Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/193650228?client_source=feed&format=rss
radiohead tour cbsnews ufc on fox fight card florida marlins ncaa basketball boise state football boise state football
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Nicole Scherzinger, Steve Jones Leaving 'X Factor'
Former Pussycat Doll reportedly wants to focus on her music career.
By Kara Warner
Steve Jones and Nicole Scherzinger on "X Factor"
Photo: FOX
"The X Factor" has said goodbye to two of its familiar faces: mentor Nicole Scherzinger and host Steve Jones.
E! News reported that the former Pussycat Doll and "Dancing With the Stars" champ has decided not to return to the show in order to focus on her music career. "She's spoken to Simon [Cowell], and he's given her his blessing," a source told E! Scherzinger often became emotional during elimination episodes, shedding tears and expressing sympathy for ousted contestants.
As for inaugural "X Factor" host Jones, the cheeky Welshman broke the news himself via Twitter on Monday. "I won't be hosting next seasons X Factor which is a shame but I cant complain as I've had a great time," Jones tweeted to his more than 94,000 followers. "Good luck to everyone on the show."
Jones had decidedly big shoes to fill stepping into the gig, with comparisons instantly made to "American Idol" host/ media mogul Ryan Seacrest. Throughout the season, the reviews of Jones' hosting skills were decidedly mixed.
Fox Entertainment president Kevin Reilly's comments during the TCA panels earlier this month now seem as though a decision was made awhile ago. "I think everyone has come to realize the value of a Ryan Seacrest," he told reporters during the network's press tour panel. "If you dialed the clock back 11 years, I'm not sure everybody in this room would have given him all the credit at that time. Those are very hard jobs to do. So whether Steve's the guy or not, it comes under the heading of 'growth' in general. There will be some tweaks to the show, but I'll tell you, I'm very happy to have it, and it's gonna be part of us for a long time."
The 34-year-old Jones seemed to take the criticism in stride and didn't appear to have high hopes for a return for the second season. "There's been no contract conversations and there won't be until the New Year," Jones told Metro UK in December. "If I'm back, great. If not, I'll do something else. Simple as that."
One thing Jones does have hope for is a possible romantic connection with Scherzinger, who was originally supposed to be his co-host before she replaced Cheryl Cole on the judging panel.
"If I ever leave 'X Factor,' Scherzinger's phone will be smoking hot from me ringing it constantly," Jones joked to Metro. "If we are not colleagues, then she's fair game."
Will you miss Steve Jones on "The X Factor"? Let us know in the comments below!
Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1678186/nicole-scherzinger-steve-jones-leaving-x-factor.jhtml
facebook news facebook news boardwalk empire torrey smith torrey smith packers bears boeing 787
Monday, January 30, 2012
Alcohol and your heart: Friend or foe?
ScienceDaily (Jan. 30, 2012) ? A meta-analysis done by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) into the relationship between alcohol consumption and heart disease provides new insight into the long-held belief that drinking a glass of red wine a day can help protect against heart disease.
"It's complicated," says Dr. Juergen Rehm, director of social and epidemiological research at CAMH. Dr. Rehm's paper, co-authored by Michael Roerecke, was recently published in the journal Addiction. "While a cardioprotective association between alcohol use and ischaemic heart disease exists, it cannot be assumed for all drinkers, even at low levels of intake," says Dr. Rehm.
Ischaemic heart disease is a common cause of illness and death in the Western world. Symptoms are angina, heart pain, and heart failure. Based on 44 studies, the analyses used 38,627 ischaemic heart disease events (including deaths) among 957,684 people.
"We see substantial variation across studies, in particular for an average consumption of one to two drinks a day," says Dr. Rehm. The protective association may vary by gender, drinking patterns, and the specific health effects of interest. Differential risk curves were found by sex, with higher risk for morbidity and mortality in women.
Moreover, for any particular individual, the relationship between alcohol consumption and ischemic heart disease should not be isolated from other disease outcomes. Even at low levels, alcohol intake can have a detrimental effect on many other disease outcomes, including on several cancers.
"Even one drink a day increases risk of breast cancer, for example," says Dr. Rehm. "However, with as little as one drink a day, the net effect on mortality is still beneficial. After this, the net risk increases with every drink."
"If someone binge drinks even once a month, any health benefits from light to moderate drinking disappear." Binge drinking is defined more than four drinks on one occasion for women, and more than five for men.
Given the complex, potentially beneficial or detrimental effects of alcohol on ischaemic heart disease in addition to the detrimental effects on other disease categories, any advice by physicians on individual drinking has to take the individual risk constellation (such as familial predisposition for certain diseases and behavior with respect to other risk factors) into consideration.
"More evidence on the overall benefit-risk ratio of average alcohol consumption in relation to ischaemic heart disease and other diseases is needed in order to inform the general public or physicians about safe or low-risk drinking levels," the study concludes. "Findings from this study support current low-risk drinking guidelines, if these recognize lower drinking limits for women."
Recommend this story on Facebook, Twitter,
and Google +1:
Other bookmarking and sharing tools:
Story Source:
The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.
Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.
Journal Reference:
- Michael Roerecke, J?rgen Rehm. The cardioprotective association of average alcohol consumption and ischaemic heart disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Addiction, 2012; DOI: 10.1111/j.1360-0443.2012.03780.x
Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.
Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.
Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120130131157.htm
snow day snow day neti pot iron chef bath and body works coupons jeff probst jeff probst
Instant Smoke Drops Add a Little Magic To Your Photographs [Photography]
matt ryan matt ryan real housewives of new york mildred pierce cam newton emmy awards nick collins
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Monumental Life Insurance Review
I?ve been in the insurance industry for 7 years, and have heard some good things and bad things about Monumental Life Insurance.? We don?t offer their products because we are an independent agency.? We prefer to keep it that way so we can use any insurance carrier we want for a particular client.
