workday pertinent: February 2013

Thursday, February 28, 2013

Clearwire borrows $80 million from Sprint but still flirts with Dish

Who knew that the greatest love triangle of the decade would involve the mobile industry's own Bella Swan, Clearwire? The network provider has accepted an $80 million loan from nailed-on suitor and sparkly vampire, Sprint, but Clear is still pondering a buyout offer from Jacob, sorry, Dish Network. The scuttlebutt around ~~Forks~~ the industry is that Dish will withdraw its bid after spurned by Clearwire one too many times -- but you never can tell with true love, or multi-billion business deals.

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile, Sprint

Comments

Source: Reuters, WSJ

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/27/clearwire-borrows-sprint-cash/

zerg rush david wilson playstation all stars battle royale kim zolciak kim zolciak travis pastrana quinton coples

Susan Buchanan: New Orleans Considers Tearing Down Claiborne Expressway

(This article was published in "The Louisiana Weekly" in the Feb. 25, 2013 edition.)

New Orleans officials hope to move residents toward a consensus this spring about whether to remove or keep the 1960s-era Claiborne expressway that destroyed African American neighborhoods in Treme, the Seventh Ward and vicinity.

Last week, Peter Park, a Denver-based city planner who oversaw the tear-down of Milwaukee's freeway, advised New Orleanians to "get involved in the Claiborne corridor study and own the plan. This isn't a government project, it's a people project." Park, a Harvard University 2012 Loeb fellow, spoke to a packed room at the Sojourner Truth Neighborhood Center in New Orleans on Feb. 20. He was joined by John Norquist, president of the Congress for the New Urbanism in San Francisco and a former Milwaukee mayor.

The New Orleans study, funded with $2 million in planning grants from the U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development and the Dept of Transportation and more from local nonprofits and the city, is mulling what to do with the overpass.

Flozell Daniels, Jr., president of the Foundation for Louisiana and chair of the Livable Claiborne Communities project, spoke last Wednesday about the city's study--which he noted will make recommendations on land use and transportation for the stretch of Claiborne between Napoleon Ave. and Elysian Fields.

Late last year, over 400 residents attended workshops held across town by Mayor Mitch Landrieu's
Office of Place Based Planning. Locals grouped by tables pored over maps and identified issues they want the Claiborne project to address. Daniels said items topping that collective list so far are blight reduction, affordable housing, jobs, opportunities for small businesses, access to fresh food and preservation of local culture. He said ways to redevelop Claiborne are still being assessed and urged residents to attend the city's next workshops in mid-March.

According to the city, the Claiborne study will help communities improve transit; connect housing to jobs, schools and healthcare; promote livability through economic development; and manage water and soil.

Views from residents in public meetings from last fall to March 2013 will be compiled this spring for a presentation by the city in June. After that, scenarios for Claiborne will be evaluated under the more than 40-year-old National Environmental Policy Act or NEPA, approved by Congress. "A preferred alternative" for Claiborne will be identified this summer, according to the city.

Meanwhile, a trend to remove urban highways has been under way for awhile. Park said to connect neighborhoods, Milwaukee tore down its Park East Freeway in 2002 and replaced it with public stairways, pedestrian bridges and parks, mixed-income housing, and commercial and retail spaces.

Norquist pointed to recent success in Seoul, South Korea, where the mayor demolished a freeway in 2011 and developed parks in a move so popular that he was then elected the nation's president. San Francisco, Seattle, Portland, New York City and Buffalo, along with Paris, France and other cities in the U.S., Europe and Asia, have all removed freeways.

So what's wrong with urban highways? Built forty to fifty years ago, U.S. expressways are decaying now and need to be replaced or removed, Park said. "They're not Roman aqueducts," he said. "At some point, they'll come down." Park said urban freeways do more harm than good. Fifty years ago, the idea was to use them to connect cities. "They were going to be built to the outskirts of town, and from there traffic would be funneled into a network of urban streets," he explained. Instead, many were constructed across town, disrupting neighborhoods.

Park said freeways work best at off-peak times. During rush hour, they siphon traffic along an artery and become clogged. Commuters get backed up after an accident and can be stranded for an hour or so. A more effective approach is a sturdy street network, on which drives to work may take a bit longer but little time is wasted in big traffic jams.

He said many city residents falsely believe that an urban freeway gives them greater mobility. Based on that thinking, taxpayer money has been spent on adding lanes to freeways that don't ease congestion in the long run.

Park also noted that urban freeways have reduced adjacent property values, and he questioned whether tax dollars should be spent on projects that hurt home and business owners.

As for businesses, their support in removing a freeway can be instrumental to a tear-down, Norquist said. When the city of Milwaukee wanted to remove the Park East Freeway, Wisconsin Governor Tommy Thompson wasn't keen on the idea but changed his mind after Harley-Davidson, based in Milwaukee, said if the highway were gone, the company would build a museum in the revitalized area.

Also speaking at the Sojourner Center on Feb. 20 was Ellen Lee, senior vice president at the Greater New Orleans Foundation. She grew up in Treme near the expressway, and her mother still lives there. Lee said the Claiborne project is expected to address income levels in the area, and noted "President Obama says working families shouldn't be living in poverty." She's optimistic that the adjacent BioDistrict of New Orleans, where two hospitals are under construction now, will create good jobs.

As of last summer, 27 percent of the city's residents lived in poverty, well above the national average of 15 percent, according to the New Orleans Community Data Center.

On the technical side, Park said studies and urban plans are two different animals. "Studies are done to analyze while plans are a statement of what we want something to be," he said. And he cited a city planner's credo, saying "to plan is human, to implement is divine." If that sounds familiar, it's a variation on a biblical teaching that humans are implements of a divine plan.

As for New Orleans, Park said the city impressed the world with its resilience after Katrina and can be a role model for other urban areas if it revives the Claiborne corridor.

The Feb. 20 event was organized by the Congress for the New Urbanism and the Claiborne Corridor Improvement Coalition, with support from the Greater New Orleans Foundation and the Ford Foundation.

Livable Claiborne Communities will hold workshops on March 16 at Joseph A. Craig Elementary School on St. Philip St. in New Orleans and on March 18 at Ashe Cultural Arts Center on O.C. Haley Blvd. To learn more, visit www.LivableClaiborne.com on the web. end

"; var coords = [-5, -72]; // display fb-bubble FloatingPrompt.embed(this, html, undefined, 'top', {fp_intersects:1, timeout_remove:2000,ignore_arrow: true, width:236, add_xy:coords, class_name: 'clear-overlay'}); });

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/susan-buchanan/new-orleans-considers-tea_b_2778998.html

grammys miguel pope Justin Timberlake Grammys frank ocean adam levine mumford and sons

Talking About Teenage Love, part 3

Shaping expectations.? How you talk about love and relationships will have a significant influence on what your kid expects out of their beloved.? Young love-ers are romantic idealists.? Their model for love will be fairy tales, cartoons and a na?ve, superficial view of dating and dating partners.? (We won?t even get into what happens if they have already been watching R rated movies with the ubiquitous portrayals of? relationship-as-sex.)? They will need your help in learning how to think about infatuation, lust, love and romance.? They need to have some ideas about the ideal partner and, especially early on, the ideal date.? You will be fighting an uphill battle to counteract the media and popular culture who have been presenting an unrealistic view of the ideal human form and an exclusive focus on sex and sexuality.

