Monday 31 December 2012

EPA faces legal battles, might take easy confirmation road

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Regardless of who takes the reins, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will likely face continued legal battles in President Barack Obama's second term as it tries to finalize pollution rules for power plants, analysts said.

EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, who spearheaded the Obama administration's regulation of carbon emissions, said on Thursday she will step down after almost four years.

Her tenure was marked by opposition from industry groups and Republican lawmakers to the EPA's first-ever crackdown on carbon emissions, as well as other anti-pollution measures.

Analysts said whoever succeeds Jackson will probably face a spate of lawsuits to challenge rules that the EPA will finalize governing power plants, industrial sources and oil and gas production.

"This is shaping up to be four years of litigation," said Christopher Guith, vice president for policy at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Energy Institute.

Given the partisan divide, Guith said, legislators would struggle to draft laws that could serve as alternatives to the EPA's pending suite of carbon and air regulation.

"As we look to an even more divided Congress, the action will be in the federal courts," he said.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia circuit, which hears most challenges to federal environmental rules, is likely to be busy as industry groups and states bring their cases against the EPA's rules after they are finalized.

The court sided with the agency in most of the recent challenges, most notably upholding its decision to use the Clean Air Act to regulate carbon dioxide emissions.

David Doniger, policy director of the National Resources Defense Council's Climate and Clean Air Program, said this could bolster the EPA as it tackles rules that may be more controversial than those rolled out under Jackson.

"The agency has a very good batting record on the clean air side. Carbon and climate (regulations) have come through completely unscathed," he said.

CARETAKER ADMINISTRATOR?

After the EPA was a political lightning rod during the first Obama administration, the president is likely to seek out a safe, possibly internal choice as Jackson's successor, or to avoid the confirmation process altogether.

"There are just so many arrows pointed at this agency," said Susan Tierney, managing principal and energy and environment specialist at Boston-based Analysis Group

Bob Perciasepe, deputy EPA administrator, will take over on an interim basis and could continue in that role indefinitely.

He previously worked at the EPA during the Clinton administration, specializing in water and air quality. Before rejoining the agency, Perciasepe was a top official at the National Audubon Society, a major conservation group.

Tierney said she expects the EPA to stay the course on its current agenda, especially as the agency faces some court-ordered deadlines to finalize rules, such as for coal ash, industrial waste from coal-fired plants and ozone standards.

PRIORITY ON CLIMATE CHANGE?

Some environmentalists have criticized Obama for being too timid on climate issues during his first term. But in his acceptance speech on election night in November the president gave a nod to climate change, raising hopes for more activism.

The White House may lean on the EPA to tackle one of the largest sources of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, the current fleet of power plants, said Jeremy Symons, senior vice president at the National Wildlife Federation.

"The president has made clear that climate change is one of his top three priorities for the second term, so that means EPA needs to do its job," Symons said.

This, he said, means the agency needs to finalize the rules for new power plants and the standards for limiting carbon emissions from existing power plants.

The NRDC's Doniger said once the EPA meets an April 2013 legal deadline to finalize the greenhouse gas rules for new power plants, it will then have to address standards for existing plants.

The EPA has to start promptly in the beginning of the second term, said Doniger, because the rulemaking process is "a multistep process that will take time."

The controversial task will almost certainly trigger lawsuits because the rules will target a large number of domestic power plants and could jeopardize electric reliability.

"It's high stakes litigation when you are talking about bringing 40 percent of generation under regulations. That's disastrous," the Chamber's Guith said.

Guith said that while the EPA does have the authority to regulate carbon dioxide using the Clean Air Act, its rules are too difficult for industry - forcing the litigation.

"This EPA has been so aggressive in pushing the envelope by way of the compliance timeline that it has made itself more vulnerable to lawsuits," he said.

The EPA may also face legal challenges from environmental groups and certain states. The NRDC, the Environmental Defense Fund and the Sierra Club joined a group of nine states led by New York that threatened to sue the EPA last year to propose air pollution standards for oil and gas drilling.

They said that the drilling, transportation and distribution resulted in a significant release of methane, a potent greenhouse gas that is not regulated by federal rules.

Doniger said the group is trying to negotiate a timeline with the EPA to set a rule but could sue the agency if it doesn't agree a schedule by February.

(Additional reporting by Ayesha Rascoe; Editing by Gary Hill)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/epa-faces-legal-battles-might-easy-confirmation-road-101014043--finance.html

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The Astro Journal Portal into the Cosmos # 21 12/30 by Anpu ...

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    On his show, Comedian Rodney Perry covers arts and entertainment, everything from comedy and politics to music and acting, with his signature comedic slant.

  • MashUp Radio is a 30-minute podcast that discusses the fusion of technology, life, culture and science. Host Peter Biddle, engineer and executive for Intel?s Atom Software, dishes up a thought-provoking discussion.

  • Joy Keys provides her listeners with insight to improve their lives mentally, physically, monetarily and emotionally. Past guests on the show have included Meshell Nedegeocello, Blair Underwood, in addition to an impressive list of CEOs, humanitarians and authors.

  • Host Barry Moltz gets small businesses unstuck. He has founded and run small businesses with a great deal of success and failure for more than 15 years. This is a business radio show where he shares all the craziness of small business. It?s that craziness that actually makes it exciting, interesting and totally unpredictable.

