Saturday, December 31, 2011

Theme parks look to keep the magic alive

Scott Audette / Reuters

Daniel Radcliffe, center, and members of the cast of "Harry Potter" wave their wands during the grand opening celebration for The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studio Resort in Orlando in 2010. The attraction has been a huge success, and is changing the way theme parks operate.

By Rob Lovitt, msnbc.com contributor

Cue the foreboding movie music: Da-dum, daa-dum, daa-dum da-dum da dum ...

This time, though, it?s not a swimmer that?s about to go under but rather the great white shark itself. On Jan. 2, Jaws, one of the original and most iconic rides at Universal Studios Florida, will kick the proverbial chum bucket.

In the end, the cause of death wasn?t a rocket-propelled grenade ? as in the ride?s original incarnation ? or electrocution ? as in subsequent years ? but rather a combination of low-tech effects, changing tastes and a drift toward irrelevance.

Ah, Bruce, as the mechanical shark was affectionately known, they hardly knew ye.

?The ride has sentimental value, but beyond that it?s time had come,? said John Gerner, managing director of Leisure Business Advisors LLC. ?The movie was huge in the ?70s but there a lot of people now who weren?t even born when it came out.?

While Universal executives are not revealing what will take the place of Jaws, it doesn?t take a boy wizard to figure out that theme parks are increasingly changing their focus from their own brands to other creative properties that come with their own built-in audiences.

?In the past, parks would make a ride of the movie they owned simply to help the movie,? said Gerner. ?Now it?s more important to link to a strong brand than to promote their own.?

For proof, one need only look a half-mile south to Universal?s Islands of Adventure park where The Wizarding World of Harry Potter has reinvigorated attendance and revenues. Wildly popular, the attraction has boosted admissions to the park 40 to 50 percent since opening 18 months ago, reports the Associated Press.

Tourists overwhelmed Disney World, Legoland and other top Florida theme parks this week, forcing them to temporarily deny entry to incoming visitors. NBC's Kerry Sanders reports.

That success also explains NBC Universal's announcement in early December that it would build a second Wizarding World at Universal Studios Hollywood and expand the attraction in Orlando.

(Msnbc.com is a joint venture of Microsoft and NBC Universal.)

Park officials have offered no details on either development, but the latter already has Potter fans fantasizing about a Hogwarts Express train running between Islands of Adventure and the erstwhile Jaws site, presumably reconfigured as a bit of London or Little Whinging.

Slideshow: Inside the Wizarding World of Harry Potter

Whether the Jaws site will, indeed, boast a Diagon Alley or the Dursleys? hometown is unknown, but whatever takes the big fish?s place will no doubt adhere to the new rules of theme-park development: Boosting admission is a good thing, but boosting the sale of food, beverage and merchandise is where the real magic happens.

?The real success story with Harry Potter is not necessarily the increase in admissions but rather the increase in merchandise sales for Universal,? said Chad Emerson, the author of several books on theme parks. ?The wands and butterbeer are driving the popularity of that attraction.

?If they replace Jaws with an attraction that can sell widgets that people want to buy, that?ll go a long way toward the balance sheet of investing in it,? he told msnbc.com.

More stories you might like:

Rob Lovitt is a longtime travel writer who still believes the journey is as important as the destination. Follow him at Twitter.

Source: http://todaytravel.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/12/27/9746022-a-shuttered-shark-a-wizards-wand-and-the-new-rules-of-attractions

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Android App for Mobile Users Gives Peek into Hollywood Celebrity Locales Across USA

?

December 30, 2011 --

San Francisco, CA (PRWEB) December 30, 2011

Star Struck, an Android Market App released by 78x36 Productions for movie celebrity fans located throughout the USA including Miami, New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Texas and more. Twilight fans take note, listed amongst the Popular Search, are all the stops in the Portland area where filming took place.

While in LA or NYC, users can immediately locate new and noteworthy Hollywood Celebrity hangouts and upcoming popular new locales by accessing this apps Hot Spot Guide.
Following 78x36 Productions release on the App Store for the iPhone, iPod touch, and the iPad, the star map celebrity tour favorite is now available to users of the Android operating system, with over a billion downloads and counting.

Search by entering movie name, actor name, or by location, and users are rewarded with a plethora of information about what scenes were filmed and where. "Users are often surprised how close they are to movie set locations used to film, even in their hometowns." "They have no idea how close they are standing near sacred ground!" Star Struck - Hollywood Celebrity Tour makes it easy to find and actually get to these places.



Now Available:

On Android Market:

https://market.android.com/search?q=star+struck+hollywood&c=apps

On the App Store:

Star Struck - Hollywood Celebrity Tour can be found at http://itunes.com/apps/starstruckhollywoodcelebritytourusa

78x36 Productions is an independent developer of applications targeting platforms on iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, and now on Android. Specializing in gaming, reference, lifestyle, entertainment, and travel mobile device applications, our popular titles include- casual gaming MEDINA - WARNING Highly Addictive, tennis reference 10S REF, and entertaining STAR STRUCK Hollywood Celebrity Tour USA.

