Monday, July 1, 2013

Democrat predicts House will pass Senate immigration bill (reuters)

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Texas pledge Heard answers Elite 11 call

June, 30, 2013

Jun 30

6:15

PM ET

BEAVERTON, Ore. -- Texas quarterback commit Jerrod Heard (Denton, Texas/John H. Guyer) drew some of the highest praise of the weekend from Trent Dilfer after several workouts at the Elite 11 finals.

?I was worried,? said Dilfer, head coach of the Elite 11 program. ?I didn?t know how he?d handle this environment.?

But Heard, 138th in the ESPN 300 and the No. 5-rated dual-threat QB, has answered the challenge.

To continue reading this article you must be an Insider

Source: http://insider.espn.go.com/blog/ncfrecruiting/midlands/post?id=12936

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Obama meets Mandela's family, praises ailing anti-apartheid leader

Jerome Delay / AP

President Barack Obama delivers remarks and takes questions at a town hall meeting with young African leaders at the University of Johannesburg Soweto campus in South Africa, on Saturday, June 29.

By Daniel Arkin, Staff Writer, NBC News

President Barack Obama met privately Saturday with relatives of critically ill anti-apartheid leader Nelson Mandela in the midst of a three-nation tour through Africa.

Obama praised the former South African president as a towering historical figure who paved the way to social justice and racial reconciliation in a nation turn asunder by generations of white-minority rule.

"I also reaffirmed the profound impact that his legacy has had in building a free South Africa, and in inspiring people around the world -- including me," Obama said in a statement.

Obama also spoke by telephone with Gra?a Machel, Mandela's wife, while she remained at the 94-year-old former statesman's beside.

"I expressed my hope that Madiba draws peace and comfort from the time that he is spending with loved ones, and also expressed my heartfelt support for the entire family as they work through this difficult time," Obama said, referring to Mandela by his honorary clan name.

The White House announced earlier that Obama, "out of deference to Nelson Mandela's peace and comfort and the family's wishes," would not visit the Pretoria hospital where the ailing leader has spent three weeks being treated for a lung infection.

Meanwhile, police officials fired off stun grenades Saturday to break up a group of about 200 protesters who had congregated outside the Soweto campus of the University of Johannesburg, where Obama spoke at a town hall meeting with students. Some demonstrators carried signs depicting Obama with an Adolf Hitler mustache.

54-year-old Ramasimong Tsokolibane told the Associated Press that a host of trade unions and civil society groups protesting outside the university object to Obama's conduct as commander in chief.

Marco Longari / AFP - Getty Images

Shadows are reflected on a wall where a portrait of visiting US President Barak Obama is displayed outside the Mediclinic Heart Hospital where former South African President Nelson Mandela is hospitalized in Pretoria on June 29, 2013.

"People died in Libya. People are still dying in Syria," Tsokolibane told the AP. "In Egypt, in Afghanistan, in Pakistan, drones are still killing people. So that's why we are calling him a Hitler. He's a killer."

A June Pew poll found that Obama enjoys widespread popularity among the South African people.

Obama earlier Saturday conducted bilateral talks with South African President Jacob Zuma at the historic Union Buildings. The two leaders held a press conference that touched on a wide range of political issues, from global trade to U.S. immigration reform.

But the focal point of the conference was Mandela's failing health and powerful legacy.

Zuma told assembled reporters that Mandela was in critical but stable condition Saturday, according to the Associated Press.

Obama called on African leaders and political actors across the globe to follow in Mandela's footsteps and put patriotism ahead of personal concerns.

?We as leaders occupy these spaces temporarily and we don?t get so deluded that we think the fate of our country doesn?t depend on how long we stay in office,? Obama said.

Obama honored Mandela again at an official dinner, toasting the iconic leader.

"I propose a toast, to a man who has always been a master of his fate, who taught who that we could be the master of ours, to a proud nation and South Africa's unconquerable soul," he said.

Obama is slated Sunday to visit Robben Island, the former penal colony where South Africa's first black president spent 18 of the 27 years he was locked up in apartheid jails, Reuters reported. He is due to head to Tanzania on Monday.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

Obama said the thoughts and prayers of the American people are with Nelson Mandela, who remains hospitalized with a lung infection. NBC's Lester Holt reports.

Related:

Source: http://feeds.nbcnews.com/c/35002/f/663309/s/2df8f8fc/l/0Lworldnews0Bnbcnews0N0C0Inews0C20A130C0A60C290C1920A46210Eobama0Emeets0Emandelas0Efamily0Epraises0Eailing0Eanti0Eapartheid0Eleader0Dlite/story01.htm

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Friday, June 28, 2013

Business owner: Parking, weather, construction slowing sales ...

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) -- Tourist season usually ushers in a new crowd of out-of-towners looking to spend a few bucks in downtown wilmington. But business owners say profits are down.

"I think it has to do with this weird weather we've been having this year," Hardwire Tattoo owner Justin LaNasa said. "It took a while to warm up, and now it's raining like crazy. And then it rained. Also, I feel that the gas prices has something to do with tourists not wanting to travel real far."

LaNasa and other downtown business owners say parking is also to blame for slugging sales in the central business district.

"The little bit of money (the city makes) off parking is damaging the merchants, and that's what keeps the bars and restaurants and the night activity high and the day activity less, because people don't want to pay that parking fee when they could go somewhere else," LaNasa said.

Earlier this year the city increased rates in its parking decks and changed the way it charges to park in them. Records show that about 2,700 fewer cars parked in city decks in May compared to the same month last year. Revenue is down in comparing those months, too, by nearly $2,700. But one tourist we spoke with says that's not the cause of the slump in business.

"I don't believe it's the parking rates. They're more expensive in other towns," tourist Vern Moody said. "I mean five dollars for a day is, to me, reasonable."

He says the economy is the real culprit.

Jade Edens, who works, at Penders Caf? disagrees. She says it is the parking.

"I think it's the cost, and I think there's not been enough on-street parking," she said.

Business owners we spoke with say that although things are slow right now, with 4th of July just around the corner, and the weather clearing up, they're hopeful that business will pick back up again, too.

Business owners say other factors affecting sales may be downtown construction and the fact they're seeing more in-state visitors and fewer out-of-state tourists.

Source: http://www.wwaytv3.com/2013/06/27/business-owner-parking-weather-construction-slowing-sales-downtown

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Thursday, June 27, 2013

New emir: Qatar will pursue its 'independent behavior'

By Regan Doherty

DOHA (Reuters) - Qatar's new emir said on Wednesday the U.S.-allied Gulf Arab state would not "take direction" from anyone, in an accession speech suggesting the young leader would pursue the assertive, independent-minded foreign policy pioneered by his father.

Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani's first address as head of state coincided with a cabinet reshuffle that saw Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani, a force behind Qatar's support for Arab Spring revolts, replaced as premier and foreign minister.

Sheikh Hamad is expected to retain his powerful post as vice chairman of the Qatar Investment Authority, (QIA), a globally active sovereign wealth fund that is worth between $100 billion and $200 billion.

Sheikh Tamim, 33, handed power by his father on Tuesday in a rare example of an hereditary Arab ruler stepping down, added in his speech that sectarianism threatened to weaken Arab unity at a time when Syria's war has sharply raised communal tensions.

From the same desk where his father announced his abdication after 18 years in power, Sheikh Tamim struck a businesslike tone in a 15-minute speech that was broad in nature and focused on domestic issues. He vowed to follow his father's "path".

"We don't take direction (from anyone) and this independent behavior is one of the established facts," Sheikh Tamim, said in the speech broadcast on Qatari state television.

"As Arabs we reject splitting countries on a sectarian basis ... and because this split allows for foreign powers to interfere in the internal affairs of Arabs and influence them."

The emir added that his country, long seen as an ally of the Muslim Brotherhood, should not be identified with any particular political trend and respected all religious sects.

"We are a coherent state, not a political party, and therefore we seek to keep relationships with all governments and states," he said.

"We respect all the influential and active political trends in the region, but we are not affiliated with one trend against the other. We are Muslims and Arabs who respect diversity of sects and respect all religions in our countries and outside of them."

NO BIG CHANGE IN POLICY

Analysts said the speech aimed to show there would be no sudden change in Qatari policy.