  • The Bottom Line Sports Show is hosted by former NBA stars Penny Hardaway, Charles Oakley, Mateen Cleaves. Tune in to get the inside scoop on what's happening in sports today.

  • Deepak Chopra Radio provides an online forum for compelling and thought provoking conversations on success, love, sexuality and relationships, well-being and spirituality.

  • Hits Radio covers basketball, sports culture and entertainment with past guests including Jason Kidd, Robin Lundberg and Chris Herren.

  • Listeners get an earful on The Halli Casser-Jayne Show, Talk Radio for Fine Minds. Whether it?s the current political cocktail or the latest must-read award-winning book, Halli tackles all topics and likes to stir ? and sometimes shakes ? things up.

  • Official Internet radio show of forthcoming epic paranormal investigation book by Eric Olsen and "Haunted Housewife" Theresa Argie.

  • Award-winning World Footprints is a leading voice in socially responsible travel and lifestyle. Hosts Ian & Tonya celebrate culture and heritage and bring a unique voice to the world of travel.

  • Football Reporters Online is a group of veteran football experts in the fields of coaching, scouting, talent evaluation, and writing/broadcasting/media placement. Combined, the group brings well over 100 years of expertise in sports.

  • Host John Martin interviews the nation's leading entrepreneurs and small biz experts to educate small business owners on how to be successful. Past guests have included Emeril Lagasse and Guy Kawasaki.

  • The Movie Geeks share their passion for the art through interviews with the stars of and creative minds behind your favorite flicks and pay tribute to big-screen legends. From James Cameron and Francis Ford Coppola to Ellen Burstyn and Robert Duvall, The Geeks have got'em all.

  • Sylvia Global presents global conversations pertaining to women, wealth, business, faith and philanthropy. Sylvia has interviewed an eclectic mix from CEOs and musicians to fashion designers and philanthropists including Randolph Duke and Ne-Yo.

  • Seasoned entertainment reporter Robin Milling gets up close and personal with the world's most compelling celebs. From Michael Douglas to Katie Holmes to Kevin Kline to Ashley Judd to America Ferrera, she sits down in person each week with each and every A-lister.

  • Mr. Media host Bob Andelman goes one-on-one with the hottest, most influential minds from the worlds of film, TV, music, comedy, journalism and literature. That means A-listers like Kirk Douglas, Christian Slater, Kathy Ireland, Rick Fox, Chris Hansen and Jackie Collins.

  • Paula Begoun, best-selling author of Don't Go to the Cosmetics Counter Without Me, separates fact from fiction on achieving a radiant, youthful complexion at any age. She?s regularly joined by health and beauty experts who offer the latest on keeping your skin in tip-top shape.

  • Source: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/anpuastrology/2012/12/30/the-astro-journal-portal-into-the-cosmos-21

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    I love how Twitter viruses use random cash amounts to make you think, "That's go...

    Sorry, Readability was unable to parse this page for content.

    Source: http://www.facebook.com/authorjonacuff/posts/10150268135649950

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    Pagano makes grand entrance in return to sideline

    Indianapolis Colts head coach Chuck Pagano, right, is hugged by general manager Ryan Grigson after he walks onto the field before an NFL football game against the Houston Texans, Sunday, Dec. 30, 2012, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

    Indianapolis Colts head coach Chuck Pagano, right, is hugged by general manager Ryan Grigson after he walks onto the field before an NFL football game against the Houston Texans, Sunday, Dec. 30, 2012, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

    Indianapolis Colts fans welcome head coach Chuck Pagano to the field before an NFL football game against the Houston Texans, Sunday, Dec. 30, 2012, in Indianapolis. Pagano is back as coach after nearly three months of treatments for leukemia. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

    Indianapolis Colts head coach Chuck Pagano acknowledges the fans after walking onto the field before an NFL football game against the Houston Texans, Sunday, Dec. 30, 2012, in Indianapolis. Pagano is back as coach after nearly three months of treatments for leukemia. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

    (AP) ? Colts coach Chuck Pagano received a warm welcome in his return to the sideline Sunday, then watched his team score on its first drive.

    With drums playing and the Colts cheerleaders lining up both sides of an inflatable horse, Pagano walked to his usual spot on the sideline, put on his headphones and hugged his assistants. It was his first appearance on the sideline since he began treatment for leukemia Sept. 26.

    Pagano's Colts took the opening kickoff and drove 75 yards to Andrew Luck's touchdown pass to Coby Fleener. The coach threw his hands in the air and wore a huge smile after Fleener caught the ball to end a 13-play drive.

    Some fans brought signs to show their support for Pagano, and the team welcomed him back with a 1-minute video just before kickoff. Afterward, an emotional Pagano waved to the crowd.

    During pregame warm-ups, Pagano hugged his wife and was followed by a large group of cameras. He shook hands with Texans defensive coordinator Wade Phillips and chatted with Colts GM Ryan Grigson.

    Online: http://pro32.ap.org/poll and http://twitter.com/AP_NFL

    Associated Press

    Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2012-12-30-Colts-Pagano/id-418f4c3ec1d4470e819bee94687ca847

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    Sunday 30 December 2012

    User:TownselMeans855 - Pravus Axiom Holonet

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    Source: http://pravusaxiom.com/swtor/wiki/index.php/User%3ATownselMeans855

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    Ouya releases SDK for $99 game console, shows off developer ...