###

Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/2011/12/prweb9069949.htm.

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Related Sites: CEN - Consumer Electronics Net , ? CEN - PDAs , ? CEN - iPod , ? VideoBasedTutorials

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Source: http://www.consumerelectronicsnet.com/articles/viewarticle.jsp?id=1818612

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Friday, December 30, 2011

A Rusted Look at The Iron Lady (Powerlineblog)

Share With Friends: Share on FacebookTweet ThisPost to Google-BuzzSend on GmailPost to Linked-InSubscribe to This Feed | Rss To Twitter | Politics - Top Stories Stories, News Feeds and News via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/181197860?client_source=feed&format=rss

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Twitter and Social Media not working.


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Twitter and Social Media not working.
So I just bought Tropico 4 off of steam and when ever I try the Twitter and Facebook stuff it claims that I'm not connected to the internet. It also doesn't minimize that game like it says it's going to do.

Anyone else have a similar problem or know what is wrong with it?

Today 06:28 AM


User(s) browsing this thread: 1 Guest(s)

Source: http://forum.kalypsomedia.com/showthread.php?tid=12980

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Missouri's 2012 SEC football schedule

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) ? The Southeastern Conference released its 2012 schedules Wednesday:

___

MISSOURI

Sept. 1: open date or non-conference opponent

Sept. 8: Georgia

Sept. 15: Arizona St.

Sept. 22: at South Carolina

Sept. 29: open date or non-conference opponent

Oct. 6: Vanderbilt

Oct. 13: Alabama

Oct. 20: open date or non-conference opponent

Oct. 27: Kentucky

Nov. 3: at Florida

Nov. 10: at Tennessee

Nov. 17: open date or non-conference opponent

Nov. 24: at Texas A&M

Source: http://www.digitalburg.com/artman2/publish/Other_Sports_111/Missouri_s_2012_SEC_football_schedule.shtml

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Thursday, December 29, 2011

NYTimes offers discounts in mistaken email gaffe (AP)

NEW YORK ? In today's digital age, it's easy to send out an email by mistake ? even for a company that's in the business of communication.

The New York Times thought it was sending an email to a few hundred people who had recently canceled subscriptions, offering them a 50 percent discount for 16 weeks to lure them back.

Instead, Wednesday's offer went to 8.6 million email addresses of people who had given them to the Times.

That was the first mistake. The second came when the Times tweeted this: "If you received an email today about canceling your NYT subscription, ignore it. It's not from us."

But the Times did send the original email, Times spokeswoman Eileen Murphy said.

"This email should have been sent to a very small number of subscribers, but instead was sent to a vast distribution list made up of people who had previously provided their email address to The New York Times. We regret the error," Murphy said in an email.

"The initial tweet was in error and we regret the mistake," she added.

The damage had already been done, however.

Many people called or wrote in. The newspaper initially honored the discount, even to people who were already paying full price and had no plans to cancel. Murphy said the newspaper stopped giving out discounts to people who received the email in error by early afternoon. She did not say how much the gaffe cost the company or specify how many people contacted the newspaper.

A parody Twitter account called (at)NYTSpam amassed 152 followers by Wednesday afternoon by making fun of the slip-up. The account's description of itself says: "Parody account. Not affiliated with (at)NYTimes or actual spammers -- just sick of bad digital strategy."

The newspaper has made big strides in raising revenue from digital subscriptions. It says it has gained 324,000 digital subscribers since restricting full online access to paying subscribers in March.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/tech/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111228/ap_on_hi_te/us_new_york_times_erroneous_email

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India tycoon's got tons of cash, nowhere to invest (AP)

MUMBAI, India ? Ajay Piramal is sitting on a mountain of cash. Yet the billionaire Indian tycoon, working in one of the world's fastest growing economies, is struggling to figure out what to do with the money.

The problem isn't opportunity, he said. It's India.

"Every large investment, there was no transparency," Piramal said.

His dilemma is a worrying sign for India. With the country mired in corruption, bureaucratic red tape and unclear and changing government policies, many of the men who made their billions here are saying maybe it's time to quit India. It's got to be easier to do business elsewhere.

In May last year, Piramal's healthcare business sold its generic drug operations to U.S. pharmaceutical giant Abbott Laboratories for $3.8 billion. Piramal, a tall big man in a country that still measures prosperity by girth, was eager to set that cash pile to work. He wanted to expand one of his chemical plants, but was told it would take five years.

"The same plant could be set up in China in two years," he said. "I love India, but my customer is not going to wait."

India, still a beacon of relatively fast growth despite a troubled world economy, should be a magnet for capital. Instead, since the beginning of 2010, the amount that Indians have invested in businesses overseas has exceeded the amount foreigners are investing in India, according to central bank figures.