This is not an option with Monumental, unfortunately, since they require their ?career agents? to be captive, meaning they can only sell Monumental Life Insurance policies.
A bit of history on Monumental Life Insurance
They?ve been in business since 1858.? They have quite an impressive line of insurance related products, including term life, interest sensitive whole life, cancer policies, and accident insurance.? Generally speaking, due to their age and great size, they are considered one of the most respected life companies in the U.S.
A few Positives ? Financial Strength
They are rated A+ by the rating agency A.M. Best, which is issued to those carriers with superior financial health.? They also have over $88 billion of insurance in force, and over $32 billion in assets, both as of 2010 financial statements.? Compare that to the insurance giant, Prudential , whose life insurance company (Pruco Life) has just over $22 billion in assets.
Another advantage of doing business with Monumental is their parent company is Aegon, same as parent company for Transamerica Life Insurance, Stonebridge Life Insurance Co.? This is a multi-national, enormous company, so it?s hard to think of Monumental ever becoming insolvent under the Aegon Group.
Some Complaints I?ve heard about Monumental
First of all, I don?t put much stock in what you read on many review sites, since these are filled with disgruntled customers.? In all honesty, it?s not a fair assessment, since ?happy? customers don?t tend to write reviews? only the ones who are upset.
But go read any of the agent forums out there.? A lot of agents are dissatisfied with Monumental.? If you want to know the truth about a company, don?t read the customer reviews.? Read the agent reviews.
These are the people who see the inner workings of the company.? Glassdoor.com is one such review site offering unbiased reviews from former agents.? Most of the reviews are between 3 to 4 stars out of 5.
Most list cons of poor training for new agents, terrible hours, and unrealistic sales quotas.? If there?s one thing I?ve learned from speaking to friends in insurance and money manager postitions:? sales quotas hurt the customer.? This is because agents must sell.
When agents must sell, the unfortunate reality is many agents get cornered into a tough situation, where they must produce, and will do anything to make a sell? even recommend products that are not right for the client.? Perhaps they will recommend whole life when only term protection is needed.
Many former, and even current career agents also cite ?unethical business practices? at Monumental.
For a life insurance quote you can count on, use our quote form on the right.? Note: We are NOT Monumental Life Insurance.? This is simply a review of the company.? Thank you for interest.
Source: http://termlifeinsurancemales.com/life-insurance-company-reviews/monumental-life-insurance-review/
chapter 11 bankruptcy chapter 11 bankruptcy big ten acc challenge 2011 john wayne gacy amr jack del rio fired jack del rio fired
Fitch warns Washington state over budget gap (Reuters)
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) ? On the heels of a warning on Friday by Fitch Ratings that it could lower its rating on Washington state's general obligation bonds, a top lawmaker said talks on balancing the state budget would gain momentum after a key forecast next month.
Fitch in a statement affirmed its 'AA+' rating on approximately $17.5 billion of the state's outstanding general obligation debt and revised its outlook on the bonds to negative from stable in part due to "challenges faced by the state in addressing a sizable budget gap that developed after the adoption of the current biennial budget."
"The state is operating in an environment of significantly constrained revenue raising and spending control flexibility," Fitch added.
House Majority Leader Pat Sullivan told Reuters that budget talks to close a budget shortfall of about $1 billion are "moving forward" and would speed up after a mid-February revenue forecast.
That outlook will help guide lawmakers on balancing the state's books before their session ends in March, he added: "We know there is no magic bullet that will solve our problem if we stay longer."
Fitch also expects action on the budget gap following the revenue forecast. The rating agency said in its statement that "it seems likely that resolution will be delayed until late in the session and after the revenue forecast update is released on February 16."
Governor Christine Gregoire urged lawmakers earlier this month to advance a measure to voters seeking approval for a temporary sales tax increase.
In her State of the State address, Gregoire urged increasing the state sales tax by a half-cent to raise new revenue to avoid deeper spending cuts to education, social services sand public safety programs.
A sales tax increase is one of a few ways for Washington state to raise revenue as it does not have an income tax.
Fitch noted that "The state, with no income tax, relies on consumption-based revenues. This makes Washington particularly vulnerable to reductions in consumer spending and limits the prospects for quick revenue recovery."
Lawmakers opened their session early this month after cutting $480 million in spending during a special session that adjourned last month.
(Reporting by Jim Christie; Editing by Gary Hill)
the lion king 3d missoni maker faire the hub the hub pat robertson evan rachel wood
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Baby On The Way For 'Big Bang Theory's' Simon Helberg (omg!)
There's a baby on the way for "The Big Big Bang Theory" star Simon Helberg!
The actor -- who plays turtleneck-loving Howard Wolowitz on the CBS show -- and wife Jocelyn Towne are expecting their first child, a rep for the couple told People.
PLAY IT NOW: 2011 Emmy Awards Red Carpet: Simon Helberg & Kunal Nayyar Dish On ?The Big Bang Theory?
The baby is due this spring.
Simon, 31, and Jocelyn, an actress, met in Los Angeles and married in July 2007.
VIEW THE PHOTOS: Wimps To Pimps
In addition to the baby news, Simon may earn yet another reason to celebrate this weekend - "The Big Bang Theory" is nominated for Best Ensemble in a TV Comedy at the 18th Annual SAG Awards.
"Big Bang" will face off against "Glee," "Modern Family," and NBC's "30 Rock" and "The Office" for the coveted statue at the SAG Awards, airing on Sunday at 5 PT/8 ET on TNT.
Copyright 2012 by NBC Universal, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
VIEW THE PHOTOS: Hollywood Dads & Their Adorable Little Ones!
fire in reno kelly ripa reno wildfire reno wildfire osu osu reno news
Unemployment rates decreasing in most Ky. counties (AP)
FRANKFORT, Ky. ? Most Kentucky counties are reporting a decrease in unemployment.