    Now that Ouya is shipping the first developer kits?of its upcoming $99 Android-based video game console, the company has opened a software developer portal, launched a software developer kit, and shown off an early preview of the user interface.

    The Ouya team has also posted an unboxing video, giving us a good look at the first developer consoles.

    What we?re looking at isn?t the finished hardware. While the developer kits have the same basic specs as the units that will ship to customers in April (including an NVIDIA Tegra 3 quad-core processor, 1GB of RAM, and 8GB of storage), these special edition models have clear plastic cases.

    That means you can see the guts of the Ouya game console without even opening it up ? and the same goes for the 2 wireless controllers that come with the kits.

    Unfortunately the game controllers are still works in progress, and the team is still working out some of the kinks.

    The developer kits also include microUSB ports that let you connect the system to a computer for Android programming and debugging. It?s not clear if the final product will have that port ? but one of the key goals of the Ouya project is to create an open platform, so I can?t see why the consumer device would ship without a microUSB port.

    Meanwhile, folks interested in developing games for the Ouya who haven?t been able to snag one of the limited edition developer kits can check out the Developer Portal for details on coding for the Ouya using off-the-shelf hardware to test their games.

    The Ouya is available for pre-order for $99 plus shipping, and it?s expected to ship in April, 2013.

    via Hacker News

    If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to our RSS feed, follow us on Twitter, or "like" us on Facebook. Thanks for visiting!

    • Game formatDownloadable
    • Drive capacity8 GB
    • Controller typeWireless
    • Video outputsHDMI
    • Announced07/10/2012
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    Source: http://liliputing.com/2012/12/ouya-releases-sdk-for-99-game-console-shows-off-developer-edition-hardware.html

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    Saturday 29 December 2012

    Just Who invented Personal Computers Anyway? | Modern Dignity ...

    Personal Computer

    The personal computer has become so common place that people take it for granted, and assume that it has always been there. But who invented the personal computer? The fact is no single person invented it, but rather it came about due to the works of different people and organizations.

    The 1960s and 1970s

    The very first device that can be labeled as a desktop computer was the Programma 101 developed by Olivetti in 1964. Today however, it will be considered more as a calculator because it was designed to perform arithmetic functions (division, multiplication, addition and subtraction). From 1965 to 1968 the Soviets developed the MIR series of computers for use in scientific research and engineering.

    Notable Developments

    It is worth noting that IBM had developed the hard disk as far back as 1956, but they were not sold on personal computers until the 1990s. Also in 1971, Intel created the Intel 4004, the first microprocessor, and it 1973 IBM developed its SCAMP computer. However, these early computers cost nearly $20,000 and weighed over 50 pounds.

    Other notable developments that influenced the development of personal computers were the Xerox Alto in 1973, created by Xerox?s Palo Alto Research Center (PARC). The Xerox Alto used a graphical user interface which would inspire the Apple Macintosh and Microsoft Windows.

    Microcomputers and the Apple I

    Microcomputers The earliest personal computers were known as microcomputers and available only in kit form. They were mot mass marketed and instead aimed at technicians and hobbyists. Micral N is the earliest microcomputer that used a microprocessor, the Intel 8008. These microcomputers came with keyboards and displays and some had disk drives too.

    In 1976, Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak created the Apple I computer circuit board, but it was the Commodore PET that became the first personal computer to be successfully mss marketed.

    The IBM PC and Windows

    By the 1980s, home computers became more popular and had a limited color range and blocky graphics. The Commodore 64 would go on to sell 17 million copies, making it the best selling personal computer in history.

    The early computers did not come with a hard disk but only with 5 1/4-inch floppy disks. The earliest IBM PCs had only 16 Kilobytes (K) of RAM. These computers used DOS or BASIC. But during the 1990s several technologies were developed such as CD ROMs and most importantly the IBM PC, which the company developed in response to the success of the Apple I and II. The success of the IBM PC and its clones spearheaded the PC revolution. Apple would counter this with the release of the Lisa, a computer with a GUI, mouse, icons and menus.

    In 1992, Microsoft released Windows, a GUI interface/OS for IBM computers. It would become phenomenally successful and sell millions of copies. Windows 3.1 would build on the success of Windows 3.0, forever changing the landscape of personal computing. Around this time, other technological innovations like USB, DVD players, P2P file sharing, writable CDs and of course the Internet spurned its development even more.

    As this guide shows, the answer to who invented the personal computer is that no single one did. It came about because of various technological advances that were made spanning decades. Today the development continues with laptops, tablets and other devices being developed left and right.

    ?

    ?

    Source: http://www.moderndignity.com/just-who-invented-personal-computers-anyway/

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    All eyes on them, Senate leaders seek fiscal deal

    President Barack Obama pauses during a statement on the fiscal cliff negotiations with congressional leaders in the briefing room of the White House on Friday, Dec. 28, 2012 in Washington. The negotiations are a last ditch effort to avoid across-the-board first of the year tax increases and deep spending cuts. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci)

    President Barack Obama pauses during a statement on the fiscal cliff negotiations with congressional leaders in the briefing room of the White House on Friday, Dec. 28, 2012 in Washington. The negotiations are a last ditch effort to avoid across-the-board first of the year tax increases and deep spending cuts. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci)

    Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. leaves the White House in Washington, Friday, Dec. 28, 2012, after a closed-door meeting between President Barack Obama and Congressional leaders to negotiate the framework for a deal on the fiscal cliff. The end game at hand, President Barack Obama and congressional leaders made a final stab at compromise Friday to prevent a toxic blend of middle-class tax increases and spending cuts from taking effect at the turn of the new year. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci)

    Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nev. leaves the White House in Washington, Friday, Dec. 28, 2012, after a closed-door meeting between President Barack Obama and Congressional leaders to negotiate the framework for a deal on the fiscal cliff. The end game at hand, President Barack Obama and congressional leaders made a final stab at compromise Friday to prevent a toxic blend of middle-class tax increases and spending cuts from taking effect at the turn of the new year. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci)

    Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., right, accompanied by the committee's ranking Republican, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., gestures during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, Dec. 28, 2012, to discuss changes in Senate procedural rules. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

    (AP) ? Senate leaders rushed to assemble a last-ditch agreement to avoid middle-class tax increases and possibly delay steep spending cuts in an urgent attempt to find common ground after weeks of postelection gridlock.

    An impatient President Barack Obama pressed top lawmakers to cut a deal, even one that falls short of the ambitions he and congressional leaders may once have harbored for a bigger deficit reduction package. Without a resolution, he warned, "every American's paycheck will get a lot smaller."

    "Congress can prevent it from happening, if they act now," he said in his weekly Saturday radio and internet address.

    Following a White House meeting Friday among Obama and congressional leaders, aides to Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., began racing against the clock for a bipartisan bargain. The leaders could present legislation to senators as early as Sunday, with a vote possible on Sunday or Monday.

    The guest list for the White House meeting included Reid, McConnell, House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, and House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. But the key players were clearly Reid and McConnell, both of whom stayed behind briefly at the White House and huddled with their staffs and Obama's top legislative aide, Rob Nabors, in the West Wing Cabinet Room just outside the Oval Office.

    Neither side expected compromise to be easy. However, McConnell and Reid voiced unexpected optimism that they could work toward a deal that could win support in both their camps.

    Warned Reid: "Whatever we come up with is going to be imperfect."

    Looking to add pressure on negotiators, Obama said that absent a compromise he expects Reid to put legislation on the floor to prevent tax increases on the middle class and extend unemployment benefits ? an implicit challenge to Republicans to dare to vote against what polls show is popular.

    Speaking for Republicans in a Saturday radio address, Sen. Roy Blunt of Missouri sought to put the burden of a deal on Obama and Reid.

    "We still can avoid going over the fiscal cliff if the president and the Democrat-controlled Senate step forward this week and work with Republicans to solve this problem and solve it now," he said.

    Whatever manages to pass in the Senate, with its Democratic majority, would then face a second test in the Republican-controlled House.

    Boehner, a Republican speaker who has struggled recently with anti-tax rebels inside his own party, said through an aide that he would await the results of the talks between the Senate and White House. A House vote could come as late as Wednesday, the final full day before a new Congress takes office.

    Officials said there was a general understanding that any agreement would block scheduled income tax increases for middle-class earners while letting rates rise at upper-income levels.

    Obama was sticking to his campaign call for increases above $250,000 in annual income, even though in recent negotiations he said he could accept $400,000.

    The two sides also confronted a divide over estate taxes. Obama favors a higher tax than is currently in effect, but one senior Republican, Sen. Jon Kyl of Arizona, said he's "totally dead set" against it. Speaking of fellow GOP lawmakers, he said they harbor more opposition to an increase in the estate tax than to letting taxes on income and investments rise at upper levels.

    But the estate tax was more likely to be used as a possible bargaining chip that Democrats could give away in exchange for higher rates for top earners and other Obama priorities.

    Obama and Democrats want to prevent the expiration of unemployment benefits for about 2 million long-term jobless men and women, and there is widespread sentiment in both parties to shelter doctors from a 27 percent cut in Medicare fees.

    Also likely to be included in the negotiations are taxes on dividends and capital gains, both of which are scheduled to rise with the new year. Also the alternative minimum tax, which, if left unchanged, could hit an estimated 28 million households for the first time and mean an average increase of more than $3,000.

    The White House has shown increased concern about a possible doubling of milk prices if a farm bill is not passed in the next few days, although it is not clear whether that issue too might be included in the talks.

    One Republican who was briefed on the White House meeting said Boehner made it clear he would leave in place spending cuts scheduled to take effect unless alternative savings were included in any compromise to offset them. In previous White House proposals, Obama has suggested finding enough cuts in government spending to put off the steeper cuts for up to six months.

    Obama, speaking to reporters following his meeting with the congressional leaders, faulted a system that left crucial decisions to the last minute, a way of governing that he said the public finds "mindboggling."

    "Outside of Washington nobody understands how it is that this seems to be a repeat pattern, over and over again," he said.

    Still, Obama himself is part of the negotiating process, and his meeting with all four top leaders Friday was the first since Nov. 16. A phone call he placed Wednesday night to McConnell was the first the Republican leader had received from a Democrat on the fiscal talks since Thanksgiving.

    Looking to add pressure on negotiators, Obama said he expects Reid to put legislation on the floor to prevent tax increases on the middle class and extend unemployment benefits ? an implicit challenge to Republicans to dare to vote against what polls show is popular.

    The start of negotiations in the Senate marked a new endgame for discussions that have moved in fits and starts since the November election.