In part this reflects the confidence and aptitude of India's maturing companies and the current malaise in the global economy and financial markets. But it also reflects deep problems at home. India's big coporations may be cash rich but the failure to invest that money domestically is bad news for a developing country that needs capital to build the roads, power plants and food warehouses that could help lift hundreds of millions out of dire poverty.

The frustration of India's business elite with corruption, political paralysis, log-jammed approvals, regulatory flip-flops, lack of access to natural resources and land acquisition battles ? to pick a few of the top complaints ? has reached a pitch perhaps not heard since India began liberalizing its economy in the early 1990s.

"If you are an honest businessman in India, it's very difficult to start up anything," said Jamshyd Godrej, chairman of manufacturing giant Godrej & Boyce. "Companies are going to operate where they see the best opportunities and efficiency for their capital."

Increasingly, that's outside India.

In 2008, foreigners poured roughly twice as much direct investment into India ? $33 billion ? as Indians plowed into businesses overseas. By 2010, that had reversed: Indians invested $40 billion abroad ? twice as much as foreigners invested in India ? a trend that's continued this year.

There is another, unspoken element to all the complaints. To the extent that business in India ran on corruption, some of the old, dirty ways of doing things are being disrupted, freezing India's already glacial bureaucracy, business leaders say.

Scandals in the staging of the Commonwealth Games, the pilfering of homes meant for war widows and the irregular auction of cellphone spectrum that cost the country billions has sent parliamentarians and even a Cabinet minister to prison.

With Indians tiring of the incessant graft, tens of thousands of middle-class protesters poured into the streets and pushed an anti-corruption bill onto the floor of Parliament.

Steelmakers can't get enough iron ore because a massive mining scandal in the southern state of Karnataka prompted a court to order the closure of illicit mines that account for a fifth of iron ore production in the country.

The bureaucrats ? even the honest ones ? are reportedly so scared of being punished they are refusing to make the decisions needed to make the country run.

Piramal is not unpatriotic. Each room in his executive suite is named after an Indian epic hero: Arjuna, the most pure; Dhananjay, acquirer and master of wealth. There's a quote from the Upanishads scriptures on the wall.

His office sits in a one million square foot office park in Mumbai his family built. The buildings around him ? white with blue glass that flashes back the unforgiving sun ? bear his own name in large black letters: Piramal Towers.

Piramal had the will and the means to build power plants and roads.

Instead, his Piramal Group's largest investment to date has been in one of the office park's tenants: the Indian subsidiary of the British telecom giant Vodafone Plc.

Last September, when he got the first payout, of $2.2 billion, from Abbott, the phone started ringing.

"Because people knew we had money, we had so many people approaching us for projects in the infrastructure sector," he said. "These people had no experience and no knowledge and no track record of having built a business in any area. And yet they were coming to us saying we have licenses and approvals. That just didn't sound right or smell right."

Each day, they paraded through his office: The investment banker who decided to build a 500 megawatt power plant, the coal trader assured of a government coal allocation, small-time miners with pretty presentations promising land, licenses and financing.

"They'd name politicians from the center and the state who had it all tied up for them," he said. "It didn't sound right. Obviously there were things going on in the system."

Road and port projects weren't much better, he said.

Piramal also looked at investing in engineering and infrastructure services companies, but couldn't make sense of their books.

"We couldn't find anything," he said. "People get greedy. In their desire to get good valuations they resort to, if I can say, creative accounting."

Today, India's infrastructure companies are known as great wealth destroyers.

"Infrastructure investment has become untouchable, a sure way of losing money," said Jagannadham Thunuguntla, head of research at SMC Global Securities. He calculates that four of India's top infrastructure companies ? GMR Infrastructure, GVK Power and Infrastructure, Lanco Infratech and Punj Lloyd ? have lost over 80 percent of their value since 2007. A fifth, Larson & Toubro is down 50 percent.

Piramal may have dodged a bullet, but shareholders in Piramal Healthcare aren't happy. Despite a $600 million special dividend and share buyback, the share price has sagged since the Abbott deal was announced on May 21 last year. They'd like to see the Abbott cash productively deployed. Instead, much of it is sitting in fixed deposit accounts.

Piramal said he really does want to run a pharmaceutical company and be the first Indian company to discover a world-class drug ? despite his dabbling in telecom, financial services and real estate financing. It's just that pharma can't absorb all his cash. He plans to sell the 5.5 percent stake he picked up in Vodafone Essar for $640 million in a few years, when Vodafone Essar issues shares in an initial public offering, he said.

He has also launched Piramal Capital, to make real estate and infrastructure loans, and spent about $50 million to acquire IndiaReit, a real estate investment company.