The Kentucky Office of Employment and Training says 114 counties reported that jobless rates fell from December 2010 to December 2011. Six counties reported an increase in unemployment during the same time period.
Woodford County had the lowest unemployment rate at 6.1 percent, followed by Fayette County at 6.5 percent and Boone County at 6.9 percent.
Jackson County had the highest jobless rate at 15.2 percent, followed by Fulton County at 14.9 percent at Magoffin County at 14.4 percent.
The statistics are based on estimates and don't include people who haven't looked for a job in the last four weeks.
google doodle notre dame shane denarius moore denarius moore alley boy alley boy
Friday, January 27, 2012
Ode To Ice
Discover the secret life of ice?what makes it cloudy or clear, why cracks form on ponds. Science Friday visited Queens ice sculptor Shintaro Okamoto in his studio and spoke with ice researcher Erland Schulson, of Dartmouth University, to find out why ice is an interesting subject for artists and scientists.
Source: http://www.npr.org/2012/01/27/145990094/ode-to-ice?ft=1&f=1007
flat tax flat tax divine bettie page harry caray northern lights maksim chmerkovskiy
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Obama-Brewer friction on display on tarmac tiff (AP)
GLENDALE, Ariz. ? Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer says she meant no disrespect when she pointed a finger at President Barack Obama during an intense discussion on an airport tarmac. But the Republican governor says the Democratic president showed disrespect for her by abruptly ending their conversation.
The brief encounter ? out of earshot of observers but captured on camera ? was a highly visible demonstration of the verbal and legal skirmishing that has regularly occurred between Brewer and Obama's administration over illegal immigration and other issues.
Airport arrivals for presidents normally involve mere pleasantries between those involved, but Brewer and Obama have a history. And part of that history is what apparently got things going, according to accounts provided by Brewer and the White House.
Brewer said that during their talk, she invited Obama to visit Arizona to hear about her administration's achievements and to visit the U.S.-Mexico border, which has been a point of friction between the two because of illegal immigration issue.
Obama then said Brewer's recently published book mischaracterized a 2011 White House meeting between them.
Brewer said in an interview Thursday, at another Phoenix-area airport, that she talks a lot with her hands and that her pointing a finger at Obama during their conversation wasn't disrespectful.
"I respect the office of the president," she said. "I was there to welcome him."
She said she was grateful for the visit and intended to talk to him about the state's accomplishments. But she said she was "taken aback by his comments" when he said he wasn't happy with how her book described their White House meeting.
Immediately after the meeting Brewer had said it was cordial, but her book said Obama lectured Brewer in the Oval Office and that she felt he was condescending toward her.
"It is what it is. I proceeded to say that to him, and he chose to walk away from me," she said Thursday.
Asked whether she regarded that as disrespectful, she replied: "Well, I would never have walked away from anybody having a conversation. And, of course, that is what it is. It is disrespectful for me."
Their relationship covers disagreements on "most of his policies," she said. "That doesn't mean we can't be cordial to one another."
The encounter was notable because it was rare case of an unscripted and tense moment between the president and a public official in view of reporters.
White House press secretary Jay Carney chided reporters Thursday, saying the encounter with Brewer was getting too much attention from the White House press corps and overshadowing Obama's message of the day on energy.
Obama appreciated that Brewer was on hand to welcome him, but he noted that her book's description of Oval Office meeting "was not accurate," Carney told reporters traveling on Air Force One on a flight from Nevada to Colorado.
Carney was questioned about Brewer's statement Thursday that Obama cut her short by walking away.
"You guys are giving this incident far too much importance, Carney said. He added, "I really assume you guys have more important issues to cover than this."
Brewer is among the Republican governors who oppose the federal health care overhaul, but the illegal immigration issue has been a particular sore point between Obama and Brewer.
The U.S. Justice Department has challenged Arizona's controversial 2010 immigration enforcement law in court, while the administration and Brewer are at odds over whether the federal government has done enough to secure the U.S.-Mexico border.
On Thursday, Brewer drew support from callers to conservative-oriented talk shows, but the incident left others in the state shaking their heads.
The Arizona Republic, the state's largest newspaper, editorialized that the image of Brewer wagging a scolding finger at the visiting president "now pretty much defines this state's relationship with Washington, D.C., to the world."
Bruce Merrill, a longtime Arizona pollster and a professor emeritus at Arizona State University, said there are two sides to the encounter, so it's hard to fully analyze what happened and why.
But the incident follows past incidents in which Arizona for a time balked at declaring a state holiday to honor Martin Luther King Jr., and Arizona State University refused to award Obama an honorary degree, Merrill noted.
"It reinforces the image of Arizona being kind of a cowboy state that doesn't show a lot of respect," he said of the airport encounter.
The two mayors who stood next to Brewer during the airport encounter were not available for interviews Thursday, their offices said.
"He doesn't want to get involved," said Melissa Randazzo, spokeswoman for Mesa Mayor Scott Smith, a Republican.
Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton's office said his schedule had no time for an interview. Stanton is a Democrat.
___
Associated Press writer Jim Kuhnhenn contributed to this report from aboard Air Force One.
rob bell jaycee dugard meg whitman f8 f8 catherine the great dark shadows
The Pajama Manifesto
My pajamas include a couple quintessential features that any sleeping outfit must satisfy. Pajamas must be soft?they can?t be made of any stiff fabrics, and can?t include zippers, divots, buckles, or rigid hemlines. Pajamas also can?t be claustrophobically tight-fitting (though that doesn?t mean they should be off-puttingly baggy, either). In other words, the primary difference between pajamas and daytime clothes is that pajamas are optimized for comfort, while everything else prizes aesthetics first. While jammies can?and often do!?look good, they can?t do so at the expense of feeling good.