Setting boundaries.? It is easy for experienced adults to lose themselves in the experience of love.? Young love-ers will need lots of help learning how to clarify their part in a relationship and their beloved?s part; what is their responsibility and what is their beloved?s responsibility; what is too much to ask and what is too much to be asked of.? Make sure your kid knows about the importance of having personal boundaries in love.? Help them make some decisions about what is too much and what is not enough before they are in the middle of it.? This would include both the physical and, more importantly, the emotional.? (It won?t save them from violating these boundaries but maybe it will reduce the number of times they try to merge their soul but lose themselves in the process.)

Maintaining respect, dignity & integrity.? There are so many sacrifices you are willing to make for a beloved.? Unfortunately for romantics (which are most teens), this can include sacrificing their dignity and their integrity.? Talk to your kid about how their beloved deserves to be treated.? What does it mean when they are treated badly, disrespected and required to compromise core values or beliefs.? And then turn it back around on them.? What do THEY deserve as someone?s beloved?? What are THEY going to require as someone?s beloved.? Talk about the importance and the problems with honesty (and dishonesty) and commitment (and infidelity).? Talk about the right way to be in a relationship and the right way to end a relationship.

Having fun.? Young love should be fun.? Not the carnal desire form of fun (though, of course, that IS fun).? Young love should be enlivening, exciting, invigorating, playful, energizing, positive, empowering, supportive, joyous, uplifting, encouraging and confidence building.? It should not be overly serious, depressing, conflictual, oppressive, undermining or demoralizing.? Adolescence is a time to practice the empowering and uplifting aspect of a loving relationship.? Once they have that down, then they can start in on the more complicated serious aspect of love in a stable, committed relationship.

Differentiating love from sex.? One of the most confusing aspects of love is its close association with sex and sexual desire.? You need to help your kid be able to tell the difference (and understand why it is important to tell the difference).? This means they need to be sexually educated beginning with a clear understanding of how sexual equipment operates, how the parts go together and what happens at all levels (physically and emotionally) when they do go together.? But, most importantly, they need to know about sexual relationships.? They need to be able to differentiate love from lust and make some decisions about the conditions under which they will (and won?t) have sex.

Establishing family dating rules.? The most direct influence you can have on how your teenager approaches loving relationships will be the rules you establish for dating and intimate time together.? When can they hang out with potential dating partners?? How old do they have to be for actual one-on-one dating (hint:? not until 16 years old).? Get these rules in place early on so there is no confusion (and less arguing) when they actually find someone worthy of dating.

Educate about manners.? There is still a place for manners and considerate behavior in loving relationships.? Sure, some people are offended by you opening a door for them (because it suggests a power differential in which the door opener is asserting their superiority and social dominance over the door openee).? Whatever.? Manners goes in both directions (since either person can open the door for the other).? The point is that there are social graces and polite considerations of others that familiarity can start to erode.? Help your kid remember to retain well-mannered behavior regardless of how long they have been in a loving relationship (or whether love has begun to fade).

Provide perspective.? Love is not enough.? It feels like it is enough.? It seems like it is enough.? But, love is not enough.? It is not enough to keep a relationship alive.? (That requires commitment and trust and communication.)? It is not enough to survive stress and trauma.? (That requires compassion and fortitude.).? It is not enough to keep the passion alive.? (That requires openness and sharing and playfulness.)? They will experience some of these (mostly the importance of commitment, trust and communication).? It will be important for you to throw in that love is great and all that but there is more they need to learn if love is going to last.? ?Love is so wonderful.? It is what really gets the relationship started so you can build in the other things that keep it going.?? ?Love is so pure that you have to be careful about putting other pressures on it unless you are really ready to assume all the responsibilities that come from committing yourself to each other.?

Love evolves across adolescence (and young adulthood).? Unfortunately, our culture does not provide any consistent or clear information about the evolution of love.? And, the information that is provided focuses almost exclusively on the infatuation and romantic aspects not on the committed partnership that marks a lasting relationship.? Your kid needs your help in learning about what love really means.

Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.

Source: http://drjameswellborn.com/talking-about-teenage-love-part-3/

newt gingrich wives at last al green gina carano burger king delivery etta james at last john king

Higher Humidity Lowers Flu Transmission

You may be safer from the flu in a humid room than in a dry one, according to a new study from researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

To simulate flu transmission in a health care setting, the researchers used "coughing" and "breathing" mannequins that were placed about 6 feet apart. Flu virus particles were released during a "cough," and devices throughout the room and near each "breathing" mannequin's mouth captured the particles. The particles were then collected and tested for their ability to infect human cells.

At humidity levels of 23 percent, 70 to 77 percent of the flu virus particles were still able to cause an infection an hour after the coughing simulation. But when humidity levels were raised to 43 percent, just 14 percent of the virus particles had the ability to infect. Most of the flu particles became inactive 15 minutes after they were released into the humid air. "The virus just falls apart," at high humidity levels, said study researcher John Noti, of the CDC's National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

High humidity was just as detrimental to small flu particles as large ones. That's important because small flu particles tend to hang in the air for a longer time, while large particles fall to the ground, Noti said.

Researchers already knew that humidity levels affect flu transmission . One reason flu transmission is thought to be lower during the summer months is because of the high humidity. But the new study more directly assessed how humidity levels might affect flu transmission in a health care setting, and also took into account flu particle size, said study researcher Donald Beezhold, also of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

During the summer months, it's pretty easy for indoor humidity levels to be up to 30 to 40 percent, Noti said. But during the winter months it's harder because indoor heating dries out the air, he said. [See Does A Warmer World Mean Less Flu?]

Raising the humidity level of a whole building could be a challenge. But the findings suggest that hospitals might consider raising humidity levels in certain rooms where there might be a high risk for flu transmission, or in rooms with patients who are particularly vulnerable to the flu, such as the intensive care unit (ICU), Noti said.

However, humidity levels should not be too high, because mold starts to grow, Noti said.

The new study is published today (Feb. 27) in the journal PLOS ONE.

Pass it on: The flu virus is less infective at in rooms with higher humidity levels.

Follow Rachael Rettner on Twitter @RachaelRettner, or MyHealthNewsDaily @MyHealth_MHND. We're also on Facebook & Google+.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/higher-humidity-lowers-flu-transmission-235810475.html

dear abby WRAL John Harbaugh jill biden jill biden martin luther king jr casey anthony

Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Scott Weiland Responds To Stone Temple Pilots Firing

'Not sure how I can be 'terminated' from a band that I founded,' Weiland says in a statement.
By James Montgomery

Scott Weiland
Photo: Tim Mosenfelder/ Getty Images

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1702732/scott-weiland-responds-stone-temple-pilots-terminated.jhtml

katt williams greg mcelroy new york post bob costas bowl projections Jovan Belcher Charlie Batch

If My Phone Falls Down The Seat Crevice Again I?ll Lose It. Please Redesign Meatspace.