Meanwhile, his thoughts have turned to Boston, where he set up IndUS Growth Partners with a professor from Harvard Business School to look for buying opportunities in the U.S., in security, financial services and biotechnology. And he said he's still planning to spend over a billion dollars on biotechnology acquisitions in North America and Europe.

"India was going more towards capitalism than socialism," Piramal said. "I think we're going back. Capitalism went to too much excess. Corruption levels went to the extreme."

He said he'll announce his first overseas acquisition by March.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111227/ap_on_bi_ge/as_india_billionaire_blues

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Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Europe will test stocks' 'Santa rally' this week

Get ready. The last trading week of the year will be a test for stocks to prove whether they have the strength to carry a rally into next year.

The broad S&P 500 index broke through its 200-day moving average on Friday after turning positive for the year as a four-day rally lifted stocks following a spell of better-than-expected economic data. At Friday's close, the S&P 500 was up 0.6 percent for the year.

But despite the recent economic data that suggest the U.S. economy is on the right track to recovery, Europe's sovereign debt crisis is troubling investors and weighing on the market.

Many market participants are reluctant to believe in a "Santa Claus rally" this year, which refers to stocks' seasonal tendency to gain in the final five trading days of the year and first two trading days of the new year.

Warnings from major credit rating agencies on a potential downgrade of several European nations have kept investors on edge. After Standard & Poor's surprised financial markets back in August with a downgrade of the United States' triple-A credit rating on a Friday evening, investors worry a similar move could come at any time - even between Christmas and New Year's.

But the absence of European sovereign bond auctions for the next two weeks could lend support to stocks.

"The fact that there won't be a (European) bond auction until the second week of January, that takes away some spotlight from Europe, at least for a little while," TD Ameritrade chief derivatives strategist J.J. Kinahan said.

"Unless we get earth-shattering news, the S&P could go up to (the) 1,300 levels," he said.

The S&P 500 closed on Friday at 1,265.33.

The correlation between U.S. stocks and European sovereign bond yields has been high, especially the link with Spanish, Italian and German bonds. A poor bond auction in any one of these countries could trigger an instant selloff in the U.S. stock market.

What happens this week is important as it sets a tone for the coming year.

"If Santa should fail to call, bears may come to Broad & Wall," so goes the Wall Street adage, according to the Stock Trader's Almanac.

Ari Wald, a technical strategist at Brown Brothers Harriman, said the key level on the S&P 500 to watch is 1,260, which is a resistance from the index's downward sloping 200-day moving average and the downtrend connecting its October and December peaks.

"A breakout above this supply would argue for continued seasonal strength through the first quarter of 2012," he said.

He also noted that 1,200 is support from the index's downward sloping 100-day moving average and the uptrend connecting its October & November lows.

"A breach of this demand could stir additional technical selling to 1,130-1,150 intermediate-term support," Wald said.

With many investors absent until the start of 2012, trading volume is expected to be light, creating more volatility.

This week's data includes the S&P 500 Case-Shiller House Price Index and consumer confidence data on Tuesday.

The Chicago Purchasing Managers Index and pending home sales data are due on Thursday. After a strong gain in November, the Chicago index is seen giving back a modest amount in December.

Copyright 2011 Thomson Reuters. Click for restrictions.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45790768/ns/business-stocks_and_economy/

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DanielPink: Google's IPad Killer Ready In 6 Months, Says Eric Schmidt http://t.co/jdYrLat8 via @fxnscitech

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Monday, December 26, 2011

Facebook and Greenpeace Clean Renewable Energy Mission

As a result of 20 months campaign by Greenpeace, the giant social networking site, Facebook has agreed to reduce dependence on coal-fired power. Hence, it is ready to switch on supporting renewable energy for its all new data centres.

Such a wise step is taken after an initiative by more than 700,000 people, who poked Facebook to join the campaign with Greenpeace in order to fight against climate change by powering its mammoth server farms with total renewable energy. This is a giant footstep in conserving environment because the data centres of companies such as Apple, Facebook, IBM, Microsoft and Twitter use up to 2% of the USA?s overall energy, which will grow up to 12% each year.

According to the Greenpeace, the company?s servers are totally dependent on coal fired power stations for the electricity generation, which is one of the fifth largest sources of energy and a giant contributor of greenhouse gas pollution in the world.

Tzeporah Berman, Co-director of Greenpeace?s Climate and Energy Program said: ?Greenpeace and Facebook will now work together to encourage major energy producers to move away from coal and instead invest in renewable energy. This move sets an example for the industry to follow.?

Facebook announced that coal will be its power source for the time being, but it will maximize its reliance on clean renewable energy for all upcoming data centres. The company added that it is striving hard to continue research on clean energy solutions as well as energy efficiency. It further justified that the company believes on the open sharing of the technology by the Open Compute Project ? a free and open foundation aimed at driving down the cost of computer hardware technology through energy efficiency.

