the second coming of Jesus is suppose to happen....he is to come from the East. So when the person rises from the grave he will rise to see Jesus.", "i also have twin sons and get asked if they are twins all the time. No idea why...Another thing that drives me nuts is when they say, \"You really have your hands full, don't you...\" No S**T Sherlock!", "I would expand this to say that a lunar eclipse occurs when the earth is positioned directly between the sun and the moon, and their plane of orbits align.\\n\\nThe last point is critical because you could easily wonder why we don't have lunar eclipses every month when the moon's orbit is such that the earth is in the middle... because the order of the planets is not only important, but that they line up just exact so that the earth's shadow does not fall just above or below the moon, but directly on it.", "A is correct, the moon muct be full, meaning the earth is between the sun and moon.\\n\\nThe other condition necessary is that the moon must be on the ecliptic. The orbital path of the moon is tilted five degrees from the ecliptic, which is the plane that holds the orbit of the earth about the sun. If the moon is above or beow the ecliptic, then the earth's shadow will miss it. In the summer and the winter, there are two times when the moon crosses this ecliptic. If there's a full moon in that time, then ther's a good clance of a lunar eclipse. If there's a new moon in that time, there's a good chance of a solar eclipse.", "The moon causes the tides. When it is overhead and when it is underneath. The Sun also causes tides, but it is a smaller effect. When the Sun and Moon line up, the tides are stronger, and when they are on opposite sides of the earth the tides tend to cancel out and are smaller.\\n\\nTides also depend a lot on the shape of the ocean floor near the shore (is it shalow or deep, etc.)", "Assuming you're on Yahoo, when you look at the list of messages, there is a \"spam\" button at the top (between delete and mark). Click the box(es) to the left of the message subject(s) and then click the \"spam\" button. If you've opened the message, you can simply click the \"spam\" button above the message between forward and move.", "This question could be very easily answered by looking up solar eclipses somewhere such as Wikipedia. \\n\\nA solar eclipse happens when the moon passes between the Earth and Sun, causing people on Earth to be completely or partially unable to see the sun, because the moon is in the way. This is able to happen in spite of the fact that the moon is much smaller than the sun, because while the sun is about 400 times bigger than the moon, it is also 400 times farther away from the Earth than the moon is. \\n\\nThe reason that a solar eclipse can only happen during the new moon is that the new moon phase is the only time when the moon is in between the Earth and Sun at all.", "what does it mean when you tell them it;s booty call.", "there was 3 guys named shut-up,maners,and s***. one day s*** got lost in the forest maners went to look 4 him and shut-up call the police. when the police arived they asked shut_up his name he said shut-up the cop repted wats ur name? \"shut-up\" the cop said: WHERE ARE YOUR MANERS!!!!! shut-up aid \"looking 4 s*** lol P>S> are u guna chose a best anser 4 this?", "The replication of chromosomes does not occur during mitosis. This replication occurs during the S phase of the interphase. Think of the word SYNTHESIS when you think of the S phase. The new strands of DNA in the chromosome are SYNTHESIZED in the S phase.", "The best viewing is without the moon. Check the times for moon rise and settings. Get away from city lights. A grassy hill is best. If you look at the moon directly it may burn and damage your eyes. They have special filters for moon watchers.", "i never heard of it and then i looked it up when i saw ur question and all ive got to say is that s*hit loooks creeeepy!", "A solar eclipse occurs when the moon moves between the earth and the sun. From our perspective, this looks like the moon is covering up the sun.\\n\\nA lunar eclipse occurs when the earth moves between the moon and the sun. The earth's shadow covers the moon and the moon appears to grow dark", "Lunar eclipses occur at full moon, when the moon passes into the earth's shadow. This does not occur at every full moon because the moon's orbit is inclined 5 degrees to the orbit of the earth around the sun, so the alignment must have the moon crossing through the earth's orbital plane at full moon.\\n\\nWhat we see depends on what part of the earth's shadow the moon passes into. The shadow consists of two areas, the umbra and the penumbra. The penumbra is a much lighter shadow, and lunar eclipses that occur when the moon only passes into it are difficult to see. The portion of the moon that dims does so only a little. When the moon passes into the umbra, the effect is more easily visible. If the moon only goes part way into the umbra, the area in that portion of the shadow will become noticeably darker. If the moon passes entirely into the umbra, that is a total lunar eclipse. The moon will get much darker and will turn a rust color. This reddish color is due to light that gets through the earth's atmosphere and back to the moon. If you think about the color of sunset and sunrise, it is primarily red. It is this red light around the rim of the earth (as you would see the unlit side of the earth from the moon during a full moon) that illuminates the moon during a total lunar eclipse and makes it appear dark red.", "What's not??? Life is amazing! It's a journey and what ever you make it!\\n\\nLife live to the full and never look back!