Source: http://feeds.slate.com/click.phdo?i=9721d0646256ea9c4a07020ad6f44952
university of alabama national championship game bcs game lsu vs alabama college football college football ncaa football
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Archaeopteryx wore black
Analysis compares microscopic structures with modern birds?
Web edition : Tuesday, January 24th, 2012
It may be time to hatch a new crop of those colorful illustrations of early feathered creatures spreading their wings amid the branches of Late Jurassic trees. In life, a new study suggests, the fossil feather whose discovery gave rise to the name Archaeopteryx more than 150 years ago was actually black.
Longtime celebrities among fossils, Archaeopteryx lithographica specimens have until last year been largely accepted as the most ancient bird species known. Whether or not they end up retaining their claim as early birds, their feathers had small pigment-bearing structures that closely matched those found in today?s birds, Ryan Carney of Brown University in Providence, R.I., and his colleagues report January 24 in Nature Communications.
Archaeopteryx got its name in 1861 based on a lone fossil feather. Modern articles about the creature often show one of the daintily preserved fossils of a spread-out skeleton, but not until 2011 was any skeletal fossil designated as an official example of the species.
To examine that original dark trace of feather, Carney and his colleagues turned to a specialized scanning electron microscope in Germany. Checking points along the feather revealed evidence of rod-shaped nubbins like the structures that hold pigments called melanins inside the cells of modern feathers.
In a procedure that has identified colors on several dinosaurs as well as fossil penguins, the researchers compared dimensions of the pigment-carrying structures, called melanosomes, against measurements of melanosomes of known color from 87 kinds of modern birds. The Archaeopteryx melanosomes grouped with modern birds? black ones instead of the brown or gray ones, or the oddball melanosomes found in penguins.
The findings fit with results reported last September by another research group that detected trace metals in fossils, indicating the presence of melanin pigments in Archaeopteryx feathers.
?I absolutely buy that this Archaeopteryx feather was black, but it?s hard to say what the rest of the animal was like,? says vertebrate paleontologist Lawrence Witmer of Ohio University in Athens, who was not part of either feather study but has worked with Archaeopteryx fossils.
Melanosomes add strength to plumage, and Witmer notes that there have been questions about whether Archaeopteryx feathers would have been strong enough for the early bird to fly. ?This new finding shows that the substance of the feather material was pretty tough stuff due to the melanin,? he says, ?but it doesn?t necessarily follow that the feather as a whole had the aerodynamic stiffness for sustained, powered flight.? Most scientists, he says, have thought that Archaeopteryx was probably a pretty clumsy flier or glider.
Carney, who has the feather?s image tattooed on his arm, also proposes a rethink of what kind of wing feather the fossil represents. It?s been assumed to be one of the long feathers, called primaries and secondaries, along the outer edge of the wing. Yet a bird sized to go with the fossil as a primary or secondary wing ?would be super, super small,? he says.
Looking back at the original 1861 description, though, Carney realized that the measurements given indicate a longer stemlike shaft at the base of the feather than is visible in today?s trace. The signs of the longer stem have worn away, so Carney and his colleagues propose that the original trace was for one of the feathers called coverts, which grow above the long feathers on the edge. That gets the size of the creature back in the range of known skeletal fossils.
Details of the feather probably won?t influence the current debate over whether to call Archaeopteryx a bird, says vertebrate paleontologist Mark Norell of the American Museum of Natural History in New York. The creature had reptilian traits such as a long tail and teeth but was long described as the earliest known bird.
In 2011 a research team argued that so many feathered dinosaurs have now turned up that a strict accounting of traits would transfer Archaeopteryx out of the birds and into the non-avian dinosaurs. As analyses duel on this point, Norell says he only uses the word bird for living species. ?It?s kind of a movable word,? he says.
Found in: Life
Source: http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/337887/title/Archaeopteryx_wore_black
philadelphia phillies sand dollar sand dollar just dance 3 just dance 3 cliff lee cliff lee
Nonfiction Monday-- Pets
Middle school students love to read about cats and dogs. Either they have them, or they wish they had them. My Dorling-Kindersley and ASPCA god and cat care manuals are falling to pieces, so I was looking around for some other books about pets. And just so you know, I decided NOT to let my dog "write" the reviews. It may be January, but I'm not that many kinds of crazy. Yet.
Brownlee, Christen. Cute, Furry and Deadly: Diseases You Can Catch from Your Pet!
The Scholastic 24/7 books on war are very popular in my library, so I looked into the Science Behind the Scenes series. This volumn presents several real life cases where pets made their owners very sick-- prarie dogs with monkey pox, kittens with rabies, and baby chicks with salmonella. Medical terms are explained, all article are well-illustrated, and additional information is given about zoonotic diseases. Scientists who worked on the real life cases are also profiled. A glossary and resource pages are included at the end of the book.
Strengths: Rabid kitties-- what's not to like? The short chapters will appeal to nonfiction readers who like a little bit of text with their pictures.
Weaknesses: While this has really good information, I find the format hard to read. This will not be the book for my students wanting information about animal care, but will be great for the students who like grossology type books. I still like the Sheila Keenan Animals in the House for a good overview of the history of pets.
Klam, Julie. You Had Me At Woof: How Dogs Taught me the Secrets of Happiness.
This memoir is not really suitable for middle school students, but I treat myself to the occasional adult book on Friday evenings, because my life is just that exciting! Ms. Klam was trying to figure out her single life and her career when she decided that a dog was what she needed. Enter Otto, a Boston terrier, who so endeared himself to Ms. Klam that she got involved with a Boston terrier rescue group and started fostering dogs. She eventually got married and had a daughter, but continued to make the dogs a very big part of her life. I wouldn't say that this book, or the dogs, really taught me much about the secrets of happiness, but it was an amusing read, and it encouraged me to rub Sylvie's tummy while I read it. Warning: several dogs pass away in this book. Sad.