With such a wonderful prospect, Facebook is looking forward to encourage other IT companies to favour clean renewable energy. In fact, Facebook said that its new Menlo Park facility in California will have a solar cogeneration array installed on the roof of the campus fitness centre.

Image Credit: Creative Commons/Tom Raftery

Source: http://renewableenergy.com/blog/2011/12/19/facebook-and-greenpeace-clean-renewable-energy-mission/

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Friday, December 23, 2011

Sprint Promotion Could Give You an Early Update to the iPhone 4S

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Sprint is reportedly having a silent promotion now through December 31st that makes select premiere customers eligible for an early handset update, reports SprintFeed.

We're being told that this is an in-store only offer (corporate stores only) and requires that the customer's account be reviewed by a sales rep for specific promotional codes. If qualified, you'll have the option of an early device upgrade in lieu of your of your next eligible upgrade. With Premiere soon ending, this seems to be a quick method to drive some year end sales.

All Sprint handsets with the exception of iDEN devices appear to be eligible for this promotion.

Read More [via 9to5Mac]

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Thursday, December 22, 2011

Morgan refuses to name McCartney voicemail source (AP)

LONDON ? CNN celebrity interviewer Piers Morgan refused to disclose details Tuesday about his most damning link to Britain's phone hacking scandal ? his acknowledgment that he once listened to a phone message left by Paul McCartney for his then-wife Heather Mills.

In an eagerly awaited appearance before the U.K.'s media ethics committee, Morgan, who replaced Larry King on CNN, was visibly tense, sometimes hostile and often rejected characterizations of his actions made by inquiry lawyers as "nonsense."

The stakes were high for Morgan. More than a dozen journalists have been arrested, senior executives with Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. media empire have lost their jobs, and top U.K. police officers have resigned over their failure to tackle the phone hacking scandal. His testimony Tuesday was given under oath, and Morgan could be subject to criminal proceedings if he was found to have violated any British laws.

Before his U.S. television career, Morgan ran two British tabloids ? first Murdoch's News of the World and then the Daily Mirror, owned by Murdoch competitor Trinity Mirror.

A key line of questioning centered on comments Morgan made in a 2006 article in the Daily Mail tabloid. In it, Morgan said he was played a phone message left by the former Beatle on Mills' answering machine, describing it in detail and noting that McCartney "even sang 'We Can Work It Out' into the answerphone."

Mills, who went on to divorce McCartney in one of most expensive separations in British history, has said there's no way Morgan could have obtained the message honestly.

Morgan on Tuesday stubbornly refused to answer almost any questions about how he came to hear the message, saying: "I'm not going to start any trail that leads to the identification of a source."

But when asked by inquiry chief Lord Justice Brian Leveson whether he could supply any information to back the assertion that he had heard the recording legally, the 46-year-old journalist said he couldn't.

Earlier, Morgan said he "doesn't believe" he had ever listened to hacked voicemail messages ? and dismissed earlier interviews in which he'd discussed phone hacking at length as having been based on rumor and hearsay.

He also refused to say who had filled him in about the practice.

"My memory's not great about this. It was a long time ago," he said.

Morgan was giving evidence to Britain's media ethics inquiry by video link Tuesday from the United States ? one of dozens of phone hacking victims, journalists and tabloid executives to face the inquiry, set up in the wake of the uproar over phone hacking and other unethical newsgathering methods at the News of the World.

The atmosphere turned tense within minutes of Morgan taking his oath. He was quizzed about his relationship to private investigators and freelancers such as "Benji the Binman," who specialized in raking though celebrities' trash to look for scoops.

Morgan said he never dealt with private investigators but he did acknowledge buying information from Benji ? and said he'd had some qualms about it.

"Did I think he was doing anything illegal? No. Did I think he was doing anything on the cusp of unethical? Yes," Morgan said.

Witnesses at the inquiry have exposed the seamy side of British journalism, with reporters accused of cooking up stories, blackmailing subjects, hacking phones and paying bribes to police officers to secure tips.

Murdoch himself may testify before the inquiry, according to an offhand comment made by inquiry lawyer Robert Jay. At one point Jay told Morgan to stop speculating about what Murdoch might have remembered about a particular incident in which the two of them clashed.

"We can ask him for his recollection of events when we get there," Jay said.

The inquiry declined to comment further, and News Corp. did not immediately return an email seeking confirmation. Murdoch earlier in the year testified before Parliament on the subject of phone hacking and shut down the 168-year-old News of the World in July after the full hacking scandal broke.

CNN, meanwhile, broadcast its star's testimony live Tuesday, but only to its international subscribers.

Separately, Murdoch's News Corp. media empire announced settlements with seven more prominent figures in the wake of the phone hacking scandal at the News of the World.