"The new Emir needed to strike a balance between his domestic audience and the strong regional and international interest in his accession," said Kristian Ulrichsen, a Gulf expert at the Baker Institute for Public Policy.

"He didn't give too much away but generally sought to reassure people that while there may be a change in leadership style there will be continuity in the underlying substance of Qatari policy-making," he said.

The new emir steered clear of any mention of Syria, a conflict in which Qatar has taken the lead in arming Syrian rebels fighting to topple President Bashar al-Assad, to the consternation of some allies who fear weapons may be falling into the hands of more extremist Islamist fighters.

He instead focused on the safer topic of the Palestinian issue, saying Qatar was committed to their struggle with Israel.

David Roberts, deputy director of the Royal United Services Institute based in Doha, said the speech had a "down to business tone, indicating that the country has work to and he is eager to get on with it".

"It strongly suggested that Qatar will continue on its path with regard to foreign policy; there was no attempt to backtrack or rein that in. There was certainly no equivocation," he said.

"HBJ" OUT

Qatar has been ruled by the al-Thani family for more than 130 years, but the handing over of power to Sheikh Tamim, marked a rare move in a region where monarchs usually rule for life.

A cabinet list released on the state news agency confirmed the new prime minister as Abdullah bin Naser al-Thani and the new foreign minister Khalid al-Atiyah, posts previously occupied by veteran politician Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim.

The reshuffle included Ali Sherif al-Emadi as finance minister, who held the post of group chief executive officer of Qatar National Bank.

The energy minister of the OPEC state and world's largest exporter of liquefied natural gas, remained unchanged.

The replacement of Hamad bin Jassim, or HBJ as he is known, marked the end of a two-decade tenure in government in which he drove the Gulf country's rise to global prominence.

In his time as foreign minister, Qatar began hosting the largest U.S. air base in the Middle East but also cozied up to America's foes Iran, Syria and Hamas in pursuit of leverage. The Afghan Taliban opened an office in Doha last week.

Named prime minister in 2007, Sheikh Hamad played a personal role in facilitating Qatar's numerous efforts to resolve violent tensions, brokering talks in conflicts ranging from Lebanon to Yemen and from Darfur to the Palestinian territories.

(This story is refiled to fix typo in paragraph four)

(Additional reporting by Sami Aboudi, Amena Bakr and Mahmoud Habboush; Writing by Yara Bayoumy, Editing by William Maclean)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/qatar-change-premier-foreign-minister-under-emir-125607917.html

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Activists say death toll in Syria now tops 100,000

BEIRUT (AP) ? The civil war in Syria has now killed more than 100,000 people, a grim new estimate Wednesday that comes at a time when the conflict is spreading beyond its borders and hopes are fading for a settlement to end the bloodshed.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which has been tracking the death toll through a network of activists in the country, said most of the 100,191 killed in the last 27 months were combatants.

The regime losses were estimated at nearly 43,000, including pro-government militias and 169 fighters from the Lebanese Shiite Hezbollah group ? a recent entrant in the conflict.

The Observatory said 36,661 of the dead are civilians. Recorded deaths among the rebels fighting to topple President Bashar Assad reached more than 18,000, including 2,518 foreign fighters.

Observatory director Rami Abdul-Rahman said he suspected that the toll actually was higher, since neither side has been totally forthcoming about its losses.

The United Nations recently estimated that 93,000 people were killed between March 2011, when the crisis started, and the end of April 2013, concurring with Abdul-Rahman that the actual toll is likely much higher.

The Syrian government has not given a death toll. State media published the names of the government's dead in the first months of the crisis, but then stopped publishing its losses after the opposition became an armed insurgency.

Abdul-Rahman said that the group's tally of military deaths is based on information from medical sources, records obtained by the group from state agencies and activists' own count of funerals in government-held areas of the country. Other sources are the activist videos showing soldiers who were killed in rebel areas and later identified.

The new estimate comes at a time when hopes for peace talks are fading. The U.N.'s special envoy to Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi, said Tuesday an international conference proposed by Russia and the U.S. will not take place until later in the summer, partly because of opposition disarray.

Regime forces are pushing into rebel-held areas in an attempt to secure the seat of Assad's power in the capital of Damascus and along the Mediterranean coast in the heartland of the Alawites, an offshoot of Shiite Islam to which Assad belongs.

The offensive, along with new reports that Assad has used chemical weapons in 10 different incidents in the conflict, also prompted Washington and its allies to declare they have decided to arm the rebels.

On Wednesday, the Observatory said the regime drove rebels out of the town of Talkalakh, along the border with Lebanon. The town, which had a predominantly Sunni population of about 70,000 before the conflict, is surrounded by 12 Alawite villages located within walking distance of the Lebanon border.

The government takeover will likely affect the rebels' ability to bring supplies, fighters and weapons from Lebanon.

The town also lies on the highway that links the city of Homs to Tartus, in the coastal Alawite enclave that is home to one of Syria's two main seaports.

Syrian state TV showed soldiers patrolling the streets of Talkalakh, inspecting underground tunnels and displaying weapons seized from the opposition.

The governor of Homs, Ahmed Munir, told the private Lebanese broadcaster al-Mayadeen that some rebels in Talkalakh handed their weapons over to authorities. He said the town was a major area for infiltrators from Lebanon.

"Talkalakh is clear of weapons," Munir said.

Southeast of Talkalakh, government forces also took control of the village of Quarayaten on a highway that links the rebels to another supply route from Iraq, according to an activist who spoke on condition of anonymity out of fear for his safety.

The regime victories are likely to help it advance on rebel-held areas of the city of Homs, he said. The activist, who is connected to rebels in Homs, spoke by Skype.

The main opposition group, the Syrian National Coalition, urged the U.N. to help civilians in Talkalakh open routes to facilitate the rescue of women, children, the elderly and the wounded.

The fighting has increasingly taken on sectarian overtones. Sunni Muslims dominate the rebel ranks while Assad's regime is dominated by Alawites, and has been backed by Hezbollah fighters, particularly in towns near the Lebanese borders.

The conflict has also polarized the region. Several Gulf states, including Sunni-majority Saudi Arabia, back the rebels. Shiite powerhouse Iran is a major Assad supporter.

Syrian Information Minister Omran al-Zoubi lashed out at Saudi Arabia after that country condemned Damascus for enlisting fighters from its Lebanese ally in its struggle with rebels.

The remarks by al-Zoubi were carried late Tuesday by the state agency SANA after Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal met with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in Jiddah and condemned Assad for bolstering his army with fighters from Hezbollah. Prince Saud charged that Syria faces a "foreign invasion."

Al-Zoubi fired back, saying Saudi diplomats have blood on their hands and are "trembling in fear of the victories of the Syrian army."

___

Associated Press writers Bassem Mroue and Barbara Surk in Beirut contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/activists-death-toll-syria-now-tops-100-000-201432503.html

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Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Study ranks social contacts by job and social group in bid to fight infectious diseases

June 25, 2013 ? In the light of Novel Corona Virus, concerns over H7N9 Influenza in S.E. Asia, and more familiar infections such as measles and seasonal influenza, it is as important as ever to be able to predict and understand how infections transmit through the UK population.

Researchers at the University of Warwick and University of Liverpool have mapped the daily contact networks of thousands of individuals to shed light on which groups may be at highest risk of contracting and spreading respiratory diseases.

These scientists used an anonymous web and postal survey of 5,027 UK residents to collect information on the types of social contact likely to lead to the transmission of respiratory infections.

The study, Social encounter networks: characterising Great Britain, was published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B

The survey is believed to be the largest national study of its kind to date and allowed the scientists, for the first time, to quantify social contact patterns and how these varied with age and job.

Although it is common sense that some jobs may be associated with more social contacts, there is huge value in possessing hard data on the number and duration of social contacts as it allows the complex interactions of the UK population to be analysed mathematically in the event of an outbreak.

According to the study, children were top of the table for social contacts, making them most at-risk for catching and transmitting infection.

A social contact is defined as a face-to-face conversation within two metres or skin-on-skin physical touch with another person.

Among adults, those working in schools, in the health sector and in client-facing service jobs such as shop workers or commercial roles had among the highest number of social contacts.

Students, unemployed people and retired people had among the lowest levels of social contacts.

According to the data collected, during a working day a teacher sees on average 62.1 different people, whereas a retired person only sees around 19.3.