Capstone Publishers, February 2012
E ARC from Netgalley.com
This is certainly fiction, and for grades 1-3, but it was so cute that I had to take a look, even though it is waaaay on the elementary side of the Pilkey side. The Mini-Mutts are tiny little fuzzy crime fighters who are going up against Brainicat, who is evil. The text is simple, the pictures bright, and my children would have loved these when they were emergent readers. This would also be a good book to, um, read to your dog!
Source: http://msyinglingreads.blogspot.com/2012/01/nonfiction-monday-pets.html
auburn football costumes seth macfarlane bobby flay clemson football the new girl miami hurricanes football
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Which Clooney film will earn an Oscar nod?
"Bridesmaids" ? in or out? Brad Pitt ? in or out? Rooney Mara ? in or out? George Clooney ? in and out?
The Academy Award nominations are set to be announced Tuesday morning, and undaunted by our so-so performance at the Golden Globes (we called eight of the 14 movie winners), we're right back with a new set of stone-cold locks, otherwise known as guesses.
Let the nomination speculation begin:
The nominees will (probably) be ...
-
More Entertainment stories
-
Late-night 'Idol' guest? Jim Carrey's daughter
The highlight of the night was Jane Carrey, if for no other reason than it made Jennifer Lopez feel old.
- Dr. Drew gets juiced up on 'Lifechangers'
- Exclusive peek: B.H. 'Housewives' wedding finale
- Klum and Seal: 'We have decided to separate'
- Stephen Colbert raises Cain in South Carolina
-
Late-night 'Idol' guest? Jim Carrey's daughter
Best Picture: "The Artist," "Bridesmaids," "The Descendants," "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," "The Help," "Hugo," "Midnight in Paris," "Moneyball"
Story: Backstage surprises from the Golden GlobesSorry, but thanks for playing: Clooney's "The Ides of March," Steven Spielberg's "War Horse" ? and 2011's other 200-plus eligible films. FYI: As a reminder, the field will consist of anywhere from five to 10 nominees. The thinking here, based on how the guild nominations went, is that the magic number will be eight.
Story: Did 'Bridesmaids' get a boost in race for Oscar?Best Actress: Viola Davis, "The Help," Meryl Streep, "The Iron Lady," Tilda Swinton, "We Need to Talk About Kevin," Charlize Theron, "Young Adult," Michelle Williams, "My Week With Marilyn."
Story: Silent 'Artist' shouts loudest at Critics Choice AwardsSorry, but thanks for playing: "Albert Nobbs'" Glenn Close, "Dragon Tattoo's" Rooney Mara and "The Artist's" B?r?nice Bejo, who, despite her lead-actress nod at the so-called British Oscars, we're going to say doesn't rate ? in this category. FYI: Theron gets the edge over the on-the-bubble competition because Diablo Cody, like Woody Allen, writes nominations as much as she writes characters.
Story: Five biggest jaw-droppers of the GlobesBest Actor: George Clooney, "The Descendants," Jean Dujardin, "The Artist," Michael Fassbender, "Shame," Gary Oldman, "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy," Brad Pitt, "Moneyball."
Sorry, but thanks for playing: "J. Edgar's" Leonardo DiCaprio and "A Better Life's" Demian Bichir. FYI: It only looks like we cribbed from the BAFTA nominations. Truth is, we're skittish about departing from the SAG script, but especially can't see DiCaprio getting in for a film with zero momentum.
Best Supporting Actress: B?r?nice Bejo, "The Artist," Jessica Chastain, "The Help," Marion Cotillard, "Midnight in Paris" Octavia Spencer, "The Help," Shailene Woodley, "The Descendants."
Story: It was a big night for big names at Golden GlobesSorry, but thanks for playing: "Albert Nobbs'" Janet McTeer and Mia Wasikowska, and, yikes, "Bridesmaids'" Melissa McCarthy. FYI: One, very funny movies (and the very funny people in them) get little Oscar respect. Two, actors in Allen films, comedies though they are, get a lot of respect. Add 'em up, and McCarthy is out, and Cotillard, as her beloved movie's most Academy-friendly option, is in.
Slideshow: Golden Globes red carpet (on this page)P.S.: Streep's shout-out to Wasikowska during "The Iron Lady" star's Golden Globes speech might have swung some votes the younger actress' way had Oscar voting not closed the Friday before. (And, yes, we know, Streep name-checked Wasikowska's other noteworthy 2011 movie, "Jane Eyre," but same difference ? the pub came too late, unless, that is, Streep was lobbying for the Aussie behind-the-scenes.
And, by the by, if Streep was talking up Wasikowska to her Academy friends, then we take back everything we said about Theron in the Best Actress race, and we hereby give that slot to Wasikowska. How's that for conviction?
SNUB ALERT: Angelina Jolie, no; Christian Bale, yes
Best Supporting Actor: Kenneth Branagh, "My Week With Marilyn," Albert Brooks, "Drive," Jonah Hill, "Moneyball," Ben Kingsley, "Hugo," Christopher Plummer, "Beginners."
Sorry, but thanks for playing: "J. Edgar's" Armie Hammer, "The Ides of March's" Philip Seymour Hoffman and "Warrior's" Nick Nolte. FYI: What we said about DiCaprio? The same goes, unfortunately, for Hammer.
? 2012 E! Entertainment Television, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Source: http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/46099855/ns/today-entertainment/
bubba smith oakland strike new gmail new gmail oakland general strike oakland general strike houshmandzadeh
Monday, January 23, 2012
In solar cells, tweaking the tiniest of parts yields big jump in efficiency
ScienceDaily (Jan. 20, 2012) ? By tweaking the smallest of parts, a trio of University at Buffalo engineers is hoping to dramatically increase the amount of sunlight that solar cells convert into electricity.