The company said in a statement Tuesday it had settled claims brought by Princess Diana's former lover James Hewitt, ex-Liberal Democrat lawmaker Mark Oaten, TV presenter Ukrika Jonsson, model Abi Titmuss and Paul Dadge, who helped rescue victims of the 2005 London transit bombings. Theatrical agent Michelle Milburn and Calum Best, the son of soccer legend George Best, rounded out the settlement list.

At least one more settlement ? with former England soccer player Paul Gascoigne ? appeared imminent, according to lawyer Jeremy Reed.

The terms of the new payments announced Tuesday were not disclosed but they are likely to be substantial.

Actress Sienna Miller earlier received 100,000 pounds (nearly $157,000) in damages when she settled with News International; the family of murdered British schoolgirl Milly Dowler were awarded 2 million pounds ($3.1 million) plus 1 million pounds ($1.6 million) from Murdoch himself, which was earmarked for charity.

___

Online:

Leveson Inquiry: http://www.levesoninquiry.org.uk/

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/tv/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111220/ap_en_tv/eu_britain_phone_hacking

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Monday, December 19, 2011

'Voice of Vatican' Foley eulogized at Pa. church (AP)

PHILADELPHIA ? The Pennsylvania-born cardinal who was the country's voice of the Vatican's midnight Christmas Mass for 25 years has been laid to rest at a Philadelphia cathedral following a funeral Mass.

Cardinal John Foley was remembered Friday for his humility, intelligence and humor in a homily delivered by New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan. Foley died Dec. 11 after a battle with leukemia. He was 76.

Besides narrating the Christmas Mass for U.S. audiences, Foley was editor-in-chief of Philadelphia's archdiocesan newspaper, The Catholic Standard & Times, from 1970 to 1984. He led an ancient Catholic order in the Holy Land for three years before retiring in February.

Foley's funeral and burial took place at the Cathedral Basilica of Ss. Peter and Paul.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/religion/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111216/ap_on_re_us/us_cardinal_foley_funeral

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Sunday, December 18, 2011

HBT: Padres pursuing trade for Cubs' Garza?

According to Jim Bowden of ESPN and MLB Network Radio, the Padres have expressed interest in acquiring right-handed starter Matt Garza from the Cubs in a package trade that would include 22-year-old first baseman Anthony Rizzo.

It?s not yet known which other names are involve in the talks, or how far along the negotiations are.

Rizzo was made expendable Saturday when the Padres picked up first base prospect Yonder Alonso in a five-player trade with the Reds. Alonso is expected to open the 2012 season as San Diego?s starting first baseman.

Garza, 28, posted a 3.32 ERA and 1.26 WHIP in 31 starts this past year for the Cubs, fanning 197 batters and walking only 63 across 198 total innings. He?s arbitration-eligible for two more seasons.

Source: http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/12/18/padres-cubs-talking-matt-garza-anthony-rizzo-trade/related/

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Matchups if NFL playoffs started today

McQueary: I told Paterno I saw Sandusky with boy

A Penn State assistant football coach testified Friday that he believes he saw former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky molesting a boy and that he that he fully conveyed what he had seen to two Penn State administrators.

Attorney: Hurd didn't sell drugs to NFL players

The attorney for Sam Hurd said Friday that his client had never sold drugs to other NFL players, hoping to put any rumors to rest as the wide receiver without a team prepares to fight federal drug charges that could put him in jail for 40 years.

Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/45690407/ns/sports-nfl/

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Saturday, December 17, 2011

Mumford & Sons Call New Album 'A Different Experience'

'It's challenging in all the right ways,' Marcus Mumford tells MTV News about the band's Sigh No More follow-up.
By James Montgomery, with reporting by Matt Elias


Winston Marshall and Marcus Mumford of Mumford & Sons
Photo: MTV News

Mumford & Sons have spent most of 2011 working on the follow-up to their breakout Sigh No More album (when they weren't touring the U.S. by rail, of course). Though they've been performing a handful of new songs live, last month they officially unveiled a somber new tune called "Ghosts" during a stop at a Philadelphia radio station.

But as the year draws to a close, there's still no official release date (or even a title) for the new album, which sort of makes sense, especially since they're still working on it, as the band told MTV News backstage at the KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas in Los Angeles.

"We're still recording. We don't really like to put any boundaries on it; we'll keep going until it's right," frontman Marcus Mumford said. "It's definitely a different experience from the first one, as it should be, I think. But it's been challenging in all the right ways. It's going well.

"I think we just want the songs to be good, and to sound right, and to feel like we've expressed everything we want to as straightforwardly and honestly as we can ... and we're working towards that," he continued.

"We're really enjoying playing the new songs live, and we still feel that our recorded work should be adverts for our live work. The fact that we call it work is a bit pretentious — it's not work, it's just playing music with your mates. It's really fun, and it still is. I think we're getting on better than we ever have."

Mumford said that the songs on the new album have been inspired by their whirlwind year, which not only saw them break through in the U.S., but found them going to places they never thought they'd go and meeting the kinds of folks they never thought they'd meet.