The length of time a person spends with a contact is an important risk factor in transmitting infection, so the results were converted into total contact hours, the sum of the durations of all contacts in one given day.

Most people have an average of around 26 social contact hours a day but a small number have up to 50 contact hours a day since people can spend time with more than one individual simultaneously.

For example, children have an average of more than 47 contact hours, a health sector worker has on average just less than 33 contact hours a day, a teacher has 32 contact hours whereas retired people have slightly more than 19 contact hours.

The researchers also found that sociability tends to decline as people get older, with school-age children having the most social contact hours and people of retirement age having the fewest.

However there is a noticeable rebound in social contact hours in people aged between 35 and 45, which the researchers suggest may be down to ?school-gate? contacts among parents with school-age children.

Dr Leon Danon from the Mathematics Institute at the University of Warwick said: ?People working as teachers or health professionals are no doubt already aware that they have higher risks of picking up bugs like colds and flu.

??But before this study there was very little data mapping out the contact patterns humans have in their daily life.

?By quantifying those social interactions, we can better predict the risks of contracting and spreading infections and ultimately better target epidemic control measures in the case of pandemic flu for example.?

?Professor Jeremy Dale, Professor of Primary Care at Warwick Medical School, commented:

?This study provides light on why some groups may be at greater risk of being exposed to respiratory and other infections that are linked to close social contact.

?It should not however cause people in these groups undue concern.

?There are many sensible measures people can take to cut down on the risk of catching or passing on these kinds of infections. These include regularly washing your hands with soap and water, keeping surfaces clean and using tissues when you cough or sneeze.?

Transport workers, such as taxi and bus drivers, also featured very high on the league tables but researchers were cautious about reading into this because of the small number of respondents in this group.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/IgJn42Rko6w/130625192549.htm

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DOMA: Supreme Court Rulings On Defense Of Marriage Act, Prop 8 Irk Haters

Anti-gay groups were immediately up in arms after the Supreme Court struck down the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) as unconstitutional, claiming that this decision will change life in the United States for the worse and that "God's judgment" will be upon us.

American Family Association spokespeople Fred Jackson and Sandy Rios expressed dismay over the DOMA strike-down, Right Wing Watch notes. Rios said the phrase "DOMA's dead" is "metaphorical" because "marriage is dead, too."

"Not a good day," Jackson said, adding, "There is no question that as a country, as a country, if God's judgment has not been upon us before this, God's judgment will be."

AFA mouthpiece Bryan Fischer thinks the worst is yet to come.


The Westboro Baptist Church thanked God for the decision because it means "USA's doom." They seem to think there is no quicker way to bring about the "destruction of this nation" than to allow this equal right.

Meanwhile, the Family Research Council, which released a statement on the decision, seems to be quite concerned about what will happen to all the country's florists.


The Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that DOMA, which bans the federal government from recognizing same-sex marriages even in states where the union has been legalized, is unconstitutional by a 5-4 vote. Justice Anthony Kennedy explained in the majority opinion that "treating those persons as living in marriages less respected than others" is in violation of the Fifth Amendment.

In a statement released after the ruling, President Barack Obama applauded the Supreme Court's decision to strike down DOMA saying it was "discrimination enshrined in law."

"This ruling is a victory for couples who have long fought for equal treatment under the law; for children whose parents? marriages will now be recognized, rightly, as legitimate; for families that, at long last, will get the respect and protection they deserve; and for friends and supporters who have wanted nothing more than to see their loved ones treated fairly and have worked hard to persuade their nation to change for the better," he said.

Also on HuffPost:

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/26/doma-supreme-court_n_3454838.html

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Market rises: less on Fed chatter, more on economy

NEW YORK (AP) ? Wall Street got back to focusing on the economy instead of the Federal Reserve on Tuesday, sending stocks higher.

Four reports showed a brightening U.S. economy. Housing and manufacturing continued to improve, and consumer confidence hit its highest level in 5 1/2 years.

The major U.S. stock indexes closed higher. The Dow Jones industrial average shot up 100.75 points, or 0.7 percent, to 14,760.31. The Standard & Poor's index rose 14.94 points, or 1 percent, to 1,588.03. The Nasdaq composite climbed 27 points, 0.8 percent, to 3,347.89.

The triple-digit rise in the Dow continues a bout of market volatility caused by investors and traders who are worried about the Fed ending its economic stimulus. Last Wednesday, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke said he expects the Fed to end its bond buying by the middle of 2014 if it feels the economy can manage without that stimulus.

The Dow then plunged by triple digits on three of the next four trading days, with investors worried that the market would struggle without the Fed propping it up.

Some investors concluded that the recent sell-offs were overblown.

"This is the day where the dust appears to be settling," said Jonathan Lewis, chief investment officer at Samson Capital Advisors in New York.

Quincy Krosby, a market strategist at Prudential Financial, guessed that shorter-term traders bought stocks Tuesday because they judged that parts of the market were "oversold."

Among the biggest gainers were big dividend payers like phone and power companies. These are stocks that have been hit the hardest by the recent sell-off.

Long-term investors were likely still sitting on the sidelines, waiting for further signs that markets are becoming less volatile, Krosby said.

The stronger economic news for the U.S. led investors to sell U.S. government bonds, a sign that they're more comfortable putting money in stocks. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note, a benchmark for many types of loans, rose to 2.6 percent from 2.54 percent late Monday.

The big economic reports Tuesday revealed.

?Orders for durable goods rose 3.6 percent in May, matching April's gain. The gauge is important because U.S. manufacturing has generally struggled this year as demand for American exports slows in other parts of the world.

? U.S. home prices jumped 12.1 percent in April compared with a year ago, according to the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller 20-city home price index. That was the biggest year-over-year gain since March 2006. For a fourth straight month, prices rose from a year earlier in all 20 cities in the index. Twelve cities posted double-digit price gains.

? The Conference Board's consumer confidence index jumped to 81.4 in June, the best reading since January 2008. The May reading, however, was revised down to 74.3 from the original estimate of 76.2.

? Sales of new homes rose in May to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 476,000, the Commerce Department said. That was the fastest pace since July 2008. Though sales of new homes remain below the 700,000 annual rate that most economists consider healthy, the pace has jumped 29 percent from a year ago.

Chris Baggini, senior portfolio manager at Turner Investments in Berwyn, Penn., said investors had used Bernanke's statements last week as an excuse to get out of the market ? something they wanted to do anyway, given its steady run-up for most of the year.

The S&P 500 is up 11 percent for the year. But at its peak last month, it was up 17 percent.

Among stocks making big moves:

?Walgreen, the nation's largest drugstore chain, slipped after reporting earnings and revenue that missed analysts' expectations. Walgreen's stock fell $2.83, or nearly 6 percent, to $45.22.

?Barnes & Noble plunged after reporting a loss that more than doubled in the latest quarter. The bookseller struggled to compete with online retailers and its Nook e-book continued to lose money. The stock fell $3.21, or more than 17 percent, to $15.61.

?Clothing chain Men's Wearhouse rose after saying it had fired executive chairman George Zimmer, the company's founder and star of its TV commercials, because he had advocated for "significant changes that would enable him to regain control," according to the company. The stock rose $2, or nearly 6 percent, to $37.13.

__

AP Business Writer Steve Rothwell contributed.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/market-rises-less-fed-chatter-more-economy-192535225.html

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This Brilliant Subway Hack Guarantees You'll Never Fall

This Brilliant Subway Hack Guarantees You'll Never Fall

The only thing worse than getting on a full subway car where there's no place to sit, is getting on an even fuller subway car where there's no place to brace yourself. But here's a brilliant hack that not only guarantees you've always got something secure to hold onto, but also something no one else has put their dirty hands on: a toilet plunger.

Read more...

    


Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/VlQpHa2RhjA/this-brilliant-subway-hack-guarantees-youll-never-fall-561567857

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Tuesday, June 18, 2013

New Biology Catalog! - Princeton University Press Blog

Be among the first the check out our new biology catalog!

Of particular interest is The Princeton Guide to Evolution, a forthcoming comprehensive, concise, and authoritative reference to the major subjects and key concepts in evolutionary biology, from genes to mass extinctions. Edited by a distinguished team of evolutionary biologists, with contributions from leading researchers, the guide contains some 100 clear, accurate, and up-to-date articles on the most important topics in seven major areas: phylogenetics and the history of life; selection and adaptation; evolutionary processes; genes, genomes, and phenotypes; speciation and macroevolution; evolution of behavior, society, and humans; and evolution and modern society.