With military colleagues, the UB researchers have shown that embedding charged quantum dots into photovoltaic cells can improve electrical output by enabling the cells to harvest infrared light, and by increasing the lifetime of photoelectrons.
The research appeared online last May in the journal Nano Letters. The research team included Vladimir Mitin, Andrei Sergeev and Nizami Vagidov, faculty members in UB's electrical engineering department; Kitt Reinhardt of the Air Force Office of Scientific Research; and John Little and advanced nanofabrication expert Kimberly Sablon of the U.S. Army Research Laboratory.
Mitin, Sergeev and Vagidov have founded a company, OPtoElectronic Nanodevices LLC. (OPEN LLC.), to bring the innovation to the market.
The idea of embedding quantum dots into solar panels is not new: According to Mitin, scientists had proposed about a decade ago that this technique could improve efficiency by allowing panels to harvest invisible, infrared light in addition to visible light. However, intensive efforts in this direction have previously met with limited success.
The UB researchers and their colleagues have not only successfully used embedded quantum dots to harvest infrared light; they have taken the technology a step further, employing selective doping so that quantum dots within the solar cell have a significant built-in charge.
This built-in charge is beneficial because it repels electrons, forcing them to travel around the quantum dots. Otherwise, the quantum dots create a channel of recombination for electrons, in essence "capturing" moving electrons and preventing them from contributing to electric current.
The technology has the potential to increase the efficiency of solar cells up to 45 percent, said Mitin, a SUNY Distinguished Professor. Through UB's Office of Science, Technology Transfer and Economic Outreach (STOR), he and his colleagues have filed provisional patent applications to protect their technology.
"Clean technology will really benefit the region, the state, the country," Mitin said. "With high-efficiency solar cells, consumers can save money and providers can have a smaller solar field that produces more energy."
Mitin and his colleagues have already invested significant amounts of time in developing the quantum dots with a built-in-charge, dubbed "Q-BICs." To further enhance the technology and bring it to the market, OPEN LLC is now seeking funding from private investors and federal programs.
Recommend this story on Facebook, Twitter,
and Google +1:
Other bookmarking and sharing tools:
Story Source:
The above story is reprinted from materials provided by University at Buffalo.
Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.
Journal Reference:
- Kimberly A. Sablon, John W. Little, Vladimir Mitin, Andrei Sergeev, Nizami Vagidov, Kitt Reinhardt. Strong Enhancement of Solar Cell Efficiency Due to Quantum Dots with Built-In Charge. Nano Letters, 2011; 11 (6): 2311 DOI: 10.1021/nl200543v
Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.
Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.
Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120120184534.htm
charles barkley beyonce hines ward troy polamalu james harrison james harrison falcons
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Paul Abrams: Mr. President: Include This In the State of the Union...Please
Amidst all the irrelevancies of the Republican presidential candidates' debates, the president can easily distinguish himself as our nation's leader.
Without trying to wordsmith his address, I would like to strongly suggest several elements that he might not otherwise include.
Near the beginning of his speech, and as the first proposed initiative for the Congress, the president should pick up on his criticism of Citizens United from the last State of the Union, reference how it is already playing havoc with the Republican nominating process regardless of its ultimate outcome, mention that the Republican candidates have all criticized SuperPacs, and urge Congress to pass a Constitutional amendment that states that money is not speech and that corporations are not people. He should acknowledge that it would not affect the 2012 election, but that Congress should not wait to pass it and send it on to the states for ratification.
The president should tell us, as is true, that the state of the nation in 2012 is "better" than it was when he took office, when Osama bin Laden still threatened us, when people were being dropped from their healthcare coverage at the whim of insurance companies, when we were losing 800,000 jobs per month, and when the American auto industry was about to fold. "Better, but still a long way to go".
He ought not be shy about noting the killing of Osama bin Laden, Anwar al-Awlaki and other al-Qaeda leaders and reiterate that one of his first directives as president was to focus the nation's efforts on our national security by bringing to justice those who were responsible for 9/11, and were plotting further cowardly strikes against us.
The president should look the American people and the Congress in the eye on the Affordable Healthcare Act and indicate what it is already doing to improve the lives of the American people. It would be fitting if one of his "guests" in the balcony with the First Lady is a person whose life was saved by the provisions of the act that are already bringing hope to millions of Americans. He ought to emphasize that everyone who had medical insurance and liked what they had has been able to keep it, and to ask the American people if they really want to return to the days when children up to 26 were not included on their policies, when insurance companies could drop coverage when they became ill, when these same companies had no requirement to spend their premiums on their healthcare, when one could be rejected for prior illnesses, and have their healthcare coverage subject to a lifetime cap, and so forth. "I have always said, and I continue to say, that I am open to any changes or additions to the Affordable Healthcare Act that preserves protections, guarantees coverage to the same number of people, and has cost-saving measures embedded into it. Despite all the sweet assurances prior to the last Congressional elections, no replacement proposal has been offered. All we have seen is a bill that passed the House to change Medicare from a guaranteed benefit that people have paid into all their lives and upon which they depend to a voucher program that guarantees our seniors nothing but a contribution to private insurance". The president ought to restate that he believes access to good, affordable healthcare is a right of every person, not a privilege of wealth.
Finally, the president ought to salute those states in which ordinary people have banded together to preserve the rights that workers fought so hard to achieve more than a half-century ago, and to remind the American people that no nation is strong without a strong, healthy middle class. He should call on the American people to exert similar pressures on Congress to overcome the special interests that block progress.
The major thrust of the State of the Union, of course, needs to be about jobs and the economy. The above are suggestions about key elements the president ought to add.
It is his major opportunity to set himself apart from the idiocy of the rightwing that has been polluting our airwaves and impinging on our consciousness.
?