"We've been writing as we go, and you can't deny the fact that our circumstances around us will always affect our writing, so we sometimes intentionally put ourselves in circumstances that we want to be inspired by," he explained. "We went to Nashville for a couple weeks in January and did some really cool writing there; we felt really happy with some of the stuff that came out of it. We stayed in this little farmhouse and had some friends who are musicians come play with us. We played a house show, just had a really nice time. And then we write on the road in these hectic places with lots of people around, and I suppose we've always put in ideas that we pick up from conversations with people, and things that we read and things that we listen to and feel."

Of course, there's also good news for fans of Sigh No More: From the sound of things, the follow-up isn't going to stray all that far from that debut. In fact, it's basically the same songs. After all, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

"If you're asking whether they're different from the first album," multi-instrumentalist Ben Lovett laughed, "what we've actually done is taken all the songs from the first album, used all the same chords, some of the same melodies, and just tweaked the lyrics!"

Related Artists

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1676133/mumford-sons-sigh-no-more-album.jhtml

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Gov't to adopt strict new limits on chimp research (AP)

WASHINGTON ? The government on Thursday said it would adopt strict new limits on using chimpanzees in medical research, after a prestigious scientific group recommended that experiments with humans' closest relative be done only as a last resort.

The National Institutes of Health agreed that science has advanced enough that chimps seldom would be needed to help develop new medicines.

NIH Director Francis Collins temporarily barred new federal funding for research involving chimps, and said a working group will review about 37 ongoing projects involving the animals to see if they should be phased out.

Chimps' similarity to people "demands special consideration and respect," Collins said.

These apes' genetic closeness to humans has long caused a quandary. It's what has made them so valuable to scientists for nearly a century. They were vital in creating a vaccine for hepatitis B, for example, and even were shot into space to make sure the trip wouldn't kill the astronauts next in line.

But that close relationship also has had animal rights groups arguing that using chimps for biomedical research is unethical, even cruel.

Chimp research already was dwindling fast as scientists turned to less costly and ethically charged alternatives.

Thursday's decision was triggered by an uproar last year over the fate of 186 semi-retired research chimps that the NIH, to save money, planned to move from a New Mexico facility to an active research lab in Texas.

Where and how to house those animals ? and others scattered around the country who probably no longer will be needed ? are among the issues that Collins said a government working group will decide as it determines how to implement the new research restrictions.

The Institute of Medicine's recommendation on Thursday stopped short of the outright ban that animal rights activists had pushed. Instead, it urged strict limits on biomedical research ? testing new drugs or giving animals a disease ? that would allow using chimps only if studies could not be done on other animals or people themselves, and if foregoing the chimp work would hinder progress against life-threatening or debilitating conditions.

The panel advised the government to limit use of chimps in behavioral and genetic research as well, saying such studies must provide insights that otherwise are unattainable ? and use techniques that minimize any pain or distress.

"We understand and feel compelled by the moral cost of using chimpanzees in research," said bioethicist Jeffrey Kahn of Johns Hopkins University, who chaired the Institute of Medicine panel. "We have established criteria that will set the bar quite high for justification of the use of chimpanzees."

The U.S. is one of only two countries known to still conduct medical research with chimpanzees; the other is Gabon, in Africa. The European Union essentially banned such research last year.

Here, too, the practice was becoming uncommon. The Institute of Medicine's investigation found over the past 10 years, the NIH has paid for just 110 projects of any type that involved chimps. There are not quite 1,000 chimps available for medical research in the country.

While it's impossible to say how many have been used in privately funded pharmaceutical research, the industry is shifting to higher-tech and less costly research methods. One drug company, GlaxoSmithKline, adopted an official policy ending its use of great apes, including chimpanzees, in research.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/science/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111215/ap_on_sc/us_med_chimp_research

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Friday, December 16, 2011

Microbial contamination found in orange juice squeezed in bars and restaurants, study suggests

ScienceDaily (Dec. 14, 2011) ? Scientists from the University of Valencia in Spain have analysed fresh orange juice squeezed by machines in catering establishments. They have confirmed that 43% of samples exceeded the acceptable enterobacteriaceae levels laid down by legislation. The researchers recommend that oranges are handled correctly, that juicers are washed properly and that the orange juice is served immediately rather than being stored in metal jugs.

Around 40% of the fresh orange juice consumed in Spain is squeezed in bars and restaurants. According to a study conducted by researchers at the University of Valencia (UV) though, poor handling of the oranges and insufficient cleaning of the juicer equipment stimulates bacterial contamination.

The team collected 190 batches of squeezed orange juice from different catering locations and analysed their microbiological content on the same day. The results reveal that 43% of the samples exceeded the enterobacteriaceae levels deemed acceptable by food regulations in Spain and Europe. Furthermore, 12% of samples exceeded mesophilic aerobic microorganism levels.