The physical world wasn't built for $500 devices we need every other minute. This is never more obvious than when I strain my back and curse like a sailor because my phone has fallen into the gap beside my car or plane seat. As tech companies obsess over usability, the thoughtlessness that mars the meatspace comes into painfully sharp relief.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/pt2zFGb3aHA/

Jessie Andrews bloomberg bloomberg Daily Caller Staten Island Trick or Treat Amy Weber

Exclusive: Juniper mulls next move after asset sale talks falter - sources

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Juniper Networks Inc is reviewing its enterprise-focused networking business after talks fell through late last year to sell assets, including security unit NetScreen Technologies, several sources close to the matter told Reuters.

The world's No. 2 networking gear maker is mulling options that could include acquisitions to bolster the security and enterprise business, with a longer-term view of a sale or spin-off, two of the sources said. For acquisition financing it could decide to raise cash through a private sale of equity, the sources familiar with the company's thinking said.

From summer to fall of 2012, San Jose, California-based Juniper discreetly contacted about half a dozen competitors to test the appetite for its assets that handle networking for enterprise clients, two sources close to the matter said.

At the time, rumors were rife that major storage provider EMC Corp was also in talks to buy Juniper, though EMC CEO Joe Tucci has since dismissed any interest in buying a networking company.

Investment banks have not been hired by Juniper to assist in the review, the sources said. Goldman Sachs has helped the company on prior deals.

A spokesman for Goldman declined to comment.

Among the assets pitched last fall was NetScreen, a maker of firewall technology that Juniper bought in 2004 for $4 billion. But the interest was underwhelming, with parties walking away after concluding that Juniper's enterprise-oriented assets lacked innovation and growth, the sources said.

The company, which in October announced a 5 percent cut in its workforce, declined to comment on what a spokeswoman called rumors and speculation.

Asked at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona on Tuesday whether the company has plans to sell NetScreen or other parts of the business, Chief Executive Kevin Johnson said: "No, if you look at the acquisitions we have done, we're a buyer not a seller."

(Reporting By Nadia Damouni and Nicola Leske; Additional reporting Paul Sandle; Editing by Edwin Chan, Edward Tobin and David Gregorio)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/exclusive-juniper-mulls-next-move-asset-sale-talks-182934262--sector.html

puxatony phil josh harvey clemons college football recruiting rankings ground hog day 2012 aaron carter black history month did groundhog see his shadow

Dorothy Hamill and Andy Dick among 'Dancing' stars

FILE - This April 12, 2010 file photo shows former Olympic figure skater Dorothy Hamill at an event celebrating Good Housekeeping magazine's 125th anniversary in New York. Hamill is one of eleven celebrity contestants who will compete on the next edition of "Dancing with the Stars." The new season kicks off on ABC with a two-hour premiere on March 18. (AP Photo/Evan Agostini, file)

FILE - This April 4, 2011 file photo shows country singer Wynonna Judd from The Judds, performing at the Girls' Night Out: Superstar Women of Country in Las Vegas. Judd is one of eleven celebrity contestants who will compete on the next edition of "Dancing with the Stars." The new season kicks off on ABC with a two-hour premiere on March 18. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson, file)

FILE - This Nov. 15, 2012 file photo shows comedian Andy Dick speaks onstage during the American Cinematheque 26th Annual Award Presentation To Ben Stiller 2012 in Beverly Hills, Calif. Andy Dick is one of eleven celebrity contestants who will compete on the next edition of "Dancing with the Stars." The new season kicks off on ABC with a two-hour premiere on March 18. (Photo by Todd Williamson/Invision/AP, file)

FILE - This June 6, 2012 file photo shows singer Kellie Pickler at the 2012 CMT Music Awards in Nashville, Tenn. Pickler is one of eleven celebrity contestants who will compete on the next edition of "Dancing with the Stars." The new season kicks off on ABC with a two-hour premiere on March 18. (Photo by John Shearer/Invision/AP, file)

FILE - This June 20, 2012 file photo shows boxer Victor Ortiz training during the media workout at Fortune Boxing Gym in Los Angeles. Ortiz is one of eleven celebrity contestants who will compete on the next edition of "Dancing with the Stars." The new season kicks off on ABC with a two-hour premiere on March 18. (AP Photo/Grant Hindsley, file)

NEW YORK (AP) ? A gold-medal figure skater, a country music legend and a kooky comedian are stepping their way onto "Dancing With the Stars."

ABC says Dorothy Hamill, Wynonna Judd and Andy Dick are among 11 contenders for the mirrored ball on the new season of the celebrity dance competition.

Other famous faces in the show's 16th edition include standup comic and actor D.L. Hughley, Baltimore Ravens football player Jacoby Jones and former "American Idol" contestant Kellie Pickler.

Also on hand will be former welterweight boxing champ Victor Ortiz, "General Hospital" star Ingo Rademacher, actress-singer Zendaya Coleman and Lisa Vanderpump from "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills," as well as Olympic gold-medal gymnast Aly Raisman.

The new "Dancing With the Stars" season kicks off on ABC with a two-hour premiere on March 18.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2013-02-26-TV-Dancing%20With%20the%20Stars/id-3ae3a763ec8946c481b3952fe204470f

margaret sanger paul george eddie long ufc 143 weigh ins micron ceo glenn miller who do you think you are

New Infrared Tech Will Let Firemen See Through Flames

Firefighters will actually be able to see through flames thanks to infrared hologram technology, a new study in Italy has found. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/w3h80fS3IBc/new-infrared-tech-will-let-firemen-see-through-flames

gisele bundchen tom brady randy travis arrested dickens greg kelly cujo karen handel hangout

Good as Gold

Theo James as Walter Clark Jr. in Golden Boy

Photo courtesy of JoJo Whilden/CBS

Every procedural needs a gimmick these days, and Golden Boy, the new cop drama from CBS that premieres Tuesday night, has a doozy: It transports viewers into the future. Each episode begins and ends with a flash-forward to the time, seven years hence, when 34-year-old Walter Clark (Theo James) is installed as New York City?s youngest police commissioner. After landing this exalted position at an impossibly early age, Clark seems weary and scarred. The series promises to reveal how he came to possess the high office, prematurely gray hair, and a pronounced limp.

Clark is a former street kid who grew up with an addict mom, an absent father, and a troubled younger sister. After only three years on the beat, an act of heroism allows him to parachute into the homicide division, where he serves alongside far more experienced detectives. Seven years from now, Clark will be the city?s top cop. Does he get there thanks to shrewd political maneuvering, exemplary police work, or low-down dirty tricks?

Judging from the first few episodes, the answer is ?all of the above.? Clark can be a suck-up and a shameless publicity hound, but he has the makings of a good cop, especially when he listens to his new partner, Don Owen (Chi McBride). If Clark is a show pony, Owen is a workhorse. Just two years shy of retirement, Owen is already making plans for a new life in Florida, but the chance to shape the career of a talented but impulsive young detective revives his own ambition. There?s something comfortingly old-fashioned about this mentor-mentee relationship. For all his drive, Clark still has a lot to learn, and it?s a sign of his potential that he quickly realizes he should heed Owen?s advice.

Of course, not all of Clark?s colleagues in the homicide division are overjoyed to have a new star in their midst. Christian Arroyo (Kevin Alejandro), homicide?s alpha dog until the pup showed up, is threatened by the young upstart. Arroyo?s attempts to sideline Clark?s progress are just as much a part of his education as Owen?s morality tales. They?re the angel and devil on the young cop?s slender shoulders.