Follow Paul Abrams on Twitter: www.twitter.com/pabrams2001
Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/paul-abrams/obama-state-of-the-union_b_1222363.html
type 2 diabetes restaurant week occupy congress juan williams victor martinez howard hughes the bachelor
Saturday, January 21, 2012
After Laying Off 60 People, RueLaLa Raises $22 Million
Members-only shopping site RueLaLa, a former subsidiary of GSI Commerce (before the eBay acquisition) just cut roughly 60 positions from its workforce of 550 employees, but an SEC filing published yesterday afternoon reveals that the flash sales company also recently completed a $22 million financing round.Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/tVQhJmtEL0M/
lego man lego man cheryl hines john lackey john lackey ed lee ed lee
RolePlayGateway?
I apologize for my tag abuse. I'm from Tumblr and that's what we do.
Right, so I posted here a little while ago saying I was open to ideas for roleplays. My post has probably descended down to the depths of page eight or nine by now...but that's okay, because an idea has struck me. And I mean literally struck me--it's come down from the Heavens (or perhaps space, or may be up from the depths of Hell, I dunno) and struck me right in the face.
Please read the next sentence carefully. It may be a mite painful for anyone who is a fan of any of the following things.
I really want to do a Superomenswholockfits roleplay.
Err. I guess I should clarify.
A massive crossover idea has been floating around Tumblr lately, and it has caught my attention like nobody's business. This crossover combines several of my favorite television and book type things--Supernatural, Good Omens, Doctor Who, Sherlock (BBC), and Misfits--into one ball of ridiculousness and awesome. At first, I thought this was very incredibly silly, and scoffed at it from afar.
But the more I think about it, the more interesting the idea becomes.
A roleplay wouldn't necessarily require extensive knowledge of all five things (or more, if that's what you like), as it would obviously have to be set in an alternate universe of some sort. For example, I haven't really finished Doctor Who (or Supernatural, for that matter), but know enough about them that if we threw continuity out the window, I wouldn't be lost.
I'd want decently dedicated, literate-to-advanced roleplayers for this. However, I don't judge literacy by how much you can post. As long as the post is more than 200-300 words, if it's a good post and the roleplay is moving at a pace that's fun for everyone, I've got no problem.
I actually considered opening up a forum for this--I thought it might be interesting to expand it and have teams of plotters in the background, throwing out ideas to the roleplayers. I may still do that, if I get enough interest or if the RP opens and expands to the point where I feel that's necessary.
Anyway. Post here if you're interested, or if you have any questions. I didn't go into detail about any of the fandoms, but if you think you may want to play and are unfamiliar with something, let me know and I'll fill you in as best I can. I haven't got an overlying plot yet, but I'm taking suggestions for that as well.
Both canon characters from the shows(/one book) and original characters will be welcome.
Uhhh....Yep, nothing else I can really think of. Sorry, fans who think crossovers are silly, if I have offended your sensibilities.
Edit for obligatory reference: I just suggested a crossover. SAVE ME, BARRY!
Source: http://feeds.feedburner.com/RolePlayGateway
winston churchill winston churchill arkham city conjugated linoleic acid world series schedule apple earnings tampa weather
Friday, January 20, 2012
Students rough up Libya's NTC vice president (Reuters)
BENGHAZI, Libya (Reuters) ? The deputy head of Libya's ruling National Transitional Council (NTC) was roughed up on Thursday by university students in the eastern city of Benghazi, in a rare incident that indicates a growing popular discontent with Libya's new rulers.
Benghazi, the cradle of Libya's uprising against Muammar Gaddafi's 42-year rule, has witnessed a number of protests over the past few months demanding the new rulers sack officials who served under Gaddafi.
The protesters in Benghazi also called on the NTC to be transparent about its financial dealings, including how billions of dollars in Libyan assets were being spent.
Abdul Hafiz Ghoga, vice president of the NTC, was surrounded by a crowd of angry protesters and jostled before he was pulled away to safety.
"Some people pulled me away from the mob," he said. "I think this incident is aimed at tarnishing the standing of the National Transitional Council."
He was attending a memorial ceremony at a Benghazi university for those killed during the civil war that overthrew Gaddafi.
Ghoga said the incident was a result of what he described as an incitement campaign against him. He said he came to the event without a security detail except for his driver.
Attiya al-Ojeli, a university professor at the Benghazi University, said a group of students outside the hall chanted "Go away, Go away!" as Ghoga entered the hall.
He said Ghoga insisted on facing the crowd against the advice of the university.
The incident is particularly embarrassing for the NTC because Benghazi was where the revolt against Gaddafi started in February last year, it was for months the NTC's base, and it is the main powerbase for many of Libya's new rulers.
The new Libyan government is grappling with a number of issues, including disbanding the militias who have carved the country up into rival fiefdoms, forming police and military forces and creating jobs for thousands of jobless youths.
Most Libyans still back their new rulers but some are starting to express the view that, five months after Gaddafi's rule ended, more progress should have been made.
(Reporting by Mohammad Al Tommy; Writing by Mahmoud Habboush; Editing by Alison Williams)
pandaria pandaria artie lange baby lisa irwin baby lisa irwin pearl jam 20 martha marcy may marlene
Romney urged by ally Christie to release tax return (Reuters)
WASHINGTON (Reuters) ? New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, a key ally of Republican presidential front-runner Mitt Romney, on Wednesday joined Romney's rivals in urging the candidate to release his income tax forms after he said he pays roughly a 15 percent tax rate.
"Let's get all of the facts out there. See what the tax returns say," Christie told MSNBC's program "Morning Joe," although he downplayed that the forms would reveal much and that all the attention would probably be "much ado about nothing."
On Tuesday, Romney told reporters that most of his income stems from investments, placing him at the 15 percent rate - a rate much lower than what most Americans pay. He has said he would not release his tax returns until April.
Romney's Republican rivals have been eager to paint the former private equity executive at Bain Capital LLC and Massachusetts governor as out-of-touch with ordinary voters amid a slow economic recovery and have pounced on the tax issue.