    Boehner refused for weeks to accept any rate increases, and simultaneously accused Obama of skimping on the spending cuts he would support as part of a balanced deal to reduce deficits, remove the threat of spending cuts and prevent the across-the-board tax cuts.

    Last week, the Ohio Republican presented a Plan B measure that would have let rates rise on million-dollar earners, well above Obama's latest offer for a $400,000 threshold.

    Facing defeat, Boehner scrapped plans for a vote, leaving the economy on track for the cliff that political leaders in both parties had said they could avoid.

    ___

    Associated Press writers Alan Fram and Andrew Taylor contributed to this report.

    Associated Press

    Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2012-12-29-Fiscal%20Cliff/id-1c73568557094e40bb11f7a3eaf5a39c

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    Video: Hawaii Lt. Gov. Schatz to succeed ?Inouye

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    Source: http://video.today.msnbc.msn.com/today/50303022/

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    Indian rape victim fighting for her life

    NEW DELHI (AP) ? The victim of a gang-rape in New Delhi fought for her life at a Singapore hospital Friday as officials in the Indian state of Punjab fired and suspended police officers accused of ignoring the rape of another woman, who then committed suicide.

    Indian authorities have been accused of belittling rape victims and refusing to file cases against their attackers, further deterring victims ? already under societal pressure to keep the assaults quiet ? from reporting the crimes.

    However, the gang-rape of the 23-year-old student on a moving bus in the capital two weeks ago has brought new focus on police and community attitudes toward woman in India. Demonstrators in New Delhi have demanded stronger protections for women and stronger punishment for rapists.

    Authorities in Punjab took action Thursday when an 18-year-old woman killed herself by drinking poison a month after she told police she was gang-raped.

    State authorities suspended one police officer and fired two others on accusations they delayed investigating and taking action in the case. The three accused in the rape were only arrested Thursday night, a month after the crime was reported.

    "This is a very sensitive crime, I have taken it very seriously," said Paramjit Singh Gill, a top police officer in the city of Patiala.

    The Press Trust of India reported that the woman was raped Nov. 13 and reported the attack to police Nov. 27. But police harassed the girl, asked her embarrassing questions and took no action against the accused, PTI reported, citing police sources.

    Authorities in the eastern state of Chhattisgarh also suspended a police officer on accusations he refused to register a rape complaint from a woman who said she had been attacked by a driver.

    Meanwhile, doctors in Singapore said the New Delhi gang-rape victim remained in extremely critical condition, had suffered a heart attack, a lung and abdominal infection and "significant" brain injury.

    "The patient is currently struggling against the odds, and fighting for her life," said Mount Elizabeth Hospital chief executive Dr. Kelvin Loh.

    Police have arrested six people in connection with the attack, which left the victim with severe internal injuries.

    "We wish she recovers and comes back to us and that no time is lost in bringing the perpetrators of such a barbaric act to justice," said Sonia Gandhi, head of the ruling Congress Party.

    Other politicians have come under fire for comments insulting the protesters and diminishing the crime.

    On Friday, Abhijit Mukherjee, a national lawmaker and the son of India's president, apologized for calling the protesters "highly dented and painted" women, who go from discos to demonstrations.

    "I tender my unconditional apology to all the people whose sentiments got hurt," he told NDTV news.

    ___

    Follow Ravi Nessman at twitter at http://www.twitter.com/ravinessman

    Source: http://news.yahoo.com/indian-rape-victim-fighting-her-life-060636406.html

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    Friday 28 December 2012

    Jenne Expands Avaya's Radvision Scopia Offering for Resellers | IT ...

    Providing Training Through Jenne University and a Range of Dedicated Pre- and Post-Sales Support

    First Classes on Innovative Videoconferencing Technology Solutions Begin on January 21st and Will Cover Scopia Solution for Video Communications

    AVON, OH?(Marketwire ? Dec 27, 2012) ? ?Jenne, Inc., a leading value-added distributor of IP telephony, audio and video conferencing, unified communications, data networking and IT security products, announced that it is now providing comprehensive training on the Avaya video portfolio, beginning with a course on the Avaya Scopia solution and taking place next month at Jenne University. Jenne, which is now an Avaya Connect Value Add Distributor, has also completed the stringent requirements of the Authorized Avaya Learning Partner (AALP), with access to Avaya Learning training and materials.

    In addition to being an authorized distributor for the entire Scopia product line, Jenne is also currently offering comprehensive support services on the entire Scopia portfolio, including pre- and post-sales support, configuration services, installation and implementation services as well as full contract renewal management services.

    Jenne University will be offering ?Avaya Scopia Solution for Video Communications? at its state of the art training facilities in Avon, OH. The class will take place on a quarterly basis, with the first session scheduled for January 21-25, 2013. Avaya?s Scopia product portfolio provides comprehensive and powerful visual communications solutions that allow advanced voice, data and video conferencing. Next month?s course is designed for systems engineers and IT managers and offers a comprehensive overview on features, operations and benefits of the Scopia solution. Following the course, students will be able to:

    • Identify Scopia endpoint functionality and?capabilities
    • Match Scopia components to various deployment?scenarios
    • Install and configure Scopia endpoint?components
    • Create and manage a conference
    • Install and configure the MCU, Scopia desktop,?and Scopia Management Suite
    • Troubleshoot the Scopia solution with component?logs and network traces covering call failures, endpoint to MCU calls,?point to point calls, PathFinder issues and video/audio issues

    ?Avaya?s Scopia videoconferencing solutions present an enormous opportunity for resellers serving all sizes of markets, and by offering these innovative products in combination with top-notch training through Jenne University, we are helping Avaya Connect partners take advantage of a business opportunity and to be more competitive,? commented Jim Karaffa, director of training and technical services, Jenne. ?As an Avaya Authorized Learning Partner, we have worked very closely with Avaya to implement what we consider to be the best certified training and support capabilities available in distribution for the Scopia solution, being able to fully certify our students here at Jenne University via the PearsonVue testing process adds a distinct advantage to our offering.?