For further reading, check out John Tyler Bonner?s Randomness in Evolution. In this concise, elegantly written book, he makes the bold and provocative claim that some biological diversity may be explained by something other than natural selection.

Also be sure to note Daphne J. Fairbairn?s Odd Couples: Extraordinary Differences between the Sexes in the Animal Kingdom. While we joke that men are from Mars and women are from Venus, our gender differences can?t compare to those of other animals. Looking at some of the most amazing creatures on the planet, Odd Couples sheds astonishing light on what it means to be male or female in the animal kingdom.

We?ll also see you at the Society for the Study of Evolution?s annual meting June 21-25 in Snowbird, Utah at booth 14. Please join us Saturday, June 22 at 7:30 p.m. for a reception in celebration of the publication of Odd Couples: Extraordinary Differences between the Sexes in the Animal Kingdom and our forthcoming The Princeton Guide to Evolution. Meet the authors and editors, and enjoy wine and cheese!

Source: http://blog.press.princeton.edu/2013/06/17/new-biology-catalog-3/

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Sunday, June 16, 2013

Remittances could be as sustainable as international development ...

167857344 300x191 Remittances could be as sustainable as international development finance

The Lough Erne golf resort in Northern Ireland, the venue for this year's G8 summit (Getty Images)

What shall we be wearing this summer when the G8 comes to town? When the UK last hosted the summit in 2005, we wore white. Everywhere I looked, I saw people wearing white. Those rubber wristbands declared our commitment to ?make poverty history?. Since then, we?ve experienced a double dip recession, mounting redundancies and rising youth unemployment, bringing us closer to the degrading and painful effects of poverty.

For the 2013 G8 summit, the major UK NGOs have launched the IF campaign to end hunger. Perhaps post-recession, policy makers shall have greater empathy and understanding of the compounded problems faced by developing countries. As for migrants and diasporas, the awful stench of poverty and deprivation continues to occupy their senses as they manage their new lives. They strive daily to enrich families and communities in poor countries across the world. This is done without fuss or fanfare, by cleaners and clinicians, builders and bankers alike, making them the hidden heroes of international development.

The nexus between migration and development began to gain formal recognition in 2006, when the UN convened a High Level Dialogue on Migration and International Development (UNHLDMID), with a Global Forum for Migration and Development (GFMD) having taken place annually since 2007. As the G8 complete their meeting at Fermanagh on 18 June, the formal sessions of the second UNHLDMID starts in New York, culminating at the UN General Assembly on 3 ? 4 October.

One of the most substantial contributions the diaspora is the money they send to their countries of heritage. In 2012, remittance flows to developing countries was $400bn, of which $30bn went to Sub-Saharan Africa. Total remittances to Africa are estimated to be over $60bn annually.

In the UK, private international donations are estimated at ?1bn, compared to formal remittances estimated at ?2.5bn. According to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), in 2011 Official Development Assistance (ODA) to developing countries was $136bn, with $50bn going to Africa. In the same year, Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) to developing countries was $336bn, with Africa receiving $21bn. Private international donations from the UK are ?1bn, compared to formal remittances estimated at ?2.5bn.

In May, the Global Forum on Remittances (GFR) convened in Bangkok. Remarkably, there is still resistance from policymakers to provide remittances with the fiscal and regulatory advantages accorded to FDI, ODA or charitable donations. In 2006, I ?proposed a remittance tax relief and matching scheme to the UN ? RemitAid?? comparable to the UK?s Gift Aid. The Finance Ministers of the world?s poorest countries adopted a resolution on RemitAid, however the global economic crisis of 2008 prevented OECD governments from adopting the appropriate tax relief policies.

Remittances as sustainable international development finance

Remittances are particularly important for sustainable development because the process is based on a continuous mode of self-help. In many poor countries, the volume of remittances is several times that of ODA and FDI, accounting for 10-15 per cent of the national income of many medium-sized developing nations.

The World Bank describes remittances as anti-cyclical, reflecting the fact that inflows are on a steady and growing pattern, with the tendency to increase further in times of both natural and man-made crises. Remittance inflows in poor countries are not countered by outflows in the form of interest, debt, dividend and expatriate payments.

Funds circulate more times in the recipient economy and are made directly to the households of ordinary citizens, thus improving the multiplier effect and increasing financial and civil empowerment. ?Studies have confirmed that remittances contribute to the relief of poverty and amelioration of human welfare in poor countries because the inflows are spent on food, shelter, education, health services, community projects and other activities in line with Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). In February Cass Business School published a report stating that households ?remitting? money overseas are more likely to make donations to ?per centdomestic UK charities: 42 per cent amongst remitters compared with 29 per cent of households in the general population.

Community tax relief similar to Gift Aid for Remittances

Like any other method of investment, remittances need the attention of progressive public policies. RemitAid?is a scheme which mitigates the current imperfections and optimises the developmental benefits of remittances. However, unlike other tax incentives such as Venture Capital Trust, Enterprise Investment Scheme and even Gift Aid, RemitAid would be a fully-fledged ?community tax relief?, whereby the full tax rebate or match funding is collected and pooled together in a common fund ? instead of it being paid directly to individual remitters.

This pooling of rebates or match funds eliminates motive, means and opportunity for abuse and creates resources substantial enough to fund effective and innovative development activities missed out by remittances, ODA and FDI. RemitAid will work in a simple way, helping to make development more effective and sustainable, fit for the demands of the 21st century.

Gibril Faal is chairman of AFFORD which works to expand and enhance the role diasporans play in Africa?s development. He is the founder of RemitAid, board member of DFID?s Global Poverty Action Fund and director of GK Partners, a UK-based company specialising in socially responsible entrepreneurship and ethical finance.

Tagged in: g8, G8 2013, G8 summit, Global Forum on Remittances, international development aid, millennium development goals

Source: http://blogs.independent.co.uk/2013/06/15/remittances-could-be-as-sustainable-as-international-development-finance/

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DACC center to host seminar for small business owners | News ...

DANVILLE ? The Illinois Small Business Development Center at Danville Area Community College will host a financial seminar for prospective and current small business owners in all stages of business.

The Obtaining Financing seminar will be offered from 4 to 6 p.m. Wednesday or 8 to 10 a.m. Thursday at Vermilion Advantage, 28 W. North St., Danville.

The cost is $10.

Offered in partnership with Downtown Danville Inc., the seminar will include presentations by a panel of local experts followed by a question-and-answer session.

To register, call the center at 442-7232 or sign up online at http://www.dacc.edu/sbdc.

The Illinois Small Business Development Center at DACC ? located in the Village Mall, 2917 N. Vermilion St., Danville ? provides free one-on-one counseling to assist potential and existing small businesses in the area. The center also performs business planning, loan application development, financial analysis, marketing plan analysis, legal structure and business registration assistance and expansion advice.

For information, call Director Carol Nichols at 442-7232 or email her at sbdc@dacc.edu.

Presentations include:

Wednesday

? Credit scores and their impact on your new business, by Diana Valdez-Wilczynski of First Midwest Bank.

? Financial information needed for a business loan application, by Jeff Fauver of the First National Bank of Catlin.

? Small business administration loan programs, by Valerie Ross of the United States Small Business Administration.

? Crowdfunding, by Eric and Patty Woller of MeMe's Treat Boutique.

Thursday

? Angel investors, by Tim Hoerr of the Urbana-Champaign Angel Network.

? Financial information needed for a business loan application, by Travis Miller of Old National Bank.

? Small business administration loans/Vermilion County CDC, by Jeff Fauver of the First National Bank of Catlin.

? U.S. Department of Agriculture programs for small businesses, by Susan Petrea, area director for the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development.

? Regional Planning Commission programs, by Kathy A. Larson, economic development specialist for the Champaign County Regional Planning Commission.

Both days

? The grant myth, by Linda Bolton of Vermilion Advantage.

? Small business programs through the city of Danville, by John Dreher of the city of Danville.