\\n\\np/s whats up kirsty's a*se?", "Well, I think they best Red S*X position would have to be 1B, b/c I like David Ortiz. But as far as move goes, the White S*X move of getting Jim Thome via free agency looks like it will reap huge dividends. I hope this helps.", "What does religion have to do with it? I know christians who have Jesus tatoos or bible quotes and stuff like that. Just look at the ex-Korn guitarist, Brian Welch...When he went all bible-thumper, he got a scripture tatoo on his neck and J-E-S-U-S on his knuckles...So there, I'm guessing its not forbidden, but hey, I'm not christian, so I dont know for sure.\\n\\n\\n\\nPeace", "Be careful not to confuse the concept of weight with the concept of mass. The Earth's weight would depend on the acceleration due to gravity (Here on Earth we call it 'little g' and it's 9.8 m/s squared) on the enormous planet with a huge bathroom scale that you could set the whole planet Earth on. The Earth's mass doesn't change (except for increasing steadily due to cosmic dust accumulation) when you move it from gravitational field to gravitational field. Likewise your weight changes when you walk on the moon, but your mass stays the same. It's the different acceleration due to gravity (The moon's instead of the Earth's) that changes your weight.", "When it is meant to happen it will. I never thought I would find anyone. When I stopped looking and decided that I didn't need a man to be happy. That is when I met him. I was a single mom of 3 in my late 20's when it happened. GOOD LUCK!!", "Why does Stevie Wonder moves his head around when he sings?\\n\\nHe's looking for the microphone" ]

[ "Because the whole BitCoin thing was designed to be fairly anonymous, and they'll be using proxies and VPNs and maybe Tor, all of which cover your tracks on the web." ]

[ "A bitcoin can be divided into smaller units so the value of a single bitcoin would be driven up so that 21,000,000 would equal the total amount of money in circulation today. For example a person making $100k a year might be the equivalent of making 1 bitcoin a year and would then pay for their coffee by transferring .000005 bitcoins to Starbucks in exchange for that coffee.", "Bitcoins is a currency that cannot be taxed by governments. Shady people used them to transfer huge amounts of money. Since they were used, they became popular and therefore increased in value.", "While Libra uses similar technology to Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, it doesn't have the 'can't be regulated, even in theory' setup that Bitcoin advertised itself with. Instead, Libra is set up so that Facebook (or whoever Facebook gives access to) can control how much currency is out there and track what people are spending it on. Facebook wants a currency that they can track and control because it would be really useful in their data mining business. They can track what stuff you're buying directly (instead of based on what pages you look at on Facebook) and sell that information to advertisers to make money.", "I can give a partial answer: > Is there any physical cash being taken from Bank A and being given to Bank B to account for the transfer? No > To me it seems as if money is just represented by figures on a computer screen. It is, why this would seem much stranger then money being represented as just pieces of paper is interesting. > Are there vast amounts of physical cash being transferred on a daily basis between banks? How does this work? There is not. The mechanics how how one bank actually credits one account while removing money from the other... someone can follow up with.", "Say you are working for a bank. You also have a savings account for in that bank. The bank hired you to keep track of what the bank is doing. So you do your job, record that Harry paid Sally $20, etc. You show your work to the other workers at the bank. The other workers at the bank check to see if you did your job well, you check the other workers at the bank. In exchange for your work, the bank adds money to your account. This is exactly how Bitcoin mining works. The \"mining\" process is administration work on keeping track of the transactions of Bitcoins. When other people in the network check your work, they agree that work has been done and award you more Bitcoin.", "Hackers were caught in many ways. The most common reason is human error. People always screw up and it applies for hackers too. Also a large parts of caught hackers are script kiddies - person who use tools/software written by other hackers. They don't have the expertise to cover their tracks and can be identified easily.", "Money laundering is taking money that has been earned illegally And transferring it either abroad to hide it or putting it into a legitimate business to make purchases/pay bills/staff, to \"clean\" it, hence the term laundering, as in, laundry. Money put into a business can be seen as a cash injection and then used for the business, this can then be taken out as salary or dividends, when the money comes back out it is seen as legally earned. People get away with it because the governments of the world can't track every transaction ever though banks do a good job, just last week I tried to transfer 4 amounts of money to my partner and the 4th one got blocked and I received a call regarding money laundering. I suspect most of it is done via cash so no banks can see the transfer.", "Supply and Demand. For total devaluation you need infinite supply or zero demand. Infinite supply is not possible because the [generation is regulated](_URL_1_) and limited by the protocol . Each bitcoin is a solution to a computational intensive problem. If too many coins are generated, the [difficulty](_URL_0_) of the problem is increased, if too few then the difficulty is decreased. The demand could reach zero if bitcoins become useless. For example if there are better alternatives to using bitcoins, or a defect is found in the protocol. Now bitcoins are not useless. You can transfer money mostly anonymously, instantly, with very little fees, and the transaction can not be blocked by governments or financial institutions.", "You can't DDOS proof a server, thats why DDOSing is so effective, I bet