    Radvision, an Avaya Company, has been a leader and innovator in the development of videoconferencing technology and solutions for the past 20 years. Since last September, Jenne began distributing the entire Scopia portfolio, helping Avaya Connect partners increase their ability to deliver comprehensive video communications solutions to a broad range of end-users in the SMB, mid-tier and enterprise markets.

    ?With its immediate stock availability, training offering and comprehensive product support, Jenne is able to offer a multi-dimensional Scopia solution,? commented Karl Soderlund, vice president, Americas Channel Sales, Avaya. ?Its new course on Scopia video conferencing will help Avaya Connect partners deliver an expanded range of high-quality communications experiences to their customers, while providing resellers new revenue opportunities through enhanced real time collaboration solutions.?

    Thousands of enterprises around the world already rely on the Scopia solution, which is known for its rich interoperability and interconnectivity for any standards-based video-enabled device, regardless of the communication network. Scopia is an end-to-end video communications solution that includes multi-point conferencing units, firewall traversal, desktop conferencing and management for voice, video and data. The system can be used to connect meeting rooms, desktop users and mobile users in a variety of setups ranging from SMB environments to large-scale, distributed network deployments.

    The Scopia product portfolio is among the most innovative and value-based videoconferencing solutions in the market and includes such features as:

    • Desktop and mobile video conferencing solutions that fully support iOS and Android devices, as well as Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) initiatives
    • The only system on the market (Scopia XT5000) to incorporate dual 1080p/60fps live video and content, H.264 High Profile and H.264 Scalable Video Coding (SVC)
    • The Scopia Executive solution supports multi-party conferencing for impromptu group meetings and includes a high resolution LED display for detailed content sharing
    • The simplest and most affordable SMB video solution combining HD video room system capabilities with the market?s highest capacity embedded MCU for multi-party conferencing, desktop and mobile video collaboration, along with integrated firewall traversal
    • Comprehensive video management delivery, control and scheduling for robust, easy-to-use conferencing with deployments including Scopia as well as third-party systems
    • Extremely high UC connectivity capabilities, high UC connectivity with interoperability provided between any standards-based video enabled device, along with Avaya and other market leading unified communications solutions

    Avaya Connect partners interested in learning more about the new Scopia course being offered through Jenne University should contact Erica Butler at (800) 422-6191, extension 3130 or email hidden; JavaScript is required. Partners who are interested learning more about the Avaya Scopia product solution should contact Jenne sales at (800) 422-6191.

    Source: http://itresellerworld.com/2012/12/27/jenne-expands-avayas-radvision-scopia-offering-for-resellers-2/

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    Mimicking a natural defense against malaria to develop new treatments

    Dec. 27, 2012 ? One of the world's most devastating diseases is malaria, responsible for at least a million deaths annually, despite global efforts to combat it. Researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, working with collaborators from Drexel University, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, and Johns Hopkins University, have identified a protein in human blood platelets that points to a powerful new weapon against the disease.

    Their work was published in this months' issue of Cell Host and Microbe.

    Malaria is caused by parasitic microorganisms of the Plasmodium genus, which infect red blood cells. Recent research at other universities showed that blood platelets can bind to infected red blood cells and kill the parasite, but the exact mechanism was unclear. The investigators on the Cell Host and Microbe paper hypothesized that it might involve host defense peptides (HDP) secreted by the platelets.

    "We eventually found that a single protein secreted when platelets are activated called human platelet factor 4 [hPF4] actually kills parasites that are inside red cells without harming the red cell itself," explains senior author Doron Greenbaum, PhD, assistant professor of Pharmacology, whose team studies innovative ways to fight malaria. The hPF4 targets a specific organelle of the Plasmodium falciparum parasite called the digestive vacuole, which essentially serves as its "stomach" for the digestion of hemoglobin. The investigators found that hPF4 destroys the vacuole with a deadly speed of minutes or even seconds, killing the parasite without affecting the host cell.

    While host defense peptides appear to be attractive therapeutic agents, the expense of manufacturing this protein lessens its potential impact on the treatment of malaria. Greenbaum and colleagues set out to discover whether synthetic molecules mimicking the structure of HDPs could have similar beneficial effects against the Plasmodium parasite. After screening approximately 2000 small molecule HDP mimics (smHDPs) developed by biotech company PolyMedix, Inc. of Radnor, PA, Greenbaum and his team found that "all of the best hits had the same mechanism of action against Plasmodium parasites."

    Like the natural hPF4 found in platelets, the most effective smHDPs tested targeted only infected red blood cells, attacking and destroying the parasite in exactly the same way, but with even greater potency and speed. "The smHDPs get into infected red cells and lyse or basically destroy the digestive vacuole or stomach of the parasite more rapidly than the hPF4 protein," Greenbaum notes. "The protein from platelets is about 25 times less potent, but the surprising thing is they act with the same mechanism. With ease, within seconds, they destroy the vacuole of the parasite."