Golden Boy?s creator, Nicholas Wootton, says he got the idea for the show while watching The Social Network, a movie about how ferociously ambitious young men with big ideas can overturn long-established ways of doing business. Successful tykes are currently having a moment on television?think singer Juliette Barnes ruling the charts on ABC?s Nashville or reporter Zoe Barnes raising hell on Netflix?s House of Cards. But the Barneses work in fields that have been revolutionized by the Internet. In music and journalism, YouTube, digital downloads, and blogging have smashed career ladders into firewood. So far at least, police work has escaped disruption. No matter how talented, well-connected, or entrepreneurial they may be, detectives are still expected to earn their bones on tough cases. Fortunately, the investigations that provide Clark?s life lessons are as accomplished as you?d expect from Wootton, who spent 11 years on NYPD Blue and a couple of seasons at Law & Order.

Perhaps because he?s 28 and as fit as a fiddle (his best-known role to date is Downton Abbey?s Kemal Pamuk, the Turkish gentleman who died in Lady Mary?s bed), James has to slather on aging makeup and affect a broken gait just to pass for a man in his mid-30s. Consequently, there?s something not quite convincing about the scenes set in the future. And the New York City of 2020 looks a lot like the 2013 version, other than the completed Freedom Tower at 1 World Trade Center, visible from the commissioner?s office.

As much as I would?ve loved to see Manhattanites kitted out in Google Glass, Golden Boy is about the past, not the future. Clark?s journey matters more than his destination. It?s an old-fashioned, low-tech case-of-the-week exploration of the ?give me a boy at 7, and I?ll show you the man? philosophy that fuels Michael Apted?s 7 Up series of movies: Give me the golden boy at 27, and I will show you the 34-year-old man in the corner office of 1 Police Plaza. When I look into my own future, I see years spent watching Walter Clark grow up, one hour at a time.

Source: http://feeds.slate.com/click.phdo?i=fec9d7ed35d34a71c27e2640c1925995

mario manningham mario manningham williams syndrome hoya casa de mi padre corned beef and cabbage diners drive ins and dives

Tuesday, February 26, 2013

March of the pathogens: Parasite metabolism can foretell disease ranges under climate change

Monday, February 25, 2013

Knowing the temperatures that viruses, bacteria, worms and all other parasites need to grow and survive could help determine the future range of infectious diseases under climate change, according to new research.

Princeton University researchers developed a model that can identify the prospects for nearly any disease-causing parasite as the Earth grows warmer, even if little is known about the organism. Their method calculates how the projected temperature change for an area would alter the creature's metabolism and life cycle, the researchers report in the journal Ecology Letters.

Lead author P?ter Moln?r, a Princeton postdoctoral researcher of ecology and evolutionary biology, explained that the technique is an all-inclusive complement to current methods of predicting how climate change will affect disease, which call for a detailed knowledge of the environmental factors a specific parasite needs to thrive. But for many parasites, that information doesn't exist.

The more general Princeton model is based on the metabolic theory of ecology. Under this premise, all biological organisms need a balance between body size and body temperature to maintain the metabolism that keeps their organs functioning. Like any cold-blooded creature, disease-causing parasites rely on external temperatures for this balance. Scientists with knowledge of a parasite's body size and life cycle could use the Princeton metabolic model to predict how the organism would fare in altered climates.

"Our framework is applicable to pretty much any parasite, and utilizes established metabolic patterns shown to hold across a wide variety of species," Moln?r said.

"It would be impossible to ever gather enough data to develop a separate climate-change model for each existing and emerging disease in humans, wildlife and livestock," Moln?r said. "With our physiological approach, many of the parameters for a specific pathogen can be predicted based on what is known about metabolic processes in all parasites, so that the model remains applicable to new and less-studied species as well."

The Princeton model estimates the "fundamental thermal niche" of a parasite, the area between the lowest and highest temperature in which a specific parasite prospers. The researchers show that an organism already kicking around the high end of that range could die out when things heat up, while a parasite lingering at the low end could lead to novel epidemics in host populations and extend to new areas.

Because global temperatures will still differ by elevation and distance from the equator, some parasites also might "migrate" from their previous territory ? rendered inhospitable by higher temperatures ? to one more inviting. That could expose human and animal populations to new diseases to which they may have little natural resistance. Thus, having an idea of which areas a parasite might transition to is important, Moln?r said.

"As metabolism varies with temperature, parasite life-cycle components such as mortality, development, reproduction or infectivity may also vary with temperature," Moln?r said. "If, for a specific parasite, we know the temperature dependence of its metabolism, or the temperature dependence of its life-cycle components, our model allows using these temperature effects to evaluate the impact of climate change on parasite fitness, and thus the regions in which the parasite may occur in the future."

Ryan Hechinger, a biologist at the University of California-Santa Barbara, said the framework adds to recent research tempering the fear that infectious diseases will uniformly flourish as global temperatures rise. Hechinger, who focuses his research on parasite ecology and evolution, is familiar with the work but had no role in it.

"There has been quite a bit of a 'the sky is falling' attitude from people claiming that infectious diseases are only going to get worse," Hechinger said. "We can't forget that most infectious diseases are caused by living agents. Like most living things, these agents may be negatively or positively affected by climate change. The modeling in this paper clarifies that infectious diseases may increase or decrease under climate change, specifically under global warming."

In addition, Hechinger said, the Princeton technique applies to any parasites that venture outside of a warm-blooded host, including organisms that plague humans, such as Plasmodium, the microorganism that causes malaria.

"If the parasites have stages when they are loose in the environment, they will be impacted by temperature. This goes for parasites with developmental stages in cold-blooded hosts because those hosts are affected by environmental temperatures," Hechinger said.

"So, the modeling framework can work for human malarias because there are parasite stages in cold-blooded mosquitos, or human schistosomiasis [most common in children in developing countries], where the parasite has stages in cold-blooded snails and free-living stages in the open environment," he said.

The Princeton model could potentially appertain to those disease carriers as well, Moln?r said. The framework could predict the future ranges of cold-blooded animals for use in combating invasive species, or even in the conservation of such animals as reptiles and amphibians, he said.

Moln?r worked with senior researcher Andrew Dobson, Princeton professor of ecology and evolutionary biology, as well as with second author Susan Kutz, an associate professor of veterinary medicine at the University of Calgary, and Bryanne Hoar, a graduate student in the Kutz lab.

The researchers tested their model on Ostertagia gruehneri, a species of nematode, or roundworm, that lives in the Arctic. Among the world's most widespread parasites, the larval stages of parasitic roundworms are free-living in the environment or utilize a cold-blooded intermediate host, while the adult stages live within their final hosts, and may cause conditions such as trichinosis.

Hoar and Kutz had reared O. gruehneri larvae in various temperatures, and recorded their development and survival. Moln?r and Dobson found that these observations correlated extremely well with how their metabolic model predicted the species would respond to increased Arctic temperatures. Under future conditions, the parasite's infectious season could split from what is now a continuous spring-to-fall transmission season into two longer fall and spring seasons separated by a hot, unlivable summer.