Source: http://www.news-gazette.com/news/local/2013-06-15/dacc-center-host-seminar-small-business-owners.html

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Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Don't Get Daft Punk's New Album Without Also Getting the Helmet

After Halloween revelers desperately wanted to buy his impressively detailed Daft Punk helmet (Thomas Bangalter version) Mauricio Santoro realized he could probably make a few bucks from his creation. So he got a small production line going and is now selling the helmets on Etsy for $500 until they run out, or until Columbia Records catches wind of it.

Read more...

    


Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/5YHWH-ksfKc/dont-get-daft-punks-new-album-without-also-getting-th-509059054

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Aretha Franklin taking June off, postponing shows

LOS ANGELES (AP) ? Aretha Franklin is taking off the month of June.

A spokesman for the 71-year-old singer says Franklin will reschedule two shows and resume her touring schedule in July.

Publicist David Brokaw provided no other details Tuesday.

Franklin announced earlier this month that she would cancel scheduled performances in Chicago and Connecticut this week to undergo medical treatment. She did not specify what type of treatment she was receiving.

Franklin appeared on the season finale of "American Idol" last week via satellite, singing a medley of her hits with the show's female finalists.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/aretha-franklin-taking-june-off-postponing-shows-035212521.html

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Scranton mayor race pits Courtright, Lewis



Last Modified: May 22. 2013 12:40AM
By Christopher J. Hughes

Financial analyst Garett Lewis is expected to face Scranton tax collector Bill Courtright in the race for Scranton mayor in the November general election, according to unofficial results from the primary election Tuesday.

The seat was left open after incumbent Mayor Chris Doherty decided not to seek re-election after three terms in office.

Lewis received 573 votes to Republican opponent Marcel Lisi?s 384, according to early results ? with 158 of 163 precincts reporting. About 714 write-in votes were cast. Courtright received 5,495, ahead of former Lackawanna County commissioner candidate Liz Randol (4,559 votes), former community development director Joseph Cardamone (458) and truck driver Lee Morgan (287).

Voters in Lackawanna County also supported a referendum to create a government study commission by a vote of 22,805 to 14,530.



Source: http://timesleader.com/news/local-news-politics/535880/Scranton-mayor-race-pits-Courtright-Lewis&source=RSS

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H. pylori, smoking trends, and gastric cancer in US men

May 21, 2013 ? The contribution of H. pylori and smoking trends to the decline in gastric cancer in US men.

Trends in Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) and smoking explain a significant proportion of the decline of intestinal-type noncardia gastric adenocarcinoma (NCGA) incidence in US men between 1978 and 2008, and are estimated to continue to contribute to further declines between 2008 and 2040.

These are the conclusions of a study by Jennifer M. Yeh of the Center for Health Decision Science at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston and colleagues, published in this week's PLOS Medicine, that suggest H. pylori and smoking trends together accounted for almost half of the observed decline in intestinal-type NCGA between 1978 and 2008. Understanding the combined effects of underlying risk factor trends on health outcomes for intestinal-type NCGA at the population level can help to predict future cancer trends and burden in the US.

The researchers developed a population-based microsimulation model using risk factor data from two national databases, the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) and National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), and cancer data from the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) Program. They estimated that the incidence of intestinal-type NCGA in men fell by 60% between 1978 and 2008. Further analysis suggested that H. pylori and smoking trends are responsible for 47% of the observed decline, and that H. pylori trends alone were responsible for 43% of the decrease in cancer but smoking trends were responsible for only a 3% drop. Finally, the researchers projected the incidence of intestinal-type NCGA to decline an additional 47% between 2008 and 2040, with H. pylori and smoking trends accounting for more than 81% of the observed fall. Key limitations to this study include the assumptions made in the model and that the study only examined one type of gastric cancer (GC) and focused only on men.

The authors say: "In conclusion, trends in modifiable risk factors explain a significant proportion of the decline of intestinal-type NCGA incidence in the US, and will contribute to future decline."

They add: "Although past tobacco control efforts have hastened the decline, the full benefits will take several decades to be realized, and further discouragement of smoking and reduction of H. pylori infection should be priorities for GC control efforts."

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_health/~3/xvzVNGNOfwo/130521193954.htm

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Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Steve Aoki Sprays Hangout Fest With Cake And Champagne

EDM superstar brings the breakdown to the massive beach crowd.
By Elizabeth Lancaster


Steve Aoki and Sway at the 2013 Hangout Music Festival
Photo:

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1707637/hangout-music-festival-steve-aoki-cake.jhtml

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Attacks in Iraq kill over 40, sectarian tensions high

By Kareem Raheem

BAGHDAD, Iraq (Reuters) - A series of bomb and gun attacks across Iraq killed more than 40 people on Tuesday, a day after over 70 died in violence targeting majority Shi'ites that has stoked fears of all-out sectarian war with minority Sunnis.

Nearly 300 people have been killed in the past week as sectarian tensions, fuelled by the civil war in neighboring Syria, threaten to plunge Iraq back into communal bloodletting.

Ten years after the U.S.-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein, Iraq's Sunnis, Shi'ites and Kurds have yet to find a stable power-sharing deal and violence is again on the upswing.

In the biggest single incident on Tuesday, a car bomb exploded near a Sunni mosque in the Abu Ghraib area of western Baghdad killing 11 people and wounding 21, police and medics said.

"I heard a powerful bang and a fireball near the main gate of the mosque," said Uday Raheem, a policeman whose patrol was stationed near the mosque.

"We held back a while fearing a second explosion and then rushed to the blast location. The bodies of worshippers were scattered and some were shouting for help. bleeding to death."

Another bomb outside a cafe in the Doura district of southern Baghdad killed six more and wounded 18.

In Diyala province northeast of the capital, at least eight people, including two policemen, were killed in bombs and shootings, and in Kanaan, also to the northeast, two roadside bombs detonated in quick succession claiming three lives.

In the north of the country, three roadside bombs exploded near a livestock market in the ethnically-mixed city of Kirkuk, killing six people and shredding the bodies of humans and animals alike.

Mahmoud Jumaa, whose cousin was killed in the multiple bombings, appeared bewildered by their random nature.

"I heard the explosions, but never thought this place would be targeted since these animals have nothing to do with politics, nothing to do with sect, nothing to do with ethnicity or religion," he said.

Kirkuk is in a disputed oil-rich swathe of Iraq claimed both by the Shi'ite-dominated government in Baghdad and ethnic Kurds who run their own autonomous administration in the north.

Two car bomb blasts killed three people in a residential part of the town of Tuz Khurmato, also in the disputed area.

North of Baghdad, a suicide bomber killed three soldiers at a checkpoint in Tarmiya, police and medics said, and in Khalis gunmen broke into a house and killed and man and his wife, both of them Sunni Muslims.

The conflict in Syria, where mostly Sunni rebels are fighting to topple President Bashar al-Assad, is turning in part into a regional proxy war between Sunni and Shi'ite powers.

Lebanon's Iranian-backed Shi'ite Hezbollah group is now openly fighting alongside Assad's forces, which are dominated by members of his minority Shi'ite-linked Alawite sect.

Iraq's Sunnis who resent their treatment by Shi'ite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's government have staged mass protests since December. Sunni militants, some of them linked to al Qaeda, have exploited the unrest, urging Sunnis to take up arms.

More than 700 people died violently in April, according to the United Nations, the highest monthly figure in almost five years. Iraq suffered a frenzy of Sunni-Shi'ite violence in 2006-07, when monthly death tolls sometimes topped 3,000.