According to the data published in the Food Control Journal, the presence of Staphylococcus aureus and the Salmonella species was found in 1% and 0.5% of samples respectively.

Isabel Sospedra, one of the authors of the study warns that "generally a percentage of oranges juice is consumed immediately after squeezing but, as in many cases, it is kept unprotected in stainless steel jugs."

In fact, the scientists have found that some juices that were kept in metal jugs presented "unacceptable" levels of enterobacteriaceae in 81% of cases and in 13% of cases with regards to mesophilic aerobic bacteria. However, when the freshly squeezed juice is served in a glass, these percentages fall to 22% and 2% respectively.

As the researcher adds, "it must also be borne in mind that juicers and juicing machines have a large surface area and lots of holes and cavities. This promotes microbial contamination, which is picked up by the juice as it is being prepared."

The conclusion is clear. To ensure consumer health, the experts recommend that juicers are cleaned and disinfected properly. The same goes for the jugs in which the juice is stored although its consumption is better as and when it is squeezed.

Orange juice consumption is common in the catering industry due to its taste and nutritional value. This drink is known for its high content of vitamin C, carotenoids, phenolic compounds and other antioxidant substances.

In 2009, Spaniards drank 138 million litres of orange juice (according to data provided by the Spanish Ministry of the Environment and Rural and Marine Affairs), 40% of which was freshly squeezed and consumed in catering establishments.

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Journal Reference:

  1. I. Sospedra, J. Rubert, J.M. Soriano, J. Ma?es. Incidence of microorganisms from fresh orange juice processed by squeezing machines. Food Control, 2012; 23 (1): 282 DOI: 10.1016/j.foodcont.2011.06.025

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/2011/12/111214094648.htm

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Canada pulls out of Kyoto accord

Environment Minister Peter Kent: ''Kyoto is not the path forward for a global solution for climate change''

Canada will formally withdraw from the Kyoto Protocol on climate change, the minister of the environment has said.

Peter Kent said the protocol "does not represent a way forward for Canada" and the country would face crippling fines for failing to meet its targets.

The move, which is legal and was expected, makes it the first nation to pull out of the global treaty.

The protocol, initially adopted in Kyoto, Japan, in 1997, is aimed at fighting global warming.

"Kyoto, for Canada, is in the past, and as such we are invoking our legal right to withdraw from Kyoto," Mr Kent said in Toronto.

He said he would be formally advising the United Nations of his country's intention to pull out.

'Impediment'

He said meeting Canada's obligations under Kyoto would cost $13.6bn (10.3bn euros; ?8.7bn): "That's $1,600 from every Canadian family - that's the Kyoto cost to Canadians, that was the legacy of an incompetent Liberal government".

Continue reading the main story

Analysis

That Canada would withdraw from the Kyoto Protocol has been the worst-kept recent secret in climate change politics.

On taking office in 2007, Stephen Harper's government found their predecessors, for all their green rhetoric, had done little to cut Canada's emissions.

Rather than heading for a 6% cut from 1990 levels by 2020, the Kyoto pledge, it was and still is set for a rise of about 16% - more like 30% if you include forestry. The obvious answer, to huge distain from critics, was to say they wouldn't try meeting the target.

Since then, the approach has been to copy the US line. Canada's current pledge is exactly the same as the US one - a cut of 17% from 2005 levels by 2020 - with the proviso that the number will change if the US passes legislation with a different target.

And as the US is outside Kyoto, Canada's last act of mimicry was to leave as well.

A burning question at the recent UN talks in Durban was whether Japan, Russia, Australia or New Zealand would follow Canada's lead - which would effectively leave just European countries inside.

For the moment, it appears unlikely, as all like the flexibility Kyoto offers for meeting emission targets. But it's not impossible.

He said that despite this cost, greenhouse emissions would continue to rise as two of the world's largest polluters - the US and China - were not covered by the Kyoto agreement.

"We believe that a new agreement that will allow us to generate jobs and economic growth represents the way forward," he said.

Beijing criticised Canada's decision. Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Liu Weimin said it went "against the efforts of the international community and is regrettable".

Mr Kent's announcement came just hours after a last-minute deal on climate change was agreed in Durban.

Talks on a new legal deal covering all countries will begin next year and end by 2015, coming into effect by 2020, the UN climate conference decided.

"The Kyoto Protocol is a dated document, it is actually considered by many as an impediment to the move forward but there was good will demonstrated in Durban, the agreement that we ended up with provides the basis for an agreement by 2015."

He said that though the text of the Durban agreement "provides a loophole for China and India", it represents "the way forward".

Canada's previous Liberal government signed the accord but Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Conservative government never embraced it.

Canada declared four years ago that it did not intend to meet its existing Kyoto Protocol commitments and its annual emissions have risen by about a third since 1990.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/world-us-canada-16151310

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