While the seasonal life of a nematode might seem trivial, what affects the parasite affects the host, Moln?r said. The researchers are broadening their model to gauge how O. gruehneri's new active seasons would alter the relationship with its primary host, the caribou. They also are investigating the recent range expansion of a nematode with a penchant for the lungs of muskoxen, a wooly bovine native to the Arctic.

Moln?r and his colleagues want to know what further population growth could be expected from these parasites as the Arctic climate continues to warm, and the eventual toll that would have on caribou and muskoxen herds.

###

Princeton University: http://www.princeton.edu

Thanks to Princeton University for this article.

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

This press release has been viewed 48 time(s).

Source: http://www.labspaces.net/127004/March_of_the_pathogens__Parasite_metabolism_can_foretell_disease_ranges_under_climate_change_

dorial green beckham mike kelly kristen bell colbert super pac colbert super pac sloth birth control pill recall

Researchers devise new image sensor that could meld screens with cameras

CCD sensors have long ruled the digital imaging roost, but a team of researchers at Johannes Kepler University in Linz, Austria have concocted flat, flexible and transparent image sensors that could eventually change things up. Made from a flexible polymer film suffused with fluorescent particles, the prototypes catch only a specific wavelength of light and shoot it to an array of sensors that surround the sheet's edge. At that point, the rig calculates where light entered the polymer by measuring how much it has diminished during its travel time, and then composes an image from that data. It's said the process is similar to how a CT scan functions, but uses visible light instead of X-rays. Not only is the membrane relatively inexpensive and potentially disposable, but the solution is a world's first, to boot. "To our knowledge, we are the first to present an image sensor that is fully transparent - no integrated microstructures, such as circuits - and is flexible and scalable at the same time," said Oliver Bimber, co-author of the group's paper.

As of now, the setup only snaps black and white images with a resolution of 32 x 32 pixels, but there are plans to boost its fidelity by leveraging higher quality photodiodes (or even composite photos). Also, color photographs could be achieved by using several sheets that capture different hues of light. So, what's this all mean for practical applications? Researchers believe its prime use lies in layering the film on TV screens and other displays to offer gesture controls without pesky, additional cameras. In addition, objects can be imbued with sensor capabilities if wrapped with the layer, and even CCD's could benefit from having a slice of the polymer slapped on them to take photos at different exposures. Hit the second source link for the scientific nitty-gritty, or head past the break for a glimpse at the setup's photos.

Filed under: Cameras, Alt

Comments

Via: Gizmodo

Source: The Optical Society, Optics InfoBase

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/24/researchers-transparent-flexible-image-sensor-screen-camera/

aaron carter sister pfizer signing day 2012 football gasland college football recruiting bjork national signing day 2012

Bell Canada set to launch Novatel's MiFi 2

Novatel's touchable MiFi 2 -- also known as the MiFi Liberate -- receives a fresh coat of paint in the form of a UI overhaul on its way to Bell Canada's network this March. No word on pricing or an exact date, but this 11-hour-lasting king of all portable access points is $50 on a two-year agreement on AT&T, so we'd hazard that sets a decent watermark on the potential price. No word on what the new UI tweaks entail but we're angling to get our hands on one some time this week at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.

Filed under: Peripherals, Wireless

Comments

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/24/bell-canada-set-to-launch-novatels-mifi-2/

stephen colbert south carolina seal seal and heidi klum drew peterson untouchable herman cain south carolina palmetto rob lowe

The Onion apologizes for offensive actress tweet

NEW YORK (AP) ? The Onion is apologizing for calling the 9-year-old star of "Beasts of the Southern Wild" a vulgar and offensive name on Twitter, an attack that led to a firestorm online.

The satirical newspaper on Sunday referred to Quvenzhane Wallis with an expletive intended to denigrate women. The Onion was lambasted overnight and asked for forgiveness Monday.

"It was crude and offensive ? not to mention inconsistent with The Onion's commitment to parody and satire, however biting," The Onion CEO Steve Hannah wrote on Facebook. "No person should be subjected to such a senseless, humorless comment masquerading as satire."

Hannah said the offensive tweet was taken down within an hour and the newspaper has "instituted new and tighter Twitter procedures" to ensure it will never happen again. Those responsible would be disciplined, he added.

"Miss Wallis, you are young and talented and deserve better. All of us at The Onion are deeply sorry."

A message sent to Quvenzhane's representative seeking comment wasn't immediately returned Monday. She was the youngest-ever actress nominee at the Academy Awards.

The Onion's original tweet brought some calls for the fake news organization to publicly identify the writer of the tweet, vows to refuse to retweet its material, and requests from outraged consumers to email The Onion to complain.

Oscar host Seth MacFarlane also joked about the young star during the ceremony. Some found the quip offensive, albeit not to the degree of the outrage over The Onion's tweet. MacFarlane joked that "it'll be 16 years before she's too old for" George Clooney.

Despite the attack, Quvenzhane had some reason to stay positive Sunday. By the time she'd arrived at the Oscar telecast, she could boast that she had been cast to play Annie in a contemporized adaptation of the Broadway musical and the "Little Orphan Annie" comic strip to be directed by Will Gluck.

It wasn't the first time The Onion has gotten into hot water for trying to push its humor. Last year, the site attracted public ire for an image that showed an airliner about to crash into Chicago's Willis Tower. Despite an outcry, the Onion's marketing director refused to back down.

Last year, the joke site made international headlines when the online version of China's Communist Party newspaper hailed an Onion report naming North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un as the "Sexiest Man Alive" ? apparently unaware it was satire.

In 2011, U.S. Capitol Police released a statement refuting tweets and an article claiming members of Congress had taken a group of schoolchildren hostage. It included a doctored picture of Republican House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner holding a gun to a child's head.

The Chicago-based publication was founded in 1988 by two students in Madison from the University of Wisconsin. Starting as a local college newspaper, it became a national comedy institution and went online in 1996, and has since developed a television news parody.

The publication is distributed weekly in cities, but it has also embraced Twitter and has an app for the iPad and other tablets. It says it averages 40 million page views and roughly 7.5 million unique visitors per month.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/onion-apologizes-offensive-actress-tweet-171540467.html

jason wu Mavericks Surf Stonewall Inaugural Ball julio jones j crew san francisco 49ers

Rapper 50 Cent Left Hanging When He Tried To Kiss Erin Andrews (VIDEO)

Erin Matthews escapes kiss by 50 cent Rapper 50 Cent has a rather embarrassing moment captured on camera, when he went in for a little smooch with reporter Erin Andrews and was denied! Erin Andrews was covering the NASCAR Daytona 500 race and on her way to interview racer Danica Patrick, when 50 Cent tried to get a little sugar. 50 Cent, ...

Rapper 50 Cent Left Hanging When He Tried To Kiss Erin Andrews (VIDEO) Stupid Celebrities Gossip Stupid Celebrities Gossip News

Source: http://stupidcelebrities.net/2013/02/rapper-50-cent-left-hanging-when-he-tried-to-kiss-erin-andrews-video/

grammys miguel pope Justin Timberlake Grammys frank ocean adam levine mumford and sons

With Pope Benedict's retirement, the where is clearer than the how

It is about to become the world's most famous retirement home, its occupant the world's most famous retiree.