microsoft and sony are doing their best to track down the attackers, after that they might deal with the hackers themselves (make them disappear) or alert the authorities which would result in prison time and really high fines. Hacker groups are really hard to track though thanks to the use of bots.", "In a nutshell, the blockchain is a publicly-maintained database of every single bitcoin transaction to have ever taken place in the history of bitcoins. Every time a bitcoin is mined or transferred, an entry is added to the blockchain, and that entry is distributed to everyone else. Bitcoin uses encryption techniques to verify that entries added to the blockchain are valid (a client will automatically reject fraudulent entries if someone tries to insert them into the blockchain).", "Just a placeholder until someone better provides an answer: Major forms of heat transfer are: Convection, conduction, advection, radiation. Heat going from the atmosphere to the snow would be generally be conduction or convection, depending on whether the air is moving. Radiation works via electromagnetic waves. No solid medium is required. The sun can heat the snow via electromagnetic waves without being in contact, either direct or indirect via atmosphere. There are probably some inaccuracies here, first post on this sub. :/", "They do show you ads, just not tracking-targeted ones (and they give you the ability to opt out). Apparently they're also in some affiliate programmes, so they get a cut of revenue when people buy things they found via DDG - even though they don't track you, your browser provides a \"referrer\" field to the destination page so it knows how you got there. They publish a [broad description](_URL_0_) of how they make money, though it took a little digging to find it.", "Bitcoin (the ledger)can be used for record keeping of assets such and deeds, titles, loans or any other commodity in a way that is not censorable or forged. this has huge implication for notary and record keeping. bitcoin the money is an electronic form of cash only its finite and more secure and private. Like any other currency it is valid by by anyone willing to accept it. It is now entirely possible to get any good or service you need in bitcoin if you know where to look(this too is becoming easier) for the best $20 education: 1. get a _URL_0_ account (might be a delay in your first trasaction to comply with federal laws, aka KYC) and buy 20$ worth of bitcoin. 2. install airbitz onto your smart phone and transfer your bitcoins to it 3. go to _URL_1_ and buy somthing. Now you have used bitcoin, gained knowledge and still have not lost any value. u simply converted a small amount into an asset. Using it, is way easier than explaining the nuances of it.", "Cryto-anarchism, is (I believe) something that has arisen mainly out of bitcoin. It's the idea that we can de-centralize our lives away from the state, and the elements of society that have control over us. Bitcoin is the best example. Bitcoins are an encrypted currency, so its incredibly difficult for the state/government to see where money is, who controls it, or where its going. It's the encryption part which makes bitcoin beyond the control of banks or government as we can make transactions in secret, and without the over site of a bank. This has given is the possibility of a new, free currency - one controlled by individuals instead of banks. This is the basis of anarchism - that we can live as individuals, free from control.", "a black hat hacker is someone who hacks with malicious intent such as to steal passwords or access classified information. a gray hat hacker is kind of complicated but its basically a hacker who hacks with good intent (such as notifying an organization of vulnerabilities) but without the consent of the organization, as opposed to a white hat hacker who is usually hired by the organization to find vulnerabilities.", "We know what the final count of bitcoins will be - 21 million. There are 12 million now, but we know the rate at which they're being uncovered and how many can exist. Because of that, there's no real inflation to it - the market is adjusted to 21 million total bitcoins, even though only 12 million are in circulation.", "Its called Regulation D. I believe it is because banks are not required to have all of the money on hand at any given time. Too frequent of transfers could potentially mess with the reserve. Limiting transfers allows them to have better tracking. [Here is a Wikipedia article about it]( _URL_0_", "You might find what you're looking for in previous eli5 posts: [Bitcoin and bitcoin mining](_URL_0_) [How BitCoin works](_URL_1_) [Bitcoin mining](_URL_3_) _URL_2_", "Bitcoins is the currency of the internet. It's sketchy because bitcoins are used to transact on the blackmarket. Getting bitcoins is like putting your computer on a parttime job. I don't remember the specifics but it's something along the lines of doing number crunching. You can't buy drugs and guns with Runescape money.", "On modern drives, yes. It's important to note that data transfer speed ultimately depends on the read/write rate of the read/write head. On older drives, the read/write rate was constant, whicj caused data to be more spread out in the outer tracks. Modern drives up the transfer rate on the outer tracks, since the outer tracks are longer, it makes sense that you could fit more data in those tracks with higher transfer rate since old CAV drives wasted alot of space on the outer tracks by using a constant transfer rate.", "There IS an energy input. Energy is being transferred from the oceans to the Moon: \"The Moon is kept in orbit by the gravitational force that the Earth exerts on it, but the Moon also exerts a gravitational force on our planet and this causes the movement of the Earth's oceans to form a tidal bulge. Due to the rotation of the Earth, this tidal bulge actually sits slightly ahead of the Moon. Some of the energy of the spinning Earth gets transferred to the tidal bulge via friction. This drives the bulge forward, keeping it ahead of the Moon. The tidal bulge feeds a small amount of energy into the Moon, pushing it into a higher orbit like the faster, outside lanes of a test track.