(Reporting by Mustafa Mahmoud; Writing by Isabel Coles; Editing by Mike Collett-White)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/car-bomb-near-sunni-mosque-west-baghdad-kills-190518743.html

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Monday, May 20, 2013

Damaged trains being removed from wreck site

Emergency personnel work at the scene where two Metro North commuter trains collided, Friday, May 17, 2013 near Fairfield, Conn. Bill Kaempffer, a spokesman for Bridgeport public safety, told The Associated Press approximately 49 people were injured, including four with serious injuries. About 250 people were on board the two trains, he said. (AP Photo/The Connecticut Post, Christian Abraham) MANDATORY CREDIT: CONNECTICUT POST, CHRISTIAN ABRAHAM

Emergency personnel work at the scene where two Metro North commuter trains collided, Friday, May 17, 2013 near Fairfield, Conn. Bill Kaempffer, a spokesman for Bridgeport public safety, told The Associated Press approximately 49 people were injured, including four with serious injuries. About 250 people were on board the two trains, he said. (AP Photo/The Connecticut Post, Christian Abraham) MANDATORY CREDIT: CONNECTICUT POST, CHRISTIAN ABRAHAM

Emergency workers arrive the scene of a train collision, Friday, may 17, 2013 in Fairfield, Conn. A New York-area commuter railroad says two trains have collided in Connecticut. The railroad says the accident involved a New York-bound train leaving New Haven. It derailed and hit a westbound train near Fairfield, Conn. Some cars on the second train also derailed. (AP Photo/The Connecticut Post, Christian Abraham) MANDATORY CREDIT

Injured passengers are removed from the scene of a train collision, Friday, May 17, 2013 in Fairfield, Conn. Two commuter trains serving New York City collided in Connecticut during Friday's evening rush hour, injuring about 50 people, authorities said. There were no reports of fatalities. (AP Photo/The Connecticut Post, Christian Abraham) MANDATORY CREDIT

Map locates Bridgeport, Conn

Metro-North Railroad officials tour the scene of the train derailment, Saturday, May 18, 2013 in Bridgeport, Conn. Officials described a devastating scene of shattered cars and other damage where two trains packed with rush-hour commuters collided in Connecticut, saying Saturday it's fortunate that no one was killed and that there weren't even more injuries. (AP Photo/The Connecticut Post, Christian Abraham) MANDATORY CREDIT

(AP) ? Commuter trains damaged in a crash in Connecticut were being removed Sunday in the first step to making repairs and restoring service, the agency that runs Metro-North said.

Aaron Donovan, spokesman for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, said the National Transportation Safety Board, which is investigating the crash, gave Metro-North the OK to remove the trains. Hundreds of feet of track need to be repaired, he said.

"We have a lot of work ahead of us, to restore signals and overhead wires," Donovan said.

Later Sunday, the Connecticut Department of Transportation will announce jointly with Metro-North a plan for the rush-hour commute beginning Monday.

Investigators are looking at a broken section of rail to see if it is connected to the derailment and collision outside Bridgeport that left dozens injured. Seventy-two people were sent to the hospital Friday evening after an eastbound train from New York City derailed and was hit by a westbound train. Nine remain hospitalized.

Service has been suspended between South Norwalk and New Haven, which includes stops at 12 stations.

Donovan compared the loss of service to a "very significant storm."

Most recently, the Waterbury branch of Metro-North was down immediately after the massive Feb. 9-10 snowstorm that blanketed the Northeast.

Investigators said Saturday that the crash was not the result of foul play, but a fractured section of rail is being studied to determine if it is connected to the accident. National Transportation Safety Board member Earl Weener said the broken rail is of substantial interest to investigators and a portion of the track will be sent to a lab for analysis.

Weener said it's not clear if the accident caused the fracture or if the rail was broken before the crash. He said he won't speculate on the cause of the derailment and emphasized the investigation was in its early stages. Officials earlier described devastating damage and said it was fortunate no one was killed.

The crash damaged the tracks and threatened to snarl travel in the Northeast Corridor. The crash also caused Amtrak to suspend service between New York and Boston.

NTSB investigators arrived Saturday and are expected to be on site for seven to 10 days. They will look at the brakes and performance of the trains, the condition of the tracks, crew performance and train signal information, among other things.

The MTA operates the Metro-North Railroad, the second-largest commuter railroad in the nation. The Metro-North main lines ? the Hudson, Harlem, and New Haven ? run northward from New York City's Grand Central Terminal into suburban New York and Connecticut.

The last significant train collision involving Metro-North occurred in 1988 when a train engineer was killed in Mount Vernon, N.Y., when one train empty of passengers rear-ended another, railroad officials said.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-05-19-US-Trains-Collide-Conn/id-0ce2fe8f357a4d45bb06aa74443a4304

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Bloomberg: Dish offers $2 billion for LightSquared's wireless spectrum

The last few years have been a tumultuous time for LightSquared, with the company's LTE plans facing one hurdle after another that eventually led to a bankruptcy filing. It looks like at least one company is now looking to buy its most valuable asset, though, with Bloomberg reporting that Dish Network Chairman Charlie Ergen has put a $2 billion offer on the table for the company's wireless spectrum. That's yet to be confirmed by either party, and Bloomberg reports that the offer is a so-called stalking horse bid, which could still let others put in a higher offer of their own. As Bloomberg also notes, this all comes at the same time that Dish is looking to buy Sprint for over $25 billion, both of which would need regulatory approval before going through.

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Source: Bloomberg

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/05/20/dish-lightsquared-wireless-spectrum-offer/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Engadget

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Aid group: Syrian refugees face dire health risks

BEIRUT (AP) ? An international aid organization is appealing for more funds to help Syrian refugees in Lebanon and Jordan, saying warmer weather will increase health risks due to lack of shelter, water and basic sanitation.

Oxfam says it needs $53 million dollars to improve access to water and proper sanitation for Syrian refugees. So far the aid group has received $10.6 million dollars.

The Britain-based group said in a statement Monday that diarrhea and skin infections have already been noted among refugees in Jordan and Lebanon. The two countries host the bulk of 1.5 million Syrians who have fled the civil war at home, seeking shelter in neighboring countries.

Oxfam says it needs the funds quickly as temperatures are expected to soar in the region in the coming weeks.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/aid-group-syrian-refugees-face-dire-health-risks-062310708.html

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Sunday, May 19, 2013

Steve Jobs widow: How is Laurene Powell Jobs spending her wealth?

For most of her 20-year marriage to Steve Jobs, Laurene Powell Jobs was content to be a behind-the-scenes philanthropist.

But a desire to change US immigration laws is bringing her into the media spotlight - albeit in a carefully managed way.

Ms. Powell Jobs has a net worth of about $11.5 billion, according to Bloomberg. Her husband, the Apple co-founder, wasn't a big philanthropist. And before his death, he did not join the "Giving Pledge," the organization started by Warren E. Buffett and Bill Gates to encourage the world's wealthiest to donate at least half their wealth to charity. The site lists 114 people who have taken the pledge. Powell Jobs has not signed either.

But she has been a quiet donor of her time and money to many causes, especially to education.

RECOMMENDED: Meet the nine richest self-made women

In 1997, she started College Track, a non-profit organization that helps low-income students get into college, and graduate from college. The after-school program reaches kids starting the summer before high school and works with them throughout college. The program includes tutoring, extra-curricular activities and leadership classes. According to the website, 90 percent of the nearly 1,200 children who have participated in College Track programs have graduated from high school.

It was through her work at College Track that Powell Jobs got on the track to immigration reform. Some of the students in California in the program came into the US at a young age illegally. Now, as high school graduates, they are ineligible for state or federal college assistance. And that has led Powell Jobs to take a more public and active stance on the immigration.

?This continues to be a purgatory that they find themselves in,? Powell Jobs told The New York TImes recently. ?It is one of these issues that seems discordant with what our country stands for.?

When the DREAM Act ? which would have offered a path to citizenship for children living in the US illegally ? failed to pass Congress, Powell Jobs began to flex her political and economic muscle. Through her Emerson Collective (which invests in education start-ups and gives education grants), she commissioned a film by Academy Award-winning filmmaker (Waiting for 'Superman,' An Inconvenient Truth) Davis Guggenheim. She's shown the 30-minute film ("The Dream is Now") to key members of Congress and launched a web site where it can be viewed.

Powell Jobs recently gave an interview to The Wall Street Journal, on the condition that the only topic she would discuss was immigration.

"Her profile is rising only of necessity and passion to change the system," said Ron Conway, a start-up investor who is a friend. "I don't think she necessarily wants to be in Washington all the time. I think it is based on the necessity of the issue." Conway told The Wall Street Journal that he saw her as "a catalyst, not a lobbyist."

RECOMMENDED: Meet the nine richest self-made women

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Source: http://news.yahoo.com/steve-jobs-widow-laurene-powell-jobs-spending-her-134127035.html

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Sex Violence Against Women Ads - Business Insider

One out of every six women in the U.S. has been the victim of a sexual assault. Elsewhere in the world, the statistics are even more appalling.

Yet advertisers often make light of sexual violence towards women. They disguise it as innuendo, humor, or artistic expression, and hope the shock factor will work promotional magic for their product.