A former nunnery set within the stone walls of the Vatican is being extensively refurbished by workers in preparation for the arrival of Benedict XVI, who steps down as Pope and head of the world?s 1.2 billion Catholics on Thursday.

The 85-year-old German pontiff?s decision to live out the rest of his days just a few hundred yards from where his successor will guide the crisis-hit Church has thrown up some highly awkward questions for the Holy See.

Will the ex-Pope interfere in his replacement?s affairs? How will they greet each other when they bump into each other in the Vatican gardens or anywhere else in the tiny sovereign nation? And will Benedict become a sort of shadow Pope, his presence looming large over the new papacy?

RECOMMENDED: How much do you know about the Catholic Church? Take our quiz!

Vatican officials insist that Benedict plans to adopt a quiet life of prayer and reflection and that he will not meddle in the affairs of the Holy See.

But at his last ever Sunday address today, Benedict assured 100,000 people crowding St Peter?s Square that he would not be ?abandoning? the Church.

He raised questions about exactly what his role will be when he told the faithful that he would "continue to serve it [the Church] with the same dedication and the same love which I have tried to do so until now, but in a way more suitable to my age and to my strength."

A FORMER NUNNERY, WITH A VIEW

Whatever his role turns out to be, it will be performed in comfort. The three-story nunnery, which has an adjoining chapel, boasts a study, a library, and living quarters for the band of personal staff that Benedict will bring with him from his papal apartments.

Set on a hill within the Vatican City State, it commands wonderful views of the terracotta rooftops of Rome, the Spanish Steps, and the distant Apennine mountains, which at this time of year are coated in glistening snow.

Gardeners were busy weeding and trimming the surrounding gardens and a cement mixer churned away in the driveway which leads to the entrance of the residence.

Mature palm trees and umbrella pines provide shade and the roof of the Sistine Chapel looms so close it almost seems to be in touching distance.

It is there that 116 cardinals will gather next month to elect Benedict?s successor in a secretive, centuries-old process known as a conclave. (Read here for how a conclave works.)

Past conclaves have lasted for weeks and occasionally ended in fist fights between feuding cardinals. In modern times, it is rarely more than a few days before white smokes wafts from a chimney stack on the Sistine Chapel?s roof, signaling the election of a new Pope.

FIRST, TO A CASTLE

Benedict will not move into the ex-convent immediately. On Thursday afternoon at around 5 pm local time he will be flown by helicopter to Castel Gandolfo, a magnificent castle which sits on the lip of a steep-sided extinct volcano.

It is the traditional summer residence of the papacy and has been used by successive popes for 400 years to escape the squalor, heat, and intrigue of Rome.

Benedict is expected to spend around two months living in the castle, while renovations to the nunnery are completed.

Attached to the castle is a huge estate made up of landscaped gardens, box hedges, mature oak trees, fish ponds, and fountains ? a perfect place for Benedict to indulge in long contemplative walks and contemplate the ramifications of his historic resignation.

There is even a small model farm, consisting of a freshly-planted vineyard, greenhouses, orange and lemon trees, and a herd of 25 Friesian cows, which are prized for their milk and yogurt.

A broad, shaded terrace, built over the remains of a Roman villa constructed by the Emperor Domitian, offers views of the Mediterranean. ?There are also the remains of a Roman theater, which was excavated in the 1970s,? says Pier Paolo Turoli, the administrator of the estate.

Benedict will live in an apartment within the castle, the oldest parts of which date back to the 13th century.

?It was acquired by the Vatican in 1596 when the Savelli family, who owned it, were unable to pay a debt to the Papacy,? says Saverio Petrillo, whose official title is director of the Papal villas.

When Benedict's helicopter arrives at the estate on Thursday he will be driven to the castle, which looms imposingly over the main piazza of the tiny village of Castel Gandolfo.

He will appear at a balcony over the entrance gate and greet thousands of well-wishers crammed into the cobbled square.

FINAL HOURS AS POPE

Then he will pray in the private chapel as the final moments of his pontificate tick away ? at 8 pm precisely local time, he will cease to be Pope and he will no longer be Benedict XVI, the 264th successor to St. Peter.

Vatican officials say he will pray, study, and write during his retirement. He has produced several books, the last one the final part of a trilogy on the life of Christ.

Benedict has said he will live "hidden from the world," but Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi has said he could provide "spiritual guidance" to his successor.

His retirement will certainly be more opulent than that enjoyed by the tiny number of Popes who have resigned in the past.

When Celestine V resigned after a few months in 1294 and returned to his former life as a hermit, he was hounded by the Church, with his successor fearing he could be a threat and set up as an anti-Pope.

He was captured after an attempt to flee to Dalmatia and imprisoned in a castle south of Rome, where he died a few months later.

It is widely believed that an unnamed character in Dante's Inferno refers to Celestine; Dante consigned the man to Hell for his "great refusal."

Benedict's resignation may have been an ecclesiastical bombshell, but perhaps not even his sternest critics would wish a similar fate on him.

RECOMMENDED: How much do you know about the Catholic Church? Take our quiz!

Monday, February 25, 2013

Seth MacFarlane Jokes About Chris Brown Beating: Fair or Foul?

Source:

Elder Scrolls Online joe biden michelle obama lupe fiasco jason wu jason wu Mavericks Surf

Battle of the chefs on golf course during festival

AVENTURA, Fla. -- What do you get when a group of celebrity chefs move from the kitchen to the fairway following a long - and late - night of wine and burgers on South Beach?

"I'm clearly not the future of golf," tweeted Alex Guarnaschelli after one swing.

"Watch out Tiger, here I come!" Jose Andres said in Spanish after teeing off.

Nearly a dozen A-list chefs took to the links early Saturday during the South Beach Wine and Food Festival for a golf tournament hosted by Andres. He, too, admitted to staying out late the night before and "seeing the sun come up on the horizon."

"That's not the way chefs usually behave," the Spanish chef said. "But we need to play with the stereotypes."

Andres recently opened The Bazaar, the new hot spot at the SLS Hotel South Beach that handed out fruit push-pops and coconut sorbet to the players. Also on hand were mimosas and whiskey, cigars, and plenty of food.

Sloppy Gino sliders made with fresh ground chuck and "atomic cheese" were prepared on site by Nadia G, the host of Cooking Channel's "Bitchin' Kitchen."

"This is a fun, from scratch spin on an Americana dish," she said of the bite-size sliders.

Back on the green, Tim Love - chef and owner of The Lonesome Dove Western Bistro in Fort Worth, Texas - said he enjoys the "athletic stuff" during the festival. (He was sore from playing in a celebrity chef volleyball tournament held by Spike Mendelsohn on Friday).

"I like getting out and doing stuff. If I don't, I just end up getting hammered," he said as he waited for his partner to play (no drink in hand). "That's going to happen, but at least I won't feel so bad about myself if I get some steps."

The chefs - including Ming Tsai, Edward Lee, Cesare Casella and Jeremy Sewall - were joined by Miami Heat's Alonzo Mourning, who said he "was looking forward to meeting them" at the end of the 18-hole round.

"I'm going to win," Andres predicted. "I know it's going to look like, because I'm the host, that will be kind of political. But I'm so good, I'm going to win."