    Greenbaum's team settled on two compounds, PMX1207 and PMX207, for testing in mouse models of malaria. Both compounds significantly decreased parasitic growth and greatly improved survival rates, providing further confirmation of the potential of smHDPs as antimalarial agents. The work, Greenbaum says, shows that "we can translate a natural arm of the innate immune system in platelets to drug-like small molecules that we are honing to become potent, selective, potentially less toxic, and cheaper to make as an antimalarial."

    Aside from their great effectiveness, smHDPs may have several other advantages over other antimalarial therapies. As Plasmodium inevitably adapts and becomes resistant to a particular drug therapy, the efficacy of that treatment decreases and survival rates drop. By mimicking the body's own natural defenses, the new HDP-centered approach could avoid that pitfall. "Certainly with malaria we've had a lot of problems in the last 20 years with resistance," Greenbaum explains. "One of the unique features of the synthetic HDPs is that studies show that pathogens have a difficult time generating resistance to them, because they attack membranes, not proteins. So they might be intrinsically more difficult to become resistant against."

    Although Greenbaum's team focused mostly on the chronic red-blood-cell stage of malaria, their HDP-mimic also shows promise against other stages of the disease. "We think that the mimics would be useful as a transmission-blocking therapeutic," Greenbaum says. "In other words, you prevent transmission from human to mosquito and therefore back to human again. We have positive data for those two stages. It's becoming increasingly more important in antimalarial drug development that people think more and more about multistage inhibition."

    The next step for Greenbaum's team is to further hone the selectivity and potency of the smHDP compounds, while developing them into drugs that can be orally administered. As Greenbaum explains, practical antimalarials need to be "taken as pills rather than having to be used intravenously, which is not going to be appropriate for treatment in endemic countries, especially in more rural environments."

    Co-authors are Melissa S. Love, Melanie G. Millholland, Satish Mishra, Swapnil Kulkarni, Katie B. Freeman, Wenxi Pan, Robert W. Kavash, Michael J. Costanzo, Hyunil Jo, Thomas M. Daly, Dewight R. Williams, M. Anna Kowalska, Lawrence W. Bergman, Mortimer Poncz, William F. DeGrado, Photini Sinnis, and Richard W. Scott.

    The research was funded by the National Institutes of Health (R44 AI090762-0; NIHT32GM08076; NIHT32AI007532; R01 AI056840); a Penn TAPITMAT Pilot Program; the Penn Genome Frontiers Institute; and a Gates Grand Challenges Exploration Program.

    Share this story on Facebook, Twitter, and Google:

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    Story Source:

    The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

    Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.


    Journal Reference:

    1. Melissa?S. Love, Melanie?G. Millholland, Satish Mishra, Swapnil Kulkarni, Katie?B. Freeman, Wenxi Pan, Robert?W. Kavash, Michael?J. Costanzo, Hyunil Jo, Thomas?M. Daly, Dewight?R. Williams, M.?Anna Kowalska, Lawrence?W. Bergman, Mortimer Poncz, William?F. DeGrado, Photini Sinnis, Richard?W. Scott, Doron?C. Greenbaum. Platelet Factor 4 Activity against P.?falciparum and Its Translation to Nonpeptidic Mimics as Antimalarials. Cell Host & Microbe, 2012; 12 (6): 815 DOI: 10.1016/j.chom.2012.10.017

    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://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_health/~3/Az0RV2Wy5vY/121227130208.htm

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    NewsDaily: Exclusive: Profits up, but Britain gets less tax from big firms

    Exclusive: Profits up, but Britain gets less tax from big firms


    By Tom BerginPosted 2012/12/27 at 4:09 am EST

    LONDON, Dec. 27, 2012 (Reuters) ? Big companies in Britain now pay less tax than they did 12 years ago despite a big jump in profitability, a Reuters analysis of official data shows. Tax campaigners say the trend is the clearest signal yet that tax avoidance has blossomed under a more business-friendly strategy at the UK tax authority Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC).

    A sign is seen outside a Starbucks Coffee shop in central London December 3, 2012. REUTERS/Andrew Winning


    Large companies' payments of corporation tax - the UK equivalent of corporate income tax - totaled 21 billion pounds ($34 billion) in 2011/12, HMRC data shows. That was down five billion pounds or 21 percent since 2000/01 when the government, then controlled by the Labour Party, took the first steps towards a more collaborative approach to big business.

    At the same time, the gross operating surplus for all companies in the UK - a widely watched measure of companies' profitability compiled by the Office of National Statistics - has risen 65 percent, to 329 billion pounds. The economy has grown by 55 percent over the same period, and receipts of both personal income tax and small companies' income tax are higher.

    HMRC and the finance ministry denied the figures showed an increase in tax avoidance - legal tactics used by multinationals such as Google, Amazon and Starbucks. They cited recent economic weakness and lower corporation tax rates. The UK's official corporation tax rate was steady at 30 percent between 2000 and 2007 but has been gradually cut. In the last tax year it was 26 percent.

    Reuters calculations show the lower tax rate and the weak economy account for about half the fall, leaving around 2.6 billion pounds of the difference in the amount of corporate tax paid between 2000/01 and 2011/12 unaccounted for.