Back in the "Mad Men" era it was unsurprising to see women treated poorly in ads.

But we've found some modern day promotions that glorify sexual violence. Some of the brands are repeat offenders; some are merely one-time gaffes.

Often, clients and agencies defend them as "edgy" fantasy scenarios.

Fair enough. But there sure are a lot of them. And so few involving violence against men ...

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/sex-violence-against-women-ads-2013-5

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Hewlett-Packard Employees At Risk Of Geese Attacks?

  • Westies Wakeboarding

    These hilarious pictures of Westie dogs doing water sports should cheer anyone up, whatever the weather. They are a newly-launched theme for handy iPhone app Weather Puppy, a weather app that comes free but lets you buy themes such as these side-splitting images of West Highland White Terrier. British publishers Maverick Arts are behind the wacky pictures and have used amazing image-manipulation skills to make it seem as if the dogs are indulging in adrenalin sports. Maverick MD Steve Bicknell explains: "We are obsessed with the weather here in the UK and I think our pictures of the Westies should cheer people up weather they are at a sunny beach or hiding from the rain."

  • Giant Cod

    An angler is celebrating after breaking the record for catching the world's biggest ever cod. The mighty fish weighed in at 103lbs, smashing the previous and long-held world record by nearly 5lbs. And the biggest specimen of Britain's favourite eating fish to be pulled out of the water by rod and line was caught by a German. Michael Eisele was on a fishing trip to Norway - the so-called El Dorado of cod fishing - when he snared the whopper.

  • Animals In The News

    Tha Sophat, a 20-month-old Cambodian boy, suckles from a cow in Koak Roka village, Siem Reap province, Cambodia, Friday, Sept. 9, 2011. Tha Sophat started suckling the cow in July after he saw a calf do the same since his parents moved to Thailand in search of work, said his grandfather UmOeung.

  • Polydactyl Kittens -- Jan. 2012

    Undated Cats Protection handout photo of 4-month-old polydactyl kittens named Fred (left) and Ned (right), currently in the care of Cats Protection, Gosport Town Branch in the United Kingdom. They will shortly be going to their new home once they've been neutered. Ned has an extra eight digits, while his brother Fred has 10 more than the usual 18, making a total of 54 digits between them.

  • Camel Fight

    Afghan festival-goers watch as a "camel fight" starts during the second day of Persian new year, or "Nowruz," celebrations in Mazar-e-Sharif, in northern Afghanistan.

  • Giant Rat

    An English man named Brian Watson killed a large rat his granddaughter's boyfriend found while cutting grass on April 21, <em><a href="http://news.sky.com/home/strange-news/article/16213384" target="_hplink">Sky News</a></em> reports. The water rat was so large, Watson broke a boat paddle trying to kill the critter.

  • Elephant in Water Reservoir

    Indian army personnel use a bulldozer during a rescue mission to save a wild elephant trapped in a water reservoir tank at Bengdubi army cantonment area some 25 kms from Siliguri on August 30, 2011. A wild elephant fell into the water reservoir tank as a herd crossed the area. Army personnel of 16 Field Ammunition Depot along with wildlife elephant squad of Mahananda wildlife sanctuary joined forces to save the animal.

  • Britain's Saddest Puppy

    Six-month-old puppy Princess has such delicate skin she can't go outside. While other dogs run free at Britain's Bleakholt Animal Sanctuary, Princess must gaze through the window. But this canine, otherwise known as Britain's Saddest Puppy, has become a minor celebrity in the media.

  • Super Egg

    Cookie Smith shows off a normal egg and a "super egg" Wednesday, May 30, 2012, in Abilene, Texas. Cookie Smith went to collect eggs from her three laying hens on Monday afternoon, and discovered one normal egg and one "super egg" in her coop.

  • Animals in the News

    "Shrek," New Zealand's most famous sheep, died in June at the age of 16. This merino wether (a castrated male sheep) came to the world's attention in 2004 when he was found in a cave near the city of Otago after being on the lam for six years. He had managed to avoid capture all that time and when he was finally found, he was carrying nearly 60 lbs of untrimmed fleece, nearly six times more than the average merino fleece.

  • Roo the Reading Dog

    Roo the Reading Education Assistance Dog (R.E.A.D) helps a pupil at Graytown Elementary School in Graytown, Ohio.

  • Two Legged Lamb

    A farmer in China's Shandong province has saved a two-legged lamb after being touched by its struggle to survive. Farmer Cui Jinxiu said the lamb was one of two born in July 2010. "The first one was a very healthy and normal one," she told Rex USA. "However, the second one surprised me. With a further look I was surprised to find that the lamb only has two legs." The family thought the lamb wouldn't survive, but it proved its strong desire to live. "I thought of dumping it after it was born, but the next morning it even stood up by itself."

  • Sprinkles the Koala

    Veterinary specialist Dr Rod Straw holds 'Sprinkles' the Koala following her life saving radiation treatment at the Brisbane Veterinary Specialist Centre in Brisbane, Australia. Suffering from an extremely rare case of excessive drooling, sprinkles developed a skin infection due to the excessive moisture flowing from her mouth.

  • 'Cupid' The Cat -- Jan. 2012

    This stray orange tabby in Houston earned the nickname 'Cupid' after he survived a piercing shoulder to shoulder wound in January 2012. A vet safely removed the arrow and 'Cupid' is expected to make a complete recovery.

  • Ranger Shoots Deers Whose Antlers Are Stuck

    It was a shot in the dark, but an Illinois police officer manage to separate two whitetail deer whose antlers were tangled together -- by shooting them apart.

  • Heidi, The Cross-Eyed Possum

    Jeepers, creepers -- where'd she get those peepers? Heidi the cross-eyed possum has become a media sensation in Germany.

  • Monkey Macaw

    This lazy monkey hitches a ride to the top of a tree -- by sitting on the back of a parrot. The squirrel monkey, which lives with a male and female parrot at a hotel in Colombia, was photographed by Alejandro Jaramillo after it hopped onto the macaw. These kinds of bizarre inter-species friendship aren't unheard of, but they aren't common.

  • Mass For Animals -- Oct. 2011

    Gil Florini, of Saint-Pierre-d'Arene's church, blesses donkeys with holy water after a mass dedicated to animals on Oct. 9, 2011, in the southeastern French city of Nice.

  • Police have released a photo of the culprit in a series of flag thefts from the graves of soldiers at the Cedar Park Cemetery in Hudson, NY. As you can see by the photo, it looks like they caught the thief in the act: This woodchuck right here in the middle of the screen.

  • Hero Dog Missing Snout Seems To Have Beaten Cancer

    Kabang, a dog in the Philippines, had her snout and upper jaw sheared off when she jumped in front of a speeding motorcycle, saving her owner's daughter and niece from serious injury or death, according to newspaper reports in the Philippines. After completing six weekly intravenous chemotherapy infusions, Kabang appears to have beaten the cancer she was suffering from.

  • 3-Eyed Nuclear Fish -- Oct. 2011

    Fishermen landed a three-eyed fish in Argentina near a nuclear reactor in October 2011.

  • Lion Tries to Eat Baby Dressed as Zebra

    This situation sounds scary, but it's actually quite cute. A lion at the Oregon Zoo tries to get a baby! One-year-old Jack was visiting the zoo with his family while wearing a black and white striped jacket. There were lots of children at the zoo that day, but the lion only came over whenever Jack sat down by the glass. The lion scratched and bit the glass partition separating the two, but the he seemed to be unphased by the commotion. Some think the lion thought Jack looked like a baby zebra.

  • Hippo Goes to the Dentist

    North Carolina Zoo Chief Veterinarian Dr. Mike Loomis recently returned from Bayamon, Puerto Rico, where he helped perform a dental procedure on a 3,000-lb. old friend. Loomis, along with veterinarians and keepers from the Parque de las Sciencias museums in Bayamon, conducted dental surgery on "Tomy," a 39-year-old male hippopotamus that the N.C. Zoo veterinarian has been treating on a semi-regular basis for two decades.

  • Animals In The News

    This pet duck, named 'Duckie,' won't hurt himself on the hot sands of San Diego's beaches thanks to a pair of customized booties made especially for him. Previously, the owner, who goes by the name "Miss Love," had been putting duct tape over his feet instead.