"What I would say to Governor Romney is: if you have tax returns to put out, you should put them out. You should put them out sooner rather than later because it's always better to have full disclosure, especially if you're the frontrunner," Christie said on NBC's program "Today."
Christie, mentioned as a possible vice presidential running mate for Romney, has been actively campaigning for the former Massachusetts governor, making appearances in New Hampshire and Iowa, the first two states to hold nominating contests.
Romney is leading the pack in the state-by-state race for the Republican Party's presidential nomination to face Democratic President Barack Obama on November 6. Saturday's Republican South Carolina primary is the next contest in the race.
Former House of Representatives Speaker Newt Gingrich and Texas Governor Rick Perry have suggested that Romney may be hiding something in not releasing his tax forms.
Some tax analysts have also said it could shed light on Romney's work at the helm of Bain Capital that could give political ammunition to rivals.
A Wall Street Journal editorial on Wednesday called on Romney to use his returns as a platform to call for a simplified U.S. tax code.
"Mr. Romney could use the opportunity to make the moral and practical case for lower rates and fewer loopholes," the Wall Street Journal said.
Romney, whose estimated net worth is $270 million, is one of the wealthiest people to ever run for U.S. president.
Christie said he would not rule out serving as the Republican vice presidential candidate but added that he was planning to continue serving as New Jersey's governor and has had "zero" discussions with Romney about the job.
"If you're a betting guy, I would bet on me being governor of New Jersey after November 2012. But I think it's rude and wrong to say you wouldn't do something that you haven't been asked to do, and I haven't been asked to do it," Christie told the "Today" show.
(Reporting By Susan Heavey; editing by Mary Milliken and Will Dunham)
pro bowl sinead oconnor celtics braylon edwards jimmer fredette mall of america mennonite
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Cruz Roja Espa?ola: Hait?, dos a?os despu
En este mes de enero se cumple el segundo aniversario del terremoto que asol? Hait?. Este suceso motiv? uno de los mayores movimientos solidarios de la poblaci?n espa?ola, que se volc? para ayudar...
Este es un peque?o resumen. Para obtener mas informacion, Favor visitarnos en WEbSite
Source: http://bitacoras.com/anotaciones/cruz-roja-espanola-haiti-dos-anos-despues/25420053
turkey pot pie turkey pot pie southern university regenesis fanboys ucla usc ucla usc
Video: Samsung?s Transparent Display: Touch-Controlled, Eco-Friendly
Minority Report, here we come. At CES last week, Samsung demoed a 46-inch, transparent, touchscreen LCD that evoked direct comparisons to the display Tom Cruise manipulated in the dystopian movie thriller from 2002.
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/GearFactor/~3/7VxjiOHwZz8/
brewers harbaugh the walking dead season 2 milwaukee brewers will power will power indy 500
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Sarkozy unveils $550 million jobs plan before vote
PARIS -- President Nicolas Sarkozy announced a euro430 million ($550 million) plan to drive down unemployment and restart growth Wednesday, a move criticized as an attempt to boost his popularity three months before France's presidential election.
With the unemployment rate pushing 10 percent and the recent downgrade of France's credit rating by Standard & Poor's, Socialist candidate Francois Hollande is hitting the president hard, saying the financial crisis reflects Sarkozy's failed economic stewardship.
Sarkozy, who is trailing Hollande in polls, has countered that the crisis is Europe-wide and that French people who are suffering need help now. To that end, he met with business and labor leaders on Wednesday to formulate a plan to create more jobs and ease the pressure on those looking for work.
It's unclear whether Sarkozy's government can put the jobs plan in place before the presidential elections, held in two rounds in April and May.
"The current economic situation in France as in Europe is very perilous. It's urgent," Sarkozy said in the opening remarks of the closed-door session, according to a transcript made public by his office.
In a clear rebuttal to his critics, Sarkozy told reporters after the meeting: "Regardless of the political calendar, the crisis, unemployment, the suffering of our compatriots don't give any of us the right to stay immobilized, inactive."
He said he'd proposed a euro430 million ($550 million) jobs plan in the meeting - a relatively minor package compared to France's euro1.9 trillon GDP.
The measures include increasing aid to those forced to take unpaid leave, training for the unemployed and incentives to hire young people. He also suggested creating a state-funded body to invest in industry.
But he gave little detail on his main plan to increase France's competitivity and spur hiring: reducing the amount companies contribute to the social benefits system, and raising the sales tax to make up for the shortfall.
After Wednesday's meeting, Bernard Thibault, head of the CGT labor union, said he didn't think the measures outlined would "have a real impact on the current employment situation."
Thibault and representatives of other hard-charging unions said they wanted more details on Sarkozy's main plan, which they've resisted because it would shift some of the burden of paying for generous social benefits from businesses to all consumers - including workers.
"We refuse to see household budgets diminished," said Philippe Louis, head of the CFTC union.
In his speech to the meeting, he compared France, at times unfavorably, with "our main competitor ... Germany" - the bellwether of economic success in Europe. Germany retained its triple-A rating from S&P when France lost it last week.
Sarkozy said French labor costs have risen 20 percent between 2000 and 2009, compared to 7 percent in Germany. He said the relative cost to employers for a worker who earns a gross monthly salary of euro2,500 ($3,200) was twice as high in France than in Germany.
Sarkozy's gamble is that reducing those costs will spark a hiring spree.
But labor unions insist workers shouldn't have to pay the cost of the financial crisis at a time when many French companies are still making profits, and accuse Sarkozy of putting together a slapdash solution ahead of elections.
Associated Press writer Sarah DiLorenzo contributed to this report.
Source: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/01/18/2595267/sarkozy-unveils-550-million-jobs.html
shannon brown utah jazz mike rowe pro bowl 2012 ron artest deion sanders shld
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)