Source: http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/02/23/3249978/battle-of-the-chefs-on-golf-course.html

buffalo wings superbowl kick off time 2012 new york giants hot wings recipe 7 layer dip recipe chris carter superbowl 2012 kickoff time

Placing blame for the adverse consequences of sequestration where it belongs ? a modest proposal (Powerlineblog)

Share With Friends:

| Politics - Top Stories Stories, RSS and RSS Feed via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/287086176?client_source=feed&format=rss

taylor swift taylor swift Ed Sheeran Fun carrie underwood jack white wiz khalifa

Cider is the apple of the alcoholic drink sector's eye, but can move beyond its core market, reports Mintel

Source: Mintel Oxygen Reports

Cider is the apple of the alcoholic drink sector's eye, but can move beyond its core market, reports Mintel

Region: UK

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Feb 2013

Cider is the apple of the alcoholic drink sector's eye, but can move beyond its core market, reports Mintel

With lager companies now also looking to capitalise on the growth in the UK cider market, it seems that the nation?s desire for this fruity drink shows no signs of losing fizz just yet. Indeed, according to new research from Mintel, three in five adults (60%) now drink cider, significantly up from the previous year?s total of 47%. This progress means that in 2012, a greater share of adults drank cider than spirits (57%).

Indeed, cider is even closing in on beer in terms of usage, a market which has struggled to retain its base of drinkers in recent years, standing at 70% in 2012. While its recent successes have helped a number of cider producers to grow rapidly, Mintel research shows that the market?s future prospects could be equally positive as, even among cider drinkers, 23% state that it does not always occur to them to drink it. Further boosting the visibility of the drink in the on- and off-trade could therefore reap spectacular rewards for operators.

Chris Wisson, Senior Drinks Analyst at Mintel said:

?Cider continues to stand out as one of the star performers among alcoholic drinks markets. Usage has flourished in recent years as the market has improved its image, with strong growth at the premium tier. The market has also performed well on the back of its accessibility, with its accessible flavour profiles helping to attract new users such as women and 18-34 year-olds. While many drinks markets are struggling to grow in real terms and are also hampered by the government?s tax escalator, cider is one of the anomalous success stories which is also showing underlying volume growth.?

Cider is in fact one of the few success stories in the alcoholic drinks landscape, achieving steady growth despite the economic downturn. Over the last five years sales of cider have increased by 32% to reach ?2.7 billion in 2012, up from ?1.8 billion in 2007 and with sales increasing 5% in the last year alone. Meanwhile volume sales have posted slower growth, although the market still managed overall growth of 18% between 2007 and 2012.

The success of cider looks set to continue in the coming years, with new producers continuing to build momentum and with strong consumer demand leading to a better range of ciders in both the on- and off-trade sales channels. Over the next five years, Mintel forecasts that the market will reach sales of ?3.7 billion, driven partly by duty increases but also growing user numbers.

Apple pips pear to the post

While apple remains the nation?s favourite flavour of cider, drunk by 47% of adults, there are striking signs of growth coming from the pear and flavoured segments. Pear has grown to be a firm favourite amongst cider drinkers, and is drunk by almost four in ten (37%) adults, buoyed by the entry of brands such as Strongbow and Stella Cidre into the segment. Meanwhile, almost a quarter (24%) of Brits have drunk any other type of fruit-flavoured cider, with flavours in this adventurous segment ranging from cloudberry to toffee apple.

?Pear cider is now a highly profitable segment of the market and one which producers should almost be prioritising on a par with apple cider. While apple continues to drive most of the sales, pear can also be an effective gateway into the market, with a particular appeal to female drinkers. However, pear is still underperforming in terms of appealing to older drinkers and operators may be well served in highlighting features such as a British heritage and ingredient quality to appeal to these more traditional cider drinkers.? Chris continues.

While the cider market continues to make great strides, there are still a number of challenges for producers to overcome. Many of these relate to its image as amongst lager, wine and RTD drinkers, just 8% think that cider is sophisticated while 14% think that it is worth paying more for, both of which are significantly behind associations with wine.

?While cider enjoys a range of positive associations among drinkers, such as being refreshing, natural and suitable for men and women, sophistication is an area where there is significant room for improvement. The cider market has improved its image greatly over the past decade and should continue working to evolve away from unfavourable historical associations such as those with underage and binge drinking, and towards being a sophisticated drink to be seen with.? Chris concludes.

For more information, please contact Sian Brenchley, Monica Trombini or Amanda Lintott
Telephone: +44 (0) 20 7600 5703 Email: press@mintel.com

Please note that this service is for journalists only. For all other requests please contact the sales team at info@mintel.com.

Source: http://www.mintel.com/press-centre/press-releases/1052/cider-is-the-apple-of-the-alcoholic-drink-sectors-eye-but-can-move-beyond-its-core-market-reports-mintel

acm awards 2012 january jones ncaa final game reba mcentire acm awards the killing april fools

Clegg on defensive as sexual harassment claims batter party

LONDON (Reuters) - Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg on Sunday denied covering up allegations of sexual misconduct by a former senior member of his Liberal Democrat party, already floundering in opinion polls.

Allegations of sexual impropriety by former party chief executive Chris Rennard threaten to engulf Clegg and further undermine the Lib Dems, the junior member of Britain's coalition government.

The latest furore comes at a bad time for the party, after the resignation of cabinet minister Chris Huhne this month who admitted he had asked his then wife to accept a penalty for a 2003 speeding offence he had committed.

A local election to replace Huhne is to be held on February 28.

Rennard, the mastermind behind the party's election strategy before quitting in 2009, was accused in a report by Britain's Channel 4 television channel on Thursday of inappropriately touching female party members and activists several years ago.

The report has since triggered a flurry of similar allegations in the British media.

Lawyers for Rennard, a member of parliament's upper house, said after the Channel 4 report that he was "deeply shocked by and strongly disputes" the allegations made against him.

Media reports have since then accused Clegg of knowing of the allegations long ago but not investigating them.

"I am angry and outraged at the suggestion that I would not have acted if these allegations had been put to me," Clegg said late on Sunday, rejecting suggestions of a "cover up".

He said was made aware of "indirect and non-specific concerns" about Rennard in 2008, and had acted on them, but there was a limit to how far the party could take the matter given sources of the concerns were indirect and anonymous.

The Lib Dems have announced two internal inquiries since more detail has come to light, one into how the party handled the allegations, and another into the allegations themselves. Clegg said they would reveal the truth of what happened.

"But in the meantime, I will not stand by and allow my party to be subject to a show trial of innuendo, half-truths and slurs," Clegg said.

Britain's opposition Labour party demanded an independent investigation.

"This series of allegations are too serious to allow the Lib Dems to investigate themselves," said Labour lawmaker Bridget Phillipson.

"Nick Clegg and other senior Liberal Democrat lawmakers and officials must come clean about what they knew and what action was taken about these serious allegations," she added.