  • World's Biggest Bitch

    Nova, a 35.5 inch tall Great Dane, was named the world's tallest female dog by Guinness World Records in June 2011

  • Allegedly Stolen Tortoise

    FILE - In this undated file photo provided by Katlyn R. Gerken, a staff member of the National Mississippi River Museum & Aquarium in Dubuque, Iowa holds Cashew, an 18-pound African leopard tortoise. The museum said Friday, April 5, 2013, that an employee found the tortoise behind paneling in her enclosure and hid her in an elevator in a misguided attempt to prevent further embarrassment after officials announced Tuesday that they believed Cashew had been stolen.? (AP Photo/Katlyn R. Gerken, File)

  • Smokey the LOUD Cat

    Pet cat Smokey is believed to have the loudest purr in the world -- with piercing purrs as loud as a lawnmower. Most cats purr at around 25 decibels but Smokey's powerful purrs average an amazing 80 decibels. Owners Ruth and Mark Adams, of Northampton, Britain, say Smokey's deafening purrs make it impossible for them to hear the television or radio when she is in the room and they struggle to have telephone conversations.

  • World's Smallest Living Cat -- Oct. 2011

    Fizz Girl, a Munchkin Cat from San Diego, Calif., has grabbed the record title for Shortest Living Cat. Measuring in at just 6 inches tall from floor to shoulder, Fizz Girl weighs 4 pounds, 2.3 ounces. Munchkin cats are a special breed that have little legs caused by a naturally occurring genetic mutation.

  • Two-headed Bearded Dragon

    A two-headed bearded dragon is set to be the latest attraction at the Venice Beach Freakshow. Pancho and Lefty sit in new owner Todd Ray's hand.

  • Is This A Woolly Mammoth In Siberia? -- Feb. 2012

    This newly released video taken during the summer of 2011 allegedly shows a living woolly mammoth crossing a river in Siberia. There is much speculation and debate as to whether this is, indeed, a living specimen of prehistoric elephant-related animals that were thought to be extinct.

  • Mobile Home Filled With 154 Reptiles

    Inside Walter Kidd's North Carolina trailer home were 154 reptiles, including cobras, vipers and Gila monsters. About 100 of the animals were dead and frozen, according to the Henderson County Sheriff's Office.

  • Gary, the Kit-Kat Loving Fish.

    Sea Life London Aquarium undated handout photo of a giant gourami that aquarium staff have weaned off chocolate.

  • Giant Shark Caught In Mexico.

    Two fishermen in northeastern Mexico claim they netted a dead great white shark estimated to be near 20-feet-long on April 15, 2012.

  • Titanic Toad

    Of course she's unhappy. Who likes getting weighed right after the holidays? This is Agathe, a cane toad, and she's sitting on a toy scale during an annual animal inventory at the Hanover Zoo in Germany on Jan. 5. Agathe weighs a slight hop over 4 pounds.

  • Elephant Votes in Thailand

    Elephant puts a ballot in ballot box during campaign to promote the general election in Ayutthaya province on June 21, 2011. The July 3 general election will be the first since Thailand was rocked by its deadliest political violence in decades last year, when more than 90 people died in street clashes between armed police and opposition protesters. (Pornchai Kittiwongsakul, AFP/Getty Images)

  • Kayaker Snags Shark -- Sept. 2011

    This is the jaw-dropping moment a canoeist landed a 6-foot shark after it dragged him through the water for 10 minutes. Brave Rupert Kirkwood, 51, had paddled a mile off the United Kingdom's Devon coast when he suddenly felt a snag on his line. The 70-pound beast nearly pulled him overboard, before pulling his 16-foot canoe through the water as he desperately clung on. After 10 minutes of wrestling with the beast, he eventually hauled the massive fish on board.

  • Pink Kitty

    This kitty isn't naturally pink. The cat's owner, Natasha Gregory of Britain told The Sun that she wanted her pet "to match my hair." The 22-year-old also has a shocking dye job.

  • Heidi, the cross-eyed opossum

    Heidi the cross-eyed opossum is pictured in her enclosure at the zoo in Leipzig, eastern Germany on June 9, 2011. Heidi moved to her new enclosure at the Gondwanaland tropical experience world, which will be inaugurated on July 1, 2011 and where Heidi will be presented to the public for the first time. Cross-eyed Heidi made the headlines in December 2010 and became an internet hit, winning more than 65,000 "friends" on social networking website Facebook.

  • Monkey Photographs Self

    One of the photos that the monkey took with Davids camera. These are the chimp-ly marvellous images captured by a cheeky monkey after turning the tables on a photographer who left his camera unmanned. The inquisitive scamp playfully went to investigate the equipment before becoming fascinated with his own reflection in the lens. And it wasnt long before the crested black macaque hijacked the camera and started snapping away sending award-winning photographer David Slater bananas. David, from Coleford, Gloucestershire, was on a trip to a small national park north of the Indonesian island of Sulawesi when he met the incredibly friendly bunch.

  • Orangutan Kicks Smoking -- Sept. 2011

    An orangutan in Malaysia is kicking its smoking habit. Wildlife officials have removed Shirley from a state zoo after the captive primate was regularly spotted smoking cigarettes that zoo visitors had tossed into its enclosure.

  • Booie, The Smoking Chimpanzee, Dies At 44 -- Dec. 2011

    Booie, a chimpanzee that kicked a smoking habit and used sign language to beg for candy, died at the age of 44 at a California animal refuge in mid-December.

  • Bear in Hot Tub

    Jenny Sue Rhoades sat down on her couch to watch television when something outside caught her eye. It was a large Florida black bear walking through the back yard of her Barry Court home in southwest Seminole County.

  • Zookeeper Lives With Lions

    Alexander Pylyshenko, 40, will live in a cage with two lions for five weeks to raise awareness about living conditions for animals in captivity.

  • Goose and Deer Become Unlikely Friend

    Wildlife experts in Buffalo, N.Y., have been amazed by an unusual springtime friendship between a deer and a nesting goose. It's a relationship that has blossomed inside a cemetery.

  • Lucy: World's Smallest Working Dog -- Nov. 2011

    Lucy, a mini Yorkshire terrier from Absecon, New Jersey, is now in the Guinness Book of World Records. Weighing just 2 1/2 pounds, Lucy was named the world's smallest working dog last week, bumping out a 6.6-pound police dog in Japan.

  • Leaping Lemurs

    A group of lemurs encounters a unusual roadblock on the way to their feeding den: a turtle. The lemurs clearly don't want to get into a territorial spat with the creature... so they take turns leaping over it in this photo sequence shot at the Indianapolis Zoo.

  • IKEA Monkey

    Look at that coat! <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/10/ikea-monkey-toronot_n_2270707.html?1355150852" target="_hplink">This little animal</a> got loose in an IKEA parking lot in Toronto. It was apparently scared, but eventually was reclaimed by its owners who were inside the store when the monkey escaped from its cage.

  • Dog With Man's Face

    Meet Tonik, a poodle-shih tzu mix that is up for adoption at <a href="https://www.homewardboundawg.com/" target="_hplink">Homeward Bound Pet Rescue</a> in Mishawaka, Ind. (Credit:<a href="http://www.petphotosbyrenny.com/" target="_hplink"> Renny Mills Photography</a>)

  • State Trooper Find Baby Deer In Car

    A Washington State Patrol trooper who responded to a report of a deer killed by a truck on Interstate 5 ended up with a 2-month-old fawn in his car. The patrol says when Trooper Scott Brown arrived at the Bellingham scene on Tuesday evening, other deer in the area stayed back but the fawn -- possibly orphaned by the collision -- ran up to him. Trooper Mark Francis says the baby deer nuzzled against Brown and started "mewing."

  • Big Brutus

    Brutus, a giant crocodile, was photographed leaping out of the water in Australia by picture-taker Katrina Bridgeford. The 18-foot long croc is a fan favorite among tourists who take cruises along the Adelaide River as he is known for making a big splash while jumping for buffalo meat.

  • This Little PIggie Has Two Snouts

    This tiny porker has an excuse for making a pig of himself at mealtimes. He really does have two mouths to feed. The bizarre two-month-old youngster -- part of a litter born on a farm in northern China -- can use both his mouths to eat and appears otherwise normal, say his owners.

  • Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/18/hewlett-packard-geese-attacks_n_3289096.html

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