    John Christensen of Tax Justice Network, a tax campaigningoogleg group, said the figures show successive governments' attempts to create a more business-friendly administration - which includes a policy known as "enhanced relationship" based on mutual trust - have encouraged companies to use such tactics.

    "These figures tell a more powerful story than any figures I have seen so far," he said, adding that senior HMRC staff had told him in recent years that they were "alarmed" at the drop in payments from large companies. HMRC defines these as firms with annual profit of more than 1.5 million pounds.

    The finance ministry declined to comment on the calculations.

    "PARADOXICAL"

    Prem Sikka, a professor of accounting at Essex University who has written extensively about tax avoidance, said that even allowing for the tax cut, the figures were "paradoxical".

    "How are they managing to reconcile higher profits with lower taxes?" he said. "It can't be done ... unless they are booking these profits somewhere else." Companies reporting for tax purposes are increasingly diverting UK profits to lower-tax jurisdictions, he said.

    Google, for example, channels $4 billion of UK sales through Ireland each year, most of which ends up in Bermuda. Google said it complies with tax law in every country in which it operates but that it also has an obligation to its shareholders "to run our business efficiently".

    When shown the calculations, an HMRC spokesman said the downward trend may also have been emphasized by a shift in the way taxes were paid from 1999 which led to "elements of double counting" in 2000/01 and 2001/02. That could make revenues in those years look artificially high. He declined to quantify the impact of this.

    Sikka dismissed the impact of this change.

    "That wouldn't make any difference to the total tax liability," he said.

    HMRC's own data does not point to a spike in corporation tax payments over the period the changes were initiated.

    Total corporation tax payments were just 2 billion pounds higher in 2001-2002 than in 1998-1999, a rise of 7 percent, while GDP rose 16 percent over the period.

    The government's tax minister, David Gauke, who has described corporation tax as one of "the most economically damaging taxes", called the tax authority's current approach "very successful" in a September speech. He declined requests for an interview.

    (Edited by Sara Ledwith and Simon Robinson)

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    Source: http://www.newsdaily.com/stories/bre8bq02v-us-tax-britain-bigfirms/

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    Thursday 27 December 2012

    Video: Alabama dad 'shocked' by BCS Christmas gift

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    Source: http://video.today.msnbc.msn.com/today/50295993/

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    93% Zero Dark Thirty

    All Critics (85) | Top Critics (25) | Fresh (79) | Rotten (6)

    What it does in the course of telling a seminal story of our time is what contemporary films so rarely do, serve as brilliant provocation.

    The genius of "Zero Dark Thirty" is that we feel exactly what those involved must have felt at the end. Not elation. Not the thrill of victory. Just relief.

    A powerful, morally complicated work on an urgent subject. It is a film that deserves-that almost demands-to be seen and argued over.

    Movies must move, and this one just lies there like a stack of paper from a classified government filing cabinet.

    [Chastain's performance has] a lot of colors, and angles, and is guaranteed to be remembered come awards time. Maya's a real character, all right.

    Kathryn Bigelow proves herself once again to be a master of heightened realism and narrative drive in this retelling of the decade-long search for Osama bin Laden.

    It's like "All the President's Men" with torture and explosions, but no mention of presidents...

    The decision one has to make is whether it's worth sitting through the first two hours, that provide a fine antidote for insomnia, to see the final 37 minutes.

    A masterful piece of action filmmaking that succeeds in generating enormous tension by dramatizing a recent historical event in spite of the fact that everyone knows how it will end.

    What makes the movie so effective is its protagonist, a doggedly determined CIA agent played by Jessica Chastain, who never loses sight of her goal in spite of repeated setbacks and bouts of political in-fighting.

    The problem at the center of Zero Dark Thirty is that knowing and not knowing constitute a process, a process in which people tell lies and get hurt, in which costs can be overwhelming.

    With a protagonist you lack the desire to root for and subject matter that's been shoved down our throats in the 11 years since 9/11, This is one of the only films this year where battling heavy eyelids is more exciting than the film itself.

    The result is a remarkably thorough, unexpectedly cinematic, two-and-half-hour chronicle of American persistence.

    There is something definitive about Zero Dark Thirty as a piece of filmmaking, as though Bigelow is concluding the entire ordeal for us on the big screen, as a film that could well earn her yet another Oscar.

    While the film may not be the best of the year, its true winner is Jessica Chastain's knock-out, Oscar-worthy performance.

    Zero Dark Thirty is a skillful -- and somewhat cautious -- look at military bureaucracy. It's both hampered and elevated by its dependence on authenticity.

    Don't mess with the chicks. Osama bin Laden did, and look what happened to him.

    Kathryn Bigelow's painstaking account of the events that led to the killing of Osama bin Laden favors dramatization over character and suspense.

    There's no more perfect title for a film this year, because it manages to suggest a witching hour, a veil of deadly secrecy, and a pinpoint-honed logistical operation all at once.

    A feverishly thrilling, decade-spanning CIA procedural.

    This is next-level filmmaking -- smart, brave and intense.

    Zero Dark Thirty has nary a wasted scene and very little in the way of respite from the intensity and power of its story and execution.

    Achieves something rare, presenting a hot-button subject-torture-without the usual moral nudging.

    Source: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/zero_dark_thirty/

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