(Reporting by Mohammed Abbas; Editing by Stephen Powell)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/clegg-defensive-sexual-harassment-claims-batter-party-205416773.html

bill nye Hurricane Isaac 2012 Snooki Baby terrell owens terrell owens neil armstrong little league world series

The Oscars Don't Have A Best Beard Award... But We Do

Though the field of nominated films at this year's Oscars are varied and unique, there is one characteristic many of them share. The movie beards of 2012 were some of the best for a single year of Academy Awards nominees. Check out all the fashion from the Oscars red carpet! But the Academy — in [...]

Source: http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2013/02/24/oscars-best-facial-hair/

Beady Eye Eric Idle rory mcilroy Fatboy Slim Rio de Janeiro Shark Week London 2012 closing ceremony

Sunday, February 24, 2013

Pluto moon vote helps the case for Vulcan

M. Showalter / NASA / ESA

An image from the Hubble Space Telescope shows Pluto and its largest moon, Charon, surrounded by four smaller moons. P4 and P5 will be getting new names. One of them might be called Vulcan.

By Alan Boyle, Science Editor, NBC News

The organizer of a contest to name Pluto's two tiniest moons can't guarantee that either one of them will be called "Vulcan" ??but if the name nominated by the original captain on the "Star Trek" TV show retains its lead in the voting, planetary scientist Mark Showalter promises to argue the best case he can.

"My starting position is that we should work with the names that received the most votes," Showalter told NBC News on Friday.

The "Pluto Rocks" voting is due to conclude at noon ET Monday, to be followed by a 1 p.m. Google+ Hangout sponsored by the SETI Institute, the place where Showalter works. Right now, Vulcan holds a commanding lead with about 140,000 of the 370,000 votes cast. But even if Vulcan holds onto that edge, don't expect Showalter to declare immediately that Vulcan is the choice.

"There will not be an announcement on Monday," he said.

For one thing, it's not totally up to Showalter to make the nomination. He's just one of the leading scientists on the discovery teams for P4 and P5, the two moons that were found in 2011 and 2012. All the members from each of the teams will have to agree on the names to be submitted to the International Astronomical Union for approval. Even then, the IAU could voice concerns about the names they submit, leading to alternate suggestions. Showalter said he's actually seen that happen in the case of the Uranian moon that ended up being called Cupid.

Kirk ... takes ... command
Vulcan wasn't on Showalter's initial list of prospects, but he added it to the ballot at the urging of William Shatner, the actor who played Captain James T. Kirk on the original "Star Trek" series in the late 1960s. Shatner favored the name because it was the fictional home planet of Kirk's pointy-eared science officer, Mr. Spock. "Let's hope the IAU thinks Vulcan is a good name," Shatner wrote in a tweet to his 1.35 million Twitter followers.

Showalter said Shatner's endorsement definitely skewed the results. "Early on, it's pretty clear there were some Trek fans who seem to have resorted to augmented voting technologies," Showalter said. But he's convinced that the groundswell of support for Vulcan is genuine, and he said he's "come up with a pretty good case" for using the name.

"I want people to feel that their vote counted," Showalter said.

The IAU's guidelines for Pluto's moons stipulate that they should be named after Greek or Roman gods who have some connection to the mythological underworld. Those guidelines worked for Pluto's three other moons, Charon (ferryman of the dead), Nix (goddess of darkness) and Hydra (a many-headed monster).

Vulcan has a family relationship to the underworld, in that he was Pluto's nephew. And in his capacity as the god of fire, Vulcan tended to hang out in the depths beneath Mount Etna and other volcanoes, rather than on the heights of Mount Olympus. That may not be Hell, exactly, but it's certainly the underworld.

Showalter admitted that it might be tricky to have the god of fire associated with one of the coldest places in the solar system. "It may well be there's a consensus that it's a great name, but not a great name for a moon of Pluto," he said. Also, the name Vulcan has been associated with a hypothetical planet that was thought to circle the sun within Mercury's orbit. The 19th-century French astronomer who discovered Neptune, Urbain Jean Joseph Le Verrier, spent fruitless years looking for it. Pluto's moon is in an entirely different place, but Showalter sees that as a potential plus.

"Maybe we'd be doing Le Verrier a favor by saying that when he was looking for the ninth planet inside Mercury's orbit, he was looking in the wrong direction," Showalter joked.

Some have said the name Vulcan should be reserved for a planet beyond our own solar system. In response, Showalter points out that there's no IAU procedure for giving names to extrasolar planets (beyond generic designations such as?Kepler-37b or Gliese 163c). That situation may change if planet-naming ventures such as Uwingu take hold. But in the meantime, Showalter feels that Vulcan should at least be given a fair shot at solar system fame.

Another moon to name
So it's virtually a sure thing that Showalter will try making the case for Vulcan. But what about the other Plutonian moon?

Right now, Cerberus is hanging onto the No. 2 spot in the voting, and unless Styx or some other name comes from behind in the next few days, Showalter will argue the case for Cerberus as well. That name fits perfectly with the mythological underworld theme, because Cerberus was the three-headed hound that guarded the gates of the underworld.

One drawback is that there's already an asteroid named Cerberus, and the IAU doesn't want newly named celestial bodies to be confused with previously named objects. Showalter said there are at least two ways around that issue: One is to argue that the asteroid and the moon wouldn't be confused. The precedent for this is Io, a mythological name that refers to a Jovian moon as well as an asteroid. Another way out is to change the spelling slightly ? say, to the Greek name Kerberos. One precedent for this is the Plutonian moon Nix, which uses an alternate spelling to avoid confusion with the asteroid Nyx. (By the way, there's already an asteroid named Vulcano, but that name is considered different enough from Vulcan,)

Opening the moon-naming process up to a vote has been a lot of work, even if it's a non-binding vote, and Showalter said he doubts that he'll do it again. But he's gratified by the response: The contest?attracted hundreds of thousands of votes from scores of countries around the world, generated more than 30,000 write-in suggestions for names, and gave Pluto fans and "Star Trek" fans lots to think about.

What would Spock think about all this? Leonard Nimoy, the actor who played the alien on the original "Star Trek" show, said via Twitter that "'Vulcan' is the logical choice."?I can imagine Spock saying that, but I can also imagine him uttering just one word. ...

Spock said, "Fascinating," a lot! Here are the times he said it. Enjoy!

More about Pluto and its moons:

Alan Boyle is NBCNews.com's science editor. Connect with the Cosmic Log community by "liking" the log's?Facebook page, following?@b0yle on Twitter?and adding the?Cosmic Log page?to your Google+ presence. To keep up with Cosmic Log as well as NBCNews.com's other stories about science and space, sign up for the Tech & Science newsletter, delivered to your email in-box every weekday. You can also check out?"The Case for Pluto,"?my book about the controversial dwarf planet and the search for new worlds.

Source: http://cosmiclog.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/02/22/17060016-star-trek-boost-helps-pluto-moons-discoverer-make-his-case-for-vulcan?lite

syracuse ohio state girl with the dragon tattoo ohio state basketball collateral dick cheney heart umf

??Windows Azure Management Portal?Windows Azure PowerShell ??????????

?Windows Azure???????????????????Windows Azure??????????????????????????????????????????

?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????Parallel Computing???????????????????????

????Windows Azure??????Management Portal?????????????????????????????Windows Azure Mobile Services???????????Scale????????????Mobile Service Mode??????????????????????????????Instance Size???????????????????????Instance Count?????????????????

clip_image002