\" _URL_0_", "In simple terms bitcoin is a decentralized digital currency. It is digital coins where you can send it to other people without fees, going through banks and etc. It is not regulated by the government and 1 bitcoin is equal to 255.49 US dollars. You don't have to have 1 bitcoin though. For example you can have .010 of a bitcoin. Not many retailers accept bitcoin yet. You can exchange bitcoins at _URL_0_ and it could be worth it. It all depends on the person.", "Its a currency like dollars or euros, and can be used to buy and sell goods. The difference is that it is not backed by a government like normal currencies are and very few people will accept payment in Bitcoins. There are some complex computer based processes in place to control how new currency is created and distributed (ie. the equivalent of a government printing new money). Just for the record, while I find a non-government backed currency a very intriguing idea, I would not condone using this as a normal currency or converting any significant amount of other money to Bitcoins. There are significant challenges that Bitcoins face and it would be very risky to do much business using the currency as it is now.", "the value of anything is the amount of money others are willing to pay for. Bitcoins cost $200 a piece (or whatever it is now) because someone is out there willing to give you $200 for a bitcoin. If there wasn't, then it wouldn't be worth that much.", "Bitcoin, like anything else, is worth money because we agree that it's worth money. Any value that anything has is only because someone else agrees that that something is worth trading for. The same is true of cars, diamonds, gold, and money. If it is accepted that X amount of Bitcoin is worth Y dollars, then that's what it's worth. If no one believes that it's worth Y dollars, then it's not.", "The Chan sites are only anonymous in the sense that anyone can post anything without having to make an account or provide a name, they are not anonymous in the commonly misconceived form of hiding ones identity and being completely free of digital-trails. Every time you post on a Chan site your IP is recorded (its hidden to public but clear to admins), thus if you post something forbidden they can then report the post and share your IP to authorities. Hackers have also been able to 'see' posters IP addresses on 4chan in the past and have used this for both good and evil, for example when annon was posted up images of an actual freshly murdered body, some batman-esk hackers managed to track down the up-loaders location just from the IP activities. In short; you are never truly anonymous.", "Bitcoin value would probably explode, the black market would be legally and safely able to transfer large sums of money, the government would absolutely have a hand in this cookie jar if it could, and the moon would be made of spare ribs. I can't see congress ever supporting a federally unregulated currency in which they can't tie names to transactions or trace/freeze/close/tax/or influence accounts around the world.", "Private banks don't print money. [Here](_URL_0_) is a simplified explanation of how money gets into circulation via banks.", "Yup. That's how bitcoin started. People treated it like pop caps. You have whole bitcoins away as gag gifts. 10 years later a single Bitcoin is worth over $4000 us.", "No there is not a \"real\" as in physical dollar for everyone you bank online. However that has little to do with the internet and stated long before we had online banking. Money existed in theory only and without any physical coins or banknotes to back it up for long before computer banking came along. This is how banks can lend more money to different people than they actually have in deposits. The system breaks down when everyone who has money in the bank on paper (or digitally) wants their physical money at the same time, because there is not enough physical money for that. In practice it is actually very hard to keep track of what \"real money\" is anyway. The US and other government keeps track of \"the money\" called the money supply in various forms of things that can be counted as money and the physical currency is only the tiniest fraction of it.", "Pulling the cash out of ATMs would be hugely time consuming and increase the risk of getting caught. The better approach (and the one they're most likely to use) is to keep bouncing the money around the globe via wire transfers, ideally to countries with very strict banking privacy laws (Switzerland, Caymans, Singapore, etc). From there, disperse the money into smaller transfers to companies that can be used to launder the money. Online retailers of luxury items would be a good choice, although I'm sure there are plenty more options.", "Because they avoid the local regulations that might easily track where the money came from and who it is going to. Large movements of money say between the USA and Columbia might attract the attention of authorities suspecting that it might be drugs related. However if the money is moved from the USA to the Cayman islands and then from an account in the Cayman islands to another account in the Cayman islands and then to Columbia it becomes impossible to track where the money is going without the cooperation of the authorities in the Cayman islands." ]

[ "Jack Daniels and Popeyes Chicken." ]

[ "The McAllisters in Home Alone were pretty bad.", "Depends on the celebrity and how they go about it for sure", "You know how your partner acts in a home setting.", "You have any idea how much it costs to build a house vs how much homes are sold for?", "You really think celebrities will see this... On reddit" ]